My jinx is gone or poor little dirty orange birds

~~ New York Yankees 7, Baltimore Orioles 3 ~~

Sunday, 9 April 2017

For quite awhile I have not been turning on a game to watch if it had already started. I’m not superstitious about baseball. Not at all. 

It started with the Os, Em sent me a text saying the Yankees were winning so I turned on the game. Almost immediately the pitcher, (I think it was Hughes) gave up about 5 runs and the Yankees. And I was wearing orange socks. Fast forward to this season when Em sent me a text “Ur pretty!” I was confused, it’s not like her to tell me I’m pretty. It was cleared up with a following text, she was talking about “My Pretty” who had just scored the go ahead run against (once again), the Os. I took a chance and turned on the game, the first thing I see is a player tripping over the grass and bobbling a play. It was Chris Davis I think, and the Yankees took advantage and won the game, handing Baltimore their first loss and coming home with a 2-4 record.

~~ Questo è tutto, dice la principessa ~~ 😛

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World Series bound

For the first time since 1985 the Royals are going to the World Series. Last time they went, they won it all. While I am well aware that past performance doesn’t guarantee future success, I would not mind if the Royals won the World Series. Even if they did boo Cano and were rude to his family. It’s in the past and they beat the Orioles. Swept them actually, 4 games, 4 wins.

Right now I am waiting on the winner of the NLCS. The Giants and Cards are currently tied in the series and the Cards are ahead in this game. No sweep in this series, I am leaning in favor of the Giants, but I don’t really have a favorite.

And the winners are ….

not the teams I picked. Well not all of them.

The Detroit Tigers were my pick and the Orioles swept them. I also picked the Dodgers and the Cardinals beat them, 3-1. On the other and, the Royals swept the Angels. Giants and Nationals, who I didn’t really care about, went 3-1, with the Giants advancing.

Next up the championship series. And the teams in it are, Kansas City Royals versus the Baltimore Orioles (Series starts 10-10). In the national league it’s the San Francisco Giants vs the Saint Louis Cardinals (Series starts 10-11).

My picks are as follows, Royals over Orioles. I don’t want the Royals to win as much as I want the Orioles to lose. Giants over Cardinals. Again I want the Cardinals to lose more than I want the Giants to win, the Cardinals were supposed to beat the Red Sox last year and failed. So they need to suffer defeat again.

After this series it will be the World Series. If things go the way I want, it’ll be a Royals vs Giants competition. I’m looking forward to it.

The Post-season begins now

The ALDS starts tonight with games between the Tigers vs Orioles (at Oriole Park, Baltimore MD) and the Royals vs Angels (at Angel Stadium, Anaheim, CA). My picks are Tigers for reasons already stated and Royals. I picked Royals for the Wild Card and am sticking with them.

The NLDS starts Friday, October 3 with the Giants vs Nationals ( at Nationals Park, Washington DC) and Cardinals vs Dodgers (at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles CA). I had already picked the Dodgers and for the NL wild card I picked the Pirates who just happened to get shut out by Bumgarner. A rather amazing feat when you consider he also batted (NL = no DH). I am once again conflicted with my pick. The thing is I don’t follow the NL and have no particular likes or dislikes concerning either of these teams. The Nationals also have an amazing pitcher who in the very last game of the regular season pitched a no-hitter. Even though I said I would pick, I think for this game I will lean back, put my feet up, pop open a cold one and just enjoy watching baseball.

This series is a best of 5. I’ll be back when one team wins 3 if not before.

Yankees are out but baseball is still alive

The regular season is over and the post season is about to begin. Even though the Yankees are out of it, I am still baseball obsessed and will be posting my thoughts about the games ahead, including who I have decided to root for this post-season.

Most years, I root against the team that kept the Yankees out of the post-season, or beat them in the post-season, for instance if they didn’t make it past the ALDS or ALCS. Or the Red Sox. It’s always good to root against the Red Sox. This year however, the team that kept the Yankees out of the post-season was the Yankees. They just didn’t win enough games. There are some teams that I absolutely won’t root for, like the Braves, who aren’t in it, and the Orioles who are, but don’t have the most wins in the American League. An important fact that I had to bring out.

The final teams haven’t been decided, since they now have this stupid 1 game Wild Card playoff. The fourth team is YTBD. The teams competing are: Kansas City Royals and Oakland A’s (9/30) in the AL and Pittsburgh Pirates vs. San Francisco Giants (10/1) in the NL. I like the Oakland A’s, they were Hunter’s first team but they have Lester, which makes me want to hate them, but the Royals have Shields, which makes me want to root against them. I have the opposite problem with the NL teams. Pirates have Russell Martin, who is adorable, I mean a really good catcher and longtime favorite player of mine. The Giants have Buster Posey, who is also a really good catcher and fun to watch. The minuses here are the Giants are ORANGE and the Pirates are YELLOW. Also Russell has gone from being clean-shaven to a scruffy little thing. Since I promised to pick one I am going with the Royals (can’t get past the Lester dislike) and the Pirates (Russell is my boo!).

For the ALDS series between the Tigers and Orioles (starts 10/2), I am going with the Detroit Tigers, because, well Baltimore. The NLDS between the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers (begins 10/3) is also hard, normally I would go with the Dodgers because they are the blue team, and the Cardinals failed to beat the Red Sox last year (the rivalry is alive!) and they have Don Mattingly. But they are LA soooo, all right, I talked myself into it, my pick is the Dodgers.

So there you have it. After the Wild Card is done, I’ll be back to pick my teams for the rest of the Division Series.

Hot chocolate is so good

Really is there anything better than hot chocolate when it’s so cold you can’t feel the cracks in your smartphone cover? Until you gulp it down and scald your mouth that is. Maybe hot cocoa with Bailey’s is better, but that was not an option.

~~ Orioles 5, Yankees 4 ~~

This was a better game, and a worse game. Better because it wasn’t as cold, I was there with friends (great guys by the way, even if they did make fun of me for not knowing Tanaka’s first name), I got to see two home runs! Don’t mention that were 3 home runs, the first home run was not thrilling. I found the concession stand with the hot chocolate that is so good. The bad? A three run home run by some fool named Schoop and a 9th inning rally that was 2 runs short of what I wanted.

~~ Questo è tutto, dice la principessa ~~ 😛

Game 10
Yankees 4-5 (0.444) tied with Baltimore and Boston

Whose bright idea was this? Oh yeah mine.

Not being one to make resolutions, I had decided that if I didn’t write every day about the Yankees, I would write for every game I went to. I have been to two games so far and haven’t written a word. So before I go to tonights game, I am writing a post however short it has to be.

~~ Yankees 4, Orioles 2 ~~

Good game yes? Yankees beat the dirty birds, except it was so cold, I missed every other inning cause I was in the bathroom trying to warm up. So was everybody else. Yes that is a slight exaggeration, but I do remember thinking, Why did I think this would be so great? I had forgotten how cold it is up in the stands at Yankee Stadium. At least the Yankees rewarded my stoicism with a win.

~~ Questo è tutto, dice la principessa ~~ 😛

Game 10
Yankees 4-5 (0.444) tied with Baltimore and Boston

Historic plays

After two rained out games, to be played at a date yet to be determined Yankees are playing baseball. This was a mad crazy game. First I was angry and freaking out, then I was freaking out happy, then I was freaking out, and I can’t really describe my emotions.

~~ Yankees 5, Orioles 2 ~~

With score 2-1 Yankees, in the seventh inning the first base umpire called a balk on C.C. This lead to my first freak out, which lead to online outrage which included me posting pictures of Stevie Wonder and stating he was the umpire in the game. This call, which was clearly WRONG, moved Matt Wieters into scoring position. Gameday says: On-field Delay, this was everyone going up to the umpire and telling him, you’re wrong man! C.C. did not move, so how could that be a balk? Now that Wieters was in scoring position, he scored. Now the score was tied and I was pissed.

The next inning with the bases loaded Vernon Wells hits a long fly ball and Adam Jones runs back to catch it, like he always does, he always catches the ball, it wasn’t going over the wall so no runs, except he dropped it Franky, Youkilis and Pronk (don’t ask me where Hafner got that nickname, I didn’t give it to him) score, as I’m yelling at my TV, “YEAH JONES! KARMA IS A BITCH!” No idea why I said that. And that is all she wrote.

Or is it? This is baseball, there is no fat lady but one team has to get 27 outs and the game doesn’t end till then. So in the top of the eighth when Manny Machado hits into a 4-6-5-6-5-3-4 triple play. That doesn’t quite describe it, the description in Gameday doesn’t describe it:

Manny Machado grounds into a triple play, second baseman Robinson Cano to shortstop Jayson Nix to third baseman Kevin Youkilis to first baseman Lyle Overbay to second baseman Robinson Cano. Alexi Casilla out at 3rd. Nick Markakis out at 2nd. Manny Machado out at 2nd.

Even the recap which goes into detail doesn’t truly describe it. It doesn’t catch the “Why” from the fans watching, the “Huh” as Youkilis throws across the diamond to Overbay and it certainly doesn’t convey the wonder and excitement of the moment. There was no mention of me jumping up and down and punching my pillow. Oh and the screaming and laughing. There was a bunch of that. And no this could not happen with any other team because no other team has Robinson Cano. Cano told Nix to throw to third and when Overbay threw to Cano he thought he had screwed up, that there was no way Robbie could catch it. But Robbie is the best second baseman in the MLB, maybe in the history of the game! Ahem. He caught it in time to tag out the runner. The Yankees ran off the field jumping and laughing like little boys.

Mariano comes in to end the game. Shuts the door they say, what door? What do they mean by that? And now this is all she wrote.

~~ Questo è tutto, dice la principessa ~~ 😛

Game 9
Yankees 5-4 (0.556)

Yankees win, Adam Jones learns Karma is a bitch, first base umpire needs a seeing-eye-dog and Mariano is still the G.O.A.T.

— ♦B Foxx ❤⚾❤ (@UES_Bella) April 13, 2013

ALDS GAME 2

~~ Yankees 2, Orioles 3 ~~
ALDS: Yankees 1, Orioles 1

Live blogging: The Orioles game is currently in rain delay, estimated start time: 8:45 P.M.

Cards pasted the Nationals. Cardinals 12, Nationals 4

Play Ball!!
Top 1:
Jeter singles to center field; Wei-Yin Chen is throwing fast balls, Ichiro reaches on an error; 2 on, no outs; Alex hits into a double play, a weird double play (second baseman caught the line drive, then tossed to second, Alex and Derek out). Robbie hits into the corner, Ichiro comes home, avoids the tag by Matt Wieters. Nick Swisher out at first.

Bottom 1:
Fly ball to left, one out; 2nd batter grounds out to Cano, two out; 3rd batter strikes out. 1-2-3 inning for Andy. Yankees 1, Orioles 0

Top 2:
Baltimore fans boo Teixeira, he pops out to first baseman; Russell fly ball center field; Curtis strikes out.

Bottom 2:
Pop out to Robinson Cano; Ground out third base to first; Strike out. Yankees 1, Orioles 0

Top 3:
Eduardo Nunez is the DH, (WHAT? Nunez DHing?) Pops out 3rd base; Jeter strikes out looking, but he doesn’t agree, is muttering as he walks back to the dug-out; Ichiro singles; Alex singles, runners at first and second; Cano grounds out to the pitcher.

Bottom 3:
Fly out to left field; Jeter to Mark; #9 batter breaks bat, ball drops before Curtis, 1st hit for the Orioles; McLouth in a single to center field, runners on first and second. This is vintage Andy, get into trouble – gets out of trouble. Walks batter, bases loaded and a power hitter coming up. Base hit to right field, two runs score. Baltimore in the lead by one run. Base hit, bases loaded again, bad base running by Baltimore; pop-out to Cano. Yankees 1, Orioles 2

Top 4:
Swisher swings out; Lined up the middle, base hit for Teixeira; Russell walks; Base hit for Curtis, bases are now loaded with one out. Nunez pops out; Jeter hits the ball to the third baseman. RISP FAIL. Ugh.

Bottom 4:
Base hit, bad throw by Jeter and Mark has to jump for it; Strike out; Ball hit to A-Rod gets the runner out at second. Hit to Cano, get the runner at second, again. Yankees 1, Orioles 2

Top 5:
Now it is time for the Yankees to get some runs. Ichiro thrown out at first; A-Rod flies out to center field; Robbie thrown out at first. The inning took about as long to play as it took me to type this. 4 pitches, that is disgusting.

Bottom 5:
McLouth reaches on an error; Hardy called out on strikes; Davis hits a fly ball to Curtis; Adam Jones hits a fly ball to Swisher, who catches it. Yankees 1, Orioles 2

Top 6:
Swisher grounds out; Mark flies out to left field; Base hit for Russell, scratch that, reached on an error; Granderson pops up and out.

Bottom 6:
Weiters get a double; Reynolds smokes it, Weiters scores; Thome strikes out; Machado hits it to Andy, who turns and throws it to 2nd, then Robbie throws on to Mark. That was pretty boss of Andy. Yankees 1, Orioles 3

Top 7:
Nunez leads off with a double (cause he runs fast like bunny, or the road runner, or whatever); Jeter hits the ball over Hardy’s head and Nunez scores; Ichiro hits the ball to Hardy and Jeter is out at second, but Ichiro makes it to first;

Chen’s night is done, Darren O’Day comes in to face Alex Rodriguez. Alex strikes out, Ichiro steals second;

My router crapped out right here, to recap the Orioles brought in a new pitcher, Cano was walked and Swisher hit a fly ball to make the last out.

Bottom 7:
1-2-3 inning Yankees 2, Orioles 3

Top 8:
Teixeira gets on first; Russell strikes out looking on a ball off the plate 😦 ; Curtis strikes out; Nunez pops out.

Bottom 8:
Davis hits over Andy’s head, over 2nd base and he gets on first.

New pitcher for the Yankees. David Robertson – fields the ball and gets Jones at first, runner advances to second; Weiters grounds out to first. Reynolds swings at the air. Yankees 2, Orioles 3

Top 9:
Jim Johnson is in for the Orioles.
Jeter grounds out; Ichiro grounds out. One more out and it’s the end for the Yankees. Alex strikes out. Yankees lose.

~~ Questo è tutto, dice la principessa ~~ 😛

ALDS GAME 1

~~ Yankees 7, Orioles 2 ~~

Up until the ninth inning the 9th inning this game was a pitcher’s duel, CC Sabathia pitched 8.2 innings and gave up 2 runs, David Robertson got the final out with 4 pitches. Jason Hammel also gave up two runs but he only pitched 5.2 innings. Considering he had knee surgery, was on the D.L. and hasn’t pitched in a month, that was rather impressive. The game was tied in the top of the 4th and the O’s kept the Yankees to the 2 runs they had already scored. Jim Johnson, the Orioles closer came in for the ninth, his numbers for 2012 are steller, 51 saves out of 54 save opportunities. He didn’t so good this game, Russell Martin hit a home run, then the Yankees started playing, “And you get a hit and you get a hit …. “, Ibanez, Jeter, Ichiro, he strikes out Alex, then Robbie gets a hit. Jim Johnson got one strike out, the Yankees got 4 runs, 5 if you count the unearned one.

Tomorrow, (actually in a few minutes, I tend to travel back in time when I’m blogging about games) Andy Pettitte takes the mound for the Yankees, we are confident, we trust Andy, if you wonder why:

Tonight marks Andy Pettitte’s 43rd #postseason start, which is nearly 5 times as many appearances as entire O’s staff entering ALDS (9).

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 8, 2012

~~ Questo è tutto, dice la principessa ~~ 😛