The Los Angeles Dodgers added manager Joe Torre who was not happy with the Yankees as he was not offered more then a 1 year extension on his contract. With the Dodgers having young talent it was not thought they would even have a chance to make it to the playoffs. Then the Dodgers added third baseman Casey Blake who came from the Cleveland Indians in a trade where they just traded away a couple minor league players. Already in the short time Casey Blake has come to the LA Dodgers he has made a big impact. In the 18 games Casey Blake has played so far as a Dodger he is batting .275 and has 9 RBI's with 3 home runs and 19 hits with just 69 at bats. Far better then any third baseman the Dodgers have had this season.

The Los Angeles Dodgers didn't stop there acquired Manny Ramirez future hall of famer and a 7 time All-Star just before the baseball trade deadline in a 3 way deal where the Boston Red Sox acruired jason Bay and a minor league infielder. The Pirates got Dodgers infielder Andy Larouche and Dodgers minor league player Bryan Morris and the Pirates got Brandon Moss and Craig Hanson from the Red Sox. As of this writing of this article Manny Ramirez has played 12 games with a Dodgers batting average of .467 with 5 home runs and 16 RBI's and 21 hits with just 45 at bats. It seems the Dodgers are a revived team them seem more happy in the dugout with the presence of Manny Ramirez there. Dodger fans having been lining up to get there Los Angeles Dodgers tickets to see Manny Ramirez play. The day Manny Ramirez played his first game as a Dodger they set a Dodgers franchise record by selling the most amount of Dodgers tickets the day of the game. One thing is for sure Dodger Fans have Manny fever fans are even buying Dodger caps with dreadlocks in beaded in the caps. Dodger fans have not been this crazy about a baseball player since the days of Fernando mania with Fernando Valenzuela.

The Dodgers young talent has been looking good as well with Matt Kemp leading the Dodgers with a 2.99 batting AVG and with home runs with 13. James Loney is leading the Dodgers in RBI's with 69. Russel Martin is leading the LA Dodgers in OBP with .390. Chad Billingsley has been a great suprise leading the Dodgers in wins with 11 and leading the Dodgers in ERA with a 3.07 ERA and Chad Billingsley is even leading the Dodgers in strikeouts with 157 so far this season.

This looks to be just what the Dodgers needed. The Los Angeles Dodgers look to have a great chance to make it into the playoffs and maybe even the world series we have to see. As of August 13th the Dodgers are tied with the Arizona Diamondbacks in the national league west.

People are lining up to buy Los Angeles Dodgers tickets to catch this tight race for the national league pennant.