On the diamond A’s feel pressure; on the court Warriors apply it

OAKLAND—Chris Bassitt was referring to the Astros. “They’re probably the best at keeping pressure on you, from pitch one to whatever.” Change sports, as do many of us did at game’s end, and he could have been talking basketball, and the Warriors.

  That’s an attribute of the best teams, the best individuals. They never allow you to relax, never allow you to believe; Tiger Woods in his day, Roger Federer to this day. The Patriots. The Warriors.

   No matter the situation, whether it’s in their favor or against them, they’re always hovering, always keeping the pressure on.

  Sunday, at the stadium renamed the Ring Central Coliseum, the Astros, World Series champions in 2017,  National League Championship Series competitors in 2018, never let up on the Athletics, and eventually, finally, perhaps inevitably, the ‘Stros won, 6-4 in 12 innings.

   Then, with the players gone, with the crowd of 23,144 gone, with the gulls swooping, squawking  and alighting as they do at major Bay Area sporting sites when the event is done, the Warriors-Raptors telecast went up on the big scoreboard screens, if only for the Coliseum grounds crew, repairing the field.

  The Warriors were down. Not to worry. As the Astros in baseball, the Dubs are the best in basketball at keeping the pressure on. That 18-0 start of the third quarter? Was anyone surprised? Make that was anyone surprised who knows the Warriors?

 And after getting swept in a three-game series to close a home stand that collapsed with five consecutive losses, is anyone surprised who knows the A’s?

  They are almost there but not quite, good enough to make one believe but not good enough to close the deal. As basketball people might advise that’s very much like the Raptors.

   “Frustrating, obviously,” That was the comment by A’s manager Bob Melvin. You presume Nick Nurse, the Raptors’ coach, was thinking the same.

   The team does so much right, but it’s not enough. The other team is just better.

  “We were on a nice little roll,” said Melvin, about a10-game stretch without a defeat. “We had momentum. Then we lose a couple. Then three more. We’ve got to find a way to be more consistent.”

  Basically a way to get runners on .So when the A’s hit home runs, and they had four Sunday, all solo shots, they need to score in bunches to   keep the pressure on.

   There’s a parallel between the Astros and the Warriors. Houston is so loaded, that even missing Jose Altuve, the 2017 American League MVP; Carlos Correa and George Springer, all injured, the ‘Stros have won six of seven and with the Twins (the Twins?) share the best record in the AL.

  Depth, or as they say around the Warriors, “Strength in Numbers.” No Kevin Durant? At times no Andre Iguodala? At times no DeMarcus Cousins.  Maybe after the hamstring injury, no Klay Thompson? Not  exactly no sweat, but rather no letdown. 

   Bassitt, the A’s starter, pitched six innings, allowed six hits and three runs. And only one walk, Tony Kemp in the fifth.  Then came two hits and a Marcus Semien error, and Houston had two runs,

  “You walk guys in this lineup,” Bassitt said about Houston, “and you’re screwed. Look at who they’re missing, and you still got to worry about the walks and the speed. You have to make them earn every single run. Unfortunately my walking Kemp started them running.”

  That’s what happens when you face a top team, a team with few weaknesses, a team that rarely makes mistakes, a team like the Astros. Or the Warriors.

  The A’s were scheduled to be in the air flying to southern California when the Warriors were finishing up against Toronto. Maybe they saw the end—the flight is only an hour, as you know; there’s TV on many planes. For sure soon enough they knew the result.

    The Warriors applied pressure. The A’s simply felt it. The Warriors won.  The A’s did not win.

After 11 innings and 4½ hours, Oakland’s faults overtake its virtues

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By Art Spander
For Maven Sports

OAKLAND — A hit batsman, a wild throw, a few hits — not a lot in the great scheme of things, but more than enough in any single game, especially one that lasts four and a half hours and in which a star reliever fails to pitch like a star reliever.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2019, The Maven 

Giants: Now even Bochy seems discouraged

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SAN FRANCISCO — Even the manager sounded depressed. For good reason. Yes, Bruce Bochy, eternal optimist, from whom there’s almost never a discouraging word, who rarely says anything downbeat about his players, even when their play seemingly demands it, was sounding all too negative.

These San Francisco Giants, the team Bochy will suffer through this one last season, is playing the sort of ball that is intolerable and, the way it is missing grounders, virtually indefensible.

Now, before end of May, it is legitimate to believe the Giants have reached the end of the road.

Two days ago, they were pathetic, losing — collapsing, if you will — to the Arizona Diamondbacks 18-2. Embarrassing. And then Saturday, the D-Backs again scored in double figures, thumping the Giants 10-4.

The only difference is that Saturday, when the announced attendance was 31,551 at Oracle Park, the fans stayed to the end, enjoying the sunshine and breezes if not the result of a fourth straight loss and fifth in six games.

“It’s hard to put a positive spin on this one,” agreed Bochy.

Other than mentioning the defense of Kevin Pillar, who Saturday was in right, and started a remarkable double play by catching a ball, throwing to Joe Panik who then fired to Brandon Belt to get the runner trying to return to first. Otherwise, the D-Backs would have had more than two runs in the inning.

Not that it really mattered. Arizona just kept slamming balls off and over the fences we’re told are too distant at Oracle — at least for the Giants. The game began, boom, with a Ketel Marte triple off Andrew Suarez. And away they went.

Oh, how times have changed. Five seasons ago the Giants won their third World Series in a stretch of five years. Now they’re not only in last place, they’re boring — other than an inning or three.

No one expected miracles when Farhan Zaidi took control of baseball operations at the end of last season — it was an old team with a poor farm system — but he could have worked some sort of transaction to keep everyone interested.

The former baseball commissioner, Bud Selig, used to advise fans that the entire idea is to provide hope — to keep everyone believing that a team is going to be up there in the final days of the schedule, Right now, the Giants appear to be without hope.

The starting pitching is getting pummeled. The offense is minimal, which is a nice way of saying terrible. The Giants scored three runs in the seventh, although when you’re trailing 10-1 that’s just window dressing. They did get runners on before that. And failed to bring them home.

“We couldn’t keep the line moving,” said Bochy.

How do you fix this mess? Zaidi warned last summer, when he came from the Dodgers to take over the Giants, that he did not believe in the quick fix, although even if he did — you know, signing a zillion-dollar free agent such as Bryce Harper — it was beyond the realm of possibility.

The Chicago Cubs, where tradition and the ballpark, “beautiful Wrigley Field,” were enough to fill the seats, and Houston Astros, who had no tradition but did have a lot of talent in the minors, were willing to go through a complete rebuilding — and each won a World Series.

But places like New York, Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco won’t accept a tear-down and rebuild. They won’t accept losing either. You have to at least be competitive. Or season tickets will tumble along with the ball club.

Bochy did point out the Giants have a fine defensive outfield, anchored by Pillar and Steven Duggar, who Saturday made another one of his airborne catches. Added to those two as of Saturday when he was called up from Sacramento is Mike Yastrzemski, who Giants partisans can only wish will remind all of baseball of his grandfather.

Carl Yastrzemski, now 79, played his entire magnificent career (Triple Crown, Hall of Fame) with the Red Soxand when Mike was in high school gave him a few lessons on the art of hitting. Mike was 0-for-3 Saturday, but that was only Day One.

Maybe the kid comes through. Maybe he doesn’t. For sure it will be more enticing to follow his progress than the lack of progress of his new team, the San Francisco Giants.

Koepka seems as much a contradiction as a champion

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By Art Spander
For Maven Sports

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — Brooks Koepka seems as much a contradiction as he is a champion, someone whose fame doesn’t seem to match his game, a golfer who has won more big events in a shorter time other than Jack Nicklaus or Tiger Woods but hasn’t connected with the people.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2019, The Maven 

Now Tiger knows how others once felt

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By Art Spander
For Maven Sports

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — Now he knows what it was like. Now Tiger Woods understands how the others felt when he was the man, dominating golf. Woods still can play. As we found out last month in the Masters, which he won. But it’s not like before.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2019, The Maven 

Warriors splash along on defense

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By Art Spander

OAKLAND — This is the way it’s done when Kevin Durant, the man his coach called the best basketball player on earth, can’t play.

There’s a stifling defense that keeps the other team from making even a single 3-pointer in the second quarter.

There’s a couple of guys nicknamed the Splash Brothers who couldn’t be defended — at least the way the Portland Trail Blazers attempted, with big men below the free throw line.

There’s a group of reserves, Kevon Looney, Alfonzo McKinnie, Shaun Livingston, Jordan Bell, Jonas Jerebko, Quinn Cook, that lends truth to the Warriors’ slogan, “Strength in Numbers,” and gives support to a team without the injured Durant and injured DeMarcus Cousins.

The Blazers hung in for a while, showed the style and talent that on Sunday enabled them to beat Denver and advance to the NBA Western Conference final. But the Warriors are the two-time champions, and they were playing at home, Oracle Arena, Tuesday night. and it was no surprise the Dubs won, 116-94.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr told us the Blazers barely had time to get to the Bay Area and get suited up.

“We were able to finish our last series on Friday,” Kerr said of the win over the Houston Rockets, “and they (Portland) had a tough game 7 in Denver, and the quick turnaround, so the schedule favored us.”

Unquestionably, but history also favors the Warriors, who have been to the NBA finals four straight years, winning three of those, and have all-stars such as Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala and the absent Durant.

In betting, you stick with a winner until he loses. The Warriors so far have shown no tendency to lose.

Curry had 36 points, Thompson 26. The Warriors shot 50 percent (51 on threes) and limited the Blazers to 36 percent. If Portland hadn’t made 27 of 31 free throws, it wouldn’t even have been in the game.

“I thought the key stretch for us,” said Kerr, “was the first five minutes of the fourth quarter.”

The Warriors led 77-71 after three. Quickly enough, it was 97-81.

“They got loose in the fourth quarter and had, what 39,” said Terry Stotts, the Portland coach. “But going into the fourth quarter, down six, finding ways to hang in on a night we were struggling offensively.”

Struggling because when the Warriors are at their best they are brilliant defensively, forcing bad shots, grabbing rebounds and then racing toward their own basket for a score.

“It’s just one game,” reminded Stotts. “I know they gave Damian (Lillard) a lot of attention. They clogged the paint. We didn’t finish the opportunities when we had them. So when you turn the ball over and don’t shoot well and don’t finish around the basket, we’ve got to look for other things.”

Lillard is the Oakland kid — “I could walk home from here,” he said during the post-game inteview. He showed up wearing an Oakland Athletics jersey and with an accurate account of why, averaging 28 a game, he scored just 19.

“They gave a lot of attention to the ball when I was coming off screens,” said Lillard. “Even when I was in isolation situations I was seeing two people. I think it was obvious they were trying to make things hard for me, sending two guys at me. I couldn’t get an attempt up even if I was trying to force it.”

The Warriors didn’t have that problem, not with Andrew Bogut, Looney and Green setting up screens for Steph and Klay. 

“It was a nice flow,” said Curry. “I mean, it’s fun when we’re at our best in terms of everybody feeling like they are a threat ... It puts so much pressure on the defense.”

The other defense. The Warriors defense was able to put on pressure of its own.

‘An unbelievable victory,’ said Warriors coach

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By Art Spander
For Maven Sports

OAKLAND — So much has been said about the Warriors, their shooting, their defense and all the other facets that are part of winning basketball. But maybe, in this great run of a half decade, not enough emphasis has been put on a word that their coach, Steve Kerr, used on Wednesday night after a game as wild and emotional as any: guts.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2019, The Maven 

Baseball gods, Longoria team to get Giants a win

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By Art Spander

SAN FRANCISCO — This one goes to the baseball gods. And to Evan Longoria, who wouldn’t have been in the game if Pablo Sandoval, a switch hitter, hadn’t hurt his leg the day before and felt he couldn’t swing righthanded.

“Sometimes it works out,” Bruce Bochy, the Giants' manager agreed, “sometimes it doesn’t.”

In a convoluted sort of way it worked Monday night against the Dodgers, and for the Giants, who had lost three in a row, there could be nobody better against whom something would work.

It was Longoria, “Longo” as everyone calls him, who delivered what arguably was the biggest hit of the year and a month he’s been with the Giants, a bases-loaded double in the bottom of the seventh that scored all three runners and beat the Dodgers, 3-2.

“He needed that hit,” said Bochy. “We needed it.”

Let’s back up to the sixth inning, where the Dodgers scored their two runs in the top half — Cody Bellinger, naturally, drove in one, and his 37 RBI are the most before May in major league history.

In the bottom of the inning, Buster Posey doubled, and with Sandoval coming to the plate, the Dodgers brought in a new pitcher, Scott Alexander, a lefty, which wouldn’t have mattered it Pablo could swing righthanded comfortably.

But he couldn't, so Bochy pinch hit another righthanded batter, Longoria, who plays third base, as Sandoval has been doing in the game.

Longoria, struggling — he’s hitless in his previous 10 at bats — flied out to no one else but Bellinger, a.k.a. Superman. But at least Longo was in the game, and when he came up in the seventh he doubled off Dylan Florio.

Like that, the chants of “Dodgers, Dodgers,”  from what liberally might be called a crowd — only 32,212 fans at the place now called Oracle Park — were replaced by shouts of “Beat L.A.”

“I’ve been waiting for that hit in a Giants uniform,” said Longoria. “It’s been a year. It’s not for a lack of opportunity. I’ve been in situations. I was feeling good. I just haven’t been able to come through.”

Although he grew up in Southern California, Longoria had spent nine years with the Tampa Rays.

“Dodgers-Giants is a huge rivalry,” said Longoria, “but it’s new to me. It gives me chills when you’re out there and hear that kind of enthusiasm from the home crowd.”

Well, the temperature was in the high 50s and a Candlestick-type wind was blowing, but Longoria said that had nothing to do with the chills.

“I know my average is not good, but that doesn’t take away from my mentality in those situations. A bases-loaded double is cool.”

So, he said, is Sandoval starting at third, which is where Longoria normally is positioned.

“Pablo’s been swinging the bat good. I’m here to win. I’m ready off the bench. I’m happy to wait. I’m hitting .200 (actually .210). I can’t go into the office and ask why I’m not starting.”

What some of the media asked was why Bochy took out Giants starter Jeff Samardzija for a pinch hitter in the fifth inning of a 0-0 game. The manager had a quick response.

“We needed to score runs,” said Bochy.

They didn’t immediately, but Samardzija said he had no problem being pulled.

“After losing three in a row (to the Yankees) we needed to do anything to score runs. Another time I’ll go seven, eight innings. Anytime you win a close game, it’s awesome. It builds confidence.”

The Giants still are last in the National League West, hitting is poor and the pitching not what was expected — and now Derek Holland is on the injured list, Ty Blach having been called up from Sacramento.

“This is a game of momentum,” Samardzija said of baseball in general.

Whether the Giants have it is unclear, but they do have a victory over the Dodgers.

Something finally went right.

 

Kerr on Durant: ‘He’s the most skilled basketball player on earth’

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By Art Spander
For Maven Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. — The question was of the present. The answer connected with the past.

Someone asked Steve Kerr whether he had seen anyone play as great in four consecutive games as has Kevin Durant, now the main star on Kerr’s team of stars, the Golden State Warriors.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2019, The Maven 

For Giants, on edge, wrong play and wrong pitch lead to defeat

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By Art Spander

SAN FRANCISCO — They live on the edge. Or, as they did on this Saturday of wind, fog, sunshine and frustration, fall off.

Another team, the Dodgers for example, has the players and the punch to overcome mistakes, a burst of runs correcting whatever failures take place.

But the Giants do not. If they make the wrong call, the wrong play, the wrong pitch, they lose, as they did to the Yankees, 6-4, at Oracle Park.

If it seems the Giants were there, well, they weren’t. Until scoring four runs in the bottom of the ninth, which didn’t prevent a second straight loss to New York but looked better cosmetically than getting shut out.

Still, it was a defeat, and shoved the Giants five games below .500, and we haven’t even reached May. Meaning the situation is apt to become a great deal worse, especially with no one in the starting lineup Saturday hitting above .280 and with Mad Bum, Madison Bumgarner, looking like Bad Bum.

But it was Derek Holland who threw the wrong pitches Saturday, most of all an inside fast ball to Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez with the bases loaded in the top of the fifth. Sanchez drove the ball 467 feet into the bleachers in left center, and like that, a 2-0 game was a 6-0 game.

Bruce Bochy wanted to take the blame. “It was my fault,” said the Giants' manager. “He (Holland) was ahead in the count, 1-2, and he still had his stuff. I gave him a chance to get through. He was making his pitches. He made a mistake.”

Holland said he deserved to take the blame, not the boss. “We were cruising,” Holland insisted. “One pitch took away a whole game. Those guys (his teammates) fought back. That’s what upsets me the most. Letting them down.”

These are upsetting times around the old ballpark. First is the Giants' incapability. Next is the attendance. There were only 33,071 on hand Saturday at what seemed like a marquee game, Giants-Yankees — and a great many in the crowd were cheering for the Yankees. True, it’s still only April, but it was the only game in the region, the Warriors and Sharks both idle Saturday.

Nobody expects the Giants to get a ton of hits and runs, and even in the championship seasons they won on pitching. Still, with Evan Longoria hitting .206, Brandon Crawford .207 and Buster Posey .247, you’re going to need near perfection from the pitchers. It doesn’t exist.

Bumgarner, who started Friday night, gave up two runs in the first. Bumgarner and Holland, two of the Giants big three, each are 1-4. Those combined eight losses are exactly half of the San Francisco total.

Maybe that’s why Bochy chose to squeeze as much as possible out of Holland, to get him confidence as much as to get the team a win. “But his margin of error is not real big,” said the manager, which of course only reflects the Giants as a whole.

San Francisco invariably is playing from behind, trying to extricate itself from a quick deficit.

The Giants did show resolve in the final inning Saturday, Yangervis Solarte hitting a three-run homer and then pinch hitter Erik Kratz hitting a bases-empty home run.  

“One pitch takes us out of the game,” said a rueful Holland. “I was told by an old pitching coach you’re one pitch from greatness and one pitch from humility.”

These are humbling days for the San Francisco Giants.

Durant on Warriors’ woes: ‘You feel like you’re in a bottomless pit’

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By Art Spander
For Maven Sports

OAKLAND — Kevin Durant has it all figured out. “They’re playing loose, with nothing to lose,” he said about the other team, the Los Angeles Clippers, the team that right there on the floor of the Oracle ran circles, rings and cubes around the Warriors.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2019, The Maven 

For A’s, the highlight is a first baseman pitching relief

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By Art Spander
For Maven Sports

OAKLAND, Calif. — This is the kind of day it was for the Oakland Athletics: A first baseman came in as a reliever; on two different occasions, fans jumped out of the stands, dashed across the diamond and were taken into custody; and the home team couldn’t pitch or hit.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2019, The Maven 

Tiger Woods fan Tony Finau has major talent of his own

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By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

AUGUSTA, Ga. — He is the baggage handler’s son of Tongan-Samoan descent who at age 7 for the first time in his life watched a golf tournament on television. It was the 1997 Masters. He was transfixed.

Read the full story here.

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