Tag: Yuli Gurriel

Kodai Senga threw the ghost fork for his first MLB out and completely embarrassed Yuli Gurriel in the process

The ghost fork is NO JOKE.

When the New York Mets signed pitcher Kodai Senga from Japan this offseason, fans quickly got to learn about the 30-year-old’s signature pitch. And yes, it’s as spooky as it sounds.

Senga — who posted 2.42 ERA during his time in Japan — throws a fastball that tops out at 99 mph to go along with his own off-speed variation of the forkball called a “ghost fork.” It had been his get-out pitch throughout his career in the Japanese NPB, and on Sunday, that pitch was in action for the first time in a regular season MLB game.

The Marlins’ Yuli Gurriel was Senga’s first strikeout victim, and I don’t think anyone could’ve really anticipated the ghost fork doing this to a seasoned big-league hitter.

The ghost fork had Gurriel losing his bat in a wild, off-balance swing. That movement truly was something else, and Senga struck out eight batters in the game — all with the ghost fork.

The Mets would go on to win, 5-1, behind Senga’s 5.1 innings of three-hit baseball. It’s safe to say that fans took notice to the ghost fork as well.

Trey Mancini is late substitute for Astros in Game 5 World Series win

Mancini shows more value with his glove than his bat.

Once again, Notre Dame alumni were absent from both starting lineups of a World Series contest. That changed in the eighth inning en route to a 3-2 Houston Astros win, giving them a 3-2 series lead over the Philadelphia Phillies. With two outs, [autotag]Trey Mancini[/autotag] was called on to pinch-hit for Yuli Gurriel, but he struck out to end the inning, bringing him to 0 for 18 in the postseason. However, he stayed in the game to take over at first base.

Mancini was much more productive with his glove. He fielded Kyle Schwarber’s ground ball and recorded the unassisted third out in the bottom of the eighth, snuffing out a Phillies rally that had produced one run. Then, he got the final putout of the ninth and the game when Nick Castellanos grounded out to shortstop Jeremy Pena.

[autotag]Matt Vierling[/autotag] did not appear for the Phillies at all. He has not played since he appeared as a defensive replacement in the ninth inning of Game 3, when Mancini flied out to him.

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Yankees’ Giancarlo Stanton stunningly broke the scoreboard after making awesome over-the-head catch

Looks like Stanton doesn’t know his own strength!

Giancarlo Stanton is known a lot more for having a powerful bat than for being a quality defender in the outfield. On Wednesday, during Game 1 of the American League Championship Series against the Astros (-1.5), he showed that he does have some defensive proficiency when he needs it. And in the process, he also showed he might be stronger than he thinks.

After Houston’s Yuli Gurriel launched a shot to left field, Stanton had to track back and make a difficult catch over his head. Which he did, and it was impressive. Kudos to him! But as he tried to stop his forward momentum on the back wall, Stanton accidentally broke Houston’s stadium scoreboard with his hand. (Note: Stanton is a listed 6-foot-6, 245 pounds.)

Uh, oops?

Huh. To be fair to Stanton, that scoreboard doesn’t seem very sturdy if it can fall apart the moment a player touches it with a small modicum of force.

Let’s see an angle of the unfortunate aftermath:

Credit to Stanton and Harrison Bader for at least trying to clean up the mess. Though it didn’t seem to work entirely:

I’m not certain we’ve ever seen a baseball player so strong that they actually break a scoreboard just by accidentally pushing on it. In the case of Stanton, I’m sure he’ll still take the awesome catch if it means he’s causing other general chaos in the outfield.

Hottest batters entering World Series between Braves and Astros

The smart money is on these players to come through.

The World Series has finally arrived, bringing with it countless ways to make money betting on the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros, from which team wins Game 1 on Tuesday to how long the series will go.

For those looking to cash in on player props in this matchup, it’s important to know which players have been recently performing at a high level, as no sport is more streaky than baseball. Below is a list of which players have been the hottest throughout the playoffs, or even just the league championship series, prior to entering the World Series.

All good runs have an ending, so it’s always possible these players have let downs — especially depending on matchups — and others emerge as World Series heroes, but this should provide a nice starting point going into Game 1, with odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook.

 

Yankees fans booed Lourdes Gurriel Jr. after thinking he played for the 2017 Astros

They booed the wrong Gurriel.

It feels like an eternity ago, but in the lead-up to the 2020 MLB season, the Houston Astros were looking at a brutal experience from opposing fans.

The team was at the center of a multi-season cheating scandal that included the 2017 World Series champions. And up until the coronavirus pandemic sent MLB games behind closed doors, fans had been waiting for an opportunity to heckle anyone associated with that 2017 team.

Well, now that some fans are allowed back into stadiums for spring training, we should expect the cheating scandal to follow wherever the Astros go this season.

But, uh, let’s leave the Blue Jays’ Lourdes Gurriel Jr. out of this.

The Blue Jays opened their Grapefruit League schedule on Sunday against the Yankees, and when Gurriel Jr. stepped to the plate, he was booed, heckled and called a “cheater” by some fans in Tampa.

The problem: Gurriel Jr. never played for the Houston Astros.

These fans were confusing Lourdes with his brother, Yuli, who is still with Houston and was part of that 2017 team.

Despite the heckling, Lourdes went 1 for 3 with an RBI in the spring training opener.

I guess it’s spring training for the fans too.

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Houston Astros vs. Minnesota Twins, ALWC Game 1 Live Stream, MLB Playoffs, TV Channel, Start Time

The Houston Astros will face the Minnesota Twins in game one of the ALWC series on Tuesday afternoon, stream all the MLB playoff action here.

The MLB Playoffs are here! We have our first game this afternoon, the Houston Astros will face the Minnesota Twins in game one of their best of three American League Wild Card series from Target Field.

The Astros will send out Zack Greinke (3-3, 4.03 ERA) to the mound and the Twins will counter with Kenta Maeda (6-1, 2.70 ERA) on Tuesday.

Can the underdog Astros upset the Twins in the American League Wildcard Series?  Tune in and find out, everything you need to know to follow the MLB action today and this week.

Houston Astros vs. Minnesota Twins

  • When: Tuesday, September 29
  • Time: 2:00 p.m. ET
  • TV Channel: ABC
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)

ALWC MLB Playoff Schedule

Game 1, Tuesday: Astros at Twins – 2 p.m. ET

Game 2, Wednesday: Astros at Twins – 1 p.m. ET

*Game 3, Thursday: Astros at Twins – time TBD

*if necessary

MLB Odds and Betting Lines

MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds last updated Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. ET.

Houston Astros (+150) vs. Minnesota Twins -167)

Over/Under: 7.5 (-110)

Want some action on the MLB? Place your legal sports bets on this game or others in CO, IN, NJ, and WV at BetMGM. 

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