Oakland A’s podcast with Joey Friedman: A’s and Giants headed in two different directions before Bay Bridge series; Bailey and Puk can be of big help down the stretch;

photo from sfgate.com: Juan Contreras of Stockton waves an Oakland A’s flag near the top of Oakland Coliseum’s Mount Davis during an MLB game between the A’s and the San Francisco Giants on Saturday, July 21, 2018, in Oakland. A’s president David Kaval has announced he will open up Mount Davis to the fans for the two game series in Oakland.

On the A’s podcast with Joey Friedman:

#1 The Oakland A’s and San Francisco Giants could be headed in two different directions. The A’s, who are tied for second with Cleveland for the AL wild card, have day light to get into postseason. Meanwhile, San Francisco, which came off a three-game sweep in Chicago, are now six games back in the NL wild card standings.

#2 San Francisco Giant pitcher Logan Webb got to throw to his childhood favorite former A’s catcher Stephen Vogt. Vogt caught Webb on the last road trip in Arizona on Sun., Aug. 18th and Webb faced his face his childhood favorite team, the A’s.

#3 The A’s in this brief two-game series will be starting Homer Bailey on Sunday. Bailey (11-8) is expected to pitch high performance and he could be one of the key pitchers that helps the A’s get to postseason as it’s a very tight wild card standings.

#4 How do you see A’s reliever AJ Puk coming around? He struggled against the New York Yankees in relief on Wednesday, but manager Bob Melvin has high expectations for Puk, who is presumed to be a starter at some point.

#5 The A’s past some tough tests this past week taking three out of four from the Astros and sweeping the Yankees and are tied for second in the wild card. They’re expected to at least split with the Giants.

Join Joey on the A’s podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Garoppolo Bounces Back in Win Over Chiefs 27-17

photo from sfgate.com: San Francisco 49ers quarterback throws behind 49ers offensive guard Mike Person (68) during the first half of Saturday Night Football’s game against the host Kansas City Chiefs in the final pre season game for 2019

by Joe Lami

Jimmy Garoppolo bounced back to expectations in his second appearance of the pre-season on Saturday night. After an abysmal performance on Monday, Jimmy G threw for 188 yards completing 14 of 20 passes and adding a touchdown in his first half dress rehearsal.

Garoppolo opened the Niners scoring with a 20-yard completion to Matt Breida to cap a seven-play, 78-yard drive, in which he went 4-for-4. He completed two more drives that ended with Robbie Gould field goals. After a 0.0 passer rating against the Broncos, Garoppolo greatly improved to a 116.2.

The Niners improved to 3-0 on the pre-season by defeating the Kansas City Chiefs 27-17. Most importantly, their dry run went phenomenal and gives hope that they’ll be ready when the season kicks off.

After showing strong defense all pre-season, the Niners defense got torched by MVP Patrick Mahomes on the opening drive. He found running back Damien Williams for a 62-yard quick touchdown strike. However, the defense was able to rebound by keeping Mahomes out of the end zone the rest of his night. He finished 8-of-10 for 126 yards.

Nick Mullens came in for backup duty; passing 8-of-11 for 84 yards. CJ Beathard didn’t see the field on Saturday night, which could give insight to how Kyle Shanahan is leaning for the backup spot.

Jeff Wilson Jr. is going to make cut down day difficult for the red and gold. He continues to impress, scoring two touchdowns in the second half, making the difference in the win. He finished with 45 yards on 12 carries and the two scores.

Kwon Alexander made his debut finishing with three tackles.

Damontre Moore stole the show with two sacks, five tackles, and four QB hits. Moore may be playing well enough to earn the 49ers a draft pick when they trade him since there’s just no room on the D-line for him on this team.

The Niners wrap up their preseason on Thursday at home versus the Chargers. While we won’t see most of the starters, we’ll get an in-depth look at how the 53-man roster is beginning to form.

San Jose Earthquakes podcast with Ana Kieu: What’s the scoop on the Quakes?

Photo credit: @SJEarthquakes

On the San Jose Earthquakes podcast with Ana:

1. The Quakes lost to LAFC 4-0 in Los Angeles last Wednesday.

2. Former Quakes striker Junior Agogo passed away in London at age 40 last Thursday.

3. It was deja vu as the Quakes defeated Vancouver WhiteCaps FC 3-1 in San Jose last Saturday.

4. The Quakes host Orlando City SC this Saturday.

5. Nick Lima and Jackson Yueill were called up to the U.S. Men’s National Team.

Ana does the San Jose Earthquakes podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Pillar and Vogt come up huge in eighth to give Giants 10-5 win

photo from sfgate.com: San Francisco Giants’ Stephen Vogt, right, celebrates with Buster Posey (28) after hitting a three-run home run off Oakland Athletics’ Ryan Buchter during the eighth inning of a baseball game Saturday, Aug. 24, 2019, in Oakland, Calif.

By Jeremy Kahn

OAKLAND — Kevin Pillar was a new addition to the San Francisco Giants earlier this season, and time and time, he comes with the biggest hit of the game.

Well, Pillar did it again, as he lashed a two-run double down the right field line in the top of the eighth inning, helping the Giants to a 10-5 victory over the Oakland As before a crowd of 53,367 at the Coliseum.

Stephen Vogt returned to the Coliseum, and put the game out of reach, as he smashed a three-run home run over the out-of-town scoreboard in left field.

In all, in that eighth inning, the Giants scored eight runs, sent 11 batters to the plate off of five different As relievers.

This was the first time that the Giants scored eight runs or more in an inning came on August 28, 2016 against the Atlanta Braves at what was then called AT&T Park, and it was the first time since August 17 ,2012 against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park that they did it on the road.

The win by the Giants, stopped their four-game losing streak and they are 4-4 on their current nine-game road trip that ends on Sunday afternoon.

With the loss, the As saw their modest three-game winning streak come to a crashing halt at the hands of their Bay Area rivals.

Things did not start out well, as Mark Canha led off the bottom of the second inning with a solo home run into the left field bleachers to give the As a 1-0 lead.

Matt Chapman gave the As a 2-0 cushion in the bottom of the third inning, as his double went off the left field wall to score Jurickson Profar, who walked to lead off the inning. Following the Profar walk, Phegley singled and Semien flew out for the first out of the inning, then Chapman put the As on top with the double.

Chris Bassitt pitched a great game, as he went 5.2 innings, allowing two runs on scattering four hits, walking no one and striking out five.

His counterpart on the mound, Madison Bumgarner went five innings, allowing two runs, while giving up four hits, walking one and striking out five.

Both Bassitt and Bumgarner did not factor into the decision in the game.

Brandon Crawford got the Giants on the board in the top of the fifth, as his laser to left field cleared the wall for his 10th home run of the season.

Evan Longoria tied up the game in the game in the top of the sixth inning, as he singled to left field that scored Alex Dickerson from second base. Dickerson doubled to left field to setup the Longoria at-bat.

Overall, since June 30, Longoria is hitting .347 (34-for-98) with 21 runs scored, nine home runs and 27 runs batted in.

Longoria went 2-for-4 with a hit by pitch and a RBI on the night.

The game was not tied for long, as Marcus Semien singled to left field off of Jandel Gustave that gave the As 3-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Jurickson Profar doubled to lead off the inning against Gustave, then advanced an additional 90 feet when Josh Phegley dropped down a perfect sacrifice bunt and then Semien came through his second hit of the night that gave the As the lead for the time being.

Profar doubled to lead off the inning against Gustave, then advanced an additional 90 feet when Josh Phegley dropped down a perfect sacrifice bunt and then Semien came through his second hit of the night that gave the As the lead for good.

Matt Olson gave the As a two-run lead, as he smoked a single to right field that scored Semien with what looked like the decisive fourth run; however, that eight-run inning put an end to that.

Profar reached base again in the bottom of the eighth inning, as he walked with two outs and then Phegley doubled in Profar. Reyes Moronta came on to face Semien, but he was unable to get that final out and Semien walked; however, Moronta was able to get Chapman to pop up to Longoria to end the inning.

Shaun Anderson came into the game in the bottom of the eighth inning, and gave up a walk to Chad Pinder; however, he was able to Khris Davis to ground into a double play.

Despite the fact that it was a save situation, Will Smith came into the game in the bottom of the ninth inning. It was the first game pitched for Smith since August 16 against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field.

NOTES: Pablo Sandoval was evaluated by Dr. Neal ElAttrache on Wednesday, and he recommends that Sandoval UCL (Tommy John) reconstructive surgery on his right elbow. Sandoval will have the operation during the first week of September.

Anderson was reinstated from the 10-day injured list, as his rehab stint in Sacramento came to a close. To make room for Anderson on the roster, Andrew Suarez was optioned to Sacramento.

Both the Giants wore their players weekend jersey, as the Giants wore all black jerseys and the As wore all white jerseys and caps. Bassitt wore a black cap on the mound instead of the white caps like the rest of his teammates.

UP NEXT: Logan Webb makes his second career start on Sunday afternoon for the Giants, while veteran Brett Anderson will take the mound for the As.

Earthquakes set MLS record in 3-1 victory over Whitecaps

photo from sjearthquakes.com: The San Jose Earthquakes get some love finally getting into the win column after five games with a 3-1 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps at Avaya Stadium on Saturday night.

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE, Calif. — In a historic night that featured first goals for three different players, the San Jose Earthqaukes used two of them to their advantage as they cruised to a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday evening at Avaya Stadium.

San Jose set an MLS record for most shots in a game with 43 against Vancouver. The previous record for most shots in a match was 38.

It was also the first match without head coach Matias Almeyda who was suspended for the match due to his ejection for arguing a non-call in the match this past Wednesday in the 4-0 loss to LAFC.

The win snaps their three-game losing streak and four-game overall winless streak. The victory also propelled them into fourth place in the Western Conference as they are tied with the Los Angeles Galaxy with 41 points. Vancouver is 2-2 in their last four games and sit in the cellar with 27 points.

“It was a big example of character”, said defenseman Shea Salinas on how the team responded without Almeyda being out there on the sidelines. “We have a bunch of leaders on this team. Every single guy that steps out there make sacrifices for the team and it showed tonight. It was an amazing performance.”

Vancouver (6-13-9) drew first blood for the Whitecaps in the seventh minute when Jakob Nerwinski received a ball along the right sideline from Theo Blair. Nerwinski dribbled past Vako and bent in a left footed shot into the lower left corner for his first goal of the season in an entertaining opening 10 minutes.

San Jose (12-10-5) countered immediately on the next possession. Captain Chris Wondolowski received a nice ball inside the box from 10 yards out from Christian Espinoza. He one-timed a pass over to Judson who fired a shot into the lower left corner of the goal that beat Whitecaps goalie Maxime Crepeau for his first goal of the season in the eighth minute.

“We knew we had to hit the reset button”, said Wondolowski. “No need to panic but at the same time iron out the details. It was good to get the three points.”

The Quakes dominated the first half from there on out and never looked back as they peppered Crepeau with shots all the way up to the halftime whistle blew. Crepeau amazingly kept the Whitecaps in the game stopping eight of the nine first half shots, including a right footed shot from Vako that was destined for the far corner of the goal only to have Crepeau get a hand on it at the last second, poured on by the home team.

In the 29th minute, Ali Adnan apparently tripped up Mangus Eriksson inside the box but referree Ramy Touchan allowed play to go and no penalty was called.

San Jose gained the lead in the 34th minute off a set piece. A corner kick by Eriksson serviced into the middle where Florian Jungworth’s header attempt deflected over to an open Wondolowski who one-timed a header into the back of the night for his team leading 11th goal of the season.

To say the Quakes controlled possession in the opening 45 minutes would be an understatement as they had a 80%-20% advantage.

In the second half, San Jose continued its exhibition against Vancouver creating numerous chances agianst the porous Whitecap defenese in the first 25 minutes of the half. However they weren’t able to cash in on any of them whether it not being able to finish their attempts or because of Crepeau’s wall of stone.

“To be honest I think we match up well with them (Vancouver)”, said Wondo. “Our style (of play) kind of helps us dictate the game against them.”

San Jose’s hard work paid off for them in the 73rd minute when Eriksson dribbled inside the box, then found a wide open Andres Rios, who came in as a substitute in the 70th minute for Vako, just outside from 20 yards out and his one-timer fired off the left goal post and into the back of the night for his first career MLS goal.

“I’m really happy”, said Rios. “It was my first goal at home. It’s an important victory for the team in our fight to get to the playoffs.”

Daniel Vega finished with two saves in a light night for the Quakes goal keeper. Crepeau, who was arguably the Whitecaps best player of the match, finished the evening with 14 saves on 16 shots on goal.

“43 shots on goal, you’d expect a few more goals,” Salinas joked about his team setting the league record. “He’s (Crepeau) been making saves like that all year. He’s a great goal keeper.”

GAME NOTES: San Jose had an astounding 16 corner kicks to only 1 for Vancouver. San Jose led in fouls 10-9.

San Jose is now 4-1-6 all time against Vancouver.

Carlos Fierro and Shea Salinas came in as subsitutions for Wondo and Espinoza in the 80th minute.

Jungworth was isssued a yellow card in the 31st minute for unsportmanlike conduct toward Touchan. Marco Lopez was also issued a yellow card in 72nd minute.

UP NEXT: The Quakes host Orlando City FC next Saturday, August 31 at 7:15 pm at Avaya Stadium.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca: Giants get swept by Cubs, head to Oakland for two-game weekend series

Photo credit: @SFGiants

On the Giants podcast with Michael:

#1 The Giants were swept in three games in Chicago two of them were loses by just one run. Do you view the Giants as a formidable opponent in their wild card chances seeing how they played against a competitive team like the Cubs? Dropping 14 of their last 17 games at Wrigley.

#2 Thursday’s game at Wrigley proved to be one for the books. Despite the loss, the Giants and Cubs played to a 1-0 final and former Cub starter Jeff Samardjiza went seven innings with two hits and one run.

#3 For Samardjiza, was this an advantage pitching in a park where he played part of career and that he was familiar with?

#4 The Cubs’ Kyle Hendricks got the call as the starter and didn’t disappoint going seven innings pitching a three hit shutout. He had good movement on his pitches on Thursday.

#5 The Giants have a rare Friday off before playing at the Oakland Coliseum on Saturday afternoon. Going for the Giants, Madison Bumgarner (8-8, 3.72 ERA), and for the A’s, Chris Bassitt (9-5, 3.61 ERA).

Michael does the Giants podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Lami: Can Garoppolo hit his targets on Saturday in Kansas City in preseason finale?

Photo credit: sacbee.com

On the 49ers podcast with Joe:

#1 On Monday Night Football, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo passed for zero yards throwing, one interception, and basically said he hasn’t been there for a year so he’s coming out of the shoot tired and rusty.

#2 Also, it should be mentioned that Garoppolo threw nine passes for zero yards from what Joe saw. Was Garoppolo pressing or was he genuinely rusty from not seeing action over a year?

#3 Do you expect to see Joe Staley and George Kittle out for preseason or on limited time in preseason?

#4 San Francisco 49ers tackle Shon Coleman, who broke his leg in the first preseason game, is out for the rest of the season. How much of an impact will that be on the team?

#5 Saturday the 49ers are in Kansas City. From what you’ve seen, how far are the 49ers ready for regular season play?

Joe does the 49ers podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon: Is the Raiders’ comeback against Green Bay in Winnipeg still significant even though it’s preseason?

Photo credit: @Raiders

On the Raiders podcast with Joe Hawkes:

#1 It may be just preseason, but there is something in the air in the Oakland Raiders dressing room — an excitement, and the anxiousness to get out on the field and do the job. The Raiders, who trailed to the Green Bay Packers up until the last few seconds of Thursday Night Football, came back and got kicker Daniel Carlson in kicking range to boot a game-winning field goal to get the Raiders their third straight preseason victory.

#2 Hard work and determination really goes into a win like the one the Raiders played on Thursday. Even though head coach Jon Gruden is using different rookies, players busting their tails to get a job on the team, and new faces who played their hearts out but were left with no choice but to be cut after a game like this.

#3 Talk about the field, it was a 80-yard field on Winnipeg and the 10-yard line is where the goal line. Did the CFL field kind of ruin the NFL game as the players had to convert their play to fit the field?

#4 There were no kickoffs in the game and the team who won the toss would start at the 25, how much of a difference did this make?

#5 The Raiders started Nathan Peterman, who completed 22 out of 36 passes for 230 yards, and Derek Carr sat out this one. How impressive did Peterman look and what are his chances as being the Raiders backup?

Joe Hawkes Beamon does the Raiders podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Headline Sports podcast with Tony Renteria: Kings to open preseason in India Oct. 4th; Yanks-A’s series could be a maker-breaker for A’s in wild card; plus more

Photo credit: nba.com

On Headline Sports podcast with Tony Renteria:

#1 The Sacramento Kings will be opening up their first preseason game on October 4th and you will be joining your broadcast colleagues for Kings coverage Jeremiah Salmonson, London Marq, Morris Phillips and Jeremy Harness for complete coverage of Kings basketball.

#2 That October 4th game will be played in Mumbai, India. It will be the Kings’ first preseason game in India and has to be very special for Kings managing partner Vivek Ranadive.

#3 The Oakland A’s have played some very exciting ball. They took three out of four from the Houston Astros and took the first two games from the New York Yankees at the Oakland Coliseum. This has turned out to be a very interesting series.

#4 The Oakland Raiders have won two of their first two preseason games and head coach Jon Gruden said this team will deliver “you can bet on that” The Raiders play preseason week three in Winnipeg against the Green Bay Packers on Thursday Night Football.

#5 The talking head, the critics, and talk show hosts have said the 49ers offense is struggling and they showed signs of that against the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football this week. 49ers starter Jimmy Garoppolo had three on completed passes out of six and zero yards. Was this a matter of Jimmy G just not prepared or just rusty coming off the knee injury?

Tony does Headline Sports each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: A’s go for it tonight as there’s a chance to sweep Yanks at Coliseum

Photo credit: mercurynews.com

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry Feitelberg:

#1 With the Oakland Raiders playing just one preseason game in the Oakland Coliseum surface, the outfield always gets scuffed up. How much of a role does that play in the A’s injuries?

#2 The A’s have three players that were out due to injuries that are back in the lineup: First baseman Matt Olson (hand), DH Khris Davis (oblique), right fielder Stephen Piscotty (knee), and center-fielder Ramon Laureano (shin). Laureano was not in the lineup on Wednesday night against the New York Yankees.

#3 The A’s starting pitcher from Wednesday night Mike Fiers has one of the best records in the American League and pitched against the Yankees. Tell us about how Fiers does it all season long.

#4 We’ve talked about Chad Pinder has just about done it all covering for open positions and has pulled it off. Talk about how valuable Pinder has been for Oakland.

#5 The starters for Thursday for the Yankees Masahiro Tanaka (9-6, 4.56 ERA) for the Oakland A’s Tanner Roark (7-8, 4.01 ERA) to conclude the series in Oakland.

Join Jerry each Thursday for the A’s podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com