Nomah Makes it 3!

That's right! Nomar Garciaparra smacked a three run dinger in the first inning of last night's Dodgers game. After scoring six runs in the first inning, the Dodgers went on to beat the snot out of second worst team in the National League, defeating the Padres 10-1. And as much as I love a Dodgers win, the only comparable feeling is a Diamondbacks loss. The Cardinals get some L.A. love for defeating Randy "My fastball may have lost velocity but I'm still the ugliest sob in baseball" Johnson. The combination of the Dodgers victory and D'backs has put the dodgers magic number at 3. What a magic number it is. The 3 run homer by nomah, the 3 game lead they currently have over Arizona and 3 wins/dbacks losses to make it back to the postseason to avenge the past 20 years of failure.

Tonight's Game: 10:10 EST Shawn Estes (2-3, 4.73) vs Clayton Kershaw (4-5, 4.28 ERA). I'll just say this about Kershaw, if the Dodgers do clinch the division he will be the only guy on the roster not of legal age to drink a celebratory beer. Maybe Manny can sneak him one when Joe isn't looking.

Mambo # 5

Five is a good number, I suppose. Not as good as the number one, which is the amount of runs the dodgers needed yesterday to win. One run. One stinking run. The Dbacks won and are now 2.5 games behind the dodgers with one week of baseball left to play. The Dback play this evening and the dodgers get a day off. Tomorrow, each team will have six games left to play and the Dodgers will either have a 2 or 3 game lead. I still refuse to believe that this team will be in the playoffs until they literally clinch it, which may or may not happen until sunday afternoon. Consider me a temporary Cardinals and Rockies fan for the next six days. So, the dodgers get a day off to look for their offense, which had already taken sunday off, and then play 3 more home games against the Padres and then finish the year in the city by the bay.

Magic Number: 6

Dodgers lost last night. Big deal. The Douchebacks also lost which puts the Dodgers number to clinch the division at six. That's any combination of Dodgers wins and D'backs losses.  Yeah, the Dodgers didn't look very good last night and Maddux, coming off of a brilliant performance in Colorado last week, got shellshocked. But tonight is a different night and so they'll do it all over again. 

 I don't really like talking about the Dodgers having this thing wrapped up. I mean, this team is streaky and anything can happen. That being said, the Diamondbacks seem to have nothing left in the tank. They could go on some unbelievable streak and steal this division but I think that both teams will limp to the end of September. 

 Kuroda will start against Hennessey tonight at the old stadium. Kuroda has been great as of late, going 2-0 with a 2.95 ERA in his last 3 starts and the dodgers have been great at home this year. So, I like I said, I'm not worried.....yet.

Introducing....DODGERS BLOG

So, I don't typically talk about sports much on here (hell, I haven't talked about anything on here since the freakin' batman movie came out) but a September push has put the Dodgers in a position I was not expecting: playoff contenders. As a result, I am turning this blog into a place to dissect the rest of the Dodgers season, however long that may be.
Just to bring you up to speed on the season, the Dodgers currently have a 3.5 game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks with 9 games left to play (D'backs have 10 left). The Dodgers have six games left at home (3 vs Giants, 3 vs Padres) and end the season with 3 on the road against, who else, the San Francisco Giants. The D'Backs have 7 games left on the road (3 at Rockies, 4 at St. Louis) and end the season with 3 at home against the Rockies. Hopefully, the final 3 games of the season won't matter for either team, as the Dodgers will have at least the 3.5 game lead they currently enjoy. However, I am not counting my chickens
Regardless, during a meeting at work this morning, I made a chart of the possible outcomes for the season.It basically lists the possible records that have each team would have to post for the Dodgers NOT to make the playoffs. I'm not going to post it because I just realize I messed it up. Anyways, if the Dodgers go 3-6 and the Dbacks go 7-3, the D'backs would tie the Dodgers. I don't see either one of those records holding up.
So, from now until what I hope will be a run at the World Series, I will be posting about every Dodgers game. So get out your manny skullcap, complete with attached dreadlocks. It's gonna be fun.

The Dark Knight

So, I saw the movie. You know, THE MOVIE. What else would anyone be talking about these days? The Dark Knight was the movie of the summer before anyone ever saw it. They hype and expectations had been risen to such heights that it couldn't possibly deliver, right? Well, kind of.
On Thursday night, the moon looked insane. I think it was full but it may have just been 7/8s full. Either way, I assumed it was just because the movie was coming out and things just kind of happen like that. They should've painted the batman logo on the moon in honor of the movie but I doubt they are hurting for money right now.

First things first. Ledger is very good in this film. He does what everyone expected him to do, which is steal the film. However, every actor is amazing in this film. Bale, Oldman, and Eckhart all turn in amazing performances but I doubt any of them will ever even receive the credit they deserve because Ledger makes this his film. But I think that from the time the movie was announced and we all saw those first pictures of the joker, this film was about the joker, not batman. Anyone who has seen "Batman Begins," pretty much knows what is coming in this film. It is good, really good but it still maintains that serious feeling. Everything in this film is believable, which is something we don't see a lot in superhero movies. I guess that is because superheroes don't exist. They are just figments of our imaginations but Batman could be more. He is a human being, who fights with himself over what his role is in society. He continually makes himself human, from his desire to love to his guilty conscious, we all see him as a regular person who wants to save the city. Bale is an amazing actor who will never get the credit he deserves for what he has done with this cultural icon.

The movie is 2.5 hours long, which is about the length of "Batman Begins," and while I love it, it does go kind of slow at points. You think the movie is going to end at one point (and may have wished it would, for further sequel opportunities) but everything pretty much works itself out. I think we'll see another Batman movie in 3 years, I have no idea what it ill include nor how it will live up to this one.

There are so many characters in this film that one might have a hard time digesting everything that is going on. However, it is a great film. Not the best I've ever seen, but damn good. I want to see it again and probably will. I was a little surprised to hear that people are selling tickets for up to $200 to see it this weekend. Are you kidding me? Only for the Dark Knight. The movie. You know, the only movie.

My Internet Personal Ad

Women, I realize it is hard to find a good guy in this society we live in. However, I think that once you get to know me and my character traits, you will be unable to resist me. I am the total package and instead of paying eHarmony to find me a mate (does Brad Pitt need an internet site to help him get some?) I'll just list my incredible qualities here.

Reasons to date Justin:

-I don't eat much: I never really get hungry. So if you say you are going to cook and somehow burn the living hell out of it, I'll be ok. I won't be disappointed that I will not be getting dinner. I mean, you'll probably have to get something for yourself but you need not worry about keeping me fed. Also, I'll never cook for you, so you can eat all the fast food you want. Just don't get fat.

-I don't need my laundry done too much: I do laundry about once every month, if that. Now don't get too freaked out. I own a lot of underwear and socks and I change clothes every couple hours so they never get too dirty. This way I am able to wear them in shifts and avoid getting them dirty. Not that I expect a woman to do laundry but if you are one that feels an obligation to keep her man's clothes clean, no need to fret, my pet. My clothes never get dirty.

-I require little attention, if any: Think you have to reassure me that "I'm the one" or that "You love me" ? Hell no, I don't need that from a girl. Hell, half the time I may even forget that you exist. Don't let this get you down, just take it as me being low maintenance. Do you really want a guy that never leaves you alone and constantly is giving you compliments and buying you sweet gifts? Of course, not. Plus, if you forget my birthday or an anniversary, I won't care. Why? Because I have no idea when either one is.

I have a large DVD collection: I have all kinds of movies that we can sit and watch together (don't get too close)! From "Death to Smoochy" to "Star Wars," I've got enough movies to ensure that I never have to take you out in public. And even if a movie may come out that I want to see, I'll just download a bootleg on the internet. NOTE: I am a little sick of chicks dating me for only my dvds and not me...

I have no job: So, as I previously stated, I'm not gonna bother you with compliments and shit but this is still a good thing. I have all the time in the world to sit around and get at video games so you can tell all of your friends how godly I am at them. Also, if there is a movie you want to see but don't have time, I'll watch it for you and just tell you about it. What else am I going to do? Plus, you'll never have to worry about where I am because I'll always be sitting on my couch. I think it is important to have that kind of trust.

So, if this isn't enough to make you want me, I really don't know what your problem is. I have not lied about my attributes to make you think I am better than I am. I know it may be hard to believe that a guy can have all of these things, but I promise I do. If you wanna hook up, let me know. I'll even let you drive and pay on the first date. I'm always thinking of others.

The funniest movie of all time...

With the popularity of movies like "knocked-up," "superbad," and "insert another stupid ass movie here," I felt it was time to reflect on the funniest movie of all time: "The Jerk." Starring and co-written by a young Steve Martin, "the jerk" offers everything you should ever want or need from a comedy. With movies these days relying on jokes that are played out by their own trailers, "The jerk" was just plain funny. I am posting one of my favorite moments from the film. Maybe some day I'll write more about it but for the time being, enjoy some late 70's humor from the king.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=vkVzspuCkxg