Sweet Seventeen

After a long day of looking for houses, it was just after four when I turned on the radio. "Let's see if the Dodgers are still playing," said I.

They were in the 13th. My gosh.

Juan's contribution: 2-for-7 with a walk. On base three times in eight at-bats. That's a way-above-average day for Juan. Good for you, dude! Of course, one of those is the bunt single that probably should have been fielded cleanly and you should have been thrown out... which would have made it 2 times on base in 8 at-bats, which would have been below average even for you. Just sayin'.

1. Bunt single. Didn't see it, but reading the play-by-play, it seems that this one can be pinned on Wells' fielding error. Blind squirrel, meet the acorn. Acorn, this is the blind squirrel.
2. Grounder to first. #82.
3. K, looking. #83.
4. Flied to left, #84.
5. Single to center.
6. Walked; would steal 2nd.
7. Flied to center, #85.
8. Fielder's choice, #86.

Juan's pace is now 557 outs.

Losses are bad

Juan Pierre was just about the only Dodger who contributed. I really can't complain about his performance in yesterday's game -- not when the rest of the team really didn't do much.

1. Doubled to center.
2. Singled to center. Would steal second and score. Juan now has more SB than K for the first time this year.
3. Popped to short. #81.
4. Singled; out stretching at 2nd. Addendum out #2.

Even with this 3-for-4 -- and remember, I'm not counting the 2 addendum outs; just the 81 he's earned so far -- Pierre is on pace to record 546 outs.

Wins are good

Yay! Wins are good. 9th inning rallies are good. Russell Martin is good. The Dodgers, in general, are good.

Not good: Juan Pierre.

1. Flied to center. #77.
2. Flied to left. #78.
3. Flied to right. #79.
4. Single to right. Would get to second and steal third.
5. Sacrifice. #80.

Just imagine how good they'd be with, you know, an average center fielder.

Worst fears relized

This is exactly the kind of game I worried about when I saw my team had signed Pierre. In a close game, his efforts would make the difference between winning and losing -- and my team would come up with the fuzzy end of the lollipop.

Between the 0-for-5, the missed squeeze in the 2nd, and the bobbled play for the go-ahead Giant runs in the 8th, the only thing that could have made this game worse for Pierre is if he'd been caught stealing in the 1st... and he might have been if the Jints' throw had been better. He got a little lucky there. Unfortunately, luck had a way of evening out in this one.

1. Fielder's choice, #72. Would steal second and score.
2. Missed squeeze sign; Ethier out at home (addendum #1). Flied to left. #73.
3. Grounded to pitcher. #74.
4. K, swinging. #75.
5. Popped to center. #76.

I am also awarding Ethier's out in the 2nd to Pierre -- it goes in the addendum. Ethier was paying attention. Pierre was not. It was infuriating.

Ho hum

This is what I was talking about. Pitching fails, Dodgers lose.

1. Bunt out to pitcher. I am so, so sick of this. #69.
2. Grounder to short. #70.
3. Grounder to pitcher. #71.
4. Single to center.

Let's try that one again.

Spreading the blame

Last night's loss, painful as it was, was not Juan's fault. He managed some timely hits, including the 8th... and the game ended with him on deck.

You have to wonder if this game would have been different if Lowe had pitched a little better, if Gonzalez hadn't grounded into that DP to end the 8th, if Furcal had managed a base hit in the 9th....

Still: this is the Juan Pierre OutWatch, and yesterday, he had three.

1. Flied to center. #66.
2. Grounded to second. Hello, old friend. #67.
3. Flied to center. #68.
4. Singled to right.

The Two Won and One Lost Weekend

Took the weekend off to get the house ready to sell. Didn't see much Juan Pierre. Missed a good performance in a win, a bad performance in a win, and a mediocre performance in a loss.

FRIDAY was Juan's best game yet. 3-for-4 with 2 SB and 3 runs scored.

1. Single to center. Stole 2nd and scored.
2. Single to 1st. Stole 2nd and scored.
3. Another single. Would score again. Can anything stop this man?
4. Yes: a fielder's choice. #58.

SATURDAY, he fell off the wagon.

1. Popped to right. #59.
2. Flied to left. #60.
3. Flied to right. #61.
4. K. #62.
5. Singled to right. Would score the winning run in the 10th, thanks to JimBilly4's new love, Russell Martin.

SUNDAY was exactly what you expect from Pierre -- 2-for-5 -- as the Dodgers lost.

1. Bunt out to pitcher. I swear, I will never understand this play. #63.
2. K. #64.
3. Popped to third. #65.
4. Single to right.
5. Single to right.

In short, Pierre is clearly out of his slump, and he is now merely the entirely mediocre talent one expects him to be. Get used to a lot of 2-for-5s.

P.S. "The hardest man to strike out last year" is now on pace for 68 Ks. He has also fallen off a record out pace -- if he keeps this up, he'll make only 554 outs, which would be 2nd on the all-time list.