Aggie Volleyball Crimson and White Scrimmage 8-17-24

Ah, our first look at the Aggie Volleyball team this year.  We all look forward to this.  I’d told dad about the Scrimmage and he had initially wanted to go.  Unfortunately by Saturday, he’d talked himself out of it.  On my side, I was listening to a tight Pirates/Mariners game on the radio.  I wasn’t going to be able to stay for the end and doubted I’d be able to pick up signal inside the Pan-Am Center on a portable radio.  Former Aggie star, Nick Gonzales, wasn’t in the game for the Pirates, though.  I was wondering where he was.

 

At the courtesy table in the Pan-Am Center, there was no Volleyball poster yet, just the card above.  I picked up a couple more Wave the Wonder Dog Football posters for some other people.  I chatted with a couple there about Aggie Soccer and their tie on Thursday.  They knew the result, but not how dramatically close it was.

 

Thankfully, Volleyball had better warm up music than Soccer, so that was easier to sit through.  It didn’t feel like the lights were all the way on for the match.  The A/C was and that was a God-send given how hot it was outside.  The crowd was a bit light.  I’d told several people about the scrimmage, including a check out girl that was wearing a high school volleyball shirt. 

 

I saw broadcaster Adam Young across the court with his new little producer.  He looks like such an adorable lad.  I wished I was sitting closer to Adam.  I would have asked him about Nick and if one of the new girls on the volleyball team, Mia Abalos, was the younger sister of former star player, Jordan Abalos.  There were probably a couple of football players there.  I thought I saw Rachel Haan, freshman on the Soccer team, there, but didn’t recognize anyone with her.  I recognized her because the team had posted a couple of pictures of her on her birthday and she is a stately beauty.

 

I looked over the team roster.  There was one notable subtraction, Alex Connatser.  She was eye-catching being tall, thin, and beautiful and also showing some real potential in flashes of play last year.  Anji Vishwanathan was also not on the team.  At least PA announcer, Ed Carnathan, won’t have to worry about stumbling over her name anymore.  

 

Also on the roster, I noticed five setters.  Coach Jordan was not going to be caught short-handed this season at that position.  I almost didn’t recognize Aspen Aldous.  She’s almost remade her body into a very slim and toned form.  Unfortunately, she still wasn’t playing, at least in this scrimmage.  I saw her standing with the reserves tapping her foot most of the time.  Peyton Castillo was available to play.  Her knee was in a heavy brace.  However, she didn’t get much playing time either.

 

Tatyana Battle has been promoted to Assistant Coach.  Coach Jordan must really be high on her coaching abilities given her relative youth.  Lia Mosher was back as Graduate Assistant.  She worked as the net official for the scrimmage.  (They probably should have used a couple of injured players as line officials, as well.  There were some disagreements.)      

 

On court during player introductions, I could see lots of returners and plenty of new faces.  Ryleigh Whitekettle was thankfully still with us as our 6’5” skyscraper, along with Starr Williams.  Newcomers, Nicole Briggs and Mia Fox also looked pretty impressive.  Yasso Amin was another front line player and she was our only international player being from Cairo, Egypt.  Rilen Garcia was introduced last and probably got the biggest hand.  How do you not root for the 5’7” setter who was pressed into service two years ago and has made the most of it since?     

 

Set 1

I have over three pages of play-by-play notes.  Why did I do this?  I’m gonna try to condense this.  It’s not about the teams here; it’s about the players and the teamwork.  So, these are just some impressions and plays I noticed in the match.

 

Ashley Herman was making kills early.  Ryleigh and Kacia Brown looked good teaming up for blocks.  Newcomers Yasso and Nicole teamed up on block.  Yasso was loud directing traffic and talking to her teammates.  Between her and Darian Markham, I don’t know if the other players will be heard on court.  I was sitting behind Coach Whitis’ squad.  He was chewing out his reserves, even when his team won the point.  He’d also make fun of himself and get his girls laughing.

 

Maggie Lightheart (our sweetheart), Kacia, and Nicole had aces.  (There would also be plenty of bad serves during the match.  Lia called a foul at the net at one point.  Nobody yelled at her, so I guess the players agreed.

 

Yasso got a hard kill.  She hits very hard.  You can hear it.  She always uses a Brazilian-style jump serve.  Rilen made a couple of impressive digs on hard hit balls.  25-18 Maggie tooled a block to win it for the White squad.  Nobody was even aware that it was set point.  Announcing fell asleep there.

 

Set 2

Ashley was in the huddle between sets, but dancing to Sade’s Smooth Operator.  She’s determined to have fun out there on court.  Morgan Stewart tripped on court early in the set.  She came up laughing.  Coach Jordan was sitting right behind her and asked if she was okay.  Mia A. (there are two Mia’s on the team) came in to serve for her first action.  It was a good one.

 

3-2 Kacia delivered a facial to Darian.  I hope they’re still friends.  5-5 Maggie stuffed Yasso on a block.  8-6 Ryleigh finished the point with a kill after an insane rally.  Freshman Makayla Martinez really hustled with three saves and a dig.

 

Yasso aced.  She has skills.  I noticed Mari Sharp using a huge toss on serve.  I hadn’t seen that before.  I wonder if Yasso taught her.  Ashley got a tip and then a kill.  Claudia Rossi made a couple of nice backsets in the set.

 

Mia A. had a couple of nice digs.  Ashley added a couple of more kills.  24-13 Yasso tooled Ryleigh for the kill.  I panicked during the point, as Maggie went flying into the scorer’s table twice for saves.  25-13 White again.  Mia A. had shanked a couple of digs in the set, but had a good save on this point.

 

Set 3

The assistant coaches changed ends, so I got watch Taty.  She spent most of the time seated and talking to individual players.  She’s going to have to work on her showmanship.  Taty needs to be able to stomp around, rant, and yell at the players.

 

Aspen gave Mia A. a big hug in the huddle.  Mia changed shirts and was the libero for the Crimson team.  Yasso started off with a kill off a block and then teaming up with Kacia on a block.  Aleka Darko had an overpass kill and teamed up for a couple of blocks.  Nicole had a kill and made a good save on a ball at the net.

 

A bunch of players had kills in the set, but Yasso stood out with 5 (by my count), including one that saved a set point.  This set was heavily contested and went into extra points.  Mia Fox had a hammer kill for the Crimson.  Mia A. dodged a shot that went out that brought the Crimson to set point, which they finally took, 28-26.

 

Set 4

I looked around the crowd and had the revelation that nobody was eating or drinking.  I guess the concessions weren’t open.  I hadn’t noticed coming in.

 

There was some confusion on an early point.  Lia lost control as the ref, as the teams argued.  Finally, Darian announced, “We’re serving!” and that was that.  Aleka looked good early with a kill and a block.  Bella Castro served an ace off Maggie defending.  The Coach shouted some instructions to her while she was on court.  Maggie came back with a tip kill a couple of points later.  Coach Jordan was shouting out some more instructions on court than he had before.

 

10-11 Ash made a hard kill.  Rilen deflected it high into the stands.  The team trainer was looking at Ashley’s hand afterward, but she came back in to play more.  Ryleigh and Kacia had another block.  They are working well together up front. 

 

Yasso and Aleka both had a couple of kills halfway through the set.  PA Ed was now having fun annunciating Yasso’s name.  In spite of the lack of concessions, a couple of ladies behind appeared to become somewhat inebriated by the end of the match.  They were heckling Ed and only cheering on one of the teams. 

 

Ash and Kacia each had a couple of kills late.  Yasso tooled Ryleigh again off a block to bring the White team to set point, which they won 25-22.  The team huddled up after the match.  As the fans were leaving, Yasso stepped out of the group and yelled, “Thank you so much for coming!” 

 

Okay, I’m making no attempt at adding up kills and blocks and there aren’t any official stats available, of course.  Just right off with the newcomers, I’m really liking Yasso Amin.  She hits very hard and blocks well and is nice to the fans.  Nicole Briggs also looked good.  Freshmen Claudia Rossi, Mia Fox, Mia Abalos, and Makayla Martinez flashed some potential.  The team is loaded with returners, so their playing time maybe very limited. 

 

I was very impressed with Ryleigh Whiteketle and Kacia Brown blocking at the net.  Ashley Herman may be set to break out this year.  She learned more than dancing and cheerleading in those two years in the reserves.  Starr Williams and Aleka Darko were looking potent.  Maggie Lightheart should see playing time and I think she’ll be a star next year.  The setter positions may be up in the air.  Darian Markham is certainly still the libero.  I don’t know about the other defensive players.  Lots of talent and potential here.  It’s just a question of getting them to work as a unit.    

 

I took off to Chik-fil-a for lunch.  It was good, but were really busy and understaffed.  I’d had two people recommend their milkshakes, but their machine was down.  (Insert McDonald’s/Sonic joke here.)  The Las Cruces Comic Con was this weekend.  I’d planned on going, but was not going before this match was scheduled.  I was not wanting to go after spending the afternoon at a game and wouldn’t have enough time tomorrow with soccer.  Shoot.  Oh, well.  It was a fun afternoon, anyway.  

NM State Aggies vs USC Trojans Soccer 8-15-24

When is a tie exciting?  When you’re down 2-1 to the #23 team in the nation with 40 seconds left in the game and you’re driving down on their goal.  Read on.

 

I guess I’m committed to another year to Aggies Sports.  They had to sell me on it, because I was really wavering even up until I actually left for tonight’s Women’s Soccer match with the USC Trojans.  I can’t believe that I even wrote that sentence.  Softball has regularly pulled in some pretty impressive visiting teams, but it is a rarity for the other programs to get a Power Five school here.  Well, Power Four now.  The PAC-12 is no more and USC is part of the Big 10.  (There’s another unlikely sentence.) 

 

They’re following up this match with home matches with UNM and Oregon.  Oregon and USC here in the same season?  Are you kidding me?  I listened to a podcast interview with Coach Baarts where the interviewer asked the same question.  He said it was all about the contacts.  Also, the program has been good enough over the past two seasons that they’ve been able to negotiate reciprocal visits for going to their sites.  (My favorite, Mya Hammack, as well as Meredith Scott, definitely another favorite after tonight, and new freshman, Daniela Portillo, were all also on the podcast and they were all darling.)      

 

In any case, I missed last Friday’s debut exhibition match.  I’d planned on going, but didn’t trust my co-workers to cover for me on a busy night.  I took three days off this week.  There was a data migration and two all-hands meetings I wanted to avoid.  (This was a great idea.  So many people got sick at the first meeting, they had to cancel the others.  Unfortunately as predicted, nobody covered for me, but at least they had an excuse.)

 

I left way early for the game to go to the ticket office to buy an Aggie Country Pass, only to find a notice which read that they’d closed early to go to the soccer game.  This wasn’t a good start to the season.  Also, the road to the stadium was closed for repaving.  (You only had all summer to do that, guys.)  In spite of these bad omens, I was still committed (or should be committed) and asked for a Country Pass at the ticket trailer.  Luckily, there was a guy there who knew what I was talking about, and they consented to sell me one for $150 (up $10 from previous years, still not too bad).

However, I was still too early and had to stand around the front gate with a few other early birds before they were open.  The Coach Baart’s wife was even briefly denied entry before somebody recognized her.  The USC team bus showed up.  I smiled and waved at the players as they came in.  Whatever the outcome, I was pleased they’d come here.  I got a few smiles and waves back.  There was guy with a camera filming the coach entering the facility.       

 

Once inside, I grabbed a hot dog and chips and an all-important drink for this very hot evening.  Here’s another unlikely statement: the bun on the dog was super fresh.  Of course the buns will get stale as the season progresses, but for now they’re fresh.  I picked up the team schedule poster at the courtesy table, along with two Football posters.  One of them features Wave the Wonder Dog, who picks up tees after kickoffs.  Is it a bad sign for your football season that your poster features a mascot?

 

I saw on the team Twitter that Mya and I were wearing the same shirt to the game today.  The merch trailer out for the game.  I was vaguely tempted, but I already have a closet full of Aggie t-shirts and other shirts.  They were selling custom player shirts, too.  The vendor was telling someone that they had to be ordered online.  Coach Baarts and his wife came over to peruse the goods.  I said, “Hey, Coach,” to him.

 

The stands were mostly empty 45-minutes before the game.  I ate my dinner and regretted not bringing my radio to listen to the Chihuahuas in the meantime.  The PA was playing some truly dreadful rap music.  I was sweating and wishing I’d gotten an IV, instead of a Gatorade.  The clubs warmed up on field.  Bella Garcia was still with the team as the Graduate Assistant this season.  She was in aviator shades with her hair in a tight bun shagging balls and looking very hot (literally and figuratively).

 

In contrast to any other Aggie event, the bulk of the crowd showed up early.  Officially, it was a bit under 1,000.  The stands and the hill behind the north goal filled up.  I saw this coming, so I was glad I was here early.  A little girl carrying an unbelievably cute little dog sat down behind me.  (I didn’t get to meet the dog, though.)  A bunch little kids in team uniforms came in.  There were some USC fans present.  Some members of the Volleyball team were on the hill and joined by Football team members after they got out of practice later.  Unfortunately, the Drum Corps and Band weren’t yet available for the game.

 

USC was wearing bright yellow uniforms for the game with red dot pattern on one side.  (I heard on Sunday that were also mesh shirts and very breathable in hot weather.)  Their uniforms were striking and attractive, but also sort looked like they should be making deliveries for DHL.  There was also confusion during the Anthem.  The Aggie girls stood and held hands.  Half of the Trojans knelt and the other half didn’t, but they all still awkwardly held hands.

 

I have to make a little digression here.  Brittney Griner, a gay black woman, who was exchanged from a Russian prison for a super villain (the “Merchant of Death, they made a movie about the guy), just won a gold medal with the USA Women’s Basketball team.  She cried standing for the Anthem at the medal ceremony, because she felt so proud and lucky to be an American, after previously taking a knee during such proceedings.  Meanwhile, these mostly White USC chicks are still BLM’ing.  This includes their goalie, Laurence Gladu, who, let’s just say lacks any obvious female characteristics.  This person looked like they were crying while kneeling.  And this person is also Canadian. 

 

First Half

Eventually, I was going to have to talk about the actual game.  There was some pregame weirdness.  A flight of three paragliders took off from somewhere behind the nearby football stadium right as the game started.  They circled around overhead and eventually took off for the mountains.  Needless to say, the crowd was distracted.  Thankfully, the girls on the field paid no attention to the aerial spectacle. 

 

USC got the first opportunity with a corner with 41’ left in the half, however, the Aggies got the first shot on goal by Lauren Machuca a minute later.  The Aggies got their first corner at 36’.  There was header at the goal which was blocked.  USC got another corner a couple of minutes later.  A ball got fired into the stands shortly after.  People were still coming in.  Though a large crowd, people were fairly tense and quiet.

 

It was a fairly even back-and-forth, until 25’ left in the half.  The Aggie defense was busted after an offensive charge.  Aggie goalie, Valerie Guha got caught in a one-on-one with Trojan Maile Hayes and didn’t have much of a chance.  1-0 USC.  The crowd kind of groaned at the easy goal on the defensive lapse.  I’m not sure if it was an over commitment on offense or USC was just a step quicker.  There was hydration break right after the goal.

 

I was asked by a fan sitting next to me if I worked for the Sun-News, since he’d seen me writing in a little notebook.  I don’t even read the Sun-News.  The rest of the crowd was just murmuring. 

 

The Aggies came down for an attack.  The ball was kicked out and went over the grandstand.  19’ another USC corner.  Their attack ended with a header shot that went over the goal and hit the scoreboard.  17’ Ariana Leamons took a shot that just went wide.  15’ Val made a save.  Right after on a USC corner, another header hit the Aggie goal post.  Val caught another shot after a follow up corner.  9’ Val was caught in a one-on-one again, but managed to dive on it.

 

The paragliders returned.  They wheeled around the stadium and landed.  Hot as it was, it was partly cloudy.  There were storm clouds out-of-town to the south.  Impressive arcs of lightning could be seen from them.  Overhead, there was a bright three-quarter moon.

 

USC made a few more attacks in the closing minutes.  One shot was knocked out by an Aggie header.  With a 1’ left, speedy Sydnee Johnson made a final Aggie attack and the goalie fell on the ball.  1-0 USC at the half. 

 

Halftime

The youth teams gathered and ran out across the field.  There was one little girl who did run back to the sidelines, but she eventually ran back for the group picture.  For stats, corners were 5 to 1 USC and both teams were even with 2 shots on goal.  The storm clouds to the south were staying put, as the sun started to go down.

 

Second Half

The Aggies came out attacking furiously.  44’ left in the half and there was a long shot by Loma McNeese on the USC goal.  A minute later, Meredith was knocked down twice, before there was finally a whistle.  She came up smiling, so I guess she was okay with it.  40’ there was some furious action around the USC goal before the goalie finally fell on it.  The crowd was responding to the effort with a “Let’s go Aggies!” chant and pounding on the metal bleachers.

 

The Aggies made a couple of more attacks, including a solo charge by Loma.  Her shot was fallen on.  31’ USC picked up the attack.  A beautiful cross field pass led to a header that was dunked in by Maria Alagoa.  2-0 USC.

 

It was getting late for some people and the some of the fans started leaving.  A couple of minutes after the goal, USC nearly put in another on another crossing pass.  28’ Ariana pushed down a Trojan player by pushing on her head.  The ref missed it.  The crowd did not.  Right after, USC took another shot that went wide. 

 

A cool breeze blew across the stands.  It was nice, but I was hoping it wasn’t blowing in that storm.  26’ a loose ball got away from the USC goalie, but there were no Aggies around to capitalize on it.  24’ Loma fell down in the USC box with a cramp.  One of the Trojans came over and helped to stretch her out.  Sorry I didn’t get her number.  That was nice sportsmanship.  17’ mass Aggie subs.  A minute later, Val caught a soft shot.

 

14’ off an Aggie corner, the Aggies got a good concentrated attack.  Blakley Edgar and Andrea Alvarenga found Kennedy Herrera, who put it in with a header off her lovely long silver blonde hair.  2-1 USC. 

 

9’ Sydnee made a breakaway attack that was broken up.  7’ a USC attack wasn’t cleared and they got another corner before it was finally kicked out.  4’ another round of Aggie subs.  3’ a long Aggie free kick was caught.

 

This takes us to the finale.  39 seconds left, Sydnee started a rush at the USC goal.  Freshman Milana Eyrich took a shot that was blocked.  There was Meredith, though.  She took out the trash and kicked it right in, 2-2.  The crowd exploded.  The girls exploded.  The game ended in a happy draw.

 

After the game, the Volleyball and Football teams rushed out to congratulate the Soccer team.  A bunch of little kids ran over to them, too.  Finally, the team went around the field to shake hands with fans on the field.  This wasn’t a win, but I doubt too many experts would have picked the Aggies to play the preseason #23 team in the nation and not get straight up beat.

 

How can I pick anyone other than lovely Meredith Scott and her clutch equalizing kick as the player of the game?  Also props to Coach Baarts and his strategic substitution strategy.  Both goalies, Valerie Guha and, yes, Laurence Gladu, got peppered, but kept the score low and close.     

 

This was a nice way to start that $150 investment in Aggie Sports.  It was a bit of a disaster when I got back to work on Friday, but it was worth the time and money.

Dad's Trip Photos: Devil's Tower 2

More pics of Devil's Tower.

This isn't readable, but dad said the Native America story about the tower involved a giant bear chasing a tribe up the mountain and you can still see the claw marks where he tried to climb up.

Dad's Trip Photos: Devil's Tower 1

I pulled some pictures off of dad's old phone (at his request).  He's got a bunch of interesting trip pictures.  Unfortunately, I can't identify all of them, but these are pretty easy to figure out.  

Diecast Car Show: The Birthday Show

A Ferrari for my birthday!  Heck, yeah!  This was a surprise gift from my dad.  I have to be honest, this diecast model is probably a lot more practical than the real thing.  Sort of.  It's beautiful, but I have nowhere to put it and it certainly should be prominently on display.    

This was an actual model.  It took me a somewhat embarrassing length of time to put this together given how simple it was.  I should have put something next to it for size.  It's 1:24 scale.  

As compared to these two 1:64 scale NASCAR's.  My Aunt Judy sent me a Wal-Mart gift card with the instructions to "buy something fun."  I picked up a spooky magazine, which I'll review sometime later, and these two diecasts.  I've run out of space for these kind of cars as well, so I've stopped buying them.  Also, the paint schemes haven't been much lately and the current car model is, frankly, ugly.  

However, these two diecasts did jump out at me.  What shocked me was that they were $4.95 each.  Why is that shocking?  I'm pretty sure the last car I bought (it might have been a Jeff Gordon Car of Tomorrow) was $6, which is another reason I stopped buying them.  $5 is what I was spending over 10 years ago when I first started buying NASCAR diecasts.  I'll let you decide what this means.        

 

Very fun, Alex Bowman Koker's Garage Miami car.

A patriotic AJ Allmendinger car.  (I've always wanted a Dinger car.)

 And as per tradition, here's a couple more birthday cards (to go with Aunt Judy's) I got, one from work and one from my dad.  (He also gave me a gift card, so there will probably be some more comics and books to review someday.)

MLB Trade Deadline Special 2024

The Trade Deadline coincides with my birthday this year.  I got a pizza at work, along with some pistachios, chocolate, and some Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.  I did well.   

 

Some of my preseason picks have looked pretty good, but I don’t think I went out on a limb with them.  The Orioles, Yankees, Astros, Phillies, and Dodgers being good isn’t much of a shocker.  Cleveland and the Brewers are leading the Central divisions, but then again, these teams are essentially the best of the worst.

 

It looks like the AL East and AL West winners may not be settled until the end of the season.  The other divisions will require the leader to collapse for there to be a change.  The two Central divisions are the most likely, but whoever wins will probably be irrelevant in the playoffs.  The Wild Card race is still wide open to this point.  In the AL, the Twins, the Royals (good job staying competitive, guys), the Red Sox, the Mariners, and even the Rangers are still in it.  There are eight teams in easy striking distance of the playoffs in the NL. 

 

I haven’t been keeping a baseball “diary” this season, but as the deadline has approached, I couldn’t resist noting several games.  A couple of trades happened near the end of the month as part of the recaps.   

 

6-8-24

So far, this has been the game of the year.  The El Paso Chihuahuas were down 15-1 in the fourth to the Las Vegas Aviators.  I was playing a computer game during the slaughter and was barely attention by that point.  However, the pups scored 7 over the next two innings and the game got my attention back.  They scored 9 in the seventh to take a two-run lead and held on for the next two innings for a 17-16 win!

 

The game was the talk of the town the next day.  Nate Mondou went 3 for 5 with 6 RBI’s and a two-run homer.  The oddity of the game was that Anthony Rifenberg was the broadcaster.  Our old friend Tim Hagerty was on a team mandated vacation at the time and was surely kicking himself for not being there.     

 

7-7-24

Funny moment in today’s Rangers game.  A fan reached over the rail and caught a flyball.  It wasn’t going to go out and Travis Jankowski was camped under it to make the play, so it was an odd circumstance that a fan could have interfered.  The broadcasters recognized the fan as a regular and had even met him before.  They hoped he wouldn’t get banned from the stadium as a result, since the guy didn’t realize he was interfering until after the play. 

 

Jankowski was mad at first, but the batter was out on interference anyway.  No harm done to the game.  The broadcasters asked him about the play after the game.  He said, “Not many fans get to make a Major League putout.”

 

7-13-24

The Astros had buried themselves at the beginning of the season, but have made a dramatic comeback since then.  This game against the Rangers may have been their for sure turning point.  Both teams started off the game with shaky pitching in the first, but what followed was a scoreless nail-biter that played like playoff game.  There were three runs waved off during the game upon review.  The Rangers loaded the bases for three straight innings without scoring.  The Astros had their chances, too.  Finally, the Astros won it in the tenth, 2-1.  This game definitely highlighted the Rangers’ offensive woes. 

 

The Chihuahuas played against Clayton Kershaw on rehab in OKC.  Under new management, they are no longer called the Dodgers, though.  They’re going by “The Oklahoma City Baseball Club,” until they settle on a new name next year.  Lame.

 

Chihuahuas players were asking the manager to be put in the game to face Kershaw.  He didn’t disappoint.  He faced 9 batters in three innings and struck out 5 with 1 walk.  A batter challenged the call on one of his pitches.  Kershaw chuckled and, of course, got the call.  After he was out of the game, fans crowded around just watching him throw a few pitches in the bullpen. 

 

I should mention this was the same day as the Trump assassination attempt.  I was completely unaware of it while listening the Ranger game earlier.  I’d called dad to give him a breathless account of the game.  He answered with, “Well, Trump got shot today.”   Later in the OKC game, they sang God Bless America and the crowd broke into a “U-S-A, U-S-A!” chant.

 

7-19-24

On the MLB.TV free game tonight, the Pirates come back from 3 runs down twice tonight to win, 8-7.  In the bottom of the ninth with the winning run on third, Nick Gonzales only needed to see one pitch to walk it off with a hit.  Nick, of course, was an Aggie star player that I’d seen in person, so I was genuinely thrilled with the outcome. There was a huge crowd there in Pittsburgh for fireworks after the game.

 

And then the agony of defeat.  It was a 2-2 game between the Chihuahuas and Sugarland.  The pups went up by 2 in bottom of the eighth.  In the top of the ninth with two on and two out, there was a dropped third strike.  I could tell by the way Tim Hagerty called it, that something weird was about to happen.  The catcher’s throw to first was dropped and the runner reached safely.  What followed was 5 unearned runs and a 7-5 loss.  (There were 4 strikeouts in the inning.)  There were lots of boo’s from the El Paso crowd following this one.  (And it gets worse.) 

 

7-22-24

“Nikky G” does it again with the game-winning hit.  This time it was against the Cardinals.  I had a day of Free MLB.TV and got to watch several games, including a couple of extra innings games.  Nick Gonzales got his clutch hit in the bottom of the eighth.  David Bednar closed it out in the ninth.  I couldn’t resist writing to my Cardinal-loving Aunt Judy to brag about my former Aggie doing well.  I hope she’s still talking to me.  I did notice that Nick is still using the same walk up music that he was using at NMSU.  (Unfortunately, I don’t know the name of the song.)

 

7-26-24

The Chihuahuas set an ignominious franchise record tonight—their eighth-straight loss.  That wouldn’t be something you’d want to remember, but for how it happened.  In the bottom of the ninth with two on and two out, a flyball to the outfield by the Salt Lake City Bees was dropped by Oscar Mercado, who had pinch hit the previous inning.  Both runs scored and the Bees had a walkoff 4-3 win.  Tim Hagerty was incredulous (as was the Bees’ announcer, who I also heard).  You’d think after that dropped third strike incident, he’d be more nonchalant about it.  (Mercado started in the outfield the next night.  Unsurprisingly, the Bees kept hitting it out to him.) 

 

Mike Trout was on a rehab assignment with the Bees to start the week.  Unfortunately that only lasted two innings before he re-tweaked his injured knee and had to come out.  The Bees sold 5,000 advance tickets on Sunday before his first game on Tuesday.  The large crowd gave him a big cheer after making a couple of putouts in the first inning and for his first at bat.  Even without him, the crowds there in Salt Lake sounded large and enthusiastic.  (And why not?  They were winning.)

 

The first big trade deadline deals also happened on the 26-th.  The Rays threw in the towel on the season, as they dealt off Randy Arozarena to the Mariners and the Orioles picked up Zach Eflin.  The M’s desperately needed the bat, as they’d lost the AL West lead from their anemic hitting.  The O’s needed some more pitching.  Both teams may not be done.

 

7-28-24

The Rangers and the Blue Jays played their series finale.  After yesterday, where Michael Lorenzen started and threw 40 pitches and only got two outs, today, Jon Gray didn’t even get that far.  He was pulled after pulling his groin after his final warm up pitch.  Worse, after two losses, the broadcasters had tabbed this as a must win before the Trade Deadline, if the Rangers were going to try and add pieces to save their season. 

 

After Gray came out, Lorenzen immediately lobbied Bochy to get into the game, which he did later, but by that point the game was out of hand.  It was a three-game sweep.  Lorenzen did go four innings and gave up only one run to get his confidence back.  And then he was traded the next day to the Royals for a Triple-A pitcher.  The Rangers do have some injured players coming back soon.

 

Meanwhile, Danny Jansen went from the Blue Jays to the Red Sox.  The Jays been losing pieces steadily over the last couple of days.  The Rays and the White Sox traded some losing pieces. 

 

Overlapping the Rangers’ game, the Chihuahuas experienced their first six-game series sweep as they lost their tenth in a row.  In the evening, I got to listen to the ESPN game.  The big news was that Jazz Chisholm went from the Marlins to the Yankees.  (What happened to the Marlins?)  Jazz got to the park just before the game started.  What was usually a 20-minute drive from Logan Airport to Fenway Park in Boston, but took over two hours because of a massive traffic jam.  Red Sox fans will apparently do anything to try and keep the Yankees from beating them.  (It didn’t work.  They got crushed.)

 

7-29-24

Lots of trades today.  In addition to trading Michael Lorenzen, the Rangers also picked up Carson Kelly from Tigers for some catching help.  The Cubs acquired Isaac Paredes from Rays.  The Rays are right in the Wild Card race, but figured it was a seller’s market and the franchise would do better by picking up more controllable younger talent.

 

The Cardinals, White Sox, and Dodgers traded a bunch of players with each other and they all ended up with nothing.  The Mariners got more hitting help with Justin Turner from Jays, but also traded Ty France to Reds.  He’d fallen off this season.  (Ty was great with the Chihuahuas.  I got to listen to him play nightly.)  The Astros acquired Yusei Kikuchi from Blue Jays for three prospects for some more pitching.  Likewise, the Brewers got Frankie Montas.  Finally, the Giants traded Jorge Soler and others to Braves.  They may have thrown in the towel on this season.

 

7-30-24

The big news of the day is that the Chihuahuas finally broke out and ended their 10-game losing streak.  In related news, the Padres picked up Tanner Scott for their bullpen.  This deal sent a couple of Chihuahuas to the Marlins.  I should mention that Dylan Cease just pitched a no-hitter for the Padres recently.  The team seems to be on the rise.     

 

Unsurprisingly, on the final day before the Trade Deadline, there were a bunch of trades.  Maybe what was surprising was the lack of big deals.  Two big rumored trade pieces, Tarik Skubal and Vlad Guerrero Jr., were not moved.  Likewise, no top 100 prospects changed teams.  With the expanded playoffs, more teams are still viable, but that also means they don’t want to give up what they have to try and improve.  It’s also reduced the number of non-contending teams with good pieces to trade.

 

In response to the surging Padres, the Dodgers got Jack Flaherty from the Tigers for essentially nothing.  [Edit: Apparently, there were possible medical issues scaring teams off.]  I find it hard to explain that.  If Detroit had sent Skubal to the Orioles, they would have lost this years’ possible Cy Young winner, but they might have gotten Jackson Holiday for him.  [Edit: Don’t listen to me.  Holiday hit a grand slam for the O’s today.]  The Tigers should have been good the last two years.  What’s wrong with them?  (Other than poor trade decisions, like not dealing Eduardo Rodriguez last year, and then not keeping him for this year.) 

 

The Dodgers also acquired Kevin Kiermaier from the Blue Jays.  He’s not the player he used to be, but is a good late innings defensive replacement.  These are the kind of deals you can make when you’re the Dodgers, picking up niche players to patch up little holes in your roster.  The slumping, disappointing Blue Jays, meanwhile, traded off a bunch of players on their team, but kept Vlad, who would have gotten them back someone worthwhile at least.      

 

In other random trades, the Royals picked up a couple of players.  They’re really trying this season.  If they had the money, they would have done something splashy.  As is, they’re just building up decent parts and hoping to squeak into the playoffs.  The D-Backs got Josh Bell.  That deal isn’t as exciting as it was the first three-or-so times Bell was traded.  [Edit: He's there for Christian Walker, who is injured.]  They also picked up A.J. Puk from the Marlins for their bullpen last week.  (Is there anyone good left on the Marlins?  They certainly didn’t need Kim Ng as their GM, if dismantling the team was ownership’s plan.)    

 

The O’s got Eloy Jimenez from the White Sox.  I’m not sure if they needed the bat.  Highly-rated pitcher, Garrett Crochet, might have been a better acquisition, but the Sox didn’t part with him, especially after Crochet said he might not be available to pitch in the postseason.  Once again, the good stuff was held back.  The Pirates acquired Bryan De La Cruz from Marlins.  (They needed pitching, too.)  And, the Giants give up Alex Cobb to Cleveland and gave up on the season in general. 

 

Obviously, it’s too early to rate the impact of these trades.  I didn’t even mention Tommy Pham going back to the Cardinals.  He paid off immediately by hitting a grand slam yesterday for them and going 3 for 4 today (all against the Rangers).  Likewise, Jazz Chisholm has chipped in four home runs for the Yankees.    

I’m inclined to say the Mariners picking up a couple of bats might help them win the AL West.  While the Astros did get some pitching help, I think a team that started off as badly as they did will regress.  If Jazz, Aaron Judge, and Juan Soto can all keep hitting, the Orioles are in trouble, but the O’s did improve themselves, too.  The Dodgers may not be endangered from winning the NL West, but they’d best hope they don’t meet the Padres in the playoffs. 

 

The Rays, White Sox, Marlins, and Blue Jays were sellers in a seller’s market and probably didn’t do much to improve their teams for the future.  If you’re going to be sellers, you probably need to go all-in to get a real return.  Finally, my World Series pick, the Phillies, basically didn’t do anything.  This reminds me of the Orioles last year.  That wasn’t the best strategy.  The Phillies also got swept, if not embarrassed, by the Yankees this week.  That wasn’t the Trade Deadline statement they wanted to make.