Seeing that the collegiate baseball season starts friday against South Florida, i figure that i should give a statement on how good i think the team is. I think they should be one of the top teams in the big ten this year, but don't take my word for it.
ahhhhhhhhhhh
c-ya
Showing posts with label baseball. Show all posts
Showing posts with label baseball. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
programming update: June 4, 2008
Sorry for the extremely long period of time in between posts on my blog, i figure that i owe you an explanation:
Although i am a University of Michigan student, therefore putting me in an elite category for intellectuals in the United States (in a manner of speaking). I have made some bad decisions in the past, bad decisions that have left me financially strained. In the last couple of weeks since i last posted, i have taken a new job, one at a factory where i pack produce, it doesn't pay well but it has long hours and a steady paycheck, plus they bus you from the temp agency to the plant, so i save money on gas. My previous job which made me absolutely no money, but still left me time to do updates on the blog every week, was a commission sales job, enough said.
Anyways, with my new summer job being taken into account, i will probably be lucky to get in a post every week, but i will say this, it will be memorable, i guarantee it.
Seeing as that all the other Michigan blogs have posted about the NCAA baseball tournament, i will just say this, the Wolverine Nine was probably the only team in Michigan that didn't get screwed by the officials that week, unfortunately they got screwed by mother nature. This just goes to show how mad people are in the state of Michigan, more on that once the Red Wings win the Stanley Cup.
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
c-ya!
Although i am a University of Michigan student, therefore putting me in an elite category for intellectuals in the United States (in a manner of speaking). I have made some bad decisions in the past, bad decisions that have left me financially strained. In the last couple of weeks since i last posted, i have taken a new job, one at a factory where i pack produce, it doesn't pay well but it has long hours and a steady paycheck, plus they bus you from the temp agency to the plant, so i save money on gas. My previous job which made me absolutely no money, but still left me time to do updates on the blog every week, was a commission sales job, enough said.
Anyways, with my new summer job being taken into account, i will probably be lucky to get in a post every week, but i will say this, it will be memorable, i guarantee it.
Seeing as that all the other Michigan blogs have posted about the NCAA baseball tournament, i will just say this, the Wolverine Nine was probably the only team in Michigan that didn't get screwed by the officials that week, unfortunately they got screwed by mother nature. This just goes to show how mad people are in the state of Michigan, more on that once the Red Wings win the Stanley Cup.
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
c-ya!
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Weekly Update May 22, 2008
Apologies for not getting to this sooner, my new job has ridiculous hours.
Big Ten championships for track and field, and baseball.
After losing to Little Sister in the first round of the Big Ten softball tournament, Wright State, our first opponent in the NCAA regional tried to give us a challenge. Their coach Mike Larabee made a bold statement that Wright State would do the same thing that Appalachian State did to us last September 1, only in softball.
Yeah, right and guess who gives up a ten run inning.
Our ladies in blue cruised to a regional championship and will host Virginia Tech in the Super Regionals tomorrow in Ann Arbor.
Baseball set the record for most Big Ten wins in a season. And they play Illinois in their first game tonight.
One thing about this that i will say about our baseball team and about college baseball in general. Everybody is now saying that they are going to host an NCAA regional, this is not guaranteed, yes the tournament selection committee wants to let more northern teams host but there is another team that has a shot, St. John's from the Big East. They have played in a much tougher conference than we have and also play in a much more baseball oriented area in New York City. If we don't win the Big Ten tournament we will really be at the mercy of the tournament selection committee to give us a regional because we haven't played the type of schedule that the other teams that will host have played.
That being said, i have no reason to believe that they can't do this or that Michigan and St. John's won't end up hosting regionals. Rich Maloney knows better than anybody out there that hosting the regional will be the key for this team's goal, Omaha. When i talked to him before the start of the season he told me that if they host a regional and (god forbid) a super regional, there's the key to going to Omaha, home field advantage.
P.S. sorry to pepper this post with links like YSMISB, i'm just really tired from this past week's workload.
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
c-ya
Big Ten championships for track and field, and baseball.
After losing to Little Sister in the first round of the Big Ten softball tournament, Wright State, our first opponent in the NCAA regional tried to give us a challenge. Their coach Mike Larabee made a bold statement that Wright State would do the same thing that Appalachian State did to us last September 1, only in softball.
“I want to remind you guys of the beginning of the football season. Appalachian State went into the Big House and beat Michigan. It was one of the biggest upsets in history and we can beat Michigan too,” Larabee said.
“This year, expect to go to Ann Arbor and win an NCAA Regional Tournament. We’re going to shock the softball world.”
Yeah, right and guess who gives up a ten run inning.
Our ladies in blue cruised to a regional championship and will host Virginia Tech in the Super Regionals tomorrow in Ann Arbor.
Baseball set the record for most Big Ten wins in a season. And they play Illinois in their first game tonight.
One thing about this that i will say about our baseball team and about college baseball in general. Everybody is now saying that they are going to host an NCAA regional, this is not guaranteed, yes the tournament selection committee wants to let more northern teams host but there is another team that has a shot, St. John's from the Big East. They have played in a much tougher conference than we have and also play in a much more baseball oriented area in New York City. If we don't win the Big Ten tournament we will really be at the mercy of the tournament selection committee to give us a regional because we haven't played the type of schedule that the other teams that will host have played.
That being said, i have no reason to believe that they can't do this or that Michigan and St. John's won't end up hosting regionals. Rich Maloney knows better than anybody out there that hosting the regional will be the key for this team's goal, Omaha. When i talked to him before the start of the season he told me that if they host a regional and (god forbid) a super regional, there's the key to going to Omaha, home field advantage.
P.S. sorry to pepper this post with links like YSMISB, i'm just really tired from this past week's workload.
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
c-ya
Monday, May 5, 2008
Weekly Update: Cinco de Mayo style
Due to my new job's bizarre scheduling and the way Michigan sports news goes i wasn't able to post anything of substance until now.
The baseball team took three out of four that school in Columbus. They did it without amazing hitting either. In the first two games the Michigan nine got most of their runs in the last two innings, in both of those games prior to that point it was tied 1-1. This was helped by the fact that Nate the Recker did not have a homer in the weekend for the first time since the Iowa series that started the conference schedule.
Nevertheless the one man wrecking crew did help the team with two RBI's over the course of the series, but the fact that he went hitless in both ends of the doubleheader on saturday plus the fact that they had trouble scoring runs that day speaks volumes as to how much his bat means to the team.
Of course with this team when one man isn't doing his best another always steps up and this weekend it was Zach Putnam who pitched a complete game and drove in a run to aid his cause on friday (the National League scouts are loving this guy). Putnam has been overshadowed in my opinion by the recker simply because of Nate's home run clout and that's unfair. Putnam was a preseason all-american and this weekend he proved to us all why that is.
In any case the Wolverines are now 2 1/2 games ahead of Purdue as those pesky Hoosiers in Bloomington took two out of three from their in state rivals.
The baseball team took three out of four that school in Columbus. They did it without amazing hitting either. In the first two games the Michigan nine got most of their runs in the last two innings, in both of those games prior to that point it was tied 1-1. This was helped by the fact that Nate the Recker did not have a homer in the weekend for the first time since the Iowa series that started the conference schedule.
Nevertheless the one man wrecking crew did help the team with two RBI's over the course of the series, but the fact that he went hitless in both ends of the doubleheader on saturday plus the fact that they had trouble scoring runs that day speaks volumes as to how much his bat means to the team.Of course with this team when one man isn't doing his best another always steps up and this weekend it was Zach Putnam who pitched a complete game and drove in a run to aid his cause on friday (the National League scouts are loving this guy). Putnam has been overshadowed in my opinion by the recker simply because of Nate's home run clout and that's unfair. Putnam was a preseason all-american and this weekend he proved to us all why that is.
In any case the Wolverines are now 2 1/2 games ahead of Purdue as those pesky Hoosiers in Bloomington took two out of three from their in state rivals.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Weekly Update April 28, 2008
My first weekend of relative freedom was good, but it could have been a lot better.
First, in Maize and Blue land, the softball team swept through Michigan State with two straight mercy rule games before playing a twin bill at home with Northwestern, who they were tied with for the lead in the Big Ten. Northwestern went out and shut down the Wolverine bats in the first game to win it 2-1. In the second game it looked like more of the same, the Wildcats had a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth when the Wolverines loaded the bases with one out for the female version of Cecil Fielder, Dorian Shaw. After fouling off nearly a dozen pitches, she finally struck out, as did the next batter to end the threat. However it was enough to wear down Northwestern's pitcher Lauren Delaney, who loaded the bases again this time with nobody out this time for Angela Findlay, who walked. That gave the bat to co-captain Samantha Findlay who has been Ms. Clutch all year, and delivered a clear cut walk off single to left to drive in the two runs needed to win the game in the seventh.
Michigan is still tied for the Big Ten lead with Northwestern, they have one more series left in their conference schedule against Penn State on the road. The Nittany Lions have struggled their way through the Big Ten this year after an impressive start in the non conference. Coach Hutchins will probably try and preach to them that they can't look past anybody, especially when the Big Ten championship is at stake. If Michigan can lock up the regular season championship then they should be able to blast their way into the NCAA tournament because they have been dominant at home this year.
The baseball team's hopes of winning the Big Ten title have been put in jeopardy as they split a four game set with last place Indiana. After assaulting the Hoosiers 14-6 on friday, the Wolverines were stumped in saturday's first game by Matt Beshore who struck out eight in a game that only lasted seven innings due to scheduling conflicts. Michigan lost the first game 2-1, then pounced on Indiana 11-4 with Nate "the 'recker'" Recknagle going 4-4 with his 17th homer of the season. Unfortunately they expended everything in that game and the score of saturday's nitecap was reversed in favor of the hosting Hoosiers. With Purdue's sweep of Minnesota, including three come from behind victories, the Wolverines now stand atop the Big Ten by a mere game, and they're playing Ohio State.
Fortunately that school in Columbus struggled with Northwestern having to settle for a split as well. Also Rich Maloney refused to leave any quotes for mgoblue, making one think that he was NOT PLEASED with the performance on sunday. If Maloney pulled a Jim Leyland on his team he should hope they react the way the Tigers do.
The Tigers could have done so much better at this point, but hope is on the way in the form of Curtis Granderson. He returned this past week hitting pretty much anything that came in front of the plate this past week, although they dropped two out of three to the Angels at home this past weekend, as a longtime Tigers fan who has had his heart broken by them so many times, it's good to have Grandy back on the field.
The Red Wings didn't just beat the Avalanche in the first two games of their playoff series, they showed them who was the boss. After giving up two really bad second period goals in game one to cut their lead to 4-3 Chris Osgood played magnificently in net. I couldn't believe what i was hearing on the radio at the time, sprawling out to make sure the Avs shooters would not get it in. I hope Billy Sauer takes some pointers from the wizard of Os in the offseason, because right now it looks like he's taking Vezina Trophy winners to school.
Last but certainly not least, i thought for certain that the Pistons were going to return to the Palace trailing the Sixers three games to one. But the self preservation kicked in early as they showed the world how they win by owning the court to send it back to Detroit on their terms. Hopefully they can complete it and end all this upset talk.
First, in Maize and Blue land, the softball team swept through Michigan State with two straight mercy rule games before playing a twin bill at home with Northwestern, who they were tied with for the lead in the Big Ten. Northwestern went out and shut down the Wolverine bats in the first game to win it 2-1. In the second game it looked like more of the same, the Wildcats had a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth when the Wolverines loaded the bases with one out for the female version of Cecil Fielder, Dorian Shaw. After fouling off nearly a dozen pitches, she finally struck out, as did the next batter to end the threat. However it was enough to wear down Northwestern's pitcher Lauren Delaney, who loaded the bases again this time with nobody out this time for Angela Findlay, who walked. That gave the bat to co-captain Samantha Findlay who has been Ms. Clutch all year, and delivered a clear cut walk off single to left to drive in the two runs needed to win the game in the seventh.
Michigan is still tied for the Big Ten lead with Northwestern, they have one more series left in their conference schedule against Penn State on the road. The Nittany Lions have struggled their way through the Big Ten this year after an impressive start in the non conference. Coach Hutchins will probably try and preach to them that they can't look past anybody, especially when the Big Ten championship is at stake. If Michigan can lock up the regular season championship then they should be able to blast their way into the NCAA tournament because they have been dominant at home this year.
The baseball team's hopes of winning the Big Ten title have been put in jeopardy as they split a four game set with last place Indiana. After assaulting the Hoosiers 14-6 on friday, the Wolverines were stumped in saturday's first game by Matt Beshore who struck out eight in a game that only lasted seven innings due to scheduling conflicts. Michigan lost the first game 2-1, then pounced on Indiana 11-4 with Nate "the 'recker'" Recknagle going 4-4 with his 17th homer of the season. Unfortunately they expended everything in that game and the score of saturday's nitecap was reversed in favor of the hosting Hoosiers. With Purdue's sweep of Minnesota, including three come from behind victories, the Wolverines now stand atop the Big Ten by a mere game, and they're playing Ohio State.
Fortunately that school in Columbus struggled with Northwestern having to settle for a split as well. Also Rich Maloney refused to leave any quotes for mgoblue, making one think that he was NOT PLEASED with the performance on sunday. If Maloney pulled a Jim Leyland on his team he should hope they react the way the Tigers do.
The Tigers could have done so much better at this point, but hope is on the way in the form of Curtis Granderson. He returned this past week hitting pretty much anything that came in front of the plate this past week, although they dropped two out of three to the Angels at home this past weekend, as a longtime Tigers fan who has had his heart broken by them so many times, it's good to have Grandy back on the field.
The Red Wings didn't just beat the Avalanche in the first two games of their playoff series, they showed them who was the boss. After giving up two really bad second period goals in game one to cut their lead to 4-3 Chris Osgood played magnificently in net. I couldn't believe what i was hearing on the radio at the time, sprawling out to make sure the Avs shooters would not get it in. I hope Billy Sauer takes some pointers from the wizard of Os in the offseason, because right now it looks like he's taking Vezina Trophy winners to school.
Last but certainly not least, i thought for certain that the Pistons were going to return to the Palace trailing the Sixers three games to one. But the self preservation kicked in early as they showed the world how they win by owning the court to send it back to Detroit on their terms. Hopefully they can complete it and end all this upset talk.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Weekly Update April 22, 2008
Now that i'm done with my final exams i figure i'll post on at least a weekly basis give or take, depending on how my job situation shapes out.
Michigan named defenseman Mark Mitera team captain for the hockey team. Bryan and Packer at mgoblog and the blog that yost built both seem to think this is a good idea, i on the other hand do not. I think that Mitera is not a captain quality player because he does not lead by example, the biggest issue for him is puck handling, he has never seemed comfortable handling the puck in his own zone and leading his team out to the attack from the defensive position, something that guys like Chris Summers and Scooter Vaughn do regularly. He also doesn't get down and block shots like the rest of the team, reminiscent of a problem Jack Johnson had while still playing for Michigan. But of course the biggest problem i have with Mark Mitera is own goals, if he played for the Colombian national soccer team he would have been dead before the end of the season. Two own goals in consecutive weeks, one of them costing the team their big rivalry game against Michigan State. It's just unacceptable in my opinion.
Speaking of State....
The Wolverine baseball team crushed the Spartans at Fisher Stadium this past sunday 27-6 to complete a four game sweep. More importantly, there were at least 2,600 fans at both of the games in Ann Arbor. This should really help Rich Maloney's case for getting Ann Arbor to host an NCAA regional should Michigan make the tournament, i interviewed Maloney before the season started for the Daily and he told me that one of the reasons why they renovated the Fish was so that they could host a regional. The fact that they came within a game of making it to Omaha last year also buoyed hopes as well.
One of the things that he also talked about that day was that only three teams who have made it to the CWS after not hosting an NCAA regional or super regional. Maloney's guys have been making strides lately, drawing 1,000+ for both games of a series vs. Eastern Michigan right after the end of classes. One of the games was a night game as was the game this past friday at the Fish. Clearly night games are going to attract more fans, but will it get them into the clear? The jury is still out.
One thing to remember here is that Fisher Stadium is designed to hold 4,000 people and this past weekend less than 70 percent of the stadium was filled, in academic terms the athletic department is getting a D in their attempts to fill the stands at baseball games. Still if Michigan wins the Big Ten regular season title, they will play the Big Ten tournament at the Fish and that would undoubtedly draw a lot of fans, if not sell the place out. If the Fish sells out and Michigan wins the Big Ten tournament there, then you can punch the ticket for Ann Arbor hosting an NCAA baseball tournament regional.
Hosting these things is key as Mark Rosen, the volleyball coach who hosted a regional at Crisler this past season, will tell you:
And when you don't have to travel the jet lag factor that often contributes in losing goes way down.
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
c-ya
p.s. i tried that at the baseball game when State swapped pitchers, didn't seem to catch on all that well.
Michigan named defenseman Mark Mitera team captain for the hockey team. Bryan and Packer at mgoblog and the blog that yost built both seem to think this is a good idea, i on the other hand do not. I think that Mitera is not a captain quality player because he does not lead by example, the biggest issue for him is puck handling, he has never seemed comfortable handling the puck in his own zone and leading his team out to the attack from the defensive position, something that guys like Chris Summers and Scooter Vaughn do regularly. He also doesn't get down and block shots like the rest of the team, reminiscent of a problem Jack Johnson had while still playing for Michigan. But of course the biggest problem i have with Mark Mitera is own goals, if he played for the Colombian national soccer team he would have been dead before the end of the season. Two own goals in consecutive weeks, one of them costing the team their big rivalry game against Michigan State. It's just unacceptable in my opinion.
Speaking of State....
The Wolverine baseball team crushed the Spartans at Fisher Stadium this past sunday 27-6 to complete a four game sweep. More importantly, there were at least 2,600 fans at both of the games in Ann Arbor. This should really help Rich Maloney's case for getting Ann Arbor to host an NCAA regional should Michigan make the tournament, i interviewed Maloney before the season started for the Daily and he told me that one of the reasons why they renovated the Fish was so that they could host a regional. The fact that they came within a game of making it to Omaha last year also buoyed hopes as well.
"If we had the Super Regional at Michigan last year it would have been a dream come true," Maloney said. "Our goal has always been making it to Omaha, but this past year, because we came so close, we actually started to believe it."
"We're trying to play as competitive a schedule as our travel limitations will allow us to and that will speak volumes to the NCAA selection committee."
One of the things that he also talked about that day was that only three teams who have made it to the CWS after not hosting an NCAA regional or super regional. Maloney's guys have been making strides lately, drawing 1,000+ for both games of a series vs. Eastern Michigan right after the end of classes. One of the games was a night game as was the game this past friday at the Fish. Clearly night games are going to attract more fans, but will it get them into the clear? The jury is still out.
One thing to remember here is that Fisher Stadium is designed to hold 4,000 people and this past weekend less than 70 percent of the stadium was filled, in academic terms the athletic department is getting a D in their attempts to fill the stands at baseball games. Still if Michigan wins the Big Ten regular season title, they will play the Big Ten tournament at the Fish and that would undoubtedly draw a lot of fans, if not sell the place out. If the Fish sells out and Michigan wins the Big Ten tournament there, then you can punch the ticket for Ann Arbor hosting an NCAA baseball tournament regional.
Hosting these things is key as Mark Rosen, the volleyball coach who hosted a regional at Crisler this past season, will tell you:
"We don't have to travel, and we get more practice time this week. It'll be fun to have our home crowd, and it'll be fun for the players to have their family and friends here to support them."
And when you don't have to travel the jet lag factor that often contributes in losing goes way down.
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
c-ya
p.s. i tried that at the baseball game when State swapped pitchers, didn't seem to catch on all that well.
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