Category: Uncategorized

By Jeremy Kahn

It seems that the San Francisco Giants have the number of their longtime rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Buster Posey launched a grand slam deep into the Dodgers bullpen in the top of the third inning, helping the Giants to a 9-5 victory over the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium.

Following singles to Gregor Blanco and Nori Aoki and after Angel Pagan loaded the bases with a two-out walk, Posey took a 2-2 offering from Mike Bolsinger and put it into the Los Angeles night. It was the first game for Blanco after missing the prior 10 due to being on the concussion disabled list.

Chris Heston won his seventh game of the season, as he pitched 5.2 innings, allowing three runs on seven hits, while walking no one.

This was the eighth win of the season for the Giants over the Dodgers in 10 games, as the reigning World Champions moved within 1.5 games of the leaders in the National League West.

Brandon Crawford drove in Brandon Belt with a double in the top of the sixth inning to increase their lead to 5-3.

The Giants blew the game wide open in the top of the seventh inning, as they scored four runs that included a bases loaded walk to Crawford, a two-run single by Southern California native Matt Duffy and a RBI single by Blanco. All four runs came off of Dodgers rookie pitcher Josh Ravin.

By Jeremy Harness

Ryan Vogelsong had his best outing of the year on Thursday night, as he shut down the bats of the Seattle Mariners in a 7-0 victory at Safeco Field, a win that assured themselves an even split of the four-game home-and-home series.

Vogelsong was never in any serious trouble all night, as he went 6 2/3 innings and gave up only three hits and struck out six guys against only a pair of walks. It was especially timely for Vogelsong, since he was having a rather-futile June that saw him lose his first three outings of the month and give up more than five runs per game.

Meanwhile, the Giants’ bats had a major resurgence, and the hit parade started rather early. In the second, the Giants scored three runs, but it really started on a miscue on the Seattle side.

With one out, Joaquin Arias grounded to second on what looked like a custom-made double play ball. However, shortstop Brad Miller muffed the exchange, and the Mariners could only get the one out to keep the inning while Brandon Belt scored.

That seemed to catapult the Giants, as Nori Aoki and Joe Panik quickly followed with run-scoring hits to bolster their lead and give Vogelsong all the run support he would need.

The Giants added to their led in a four-run eighth inning that was highlighted by Matt Duffy’s two-run triple that scored Angel Pagan and Buster Posey. Duffy would later score on a single by Andrew Susac two batters later.

They will have a chance to narrow the gap between themselves and the Los Angeles Dodgers, starting Friday night, as they will head south to Dodger Stadium to face the National League West leaders.

Chris Heston (6-5, 3.76 ERA), who threw a no-hitter at the New York Mets earlier this month but took a loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in his most recent outing will start things off in the Friday opener, as he faces Mike Bolsinger (4-1, 2.25 ERA).

By Jeremy Harness

The Giants had Madison Bumgarner on the hill Wednesday night, and the left-hander responded with a very nice performance and gave his team a chance to win.

However, the opposing pitcher was a tad more dominant and rendered Bumgarner’s outing an afterthought.

Both went eight innings, but the difference came in a sixth inning that saw the Seattle Mariners drop a two-spot on the lefty that carried the Giants to last year’s World Series title. In that inning, Austin Jackson and Robinson Cano tagged Bumgarner for RBI extra-base hits to give all the run support that Felix Hernandez needed in a 2-0 Giants loss at Safeco Field.

Hernandez gave up only four hits in shutting out the Giants, walking two and striking out five batters. Meanwhile, Bumgarner also gave up four hits and walked just one batter against nine strikeouts, but Cano and Jackson combined to do him in on Wednesday.

The Giants never got any real momentum against Hernandez, and the closest they came to getting on track was in the top of the seventh inning, just after Seattle grabbed the two-run lead. Brandon Crawford reached base on a throwing error by Cano, and then two batters later, Casey McGehee worked the count full before drawing a walk to advance Crawford in scoring
position.

However, as they have frequently experienced at home this year, the Giants could not come up with the big hit to change the momentum of the game. The next batter, Justin Maxwell grounded out to third to end the threat and let Hernandez off the hook.

The Giants only got one more batter on base the rest of the way, and they will return to Safeco Field Thursday afternoon in the hopes of taking the finale to split the four-game home-and-home series.

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO-When will the San Francisco Giants win a game at the usual friendly confines of AT&T Park.

Ruby De La Rosa went eight strong innings, as the Arizona Diamondbacks completed their first three-game sweep at AT&T Park since July 25-27, 2008 with a 4-0 victory over the Giants before a crowd of 41,310, the 360th consecutive sellout.

De La Rosa allowed four hits, while walking two and striking out six on his way to his fifth win of the season.

Just five days after throwing his first career no-hitter, Chris Heston lasted only five innings, as he allowed three runs on seven hits, walking four and striking out six.

Brandon Crawford committed two errors on the same ball hit by Wellington Castillo in the top of the second inning that allowed Jake Lamb to score from second base.

Chris Owings hit a two-run double to straightway centerfield in the top of the fifth inning that scored Ender Inciarte and Paul Goldschmidt.

A.J. Pollock drove in the fourth and final run of the game with a sacrifice fly to centerfield that scored Inciarte.

The Giants began to threaten in the bottom of the ninth, as Joe Panik doubled and then Brandon
Belt, but then Brandon Crawford struck out and then Casey McGehee walked to load the bases for pinch-hitter Buster Posey, who batted for Justin Maxwell.

Posey ended the game, as he grounded into a double play.

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO-After a great road trip that saw the San Francisco Giants go 4-2, the defending World Champions returned home and their losing ways at home continue.

Allen Webster was dominant, as he threw five innings of no-hit ball, before allowing a double to Joe Panik in the bottom of the sixth inning and the Arizona Diamondbacks defeated the Giants 4-2 before 42,006, the 359th consecutive sellout at AT&T Park.

Making his Diamondbacks debut, Webster went 5.2 innings, allowing two runs on two hits, while walking three and striking out two.

The Giants have now lost seven in a row at home, their longest losing streak at home since losing seven in a row from May 14-31, 2008.

It was a tough outing for Ryan Vogelsong, who gave up three runs in the first inning, before being relieved after just 3.2 innings, where he allowed four runs on six hits, walking five and striking out one.

Vogelsong got the first two batters of the first out, but Paul Goldschmidt began a streak where six consecutive Diamondbacks reached base via a walk or a single. The nightmarish inning came to a close when Vogelsong got Webster to flyout to Angel Pagan in centerfield to end the 39-pitch first.

After Vogelsong was lifted in favor of Yusmeiro Petit, the bullpen of Petit, Mike Broadway, who made his major league debut, Jeremy Affeldt and George Kontos was lights out, as they allowed just one hit over the final five and one-thirds of the game.

Buster Posey extended his hitting streak up to eight straight, and is batting .353 with seven RBIs during the streak.

Asides from Broadway making his major league debut, Jarrett Parker made his major league debut in right field and went 0-for-3. Broadway gave up a hit and struck out a batter in his only inning of work.

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO-Chase Anderson was eight outs away from baseball immortality, but Buster Posey got in the way of that.

Anderson threw 6.1 innings of no-hit ball on his way to going seven innings, allowing just that one hit, walking one and striking out two and the Arizona Diamondbacks defeated the San Francisco Giants 1-0 before 41,952, the 358th consecutive sellout at AT&T Park.

Posey hit a comebacker off of Anderson’s calf, and Posey beat it out down the line for the Giants first hit of the game.

The win by the Diamondbacks broke their four-fame losing streak, and gave Anderson his second win of the season.

Madison Bumgarner went eight innings, allowing nine hits (all singles), walking three and striking out seven. This was the first time since last August that Bumgarner pitched at least eight innings in back-to-back starts.

Ender Inciarte drove in the only run of the game in the top of the second inning, as he singled in Wellington Castillo, who singled to lead off the inning.

Joe Panik saw his 15-game hitting streak come to an end, as he went 0-for-4. Panik’s streak of reaching base in 23 straight games also ended. Both streaks were major league highs thus far during the 2015 season.

This was the sixth straight loss by the Giants at AT&T Park, their longest such streak since losing seven in a row from May 14-31, 2008.

Prior to the game it was announced that Hunter Pence was placed on the 15-day disabled list, and the team selected to purchase the contract of right-handed pitcher Michael Broadway from Sacramento.

NHL COMMENTARY

By DANIEL DULLUM

Sports Radio Service

Thursday, June 11, 2015

PHOENIX, Arizona – In a not-so-surprising move, the Glendale City Council voted 5-2 Wednesday to break a 15-year, $225 million lease agreement signed by Glendale and IceArizona – the owners of the Arizona Coyotes – after the troubled team was purchased from the NHL two years ago.

Glendale’s leadership team (that’s a loose term) has never been happy with the terms of the deal and on Wednesday, the city employed the same deft touch that convinced the National Football League to move most of its Super Bowl activities to downtown Phoenix.

While the City of Glendale said it would proceed to book events at Gila River Arena, the Coyotes ownership group responded with a $200 million lawsuit against Glendale, along with a temporary restraining order to prevent the city from ending the original deal.

Aiding the Coyotes in this action is an army of high-end attorneys on retainer with the NHL, which has no intention of moving the club out of the desert and away from a top ten television market in the US.

In a statement, the NHL called Glendale’s actions “outrageous and irresponsible,” adding that the league “stands by and will fully support, the Arizona Coyotes in their efforts to vindicate their contractual rights.”

This is a legal battle that could drag on indefinitely. But remember, Glendale is dealing with a league that, 20 years ago, shut itself down for an entire season to get what it wanted. In this particular game of chicken, the NHL won’t be the one that flinches.

Rumors that used to bounce around are making a comeback, having the Coyotes land anywhere from Seattle to Portland, Ore., to Quebec City to Las Vegas. But the NHL has too much time and resources invested in establishing a franchise in a market that has had a healthy core of hockey fans since the old Phoenix Roadrunners from the Western Hockey League showed up in 1967. But the NHL and the Coyotes are still trying to recover from the damage inflicted – on and off the ice – by four years of being underfinanced wards of the league.

Sports talk radio in the Valley have again revved up old complaints about the team being “way out there in Glendale,” about 25 miles from downtown Phoenix, wishing they would move back to U.S. Airways Center, where they played after moving from Winnipeg. That would be nice, except the old obstructed seat issues that forced the Coyotes out in the first place still exist.

There’s talk that the NBA Suns are looking for a new playpen, claiming their 23-year-old arena is now antiquated. The City of Phoenix hasn’t said anything publically about that. It should also be noted that while a new arena to host both the Suns and Coyotes would solve the Coyotes’ problems, the hockey team needs the Suns more than the other way around.

The Suns were the first major league franchise here, and that status carries significant weight. It’s the Suns’ town. If a shared arena downtown came to pass, there’s no question the Suns would get the primary scheduling dates. Coyotes management has to know that. And the Suns know they could get a newer arena without any involvement from the Coyotes.

If the restraining order is upheld, the Coyotes will play at Gila River Arena. If not, a decision must come quickly, and in all likelihood, they would have to accept secondary dates at U.S. Airways, as the old Veterans Memorial Coliseum is exactly that – old. Fifty years old. It’s beyond doubtful that Phoenix or Maricopa County has any interest in pouring money into the market’s first “big” arena.

On Thursday, the Associated Press reported that one Phoenix city council member suggested that a return to downtown for the Coyotes could be seriously considered.

If that happens, the Glendale City Council will learn quickly what it’s like to have a white elephant on its hands.

Daniel Dullum covers the NHL for Sports Radio Service.

By Jeremy Harness

The Giants could not complete the three-game sweep at City Field on Thursday, but at least they earned a valuable series win, particularly one on the road against a team with a winning record.

The sweep was taken away in the bottom of the ninth, when Michael Cuddyer’s single off reliever Sergio Romo brought in Curtis Granderson to hand the Giants a 5-4 loss to the New York Mets.

Tim Lincecum didn’t pitch terribly, but he ended up using too many pitches in a short period of time, which made his numbers look worse than they actually were. He gave up a pair of earned runs (three total) on only four hits, walking three and striking out five while keeping the Giants in the game.

However, he was only able to go 4 2/3 innings, due in large part to the fact that he used 102 pitches in the process.

He rolled through the first three innings without surrendering a run but ran into a little trouble in the fourth, as Travis d’Arnaud singled in a run to cut the Giants’ lead to a single run. In the next inning, Lincecum saw his lead evaporate and found his team trailing by one after a sac fly followed by a double by Cuddyer gave the Mets a 3-2 lead.

After that hit, Lincecum was pulled for Yusmeiro Petit, who got the Giants out of that inning without any further damage.

Brandon Crawford blasted the Giants back into the lead with a two-run homer in the sixth inning with two outs. However, Granderson responded in the next frame with an RBI single to tie things up off reliever Hunter Strickland to set up Cuddyer’s walk-off to send the Giants home on a sour note.

Regardless, the Giants will now head home – after a successful road trip – for a three-game series against Arizona that starts Friday before the Seattle Mainers come into town for a two-gamer at AT&T Park. The Giants and Mariners will then head north to Seattle for a two-game set at Safeco Field.