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Y E S T E R D A Y…

Dodgers 13, Marlins 1: No, that’s not a typo. 13 RUNS! The Boys in Blue displayed sheer dominance in every facet of the game: four hitters had multi-hit games, highlighted by Rafael Furcal’s 5-6, and starter Chad Billingsley retired hitters so easily it was like shooting Fish in a barrel. I know, that was bad, but I couldn’t resist! C-Bill struck out eight over seven frames, and surrendered only three hits to get his first W of the season. The Dodgers have won five straight, and are hotter than Miley Cyrus right now. Even Paris Hilton would agree, “That’s hot.”

Athletics 1, Angels 6: Casey at the Bat, once again. Kotchman went 3-4 to lead Halo hitters, and racked up another three RBIs. Ervin Santana is resembling the other Santana (I’m not talking about the musician) with every start. Ervin held the A’s to four hits in his six shutout innings, recorded his fifth win, and reduced his ERA to a microscopic 2.47 (Johan’s ERA: 3.12). In short, Ervin is straight-up studly. If he’s still available in your fantasy leagues, hop on that immediately.

T O D A Y…

Dodgers at Marlins (9:10 p.m., FSNPT): Get the brooms ready. The Blue Crew go for a sweep in the series finale, and their sixth straight win. With Burke Badenhop (0-2, 8.36 ERA) to pitch for the Fish, the Dodgers are sitting pretty. Hiroki Kuroda will take the mound for the Dodgers.

Athletics at Angels (7:05 p.m., FSN West): A’s starter Justin Duchscherer absolutely owns the Angels. In his last 19.1 innings against the Halos, Duchscherer has held them to exactly zero earned runs. Luckily, all those appearances came in a relief role. Chone Figgins (2-17 lifetime against Duchscherer) and Co. are crossing their fingers for a different fate facing Duchscherer in his new role. Don’t hold your breath, bud.

N E W S W O R T H Y…

• After a bittersweet end to last season, beating Illinois in the Rose Bowl but wondering how they could have fared against LSU, USC football can look forward to more of the same BCS-related gripes that have become a staple of every college football season. Not just for USC, but for the handful of schools who end up with at most one loss at season’s end, and feel their team deserves a shot at winning it all. With the BCS committee rejecting the proposal for a four-team playoff yesterday, disgruntled fans will have to wait until at least 2014 for a legitimate system to take hold.
• Freshman UCLA forward Chace Stanback has announced he will transfer, but the former California state player-of-the-year hasn’t said where to yet. A puzzling move, since up to four Bruins - Kevin Love, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Russell Westbrook, and Josh Shipp - could be pros by next season. None have hired agents, but Westbrook and Love are near-certainties to leave.
• The Halos called up their top pitching prospect, Nick Adenhart, presumably to fill the fifth spot in the rotation if Dustin Moseley has another rough outing today against the A’s. Either way, both Adenhart and Moseley are just stop-gaps until Lackey can return from the DL.
• Their on-ice woes were clearly apparent, but the Kings’ financial floundering weren’t so obvious. The team is upping ticket prices, claiming they are losing money at pre-lockout levels. Get your wallets ready, Kings fans.

C O L U M N S…

• If A’s GM Billy Beane read this, he would laugh. But in the eyes of regular baseball folk like you and I, closers are valuable. One of the best in the biz, Francisco Rodriguez, will be a free-agent next season, and could demand close to $11 M/year on the open market. That’s a bit rich for the blood of Tony Reagins, Angels GM, despite K-Rod’s success. Reagins needs to open up his check book, says the Times’ Helene Elliott, begins the Halos simply couldn’t afford to lose him.
• SPORTSHUB COLUMN OF THE DAY: Though he’s one of the younger players on the ballclub, Angels’ first baseman Casey Kotchman has deeper roots with the Halos than anybody on the squad (Garrett Anderson included). Kotchman’s dad, Tom, is a minor league manager in the Halos system, so Casey grew up around the team, sharing batting practice, bus rides, and clubhouse shenanigans with G.A., Troy Percival, and Jarrod Washburn. They even taped him to a tree once, says the OC Register’s Mark Whicker. Seeing as how Kotch has more homers (6) than strikeouts (5) this season, I’d say the early lessons served him well.

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