On Sunday night, San Francisco Giants center fielder Andres Torres became the first player in the 2010 postseason to notch a golden sombrero. For those out there who are unfamiliar with such terminology, a golden sombrero is the illustrious four-strikeout game.

Torres, who is no stranger to the sombrero, struck out against Philadelphia Phillies starter Roy Oswalt in each of his four plate appearances in Game 2, which Philadelphia ultimately won 6-1. In his first three at bats, Torres was blown away by Oswalt’s overpowering fastball; in his final at bat, Oswalt dropped a nasty, backdoor curve on the Giants leadoff hitter, making the sombrero official.

Of Oswalt’s nine strikeouts in the game, Torres was responsible for four of them.

Goose Gossage Award (Reliever of the Year)

National League:
First Place Vote – Brian Wilson (San Francisco)
Second Place Vote – Billy Wagner (Atlanta)
Third Place Vote – Heath Bell (San Diego)

American League:
First Place Vote – Rafael Soriano (Tampa Bay)
Second Place Vote – Neftali Feliz (Texas)
Third Place Vote – Joakim Soria (Kansas City)

With just a few hours remaining before the start of tonight’s opening game of the National League Championship Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the San Francisco Giants, baseball fans are anticipating one of the greatest pitching matchups in postseason history: Tim Lincecum vs. Roy Halladay.  The Freak vs. Doc.  The youngster vs. the veteran.

Before these two aces toe the rubber this evening, here is an in-depth look at how they both have matched up against each team’s hitters in both 2010 and over the course of their careers.

(more…)

On Monday night, Major League Baseball and TBS had another blatant slip up in censorship…and for that we are forever grateful.  Over the weekend it was the entire Texas Rangers team cursing with excitement after a game-changing Michael Young home run; on Sunday night it was a leaping Tim Lincecum, rejoicing after Brooks Conrad’s third error of the game.

Tonight, it was the Atlanta Braves Game 4 starting pitcher, Derek Lowe, that joined a growing list of players that have been heard(and observed) dropping a crisp “F-Bomb” during the 2010 postseason.

(more…)

First off, I’d like to issue a genuine thank you to Major League Baseball for not even considering that players might be swearing in the dugout after a game-changing play.  Over the weekend, I witnessed two incredibly audible, profanity filled moments in the dugout –one after Michael Young’s 3-R HR and the other after Brooks Conrad’s 3rd error– that made me wonder who the crack squad of geniuses working in the MLB production room really are, and what in the hell they are actually doing in there.  Clearly they are not screening any of the replays before airing them, and they are definitely not adjusting to the hyper-sensitive mics near the dugout.

(more…)