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• Grants to help fix up homes

• Two challengers seek change in North San Joaquin water agency

• Groundwater jargon tough to soak in

• Flu shots recommended for all

• 'Mean-spirited vandalism'

• Regional Roundup

November 2nd, 2009

• Deputies name suspect in fatal Acampo shooting

November 7th, 2009

• Lodi High graduate was at Fort Hood

• Lining up for flu shots in Lodi

• Tour packs buses as birdwatchers admire Sandhill cranes

• City of Lodi staff looking into possibility of limiting number of taco trucks

• Daytime thieves targeting Lodi homes

• Lodi High School rally featured on 'Good Day Sacramento'

• Out of control

• Homicide suspect Anthony Hubbard arraigned

• Regional Roundup

• New Lodi Memorial rule to combat spread of H1N1: Visitors must be older than 16

November 6th, 2009

• Short sales make up nearly half of Lodi market

• Regional Roundup

• Lodi man accused of smuggling drugs, weapons for inmates at state prison

• 'I-5 Strangler' sentenced to 6 terms of life

• Jury convicts Acampo man of torture, assault of his girlfriend

• Young girl is 200,000th person to assemble AIDS, HIV care kit

• Woman in wheelchair struck by car

November 5th, 2009

• A lower Lodi Lake

• Streetside scarecrows

• San Joaquin County considers moratorium on new Williamson Act contracts

• Speakers address Lodi Unified School District budget shortfalls, plea to keep programs

• Armed robbers still targeting Lodi shops

• Regional Roundup

• California voters have final say over $11 billion water bond

• Weekend bus service to continue until Lodi City Council makes decision

• Paul Tebbel shines spotlight on sandhill cranes

• Your complete guide to Sandhill Crane Festival

• David Diskin is first to give an invocation under new city of Lodi policy

• Man wanted in Acampo homicide gives up to San Joaquin County Sheriff's detectives

November 4th, 2009

• Candle fire

• Rep. Jerry McNerney sets telephone town hall for Thursday

• Jason Behrmann is unanimously named Galt's city manager

• Regional Roundup

• Galt City Council argues over ordinance hiring residents

• San Joaquin County sues state over prison hospital planned for Stockton

• Big win for Allen Baroni in reclamation election

• California sends Democratic loyalist John Garamendi to Congress

• Bicycling father raising awareness of teen suicide

• Lodi City Council weighs raising fares to restore some bus service

November 3rd, 2009

• 500 attend service for Kyle Coumas

• Correction

• Galt considers ordinance that would require city contractors to hire locally

• Regional Roundup

• Have you seen a missing guide dog puppy in Lodi?

• Galt man dies after weekend Highway 12 crash

• Jason Behrmann is top candidate for Galt city manager

• Deputies name suspect in fatal Acampo shooting

• Clarification

November 2nd, 2009

• Downtown Lodi trick or treat

• Public Meetings

• Correction

• Kyle Coumas funeral today

• 27-year-old man shot to death Saturday night in front of Acampo home

• Regional Roundup

• Group investigates reports of haunting

• Sandhill Cranes Festival comes to Lodi next weekend

• Lamborghini lovers gather for show, fine wine, luncheon in Woodbridge

• Lodi's 'Biggest Loser' Christy Richesin runs 5K Halloween race

The following stories have received the most reader comments during the last 7 days.

• Bible is entwined with American civic life (135)
• I predict: A conservative tide will rise in 2010 (73)
• David Diskin is first to give an invocation under new city of Lodi policy (70)
• The Treaty of Tripoli hoax (60)
• Universal health care solves big problems (54)
• Here's what my father knew about the assassination of JFK (35)
• Stuck in neutral? Hardly! (35)
• Words from our forefathers (27)
• City of Lodi staff looking into possibility of limiting number of taco trucks (24)
• Majority cannot deprive the minority (24)

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Perfect timing

Trade to Tampa lands Lodi's Jason Bartlett in MLB playoffs

Coming into Major League Baseball and joining a perennial playoff contender is a rookie's dream come true. Such was the case when Lodi's Jason Bartlett entered the big leagues with the Minnesota Twins in 2004.

The 1997 St. Mary's graduate was getting playing time at shortstop and even got into the postseason in 2006.

But after the 2007 season, Bartlett was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays — a 1998 expansion team nearly always at the bottom of the American League East. The Rays had never even won more than 70 games in a season through last year.

Serendipity struck Bartlett this year however, as the 28-year-old is heading to the postseason with the story-book Rays and the Twins are headed home after losing a one-game playoff against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday.

Attempts to reach Bartlett this week were unsuccessful.

Bartlett and the young Rays have turned the franchise around and now the AL East Champions will begin their quest to reach the World Series today in Game 1 of the American League Division Series against the White Sox.

Bartlett is slated to start at shortstop and bat ninth for the Rays. Bartlett is batting .286 on the season with 37 RBIs, 20 stolen bases and one homer. However, Bartlett's big contribution this year has come on defense.

After leading all MLB shortstops with 26 errors in 2007, Bartlett has cleaned it up this year, recording only 16. The change in his play was so significant, that he was voted Tampa Bay's Most Valuable Player by the local chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America, according to MLB.com.

Bartlett is one of eight Rays who brings postseason experience to the Rays, as he played in three playoff games in 2006 when the Twins were swept by the A's in the ALDS. In that series, Bartlett had three hits, including a double, in 11 at-bats. Going into today's game, his postseason batting average is .273.

When the players take the diamond today for the first game in the best-of-five series, Bartlett and the Rays will be looking for the same thing: Their first playoff victory.