Game 26, Angels at Mariners
DMZ · May 2, 2005 at 6:39 pm · Filed Under Game Threads
LHP Washburn v RHP Franklin, 7:05, FSN
Standard lineup for the M’s even though it’s a lefty. Will the defense save Franklin again? Will Choo ever see action?
In-stadium All-Star balloting starts tonight, and Pokey Reese is on the ballot. Isn’t this a little early to start voting? I mean… really now. (Pokey note: Reese is seeking his second opinion from Dr. James Andrews, who you know from many, many other player injuries.)
From the press notes: 18,000 tickets available for Tuesday’s game, and 20,000 available for the mid-week afternoon game. And today’s predicted color bit: the Mariners didn’t give up a home run in “the past 31.2 innings”
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243 Responses to “Game 26, Angels at Mariners”
Quick! Demoralizing loss– show The Catch!
Infield out. Definitely fits into the lineup.
DMZ so, how long until you start writing “the Mariners can’t win” articles?
With the whole coincidence thing going. Ride the streak.
so if his bat doesn’t break, is that a hit?
On top catches: The one Griffey catch that I distinctly remember took place in Old Tiger Stadium. He went straight back to the deepest part of the park and jumped high enough that it seemed his arm went all the way over the wall and down a bit to bring the ball back into play. It was absolutely incredible. I’ve seen it since on some clip where Griffey hosted TWIB or something, and it was just as spectacular all these years later.
Did anybody catch the Angels broadcaster say that Choo was from LA. Then about 30 seconds later say “no wait, it was Korea. I was looking at the wrong guy.” Priceless.
Game notes: this game sucked. Except for The Catch.
I think so. I hope he gets some playing time.
That’s not a bad idea, there, Matt. Hmmmmm….
Shawn: Rex Hudler isn’t known for his intelligence, I can tell you that much.
Time for a “there is NO way the Mariners can win the World Series this year” article from DMZ, along with “Doyle can’t stay healthy”.
Dave Henderson, referring to The Catch: “Garrett Anderson knows that if he doesn’t hit it 5 or 6 rows deep, it won’t be a home run” I didn’t there would be anything that would make me say “well, it wasn’t thaaaaat great” but Hendu pulled it off.
Choo looked a good deal more composed and in control of the count than some other members of the team we’ve watched over the last couple of weeks. I’m not enough of an aficionado to have an opinion whether its too early to bring him up — but, despite the out, he looked decent for a rookie who’s developed a butt full of splinters from bench time.
ESPN just now noted Ichiro and Winn combined for 4 for 6, the rest of the team 0 for 24.
Not a winning recipe.
so, what’s the total vs left-handers now? 1-7? Santana, Buehrle, Sabathia, Lee, Zito, Rogers, Washburn…
Well, if Derek were REALLY smart, he’d write a ‘why I’ll never win the lottery’ article.
There is no way — no way — I’m writing any articles about Doyle and health.
#206 – that one was incredible. I remember the SI spread on it, a fold out multi-page pictorial of all the ground he covered, finishing with him reaching way over the fence.
To everyone suggesting, implicitly or explicitly, that this Ichiro catch replace Griffey’s “The Catch” as “The Catch” – Ichiro is amazing, wonderful, great, and more, but let’s not forget and dismiss the years of excitement Griffey gave us. “The Catch” is still his.
What no heart from Sports Center for “The Catch”? Humph.
Wow, I just saw SportsCenter and their three highlights:
HR #1
HR #2
Wilson Valdez strikes out.
No, really. I don’t know if that’s where they ran out of usable tape, or what.
Tacoma loses 3-1, to the same pitcher (Jason Young) they racked up for eight earned runs before he could record an out just a week before. How does THAT happen?
Ahh, the ESPN boys got ’round to it.
Okay, so for the top 10 highlights, Ichiro! was #1. That catch was amazing, there’s just no way to deny it. I could watch it over and over and I would still feel the awe.
Agreed. It wasn’t the scaling of the wall that was amazing so much as the midair body-torque correction. Few have the presence of mind or control of body to manage that.
Anybody know where I can find a video clip of the Catch? I have looked a few places online with no luck so far.
As great as Ichiro is and i appreciate his outstanding individual accoplishments, i think i am kinda ready for us to get excited about this ‘TEAM’ again rather then one guy’s hit total or great catch in a 5-0 terrible game. I don’t understand the logic of not moving the fences at this place in. This ballpark is so in the heads of our hitters that we now have a home field disadvantage. 2 balls tonight should have DEFINATELY been out of the park and they stayed in the yard. Move the damn fences back or enjoy watching your $10Mill. a year 3B hit 15 homers and become more and more pissed off with every at bat.
Meant to say ‘move them in’ 🙂
#226: It’s on the top page of MLB.com
That’s what I get for going out to dinner with my girlfriend instead of obsessively watching every minute of every game. I assume I’ll get to see it a gazillion times before the game tonight at least.
I don’t understand the logic of not moving the fences at this place in.
You can’t move them mid-season, for one.
Okay–I looked on the thread but didn’t see any reference to what I thought was the second-most entertaining part of last night’s game. I was there, and I saw The Catch, but I also saw The Hit, which is what the fan who dropped onto center field got as he reached the third base line. He got totally, completely, comprehensively laid out by the biggest/scariest looking member of the grounds-keeping staff (who was clearly and rightly pleased with himself). It was a sweet open-field tackle, Holmgren should be on the line with that guy (the staff member, not the fan).
Why do people assume that moving the fences in would help the M’s hitters more than it would hurt their pitchers? Between Franklin and Moyer alone we’d give up a ton of home runs if the fences were in.
Besides, Ichiro certainly wouldn’t have made THE CATCH if the fences were in even a few feet.
You are aware that so far this year Safeco is exactly in the middle of the pack in terms of HRs?
But yeah, let’s move the fences in and instead of a rotation with two pitchers in the top ten for home runs allowed (like last year), we can have all five. Looking forward to those games the M’s lose 15-7 and 11-5 at SafeCoors Field on the Sound….
Designing a park to suit a current roster of players is a fool’s errand. The players come and go, but the park remains.
Rather than complaining about the effects of the park, the team could use it to their advantage if they would realize how playing in Safeco skews raw statistics, and leverage the misunderstanding of park effects still prevalent in the game today, instead of rewarding marginal players with multiyear contracts for succeeding because of the park they play in.
#232 Will, that guy appeared to be the head of the security detail. Unfortunately I was looking away at the time, but the guy next to me was all over it – he appreciated it as much as you did…
You know, Franklin’s BABIP was still frekishly low in this game. With 2 HR, he only allowed 3 hits on BIP. Price and Olivo were right about the karmic balance.
Re: #227, moving the fences in wouldn’t help a bit. Doesn’t seem like other teams have a problem hitting HRs in Safeco, so if you move the fences in to try and help our power-challenged roster it’ll be like Hiram Bithorn Park to the rest of the league.
Our problem is that the roster, quite simply, isn’t very good. Sexson is the only legit power threat right now, although Beltre will come around eventually. Other than those two there isn’t a real threat to an above average AL starter to go yard … and the 7-9 spots in the order are all automatic outs. I doubt even moving the fences in would help Olivo or Valdez … they’re simply Mendoza line hitters, deal with it.
The two best catches I’ve seen live were:
1. Griffey perfectly timing a Juan Gonzalez moonshot, planting one foot about halfway up the baby-blue Kingdome wall, and snatching it back (I wanna say this was 1994).
2. In 2001 I was sitting in center at Safeco against the Orioles and saw Ichiro run down and slide to catch a ball in foul territory in which he covered more ground in less time than I thought was ever possible. I never thought he would get to that ball, but he did. He also ended that game with a sliding catch coming into shallow right.
I am sure Beltre is more interested in a World Series ring then a possiable 5 hr high total for the year. Why don’t we let him and the rest of the team settle in before we go making suggestions to change the one thing that is allowing this pitching staff have any worth what-so-ever.
I think what he was suggesting was sliding walls that move in only in the top half of innings. Do you think anyone would notice?
One of the great things about the clip of Ichiro’s catch is the audio. Rizzs sounds like two very different people before and after the ball is in Ichiro’s glove. He isn’t a good announcer by most measures, but at least he is genuinely giddy when something exciting like this happens. Of course, its pretty annoying when he is genuinely giddy when Ibanez hits a two out single, or a someone puts extra relish on his hot dog.
Also fun is watching the reactions – you only get a split second of them on the mlb.com clip, but they’re great. One guy thinks its fine just to clap a bit – he must be an Angels fan. Everyone else’s hands shoot up in the air, and the guy in red just to the center-field side of Ichiro seems like he’s about to knock his hat off his head when the clip ends.