bleacherreport.com file photo: Bryce Harper’s negotiations with the Washington Nationals is not the same offer that the San Diego Padres Manny Machado received as Harper remains a free agent
On Headline Sports with Tony:
#1 The recent signing of Manny Machado to the a ten year $300 million deal with the San Diego Padres could that mean more big signings to come with Dallas Keuchel and Bryce Harper.
#2 The Raiders are at the bargaining table with the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum Authority to get a deal on the table to get the Raiders back at the Coliseum for home games the Raiders might even sign a two year deal if the stadium in Vegas is not ready by the 2020 season.
#3 The Sacramento Kings are coming off a tough two point loss to the Denver Nuggets on Feb 14th they’re in Oakland tonight to face the Warriors.
#4 The Oakland A’s president David Kaval finally solved the A’s radio flagship station issues getting KTRB 860 in San Francisco and now the biggest task at hand trying to solve the toxic waste clean up at the A’s future new home at Jack London Square
#5 The Giants biggest story is the retirement announcement of manager Bruce Bochy who will finish his career this season
#1 Manny Machado signed baseball’s biggest contract with the San Diego Padres on Tuesday for 10 years and $300 million. What does this do for the Padres and how does someone like Machado get away from the Dodgers?
#2 Former NBA official Tim Donaghy was accused of betting on basketball, but it was never really revealed how he fixed games until an ESPN report saying that Donaghy was paid to fix games and got paid to do it. Some of the top NBA officials came from Philadelphia and Donaghy was from those parts. The influence as to why was simple…money!
#3 Baseball superstars Dallas Keuchel, Bryce Harper and Craig Kimbrell are still free agents looking for that longterm lucrative contract and all three are not in a MLB spring training camp holding out until some big league team comes calling with boatloads of money in the neighborhood of $300 million. At this early stage of spring training, are they fooling themselves or are they onto something?
#4 One of the first African American pitchers in baseball history, Dan Newcombe passed away on Tuesday at age 92. Newcombe joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1949. He finished his ten-year career with the Dodgers at 149-90 and an ERA of 3.56. Former Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda said he was the best hitting pitcher he ever saw.
#5 Knowing that San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy, who has announced his retirement after this season, was it a matter of Bochy losing his magical touch in the last few seasons or he just simply doesn’t have the talent on the Giants roster to win a World Series again–much like he did previously?
#1 Does Kyler Murray’s decision to leave the Oakland A’s for the NFL Draft or will he be a two sport player much like Bo Jackson and Dieon Sanders?
#2 How serious are the Philadelphia Phillies about pursuing Bryce Harper and does Amaury think they’ve got the best chance of acquiring him?
#3 How much does it take out of ball clubs when they open the season in Tokyo because of the distance the A’s open this season in Japan. Do the players enjoy the trip and do they find it productive and challenging?
#4 San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner is still in the shopping sweepstakes. No deals yet, but plenty of interest.
#5 Manny Machado has an seven-year deal on the table that could be as huge as 13 years at $325 million from the Chicago White Sox. Will it be too good to pass up?
#6 White House treated the Clemson Tigers to lunch with hamburgers boxes from Wendy’s, McDonalds, and Burger King on silver platters with paper napkins and plastic containers of mustard, mayo, and ketchup. Could Trump have served better food for lunch.
#1 What would it mean for the Washington Nationals in 2019 if they were able to re-sign Bryce Harper?
#2 Would the Dodger Manny Machado be in a deal for Bryce Harper seem possible or practical for both Dodgers and Nats?
#3 The Milwaukee Brewers have expressed interest in San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner. Will the Giants part with the lefty who was a big part of their World Series success?
#4 The New York Mets get JD Davis from Houston, sending catcher Kevin Palwecki to Houston who turned around and later got dealt to Cleveland. Palwecki will get more time behind the plate in Cleveland. As the Mets signed catcher Wilson Ramon to a two-year, $19 million deal.
#5 The Astros’ Dallas Keuchel is being floated on the free agency market. It shouldn’t take long before a team goes out and signs him.
Amaury Pi-Gonzalez is the Spanish play-by-play voice for the Oakland A’s and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
Daniel Dullum is filling for Amaury’s Podcast today:
1 The Sharks are coming off a tough 6-0 in Dallas on Sunday and are looking to get back into the win column. The Montreal Canadiens are currently on a four-game loss streak and host the Sharks in a frosty cold Montreal, but there’s no outdoor game here as they’ll hook up tonight at the Bell Centre for this contest.
2 NFL Wild Card Playoffs start this Saturday. Daniel takes a look at Tennessee @ Kansas City and in game two Atlanta @ LA Rams.
3 For Sunday’s Wild Card games game one Buffalo @ Jacksonville and game two Carolina @ New Orleans.
4 The Cubs looked like the front runner in the Manny Machado sweepstakes, but the latest is Machado is up for grabs and the Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos is not very excited about letting Machado get away. A Machado contract would command around $325 million.
5. Former Oakland Raiders head coach Jon Gruden has said “let’s wait and see” in regards to his getting the job at the Raiders. Gruden can’t very well come out and say “the job is mine” because the Raiders are obligated by NFL policy to abide by the Art Rooney rule and have to interview at least one minority before announcing that Gruden is the new head coach. Sources say a minority assistant coach could be interviewed and if they hire Gruden that assistant coach could be hired on under Gruden as his assistant coach.
Sunday afternoon in Baltimore started off with promise for the Oakland Athletics. The A’s put up three runs in the top of the first inning, and they appeared ready to do battle to win the rubber game of the three game series with the Orioles.
Instead, the A’s allowed the O’s to put on a power display that included six home runs, score 11 unanswered runs and never scored again after the first inning en route to losing the game 11-3. The loss meant the A’s also lost the series two games to one.
Oakland has now lost six of their last seven games. Even more importantly, the A’s have dropped four games under .500 for the first time this season. They are now 4.5-games behind division leading Seattle.
In the batter’s box
Manny Machado was the star of the game for the Orioles on Sunday. Machado went 2-for-4 in the game with six RBI. Both of his hits were home runs. His home run in the bottom of the eighth inning was a grand slam that put the game out of reach for the A’s. Machado now has nine home runs for the season.
Mark Trumbo went 3-for-5, had two RBI, scored a run and hit his ninth home run of the year in the game off Graveman.
Joey Rickard had a strong day at the leadoff spot for the O’s. Rickard went 2-for-4, scored three runs, had an RBI and hit his third home run of the season off Ryan Dull.
Jonathan Schoop could do no wrong on Sunday. Schoop went 3-for-4, scored two runs, recorded a RBI and hit his fifth home run of the year.
Designated Hitter Matt Wieters got in on the power act hitting his fifth round tripper of the season off Graveman in the second inning.
The Orioles scored 11 runs off 12 hits. The picked up five base-on-balls and struck out just eight times. Baltimore left 13 men on base.
The key man at the plate the A’s was Josh Reddick. Reddick went 3-for-3 with a run scored and a RBI. He has eight hits in his last eight consecutive at-bats which ties a franchise record. Reddick’s success at the plate has also caused the opposing team’s defense to abandon the shift which opens up the field for him.
Danny Valencia continues to look strong since returning to the lineup. Valencia went 2-for-4 on Sunday with a RBI.
On the hill
RHP Chris Tillman started the game for Baltimore. After giving up three to the A’s in the top of the first, no one thought Tillman would be around long enough to figure into the decision let alone pick up the win. Tillman went 6.1 innings giving up three runs (all earned) off six hits. He struck out seven and walked four. With the victory, Tillman’s record improves to 4-1 on the year.
Brad Brach and Vance Worley combined for 2.2 innings of scoreless relief for Baltimore to close out the game.
Kendall Graveman struggled again as a starter for the Athletics. Today his sinker just was not sinking. The opposing hitters were able to tee up on his pitches and drive them where they wanted the ball to go. Graveman gave up six runs on five hits in 2.2 innings of work. He walked three, struck out two and issued four home runs. Graveman took the loss and his record now stands at 1-4.
Ryan Dull and Marc Rzepczynski came on in relief of Graveman.
J.B. Wendelken – who was called up from Triple-A Nashville – saw action in his first major league game ever. He may want to forget the experience. Wendelken worked 1.1 innings and his time on the mound ended with Manny Machado hitting a grand slam home run off the rookie. It was not a storybook beginning to a career.
A’s backup catcher Josh Phegley took the mound to close out the game out for Oakland.
Up next
The A’s stay on the East Coast and open a three-game series in Boston on Monday night. Sonny Gray is scheduled to face Clay Buchholz in the series opener.
The Orioles travel to Minnesota for a three-game series with the Twins.
Oakland Athletics’ Josh Donaldson (20) is welcomed after hitting the game-winning three-run home run off Baltimore Orioles’ Zach Britton in the ninth inning of a baseball game Friday, July 18, 2014, in Oakland, Calif. Oakland won 5-4. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
By Kahlil Najar
OAKLAND – The fireworks weren’t over after the All-Star game for the A’s. Josh Donaldson cranked a three-run shot to deep right-center field in the bottom of the ninth to give the A’s (60-36) a 5-4 victory over the Baltimore Orioles (52-43).
“It was an amazing game all around,” said Bob Melvin. “Being able to put up a three spot in the ninth against a really good closer without an out. We’re going to play all 27 outs.”The game played out like a heavyweight boxing match. The hated Manny Machado and the Baltimore Orioles were coming to town six weeks after Machado and Donaldson had some words at third base and the teams matched each other with beaning each others players.
The A’s were able to get on the board first in the bottom of the third inning when Coco Crisp was able to cross home plate. Crisp hit a single to get on base then advanced to second on a wild pitch by Baltimore starting pitcher Chris Tillman. With Crisp on second John Jaso hit his 15th double of the year to center field and scored Crisp easily to give the A’s a 1-0 lead.
Baltimore waited until the fifth inning to strike and take the lead from Oakland. J.J. Hardy was beaned by Samardzija to start the inning and was moved to third after a single by Machado and ground out by the Orioles. Schoop then came up and hit his seventh home run of the year to left field and make it a 2-1 game.
Oakland didn’t take long to respond as Derek Norris came up in the bottom of the inning and hit a line shot over to left field that missed hitting the net in the Overstock.com “O” and tied the game at two a piece.
In the seventh, after hearing boos all night Manny Machado hit his 10th home run of the season over the out of town scoreboard with Hardy on base to give the Orioles a 4-2 lead. The homer was a slap in the face of all 27,000 Oakland fans that were in attendance as they could feel this one slipping away.
That was until the bottom of the ninth.
The Orioles put in their reliable closer Zach Britton to close the game. Back to Back Home Run Derby champion Yoenis Cespedes was up to bat first. The crowd was anxious in anticipation on a homer from Yo but he did the exact opposite. Cespedes hit a slow roller to third base that Machado wasn’t ready for so Cespedes was able to make it to first safely. Brandon Moss was next and he hit a nice bloop single to right field that landed him at first and the speedy Cespedes made it to third. Donaldson, who had been without a hit tonight, came up to the plate representing the winning run. On a first pitch two-seam fastball down the middle of the plate, Donaldson launched his 21st home run of the year into the back of the Coliseum and sent everyone home with a 5-4 Oakland victory.
The battle between Machado and Donaldson was not lost on crowd tonight or on Bob Melvin. Nor were the lead changing home runs by each player.
“Certainly there’s a little of irony involved in the whole thing,” said Melvin. “Our fans came out and there was some heckling. I think Machado handled it pretty well and he had a huge at bat and hit a big home run. Then to see JD come up in the ninth and you think ‘Really? Could this happen?’ and it did. We’ve seen JD come up big for us in those big at bats.”
The A’s and Orioles head back at it tomorrow night when Jason Hammel takes on Wei-Yin Chen, game time 6:05 pm.
The Oakland Athletics were involved in a wild baseball affair on Sunday in Baltimore. The game featured 12-runs, 16-hits, 15-walks, an overturned grand slam home run, a bench clearing confrontation between the teams and two ejections as the A’s defeated the Orioles 11-1. The win also gave the series victory to Oakland two games to one.
The A’s not only showed off their high-powered offense but they also demonstrated their high-quality pitching. Scott Kazmir worked seven innings of shutout baseball giving up just four-hits while striking out seven hitters and walking just two men. Kazmir threw 96 pitches (62 strikes) en route to his seventh win of the season. Kazmir’s ERA is now a paltry 2.20.
The overriding philosophy of the A’s is to have their hitters “get on base”. They do not care if you get a hit, walk or hit-by-pitch as long as you get on base. On Sunday, the A’s walked more times than they got a hit. Oakland recorded 11 bases-on-balls off Baltimore pitching. Add to that 10-hits and you can see that the A’s had runners on base almost constantly.
The big inning for the A’s came in the top of the third. Derek Norris led off the inning with a walk. Callaspo then walked. Kyle Banks walked to load the bases for John Jaso. Jaso hit a fly ball to deep right-center field that appeared to leave the park and was called a home run by the umpires. The umpires reviewed the play and changed the call to a double. Norris and Callaspo scored but Banks was sent back to third while Jaso returned to second with a two-run double.
With runners at second and third and no outs, Nick Punto walked on four straight pitches from Ubaldo Jimenez. Josh Donaldson hit into a force out at home but the bases remained loaded with one out. Brandon Moss then took the first pitch to him over the center field wall for a grand slam home run with no review required. Moss’ 16th home run of the season gave the A’s a 6-0 lead and sent Jimenez to the showers after just 2.1-innings.
The A’s went on to score a run in the fourth inning, three-runs in the fourth inning and one in the ninth inning for the 11-1 win.
Jaso and Moss finished the game with four-RBI each. Nick Punto posted two-RBI and both came with two outs in the inning. The A’s left only two runners in scoring position with two out.
John Jaso went two for six and a run scored to go with his four-RBI. Punto went two for three with a run and two walks plus his two-RBI. Yoenis Cespedes went two for five on the day. Alberto Callaspo went one for three with two walks and three runs scored.
The Athletics went six for 10 with runners in scoring position.
In a lineup oddity, the A’s used three catchers in the game but only two worked behind the plate. Jaso was the DH, Vogt played right field and Derek Norris was the starting catcher. In the bottom of the sixth-inning, Manny Machado hit Norris with his back-swing and Norris was taken out of the game as a precaution. Vogt came in from right field to take over the catching duties.
In the bottom of the eighth-inning, Machado came to bat with two out. Machado thought a 1-1 pitch from Abad was deliberately thrown at his knees. On the next pitch, Machado swung and let the bat fly down the third base line. There was little doubt that he intended the bat to fly at Abad. Both benches cleared their dugouts and the pitchers emptied the bullpens. There were a few shoves and some yelling but it was a “nothing to see here” situation. The umpires ejected Machado and Abad once calm was restored.
Machado was also the instigator of the benches clearing brawl in the Friday night game. Machado can expect a less than warm welcome from A’s fans when Baltimore comes to Oakland in July.
The A’s are four for six on the road trip and now head to Los Angeles for a three-game series with the Angels.
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