Tag Archives: Ryan

bye-bye, Brendan

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Yes, my mantra has always been . . . .

” Chicks dig the long ball but, REAL women love leather “

And, you certainly fit that bill. Granted, I’m sure your among those who would agree ‘t would have been nice if your bat was a bit more productive but, your DEE has been an absolute thing of beauty to watch these past couple of years.

It’s pretty much against my religion to wish any sort of luck to the Yanks but, I hope that YOU do really well in what ever capacity you are able to play in pinstripes. Say “hi” to Ichiro  🙂

Truly, best wishes in the Bronx and beyond.

Thanks for the glove, Brendan!

BrendanRyanSMI

IconSMI

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

g131 | balking off . . .

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Mariners 3 | Rangers 4 (in 10)

ON THE MOUND
Kuma started out great – striking out the side in the 1st but then, threw a TON of pitches as he struggled through the 2nd (giving up TWO runs to tie the game in the process). But, he settled down and retired NINE straight at one point, ending with . . .
SIX innings ~ SEVEN hits ~ THREE earned runs ~ ONE walk ~ SEVEN strikeouts

} Charlie and Yoervis post great relief, combining for THREE innings ~ ONE hit ~ ONE walk ~ THREE K’s

Missed most of the game but, saw a really bizarre 10th inning with Danny pitching . . .
Andrus is out before he gets out of the batter’s box, then Kinsler and Beltre both single and Kinsler steals 3B and scores the go-ahead run on a  . . . .  B A L K  (that looked like a shake-off)

AT THE PLATE
~ Lots of “ONE hits” (though Ackley had THREE) and FIVE total walks with TWO doubles (Kendrys and Brendan)
~ Unfortunately, only ONE for EIGHT w/RISP
~ Guti struck out THREE times but, homered ONCE (solo shot)

IN THE FIELD
* THREE total DP’s turned (TWO against the M’s)
* a key stolen base in the 10th allows the eventual Rangers winning run to score in the 10th
* Ryan “the ranger” of a different sort turned in a web GEM
* Guti made a wall-crashing catch (and avoided a DL designation!)

tweets of the game . . .

g126 | series win against the ‘phants!

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Mariners 5 | Athletics 3

ON THE MOUND
Kuma gave up TWO lead-off homers but, posted his second straight solid outing to earn his TWELFTH victory . . .
SEVEN innings ~ SEVEN hits ~ THREE earned runs ~ TWO walks ~ FOUR strikeouts

} Charlie and Yoervis combined for a hitless / scoreless 8th and Danny “lorded” over the A’s, striking out the side in the 9th for his NINTH save in TEN tries

AT THE PLATE
Each team had SEVEN hits (including TWO doubles and ONE homer – the A’s also has a triple) but . .
the M’s were able to get the better of the A’s (and Dustin got the better of their catcher)
~ Michael M and Brad both hit solo shots
~ Brendan (in for Nick who’s still nursing a stitched up knee) hit a TWO-run double that gave the M’s the 4-3 lead in the 6th and then he added an RBI single to extend their lead to 5-3 in the 8th.

IN THE FIELD
Curious game with NO errors and NO double plays – on EITHER side

tweet of the game . . .

g122 | Calgon (aka: Seahawks) take me away

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OK. I admit it. My attention was mostly on the grid iron tonight, as the Seahawks played their first home pre-season game (beating the Denver Broncos quite soundly, I might add)

Mariners 3 | Rangers 15

ON THE MOUND
Not a happy Felix day to say the least ~ especially the 2nd inning ~ FIVE’s nearly across the board in a BAD way . . .
FIVE innings ~ FIVE hits ~ FIVE earned runs ~ FIVE walks ~ FOUR strikeouts

Believe it or not, the M’s were actually in this game until the 7th, having scored ONE run in each of the first THREE innings. And then a pretty improbable 6th . . . Luke loaded the bases (an error by Brendan, a single and a HBP) and Carter came in and was indeed impressive, retiring the side in order without giving up a run!

Ollie took over for Carter in the 7th with TWO on, TWO out and gave up a TWO-run double (of course, charged to Carter). And then things REALLY fell apart in the 8th when Ollie gave up TWO walks and FOUR singles before being relieved by Charlie who allowed a FC, a single, a runner via a second Brendan error and a double. All told, Ollie tagged with SIX earned runs, Charlie with TWO (ONE unearned). absolute YUCK

AT THE PLATE
TEN hits usually good, right?
Especially with a couple of doubles (Brad and Raul) and a home run (Kyle) and THREE players with multiple hits.
Well, doesn’t do much good when pitching, catching and throwing is nearly non-existent 😦

IN THE FIELD
* Brendan, having not played in forever, with TWO errors
* Dustin with his second SB of the season
* Kyle caught stealing

 

tweets of the game . . .

 

 

 

 

g117 | The King, The Lord The DEE and the bottom of the order . . .

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A VERY Happy Felix Day, as Felix was Felix, the DEE was back “on” and the O was just enough.

Mariners 2 | Brewers 0

ON THE MOUND

THIS is the Felix we know and love – maybe not perfect but, definitely dominant . . .
EIGHT innings ~ FOUR hits ~ZERO runs ~ ONE walk ~ NINE strikeouts

} Danny with his FOURTH save in as many tries (gave up one hit and struck out one)

AT THE PLATE
Their starter was not too shabby himself, as the M’s only managed FOUR hits – though TWO were for extra bases and all were from the bottom of the order. The runs came via a Dustin double and WP and a Justin homer (his 12th)

IN THE FIELD 
* Brendan was at SS and Brad at 2B (Nick out with illness) and Brendan made some really nice plays, including one of the bare-handed variety
* A double play turned (Brad-Brendan-Justin) but, none turned against them (though Henry got caught trying to stretch a single into a double)

tweet of the game . . . 

 

 

g91 | done in by RS bats and “the other” Venezuelan Felix

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Mariners 4 | Red Sox 11

Early on, it was fairly apparent that seeing the M’s homer streak extended to EIGHTEEN games was likely be the best we could hope for (because, clearly, the M’s pitching was not up to the task of the mighty Red Sox these last TWO games) it was just a surprise that Brendan Ryan would be the one to do it. We are seeing a pattern in this series: 11-4, 11-8, 11-4 – first to ELEVEN tomorrow wins!  😉

ON THE MOUND
Aaron looked to follow up his great start in Cinci with another but, ‘t was not to be . . .
1st inning went well, with the aid of a DP. The 2nd inning could have been MUCH worse, as the loaded the bases with NO outs (including a double by Ortiz that gave him the all time DH hits record – 1689) but they only managed a couple of sac-flys. And, it just escalated from there . . .
FIVE innings ~ EIGHT hits ~ SEVEN earned runs ~ THREE walks ~ ZERO strikeouts

} Lucas, the only pitcher with a decent outing last night, did not help matters in relief of Aaron on this night, giving up a couple of inherited runners and then another of his own.
} Carter was far from dominant, walking a couple and loading the bases once but, he did manage to get through 1.1 w/o damage
} Ollie posted a pretty typical 1-2-3 (the reason he’s drawing some attention as the trade deadline nears)
} Tom walked the first two batters and allowed ONE run on a WP and another on a one-out single (to Mike Carp). He ended up striking out TWO on (sheer anger).

AT THE PLATE
~ Kyle extended his hit streak to TEN games
~ Jason , Kendrys, Dustin, Justin and Michael S all with doubles
~ Brendan hit a homer on the 8th pitch of his AB in the 8th (having replaced Nick) off a pitcher making his major league debut
~ Kendrys, Justin and Henry with the other RBI

IN THE FIELD
* DP (Brad-Nick-Justin) to erase the first hit of the game
* Kyle continued to show off his solid skills at the hot corner with a couple of nice plays
* Brad had a bad throw to Nick that allowed a run in the 6th

tweets of the game . . .

g72 | a WIN? in Anaheim? in extras?

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Mariners 3 | Angels 2

Earlier today, it was announced that Alex Liddi was optioned to AAA Tacoma and Justin Smoak was activated from the DL (after a rehab stint with the Rainiers). ‘t was a short trip for Justin to Oakland, as the Rainiers had been in Sacramento.

ON THE MOUND
Really a shame that Jeremy didn’t get the win tonight, after putting up his THIRD straight quality start (allowed just ONE run in his TWO previous starts: a win vs. the Yanks in SIX innings, a ND vs. the ‘stros in EIGHT innings). His final line . . .
SIX innings ~ SIX hits ~ ONE earned run ~ THREE walks ~ ZERO strikeouts

} Ollie in for the 7th . . .
walked the lead batter (Ianetta), got Bourjos to fly out, then a WP advanced the runner to 2B, he then got Trout looking and Hamilton swinging.

} Tom in for the 8th . . .
boom. lead-off homer by Pujols ties the ball game (believe it or not, it was the first homer Tom gave up this season). The good news is he was able to retire the rest in order AND then come back out for the 9th where he gave up a lead-off base hit, a wild pitch and a walk BUT, got Bourjos to strikeout and Trout to fly out. There’s nothing wrong with Tom’s velocity (touched 97-98 a couple times) it’s just a matter of location and confidence and, despite the homer, the fact that he hung in and got some outs after that, is a means toward that end.

} Charlie took over in the 9th with TWO on / TWO out ~ and strikes out Hamilton

} Yoervis in for the 10th . . .
gets Pujols to pop-up behind the plate, Trumbo to strike out and Kendrick to ground out to earn his FIRST career SAVE . . .

He said, “For an inning, I felt like Mariano Rivera.”

AT THE PLATE
~ back-to-back jacks from Rauuuuuuul and Justin on back-to-back pitches in the 2nd gave the M’s a 2-0 lead . . . 

Welcome back, Justin! | Stephen Dunn, Getty Images

Welcome back, Justin! | Stephen Dunn, Getty Images

~ Mike with his FIRST big league double with TWO outs in the 4th (but he was left stranded)
~ Brendan fails to get a bunt down (pop-up) TWICE
~ Kyle hits a TWO-out double in the 10th and scores the go-ahead run via Kendrys FIRST hit of the night (what would end up being his NINTH game-winning hit of the season)!

IN THE FIELD
* THREE double plays turned (4-6-3, 6-4-3, 3-6-1) all off Hamilton’s bat
* Nick with his third stolen base of the season
* beautiful straight at ‘im catch by Endy to end the threat in the 6th with runners at the corners
* Michael S with a nice running catch for the first out in the 8th with a runner on (kept ‘im at 1B)

(on the other side, Bourjos robbed Justin of a sure double and Michael S of a possible homer)

tweets of the game . . . 

interesting note of the game . . .

ELEVEN players on the current 25-man roster were NOT on the opening day roster ~ NINE players on the current roster started the season in AAA

g70 | no sweep for yous

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Mariners 2 | Athletics 10

Well, something was bound to give, as Kuma and Colon had combined to give up ONE run in the past 57.2 IP

ON THE MOUND
Kuma was playing with fire early on, as the A’s had a runner at 3B in each of the first THREE innings (including via a triple – the first Kuma had allowed all season) but failed to score.

Then in the 4th ~after 31 2/3 innings without allowing an earned run~ Kuma allowed TWO runs to tie the game at 2-2 . In the 5th, Kuma continued to struggle, giving up the lead with another TWO runs and his day ended much earlier than desired or expected and ultimately recording his second loss of the season and only his third “non-quality start”
FIVE innings ~ EIGHT hits ~ FOUR earned runs ~ THREE walks ~ THREE strikeouts

Unfortunately, the bullpen ended up with an even worse day . . .
combining to allow NINE more hits and SIX more runs in their THREE innings of work
} Blake replaced Kuma and got through the 7th without giving up any runs despite two singles but, the 8th would not be so kind. Back-to-back homers and back-to-back singles extended the A’s lead to 6-2 – still with only ONE out.
} Tom replaced Blake, and I’m thinking . . . at least he’ll get some work, maybe get on track . . . not so much 😦 He allowed a single that loaded the bases, an “RBI walk” and a sac-fly that extended the lead AGAIN to 8-2
} Carter’s appearance left much to be desired, as he gave up TWO runs on TWO solo shots and then it was 10-2

AT THE PLATE
~ FIVE singles in the 2nd gave the M’s a 2-0 lead – decent start
~ at one point ~after the M’s scored their TWO in the 2nd~ Colon retired 12 in-a-r0w and then just allowed a couple scattered singles and then the A’s bullpen completely shut them down

IN THE FIELD
* awesome 3-6 (Michael-Brendan) DP to end the bottom of the 1st w/ runners at 1B and 3B
* SUPER diving web gem by Nick in the 8th for the out of what would have been a sure single, maybe more.

tweets of the game . . . 

 

https://twitter.com/gbakermariners/status/346378314174320642

 

 

g68 | Old Joe + Young Mike = not too shabby battery

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Mariners 3 | Athletics 2

whodathunk the M’s would be the ones to break the A’s ELEVEN game home-winning streak?

ON THE MOUND
Way to be “Road Joe”, Joe and collect your first road win this season!
SEVEN innings ~ FIVE hits ~ ONE earned run ~ TWO walks ~ FOUR strikeouts

} Danny gave up a lead off homer in the 8th but, retired the next THREE batters in order
} Ollie collected his FIRST career SAVE via a pop-up, strikeout, single and a fly out

AT THE PLATE
~ M’s first run courtesy a 2nd inning GDIP by Mike Z that scored Michael M, who had doubled
~ M’s second run courtesy Mike Z’s FIRST big league homer ~a solo shot in the 7th

s t r e t c h | Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

s  t  r  e  t  c  h | Thearon W. Henderson, Getty Images

~ M’s third run courtesy Raul’s RBI single scoring Nick (who’d been at 3B cuz of Kyle’s takeout slide)
~ Every starter except Kendrys had at least one hit (and he did have some HARD outs)
~ Raul and Nick each with TWO hits
~ Michael S with a solid single in the 9th to break an 0-18 slump on a NINE pitch AB

IN THE FIELD
* Brendan with his usual couple of super plays, including a DP (Nick-Brendan-Morse)
* unfortunately Brendan also had an error (which is becoming a little too usual)
* and, Nick and Jason got crossed up on a pop-up that allowed the A’s first run to score
* excellent work behind the plate from Mike (so THIS is what a real catcher looks like 🙂 ) – including a great play for an out at home . . .
Michael S muffed fielding a hit to shallow center but, stayed with it for the relay to Brendan and then to Mike who caught it and dove back to tag the 6′ 8″runner who was also diving to the plate

Mike's first play at the plate | Thearon W. Henderson, Getty Images

Mike’s first play at the plate | Thearon W. Henderson, Getty Images

A’s catcher deserves a mention as he made an OUTSTANDING, sprawling catch of a pop-up that was the result of Brendan’s failed bunt attempt in the 9th after Michael S had singled ~ thankfully, it wouldn’t matter

tweets of the game . . . 

 

g67 | of too little O, imploding pens and wasted gems

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Mariners 1 | Astros 6

Despite the meager offense, it was shaping up to be a really fun night with a battery consisting  of a journeyman starter and a rookie receiver (making his major league debut), dealing a scoreless  gem through EIGHT innings. Then, in seemingly the blink of an eye, it all evaporated . . . courtesy the bullpen.

ON THE MOUND
Jeremy extended his scoreless innings streak to THIRTEEN and, was in the line for the win when Nick broke the scoreless tie in the 8th with an RBI single. Jeremy only threw  89 pitches . . .
EIGHT innings ~ THREE hits ~ ZERO runs ~TWO walks ~ FIVE strikeouts

What the heck has happened to the ‘pen?!?
#ClosingTime is seeming perpetually open 😦

The M’s had dealt the Astros SEVENTEEN straight scoreless innings over the last TWO nights and then in the 9th, the bullpen combined for . . .
FIVE hits ~ SIX earned runs ~ FOUR walks ~ TWO strikeouts
(Tom + Yoervis + Charlie) 5 charged to Tom
the most runs the M’s have given up in the 9th inning since 2006

AT THE PLATE
~ The Good: Nick 3/4 w/the lone M’s RBI, Mike w/his first big league hit in his second big league AB
~ The Bad: only FIVE total hits
~ The Ugly: ELEVEN strikeouts

IN THE FIELD
* Mike Zunino’s debut behind the plate was a success: blocking balls, framing pitches, moving with ease – he even threw out his first base runner . . . by a mile! (a failed hit and run)
* No DP’s but, Brendan made his usual “highlight per night”

tweets of the game . . .