Tagged: Manny Ramirez

Giants & Rockes Split 2 – Manny-Less Time!

Game 2 of the 2 game series is a must win for the Giants. They need the split to head into Los Angeles on a high note. Plus just to stay at 6/5 games back from the Dodgers. The Giants have started the game off with some runs. The Giants already have a 5 run lead going into the top of the 4th inning. Bengie Molina already has 2 home runs. The Rockies finally got their first hit off of Cain in the bottom of the 4th.
 
The Giants get on the board again in the top of the 5th inning. Fred Lewis hit a RBI single up the middle to score Nate Schierholtz. The Giants bring in Eugenio Velez to pinch run for Matt Cain, so his day is over after 6 innings of no runs and 1 hit ball. He did walk 5 runners though but did manage to strike out 7.
 
The Rockies get on a scoreboard in the bottom of the 7th inning. Brad Hawpe hits a solo home run off of Jeremy Affeldt. That’s all the Rockies would get in the 7th inning. Randy Winn got a RBI single in the top of the 9th to score Pablo Sandoval. The Rockies get 2 runs on a 2 run home run by Ian Stewart in the bottom of the 9th. That was off of Justin Miller. The Giants still hold on to win the game by a score of 8-3 over the Rockies.
 
Matt Cain is the winning pitcher and is now 3-1 this season.
 
Up Next
 
The Giants start a weekend series with the Dodgers. Barry Zito gets the start for the Giants. Giants fans are hoping he can keep his starts going against the Manny-Less Dodgers. Manny Ramirez who’s on a 50 game suspension will not be eligible to play again until July 3rd.
 
~ King of Cali

Giants & Manny Thoughts!

Randy Johnson has a trend going on. He has a great outing then a bad one. It’s been like that since the start of the season. He has been pitching really well at home, so good news Giants fans. Johnson’s next 2 starts will be at home. =)
 
You would think that playing in Colorado would jump start a teams offense. Not for the Giants! They can’t even score runs there. They have another game there today, so lets see what happens. We need to win this game to get a 2 game split with the Rockies. The Giants have Matt Cain on the mound.
 
Up Next
 
After today’s game the Giants will fly to Los Angeles to face the Manny-less Dodgers. The Giants got a early Christmas gift today. When they woke up to
mannyramirezparty.jpgnews saying Manny is suspended for 50 games starting today. This should help the Dodgers come back down to earth after their hotttt start. Man having Manny out is going to really hurt my Fantasy team! =( Oh well as long as my Giants catch up and take the lead in the division. =) 
 
Even Barry Zito has a tweet about Manny. “Manny’s gone for 50 games. Time for the Giants to capitalize.” Zito gets the start tomorrow night against the Dodgers. Go Giants!
 
Now Manny has more time to party with his fans… lol
 
~ King of Cali

April NL West Recap

NL West standings after the first month of baseball.
 
                       W     L       GB     Home    Road
Dodgers        15    8        —        7-0        8-8   
Giants           10    10     3.5      8-3        2-7
Padres           11   11      3.5     6-4        5-7
D-Backs          9     13      5.5    8-10      1-3
Rockies          8     12      5.5     4-5       4-7
 
 
Here is a little recap of the top 3 teams in the NL West.
 
Dodgers
 
The Dodgers did have a hot start but have lost a few recently to let the rest of the NL West catch up. The Giants and Padres are just 3.5 games back. The Dodgers could have just been tired from being on the road so much in April. They are now starting off May at home, so we can see what some home cooking will do for them.
 
Giants
 
The Giants started the season off by taking 2 out of 3 from the Brewers. You’re thinking great start right? Wrong! They then went to San Diego and Los Angeles and got swept. They went 0-6 on the road trip, so that a 2-7 start. The Giants have then bounced back and end the month with a 10-10 record and taking the last series of the month 2 out of 3 games from the Dodgers.
 

Padres
 
It’s really hard to judge a team after the first few weeks of the season. Some teams have very bad starts and some have hot starts. Now that April is over you will see teams start to show who they really are. The Padres started out pretty hot but were projected to finish last in the NL West. They have started to come down from their high horse. They are still tied for 2nd place in the NL West, but they have started to lose some games to get back to the middle of the pack. I’m sure after May they will find themselves lower in the standings.

 
Up Next
 
Dodgers are home tonight to start a 3 game series with the Padres.
 
Giants start a 3 game series with the Rockies at home tonight.
 
D-Backs are currently on the road in a 4 game series with the Brewers. The Brewers took game 1 by a score of 4-1.
 
Side Notes
 
I will be at the Giants game Friday May 15th. If you’re going to be there. Let me know. Maybe we can meet up for a beer.
 
~ King of Cali
 

Giants Take the Series from the Dodgers – April Over!

Now that the first month of Giants baseball is over.  I think the Giants are starting to play some decent ball. The Giants finished 10-10 in April, after a 2-7 start. Giants fans are happy with that. The Giants did have a 0-6 road trip in San Diego and Los Angeles, so to have an 0-6 road trip and still finish the month 10-10 is a good turn around. The Giants are only 3 games behind the Dodgers after the Dodgers hot start.
 
Giants vs. Dodgers Series
 
The Giants did win the series with the Dodgers at AT&T Park.  They split the first 2 games but game 3 was a different story with “The Freak” on the mound for the Giants. Lincecum looked like Lincecum again last night. The Dodgers couldn’t get anything going against him until the 8th inning. Bengie Molina was  a double shy of hitting for the cycle. Yes that’s right…that means he did hit a triple! lol =)
 
Pablo Sandoval did come out of the game in the 4th inning. He had a groin strain and it was reported after the game that it’s not as bad as they thought. They will see how he feels tomorrow when he gets to the ball park. They think he will probably play Friday night against the Rockies. 
 
Lincecum vs. Ramirez
 
The match up with Manny Ramirez and Tim Lincecum was exciting to see. Lincecum held Manny in check, but Manny was still able to get some good swing.
 
 

Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for mlb_lincecum_ramirez.jpg 
  • 1st     Lineout to right field on a 0-1 pitch.
  • 4th    Flyout to right field on a 1-1 pitch.
  • 6th    Line-drive single to right field on 1-0 pitch
  • 8th    Walked after a 3-1 count. 
 
Thoughts from Jeremy Affeldt
 
Wasn’t worried when they got off to a slow start. Thinks they were trying to do to much to early. They have been playing really good baseball the 2nd half of the month. He thinks with the pitching going so well. It’s taking a lot of pressure off of the offense.
 
Keep the Giants train rolling!

 
Slow start in April but a strong finish for the Giants. Let’s see if they can keep the train moving in the right direction in May. Go Giants!
 
~King of Cali

Giants, Dodgers and Bonds… Oh My!

Last night was a very cold and windy. You can see players between pitches blowing into their hands trying to warm them up. It reminded me of Candlestick Park. Watching games there with the wind blowing like crazy. =)
 
Another great start last night for the Giants starting rotation. Zito had 6 scoreless innings till the Dodgers got to him in the 7th inning. Zito and Sandoval have some kind of connection, cause Zito looks very comfortable with Sandoval behind the plate. Giants did have a 3-0 lead till the Dodgers got 4 in the 7th inning. Merkin Valdez came in with a runner on 1st and the Giants clinging to a 1 run lead. After the inning it was the Dodgers 4 and the Giants 3. The Giants did score 2 runs in the bottom of the 8th inning to take the lead right back. Brian Wilson then came in to strike out the side. He must had felt like he had to make a statement. Wilson also has deleted his Twitter Account. The media was on him for twittering late Saturday night about going out and then he got a blow save the next day. Dumb media! lol Wilson had just added me to follow me on twitter and not I have no chance at trying to interview him. =( 
 
Giants are looking good right now. Once they lost the lead. I figured they were done. It was a very cold night, so it was easy for them to just throw in the towels and wait to try it again another day. These guys are starting to score a few runs. They send Sanchez to the mound tonight. He’s the one who started this impressive run by the starting rotation, so I’m hoping he can keep it going.
 
Barry Bonds made his way to AT&T Park last night. He was all smiles out there last night. It’s obvious he misses being out there and hearing all the fans chant his name. Bonds did say he was hoping the Giants would have got Manny Ramirez. He was saying how great of a hitter he is. He also was saying that the Giants have something good with Fred Lewis in left field. He has been watching all of the Giants games on TV. Said he’s seen Johnson 6 innings of no hit ball. He thinks this team has a great rotation and they are a good team with some good players. Bonds was like a different person last night and I’m glad people who were watching the game got to see that side of him. He was really nice, fun and joking around. You can tell his passion is still baseball. Just listening to him talk about hitting and breaking down Manny Ramirez’s hitting when he was at the plate. He needs to stay in the game some how, cause he has so much to offer to players. Bonds still said he’s not retired but he’s just a fan right now. He’s a big fan of the organization and he will always be a Giant.
 
~ King of Cali

Giants/Dodgers =(

Okay so I’m pumped to listen to the Giants and Dodgers game today. It’s the Dodgers home opener, so I would love for my Giants to take this game from them. I have my Dodgers friends texting me “Go Dodgers!”. I rushed back from the gym to start the MLB Radio. It’s just about game time. I hear the announcers….. then the radio cuts out! I tried to refresh and sign in and out and nothing! I wasn’t able to get back on to the MLB radio till the top of the 2nd inning.
 
The Dodgers get on the board in the bottom of the 3rd. Orlando Hudson hits a solo home run. Manny Ramirez then doubles off Johnson. That’s all the Dodgers would get that inning. The Giants did answer back in the top of the 4th inning. Bengie Molina hit a double and scored on a Travis Ishikawa single.
 
Andre Ethier hit a solo home run off of Randy Johnson. This year so far all of the runs Johnson has given up have been by home runs. He gave up two in his first game against the Brewers and two today against the Dodgers so far. Well I guess I jinxed them, cause they got two more guys on and Rafael Furcal hit a 2 run single. The Dodgers end up getting one more run off of Johnson. Johnson leaves the game in the bottom of the 4th inning with bases loaded. Merkin Valdez comes in to face Martin with bases loaded and Martin his a 2 run single off of him. Score is now 7-1 Dodgers. Oh mannnnnn we (Giants) suck! lol
 
In the bottom of the 6th inning Orlando Hudson hit a triple, and that gives him the cycle. He’s the first Dodger in 39 years to hit for one, and it’s also the first cycle ever hit at Dodgers Stadium. Okay so about 2 mins after Hudson hits for the cycle and Ramirez walks my friend (Giants fan) texts me “Giants Suck!”. I just text back no sh*t! lol Man I really want to turn this game off and just wait till Wed. when they play again. The only reason I’m not is cause I have some guys on my fantasy team from both teams. Just an FYI my Dodgers players are doing good for my fantasy team. lol Another fyi – Every Dodgers starter has a hit today and Hudson has 4 of them. I’m just hoping the Dodgers use all their hits for the series today. =)
 
Well I usually leave a Giants Highlights section, but there isn’t any, so I feel sorry for anybody who has a Giants player on their Fantasy team. Here is good news. If you have a Giants starting pitcher on your Fantasy team. Then they didn’t get smacked around today, but you might want to check the box score when it’s their turn to pitch. lol
 
Man I sound really bitter in this blog. I’m not…well kind of. Just sucks that were playing so bad. I know… I know there is still tons of games left. Okay so as I was writing that last sentence I got good news/bad news. The bad news is the Dodgers hit a 3 run home run to make the score 11-1 now. The good news is my Fantasy got Andre Either hit it and that’s his 2nd home run of the game. lol I guess you  have to take the good with the bad huh? lol
 
Well the game that would never end has finally ended. The Dodgers bent the Giants over and spanked them for 11 runs. Dodgers win 11-1 over the Giants.
 
Today In Baseball History
 
1939 – With apparent muscle loss, especially around his shoulders, Yankee first baseman Lou Gehrig goes deep twice in an exhibition game against the Dodgers. The home runs will be the last round trippers the ‘Iron Horse’ will ever hit.
 
~ King of Cali

Dodgers vs. Giants Recap – Today In Baseball History!

Giants #5 starter Jonathan Sanchez will miss his start today against the Dodgers. Sanchez burned his finger in the kitchen. I guess he doesn’t make enough money yet to have someone cook for him. He said he will pitch on Sunday against the Dodgers at AT&T park.
 
Madison Bumgarner is getting his first start of the Spring for the injured Jonathan Sanchez. Giants fans are excited to see him. He’s going to be a pitcher that we look forward to seeing in the pro’s in the next few seasons.
 
Bumgarner starts the first inning by striking out Juan Pierre, Getting Hu to ground out and striking out Manny Ramirez.
 
Winn starts the game off with a single and Renteria follows that up with a single. Runners now at 1st and 3rd for Fred Lewis. Winn scores on a RBI single by Lewis. After 1 inning it’s the Giants 1 and the Dodgers 0.
 
Bumgarner has another perfect inning to retire the Dodgers in order in the top of the 2nd inning.
 
Doug Mientkiewicz hits a 2 run home run off of Justin Miller to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead in the top of the 4th.
 
Emmanuel Burriss led off the Giants bottom of the 5th with a triple off of ex-Giant Shawn Estes. Aurilia hits a RBI single scoring Burriss to tie the game at 2.
 
The Dodgers get the bases loaded in the top of the 6th inning, but are unable to get any runs across.
 
Fred Lewis hits a triple in the bottom of the 6th inning. He then scores on a sac fly by Matt Downs. Travis Ishikawa hits a solo home run to give the Giants a 4-2 lead.
 
The Dodgers get the bases loaded in the top of the 7th inning. The Dodgers score 3 runs and take a 5-4 lead over the Giants.
 
The Giants answer back in the bottom of the 8th. Andres Torres hits a solo home run to tie the game at 5. The Giants then load the bases for Matt Downs and he hits a bases clearing double. The Giants now have a 8-5 lead over the Dodgers.
 
Juan Castro hits a 2 run home run off of Alex Hinshaw in the top of the 8th inning. The Dodgers end up getting another run and the game is tied going into the bottom of the 8th inning.
 
The Giants answer right back in the bottom of the 8th scoring 2 runs to take a 10-8 lead into the 9th inning.
 
The Cactus League finally comes to a end. The Giants hold the Dodgers scoreless in the 9th and win 10-8.
 
Totals
 
  • Dodgers get 8 runs, 10 hits and 0 errors.
  • Giants get 10 runs, 14 hits and 1 error.
 
Multi Hit Game
 
The Giants get 3 players with a multi hit game.
 
  • McBryde goes 2-2 with 1 RBI and scored 1 run.
  • Lewis goes 2-3 with 1 RBI and scored 1 run.
  • Holm goes 2-4 with 1 RBI and scored 1 run.
 
Pitching Highlights
 
Bumgarner pitched 3 innings giving up 1 hit and striking out 4 Dodgers including Manny Ramirez.
  
Side Notes
 
This was the final cactus league game for the Giants. The Giants are flying to San Francisco after the game and will be playing the A’s tomorrow night at AT&T Park.
 
Giants lead the National League in home runs this spring. The #1 team in home runs is the Kansas City Royals.
 
Randy Johnson will pitch Friday against the A’s and then his first start of the season will be on Wednesday (my b-day) against the Brewers.
 
Today In Baseball History
 
1997 – Setting a record for the most runs scored in one inning of an Opening Day contest this century, the Padres score 11 runs in the bottom of the sixth inning en route to a 12-5 rout of Mets. Chris Gomez, Rickey Henderson and Quilvio Veras lead the attack with a back-to-back-to-back home runs.
 
~ King of Cali

My Fantasy Baseball Team

Here is my fantasy team from the fantasy draft that I did with other fellow bloggers. I wasn’t able to complete the draft so the computer finished it off for me. I did make it thru 20 or 21 rounds then put it in auto draft for the rest of the draft. I did have the #3 in the draft and I picked Albert Pujols with my first pick.
 
BATTERS
 
C        Chris Iannetta,        Col
 
1B       Albert Pujols           Stl
 
2B        Robinson Cano       NYY
 
3B         Garrett Atkins        Col
 
SS          Derek Jeter            NYY
 
2b/SS    Miguel Tejada        Hou
 
1B/3B    Pablo Sandoval        SF
 
LF           Manny Ramirez       LAD
 
CF         Shane Victorino        Phi
 
RF         Bobby Abreu              LAA
 
OF        Alfonso Soriano         ChC
 
OF        Hideki Matsui             NYY
 
OF         Denard Span              Min
 
OF         Kendry Morales         LAA
 
OF         Felix Pie                     Bal
 
DH        Jeff Clement              Sea
 
UTIL     Edwin Encarnacion    Cin
 
Bench    Ramon Hernandez    Cin
 
Bench    Freddy Sanchez        Pit
 
Bench    Mark Ellis                  Oak
 
Bench    Joe Crede                  Min
 
PITCHERS
 
P            Chris Young                SD
 
P            Jesse Litsch                Tor
 
P            John Lannan                Was
 
P            Jeremy Bonderman     Det
 
P            James McDonald         LAD
 
P            Matt Guerrier              Min
 
P            Chad Cordero              Sea
 
P            Steven Shell                Was
 
P            Jorge Julio                    Mil
 
SP          Roy Oswalt                   Hou
 
SP          Rich Harden                 ChC
 
SP          Randy Johnson            SF
 
SP          Gil Meche                    KC
 
RP          Brian Wilson                SF
 
RP          Miguel Batista            Sea
 
RP          Juan Cruz                   KC
 
RP          Cory Wade                  LAD
 
Don’t forget to go to “The Max” blog and vote for me so I can make it past the first round at least. =)
 
~ King of Cali

Who would you build around?

This is just something I have been thinking about and I’m curious as to what other bloggers think about this. If you could start your with one player. Who would be the guy you would build your team around? Would you start off with a young Ace like Tim Lincecum. Somebody that can start every five days and shut the other team down. Maybe you want a star shortstop like Derek Jeter. Someone that can hit and give you a 100% day in and day out. Maybe you want a centerfielder like Aaron Rowand that goes balls out on defense. You can even go with a monster swinger like Ryan Howard. He can spark your offense and get a ton of RBI’s. There is so many ways you can go with this. I’m just curious to see what bloggers would go with what guys to start a team and build around them. I look forward to your comments.
 
~King of Cali