Miami Palms Blog

Miami used the long ball to their advantage, collecting three bombs, from Carlos Ruiz, Coco Crisp and finally Edwin Encarnacion. Ruiz's blast was the biggest, scoring three runs, while Crisp and Encarnacion each had one runner aboard. The Rays pitchers were a big help, walking 9 Miami Palms, including Encarnacion three times.  Miami Palms 10, Tampa Bay Rays 2  Tuesday, September 26, 2017  Miami Palms (96-60)                                      Tampa Bay Rays (5-6)                                     Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB...

The Palms finished off their last long home stand with a victory over the White Sox in an active game. The Palms hit three home runs, two of which came off the bat of Jaspero Gonzalez, and another coming from Edwin Encarnacion. The Palms needed to keep scoring, because the White Sox never really went away, getting to within 1 as late as the 8th inning.  Miami Palms 6, Chicago White Sox 4  Sunday, September 24, 2017  Chicago White Sox (3-5)                                  Miami Palms (95-60)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A...

Blake Johnston very nearly got through 7 solid innngs with a lead and a potential win. He had 2 outs after striking out Tim Anderson, but then walked Yoan Moncada and allowed 5 consecutive singles as the Sox turned the game around, and Miami was unable to claw back any further.  Chicago White Sox 7, Miami Palms 5  Saturday, September 23, 2017  Chicago White Sox (3-4)                                  Miami Palms (94-60)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player  ...

Miami took a lead in the 4th inning thanks to a two run homer from Travis Jankowski, his first of the year, and his first with the Palms. John Jaso followed suit in the 7th with a solo shot, and it seemed as though Miami was well on their way to victory. The White Sox had other ideas, stringing together a few hits in the top of the 9th, and the bottom of the order produced two runs, with Francisco Rodriguez ultimately blowing the save. The Palms came back, however, with Pat Grant doubling, followed by a Nick Markakis single. The game was over when Chris Korb hit a sacrifice fly to right.  Miami Palms 4, Chicago White Sox 3  Friday, September 22, 2017  Chicago White Sox (2-4)                                  Miami Palms (94-59)              ...

The Palms offense did all their work in the 6th inning, thanks to back to back doubles from Jaspero Gonzalez and Edwin Encarnacion. Meanwhile, the White Sox couldn't penetrate the Palms' defenses, with Archie Bradley, Cody Allen and Francicio Rodriguez combining for the shut out.  Miami Palms 3, Chicago White Sox 0  Thursday, September 21, 2017  Chicago White Sox (2-3)                                  Miami Palms (93-59)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player ...

With the postseason right around the corner, it's not uncouth to take a hard look at the postseason, and who the Palms might be playing should things stay relatively unchanged. The Twins have 78 wins compared to Miami's 92, which means that the Palms have clinched at least a playoff spot, but assuming no major changes, the Palms will also win the AL East, which they have a 3.5 game lead over the Red Sox. With that in mind, if they keep this up, Miami would have a 5 game series, but not home field advantage, with the resurgent Houston Astros to open the playoffs.

Tampa took advantage of one of Manny Parra's roughest outings by collecting a series of extra base hits in the 2nd. They hit 3 doubles on their way to three runs, and led the rest of the way. Miami tried to inch their way back in, including a two run blast from Jaspero Gonzalez, followed by a later solo shot from Chris Korb, but the Rays maintained their pace, and the Palms never caught up.  Tampa Bay Rays 5, Miami Palms 4  Wednesday, September 20, 2017  Tampa Bay Rays (5-5)                                     Miami Palms (92-59)                                      Player      ...

Miami took the first game of their quick two game set with the Rays thanks to a solid outing from Jarod Lantz, good defense and some good swings of the bat. Lantz worked 8 innings, allowing only a Logan Morrison home run, while the defense turned 3 double plays behind him. The Palms offense hit two solo homers, from Jaspero Gonzalez and Chris Korb, and a pair of RBI doubles, from Gonzalez again and Frank Sohn.  Miami Palms 4, Tampa Bay Rays 1  Tuesday, September 19, 2017  Tampa Bay Rays (4-5)                                     Miami Palms (92-58)                                      Player   ...

Carlos Ruiz has been a competent producer for the Palms this season, but he hasn’t produced at a level that the league has taken notice. Against the Yankees this weekend, however, the veteran catcher sought to change that. He drove in two runs against the Yankees on Friday night, including the game winner with a bases loaded HBP, and he followed that up with a three run, game winning homer on Saturday afternoon before being given the day off on Sunday. Not only were those vital runs as the Palms won the series, they were also unexpected. Somehow, Ruiz had only driven in 33 runs to this point in the season, but tacked on 5 in a two game stretch.

The Yankees did their damage early, scoring three times in the first three innings. Didi Gregorius drove in a run in each of his first two at bats to pace the Bombers. Miami also had good production from their short stop, as Tony Abreu drove in the Palms' two runs, in the 6th and 2nd innings. The bullpens were the real stars of this game, working a combined 8 innings of scoreless relief between the two sides.  New York Yankees 3, Miami Palms 2  Sunday, September 17, 2017  New York Yankees (4-8)                                   Miami Palms (91-58)                                      Player     ...

For the second game in a row, the Palms were rescued by Carlos Ruiz. After a slow start, the Palms overcame a 1st inning home run by Chase Headley and had the game tied in the 8th inning. After Frank Sohn and Chris Korb got on base, Ruiz lined a Jordan Montgomery pitch over the left field fence, a much better hit than the HBP that won the game on Friday night.  Miami Palms 5, New York Yankees 2  Saturday, September 16, 2017  New York Yankees (3-8)                                   Miami Palms (91-57)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO...

This game had a most unusual conclusion. After 8 dominant innings from Luis Severino, who struck out 9 while scattering 6 hits, the Yankees tried to shut the game down with Aroldis Chapman for a 2-1 victory. The first batter, Chris Korb, put the kibosh on those ideas, hitting the second pitch he saw over the right field fence. In the bottom of the 10th, David Robertson walked two batters and allowed a single to Edwin Encarnacion, before doing the unthinkable. He beaned Carlos Ruiz, and the lead runner came around to score the game winning run.  Miami Palms 3, New York Yankees 2  Friday, September 15, 2017  New York Yankees (3-7)                                   Miami Palms (90-57)                    ...

The Palms have a few built in off days for the month of September in order to allow for make up dates late in the season, but as it turned out, the Palms stayed dry all season long, and these off days truly are days off. Miami is in the throes of a playoff chase, meaning extra baseball for the players, and the bonus days off may prove to be an advantage for the team over the final weeks.

Good pitching was nowhere to be found in this game. The scoring started early as Brian Dozier led off with a home run in the top of the first. Two batters later, Jorge Polanco added a twp run blast. On their way to a 11-4 lead, the Twins also got a 3 run blast from Joe Mauer. The Palms would score 7 times in the 5th, however to tie the game, with John Jaso and Jaspero Gonzalez collecting 2 run blasts and Brett Hayes adding a 2 run homer. The Twins bullpen, from that point forward, was more effective. The Twins were able to score a few more times, however, including twice in the 8th to take the lead for good.  Minnesota Twins 14, Miami Palms 11  Wednesday, September 13, 2017  Minnesota Twins (3-3)                                    Miami Palms (89-57)        ...

Tony Abreu has had a cycles' worth of hits in the series with the Twins, but most notably, he has been that driver of Miami's offensive renaissance. The Palms slumped heavily through the first part of the season's second half, and Abreu saw his average drop as low as .254, but after crushing the ball of late, he has seen that average rise to .273 after last night's clutch performance. An engine needs all of its components to be functioning if it wants to make the car move, and Tony Abreu has always been one of the team's main cylinders. Any hope for success in the postseason they have is only augmented if Abreu can keep up this recent performance.

The Palms didn't get a typical Jarod Lantz outing, as he allowed a 3 run blast to Jorge Polanco early, and for the Twins to mount a 5 run 8th, capped by a 3 run blast from Byron Buxton, putting the Twins up 8-6 for the bottom of the inning. The Palms were more than capable of getting on base through the game, collecting 17 hits, and they were able to get through in the 8th. Edwin Encarnacion hit his own 3 run home run to put Miami back in front for the victory.  Miami Palms 9, Minnesota Twins 8  Tuesday, September 12, 2017  Minnesota Twins (2-3)                                    Miami Palms (89-56)                                  ...