[Westheim]

Raccoons (49-57) @ Falcons (49-54) – August 4-6, 2003

Another example of a thoroughly mediocre CL South were the Falcons being five games under .500, but only four games out of first place. There wasn’t anything particularly good about their roster. So, somehow just another Raccoons team.

Projected matchups:
Randy Farley (7-4, 3.75 ERA) vs. Dylan Jones (11-7, 3.89 ERA)
Edgar Amador (2-4, 5.40 ERA) vs. Manuel Hernandez (11-8, 4.46 ERA)
Felipe Garcia (3-2, 3.43 ERA) vs. Terry Wilson (13-9, 3.22 ERA)

49 wins on this team and we’re gonna face 35 of them, great. Those are also three left-handers, another oddity that is going to befall us in this midweek melee.

Game 1
POR: 3B Sharp – SS Guerin – LF Reece – 1B Martin – 2B Ingall – RF Beairsto – C Thomas – CF Torrez – P Farley
CHA: CF Hudson – LF R. Wilson – RF J. Lugo – C F. Chavez – 1B H. Green – SS Vieitas – 3B S. Moore – 2B A. Ramirez – P D. Jones

Through four innings, we lived a nightmare. We had no hits, just two walks, and those runners got erased as Jones faced the minimum. We had little pitching, as Farley struggled to throw strikes, and the Falcons got on easily. And we had fielding, but it was of the scary sort, with Guerin dropping Farley’s throw in the bottom 2nd that loaded the bases and let the Falcons score the first run of the game. It was 2-0 after four for the home team, and Ingall drew another walk in the fifth. Oh, well, another runner to get picked off. Beairsto came off and – holy cow – that pitch was crushed clear to the Atlantic: game-tying 2-run homer, well over the 410ft fence. Before the Falcons could regroup, the Coons took the lead, 3-2, when Farley doubled through Steve Moore and Torrez scored from first base. That remained the score through seven, when Sharp’s leadoff double and a subsequent wild pitch allowed Guerin to plate Sharp with a single up the middle to make it 4-2. Concie was not scored, and Farley did not re-appear for the eighth after expending 107 pitches. By the time he had wrapped his arm with a towel, the lead was gone, with Moreno serving up a homer to Fernando Chavez, walking two, and Martinez then came in and allowed a single, a wild pitch, and so on. The inning ended when Neil Reece hammered out Pedro Estrada at home, but now the Coons trailed by a run, facing closer Luis Hernandez, who didn’t throw a strike to the first three batters. Beairsto grounded out, but Thomas and Torrez walked. Their pitching coach jogged out to choke Hernandez some, and he then returned to strike out Palacios and Sharp. 5-4 Falcons. Beairsto 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; Farley 7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K and 1-2, 2B, RBI;

Yay, our bullpen. Blech. Another one of those truly unnecessary losses where the assumed relief man just forgoes basic pitching principles - … like, you know, throw one over the plate once in a while. And in general, throw them only where your catcher can theoretically reach them.

Game 2
POR: 1B Sharp – SS Guerin – LF Reece – 2B Ingall – RF Beairsto – 3B M. Ramirez – C Ledesma – CF Torrez – P Amador
CHA: CF Hudson – LF R. Wilson – RF J. Lugo – C F. Chavez – 1B H. Green – SS Vieitas – 3B McGreary – 2B S. Moore – P M. Hernandez

Offense was expensive early on, but in the bottom 4th the Raccoons were not hit hard only once, but twice. First Concie got himself hurt on a launching play, and after we replaced him with Palacios (and Ingall moving to short), Hubert Green hit a booming home run right away to get some scoring onto the board. But! The Raccoons did get going eventually, right in the next inning. After Torrez made an out, Amador hit a rocket that fell onto the warning track and arrived at second base eventually, thoroughly exhausted, as badly out of shape he was. Sharp singled, but Amador was never to score on such a thing. However, Palacios singled, and THAT scored the tying run in our bulky pitcher. Reece grounded to short, but past the reach of Herberto Vieitas and Sharp was sent and scored for the lead. After Ingall made the second out, Beairsto came up and – oh, wow. Wow. Just wow. That thing was not only outta here, it didn’t come down again until two zip codes over – 3-run homer!! That put the Coons up 5-1. Amador was very good through five, but in the sixth, the roof caved in. One run already in, the Falcons had them loaded with one out. But his stuff was still biting, and the #8 guy Steve Moore was up. He could probably take on Moore – and he struck him out. Now back in the groove, we also had him face pinch-hitter Pedro Estrada, who was not a power guy, and a right-hander anyway. Whoops, where was that liner goin’? Okay, two runs scored, and now Huerta came in and sat down John Hudson, but now our nice lead was down to a single run. Huerta managed to somehow pitch around a Jose Lugo triple in the bottom 7th, and Bruno walked a pair, but somehow we even survived that in the eighth. But we still had Nordahl available to blow it up. Bottom 9th, Wilson grounded out, and he whiffed Lugo. Then Chavez singled. Hubert Green doubled, putting the winning runs in scoring position for the Falcons with two out and Herberto Vieitas batting, a shortstop with oomph, and a switch-hitter. He made contact with the 1-1 pitch, sailing it out to left center. And funny thing was, Torrez had been moved to first base, after Martin had pinch-hit for Sharp against a right-handed reliever in the top of the ninth. Between Reece and Beairsto, there was plenty of space for that one to fall in. 6-5 Falcons. Palacios 2-2, BB, RBI; Reece 2-5, RBI; Huerta 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K;

Nordahl… I really wanted to like him, but that little piece of dirt is starting to really tick me off.

Neil Reece stole his first base since 2000 in this game. That’s probably it for this year. The last year he managed to swipe more than one bag was 1993.

Game 3
POR: 3B Sharp – 2B Palacios – LF Reece – 1B Martin – SS M. Ramirez – RF Beairsto – C Thomas – CF Torrez – P F. Garcia
CHA: CF Hudson – LF R. Wilson – RF J. Lugo – C F. Chavez – 1B H. Green – SS Vieitas – 3B McGreary – 2B Starks – P T. Wilson

When Beairsto made it a dinger a day with a second inning solo home run, that was the first run of the game. The run didn’t stay alone on the board for long, as the Falcons rapped Garcia for two in the bottom of the frame, and another one in the third. The Coons didn’t have much going on – except for Beairsto. He hit another bang in the fourth, solo again, because nobody else got on. The next time he came up, the Falcons fed him junk, he walked, and they got him erased on Mark Thomas’ double play grounder. The Coons still trailed 3-2 when Beairsto was up again, this time with Ramirez on second and no outs. It was not an intentional walk in the way of the catcher stepping out by six feet, but it came pretty close. Now we used Thomas to bunt and hoped to avoid to have two turned again, which worked, and then Torrez singled up the middle, and both runs scored! That was a 4-3 lead, and then we instantly got to see the bullpen mangle that lead again. Huerta got two men out, then walked Green. Wilson came in to throw a wild one and allow a single to Vieitas, and then we brought Bruno against Pedro Estrada. Bruno would manage something rare: allowing two 3-run home runs in one inning. Estrada was first, and Hudson was second. And the Coons lost. 9-5 Falcons. Palacios 2-5, HR, RBI; Beairsto 2-2, 2 BB, 2 HR, 2 RBI; Torrez 4-4, 2 2B, 2 RBI;

(throws paper off the desk in disgust) I would really love to give you a detailed report on what is wrong and how we fix it, but truth be told, this is all completely ****ed up and it will never get any better anymore.

Never.

Raccoons (49-60) @ Indians (52-56) – August 7-10, 2003

They had some of this and some of that, and most importantly, the Raccoons are ****. The Indians’ most remarkable feature was a 3.67 rotation ERA, second in the CL, and a tough nut to crack for a team of castaways, or more precisely, throwaways.

Projected matchups:
Ramón Meza (1-3, 5.75 ERA) vs. Jack Hamilton (3-5, 3.10 ERA)
Nick Brown (6-11, 3.95 ERA) vs. Alonso Alonso (8-8, 3.83 ERA)
Randy Farley (7-4, 3.61 ERA) vs. Patrick Moreau (7-11, 3.48 ERA)
Edgar Amador (2-4, 5.50 ERA) vs. Ramón Jimenez (4-6, 4.22 ERA)

Another left-hander, then three right-handers. Not that it matters. Our guys will find a way to give up another 34 runs in this series.

Game 1
POR: 3B Sharp – 2B Ingall – LF Reece – 1B Martin – SS M. Ramirez – RF Beairsto – C Thomas – CF Torrez – P Meza
IND: LF Alvarez – 2B D. Mendez – RF Alston – CF Cavazos – SS M. Jones – C Bowen – 1B Montray – 3B Harris – P Hamilton

The Raccoons struck first again, and again with a solo home run. This time Martin hit his 18th of the year in the top 4th, after both teams combined for three soft singles in the first three innings. Like all things good in Coon City, it didn’t last long. Bottom 4th, Mike Jones homered, and we are tied at one. The Indians were just getting warm, and Meza stopped surrendering people in the bottom 5th altogether. Bases loaded, no outs, and while Cavazos popped out for the first out, Meza then in succession walked and balked, and Montray put the nails into it with a 2-out, 2-run double that made it 5-1 eventually. Bottom 6th, Hamilton led off with a single and Meza’s last act before he was put in a sack and shipped back to Santa Banana was drilling Jesus Alvarez. Joly came in and threw four balls to Mendez, then walked another one, and a single to Cavazos … the Indians scored three more runs, left them loaded, and would put three on again in the eighth, but didn’t score either. In the grand scheme of things it didn’t matter by a long shot. Al Martin was the last Raccoon to touch third base. 8-1 Indians. Martin 2-4, HR, RBI;

Game 2
POR: 3B Sharp – 2B Palacios – RF Beairsto – 1B Martin – LF Reece – C Ledesma – SS Ingall – CF Torrez – P Brown
IND: LF Alvarez – 2B D. Mendez – RF Alston – C Paraz – CF Cavazos – 1B B. Morris – SS M. Jones – 3B Harris – P A. Alonso

Alonso didn’t get a decision, leaving in the second with an injury, although by that time Jose Paraz had put the Indians ahead 2-0 with a ringing shot in the first. Brown was wonky, and if the Indians had put up eight WITHOUT their big bats the day before, they’d easily swamp him for as much here. Bottom 3rd, Brown walked Alston, walked Paraz, and Cavazos singled, all with two out. Bob Morris launched a 3-1 liner to left that found Reece more than Reece found him, but it counted for the third out. Brown didn’t surrender anything else through six innings of work and was actually quite good in the latter three, not issuing another walk after dealing out four in the first three innings. He was hit for in the top 7th with two out and Ingall and Torrez representing the tying and go-ahead runs in a 2-1 deficit. Dale Moore popped out. The bullpen almost became unwound in the eighth, but Beairsto saved two runs with a headlong catch. That still made them winners. They still trailed in the ninth, 2-1, facing Iemitsu Rin with Martin batting first. After Rin disposed of the shadows of Martin and Reece, Miguel Ramirez had a pinch-hit single up the middle. Ingall fired a ball to deep left that got the home team’s fans squeaking briefly, but ultimately Jesus Alvarez made a leisure catch. 2-1 Indians. Ramirez (PH) 1-1;

Concie was put on the DL today with an oblique strain. He will get back in late September, but that won’t help us keeping the snouts above the waterline. Manny Gabriel was called up, batting .311 in AAA, but we know he sucks in the spotlight, yet we need a shortstop. Marvin Ingall gets you only that far. I would dig it if Ramirez could play a decent short, but his best position is third, and he keeps botching things one spot over.

Game 3
POR: 3B Sharp – 2B Palacios – RF Beairsto – 1B Martin – C Ledesma – CF Torrez – SS Gabriel – LF J. Rodriguez – P Farley
IND: 3B Montray – 1B M. Jones – C Paraz – CF Cavazos – 2B D. Mendez – RF C. Rey – LF J. Alvarez – SS Kilters – P P Moreau

We’d force feed Moreau seven left-handed batters. See how he likes that.

The game started with two singles by Sharp and Palacios before Sharp was caught in a rundown, Beairsto made something dumb as well, and - … by contrast, Farley allowed a single to the first two batters as well, he was Mr. Singles after all, but those two managed to stay on the base paths. For good measure he added a balk and allowed Paraz to sacrifice in Montray for the first run of the game. Two more singles in the second, but no runs, and in the third, Farley allowed leadoff single to Jones and Paraz, then threw a wild one. Cavazos floated a soft line to center, where Torrez made the catch, and Jones started for home, where Torrez hammered him out for a double play. Then Farley walked the bags full versus David Mendez and Claudio Rey. Somehow Alvarez rolled into an out, but Farley wasn’t going to last long. The Raccoons were irrelevant for five innings, before Sharp singled to start the top 6th. That was their fourth hit, and half of them by right-handers (read: Sharp). Palacios was plunked and then Beairsto singled.

Okay, we have a 1-0 deficit, three on, and nobody out. Would someone kindly step forward and smack one?

No. Martin lobbed out to shallow left, with the tardy Sharp having no hope of scoring. Then Ledesma grounded to second for a pair. Farley, who allowed a flurry of base runners with seven hits and four walks, didn’t get through the sixth and was replaced by Wilson with two in scoring position and two outs and Montray up. Wilson took care of the lefty with a K and the score remained 1-0. That remained the score through eight, and there’s Rin. He probably was licking his lips to face Torrez, Gabriel, and Rodriguez, but the bench was still full except for Marv. Well, Torrez batted, and flew out. Then came Reece and Thomas, and those two didn’t even manage to get the lumber on the leather. 1-0 Indians. Sharp 2-4;

Game 4
POR: CF Torrez – 2B Palacios – LF Reece – 1B Martin – C Ledesma – 3B M. Ramirez – SS Gabriel – RF J. Rodriguez – P Amador
IND: 3B Montray – 1B M. Jones – LF Alston – C Paraz – 2B D. Mendez – RF C. Rey – CF Alvarez – SS Kilters – P Jimenez

Martin killed the first inning with a double play. In the second, the Raccoons had the misfortune to get Amador to the plate with three on and no outs. Eddie at least lofted one to right that Claudio Rey couldn’t get back in in time for nab Ramirez at home, 1-0 Coons. Torrez singled, and then Palacios popped out to short. Hnn-gggh!! The third and fourth were scary innings for Amador, with the Indians sprinkling runners all over the place but not getting them in. After that run in the second, the Raccoons had just one scoring opportunity in the fifth, and apart from that waited for a big bang in the bottom half of the line score, only to then shrug and say “Well, at least we tried”. Mike Jones led off the bottom 8th with a double, which got Amador knocked from the game, as we preferred a left-hander against the big boys. However, groundouts by Alston and Paraz brought Jones around to score and we were tied, in another chapter of futility, this time written by Benton Wilson, who didn’t do anything wrong, but didn’t do anything right either. Ledesma doubled off Terry Harris to start the top 9th, and here we used Ramirez to bunt him into scoring position as we are DESPERATE for a run. Ramirez bunted so badly that Ledesma got forced, and the Raccoons ended up leaving two men on. Nordahl needed some work, so we forfeited the game. Ah, not quite. He put Chris Kilters on with two out, but then Torrez snagged the deep fly unleashed by Craig Bowen to spoil the Indians’ party. For a second. Bottom 10th, Manuel Martinez drilled Montray, walked Jones, but Alston flew out to Reece on 3-2. Didn’t matter. Martinez walked Paraz on four straight to load them up. Marcos Bruno came in to face David Mendez, struck him out, and then Jimmy Holbrook popped out. Bruno also pitched the 11th, but by the 12th we were stuck with Bob Joly. He struck out Montray, then walked Jones, walked Alston, and there was nobody left to rescue him. Paraz walked on four pitches once again, and Mendez walked off his team with a first-pitch single. 2-1 Indians. Bruno 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K;

We had five hits. We had 50 hits for the entire week.

In other news

August 4 – Nashville’s Carlos Castro (15-5, 2.74 ERA) strikes out 15 Pacifics in an 8-1 Blue Sox win, allowing only six hits and a walk in a complete game effort.
August 7 – MIL SP Doug Morrow (12-7, 3.93 ERA) spins a 2-hitter in a 2-0 shutout of the Canadiens.
August 8 – TOP OF Lionnel Perri (.315, 20 HR, 96 RBI) has manufactured a 20-game hitting streak with a 1-6 day in a 10-5 win over the Cyclones.
August 9 – Another 20 pops up with ATL C Ricardo Valadez (.273, 2 HR, 27 RBI) showing some consistency and a second-inning single in a 13-2 smothering the Knights get handed by the Aces.

Complaints and stuff

Hard to find words.