Less than a week ago the Dodgers gave their fans a renewed sense of hope by winning four straight and at one point coming to within a game-and-a-half of the National League wild card. Tonight all hopes for the 2007 season have all but vanished.
In a melancholly way I was actually happy to learn that it was Takashi Saito who permitted the Rockies to win tonight's game. It was as if terrible news had just been delivered by a dear old friend. The blow was somehow lessened. All you had to do was look at Takashi's face the moment the batter made contact and you knew what every Dodger fan was feeling. We were all on the mound with him at that moment.
As I trolled the baseball forums I realized that not even the harshest of fans could find anything negative to say about Saito's peformance. Rather, the comments were sympathetic, more akin to words of condolence than typical sports banter. In less than two seasons Takashi Saito has earned true respect among Dodger fans, and deservedly so. So thank you Takashi, thank you for being the one to break the news. We'd much rather hear it from you than from Loaiza, or Hernandez, or Hillenbrand.
And although there are still a handful of games left in the season, I'm going to say "See you in 2008!" with hopes that I'll be eating my words this October.
posted at 02:30