Texas #44: Austin W-0000000000000-D

NOT KERRY, NOT BRANDON, BUT AUSTIN WOOD. On Saturday of last week, Texas beat Boston College 3-2 in a marathon 25 innings, the longest in NCAA history. And somewhere in the middle of all of that, Texas Longhorn relief pitcher Austin Wood threw 12 innings of no-hit ball and 13 shutout innings. Think about that. Wood threw a total of 169 pitches, which amounts to 13 pitches an inning, very efficient and perhaps the reason why he was left out there for so long. Wood is no Steven Strasburg, but on that particular night, Wood pitched the game of his life.

Kendry Morales the Getaway Jet!

MY 3-YEAR OLD LIKES TO WATCH Jay Jay the Jetplane. Personally, I find it a little eery looking at giant faces mounted on the front of airplanes, but my son doesn't seem to mind. So when Kendry Morales walked up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth, tie game, bases loaded on getaway day sporting a new thick, dark goatee, I figured something was due to happen. No way they wanted to take a flight out of town after getting swept by Seattle. Shortly thereafter, a squibbler past the shortstop, the Halos were ready for takeoff.

Rick Porcello's Postgame Coca-Cola!

IMAGINE BEING 20 YEARS OLD in the Big Leagues and running off a 5-game winning streak. Rick Porcello and his devastating sinker has been one of the feel good stories of the first half. Not since the likes of Doc Gooden have we seen such a young arm, so successful, so quickly. It's gotta be a nightmare for opposing hitters facing Verlander's high heat and Porcello's sinker. If not GM, at least Detroit's starting pitchers are motoring along quite nicely these days.

Carlos Zambrano Is Dynamite

CARLOS ZAMBRANO IS A RARITY. Yesterday's explosion after failing to tag out Nyjer Morgan at the plate was reminiscent of his manager, Lou Pinella. Zambrano ejected homeplate umpire Mark Carlson , slammed his glove into the brick wall, threw a ball into the outfield and took his signature hacks at the Gatorade cooler. It was over the top, comical. I haven't quite pinpointed what differentiates this guy from other hotheads in baseball. He's such a dynamite player in every kind of way. Dynamite pitcher. Dynamite hitter. Dynamite explosive. So what makes him different than a Milton Bradley? If anything, at least Zambrano owned up to his mistakes afterwards.

Milton Bradley Pours on the Gasoline

IT'S THE KIND OF THING YOU READ ABOUT and instantly frown upon, that is, Milton Bradley blaming the umpires for his recent slump—a victim's mentality. If Bradley thinks the umpires are expanding his strike zone as a personal vendetta, wouldn't spilling it to the press just irritate the umpires even more? As Lou Pinella said it, "Blaming the umpires isn't a good solution."

Chicago Cubs Game Day Buddy

THEY'RE ACTUALLY KINDA COOL, those Bullpen Buddy blow-up batters that act as a decoy for pitching practice. Obviously they don't swing the bat, but from this past week, the Chicago Cubs offense might as well have been Bullpen Buddies or perhaps Game Day Buddies. Five runs in the last six games? It wasn't as if the pitching was struggling either, sporting a decent 3.67 ERA on the roadtrip. Sure, the Bucs are coming to town, but their pitchers have been impressive on more than one occasion this year. Should make for more angst in Wrigleyville.

Yankee Stadium Home Run Balls

BASEBALL FANS POKE FUN AT STADIUMS like Coors Field or Citizens Bank Ballpark as launching pads for home runs, but new Yankee Stadium looks like the latest and greatest of such pads. Home runs are flying out of the Bronx box at about four per game, twice as many as the old stadium last year. In other words, over 320 fans will leave the stadium with a souvenir home run ball, more than anywhere else in big league history.

Tony Gwynn: Father & Son

IF YOU FOLLOWED BASEBALL anytime during Tony Gwynn's career, at some point you probably became a fan of his hitting prowess, and if not that, his personality. So when I heard about the trade that sent Tony Gwynn Jr. to San Diego and Jody Gerut to Milwaukee, I couldn't help but smile. But it won't be easy at all for Junior. The comparisons are bound to become more intense with him in San Diego now. No, Junior will never be as great a hitter as his dad, but at least the legacy of Senior will live on.

Jake Peavy and the Twins Deny the White Sox

TALK ABOUT A DOWNER OF A DAY, it doesn't get much worse for a team to get thumped by a division rival and then turned down on a trade approval, but that's exactly what happened to the White Sox today. The Twins had been struggling, especially after those three consecutive walk-off losses to the Yanks, so they pretty much took it out on the Sox, crushing them 20-1. Then the Sox get the news that Padres ace Jake Peavy rejects their trade offer. It makes you wonder how it all unfolded. Was Peavy sitting in the clubhouse watching Sportscenter replay highlights of the Twins/Sox blowout and taking a sweet-talk call from White Sox GM Kenny Williams? Probably not, but today's news was nothing short of comical genius.

Three Consecutive Yankee Walk-offs

THE ONLY THING that would have been more incredible about the three consecutive Yankee walk-off victories over the weekend is if it had happened during a postseason. Even so, with all the shenanigans that have occurred off the field in the Bronx this year, this is one of those series that you talk about for a long time like the '78 Boston Massacre. Hats off the Girardi for navigating the team through a tough series, and if you're human, you can't help but feel for Twins manager Ron Gardenhire, one of the most respected and even-keeled skippers in the game.

John Lackey's Nearsightedness

I LOVE JOHN LACKEY'S STUFF especially his dominance of the Rangers over the years, but what he pulled on Saturday against them was just dumb and costly machismo. Not buying into his attempt at denial. It's what every pitcher spews out to avoid a fine. Why in the world would you throw behind someone's head (which almost always results in a miss, thankfully) AND THEN take another shot at the body, in this case, plunking Ian Kinsler in the ribs? That's ASKING to get tossed, which is precisely what happened. If Lackey was upset at Kinsler's two jacks on Friday, why not just plunk him in the ribs and forego any risk of getting thrown out of the game? Why? Because Lackey has no long-term perspective. The cost: perhaps another fine start by Lackey and eight, count 'em, 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 innings of work from your bullpen. And yes, it's Sunday and the Rangers just completed a sweep of the Angels. Somebody get Lackey his new prescription for nearsightedness quick!

Chris Coghlan's Ransom Phone Call

I UNDERSTAND IT WHEN A FAN tries to trade a significant home run ball for some form of memorabilia, like one of the player's bats, a signed baseball or an autographed photo. But what the fan did who caught Chris Coghlan's first homer was nothing short of a ransom. It's one thing to ask for one of the aforementioned items and another to ask that player to secure one of his teammates bats and demand tickets to future games. And that the fan turned out to be a police officer didn't help boost confidence in our peace officers. Who am I kidding, this is a fallen world for sure. I'm just glad Mr. Coghlan got his home run ball back so that he could give it to his mom who has supported him through all the years.

Hey, Who Turned Off Big Papi?

IT WAS AN UGLY DAY AT THE PLATE for Big Papi, an 0 for 7 with 12 men left on base. The Red Sox lost 5-4 in extra innings to the Angels on thursday, and somebody must have turned off Big Papi just prior to the game, or, actually since the season began. Is David Ortiz washed up at the young age of 33? Not yet washed up, but his best days are behind him.

Grand Theft Contact

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT, there were two recent incidents involving umpire contact. Last week Jerry Manuel bumped umpire Bill Welke's cap with his own, drawing a fine and a one game suspension. And on Wednesday, umpire Paul Schrieber put his hand on Magglio Ordonez's back while Ordonez was arguing balls and strikes with him. Schrieber will likely be fined as well, and his actions were deemed extremely rare for an umpire. Although the amounts are typically undisclosed, such seemingly small and innocent contacts probably amount to three to four digit fines, and you could almost see the fines popping up as if in a videogame.

Ryan Zimmerman Walks Away with 30

RYAN ZIMMERMAN'S HITTING STREAK ENDED yesterday at 30 games and I couldn't help but notice the 2 walks. Some say a walk is as good as a hit, but not this streak. Still 30 games is a nice run, but I'm sure Zimmerman would trade it for 10 more wins.

The Big Unit: A Giant Among Giants

IT WASN'T PRETTY but Randy Johnson picked up his 298th career win on Monday over Daniel Cabrera and the Washingon Nationals. Turns out it was one of the tallest matchups in baseball history with Johnson at 6'-10" and Cabrera at 6'-9". That's a whole lot of tall!

Juan Pierre Gets His Day

SINCE MANNY RAMIREZ'S SUSPENSION, Juan Pierre has shown us how good a player he can be when he's on top of his game—getting on base, slashing the ball, stealing bases and scoring runs. Some people think there is no place in baseball for a speedy outfielder who slashes and dashes, sports a low on-base percentage and has a subpar arm, which is all the more amazing how Pierre was able to play every single game for five straight seasons ('03-07). But long before Juan Pierre's arrival there was a guy by the name of Willie Wilson who played 19 seasons in the big leagues. Yes, how soon we forget. Good to see No. 9 running out there again.

Dom DiMaggio: 1917-2009

Glad You're Ok, Rick Ankiel

REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING RICK ANKIEL back on the field again after that frightening crash into the outfield wall earlier this week. It's one thing to have your entire body slamming into the wall to dampen the impact and another to have the head and neck bent by the wall. Who said baseball isn't a contact sport? Ankiel's hustle wasn't as evident during his days as a pitcher and is now greatly appreciated and admired by baseball fans. Rick Ankiel was meant to play ball, and thankfully will continue to do so for many more years.

MannyQuake

THERE'S SO MUCH SPECULATION OUT THERE about who might be juicing, but it's like an earthquake or a bombshell every time a big name is exposed. Today it's Manny Ramirez's turn.
Sooner or later every fan ought to ask of themselves why baseball is still worth watching after it's been dragged thru the mud perhaps more times than all of the other major sports combined. It's disappointing for sure. But if it means the sport will get cleaner as a result, then it'll be well worth sticking with it. How much more can baseball take?

Mike Napoli Revealed

LAST YEAR VLADIMIR GUERRERO, known for wearing a Superman t-shirt underneath his BP jersey and hence the nickname "Super Vlad", bought a bunch of Superman shirts for some of his Latino teammates. Having overheard Vlad's shopping plans, Mike Napoli asked in on it and was granted one of the shirts. I have no idea if he really wears it underneath his jersey, but one thing's for sure, Mike Napoli is quickly becoming one of the best hitting catchers in baseball. If you thought Mike Piazza had crazy power, Napoli's homerun power is displayed with a quick flip of the wrist, whereas Piazza's was a full-bodied uppercut.

Napoli was supposed to be an afterthought to the up-and-coming Jeff Mathis, but after his first few weeks in 2006, it quickly became clear that he possessed two great hitting tools: power and plate discipline. Despite striking out a lot and hitting for low average, the Angels noticed that Napoli kept getting on base, scored frequently, and hit the ball hard when he did make contact. Fast forward to today and you're looking at a rare offensive catcher who will be doing a lot of damage for years to come.

Carl Crawford Steals the Pants off Varitek

SO IMPRESSIVE, YET NOT AT ALL SURPRISING that speedster Carl Crawford ripped off six bags in a single game yesterday, tying a record that had only been reached four other times in major league history—and he didn't even know of it until being interviewed after the game. The Rays actually stole a total of eight bags off of Red Sox captain Jason Varitek with nobody getting caught. Man, what a rough day behind the plate for Varitek who isn't the best at throwing out runners. In one day, Varitek's percentage of throwing out runners dropped from 28% to 21%. In other words, he had the pants stolen off him!

LA+HOME=WIN

DODGER FANS ARE SITTING PRETTY alongside their team atop the NL West after a 15 win April, but moreso because the Dodgers are undefeated at home thus far. Walking back to your car after a win is so much better than after a loss. No trash talk to deal with from opposing fans and a great vibe running thru the stadium. Hey, in LA it almost makes the drive home a bit better...almost. So hats off to LA on a great start at home even if it was only at the expense of the Padres, Rockies and Giants.

Slumpbusters

AS IF IT COULDN'T GET ANY WORSE for Alex Rodriguez, Selena Robert's in her forthcoming book, A-ROD: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez, claims that A-Rod intentionally tipped pitches to opposing hitters during his days as a Texas Ranger. It's one thing to juice up on your own, but another to intentionally hurt the work of your own teammates. Bush league stuff and hopefully not something that's prevalent out there. But am I just kidding myself?