2012 MLB Season Review Part 1
So, the season has ended and the San Francisco Giants are the World Champions for the second time in three seasons. To finish the series “A Whole New Ball Game”, I will go back over my first season as a baseball fan and try to find the highs and lows. In this part, I’ll take it up to the All Star Game in July in Kansas.
March – Fun in the Sun and a Japanese soft start
The month would usher in Spring Training in Arizona and Florida. The league decided to change the playoff format and introduced a wild card game for the two best teams outside divisional winners. The regular season started, almost surprisingly to baseball fans, in Tokyo with the Mariners and the A’s playing a two game series.
April – Suspension, Birthday Blues and Pitching Perfection
The factually incorrect Opening Day started on 4th April when the reigning World champions St Louis Cardinals beat the newly named Miami Marlins in the even more new Marlins Park. The Blue Jays and the Indians conspired to deliver the longest Opening Day game in history with a marathon 16 innings. April would also bring Ozzie Guillen of the Marlins a suspension for comments made about Fidel Castro. It was birthday time in Boston as the iconic Fenway Park turned 100 but the Yankees ruined the party with a 6-2 victory. They would also overturn a 9-0 deficit later in the series. Chicago White Sox pitcher Phillip Humber wrote his name in the record books with the 21st perfect game.
May – Pitching Highs, Lows and Home Run madness
The month would start with Jered Weaver pitching a no hitter and Yankees pitcher Mariano Riviera suffering a terrible knee injury that would end his season. Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton went home run crazy against the Orioles when he blasted 4 over the fence. Justin Verlander went nine and a third innings into a no hitter before the Pirates finally spoiled his plan to join Ryan, Koufax and Cy Young with three major league no hitters.
June – Pitchers Dominance
Johan Santana delivered the Mets their first ever no hitter on June 1st against the Cardinals at Citi Field. More no hitting action came a week later at Safeco Field when no less than six pitchers combined for the Mariners. Giants pitcher Matt Cain went one better at AT&T Park when he delivered Perfect Game number 22 against the hapless Astros. R.A. Dickey had a sublime June with back to back one hitters versus the Rays and the Orioles. The end of the month would see the first team, Texas, get to the 50 win mark.
July – All Star Mauling and pre-cursor to future events
The National League hammered the American League 8-0 but it was the 5 run inning given up by Justin Verlander that would be a foretelling for later in the season. Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval hit a triple with the bases loaded against Verlander. The victory signalled the NL champion would have home advantage in the World Series. History will show that the advantage had already been gained before the middle of the first inning….
Next time, I’ll pick up the season post All Star Game and take it through to the conclusive World Series. With pitchers dominating the season to this point I can only finish with a Cy Young quote, “A pitcher’s got to be good and he’s got to be lucky to get a no hit game”.
