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foot, the speedy five-eighth proved a real handfu

in Allgemein 07.11.2019 13:42
von MJL456 • 2.720 Beiträge

HOUSTON -- Josh Hamilton turned from his locker and saw a group of reporters waiting to talk to him after Saturdays game against Houston. "Im not answering any questions about hitting," he said. That was just fine after the defensive show the Angels struggling slugger put on in Los Angeles 7-2 win over the Houston Astros. Joe Blanton pitched seven sharp innings, and Howie Kendrick and Chris Iannetta both homered to lead the Angels. Alberto Callaspo and Erick Aybar drove in two runs apiece in a big fourth inning, but it was Hamilton who everyone was talking about. He likely robbed Houston of two home runs with his glove. "Through this whole struggle on the offensive side with him trying to find his comfort zone in the box, hes played great defence for us," Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia said. "Great range, today he took away a couple home runs. Josh made them look easy." Blanton (2-10) tied season lows with three hits and two runs, pitching six scoreless innings before a two-run home run by Brett Wallace in the seventh. He appreciated the work of Hamilton perhaps more than anybody. "They were both great catches," Blanton said. "Short field over there, he played the wall great, timed his jumps perfectly, made two outstanding plays." Kendricks solo homer came in the fifth and Iannetta tacked on two with a home run in the eighth. Houston starter Jordan Lyles (4-3) was done in by a four-run fourth inning by the Angels. He allowed five hits, four runs and walked two in four innings for his first loss against Los Angeles in three starts. Blanton was perfect through 3 1-3 innings before a double by Jose Altuve. Altuve advanced to third on a wild pitch before a two-out walk to Chris Carter. Blanton escaped the jam when Hamilton leaped to grab a fly ball hit by J.D. Martinez at the wall in right field. It was the second time Martinez hit the ball hard and came away empty. Mike Trout caught another drive from him on the warning track in left-centre in the second inning. Hamiltons second nifty defensive play came when he jumped and reached over the short wall in right field to catch a ball hit by Matt Dominguez in the seventh inning. Hamilton tumbled to the ground after the catch while Dominguez stood motionless and stared at him in disbelief. He didnt think the first one would have been a home run, but was certain that the second one would have gone out. Hamilton, who joined the Angels this season after signing a five-year, $125 million contract, is hitting just .221 with 10 homers this season. He was disappointed in a span earlier this season when he wasnt hitting well and he was struggling on defence. "If you dont do it at the plate you want to do it in the field, and during that stretch I wasnt doing it either way," he said. "I felt like I wasnt. But I feel better. Everybody keeps telling me to go out and play and have fun. Just relax." He did just that on Saturday, and said making plays like that "are favourite things for me, more fun than hitting a home run." Mark Trumbo singled to get things going in the fourth inning. Lyles then started to struggle with control, plunking Howie Kendrick before walking Hamilton to load the bases. Callaspos single scored Trumbo and Kendrick to make it 2-0. Things continued to go downhill for Lyles when he hit Peter Bourjos with a pitch. Aybars two-run single pushed the lead to 4-0, but he was out trying to stretch it into a double. Lyles finally escaped the inning when Trout lined out to Brandon Barnes in centre field. "I think it is one of those things where you try to make the perfect pitch, and you are falling behind and you try to make a better pitch and a better pitch and a better pitch. He could not get his fastball command back," Houston manager Bo Porter said of Lyles in the fourth inning. Kendrick hit his ninth homer of the season to the seats in right field off Josh Fields with two outs in the fifth to make it 5-0. Carter walked with no outs in the seventh before Wallace hit his first homer of the season with one out to the Crawford Boxes in left field to make it 5-2. Bourjos bruised his right wrist when he was hit by a pitch, and he left the game in the bottom of the fourth inning. Trout took over in centre field for Bourjos, and J.B. Shuck entered the game in left field. Bourjos said he was sore after the game. Scioscia said he would have X-rays on the wrist as a precaution. NOTES: Houston reliever Travis Blackley shoved Shuck when he tagged him in the back on a rundown eighth inning. He regretted the move soon afterward. "I never try to be malicious toward anyone," he said. "It was one of those things where the heat of the moment kind of got me. I dont mean anything by it." ... The series wraps up on Sunday when Los Angeles left-hander C.J. Wilson opposes Lucas Harrell. ... Someone from Houstons dugout yelled "got it," causing Los Angeles catcher Hank Conger to let a foul ball he could have caught drop during Friday nights game. Porter wouldnt say who did it, but was unhappy with the incident and called Scioscia to apologize on Saturday morning. "I apologized to him on behalf of our ball club," Porter said. "Its not something that I condone, and I take full responsibility. It wont happen again." Scioscia wasnt that concerned about it. "He called and I appreciated it but its no big deal," he said. Cheap MLB Jerseys Nike 2020 . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. Cheap MLB Jerseys Authentic . They had already blown a double-digit lead, fans were hitting the exits, and a long seven-game road trip waited at the end. https://www.mlbjerseyschina.us/ . Supported by three-run homers from Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos, the young right-hander went seven strong innings in the Washington Nationals 8-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. Fake Nike MLB Jerseys . The third-ranked Ivanovic, who won the event in 2008 and 10, served five aces and broke Wickmayer, also a former winner in 2009, five times. "The result looked easier than it really was," Ivanovic said. Discount MLB Jerseys . Sulaiman, 44, was chosen unanimously Tuesday in a vote by the leadership, the World Boxing Council said. Sulaiman becomes the sixth president of the organization. Much was expected of the 2016 NRL Grand Final but it was always going to be a big ask to live up to the hype following the Broncos-Cowboys classic 12 months before - and Western Bulldogs AFL fairy tale in Melbourne little over 24 hours earlier.The Sharks showed no sign of Grand Final nerves in the first half; they had the Storm under pressure through the majority of the opening 40 minutes were rewarded with points to lead 8-0 early.A lot was written about the perceived lack of big-game experience in the Sharks team, but two of their most experienced -- James Maloney and Luke Lewis -- relieved the pressure by combining in attack on several occasions to have the Storm defence constantly on the back foot.Melbourne enjoyed a light breeze in the first half but that was all that favoured them. Cronulla mauled Melbourne in the opening 40 minutes, forcing the Storm to make 209 tackles to their 134, and the Sharks deserved their 8-0 lead; but it should have been a lot more.The Sharks had led 16 times at the break this season, winning 13 times, but Jesse Bromwich tested their mental strengh with a try in the 51st minute to incredibly drag Melbourne back into the match and cut Cronullas lead to 8-6.Storm centre Will Chambers delivered another devastating blow with a try in the 64th minute to put Melbourne in front for the first time, but Christian Welch conceded an unnecessary penalty that set up Andrew Fifita to score for a 14-12 Cronulla lead with nine minutes to play. It was a lead they never relinquished as they claimed their maiden premiership.Key Moments -6th min?- Storm winger Marika Koroibete high shot lands him on report and James Maloney kicks Sharks 2-0 ahead.14th min - Sharks five-eighth James Maloney line break has Luke Lewis heading for the line but pulled down centimetres short15th min - Sharks captain Paul Gallen sends Ben Barba to the tryline for the first try of the match.20th min - Sharks centre Jack Bird suffers arm injury and looks restricted but bravely plays on.35th min? - James Maloney kicks for Sosaia Feki but Suliasi Vunivalu saves a try by getting a hand to the ball.50th min - Jesse Bromwich muscles Melbourne back into the match with a try to cut Cronullas lead to 8-6.66th min - Storm hit the lead through a try to Will Chambers after a heavy defensive workload at the other end.69th min - Andrew Fifita scores try after Christian Welch swinging arm on Chad Townsend givees Cronulla more possession.dddddddddddd78th min - Will Chambers fields a ball but fails to see an unmarked Cooper Cronk on the inside that wouldve won the match.The DifferenceEnthusiasm and energy was a glaring difference for the Sharks. Whatever they may have lost on experience was made up for in their sheer determination to claim victory.James Maloney and Luke Lewis played major roles, and the Storm found it extremely difficult to nullify their contribution.Maloney constantly had Melbourne on the back foot while Lewis was a relentless threat in attack with his offloads and support of the ball carrier. Lewis also worked overtime in defence to continually frustrate the Storms dangermen.Melbourne did incredibly well to fight back after a mountain of defensive work to lead with 15 minutes to play, but Cronulla, as theyve done all season, found a way to win.Telling tacticsCronulla were too fast for Melbourne in all facets of the game. Their speed at the play the ball was too much for the Storm to handle, and nullified the impact of Melbournes wrestle.Everything the Sharks did in attack revolved around Maloney, and, with the Storm constantly on the back foot, the speedy five-eighth proved a real handful for the best defence in the NRL.The defensive workload in the first half drained Melbourne of a great deal of gas, with Cameron Smith alone posting 71 tackles, but they somehow found more to give in the second half -- only to have their dream shattered.Grand Final debutantsThere wasnt a bad player on either side despite Cronullas dominance. None of the debutants were overawed by the occasion, but the seasoned campaigners such as James Maloney and Luke Lewis for the Sharks who provided the guile; Cameron Smith and Jesse Bromwich did likewise for the Storm.Where to nowMelbourne;?Can never be written off but they will lose some crucial players next season, such as Blake Green, Marika Koroibete and possibly others. They will be top-eight contenders again but might not reach this stage next season.Cronulla:?Somehow we dont think they care right now. Celebrations could quite possibly continue well into pre-season next year, but the nucleus of their side are young so, like the Storm, they could be top-eight chances. The likes of Michael Ennis will be hard to replace. ' ' '

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