Randy Wolf (The New Dodgers Ace) from Dodgers.com

So the Dodgers played the Giants today in Arizona.  It was the first Dodgers/Giants “Regular Spring Training” game as part of the cactus league.  In the spirit of David Letterman, here are the top 10 things I learned:

10.  Man it’s good to have baseball again.  It’s been too long thinking about Manny (even though he came up again and again in the game) and not listening to the crack of the bat.

9.  Who’s playing center field now?  I listened to Jon MIller (Giant’s radio station) and even he had trouble naming all the new players switching in and out of the game.  Got to love spring training where most of the names are new and you never know who just subbed in.

8.  Jon Miller interviewed Henry Schulman (Writer for the San Francisco Chronicle) during the broadcast and I liked what he had to say.  He was talking about the rivalry and that even though this was a nothing game that the fans still get into it.  He was saying that he could really see it in the players too that there was a greater energy going into the game.  There is something deeper to this rivalry, and I hope it never leaves.  I really like that the players get into it too.

7.  The Dodgers can finally hit Sergio Romo.  (See previous post)  They lit him up today.

6.  Delwyn Young needs to take more fly balls.

5.  Jonathan Broxton still has me worried as a closer…unless they just sit him when he plays the Giants.  They just continue to light him up.  He got out of the inning, but not without a run, and not without striking fear as to how bad the Giants may beat him later this year.

4.  Randy Wolf may be well worth his asking price.  Who knew he could become the ace!?

3.  Russell Martin is still a stud.  Here’s hoping he can hit the second half, but he is definitely still my current favorite.

2.  Never heard of Valentino Pascucci before today, but I hope we keep hearing about him.  He launched a homerun, and he has the coolest name of any Dodger in years.

1.  The Dodgers are still better than the Giants and proved it by the final score.  Ahh, I love living in this area when the Dodgers are obviously better and every Giants fan knows it.

Too bad it isn’t a 3 game series…

Saito from L.A. Times - Allen J. Schaben

So Takashi Saito signed with the Red Sox this last week, ending his time as a Dodger.  I don’t quite know why this happened.  Saito was a stud.  He had elbow problems last year, but when he was on – he was lights out.  He was different than Gagne, but in some ways he was better.  Gagne was all about the drama and the look.  Saito was all about just getting it done.  Gagne always had guys on base to make it interesting, Saito just struck them out.  He was surgically accurate, and he gave Dodger fans great peace when he came in.

I’ve wrote previously that I want to one of his last games in SF last year, and it was reassuring to see him back and close the door.  He ended up not being fully ready for the playoffs, but even Giant’s fans knew he was good.  I have a friend who is a big Giant’s fan and Saito was always his Fantasy Baseball closer because he knew how good he was.

This whole thing is a little confusing.  It appears like the Dodgers just let him walk away.  I’m trying to read inbetween the lines, and the Dodgers seem to be on a trend.  Cut older, injury prone players.  Kent, Nomar, Penny, Saito.  All guys who had injuries, and who the Dodgers think will have more.  The fact that the Red Sox picked up Saito and Penny is real interesting.  They wouldn’t just pick up guys they thought would be injured, but they did only sign them to 1 yr deals.

The real problem with this is that now Broxton is the default closer.  Broxton is a great setup guy, but he hasn’t shown he’s Saito material yet.   This is especially true against the Giant’s last year.  They lit him up at the end of the season.  He is a hard thrower, but he can be hit and they usually hit it far.  The Dodgers lost Hoffman and thought Saito would call them back, and he didn’t.  I still think they need a real closer or else the bullpen won’t be near as strong as last year.

Manny Ramirez at AT&T Park

So when the Dodgers first got Manny, I was skeptical.  They already had 4 outfielders, so I didn’t understand a 5th.  Yeah, he was Manny, but would he really turn things around?  We need pitching and a shortstop more than another outfielder.

Well, I went to the game with a Dodger fan and a Giants fan.  Middle of the game, 2 out, 2 on, Manny up and the whole crowd shouting “Beat LA, Beat LA.”  What happens, Manny drives a double to the gap and drives in both runs.  Clutch.  Anyone

who can handle that pressure and come through against the Giants – he’s a keeper.  The Dodgers lost the game in the ninth (Broxton and the Giants don’t mix well), but still the moment of the game was the coming out of Manny.

Here’s another picture – this time of good ole Jeff Kent.

Jeff Kent at AT&T Park