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Quotes of the Day
"There's no quit in this team, I can tell you that. We fight to the last out. It's fun to watch."
- Miguel Montero Kirk Gibson Ryan Vogelsong on the Giants' gutsy (one might say gritty) walkoff win.
"I'm a pitcher and I just cheated and I got lucky. I hit it on the sweet spot. It was like a blur. I swung and was like, 'Oh my God.' It feels good for anybody to hit a home run. I didn't really know what to do. I wanted to make sure I jogged around the bases fast enough. I wanted to get around there and get back into the dugout."
- Wade Miley on his first career home run.
"We've got to find a way to close the door when we have the lead. We put together really good at-bats late in innings like they did tonight. I think tonight you just tip your hat and try to come back and win one tomorrow."
- Veteran sage Eric Chavez
Diamondbacks Links
Arizona Diamondbacks cough up lead in loss to the San Francisco Giants
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Maybe focusing on the positive will change the Diamondbacks' fortunes. Here's Wade Miley almost knocking one into the bay. With every game Wade seems to silence the critics that would call his excellent 2012 season a mirage.
Did Wade Miley call his shot? Well...kind of. Wade called his shot in the same way that Mark Grace called that home run last year (HE SHOULDA CALLED A CAB INSTEAD AMIRITE? I'll see myself out). In his latest rundown, Nick Piecoro notes that three of the ten pitchers with the biggest spikes in velocity this year are Diamondbacks. Trevor Cahill's average velocity is up 1.9 mph, Brandon McCarthy's is up 1 mph, and Kennedy is up .9 mph. Ian and Brandon, please go back to what you were doing previously.
Good signs show up in Arizona Diamondbacks road-trip losses
A nice reminder that the Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team and as such are able to deal with the ebb and flow of the season without getting too bogged down in the outcome of individual games. However, it should be noted that the author is not a professional (at anything really) and as such is having a really bad time watching Diamondbacks games as of late.
Arizona Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson forced to play Martin Prado at multiple positions
Martin Prado has been as versatile as advertised. It's unfortunate just how versatile he's needed to be thus far.
Around the League
Kind of like the Butterfly Effect (ugh) of baseball - a trade brings in Player A at the deadline, Player A walks in free agency, compensation pick becomes player B, player B is traded...etc. An absolutely useless exercise, but one I find fascinating.
The GQ A: Barry Zito: Profiles: GQ
Barry Zito did an interview with GQ and it appears he's a gun enthusiast and a born-again Christian. Still waiting for Luke Scott's interview with Mother Jones about his switch to Rastafarianism and a vegan diet.
Marginalia
Pitching Our Next Great Baseball Movie - Baseball Nation
A lot of notable people weigh in on what great baseball story should be committed to film next. There are a ton of opinions in here, and it is a great reminder of the eccentrics and odd-balls who have played the game over the years. I'm with Bob Costas, I think a Barry Bonds biopic, done correctly, could de-mystify a complex and troubled character.
This Raul Ibanez GIF is how this road trip feels
I probably shouldn't embed the GIF because of things like "Copyright" and "the Law", but click that link. Raul Ibanez is super good at the defense.