Tag: mlb

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: A’s now 2 1/2 behind first-place Astros; A’s open nine-game homestand tonight

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @Athletics

On That’s Amaury’s podcast:

#1 The Oakland A’s new ticket plan called “A’s Access” gives the fans the opportunity to buy passes to all games for low ticket prices. It gives the working, middle-class a chance to buy affordable tickets at lower prices.

#2 The A’s continue they’re winning ways getting a 8-7 win over the LA Angels and are now closing in on the Houston Astros for first-place in the AL West. The A’s are now just 2 1/2 games back.

#3 The A’s recent acquisitions of pitchers like Fernando Rodney, Jeurys Familia, Shawn Kelly, and Mike Fiers, put the A’s in a very good place to go deep in the postseason.

#4 The A’s open a long homestand tonight against the Seattle Mariners. M’s Marco Gonzalez (12-7) against the A’s Sean Manaea (10-8).

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Oakland A’s Spanish play by play announcer and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: Rodriguez pitches another gem, surrenders only one run to Pirates

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @nbcbayarea

On the Giants podcast with Morris:

San Francisco Giants pitcher Derek Rodriguez is the pitcher of record and also contending for the NL Rookie of the Year Award. He won again, pitching seven innings, one run, two hits, one walk, four strikeouts in the Giants’ 4-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Rodriguez over nine games has a 1.28 ERA and has allowed eight earned runs in 56.1 innings pitched. That’s eight earned runs in 56.1 innings of work–a career low for Rodriguez as a starter. The Giants’ Nick Hundley hit a game-tying triple for an RBI, scoring Steven Duggar. Another key hit came from Joe Panik. Panik drove in his second run with a single that scored Gorkys Hernandez.

The Giants open a three-game series in Los Angeles against the Dodgers on Monday night. The Giants will start Madison Bumgarner against the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw.

Morris does the Giants podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

On Your Heels: A’s nip Angels 8-7, creep closer to Astros at the top of the AL West

Published on by moepeaLeave a comment

By Morris Phillips

Like today’s starting pitcher, Blake Treinen is a singular force of momentum as a closer.

Treinen stepped on the mound for the bottom of the ninth on Sunday knowing this: only one of the 13 pitchers that preceded him escaped without allowing at least one walk or a hit in a game that resembled batting practice as much as a major league affair can. With the A’s clinging to an 8-7 lead–narrowed from 8-3 by the Angels over the previous four innings–Treinen was entrusted with the task of getting the final three outs.

Challenging task and circumstances? Sure, how else could you explain Treinen needing 11 pitches–not nine–to finish the afternoon with three, consecutive strikeouts?

Well, for the bullpen-rich A’s, Trienen is the closer of closers. Consider the 30-year old fireballer the crescendo of crescendos. Following trade acquisitions Jeurys Familia and Fernando Rodney–both closers for their former teams–not to mention premiere setup man, Lou Trivino, Treinen was one more power arm than the Angels could withstand on Sunday.

While the offenses piled up the runs on Sunday, the bullpens dictated the outcome. The Angels’ bullpen, beset by injuries, had a rag tag, patched together look while the A’s relievers, as a unit, resembled an out-making machine. Afterwards, Angels’ manager Mike Scioscia admitted his guys weren’t exactly a seamless organization.

“We’re looking at whoever is available to give us innings,” said Scioscia, who went without a starter on Sunday, as bullpen guy Taylor Cole took the ball to start, and was followed by six more relievers. “We tried to line them up as best we can, but it’s just not as efficient as it is if you have at least the functionality of having starters that are getting to a certain point of the game.”

Trevor Cahill, looking for his fourth win in as many starts, achieved just once previously in his decade-long, big league career, didn’t exactly deliver the A’s to their bullpen. Not the dominant force on the road as he’s been at the Coliseum, Cahill blew an early 3-0 A’s lead in two, swift acts. Then after he steadied in the third and fourth innings, Cahill fell into trouble in the fifth, and was lifted despite the A’s leading 7-4 at that point.

Jed Lowrie’s two-run homer in the fourth off ex-Athletic Jim Johnson appeared to give the A’s a comfortable lead, but then Cahill gave a run back in the bottom of the frame. Yusmeiro Petit was touched for a run in the sixth, and Familia allowed two runs in the eighth, setting the stage for the narrowed finish.

Treinen picked up his 30th save in 34 chances, lowered his ERA to 0.92, and boosted his strikeouts per nine innings to 12.

Lowrie’s double and homer were the 1,000th and 1,001st hits of his career.

With the A’s winning while the Mariners finished off a four-game sweep off the Astros, the A’s climbed within 2 1/2 games of the AL West division lead. That’s as close as the A’s have been to first place since April 3, and seamlessly sets up their next six games–three against the Mariners, then three against the Astros–all at the Coliseum.

Sean Manaea faces Marco Gonzalez in the series opener with both lefties looking to improve on their double-digit win totals.

Rodriguez continues to shine; Giants edge Pirates 4-3 for series split

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — Dereck Rodriguez is continuing to show everyone that he should be considered for the National League Rookie of the Year.

Rodriguez went seven innings, allowing one run on two hits, while walking one and striking out four and the San Francisco Giants defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3 before a sellout crowd of 41,980 at AT&T Park on Sunday afternoon.

The right-hander continued his impressive streak of where he did not allow more than two runs, as the streak now stands at eight. The last time Rodriguez allowed more than two runs in a game was against the Washington Nationals on June 9, when he allowed five runs in just two and two-thirds innings of work.

Rodriguez also retired the final nine batters he faced after he issued a leadoff walk to Elias Diaz to open the top of the fifth inning.

Over his last nine appearances on the mound, Rodriguez has a 1.28 earned run average and has allowed just eight earned runs in 56.1 innings. The two hits he allowed were a new career-low in a start.

With the victory, the Giants are now 21-20 in one-run games this season.

The Pirates took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning, as Diaz doubled off of Rodriguez that scored Josh Bell, who doubled to lead off the inning.

Diaz’s double was the last hit that the Pirates would get off of Rodriguez for the remainder of the game.

Nick Hundley tied up the game in the bottom of the third inning, as he hit a triple to the appropriately named Triples Alley out there in right-center field to score Steven Duggar, who singled to lead off the inning.

That was the second triple of the season for Hundley, with his first coming on June 6 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. It is also the first season since 2015 he has more than one triple in a season, in that season, he hit five triples.

Hundley ended the afternoon with two hits, his third multi-hit game since July 1. He picked up a multi-hit game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on July 1, and then three weeks later on July 22 against the Oakland A’s at the Coliseum.

Joe Panik drove in what turned out to be the game-winning run, as he a sacrifice fly to score Brandon Crawford, who doubled with one out in the bottom of the fourth inning. After the Crawford double, Gorkys Hernandez hit an infield single that sent Crawford to third base.

After the Panik sacrifice fly that gave the Giants the lead for good, Duggar beat out an infield single and Hernandez smartly headed to third base, as Pirates starter Joe Musgrove argued concerning Duggar beating out the throw.

Hundley drove in his second run of the game, as he singled in Hernandez from third base to give the Giants a two-run lead.

Panik drove in his second run of the afternoon in the bottom of the sixth inning, as he singled off of Musgrove to score Hernandez, who reached on a Fielders’ Choice that forced out Crawford at second base after the shortstop walked to lead off the inning.

The Pirates tried to make a game out of it in the top of the eighth inning, as Reyes Moronta walked Adam Frazier, then Jordy Mercer singled him to second base. After Moronta was able to strikeout pinch hitter David Freese, and then Tony Watson came on to strikeout Corey Dickerson; however, the Pirates got within one run, as Starling Marte lashed a two-run double to get the Pirates within one run. Watson was able to regroup, and get Gregory Polanco to fly out to Duggar for the third out of the inning.

Will Smith came onto the close the game in the top of the ninth inning, and nailed it down for his eighth save in 10 chances this season. Smith struck out Bell and pinch hitter Francisco Cervelli, before getting Diaz to fly out to Duggar to end the game.

Musgrove went six innings, allowing four runs, on seven hits, walking one and striking out six, as he saw his record fall to 4-7 on the season.

Mercer committed multiple errors in the same game for the first time in his major-league career.

NOTES: In his Giants debut, Casey Kelly became just the third Giants reliever in the San Francisco era to throw at least five innings in his debut. Kelly joins Don Larsen, who 6.1 on April 14, 1962 against the Reds at Candlestick Park and then John Montesfusco went 9.0 innings on September 3, 1974 against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium, this according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Brandon Belt began his rehab assignment after hyperextending right knee against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday night, and he went 0-for-2 for the Sacramento Rivercats. Hunter Strickland, who is currently on the disabled list with a broken right hand threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts. Strickland is eligible to come off the disabled list on Saturday.

UP NEXT: Madison Bumgarner will take the hill, as the Giants open their final three-city road trip of the season on Monday night at 7:10 pm PDT against Clayton Kershaw and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Following the final trip to Los Angeles for the 2018 season, the Giants will head onto Cincinnati for a three-game series and then ending with a four-game series at Citi Field against the New York Mets.

MLB The Show with Daniel Dullum: Will Bonds’ past transgressions get swept under the rug and go in the Hall of Fame?; Astros hear footsteps, A’s closing in on first place in the AL West; plus more

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @jcfphotog

On the MLB The Show podcast with Daniel Dullum

1 He fought with the media. He admitted unknowingly to using steroids in grand jury testimony. He and his trainer Greg Anderson were well-known to frequent Victor Conte of BALCO Labs, according to Conte, former Giant outfielder Barry Bonds’ ex-friend and business manager, son of former 49er Bob Hoskins, Steve Hoskins, said that he and his sister, Kathy Hoskins, saw Anderson handle a needle in Bonds’ bedroom of his house during Bonds’ playing days Bonds would complain of a sore butt according to Hoskins from taking too many shots. They also recorded Bonds and Anderson talking about steroid use in the Giants clubhouse. Bonds later fired Hoskins as his business manager fast forward. Now, the Giants retired Bonds’ No. 25 and there’s a big push to get Bonds to the Hall of Fame. Will all these transgressions be swept under the rug and will Bonds eventually be elected to the Hall of Fame?

2 Athletics blank Angels, closing in on Astros in AL West.

3 Indians’ Ed Encarnacion headed to DL.

4 Cubs’ Yu Darvish set to throw simulated game Tuesday.

5 Yankees restore relationship with Papa John’s pizza.

Daniel Dullum does the MLB The Show podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Pirates blank Giants 4-0 just hours after Bonds’ No. 25 was retired

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — After the pomp and circumstance of the Barry Bonds number 25 retirement ceremony subsided, there was still a game to be played between the San Francisco Giants and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Corey Dickerson would drive in the only run that the Pirates would need on a sacrifice fly that scored Josh Harrison in the top of the third inning, as the Pirates defeated the Giants 4-0 before a sellout crowd of 41,209 at AT&T Park on Saturday night.

Harrison walked to lead off the inning, went to second on a Jordy Mercer single and advanced to third on a Trevor Williams sacrifice bunt.

Josh Bell put the game out of reach in the top of the fifth inning, as he launched a three-run home run into the left field seats for his eighth home run of the season.

That fourth inning would be the last for Ty Blach, as he gave up four runs on four hits, walked two and struck out five, as his record fell to 6-7 on the season.

Unfortunately, for the second time in this series, the offense could not get going, as they were shutout one day after scoring 13 runs against the same team.

“Couldn’t get the offense going,” said Giants manager Bruce Bochy.

Casey Kelly replaced Blach, and did a great job, as he went five innings, allowing just two hits and struck out in his first appearance as a member of the Giants.

“Saved the bullpen,” said Bochy.

This was the first major appearance for Kelly since the 2016 when he pitched for the Atlanta Braves. Kelly went 0-3 with a 5.82 earned run average.

‘Great to get out there,” said Kelly.

In his last game for the Braves on July 1, 2016 against the Miami Marlins, Kelly went two innings, allowing two runs (one earned) walked one and struck out two.

NOTES: With the retirement of Bonds number 25, the Giants are the seventh major league team to retire at least 10 numbers. The New York Yankees have retired 21 numbers, the most in major league history.

UP NEXT: The Giants and Pirates will wrap up their three-game set with a series finale on Sunday afternoon at 1:05 pm PDT.

Dereck Rodriguez closes out the home stand for the Giants, as he takes the mound, while Joe Musgrove will take the hill for the Pirates.

Barry Bonds’ No. 25 is now officially retired

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — Barry Bonds may not be in the National Baseball Hall of Fame, but he received the biggest honor from the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park on Saturday night.

Prior to the third game of the four-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the team that drafted Bonds with the seventh pick of the 1985 Amateur Draft out of Arizona State, the Giants honored Bonds with the retirement of his number 25, which is now in between his godfather Willie Mays’ number 24, and Juan Marichal’s number 27 on the Club Level at AT&T Park.

”I am overwhelmed with emotions as the reality of this day sets in,” Bonds said. ”This may come as a surprise to a lot of people but as a child I didn’t even want to play baseball. I wanted to play all sports – basketball, football, ride my bike, all the things that kids do. But once my mom signed me up … I got my first taste of what would be my lifelong passion.”

In the ceremony that lasted over an hour was attended by Bonds’ family, including mother Pat, brother Ricky and adopted sister Carol, along with his three children, Aisha, Nikolai and Shikari.

Former Bonds teammates such as Bobby Bonilla, Will Clark, Ray Durham, Shawon Dunston, Kirk Rueter, Rob Nen made appearances and there was a surprise appearance by former Los Angeles Dodgers closer Eric Gagne.

“That’s great,” said Bonds.

Three of Bonds’ former managers were also in attendance, as Jim Leyland, Dusty Baker and Bruce Bochy were also in attendance.

Orlando Cepeda, Marichal, Mays, Willie McCovey and Gaylord Perry were all in attendance to welcome Bonds to the fraternity of having their numbers retired with the Giants.

Mays took the mic, and spoke to the sold-out crowd about where Bonds rightful place should be in baseball history and that is the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.

”When people talk about, ‘Oh, who’s the best ballplayer in the world?’ I don’t care,” Mays said. ”I played my 20 years, 22 years, whatever it might be. Give somebody honor that deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame is a type of fraternity that, when you get there, you’ll say, ‘Man, how did I get here?’ And I want him to have that honor be something that happens to him.”

”Vote this guy in!” Mays added.

The ceremony came four days after the 11th anniversary of Bonds breaking Hank Aaron’s home run record.

Bonds, who is now a special assistant with the organization does not want to return to the dugout, a place he was for one year as hitting coach of the Miami Marlins.

The 54-year old Bonds enjoys coming to AT&T Park, as it is reminder to him that he built this park.

“I built this park, Willie never played here, Willie McCovey never played here,” said Bonds.

MLB The Show podcast with Matt Harrington: Rangers rookie Guzman belts 3 HRs; Bonds gets number retired but can’t get elected into the Hall of Fame; plus more

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: sbnation.com

On the MLB The Show podcast with Matt:

It’s been an exciting year in Major League Baseball. The Texas Rangers’ 23-year-old rookie Ronald Guzman hit three home runs, in his first at-bat. He grounded out, but in the next three, he parked the ball three consecutive times and struck out in his final at-bat to help the Rangers defeat the New York Yankees 12-9.

Former Giant outfielder Barry Bonds will have his old number retired today at AT&T Park in San Francisco. After everything that’s happened to him in his career, telling the grand jury that he unknowingly used performance enhancers, that he had steroids injections with the help of his former trainer Greg Anderson, Bonds and Anderson’s connection to Victor Conte and BALCO labs on the Peninsula, his mistreatment of the media, fans on the road, baseball writers, and the other writers still consider his home run record tainted. Matt answers these questions, considering all these factors–does Bonds still deserve to be elected to the Hall of Fame?

The Seattle Mariners, who are six games out in second place, are trying to leave their slump in the rear view mirror after leading the Oakland A’s by as much as 11 games, but lost that lead and are trying to start a fight to get back into second place. The M’s have now won two straight including defeating the first-place Houston Astros on Friday night 2-1. The M’s are six games out of first place in the AL West.

The Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles played like it was sandlot ball on Friday night. The Sox got a 19-12 seven-run victory out of the first meeting of the series. The Red Sox’s Xander Boggaerts and Andrew Bennintedi both hit three run home runs to help pace Boston.

The A’s got clipped by the Los Angeles Angels at Angels Stadium on Friday night 4-3. The A’s took an early lead with some home run help, scoring three runs in the top of the second, but the Angels rallied back scoring two runs each in the bottom of the third and sixth frames for the comeback win.

Matt does the MLB podcast each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Angels Rally on Pair of Homers, Top A’s 4-3

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

Photo credit: mlb.com

By Matthew Harrington

So many times this season the Oakland Athletics have lived by the long ball to win games, but Friday night in Anaheim, the dinger doomed the Green and Gold. The Los Angeles Angels hit two two-run shots, outscoring the A’s 4-3 in the first game of a three-game set. The A’s hit a pair of dingers themselves, a solo shot by Jed Lowrie and a two-run blast by Khris Davis, but Justin Upton and Kole Calhoun’s round-trippers tipped the scales in the Halos’ favor.

The Swingin’ A’s did just that in the first inning, jumping on Angels’ starter Felix Pena after Matt Champan launched his 16th homer of the year with one out and no one on. Jed Lowrie reached base, allowing Davis to crush his team-leading 33rd homer of the season for a 3-0 lead.

Brett Anderson would exit the game in line for the win, but the A’s margin for error was razor thin, nursing a 3-2 lead after Calhoun’s 16th homer of the year knocked in two runs in the bottom of the third.

A’s manager Bob Melvin’s most reliable reliever not named Blake Treinen, Lou Trivino, came into the game in the sixth, but struggled to stymie the Angels after Upton’s two-run shot. Former Athletic Jim Johnson picked up the win, despite throwing just 1/3 of an inning. Blake Parker picked up his 11th save of the season.

The A’s still remain 1 1/2 games up on the Seattle Mariners and they got positive results from newly-acquired reliever Fernando Rodney. He pitched a perfect inning, notching a punchout along the way. Edwin Jackson takes the hill for Oakland in game two, opposed by Tyler Skaggs of the Angels.

The A’s and Angels face each other for game two on Saturday night at 6:07 pm PDT.

Pirates storm back, but Giants hold on for 13-10 win on Orange Friday

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

By: Ana Kieu

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — In a nutshell, the San Francisco Giants got on the board with a three-run first inning, the Pittsburgh Pirates stormed back in an attempt to tie the ballgame, but the Orange and Black held on for the 13-10 win at AT&T Park on an Orange Friday type of night.

The Giants didn’t waste any time in the bottom of the first inning. Andrew McCutchen homered to right field for his 13th home run of the season and a 1-0 lead. Austin Slater’s RBI single made it a 2-0 game. Alec Hanson drove in Brandon Crawford for a 3-0 lead.

The Pirates finally got on the board in the top of the second inning as Jordy Mercer hit a line drive single to score David Freese. The score, 3-1, was still in favor of the Giants.

The Giants certainly came on down in the bottom of the third inning. McCutchen’s bases-loaded walk scored Slater, who got his team ahead 4-1. Buster Posey and Evan Longoria added line drive singles. The score was 7-1 Giants after three innings.

Mercer scored the Pirates’ second run of the game, a line drive double that scored Steven Duggar, but the Giants still led 7-2 in the top of the fourth inning.

Not only that, San Francisco continued to pour in the runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. Steven Duggar went down the line for a two-run double and Posey got an RBI single. The Giants were up 10-2 after four innings. A lot of fans thought the Pirates were done for the night, but that wasn’t the case tonight.

Freese singled on a sharp line drive to bring the Pirates within seven–a 10-3 lead–in the top of the fifth inning. But, the Giants weren’t too nervous, as Alec Hanson brought home Crawford to up San Francisco’s score to 11-3 over Pittsburgh in the bottom of the fifth inning.

It was all good vibes for the Giants until the Pirates’ Francisco Cervelli hit a grand slam to left center field to pull his team within five in the bottom of the seventh inning. The score was 12-7 Giants after seven innings.

The Pirates got even closer in the top of the eighth inning when Colin Moran tripled on a sharp line drive to score Jordan Luplow. Also, Cervelli’s line drive single, and in the top of the ninth inning, Adeiny Hechavarria’s fly ball homer–his fourth of the season–capped off the scoring for Pittsburgh.

Meanwhile, San Francisco’s last run of the night came from Slater, who hit a line drive single to score McCutchen in the bottom of the eighth inning. That was arguably an insurance run, but the Giants had the game regardless.

The Giants held on for the 13-10 win over the Pirates in game one of the series.

Notes

Up Next
The Giants and Pirates will meet again Saturday night at 6:05 pm PDT.