June 2015 – Page 3 – Sports Radio Service

Sacramento welcomes Willie Cauley-Stein

Published on June 27, 2015June 27, 2015 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

by Charlie O. Mallonee

One word describes Willie Cauley-Stein’s debut in Sacramento – impressive.

The giant of a young man handled the Sacramento press with a style and ease that comes only from having been on the big stage before. Cauley-Stein learned how to carry himself in his days at Kentucky.

It is really hard to explain the madness that is Kentucky Wildcats basketball. The Wildcats fans are truly fanatical. They are Sacramento Kings fans times three. The state of Kentucky literally lives and dies with their Wildcats. There is not a college basketball program on the west coast that comes close to the importance of Kentucky basketball to its fans.

That is the stage on which Cauley-Stein has grown up on over the past three seasons. Not only are the Wildcats the lead story on the local news, but Kentucky basketball is reported on throughout the Midwest, Southeast and Northeast. Wildcats basketball is often the lead story on ESPN and other sports networks.

During the Kentucky 38-0 run last season, the team was covered nationally on a day to day basis. Cauley-Stein has dealt with the press before, and it showed on Saturday. He was calm, cool and collected.

Following opening remarks by Vlade Divac and Vivek Ranadive, Cauley-Stein took control of the room. He started off by comparing the Kings fans to the Kentucky fans. “They’re super passionate,” he said.

Cauley-Stein was surprised by the large number of fans that were at the airport to greet him late Friday night. “I was not expecting that at all. They told me while I was walking off (the plane) that there would be some fans out there. I figured a couple of fans and sign some autographs. It was like an eruption … it was really cool,” said the newest King.

When asked if he had spoken with DeMarcus Cousins, Cauley-Stein revealed, “I actually just got done talking with him. He is super excited to have me on the team. We’ve both been talking. We’re thinking big things here. We’re anxious to get it going.”

Cauley-Stein told reporters he felt good about his workout in Sacramento and had a feeling that he could wind up with the Kings. He also added the line of the day, “I look good in purple.”

The newest King also seems excited that the Kings and Kentucky play a very similar style offense. “The cool thing about it is it’s very versatile, so it plays right into my hands. I can play multiple positions so I can fit in wherever I am needed. It’s very beneficial because as a rookie I’m not going to have to learn as much. I can learn the speed of the game and the physical play of the NBA,” he explained.

Cauley-Stein was asked about how his three years at Kentucky would help at the NBA level. “I’m a little older. The young adults that come into the league are 18 or 19 years old and I’m about to turn 22. In playing for Coach Cal (John Calipari), he runs his program like a pro program. I am kind of used to the pro life playing at the college level. Our fans are similar. The scrutiny that you go through, the spotlight that you’re in all the time. It’s not going to be any different than anything I’m already used to,” he related.

Responding to a question about defense Cauley-Stein said, “I look at myself as a defensive stopper. I take an extreme amount of pride in playing defense. The only way to win a championship is to be cohesive and play as a group defensively.We’re all pros. We’re going to score, but if you can’t stop the other person you are not going to win. So, that’s kind of my thing. I play super high intensity defense. If that is what we need, then that is what I’m going to do. I want to be that anchor. I want to the person who is going to the stopper.”

The big 7-footer was asked how long he had wanted to be a NBA player. After some thought he said, ” Probably since third grade. The teacher asked what do you want to be when you grow up. Everyone else was saying doctor, astronaut, army man. I raised my hand and said I want to play in the NBA. Everyone kind of snickered and laughed. There were 20 kids in my class – 800 people in my town. They said you’re not going to the NBA. I said just watch. I’m going make it.”

Cauley-Stein did make it. He is a Sacramento King now, and those 19 other third graders will be calling him for tickets to games.

Willie Cauley-Stein appears to be excited to be a member the Sacramento Kings. He appears to be at ease with taking on his new role as a NBA player. Will he be successful? Only time will let us answer that question, but I wouldn’t bet against him.

San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders podcast with David Zizmor: 49ers may have to look forward to 2016 draft for retiree replacements; Raiders expect lots from Murray at running back

Published on June 27, 2015June 27, 2015 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

by David Zizmor

San Francisco 49ers camp update: When the San Francisco 49ers were wrought with four players retiring in the off season and well before their time at that. These were guys who were all starters that’s tough to replace. Anthony Davis is the most recent retiree he retired after the draft the Niners didn’t even have an opportunity to approach their draft with the knowledge that they would replace Davis at right tackle.

The Davis retirement was probably the toughest one of them all. The 2016 draft is going to be in Virginia they did this year’s draft in Chicago it had always been in New York the NFL realized that the draft is a money generator. You just don’t need to do it in New York you could do it anywhere and people will show up.

Chicago was there first choice Chicago is a great town, and anybody whose been there would agree. They have very dedicated fans with the Bears and it’s centrally located you have a lot of people down from Green Bay, Detroit, Indianapolis, and those places are from shouting distance and it’s certainly an easy drive from each other.

What the NFL is doing now is trying to spread the love around and their going to accommodate Washington their the closest team to Virginia. This is going to be a Washington draft it’s not as far away as Philadelphia frankly New York isn’t all that far. Pittsburgh, Carolina, those towns are all relatively close to each other as the draft will be held in Virginia in 16.

Oakland Raiders camp update: Running back Latavius Murray who is expected to take over the starting position from ex-Raider Darren McFadden. Murray who was with the Raiders last season rushed for 424 yards, two touchdowns, while picking up 5.2 yards per carry. He had a strong 2014 season when he was on the field if you were watching the Raiders down the stretch you would notice him, he definitely stood out when he was out on the field.

The issue so far in his career is keeping him on the field, Murray is a guy who has a lot talent and he has to play. Murray has had a series of injuries that’s been a little bit rough but if he continues to improve your talking about a guy who has the talent to be an every down back in the NFL. We saw him make amazing plays last season.

Murray had that one big run against Kansas City this is a guy given the opportunity and given a decent offensive line he could be very successful. It’s still tough to say as I said he needs to stay on the field, the talent level is there the Raiders are very hopeful he doesn’t have Maurice Jones Drew blocking his path to the starting position anymore like he did last year.

This is a guy who has speed, he has power, size, he can be a every down back if he wants he’s a little bit successful. The biggest thing he’s got going for him this year is the offense looks more rounded. The one problem the Raiders had last year was quarterback Derrick Carr was improving but he didn’t have any wide receivers to throw to which meant teams could challenge him.

David Zizmor covers the NFL for http://www.sportsradioservice.com listen to the podcast below

Bullpen implodes again

Published on June 27, 2015 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO-Even though the San Francisco Giants defeated the San Diego Padres on Thursday afternoon, the bullpen continues to falter.

Javier Lopez gave up a double to Carlos Gonzalez that scored Charlie Blackmon on the first batter he faced, as the Colorado Rockies defeated the Giants 8-6 before a crowd of 41,887, the 366th consecutive sellout at AT&T Park. Following an intentional walk to Nolan Arenado, Ben Paulsen hit a two-run single that scored Troy Tulowitzki and Gonzalez.

The Giants tied up the game in the previous half-inning, as Brandon Belt singled in Matt Duffy and then Brandon Crawford singled in Buster Posey. All four hits came with two outs for the Giants.

Arenado gave the Rockies the lead in the top of the sixth inning, as he hit a towering three-run home run into the left field bleachers that also scored Tulowitzki and Gonzalez.

Andrew Susac gave the Giants the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning, as he hit a solo home run off of Rockies starter Chad Bettis, breaking the scoreless tie.

Hudson lasted 5.2 innings, allowing five runs on 10 hits, walking one and striking out six, as he lost for the seventh time this season against five wins.

Bettis improved to 4-2 on the season, as he went six innings, allowing three runs on six hits, walking two and striking out three.

Lopez dud not retire a batter for the second straight day, as he faced four batters on Thursday and three batters on Friday.

It was a big night for Gonzalez, as he picked up his fourth career five hit game and the first since May 6, 2014 against the Texas Rangers at Coors Field.

Arenado also did big things at the plate, as he hit two home runs, giving him 22 home runs on the season. It was the fourth multi-home run game for Arenado in his career, the third this season and second this week. Arenado also hit two home runs in the same game on Tuesday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Coors Field.

The Giants mounted a mini comeback in the bottom of the ninth inning, as Crawford scored on a passed ball with Travis Ishikawa at the plate. Following the passed ball, Ishikawa walked and then Gregor Blanco singled in Justin Maxwell, who also walked.

Joe Panik then singled in Ishikawa to narrow the lead down to 8-6, but then Matt Duffy struck out for the second out of the inning to bring up Buster Posey; however Tommy Kahnle struck out Posey to end the game.

There were three different reviews on the evening, all were challenged by the Giants and none of the three were overturned.

SaberCats score 42 straight points in win at Spokane

Published on June 27, 2015 by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Friday, June 26, 2015

By scoring 42 unanswered points, San Jose rolled to a 62-27 win at Spokane over the Shock in Arena Football League action Friday.

After Spokane tied the game at 20-20 on a fumble recovery for a touchdown, the SaberCats scored on touchdown passes from Meyer to Jeremy Kelley (14 yards) and Ben Nelson (5 yards) to take a 27-20 lead.

A 14-yard scoring pass from Meyer to Darius Reynolds continued the scoring streak early in the third quarter. Reggie Gray scored on an acrobatic 11-yard TD reception, Meyer added a 15-yard scoring run that put the Cats up 48-20 after three quarters.

Offensive lineman Rich Ranglin’s fifth TD of the season gave San Jose a 55-20 lead in the fourth quarter. San Jose tacked on one more touchdown before Spokane scored with under one minute to play.

SaberCats quarterback Erik Meyer completed 26 of 34 passes for 277 yards and seven touchdowns against his former team. Gray snared a game-high 14 receptions for 154 yards and four touchdowns. Nelson grabbed 10 passes for 91 yards and one TD.

Defensively, Francis Maka recorded back-to-back sacks, giving him 10 for the season. Defensive back Fredrick Obi had an interception and nine tackles, and Ken Fontenette finished with seven tackles.

After the SaberCats enjoy a Fourth of July bye week, they return to action Friday, July 10 at the SAP Center, hosting the New Orleans Hornets. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

Oakland Snaps 5-Game Winning Streak, Lose To Royals 5-2

Published on June 26, 2015September 5, 2015 by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

By Kahlil Najar

Oakland –

In the first meeting in Oakland this year, the Kansas City Royals defeated the Oakland Athletics 5-2. The Royals were powered by a pair home runs from Kendrys Morales and Alex Gordon.

Coming into the game Oaklands starting pitchers had been been credited with the win for the A’s last five games which was the first time that had happened since 2013. Unfortunately Jesse Hahn (5-6) had a mediocre night as he went six innings and gave up 5 runs although three were unearned. Offensively the A’s 1 through 4 hitters went 1 for 14 and the A’s were only able to get four hits for the whole game.

Kansas City got on the board first when in the top of the second on a 1-0 pitch Kendrys Morales hit his ninth homer of the year to put the Royals up 1-0.

Then to start the third Hahn gave up three singles to the Royals which included a single by Lorenzo Cain who was able to score Alex Rios who singled early in the inning and make it a 2-0 game.

Then the error bug came out again for Oakland.

As Hahn was pitching to Eric Hosmer, he threw a ball that snuck pass Vogt and bounced against the back stop and allowed Escobar and Cain to advance to second and third.

Then on an off-speed hit by Hosmer to first base, Ike Davis charged the ball then tried to flip the ball to Hahn who was trying to cover first but the ball ended up being thrown into the ground and allowed Escobar and Cain to score to give the Royals a 4-0 lead.

Davis’ error was the A’s 73 error of the year. A category that the A’s still lead the league.

The A’s were able to get one run in the bottom of the third when Sam Fuld hit his 10^th double of the year and scored Marcus Semien who had landed at first earlier.

In the top of the sixth Alex Gordon hit a monster shot to right center field that gave the Royals a 5-1 lead.

The hated Kelvin Herrera came out in the bottom of the eighth to a shower of boo’s from A’s fans who are still sour from when Herrera threw at Brett Lawrie earlier in the year in Kansas City. If you remember, Herrera was suspended for five games when after he threw a 99 mph fastball behind Lawrie and then pointed to his head as if to warn the A’s of what would happen next.

Herrera had the last laugh as he was able to get the A’s down in order with a strike out, ground out and fly out.

In the bottom the ninth inning Stephen Vogt was hit in the elbow by closer Franklin Morales and was awarded first base. It looked like Vogt wouldn’t be able to make it so Melvin substituted Josh Phegley in to pinch run for Bogt. Zobrist then hit his 13th double of the year and brought Phegley in to bring the game to only a three run lead. Josh Reddick came up and hit a deep line shot to left field that was tracked down by Gordon to leave the A’s with one out left in the game. Billy Butler then struck out to end the game and make it a 5-2 victory for Kansas City.

The A’s are now tied for last place in the AL West with the Seattle Mariners.

The A’s head back at it tomorrow when they send Scott Kazmir (4-4, 2.70) against the Royals Chris Young (6-3, 2.83). Game time 1:05 pm.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Jeremy Kahn: The rivalry brewing up again as Giants close in on the Dodgers one game lead

Published on June 26, 2015 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

by Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants in the month of June are just a game out of first place behind first place Los Angeles in the National League West. Heading for the first week of July if the Giants stay healthy they can make a run at the Dodgers. It’s a two team race it’s almost like the 50s when these two teams kept it up in the race for the best in the National League when they played in Brooklyn and Polo Grounds.

The Giants and the Dodgers look at these standings it’s the Giants and the Dodgers all over again. The fans at Dodgers Stadium are sick of the Giants winning championships every other year and their sick and tired of the Giants coming to Dodgers Stadium and beat LA and that’s what the Giants have done all season.

The Dodgers haven’t scored since April on the Giants at AT&T Park and they got shutout in all three games and then the Giants this past week went to LA and won two out of three and won the first two games the Giants nailed them by scores of 9-5 and 6-2. It’s a series like this that Giants fans love and the Dodgers fans despise.

The San Padres found out about the bats of Angel Pagan, Buster Posey and Brandon Crawford this past series at ATz&T and if Posey can get a good pitch to hit there’s telling what he can do. He’s a Mike Trout or a Miguel Cabrera type hitter he could get it going and it’ll be off to the races with Buster. Tuesday night Madison Bumgarner pitcher brilliantly only to lose 3-2 in 11 innings in the one loss to the Pads in this series.

It’s like after Mad Bum threw for 14 strikeouts and lost you have to ask “what’s going on here?” It’s a question now what the Giants are going to do in their rotation when starting pitcher Jake Peavy gets back. Ryann Vogelsong pitched himself a ball game on Wednesday night for the win and now with Nori Aoki out with the fractured fibula the Giants will be counting on the line up to keep getting the base knocks to keep them in ball games.

It’s very tight in the outfield right now it’s so strange that the first two guys they brought in are now being depended on because of all the injuries that the Giants have right now. The Giants are looking to Travis Ishikawa and Brandon Crawford for some extra hits in the long run Ishikawa has some great experience.

Jeremy Kahn is a San Francisco Giants beat writer for http://www.sportsradioservice.com listen to the podcast below

Grading the Kings Draft Pick

Published on June 26, 2015June 26, 2015 by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings selected Kentucky center Willie Cauley-Stein with the number six pick overall in the 2015 NBA Draft. Cauley-Stein had been on the Kings radar throughout the pre-draft evaluations. The big man was one the players the Kings brought to Sacramento for a workout.

Many of the early mock draft boards had Cauley-Stein going to the KIngs at number six; however, the last mock draft projections had Cauley-Stein falling as low as 11th in the draft. That begs the question – did the Kings draft the defensive-minded center too high and miss a more talented athlete with their first-round pick?

The Kings were said to be looking for a ball distributor to run George Karl’s “dribble-drive offense”. The talented point guard Emmanuel Mudiay was available at number six. Mudiay, a 6-foot-5 big bodied guard in the Tyreke Evans mold, was available and went to the Denver Nuggets with the seventh pick. The long term evaluation of the 2015 draft will look at what would have been the results if the Kings had selected Mudiay rather than Cauley-Stein.

One of the positives of taking Cauley-Stein is that he is the player DeMarcus Cousins wanted the KIngs to select in the draft. Of course, there is the obvious Kentucky connection, but Cousins desire to have Cauley-Stein on the floor with him probably goes well beyond their college connection.

Cousins has literally been beat up on the court by double-teams on offense and defense. Cauley-Stein is a rim protector. He will provide a defensive presence that has been sorely missing for Sacramento, and that should ease the load on Cousins. Cauley-Stein can also run the floor with excellent speed which the Kings can use on fast-break opportunities.

If the Kings drafted Cauley-Stein to placate Cousins, then the selection is a short-term fix that will be a long-term failure. If Sacramento drafted the center because they feel he was the best available player, then the pick has chance to have immediate impact on team play.

Now on to the grades for the selection. Using the four-point system to analyze the draft, the seven reporters whose grades I reviewed scored the Kings selection as solid B with a 3.2 grade point average. That was actually higher than I thought would be the case.

Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman gave the Kings a B+ for selecting Cauley-Stein. He liked the center’s ability to defend in the paint near the basket and to be a full-court defender. Wasserman did not care of Cauley-Stein’s lack of offense.

Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix scored the pick with a B. Mannix sees Cauley-Stein as an elite defender in the Tyson Chandler mold. Mannix said that Cauley-Stein “maybe the safest pick in the draft.” He noted that the number six pick will defend but might not score. Mannix also wondered if the selection was made in order to replace DeMarcus Cousins.

SB Nation’s Kevin O’Connor issued a B grade for the taking of Cauley-Stein. He states that the former Kentucky center is quick, long and can defend the floor. O’Connor thinks the pairing of Cauley-Stein with DeMarcus Cousins is a good one. SB Nation feels Cauley-Stein will need time to develop on offense.

USA Today’s Scott Gleeson did not like the selection at all. He issued the harshest grade of all the analyst giving the Kings a C. Gleeson says that taking Cauley-Stein at number six was too high for the talent level. Gleeson likes the draftee’s defense but says the offense may never come.

Yahoo! Sports staff gave the Kings a grade of B for the pick. Their logic was that if DeMarcus Cousins is on his way out then Cauley-Stein could be his replacement. They call him a “defensive menace.”

CBS Sports’ Matt Moore gave the Kings an A+ for taking the 7-foot center. Moore thinks the pick will keep DeMarcus Cousins happy which is good for everybody concerned. He sees DMC – WCS (get used to it – those initials are going to be used all the time) as the perfect duo for George Karl’s offense.

The Sporting News gave the Kings a B+ for giving DeMarcus Cousins the pick he wanted which is good news for the club. They see Cauley-Stein as strong on “D” and thin on offense.

Finally –

Sports Radio Service’s Charlie O. Mallonee gave the Kings a B-minus. He likes the fact that Cauley-Stein can be of immediate help to the team on defense which will support DeMarcus Cousins. Mallonee (it’s odd to write about yourself in the third person) likes Cauley-Stein’s attitude about needing to improve on offense. He seems willing and eager to show fans that he can be valuable on offense as well. The minus was given because over the past several years guards have had the most impact in the long run for NBA teams. The real test of this selection will be in three seasons when Mudiay has time to mature and learn the NBA game. Then, we can compare Cauley-Stein and Mudiay in order to determine who picked the best available in the 2015 draft.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: As the soap box turns Karl and Cousins could very well be stuck with each other

Published on June 26, 2015 by lleonardbwLeave a comment

by Charlie O

SACRAMENTO–Does the current Sacramento Kings management style have similarities with the former Kings owners the Maloof Family? In terms of finances no, managing partner Vivek Ranadive is lucrative and liquid and he can get what he wants. The team dollar wise is solid which is an issue the team had when the Maloofs owned the club.

Financially the team is on strong footing they have no problems with the investments they made into the arena or downtown. What is Malooflike is the fact that team owner Vivek Ranadive by all reports and there are a consensus of reports that he is very actively inserting himself into the day to day basketball operations and management.

Which what the Maloofs did frankly when the Maloofs got involved telling former Kings general manager Geoff Petrie what he ought to be doing that’s when the Kings started going down hill. So right now the Kings are at risk in having an owner that he feels knows whats best for the team.

Ranadive is a billionaire, he’s a tremendous tech guy, as an owner he’s business savvy because what he’s trying to put together with the arena and the associated buildings with it it’s nothing short of genius. When it comes to operating a pro basketball team he’s flat out a rookie.Ranadive has to recognize that, ten years from now when you walk into a room and he says “guys I’ve seen this guy and he’s the player we need to sign” and everybody says “he knows what he’s talking about” right now he’s a little short on knowledge.

Also with the Kings head coach George Karl and the Kings DeMarcus Cousins situation doesn’t have much to do with George Karl.Cousins is a mad young man because they took a coach Michael Malone who had won him over for whom has said “I want to play for you, I will make commitments to you and I will make changes in attitude on the floor 110 percent best efforts.”

Then when Cousins made those changes they fired Malone, then people acted surprised that DeMarcus is pissed off, he’s a 24 year old guy who in five seasons has played for two owners, three general managers, and five coaches. I’d be angry too, I’d be really angry, if I was Cousins I’d be standing on somebody’s desk in my whole 6’11 height jumping up and down saying “get me the hell out of this town.”

Instead he just voiced some of that and of course he’s frustrated at this point how can you expect him to commit this much to Karl especially when it’s rumored that Ranadive is going up and down the halls in the offices of the Kings asking his employees “should we get rid of Karl.” For Cousins he has to know whose going to be boss and it doesn’t make a difference whose boss he just needs to know somebody is boss.

Charlie O covers the Sacramento Kings for http://www.sportsradioservice.com listen to the podcast below

Warriors Take UCLA’s Kevon Looney with 30th Pick in the NBA Draft

Published on June 26, 2015 by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

With the 30^th and final pick of the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft last night, the Golden State Warriors selected UCLA forward Kevon Looney. The 19-year-old freshman fell into the Warriors lap after being projected as a lottery pick mid-season. A balky hip that won’t affect his ability to be ready for the start of the season helped Looney’s draft slide.

Looney produced one of the best freshman campaigns a storied program like UCLA has ever seen. The Milwaukee, WI native became a nightly threat for a double-double, average 11 points and 9 rebounds per game. His ability to get to the rim put Looney 2^nd in the Pac-12 in rebounds. He led the conference with 122 offensive rebounds. He led all freshmen nationally with 15 double-doubles and was second in total rebounds with

The 6-foot-9, 220 pound power forward still has some developing to do before his body and his game are NBA-worthy, but that shouldn’t be a concern for the World Champions. The Warriors return most of the deep core that led them to the Larry O’Brien Trophy, which means playing time with the big club will be limited. This gives Looney a chance to hone his skills in the D-League with the Santa Cruz Warriors for a season or two until he’s ready to play a physical role against NBA caliber players. At the 30^th pick, he represents a low risk-high reward profile for a team with no real weaknesses at the moment.

Giants need late burst to put the Padres away in 13-8 win

Published on June 26, 2015June 26, 2015 by moepeaLeave a comment

By Morris Phillips

In splitting their first 38 home games, the Giants have been all over the place in terms of their play: just as often brilliant as they’ve been just been bad.

On Wednesday afternoon, they squeezed the whole gamut into one ballgame.

The Giants cruised through the first seven innings, leading 9-2 behind starting pitcher Chris Heston and an impressive offensive display. But the Padres mounted in a huge rally in the eighth to climb within 9-8, only to see the Giants rally back in the bottom of that inning to finish off a 13-8 win.

How up and down have the Giants been at home? The matinee win against the Padres marked the first time the Giants have won back-to-back home games in almost a month, last accomplishing the trick on May 29 with consecutive wins against the Braves.

“Obviously we would have like not to make it interesting, but it was good to counter-punch,” Joe Panik said of the Giants’ topsy-turvy afternoon.

The Giants racked up a season-best 13 runs and 19 hits, but it wasn’t easy street until they added on the final six hits and four runs in the eighth, to answer the Padres’ big rally. In a ballgame featuring 31 hits, the fans were treated to an offensive display by both teams that’s been rare along McCovey Cove this season for sure, but in previous seasons as well.

Even rarer were the Giants’ four triples, a feat the team hadn’t accomplished since 1960 when Willie Mays accounted for three of the four three-baggers all by himself. This time, Brandon Belt had a pair of triples, and that had him all fired up describing the thrill of baseball’s rarest type of hit.

“When I can sniff a triple, I’m going to turn it on. I will do whatever I have to do–use my giraffe strides—to get to third base,” Belt said.

Heston did his best to take advantage of all the offensive support. The rookie pitched well again, throwing seven innings, allowing two runs and five hits, while walking one and striking out six. All indications are that Heston will retain his spot in the rotation when Matt Cain and Jake Peavy return from the disabled list, and he showed why again on Wednesday.

Heston won his eighth game against five defeats to maintain his stature as one of the most impressive rookies on any team this season. Again, Heston showed great command of all four of his pitches and kept the Padres at bay.

But when Jeremy Affeldt relieved Heston, things got interesting. Affeldt allowed two doubles and a Matt Kemp two-run homer before manager Bruce Bochy could make a change. But Javier Lopez and Sergio Romo had issues as well, allowing a combined four hits before Romo got Clint Barmes to pop out to end the inning.

In the bottom of the eighth, the Giants bounced right back. Mat Duffy and Belt came up with RBI singles and Buster Posey knocked in a couple of runs with a double.

James Shields got the start for San Diego, and he ended up no happier than he was in a pair of World Series matchups with Madison Bumgarner last fall. The former Royals starter was lifted Wednesday after allowing seven runs and nine hits in only four innings of work.

The Giants look to move their home record above .500 on Friday night when Colorado comes to town. Tim Hudson and the Rockies’ Chad Bettis are scheduled for the series opener at 7:15pm.