At game time, the Chihuahuas were not on. There was no broadcast explanation. I kept tuning back to the station periodically, but their game never came on. I assumed they’d been rained out. I hope Tim Hagerty and Leah Piri at least got some rest.
Flipping over to the Rangers/Twins game, I got Rain Delay Theater with Jared Sandler. Thankfully, the delay ended within an hour. The game seemed to run pretty quickly. Cole Hamels was dealing. He pitched a the complete game in about 90+ pitches. By contrast, the Twins’ pitchers needed over 150. The Twins’ only run came on an error, unearned. Normar Mazara homered, and Robinson Chirinos drove in two runs. 4-1 Rangers was the final. Meanwhile in Round Rock, Willie Calhoun hit a three-run homer against the Isotopes.
Shockingly, KOA was coming in clear, and even more surprising, I got to hear a bit of the Rockies playing the Phillies. I joined the game in the eighth with the Rox up 8-4. It was raining lightly in Denver. Was it raining everywhere except here today? The Rockies loaded the bases in the bottom, but failed to score. Rockie newcomer and former Phillie, Pat Neshek came in to close. There was some miscommunication on a fly ball for the final out. It dropped untouched, which lead to a run, but no error was charged. The damage ended there with the Rockies winning 8-5.
8-6-17
Tim Hagerty sounded a bit tired to start today’s double header between the Chihuahuas and the (gag) Baby Cakes. Thankfully, he perked up as the games went along. He described a deluge yesterday in New Orleans, which canceled the game. The (gag) “Shrine on Airline” stadium ended up underwater and thoroughly unplayable. The new groundskeeper at the stadium just started this week. What an introduction to the job. A viral video showed a couple of the players swimming in the dugout/improvised pool after the game was canceled. The video was shown on Sportscenter, and you can bet the hosts made note that the scheduled game was between the Chihuahuas and Baby Cakes (snicker, snicker).
I actually learned quite a bit about the stadium during the double header. First off, it’s right next to the New Orleans airport. At night apparently they don’t have a lot of flights out, but during the day it’s shades of old Shea Stadium. A steady roar of jets filled the air for most of the afternoon. That’s not all. The stadium is also next to a Harley-Davidson plant. On a couple of occasions, there was an unmistakable growl of an HD motorcycle thundering by. (Over the radio, they were louder than the low-flying jets.) The Saints’ practice facility, a big warehouse, is next door. The football players come over to take an annual swing at batting practice. The stadium is located in a suburb, nowhere near any tourist stuff. Let’s not forget the weather either. Frankly, I might avoid this place if I was touring ballparks around the country.
The fans might feel the same. Announced attendance was over 5,900, but if they were there, they were real quiet. Tim all but apologized for a lack crowd noise. Later, Tim spotted a kid in the stands with four foul balls that he’d shagged during the game. I think that tells you everything you need to know about the size of the crowd. (Friday night’s Game Two, where even friends and family left because of the hour, needed no explanation.) He thought that the weather might have scared them off, though Sunday was a nice day. Normally, the New Orleans fans show up better. The team had been expecting a big crowd for Star Wars Night on Saturday.
I feel like I’m delaying talking about the games. The Chihuahuas had actually gained good ground on the division leaders by not playing. The ‘Cakes, on the other hand, were the first team in the PCL eliminated from the playoffs on Friday. One of these teams has something to play for; the other doesn’t.
However, it’s not that simple. The Padres have “too many outfielders.” This resulted in Travis Jankowski being sent down to the Chihuahuas, which in turn gave the Chihuahuas “too many outfielders.” Collin Cowgill, former big leaguer and the guy who hit a grand slam on Friday, was released. Two other players have been let go over the last seven days. Not to mention, big contributors like Jose Pirela and Phil Maton, were called up earlier in the season. So in my opinion, the Chihuahuas are well short-handed of Triple-A level talent at the moment. I’m not hearing about any great players being brought up from the lower levels. The organization has made a determination on the Chihuahuas’ season, and it’s not “Let’s go for another championship!” It could be worse. Tim incredulously mentioned that Tacoma had been reduced to nine position players for today.
Let’s just tear off the band-aid. The Chihuahuas lost both games. In Game One in the first, a ‘Cakes runner was thrown out at home, but four runs scored afterward anyway. It was starter Kyle Lloyd’s only bad inning, as he no-hit them for five consecutive innings following. The Chihuahuas got runners on, but only managed a bases loaded balk run. In the sixth, Ryan Schimpf hit a solo home run into the pool in the outfield. (Oh, apparently there’s a pool at this stadium for some reason where it also rains a lot. The one in Phoenix barely makes any sense.) 4-2 Baby Cakes was the final in a one hour, forty minute game.
In Game Two in the third, the pups loaded the bases. The closest they came to a run then was a force play at home. In the bottom, the ‘Cakes loaded the bases with no outs. They sac’d in a run, singled in a run, reloaded the bases, and sac’d in another run, 3-0. Next inning, they put up two more runs, 5-0. In the seventh, Peter Van Gansen doubled in a run, going three for three in the game. His defense is lacking, but he’s getting the runs back on offense. 5-1 Baby Cakes final in two hours and twenty minutes. Damn, this is how other teams feel when they lose to the Chihuahuas. The name thing just makes it worse.
Meanwhile, I missed the first inning of the Rangers versus the Twins, where Adrian Beltre hit a three-run homer and Joey Gallo followed that with a two-run, tape-measure shot home run to a 5-0 Ranger lead. So, I didn’t really miss anything, did I? I came in just after the Twins had hit a two-run shot and showers sent the game to Rain Delay Theater in the second. The delay ended right after the Chihuahuas’ Game One. The Twins would tie it thanks to another two-run homer and then a solo home run in the third. You know, I think I’m starting to see a pattern this season in the scoring, like most of the runs are coming in a certain fashion. I’ll have to do some research before I write out any conclusions, wouldn’t want to be too hasty. A disputed call gave the Twins the lead. 6-5 Twins was the further disappointing final.
At least with the early afternoon game, we got the ESPN Sunday Night game, between the Dodgers and the Mets. Jerry Hairston Jr. joined the broadcast. He added an energetic flavor to the proceeding. He hoped to catch a foul ball and be signed by a scout to re-start his playing career. My favorite exchange was Hariston saying that he had a “Key to the City,” which entitles the holder to a free meal anywhere in town. Play-by-play co-host, Jon Sciambi, wasn’t sure if he was kidding or not.
As for the game, in the first, a reversed call on a steal extended the inning for the Dodgers. Three runs scored immediately afterward (including a double steal). The final out of the inning was thrown out at the plate. That set the tone for the rest of the game. Justin Turner and Cody Bellinger homered later. Hyun-Jin Ryu pitched eight scoreless innings, giving up a single hit. Up 8-0 in the ninth, Kenley Jansen was brought in. That seemed like overkill. He gave up one walk to give the Mets their second baserunner of the night (and he took forever to pitch the damn the ball). The Dodgers swept the season series with the Mets for the first time ever. I’m almost foreseeing sub-500 teams, forfeiting games for the rest of the season rather than embarrassing themselves against the nigh-unbeatable Dodgers at this point.
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