Miami Palms Blog

Yu Darvish only went 6 innings because of his pitch count, but was able to hold Miami scoreless in his 6 innings of work. His opposite, Lucas Harrell, continued his struggles, going only three innings for Miami and allowing 5 runs, including a big 3 run homer for Daniel Murphy. The Palms now go to Toronto for a 4 game international set.  Texas Rangers 6, Miami Palms 1  Sunday, June 30, 2013  Texas Rangers (4-3)                                      Miami Palms (44-39)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E...

The Palms turned the tables on Texas on Saturday afternoon, hitting 4 home runs and using a strong outing from Blake Johnston to fend off the Rangers. Nick Tepesch struggled struggled, allowing 7 runs in the first 4 innings. Steve Drysdale's 2 run homer was the biggest blast of the game for either team.  Miami Palms 9, Texas Rangers 2  Saturday, June 29, 2013  Texas Rangers (3-3)                                      Miami Palms (44-38)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave ...

After such a dominant outing from Kyle Blume on Wednesday, the atrocious pitching from Troy Munoz and the bullpen was especially jarring. Munoz allowed 3 home runs, including one that led off the game from Ian Kinsler and a 3 run shot from Adrian Beltre. The Rangers batted around in the 8th to squelch the comeback that Miami was improbably putting together, scoring 7 unanswered to get the game within 3. This game will go down as one of the more frustrating of the season, as scoring 8 runs is usually more than enough.  Texas Rangers 15, Miami Palms 8  Friday, June 28, 2013  Texas Rangers (2-2)                                      Miami Palms (43-38)                        ...

Kyle Blume has been exceeding expectations to this point in the season, with the best ERA among starters and a 8-5 record. Most impressive has been his ability to go deep into games. He already has 7 complete games this season and earned his first shut out of his young career against Baltimore on Wednesday night . Strong starting pitching has been the primary impetus for the Palms' success this season, and if Blume and the resurgent Blake Johnston can keep up their recent performances, the Palms should remain in contention all year.

The Palms had perhaps the best pitching outing of the year, with Kyle Blume taking a no hitter into the 7th, and then allowed only 2 hits for the remainder of the game. He also walked 3 and struck out 4. It's too bad for Martin Prado that Blume had this outing. He has only hit 4 home runs this season, and number 5 came with the bases loaded in the 2nd inning. The Palms were done scoring after the 3rd inning, but Blume wasn't done pitching, and Miami heads to the off day with a victory.  Miami Palms 7, Baltimore Orioles 0  Wednesday, June 26, 2013  Miami Palms (43-37)                                      Baltimore Orioles (5-6)                           ...

Baltimore got a fantastic outing from Chris Tillman, making his 4th start of the year versus Miami and earning his first win against the Palms. Only a 2 run homer from Carlos Ruiz marred his otherwise stellar outing. Jim Johnson loaded the bases in the bottom of the 9th, but Miami was unable to push any runs across the plate, as Coco Crisp flew out harmlessly to Adam Jones.  Baltimore Orioles 4, Miami Palms 2  Tuesday, June 25, 2013  Miami Palms (42-37)                                      Baltimore Orioles (5-5)                                  Player          AB R  H BI BB SO...

The Orioles took control of the game in the 6th and 7th inning, when they scored 4 of their 5 runs. They manufactured a pair in their half of the 6th, but a 2 run Danny Valencia homer chased Lucas Harrell. Adam Jones also hit a solo blast for Baltimore.  Baltimore Orioles 5, Miami Palms 2  Monday, June 24, 2013  Miami Palms (42-36)                                      Baltimore Orioles (4-5)                                  Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player       ...

The series finale in Miami went the way of the Palms. Blake Johnston got through 8 2/3rds innings without any issues, but loaded the bases for Stephen Drew, who hit a grand slam to put Boston on the board and spoil a potential shutout for Johnston. On offense, Tony Abreu was the star, driving in the first 3 runs for the Palms and scoring the 4th. A Kelly Johnson 2 run single in the 8th provided the game winning scores.  Miami Palms 6, Boston Red Sox 4  Sunday, June 23, 2013  Boston Red Sox (5-9)                                     Miami Palms (42-35)                                      Player   ...

The Palms got two homers from Steve Drysdale, 4 RBI from Brett Hayes and 8 strikeouts and 7 innings from Troy Munoz on their day time domination of division rival Boston Saturday afternoon. The big inning was the 6th when the Palms batted around and scored 5 runs, including a 3 run homer from Hayes.  Miami Palms 11, Boston Red Sox 2  Saturday, June 22, 2013  Boston Red Sox (5-8)                                     Miami Palms (41-35)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave   ...

Blake Johnston struggled to start the season, but has begun to turn things around very quickly. So far in June, he has pitched to a 2-0 record with 28 innings under his belt, 20 strikeouts and an ERA of 2.89. His modest start has blunted his numbers, but this is the Johnston Miami was hoping for when he joined the rotation. His deeper metrics assert that he is the best pitcher right now on the Miami team, and he is only getting stronger as he grows more comfortable in the role of starter.

The Palms seem to have John Lester's number. They  were able to score 2 runs, all they would need, on a Carlos Ruiz home run in the 4th inning, and manufactured a pair more just to put the icing on the cake in the 7th. Jose Iglesias hit a solo homer in the 5th and went 4-4 overall.  Miami Palms 4, Boston Red Sox 1  Friday, June 21, 2013  Boston Red Sox (5-7)                                     Miami Palms (40-35)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Play...

The Palms struggled against the Red Sox in game 1 of a 4 game set on Thursday night. The Sox got going early thanks to a 3 run homer from Mike Napoli, that ended a 4 run first. Dustin Pedroia went 5 for 5 with two home runs for 3 RBI. Napoli added three more RBI later throughout the game to finish an excellent game for he and his team.  Boston Red Sox 10, Miami Palms 2  Thursday, June 20, 2013  Boston Red Sox (5-6)                                     Miami Palms (39-35)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E L...

Somehow, Martin Prado always flies under the radar for Miami. After hot starts and eye catching performances from Steve Drysdale, Billy Dupont and Kelly Johnson, followed by a hot streak from Frank Sohn, it was tough to notice what he has been doing all season. Prado hasn't put up his typical power numbers, but he has managed to elevate his batting average all the way up to .337, which would definitely be his highest since joining Miami. The home run total is far off his typical pace, but it's hard to argue with this production.

The Palms lost to the Orioles, giving up a split to Baltimore on Wednesday night. Baltimore jumped out to a big lead earlier, with a 4-0 score after their second time at the plate. The Palms' scored all 4 of their runs when the bottom of the lineup came through, when Tony Abreu hit a two run single and Kelly Johnson hit a two run homer. The Palms lost, though, when Ryan Flaherty hit a home run off of Felix Gonsales, and Jim Johnson shut Miami's top of the order down.  Baltimore Orioles 6, Miami Palms 4  Wednesday, June 19, 2013  Baltimore Orioles (3-5)                                  Miami Palms (39-34)                                  ...

Both the Orioles and the Palms had two home runs in this game, however the Palms had theirs with a runner on base in each instance, while Baltimore had two solo shots in the third inning. Miami had a 2 run first inning shot from Frank Sohn, while Coco Crisp had the game winner off of start Zach Britton in the 7th. Blake Johnston continues to be the Palms most reliable starter over the last few outings, going 8 solid innings with 5 strikeouts for the win.  Miami Palms 4, Baltimore Orioles 2  Tuesday, June 18, 2013  Baltimore Orioles (2-5)                                  Miami Palms (39-33)                                      P...

The Palms may be regressing, just a bit. Lately, the team has been in a bit of a slump that has taken them out of the Wild Card spots, and a lot of it may be attributable to a regression towards their FIP. The Palms should be giving up over 5 runs a game, but have been allowing less than 5. The biggest two players who have been pitching above their heads are Lucas Harrell and Don Schoppe. Both have struggled in recent starts, and it may be a sign of things to come. Blake Johnston, however, has been showing signs of improvement, and his poor numbers are in part thanks to sloppy defense and bad luck. There is more and better to come from the pitching staff, however, and the Palms are still on pace to win 87 games. Can the team dig a little bit deeper? Can the rotation string together a few dominant starts? That remains to be seen.