azdad1978
Championship!!!!
David Vest
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 14, 2005 12:00 AM
Shawn Estes' record dropped to 0-3 on Sunday, but it wasn't his fault. The left-hander's 56-pitch effort against Oakland at Phoenix Municipal Stadium was outstanding.
"I couldn't be more happy with his outing," manager Bob Melvin said after Estes held the Athletics to three hits and no earned runs in five innings.
Oakland won 3-0.
Estes did not allow a base runner in his first three innings, and the only run that scored against him came with two outs in the fifth inning when left fielder Quinton McCracken lost a fly ball in the sun.
"It just went right into the sun at the last minute," McCracken said.
Estes moved the ball well while keeping it low; 11 of the 15 outs he recorded came via ground balls and two were strikeouts.
"It's a good day for me when the infielders are getting work," Estes said.
Keeping tabs on Halsey
Melvin made a few calls to bench-coach-turned-manager Jay Bell during the split-squad game to track the progress of left-hander Brad Halsey, who started the other game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Maryvale Park.
The Diamondbacks won 15-11.
The news on Halsey wasn't that great.
Halsey, a strong contender for the fifth spot in the starting rotation, pitched three innings and gave up five hits and four runs, three earned.
Night and day
The Diamondbacks and Athletics combined for 11 hits and three runs in a game that lasted 1 hour, 57 minutes.
Meanwhile, the other Diamondbacks squad and the Brewers combined for 38 hits, including a grand slam by Desert Vista graduate Corey Myers, and 26 runs in a game that lasted 3:45.
Short hops
Infielder Alex Cintron went 0 for 2 vs. Oakland and played only four innings. Melvin said he wanted to rest Cintron because he played all nine innings on Saturday.
Despite going hitless, Cintron is batting .409 this spring. His versatility in the field has impressed Melvin, too.
"In the National League you can't understate what a guy like him can do for you," Melvin said. "He plays third, he can play shortstop, he can play second (base). I imagine he can play first (base) if you had to run him out there."
• Oakland made 11 roster moves after the game, optioning five players to their Triple-A team and the others to their minor league camp.
Melvin remained mum on when the Diamondbacks will make their first demotions.
• Right-hander Greg Aquino is scheduled to throw another side session today. Aquino has been nursing a strained flexor mass near his pitching elbow.
• Melvin said right-hander Tony Peña, who tweaked a muscle in his pitching forearm last week, will be re-evaluated today. Peña did not throw on Sunday, but the team isn't too worried about the injury.
• Left-hander Bill Murphy has a pulled left hamstring.
• The Diamondbacks are off Tuesday but right-hander Javier Vazquez is expected to either work out on his own or pitch in a minor league game.
Jeff Pentland
NAME: Jeff Pentland.
ROLE: Kansas City Royals hitting coach.
BIO SHEET: Pentland is a familiar face to local baseball fans. The former Arizona State4 pitcher helped the school win a national title in 1967 and was inducted into ASU's Hall of Fame in 2002. Pentland received his bachelor's and master's degrees from ASU.4 The Los Angeles native's coaching career started in 1971 at Mesa Community College as an assistant. He also coached ASU's junior varsity squad in 1973. This is Pentland's second season with the Royals. His first stint as a major league hitting coach started in 1997 with the Chicago Cubs.
MEMORABLE MOMENT AS COACH AT MCC: "We went on to win the national junior college championship in my first season. I thought that coaching was going to be really easy at that point." FAVORITE CACTUS LEAGUE MEMORY AS A COACH: "When I watched Sammy Sosa develop into a good hitter in 1998. That season Sammy did a lot of work and was willing to make a few changes in his swing. We spent a lot time talking about the goals we wanted him to reach. He had a season. It makes you feel good about the work you did."
COLLEGIATE HIGHLIGHT: "(ASU) is a tough and strong tradition to play for. We won the title with pitching and playing a lot of defense. We won several 4-3 games. Back then you were expected to pitch nine innings every outing. The role of the reliever hadn't developed like today. You had to pace yourself, get some cheap outs at the start, and show your stuff in the middle of the game. When we won (the title), it was a big thrill."
-Jose E. Garcia
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/diamondbacks/articles/0314dbnb14.html
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 14, 2005 12:00 AM
Shawn Estes' record dropped to 0-3 on Sunday, but it wasn't his fault. The left-hander's 56-pitch effort against Oakland at Phoenix Municipal Stadium was outstanding.
"I couldn't be more happy with his outing," manager Bob Melvin said after Estes held the Athletics to three hits and no earned runs in five innings.
Oakland won 3-0.
Estes did not allow a base runner in his first three innings, and the only run that scored against him came with two outs in the fifth inning when left fielder Quinton McCracken lost a fly ball in the sun.
"It just went right into the sun at the last minute," McCracken said.
Estes moved the ball well while keeping it low; 11 of the 15 outs he recorded came via ground balls and two were strikeouts.
"It's a good day for me when the infielders are getting work," Estes said.
Keeping tabs on Halsey
Melvin made a few calls to bench-coach-turned-manager Jay Bell during the split-squad game to track the progress of left-hander Brad Halsey, who started the other game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Maryvale Park.
The Diamondbacks won 15-11.
The news on Halsey wasn't that great.
Halsey, a strong contender for the fifth spot in the starting rotation, pitched three innings and gave up five hits and four runs, three earned.
Night and day
The Diamondbacks and Athletics combined for 11 hits and three runs in a game that lasted 1 hour, 57 minutes.
Meanwhile, the other Diamondbacks squad and the Brewers combined for 38 hits, including a grand slam by Desert Vista graduate Corey Myers, and 26 runs in a game that lasted 3:45.
Short hops
Infielder Alex Cintron went 0 for 2 vs. Oakland and played only four innings. Melvin said he wanted to rest Cintron because he played all nine innings on Saturday.
Despite going hitless, Cintron is batting .409 this spring. His versatility in the field has impressed Melvin, too.
"In the National League you can't understate what a guy like him can do for you," Melvin said. "He plays third, he can play shortstop, he can play second (base). I imagine he can play first (base) if you had to run him out there."
• Oakland made 11 roster moves after the game, optioning five players to their Triple-A team and the others to their minor league camp.
Melvin remained mum on when the Diamondbacks will make their first demotions.
• Right-hander Greg Aquino is scheduled to throw another side session today. Aquino has been nursing a strained flexor mass near his pitching elbow.
• Melvin said right-hander Tony Peña, who tweaked a muscle in his pitching forearm last week, will be re-evaluated today. Peña did not throw on Sunday, but the team isn't too worried about the injury.
• Left-hander Bill Murphy has a pulled left hamstring.
• The Diamondbacks are off Tuesday but right-hander Javier Vazquez is expected to either work out on his own or pitch in a minor league game.
Jeff Pentland
NAME: Jeff Pentland.
ROLE: Kansas City Royals hitting coach.
BIO SHEET: Pentland is a familiar face to local baseball fans. The former Arizona State4 pitcher helped the school win a national title in 1967 and was inducted into ASU's Hall of Fame in 2002. Pentland received his bachelor's and master's degrees from ASU.4 The Los Angeles native's coaching career started in 1971 at Mesa Community College as an assistant. He also coached ASU's junior varsity squad in 1973. This is Pentland's second season with the Royals. His first stint as a major league hitting coach started in 1997 with the Chicago Cubs.
MEMORABLE MOMENT AS COACH AT MCC: "We went on to win the national junior college championship in my first season. I thought that coaching was going to be really easy at that point." FAVORITE CACTUS LEAGUE MEMORY AS A COACH: "When I watched Sammy Sosa develop into a good hitter in 1998. That season Sammy did a lot of work and was willing to make a few changes in his swing. We spent a lot time talking about the goals we wanted him to reach. He had a season. It makes you feel good about the work you did."
COLLEGIATE HIGHLIGHT: "(ASU) is a tough and strong tradition to play for. We won the title with pitching and playing a lot of defense. We won several 4-3 games. Back then you were expected to pitch nine innings every outing. The role of the reliever hadn't developed like today. You had to pace yourself, get some cheap outs at the start, and show your stuff in the middle of the game. When we won (the title), it was a big thrill."
-Jose E. Garcia
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/diamondbacks/articles/0314dbnb14.html
