Unless my work schedule changes in the next few hours, I’m not likely to get a chance to catch up with Thursday night’s Dodger debacle in a timely, detailed manner. I’m disappointed withGame Two‘s result, of course, and hold myself to blame for years of trash-talking Cardinals catcher Mike Matheny (career OPS .629), who drove in four runs (that weak-hitting SOB probably drowns kittens in his spare time).

After consecutive 8-3 drubbings, there’s not much else to say except that this isn’t too far off what I expected. But the night’s outcome certainly could have been different. The Dodgers’ celebrated defense let them down, with both shorttop Cesar Izturis and second baseman Alex Cora, as good with the leather as any keystone combo you’ll find, failing to prevent key singles. Shawn Green dropped a pickoff throw from Jeff Weaver. Milton Bradley misplayed three balls that helped St. Louis score runs. And the pitching certainly could have been handled differently. Jon Weisman points to Jim Tracy sticking with Jeff Weaver in the fifth, when the bases were loaded with two outs and the Dodgers trailed 4-3:

…in a must-win situation, already down by a run, if you have a fresher, better option than Weaver – particularly with his spot due up in the top of the sixth inning – you have to take it.

I don’t like to second-guess Jim Tracy, but this one seemed obvious to me. He potentially needed only 13 outs to close out the game, most of which could be taken by rested Eric Gagne and Yhency Brazoban. That left Duaner Sanchez, Wilson Alvarez and Giovanni Carrara, all fresh, to go after St. Louis catcher Mike Matheny.

Heck, why not bring in Gagne right then. Did you need a bigger moment?

Baseball Prospectus’s Joe Sheehan got to the heart of the problem on the other side of the ball in his column today:

Blown opportunities didn’t turn out so well for the Dodgers, who might have scored 11 runs in the first four innings last night with some better distribution of their actions. As it was, though, they hit three solo home runs while stranding seven runners in the first four innings.

Sometimes, you can see the moment when a dream dies. With the Dodgers having tied the game at three in the fourth, and having chased Jason Marquis from the mound, they were one pitch away from taking the lead and bringing Adrian Beltre to the plate. In relief of Marquis, Cal Eldred had walked consecutive batters and gone to a 3-0 count on Steve Finley with the bases loaded.

Eldred got a fastball over for a strike, with Finley taking all the way. Finley then overswung at the 3-1 fastball, perhaps the key moment in the series. He then popped up a well-placed heater on the 3-2 pitch, ending the threat. The Cardinals picked up three runs in the bottom of the fifth, the Dodgers were shut out the rest of the way, and the series likely came to an end.

My poor Dodger cap took quite a beating, especially as I watched Weaver and the defense unravel. To answer the Weaver/Kevin Brown question — who would you rather have in October — more authoritatively: until I see Brown pitch like the bastard in the catalog, I’ll offer up the great Abe Lincoln quote which my pal Steven Goldman used a few weeks ago: “If this is tea, please bring me some coffee, but if this is coffee, please bring me some tea.” Weaver wasn’t so hot last night, but he should have gotten better support on offense, on defense, and from the dugout. I wish Brown better luck.

I question whether Bradley should have been in the lineup last night. After his second recent high-profile outburst (one with considerably different circumstances from the on-field incident) the day before, he looked simply lost in the field. But he did hit one 461 feet, and poked a double as well, providing a good chunk of the Dodger offense. Like everything else with Bradley, I take the ups with the downs and hope this talented, intelligent player gets his shit together. But man, his timing needs work.

I’m not ready to shovel dirt on the Dodgers just yet. Even down 2-0, they’re headed back to L.A., where they played better than .600 ball this year. But the same things I just said about Bradley apply to the rest of them: they need to get their shit together, and their timing needs work.