chenyan94: Ovi, he always shows his emotions
Ovi, he always shows his emotions
Thames hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning Thursday night, and the Milwaukee Brewers slowed the Cincinnati Reds‘ best surge of the season with a 6-4 victory .
Thames has been the Reds’ biggest nemesis. He hit a record 10 homers against Cincinnati last year – the most by a Brewer against one team in a single season. Thames gave the Brewers a 5-4 lead when he homered in the seventh inning off reliever Amir Garrett (0-1).
.tpClipInfo > * { display: none !important; }
.tpPlayer { display: none !important; }
.tpReleaseList > * { display: none !important; }
.tpReleaseModel > * { display: none !important; }
.tpNavigation > * { display: none !important; }
.tpSearch > * { display: none !important; }
.tpCategoryModel > * { display: none !important; }
.tpHeader > * { display: none !important; }
.tpCategoryList > * { display: none !important; }
Thames’ third home this season against the Reds was the turning point in a game that started badly for the Brewers and included a benches-clearing incident in the third inning when Cincinnati’s Joey Votto exchanged words with catcher Erik Kratz.
”I’m not really thinking about, `It’s the Reds, yeah I’m going to get some hits,’ or whatever,” Thames said. ”In this park, the ball will travel a little bit, so that’s nice. For me, it doesn’t matter if it’s the Royals, the Yankees or the Reds, I try to have the same approach.”
Thames is 3 of 3 in his career against the left-handed Garrett with three homers.
”Me and him, we have a past history – three home runs,” Garrett said. ”He got me today. Sometimes [url=www.clevelandbrownsteamonline.com/josh-gordon-jersey]Josh Gordon Jersey Youth[/url] , you get got. That’s how the game is.”
Jesus Aguilar hit a two-run homer off Anthony DeSclafani, connecting for the third straight game. Eric Sogard added a sacrifice fly in the ninth.
Milwaukee beat the Reds for the sixth straight time and improved to 6-1 overall against Cincinnati this season, including 4-0 at Great American Ball Park.
Junior Guerra (4-5) gave up Jose Peraza’s second career leadoff homer and Jesse Winker’s two-run shot while getting his first victory since May 14. Corey Knebel pitched the ninth for his eighth save in 10 chances.
The last-place Reds were the hottest team in the NL Central heading into the game, winning nine of their last 10 games.
Votto was in the middle of a dispute for the second straight game.
The third inning opened with Votto thinking he’d drawn a walk on a 3-1 pitch, but plate umpire Roberto Ortiz called it a strike. When Votto returned to the batter’s box, he exchanged words with Kratz. Votto removed his batting helmet, and the benches and bullpens emptied.
Players milled briefly, many joking with one another. When play resumed, Votto flied out.
”It was just a little bit of a misunderstanding at the plate,” Votto said. ”It was just two guys having words. It was really nothing.”
Votto was ejected in Atlanta on Wednesday by plate umpire Carlos Torres for arguing a called third strike, his eighth career ejection.
MILWAUKEE MOVES
The Brewers called up LH reliever Mike Zagurski from Triple-A Colorado Springs and optioned RH Adrian Houser. Zagurski last pitched in the majors in 2013 with the Pirates. He played in the Japan Central League in 2015-16.
THAMES’ STATS
Thames homered off a left-hander for the first time since June 6 last year against San Diego’s Ryan Buchter. Thames missed 41 games earlier this season with a torn ligament in his left thumb. His three homers off Garrett are his highest total off any pitcher. He has six homers in 34 career at-bats in GABP.
”We’ve had no answer for him,” interim Reds manager Jim Riggleman said.
GOING DEEP
Aguilar has homered in three consecutive games for the second time this season – he also did it from May 18-20. He recorded his eighth three-hit game this season, a career high.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Brewers: CF Christian Yelich left the game with a tight lower back after he grounded out in the first inning. He felt his back tighten a couple steps toward first base. … Travis Shaw was back at third base after missing two games with a sore right wrist. He took batting practice pregame and felt good enough to play [url=www.clevelandbrownsteamonline.com/denzel-ward-jersey]Denzel Ward Jersey Elite[/url] , although the wrist is likely to bother him at times. He went 0 for 4.
Reds: Top prospect Nick Senzel today had surgery on his broken right index finger. Senzel hurt his finger Friday with Triple-A Louisville. There’s no estimate for the infielder’s return.
UP NEXT
Brewers: Chase Anderson (5-6) beat the Reds 7-6 at Great American Ball Park on May 1, allowing four runs in 5 1/3 innings. He’s 2-1 with a 4.15 ERA in six career starts at Great American.
Reds: Sal Romano (4-7) has lost all of his four career starts against the Brewers, giving up 13 runs in 18 2/3 innings.
—
In his first home Stanley Cup Final game after 13 long years checkered with as many disappointments as milestones, Alex Ovechkin was not going to be denied the opportunity to do something special.
He played with an edge. He played with joy. And he played with the leadership his Washington Capitals have come to expect.
Ovechkin dived to the ice to score his 14th goal of the playoffs, laid down to block shots, dished out hits and, along with Evgeny Kuznetsov, muscled the Capitals past the Vegas Golden Knights 3-1 on Saturday night to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
.tpClipInfo > * { display: none !important; }
.tpPlayer { display: none !important; }
.tpReleaseList > * { display: none !important; }
.tpReleaseModel > * { display: none !important; }
.tpNavigation > * { display: none !important; }
.tpSearch > * { display: none !important; }
.tpCategoryModel > * { display: none !important; }
.tpHeader > * { display: none !important; }
.tpCategoryList > * { display: none !important; }
Showing the kind of emotion on the ice and the bench from his younger days, Ovechkin led the way and now has Washington two wins away from the first championship in the 43-year history of the franchise.
”It’s the Stanley Cup Final,” Ovechkin said. ”What do you wanna do? It’s all in for everybody.”
The Capitals suddenly look in complete control of the series thanks to Ovechkin and Kuznetsov, who fired a wrist shot past Marc-Andre Fleury that made it perfectly clear the injury that knocked him out of Game 2 was not bothering him. Invoking Michael Jordan’s 63-point game on a broken foot and 38-point game with the flu, Kuznetsov said: ”When you’re hurt, you play a little better always.”
It doesn’t get much better than this for Kuznetsov and Ovechkin. As Kuznetsov flapped his arms in celebration of his goal on a 2-on-1 rush [url=www.chicagobearsteamonline.com/devin-hester-jersey]Devin Hester Jersey Youth[/url] , Ovechkin screamed and raised his arms to the bench – showing the same emotion he did in the final minutes of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final and when Braden Holtby made a stick save of a lifetime to preserve a 3-2 win in Game 2.
”It’s just automatic. You just get excited,” Ovechkin said. ”It’s huge moments for us. You just want to give emotion to your teammates and to yourself, as well.”
Fired up for the first Cup Final game in Washington since 1998, the Capitals unloaded chance after chance on Fleury, who made 23 saves but couldn’t backstop a frazzled, disjointed team that lost two games in a row for the first time in the playoff and is trailing in a series for the first time.
At the other end, Braden Holtby gifted Tomas Nosek a goal by giving the puck away but stopped the other 21 shots he faced from the Golden Knights, who looked nothing like the winners of 13 of their first 16 playoff games through the first three rounds.
”All year we’ve had a lot of guys going,” Vegas defenseman Deryk Engelland said. ”That hasn’t been the case. Our goalie’s been bailing us out with huge saves all night and we have to bear down and be better for him.”
The Golden Knights’ historic run in its inaugural season is now in danger of coming to an end with Game 4 back in Washington on Monday night.
”We haven’t been behind in any series,” Fleury said. ”It doesn’t mean we’re out of it.”
They’re not out, but they’re down because Holtby was there when the Capitals needed him by making 21 saves on 22 shots. Of course, they didn’t need him much because they were on the attack for much of the game and also blocked 26 shots in front of Holtby.
”I think there’s more to blocking shots than just going out there and trying to get hit,” Holtby said. ”We’re doing a great job of creating the right layers [url=www.sanfrancisco49ersteamonline.com/mike-mcglinchey-jersey]Mike McGlinchey Jersey[/url] , guys going out there strategically to know which lane I’m picking for sight lines and they’re taking away the other half and making big blocks. That’s a huge part of why we’re having success defensively because it’s all through our lineup.”
Ovechkin attempted eight shots in the first period and scored a goal that seemed inevitable. It came 1:10 into the second period when Ovechkin threw himself full extension over Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb to reach the rebound and backhand the puck past Fleury.
”I thought it was sort of the right thing in a playoff game, our first victory in the final at home, that Alex would score the first goal,” coach Barry Trotz said. ”I thought that was a little bit of poetic justice if you will for all the tough times.
Ovechkin’s goal matched John Druce’s franchise record set in 1990 and tied him for the league lead in these playoffs.
When Kuznetsov showed his injured left arm is just fine by scoring on a perfect shot on an odd-man rush, Ovechkin looked to the ceiling with his arms extended as he was hugged by Lars Eller.
”Ovi, he always shows his emotions when he scores, but he’ll be just as happy for somebody else scoring,” Eller said. ”He wants to win as bad as anyone. You see how our team celebrates when somebody else scores. Everybody is happy for one another and everybody is happy for the team.”
The red-clad raucous crowd was quieted when Vegas scored early in the third period. Holtby – well-aware of the Golden Knights’ ability to cross up opposing goaltenders – had his puck-handling attempt intercepted by Pierre-Edouard Bellemare. The puck skittered to Nosek for an easy goal.
Vegas built some momentum, but Devante Smith-Pelly gave the Capitals an insurance goal with 6:07 left – his fourth of the playoffs – after Jay Beagle took the puck away from Shea Theodore on the forecheck and found his teammate skating in alone on Fleury. Vegas pulled Fleury for more than two minutes at the end of the game but couldn’t break through.
The Capitals have now pieced together consecutive wins against the hottest team in the playoffs and are game-by-game exorcising the demons of the past decade and more.
Add comment