1. First Sunday of the NFL season. 'Nuf said.
2. Game four of the Giants vs. Padres series. The Giants are 1 game behind the Padres in the N.L. West. Both teams' #1 pitchers are going at it; Tim Lincecum and Mat Latos.
3. Tennis US Open Men's Final. Nadal vs. Djokovic. Nadal going for the career Grand Slam.
4. FIBA World Championship. USA is going for their first gold medal in the basketball world championships since 1994.
5. Golf's BWM Championship. Tiger Woods must finish in the top-5 to get a birth in the Tour Championship, not that I know what that means or the implications of it.
6. WNBA finals. Game 1 of the WNBA finals. Atlanta Dream at the Seattle Storm.
Ok, just kidding about #6. But this Sunday is a sports fan's paradise.
It was a frustrating day for Mike Singletary and Alex Smith.
The 49ers defense didn't let up a first down until late in the 2nd quarter. When they did, however, the Seahawks scored two quick touchdowns. Nate Clements was flagged for a personal foul after arguing with the referee and got burned after he attempted to jump a Mike Williams route. It led to a 35 yard reception and set up a 1-yard TD run by Hasselbeck. On the following 49ers possession an Alex Smith pass bounced off Michael Crabtree's hands for an interception deep in 49er territory. Again a San Francisco defensive back gambled and lost by trying to step in front of a Seattle wide receiver. Hasselbeck had an easy TD pass to Deon Butler to give the Seahawks a 14-6 lead at halftime.
San Francisco hurt themselves the first half. They moved the ball well on offense and dominated the play clock. But they couldn't punch the ball into the end zone. Alex Smith was very efficient in the first half but missed a wide open Norris for a TD. And the 49ers had another opportunity to score from the 1 yard line but had burned all of their timeouts and had to settle for their second field goal. Nate Clements's outburst gave the Seahawks their first first down and ultimately led to their touchdown. Clements and another 49ers cornerback also were impatient on defense and their gambles led to both Seahawks touchdowns.
---
The Giants offense impressed, jumping on Padres ace Mat Latos early and often and chased him for five runs. Buster Posey hit an opposite field 2-run home run to give the Giants a 2-0 lead, which would later grow to a 5-0 lead. Even more impressive was the fact that Latos hadn't given up this many runs since late April.
---
Arian Foster rewarded astute fantasy football owners who predicted his breakout.
The Houston Texans have been pretty good over the last few years but have had the misfortune of being in the same division as the Indianapolis Colts. They haven't had success because of their inability to beat their division foe.
This year though things might be different.
Texans running back Arian Foster rushed for 231 yards and 3 TDs and Houston took down the Colts 34-24. Peyton Manning threw for 433 yards and 3 TDs in a losing effort.
---
Kevin Durant led the way for Team USA.
In the FIBA World Championship Team USA won a gold medal, defeating host country Turkey 81-64. Kevin Durant once again carried the team and scored 28 points. He set the record for the most points by a US player at this tournament. Team USA had been known as the "B Team" because of a lack of star players like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony etc. But the "B Team" did what the stars couldn't do four years ago and took home a gold medal.
---
The 49ers started the 2nd half off terribly. Alex Smith threw a pick 6 on the 49ers first possession. The offense isn't getting anything going and has been penalized multiple times. The Seahawks just scored again on a Deion Branch touchdown catch to take a 28-6 lead in the third quarter.
---
Frank Gore has had at least 1,000 yards rushing each of the last four seasons. Last year he amassed 13 TDs and had 2 TD runs of 75+ yards versus Seattle last year. Even with the emergence of TE Vernon Davis and 2nd year WR Michael Crabtree, the 49ers offense still revolves around Gore. Alex Smith showed some positives last year but still hasn't proved anything.
NFL analyst Jimmie Johnson said that other teams will learn that that bottling up Frank Gore is the key to beating the 49ers. If Gore can be shut down then all the pressure will be on Alex Smith, who isn't good enough to make the big plays.
It's late in the 3rd quarter right now and Gore has 16 carries for 36 yards.
Alex Smith has 155 passing yards and 2 very costly INTs.
---
Aubrey Huff congratulates Buster Posey after Posey's two run home run in the first inning.
The San Francisco Giants beat the San Diego Padres today 6-1, took three out of 4 games in the series and are now in a virtual tie for first place in the NL West.
Tim Lincecum has now had 3 good starts in a row. Today he got the W and improved to 14-9 (3-0 in September) after 7 innings of 9 Ks and only 1 earned run. He even had 2 RBIs off of Mat Latos. His control was great, only allowing 1 walk, and had great command of his fastball. Lincecum tightened up his mechanics, allowing him to locate his pitches and keep his fastball in the low to mid 90s.
The Giants improved to 7-3 over a tough 10 game road trip versus the Dodgers, Diamondbacks and Padres. They won every series and now play 12 of their final 18 games at home.
Most promisingly, the Giants starting pitching rotation dazzled over the road trip. Tim Lincecum has 3 wins in his last 3 starts, Matt Cain continues to be the Giants most reliable pitcher, Jonathan Sanchez also has pitched well his last 3 starts and even though he got the loss yesterday, Madison Bumgarner only gave up 1 run yesterday.
Just a little while ago the vaunted Giants pitching staff was getting knocked around. Lincecum was struggling, Zito was (and still is) struggling and even Matt Cain was having problems. Some people were calling the Giants staff the most overrated in all of baseball
The Giants are a team built around pitching. When San Francisco has floundered it has been because their starters couldn't get the job done. And their recent success can be attributed to their stellar pitching. If the Giants make the play-offs it will be because their starters continue to carry them and their bullpen can be effective.
The offense has been a lot better over the last couple months but can't be counted on to win games for the Giants. Today's win is how the Giants win when they are doing well. Strong starting pitching, solid hitting and a good bullpen.
---
It's official, the 49ers lost 31-6 in their season opener vs. the Seattle Seahawks. The 49ers road woes continue; they were 2-6 on the road last year and can look forward to a visit from last year's Super Bowl champs, the New Orleans Saints.
---
Tiger Woods's run in the Fedex Cup playoffs ended today. He was 1 under par in the final round and finished 42nd in points. The top 30 advance to play in the Tour Championship. Woods will now prepare for the Ryder Cup which is two weeks from now.
---
The US Open Final between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic was postponed due to rain.
No comments:
Post a Comment