Charleston Riverdogs Press Release: Forrest Run 5K

RiverDogs to Host 13^th Annual Run Forrest Run 5K Race on May 21

Race to benefit Singleton Memorial Fund

CHARLESTON, SC - Fans of the Charleston RiverDogs can lace up their running shoes and head to Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park for the 13thAnnual Run Forrest Run 5K Race presented by Fleet Feet Sports on Saturday, May 21 at 4 pm before the RiverDogs game against the Columbia Fireflies.

The rain or shine race benefits the Singleton Memorial Fund which is in memory of Chris Singleton’s mother, Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, who was one of the nine victims of the June 17, 2015 at the Mother Emanuel AME Church. Chris is a sophomore at Charleston Southern University and a member of the Buccaneer baseball team. Funds will be used to meet Chris’s educational expenses at CSU, and it is Chris’s wish that any remaining funds be applied to the planned CSU Baseball enrichment center in memory of Ms. Singleton.

The race features split times at each mile marker with chip timing for quick and accurate results.

“This race is fun for all ages and caters to every type of participant,” said RiverDogs Vice President of Special Events Melissa Azevedo. "Our 5K race begins in front of The Joe and finishes at home plate where runners are greeted by RiverDogs players and coaches."

Pre-registration by May 18 cost for the race is $30, and includes a race packet, T-shirt, one ticket to that evening’s RiverDogs game against the Columbia Fireflies (6:05 pm first pitch), an awards ceremony and a post-race party with dinner and beer garden. Late registration and walk-up after May 18 is $35. T-shirts will be available while supplies last.

Additional game tickets are $8 each and can be purchased online with your race registration or in person at packet pick-up.

Race packets may be picked up on Friday, May 20 at Fleet Feet Sports in Mt. Pleasant from 12 noon until 6 pm. On-site registration and packet pick-up on race day is 2 pm until 3:45 pm at The Joe prior to the 4 pm race start.

Registration forms are available online at RileyParkEvents.com or GoRaceProductions.com. For more information, please contact Kristen Wolfe at 843-577-DOGS (3647).

Game Preview: New York Yankees vs. Kansas City Royals 5/11

The New York Yankees and the Kansas City Royals will square off head-to-head for the third time this week tonight inside of Yankee Stadium. In this four game set we have been entertained by a few great pitching matchups on paper and the pitching matchup tonight hopefully won’t disappoint as well as the Yankees send Michael Pineda to the mound to face off with Yordano Ventura for the Royals. Ventura reminds me a lot of Luis Severino in a way, live arm but hasn’t quite put it all together yet, so this will be an interesting watch tonight in the Bronx.

Pineda pitched better in his last start against the Boston Red Sox and was extended farther than he had been all season but it still wasn’t enough to turn things around just yet. Pineda allowed two runs and eight hits in 106 pitches but opponents are still batting a staggering .307 against the Yankees right-hander this season.

Ventura has also looked less than stellar in his last few starts, especially his last two, which is not a great sign for the royals. Ventura has walked 11 batters in his last two starts and gave up six hits and five runs in his most recent start against the Cleveland Indians. If Pineda weren’t on the mound this would be the easiest win of the series for the Yankees on paper. We don’t play the games on paper though unfortunately.

The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside of Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network, ESPN’s Wednesday Night Baseball and of course MLB TV. It’s not very often that the Yankees get to flex a little bit against the defending World Series champions and it’s always fun to beat up on them so let’s have a little fun after a hard start to the 2016 season. Shall we?

Go Yankees!

If Starlin Castro’s Oblique Goes From “No Big Deal” to a “Big Deal”

Starlin Castro had Yankees fans around the world holding their collective breath as he exited Sunday night’s game against the Boston Red Sox in the Bronx. As the injury bug continues to pile up for the Yankees the team can ill afford to lose another player period, let alone one of their best hitters in Castro. The Yankees downplayed the injury like they always do after taking Castro out citing that there wasn’t a need in worsening the injury while the team was down by four runs but what if the injury is serious? Oblique injuries can be nagging injuries and some of them have some staying power, what if Castro’s oblique goes from “not a big deal” and “we’re just going to give him a day” to “the New York Yankees have added Starlin Castro to the 15-day DL?”

Could the Yankees survive? Well yeah, I guess that they could but the offense is already stagnant as it is and Castro is one of the few bright spots in the order. New York would presumably call up Robert Refsnyder to fill in Castro’s shoes at second base and in the order but who would it surprise to see someone like Pete Kozma called up instead because he’s a veteran? Certainly wouldn‘t surprise me. This is one of the few bats the Yankees can ill afford to lose though no matter who they are replacing Castro with internally.

One man does not make or break an offense. Just like Castro’s hot hitting did little to affect the Yankees in the grand scheme of things early on this season the absence of Castro would have a similar effect in my opinion. The Yankees are struggling to score consistently with Castro and I’d venture to guess that the team would struggle to score consistently without him as well.

So if Castro’s oblique injury goes from no big deal to a big deal frankly I’m not sure if the Yankees would notice. I know you were expecting a doom and gloom type post but frankly this season has been nothing but doom and gloom thus far. The team is already close to fielding a payroll as high as the Atlanta Braves on the disabled list, what’s a little more.

I’m trying hard to stay into this and stay positive this season but when everything is working against you it’s hard to. You know?

Weekly Prospects Check In: Gary Sanchez

El Gary Sanchez, or so he likes to be called, is still toiling in the minor leagues just waiting for another call up to the show. As weird as this sounds when you’re talking about a company worth over $3.4 billion but it seems like the Yankees are taking their time with Sanchez’s development and it may all come down to money. The Yankees can delay his arbitration and his free agency by a year if they wait about three more weeks, the date changes every season and I don’t know the exact date admittedly but I know it’s usually around the 20^th-25^th of May, and that may be the plan right now.

Sure Sanchez struggled a bit in spring training and sure Austin Romine hasn’t done anything in the Bronx to warrant the Yankees sending him down but Sanchez has long been thought of as the future in the Bronx. It was Sanchez who allowed Brian Cashman to trade then top catching prospect Jesus Montero for Michael Pineda and it was Sanchez and Luis Torrens who have carried the Yankees heavy catching depth in the minor leagues.

Sanchez is everything the Yankees need. He’s young, he’s right-handed, he has some pop and he’s improving each and every day. He’s a shot in the arm and just what the doctor ordered and he may be one more doctor’s order away from a call up. Stay tuned. 

Year	Age	Lg	G	PA	R	H	2B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+
2016	23	AAA	24	107	13	28	11	5	20	2	7	16	.283	.336	.566	.902

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

This Day In New York Yankees History 5/11: Hidek Matsui is Human

On this day in 2006 Hideki Matsui's streak of playing in every game since starting his MLB career with the Yankees ends at 518 games. Matsui broke his wrist attempting to make a diving catch out in left field. The 31 year old All Star from Japan established the major league record for the most consecutive games played to start a career surpassing Ernie Banks' mark of 424 games.

Also on this day in 1946 the New York Yankees and Tiny Bonham end the Boston Red Sox 15 game winning streak with a 2-0 victory in Yankee Stadium. Before the loss Boston was 21-3 to start the 1946 season and would easily win the American League pennant that season.

Game Thread: New York Yankees vs. Kansas City Royals 5/10

The New York Yankees defense has taken the field, the pitchers are done throwing their warm up pitches in the bullpen and the Kansas City Royals leadoff man is ready to take his first at bat of the night. This is Yankees baseball ladies and gentleman and this is the second game of these team’s four-game set head-to-head this week in the Bronx. The Yankees send their stopper and their ace to the mound tonight in Masahiro Tanaka while the Royals will look for a bounce back start from Kris Medlen tonight in the Bronx. The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside of Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network, MLB Network and MLB TV.

These two teams have two more games to go in this four game series before the Royals kiss the Bronx goodbye for a while and if you want to see either of these games live you need to act now. No longer can you print your tickets at home obviously so you need to click the Yankees tickets link at the top of the blog now to get your tickets or at least your ticket barcode on your phone in hand before the game. It supports the Yankees and it supports the blog, and we thank you for it in advance. If you can’t make it out to the Bronx this week then you can simply follow along on Twitter and live tweet with us by dropping us a line @GreedyStripes. We are around for each and every Yankees game this season like we have been since day one.

Tanaka, just like the last time. Go! And Go Yankees!

USA Today’s Weekly MLB Power Rankings

Last week I made a pretty bold prediction, I thought anyway, as far as these power rankings go and like most of my predictions we all get to point at me and laugh this week when I’m miserably wrong. My bold prediction was that the New York Yankees would win five of their six games with the Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox and become the league’s highest riser in this week’s rankings. Well the Yankees went 3-3 on the week while also finishing strong with a series victory over the Red Sox but was it enough to become the biggest rise of the week?

In a word, no. The biggest rise of the week went to the Seattle Mariners who rose eight spots in the rankings to the #6 position while the biggest fall of the week went to the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers fell a whopping 11 spots from the #8 to the #19 position to end the week. Not a good week for Tigers and a great week for the Seattle Cano’s.

The New York Yankees finished the week at the #26 position which was one spot lower from their position last week at #25. To round out the rest of the American League East the Baltimore Orioles finished the week 5th while the Boston Red Sox took the series loss on the chin at the #8 position. The Toronto Blue Jays finished the week still lagging behind at the #15 position while the Tampa Bay Rays finished their week with the #18 ranking.

The Top 5 teams according to the rankings are the #1 Chicago Cubs, the Washington Nationals, the Chicago White Sox, the New York Mets and the Baltimore Orioles. The five teams that don’t want to be mentioned on this list after being the five worst teams in the rankings are in descending order the #26 New York Yankees, the Milwaukee Brewers, the Cincinnati Reds, the Minnesota Twins and the #30 Atlanta Braves.

I put very little stock into these power rankings truth be told but they do paint a pretty accurate picture over the course of a season. The better teams tend to stay at the top, the teams I would classify as mediocre hang around in the middle somewhere and the worst teams in the league tend to hang around the #20 and below rankings. These early season rankings just tend to get a little redundant with so much movement but we bring them to you anyway because the view counter and discussion on Twitter shows me you like them. Enjoy!

Charleston Riverdogs Press Release: Ken Griffey Sr.

Ken Griffey, Sr. Joins the Inaugural

“Legends in the South” Alumni Game at The Joe

Former Yankee and Braves Slugger to Join Yankee Legends Team at The Joe on May 27th

CHARLESTON, SC – If you’ve only ever seen Ken Griffey, Sr. swing a bat on YouTube, now is your chance to see one of the all-time greats in person. Joining a star-studded cast of New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves legends, Griffey will don the Yankee pinstripes as the team of former Bronx Bombers take on the Braves in the inaugural Legends in the South game on Friday, May 27 at 6:35pm at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park.

Griffey, a three-time all-star and two-time World Series champion throughout his 19-year major league career, joins a dynamic cast in the baseball showcase at The Joe that includes the likes of Bobby Richardson, Gene “Stick” Michael, Ron Blomberg, Marquis Grissom, Denny Neagle, and Ryan Klesko.

A former 29th round pick from Donora, PA, Griffey collected more than 2,000 hits and 152 home runs in his career that spanned stints with the Cincinnati Reds, Yankees, Braves, and Seattle Mariners. The multi-talented outfielder hit .296 with a .359 slugging percentage in 2,097 career games. Part of the famed “Big Red Machine,” Griffey won back-to-back World Series titles with the Reds in 1975-76 before being traded to the Yankees prior to the 1982 season and joined the Braves in ’86.

General admission tickets for this once-in-a-lifetime event start at just $12 and are currently on sale. Box seats are $25 each, lower reserved seats are $20, and upper reserved tickets are only $15. Tickets may be secured by calling 843/577-DOGS (3647), online at riverdogs.com or at the Riley Park Box Office. The first pitch is scheduled for 6:35pm and gates will open at 4pm for batting practice.

Various VIP meet and greet opportunities are now available for auction on riverdogs.com/auction and it offers fans once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to rub shoulders with the shining cast of former big leaguers. Auction items include a spot at a welcome reception with the Legends’ teams on Thursday, May 26, from 6-8pm and a luncheon at a downtown restaurant on Friday, May 27, from 1-3pm.

Fans can also bid on a unique opportunity to take batting practice on the field, suit up in full uniform and experience the game from either the Braves or Yankees dugout with one spot for each team available for auction.

Game Preview: New York Yankees vs. Kansas City Royals 5/10

The New York Yankees and the Kansas City Royals are back at it again tonight in the Bronx in the second of their three-game set in the Bronx. Unfortunately as you read earlier this morning I will be missing this game but I will be there in spirit rooting on the home team. In the contest the Yankees will be sending Masahiro Tanaka to the mound looking for another gem, and maybe some offensive support to help, while the Royals will counter with Kris Medlen.

Tanaka pitched an absolute gem in his last start against the Baltimore Orioles but while he delivered just what the doctor ordered the offense fell asleep in a no-decision. Tanaka ended up throwing eight shutout innings in the start but the Yankees did not break through until the bottom of the 10^th when a Brett Gardner solo home run sent the Yankees fans home happy with a 1-0 walk off victory.

Medlen had the exact opposite kind of start as Tanaka did last time out against the Washington Nationals. Medlen lasted just two innings in the contest while allowing nine runs, six of them earned, on six hits. Please sir, may we have some more?

The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside of Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network, MLB Network and of course MLB TV. Medlen is one of those pitchers I’ve watched a lot since moving to Atlanta and while with the Braves I suffered through a pair of Tommy John surgeries with the right-hander. I’m glad to see him back on the mound and back with a contending team because I always kind of liked him when I watched him pitch either live or on television. I’m a Yankees fan through and through but when you live afar and you’re a baseball junkie like me it’s hard not to latch on and at least follow the “home” team. Medlen pitching or not though you need to best believe I’ll still be shouting GO YANKEES each and every time.

Go Yankees!

So I’m Going to See the Chattanooga Lookouts Tonight!

When you become a parent you come across these proud moments with your children that just make you smile and warm your heart. Today I have one of those stories for you as last week my son came home with a note in his book bag. Now to fully understand my son you have to know the whole story. He’s a sponge. He’s too smart for his own good and possibly the worst part about it is that he knows it. His teacher’s only complaint, granted this is Kindergarten we’re talking about here, is that he has far too much energy. He has that energy because he’s bored. The teacher sent home a list of reading words he was going to learn the first week of school and he rattled them off like he knew them his entire life. The teacher then put him in an accelerated group in school and long story short she sent home the list of first grade work and words he would have to learn by the time he was done with the grade. Again, rattled them off like he knew them all along.

So you have to understand how my heart dropped when he said “Dad I got a note sent home today from my teacher.” He was quick to point out that it was a “good note” and when I read the note my heart sank again, but for an entirely different reason. Each class teacher picked one student that was “most improved” and they picked my son, Evan. His prize was a ticket to the Chattanooga Lookouts game tonight, a free hot dog, a free drink and he will be in a pre-game parade on the field.

I’m not bragging I am just overwhelmed with pride for my son and I had to share it with you guys. I’ll go quiet tonight and I may be a bit quiet tomorrow as I catch up but I just had to share this. #OneProudDad.