San Francisco Giants second baseman Luis Arraez throws to second base for the first out in the bottom of the second inning to retire Salvador Perez at Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City on Wed Jun 22, 2026 (AP News photo)
By Barbara Mason
If you love the nuances of the pitching game, the opening innings of game three between the San Francisco Giants (42-60) and the Kansas City Royals (43-60) was definitely your cup of tea.
Through the first five innings of this game three it was a good old-fashioned pitchers duel with Giants starting pitcher Landen Roupp and the Royals starter Seth Lugo putting up some brilliant work. Each team had a single hit through five innings. The Royals just get by the Giants for the three game sweep in a Wednesday 5-4 win.
GAME RECAP
The first five innings show-cased some excellent pitching from both starters. Landen Roupp for the Giants and for the Royals Seth Lugo were both amazing. Each pitcher had only given up one hit apiece.
The Giants finally broke through in the top of the sixth inning and they did it without a single hit. Willy Adames crossed home plate for the first run of the game. He had walked to open the inning. Drew Gilbert was hit by a pitch giving the Giants two runners on base. A sacrifice from Luis Arraez gave Adames the first run and the first lead of the day 1-0.
Going into the top of the seventh inning there had been a total of three combined hits for the two teams. Both pitchers had done a great job keeping the offenses in check until San Francisco got an impressive rally going with two outs in the inning.
Rafael Devers got the rally underway walking. Jung Hoo Lee came through big-time hitting a triple and Devers scored giving San Francisco a 2-0 lead. Willy Adames followed with a double that drove Lee home, the lead now 3-0 in favor of the Giants. Going into the bottom of the seventh the Giants had some ample breathing room.
The Royals displayed quite a rally of their own in the bottom of the seventh inning after a dispute on second base claiming that Vinnie Pasquantino had been pushed while trying to advance to second base.
It was a downright horrible call and disrupted play for a minute. After the incident Salvador Perez hit a 2-run homer and in a flash San Francisco was looking at a 3-2 lead. A pitching change for the Giants took place with Sam Hentges relieving Roupp.
Unfortunately Hentges gave up a couple of singles and the Royals had runners on first and third with only one out. Again a pitching change for the Giants and Keaton Winn relieved Hentge.
Winn allowed a run; Michael Massey scored when Starling Marte singled and this game was tied 3-3. When it had looked so very promising for San Francisco it all came crashing down.
With two outs the Royals had the bases loaded and Lane Thomas singled driving in Nick Lofton and Marte. The 3-0 Giants lead had become a distant memory now trailing 5-3. The bottom of the seventh got underway on a sour note and ended horribly for San Francisco.
The Giants got through the eighth inning without further damage and went into the top of the ninth inning, their last chance to avoid a sweep. Heliot Ramos was the first at bat and struck out.
Rafael Devers grounded out and Casey Schmitt was the last hope for the Giants. Schmitt hit a home run and San Francisco was still breathing. It all came to an end when Jung Hoo Lee popped out and that was the ball game 5-4 in favor of the Royals sweeping San Francisco. The Giants are now 18 games under .500.
GAME NOTES
The Giants jumped out in front early showing great energy. Willy Adames provided some really nice offensive sparks in the game as did Jung Hoo Lee and Casey Schmitt. The team just could not sustain rallies still struggling with runners on base.
The bottom line is that the Giants could not turn their scoring opportunities into enough runs to win this game. San Francisco was in a tight, winnable game but the big difference was clutch hitting and late execution by Kansas City. A huge moment for the Royals was the homer off the bat of Salvador Perez for his 317th home run tying the franchise home run record.
Giants starting pitcher Landen Roupp had a stellar six innings which loosened toward the end of his outing. He was relieved by Sam Hentges in the seventh inning. Roupp had allowed four hits, two earned runs with seven strikeouts.
Hentges only lasted 1/3 of an inning allowing two hits and two earned runs. He was relieved by Keaton Winn who also allowed two hits and one earned run.
The Royals starter Seth Lugo pitched through seven innnings. He allowed three hits, three earned runs, one walk with five strikeouts. For the first six innings of the game both of these pitchers put on quite a show.
The Giants will now return home on what will no doubt be a very quiet flight. This had been an extremely tough series. They will be back on the field Friday taking on the Los Angeles Angels in a three-game series.
Probable pitchers for Friday for San Francisco will be Logan Webb. He has a 5-7 win/loss record and a 3.87 ERA. The San Francisco offense will be facing Los Angeles starter Grayson Rodriguez. His ERA is 8.23 with a 3-3 win/loss record. First pitch is scheduled for 7:15 PM at Oracle Park in San Francisco.
Washington Mystics Kiki Irafen (44) takes the ball up the floor against the Golden State Valkyrie in the second of their two game meetings on Mon Jul 20, 2026 at Chase Center in San Francisco (AP News photo)
Golden State Valkyrie podcast Michael Roberson:
#1 The Washington Mystics on Monday night got lots of help in their second meeting with the Golden State Valkyrie at Chase Center. Kiki Iriafen scored 23 points with 12 rebounds and Shakira Austin scored 15 points with 15 rebounds for a 90-82 win to snap the Valkyries nine game win streak.
#2 The Mystics down 80-73 with just 3:32 left and closed the game off with a 17-2 run. Iriafen hit a jump shot to help Washington take the lead 1:41.
#3 The Valkyries Kaitlyn Chen scored 20 points with six assists and hit a three pointer in the fourth quarter to lead the Valkyrie in scoring. Chen also assisted on Kiah Stokes three pointer but the Valkyrie later faltered later in the game and couldn’t hold on.
#4 The Valkyries Veronica Burton scored 12 points and had seven assists with Kayla Thornton scoring 15 points. The Mystics and Valkyrie split their two games series with the Valkyrie winning on Saturday and the Mystics winning on Monday night.
#5 The Valkyrie face the Phoenix Mercury on Wed Jul 29th at the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix for a 7:00pm PDT tip off. The Valkyrie third place in the Western Conference 19-8 and the Mercury 13th in the Western Conference are 9-18 how do you see this match up?
Wilson’s Blast Buys Extra Time but Vargas Cashes In As D-Backs edge A’s in 10 innings 6-5
Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Idemaro Vargas turns a double play while avoiding the sliding Sacramento A’s Tyler Soderstrom (21) on a ball hit by the A’s Jonah Heim in the top of the third at Chase Field in Phoenix Tue Jul 22, 2026 (AP News photo)
By Mauricio Segura
Digging out of an early hole, the A’s finally reached level ground with two outs in the ninth, and even moved ahead in the tenth. One final answer from Arizona turned the comeback into a 6-5 loss when Ildemaro Vargas singled home Gabriel Moreno for the winning run.
Jack Perkins had barely settled on the mound when Arizona built a 3-0 lead. Ketel Marte drew a leadoff walk, Moreno singled with two outs, and Max Kepler drove a three-run homer to right-center. The opening inning had already been Perkins’ biggest trouble spot as a starter, with ten of his previous 24 runs allowed occurring in the first. Perkins recovered from there,allowing no more runs over his next four innings and giving the A’s enough time to work their way back.
That work began in the third. Lawrence Butler sent a grounder through the middle and raced to third for a triple, then scored when Alika Williams singled to right. Jacob Wilson was hit by a pitch and Tyler Soderstrom drew a walk, loading the bases with nobody out. It was the first major turning point, and Arizona starter Kohl Drake escaped it. Shea Langeliers lined to shortstop, and Jonah Heim grounded into a double play that held the score at 3-1.
Drake, making his major-league debut, limited the Athletics to that single run across five innings. Tommy White produced one of the few other threats with a fourth-inning single, one game after becoming the third player in Athletics history to record four hits within his first three major-league games.
Arizona added breathing room in the seventh without a hit. Geoff Hartlieb issued consecutive walks to Vargas and Jorge Barrosa, then threw a wild pitch that moved both runners. Marte followed with a sacrifice fly, scoring Vargas for a 4-1 lead.
The Athletics answered in the eighth when Langeliers drove Ryan Thompson’s pitch over the wall in left-center. It was his 23rd homer of the season, continuing another power-heavy year for the All-Star catcher. Heim and White followed with singles, putting the tying runs aboard, but Jeff McNeil grounded into an inning-ending double play.
The ninth began quietly and nearly ended the same way. Paul Sewald retired Carlos Cortes and Butler, leaving the Athletics one out from defeat. Donovan Walton then lined a triple to center, and Wilson followed with a two-run homer to left that tied the game at 4-4. Wilson entered the game riding an eight-game hitting streak and carrying the third-longest errorless streak by a shortstop in major-league history. One swing had rescued the Athletics from the edge.
Soderstrom began the tenth at second and moved to third on Langeliers’ groundout. Heim lifted a sacrifice fly to center, giving the A’s their first lead at 5-4. Late production has been a regular part of Heim’s season, with 18 of his first 30 RBIs recorded in the seventh inning or later.
The lead did not survive the bottom half. Luis Medina inherited Corbin Carroll at second, then issued walks to Moreno and Kepler. Nolan Arenado singled to center to score Carroll and tie the game, keeping the bases loaded. Medina struck out Tim Tawa, but Vargas followed with a ground-ball single to left that brought Moreno home and ended it.
The Athletics had several reasons to admire the fight, especially after falling behind by three runs before recording a hit. They also had two painful missed chances: the bases-loaded opportunity with nobody out in the third and the two-on threat in the eighth. Those moments separated a stirring comeback victory from a defeat that took ten innings to settle.
The series finale will send rookie left-hander Gage Jump (3-5, 3.78 ERA, 56 strikeouts) against veteran right-hander Merrill Kelly (7-8, 5.20 ERA, 62 strikeouts), with first pitch set for 12:40 p.m. Pacific and a rubber game waiting to be claimed.
Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.
Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.
⚡Craft cocktails? Check. 🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah. 🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.
Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.
Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.
📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street
Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm
Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.
Former San Francisco Giant Jeff Kent beat out former teammate and outfielder Barry Bonds to be inducted into the Cooperstown Hall of Fame (AP file photo)
Jeff Kent to the Hall of Fame before Barry Bonds
That’s Amaury News and Commentary
By Amaury Pi-González
Who in their right mind, who followed baseball when Kent and Bonds were playing together on the Giants teams from 1997 to 2002, would have predicted that Jeff Kent would be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, before Barry Bonds?
We can all come to our own conclusion. Bonds, who hit an incredible 762 home runs, the #1 all-time, and has all the accolades possible for a baseball player’s career, has not been inducted into the most famous Hall of Fame in sports in the United States.
At the ceremony in Cooperstown this July 26, there will be a record 61 Hall of Fame players in attendance to see Jeff Kent, Carlos Beltrán, and Andruw Jones inducted (Class of 2026). Jeff Kent will be inducted with a San Francisco Giants jersey.
I was broadcasting the Giants games during the years Kent and Bonds were playing with the Giants. Kent played for the Giants from 1997-2002; he also played for the Blue Jays, Mets, Astros, and Dodgers, while Bonds, who played for the Pirates for the first seven years, became a Giant in 1993 and played with the team until 2007.
The majority of the headlines during their careers were about Barry Bonds, and obviously his accomplishments are in a class by themselves. Jeff Kent also had a great career, and he will be remembered as a Hall of Fame player from 2026 until the rest of his life.
Jeff Kent’s career spanned 17 years, and he played for seven different teams. He ended with a .290 batting average, 377 home runs, and 1,519 runs batted in. Won the National League MVP in 2000 with the Giants and was selected to five (5) All-Star Games. Main position: Second base (the all-time leader in home runs for the position).
Maybe it was a clash of egos, but Kent and Bonds did not like each other, even though the Giants were a winning team and, on the field together, both were a dynamic offensive duo; a great majority of the runs scored by the Giants were because of Bonds and Kent; they were the big producers of the Giants’ offensive attack.
But it is a simple fact: their relationship even led to a physical dugout altercation, howevr both were great players deserving of the Hall of Fame. Barry Bonds spent 10years on the Baseball Writers’ Association of America ballot, peaking at 66% of the vote in 2022 (falling short of the required 75%). Continues to be considered by the Hall’s Era Committees, such as the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee.
This Sunday, July 26, will be a day of celebration for the three new members of the Hall of Fame, Beltrán, Jones, and Kent. May they enjoy it with their families in good health.
Quote: You should always go to other people’s funerals; otherwise, they won’t come to yours. -Yogi Berra.
Amaury Pi-Gonzalez – Cuban-born Pi-González is one of the pioneers of Spanish-language baseball play-by-play in America. Began as Oakland A’s Spanish-language voice in 1977 ending in 2024 (interrupted by stops with the Giants, Mariners and Angels). Voice of the Golden State Warriors from 1992 through 1998. 2010 inducted in the Bay Area Radio Hall of fame.
San Francisco Giants pitcher Sam Hertges throws to the Kansas City Royals line up in the bottom of the sixth inning at Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City on Tue Jul 21, 2026 (AP News photo)
By Barbara Mason
It was another disappointing game for the San Francisco Giants (42-59) dropping game two to the Kansas City Royals (42-60) by the score of 3-2. In Tuesday night’s game the Giants did take a 2-1 lead in the fifth inning that was short-lived.
Jesus Rodguiez and Drew Gilbert both scored in the inning but the Giants would not score again for the rest of the game. The Royals would score a couple of runs in the sixth inning taking back the lead 3-2 which would be the final. The Royals finished with eight hits, the Giants five hits. San Francisco had their opportunities but failed to capitalize on them unable to produce timely hits and leaving runners stranded.
GAME RECAP
The two opening innings were for the most part three and outs for both teams with a single here or a walk there. It had so far been a pitchers duel until this game went into the bottom of the third inning. The Royals took the first lead of the game in the third when Carter Jensen hit a solo home run giving Kansas City a 1-0 lead.
The Giants would tie up the game in the top of the fifth inning. Jesus Rodriguez doubled and Drew Gilbert singled him home and this game was tied at one apiece. San Francisco would take the lead when Drew Gilbert scored on an error for a 2-1 tally. As the inning came to an end the Giants would count on their pitchers to keep the Royals off the board.
Going into the bottom of the sixth inning tha score had remained 2-1 in favor of the Giants. That was about to change. San Francisco would go through three pitchers in the inning. Starting pitcher Mahle walked a runner and hit a batter to start the inning.
He was relieved by Sam Hentges who did much the same, walking the first batter he faced and hitting the next at bat. He was relieved by Keaton Winn who got out of the inning. The damage had been with Salvador Perez and Isaac Collins both scoring giving the Royals a 3-2 lead that persisted to the final San Francisco out.
GAME NOTES
What went so wrong for the Giants in the second game of the series? It looked very much like game one with the same deficiencies. The Royals on the other hand made the key plays when they needed them most. Avila kept the Giants offense under control for most of the game allowing only a couple of runs and preventing any big innings.
Kansas City built a lead with timely hitting which included the first run of the game a solo home run by Carter Jensen. RBI hits put a lot of pressure on Giants starter Tyler Mahle. San Francisco had opportunities but didn’t string together enough hits until late. They played from behind for much of the night..
Luinder Avila outpitched Tyler Mahle. He allowed just the two runs over 6 1/2 innings striking out seven which gave Kansas City a strong start. The Giants offense managed only five hits and couldn’t score after the fifth inning despite having a few chances late. The Royals bullpen finished the job. The Kansas City relievers protected the one-run lead with Alex Lange earning the save.
Wednesday the Giants will be looking to avoid a sweep in game three. The Giants will send Landen Roupp to the mound with a 7-8 win/loss record and a 3.98 ERA. The Royals plan on starting Seth Lugo. He has a 3-6 win/loss record and a 4.39 ERA. First pitch for this game is scheduled for 11:10 AM.
The Oakland Banners suffered their fourth straight loss on Jul 17, 2026 (Oakland Ballers photo)
Oakland Ballers Weekly Report Mon Jul 20, 2026
By Lewis Rubman
Monday, July 20, 2026
By Lewis Rubman
OAKLAND–The Oakland Ballers finished the first half of the 2026 Pioneer Baseball League on a high note, tying the Yolo-Sutter Freebirds in a stirring, come from behind finish to force a Knock Out Round that the B’s won, 4-3. The excitement of the game was, however, marred by the tone deaf attempt of the team’s management to shorten the contest by two innings.
Oakland could feel good about its four game winning streak, although that being its longest of the year was a sobering fact. Nonetheless, spirits were high as the B’s headed south to Long Beach. And go south was what they did.
The first encounter of the three game series in Long Beach took place on Bastille Day, Tuesday, July 14. The Ballers looked sharp for the first three innings and sharper still after five and a half, when they were ahead of the league leading Coast, 4-1.
But then that old Ballers nemesis, failure to execute, returned to the scene. Charlie Hurley, their starting pitcher, surrendered back to back walks, the first to Patrick Roche on a full count and the second to Cooper Vest on four pitches. Matthew Bardowell smacked a grounder to Jake Allgeyer, who whipped a throw to Nick Leehey, whose relay to Jeter Ybarra at first beat Bardowell to the bag for what looked like a rally killing around the horn double play.
But it was not to be; Leehy, it seemed, hadn’t touched second base, and, instead of two outs and empty bases, Hurley had to face Cuba Bess with runners on the corners and only one away. Bess drove Roche home with a ground out to first that also moved Vest over to third. Jacob Jablonsky’s single to right plated Vest before Emilio Corona’s homer to center crowned the Coastal rally to give the hosts a 9-4 lead.
That was it for Hurley; Valek Cisneros relieved him. It was only fitting that the first Long Beach batter he faced, Anthony Mata, reached base on an error by Leehey, who had not been charged with one earlier in the frame. After all, when keeping score you can’t anticipate a double play.
There were a few changes to the Ballers’ roster that day, not that you would have noticed it if you checked their or the league’s website, or even if you googled the Ballers’ transactions. Most notable was that Ahmad Harajjli, the player to be named later in the deal that sent C.J. Blowers to the Florence Y’Alls of the Frontier League, arrived and managed to give up two runs on three hits, two walks, and a wild pitch in the bottom of the eighth. He faced eight batters.
The Ballers now show him in the roster, but when I clicked the link to get details about his record, the numbers were inconsistent with a recent arrival. I hope this will have been corrected by the time you read this. Harajilili had the excuse that he had taken an early morning, delayed departure flight from Kentucky. Other new acquisitions now on the roster but with inconsistencies in the details provided for them are Demias Jimerson, Reed Butz, and Austin Ballentine.
The line score looked like this:
Oakland Ballers (22-27) 000 022 000 4 10 1
Long Beach Coast (38-11) 001 004 52x 12 12 1
Winning pitcher: Jack Martin (5-0) Losing pitcher: Charlie Hurlley (1-4)
Time: 2:58 Attendance: 2,184
The Ballers returned to Blair Field the next day, Wednesday July 15, and once more blew a lead, only this time they hadn’t needed come back from a deficit to gain it..
The Ballers owed their brief advantage to Jaden Collura’s two run double off the Coast’s starting and eventually winning pitcher, the franchise player and manager’s son Cole Percival, in the top of the third, following walks to Esai Santos and Jake Allgeyer.
The B’s starter, Hunter Day, had been sharp in his first three innings of work. He issued a free pass to the first batter he faced, Eddy Pelc, a human walking machine, but he immediately was erased by a double play, and that was all the offence the Coast could muster until Cuba Bess’s two run double to right with two down broke the spell. Day’s terrific start became a footnote. A glance at the line score shows how rapidly Oakland, shut out after their pair of third inning runs, fell out of contention.
Oakland Ballers (22-28) 002 000 000 2 8 0
Long Beach Coast (39-11) 000 212 03x 8 10 0
Winning pitcher: Cole Percival (1-0) Losing pitcher: Hunter Day (0-2)
Save: Zach Voelker (10)
Time: 2:48 Attendance: 727
Voelker’s save made him the first PBL pitcher to reach double digits in that category this season
It was the Ballers’ seventh consecutive loss to the Coast.
Miles’ Militia needed to win the closing set-to of the series on Thursday the 16th if they were to get their first victory of the second half and avoid being swept away by a Coastal tidal wave. As you can see, they didn’t succeed.
Oakland Ballers (22-29) 010 332 000 9 13 1
Long Beach Coast (40-11) 004 230 03x 12 11 1
Winning pitcher: Gary Grosjean (3-1) Losing pitcher: Matthew Maloney (1-2) Save:
Zach Voelker (11)
Time: 3:55 Attendance: 717
The top of the fourth brought bad news to both teams. For the Ballers it was a disaster. For the Coast it was a pebble in their spiked shoes.
After Conner Smith walked to open the inning, he was erased in the front end of Myles Bearle’s second to first double play. Then Tremayne Cobb got things started again. A player who can beat you in many ways, he got a leg single to short and then went to second when Esai Santos singled to center. With Leehey at the plate, Santos and Cobb pulled off a double steal. Immediately upon sliding into third, Cobb visibly was in extreme pain. He was helped off the field with an injured left knee. This would be a concern for any player. It’s more than that for Cobb—ignoring the human side of the question for a moment and considering only what the incident could mean in terms of wins and loses—Oakland manager Aaron Miles believes that Cobb is the best player in the league. He might be right.
Jaden Collura pinch ran for Cobb, and Nick Leehey then shot a 389 foot home run to left field to tie the score at four. That was the pebble in Long Beach’s shoe.
The Coast regained the lead in the bottom of the frame, with two runs, one of them unearned thanks to an error by Ybarra. Those tallies came off Jacob Petersheim, who lasted on a third of an inning. The more I watch Ybarra, the more I suspect that there’s a physical problem that interferes with his mobility. He’s still an asset to the team; it would be difficult for the league’s leading home run hitter not to be.
I can’t give Petersheim anything but the benefit of the doubt. He might have impressive metrics like spin rate—I don’t know about that; and I don’t know how interpret data like that—but his more traditional numbers make me wonder—and I write this with a mixture of criticism and curiosity—why the Ballers ever offered him a contract. His college record over four years was 10-10-4 , 6.82. with an average of 9.4 runs scored against him every nine innings. His record with the Ballers as I write this is 0-1-0, 8.10, with 10.8 opponents’ runs per nine innings.
The Ballers showed the grit that had characterized them in their glorious season of 2025 .They scored a three runs in the fifth on RBI singles by Brendan O’Sullivan and Conner Smith and a bases loaded walk to Leehey to give them a short lived 7-6 advantage that was wiped out in the bottom half of the frame by Patrick Roche, Jr.’s single to center with Walking Eddy Pelc on board. Cuba Bess followed that up with a two run four bagger to right. Oakland fought back with a run producing single to right by Paul Winfield that plated O’Sullivan and a sac fly by Myles Beale that brought inWinfield, who had advanced to third, with the Ballers’ last hurrah.
Many fans know that Willie Mays never considered The Catch his best defensive play. What he took most pride in was the throw he made from the Polo Grounds’ center field vastness was that, although Larry Doby was able to advance to third on the play, he had to hold up there and couldn’t score what would have been the tying run. Jaylen Edmonds , pinch running for Matthew Bardowell, was able to score from second Cooper Vest’s sacrifice fly to right.
In addition to the pitchers I’ve already mentioned, Oakland used Jake Villar, Valek Cisneros, Matthew Maloney, who was charged with the loss, and Langston Burkett. Cisneros was the only one who was effective, allowing just a walk and a hit batter over three full innings. The Ballers tried twice to appeal the play, but the umpires refused to approve the appeal. Since the call was a matter of judgement and not one of interpretation, Oakland couldn’t play the game under protest.
It was all over but the shouting. The Ballers went down one, two, three in the top of the ninth and then boarded the team bus for the six hour drive to Oakland. It was not the best preparation they could have made for the next evening’s scheduled 6:35 start against their nemesis from the north, the Modesto Roadsters.
When the Baller followers arrived at Raimondi Park for that game on the seventeenth, the baseball question that was troubling many of them concerned the state of Tremayne Cobb’s knee. The reports that I got from the players I spoke with were that he was in good spirits but that the club wasn’t counting on their spark plug shortstop to see action before next week.
It took Modesto four batters to put Oakland behind by three runs; clean up hitter Osiris Johnson’s full count homer over the low left field fence with Lucas Terilli and Jacob Lojewski on base took care of that. Modesto had to wait for their number four batter to do the job because their offense had stalled when their number three bat, Max Handron flew out to Beale at the left field wall.
The Ballers originally had announced righty Griffin Smith as their starting pitcher. However, another portsider, Aidan Risse, took the mound and the loss for the B’s.. Modesto never trailed after that, first inning onslaught although Oakland did retaliate with a pair of two run bombs, one in each of the fourth and fifth frames. The first blast came off the bat of Jeeter Ibarra, who extended his hitting streak to 18 games and his league leading home run total to 22. The second round tripper was courtesy of Jared Collura, who has been finding a new home for himself in left field while Conner Smith takes over more of the team’s catching duties. Recent acquisition Ahmded Harajlli pitched two scoreless innings before getting hammered for two runs on Max Handron’s double and Johnson’s round tripper, both to left, before he was yanked and replaced by Brock Mayer, who held visitors hitless for two frames before giving way to Brady Chávez, who also shut them down without a hit. Each of the Ballers’ mopper uppers granted the Roadsters one toll free passage to first base.
The game had started under balmy skies with the thermometer reading 81o. It, like the number and spirits of the spectators, dropped precipitously over the nearly three hours of wouldabeen, shouldabeens. There was no objective way to quantify the spirits or the number of people who stayed to the chilly end, but the temperature drop was 16 degrees.
Saturday, July 18 was Tyler Lozano Take Over Day. The B’s mainstay backstop of 2024 and ’25 one-upped Bert Campanaris and Martín Dihigo. The former had played an inning of at each position over the course of one nine inning game in 1965. The latter had played all of them and also managed over the course of a lifetime. Lozano played a different ballpark role each inning. He caught the top of the first and threw out Terilli when Modesto’s leadoff hitter tried to steal second. At bat, Lozano struck out leading off the home first. Then he went to broadcast booth and threw out rubber balls to the crowd below him. Next, he went into the stands to toss hot dogs. He coached at first base. I lost track of where he was and what he was doing after that but found the time to wonder if the Ballers had managed to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, would he have been eligible to replace the injured Tremayne Cobb as the team’s Knock Out Round representative.
This time, Griffin Smith really did start for the Ballers. He pitched well, by PBL standards, going six full innings and giving up three runs, all earned, on six hits and a walk after throwing 85 pitches.But the bullpen let him down, and Smith and the Ballers ended up on the short end of another union work day score of nine to five. This is how that developed:
Modesto Roadsters (32-21) 010 000 431 9 11 1
Oakland Ballers (22-31) 000 001 121 5 6 0
Winning pitcher: Omar Serrano (4-1) Losing pitcher: Griffin Smith (0-4)
Time:2:59 Attendance: 1,944
The next afternoon, Sunday July 19, we celebrated the achievements of the guy in the center of this photo:
Modesto also would have been a fitting venue for a celebration of The Man of Steal. He hit.345 in 134 games for the 1977 Modesto A’s of the Classs A California League. His OPS was an incredible .934, not to mention his 95 stolen bases in 117 attempts.
The ball game that followed the celebration was a horror story. Its synopsis fits in these few lines.:
Modesto Roadsters (33-21) 113 140 020 12 13 2
Oakland Ballers (22-32) 010 010 001 3 11 1
Winning pitcher: Corbin Talley (4-1) Losing pitcher: Charlie Hurley (1-5)
Time: 2:58 Attendance: 1,375
About the only bright spot for the B’s was that Ibarra was able to extend his hitting streak to 20 games. The sunny skies, complimented by a temperature that scarcely varied from the 64o it stood at when the game began, took some of the sting out of watching the Ballers’ tepid performance.
Raimondi Park has a capacity of 4,001, but Sunday’s attendance was only 1,375 in spite of the beautiful weather, the chance kids had to run the bases and get autographs after the game, and, of course, the added attraction of the homage to Rickey Henderson. The most likely explanation for this disappointing turnout was the scheduling conflict between the attractions in West Oakland and the broadcast of the World Cup final.
That is but one way in which scheduling has become a concern around 20th and Wood. Under the financially challenged Pioneer Baseball League’s new travel saving format, the Ballers will be on the road Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays and play at home Friday night, Saturday mid-afternoon, and early Sunday afternoon. Remember that six hour bus ride from Long Beach? I also heard some grousing from ballpark workers about these new arrangements.
This situation raises a really troubling question. What happens if the PBL goes out of business?
Do the Ballers go to semi-pro league like the Pecos? Do they and a few other clubs try to form a new circuit? Or do they dry up, like a raisin in the sun?
For the time being, carpe diem. The B’s will play this coming Tuesday through Thursday nights in Long Beach and then take another six hour bus ride to face the Boise Hawks at the usual three different starting times over the week-end.
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal has numerous suitors from other clubs before the baseball trade deadline will the Tigers trade him or keep him as they will need his services in the post season (AP News photo)
That’s Amury News and Commnentary podcast:
#1 How could trade deadline rumors involving Tarik Skubal impact the Detroit Tigers’ playoff hopes, and which contenders should pursue him?
#2 With injuries affecting stars Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge, which player is more critical to their team’s postseason chances?
#3 What does Max Kepler’s walk-off RBI in the Arizona Diamondbacks’ dramatic comeback over the St. Louis Cardinals say about Arizona’s resilience this season?
#4 Can Paul Skenes continue pitching at an elite level and emerge as the National League Cy Young Award favorite by season’s end?
#5 As the MLB trade deadline approaches, which player—the New York Mets Francisco Lindor, the Sacramento A’s Shea Longeliers, or another star—could become the biggest name on the trade market?
Amaury Pi-Gonzalez – Cuban-born Pi-González is one of the pioneers of Spanish-language baseball play-by-play in America. Began as Oakland A’s Spanish-language voice in 1977 ending in 2024 (interrupted by stops with the Giants, Mariners and Angels). Voice of the Golden State Warriors from 1992 through 1998. 2010 inducted in the Bay Area Radio Hall of fame.
Whether you’re pre-gaming with the Kings or celebrating an A’s win, Cyprus Grille at the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena is your downtown go-to.
⚡Craft cocktails? Check. 🔥Game-day bites? Oh yeah. 🏟️Steps from Golden 1 Center? You bet.
Open daily, Cyprus Grille is serving up local flavor with a front-row seat to the action. Stop by before or after the game—or make it your new downtown hangout.
Cyprus Grille—where fans fuel up.
📍Located inside the Holiday Inn Sacramento Downtown – Arena @ 300 J Street
Happy Hour – 4pm-6pm
Show your ticket for additional discounts when dining in.
Longtime friend and sports agent Paul Rich (left) discusses things over with LeBron James (right). LeBron has not made a decision which team he will be playing for for the 2026-27 season (Yahoo News photo)
NBA podcast David Zizmor:
#1 Dave, Paul Rich appreared on the Klutch Sports show Game Over with Max Kellerman and was asked about why the stretching out of time on LeBron James trying to make a decision where his next team will be?
#2 Rich was asked if there is anything that could be done to get a deal done and make announcement where LeBron will be going. Rich said there is no need to go above and beyond. That it’s understood and that all messages have sent out.
#3 Dave on the NBA Today show it was brought up that Miami might make the most sense for LeBron what’s your take on that part of the show would Miami make sense for LeBron?
Sacramento A’s Jeff McNiel launches a two run seventh inning pinch hit home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field in Phoenix on Mon Jul 20, 2026 (AP News photo)
McNeil’s Pinch Hit Turns the Desert Green in 5-2 A’s win
By Mauricio Segura
The Sacramento Athletics beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-2 with contributions from the entire lineup. They got a rookie’s first home run, another blast from their steady shortstop, four hits from a newcomer, a veteran’s two-run pinch single and three scoreless innings from the bullpen. The result ended an eight-game road losing streak and a run of five straight defeats in series openers.
Joshua Kuroda-Grauer provided the first jolt in the second inning. The 23-year-old drove Mitch Bratt’s pitch 416 feet to left-center for his first major-league home run, giving the A’s a 1-0 lead. He later fought through a painful foul ball off his groin and finished the plate appearance with a single before leaving with a testicular contusion.
Kuroda-Grauer entered the game tied for the most hits by an Athletic through the first 15 games of a career. His two-hit performance gave him 25 through 16 games, matching Eddie Murphy’s franchise mark from 1912. It was another impressive chapter in a start that has made the rookie one of the brightest parts of a difficult summer.
Jacob Wilson doubled the advantage in the fifth, sending a solo home run to left-center for his sixth of the season. Wilson also handled every chance at shortstop, extending his errorless streak to 100 games. Between Kuroda-Grauer and Wilson, the left side of the Athletics’ infield supplied power, defense and a glimpse of what the club hopes to build around.
Jeffrey Springs protected the 2-0 lead through five innings. Arizona’s Nolan Arenado doubled in the fifth for the 2,000th hit of his career, but Springs stranded him. The Diamondbacks finally solved the left-hander in the sixth. Jorge Barrosa opened with a double, and Ketel Marte followed with a two-run homer that tied the game. Geraldo Perdomo added a bunt single, prompting Mark Kotsay to turn to Luis Medina.
The Athletics had already missed a major scoring chance in the top of the sixth. Tommy White and Alika Williams reached, Henry Bolte moved them over with a sacrifice bunt, but Perdomo threw White out at home on Wilson’s grounder. That wasted opportunity could have hung over the game. Instead, the A’s answered one inning later.
Shea Langeliers and Lawrence Butler began the seventh with singles against Kevin Ginkel. After Donovan Walton popped up a bunt and Jonah Heim struck out, White hit a ground ball back toward the mound. He was initially ruled out, which would have ended the inning, but a replay challenge overturned the call and loaded the bases.
That brought Jeff McNeil off the bench. He entered just 1-for-8 as a pinch hitter, while the Athletics’ pinch hitters had managed only one hit in their previous 23 at-bats. McNeil changed the math with one swing, lining a single to center that scored Langeliers and Butler for a 4-2 lead. He then stole second, and White scored on Ginkel’s wild pitch to make it 5-2.
White finished 4-for-5 in only his fourth major-league game, giving the Athletics a steady stream of traffic from the seventh spot. The A’s collected 15 hits, including 13 singles, and did enough with them to overcome 11 runners left on base.
Medina earned the victory after stopping Arizona’s sixth-inning threat and working through the seventh. José Suarez retired the side in order in the eighth, and Hogan Harris handled a two-runner ninth for his seventh save. Harris struck out Ildemaro Vargas and Arenado before an automatic-ball-strike challenge turned Ryan Waldschmidt’s apparent ball into the final strike.
Game 2 is set for 6:40 p.m Tuesday night. Pacific, with Jack Perkins (2-5, 6.87 ERA, 72 strikeouts) starting for the Athletics; Arizona had not officially named its pitcher as of publication, though Triple-A left-hander Kohl Drake (3-5, 6.92 ERA, 60 strikeouts) was reportedly in line for his major-league debut.
Costa Rican-born Mauricio Segura has been covering sports in the Bay Area since 2001 for a variety of magazines and newspapers, as well as his own publication, Golden Bay Times.
San Francisco Giants starter Trevor McDonald pitches against the Kansas City Royals in the bottom of the first inning at Kaufman Stadium in Kansas City on Mon Jul 20, 2026 (AP News photo)
By Barbara Mason
The San Francisco Giants (42-58) rolled into Kansas City Monday after dropping a series to the Mariners over the weekend. The Royals (41-60) took a series off the San Diego Padres in their last series at home.
Both teams have struggled this season this game having all the makings of a very competitive series. San Francisco was first up on the scoreboard in the fourth inning when Heliot Ramos had a monster hit for a solo home run and a 1-0 lead.
The Royals answered with three runs taking a 3-1 lead. Salvador Perez hit a 2-run homer followed by Michael Massey scoring from third base after hitting a double. Isaac Collins singled him home for the 3-1 lead.
This game went into the top of the ninth inning and the Giants were three outs away from losing the game. Rafael Devers and Heliot Ramos both struck out. Jung Hoo Lee singled followed by Willy Adames who clobbered the ball into right center to tie up this game at three apiece.
The Royals were looking for a walk-off in the bottom of the ninth. Rojas got the inning underway with a single. When Carter Jensen lined out Rojas advanced to third and he was 90 feet away from the walk-off.
Loften reached first on a bunt single, Rojas scored and that was the ball game. San Francisco fought hard to tie up the game but fell short in the bottom of the ninth inning losing the first game of the series 4-3.
GAME RECAP
This game got underway early evening with San Francisco having to deal with some uncomfortable humid temps. At first pitch the temperature was 95 degrees. San Francisco had two runners on base leaving both Bryce Eldridge and Rafael Devers stranded.
It was unfortunate that San Francisco could not capitalize on the opportunity early. Giants starting pitcher Trevor McDonald threw an idyllic opening inning going three and out.
San Francisco went three and out in the top of the second inning but Kansas City had a huge opportunity to drive in some runs loading the bases with no outs in the bottom of the inning.
The Royals came away empty when Michael Massey flied into a double play followed by as Rojas ground out for the third out, a squandered opportunity for the Kansas City.
The third inning was another three and out for the Giants still looking for their first hit of the game. Trevor McDonald had his third walk of the game but finished the inning giving up nothing else.
San Francisco was first up on the scoreboard in the top of the fourth inning. With two outs, Heliot Ramos homered to right center, a monster hit for 430 feet giving the Giants a 1-0 lead. In the bottom of the fourth inning the Royals fought back getting a lucrative rally going.
Vinnie Pasquantino was hit by a pitch followed by a Salvador Perez home run giving the Royals a 2-1 lead with two outs. Michael Massey doubled with an Isaac Collins single driving him home for a 3-1 lead. Carter Jensen fouled out for the third out but the Royals had taken the 3-1 lead into the top of the fifth inning.
The Giants got their second hit of the game in the fifth inning but not much else going into the bottom of the inning. The Royals also got a single in the inning still leading 3-1 going into the sixth.
There would be a change on the mound for San Francisco with no medical reason given. The team has not announced that McDonald suffered an injury but it apparently was something physical. JT Brubaker would come in to relieve McDonald.
Neither team was able to get very much if any offense in the sixth inning. The Giants went three and out in the seventh inning but the Royals did get a couple of singles in the bottom of the seventh but were not able to score any more run continuing to lead 3-1.
San Francisco’s Daniel Susac doubled to start the top of the eighth inning. He advanced to third when Luis Arraez grounded out but was left stranded. The Royals went three and out and San Francisco was down to their last three outs.
Rafael Devers struck out for the first out in the ninth inning, Ramos struck out for the second out and San Francisco was one out away from losing game one. Lee singled followed by a booming shot from Willy Adames to tie up this game 3-3.
The question now would Kansas City be able to walk-off this game. The answer was not long in coming. The Royals fought back winning the game in a walk-off. Rojas had singled and advanced to third scoring on a Loftin bunt for the 4-3 win. It was a crushing loss for the Giants.
GAME NOTES
The big difference in this game was that the Royals capitalized on one bad inning while the Giants came up just short in their late comeback. San Francisco starting pitcher was cruising through the first three innings but the Royals broke through in the fourth inning.
Salvador Perez hit a two run homer and KC added another RBI single to score three runs in the inning. They had turned a 1-0 Giants lead into a 3-1 deficit. Heliot Ramos provided the San Francisco’s offense for most of the game with a solo home run in the fourth inning.
The Giants struggled to string hits together against Royals starting pitcher Michael Wacha and the Kansas City bullpen. The Giants rallied in the ninth scoring two runs but came up just short.
There was concern when McDonald left the game in the fifth inning exiting with a trainer but the exact reason is still unknown. The difference in this game was one costly inning by the Giants’ starter and not enough timely hitting. San Francisco had six hits in this game, the Royals with nine.
McDonald went four innings allowing four hits, three earned runs, two walks and three strikeouts. He exited the game going into the fifth inning with a trainer. Brubaker relieved McDonald allowing three hits, no runs, no walks and two strikeouts. The Royals starter Michael Wacha pitched through six innings allowing three hits, one earned run, one walk with five strikeouts.
Tuesday the Giants will be looking to tie up the series in game two. Tyler Mahle will take the mound for San Francisco. He has a 2-8 win/loss record and a 5.31 ERA. The Royals will start Luinder Avila. He has a 4-3 win/loss record and a 5.08 ERA. First pitch for this game is scheduled for 4:40 PM.
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