photo courtesy Daily Californian: In a contest won by the Cal Bears on two come back touchdowns vs Ole Miss Daniel Dullum shares his inside analysis from Saturday’s game played at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley
On the NCAA Football Podcast with Daniel:
1 San Diego State stuns Cardinal
2 Cal holds off Ole Miss
3 Memphis stuns UCLA
4 USC works overtime to beat Longhorns
5Florida’s last-second win over Tennessee
Daniel is filling in for Michelle Richardson this week catch Michelle next Sunday for all the latest in NCAA Football at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
Oakland Athletics’ Joey Wendle connects for a grand slam off Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Edubray Ramos during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)
On the podcast with Matt:
1 The end of a great era this week when Cleveland’s long win streak ended in a loss to the Kansas City Royals. The streak at 22 fell four games short of tying the MLB all time record held by the 1916 New York Giants at 26.
2 The are really, really depending on some players of the future for the 2018 season, Matt Chapman, Matt Olson, Franklin Barreto, Marcus Semien, Chad Pinder, Joey Wendle, and Ryon Healy.
3 The A’s starter Daniel Mengden on Friday night in Philadelphia had a great outing in Philadelphia Friday throwing a two hit shutout
4 The Giants are battling to avoid a 100 loss season the last and only Giant team to reach the 100 loss plateau was the 1985 team managed by Jimmy Davenport and Roger Craig.
5 Ever since playing in SF the LA Dodgers looked like a cured team. They took the Giants two out of three at AT&T Park and now have won three straight
California quarterback Ross Bowers (3) runs against Mississippi during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Berkeley, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
By Morris Phillips
BERKELEY, CA–The Ole Miss Rebels started fast, but ended slow, and the Cal Bears’ unheralded defense rightfully could claim authorship to their opponents’ surprising about-face.
That’s because apparently it’s not a phase, but a pattern. The line drawn in the sand by the Bears at the half is familiar. This is the third, consecutive week the Bears trailed at halftime, but won the game. According to head coach Justin Wilcox, it took a bunch of contributors to make that happen.
“I commend our players for never losing the faith and staying together, and it took so many guys,” Wilcox said. “You’re going to look throughout the stat sheet, but special teams, guys who made blocks and tackles, guys who came in and stepped up when guys got dinged and we needed everybody, that was the ultimate team win.”
Cal’s 27-16 win over favored Mississippi sets up an early-season showdown with No. 4 USC on Saturday in Berkeley. Television has endorsed the meeting of old rivals with a juicy 12:30pm start time on ABC. The Trojans barely managed to stay perfect themselves, coming up with a game-tying field goal to end regulation, and then squeezing past Texas, 27-24 in two overtimes.
So how did Cal get to this point–an unlikelihood for a team with a new coach, and so many new faces at key positions?
Under Wilcox, it’s been defense, running the ball, and a healthy slice of resilience. Quarterback Ross Bowers, who really picked it up after throwing a hurtful interception after halftime, explained.
“We just don’t flinch, whether we could be down, we could be up,” Bowers said. “This team is always prepared. We’re waiting for the adversity because that’s when we play our top game.”
Adversity was immediate for the Bears on Saturday as Mississippi exploited their size and speed at the wide receiver spots in the opening drive. Three of the Rebels’ first four plays–all passes–went for 9, 19 and 45 yards. Early in the second quarter, Mississippi’s Shea Patterson had added 71 and 72-yard touchdown passes to establish a 16-7 lead.
Down nine, the Bears’ response was three-and-outs on their two, ensuing possessions. But as things looked as if they were falling apart, Cal was actually putting them together. As Wilcox described, the strategic changes were subtle, and the contributions came from a bunch of different places.
“We played better,” Wilcox explained. “We didn’t install a new defense at halftime. We played it better. We changed up kind of what they were doing, who they were trying to isolate. A lot of the same calls, same coverages and our guys went out and executed better.”
San Diego State running back Rashaad Penny reacts after scoring a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Stanford on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Saturday, September 16, 2017
David Wells’ 8-yard touchdown reception from Christian Chapman in the final minute of play gave unranked San Diego State a 20-17 upset win over No. 19 Stanford Saturday before 43,040 fans at San Diego Stadium.
The loss negated a big night for Cardinal running back Bryce Love, who gained 184 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. The undefeated Aztecs (3-0) countered with a 175-yard effort from Rashaad Penny – the nation’s leading rusher – on 32 attempts.
The game was delayed nearly 25 minutes before the winning touchdown when the lights went out at the 50-year-old stadium. Fans tried to help out by shining lights from their cellphones.
Stanford (1-2 overall, 0-1 Pac-12) had a final possession that ended abruptly when Kameron Kelly picked off a Keller Chryst pass on the first play of that drive.
The Cardinal took a 17-13 lead nine seconds into the fourth quarter on a 53-yard scoring run by Love. Earlier, a Jet Toner 20-yard field goal with 4:51 remaining in the third quarter pulled Stanford to within 13-10.
After Love scored on a 51-yard touchdown run with 12:39 left in the second quarter to give the Cardinal their first lead at 7-3, San Diego State responded with Rashaad Penny running four yards for a TD with :43 to go in the first half.
The Aztecs extended their lead to 13-7 on a 36-yard field goal by John Baron II at 8:33 of the third quarter, his second field goal of the game. Earlier, Baron booted a 43-yard field goal 55 seconds into the game, giving San Diego State the first lead of the game.
Chryst completed 8 of 19 passes for 56 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions for the Cardinal, and was sacked four times. Trenton Irwin caught six passes for 49 yards to lead the Stanford receivers.
Chapman was 21 of 29 passing for 187 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions, despite being sacked six times. His primary target was Mikah Holder, who snared seven throws for 85 yards.
With back-to-back wins over Pac-12 opponents (Arizona State and Stanford), the Aztecs have a chance to return to the Associated Press Top 25. The Cardinal return to conference play next Saturday night when they host UCLA.
Photo: Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle The Dynamo (10-10-8) failed to score for a second consecutive game – the first time that has happened this season in the San Jose Earthquakes 1-0 shutout of the Dynamo at Avaya Stadium in San Jose on Saturday night
By London Marq
SAN JOSE–As the long season draws to a close the matches are getting more crucial for the San Jose Earthquakes. On a cool night at Avaya Stadium the Earthquakes hosted the Houston Dynamo as they fight for playoff positioning. With 36 points entering play, they sit one point out of playoff contention.
Not surprisingly the Earthquakes came out firing early. They need to when at home if they want to be taken seriously. After missed shots by Vako and Urena, it looked as if it might be a long night for the Quakes, but they were relentless. Ball movement in the scoring third was solid and proved fruitful. An accurate cross came into the box from Sarkodie on the right side and found Hoesen. Hoesen, in traffic, very accurately slotted it into the bottom corner. The Quakes fought hard and did their due diligence to hold off Houston from equalizing. At the end of the 90 minute mark, they would walk off with a much needed, well deserved win 1-0.
A truly momentous victory, the win moves them from sevnth place in the standings to fifth. The Quakes, since acquiring new manage Chris Leitch midseason, have proved to have resilience. While they have had their losses, the Quakes are matching up well with other teams in playoff contention. This is experience that they will need if they want to make a run in the playoffs, and maintain their strength in the seasons to come.
The playoffs are not a guarantee. With five games left in the season anything can happen. The schedule is on the Quakes side, with three of those games taking place at Avaya Stadium. Marco Urena stated before the match, “If we want to make the playoffs, we have to win at home”. He’s not wrong and they will have their chance. If nothing else, remainder of the season will be filled with drama.
The next match will be on September 23rd, an away game against D.C. United.
Oakland Athletics’ Mark Canha, left, scores on an RBI sacrifice fly by Boog Powell as Philadelphia Phillies catcher Jorge Alfaro, right, watches during the second inning of a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
By Jeremiah Salmonson
The A’s and Phillies went at it during stormy conditions on Saturday in the city of brotherly love. Those stormy conditions turned into a rain delay and an abbreviated second inning performance from Kendall Graveman. Graveman did not allow a run. Following the delay, the Phillies came out swinging to bury the with a final of 5-3.
The Phillies offense scored single runs in the third, fourth, and eighth withtwo runs scored in the sixth. The Phillies were able reach five runs on eighthits. That would be all the Phillies needed as the A’s were only able to scratch across three hits. The A’s lone hits were on a solo homer from Matt Olson who continues his homer tear, Matt Chapman who doubled, and Jed Lowrie’s solo shot in the ninth. The only other at bat leading to a run was from Chad Pinders sacrifice flyout.
Due to the rain delay, both teams had to use more pitchers than they would have liked. For the Phillies, Lively threw three innings of two runball keeping them close. The Phillies also sent Rios, Arano, Milner, Ramos, Garcia, and Neris. Arano got the win which was his first of his career (W 1-0, 0.00 ERA). The A’s bullpen featured Smith, Hendricks, Castro (L 1-3, 4.06 ERA) Coulombe, Dull, and Casilla.
The rubber game of the series is tomorrow at 10:35 local time. It will be Henderson Alvarez (0-0, 0.00 ERA) against Sean Manaea (10-10, 4.65ERA) as the A’s look to take the series 2-1.
Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda waves to fans prior to the San Francisco Giants’ baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
By: Ana Kieu
SAN FRANCISCO — Despite it being Orlando Cepeda bobblehead night, the San Francisco Giants were unable to get a win, falling 2-0 to the Arizona Diamondbacks at AT&T Park Saturday night.
The Diamondbacks jumped out to an early 2-0 lead when Paul Goldschmidt hit his 35th home run of the season in the top of the first inning.
The Giants continued to trail the Diamondbacks 2-0 as a 1-2-3 ended the fifth inning.
Madison Bumgarner (3-9) ended his night on the mound after going seven innings. He gave up two runs on seven hits. He also tallied one walk and six strikeouts.
Batting ninth, Cory Gearrin replaced Bumgarner to start the eighth inning. Gearrin was then replaced by Nick Hundley in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Batting ninth, Sam Dyson replaced Gearrin to start the ninth inning.
Not only were the Giants’ pitching substitutions time consuming, they also didn’t help at all. The Diamondbacks shutout the Giants 2-0 in the middle game of the series. Zach Greinke (17-6) picked up the win.
Notes Giants Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda celebrated his 80th birthday. Moreover, the club shared a large birthday cake in the press room in honor of the special celebration.
Giants signaled their intention to exercise Matt Moore’s $9 million option for 2018. The team has a $10 million option for 2019.
Up Next
The Giants conclude the three-game series with a rubber match Sunday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. PST on ESPN, NSBA and FSAZ.
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts watches from the dugout during the first inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
By Amaury Pi Gonzalez
LOS ANGELES–With all the respect to all the teams (with two weeks of regular season remaining) the 2017 season has provided us with many thrills. Rookies like Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees and others and veterans like Dominican Adrian Beltre of the Texas Rangers who this 30th of July became the 31st player in Major League Baseball to reach 3,000 hits, and of course, the Cleveland Indians establishing a new American League record of 22 consecutively wins, this is what I see for this postseason.
Teams to watch: Arizona Diamondbacks are one of the strongest teams, with little weaknesses, they can hit, field and pitch and they are a very dangerous team. The Washington Nationals easily winning the NL East, under Manager Dusty Baker, they are a powerhouse and will need their superstar Bryce Harper to come out big during the playoffs.
Teams still with a chance of winning their divisions are the Yankees closely behind the Boston Red Sox, and then wild card favorites that might make it this season, like the Minnesota Twins, a team that finished last in their division in 2016 looking very good and playing very good for their Manager Paul Molitor (Hall of Fame player). The LA Angels are surviving and looking to make it as a wild card team in the American League.
The Milwaukee Brewers still have a shot with a handful of games remaining, but the defending Champions Chicago Cubs are by far the best team in the NL Central. This are not the dominating team the Cubs were in 2016, yet, they are still a very good team.
Then my simple prediction for this 2017 World Series will be the Los Angeles Dodgers, this is their year. Yes, they recently lost 11 games in a row, but are back on track. Then in the American League the Houston Astros are one of the most talented teams in the game, which recently added a #1 starter in Justin Verlander They are tough to beat winning the AL West.
Prediction World Series:
American League: Houston Astros
National League: Los Angeles Dodgers.
Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the LA Angels Spanish TV talent, the Oakland A’s Spanish radio talent, and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
Oakland Athletics’ Daniel Mengden, left, and Bruce Maxwell celebrate after a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Friday, Sept. 15, 2017, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
By Matthew Harrington
The Oakland Athletics rotation has its holes, but still it’d be hard to believe that Daniel Mengden would turn in the best start of the season for the green and gold.
That’s just what happened Friday night, with the mustachioed hurler who sports that herky-jerky wind-up just as peculiar as his facial hair choice throwing a complete-game shutout on the road against the Philadelphia Phillies. Matt Olson and Matt Joyce had two-run homeruns to seal a 4-0 shutout for Mengden.
Mengden surrendered just two hits, baffling the Phillies bats to the tune of 7 strikeouts. He coaxed 15 ground outs to just 5 fly outs in a hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park
Olson cracked a two run shot in the 1st of Phillies starter off Mark Leiter Jr. Joyce ripped his an inning later for a 4-0 lead after six outs. Leiter would finish 6 innings but pick up the loss.
Saturday Kendall Graveman takes the hill for the second game of the interleague series. He’ll be opposed by Ben Lively for Philadelphia.
Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (44) is congratulated by Ketel Marte (4) after scoring in the second inning, during a MLB game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park in San Francisco, California. Valerie Shoaps/CSM (Cal Sport Media via AP Images)
By Jeremy Kahn
SAN FRANCISCO-Things were looking good for the San Francisco Giants in the early going, but it was the top of the seventh inning that proved to be the Achilles heel for them in the end.
A.J. Pollock hit a two-run double that scored Peninsula native Daniel Descalso and Ketel Marte in the top of the seventh inning, as the Arizona Diamondbacks came back to defeat the Giants 3-2 before a crowd of 39,810 at AT&T Park.
The seventh inning comeback made a winner of Robbie Ray, who won his 14th game of the season, as he went seven innings, allowing two runs (one earned), allowing six hits, walking not a batter and striking out 10.
It was a tough loss for Jeff Samardzija, who pitched eight strong innings for the Giants, allowing three runs on six hits, not walking a batter and striking out six. With the loss, Samardzija set a dubious career high with 14 losses.
Samardzija was cruising along after he allowed a double to Chris Herrmann in the top of the second inning, as after that, Samardzija retired the next 14 Diamondbacks in a row until Descalso singled with one out in the top of the seventh inning.
Samardzija helped himself out at the plate in the bottom of the sixth inning, as he led off the inning with a single, went to second on a Joe Panik single and then scored when Ray could not handle a throw on a Hunter Pence single that allowed Panik to advance to third base. Unfortunately, that is where the rally ended, as both Buster Posey and Nick Hundley struck out to end the threat.
Pence was forced to leave the game in the top of the ninth inning, as he suffered back spasms and is listed as day-to-day.
NOTES: Madison Bumgarner looks to even up the series on Saturday night, as he takes the mound against Zack Greinke.
Engelb Vielma was claimed from the Minnesota Twins, and to make room for the 23-year infielder, the Giants moved Michael Morse to the 60-day disabled list to create a spot on the 40-man roster.
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