Nets sign Donte Greene

newshopper.sulekha.com

Nets sign Donte Greene

The Nets have come to terms with Donte Greene to give him a training camp invite with a non guaranteed contract.

Greene is a former first round pick from Syracuse, as the 6-11 forward is now the 14th person under contract with the Nets and would be a backup for Gerald Wallace, and Mirza Teletovic.

He has played his first 4 seasons in the NBA with the Sacramento Kings mostly in a backup role. Greene has averaged 6.4 points, 2.4 rebounds in his career. There is some potential in Greene who in his one year at Syracuse did put up some nice stats averaging 17.7 pts, and 7.2 rebs per game but hasn’t seen that kind of success at the NBA level.

Yankees Win in Sabathia's Return

daylife.com

Yankees vs. Indians Post Game Recap 8/24

The Yankees were able to start the series with the Cleveland Indians with a much needed win beating them 3-1 after a tough series in Chicago.

Yankees ace C.C Sabathia was able to return to the rotation from the DL and earn his 13th win of the season.  Sabathia went 7.1 innings allowing four hits, one walk, one run, and had nine strikeouts.  Sabathia one mistake came in the 4th inning, as Asdrubal Cabrera was able to hit a solo homerun.

Rafael Soriano made the 9th inning very interesting allowing two hits, and an intentional walk to load the bases. Soriano however was able to get his 32nd save despite a shaky 9th inning.

Derek Jeter had a scary moment in the 2nd inning taking a 92mph off the helmet but was able to stay in the game. Jeter was able to have yet another multi-hit game going 2 for 4 with two runs scored.

Nick Swisher continues to rake in the second spot in the lineup, as on Friday night he went 3 for 4 with a RBI double in the first inning, and hit a two-run shot in the 7th to break a 1-1 tie for his 19th homerun of the season.

Yankees will look for another win on Saturday, as Hiroki Kuroda (12-8, 2.96) will face Justin Masterson (9-11, 4.73).

Ivan Nova Placed on DL

tucsoncitizen.com

Ivan Nova Placed on DL

The Yankees suffered yet another injury to their pitching rotation, as starter Ivan Nova will be placed on the 15 day DL with inflammation in his right shoulder.

Nova said that he first felt some stiffness in the shoulder while facing the last batter on Tuesday night against the White Sox.

Ivan has struggled since the All-Star break going 2-5 with a 6.40 ERA, but Girardi and Nova both said the injury has nothing to do with the injury.

"Any time a guy says he has a little stiffness in his shoulder, you're going to worry," Girardi said Wednesday. "We don't think it's anything too concerning, but we've got to make sure."

The one bright spot for the Yankees is that C.C Sabathia will be back on Friday to start the season against the Indians. The Yankees do need to show some concern though because their division lead has been cut to 2.5 games by the Rays. All of the injuries the Yankees have had has not lead to a very good second half of the season with only a .500 record.

Mets Swept By Bottom-Feeding Rockies

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Final Score: Colorado Rockies: 1 New York Mets

Mets Swept by Bottom-Feeding Rockies

Even the presence of an Olympic gold medalist in Gabby Douglas couldn’t turn the fortunes of the Mets, who suffered a sweep at the hands of the lowly Colorado Rockies Thursday afternoon after falling 1-0.  It was one misplay that led to the Mets demise this afternoon, even after another stellar MLB debut from a rookie.  The loss puts the Mets 11 games under .500 and into fourth place in the NL East.

Collin McHugh was making his MLB debut today in place of the injured Johan Santana; what an appearance it was for the 25 year old McHugh.  McHugh gave up a game opening double to Charlie Blackmon, but stranded him on third. 

McHugh would allow only one other hit and one walk, which was semi-intentional to Carlos Gonzalez in his 100 pitch effort.  McHugh tossed seven shutout innings, striking out nine.  The nine strikeouts is the second most in a debut in franchise history, second to Matt Harvey’s 11 earlier this season.

McHugh’s final stat line was seven innings pitched, surrendering only two hits and one walk while striking out nine.  He is the third pitcher in franchise history to toss seven-plus shutout innings in his major league debut.  He is also the first pitcher since 1900 to throw seven-plus innings while striking out nine-plus batters to not get a win.

The game was lost in the eighth inning this afternoon, as Tyler Colvin roped a line drive at inexperienced centerfielder Jordany Valdespin off Bobby Parnell.  Valdespin broke in on the ball at first and it ended up landing over his head.  He was making only his fifth career start in centerfield and 23^rd overall appearance as a professional, all coming this season between the majors and Triple-A Buffalo. 

Chris Nelson followed the Colvin double with an RBI single, giving the Rockies all they would need for the win. 

The Mets offense struggled yet again, as starter Tyler Chatwood and relievers Adam Ottavino, Rex Brothers, Will Harris and Matt Belisle combined to blank the Mets.  The Mets went 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position and stranding 12 base runners all together.  The Mets were shut down the whole series by the pitching staff with the worst team ERA at 5.31.  The Mets were able to muster only five runs in four games against the Rockies.

The Mets will take on another bottom-feeding team in the Houston Astros starting Friday night at 7:10 P.M. ET.  Jon Niese (10-6, 3.82 ERA) will take the mound against Jordan Lyles (2-10, 5.70 ERA) on Meringue night at Citi Field. 

Wayne Hunter gets Benched

newsday.com

Wayne Hunter gets Benched

The New York Jets and head coach Rex Ryan finally benched Wayne Hunter, and will be starting Austin Howard at right tackle in Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers.

Wayne Hunter was by far the Jets worst offensive lineman last year, and with allowing 2 ½ sacks in his first preseason game against the Giants it showed that he is clearly not a starting lineman.

Rex Ryan said "We're gonna give Austin Howard a shot to be with this first group. I thought he earned that right. He played extremely well against Cincinnati, did OK against the Giants, but really played well against Cincinnati, and this is what I wanna do. I'm gonna put him in that situation, and we'll see how he does this week."

Austin Howard was signed by the Jets last November from the Ravens practice squad, and has played in 4 games in the NFL with the Eagles in 2010.

The Jets will hope Howard is the answer at right tackle, but in all likelihood the Jets will be having problems at the position all year unless they can make a move of some sort.

Bullpen Losses Yet Another Game for Mets

Wednesday, August 22 2012

Final Score: Colorado Rockies: 5 New York Mets: 2

Bullpen Losses yet another Game for Mets

Things are hitting new lows every night in Queens for the Mets.  After another disappointing loss to the Rockies 5-2 Wednesday night, the Mets now see their losing streak at four games.  They have lost 13 of their last 15 games at Citi Field and have an abysmal 11-27 record since the All-Star break.  They have also lost seven straight games to the Rockies at home.  The Mets record now sits 10 games under .500, the worst it has been in three years. 

It was yet another strong effort from a starting pitcher tonight for the Mets that was wasted by a poor showing at the plate and a poor performance from the bullpen.  This is becoming almost a nightly thing, making watching the game almost obsolete as the end result is almost always the same.

Tonight the starting pitcher to be let down was Matt Harvey.  Harvey received a no-decision in the game, being lifted after six innings with his pitch count at 102.  Harvey was dominant against the Rockies, carrying a no-hitter into the 4^th inning before Jonathan Herrera led off the frame with an opposite field single.  It was one of only three hits that Harvey would surrender on the night.

Harvey would also walk two batters and give up only one earned run, as Herrera scored in the 4^th inning off a Wilin Rosario sac fly.  Harvey almost single handedly made up for the base runners he surrendered going 2 for 2 at the plate with two singles, giving him a .455 batting average in the major leagues.

Harvey also struck out nine Rockies Wednesday night, giving him 43 in his first six major league appearances.  That is enough to become the Mets franchise leader through six appearances, giving him one more than Nolan Ryan had in his first six Mets appearances, even though one was out of the bullpen.

Harvey ended the night with six innings pitched, three hits and two walks resulting in one earned run and nine strikeouts.

Immediately after going to the bullpen, the tie game was broken open as Ramon Ramirez gave up a homerun to Rosario to start the 7^th inning and would see Tyler Colvin score on a D.J. Mathieu suicide squeeze.

The Rockies would later capitalize on a Kelly Shoppach throwing error in the ninth inning and plate two more insurance runs off Frank Francisco, who saw his ERA rise to 6.42.  The Mets were able to bring the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the ninth, but Ronny Cedeno flew out to end the game.

Scott Hairston’s first inning sac fly and Ike Davis’ eight-inning RBI single accounted for all of the Mets offense.  Jason Bay was heavily booed after going 0 for 3, dropping his average to .148.  With the tying runs on base in the 8^th inning, Bay was lifted for pinch-hitter Jordany Valdespin, who struck out to end the inning.

The Mets look to salvage the last game of the four game series Thursday afternoon as Collin McHugh will make his major league debut in place of Johan Santana against Tyler Chatwood (3-3, 5.46 ERA).

Yankees Swept by White Sox

sports.yahoo.com

Yankees vs. White Sox Post Game Recap 8/22

The Yankees woes in Chicago continued, as the Yankees were swept by the A.L Central leading White Sox by a score of 2-1.

Yankees hitters were dominated by Chris Sale who picked up his 15th win of the season. Sale went 7.2 innings allowing three hits, one walk, one run, and had thirteen strikeouts.

Phil Hughes on almost any other night would have gotten the win with the way he pitched but instead got his 11th loss of the season. Hughes went seven innings allowing five hits, two walks, two runs, and had five strikeouts.

Derek Jeter was able to smack another homerun on Wednesday for his 3rd straight game with a homerun in Chicago. The homerun was Jeter’s 13th of the season his highest amount of homeruns in a season since 2009.

One positive sign for the Yankees was that Robinson Cano who was in an awful slump may be snapping out of it. Cano was able to go 2 for 4 hitting his 33rd double of the season just missing a homerun.

The sweep to the White Sox has opened the door for the Tampa Bay Rays, as the Rays have cut the Yankees lead in the division to only 3 games now.

The Yankees will have a off day on Thursday before starting a series in Cleveland, as C.C Sabathia (12-3, 3.56) will be making his return from the DL to face his former team and their starter Corey Kluber (0-2, 6.27).

Johan Santana Shut Down For Season

Johan Santana Shut Down For Season

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 Mets starting pitcher Johan Santana is being placed on the 15-day DL, retroactive to August 18^th because of inflammation in his lower back.  Santana is not expected to pitch again this season according to General Manager Sandy Alderson.  Alderson is also adamant in saying that the shut down has nothing to do with Santana’s ankle or shoulder injuries he has suffered through this season.

“I’m very confident he’ll be back next season ready to go, hopefully in a stronger position coming into this season,” Alderson said.  “If you look back at this season and what we reasonably could’ve expected at the beginning of the year, he’s accomplished quite a lot.”

Santana’s back became a problem recently for him when it tightened up after his bullpen session on Monday afternoon.  Reoccurring back pain had been complained about by Santana since after his last start August 17^th against the Washington Nationals. 

Since throwing the first no hitter in Mets history June first and throwing a career high 134 pitches, Santana has compiled a 3-7 record with an 8.27 ERA in 10 starts, giving up six or more earned runs in his last five starts.

Right hander Collin McHugh will be promoted from Triple-A Buffalo to replace Santana.  McHugh, 25, has a 2-4 record with a 3.39 ERA in 12 starts for the Bison.  There had been rumors of Jenrry Mejia coming up for the start, but the Mets instead opted to go with McHugh.

Fading Mets Drop Another to Rockies

Tuesday, August 21^st 2012

Final Score: Colorado Rockies: 6 New York Mets: 2

Fading Mets Drop Another to Rockies

The Mets season is starting to become tumultuous and hard to watch for fans, as they dropped another game to the lowly Rockies Tuesday night 6-2.  The loss drops the Mets to nine games under .500, a worse in the past three seasons.  Their overall record since the All-Star break now sits at 11-26.  Citi Field has become a place no person of the Mets organization or fans want to be, as they have lost 12 of the last 14 games there. 

The night started out very promising for the Mets.  They were able to stake Chris Young to an early lead again, going ahead 1-0 in the 4^th inning thanks to a sac fly from Daniel Murphy that knocked in Ruben Tejada.  That looked to be all the Mets would need with how Young was pitching, but everyone unraveled in the 6^th inning.

Young retired the first 15 Rockies that he faced, striking out four batters and having no one come close to getting a hit.  Then the sixth inning Young implosion that has become too much of a constant happened. 

D.J. Mathieu led off with a weak, but legitimate, infield hit which was followed by a Jonathan Herrera single.  Add in a Young throwing error and a two more hits and the Mets found themselves down 4-1 in a blink of an eye after starting the inning protecting a Young perfect game.

To end the night, Young finished with seven innings pitched, giving up four runs, two of which were earned, on five hits and one walk while striking out nine.  What started out looking like a potentially historic night ended in disappointment with Young’s record dropping to 3-7.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, manager Terry Collins was ejected from the game for arguing a call at second base.  Andres Torres got picked off second and got into a pickle, dashing back to second base and diving back in initially being called safe.  Rockies manager Jim Tracy came out to argue after his third baseman Jordan Pacheco had obviously tagged Torres out, and the call was overturned.  This in turn made Collins come out, who was subsequently run from the game moments later.

Not to be forgotten is the work of Rockies starter Jhoulys Chacin, who was making his first start since May 1^st.  He went six innings, allowing only one run on four hits and no walks while striking out two.  It was Chacin’s first win in since August 28^th, 2011.

The Mets look to get in the win column Wednesday night as Matt Harvey (2-3, 3.00 ERA) will make his second start at Citi Field against Jeff Francis (4-4, 6.07 ERA). 

Youkilis Slams White Sox past Yanks

yankees.lhblogs.com

Yankees vs. White Sox Post Game Recap 8/21

The New York Yankees lost to the Chicago White Sox for a second straight game, losing by a score of 7-3. The Yankees despite having a great home stand have seen their division lead shrink, as the Tampa Bay Rays are coming up in the rear view mirror quick only trailing by 4 games.

Ivan Nova had a tough time against a good White Sox lineup losing his 7th game of the season. Nova pitched six innings allowing seven hits, two walks, six earned runs, and struck out three. The big blow to the Yankees and Nova was done by Kevin Youkilis who hit a grand slam in the 5th inning to break a 2-2 tie at the time.

Derek Lowe pitched the final two innings for the Yankees allowing five hits, one walk, one run, as Lowe was able to keep the White Sox from really blowing the game open.

Derek Jeter after a milestone breaking night wasted little time moving up the hits leader board passing Eddie Murray for 11th all-time with a leadoff homerun for his 12th of the season.  The 1st inning homerun also tied Jeter with his former manager Joe Torre at 252 career homeruns. Pete Rose was but on notice too, as Jeter is now exactly 1,000 hits away from Rose.

Russell Martin was able to have a good game going 2 for 4 hitting his 14th homerun of the season in the 7th inning.

Robinson Cano who was once an MVP candidate has hit a rough patch at a very bad time. Cano went 0 for 4 against the White Sox, and is now batting only .302 for the season.

The Yankees will look to try and avoid the sweep in Chicago, as Phil Hughes (12-10, 4.23) will face Cy Young hopeful Chris Sale (14-4, 2.72).

Mets Drop Series Opener to Lowly Rockies

Monday, August 20 2012

Final Score: Colorado Rockies: 3 New York Mets: 1

Mets Drop Series Opener to Lowly Rockies

What started out as a promising season has hit a new low for the Mets, who dropped to a season high eight games under .500 after Monday night’s 3-1 loss to the Colorado Rockies.  With the season going down the drain fast, even individual awards for players such as R.A. Dickey seem to be joining them.  With the loss, the Philadelphia Phillies have tied the Mets for third place in the NL East.

Dickey’s pursuit of 20 victories for the season became a little more difficult after receiving a tough luck no-decision Monday night.  Dickey surrendered a fifth inning solo homerun to Tyler Colvin in the 5^th inning to tie the game up and the Mets offense was unable to back their ace, resulting in Dickey’s total for wins staying at 15.

Dickey was staked to a one run lead after the first inning thanks to a Daniel Murphy single scoring David Wright.  That was the only scoring the Mets were able to do for Dickey, as they squandered their other good chance in the 7^th inning when Dickey was lifted for pinch hitter Justin Turner.

The final stat line for Dickey was great again, as he went seven innings, giving up only three hits and two walks and one earned run while striking out six.  Dickey will get his next crack at win 16 Saturday against the Houston Astros, as he is the only pitcher that will continue on regular rest as the rest of the team has moved to a six-man rotation.

After Dickey was relieved, it did not take long for the Mets bullpen to do what they have done best this season and surrender leads and tie games.  Josh Edgin surrendered an unearned run, after his shovel to first base allowed Jonathan Herrera to get to second base.  Herrera was then bunted over to third and scored after Edgin unleashed a pitch Kelly Shoppach could not handle.

Jon Rauch would surrender another run in the 9^th inning, only his second in his last 22 appearances to give the Rockies a two-run edge.

While the hitting may have been underwhelming, the Mets did flash the leather in the field.  David Wright and Ruben Tejada both made outstanding plays in the 5^th inning, robbing Wilin Rosario and D.J. LeMahieu.  Mike Baxter would add a nice sliding catch in the 6^th inning to rob Guillermo Moscoco of a hit of his own.

The Mets and Rockies will play the second game of their four game series Tuesday night with Chris Young (3-6, 4.50 ERA) being opposed by Jhoulys Chacin (0-3, 7.30 ERA).

Yankees Lose Series Opener to White Sox

Yankees vs White Sox Post Game Recap 8/20

The Yankees were unable to start their series in Chicago with a win losing to the White Sox by a score of 9-6.

Freddy Garcia was looking like he’d be cruising to a great start until the 5^th inning where it all fell apart for him. Garcia only went 4.1 innings allowing six hits, four walks, five runs, and had 8 strikeouts in the the no decision.

The bullpen wasn’t very good for the Yankees either, as Joba Chamberlain blew a Yankees lead when Gordon Beckham to him deep. Chamberlain also ran in to his old friend Kevin Youkilis, and proceeded to drill him in the back with a fastball. Boone Logan picked up his 4^th loss of the season going 1.2 innings allowing two hits, one walk, and two runs.

Derek Jeter had quite the day passing players on all-time lists with his 4 for 5 day. Jeter jumped past Nap Lajoie, and tied Eddie Murray for 11^th on the all-time hits list with 3,255 hits. Jeter then tied Craig Nettles on the Yankees all-time homerun list with 251^st homerun of his career, and 11^th of the season. The homerun also let Jeter pass Craig Biggio on the all-time runs list with 1,855 runs scored.

Nick Swisher was very patient at the plate going 1 for 2 with three walks, and scored twice in the two spot.

Mark Teixeira returned to the lineup after missing a few game with his wrist bothering him, and Teixeira went 2 for 4 knocking in two RBI giving him 80 for the season.

The Yankees will look to bounce back on Tuesday, as Ivan Nova (11-6, 4.76) will face Francisco Liriano (4-10, 5.22).

Michael Pineda Charged with DUI

nydailynews.com

Michael Pineda Charged with DUI

Yankees injured pitcher Michael Pineda was charged with a DUI by Tampa police early Monday morning. Pineda blood alcohol rate was at a .128 which is above the legal limit.

The police report said that "no headlights were illuminated at night." The report also stated that the officer could smell "a distinct odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath and his speech was slurred."

Pineda was the Yankees big move in the off-season, and was sidelined for the entire season in spring training as his shoulder needed surgery. The Yankees traded top catching prospect Jesus Montero for Pineda in a 4 player deal in January.

The trade by general manager Brian Cashman isn’t looking very good so far with this latest incident, as Pineda came in to spring training overweight, and no is having off the field problems. Pineda did have a good rookie season making the All-Star team with the Mariners, and finishing the season going (9-10) with a 3.74 ERA. The Yankees will be hoping Pineda can get healthy, and that this DUI is a one time deal.

Yankees Finish Home Stand Strong

nydailynews.com

Yankees vs. Red Sox Post Game Recap 8/19

The Yankees were able to beat the Red Sox in the rubber game of the series by a score of 4-1 to finish of a very good home-stand.

Hiroki Kuroda showed against the Red Sox that he is the Yankees best pitcher right now earning his 12th game of the year. Kuroda went eight innings allowing four hits, one run, and struck out four. The only run the Red Sox were able to score off Kuroda came from an Adrian Gonzalez solo homerun.

Rafael Soriano was the only other pitcher needed in the bullpen, as Soriano pitched the 9th inning earning his 31st save of the season.

Derek Jeter the majors hitting leader added some more going 3 for 4 with two doubles giving him 26 on the season, and scoring two runs. Jeter also stole his 8th base of the season taking third base on a double steal.

Ichiro had his best game as a Yankee on Sunday going 3 for 4 hitting two solo homeruns into right field for his 6th and 7th of the season.

Curtis Granderson had a nice game in the cleanup spot with no Mark Teixeira going 1 for 2 with a RBI double for his 14th double and 71st RBI. Granderson was also able to draw two walks.

The Yankees will be heading to the Windy City to play the White Sox, as Freddy Garcia (7-5, 4.68) will face Gavin Floyd (9-9, 4.43) on Monday night.

Mets Drop Rubber Game, Series Against Nationals

Sunday, August 20^th 2012

Final Score: New York Mets: 2 Washington Nationals: 5

Mets Drop Rubber Game to Nationals

The start of the game today was delayed two hours and 26 minutes because of rain, and the Mets wish the game had been postponed all together.  The Nationals dropped the Mets in the rubber game of the series, as the Mets could already be contemplating that the new six-man rotation may not be the way to go after suffering a 5-2 loss this afternoon.  The Mets have won only once in their last 11 series and went 2-4 on this latest road trip against two division leaders in Cincinnati and Washington.

No one likes such a lengthy delay to start a game, but it cannot be used as an excuse as professional athletes have to be prepared to take on anything thrown at them.  This afternoon, Jeremy Hefner did not come out on top of his game and the Nationals capitalized. 

Hefner was hurt by the long ball, surrendering homeruns to Bryce Harper and Danny Espinosa in his five innings of work.  In total, Hefner surrendered eight hits and five earned runs, as it was a rough afternoon for the Mets starter.

Harper would also add an RBI triple in the game, just adding to his impressive numbers for the series.  Harper ended the series 4 for 7 against the Mets, including a triple and two homeruns, four RBI’s and a walk.

Gio Gonzalez blanked the Mets into the sixth inning, earning his N.L. high tying 16^th win of the season.  It was not an easy win for Gonzalez, who got out of two base runner jams in both the first and third innings.  A leadoff triple by Ronny Cedeno in the fourth inning also went for naught.  

The Mets struggled today with runners in scoring position, going 1 for 11 and stranding 10 runners on base.

Daniel Murphy was ejected in the eighth inning tonight by home plate umpire Jordan Baker after being called out on strikes and flipping his bat.  He is the fourth Met to be ejected this season, after Frank Francisco, D.J Carrasco and Ike Davis. 

Next up for the Mets is a soft stretch in the schedule.  After facing two division leaders on the road this week, the Mets will get to face bottom dwellers for the next week at Citi Field.  The first team coming in is the NL West bottom dwelling Colorado Rockies.  R.A. Dickey (15-4, 2.89 ERA) will take the mound for the Mets in the first game of the series against Alex White (2-6, 5.74 ERA) at 7:10 P.M. ET Monday night.

Also, sometime Monday Terry Collins is planning to meet with Sandy Alderson to discuss Johan Santana’s future.  Right now, Santana is still scheduled to start Thursday’s matinee against the Rockies.  

Giants Hammer Jets, Win MetLife Bowl

Saturday, August 18^th 2012

Final Score: New York Giants: 26 New York Jets: 3

Giants Hammer Jets, Win MetLife Bowl

The Jets are again making all the noise in New York during the off-season, but were reminded by the Giants who the defending champs were Saturday night as the Giants dominated the Jets on all fronts en route to a 26-3 win. 

It was only a preseason game, which is good for the Jets as they struggled throughout every facet of the game, being the only team in the NFL to not score an offensive touchdown yet.  As for the Giants, they are looking to almost be in midseason form.

The defensive front for the Giants was on all night, as Jason Pierre-Paul looked great, getting two sacks.  The Giants made mince meat of Jets tackle Wayne Hunter, with Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck each getting in on the fun with half a sack to add to JPP’s total. 

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The game wasn’t perfect for the Giants, who had to settle for four Lawrence Tynes field goals.  Head coach Tom Coughlin would like to see the offense execute better once the regular season comes around, but this is a time to just fine tune things and keep players healthy.

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Health became a concern last night for the Giants, who had multiple players suffer injuries in the game.  Ahmad Bradshaw was forced from the game after the first series with an injury to his hand.  It was believed to be serious at first, but the x-rays came back negative and he just iced his hand on the sideline for the remainder of the game. 

Backup linebacker Mark Herzlich also suffered an injury, getting only a few plays in before encountering a hip pointer and leaving in the third quarter.  Backup defensive end Adrian Tracy also suffered an injury in the third quarter, being forced from the game with a hamstring injury.  Both players have had good preseason for the Giants, so getting them back on the field would be beneficial for all parties.   

Jayron Hosley had a strong game for the Giants, intercepting Mark Sanchez and returning it for a 77-yard touchdown in the second quarter; but was seen in a walking boot after the game.  It was Hosley’s biggest game and it ended in such a disappointing fashion.  He will undergo tests Sunday to see just how bad the injury truly is.

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With Bradshaw out, D.J. Ware got an increased workload for the game, but was unable to make anything of it.  Ware was only able to muster 15 yards on 11 carries behind below averaging blocking as there were often no holes to run through. 

David Wilson had a less than stellar night, but was the most successful at running the ball for the Giants, gaining 26 yards on eight carries.  Da’Rel Scott made his first appearance of the preseason, gaining seven yards on three carries while Andre Brown rounded out the running game Saturday night with 10 yards on four carries.

The Virginia Tech products Hosley and Wilson had strong performances again as mentioned, showing the abilities that the Giants had hoped they would bring to the table.  Not to be outdone was second round pick Rueben Randle.  Randle made the most of his limited opportunities by reeling in a 49-yard deep pass from David Carr, making an impressive jumping reception over the Jets defensive back.

Victor Cruz may not have had a 99-yard touchdown reception this time around, but the Jets were still unable to contain him.  Cruz opened the game just missing a deep reception down the sideline over Darrelle Revis, one of a few times Eli Manning and Cruz were unable to connect.  Cruz also took a big shot from Jets safety LaRon Landry, but was able to hold on and give the first down signal when he popped up.  Cruz was targeted often and reeled in five receptions for 51 yards in a half of work.

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Cruz tore the Jets up Saturday night, as him and Manning have just continued to build amazing chemistry with each other since Hakeem Nicks has been sidelined.  Nicks should resume practicing this week, giving Manning yet another weapon to use.    

The Giants will continue their preseason next Friday against the Chicago Bears at MetLife Stadium.

Jets Post Game Recap

nypost.com

New York Jets Post Game Recap 8/18

The Jets were hammered by the defending Superbowl champion New York Giants losing by a score of 26-3, as the Jets offense for the second game straight was unable to score a touchdown.

The Jets offense is a mess, and quarterback Mark Sanchez entering his 4th season is still making dumb mistakes that have fueled fans to want him replaced. Sanchez threw an awful interception trying to get the ball to Patrick Turner on a crossing pattern, with the pass well behind a well covered Turner and it was picked off for a touchdown by rookie Jayron Hosley. Sanchez was 9 for 11 with 59 yards passing, but the interception in scoring territory was a big blow to the Jets leading to a possible 10-14 point swing.

Tim Tebow started the half out pretty good making some nice sideline throws, but after under throwing a wide open Stephen Hill in the end zone the wheels came off for the second team offense. The offensive line really went down hill quick after the first drive with Tebow, as they allowed him to get sacked 4 times. Tebow ended up finishing going 5 for 14 with 69 yards passing, and 2 rushes for 5 yards.

The ground and pound didn’t see much success against the Giants, as starter Shonn Greene ran 11 times for 36 yards. Despite a good game against Cincinnati for Joe McKnight it seems that Bilal Powell is the backup running back getting more carries than McKnight. Powell ran 6 times for 21 yards, and McKnight only got 3 rushes for 3 yards.

The Jets receiver core is certainly lacking right now with no Santonio Holmes or Jeremy Kerley. Jordan White was the leading receiver against Giants catching 3 balls for 28 yards. Rookie Stephen Hill did look good with Tebow catching 2 passes for 21 yards, and was able to get wide open in the end zone but Tebow under threw him costing the Jets a touchdown.

The Jets main problem has to be the offensive line, and in particular Wayne Hunter.  Hunter allowed 2 sacks to Jason Pierre Paul, and very allowed another sack but it was nullified by an offside’s penalty from the other end of Giants line. The Jets as a team gave up 7 sacks, and run blocking wasn’t very good either, as the Jets had 24 rushes for only 65 yards.

The Jets first team defense did look good only allowing 6 points to a very good Giants offense. Their was a few bright spots as safety LaRon Landry was able to intercept Eli Manning on a overthrow, and lay a big hit on Victor Cruz. Mike Devito was able to cause some disruption up the middle getting into the backfield. Bart Scott lead the team in tackles with 5, and just missed a sack on Eli Manning. First round pick Quinton Coples looked good again, and was able to rack in his second sack of the preseason.

T.J Conley may have just opened up a new completion in Jets camp after shanking two punts in the game. There is currently no other punter on the team but that maybe changing after his performance. Punter is going to be an important position for the Jets, as he will be used a lot due to a sub-par offense.

The Jets will look to work on getting the offense fixed before facing Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

Strong Niese Outing Powers Mets to Win

Saturday, August 18^th 2012

Final Score: New York Mets: 2 Washington Nationals: 0

Strong Niese Outing Powers Mets

The Mets offense was not able to generate much scoring tonight, but it gave them enough to get the 2-0 victory over the Nationals behind a strong pitching performance from Jon Niese.  Even the bullpen pitched well for the Mets, giving up no runs in their relief of Niese.  With the win, the Mets were able to avoid dropping to a season low eight games under .500.

Niese threw possibly his best game of the season, going 7 1/3 shutout innings.  He allowed only five hits while striking out seven Nationals.  Niese was removed before he could finish the 8^th inning at 109 pitches, 13 shy of his career high, after getting Bryce Harper to fly out.

The pulling of Niese comes slightly as a surprise as the Mets are moving to a six-man rotation starting Sunday, meaning Niese will have an extra day of rest before pitching Friday night against the Astros.

Niese now has a career high streak of 13 1/3 consecutive innings without giving up a run.

Jon Rauch relieved Niese and was able to record the final two outs of the 8^th inning without incident.  Since June 28^th in 21 appearances, Rauch has given up only one earned run in his 15 innings of work.

Another positive for the Mets tonight was the performance of Frank Francisco.  Francisco was able to notch his 20^th save of the season tonight after being pulled from the ninth inning twice earlier in the week. 

Edwin Jackson had a strong game for the Nationals, going seven innings and giving up only two hits and one walk while striking out 11.  The only blemish for Jackson was a homerun given up to Ike Davis in the 7^th inning, which proved to be all the runs the Mets would need.  It was Davis’ 22^nd homerun of the season.

Next up for the Mets is the implanting of their six-man rotation Sunday, starting with Jeremy Hefner (2-4, 4.76 ERA) taking the mound in the finale against Gio Gonzalez (15-6, 3.29 ERA).

Lester Returns to Old Form Against Yanks

northjersey.com

Yankees vs Red Sox Post Game Recap 8/18

The Yankees were unable to make it two straight wins over the rival Red Sox losing by a score of 4-1 on Saturday afternoon.

David Phelps was able to have his longest outing of his major league career, but a lack of run support lead to his 4^th loss of the season. Phelps went 6.2 innings allowing seven hits, three runs, and had seven strikeouts.

Jon Lester has struggled this year not pitching anywhere near his capabilities, but Lester looked like his old self against the Yankees going seven innings only allowing five hits, and one run.

Pedro Ciriaco has become a Yankee killer going 4 for 4 with a double, stolen base, and run scored. Ciriaco is now 15 for 29 against the Yankees this year.

Derek Jeter's 13 game hitting streak came to end, as Jeter went 0 for 3 with a walk in the loss.

Nick Swisher's hot hitting on the home-stand continued going 3 for 4, as Swisher is now 10 for 24 with 4 homeruns and 11 RBIs.

Curtis Granderson was the only Yankees to cross home plate in the game, as Granderson was able to hit a solo homerun for his 32^nd homerun of the season, and also hit his 13^th double of the season.

Yankees will look to take the rubber game of the series on Sunday Night Baseball, as Hiroki Kuroda (11-8, 3.06) will face Josh Beckett (5-10, 5.19).