That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: AL West: Two different worlds; What do the A’s need?

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @biggamerings

By: Amaury Pi Gonzalez

The American League West now has the World Champion Houston Astros, we can see why the Astros are in outer space and the other four teams are on planet earth. Standings below are enough and clear for anybody to understand.

1 – Houston 101-61 .623 —

2 – Los Angeles 80-82 .494 -21

3 – Seattle 78-84 .481 -23

4 – Texas 78-84 .481 -23

5 – Oakland 75-87 .463 -26

It we took the champion Astros out, it would have been a great race. Four teams separated by five games in the lost column. But we cannot do that. The Astros came to live with us here in the West back in 2013, after 51 years as a member of the National League winning nothing in the NL. Since they moved to the AL West, Houston have won two pennants and a World Series.

While the Astros still basking in their impressive 2017 championship season, the other four teams are involved in a dog race to see who can improve the most. We know the Astros have a team already that could easily win again in 2018 and be competitive for a long time. I hate to use the word ‘dynasty ‘because these days with free agency it is not something that anybody could predict. If not, ask the Giants.

What do the Athletics need?
The last three seasons the Athletics have owned the cellar. Ending in last place this year with 75-87, last place in 2016 with 69-83, and again in last place in 2015 with 68-94. Back in 2014 the A’s had a respectable 88-74 season, and finished in second place, 10 games behind the division leaders Angels.

The A’s have a very good nucleus of young talented position players: Healy, Olson, Chapman, Pinder, Powell, and guys that have been there in the past like Marcus Semien and veteran Jed Lowrie, who is returning. Their infield seems to be set (not to make any comparisons, but the Astros strength is also in their infield with Bregman-Correa-Altuve and Gurriel). The outfield is quite another story. Let’s assume that Khris Davis (arbitration eligible) is coming back, then we need a regular center fielder, is it Powell? Matt Joyce who had a very good season (.243 25 HR 68 RBI) on his first of a two year contract with the team, could be the Opening Day right fielder. It could take until Spring Training to see who of these guys figure in the mix: Brugman, Nunez, Canha, Smolinski, or some other outfielder coming from someplace else, not in the A’s organization.

Their weakness seems to be in the bullpen and the inconsistency of their starters. For starters, I believe they could use a veteran like Vallejo-native CC Sabathia. If the Yankees do not retain him, he is a free agent. Hope is, that the A’s do keep their young group of players because that is their future. A veteran hurler like Sabathia would compliment their young starters, like Graveman, Cotton, and others. It could be the same effect as when Bartolo Colon was with the team next to a young Sonny Gray. Remember?

I do not expect the A’s to be very active this off-season, but I could be surprised. Healy is one guy that could be gone, as much as I hate to see that, I can understand it, since they have very good young infielders, and I forgot to mention Franklin Barreto is just 22 years old, he had a taste of major league baseball this season. Barreto is a nice kid; hard-working, when I spoke with him this year, he comported himself like a veteran. The A’s will not be favorites in this division next season, but they might make it very interesting, especially if their young talent continues to improve.

As I had said during the. year, the best news for the A’s this year, is that under the leadership of team president David Kaval, the team is now in a very good position to build a new park in Oakland. People that have lived here (Bay Area) for a long time, know very well that building a new sports facility is not something that happens easily. This is not Cincinnati, Kansas City. Atlanta or Texas. Therefore, you need strong leadership and from the first time I met Mr. Kaval personally during the A’s Fanfest prior to the starting of the 2017 season at Jack London Square. I saw his passion and dedication to make this happen. And I believe he will make it happen.

However, and as much as I like the Lake Merritt location, something still tells me that at the end of it all. The A’s might build their new place right at the same place where they have been playing since 1968. At the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. I believe that is the best location, most accessible, and although there is nothing around it, the land is there and they can build around the park.

Next season, the Athletics will celebrate their 50th season at Oakland.

San Jose Sharks Podcast with Len Shapiro: Heed big factor in last two Sharks wins; SJ tries for five straight against Tampa Wed night

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

AP File Photo: Nashville Predators’ Frederick Gaudreau, left, is defended by San Jose Sharks’ Tim Heed (72) during the third period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2017, in San Jose , Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

On the Sharks Podcast with Len Shapiro:

1 The Sharks extended their win streak to four straight with a 2-1 win over the Ducks last Saturday night at SAP

2 The Ducks Corey Perry scored in the first period for Anaheim and Joel Ward scored in the third period for San Jose to tie it up 1-1 and in the shootout Joonas Donskoi broke the deadlock

3 For San Jose goalie Martin Jones stopped 25 shots and the Ducks Ryan Miller stopped 44

4 How much pressure is it without Marc Edouard Vlasic and Paul Martin in the line up on younger players Joakim Ryan, Tim Heed, and Dylan DeMelo

5 The Sharks get ready for Tampa Bay on Wednesday night at SAP Len talks about how this one will come out

Len Shapiro does the Sharks podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com each week

 

 

 

Cal Bears Football Podcast with Morris Phillips: Looney says Cal needs to win next two games to improve bowl chances

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

AP File Photo: Washington quarterback Jake Browning passes as Jesse Sosebee, left, pushes back California’s James Looney in the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

On the Cal Bears Podcast with Morris:

1 Saturday was satisfying 37-23 for the Cal Bears their first win in the last three games it had to be relieving for Cal head coach Justin Wilcox

2 Cal’s James Looney defensive end was saying after the game that in the net two games Cal has to get the next game against Stanford get the axe and win against UCLA on the last regular game of the season

3 Any disadvantages of playing the two games on the road

4 At 5-5 how do you see Cal ‘s bowl chances

5 Cal quarterback Ross Bowers threw 24-30 for 259 yards and two touchdowns had a good game against the Oregon State Beavers

Barracuda Left Winger Rudolfs Balcers – Profile

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo: sjbarracuda.com

By Alexandra Evans

SAN JOSE—Would you believe that Rudolfs Balcers, who is remarkably slick and speedy on the ice, once hated hockey? This answer camer as a shocker.

A first-generation hockey player (on both sides of his family), the 20 year-old Liepaja, Latvia native commenced his career at age 3 ½. It was at this age that Balcers, whose then-teammates were older, dreaded lacing up his skates and stepping on the ice.

“If I didn’t see my mom or dad in the stands, I would cry,” Balcers shared. Thankfully, it was only a few days later that he acclimated to the hockey surroundings and began picking things up.

Balcers went on to play in Norway for the Stavanger Oilers, where he was the youngest player. In 38 career games with the team, he put up 22 points (eight goals and 14 assists) and a plus-15 rating, and also helped lead them to a championship win two years in a row.

The 5 foot 11 inch, 175 pound left winger kicked things into overdrive when he joined the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL in 2016-17. In a single season, he appeared in 66 games and put up 77 points (37 goals and 40 assists) and a plus-26 rating.

The speedy and well-coordinated (in regards to hand-eye movement) Balcers was drafted 142nd overall in 2015 by San Jose, the fourth Latvian player in history to be selected by the franchise, one of whom, Karlis Custke, was selected 130th overall the same year. Balcers signed an entry-level deal with the Sharks in July.

Balcers wasn’t an avid supporter of any single hockey team growing up, though he followed the Sharks as, when he was growing up, the first two Latvian players to be drafted by San Jose’s franchise were active on the ice (Sandis Ozolinsh was drafted in 1991, Victor Ignatje in 1992).

“Being here [in San Jose] and representing Latvia is a big deal,” Balcers responded when I asked him what it means to be a member of San Jose’s franchise. He spent a majority of the preseason training with the Sharks players, which seemed to have benefitted him.

“That was a fun time, getting to see what they do. I learned some stuff, got sent down here [to the Barracuda]. My goal was to make the team here, just try to do my best to stay with the Barracuda, and show them that I can play,” Balcers remarked.

Off the ice, Balcers has enjoyed exploring the South Bay and San Francisco, while relishing the idyllic, snow-free California weather.

Barracuda Outshines Stars 6-1, Sorensen Gets A Hat Trick, Labanc Returns

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Alexandra Evans

SAN JOSE — The Barracuda have returned to San Jose from their road trip to the Midwest, Texas, and Southern California (a trip that came with three consecutive losses) to face the Texas Stars yet again. The Stars overthrew them 3-2 in a shootout last Saturday, October 28. Tonight, the Cuda refused to be outshined again and crushed them 6-1.

Roster update: Kevin Labanc was reassigned to the Barracuda from the Sharks today. In 13 games with the Sharks this season, he has posted three goals and four assists for seven points, along with a minus-3 rating and 10 penalty minutes.

The force was strong in the first period, and I am not just saying that because the previous night (November 4th’s match against the Anaheim Ducks) was Star Wars night for the Sharks! Marcus Sorensen scored two goals less than three minutes apart, the first one on the power play (Ludwig Bystrom scored the Stars’ first goal of the game 59 seconds before Sorensen’s second goal, on the power play). Nearing the end of the period, at 17:19, Filip Sandberg scored after being handed the puck by Rudolfs Balcers, who received the pass from Brandon Mashinter. In some of the earlier games this season, the Cuda had put up numerous penalties in a single period alone. There were only two in the first tonight.

The second period remained rather quiet, and ended scoreless. Following the first intermission, the boys stepped on the ice looking confident, as they should after a killer first period. Three goals in one period alone is something the Cuda had yet to accomplish prior to tonight’s match.

Five minutes into the third period, the Cuda has 25 shots on goal. Adam Helewka and Julius Bergman each fired the puck at the net within a few minutes of one another, hitting the rim and bouncing back after each player’s attempt. Then, almost eight minutes in, Sorensen notched a hat trick, assisted by Danny O’Regan and Labanc. Approximately three minutes later, Cavan Fitzgerald scored his first goal of the season, making the score 5-1. Oliver Archambault (who was recently recalled from the Allen Americans of the ECHL) wanted in on the action, and scored (his first goal as well) at the 18:44 mark. The final score was 6-1.

Sorensen, who played on the offensive line with O’Regan and Labanc (as he had last year), spoke with the media about his hat trick following the match. This was his first time scoring since opening night.

“It’s huge to be part of the offensive [line], especially on a power play. You need to help the team,” he said.

“[Sorensen] has always had potential, he just found the back of the net, which made an easy night. It was awesome to watch,” Coach Roy Sommer said.

Labanc also spoke about his reassignment to the Cuda. It came as a shocker for some, but his A-game is as strong as always.

“It was definitely fun [playing with the Sharks]. You want to come with the right attitude, you don’t want to think you’re sent down, you just have to be motivated to get back up, and be a good leader for all of the young guys, show them what it takes to play up there [in the NHL]. Work hard, work everyday.

“I learn from Jumbo [Joe Thornton], he’s always working. No matter what or where I play, you’ve got to have that work ethic, that’s what will make you a good hockey player. I’m down here [with the Cuda], so I’m going to work and just do the best that I can.

“Just because you get sent down, don’t be sorry for yourself. Instead, make a statement. Let them know you’re going to play hard no matter what…don’t waste a day,” Labanc shared.

Labanc, who enjoyed reconnecting with last year’s teammates, also discussed the smooth flow between him, Sorensen, and O’Regan.

“I knew I was playing with Marcus and Danny beforehand, so I knew we had chemistry. You just do what you can, play hard, and goals will come,” he said.

I also spoke with Helewka, Archambault, and Fitzgerald on their overall thoughts and feelings about tonight’s big win.

“The talk in the room before the game was ‘it’s a must-win for our confidence.’ We played like that, it showed, and we had success because of it,” Helewka said.

Helewka’s hand-eye coordination has really stood out to me so far this season; he truly knows where the net is, he knows where to send the puck in order to get it into the net, and how to find the “holes” around the net minder. He has been the king of assists thus far.

“I’ve always kind of worked on [my hand-eye coordination], so I guess it might be progressing this year,” Helewka told me after I brought the subject up with him.

Archambault and Fitzgerald scored their first goals of the season in tonight’s match, Archambault’s being his first in the AHL.

“It’s fun to get the first one out of the way, a good pass by my teammates [Tim Clifton and Radim Simek], so I was happy,” Archambault said.

“We had a lot of confidence in everyone tonight, in all three zones we felt good,” Fitzgerald said. “It was a big bounce-back game for us. We knew we needed to come back… it’s good to get that first win [since returning to San Jose] out of the way.”

Lynch leads the Raiders to victory in return 27-24

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Oakland Raiders players dance on the field, during the second half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins, Sunday, Nov. 5, 2017, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

By Jeremy Kahn

After missing a game due to a suspension, Marshawn Lynch helped lead the Oakland Raiders back into the win column.

Lynch carried the ball 14 times for 57 times and two touchdowns, including a season-long 22-yard run and the Raiders defeated the Miami Dolphins 27-24 at Hard Rock Stadium.

The veteran also added a late touchdown to give the Raiders their final points of the game, but the Dolphins would not go down with a fight, as they scored with 1:32 remaining and were able to successfully make the two-point conversion; however, the Raiders sealed the game, as they recovered the onside kick.

This was just the second Raiders victory since they started the season 2-0, and move within one game of the .500 mark.

Derek Carr went 21-for-30 for 300 yards passing with a touchdown and an interception. Carr helped the Raiders go eight for 15 on third down, as the Raiders went 1-1 on their road trip thru Buffalo and Miami.

Carr’s lone touchdown pass was to Johnny Holton for 44 yards. It was the only catch of the evening for Holton.

Jared Cook led the Raiders with eight catches for 126 yards, while Amari Cooper caught four passes for 58 yards and Michael Crabtree caught three passes for 40 yards.

DeAndre Washington carried the ball four times for 16 yards, while Jalen Richard carried the ball five times for 14 yards.

Jay Cutler made his return to the field after missing a game with cracked ribs, and went 34-for-42 for 311 yards passing and three touchdowns passes.

Julius Thomas caught six passes for 84 yards and a touchdown, while Kenyan Drake led the Dolphins on the ground with nine carries for 69 yards.

NOTES: After their annual bye week, the Raiders return to the field on November 19, as they host the defending World Champion New England Patriots at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.

This is the second year in a row that the Raiders will host a game in the capital of Mexico, as they defeated the Houston Texans 27-20 last season on Monday Night Football.

49ers’ Still Seek First Win 20-10 loss to Arizona; Drop to 0-9

Published on by joelamiLeave a comment

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan speaks at news conference after an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Nov. 5, 2017. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By: Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA, Calif — 49ers head coach, Kyle Shanahan will have to wait at least another week before his first National Football League win. His best chance of the season came on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals.

Arizona came in off their bye week and had their way with the 49ers, winning 20-10. Drew Stanton started at quarterback for Arizona after Carson Palmer broke his arm in week seven. The extra week for Stanton seemed to be just enough, as he finished 15 of 30 for 201 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw one interception.

The Cardinals leaned heavily on Adrian Peterson, who had his best game yet since going to the desert, running for 159 yards on a career-high 37 carries.

Arizona won the game with their defensive line, as the 49ers were completely shut down offensively. The banged-up front for the Niners came back to haunt them, as C.J. Beathard was unable to do anything, getting hit a total of 16 times, including five sacks.

Even, Arizona coach, Bruce Arians was impressed by Beathard’s toughness, “that was a beat-up offensive line and God bless him. He’s tough as nails and stood in there and threw the ball because we hit him a bunch.”

When Beathard was able to throw the ball, he was inconsistent and inaccurate, completing 26 of 51 passes for 294 yards and an interception. However, he was the only 49er to find the end zone, as he used his feet to slam it in from one-yard on a read-option play in the third quarter.

The San Francisco defense kept them in the game but unfortunately, the stagnant Niners offense couldn’t do anything.

Eric Reid made a great play late in the second quarter intercepting a pass in the end zone that would have put Arizona up 21-3 before the half, but the offense stalled out after a false start penalty and a couple of incompletions.

Penalties continue to be a reoccurring issue with San Francisco, as they continue to commit penalties. On Sunday, they committed eight penalties for 53 yards, bringing their season total to 76 penalties for 516 yards.

49ers’ wide receiver, Marquise Goodwin, recognizes the problem, “it’s the same thing every week. It’s the same story. We just have to get better from that. They didn’t go out there and beat our heads in. We did it to ourselves each week.”

The difference between winning and losing usually comes in the form of penalties and with the Niners being towards the bottom of the league, it’s something the coaching staff needs to find a way to fix. After all, they are 0-9 and haven’t won a game at home since September 12th, 2016.

MLB Podcast with Daniel Dullum: Astros get the waited celebration they wanted; Cueto to stay on with Giants; Marlins option out Ichiro

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Francisco Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto works against the San Diego Padres in the second inning of a baseball game Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

On the MLB Podcast with Daniel:

1 Astros celebrate World Series victory

2 Johnny Cueto chooses not to opt out of Giants contract

3 Marlins decline 2018 option on Ichiro Suzuki

4 Jose Canseco to MLB: ‘Fire human umpires, robots are better

5 Astros’ Justin Verlander ties the knot with Kate Upton

Daniel who did the MLB podcasts for Sportstalk  all season will take over next week for the NHL Podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservivce.com

 

Categories MLB

NCAA Podcast with Daniel Dullum: Wahzoo snaps Stanford win streak at five; Playoff scenarios; USC moves up in the poll rankings over Arizona

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Ronald Jones II (25) of the USC Trojans runs the ball for a gain during a college football game between the Arizona Wildcats vs USC Trojans on November 4, 2017 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)

On the NCAA Podcast with Daniel Dullum:

1 Washington State nips Stanford

2 Crazy Saturday creates new playoff scenarios

3 No. 17 USC wins Old West shootout with No. 22 Arizona

4 No. 1 Alabama cruises past LSU

5 Florida Atlantic closing in on Conference USA title

Daniel Dullum  is doing the NCAA Football Podcast for Michelle Richardson at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Gritty Bears turn Senior Day into satisfying victory celebration 37-23

Published on by moepeaLeave a comment
AP20039770096
Nov 4 2017 – Berkeley CA, U.S.A. California running back Patrick Laird (28) game stats 33 carriers for 216 yards and 1 touchdown break away from OSU defenders down the sideline during the NCAA Football game between Oregon State Beavers and the California Golden Bears 37-23 win at California Memorial Stadium. Thurman James / CSM (Cal Sport Media via AP Images)

By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–After a satisfying Senior Day win over Oregon State at Memorial Stadium, James Looney made his and his teammates’ intentions clear. The Bears have some unfinished business in their remaining games.

“We gotta get one more, get to bowling. We want to get two more, get the Axe for sure,” Looney said with teammate Raymond Davison III joining him in the postgame presser and giving his tacit approval of Looney’s bold statement.

One year after allowing 40 points per game, finishing 5-7, and enduring an oddly timed coaching change, the Bears have bold intentions to post a winning record in the face of prognosticators that felt Cal was capable of winning just two games in 2017.

Instead the Bears are 5-5 leading into their final two contests at Stanford and at UCLA, two opponents that lost this weekend while the Bears picked up a critical 37-23 win over OSU. A bye week comes first, a coveted break ahead of Cal trying to break a six-game losing streak to rival Stanford.

“It’s great to be in a position to earn ourselves another game,”  said quarterback Ross Bowers, who led Cal with 24 of 30 passing for 259 yards and two touchdowns. “This bye week is going to be huge for us. We can get in the mindset that ‘it’s just a bye week,’ but we have to get significantly better in whatever the little things are and then get ready for our next game.”

On Saturday, the Bears showed the persistence against OSU that was clearly lacking in the previous week’s disappointing loss at Colorado.  After the Beavers struck first with an option pass play to Ryan Nall for a touchdown less than four minutes in, Cal responded with consecutive scoring drives for a 17-7, second quarter lead, and then a 20-13, halftime advantage.

As have all of Cal victims this season, Oregon State got a heavy dose of running back Patrick Laird, who finished with 214 yards rushing on 33 carries. Laird’s big day served as the perfect counterpoint to Nall’s 224-yard rushing performance last season in the Bears’ most disappointing loss of 2016. Nall, OSU’s talented, big back had never surpassed 200 yards in a game before or after his breakout against Cal, that featured a trio of big, back breaking runs. This time, the improved Bears’ defense held Nall to 89 yards rushing and receiving combined, and limited his big plays to the 26-yard touchdown that gave OSU their only lead.

“We were going to be committed to stopping the run and we played a lot of heavy-run fronts,” Coach Justin Wilcox said of his team’s approach to stopping Nall. “He [Ryan Nall] hit some runs and he is going to earn some.”

Meanwhile, Laird was merely consistent, handling the ball on a career-high 33 carries along with six pass receptions, none of which went for more than 20 yards. Laird kept the chains moving on a day in which the Bears had 10 possessions, none of which concluded with a punt.

The Bears scored on three consecutive possessions again in the second half, extending their lead to 37-20 with 10:30 remaining.