How the columnist may soften from online to newsprint

       From the online column headline at midnight "Chase Utley's slide was late, high and arguably dirty" to the morning headline when the L.A. Times was delivered at home "Utley's hard slide at second base is borderline legal, but it might be a season saver" is an alteration of tone to match the piece's changes themselves in Bill Plaschke's sports column. 

       Overnight worries about arousing New York City readers before Monday's third game of the National League Divisional Series by an L.A. paper admitting that dirty work had been afoot?    Maybe editorial or columnist concern that L.A. fans would think the piece "too" honest and judgmental on what the fans wanted to celebrate, a gutsy play that led to a victory.

       Possibly also, just a reconsideration of the piece after a first blush of rapid columnizing.  Plaschke is not afraid to make ethical judgments and has often been a conscience for sports in L.A., but he may have seen his piece as a little unbalanced or unfair to the home team, especially after 27 years without a World Series appearance.

       "It was awful, it was ugly, but the Dodgers scored the tying run on the play" appears online at night but is absent in morning at home.

       An added print ending that wasn't online summoned Tommy Lasorda's shouted admonition to the fans after tossing out the first pitch, "We gotta win tonight" and reminded morning readers that the Dodgers won "in a style that the tough Lasorda surely loved."