[Westheim]

Raccoons (14-30) @ Condors (25-19) – May 26-28, 1997

Coming in raging hot on a 2-game winning streak (never mind a rampant 3-13 since May 9), we were to face the Condors, who had a terrible rotation (11th with 4.57 ERA), but just made up by scoring more and more and more runs: 5.2 per game to be exact. That led the Continental League and that made them a contending team. Much in contrast to whomever they faced in this series. Ah right. The Critters.

Projected matchups:
Jose Rivera (2-4, 4.32 ERA) vs. Jose Maldonado (0-0, 2.76 ERA)
Kisho Saito (2-3, 2.80 ERA) vs. Juan Lara (5-3, 6.25 ERA)
Scott Wade (1-2, 5.48 ERA) vs. Sergio Gonzalez (3-6, 5.88 ERA)

Three right-handers up, as well as an off day after getting swept here, so left-handed bats could expect to be in the lineup. Minus Lacombe of course.

Game 1
POR: 2B Brewer – 3B O’Morrissey – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Buell – LF Kinnear – SS Ingall – C Vinson – P J. Rivera
TIJ: 2B Marino – C F. Ramirez – 1B C. Guzmán – 3B J. Garcia – RF Hooper – LF Spinelli – CF E. Carter – SS Liang – P Maldonado

The game got going good for the Coons with leadoff singles by Brewer and O-Mo (although only Brewer was brought home), and then a surprising 2-out single by Rivera in the second inning that brought up Brewer again, and he hit his first homer of the year, 3-0. Next time I looked up, Rivera walked off the field with the manager and trainer with some issue or other and Tzu-jao Ban would come out of the bullpen for long relief. It was as good as his closing work! Guzmán homered in the third, and a double by Erwin Hooper to lead off the bottom 4th led to another run. The Coons hurriedly added two runs in the fifth with two out RBI knocks by Wedemeyer and Buell (the latter a triple), but Ban soon had the tying run at the plate again in the bottom 5th and got the hook. Santana got out of that jam, and we were still up 5-2 after the top 7th. I brought Ramos in a double switch that removed Weeds intending to have Ramos pitch this game to completion – somehow. Short version: didn’t work. Jesus Garcia’s 3-run shot tied it in the seventh, but it wasn’t quite over. Big deal, a tied game is never over. Brewer had kind of some day, matching Garcia with a huge 3-run homer of his own in the top 8th, and two errors by Garcia after that allowed O-Mo and Reece to reach, only to be doubled home by Buell, 10-5. Ramos was still to pitch here. And it was Brewer Day at the park: he came up with two out in the ninth and singled home Ingall from third base for the final score: 11-5 Raccoons! Brewer 4-6, 2 HR, 6 RBI; O’Morrissey 3-5, BB, 2B; Wedemeyer 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI; Buell 4-5, 3B, 2B, 3 RBI; Ingall 3-5, 2B;

Additional notes: Stephen Buell missed the cycle by the home run, while Brewer drove in 50% more runners than he had ALL SEASON so far. He started the season horribly batting around .100 in RISP situations and he only jumped over .200 in this game. Admittedly, he’s not the run cashier, batting leadoff, but sometimes batting .300 is not enough, it has to come situational, too. In no season in his career, has his R/RBI ratio been this lopsided: 2.3 including this game, 5.0 (!!) before this game.

But we have a 3-game winning streak, woo-hoo! It will now certainly end with Kisho Saito pitching. And not because of Saito, most likely.

Note (also listed below): the Condors traded Jesus Garcia away after this game. They received former Canadien Raúl Solís, whom I had been so glad when the Buffaloes had signed him to the Federal League after the ’95 season.

Game 2
POR: 2B Brewer – 3B O’Morrissey – CF Reece – RF Buell – LF Kinnear – SS Guerin – 1B Ingall – C Kondo – P Saito
TIJ: 2B Solís – RF Spinelli – 1B C. Guzmán – SS Gorden – CF Hooper – 3B Liang – LF Espinoza – C P. Carter – P J. Lara

Back-to-back 2-out doubles by Buell and Kinnear spotted Saito an early 2-0 lead in the first inning. That would be it. He put two on in the bottom 1st, but wiggled out of there, but the Condors got a run on 2-out hits by Eneas Spinelli and Carlos Guzmán in the third inning. That 2-1 lead held up until the sixth. With a runner on first base and two out, Chun-mei Liang reached on catcher’s interference, and Alejandro Espinoza (the ex-Coon) singled to load them up. Unfazed, Saito was sunk with Paul Carter’s 2-run single. Guzmán also knocked out Saito for good in the bottom 7th with a 1-out double. The Coons starved the runner, but couldn’t get on base for their lives. 3-2 Condors. Buell 2-4, 2 2B, RBI;

If I say they couldn’t score for their lives, I mean it. I stood outside with a shotgun, but it’s hard to hit the leftfielder with a blunderbuss…

For bad news exceeding terrible offensive performances, Jose Rivera was evaluated for good on Tuesday night. The diagnosis was striking: shoulder inflammation, he will basically miss the rest of the season.

This is bad, since we have nobody left to pick up the slack here. We called Pancho Padilla from AAA, a right-hander that was injured when I purged the available relief crumbs earlier this month and thus escaped capital punishment so far. He would switch into a relief role and Jose Ramos was penciled in to make spot starts until a certain free agent starter could make up his mind about the doubtlessly miniscule offer I made him on Wednesday.

Game 3
POR: 2B Brewer – 3B Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Buell – LF Kinnear – C Vinson – SS Guerin – P Wade
TIJ: CF Espinoza – C F. Ramirez – 1B C. Guzmán – SS Gorden – LF Hooper – 3B Liang – RF B. Martinez – 2B Marino – P S. Gonzalez

We scored in the first again: Brewer singled, Ingall singled, Reece singled, bases loaded, before Weeds flew out, and everybody held. Buell’s hopper bounced funnily away from Guzmán costing him a play for an RBI single. That brought up Kinnear, who shook his bat in anticipation, much resembling a dog spotting a hydrant, waving his tail. Kinnear didn’t disappoint, launching the ball deep to right, and Bartolo Martinez didn’t bother to run after it. GRAAAAAAND SLAAAAAAAMMM!!! This was now Wade’s to lose, and the Condors chewed him up for a run in the first, a run in the second, and a run in the third, and NO run in the fourth. The Coons had merely scored one with the bags full and one out in the top 3rd, and we so led 6-3 after four. Wade, completely at his defense’s mercy in this game, wobbled through six with the 6-3 standing. Ingall singled his way on to start the top 7th, and we called a hit-and-run with Reece struggling badly at the plate. He grounded to short, but Rory Gorden’s throw to first was way wide and went into the seats. Runners in scoring position with no outs, only Ingall was scored with a Buell groundout. Weeds had whiffed, and Kinnear grounded out harmlessly. 7-3. With lefty Clyde Brady pinch-hitting for the Condors to lead off the bottom 7th, Zuniga replaced Wade and pitched a perfect seventh. Could you trust Pancho Padilla, who was fresh in contrast to the rest of the pen, with a 4-run lead? No. He loaded the bags with two out in the bottom 8th, and Santana came in to face lefty Francisco Marino. 0-1, contact to deeeep center. Neil Reece made the CATCH OF HIS LIFE on this one. With lots of lefties up, Santana stayed in for the ninth and sat down the side in order to actually earn a save. 7-3 Raccoons. Brewer 2-5; Ingall 2-5; Buell 2-4, BB, 2 RBI; Kinnear 1-3, BB, HR, 4 RBI; Santana 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, SV (1);

Raccoons (16-31) @ Aces (23-25) – May 30-June 1, 1997

The Aces were struggling with their pitching staff, which ranked consistently in the lower half in the Continental League. Their 230 runs allowed were the third-worst mark in the league, and their offense was average only.

Projected matchups:
Miguel Lopez (3-3, 3.51 ERA) vs. Carlos Guillén (4-4, 5.10 ERA)
Esteban Flores (0-1, 4.77 ERA) vs. Rob Griffin (2-2, 7.02 ERA)
Jose Ramos (2-2, 5.17 ERA) vs. Alejandro Venegas (5-2, 3.52 ERA)

Game 1
POR: 2B Brewer – 3B O’Morrissey – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – LF Buell – C Vinson – SS Guerin – RF Lacombe – P M. Lopez
LVA: SS R. Gutierrez – 3B Petipas – 1B J. Vargas – RF Mashiba – 2B J. Zamora – C Manuel – LF E. Garza – CF Li – P Guillén

In his 57th at-bat of the season, Joe Lacombe drove in his first run, a 1-out RBI single scoring Conceicao Guerin in the top 5th, and that was the first run of the game. Brewer would cash Lacombe, 2-0, the same inning, and an error allowed O’Morrissey to reach. Reece would hit an RBI single, 3-0. Top 6th, Buell was on third base with one out. The Aces walked Guerin intentionally(!!) to get to Lacombe, who promptly struck out, but they made their calculation without Miguel Lopez who dropped a bloop into shallow left to score Buell. Miguel Lopez had been devastating the first time through the lineup, whiffing five Aces, but he didn’t strike out anybody the second time through, and the shutout was blown up by Edgardo Garza with a 2-out, 2-run single in the bottom 7th. Lopez got PH Manny Espinosa to lead off the bottom 8th, then yielded for Brad Tamburrino, who got two outs quickly. De La Rosa came out to close the game when Steve Caddock was left on second base in the top 9th. Vargas walked, Mashiba was drilled, and Zamora singled. Bags full, no outs. Great stuff. In my despair I went for Miller with Santana also getting ready. Miller simply walked the first run in, and the Aces tied the game on Garza’s groundout. Li flew out to Lacombe for the second out, and then Santana came in to face pinch-hitter Joe Douglas, walked him to load the bags, and then walked Robinson Gutierrez. 5-4 Aces. O’Morrissey 2-5, 2B; Lacombe 2-4, RBI; Lopez 7.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 8 K;

Gotta kill people. 25, to be exact.

Well, 24. David Brewer has a 10-game hitting streak going as of now.

Game 2
POR: 2B Brewer – 3B O’Morrissey – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Buell – LF Kinnear – C Vinson – SS Caddock – P E. Flores
LVA: SS R. Gutierrez – 2B J. Zamora – CF J. Vargas – RF Mashiba – LF E. Garza – C Manuel – 1B A. Maldonado – 3B Petipas – P Griffin

The Coons scratched out a run in the second against pushover Griffin, but Flores was hit for two runs in the bottom of the inning. The Aces’ battery fell apart as a whole in the fourth then with Griffin allowing a leadoff triple to Stephen Buell, scoring him with a wild pitch, walking him Kinnear, and moved Kinnear up with a wild pitch, and Andres Manuel couldn’t calm him down. Two on and one out, Flores came up, batted, and hit a go-ahead RBI double to deep left. Brewer hit an RBI single, extending his streak, and the bags were full in a 4-2 game with one out for Neil Reece, who had long been looking for a meaningful hit, and now came up with a 2-run single that sent Griffin for the showers. In total, we would send up 11 men and scored six runs for a 7-2 lead, but would Flores get to reap the harvest? The Aces pummeled him for two runs in the fourth, 7-4, but he got through the fifth unharmed, and even managed to get through seven after that, with the Aces only reaching again with two out in the seventh, and then not scoring. Neil Reece in the top 5th had left the bags full, striking out against ageless Armando Dávila, and not enough runs in the bank would come back to bite. Once Cesar Zuniga was touched for two runs in the bottom 8th and required rescue by Tamburrino, the fire was burning again – for the Aces. Top 9th, up 7-6, ex-Coon Qi-zhen Geng issuing pitches. Wedemeyer made an out, bouncing out to Maldonado, before Buell reached on an error. Kinnear was drilled in the forearm by Geng and had to leave the game with a nice welt forming immediately. Guerin ran for him, while Crockett hit for Vinson. Buell scored on the single that Crockett lobbed into shallow left, and that was all we got in the inning, as Caddock and Ingall made outs. And now Gabby came back out. Oh Jesus Christ. He put Gutierrez on, he put Zamora on, Vargas tied the game with a double. Exit De La Shmosa. Santana retired the side before Vargas could score, and extra innings we played! Top 11th, Buell singled with one out, then stole second, and even went to third when Mario Guerrero’s throw went into center. He was not scored… Cory Maupin and Pancho Padilla pitched long relief as both teams were out of players (we had no position players left, and only Ban and a tired Miller in the pen). The Aces left the winning run on third in the 12th again, and then Reece led off the top 13th with a triple. Nori Kondo (now batting cleanup…) flew out to right, but Reece tagged and scored anyway. Ban did not come in to blow a save, instead Padilla remained in. Guerrero hit a 1-out triple in the bottom 13th and was scored by Gutierrez, and we had to play on. Padilla singled off Maupin to start the top 14th, and the Aces didn’t bring Richard Cunningham until we had runners on the corners with one out for Brewer, who rammed an RBI single to right. O-Mo singled to load them up but Reece and Kondo BOTH flew out gingerly. 10-9, and now we needed another arm with Padilla gassed. Tzu-jao Ban came in, walked Garza with one out, and we could all go home once Antenor Maldonado emptied a bat full into the right field bleachers. 11-10 Aces. O’Morrissey 2-6, 2 BB; Buell 3-7, 3B, RBI; Crockett (PH) 1-2, RBI; Santana 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K; Padilla 3.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K and 1-1;

Somebody or other had hidden a chill pill in my sandwich before the game, and I didn’t give a crap about all of this. Look at all those guys running around the field, hehehe!

Vern Kinnear’s bruised forearm was not quite that bad and he was ready to play the next day.

So, what else at the end of May? You say we don’t have enough bad news so far? Well, here’s one: Luke Newton’s ankle doesn’t get better, he could miss all of June.

Shoot me, $12.

Game 3
POR: 3B O’Morrissey – RF Buell – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – C Vinson – 2B Ingall – LF Kinnear – SS Guerin – P Ramos
LVA: CF Douglas – 2B J. Zamora – 1B J. Vargas – RF Mashiba – LF E. Garza – C Manuel – 3B Petipas – SS R. Gutierrez – P Venegas

“I don’t give an F” strategy yielded us a few runs in the top 3rd. In a scoreless games, O-Mo was on first with two out but never got a good jump with Neil Reece batting and Reece eventually walked, moving him up anyway. With Wedemeyer batting, both set off to steal and Andres Manuel tried to get Reece at second base – and didn’t. Wedemeyer then singled into left, Reece was waved around third and scored, 2-0. Vinson singled him home, and Venegas barely escaped the inning down only 3-0 when Guerin made the final out to Mashiba with the bags full. Ramos almost was eaten up in the bottom 3rd already before Guerin pulled him out by starting a double play with runners on the corners and one out, and in the fourth the Aces loaded the bases with nobody out with a single and two walks. Bob Petipas singled a run in before Gutierrez flew out to Reece in shallow center and nobody dared to go. Venegas then lined to – OH, O-MO!!! O’Morrissey made a stellar play on that liner and tagged Edgardo Garza for the double play, still 3-1 Coons. Ramos walked the leadoff man in the fifth, but got out of that, but then walked Garza with no outs and Petipas with one out in the bottom 6th, and with six walks on his ledger was done. Tamburrino, used almost every day by now, was brought in to face Gutierrez, who flew out to right, and then Zuniga came out to face PH Manny Espinosa. He struck him out, but then put Joe Douglas on to lead off the seventh. Daniel Miller came in, proved useless again and the Aces scored a run. 3-2. Miller still pitched the eighth (scoreless), but who was to close this game (or at least try?). Before that question begged to be replied to, we still had to play the top 9th. O-Mo got on, stole second base, and Neil Reece tattooed a Charlie Deacon pitch for a 2-run homer. FINALLY! OFFENSE!! Yes, the bottom 9th. Miller had been hit for, so that was not an option and limited us to Padilla (gassed), Santana (gassed), De La Rosa (useless), and Ban (super useless), or using a starter. Nah. Ban came out while I was preparing my “I went to Vegas and came home with nothing but this T-Shirt” T-Shirt to wear on the plane home. Joe Douglas led off with a line drive for a single. Zamora bounced to Ingall, who only got the lead runner after a slow turn to Guerin. Ban then fell 2-0 behind Vargas and Vinson cooked up his own strategy. Expecting no less than another ball inside he got exactly that, a 3-0 pitch that he turned nicely into and thundered it to first where Caddock tagged out the returning Douglas. Vargas eventually grounded to Guerin – WHO BOBBLED IT. Mashiba popped into shallow left. Who has it, who has it??? Kinnear barked off the young Guerin and grabbed it. We did NOT BLOW A GAME!!! 5-2 Raccoons. O’Morrissey 2-5; Reece 1-3, 2 BB, HR, 2 RBI; Wedemeyer 2-4, BB, 2 RBI; Ingall 2-3, BB, 2B;

In other news

May 27 – Infielders are swapped between Tijuana and Topeka, with Raúl Solís (.226, 1 HR, 18 RBI) heading to Mexico in exchange for Jesus Garcia (.254, 5 HR, 31 RBI).
May 27 – VAN OF Luis Arroyo (.336, 1 HR, 19 RBI) will miss up to one month with a strained hamstring.
May 28 – BOS OF/1B Dave Reid (.275, 3 HR, 29 RBI) goes down to a strained oblique and will miss one month’s worth of games.
May 28 – PIT INF Roberto Rodriguez (.277, 2 HR, 21 RBI) is going to miss a month after suffering a strained rib cage muscle.
May 28 – SFW SP Pat Cherry (3-4, 5.49 ERA) is trying to rally from a horrible start to his season, and makes a nice start with a 3-hit shutout against the Blue Sox in a 6-0 Warriors win.
May 31 – Salem’s Alonso Lopez (2-2, 2.40 ERA) 3-hits the Cyclones in an 8-0 shutout. The Wolves had taken Lopez from the Raccoons in this winter’s rule 5 draft.

Complaints and stuff

Having the first overall draft pick next year will be fun.

The Pacifics placed catcher Sidney Aycock on the trading block this week. He is quite good defensively, while batting more than Vinson in the long run. He would also be a free agent at the end of the year. Nori Kondo batting way below .200 makes him easily expendable. However, we could not work out a deal, since they didn’t want Joe Lacombe, whom I offered first, and while they were keen on Tzu-jao Ban and I wasn’t necessarily in love with him, I wanted more for Ban. However, they wouldn’t add 2B Ed Edwards to the deal, and while they had a very interesting prospect at the A level, that boy had only been drafted last year and was ineligible for a trade.

But on good news: Stephen Buell was named the Player of the Week this time through those different days, batting .500 (14-28) with no homers, but 8 RBI. The kid is still not 22, by the way. His defense is a disgrace, but he sure can bat: .942 PCT, -5.9 ZR, and .858 EFF when playing right (30 games), but .308/.365/.455 at the dish.

And whoever thought it was impossible to work the word “blunderbuss” into a baseball dynasty report, you, Sir, have been proven WRONG.

Boo-yah!!

And out!