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grounder against Chris Hatcher

  • August 13, 2018
    I always enjoy going over the baseball transactions every day just to follow the career paths of players or coaches, or even managers, I may have dealt with in the past. [b]Jordan Schroeder Jersey[/b] . The other day, one name in particular caught my eye: Roy Howell signed on to be the manager of the Seattle Mariners Triple-A farm club in Tacoma. Of course, I had to make sure, it was the Roy Howell I was thinking of and it turns out it was. Roy Lee Howell came to the Blue Jays in their very first season in 1977. He had the fiery red hair and, later, the beard to go along with his gamer personality. Howell, a third baseman by trade, was the fourth-overall pick of the Texas Rangers in the 1972 draft. In the spring of 1977, he lost the Rangers third base job to longtime Rangers star Toby Harrah. Pat Gillick quickly pounced and pulled off his first significant in-season trade in franchise history on May 7 of that year, getting Howell in return for pitcher Steve Hargan, infielder Steve Mason and $200,000. Howell never had great numbers, in fact, his batting average peaked at .316 in 1977 and his best production year was 1979, when he 15 homers and knocked in 72 runs. But that first year with the Jays, he had a game for the ages at Yankee Stadium, no less. Howell slugged a pair of home runs, two doubles and a single, driving in nine runs as the Blue Jays came up with, by far, their biggest victory of their inaugural season pummeling the Yankees, 19-3. Those nine runs batted-in in a game is still a franchise record. Remember that 1977 was the year the Yankees won their first of back-to-back World Series. Howell spent four years with the Jays, then moved on as a free agent to the Milwaukee Brewers and finally to the San Francisco Giants. He came into managing late. Only three years ago in 2011, he became the skipper of the independent Pennsylvania Road Warriors of the Atlantic League. After that, he worked his way up in the Mariners organization as a hitting instructor. He wasnt actually supposed to be the skipper at Tacoma this year, but then fate stepped in. John Stearns, who was coaching on the Ms big league staff had to step down for health reasons. Rich Donnelly, a long time Major League coach, who had just been hired at Tacoma was promoted to Seattle to replace Stearns and, just like, that Howell, at age 60, was the new manager of the Rainiers. I looked back at that 1977 Blue Jays roster and its interesting, if not amazing, how many got involved in coaching or managing after their playing days were done. The most prominent include Alan Ashby, who went on to become an even better broadcaster, Phil Roof, Ernie Whitt, whos managed the Canadian mens team among others, Canadian Dave McKay, who worked for many years in Oakland and St. Louis with Tony LaRussa. I counted nine in total, including Doug "the Red Rooster" Rader, who had big league managerial stints with Texas, the White Sox and the Angels. Rader was also a coach on LaRussas staff in 1992, when they lost to the Blue Jays in the ALCS. Who knows? Maybe in the next couple of years Roy Howell will get his Major League shot. - Drew Hutchison will be starting for the Blue Jays Friday afternoon at Dunedin against Clay Buchholz and the Red Sox. If Hutchison continues to pitch the way he has this spring and holds his own against the BoSox, you can pretty much guarantee he will make the opening day roster as the number-four or five starter. Ricky Romeros big test is Tuesday at Lakeland against Detroit. Though Ricky has pitched well in two extended relief outings this spring, this will be his first start where he should face predominantly Major League hitters. If he gets through the outing unscathed, he will definately be in the conversation for the fourth or fifth starters slot. - The other day, a Tampa Bay Rays prospect by the name of Jeremy Moore crashed a monster home run off Marcus Stroman over the "batters eye" in dead centre field at Dunedin and drew the praise of skipper Joe Maddon. I wanted to learn a little bit more about Moore, so I did a little digging. He was a sixth-round pick of the Angels in 2005, a speedy outfielder who could handle all three positions well. Though he seemed to be progressing well through the minors, he was bothered by a bone spur and other issues in his hip. That seemed unusual for somebody so young, but doctors felt the beatings he took as a four-sport star in growing up in Louisiana, including football, had done the damage. Moore ultimately had to undergo hip surgery at age 24, though, thankfully, not hip replacement surgery like Bo Jackson. Moore missed the entire 2012 season before signing a minor-league deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. After batting .211 with seven homers and 31 runs batted in last season in his comeback year, the Rays saw enough in him to sign Moore in January. Though he may be a long shot to make the Tampa Bay opening day roster, he has hit four homers this spring and has the versatility the Rays covet. Impressing Joe Maddon doesnt hurt either. Jeremy Moore is the kind of player you really pull for. - Andrew Marchand of ESPN New York pointed out that the Blue Jays could be on hand in New York for "Derek Jeter Day." Sunday, September 21, the Blue Jays are in New York and that is the Yankees final Sunday home game of the regular season. Nothing is official yet, but the Yanks did hold "Mariano Rivera Day" on the final Sunday of last season. So there is a chance, the Blue Jays will be part of the grand farewell of one of the Yankees all-time greats. [b]Sergei Bobrovsky Jersey[/b] . Sources tell TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun the international tournament will likely return in September 2016 rather than 2015. [b]Joonas Korpisalo Jersey[/b] . The 25-year-old Lu, a regular on the Japan LPGA Tour after giving up her LPGA Tour membership in 2010, shot an 8-under 64 in windy, wet conditions at Kintetsu Kashikojima.NEW YORK -- The Miami Marlins lost star pitcher Jose Fernandez to a serious elbow injury five weeks into the season and star slugger Giancarlo Stanton with 2 1/2 weeks to go. Yet by beating the New York Mets 4-3 Wednesday night, they improved to 74-77 with 11 games remaining and have given themselves chance to avoid a sixth straight losing season. "This team is obviously headed in the right direction under our baseball department and Mike Redmond," team president David Samson said. "Thats all any team can hope for, is to be getting better. And this was clearly a step up this year." Henderson Alvarez (11-6) ended a three-start winless streak, allowing two runs and eight hits in six innings. Steve Cishek pitched his second perfect ninth of the series for his 37th save in 41 chances. "That would be huge for us, no doubt, to get to .500," said Redmond, the Marlins second-year manager. Miami completed a trying 5-5 trip. Before the game, the team said Stantons season was over. The NL home run leader was hit in the face by a fastball from Milwaukees Mike Fiers last Thursday and sustained facial fractures, concussion symptoms, dental damage, cuts that required stitches and two black eyes. "An emotional trip for us, losing G and all that we went through," Redmond said. "Guys are beat up. Theyre banged up. Theyre emotionally on tilt." But the Marlins took two of three from the Mets with small ball: 30 of their 35 hits in the series were singles. "We need to finish the season strong," second baseman Donovan Solano said. "The last two seasons were not good for us. We know now how we need to win games. So I think that weve done a good job." Wearing their bright orange alternate jerseys, the Marlins built a 3-0 lead in the first two innings against Dillon Gee (7-8) and held on to open a two-game lead over the Mets for third place in the NL East. Gee gave up four runs and seven hits in 6 2-3 innings. He entered with a scoreless streak of 16 1-3 innings against the Marlins but threw a run-scoring wild pitch in the first and allowed Garrett Jones run-scoring hit on a squib that went 30 feet toward third base. [b]Lukas Sedlak Jersey[/b]. Solanos RBI single made it 3-0 in the second. Gee stroked a single into centre in the fifth, prompting teammates to wave towels and stand and applaud in the dugout. He had been 0 for 35 this year and was hitless in 41 at-bats since singling off Miamis Tom Koehler on Sept. 15 last year, Lucas Duda hit a two-run single, just the sixth hit for the Mets in 63 at-bats this year with the bases loaded and two outs. Wilmer Flores followed with a fly that Marcell Ozuna caught with a leap against the wall in left-centre. Christian Yelich restored a two-run lead with an RBI double off Josh Edgin in the seventh, and Curtis Granderson hit a run-scoring grounder against Chris Hatcher in the eighth. New York (73-80) dropped nine games back for the NLs second wild card with nine games left, on the brink of elimination. The Mets must go 8-1 to avoid a sixth straight losing season, one shy of the franchise record. A more achievable goal would be overtaking the Marlins or perhaps Atlanta (76-76), where the Mets open a three-game series Friday. "It would be a tremendous accomplishment," manager Terry Collins said, "especially where were sitting right now with guys going down right and left around here." WEB GEMS Adeiny Hechavarria ranged deep into the shortstop hotel to get Flores second-inning grounder and while falling made a sidearm throw to second for the forceout on Duda. Right fielder Reed Johnson then grabbed Grandersons bloop on a short hop and threw to second in time to force Flores, who had held up because he was unsure whether the ball would be caught. TRAINERS ROOM Mets CF Juan Lagares will be sidelined for a few days after spraining his right elbow Wednesday. UP NEXT Marlins LHP Brad Hand is to start Thursdays homestand opener against NL East champion Washington, which goes with RHP Doug Fister (14-6). Mets RHP Zack Wheeler (10-10) starts Friday, and the Braves plan to start RHP Julio Teheran (13-12). 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