Tag / Giants

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2013 Predictions Revisited

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersBack in April, on the eve of the 2013 baseball season, I looked into my crystal ball and tried to predict the outcomes of the division races and the major awards.  Now that the season has come to an end the playoffs are in full swing, let’s take a look back at how things unfolded and how wrong my predictions were.

American League

East: Rays

Nobody really predicted the Red Sox bouncing back from their miserable 2012 campaign and winning the division this year.  The Rays, meanwhile, managed to beat the Rangers in the tie-breaker game and make it as the second wild card.

Central: Tigers

This one was practically a no-brainer, although the Indians did make a race of it.

West: Angels

The Angels once again made a huge splash in the free agency market and then underachieved miserably during the season.  The A’s, despite their precarious stadium and underfunded roster, took the division handily.

Wild Cards: Blue Jays, A’s

Despite totally remaking their roster, the Blue Jays failed to reach the playoffs once again.  The Indians and the Rays were the actual wild card teams.  Overall, for the AL, I managed to get one division winner correct and 3 of the 5 playoff teams correct.

National League

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Ballpark Tour: PETCO Park

PETCO

Stadium Name: PETCO Park

Location: San Diego

Home Team: Padres

Years in Service: 2004 – Present

Visits: 3

After 35 seasons at Jack Murphy Stadium (or Qualcomm Stadium), the Padres moved downtown in 2004 with the opening of PETCO Park.  The new stadium was initially supposed to open for the 2002 season, but legal battles and political tomfoolery delayed the project for two years.  The first event held at PETCO Park was an NCAA invitational tournament hosted by San Diego State University, whose head coach was former Padres great Tony Gwynn.  The Padres themselves christened the stadium on April 8 with a 10 inning victory over the Giants.

With the Cubs, coming off their surprising run towards the NL title in 2003, scheduled for a weekend series at the newly opened PETCO Park in the middle of May in 2004, a trip out to the coast was in order.  The Cubs swept the three game series against the Padres, and a tremendous weekend was had.  The new park was a vast improvement over the old Jack Murphy.  One of these days, I’ll need to take a return trip.

by jim

Looking To Next Year

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersWith the 2013 season limping to the finish line, it became time to look forward to next year on Tuesday when the White Sox released their 2014 schedule.  The south siders begin the 2014 campaign at home against the Twins on March 31.

Inter-league matchups against the NL West include home dates against the Diamondbacks, Giants, and Padres.  The White Sox will travel to Los Angeles for yet another tilt with their opponent from the 1959 World Series and will also make their first ever trip to Colorado to face the Rockies.  The team will also split a 4 game series against the Cubs, similar to this season, with the first 2 games at Wrigley Field and the last 2 at US Cellular Field.

Should the team find themselves in contention, they finish the year with games mostly against their Central division foes, with only 7 September games coming outside the division.

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Ballpark Tour: AT&T Park

ATTPark

Stadium Name: AT&T Park

Location: San Francisco

Home Team: Giants

Years in Service: 2000 – Present

Visits: 1

The San Francisco Giants opened Pacific Bell Park in 2000 after 40 seasons at Candlestick Park.  The ballpark was the first stadium built without public funds since the completion of Dodger Stadium in 1962.  The stadium was renamed SBC Park in 2003 and then finally AT&T Park in 2006 thanks to the corporate upheaval in the telecommunications world.  In April 2010, the stadium became the first MLB ballpark to receive LEED Silver Certification for Existing Buildings, Operations and Maintenance.

In May of 2008, I made my second trip out to Bay Area, this time to attend the Java One conference.  The week started with the A’s in town while the Giants returned home for a weekend series, so I adjusted my schedule so that I could attend games at both stadiums.  Friday night, after most of the techies had left town, I hopped on the bus down to AT&T Park to see the Giants, once again, take on the Phillies.  I dropped some major coin for the best tickets in the house, which got me in a box between home plate and the Phillie dugout and a prime spot on the evening’s telecast.  The Phillies, on their way to a World Series championship, defeated the Giants 7-4.

As one would expect from a newly built stadium, AT&T Park offered all the amenities one would expect.  The park is a huge upgrade over Candlestick and, given the Giants recent success, has proven to be a boon for the franchise.  Given the opportunity, I would love to go back for another game.

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Ballpark Tour: 3 Com Park

Stadium Name: 3 Com Park

Location: San Francisco

Home Team: Giants

Years in Service: 1960 – 1999

Visits: 1

When the New York Giants moved west in 1958, the city of San Francisco began constructing a new ballpark for them, and Candlestick Park was born.  The stadium opened in 1960 and was the home of the now-San Francisco Giants through the 1999 season.  Along the way, the stadium has also played host to the Oakland Raiders, the San Francisco 49ers, dozens of commercials and movies, and, in 1965, the final commercial concert appearance by the Beatles.

In September of 1999, I headed out to the Bay Area to visit an old friend.  One of the items on our agenda was to head out to Candlestick, which had been renamed 3Com Park by this point, to see a game before the Giants moved to their new home the following season.  With only 13 home games left on the schedule, we set out to see the Giants take on the Phillies on September 2.  The Giants, behind starter Joe Nathan, defeated the Phillies 3-2 on a cool autumn afternoon.  I would return to San Francisco 9 years later to check out the new stadium, but that is a tale for another day.

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Soriano Goes Bye Bye

alfonso-soriano-wallThe Jim Hendry era on the North Side officially came to an end today as Alfonso Soriano was traded to the Yankees for what is expected to be a lower tier pitching prospect.  Soriano signed an 8-year contract with the Cubs prior to the 2007 season and helped lead the team to back-to-back division titles in 2007 and 2008.  Unfortunately, the Cubs were swept in both division series and the team started to unravel from there.

As new leadership came in and the team started to rebuild, Soriano and his $18 million contract no longer fit with the team’s needs.  Unfortunately for the Cubs, however, former GM Jim Hendry passed out No Trade clauses like a drunken sailor, so moving Soriano has been easier said than done.  There was talk of a deal last year that would have sent Soriano to the Giants, but he declined the move.  This year, however, he appears willing to accept the move that will reunite him with the franchise with which he started his career.

Soriano’s numbers in a Cub uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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#307 – Lorenzo Barcelo

265796Name: Lorenzo Barcelo

Rank: 307

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2000-2002

On July 31, 1997, the White Sox, only 3 1/2 games behind the Indians for the AL Central lead, blew up their season with a move that became known as the White Flag trade, sending Wilson Alvarez, Danny Darwin, and Roberto Hernandez to the Giants in exchange for a group of prospects that included Mike Caruso, Keith Foulke, Bob Howry, Ken Vining, and Lorenzo Barcelo.

After joining the White Sox organization, Barcelo started over in Rookie ball and started working his way back up the ladder, eventually reaching the major leagues in July of 2000 when Cal Eldred’s elbow finally gave out.  Barcelo appeared in 22 games for the White Sox that season and threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings during the White Sox Division Series loss to the Mariners.

Things went south for Barcelo following that season.  He missed most of the 2001 season after tearing his rotator cuff.  Another arm injury cut short his 2002 season, and effectively ended his White Sox and major league career.  Following the 2002 season, he was let go.

Barcelo’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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by jim

2013 Predictions

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersContinuing the tradition started two years ago and continued last year, here are my picks for the baseball season that is just getting underway.

American League

East: Rays

Central: Tigers

West: Angels

Wild Cards: Blue Jays, A’s

AL Champion: Angels

Cy Young: David Price

MVP: Mike Trout

National League

East: Braves

Central: Brewers

West: Dodgers

Wild Cards: Giants, Cardinals

NL Champion: Braves

Cy Young: Clayton Kershaw

MVP: Matt Kemp

by jim

All Time Team Records

As we head into the 2013 season, here all the all-time team records in games that I have attended.

All-Time Team Records

Team Won Lost Winning Pctg
California Angels 1 0 1.000
Arizona Diamondbacks 12 2 0.857
Florida Marlins 15 8 0.652
Philadelphia Phillies 10 6 0.625
Toronto Blue Jays 9 6 0.600
Chicago White Sox 209 171 0.550
Colorado Rockies 7 6 0.538
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 14 12 0.538
New York Yankees 9 8 0.529
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And Then There Was One

A.J. Pierzynski’s White Sox career officially came to an end Thursday when the free agent catcher signed a contract with the Texas Rangers, leaving Paul Konerko as the last remaining member of the 2005 World Series champions to play for the South Siders and the White Sox without their most popular backstop since Carlton Fisk.

Pierzynski signed with the White Sox on January 6, 2005 following a year with the Giants that called his professionalism into question.  He rewarded the White Sox organization with 8 seasons of stability behind the plate the included 1 All-Star selection, 2 playoff appearances, and, of course, the 2005 World Series championship.  Over those 8 seasons, Pierzynski was involved in many key moments that endeared him to the White Sox faithful, including:

The walk-off home run, and resulting bat flip pictured to the left, against the Dodgers in 2005.

The two home runs in a thrashing of the Red Sox in game one of the 2005 ALDS, the first White Sox home postseason victory since 1959.

The controversial dropped third strike that led to a White Sox victory in game two of the 2005 ALCS against the Angels.

The 2006 brawl against the Cubs where Michael Barrett sucker-punched him after Pierzynski enthusiastically scored a run against the crosstown rivals.

Hanging on to the throw from Ken Griffey Jr. to preserve the shutout in the 2008 tie-breaker game that pushed the White Sox into the playoffs over the Twins.

Being behind the plate for Mark Buehrle’s no-hitter in 2007 and Philip Humber’s perfect game in 2012.

In games I have attended, Pierzynski ranks 2nd in games, doubles, at bats, runs, and hits, third in RBIs, sixth in triples, and seventh in home runs.

Pierzynski’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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