Dodgers Ink Andre Ethier and Look for 40th Win

Aaron Harang (5-3, 3.95) vs. Jerome Williams (6-3, 4.02)

Dodger Lineup: vs. Angels

Gordon 6

Ellis 2

Ethier 9

Rivera 3

Abreu 7

Kennedy 4

Uribe 5

Gwynn 8

Harang 1

Last night while Mike Trout and company were busy defeating the home team, the real story was breaking on Twitter. The new Dodgers’ ownership made their first move. They came to an agreement with All-Star and Gold Glove Award winner Andre Ethier on a 5-year $85 million contract extension with a sixth year vesting option pushing the contract up to a probable $100 million. We have seen some crazy big contract extensions and free agent signings this past offseason. Werth, Pujols, Fielder, etc. garnered gigantic deals, so this deal  to ink Dre is very reasonable and well-deserved in my opinion. Ethier, a fan favorite, is the perfect partner to the Dodgers’ other franchise player Matt Kemp. Kemp and Dre pack a powerful double punch in the lineup, and they will now also man the outfield for years to come. Ethier’s deal is the third largest in Dodger history behind Brown and Kemp. As you know, Dre is my favorite current Dodger, so I may be a bit biased with my excitement. He is in fact in a slump right now, but all players go through these cyclical moments during the long-season. Now the new owners need to focus on obtaining another power bat. No doubt, the Dodgers will be prominent players in the free agent market this winter.

As for the game today, the Dodgers will try to even up the three-game series against their cross-town rivals after falling to the Angels last night.

Aaron Harang will take to the mound in hopes of his sixth win and third consecutive victory. Last time out against the Phillies, Harang battled out of jams and didn’t get flustered with runners on base. He has virtually never pitched against the Halos-only 1.2 innings to be exact. He is 0-1 with a 21.60 ERA in that small sample. The only current Angel to have any at bats against Harang is the infamous Albert Pujols who has four homeruns against him. Let’s not pitch to him tonight, ok?

Jerome Williams, a righty, gave up five earned runs is last time out against the Mariners. He picked up the loss after surrendering 7 total runs on 9 hits over 5 2/3 innings. Williams has otherwise been very solid. In his career against the Dodgers, he is 2-2 with a 4.64 ERA. None of the current Dodgers have ever faced Williams.

The Angels have been on a road-trip roll, and they have won 10-straight away games. The Dodgers still have the best home record in the Majors of 21-10.

Juan Uribe made his first appearance last night as a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning after being reinstated from the disabled list. He was hit by a pitch by Frieri in his only at bat. Don Mattingly is planning to start Uribe at his usual third base today and tomorrow.

Join us after the 7:10 pm game for our nightly wrap up. Let’s send those ORANGE COUNTY Angels back to Anaheim with a couple losses!