Author: kahlilnajar7

Kazmir’s Rough Three Innings Dooms A’s, Oakland Loses 10-1

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

 

NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 24: Scott Kazmir #26 of the Oakland Athletics pitches in the first inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field on June 24, 2014 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NY – JUNE 24: Scott Kazmir #26 of the Oakland Athletics pitches in the first inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field on June 24, 2014 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

 

By Kahlil Najar

NEW YORK – Scott Kazmir is allowed to have one bad game a year. This was it. In three innings Kazmir gave up eight hits and seven runs – of those eight hits, three went for home runs.

“I just wasn’t throwing my pitches where I wanted to at all,” said Kazmir. “Any change up was belt high or even higher, and they put good swings on them. They didn’t miss any of those pitches that were up in the zone. For the most part, everything was right down the middle.”

It seemed as though Kazmir wasn’t on his game tonight. Head Coach Bob Melvin echoed that sentiment, “It was a performance that we haven’t seen so for me it just looked like some balls were up in the zone and he wasn’t locating like he normally does.”

The three homers tonight were also a shock for Kazmir. Known for not giving up the deep ball, Kazmir gave up the home run ball to Curtis Granderson, former Athletic Chris Young and Travis d’Arnaud.

“It’s almost a shock when you see him give up home runs,” said Melvin. “He got some balls up, missed location with a few of them, and they didn’t miss them. The wind was blowing out to left, and they got some in the air out there, took advantage of it.

The only highlight of the night for the A’s was when Yoenis Cespedes hit his 20th double of the year and scored Brandon Moss in the first inning.

The Mets started former Athletic starting pitcher Bartolo Colon who earned his eighth win of the year as he went 8 strong innings and struck out 8 on 112 pitches.

When asked about Colon, catcher Stephen Vogt said, “What he did tonight is what he did for us all of last year. He’s so frustrating to play, especially someone who has caught him and knows him well. He threw me three sliders in one at-bat. I don’t think I’ve seen him throw three offspeed pitches to anyone. That’s just what he does. Just when you think you’ve got him figured out, he’s going to throw you something you have no idea about. That’s just a testament to how good he is.”

The A’s hope to turn it around tomorrow when Brad Mills (0-0, 4.50 ERA) takes on the Mets Zack Wheeler (3-7, 3.93 ERA), game time 4:10pm PST.

Clutch Crisp Seals Victory For A’s Over Red Sox 4-3

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment
Kyle Blanks scores the go-ahead run in the eighth inning. The A's defested the Red Sox, 4-3. BEN MARGOT/AP
Kyle Blanks scores the go-ahead run in the eighth inning. The A’s defested the Red Sox, 4-3. BEN MARGOT/AP

 

By Kahlil Najar

OAKLAND – Coco Crisp came in to the game in the bottom of the seventh and proved his worth in the eighth when he hit a go-ahead RBI single off of lefty Andrew Miller to give the A’s a 4-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox.

On his clutch timing Crisp said, “Everybody in here in the later innings, his number can be pulled out of the hat. We know with our team we play a full squad, so we’re always prepared in case of anything.”

Putting Crisp in was something that coach Bob Melvin didn’t want to do, “Certainly I’d like to rest him the whole game, but he always tells me he’s ready to go, and he came up huge for us. There’s been so many times over the last couple of years where he comes up in those situations and comes through so many times. To an extent you almost expect it, which is unrealistic, but you always feel good when he’s up at the plate.

With the win tonight the A’s have the best record in the league and are 18 games over .500.

Josh Donaldson hit his 18th homer of the year in the bottom of the first with two men on to give the A’s a 3-0 lead. Boston mounted a comeback in the second when Jackie Bradley Jr. hit a line drive single to center field and score Mike Napoli and Jonny Gomes who had landed on the bases earlier in the inning.

The Red Sox completed the comeback in the top of the third when the always reliable David Ortiz hit a single to right field ans score Xanders Bogaerts to tie the game at 3-3.

It wasn’t until the bottom of the eighth when Crisp smacked a line drive single to Red Sox right fielder Brock Holt and scored Kyle Banks who was on second and sealed the victory for Oakland.

Melvin concluded, “That was a complete team win today. When your starter goes four innings and you got to use a lot of bullpen you certainly got a lot of contributions.”

The Red Sox and A’s head back at it tomorrow night when the Red Sox send Rubby De La Rosa (2-2) against Jesse Chavez (6-4), game time 1:05pm PT.

Pinch Hitting Norris Propels A’s Victory Over Rangers 10-6

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment
Oakland Athletics' Josh Donaldson, left, congratulates Derek Norris, right, after Norris hit a three-run home run off off Texas Rangers' Shawn Tolleson in the sixth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, June 17, 2014, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
Oakland Athletics’ Josh Donaldson, left, congratulates Derek Norris, right, after Norris hit a three-run home run off off Texas Rangers’ Shawn Tolleson in the sixth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, June 17, 2014, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Kahlil Najar

OAKLAND – If the baseball world didn’t know that the A’s have a deep bench at the catcher position, they do now.

Derek Norris, Stephen Vogt and John Jaso went a combined 7 for 8 with 7 RBI and 7 hits to help propel the A’s (43-2) to a 10-6 victory over the Texas Rangers (35-36).

“It’s pretty amazing. It’s quiet a luxury. We have three guys that can start in a number of places,” said Melvin on the three catchers.

Norris, who came in for Jaso in the bottom of the sixth got his night started right when he launched a three run home run to left field off of Rangers pitcher Shawn Tolleson. Then in the eighth with Donaldson and Crisp aboard he hit a double that scored two more runs. Norris ended the night with two hits and five RBI off the bench.

Melvin praised Norris by saying, “He’s done it before coming off the bench. He has a knack. He’s ready for the situation. He knows how to pinch hit. You don’t play for a majority of the game and you end up with 5 RBI means you’re taking advantage of your opportunities.”

Texas pitch Yu Darvish (7-3) suffered his third loss of the year and is now 1-8 against the A’s lifetime.

“His stuff is so good and on top of that he has seven different pitches. We’ve been really fortunate, we’ve made him work and a few guys square him up and have some good numbers off of him. But he’s about as good as you get,” said Melvin.

Vogt, who went 3 for 3 off of Darvish said, “I saw him pretty well today, fortunately saw three pitches to hit and hit all three of them. He’s such a good pitcher and we’ve been fortunate enough to have success against him. I don’t have anything to explain that.”

On his night, Norris said “I’ve worked pretty hard on making my swing more consistent, just more level of a bat path, but ultimately trying to stay in the zone as long as I can with the bat. The longer you’re in the zone, the more chances you have of barreling the ball. So that’s my main goal, and I’ve worked hard on it. It’s paying off.”

Tommy Milone (5-3) who started the game for the A’s had a decent night as he went 5 2/3 innings with three strike outs and three runs. Milone’s nemesis has been the first inning this year and today was no different as he gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead off of a single from Adrian Beltre.

However in the bottom of the second the A’s had three runs cross the plate with two runs coming because of a single by Alberto Callaspo and single from Vogt. In the fourth, the A’s added to their lead when after two stolen bases by Eric Sogard, Coco Crisp was able to hit a sac fly to bring Sogard home and make it a 4-1 Oakland lead.

In the top of the fifth, the Rangers Rougned Odor hit his third homer of the year and brought the score to 4-2. The A’s responded in the bottom of the inning with another RBI from Vogt to make bring the lead back to three and a 5-2 score.

The Rangers added a run in the top of the sixth and bring the lead back to two but then in the bottom of the sixth is when Norris came in. Norris knocked his pinch hit homer  and made it a 8-3 game.

The Rangers tried to make it interesting as they added three runs in the top of the 7th but in the bottom of the 8th, Norris came up to the plate and hit his eleventh double of the year to make it a 10-6 final.

“D-No is such a good baseball player,” said Vogt. “He’s having an All-Star caliber year, and I hope that gets recognized. What he’s done off the bench, just what I’ve been fortunate enough to witness, it’s incredible the way he comes in, he doesn’t get big, he doesn’t try to do too much and comes through all the time.”

The A’s and Rangers close out the series tomorrow when Sonny Gray (6-3) goes against Nick Tepsch (2-2), game time 12:35 pm PST.

Brewers Triple-A left-hander Brad Mills Traded To A’s For 4 Quarters

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment
Newly Acquired Brad Mills
Newly Acquired Brad Mills

By Kahlil Najar

OAKLAND – Yeah you read that right. The A’s picked up a new starter for their rotation for four quarters. 10 dimes. 100 pennies.

Left-Hander Brad Mills has experience in the majors when he was brought up by the Angels. His big league record is 3-3 with a 7.76 ERA.  This year in Triple-A he’s 4-2 with a 1.56 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 77 strikeouts.

The $1 fee the the A’s had to give up was because in Mills’ Minor League Contract with the Brewers he had an out that if he was not in the Majors by June 15th the Brewers would be required to advertise Mills availability to the other teams in the majors. If a team was interested, the Brewers had to give him up.

Mills should be joining the starting lineup this Saturday against Boston.

 

SaberCats Unplug the Shock Win 47-37 and Clinch Playoff Spot

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment
Harper and Gray Celebrate SaberCats Touchdown In The Third Quarter (Photo Credit: Emily Zahner)
Harper and Gray Celebrate SaberCats Touchdown In The Third Quarter                  (Photo Credit: Emily Zahner)

 

By Kahlil Najar

SAN JOSE – The San Jose SaberCats (9-4) unplugged the Shock (6-7), 47-37 and clinched a playoff birth tonight. San Jose quarterback Nathan Stanley completed 18-of-31 passes for 240 yards and four touchdowns. Jason Willis lead the San Jose receiving core with 77 yards receiving however Reggie Gray, Rod Harper, Dominique Curry and Rich Ranglin had a touchdown each tonight. Defensively, Francis Maka lead the cats with three-and-a-half sacks.

“They (the defense) played great. They’ve been the backbone of the team. They’ve been very consistent week in and week out. Getting pressure on the quarterback and covering teams,” said Head Coach Darren Arbet. “It’s a really close group and they challenge each other.”

The SaberCats were in control of the game and one of the standout plays of the first half was a deep pass from Stanley to offensive weapon Reggie Gray down field who dove to grab the ball.

“Tonight was a big game for my receivers. They played extremely well,” said Stanley. “Reggie had the deep route but we double counted them and got them on the jump. I took a shot and Reggie went up there and got it.”

The Shock got on the board first when Terrance Sanders took the opening kickoff 57-yards and made it a 7-0 lead. Dominique Curry answered for the Cats when he rumbled into the end zone from one yard out and tied the game at 7. Stanley found Ranglin open for a 15-yard screen pass before the end of the first and put the Cats up 14-7.

Spokane outscored San Jose in the second quarter 17-13 on the strength of two touchdowns – a two yard run from Rashaad Carter and a six yard touchdown to Nick Truesdell and a field goal. Stanley was able to get a pair of touchdowns for the Cats including a one-yard run from JJ Payne and the 42-yard bomb to Reggie Gray. At the half, the  Cats were up 27-24.

Stanley found wide receiver Rod Harper for a 14-yard touchdown to start the second half and increased the San Jose lead to 10.After a turnover on downs by the Shock, Stanley fired a bullet to Curry who was able to break a few tackles and tan the ball into the end zone to make it 41-24.

In the fourth, the Cats were able to put up a pair of field goals and the Shock were only able to put up a pair of touchdowns and finished the game with a 47-37 victory for San Jose.

With the win, the Cats have made the playoffs in back-to-back-back years.

On clinching the playoff spot Arbet said, “You always have those three goals – clinch a playoff spot, win your division then win the championship. One down, two to go.”

The Cats next face Arizona on June 27th at home at 7:30pm.

Gray Starts Slow, A’s Lose 7-0 to Yankees

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment
New York Yankees' Brian McCann, left, scores as Oakland Athletics catcher Derek Norris can't catch the ball in the eighth inning of a baseball game Friday, June 13, 2014, in Oakland, Calif. McCann scored on a hit by Brian Roberts. A's Norris received an error on the play. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
New York Yankees’ Brian McCann, left, scores as Oakland Athletics catcher Derek Norris can’t catch the ball in the eighth inning of a baseball game Friday, June 13, 2014, in Oakland, Calif. McCann scored on a hit by Brian Roberts. A’s Norris received an error on the play. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Kahlil Najar

OAKLAND – Sonny Gray (6-3) gave up three runs on 49 pitches in the first two innings and the A’s lost to the New York Yankees 7-0. Jed Lowrie and Derek Norris were able to pressure Phelps and get a double and single respectively however those were the only offensive highlights of the game for the A’s. Gray was able to settle down in the later innings and ended up going six innings and striking out 7 batters in his first ever outing against the Yankees.

On his slow start, Gray said,”They were aggressive and once we were able to start making pitches down in the zone I got them out. It was just a little too late.”

“That’s been his problem the last few times, whether it’s ball/strike ratios (or) giving up some hits like he did tonight. Good news is that he settled in pretty well. He was able to give us six innings and threw the ball well, so that was good to see,” said head coach Bob Melvin on Gray. In his last three starts Gray is 1-1 with an ERA of 6.

In addition the poor start from Gray, the A’s have been struggling at bat lately – especially John Jaso, Josh Donaldson and Derek Norris. Jaso has a 0-for-17 streak, Donaldson is 0-for-27 and Moss is a little better but is still 1-for-17.

“Sometimes it goes that way. You get hits in bunches and everybody is hot and other times you cool off as a club. You’ve just got to keep grinding. We’ve been in a bit of a funk for about a week or so,” echoed Melvin on the slump of his team. The A’s are now 3-5 over their last 8 games. However overall they are 40-26 which is good for the second best record in the league.

All of the Yankees 12 hits were singles. Three of those in the first inning led to a 2-0 lead after one. The Yankees 1-2-3 hitters started off the game with a single each and Brett Gardner ran over home plate and gave the Yankees a 1-0 lead. Mark Teixeira hit a deep sacrifice fly to Coco Crisp and scored Derek Jeter who was on third to make it a 2-0 game. In the second after a Brian Roberts single and a Kelly Johnson walk, Brett Gardner hit a single to left field that scored Roberts from second and bring the lead to three.

The A’s weren’t able to figure out Yankees starting pitcher David Phelps as he held them hitless until the fifth inning when Derek Norris smacked a single to left field. On the night, Oakland weren’t able to get a base runner past second base.

The Yankees secured the win in the eighth inning when they were able to beat up A’s reliever Jeff Francis for five hits and four runs.

Prior to tonight, the A’s had beaten the Yankees seven straight times at the Coliseum.

Hiroki Kuroda and Scott Kazmir head to the mound tomorrow when both teams face off again at 7:05 PM.

 

A’s Clipped In The 14th, lose to Angels 2-1

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment
Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols, center, slides into home after being tagged out by Oakland Athletics catcher Derek Norris while trying to score on a single by Josh Hamilton during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, June 10, 2014, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Los Angeles Angels’ Albert Pujols, center, slides into home after being tagged out by Oakland Athletics catcher Derek Norris while trying to score on a single by Josh Hamilton during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, June 10, 2014, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

By Kahlil Najar

ANAHEIM – Drew Pomeranz pitched seven innings of one run ball and Yoenis Cespedes had one of the best throws you’re going to see this year but Collin Cowgill hit a homer in the bottom of the fourteenth to lead the Angels over the A’s 2-1.

Jeff Francis (0-2) went 1 2/3 innings and gave up two walks and of course the solo shot to Cowgill to end the game. Cory Rasmus (2-0) got the win for the Angels and kept the A’s hit-less in the last two innings of the game. The A’s used a three other relievers tonight in addition to Francis and they gave up four hits in five innings. Sean Doolittle had a pair of strikeouts in the bottom of the 12th.

The highlight of the night for the A’s was in the bottom of the eighth when Cesepedes bobbled Mike Trout’s double to left field and after picking up the ball he saw Howie Kendrick rounding third and threw a laser to Derek Norris who was able to tag out Kendrick. Check out the video of the throw below:

 

Th Angels got on the board first in the bottom of the sixth when after a Mike Trout walk to start the inning, Josh Hamilton singled on a line drive to right field and made it a 1-0 lead for LA. The A’s tied the game in the top of the 8th when after Nick Punto double and a Stephen Vogt ground out, jed Lowrie hit a sac fly to right field and Punto scored after tagging up. Then came the homer in the bottom of the 14th to end the game.

Even though they lost the game, the talk of the night for the A’s was the throw by Cespedes.

“If you hadn’t seen it, you probably wouldn’t have believed it. Flat-footed, he threw it 325 feet on the fly, right to DeNo’s chest,” said Sean Doolittle.

Coco Crisp echoed Doolittle’s sentiments, “Probably the best recovery I’ve ever seen. An amazing throw.”

The A’s and Angels head back at it tomorrow when Tommy Milone (3-3, 3.68 ERA) goes up against Jered Weaver (7-4, 3.31 ERA), game time 7:05PM.

Former Oakland Athletic and Cy Young Award winner Bob Welch passes at 57

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

9925354

By Kahlil Najar

OAKLAND – Former Oakland Athletic and Cy Young Award winner Bob Welch passed away today at the young age of 57. The cause of death was unavailable. In a press release from the the Athletics, A’s President Michael Crowley said, “We are deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Bob Welch. He was a legendary pitcher who enjoyed many of his best seasons with the Oakland A’s. He will always be a significant part of our franchise’s history, and we mourn his loss. We send our greatest sympathies to his family and friends.”

General Manager Billy Beane expressed his sentiments on this sad occasion, “This is a sad day for the entire A’s organization. Those of us who knew Bob as a teammate and a friend will miss him greatly. My condolences go out to his family.”

Current A’s closer Sean Doolittle posted on Twitter, “Devastated to learn of Bob Welch’s passing. The A’s organization lost not only one of its best pitchers, but one of its best people.”

In 17 seasons in the majors, Welch earned a 211-146 record and 3.47 ERA. Bay Area fans might remember him being a key member of the A’s from 1988-90 when he and Dave Stewart were the aces of the staff and lead them to the World Series in 1989 when they swept the San Francisco Giants. In 1990 when Welch won the Cy Young he compiled an unbelievable record of 27-6 with an era of 2.95. In 24 years, no one has come close to winning at least 25 games.

After his playing days, Welch was the pitching coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks when they won the 2001 World Series and he shared time with current A’s coach Bob Melvin.  His son Riley was selected by the A’s in the 34th round of the 2008 MLB First-Year Players Draft.

SaberCats Rock and Roll All Night Over The Kiss 63-35

Published on by kahlilnajar7Leave a comment

sc4

By Kahlil Najar and Emily Zahner

SAN JOSE – The San Jose SaberCats (8-4) easily handled the LA KISS (2-10), 63-35 tonight in San Jose. Rookie SaberCats quarterback Nathan Stanley completed 25-of-37 passes for 280 yards and 7 touchdowns. Reggie Gray caught 6 passes for 92 yards and a pair of touchdowns and Dominique Curry had 3 touchdowns to lead the San Jose receiving core. Defensively Clevan Thomas and Simeon Castille each pulled down a pair of interceptions and Ken Fontenette had 8 tackles on the night.

Stanley started tonight over regular starter Russ Michna who was hurt in the loss to the Rattlers and has been placed on injured reserve. 

On his start Stanley said, “I’m still learning every day, but I am trying to shake that rookie thing off. I know it can be a boost to the other team if they know they are playing a rookie. It was great to go down and score on the first drive. It was good for my confidence.”

The Sabercats scored first with a nice strike from Stanley to Jason Willis who was able to score from six yards out and give the Cats a 7-0 lead. Aaron Garcia, who was starting for the Kiss, tied up the game less than a minute later with a touchdown pass to Julius Wilson. The Cats retook the lead with 5:27 left in the first on Curry’s first touch down of the evening.

The Cats struck again early in the second when Curry pulled down his second TD of the contest at 10:45 of the second and made it a 21-7 lead for San Jose. Garcia found leading Kiss receiver Donovan Morgan streaking down the middle of the field and brought the SaberCat lead back to 7 points at 21-14. The Cats the scored 14 unanswered points to end the half and go into the half leading 35-14.

The Kiss started the second half strong when Garcia found two receivers open for a pair of touchdowns and made the score 35-28 with San Jose in the lead and less than 8 minutes left in the quarter. In the final quarter, San Jose scored four times including a 13-yard touchdown interception by Simeon Castille and ended the score at 63-35.

The Cats stay home this week and face the Spokane Shock next Saturday at 7:30pm.