The Boston Red Sox have turned things up a notch and pummeled the Yankees for the second straight day. Their fifth win in a row brought the Red Sox to just a game and a half behind the stumbling Yankees. The win combined with another loss for the Mariners pushes the Red Sox a game and a half ahead in the wildcard race.
Clearly, the Red Sox are on a mission. And you have to wonder how much that close door meeting with all the players and staff had to do with the current streak. The Red Sox were stumbling. Manny Ramirez wasn't playing and that led to the meeting where reportedly, the players all got to voice their feelings. Ever since that meeting, the Red Sox haven't lost and their potent offense seemed rekindled. The Yankees, especially with Jeter out, are going to have a tough time to keep the Red Sox behind them.
The Cubs also seem on a mission as Sammy Sosa and his team have won six of their last seven including four in a row. Prior won his fifteenth today despite not having his best stuff and still won. That's the sign of an ace. And Sosa now has 34 homers and 92 RBI. Not bad for a guy who missed a third of the season.
The Phillies also look rejuvenate and have won five in a row. Pat Burrell is starting to hit. Lieberthal is batting for a high average. Thome is hot. The pitching is coming around (word has it the pitchers are finally on the same page as their pitching coach) and bench players like former Yankee, Rickey Ledee, contribute every time they play. The Phillies are now a game up on the Marlins (who won big today) in the wildcard race.
The Dodgers have won seven of their last ten and are only 2.5 back from the Phillies. Meanwhile, the Diamondbacks have fallen on hard times and have lost seven of ten to fall to within two games of a .500 record. The Diamondbacks, Astros and Cardinals are all in danger of falling out of the race.
The Twins and White Sox are both hot and will go head to head down the stretch. Unfortunately for baseball, the Royals are sinking finally after fighting on top or near to it most of the year. Sad...
And finally tonight, my Cy Young Aware nominee, Roy Halliday, matched his career high with nineteen wins with a stunning ten inning 1-0 shutout. His extra inning shutout was the first of its kind since Jack Morris had his career moment in the 1991 World Series. Halliday didn't give up a hit until the eighth inning and only gave up three hits in ten. Loiza has been great, but Halliday is my Cy Young.
Saturday, September 06, 2003
Friday, September 05, 2003
Every day is a battle now and every day features nail-biting action. The Mariners led Baltimore the entire game until the fighting young Orioles tied the game with two outs in the ninth off a closer who hadn't blown a save in the last fourteen attempts. The Orioles then loaded the bases in the tenth but didn't score. The battle continues.
The Cardinals, now fighting for their life led their game 2-1 for most of the game until Isringhausen blew the save in the ninth. The two teams are now battling into the eleventh inning.
The Red Sox combined good pitching by Pedro Martinez and timely hitting from seventeen game winner, Andy Pettitte, to beat the Yankees convincingly in New York. The Red Sox maintain their small lead in the wildcard and pull within two games of the Yankees.
The Phillies won a squeaker from the Mets, 1-0 as Vincente Padilla won his 12th game. New closer and world traveler, Rheal Cormier, recorded his first save in his first chance. The win, combined with a Marlins loss to the Expos, puts the Phillies back on top in the wildcard standings.
The White Sox and the Twins both won to stay tied at the top of the AL Central. The Royals are trying to stay only a game back and are beating the Angels 2-0 in the fifth. The Padres are leading Houston. The Rockies are leading the Dodgers. The Cubbies beat the Brewers with Sammy Sosa's homerun and his 89th and 90th RBI.
While I'm waiting for the finals scores to come down, let's look at the Fan's favorite boxscore players and how they performed for the last seven days:
The Struggling Mariners Core:
Ichiro - 2 for his last 27 (.074)!
Edgar Martinez - 3 for his last 19
Mike Cameron - 2 for his last 19
The Reds just scored two runs in the top of the 12th to take a 4-2 lead over the Cardinals. Instrumental in the rally was Wily Mo Pena, of all people.
The future great Rangers:
Hank Blalock. 10 for 21 (.476!) with 3 doubles, 2 homers and 6 runs scored
Mark Teixeira. 14 for 25 (.560!!) with 4 doubles, a triple and 3 homers to account for 9 RBI!
Michael Young. 5 for 25 (.200) with 3 doubles, a homer and 3 runs scored.
Laynce Nix. 4 for 13 (.308) with 2 homers and 7 RBI.
Others:
Karim Garcia. 6 for 14 (.429) with 3 RBI.
Nick Johnson. 9 for 22 (.406) with a .511 OBP and 6 RBI.
Melvin Mora. 4 for 11 (.364) with 2 runs scored. He can still win the batting race with enough AB's
Rocco Baldelli. (steady each week) 7 for 24 (.292) 2 RBI and 4 runs scored. BUT also, 8 K's
Coco Crisp. A crisp 13 for 30 (.433) with 4 runs scored, 2 RBI and 4 stolen bases.
Pat Burrell. A good week! 7 for 24 (.292) with 2 doubles, a homer and 5 RBI
Miguel Cabrera. 2 for 24 Ugh! (.083) with 10 strikeouts!
Bo Hart. 3 for 11 (.273) with 2 doubles and 2 runs scored.
Scott Podsednik. 8 for 24 (.333) with a double and 6 runs scored.
Sean Burroughs (now batting leadoff). 7 for 24 (.304) with a double and 4 runs scored.
Well, good new for Mariners' fans as they pulled out the win in 13 innings. Bad news for Cardinal fans as the Reds came on to win that game 4-2 in 12 innings. The Dodgers have come from behind to go ahead of the Rockies. The Royals are up 5-0 in the 8th and the Astros have come back to lead the Padres, 5-4.
The Cardinals, now fighting for their life led their game 2-1 for most of the game until Isringhausen blew the save in the ninth. The two teams are now battling into the eleventh inning.
The Red Sox combined good pitching by Pedro Martinez and timely hitting from seventeen game winner, Andy Pettitte, to beat the Yankees convincingly in New York. The Red Sox maintain their small lead in the wildcard and pull within two games of the Yankees.
The Phillies won a squeaker from the Mets, 1-0 as Vincente Padilla won his 12th game. New closer and world traveler, Rheal Cormier, recorded his first save in his first chance. The win, combined with a Marlins loss to the Expos, puts the Phillies back on top in the wildcard standings.
The White Sox and the Twins both won to stay tied at the top of the AL Central. The Royals are trying to stay only a game back and are beating the Angels 2-0 in the fifth. The Padres are leading Houston. The Rockies are leading the Dodgers. The Cubbies beat the Brewers with Sammy Sosa's homerun and his 89th and 90th RBI.
While I'm waiting for the finals scores to come down, let's look at the Fan's favorite boxscore players and how they performed for the last seven days:
The Struggling Mariners Core:
Ichiro - 2 for his last 27 (.074)!
Edgar Martinez - 3 for his last 19
Mike Cameron - 2 for his last 19
The Reds just scored two runs in the top of the 12th to take a 4-2 lead over the Cardinals. Instrumental in the rally was Wily Mo Pena, of all people.
The future great Rangers:
Hank Blalock. 10 for 21 (.476!) with 3 doubles, 2 homers and 6 runs scored
Mark Teixeira. 14 for 25 (.560!!) with 4 doubles, a triple and 3 homers to account for 9 RBI!
Michael Young. 5 for 25 (.200) with 3 doubles, a homer and 3 runs scored.
Laynce Nix. 4 for 13 (.308) with 2 homers and 7 RBI.
Others:
Karim Garcia. 6 for 14 (.429) with 3 RBI.
Nick Johnson. 9 for 22 (.406) with a .511 OBP and 6 RBI.
Melvin Mora. 4 for 11 (.364) with 2 runs scored. He can still win the batting race with enough AB's
Rocco Baldelli. (steady each week) 7 for 24 (.292) 2 RBI and 4 runs scored. BUT also, 8 K's
Coco Crisp. A crisp 13 for 30 (.433) with 4 runs scored, 2 RBI and 4 stolen bases.
Pat Burrell. A good week! 7 for 24 (.292) with 2 doubles, a homer and 5 RBI
Miguel Cabrera. 2 for 24 Ugh! (.083) with 10 strikeouts!
Bo Hart. 3 for 11 (.273) with 2 doubles and 2 runs scored.
Scott Podsednik. 8 for 24 (.333) with a double and 6 runs scored.
Sean Burroughs (now batting leadoff). 7 for 24 (.304) with a double and 4 runs scored.
Well, good new for Mariners' fans as they pulled out the win in 13 innings. Bad news for Cardinal fans as the Reds came on to win that game 4-2 in 12 innings. The Dodgers have come from behind to go ahead of the Rockies. The Royals are up 5-0 in the 8th and the Astros have come back to lead the Padres, 5-4.
Thursday, September 04, 2003
Driving home from work today, the Fan saw a few maple trees have already started turning their colors. The Jets and Redskins started the NFL season tonight on ABC and I didn't wear shorts for the first time since early July. These sure signs that summer has waned and Fall is knocking on the door means the climax of the Major League Baseball season is building. And the signs there are strong for an amazing climax.
In the American League, the climax will settle which of the Yankees, Red Sox, A's, Mariners, White Sox, Royals or Twins will be among the final four teams standing.
The National League climax will discern which of the Cubs, Cardinals, Astros, Dodgers, Braves, Giants, Diamondbacks, Marlins or Phillies will make the final four. Two will be the Braves and Giants which leaves seven teams fighting for the other two spots.
But it doesn't end there. The Cy Young races are wide open as are the Rookie of the Year races. The AL batting race has no clear cut favorite. Thome and Bonds will go down to the wire for the homerun race.
And the National League batting race has gotten interesting. Pujols and Helton are only .009 points separated with Pujols still maintaining the lead. Surprisingly, the top AL hitter is batting .322. That is low and seems to be part of a trend. In the 2000 season, both Todd Helton and Nomar Garciaparra batted .372 to lead their respective leagues. That year there were five players who batted over .350.
A year later, in the 2001 season, there were only two batters at .350: Larry Walker and Ichiro Suzuki. Last year, only Barry Bonds batted over .350 for the season. Manny Ramirez won the AL batting title at .349.
In the middle of a pennant race, a star player should never get thrown out of the game except for totally unacceptable behavior. The umpiring in the Cubs/Cardinals series has been abominable and neither Moises Alou nor Sammy Sosa argued strenuously to deserve getting thrown out of the game. The umpires are out of control and have become the story in these tight series. Umpiring should NEVER be the story. They are far too combative and provoke as many arguments as they avoid.
In the American League, the climax will settle which of the Yankees, Red Sox, A's, Mariners, White Sox, Royals or Twins will be among the final four teams standing.
The National League climax will discern which of the Cubs, Cardinals, Astros, Dodgers, Braves, Giants, Diamondbacks, Marlins or Phillies will make the final four. Two will be the Braves and Giants which leaves seven teams fighting for the other two spots.
But it doesn't end there. The Cy Young races are wide open as are the Rookie of the Year races. The AL batting race has no clear cut favorite. Thome and Bonds will go down to the wire for the homerun race.
And the National League batting race has gotten interesting. Pujols and Helton are only .009 points separated with Pujols still maintaining the lead. Surprisingly, the top AL hitter is batting .322. That is low and seems to be part of a trend. In the 2000 season, both Todd Helton and Nomar Garciaparra batted .372 to lead their respective leagues. That year there were five players who batted over .350.
A year later, in the 2001 season, there were only two batters at .350: Larry Walker and Ichiro Suzuki. Last year, only Barry Bonds batted over .350 for the season. Manny Ramirez won the AL batting title at .349.
In the middle of a pennant race, a star player should never get thrown out of the game except for totally unacceptable behavior. The umpiring in the Cubs/Cardinals series has been abominable and neither Moises Alou nor Sammy Sosa argued strenuously to deserve getting thrown out of the game. The umpires are out of control and have become the story in these tight series. Umpiring should NEVER be the story. They are far too combative and provoke as many arguments as they avoid.
Wednesday, September 03, 2003
The old Yankee Stadium had one unfortunate feature that was rectified by the renovation of the 70's. If you did not carefully look at your tickets and at the map of the stadium found on their yearbook, you could have found yourself behind this huge girder holding up the upper decks. If that was your fate, all you saw was a third of the field. And there was no scoreboard replays in those days.
Last night was a girder night with the Fan's blog site. I tried for hours to get here and could not. I apologize for not making it here if you happened to stop by. And it's been a couple of exciting nights in baseball.
Now that MLB has hit September, the games get more important and more contentious. The Cubs and Cardinals featured beanballs and two managers shouting at each other. In between was a terrific game which Moises Alou used as his catharsis from last night's latest umpire debacle. Last night, Alou and others got thrown out of an important game because another umpire missed an obvious call as replays clearly showed chalk flying on an extra base attempt by Alou called foul by the third base umpire.
Tonight, Alou blasted the umpiring in general (for which I add my vote) before the game and took out his frustration on the Cardinals with five hits, including the game winner. The performance and the game kept the Cubs in the race after almost being counted out.
One area of concern for the Cubs is the persistent .500 record for Kerry Wood. The man has lights out stuff and is nearly impossible to hit. Major League batters are only batting .207 for the season and he has struck out 228 batters in 182 innings. His problem, and the reason for his 3.56 ERA is the base on balls. Wood has walked three batters per start this year and if you follow the statistic I heard recently where 50% of all bases on balls score, that would account for half of Wood's ERA. If he could cut his walks from 4.4 walks per nine innings to 2.4, he would be unstoppable. Mark Prior has walked half as many batters as Wood in nearly as many innings.
The Red Sox also had an exciting game as they blew a one run lead in the eighth as Mike Timlin gave up another homer. But the Sox hung tough and threw another runner out at the plate to extend the game. In the tenth inning, David Ortiz, who is rapidly approaching MVP type credentials, hit his second homerun of the game to win it for the Red Sox.
The Red Sox victory over the White Sox allowed the Twins to tie them for the division lead as the Twins scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth on a terrible play at the plate that cost the Angels the game and Benji Molina a season as he broke his wrist on the play.
The Royals also won to climb to within a game of the two leaders. All three teams have 66 losses in that all important column. The Royals looked like they were going to fold but manager, Tony Pena, is not going to let them quit and they are going to hang around at least a while longer.
The Mets swept the Braves as they are another young team playing good baseball. The Mets, Rangers, Devil Rays, Pirates, Padres and Brewers are all playing good baseball and will not be easy wins down the stretch for the contenders.
And on a final note, the Orioles have been one of the best offensive teams in the game and though they traded Conine away, still should have had enough fire power to win their share of games. But their offense went silent for two weeks and they lost a ton of games along the way.
Tonight the Orioles broke out of it with a 9-0 win tonight over the high flying A's. Is it a coincidence that the O's found their offense as Melvin Mora got back in the lineup after a long injury? The Fan does not believe in coincidences and Mora was a big cog in that offense as he is having a breakout year.
Watch out for this team next year if they get a couple of pitchers and one more good bat. Jay Gibbons is blossoming into a star and already has 91 RBI this season. After a long darkness, the Orioles are another team on the rise.
Last night was a girder night with the Fan's blog site. I tried for hours to get here and could not. I apologize for not making it here if you happened to stop by. And it's been a couple of exciting nights in baseball.
Now that MLB has hit September, the games get more important and more contentious. The Cubs and Cardinals featured beanballs and two managers shouting at each other. In between was a terrific game which Moises Alou used as his catharsis from last night's latest umpire debacle. Last night, Alou and others got thrown out of an important game because another umpire missed an obvious call as replays clearly showed chalk flying on an extra base attempt by Alou called foul by the third base umpire.
Tonight, Alou blasted the umpiring in general (for which I add my vote) before the game and took out his frustration on the Cardinals with five hits, including the game winner. The performance and the game kept the Cubs in the race after almost being counted out.
One area of concern for the Cubs is the persistent .500 record for Kerry Wood. The man has lights out stuff and is nearly impossible to hit. Major League batters are only batting .207 for the season and he has struck out 228 batters in 182 innings. His problem, and the reason for his 3.56 ERA is the base on balls. Wood has walked three batters per start this year and if you follow the statistic I heard recently where 50% of all bases on balls score, that would account for half of Wood's ERA. If he could cut his walks from 4.4 walks per nine innings to 2.4, he would be unstoppable. Mark Prior has walked half as many batters as Wood in nearly as many innings.
The Red Sox also had an exciting game as they blew a one run lead in the eighth as Mike Timlin gave up another homer. But the Sox hung tough and threw another runner out at the plate to extend the game. In the tenth inning, David Ortiz, who is rapidly approaching MVP type credentials, hit his second homerun of the game to win it for the Red Sox.
The Red Sox victory over the White Sox allowed the Twins to tie them for the division lead as the Twins scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth on a terrible play at the plate that cost the Angels the game and Benji Molina a season as he broke his wrist on the play.
The Royals also won to climb to within a game of the two leaders. All three teams have 66 losses in that all important column. The Royals looked like they were going to fold but manager, Tony Pena, is not going to let them quit and they are going to hang around at least a while longer.
The Mets swept the Braves as they are another young team playing good baseball. The Mets, Rangers, Devil Rays, Pirates, Padres and Brewers are all playing good baseball and will not be easy wins down the stretch for the contenders.
And on a final note, the Orioles have been one of the best offensive teams in the game and though they traded Conine away, still should have had enough fire power to win their share of games. But their offense went silent for two weeks and they lost a ton of games along the way.
Tonight the Orioles broke out of it with a 9-0 win tonight over the high flying A's. Is it a coincidence that the O's found their offense as Melvin Mora got back in the lineup after a long injury? The Fan does not believe in coincidences and Mora was a big cog in that offense as he is having a breakout year.
Watch out for this team next year if they get a couple of pitchers and one more good bat. Jay Gibbons is blossoming into a star and already has 91 RBI this season. After a long darkness, the Orioles are another team on the rise.
Monday, September 01, 2003
There were four major MLB stories today...well...three and one is still going: The Red Sox scored six runs in the ninth to beat the Phillies. The Marlins took over first place in the wildcard race as newcomer/old friend, Jeff Conine, drove in a run. Barry Bonds came out of the hospital to beat the Diamondbacks. And still in progress: The struggling Cubs and ace, Mark Prior, are dominating the division leading Cardinals.
The Red Sox looked down and out after the Yankee series, an emotional series that featured the Yankees dashing the hopes of the Sox gaining ground on the AL East. And the Yankees did so with Roger Clemens stuck firmly in the franchise craw. New acquisition, Jeff Suppon, was on the mound and he had not helped the Red Sox very much since his arrival.
Suppon gave up six quick runs but stayed in the game and gave the Sox a chance to climb back to a one run deficit, 6-5. The Sox then score twice in the eighth to go up by a run but Mike Timlin gave that back in the bottom of the eight plus two more runs and the Sox were down to their last three outs trailing 9-7.
The Red Sox exploded off of the woeful Jose Mesa which started when Lou Merloni, the Mayor of Boston, beat out an infield single with the bases loaded to get the Sox within one. Trot Nixon finished the inning off with a grand slam off Turk Wendell (who has, despite a good year, given up an astounding number of game winning homers). Final score: 13-9.
The game meant two things. First, it meant that the Red Sox are not finished and have a lot of character and secondly, the game showed that the Phillies are not armed to win a playoff spot. Larry Bowa cannot find the combination in the bullpen to win games and that fact will sink this team.
The Cubs have been in the same danger as the Phillies of falling out of the race. The day started with the Cubs having fallen to two games behind the Cardinals and four games behind in the wildcard race. Their season record sunk in the process to only three games above .500. The game today against the Cardinals, and this series, really is pivotal for the team.
The Cubs sent Mark Prior to the mound (yes, this story is now finished too) and not only did Prior have his fifth straight amazing outing to up his record to 13-5 and have eight shutout innings lowered his ERA to 2.47, he also went two for three at the plate with a run scored and an RBI. It is clear that without Prior, the Cubs would be under .500 for the season.
As mentioned, Prior has had five terrific outings since he came back from the fluke accident suffered when running the bases. Since returning from that outing, Prior has pitched 39 innings while giving up only three runs (a 1.44 ERA). During that streak he has had two complete game victories with a phenomenal 35 to 4 strikeout to walk ratio.
Prior is now 19-11 in his young MLB career with 332 strikeouts in only 284 innings. He is clearly the best young pitcher in baseball.
Between Barry Bonds emotional roller coaster with his father's illness and death and the aftermath of that, Bonds has played four games in the last two weeks. He has hit the game winning hit in each of those games with three of them coming via the homerun. Today, his RBI single in the ninth inning off of Curt Schilling to win the game 2-0 added another page to the glorious story that is Barry Bonds. Much like the Red Sox fans yesterday with Clemens, the world has to give Bonds his due as the best there is and of his time.
And the last big story of the day has to be the Florida Marlins re-taking the wildcard lead in the National League. Remember that this is the team that lost nine of ten to allow the rest of the wildcard contenders to catch up. They broke the losing streak with two wins against a very hot Expos team but lost star third baseman, Mike Lowell to a broken hand.
In contrast to the Marlins story of the last few years, the front office responded and in a perfect and brilliant move, brought Florida's favorite son, Jeff Conine, back home. Conine was this franchise for a long time before he was traded off to Baltimore in a cost cutting move. Conine has long been a real pro and one of the best clutch batters. Only someone of Conine's stature and leadership could have replaced someone like Mike Lowell. It was the perfect move.
And that perfect move paid its first dividends today as Conine went one for three and drove in the first of the Marlins five runs as the Marlins finished a sweep of the Expos. The sweep at home, like the Red Sox, announced that the Marlins were not going down with a whimper and that you better play well because the Marlins are in this thing to win.
The Red Sox looked down and out after the Yankee series, an emotional series that featured the Yankees dashing the hopes of the Sox gaining ground on the AL East. And the Yankees did so with Roger Clemens stuck firmly in the franchise craw. New acquisition, Jeff Suppon, was on the mound and he had not helped the Red Sox very much since his arrival.
Suppon gave up six quick runs but stayed in the game and gave the Sox a chance to climb back to a one run deficit, 6-5. The Sox then score twice in the eighth to go up by a run but Mike Timlin gave that back in the bottom of the eight plus two more runs and the Sox were down to their last three outs trailing 9-7.
The Red Sox exploded off of the woeful Jose Mesa which started when Lou Merloni, the Mayor of Boston, beat out an infield single with the bases loaded to get the Sox within one. Trot Nixon finished the inning off with a grand slam off Turk Wendell (who has, despite a good year, given up an astounding number of game winning homers). Final score: 13-9.
The game meant two things. First, it meant that the Red Sox are not finished and have a lot of character and secondly, the game showed that the Phillies are not armed to win a playoff spot. Larry Bowa cannot find the combination in the bullpen to win games and that fact will sink this team.
The Cubs have been in the same danger as the Phillies of falling out of the race. The day started with the Cubs having fallen to two games behind the Cardinals and four games behind in the wildcard race. Their season record sunk in the process to only three games above .500. The game today against the Cardinals, and this series, really is pivotal for the team.
The Cubs sent Mark Prior to the mound (yes, this story is now finished too) and not only did Prior have his fifth straight amazing outing to up his record to 13-5 and have eight shutout innings lowered his ERA to 2.47, he also went two for three at the plate with a run scored and an RBI. It is clear that without Prior, the Cubs would be under .500 for the season.
As mentioned, Prior has had five terrific outings since he came back from the fluke accident suffered when running the bases. Since returning from that outing, Prior has pitched 39 innings while giving up only three runs (a 1.44 ERA). During that streak he has had two complete game victories with a phenomenal 35 to 4 strikeout to walk ratio.
Prior is now 19-11 in his young MLB career with 332 strikeouts in only 284 innings. He is clearly the best young pitcher in baseball.
Between Barry Bonds emotional roller coaster with his father's illness and death and the aftermath of that, Bonds has played four games in the last two weeks. He has hit the game winning hit in each of those games with three of them coming via the homerun. Today, his RBI single in the ninth inning off of Curt Schilling to win the game 2-0 added another page to the glorious story that is Barry Bonds. Much like the Red Sox fans yesterday with Clemens, the world has to give Bonds his due as the best there is and of his time.
And the last big story of the day has to be the Florida Marlins re-taking the wildcard lead in the National League. Remember that this is the team that lost nine of ten to allow the rest of the wildcard contenders to catch up. They broke the losing streak with two wins against a very hot Expos team but lost star third baseman, Mike Lowell to a broken hand.
In contrast to the Marlins story of the last few years, the front office responded and in a perfect and brilliant move, brought Florida's favorite son, Jeff Conine, back home. Conine was this franchise for a long time before he was traded off to Baltimore in a cost cutting move. Conine has long been a real pro and one of the best clutch batters. Only someone of Conine's stature and leadership could have replaced someone like Mike Lowell. It was the perfect move.
And that perfect move paid its first dividends today as Conine went one for three and drove in the first of the Marlins five runs as the Marlins finished a sweep of the Expos. The sweep at home, like the Red Sox, announced that the Marlins were not going down with a whimper and that you better play well because the Marlins are in this thing to win.
Sunday, August 31, 2003
It was a bittersweet day for Red Sox fans as the arch rival, New York Yankees, defeated their team for the second straight day to take back a commanding five and a half game lead in the AL East division. Even worse, the A's and Mariners both won, thus hurting the wildcard race as well.
But they were defeated by Roger Clemens, making possibly his last appearance as a player in Fenway Park. It was one more chance to see the hero of the '86 Red Sox and the man who holds the Red Sox record for wins in their long franchise history. The game was the last opportunity to see this Hall of Famer who can still pitch as he gets ready to ride out into the sunset. And, as if something in the planets aligned, the win was Roger Clemens' 100th win at Fenway Park.
And so the Red Sox fans did what makes them great fans: When Clemens was pulled from the game in the seventh inning with an 8-2 lead (but with the bases loaded), the Red Sox crowd at Fenway and thousands more who were watching the game like I did, cheered too. Like him or hate him, Clemens has earned his spot in history with hard work and determination. And we were there to see it pay off.
But they were defeated by Roger Clemens, making possibly his last appearance as a player in Fenway Park. It was one more chance to see the hero of the '86 Red Sox and the man who holds the Red Sox record for wins in their long franchise history. The game was the last opportunity to see this Hall of Famer who can still pitch as he gets ready to ride out into the sunset. And, as if something in the planets aligned, the win was Roger Clemens' 100th win at Fenway Park.
And so the Red Sox fans did what makes them great fans: When Clemens was pulled from the game in the seventh inning with an 8-2 lead (but with the bases loaded), the Red Sox crowd at Fenway and thousands more who were watching the game like I did, cheered too. Like him or hate him, Clemens has earned his spot in history with hard work and determination. And we were there to see it pay off.
Saturday, August 30, 2003
It's time to give it up to the Milwaukee Brewers! Winners of twelve of their last fourteen games, the Brewers are an unwelcome sight right now for any contender...just ask the Cubs and the Phillies. And even though the Brewers have lost seventeen more games than they have lost for the season, Milwaukee's Brew Crew is a fun team to follow.
Today saw these Brewers beat up on the Cubs who desperately need to put together a winning streak. Team offensive giant, Richie Sexson went three for four with four RBI to lift his season total to one hundred. Sexson is perceived as this big guy who strikes out a lot and hits a homer once in a while. Let's take a closer look:
Last five year homer totals: 31, 30, 45, 29 and so far 36 this year.
Last five year RBI totals: 116, 91, 125, 102 and 100 so far this year.
Sexson also has a lifetime .271 batting average (and hits there consistently year after year) while increasing his total bases on balls every year for the last five years. This is a good player!
Geoff Jenkins is another great player who just can't seem to shake the injury bug. Jenkins had 28 homers and 95 RBI when he went down again this year with a fractured left thumb.
Another find is rookie leadoff hitter, Scott Podsednik. Podsednik is batting .313 with a fairly good OBP (for a leadoff hitter) of .379. He has stolen 31 bases and has 76 runs scored.
The Brewers have a few good arms in Ben Sheets, Wayne Franklin, Matt Kinney and new closer, Matt Kolb (13 saves with a 2.01 ERA). But my favorite pitcher and story has to be Brooks Kieschnick who had cups of coffee with the Cubs, Reds and Colorado. This year he is a pitcher...a pitcher who regularly pinch hits.
Kieschnick hasn't played the field at all this year but as a batter--mostly as a pinch hitter--has five homers and nine RBI in only 55 at bats. His batting average is .327, his OBP is .383 and has a slugging percentage over .600! What's more, in his first year as a pitcher, he hasn't performed too badly. He's won a game and lost a game and has a 4.76 ERA. Hey, that's lower than Jose Mesa! What a great story.
Speaking of great stories, I almost hesitate to write about Barry Bonds as so much has been written already. But the man has game-winning homers in the last three games he's played and has homered in 24 of the last 27 games he's played. His homer today was off an inside pitch from Randy Johnson that he turned on lightning quick. The man is simply amazing.
After mentioning Randy Johnson, makes me compare him to Pedro Martinez who just don't seem to be themselves. Johnson has a bad knee and is 4-7 on the year. Martinez, after being sick last week, got hammered by the Yankees today. I have a feeling that this series is going to go fifty/fifty for both teams the rest of the way.
Today saw these Brewers beat up on the Cubs who desperately need to put together a winning streak. Team offensive giant, Richie Sexson went three for four with four RBI to lift his season total to one hundred. Sexson is perceived as this big guy who strikes out a lot and hits a homer once in a while. Let's take a closer look:
Last five year homer totals: 31, 30, 45, 29 and so far 36 this year.
Last five year RBI totals: 116, 91, 125, 102 and 100 so far this year.
Sexson also has a lifetime .271 batting average (and hits there consistently year after year) while increasing his total bases on balls every year for the last five years. This is a good player!
Geoff Jenkins is another great player who just can't seem to shake the injury bug. Jenkins had 28 homers and 95 RBI when he went down again this year with a fractured left thumb.
Another find is rookie leadoff hitter, Scott Podsednik. Podsednik is batting .313 with a fairly good OBP (for a leadoff hitter) of .379. He has stolen 31 bases and has 76 runs scored.
The Brewers have a few good arms in Ben Sheets, Wayne Franklin, Matt Kinney and new closer, Matt Kolb (13 saves with a 2.01 ERA). But my favorite pitcher and story has to be Brooks Kieschnick who had cups of coffee with the Cubs, Reds and Colorado. This year he is a pitcher...a pitcher who regularly pinch hits.
Kieschnick hasn't played the field at all this year but as a batter--mostly as a pinch hitter--has five homers and nine RBI in only 55 at bats. His batting average is .327, his OBP is .383 and has a slugging percentage over .600! What's more, in his first year as a pitcher, he hasn't performed too badly. He's won a game and lost a game and has a 4.76 ERA. Hey, that's lower than Jose Mesa! What a great story.
Speaking of great stories, I almost hesitate to write about Barry Bonds as so much has been written already. But the man has game-winning homers in the last three games he's played and has homered in 24 of the last 27 games he's played. His homer today was off an inside pitch from Randy Johnson that he turned on lightning quick. The man is simply amazing.
After mentioning Randy Johnson, makes me compare him to Pedro Martinez who just don't seem to be themselves. Johnson has a bad knee and is 4-7 on the year. Martinez, after being sick last week, got hammered by the Yankees today. I have a feeling that this series is going to go fifty/fifty for both teams the rest of the way.
Friday, August 29, 2003
The Fan has never seen a baseball race like this. Oh yes, there have been two teams that went down to the wire. That is exciting in and of itself. But five teams tied for the wildcard in the National League? Three other teams within a game and a half behind those five? The race is stupifying. And the best part is that we aren't all tied up in June. This is the end of August--heading into September.
The Cubs, now a game and a half out, have lost two heartbreaking games to the Cardinals as their starters pitched with purpose and passion only to have the bullpen throw the games away. Last night's Cubs needed five pitchers to get three outs. That's when you know you're in trouble. The sad thing about the two games is that Sammy Sosa drove in nearly all of the Cubs' runs.
On the other side of that series, the two wins for the Cardinals has to drive them to an emotional push. Those kinds of wins bring a team together and make the fight much more cohesive...not to mention exciting.
The poor Phillies and Marlins can't win a game. To know how far they were ahead in this wildcard race, consider that the Phillies have lost nine of ten while the Marlins have lost eight of ten and it wasn't until tonight that the pack caught them to logjam the race.
The Expos have to be the scariest team right now as they are hitting and pitching very well while making great plays on defense. I wouldn't want to play them right now. All of the other contenders have played near .500 baseball. The wildcard race is like a great big ferris wheel spinning slowly into the night.
Nearly as interesting is the see-saw between the A's, the Red Sox and the Mariners. It's very weird looking at the wildcard standings and seeing the the Red Sox a half a game up on the Mariners. The Mariners? The Mariners haven't been the wildcard standings all year as they started on top in the AL West and stayed there until this week. Now they are two games back of the high flying A's.
You have to shake your head at the way a team suddenly loses their way. The Phillies and Marlins are now joined by the Mariners who have also lost eight of ten. Joel Pineiro was the ace of the Mariners early in the year. In his last two starts, he's only pitched eleven and two-thirds innings and has given up nine runs on fourteen hits. Meanwhile, Ichiro Suzuki has only six hits in his last forty-two at bats.
The race in the AL Central gets overlooked lately but the three teams at the top are all bunched up and any team can take it at this point.
The Fan will repeat himself one more time: Nick Johnson is the key to the Yankees lineup. Johnson's On Base Percentage for the year stands at .438 and he has scored 43 runs in 65 games.
And now it's time for the Fan's favorite boxscore players and how they fared the last seven days:
- Jose Reyes. I had to start with Reyes as the twenty year old has been flat out electrifying so far. In his last seven games, Reyes has batted .333 with three homers, six RBI and six runs scored. The youngster is now batting .312 for the season.
- Rocco Baldelli. Rocco had a quiet week as he batted .268 with three RBI. Baldelli is now batting .298 for the season.
- Coco Crisp. The speedy Crisp had a great week with a guady .429 average with seven runs scored and two RBI. Crisp has now scored 46 runs in just 71 games.
- Mark Teixeira. Teixeira had a miserable week with just three hits in twenty-two at bats. His season average sank to .245.
- Hank Blalock. Teixeira's teammate didn't do much better, batting .167 for the week. He did hit two homers though, good for three RBI. Blalock is still batting a solid .310 for the season.
- Pat Burrell. Burrell actually batted .267 for the week with two doubles, a triple and two homers to go along with five RBI. Burrell has crept over the Mendoza Line and is hitting .202 for the season.
- Miguel Cabrera. Cabrera's tough week matched the Marlins this week as the rookie only batted .217 for the week though he did have a homer and three RBI.
- Sean Burroughs. Jeff's son went crazy this week as he had fifteen hits in twenty-nine at bats! Six of those hits were for extra bases as he scored five runs and drove in four. Burroughs is now up to .299 for the year.
The Cubs, now a game and a half out, have lost two heartbreaking games to the Cardinals as their starters pitched with purpose and passion only to have the bullpen throw the games away. Last night's Cubs needed five pitchers to get three outs. That's when you know you're in trouble. The sad thing about the two games is that Sammy Sosa drove in nearly all of the Cubs' runs.
On the other side of that series, the two wins for the Cardinals has to drive them to an emotional push. Those kinds of wins bring a team together and make the fight much more cohesive...not to mention exciting.
The poor Phillies and Marlins can't win a game. To know how far they were ahead in this wildcard race, consider that the Phillies have lost nine of ten while the Marlins have lost eight of ten and it wasn't until tonight that the pack caught them to logjam the race.
The Expos have to be the scariest team right now as they are hitting and pitching very well while making great plays on defense. I wouldn't want to play them right now. All of the other contenders have played near .500 baseball. The wildcard race is like a great big ferris wheel spinning slowly into the night.
Nearly as interesting is the see-saw between the A's, the Red Sox and the Mariners. It's very weird looking at the wildcard standings and seeing the the Red Sox a half a game up on the Mariners. The Mariners? The Mariners haven't been the wildcard standings all year as they started on top in the AL West and stayed there until this week. Now they are two games back of the high flying A's.
You have to shake your head at the way a team suddenly loses their way. The Phillies and Marlins are now joined by the Mariners who have also lost eight of ten. Joel Pineiro was the ace of the Mariners early in the year. In his last two starts, he's only pitched eleven and two-thirds innings and has given up nine runs on fourteen hits. Meanwhile, Ichiro Suzuki has only six hits in his last forty-two at bats.
The race in the AL Central gets overlooked lately but the three teams at the top are all bunched up and any team can take it at this point.
The Fan will repeat himself one more time: Nick Johnson is the key to the Yankees lineup. Johnson's On Base Percentage for the year stands at .438 and he has scored 43 runs in 65 games.
And now it's time for the Fan's favorite boxscore players and how they fared the last seven days:
- Jose Reyes. I had to start with Reyes as the twenty year old has been flat out electrifying so far. In his last seven games, Reyes has batted .333 with three homers, six RBI and six runs scored. The youngster is now batting .312 for the season.
- Rocco Baldelli. Rocco had a quiet week as he batted .268 with three RBI. Baldelli is now batting .298 for the season.
- Coco Crisp. The speedy Crisp had a great week with a guady .429 average with seven runs scored and two RBI. Crisp has now scored 46 runs in just 71 games.
- Mark Teixeira. Teixeira had a miserable week with just three hits in twenty-two at bats. His season average sank to .245.
- Hank Blalock. Teixeira's teammate didn't do much better, batting .167 for the week. He did hit two homers though, good for three RBI. Blalock is still batting a solid .310 for the season.
- Pat Burrell. Burrell actually batted .267 for the week with two doubles, a triple and two homers to go along with five RBI. Burrell has crept over the Mendoza Line and is hitting .202 for the season.
- Miguel Cabrera. Cabrera's tough week matched the Marlins this week as the rookie only batted .217 for the week though he did have a homer and three RBI.
- Sean Burroughs. Jeff's son went crazy this week as he had fifteen hits in twenty-nine at bats! Six of those hits were for extra bases as he scored five runs and drove in four. Burroughs is now up to .299 for the year.
Tuesday, August 26, 2003
The Fan understand about being a fan. Right now the Pittsburgh Pirate fans have lost their hero and the San Diego Padre fans have found a new one. Brian Giles is one of the best players in the game. The fact that he played for the Pirates hid that fact quite well for a long time. Try to remember the last time you saw a Pirate game on national television?
But Brian Giles also was paid over $8 million a year by the Pirates and when you are losing, that's a lot of money to spend on one guy. That is the strategy that has worked for the Oakland A's and the Seattle Mariners. The Pirates are hoping they can duplicate that philosophy. But the thing is, how much of Giles play for the Pirates is responsible for ticket sales in Pittsburgh? How do you measure that? How do you measure the amount of tickets are lost when the team's message to its fans is that superstars are too expensive? That's a bitter pill and almost as damaging to fans morale as a baseball strike.
On the other side of the country, the message that San Diego is telling its fans is that they are serious about building a great team. The core is shaping up nicely and with Giles being only thirty-two years old with at least six good years left, he will be the cog in that core. Giles is from San Diego and going home is only going to help him even more to continue to put up the kind of world class numbers the world shouldn't be ignoring.
Elsewhere, Portland Oregon has passed a stadium bill in an election and become the front runners for the Expos. Portland is a beautiful city and all, but you better build a dome as it rains a lot there. The only other Expos option seems to be Washington. I can't imagine baseball agreeing to a team in Puerto Rico as the travel costs that would be added to the teams would be enormous.
The only problem with an Oregon Expos result would be that the National League West already has five teams. The NL Central has six. What seems to make sense to me is to move Milwaukee from the NL Central to the NL West (but make sure plenty of Cubs/Brewer games are scheduled) and move the new Oregon Expos into the American League West as that division only has four teams. Texas would love that...one more good team to have to contend with!
Oh those Phillies! They were beating the (for now) Montreal Expos 8-0 in the fifth inning and 10-4 in the sixth. They lost the game 14-10 as the Expos scored ten runs in the final two innings. "Ouch!" says those Phillies fans hoping for the wildcard. Yes, I know what it's like to be a fan.
In that Phillies game, the combined line of the Phillies' relievers is:
2 10 10 10 3 1
(Innings, hits, runs, earned runs, walks, strikeouts)
Quickly around the majors tonight: Toronto outlasted the Red Sox despite a late charge by the Sox. The game featured 31 hits and four errors.
The Cubs got another win from Mark Prior, who is really the front runner for the NL Cy Young award. Randall Simon has made a big impact in the first week playing for the Cubs. The man swings at everything but he rarely misses. He struck out only 32 times last year in 480+ at bats. The highlights showed him hitting a ball a ton that was pitched over his head! Oh! By the way, the Cubs beat division rival, the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Marlins lost again, this time to Pittsburgh as Jason Kendall took out his non-trade (he was hoping to go with Giles) frustration out on the fish including a two run homer. The Marlins are staying neck and neck with the Phillies as they shrink back to the wildcard pack that both teams could have owned.
The White Sox pounded Roger Clemens (sigh) as they won their sixth straight. Frank Thomas hit a grand slam. I hope Clemens doesn't finish the year poorly.
The Royals kept pace by beating Texas 9-2. Mike Sweeney broke out of his slump by going three for five with four RBI. Rafael Palmeiro hit his thirty-first homer of the season (521 for his career) and now has 93 RBI. Why would you want to dump a guy like that to go along with all your kids?
The Devil Rays are leading the suddenly anemic Seattle Mariners 3-0 in the fifth. The A's and Orioles are scoreless after four innings. The Orioles have really missed Melvin Mora and haven't shown the same potent offense since he had to shut it down. They will be a tough team next year.
But Brian Giles also was paid over $8 million a year by the Pirates and when you are losing, that's a lot of money to spend on one guy. That is the strategy that has worked for the Oakland A's and the Seattle Mariners. The Pirates are hoping they can duplicate that philosophy. But the thing is, how much of Giles play for the Pirates is responsible for ticket sales in Pittsburgh? How do you measure that? How do you measure the amount of tickets are lost when the team's message to its fans is that superstars are too expensive? That's a bitter pill and almost as damaging to fans morale as a baseball strike.
On the other side of the country, the message that San Diego is telling its fans is that they are serious about building a great team. The core is shaping up nicely and with Giles being only thirty-two years old with at least six good years left, he will be the cog in that core. Giles is from San Diego and going home is only going to help him even more to continue to put up the kind of world class numbers the world shouldn't be ignoring.
Elsewhere, Portland Oregon has passed a stadium bill in an election and become the front runners for the Expos. Portland is a beautiful city and all, but you better build a dome as it rains a lot there. The only other Expos option seems to be Washington. I can't imagine baseball agreeing to a team in Puerto Rico as the travel costs that would be added to the teams would be enormous.
The only problem with an Oregon Expos result would be that the National League West already has five teams. The NL Central has six. What seems to make sense to me is to move Milwaukee from the NL Central to the NL West (but make sure plenty of Cubs/Brewer games are scheduled) and move the new Oregon Expos into the American League West as that division only has four teams. Texas would love that...one more good team to have to contend with!
Oh those Phillies! They were beating the (for now) Montreal Expos 8-0 in the fifth inning and 10-4 in the sixth. They lost the game 14-10 as the Expos scored ten runs in the final two innings. "Ouch!" says those Phillies fans hoping for the wildcard. Yes, I know what it's like to be a fan.
In that Phillies game, the combined line of the Phillies' relievers is:
2 10 10 10 3 1
(Innings, hits, runs, earned runs, walks, strikeouts)
Quickly around the majors tonight: Toronto outlasted the Red Sox despite a late charge by the Sox. The game featured 31 hits and four errors.
The Cubs got another win from Mark Prior, who is really the front runner for the NL Cy Young award. Randall Simon has made a big impact in the first week playing for the Cubs. The man swings at everything but he rarely misses. He struck out only 32 times last year in 480+ at bats. The highlights showed him hitting a ball a ton that was pitched over his head! Oh! By the way, the Cubs beat division rival, the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Marlins lost again, this time to Pittsburgh as Jason Kendall took out his non-trade (he was hoping to go with Giles) frustration out on the fish including a two run homer. The Marlins are staying neck and neck with the Phillies as they shrink back to the wildcard pack that both teams could have owned.
The White Sox pounded Roger Clemens (sigh) as they won their sixth straight. Frank Thomas hit a grand slam. I hope Clemens doesn't finish the year poorly.
The Royals kept pace by beating Texas 9-2. Mike Sweeney broke out of his slump by going three for five with four RBI. Rafael Palmeiro hit his thirty-first homer of the season (521 for his career) and now has 93 RBI. Why would you want to dump a guy like that to go along with all your kids?
The Devil Rays are leading the suddenly anemic Seattle Mariners 3-0 in the fifth. The A's and Orioles are scoreless after four innings. The Orioles have really missed Melvin Mora and haven't shown the same potent offense since he had to shut it down. They will be a tough team next year.
Monday, August 25, 2003
In contrast to almost all the National League contenders, the Red Sox and the A's are doing what they need to do to contend.
The Red Sox, after a tough Oakland series, didn't get down and came back to sweep one of the best teams in the AL. And they beat the Mariners in convincing fashion after scrapping for wins in the two close games to start the series. First, Derek Lowe became the ace that he was last year and today, one of the best ever, Pedro Martinez, shut the veteran Mariners down for one run each game.
And what an acquisition David Ortiz has been. You have to wonder what the Twins were thinking to let this guy go. Only 27 years old, Ortiz is coming into his own in a park where he can either pull the ball out or knock it against that big green wall. Of David's 95 hits, 56 of them have been for extra bases. His 74 RBI in 99 games projects out to 120 RBI for a season if he played every day. He has already surpassed his career record for doubles with 34, triples with 2 and he's already tied his season high for homers. The guy has done everything you could ask him to do. And he's only cost the Red Sox $1.25 million.
The batting race tightened up in the Red Sox/Mariner series as well. The Red Sox kept Ichiro in check most of the series and now the great hitter is down to .331. Garciaparra is up to .325 and Mueller is batting .328. Garciaparra has already won one batting title and Mueller has been consistent throughout the season. The batting race is just one more fun one to watch the rest of the year.
I simply do not understand how the A's can pull off the kind of runs in the second half every year like they do. Every first half they look terrible and it looks like they will have an off year. Now they've come roaring back and amazingly, the A's and the Mariners are tied with the exact same record in the AL West. Didn't the Mariners have an eleven game lead at one point?
You can't ask for a better pennant race down the stretch as the Red Sox, the Mariners and the A's all have identical records. Only two of those teams will make it to the playoffs if the Yankees maintain their current play. The Yankees have won nine of eleven and have not shown any let up at all. The AL Central winner will have at least ten less wins than the three teams mentioned at the top of this paragraph. Amazing.
The playoffs are all about matchups. The Yankees don't match up well against either the Mariners or the A's. The Red Sox match up better against Seattle (in fact, they own them) but not against the A's. The A's don't match up well with the Mariners. The Yankees match up better with Boston. Who wins the races down the stretch will make a serious impact on which team makes it to the World Series.
In the meantime, the Phillies continue to look like a jet with only one engine as they are 9-12 in August. The Phillies will not make the playoffs and Larry Bowa will not be managing this team next season. The Fan is on a crusade. Boone got taken care of in Cincinnati and Bowa is next in the Fan's sights. This team will not contend with him in charge. Can you imagine where this team would be if Scott Rolen wasn't run out of town by Bowa?
Poor Jeff Weaver. He came in to pitch in the eighth inning against the Orioles with the Yankees up 3-1 and after getting his first out, gave up a homerun to Larry Bigbee. Weaver found out what the "yank" in Yankees stood for. On the flip side, struggling closer, Mariano Rivera pitched a perfect inning and a third for the save. Pettitte got the win and is now 16-7. The Yankees have to sign this free agent at the end of the year!
The Red Sox, after a tough Oakland series, didn't get down and came back to sweep one of the best teams in the AL. And they beat the Mariners in convincing fashion after scrapping for wins in the two close games to start the series. First, Derek Lowe became the ace that he was last year and today, one of the best ever, Pedro Martinez, shut the veteran Mariners down for one run each game.
And what an acquisition David Ortiz has been. You have to wonder what the Twins were thinking to let this guy go. Only 27 years old, Ortiz is coming into his own in a park where he can either pull the ball out or knock it against that big green wall. Of David's 95 hits, 56 of them have been for extra bases. His 74 RBI in 99 games projects out to 120 RBI for a season if he played every day. He has already surpassed his career record for doubles with 34, triples with 2 and he's already tied his season high for homers. The guy has done everything you could ask him to do. And he's only cost the Red Sox $1.25 million.
The batting race tightened up in the Red Sox/Mariner series as well. The Red Sox kept Ichiro in check most of the series and now the great hitter is down to .331. Garciaparra is up to .325 and Mueller is batting .328. Garciaparra has already won one batting title and Mueller has been consistent throughout the season. The batting race is just one more fun one to watch the rest of the year.
I simply do not understand how the A's can pull off the kind of runs in the second half every year like they do. Every first half they look terrible and it looks like they will have an off year. Now they've come roaring back and amazingly, the A's and the Mariners are tied with the exact same record in the AL West. Didn't the Mariners have an eleven game lead at one point?
You can't ask for a better pennant race down the stretch as the Red Sox, the Mariners and the A's all have identical records. Only two of those teams will make it to the playoffs if the Yankees maintain their current play. The Yankees have won nine of eleven and have not shown any let up at all. The AL Central winner will have at least ten less wins than the three teams mentioned at the top of this paragraph. Amazing.
The playoffs are all about matchups. The Yankees don't match up well against either the Mariners or the A's. The Red Sox match up better against Seattle (in fact, they own them) but not against the A's. The A's don't match up well with the Mariners. The Yankees match up better with Boston. Who wins the races down the stretch will make a serious impact on which team makes it to the World Series.
In the meantime, the Phillies continue to look like a jet with only one engine as they are 9-12 in August. The Phillies will not make the playoffs and Larry Bowa will not be managing this team next season. The Fan is on a crusade. Boone got taken care of in Cincinnati and Bowa is next in the Fan's sights. This team will not contend with him in charge. Can you imagine where this team would be if Scott Rolen wasn't run out of town by Bowa?
Poor Jeff Weaver. He came in to pitch in the eighth inning against the Orioles with the Yankees up 3-1 and after getting his first out, gave up a homerun to Larry Bigbee. Weaver found out what the "yank" in Yankees stood for. On the flip side, struggling closer, Mariano Rivera pitched a perfect inning and a third for the save. Pettitte got the win and is now 16-7. The Yankees have to sign this free agent at the end of the year!
All baseball fans and human beings had to feel a tinge of sadness along with the thrill of the great performance given by Yankees pitcher, Jose Contreras against the Orioles today. The victory certainly seems to mean that Jeff Weaver has officially lost any shot at ever being a meaningful pitcher for the Yankees.
Weaver has gone in two short years from being the best Tigers pitcher to being the worst Yankee pitcher. How and why did that happen? Was it bad coaching? Bad luck? Unknown injuries? Or is it that baseball is a lot like golf--it's all a mind game. Weaver would be well at this point to move on from the Yankees and get a fresh start elsewhere. One also wonders if he could also use a sports psychologist to restore his confidence.
Weaver heads a list of players who could use a change of scenery. Joe Torre is likely to continue to support pitching Weaver except in long games where the Yankees are being blown out. Sterling Hitchcock is going to benefit from being let go to another team and another chance and Weaver could/should be next.
I don't know if Pat Burrell and Jose Mesa need a change of scenery or a change in who manages the team. The Fan has watched several involving the Phillies and the Fan would be a nervous wreck playing for Larry Bowa. Contrast his style with Tony Pena for the Kansas City Royals. Pena has just as much fire as Bowa for winning but does so with a positive attitude and an understanding of human nature. Bowa reminds me more of Billy Martin who either pushed a player or broke them depending on their makeup.
Lou Piniella has that fire too and can explode into rages as good as Bowa's but Piniella has won every where he's gone so he has to be a major motivator too. For those of you who thought he was too harsh to Ben Grieve, you may have been right...for Ben Grieve, but a similar player with Grieve's personality is Jon Olerud and Pineilla never tried to change Olerud's style of play. The Grieve blowup makes Ben another player who could probably use another place to play.
Another player who could use a change of scenery is Bobby Higginson. Higginson has hit over 25 homers four times in his career and has driven in over a hundred runs twice. And that was all for bad ballclubs. It seems like he is sleepwalking. Good players are good players because they love the competition. It has to have taken a toll on his interest in pushing himself from day to day. By the way, the Tigers broke an eleven game losing streak today.
A change of location can really help a player in a rut. Mike Hampton is the number one example. Colorado was not conducive to his style of pitching and another organization (the Braves) took an interest in him and right now is the hottest pitcher in the league.
Weaver has gone in two short years from being the best Tigers pitcher to being the worst Yankee pitcher. How and why did that happen? Was it bad coaching? Bad luck? Unknown injuries? Or is it that baseball is a lot like golf--it's all a mind game. Weaver would be well at this point to move on from the Yankees and get a fresh start elsewhere. One also wonders if he could also use a sports psychologist to restore his confidence.
Weaver heads a list of players who could use a change of scenery. Joe Torre is likely to continue to support pitching Weaver except in long games where the Yankees are being blown out. Sterling Hitchcock is going to benefit from being let go to another team and another chance and Weaver could/should be next.
I don't know if Pat Burrell and Jose Mesa need a change of scenery or a change in who manages the team. The Fan has watched several involving the Phillies and the Fan would be a nervous wreck playing for Larry Bowa. Contrast his style with Tony Pena for the Kansas City Royals. Pena has just as much fire as Bowa for winning but does so with a positive attitude and an understanding of human nature. Bowa reminds me more of Billy Martin who either pushed a player or broke them depending on their makeup.
Lou Piniella has that fire too and can explode into rages as good as Bowa's but Piniella has won every where he's gone so he has to be a major motivator too. For those of you who thought he was too harsh to Ben Grieve, you may have been right...for Ben Grieve, but a similar player with Grieve's personality is Jon Olerud and Pineilla never tried to change Olerud's style of play. The Grieve blowup makes Ben another player who could probably use another place to play.
Another player who could use a change of scenery is Bobby Higginson. Higginson has hit over 25 homers four times in his career and has driven in over a hundred runs twice. And that was all for bad ballclubs. It seems like he is sleepwalking. Good players are good players because they love the competition. It has to have taken a toll on his interest in pushing himself from day to day. By the way, the Tigers broke an eleven game losing streak today.
A change of location can really help a player in a rut. Mike Hampton is the number one example. Colorado was not conducive to his style of pitching and another organization (the Braves) took an interest in him and right now is the hottest pitcher in the league.
Saturday, August 23, 2003
The Minnesota Twins had everything right where they wanted. They were playing division rivals, Kansas City, at home in their little ballpark with a chance to really make a statement. The Royals were ripe for collapse, on the ropes and gasping. The Twins won the first game. So far...so good. Then they lost last night in a good pitching duel. No problem. Win Saturday and the Twins would still make a statement. They even had Jose Lima starting for the Royals as he is going in the Lima direction shown the last three seasons of his major league career.
And true to form, they whacked Lima around for ten hits in four innings. The trouble was that they only scored three runs. Ten hits to score three run? In four innings? That's 2.25 baserunners per inning and managed only three runs? They only knocked three more hits for the final five innings and didn't score any more runs. The Royals won 4-3. When the chips are on the line and the contenders are rushing towards September, you have to have a guy step up and get the big hit. The Twins just haven't had that guy.
You have to wonder if the 7-0 start was as good as it will get for Lima. It was fun while it lasted, but it was too good to be true. Well, it was true, but it was too good to last.
Three other teams that are staggering in this pennant race are the Marlins, the Mariners and the Astros. Seattle's lead over Oakland is down to two games even though the A's are only playing .500 ball the last two weeks.
The Marlins could have zoomed by the Phillies as the Phillies sat on the wildcard lead despite loss after loss. The Marlins have now lost five straight. They have pitched fairly well but have stopped hitting. All the losing by the wildcard leaders means that the Diamondbacks are slithering back into the race. I'm a Fan more than I am anything else and I'd rather see brown shoes at a formal occasion than see the Diamondbacks winning the wildcard.
The Red Sox have responded to adversity and beat the Mariners again today. The win was not pretty as their closer, Kim, again looked shaky in the last inning and allowed the Mariners to tie the game. But Kim and Mike Timlin held the Mariners there and the Red Sox put it away in the bottom of the tenth.
Now that the Yankees have lost two straight and are now leading the Red Sox by "only" five games, I wonder if Steinbrenner will start calling the red phone again. The man has the patience of a sled dog in Florida.
And finally tonight, the Fan sends condolences to the Bonds family as Bobby lost his battle today and died. Though I never did get over you coming to the Yankees at the expense of my Bobby Murcer, you were a good man and a great talent and gave us the best player of our generation. Rest in peace, Bobby B.
And true to form, they whacked Lima around for ten hits in four innings. The trouble was that they only scored three runs. Ten hits to score three run? In four innings? That's 2.25 baserunners per inning and managed only three runs? They only knocked three more hits for the final five innings and didn't score any more runs. The Royals won 4-3. When the chips are on the line and the contenders are rushing towards September, you have to have a guy step up and get the big hit. The Twins just haven't had that guy.
You have to wonder if the 7-0 start was as good as it will get for Lima. It was fun while it lasted, but it was too good to be true. Well, it was true, but it was too good to last.
Three other teams that are staggering in this pennant race are the Marlins, the Mariners and the Astros. Seattle's lead over Oakland is down to two games even though the A's are only playing .500 ball the last two weeks.
The Marlins could have zoomed by the Phillies as the Phillies sat on the wildcard lead despite loss after loss. The Marlins have now lost five straight. They have pitched fairly well but have stopped hitting. All the losing by the wildcard leaders means that the Diamondbacks are slithering back into the race. I'm a Fan more than I am anything else and I'd rather see brown shoes at a formal occasion than see the Diamondbacks winning the wildcard.
The Red Sox have responded to adversity and beat the Mariners again today. The win was not pretty as their closer, Kim, again looked shaky in the last inning and allowed the Mariners to tie the game. But Kim and Mike Timlin held the Mariners there and the Red Sox put it away in the bottom of the tenth.
Now that the Yankees have lost two straight and are now leading the Red Sox by "only" five games, I wonder if Steinbrenner will start calling the red phone again. The man has the patience of a sled dog in Florida.
And finally tonight, the Fan sends condolences to the Bonds family as Bobby lost his battle today and died. Though I never did get over you coming to the Yankees at the expense of my Bobby Murcer, you were a good man and a great talent and gave us the best player of our generation. Rest in peace, Bobby B.
Friday, August 22, 2003
The incredible and interesting playoff races continued tonight as Oakland, St. Louis, Houston and Minnesota all lost their games and Philadelphia, Boston, Kansas City and the American's League's Chicago team all won.
The Cubs are beating Schilling and the Diamondbacks, 3-0 in the sixth inning as Sammy Sosa has already hit two homers and Carlos Zambrano has not yet given up a hit. Sammy now has thirty homers and over eighty RBI for the season.
Two homers were also hit by our friend, Pat Burrell, as he went three for four and was instrumental in bringing the Phillies from behind to win the game. In the process, they shut down Albert Pujols hitting streak as he went "Oh for Five."
The Marlins are winning early against the Giants as Cabrera singled and Gonzalez homered to plate two. Dontrelle Willis is pitching for the Marlins and has given up one run in four full innings.
The Red Sox beat Seattle as Jeff Suppon pitched a good game and Manny Ramirez hit his 31st homer. The Red Sox are now tied again with Oakland for the wildcard race. Oakland got a big blow today as ace, Mark Mulder, learned that he had a stress fracture in his hip and will be out for the rest of the season. Mulder had won fifteen games for the A's this year so that's a big loss.
Zambrano now has a no-hitter through seven!
...
Oh man. I knew Shea Hillenbrand would break it up! The no-hitter was broken up with two outs in the eighth inning. The Flagrant Fan was hoping...
The Cubs are beating Schilling and the Diamondbacks, 3-0 in the sixth inning as Sammy Sosa has already hit two homers and Carlos Zambrano has not yet given up a hit. Sammy now has thirty homers and over eighty RBI for the season.
Two homers were also hit by our friend, Pat Burrell, as he went three for four and was instrumental in bringing the Phillies from behind to win the game. In the process, they shut down Albert Pujols hitting streak as he went "Oh for Five."
The Marlins are winning early against the Giants as Cabrera singled and Gonzalez homered to plate two. Dontrelle Willis is pitching for the Marlins and has given up one run in four full innings.
The Red Sox beat Seattle as Jeff Suppon pitched a good game and Manny Ramirez hit his 31st homer. The Red Sox are now tied again with Oakland for the wildcard race. Oakland got a big blow today as ace, Mark Mulder, learned that he had a stress fracture in his hip and will be out for the rest of the season. Mulder had won fifteen games for the A's this year so that's a big loss.
Zambrano now has a no-hitter through seven!
...
Oh man. I knew Shea Hillenbrand would break it up! The no-hitter was broken up with two outs in the eighth inning. The Flagrant Fan was hoping...
Wednesday, August 20, 2003
With the Royals loss and the Twins win, those two teams are now tied. If Chicago wins, the White Sox will be in first by half a game. That's the bad news for the Royals. The good news is that they almost came back from way behind today to win in the ninth AND they have been counted out for dead a month ago and stormed back. We'll have to see which way they go this time. This Fan's sad opinion is that this is the beginning of the end of a great run.
The Cubs have bounced back tonight behind the brilliance of Mark Prior. If the 6-0 score (eighth inning) holds up, the Cubs will be only a half a game behind Houston. The Cardinals are losing huge, 13-0, so they will not be taking advantage of the opportunity to inch closer.
The Phillies are getting trounced by Milwaukee again and the more I see this collapse, the more I believe that there is no way that Larry Bowa will survive as manager. And with the talent they have, I wouldn't be surprised if it happens soon.
The Marlins, a half a game behind the Phillies are beating Colorado 1-0. That would not be considered a safe lead in Coors (obviously). Cabrera is two for two and has driven in the only run. Mike Redman is pitching very well again tonight.
Barry Bonds game winning homer last night reminded me of The Natural, one of the best baseball movies of all time. I will say this to you one more time: We are watching history folks. Sixty years from now, people will be asking you if you ever saw him play. The two best players ever: 1. The Babe. 2. Barry Bonds.
And now it's time for the Fan's favorite boxscore players and how they've fared the last seven days:
- Karim Garcia. Garcia has captured my fancy with his big week for the Yankees. Now I wonder why he sat today! Garcia came up to the plate thirteen times last week and had four walks and five hits (a tidy little .694 OBP!) with three homers, a double and seven RBI.
- Rocco Baldelli. Baldelli is the model of consistency. He batted .300 exactly for the week and is at exactly .300 for the year. What is promising is that his OBP seems to rise every week so that means he's getting more selective.
- Coco Crisp. Crisp didn't describe Coco's batting last week as he only hit .182 last week to pull his season average down to .262. His OBP is down to .301, which is very poor for a leadoff guy.
- Hank Blalock. Blalock batted a consistent .292 for the week with a homer, two doubles and seven RBI. He is now at .317 for the season with 21 homers and 72 RBI. His season OBP is .374. Excellent.
- Mark Teixeira. Teixeira struggled last week, batting only .192 but he did have three doubles and three RBI. He is batting a decent .250 for his rookie season with 19 homers and 61 RBI. Watch out next year!
- Michael Young. Young had a good week, batting .313 with a homer and three RBI. More importantly, he scored nine runs from the leadoff spot and now has scored 87 runs for the season to go along with his .310 batting average with 11 homers and 61 RBI.
- Pat Burrell. Burrell didn't make progress as it appeared he might as he batted only .182 for the week and shrunk back down to .201 for the year.
- Miguel Cabrera. The youngster had a great week as he batted .429 for the week with nine hits in twenty-four at bats. Cabrera had a double, a triple and two homers and drove in six runs. He's also improving his patience and walked four times last week.
- Jose Reyes. Reyes was as good as Cabrera as he had eleven hits in twenty-seven at bats for a week's average of .407. The twenty year old is now batting .308 in his rookie season.
Mark Prior is the man. He is the Cy Young Award winner this year and looks as dominant as Roger Clemens in his young years.
The Cubs have bounced back tonight behind the brilliance of Mark Prior. If the 6-0 score (eighth inning) holds up, the Cubs will be only a half a game behind Houston. The Cardinals are losing huge, 13-0, so they will not be taking advantage of the opportunity to inch closer.
The Phillies are getting trounced by Milwaukee again and the more I see this collapse, the more I believe that there is no way that Larry Bowa will survive as manager. And with the talent they have, I wouldn't be surprised if it happens soon.
The Marlins, a half a game behind the Phillies are beating Colorado 1-0. That would not be considered a safe lead in Coors (obviously). Cabrera is two for two and has driven in the only run. Mike Redman is pitching very well again tonight.
Barry Bonds game winning homer last night reminded me of The Natural, one of the best baseball movies of all time. I will say this to you one more time: We are watching history folks. Sixty years from now, people will be asking you if you ever saw him play. The two best players ever: 1. The Babe. 2. Barry Bonds.
And now it's time for the Fan's favorite boxscore players and how they've fared the last seven days:
- Karim Garcia. Garcia has captured my fancy with his big week for the Yankees. Now I wonder why he sat today! Garcia came up to the plate thirteen times last week and had four walks and five hits (a tidy little .694 OBP!) with three homers, a double and seven RBI.
- Rocco Baldelli. Baldelli is the model of consistency. He batted .300 exactly for the week and is at exactly .300 for the year. What is promising is that his OBP seems to rise every week so that means he's getting more selective.
- Coco Crisp. Crisp didn't describe Coco's batting last week as he only hit .182 last week to pull his season average down to .262. His OBP is down to .301, which is very poor for a leadoff guy.
- Hank Blalock. Blalock batted a consistent .292 for the week with a homer, two doubles and seven RBI. He is now at .317 for the season with 21 homers and 72 RBI. His season OBP is .374. Excellent.
- Mark Teixeira. Teixeira struggled last week, batting only .192 but he did have three doubles and three RBI. He is batting a decent .250 for his rookie season with 19 homers and 61 RBI. Watch out next year!
- Michael Young. Young had a good week, batting .313 with a homer and three RBI. More importantly, he scored nine runs from the leadoff spot and now has scored 87 runs for the season to go along with his .310 batting average with 11 homers and 61 RBI.
- Pat Burrell. Burrell didn't make progress as it appeared he might as he batted only .182 for the week and shrunk back down to .201 for the year.
- Miguel Cabrera. The youngster had a great week as he batted .429 for the week with nine hits in twenty-four at bats. Cabrera had a double, a triple and two homers and drove in six runs. He's also improving his patience and walked four times last week.
- Jose Reyes. Reyes was as good as Cabrera as he had eleven hits in twenty-seven at bats for a week's average of .407. The twenty year old is now batting .308 in his rookie season.
Mark Prior is the man. He is the Cy Young Award winner this year and looks as dominant as Roger Clemens in his young years.
Tuesday, August 19, 2003
The Royals loss to the Yankees tonight combined with Chicago and Minnesota wins brought those two winning teams to within one game of the Royals. Watching the Royals is like watching that marathon runner in the Olympics who led the whole race and then staggered around the track at the very end while those behind passed to victory. This Fan hopes it doesn't end like that but the signs are there.
The White Sox and Twins both have winning records since the AllStar break while the Royals are a few games under .500. The question will continue to be if the Royals have enough pitching to get the job done. As much as it's painful to say so, it doesn't look like it.
The Phillies, who have 27 straight games without a day off, lost to a Brewer team they have to beat. It's hard to figure how this team can look so poor on some nights and like World Champions the next. I have some doubts on whether Bowa is the right manager for this team.
Fortunately, the Phillies are being mirrored by the Marlins who are not taking advantage of the opportunity. The Marlins are losing 7-1 tonight in Colorado. Colorado is not a place I'd want to travel if I was in the midst of a wildcard race.
Billy Wagner is in for the ninth inning of a slugfest between the Cubs and Astros that the Astros are leading 12-8. Sammy Sosa has gone suddenly cold as he only has five hits in his last seven games (for a .217 average over that span). Sammy just flew out to end the game with runners on second and third. Game over. The Astros win. The Cubs are now one and a half games back.
The Cardinals are winning big over Pittsburgh so they will leap frog over the Cubs and stay a game behind the Astros.
Bobby Valentine made a great comment on ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" concerning the Astros veteran players. He basically said that they look like they lack spirit and fun and play all their games with a grim determination. That is a feeling I have had without being able to verbalize it. A friend of mine at work says that if it isn't fun, it's not worth doing. It doesn't look fun for the Astros. Valentine has really impressed me with his observations.
It appears that after getting to within two games of the .500 mark that the Orioles have either run out of gas or have quit on Hargrove. The last few times I've seen them play it looked like they were sleepwalking. Tonight their uninspired play led to a gimme run as they threw the ball all over the place on a play where they had a Devil Ray player caught dead between third and home. The Orioles are now ten games below .500.
The White Sox and Twins both have winning records since the AllStar break while the Royals are a few games under .500. The question will continue to be if the Royals have enough pitching to get the job done. As much as it's painful to say so, it doesn't look like it.
The Phillies, who have 27 straight games without a day off, lost to a Brewer team they have to beat. It's hard to figure how this team can look so poor on some nights and like World Champions the next. I have some doubts on whether Bowa is the right manager for this team.
Fortunately, the Phillies are being mirrored by the Marlins who are not taking advantage of the opportunity. The Marlins are losing 7-1 tonight in Colorado. Colorado is not a place I'd want to travel if I was in the midst of a wildcard race.
Billy Wagner is in for the ninth inning of a slugfest between the Cubs and Astros that the Astros are leading 12-8. Sammy Sosa has gone suddenly cold as he only has five hits in his last seven games (for a .217 average over that span). Sammy just flew out to end the game with runners on second and third. Game over. The Astros win. The Cubs are now one and a half games back.
The Cardinals are winning big over Pittsburgh so they will leap frog over the Cubs and stay a game behind the Astros.
Bobby Valentine made a great comment on ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" concerning the Astros veteran players. He basically said that they look like they lack spirit and fun and play all their games with a grim determination. That is a feeling I have had without being able to verbalize it. A friend of mine at work says that if it isn't fun, it's not worth doing. It doesn't look fun for the Astros. Valentine has really impressed me with his observations.
It appears that after getting to within two games of the .500 mark that the Orioles have either run out of gas or have quit on Hargrove. The last few times I've seen them play it looked like they were sleepwalking. Tonight their uninspired play led to a gimme run as they threw the ball all over the place on a play where they had a Devil Ray player caught dead between third and home. The Orioles are now ten games below .500.
Monday, August 18, 2003
If there are any further questions as to whether or not Barry Bonds is the National League's most valuable player, please review the recent series sweep of his team by the Montreal Expos during his absence. Bonds, who has been with his ailing father, is expected to play Thursday night but has to heavy heart as Bobby Bonds is seriously ill with a variety of ailments.
In the four games against the Expos, the Giants managed only four runs on six extra base hits (no homers) while leaving 32 runners on base. They only managed 24 hits during the four game set or an average of six hits a game. Without Bonds, the Giants are the Tigers with better pitching.
The Yankees ended Lima Time rocking Jose for six runs in four innings. Lima lost for the first time this year. The loss is a bad start for an important Royals week where they face the Yankees three times before closing the week with a four game series at Minnesota. The Royals loss combined with tonight's White Sox win lowers the Royals' division lead to two games.
Karim Garcia had three RBI for the Yankees and could be a key slugger for New York down the stretch. Dellucci is a nice player but has never hit for much in his short career and the Yankees could use big production from Garcia down the stretch and into the playoffs. Garcia is batting .333 since joining the Yankees and has big time power potential.
The Yankees have their biggest division lead over Boston of the year at five games. I wouldn't count the Red Sox out yet though as the two teams will face each other over a dozen times down the stretch.
In battles of the lower end of the divisions, Texas and Detroit are in the bottom of the sixteenth inning as neither team has scored a run since Detroit tied the game in the ninth inning. Either that's a lot of good relief pitching or a lot of bad hitting. A-Rod is oh for six.
Tampa Bay and Cleveland are also in the fourteenth inning as the Devil Rays scored a run in the top of the eleventh only to see the Indians tie it in the bottom of that same frame.
Hey! At least those teams are battling hard with nothing to lose but the ballgame.
In the four games against the Expos, the Giants managed only four runs on six extra base hits (no homers) while leaving 32 runners on base. They only managed 24 hits during the four game set or an average of six hits a game. Without Bonds, the Giants are the Tigers with better pitching.
The Yankees ended Lima Time rocking Jose for six runs in four innings. Lima lost for the first time this year. The loss is a bad start for an important Royals week where they face the Yankees three times before closing the week with a four game series at Minnesota. The Royals loss combined with tonight's White Sox win lowers the Royals' division lead to two games.
Karim Garcia had three RBI for the Yankees and could be a key slugger for New York down the stretch. Dellucci is a nice player but has never hit for much in his short career and the Yankees could use big production from Garcia down the stretch and into the playoffs. Garcia is batting .333 since joining the Yankees and has big time power potential.
The Yankees have their biggest division lead over Boston of the year at five games. I wouldn't count the Red Sox out yet though as the two teams will face each other over a dozen times down the stretch.
In battles of the lower end of the divisions, Texas and Detroit are in the bottom of the sixteenth inning as neither team has scored a run since Detroit tied the game in the ninth inning. Either that's a lot of good relief pitching or a lot of bad hitting. A-Rod is oh for six.
Tampa Bay and Cleveland are also in the fourteenth inning as the Devil Rays scored a run in the top of the eleventh only to see the Indians tie it in the bottom of that same frame.
Hey! At least those teams are battling hard with nothing to lose but the ballgame.
Sunday, August 17, 2003
What is amazing about MLB pennant and wildcard races is how much the teams involved are spinning their wheels. If one team were to put a winning streak together, they would blow the race apart. But it just isn't happening.
Take, for example, the National League Central Division race. Houston is leading the division by a half a game and have lost six of their last ten games. Pitching and spotty hitting has been a problem for them. Pitching problems in their starting ranks are a result of key injuries. While you can't plan against something like that, their great bullpen is also a concern due to overwork.
Meanwhile, the Cubs and Cardinals had a great opportunity to capitalize on the Astros' misfortune but both teams have only won half of their last ten games. The Cubs aren't hitting well and the Cardinals aren't pitching well.
The wildcard leaders, Philadelphia and Florida, aren't exactly taking charge either. The Marlins have won seven of ten to get back in the race after a tough streak but the Phillies have only been a .500 team for quite a long time. The Phillies are sabotaged by difficulties in closing games.
Tonight is a great example for the Phillies. Leading 6-3 going into the ninth, Jose Mesa--who has an ERA of 6.10 and has given up 1.7 baserunners per inning this season--came in and gave up four baserunners and a run. Mike Williams came in to fortunately get the final out. But when your main closer has an ERA over six and your backup closer has an ERA over five, then you sweat every close game. Fortunately for the Phillies, Thome and Burrell are starting to come on strong.
The Marlins seem to have an edge with good starting pitching and good relief pitching. They also have great clutch hitting but good pitching can shut them down.
In the American League Central Division race, the three teams involved are also treading water. The leading Royals are holding on by winning only five of their last ten. Their pitching is suspect and sometimes it seems as if they are winning with mirrors.
The White Sox, who made a major charge to get into the race are slipping back the other way. They have lost six of ten and have now lost Billy Koch. That may be a blessing though as Koch simply hasn't done the job. In the amazing statistic of the week, Koch leads the team with only eleven saves. Contrast that to the Braves and Dodgers who both have save leaders with over forty saves!
For all the talk of Frank Thomas not making the AllStar team, he seems to be clogging up the middle of the lineup. Batting only .259, Thomas only has 66 RBI, a paltry amount considering he has 28 homers. Ordonez and Valentin seem to be the leaders of that club and they better start righting that ship before it sinks.
The Twins seemed to be coming on strong, but coming on strong only means winning six of their last ten. That's not enough to get the job done. I seriously doubt the Twins pitching can get them where they want to go.
The top two American League wildcard teams are also spinning on idle. The A's have only won five of their last ten and the Red Sox have won only four of ten. Then again, that seems to be a result of the two teams playing each other and playing even. Do the Red Sox have enough pitching? Do the A's have enough hitting?
Part of the explanation for all the above mediocrity is the improved play of the "also-rans" of baseball. Last place Texas has won seven of its last ten. Next to last place Cleveland has won eight of their last ten. The Devil Rays have won more games than they have lost for three straight weeks.
In the National League, the last place Mets have won seven of ten but are the only bottom division team in the league with a winning record.
The real reason for the lack of clear leadership in the races is the current schedule. When the teams in each division playing each other nearly two dozen times, all they do is take turns knocking each other off.
On one hand, the close races lend excitement to the game and keep fan interest involved. On the other hand, it's sort of like watching two fat has-been heavyweight boxers stumbling through fifteen excruciating rounds.
Take, for example, the National League Central Division race. Houston is leading the division by a half a game and have lost six of their last ten games. Pitching and spotty hitting has been a problem for them. Pitching problems in their starting ranks are a result of key injuries. While you can't plan against something like that, their great bullpen is also a concern due to overwork.
Meanwhile, the Cubs and Cardinals had a great opportunity to capitalize on the Astros' misfortune but both teams have only won half of their last ten games. The Cubs aren't hitting well and the Cardinals aren't pitching well.
The wildcard leaders, Philadelphia and Florida, aren't exactly taking charge either. The Marlins have won seven of ten to get back in the race after a tough streak but the Phillies have only been a .500 team for quite a long time. The Phillies are sabotaged by difficulties in closing games.
Tonight is a great example for the Phillies. Leading 6-3 going into the ninth, Jose Mesa--who has an ERA of 6.10 and has given up 1.7 baserunners per inning this season--came in and gave up four baserunners and a run. Mike Williams came in to fortunately get the final out. But when your main closer has an ERA over six and your backup closer has an ERA over five, then you sweat every close game. Fortunately for the Phillies, Thome and Burrell are starting to come on strong.
The Marlins seem to have an edge with good starting pitching and good relief pitching. They also have great clutch hitting but good pitching can shut them down.
In the American League Central Division race, the three teams involved are also treading water. The leading Royals are holding on by winning only five of their last ten. Their pitching is suspect and sometimes it seems as if they are winning with mirrors.
The White Sox, who made a major charge to get into the race are slipping back the other way. They have lost six of ten and have now lost Billy Koch. That may be a blessing though as Koch simply hasn't done the job. In the amazing statistic of the week, Koch leads the team with only eleven saves. Contrast that to the Braves and Dodgers who both have save leaders with over forty saves!
For all the talk of Frank Thomas not making the AllStar team, he seems to be clogging up the middle of the lineup. Batting only .259, Thomas only has 66 RBI, a paltry amount considering he has 28 homers. Ordonez and Valentin seem to be the leaders of that club and they better start righting that ship before it sinks.
The Twins seemed to be coming on strong, but coming on strong only means winning six of their last ten. That's not enough to get the job done. I seriously doubt the Twins pitching can get them where they want to go.
The top two American League wildcard teams are also spinning on idle. The A's have only won five of their last ten and the Red Sox have won only four of ten. Then again, that seems to be a result of the two teams playing each other and playing even. Do the Red Sox have enough pitching? Do the A's have enough hitting?
Part of the explanation for all the above mediocrity is the improved play of the "also-rans" of baseball. Last place Texas has won seven of its last ten. Next to last place Cleveland has won eight of their last ten. The Devil Rays have won more games than they have lost for three straight weeks.
In the National League, the last place Mets have won seven of ten but are the only bottom division team in the league with a winning record.
The real reason for the lack of clear leadership in the races is the current schedule. When the teams in each division playing each other nearly two dozen times, all they do is take turns knocking each other off.
On one hand, the close races lend excitement to the game and keep fan interest involved. On the other hand, it's sort of like watching two fat has-been heavyweight boxers stumbling through fifteen excruciating rounds.
Saturday, August 16, 2003
One of the nicest stories in MLB this year is Rod Beck. Beck is remembered as "Gasoline Beck" by Red Sox fans in 2001 because they weren't aware that he was pitching with a blown out elbow. All they saw were six saves and five blown saves.
After the 2001 season, Beck had Tommy John surgery and missed the 2002 season. Since Beck is right-handed and since he was 34, he didn't receive a major league offer for 2003. But Beck knew he could still pitch and ended up in Iowa, pitching for their minor league team as he lived in a motor home behind centerfield. For a terrific article on Beck's minor league start to this season, please go to:
http://espn.go.com/mlb/s/2003/0515/1554407.html
When the Padres lost Trevor Hoffman for the season, they tried a couple of different options and none panned out. Finally they gave Rod Beck a call. All he's done since then is win two of his three decisions and convert sixteen out of sixteen save chances to go along with a 1.82 ERA.
Beck's success, along with other great stories like Chris Hammond for the Braves last year, are what make baseball unique and so very much fun to follow. Go Rod Go!
After the 2001 season, Beck had Tommy John surgery and missed the 2002 season. Since Beck is right-handed and since he was 34, he didn't receive a major league offer for 2003. But Beck knew he could still pitch and ended up in Iowa, pitching for their minor league team as he lived in a motor home behind centerfield. For a terrific article on Beck's minor league start to this season, please go to:
http://espn.go.com/mlb/s/2003/0515/1554407.html
When the Padres lost Trevor Hoffman for the season, they tried a couple of different options and none panned out. Finally they gave Rod Beck a call. All he's done since then is win two of his three decisions and convert sixteen out of sixteen save chances to go along with a 1.82 ERA.
Beck's success, along with other great stories like Chris Hammond for the Braves last year, are what make baseball unique and so very much fun to follow. Go Rod Go!
Friday, August 15, 2003
Aaron Boone came up to bat for the Yankees in the top of the ninth with the Yankees down a run to the Orioles. The Yankees had runners on first and second with one out. Boone was mired in a terrible slump as he started his Yankee career with six hits in fifty-one at bats (a .117 batting average!). The Yankees' bullpen blew a great performance by Roger Clemens the previous half inning, denying Clemens his 305th win. This was the time for Boone to come through.
Boone pulled the first pitch hard foul down the third base line--no balls, one strike. Boone took the next pitch the opposite way and the ball hit inches right of the right field foul line. Typical for a man in a slump to just miss a game tying double. Boone then took a slider outside. And then a pitch came pouring in towards Boone's hands. Boone brought his hands in and swung quickly. The ball jumped off his bat and flew down the left field line. The third base umpire ran down the line...and called it foul.
Boone jumped into the air and ran across the diamond--a stupid move fortunate not to be noticed. The Yankees screamed. When you're batting .117, this is the worst thing that can happen for the new guy in an embarrassing starting slump. Fortunately for baseball, the umpires consulted and the home plate umpire overruled the call--by the replay correctly--and Boone became a New York Yankee with a game winning three run homer.
Lost in the shuffle of the hour long ninth inning (Rivera again struggled in the ninth but got the save with one run scored) was a curious call from Torre to the Yankee bullpen an out into the eighth inning after Clemens struck out the first batter. Torre brought in Jesse Orosco, who looked every month of his forty-seven years and blew the win. The Yankees better hope Gabe White will join the club soon and save Torre from making that mistake again.
Sammy Sosa single-handedly beat the Dodgers for the second time in a week as he collected both RBI in a 2-1 complete game win for Mark Prior. Prior looks so good it's scary. Sosa now has 78 RBI in his 97 games. The Cubbies are back on top of their division by a half a game. As Mel Allen would have said: "How about that."
Randy Johnson, like Mariano Rivera, just isn't the same pitcher this year. The Braves hacked him up tonight for seven runs to push his season record to 3-5 with a 5.05 ERA after ten starts.
The Cleveland Indians beat Tampa Bay tonight 1-0 to improve their record to 8-2 in the last ten games. C.C. Sabathia pitched a complete game shutout to improve his record to 11-7 with a 3.28 ERA. With Hafner and Broussard blossoming as rookie hitters and pitchers like Sabathia and Anderson, the Indians are going to be a really good team in a couple of years.
The White Sox are suddenly tumbling again as they have lost three in a row. This is such a strange and exciting season as both Central Divisions in both leagues feature teams flip flopping back and forth in the standings. Between the Central Divisions and the wildcard races in both leagues, it's going to be an exciting last forty games of this season.
Boone pulled the first pitch hard foul down the third base line--no balls, one strike. Boone took the next pitch the opposite way and the ball hit inches right of the right field foul line. Typical for a man in a slump to just miss a game tying double. Boone then took a slider outside. And then a pitch came pouring in towards Boone's hands. Boone brought his hands in and swung quickly. The ball jumped off his bat and flew down the left field line. The third base umpire ran down the line...and called it foul.
Boone jumped into the air and ran across the diamond--a stupid move fortunate not to be noticed. The Yankees screamed. When you're batting .117, this is the worst thing that can happen for the new guy in an embarrassing starting slump. Fortunately for baseball, the umpires consulted and the home plate umpire overruled the call--by the replay correctly--and Boone became a New York Yankee with a game winning three run homer.
Lost in the shuffle of the hour long ninth inning (Rivera again struggled in the ninth but got the save with one run scored) was a curious call from Torre to the Yankee bullpen an out into the eighth inning after Clemens struck out the first batter. Torre brought in Jesse Orosco, who looked every month of his forty-seven years and blew the win. The Yankees better hope Gabe White will join the club soon and save Torre from making that mistake again.
Sammy Sosa single-handedly beat the Dodgers for the second time in a week as he collected both RBI in a 2-1 complete game win for Mark Prior. Prior looks so good it's scary. Sosa now has 78 RBI in his 97 games. The Cubbies are back on top of their division by a half a game. As Mel Allen would have said: "How about that."
Randy Johnson, like Mariano Rivera, just isn't the same pitcher this year. The Braves hacked him up tonight for seven runs to push his season record to 3-5 with a 5.05 ERA after ten starts.
The Cleveland Indians beat Tampa Bay tonight 1-0 to improve their record to 8-2 in the last ten games. C.C. Sabathia pitched a complete game shutout to improve his record to 11-7 with a 3.28 ERA. With Hafner and Broussard blossoming as rookie hitters and pitchers like Sabathia and Anderson, the Indians are going to be a really good team in a couple of years.
The White Sox are suddenly tumbling again as they have lost three in a row. This is such a strange and exciting season as both Central Divisions in both leagues feature teams flip flopping back and forth in the standings. Between the Central Divisions and the wildcard races in both leagues, it's going to be an exciting last forty games of this season.
Thursday, August 14, 2003
The Cubs and Red Sox both faced crisis coming into their respective series. The Cubs had just lost two of three from the Dodgers and had fallen two and a half games behind the Astros and further out in the wildcard race. The Red Sox started their series in Oakland after losing two of three to the Orioles.
Both teams left those losing series in a bad way and now had to begin series against important opponents. The Cubs had to face the Astros who were on top in the Central Division. The Red Sox had to play Oakland, their closest wildcard competitor. And both teams took it on the chin their first games by tidy pitching performances. Oakland's Tim Hudson handcuffed the Red Sox for a complete game shutout, out-pitching Pedro Martinez. Wade Miller outpitching the Cubs' Kerry Wood in a one run performance.
By then, Boston was tied with Oakland for the wildcard and the Cubs were three and a half back of the Astros. The Red Sox continued to struggle and lost the next game to Oakland and for the first time, the Red Sox trailed the wildcard race. Cub fans and the Red Sox nation groaned: "Here we go again. Another late season swoon."
But the Cubs roared back and won the next three games against Houston and the Red Sox won convincingly yesterday and came from behind today with a ninth inning Manny Ramirez bomb and won in extra innings with more Bill Mueller heroics.
Now the Cubs are only a half a game back of the Astros and only two and a half off the wildcard race. The Red Sox are back a game ahead of the A's in their wildcard race. These are fun teams with a lot of spirit and a lot of passionate players. The Cubs won't quit with Dusty Baker in the dugout and their hard nosed pitching and the Red Sox are playing more as a team than any team in long time Boston memory.
Personally, I don't believe the Astros can stay in the race. Their starters have been in and out with injuries and inconsistencies all year long and their bullpen has to be pretty gassed as they pitch tough games every day. Jimy Williams is a staff killer and Houston won't be any different.
The Cubs, then, will only have to worry about the resurgent Cardinals who are capable of anything with Pujols and Edmunds in the lineup.
The Cardinals were also given a big shot in the arm by two straight excellent starts by fill in starter: Garrett Stephenson. The Cubs have a lot of work to do but they showed character as did the Red Sox, by not folding when they most certainly could have.
Both teams left those losing series in a bad way and now had to begin series against important opponents. The Cubs had to face the Astros who were on top in the Central Division. The Red Sox had to play Oakland, their closest wildcard competitor. And both teams took it on the chin their first games by tidy pitching performances. Oakland's Tim Hudson handcuffed the Red Sox for a complete game shutout, out-pitching Pedro Martinez. Wade Miller outpitching the Cubs' Kerry Wood in a one run performance.
By then, Boston was tied with Oakland for the wildcard and the Cubs were three and a half back of the Astros. The Red Sox continued to struggle and lost the next game to Oakland and for the first time, the Red Sox trailed the wildcard race. Cub fans and the Red Sox nation groaned: "Here we go again. Another late season swoon."
But the Cubs roared back and won the next three games against Houston and the Red Sox won convincingly yesterday and came from behind today with a ninth inning Manny Ramirez bomb and won in extra innings with more Bill Mueller heroics.
Now the Cubs are only a half a game back of the Astros and only two and a half off the wildcard race. The Red Sox are back a game ahead of the A's in their wildcard race. These are fun teams with a lot of spirit and a lot of passionate players. The Cubs won't quit with Dusty Baker in the dugout and their hard nosed pitching and the Red Sox are playing more as a team than any team in long time Boston memory.
Personally, I don't believe the Astros can stay in the race. Their starters have been in and out with injuries and inconsistencies all year long and their bullpen has to be pretty gassed as they pitch tough games every day. Jimy Williams is a staff killer and Houston won't be any different.
The Cubs, then, will only have to worry about the resurgent Cardinals who are capable of anything with Pujols and Edmunds in the lineup.
The Cardinals were also given a big shot in the arm by two straight excellent starts by fill in starter: Garrett Stephenson. The Cubs have a lot of work to do but they showed character as did the Red Sox, by not folding when they most certainly could have.
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