36-year old righty swinging 3B Casey Blake has been a solid baseball player since coming over from the Indians last season. He has played in 136 games this season for the Dodgers and he is 133 for 475 (.280 avg, .837 OPS) with 82 runs scored, 18 homers and 77 RBIs. Blake also plays a decent 3B for the Dodgers. He does the little things that help you win ballgames and he’s a player that likes to get dirty.

24-year old righty reliever James McDonald was the Dodgers’ #2 rated prospect coming into this season according to Baseball America. He was a starter in the minors but the Dodgers had a spot for him in the bullpen. He has pitched in 43 games (4 starts) for the Dodgers this year and he is 5-5 with a 3.90 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. He has a control problem right now as he has walked 30 batters in 60 innings but that’s something the Dodgers think they can fix. The Dodgers were smart to resist trading him the last couple of months.

In Russell Martin’s first three years with the Dodgers he played in 427 games in which he was 430 for 1,508 (.285 avg, .806 OPS) with 239 runs scored, 42 homers, 221 RBIs and 49 stolen bases. Could it be possible that the Dodgers rode Martin too hard and he’s starting to wear down? He has played in 134 games for the Dodgers this year and he is 122 for 479 (.255 avg, .683 OPS) with 58 runs scored, 6 homers, 49 RBIs and 10 stolen bases. The Dodgers should really consider bringing in a backup catcher who can play more than someone like Brad Ausmus to give Martin a break once in a while.

Ronnie Belliard has been on fire since coming to the Dodgers and he’s eating into Orlando Hudson’s playing time. Belliard has played in 18 games for the Dodgers and he is 17 for 56 (.304 avg, .928 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 4 homers and 14 RBIs. It will be hard for manager Joe Torre to take Belliard out of the lineup if he keeps hitting like he is right now.

George Sherrill, Jon Garland and Vicente Padilla have all pitched very well since coming to the Dodgers. Sherrill has been working as Jonathan Broxton’s set-up man and he has been almost unhittable. He has pitched in 22 games for the Dodgers this season and he is 0-0 with 1 save, a 0.44 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. The Dodgers have been very pleased with Sherrill who they gave up a lot to get. Vincente Padilla is pitching for the Dodgers dirt cheap as the Rangers are on the hook for his whole salary minus a pro-rated portion of the league minimum which is what the Dodgers are paying him. Padilla has started 4 games for the Dodgers and he is 3-0 with a 2.01 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. Jon Garland has also been real solid since coming over from the D-Backs as he has started 3 games for the Dodgers and he is 2-0 with a 3.32 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. It appears as if the Dodgers were very astute in what pitchers to pick up for the stretch run.