[Westheim]

Raccoons (28-34) @ Rebels (38-24)

The Raccoons had faced the Rebels only once before, being swept in 1978. The Rebels were thus the only team we had never won against.

So badly were the Raccoons struggling with the bat, that Logan Evans, who started game 1, had the 6th best batting average (.233) in that game’s lineup, ahead of Cook, Simon, and Peterson. Evans went 1-3 at the plate, something that could not be said from all Raccoons. Hall was 2-3 with two walks, Clark 3-5, Sánz 2-4 with a walk, and that was about it. Hall scored Clark in the first, but the Rebels tied it soon after that and Evans left after seven with the score still 1-1. The pen surrendered two again in the eighth. The Raccoons loaded the bags with nobody out in the top 9th! Nixon fanned, Sánz singled in one run, Costa grounded out and Bocci pinch hit for Peterson, but also grounded out. Raccoons lost 3-2. Those little suckers.

The Rebels were a nightmare for right handed pitching. In game 2 they threw six lefties at Gary Simmons, plus a switch hitter, and their pitcher Victor Macias was neither. He did what he could, but a 3- run homer by Juan Medine was the decider in the 4-2 loss. The Raccoons had only four hits …

The Raccoons also had four hits in game 3, lost it, 4-0, and this gave them six losses against the Rebels all time, with no wins, and six losses in their last six games, with no wins. Overall they were 0-12 in interleague play this season.

Raccoons (28-37) @ Loggers (28-38)

Battered, bruised, beaten, and only half a game away from the bottom of the CL North, the Raccoons travelled to Milwaukee. Worst offense met worst defense (and third-worst offense).

A leadoff triple to Ken Clark in the top 1st of game 1 – that should get the Raccoons to a head start, right? No, they whiffed three times in the inning and the run did not get in. That set the tone for a 7-0 beating the Raccoons received, and they only had six hits. That offense was a total pest. Ken Clark was terrible in centerfield, costing a few extra hits and runs for the Loggers to Powell’s detriment.

The loss dumped the Raccoons to last place in the CL North for the first time this season and I had no doubt they’d stay there, after being subscribed to last place for the last three years. The other teams that had booked last place three years running? Miners were 4th, 36-31 in a strong FL East, Gold Sox were 5th, 31-35, and the Condors also 5th, 30-37. Raccoons most aweful. They were also ten games behind the next closest team all time.

Game 2. On a rainy day Jack Pennington left after five innings in a 4-4 game. Both teams had already left the bases loaded twice there. Jenkins surrendered two in the bottom 6th, before the Raccoons loaded them up with nobody out in the top 7th. Then Troy Scott grounded into a double play. One run scored on the play and the Raccoons did manage to send the game to extra innings at 6-6, but in the top 10th the Raccoons had only two hits. Yet they scored six runs, four of them being walked in by a epically failing Loggers bullpen. Their starter Bill Warren had already walked in two to start the game, so the Raccoons won this one 12-6 to end their 7-game slide, but half the runs were donated by bases loaded walks – whether you will ever see such a game again? Maybe if you live long enough. A big win, but not one to be especially proud of. The offense still had not been productive enough to win the game without the walks. After a long time an offensive output worth mentioning: Wyatt Johnston was 4-4 with two walks (so six times on base) and one RBI.

Rubber game. Scoring was low again, but the Raccoons saw a good day from Hall (3-5, 1 RBI, 11-game hitting streak) and Johnston (2-2, 2 BB, 1 RBI), who singled for the go-ahead run in the fifth, 3-2 Raccoons. Evans left after six, and Jason White pitched two flawless innings in relief. Still up 3-2, Wally Gaston came out for his first save chance in ages. He walked two, but then struck out Cam Gallagher to save the game.

Raccoons (30-38) vs. Indians (41-28)

If you don’t expect anything, you would hardly be let down by your team, right? Well. The Indians were pacing over .600 at the moment, and playing the Raccoons could hardly slow them down.

Game 1. Simmons gave up four runs through six innings, while the Raccoons were 1-hit through five. In the bottom 6th Steve Murray issued a leadoff walk to Clark. Green reached on an error and Hall walked to load ‘em up. Nixon walked and a run scored, Sánz singled for another run. Johnston plated two more and we had a brand new ballgame at 4-4. The pen immediately blew it up again. Raccoons lost 6-4, with only four hits. Without five walks and two errors by the Indians, they wouldn’t have even got close to scoring.

Ocasio got the loss in this one. He couldn’t even get out lefties from the pen. Thus, he was to be removed from the majors roster. Out of option years, the Raccoons waved him and recalled Jorge Romero from his rehab stint. He had pitched two days ago, so I didn’t know exactly where to put him for his first start back, but probably between Pennington and Evans. Moran got another start in game 2, and we had only one lefty (West) in the pen from now. All options at AAA were no options at all. Bojorquez had just been injured (diagnosis pending), and O’Rearden was highly despised by me. Moran was not so bad an option out of the pen, although he was a righty. He walked and whiffed them all alike.

Moran did hold his ground in game 2, pitching six shutout innings en route to a 2-0 shutout win for the Raccoons. Nixon brought in one run in the first, and Grant West, who went 1.1 innings with 2 K’s, sacrificed in a runner when he came to bat in the bottom 7th. Gaston got his 12th save.

A leadoff homer by Esteban Hernandez and another run in the first off Powell put the Raccoons in a deep hole again. Down 2-0, a deficit that can not be overcome even by the best of teams! They scratched together one run in the sixth, but still trailed 2-1 into the ninth. Wally Gaston, with an off day following, entered in a non-save situation and got through them quickly. Bottom 9th. Ralph Nixon came up and shot his first home run in 33 days, his 10th of the season, to make it a 2-2 game. It was only the Raccoons’ third hit of the game. Gaston pitched a quick top 10th, before the Raccoons came up again. Simon singled, but Gaston failed to bunt him over but popped out to closer David Carr. Ken Clark struck out, and Cameron Green came up, 0-4 in the game and in a hole anyways. He dripped one along the left foul line and was safe on an infield hit. Enter Daniel Hall, 0-3 in the game and 0-9 in the series. He grounded to the gap at short and just below the glove of SS Bruce Cannon. With Clark at second, this was the winning shot, as the Raccoons centerfielder flew over third and into home to walk off his team, 3-2!

On the following off day, Oklahoma City claimed Roman Ocasio. Get happy with that loser.

The Raccoons would now play 17 consecutive games until the All Star break. And that with only one lefty pitcher in the pen. Well, it’s not like that was going to make any difference.

The lineup I was using by now was more or less always CF Clark – 3B Green – LF Hall – 2B Nixon – RF Sánz – and then any combo of catcher (Bocci or rarely Peterson), first baseman (Johnston or Cook), and SS Ben Simon. None of them worked anyway.

Raccoons (32-39) @ Aces (35-38)

We had swept the Aces in the first week of the season, but now both teams took care such an outlandish act would not be allowed to happen again.

Jack Pennington delivered his worst outing of the season. It lasted only 2.2 innings, but seven runs scored, as he threw two wild pitches, walked five and even allowed a ground rule double to opposing pitcher Kinji Kan. But Kan didn’t last five innings either, because: enter Wyatt Johnston. He bashed a 3-run shot in the fourth, and added with a bases-loaded single in the fifth. By then, the Raccoons trailed only 8-7. But three runs scored on Ben Jenkins in the bottom 5th and four more on Jason White in the sixth. Raccoons took a badly burning 15-7 loss. Daniel Hall was injured on a play, on his 26th birthday, diagnosis pending.

Game 2 saw the return of Jorge Romero to the mound, almost ten months after tearing his labrum on September 3 of last year. Romero no-hit the Aces into the fifth, before he surrendered a solo home run to Michael Martin. He went seven frames of 4-hit, 2-run ball and was on the hook with the Raccoons 2-1 down entering the top 9th. Nixon reached on an infield single, made second on a grounder and then scored on a single by Stephano Bocci. For the trash can. Jason White allowed the winning run to score in the bottom of the inning and the Raccoons lost 3-2.

In game 3 the Aces lost their starter Dave Larson to injury on a play and the Raccoons scored twice in the inning. Logan Evans worked a narrow 2-1 lead well, going six innings. Clark homered to lead off the seventh, then Paul Cooper almost ruined it in the bottom 7th. Moran came in and got two K’s to end that inning with runners in scoring position. Troy Scott was thrown out at the plate to end the top 8th. Moran continued in the bottom 8th, but a cheap error by Green (his second in the game) threw the game away – almost. One run scored. The Aces then loaded the bases with nobody out in the top 9th, and for ONCE, for ONCE! … the Raccoons connected. Bocci whiffed, but Cook singled in a run, and then Ben Simon, who sucked a ton this year batting below .210, sunk a grand slam to the left field stands. Raccoons won 8-2.

In other news:
June 16 – While Alex White reaches a 25-game hitting streak with two hits in a 10-2 loss of the Cyclones against the Crusaders, Luis Camacho’s streak ends at 21 in a 14-2 wrecking of the Indians at the hands of the Dallas Stars.
June 18 – Pittsburgh’s Leland Lewis 1-hits the Titans in a 7-0 shutout.
June 18 – Cyclones ace Jesse Thompson is out with a torn ulnar collateral ligament and will miss at least 10 months. He has not had an injury-free season since 1978. His overall record is 59-27 with a 3.26 ERA. He was 8-2 with a 2.63 ERA this year, the latter a personal best.
June 21 – Alex White has now hit in 30 straight games, with an 8th inning single in today’s game. His Cyclones had nothing to celebrate, though, as the 5-2 loss against the Rebels put them in a tie for 1st in the FL East.
June 23 – White goes 2-3 with 2 RBI, but those were the Cyclones’ only runs in a 6-2 loss to the Capitals. His streak is at 31 games.
June 23 – Juan Soto pitches a 3-hitter in a 6-0 shutout of the Titans.
June 26 – Sad news: Salem Wolves owner Lester Armstrong passes away during the night. His son Robby takes over day-to-day operations. Lester Armstrong had already handed over many of the tasks due to chronic illness.
June 26 – The Scorpions dump the Cyclones, 8-4, and also kill the streak of Alex White at 33 games.
June 27 – Rebels outfielder Juan Medine, who gave the Raccoons a good thumping a few weeks ago, goes down to a knee sprain and will be out for about a month.
June 27 – The Crusaders trade 1B Jeremy Churchill and his power bat to Oklahoma City, receiving infielder Edward Evans and hopeful pitching prospect Rafael Guerra.

Daniel Hall was diagnosed with elbow inflammation. He once again will miss about four weeks. His injury history grew longer and longer. He went to the DL, so his .284 / .414 / .471 line and his 3 HR, 25 RBI are missing below. I had three outfielders to choose from with good results at AAA, and went with Dale Armstrong, for the sole reason that he was already on the 40-man roster, which was crammed full. Armstrong has been in the Raccoons’ minor league system all those years. He has a Gold Glove at the AA level, and a long list of bones broken in the line of duty, including fingers and wrists, sprains to ankles and wrists, shoulder injurys and back spasms. He would not hit above .200 most likely, but we’d try him over Troy Scott and Sherwood Henderson, who weren’t either.

Next: one week at home against Condors and Crusaders, then a week on the road with the Canadiens and Titans. Then, All Star game.

By the way, two weeks since the draft, and most of our first picks have started well into their A level careers. Orlando Lantan is batting only .270, but Kelly Weber is above .400. Pitchers Vazquez and MacDonald have shown good outings. Only Greg Thornburg, our round 2 pick, has yet to learn how to hold a bat.

The team currently has two triple crown winners: Logan Evans and Ralph Nixon. Of course, that’s only among all them other Raccoons.