Good Ol' Jim

After a rocky evening last night in DC the Dodgers got back to work and took game one of the four-game series with the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Randy Wolf didn't have his best stuff, but thanks to strong pitching by the bullpen and of course, team MVP Russell Martin, the Dodgers came back and took the game.  But, whenever the Dodgers visit Pittsburgh, you can't help but think of Jim Tracy.  Tracy gave his all as skipper here for 5 seasons (was a Dodger overall for 7 years), and I personally think he is the best manager the Dodgers have had in the post-Lasorda era.  Grady Little is off to a great start as the Dodgers manager, but it is still too early to tell what his legacy as a Dodger will be.  The Dodgers had winning seasons in 4 of Tracy's 5 seasons, and of course, won the West in '04.  I always felt Tracy got a bad rap for the Dodgers poor season in '05.  The team was absolutely decimated by injuries and Tracy was not to blame for that, but someone always has to take the fall.  And unfortunately that year it was Tracy.  But, I thought Tracy shined in comparison to previous manager Davey Johnson.  Bill Russell, one of the all-time favorite Dodgers, before him also did the best he could, but it was a huge time of transistion for the franchise, and he didn't really stand a chance.  And then of course there is the fact that no other manager since Lasorda has served as long as Tracy did.  Now Jim Tracy's in Pittsburgh, and although the Pirates have consistently been one of the worst teams in baseball over the past decade, things are looking up for them.  The NL Central is without a doubt the worst division in baseball, and that has allowed the Pirates to be in 2nd place in that division.  They have lots of good young talent too like Chris Duffy, Freddy Sanchez, Zach Duke, Ian Snell, and Tom Gorzelanny.  The future is not bleak in Pittsburgh, and I would hate for Jim Tracy to have a bleak future.  But, that's the long-term future. But, the short-term future is not looking good for Jim and the Pirates, and by short-term, I mean the next three days.  Because Jim still has to deal with the Dodgers for the next three days.  Let's go blue!!!