OCTOBER BASEBALL – The NL West Division Champion Dodgers take on the NL Central Division Champion Cubs in the second game of the National League Division Series. The Dodgers lead the best-of-five series, 1-0.► The Dodgers set club NLDS single-game records last night in runs (7) and walks (8) while tying the team’s NLDS single-game record for homers (3).
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS – With last night’s win, the Dodgers are 3-5 against the Cubs this season. However, all five Dodger losses were by two runs or less, whereas the three Dodger victories were all by three or more runs.
AND THE DODGERS INCH AHEAD… – Not only do the Dodgers have a 1-0 lead in the series, but last night’s win gives them a one-game edge in the 118-year, 2,025-game all-time series. The two franchises first played each other on May 29, 1890 in Brooklyn and since then, the Dodgers have a 1,013-1,012 record.
BEST OF FIVE – The Dodgers have played 11 best-of-five series in their postseason history and have won Game 1 in just three of those series. In all three cases, the Dodgers went on to win the series (the NLCS in 1974, 1978, and 1981). Two other times, the Dodgers overcame a Game 1 defeat to still win the series (the NLCS in 1977 and the NLDS in 1981) and five times they lost the first game and went on to lose the series.
MANNY LONGBALLS – Last night, Manny Ramirez hit his 25th postseason home run and 15 of them have come on the road. Both of those totals are Major League records. He also holds the all-time record for Division Series homers with 11.
► Ramirez has hit safely in 36 of his last 41 postseason games, with a .344 (54-for-157) average during that span.
HAVING A GRAND OL’ TIME – Last night, James Loney hit the 17th grand slam in NLDS history. It was the third slam in Dodger postseason history and first since Dusty Baker on Oct. 5, 1977 in Game 2 of the NLCS against the Phillies. The only other postseason slam for the Dodgers came the previous night in Game 1 of that series when Ron Cey hit one in the seventh inning off Steve Carlton.
► Loney’s four RBI tie him with Steve Garvey (1981) and Eric Karros (1995) for the most in a Division Series for the Dodgers. Loney now has seven career RBI in the NLDS which is the Dodgers’ career mark. He had three in the 2006 NLDS vs. the Mets.
MAURY’S BIG DAY – Dodger legend Maury Wills turns 76 years old today. Wills, who serves as a baserunning and bunting instructor for the Dodgers, will be honored on Oct. 13 at the “Sportswalk to the Waterfront” in San Pedro, CA. Also being honored that night is the late U.S. President Gerald Ford. For more information or to attend the event, fans can contact the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce at 310.832.7272.
‘PEN IS MIGHTIER – A trio of Dodger relievers pitched 3.0 scoreless innings last night, including Greg Maddux’s first relief appearance since saving Game 5 of the NLCS at San Diego on Oct. 12, 1998. The Dodger bullpen ranked second in the NL this season with a 3.33 ERA behind the Phillies (3.19).
A BIG DAY FOR Ks – On this date in 1953, Carl Erskine struck out a World Series record 14 Yankees in Game 3. Ten years later to the day, Sandy Koufax broke the record with 15 strikeouts over the Yankees in Game 1 of the Fall Classic and exactly two years after that, he fanned 13 Milwaukee Braves on two days rest (including Joe Torre twice) to give him 382 for the season, earning his 26th win and clinching the NL pennant.
FOOTING THE BILLS – Tonight’s starter Chad Billingsley ranked fifth in the NL with 201 strikeouts and seventh with a 3.14 ERA this season. From June 17 through the end of the regular season, he went 12-3 with a 2.78 ERA, which tied him for the most wins in baseball during that period with Mark Buehrle, A.J. Burnett, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt, and CC Sabathia. At just 24 years of age, Billingsley became the youngest Dodger to notch 16 victories since Ramon Martinez won 17 as a 23-year-old in 1991.
TURNING IT AROUND – The Dodgers were a season-high 7.0 games out of first place on April 25 but came back to win the NL West, matching the largest deficit the franchise has had to overcome to win a division or NL pennant. The 1966 Dodgers were also 7.0 games out of first on May 13 and won the NL pennant that season before losing in the Fall Classic.
PACK YOUR BAGS – After tonight’s flight home, the Dodgers will have traveled more than 58,000 miles from the time they reported to Vero Beach until Game 3 of the NLDS. The team will have made 37 flights, including their historic trip to Beijing, China in March where they faced the Padres in the first-ever Major League games on Chinese soil.
TOMORROW’S WORKOUTS – The Dodgers will hold a workout tomorrow at 3 p.m. PT at Dodger Stadium, followed by the Cubs at 5 p.m. The media entrance will open at 1 p.m. for credential pickup and the Dodger clubhouse opens at 2 p.m. Manager Joe Torre and Game 3 Dodger starter Hiroki Kuroda will be available at approximately 2:30 in the media conference area.
ALL SOLD OUT – Game 3 and 4 of the NLDS at Dodger Stadium are officially sold out.
Additional Notes-- Game 2
* The Cubs struck first in yesterday’s contest, scoring two runs in the second inning, but the Dodgers responded with seven unanswered runs to win Game 1 7-2.
* Los Angeles won its second postseason game in 14 tries since winning the 1988 World Series. The Dodgers seven runs were their most in a playoff game since also scoring seven in Game 5 of the 1988 League Championship Series against the Mets.
* Chicago has now lost seven straight playoff games, the longest streak in franchise history previously held by Cubs teams that lost six straight between 1989 and 1998.
* After the All-Star break, Chad Billingsley was 7-2 with a 2.99 earned run average, having won his last four decisions of the season.
* Carlos Zambrano has never defeated the Dodgers in three starts at Wrigley Field with Zambrano has compiling a 5.12 ERA in the starts. However, in his one home start against Los Angeles in 2008, Zambrano allowed only one run in eight innings, earning a no decision in 2-1 Cubs win in 10 innings.
* Russell Martin is 8-for-13 (.615 batting average) with one home run against Carlos Zambrano in his career.
* In 13 career Division Series playoff games, Mark DeRosa is batting .429 (12-for-28) and slugging .714 (20/28).
* With his seventh inning blast off Sean Marshall, Manny Ramirez became the first player in Major League history with 25 career postseason home runs.
Game 2 Starting Lineups
Dodgers:
Furcal. SS
Martin. C
Ramirez. LF
Ethier. RF
Loney. 1B
Kemp. CF
DeWitt. 2B
Blake. 3B
Billingsley. RHP
Cubs:
Soriano. LF
Theriot. SS
Lee. 1B
Ramirez. 3B
DeRosa. 2B
Edmonds. CF
Soto. C
Fukudome. RF
Zambrano. RHP
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