Photo credit: bleacherreport.com
On the 49ers podcast with Dave:
#1 For San Francisco 49ers (4-0) quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, it was drive, drive, drive, and he got it done throwing multiple touchdowns against the Cleveland Browns (2-3).
#2 Who would have expected the 49ers would be 4-0 after their first four games? Was the win against Cleveland the one that passed the audition?
David Zizmor does the 49ers podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
Photo credit: sjsuspartans.com
By Ana Kieu
The awards continue for San Jose State placekicker Matt Mercurio.
After being named the Mountain West “Special Teams Player of the Week” on Monday, October 7, the redshirt freshman from Salinas, Calif., was named one of the three Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award “Stars of the Week” for his contribution in San Jose State’s 32-21 victory over New Mexico on Friday, October 4.
The graduate of Palma High tied a San Jose State single-game school record with four field goals and accounted for the Spartans’ last 12 points in the game after taking a 20-0 second-quarter lead.
Mercurio connected on field goals of 24, 33, a career-long 49, and a second of 24 yards as San Jose State improved its season record to 3-2, 1-1 in the Mountain West.
For the season, Mercurio is 7-of-10 kicking field goals and is San Jose State’s leading scorer with 36 points.
Photo credit: sjsuspartans.com
By Ana Kieu
SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose State football earned its first Mountain West win of the season by downing the New Mexico Lobos 32-21. Now, San Jose State heads out on the road to look for a two-game win streak with another MW win over the Nevada Wolf Pack.
Here’s the lowdown on the San Jose State-Nevada game:
GAME #6
San Jose State at Nevada
Saturday, October 12, 2019
Mackay Stadium, Reno, Nev.
1:00 p.m. PT
AT&T SportsNet/Mountain West Network
SAN JOSE STATE RECORD
3-2, 1-1 Mountain West.
NEVADA RECORD
3-2, 0-1 Mountain West. The Wolf Pack lost to Hawaii, 54-3, on September 29. Nevada had a bye the week of October 5.
RADIO COVERAGE
KKSF (910 AM, Oakland), RealTalk 910, is the new flagship radio station for San Jose State football. Justin Allegri calls the play-by-play. Kevin Richardson provides commentary. The Nevada broadcast begins at 12:30 p.m. PT with a pregame show.
Network affiliates are KION (1460 AM/101.1 FM, Salinas), KFIV (1360 AM, Modesto), KWSX (1280 AM, Stockton).
The San Jose State-Nevada broadcast with Justin Allegri and Kevin Richardson calling the action also will be carried on www.siriusxm.com Channel 981.
KSJS (90.5 FM, San Jose) also will broadcast the San Jose State-Nevada game starting with Ryan Carlson handling all duties starting at 12:45 p.m. PT.
TELEVISION
AT&T Sports Network will provide broadcast coverage beginning at 1:00 p.m. PT. Drew Goodman calls the play-by-play. Sed Bonner provides commentary. AT&T Sports Network is available on DirecTV Channel 684, and DISH Network Channel 414.
SERIES HISTORY
Nevada leads the series, 21-9-2. The Wolf Pack have won the last two games and nine of the last 11 in a series that dates back to 1899. A year ago, Nevada posted a 21-12 triumph over San Jose State.
San Jose State’s last win in the series was a 14-10 win in CEFCU Stadium on October 15, 2016.
The Spartans are winless in their last eight trips to Mackay Stadium in Reno. San Jose State’s last win there was a 49-30 decision on October 21, 2000.
ON THE MINDS
San Jose State can finish the weekend of October 12 with a 4-2 overall win-loss record for the first time since 2012 with a win at Nevada. Since then, the Spartans’ best win-loss record after six games was 3-3 in 2013, 2014 and 2015.
STAKES ARE HIGH
This game gives San Jose State its first opportunity since the 2015 season to be 2-1 in Mountain West action after three games and to win a conference road game since the November 26, 2016 triumph at Fresno State, 16-14. Since the win in Fresno, the Spartans returned to San Jose with a conference loss in nine consecutive contests — four in 2017, four in 2018 and earlier this season at Air Force.
SEEKING A WIN STREAK
The Nevada game marks the third time this season San Jose State can notch its first two-game winning streak since defeating UNLV, 33-10, on October 4, and winning at Wyoming, 27-20 in overtime, on October 18, 2014.
NATIONAL LEADER IN TURNOVER MARGIN
A point of emphasis for this year’s San Jose State team is finishing in the top-25 in turnover margin.
After six games, San Jose State is the national in turnover margin at +11 or 2.2 per game in games played through October 5. The Spartans have 11 interceptions, which is second nationally, and four fumble recoveries. Florida, which has played six games, is the national leader with 12 interceptions.
For its first five games, San Jose State lost the ball four times on three fumbles and one pass interception. Through games of October 5, the Spartans are tied for eighth nationally in fewest times losing the ball.
POINTS OFF OF TURNOVERS
After five games, San Jose State has scored 37 points off of opponent turnovers compared to none by the opposition. The 37 points have come in the three Spartan wins this season — 14 vs. Northern Colorado, seven at Arkansas, and a season-high 16 against New Mexico.
The 16 points came in handy in the 11-point win over New Mexico and seven points was the difference in a 31-24 victory at Arkansas. San Jose State defeated Northern Colorado, 35-18.
BACK-TO-BACK WEEKS BLOCKING A KICK
If it’s a Friday, it must mean the San Jose State will execute a blocked kick. In the Friday, September 27 game at Air Force, linebacker Hadari Darden was credited with deflecting an Air Force extra-point attempt after a Falcons’ third-quarter touchdown.
On Friday, October 4 against New Mexico, wide receiver Bailey Gaither blocked a first-quarter punt for the second time in his career.
The Spartans enter the week tied for eighth nationally in blocked kicks with two.
While you’re on the site, check out the recent press releases on Josh Love and Matt Mercurio:
JOSH LOVE & MATT MERCURIO NAMED MOUNTAIN WEST PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
For the second time in three weeks, two San Jose State players received Mountain West football’s Player of the Week honors.
Quarterback Josh Love was named the Mountain West “Offensive Player of the Week” for the second time this season and kicker Matt Mercurio was named the Mountain West “Special Teams Player of the Week.”
Love, a senior, completed 24-of-36 passes without an interception for a season-high 405 yards and two touchdowns in the Spartans’ 32-21 conference win over New Mexico on October 4. The signal caller received the same Mountain West honor after San Jose State defeated Arkansas, 31-24, on September 21.
Mercurio, a freshman, tied a San Jose State single game school record kicking four field goals in five attempts and converted two extra point tries in the win. He accounted for the team’s last 13 points with a PAT and field goals of 24, 33, a career-long 49, and a second 24-yard field goal.
JOSH LOVE NAMED TO DAVEY O’BRIEN AWARD GREAT 8
San Jose State’s Josh Love is one of eight FBS quarterbacks named to the Davey O’Brien Award’s Great 8 list for games played the week ending October 5.
Love completed 24-of-36 passes without an interception for a season-high 405 yards and two touchdowns in the Spartans’ 32-21 conference win over New Mexico on October 4.
The fifth-year senior is the first San Jose State quarterback recognized by the Davey O’Brien Award for weekly excellence at the position since David Fales during the 2013 season.
For the year, Love has completed 61.9 percent of his passes with only one interception for 1,418 yards and seven touchdowns.
The other seven quarterbacks recognized as the Davey O’Brien Award’s Great 8 for Week 6 include Ian Book, Notre Dame; Joe Burrow, LSU; Jett Duffey, Texas Tech; Sam Howell, North Carolina; Jake Luton, Oregon State; Brock Purdy, Iowa State; and Khalil Tate, Arizona.
The Davey O’Brien Award’s Quarterback of the Week from the Great 8 honorees will be announced on Tuesday, October 8.
bearinsider.com photo: Cal Bears defensive back Jaylinn Hawkins (6) and defensive back Erik Harutyunyan (26) got some joy before Oregon put the kibosh on the Bears happiness with a 17-7 win at Oregon on Saturday.
On the Cal football podcast with Morris Phillips:
#1 Another tough loss for Cal quarterback David Modster, who threw two picks. How much did the turnover play a role in the lack of offense against Oregon?
#2 How tough of a role was it for Modster to step into throwing 17-34, 190 yards and one touchdown.
#3 Knowing head coach Justin Wilcox, he really wanted to set up some kind of rally down 10 points to get back into this game. How uphill was his game plan to execute?
#4 Oregon is noted for its tough defense and they succeeded with holding Cal to just a touchdown. Talk about how the Ducks were able to stop the run?
#5 Oregon State comes to Cal Saturday Oct 19th. There’s no doubt that Modster wants to avoid the interception and get the scoring up. How much of a workload does he have this Saturday?
Morris Phillips does Cal podcasts every Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
file photo from Washingtonpost.com: In this April 19, 2011, file photo, Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey discusses the direction of the team with the media during a basketball news conference, in Houston, after the decision to part ways with NBA basketball head coach Rick Adelman. Morey tried Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 to defuse the rapidly growing fallout over his deleted tweet that showed support for Hong Kong anti-government protesters, saying he did not intend to offend any of the team’s Chinese fans or sponsors.
By Amaury Pi Gonzalez
China’s mad over tweet by Rockets GM: A political triangle has the NBA’s Houston Rockets apologizing over a tweet by Rockets general manager Daryl Morey tweeted “Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong” as soon as that tweet was known China ended its relationship with the Houston Rockets and sponsors pulled out of all radio advertising in China.
The Rockets are the most popular team in China because of its relationship with former NBA player Yao Ming. The Rockets’ James Harden and Russell Westbrook quickly tried to go into damage control.
“We apologize, we love China. We love playing there. Both of us, we go there once or twice a year. They show us most support so we appreciate them,” said Harden.
The Chinese response was too late for the Rockets as a Chinese statement read, “Deeply disappointed by the inappropriate remarks.” Hong Kong has been protesting for the last four months about China having the ability to use extradition any Hong Kong citizen if they are wanted for any crime, espionage, or whenever deemed necessary to extradite a Hong Kong citizen when necessary.
Texas representative and presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke has said that the apology from the Rockets and the NBA is an embarrassment. That the NBA and the Rockets should stand pat on Hong Kong standing up to China and protesting extradition of any Hong Kong citizen and not to cave to China.
The Rockets and the NBA are in panic mode now as the league could face losing millions of dollars in revenue in NBA properties, NBA paraphernalia, and NBA branding not to mention their broadcast rights in China. The NBA and the Rockets have apologized but it may be a little too late as the Hong Kong issue is an extremely sensitive issue to China.
Oakland A’s consider getting rooted in Las Vegas: Sources say that baseball commissioner Rob Manfred is getting tired of the situation that’s gone back and forth between the city of Oakland and the A’s There has been a lot of posturing between the A’s and the city regarding how to get started on working the land at Jack London Square the A’s were in discussion with the City Manager on Tuesday the day before the A’s wild card game with Tampa Bay. 90 minutes after the meeting with the city manager, Kaval found out the city was suing the A’s to stop them from developing at the Coliseum.
When the city handed the A’s a lawsuit on Tuesday to stop the team from developing on the Oakland Coliseum site, it baffled A’s team president David Kaval, who has been very guarded with his statements about the lawsuit. Kaval has been the spearhead of the new stadium for the A’s and for a brief moment it looked like the A’s were going to work something out with the city, but the city council are split on the A’s getting a downtown stadium. To clarify, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaff and City Council president Rebecca Kaplan are both not on board with suing the A’s.
Because of the lawsuit, Kaval and the A’s are regrouping and considering something they never thought they would and that’s moving the A’s out of town to Las Vegas. Fighting the city of Oakland is not on the A’s radar and it will be a sad day when the A’s make the official announcement that it’s over in Oakland. The A’s triple-A team, Las Vegas Aviators, are playing near the Vegas strip.
Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio talent for the Oakland A’s on 1010 KIQI San Francisco and on http://www.sportsradioservice.com for News and Commentary.
Photo credit: gostanford.com
By Ana Kieu
Cameron Scarlett had a career-high rushing performance for Stanford on Saturday, but David Shaw’s best call against No. 15 Washington was inviting former Stanford two-sport star Tyler Gaffney to be the team’s honorary captain.
A slashing running back who got stronger as the game progressed and left everything on the field, Gaffney played with a swagger and enjoyed contact, dishing out as much as he received. As a senior in 2013, Gaffney rushed for 1,709 yards and 21 touchdowns.
“I wanted him up here,” said Shaw, the Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football, following the Cardinal’s inspiring 23-13 victory against the Huskies on Saturday. “This was going to be an attitude game and I couldn’t think of a better person to come talk to the team, and he was awesome.”
So was Stanford.
Seeking to play its first complete game of the season, the Cardinal (3-3, 2-2 Pac-12) put it together against heavily-favored Washington (4-2, 1-2 Pac-12), which had outscored its previous three opponents by a combined 72 points. Stanford was relentless and wouldn’t be denied on a crisp evening in front of a loud and appreciative home crowd.
Scarlett, a fifth-year senior running back, made Gaffney proud by rushing a career-high 33 times for a personal-best 151 yards. Scarlett carried on nine consecutive runs and picked up two first downs on the Cardinal’s final possession, eating up five of the last six minutes on the clock.
“I had a quick word with him,” said Scarlett, who met Gaffney during his recruiting process. “His message was there’s going to be adversity and nobody in the country thinks we’re going to win this game. The only thing that matters is that we know we have what it takes to win.”
Scarlett’s key block on a blitzing safety enabled junior quarterback Davis Mills to hit sophomore wide receiver Simi Fehoko in stride with a 42-yard scoring pass early in the second quarter to give Stanford a lead it never relinquished.
“Can’t say enough about where Cam Scarlett is right now,” said Shaw. “Just playing such great football.”
After eclipsing 90 yards in three of the first five games — twice finishing with 97 — Scarlett was elated to surpass the century mark.
“I was sick and tired of running for 90 yards,” Scarlett said.
Going after it
Defensively, Stanford limited Washington to 88 yards rushing and hounded Huskies quarterback Jacob Eason (16-of-36), sacking him twice and hurrying him six times. Washington was 2-of-12 on third down.
“These quarterbacks have big arms and it’s really important to get pressure on them,” said junior outside linebacker Gabe Reid, who collected six tackles and an 18-yard sack in his first career start of the season. “We worked hard to get into the pass rush and a big shout out to the DB’s as well for playing tight coverage and giving us a chance to get back there.”
Freshman cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly made his first collegiate interception early in the fourth quarter and added two pass breakups. Junior cornerback Paulson Adebo equaled his career high with four pass breakups and had five tackles.
The unit’s hard work and physical play hasn’t gone unnoticed.
“All the respect in the world to our defense,” junior center Drew Dalman said. “They’re playing their butts off right now and making plays when it counts.”
Breaking out
Shaw knew it was only a matter of time before the speedy 6-foot-4, 226-pound Fehoko made a big contribution. He had two receptions entering the game but caught three for 91 yards and scored his first collegiate touchdown against the Huskies. Fehoko also recovered a Scarlett fumble in the third quarter.
“A lot of it had to do with the chemistry between Davis and me,” said Fehoko. “It’s been there for a while and it finally clicked.”
Tavita Pritchard, the Andrew Luck Director of Offense and Kevin M. Hogan Quarterbacks Coach, added the comeback and go route that Fehoko scored on earlier in the week.
“I knew it was up in the first 20 play calls and I was excited,” Fehoko said. “I got good reps against our scout team. On that play, I was kind of scared — I was focusing so hard on the ball. It was awesome.”
Mills sharp
Mills received his second straight start and third of the season in place of injured senior K.J. Costello and threw for a career-high 293 yards, connecting on 21-of-30 attempts. He also showed good mobility, running three times for 26 yards.
“Guys made plays for him and he continues to grow,” said Shaw. “I thought it was a great performance by him tonight.”
Mills left the game in the fourth quarter with an undisclosed injury and was replaced by sophomore Jack West, who received his first playing time of the season. With a two-score lead, Shaw kept the ball on the ground and burned the clock.
“Jack knows the game plan inside and out,” Shaw said. “We just weren’t going to put the ball in the air.”
Fabulous freshmen
Stanford’s first-year players continue to impress. Walter Rouse and Barrett Miller started at left tackle and left guard, respectively, and were joined by Jake Hornibrook when senior right guard Henry Hattis went down midway through the third quarter.
“It was awesome being out on the field and playing football again with my guys and having fun,” said Hornibrook of his college debut. “It was a great experience.”
One of five highly touted first-year linemen, Hornibrook said the group has formed a special bond.
“We’re all in it together, just trying to get better,” he said.
Dalman has been impressed by the contributions of the entire class, many thrust into early action due to injuries. In all, 14 true freshmen have played this season.
“It’s just a testament to a lot of our young guys that were out there to step up,” Dalman said.
Ball hogs: The Cardinal finished with a nearly 18-minute time of possession advantage and ran 16 more plays. Shaw, citing UCLA head coach Chip Kelley, said time of possession is a meaningless stat unless you score touchdowns.
“Still hate getting inside the five-yard line and kicking two field goals,” said Shaw. “That one is going to stick in my craw for a while because we fought so hard to get down there.”
Up next
Stanford has a bye next week and has 12 days to rest up and prepare for UCLA on October 17. It’ll be a Thursday night contest at Stanford Stadium and kickoff is at 6 p.m.
The Cardinal entertains Arizona on October 26 and doesn’t travel again until November 9 when it treks to Colorado. Start times haven’t been announced.
Theme game
Saturday was Breast Cancer Awareness Game. Stanford football student-athletes and coaches wore pink to draw awareness to breast cancer as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast cancer survivors were honored throughout the game.
Notes
Washington was the highest-ranked foe Stanford has defeated since 2017, when it downed No. 9 Notre Dame … Scarlett’s 33 rushing attempts were the most by a Cardinal since Christian McCaffrey in 2015, when he carried 33 times against Oregon … Senior inside linebacker Curtis Robinson led Stanford with eight tackles … Sophomore wide receiver Michael Wilson (6) and junior wide receiver Connor Wedington (4) combined for 10 catches for the Cardinal … Washington had forced three turnovers in each of its last three games, converting six into touchdowns. However, Stanford committed zero turnovers … Senior Jet Toner converted all three field goal attempts to move past Rod Garcia into sixth place on Stanford’s career list for makes with 46 … Ken Margerum, a consensus All-America wide receiver for Stanford in 1979 and 1980, was recognized as part of the program’s 125-year celebration of Stanford football.
Quote
“We definitely left meat on the bone and know we can get better. Good to see us make progress and take another step in the right direction.” — Junior center Drew Dalman
photo from albuquerquejournal.com: New Mexico’s Jordan Kress (9) catches a TD pass from Sheriron Jones on Friday night against host San Jose State. RON FRIED/SAN JOSE STATE ATHLETICS.
On the NCAAF podcast with Michelle:
#1 Michelle, we wanted to lead off asking you about your old alumnus, University of New Mexico, Lobos (2-3) struggled in the second quarter of their game against the San Jose State Spartans (3-2) the Lobos defense couldn’t stop the Spartans run and San Jose ended up getting 20 points, which gave the Lobos too much of a deficit to come back from.
#2 The Michigan Wolverines (4-1) are ranked #19 and they played Iowa (4-1), who are ranked #14 and hung on to win 10-3. Despite their rank, Michigan should be a higher ranked team and were expected to come out of the shoot to start the season.
#3 LSU (5-0) left very little doubt with their 42-6 against Utah State (3-2) and LSU quarterback Joe Burrow left very little doubt that LSU would dominate this one with five touchdowns, 27-38 and 344 yards.
Michelle does the NCAAF podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
photo from latimes.com: The Astros’ Gerrit Cole struck out 15 in 7 2/3 scoreless innings against the Rays in Game 2 the ALDS.
On the MLB The Show 2019 Postseason podcast with Daniel:
1 Astros’ Gerrit Cole making the most of what might be his last days in Houston
2 Yankees in the driver’s seat with 2-0 lead over Minnesota in ALDS
3 NLDS – Braves, Cards even at 1-1, Nats unsure if Max Scherzer will start game 3 vs. Dodgers
4 A’s Bob Melvin, Billy Beane believe Khris Davis will bounce back
5 Giants working to get GM in place while searching for manager
Photo credit: @SJEarthquakes
By Ana Kieu
There wasn’t an actual Decision Day as the San Jose Earthquakes’ season ended with a thud in a 3-1 loss to the Portland Timbers at Providence Park on Sunday afternoon.
Quakes captain Chris Wondolowski scored the equalizer in the 39th minute to tie the score 1-1 just 10 minutes after Timbers defender Larrys Mabialia opened the scoring in the 29th minute. Wondo found the back of the net and scored from an acute angle for the game-tying goal. Wondo’s goal scoring streak now stands at 159.
The two teams headed to the locker room tied at one goal apiece at the halftime break.
The Timbers started off the right foot to start the second half. Portland went ahead 2-1 in the 59th minute, thanks to defender Dairon Asprilla, who scored the go-ahead goal. With the goal, Asprilla scored his second in two matches.
The Quakes made their first substitutions in the 61st minute. Shea Salinas came in for Vako, while Andy Rios came in for Florian Jungwirth.
The Quakes made their final substitution in the 66th minute. Danny Hoesen came in for Mario Lopez.
Timbers midfielder Sebastian Blanco extended the Timbers’ lead to 3-1 with a noteworthy free kick in the 75th minute. Like Quakes head coach Matias Almeyda, Blanco’s also an Argentine native.
The Timbers made two substitutions in the 81st minute. Marvin Loria and Zarek Valentin came in for Jeremy Ebobisse and Jorge Moreira, respectively.
The Quakes dropped their season finale with a 3-1 loss to the Timbers, but the Quakes displayed good sportsmanship to the Timbers and thanked their fans for being there through the thick and thin. The Quakes will watch tape, make changes and work hard to prepare for the 2020 season.
photo from bleacherreport.com: Oakland A’s manager Bob Melvin says a game could go right down to a home run or a strikeout.
By Amaury Pi-Gonzalez
There are basically four ways of building a championship team:
1. Farms system
2. Free Agent signings
3. MLB Draft
4. Trade of players
Of course not one is always the easiest, but instead, a combination of all four.
“The focus next year will be winning more games and trying to win our division,” said manager Bob Melvin after the A’s lost the Wild Card game to the Tampa Bay Rays 5-1 at the Oakland Coliseum.
For the second year in a row, the A’s ended 97-65 in second place behind the Houston Astros. The last game of the season this year at the Coliseum had a record 54,005 attendance, a record for a Wild Card game in all of baseball. Unfortunately, the same results for the Green and Gold dating back to 2000. The A’s have lost nine consecutive winner-take all games. We have to go back to the team of the 1973 World Series’ Game 7 against the New York Mets. That was the last time the A’s won a do or die game.
In today’s baseball, things are much different. We are now in a game where is down to “home-run” or “strikeout” — both keep going up each season. For the record, winning the division is important, like Melvin mentioned, but let’s not forget that in 2005 the Atlanta Braves won the Division championship for the 14th consecutive year (1991-2005). That is the current MLB record for winning consecutive division titles. However, during that record-setting streak the Braves, under manager Bobby Cox, only won one World Series in 1995 over the Cleveland Indians. In 2014, Cox was elected to the Hall of Fame as a manager by the veterans committee.
Under the current system, it is much difficult to make it all the way to the October Classic — especially for a wild card team — with the goal of winning 12 games in the postseason to bring home the hardware.Winning your division is definitely a better way of going into the postseason for obvious reasons. A one-game Wild Card playoff is basically a “coin flip” on who is going to win. In the case of the game against Tampa Bay, I did agree with starting Sean Manaea, who was pitching great after his return, but we also have to respect Rays pitcher Charlie Morton, an established mainstay in their rotation with experience, a guy that made the last out of the World Series giving the Astros the title two years ago.
The last handful of games during the regular season the A’s were not hitting, scoring one to three runs per game and unfortunately that carried into the October 2 Wild Card game against the Rays in a 5-1 loss. The future is bright for the young A’s who are getting younger in their rotation for 2020 with Luzardo. Montas. AJ Puk joining Sean Manaea and Mike Fiers. Minus a couple of relievers and possibly Jurickson Profar the A’s position players will be mostly the same as this year. They will not need the services of veteran pitcher rentals Homer Bailey and Roark. Piscotty and Ramon Laureano now could be joined in left field by Seth Brown a young player with talent who hits left-handed. Khris Davis could use this off season to clear his mind and work toward adjusting his batting so he can have a new approach to hitting and be the Khris Davis that we all know.
Do not expect the A’s to be actively trading this winter because they do not need to They still have the core of the young players under contract. In my opinion, Marcus Semien — the team’s MVP this season — should win in arbitration.
I picked the Houston Astros to win the World Series before the season began. After they picked up starter Zack Greinke on July 31, my opinion became much more easy to make. But it is baseball, and it is not perfect science. I remember the 1988 World Series all too well, when the A’s lost to the Dodgers. I worked that series, and after that series, I learned that anything is possible in baseball so the main thing is to make it to the World Series and bring home the trophy. That should be every team’s goal. Postseasons are nice, the fans love it and get into it, but sometimes you have to deliver and go much deeper into October.
As for the A’s, they will have to wait another year for that chance and hopefully in 2020 they could be playing at the end of October.
Amaury Pi-González is the pioneer in establishing Spanish radio play-by-play broadcasts in the Bay Area since the middle of the 1970’s with the Oakland Athletics. He has been a longtime contributor to sportsradioservice.com
