Former Dodger Edwin Jackson Versus Josh Beckett in Rubber Game

I guess you could say the Dodgers were up all night long, partying! (Credit to Eric Stephen)

The Dodgers really shouldn’t be tussling with the last place Cubs but they did for 12 innings on Saturday night. in the rain no less. The Cubs might be awful, but any club can beat any club on any given day. Even the worst team in Baseball will win about 60 games per season.

Thank god for Hanley Ramirez. It was his twelfth inning walk-off three-run home run into the Dodger bullpen off of a Blake Parker Curveball that gave the Dodgers a rain soaked 5-2 win. That saved us from having to see Chris Perez blow another game. Which he easily would have. Seriously thank you Hanley, thank you! It also evened the series. This afternoon the two clubs will go at it again in the rubber game. The Dodgers will not see the Cubs again until a late September series at Wrigley Field.

Dodgers Lineup vs. Chicago

Turner 2B

Puig CF

Gonzalez 1B

Hanley SS

Kemp RF

Ethier LF

Uribe 3B

Butera C

Beckett P

Edwin Jackson-5-11 vs. Josh Beckett-6-5

Fatigue has to come into play here as the Dodgers will probably be tired. I know I am. Yasiel Puig and Adrian Gonzalez return to the lineup this afternoon. Dee Gordon gets a breather as Justin Turner who played first base last night, slides over to second base. Andre Ethier is playing in left instead of the rusty Carl Crawford.

The pitching match-up will see former Dodger Edwin Jackson battling Josh Beckett. Do you remember Jackson? He was the over hyped can’t miss prospect that never could live up to expectations. The Dodgers drafted him in the sixth round of the 2001 amateur draft. He debuted for the Dodgers in 2003.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

lolz Jackson-Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

But he had some major control problems early in his career, and the Dodgers set him adrift in 2005. The Dodgers traded him for Danys Baez and Lance Carter. Remember those bums? Man they made Jackson look like a hall of famer. Anyways, he did get better once he left the Dodgers, but never could live up to the hype that surrounded him. He ended up bouncing around the majors. He played with Tampa Bay, then was traded to the Tigers. Then he was involved in a three-team trade that sent him to Arizona. That deal involved Max Scherzer, Ian Kennedy, and Austin Jackson.

Then he was traded to the White Sox, and then dealt to the Blue Jays. He played with the Cardinals, Nationals, and now finally the Cubs. This season he is 5-11 with a 5.79 ERA in 22 starts. He’s whiffed 108 and walked 53, but has given up 77 earned runs and 10.3 hits per nine.

But he’s pitched well against the Dodgers in his career. He is 3-2 with a 3.46 ERA in six starts versus the Dodgers. At Dodger Stadium he is 4-4 with a 4.42 ERA in nine starts.

Josh Beckett is trying to rebound from a poor start against the Braves. He’s been battling a hip impingement, and trying to compensate. Beckett is 6-5 with a 2.74 ERA in 19 starts. He’s whiffed 101 and walked just 36. He’s allowed just 7.3 hits per nine, which is all-star quality. Beckett is 1-3 with a 5.79 ERA against the Cubs.

We’ll try and stay awake if you will! Let’s hope the Dodgers don’t sleepwalk through this rubber game. Otherwise we may have our parade rained on. The Angels come into town tomorrow and they are not to be taken lightly this year.

Game Time- 1:10 PM

Go Blue!