Dodgers not raising like Arizona
This is supposed to be an anniversary, not a replay.
In 1958, their debut season in Los Angeles, the Dodgers played 24 games and found themselves 6 1/2 games out of first place. In 2008, they played 24 games and found themselves six games out of first place.
This is not a calamity. In 1958, you won your league or you went home. Today, four teams from each league advance to the playoffs.
And the wild card can be your friend, keeping the Dodgers' hopes alive even if the Arizona Diamondbacks lap the rest of the National League West by the Fourth of July.
The Diamondbacks can look forward to a pleasant summer, in large part because of seeds they planted over the last two summers. The Dodgers can look forward to an uneven summer, in some measure because they stunted the growth of their seeds.
Arizona has the best record in baseball. For the benefit of analysts that branded the Diamondbacks an illusion last season because they won the division despite getting outscored by 20 runs, they lead the league in runs scored -- and fewest runs given up.
And, against the NL West, they're 16-5.
"If they can continue that for six months, we've got no chance," Colorado Rockies outfielder Matt Holliday said.
They can't, of course. But they can count on Brandon Webb, Dan Haren and Randy Johnson -- the best front three in baseball, if Johnson stays healthy -- atop a pitching staff that leads the majors in earned-run average.
The arms are supported by a gifted young lineup that leads the league in runs and slugging percentage.
The Diamondbacks planted their kids in the lineup and let them grow, and the Rockies did likewise.
That is called rebuilding, and the Dodgers do not play that game. They don't think you'd like it.
"We don't sit back and tell our fans to wait for a year or two," owner Frank McCourt said. "We want to win now."
Ned Colletti, the Dodgers' general manager, considers Los Angeles an unforgiving market. Better to have a kid spend a little extra time in the minor leagues, Colletti believes, than to let him sink or swim in the majors.
The Dodgers got to the playoffs two years ago and had a winning record last year. But three losses and out in October satisfies no one, and who knows if the Dodgers are any closer to the World Series?
