San Francisco Giants

As it stands right now, the Colorado Rockies are 4.5 games ahead of the San Francisco Giants in the National League Wild Card race. The Rockies have been a bit of a surprise team this season, after an unimpressive '08 campaign and the loss of Matt Holliday during the offseason. They've thrived after the firing of Clint Hurdle, as Jim Tracy has pushed the right buttons, rarely ever taking a misstep.

Continue reading "Have the Rockies locked up the NL Wild Card?"

veteran lefty that lulls opposing hitters to sleep with his deliberate style on the hill. 

3-San Francisco Giants: Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Randy Johnson, Barry Zito, and Jonathan Sanchez. Wild card: Noah Lowry.

Continue reading "MLB's Top Five Starting Rotations"

With the MLB playoffs set to begin, there is a subtle difference in the air compared to start of any other postseason. In the NHL, fans can potentially look forward to a great Canadians/Bruins series that is not only exciting, but has a historical kick to it. Likewise basketball fans always have the chance to see if the Suns can finally get past the Spurs and football fans love seeing the rivalry of the Eagles Vs the City of Philadelphia when the Eagles so much as get tackled for a loss.

Continue reading "The Ups and Downs of the MLB Playoffs"

    With two outs in the top of the eighth inning it looked like the Mets would leave Philadelphia last night with their collective tail between their legs.  Brad Lidge, who still hasn't blown a save all season, was warming up in the Phillies' pen, and the New York offense had only mustered two runs and 12 hits in the previous 16.2 innings, going back to the fifth inning of Tuesday's game.  But Carlos Delgado, who had homered in the sixth to cut Philly's lead to 3-2, sliced a liner over the left field fence to tie the game at three and spark the Mets's offense.  Carlos Beltran followed with an infield hit, and stole second.  With first base open, Brad Lidge walked Ryan Church intentionally, but Daniel Murphy made him pay, doubling down the right field line to bring home Beltran with the go-ahead run.  The hit parade continued with Brian Schneider's flare to left, which put the icing on the cake.  New York's four-run eighth inning clinched a two-game split in Philadelphia, and catapulted the Mets back into first place by a half game.

Continue reading "Delgado's Two Bombs Save The Day"

    Since when is a four-run, seventh inning lead against a team 17.5 games out of first place not safe?  Since the Mets' bullpen hit rock bottom.

    The Mets' plan for Monday afternoon's makeup game against the Pirates was to get on top early and send Pittsburgh packing quickly.  When David Wright knocked a three-run home run to right center in the first, and Pedro Martinez allowed only one run through six innings, the game seemed to be following how it was scripted.  But then on came the New York bullpen.

Continue reading "Heilman Heads Up Another Bullpen Meltdown"

    The Mets limped home from a disappointing 1-5 road trip with a slew of injuries.  Marlon Anderson and John Maine were put on the DL over the weekend and Billy Wagner joined them today with a strained left forearm.  Ramon Castro is still shaken up from the bizzare home plate collision on Saturday, and is listed as day-to-day with a sore ankle.  Rather than make any external moves, the Mets have turned to their farm system for help.  Although for the time being Jerry Manuel says he will use a bullpen by committee in the ninth inning, Eddie Kunz, the heir apparent to Billy Wagner, is on the major league squad and may get some looks in the closer role over the next two weeks while Wagner is out.  Daniel Murphy, who was a third baseman in the minors but requested some work at second base and the outfield--a smart move, considering David Wright isn't going anywhere anytime soon--is getting the start in left field tonight agains the Padres.  The Mets really love the way he hits, so he could be a fixture at the major league level for the remainder of the season and perhaps into the future.  And rumor has it that the Mets are considering calling up Jon Niese to make a few starts in Maine's stead.

Continue reading "Mets Look to Bounce Back at Home"

    The trade deadline is approaching and the Mets still have some needs to fill.  It's still unknown whether Ryan Church will be able to come back and play everyday, so a corner outfielder is certainly a priority.  On Monday Jerry Manuel named Fernando Tatis the everyday left fielder, but his red-hot month may not, and probably will not, last.  Even if Tatis remains decent as a starter, the uncertainty surrounding Church's health calls for a stronger bench.  Endy Chavez is an excellent defensive replacement outfielder, but when he plays everyday he eventually gets exposed offensively, so he is really more suited to a role as a fourth outfielder.  Casey Blake would have been a good fit because he can play both corner outfield positions as well as first base, but he has already been traded to the Dodgers.

Continue reading "Trade Market: Will The Mets Be Involved?"

    Monday night in Miami was an all-around bad experience for the Mets.  John Maine cruised into the fifth inning with a 2-0 lead, and looked just fine to the naked eye.  But after Maine missed with a 1-0 fastball to John Baker, Jerry Manuel, Dan Warthen and Ray Ramirez, the trainer, jogged out to the mound to consult with Maine.  He appeared to say he was fine, and stayed in the game for the time being.  But after his next pitch to Baker left the yard for a solo home run, and his 1-2 pitch to Marlins pitcher Ricky Nolasco chased Endy Chavez to the warning track to make the catch, Manuel and Warthen decided they had seen enough, and pulled Maine in favor of Carlos Muniz.  Maine is listed as day-to-day with shoulder stiffness, and Warthen said he was most concerned that Maine might develop further injuries if he tried to compensate in his delivery to protect his shoulder.  In all likelihood Maine will miss a start in order to rest his shoulder, and hopefully pitch again next week.  After the game Manuel was adamant that Maine will not pitch through any pain.

Continue reading "Mets Fried By Fish, Maine Leaves Early"

    When the Mets traded for and signed Johan Santana in January, tonight's game was exactly what they had in mind.  The ace will take the mound tonight at Shea to face the Phillies, who are tied with the Mets atop the National League East.  Tonight would be a perfect situation for the type of start Mets fans are itching for out of Santana.  Overall, despite his 3.10 ERA, Santana's season has been a disappointment to this point.  His 8-7 record is mediocre, his strikeout rate is down, his batting average against is up, and his solid ERA is also misleading in that it does not reflect the grand slam he allowed to pitcher Felix Hernandez of the Mariners.  Santana has only pitched into the eighth inning once this season, and Duaner Sanchez ultimately blew that game in the ninth.  Tonight is an opportunity for Santana to turn his sub-par season around, and show Mets fans that he is worth his exhorbitant contract

Continue reading "Johan Santana Takes the Hill With ..."

   After splitting the four-game series in Cincinnati, the Mets are back in a first-place tie with the Phillies for the lead in the NL East.  Lately it hasn't only been Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran leading the offense; Carlos Delgado has been on fire recently and came through with the clutch, game-tying hit in the seventh inning on Sunday, and the Mets' bench players have been carrying the torch as well.  The "irregulars," (as Mets television broadcaster Gary Cohen puts it) such as Fernando Tatis, Endy Chavez, Damion Easley and Ramon Castro, have been igniting the Mets' offense for the past three weeks.  But two new players with anything but household names were just as instrumental to the Mets' success in Cincy as anyone getting paid upwards of $12 million per year:  Argenis Reyes and Robinson Cancel.

Continue reading "Makeshift Mets Back In First, But ..."

    The Mets are riding their longest winning streak since 2000 heading into the second half tonight in Cincinnati, and they will have their ace on the hill to try to extend it.  Johan Santana is a disappointing 8-7 so far this season but still boasts a fantastic 2.84 ERA, good enough for fourth in the National League.  Despite a relatively lousy second half last year (5-7, 4.04 ERA), Santana has excellent career numbers after the All-Star break.  He is 50-17 in 108 starts, with a 2.79 ERA and 642 strikeouts in 606.1 innings.  The Mets hope that their improved play of late will only help Santana reach those lofty second half expectations, and lead the team through a pennant race.  Santana gets the start tonight against the Reds and rookie starter Johnny Cueto.

Continue reading "Johan Looks to Start Second Half Strong Tonight"

It’s the annual midpoint of the baseball season, and for the brief span that is the All-Star break, all eyes are upon the Bronx. As everyone is well aware of, this campaign is the last go around for the world’s most famous, largest, and most prominent ballpark, Yankee Stadium. It seems hard to believe, and even more sacrilegious that this living legend’s days are numbered. Built in 1923 and christened by the greatest ballplayer to ever live, Babe Ruth, the cathedral of baseball will never truly be replaced. Although the Bombers will move a block to Yankee Stadium’s heir, the Mecca of America’s Pastime will still live on in our hearts. Whether you’re a diehard Yankee fan, or Yankee-hater, you still can respect the history and awe that the stadium brings. So when the All-Stars take the field Tuesday night, sit back on your couch, crack open a cold one and soak up the history of Yankee Stadium, as its final chapter is unveiled to all of us.

Continue reading "National League Looks to End Rut"

One of the All-Star Break traditions: Reassessing our predictions from the first half of the season. Some of mine have changed, some have stayed the same—and some were just damn wrong. Living in the West, I will take the contrarian position and roll from west to east in my choices.

Continue reading "Second Half Predictions"

    Mike Pelfrey pitched another gem Sunday night, throwing eight shutout innings in the Mets' 7-0 victory over the Rockies, and won his sixth straight start.  New York cruised through their six-game homestand, outscoring the Giants and Rockies 31-4 with four shutouts to boot.  They now stand just a half game behind the Phillies for first place in the NL East.

Continue reading "Big Pelf and the Mets Take Nine Into ..."

    This time last week the Mets were 4.5 games behind Philadelphia entering their pivotal four-game series with the division leaders.  After Johan Santana gave up a 2-0 lead and Duaner Sanchez allowed the winning run in the ninth, the horizon looked bleak for the orange and blue.  However, since that devastating defeat, New York has racked up six straight wins and the Mets now find themselves just 1.5 games back of the Phillies in the NL East.  During the winning streak the Mets have scored an average of seven runs per game while yielding only three per contest, including back-to-back shutouts of the Giants on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Continue reading "Mets Go For Seven Straight Tonight at Shea"

    Another day brought another win for the Mets this afternoon, as they ran their season-high winning streak to six straight.  Fernando Tatis snapped a 3-3 tie in the seventh inning with his fourth home run of the year, and his second go-ahead shot in the last five days.  The bullpen was lights out for the third straight day and hasn't allowed a run since almost giving back a 10-1 lead on Monday in Philadelphia.  The sweep of the Giants was the Mets' first such feat since they took three straight from Washington from April 15-17, unless you count the three-game series at Yankee Stadium that was started in May and finished in June.  The Phillies rebounded from a 2-0 loss in St. Louis on Tuesday to beat the Cardinals in two straight, so the Mets are currently 1.5 games out of first place heading into a three-game series against Colorado this weekend.

Continue reading "Dust Off Your Brooms, Tatis Comes Through Again"

    Well, my biggest gripe yesterday was that the Mets never win or lose a game that isn't in question until the final out.  I guess they realized I'm almost out of Pepto and gave me the break I was looking for.  Carlos Beltran belted a three-run home run off Giants ace Tim Lincecum in the first inning and Carlos Delagado and Fernando Tatis each homered later in the game to lead the Mets to their fourth straight win.

Continue reading "Pelfrey and the Mets Finally Make It Easy"

"It's not a game, it's an arms race" - Kanye West and Fallout Boy belt this hook over and over again on a recent hit with that same title. In that context, Kanye and the Fallout Boy guys are referring to the battle of musical artists not only surviving in a competitive worldwide market, but one with hindrances around every music sharing online ripping program. While that's an issue for another day and another blogsite, it's relevance is crucial when talking about the current state of Major League baseball and the National Basketball Association.

Continue reading "From the NBA to MLB, the Arms Race Has Begun"

In one of the most exciting Series, a seven-game battle with the San Francisco Giants, in their first series since relocating from New York in 1958. The two teams alternated wins until New York won Game 7 in Candlestick, 1-0. Skowron, however, went only 4-18 in his six games, with a lone triple as his only extra-base hit.

Continue reading "Around The Horn With The '61 Yankees: 1B"

his belt, Kouzmanoff should give the Padres some extra pop in the middle of the lineup this year.

San Francisco Giants

Where will the offense come from?

For the first time in 15 years, th

Continue reading "MLB 2008 Preview Part One: National League West"

When the San Francisco Giants held its first full squad work out on Tuesday, there was one thing all the players noticed what was gone: the media.  " That's the biggest thing," infielder Kevin Frandsen  said. "When you walk in here, you can actually walk in here."  With the Bonds era finally ending, the clubhouse can finally relax.  Barry Zito mentioned that some San Francisco players weren't "totally comfortable in their own skin" around Bonds, and reliever Brian Wilson said players will no longer have to walk around "on eggshells." 

Continue reading "Gone Bonds Gone: Giants Now able to Relax"