Friday, August 30, 2013


The Nationals got three-run homers from Ian Desmond and Jayson Werth and swept the series with the Marlins, winning last night by the score of 9-0.  Bryan Harper also connected long distance in support of Gio Gonzalez, who threw seven shutout innings.  The Nationals don’t want the Marlins to leave town, and they have now beaten the Fish 9 out of 12 times this season. 

The Fish will send their ace, Jose Fernandez, to the mound tonight in Atlanta as the Fish and the Braves start a three-game series.  Fredi Gonzalez will counter with Julio Teheran.  Game time tonight is 7:30 pm.  The pitching matchups for the rest of the series with the Braves:

SATURDAY Jacob Turner vs Mke Minor 7:10 pm
SUNDAY Nathan Eovaldi vs Alex Wood 5:00 pm  

The Marlins are the worst offensive team in the majors, and they are not showing any signs of improvement.  This is the sorry reality:  The Marlins have now been held to three runs or less 86 times this season, and their record in those 86 games is 17-69. Taking it one step further,

When scoring three runs in a game 6-16
When scoring two runs in a game 9-17
When scoring one run in a game 2-20

Of course, they lead the majors in getting shutout, last night’s shutout was #16 this season. Awful.

The Fish are still at the bottom of the list in runs scored in MLB, with 415 runs in their 131 games, an underwhelming 3.17 runs per game.  Here are the rest of the bottom-dwellers:

TEAM W-L Runs
Marlins 49-83 419
White Sox 56-76 502
Giants 59-74 504
Phillies 61-73 507
Cubs 56-77 512

In contrast, the Detroit Tigers (78-56) lead MLB with 682 runs scored and the Boston Red Sox (79-56) have plated 680.  The Sox have played 1 more game than the Tigers. 

In the Major Leagues yesterday, first in the National League,

Mets 11 Phillies 3
Eric Young went 3-5 with three RBI and two runs scored.  Daniel Murphy went 4-5 with two RBI.

Brewers 4 Pirates 0
Yovany Gallardo threw seven shutout innings.  Aramis Ramirez connected longdistance and Jonathan Lucroy drove in a pair of runs.

Braves 3 Indians 0
Kris Medlen dominated with seven shutout innings and Craig Kimbrel retired the Indians 1-2-3 in the ninth to record his 32nd save. The Braves continue to lead the NL East by 13 games over the Nationals, and lead the Dodgers and the Cardinals by three games for the best record in the NL.

Over in the American League,

Tigers 7 A’s 6
Torii Hunter hit a three-run homer, capping a four-run ninth inning as the Tigers avoided a sweep.  

Royals 3 Twins 1
Bruce Chen allowed 1 run in his 5 2/3 innings of work

Angels 2 Rays 0
Jason Vargas allowed two hits in seven innings.  Tampa Bay has now lost four out of their last five games.

Orioles 3 Red Sox 2
Chris Davis’ RBI double in the fifth inning was the difference.  Manny Machado drove in a pair of runs in the win.

Mariners 3 Astros 2
Franklin Gutierrez hit a two-run homer and Nick Franklin also connected long distance.

Today in MLB, in the National League,

Phillies @ Cubs 2:20 pm
Roy Halladay vs Jeff Samardzija 

Mets @ Nationals 7:05 pm
Dillon Gee vs Jordan Zimmerman

Cardinals @ Pirates 7:05 pm
Shelby Miller vs Francisco Liriano

Marlins @ Braves 7:30 pm
Jose Fernandez vs Julio Teheran

Reds @ Rockies 8:40 pm
Bronson Arroyo vs Jeff Manship

Giants @ Diamondbacks 9:40 pm
Tim Lincecum vs Randall Delgado

Padres @ Dodgers 10:10 pm
Eric Stults vs Hyun-Jin Ryu

Over in the American League,

Orioles @ Yankees 7:05 pm
Miguel Gonzalez vs CC Sabathia

Royals @ Blue Jays 7:07 pm
Ervin Santana vs Mark Buehrle

Indians @ Tigers 7:08 pm
Zach McAllister vs Rick Porcello

White Sox @ Red Sox 7:10 pm
Hector Santiago vs Ryan Dempster

Twins @ Rangers 8:05 pm
Liam Hendricks vs Yu Darvish

Mariners @ Astros 8:10 pm
Taijuan Walker vs Brad Peacock

Rays @ A’s 10:05 pm
David Price vs Jarrod Parker

Here is baseball’s next controversy . . . we shall call it “realignment”:


Miguel Cabrera’s chase of a second consecutive triple crown could be in danger.  He suffered another injury yesterday:


The Braves’ injury woes continue, as Justin Upton got hit by a pitch on the hand last night:


Former GM Jim Bowden shares his list of prospects he would call up now:


Here are the latest trade rumors around the majors:


Here is ESPN chiming in with their gossip:


REMEMBER:  ANY PLAYERS TRADED AFTER THE AUGUST 31st DEADLINE ARE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR POSTSEASON ROSTERS.

TODAY’S TRIVIA QUESTION:  As a Yankee fan, and more importantly, a baseball fan, I hope that Derek Jeter is able to continue playing and returns to the Yankees next season.  We know about all the World Series championships.  How many Gold Gloves has Jeter won?  The answer comes later, alligator.   

Here are the up-to-the-minute standings in MLB:


Here are the individual league leaders in MLB:


It is game time for NCAA football. Here is the complete schedule for this week in college football, including results from yesterday’s games:


The Canes open up against Florida Atlantic tonight at the Seven Names Stadium.  Everyone at the U is just ready for some football.  Kickoff is at 8:00 pm, and you can watch it on ESPN-U.


The Herald’s Manny Navarro and Susan Miller Degnan have the latest scoop from the University of Miami:


Here’s the latest from FIU, who take on the University of Maryland on Saturday at 12:30 pm.  You can catch the game on the computer, on ESPN-3:




Here’s the latest from Tallahassee and FSU:


We have to include the Gators, right?


In the NFL, the Dolphins were looking for answers to some roster questions last night, and closed out their preseason schedule with a win last night, getting past the New Orleans Saints 24-21.  Third-string QB Pat Devlin was at the controls and guided the Fins to the win, completing 22-38 throws for 259 yards and two touchdowns, including on a 56-yard touchdown pass to Marvin McNutt with just over three minutes left in the game. 

Armando Salguero was with Dolphins Head Coach Joe Philbin after the game:


Here is Salguero’s daily Dolphin report from the Miami Herald:


Miami opens the regular season in Cleveland against the Browns on Sunday, September 8, at 1:00 pm.  

Here are the details and summaries of yesterday’s preseason finales:


Here’s ESPN’s NFL Nation Blog, with news from all around the league:


We can all continue to sleep at night, knowing full well that Aaron Hernandez remains in jail, where he belongs.  

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NOTE TO ALL KIDS AGES 5-16:

RedZone Sports has a 5-on-5 Youth Basketball League at Bowman Ashe / Doolin, located at 6401 S. W. 152nd Avenue.  The league starts September 14th, but early registration ends September 7th.  For more information, contact Feli Villalba at (305) 218-4196 or via e-mail at fvillalba@redzonesports.org

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I’m selling three lots totaling a little over five acres in the beautiful North Carolina mountains, overlooking the New River, a quick 35-minute drive from Boone and Blowing Rock.  Click here to see some photos and feel free to contact me if you have any questions: 


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THE ANSWER TO TODAY’S TRIVIA QUESTION:  As a Yankee fan, and more importantly, a baseball fan, I hope that Derek Jeter is able to continue playing and returns to the Yankees next season.  We know about all the World Series championships.  How many Gold Gloves has Jeter won?   

Make that five Gold Gloves for the captain - 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, and 2010.

Behave yourselves, and always remember that tomorrow will bring us a brand new day.  HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!! 

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Thursday, August 29, 2013


The Marlins lost to the Nationals last night by the score of 4-3. Ian Desmond’s RBI single in the seventh inning broke a 3-3 tie. Enough said.  The Marlins inept offense will find a way to not score runs.  In fact, the Marlins have drawn 31 bases on balls in their last nine game.  NONE of those 31 runners have managed to score.  That is pathetic.  

In the immortal words of Charles Dillon “Casey” Stengel, “Can’t anyone here play this game?”.  Here is video of two Marlins players sliding into third base yesterday AT THE SAME TIME:


The Fish will send Tom Koehler to the mound tonight to take on Gio Gonzalez.  Game time is 7:05 pm.  The Nats will be sorry to see the Marlins leave town, as they have an 8-3 record so far this season against Miami.

The Fish will head to Atlanta to take on the Braves over the weekend.  Jose Fernandez will be on the mound on Friday against Julio Teheran.  

I know that the Marlins are the worst offensive team in the majors,  but I wanted to see it in detail.  This is the sorry reality:  The Marlins have now been held to three runs or less 85 times this season, and their record in those 84 games is 17-68. Taking it one step further,

When scoring three runs in a game 6-16
When scoring two runs in a game 9-17
When scoring one run in a game 2-20

Of course, they lead the majors in getting shutout, 15 times.

The Fish are 32-14 when they score four runs or more in a game. You would think that the team’s crack management and incompetent owner would figure this out and add some offense for next season.  The Fish are still at the bottom of the list in runs scored in MLB, with 419 runs in their 131 games, a putrid 3.19 runs per game.  Here are the rest of the bottom-dwellers:

TEAM W-L Runs
Marlins 49-82 419
White Sox 56-76 502
Phillies 61-72 504
Giants 59-74 504
Cubs 56-77 512
Twins 57-74 512

 Just for fun, close your eyes and imagine how many more wins the Fish would have if they had only scored as many runs as the White Sox, the second-worst scoring team in MLB.

In contrast, the Boston Red Sox (79-55) lead MLB with 678 runs scored and the Detroit Tigers (77-56) have plated 675.  The Sox have played 1 more game than the Tigers. 

In the Major Leagues yesterday, first in the National League,

Dodgers 4          Cubs 0
Hanley Ramirez connected long distance and Ricky Nolasco went eight innings, giving up just three hits and struck out 11.  Nolasco is 6-1 since coming to the Dodgers and has given up just four runs in his last 33 1/3 innings.

Pirates 7 Brewers 1
Marlon Byrd hit a three-run homer in his first game with the Pirates.  Gaby Sanchez and Josh Harrison had three hits apiece.  

Phillies 6 Mets 2
Cole Hamels struck out eight and gave up two runs in his seven innings of work.  Carlos Ruiz homered in the win.

Braves 3 Indians 2
Chris Johnson singled home Jordan Schafer in the bottom of the ninth inning to end the game.  The Braves are the first team to reach 80 wins this season.

Reds 10 Cardinals 0
The Reds beat up on Adam Wainwright, who gave up nine runs in two innings.  Jay Bruce homered and drove in five runs in the win.

Rockies 5 Giants 4
Jhoulys Chacin took a no-hitter into the seventh inning.  Yorvit Torrealba drove in two runs for the Rockies.

Padres 5 D-Backs 1
Will Venable and Jesus Guzman connected long distance.

Over in the American League,

Rangers 12 Mariners 4
Leonys Martin homered and finished with four RBI.  Felix Hernandez is now 0-4 with a 7.57 ERA against Texas this season.

Blue Jays 7 Yankees 2
The Jays pounded Hiroki Kuroda for seven runs and nine hits in five innings.  

A’s 14 Tigers 4
Brandon Moss hit two homers and drove in six runs.  Doug Fister gave up seven runs and 13 hits in his five innings of work.

Red Sox 4 Orioles 3
Mike Carp had a pinch-hit RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning to beat the O’s.  Chris Davis hit his 47th homer of the season in the loss.

Rays 4 Angels 1
Chris Archer gave up a run and five hits in seven innings.  David de Jesus had two hits, scored two runs, and drove in another one.

Royals 8 Twins 1
Salvador Perez went 4-5 with two home runs and finished with four RBI.  

White Sox 6 Astros 1
Avisail Garcia hit a three-run homer and Chris Sale struck out 12 and allowed only one run and four hits in eight innings.


Today in MLB, in the National League,

Phillies @ Mets 1:10 pm
Ethan Martin vs Carlos Torres

Marlins @ Nationals 7:05 pm
Tom Koehler vs Gio Gonzalez

Brewers @ Pirates 7:05 pm
Yovani Gallardo vs Gerrit Cole

Indians @ Braves 7:10 pm
Ubaldo Jimenez vs Kris Medlen

Over in the American League,

A’s @ Tigers 1:08 pm
Bartolo Colon vs Max Scherzer

Angels @ Rays 1:10 pm
Jason Vargas vs Jake Odorizzi

Royals @ Twins 1:10 pm
Bruce Chen vs Samuel Deduno 

Orioles @ Red Sox 7:10 pm
Chris Tillman vs Jon Lester

Mariners @ Astros 8:10 pm
Erasmo Ramirez vs Jordan Lyles

Dodgers’ manager Don Mattingly removed outfielder Yasiel Puig from their game yesterday in the fifth inning.  This young man NEEDS to learn how to play the game:


The Angels are dysfunctional, according to Ken Rosenthal:


Justin Verlander is struggling.  Can you believe he has the fourth-best ERA among the Tigers’ starters?


Robinson Cano hopes to be back in the Yankees’ lineup on Friday


Here are the latest trade rumors around the majors:


Here is ESPN chiming in with their gossip:


REMEMBER:  ANY PLAYERS TRADED AFTER AUGUST 31st ARE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR POSTSEASON ROSTERS.

TODAY’S TRIVIA QUESTION:  In a sad note, the Marlins are headed for what could be their worst season ever.  What is the worst record the Marlins have ever had in a season?  The answer comes later, alligator.   

Here are the up-to-the-minute standings in MLB:


Here are the individual league leaders in MLB:


In paying homage to "Throwback Thursdays", here are my top 100 Chris Berman baseball nicknames:

(IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER):

Jim HEY Abbott
Rick SEE YOU LATER Aguilera
Mike ENOUGH Aldretti
Doyle BRANDY Alexander
Roberto REMEMBER THE Alomar
Moises SKIP TO MY Alou
Rene KOOK Arocha
Oscar Azocar NAMED DESIRE
Scott TALLULAH Bankhead
Kevin SMALL MOUTH Bass
Bruce EGGS Benedict
Bud PAINT IT Black
Bert BE HOME Blyleven
Bobby BAD TO THE Bonilla
Scott SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALI Brosius
Greg LIFE IS A Cadaret
Jose CAN YOU SEE Canseco
Jeff Conine THE BARBARIAN
Henry AVO Cotto
Carlos IN Delgado DA VIDA
Jim TWO SILHOUETTES ON Deshaies
Bo BUENOS Diaz
Lee Elia KURYAKIN
Cliff PINK Floyd
John GENERALISIMO FRANCISCO Franco
Jim BELA Fregosi
Greg Gagne WITH A SPOON
Nomar MR NICE GUY Garciaparra
Bernard INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN Gilkey
Tom HEARD IT THROUGH THE Glavine
Dwight Gooden PLENTY
Mark AMAZING Grace
FETTUCCINI Alfredo Griffin
Mel CARNEGIE Hall
Von PURPLE Hayes
Danny URIAH Heep
Todd HIGHWAY TO Helton
Stan Javier SELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS
Wally ABSORBINE Joyner
Jimmy FRANCIS SCOTT Key
John I AM NOT A Kruk
DON’T WALK AWAY Rene Lachemann
Mike CAR 54 Lavallier
Jim SATURDAY NIGHT LeFebvre
Davey CANTA Lopes
Mark GET BACK Loretta
John TONIGHT LET IT BE Lowenstein
Gregg MATHE Maddux
Don WELCOME Mattingly
John Mayberry RFD
Oddibe YOUNG AGAIN McDowell
ME AND Willie McGee
Fred McGriff THE CRIME DOG
Bob Melvin AND THE BLUE NOTES
Mike LOGGINS AND Messina
EATING Raul Mondesi
Eddie EAT DRINK AND BE Murray
Robb THE FLYING Nen
Johnny QUAKER Oates
Alex Ochoa GESUNDHEIT
Al Osuna OR LATER
Rafael EMERSON LAKE AND Palmeiro
Bill VEAL Pecota
Terry PIT AND THE Pendleton
Tony JALA Peña
Melido SHUFFLE Perez
Ken GOOD EVENING Mr. Phelps
Mike PEPPERONI Piazza
Bill LIQUID Plummer
Ted TOWER OF Power
Tom GOODNIGHT SWEET Prince
Tim PURPLE Raines
Randy Ready OR NOT
Jerry ROLLS Reuss
Jose BLAME IT ON Rijo
Cookie DAYS OF WINE AND Rojas
Juan PLAY IT AGAIN Samuel
Rafael EVIL WAYS Santana
Steve ALTO Sax
Mike NOVA Scioscia
Tom LEAVE IT TO Seaver
Kevin ALKA Seitzer
Larry SATIN Sheets
Gary Sheffield OF DREAMS
Eric WIN PLACE OR Show
Heatcliff Slocumb IF YOU GOT’EM
Luis Sojo IN THE RAIN
Sammy SAY IT ISN’T Sosa
Doug PEOPLE ARE Strange
Darryl Strawberry SHORTCAKE
Frank Tanana DAIQUIRI
Manny KINGSTON Trillo
Steve RAINBOW Trout
Jeff DREAM Weaver
Walt THREE BLIND Weiss
John TEENAGE Wetteland
Todd WE ARE THE Worrell
Butch OIL AND Wynegar
Matt FOREVER Young
Greg THE WRATH OF Zahn
Todd GOOD HOUSEKEEPING Zeile

Another embarrassing adventure for the NCAA, as they totally mishandled the Johnny Manziel situation:




My take:  Bottom line, the rules and the double standards are stupid to begin with.  However, he either took money or not.  If the NCAA says they did not find any proof he took money for signing thousands of autographs, then you cannot punish him.  Realistically, however, he would have probably sat out the second half of the game anyway in A&M’s game against lowly Rice. 

It is game time for NCAA football, as the season kicks off tonight. Seventeen games on the docket tonight, including #6 South Carolina hosting North Carolina and #24 USC traveling to Hawaii.  

Here is the complete schedule for this week:


The Canes open up against Florida Atlantic tomorrow night at the Seven Names Stadium, and they will be counting on the defensive line to provide a lot of pressure:


The Herald’s Manny Navarro and Susan Miller Degnan have the latest scoop from the University of Miami:


Here’s the latest from FIU, who take on the University of Maryland on Saturday at 12:30 pm:



Here’s the latest from Tallahassee and FSU:


We have to include the Gators, right?


In the NFL, RG III will start opening day for the Redskins.


As everyone knows, you always need a quality backup QB, and the Dolphins are blessed with Matt Moore.


Here is Armando Salguero’s daily Dolphin report from the Miami Herald:


Finally, the NFL preseason ends tonight.  The Fins close out their preseason tonight against the New Orleans Saints here at the Seven Names Stadium.  Channel 4 in Miami will handle the telecast, game time is 7:30 pm.

Miami opens the regular season in Cleveland against the Browns on Sunday, September 8, at 1:00 pm.  

Here is the schedule for the last week of preseason football:

THURSDAY

Detroit Lions @ Buffalo Bills 7:00 pm
Indianapolis Colts @ Cincinnati Bengals 7:00 pm
Philadelphia Eagles @ NY Jets 7:00 pm
New Orleans Saints @ Miami Dolphins 7:30 pm
Jacksonville Jaguars @ Atlanta Falcons 7:30 pm
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Carolina Panthers 7:30 pm
NY Giants @ New England Patriots 7:30 pm
Washington Redskins @ Tampa Bay Bucs          7:30 pm
Cleveland Browns @ Chicago Bears 8:00 pm
Houston Texans @ Dallas Cowboys 8:00 pm
Green Bay Packers @ Kansas City Chiefs 8:00 pm
Tennessee Titans @ Minnesota Vikings 8:00 pm
Baltimore Ravens @ St. Louis Rams 8:00 pm
Arizona Cardinals @ Denver Broncos                 9:00 pm
San Francisco 49ers @ San Diego Chargers       10:00 pm
Oakland Raiders @ Seattle Seahawks               10:00 pm

Here’s ESPN’s NFL Nation Blog, with news from all around the league:


We can all continue to sleep at night, knowing full well that Aaron Hernandez remains in jail, where he belongs.  

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NOTE TO ALL KIDS AGES 5-16:

RedZone Sports has a 5-on-5 Youth Basketball League at Bowman Ashe / Doolin, located at 6401 S. W. 152nd Avenue.  The league starts September 14th, but early registration ends September 7th.  For more information, contact Feli Villalba at (305) 218-4196 or via e-mail at fvillalba@redzonesports.org

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I’m selling three lots totaling a little over five acres in the beautiful North Carolina mountains, overlooking the New River, a quick 35-minute drive from Boone and Blowing Rock.  Click here to see some photos and feel free to contact me if you have any questions: 


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THE ANSWER TO TODAY’S TRIVIA QUESTION:  In a sad note, the Marlins are headed for what could be their worst season ever.  What is the worst record the Marlins have ever had in a season?  

The 1998 Marlins, ONE YEAR AFTER WINNING THE WORLD SERIES, had a record of 54-108.  That is the only time they lost more than 100 games.

Behave yourselves, and always remember that tomorrow will bring us a brand new day. 

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