7-17-17
Tim Hagerty was still a bit under the weather for tonight’s Chihuahuas versus Rivercats game in Sacramento. I was under the weather too, in a more literal manner. We were deluged by a monster rainstorm. It was after 1:00 am, my workplace was flooded, and I was outside with a flat bottomed metal shovel, scooping out water and trying not to notice how much lightning was going on around me. At that point, I was having serious philosophical thoughts about my life.
The workday had at least stared promisingly with a co-worker returning from vacation and bringing me back some souvenirs from a Dodgers’ game (more on that in another post). Likewise, the Chihuahuas did well in their game, amassing a six-run lead through five innings. Tim was a bit low-key, so I found myself kind of drifting in and out of listening. I did notice that the PA was playing the Rocky theme for a Rocky Gale at bat. Tim, and I’m guessing Rocky, are a bit spent on that gag.
The Rivercats made a comeback in the seventh with three runs, knocking Brian Rodriguez out of the game. Carter Capps came in. Tim made note that this was the same umpiring crew from last month (6-25-17) that had called him for a couple of illegal pitches because of his unorthodox delivery. This resulted in Capps and manager, Rod Barajas, getting ejected. This time, no problems with the umps and Capps stopped the comeback. In the eighth, there was a kid screaming encouragement for the ‘Cats, along with howling coming from some other fans. Whatever that was all about, it didn’t help. 7-3 pups was the final. The Chihuahuas are finally back to being a .500 team.
7-18-17
Chihuahuas versus Rivercats. The ‘Cats had a 2-0 lead until the fourth. With two outs, bases loaded, and the bottom of the order up, pup pitcher, Zach Lee, tied the score with a single. A wild pitch scored another to give the Chihuahuas the lead. But, the Rivercats came back to tie it in the bottom, 3-3. The Chihuahuas scored two in the fifth to take a 5-3 lead. The PA played, “Who let the Dogs out?” In the bottom, with the bases loaded and two out, and a full count with the crowd going crazy, Zach struck out the last batter.
Christian Villanueva homered in the seventh. Tim Hagerty’s voice cracked during the call, so he’s still not quite 100% after losing his voice. Sacramento did manage to score two in the bottom to make it 6-5 pups. Jason Jester, in his second inning of relief, gave up the tying run, but after loading the bases, he got out of it by starting a 1-2-3 double play. We did not get a resolution until the bottom of the twelfth. With the fans screaming and sounding pretty rowdy, a lead-off double, moved to third, was brought in by Trevor Brown. 7-6 Rivercats, but quite a game. Jarrett Parker, down from the Giants, went 3 for 5 with a walk in the game.
7-19-17
The good news was that I got to listen to a Chihuahuas’ day game against the Rivercats, nearly uninterrupted. The bad news was that they lost 3-1. The score didn’t even feel that close. The Rivercats scored on a lead-off home run in the first, and two more in the fifth (though they had a runner picked off second). Tyler Bede kept the pups well in hand for most of the game. It wasn’t until he came out in the seventh, that a bases loaded walk produced the only Chihuahuas’ run. I even missed the end of the game because of a couple of El Paso weather alerts. It was a two-and-half hour game, which wasn’t the end of the series. The teams play again tomorrow night. So much for a get-away day.
I spent most of the game reading my new Dodger yearbook. It was pretty cool. I liked the section that hit the high points (and lows) during the 2016 season. I got a couple of things out of the game. Franchy Cordero was called up to the Padres. I finally got an explanation for old Dudley Field’s nickname, the Dudley Dome. It was said that it never rained there, like there was a dome covering the field. Tim Hagerty called a fan with a mitt catching a foul in the seventh. He loves doing that. I think he’d wear a mitt in the pressbox if he could still do his job.
Checking the MLB scores at work, I noticed that the Rockies completed a three-game sweep of the Padres, scoring 36 runs in the process. Nolan Arenado hit three homers in the finale. Unfortunately, the Dodgers keep winning (10 in a row). The Rockies are in second, 10 games back. The Rangers have lost three in a row to the Orioles. Let’s see if Cole Hamels can stop the bleeding tomorrow.
7-20-17
I couldn’t resist clicking on a story from a Sports Illustrated daily e-mail: What do broadcasters eat during games? Joe Buck apparently has at least four cups of coffee before games. This explains a lot. There was another story on a Giants’ fansite that reported that the Giants home sellout streak had finally ended after several years. Unfortunately, I didn’t write down any of the particulars. The Giants’ organization tweeted out a “Thank you,” to their fans from their support. Meanwhile, the Rangers blew a five-run lead and were swept by the Orioles in a four-game series. The Rangers will be sellers at the trade deadline here shortly.
We’ll pick up the action in the eighth in Sacramento. The Chihuahuas had already come back from two down against the Rivercats, but were trailing by a run. New arrival, Peter Van Gansen, singled in the tying run, and scored on a play at the plate on a hit by Christian Villanueva. Not bad, considering that before the game, while Tim Hagerty was talking to Steve Kaplowitz, Tim had thought that the name was a gag entry on the roster.
Carter Capps got a two-inning save. Dusty Coleman hit another home run, and the Chihuahuas beat the Rivercats, 5-3. They are still three back of Salt Lake in the standings. In somewhat bad news today, a roster spot was opened up by the release of pitcher, Tyrell Jenkins. He just hadn’t lived up his projections. Today was also his birthday.
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