#todd duffey

[gameofthunder66]

-watched 2/4/2023- 3 stars- on Hulu

Movie had kind of dumb story to it, but had some funny stuff too.

Office Space (1999) dir. Mike Judge

[byneddiedingo]

Stephen Root in  Office Space (Mike Judge, 1999)

Cast: Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston, David Herman, Ajay Naidu, Diedrich Bader, Stephen Root, Gary Cole, Richard Riehle, Alexandra Wentworth, John C. McGinley, Paul Willson, Todd Duffey, Greg Pitts, Orlando Jones. Screenplay: Mike Judge. Cinematography: Tim Suhrstedt. Production design: Edward T. McAvoy. Film editing: David Rennie. Music: John Frizzell. The floppy disks and the Michael Bolton jokes make us realize that Mike Judge's Office Space was produced 23 years ago. But no one who has ever worked in a cubicle or waited tables at a fern bar will call its satire on marketing gimmicks like "flair" and management busywork like "mission statements" dated. Some things don't change in corporate America. Judge's first feature film reveals his inexperience as a director, but his screenplay still hits a nerve, and he has gone on to a more up-to-date and more sharply satirical view of the tech business in his TV series Silicon Valley. Office Space is not as loosey-goosey as either of Judge's animated series Beavis and Butt-Head or King of the Hill, partly because of tension between Judge and the executives at 20th Century Fox. It benefits mostly from skilled performers like Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston, Stephen Root, Gary Cole, and other members of its ensemble.

[twins2994]

Pirates Double Up Twins 4-2.

Pirates 4 Twins 2 W-Kuhl (2-1) L-Berrios (1-1)

The Pittsburgh Pirates made the trip down to Bradenton to play the Twins for the first time this spring. A low scoring game ensued on a 80 degree day at Hammond Stadium. The Pirates bats got to work in the first inning as Kevin Newman led-off with a single to right. With one out, Colin Moran doubled him home to put the Bucs on the board first. Pittsburgh got back to work in the second. Michael Perez started the rally with a one-out single to center. Tony Wolters lined a base hit to right and Kevin Newman singled home another run. The Pirates had a two-run lead and kept adding on in the third. Todd Frazier walked with one out and Dustin Fowler singled to right. The next batter, Brian Goodwin hit a sac fly to left, which scored the third Pirates run. Pittsburgh had one last rally in them in the fourth. Tony Wolters led-off with a single to right and reached second base on a groundout. Cole Tucker hit an RBI single to right to put the Pirates up 4-0 after four innings of play. Chad Kuhl looked good for the Pirates over three scoreless innings. Sean Poppen fanned three over two innings and the Pirates bullpen was rolling through eight scoreless frames. The Twins bats finally woke up in the ninth. Zander Wiel and David Banuelos walked to start the inning. With two outs, Andrew Romine hit a flyball to right that Cal Mitchell couldn’t find in the sun. The sun double scored Wiel and put the Twins on the board. Drew Maggi lined a base hit to right to score Romine and the Twins were within a pair. Aaron Sobato grounded out to end the game and the Pirates picked up the win today in Fort Myers. 

-Final Thoughts- Jose Berrios got knocked around a bit today. He went four innings and allowed four runs on eight hits with a walk and a strikeout. Alex Colome had a clean fifth, Hansel Robles gave up two hits in the sixth, and Taylor Rogers looked sharp in the seventh. Tyler Duffey struck out two in the eighth. Brandon Waddell had a scoreless ninth. Josh Donaldson led the way with two hits on the day. The Twins hit 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left ten men on base. Jorge Polanco left the game early with adductor tightness. The Twins optioned Nick Gorodn, Travis Blankenhorn, Gilberto Celestino, and Ben Rortvedt before today’s game. Tomorrow, Matt Shoemaker faces Eduardo Rodriguez as the Twins make the trip up to JetBlue Park. 

-Chris Kreibich-

[koreanpike3-blog]

MLB Bullets rings in the new

And a Happy New Year to everyone and may 2019 bring the Cubs another World Series title. Me, I’m still writing 2017 on my box scores.

I’m also pretty sure that’s the first time I’ve shown a photo from the Australian Baseball League for a piece.

Free agent catcher Jonathan Lucroy has gone to be with the Angels. No, he didn’t die. He signed a one-year, $3.35 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels.

The Blue Jays acquired former Cubs pitcher Clayton Richard from the Padres for minor league outfielder Conor Panas.

The Blue Jays also signed pitcher Matt Shoemaker to one-year deal. Shoemaker had been non-tendered by the Angels.

One free agent is definitely signing this week or he isn’t playing in MLB in 2019. Seibu Lions pitcher Yusei Kikuchi has until January 3 to sign with an MLB team or he’s returning to Japan for 2019. Jason Catania has a look at Kikuchi and the teams most likely to sign him. Not surprisingly, they’re all on the West Coast.

The Brewers and Padres are rumored to be the favorite trade destinations for Yankees pitcher Sonny Gray.

The Diamondbacks are reportedly softening on their stance against trading pitcher Robbie Ray and are now listening to offers for the left-hander.

The Twins signed free agent Nelson Cruz to a one-year, $14 million deal last week. Jonah Keri explains why teams aren’t paying for power on the free agent market anymore and he also wonders if the market hasn’t overcorrected and the Twins got a steal.

Twins pitcher Tyler Duffey got a birthday present when Cruz signed with the Twins. He gave up a 493-foot HR to Cruz in 2016 and Duffey is elated he won’t have to pitch to Cruz in 2019.

The Rays were a team that lost out on Cruz and Mike Axisa looks at six hitters the Rays could go for instead of Cruz.

One of those hitters is Mariners DH Edwin Encarnacion, who isn’t expected to stay in Seattle after being traded there earlier this winter. Jon Paul Morosi reports that the Rays, Astros and White Sox have shown the most interest in trading for Encarnacion. Those three teams are also interested in Cardinals first baseman Jose Martinez.

Athletics outfielder Kyler Murray’s NCAA football career came to an end with the Oklahoma Sooners loss to Alabama. Pete Thamel talks to both baseball and football scouts about Murray’s professional prospects and most observers in both sports think he’ll abandon baseball for the NFL. Basically, they think it will be hard for him to go from playing in front of 85,000 football fans to playing for the Beloit Snappers.

Rian Watt has some memories of the recently-retired Miguel Montero and why his memories of the former Cubs catcher mean so much to him.

Dayn Perry has 50 baseball predictions for 2019.

Mike Petriello has five pitchers who should break out in 2019.

Bryan Hoch lists five things the Yankees have yet to do this winter.

And Ken Gurnick has five things the Dodgers should do before Opening Day.

Todd Zolecki has five things for the Phillies to do. Methinks this was an MLB.com assignment to all their beat writers this week. (And yes, Jordan Bastian has five for the Cubs.)

Jake Mintz looks back at Rick Ankiel’s career, his battles with the yips and his re-inventing himself as a hitter.

If you want to know what really goes on at the Winter Meetings, Corey Brock follows a young man around the Winter Meetings who wants to land a job as a baseball broadcaster. (The Athletic sub. req.)

An 88-year-old Astros fan teared up when his family chipped in for a trip to Spring Training for Christmas.

Pirates pitcher Trevor Williams got mistaken for Bryce Harper by his waiter, so Williams told the waiter that he (Harper) was signing with the Yankees.

And finally, one of the biggest story of the weekend was the skies lighting up in New York after a transformer blew. Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard (aka Thor) assured his teammates that he didn’t do it, but that he was willing to help out if they needed him to.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Happy 2019.

Source: https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2018/12/31/18162442/mlb-bullets-jonathan-lucroy-nelson-cruz-yusei-kikuchi-yankees-dodgers-phillies-edwin-encarnacion

[chessgroup69-blog]

MLB Bullets rings in the new

And a Happy New Year to everyone and may 2019 bring the Cubs another World Series title. Me, I’m still writing 2017 on my box scores.

I’m also pretty sure that’s the first time I’ve shown a photo from the Australian Baseball League for a piece.

Free agent catcher Jonathan Lucroy has gone to be with the Angels. No, he didn’t die. He signed a one-year, $3.35 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels.

The Blue Jays acquired former Cubs pitcher Clayton Richard from the Padres for minor league outfielder Conor Panas.

The Blue Jays also signed pitcher Matt Shoemaker to one-year deal. Shoemaker had been non-tendered by the Angels.

One free agent is definitely signing this week or he isn’t playing in MLB in 2019. Seibu Lions pitcher Yusei Kikuchi has until January 3 to sign with an MLB team or he’s returning to Japan for 2019. Jason Catania has a look at Kikuchi and the teams most likely to sign him. Not surprisingly, they’re all on the West Coast.

The Brewers and Padres are rumored to be the favorite trade destinations for Yankees pitcher Sonny Gray.

The Diamondbacks are reportedly softening on their stance against trading pitcher Robbie Ray and are now listening to offers for the left-hander.

The Twins signed free agent Nelson Cruz to a one-year, $14 million deal last week. Jonah Keri explains why teams aren’t paying for power on the free agent market anymore and he also wonders if the market hasn’t overcorrected and the Twins got a steal.

Twins pitcher Tyler Duffey got a birthday present when Cruz signed with the Twins. He gave up a 493-foot HR to Cruz in 2016 and Duffey is elated he won’t have to pitch to Cruz in 2019.

The Rays were a team that lost out on Cruz and Mike Axisa looks at six hitters the Rays could go for instead of Cruz.

One of those hitters is Mariners DH Edwin Encarnacion, who isn’t expected to stay in Seattle after being traded there earlier this winter. Jon Paul Morosi reports that the Rays, Astros and White Sox have shown the most interest in trading for Encarnacion. Those three teams are also interested in Cardinals first baseman Jose Martinez.

Athletics outfielder Kyler Murray’s NCAA football career came to an end with the Oklahoma Sooners loss to Alabama. Pete Thamel talks to both baseball and football scouts about Murray’s professional prospects and most observers in both sports think he’ll abandon baseball for the NFL. Basically, they think it will be hard for him to go from playing in front of 85,000 football fans to playing for the Beloit Snappers.

Rian Watt has some memories of the recently-retired Miguel Montero and why his memories of the former Cubs catcher mean so much to him.

Dayn Perry has 50 baseball predictions for 2019.

Mike Petriello has five pitchers who should break out in 2019.

Bryan Hoch lists five things the Yankees have yet to do this winter.

And Ken Gurnick has five things the Dodgers should do before Opening Day.

Todd Zolecki has five things for the Phillies to do. Methinks this was an MLB.com assignment to all their beat writers this week. (And yes, Jordan Bastian has five for the Cubs.)

Jake Mintz looks back at Rick Ankiel’s career, his battles with the yips and his re-inventing himself as a hitter.

If you want to know what really goes on at the Winter Meetings, Corey Brock follows a young man around the Winter Meetings who wants to land a job as a baseball broadcaster. (The Athletic sub. req.)

An 88-year-old Astros fan teared up when his family chipped in for a trip to Spring Training for Christmas.

Pirates pitcher Trevor Williams got mistaken for Bryce Harper by his waiter, so Williams told the waiter that he (Harper) was signing with the Yankees.

And finally, one of the biggest story of the weekend was the skies lighting up in New York after a transformer blew. Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard (aka Thor) assured his teammates that he didn’t do it, but that he was willing to help out if they needed him to.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Happy 2019.

Source: https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2018/12/31/18162442/mlb-bullets-jonathan-lucroy-nelson-cruz-yusei-kikuchi-yankees-dodgers-phillies-edwin-encarnacion

[changechest3-blog]

MLB Bullets rings in the new

And a Happy New Year to everyone and may 2019 bring the Cubs another World Series title. Me, I’m still writing 2017 on my box scores.

I’m also pretty sure that’s the first time I’ve shown a photo from the Australian Baseball League for a piece.

Free agent catcher Jonathan Lucroy has gone to be with the Angels. No, he didn’t die. He signed a one-year, $3.35 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels.

The Blue Jays acquired former Cubs pitcher Clayton Richard from the Padres for minor league outfielder Conor Panas.

The Blue Jays also signed pitcher Matt Shoemaker to one-year deal. Shoemaker had been non-tendered by the Angels.

One free agent is definitely signing this week or he isn’t playing in MLB in 2019. Seibu Lions pitcher Yusei Kikuchi has until January 3 to sign with an MLB team or he’s returning to Japan for 2019. Jason Catania has a look at Kikuchi and the teams most likely to sign him. Not surprisingly, they’re all on the West Coast.

The Brewers and Padres are rumored to be the favorite trade destinations for Yankees pitcher Sonny Gray.

The Diamondbacks are reportedly softening on their stance against trading pitcher Robbie Ray and are now listening to offers for the left-hander.

The Twins signed free agent Nelson Cruz to a one-year, $14 million deal last week. Jonah Keri explains why teams aren’t paying for power on the free agent market anymore and he also wonders if the market hasn’t overcorrected and the Twins got a steal.

Twins pitcher Tyler Duffey got a birthday present when Cruz signed with the Twins. He gave up a 493-foot HR to Cruz in 2016 and Duffey is elated he won’t have to pitch to Cruz in 2019.

The Rays were a team that lost out on Cruz and Mike Axisa looks at six hitters the Rays could go for instead of Cruz.

One of those hitters is Mariners DH Edwin Encarnacion, who isn’t expected to stay in Seattle after being traded there earlier this winter. Jon Paul Morosi reports that the Rays, Astros and White Sox have shown the most interest in trading for Encarnacion. Those three teams are also interested in Cardinals first baseman Jose Martinez.

Athletics outfielder Kyler Murray’s NCAA football career came to an end with the Oklahoma Sooners loss to Alabama. Pete Thamel talks to both baseball and football scouts about Murray’s professional prospects and most observers in both sports think he’ll abandon baseball for the NFL. Basically, they think it will be hard for him to go from playing in front of 85,000 football fans to playing for the Beloit Snappers.

Rian Watt has some memories of the recently-retired Miguel Montero and why his memories of the former Cubs catcher mean so much to him.

Dayn Perry has 50 baseball predictions for 2019.

Mike Petriello has five pitchers who should break out in 2019.

Bryan Hoch lists five things the Yankees have yet to do this winter.

And Ken Gurnick has five things the Dodgers should do before Opening Day.

Todd Zolecki has five things for the Phillies to do. Methinks this was an MLB.com assignment to all their beat writers this week. (And yes, Jordan Bastian has five for the Cubs.)

Jake Mintz looks back at Rick Ankiel’s career, his battles with the yips and his re-inventing himself as a hitter.

If you want to know what really goes on at the Winter Meetings, Corey Brock follows a young man around the Winter Meetings who wants to land a job as a baseball broadcaster. (The Athletic sub. req.)

An 88-year-old Astros fan teared up when his family chipped in for a trip to Spring Training for Christmas.

Pirates pitcher Trevor Williams got mistaken for Bryce Harper by his waiter, so Williams told the waiter that he (Harper) was signing with the Yankees.

And finally, one of the biggest story of the weekend was the skies lighting up in New York after a transformer blew. Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard (aka Thor) assured his teammates that he didn’t do it, but that he was willing to help out if they needed him to.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Happy 2019.

Source: https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2018/12/31/18162442/mlb-bullets-jonathan-lucroy-nelson-cruz-yusei-kikuchi-yankees-dodgers-phillies-edwin-encarnacion

[thisdaynews]

How Schumer might get the last laugh on impeachment trial

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/how-schumer-might-get-the-last-laugh-on-impeachment-trial/

How Schumer might get the last laugh on impeachment trial

“I am hopeful that we can reach an agreement on how to proceed with the trial that will allow the opportunity for witnesses for both the House managers and the president’s counsel if they choose,” Collins said in a statement for this story. “It is unfortunate that Chuck Schumer — who voted against witnesses in the Clinton trial and prejudged its outcome — and his allies are seeking to politicize this process.”

Trump national security adviser John Bolton’s offer to testify gives some momentum to Democrats’ calls for witnesses and documents about the White House’s decision to withhold aid to Ukraine. Democrats also want to hear from acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, Office of Management and Budget official Michael Duffey, and Mulvaney adviser Robert Blair.

“If the Republicans ram through process that ultimately leads to no witnesses, I think they do it at their own peril,” said Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), a former chairman of the party’s campaign arm. “Some of these members: They have an audience of one. But I think they forgot that there’s a broader audience that they’re going to have to face at election time.”

Republicans say that Schumer has the politics all wrong, and that they are merely following the precedent of former President Bill Clinton’s trial. That means starting the trial and deciding on witnesses later. However, Clinton impeachment investigators did not face the same level of stonewalling that the House has faced to date from Trump and Senate Republicans in 1999 eventually sought testimony from key witnesses.

So now that Schumer’s proposal has been rejected, Republicans merely see an effort to save face.

“He can create that narrative, I’m not the least bit worried about it,” said endangered Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.). “Sounds like he’s trying to make lemonade out of lemons.”

“Everybody believes Sen. Schumer’s going to play a game with impeachment to try and get back the Senate,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), also up for re-election. “He wakes up every day trying to be the majority leader.”

Yet concentrating on process may also be good politics for Democrats.

“It’s a popular issue across America. I’ve not heard any blowback from it. Why wouldn’t someone want to hear from witnesses with firsthand information?” asked Doug Jones of Alabama, the most vulnerable Democratic senator facing reelection. He said not a single constituent “has said that’s an unreasonable position.”

Crossing Trump and being seen as following Schumer’s marching orders would court disaster for most GOP senators, who can’t afford to alienate their party’s conservative base. And Democrats are eager try to capitalize on Republican votes against new evidence in the impeachment trial.

And given slim hopes of most major legislation getting passed in the Senate this year, the impeachment votes may be some of the most high-profile roll calls taken by senators this year.

“The procedural votes may be more important than the vote on removal or acquittal. Because what will matter more to voters than where a senator lands is how he or she got there,” said Geoff Garin, a Democratic pollster for Hart Research. “So if Susan Collins or any of the other Republicans vote for acquittal and the takeaway for voters is this is a political or partisan vote on an important issue, that will have a long lasting impact.”

Senate Republicans argue that they should rely on the same set of evidence presented in the House, at least for the start, and let the Senate decide on whether to bring in more witnesses after hearing presentations from House managers and the president’s defense.

The GOP has also cautioned Democratic colleagues who are calling for testimony from Mulvaney and Bolton that they will respond with votes to bring in Hunter Biden, Vice President Joe Biden’s son.

“We’re not foreclosing additional witnesses,” said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who is up for re-election.

Democrats have misjudged the politics of McConnell’s hardline positioning before. In 2016, the party designed a political campaign around the GOP’s blockade of Merrick Garland’s nomination to the Supreme Court.

But their push went nowhere andeventually Democrats’ dropped their rallying cry of “Do Your Job.” Republicans, meanwhile, credited the vacancy with winning them the presidency and holding the Senate. And some in the GOP see the impeachment trial’s politics playing out in a similar fashion.

“The more the American people learn about the impeachment process, I think the more they come to appreciate that the Senate is not in charge of impeachment,” said Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.), who chairs the Senate GOP’s campaign arm. “They’re starting to understand that there are a lot of games being played here.”

But perhaps the biggest difference between 2016 and 2020 is that Trump now enjoys three years of Republicans almost always siding with him on the Senate floor. And Democrats believe no issue will highlight that more than the choice of whether to hear new evidence from witnesses at the trial to remove the president from office.

“This is an opportunity for Republicans who stake a claim to moderation and independence back home to put their money where their mouth is,” said Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii). “This is a true binary test: Of whether or not you are all in for Trump, or whether you will occasionally demonstrate that you’re going to use your own mind and your own spine.”

Read More

[jaretgoestothemovies]

Todd Duffey (Brian from Office Space) Interview

[footballleague0]

Aaron Judge hits 45th HR, Didi Gregorius passes Derek Jeter mark

NEW YORK — Aaron Judge hit his AL-leading 45th home run and topped 100 RBI, Didi Gregorius surpassed Derek Jeter for the most home runs by a Yankees shortstop and New York beat the Minnesota Twins 11-3 Wednesday for a three-game sweep.

The game was briefly halted in the fifth inning when a foul ball down the third-base line off the bat of Todd Frazier struck a young girl, who was carried out of the stands, given first aid and taken to a hospital. The protective netting at Yankee Stadium ends at the home plate side of each dugout, and the team said in July it is “seriously exploring” extending the netting for 2018.

Frazier knelt down and covered his head, and many other Yankees and Twins watched in stunned silence as the fan was helped. The Yankees said they weren’t allowed to provide more information on her condition.

The Yankees, who have won 10 of 12, began the day three games behind AL East-leading Boston. They opened a seven-game advantage over the Twins for the top AL wild card with 10 games remaining.

Minnesota started 1 1/2 games ahead of the Los Angeles Angels for the league’s last playoff berth. The Twins have lost five of six and were outscored 18-6 in the three-game series.

Judge hit his eighth home run of September, a two-run drive that began the comeback from a 3-0 deficit. He added a sacrifice fly for his 101st RBI, joining Joe DiMaggio, Tony Lazzeri and Hideki Matsui as the only Yankees rookies to reach the century mark.

Judge’s opposite-field drive down the right-field line came on an 0-2 pitch from Bartolo Colon. Gary Sanchez followed with a shot into Monument Park, his 32nd, to go back-to-back with Judge for the second time in the homestand.

Greg Bird’s RBI double in a six-run fourth chased Colon (4-6 in the AL and 6-14 overall), and Brett Gardner and Sanchez followed with run-scoring singles against Tyler Duffey for a 6-3 lead.

Gregorius’ three-run drive into the second deck in right was his 25th, surpassing Jeter’s total in 1999.

Minnesota built its lead in a 46-pitch third inning against Luis Severino. Joe Mauer had an RBI single that capped a 13-pitch at-bat, the longest of his big league career, and Jorge Polanco hit a two-run single.

Colon, 44, signed his first big league contract in 1993, about eight months before Severino was born. Colon gave up six runs and seven hits in 3 1/3 innings, raising his overall ERA to 6.63.

Moved up two days in the rotation but pitching on normal four days’ rest, Severino allowed three runs and five hits in three innings, just his second poor start since the All-Star break. Chasen Shreve (4-1) pitched three hitless innings.

BIG NUMBERS

Judge also struck out for the 199th time this season and walked for the 116th. DiMaggio had 125 RBI as a rookie in 1936, Lazzeri 114 in 1926 and Matsui 106 in 2003 after leaving the Yomiuri Giants to sign with the Yankees.

NEARLY CYCLE

Jacoby Ellsbury singled, doubled and tripled. He hit a fly to right-center in his last at-bat.

THUMBS DOWN

The Yankees posed in their new thumbs-down T-shirts, nine days after a Mets fan responded with the gesture following Frazier’s home run against Tampa Bay at Citi Field.

SMALL BALL

Minnesota has 26 sacrifices, tied for second in the AL behind the Chicago White Sox (32). The Twins had a pair of singles in loading the bases during CC Sabathia’s first four pitches Tuesday night.

“If you’ve got a better chance to get a hit by bunting that you do of swinging the bat, I think that they’re times to still to that,” manager Paul Molitor said. The bunt had been part of the game forever. It’s a proven commodity.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Yankees: OF Aaron Hicks (oblique strain) will start batting practice Thursday in Tampa, Florida, and is to play in a game Monday at New York’s minor league complex. … RHP Adam Warren (back spasm) was to throw a bullpen session Wednesday and advance to a simulated game by Sunday or early next week.

UP NEXT

Twins: LHP Adalberto Mejia (4-6) is to open a four-game series at Detroit on Thursday.

Yankees: RHP Masahiro Tanaka (12-11) is to start Friday’s series opener of a three-game series at Toronto, New York’s final road games.

The post Aaron Judge hits 45th HR, Didi Gregorius passes Derek Jeter mark appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

from http://ift.tt/2yeK2I3 from http://ift.tt/2jMc1Mv

[giantsfootball0]

Aaron Judge hits 45th HR, Didi Gregorius passes Derek Jeter mark

NEW YORK — Aaron Judge hit his AL-leading 45th home run and topped 100 RBI, Didi Gregorius surpassed Derek Jeter for the most home runs by a Yankees shortstop and New York beat the Minnesota Twins 11-3 Wednesday for a three-game sweep.

The game was briefly halted in the fifth inning when a foul ball down the third-base line off the bat of Todd Frazier struck a young girl, who was carried out of the stands, given first aid and taken to a hospital. The protective netting at Yankee Stadium ends at the home plate side of each dugout, and the team said in July it is “seriously exploring” extending the netting for 2018.

Frazier knelt down and covered his head, and many other Yankees and Twins watched in stunned silence as the fan was helped. The Yankees said they weren’t allowed to provide more information on her condition.

The Yankees, who have won 10 of 12, began the day three games behind AL East-leading Boston. They opened a seven-game advantage over the Twins for the top AL wild card with 10 games remaining.

Minnesota started 1 ½ games ahead of the Los Angeles Angels for the league’s last playoff berth. The Twins have lost five of six and were outscored 18-6 in the three-game series.

Judge hit his eighth home run of September, a two-run drive that began the comeback from a 3-0 deficit. He added a sacrifice fly for his 101st RBI, joining Joe DiMaggio, Tony Lazzeri and Hideki Matsui as the only Yankees rookies to reach the century mark.

Judge’s opposite-field drive down the right-field line came on an 0-2 pitch from Bartolo Colon. Gary Sanchez followed with a shot into Monument Park, his 32nd, to go back-to-back with Judge for the second time in the homestand.

Greg Bird’s RBI double in a six-run fourth chased Colon (4-6 in the AL and 6-14 overall), and Brett Gardner and Sanchez followed with run-scoring singles against Tyler Duffey for a 6-3 lead.

Gregorius’ three-run drive into the second deck in right was his 25th, surpassing Jeter’s total in 1999.

Minnesota built its lead in a 46-pitch third inning against Luis Severino. Joe Mauer had an RBI single that capped a 13-pitch at-bat, the longest of his big league career, and Jorge Polanco hit a two-run single.

Colon, 44, signed his first big league contract in 1993, about eight months before Severino was born. Colon gave up six runs and seven hits in 3 1/3 innings, raising his overall ERA to 6.63.

Moved up two days in the rotation but pitching on normal four days’ rest, Severino allowed three runs and five hits in three innings, just his second poor start since the All-Star break. Chasen Shreve (4-1) pitched three hitless innings.

BIG NUMBERS

Judge also struck out for the 199th time this season and walked for the 116th. DiMaggio had 125 RBI as a rookie in 1936, Lazzeri 114 in 1926 and Matsui 106 in 2003 after leaving the Yomiuri Giants to sign with the Yankees.

NEARLY CYCLE

Jacoby Ellsbury singled, doubled and tripled. He hit a fly to right-center in his last at-bat.

THUMBS DOWN

The Yankees posed in their new thumbs-down T-shirts, nine days after a Mets fan responded with the gesture following Frazier’s home run against Tampa Bay at Citi Field.

SMALL BALL

Minnesota has 26 sacrifices, tied for second in the AL behind the Chicago White Sox (32). The Twins had a pair of singles in loading the bases during CC Sabathia’s first four pitches Tuesday night.

“If you’ve got a better chance to get a hit by bunting that you do of swinging the bat, I think that they’re times to still to that,” manager Paul Molitor said. The bunt had been part of the game forever. It’s a proven commodity.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Yankees: OF Aaron Hicks (oblique strain) will start batting practice Thursday in Tampa, Florida, and is to play in a game Monday at New York’s minor league complex. … RHP Adam Warren (back spasm) was to throw a bullpen session Wednesday and advance to a simulated game by Sunday or early next week.

UP NEXT

Twins: LHP Adalberto Mejia (4-6) is to open a four-game series at Detroit on Thursday.

Yankees: RHP Masahiro Tanaka (12-11) is to start Friday’s series opener of a three-game series at Toronto, New York’s final road games.

The post Aaron Judge hits 45th HR, Didi Gregorius passes Derek Jeter mark appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

from https://dailystarsports.com/2017/09/20/aaron-judge-hits-45th-hr-didi-gregorius-passes-derek-jeter-mark/ from https://dailystarsports.tumblr.com/post/165560059451

[twins2994]

Yankees Hold On To Beat Twins.

Twins 1 Yankees 2 W-Robertson (9-2) L-Santana (15-8) SV-Chapman (19)

The Minnesota Twins have had a tough time against pitchers who know how to pitch lately. Jason Vargas and Marco Estrada held them down early this month and it was Jaime Garcia’s turn tonight. Garcia got some early run support this evening. Aaron Judge smoked a Ervin Santana fastball out to right in the first inning for a home run. The solo shot put New York up 1-0 and it took until the fifth inning for the Twins to get to Jaime Garcia. Eddie Rosario led-off the inning with a single then Eduardo Escobar lined a base hit to right. Rosario went to third on a bobble by Judge and the Twins were in business. Robbie Grossman hit an RBI groundout to third and the game was tied at one. Garcia got out of the jam after giving up the tying run. The Yankees got back to work in the sixth inning. Chase Headley lined a single to center and Starlin Castro followed with a base hit of his own. A wild pitch gave both runners an extra base then Paul Molitor decided to intentionally walk Jacoby Ellsbury. This loaded up the bases for Todd Frazier, who hit a sacrifice fly to center field. Headley scored on the play and the Yanks led 2-1. Meanwhile, Jaime Garcia tossed up 5 2/3 solid innings tonight and the bullpen did the rest. David Robertson retired all four men he faced, but Dellin Bentances struggled. He hit Robbie Grossman and walked two other batters and recorded one out. Aroldis Chapman had to relieve him for a five-out save. Chapman retired Joe Mauer and Byron Buxton to end the eighth and came back for the ninth. The Cuban missile threw a 1-2-3 ninth and the Yankees took Game 1 from the Twins tonight.

-Final Thoughts- Ervin Santana pitched alright tonight. He lasted 5 2/3 innings and allowed two runs on seven hits with three strikeouts and a walk. He threw just 58 strikes on 96 pitches. Trevor Hildenberger retired all three men he faced, Taylor Rogers struck out one in 2/3 of an inning, and Tyler Duffey got the last two outs of the eighth. The Twins scattered four hits tonight against the Yankee pitching staff. They had a chance with one out and the bases loaded in the eighth, but couldn’t cash in. They hit 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base. Tomorrow, Jose Berrios faces off with CC Sabathia in the second game from Yankee Stadium.

-Chris Kreibich-

[changechest3-blog]

MLB Bullets rings in the new

And a Happy New Year to everyone and may 2019 bring the Cubs another World Series title. Me, I’m still writing 2017 on my box scores.

I’m also pretty sure that’s the first time I’ve shown a photo from the Australian Baseball League for a piece.

Free agent catcher Jonathan Lucroy has gone to be with the Angels. No, he didn’t die. He signed a one-year, $3.35 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels.

The Blue Jays acquired former Cubs pitcher Clayton Richard from the Padres for minor league outfielder Conor Panas.

The Blue Jays also signed pitcher Matt Shoemaker to one-year deal. Shoemaker had been non-tendered by the Angels.

One free agent is definitely signing this week or he isn’t playing in MLB in 2019. Seibu Lions pitcher Yusei Kikuchi has until January 3 to sign with an MLB team or he’s returning to Japan for 2019. Jason Catania has a look at Kikuchi and the teams most likely to sign him. Not surprisingly, they’re all on the West Coast.

The Brewers and Padres are rumored to be the favorite trade destinations for Yankees pitcher Sonny Gray.

The Diamondbacks are reportedly softening on their stance against trading pitcher Robbie Ray and are now listening to offers for the left-hander.

The Twins signed free agent Nelson Cruz to a one-year, $14 million deal last week. Jonah Keri explains why teams aren’t paying for power on the free agent market anymore and he also wonders if the market hasn’t overcorrected and the Twins got a steal.

Twins pitcher Tyler Duffey got a birthday present when Cruz signed with the Twins. He gave up a 493-foot HR to Cruz in 2016 and Duffey is elated he won’t have to pitch to Cruz in 2019.

The Rays were a team that lost out on Cruz and Mike Axisa looks at six hitters the Rays could go for instead of Cruz.

One of those hitters is Mariners DH Edwin Encarnacion, who isn’t expected to stay in Seattle after being traded there earlier this winter. Jon Paul Morosi reports that the Rays, Astros and White Sox have shown the most interest in trading for Encarnacion. Those three teams are also interested in Cardinals first baseman Jose Martinez.

Athletics outfielder Kyler Murray’s NCAA football career came to an end with the Oklahoma Sooners loss to Alabama. Pete Thamel talks to both baseball and football scouts about Murray’s professional prospects and most observers in both sports think he’ll abandon baseball for the NFL. Basically, they think it will be hard for him to go from playing in front of 85,000 football fans to playing for the Beloit Snappers.

Rian Watt has some memories of the recently-retired Miguel Montero and why his memories of the former Cubs catcher mean so much to him.

Dayn Perry has 50 baseball predictions for 2019.

Mike Petriello has five pitchers who should break out in 2019.

Bryan Hoch lists five things the Yankees have yet to do this winter.

And Ken Gurnick has five things the Dodgers should do before Opening Day.

Todd Zolecki has five things for the Phillies to do. Methinks this was an MLB.com assignment to all their beat writers this week. (And yes, Jordan Bastian has five for the Cubs.)

Jake Mintz looks back at Rick Ankiel’s career, his battles with the yips and his re-inventing himself as a hitter.

If you want to know what really goes on at the Winter Meetings, Corey Brock follows a young man around the Winter Meetings who wants to land a job as a baseball broadcaster. (The Athletic sub. req.)

An 88-year-old Astros fan teared up when his family chipped in for a trip to Spring Training for Christmas.

Pirates pitcher Trevor Williams got mistaken for Bryce Harper by his waiter, so Williams told the waiter that he (Harper) was signing with the Yankees.

And finally, one of the biggest story of the weekend was the skies lighting up in New York after a transformer blew. Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard (aka Thor) assured his teammates that he didn’t do it, but that he was willing to help out if they needed him to.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Happy 2019.

Source: https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2018/12/31/18162442/mlb-bullets-jonathan-lucroy-nelson-cruz-yusei-kikuchi-yankees-dodgers-phillies-edwin-encarnacion

[twins2994]

Yankees Sweep Twins.

Twins 3 Yankees 11 W-Shreve (4-1) L-Colon (4-6)

It has been awhile since the Minnesota Twins have been swept in a series. The last time the Twins were swept this year was late-July and fifteen series ago. Today, the New York Yankees had a chance to hand the Twins another loss and gain ground in the first American League Wild-Card race. The Twins started the scoring this afternoon. Kennys Vargas and Jason Castro both singles to begin the rally then Brian Dozier walked. Joe Mauer battled Luis Severino in a thirteen-pitch battle. Mauer won and lined a single to right, which scored Vargas. Jorge Polanco then hit a ball that had eyes. The ball missed both Greg Bird and Starlin Castro for a two-run single and the Twins led 3-0. That lead would be very short-lived as the Yankees struck in the bottom of the third. Greg Bird led-off with a double and two batters later Aaron Judge came up. Judge smoked a Bartolo Colon fastball out to right for a two-run shot and the Twins lead was cut to one. The next batter, Gary Sanchez drilled a Colon offering out to center and the game was tied in an instant. In the fourth, it was more of the same as Jacoby Ellsbury tripled. Todd Frazier walked and Greg Bird put New York up for good with an RBI double. Brett Gardner lined a run-scoring single to center, Gary Sanchez drove in a run with a base hit, and Didi Gregorius walked up to the dish. Gregorius smacked a Tyler Duffey fastball out to right for a three-run blast. This capped off a six-run fourth and the Yankees led 9-3. New York was not done in the fifth. Matt Holiday led-off with a single and Jacoby Ellsbury walked. After a sacrifice fly, Nik Turley uncorked a wild pitch that scored Matt Holiday. Greg Bird singled then Brett Gardner was drilled by a pitch. Michael Tonkin came on and Aaron Judge hit a sac fly to right. Ellsbury scored and the Yanks had an 11-3 advantage. Luis Severino only lasted three innings today, but the New York bullpen picked him up. Chasen Streve hurled three shutout frames then Ben Heller had a clean seventh. Domingo German struck out four over two hitless innings as the Yankees swept the Twins in the Bronx.

-Final Thoughts- Bartolo Colon was knocked around in the bandbox that is Yankee Stadium. He lasted 3 1/3 innings and allowed six runs on seven hits with three strikeouts and a walk. Tyler Duffey was charged with three runs in 2/3 of an inning, Nik Turley gave up two and retired one, and Michael Tonkin threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings. Glen Perkins had a clean seventh and John Curtiss had a 1-2-3 eighth. Kennys Vargas led the team with two hits on the day. The team hit 2-for-4 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base. Does anybody want to win the second American League Wild-Card race? The Twins and Angels keep losing and the other teams are three games or better out of it. Alright folks, I’m all caught up and I’ll be there for the last ten game this year. After the game, the Twins head to Detroit for a huge, huge, huge four-game set. Adalberto Mejia will face Jordan Zimmermann in Game 1.

-Chris Kreibich-

[wherethespiritsgo-blog]

Sounds like a case of the Mondays.

Brian

...as portrayed by Todd Duffey in Mike Judge's Office Space

[twins2994]

Twins Take Series From Yanks For First Time Since 2014.

Yankees 1 Twins 6 W-Berrios (9-3) L-Montgomery (6-5)

The Minnesota Twins have not had good success against the Yankees since the early-2000′s. Today, they had to do something they hadn’t done since 2008. That was win a series at home against the Yankees. The Twins also hadn’t beaten the Yanks in any series since 2014. Minnesota got to work right away in the second inning this afternoon. Chris Gimenez singled with one out and Ehire Adrianza doubled. Zack Granite drove in a pair with a single to center and the Twins went up 2-0. Brian Dozier drew a walk and Eduardo Escobar singled another run home. The next batter, Miguel Sano crushed a Jordan Montgomery curveball into the bullpens in left-center for a three-run shot. This capped off a six-run second for the Twins with Jose Berrios on the mound. Berrios struggled with command early then figured things out as the game went on. He threw six scoreless frames before the Yankees got to him in the seventh. Clint Frazier singled then Austin Romine was hit by a pitch. Berrios struck out pinch-hitter Todd Frazier, but Brett Gardner hit an RBI single to left. Tyler Duffey came on and got the final out of the seventh to end the threat. Taylor Rogers threw a clean eighth and Trevor Hildenberger hurled a scoreless ninth to end the game. It was the first series win for the Twins at home since 2008 at the Metrodome. 

-Final Thoughts- Jose Berrios could not throw strikes early, but found his command as the game went on. He came back with a nice game after his worst outing on Friday. Berrios went 6 2/3 innings and allowed a run on six hits with two walks and five strikeouts. Tyler Duffey struck out Jacoby Ellsbury to end the seventh, Taylor Rogers gave up a hit in the eighth, and Trevor Hildenberger fanned one in a clean ninth. Ehire Adrianza had two more hits to raise his average to .309. The club hit 3-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left three men on base. The Twins go into the off day tomorrow on a high note. The Detroit Tigers come to town on Friday night. Anibal Sanchez will face Ervin Santana in the opener.

-Chris Kreibich-

[twins2994]

Twins Hold On To Sweep Sox!

Twins 7 White Sox 6 W-Pressly (1-2) L-Holland (3-3) SV-Kintzler (8)

The Minnesota Twins have had a good offense so far this year. The bullpen hasn’t been so strong and tonight Phil Hughes almost gave a six-run lead back until the end of the ‘pen staved off a late Chicago rally for a two-game sweep at Guaranteed Rate Field. The Twins got started early this evening in the first inning. Derek Holland walked both Robbie Grossman and Miguel Sano with one out. Jorge Polanco reached on an error by Jose Abreu after a double play wasn’t turned and the inning continued. Joe Mauer lined a run-scoring single to center and the Twins were on the board. The next batter, Eduardo Escobar made the Sox pay for the error some more. He belted a Derek Holland fastball out to left for a three-run shot and Minnesota had a four-run edge. In the second, Brian Dozier smoked a Holland fastball out to left for a solo homer. The Twins were not done yet as Miguel Sano dug in. Sano deposited a Holland slider into the Twins bullpen for a solo shot of his own. This put the Twins up 6-0 in a blink of an eye. Meanwhile, Phil Hughes was cruising through 3 1/3 innings then Avisail Garcia doubled off him. Todd Frazier hit a flyball to center field that Byron Buxton dropped, which scored a run. Later in the inning, Matt Davidson hit an RBI groundout and the Sox were within four. The Twins got a run back in the fifth. Miguel Sano led-off with a walk and Eduardo Escobar doubled him home. Minnesota led by five, but Phil Hughes struggled in the bottom of the fifth. Omar Narvaez doubled then Leury Garcia singled. This brought up Melky Cabrera, who slugged a Phil Hughes curveball out to right for a three-run blast. This pulled Chicago within two runs. Matt Davidson inched them closer in the sixth. He took Tyler Duffey deep and the Sox cut the Twins lead to one after six frames. The Twins bullpen had their work cut out for them. They needed to get nine outs and Ryan Pressly looked great in a 1-2-3 seventh. Matt Belisle walked two in the eighth and Brandon Kintzler came out for a five-out save. He got the team through a mess in the eighth and we headed to the ninth. Kintzler had a perfect ninth to seal the two-game sweep for the Twins in Chicago.

-Final Thoughts- Phil Hughes was throwing good through the first three-plus frames then hit a wall. The dropped ball by Byron Buxton hurt him and also a few tough calls by Jerry Layne did as well. He went 4 2/3 innings and allowed five runs on six hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Tyler Duffey retired one of the three men he faced, Taylor Rogers had a clean sixth, and Ryan Pressly struck out the side in the seventh. Matt Belisle struggled with control in the eighth, which led Paul Molitor to bring in Kintzler. Brandon retired all five men he faced and struck out three. Eduardo Escobar led the team with two hits on the night and 4 RBI’s. The club hit 3-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left four men on base. After the game, the Twins head to Cleveland to play the Indians. Ervin Santana will face Josh Tomlin in Game 1.

-Chris Kreibich-