I can’t stand the thought of no mo baseball for the rest of the year, so I’m just hoping that the Tigers make a game of it. Even if I can’t actually ROOT for them, if you dig. So in order to kind of encourage them, I headed over to Mama’s, paper catsuit and all. Naturally, Louis The Cat rushes over to miauw all ovah that paper and I tell him that he best not be thinkin of getting petted, let alone sitting with me, unless his team leads. AAAARRRRRROOOOWWWW, MIAOW, he sez, which means, just you wait, sista.

Demi Eff Lovato is in to sing the National Anthem. Naturally, she butchers it. Can someone please PLEASE explain to me why it is now an absolute necessity for female “singers” to refuse to sing the National Anthem as it was written, slowing it was down, changing the key, the phrasing, jazzing it up, dumbing it down? I mean, seriously, WHY is it so important to make fun of the National Anthem? I’m assuming that is the reason behind the butchery. When it first started, with Roseanne Barr, I think, it was supposed to be funny. I had hoped it would end there, but noooooooo…

grrrrrrrrrrrrr

Mama and I decided to listen to KNBR with McCarver and Joe Uck muted out. Trouble is that the feeds are not coordinated, but that’s OK. We were so late we didn’t get started until the second inning. We didn’t miss much of anything.

Ryan Theriot is the Giants’ DH. This tells you all you need to know about the essentiality of the stupid DH.

1st – Scherzer gets 1,2,3. He is NOT getting any low strikes. Cain gets 1,2,3 with a walk to Miggy Cabrera.

2nd – Posey Ks, then Pence hits a GR double over the left-center fence. Then Brandon Belt hammers his first hit of the Series – a triple to the RF corner (that’s a REAL triple), then Blanco and Theriot strand him at third. The wind is blowing in HARD. It looks misty out there.

They are interviewing some female. NOT an athlete, not stick skinny enough to be a celebrity. Of course, they aren’t showing the, you know, like GAME, and the captions say she stayed in the MLB FanCave all season, watching every single game. Which won her tickets to the WS. I can’t imagine living with those creeps in the FanCave all FREAKING YEAR. I’m getting old, I guess.

Jeezus gawd. I just HATE the way they show the WS. Or don’t show it, I should say. I call home, remind kidz to feed the Dogss and let them out in the back yard.

3rd inning – Matt Cain, who has been hommeriffic this postseason, left a changeup down the middle to Miggy Cabrera, who sent it (barely) over the RF wall (thank you wind) for a 2 run homer. Goobah shutout innings, goobah lead. After Mama and I finish yelling, Louis has magically appeared on top of the couch and next thing I know, I feel whiskers rubbing my neck and a paw patting my paper catsuit and I hear MIAORWWWWW. He gets his chin scratched.

4th inning, both pitchers had settled down,1,2,3 – no problem. It’s raining, not that hard. Fans don’t seem to care and neither do the players. I can’t believe that hurricane is causing rain as far west as Detroit. I mean, I’ve heard it’s huge, but geeez.

Call kidz to make sure they’ve let the Dogss back IN the house.

5th inning – Scherzer is cruising, gets easy 1,2,3. Cain back out. Infante singles, but is stranded when Quinton Berry comes up with 2 out and he grounds weakly to Cain – it goes off his glove and Crawford the SS manages to pick it up and throw to first in time to get Berry. Shades of Adam Everett.

Maybe Brandon Crawford should get the MVP for his glove – he’s made at LEAST 7 WebGem plays along with excellent turning of the DP.

6th – Scherzer is at only 67 pitches. You talk about efficiency. Scutaro singles. Panda fouls off a bunch, looks at 3 balls, then swings at a vicious slider. Then it’s Buster Posey, who has uck-sayed all Series, golfs a changeup juuuuuuust inside the LF foul pole.

Giants re-take the lead 3-2. Scherzer is furious. 345 stinking feet and it’s a homer. Could be worse there boy – only 325 to the LF pole at the Box.

Pence Ks looking on 3 pitches – all in the middle of the zone, too. Belt flies out.

New pitcher is LHP Jeremy Affeldt. PH Avasail Garcia walks and Mr. Triple Crown is up.

Matt Cain back out. Can he hold a lead THIS time? And, no. Miggy Cabrera Ks swinging. Prince pops up to Crawford. Cain hangs a slider to Delmon Young and it’s POW, gone opposite field. Tie game.

Giants 3 Cats 3

AAARRRRRROWWWWWWWRRRR, sez Louis. How that damm cat knows what happens on the TV, I do not know, but he rubs the paper on my ankles and then jumps up on my right side – see, he knows not to bother my scorebook writin hand, settles himself next to me, puts his head on my thigh and purrs. I tell him that I might move or jump, depending on the action. He shrugs. MIAUWRRRRK, RROOOOWWWWRRRR, he sez.

So Dirks singles up the middle (no relievers in sight) then Jhonny Peralto is up. Cain is leaving pitches up and Peralto almost takes one out but Blanco catches it on the warning track.

7th – Scherzer back out, determined he IS gonna win this game if he has to finish the damm thing his own self. We’ll see. Blanco singles to right. DH Theriot grounds out and Blanco is at second. And well, looks like Scherzer AIN’T gonna finish this damm game his own self, because he’s outta there for slugger Brandon Crawford. Really. 90 pitches. I look at Louis – you know, a run scores and you outta here too, I tell him. MIAOWWWW, PPRRRRRRRRKKK, he tells me.

Lefty Drew Smyly in. Crawford lines out to CF. Smyly gone and Dotel is coming in to get Great Hitter Pagan to hit lefty. It’s not like he can’t hit lefty. Reminds me of Phil Garner bringing in John Franco to face Chipper Jones, forgetting that Chipper could hit right. I mean, not that Pagan is any Chipper Jones. And he gets Pagan out.

Matt Cain back out – hey, he outlasted Scherzer. Wouldn’t have guessed that. Infante out, Laird pops out on a FB down the middle, Jackson Ks swinging on 3 pitches.

8th – Dotel back out, and he walks Scutaro on 4 straight pitches. Panda hits into a 3-6-1 DP. Scutaro can’t escape the rundown. Posey fouls off a bunch, but Ks, swinging.

Maybe we’ll get lucky and this game will go 21 innings, set a record and we’ll get the fun of watching position players pitch and pitchers field at short or something.

LHP Jeremy Affeldt in to face PH Avasail Garcia, who walks. He then strikes out Cabrera, Fielder and Young, ALL swinging. Really impressive pitching.

9th – Lefty Phil Coke, Da Closah, in. He strikes out Pence, looking on a FB RIGHT DOWN THE MIDDLE. He then strikes out Belt and Gregor Blanco.

Affeldt back. Dirks Ks swinging. Peralta up – he has got to be the hardest luck guy – he hit a FB right down the middle at least 420 feet to left CF, but it was into the wind and Pagan got it at the wall.  He’s out, Santiago Casilla, RHP in. It’s 10: 20, so I call home to make sure kidz have gone to bed. They haven’t, naturally. I explain the connection between going to bed and video game privileges, and get grumbling, as expected.

Anyway, Casilla hits Infante on the back of the hand and he leaves, heads straight for the dugout – must have broken it. Danny Worth in to pinch hit. Apparently, Alex Avila is hurt and can’t play today. Whoa. Laird grounds out.

And it’s EXTRA INNINGS!!!!

I call home again, to make SURE those kidz are headed for bed. Husband grumbles as I tell him it’s extra innings. He knows the bad news – I’ll be home when it’s ovah and not a minnit sooner. He knows me all too well and I hear the faint sigh.

10th – Coke back in. Riot singles to right. Crawford sac-bunts. Pagan Ks swinging. Scutaro hits a single to center, Jackson plays it on the bounce and Riot beats the throw into home!!! And sorry Phil Coke, Ball three was NOT strike 2 – it was way up and way out. And the ball that Scutaro hit was also up and out and was ALSO a ball, so no complaining. Panda grounds to third and Scutaro is tagged out trying to advance.

Giants 4 Tigers 3

I tell Louis to get down, his team is losing.

Sergio Romo in. Austin Jackson Ks swinging. That slider is FILTHY. Don Kelly in to hit lefty and he strikes out swinging at a FB outside at the knees. No, it wasn’t a slider – too fast. Mr. Triple Crown up.  Slider for a called strike. Slider for a ball. Slider for a swinging strike. Slider for a ball. FB up away fouls it off. “One strike away.” And he strikes out looking on a FB right down the middle. Miggy gets the sombrero tonight. The Giants get the trophy.

At least the Tigers actually made it a game tonight. All the “experts” who said the Tigers were heavy favorites and would win in 5 – well, I guess they all gonna sniff – Small Sample Size. Not, well, I guess I wuz ronggg.

Baseball is now over for 2012. The Giants win the WS again. MVP should be Lincecum or Brandon Crawford. Or even Romo. But no, it’s Pablo Sandoval – it’s those 3 homers. National League keeps winning All Star games and World Series. So much for DH superiority. Yeah – lemmee guess – Small Sample Size.

Marco Scutaro’s postseason heroics reminds me of Cody Ross in 2010, and although he was DFAd by 2 teams before being picked up by SanFran this year, betcha this gets him a contract for next year.

And now, it’s time for me to wash up (get rid of cat hair) and head back home because I have this feeling I need to kick kid asses, get them into bed….

Tim Dandy to the rescue!
Tim Dandy to the rescue!
Tim Dandy to the rescue!
Go, Tim Dandy! Go, Tim Dandy!

Voge was droopin  on the pitchin mound
And couldn’t no more strikes be found
Couldn’t get even the simple force
Uh huh, that’s right, of course.
Tim Dandy to the rescue!
Go, Tim Dandy! Go, Tim Dandy!

(Apologies Black Oak Arkansas)

Ay-yep, Timmeh Lincecum, he done it again. Vogelsong had gotten out of a bases loaded jam in the 5th by getting Miggy Cabrera to pop out, and in the 6th, gave up the 4th of his walks after getting 2 outs – yeah, 4 walks, 5 hits, no runs. In c.omes Timmeh, just like in Game 1, strands the runner, pitches 2 shutout innings.

Looks like the MVP to me, especially if he keeps coming in as a high leverage long reliever. Which is very VERY kewl – haven’t seen a pitcher do this as far back as I can remember.

As for the game. Sigh.

OK, we’re in Dee-troit. Motah City. Home of Mo-town. There are plenty of famous singers – Eminem, Kid Rock, Ted Nugent (uck), Aretha Franklin. To name just a few. So why is some drab skinnyass bimbette with a crap voice singing the National Anthem? Oh – she’s some Fox sitcom starlette. Uck.  Yeah, I know. All about the Benjamins.

You know, I’d sure like to know who exactly is this “casual fan” that Fox/MLB pander to who prefer mega closeups of nosehairs, batting gloves, godknowswhat, and all those STUPID megamega slo mo watching the bat swing/ball bounce stuff. Or the interviews with random jerk Foxcom TV starlettes who don’t know a baseball from a golf ball. Or even the mid inning interviews with players/managers, drowning the GAME ON THE FIELD. I know they do stupid crap like this during the regular season, but this is beyond awful.

sigh

I swear I can remember when what most of what they showed during the WS was like, you know, the like, you know GAME. I mean, showing the field, the fielders positioning, guys catching and throwing the ball. Not much nosehair (although there sure nuff was crotch grabbing. I betcha the AAGPBL players didn’t do none of that. I never have understood why do that but it does start early – age 5 months. Trust me on this, I didn’t believe it when I first saw it.)

but I digress…

Really, not real too much interesting in this here game – Hunter Pence was the hitting star. Really. He walked, stole a base (endless stuff about free tacos – and NO, I am not feeding the kidz that stuff), went to 3rd on a WP and came home on a “triple” which was a misplayed ball to center by Austin Jackson. You know how it is – if the fielder doesn’t put a glove on the ball, no matter HOW badly he goes after it, no error. And really, the best it should have been was a double and a 1 base error on the bobble.  Hunter also singled twice.

Tigers have now been shut out 2 straight games. It isn’t just the pitching, they are just not hitting. Prince had a good reason to be furious about that crappy strikeout call in the 4th, but otherwise, no cigar. Actually, Prince didn’t hit that well last year vs Saint Looey, and this year, ohhh, mama. BAD. I mean, seriously, the Astros in the 05 WS, at least we put up a fight, lost by only 1 run every single game – And Brad Lidge lost 3 of those by his lonesome.

Man, here I go, getting all nostalgic again.

I supposed I should make some comment about the Astros new logo getting “accidentally” leaked on a t-shirt in the Academy store. Logo is the old H on the orange star. Lots better than that stupid brick red/pinstripes. Although I was kind of hoping for the old blue/gold – the players really seemed to like that one.

Tim Bogar turned down the position of bench coach after not being chosen manager. Not sure whether or not it had anything to do with the document they wanted him to sign in which he was supposed to agree to turn down any offers to manage that came his way. He’s not going back to the Red Sox neither, apparently, now that they got The One from Toronto, where the players didn’t like him and neither did the fans.  Shrug.

Interesting that this year’s bench coach, Pettini, is being let go – and he was one of Luhnow’s petsy-poos from Saint Looey, too.

Naturally, no other news. Will check out the winter leagues after the Series ends. And it sure nuff looks like it’s gonna end tomorrow. This is like THE most boring Series in, like forever. Tigers might could win tomorrow – it’s Scherzer vs Cain, but no WS team has ever come back from 3-0 to win it all.

But it IS baseball and youneverknow…

So I’m a fangrrrl. I admit it. Hunter has a lower OPS than all the pitchers on his team in the postseason COMBINED. But today, Doug Fister and Madison Bumgardner had themselves an EXCELLENT pitchers duel going for 6 innings – each guy had given up 2 hits and 1 walk. And the game was moving right along – as fast as a modern WS game can go with all the ceremonies and interruptions.

So anyway, Fister, who had thrown 108 pitches, came out to pitch to Pence, still hitting in the 5-hole, don’t ask me why. Well, maybe it’s like Tevye says in Fiddler on the Roof – TRADITION!!!!

So it’s a scoreless game. Pence had had 2 ABs already – flied out to shallow center and to the arning track in center – a LOT better than what he HAD been doing, which was flailing wildly or grounding out. He took a breaker in the dirt for ball 1, fouled off a perfect FB on the inside, started at a FB that was RIGHT down the middle, took a slider outside that he usually flails at, fouls a curve, then hits a slider that doesn’t slide quiiite enough into LF for a hit. It’s goo-bah Fister, and in comes his relief.

Smyly, RHP, gives up a walk, then Gregor Blanco, who tried and failed to bunt his previous 2 ABs, chops one down the 3rd base line, the catcher and 3rd baseman stare at it, willing it to go foul, but it doesn’t, and ever one is safe, bases loaded. So Brandon Crawford hits into a 4-6-3, Hunter scores the go ahead run!!!

Fister is informed that strangling relievers who give up a run on the only inherited runner, which loses him a hard fought and well pitched ballgame is not allowed in MLB. He checked with Astros starters who confirmed the news. They told him about all their favorite blood pressure medications and stress-reducing yoga positions.

Very next inning, same reliever back out. He walks Angel Pagan on 4 straight pitches, gets Scutaro staring at strike 3 RIGHT DOWN THE MIDDLE, then Angel Pagan takes off on the first pitch and barely makes it. Smyly then decides to IBB Sandoval to pitch to Posey. Small sample size decisions ROOL, do they not? at least here, they do. Posey takes a walk, mostly because Strike 1 and Strike 2 are called Ball 1 and Ball 2. First time all night that the ump didn’t call the rule book zone.

Hunter then drives in the security run with a sac-fly the very next inning. He ain’t hittin the ball much, but today it counted.

Not real too much that was kewl, except for the second inning, in which Da Prince was HBP, then Delmon Young hits a double into the LF corner. Blanco gets it, throws a PERFECT beebee to Scutaro, the cutoff man, who makes a PERFECT throw to Posey, who nails Prince on his ass – nice target, by the way. And Prince was trying to slide in, not annihilate Posey. And Prince was barely out, too – just a slightly weak or offline throw and he scores.

So much for the Tigers win it in 5, so much for the – ohhhh this is SOOOOOO lopsided in the Tigers’ favor. At least so far.

Yes, I AM still rooting for Hunter to suddenly start hitting and get the MVP.