Until 1955, the Brooklyn Dodgers had gone through a long series of near-misses at World Series glory, coming close but not close enough. It became a running theme and spawned a team slogan: “Wait ’til next year!” Next year finally did show up, but it...

After last night’s ninth-inning derailment, I was just about ready to give up on baseball. Well, not really, but it felt like it for a few minutes. That was a gut punch if ever there was one, or indeed a heartbreak. Funny how dealing with such big...

No offense to the Phillies, but they didn’t beat us. We beat ourselves. I’m sure I’ll be able to manage some sort of reasoned, well-thought-out response tomorrow. But right now, one word pretty much covers it: Heartbreak.

Thanks to Larry Harnisch of the LA Times and The Daily Mirror blog for hosting lunch this afternoon at the always-tasty Philippe’s restaurant. We had a great time talking Los Angeles history, including our various theories on the true origins of the...

Following up on the recent Steve Lopez post, “How to generate hits in these troubled times”, Lopez announced his tickets were going to be awarded to a local firefighter. Of course. The winning entry: “Dear Manny,” wrote Richard MacPhee, “I am a...