Baseball Daily Dose: Dose: Miggy Joins the 400 Club
Sunday, May 17, 2015
If April showers bring May flowers, then what do May showers bring?
Rain delays and lots of ‘em. Across Major League Baseball, there were three on Saturday.
Not all rain delays are created equal. Some are worth the wait. Others aren’t.
Saturday’s Cardinals/Tigers game was too good to leave early. But even if you didn’t stay for the whole thing, at least you saw a bit of history.
Before the tarp went on, Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera launched a first-inning homer to center field, his tenth of the season. But more importantly, it was the 400th home run of his career.
Barry Bonds won’t lose any sleep over this. Cabrera is still 362 homers behind him. But at least Cabrera can hang his hat on being Venezuela’s all-time home run king. Cabrera earned that distinction Saturday by passing former Expos and Rockies great Andres Gallaraga. He also joined Jimmie Foxx, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle, Frank Robinson and Ted Williams as one of only six players in MLB history to reach 400 homers, hit for the Triple Crown and win multiple MVPs. Five of those six are enshrined in Cooperstown. The sixth will get there as soon as he’s eligible.
Cabrera’s productive Saturday continued a season-long trend. His batting average in day games this year is .452. Compare that to his mediocre .194 clip at night. Only one of Cabrera’s ten homers has come after dark.
Most of the hardware in his trophy case pertains to hitting, but Cabrera can still win games with his glove. After the rain delay, Cabrera made a great catch in foul ground and finished the play by throwing out a runner at third base.
Saturday featured an unusually erratic David Price. The Tigers lefty missed his spots all afternoon, allowing three home runs. The last time Price gave up that many homers was July 19, 2013 against Toronto. Fortunately for Price, Jose Iglesias won the game for Detroit with an RBI single in the 10th inning.
Editor’s Note: Play one-day fantasy baseball for cash! FanDuel is hosting a $20,000 league for Sunday’s MLB games. It’s just $2 to join and first place wins $2,000. Starts today at 1:10pm ET. Enter now!
Giancarlo Does it Again
The Marlins signed Giancarlo Stanton to a 13-year, $325 million contract this past offseason.
What a bargain.
Stanton continued his daily routine of stretching the laws of physics Saturday with a home run that landed 475 feet from home plate. Four of Stanton’s last six hits have gone over the fence with three of them traveling in excess of 465 feet. One of Stanton’s fly-outs Saturday went 428 feet. That’s longer than all of Jose Bautista’s home runs this season.
Stanton came along at the right time in human history. His prime has coincided perfectly with the golden age of social media. Everything this guy hits goes viral.
Saturday’s home run was special, not just because the ball almost landed in the next solar system, but because of Ryan Carlos Mont’s incredible catch in center field. No need to Google him: Mont isn’t on the Marlins roster. He’s just a very brave fan who risked his life to catch Stanton’s home run over the center field railing. Mont went old school, making the catch with his bare hand.
Too bad Stanton’s nature-defying blast was spoiled by another poor outing by Mat Latos. The Braves have had his number all year. In three starts against them, Latos is 0-3 with a 16.43 ERA. In his other five starts, he’s 1-1 with a 2.73 ERA. Latos had a scary moment when a line drive hit off his shin, but it only bruised him.
Atlanta scored four of its five runs on a grand slam by Jace Peterson. It was the rookie second baseman’s first career homer. The Braves are now 6-2 versus the Marlins and just 11-17 against the rest of the league.
The Triumphant Return of Hunter Pence
Let’s face it. Baseball wasn’t the same without Hunter Pence. After being sidelined two months by a broken forearm, the league’s quirkiest superstar returned on Saturday.
Summer can start now.
The Giants’ frizzy-haired right fielder started his season with a bang, scoring three times in an 11-2 win over Cincinnati. Pence went 2-for-3 with a double as San Francisco pulled within four and a half games of the first-place Dodgers.
Brandon Crawford, one of three players to hit a grand slam on Saturday, finished the night with a career-high six RBI. That’s the most RBI by a Giants shortstop since Juan Uribe drove in six runs as part of a 13-0 win over the Cubs on September 23, 2010.
Buster Posey supplied two singles in the victory, raising his season average to .292. That’s the highest it’s been since April 12.
Mets Win Big Over Brew Crew
The Mets entered the day on a five-game losing streak, but you wouldn’t know it by the way they stomped the Brewers Saturday at Citi Field.
Ten of New York’s season-high 14 runs came in the fourth inning. One more and they would have tied the team record for most runs in a single inning. That mark was set on July 16, 2006.
Wilmer Flores plated four with his second career grand slam. Meanwhile, New York’s starting pitcher, Jacob deGrom, exploded for three hits, doubling his season total. Before Saturday, the Mets had just ten runs combined in their previous five games.
The Brewers fell to 13-24 after Saturday’s rout. Only the A’s have a lower winning percentage.
American League Quick Hits: Ubaldo Jimenez took the loss Saturday, dropping him to 0-5 all-time against the Angels. His ERA in those five starts is 5.34 … Angels starter Matt Shoemaker gave up his 11th home run of the season Saturday. That leads the American League … The Red Sox and Mariners honored the Negro Leagues by wearing special 1940s throwback uniforms on Saturday. The Red Sox wore Boston Royal Giants jerseys while the Mariners were in Seattle Steelheads gear … David Ortiz continues to own Felix Hernandez. After going 2-for-2 Saturday, Big Papi is now 15-for-38 (.395) against him with two homers and seven RBI … Not that anyone expected Jackie Bradley Jr. to get a hit off King Felix but the Red Sox outfielder is now hitless in his last 28 at-bats dating back to last season. He’s struck out nine times over that stretch … Mariners center fielder Austin Jackson (sprained right ankle) began a rehab assignment Saturday, going 2-for-4 in his first game for Triple-A Tacoma. He can come off the disabled list as early as Tuesday … CC Sabathia has won two straight after dropping his first five decisions. Six of his last seven starts have come on the road … Astros DH Evan Gattis broke out of a 2-for-23 slump with two hits Saturday against Toronto. One of them was his seventh home run of the season … Here’s another odd twist to the never-ending Josh Hamilton saga. Apparently the Angels wouldn’t let Hamilton clear the air with owner Arte Moreno even though he tried several times … Mike Wright will make his major league debut for the Orioles on Sunday. Bud Norris is out with bronchitis while Chris Tillman is dealing with a stiff back. Wright is the Orioles’ seventh-best prospect according to MLB.com … Death, taxes and the A’s losing close games: those are your guarantees in life. After losing 4-3 to the White Sox Saturday, Oakland is now 1-13 in one-run games … Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis has reached base at least three times in seven straight games, the longest streak since David Wright did the same thing in 2009. Check out Kipnis’ slash line for the month of May: .517/.586/.833. Is that even possible?
National League Quick Hits: Mets starter Dillon Gee (groin) went 4 1/3 innings Saturday in a rehab start for High-A St. Lucie. He scattered six hits and one earned run … Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos has the longest active hitting streak in the major leagues at 18 games. He’s hit .371 during the streak (26-for-70) … Bryce Harper’s breakout year continued Saturday with his 13th home run. That’s the same number he had last season … Max Scherzer fanned 11 hitters Saturday against San Diego. It’s the 28th time he’s reached double-digit strikeouts … Padres outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A El Paso on Monday. He’s been dealing with a left foot injury since spring training … Cubs rookie Kris Bryant reached base four times on Saturday. That’s the fifth time he’s done that this season, second in the league behind Dee Gordon and teammate Anthony Rizzo. The 23-year-old has quietly become Chicago’s most reliable hitter … Jon Lester notched his 1,500th strikeout on Saturday. He’s the 200th pitcher to reach that milestone … Giants third baseman Casey McGehee hit into his 12th double play on Saturday. That ties him with Braves shortstop Andrelton Simmons for the league lead … Saturday was Archie Bradley’s first start since getting hit in the face with a line drive. The Diamondbacks rookie only lasted two innings, allowing four runs and five hits before getting the hook … Diamondbacks third baseman Yasmany Tomas belted his first career homer Saturday against the Phillies. It came on a 95 mph fastball from Ken Giles … Saturday marked Grady Sizemore’s first four-hit game since August 21, 2008 … Matt Holliday has reached base safely in all 34 games this year. That’s the second-longest streak in team history behind Albert Pujols, who opened the 2008 campaign with a 42-game streak … You probably remember Laurence Leavy, aka Marlins Man, from last year’s World Series. He wore his signature orange Marlins jersey to the Preakness Saturday, successfully photo-bombing American Pharaoh as he crossed the finish line in first place.
If April showers bring May flowers, then what do May showers bring?
Rain delays and lots of ‘em. Across Major League Baseball, there were three on Saturday.
Not all rain delays are created equal. Some are worth the wait. Others aren’t.
Saturday’s Cardinals/Tigers game was too good to leave early. But even if you didn’t stay for the whole thing, at least you saw a bit of history.
Before the tarp went on, Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera launched a first-inning homer to center field, his tenth of the season. But more importantly, it was the 400th home run of his career.
Barry Bonds won’t lose any sleep over this. Cabrera is still 362 homers behind him. But at least Cabrera can hang his hat on being Venezuela’s all-time home run king. Cabrera earned that distinction Saturday by passing former Expos and Rockies great Andres Gallaraga. He also joined Jimmie Foxx, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle, Frank Robinson and Ted Williams as one of only six players in MLB history to reach 400 homers, hit for the Triple Crown and win multiple MVPs. Five of those six are enshrined in Cooperstown. The sixth will get there as soon as he’s eligible.
Cabrera’s productive Saturday continued a season-long trend. His batting average in day games this year is .452. Compare that to his mediocre .194 clip at night. Only one of Cabrera’s ten homers has come after dark.
Most of the hardware in his trophy case pertains to hitting, but Cabrera can still win games with his glove. After the rain delay, Cabrera made a great catch in foul ground and finished the play by throwing out a runner at third base.
Saturday featured an unusually erratic David Price. The Tigers lefty missed his spots all afternoon, allowing three home runs. The last time Price gave up that many homers was July 19, 2013 against Toronto. Fortunately for Price, Jose Iglesias won the game for Detroit with an RBI single in the 10th inning.
Editor’s Note: Play one-day fantasy baseball for cash! FanDuel is hosting a $20,000 league for Sunday’s MLB games. It’s just $2 to join and first place wins $2,000. Starts today at 1:10pm ET. Enter now!
Giancarlo Does it Again
The Marlins signed Giancarlo Stanton to a 13-year, $325 million contract this past offseason.
What a bargain.
Stanton continued his daily routine of stretching the laws of physics Saturday with a home run that landed 475 feet from home plate. Four of Stanton’s last six hits have gone over the fence with three of them traveling in excess of 465 feet. One of Stanton’s fly-outs Saturday went 428 feet. That’s longer than all of Jose Bautista’s home runs this season.
Stanton came along at the right time in human history. His prime has coincided perfectly with the golden age of social media. Everything this guy hits goes viral.
Saturday’s home run was special, not just because the ball almost landed in the next solar system, but because of Ryan Carlos Mont’s incredible catch in center field. No need to Google him: Mont isn’t on the Marlins roster. He’s just a very brave fan who risked his life to catch Stanton’s home run over the center field railing. Mont went old school, making the catch with his bare hand.
Too bad Stanton’s nature-defying blast was spoiled by another poor outing by Mat Latos. The Braves have had his number all year. In three starts against them, Latos is 0-3 with a 16.43 ERA. In his other five starts, he’s 1-1 with a 2.73 ERA. Latos had a scary moment when a line drive hit off his shin, but it only bruised him.
Atlanta scored four of its five runs on a grand slam by Jace Peterson. It was the rookie second baseman’s first career homer. The Braves are now 6-2 versus the Marlins and just 11-17 against the rest of the league.
The Triumphant Return of Hunter Pence
Let’s face it. Baseball wasn’t the same without Hunter Pence. After being sidelined two months by a broken forearm, the league’s quirkiest superstar returned on Saturday.
Summer can start now.
The Giants’ frizzy-haired right fielder started his season with a bang, scoring three times in an 11-2 win over Cincinnati. Pence went 2-for-3 with a double as San Francisco pulled within four and a half games of the first-place Dodgers.
Brandon Crawford, one of three players to hit a grand slam on Saturday, finished the night with a career-high six RBI. That’s the most RBI by a Giants shortstop since Juan Uribe drove in six runs as part of a 13-0 win over the Cubs on September 23, 2010.
Buster Posey supplied two singles in the victory, raising his season average to .292. That’s the highest it’s been since April 12.
Mets Win Big Over Brew Crew
The Mets entered the day on a five-game losing streak, but you wouldn’t know it by the way they stomped the Brewers Saturday at Citi Field.
Ten of New York’s season-high 14 runs came in the fourth inning. One more and they would have tied the team record for most runs in a single inning. That mark was set on July 16, 2006.
Wilmer Flores plated four with his second career grand slam. Meanwhile, New York’s starting pitcher, Jacob deGrom, exploded for three hits, doubling his season total. Before Saturday, the Mets had just ten runs combined in their previous five games.
The Brewers fell to 13-24 after Saturday’s rout. Only the A’s have a lower winning percentage.
American League Quick Hits: Ubaldo Jimenez took the loss Saturday, dropping him to 0-5 all-time against the Angels. His ERA in those five starts is 5.34 … Angels starter Matt Shoemaker gave up his 11th home run of the season Saturday. That leads the American League … The Red Sox and Mariners honored the Negro Leagues by wearing special 1940s throwback uniforms on Saturday. The Red Sox wore Boston Royal Giants jerseys while the Mariners were in Seattle Steelheads gear … David Ortiz continues to own Felix Hernandez. After going 2-for-2 Saturday, Big Papi is now 15-for-38 (.395) against him with two homers and seven RBI … Not that anyone expected Jackie Bradley Jr. to get a hit off King Felix but the Red Sox outfielder is now hitless in his last 28 at-bats dating back to last season. He’s struck out nine times over that stretch … Mariners center fielder Austin Jackson (sprained right ankle) began a rehab assignment Saturday, going 2-for-4 in his first game for Triple-A Tacoma. He can come off the disabled list as early as Tuesday … CC Sabathia has won two straight after dropping his first five decisions. Six of his last seven starts have come on the road … Astros DH Evan Gattis broke out of a 2-for-23 slump with two hits Saturday against Toronto. One of them was his seventh home run of the season … Here’s another odd twist to the never-ending Josh Hamilton saga. Apparently the Angels wouldn’t let Hamilton clear the air with owner Arte Moreno even though he tried several times … Mike Wright will make his major league debut for the Orioles on Sunday. Bud Norris is out with bronchitis while Chris Tillman is dealing with a stiff back. Wright is the Orioles’ seventh-best prospect according to MLB.com … Death, taxes and the A’s losing close games: those are your guarantees in life. After losing 4-3 to the White Sox Saturday, Oakland is now 1-13 in one-run games … Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis has reached base at least three times in seven straight games, the longest streak since David Wright did the same thing in 2009. Check out Kipnis’ slash line for the month of May: .517/.586/.833. Is that even possible?
National League Quick Hits: Mets starter Dillon Gee (groin) went 4 1/3 innings Saturday in a rehab start for High-A St. Lucie. He scattered six hits and one earned run … Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos has the longest active hitting streak in the major leagues at 18 games. He’s hit .371 during the streak (26-for-70) … Bryce Harper’s breakout year continued Saturday with his 13th home run. That’s the same number he had last season … Max Scherzer fanned 11 hitters Saturday against San Diego. It’s the 28th time he’s reached double-digit strikeouts … Padres outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A El Paso on Monday. He’s been dealing with a left foot injury since spring training … Cubs rookie Kris Bryant reached base four times on Saturday. That’s the fifth time he’s done that this season, second in the league behind Dee Gordon and teammate Anthony Rizzo. The 23-year-old has quietly become Chicago’s most reliable hitter … Jon Lester notched his 1,500th strikeout on Saturday. He’s the 200th pitcher to reach that milestone … Giants third baseman Casey McGehee hit into his 12th double play on Saturday. That ties him with Braves shortstop Andrelton Simmons for the league lead … Saturday was Archie Bradley’s first start since getting hit in the face with a line drive. The Diamondbacks rookie only lasted two innings, allowing four runs and five hits before getting the hook … Diamondbacks third baseman Yasmany Tomas belted his first career homer Saturday against the Phillies. It came on a 95 mph fastball from Ken Giles … Saturday marked Grady Sizemore’s first four-hit game since August 21, 2008 … Matt Holliday has reached base safely in all 34 games this year. That’s the second-longest streak in team history behind Albert Pujols, who opened the 2008 campaign with a 42-game streak … You probably remember Laurence Leavy, aka Marlins Man, from last year’s World Series. He wore his signature orange Marlins jersey to the Preakness Saturday, successfully photo-bombing American Pharaoh as he crossed the finish line in first place.
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service – if this is your content and you’re reading it on someone else’s site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.
