Raiders will head to Miami for Week 3 tilt with Dolphins

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By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND, Calif — If one road game wasn’t enough, how about a double-dip?

The Raiders are hitting the road once again this time, they are heading to South Beach where they will take on a surprisingly undefeated Dolphins team in a key Week 3 matchup for Oakland this Sunday.

Kickoff is at 1:00 p.m. ET, which means 10:00 a.m. PT for West Coasters.

Last season, the two teams faced each other in Week 9 with the Raiders defeating the Dolphins, 27-24, behind a three-yard touchdown run by running back Marshawn Lynch late in the fourth quarter.

Oakland (0-2) lost a heart-breaker last week in Denver, 20-19, wasting an awesome performance by starting quarterback Derek Carr.

Carr was sharp all game, completing 29-of-32 passes for 288 yards and one touchdown. He’s the only quarterback in NFL history to complete 90 percent of his passes with more than 30 attempts, per ESPN. It was nice to see Carr bounce back from an ugly game in Week 1, where he threw three interceptions in Oakland’s 33-13 loss to the visiting Los Angeles Rams.

Out of those 29 completions, 10 were to wide receiver Amari Cooper, who also rebounded from a bad first game of the season where he posted just one catch for nine yards on three targets.

Against the Broncos, Cooper was targeted 10 times (catching each one) for 116 yards. It was a welcoming sign for Oakland, albeit in a loss.

Oakland held a 19-7 lead into the third quarter before the Broncos rallied with 13 unanswered points, including kicker Brandon McManus’s game-winning 36-yard field goal with six seconds remaining in the game.

Without stud defensive end/outside linebacker Khalil Mack, who was traded to Chicago prior to the start of the regular season because the Silver and Black were hesitant to reward Mack with a new contract extension, Oakland’s defense has been a no show through the first two games of the season.

The Raiders have had a tough time generating any kind of pass rush this season. Only linebacker Bruce Irvin and rookie defensive tackle Maurice Hurst have recorded a quarterback sack, but that could change against Miami. Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill has been sacked five times this season, which ranks 13th in the NFL. Tannehill has also been hit nine times in the pocket.

Miami (2-0) defeated the Jets, 20-12, in New York at MetLife Stadium behind Tannehill and the NFL’s fourth-ranked scoring defense.

Tannehill completed 17-of-23 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Dolphins a 20-0 lead before halftime. Through two games this season, Tannehill has completed 31-of-57 passes for 398 yards with four touchdowns, two interceptions and a 104.9 passer rating.

Running back Kenyan Drake had 11 carries for 53 yards and one touchdown against the Jets. Drake leads the Dolphins with 25 carries for 101 yards this season.

Backup running back Frank Gore finished with just nine carries for 25 yards, but those yards were all he needed to pass Hall of Famer Curtis Martin (14,101) for fourth place on the NFL’s all-time rushing list with 14,103 yards. Gore, who is in his 14th season, signed a 1-year deal with his hometown Dolphins in the offseason.

Electric wide receiver Jarvis Landry was traded to Cleveland in the offseason, leaving the Dolphins with question marks at the position. Holdover Kenny Stills leads the Dolphins in receiving yards (123) and touchdowns (2) through two games, while free agent addition Danny Amendola leads the team in catches (8).

Amendola, who won two Super Bowl rings in four seasons with the New England Patriots, signed with the Dolphins this past offseason to give Tannehill another reliable target.

Middle linebacker Kiko Alonso and safety Reshad Jones are two of Miami’s prime defenders that Oakland must be aware at all times.

Jones is arguably the Dolphins most reliable playmaker, as he leads Miami with two interceptions this season. Last season, Jones led Miami in tackles with 122.

The two-time Pro Bowler will likely be following Raiders tight end Jared Cook, who has been explosive the first two weeks of the season. In 2017, Cook led all Raiders receivers with 688 yards and this season, he leads Oakland with 229 yards, which includes his franchise record-setting 180-yard performance in Week 1.

After posting back-to-back seasons of 115 tackles, Alonso is a major focal point for the Dolphins defense. Last week against the Jets, Alonso recorded a 13 tackles and two forced fumbles, coming up huge for Miami many times in that contest.

Sunday’s game in Miami is a must-win for Oakland. There’s no way to sugarcoat it.

Falling to 0-3 with a loss before coming home to take on a puzzling Cleveland Browns team in Week 4 at the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum would be catastrophic.

San Jose sports podcast with Ana Kieu: Both Earthquakes and Spartans can use paper bags

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On the San Jose sports podcast with Ana:

1. The San Jose Earthquakes returned to Avaya Stadium…only to lose to Sporting Kansas City 5-1.

2. Quakes captain Chris Wondolowski put the Native American community first before the match vs. Sporting KC at Avaya Stadium. Wondo is half Native American through his mother, Janis Hoyt, who was born into the Kiowa tribe from Oklahoma. Wondo is also a member of the Kiowa tribe.

3. The Quakes host the Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta United at Avaya Stadium tonight. Do you think the Quakes will get blown out again?

4. Despite the 35-22 loss, the San Jose State Spartans put on quite a show against No. 20 Oregon at Autzen Stadium.

5. After the bye week, the Spartans will welcome the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors for this year’s Homecoming game on September 29th. Coach Nick Rolovich and his Rainbow Warriors have proved they weren’t the same team they were last year. What should coach Brent Brennan and his Spartans do in order to prepare for this Mountain West contest? Also, do you think the Spartans can beat Hawaii?

Ana does the San Jose sports podcasts each week for SportsRadioService.com!

San Jose State men’s basketball announces 2018-19 TV schedule

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By: Ana Kieu

San Jose State men’s basketball will play on a nationally televised stage five times during Mountain West play during the 2018-19 season. The conference and its national TV partners finalized the schedule and made the announcement on Wednesday.

“I’m excited that our team will get multiple opportunities to play on a national stage, especially at home,” head coach Jean Prioleau said. “We enjoy having the chance to make some noise and perform at a high level in front of a lot of viewers. The national spotlight is great exposure for this program and I’m excited for our fans and the San Jose community as a whole.”

Two of the five games broadcasted will be played in the Event Center. The Spartans welcome UNLV for a 2 pm PT contest on Sunday, February 16, and New Mexico for a 7 pm PT tip on Tuesday, February 26. Both games will be broadcasted by AT&T SportsNet.

The Spartans’ fans’ first chance to catch SJSU on television will be Wednesday, January 9th at Nevada on CBS Sports Network. The Spartans also have televised road contests slated for Saturday, January 19th at UNLV and Wednesday, February 13th at New Mexico.

Additionally, any SJSU men’s basketball game not on national television will be broadcasted on the MW Network via watchstadium.com. Links for those games will be available all season long on the MBB schedule page and TheMW.com.

Date                                     Location                            Opponent         Network                           Time

1/9/2019                           Reno, Nev.                          Nevada               CBS Sports Network     8:00 p.m. PT

1/19/2019                         Las Vegas, Nev.                 UNLV                    AT&T SportsNet             4:30 p.m. PT

2/13/2019                         Albuquerque, N.M.          New Mexico      AT&T SportsNet             6:00 p.m. PT

2/16/2019                         The Event Center            UNLV                    AT&T SportsNet             2:00 p.m. PT

2/26/2019                         The Event Center            New Mexico      AT&T SportsNet             7:00 p.m. PT

Shaw helps the Giants to a 5-4 win over the Padres

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By Jeremy Kahn

After dropping 11 in a row, the San Francisco Giants have turned it and got a little streak going on in the better direction against the San Diego Padres.

Chris Shaw hit a two-run single that landed just out of the reach of Hunter Renfroe in left field, as the Giants came back to defeat the Padres 5-4 at Petco Park on Tuesday night.

It was the fourth win in a row for the Giants, who started the month of September by losing a season-high 11 in a row.

The Shaw single scored Nick Hundley, who grounded into a fielder’s choice that sent Evan Longoria to third base on a Cory Spangenberg throwing error. Crawford then hit for Aramis Garcia, and walked to load the bases.

Longoria led off the inning with a sharp single to centerfield off of eventual losing pitcher Craig Stammen.

After the Crawford walk, Hunter Pence ground into a fielder’s choice that saw Longoria get thrown out at the plate by a step, as Stammen threw to Austin Hedges, who barely kept his foot on the plate.

Shaw then gave the Giants the lead for good with his flare down the left field line just out of reach of Renfroe.

Pence gave the Giants the lead in the top of the second inning, as his two-run home run gave the Giants a 2-1 lead. He also added a run-scoring double in the top of the fourth inning that once again gave the Giants a one-run lead at 4-3.

Franmil Reyes gave the Padres the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning just out of the reach of Shaw, who claimed possible fan interference. The umpires went to video review, and the home run stood.

It was the second and third runs batted in of the night for Reyes, who also drove in a run on a single in the bottom of the third inning. Renfroe got the Padres on the board in the bottom of the first inning, as he drove in a run on a double.

Sam Dyson pitched one inning to get his fourth win of the season for the Giants, and Will Smith finished it up for his team-leading 14th save of the season.

Derek Holland pitched five innings, allowing four runs on five hits, walking two and striking out six.

East Bay native Joey Luchessi also pitched five innings for the Padres, as he gave up three runs on seven hits, walking just one and striking out eight.

UP NEXT: The Giants and Padres will wrap up their series with a finale Wednesday night at 6:10 pm PDT.

Chris Stratton will go to the mound for the Giants, as they look for a sweep. Stratton coming off his first career shutout on Friday night, as the Giants stopped their 11-game losing streak with a 2-0 victory over the Colorado Rockies at AT&T Park. Robbie Erlin goes for the Padres, as he looks to stop a career-high tying four-game losing streak.

Angels knock off the A’s 9-7

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By Jerry Feitelberg

The Los Angeles Angels won a wild and wooly game Tuesday night at the Oakland Coliseum as they sent the A’s down to their fourth loss in the last five games by a score of 9-7. It was also the third loss in a row for the Green and Gold.

With the loss, the A’s now trail the Houston Astros by five games in the race for first place in the AL West and are 2 1/2 games behind the New York Yankees for the first Wild Card spot. Time is running for the Green and Gold as there are just 11 games left in the regular season. The A’s are now 90-61 on the season.

The Angels put one on the board in the top of the fourth. With one out, their all-world center fielder, Mike Trout, blasted his 35th home run of the year off Daniel Mengden. Mengden walked the next hitter, Justin Upton. Mengden retired Shohei Otani for the second out. Angels shortstop Andrelton Simmons then lined a double off the wall in left center field. It went out like a rocket, and the A’s were able to get the ball back to the infield to prevent Upton from scoring. Mengden retired third baseman Tyler Ward for the third out. The Angels led 1-0 in the middle of the fourth inning.

The A’s answered by scoring four times in the bottom of the fourth. Angels manager Mike Scioscia replaced starter Tyler Skaggs with Cam Bedrosian. Skaggs made his first start since August 11th, and Scioscia had him on a pitch count. Skaggs did not allow a hit or  run in three innings of work. The A’s took advantage of Bedrosian’s wildness to load the bases with no outs. Bedrosian walked Jed Lowrie to start the inning. A’s DH Khris Davis singled to send Lowrie to second. Bedrosian walked Stephen Piscotty to load the bases with no out. Bedrosian struck out the next two hitters and was in position to get out of the jam. A left fielder ripped a double that bounced off the base of the left field wall that cleared the bases. Catcher Jonathan Lucroy followed with a single to drive in Canha with the A’s fourth run of the frame. Scioscia changed pitchers, and reliever Noe Ramirez was able to retire Ramon Laureano for the final out of the fourth. The A’s led 4-1 after four.

Melvin went to his bullpen to start the sixth inning. The move turned out to be a disaster for the A’s as the Angels plated six runs on four hits. Shawn Kelley started the inning and faced Jose Fernandez. Kelley retired Trout for the first out. Justin Upton singled off Matt Chapman’s glove to put runners on at first and second. Melvin brought in lefty Ryan Buchter to pitch to Ohtani. That strategy failed as Ohtani singled to load the bases. Andrelto Simmons singled to drive in Fernandez and Upton. The Angels trailed 4-3. Melvin replaced Buchter with Lou Trivino. Trivino hit Taylor Ward with a pitch to load the bases. Kaleb Cowart hit his first home run of the run and his first grand slam. Trivino retired the next two hitters, but the damage was done. The Angels took a 7-4 lead.

The Angels put two more on the board in the top of the eighth. The A’s brought in their seventh pitcher of the night, Cory Gearrin, to face the Halos. Ohtani walked. Simmons followed with a single. Ward reached on a fielder’s choice. Ohtani was thrown out at third, but Chapman’s throw to first sailed past Matt Olson and went into right field. Simmons scored, and Ward ended up on third base. Cowart, who hit a grand slam in his last at-bat, tripled to drive in Ward with the Angels’ ninth run of the night.

The A’s rallied in the bottom of the eighth inning and scored three times to make it a 9-7 game. Jed Lowrie got things going when he walked for the third time in the game. Davis struck out, but singles by Piscotty and Olson allowed Lowrie to score. A’s shortstop Marcus Semien walked to load the bases. A’s outfielder Dustin Fowler was sent in to pinch hit for Josh Phegley. Fowler came through with a single to drive in Piscotty and Olson. Angels’ pitcher Ty Buttrey retired Ramon Laureano for the third out. The A’s had one more opportunity to either tie or get ahead in the bottom of the ninth inning.

The Angels’ seventh pitcher of the evening retired in order in the ninth to seal the win. The A’s lost 9-7.

Game Notes and Stats: Time of the game was three hours and 42 minutes. For all intents and purposes, it was a bullpen game for both managers. A’s manager Bob Melvin started Liam Hendriks for the first inning, and Daniel Mengden was able to go four innings with the Halos scoring just one run. Angels manager Mike Scioscia used seven pitchers to subdue the A’s.

Things went awry in the sixth and eighth innings as the A’s bullpen imploded and allowed the Angels to put eight runs on the board. The A’s used eight pitchers in the loss, and it appeared to many that the bullpen might be a bit tired at this stage of the season. Rookie Lou Trivino, who has been so good, was burnt by Kaleb Cowart when he hit his first homer of the year, and it was a grand slam to boot. Cowart also had a triple.

The A’s line was seven runs on seven hits and one error. The Angels’ line score was nine runs on nine hits and no errors.

The winning pitcher was the Angels’ third pitcher Noe Ramirez. Ty Buttrey earned his fourth save of the year.

The losing pitcher was the A’s Lou Trivino, who absorbed the loss. His record is now 8-3.

There were 15.031 fans in attendance as they watched their A’s go down to defeat.

Up Next: Game two will be played Wednesday night at the Oakland Coliseum. Game time will be at 7:05 pm PDT.

Brett Anderson will go for the A’s. Anderson is hoping to rebound from two poor outings since coming off the DL.

Felix Pena will pitch for the Angels.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Giants take second game of three game set from Padres using regulars and second stringers

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On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Marko:

#1 How much playing time do you expect Giants manager Bruce Bochy to give his call ups and reserves seeing the Giants’ postseason hopes fading?

#2 Bochy in the series has played it competitive winning on Monday night in San Diego 4-2 and using a lot of his regulars and second string bench and bullpen core.

#3 On Tuesday night at Petco the Giants just got by the Padres 5-4 to take a 2-0 lead in the series down 4-3 the Giants made hay in the Petco Park evening coming back to score two runs off Padres reliever Craig Stammen in the eighth.

#4 The Giants conclude this three-game series with the Padres on Wednesday night. The Giants will be looking to get a sweep and after suffering an 11-game losing steak that ended Friday. The Giants now have won four of their last five games.

#5 The Giants next opponent will be at Busch Stadium in St. Louis to open a three-game series with the Cardinals. The Giants will try and play spoilers in this one as the Cardinals are just 2 1/2 games behind Milwaukee in the NL Wild Card race.

Marko does the Giants podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks rout the Ducks 4-1 in preseason game No. 1

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By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — No, the regular season hasn’t started yet, but the San Jose Sharks opened up the preseason at SAP Center versus the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night.

For the Sharks, the recent acquisition of Ottawa Senators star defenseman Erik Karlsson might signal the dawn of a new era in San Jose. The Sharks welcomed Karlsson to San Jose with a full page color ad in Monday’s edition of The Mercury News. The Sharks reportedly will offer Karlsson an eight-year contract extension.

Karlsson revealed that he never wanted to leave Ottawa after a season full of controversy, but I’m almost certain that he’ll get comfortable with California now that he’s expected to practice with the Sharks on Wednesday.

In other news, Mike Hoffman’s fiancee, Monika Caryk, said she won’t sue Karlsson’s wife, Melinda Currey, over allegations of cyberbullying.

For the Ducks, there has been a lot of debating over questions surrounding their training camp. The Ducks’ recent trades may or may not change the balance of power in the Pacific Division, but I’ll wait for the regular season to start before commenting on that.

Anyhow, let’s get to the Sharks vs. Ducks preseason game.

Despite an action-packed first period, the game was in a scoreless tie. Shots were 14-6 in favor of San Jose.

Just moments after Gibson’s penalty expired, Brenden Dillon was called for tripping at the 16:30 mark of the second period. And, to make things worse, Anton Rodin gave the Ducks a 1-0 lead with his first power play goal of the preseason at the 15:31 mark of the second period. Assists were handed to Corey Tropp and Brandon Montour.

But the Sharks bounced back nicely. Rourke Chartier scored the game-tying goal at the 12:23 mark of the second period. A lone assist was handed to Ivan Chekhovich.

The Ducks pulled Jared Coreau in favor of Kevin Boyle with 8:06 left in the second period. However, the Ducks’ decision didn’t work in their favor.

The Sharks took a 2-1 lead with 4:35 left in the second period. Chekhovich scored his first goal of the preseason. A lone assist was handed to Barclay Goodrow.

The Sharks brought a 2-1 lead to the locker room following a gutsy second period. Shots were 29-15 in favor of San Jose.

The Sharks were feisty late in the third period. Barclay Goodrow tallied a goal–his first to extend the Sharks’ lead to 3-1 with 1:49 left in regulation. Assists were handed to Tim Heed and Radim Simek. Shortly after, Chekhovich scored his second goal of the game (and preseason) to expand the Sharks’ lead to 4-1. Assists were handed to Goodrow and Dylan Gambrell.

The Sharks defeated the Ducks 4-1 in their first preseason game of 2018.

Notes
Tonight’s attendance was 13,926.

Sharks’ roster 
Forwards: Dylan Gambrell, Marcus Sorensen, Barclay Goodrow, Joonas Donskoi, Antti Suomela, Vincent Praplan, Tomas Hertl, Lukas Radio, Sasha Chmelevski, Rourke Chartier, Kevin Labanc, Ivan Chekhovich and Maxim Letunov.

Defensemen: Brenden Dillon, Ryan Merkley, Joakim Ryan, Radim Simek, Nick DeSimone, Tim Heed and Jeremy Roy.

Goalies: Antoine Bibeau and Zachary Emond.

Up Next
The Sharks head to Anaheim to take on the Ducks in a preseason rematch on Thursday, September 20 at 7:00 pm PDT.

Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O: Will the A’s stay with their bullpenning concept?; plus the future on A’s pitchers Triggs and Cahill

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On the Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O:

1) The A’s continue to try the bullpenning concept to supplement their lack of starting pitching? Do you think they should stay with it or go another direction?

2) On the injury front: the news isn’t good Andrew Triggs – what’s happening with him?

3) Pitcher Trevor Cahill is rehabbing. What’s his status?

4) The A’s made a big announcement about their Triple-A team this week. Tell us about it and give us your opinion on the move.

Charlie O does the A’s podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: A’s unlikely to win AL West, but have a good shot at the AL Wild Card

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Amaury does his News and Commentary podcast with Marko Ukalovic, Jeremy Harness, and Joey Friedman from Scotts Seafood Restaurant in downtown San Jose.

It seems like 20 years ago when Oakland A’s pitcher Kendall Graveman was on the A’s roster at the beginning of the 2018 season. That was five an half months ago and the A’s saw pitcher Sean Manaea throw a no-hitter, but later to be put on the DL for Tommy John surgery, which ultimately ended his season and also his season for 2019.

Also, A’s pitcher Jharel Cotton also is having Tommy John. The A’s are 90-60 as of Monday night and they look like they’re going to make it to the playoffs. The last three years, the A’s finished in the cellar. They look like they caught lightening in a bottle. Matt Chapman and Matt Olson are the real thing and Marcus Semien is having a good year. It’s Semien’s bat that has him in the big leagues, not his glove.

Amaury has much more on the A’s drive to the playoffs at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with David Zizmor: How prepared are the 49ers?; Penalty provides big break in first win of season

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On the 49ers podcast with David Zizmor:

The San Francisco 49ers nearly threw away last Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions literally when 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo passed a ball that was intercepted by a Lions defender. With the turnover it nearly derailed a faltering lead that once was 17 points in the fourth quarter at Levi’s Stadium.

The 49ers caught a break when a penalty flag was thrown against the Lions for a holding call on offensive back Quandre Diggs. That called back a return on Garoppolo’s pass from the Lions safety Tracy Walker who ran the interception for 37 yards and ironically was tackled by Garoppolo which would have spotted the ball on the seven yard line and the 49ers barely holding onto a three-point lead 30-27.

David Zizmor does the 49ers podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com