Yasiel Puig: Let The Wild Horse Roam

My Tuesday was a bit overwhelming attending a funeral for a close mentor. So I didn't get to check out much sports news til around 4 p.m. and sure enough, I saw four words ring out. "YASIEL PUIG GETS BENCHED."

Naturally, I rolled my eyes but I wanted to see what folks were raising a ruckus over. Turns out Puig was late to the stadium and was punished. No big deal. You're late for work, you face consequences.

Of course, people made a big deal about him being out the night before. But had he been on time, nobody would say anything. So it's no surprised that Puig - who's never been a fan of the media - cussed the media out and wanted to only talk baseball.

As Will Leitch mentioned this year, sports fans (and some media) have a problem with accepting youthful mistakes. People think folks should mature as fast as they did, not realizing it's harder when cameras amplify your every move. We expect too much of teenagers and 20-somethings with prodigious talent to act like adults instead of realizing adulthood is a process not based on age or talent.

How Bout These Dodgers?: Another Day, Another WOW

 "Another incredible moment in the Magic Castle" (Vin Scully after Adrian Gonzalez's walkoff hit)

So after another exciting win at Chavez Ravine, how can you not watch every single game with these Dodgers? How can you see the Dodgers down by any deficit and not wonder how, but when it's going to be overcome? How can you see this team and not think "They just might get to the World Series"

When Chris Capuano pitched a terrible five innings and allowed four runs, it felt like a bad prelude to a good ending. When Adrian Gonzalez and a fresh-off-the-DL Hanley Ramirez led a 6th inning rally to cut the lead to 4-2, I sat back nodding.

And when Andre Ethier dusted off his Captain Clutch cape and tied the game on a pinch-hit bomb in the 9th? My calmness was validated and it erupted into cheers! It felt like 2009 again seeing him step up and swing away like he knew the ball was gone.

But oh there's more!! How crazy is it that freaking Carlos Marmol, the relief pitcher, stepped up to bat in the 10th and sent a ball to the warning track. Yeah, it's been that kind of run where a pitcher getting a walkoff hit wouldn't be the craziest thing.

Then you have the 12th. The Wild Horse Yasiel Puig doing what he does best to set up the win.

Confidence in Canada (Dodgers Keep Rolling)

Just when I think I keep running out of things to say about the Dodgers' incredible play, this team keeps on finding ways to stretch my creativity. Consider what they did last night.


Down to their last strike against Toronto, Andre Ethier - who's been resembling his Captain Clutch days lately - ties the game in the 9th inning. Then in the 10th, Mark Ellis and Yasiel Puig hit home runs to spark a five-run explosion and finish off the Blue Jays in a sweep.

To recap, three straight wins in Toronto, the last two via comeback. 41 runs scored the last four games. Six straight road wins coming off the All-Star break (10 in a row overall). First place in the National League West. At this point, the question isn't how hot this team can stay but who's going to catch fire next.

Even maligned reliever Brandon League has rediscovered his mojo, earning a win the last two games. His two scoreless innings of work Wednesday were crucial in putting the Dodgers in position to tie and take the lead. For a guy who's earned groans this year after losing his job as the closer, he's starting to redeem himself quite nicely.

Back From the Dead, the Dodgers Keep Rolling

A month ago, I was ready to consider this Dodgers season a wash. On the morning of June 3, they were nine games under .500. Between injuries and lackluster hitting, nothing was going right. By June 19, they were 29-40 after losing Game 1 of a doubleheader to the Yankees.

Fast forward to today. The team just finished a 14th inning game to sweep the Diamondbacks. They're 1.5 games out of first place. They're 45-45 and all a sudden they look like a different team and I'm watching games with more interest than just as a loyal fan.

Instead of worrying where the Dodgers offense comes from, I see timely hitting coming from AJ Ellis, Hanley Ramirez, Adrian Gonzalez and yes, Yasiel Puig. 

A lot of credit goes to Puig, your reigning National League rookie/player of the month. I've still yet to come up with a non-pitching rookie who's impacted the team like this right away and if he makes the All-Star team, I'll be happy. But I want to give props to Ramirez, who looks more and more like the player he was from 2008-2010.

My Love/Hate Relationship with Fan Voting

MLB wraps up another year of fan voting for the All-Star Game on Thursday. I haven't even bothered to check the numbers closely, which is something I used to do for every sport back in the day. But it reminds me why the older I get, the more ambivalent I feel on fan voting.

It's great because it's the ultimate sign of fans being involved. But at what cost? Since we know that fans don't always get it right, it's just going to become a biased decision where guys who aren't deserving start because they happen to be on the right team.

It's great because the fans decide who they get to see in All-Star Games. But if the game is supposed to honor those who had great first halves, can we trust fans to get it right besides a popularity contest.

To be honest, I'm not one of those old school folks who think the All-Star Game should mean more than it does. I love the entertainment and relaxation of it (although the Home Run Derby is basically like the Slam Dunk Competition - a dog on Old Yeller status). It shouldn't be any more pressure than it needs to be.

Yasiel Puig: Something Like A Phenomenon

Has anybody had a better first week in pro sports recently than Yasiel Puig? The Dodgers' highly touted phenom has been on a tear this week unlike anything I've seen. A recap of his first five games.

Monday: 2 hits and a bullet assist from deep right field for the game-ending double play.
Tuesday: 2 home runs. The first to tie the game, the second to give the Dodgers more insurance.
Wednesday: 0-for-4. A reminder that he's human.
Thursday: Grand slam in the 8th inning to turn a 1-0 lead to a 5-0 cushion. On the first pitch!!
Friday: Game-tying home run in the 6th. Intentional walk in the 8th.

4 home runs, 10 runs batted in. A name on the lips of non-baseball fans. Can't script it any better. He'd be front and center on that old VH1 show "Best Week Ever"

I was at Dodger Stadium Friday and to see the Puig Phenomenon live was something to behold. We saw folks already selling bootleg Puig shirts on the drive in. There were fans with "Viva Puig" signs in the stadium. The atmosphere was ready to see another big moment and the team's latest phenom didn't disappoint.