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Don Mattingly had dodged questions all week about these Los Angeles Dodgers against those San Francisco Giants, about the long (and possibly naïve) view of burying the Giants and winning a division a full month before the season would end, and then Wednesday night happened. He went to the mound in the ninth inning to see Clayton Kershaw, to see if 127 pitches in a one-run game weren't quite enough for his ace, what with two Giants on the bases and one out still undone. "How am I doing. I'm good. That was about it," Kershaw recalled of a meeting he had little use for.'via Blog this'
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There are complications, true. The first is the Giants can offer quantity over quality, but the Phillies might prefer the quality. Also, of note is that the Giants aren't on Hamels's list of pre-approved trade destinations, which means he might want them to pick up his $20 million option for 2019 in exchange for agreeing to the deal. Even though one of the Giants' selling points is their ability to take that Jon Lester money and shovel it to Hamels without the Phillies kicking in that much, an extra year at $20 million might make them think twice. At least the Dodgers are in a bidding war now. Stupid Dodgers.'via Blog this'
The Dodgers are said to be highly reluctant to move left-hander Julio Urias, but Double-A right-hander Jose De Leon should be ready to join a major-league rotation by next year.The Giants, meanwhile, have a number of pitching prospects who could be major-league-ready by next year: Tyler Beede, Joe Biagini and Kelvin Marte at Double-A and Keury Mella at high Class A.
1. That fastball wasn't a regular Kershaw fastballA typical Kershaw fastball comes out of his hand at 93.836 mph, but because he's releasing the ball at an average extension of 6.547 feet in front of the rubber, the "perceived velocity" -- or what it looks like to the batter -- is actually 94.178 mph. Though he's not necessarily an elite flamethrower, that improvement is still quite good; among pitchers who have thrown the four-seamer at least 40 times, his velocity ranks 110th, but his perceived velocity is 87th.On that pitch, however, the output just wasn't what you'd expect. This one came out of his hand at only 91.614 mph, and because he didn't get as much extension as he usually does -- only 6.075 feet -- the perceived velocity was only 90.909 mph. A usual Kershaw fastball seems faster to the batter; this one actually looked slower. Toss in the fact that his usual fastball spin rate is 2230.421 rpm, and this one was at just 2135.124, and it's clear to see that this wasn't a typical Kershaw offering.Now, that might not have been an issue, except …2. The placement couldn't have been worseIf we watch the video, we can see where Kershaw put this pitch, and, well, this is why they say a picture says a thousand words.A standard-issue Kershaw heater can get away with being down the middle. A flat Kershaw fastball down and away might not be remembered. But a sub-par fastball right down the middle of the plate, well, even he can't get away with that.Worse, the pitch came at the exact moment when hitters know they ought to be attacking him …3. It came on the first pitchOver the last few years, hitters have learned that getting down two strikes against Kershaw, when he can bury them with that slider or curveball, is a recipe for disaster. In 2010, hitters offered at just 6.489% of Kershaw's first pitches, only the 98th-highest rate in baseball. Last year? 11.131%, the highest rate in baseball. To restate that: No pitcher in baseball in 2014 saw as many swings on 0-0 counts as Kershaw. And why not? 85% of his first pitches last year were fastballs. At least you've got a prayer against that, as opposed to that 1-2 slider.Though first-pitch swings haven't increased against him this year (down slightly to 10.276%), the productivity has continued, with a .400/.400/.743 first-pitch line headed into Thursday's game. When Kershaw is ahead in the count, that falls to .203/.214/.333. When he has two strikes, it's .144/.226/.250, which is a numerical version of saying "don't even bother."The rumors of Kershaw's demise, it must be said, are sorely exaggerated: His 2.88 FIP -- a metric on the ERA scale that focuses on events the pitcher has complete control over and strips away things like defense and "luck" -- is far more representative of his performance than his 4.32 ERA. Even so, the best pitcher on earth can't get away with a first-pitch meatball right down the middle, even when the other pitcher is batting.Mike Petriello (@mike_petriello) is an analyst for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
"I'm running out of words to describe this kid. He's phenomenal," Tulsa manager Razor Shines said last week. "Everything he does is different. I don't know how to explain what I'm seeing. It's like high school baseball, it's like he's a really good player dominating high school. He makes it look so easy."'via Blog this'
Shines wasn't shy about piling hype on the left-handed hitting infielder.
"He's better than everybody else, it's just that simple," he added. "It's the way a young Willie Mays was better than everybody else or the way a young Hank Aaron was better than everybody else. I don't think you can explain it. I think he's this gifted. He is by far the best player I have ever managed."
One at-bat isn’t the end-all, be-all (but( it’s a relief, I guess, is the best word I can think of,” said McGehee, who left for pinch runner Matt Duffy. “In that last at-bat, instead of chasing hits, it was, `Let’s just get in there and compete instead of worrying about the outcome.’ The feeling I had in that at-bat and that swing is something I’ll file away and hopefully be able to build off.”
7.09 (h): It is interference by a batter or a runner when: (h) In the judgment of the umpire, the base coach at third base, or first base, by touching or holding the runner, physically assists him in returning to or leaving third base or first base. (i) With a runner on third base, the base coach leaves his box and acts in any manner to draw a throw by a fielder.
Mattingly on umpires' explanation: "He didn't see it. He was watching the play. I don't know why the third-base ump is watching the play. There's nothing for him to watch. It's a ground ball to left. I don't know who's watching to see if he touched the base. I really don't know what the umpires' responsibilities are there. But I do know there's no way in baseball they allow the third-base coach to come up and basically block the runner from going forward, and that's what happened tonight. That's obviously a missed call. It's not reviewable from their explanation."
Third-base umpire Fieldin Culbreth: "Don came out and asked me did I see him grab him. I told him no, I did not see him grab him. . . . The rule is pretty specific in the fact that he had to touch and physically grab him and assist him in returning to the base. That did not happen. If he doesn't physically assist him in returning to the base then there's no interference."
The latest late night/early morning deal is brought to us by Fox Sports Ken Rosenthal, who reports the San Francisco Giants and GM Brian Sabean have reached an agreement to bring back veteran right-hander Jake Peavy on a two-year deal. ESPN's Jerry Crasnick later confirmed the overnight agreement and the financials, which come in at $24 million guaranteed.'via Blog this'
Although it remains to be seen if Maddon intends to go elsewhere, there is bound to be talk regarding the Los Angeles Dodgers due to the fact that former Rays vice president Andrew Friedman was recently hired by L.A.'via Blog this'
— This one really had to hurt the staff. They watched their team get overwhelmed, and to top it off, Wilson came out for the ninth. But the coaches, led by Dave Righetti, handled the end with class …
A positive: Andrew Susac is now 3 for 7 against Kershaw this season. Matt Duffy is 2 for 2. Joe Panik is 2 for 8, which is like a .600 average when you adjust for Kershaw. These kids are not afraid.'via Blog this'
The magic number is one for the Dodgers, and all of a sudden, the Giants need to make up two games on the Pirates just to make sure they don’t have to go to Pittsburgh next week. That’s a tough road — one-game playoff, Nationals, Cardinals-Dodgers winner, with all series being played primarily on the road — if that’s the way this ends up. Especially with Angel Pagan done for the year and Michael Morse possibly soon joining him on the ineligible list. And with Buster Posey, Hunter Pence and Pablo Sandoval all slumping at the same time.
Posey had two hits tonight, but it’s still been a quiet road trip for him: 9 for 31 with only one extra-base hit, one run and two RBIs. Sandoval has 12 hits in 63 at-bats over the last 17 games. Pence is 7 for 55 over his last 15 appearances.
“It’s hard to score runs when the heart of your order is having a hard time,” Bochy said. “It’d be nice to get them going the last five games and take some pressure off the pitchers.”
After all, each played for high stakes. The outcome sustained the Giants' flickering hopes of winning the National League West by freezing the Dodgers' magic number for clinching the division title at three. Los Angeles must win the series' next two games to enjoy the privilege of performing a victory dance in front of the Giants.
Meanwhile, the Giants remained tied with Pittsburgh atop the Wild Card standings. San Francisco's magic number for securing the second Wild Card berth -- and a one-game showdown against Pittsburgh on Oct. 1 for the right to advance to the Division Series -- dwindled to two. Any combination of Milwaukee defeats and San Francisco victories totaling two will send the Giants to the postseason.'via Blog this'
