TED SOBEL SPORTS AUDIO VAULT: Your Inside Access to TOUCHING GREATNESS

Dodger Stadium washes away a bad taste before the snakes show up

With lefty Ted Lilly being the umpteenth Dodger to go back on the disable list, the club recalled righthander Matt Magill last night from Triple-A Albuquerque for today’s start against the first place Atlanta Braves. Magill last pitched in a spot start for L.A. on Sunday and lost at Colorado 7-2 when he walked a whopping 9 batters. And today he ONLY walked 6 on his way to an 8-1 loss to the Braves in another frustrating game for manager Don Mattingly who’s become a professional juggler with a different lineup daily due to injuries and lack of performance.

At least Dodger fans had something to hang around for again watching Yasiel Puig go 3-5 with 2 singles, a double and another electrifying throw to the plate from right field that only held a man at 3rd base but had a Clemente/Kaline affect that just makes you want to go WOW!

The following are my sounds of the postgame including Dodger utility guy Jerry Hairston, Jr. who’s at least enjoying some wins these days…his hometown Chicago Blackhawks beating the L.A. Kings last night to advance to another Stanley Cup final. Hairston has his Jonathan Toews jersey hanging in front of his locker as a shrine to his hopeful Cup winners and we chatted about that along with his favorite sport Golf and this week’ U.S. Open.

Manager Don Mattingly:

Losing pitcher Matt Magill who shows good stuff but his wildness is killing a great opportunity to show the club that he belongs up here:

Dodger 3b Luis Cruz frustrated but still very positive alongside his next door neighbor in the clubhouse Mr. Puig:

Dodger leftfielder Scott Van Slyke who made 2 sliding catches but left 6 men on base at the plate something we just had to discuss as one of the key factors of this club’s woes:

Dodger reliever Matt Guerrier who pitched one inning un-scathed as part of a foursome that had to come out of the bullpen again:

Hairston’s Dodger/Blackhawks locker

Jerry Hairston, Jr. even after a loss willing to talk hockey, golf, and issues surrounding his injury depleted clubhouse:

You can follow Jerry on twitter @Therealjhair …he’s one of the real good guys whether you like Chicago teams or not! LOL

As you heard me ask them all…the NL West first place Arizona D-Backs are in town for the next 3 starting tomorrow night and it’s time for the Dodgers to make up some ground or realistically consider a longshot wild card spot is their goal this season despite that we’re still in early June.

Koufax introduced by Scully…PERFECTION!

It was another perfect night for a ballgame in L.A. and I’m not talking about the Dodgers and first place Atlanta Braves. For me it was the guys of yester-year that grabbed my attention more than the game’s current stars (at least for one day). If you grew up in the 60’s and 70’s as a Dodger fan like I did, all you have to do is mention names like Koufax, Wills, Sutton, Cey, Garvey, Lopes, Russell, and Buckner and I’m there in a heartbeat! Throw in others like Fernando, Newk, Sweet Lou, and one of my boyhood idols Ron Fairly and my sentiments grow even stronger.

It was the first ‘Old Timer’s’ game played at Dodger Stadium since 1995 and to me it was a great hit…or even a grand slammer. It celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Dodgers first World Series sweep of the Yankees and a solid roster from both squads was on hand along with those who faced each other in the 1977, ’78, and ’81 series. Let’s face it, baseball’s tradition and history is what makes it standout over every other sport on the planet and younger fans should embrace that if it’s to last throughout the ages the way it needs to be remembered-with special passion.

Fernando turns back the clock

Here’s the complete roster (as provided by the Dodger P.R. staff) who donned their old jerseys to refresh memories that will never fade for any of us who lived it:

DODGERS

Tommy Lasorda – Manager

Bill Buckner

Ron Cey

Tommy Davis

Ron Fairly

Steve Garvey

Pedro Guerrero

Mickey Hatcher

Lou Johnson

Sandy Koufax

Ken Landreaux

Davey Lopes

Rick Monday

Manny Mota

Don Newcombe

Jerry Reuss

Bill Russell

Darryl Strawberry

Dick Tracewski

Fernando Valenzuela

Bob Welch

Maury Wills

Don Sutton

Steve Yeager

YANKEES

Billy Crystal – Manager

Paul Blair

Rick Cerone

Chris Chambliss

Ron Davis

Al Downing

Dwight Gooden

“Goose” Gossage

Rickey Henderson

Jay Johnstone

Jim Leyritz

Graig Nettles

Bob Watson

I got the opportunity to speak to many of them so enjoy going down memory lane with me (whether you lived it or not!):

Koufax during batting practice ready to shag some balls

Sandy Koufax didn’t say much as usual but he did compare the Dodgers new sensation Yasiel Puig to Fernando-mania and afterwards it was announced that the 2nd Koufax Bobblehead Doll night will be on June 27 vs. the Phillies-maybe HE will be more talkative?):

with Fernando who’s still THE fan’s favorite

Tommy Lasorda (who first greeted old mates Dick Tracewski and Pete Richert) with Fernando Valenzuela as Tommy tells his former lefty right in front of me that he’s starting tonight. I spoke with both of them including asking Fernando to compare Puig-mania with his days in the spotlight:

Chatting it up with HOF’er Sutton

Hall of Fame pitcher Don Sutton who had his ‘Bobblehead Doll Night’ last night as he’s in town still doing radio play by play for the Braves:

Wills at 80 still looks good in the Dodger infield

Should be Hall of Famer Maury Wills who’s speed on the basepaths changed the game forever and he’s still teaching base-running to the current Dodgers, tells a great not well-known Koufax story that you can’t miss:

Ron Fairly who roamed first base and right field at Dodger Stadium in the 1960’s and had one of the smoothest swings you’d ever see. This was the first time I’d ever interviewed him and I told Ron just how special that was right off the bat:

The longest running major league infield was together again with Garvey, Lopes, Russell and Cey back on the field where they belong for the ages and I spoke with three of them:

‘The Garv’ back at first base

Steve Garvey:

Russell roaming at shortstop

Bill Russell:

Cey covers the hot corner again

Ron Cey:

‘The Penguin’ swinging for it all, like old times

Bill Buckner who’s #22 was stolen by Clayton Kershaw (LOL) and was one of the Dodgers consistent left handed hitters during his time in the 70’s (and a guy who I got to know in those early days as you’re about to hear):

Reuss and Buckner renew acquaintances

Lefty Jerry Reuss who had several excellent seasons in his 8 years in Dodger Blue:

Former Dodger and Yankee Darryl Strawberry who returned home to his native L.A. where I once covered him like a tarp:

Don Newcombe who at 87 years young is simply a Dodger legend and always special to chat with:

Lou Johnson a Dodgers World Series hero who still works for the club:

Hall of Fame reliever Goose Gossage and his Yankees battery-mate Rick Cerone recalling one of the scariest moments in World Series history when Ron Cey was beaned in the 1981 Fall Classic:

Vin Scully introducing a few of the all-time Dodger legends like Koufax, Fernando, and Lasorda:

The few innings these guys tried to play was worth the time and then the current Dodgers went out and lost 2-1 to the Braves while I watched the hockey Kings reign as Stanley Cup champions end in Chicago in the 2nd overtime 4-3. A bitter-sweet night that makes sports why we follow it…and it’s right back to the stadium on Sunday.

Time is running out on the Kings season

There’s a new King-sized hole to get out of in L.A. and I’m not talking about the condition of our embarrassing streets! The hockey Kings lost to Chicago 3-2 in game 4 and their Western Conference finals series is now hugely in favor of the Blackhawks at 3 games to 1. The loss ended the Kings 15 game home winning streak and puts them in a most desperate situation even more so with their lack of offense making this a harder mountain to climb. The Cup Champs had only 2 shots on goal in the 3rd period keeping them at their 2 goal a game average during these playoffs, which likely won’t do the job to get them to that final round.

Tyler Toffoli personifies the Kings frustrations by fanning on this great scoring chance.

The following are my sounds of the postgame and this one was far from fun to get the losing side to have to comment on this game and what lies ahead…which immediately is a potential season-ending game 5 in Chicago on Saturday.

Kings coach Darryl Sutter:

Kings captain Dustin Brown:

Kings defenseman Drew Doughty:

Patrick Kane ties it up late in the 2nd period

A very upset (as you’ll hear) Kings RW Dustin Penner:

Kings center Anze Kopitar:

Kings VP Luc Robitaille (who’s also to be inducted into the California Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday):

Another game with Mike Richards watching from the press box

Will we or won’t we be back at Staples on Monday night for a game 6? Even the hockey Gods can’t predict that but we do know who’s favored to reach the Stanley Cup Final…and it’s not the Kings, who’s reign as the defending champs is hanging by a piece of dental floss (with not many teeth left to clean!).

Welcome to big leagues young man

Expectations are tough to live up to especially after just two big league games and the Dodgers hopeful new star of the future Yasiel Puig went hitless in his four at bats including two strikeouts as his guys lost to the Padres 6-2.

Dodger starter Clayton Kershaw allowed 3 runs on 7 hits along with 9 strikeouts in his 6 innings of work. But that fell short of San Diego righty Jason Marquis’ 2 run, 2 hit outing and he took a no-hit bid into the 6th inning when Skip Schumaker’s 2-out double ended it. And finally Marquis was knocked out of the game after a 7th inning homer by left fielder Scott Van Slyke.

But the spotlight was on Puig who had one of those nights that he’ll have hundreds of times over the next decade plus, something he’ll have to learn to accept. He looked quite dejected in the dugout after striking out looking in the 9th inning. But he seemed fine when we spoke to him in the clubhouse later. It’s the first time in many moons that I recorded a player’s Spanish speaking interview but I thought you might like to hear his tone of voice and words (in English from his interpreter) including when we might expect to get an English speaking chat from him? Don’t hold your breath for that happening anytime soon but at least he smiled when saying that.

The following are my sounds of the postgame…

Manager Don Mattingly:

Clayton Kershaw:

Dodger catcher Tim Federowicz:

Dodger LF Scott Van Slyke who belted his 6th homerun in this one:

Puig strikes out looking at a very low pitch in the 9th inning

Dodger RF Yasiel Puig in Spanish (with his English interpreter):

And don’t look now Dodger fans, but it gets much tougher from here with the first place Atlanta Braves invading the Ravine for the next 4 days and they’re riding high on a 5 game winning streak. Of course I’ll miss the Thursday night opener between Zack Greinke and Tim Hudson as I’ll be back at Staples Center for the hockey Kings big game 4 vs. the Chicago Blackhawks.

FYI-while standing in the Dodger clubhouse tonight I noticed an old-school creamsicle colored Tampa Bay Buccaneers hat inside Greinke’s locker and I asked him about it. He’s an Orlando guy and grew up liking the Bucs but of course not old enough to remember their worst years in that awful color when they were winless under coach John McKay. That was the team that McKay was famous for his reply when asked about the team’s execution?…:I’m in favor of it’! At least Zack’s Dodgers aren’t that bad yet, but they’re still mired in last place which is embarrassing enough for the highest payroll club in baseball.

Sandy’s back where he belongs

And one great note of interest that I learned tonight is that Sandy Koufax will be here for the Dodgers old-timer’s game on Saturday night with player’s introductions starting at 5:20pm. That’s a can’t miss one for me and hope to see you here as well!

The Dodgers hope to cash in on their new ‘Puiggy Bank’

He’s not a 2-hit homer wonder yet as the Dodgers new phenom (at least for 2 games) Yasiel Puig is the talk of baseball and just the sparkplug the disappointing (and injury depleted) last place Dodgers ordered. Puig will leadoff again tonight for his starter Clayton Kershaw who hopes to lead his club to only their 3rd series sweep of the season. And it still counts even if it’s against the lowly Padres. By the way, how about Kershaw’s ERA at Dodger Stadium? At 2.27 it’s the 4th lowest in L.A. history behind Sandy Koufax (1.37), Don Drysdale (2.19), and Dean Chance (2.24). Pretty decent company!!!

The following is a list directly from tonight’s Dodgers media notes of just what Puig has accomplished in his very short time in the big leagues.

Dodger outfielder Yasiel Puig put together a game of firsts last night, going 3-for-4 with a double, two home runs and five RBI in his second MLB game. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Puig became the second player in Major League history to have a two-homer, five-RBI game within the first two games of his career, joining Dino Restelli of the 1949 Pirates, and the second Dodger player ever to have such a game batting in the leadoff spot (Tommy Brown, 3 HR/5 RBI on Sept. 18, 1950 vs. Cubs).

Puig became the first Dodger player to have a multi-home run game within his first two career games (16th all-time, last: Manny Machado, Aug. 10, 2012) and the first Dodger player to post a game with five or more RBI within his first two career games since Spider Jorgensen knocked in six in the second game of his career on April 17, 1947 for Brooklyn against the Boston Braves.

According to Elias, Puig was also the first Dodger player to post multi-hit games in the first two games of his career since Larry Miller on June 21 (second game of doubleheader) and June 29, 1964. The last Dodger to start his career with three multi-hit games was Preston Ward, who went 2-for-5 in each of his first three career games from April 20-22, 1948.

Not bad for a guy who hasn’t been here in L.A. long enough to know the names of any of our freeways. So let’s Puig-out on this fun while it lasts and as Vin Scully called it last night…”VIVA PUIG”!

The following are my pregame interviews with Don Mattingly and Stan Kasten who I not only obviously asked about Puig’s early impact on the club but also their feelings about the latest performance enhancing drugs news in the game of baseball. Mattingly was quite candid on his feelings and it’s a nice insight into the solid citizen that he is.

Don Mattingly pregame with us media folk:

Dodgers President and part-owner Stan Kasten on Puig and the drug issues in baseball:

Quick did whatever it took to make amends for a disappointing game 2

No it wasn’t a must-win game 3-but as I always say ‘it was a better win this one or else’! And the Kings took care of biz by scoring the all important first goal of the game (by who else but Mr. Clutch Justin Williams) and they held on for a 3-1 win (including a late empty netter) over Chicago to make this a 2-1 Hawks series lead.

The Kings have now won 15 straight on home ice (8 of those in these playoffs) and it certainly helped that goalie Jonathan Quick was back on his all-world game making 19 saves and none better than the one in the final minutes to preserve the win on a point blank stop on Bryan Bickell (who scored his club’s only goal on an uncontested wrap-around in the last minute of the 2nd period).

Kings defenseman Slava Voynov gave his club a 2-0 lead in the 2nd period which gives him a new club record of 4 game winning goals in the same postseason. And the Kings minus Mike Richards again found a way to make this a series. Mike came into our press area to watch the game from the 2nd period on and I asked him if he thought he might be able to go in Thursday night’s game 4 and he didn’t rule it out by simply saying ‘I hope so’. Mike was also kind enough to stop and take a picture together at what some lovingly call ‘Ted’s Sports Bar’ where I sit for every event I cover at Staples.

with Richards at the alcohol free press area known as Ted’s Sports Bar

The following are my sounds of the post-game in a very up-beat but cautiously optimistic locker room:

Kings goalie Jonathan Quick:

Kings RW Justin Williams:

Kings captain Dustin Brown:

Kings defenseman Slava Voynov:

Kings center Jarret Stoll:

Kings defenseman Rob Scuderi:

Kings center Tyler Toffoli:

Kings defenseman Robyn Regehr:

When it was all over, Kings play by play guru Bob Miller gave me a few minutes to discuss his thoughts on the game including the bad high sticking penalty by Chicago’s Duncan Keith against Jeff Carter which resulted in ONLY a 4 minute minor penalty as opposed to what should’ve been a 5 minute major, a game misconduct, and a suspension—which don’t be surprised if Keith is watching game 4 from his locker room.

Bob Miller and I talk post-game:

To sum this series up…this was a great win for the Kings but if they don’t make it 16 straight at home on Thursday night it likely won’t be enough as the Blackhawks are too good a team to lose 3 straight to any club in the playoffs. OR ARE THEY???