Tagged: Cesar Izturis
Take a Step Back
As I said in an earlier entry, the next few weeks may be scarce interms of my entries, and most likely will not have game summaries and info on a daily basis. Still trying to get out a post every day or two about different topics. Since I have baseball games myself also, I did not get to catch the first few innings of each Yankee game, so that’s another reason why I am behind.
As for this entry. I have a question for the O’s. What the hell happened? The whole Boston series, the team looked legitimate. May have lost 2 of 3, but were in all 3 games, showed tons of patience and hitting, and kept up with positive starting pitching. The bad part was the bullpen, specifically Albers who blew the two games we lost in that series. The good part was that the bats were coming alive. We were having double digit hit games, multi-hit games for a lot of guys, and the bats of Markakis and Jones looked to be coming back.
The O’s arrived back in Baltimore, and decided to just stick with the trends from the beginning of the season after beating the Yankees on Tuesday. While Sabathia and Burnett were on top of their games, specifically Burnett who pitched his best stuff in a long time (unfortunately it had to come against us), but why did the bats just die. At least against Sabathia we got some hits, but it just looked flat out horrible. We lost the touch that the guys were able to find against the Red Sox on Sunday and the Yankees on Tuesday to bring guys in who were on base and not rack up the LOB statistic. Wednesday went back to the old crap where we get hits all spread apart and not score. Last night was just horrific. We had 3 total hits, and the whole lineup just looked out of it, specifically Wieters. The last two nights he has look mezmorized at the plate. Not sure what is going on, but I am hoping Crowley can help him get back on track to hitting .300+. He dropped below .300 last night, which is hard to see when he was one of the positive aspects of our offense before. Wigginton continued his hitting with one hit in each of the two past games. Who would have guessed Cesar Izturis would be our hottest bat at any time in the season. More to come on him later. I want to write a post about it, but might wait to see how he does vs. Lackey tonight.
The bullpen went back to the ‘Opposite Day’ concept. Here is what the stats and happenings are for the bullpen guys:
-Albers has pitched 2.1 innings (1 IP Wed. and 1.1 IP Thurs.) and in those outings only let one hit thru and got a K. He looks to have gotten his fastball under control. That is a good sign since he is a guy the team is hoping to build with for the future in the ‘pen.
-Castillo was brought up and had solid innings before yesterday of strikeouts and no runs. Unfortunately for him, he was brought in to face Robbie Cano, who smacked his 2nd HR of the night off of Castillo’s low speed side arm on the 2nd pitch.
-Hendrickson and Meredith both pitched an inning on Wednesday. The difficult part of this one is that neither looked bad. They both looked on top of their stuff, just the Yankees lineup is overpowering and talented. Luckily, between the 2.1 innings they pitched, they only let up 1 ER, but had 7 hits combined. Would have been more runs but Hendrickson inherited some Guthrie allowed hits.
-Berken and Ohman came in for 9th inning pitching in the 2 games. Berken smoothly got 2 outs, and Ohman got 3 with 2 Ks and 1 H. Sad that they couldn’t be for saves.
Just looks like the pitching is going downhill. Starters haven’t looked stellar. Sorry to Matusz, but you threw some ugly pitches. Overall, still looked great, but against a team like the Yankees, you can’t even give up one bad pitch without paying the price. Guthrie just was disgusting.
Hopefully this weekend the O’s can rebuild on their offense and the power they have shown a little bit lately. My hopes are for Wieters to get back with it, Jones to have a 3-3 or 4-4 night (he sincerely needs it), and Markakis keeps the slugging up. The reason I think those things are most important are because they are the heart of the lineup and that has been troubling all season.
Welcome Mr. Robinson!
Well, the Orioles welcomed two new things to Baltimore today. The new Jackie Robinson #42 statue outside of the H gate will call, and a home win. For the first time this season, the Orioles are on a winning streak!
I am beginning finals weeks (yes, 3 weeks of finals) right now in school, so the next few weeks of entries may not be as in depth as the first bunch this season. There may be times, of course, that I have down time, and instead of studying for an exam that could get me college credits, I would spend a few hours analyzing the Baltimore Orioles.
I will start it off tonight with this. The entry on tonight’s game will be more about some concepts and happenings that I took note of during the game. Just as a game recap, I am providing you with the scoring summary (courtesy of Yahoo! sports):
| Scoring Summary |
| Bot 2nd: Baltimore |
| – C. Izturis walked, L. Scott scored, T. Wigginton to third, N. Reimold to second |
| Top 3rd: NY Yankees |
| – B. Gardner safe at first on third baseman M. Tejada’s fielding error, N. Swisher scored |
| Top 4th: NY Yankees |
| – J. Posada homered to deep right |
| Bot 6th: Baltimore |
| – R. Hughes singled to shallow right, L. Scott scored, T. Wigginton to third |
| – N. Reimold singled to shallow left, T. Wigginton scored, R. Hughes to second |
| – C. Izturis singled to shallow left center, R. Hughes scored, L. Montanez to second |
| Bot 8th: Baltimore |
| – C. Izturis singled to shallow right, J. Lugo scored |
| Top 9th: NY Yankees |
| – B. Gardner safe at first on shortstop C. Izturis’ fielding error, N. Swisher scored, R. Pena to third |
| – M. Teixeira singled to shallow right, R. Pena scored, B. Gardner to third |
So, thanks again, Orioles, for another last second win where you go with the “give me a heart attack” play and get men on in crunch time before closing it. Two in a row. Only a few more and I will start to think Sherrill is back. I say that because while Gonzalez did get us into tough situations, at least Sherrill would finish 95% of them off. Hence, I am okay with the O’s winning by a thread every night, as long as they still add one to the win column.
Pitching:
I have things to say about all 4 pitchers.
Just a summary:
| Baltimore | ||||||||||
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | HR | WHIP | Season ERA | ||
| K. Millwood | 5.1 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1.28 | 3.38 | |
| A. Castillo (W, 1-0) | 1.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.30 | 0.00 | |
| J. Johnson (H, 3) | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.62 | 6.23 | |
| A. Simon (S, 1) | 1.0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3.00 | 0.00 | |
Millwood: Another tremendous night. Proved again why he is the 1 spot in our rotation. In times of need, he came through with big pitches to create big outs. Still looking for a win, but then again, throwing 5.1 innings of solid baseball with really only the 1 earned run off of the Posada shot. Props to him for keeping up the good work.
Alberto Castillo: Wow. Even without the stat line above, I have been thinking ever since he was taken out about his 1.2 IP with 1 H and 3 Ks. He looked great. Lots of confidence, and able to really throw strikes and move the ball around the zone. Great stuff from a guy who is fighting for a roster spot.
JJ: Solid. Nothing incredible, but got the job done. Got thru the 8th with 1 hit, still would like to see more Ks out of him, but happy none the less with the job well done. I really prefer him in that role. Trembley, please see how successful the guy is in the 8th and just the 8th.
Alfredo Simon: Who are you? Well, you made a name tonight all around baseball. Recording a save over the New York Yankees is difficult to do, let alone when it includes 2 Ks in 1 IP, and one of those Ks was of Derek Jeter. More to come on this guy later. In the long run, great stuff. I was extremely impressed with the wicked 2-seamer. I feel like that would be one of the hardest pitches to hit in baseball if he could perfect the control. Topping out at 97 was insane to watch.
Lineup notes:
-Hughes again with an RBI single and run scored. The dude knows what he wants and knows how to get it.
-Adam Jones, (going off of memory here) in the 6th inning, struck out after the O’s had just taken the lead. His K ended the inning, and after his ‘too-far’ check swing, he belted the bat at the ground and chucked the helmet in front of him. I understand his frustration. He was supposed to be the leader of the lineup and have the year of his life. He did come on later to hit a double. Either way, I think Trembley has another decision to make here. Atkins was one that Trembley decided to act on by bringing up Hughes to give Atkins some sitting time. Jones provides such a glove (while some may argue against it, and even at times I have said how I see a lack of effort in the field, and still no one can deny that his throws have been off this year), so it is difficult to bench him. I think a night off would do him some good though. Hitting barely over the .200 mark is not what the team needs right now with all of this sudden firepower showing through.
-Markakis seemed to have found his bat. He got 6 doubles on the road trip, which sounds dandy. But when, in the bottom of the 8th, he comes up with 2 outs and runners on 2nd and 3rd, I expect RBIs. Once again, Markakis hasn’t found the clutch side to his hitting yet. Hopefully it’s coming, since his new found bat just seemed to arrive within the past week.
-Izturis. Buddy. Whoever told you it was opposite day was kidding with you, man. You went 2-3 with 3 RBIs and a BB (which was an RBI), yet gave up the first run in the 9th on a bad hop play at short. I know Gardner is fast, but dude, field the ball. Unacceptable there. I am not sure what I like more, this offensive side of Cesar, or the little Venezuelan gold glover without a bat side. Hmm… How about mixing the two into a… wait for it… legitimate 5-tool player? Surprise the league! I’m all for that.
Last bit.
Watched Trembley’s post game press conference. I am going to now recap my personal Trembley timeline.
Before the season – trusted him and Andy 100% to do the best for the organization and its growth.
Beginning of season – felt bad for him since Gonzo was blowing up and it wasn’t his fault, especially when the organization had just paid for the dude, he couldn’t just sit Mike after 1 outing.
As of late – not so happy. He made the mistake of using Albers in Boston the night after his loss in relief, and then blew it again. Used JJ for too long too. I am not liking the pitching change decisions. Then again, I like his open outlook.
Well, this press conference hurt. Trembley seemed like he had given up on the team. Repeatedly, he would say things about how anyone could fill any duty and that there were no true assigned spots in the bullpen, and how the team played great tonight but still would be shuffled with. Man, you’re burning me up inside. I liked you, but now you have to go sound all pessimistic and act like you are just totally shut down already. I know it has been rough, but be a professional and talk to the media like you mean it.
That’s all tonight. Notes for tomorrow:
It’s CC vs. Guthrie. I was thinking of saying different points about hitting CC and Guthrie being back in domination form, but then I found this:
Repeat, please. Big nights from Jones and Markakis are due, along with solid nights from Wigginton and Scott. Everything is looking like it is falling somewhat into place, so let’s go get it done.
Sweet Caroline!
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O’s
win!
That’s how we have to look at it right now. With a very intense 10th
inning now completed, the Orioles held on and beat the Red Sox today,
7-6. This ends their 3 game series for the weekend, and brings the birds
back home for a bit.
It truly was a thriller. It was a back and forth game through the end,
where luckily the O’s stopped the Sox from continuing the lead change trend.
Pitching:
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Tim-e
to Wake-field up: Well, we faced Okajima and the fiery Bard after
Wakefield left, and those guys were surprises to our hitters. While we
did get the tying runs off of Okajima, it was a rude awakening call facing a
guy that throws higher than 85. Wakefield surprised me today. I
never realized how slow he was. He didn’t break 82 on the day. The
movement must be insane to see in person because other than the movement, there
is no reason any player shouldn’t be slugging off of him. He pitched
great against us only letting up 2 ER in 6.2 IP with a 5:1 K:BB ratio.
Hernandez
came out on top of his stuff basically. Was not as good as in Spring
against the Red Sox when he shut them out in his last start with 7 Ks, but not
far off. He hasn’t kept up with the strikeouts lately, with a 1:3 K:BB
ratio today. Letting up some hits and not getting into batter’s minds, it
was no more than an okay performance. On the bright side, he didn’t get
the loss, which wasn’t deserved with his good outing. 2 of his 3 ER were
because of the inherited runners that he left on which scored off of Hendrickson.
5 full innings though of shutout baseball is a great stat to see. He also
has stuck down on his pitches and has still not let up a HR this year, which
was his rough point last year.
Hendrickson
and Berken each had solid stints, both letting up runs though. Looking at
their outings, neither was off their game, but just had some bad luck with
solid Red Sox hitters making good cuts. Trembley used Castillo for 2 outs
late in the game. JJ came on for an extremely positive appearance, , holding
the score and forcing the game into extras by getting the Red Sox out in the 9th
despite a leadoff single by McDonald who was eventually advanced into scoring
position before the inning ended.
Fielding:
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Andre
Beltran: Yea, I know that isn’t a player’s name. There is an Adrian
Beltre. I remember when the Red Sox picked up Beltre in the offseason,
and I got an ESPN update text saying the Red Sox got Andre Beltran. At
that point, I had no idea what they were talking about. Maybe a
nobody? Well, he’s made a name for himself today. Just on defense,
the game started off with 2 bobbling errors on back to back Orioles hitters
grounding to 3rd (they ended up only crediting him with 1).
Ever since those moments, he has been a gold glover at 3rd. He
has robbed Tejada of RBIs, and a bunch of other guys too. He has been
making spectacular dives and grabs throughout the entire game. Through 3
innings, 7 out of the 13 balls hit in the field were to Beltre. So his
position demanded some nice plays out of him, which he definitely provided.
It
was interesting watching the short popups in left field today. On the
first one, which Reimold caught, Izturis actually fell over from running into
Reimold. After that, the three guys (Reimold, Tejada, and Izturis) all
communicated and stuck through the game with no errors. Props to Reimold
also early in the game with a long running catch in left. Proud he
finally held onto one of those. I have been doubting him a lot in terms
of his abilities in LF.
Hitting
and the end:
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The
O’s actually had a 1-0 lead through the 5th. Now most people
at this time would think maybe Wigginton or Markakis had an RBI early.
Wrong. In the 2nd, with 1 out (a Wigginton groundout), Rhyne
Hughes stepped up and smacked a double to the left center gap. Craig
Tatum then stepped up, and unexpectedly got an RBI single. Props to him
for the clutch hit.
As
the game continued, that left center gap became popular, especially balls off
the wall. Most balls today were hit towards left, whether to the outfield
or to 3B Beltre. No performance was too great at the plate, but the
hitting highlight of the day was that our 1-9 hitters all got at least one hit,
4 of which got 2 a piece.
Very
exciting stuff today. Showed a lot of offensive firepower late which they
have been doing in this series. It is a good sign. Before the 8th,
the only guys with hits were the 1, 2, 8, and 9 slots (as opposed to last night
when 2-7 all had multi-hit games). Coming up with intensity in the 10th,
here’s the overall summary of how we took a 7-4 lead:
–
R. Hughes singled to right, M. Tejada scored, L. Scott to third, T. Wigginton
to second
– M. Wieters singled to shallow center, L. Scott and T. Wigginton scored, R.
Hughes to second
The
hitting is really coming around. 14 hits as a team today, .311 as a team,
but once again with 10 LOB they are not producing as much as they could
be. Also, the 10 Ks against us really hurt too, with 3 in a row by Bard,
striking out the side in the 9th.
To
me, it was sad that we couldn’t enter the bottom of the 10th and be
a quality baseball team and have a 1-2-3 inning. Is it a requirement for
the Orioles to always worry their fans with late inning runs by the opposing
team, especially in situations of extra innings like this one? I guess.
But at least we held onto it. Props to JJ for not losing his cool.
No defensive woes, but maybe it was just that JJ should have been taken out
instead of going more. Who knows. Either way, we got the W.
After
2 losses of one run each, this win is something the team needed. Now,
hopefully they can rest on this off day, get their gloves back together, and
bring the same stuff out against the Yankees. It will be the top of the
rotation on Tuesday, and hopefully we can even sweep the Yankees. They
might be doing well, but the offense we are producing may be the key to
overcoming the Yankees steroid and money driven lineup. Hopefully, also,
we can bottle up this quality work by the bullpen today, especially JJ, so that
we won’t have to rely on a lot of work by a slumping guy like Fat Albers.
Millwood, Guthrie, and Matusz will all hopefully keep up with their solid
seasons so far so that this lineup can come out and give the O’s some wins.
Could
we somehow have one of those high scoring games where you can tell by the 6th
That’d be nice. I hope we can find some type of game or two like
that. Maybe even the series win over the Yankees. Now that’d be
impressive. Just no more of these nail-biters. I’m running out of
nails. inning that we win and are up by 5+?
2131 and Beyond 