Who says there's no free lunch?

Wow. Last night was the perfect example of why I love being at the ball park as often as possible. Why? Because you just never know what you’re going to see.

By now you’ve probably seen the highlights or perhaps like Cheryl and me, you simply saw the game live and you know about all the details. If you haven’t – you can visit the Angels web site to see how the Angels/Dodgers game ended. It ended on a throw from Juan Rivera to Howie Kendrick to get Russell Martin diving back into second base just before Reed Johnson could cross home plate to score what would have been the game tying run. This all happened just after Matt Kemp was picked off second base by Brian Fuentes.

It was a stunning play. One moment we thought the Dodgers were going to tie the game and then bam, it was game over, just like that. Angels win. It was one of those plays where you ask yourself, did I really see what I just saw? As soon as I realized what happened, I couldn't wait to see the replays.

This game was a gift. The Dodgers did everything they could to give away this game and thankfully, the Angels took the victory, thank you very much.

The Dodgers are supposed to be a good team, but I have to tell you that they didn’t play very good baseball. I know I’m biased, but it appears to me the Dodgers play uninspired baseball and has players who seem to think they’re better than they really are. I get the impression some of them walk around with a big chip on their shoulders. It's not swagger either... it's sort of an arrogance. I don’t see a team out there; for the most part, I see a group of individuals doing their own thing. Just saying.

Harsh?

Perhaps, but I’ve heard more than a Dodger fan or two complain about the bone-headed plays and laziness of players like Matt Kemp and Manny Ramirez more than once. Both made huge base running blunders last night (Kemp being picked off second and Ramirez failing to score from first base on a two out double by Kemp). Who do these guys think there are; Juan Rivera?

Speaking of Rivera – here’s another great thing about baseball. Two nights ago, Rivera was on the verge of being a goat and one day later, he’s a hero. Go figure. Go Halos.

Anyway, when the third inning ended last night, I felt pretty good about the fact that the Angels had only given up one run.

I feel extra good today knowing the Angels will have won both series' from the Dodgers this year. Why? Other than the obvious reason of just enjoying a win of any kind there's also this... You know the saying “there’s no free lunch?” Not true. My colleague at work Joe will be buying me lunch for the second time this season. You se Joe’s a Dodger fan and well... you can probably figure out the rest.

I only wish I had bet Joe on each game. I’d have five free lunches instead of two and possibly six depending on how things go tonight.

I have to admit, I have been giving it to Joe pretty good lately. I’ve been throwing little “fun facts” at Joe all season. Earlier when the Dodgers were on pace to lose 100 games I used that "fun fact" as a way of needling the guy. He’s been a good sport about it all and I know there may be a day when he’ll be returning the favor (at least he hopes so). It’s all in fun, as it should be.

That’s baseball and that’s part of the joy of being a fan.

When you think about it, those of us living in Southern California have a unique thing going. A lot of us Angel and Dodger fans work together and/or live near one another. It makes for some interesting times. It’s totally different than living in an area where your baseball team is the only team around for hundreds of miles.

I like it this way. Most Dodger fans – those who have grown up watching and loving the Blue Crew are good baseball fans. I like having them around even more when we Angel fans have bragging rights.

As we were leaving the stadium last night – some Dodger fans were openly whining about the bad calls in the game. For them, I simply have this: