Giants Get Right in Colorado

post from The Giants Baseball Blog- A San Francisco Giants Blog and Fan Website on 05 August 2012 07:01:37 PM. © The Giants Baseball Blog- A San Francisco Giants Blog and Fan Website

After finishing up their home stand in forgettable fashion earlier in the week, the Giants had to get their offense going in Denver. They did exactly what they needed to!

Pagan back to leadoffBruce Bochy hosted a team meeting before game one on Friday night, and whatever he said worked wonders for his squad in this 3-game set. San Francisco rode a couple of offensive fueled nights in games one and two to easy victories. The key though wasn't just that the bats woke up this series, it's that they woke up early on in ballgames and provided the Giants starters some breathing room. Coors Field is the most lively park in baseball and 5 run leads there are like 2 run leads in a typical yard. One of the reasons why the Giants offense had been sputtering is because of their lack of production at the top of the order. Bochy decided to throw Pagan back at the top of the lineup for this series and he responded terrifically. Angel went 7-14 in the series, reaching base 10 times all together and scoring 7 runs. That's getting it done in the leadoff spot and something the Giants sorely need to regain. Buster Posey also continued his 2nd half assault on NL Pitching and had himself another terrific series. Posey ended up with 8 knocks (two of which left the yard) and 7 RBI.

As for the Giants newcomers, both contributed heavily in the series. Hunter Pence didn't do a whole lot with the bat in games one and two, but he showed up ready to hit Sunday. He nailed two RBI-doubles, including one off the right field wall, and drove in 4 runs in the series. I think the biggest impact we're already seeing from his though is just his presence in the middle of that order and how it's allowing Cabrera and Posey to see better pitches. I'm also sold on Marco Scutaro already. He's had some adventures in the field over at third thus far, but the guy can hit and is exactly the type of patient, steady bat the Giants needed in their infield.

Lincecum labors, finishes strongIt wasn't just the offense that stepped it up in Denver either. The pitching had a rough go of it in the second part of that last home stand, but the starters really pulled their weight in the offensive friendly confines of Coors Field. All three starting pitchers ended up with strong outings. They did all run into some trouble at some point in their start, especially Lincecum in game three, but they all managed to get through 6 and collect victories. Bumgarner and Vogelsong each had pretty good stuff throughout, but Timmy went through his start with less than stellar command. Lincecum had to labor through 6, walking 4 batters and allowing base runners in every inning, but he did a helluva job walking the tightrope and didn't allow the Rockies any big innings when it looked like some were brewing. He also was the recipient of some strong defense behind him. Melky Cabrera came up with what I thought was the play of the weekend when he threw out Wilmn Rosario at the plate trying to score on a fly out. That preserved the Giants two run lead got Lincecum two outs and out of an inning when it looked like it was going to interesting.

The thing I liked most about this series had to be the relentless, non-stop offensive barrage the Giants put up this weekend. Normally when they put up big numbers in a game, the majority of their damage is done in one inning. This weekend, it seemed like they were scoring every other inning, and I hope we see more of that consistency over these final two months.

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Rangers errors cause 7-6 loss to Royals (Yahoo!
Sports)

post from MLB News Blog on 05 August 2012 06:19:40 PM. © MLB News Blog

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Errors by Alberto Gonzalez and Mike Olt in a three-pitch span allowed the tiebreaking run to score in the 10th inning, giving the Kansas City Royals a 7-6 victory over the slumping Texas Rangers on Sunday.

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Goodbye Braves and Good Riddance, Astros Lose To
Braves

post from The Crawfish Boxes on 05 August 2012 06:01:13 PM. © The Crawfish Boxes

August 4, 2012; Atlanta, GA, USA; Houston Astros center fielder Justin Maxwell (44) celebrates with first baseman Matt Downs (16) after hitting a second home run in the seventh inning against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-US PRESSWIRE

Can we say this game was the Astros season in a microcosm?

Things started out well, with a good pitching performance before things fell apart. The offense had some opportunities, but couldn't come through in crucial situations, leaving Houston behind for most of the game. The bullpen looked good but gave up too many runs and Brett Wallace did nothing but hit, hit, hit.

Oh, wait, he hasn't done that all season. That's a new thing.

The most frustrating part of this one has to be Bud Norris, who looked dominant at times, but couldn't put it all together. That big inning has gotten the better of many Astros pitchers in the last month, but with Norris, he's got the stuff to avoid that.

To make matters worse, this makes four straight games Houston has lost when Tim's been in attendance. I can't blame the entire mid-season swoon on him, but he certainly isn't helping matters. Let's just agree that he probably shouldn't attend any more games for a while.

Well, if the goal is to lock in that No. 1 overall pick by Sept. 1, maybe he should...

EDIT: Tim just reminded me that he went to Saturday's victory too, which is a rare road win for this team. So, he's really 4 for 5 on losses in person, which is remarkably similar to Houston's winning percentage since June 1.

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Braves Use Sixth-Inning Rally To Defeat Astros
6-1

post from Talking Chop on 05 August 2012 06:01:13 PM. © Talking Chop

Kris Medlen turned in another solid performance as a starter, but won't have a win to show for it. That didn't matter, because his teammates bailed him out, fending off a big rally and breaking the game open late for a 6-1 win over the Astros.

Medlen held the Houston offense in check through five innings, allowing just three singles and no runs while issuing a pair of walks, but Braves hitters couldn't do much early against Astros starter Bud Norris, either. David Ross hit an opposite-field home run in the second inning, but like Medlen, Norris held Atlanta hitters to three hits through five.

The sixth inning, though, is where all the excitement started. Medlen was pulled after giving up consecutive one-out singles to Marwin Gonzalez and Brett Wallace, and Cory Gearrin was given the task of holding them there. Braves villain Justin Maxwell, though, spoiled those plans, doubling in a run to tie the game. Jonny Venters quelled the rally with a strikeout and a groundout, and he would be rewarded for his efforts.

With one out in the bottom of the sixth, Chipper Jones and Freddie Freeman reached base against Norris, but a Dan Uggla pop-up left little hope that a two-out rally would develop. However, David Ross reached on an infield single to load the bases. Paul Janish stood at the plate when Norris flung a wild pitch way high to allow Chipper to score the go-ahead run; moments later, Janish smacked a two-run single for a 4-1 lead.

Atlanta added single runs in each of the next two innings against Houston's bullpen to put the game out of reach: Chipper doubled home Martin Prado with two outs in the seventh and Michael Bourn contributed an RBI single with two outs in the eighth, scoring David Ross.

Jonny Venters earned the win in relief, his fourth of the season.

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Pierzynski HRs for 5th straight game, leads
ChiSox (Yahoo! Sports)

post from MLB News Blog on 05 August 2012 05:48:22 PM. © MLB News Blog

CHICAGO (AP) — Pinch-hitter A.J. Pierzynski tied a White Sox record by homering in his fifth consecutive game, a go-ahead, two-run drive in the seventh inning off Jason Isringhausen that led Chicago over the Los Angeles Angels 4-2 Sunday.

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Reyes Hits in 24 Straight Games. Carlos Lee at
11. Marlins Fall to Nationals, 4-1

post from Marlin Maniac on 05 August 2012 05:30:53 PM. © Marlin Maniac

A rough second inning set the stage for a win for the Nationals today, despite a six-inning effort by Ricky Nolasco. Yielding a two-run base hit to Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg, the second inning of the game proved to be the undoing of the Marlins in the matinee matchup. Greg Dobbs put the [...]

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Cabreras HR caps 5-run rally in 10th for Tigers
(Yahoo! Sports)

post from MLB News Blog on 05 August 2012 05:26:04 PM. © MLB News Blog

DETROIT (AP) — Miguel Cabrera’s two-run homer capped a stunning five-run rally by Detroit with two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning, giving the Tigers a 10-8 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Sunday.

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Teagardens double in 10th leads Os over Rays 1-0
(Yahoo! Sports)

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Taylor Teagarden broke out of a long slide with an RBI double in the 10th inning that led the Baltimore Orioles over the Tampa Bay Rays 1-0 on Sunday.

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Gonzalez, Morales carry Red Sox past Twins, 6-4
(Yahoo! Sports)

BOSTON (AP) — Adrian Gonzalez hit a two-run homer, Franklin Morales turned in another solid substitute start and the Boston Red Sox averted a four-game sweep with a 6-4 win over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday.

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-4-yahoo-sports/

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Howard gives Phils 5-4 win vs D-Backs (Yahoo!
Sports)

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Slumping slugger Ryan Howard singled home the winning run in the ninth to give the Philadelphia Phillies a 5-4 comeback victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday.

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