2015 Postseason Race

With just 30 games to go, we have an exciting race for the eight playoff spots:


LEAGUE STANDINGS FOR 2015 Millennium League

Division Leaders            WON LOST  PCT   GB  
2015 Miami MMN               82  50  .621 ----    
2015 Oakland OAA             78  54  .591 ----      
2015 Toronto TOA             75  57  .568 ----
2015 St. Louis SLN           71  61  .538 ----


Wild Card Leaders           WON LOST  PCT   GB
2015 Anaheim ANA             77  55  .583 ----        
2015 Houston HOA             73  59  .553 ----
2015 Washington WAN          72  63  .533 ----
2015 Los Angeles LAN         70  62  .530 ----
2015 San Francisco SFN       69  63  .523  1.0        
2015 Philadelphia PHN        68  64  .515  2.0
2015 Cleveland CLA           67  65  .508  3.0        
2015 Boston BOA              65  67  .492  5.0
2015 Kansas City KCA         64  68  .485  6.0 
2015 Minnesota MNA           64  68  .485  6.0

Mariners Champs Again!!

 



Congratulations to the Seattle Mariners for winning the 2014 Millennium World Series!  Here is a recap of the games:

Game 1:
Jake Arrieta took a 1-0 lead into the 9th inning and was gunning for the opening game shutout.  Carl Crawford singled and stole second.  With one out, Albert Pujols cleared the fences and K-Rod pitched a scoreless 9th to hand Arrieta his first playoff loss as the Mariners steal the first game in Oakland 2-1.

Game 2:
Brandon Phillips launched a 2 run blast off Collin McHugh in the 2nd inning to give the Mariners the lead.  They added two more runs in the 6th with RBI’s by Ryan Braun and Evan Longoria.  Mike Morse put the A’s on the board with a solo shot in the 7th and Austin Jackson added another one in the 8th to make it close.  Darren O’Day shut the A’s down in order in the 9th to preserve the 4-2 Mariner victory.

Game 3:
Mariners started the scoring with 2 runs in the bottom of the 3rd.  Oakland answered with 2 in the top of the 4th.  Brandon Belt doubled in Jose Reyes in the 6th to give the M’s a 3-2 lead.  Jon Lester stayed in the game into the 9th inning.  Daniel Norris hits a split 1 double 2-20 out in the top of the 9th inning.  He scores on a Kyle Seager single to tie it.   The tie game goes into the 14th inning.  The A’s 8th pitcher, Jared Hughes beans Peter Bourjos with one out who advances to 3rd on a Brandon Phillips Single.  Yadier Molina hits a high fly in to the middle of the OF.  Bourjos has 1-9 split chance of being safe on the sac fly and draws a 1 to win it.  4-3 Mariners with the walk-off.

Game 4:
Jose Quintana and Jeff Samardzjia bring their best efforts to game 4.  Through 8 innings, the only hit of the game was a Carl Crawford double in the 6th inning.  Kyle Seager led off the 9th with his 3rd walk of the game.  After Michael Cuddyer struck out, Seager advanced to second on a wild pitch.  A ground out by Al Avila advanced Seager to third.  The next pitch to Jonathan Schoop got away from Yadier Molina to give the A’s the first run of the game.  Schoop promptly flew out to end the inning.  After leaving their starters in too long in games 1 and 2, Quintana is pulled for the closer, Jake McGee.  It is the right move as McGee pitches a perfect 9th as the A’s get their first victory of the series despite not getting a hit with a 1-0 win. 

Game 5:
Jake Arrieta and Felix Hernandez try to match the marvelous pitching performances in game 4.  The game is scoreless until the 7th when Schoop scores on a passed ball.  Arrieta reaches his pitch limit and is lifted for Blaine Hardy.  After a Carl Crawford hit and steals second, Hardy gets Ryan Braun to fly out.  Adam Rosales comes in to pinch hit.  Oakland counters by bringing in Roman Mendez.  Rosales is sent back to the bench for a different PH, Kirk Nieuwenhuis.  Mendez gives a free pass to Nieuwenhuis to face Albert Pujols.  Pujols doesn’t take kindly to the move and jacks a 3 run shot to RF for a 3-1 lead.  Three Seattle relievers keep the A’s off the board as the Mariners overcome 3 errors and a passed ball to earn the 3-1 victory and win their 5th championship in franchise history. 

Braves Win 2nd Pick

3-8-1  Congrats to manager Tom Edwards and his Atlanta Braves for winning the second pick in the 2015 draft.

Indians Grab 1st Pick in 2015 Draft

9 - 5 -4.  Congratulations to Mike Petersen and his Cleveland Indians for winning the first pick in the upcoming draft.  Mike's team moves up from the 8th position.

2015 Draft Lottery Info

We will be conducting our draft lottery on Monday, March 6th and Tuesday, March 7th.....

The “Pennsylvania Daily Number Evening” lottery (http://www.palottery.state.pa.us/) on subsequent nights (7PM EST) will be used to decide who gets the #1 and #2 picks in the first round only. If the second pick yields the same result as the first night, then a third night’s lottery drawing will be used.

The remaining 10 teams will draft in reverse order of record. So, the team with the poorest record can do no worst than pick third in the first round.

2015 Lottery Drawing Chances:

000 to 249 – Minnesota (59-103)

250 to 449 – Atlanta (65-97, 4-2 vs. New York in tie-breaker)

450 to 604 – New York (65-97)

605 to 724 – Arizona (67-95)

725 to 814 – Anaheim (70-92, 5-1 vs. Washington in tie-breaker)

815 to 879 – Washington (70-92)

880 to 924 – Chicago (71-91 26-22 runs scored vs. Cleveland in tie-breaker)

925 to 954 – Cleveland (71-91)

955 to 974 – Pittsburgh (73-89)

975 to 986 – Kansas City (77-85)

987 to 994 – Houston (80-82)

995 to 999 – Miami (89-73)


(Click here for a history of previous lottery numbers selected.)

Mariners Eliminate Blue Jays in Seven Games

Seattle advanced to their sixth World Series with a four games to three semi-finals playoff win over the Toronto Blue Jays.  A summary of the series:


Game 1: TOR wins 7-1.  Nelson Cruz slammed 2 homeruns and had 3 RBI and Henderson Alvarez pitched a complete game allowing 1 run while scattering 7 hits.  Felix Hernandez took the loss as he gave up 10 hits and 5 runs over 5 innings.

Game 2: SEA wins 4-0.  Jeff Samardzija fired a six hit shutout and Kirk Nieuwenhuis hit a single, double and homer while knocking in a pair.  Iwakuma takes the loss.

Game 3: TOR wins 5-2.  Garrett Richards pitched 8 strong innings by only giving up 1 earned run while fanning 9.  Justin Turner had 2 ribbies.  Seattle's Lester got knocked out in the 3rd inning as he gave up 7 hits and 4 runs over 2 2/3 innings.

Game 4: SEA wins 4-0.  Seattle's Felix Hernandez responded from his first game loss by firing a 3 hit shutout.  Pujols hit a homer, drove in 2 runs and scored 2 runs.  Blue Jays' Chris Archer takes the loss.

Game 5: SEA wins 5-3.  The Mariners take a 3-2 series lead with the win.  Jeff Samardzija won his second game of the series (3-0 1.93 ERA in the post season) by pitching 6+ strong innings.  Jose Reyes went 4 for 4.  Henderson Alvarez, who pitched a gem in game #1 of the series, got hit hard by giving up 13 hits and 5 runs.

Game 6: TOR wins 6-5 in 13 innings.  Facing elimination, Toronto's Iain Kinsler hit a dramatic walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 13th to send the series to game 7.  Seattle had a 4-1 lead going to the bottom of the 7th but their bullpen could not hold the lead.  Both teams scored a run in the 10th inning as this game was the most exciting of the series.  Toronto's strong bullpen pitched 6 innings while only giving up 1 run. 

Game 7: SEA win the final 2-1.  King Felix pitched brilliantly again as he fired a 3-hit CG while fanning 8.  Garrett Richards was the hard luck loser giving up 2 runs (1 earned) and striking out 7 over 7 2/3 innings.  The game was decided in the 8th inning.  After an out was recorded, Jose Reyes reached on an error.  One out later, Ryan Braun stepped in and he drew a walk.  Pujols then lined a single for the game winning run.         

A's Outlast Crosstown Rival Giants in 7 Games

Oakland beats San Francisco in 7 games.  Close, low scoring series with 4 one run games.  As they did in the divisional round the A's come back from a 3-1 series deficit.  A summary of the series:


Game 1: Oakland wins 5-2.  SF jumped to an early lead on a Yasiel Puig double, but the A's scored single runs in the 4th thru 8th innings.  Austin Jackson recalled memories of past playoff glory with a pinch-hit triple.  Jake Arrieta pitched 6 ok innings before 5 OAK relievers LaRussa'd the Giant bats to close out the win.

Game 2: SF wins 1-0.  Max Scherzer and and three RP's hold the A's scoreless, Coco Crisp had an RBI double.

Game 3: SF wins 4-3.  Thanks to another Austin Jackson triple and RBI hits by Kyle Seager (the original Seager brother) and Mike Morse the A's jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, but the Giants scored 1 in the 2nd and 3 in the 4th to win again.  Chris Coghlan doubled twice and drove in 2 for the Giants.

Game 4: SF wins 3-1.  Morse homered to give the A's another early lead but Adam Wainwright and 3 relievers held the A's scoreless the rest of the game.  Craig Kimbrel saved his 3rd game in a row.

Game 5: Oakland wins 3-2.  The A's again jump out to an early lead but manage to hold on this time.  Kemp and Morse homer for the A's runs, Arrieta goes 8 innings, Scott Atchison gets the final out for the save.

Game 6: Oakland wins 4-3.  The A's scored single runs in the 2nd, 3rd, and 5th innings, Giants had a 3 run rally in the 5th.  In the 9th the A's loaded the bases on a single, error, and walk, Craig Kimbrel then walked Matt Joyce to give the A's a literal walk-off win.

Game 7: Oakland wins the final 2-0.  Morse drove in the only runs with a double in the 3rd inning.  The Giants had baserunners on throughout the game but could not come up with a clutch hit.  Carlos Carrasco pitched 3 scoreless innings in relief for the win. 

Series MVP: Oakland - Mike Morse 10 - 26, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 5 2B.        

Toronto Defeats St. Louis in Five Games

St. Louis (AP) - The Toronto Blue Jays eliminated the St. Louis Cardinals four games to one in a closely contested quarter-finals playoff series.  Although the series ended in just five games, the playoff match was much closer than it appeared as four of the five games were decided by one run.  And, three of the games were walk off wins.  A recap of the series:

GAME 1:  TOR 5, STL 4 (15) – Lots of tense moments in the opener as the Blue Jays finally broke through in the bottom of the 15th.  Adrian Beltre hit a walk off rbi-double after a costly Redbird error by Anthony Rendon.  Koji Uehara got the win in relief as the strong Blue Jay bullpen pitched 7 1/3 innings of scoreless relief while only allowing two hits.

GAME 2:   TOR 3, STL 2 – Another walk off win for the Jays.  In the top of the ninth, the Cardinals rallied to tie the game at 2-2 vs. Blue Jays’ closer Chapman.  But, then in the bottom of the inning, Toronto’s Justin Turner hit a 2-out walk off double against Drew Storen.  Chapman gets the win in relief while Mike Dunn takes the loss.

GAME 3:   STL 1, TOR 0  – Alcides Escobar executed a walk-off suicide squeeze play to perfection in the bottom of the 9th to give the Cardinals the win.  In another tense one run struggle, each team only managed two hits.  The win went to Kelvin Herrera who allowed no runs in 1 inning. The loss was charged to Tony Sipp in relief.

GAME 4:  TOR 6, STL 5 – Fourth straight one run ball game.  Nelson Cruz and Justin Turner hit homeruns off Francisco Liriano to jump out to an early 5-1 lead.  But, the Cardinals chipped away to reduce the deficit to just one run entering the top of the 9th.  Then, Aroldis Chapman promptly struck out the side to preserve the win. 

GAME 5:  TOR 4, STL 2 – Henderson Alvarez outpitched Jacob DeGrom as Toronto advances to the semi-finals to face Seattle.  Chapman pitched a scoreless ninth to gain his second save in the series.

A’s / Red Sox Series Goes Seven Games Before Oakland Wins Clincher

Oakland (AP) - In a battle of division rivals, the Oakland Athletics defeated the Boston Red Sox 4 games to 3.  A recap of the series:

 

GAME 1:  BOS 10, OAK 9 - The Red Sox rallied for two runs in the top of the 10th when Charlie Blackmon walked, Justin Upton doubled, Josh Donaldson hit a sac fly and Jonathan Lucroy doubled the go-ahead run. Then, Rondon fanned the side in the bottom of the 9th to pick up the save.

GAME 2:  BOS 5, OAK 1 (10) - Boston scored four unearned runs off Jake McGee in the top of the tenth inning to grab a 2-0 series lead.  Betances picked up the victory in relief.

GAME 3:  OAK 5, BOS 4 (12) - Ender Inciarte singled home Jimmy Rollins in the top of the 12th as the A's picked up a much needed victory.  Jake McGee got the win in relief.  Oakland left 15 on base while Boston stranded just 5 runners on base.

GAME 4:  BOS 3, OAK 0 - Phil Hughes tossed 6 scoreless innings and relievers Jepsen, Betances and Rondon completed the shutout.  Alexei Ramirez drove in a pair of runs.

GAME 5:  OAK 3, BOS 1 - Jake Arietta fanned 12 over 6+ innings and D. Norris drove in two runs as the Athletics staved off elimination.

GAME 6:  OAK 9, BOS 3 - Oakland's bats came alive as they scored 6 runs off loser Jordan Zimmerman.  Collin McHugh pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings while fanning nine batters.  Kemp, Morse and Seager all hit homers for Oakland.

GAME 7:  OAK 5, BOS 3 - Oakland scored four first inning runs off Anibal Sanchez and their pitching made the runs hold up as Oakland advances to the semi-finals to face their crosstown opponent San Franciso Giants.  Michael Morse hit a homer and drove in 3 runs for the A's.

Giants Eliminate Phillies

The San Francisco Giants used strong pitching and timely hitting to knock off the second seeded Philadelphia Philies in five games.  A recap of the series:

GAME 1:  SF 3, PHIL 1 (10) - The Giants got to Phillies reliever Mark Melancon in the 10th as Chisenhall and Coughlan hit RBI singles.  Zach Duke got the win in relief and Craig Kimbrel pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the 10th to preserve the victory.

GAME 2:   PHIL 2, SF 1 (11) – Another extra inning contest as (after two were out) Kevin Kiermaier tripled and then Eric Hosmer got the walk off game winning hit.  Good pitching matchup in this one as Philadelphia’s Cory Kluber faced the Giants’ Zack Greinke but both pitchers were long gone by the time the game finished in the 11th.  Melancon gets the “W” and Kimbrel records the loss.

GAME 3:   SF 4, PHIL 2  – Giants’ catcher Robinson Chirinos hit a two-run homer off R. A. Dickey in the bottom of the eighth to break a 2-2 tie.  Kimbrel gets his second save in the series by pitching a scoreless ninth.

GAME 4:  SF 7, PHIL 1  – Very strange line score for the Giants as they score 7 runs off just 2 hits.  But, the Phils gave up seven walks, an error and a hit batsman which allowed San Francisco to get the win.  Tanner Roark pitched 6+ shutout innings to defeat Phillies pitcher Scott Feldman.  Giants are now up 3 games to 1.

GAME 5:  SF 6, PHIL 5 – San Francisco’s Adam Wainwright outpitched Michael Wacha as the Giants eliminate the Phillies.  Puig, Castro and Dozier all hit homers off Wacha to pave the way for the series clinching win.  Craig Kimbrel earned his third save in the series by pitching another 1-2-3 inning in the top of the 9th.  San Francisco now faces the winner of the Oakland Boston series.

Seattle Defeats Los Angeles in Six Games

 

Fourth seeded Seattle eliminated fifth seeded Los Angeles in a quarter-finals playoff series.  A recap of the games: 

GAME 1:  LA 5, SEA 1  - Matt Garza didn't allow a hit until the 8th inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Seattle Mariners 5-1.  Garza (1-0) gave up just 2 hits and 1 walk in 7+ innings.  The right-handed Garza lost a no-hitter when Albert Pujols doubled with one out in the 8th inning.   The loss was charged to Felix Hernandez (0-1).  He gave up 5 runs and 10 hits in 8+ innings.  Aramis Ramirez hit a two-run homer for LA. 

GAME 2:   SEA 5, LA 4 – Seattle’s Ryan Braun hit two homers including a solo shot in the bottom of the eighth which proved to be the game winner.  Darren O'Day got the win in relief and Francisco Rodriguez recorded another postseason save for the Mariners.

GAME 3:   LA 7, SEA 0 – Teams travel to LA for the next three games.  Andrew Cashner fired seven shutout innings as the Dodgers cruised 7-0.  Cashner fanned nine in his seven innings of work.  David Peralta hit a pinch-hit grand slam homerun off Sergio Romo in the bottom of the seventh to break the game wide open. 

GAME 4:  SEA 1, LA 0 – King Felix fired a dominating one-hitter while fanning 12 as the Mariners evened the series.  The lone run was scored in top of the sixth as Albert Pujols knocked in Jose Reyes for the game winner. 

GAME 5:  SEA 4, LA 2 – Jeff Samardzija outdueled Matt Garza as the Mariners pushed the Dodgers to the brink of elimination with a 4-2 win.  Francisco Rodriguez, who gave up an unearned run in the bottom of the ninth as LA tried to mount a comeback, got his second save of the series. 

GAME 6:  SEA 7, LA 6 (12) – Jose Reyes hit a walk off double in the bottom of the twelveth  scoring Peter Bourjos as Seattle eliminated Los Angeles.  The Dodgers had tied the game up at 6-6 in the 8^th as they scored two runs off Romo.  Both teams used eight pitchers in the game.  The Mariners, who were eliminated in last season’s semi-finals to the eventual champs Indians, will now face the winner of the Toronto-St. Louis playoff series.

 

Winding Down the 2014 Season

We have just 12 games to go in our current season.  Here is how our playoff races are shaping up:

Division Leaders
1.  Toronto (96-54)
2.  Philadelphia (92-58)
3.  Oakland (88-62)
4.  Seattle (86-64)

Wild Card Spots
5.  Los Angeles (89-61)
6.  St. Louis (86-64)
7.  Boston (86-64)
8.  San Francisco (84-66)

On the Bubble
9.  Miami (83-67)

Current Bullpen Stats

ZTeam Bullpen

Team                         ReERA ReW ReL Sv
---------------------------  ----- --- --- --
Toronto Blue-Jays (TOA)       2.20  26  16 41
Oakland A's (OAA)             2.56  21  19 39
Boston Red Sox (BOA)          2.83  30  21 51
San Francisco Giants (SFN)    2.87  22  24 52
Anaheim Angels (ANA)          2.98  16  23 38
Arizona Diamondbacks (ARN)    3.00  17  20 32
Seattle Mariners (SEA)        3.04  27  13 51
St. Louis Cardinals (SLN)     3.08  23  21 45
Atlanta Braves (ATN)          3.28  24  21 38
Philadelphia Phillies (PHN)   3.30  25  16 43
Pittsburgh Pirates (PIN)      3.47  24  22 48
Cleveland Indians (CLA)       3.54  17  24 35
Los Angeles Dodgers (LAN)     3.55  24  21 45
Washington Nationals (WAN)    3.59  19  21 32
New York Yankees (NYA)        3.70  13  19 22
Miami Marlins (MMN)           3.73  21  19 46
Kansas City Royals (KCA)      3.94  15  24 39
Chicago White Sox (CHA)       4.27  22  21 39
Houston Astros (HOA)          4.34  19  28 47
Minnesota Twins (MNA)         4.81  18  28 32

Current Clutch Hitting Stats

Team Clutch Hitting

Team                         ClAB ClH ClHR ClRBI ClAvg
---------------------------  ---- --- ---- ----- -----
St. Louis Cardinals (SLN)     588 143   20   181  .243
Boston Red Sox (BOA)          591 139   15   182  .235
Kansas City Royals (KCA)      583 137   11   172  .235
New York Yankees (NYA)        547 127   15   168  .232
Los Angeles Dodgers (LAN)     548 127   18   173  .232
Cleveland Indians (CLA)       622 144   19   185  .232
Anaheim Angels (ANA)          563 130   11   166  .231
Chicago White Sox (CHA)       609 140   14   174  .230
Miami Marlins (MMN)           623 143   17   167  .230
Pittsburgh Pirates (PIN)      549 126   16   157  .230
Seattle Mariners (SEA)        536 123   15   153  .229
Philadelphia Phillies (PHN)   595 136   21   186  .229
Oakland A's (OAA)             556 126   13   156  .227
Toronto Blue-Jays (TOA)       542 120   22   175  .221
Atlanta Braves (ATN)          528 114   12   143  .216
Arizona Diamondbacks (ARN)    563 120   11   145  .213
Houston Astros (HOA)          553 114   21   161  .206
San Francisco Giants (SFN)    621 126   11   147  .203
Washington Nationals (WAN)    532 104   22   135  .195
Minnesota Twins (MNA)         560 104   11   139  .186

The Indians Are World Champions!

The Cleveland Indians won their first Millennium League World Championship with a convincing four games to one victory over the San Francisco Giants.  A summary of the series:

SF 8, CLEV 6 - The Giants jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead and Max Scherzer pitched just good enough for the win.  Coco Crisp drove in 4 runs via a pair of singles.

CLEV 3, SF 1 - Ricky Nolasco (3-0, 2.63 ERA in the post season) was brilliant as he a fired a complete game 6-hitter while fanning 9.  Jay Bruce hit a 2-run shot for the Tribe.  Adam Wainwright, who was undefeated in this postseason prior to this game, took the loss.

CLEV 3, SF 0 - Jhoulys Chacin (3-0, 0.36 ERA) pitched 7+ innings of scoreless ball.  Pedro Alvarez, batting .349 this postseason, had a pair of hits, drove in a run and a scored a run.

CLEV 6, SF 5 (13) - The Giants' Scherzer had a one run lead going to the 9th, but Craig Kimbrel failed to notch the save as the Tribe scored a run in the 9th and then the game winner in the 13th.  The Indian bullpen tossed 8 innings of scoreless relief as Tim Stauffer got the win.  Justin Wilson took the loss as he threw a wild pitch in the 13th scoring Brian McCann.

CLEV 3, SF 2 (10) - Ben Revere drove in the winning run off loser Craig Kimbrel in the top of the 10th as the Cleveland Indians won their first championship.  The Tribe's only other World Series appearance was in the 2000 season as they lost in four games to the Arizona Diamondbacks.  Congratulations Mike Petersen and his team!

Houston Astros: A Year by Year Recap

Houston Astros Year by Year Recap

Millennium Strat League

2013

94-68, 1^st Killebrew Division

Beat Toronto 4 games to 3 in 1^st round of playoffs

Lost to San Francisco 4 games to 3 in 2^nd round of playoffs

The Astros advance to the 2^nd round of the playoffs after winning the Killebrew division. Leading the way was Clayton Kershaw. He won his 2^nd Cy Young going 19-6, with a league record 1.60 ERA. He pitched 258 innings, striking out 231, 0.87 WHIP and threw 6 more shutouts which now gives him the MSL record for career shut outs with 18. Eric Stults (19-7, 3.21, 3^rd round pick) tied Kershaw and 2 others for the league lead in wins. Homer Bailey (11-11, 4.27, 199 K), Kyle Kendrick (12-7, 4.62) and Jeremy Hellickson (8-7, 4.81, 4^th round pick) rounded out the rotation. 2^nd round pick Yordani Ventura (0-1, 6.57, 2 starts) looks to be a strong presence in the future. Bryan Morris (7-6, 5.08) and Jerome Williams (4-4, 5.20) struggled in relief. Tony Watson (6-6, 2.79) and Ernesto Frieri (1-1, 3.06) were excellent in the set up roles. Edward Mujica (2-5, 3.05) set a MSL record with 51 saves. Billy Hamilton (.167-0-1, 23 stolen bases) was the team's 1^st round pick and Kris Davis (.186-6-18) showed some speed and power. 2012'2 1^st 2 round picks Adam Eaton (.187-1-9) and Yasmani Grandal (.225-0-4) both struggled in 2013 but hope to contribute in 2014. Mike Napoli (.230-32-90, 32 doubles) and Giancarlo Stanton (.249-31-94) led the team in home runs. Ian Desmond (.252-21-78, 35 doubles, 14 stolen bases), Todd Frazier (.247-23-81, 34 doubles) and Matt Wieters (.220-28-58) also provided pop for Houston. The Astros trade former 1^st round pick Freddie Freeman (.316-13-37, 72 games) for Gerardo Parra (.308-5-35, 78 games) and Jason Kipnis (.221-5-22, 65 games). Jacoby Ellsbury (.328-8-51, 96 runs, 40 stolen bases) set a club record with 206 hits. Omar Infante (.301-8-30) may have seen his last days in Houston. Josh Hamilton (.234-9-49) struggled as injuries may have finally gotten the best of him.

2012

91-71, 2^nd Killebrew Division

Lost to Oakland 4 games to 3 in 1^st round of playoffs

For the 2^nd straight year the Astros finished 2^nd in the Killebrew Division and for the 2^nd straight year, the Oakland A's dispatched them in the 1^st round of the playoffs. Josh Hamilton (.282-58-128, 116 runs) set a club record in home runs. Giancarlo Stanton (.323-47-121, 97 runs, 43 doubles) had a breakout season and along with Hamilton helped the Astros finish 293 dingers which was 2^nd all time to the Mariners 301 in 2008. Shortstop Ian Desmond (.306-37-84, 109 runs, 38 doubles, 14 stolen bases) had a wonderful season as well giving the Stros their 3^rd player with 37 or more home runs. Omar Infante (.299-11-65, 39 doubles), Scott Hairston (.283-21-54, 290 AB), Matt Wieters (.266-22-68), Todd Frazier (.259-19-56, 10 triples), Freddie Freeman (.251-27-78) and Cameron Maybin (.225-14-37, 18 stolen bases) all had at least 11 long balls. Mike Napoli (.191-9-35) struggled. Adam Eaton (.095-0-0, 1^st round pick) and Yasmani Grandal (.236-5-19, 2^nd round pick) didn't get much playing time but hope to be in Houston's future plans. Jacoby Ellsbury (.264-3-18, 11 stolen bases) fought injries and appeared in only 70 games. Clayton Kershaw (17-10, 3.00, 243 IP, 223 K, 1.00 WHIP) fell off just a bit but still threw 5 shut outs. Homer Bailey (12-10, 4.82), Brandon McCarthy (9-5, 5.01), Matt Harrison (12-11, 5.12), Joe Blanton (8-9, 5.38) and Jeff Turner (4-2, 5.79) were the other starters. Tim Blackley (3-2. 3.71) was a late call up and spot starter but threw the Astros 2^nd ever no hitter. Matt Thornton (2-2, 4.58), Tony Watson (4-1, 4.15), Alex Burnett (8-2, 4.02), Edward Mujica (2-2, 3.04), Ronald Belisario (5-3, 2.88) and Casey Fien (1-5, 2.64) pitched well and bridged the gap between the starters and closer Ernesto Frieri (2-5, 3.44) and his 28 saves.

2011

96-66, 2^nd Killebrew Division

Lost to Oakland 4 games to in 1^st ound of playoffs

After 6 long years the Astros finally made it back to the playoffs. Mike Napoli (.314-43-109, 401 AB) had his best year as a pro and the best year for an Astro in 2011.Jacoby Ellsbury (.291-29-90, 120 runs, 37 stolen bases) and Cameron Maybin (.281-14-48, 88 runs, 12 triples, 38 stolen bases) patrolled the outfield with slugger Giancarlo Stanton (.235-34-96, 90 runs, 11 triples). Matt Wieters (.263-21-53), Omar Infante (.277-8-51) and Ian Desmond (.216-10-39, 17 stolen bases) were stellar up the middle. Josh Hamilton (.263-25-85, 33 doubles) battled through nagging injuries to DH and help the offense. Houston continued to stock it's stable with 1^st baseman Freddie Freeman (.262-21-61, 35 doubles) and 3^rd baseman Todd Frazier (.167-6-13, 84 AB). Mark Reynolds (.190-37-97) was big or bust in 2011. He struck out a league record 232 times. Ladies and gentlemen please welcome the arrival of Clayton Kershaw. The 2011 MSL Cy Young winner went 24-7 with a 2.52 ERA. He threw 7 shut outs and struck out 238, 1.03 WHIP. He tied the MSL record for wins and set the MSL record for shutouts. Homer Bailey (10-7, 4.78), Matt Harrison (14-9, 3.05), Brandon McCarthy (9-7, 3.86) and Colby Lewis (10-10, 4.53) were solid for Houston. Despite being nearly 300 years old, Livian Hernandez (8-8, 6.18) still made 16 starts. Ryan Madson (4-5, 3.19) reclaimed his closer role with 36 saves from Matt Thornton (2-1, 2.24). Rafel Perez (3-1, 1.87), Kyle Farnsworth (0-2, 3.21), Edward Mujica (1-2, 3.90) and Enersto Frieri (4-3, 3.93) helped bridge the gap.

2010

67-95, 5^th Killebrew Division

For the 1^st time in 5 years, Houston did not break the century mark in losses. Josh Hamilton had a year for the ages. He batted .369 with 43 home runs, 115 RBI, 102 runs, 198 hits and 41 doubles. He was not only chasing the league batting average record but also the triple crown but fell short on both instances. Jack Cust (.269-20-54), Russell Branyan (.251-31-83) and Mark Reynolds (.162-21-60) hit some tape measure shots during the year. The Astros continue to collect young talent as Giancarlo Stanton (.211-28-75, 384 AB) showed raw power despite not batting well. He joins Ian Desmond (.241-10-48), Matt Wieters (.241-11-31), Omar Infante (.290-6-37) and Jacoby Ellsbury (.000-0-0) for a bright future. Mike Napoli (.235-19-48), Brandon Inge (.210-13-47) and Johnny Gomes (.205-10-32) provided some power. Matt Thornton (1-1, 1.69, 33 saves) took over the closer role with outstanding success. Aaron Heilman (3-1, 3.44), Logan Ondrusek (4-2, 3.62) and Edward Mujica (2-4, 3.84) were solid in the set up role while Nick Masset (1-6, 5.37) fell apart in 2010. Homer Bailey (8-5, 5.04) and Clayton Kershaw (11-16, 4.35, 222 K) are progressing nicely and wouldn't be surprised in one of them has a break out year in 2011. Colby Lewis (14-8, 4.24, 205 K) and Livian Hernandez (9-13, 4.60) provided solid starts. Armando Gallaraga (3-9, 5.57), Kevin Correia (3-12, 7.79) and Manny Parra (1-6, 9.54) were horrible.

2009

52-110, 5^th Killebrew Division

Houston was once again a powerful team with 219 home runs. Mark Reynolds (.268-50-116, 101 runs, 30 doubles, 86 walks, 225 K, 13 stolen bases) had a career year hitting the 50 mark in taters. Rookie Matt Wieters (.318-17-50) was great in his 108 games. Jack Cust (.234-16-45), Josh Hamilton (.234-13-32), Mike Napoli (.225-23-60), Johnny Gomes (.223-25-50) and Brandon Inge (.219-31-83) all had power but couldn't hit the ball consistently with the highest average at .234. Jacoby Ellsbury (.285-7-40, 88 runs, 88 stolen bases) was electric on the base paths as he set a MSL record with 88 stolen bases. Omar Infante (.273-0-15) and rookie Ian Desmond (.263-1-7) look to be the future up the middle. Clayton Kershaw (5-16, 4.73, 199 K) and Homer Bailey (5-9, 7.84) struggled again but Houston still has high hopes for both of these young pitchers. Livian Hernandez (6-16, 5.58), Kevin Correia (7-16, 6.17) and Brad Penny (9-17, 6.92) started 97 games with a combined record of 22-49. Matt Thornton (2-3, 2.49), Nick Masset (5-3, 3.01) and Todd Coffey (2-2, 3.64) pitched well out of the pen. Closer Ryan Madson (5-10, 5.19, 17 saves) and Phil Coke (0-0, 5.62) were terrible. Youngster Matt Harrison (0-8, 9.86) was winless in 12 starts.

2008

55-107, 5^th Killebrew Division

Houston's 241 team homer were 2^nd in the league in 2008. Lance Berkman (.289-32-94, 96 runs, 45 doubles) had another magnificent season in Jeff Miller's 1^st season as owner of the Astros. Josh Hamilton (.270-33-89, 95 runs) and Mark Reynolds (.229-33-105, 226 K) both joined Berkman in the 30 home run club. Mike Napoli (.260-20-50, 235 AB), Jim Edmonds (.240-26-66, 29 doubles , 350 AB) and Jack Cust (.219-26-63, 108 walks, 205 K) each went over 20 dingers. Garret Atkins (.272-14-41), Richie Sexson (.252-12-26, 155 AB) and Mark Ellis (.226-14-43) hit double digits in home runs. Jacoby Ellsbury (.259-9-52, 41 stolen bases) and Omar Infante (.271-4-29) look to have secured positions up the middle. With a 6.04 team ERA the Astros pitching staff was once again bad. However with the additions of Homer Bailey (2-3, 9.17, 7 GS) and Clayton Kershaw (3-12, 8.33) there is hope for the future. Brad Penny (7-4, 4.45) wasn't too bad but Vincente Padilla (9-13, 5.21), Tim Redding (5-15, 6.37) and Livian Hernandez (4-19, 7.99) weren't good. Closer Billy Wagner (2-4, 2.81, 26 saves) was very good. Ryan Madson (2-7, 3.58), Willie Ohman (4-3, 3.93) and Matt Thornton (4-2, 4.10) pitched okay out of the pen.

2007

53-109 5^th Killebrew Division

With a .269 batting average and 210 homers, the Astros can still hit. With 12 players hitting 10 or more homers being led by long time Astro Lance Berkman (.252-32-89), The Astros hit 210 team dingers. Moises Alou (.344-20-51, 317 AB), Josh Hamilton (.322-14-51, 270 AB), Kat Matsui (.313-10-46, 412 AB, 24 stolen bases)) and Jose Molina (.303-2-17) all batted over .300. Mark Ellis (.291-11-22), Brad Hawpe (.280-17-52), Jeremy Hermida (.271-19-71), Damon Easley (.270-10-28), Garrett Atkins (.260-12-64), Mike Napoli (.258-12-32), Ryan Spilborghs (.252-14-28) and Willy Mo Pena (.249-11-33) a;; went into double digit in long balls for the Astros. Sammy Sosa (.266-8-33, 192 AB) and Craig Biggio (.261-1-6, 69 AB) both played sparingly despite their illustrious careers. Pitching was once again a disaster for Houston. Starters Todd Wellmeyer (3-4, 4.15), Darrin McGowan (3-8, 4.68), Scott Baker (9-12, 4.92), Woody Williams (2-21, 6.21), Ervin Santana (1-16, 6.97) and Jonathan Danks (3-17, 8.01). The last 3 had 92 starts and went a combined 6-54. Carlos Marmol (5-2, 3.05, 14 saves), Mitch Guerrier (4-4, 3.81) and Jason Grilli (7-4, 3.97) were decent out of the pen while Shawn Chacon (2-9, 5.90, 69 games, 102 IP) was very bad.

2006

47-115 5^th Killebrew Division

The Astros saw a catastrophic dip in 2006. They dropped 35 wins from the previous year. They still batted .267 with 187 home runs. Garrett Atkins (.318-23-68, 43 2B) had a spectacular season for the Stros. Mike Piazza (.288-27-75) and Lance Berkman (.272-35-84) both provided power for the Astros. They had 5 other players who hit at least 11 home runs. Moises Alou (.275-11-35), Juan Encarnacion (.254-13-50), Mike Sweeney (.233-12-37), Cliff Floyd (.226-17-42) and Mike Napoli (.206-12-29) were on that list. David Eckstein (.291-2-27) and Mark Kotsay (.270-6-48) also contributed for Houston. Pitching was flat out bad. The starting staff of Claudio Vargas (5-15, 5.73), Steve Trachsel (5-14, 5.83), Tom Glavine (10-12, 6.08), Vincente Padilla (8-21, 6.56) and Cole Hamels (3-13, 6.57) has to be among the worst of all time They started 136 of the 162 games. The relievers weren't much better. H Carrasco (2-8, 4.95, 91 IP), Matt Thornton (1-2, 5.17), Charles Gaudin (2-3, 4.42) and R Bauer (3-4, 3.93) were set up men/mop of men for closer Billy Wagner (1-8, 3.91, 19 saves).

2005

82-80 3^rd Killebrew Division

The Astros finished 3^rd in the Killebrew Divison, ending their two year run of winning the Division. They continued to be a hitting team, batting .271 with 182 long balls. They had 8 players hit 10 or more homeruns. Mike Sweeney (.276-25-67, 41 2B) led the team with 25 homers. David Eckstein (.318-13-61, 99 runs) lead the team in runs, hits, ba tting average, triples, HBP and stolen bases. Moises Alou (.301-21-60) and Lance Berkman (.298-17-70, 38 2B, 83 BB) are long time Astros who helped contribute this season. Luis Gonzalez (.295-6-57), Mark Kotsay (.287-17-87), Larry Walker (.277-15-48), Brad Hawpe (.261-10-29) and Mike Lieberthal (.247-17-60) all chipped in on offense. Houston had 5 pitches win at least 10 games in 2005. Justin Duchscherer (10-4, 2.53, 97 K, 85.1 IP, 8 sv) was spectacular out of the pen to win his 10 games. Shawn Chacon (12-6, 4.85, 2 sv) split time between the starting rotation and the pen for his 12 wins. Jason Johnson (10-12, 4.71), Tom Glavine (11-14, 5.53) and Jeff Weaver (11-12, 5.86) were the starters in double digits. Toma Ohka (9-11, 4.26) and Rodrigo Lopez (4-12, 7.13) were the other two full time starters with Hector Carrasco (7-3, 2.94) getting almost a dozen starts. Billy Wagner (4-0, 0.76, 26 sv, 29 hits, 9 BB, 54 K in 47.1 IP) was nearly unhittable in the 9^th inning of games.

2004

95-67 1^st Killebrew Division

Beat Minnesota 4 games to 2 in 1^st round of playoffs

Lost to St. Louis 4 games to 1 in 2^nd round of playoffs

The Houston Astros defended their division title in 2004 and won their 1^st playoff series before bowing out in the 2^nd round. The Astros batted .279 as a team with 218 home runs. 1^st baseman Jeff Bagwell (.273-14-49) had a down year. Other infielders included 3^rd baseman Sean Burroughs (.268-3-46), 2^nd baseman Todd Walker (.232-17-57) and former 1^st round draft pick David Eckstein (.280-1-52, 15 SB) at short stop. Eli Marrero (.419-11-56, 21 2B 198 AB) dazzled in a limited role. Lance Berkman (.305-32-108, 114 runs, 40 2B, 126 BB, 10 SB) led Houston in 8 offensive categories. There were a total of 10 Astros who hit double digit in home runs. Eli Marrero, Lance Berkman, Miguel Ojeda (.303-13-37, 132 AB), Mike Sweeney (.286-24-83), Mark Kotsay (.285-14-63, 38 2B, 82 runs), Moises Alou (.273-26-83, 88 runs, 34 2B), Junior Spivey (.263-15-34, 160 AB), Mike Piazza (.258-20-68) and Todd Walker all eclipsed the double digit barrier. The franchise's very 1^st pick, Larry Walker (.254-8-41), continued to struggle in Houston. The Stros had 5 pitchers win at least 12 games. Jaret Wright (13-7, 3.33) emerged as the star of the staff. Jason Johnson (12-9, 4.68), Rodrigo Lopez (12-10, 4.73), Tom Glavine (14-9, 5.17) and Jeff Weaver (15-12, 5.33) all had records above .500 depite having poor ERAs. Billy Wagner (1-3, 2.45, 35 sv) and Octavio Dotel (6-3, 3.89, 9 sv, 98 K, 78.2 IP) anchored the bullpen once again, this time with help from Akinori Otsuka (2-3, 2.86, 2 sv)

2003

82-80, 1^st Killebrew Division

Lost to St. Louis 4 games to 1 in 1^st round of playoffs

2003 saw the Houston Astros only go 82-80. However that record was good enough for Houston to win their 2^nd division title in 3 years. The Astros got back to their hitting ways by batting .273 with 198 home runs. Lance Berkman (.316-23-104, 107 runs, 43 2B), Moises Alou (.313-13-45, 278 AB), Bo Hart (.313-1-34, 10 T, 275 AB), Ramon Vazquez (.309-5-41) and 1^st round draft pick Mark Teixeira (.302-5-13, before being traded to Boston along with Houston's 2^nd and 3^rd round pick in 2004 for Mike Sweeney (.299-8-32), Tom Glavine (1-2, 7.04), Garrett Atkins and Boston's 1^st round pick in 2004) all batted over .300 for Houston. Jeff Bagwell (.260-46-136, 107 runs) topped the 40 home run mark for the 3^rd time in 4 years. Sean Burroughs (.275-9-41), Mark Kotsay (.270-19-79), Alex Cintron (.265-15-48), Mark Piazza (.260-19-42, 250 AB) and Larry Walker (.249-15-68, 34 2B) rounded out the offense. Kip Wells (11-13, 5.04), Wade Miller (14-12, 5.11), Jae Seo (10-11, 5.29) and Brian Anderson (13-12, 5.48) all won over 10 games despite each of them having an ERA of over 5. The strength of the pitching staff was in it's bullpen. Tom Martin (1-3, 2.49, 2 sv), Billy Wagner (6-1, 2.61, 33 sv, 73 K, 51.2 IP), Octavio Dotel (6-7, 3.07, 4 sv, 103 K, 88 IP) and Matt Herges (4-2, 3.57, 4 sv) protected leads late to help the Astros finish out games.

2002

74-88 3^rd Killebrew Division

The 2002 version of the Houston Astros missed the playoffs for the 1^st time in MSL history managing to win only 74 games. After hitting at least .270 with at least 240 homers in each of the 1^st 2 years, they only batted .252 with 161 longball in 2002. Larry Walker (.303-29-89) and Moises Alou (.303-6-19) were the only 2 Houston players to bat over .300. Power was supplied by the Killer B trio of Jeff Bagwell (.287-36-95, 105 runs, 33 2B, 91 BB), Lance Berkman (.257-32-91, 88 runs, 34 2B) and Craig Biggio (.210-19-75, 19 HBP, 10 SB). 2^nd year second baseman David Eckstein (.271-6-35, 84 runs, 11 T, 34 HBP, 26 SB), Chris Singleton (.256-11-43, 15 SB) and Jeff Cirillo (.208-4-28) all played roles for the Astros. Wade Miller (11-4, 3.36) was the only starter to have a winning record. Brian Anderson (8-9, 4.37), Jason Johnson (8-12, 5.14), Kevin Appier (6-15, 5.31), Josh Fogg (4-11, 5.40) and Ryan Dempster (5-8, 6.11) all brought the stank on a nightly basis. Octavio Dotel (5-4, 1.93, 11 sv, 90 K, 74.2 IP) and Billy Wagner (1-4, 2.93, 22 sv) were excellent out of the pen. David Eckstein set a ne league record with 34 HBP.

2001

98-64 1^st Killebrew Division

Lost to Oakland 4 games to 3 in 1^st round of playoffs

The Astros won their 1^st division title in the 2^nd year of the MSL. This team once again were hitters batting .270 with 244 home runs. 2000 1^st round draft pick Larry Walker (.317-32-85, 36 2B, 116 runs) led the team in batting average. The Astros also had 3 other players batting over .300. Lance Berkman (.316-32-104, league leading 52 2B, 116 runs), Jeff Bagwell (.307-43-123, 125 runs) and Jeff Cirillo (.307-20-68) all eclipsed that mark with Moises Alou (.298-24-89) just missing it at .298. Craig Biggio (.255-18-67, 97 runs, record 29 HBP), Greg Norton (.260-14-39, 123 AB), Joe Liefer (.253-24-61, 277 AB) and Ben Petrick (.231-11-30) all were over 10 homers giving the Astros 9 players in double digits after having 10 of them the year before. 1^st round draft pick David Eckstein (.246-4-41) led the team with a franchise record 27 stolen bases. We then have the curious case of Richard Hildago who had a spectacular inaugural MSL season (.296-51-159) just to see a historical drop off in 2001. Hildago batted .248 with 7 home runs and 31 RBI. All 5 starters won in double figures despite all of them having ERAs over 4 with one being over 6.50. Wade Miller (19-6, 4.06), Albie Lopez (17-12, 4.33), Kevin Appier (12-10, 4.57) and Jimmy Anderson (13-11, 4.86) were all solid for Houston. Ryan Dempster (12-9, 6.53) is now 29-21 for his career despite having an ERA of over 6. The Astros had 5 pitchers out of the pen that contributed heavily to the success of the team. Octavio Dotel (6-1, 1.79, 5 sv, 112 K, 90.2 IP), Bobby Witt (5-2, 1.91, 3 sv, 33.2 IP), Billy Wagner (1-4, 2.93, 42 sv, 77 K, 58.1 IP), Mike Remlinger (3-2, 3.41, 1 sv, 86 K, 63.1 IP) and Vladimir Nunez (5-1, 3.73, 100 IP) went 20-10 out of the pen to help the Astros to the division title. Wade Miller (.760 winning %), Billy Wagner (42 saves) and Craig Biggio (29 HBP) all set new single season records.

2000

93-69 2^nd Killebrew Division

Lost to Arizona 4 games to 1 in 1^st round of playoffs

This team flat out hit. With a .278 team batting average and 248 home runs they demolished teams along the way. The Astros had 10 players with more than 10 home runs. Richard Hildago (.296-51-159, 127 runs, 35 2B) ended up 5^th in the league in home runs and 2 in RBI. Hildago ended up with the painful distinction of leading the league with 28 HBP. Moises Alou (.330-19-88) and Jeff Bagwell (.316-41-109, 141 runs, 40 2B, 104 BB) both ended up batting over .300. Jeff Cirillo (.291-19-47, 47 2B), Lance Berkman (.290-20-68), Joe Girardi (.284-10-56), Mike Bordick (.283-30-98, 104 runs), Craig Biggio (.278-10-46), Ron Gant (.272-15-41, 191 AB) and Brook Fordyce (.258-14-30, 159 AB) all hit the double digit mark in longballs. 1^st round draft pick Larry Walker (.260-7-62) had an average season. Ryan Dempster (17-12, 5.70, 217 K), Jose Mercedes (10-7, 3.53), Kevin Appier (15-8, 4.21) and Albie Lopez (15-8, 4.64) paced a solid yet unspectacular starting staff. Mike Remlinger (1-1, 2.80, 32 saves) and Paul Shuey (4-2, 2.22) anchored the bullpen.

It's Indians vs. Giants in Series

The Cleveland Indians eliminated the two-time defending champion Seattle Mariners with a convincing 4-1 series victory.  A summary of the games:

Game 1 - SEA 7 CLE 3 - Yadier Molina lofted one into the 'cheap seats' and had 2 RBI and Felix Hernandez went the distance as the Seattle Mariners topped the Cleveland Indians by a score of 7 to 2 at Rangers Ballpark. Hernandez(3-0) was very good in the win. He surrendered only 7 hits and no walks in 9 innings lowering his ERA from 3.14 to 2.70. Seattle managed 12 hits in their victory. Shelby Miller(0-2) suffered the loss. He got hit hard, allowing 12 hits and 3 walks in 9 innings.



Game 2 - CLE 5 SEA 4 - Pedro Alvarez ripped 2 homeruns and had 5 RBI and Ervin Santana pitched a complete game at Rangers Ballpark as the Cleveland Indians pulled off a dramatic comeback beating the Seattle Mariners by the count of 5 to 4.

Cleveland came up with the deciding runs in the bottom of the 9th inning plating 2 runs.  Daniel Nava started the inning off right when he drew a walk.  Domonic Brown followed, but he was set down on strikes.  Alvarez then clubbed a two-run home run giving Cleveland the win as 23,098 happy fans joyfully celebrated.  Cleveland had a total of 11 hits for the game.

Santana(2-0), allowing 4 runs for the game, picked up the victory. Francisco Rodriguez(0-1) was the losing pitcher in relief. 

Game 3 - CLE 9 SEA 7 - Jay Bruce rocketed 2 homeruns as the Cleveland Indians bested the Seattle Mariners 9 to 7 at Rogers Centre.

Ricky Nolasco(2-0) had a fairly solid outing.  He went 6 and 1/3 innings allowing 9 hits and 1 walk.  Despite losing, Seattle out-hit Cleveland 16 to 11. 

Jim Henderson recorded the save, his 4th.  Jon Lester(1-1) suffered the loss.  He gave up 4 runs and 4 hits in 1 and 2/3 innings.

Game 4 - CLE 4 SEA 1 - Jhoulys Chacin had a strong outing as the Cleveland Indians beat the Seattle Mariners by a score of 4 to 1.

Cleveland scored the winning runs in the top of the 9th inning with 3 runs using 2 hits.  Matt Carpenter started the inning off right when he drew a walk.  Erick Aybar stepped up next and he drew a walk.  Denard Span then doubled scoring two baserunners.  One out later, Chris Carter was the next batter, but he struck out.  Domonic Brown came up to bat and ripped a single scoring the final run of the inning.  Seattle proved to be no trouble in the bottom of the 9th. 

Chacin(2-0), allowing 1 run for the game, picked up the victory. Paco Rodriguez(0-1) ended up with the loss in relief. 


Game 5 - CLE 10 SEA 4 - Shelby Miller completed the game without help from the bullpen at Rogers Centre as the Cleveland Indians beat the Seattle Mariners by the count of 10 to 4.

Seattle was unable to climb back into it after Cleveland went ahead for good in the top of the 5th inning scoring 3 runners on 2 hits.  The key at-bat was by Jay Bruce who quieted the home crowd when he doubled plating three runs. Cleveland rapped out 12 hits for the night. 

Miller(1-2) lasted until the end allowing 4 runs for the win. Justin Verlander(1-1) ended up with the loss.  He got hammered, allowing 8 hits and 2 walks in 4 and 2/3 innings. 

Giants Advance to Fall Classic

 

Adam Wainwright led the San Francisco Giants to their first World Series berth with an exciting seven game series win over the Houston Astros.

 

Game 1 - Astros 6, Giants 5

The Giants took a 3 to 1 lead after 6 innings and Wainwright was cruising.  However in the bottom of the 8th things took a turn in favor of the Astros.  With 2 men on, Houston's 1st baseman, Mike Napoli, drove a pitch deep into the LF stands.  The Astros were feeling pretty good going into the top of the 9th sending Edward Mujica and his 51 regular season saves out to the mound with a 4 to 3 lead.  But the joy was short lived as Mujica gave up 4 hits that led to 2 runs and the Giants retook the lead with Craig Kimbrel and his 32 regular season saves and sub 1 WHIP taking the mound.  Omar Infante got on base due to an error by David Wright.  Jeff Miller then sent Khris Davis up to pinch hit for Matt Wieters.  This was the right move as Davis drove the Kimbrel offering into the seats for a walk off pinch hit 2 run homer.

Game 2 - Astros 3, Giants 0

The Astros scored runs in the 1st, 2nd and 6th innings but Mr. Clayton Kershaw would only need the run in the 1st as he dominated the Giants all night long.  Despite having a bit of a control problem (5 walks), Kershaw limited San Francisco to 3 hits while striking out 6 en route to his 3rd win of the playoffs.  Now the series shifts to the bay area.

Game 3 - Giants 3, Astros 1

Eric Stults (6 IP, 3 hits, 1 run) and Max Scherzer (7 IP, 4 hits, 1 run, 8 K) put on a heck of a pitching performance but neither factored into the decision.  With the game knotted at 1 going into the bottom of the 9th, Chris Withrow was called on to pitch.  He promptly walked Allen Craig before grooving one to Coco Crisp who clubbed into the right field seats for the walk off dinger and gave the Giants their 1st win of the series.

Game 4 - Giants 2, Astros 1

The Giants even the series on another walk off win.  In another great pitching match up, Adam Wainwright was dominant.  He threw a complete game giving up 6 hits and striking out 6 was giving up a single run.  His counterpart, Homer Bailey, pitched 5 innings giving up 8 hits, 1 run and striking out 5.  Ernesto Frieri pitched a scoreless 8th before loading the bases up with 1 out in the 9th before giving way to Tony Watson.  Watson must have watched the Coco Crisp home run from the night before as he sailed 4 straight pitches out of the strike zone to crisp to give him the walk off walk.

Game 5 - Astros 2, Giants 1

Clayton Kershaw once again dominated the Giants lineup.  Once again he gave up a measly 3 hits to San Francisco, one of them being a solo shot to Freddy Galvis in the 8th inning.  Jason Kipnis hit a 2 run long ball in the 6th to give Kershaw all the support he needed.  Astros are feeling good, just needing 1 at home to take the series.

Game 6 - Giants 4, Astros 3 11 innings

Allen Craig was the hero for game 6.  He took Eric Stults deep 2 times, including the go ahead dinger in the top of the 11th.  After watching his bullpen blow 2 of the games at San Fran, Jeff Miller let Stults go all 11 innings and that cost him as the pitch to Craig was a breaking ball that did not break.  Zack Greinke pitched 3 innings of scoreless relief and Kimbrel picked up the save.  On to game 7.

Game 7 - Giants 4, Astros 2

Wainwright/Bailey III - Wainwright went 6 innings giving up 11 hits and 2 runs while striking out 6 to out duel Homer Bailey who went 7 innings giving up 11 hits and 4 runs while striking out 9.  Pedro Florimon surprised everyone by sending a 2 run shot deep into the night in the 4th inning.  Houston tried to climb back into it with 2 runs in the 7th but then Tyler Roark and Craig Kimbrel shut them down in the 8th and 9th innings to give the game and the series to the San Francisco Giants.

2013 Final Regular Season Bullpen

ZTeam Bullpen

Team                         ReERA ReW ReL Sv

---------------------------   ---- --- --- --
Oakland A's (OAA)             2.82  23  11 51
Minnesota Twins (MNA)         2.98  19  20 40
Washington Nationals (WAN)    3.00  20  18 43
Arizona Diamondbacks (ARN)    3.03  20  30 39
San Francisco Giants (SFN)    3.08  26  12 47
Cleveland Indians (CLA)       3.33  22  13 49
Seattle Mariners (SEA)        3.42  22  20 47
Anaheim Angels (ANA)          3.43  22  17 38
Atlanta Braves (ATN)          3.47  20  24 39
Toronto Blue-Jays (TOA)       3.55  16  25 47
Houston Astros (HON)          3.78  23  27 66
Philadelphia Phillies (PHN)   3.92  22  20 50
New York Yankees (NYA)        3.95  19  18 36
Chicago White Sox (CHA)       3.97  24  20 45
Kansas City Royals (KCA)      4.03  26  27 33

Pittsburgh Pirates (PIN)      4.05  15  28 38

Los Angeles Dodgers (LAN)     4.13  28  25 45

Miami Marlins (MMN)           4.20  20  21 40

St. Louis Cardinals (SLN)     4.20  25  25 31

Boston Red Sox (BOA)          4.30  22  24 50