Jose Fernandez is just outstanding, the Marlins have a packed house today. When was the last time there was excitement over the Marlins, even the new stadium didn’t help.
I know it’s not MLB, but did anyone see the catch made by an LSU outfielder the other day in the game with Texas A&M?
Game tied, two out, bases loaded, bottom of the ninth. Check out the catch that sent the game to extra innings. LSU won the game 5-4.
The Giants are 6-0 so far against teams outside their division…and completed their first ever sweep at Turner Field today.
If the Mariners can beat the A’s tomorrow, they’ll be back to .500.
Two seasons ago, when it was announced that the Houston Astros were joining the AL West, I was all for it because it meant that, at least in the short term, the Mariners wouldn’t be in the cellar. And while that is still true, I’m baffled at how the Astros are giving the M’s so much trouble. On the current road trip, the M’s took 2 of 2 from the Yankees, then flew to Houston and lost the first game there in embarrassing fashion (a game started by Felix Hernandez). And while the M’s won the next two games, both were close shaves in which they took big leads and then the Astros poured it on and scared the shit out of me, with the M’s having to rely on Fernando Rodney on Saturday and then Danny Farquhar on Sunday to slam the door closed in the 9th inning.
During Saturday’s game, the M’s announcers pointed out an interesting fact. Hisashi Iwakuma wears #18, and so have a bunch of other Japanese pitchers who have come over to play in the USA. It turns out there’s a reason for that: in Japan, the number 18 is typically reserved for the ace of the pitching staff.
Bizarre stat of the month: during the 3-game sweep of the Braves, the Giants batting avg with runners in scoring position was a tidy .000.
They scored all their runs in the series on solo HR (one 2-run shot, with a runner on 1st) and a ground-out.
Yeah…that’s a bit distressing, really. But I’m willing to overlook it as long as they keep winning. 
On a tangentially related topic, how the hell is Jordan Walden’s delivery not illegal?
Related question: how the hell does he ever manage to get the ball over the plate, given that he’s in midair as he begins his pitching motion?
Official Baseball Rules 2.00, definition of Illegal Pitch: A pitch delivered to the batter when the pitcher does not have his pivot foot in contact with the pitcher’s plate (aka, the rubber)
With nobody on, it’s a ball to the batter. With a runner on, it’s a balk.
Nats are half a game back, as long as they can hang in until some of the star players come off the DL, I feel good.
Jay Bruce sidelined for at least a month with a torn meniscus. Damn, the Reds just can’t seem to shake the injury bug.
God, I wish the Dodgers would get a real manager.
All year, Greinke has been working with Butera and pitching lights out. Seems simple enough. Apparently not. Mattingly instead starts Butera last night and Oliva catches Greinke tonight, even though they’ve never worked together. Don’t misunderstand, I like Oliva well enough, a nice pickup with AJ on the DL and more consistent than Fedex, but I’m so tired of Mattingly basing all of his decisions on stats, common sense be damned.
I didn’t get to see the Jays game tonight but I’m looking at the box score and wondering just how bad the Phillies played - Ben Revere was caught stealing AND picked off first, Marlon Byrd was thrown out at home, and they went 0-for-6 with RISP. Although the score was only 3-0 this debacle took three hours to play and the Blue Jays needed five pitchers to get the shutout. This is one of those things where numbers tell you a story, and the story is “this wasn’t fun to watch.”
I don’t think anyone is pitching much better than Johnny Cueto right now. Dude has been lights out, and would likely not have a single loss on his W/L record had he more run support from the Red’s woefully inconsistent offense.
And Braves lose 7 in a row, Nats win after a 3 hour rain dealay against LA.
Jeff Samardzija pitched what should have been a complete-game three-hit shutout last night, and doubled and scored a run. This would ordinarily be enough to win.
But not for the woeful Cubbies. His teammates made an error which led to an unearned run, and backed him with one hit other than his own. The game went into extra innings and the White Sox won 3-1 in 12.
Samardzija is now 0-3 after seven starts with a 1.62 ERA.
Huh. Mariners win their 4th in a row, 2nd in a row vs. Oakland, moving back above .500 (16-15), and jumping directly from 4th place to 2nd in the AL West. I’m starting to get excited about the 2014 Mariners.
Pirates beat the Giants tonight on the first ever walk-off replay challenge.
At 1-1 in the bottom of the ninth, Starling Marte hit a triple, then went home on a throwing error. He was ruled out at home, but after the Pirates challenge, he was ruled safe and the game ended with a 2-1 Bucs win.
So glad to have Kershaw back. The difference is amazing. But the Dodgers may have lost Ryu for a while, which puts a bit of a damper on the rotation.
The Blue Jays blew a 5-run lead last night. As it happens they ended up winning anyway, but I’m beginning to wonder if they’re approaching some sort of record for the most blown leads above a certain number in a span of time, because it’s getting kind of amazing. I’ve actually lost count.
They blew a 5-run lead last night.
On May 3 they blew a 5- run lead and lost to Pittsburgh.
On May 2 they blew a 2-run lead In the ninth, losing to Pittsburgh.
On April 29 they blew a 3-run lead to the Royals, losing.
On April 26 they blew a 3-run lead to the Red Sox, losing.
On April 23 they blew a 5-run lead and lost to Baltimore.
How many teams blow three 5-run leads in two weeks? Hell, I bet some teams won’t blow three 5-run leads all year. They also blew a 4-run lead to Minnesota on April 17 if you want to go back another week and drop the standard to 4 runs.
The Rockies just continue to bomb. They outscored Texas 20-3 in two home games, including a Major League best 21 hits last night. Now they are in Texas for another two and they already have 11 hits in four innings tonight. Nolan Arenado, who Vin Scully last week said is a better player than Brooks Robinson, has two hits and now has a 27 game hitting streak, tying the franchise record. They lead 6-0 in the fourth.
Wow, the Mariners really are on a tear. Today they won the first game of their doubleheader against the first-place A’s, notching their fourth consecutive series win by taking 3 out of 4 from the A’s.