Here are some baseball notes on a fairly quiet offseason so far. The New York Mets and New York Yankees haven't done anything although the Toronto Blue Jays have been busy the past few days. In the next couple of weeks when the winter meetings begin I would expect things to pick up.
The Blue Jays made a big trade with the Miami Marlins the other day to aquire Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson, John Buck was also part of the trade. The Blue Jays gave up some top prospects and they gave up Yunel Escobar and Adeiny Hechavarria. It was a big trade, I wonder why the Marlins are able to operate like this. In the long run it may benefit them but how can they sign all these players and then break up their team within a year. I think this is just embarrassing and shouldn't be allowed to happen. The Marlins got a new stadium which the tax payers mostly paid for and now they barely even have a team.
The Blue Jays on Friday signed Melky Cabrera to a two year 16 million dollar deal.
The Detroit Tigers signed Torii Hunter to a two year deal, they have some offense on paper. The Padres and Oakland Athletics made a trade on Friday. Oakland sent righty pitcher Tyson Ross to the Padres for infielder Andy Perrino and lefty Andrew Werner. The A's also sent minor leaguer A.J. Kirby-Jones in the deal. The Athletics found a player in Perrino who can play shortstop for them. Ross had a very good season in AAA last year.
The AL MVP was one of the most contested in recent years with Miguel Cabrera and Mike Trout. Cabrera won to complete a wonderful season winning the Triple Crown and the MVP. It was and is still a war between the sabremetrics community and the old school baseball community. The Old School won out for now but it really got heated and contentious between the two sides. I personally would of voted for Cabrera myself if I had a vote because the Tigers did win the division and the Angels didn't even make the playoffs. I know you don't have to do that but I give that more weight.
I don't think there were really any suprises in the awards. R.A. Dickey won the NL Cy Young which wasn't a shock although he was the first knuckle ball pitcher to ever win the award. I guess for the AL manager of the year you could of picked Buck Showalter but Bob Melvin won it with the Oakland Athletics who also had a great and very suprising season.
Justin Verlander lost out on his second straight Cy Young but David Price won it, he also had a great season and Verlander didn't have as great of a season as the year before.
Friday, November 16, 2012
Sunday, November 11, 2012
The Giants put up a stinker in Cincinnati
The New York Giants lost to the Cincinnati Bengals by the score of 31-13 on Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati. The Giants have not played that well in the last couple of weeks and it continued in this game. This was probably rock bottom as they didn’t play well in any facet of the game.
Eli Manning was 29-46 for 215 yards, no touchdowns and he threw two interceptions. Andre Brown led the Giants rushing attack with 65 yards on seven carries and a touchdown. Ahmad Bradshaw had 10 carries for 57 yards. Henry Hynoski the fullback had a carry for five yards, Manning and David Wilson each had one carry for one yard. Hakeem Nicks led the receivers with nine catches for 75 yards, Martellus Bennett had four carries for 37 yards, Brown had five catches for 29 yards and Victor Cruz had three catches for 26 yards. Ramses Barden had two catches for 22 yards, Bradshaw had three catches for 14 yards and Domenick Hixon had one catch for eight yards. Rueben Randle had two catches for four yards. Lawrence Tynes was 2-2 on field goals with his long being 31 yards and he made one extra point. Wilson had six kick returns for average of 17.8 yards. Steve Weatherford had four punts for an average of 53.3 average with a long of 68 yards.
Prince Amukamara led the defense with seven tackles and three assists. The Giants did not have a sack or an interception. Chase Blackburn did have a forced fumble.
Andy Dalton was 21-30 for 199 yards and four touchdowns. BenJarvus Green-Ellis had 15 rushes for 50 yards, Cedric Peerman had six rushes for 21 yards and Brian Leonard had four rushes for four yards. Mohamed Sanu had one carry for three yards. A.J. Green led the Bengals receivers with seven catches for 85 yards and one touchdown. Sanu had four catches for 47 yards and a touchdown and Andrew Hawkins had three catches for 16 yards and a touchdown. Orson Charles had a catch for 19 yards, Peerman had a catch for nine yards and Green-Ellis had two catches for eight yards. Mike Nugent was 1-1 on field goals and had four extra points. Brandon Tate had two kickoff returns for an average of 12 yards. Kevin Huber had four punts for an average of 48.3 yards.
The Bengals had two interceptions, Terence Newman had six tackles and one assist to lead the defense. Carlos Dunlap had 1.5 sacks and four tackles and an assist. Wallace Gilberry had a sack, Robert Geathers had a sack and Domata Peko had ½ a sack.
The Giants are now 6-4 and the Bengals are 4-5. The Giants remain in first place in the NFC East but now only a game ahead of the Dallas Cowboys. The Giants were behind 14-0 after five minutes of the game and never got it together. They were losing 17-6 at the half and it just got worse from there.
Eli Manning was 29-46 for 215 yards, no touchdowns and he threw two interceptions. Andre Brown led the Giants rushing attack with 65 yards on seven carries and a touchdown. Ahmad Bradshaw had 10 carries for 57 yards. Henry Hynoski the fullback had a carry for five yards, Manning and David Wilson each had one carry for one yard. Hakeem Nicks led the receivers with nine catches for 75 yards, Martellus Bennett had four carries for 37 yards, Brown had five catches for 29 yards and Victor Cruz had three catches for 26 yards. Ramses Barden had two catches for 22 yards, Bradshaw had three catches for 14 yards and Domenick Hixon had one catch for eight yards. Rueben Randle had two catches for four yards. Lawrence Tynes was 2-2 on field goals with his long being 31 yards and he made one extra point. Wilson had six kick returns for average of 17.8 yards. Steve Weatherford had four punts for an average of 53.3 average with a long of 68 yards.
Prince Amukamara led the defense with seven tackles and three assists. The Giants did not have a sack or an interception. Chase Blackburn did have a forced fumble.
Andy Dalton was 21-30 for 199 yards and four touchdowns. BenJarvus Green-Ellis had 15 rushes for 50 yards, Cedric Peerman had six rushes for 21 yards and Brian Leonard had four rushes for four yards. Mohamed Sanu had one carry for three yards. A.J. Green led the Bengals receivers with seven catches for 85 yards and one touchdown. Sanu had four catches for 47 yards and a touchdown and Andrew Hawkins had three catches for 16 yards and a touchdown. Orson Charles had a catch for 19 yards, Peerman had a catch for nine yards and Green-Ellis had two catches for eight yards. Mike Nugent was 1-1 on field goals and had four extra points. Brandon Tate had two kickoff returns for an average of 12 yards. Kevin Huber had four punts for an average of 48.3 yards.
The Bengals had two interceptions, Terence Newman had six tackles and one assist to lead the defense. Carlos Dunlap had 1.5 sacks and four tackles and an assist. Wallace Gilberry had a sack, Robert Geathers had a sack and Domata Peko had ½ a sack.
The Giants are now 6-4 and the Bengals are 4-5. The Giants remain in first place in the NFC East but now only a game ahead of the Dallas Cowboys. The Giants were behind 14-0 after five minutes of the game and never got it together. They were losing 17-6 at the half and it just got worse from there.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Yankees Notes from the GM Meetings
Here is some notes from the GM meetings courtesy of the Lohud Yankees Blog. I put my own thoughts mixed in there. It really is laying the groundwork because no real trades or anything get done but this will set up the Winter meetings where most of the action takes place.
Surrounded by media standing four or five deep, Scott Boras just spoke in the hotel lobby and left little doubt that his client, Rafael Soriano, will decline the Yankees qualifying offer.
“Most qualifying offers are really for players of the highest value,” Boras said. “When teams make them, they’re acknowledging the value and other teams know that, as well. I don’t anticipate many players accepting single-year contracts that are in that arena.”
I would agree that for the most part they won't take the offer. I don't think the Yankees want him too take it though, they just wanted to protect themselves from him leaving.
As for current value, Boras made the case that Soriano might have been the difference in some teams making or missing the playoffs this season, and he played up the idea that the Yankees shouldn’t easily let go of such late-inning comfort.
“If you look at the Angels, Dodgers, White Sox, Milwaukee; those teams would have been in the playoffs if they had a closer that had the efficiency rating of Soriano,” Boras said. “The Yankees took advantage of that. If that was a really good business decision for the Yankees two years ago, and it proved to be so valued today, it certainly would be a wiser decision when (Mariano) Rivera is older and coming off an injury.” It sounds wise but the Yankees are trying to get under the cap and also Soriano wants to close and he won't be a closer with the Yankees unless Rivera gets hurt.
Brian Cashman said he hasn’t heard and hasn’t asked whether Soriano, Nick Swisher or Hiroki Kuroda will accept or decline their qualifying offers — “We’d be very happy (if they accept), let’s put it that way,” Cashman said — but it’s becoming clear that the Yankees are setting priorities this offseason. One-year deals are one thing, but with $189 million in mind for next year, the Yankees have to pick and choose where they allocate funds. It sounds like tonight that Swisher and Soriano will definitely decline, Kuroda is still up in the air.
That alone might be enough to keep the Yankees out of the Soriano bidding should he hit the open market.
“It would be great if we had them both (Soriano and Rivera),” Cashman said. “The only bad side to having them both — and I don’t have Mo, and I don’t have Soriano (right now) — but obviously it would affect dollars to be spent elsewhere. But bullpens are big time, so do I have to replace him? I think it’s relative to how that would impact the other side of it.”
Boras certainly sounded as if he’s not expecting to come to terms on a contract extension for Robinson Cano any time soon. “He’s there for another year,” Boras said. “I talked to Randy (Levine) a few times this week. I talked to Cash. These are things that, I’m sure as time goes forward, we’ll continue to talk about. But nothing current.”
Just to be clear, Cashman said that if Soriano does happen to accept the qualifying offer, he has no problem with paying both Soriano and Rivera closer money next season. “That would happen,” Cashman said. “If he accepts, yeah, absolutely. We made that decision when we tendered the offer.”
Because Tino Martinez was serving as a senior advisor in the Yankees organization, he had to receive permission to interview for the Marlins hitting coach job. “You combine the great player with that type of experience in seeing how things get done, and I think he’s got a tremendous amount to offer,” Cashman said. I am sure they are happy he went to Miami and not Boston.
The Yankees never talked about making Martinez their hitting coach. “We didn’t have any vacancies,” Cashman said. “The Yankees, we’ve been blessed to have some tremendous hitting coaches, from Don Mattingly to Kevin Long, so it’s not an area that’s needed to be addressed at all.”
Although he hasn’t asked whether Kuroda will accept a qualifying offer, Cashman said he has spoken to Kuroda’s agent. “Yes,” Cashman said. “I wouldn’t say, and I couldn’t say (what exactly the conversation was about).” I have a feeling Kuroda will come back but if he gets a two year offer somewhere and it is pretty significant money you never know he could go there.
Just something to keep in mind: Ken Davidoff brought up that the $189 million luxury tax threshold includes more than player salary. There’s a certain amount of money — something around $10-12 million, Cashman said — that’s automatically factored in for things like travel expenses. So in terms of player contracts, the Yankees have to get closer to $177 million to stay below the luxury tax.
Cashman dismissed the idea that the Yankees can’t get better while also working to control spending. “Didn’t we get better this year?” he said. “Ninety-five wins. Won the American League East. Went farther in the playoffs (than the year before). Got older, probably. … Improved flexibility. Kept financial costs in check. Lined ourselves up for the long term going that route in certain areas, and we’re better.” I agree with him, pitching is the most important, they still have a lot of good players and if they get good bench players and have good pitching they will be fine.
Surrounded by media standing four or five deep, Scott Boras just spoke in the hotel lobby and left little doubt that his client, Rafael Soriano, will decline the Yankees qualifying offer.
“Most qualifying offers are really for players of the highest value,” Boras said. “When teams make them, they’re acknowledging the value and other teams know that, as well. I don’t anticipate many players accepting single-year contracts that are in that arena.”
I would agree that for the most part they won't take the offer. I don't think the Yankees want him too take it though, they just wanted to protect themselves from him leaving.
As for current value, Boras made the case that Soriano might have been the difference in some teams making or missing the playoffs this season, and he played up the idea that the Yankees shouldn’t easily let go of such late-inning comfort.
“If you look at the Angels, Dodgers, White Sox, Milwaukee; those teams would have been in the playoffs if they had a closer that had the efficiency rating of Soriano,” Boras said. “The Yankees took advantage of that. If that was a really good business decision for the Yankees two years ago, and it proved to be so valued today, it certainly would be a wiser decision when (Mariano) Rivera is older and coming off an injury.” It sounds wise but the Yankees are trying to get under the cap and also Soriano wants to close and he won't be a closer with the Yankees unless Rivera gets hurt.
Brian Cashman said he hasn’t heard and hasn’t asked whether Soriano, Nick Swisher or Hiroki Kuroda will accept or decline their qualifying offers — “We’d be very happy (if they accept), let’s put it that way,” Cashman said — but it’s becoming clear that the Yankees are setting priorities this offseason. One-year deals are one thing, but with $189 million in mind for next year, the Yankees have to pick and choose where they allocate funds. It sounds like tonight that Swisher and Soriano will definitely decline, Kuroda is still up in the air.
That alone might be enough to keep the Yankees out of the Soriano bidding should he hit the open market.
“It would be great if we had them both (Soriano and Rivera),” Cashman said. “The only bad side to having them both — and I don’t have Mo, and I don’t have Soriano (right now) — but obviously it would affect dollars to be spent elsewhere. But bullpens are big time, so do I have to replace him? I think it’s relative to how that would impact the other side of it.”
Boras certainly sounded as if he’s not expecting to come to terms on a contract extension for Robinson Cano any time soon. “He’s there for another year,” Boras said. “I talked to Randy (Levine) a few times this week. I talked to Cash. These are things that, I’m sure as time goes forward, we’ll continue to talk about. But nothing current.”
Just to be clear, Cashman said that if Soriano does happen to accept the qualifying offer, he has no problem with paying both Soriano and Rivera closer money next season. “That would happen,” Cashman said. “If he accepts, yeah, absolutely. We made that decision when we tendered the offer.”
Because Tino Martinez was serving as a senior advisor in the Yankees organization, he had to receive permission to interview for the Marlins hitting coach job. “You combine the great player with that type of experience in seeing how things get done, and I think he’s got a tremendous amount to offer,” Cashman said. I am sure they are happy he went to Miami and not Boston.
The Yankees never talked about making Martinez their hitting coach. “We didn’t have any vacancies,” Cashman said. “The Yankees, we’ve been blessed to have some tremendous hitting coaches, from Don Mattingly to Kevin Long, so it’s not an area that’s needed to be addressed at all.”
Although he hasn’t asked whether Kuroda will accept a qualifying offer, Cashman said he has spoken to Kuroda’s agent. “Yes,” Cashman said. “I wouldn’t say, and I couldn’t say (what exactly the conversation was about).” I have a feeling Kuroda will come back but if he gets a two year offer somewhere and it is pretty significant money you never know he could go there.
Just something to keep in mind: Ken Davidoff brought up that the $189 million luxury tax threshold includes more than player salary. There’s a certain amount of money — something around $10-12 million, Cashman said — that’s automatically factored in for things like travel expenses. So in terms of player contracts, the Yankees have to get closer to $177 million to stay below the luxury tax.
Cashman dismissed the idea that the Yankees can’t get better while also working to control spending. “Didn’t we get better this year?” he said. “Ninety-five wins. Won the American League East. Went farther in the playoffs (than the year before). Got older, probably. … Improved flexibility. Kept financial costs in check. Lined ourselves up for the long term going that route in certain areas, and we’re better.” I agree with him, pitching is the most important, they still have a lot of good players and if they get good bench players and have good pitching they will be fine.
Saturday, November 3, 2012
The New York Giants build a big lead, blow it and then hold on to win in Dallas
The New York Giants defeated the Dallas Cowboys by the score of 29-24. The game was played at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas. The Giants jumped out to a 23-0 lead and looked like world beaters but then Dallas came back and in the third quarter they actually took the lead. The Giants though somehow kept their composure and stuck with it. The Giants have Eli Manning and he didn’t have a great game again but he is there when you need him the most. The Giants defense started out really strong but then they looked pretty awful after that.
Manning was 15-29 for 192 yards and no touchdowns with one interception. Ahmad Bradshaw rushed for 78 yards on 22 attempts. Andre Brown rushed for 21 yards on three attempts and one touchdown, Manning rushed for three yards on one carry and David Wilson rushed twice for one yard. Wilson is the main kick and punt returner. He returned four kicks for 86 yards which is a 21.5 average. Wilson has brought something to the Giants they have really been lacking which is a true kick return threat. Ruben Randle had the most yards receiving with 68 on two receptions. Hakeem Nicks caught four balls for 46 yards, Martellus Bennett caught four balls for 29 yards and Domenick Hixon caught three passes for 26 yards. Victor Cruz caught two balls for 23 yards. Lawrence Tynes was 5-5 on field goals and two for two on extra points. His long field goal was 43 yards.
The Giants defense had four interceptions with Stevie Brown having two, Corey Webster and Jason Pierre-Paul each had one interception. Paul had one touchdown. Stevie Brown also led the defense with six tackles along with Keith Rivers who had six tackles.
Tony Romo was 36-62 for 437 yards and one touchdown with four interceptions. Felix Jones rushed 13 times for 19 yards with one touchdown, Romo also had a rushing touchdown. Jason Witten led the receivers with 18 catches for 167 yards. Miles Austin had nine catches for 133 yards, Dez Bryant had five for 110 and John Phillips had three catches for 14 yards. Dan Bailey was 1-1 on field goals and three for three on extra points. His field goal was 51 yards. Dunbar returned six kicks for 142 yards which is an average of 23.7 yards.
The Cowboys had one interception and one fumble recovery. Brandon Carr was their leading tackler with five.
The Giants are in first place in the NFC East with a 6-2 record and the Cowboys are 3-4 and in third place in the NFC East. The Giants will play at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday afternoon.
Manning was 15-29 for 192 yards and no touchdowns with one interception. Ahmad Bradshaw rushed for 78 yards on 22 attempts. Andre Brown rushed for 21 yards on three attempts and one touchdown, Manning rushed for three yards on one carry and David Wilson rushed twice for one yard. Wilson is the main kick and punt returner. He returned four kicks for 86 yards which is a 21.5 average. Wilson has brought something to the Giants they have really been lacking which is a true kick return threat. Ruben Randle had the most yards receiving with 68 on two receptions. Hakeem Nicks caught four balls for 46 yards, Martellus Bennett caught four balls for 29 yards and Domenick Hixon caught three passes for 26 yards. Victor Cruz caught two balls for 23 yards. Lawrence Tynes was 5-5 on field goals and two for two on extra points. His long field goal was 43 yards.
The Giants defense had four interceptions with Stevie Brown having two, Corey Webster and Jason Pierre-Paul each had one interception. Paul had one touchdown. Stevie Brown also led the defense with six tackles along with Keith Rivers who had six tackles.
Tony Romo was 36-62 for 437 yards and one touchdown with four interceptions. Felix Jones rushed 13 times for 19 yards with one touchdown, Romo also had a rushing touchdown. Jason Witten led the receivers with 18 catches for 167 yards. Miles Austin had nine catches for 133 yards, Dez Bryant had five for 110 and John Phillips had three catches for 14 yards. Dan Bailey was 1-1 on field goals and three for three on extra points. His field goal was 51 yards. Dunbar returned six kicks for 142 yards which is an average of 23.7 yards.
The Cowboys had one interception and one fumble recovery. Brandon Carr was their leading tackler with five.
The Giants are in first place in the NFC East with a 6-2 record and the Cowboys are 3-4 and in third place in the NFC East. The Giants will play at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday afternoon.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
San Francisco Giants take Game 2 of the World Series and lead 2-0
The San Francisco Giants defeated the Detroit Tigers by the score of 2-0 on Thursday night in the World Series. The game took place at AT+T Park in San Francisco, California. It was game two of the 2012 World Series. The Giants won and took a commanding 2-0 lead in the best of seven series. The next three games will be played in Detroit. Madison Bumgarner started for the Giants and was great and Doug Fister was also very good for the Tigers. The offense for the Giants had a sacrifice fly and a groundout, they didn’t exactly kill the ball. Blanco led the offense with a couple of hits and Hunter Pence had the only RBI of the game. The Tigers only managed two hits, the bullpens of each team were also good.
Bumgarner earned the win in this game pitching seven innings giving up two hits and no runs with two walks and eight strikeouts. Santiago Casilla pitched one perfect inning and Sergio Romo earned the save with a perfect inning. Fister suffered the loss pitching six innings giving up four hits and a run with a walk and three strikeouts. Drew Smyly pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up a hit and a run with three walks and two strikeouts, Octavio Dotel pitched 1/3 of an inning walking one and Phil Coke struck out the only batter that he faced.
Angel Pagan drew a walk and more importantly a stolen base which secured a free taco for all of America. Tuesday October 30th between 2-6PM you can stop in any Taco Bell store and get your free Doritos Locos Taco. Pablo Sandoval had a hit and drew a walk, Buster Posey had a hit and drew a walk and Pence had a hit and an RBI. Brandon Belt drew a walk, Blanco had two hits and Crawford drew a walk. The Giants were 1-5 with runners in scoring position and left seven men on base. Blanco had an outfield assist and Bumgarner had a pickoff.
Austin Jackson drew a walk, Omar Infante had a hit and Miguel Cabrera drew a walk. Delmon Young had a hit, Young hit a double and the Tigers were 0-2 with runners in scoring position and they left two men on base. Infante was caught stealing.
In the seventh the Giants took a 1-0 lead on a groundout. It was bases loaded no outs and they took a double play instead of playing the infield in, it was a controversial move to say the least. In the eighth Pence hit a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0 Giants and that would be the final score.
The Giants took the first two games of the series at home. The two teams had the day off on Friday and will resume on Saturday night in Detroit. They will play the next two there and then if there is a game five it will also be in Detroit before shifting back to San Francisco if need be.
Bumgarner earned the win in this game pitching seven innings giving up two hits and no runs with two walks and eight strikeouts. Santiago Casilla pitched one perfect inning and Sergio Romo earned the save with a perfect inning. Fister suffered the loss pitching six innings giving up four hits and a run with a walk and three strikeouts. Drew Smyly pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up a hit and a run with three walks and two strikeouts, Octavio Dotel pitched 1/3 of an inning walking one and Phil Coke struck out the only batter that he faced.
Angel Pagan drew a walk and more importantly a stolen base which secured a free taco for all of America. Tuesday October 30th between 2-6PM you can stop in any Taco Bell store and get your free Doritos Locos Taco. Pablo Sandoval had a hit and drew a walk, Buster Posey had a hit and drew a walk and Pence had a hit and an RBI. Brandon Belt drew a walk, Blanco had two hits and Crawford drew a walk. The Giants were 1-5 with runners in scoring position and left seven men on base. Blanco had an outfield assist and Bumgarner had a pickoff.
Austin Jackson drew a walk, Omar Infante had a hit and Miguel Cabrera drew a walk. Delmon Young had a hit, Young hit a double and the Tigers were 0-2 with runners in scoring position and they left two men on base. Infante was caught stealing.
In the seventh the Giants took a 1-0 lead on a groundout. It was bases loaded no outs and they took a double play instead of playing the infield in, it was a controversial move to say the least. In the eighth Pence hit a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0 Giants and that would be the final score.
The Giants took the first two games of the series at home. The two teams had the day off on Friday and will resume on Saturday night in Detroit. They will play the next two there and then if there is a game five it will also be in Detroit before shifting back to San Francisco if need be.
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