Napoli is Going Going, Back Back to TEXAS

Photo: Mike Napoli Instagram

First Josh Hamilton, and now Mike Napoli.

Oh yeah, Napoli is once again a Texas Ranger. The deal went down last Friday which will send Napoli back to Texas for cash or a player to be named.

This could be huge for Texas. If you can remember, Napoli was a huge contributor to the Rangers during their road to the World Series in 2011. Although they would end up losing to the St. Louis Cardinals, Napoli’s clutch hits did not go unnoticed.

But hey, props to him, because he did what they couldn’t do over at the Red Sox- Won himself a championship and a nice piece of bling in 2013. 💁💍

Nap has said he doesn’t care where he plays back in Texas, he just wants to contribute to the team and help them win. This year he is batting .205, has 13 HR and 40 RBIS.

But what he can bring back to Texas goes beyond the field. Napoli is THAT guy. A leader with playoff and World Series experience. He knows how to fire up his teammates, as well as the stadium with his badass walk up songs.

Globe Life Park in Arlington will be hearing the chants of “NAP­O­LI” once again.

Love ya Nap, you the BOMB!

– Paige

Hey Now! You’re an ALL STAR, Get Your Game On, GO PLAY!

IT’S HERE YOU GUYS! The MLB All-Star Game!

I know, some of you may not be as thrilled as me, but since the winner of the game (American League vs National League) gets home field advantage in the World Series, you know I’m praying, wishing and hoping the Astros will be there! THIS IS A BIG DEAL!

Not to mention it’s so much fun! I went in 2011 in Arizona…

And in 2012 in Kansas City…

I mean, how can you not have fun?! All of baseball’s biggest stars are there and boy do they put on a show.

This year’s All-Star game and festivities will be held at the Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati, home of the Reds.

There will be events going on all weekend, but the good stuff doesn’t start until Sunday.

Sunday 7/12

ALL-STAR FUTURES GAME 

This is a game played for players in the minor leagues. It allows the greatest prospects to show the world and their team what they’ve got! Some current MLBers who played in this game: Kris Bryant, Mike Trout, Bryce Harper and Carlos Correa.

LEGENDS AND CELEBRITY SOFTBALL GAME 

Check out former players, rappers, actors and coaches play a little softball. Here’s the roster this year!

I see Snoop D-O-double G on this year’s roster! Can you picture him running the bases?! #LOL.

Monday 7/13

HOME RUN DERBY 

My favorite event! Great hitters hitting bombs. This years contestants are: Todd Frazier, Kris Bryant, Prince Fielder, Albert Pujols, Anthony Arizona, Josh Donaldson, Joc Pederson and Manny Machado.

Tuesday 7/14

ALL-STAR GAME 

Like I said before, these teams have home field advantage in the World Series on the line aka they actually give a s*** if they win or not. Check out the starting lineups:

American League 

National League 

If you don’t see your favorite player on there, there’s a chance he’s on the reserve list. 

There you have it! It’s time to kick back, grab a drink and enjoy some baseball. You know that’s what I’ll be doing!

P.S. GO AMERICAN LEAGUE!

– Paige

Remember the Name- MLB Players Who Are Killing it

Article published June 10, 2015- all stats up to date as of then

Yes. My favorite thing to talk about.

Baseball is a team sport, but let’s be real, every team has that one player that every fan knows of. With the season rolling along and the all-star game (half-way through the season) approaching, I figured we’d take a look at the big names putting the team on their back, Greg Jennings style.

Adrian Gonzalez, Los Angeles Dodgers

Gonzalez is all over the stats board for the Dodgers. He is in the top of all offensive categories with a .324 batting average, 11 HR, 39 RBIs and has an OPS of .985. He is an extra-base hitting machine, delivering doubles left and right in clutch situations. The Dodgers are first in the NL West and can thank their all-star game bound first baseman for his contributions to the team.

Brian Dozier, Minnesota Twins

The Twins are in second place in the AL Central with a record of 33-26, just trailing the Kansas City Royals. Brian Dozier has stepped up big time and can be thought of as the best second baseman in the AL. He is batting .265, has 11 HR, 28 RBIs and an OPS of .863. He also leads the MLB with 47 runs. Not only can he perform at the plate, he is great in the field.

Bryce Harper, Washington Nationals

The question is what can’t Harper do? Not only can he chase down baseballs in the outfield and throw runners out, Harper is a threat at the plate. He is batting .330 and leading the MLB with 20 HR (yes, I said TWENTY) and OPS of 1.187. OW, OW! Harper has also knocked in 47 RBIs helping his team move to first place in the NL East at 31-28. With the numbers to show, Harper has proved this season he can hit any pitch from any pitcher. Harper is playing “put your money where your mouth is” kind of ball.

Chris Archer, Tampa Bay Rays

Talk about an ace! Archer seems pretty much untouchable. He is 7-4 with a 1.84 ERA and leading the MLB with 108 strikeouts. He surely is doing all he can to keep his team in the race, as they trail the New York Yankees by 1.5 games. With Archer’s crazy ability to find the strike zone, you hardly ever see this guy walk a batter. It’s not even all-star break yet and he is already going down in history for what he has done this season.

Dallas Keuchel, Houston Astros

Can Keuchel pitch every night? He can be thought of as one of the best pitchers in the AL. No, I am not being biased – he has been named the AL pitcher of the month for April and May. He is 7-2 with an ERA of 1.9 and 72 strikeouts. He has been dominant all year and is a big reason why the Astros are in first place in the AL West. Keep your eyes on Keuchel to see if he will be the starting pitcher in this years all-star game.

Eric Hosmer, Kansas City Royals

Hosmer really emerged last season when he helped his team to the World Series. This season he is looking to do the same, and he is off to the best start of his career. He is hitting .301 with 7 HR and an OPS of .859. Although Hosmer is not always the long-ball hitter, he is efficient at the plate with 35 RBIs. On top of his stats, Hosmer is the backbone of the Royals composure on the field and in the clubhouse – just the type of player you would want on your team.

Jacob deGrom, New York Mets

Last year’s NL Rookie of the Year is off to a great start again. deGrom is 7-4 with an ERA of 2.42 and 81 strikeouts. This season he has taken a perfect game into the sixth-inning and although he could not pull that gem off, he showed everyone what he was capable of. He also has the ability to settle down after a rough start – something all baseball fans want their pitchers to be able to do. The Mets are second in the NL East and look to deGrom to keep pitching well.

Jhonny Peralta, St. Louis Cardinals

The best team in the MLB (39-21) has many weapons but there’s one in particular. Peralta is leading the Cardinals in almost all offensive categories. He is batting .315, has 10 HR, 35 RBIs and a .900 OPS. He also leads the team with 69 hits. Peralta is the go-to guy to get a rally going, which is what he did recently to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers. He also is great on the field making plays at shortstop look too easy.

Mark Teixeira, New York Yankees

The Yankees are in a close race with the Tampa Bay Rays, but Teixeira is doing all he can to keep them in the top spot. He is batting .238 with 17 HR and a .917 OPS. His batting average is not as high as he is capable of, but with 45 RBIs he proves that he can pull through in the right situations.

Prince Fielder, Texas Rangers

Coming back from an injury-ending season, Fielder is on a roll and proving why the Rangers paid the big bucks for him. He is hitting .354, has 10 HR, 41 RBIs and an OPS of .953. Oh, and he has 81 hits. Not too shabby. Fielder has also come up with a couple of walk off wins, helping the Rangers pull within two games behind the AL West leading Astros. Good news for the Rangers that they got this “Fielder” back.

With the first half of the season almost in the books, it’s time for teams to focus on their play-off push. It is a long season but EVERY GAME COUNTS. Look for these big names to hopefully take their team into October and win the pennant.

But let’s be real. Hopefully I will be sipping some World Series champagne – Go Astros!

XO!

– Paige

Why We Wish UCLA Was Going to Omaha

Take me out to Omaha, take me out to the field. Let’s go watch some college baseball; their tight pants draw in my appeal! Sorry, was that too forward? Whatever, half the fun of baseball games is seeing hot guys in tight pants (#amiright?!) But the other half is catching a walk-off homer or a perfectly pitched game.

As usual, this year’s NCAA College World series will be held at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska, from June 13th-23rd/24th. Get your tickets here. Be prepared for 10 days of baseball, baseball and more baseball!

Being a West Coast (best coast) girl, I was stoked that UCLA had a top billing going into the College World Series. If you live on the West Coast and know anything about baseball, you know that UCLA’s coach, John Savage was named Coach of the Year and is a well-respected coach that recruits very well (as he should, considering he has been coaching at UCLA for 11 years this season.) So it was a real bummer when UCLA lost to Maryland by strike out. Questionable call. Not still bitter or anything.

If you take a peek online at the boys’ stats and faces (we have to see if there are any up and coming cuties, DUH), you will see that this season the boys put up some pretty great numbers. For example, pitcher David Berg was named Pitcher of the Year, and they also have multiple guys on All-Conference teams.

Then there’s Darrell Miller Jr. Boy does this guy have some family background in sports. The UCLA  catcher is son to former big leaguer Darrell Miller who played for the Angels in the ’80s, and his uncle Reggie Miller and aunt Cheryl Miller are both in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. If you’re old enough, you might remember Reggie Miller as the player who destroyed the Knicks in the 1995 East Semis by scoring eight points in nine seconds for the Pacers to win the game. Bad. Ass. Regardless, Darrell Miller Jr. looks like he’s on the same streak to glory. He has even been described by on air announcers as the best batter west of the Mississippi. And don’t worry Darrell, we still think that ump was blind in that Maryland call to end the game.

Like I said, not still bitter or anything.

Ultimately, UCLA has a talented team to work with and should continue to be successful next year. So you better watch out Maryland! No freebies next time.

We also cannot go without mentioning James Kaprielian, who is ranked number 28 in the 2015 Draft, according to MLBpipeline.com. Plus, Kaprielian has a story to tell. When he was just four years old, his mother, Barbara Kaprielian was diagnosed with breast cancer. In June 2014, she lost her 14-year battle to cancer. Now Kaprielian pitches in his mother’s memory, with a stadium seat even engraved in honor of her.

So if you’re wondering if we thought UCLA was going to make it to Omaha. Well, yeah. But hey, there’s always next season! In the mean time, be sure to check out the Omaha schedule.

For those of you who are going to be there, have a BLAST! And have a beer for us girls on the West Coast!

 

Who knows, maybe if there’s some serious babes, cold booze and good ball games, we might just have to pop on a flight!

– Alexa