Jet lag 1, beat writer 0 (* updated)
Dodgers manager Grady Little chats with MLB.com's Ken Gurnick in the dugout at Shea Stadium, while off to the right the road trip to New York catches up to Tony Jackson, the Dodgers' beat writer for the L.A. Daily News. Jackson's nap made it on to the Dodgers' PR blog, where presumably Josh Rawitch posts, "It was one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time and had to share it with all of you. The strange thing is, this was on our first day in town, so we can't blame New York. Though I have to admit, I feel this morning like Tony looks in the photo."
The Dodgers pulled out two of four from the Mets this weekend, getting improbable wins from major league-debut starters Hong-Chih Kuo and Eric Stults while losing the games pitched by veterans Greg Maddux and Brad Penny. The latter pitcher's struggles, in particular, pose a problem for the Dodgers' playoff hopes. Penny hasn't pitched well since starting for the National League in the All Star game. The Dodgers now head to Chicago leading the West by two games pending the Padres game at San Francisco Sunday evening. Jon Weisman at Dodger Thoughts analyzes the split and the Dodgers' future of Nomar Garciaparra, who has been hitting more like Cesar Izturis than a first baseman since the All Star break.
* Monday update: The photo has been taken down from the Dodgers' blog, without explanation.