Fan Interference

Scouts:  This is officially my second favorite Gif of the 2019 Baseball Season.

Scouts Edit: For those looking for a bigger view of the gif, here’s the large version of J.D. Martinez copping a feel.

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Yankees 10, Red Sox 5 – Scouts: At the beginning of the year, this was supposed to be one of the biggest games of the year.  It was supposed to be two teams battling it out for the division title, preparing for the playoffs.  Instead it was another Yankee blow out, and it was Dave Dombrowski’s final one as a member of the Boston Red Sox.  I guess when you work for Boston, loyalty is short and you are only as good as your last move.  Despite making several key moves last season that led to a championship, this year, only furthered proof that in the end it’s all a crap shoot.  Dombrowski decided to resign Nathan Evaldi and Steve Pearce, both of who spent most of the year injured, and gave Chris Sale a massive extension right before the worst season of his career.

Rangers 10, Orioles 4 – Scouts: Pretty typical game for the O’s, as they continue to work towards the second worst record in baseball 3.5 games behind Detroit.  Nick Solak was all over this one, going 3-4 with 4 RBI’s and a pair of walks.

 

Phillies 10, Mets 7 – Prof: Earlier in the season, a lot of the “smart guys” in baseball picked Philadelphia to win the NL East. How’s that working out for ya? Currently in third place with the Woebegone Mets nipping at their heels, the Phillies keep snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, even with such illustrious players like JT Realmuto and Bryce Harper. Wanna know something fun? Neither one of those guys really did anything in this game. It was Maikel Franco, Scott Kingery, and Aaron Haseley who got the job done.

Blue Jays 3, Rays 8 – Scouts: Tyler Glasnow returned from the 60 day DL and pitched, well okay considering, allowing 1 hit and two runs over 2 innings.  Avisail Garcia provided most of the offense for Tampa, with a 3-4, 3 RBI performance including a two run homer in the 7th.

Diamondbacks 3, Reds 4 – Prof: MICHAEL LORENZEN, you’re amazing! He didn’t even pitch in this game, but the Reds used him as a pinch hitter, and it was his double that scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth. If you’re like me and you love when a pitcher gets to bat, these are golden days indeed. You’ve got Zack Greinke, Shohei Ohtani, and you can add Michael Lorenzen to that group. Oh, and Eugenio Suarez continues to be ridiculous this year with yet ANOTHER home run – 44 for the season. Fun fact: did you know that Suarez’ batting average for the month of September is .400?

 

Royals 0, Marlins 9 – Scouts: Nice game for Sandy Alcantara who picked up the complete game shutout allowing just 4 hits while striking out 8.

 

Nationals 9, Braves 4 – Prof: Earlier, we talked about the Phillies and Mets battling it out for third place. This matchup is a bit more defined. Atlanta has a firm hold on first place, more than ten games ahead of Washington. No shame here, as the Nats continue to battle for a Wild Card spot. Here, they got the best of the Braves. They got hot early against young maple-scented wunderkind Mike Soroka, and Max Scherzer struck out nine. Juan Soto had an oppo homer, but he wasn’t the only one who went yard: Yan Gomes (twice!) and Adam Eaton also turned home plate into a launching pad.

Cardinals 2, Pirates 0 – Scouts: This one was all about Jack Flaherty who struck out 10 over 8 shutout innings allowing just 5 hits.  Pittsburgh never really had a chance.

Angels 1, White Sox 5 – Scouts: Not a banner day for the starters.  Dylan Cease walked 5 in the first two innings and only lasted 3.1 for the White Sox.  Meanwhile Noe Ramirez was out after just two outs recorded.  Jose Abreu has quietly put up another fine season, hitting his 31st home run.

 

Cubs 5, Brewers 8 – Prof: The NL Central is probably the most interesting race in baseball. Between the Cardinals, Cubs, and Brewers, these are some of the hottest teams in baseball, and whichever team doesn’t win the NL Central pennant will be in the lead for the NL Wild Card. This rivalry between the Cubs and Brewers is generally nasty, because Chicago is so close to Milwaukee and the tickets are a lot cheaper than getting them at Wrigley, so these games are packed to the gills with Cubs fans. Brewers fans are usually pretty friendly, even to the away team’s fans, but not so much Chicago interlopers. Even when the teams stink, these are highly contested and fun games to attend. This one, having weight behind it, makes it even more fun. A nice thing to see was that Brent Suter, who had been on the injured list for months, got the win after a flawless two innings. Another nice thing to see was Ben Zobrist back in Cubbie pinstripes, with an RBI double. The Brewers had a four run fourth inning.

Mariners 1, Astros 21 – Prof: [Stefan from SNL voice] Baseball’s hottest club are the Houston Astros. This team has it all: fifteen strikeouts in eight innings, multi-RBI doubles, fielder’s choice RBI, multi-RBI homers, scoring thanks to an error, Jake From State Farm, four game sweeps, and Gerrit Cole having a hell of a birthday!

 

Spiders 5, Twins 2 – Scouts: This was a very important series for the Twins, who blew a golden opportunity to put significant distance between themselves and the team from Cleveland.  Minnesota still has a 5 and a half game lead, but dropping two of three isn’t a good sign at this point in the season.

Tigers 1, Athletics 3 – Prof: Good news – Sean Manaea struck out ten in seven innings, matching his career high and showing that he’s good to go after shoulder surgery. Bad news – El Tigre has now lost 100 games on the season. That’s just pathetic. They’ve lost even more than the Orioles, whom everyone knows are the worst of the worst. But are they, really? Only one way to find out, I guess. Wiffle Ball tourney between Detroit and Baltimore!

Rockies 1, Padres 2 F/10 – Scouts: Colorado continues to get kicked around by what’s seeming the be the entire NL, this time watching as Wil Myers put up a three hit performance, including the walk off single in the 10th.

Giants 0, Dodgers 5 – Prof: The Magic Number is Two. This is how good the Dodgers are – they can use Kenta Maeda in long relief. Maeda would be a rotational guy for at least half of the teams in the league but the Dodgers use him as a mop up guy. Maeda got the win after four sparkling clean innings. Corey Seager and Matt Beaty homered.