There was much rejoicing in Citi last night.
Luis Atilano has his worst start yet, giving up the game.
20 May
NPB Off day.
MLB Florida Marlins (2) at St. Louis Cardinals (4). Nate Robertson just wasn’t good enough to hold the Cards down while Wainwright had all the right stuff to keep the Fish from putting too many on the board. Florida remains in second place with their 22-20 record.
Tampa Bay Rays (8) at New York Yankees (6). The Yankees are always a tough, potent team to face, but Tampa manages to sweep New York in this two-game series thanks to some serious offense from the Rays. Carlos Peña mashes two and the Rays record jumps to 30-11, becoming the first team to reach 30 wins this year.
New York Mets (10) at Washington Nationals (7). Luis Atilano’s six earned runs are what doomed the Nats. They return to playing 0.500 baseball in fourth place with their 21-21 record.
Baltimore Orioles (7) at Texas Rangers (13). Ouch. The Birds get stomped by Texas in a surprising loss. Why so surprising? Brian Matusz should be way better than this. 13-29 for the Orange Birds.
After embarrassing the team, acting like a primadonna, insulting the manager, and making everyone involved look bad, Hanley Ramirez either apologized to his teammates or the team has decided not to make a fuss about it, because he was back in the lineup last night doing fairly well. Thank god that’s over. The Marlins are rarely in the news, but I don’t want them in there because of this.
19 May
NPB Hiroshima Carp (8) at Orix Buffaloes (2). Eric Stults notches his first win as the Carp manage to come out of their ten-games-under-0.500 hole for a day. Their record rises to 17-26-0 at a manageable 10.5 games back. That was sarcasm.
Yokohama BayStars (3) at Rakuten Eagles (2). Darrell Rasner actually tosses a great game against Yokohama, but the runs he gives up are just enough to combine with an unearned for the loss. Rakuten falls to 19-26-0, tying them with the 19-26-1 Fighters.
MLB Tampa Bay Rays (10) at New York Yankees (6). Wade Davis and the powerful Rays offense combine to push this game increasingly out of New York’s reach. The lead rises to four games as Tampa Bay moves to a 29-11 record.
New York Mets (3) at Washington Nationals (5). Liván Hernández continues his dominant streak as he holds down the Mets for Drew Storen to come in for the win for Washington, boosting them out of their five game losing streak. The Nats record increases to 21-20 in third place.
Baltimore Orioles (3) at Texas Rangers (4). Guthrie puts together quite the game, but the Orioles bullpen can’t hold on, giving them their 28th loss.
Florida Marlins (5) at St. Louis Cardinals (1). The back-to-back shutout is prevented, but that doesn’t mean that Aníbal Sánchez didn’t have electric stuff last night. Florida’s off-field woes stayed off-field as Hanley went 3-5 with an RBI and the rest of the team contributed as well. Florida’s 22-19 record is good enough for second, but with the Nats breathing down their necks can they hold on against Adam Wainwright tonight?
Let Teddy Win!
No, I didn’t go see the Nats this weekend, but I did finally upload this picture.
14 May
NPB Rakuten Eagles (8) at Hiroshima Carp (7). Knowing how badly the Eagles have been so far this season makes this worse. I want the Carp to win!
MLB Cleveland Indians (1) at Baltimore Orioles (8). My friend went to this game to see the fireworks and watch with an out-of-town friend of his. I’m glad he saw a win.
New York Mets (2) at Florida Marlins (7). I watched every game in this series. Spoiler alert: it ends well for me.
Seattle Mariners (4) at Tampa Bay Rays (3). I was shocked by this, but I guess you can’t sweep all your opponents.
15 May
NPB Nippon-Ham Fighters (0) at Carp (1). I knew this was a Maeda game the second I started writing the score. It’s great that Hiroshima’s got such a solid part of the rotation, but they need a lot more arms.
Eagles (2) at Hanshin Tigers (3). Not too surprised that one of the top teams in the CL could beat the Eagles. I’ll be surprised if Rakuten splits the series.
MLB Washington Nationals (2) at Colorado Rockies (6). Inclement weather has ruined the past two series for Colorado, but still allowed them to rack up wins. They notch one in this first part of the doubleheader.
Mariners (2) at Rays (3). Now that’s more like it. Nothing puts a bigger smile on my face than a walk-off jack. Willy Aybar earns himself the job with one swing of the bat, sending Pat Burrell down for assignment. Good riddance, Pat. Never buy a player from Philly again, Tampa Bay.
Indians (8) at Orioles (2). Now that my friend’s not in the ballpark, we can resume the usual win schedule.
Mets (5) at Marlins (7). This game should not have been this close, but the Marlins bullpen likes to make things interesting. Note that this series has seen remarkable hitting from both Chris Coghlan and Gaby Sanchez so far. Dan Uggla has done well for himself, too.
Nationals (3) at Rockies (4). The doubleheader just doesn’t go in Washington’s favor. Tough break for the previously surging Nats.
16 May
NPB Fighters (6) at Carp (2). Knowing how terrible the Fighters are makes this a thousand times worse. The Carp close the first weekend of interleague play out with their record standing at 16-25-0, good for fifth in the Central League.
Eagles (7) at Tigers (3). A fair split for Rakuten allows them to end the weekend on a high note with only one loss in interleagues so far. Their record at the end of the weekend: 19-24-0, good for FOURTH!
MLB Mets (8) at Marlins (10). Another game that should not have been this close. Ricky Nolasco almost watched his bullpen lose him a game again, but they managed to pull together at the last minute to secure the series sweep. It was the first time Florida ever swept the Mets at home in a four-game series in the team’s existence. That’s good enough to raise the Marlins record to 20-18, putting them four games back, tied for second with the Nats.
Indians (5) at Orioles (1). The losing ways continue. Baltimore falls to 12-26 in last. My friend’s got a bet going that the Orioles record will be better than the Pirates, but they’ve got to start performing if he wants his money.
Mariners (1) at Rays (2). A pitching duel between Cliff Lee and Matt Garza decided in late innings. Way to go TB. The Rays now have a 26-11 record good for first.
Nationals (1) at Rockies (2). An ugly sweep, but at least Washington seemed to be making a real contest of it. They close the weekend at 20-18 in second place with the Marlins.
Went to the Orioles game last night to see King Felix and Ichiro play the Orioles. It was a great game (I’ll get into that later), but we were super amused by the fact that Ichiro’s name was listed on the All-Star ballot for the Home Run Derby. Ichiro? The Great Singles Hitter (TM)? At one at bat I motivated him by screaming “Ganbare!” and “Kettobase!”. He promptly responded by hitting a home run. You’re welcome, Ichiro.
13 May
NPB Rakuten Eagles (6) at Hiroshima Carp (4). I hate seeing my two most beloved teams play each other, but not as much as I hate seeing the Eagles beat the Carp. It’s nice revenge by Marty Brown on the Carp for firing him, but I hate the loss. Hiroshima falls to 15-23-0 and the Eagles rise to 17-23-0. Both teams are in fifth place.
MLB Seattle Mariners (5) at Baltimore Orioles (6). This game was won by a Luke Scott grand slam in the 8th and ended with a fantastic play at the plate as the tying run was thrown out on an Ichiro single. Great game. The Birds jump to 11-24 in last.
New York Mets (1) at Florida Marlins (2). I’ll take a win any way I can get one, even the classic walk-off wild pitch. A great pitching duel between Josh Johnson and Johan Santana that ended in a no decision for both. Florida is 17-18 and in fourth.
Washington Nationals (14) at Colorado Rockies (6). Whoa, what happened here. A wild game in the mile-high city. I didn’t think Coors gave up this many runs anymore. Washington rises to 20-15 and is at a shocking 5 games above 0.500 in second place, only one behind Philadelphia.
The Marlins can’t quite lock down the sweep against the Cubs, but a series win is still more than they’ve done in recent history.
12 May
NPB Off Day
MLB Washington Nationals (6) at New York Mets (4). Tyler Clippard wins yet another as the Nats pull ahead into sole possession of second (again) with their 19-15 record, 1.5 back behind the Phils.
Florida Marlins (3) at Chicago Cubs (4). Carlos Zambrano keeps the Marlins bats just quiet enough to avoid the series sweep. The Fish’s record drops to 16-18, tying them with the Braves for fourth.
Seattle Mariners (2) at Baltimore Orioles (5). Go Orioles! The controversy-ridden Mariners drop game 2 of the series allowing the Orioles to climb to 10-24 for the season.
Tampa Bay Rays (4) at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (3). The Tampa Bay (don’t call me “Devil”) Rays continue to recover from the three-game skid on their road trip to close it off with a win. They head home for a day of much needed rest and a 24-10 record good enough for first place.
The Marlins put together two wins against the Cubs and Coghlan is hitting again. What else to do but celebrate?
I listened to about half of the Marlins at Cubs game in Spanish to get some practice. It’s surprising how much I was able to understand easily despite not really knowing much about baseball in Spanish. My favorite part: the center fielder is translated as central gardener.
11 May
MLB Seattle Mariners (5) at Baltimore Orioles (1). I almost went to this game, but I’m glad I didn’t. The weather was miserable and the team didn’t even win. Good luck tomorrow, Baltimore (9-24).
Washington Nationals (6) at New York Mets (8). Tyler Clippard has his first genuinely bad outing of the season as he blows the game in the 8th. Washington falls to 18-15 and is tied for second with the Mets again.
Florida Marlins (3) at Chicago Cubs (2). The Fish take another against the Cubbies in a solidly pitched game by Ricky Nolasco. Both runs came in via home run this game, one two-run blast by Cody Ross and a garden variety solo homer by Gaby Sanchez. The good night raises Florida to 16-17 in fourth, still 4.5 back.
Tampa Bay Rays (7) at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (2). The Rays notch another win to hold on to first place against former teammate Scott Kazmir. Their record sits at 23-10, but they’ve still got the Yankees breathing down their necks one game back.
It may seem unrelated to baseball, but racing a train is a lot like stealing home...
Cody Ross decides to steal home right after I leave to take a shower, of course, but that’s neither here nor there. I saw the replay and it was sweet.
10 May
NPB Off day
MLB Washington Nationals (3) at New York Mets (2). I don’t know what to say about this Nats team. They’re really something this year. This puts them in sole possession of second place with their 18-14 record.
Florida Marlins (4) at Chicago Cubs (2). It was a sloppily played game by Florida early, but they fixed their errors and capitalized on rookie shortstop, Starlin Castro’s errors to take the lead and hold on. Florida gets to move closer thanks to a Mets loss, but their 15-17 record is still only good enough for fourth.
Tampa Bay Rays (4) at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (5). That’s not gonna become a pain to type every day. Maybe I’ll shorten it. The Rays lose in extras, but, really, they only got there by rallying for three runs in the 9th. The skid increases to three games, but a Yankees loss to the Tigers last night leaves them half a game up in first.
Fukudome ALMOST hit the game-winning walk-off home run. That's enough for me to put a picture of him up today, haha.
It was a light baseball day yesterday with only two teams that matter to me playing baseball. I don’t know when it happened, but at some point in the offseason I became a Nats fan. The Marlins will always come first for me, but Washington has made a pretty good case for itself. I love an underdog and I love seeing the pieces of this team come together.
26 April
NPB No games on Mondays!
NOTE: That’s not entirely true, but they seem to only make up rain delays on Mondays, by my count.
MLB San Diego Padres (1) at Florida Marlins (10). Josh Johnson does what JJ does best. He doesn’t quite notch the shut out, but a complete game win is always fine by me. JJ’s slider was still hitting in the 90s in the 9th and he even helped himself out going 3-4 with 3 RBIs. What a pitcher. Florida rises to sole possession of second place with an 11-9 record, half a game back from the Phillies (who lost to San Francisco last night).
Washington Nationals (3) at Chicago Cubs (4). Is there anything more anti-climactic than the walk-off walk? The Nats couldn’t find the strike zone in the 10th and walked in the Cubs’ fourth run. Their performance was good enough that Duffy wasn’t ashamed to wear her Nats hat at the game, but it wasn’t good enough. The Nats record falls back to 0.500, 10-10, and they fall to third, half a game back from the Mets and 1.5 from the Phils. I really hope this division stays this competitive all year, I’m loving it right now.
I bet it was this partly this guy's fault, too.
When you have a series against the Giants (and you’re the Hiroshima Carp), things can get ugly. PYS 2010 has taught me that as well, where my version of the Hiroshima Carp are barely a fourth place team.
23 April
NPB Hiroshima Carp (4) at Yomiuri Giants (10). The Giants offense is potent, to say the least.
Nippon-Ham Fighters (2) at Rakuten Eagles (11). Hokkaido really can’t catch a break, can they?
MLB Los Angeles Dodgers (1) at Washington Nationals (5). Luis Atilano makes his MLB debut for the Nationals and manages to notch his first win in the same day. Congratulations, Luis.
Baltimore Orioles (3) at Boston Red Sox (4). What’s good for Boston is always considered bad to me. The Orioles continue to get a tough break.
Toronto Blue Jays (6) at Tampa Bay Rays (5). Not how I would have wanted it, but there’s still two games left in the series.
Florida Marlins at Colorado Rockies. Postponed for rain.
24 April
NPB Fighters (0) at Eagles (3). I can’t complain about how well Rakuten is doing against Hokkaido.
Carp (4) at Giants (7). Hiroshima answers back with some runs, but the Fish can’t notch quite enough for the win.
MLB Dodgers (4) at Nationals (3). LA comes back right away to win a close one.
Marlins (4) at Rockies (1). Game 1 of the series made up from yesterday. Get ready for a doubleheader.
Blue Jays (3) at Rays (9). Tampa Bay answers back with some serious run support.
Orioles (6) at Red Sox (7). So close! Baltimore is really struggling to get another win.
Marlins (1) at Rockies (8). The Fish get knocked around by the mountains.
25 April
NPB Fighters (3) at Eagles (4). Rakuten completes the series sweep, which is great for their record and should push them further up in the standings. The Golden Eagles end the week at 12-16-0, still in fifth.
Carp (2) at Giants (8). Like the Eagles, the Giants sweep the Carp, devastating their place. Hiroshima closes the week at 10-15-0, surprisingly just a game back from the fourth place Swallows.
MLB Orioles (7) at Red Sox (6). It’s funny when an Orioles win provides so much excitement, but that’s what happens when your team is only 3-16 in dead last.
Dodgers (0) at Nationals (1). These are the types of games that Washington has to win if they want to compete. The Nats are putting together quite the season with their 10-9 > 0.500 record so soon in the season. New York also had a good weekend while Florida had a poor one, which means all three of those teams are tied at 10-9, 1.5 games back on the Phillies in second.
Blue Jays (0) at Rays (6). If David Price keeps pitching like this…Wow. Nice work. Tampa Bay’s 14-5 record is good enough a 1.5 game lead on the Yankees for first place.
Marlins (4) at Rockies (8). Another series loss for Florida. Just a little disappointing, but at least they’re still only 1.5 GB from first with that same 10-9 record as everyone else.
I’ve been watching tons of baseball and going to a lot of games, which is great for my sports posts, but kind of terrible for blog updates. I’ll try and get some writing done this week, but until I do, here are the scores.
12 April
NPB Off-day
MLB Washington Nationals (4) at Philadelphia Phillies (7). I expected a little better from the Nats, but it was still a relatively solid effort. They’ve got an off-day today, but they’ll go up against Philly tomorrow and they’ll hopefully notch another “curly W”, as they call it. Their record drops to 3-4, but they’re still a half game up on the Mets in the East.
Tampa Bay Rays (5) at Baltimore Orioles (1). Another solid win for Tampa Bay. Garza went deep (8 innings) and the lineup continues to produce. I’m gonna see them live tonight. Tampa Bay is 4-3 with sole possession of third in the AL East.
Cincinnati Reds (6) at Florida Marlins (5). A real heartbreaker to lose, but it’s not the end of the world. If the Fish can come back with a solid game tonight, they’ll still be in a good position to win another series. Despite the loss, the Marlins are 4-3 in sole possession of second place in the NL East.
