In booth, they will agree to disagree

Some of the highs and lows of watching Dodgers-Cardinals Game 2:

Say hey

Welcome to Dodger Stadium. There’s not a better high-definition shot than the one taken from the blimp on a sunny October afternoon over the happy ballpark.

Say what?

Just after TBS’ Bob Brenly spoke about how Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw needed to throw hard stuff to Mark DeRosa, play-by-play man Dick Stockton said DeRosa struck out on a high fastball. Analyst Brenly gently stepped in and said it was a slider. Go with Brenly.

Replay this

The great camera work in the bottom of the ninth showing Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday’s indecisive glove work on James Loney’s sinking fly ball -- up or down? Holliday chose too late. The ball hit him in the belt buckle and Loney ended up on second with two out. Juan Pierre came in as a pinch-runner for Loney, eventually scored to tie the game and the Dodgers went on to win.

Replay this 2

Snippet of Dodgers catcher Russell Martin’s father, Russell Martin Sr., playing the national anthem on the saxophone on Sept. 20, 2006, at Dodger Stadium. Apparently some guitarist named Slash did the anthem Thursday. Thanks for no TV on that.

Sharp shot

The picture-in-picture-in-picture triple shot in the top of the seventh inning of Cardinals Manager Tony La Russa, third base coach Jose Oquendo and batter Colby Rasmus relaying signals back and forth before Rasmus doubled in what was, for a while, the game-leading run.

Before & after

At least twice before the first pitch was thrown, Brenly and Stockton referenced Sandy Koufax while talking about Kershaw. Slow down, guys. Dodgers fans prefer a little more reverence for Koufax. Postgame? At least David Wells didn’t spend the first few seconds coughing as he did Wednesday night. He second-guessed La Russa instead.

Not in the box score

On Rasmus’ RBI double, the 8-6-3-5 put-out of Rasmus at third had La Russa muttering unsweet nothings to the wall.

And another thing

Dugout interviews of La Russa and Dodgers Manager Joe Torre worked. La Russa said he hoped that missed opportunities wouldn’t haunt his team; Torre said he expected Kershaw to keep his team in the game. Best analysis of the day. Both were right.

--

[email protected]

twitter.com/mepucin