Fish v. Torto - 2010 AL Playoff Series

Our venerable leader in World Series Titles and appearances, Fish, generously found his way out to West Bend on Sunday morning so we could hammer out our overdue Twins/Tigers AL playoff series.  We both expected a very hard fought, tight series.  We got what we expected.

Game 1:  F.Hernandez @ T.Cahill
The  Battle of the Aces didn't disappoint.  Fish scored Matt Weiters on a Robbie Cano RBI double in th 3rd to take a 1-zip lead, and then added 2 more in the 6th on Morneau and Vladdy singles.  King Felix kept it together though, and that was all Fish would get on him.  Scoreless going into the top of 9th, the Tigers rallied, scoring runs on back-to-back RBI doubles from Zobrist and O-Dog Hudson. Hip-hip Jorge pinch hit, and advanced the tying run to 3rd, but Edwin Encarnacion hit a long fly-out to end the game.
Fish wins 3-2, Fish leads series 1-0.

Game 2: J.Pineiro @ D.Price
Pineiro and Price battled as well as their #1 counterparts.  Tigers got on the board early on a leadoff B.J. Upton 2B, followed by a Boring Barton RBI single.  While Fish's hitters were puzzled by Pineiro's stuff, my squad added another run on a Maggs sac fly in the 6th.  2-zip in the bottom of the 9th, and Pineiro had pitched a 4-hit shutout gem but was spent. Darren Oliver came in to deal with the big lefties, Cano and Morneau.  After getting by Cano, Alex Rios singled, and Morneau proceeded to go yard and tie up the game.  Oliver was pulled for Grant Balfor to preserve the tie, but Fish would not be denied on the very next batter, walking off the game on a Vladdy solo-shot.
Fish wins 3-2, Fish leads series 2-0

Game 3: D.Braden @ J.Vargas
Returning to Detroit in dire straights, the Tigers needed a win badly to have any chance of getting to the World Series.  El Tigres jumped out early, getting an RBI single from Boring Barton, followed by a Maggs Ordonez 3-run blast into the savage Detroit night. The lefty Vargas gave up 3- in a shakey 6th, but was able to hold out the rest of the way for the complete game win.
Torto wins 4-3, Fish leads series 2-1 

Game 4: J.Danks @ D.Fister
Building on the momentum from Game 3, the Tigers bats came alive.  A 5-run Tigers 4th inning built on singles and walks was made ruinous by a Michael Young error.  The Tigers went right back to work in the 5th adding 3 more runs, and one more in the 6th.  Fish scrapped back with 3 in the 7th, 1 in the 8th, and 1 in the 9th (a Thames blast), but it was too little, too late. 
Torto wins 8-4, series tied 2-2

Game 5: F.Hernandez @ T.Cahill
The King Feliz had the Eye of the Tiger in this one, giving up only 1 run (Wieters RBI-single) in another complete game effort. Much to the delight of Detroiters everywhere, the Tigers mustered enough offense to sweep all their home games (Mauer RBI single, and Beltre 2-run HR). 
Torto wins 3-1, Torto leads series 3-2

Game 6: J.Pineiro @ D.Price
Now Fish was caught on his heels, and needed his squad to deliver a win to stay alive.  El Tigres got things rolling early with Beltre driving a run across in the 1st, and Sean Rodriguez and Maggs delivering RBI hits. Fish stuck with Price though, and it paid off.  He settled in, and got a solo shot out of Morneau and a couple of RBIs out of Vladdy (single and solo HR).  Holding a 4-3 lead thru 6, my normally solid long, Brian Duensing, got 2 Ks to start the 7th. Then disaster struck. 2-out double from Rios, a Cano HBP, and another Vlad Guerrero HR (3-run shot).  Tack on another insurance run for Fish in the bottom of the 8th, and the Twins fans were believing again.
Fish wins 7-4, series tied 3-3

Game 7: J.Vargas @ D.Braden
The tension was there for both teams in Game 7, but the starters were sharp.  Tigers got on the board early, on a Zobrist RBI single.  The Twinkies countered with a Robbie Cano RBI single.  Braden was spent early into the 8th, and David 'Aaaaaarrrrdsma' came on in relief.  Aardsma walked the bases loaded, got Zobrist for the 2nd out, but then yielded a 2-RBI single to the O-Dog.  Aardsma took the long walk of shame after handing the ball to Manager Fish, relieved by Joakim Soria.  Soria gave up an single to Andrus, loading up the bases again. Daric Barton then hit a dribbler in front of the mound which catcher Rocco Cervelli (error rating of 10) bobbled and threw away.  Another run scored, making it 4-1 Tigers.  Fish got back a run in the bottom of the 8th, but it was not enough.  Grant Balfor finally had a clean outing, getting the last 4 outs of the game, and striking the last two batters out.  Game over.
Torto wins 4-2, Torto wins series 4-3

Series MVP - the lefty Jason Vargas, who pitched 15 innings, giving up 4 runs. More importantly, he delivered huge wins in games 3 and 7. 

Standard celebratory practices were followed in Detroit.
World Series here we come.

Great series with Fish, as usual.  We worked our cards to the fullest.  Jams, offs, A-1Bs, etc.  I don't think we've had a playoff series that didn't go to game 7, and I believe we've split 2-2 on those series overall.  Couldn't be much tighter if we drew it up that way.  Oh, and after we finished our playoff series, we decided to get our 2nd NL series in.  Fish won that one 2-1, so he'll have the update.

Mets pick up two more wins on the road vs Mario

Jordan Zimmerman (above in UWSP uniform), just years removed from playing in places like Superior and Platteville, sure has come a long way from the D3 anybody to a possible Cy Young winner (if teammate Drew Storen doesn't steal it away from him)

NICK AT MARIO SERIES UPDATE

GAME ONE (C. Luebke vs R.A. Dickey)

A Matt Holliday three-run homer in the top of the eighth helped send the Mets past Mario in game one. Doubles by Alfonso Soriano and Martin Prado helped plate two runs for Mario in the second and seventh inning, before starter R.A. Dickey ran out of steam. The Mets bullpen, a considerable strength all season, held down a one-run game. Drew Storen picked up his league-leading fifth win of the season, while J.J. Putz pitched a perfect ninth for the save.

NICK 4, MARIO 2

W – Storen, L – Dickey, SV – Putz

GAME TWO (J. Zimmerman vs J. Garcia)

Nick’s lefty-mashing lineup went nuts (again), while starter Jordan Zimmerman added another bullet-point to his striking resume for the Cy Young Award. The Mets battered Mario’s Jaime Garcia for 6 earned runs in just 2 1/3 innings. Pablo Sandoval, Willie Harris and Ryan Hannigan all had three hits. Zimmerman tossed a complete game, striking out ten batters in the win. Freddie Freeman provided the lone highlight on the day for Mario, hitting a three-run homer in the third inning.

NICK 8, MARIO 3

W- Zimmerman (CG), L – Garcia

GAME THREE (D. Mosely vs J.Cueto)

Johnny Cueto helped Mario avoid the sweep, securing a game three, complete game win against the Mets. Ricky Weeks had three hits, while Ryan Braun added two hits and a RBI. In the loss, Matt Kemp hit a double and drove in two runs and Bryan Peterson added a multi-hit performance to his utterly surprising 2012 campaign.

MARIO 4, NICK 3

W – Cueto, L – D. Mosely

***Editor’s note…Nick went “PTP Ironman” (CHARTING AND SCOREKEEPING) during this series that still clocked in at less than 2.5 hours, because Mario’s “wrist hurt.” Awwww...poor Mar. Does this belong anywhere in the record book, Torto?

Friday Night Lights

Guys

As an update, games were played on Friday night, here is the overview of the outcomes:

Spencer swept Carlo 3-0

Mario beat Fish 2 out of 3
Nick beat Mario 2 out of 3

Fish beat Carlo 2 out of 3

More importantly, Carlo and I conducted two separate trades that were league approved. Meet my new employees:

So the trades were as follows:

Fish gets:
Carlos Gonzalez and Joey Votto

Carlos Gomez and David Wright

Carlo gets:

Lance Berkman and Hunter Pence

Drew Stubbs and Jamie Carroll

2012 PTP Mets: We'll crash into a wall or each other for a win!

The Steve Stone (above) skippered New York Mets are tied for first place after an impressive, at times thrilling, first half.

This post will re-cap two enjoyable weekend series played at Casa De Goldy (thanks, Goldy), while providing a general mid-season analysis, as well.

-----SERIES 1: Nick at Goldy (San Fran)-----

GAME ONE:
Although my day went great overall, game one couldn't have gone worse! Goldy pounded my team, 17-2. Jose Reyes had five hits, and was a triple shy of a cycle. Brandon Phillips had two doubles, while Andre Ethier added three Rbis in a multi-hit performance. My staff ace, Matt Latos, was battered for seven earned before several relievers failed me.
What's worse ***my shortstop Ruben Tejada and left fielder Elvis Presley crashed into each other and both came up injured***. Tejada for seven games and Presley for 15. This injury comes just games after Nyjer Morgan went down for 21 games after colliding with the center-field wall and the team traded for star slugger, Matt Kemp.
GOLDY 17, NICK 2
W T.Hanson, - L - Latos

GAME TWO:
A Placido Polanco (of all people!) ninth inning error, allowed two runs to score for the visiting Mets. Behind a wasted Chacin start, Goldy's team jumped to a 3-1 lead on three solo homers from Geo Soto, Sparkles Male Model and the tough-luck Polanco. Chase Utley hit two doubles and drove in a run.
NICK 4, GOLDY 3
W - Cordero, L, BS - Axford, SV - Putz

GAME THREE:
WIAC grad Jordan Zimmerman (represent, represent!) finished a very strong first half by pitching a dazzling seven shutout innings before Drew Storen and J.J. Putz locked down a team-effort shutout. A first inning solo homer from Chase Utley was the only run scored in this pitcher's duel. In the loss, Brandon Beachy went 8 innings yielding just one run while striking out 15 Mets.
NICK 1, GOLDY 0
W - Zimmerman, L - Beachy, SV - Putz

After scoring 17 runs in game one (and then spending a long night in the Castro District), Goldy's team managed just three in the final two games. Although down a couple players due to injury, the Mets were smiling widely as they boarded the plane headed for Miami.

-----SERIES TWO: Nick at Torto (in Miami)-----

GAME ONE:
The Mets new leadoff hitter, Todd Helton (what?), hit a base-clearing double in the top of the ninth to boost the Mets over the stunned Marlins and closer Sergio Romo. Injury fill-in Bryan Peterson laced two hits, including a two-rbi double. Ryan Hanigan and Matt Kemp each collected three hits in the win, while Mike Stanton hit a homer and Prince Fielder had two doubles in the loss.
NICK 6, TORTO 5
W - Storen, L - Romo

GAME TWO:
An eighth inning, Rod Barajas three-run double - off the oft-rattled Christian Martinez - proved to be the difference in a game two's comeback Marlins win. Chris Heisey hit another round-tripper as did Lucas Duda. Matt Kemp hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs, while Blake DeWitt had three hits in the loss.
TORTO 6, NICK 5
W - Hawkins, L - Martinez, SV - Lannon

GAME THREE:
Marlins ace Roy Halladay was injured and removed after just one batter (thankfully) against the Cardiac-kid Mets who grabbed a game-three, 5-4 win and a series victory. New York scored all five runs in the eighth and ninth after trailing all game. The Mets continue to get big production from likely (Ultey and Holliday) and unlikely sources (Bryan Peterson had two RBI and Willie Harris added a lead-off ninth inning double). Princey had a two RBI and a double and Jimmy Rollins collected two hits and two steals in the loss.
NICK 5, TORTO 4
W - Storen, L - Romo, SV - Putz

Fun with stats!!!

HITTING

• Matt Holliday had a 15 game hitting streak and 14 RBI
  
• Chase Utley is hitting .328 with 10 RBI and 3 SB
  
• Nyjer Morgan was great, batting .341, before injuring himself
  
• Matt Kemp has started hot, hitting .308 with a homer in just two series
  
• After a slew of injuries to key players, Bryan Peterson has come up huge, hitting .375 with four steals.

PITCHING

• Jordan Zimmerman is 3-1 with a 3.05 ERA, anchoring a solid starting five
  
• The bullpen has been HUGE!
• J.J. Putz has converted 6 of 7 saves with a 1.64 ERA
• Drew Storen has won four games and saved two others

The real baseball season approaches....

How remarkable is Wiffleball's logo? You be the judge. Be gone Picasso, Van Gogh, Matisse, Da Vinci.....a new era has begun.

This inspires a PTP logo of similar variety ....I see a silhouette of athlete tossing three dice in the direction of a box with a pencil and stack of papers by its side.

Presidents Day has left me with some extra time at work.

Crooklyn Dodgers 1/4 season stats update.

Dee Gordon brings back "90s sexy"

After preserving my record 11-0 streak to start a season by besting Nick 2 of 3 games I decided to give you all a quick status update. Nothing of real significance to take notice of, except the fact that my catchers are raping the ball.

Al Pujols: 12-35 (.375)

Spencer catchers: 16-27 (.593)

Ruiz: 7-12 (.583)

J-buck: 9-15 .(600)

Dee Gordon 4 sb

Andy mccutchen 2 sb

Rick Ankiel 10 RBI

Gallardo: 1.93 ERA. 14 ip, 3er ** he has 0 walks on the season to go with 14Ks

Gallardo: 14 k

Gallardo: 0.71 WHIP

Are You Not Entertained?

Fish is not much of a movie buff. In fact, for about a decade in the late 90’s, early 00’s, I believe the only two movies he watched (outside of the Star Wars and Indiana Jones trilogies) were The Gladiator and, sadly, Castaway.

Our matchup last Saturday brought to mind one of the closing scenes of The Gladiator. The Emperor, losing credibility amongst the people to the popular Spaniard, chose to fight him one-on-one. Just before the battle, however, he confronts Maximus, ruthlessly stabbing him in the back of the shoulder with a shiv to even out the fight.

Let’s just say I was the Emperor, after years of dominating PTP Fish played the role of the Gladiator, and that rancid PTP draft job we pulled on Fish was the shiv…..

Game 1 – Dempster @ Kershaw

Dempster, surprisingly, held his own against the sexy southpaw , handing a 1-1 ballgame to Josh Johnson in the 7th inning (runs scored on RBI doubles by Jay Bruce (Keith) and Hunter Pence (Fish), respectively). In the 8th and the 9th, however, Justin Upton broke the game open, crushing a two-run and a three-run homerun in consecutive innings. Mike Morse added two RBI’s as Fish forced Kershaw to mop up his own mess in the complete game defeat.

Keith wins 8-1

Game 2 – Carpenter @ Cain

We were battling ya’ll. This one went a full 11 ½ innings without a run crossing the plate. Carp went 10 strong and Cain went 9. In the bottom of the 12, typical of the way my season is going, Fish rolled consecutive doubles by Clint Barmes and Johnson (don’t know his first name – doesn’t matter) with two outs to end the game.

Fish wins 1-0 (12)

Game 3 – Bumgartner @ Jurrjens

Fish started strong in the bottom of the first with a three-run jobber by lefty killer Allen Craig. A Danny Murphy RBI double in the 2nd cut the lead to 3-1 and a Tulowitski RBI double in the 6th cut the lead to 3-2 before Fish came back with two runs in the bottom of the 6th on RBI’s by Jamey Carroll and “Oh God, please don’t kill me!” Wilson Ramos. He led 5-2 through seven.

For some reason (nostalgia, I suppose) he decided bringing in Carlos Marmol would be a good idea. After cruising through the 8th, Marmol was tagged for three runs in the top of the 9th, courtesy of jacks by big cocksuckers the likes of Mike Morse and Jay Bruce. I was able to take the game in the top of the 10th thanks to consecutive run scoring doubles by Danny Murphy and “Razor” Ramon Hernandez.

Keith wins 9-5 (10)

Keith wins series 2-1

METS SWEEP AGAIN; IMPROVE TO 9-0!

(Left: The freshly-bearded and flat-brimmed Joey Votto - left - says he's never felt more comfortable at the plate and in the clubhouse, while Matt Holliday - above - says he senses something very big this year for New York's "other" team)

GAME ONE: Luebke v Bumgardner
Jason Bourgeois (3x5 with two doubles and two RBI) led an impressive team effort that featured a hit from every Met in the lineup. The surging Mets scattered 14 hits and scored seven runs in the game. Joey Votto and Chase Utley each added two hits and a RBI. Lefty Corey Luebke earned the win in a solid five innings. For Keith, Daniel Murphy had two hits and scored the lone run.
NICK 7, KEITH 1
W – Luebke, L – Bumgardner, SV – Cordero


GAME TWO: Zimmerman v Garza
Red hot Matt Holliday launched a solo home run in the top of the seventh that proved to be the only run of the contest. The story for 7+innings was Mets starter Jordan Zimmerman tossing a PERFECT GAME. Zimmerman yielded just one hit (a Daniel Murphy triple), no walks and no runs in the win.
“Only Ewoldt would pull a guy after walking no one and giving up one hit,” said
Zimmerman while playfully head-locking the manager and fellow WIAC-grad. "Everyday at the park just seems to be nothing but sunshine, wide-smiles and lolly-pops, honestly."
J.J.Putz pitched gangster-style earning a two inning save. Joey Votto had another
multi-hit game as did Ruben Tejada.
NICK 1, KEITH 0
W – Zimmerman, L – Garza, SV – Putz

GAME THREE: Mosely v Lohse
Ruben Tejada hit a game tying triple just two batters before "The Hawk" Mark Kotsay scored him on a game-winning single in the eighth. Justin Upton hit two homers and drove in four for Keith’s team, a team that led at two different points in the game. Chase Utley and Matt Holliday each hit home runs, while Nyjer Morgan went 3x4 for the Mets. Drew Storen pitched a nearly perfect two innings in relief, earning the win.
NICK 6, KEITH 5
W – Storen, L – Josh Johnson


***Fun with stats***

• Through this winning streak my team is hitting .328 and has a team ERA of 2.91.
• Pablo Sandoval and Matt Holliday still have their hitting streaks going, both at nine games.
  
• Of most surprise, my team has had only three errors on defense over this span.
  

Rocky Start

Despite a roster oozing with talent, the Colorado Rockies have stumbled out to a 1-5 start following a disappointing six game home stand.

“Obviously not the way we wanted to start the year,” shares undisputed team leader Chris Carpenter. “But a couple of breaks and we’d be looking at a 6-0 start. Skip will get us back on track.”

The team remains extraordinarily optimistic the season will turn around quickly, largely due to this balanced clubhouse, featuring an impressive array of five-tool veterans and up-and-comers….

Starting Lineup
Justin Upton -OF
Jay Bruce - OF
Jon Jay – OF
David Freese – 3B
Troy Tulowitzki – SS
Daniel Murphy – 2B
Michael Morse – 1B
Ramon Hernandez – C

Bench
James Loney
Dan Uggla
Dexter Fowler
Miguel Tejada
Eli Whiteside

Rotation
Chris Carpenter
Madison Bumgartner
Matt Garza
Kyle Lohse
Ryan Dempster

Bullpen
Craig Kimbrel
Josh Johnson
Marc Rzepczynski
Heath Bell
Brian Wilson
Octavio Dotel
Leo Nunez

AMAZING METS IMPROVE TO 6-0 AFTER ANOTHER SWEEP!

Big Panda Pablo Sandoval, Matt Holliday, Chase Utley and a cast of others help power Nick in 3-0 sweep against league nice guy, Carlo.

***EDITORIAL***The series was fun to play, well-mannered and balanced perfectly between compliments and apologizing. Games two and three were played, gangsta style, on paper with crooked lines drawn in. For as much time as I sit around thinking about PTP, you'd think I'd have a clean set of charts and a few scoresheets. Nope...only loose-leaf paper will do for Carlo and I.***

GAME ONE: Dustin Mosely v Zack Greinke

Six doubles and a Pablo Sandoval three-run homer helped power Nick’s Mets past Carlo’s squad in game one. Zack Greinke was not sharp, lasting just four innings and surrendering seven runs. Mets starting pitcher Dustin Mosely was hit around, but earned a complete game win, pitching to contact all night. Matt Holliday hit two doubles and drove in a run. In the loss Matt Kemp hit two doubles and drove in two runs.

NICK 9, CARLO 3

W – Mosely, L – Greinke

GAME TWO: Vance Worley v Mike Leake

Ryan Hannigan broke up a 6-6 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning with a base shot that plated, Chase Utley, the eventual winning run. The Mets hammered Car’s starter, Mike Leake, for six runs, all earned, in the second inning. Sandoval hit another long ball, his third on the year, while Josh Thole, Vance Worley and Alex Presley all singled in runs. Carlo’s team tied the game in the seventh, scoring all six runs, off a tired Vance Worley and shaky reliever Christhian Martinez. Neil; Walker and Ryan Howard each homered for Carlo in the loss.

NICK 7, CARLO 6

W – Martinez, L – Kerry Wood, SV – Storen

GAME THREE: Mat Latos v Anibal Sanchez

A five run sixth and a three run seventh provided much of the Mets’ offensive punch in a game three, 11-3 blowout. The win is the Mets sixth straight to start the fresh season. Alex Presley hit a triple, a double and drove in four runs, while Chase Utley added four hits, two RBI and a stolen base. For Carlo, Neil Walker had two hits and two RBI. Latos lasted just five innings for the Mets, but four relievers - including the game’s winner Drew Storen - pitched the other 4 innings nearly flawlessly.

NICK 11, CARLO 3

W – Storen, L – A. Sanchez

***Stats watch...Matt Holliday and Pablo Sandoval each have a 6-game hitting streak going. So that's fun. Of course, now that I typed this out, they will each go hitless in their next game.***