Miami Palms Blog

Through the years, no team has seemed to deliver more heart breaking losses per capita than the Angels. Miami led most of the way, scoring 3 early runs, but going into the bottom of the 9th, the Angels had pulled to within 1.All world player Mike Trout hit a solo homer. The Palms scraped a run together in the 11th, but it was Trout again who drew the game level with an RBI triple. With one away Trout scored when Albert Pujols hit a ball too deep in the hole to be retired at the plate, allowing the Angels to walk off winners.  Los Angeles Angels 5, Miami Palms 4  Friday, June 22, 2018  Miami Palms (41-34)                                      Los Angeles Angels (1-0)                     ...

The Palms have an off day on Thursday, and they would do well to enjoy it. They have a tough grind ahead of them between now and the All Star Break. They have enjoyed more time off this season than most of the rest of the league, and will be paying for it for the rest of June and early July, without another off day. If anyone stands to benefit, it will be bench players in need of action and relievers who have not been particularly active recently. Fatigue will be a concern, but fortunately, they have some momentum which may buoy the team during this difficult stretch.

The Palms have a long awaited off day coming on Thursday, and the game against the Tigers seemed interminable. They blew a 2-0 lead when the Tigers, led by Jeimer Candelario's 3 run homer, had a 5 run 7th. They tacked another 5 runs on the Palms in the 8th and 9th, with another 3 run homer, this time from JaCoby Jones setting the pace. The Palms will save their energy and hope to come back strong in Los Angeles against the Angels on Friday.  Detroit Tigers 10, Miami Palms 3  Wednesday, June 20, 2018  Detroit Tigers (1-2)                                     Miami Palms (41-33)                                      ...

The Palms were resurgent early in June, but they became bogged down in Cleveland. The slow down started in a series with the Marlins, but it wasn’t apparent until they took on the Tribe. They dropped three of four, and in those 3 losses, they managed only 5 runs, though one of the games required 10 innings. The problem wasn’t getting on base or getting hits, but rather converting on opportunities. They collected 28 hits in those three games, which should be more than enough to scratch out a few runs. If the Palms are to be successful, they need to produce with runners in scoring position, and lean on the long ball when the chance arises.

The Tigers hit a pair of 3 run homers to give Detroit a commanding lead for a great deal of the game. The Palms slugged their way back into it though, scoring 5 runs on a pair of home runs by Frank Sohn and Edwin Encarnacion, tying the game up at 7. Detroit scratched out two runs in the 9th, though, and it looked like the Palms were resigned to defeat. With two outs, Encarnacion had a clutch single to bring the Palms to within 1, and Frank Sohn followed up with a walk off, three run blast to conclude the exciting Miami victory.  Miami Palms 11, Detroit Tigers 9  Tuesday, June 19, 2018  Detroit Tigers (0-2)                                     Miami Palms (41-32)                      ...

Miami returned home after a tough set with Cleveland and after a slow start, turned in a solid win against the visiting Tigers. The Palms scored three times in the 6th, including a two run homer from Edwin Encarnacion to take the lead for the first time. Dylan Bundy was effective, and Archie Bradley and Brian Matusz were solid in relief.  Miami Palms 6, Detroit Tigers 3  Monday, June 18, 2018  Detroit Tigers (0-1)                                     Miami Palms (40-32)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LO...

The Indians got a strong showing from Shane Bieber, who went 8 solid innings while scattering hits early and staying out of trouble late. Cleveland pulled into the lead when Brandon Guyer hit a 2 out, 2 run homer in the 6th, which turned out to be enough to secure victory for the home side.  Cleveland Indians 3, Miami Palms 1  Sunday, June 17, 2018  Miami Palms (39-32)                                      Cleveland Indians (3-1)                                  Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player ...

Jarod Lantz had something special going through the first 5 2/3 innings, before Erik Gonzalez broke up his perfect game with a double. It went futher awry an inning later when the Indians strung together a few hits and capped it off with a three run, Jason Kipnis home run. The Palms tied things in the top of the 9th with a 2 run homer from Chris Korb, but in the 10th, Cleveland was able to drive in the go ahead run when Michael Brantley had a well timed extra base hit.  Cleveland Indians 4, Miami Palms 3  Saturday, June 16, 2018  Miami Palms (39-31)                                      Cleveland Indians (2-1)                              ...

Miami has seen a bit of a renaissance on the offensive side of the ball lately. Specifically, the heart of the lineup has been producing at a high level for the last two weeks. Frank Sohn has seen his batting average rise by 10 points, while Edwin Encarnacion has raised his average by 20 points and Tony Abreu has shot up 30 points. Encarnacion and Abreu have each hit 5 home runs in the past two weeks, each doubling their total and elevating their power hitting bona fides. Sohn has coupled his raised average with greater plate patience, including a walk a game average in the last two weeks. The Palms have been very strong since June began, and they will hope to be able to continue to rely on their stars and veterans to keep their post season dreams afloat.

The Indians earned a win thanks to a combined effort from Corey Kluber and the bullpen. They were also able to touch Blake Johnston and Mike Morin for three runs apiece, primarily by chipping away with well timed base hits and a pair of solo home runs.  Cleveland Indians 6, Miami Palms 1  Friday, June 15, 2018  Miami Palms (39-30)                                      Cleveland Indians (1-1)                                  Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player       ...

This season looks like it may be the last rodeo for several pillars of the Palms recent history. Most notably, Brett Hayes has made no secret about the fact that he will likely hang up his spikes after this year concludes, thanks in no small part to his diminishing production, but primarily because of the wear and tear he is undergoing behind the plate. Two other players that have been heard speculating on their long term plans are middle infielders Tony Abreu and Johnny Giavotella, and outside of the organization, many have wondered about the long term status of tonight’s starter, Lucas Harrell.

Miami took it to the Indians in Cleveland with their first game of a 4 game set. The Palms scored 4 times in the first inning, with a 3 run Brett Hayes homer doing the heavy lifting. They bled Cleveland pitching for 4 more runs in the 7th, as the Palms recovered nicely from their loss at home the previous night.  Miami Palms 8, Cleveland Indians 1  Thursday, June 14, 2018  Miami Palms (39-29)                                      Cleveland Indians (0-1)                                  Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave   ...

Now that we are in June, it seems an appropriate time to speculate about a team’s playoff chances. As of right now, though, a strong showing from the rest of the AL East has the Palms on the outside looking in. They had a 38-28 record going into Wednesday afternoon’s game, which placed them only in third place in the AL East, and third place in the Wild Card race, which means they aren’t in playoff position. A top heavy American League seems to ensure that the Palms will be in for a fight if they hope to reach the post season this year, and their May swoon certainly did them no favors.

The Palms and Marlins gave local fans as many extra innings as they could in their three game set. The Palms took an 8th inning lead when Edwin Encarnacion hit a 2 run home run, but Yadiel Rivera hit a solo blast off of Brian Matusz to tie it back up in the 9th. The Marlins were able to score three times and bat around in the 12th to finish things off.  Miami Marlins 5, Miami Palms 2  Wednesday, June 13, 2018  Miami Marlins (1-2)                                      Miami Palms (38-29)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO...

The Marlins sent young, unproven Travis Richards to the mound, while the Palms had veteran ace Manny Parra, and that made all the difference on Wednesday evening. The Palms were able to batter Richards in the early going, scoring 3 times in the first inning and seizing a commanding lead. Meanwhile, Parra was on his way to a complete game shut out, never really getting bothered until the 9th, when he pitched out of a jam with runners in scoring position to earn victory over the cross town rivals.  Miami Palms 6, Miami Marlins 0  Tuesday, June 12, 2018  Miami Marlins (0-2)                                      Miami Palms (38-28)                           ...

The first game between the cross town rivals certainly was a battle. The Palms scored three times thanks to two home runs off the bat of Edwin Encarnacion, but were otherwise silent at the plate. The Marlins spread the wealth a bit more, hitting three solo home runs off of Jarod Lantz. It was a double with a runner in scoring position that ended the game, though, as Tony Abreu drove Nick Markakis in in the bottom of the 13th to secure a victory.  Miami Palms 4, Miami Marlins 3  Monday, June 11, 2018  Miami Marlins (0-1)                                      Miami Palms (37-28)                                     ...

The Yankees jumped on the Palms and pitcher Blake Johnston in the 3rd inning, scoring 7 times. The game would be 8-4 through 6, and then Miami started chipping away. They had it to 8-7 by the time the 9th inning started. Greg Garcia, an unlikely candidate, hit a 2 run homer to give Miami the lead for the first time since New York's big inning. Tony Abreu and Jaspero Gonzalez went back to back later. The extra dingers were key, as New York's Aaron Judge hit a home run of his own to conclude the scoring for the series.  Miami Palms 11, New York Yankees 9  Sunday, June 10, 2018  Miami Palms (36-28)                                      New York Yankees (4-6)                       ...