Schmidt's Woes Continue as Dodgers Fall

The Los Angeles Dodgers fell to the Milwaukee Brewers 4-1, dropping the best-of-three series. The Dodgers had an early advantage after Rafael Furcal hit a lead-off homer, but the offense stopped their, collecting only four hits for the rest of the game. Felipe Lopez had three hits and two runs scored for the Brewers, and Ryan Braun hit a two-run double that gave Milwaukee insurance. Jason Schmidt could not escape the fourth, leaving the bases loaded with two outs after already giving up two runs.

Dodgers Pulverize Brewers

The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 17-4, the most runs LA has scored in a game this year. The Dodgers collected 18 base-hits, five walks and two hit-by-pitches in their onslaught. The real damage came in three innings, with four runs coming in the first, seven coming in the sixth, and for good measure, five in the eighth. Manny Ramirez busted his mini-slump with a solo-homer and a two-run double, and Matt Kemp homered and drove in five runs, matching a career-high. Russell Martin reached base five times, scoring twice, and Casey Blake had two hits, two runs scored and two runs-batted-in. Andre Ethier had two RBI's and three runs, and Rafael Furcal scored twice. Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun both had two hits and an RBI for Milwaukee.

Dodgers Can't Overcome Deficit

The Los Angeles Dodgers fell to the Milwaukee Brewers 6-5, their seventh loss in 11 games. Milwaukee took advantage of Clayton Kershaw's poor control, twice drawing walks with the bases loaded before driving the lefty out of the game in the fifth inning. Ryan Braun seemingly put the game out of reach with a three-run homer that gave the Brewers a 6-1 lead. However, the Dodgers scored a run in the seventh and three in the ninth. With the bases loaded and two out, Manny Ramirez could not be the hero as he flew out to right field to end the game. Matt Kemp doubled twice and scored twice, James Loney had a two-run double, and Orlando Hudson drove in two runs. Brad Ausmus had two singles and a run scored. Braun finished with four hits, and Casey McGehee had two hits and two runs scored.

Dodgers Finish Half on Right Note

The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 7-4, taking the series 2-1. The Dodgers had the early advantage, scoring twice in the first inning. Clayton Kershaw was solid, giving up only one run on two hits and five walks over six-plus innings of work. Ramon Troncoso notched the save with a scoreless ninth. Brad Ausmus connected for his first homer of the season, and Orlando Hudson had two home runs, one from each side of the plate. James Loney drove in two runs, and Manny Ramirez doubled twice and scored twice. Mike Cameron and Bill Hall both doubled, knocked in a run and scored a run for the Brewers.

The victory ended the Dodgers' nine-game road trip, in which they went 6-3. It was also the last game before the All Star Break, which signals the end of the first half of the season.

Weaver's Struggles Set Dodgers Back

The Los Angeles Dodgers fell to the Milwaukee Brewers 6-3, evening the series at a game apiece. Jeff Weaver struggled, giving up four runs (two earned) over three-and-a-third innings, and it was a deficit the Dodgers could not escape. Rafael Furcal and Andre Ethier had back-to-back homers, with Furcal hitting a two-run shot, and Matt Kemp scored a run. Prince Fielder had two hits, an RBI and a run scored for the Brewers, and J.J. Hardy drove in two runs.

Jonathan Broxton will not pitch tomorrow or participate in the All Star Game this Tuesday due to a nerve issue in his right-big toe. The toe was a problem for him before in mid-June, and just recently started to affect his pushoff, explaining his recent performances.

Blake DeWitt was demoted to Triple-A for the third time this season. Scott Elbert was called up to replace him. Elbert had two-and-two-thirds shutout innings in the game.

Dodgers Overpower Brewers for Win

The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 12-8 in 10 innings, their first victory of the season against the Brew Crew. The Dodgers had an early lead after Andre Ethier homered in the first, but Chad Billingsley did not have his A-game, yielding two runs in the first before recording three outs. After trading runs in the fourth innings, Manny Ramirez and Russell Martin both slammed jacks to give the Dodgers a two-run cushion. Billingsley once again surrendered two more runs to tie the game. Mat Gamel then homered in the eighth to give Milwaukee a one-run lead. However, the Dodgers got to closer Trevor Hoffman, with Mark Loretta singling home the tying run in the ninth. In the 10th, LA broke the game open, scoring two runs before loading the bases, where Matt Kemp delivered a grand-slam home run to put the game out of reach for Milwaukee. Despite allowing two runs in the bottom of the inning, Jonathan Broxton held on to seal the victory. Kemp finished with a double and single in addition to the grand-slam, and Martin had three hits and scored three runs. James Loney homered, and Casey Blake hit an RBI-triple in the 10th that gave the Dodgers the lead. Gamel finished the game with three RBI's for the Brewers, and J.J. Hardy smashed a homer and drove in three runs. Prince Fielder scored twice, and Mike Cameron had three hits.

Editor's Note: Don't Vote for Manny

The Major League Baseball All-Star Game is not a joke. It is the most honored and revered of all the professional sporting All-Star games. That's why I don't like it when people decide to turn the game into a mockery. Milwaukee fans are already drunk off their first visit to the postseason, and as a result any Brewer with a pulse is getting a bulk of the votes, enough to put the deserving Hanley Ramirez in a close second behind (gulp) J.J. Hardy. But now a push has been started to get Manny Ramirez into the Midsummer Classic. The same Manny who is currently in the middle of a 50-game suspension for a drug violation. Why is he being voted for? It's not because a large consortium of Dodger fans want to see the man who pushed the Boys in Blue into the postseason take part in the game. It's because someone thought it would be a good lesson for Bud Selig and the MLB front-office. They want Selig to learn some kind of complicated lesson by ruining the most treasured holiday of the summer behind Independence Day. What is this lesson? It's that Selig should not sit on his hands, hoping Manny doesn't garner enough votes to become a starter. They've decided to ignore the fact that this situation has never occurred before, or that Manny's suspension will be up by the time the All-Star Game rolls in and the Players' Union would fight tooth-and-nail to make sure Manny can play. The only way to cease the speculation is for Manny himself to come out and announce he will not travel to St. Louis to take part in the festivities. We can only hope that can end the idiocy once and for all.

Editor's Note: It's Your Patriotic Duty

As All-Star voting gets underway, the Dodgers try to send more than just Russell Martin to the Midsummer Classic. Orlando Hudson's best start of his career certainly warrants consideration. Russell Martin, while his offense has tapered off, is still posting offensive numbers to lead most of the catchers in the league. Even Juan Pierre is showing no signs of cooling off after getting a chance to start in place of Manny Ramirez. But they need your help. The Dodgers need to get the votes in order to represent in St. Louis. And while it appears that Milwaukee fans are stuffing the boxes to send undeserving Brewers like Jason Kendall and J.J. Hardy to the All-Star Game, there is still plenty of time to get out the vote.

Late Rally Sends Dodgers Packing

The Los Angeles Dodgers fell to the Milwaukee Brewers 7-4 in an exhibition, their last exhibition in Los Angeles. Part of the team will travel to San Francisco to play the Giants, while the rest will go to San Diego to prepare for the season-opener. Milwaukee scored 3 runs in the seventh and 4 in the ninth to come from behind. Clayton Kershaw threw three hitless innings, and Ronald Belisario helped his cause by throwing a scoreless inning while striking out two. Rafael Furcal had a double, run scored and RBI, and Andre Ethier had a two-run double. Kershaw had his own double, and Juan Pierre had two hits.

Dodgers Can't Keep Up with Brewers

The Los Angeles Dodgers fell to the Milwaukee Brewers 7-2 in an exhibition. Chad Billingsley pitched five innings, struck out five, and gave up a two-run homer. Guillermo Mota, Will Ohman, Jeff Weaver, and Tanyon Sturtze each gave up at least one run in just two innings combined. Russell Martin hit a two-run home run, and Matt Kemp reached base three times.

Lakers Buck at 4-3 Outcome

The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 104-98, ending their road trip with a 5-2 record. The Lakers awoke from their offensive slumber, shooting .472 from the field and going to the charity stripe 36 times. LA turned the ball over 20 times, but Milwaukee had 16 of their own turnovers, and the Bucks only went to the free-three line 9 times. Kobe Bryant broke out of his own dry-spell, scoring 30 points, grabbing 8 rebounds, and getting 4 steals. Lamar Odom had a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds, and Pau Gasol had 15 points. Sasha Vujacic was perfect, shooting 3-for-3 from the field and 6-for-6 at the line, ending the game with 14 points and 5 rebounds. Ramon Sessions stood out for Milwaukee, getting a triple-double with 16 points, 10 rebounds, and 16 assists. Richard Jefferson scored 29 points.

Dodgers News: Hitting Gallery, Injury Bug, and Manny's in Left

The Los Angeles Dodgers fell to the Milwuakee Brewers 12-8, their 14th loss of the spring. Andre Ethier had 3 hits and three RBI's, and Orlando Hudson had two hits and a run scored. Russell Martin had a two-run double, and Manny Ramirez had a hit and scored a run. Eric Stults struggled, giving up four runs on three hits and three walks in less than three innings. Claudio Vargas also struggled, surrendering four runs in just one inning of work. Not one of the Dodgers' pitchers had a scoreless outing, giving up a total of five home runs.

More Dodgers have entered the infirmary. Jason Repko left last night's game after feeling a twinge in his left hamstring. A.J. Ellis left the complex after suffering from flu-like symptoms. Delwyn Young's right shoulder flared up, but an MRI showed no damage. Young had his elbow surgically repaired during the offseason.

Manny Ramirez returned to left field for the first time since aggravating his left hamstring.

Dodgers News: Homers Abound, Levine Takes a Whack, and Manny Gets Ready for Left

The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 7-3, their ninth win of the spring. Russell Martin had a home run, 2 runs scored, and two RBI's, and Juan Pierre had two hits, including double, two stolen bases, and scored a run. Delwyn Young had a solo home run, and Valentino Pascucci had a two-run blast. Mark Loretta had a double. Clayton Kershaw had a decent outing, giving up two runs in 3-and-two-thirds innings and striking out five. Ramon Troncoso had perfect one-and-one-third innings.

Ken Levine called the game on the Dodgers' radio network. Levine is one of six candidates competing for the TV play-by-play job on games outside the NL West. The hole was created after the Dodgers announced Charlie Steiner would only broadcast on the radio. Steiner previously did play-by-play for Vin Scully, who can not call games east of the Rocky Mountains. The list of candidates can be seen here.

Eric Threets left the game after pitching just one-third of an inning. Threets suffered an injury to his left shouler. Doug Mientkiewicz left the game after straining a quad muscle.

Joe Beimal is expected to sign with a team soon, according to ESPN. Aside from the Dodgers, Beimal has gotten interest from Colorado, San Diego, and Oakland. Beimal pitched the last three seasons in LA, and had an ERA of 2.02 with a 5-1 record last season.

The Brewers were asked to use the DH in today's game so Manny Ramirez could get at-bats. However, Milwaukee denied their requests, and the pitcher-hitter rule was used. Manny is instead penciled in for tomorrow's game against Colorado as the left-fielder.

Dodgers News: Broken Leg, 7-Inning Game, and Manny Negotiations

The Los Angeles Dodgers were defeated by the Milwaukee Brewers in a "B" game. B games are not reflected in the Spring Training standings. Randy Wolf threw two innings and surrendered two runs, including a home run.

Ivan De Jesus, Jr. broke his left leg while sliding into home during the Dodgers' B game. De Jesus will most likely miss the rest of the season after he undergoes surgery. He is one of the Dodgers' top prospects, but was unlikely to make the club in April.

Owner Frank McCourt is not considering Manny Ramirez's request for a 2-year deal with a salary valued at $43.5 million. The salary was meant to be deferred over several years. The Dodgers made a previous offer of $45 million deferred, with the deferred compensation valued at $42 million. McCourt has said he wants to take a break from negotiations, but will resume at some point with the negotiations starting from scratch.

Clips' Win Ends Streak, Camby

The Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Milwaukee Bucks, snapping a long 12-game losing streak, a streak that started with a loss to the Bucks. Unfortunately, it meant Marcus Camby had to leave the game with a sprained ankle. For the first time this season the Clips shot over 50% with .545, while holding Milwaukee to .388 shooting. Camby and Brian Skinner each scored 18 points for LA, and Ricky Davis came off the bench to get 13. Richard Jefferson finished with 26 points for the Bucks, and Michael Redd added 21 points.

Dodgers Lose Hoffman, Continue Bullpen Work

The Los Angeles Dodgers failed to sign Trevor Hoffman (left), according to Fox Sports.com, who made an agreement with Milwaukee. LA made an offer of 1 year with on option for 2010, but with Jonathan Broxton waiting in the woodworks to become a closer, Hoffman saw a definite closer job with the Brewers. The Brewers lost their closer Salomon Torres to retirement. The Dodgers are still pursuing bullpen help, looking at Dennys Reyes, Guillermo Mota, and Juan Cruz.

The Bucks Stop Clippers

The Los Angeles Clippers were defeated by the Milwaukee Bucks 119-85, ending their road-trip with a 2-2 record. The Clips trailed at one point in the game by 43 points, and suffered their worst defeat of the season. Zach Randolph cooled off in the Wisconsin snow, scoring only 4 points, while Al Thornton led LA with 20. Richard Jefferson led the Bucks with 22 points, and Luke Ridnour scored 18, as 8 Bucks scored in double-digits.

Sabathia Signs With Yankees

The New York Yankees and CC Sabathia have reached an agreement over a $161 million 7-year contract. Sabathia was one of the most coveted free-agents, but had only received offers from New York and Milwaukee. Other teams were reported to have interests in him, including the Dodgers, but no actions were ever made.

Lakers Find There's No Place Like Home

The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 105-92, returning to Los Angeles after a 3-game road trip that saw the Lakers nearly lose each game in the 4th quarter. LA held the Bucks to just 38% shooting, while all of the Milwaukee starters failed to achieve double-digits in any category, a direct contrast to the Lakers' five starters. Kobe Bryant had 20 points with 8 assists, and Derek Fisher scored 19 points. Sun Yue, the young phenom from China, made his Laker debut with 4 points. Rookie Joe Alexander led the Bucks off the bench with a meek 15 points.

Dodgers Get in on Sabathia

The Los Angeles Dodgers are prepared to offer CC Sabathia a $100-120 million 6-year contract, reports MLB.com. The former CyYoung pitcher is seen as the best pitching free agent, and is being courted by the Yankees, Angels, Brewers, and Giants. CC is a California native who prefers the NL so he can bat.