Fish. Why did it have to be fish?
Recaps
[AZ Central] ‘Unacceptable’: Diamondbacks find no relief, hear boos as Marlins sweep 3-game series – Beeks (2-1), charged with three runs in an 8-7 loss the previous day, was rocked for five runs on two hits and four walks (one intentional) in two-thirds of an inning in the series finale. “What I saw there today was unacceptable. We’ve got to be better than that,” Lovullo said. “That falls ultimately on me, and we’re going to figure this out. That’s a frustrating series.” Diamondbacks pitchers walked 10 batters in all. One of two errors on third baseman Eugenio Suarez led to a Marlins run, and the Diamondbacks did not register a hit between Ketel Marte’s solo home run in the third inning and José Herrera’s single to lead off the bottom of the eighth.
[Dbacks.com] Lovullo: D-backs’ losing streak ‘unacceptable’, expecting a turnaround – General manager Mike Hazen is looking for any reason to buy at the Trade Deadline, but his team is going to have to pick up the pace in order for that to happen. The road only gets tougher for Arizona between now and the All-Star break. The Diamondbacks are three games into a 17-game sprint to the break that doesn’t include an off day and they will have to face some tough competition. The Giants come to Chase Field for four games starting Monday, followed by three at home with the Royals.Arizona finishes the first half with four games in San Diego and three against the Angels in Anaheim.
Team news
[Arizona Sports] Diamondbacks among many National League teams who can play into trade deadline strategy – “Inconsistent when healthy,” manager Torey Lovullo answered when asked to evaluate the first half. “I’ve expressed that to you guys many times over the first month and a half of the season where I felt we just weren’t playing D-back type of baseball. “We have been playing a lot better, still inconsistent in different areas but we’re fighting and battling. The injuries haven’t helped us … probably the words that come up mostly is inconsistent and fighting.” Major League Baseball’s trade deadline is nearly one month away, and these summer games will determine whether teams on the playoff bubble lean in one direction or another. With each team hitting their midway point on the schedule, here’s a review of the National League tiers in terms of the deadline.
[Mike’s D-backs Report] D-backs Played Their Worst Series of the Season Against the Marlins – The main takeaway from this series is that the Diamondbacks should no longer consider themselves buyers. They have the 10th-best record in the National League, which is too far removed from a potential Wild Card spot. Their playoff odds sit at 20.0% on FanGraphs and 17.2% on Baseball Reference entering play on June 29th. What would selling look like to this team? That likely means shopping around Josh Naylor, Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Eugenio Suárez, Randal Grichuk, Shelby Miller, and Jalen Beeks. All of them will be free agents following the season. The reality is the team will not get much more than a warm body for any of those seven players.
[SI] How Diamondbacks Beat Themselves in Sweep by Marlins – The pitching line for the bullpen this series was eye-wateringly bad, even for a unit that already ranked near the bottom of the league: 12.2 IP, 15, H, 14 ER, 9 BB, 17 K, 3 HR. For the year, the D-backs’ reliever ERA now stands at 5.31 — 28th in MLB. We are well beyond making excuses for the injuries to A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez. There is just no plausible explanation for why the bullpen is this bad. What’s clear however is it’s wearing on everyone, the front office, the manager, the players, and the fans.
And, elsewhere…
[ESPN] Detroit vs. Everybody: Are the Tigers the team to beat in MLB? – If you picked the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers to be the first team to win 50 games this MLB season, you weren’t alone. You were also wrong. If you picked the Detroit Tigers, congratulations! We’re not sure we believe you, but we’ll give you the benefit of the doubt. But are they really as good as they’ve played so far? Are they even the American League’s best team? Could they defeat the Dodgers (or whichever team comes out of a stacked National League) in the World Series?
[MLB] Vote Ketel, beginning at 9 am AZ time today – Phase 2 of voting will run from noon ET on Monday (June 30) until noon ET on Wednesday (July 2). The All-Star Ballot will continue to be available exclusively online and via mobile devices at MLB.com/vote, all 30 Club websites, the MLB App and the MLB Ballpark App. Fans may vote once per day during Phase 2, with the daily voting limit resetting each day at midnight ET. Phase 2 winners will be announced on Wednesday live on ESPN at 7 p.m. ET. It’s important to note that vote totals from Phase 1 do not carry over, so everybody starts with a clean slate.
[NBC] Cosmic Baseball is ready to light up ballparks nationwide – Cosmic Baseball offers an electric new take on America’s pastime that features UV-reflective neon balls and fluorescent jerseys, and is played before screaming fans and children lucky enough to score tickets. The first half of the game generally looks like a regular matchup, with a few quirks like pitchers in helmets and players running the bases backward. But after a brief intermission, there’s a cosmic “transformation” for a completely new nocturnal game. “For us, it’s how big of an environment can you create,” said Chris Martin, the creator and co-founder of the league. “And how many memories can you bring when the black lights go on?” With a huge smile, he added, “You’re going to see something and go, ‘This is absolutely insane.’”
And here’s what I was watching during yesterday’s game…
Green Street 3: Never Back Down (2013)
Rating: C-
Dir: James Nunn
Star: Scott Adkins, Kacey Barnfield, Joey Ansah, Jack Doolan
a.k.a. Green Street Hooligans: Underground
Remembering the first Green Street film, it’s hard to believe this is the same franchise. There’s little here about football culture. I’m not sure we see any round objects after the first half-hour, if at all. It feels more as if somebody pasted a generic martial arts action script about vengeance for dead relatives and fight rings – not in short supply – onto the East End. It’s definitely a disappointment, considering this was written and directed by the men behind Tower Block, one of the more respected inner-city films of the decade.