Tag: mlb

Graveman Ends Rangers Streak at four, A’s Win 4-1

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

Oakland Athletics pitcher Blake Treinen works against the Texas Rangers during the ninth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 22, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

The Oakland A’s snapped the Texas Rangers’ four-game win streak Friday night at the Oakland Coliseum, beating the Rangers 4-1 to dampen their foe’s Wild Card hopes. Kendall Graveman fired seven innings of one-hit ball and Matt Olson hit his 24th homer of the season.

Graveman scattered just six hits, including a solo homerun to Shin-Soo Choo in the top of the third to pick up his 6th win of the season. Olson staked Graveman to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second, blasting a right field line drive home run off Rangers starter Nick Martinez that also scored Khris Davis.

The A’s added a run in the bottom of the third after Jed Lowrie’s RBI single, then added another on a Matt Joyce run-scoring single-bagger for a 4-1 lead. Graveman would walk just three and punch out four to hang on for the win.

Chris Hatcher pitched a perfect eighth inning, his 11th straight scoreless frame, then Blake Treinen managed to walk the tight rope, allowing two hits but striking out two for his 13th save. The Rangers send Miguel Gonzalez to the hill hoping to cut into the 3.5 game Wild Card deficit Saturday while Oakland counters with Sean Manaea.

A’s meet the Texas Rangers as the 2017 home season comes to a close.

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Oakland Athletics’ Boog Powell, center, slides to score beneath Texas Rangers catcher Robinson Chirinos, right, in the eighth inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. Powell scored on a single by teammate Marcus Semien. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND- The Oakland A’s start the final homestand of the season as they play three games against the Texas Rangers and three with the Seattle Mariners. The A’s finish the season on the road as they will meet the Rangers again for four games in Arlington.

The A’s finished the nine-game to Boston, Philadelphia, and Detroit with a record of 6-3. The young players have been sparking the offense, and they are building confidence that this team will be competitive next season. The front office will have to strengthen the starting rotation and the bullpen if the A’s are going to make it back to the playoffs. The fans can see the improvement as players such as Matt Olson, Matt Chapman, Chad Pinder, Boog Powell, Bruce Maxwell all have made contributions to the offense since they were called up from Nashville. Khris Davis, Jed Lowrie, and Matt Joyce, all veterans, have played well. Davis and Joyce are under contract for next season.Lowrie is not, and he may be with another team come spring.

The young A’s will be squaring off against the Texas Rangers starting Friday night. The Rangers are still alive in the chase for the second Wild Card spot in the American League. Entering play tonight, the Rangers were just 2 1/2 games behind the Minnesota Twins. Their chances are slim, but the A’s would love nothing better than to help eliminate them from contention. The Rangers are a veteran team. They do not hit for average, but they have several players that can knock the ball out of the park. They are led by Adrian Beltre. The veteran third baseman was on the DL for part of the season. He reached the 3000 hit plateau earlier this season, and he is a sure bet for baseball’s Hall of Fame. Shortstop Elvis Andrus is having a good year. He is hitting .301 and has 41 doubles and 20 homers on his stat sheet. Mike Napoli, Joey Gallo, and Rougned Odor are not hitting for average, but they have hit 29, 38, and 30 home runs respectively. Gallo and Odor are just 23-years old. The outfield will be manned by Nomar Mazara, Delino DeShields, Shin-soo Choo, and if he is able to play, Carlos Gomez.

Kendall Graveman will go for Oakland Friday night. Graveman is 2-0 with an ERA of 2.61 and a WHIP of just 1.07 in his last three starts against the Rangers. Nick Martinez will pitch for Texas. Martinez is 0-1 with an ERA of 4.15 in his two starts against the A’s. Saturday’s game will feature the Rangers’ Nick Martinez going against leftSean Manaea. Gonzalez is 8-11 but has won only once after coming over from the White Sox. This will be his first start against Oakland. Manaea is 11-10 but had a rough road trip. He was bombed in Boston but got the win in Philly. In his last two starts in Oakland, Manaea has allowed just two runs in 11 innings of work. Lefty Martin Perez pitches for Texas on Sunday, but the A’s have not announced their starter as of Thursday.

This weekend will be Fan Appreciation Weekend at the Coliseum. Friday night is the annual Filipino Heritage night. There will be a Star Wars themed fireworks display after the game. Sunday’s game will be Hispanic Heritage Day. Lots a giveaways as a thank you to the fans that have been so loyal supporting this club this year.

Ex-Giant Ryan Vogelsong retires, Giants avoid sweep with big 7-2 win over Dbacks

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San Francisco Giants pitcher Chris Stratton throws to the Arizona Diamondbacks during the first inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/George Nikitin)

By: Ana Kieu

SAN FRANCISCO — Ryan Vogelsong retired on the same mound where it all began and the San Francisco Giants avoided a sweep with a 7-2 blowout win over the Arizona Diamondbacks at AT&T Park Sunday afternoon.

Chris Stratton and Taijuan Walker engaged in an impressive pitcher’s duel, but Pablo Sandoval snapped the scoreless deadlock in the bottom of the fourth inning. Sandoval was out on a sacrifice fly to David Peralta. Austin Slater scored to put the Giants on the board 1-0.

The Giants scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning for a 4-0 lead. Slater drew a walk that scored Stratton. Brandon Crawford followed with a sacrifice fly to score Denard Span. Jarrett Parker then grounded into a force out that scored Joe Panik.

J.D. Martinez cut the lead in half in the top of the sixth inning with a two-run homer to center field to score Paul Goldschmidt. Martinez’s two-run jack was his 40th of the season and 24th with the Diamondbacks.

Sandoval homered on a fly ball to left center to extend the Giants’ lead to 5-2 in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Kelby Tomlinson was out on a sacrifice fly to Martinez. Panik scored to expand the Giants’ lead to 6-2 in the bottom of the seventh inning.

After flying into a force out, Sandoval picked up an RBI single that scored Slater. The Giants took a 7-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh inning.

The Giants (58-93) blew out the Diamondbacks (87-63) with a lopsided 7-2 victory at home.

Notes
Ryan Vogelsong took the mound for one last time at AT&T Park. He retired as a Giant today. He officially ended his 12-year Major League Baseball career that began on September 2, 2000.

Pablo Sandoval ripped a home run off Jorge De La Rosa for his his first right-handed home run in three years.

Orlando Cepeda turned 80 years old today.

On this day in 1997, the Giants beat the Dodgers 2-1 to move a game behind Los Angeles-NL in the National League West. Barry Bonds hit a two-run homer and Kirk Rueter allowed just one run over seven innings of work for the win.

Up Next
The Giants have a much-needed off day before returning to action Tuesday for a two-game series against the Colorado Rockies. Game 1 starts at 7:15 p.m. PST on NSBA, ATRM.

Diamondbacks continue momentum, top Giants 2-0

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Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda waves to fans prior to the San Francisco Giants’ baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By: Ana Kieu

SAN FRANCISCO — Despite it being Orlando Cepeda bobblehead night, the San Francisco Giants were unable to get a win, falling 2-0 to the Arizona Diamondbacks at AT&T Park Saturday night.

The Diamondbacks jumped out to an early 2-0 lead when Paul Goldschmidt hit his 35th home run of the season in the top of the first inning.

The Giants continued to trail the Diamondbacks 2-0 as a 1-2-3 ended the fifth inning.

Madison Bumgarner (3-9) ended his night on the mound after going seven innings. He gave up two runs on seven hits. He also tallied one walk and six strikeouts.

Batting ninth, Cory Gearrin replaced Bumgarner to start the eighth inning. Gearrin was then replaced by Nick Hundley in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Batting ninth, Sam Dyson replaced Gearrin to start the ninth inning.

Not only were the Giants’ pitching substitutions time consuming, they also didn’t help at all. The Diamondbacks shutout the Giants 2-0 in the middle game of the series. Zach Greinke (17-6) picked up the win.

Notes
Giants Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda celebrated his 80th birthday. Moreover, the club shared a large birthday cake in the press room in honor of the special celebration.

Giants signaled their intention to exercise Matt Moore’s $9 million option for 2018. The team has a $10 million option for 2019.

Up Next
The Giants conclude the three-game series with a rubber match Sunday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. PST on ESPN, NSBA and FSAZ.

 

This is the place the Athletics have chosen for their new $500-mil ballpark

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
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A mock-up of what a new Athletics ballpark could look like on the proposed site from Newballpark.org

by Charlie O. Mallonee

The day that all Oakland Athletics fans have been waiting for has finally come. On Wednesday, the Athletics announced that they have selected a site for their new $500-million privately financed baseball only ballpark. That site will be will be known as the Peralta Ballpark Plan.

The location is between Lake Merritt and I-880 and is currently occupied by commercial warehouses, parking lots and the administrative offices for the Peralta Community College District.

Plans call for more than a ballpark on the site

This plan calls for a complete makeover of the area that will include more than the Athletics new facility. It will include:

  • New housing
  • There will be emphasis on affordable housing
  • Small business space will be available
  • Restaurant and retail space that will serve the locals and fans
  • Parks will be a part of the overall development
  • Commercial real estate will also have a place in the plan
  • If this sounds a lot like what happened in China Basin when AT&T Park was built, that is exactly the hopes and plans for this development.

What is the proposed schedule for the project?

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An aerial shot of the proposal ballpark site
  • Year one: Community Process – the residents, businesses and city government of Oakland have buy into the project in order to make it work.
  • Year two: Permitting (this is California), environmental approval and final ballpark design
  • 2021: Groundbreaking ceremony
  • 2023: Play ball!

What about financing?

  • The ballpark will be privately financed by the Oakland Athletics similar to how the Giants and the Warriors have built or are building their own facilities. Details to follow.
  • What about financing for the remainder of the project? Oakland Athletics owner John Fisher has made his fortune in commercial real estate. He is exactly the type of person who can pull together developers who will want to invest in this type of project, and because Oakland has been an economically challenged city, they are positioned nicely to receive federal and state money to help make a project like this successful.
  • The other factor this project has going for it is the overcrowding in the Bay Area. Oakland is really the last place where commercial office and work space can be developed. It may be last place in the Bay Area where “Transit Oriented Development” that includes work space, affordable housing, shopping and entertainment without needing a car can be made a reality. Would tech companies rather have employees and offices in Iowa or Oakland? It is an easy choice.

What about access to the ballpark?

The Coliseum offers some of the easiest in and out access of any sports complex in America. The new site would offer:

  • BART
  • Access to several freeways
  • The ability to walk and bike from downtown Oakland and surrounding communities
  • AT&T proved you do not have to have a 25,000 car parking lot to make a stadium work in California
Coliseum before Mt. Davis
The Coliseum with its beautiful views before the blight of Mt. Davis

What about the view?

How about a view of Lake Merritt, the Oakland skyline and the Oakland Hills? It might remind you of the great views from the Coliseum before “Mt. Davis” was built.

What would happen to the Coliseum site?

  • The A’s would work with the City of Oakland and the County of Alameda on a plan to develop what is undoubtedly a very valuable piece of land. Remember John Fisher is a major developer of real estate and knows how to bring people together for big projects.
  • The site is ideal for housing, hotel, retail and office development. Remember “Transit Oriented Development”? BART and Air BART are already at that location. That airport is one mile away. The land sits on I-880. It is prime real estate in an area that is running out of room.
  • The other part of the plan for that site is really exciting. The Athletics plan to build a multi-use sports complex and an Urban Youth Academy for baseball and soccer (remember John Fisher also owns the San Jose Earthquakes). This where Major League Baseball can really get involved as part of their initiative to reach out to urban youth.

Oakland Athletics President David Kaval said on Twitter, “A great day for Oakland and the #rootedinoakland”.

This is a day many thought would never come, but it is just the beginning. There is a great deal of hard work to do between now and April 2023.

Road woes continue, Giants fall to White Sox 8-1 in laugher

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Chicago White Sox’s Avisail Garcia, center, scores past San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey, left, as home plate umpire Eric Cooper looks on during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Chicago, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Marton)

By Ana Kieu

The San Francisco Giants closed out the three-game series with a brutal 8-1 loss to the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field on Sunday.

Giants ace Madison Bumgarner faced the White Sox for the first time in his career. He was matched up against rookie Carson Fulmer, who made his second start of the season.

The Giants got off to an early start as Jarrett Parker sent a fly ball to center for a 1-0 lead at the top of the second inning, but the White Sox poured in the runs in the bottom of the second inning. A throwing error by Mac Williamson allowed Kevan Smith and Rymer Liriano to score on Yolmer Sanchez’s two-run line-drive double. Tim Anderson hit a ground ball single to left. Fresh off a cycle, Jose Abreu jacked a two-run home run for his 30th of the season. The White Sox jumped to a 5-1 lead to end the inning.

Avasail Garcia scored on an RBI double by Matt Davidson, extending the White Sox’s lead to 6-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning.

A wild pitch by Albert Suarez allowed Sanchez to triple for a 7-1 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Abreu smacked his 31st home run of the season to expand the White Sox’s lead to 8-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Fulmer put in a hard day’s work with six innings, three hits, one run, three walks and nine strikeouts. The White Sox had Sunday’s game from start to finish, winning the series with a lopsided 8-1 victory at home.

Notes
White Sox placed left handed starter Carlos Rodon, who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury, on the 10-day disabled list.

Giants right handed reliever Mark Melancon will undergo surgery for his forearm next week. He’ll miss the rest of the season.

Up Next
The Giants return to AT&T Park to host the rival Dodgers. Game 1 between the two teams is on Monday night at 7:15 p.m. PST.

Giants drop series finale to Cardinals 7-3

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San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner works against the St. Louis Cardinals in the first inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Ana Kieu

SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants lost 7-3 to the St. Louis Cardinals in the series finale at AT&T Park on Sunday afternoon.

Madison Bumgarner made his 14th start of the season after being scratched from his start on Thursday with flu-like symptoms.

The Giants broke through in the bottom of the third inning. Buster Posey hit a line-drive single to Joe Panik, who scored a run to give his team a 1-0 lead.

The Cardinals hit back-to-back home runs to take their first lead of the game in the top of the fourth inning. Paul DeJong tied the ballgame 1-1 with a home run on a fly ball for his 21st of the season. Jose Martinez then smacked a home run on a fly ball to left center that gave St. Louis a 2-1 lead.

Bumgarner hit a solo home run for his third of the season, tying the game 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning.

The Cardinals poured in the runs in the sixth inning. Harrison Bader hit his second career home run and the Cardinals’ third of the game to put his team ahead 3-2. Martinez followed with an RBI double to make it a 4-2 game. Yadier Molina added another RBI double to extend the Cardinals’ lead to 5-2.

Bader expanded the Cardinals’ lead to 6-2 with a ground ball single that scored Alex Mejia in the top of the seventh inning. Shortly after, Bader scored on a ground rule double by Martinez to enlarge the Cardinals’ lead to 7-2.

Tim Federowicz hit his first home run as a Giant in the bottom of the eighth inning. As a result, San Francisco cut the Cardinals’ lead to 7-3.

The Giants lost to the Cardinals 7-3 in the series finale at home.

“I contribute a little bit more,” Giants center fielder Gorkys Hernandez said. “You have to finish hard. You have to prepare for next season.”

“This year is really tough,” Hernandez added. “Everyone wants to go to the playoffs.”

Notes
The Giants recalled infielder Orlando Calixte and outfielder Mac Williamson from triple-A Sacramento. San Francisco now has 31 active pitchers on their roster (16 pitchers, three catchers, six infielders and six outfielders).

Giants outfielder Austin Slater went 1-for-3 in his second rehab appearance with triple-A Sacramento last night, playing seven innings in left field. Slater has missed the last 50 games with a right groin strain.

Giants left handed pitcher Josh Osich turns 29 years old today.

Today’s attendance is 39,724.

Up Next
The Giants head to Coors Field to take on the Colorado Rockies for a three-game series that starts this Monday at 1:10 p.m. MST on NSBA, ATRM.

MLB Podcast The Show with Matt Harrington: Melancon will need surgery after season should be good as new by spring; Manaea put in great effort but gets the loss on Friday

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San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Johnny Cueto reacts after recording the last out of the second inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday, Sept. 1, 2017, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

By Matt Harrington

SAN FRANCISCO– The San Francisco Giants used nine different pitchers on Friday night against the St Louis Cardinals, the Giants came out with a three run burst in the bottom of the second and added two more in the bottom of the third and had a 5-2 lead at AT&T Park. Giants starter Johnny (Baseball) Cueto was sailing along until the top of the sixth when he was lifted for Steven Okert. Cueto left the ball game going five plus innings, four runs, two earned runs and a strike out.

The Giants had used including Cueto a total of nine pitchers and seemed like an inflated number as much so as the all time temperature high of 106 degrees in San Francisco history. The Giants also are faced with reliever Mark Melancon having surgery after the season. This was a known fact after Melancon’s last start and Melancon who pitched in Friday night’s game will have surgery regarding his pronator strain but should be ready next spring.

Oakland A’s notes: The A’s continue getting tortured they have now lost every game on this current road trip with two more games left. Friday’s loss wasn’t comforting at all losing to the Seattle Mariners 3-2 behind the effective pitching of Mike Leake who comes over to Seattle from St Louis. Leake held Oakland scoreless over six innings after giving up two runs to start the game.

A’s starter Sean Manaea put in a great effort giving up three runs in the bottom of the third and that was all the M’s were going to get but the A’s bats couldn’t get any production going. For Manaea 6 2/3 innings, seven hits, three runs all earned, walked  and struck out three. Manaea drops his record to 9-9. The A’s continue this current trip at Safeco Field Saturday night Jharel Cotton (7-10) gets the start for Oakland and the Mariners Yovani Gallardo (5-10) will start for Seattle a 6:10PM first pitch.

Matt Harrington does the MLB Podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Oakland A’s Podcast: Trade Deadline Special featuring Melissa Lockard of OaklandClubhouse.com with Charlie O

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
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Photo: Bruce Kluckhorn USA TODAY Sports

  • What uniform will Sonny Gray be wearing on August 1st?

  • Who will the Athletics get in return for Gray?

  • What will happen with Yonder Alonso?

  • Should Jed Lowrie and Rajai Davis have their bags packed?

  • Is Khris Davis untouchable?

  • Are the Oakland Athletics really in a true rebuilding mode?

Get the answers to these questions and more on this special edition of the Oakland A’s Podcast which will focus on the MLB trade deadline. The Athletics are definitely sellers at this point and their prize player is pitcher Sonny Gray. Many teams want him, but who will be willing to step up and pay the price the A’s are going to want for Gray?

melissa lockard
Melissa Lockard OaklandClubhouse.com & FanRagSports.com

Charlie O welcomes Melissa Lockard to the podcast to discuss all things trade deadline. Melissa is the publisher and editor of OaklandClubhouse.com and a regular contributor to FanRagSports.com on the latest news relating to the Athletics. Melissa also spends a great deal of time reporting on the A’s minor league organization, so she knows the strengths and weaknesses of the system as well as what the needs are for the future.

This podcast will not waste your time. It’s 19-minutes and 17-seconds of pure content. They jump into the questions and get to the heart of the story.

Reds break out brooms against Giants

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San Francisco Giants pitcher Johnny Cueto throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds, Sunday, May 7, 2017, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Michael E. Keating)

By Jeremy Kahn

This will be a weekend that the San Francisco Giants will want to forget for the rest of the season.

Scott Feldman threw a complete game shutout, the third of his career and first since 2014, when he was a member of the Houston Astros and the Cincinnati Reds shutout the Giants 4-0 at Great American Ballpark, completing the three-game sweep.

The Bay Area native entered the game with a 1-5 career record versus the Giants struck out five, walked just one on his way to his second win of the season.

This was the fourth time this season that the Giants were shutout, tying the Chicago White Sox for the most in the major leagues.

During the three-game sweep of the Giants, the Reds outscored the Giants 31-5, as they swept the Giants for the first time since the 2013 season.

Former Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto, who pitched for the Reds for eight seasons before being traded to the Kansas City Royals during the 2015 season went seven innings, allowing six hits and struck out 10, as his record fell to 4-2 on the season.

Cueto topped the double-digit plateau in strikeouts for the 14th time in his major-league career, and it was the fourth time since joining the Giants that Cueto struck out 10 or more in a game.

Christian Arroyo booted a ground ball hit by Billy Hamilton in the first inning, for the Giants eighth error in their last seven games. Hamilton got the Reds on the board, as he scored on a Eugenio Suarez single. Scooter Gennett added a run-scoring later in the inning to give the Reds and Feldman all the runs that they would need.

The final two runs of the game came via the home run ball, as Scott Schebler and Zack Cozart each hit solo home runs for the Reds.

Hamilton tripled later in the game, becoming the first Reds player to hit triples in three consecutive games since Deion Sanders during the 1997.

NOTES: Matt Moore looks to break the Giants losing streak on Monday afternoon, as they open a three-game series against the New York Mets at Citi Field. Jacob de Grom will take the mound for the Mets in the series opener.

Brandon Crawford, who is currently on the 10-day disabled list with a right groin strain will start a rehab assignment on Monday, as he will play six innings for the Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels.