Just as I predicted, the Dodgers came home from San Francisco after two devastating losses to the Giants, with the determination to turn things around...and turn things around they did.  The Dodgers swept a 4-game series from the Phillies (the first time they have done this at home since 1962) and won two out of three to the Brewers.  The Phillies and Brewers are very good teams and the Dodgers showed the baseball world that they are just as good as either of those two teams.

I had the opportunity to attend Friday night's game and enjoyed every minute of it.  Me and my wife became parents three months ago and finally made it to a game.  Our 3-month old girl stayed with her Grandma while we (along with my parents and father-in-law) made it to our first game in a long time.  The Dodger Dog was wonderful. 

The one imperfection in this homestand came on Saturday night.  You're thinking, "Of course, they lost".  That is true and that was part of it.  But what I'm really talking about was the reception given to Milwaukee's set-up man when he jogged in from the bullpen in the 8th inning.  The Dodger Stadium crowd greeted their former hero with nothing but boos.

Eric Gagne was the greatest closer in franchise history and the most popular pitcher since Orel Hershiser and Fernando Valenzuela.  He practically doubled the previous record of consecutive saves.  He went a whole season without blowing a save and won a Cy Young Award.  Eric Gagne carried the team on his shoulders while he was on the mound.  Without Gagne, Steve Finley's dramatic grand slam in 2004 would likely have been meaningless, as any other closer would have had several more blown saves resulting in a few more losses. Dodger fans enjoyed the excitement of knowing the game was over when he jogged onto the field in the 9th inning.

I didn't understand the reaction of the crowd on Saturday night.  If you aren't going to cheer Eric Gagne when he makes his return to Dodger Stadium as a former Dodger, then exactly who are you going to cheer?  You can boo when he strikes out a Dodger, like Casey Blake.  After all, he is pitching for the opponent.  But you can't acknowledge him and what he did for Los Angeles for even a minute?

Kirk Gibson, a coach for the rival D-Backs was cheered earlier this year.  Joe Torre got an ovation from a Mets crowd that hated him and had no obligation to give him any acknowledgment.  Heck, even Johnny Damon got some cheers from Boston fans upon his return to Fenway shortly after doing something unthinkable and traitorous - leaving the Red Sox for the hated Yankees.  Dodger fans couldn't do the same for Gagne?

Was it the Mitchell report?  I doubt it.  Was it the fact that he left as a free agent despite saying during the season that he was willing to give the Dodgers "a hometown discount?"  Many Dodger fans shrugged their shoulders, thinking that his best days were behind him anyway, after the string of injuries that left him sidelined for two years. Honestly, how many of the 50,000 fans were actually thinking about those words when he entered the game on Saturday? 

No, Dodger fans booed him because they were in a bad mood. The Brewers had just taken a lead, leaving the Dodgers six outs away from falling into second place.  They didn't enjoy having to watch their former closer enter the game to help ensure that the Brewers kept the lead. That, combined with the fact that Takashi Saito has done a fantastic job as closer for the Dodgers in Gagne's absence, left Dodger fans with very little love for their former closer whom they enjoyed watching just a few years earlier. 

If Gagne had come into the game earlier or with the Dodgers leading, the reaction might have been a little different.  John Park Rule #1 is that teams are never as good as they are during a winning streak and never as bad as they are during a losing streak.  John Park Rule #2 is that the longer a game wears on, especially during a pennant race, the less likely for a former player to get an ovation upon an initial return to their former stadium and the more likely they are to get booed.  Much of the fan reaction can be explained with psychology.  It's just too bad Dodger fans couldn't rise above it.

 

That was a great series!  I'm a mind-reader and I know what you're thinking.  "What?!  What are you talking about?!  That series was awful!! The Dodgers lose two out of three to a really bad team - the hated Giants no less.  The Dodgers blow a golden opportunity to get into first place and you say this was a great series??  Maybe you should change the color scheme of this blog to black and orange." 

Okay, okay, I hear you. But I stand behind my statement. This was a great series.  All three games go down to the wire.  The Dodger-hating fans in San Francisco are loud and passionate.  This is what the Dodger-Giant rivalry is all about.  This was a great series.  But Dodger fans are disappointed.  "We should have swept these guys or at least won two out of three.  We blew it.  This team has no heart.  If they can't beat a team as bad as the Giants, how can they expect to come home and beat teams like the Phillies, Brewers, etc etc."

First of all, you forget that this is a Dodger-Giant series.  There is no advantage in a Dodger-Giant series,  In a Dodger-Giant series, one team is as good as the other.  Regardless of talent level or position in the standings, the Dodgers and Giants are .500 teams when they play each other.  Why? Because that's the way it is in a rivalry.  Both teams dig down deep and find a way to beat the team they hate.  Two weeks ago, the Dodgers won two out of three from the Giants at home.  This weekend they lose two out of three.  .500.  This is the way it has always been between these two teams.  Throw stats out the window!  The Dodgers had no advantage going into this series. 

This was a great series, not only for the reasons mentioned above, but for another reason.  This Dodger team needed a kick in the butt. The Dodgers are still riding the Manny high and are not playing good enough baseball.  A Dodger sweep of the Giants and a spot in first place could have been the worst thing for the Dodgers and their mental approach to a homestand against some tough opponents.  The Dodgers needed a wake-up call that things will not be easy the final two months - Manny or no Manny.  They are going to have to fight for this division.  The Dodgers are going to fly home angry and looking for blood - the exact attitude they need to beat Philadelphia and Milwaukee. 

If the Dodgers win the division, they may very well point back to the two bitter defeats in this weekend's series with the Giants.

Right now I'm watching the 9th inning of yesterday's game.  I taped it to watch the post-game show.  Anyway, I believe that this very game is the beginning of a big stretch for the Dodgers - a stretch that will land the Dodgers in first place and in a good position heading into October.  The Dodgers are due for a winning streak and I believe that streak will be happening soon and may have already started already.

The Dodgers now have an offense behind a pitching staff that has the best ERA in the National League.  Unlike the first half, a good stretch by the starting rotation is likely to give the Dodgers a lot of wins. 

Hold on to your seats.  The next few weeks are gonna be exciting.