Archives › Matthew Pouliot
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Yankees GM Brian Cashman had some, well, interesting quotes after the Yankees got swept out of the ALCS on Thursday. Here’s one of them: Raul Ibanez didn’t hit in last year’s postseason for Philadelphia; he hit in this postseason for us in a massive way. Why did we gravitate to him? He’s left-handed, he’s got…
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As far as I can tell, Alex Rodriguez committed two crimes this month. He played pretty horribly in the playoffs, which hardly put him among the minority of Yankees hitters, and he embarrassed his team by reportedly trying to get a woman’s digits from the dugout. In the case of the latter, absolutely no one…
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Is everyone all geared up to see the NL’s fifth best team and the AL’s seventh best team square off in the World Series? Of course, the Cardinals and Tigers have genuinely looked like baseball’s best teams during October. And if some would prefer neither had reached the postseason because they weren’t all that good…
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That Cardinals leadoff man Jon Jay has struggled at the plate in the postseason is undeniable. Also undeniable: the Cardinals have played seven games on the road and just four at home. Playing a second straight game in St. Louis on Thursday, Jay went 2-for-5 with a two-run double in the Cardinals’ 8-3 win over…
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The real question is why Hector Sanchez ever started catching Tim Lincecum in the first place this year. Yeah, Lincecum got off to an awful start this year with Buster Posey catching him. But who made that about Posey? Matt Cain and Madison Bumgarner certainly didn’t have any problem with Posey. And Lincecum was extremely…
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Flexing their financial muscle once again, the Dodgers lured Gerry Hunsicker away from the Rays on Thursday, naming the former Astros GM their senior advisor for baseball operations. That would seem to make Hunsicker the No. 2 man in the Dodgers front office behind general manager Ned Colletti. He’s expected to work primarily in scouting…
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It takes more than a couple of goats for a team to get swept in a seven-game series. Let’s run down the five people most responsible for the Yankee meltdown. Derek Jeter‘s ankle not being a person, we’ll leave it out of this. 5. Eric Chavez – Alex Rodriguez struggled mightily, yet Chavez was worse.…
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Everyone figured that Bob Brenly was on his way back to Arizona after his exit from the Cubs booth was confirmed Wednesday. The Diamondbacks made it official today, naming him their TV color guy, and announced a surprise choice as the new play-by-play man: ESPN’s Steve Berthiaume. The move keeps Brenly in the booth with…
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Jason Motte had never had a two-inning save before the Cardinals asked him to get six outs in a two-run game after Wednesday’s long rain delay. Not only did he do the job, but he made it a breeze, retiring every Giant he faced as St. Louis won 3-1. In so doing, Motte became just…
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No, the Yankees probably weren’t beating the Tigers four times in five days either. Still, Wednesday’s rainout made the assignment that much tougher. – Because they’re playing four games in four days, the Yankees have lost the ability to pitch Game 4 starter CC Sabathia on three days’ rest in Game 7. At best, he’ll…
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The Giants acquired Hunter Pence to drive in runs hitting behind Buster Posey. And that’s exactly what he did in the regular season. In 59 games after coming over from the Phillies, Pence racked up 45 RBI. That pace would have led the NL had he maintained it for the full year. Of course, it’s…
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The Giants made it official after the Game 3 loss to the Cardinals, naming Tim Lincecum and Barry Zito their starters in St. Louis the next two days. Madison Bumgarner, who took the loss in Game 1 after allowing six runs in 3 2/3 innings, will spend the rest of the NLCS in the bullpen.…
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If Derek Jeter‘s broken ankle didn’t take him out of the mix for the World Baseball Classic the moment it happened, today’s news that he needs surgery definitely makes the issue moot. But as unfortunate as Jeter’s injury is for the Yankees, it’s not necessarily a bad thing for Team USA in next spring’s World…
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Sending Justin Verlander back out to pitch the ninth against the Yankees with a 2-0 lead in Tuesday’s Game 3 was pretty much a no-brainer. It’s not like manager Jim Leyland was going to turn to Jose Valverde. 115 pitches is a pretty high total to be starting an inning with, but Verlander has been…
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Benched sluggers Alex Rodriguez and Nick Swisher never budged, and lefty Phil Coke was allowed to face three left-handers and switch-hitter Mark Teixeira in escaping the ninth inning of Detroit’s 2-1 win over the Yankees on Tuesday. Coke replaced Justin Verlander after the ace’s 132nd pitch retired Brett Gardner for the first out of the…
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Former major league third baseman Eddie Yost, who led the AL in walks six times in an 18-year big-league career, died at age 86 on Tuesday. Long before walks were cool, Yost was the champion of the category, racking up huge totals despite the fact that he wasn’t an overpowering hitter. Yost never batted .300…
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Alex Rodriguez appears about as helpless as a week-old kitten at the plate at the moment, at least when he’s facing right-handers, but that doesn’t make it any less baffling that manager Joe Girardi chose tonight’s Game 3 to bench him. That’s because of the four homers the Yankees hit off Justin Verlander this year,…
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Matt Holiday admitted to a mistake Monday after his late takeout slide knocked second baseman Marco Scutaro off his feet and forced him out of the game a couple of innings later. Still, he doesn’t think it reflects on him as a player. “I’m not a dirty player,” Holliday replied when asked if he crossed the…
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The Giants’ Tim Lincecum said he was ready to pitch in relief tonight after throwing two scoreless innings in Sunday’s Game 1 against the Cardinals. However, it appears to be manager Bruce Bochy’s strong preference to reserve him for the Game 4 start, according to CSN Bay Area’s Andrew Baggarly. “We’d like to have that…
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We’re 10 days into the 2012 postseason and the American League finalists can’t hit, the National League contenders can’t get any starting pitching and none of the teams still playing seem to be any better than the ones that were eliminated. Here are the hitting lines of the four teams still standing: Detroit: .258/.299/.351, 3…
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He hasn’t had the chance to distinguish himself as much as some, but at-bat for at-bat, Carlos Beltran is the best postseason hitter of all-time. At least until David Freese overtakes him. Beltran and Freese both added to their remarkable postseason totals in Sunday’s Game 1 against the Giants, hitting two-run homers off Madison Bumgarner.…
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The Giants entered the postseason with Matt Cain and Madison Bumgarner in the rotation and no certainties after that. Following Bumgarner’s latest shaky outing against the Cardinals in Game 1 of the NLCS, they have to be wondering whether they can afford to pencil the lefty in for his expected Game 5 start. Bumgarner was…
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The Cardinals overcame a 6-0 deficit to win Game 5 of the NLDS against the Nationals. On Sunday, they found themselves with a 6-0 lead and then held on to beat the Giants 6-4 in the first game of the NLCS. David Freese and Carlos Beltran hit two-run homers for the Cardinals as they built…
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After going down 6-0 to the Cardinals in the top of the fourth, the Giants came right back and knocked Lance Lynn out of the game in the bottom of the inning, closing to within 6-4. However, they’ve been unable to make up any additional ground the last two innings, leaving them with a two-run…
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Umpire Jeff Nelson admitted after Sunday’s game that he botched the call at second base that aided the Tigers in a two-run eighth inning against the Yankees. Omar Infante was attempting to return to the bag after rounding second on a single, but he was clearly tagged out by Robinson Cano on the play. Nelson…
