Tag: Philadelphia Phillies (Page 10 of 31)

MLB Roundup: Red-hot Renteria, Lee’s bad news & the BoSox’s early woes

Giants 5, Braves 4
Quick, name the team with the best record in baseball. The Yankees? Sorry – they’re currently only .500. The answer would be the Giants, who have begun the year 4-0 after coming from behind to the beat the Braves 5-4 in 13 innings on Friday. Quick, name the hottest hitter in the league right now. If you said Albert Pujols, then punch yourself in the ear because you’re wrong. If you said Edgar Renteria, you’re right, but you probably only said that to be a wiseass – so the jokes on you. Renteria is batting an astonishing .688 to start the year after going 3-for-5 with a game-tying two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth, which helped San Fran erase a 4-2 deficit. I don’t know how Pablo Sandoval slimmed down and stole Renteria’s jersey without anyone seeing, but there’s no way that’s the real Edgar Renteria.

Rangers 6, Mariners 2
Nelson Cruz abused the Mariners on Friday, going 3-for-4 with a solo homer, two RBI and two runs scored in the Rangers’ 6-2 victory. Seattle is hitting .199 as a team and was 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position. It was the club’s fourth straight loss and making matters worse, it was revealed that Cliff Lee might not come off the disabled list until May now.

Royals 4, Red Sox 3
It’s early, but you know things are bad in Boston when they’re losing to Kansas City. Rick Ankiel (yes, that Rick Ankiel) hit a go-ahead two-run single off Daniel Bard in the eighth inning of the Royals’ 4-3 win over the BoSox on Friday night. It was the fourth hit of the night for Ankiel, who also hit a solo home run and drove in three runs. Not a bad night for the newcomer, who helped sent Boston spiraling to a 1-3 start.

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MLB Report: Granderson lifts Yanks, Jones & Wells off to great starts

Yankees 3, Red Sox 1
It’s only been three games, but new addition Curtis Granderson is already making a huge impact for the Yankees. After homering in his first at bat of the season on Sunday night, Granderson delivered the go-ahead solo home run in the top of the 10th inning Wednesday as the Bombers beat the Red Sox 3-1. With Granderson’s help, New York was able to take two of three games in Boston. (I wonder what people are going to complain about seeing as how the Yankees didn’t “buy” Granderson – they traded for him.)

Pirates 4, Dodgers 3
Do the Bucs have a star in the making in Garrett Jones or what? The 28-year-old hit his third homer in two games with a three-run shot off of Clayton Kershaw to help the Pirates down the Dodgers 4-3 on Wednesday. Roger Cedeno played the hero in the 10th inning when he singled home Lastings Milledge for the winning run, as Pittsburgh is surprisingly in position to sweep L.A. to start the season.

Giants 10, Astros 4
The Giants might as well petition the league to play the Astros every night, because they own Houston. The G-Men completed a three-game sweep of the Stros on Wednesday night, as Edgar Renteria went 5-for-5 in a 10-4 San Francisco victory. (Stop laughing – I’m seriously…yes…it really was that Edgar Renteria.) With their pitching, if the Giants can continue to swing the bats as well as they have, they’re going to be serious contenders in the NL West.

Blue Jays 7, Rangers 4
Is that Vernon Wells up in Toronto or did the Blue Jays make a move for Albert Pujols and didn’t tell anybody? Wells went 2-for-3 with two dingers and three RBI on Wednesday night as the Jays beat the Rangers 7-4. Wells now has three homers in two games and while it’s a little early for Toronto fans to be doing back flips about his production, he’s certainly off to a great start.

Phillies 8, Nationals 4
Plenty of Philadelphia fans were on board Wednesday in Washington, D.C. to see Ryan Howard go 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBI in the Phillies’ 8-4 win over the Nationals. Apparently the Nationals’ front office didn’t restrict the number of tickets that the well-organized Philadelphia faithful could buy and Phillie fans traveled down to D.C. in buses in order to invade Washington. It was essentially a home series for the Phillies, so nice work, Washington front office.


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MLB Report: Heyward homers in first AB, Pujols, Lincecum dazzle

Braves 16, Cubs 5
Rookie Jason Heyward had a picture-perfect start to his MLB career when he belted a three-run home run off Carlos Zambrano in his first at bat on Monday. Heyward finished the day with two hits, four RBI and two runs scored to lead Atlanta in the rout. Zambrano had a nightmarish debut, allowing eight runs on six hits in just 1.1 innings of work.

Cardinals 11, Reds 6
MLB might as well start the engraving process for the MVP award, because Albert Pujols is already making a claim that he deserves the honor. The best hitter in baseball went 4-for-5 with three RBI and two home runs in the Cards’ 11-6 victory over the Reds.

Giants 5, Astros 2
Concerns about Tim Lincecum after his so-so spring were put to rest on Monday in Houston after the two-time Cy Young winner blanked the Stros over seven innings. Lincecum held a weak Houston lineup to four hits and no runs, while also striking out seven. Outside of a small jam in the sixth inning, he was nearly flawless.

Phillies 11, Nationals 1
It didn’t take long for Roy Halladay to impress his new teammates. He pitched seven innings against the Nationals on Monday, allowing one run on just six hits while striking out nine. The lone run actually scored in the first inning, but Washington looked overmatched after that point.

Rangers 5, Blue Jays 4
Shaun Marcum had a no hitter through six innings on Monday before the Rangers finally got to him in the seventh. Texas erased a 3-0 and 4-3 deficit to win 5-4 with two runs in the ninth. Catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia came through in the clutch, delivering a bases-loaded, walk-off single to win it for the Rangers.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

MLB Opening Week: 10 Things to Watch

While nothing beats the opening weekend in football, I’ll always have a special place in my heart for the start of a new baseball season. With a sense of a new beginning, the opening week of baseball brings hope and excitement to fans across the country.

Then you realize that you’re favorite team is the Pirates, Royals or Nationals and all that hope gets crushed. It’s an ugly realization, but it is what it is.

As baseball is set to kick off a new season, here are 10 things to keep an eye on this week.

1. Roy Halladay makes his Philles debut
Fans will have to wait until next weekend to see Halladay make his Philadelphia debut, but they probably won’t have to wait long to see him dominate in red and white. Halladay will start against the Nationals on Opening Day and then at Houston five days later, which means he gets tune ups against two of the weaker teams in the National League. He shouldn’t have any issues making the early-season transition to the NL – outside of hitting, of course. Unless he succumbs to the pressure of pitching in Philadelphia, Halladay will likely have plenty of success throughout the entire season.

2. Jason Heyward’s MLB debut
The top position player prospect in baseball will enter the 2010 season as the Braves’ starting right fielder. The former 2007 first round pick hit .323 with 17 homers and 63 RBI between three stops in the minor leagues last season and might be the difference between the Braves finishing in the middle of the pack in the National League, or securing a postseason berth. Heyward doesn’t have one breakout skill, but he’s a five-tool player who takes a patient approach to the plate and exhibits good bat speed. He’s also a solid defender, with above-average speed and can play multiple outfield positions. If Heyward turns out to be the real deal, then so too will the Braves.

3. Can Jon Rauch fill Joe Nathan’s shoes?
After Nathan decided to have Tommy John surgery and therefore miss the entire 2010 season, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said that the club would employ a closer-by-committee situation with their bullpen. But Gardenhire quickly went back on that decision, instead choosing to go with Rauch as his full-time closer. The question now becomes: Will Rauch be the same reliable pitcher he was last year in Minnesota or the one that struggled in Arizona in the first half? Rauch isn’t the long-term solution, but he doesn’t have to be either. He just has to be dependable this season to help bridge the gap until Nathan returns to full health in 2011.

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With injuries to Blanton, Romero and Lidge, are the Phillies in trouble?

After the club acquired Roy Halladay from the Blue Jays over the offseason, there aren’t too many (if any) media publications that are predicting against the Phillies in the NL East this season.

But with Joe Blanton, J.C. Romero and Brad Lidge set to start the season on the disabled list, should the Phillies be concerned?

Blanton has never been an overpowering pitcher, but he’s been a rock in the middle of the Phillies’ starting rotation since he was acquired from the A’s a couple years ago. He’ll miss anywhere from 3-6 weeks after tweaking his oblique muscle during a recent throwing session and now Kyle Kendrick (who lost out to Jamie Moyer for the club’s fifth starter spot) will take his place.

Romero underwent surgery to repair a torn flexor tendon in his elbow last October and isn’t ready to return, although he is progressing faster in his rehab than Lidge. Both pitchers aren’t expected to return until mid April at the earliest.

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