Thursday, June 20, 2013

MLB Update

Due to the collapse of Natstown, baseball interest in Our Nation's Capital has returned to its usual somnolent state.  But the Swingin' A's are still playing great, and the two most popular teams in Kentucky -- the Cards and the Reds -- are doing extremely well.  Here are the latest rankings from CBS Sports:

1.  St. Louis Cardinals:  46-26
2.  Cincinnati Reds:  44-29
3.  Oakland Athletics:  43-31
4.  Baltimore Orioles:  42-31
5.  Boston Red Sox:  44-30
6.  Detroit Tigers:  39-31
7.  Atlanta Braves:  43-30
8.  Pittsburgh Pirates:  42-30
9.  Texas Rangers:  40-32
10.  San Diego Padres:  36-36

To me, one of the most remarkable facts about baseball over the last 20 years is how the Padres manage to almost always stay ahead of the Dodgers.

CBS is finally about to give up on Natstown, which is currently ranked 20th.

21 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. 2-1, Oakland, with bases loaded and no out in the top of the sixth ... I love it when an A walks home ...

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    2. Argh! But the Rangers switch pitchers, and the new guy comes in to throw strikeout, pop out (to Coco Crisp, whose shirt I am wearing) and strikeout ... 2-1 through five and a half ...

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    3. ARGH! A's switch pitchers amid bottom half, and our guy throws a wild pitch, allowing the tying run to score ... 2-2 through six ...

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    4. To follow a team pretty much inning by inning throughout the baseball season is grueling. I'm the fan equivalent of the reckless outfielder who hurts himself charging into the rail futilely chasing a foul with two out and no one on in the eighth inning of a 8-1 game.

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    5. 4-3, Rangers, through seven and a half ...

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    6. Strikeout, strikeout ... and now Josh Donaldson ...

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    7. SINGLE! We're alive!

      #GreenCollar!

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    8. MLB.com's automated "Scout" commentator just told us, "That was pitch number 15 for Joe Nathan; his effectiveness may start slipping, as he holds opposing hitters to a .146 average in the first 15 pitches but they hit .188 off him after that."

      I didn't find that comment as encouraging as I thought I was going to find it based on the first several words.

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    9. Seth Smith out. Rangers win. A's leave 13 on base! URGH!

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    10. If Joe Nathan would go ahead and retire this afternoon, I would totally support his first-ballot Hall of Fame candidacy.

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  2. Well, we try, John. Thanks for reading The Heath Post!

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  3. I propose that the A's call up ex-Hilltopper Ryan Huck right now. In that sixth inning in which Oakland got bases loaded with no out but produced only one run in a one-run loss yesterday, Bob Melvin put in two pinch-hitters who were both hitting below .200 on the season.

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  4. A's won the opener in Seattle last night, 6-3, as Coco Crisp homered to break a 3-3 tie. I've got to get to bed, but, tonight, Oakland is up 3-2 going into the top of the sixth. In the fifth, Coco fouled the first four pitches from Aaron Harang but then worked his way to a base on balls that loaded the bases. The A's ended up scoring two runs to take the lead on the Mariners.

    I've worn the Coco Crisp shirt during four of Oakland's games since my wife and daughter gave it to me on Father's Day. The A's won twice and lost once, and then there's tonight's game. GO, OAKLAND!

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  5. OK, good ... it turns out that maybe me and the A's just all needed a day off. After losing two of three games to Seattle over the weekend--against Oakland, the 2013 Mariners are the Big Red Machine--the A's had played 30 games in 31 days, the AP reports. And back at home, the A's were having toilet problems:

    There was fresh carpeting and other upgrades nine days after a sewage problem and flooding in the clubhouses and umpire room that sent the A's and Mariners scrambling for the locker room of the NFL's Oakland Raiders.

    It happens to all of us. Anyway, Oakland beat the Reds, 7-3, Tuesday night. And Texas lost, so the A's and Rangers are effectively tied at the top of the American League West standings (though Texas has the better record at 44-33 to Oakland's 45-34). Plus, the game entered a new name into the annals of A's history: Stephen Vogt, a 28-year-old catcher from Visalia, Calif. He went hitless in three at-bats but did sacrifice-fly home a run. Welcome to the A's, Stephen Vogt; I have rooted for the A's since about 10 years before you were born, and I feel confident that you will be able to wear your #GreenCollar with genuine pride and hope.

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  6. A.J. Griffin--a 25-year-old, 6-foot-5 righthander from El Cajon, Calif., who made his major-league debut a year and two days ago--just completed a two-hit shutout with a strikeout as the A's beat the visiting Reds, 5-0. With his first-ever complete game, Griffin improved his career statistics to 13-7 with a 3.34 earned-run average. Hooray for A.J. Griffin! Hooray for the A's!

    The Rangers play at the Yankees this evening; for at least the next few hours, Oakland is back atop the American League West by a half-game! #GREENCOLLAR!

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