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cknox0723 · 07-14-2004, 01:30 AM

The third and final game, the rubber match of our home series with Detroit, is the first with a pitching matchup that seems even. And Jorge DePaula versus Jeff Suppan isn't the matchup to make announcers swoon, but at least we both have a reasonable chance to win. However, I'd much prefer Good Jorge to show up for the fifth straight time.

A leadoff single by Jermaine Dye makes me think otherwise, but the 1-2 count on which it occured proves to be a much better indicator, as DePaula proceeds to strike out both Omar Infante and Pudge. He puts the inning to rest by inducing Rondell White to hit a weak grounder to second base, and we head to the bottom of the first.

And the game moves into The Twi-Night Zone, where up is down, down is up, and Jeff Suppan strikes out Jeremy Reed and Magglio Ordonez. Mericfully, the whiffs are sandwiched around a single by D.Y., and a four pitch walk to Brad Fullmer gives us a true Twi-Night Zone threat. Of course, Joe Crede flies out to right to end the inning, begging the question of whether or not we're actually in an alternate reality.

And it remains unanswered in the second inning. DePaula starts off strong by getting Adrian Beltre to top a slider and bounce to the left side, but Joe "I'm Going To Screw Up In Every Way Imaginable" Crede throws the ball into the stands, and instead of an out, there's a Tiger on second. Reed Johnson bounces to second, moving Beltre to third, and Carlos Pena works a six pitch walk to put runners at the corners with one out for Jason Alfaro. He bounces out to the drawn in infield, and it appears we'll get out of it. But The Possessed Bat of Jeff Suppan hammers a 2-0 changeup off of the left-center field fence, and all of a sudden we're down two. Jermaine Dye flies out on the next pitch to end the inning, but it's cold comfort.

The bottom of the order does its best in the bottom half of the inning, but a screaming shot from Ramon Vazquez and a couple of hits by A Sandwich and A Hacker all end up as a big '0' when Jeremy Reed grounds out to second to end the inning.

DePaula, obviously, seems pretty dejected about the way things are shaking out, and he takes the out to the mound with him for the third inning. Predictably, Omar Infante cracks a shot on DePaula's first pitch of the inning, but Ramon Vazquez makes a diving stop and throws a strike to first to rob the shortstop of a base hit. Renewed, DePaula strikes out Pudge and gets Rondell to ground out. It seems we've gotten some momentum. It seems to carry over into the bottom half, as Fullmer and Ordonez get on base after D.Y. grounds to short, but Joe "I'm Throwing The Game" Crede hits into a 5-4-3 double play and I need a hug.

The emotionally unstable DePaula gets a couple of ground balls to, of all people, Joe Crede to get the first two Detroit hitters out in the fourth, but then three straight Tigers line base hits, undoubtedly because Crede is tipping the pitches. The third of those hits is the second of the game by the pitcher Suppan (?), and it plates Carlos Pena to make it three to zilch. Jermaine Dye gets a 4-pitch free pass, and when DePaula falls behind 2-1 to Omar Infante, I know something's seriously wrong. His next pitch is lined into center field, scoring two. Pudge grounds out to second two pitches later to surprisingly end the inning, but now it's 5-0.

The game should be over, but Suppan continues to insist on giving us opportunities. He surrenders a two-out single to Hacktastic Julio and proceeds to walk the pitcher DePaula on five pitches. Jeremy Reed works a full count, but I fully expect him to strike out. He indeed stares at strike three, right on the inside corner, but umpire Dana DeMuth disagrees and calls it ball four. That loads the bases for D.Y.. He promptly takes two strikes, fouls off a slider, and then takes a huge cut at a fastball only to ground it to first. That'd end the inning, but Carlos Pena forgets to actually catch the ball, allowing everyone to reach base and Lugo to score. Of course, just as I'm starting to think that something might be going right, Magglio Ordonez strikes out to end the inning. But we've got a run, so that's something.

DePaula gives up a couple of long fly balls to start off the fifth, but both end up enrobed in leather. And a Reed Johnson walk proves meaningless as Carlos Pena strikes out on three pitches, the third being a fastball over his head, to end the inning.

And Suppan sees the bottom of the fifth as the perfect time to let us close the deficit a bit. He starts off the inning by missing badly with his first two pitches, and then hangs a slider. Brad Fullmer puts it into the right field seats for his first longball of the year, and it's 5-2. The next batter is the lovely Joe Crede, who tries to make an out, but his soft liner makes its way into the outfield. Ramon Vazquez follows with a solid single over shortstop, and we've got a threat. Except our next two batters are Mike Piazza and Julio Lugo, and they both make outs. We end up with runners at the corners and two outs with the pitcher's slot due up, so I call on The Big Hurt. He pushes Suppan's pitch count up over 100, but flies out and we come away (relatively) empty.

Joe Roa comes in for the sixth and fans Jason Alfaro, but of course Jeff Suppan not only hits for himself but singles to center. But against non-pitchers, Roa is fine, as he fans Jermaine Dye on three pitches and gets Omar Infante to fly out to end the inning. And The Twi-Night Zone returns in the bottom of the sixth as a fatiguing Suppan still manages to set down the top of our order without breaking a sweat. The Ground-Ball Machine of Roa keeps us in it through the seventh, and on comes Jack Cressend to pitch for Detroit in the pivotal bottom of the seventh inning.

Joe "Sax's Revenge" Crede grounds out to first to start the seventh, but Ramon Vazquez singles to give us a baserunner. Mike Piazza follows, and I consider a stolen base, hit and run, or plain old pinch-hitter. I do nothing, fully expecting an inning-ending double play. And that's just what Sausage, Peppers, And Onions does, but Jason Alfaro tries to make the flip to second before he has the ball, and instead bobbles it. Everyone's safe, but all that does is give Julio Lugo his own chance to end the inning with a double play. Cressend gets a 2-2 count on him, but bounces a slider, presumably assuming Hacktastic Julio would chase it. He doesn't, and the ball bounces by Pudge, a rare passed ball that is absolutely huge, allowing both runners to move up and eliminating the rally-killer. With the pressure off, Lugo hits a sacrifice fly on the next pitch to make it 5-3. Joe Borchard pinch-hits for Roa, but grounds out to short to end the inning.

I bring in Shingo Takatsu, but for the second straight day, he struggles, giving up a single, a bunt single, and after falling behind 2-0 to pinch-hitter Junior Spivey, a two-run double. By the time the inning reaches an end, it's 10-3. Joe "I Just Suck" Crede strikes out with two men on to end a minor threat in the eighth, and after two straight hits by Detroit to start off the ninth, I mutter a few choice words and bring in Enrique Wilson to pitch. And he retires the next three batters in order.

We fail to come back in the ninth and lose 11-3, meaning that Detroit's taken two out of three from us despite the series taking place in Chicago. Disappointing, but I'm more interested in Enrique Wilson's pitching success. His ERA in two appearances this year? 0.00. Hmmm....

DET 11 CHW 3

WP: J. Suppan (2-3) - 6 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 6 K, 116 pitches, 3-3, 3 RBI (a perfect example of why ERA can sometimes be a SOC -- Suppan pitched pretty poorly today, and that's being kind -- but his ERA dropped!)
LP: J. DePaula (2-5) - 5 IP, 6 H, 5 R. 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K (new nickname - Shafted Jorge - since his record is a complete miscarriage of justice)

Game Ball Goes To... Joe Crede, hahahaha. Just kidding. Certainly not Shingo Takatsu, either - he gave up six runs and got three outs. I'll begrudgingly give it to Carlos Pena, who had three hits and scored three runs.

Code:

STANDINGS, BECAUSE THIS IS JUST SO INTERESTING

Kansas City Regal Ones....24-23 (--)
Minnesota Twinbills.......24-23 (--)
Cleveland Tribe...........25-24 (--)
Detroit Felines...........19-28 (5 GB)
Chicago Pale Hose.........15-31 (8.5 GB)

And Barry Zito of the Minnesota club is out for a month and a half or so with a pulled bicep muscle. Uh, does this mean we can still make a run??

Craig

07-14-2004, 01:30 AM	#211 (permalink)
cknox0723 All Star Starter Join Date: May 2003 Location: NJ Posts: 1,957 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	panning the crowd for a pun The third and final game, the rubber match of our home series with Detroit, is the first with a pitching matchup that seems even. And Jorge DePaula versus Jeff Suppan isn't the matchup to make announcers swoon, but at least we both have a reasonable chance to win. However, I'd much prefer Good Jorge to show up for the fifth straight time. A leadoff single by Jermaine Dye makes me think otherwise, but the 1-2 count on which it occured proves to be a much better indicator, as DePaula proceeds to strike out both Omar Infante and Pudge. He puts the inning to rest by inducing Rondell White to hit a weak grounder to second base, and we head to the bottom of the first. And the game moves into The Twi-Night Zone, where up is down, down is up, and Jeff Suppan strikes out Jeremy Reed and Magglio Ordonez. Mericfully, the whiffs are sandwiched around a single by D.Y., and a four pitch walk to Brad Fullmer gives us a true Twi-Night Zone threat. Of course, Joe Crede flies out to right to end the inning, begging the question of whether or not we're actually in an alternate reality. And it remains unanswered in the second inning. DePaula starts off strong by getting Adrian Beltre to top a slider and bounce to the left side, but Joe "I'm Going To Screw Up In Every Way Imaginable" Crede throws the ball into the stands, and instead of an out, there's a Tiger on second. Reed Johnson bounces to second, moving Beltre to third, and Carlos Pena works a six pitch walk to put runners at the corners with one out for Jason Alfaro. He bounces out to the drawn in infield, and it appears we'll get out of it. But The Possessed Bat of Jeff Suppan hammers a 2-0 changeup off of the left-center field fence, and all of a sudden we're down two. Jermaine Dye flies out on the next pitch to end the inning, but it's cold comfort. The bottom of the order does its best in the bottom half of the inning, but a screaming shot from Ramon Vazquez and a couple of hits by A Sandwich and A Hacker all end up as a big '0' when Jeremy Reed grounds out to second to end the inning. DePaula, obviously, seems pretty dejected about the way things are shaking out, and he takes the out to the mound with him for the third inning. Predictably, Omar Infante cracks a shot on DePaula's first pitch of the inning, but Ramon Vazquez makes a diving stop and throws a strike to first to rob the shortstop of a base hit. Renewed, DePaula strikes out Pudge and gets Rondell to ground out. It seems we've gotten some momentum. It seems to carry over into the bottom half, as Fullmer and Ordonez get on base after D.Y. grounds to short, but Joe "I'm Throwing The Game" Crede hits into a 5-4-3 double play and I need a hug. The emotionally unstable DePaula gets a couple of ground balls to, of all people, Joe Crede to get the first two Detroit hitters out in the fourth, but then three straight Tigers line base hits, undoubtedly because Crede is tipping the pitches. The third of those hits is the second of the game by the pitcher Suppan (?), and it plates Carlos Pena to make it three to zilch. Jermaine Dye gets a 4-pitch free pass, and when DePaula falls behind 2-1 to Omar Infante, I know something's seriously wrong. His next pitch is lined into center field, scoring two. Pudge grounds out to second two pitches later to surprisingly end the inning, but now it's 5-0. The game should be over, but Suppan continues to insist on giving us opportunities. He surrenders a two-out single to Hacktastic Julio and proceeds to walk the pitcher DePaula on five pitches. Jeremy Reed works a full count, but I fully expect him to strike out. He indeed stares at strike three, right on the inside corner, but umpire Dana DeMuth disagrees and calls it ball four. That loads the bases for D.Y.. He promptly takes two strikes, fouls off a slider, and then takes a huge cut at a fastball only to ground it to first. That'd end the inning, but Carlos Pena forgets to actually catch the ball, allowing everyone to reach base and Lugo to score. Of course, just as I'm starting to think that something might be going right, Magglio Ordonez strikes out to end the inning. But we've got a run, so that's something. DePaula gives up a couple of long fly balls to start off the fifth, but both end up enrobed in leather. And a Reed Johnson walk proves meaningless as Carlos Pena strikes out on three pitches, the third being a fastball over his head, to end the inning. And Suppan sees the bottom of the fifth as the perfect time to let us close the deficit a bit. He starts off the inning by missing badly with his first two pitches, and then hangs a slider. Brad Fullmer puts it into the right field seats for his first longball of the year, and it's 5-2. The next batter is the lovely Joe Crede, who tries to make an out, but his soft liner makes its way into the outfield. Ramon Vazquez follows with a solid single over shortstop, and we've got a threat. Except our next two batters are Mike Piazza and Julio Lugo, and they both make outs. We end up with runners at the corners and two outs with the pitcher's slot due up, so I call on The Big Hurt. He pushes Suppan's pitch count up over 100, but flies out and we come away (relatively) empty. Joe Roa comes in for the sixth and fans Jason Alfaro, but of course Jeff Suppan not only hits for himself but singles to center. But against non-pitchers, Roa is fine, as he fans Jermaine Dye on three pitches and gets Omar Infante to fly out to end the inning. And The Twi-Night Zone returns in the bottom of the sixth as a fatiguing Suppan still manages to set down the top of our order without breaking a sweat. The Ground-Ball Machine of Roa keeps us in it through the seventh, and on comes Jack Cressend to pitch for Detroit in the pivotal bottom of the seventh inning. Joe "Sax's Revenge" Crede grounds out to first to start the seventh, but Ramon Vazquez singles to give us a baserunner. Mike Piazza follows, and I consider a stolen base, hit and run, or plain old pinch-hitter. I do nothing, fully expecting an inning-ending double play. And that's just what Sausage, Peppers, And Onions does, but Jason Alfaro tries to make the flip to second before he has the ball, and instead bobbles it. Everyone's safe, but all that does is give Julio Lugo his own chance to end the inning with a double play. Cressend gets a 2-2 count on him, but bounces a slider, presumably assuming Hacktastic Julio would chase it. He doesn't, and the ball bounces by Pudge, a rare passed ball that is absolutely huge, allowing both runners to move up and eliminating the rally-killer. With the pressure off, Lugo hits a sacrifice fly on the next pitch to make it 5-3. Joe Borchard pinch-hits for Roa, but grounds out to short to end the inning. I bring in Shingo Takatsu, but for the second straight day, he struggles, giving up a single, a bunt single, and after falling behind 2-0 to pinch-hitter Junior Spivey, a two-run double. By the time the inning reaches an end, it's 10-3. Joe "I Just Suck" Crede strikes out with two men on to end a minor threat in the eighth, and after two straight hits by Detroit to start off the ninth, I mutter a few choice words and bring in Enrique Wilson to pitch. And he retires the next three batters in order. We fail to come back in the ninth and lose 11-3, meaning that Detroit's taken two out of three from us despite the series taking place in Chicago. Disappointing, but I'm more interested in Enrique Wilson's pitching success. His ERA in two appearances this year? 0.00. Hmmm.... DET 11 CHW 3 WP: J. Suppan (2-3) - 6 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 6 K, 116 pitches, 3-3, 3 RBI (a perfect example of why ERA can sometimes be a SOC -- Suppan pitched pretty poorly today, and that's being kind -- but his ERA dropped!) LP: J. DePaula (2-5) - 5 IP, 6 H, 5 R. 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K (new nickname - Shafted Jorge - since his record is a complete miscarriage of justice) Game Ball Goes To... Joe Crede, hahahaha. Just kidding. Certainly not Shingo Takatsu, either - he gave up six runs and got three outs. I'll begrudgingly give it to Carlos Pena, who had three hits and scored three runs. Code: STANDINGS, BECAUSE THIS IS JUST SO INTERESTING Kansas City Regal Ones....24-23 (--) Minnesota Twinbills.......24-23 (--) Cleveland Tribe...........25-24 (--) Detroit Felines...........19-28 (5 GB) Chicago Pale Hose.........15-31 (8.5 GB) And Barry Zito of the Minnesota club is out for a month and a half or so with a pulled bicep muscle. Uh, does this mean we can still make a run?? Craig