Jason Vargas of the Royals is the MVP of Yesterday, throwing a complete game 3-hit shutout yesterday.
Standings, as ever, after the jump:
MVP of Yesterday (August 13, 2014): Jason Vargas
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MVP of Yesterday (August 12, 2014): Josh Donaldson
Going 3-4 with 2 HR and 4 RBI, Josh Donaldson of the A’s is the MVP of Yesterday.
Standings, as always, after the jump:
MVP of Yesterday (August 11, 2014): Giancarlo Stanton
With two home runs, one of them a signature bomb that seemingly only he can produce, as well as a nice play in the field, Giancarlo Stanton is the MVP of Yesterday.It’s his fifth of the year, tying him with Kershaw for first overall and making him the number one position player.Standings, as always, after the jump: Continue reading
Random Video: Robin Williams on Dock Ellis and Acid (some NSFW language)
RIP Robin Williams.
The Red Wings had one of the weirdest no-hitters ever
It’s late so I can’t write too much, but, anyway, I was at the ballpark tonight. However, this story starts on July 24, when I was sitting on my couch watching the Rochester Red Wings play in Durham. Trevor May, who I discussed a few days ago, was pitching, and he was on that day, having given up no hits in the first three frames…. until the skies opened up and washed it away after three innings.
Cut to today (August 11), because Rochester wouldn’t be back to Durham, they were playing it here. Durham would still technically be the home team, and it would still be a nine-inning game, but it would be played in Rochester. Of course, Trevor May is now with Minnesota, so taking the mound instead was Logan Darnell…
It was still early, but here’s how the scoreboard looked, complete with makeshift “Bulls” sign.
And a funny thing happened: Darnell was unhittable. Literally. He struck out five and got the final hitter, Justin Christian, to ground into a double play to seal the 3-0 no-hitter.
And then, of course, everybody went crazy:
This was the third no-hitter I’ve ever seen in person (or, as somebody else pointed out to me, the second and two-thirds no-hitter, since I technically only saw just six of the nine innings). It also, however, is the weirdest. Consider how this technically was a road win for Rochester, despite being at home, where they have excelled all year. Consider how the person who started the no-hitter (May) is now in Minnesota, and the person who threw the final six innings (Darnell) had been called up AND sent down by Minnesota since the game began. Chris Colabello, who had an RBI single during the game, was also in Minnesota. The losing pitcher for Durham, Alex Colome, had been the winning pitcher in Durham’s win yesterday against Buffalo. Jayson Nix, who was the starting 2B for Durham when the game started, isn’t even in the Tampa Bay organization anymore.
(They’d removed the “Bulls” from the bottom, but hadn’t wiped the board yet.)
And, then, of course, there is the final strangeness that there was a whole other game to play. That was a interesting game, too, with the Wings squeaking out a 5-4 victory despite the rehabbing Wil Myers hitting a Grand Slam for Durham (leading to a hilarious Twitter exchange between Durham and their parent club), but… well… it was coming after a no-hitter that spanned weeks and states… so… well… better luck next time, game two of a double-header.
MVPs of the Weekend and also Thursday (Aug 7 through 10)
Jon Lester, J.J. Hardy, Max Scherzer (despite the fact the Tigers bullpen blew his start) and Chase Utley are the MVPs of the weekend (and also Thursday).
Standings, as always, after the jump:
Bizarre Baseball Culture: The Detroit Tigers, A Talking Tiger, and the Power of SHAZAM!
In Bizarre Baseball Culture, I take a look at some of the more unusual places where baseball has reared it’s head in pop culture and fiction.
Nothing is going to beat Mr. Go. It just can’t be done. But, I’ll give it my best shot by bringing to you a comic from 1977 in which DC’s Captain Marvel and his talking anthropomorphic tiger mascot Tawky Tawny join the Detroit Tigers to defeat a team of alien All-Stars.
It’ll have to do.
So, here’s Shazam! number 32, from late 1977. I covered most of Captain Marvel’s complicated history (and why most people think he’s called Shazam) way back in May 2012, so if you want to know that, go there. However, an update is in order: DC has more or less given up calling him “Captain Marvel” and now is referring to him as “Shazam”. This is partly because everyone who doesn’t read comic books calls him that anyway, and also partly because Marvel has recently given the title of “Captain Marvel” to a character named Carol Danvers (who appeared as “Ms. Marvel” back in one of the AAA baseball comics) to great success, to the point where it’s thought they might make a movie starring her, likely with the name “Captain Marvel”.
Personally, the Shazam Captain Marvel will always be the real Captain Marvel to me, but, hey, you can’t beat copyright/trademark law, I guess.
(Incidentally, the Hero-Formerly-Known-As-Captain-Marvel-And-Now-Officially-Known-As-Shazam will reportedly be played by The Rock in a future movie.)
(Also, all characters, images and panels from the comic are trademarked and copyrighted to their owners and rights holders, all pictures here are are being used under fair use doctrine and are meant merely to support and enhance the opinions and facts stated in this post.)
But enough Captain Marvel background, go below the jump for an analysis/review of this comic!
Iron Man (in more ways than one)
Greatest Baseball-Related Costume ever?
THE Iron Man is here tonight…And so is Iron Man, apparently. #Orioles60 pic.twitter.com/US8EYTzu0G
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) August 9, 2014
Greatest Baseball-Related Costume ever.
For the Minnesota Twins, Saturday is May Day
Trevor May deals during a game in May in Rochester. Photo by Dan Glickman.
For Minnesota Twins fans, it probably has been a question of “when”, not “if”, and it’s been a question they have been asking since April (probably earlier).
That question, of course, is: “When the hell will Trevor May get called up?” With every great start by him or his higher-ceiling-but-not-as-polished comrade, Alex Meyer, the cries would go louder and louder. Twinkie Town, perhaps the best (or at least most popular) Minnesota Twins blog on the web, wrote not one, but two facetious articles that implied that otherworldly powers beyond our understanding
The answer, at least for now, is “Saturday, August 9th.”
Yes, the day has come: Trevor May is going to pitch in the Major Leagues.
Having seen May all year this year (I’ve made a point of trying to get to as many of his starts as possible), May was acquired in the Ben Revere trade a few years back. In the past, apparently, he’s had control problems, and they still come up now and then, but in general he’s proven himself more than ready to try in the big leagues, posting a 2.93 ERA (4th best in the IL) and striking out 91 in a little over 95 innings. As I said earlier, he’s generally regarded as the lesser of the two pitching prospects who’ve helmed the Red Wings rotation (Alex Meyer, who has felt streaky at times this year), but he still could be something special, or at the very least be a good part of a rotation, especially one like the Twins’, which needs all the help it can get.
Then again, you never know with pitchers. Only time can tell.
MVP of Yesterday (8-6-2014): Drew Hutchison
Drew Hutchison of the Blue Jays threw 8.2 innings yesterday against the Orioles and gave up just one hit. Now, admittedly, that one hit was a home run, but still, an impressive performance that gets him the MVP of Yesterday.
Standings after the jump, of course:
The Baseball Continuum 