I was scorekeeping at a school baseball tournament today. Felt so good to be back on a diamond, close to some real baseball action. And it felt amazing to hear the cracks of the bat every time the batter made contact. The weather was BEAUTIFUL too. Absolutely GORGEOUS day for baseball!!
The roof was open for last night's Jays game for the first time!! The Blue Jays performance this season has been up and down, much like the weather here in TO these past few weeks. This hasn't come as a surprise to me. They got good players, but are very scrappy. Really, I didn't have much expectations for them coming into this season so I'm just enjoying whatever they do. That 13-12 game against the Red Sox was freakin' fantastic!! I am, however, itching to get down to a game this season!
How 'bout the Padres eh? Every pundit in the country said they would be dead last in the NL West and would be one of the worst teams in the NL. Low and behold, they are first in their division. But hey, the Jays got off to a 27-13 start last year too...
Tonight, two MLB stars return to their line ups from injury. Cliff Lee will make his much anticipated debut with Seattle and second baseman Ian Kinsler is slated to return to the Texas batting order. I like both guys a lot, especially Kinsler. So I'll be excited to see what they got this season!
All those changes to the All-Star Game, they're alright. I don't like the ineligible-if-pitched-on-Sunday rule though.
-D
Friday 30 April 2010
Sunday 18 April 2010
Wild Night in Baseball
First there was Ubaldo Jimenez, hurling the first no hitter in Rockies history, despite a plethora of walks and a couple of close plays. Then there was the 6 hour 53 minute duel between the New York Mets and the St. Louis Cardinals.
The two rare feats made for a great night in the MLB. Ubaldo Jimenez, the Rockies ace who came into the season with ample expectations jumped in celebration as the game finished with a ground out to second. He was throwing heat all night long, with his fastball still blazing at 97 miles per hour in the 8th inning. There have been quite a few flirts with no-no's this season by various pitchers. CC Sabathia carried one with 4 outs to go. Ricky Romero set 21 down before giving up a home run to Alex Rios last Tuesday. And on Opening Day, Shaun Marcum kept the Rangers hitless until 1 out in the 7th.
Later in the night, a friend of mine instant messaged me and told me to tune into the Mets-Cardinals match up. It was the bottom of the 19th inning, with the score tied at 1. Amazingly enough, neither team had scored until the Mets struck first in the top of the 19th inning. All in all, the Mets used 24 of their 25 players, while the Cardinals used 22 of 25. The Cards also used 2 position players on the mound, and put starting pitcher Kyle Lohse out in left field to finish the game. In the end, the Mets won 2-1 in 20, almost 7 hours after the first pitch! Amazing!
-D
The two rare feats made for a great night in the MLB. Ubaldo Jimenez, the Rockies ace who came into the season with ample expectations jumped in celebration as the game finished with a ground out to second. He was throwing heat all night long, with his fastball still blazing at 97 miles per hour in the 8th inning. There have been quite a few flirts with no-no's this season by various pitchers. CC Sabathia carried one with 4 outs to go. Ricky Romero set 21 down before giving up a home run to Alex Rios last Tuesday. And on Opening Day, Shaun Marcum kept the Rangers hitless until 1 out in the 7th.
Later in the night, a friend of mine instant messaged me and told me to tune into the Mets-Cardinals match up. It was the bottom of the 19th inning, with the score tied at 1. Amazingly enough, neither team had scored until the Mets struck first in the top of the 19th inning. All in all, the Mets used 24 of their 25 players, while the Cardinals used 22 of 25. The Cards also used 2 position players on the mound, and put starting pitcher Kyle Lohse out in left field to finish the game. In the end, the Mets won 2-1 in 20, almost 7 hours after the first pitch! Amazing!
-D
Sunday 11 April 2010
Jays Rollin' Along
4-1.
First in the AL East.
Bet none of the pundits expected that!
Vernon Wells has been hot-4 home runs in the first three games. Adam Lind has been smokin', lining singles and doubles left right and centre. Edwin Encarnacion has been on a streak. The starting pitching has been wonderful-fifth starter Dana Eveland hurled 7 and 2/3 innings of shutout ball.
The hitting has been there too. Yea, they only scored 3 runs tonight but look at the two 9th inning rallies! Tomorrow Shaun Marcum gets back on the mound as the Jays attempt to sweep the O's at Camden Yards. His fabulous outing on Opening Day got lost amidst the hoopla over Frasor's blown save. The man took a no-hitter into the 7th inning for God's sake! That doesn't happen everyday, surely not on Opening Day, and even rarer for a pitcher who was making his first start after Tommy John surgery.
Keep the hits coming boys!! Can't wait for the home opener Monday!!
-D
First in the AL East.
Bet none of the pundits expected that!
Vernon Wells has been hot-4 home runs in the first three games. Adam Lind has been smokin', lining singles and doubles left right and centre. Edwin Encarnacion has been on a streak. The starting pitching has been wonderful-fifth starter Dana Eveland hurled 7 and 2/3 innings of shutout ball.
The hitting has been there too. Yea, they only scored 3 runs tonight but look at the two 9th inning rallies! Tomorrow Shaun Marcum gets back on the mound as the Jays attempt to sweep the O's at Camden Yards. His fabulous outing on Opening Day got lost amidst the hoopla over Frasor's blown save. The man took a no-hitter into the 7th inning for God's sake! That doesn't happen everyday, surely not on Opening Day, and even rarer for a pitcher who was making his first start after Tommy John surgery.
Keep the hits coming boys!! Can't wait for the home opener Monday!!
-D
Monday 5 April 2010
Opening Day
Well, for 28 teams in the MLB at least, it is OPENING DAY!
Last night, the oldest rivalry in baseball, the defending World Champs New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, opened the 99th season at Fenway Park, the first opener played at night. The Yankees opened up a quick 5-1 lead before the Red Sox stormed back to win the opener 9-7.
Today in Washington DC, President Obama trotted out to the mound to throw the traditional presidential first pitch on Opening Day. Though he wore a bright red Nationals jacket, Obama still had that ubiquitous White Sox hat. The pitch was apparently high and wide.
Down in Arlington, Texas, the Toronto Blue Jays just wrapped up their season opener against the Texas Rangers. Our big hitters produced just like we expected they would. Wells hit a two run bomb in the 1st inning. Lind followed it up with another homer in the 3rd and Wells drove in the go ahead in the 8th with the bases loaded. It's also worthy of noting that Shaun Marcum took a no hitter into the 7th inning before Vladimir Guerrero singled and Nelson Cruz homered. HOWEVER, our newly appointed closer Jason Frasor could not hold the line in the 9th, squandering a 4-3 lead, giving up 4 straight hits. It was obviously not how the team wanted to start the season, but there were a lot of positives out of this game.
Can't wait to see Rich Harden on Wednesday.
-D
Last night, the oldest rivalry in baseball, the defending World Champs New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, opened the 99th season at Fenway Park, the first opener played at night. The Yankees opened up a quick 5-1 lead before the Red Sox stormed back to win the opener 9-7.
Today in Washington DC, President Obama trotted out to the mound to throw the traditional presidential first pitch on Opening Day. Though he wore a bright red Nationals jacket, Obama still had that ubiquitous White Sox hat. The pitch was apparently high and wide.
Down in Arlington, Texas, the Toronto Blue Jays just wrapped up their season opener against the Texas Rangers. Our big hitters produced just like we expected they would. Wells hit a two run bomb in the 1st inning. Lind followed it up with another homer in the 3rd and Wells drove in the go ahead in the 8th with the bases loaded. It's also worthy of noting that Shaun Marcum took a no hitter into the 7th inning before Vladimir Guerrero singled and Nelson Cruz homered. HOWEVER, our newly appointed closer Jason Frasor could not hold the line in the 9th, squandering a 4-3 lead, giving up 4 straight hits. It was obviously not how the team wanted to start the season, but there were a lot of positives out of this game.
Can't wait to see Rich Harden on Wednesday.
-D
Saturday 3 April 2010
Gorgeous Weather
It is the 2nd of April and here in Toronto, the thermometer hit a gorgeous 23 degrees today. Tomorrow, the forecast high is 24!! You know what I have on my mind when days like these come by? SANDLOT BASEBALL!!
Went out with a few friends today and hacked at a few balls. Also pitched a little and did a little fielding. It felt so good to get some outdoor exercise after the winter, especially with the sun not too hot and a warm breeze. Can't wait for more days like these during the summer!
I recently became a subscriber of Sports Illustrated magazine. The latest issue, featuring the magazine's prediction for the 2010 baseball season, had Roy Halladay on the cover page. Inside, there was an absolutely fantastic feature on Doc, talking about his worth ethic and his journey as a Blue Jays ace. I definitely recommend all Jays fans give it a read-and Phillies fans too-I really want to go see his return to the Rogers Centre on June 20. But that's also the day that the G20 summit opens in Toronto, just steps away from the stadium. Security will be HELL, so we'll see.
NCAA Final Four matches tomorrow. Duke v. WV and Bulter v. MSU. Who are you cheering for?
-D
Went out with a few friends today and hacked at a few balls. Also pitched a little and did a little fielding. It felt so good to get some outdoor exercise after the winter, especially with the sun not too hot and a warm breeze. Can't wait for more days like these during the summer!
I recently became a subscriber of Sports Illustrated magazine. The latest issue, featuring the magazine's prediction for the 2010 baseball season, had Roy Halladay on the cover page. Inside, there was an absolutely fantastic feature on Doc, talking about his worth ethic and his journey as a Blue Jays ace. I definitely recommend all Jays fans give it a read-and Phillies fans too-I really want to go see his return to the Rogers Centre on June 20. But that's also the day that the G20 summit opens in Toronto, just steps away from the stadium. Security will be HELL, so we'll see.
NCAA Final Four matches tomorrow. Duke v. WV and Bulter v. MSU. Who are you cheering for?
-D
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