Author: Sports Radio Service

Thairo Estrada carries Giants to comeback 7-6 win over Cubs on crazy night at Wrigley Field

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San Francisco Giants Mike Yastrzemski (5) celebrates with Thairo Estrada for Estrada’s three run home run in the top of the ninth inning at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Mon Jun 2, 2024 (AP News photo)

Monday, June 17, 2024

Wrigley Field

Chicago, Illinois

San Francisco Giants 7 (36-37)

Chicago Cubs 6 (34-39)

Win: Erik Miller (2-2)

Loss: Hector Neris (6-2)

Save: Camilo Doval (13)

Time: 3:06

Attendance: 36,048

By Stephen Ruderman

The Giants came back to win a crazy game against at Wrigley Field in Chicago, as Thairo Estrada hit a three run home run in the top of the ninth, and the Giants ended up beating the Cubs 7-6.

It was hot, and the wind was blowing out to right field at Wrigley, which meant the ball was flying out during batting practice. Usually, that also meant that it would be a high-scoring game. That would be good for a Giants’ offense that has gotten quite home run happy over the last 11 days. The heat and the wind blowing out also meant that this was likely going to be a crazy game.

Javier Assad, who looked more like an accountant than a pitcher with his glasses, made the start for the Cubs, and he threw a 1-2-3 top of the first inning. Brett Wisely and Heliot Ramos were both called out on nut cutter pitches by Home Plate Umpire Manny Gonzalez that they took umbrage to, and Patrick Bailey grounded out to first base.

Jordan Hicks made the start for San Francisco, and he walked former Giant Mike Tauchman to start the bottom of the first. Christopher Morel then flew out to left field, but Tauchman boldly tried to take second, and he was nabbed at second on a one-hop throw from left-fielder Michael Conforto. Cody Bellinger lined out to right, and Hicks ended up throwing a fairly-quick inning.

Assad threw a scoreless top of the second, as Gonzalez called Mike Yastrzemski on a pitch that was clearly inside to end the inning. Hicks walked Ian Happ with one in the bottom of the second but threw another scoreless inning.

The Giants would have their first opportunity in the top of the third. Thairo Estrada lined a base-hit to left to start the inning, and Trenton Brooks walked to put runners at first and second with nobody out for the top of the order.

Opportunities with runners in scoring position have been the real kryptonite for the Giants all season, and here they were with an early opportunity tonight. Wisely made Assad work through an eight-pitch at-bat before flying out to right and moving Estrada to third, but Ramos struck out swinging, and Patrick Bailey flew out to center to waste another opportunity.

Hicks pitched another scoreless inning in the bottom of the third, but with two outs, Tauchman reached on an infield hit, and ended up leaving when he hurt himself stepping on the bag first.

Assad walked Jorge Soler with two outs in the top of the fourth, and Yastrzemski hit a triple to the gap in right-center to put the Giants on the board. The Giants were able to get an RBI hit, but considering that runners weren’t in scoring position, that is probably why.

Hicks ran into trouble for the first time with two outs in the bottom of the fourth. After Hicks retired the first two men he faced, Happ and Nico Hoerner both singled, and Michael Busch walked to load the bases. However, Hicks was able to get Dansby Swanson to ground out to end the inning.

Ramos and Bailey singled with two outs off Assad in the top of the fifth, but you guessed it, the Giants were unable to come through, as Matt Chapman flew out to Seiya Suzuki. Though, to the Giants’ credit, Suzuki made a nice catch along the line and up against the side wall.

The Cubs almost got on the board in the bottom of the fifth. Patrick Wisdom, who pinch-ran for Tauchman in the third, walked with one out, and Morel singled Wisdom over to third.

Cody Bellinger flew out to shallow right, and when Wisdom tried to score, Yastrzemski, who ran in to make the catch, had all the momentum he needed to throw a perfect one-hopper to nail Wisdom at the plate. The Cubs challenged what was an extremely-close play, but there was not enough evidence either way, and the call was upheld.

Melvin noted the difficult situation catcher Patrick Bailey was in to make that play.

“They’re momentum swings,” said Manager Bob Melvin. “It’s a huge play. You gotta make a great throw, and now with the blocking the plate stuff, Bail[ey] has got to have the presence of mind to start in the right spot, which is very difficult. When it’s a one-run game, you’re just digging to get an out…..Bailey made a nice play at the plate. Now all the sudden, it’s a momentum swing in our dugout.”

That also ended the night for Jordan Hicks, who threw 87 pitches, gave up four hits, walked four and struck out four over five shutout innings.

Left-hander Luke Little came in for the accountant, Assad, for the top of the sixth and walked Michael Conforto to start the inning. Conforto advanced to second on a ground out by Soler. Yastrzemski then placed a beautiful bunt along the third base line that stayed fair and allowed him to reach. Hayden Wesneski came in and walked Estrada to load the bases, and here the Giants were again with a golden opportunity.

So what happened? Trenton Brooks struck out swinging in a really brutal at-bat. As Brooks was waiting for the first pitch from Wesneski, he was in the box but not facing the pitcher with eight seconds left on the Pitch Clock, which meant there was an automatic strike. Brooks then swung and missed at two pitches in the first, and Wisely flew out to left to end the inning and waste yet another opportunity for the Giants.

Randy Rodriguez was brought in for the bottom of the sixth and gave up a leadoff base-hit to Suzuki. Happ grounded into a double play, but Hoerner reached on an infield hit, and Busch hit a home run to left-center to give the Cubs their first lead of the night.

Heliot Ramos hit a home run into the wind in right-center on the first pitch from Wesneski in the top of the seventh to tie the game, and Bailey followed that up with a walk to put the go-ahead run on. Chapman grounded into a force play, and Conforto and Soler both walked to load the bases.

It was yet another golden opportunity for the Giants, as Cubs Manager Craig Counsell went to Mark Leiter Jr., the son of former Giants’ pitcher Mark Leiter Sr. The Giants appeared ready to waste it when Yastrzemski struck out swinging for the second out, but this would turn out to be an opportunity they would not waste.

Well, they got a little help. Thairo Estrada was hit on the right forearm to give the Giants the lead. Brooks struck out swinging, and that ended the inning.

Unfortunately, the Giants’ lead would not last long. Rodriguez was back out for the bottom of the seventh, and he got catcher Miguel Amaya to ground out to short to start the inning. Wisdom then hit a popup to the right side of the infield, but there was confusion between the infielders, and the ball dropped. Morel popped up to catcher Patrick Bailey in foul territory, and Melvin went to left-hander Erik Miller.

Miller’s first pitch to Bellinger was a nut cutter slider right on the inside corner called a ball. Bailey took exception to the call by Manny Gonzalez, and after Miller threw a changeup down and away for ball two, Gonzalez called the next two pitches that were both in the zone balls, and Bellinger walked to put runners at first and second with two outs.

Suzuki now came up to the plate, and he pulled a double down the left field line to tie it. Happ then hit a bomb to the back of the bleachers to give the Cubs a 6-3 lead, and the damage was done. Leiter was back out for the top of the eighth, and Bailey hit a solo home run off the scoreboard in right to make it 6-4.

Next up was Matt Chapman, and after Gonzalez called him out on a nut cutter sinker at the knees, Melvin got ejected from the dugout and came out to give Gonzalez an earful. This was Melvin’s third ejection through 73 games this season. That ties the total of three his predecessor, Gabe Kapler, had in his entire four-stint managing the Giants.

Miller stayed out and threw a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the eighth, and Cubs’ Closer Hector Neris was brought in for the ninth. Conforto grounded out to second to begin the inning, but the Giants caught a break when Soler reached on catcher’s interference. Yastrzemski then walked to bring the go-ahead run to the plate for Thairo Estrada.

Estrada, who had been struggling, has started turning it around over the last few days. Here, he had an opportunity to keep it going, and keep it going he did. Estrada hit a three-run home run to left on the first pitch from Neris to give the Giants a 7-6 lead, and the normally-mild-mannered Estrada showed a lot of emotion rounding the bases.

Camilo Doval was torched when he was brought in to close the Giants’ blowout of the Angels yesterday at Oracle Park, and he would get a chance to quickly bounce back tonight. Doval has had a rough go at things since allowing four runs in a blown save and loss to the Yankees on June 2, as his ERA had ballooned up to 4.88.

The first man Doval would face was Patrick Wisdom, and Doval was immediately down 2-0. He then caught a break when Manny Gonzelez called a sinker that appeared to be off the plate for ball 3 a strike. Doval settled down and got Wisdom to pop out to first.

Gonzalez’s ball calls to Cody Bellinger in the bottom of the seventh helped lead to Seiya Suzuki’s three run home run, and here in the ninth, his strike calls certainly helped Doval calm down. That’s just Baseball.

“Umpiring’s not as easy job, but both sides have to deal with it.” said Melvin. “Sometimes, it goes your way; sometimes, it doesn’t.”

In the ninth, it went the Giants’ way. Not only did Doval come back to get Wisdom to pop, he ended up throwing a 1-2-3 inning to close it out.

“That’s what [Doval] does,” said Melvin. “It was difficult having to bring him in that game yesterday, because that’s all we had left; and we’re trying to play chess with this thing and have certain guys available on a certain day, and that’s not an ideal situation for a closer. [It] doesn’t surprise me [that] he came back and pitched the way he did today.”

The Giants’ offense wasted a couple more opportunities tonight, but the wind blowing out at Wrigley carried the Giants’ now-home run-happy offense to a big win.

“These guys are really pushing hard,” said Melvin. “It seems like, for a lot of the year, our at-bats get better later in the game.”

Erik Miller got the win; Hector Nerris got the loss; and Camilo Doval got his 13th save of the year. The Giants improve to 36-37, and they can get back up to .500 for the first time since May 31 with a win tomorrow night.

Doing the honors on the hill for the Giants Tuesday night will be their ace, Logan Webb (6-5. 3.02 ERA), and he will be opposed by left-hander Justin Steele (0-3, 3.22 ERA). First pitch will be at 7:05 p.m. at Wrigley FIeld, and 5:05 p.m. back home in San Francisco.

Giants News and Notes:

Some news on the injury front:

Kyle Harrison, who was scratched from his start yesterday after spraining his right ankle in his bullpen session Saturday stayed behind in San Francisco.

Blake Snell threw a bullpen session on Saturday in San Francisco, and tomorrow, he will pitch three innings in a simulated game. It will be Snell’s first time facing live hitting since straining his left groin in his last start, which came against the Yankees on June 2. Snell could possibly return to the rotation as soon as Saturday or Sunday when the Giants take on the Cardinals in St. Louis.

LaMonte Wade, who has been out since May 27 with a strained left hamstring, did travel with the team to Chicago to continue baseball activities. According to Andrew Baggarly, the Giants Beat Writer for The Athletic, Wade is “pushing” hard to play in Thursday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama. However, after comments from Manager Bob Melvin, it does not appear that Wade will get to play in Thursday night’s game.

Robbie Ray is scheduled to pitch three innings in his third Arizona Complex League appearance when the ACL Giants take on the ACL White Sox at the Giants’ minor league spring training complex in Scottsdale.

Alex Cobb and Tristan Beck both had bullpen sessions today in San Francisco. It is unknown how those went.

Willie Mays, whose career started for the Birmingham Black Barons in the Negro American League in 1948, will not make the trip to Rickwood Field, which was the first professional ballpark he called home. Mays, 93, put out the following statement.

“I’m not able to get to Birmingham this year but will follow the game back here in the Bay Area,” said Mays. “My heart will be with all of you who are honoring the Negro League ballplayers, who should always be remembered, including all my teammates on the Black Barons. I wanted to thank Major League Baseball, the Giants, the Cardinals and all the fans who’ll be at Rickwood or watching the game. It’ll be a special day, and I hope the kids will enjoy it and be inspired by it.”

My thoughts:

If the Giants are going to make a serious run at the Playoffs, they cannot rely solely on home runs. The Giants are not entirely built to hit home runs, and Oracle Park is not a ballpark made for home runs. Hitting home runs will work in certain ballparks, but if they stay home run happy like this, it’s going to get them into trouble, just as we saw in the homestand last week.

When the Giants have runners in scoring position in a situation to put up a crooked number, it’s pretty much a given that they are going to waste it. The Giants have wasted an incredible amount of opportunities this year, and teams that waste the amount of opportunities that the Giants do typically don’t end up in the Postseason.

The Giants are perfectly capable of playing fundamental situational baseball and getting the big RBI hits when needed. In fact, that’s what they did when they won 10 of 12 at the end of May this year, and that’s what they did when they made their 57-38 run from May 15 to July 23 last year.

That’s what made it so frustrating when then-Manager Gabe Kapler expressed his disappointment with the lack of home runs the Giants were hitting following a 6-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Aug. 26 of last year. Kapler didn’t get, and despite his genius, President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi sometimes seems not to get that this team is built to play situational baseball.

Bob Melvin does get it, and he acknowledged just that following the Giants’ 5-3 win over the Houston Astros last Wednesday. It was more apparent yesterday, when they scored nine of their 13 runs in their 13-6 win over the Los Angeles without a home run.

This team is a good team, and they are a much better team than people think. If they can consistently play good situational baseball and get healthy, then they stand a real shot at getting back to the Postseason this year.

Sharks new era begins with introduction of Ryan Warsofsky as 11th head coach in team history

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San Jose Sharks general manager Mike Grier (left) poses with new head coach Ryan Warsofsky (center) with Sharks president Jonathan Becher at Warsofky’s introductory press conference at SAP Center on Monday JUN 17, 2023. (Sports Radio Service)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE—The San Jose Sharks introduced their newly hired head coach Ryan Warsofsky at an introductory press conference on Monday afternoon on the north concourse of the SAP Center.

Warsofsky replaced David Quinn who lasted just two years behind the bench for San Jose. Warsofsky was an assistant coach under Quinn and was in charge of the penalty kill and defense.

Warsofsky becomes the youngest active NHL head coach at 36. He says he plans to get to know the players mentally before thinking about hockey. He emphasized that, due to his age, he feels he can connect with the pressures that social media has on the new generation of hockey players. 

“We’re very excited to announce Ryan as the 11th head coach of the San Jose Sharks,” said Sharks general manager Mike Grier. “His track record of success at nearly every level of hockey as a head and assistant coach speaks for itself. Ryan knows our existing group well, has the respect of the players who he will be working with, and will be a great teacher for the young players who will be joining our organization.”

Warsofsky was emotional throughout his opening statement as he choked up periodically as he thanked all the people who helped him get to his current position as the Sharks head coach, including past coaches he’s worked with and his family. One in particular was good friend Rob Cancannon.

“I emailed the guy when my first year was done at Curry. It was an assistant job that opened in South Carolina in the ECHL. Rob Concannon, who’s here,” Warsofsky said. “I emailed him, and 10 minutes later, he called me, [which] changed my life forever. He’s got some sprinkled dust down there because he’s hired three NHL head coaches, Jared Bednar and Spencer Carberry. He’s one of my great friends, and I love you, Rob,” Warsofsky said.

When asked what type of style the Sharks will play under his guidance, Warsofsky said he wants to his team to play not only with an edge but also as an entertaining product as well.

“We want to be fast. We want to get on teams. There will be a very distinct look of what our team looks like. I can tell you that right now. I think fans will leave our building and say, wow, that was a fun team to watch, win or lose,” Warsofsky said. “The opponent will say, man, that was a tough team to play against. I think there’ll be some changes structurally for sure. But I think you’ll be proud of the team that we put on the ice. It will be clean. It’ll be structured. There will be an effort that will be distinct throughout the whole building.”

Warsofsky said he was excited about getting to coach all of the Sharks up and coming prospects including Will Smith, Filip Bystedt and the 2024 number one overall pick, who the Sharks have the first time in franchise history, which is expected to be Macklin Celebrini out of Boston University who just turned 18 two days ago.

Warsofky’s familiarity with the current Sharks lineup and his ability to connect with the players is what won him over with Grier and Sharks president Jonthan Becher.

Warsofsy joined the Sharks as head coach of the Chicago Wolves (AHL). He led the Wolves to the AHL’s best regular-season record with a 50-16-5-5 record (.724%) in 2021-22 and captured the 2022 Calder Cup, his second Calder Cup Championship, earning a 14-4 record over four different series during the playoffs. The year prior in his first stint with Chicago, Warsofsky guided the team to the third-best record in the league (21-9-1-2), but the AHL did not hold a formal playoffs due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In his two seasons, the Wolves amassed a 71-25-6-7 record and the team’s penalty kill ranked in the Top-10 twice (2021-22, fifth; 2020-21, ninth) and the power-play ranked fourth in 2020-21.

Prior to his time with Chicago, Warsofsky worked with the Charlotte Checkers (AHL) for two seasons. He started as an assistant coach in 2017-18 and helped the team capture the Calder Cup 2017-18, overseeing the top penalty killing unit in the League (86.6%). The following year in the abbreviated season, he was named as the League’s youngest head coach (31) on July 10, 2019 and guided the team to a 34-22-5-0 and ranked third in both power-play and penalty kill percentage.

As head coach in the AHL with Chicago and Charlotte, Warsofsky earned a 105-47-11-7 record (.671%).

Warsofsky also worked with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays for five seasons, including two seasons as head coach/director of hockey operations (2016-2018) after starting as an assistant coach. In his two seasons at the helm, South Carolina posted an 88-44-10-2 record and the team advanced to the Kelly Cup Final in 2017. Warsofsky has also worked as an assistant coach in the NCAA with Curry College for one season (2012-13).

Internationally, Warsofsky served as an assistant coach to Team USA’s 2023 World Championship staff, helping guide the team to a fourth-place finish at the tournament. 

Oakland A’s podcast with Barbara Mason: A’s get day off after doubleheader Sunday in Minnesota

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Oakland A’s pitcher Joey Estes (68) delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins in the bottom of first inning in the second game of the doubleheader at Target Field in Minneapolis on Sun Jun 16, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Barbara Mason:

#1 The Minnesota Twins Carolos Correa took Oakland A’s pitching yard twice in the 6-2 win of the front game of a doubleheader at Target Field in Minneapolis.

#2 The Twins Royce Lewis and Carlos Santana also provided home run help with two hits a piece. The Twins did most of their damage scoring three runs in the bottom of the first inning.

#3 For the A’s in first game they got a home run out Daz Cameron but the A’s just couldn’t get enough run support and lost it by four runs 6-2.

#4 In the second game of the doubleheader the A’s continued their losing streak extending it to nine games and were swept in the four games by the Twins. The A’s came close in game two but just couldn’t seal the deal with an 8-7 loss.

#5 A’s return to the Coliseum to open a three game series with the Kansas City Royals Tuesday night. Starting pitcher for the Royals Alec March (5-3, ERA 3.63) and for the A’s Hogan Harris (0-0, ERA 2.49) first pitch at 6:40pm PT.

Join Barbara Mason for the Oakland A’s podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Giants pound Angels for 9 run fourth for 13-6 win

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Bat meets the ball in the bottom of the fourth inning as San Francisco hitter Jorge Soler connects for a three run home run against the Los Angeles Angels at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sun Jun 16, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Marko:

#1 Marko, the San Francisco Giants bats woke up in their 13-6 win over the Los Angeles Angels at Oracle Park after the Angels beat the Giants twice on walk runs on Friday and Saturday.

#2 Jorge Soler was part of that Giants nine run rally in the bottom of the fourth inning with a three run home run.

#3 The Giants hitting had been struggling and against a Angels team whose had their share of troubles the Giants had to be relieved they were able to make some good contact on Sunday.

#4 Giants manager Bob Melvin said you don’t see a nine spot too often especially when you come off a couple of walk off loses and the hitting’s been snake bitten.

#5 Giants open a six game road trip at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Monday. The Giants have not decided on a starter and the Cubs will start Javier Assad (4-2, ERA 2.81) first pitch slated for 5:05pm PT

Marko Ukalovic does the San Francisco Giants podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL Finals podcast with Titus Wilkinson: Oilers unload on Panthers in game 4 avoid elimination

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Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky (72) looks on as the Edmonton Oilers Zach Hyman (18) celebrates a goal in the second period of game 4 in the NHL Stanley Cup Finals on Saturday June 15, 2024 at Rogers Place in Edmonton

NHL Finals podcast with Titus Wilkinson:

#1 Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers was no longer someone that the Florida Panthers could hold back any longer. McDavid scored one of the eight goals for the Oilers with three assists and four points.

#2 The Panthers were able to defend McDavid which was key for the Panthers in the first three games after the 8-1 win on Saturday is it too early to say the Oilers have turned a corner?

#3 Panthers starting goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky was just pelted with shots from the Oilers and five of those shots got through Bobrovsky, Bobrovsky got pulled for back up goaltender for Anthony Stolarz who gave up three goals in his own right.

#4 Titus, no matter what happens from here game 4 was a life or death situation for the Oilers and they owned the Panthers in this one scoring three goals in the first and second periods and adding two more in the third to avoid being eliminated.

#5 The Oilers still have a long way to go they need the type of offense they had in game 4 to keep this thing going against a team like the Panthers. The last team to come back down 0-3 and win four in a row in the Stanley Cup Finals were the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs.

Titus Wilkinson is a podcast contributor at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Bay FC loses on heartbreak goal by Utah Royals Kate Del Fava in 1-0 loss

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Bay FC’s Kayla Lynne Sharples (27) fights for the ball against Utah Royals FC’s Kate Del Fava (8) in the second half at PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif., on Sunday, June 16, 2024. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

By William Espy

SAN JOSE–It was a battle of the expansion teams on Sunday night, as Bay FC hosted the Utah Royals for the first-ever meeting between the two teams. Utah is off to a difficult start with only four points through their first 12 games, while Bay FC is looking to build off their monumental win against the Chicago Red Stars at Wrigley Field. Bay couldn’t close the deal Sunday at Pay Pal Park in San Jose losing on a 89th minute goal 1-0 by the Royals Kate Del Fava.

Bay FC Starting XI: Rowland, Dydasco, Menges, Malonson, Sharples, Pickett, Anderson, Boade, Hill, Kundananji, Oshoala

Utah Starting XI: Haught, Flynn, Tejada, Del Fava, Burns, Foederer, Henry, Fraser, Tucker, Sentnor, Mozingo

Bay FC started off in control, getting multiple chances in the opening ten minutes while a majority of Utah’s possession was spent in their defensive half of the pitch attempting to break out and launch an attack.

When the Royals did get an attack set up, Bay was finding a way to get in the shooting lanes and prevent them from putting any pressure on Katelyn Rowland. In the 15th minute, Bay got their best opportunity of the night so far when Asisat Oshoala slipped with the ball inside of the box, it fell to Rachael Kundananji who shot it just wide despite the goalkeeper being a non-factor in the play.

They continued applying pressure to Utah’s defense for the next few minutes, with a couple of more chances coming in short succession. Tess Boade had a phenomenal run that nearly gave her team the lead in the 24th minute, however, she was unable to sneak the ball past Mandy Haught who went down in some discomfort after the play.

Utah made an early substitution in the 26th, taking off Lauren Flynn for Madison Pogarch. Caprice Dydasco had a long shot that hit the crossbar in the 28th minute. It was clear in the first 30 minutes that Oshoala and Kundananji are developing the chemistry that fans have been waiting for, as they kept creating chances for one another, but it still remained a 0-0 tie.

Joelle Anderson got called for the first yellow card of the game in the 37th minute when she tripped up Amandine Henry. Kundananji continued feeding passes into the box as the half progressed, but unfortunately for Bay FC, nobody had been able to get good contact on any of them, otherwise they could’ve easily been leading at this point in the match.

Tess Boade had a solid opportunity of her own in the 42nd, but it was saved by Haught. Dydasco picked up Bay FC’s second yellow card of the night during the 45th minute when she tripped up the ball carrier from behind. The first half came to an end, with the game still tied at 0.

Rowland faced her first real test of the night in the 56th minute when she was forced to extend out completely to tip a ball over the crossbar. Anderson and Oshoala came out in the 60th minute with Deyna Castellanos and Dorian Bailey taking over.

Utah was playing stronger to start the second half, creating more opportunities and not letting Bay get as many attacking chances but still, the game remained 0-0 by the 70th minute. Kundananji continued to create chances though, taking another shot in the 74th minute that sailed just over the goal at this point, Albertin Montoya made another substitution taking out Rachel Hill for Scarlett Camberos.

Kundananji seemed to have gotten her goal in the 85th minute, but it was called a foul as she pushed off of the defender. Utah would get awarded a free kick in the 89th minute when Boade picked up a yellow card, they then went on to score off of the set piece when Kate Del Fava was able to connect with the cross and put it in the back of the goal.

Now, Bay FC only had the nine minutes of stoppage time to find an equalizer. They’d be unable to do so, and Utah would walk away with their second win of the season, defeating Bay FC 1-0.

A’s Get Swept By the Minnesota Twins 8-7 In An Offensive Marathon

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Oakland A’s third base coach Eric Martins (3) congratulates JJ Bleday (33) for his top of the third inning solo home run in the second game of the doubleheader against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis on Sun Jun 18, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Oakland A’s (26-48) fought back in game four of their series with the Minnesota Twins (40-32) tying this game up three times. They hit a couple of home runs and finished the game with 11 hits. Tyler Soderstrom has shown up beautifully.

He has hit four home runs in a seven-game span. He shares that milestone with some heavy hitters the likes of Jose Canseco, Reggie Jackson, Jimmie Fox and Mickey Cochrane. This is the A’s ninth loss in a row the longest this season coming up short in this one 8-7 another one-run loss.

Sunday evening the A’s played the second game of their double header with the Twins and couldn’t avoid the sweep getting edged by one run. Oakland had a loss in the first game 6-2 of the doubleheader and the A’s ended up dropping all four games. The A’s are on a nine game losing streak and return back to the Coliseum on Tuesday night.

Game recap: Joey Estes took the mound for game four with a 5.97 ERA. The Twins Chris Paddack was on the hill for Minnesota. Neither pitcher lasted long in a marathon of hits for both teams in the early innings. Estes went 2.2 innings allowing eight hits, six earned runs and only two strikeouts. Paddack went 2.1 innings allowing five hits, five earned runs and no strikeouts. Not a great outing for either pitcher.

Royce Lewis got this game going hitting the first home run of the game, a two-run shot in the first inning to take the early 2-0 lead. The second inning was a wild affair with each team scoring three runs.

In the top of the second, Seth Brown doubled reaching third on two errors by the Twins that allowed Daz Cameron and Tyler Soderstrom to score. Zack Gelof came to the plate and he also hit a double and Seth Brown scored giving the A’s a 3-2 lead. That lead was short-lived when Trevor Larnach hit a three run home run taking back the lead 5-3.

The A’s apparently wanted in on the action hitting two home runs in the third inning. JJ Bleday and Tyler Soderstrom both hit solo home runs to tie up this game at five apiece. Minnesota took back the lead in the bottom of the third off an Austin Martin double and Carlos Santana scored for a 6-5 Twins lead. Both teams were enjoying a great offensive effort.

Minnesota would tack on another run in the 6th inning. Carlos Correa who was having an incredible series singled Royce Lewis home extending their lead to 7-5. Again Oakland would have to play catchup. The A’s made up those two runs tying the game back up at seven in the seventh inning. Tyler Soderstrom singled JJ Bleday home and Shea Langeliers singled Miguel Andujar home and it was a whole new ball game.

In the bottom of the eighth once again the tie was broken when the Twins Jose Miranda homered for Minnesota’s third home run of the game. The Twins had taken back the lead in this see-saw game. Through eight innings the Twins had 14 hits and the A’s had 11. There had been three ties in this game in a most productive offensive effort for both teams. The A’s could not muster any offense in the ninth inning and lost their ninth game in a row 8-7.

The hitting that we saw from Oakland was encouraging with the 11 hits but the team has lost so many one run games in the late innings lately. Having to come from behind so often is discouraging for this team. Oakland has now figured out a way to get back into games and now they need to close out those games.

Oakland will have the day off . They begin a three-game series Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals at the Coliseum. Probable pitchers will be Hogan Harris for the A’s with a record of 0-0, 2.49 ERA and Alec March for the Royals with a record of 5-3, 3.63 ERA. First pitch for the Tuesday matchup is scheduled for 6:40 PM.

Incredible performance from Daquan Neal not enough to get Panthers the win as they fall to Strike Force 43-42

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Photo courtesy of Bay Area Panthers.

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

SAN JOSE- The Panthers looked to continue their winning streak at SAP Center against the San Diego Strike Force on Sunday evening.

Heading into this game the Panthers had a 9-1 record and were on a four game winning streak. The Strike Force on the other hand had a 6-5 record and were coming off a loss to the Arizona Rattlers by a 46-47 score.

These two teams had met twice before this match with the Panthers winning both games though they were both close. The first game between these teams ended 53-50 while the second one was 33-32.

The first quarter saw a dominant performance for quarterback Daquan Neal who scored two touchdowns on the run. The first touchdown was a set play as they faked out Strike Force’s defense making it an easy jog into the end zone for Neal. Later in the quarter Neal on a scramble took the play into his own hands rushing forward and extending his arm out to just get the ball into the end zone making it 14-0 Panthers.

Strike Force’s offense on the other side struggled quite a bit out the gate as they would not complete a pass until the four minute mark. On that same drive San Diego basically killed their own chances to score as they took three straight penalties and were forced to punt back.

Momentum shifted at the start of the second quarter as Strike Force scored early with Rudy Johnson rushing for two yards making it 14-7.

As much as he had been doing it with his feet Neal also was able to it with his arm as he launched one to Joshua Tomas for 23 yards extending the Panthers lead to 21-7.

San Diego would strike back late in the second as Nate Davis completed his first touchdown pass of the game to Rudy Johnson making it a one score game.

The Strike Force wasted no time tying the game up in the third as just two minutes in Davis got his second touchdown pass of the game this time connecting with Arthur Jackson for three yards.

It was more dominance though from Neal who got the hat trick in the third with another rushing touchdown giving the Panthers the lead right back at 28-21.

The fourth got off to another rough start for the Panthers as Elijah Lilly got a punt return touchdown for San Diego tying the game right back up.

Neal though feeling like three wasn’t enough got his fourth rushing touchdown of the game making it 35-28.

Davis matched Neal with a touchdown of his own airing one out to Jordan Kress for 23 yards tying the game right back up.

Neal managed to the Panthers the lead back on a beautiful pass to JT Stokes for 41 yards making it a 42-35 game. One the play though unfortunately Kishawn Walker had a scary collision with the boards and had to be carted off the field. While being carried away he did flash a thumbs up to the crowd to show that he was doing okay.

Once play resumed San Diego looked to respond but Joe Foucha came up with his second interception of the game ending the drive.

The Panthers weren’t able to do much with that ball and had to give it back to San Diego with less than a minute left.

Strike Force managed to march their way down the field and on the third play of the drive Davis connected with Kress again to make it 41-42. Then for killing blow Connor Mangan connected with the drop kick attempt securing San Diego an improbable comeback victory 43-42.

Neal finished the night going 10-18 with 131 yards completed and two passing touchdowns as well as four on the ground. Davis on the other hand threw 19-28 with 158 yards completed and four touchdown passes.

Foucha had a great night defensively with two interceptions while for San Diego Justic’e King lead the way with ten total tackles and five solo.

The loss ends the Panthers winning streak at four making their record now 9-2, while San Diego improves to 7-5 with the win.

The Panthers will look to bounce back on the road against the Duke City Gladiators on June 22nd at 5:05 p.m.

Giants’ offense wakes up to take out frustrations on Angels with 13-6 win

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Bottom of the fourth inning and the San Francisco Giants Jorge Soler rounds the bases after hitting a three run homer against the Los Angeles Angels at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sun Jun 16, 2024 (AP News photo)

Sunday, June 16, 2024

Oracle Park

San Francisco, California

Los Angeles Angels 6 (28-43)

San Francisco Giants 13 (35-37)

Win: Spencer Bivens (1-0)

Loss: Jose Suarez (1-2)

Time: 2:48

Attendance: 41,008

By Stephen Ruderman

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants were able to avoid an embarrassing sweep at the hands of the Los Angeles Angels, as the Giants pounded the Angels into submission with nine-run bottom of the fourth inning and a 13-6 blowout to salvage a game in this series.

The Giants lost the first two games of what was very much a winnable series against the lowly Angels. Sunday, they looked to avoid getting swept in front of a sold out crowd on a drop-dead gorgeous Father’s Day at Oracle Park.

However, Kyle Harrison, who was supposed to make the start Sunday, was scratched and placed on the 15-Day Injured List after he sprained his right ankle in a bullpen session Saturday. With Harrison suddenly on the IL, Bob Melvin was forced to have to navigate through another bullpen game.

Left-hander Erik Miller got the start, and he ran into some tough luck in the top of the first inning. Michael Stefanic grounded out to short to start the game, but with one out, Luis Rengifo hit a chopper along the third base line that skipped off Matt Chapman’s glove and got by, which allowed Rengifo to reach base.

The play was ruled a base-hit, and Rengifo would then take second base on a passed ball by Patrick Bailey. Taylor Ward grounded out to third for the second out, and Rengifo was unable to advance. However, former Giant Kevin Pillar floated a base-hit to center field to score Rengifo and put the Angels on the board.

It would also be a bullpen game for the Angels, and Ben Joyce would be the opener. Brett Wisely struck out looking, and then Heliot Ramos stayed white hot with a ground ball to right field for a base-hit. However, Joyce got through the rest of the inning without any problems.

Spencer Bivens, who was called up to replace Harrison on the roster, would be the pitcher for the top of the second. Bivens has quite a remarkable story. He made the baseball team at Penn State, but he was just as quickly booted off after testing positive for marijuana.

Bivens pitched in 2017 and 2018 for Rogers State University in Oklahoma, and after he wasn’t drafted in 2019, he went all the way to France to pitch in a league that only played on weekends. He returned to the United States in 2020 to pitch in the little-known Washington League for a team called the Steel City Slammin’ Sammies.

The Washington League was one of the very few leagues other than Major League Baseball that played baseball in the COVID Pandemic Year of 2020, and Bivens took full advantage of that.

“I’m happy I stuck with it,” said Bivens. “I’m happy I pursued baseball in the U.S., because if it wasn’t for COVID, I don’t know if I’m here.”

Bivens split time between the Frontier League and the Atlantic League in 2021. He started the 2022 Season in the Atlantic League, but he was finally brought into organized baseball by the Giants, who signed him to a minor league deal.

After pitching in the minor leagues throughout the 2022 and 2023 seasons, Bivens went 4-0 with a 2.81 ERA in 21 games for the Sacramento River Cats this season. He also pitched this past off-season in the Mexican League. Then last night, just over 12 days shy of his 30th birthday, he finally got the call that he was going to the big leagues.

“I don’t even think I’ve had time to think about it,” said Bivens. “It’s happened so fast. It’s been unbelievable. You can’t make it up, and I have no words.”

The first hitter Bivens faced was Zach Neto, who Bevins out swinging on a sinker in the dirt that Bailey threw to first to complete the out. Nolan Schanuel then hit a home run to straightaway center to make it 2-0.

“I was really high, and then really low, really quick,” said Bivens. “But [I] just [did] not let it overwhelm [me]. Solo home runs don’t usually beat you. I’m just happy to be able to stay composed and get after it.”

Indeed, Bivens stayed composed. In fact, he retired the next eight men he faced, and he ended up retiring nine of 10 and striking out four over three innings in what was quite an impressive major league debut.

“You never want to forget what that day’s like,” said Melvin. “Coming out of the bullpen [in front of] a packed house here [and being in the] big leagues, especially with what he’s been through in his career, that’s about as good as it gets.”

The Giants wasted a two-out opportunity against Joyce in the bottom of the second, and then they drew left-hander Jose Suarez in the bottom of the third. Brett Wisely led off the inning with a double, and Ramos singled him over to third, which brought Bailey to the plate.

Bailey hit a ground ball to third that was fielded by third-baseman Luis Rengifo, who caught Wisely leaning off the bag at third. Rengifo caught Wisely in a rundown and tagged him out for a rough first out. Rengifo banged himself up when he tagged Wisely, but he stayed in the game.

Matt Chapman flew out to left field, and Michael Conforto popped up to Rengifo in foul territory, as the Giants had wasted another opportunity.

The Giants would get another opportunity against Suarez in the bottom of the fourth, and this time, they would cash in. Jorge Soler walked to start the inning, and Wilmer Flores doubled him over to third. Soler appeared to have an easy score, but he was held at third by Third Base Coach Matt Williams to the chagrin of this impatient sellout crowd.

Austin Slater pinch-hit for Mike Yastrzemski, and he was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Thairo Estrada. Estrada has been struggling, but he had hits in each of the first two games of this series.

Estrada then lined a double down the left field line, as the ball deadened out at the ball in the corner, and two runs scored to tie it up. Wisely then shot a double to the gap out in right-center, as back-to-back doubles had given the Giants a 4-2 lead.

For the Giants, they were just getting started. Old friend Hunter Strickland struck Ramos out swinging for the first out, but Bailey lined a single to load the bases for Chapman, who singled on a sharp one-hopper that hit off the wrist of Rengifo at third. This time, Rengifo had to leave the game with a left wrist contusion.

Conforto fouled out, and then Jorge Soler, who has finally been swinging the bat better with runners in scoring position, hit a three-run home run to left. The Giants had now scored eight runs in the bottom of the fourth, and they led it 8-2.

“[Soler]’s done it his whole career,” said Melvin. “It’s just been a little bit of a struggle for him here to this point, but that’s who he is.”

Flores reached after Cole Tucker, who had moved over to third, bobbled a ground ball, and threw it away. That brought up Slater, and he lined a base-hit out to right-center to score Flores and make it 5-2.

All in all, the Giants ended up scoring nine runs in the bottom of the fourth. This was the fourth time in the history of Oracle Park that the Giants had a four-run inning. The last time was Sept. 7, 2008, when the Giants scored 10 runs in the bottom of the fourth inning of that game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Sean Hjelle came in for Bivens and threw a 1-2-3 top of the fifth. Jose Marte, who had finished the bottom of the fourth for Strickland, would have pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the fifth had it not been for a one-out error by Nolan Schanuel at first, but he ended up pitching the minimum regardless after Bailey grounded into a double play.

Luke Jackson pitched a scoreless top of the sixth, and Marte did the same in the bottom of the sixth. Taylor Rogers then worked his way out of some two-out trouble to pitch a scoreless inning in the top of the seventh.

Austin Slater led off the bottom of the seventh with a home run to straightaway center off Carson Fulmer to make it 10-2. Tyler Rogers replaced his brother in the top of the eighth and gave up a leadoff double to Cole Tucker, but he pitched a scoreless inning anyway.

The Giants decided to score three more runs in the bottom of the eighth. Soler hit a ground-rule double with nobody out to make it 11-2, which capped off quite a day for him. Soler went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double and four RBIs.

Trenton Brooks then got in on the action with an opposite-field base-hit to left to score Soler and make it 12-2. Angels Manager Ron Washington had enough, and he brought in infielder Luis Guillorme to pitch. Another run would score when Wisely grounded into a fielder’s choice to make it 13-2.

Melvin decided to bring in his closer, Camilo Doval, who had not pitched in four days, for a maintenance outing in the top of the ninth. To be blunt: it didn’t go well. Doval was all over the place, and he got torched for four runs and four hits over just a third of an inning. Doval kicked a cooler and slammed his glove to the ground when he returned to the dugout.

“It’s tough for a closer to come in in that situation,” said Melvin. “He’s used to the game being on the line…..[but] he was our last guy that was fairly rested, and obviously, it didn’t work out. Closers typically don’t want to be in games like that.”

Fortunately, Ryan Walker was able to put out the fire, and the Giants were still able to win easily. Hey, at least the Giants won and were able to let a bit of frustrations out with a 13-run day at the plate.

To cap off Spencer Bivens’ special day, he got the win in his major league debut, and Jose Suarez took the loss.

“It doesn’t really feel real; I’m just waiting to wake up from the dream,” said Bivens. “It’s nothing like I imagined it, and it’s even better that it’s that way.”

Bivens also received lengthy praise from his skipper.

“He [knew] he [was] gonna have to give us three innings,” added Melvin. “We were going to have to go through everybody in the bullpen today…..I [had] two guys I [didn’t] want to use, but Spencer knew that [he had to go] three innings and he [would] probably have to get through it, and he did it efficiently, too.”

Melvin also said that he thought about sending Bivens back out for the fifth, but with how long the bottom of the fourth was, and the fact that Bivens had to sit awhile, Melvin decided against it

Oh yeah, and how about those 13 runs by the offense. They also got 16 hits. Six guys in the Giants’ lineup had two-hit games: Wisely, Ramos, Bailey, Soler, Slater and Estrada.

The Giants improve to 35-37, and they will now head back on the road for a unique three-city road trip. First, they will travel to the North Side of Chicago to take on the Cubs for three Monday night. Then they’ll travel to Birmingham, Alabama for a special game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Rickwood Field Thursday night, followed by two more games against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Saturday and Sunday.

The Giants have yet to announce who they will go with in the series opener Monday night. The Cubs will go with their young right-hander, Javier Assad, who has had quite a good season. Assad is 4-2 with a 2.81 ERA.

First pitch will be at 7:05 p.m. in Chicago, 5:05 p.m. back home in San Francisco.

Giants News and Notes:

Prior to the game, the Giants released right-handed reliever Nick Avila. Avila was on the 40-Man Roster, and a spot had to be cleared for Bivens.

Sunday’s sellout crowd of 41,008 is the largest crowd at Oracle Park since Sept. 4, 2022, when 41,189 fans filed into Oracle Park to watch Wilmer Flores complete a sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies with a walk-off home run.

Sunday was also the sixth sellout of the season for the Giants, already doubling their total of just three last season. The Giants have had a total attendance of 1,247,527 through 37 home games this season, which is the highest total at this point of the season since 2018, when they had drawn 1,432,567 fans through 37 home games.

A’s Lose Game Three To Twins 6-2 In First Game of Double Header

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Oakland A’s hitter Max Scheumann is frustrated after striking out against the Minnesota Twins in the top of the fifth inning at Target Field in Minneapolis during the front game of a doubleheader on Sun Jun 16, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Oakland A’s (26-47) lost their eighth game in a row against the Minnesota Twins (39-32) 6-2. Starting pitcher J.P. Sears gave up six hits two of them home runs, four earned runs with only a single strikeout. The Twins starter Bailey Ober went 6.1 innings allowing six hits and one run with eight strikeouts. Oakland will be looking to avoid a sweep in this double header with first pitch at 4:40 PM.

Game recap: Game Three in the first of the double header opened up at 10:40 AM under partly cloudy skies and a high of 87 degrees. The weather report was favorable calling for no rain until early tomorrow morning. There would be no rain but but it was humid with a heat advisory calling for 87 degrees feeling more like 93 degrees during the game.

It was not the start that Oakland had envisioned after taking a 4-0 lead in the first inning of Friday’s game. The Twins Carlos Correa continued to hit as he has all series getting this game underway in the first inning knocking a two run home run out of the park for a 2-0 Twins lead. Minnesota would add to their lead when Royce Lewis hit a solo homer in the same inning for a 3-0 advantage.

Carlos Correa hit his second home run of the day in the fourth inning, a solo shot, and Minnesota was again on the scoreboard leading 4-0. Correa is 18 of 30 with three home runs in the past seven days. This guy is on a roll. In the seventh inning Carlos Santana hit a two-run home run. Everything was working for the Twins in this game.

Oakland did hit a solo home run in the seventh inning. Daz Cameron homered to left for a solo but again the A’s were leaning heavily on hitting home runs and when you are losing, solo home runs don’t make of an impact. Going into the eighth inning the A’s were losing 6-1. Oakland would one more run in this game in the ninth inning. Kyle McCann singled J.D. Davis home for a final score of 6-2 in favor of the Twins. Minneapolis will be looking for a sweep in the second game of the double header.

The A’s had nine hits in this game, the Twins had 12. Oakland left too many runners stranded something that has hurt them all season as they lost their eighth straight game.

It was a rough outing for J.P. Sears who allowed two home runs and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings. The lefty had allowed eight home runs in his first 14 starts this season. He had not allowed a single home run in his past five starts so this was not a great start for him.

The Twins starting pitcher Bailey Ober had a nice game going 6.1 innings allowing six hits, one run with eight strikeouts.

Game notes: Sunday afternoon the A’s got knocked off by the Twins in the front game of a double header after game three was rained out Saturday at Target Field. JP Sears pitched for 4.1 innings giving up nine hits, four runs, four hits and four walks. Sears struck out one batter.

In Friday nights game, the Twins won the game in another walk off 6-5. Oakland is no doubt sick of walk-offs ad nauseam. They lost two games in a row to the Padres Tuesday and Wednesday evening in walk offs after tying up the game in game two in the eighth inning and in game three leading 4-2 going into the bottom of the eighth inning. It has been a rough stretch for the Oakland A’s who desperately needed hits late in games never seem to materialize.

The second game of this double header is slated to begin at 4:40 PM. The A’s will be looking to avoid the sweep in this game. Joey Estes will take the mound for the A’s with a 4.78 ERA and a 2-2 win/loss record. Chris Paddack gets the nod for the Twins with a 4.70 ERA and a winning 5-3 record.