Major League Baseball: 2019 Season

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Amazing. Each game in the Reds/Mets 4 game series were decided by 1 run. And back-to-back 1-0 games to finish it off, with the teams splitting them.

Game 1: 5-4 Reds
Game 2: 4-3 Mets
Game 3: 1-0 Reds
Game 4: 1-0 Mets

On a pretty cool note, Castillo was named the March/April National League Pitcher of the Month.
 
Reds blew an 8-0 lead tonight. The Giants hit a game tying home run with 2 outs in the 9th off of Iglesias. It ended after 11 innings with a Reds 1-run...loss, 12-11. :grumpy:

Some notes about the game: Dietrich hit a 3-run shot in the 1st inning and followed it up with another 3-run bomb in the 3rd. Senzel made his Major League debut. His stat line was 1-5 with 2 walks and a run scored. His 1st career hit was effectively a swinging bunt that rolled halfway towards 3rd base. In a game where the offense scored a whopping 12 runs, Votto somehow went 0-7 for only the 2nd time in his career. The Reds left a TON of guys on base late in the game, including leaving the bases juiced in the 9th. Gray pitched okay, mostly one rough inning in the 4th where he gave up 3 runs. Unfortunately he was not rewarded the win because the bullpen uncharacteristically got beat around. I'm sure they need a break after so much usage. Too bad the next off day isn't until a week from Monday.

So, in short, the offensively challenged Reds scored a bunch of runs and still managed to lose by their usual 1 run because the pen imploded. Awesome.
 
Another big lead tonight for the Reds. This time, they didn't blow it. The Reds hit 5 dingers tonight, including Senzel getting his 1st career.

In what will be a theme for their 150th season, the Reds wore throwback jerseys tonight. They featured their uniforms from the 1902 season. Very cool.
 
I think this whole Mexico Series deal is pretty fun. I was rather surprised at how much Astros fans in America and Mexico embraced this brief two-game set. The Astros were bombing balls out of the park early and often to coast to a 14-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (or are they just the Los Angeles Angels these days?). Alex Bregman had multiple jacks in this game. I'll let you know if we take the series or settle for a split in my next series summary.

As kind of a fun fact, Astros' Hall of Famer Craig Biggio got his 2000th hit in career outside of the United States in 2001. We took on the Montreal Expos (now the Washington Nationals) then. B-G-O, of course, would eventually knock down 3000+ hits in an excellent career. I think I heard pitcher Wade Miley is one of a few players to play baseball in four different countries even playing in last night's game in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico.


Enjoy your Cinco de Mayo baseball today!
 
Another big lead tonight for the Reds. This time, they didn't blow it. The Reds hit 5 dingers tonight, including Senzel getting his 1st career.

In what will be a theme for their 150th season, the Reds wore throwback jerseys tonight. They featured their uniforms from the 1902 season. Very cool.
At least you won and have an offense. The Mets psychological problems continue as they cannot hit anymore and their pitching is getting hung out to dry. I am still under the belief that Callaway will be fired before the end of the year.
 
Quick recap of today's game:

Reds batting in 1st inning: single, homer, homer, homer. The back-to-back-to-back homers all happened on consecutive pitches. Score 4-0 with no outs in the game. Good start.
Giants batting 6th inning: Castillo was cruising, having not allowed a hit yet. That vanished with a couple of hits, walk, and homer. Game tied at 4 apiece.
Giants batting 9th inning: Iglesias gives up another home run, this one going for 2 runs.
Reds batting 9th inning: Reds have not had a hit since the last homer in the 1st inning. Farmer hits one with 2 outs. Groundout ends game.

Final score: 6-5 Giants.
Yup, ANOTHER 🤬, 🤬,🤬, 🤬 1-run loss.
 
Why don't we play some baseball in México? That's what the Astros and Angels did this weekend in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Here now is my summary...

GM1 HOU vs. LAA: (14-2; Houston)
GM2 HOU vs. LAA: (10-4; Houston)

Though Houston is closer to Monterrey than Anaheim is, we were the "road" team in this match. I was tickled pink with the Astros hitting plenty of jacks in this contest. There was like... maybe five bombs by the Astros in Game 1 of this series. Alex Bregman accounted for two of the homers the Astros hit in Game 1. The biggest damage in Game 2 was by Alex Bregman, hitting a go-ahead Grand Slam that would essentially put the Astros up for good in Game 2. Great news also for the Astros was Ryan Pressly passing Roy Oswalt for the most successive scoreless innings pitched in Astros history with about 33 straight innings (R. Oswalt had about 31 or so). It was a happy time for the Astros. We are now 20-14 on the 2019 season so far and still leading the AL West. Seattle is kind of cooling off but still is an AL West threat. But again... this was a fun series!

Up next for the Houston Astros... México was cool, but home is cooler. So we're coming back to Houston to host the 12-23 Kansas City Royals for a three-game set starting tomorrow night.


Congratulations to all other series winners as well as those who won today/tonight.


[UPDATE] Pressly had 33 straight scoreless innings, not 32. Changes made.
 
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The Reds game is in a delay in Oakland because a section of the outfield lights will not come on. This comes a day after they had a delay for BEEEEES on the field. Speaking of which, I forgot to recap yesterday's game. I was at work, so I missed it unfortunately. The Reds' bats came alive yet again, and this time the pitching did not blow it (Iglesias is unhappy about his role right now though, believing he shouldn't be coming in during tie games when he's the closer...sour grapes for poor pitching, methinks :rolleyes:). Oh, and Senzel hit career home runs #2 and #3 as well. He's already been such a boost for the team since coming up.

Derek Dietrich was amusing yesterday during the delay. :lol:
 
I want to take a moment to acknowledge Mike Fiers on throwing Major League Baseball's 300th No-Hitter. Fiers threw a no-no when he was with my Houston Astros back in 2015 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Sadly among us GTPlaneteers, Fiers' latest no-no happened as his Oakland Athletics blanked Dolph Drago's Cincinnati Reds 2-0. Dang... the Redlegs can't catch a break.

Anyhow... I hope you enjoy some Wednesday (or "Hump Day") baseball! I'll provide a summary of my Astros hosting the Kansas City Royals once that game ends tonight.
 
Yep, score 37 runs in the series against the Giants, then can't manage a single hit as soon as they hit the west coast. That's the Reds for you.
 
This latest series summary is of the Houston Astros hosting the Kansas City Royals...

GM1 KC at HOU: (6-4; Houston)
GM2 KC at HOU: (12-1; Kansas City)
GM3 KC at HOU: (9-0; Houston)

Really bad weather hit the Houston area on Tuesday night, and there was apparently bad weather inside Minute Maid Park when the Royals smashed the Astros. Tuesday was just awful. It was probably a good thing I didn't see any TV thanks to the bad weather on Tuesday, because I would have hated to see the Astros get hammered the way they did. I didn't even listen to AM 790 here in Houston, which broadcasts Astros games on the radio. We returned the favor earlier tonight with a resounding 9-0 win. It began with a leadoff homer by George Springer to start the game. We did hit back-to-back jacks later in the game. We were able to sink the Royals tonight and take the series in the series' Rubber Game. The 2019 Houston Astros so far are 22-15 and leading the AL West. The 2019 Kansas City Royals, however, still have the worst record among AL teams now at 13-25. The team currently with the worst record in the MLB overall is the Miami Marlins at 10-26.

Up next for the Houston Astros Baseball Club... after failing in both series at Texas, let's see if HOSTING Texas will improve our chances. Four-game set starting tomorrow night here in Houston against the Texas Rangers.


Congratulations to all other series winners and those who won today/tonight.


[OMISSION] TWO Grand Slams were hit by Kansas City in Game 2 of 3 as part of the Astros getting thrashed on Tuesday night.
 
Brew Crew blanked the Cubs 7-0 at Wrigley earlier today, Gio got his first win & Braun was the only one to go yard. Seven game winning streak, maybe they are trying to match the intensity of the Bucks (first team to make it to the CF in the NBA).
 
Well, like I said earlier, the NL Central is going to be fun to watch this season. I'm pretty certain the NL Central will get in the Division winner and maybe one or two Wild Card berths to this season's postseason. Maybe the Brewers could find their way into the postseason come September. So... keep the good times rolling, Milwaukee Brewers fans!
 
The Battle for the Silver Boot resumes between the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers. This time, in Houston. The Rangers lead this season series 4-2. Could the Astros pull even in this four-game set? Series summary:

GM1 TEX at HOU: (4-2; Houston)
GM2 TEX at HOU: (3-0; Houston)
GM3 TEX at HOU: (11-4; Houston)
GM4 TEX at HOU: (15-5; Houston)

So make that 6-4, Astros as far as the Silver Boot season series is concerned. An early candidate for "Play of the Year" had to be on Thursday night as severe storms rolled into Houston. Rain still fell into Minute Maid Park despite the fact our ballpark is a retractable roof ballpark. People had to clear out to avoid getting wet. Even still, the "Play of the Year" nominee for 2019 was when Josh Reddick robbed former Astro Hunter Pence of a potential go-ahead three-run homer even with that rained out part of the park. Reddick was all fired up afterwards. A cool story of the 4th game was the Major League debut of local Houston talent Corbin Martin on Mother's Day with his parents watching him make his MLB debut. Boy, did Martin ever get some run support! George Springer collected five hits in Game 4. The Texas Rangers fall to 17-20 on the season so far, and my Houston Astros still lead the AL West and with an overall record of 26-15.

Up next for the Houston Astros Baseball Club... hey, Detroit! Do you mind if we come to your house and play baseball? That's right- H-Town meets MoTown to start a six-game road trip starting tomorrow. The Houston Astros will meet the Detroit Tigers at lovely Comerica Park. Sadly, we'll have to do so without José Altuve, who was scratched from the Mother's Day game with hamstring soreness.


Elsewhere...

* Remember when Boston sucked for most of the season so far? Well, the defending champs got their groove back and then some. It wasn't as severe a beatdown as the Astros on the Rangers today, but they did spank the Mariners 11-2 today in Fenway Park. BOS' winner was Hector Velazquez. SEA's loser was Marco Gonzales.

* How about Boston's best friends? You know- the New York Yankees? The Yanks did good with a 7-1 blowout at the Tampa Bay Rays. The winner for the Yankees was Masahiro Tanaka. Blake Snell was the loser for the Rays.

* Another AL East team to talk about is the Toronto Blue Jays. Canada's only remaining MLB team failed today hosting the Chicago White Sox 5-1. The White Sox won with Lucas Giolito. For the losing Blue Jays, Aaron Sanchez took the loss.

* My Astros get Detroit next, but the Tigers won 5-3 at the Minnesota Twins. Daniel Norris got the win for DET along with a Save from Shane Greene. It was Martin Perez who was Minnesota's losing pitcher today.

* The only National League representative of completed games as of the time of this post was the Philadelphia Phillies. The Fighting Phils won 6-1 at the Kansas City Royals. PHI's winner was Cole Irvin. The loser for KC was Jakob Junis.


Congratulations to all other series winners and those who won on Sunday. The Miami at New York Mets game was postponed.


[UPDATE] Forgot to mention the HOU at DET series starts on Monday.
 
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I wouldn't be shocked if Shane Greene and Matt Boyd both get traded at some point in the season. Boyd has been the only consistent starter for the Tigers at this point of the season, and Greene has been the only half decent closer that the Tigers have had in the past couple seasons of closer by committee.
 
If Shane Greene and Mike Boyd do get traded, I'd be interested to see who on the market would replace them. Either Detroit could find some good pitching in a trade or maybe look into their farm system.

I nowadays do series summaries rather than discuss individual games. However, I must note that I saw for the first time live an inside-the-park home run. It was George Springer with a different kind of "Springer Dinger" when he knocked an extra base hit at Detroit. He rounded the bases successfully to get himself an inside-the-park home run in the Astros' 11-4 victory at Detroit last night. I'll have the series summary of HOU at DET once this series concludes.

Elsewhere, I read Vladimir Guererro Jr. went yard twice for the Toronto Blue Jays recently. It's always great to see young talent try to make their mark.


You all enjoy some Wednesday (or "Hump Day") baseball today/tonight!
 
The first stop of this two-city road trip for the Houston Astros started in Detroit against the Detroit Tigers. How did H-Town do in MoTown? Summary:

GM1 HOU at DET: (8-1; Houston)
GM2 HOU at DET: (11-4; Houston)
GM3 HOU at DET: (5-1; Houston)

The Houston Astros swept the Tigers in this series. Memorable for me was George Springer getting himself an inside-the-park Home Run in Game 2 of this series. It was always great to see Justin Verlander play against his former team. That was the treat in Game 3 of this series. Verlander is currently an Astro, but he did a majority of his damage with the Detroit Tigers. Justin Verlander with the Astros has a feeling I've been used to- seeing someone who played for your favorite team but then has greater success with another. Case in point- Justin Verlander going from Detroit to Houston, and then winning a championship with the Houston Astros in 2017. With the sweep, the Astros beat Detroit by a combined 24-6. I like Detroit aside from my Astros, so I wish Detroit well the rest of this season. Detroit falls to 18-23, 4th in the AL Central and 8.5 games back of the division-leading Minnesota Twins. For my Astros, we are now 29-15 on the season and still lead the AL West.

Up next for the Houston Astros... 'dem Astros. 'Dem Red Sox. 'Dat Fenway Park. The last time the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox met, they hammered us in the 2018 ALCS in five games. The Astros will be looking for revenge in this three-game set against a much improved Red Sox team compared to earlier this season. The action begins on Friday in Boston. And after this series, we'll welcome the same Boston Red Sox to Minute Maid Park back in Houston later this month.


I hope your favorite team(s) is/are doing well. Congratulations to all other recent series winners as well as those who won today/tonight, including the Cincinnati Reds taking down the Chicago Cubs in extra innings in Cincinnati.
 
Often times in the Sports forum of GTPlanet, I make assessments. So here is my latest one involving the Houston Astros. Since my Astros are not playing today or tonight, this is my chance to basically share what my favorite team is up to and how they are doing so far.

The 2019 Houston Astros are currently 29-15. They just got through sweeping the Detroit Tigers in Detroit in a three-game series. This follows up on a sweep of the Texas Rangers at home. Some locals here in Houston think this is probably the best the Astros have ever been in the nearly 60 years the franchise has been around. That not only applies to how they've done recently, but really the past few years culminating with their 2017 World Series triumph. The team went from losing 100+ games for three successive seasons to becoming a true powerhouse. Too bad 2019 started so slowly with a 2-5 record, losing a four-game series at Tampa Bay to start the season followed by a three-game series loss at the Texas Rangers. Houston still kept the awesomeness going with lots of game-winning magic. Maybe their hot form of late has stemmed from when they blew out the Los Angeles Angels in the two-game Mexico Series. George Springer has asserted himself with a good number of leadoff home runs this season. The little giant José Altuve banged nine jacks to start this season. The likes of Carlos Correa and Yuli Gurriel have also contributed nicely. A guy I'm starting to like on the Astros a lot is Aledmys Diaz for his timely hitting. Pitching is still a strong suit for the Houston Astros. It's still The Verlander and Cole Show as our two best pitchers. And really, Gerritt Cole is a better pitcher than what his 4-4 record indicates.

According to Yahoo! Sports, the Houston Astros are 1st in MLB for batting average (.282), runs (245), and WHIP (1.04). We are 5th, however, in ERA with a 3.52 ERA. I would argue if there is any time to be an Astros fan, it's now. They are fun to watch and have such unique chemistry. I've only followed the Astros since about 2003 or 2004 or so- back when they were in the National League Central. So I didn't get to see the Astros of Nolan Ryan, J.R. Richard, José Cruz, or countless other Astros' legends. All I know is that this stretch for the Houston Astros may be the best ever since debuting in 1962 as the Houston Colt .45s. This team really believes they can "Take it Back" after falling short in last season's postseason.


My Houston Astros will start a three-game weekend series at the defending champion Boston Red Sox this weekend. If you would like to make your own assessment of your favorite team(s), please go ahead. Or otherwise enjoy the Thursday action.
 
This gif is very fitting for the Twins series against Seattle.

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Just tonight they've scored 10 runs and it's only the 4th inning!
 
Good grief! My Astros hung five on the Red Sox in the first inning alone! I hope the Twins don't blow this lead (14-0, MIN Twins in the Top 5th as of the time of this post).
 
The Houston Astros battled the defending champion Boston Red Sox in Boston this weekend. Here is how this three-game set ended:

GM1 HOU at BOS: (3-1; Houston)
GM2 HOU at BOS: (7-3; Houston)
GM3 HOU at BOS: (4-3; Boston)

The 10-game winning streak, and a possible perfect road trip, were both snapped in the series finale. Game 1 was mostly a pitching duel until a few runs were finally scored late. The key to the nationally-televised Game 2 win for the Astros was Houston hanging five runs on the Boston Red Sox in the first inning alone. George Springer had to come out of Game 3 with an injury (lower back). The Astros, unfortunately, couldn't sweep Boston and this road trip. Despite that, we're returning to Houston with a 31-16 record and still leading the AL West. We currently have the best record in the league at 31-16. The Los Angeles Dodgers also have 31 wins, but they have one more loss than the Astros, sitting currently at 31-17.

Up next for the Houston Astros Baseball Club... we start a long 10-game home stand against three different teams. Starting tomorrow night, we host a four-game set against our opponents from the 2005 World Series- the Chicago White Sox. We then spend Memorial Day weekend at home hosting the Boston Red Sox in a three-game weekend set. And to conclude this homestand, this would be a regular NL Central match if we were still in the National League. But... it's Interleague the following week when the Chicago Cubs come on down to H-Town. First things first, though- CHW at HOU for four games.


Congratulations to all recent series winners and everyone else who won today/tonight.
 
The Twins won 16-7 and hit 8 home runs. They've also stretched their lead to 8 games over Cleveland. It's going to be very tough when they remember they're a Minnesota team, but until than I'm going to enjoy every second of this ride! :lol:
 
Let's see what happens when you put the Chicago White Sox and the Houston Astros on a baseball ballpark and have them play against each other. Series summary:

GM1 CHW at HOU: (3-0; Houston)
GM2 CHW at HOU: (5-1; Houston)
GM3 CHW at HOU: (9-2; Chicago White Sox)
GM4 CHW at HOU: (4-0; Chicago White Sox)

It is a series split for the Astros and White Sox. Justin Verlander could have had himself a no-hitter in Game 2 had he not given up a solo homer in the 7th inning even with Nolan Ryan in the house at Minute Maid Park. Just decimation by the White Sox on Wednesday in Game 3. That decimation included the White Sox getting a Triple Play and hitting a Grand Slam on us. Game 4? Absolute 🤬 show by the Astros. Couldn't do anything (besides fail, of course). And on top of that, the Astros' streak of games with at least one homer was snapped in this series finale. The Houston Astros are now 33-18 and still leading the AL West. We lead by seven games over 2nd Place AL West Texas.

Up next for the Houston Astros... the Astros' fascination with Sox continues, now that the Boston Red Sox will come on down to H-Town for a three-game weekend series. We won the last series, and the Red Sox surely will want revenge series-wise.


Elsewhere...

* I want to spare some thoughts for the New York Mets. Even though the Mets won 6-4 today hosting , Yoenis Cespedes will likely miss the rest of the season after needing surgery from an accident he suffered at his ranch. By the way, the Mets swept the Washington Nationals in this series, and the Washington Nationals are now 12 games under .500, the worst since about 2010. I bet the Nationals wish they still had Bryce Harper at this point.

* Talk about two teams going in two different directions. The Miami Marlins defeated the Detroit Tigers 5-2 in Interleague play in Detroit. Miami has very few wins so far this season. The Miami Marlins, whom have the fewest Home Runs scored so far this season, have won six straight games. The Tigers of MoTown, however, have now lost nine straight.


Congratulations to all recent series winners as well as those who won today/tonight.
 
Detroit desperately needs to get some offense. The inability to hit has absolutely decimated the team.
As a Reds fan, I feel your pain. Only the Reds actually have plenty of offensive power, they just can't put it together most games this season for whatever reason.
 
Time for another summary. This time, Boston at Houston...

GM1 BOS at HOU: (4-3; Houston)
GM2 BOS at HOU: (4-3; Houston)
GM3 BOS at HOU: (4-1; Boston)

First to four wins the game, I guess. Astros take two out of three in Houston, just like they did in their series at Boston. I hope David Price will be alright after having to leave Game 2 with flu-like symptoms. Sadly, the Astros got bit by the injury bug again as A. Diaz had to leave in Game 3 of this series with hamstring discomfort. Astros couldn't sweep the Red Sox. Again. That's okay- we still won the series. Also, we're still atop the AL West by seven games over Oakland. Our record is now 35-19. However, we don't have the best record in all of baseball. That distinction goes to the 36-16 Minnesota Twins.

Up next for the Houston Astros... what would be an NL Central Division match in the old days, is now Interleague play as we host the Chicago Cubs for a three-game set starting on Monday.


Elsewhere...

* I heard the 2019 Baltimore Orioles have become the quickest to allow 100 home runs through only 48 games. So I guess you shouldn't be surprised if you go yard against the O's. Baltimore is currently 16-37 on the season- the worst record in baseball at present. Baltimore has three more losses than the 16-14 Miami Marlins (worst record of NL teams). Baltimore will have their next series in Baltimore against AnthonyD1993 and Joey D's Detroit Tigers for a three-game set. The fun starts tomorrow!

* Dolph Drago's Cincinnati Reds won their three-game set at the Chicago Cubs. It was a 6-5 win in Game 1 on Friday, Cubs winning 8-6 on Saturday, and an convincing 10-2 Reds win today. Up next for the Redlegs... they'll host the next-to-last NL Central Pittsburgh Pirates for three games starting tomorrow.

* The Minnesota Twins tied the MLB record for being the quickest to 100 home runs. They've done so in about only 50 or so games this season. Minnesota has really come alive this season. My Astros know full well about how beast the Twins are this season. Maybe a changing of the guard in the AL Central after Cleveland used to be the AL Central team to beat? Twins ballin'.

* Toronto is all smiles with their NBA team making the NBA Finals, but what about their baseball team? Well, Barra333's Blue Jays avoided getting swept by the San Diego Padres on Sunday with a 10-1 victory. The Blue Jays lost 6-3 this past Friday and a 19-4 demolition yesterday. Toronto is 21-32 on the season, 4th in the powerful AL East. Their next series is a three-game set starting tomorrow at the Tampa Bay Rays.


Congratulations to all other series winners and those who won today/tonight.
 
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