Archive for September, 2012
Is Jeff Kent a Survivor?
September 26th, 2012 | 
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With the start of the reality television season comes news that former San Francisco Giants player and LDS Church member Jeff Kent is one of the contestants on this year’s “Survivor.” Kent was awarded the National League MVP in 2000 and was an All Star five times during his 17 year career, which ended in 2008. Since his retirement, he has lived on his ranch in Texas with his wife and four daughters.
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Ellsbury shines, but develops injury: Majors Update Sept. 24
Jacoby Ellsbury led the Mormons in the majors at the plate this past week, but by the end of the week he was benched with a rumored strain to his lat, which left him day-to-day. But before the injury he hit .467 with 6 rbis and a home run in 15 at bats.
But unlike Ellsbury, several other Mormons were largely kept from the plate by their managers. John Buck, for example, was one of those who struggled to get a shot at the plate—but Buck made the most of 7 at bats this past week, slamming 2 home runs among 3 hits for a .429 average. Unfortunately, Elliot Johnson (1 at bat) and Adam Rosales (3 at bats) didn’t do as well.
Barney on Fire, Guthrie great again: Majors Update Sept. 17
9 for 19, 7 runs and 6 walks. Sounds like a great week, huh? That was Darwin Barney this past week as he helped the Cubs win 4 of 6 against the Astros and Pirates. The week raised his batting average for the year to .263, slightly lower than last year.
But Barney was just the leader of a troika of strong Mormon hitters this past week. Jacoby Ellsbury also was strong, hitting .360 for the week with 2 runs, 2 rbis, 3 walks and 2 stolen bases. And the teenager Bryce Harper continued a now 3-week-long hot streak, hitting .318, scoring 3 runs and walking 3 times while hitting his 19th home run — he now holds the record for the most home runs in the National League by a teenager, 5 behind the major league record of 24.
Maier’s Storm Chasers Lose, was last Mormon in playoffs: Minors Update Sept 16
The last Mormon playing in the minor league playoffs has been eliminated. Mitch Maier was blanked in 4 at bats, striking out once, leaving his playoff average at .297, still 3rd best on the team, but his team didn’t have enough to stave off the Reno Aces, who beat Maier’s Omaha Storm Chasers 8-2, to win the fourth game of the Pacific Coast League and clinch the series.
Raptors lose championship with Cone on the bench: Minors Update Sept. 15
Rookie league pitcher Derek Cone again sat on the bench while his team, the Ogden Raptors, lost the final game of their series with the Missoula Osprey and the Pioneer League Championship. Meanwhile, the other Mormon remaining in the minor league playoffs, Mitch Maier, was 1 for 4 with 2 strike outs in the Omaha Storm Chasers loss.
Cone didn’t pitch, but his team still in it: Minors Update Sept. 14
As the last of the minor league playoffs wind down, rookie league pitcher Derek Cone sat on the bench while his team, the Ogden Raptors, beat the Missoula Osprey in the second game of their three-game series. The series is now tied at one game a piece, and concludes tonight.
Maier homers in win, Howell pitches but is out: Minors Update Sept 13
Mitch Maier is hitting .345 in the Pacific Coast League playoffs, providing a huge boost to the Omaha Storm Chasers in their bid for the League championship and a shot at the AAA championship. Maier homered for the third time in the playoffs yesterday as the Storm Chasers beat the Reno Aces and tied in their 5-game championship series at 1 game a piece.
Three remaining Mormons don’t play, but lose: Minors Update Sept. 12
All three of the Mormon players remaining in minor league playoff games did not play in yesterday’s games, but their teams did play, and all three lost. In the AAA Pacific Coast League, Mitch Maier, who as a position player might have been expected to play, was benched as the Omaha Storm Chasers lost to the Reno Aces. Blaine Howell, relief pitcher for the Bakersfield Blaze (A), did not pitch, as the Blaze lost to the Modesto Nuts. And in the Rookie Pioneer League, Derek Cone didn’t pitch and instead watched the Ogden Raptors lose to the Missoula Osprey.
Howell pitches well in team loss, Harper out: Minors Update Sept. 11
Blaine Howell pitched his best trying to give the Bakersfield Blaze a shot at shutting out the Modesto Nuts yesterday. Howell pitched 2.0 innings of relief after starter Stalin Gerson gave up 5 earned runs in the first inning. Howell gave up just 1 hit and no walks while striking out 3 in an attempt to keep the Blaze in the game. However, Nuts pitching kept the Blaze from scoring more than 1 run and the Nuts eventually won 12-1. They lag behind the Blaze 2 games to 1 in the series, which continues tonight.
Weekly Player Update: September 10th
The clear bright spot for Mormons in the Major Leagues this past week is Bryce Harper. The teenage phenom is on a hot streak that might erase the doubts in him that arose when he went into an extended post-all-star-game slump. After a strong week last week, Harper got even stronger this week, batting .360, scoring 8 runs and hitting another 3 home runs. In the past two weeks he has had two two-home run games and hit a total of six four-baggers to raise his total for the year to 18 and tie Mel Ott’s National League record for home runs by a teenager. Only one teenager has hit more home runs in a season: Tony Conigliaro hit 24 home runs as a 19-year-old rookie with the Boston Red Sox in 1964. Can Harper pass him?