Tag: Mauricio Dubon

That’s Amaury News and Commentary podcast: Padres Arraez placed on 7 day concussion IL; Braves Strider hurt again out on 15 day IL; plus more MLB news

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San Diego Padres Luis Arraez is laid out after colliding with Astros second baseman Mauricio Dubon (left) as Padres first base coach David Macias (46) and the Houston Astros trainer checks on Arraez in the top of the first inning at Daikin Park in Houston on Mon Apr 21, 2025 (AP News photo)

That’s Amaury News and Commentary podcast:

#1  The San Diego Padres have placed Luis Arraez on the seven day concussion injured list on Monday. Arraez got into a scary collision with Houston Astros second baseman Mauricio Dubon at first base. Arraez was laid out and had to be carted off the field and taken to the hospital but came back to the ballpark after the Padres 3-2 win. Talk about taking one for the team.

#2 If it’s one thing it’s another for the Atlanta Braves pitcher Spencer Strider. Strider was who returned from elbow surgery and had not been in a game since April 5, 2024. Strider in his last game pitched five innings in a 3-1 loss giving up two runs on April 16th. Strider on Monday strained his right hamstring while playing catch on Monday and is now on the 15 day injured list.

#3  Cleveland Guardians pitcher Triston McKenzie has been designated for assignment on Monday. McKenzie had been suffering from arm injuries had made 30 starts in 2022 when he went 11-11 with a 2.96 ERA. McKenzie had a 11.12 ERA in four appearances this season. McKenzie a right hander since April 16 when allowed four runs against the Baltimore Orioles.

#4 After playing in 32 minor league games the Sacramento Athletics have called up first baseman Nick Kurtz. Kurtz the A’s No. 4 overall pick in last season’s draft will be activated on Wednesday. The A’s will face the Texas Rangers left hander Patrick Corbin on Tuesday and would like to see Kurtz get some at at bats to see if he add some punch to the line up.

#5  San Francisco Giants infielder Casey Schmitt is on the 30 day IL suffering from a grade 2 left oblique strain. Schmitt who underwent an MRI Monday was diagnosed by Dr. Ken Akizuki and the Giants orthopedist has scheduled Schmitt for evaluation for this weekend. Schmitt was hitting in the batting cage last weekend in Anaheim when he got injured putting him on the ten day IL.

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.

Strike Three!: Giants throw the baseball past the Rockies in 8-5 win

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Giants’ fans versed in what makes the team click under manager Gabe Kapler already know: Carlos Rodon and his contributions are special. It may sound trite, but the team’s key free agent acquisition is just what the doctor ordered.

Thankfully, Kapler comes closest to describing the newest phenomenon to hit Oracle Park.

“As good as he’s been, as many dudes as he struck out, there’s still probably more ceiling in there for Carlos,” Kapler said. “He’s that good.”

Rodon piled up 12 strikeouts, and mixed in two, timely double play balls in the Giants 8-5 win over the visiting Rockies Monday. The former Chicago White Sox threw 110 pitches and marveled at how easily the ball left his hand more than his ability to consistently dial up swings and misses.

“It worked out for us,” Rodon said of Kapler’s decision to allow him to pitch a sixth inning. “I felt like it was an easy fastball and I really wasn’t exerting a lot on all pitches, so it was an easier decision for me to say yes.”

“He has good stuff,” manager Bud Black said of Rodon, who frustrated Rockies’ hitters. “He’s not leading the league in strikeout percentage for any reason on that his stuff. It’s legit. We saw the velocity and we saw the slider, just like we talked about. We knew it was coming.”

Rodon’s first six outings as a Giant are in the record books. His 53 strikeouts over that span are the second most registered by a Giants’ pitcher since the turn of the century 122 years ago. Only Tim Lincecum with 56 in 2010 has tallied more.

The Giants’ offense did their part with a run in the first, two in the third and three in the sixth which ruined the evening for Austin Gomber. The Rockies’ starter surrendered a first inning triple to Austin Slater and a two-run shot to Mauricio Dubon in the third. After a pair of hitters reached in the sixth, Gomber was relieved by Robert Stephenson, who couldn’t keep the visitors within range, down just 3-2.

Darin Ruf’s single scored Dubon, Brandon Crawford drew a walk, then the Rockies got sloppy. Stephenson uncorked a wild pitch and catcher Elias Diaz’ throwing error allowed Wilmer Flores to score. Pinch-hitter Joc Pedersen’s sacrifice fly chased home a third run in the inning.

The Giants’ offense showed resourcefulness throughout with three sacrifice flies and a pair of stolen bases. They piled up 11 hits, performed late in counts as Kapler’s edict for his team to control a game’s “time of possession” played big. The team capped a brilliant offensive night with a pair of runs in the eighth.

The Giants won a third straight after losses in seven of eight. The momentum could build as the Rockies have dropped eight in a row to the Giants, with each of those eight wins featuring at least 10 Giants’ hits. The Rockies have dropped seven of eight away from Coors Field, possibly signaling that their unexpected fast start to the season could be ending.

Alex Wood takes the mound for San Francisco on Tuesday, and he’s had success against the Rockies across 19 starts against them for the Dodgers and Giants. What’s telling is most of that success has come away from Coors Field, where Wood’s ERA is an undesirable 8.50.

Antonio Senzatela starts for Colorado. He has a 5-1 record against the Giants.

Wood, Giants find the time and the place to get past Texas, 3-1

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–The Texas Rangers have been rough on left-handed starting pitchers this season, so Alex Wood and the Giants knew they’d need a special performance on Monday night.

Special and timely.

The Giants waited until the last possible moment to pounce, but they did just that with a two-run, seventh inning rally that carried them past the Rangers, 3-1 at Oracle Park.

With Wood lifted from the game for pinch-hitter Darin Ruf, the Giants lefty appeared destined for a no-decision despite allowing just four hits and a run in seven innings of work. But Ruf singled, following Austin Slater’s walk and preceding Mauricio Dubon’s tie-breaking base hit. Suddenly, Wood was in business, cheering loudly from the dugout and leading 2-1.

For those scoring at home, that’s three, consecutive right-handed hitting pinch-hitters–with spotty records–coming through with two outs and the game on the line.

“I liked that (Giants manager Gabe Kapler) used all his pinch hitters there. If they had not scored, then we had them in trouble,” Texas manager Chris Woodward recounted. “We just didn’t execute a pitch there at the end.”

How spotty? Ruf had managed just one hit in ten pinch-hitting appearances coming in, and Dubon, the last guy any manager would want hitting deep in a count, had just one hit in 31 plate appearances this season with a two-strike count.

So what does Dubon do with the game in the balance? He fouls off five, consecutive pitches and singles to center field on the eighth pitch of the at-bat to give his team the lead.

“If you don’t end up scoring a run, you’re almost out of players,” Kapler said. “Dubon’s at-bat was excellent, that’s the one that’s going to stand out. But Slater’s was equally as good and Ruf’s was awesome.”

The Rangers then contributed to the Giants’ fortunes when third baseman Charlie Culberson one-hopped his throw across the diamond for an error that allowed Mike Yastrzemski to reach and Ruf to score.

Wood improved his record to 4-0 (in just five starts) by avoiding any explosive hits outside Khris Davis’ triple off the bricks in the fifth, and hanging around in a matchup with Texas’ Kyle Gibson, who has a similar reclamation story to Wood’s and was almost as good on Monday.

Gibson pitched six innings, allowing four his and a run while striking out six. He did surrender a solo shot to Brandon Belt, the game’s first run in the fourth inning.

Wood became just the third lefty starter to defeat the Rangers joining Steven Matz and Mike Minor, who both accomplished the feat in the season’s first week. Since then, the Rangers have compiled a major league-best 12 wins against left-handed starters, including the last six opportunities consecutively.

The Rangers lost in interleague play for the 13th time in their last 14 matchups. The Giants improved to 13-4 at home, tying their best start to a season at home in their San Francisco history.

The teams conclude their brief series Tuesday afternoon with Texas’ Jordan Lyles facing Logan Webb.

Playoff Push: Dubon’s homer gives Giants the edge in 7-2 win over the Rockies

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Winning formulas never get old, so the Giants reached in the well one more time.

Beating sub .500 teams at home with offense has become a reoccurring theme for San Francisco, and it surfaced again Wednesday night in a 7-2 win over the Rockies. The Giants have won 15 of 19 at Oracle Park with most of the wins just like this one.

Mauricio Dubon hit a three-run homer in the seventh to break up a 2-2 tie, and send the Giants to a second win in this critical four-game series starting the regular season’s final week. With the Cardinals, Marlins and Brewers losing in the tightly-bunched NL playoff hunt, the Giants assumed the eighth and final spot with five games remaining.

“You’re playing meaningful baseball and every hit, every run, every home run, every catch you make counts,” Dubon said. “That’s the fun part of it.”

Dubon’s game-altering shot came two pitches after manager Bud Black lifted starter Ryan Castellani in the fifth, in which he allowed a leadoff double to Alex Dickerson, then walked two of the next four batters, allowing the Giants to tie the score, 2-2.

Yency Almonte relieved and watched Dubon send his slider over the left field wall. Dubon’s was the biggest of the Giants 11 hits, five of which went for extra bases including Evan Longoria’s solo shot that got the Giants on the board for the first time in the fourth.

“The pitch to Dubón was a slider the just didn’t get to the outside part of the plate,” Black said. “It didn’t get away from the barrel. The kid dropped the head on it, got it up in the air. He squared it up.”

The Giants have had their way with losing clubs, winning 22 of 33. They’re 27-11 when they score at least four runs.

Mike Yastrzemski continues to mend his calf, which has caused to miss the last five games. His primary replacement, rookie Luis Basabe injured his hamstring on Tuesday, and is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season and at least two rounds of the playoffs. Steven Duggar was summoned from Sacramento to replace Basabe.

Caleb Baragar started for the Giants, pitching just the first inning as the opener. Logan Webb took over in the second and pitched five, solid innings to get the win. Baragar’s appearance marked the first time the Giants have employed an opener this season, after Bruce Bochy employed the strategy a couple of times in 2019.

Giants’ bullpen no match for Colorado’s bats in 6-4 loss on getaway day

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By Morris Phillips

The Colorado Rockies are crushing opponent’s bullpens, and they made sure the Giants got a reminder before the visitors left town Thursday afternoon.

David Murphy and Charlie Blackmon homered in a five-run, seventh inning as the Rockies overcame a late deficit and a flawless five innings from Giants’ starter Tyler Anderson in a 6-4 win.

Giants’ relievers had allowed just five homers in 56 appearances coming in. But the new rule requiring that each pitcher face at least three batters doesn’t allow managers to always match up–right vs. right, left vs. left–and that favors a power hitting lineup like the Rockies possess. After Thursday’s three homers and two doubles, Colorado is hitting .294 with 11 home runs after the opposing starter is lifted.

“Anything we can do to get to the ‘pen and have someone go through at least three hitters in our lineup, whether it’s lefty or righty, we feel good about that,” Trevor Story said.

Anderson didn’t issue the home team any favors, as the former Rockie dealt for five innings, allowing two hits, two walks and no runs.  In his first start of the season, Anderson appeared highly motivated by his fall from grace in 2019. Tabbed as the Rockies’ opening day starter, Anderson suffered a knee injury after making five starts, then was demoted to Triple-A before having season-ending surgery. After being waived by the Rockies, Anderson was claimed by the Giants in October.

“I hadn’t thrown a lot of pitches, and there’s been a lot of injuries going on around baseball,” Anderson answered when asked if should have been allowed to pitch deeper into the ballgame. “I think that was the right move there.”

After the game went scoreless for the first five innings, the bats broke out on both sides with Trevor Story’s solo shot off Wandy Peralta in the sixth, which was topped by Mauricio Dubon’s three-run shot in seventh to give the Giants the lead.

But Rico Garcia failed to hold that lead, allowing consecutive doubles to Garrett Hampson and Chris Owings before Murphy’s two-run shot in a pinch-hitting role. Manager  Gabe Kapler then turned to Caleb Baragar but he allowed a David Dahl single ahead of Blackmon’s homer and the Rockies led 6-3.

Jairo Diaz came on for the Rockies in the eighth and got the final, four outs for the save.

Teams were required to reduce their active rosters from 30 to 28 before the game, and the Giants opted to demote Steven Duggar and pitcher Andrew Suarez to their alternative training site in San Jose

The Giants have dropped four of five and open a three-game series at Dodgers Stadium on Friday night.

“I think it’s just, take the step right in front of you. We understand that there’s no architectural blueprint for this season, and we’re just going to fight tomorrow. Be ready and prepared to play the Dodgers in Los Angeles tomorrow.”

Jeff Samardzija is expected to start for the Giants on Friday with Johnny Cueto scheduled for Saturday.

 

 

 

New Gen Giants load up on the Rockies, win 8-3 in series finale

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Anyway you dissect it, this is a week of permanent transition for the Giants with the retirement of manager Bruce Bochy looming on Sunday.

But that’s not all the change. The Giants offered an interesting lineup on Thursday for the finale of the series with the Rockies without Brandon Crawford, Brandon Belt, Buster Posey or Pablo Sandoval and Joe Panik for that matter.⁹⁷

With the exception of Evan Longoria, Bochy went with the new and the young to tangle with Colorado’s Kyle Freeland and the five relievers that followed him. And that group acquitted themselves quite well, racking up 12 hits (at least one hit against each of the six pitchers they saw) and eight runs in a 8-3 win that was a close game into the eighth inning.

Mike Yasztremski homered in the fourth–his 21st–and Mauricio Dubon in the seventh to support Tyler Beede and a host of relievers. Beede was dominant into the fourth inning where he left abruptly with an oblique injury while facing Ryan McMahon, the first batter of the inning.

At that point, Beede had struck out seven, while allowing no hits or walks. Afterwards, Bochy tried to make light of what was shaping up to be the best start of the rookie righthander’s season.

“I was kidding him, it probably wasn’t good timing, ‘But you know you’ve got a no-hitter going here, you want me to take you out?'” Bochy recounted.

Butch Smith followed Beede out of the bullpen and got through the fourth, but allowed the Rockies a game-tying run in the fifth.