I'm back with another installment of Spring Training 2011 here in Tampa. It's been a while since my last update, but I can assure that it's been a tiring week of games and travel for me.
Today's Topics
- Baltimore Orioles @ Philadelphia Phillies (Tuesday, March 8th)
For most of the game the Orioles were in command until they brought in Rosario. In the 9th he proceeded to do his best Charlie Sheen impression and throw 2 balls about 10 feet over the catcher's head. This allowed the Phillies to win the game by 1 in the bottom of the 9th yet again. The Orioles seem like an average team, but are in the AL East. The Phillies seem like they can overcome small deficits, but not large ones.
- Minnesota Twins @ Baltimore Orioles (Wednesday, March 9th)
The Twins basically played no one, which allowed the Orioles to jump all over them. The Orioles can definitely hit the ball when they need to, but it seems like a fallacy since it was against the equivalent of a AAA team. However, given from what I've seen of the Orioles so far, they might be able to surprise people.
- Chicago Blackhawks @ Tampa Bay Lightning (Wednesday, March 9th)
Another game of hockey that ended in a shootout. I can't believe I saw 2 shootouts in a row. In the early 2nd it looked like Tampa had it in the bag but Chicago fought back to tie it. There were a lot of no calls by the Refs, including a very blatant hand pass. The Lightning ended up winning, but it was an entertaining game to say the least.
- St. Louis Cardinals @ Atlanta Braves (Thursday, March 10th)
We traveled over to Orlando for a day-night doubleheader, first up being a chance at seeing Albert Pujols play...who didn't. The game was pretty boring as well, ending up a 2-1 Braves win. There was very little fanfare. Runners got to third a couple of times, but nothing really exciting happened. Both teams really failed to impress, especially since their starters were played most of the day.
- Washington Nationals @ Houston Astros (Thursday, March 10th)
That night we went over to Osceola County Stadium to see these two teams play. It was a good game that featured some good offensive firepower, but not much in terms of fielding. We got to see #1 pick Bryce Harper catch a fly ball and get a double on a blooper to shallow left field, which was pretty exciting. The Nationals seem to have that fighting spirit like they did last year, but it remains to be seen how long they can keep it up.
- New York Yankees @ Toronto Blue Jays (Friday, March 11th)
We went over to Dunedin for this one, and let me say that this Stadium was pretty terrible outside of the Nachos. The game featured the Yankees short squad, so no one played. This allowed the Jays to win handily on this brisk day.
- Toronto Blue Jays @ Detroit Tigers (Saturday, March 12th)
Lastly we traveled to Lakeland to see the Tigers stadium. It's a nice stadium and the game featured some solid play with both teams using their starters for most of the game. The Jays seem to have a good offense, but their pitching staff needs some work. The Tigers need some work in the fielding department, even though they won late.
That's all for now. The last post will come on either Tuesday or Wednesday. Until then!
No comments:
Post a Comment