2019 AMERICAN LEAGUE WILD CARD SERIES
Mesa Solar Sox @ Hollywood Werewolves |
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| GAME #1 – Ian Kennedy 3-9 (6.51) vs. Clayton Kershaw 17-6 (2.10)
Hollywood loads the bases in the 1st with no one out, but Ian Kennedy induces a double play where Hollywood only scores 1 run. The scores stays that way into the 4th when Christian Yelich’s double is followed by a Matt Chapman double, making it 2-0 Hollywood. Ketel Marte follows with a single to make it 3-0. It’s followed by a SF by Alex Gordon to run the score to 4-0. Hollywood cruises from there, winning 7-1. Kershaw goes 5 scoreless and hands to the bullpen. |
| GAME #2 – Trevor Bauer 15-8 (2.22) vs. Charlie Morton 13-7 (3.56)
In the bottom of the first, Bauer walks 4 batters to give Hollywood a 1-0 lead without the benefit of a hit. Mesa finally gets on the board when Tim Anderson scores on a Randal Grichuk single to tie it. Mesa takes the lead in the 5th when Adalberto Mondesi scores on a SF by Jesus Aguilar to give them a 2-1 lead. Bauer takes a no-hitter into the 6th, when he finally gives up a 1-out double to Matt Chapman. That was the only hit they get. Bauer goes 6.1 innings and Jeffress goes 2.2 to finish them off. |
| GAME #3 – James Paxton 14-8 (2.91) vs. David Price 13-8 (4.26)
Paxton v Price. The scoreless games goes into the bottom of the third, when with 2-outs, Matt Chapman doubles home a pair for the 2-0 Hollywood lead. In the top of the 4th, Steven Pierce cuts the lead in half when he hammers a HR, knocking Price out. Hollywood extends the lead to 3-1 when Same Dyson fields a Christian Vazquez sacrifice and throws it up the first base line. With 2-on in the 8th inning, Eugenio Suarez hammers a 3-run homer off Diego Castillo to give Mesa the shocking 4-3 lead. Jeremy Jeffress comes in to get the 2-inning save and Mesa shocks the MWBL world by upsetting Hollywood 2 games to 1 in Hollywood! |
| Mesa wins the American League Wild Card 2 games to 1 – Hollywood was a feast or famine offense all year and it showed in the series. They feated in game 1, but that was against a 4 grade starter. They couldn’t get the big hit or score in games 2 & 3. |
2019 NATIONAL LEAGUE WILD CARD SERIES
Bethesda Bandicoots @ Columbus Explorers |
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| GAME #1 – Tyson Ross 14-9 (3.05) vs. J.A. Happ 20-3 (2.55)
The game features only 8 hits – but the day belonged to Happ – at least for the 6 innings he pitched. He was in complete control, fanning 9, walking none and giving up just 3 hits – and no runs. Columbus got on the board early – Dee Gordon opens with a single, steals 2nd and scores on a Shin-Soo Choo single for the 1-0 lead. Ross was having himself a very good day as well – until he hurt his own cause with a throwing error in the 6th which led to a 2nd Columbus run. Happ left the game after 6 and the trio of Tony Watson, Drew Steckenrider and Jose LeClerc closed out the game keeping Bethesda hitless and scoreless for the final 3. |
| GAME #2 – Hyun-Jin Ryu 7-2 (1.78) vs. Julio Teheran 12-10 (3.83)
Game 2 looks a lot like a reverse of game 1. Ryu in complete command and the Bandicoots are getting the runs. The game was scoreless through 2 until Robinson Chirinos hits a fly ball that just clears Enrique Hernandez‘s leaping glove and it clears the wall for a solo homer (1) and 1-0 Bethesda lead. The Ryu draws a walk and with 2 outs Jeff McNeil doubles scoring Ryu and it’s 2-0. |
| GAME #3 – John Gant 10-6 (3.70) vs. Wade LeBlanc 11-10 (3.19)
Game is pretty much over after the 1st. Dee Gordon opens with a walk, steals 2nd and scores on a Shin-Soo Choo single for the 1-0 lead. 1 out and Matt Carpenter doubles him home. Brock Holt and Paul DeJong walk. Asdrubal Cabrera grounds into FC at 2nd, but a run scores. Alex Avila then doubles in 2 more for 5-0 lead after 1. |
| SERIES WRAP UP – So the Explorers take the series in a close one 2 games to 1. |
2018 AMERICAN LEAGUE WILD CARD
Detroit Crime @ Chicago Mobsters |
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  The Detroit Crime(104-58) take on the Mobsters of Chicago (105-57) in the American League Wild Card Series. Chicago comes in with a rotation of Rich Hill (13-3 2.98), Carlos Matias Martinez (11-9 3.47) & Marcus Stroman (15-8 3.95). Detroit’s rotation will be Stephen Strasburg (16-7 2.70), Carlos Carrasco (15-8 2.58) & Madison Bumgarner (9-7 4.05). This should be a great Wild Card match up with two very even teams. |
| GAME #1 – Stephen Strasburg (16-7 2.70) vs. Carlos Matias Martinez (11-9 3.47)
Chicago gets on the board first in Game 1 in the bottom of the 4th after Andrelton Simmons gets Hit by a Pitch moving Andrew McCutchen to second, Daniel Nava send a fly ball into the gap in right center, scoring Cutch. Alex Bregman hits a Sacrafice Fly to left, scoring Simmons. Freddie Freeman then plates Nava with a stand up Double to left. J.D. Martinez then hits a Double down the line in left scoring Freeman. After recording the final out in the 3rd Detroit manager Sergio Ivone then pull Strasburg & Jason Vargas takes over for the Crime. In the 6th Inning Rich Hill allows his 1st Hit of the game, a two out Double to Bryce Harper, followed by a shot to right past Neil Walker, scoring Harper to make it 4-1. Hill is pulled after 5.2 Innings, allowing only 2 Hits, 1 Run, walking 2 & Striking Out 8. Noah Syndergaard is brought in for Chicago.
Adam Jones Doubles in the 7th, followed by Pinch Hitter Daniel Descalso who Single home Jones, cutting the lead to 5-2 for Chicago. In the bottom of the 7th Ryan Butcher is called upon to face Freddie Freeman, but it’s Freeman who wins this battle with a solo Home Run putting Chicago up 6-2. Chicago Manager Stray Corrado then played the bullpen game, matching up lefties & righties the best he could. In the 9th with one out Kyle Schwarber is called upon to pinch hit for Adam Jones. Schwarber Doubles, bringing up Daniel Descalso to face Aroldis Chapman. Chapman hit Descalsco with a 87 MPH Slider that got him in the shoulder. Home Plate Umpire Victor Carapazza ejected Chapman. Chicago manager Stray Corrado was livid as he was trying to explain baseball to Carapazza in that in no way shape or form would Chapman try to put another runner on in this situation. Also if Chapman was going to hit someone on purpose it would be with a 102 MPH Fastball & not his slider. To no avail though Carapazza didn’t buy it & had already ejected Chapman. Corrado went to his long time ace & the Mid-West Baseball League All-Time Wins leader to get him 1 out. C.C. Sabathia then proceeded to get Ryan Goins to pop one up on the infield for the final out of game #1. After 249 Career wins, 8 Playoff Wins, 1 All-Star Game win, C.C. Sabathia notched his 1st Career Save. Final Score: Chicago 6 – Detroit 2 Win: Rich Hill 1-0 (1.59) Home Runs: Freddie Freeman #1 |
| GAME #2 – Carlos Carrasco (15-8 2.58) vs. Carlos Matias Martinez (11-9 3.47)
It didn’t take long in this one as the Crimes Manny Machado found as offering from Carlos Matias Martinez he liked & deposited it into the left fielder seats for a 1-0 Crime lead. The 2nd Inning wasn’t much better for Chicago as Chris Davis blasted a solo Home Run to right field & after a Descalso walk, Yasmani Grandal blasted a two-run shot to give the Crime a quick & solid 4-0 lead. Chicago chimed back when J.D. Martinez hit a Solo Home Run off Carrasco, making the score 4-1 after 2 Innings of play. Top of the 3rd & once again Manny Machado had something on Martinez as he blasted his second Home Run of the game putting the lead securely back in the Crime’s favor at 5 to 1. Carlos Matias Martinez was pulled after 2.1 Innings & Chicago called upon game #1 closer C.C. Sabathia to try & keep the lead at only 4 runs. Bottom of the 4th Justin Turner muscled one deep to left for a solo bomb, cutting the lead to 5-2 Detroit still in charge.
Bottom of the 7th & J.D Martinez hits one deep to left for a solo Home Run (7-5 Chicago). Buster Posey singles & is replaced by Billy Hamilton who promptly steals second. Justin Turner Singles up the middle scoring Hamilton standing up. At the end of 7 Innings of play Chicago now holds a 8-5 lead over the Crime. Bottom of the 8th after a Alex Bregman Single & a two base error on Bryce Harper Freddie Freeman lifts a rain bringer down the line in right. Bregman tags, & tests the arm of Harper, but scores easily putting the Mobsters up 9-5. Chicago’s bullpen game was a merry go round of 6 pitchers after Sabathia. Eight total Mobsters arms were used & only Martinez & Sabathia pitched more than 3 batters faced. Final Score: Chicago 9 – Detroit 5 Win: C.C. Sabathia 1-0 (0.00) Home Runs: J.D. Martinez 2 – (2), Justin Tuner 2 – (2), Manny Machado 2 – (2), Chris Davis 1, & Yasmani Grandal 1 |
| C.C. Sabathia who was shut down in the final week of the season to rest his ailing knee was one of the shining stars for Chicago. Sabathia with the Save & the Win was nothing short of unexpected. Chicago’s 2,3,4 hitters (Bregman, Freeman & Martinez) batted .571, .429 & .444 with 3 Home Runs & 8 RBI’s. Justin Turner was 5 for 8 with 2 Home Runs and 5 RBI’s.
Chicago after a well earned day of rest will head south of the border down Mexico Way to take on the Bottle Rockets of Tijuana in one of the American League Division Series match ups! |
2017 AMERICAN LEAGUE WILD CARD
Tijuana Bottle Rockets @ Detroit Crime |
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 Game #1: Chris Devinski (4-4 2.16) vs. Carlos Carrasco (11-8 3.32) Detroit opens the scoring with an RBI Double from Ben Zobrist in the 1st making it 1-0, then in the 3rd Manny Machado blasted a 2-run Home Run over the left field wall off Devinski making it 3-0. Carlos Carrasco was on the money all day with 14 Ks, pitching a 2 hit shutout. The game was still 3-0 in the Bottom of the 8th when Sean Rodriguez hit a 3-run Home Run off of Flynn. Final Score: Detroit 6 – Tijuana 0 |
Game #2 Tanner Roark (16-10 2.83) vs. Stephen Strasburg (15-4 3.60) Tijuana started quick with walk, walk, K followed by a 3-Run Home Run off the bad of Edwin Encarnacion making it 3-0. Detroit got 1 back in the 3rd off the bat of Bryce Harper, but Tijuana came back with a 2-Run Home Run from Justin Upton making it 5-1. Tanner Roark and Dan Otero combined on a 3 hitter and Tijuana ties the series at 1. Tijuana manager Dave Myers says bring on game 3. Final Score: Tijuana 6 – Detroit 1 |
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Top 1st Daniel Murphy hits a solo Home Run for Tijuana getting the Bottle Rockets off to a fast start. In the bottom of that frame though Detroit also jumped off to a fast start with a 2-run Home Run from Ben Zobrist making the score 2-1. Detroit chased Junior Guerra with 2 more in the 2nd with a Home Run by Sean Rodriguez followed by a walk to Ichiro_ and single from Yasmany Grandal. Edwin Encarnacion hit a solo shot making it 4-2. The Bottle Rocket pen held it close for Tijuana until the 7th when Manny MAchado hit a change-up over the right field wall for a 2-Run Home run making it 6-2. Madison Bumgarner and 3 Relievers for Detroit held the Bottle Rockets to 3 hits with 14 Ks.
Final Score: Detroit 6 – Tijuana 2 Series Final: Detroit 2 – Tijuana 1
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2017 NATIONAL LEAGUE WILD CARD
Triple Creek Patriots @ Columbus Explorers |
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| Triple Creek Patriots (96-66), in their first ever MWBL playoff appearance, take on a strong Columbus Explorer crew (101-61). Vegas line gives the edge to Columbus, let’s see how it shakes out. |
| Game #1: Kevin Gausman (10-11 3.72) vs. J.A. Happ (16-7 2.58)
Lead-off double to the right center gap by Jonathan Villar quiets the home crowd quickly. Corey Seager follows two batters later with a double down the 3rd base line, scoring Jonathan Villar easily. Patriots 1-0. Charlie Blackmon leads the Columbus attack. He had an outstanding season with a .345/.381/.552 slash line. Kevin Gausman shakes off Caleb Joseph several times, and after finally delivering his first offering, Charlie Blackmon hits a bullet into right field. The Patriot skipper is out the dugout instantly, signaling for a lefty, they had Alex Wood already warming up! Alex Wood was a dazzling 11-0 this year on a 1.27 ERA. Kevin Gausman‘s not happy but he looked tentative out there and that just won’t cut it. Charlie Blackmon steals 2nd on Alex Wood‘s 1st pitch but doesn’t score. After 1 inning – Patriots 1 Explorers 0. Bottom of the 4th, Patriot’s leading 1-0, and Matt Carpenter on 2nd after a double. Ian Desmond doubles scoring Carpenter. Eduardo Nunez follows with a single that couldn’t quite score Ian Desmond. 1st and 3rd, Grandy-man (Curtis Granderson) up, and Eduardo Nunez is off to the races, stealing 2nd on a close play. Dee Gordon scores Ian Desmond on a fly ball bringing Jose Iglesias up with a man on 2nd. Jose goes with a pitch into right for a hit, scoring the speedy Eduardo Nunez. At innings end the Explorers have taken a 3-1 lead. Fast forward to the 6th, and Lonnie Chisenhall finds himself facing Blaine Hardy with 1 out and runners on 2nd and 3rd. Lonnie Chisenhall pokes one to 3rd, Eduardo Nunez juggles it, manages to get the out at 1st but a run scores. Several Columbus pitchers entered the series itchy, which made it “everyone into the pool” day, and it was now Joe Biangini’s turn. Chase Headley turns a Joe Biangini fastball into a line-drive scoring Corey Seager. Tie game. In the bottom of the 6th, Columbus starts with a single from Eduardo Nunez. After a Eduardo Nunez SB and FC from Curtis Granderson, Dee Gordon steps in with a chance 90 feet away. He walks and immediately tries to steal 2nd. All 4 previous Explorer stolen base attempts have been successful, so on the 5th attempt of the day Caleb Joseph pops up with a little something to prove, and oh how he does, right over Jonathan Villar‘s head scoring Eduardo Nunez. Jose Iglesias, drove in a run earlier, and is looking for more. He finds a pitch he likes and bounces one of the wall for a double. Ryan Zimmerman into bat for Joe Biangini, and he walks, Alex Wood is not happy with his effort there as CharlieBlackmon is on deck. The 2-2 pitch to Blackmon just catches the plate, Charlie Blackmon was frozen. Alex Avila goes down swinging and Alex Wood minimizes the damage but the Patriots trail 5-3 after 6 full. Top of the 8th, still 5-3, and Albert Almora steps in for Lonnie Chisenhall. Almora hits a seeing-eye-single off Tony Watson to lead it off. Chase Headley follows with a single off Tony Watson‘s glove. Trayce Thompson pops out bringing Jose Lobaton up. David Robertson trots in to relieve Tony Watson which turns Jose Lobaton around. Two outs and two on, a curveball from David Robertson is lofted to center, Curtis Granderson on the run, he may run out of room, and does! Go crazy!! Jose “the hidden power source” Lobaton coaxes one into the front row. Patriots 6 Explorers 5. Marwin Gonzalez drives in Stephen Piscotty in the 9th to add a Patriot insurance run. Matt Carpenter tanks a solo-shot in the 9th for Columbus to pull within 1 but Addison Reed would preserve a Patriot victory, 7-6. |
 Game #2: A.J. Griffin (7-11 4.07) vs. Wade LeBlanc (7-3 2.73)
A.J. Griffin making his 1st playoff start since TJ Surgery & L-O-N-G rehab takes on lefty Wade LeBlanc. Patriots fail to score in the 1st but Explorers draw 1st blood. Charlie Blackmon leads off with a single, Russell Martin executes a great hit and run, and Matt Carpenter snags the RBI on a FC. Explorers 1-0. Marwin Gonzalez starts a 2nd inning Patriot rally with a single and stolen base. Gonzo moves to 3rd on a FC and Chase Headley scores him with a hot shot by Jose Iglesias. Headley makes 2nd on a Trayce Thompson single. Caleb Joseph gets a wish granted and smokes one to left center, scoring Chase Headley and getting Tracye Thompson to 3rd. Jharel Cotton, who replaced A.J. Griffin after Charlie Blackmon‘s single in the 1st, squares on a suicide squeeze! Whoa! Not even close to making contact and Trace Thompson is TOAST but Caleb Joseph beats Russell Martin‘s throw to 2nd. Jharel Cotton only hangs his head for a moment, he still has a square wheeled duck on the pond. Jharel Cotton takes a vicious hack and turns on an inside fastball, it’s down the line, Eduardo Nunez dives, it’s through! Caleb Joseph rumbles and stumbles across the plate, Jharel Cotton found himself a double, don’t tell me the odds. Jharel Cotton then holds Columbus down and Triple Creek has a 3-1 lead after 2 innings. It would remain 3-1 until the 7th, when Andrew Benintendi makes an appearance, pinch hitting for Stephen Piscotty. Andrew finds a hole on the left side to score Jonathan Villar. Jonathan Villar had singled and stole 2nd to get into position. Patriots would hold their 4-1 lead the rest off the way. |
| Triple Creek takes the series 2-0 as their bats worked some serious magic and hurlers got outs when they counted most. Marwin Gonzalez led all hitters, going 5-9. |
