May 31, 2010, 10:34 p.m. One at least. Yours truly. I doubt I'm alone in the thinking, but as an L.A. man who puts the Dodgers above all else, I'm jealous of the basketball team. I'm jealous of the fan attention – bandwagon or no – I'm jealous of the media attention, and it bugs me that when I venture out to watch a game at dinner, every last set is tuned to TNT, rather than Prime or 9. Even on a night with only an Eastern Conference contest on the docket, baseball is the raggedy-Ann stepchild to a Lakers-crazed city. Irks me no end. Look, I love the Lakers, and I'm rooting for yet another Finals victory, but I'm jealous of the team's success; the success I crave for the Dodgers to achieve. As a Lakers fan, 1972 meant the world to me, and it pretty much squelched the longing. Finally beating the Celtics in 1985 was heartening too, and yes, I enjoyed the other eight championships in Los Angeles. But there have been so many, and the team is just so good and the organization so well-oiled so much of the time, it's difficult to keep the feeling fresh. It's not that winning gets old…well, maybe it is to a degree. Seeing the lame car flags around town again doesn't help any either. Ten Lakers rings in L.A. to five for the Dodgers, plus 22 years apart and counting. And I am so jealous. I still maintain that one Dodgers World Series triumph could and would turn the town completely blue, and that a couple would leave the Lakers in the dust, but the prospect of such an occurrence just seems so remote. I'm jealous of the Philadelphia Phillies as well, and not only because of the back-to-back NLCS wins and their 2008 championship, as if that's not enough. I'm jealous of their getting Cliff Lee last year and Roy Halladay this, and with seemingly very little resistance. Halladay, already god-like in his first act with the Phils, puts that effort to shame with a perfect game Saturday? Are you kidding me? I want that here, for my team. I'm jealous, and I want the Dodgers jealous too. I want them to ache for a Lakers-like reputation and a Philly-like run of winning as much as I. And I want them to do something about it. Last week we discussed Roy Oswalt, and I stand by my assessment of his acquisition being possible. I get that Cliff Lee will come cheaper in salary, and probably more expensive in human treasure, but will not split hairs. These are two great pitchers we're talking about here. Great, great, great pitchers, either of whom will make L.A. almost unimaginably better, and equally as ring-worthy. Absolutely, positively, guaranteed. I don't care which, I just want one of them here, and I don't care what it cost. They deserve it. I deserve it. You deserve it. Los Angeles deserves it… Talkback: Your comments are always encouraged… Last Add, Jealous: OK, I do care what it costs. I want the Dodgers to be smart, obviously. But I don't want excuses, and I really don't want a lack of initiative. Trades may be difficult, but there are always ways. Not for those who sit on their hands, however. But for those who really and truly want it, for the jealous, there are ways… Look-Alikes: Not sure which man will be the more insulted, so sorry guys, but Mickey Rourke (primarily in "Iron Man 2") and Manny Ramirez… Baseball Celebrations: It's too bad about Kendry Morales, and sure, an injury during a post-game celebration is something many of us have worried about before, but this was more a klutzy slip-and-fall accident than anything else, the kind of thing only a left-hander could muster. Morales landed awkwardly, but it was pretty much his own fault, not the cause of a bunch of careless co-workers doing him in. I haven't seen anything like what happened in Anaheim before, thankfully, but a couple of other game-winners come to mind. We've all seen the Kirk Gibson play a million times, but as you watch again, recall the oh-so-careful patting on the back by third base coach, Joe Amalfatano, as the hero rounds third, and the way Steve Sax clears a path, to allow the gimpy Gibby easy access to home plate. We're not going to show the Dave Dravecky videos, one of him breaking his arm while throwing a pitch in 1988, the other re-breaking it in aftermath of the pennant clincher, with the Giants beating the Cubs in the 1989 NLCS. He had beaten cancer twice, and while these two-decade-old incidents are still quite sad, Dravecky has done well since then, and continues to inspire. If you don't know the story, or to learn more, please visit DaveDravecky.com. Or if you're in the neighborhood, Dravecky will appear at a Fresno Grizzles game, July 16… Media Savvy: Neat piece about Christy Mathewson one-man-show performer Eddie Frierson, by Jerry Crowe in this morning's LAT… Statue for Sandy: The Koufax in bronze campaign continues. Please Vote “Yes on 32.” And tell a friend… Remember, glove conquers all….
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