Author: scott

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Star honors for the weekend go to Ryan Braun, who was 5-for-13 with his 16th homer. He also had two doubles (24) and his second triple of the year. He drove in two, scored three, and walked twice as the Milwaukee Brewers (79-70) took two of three from the host Miami Marlins. Ian Kinsler was 3-for-11 with…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Ian Kinsler hit home run #18, but the Detroit Tigers (60-86) nevertheless lost to the visiting Chicago White Sox, 17-7. Kinsler, who served as DH in this one, clubbed his shot in the ninth inning for his only hit in five at-bats. Prior to the game, Kinsler was presented with the 2017 Heart…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Ian Kinsler was 0-for-5 as the Detroit Tigers (60-85) gave the host Cleveland Indians (90-56) their A.L. record 21st-straight win, 5-3. Craig Breslow did not appear for the Indians. St. Louis Cardinals’ rookie pitcher Ryan Sherriff had the first rough outing of his young career. He allowed two inherited runners to score, along with two of…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Ian Kinsler hit his 22nd double in four at-bats, but it didn’t matter: the Cleveland Indians (89-56) won their 20th in a row by beating the Detroit Tigers (60-84), 2-0. Craig Breslow did not appear for the Indians. Meanwhile, the Tigers still talking about whether or not to bring Brad Ausmus back as manager next year. Alex Bregman was…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Only two MOTs in action last night. Both of their teams were involved in streaks of one sort or another. Craig Breslow pitched a scoreless inning of relief for the Cleveland Indians (84-56), who won their 15th in a row by beating the lowly Chicago White Sox, 11-1. Breslow worked the ninth,…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Ian Kinsler hit home run #15 to break a four-way tie for most among MOTs. It was one of the few highlights for the Detroit Tigers (59-80), who were pummeled by the visiting KC Royals, 13-2. The solo shot — his only hit in three at-bats (he also walked) — came in the fifth…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Kevin Pillar had a single and double (#34) and scored a run in seven at-bats as the Toronto Blue Jays (64-75) lost to the host Boston Red Sox, 3-2, in 19 innings. The winning single was hit in Pillar’s direction, but there was no superhuman effort in this story, and his throw…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Welcome back, folks. Hope you had a great Labor Day holiday despite weather conditions and sundry global events. Since most teams begin a new series on Mondays, I’m going to dispense with the usual long-weekend wrap. Too complicated. However I just wanted to give a shout-out to Atlanta Braves pitcher Max Fried….

By Scott Barancik, Editor Here are your minor-league highlights from the week of August 28 – September 3, 2017: Jewish Baseball News Hitter of the Week: Zane Gurwitz 2B Zane Gurwitz (Angels/rookie), a 2017 draftee, hit .500 (8-for-16) with 2 HRs, 7 RBIs and a walk last week. His .386 average is tops among all Arizona Rookie…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Yesterday was the deadline for trades that would qualify players to appear in the post-season. The Detroit Tigers made a couple of big deals, parting ways with their ace Justin Verlander and outfielder Justin Upton, but Ian Kinsler remains mired with the last-place team, which was idle last night. There’s still a better-than-average chance that…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Ryan Braun hit his 21st double in four at-bats as the Milwaukee Brewers (69-64) held off the visiting St. Louis Cardinals, 6-5. Keon Broxton made a home run-saving catch to end the game, but I think the announcers got a little too enthusiastic. The hit would have given the Cards (66-66) a…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Alex Bregman was 3-for-5 with an RBI as the Houston Astros (79-52) were sextupled by the Texas Rangers, 12-2. He also made this nice play at shortstop, where he started the game before moving to his usual position at third base. Bregman is hitting .338 since the All-Star break, and he’s hitting home runs and…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Monday. Need I say more? Danny Valencia highlighted the doings for the few MOTs in action. He hit home run #14, good for one run, but the Seattle Mariners (66-65) lost to the host Baltimore Orioles (66-65), 7-6. Valencia, who played right field and first base (but not at the same time),…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor Let’s start with pitching for a change. Welcome, Ryan Sherriff, who had a darned good debut for the St. Louis Cardinals (66-65) on Friday in a 5-1 loss to the visiting Tampa Bay Rays. Sherriff — who toiled in the minors for seven years — came on in the 7-3 loss, tossing three shutout…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor This time it was the Detroit Tigers (55-71) that scored double-digit runs, beating the Yankees, 10-6. Ian Kinsler was hitless in five at-bats in a game that was marred by hit batsmen and brawls. Pretty intense stuff, as you can see from the video. Tigers skipper Brad Ausmus was one of those ejected. Kevin Pillar was…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor The descendants of Samson put on a power display last night, with three of the five hits accrued going for home runs. Alex Bregman hit his MOT-leading 16th, a three-run shot in the eighth inning to put the icing on the cake and give the Houston Astros (77-48) a 6-1 win over the visiting…

By Ron Kaplan, contributor First Ian Kinsler gets in trouble with the umpire, now it’s Kevin Pillar. He was ejected by the home plate ump as he returned to the dugout following a groundout in the third inning. The Toronto Blue Jays (62-64) lost to the host Tampa Bay Rays, 6-5. Meanwhile, Kinsler drove in his 36th run with…