Rangers 6, Orioles 5: I am SO over Ian Kinsler
I missed most of this game as I was out enjoying the lovely weather for most of the day, but when I tuned in to Joe Angel in the fifth inning and found out that it was 5-1, I was just like, "meh." I mean, what are the odds you'll get good starting pitching from Adam Eaton and Mark Hendrickson in the same week? Sucky, that's what they are.
Maybe it's harder to get emotional about the game when you miss the first part of it, maybe the expectations are so low for Hendo, or maybe apathy is setting in early, but I can't get too worked up about this.
The Good
- After starting the season ice cold, it looks like Ty Wigginton is finally starting to come around the past few days. Ty had the first two RBIs of the night including his first home run of the year.
- Brian Bass is looking good. He came into the game with one out in the fifth and a runner on third and threw 3.2 scoreless innings, allowing just 2 hits and striking out four. After starting the season looking just awful, Bass has now gone four outings without allowing a run.
- The 9th was pretty exciting as the bottom of the order came through in a big way. ZAUN reached on an error and ended up at second base, pinch hitter Lou Montanez slapped an opposite field single, and Cesar Izturis doubled, all with no outs.
The Bad
- It's hard to be too tough on the top of the lineup the way they've been hitting since the season started, but they were just abysmal today. Roberts-Jones-Markakis-Huff were 3-19 and left 12 runners on base. Adam Jones did get a single with two on in the 9th but by then it was too little, too late.
- Mark Hendrickson continues to show why he doesn't belong in a major league rotation. In 4.1 innings he allowed four homeruns, including two to that jerk Ian Kinsler. If you're looking for a silver lining you could say that he only walked one, but not many guys are gonna take a walk when the pitcher is giving them meatballs to hit.
Looking Ahead: Brad Bergesen makes his second big league start tomorrow, game time 1:35. It's going to be 85 degrees and sunny and hopefully he'll be able to repeat Tuesday's performance in front of a much larger crowd.
19 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Right now its all about spotting the keepers
while we mark time til the cavalry comes. Brian Bass is starting to look like a keeper. (Who’d’a thunk it?)
Checking back in from Camden Yards
On the screen at the game we were informed that tonight’s game had the largest walk-up crowd in the history of Camden Yards (something like 12,000 tickets bought spur-of-the-moment). Total attendance about 41,000, which was already going to get a little boost thanks to the cross-promo with the Ravens. The hats are not all that exciting. You could tell they were not anticipating the last-minute crowd; concessions were NOT fully staffed at all.
Hendrickson never looked good. I doubt anybody needs me to inform them of this. The homers were not cheap ass home runs.
Felix Pie really doesn’t look good in left field. The play where Izturis got charged with an error just felt like it should have been Pie’s ball. Listened to the radio on the way home and Dave Johnson agreed and remarked that he didn’t see Pie calling for it on the replays. At the time it didn’t seem like it would matter since the one run put the Rangers up by five and our bats had nothing going on, but…
The rain didn’t scare anybody away but I’d estimate that half the crowd fled after the bottom of the 8th ended with no score by the O’s. I’m a to-the-bitter-end kind of guy but even that was tested sorely with knowing that the 7-8-9 spots were coming up with the highest average being Izturis at .211. The ones who stayed almost got a taste of Oriole Magic. Almost! I can guarantee you would see me on a MASN defining moment commercial next year if we’d pulled off that game. Four runs was just too much.
The game never felt out of reach – I think that’s why people stayed for so long. I mean, it is Texas. Zaun, Montanez and Izturis all got on but of the top four hitters only Jones could get any traction. The lineup turned over and we just couldn’t sustain the rally. Too bad.
There are still baseball fans in Baltimore, even after a decade of losing, and 12,000 showed up tonight just because the weather was nice even though it was Mark Hendrickson pitching against Texas. That’s pretty impressive.
As a note that doesn’t really fit in anywhere else, I’d rather see Moeller remain as the backup than Zaun when Wieters gets the inevitable callup. Zaun just really doesn’t look good out there. He can block balls and block the plate but he can’t really throw out guys and he is looking terrible at the plate. I know this will never happen because it’s unlikely they’ll diss the Dempsey clan by cutting Zaun loose midseason (and probably they only signed him in the first place for that reason), but viewed through any objective lens there’s no reason to keep him right now.
Final comment: Brian Bass is (shockingly) Birdland.
Cry havoc and unleash the Esskay hot dogs of war! - The Wayward Oriole, Opening Day 2008
by Eat More Esskay on Apr 25, 2009 11:07 PM EDT reply actions
One further comment
Someone really needs to plunk Ian Kinsler today or tomorrow. I’m not saying throw at his head or anything, but put a curveball on his ass or something. Padilla was plainly headhunting last night and came at Nicky’s knees; someone on the pitching staff needs to send a message that this will not fly and we will drop one on their young star too.
Cry havoc and unleash the Esskay hot dogs of war! - The Wayward Oriole, Opening Day 2008
by Eat More Esskay on Apr 25, 2009 11:12 PM EDT reply actions
kinsler is doing what he's paid to do
hit the ball. orioles pitchers just can’t do their job. Ain’t Kinsler’s fault.
Padilla looks like he’s headhunting, but he actually just sucks and most likely those are mistakes.
just curious..
any reason you can come up with why he’d be trying to hit our batters? he didn’t get knocked aroung more than usual, and he wasn’t protecting his own batters..
he has a bit of a reputation as an asshole
of course i think a lot of that has to do with alcoholism, I think.
No, I agree with you Y Not. He’s just a crappy pitcher.
Great write up, EME!
Count me as someone who was never on the Zaun bandwagon to begin with. If he’s so loved in the clubhouse, then make him a bench coach or bullpen catcher. Otherwise, he should not be filling a slot on the roster when Wieters arrives. He’s done.
by Fred Sanford on Apr 26, 2009 9:51 AM EDT up reply actions
he's a better backup than Moeller
that’s the point of signing him. He’s a backup who can be stretched into a starter, which is exactly what the team needed.
Stating the obvious...
With our pitching, it’s going to be an adventure every time out. After 17 games, the team ERA is 6.10. Opponents are batting .308 against us. Only twice have our starters completed seven innings (once by Uehara in a loss to the Red Sox, and once this week by the much-maligned Adam Eaton, who actually leads the staff in strikeouts).
I guess we all knew this was going to happen this season, but it’s tough following the games, and thinking that a 7-0 lead against the Red Sox isn’t safe.
hendrickson has never looked good
in his career.have to think he is the pitcher that will be replaced by Rich Hill who can’t be any worse than he is
wigginton
that home run was a straight up jack. he definitely looks like he’s coming around. it would be nice if wiggs, luuuuuukkke and huff daddy could all be hot at once.
"If they pitch to you, make them pay."
--Diamond Dave to the Phenom
It's time
for the overweight Caucasian contingency to step it up!!
Mood about O's rotation: Depressed : (
by sickuvitall on Apr 26, 2009 10:39 AM EDT up reply actions
it's sort of like a progression, no?
scott=normal athlete size
huffy=normal size for dude in mid 30s
wigginton=uh, a bit bigger
"If they pitch to you, make them pay."
--Diamond Dave to the Phenom
by j.q. higgins on Apr 26, 2009 11:09 AM EDT up reply actions
j.q.: Joe Angel described a player last night as "lurking in the on deck circle"-- evidently w/o a book OR a laptop!!! Whaaa...?
"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.
"WHAAA?!" indeed...
well, mr. AHN-HELL, how does one know if one’s lurking w/o a book or a laptop? was he wearing a cape and twirling his black, waxed moustache?
"If they pitch to you, make them pay."
--Diamond Dave to the Phenom
by j.q. higgins on Apr 27, 2009 6:28 AM EDT up reply actions
Last night's game
I was there as well and was blown away by the size of the crowd. We had vouchers from the Opening Day 4-ticket package that we had to exchange for actual seats. We arrived at 6:30 and didn’t get in the gates until the National Anthem.
Bass looked damn good. Not only was he working quick and mowing guys down, but he picked off a runner at first (an O’s pitcher who holds runners? The hell, you say!) and snagged two straight comebackers. He was doing everything you could ask of him. Albers looked solid in the ninth as well.
Right before Wiggy’s home run, I said to my dad, “Wigginton’s about due for a homer…not that it would do us much good.” I also called mustard as the winner of the hot dog race, so I was on a roll last night. However, I pressed my luck later by calling for a two-run homer to the RF bleachers by Luke. He flew out to left instead.
Agree with EME. ZAUN is, unfortunately, pathetic. All weak ground balls. He has FIVE hits this year. As in, this many (holds up open hand). I wonder how long it took Diamond Dave to call Andy after the game and beg for Wieters.
"The United States is the New York Yankees of countries...powerful and respected until the year 2000." - Homer J. Simpson



















