Month: July 2014

Kershaw up to his old tricks

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By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO-Clayton Kershaw is seen as one of the best pitchers in the major leagues for many reasons, and the San Francisco Giants found that out in the second game of the three-game series.

Kershaw pitched a complete game, allowing zero runs on just two hits, walking just one and striking out six, as the Los Angeles Dodgers moved back into first place with a 5-0 victory over the Giants before a crowd of 42,060, the 301st consecutive sellout at AT&TPark.

It was another tough loss for Ryan Vogelsong, as he went six innings, allowing four runs (two of them earned) on eight hits, walking one and striking out four.

Vogelsong retired the first 11 batters he faced, but then Adrian Gonzalez doubled to right field that Hunter Pence lost in the sun.

Gonzalez then scored the Dodgers first run of the evening, as Hanley Ramirez singled to left field; however he was then thrown at second base by Michael Morse to end the inning.

Juan Uribe drove in the Dodgers second run of the game in the top of the fifth inning, as Carl Crawford scored after he singled to leadoff the inning versus Vogelsong.

Yasiel Puig scored the Dodgers third run of the game, as he singled to leadoff the top of the top of the sixth inning and then scored when Buster Posey was unable to hold onto Dan Uggla’s throw from second base for a fielding error on a ball hit by Crawford.

Uribe added another run batted in with a double to right-center field that scored Crawford with their second run of the inning, and their fourth run of the game.

The Giants offense disappeared for the third straight game, as they could muster only one hit off of Kershaw thru the first five innings and only two base runners thru that same period.

Kershaw retired 11 in a row after allowing Blanco’s base hit, as Morse walked with one out in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Gonzalez picked up his third hit of the night to score Gordon after he led off the inning with a single of his own.

Morse picked up the Giants’ second hit of the night in the bottom of the seventh inning, as he singled off the glove of Gordon and into centerfield.

After getting hit in the mask on Friday night, it was discovered that Hector Sanchez suffered a concussion and was placed on the seven-day disabled list.

Andrew Susac was recalled from Fresno, and the native of Roseville, CA made his major league debut, as he replaced Posey behind the plate in the top of the eighth inning.

Susac made his first plate appearance in the bottom of the eighth inning against Kershaw, and on the first pitch he saw, he grounded out to Uribe for the third and final out of the inning.

That was not only move by the Giants on the day, as they acquired Jake Peavy from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for minor league pitchers Edwin Escobar and Heath Hembree.

NHL: “If They Can Take The Job…”

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-By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks did not make any moves this week, they did not even turn up in the rumor mill. For better or worse, it does look like Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau be in teal next season. As I have said before, I think that is for the best.

Listening to a radio interview with the Red Wings’ Mike Babcock, I was reminded of Doug Wilson’s comments about the role he expects younger players to take this coming season.

Back in May, Wilson described part of his plan for the team. He was talking about Al Stalock’s chances of taking the starter’s role:

Every one of our young players will be given the chance to take whatever role they want. That includes him. When you go through this you have guys who are aching and begging for that opportunity. If they can come in and do it they can take it.

In an interview with Detroit Sports 105.1 on July 17, Mike Babcock said something very similar:

We’re gonna play the best players. So just like we did last year- it’s always a hard thing when a veteran on a one way contract doesn’t make the lineup, but that’s life- we’re committed to the growth of this team. Most franchises to get back on top have to get bad for ten years. That’s not our plan. We’ve scrounged to get in the playoffs the last two years in a row. I think we did a real good job, had a real good run against Chicago. I didn’t like us in the playoffs last year against Boston, but we like what we have coming. And we like our kids, so the biggest thing is not to rush them. We could really use some puck-moving D. Well we just happen to have some puck-moving D in the minors, big guys who can skate. When are they ready? We’re sure not going to rush them but if they’re capable of taking jobs they’re gettin’ the jobs.

There are some differences there, the focus on giving players time is something that Wilson has put less emphasis on lately. The last part, about giving the young players a chance to take jobs if they are capable, this sends up some red flags for me. My confusion stems from how you get from the first sentence (“We’re gonna play the best players.”) to the last one (“We’re sure not going to rush them but if they’re capable of taking jobs they’re gettin’ the jobs.”).

If these guys are the best players you have, why in the world would they NOT, under any and all circumstances, get the job?

Maybe I am misreading the “taking jobs” part. Do they simply mean “if they are capable of doing the job, since we don’t have anyone better, we will let them play instead of going out and finding someone older”? Shouldn’t they also mean “if they are better than the older players we have, we will use them”? Shouldn’t they always mean that?

It certainly seems like the Sharks have not followed that last rule. Yes, Matt Irwin lacked experience, but all signs pointed to him being a better option in many games last season than Brad Stuart or Scott Hannan. Given the ice time to develop his game, won’t he be a quicker, higher return asset than those two were last season? If he doesn’t play he won’t develop, but that is true of any young player. The team followed the same pattern with Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Justin Braun and to a lesser extent Jason Demers: using older veterans again and again while the young players seemed ready and in need of ice time.

This notion that a younger player with more upside will be benched to let a veteran play is insane. Yes, the veteran might represent a lower short-term risk but if a younger player is capable of taking the job, doesn’t that mean he is not a higher risk long term? Doesn’t that mean he is capable of taking the job from the veteran? To say a younger player will get to play if he is capable of taking the job sounds like the team had previously given far to much consideration to veteran status. This is not just a matter of fairness and meritocracy, it is the difference between winning and losing.

On the other hand, it can be risky to put too much on a younger player. Eric Gilmore published a piece on NHL.com suggesting that Mirco Mueller could crack the Sharks lineup this coming season. Doug Wilson has suggested as much in the past. Tomas Hertl cracked the lineup last season, in his first year in North America. Couldn’t Mueller make the big club early too? Other defensemen have done it but comparing Hertl’s role to Mueller’s is clearly comparing apples to oranges. A defenseman’s job is much more complicated, traditionally defensemen take longer to develop their professional game. To move any player up to the NHL too soon can have a negative impact on his game, and with defensemen that impact can be that much worse.

So, as eager as fans might be to see Mueller make the jump, it seems unlikely that such a move would be a good thing for the Sharks or Mueller.

It might just be noise. Hannan is returning, Thornton and Marleau very probably are too. The team will have no shortage of veterans to fall back on. If their humiliation as group at the end of last season stung them as much as they claim, less roster turnover is better than more.

Kings arena downtown: Kings to begin construction on new arena groundbreaking in coming weeks

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by Jerry Feitelberg

SACRAMENTO–Sacramento Superior Court Judge Timothy Frawley made his second major ruling in favor of the Sacramento Kings to start construction on their new arena at Downtown Plaza. The construction was about to face a delay after a recent lawsuit filed by foes opposed to the arena claiming that the new arena would be an act of gentrification and would displace many single occupancy hotel residents in downtown Sacramento.

The ruling by Frawley would clear a path for the arena to start construction but also would force those single occupants to move from their homes in hotels that they stayed in for decades to make way for new buildings in the neighborhood. The foes who learned of their lawsuit loss on Friday had filed the suit under the California Environmental Quality Act. The opposition said that traffic, noise, and pollution issues amongst other complaints were reasons for the suit to get a injunction to block the start of construction for the Kings arena.

Frawley back in Febuary in his first ruling against another opposition group who wanted to place an initiative on last June’s ballot saying that voters should have a vote on whether public funds and building a new arena should be allowed to go forward. The opposition group in this attempt found that that they were caught in a political triangle which went back to Hedge Fund manager Chris Hansen who tried to buy the Kings and move them to Seattle.

Hansen later admitted being behind funding the campaign to put the arena initiative on the ballot. Frawley ruled that the legal language in the initiative was flawed and that the Sacramento Registar of Voters found many discrepancies of unregistared voters who signed documents to get the initiative on the ballot and legal flaws in the language of the ballots were stained. At the time Mayor Kevin Johnson said “I can smell the stench off those ballots” regarding the initiative push.

The opponents lawyer Kelly Smith said in Sacramento Superior Court on Friday to Frawley that the bill that protects new arena projects such as the Kings arena proposal is unconstitutional. The bill was sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg that give teeth to any arena proposal and that any lawsuit trying to block it’s construction could only be successful in the event of a health and saftey issue or if American Native artifacts are threatened.

The state initiative SB743 was signed by California Governor Jerry Brown that stops CEQA lawsuits from injunctions. Opposition after opposition group tried everything to try and halt the construction of the new arena and Frawley had played a key role in ruling in favor of the new arena with stopping some major lawsuits against it’s construction.

The project was originally scheduled to breakground this week but after this latest lawsuit filed the groundbreaking will be recheduled. The Kings new arena is expected to be completed and ready for the NBA season in 2017. The Kings will spend $222 million for their share on the arena project and the city will spend $255 million. The opponents had objected to the city’s use of public subsidies and the use of public parking lots owned by the city to pay back the money barrowed from the general fund another suit that was overruled. Opponents said that the money should have been used towards the arts rather than building a new arena for the Kings.

Jerry Feitelberg is covering the new arena developments for the Sacramento Kings and the Golden State Warriors for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Puig triples up in win

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By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO-You knew Yasiel Puig would get to the San Francisco Giants sooner or later, and sooner became in the opener of the three-game series on Friday night.

Puig hit three triples and a double in his first four at-bats and ended up going 4-for-5, as he flew out to centerfield in his last at-bat, and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Giants 8-1 before a sellout of 41,753, the 300th consecutive sellout at AT&TPark.

The Dodgers got to Tim Lincecum in the first inning, as Puig tripled to left-center field and then scored on an Adrian Gonzalez single.

After settling down from the second until the fourth innings, Lincecum got roughed up in the top of the fifth inning, as Zack Greinke got the hit party started, as he singled off of Lincecum, then Dee Gordon tripled and then Puig made three straight hits, as he tripled to score Gordon from third.

Gonzalez then singled score Puig and then Hanley Ramirez made it five hits in a row, as he singled to send Gonzalez to third and that was the end of the night for Lincecum.

Juan Gutierrez was able to put an end to the streak, as he got Carl Crawford to line out sharply to Michael Morse at first base for the second out; however Matt Kemp got into the hit parade, as he tripled to right-center field to score Gonzalez and Ramirez.

Puig’s fourth hit of the night, and third triple drove in Gordon, who singled with two outs against Gutierrez.

By hitting three triples in the game, Puig tied a Dodgers team that was set by Jimmy Sheckard on April 18, 1901 against the Philadelphia Phillies.

The five triples ties a Dodgers team record that was set in 1921 at the Polo Grounds versus the Giants.

Greinke pitched a great game for the Dodgers, as he went seven innings, allowing zero runs on four hits, while walking one and striking out 10.

Four of Greinke’s strikeouts came in the bottom of the fourth inning, as he struck out Hector Sanchez, Hunter Pence, who reached on a Greinke wild pitch and then ended the inning by striking out Gregor Blanco.

Greinke became just the fifth Dodgers pitcher in team history to strikeout four players in an inning, joining Pete Richert, Don Drysdale, Darren Dreifort and Brad Penny.

The right-hander is just the 12th National League pitcher to strikeout all four batters in successive order, and the third Dodger (Richert and Drysdale).

Lincecum, who saved the Giants 14-inning victory on Tuesday night against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park did not get out of the fifth inning, as he went 4.1 innings, allowing six runs on nine hits, walking two and striking out six.

Dan Uggla made his Giants debut, and went 0-for-2 versus Greinke.

Uggla was not the only new Giants player on the roster when the game began, as Tony Abreu was also recalled from Fresno along with Uggla.

Both Ehire Adrianza and Marco Scutaro were placed on the 15-day disabled list prior to the game.

Adrianza was placed on the disabled list with a right hamstring strain, and Scutaro went back on the disabled list with a lower back strain.

To make room for Abreu and Uggla on the 40-man roster, the Giants designated left-handed pitcher Jose DePaula and infielder Nick Noonan for assignment.

Sanchez was forced to leave the game after getting hit in the catcher’s mask and that sent Morse to first base, Buster Posey to catch and Tyler Colvin entered the game in left field.

Ramirez finished off the scoring for the Dodgers in the top of the eighth inning, as he singled off of George Kontos to pinch hitter Andre Ethier, who walked to leadoff the inning.

Colvin broke up the shutout in the bottom of the ninth inning, as he singled to right field off of Paul Maholm to score Joaquin Arias from third base.

Hammel’s Struggles Continue, A’s Lose 4-1

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ARLINGTON, TX - JULY 25: Brandon Moss #37 of the Oakland Athletics stands in the dugout against the Texas Rangers in the fourth inning at Globe Life Park in Arlington on July 25, 2014 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX – JULY 25: Brandon Moss #37 of the Oakland Athletics stands in the dugout against the Texas Rangers in the fourth inning at Globe Life Park in Arlington on July 25, 2014 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

By Kahlil Najar

Jason Hammel (8-8) last less than six innings in Texas tonight and the A’s (63-39) lost to the Rangers (41-62) 4-1.  The A’s were able to spread seven hits throughout the night however Adrian Beltre had two hits and RBI tonight to lead the offensive charge for the Rangers.

Over his last eight starts Hammel is 0-3 and 2-5 with a 5.02 ERA. With the A’s Hammel has gone a combined 12 2/3 innings, given up 19 hits, 12 runs,  seven walks and only eight strikeouts. He has a high ERA at 7.12. A stark comparison to Jeff Samardzija who has been an ace from the beginning.

“The easy thing to do here is to start getting down on myself, but I’m not going to do that. Lot of good things tonight,” said Hammel on his night.

The Rangers got on the board first in the bottom of the second. Jim Adduci hit his third double of the season off of Hammel into centerfield and then J.P. Arencibia singled a line drive to left field and drove Adduci in to make it a 1-0 lead for the Rangers.

The Rangers added another run in the bottom of the third when Rios shot a single to left field and drove in Andrus who was already on base.

The A’s got their only run of the game in the top of the sixth when on back to back singles from Sogard and Jaso landed Sogard at third. Cespedes then came up to the plate and hit a single to left field and brought in Sogard to make it a 2-1 game.

The Rangers added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth to make it a final of 4-1.

Eleven game winner Sonny Gray starts for the Athletics tomorrow against Nick Tepesch, game time 5:05 pm PST.

Game notes:

Oakland manager Bob Melvin successfully challenged to have two safe calls at first base overturned on replay. Arencibia was initially ruled safe on a pick off throw by Hammel in the fourth. Andrus was called safe on what would have been an infield single, but wound up the inning-ending out in the seventh.

 

Samardzija Gets Plenty of Support in A’s Win Over Astros

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BY PAUL GACKLE

OAKLAND — Brandon Moss gave Jeff Samardzija more run support in one swing than he’s received in two-thirds of his starts this season.

Samardzija has received the fourth lowest run support in the majors this season, but the A’s supplied plenty of offense on Thursday, including a grand slam from Moss, as they defeated the Houston Astros 13-1 at the O.co Coliseum.

“When you have a lead, you can take a deep breath and pound the zone,” Samardzija said.

The All-Star right-hander received little offensive help when he was a member of the Chicago Cubs earlier this year. The Cubs provided four or more runs of support in only four of his 17 starts and he received as much offense from the A’s on Thursday as his former club provided in his last six outings with the team.

The American League’s top run-scoring team opened up the scoring with a three-run, two-out rally in the third inning. Josh Donaldson picked up his 72nd RBI of the season, scoring Josh Reddick with a single to right and then Eric Sogard scored on a wild pitch after swiping third in a double steal with Donaldson.

The All-Star third baseman eventually scored on a single to right by Derek Norris.

After adding a run in the fourth, the A’s gave Samardzija a 7-1 cushion in the sixth when Moss smacked his third grand slam of the season with Coco Crisp, Donaldson and Sogard aboard.

“Twelve RBI in three at bats — that’s not fair,” A’s Manager Bob Melvin said, referring to Moss’ three grand slams. “You’ve got guys who have to work to get 12 in a month and he’s got them in three at bats.”

Samardzija said the grand slam changed the mood in the dugout.

“That really broke it wide open,” he said. “It made the dugout nice and loose.”

The A’s tacked on a ninth run later in the inning and added four more in the eighth, allowing Samardzija (2-1) to cruise to an easy victory.

Josh Reddick continued to impress in his return from the disabled list. He went 2-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI returning to Wham’s “Careless Whisper” as his walk-up music one night after using “Wild Thing” to the chagrin of the home crowd.

Whatever music he uses, Reddick’s hitting the ball, going 4-for-8 in two games.

As the bats piled it on, Samardzija continued to impress his new club, surrendering one run on five hits in eight innings of work. He’s pitched at least seven innings in all four of his starts with the A’s.

“He goes out there and takes nothing for granted,” Melvin said. “He’s just as comfortable, probably, in two or three-run games as he is with some runs.”

Time for the A’s to make Hay

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Time for the A’s to Make Hay

The A’s beat the lowly but pesky Houston Astros on Thurs and they upped their major league best record to 63-38. After the game the A’s embark on a six game road trip to Texas where they will face the Texas Rangers and the Houston Astros again. The Rangers, if you can believe it, have a worse record than the Astros. The Rangers’ pitching staff has been decimated by injury and the team is just not very good right now. There is some speculation that Ranger Manager Ron Washington will be fired after the season. The Rangers’ top acquisition in the off season was Prince Fielder. The big lefty slugger is out for the season and the Ranger offense has been weakened.

The A’s will send Jason Hammel to pitch Friday night. Hammel is looking for his first win as an A since coming to Oakland in a trade with the Cubs. Sonny Gray (11-3, 2.72) will pitch game two and Scott Kazmir(11-3, 2.32) will go in the finale. The Rangers are sending out three pitchers with losing record. Jerome Williams(1-4, ERA over 6) will pitch Friday night. Nick Tepesch(1-2,4.75) goes on Saturday and Miles Mikolas (1-6,7.48) on Sunday. The A’s then travel to Houston to face a team that played them tough in the three game series that concluded on Thursday but the A’s took two out of three and clobbered them 13-1 in the finale. After that, the A’s come home to face the Kansas City Royals for three, the Tampa Bay Rays for three and four with the Minnesota Twins. The only team without a losing record is the Royals but they are at the .500 mark with a record of 50-50. The Rays are four games under .500 but have as of July 24th won seven in a row. The Rays had a lot of injuries earlier in the season but are playing well as those players are now healthy. The Twins are in last place in the AL Central with a 46-54 record.

The Angels, who are now 2 ½ games behind the A’s, start a four game series against the Detroit Tigers

Thursday and will have to face Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander and Rick Porcello. The Angels then o on a tough road trip as they travel to Baltimore to play the Orioles again. The Orioles took two out of three in Anaheim and are in first place in the AL East. The Angels then go to Tampa Bay to face the Rays and as noted above, the Rays are playing well and could be a problem for the Angels. The Angels road doesn’t get any easier as they return “home” to play a four game series with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The first two games of the series will be in Los Angeles and the last two games will be in Anaheim. The Angels then have to face the Boston Red Sox for three. The Red Sox have been playing better as of late and would love to upset the Angels apple cart.

It will be up to A’s manager, Bob Melvin, to keep his troops focused. The A’s have to feast on these team and they could put a lot of distance between them and the Angels. The Angels have the second best record in the American League and know that they can’t afford to lose any of these series as they want to keep pace with the A’s. The season is about two thirds complete. The trade deadline happens a week from today and the stretch drive to the playoffs begins. Should be a lot of fun and, hopefully,

the fans will come out and support the best team in the American League, the Oakland Athletics.

Hamels salvages series finale

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By Jeremy Kahn

PHILADELPHIA-Still after eight and a half years, Cole Hamels continues to be a mainstay in the Philadelphia Phillies starting rotation.

Hamels went eight innings, allowing just one run on six hits, walking just one and striking out 10 and the Phillies salvaged the finale of the four-game with a 2-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants before 33,258 at Citizens Bank Park.

By striking out 10 in the game, it was the fourth time this season that Hamels topped the double digit and the 27th time in his career.

Hamels threw 116 pitches on the afternoon, 90 of them were strikes and just 26 balls.

Chase Utley gave the Phillies the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning, as he singled up the middle to score Ben Revere from second base after Revere reached second base after Michael Morse was not able to catch the Revere hit ball for a two base error.

Marlon Byrd drove in the first run of the game in the bottom of the first inning, as Jimmy Rollins scored from third base after the former Encinal of Alameda High School star doubled and then advanced to third on a Buster Posey passed ball.

The inning could have been even worse, but Hudson was able to get Grady Sizemore to line into a double play to end the inning.

With a chance to get something going in the top of the fourth inning, as Joaquin Arias came to the plate; however he grounded out to Rollins to end the inning and leave the bases loaded.

After the Giants failed to get on the board in the top of the fourth inning, the Phillies put two on with one out in the bottom of the fourth; however Hudson was able to get Wil Nieves to pop out to Adrianza at second base and then Hamels to strikeout to end the inning.

Adrianza got the Giants on the board in the top of the fifth inning, as he singled up the middle to score Gregor Blanco, who singled and advanced to second on a Hudson sacrifice bunt.

Hudson went pitched six innings, allowing two runs (neither of them earned) on eight hits, walking two and striking out six.

Both of the runs came courtesy of Posey’s passed ball in the bottom of the first inning and then Morse’s two-base fielding error in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Hunter Pence, who was the hero in Wednesday night’s 3-1 victory struck out three times against Hamels.

The last time Pence struck out three times against a starting pitcher was Scott Collmenter of the Arizona Diamondbacks on August 16, 2011, while Pence was playing for the Phillies.

Cespedes Powers the A’s to Victory

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by Jerry Feitelberg

What an interesting game the A’s played Wednesday night against the lowly Houston Astros. The A’s won the game 9-7 as the A’s led 7-0 after four innings on the strength of two home runs off the bat of Yoenis Cespedes. Cespedes drove in five runs and he made it look like he was participating in a Home Run Derby. The A’s continued to have their way with former Athletic, Brad Peacock. Peacock gave up seven runs on seven hits in just 3 and 2/3rds innings of work. The A’s starter, Jesse Chavez, pitched well giving up two runs on four hits before he left the game in the top of the sixth with two outs. Ryan Cook relieved and Cook did not allow a hit or any runs in 1 and 1/3rd inning of work.

The A’s in the meantime, increased the lead and led 9-2 at the end of seven innings. Then came the fateful eighth inning. A’s manager, Bob Melvin, brought in Jim Johnson to pitch. The fans started to get nervous as Johnson has had a terrible year so far with Oakland. However, the bullpen needed some rest and the A’s had a big lead so what could go wrong. Well, it did not go well for Johnson. Jose Altuve, Houston’s great second baseman and All-Star, hit a ground ball to third. Josh Donaldson’s throw to first was offline and Brandon Moss tried to tag to tag Altuve but that tactic went awry. Moss did tag Altuve but Altuve, running hard, nearly took Moss’ left arm off. His glove was knocked off his hand and the ball dropped to the ground and Altuve was credited with a single. Did this unnerve Johnson? Probably. Johnson’s struggles are well known and he must have been thinking “here we go again. What will go wrong now?”

Big League players have to have confidence that they can do the job and relievers have to believe they are invincible. Someone once said baseball is 50% physical and 90% mental. In any case, Johnson proceeded to give up three more hits and could not get anyone out. The A’s brought in Dan Otero to pitch and he gave up 2 hits and one run. Johnson was charged with four runs on four hits and the Astros sent ten men to the plate in the inning scoring five runs and the game was suddenly a 9-7 contest.

Otero got one man out and the A’s brought in Luke Gregerson to restore order. Gregerson retired the two men he faced to end the inning and closer Sean Doolittle put the Astros down in order in the ninth to seal the win.

There were a lot of positives in the game. Yoenis Cespedes had a big night as did John Jaso who had three hits and a walk as well as a sacrifice fly. Right fielder Josh Reddick had two hits and really had good swings in his first game back from the DL. Jesse Chavez pitched well as he picked up his eighth win of the year. On the negative side, Cespedes injured himself while batting and suffered a sprain in his right thumb. Brandon Moss also was hurt and he may not play Thursday as he had a biceps stinger in his left arm. The biggest negative of the night was the pitching of Jim Johnson. Johnson had 100 saves over the last two seasons with the Baltimore Orioles and the A’s brought him here to be their closer. He also was given a ten million dollar contract but he has not done enough to earn the money and he was bombarded with boos as he exited the game

The A’s conclude the Series Thursday afternoon at 12:30pm at the O.co Coliseum Jeff Samidzija will pitch for the A’s before they start a six game road trip against the Texas Rangers and three more with the very same Houston Astros.

The A’s improve their record to 62-38 and continue to lead the Los Angeles Angels by two games in the AL West.

Quakes Douse Fire with Five Goals, Extinguish Five-Game Winless Skid

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By Matthew Harrington

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Perhaps all the San Jose Earthquakes needed to reach full potential in 2014, all they needed was a familiar face and the national spotlight in town. If that’s the case, Quakes coach Mark Watson might beg the NBC Sports trucks not to leave the Santa Clara University.

On the MLS game of the week, the San Jose Earthquakes trounced the Chicago Fire 5-1 Wednesday night at Buck Shaw Stadium, riding an offensive wave to snap a five-game winless stretch. Goals from Shea Salinas, Atiba Harris and Chris Wondolowski gave San Jose its first win at home since a 3-0 blanking of the Houston Dynamo, helping a team sitting dead last in the Western Conference (5-8-5, 20 points) gain some ground in the standings.

“We haven’t had the points at home that we should have,” said Watson. “That’s a big result, to back the performance up in New York. This is the time of the season where we need to pick up points quickly. This is a huge result and will give us a huge boost of confidence to move forward.”

It took a goal in the 85th minute from Steven Lenhart to draw the San Jose even in New York Saturday for the point in game where the lacked a finishing touch against the Red Bulls. In fact, over a run of six games entering Wednesday, the Quakes went 1-4-1 while only scoring four goals total. Wednesday night, five different Quakes found their way onto the score sheet, the highest scoring output San Jose produced this season and most goals in a game since a 5-0 blanking of Real Salt Lake at home July 14, 2012.

“That’s what we’re capable of,” said Quakes goalkeeper Jon Busch. “We know when we get the consistency, that’s what we’re capable of. We’ve talked about it in this locker room. We have some very talented players. Today it all came together.”

The Quakes’ dominant performance came in front of the architect of many an Earthquake victory, with former bench boss Frank Yallop facing his old charges for the first time as head coach of Chicago (3-5-11, 20 points). Before joining the Men in Red this season, the Watford native brought two MLS Cups to Silicon Valley, scaling the stateside summit in 2001 and 2003. In his time with the team from 2001-03 and 2008-13, the English-born Canadian shot-caller compiled 99 wins, earned 2001 and 2012 Coach of the Year Honors and nabbed the club’s lone Supporters’ Shield in 2012. It marks the only time San Jose finished with the most points of all MLS teams at season’s end.

“It was pretty emotional,” said Yallop. “I saw the new stadium going up, which is a great thing for the city. I was very happy for that. It’s different. It’s weird sitting on the other bench, but you move on. I have some fantastic memories and times here, so I’ll never forget those. I’m pleased for Mark to get the result tonight but I’m not happy we lost.”

“It was a little different, to be honest,” said Watson, who served as an assistant under Yallop from 2010-2013 with San Jose as well as with the Canadian national team from 2004-06. “He’s been a great friend of mine. I’ve coached with him a long time. It was a little different, but once the game starts you’re focused on the team, the game and getting points.”

A strike deep into the first half by Shea Salinas converted early promise into late success. In the 45th minute, Salinas tried to chip a pass around a Chicago defender but instead hit shinguard. The carom landed tidily in front of midfielder Yannick Djalo who fed a lead pass to a streaking Salinas down the left side. Salinas took the ball down the sideline then advance in towards the Chicago cage. The Quakes midfielder fired a shot to the far post that beat Fire goalkeeper Sean Johnson’s dive to tally his first goal of the season and put San Jose up 1-0 heading into the interval.

“That was an incredible goal,” said Watson. “Shea’s a little different when he plays on the left side. As right footed player, his natural tendency is to come inside. We’ve worked with him a little bit on situations where ‘what do you do when you come inside’ or get too far central.”

“What a goal,” said Busch. “That was a great goal by Shea. That helps a lot. We were playing well, getting a lot of chances. For him to bury that one before halftime, it really gave us a boost.”

The Quakes opened the second half with another offensive flurry, with Atiba Harris finding the back of the net in the 52nd minute. Harris played give-and-go with Chris Wondolowski, who found himself anchored dead center at the mouth of the penalty box. Wondolowski put the ball on net, but Johnson made the save. The rebound bounced to Harris, who buried the ball in a vacated net to stake San Jose to a commanding 2-0 advantage. Just over ten minutes later, Wondlowski made it 3-0, scoring on a low liner for his seventh goal of the season and a comfortable 3-0 edge.

Grant Ward of Chicago sullied Quakes keeper Jon Busch’s clean sheet, beating the keeper in the 75th minute to inch the visitors a pair short of the tie. That’d be all the offense the Second City squad could muster though, with the Quakes defense winning out on the day. Yannick Djalo tacked on a marker with a delicate touch to arch one over Johnson in the 79th minute while substitution Cordell Cato added a goal of his own in the 85th minute.

Djalo, on loan from Benifica of Portugal for his first season in the MLS, finished the night with a goal and two assists playing underneath the defense for most of the night in a role normally filled by two-time Golden Boot winner Chris Wondolowski.

“If we’re getting results like that, I’ll play wherever,” said Wondolowski. “I thought he did good. It’s a good situation.”

It may be a situation that continues in the future according to the man in charge of the Quakes lineup.

“When you’re searching for performances, results, points, you try different things,” said Watson. “Based on his performance tonight, things look pretty good. There’s a chance we’ll see that again.”

Djalo will most likely get his next shot when San Jose hosts Atletico Madrid Sunday at a special venue as the Quakes take part in the farewell tour of Candlestick Park. Some other players, like Alan Gordon or Steven Lenhart (a late scratch Wednesday night), may not take part in the exhibition against the European side in order to be back to full strength for a late-season charge.

“We’ll have to look at everything. Obviously it’s an important game in some ways. It’s a fantastic opponent and we’re playing the last event at Candle Stick. We want to play well and win the game but we also have to look at the big picture and make the best decisions.”