Joe Torre, not Manny Ramirez, holds Dodgers together

If the Los Angeles Dodgers now make the playoffs with Manny Ramirez, many will say Joe Torre managed to reach the postseason again due to superior talent.

Not so fast. Maybe Torre reached the postseason every year with the Yankees due to great talent, but not this time in L.A.

If anything, Torre may have accomplished one of his best managing jobs ever just to keep the Dodgers in the NL West race and be in position to trade for Ramirez.

Consider the odds Torre has faced in his first year with the Dodgers:

The team’s best player, shortstop Rafael Furcal, has been injured since May 5.
Staff pitching ace Brad Penny has been sidelined since June 14.
Closer Takashi Saito has been out since July 12.
L.A.’s top three third basemen were injured when the season began.
Center fielder Andruw Jones is a $36 million bust.
Jason Schmidt may "earn" his $47 million with the Dodgers by recording one win.

Despite it all, Torre has kept the Dodgers in contention in the Weak Weak NL West.

All things considered, that may be nearly as much of an accomplishment as winning four World Series in five years with the greatest talent on earth in New York.

Peavy deserves All-Star honor

It’s truly an honor for Jake Peavy to be starting tonight’s Major League Baseball All-Star Game for the National League.

Peavy is the type of guy you’d like to have for a teammate because he backs you 100 percent, even if it’s your error that costs him a game.

In fact, the Padres ace is probably as good as it gets when it comes to the teammate category.

The only concern about Peavy starting the All-Star Game is that he tends to get too pumped up for these types of situations.

If he can temper himself, he should be fine – and maybe he’ll even earn the most valuable player as Padres pitcher LaMarr Hoyt did while starting the 1985 All-Star Game.

Last year’s NL starter, Brad Penny of the Dodgers, was never the same after the All-Star contest. He had a horrible second half and probably kept the Dodgers from winning the NL West outright from the Padres.

Peavy can only hope that he one-ups Penny when it comes to the second half of 2007.

And by the way, don’t forget who first predicted Peavy would start the All-Star Game in a blog titled “Peavy looking like an All-Star.” As a reminder, check out this blog from April 27.

Thank you.

Peavy holding a winning hand?

Jake Peavy is turning up all aces.

Opponents’ aces, that is.

Peavy got a taste of it last Sunday when he was out-dueled by Josh Beckett of the Boston Red Sox, 4-2.

He’ll dive headfirst again when matched up Saturday night at Dodger Stadium against Brad Penny.

Beckett was 10-1 when he battled Peavy. Penny comes into Saturday with the same mark.

Of course, Peavy is no slouch at 9-2 for the Padres.

Last season, Peavy finished just 11-14 in his first go-round as staff ace. (Woody Williams, believe it or not, was the opening day starter in 2005.)

The difference in Peavy this year is that he’s healthy. He was never quite right in 2006 after overextending himself in the preseason World Baseball Classic.

If Peavy wants to be the elite in the National League … as opposed to one of the elite … a good way to start would be beating Penny, the NL starter in last year’s All-Star game.

How about those Dodgers?

If you remember the television show four decades ago called “Mr. Ed,” you’ll recall the star was a talking horse who often wore a Dodger hat because he lived in Los Angeles.
Whenever Mr. Ed got into trouble with his owner Wilbur Post, he would say: “How about those Dodgers?”
So, how about those 2007 Dodgers, who open a three-game home series tonight against the Padres? Like Mr. Ed, they could be known to cause a lot of trouble.
Or do you think a team with Brad Penny as its No. 4 starter is weak on pitching? Hardly, considering Penny started the 2006 Major League Baseball All-Star game for the National League.
Thus far, the Padres certainly have bullpen strength over the Dodgers. But the more one sees of Los Angeles closer Takashi Saito, the more it becomes obvious this guy throws a lot of 1-2-3 innings like Trevor Hoffman.
The Dodger lineup is certainly formidable with Rafael Furcal (hoping to return tonight from a sprained ankle) and Juan Pierre at the top. And it’s not bad in the middle with Nomar Garciaparra, Jeff Kent and Luis Gonzalez. It’s easy to point out that the Dodgers are aging in the middle of their order, but the age factor could certainly point right back at Padres 40-something pitchers Greg Maddux and David Wells.
Padre nemesis Derek Lowe will start the series opener. Lowe is just 2-2 lifetime against the Padres but has a solid 2.37 ERA against them.
The Padres did win 13 of 18 last year against the Dodgers, including seven of nine in Los Angeles. San Diego always seems more fired up than the Dodgers when the teams meet.
If the Padres are to repeat as NL West champions, it may take another 13-5 record against the Dodgers. Why? Because the Dodgers seem to do much better when they’re not playing the Padres.