Thursday, December 18, 2014

Charros Take 2 From Naranjeros 3-2 and 7-0

The Charros de Jalisco have taken the first two games of a three game series with the Naranjeros de Hermosillo by scores of 3-2 and 7-0.

Ivan salas got the win in the 3-2 victory pitching the top of the 9th in relief of Adrian Ramirez who had given up a 2 run home run to Jose Amador that had tied the game at 2 apiece.

Jalisco opened the scoring in the bottom of the 3rd on a sac fly that scored Amadeo Zazueta for the 1-0 lead.

The Charros added a run in the bottom of the 8th when Amadeo Zazueta singled and went to third on an errant pick off attempt. Zazueta scored on a single by Israel Nunez to give the Charros a short lived 2-0 lead.

After Hermisillo had tied the game in the top of the 9th, Edson Garcia, of the Charros hit a walk off single in the bottom of the 9th to score Ivan Araujo with the winning run and the 3-2 victory for the Charros.


Jalisco improved to 35-23 overall and 14-9 in the second half of the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico season with the 7-0 win on Wednesday night. Juan Delgadillo improved to 2-6 on the year with 6 strong innings of 2 hit ball with 3 walks and 4 strikeouts.

The Charros scored two runs in the bottom of the 1st on a sac fly by Leo Heras that scored Eduardo Arredondo and a ground out by Japhet Amador that plated Manny Rodriguez for the 2-0 lead.

Manny Rodriguez singled to right in the 2nd that scored Eduardo Arredondo for a 3-0 Charros lead.

The same tandem scored a run in the 4th as Arredondo, who had singled and moved to second on a balk, scored on a single to left by Rodriguez that upped the lead to 4-0.

Leo Heras led off the 7th for Jalisco with his 8th home run of the year, a solo shot to right for a 5-0 lead. With two outs, CJ Retherford singled to left and IvanAraujo drew a base on balls. Amadeo Zazueta followed with a double that scored Retherford and Araujo for the final two runs and the 7-0 final score.

NFL Game Picks Week 16

After an 11-5 week last week, thank you Aaron Rogers and Chip Kelly, I'm sure to knock 'em dead this week.

(L) Tennessee @ Jacksonville     Titans 20-17     Tossup. Titans defense wins
(L)Philadelphia @ Washington     Eagles 28-24     Eagles O too fast
(W)San Diego @ San Francisco     Chargers 30-21     Harbaugh looking East
(W)Minnesota @ Miami     Dolphins 20-17     Tossup. Going with the home team
(L)Baltimore @ Houston     Ravens 20-13  Defensive struggle...Ravens with too much O
(W)Detroit @ Chicago     Lions 28-13     Cutler out...Goodbye Bears
(L)Cleveland @ Carolina     Browns 20-10     Why...I don't know
(L)Atlanta @ New Orleans     Saints 30-24     Brees wants to get to 8-8
(W)Green Bay @ Tampa Bay     Packers 35-13     It was too cold in Buffalo
(W)Kansas City @ Pittsburgh     Steelers 17-13     Good D by both teams
(W)New England @ NY Jets     Patriots 30-13     Brady or Smith...Brady
(L)NY Giants @ St. Louis     Rams 20-10     Not much O but good D in STL
(W)Buffalo @ Oakland     Raiders 17-12     I don't know...Raiders D
(L)Indianapolis @ Dallas     Colts 20-17     No Murray...No win!
(W)Seattle @  Arizona     Seahawks 22-9     Lindley v. Seahawks secondary...no way!
Denver @ Cincinnati     Broncos 28-13     Manning all better this week

Monday, December 15, 2014

Saints Beat Listless Bears 31-15 on MNF

Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints looked like a new team on Monday night, defeating the Chicago Bears 31-15. Brees threw for 375 yards and 3 touchdowns with no interceptions in the win. The Saints improved to 6-8 on the year, a game in front of the Carolina Panthers and the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC South Division.

Jay Cutler went 17 of  31 for 194 yards, 2 touchdowns and 3 interceptions against a stingy, swarming Saints defense. Cutler was sacked 7 times for the game.

Read the ESPN recap here.

Golden State Warriors Have Won 16 In A Row

Check out this week's ESPN Power Rankings here.

Royals Sign Alex Rios For 1 Year at 11 Million

The kansas City Royals have signed free agent outfielder, Alex Rios to a 1 year, 11 million dollar contract to replace Norichika Aoki in right field.

Read the ESPN article here.

Dodgers Sign Brett Anderson

The LA Dodgers have signed former Colorado LHP Brett Anderson to a 1 year, 10 million Dollar deal sources said.

Read the ESPN story here.

Jason Motte to Sign With Cubs

Jason Motte, who has played his entire career with the St. Louis Cardinals, has agreed to a 1 year deal with the Chicago Cubs for a reported 4.5 million dollars.

Motte missed the entire 2013 season after undergoing "tommy john" surgery.

In 2012, Motte had 42 saves and an ERA of 2.75




Kentucky Remains Unanimous #1 in Men's Basketball

The 11-0 Kentucky Wildcats remained the unanimous #1 in the NCAA Men's Baskaetball AP Top 10. Two days after losing Alex Poythress, their leading scorer, to an ACL injury, the Wildcats beat North Carolina 84-70.

Duke, Arizona, Louisville and Wisconsin remain unchanged to round out the top 5.

The top 7 spots remain the same with Virginia at #6 and Villanova at #7. Gonzaga leapfrogged Texas for the 8th spot and Kansas remained at #10. Wichita State is at 11 and Ohio State comes in at #12.

MLB Signings of Note This Week

Chase Headley is reported to have signed a 4 year 52 million dollar contract with the NY Yankees. Headley was traded to the Yankees prior to the deadline in 2014 and hit a combined .243 with 13 HRs and 49 RBIs last season.

The Chicago White Sox have signed free agent, Melky Cabrera to a 3 year 42 million dollar contract. Cabrera hit .301 with 16 home runs, 73 RBIs and 81 runs for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2014.

Bryce Harper and the Washington Nationals have avoided a grievance hearing by agreeing to a 2 year 7.5 million dollar contract. In an injury plagued 2014 season, Harper nit .273 with 13 HRs and 32 RBIs.

Sunday, December 14, 2014

Charros Sweep Navojoa with 5-2 Victory

The Charros de Jalisco swept the three game series with the Mayos de Navojoa with a 5-2 victory on Sunday night. Ivan Zavala pitched the 8th inning for the Charros to pick up the win while Brian Broderick notched his 16th save of the year.

Jalisco scored two runs in the top of the1st. Eduardo Arredondo singled to right and Manny Rodriguez was hit by a pitch. Leo Heras laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance the runners. Japhet Amador singled to center to score Arredondo and Rodriguez for the quick 2-0 Charros lead.

The Mayos got a run back in their half of the 1st on a single by Alan Sanchez and a one out double to left by Jose Chavez that scored Sanchez to cut the Charros' lead to 2-1.

Tim Fedroff led off the bottom of the 2bd for Navojoa with a single to right. After Carlos Orrantia struck out, Fernando Flores doubled to score Fedroff and the score was tied at 2.

There would be no more runs scored by either team until the top of the 9th. Jose Lopez replaced Esteban Haro on the mound for Navojoa and got the first two batters out on fly balls to the outfield. The third batter, CJ Retherford, doubled and scored on a double to right by Edson Garcia. Jesus Lopez then singled to put runners on the corners with two outs. Lopez stole second and Garcia and Lopez both scored on a throwing error by the Navojoa shortstop on a ground ball. That made it a 5-2 ball game as Broderick pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to give the win to Zavala.

Ivan Zavala, normally an 8th inning set up man, got the win to go to 1-0 on the year with a 2.70 ERA while Jose Lopez took the loss for the 19-37 Mayos.

Edson Garcia was 1 for 1 with a double and an RBI after replacing Jesus Cota in left field. Japhet Amador was 1 for 4 with his 46th RBI of the year. CJ Retherford went 2 for 4 to up his batting average to .368 on the season.

The Charros are now 10 games over .500 at 33-23 and 12-9 for the second half. Jalisco is one full game ahead of both Mexicali and Culiacan for the overall Liga Mexicana del Pacifico lead.  

Charros Best Mayos 5-1

After falling behind 1-0 in the 1st, the Charros erupted for 5 runs in the 3rd to defeat the Mayos de Navojoa in the second game of a three game set in Navojoa.

Jose Chavez singled to start the bottom of the 1st for the Mayos. Carlos Orrantia singled to center to put runners on the corners with no outs. Jon Weber singled to score Chavez and give Navojoa a one run lead at 1-0.

The Charros bats remained quiet until the top of the 3rd when Gabriel Gutierrez singled to right to lead off the inning and went to third on a single by Ivan Araujo. Jesus Lopez singled to score Gutierrez with Araujo stopping at second. Eduardo Arredondo reached safely on a sacrifice bunt that the Mayo's first baseman misplayed to load the bases for the Charros. Manny Rodriguez hit into a double play that scored Araujo and got Lopez to third. Leo Heras drew a base on balls. Japhet Amador singled to score Lopez and move Heras to second. Heras stole third in front of a Marquez Smith walk that loaded the bases again for Jalisco. CJ Retherford singled to left to score Heras and Amador and the Charros were on top 5-1.

The Mayos only threat after the first came in the bottom of the 8th. With the benefit of 2 walks, Navojoa chased the Charros starter, Ben Kozlowski. Adrian Ramirez, on in relief, got Jose Chavez to pop out to second and Carlos Orrantia to pop out to first. Ivan Salas relieved Ramirez and got Jon Weber to fly out to left to end the threat.

Ben Koslowski went 7 innings giving up just 3 hits and 1 run, all in the 1st inning, t improve to 3-2 on the year. Kozlowski struck out 4 but also walked 4. The Mayos did not get a hit after the 1st inning.

Salvador Robles took the loss for the Mayos to fall to 1-7 on the season.

The Charros are now 32-23 overall and 11-9 in the second half of the season.

Saturday, December 13, 2014

Marcus Mariota Wins Heisman Trophy

As if there was any doubt, Marcus Mariota won the Heisman Trophy for 2014.

Read the ESPN article here.

Muschamp Returns to Auburn as Defensive Coordinator

Auburn University has reportedly inked Will Muschamp to a 3year deal worth between 1.6 and 1.8 million dollars a year. This would make Muschamp the highest paid defensive coordinator in college football.

It appears that Muschamp's interview with the University of Houston for their head coaching position  may have been a ruse to force Auburn's hand.

Read the ESPN article here.

Muschamp's "I'm just a ball coach"  Auburn introduction.

Charros Top Navojoa 2-1 Behind Orlando Lara's Strong Outing

The Mayos de Navojoa may be in last place in the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico but you wouldn't have known it last night as it took a strong pitching performance by the Charros starter, Orlando Lara, to defeat the Mayos 2-1.

Manny Rodriguez drew a walk to begin the Charros 4th. Leo Heras walked and both runners advanced on a wild pitch by the Navojoa starter, Hector Velazquez. With one out, CJ Retherford singled to score Rodriguez and Jalisco led 1-0.

Navojoa tied the game in the bottom of the 5th on a lead off walk to Eliseo Aldazaba and a single to right by Rolando Acosta that put runners on the corners. Tim Fedroff then grounded into a 6-4-3 double play that scored Aldazaba with the tying run.

The Charros lead off hitter in the 6th, Manny Rodriguez, doubled to left and went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Leo Heras. Rodriguez scored on a sac fly to right by Marquez Smith and the Charros had regained the lead 2-1. That would prove to be the winning run as the pitching, by both teams, took over.

Manny Rodriguez was 1 for 3 with his 21st double of the year and 2 runs scored. CJ Retherford singled once in his three at bats and drove in the first run for the Charros. Marquez Smith, though hitless on the night, hit the sac fly to drive in the eventual winning run in the 6th inning. Gabriel Gutierrez was 2 for 2 with a double and a stolen base.

Orlando Lara, now 5-3 on the year, got the win, allowing just 2 hits and a run in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out 6 but walked 4, continuing a pattern by the Charros starters of late. Brian Broderick pitched the 9th to pick up his 15th save of the year.

Hector Velazquez, for the Mayos, matched Lara's pitching for 6 innings, giving up just 4 hits and 2 runs with 4 strikeouts. He walked 3 and saw his record fall to 0-5 on the season.

Jalisco remains atop the overall standings with a 31-23 record, one game ahead of Mexicali, los Mochis and Culiacan who are all 30-24. The Charros are 10-9 in the second half of the season one game behind the leaders.


Friday, December 12, 2014

2015 Alpine Cowboys Hot Stove Talk

I wrote an article for the bigbendcourier.com on the upcoming season for the Alpine Cowboys, a team in the Pecos League.

The Cowboys made it to the finals last year and came up a game short of the Pecos League Championship.

Read the article here and follow the Pecos league beginning in May of 2015. I will have updated articles here and you can follow the games on pecosleague.com. The Cowboys home games are carried on KVLF 1240 AM.

Arizona Cardinals Over Rams 12-6

The Arizona Cardinals rode the toe of Chandler Catanzaro to victory last night, 12-6, over the St. Louis Rams. The two teams combined for 6 field goals and 0 touchdowns.

The Cardinals became the first team this year to win a game without scoring a touchdown while the Rams have not allowed a touchdown in their last three games.

Drew Stanton, who left the field in the 3rd quarter with an injury, and Ryan Lindley were a combined 16 of 30 passing for 139 yards and no touchdowns for the Cardinals while Shaun Hill was 20 of 39 for 229 yards, no touchdowns and one interception for the Rams.

Arizona rushed for 143 yards on 33 carries, led by Kerwynn Williams' 75 yards and the Rams were held to 69 yards on the ground with Tre Mason running for 33 yards on 13 carries.

Read the ESPN recap here.

Tomateros Defeat Charros 5-2

The Tomateros de Culiacan took the rubber match of the 3 game series with the Charros, 5-2, on a night that Jalisco's offense was ineffective, the fielding was erratic and the their starting pitching was poor.

Rico Noel drew a walk and stole second to lead off the game for Culiacan. Noel then stole third and scored on a throwing error by the Charros catcher. The Tomateros had a 1-0 lead with out benefit of a hit.

The Charros answered in their half of the first when Leo Heras singled and Japhet Amador was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second. Marquez Smith singled to right and Heras scored. Jalisco had tied the score at 1, after 1 inning.

Culiacan loaded the bases with 2 outs in the top of the 3rd and Joey Meneses singled to score Ramiro Pena and Issmael Salas to give the Tomateros a 3-1 lead.

CJ Retherford hit his fourth home run of the season, a solo shot to left, to pull the Charros to within a run at 3-2 in the bottom of the 3rd.

Ali Solis was hit by a pitch to start the 4th. Rico Noel walked. Ramiro Pena moved both runners up on a sacrifice bunt to the pitcher. Eric Farris then hit a sac fly to right to score Solis and Russell Branyan doubled to left to score Noel. Culican took the lead with the eventual final score of 5-2.

The Charros were unable to score two separate times with the bases loaded after the 4th inning. Jalisco was 3 for 11 with runners in scoring position while stranding 13.

Juan Delgadillo took the loss for the Charros to fall to 1-6 on the season, giving up all 5 Tomateros runs on just 4 hits but he hit 2 batters and walked 4 more in just 3 2/3 innings on the mound. The Jalisco relief pitchers pitched 5 1/3 innings of scoreless 2 hit ball, to keep the game as close as it was for the Charros.

Juan Castillo got the win in relief for Culiacan. The Tomateros pitchers scattered 11 hits by the Charros. Oscar Villarreal pitched the 9th to notch his 5th save of the year
 

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Marcus Mariota Sweeps Awards

Marcus Mariota, the outstanding quarterback of the Oregon Ducks, won the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award and the Davy O'Brein National Quarterback Award at the Home Depot College Football Awards on Thursday night.

Mariota had previously won the Maxwell Award as the nation's Most Outstanding Player and is, by all accounts, the front runner for the Heisman Trophy in 2014.

Read the full ESPN story here.

Royals Sign Kendrys Morales For 2 Years

The Kansas City Royals, not content to rest on their laurels, have signed free agent Kendrys Morales to a 2 year 17 million dollar contract.

Morales will get $6.5 million next year and $9 million in 2016. The deal includes an $11 million mutual option for 2017 with a $1.5 million buyout. Morales can make an additional $750,000 in performance bonuses in each of the first two seasons based on plate appearances: $50,000 for 375 and $100,000 apiece for 400 and each additional 25 until 550.

Twins Give Ervin Santana 4 Year Deal

The Minnesota Twins have given free agent Ervin Santana a 4 year deal worth 55 million dollars according to ESPN.

The right-hander is guaranteed $54 million over the four years, with a conditional option worth $14 million in 2019 if he throws more than 200 innings, a source said. He will receive a $1 million buyout if the Twins don't exercise the option.

Read the ESPN article here.