Tag: San Francisco

Right Winger Christian Ouellet Returns With SF Bulls

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by Kahlil Najar

SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francsico Bulls announced on Tuesday that they have resigned talented right winger Christian Ouellet through the 2013-2014 season. He’ll begin the season at the Bulls’ AHL affiliate’s Training Camp in Worcester, Massachusetts.

IIn 2012, he split time between both the Gwinnett Gladiators and the San Francisco Bulls racking up 17 goals, 20 assists and 46 penalty minutes. For the Bulls, Ouellet grabbed three assists in five games during their first ever playoff run against the number one seed Alaska Aces.

“Christian is a player that does everything well,” said Bulls President and Head Coach Pat Curcio. “He’s got offensive skills and is responsible in the defensive zone. He’s going to be a star. We wish him all the best at Worcester’s Training Camp.”

On his return, Oulette said, “I’m happy to be returning. I want to have a good season, since I had a great time with the team and in the city last year. I’m excited to be back playing with Scotty (Langdon), Kris (Belan) and Dylan (King) if I don’t make Worcester.”

Ouellet will be a welcome spark to Bulls who have already resigned Brett Findlay, Nick Czinder, Scott Langdon, Dylan King and Kris Belan back to the roster.

2013-9-10-ouellet

Where did the fans go?

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By Jerry Feitelberg

Ever since 1968 when the A’s arrived I Oakland, they have always been the “second team.” The Giants landed in San Francisco ten years earlier and have “owned” the Bay Area ever since. Never mind the fact that the A’s won six American League pennants and four World Series. There was no question that the fans preferred the Giants over the A’s even when the Giants played at Candlestick Park. There is no question that attendance has been terrific at the Giants new facility, AT&T Park, at Third and King in the city. The Giants, of course, have had great success on the field since the park opened. The Giants had Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent and they won the NL crown in 2002 but lost the World Series to the Anaheim Angels that year. They sold out the park and while attendance slowed up a bit prior to the 2010 season, they have done very well. The Giants, as everyone knows, won the World Series in 2010 and 2012.

The A’s, on the other hand, had some bad season afters they made the playoffs and their attendance was pretty pathetic. Their owners, Lew Wolff and John Fisher, have wanted to move the team to San Jose but the Giants,who have “territorial rights” to San Jose have indicated that they have no intention of relinquishing those rights.

So, the A’s play in an outdated facility but they have an outstanding team that is trying to win the AL West and make it to the playoffs for the second straight year. One would think that the Coliseum would be packed. Not so. The A’s played the Texas Rangers the last three days here in Oakland. How was attendance ? Pretty bad. The A’s drew 24,000 on Labor day and 16,000 plus Tuesday and Wednesday and the Attendance for Thursday’s night game with the Houston Astros appears to be the smallest crowd of the year with less than 10,000 fans. If you were a player, would you not wonder what the hell is going on. The Giants who are in a battle for last place in the NL West and playing at home against Arizona will pack the joint and the A’s will be playing in front of a sparse crowd. Hard to believe but if the fans want the A’s to stay in Oakland it would be wise for them to show up and support their team rather than moaning and groaning about the possible departure of the club to San Jose.

Petit is nearly perfect

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By Jeremy Kahn

PhotoSAN FRANCISCO-Yusmeiro Petit came within just one strike of baseball immortality against his former team, the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The right-hander, who is making his third start in the last two weeks, came within one strike of becoming the 24th pitcher to throw a perfect game, as the San Francisco Giants defeated the Diamondbacks 3-0 before a sellout crowd of 41,180 at AT&T Park.

Petit retired the first 26 batters he faced, but former Oakland A’s third baseman Eric Chavez broke up the perfecto with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, as his single was out of the reach of a diving Hunter Pence in right field.

In all, Petit threw a complete game one-hit shutout, the first of his career, as he struck out seven, just five days after striking out a career-high 10 in the Giants 8-2 victory over these same Diamondbacks on Sunday afternoon at Chase Field in Phoenix.

Petit was only the second Giants pitcher this season to throw a complete game, joining Tim Lincecum, who threw a no-hitter on July 13 against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park.

The eight and two-thirds of no-hit ball pitched by Petit was the longest in his career, breaking his previous long of seven innings, while pitching for the Diamondbacks at PNC Park against the Pittsburgh Pirates on August 4, 2009.

Petit is the 12th pitcher in major league history to lose a perfect game with two outs in the ninth inning, and the second this season, as Yu Darvish of the Texas Rangers lost a perfect game in his first start of the season against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park on April 2, 2013.

In that game, Ronny Cedeno broke up Petit’s no-hit bid with no outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, as the Diamondbacks defeated the Pirates 6-0.

Pence scored the first run of the game for the Giants in the bottom of the second inning, as Petit’s battery mate Hector Sanchez drove him in with a single.

It was also Pence who scored the Giants second run of the game in the bottom of the fourth inning, as he scored on the second Sanchez single of the night.

On the night, Pence went 3-for-3 with three runs, a single, a double and a home run.

Over his last 15 games, Pence is hitting .392, going 20-for-51 with nine RBIs, and 13 runs scored.

This was also the 48th multi-hit game of the season for Pence, tied for the third-most in the National League.

Following the Pence double, Pablo Sandoval nearly reached for the second consecutive at-bat; however Adam Eaton made a terrific catch in left field.

Joaquin Arias was then retired following the Sandoval fly out, as Paul Goldschmidt made a great play at first base.

Petit’s opponent on the mound, Patrick Corbin nearly picked up the first Diamondbacks hit in the top of the sixth inning, but Juan Perez made a tremendous diving catch to preserve the game for Petit.

Corbin went eight innings, allowing three runs on eight hits, walking just one and striking out five, but lost for the second time in the last five days to the Giants.

Sandoval extended his hitting streak to eight-straight games, as he singled off of Corbin in the bottom of the second inning.

During the streak, Sandoval is hitting .406 (13-for-32) with eight RBIs, also over his last 23 games, the 2012 World Series MVP is hitting .386 (33-for-86) with 20 RBIs.

Pence made it 3-0 in the bottom of the eighth inning, as he took a Corbin pitch and supplanted it into the left field bleachers for his 19th home run of the season.

It was the 19th home run of the season for Pence, as he is just one home run shy of becoming the first Giants player to go 20-20 since Barry Bonds turned the trick in 1998.

Pence and Sandoval are not the only Giants swinging a hot bat, as Angel Pagan extended his hitting streak up to 11 games, as he singled in the bottom of the fifth inning.

49ers trounce Chargers, 41-6

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By Gabe Schapiro

In the final preseason tune up before the regular season gets underway next week, the San Francisco 49ers (3-1) took it to the San Diego Chargers (1-3) last night, running away with a 41-6 victory. Despite several starters not suiting up, and several others only making brief appearances, all three facets of this 49ers squad were on display. Their offense punched in four touchdowns, their defense racked up four sacks and three interceptions, and their special teams unit had multiple nice returns and a blocked punt in the Chargers own endzone that went for another score. The overmatched Chargers managed just two field goals on the night.

Colin Kaepernick played for just the first series of the game, but made it count marching the offense down the field, culminating with a quick pass to rookie wideout Quinton Patton, who deked his man and ran it in for a 43-yard touchdown. Patton, who made his 49ers debut last week against the Vikings, had another strong outing, finishing with two receptions, 52 yards, and the touchdown.

After the opening series backup Colt McCoy took over and played into the third quarter. He wasted little time getting in on the onslaught, contributing a five-yard touchdown pass to Anthony Dixon half way through the second quarter. On the night he completed eight of 15 passes for 56 yards, and the one touchdown.

Third string QB B.J. Daniels who has been opening eyes all preseason, took over late and did more of the same. He threw two touchdown passes five minutes apart to put a nail in the San Diego coffin, highlighted by a 45-yard touchdown grab by Lavelle Hawkins. Hawkins, who is still fighting for a roster spot on the teams muddled receiving corps, was the games leading receiver with four receptions for 62 yards and the touchdown. Daniels completed five of his nine passes for 76 yards and two touchdowns. He also flashed his running ability, with six carries for 54 yards.

On the defensive side of the ball linebacker Cam Johnson was the star, finishing with six tackles, two sacks, a blocked punt, and managed to recover the blocked punt in the endzone for a touchdown. FS Craig Dahl, LB Michael Wilhoite, and CB Tramaine Brock hauled in an interception each.

Maybe the only negative on the night for San Francisco was the injury of RB LeMichael James, who sustained a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee. He is expected to miss three-to-four weeks. With James out Frank Gore and Kendall Hunter will get the bulk of the carries. At punt and kick returner, the duties will likely go to one of WR Kyle Williams, CB Perrish Cox, or WR Quinton Patton.

All in all, the 49ers end their preseason schedule on a very high note, and look raring to go for the regular season opener next Sunday, September 8 at 1:25 PM against the always-tough Green Bay Packers at the friendly confines of Candlestick Park.

Preseason preview week 4, 49ers at Chargers

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By Gabe Schapiro

In the final tune up for the regular season opener, the preseason schedule comes to a close this Thursday at 7pm when the San Francisco 49ers (2-1) face off against the San Diego Chargers (1-2) at Qualcomm Stadium. The Chargers finished a disappointing 7-9 last season, a distant second place to the AFC West Champion Denver Broncos. As a result, they enter 2013 with a new general manager, Tom Telesco, and a new first time head coach, Mike McCoy. Their roster is headlined by many of the same key players, namely QB Phillip Rivers, TE Antonio Gates, and RB Ryan Mathews. There have been some changes, headlined by the acquisition of DE/OLB Dwight Freeney and their first two draft picks, OT D.J. Fluker and the controversial ILB Manti Te’o, but with Rivers and Gates declining, there chances of contending appear slim.

Last week San Francisco came away with a decisive 34-14 win over the Minnesota Vikings. Colin Kaepernick, who played through he first quarter, his longest action of the preseason, started off slow completing just one of his first six passes before settling in. He led an 11 play, 84-yard touchdown drive, culminating in a five yard touchdown pass to rookie Quinton Patton, who was making his 49ers debut. The game was also highlighted by an 105-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Lavelle Hawkins and a pair of rushing touchdowns in the fourth quarter from Jewel Hampton and Anthony Dixon. The 49ers defense was stout once again, but did surrender their first two touchdowns of the preseason schedule.

With the regular season opener just a week and a half away, position battles are becoming clearer and the final roster is starting to take shape.

Prior to last weeks game veteran QB Seneca Wallace was signed to a one-year contract, adding to the competition for the backup job behind Kaepernick. In addition, yesterday it was announced that they had released Scott Tolzien, leaving Colt McCoy, B.J. Daniels, and now Wallace to fight it out. McCoy was unspectacular last week, completing 73% of his passes but also throwing an interception. Daniels and Wallace saw limited action late in the game, completing two-of-three and two-of-two passes respectively.

At wide receiver, Patton finally got onto the field, starting the game as the third receiver behind Anquan Boldin and Marlon Moore, and didn’t disappoint, hauling in a team high four receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown. Jon Baldwin made his debut following the trade last week that sent AJ Jenkins packing, finishing with two receptions for 23 yards. Best guess has Boldin, Moore, Kyle Williams, Patton, and Baldwin making the final roster, with a possible sixth wideout spot still being up for grabs.

On the defensive side of the ball, the picture looks pretty clear. During a press conference from defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, it was announced that rookie FS Eric Reid and DT Ian Williams would both be getting the nods to start the opener. They have both been the odds on favorites to start over Craig Dahl and Glenn Dorsey respectively, but this was the first official word. He also indicated that CB Nnamdi Asomugha has the edge for the third corner back spot, but is a little banged up which has prevented him from officially locking it up.

Following the upcoming game against the Chargers, it will finally be time for some regular season action. For San Francisco the journey starts on Sunday, September 8 at 1:25pm up against the tough Green Bay Packers, at Candlestick Park.

Bulls and Sharks keep the love going, re-up affiliation

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by Kahlil Najar and Phillip Torres

SAN FRANCISCO–

The San Francisco Bulls announced today that their affiliation with the NHL’s San Jose Sharks and the AHL’s Worcester Sharks has been renewed. The Bulls will continue to serve as the Sharks’ exclusive ECHL developmental team.

The Bulls were the new kid at the table last year as they entered their inaugural season in the ECHL and when they announced their affiliation with the Sharks, they instantly became a the new belle of the ball. The Sharks provided seven players to the Bulls, including goaltenders Thomas Heemskerk and Taylor Nelson, defenseman Mikael Tam, and forwards Marek Viedensky, Daniil Tarasov, Yanni Gourde and Tommy Grant.

On the Bulls, Sharks Assistant GM Joe Will said “San Francisco provides a terrific option for us to place players in a situation where they can further develop themselves as hockey players. Bulls Head Coach Pat Curcio and his staff do a great job preparing the players to succeed and Daniil is a perfect example of that. He worked hard in San Francisco and Worcester and earned an NHL contract on the merit of his play.”

“We’re very excited to continue and further grow our partnership with the San Jose Sharks,” said SF Bulls President and Head Coach Pat Curcio. “We can’t thank Doug Wilson, Wayne Thomas, Joe Will and John Tortora enough for their support. Our first season created a mutually beneficial relationship. The Sharks provided us with high-quality players, who helped contribute to our team’s appearance in the playoffs. We are excited about the opportunity to develop Sharks prospects while putting a winning product on the ice. We also believe that our affiliation with the Sharks not only gives us quality prospects, it gives us an instant identity in a very large market, and we are very grateful to them for that.”

“We had an extremely positive relationship with the Bulls last season as a development vehicle for players within our system and we look forward to continuing that agreement,” said Sharks GM Doug Wilson.

This affiliation with the Sharks helps solidify the Bulls home here in San Francisco. The proximity of the Cow Palace to the SAP Center is something that most ECHL and NHL teams do not share and no doubt had an influence in both teams decision to continue this successful partnership. The Bulls had tremendous reach into the community during the season as they had above average attendance to most home games and put their stamp on all facets of media including radio, TV and other out-of-home advertisements.

“It’s important for us as an organization to help grow the game of hockey at all levels in the Bay Area and the Bulls have done a great job putting a quality product on the ice,” said Sharks Chief Operating Officer John Tortora. “The Sharks Bay Area journey began in the San Francisco area and this is another opportunity for us to connect and engage with our many fans and supporters in the North Bay, which is home to more than 15% of our season ticket base.”

The Bulls start their season this year with a preseason match up against the Bakersfield Condors on October 10th at 7:30pm at the historic Cow Palace

SF Bulls Pick Up A Pair of Power Forwards in Perdicaro and Paquette

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SAN FRANCISCO –

By Kahlil Najar

The San Francisco Bulls announced today they have agreed to terms with center Anthony Perdicaro and right wing Danick Paquette.

Perdicaro comes from the Quad City Mallards of the CHL where he tallied 43 points in 44 games. He’s a big guy standing 6-foot, 2-inches tall and weighing in at 190-pounds. “I’m excited to get out there and play for Pat and the Bulls fans,” said Perdicaro. “After talking to Pat this summer, the Bulls seemed like the right fit. I’m ready to go and win some games. I’ve never played in a big city, mostly small towns. But coming from New York and Florida, it won’t be too big of an adjustment.”

Paquette, 23, was a third-round draft pick, 64th overall, of the Atlanta Thrashers in 2008. last season he split the season between the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League and the ECHL-champion Reading Royals. The 6-foot, 210-pound Montreal, Quebec native has played in six AHL games between the Chicago Wolves and Hershey. Paquette had 55 points (28 goals, 27 assists) and 466 penalty minutes in 131 career ECHL games with the Gwinnett Gladiators, South Carolina Stingrays, Utah Grizzlies, Chicago Express and Reading.

“Anthony brings skill and a physical style to our lineup,” said SF Bulls President and Head Coach Pat Curcio. “Last year he was a top player in the CHL and we are confident he’ll be a top player in the ECHL. We are excited to have Danick, who has the potential to get to the next level and the NHL. He’s a skillful power forward, who will fit well on our team this season.”

SF Giants split series, defeat Brewers 4-1

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By Jerry Feitelberg

August 8, 2013

0808131The Giants were looking to even the four game series with the Milwaukee Brewers Thursday afternoon at AT&T park. The Giants sent Tim Lincecum to the hill. Lincecum entered the game with a 5-11 record for the season but he looked like the Timmy of old as he picked up the win going eight innings allowing no runs and just ONE hit as the Giants won the game 4-1. Marco Scutaro and Brandon Crawford were terrific at the top of the lineup as they both had three hits each in the game. They had back to back hits in the first, second and sixth inning. The big blow of the game came in the first inning went Brandon Belt hit a three run homer. The game summary follows.

The Giants jumped out to 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Marco Scutaro led of with a single to left. Shortstop Brandon Crawford followed with a double to left center field to put men on at second and third with no out. With one out, first baseman Brandon belt launched a home run to deep right field to score Scutaro and Crawfor ahead of him. Giants lead 3-0 after one inning of play.

The Giants added a run in the bottom of the second. With two out, Marco Scutaro doubled down the left field line. He advanced to third on a wild pitch and then scored on a single off the bat of Brandon Crawford. Giants lead 4-0 after two.

The Brewers got on the board in the top of the ninth. Khris Davis, pinch hitting for the pitcher, doubled to start the frame. Davis scored when Jean Segura singled with one out. Sergio Romo nailed nail the win getting the last two outs of the game. Giants win 4-1. Lincecum gets the win and he is now 6-11 for the season and Donovan Hand took the loss . Hand’s record is now 0-4.

Notes: The Giants entered the game homer less in eleven straight home games. The last home run at home was on July 20th.The Giants are now 8-12 since the All-Star break. The Giants recalled Hector Sanchez from Fresno and he caught the game for the Giants. Catcher Guillermo Quiroz was designated for assignment. With the win, the Giants are now 12 games under .500 and their home record improves to 30-29. The Giants play an inter-league series with the Baltimore Orioles Friday night at AT&T park at 7:15 pm.

Attendance was 41,219. It was the 233rd consecutive sellout for San Francisco.

Late rally downs Bumgarner, Giants

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By Jeremy Harness

August 7, 2013
Photo


SAN FRANCISCO – As the eighth inning began, things were looking pretty good for the Giants.

Starter Madison Bumgarner had been giving a spectacular performance, going seven innings and giving up only a pair of hits and a walk while the Giants had just given him a run in the bottom of the seventh to put him in line for a possible win.

That’s when the good feelings ceased, however. The Milwaukee Brewers tagged Bumgarner for four runs in the eighth inning as the Giants fell 6-1 before 41,416 hopeful fans at AT&T Park Wednesday night.

Looking on the bright side, however, Bumgarner now has 10 straight outings that he has pitched at least seven innings, which is the longest streak by a Giants starter since Rick Reuschel had 11 consecutive to end the 1988 season.

The Giants couldn’t get anything going offensively against starter Marco Estrada, managing only one hit against him in the five innings he pitched.

It wasn’t just Estrada who the Giants had issues with on Wednesday. They also have center fielder Carlos Gomez to thank for keeping them off the scoreboard. They hit several hard shots in Gomez’s area, only to watch him run each one of them down.

That started in the first inning, when Buster Posey smacked one that was destined for extra bases, a ball which Gomez leaped at the warning track and snared to end the inning.

The Giants did get a little payback in the seventh inning, though. After he walked with two outs, Bumgarner timed his pickoff move perfectly as Gomez was trying to steal second. From there, first baseman Brandon Belt fired to second for the putout as Gomez spiked his helmet in frustration.

That seemed to spark a rally for the Giants that carried over to the bottom of the inning, as the two Brandons got on base to start things off, Crawford with a walk and Belt with a single that just skipped past second baseman Rickie Weeks’ glove.

A wild pitch by reliever Alfredo Figaro then moved both of them into scoring position with Posey at the plate. Posey was robbed again of a base hit – this time by a diving grab in left field by Khris Davis – but Crawford tagged up from third to put the Giants in front and take the lid off of the scoreless game.

However, the Brewers themselves got some momentum against Bumgarner in the eighth that eventually knocked him out of the game. Davis and Yuniesky Betancourt led off the inning with hits before Jeff Bianchi scored Davis. On the next play, Betancourt scored on a throwing error by Bumgarner on a fielder;’s choice, which gave the Brewers the lead. After the outburst in the eighth, the Brewers put up two more runs off reliever Barry Zito to send even more fans to the exits. 

49ers vs Broncos, preseason preview

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By Gabe Schapiro

August 5, 2013

This Thursday, August 8 at 6pm, the preseason schedule kicks off when the San Francisco 49ers take on the Denver Broncos at Candlestick Park. This matchup features two of the league’s best squads from 2012, and the two odds-on-favorites to win Super Bowl XLVIII. Last season the Broncos finished 13-3, winning the AFC West before losing to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Baltimore Ravens in the playoffs. The San Francisco 49ers finished 11-4-1, winning the NFC West, before falling to the same Ravens in the Super Bowl.

First the obligatory disclaimer that this is still just preseason football. The outcomes don’t matter and aren’t indicative of how well a team will do during the regular season. Instead, it’s a time to hope for good health, to keep an eye on a few key position battles, to look for growth and improvement from key players, and to hope for good health some more.

San Francisco has already been dealt a couple of blows due to injuries, most notably to their top wideout Michael Crabtree who is expected to be out until at least around week 12 with a torn Achilles. He joins receiver Mario Manningham on the PUP list. The 49ers have a stockpile of receivers in camp vying for roster spots, with really only Anquan Boldin penciled in as a sure thing as the new go-to option for Colin Kaepernick. AJ Jenkins, Kyle Williams, Kassim Osgood, and rookie Quinton Patton have all also been limited or have missed several practices due to minor injuries. The team recently signed Austin Collie and Lavelle Hawkins to join the fray at the position, which also includes Ricardo Lockette, Marlon Moore, and Chad Hall. The wide receiving corp as a whole may be the biggest single thing to look for during the preseason, both in terms of who can stay on the field and who can seize the opportunity and fill out the depth chart behind Boldin.

More recently, San Francisco lost cornerback Chris Culliver for the season with a torn ACL. He had been penciled in as the team’s third corner behind Carlos Rogers and Tarell Brown. It’s a big blow at a position that already had questionable depth. Keep an eye on Nnamdi Asomugh, Tramaine Brock, and Perrish Cox who will be fighting to take over the spot.

The other major position battles to watch will be at kick and punt returner, free safety, and nose tackle.

LaMichael James appears to have the inside track to be the return specialist, as he is listed atop the first game release depth chart the 49ers have issued at both kick and punt returner. He struggled when he was given brief looks at returning punts last season, but reportedly has impressed during camp.

At free safety, CJ Spillman is currently listed as the starter. First round pick Eric Reid, who the team traded up to get, however, is still considered the favorite to start game one of the regular season. Craig Dahl has reportedly had a very strong spring, but is on the outside looking in at this point.

Ian Williams and Glenn Dorsey are fighting it out for the nose tackle spot. Both have been performing well at camp, but Williams has the edge.

Notes: Star linebacker Patrick Willis suffered a fracture in his right hand, which will require surgery. Willis has a history of broken hands, and most importantly a history of playing through them without missing a step. He is still expected to be ready to go for the season opener against the Packers, but will be sitting out Thursday’s preseason opener.