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reds1 · 08-28-2015, 09:00 AM

January 1, 1940

Eastern League: Wellington Joins in the Fun

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The fortunes of the Braeland City Monarchs cooled off a bit, as they went only 14-13 in December. That was enough to keep them in top spot in the East, but now they find themselves being pursued by a hot Wellington Athletics team. They remain very good on both offense and pitching. However, their bullpen has struggled, with their ERA falling to 4.71 from 4.08 over the past 4 weeks.

Top Position Player: The Monarchs are blessed with some mighty fine offensive players. One of them, 32-year old 3B Louie Hetherington (.329/.410/.464, 5 HR, 48 RBI, 63 R, 45 BB), had a terrific December, going .356/.436/.563 with 4 HR and 21 RBI. Hetherington won an EL Player of the Week Award during the month for his efforts.

Top Pitcher: 30-year old SP Lenny Freke (12-5, 1.87 ERA, 1.02 WHIP) is at the top of his game and is currently rated the No. 1 SP in the ULB. His performance in December (5-1, 1.35 ERA) earned him Pitcher of the Month honours. On December 4, he pitched a 5-hit shutout against the Downie Chiefs with 3 K and 1 BB. If that weren’t enough, Freke went 4-5 at the plate on December 25 against the Wellington Athletics, collecting 4 RBI and helping Braeland City win 7-1. Freke surrendered 4 hits and 1 ER with 3 K, 0 BB.

Noteworthy: SS Adam Ashley (.326/.387/.507, 4 HR, 42 RBI, 71 R, 33 BB, 15 SB) hit for the cycle against the Embro Suns on December 12, going 4-5 with 6 RBI and 3 R.

Curious: On December 26, 1B Tim Ambrose (.278/.350/.427, 10 HR, 58 RBI, 42 R, 35 BB) was designated for assignment and placed on waivers. After clearing them, he was assigned to the AAA Clifton Whales. On January 1, the 31-year old returned to the Monarchs as their starting 1B and bats 2nd in their lineup. What I find curious about these moves is that this is a player who leads the team in HRs and RBIs.

Key Injuries: None.

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The Wellington Athletics turned the heat up in the East, going 18-9 in December to leap into the wild card spot, 2.5 games up on the Queensland Eagles and just 2.0 games back of first place. Curiously, while they have remained competitive on both sides of the ball, the Athletics have slipped just a bit in the offensive rankings. That speaks, I think, to the overall competitiveness in the Eastern League.

Top Position Player: When Quentin Stubber went down to injury early in the month, Wellington re-called 24-year old RF Phil Keeling from AAA Quinlan. Needless to say, Keeling made the most of his opportunity, as he went .338/.373/.481, 1 HR, 13 RBI, 11 R, 5 BB and won the EL Rookie of the Month Award in December. With the return of Stubber from the DL, Keeling is now riding the pine, but it looks like he will stay up with the big club, biding his time.

Top Pitcher: A very tough choice, as 3 pitchers put in top performances in December. I’ll go with SP Soren Heinke (6-7, 2.89 ERA, 1.13 WHIP), who went 3-0, 1.02 ERA.
Both SP Clyde Boney (6-0, 2.93 ERA in Dec) and SP Darren Whiteley (5-0, 2.43 ERA in Dec) had outstanding months as well.

Key Injury: RF Quentin Stubber (.308/.454/.445, 6 HR, 30 RBI, 47 R, 55 BB, 11 SB) strained an oblique on a defensive play on December 2 against the Embro Suns. He returned to the lineup about 4 weeks later.

Key Trade: On December 19, Wellington traded little-used 27-year old C Hall Wright (22/23 - .167/.167/.667, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R) to the Embro Suns, along with 21-year old minor league RP Luke Woodward (26/80). In return, the Athletics received 36-year old 2B Alejandro Valdés (74/74 - .280/.348/.341, 1 HR, 28 RBI, 49 R, 33 BB, 7 SB).

Knee-jerk analysis: Valdés is still a proficient contact hitter and his speed and base-stealing abilities will make him a productive lead-off hitter for the Athletics. However, he is a nightmare defensively at 2B (-23.8 ZR) and no doubt this has contributed to his current -1.8 WAR value. It would appear that he is on the decline.
No doubt, Embro has this in mind when they traded him, as they appear to have a suitable replacement for him at 2B. In return, they receive the currently No. 1 rated pitching prospect in the ULB. Woodward was the 9th overall pick in the 1937-38 amateur draft. He is one decent pitch from being a viable SP, but his changeup is only rated 20/25, and the scouting report on him says that he doesn’t have the drive to make the most out of his tools. If Wellington can somehow mitigate Valdés’ defensive deficiencies and reach the playoffs, I will view this trade as equitable.

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The Queensland Eagles cooled off considerably in December, mustering only a 12-15 record to fall 4.5 games out of first place and 2.5 games behind the wild card. The Eagles continue to excel on offense, but their pitching has really regressed. A season ending injury to SP Darren Stewart would not seem to help matters either.

Top Position Player: SS Katsunan Chikafuji (.330/.401/.538, 11 HR, 78 RBI, 75 R, 41 BB) continued his outstanding play; in fact, he won the Batter of the Month Award for December.

Top Pitcher: December was just not kind to Queensland pitchers. The only SP who had a decent month was, ironically, called up in the middle of the month to replace the injured Stewart. The Taiwanese SP Pi-ao Quian was drafted 9th overall by the Eagles on December 6; on December 12 he joined the big club and started his first major league game on the 16th. In his 3 starts on the month, he went 3-0, 3.00 ERA, 1.67 WHIP, 4 K, 17 BB. All 3 were quality starts. Not a bad start for the 22-year old rookie.

Key Injuries: 30-year old SP Darren Stewart (5-6, 4.02 ERA, 1.44 WHIP) was diagnosed with a ruptured ulnar collateral ligament, suffered in a game on December 8 against the Stratford Barons. He will be out for at least 8 months. Stewart was 1-0, 1.93 ERA in December before the injury.

Back-up IF/OF Jilenko Balignasay (.286/.333/.429) remains out for 7 more weeks with a broken bone in his elbow suffered back on October 28.

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The Embro Suns continue to play slightly above .500 ball, going 14-13 in December. They remain 7 games back of first, but due to the struggles of others, that’s good enough for 4th place in the standings. The offense improved overall but the pitching continues to sputter, preventing the team from gaining any traction.

Top Position Player: Some fine performances this month by the Suns, but 1B Jim Friend (.340/.403/.448, 3 HR, 53 RBI, 50 R, 21 BB) burned bright, hitting to the tune of .388/.419/.457. He went 4-5 in 3 games this month, collecting a total of 10 RBI and 6 R in those games. The 25-year old Friend was acquired back on June 25 from the Balmoral Giants.

Top Pitcher: It was a rough month for Suns pitchers; even ace SP Colm Soper went just 2-2, 4.35 ERA in December. However, SP Edward Hill (8-6, 3.72 ERA, 1.37 WHIP), who was acquired late last month from the Wolseley Unions, had a fine month, going 5-1, 3.60 ERA. RP Jim Palm (6-2, 6 SV, 1.95 ERA, 1.21 WHIP) was the only other pitcher who did well, going 2-1, 2 SV, 0.76 ERA.

Key Injuries: None.

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The recent wheeling and dealing by the Brunswick Legends has not exactly boosted the team’s fortunes here in the short term. In fact, they regressed in December, going just 12-16 to fall 9 games back of first and are now just 1 game above .500. Pitching improved modestly over the past month, but their offense has really cooled off. Certainly losing a player of the stature of a Mark Elston to an extended injury doesn’t help.

Top Position Player: It’s hard to fill the shoes of someone playing as well as Mark Elston, but 2B Matthew Shelley (.302/.357/.454, 4 HR, 48 RBI, 46 R, 27 BB, 6 SB) had a fine month, hitting .333/.393/.429.

Top Pitcher: Individually, the Brunswick pitchers didn’t have particularly great months, but SP Matthew Monroe (8-7, 2.78 ERA, 1.17 WHIP), did alright, going 2-2, 2.06 ERA in 6 starts.

Key Injuries: LF Mark Elston (.403/.526/.702, 12 HR, 50 RBI, 49 R, 50 BB) suffered an oblique strain on December 6. He will be out for another 3 weeks.

SP Rob Fields (3-2, 3.42 ERA, 1.56 WHIP) suffered elbow inflammation and will miss at least 2 more weeks. He was injured while trying to win a prize by knocking all the bottles over at the county fair back in November.

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October, when they went 19-9 on the month, seems like ages ago, as the Stratford Barons continue their decline into irrelevance. The Barons struggled in December, going 12-16, to fall 9 games back of first and now just sit 1 game above .500. Their offense picked up modestly in many of the rankings, but their pitching took a step back.
On the plus side, they have terrific players in the lineup, such as C Gavin Hurley, 2B Brian Main and SS Jake Walker; and SP Ryan Borden is developing into a legitimate ace (ranked 9th overall among pitchers). They have a solid farm system that is ranked 5th overall. But right now, there are just too many players that are underperforming, and it’s sinking the Barons.

Top Position Player: Got to go with SS Jake Walker (.352/.450/.522, 2 HR, 31 RBI, 54 R, 55 BB) again, as he was on fire in December, batting .449/.542/.626. The month included 2 games where he went 4-4 with 6 R in total, and he earned a Player of the Week Award.
C Gavin Hurley (.307/.345/.474, 6 HR, 42 RBI, 33 R, 17 BB) had a 20-game hitting streak end on December 22 against the Downie Chiefs.

Top Pitcher: SP Ryan Borden (10-4, 4.21 ERA, 1.36 WHIP) is the only pitcher carrying his weight at the moment. He went 4-1, 2.80 ERA in December.

Key Injuries: None.

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The Downie Chiefs enjoyed their first winning month of the season, going 15-13 in December. Their success is largely supported by the pitching staff, although the bullpen ERA is rated worst in the league. The offense has been abysmal, rated dead last in a slew of categories. Despite the struggles, the Chiefs’ run differential is only -5 and their Pythagorean record suggests that they should be at 40-41, a deficit of 1. In fact, with the exception of Cobourg (-5), all the teams in the Eastern League have a Pyt. record difference that is 1, 0 or -1.
Nevertheless, the Chiefs are mired near the bottom of the standings in a very competitive league and have the second worst farm system in the ULB. The moves they made in offseason bringing in the likes of SP Nick Paddock (7-10, 3.45 ERA, 1.39 WHIP) and CF Jonathan Lauder (.336/.388/.459, 5 HR, 34 RBI, 36 R, 23 BB) have not been enough to improve their fortunes in the East.

Top Position Player: He hasn’t hit a HR since October; but1B Jeaic Risbrough (.346/.414/.456, 2 HR, 27 RBI, 33 R, 26 BB) knows how to make contact. He had his best month in December, hitting .372/.456/.474.

Top Pitcher: SP Frank Leadbeater (8-8, 3.14 ERA, 1.36 WHIP) is Downie’s best pitcher, and he demonstrated that in December, going 4-2, 1.41 ERA.
SP Hidetada Kobayashi (3-3, 35 ERA, 1.22 WHIP) deserves a mention as well, as he went 3-2, 2.55 ERA on the month.

Noteworthy: 31-year old SS Ken Cutler (.255/.296/.306, 2 HR, 21 RBI, 24 R, 14 BB) enjoyed a couple of games in December where he went 4-5 and 4-6 at the plate. Alas, he collected no RBI and only 2 R for his efforts, illustrating Downie’s struggles with run production.

Key Injury: SP Bradley Paris (4-3, 3.29 ERA, 1.22 WHIP) remains out for 8 more weeks due to a partially tore his labrum suffered in a game against the Kingston Pelicans on November 10.

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If it wasn’t for their disastrous 6-21 October, the Cobourg Red Stockings would be considered close to a .500 ball club. Cobourg went 13-15 in December; not great, but certainly an improvement over their earlier struggles. Over the past two months, their record is 26-27. But there’s a reason why they are mired in last place. The pitching and offence have been lacklustre to say the least. There have been some modest improvements in their hitting performance and the bullpen ERA is respectable. But it has been nowhere near enough to improve their fortunes.

Top Position Player: There were quite a few performances in December worthy of mention, but my selection is SS Ninfa Puzon (.298/.328/.457, 3 HR, 36 RBI, 59 R, 17 BB, 16 SB) who batted .313/.331/.548 with 11-2B, 5-3B and 2 HR.

Top Pitcher: RP Larry Parrish (3-2, 5 SV, 2.78 ERA, 1.36 WHIP) gets the nod again, as he was sensational in December, going 2-0, 3 SV, 0.89 ERA, with 13 K and 7 BB.
Honourable mention goes to SP Carlo Foronda (4-9, 3.94 ERA, 1.53 WHIP) who went 2-3, 2.49 ERA in 5 starts.

Noteworthy: Whatever my misgivings about the wisdom behind Cobourg’s acquisition of CF Clint Jones (.315/.376/.479, 7 HR, 52 RBI, 65 R, 32 BB, 15 SB) last month from the Cambria Cannons, there’s no denying his talent. On December 18, Jones went 4-5 with 2 HR, 2 RBI and 4 R. He also won a Player of the Week Award later in the month.

Key Injuries: None.

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08-28-2015, 09:00 AM	#133
reds1 Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2002 Location: Winnipeg Posts: 3,919	January 1, 1940 Eastern League: Wellington Joins in the Fun -------- The fortunes of the Braeland City Monarchs cooled off a bit, as they went only 14-13 in December. That was enough to keep them in top spot in the East, but now they find themselves being pursued by a hot Wellington Athletics team. They remain very good on both offense and pitching. However, their bullpen has struggled, with their ERA falling to 4.71 from 4.08 over the past 4 weeks. Top Position Player: The Monarchs are blessed with some mighty fine offensive players. One of them, 32-year old 3B Louie Hetherington (.329/.410/.464, 5 HR, 48 RBI, 63 R, 45 BB), had a terrific December, going .356/.436/.563 with 4 HR and 21 RBI. Hetherington won an EL Player of the Week Award during the month for his efforts. Top Pitcher: 30-year old SP Lenny Freke (12-5, 1.87 ERA, 1.02 WHIP) is at the top of his game and is currently rated the No. 1 SP in the ULB. His performance in December (5-1, 1.35 ERA) earned him Pitcher of the Month honours. On December 4, he pitched a 5-hit shutout against the Downie Chiefs with 3 K and 1 BB. If that weren’t enough, Freke went 4-5 at the plate on December 25 against the Wellington Athletics, collecting 4 RBI and helping Braeland City win 7-1. Freke surrendered 4 hits and 1 ER with 3 K, 0 BB. Noteworthy: SS Adam Ashley (.326/.387/.507, 4 HR, 42 RBI, 71 R, 33 BB, 15 SB) hit for the cycle against the Embro Suns on December 12, going 4-5 with 6 RBI and 3 R. Curious: On December 26, 1B Tim Ambrose (.278/.350/.427, 10 HR, 58 RBI, 42 R, 35 BB) was designated for assignment and placed on waivers. After clearing them, he was assigned to the AAA Clifton Whales. On January 1, the 31-year old returned to the Monarchs as their starting 1B and bats 2nd in their lineup. What I find curious about these moves is that this is a player who leads the team in HRs and RBIs. Key Injuries: None. -------- The Wellington Athletics turned the heat up in the East, going 18-9 in December to leap into the wild card spot, 2.5 games up on the Queensland Eagles and just 2.0 games back of first place. Curiously, while they have remained competitive on both sides of the ball, the Athletics have slipped just a bit in the offensive rankings. That speaks, I think, to the overall competitiveness in the Eastern League. Top Position Player: When Quentin Stubber went down to injury early in the month, Wellington re-called 24-year old RF Phil Keeling from AAA Quinlan. Needless to say, Keeling made the most of his opportunity, as he went .338/.373/.481, 1 HR, 13 RBI, 11 R, 5 BB and won the EL Rookie of the Month Award in December. With the return of Stubber from the DL, Keeling is now riding the pine, but it looks like he will stay up with the big club, biding his time. Top Pitcher: A very tough choice, as 3 pitchers put in top performances in December. I’ll go with SP Soren Heinke (6-7, 2.89 ERA, 1.13 WHIP), who went 3-0, 1.02 ERA. Both SP Clyde Boney (6-0, 2.93 ERA in Dec) and SP Darren Whiteley (5-0, 2.43 ERA in Dec) had outstanding months as well. Key Injury: RF Quentin Stubber (.308/.454/.445, 6 HR, 30 RBI, 47 R, 55 BB, 11 SB) strained an oblique on a defensive play on December 2 against the Embro Suns. He returned to the lineup about 4 weeks later. Key Trade: On December 19, Wellington traded little-used 27-year old C Hall Wright (22/23 - .167/.167/.667, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R) to the Embro Suns, along with 21-year old minor league RP Luke Woodward (26/80). In return, the Athletics received 36-year old 2B Alejandro Valdés (74/74 - .280/.348/.341, 1 HR, 28 RBI, 49 R, 33 BB, 7 SB). Knee-jerk analysis: Valdés is still a proficient contact hitter and his speed and base-stealing abilities will make him a productive lead-off hitter for the Athletics. However, he is a nightmare defensively at 2B (-23.8 ZR) and no doubt this has contributed to his current -1.8 WAR value. It would appear that he is on the decline. No doubt, Embro has this in mind when they traded him, as they appear to have a suitable replacement for him at 2B. In return, they receive the currently No. 1 rated pitching prospect in the ULB. Woodward was the 9th overall pick in the 1937-38 amateur draft. He is one decent pitch from being a viable SP, but his changeup is only rated 20/25, and the scouting report on him says that he doesn’t have the drive to make the most out of his tools. If Wellington can somehow mitigate Valdés’ defensive deficiencies and reach the playoffs, I will view this trade as equitable. -------- The Queensland Eagles cooled off considerably in December, mustering only a 12-15 record to fall 4.5 games out of first place and 2.5 games behind the wild card. The Eagles continue to excel on offense, but their pitching has really regressed. A season ending injury to SP Darren Stewart would not seem to help matters either. Top Position Player: SS Katsunan Chikafuji (.330/.401/.538, 11 HR, 78 RBI, 75 R, 41 BB) continued his outstanding play; in fact, he won the Batter of the Month Award for December. Top Pitcher: December was just not kind to Queensland pitchers. The only SP who had a decent month was, ironically, called up in the middle of the month to replace the injured Stewart. The Taiwanese SP Pi-ao Quian was drafted 9th overall by the Eagles on December 6; on December 12 he joined the big club and started his first major league game on the 16th. In his 3 starts on the month, he went 3-0, 3.00 ERA, 1.67 WHIP, 4 K, 17 BB. All 3 were quality starts. Not a bad start for the 22-year old rookie. Key Injuries: 30-year old SP Darren Stewart (5-6, 4.02 ERA, 1.44 WHIP) was diagnosed with a ruptured ulnar collateral ligament, suffered in a game on December 8 against the Stratford Barons. He will be out for at least 8 months. Stewart was 1-0, 1.93 ERA in December before the injury. Back-up IF/OF Jilenko Balignasay (.286/.333/.429) remains out for 7 more weeks with a broken bone in his elbow suffered back on October 28. -------- The Embro Suns continue to play slightly above .500 ball, going 14-13 in December. They remain 7 games back of first, but due to the struggles of others, that’s good enough for 4th place in the standings. The offense improved overall but the pitching continues to sputter, preventing the team from gaining any traction. Top Position Player: Some fine performances this month by the Suns, but 1B Jim Friend (.340/.403/.448, 3 HR, 53 RBI, 50 R, 21 BB) burned bright, hitting to the tune of .388/.419/.457. He went 4-5 in 3 games this month, collecting a total of 10 RBI and 6 R in those games. The 25-year old Friend was acquired back on June 25 from the Balmoral Giants. Top Pitcher: It was a rough month for Suns pitchers; even ace SP Colm Soper went just 2-2, 4.35 ERA in December. However, SP Edward Hill (8-6, 3.72 ERA, 1.37 WHIP), who was acquired late last month from the Wolseley Unions, had a fine month, going 5-1, 3.60 ERA. RP Jim Palm (6-2, 6 SV, 1.95 ERA, 1.21 WHIP) was the only other pitcher who did well, going 2-1, 2 SV, 0.76 ERA. Key Injuries: None. -------- The recent wheeling and dealing by the Brunswick Legends has not exactly boosted the team’s fortunes here in the short term. In fact, they regressed in December, going just 12-16 to fall 9 games back of first and are now just 1 game above .500. Pitching improved modestly over the past month, but their offense has really cooled off. Certainly losing a player of the stature of a Mark Elston to an extended injury doesn’t help. Top Position Player: It’s hard to fill the shoes of someone playing as well as Mark Elston, but 2B Matthew Shelley (.302/.357/.454, 4 HR, 48 RBI, 46 R, 27 BB, 6 SB) had a fine month, hitting .333/.393/.429. Top Pitcher: Individually, the Brunswick pitchers didn’t have particularly great months, but SP Matthew Monroe (8-7, 2.78 ERA, 1.17 WHIP), did alright, going 2-2, 2.06 ERA in 6 starts. Key Injuries: LF Mark Elston (.403/.526/.702, 12 HR, 50 RBI, 49 R, 50 BB) suffered an oblique strain on December 6. He will be out for another 3 weeks. SP Rob Fields (3-2, 3.42 ERA, 1.56 WHIP) suffered elbow inflammation and will miss at least 2 more weeks. He was injured while trying to win a prize by knocking all the bottles over at the county fair back in November. -------- October, when they went 19-9 on the month, seems like ages ago, as the Stratford Barons continue their decline into irrelevance. The Barons struggled in December, going 12-16, to fall 9 games back of first and now just sit 1 game above .500. Their offense picked up modestly in many of the rankings, but their pitching took a step back. On the plus side, they have terrific players in the lineup, such as C Gavin Hurley, 2B Brian Main and SS Jake Walker; and SP Ryan Borden is developing into a legitimate ace (ranked 9th overall among pitchers). They have a solid farm system that is ranked 5th overall. But right now, there are just too many players that are underperforming, and it’s sinking the Barons. Top Position Player: Got to go with SS Jake Walker (.352/.450/.522, 2 HR, 31 RBI, 54 R, 55 BB) again, as he was on fire in December, batting .449/.542/.626. The month included 2 games where he went 4-4 with 6 R in total, and he earned a Player of the Week Award. C Gavin Hurley (.307/.345/.474, 6 HR, 42 RBI, 33 R, 17 BB) had a 20-game hitting streak end on December 22 against the Downie Chiefs. Top Pitcher: SP Ryan Borden (10-4, 4.21 ERA, 1.36 WHIP) is the only pitcher carrying his weight at the moment. He went 4-1, 2.80 ERA in December. Key Injuries: None. -------- The Downie Chiefs enjoyed their first winning month of the season, going 15-13 in December. Their success is largely supported by the pitching staff, although the bullpen ERA is rated worst in the league. The offense has been abysmal, rated dead last in a slew of categories. Despite the struggles, the Chiefs’ run differential is only -5 and their Pythagorean record suggests that they should be at 40-41, a deficit of 1. In fact, with the exception of Cobourg (-5), all the teams in the Eastern League have a Pyt. record difference that is 1, 0 or -1. Nevertheless, the Chiefs are mired near the bottom of the standings in a very competitive league and have the second worst farm system in the ULB. The moves they made in offseason bringing in the likes of SP Nick Paddock (7-10, 3.45 ERA, 1.39 WHIP) and CF Jonathan Lauder (.336/.388/.459, 5 HR, 34 RBI, 36 R, 23 BB) have not been enough to improve their fortunes in the East. Top Position Player: He hasn’t hit a HR since October; but1B Jeaic Risbrough (.346/.414/.456, 2 HR, 27 RBI, 33 R, 26 BB) knows how to make contact. He had his best month in December, hitting .372/.456/.474. Top Pitcher: SP Frank Leadbeater (8-8, 3.14 ERA, 1.36 WHIP) is Downie’s best pitcher, and he demonstrated that in December, going 4-2, 1.41 ERA. SP Hidetada Kobayashi (3-3, 35 ERA, 1.22 WHIP) deserves a mention as well, as he went 3-2, 2.55 ERA on the month. Noteworthy: 31-year old SS Ken Cutler (.255/.296/.306, 2 HR, 21 RBI, 24 R, 14 BB) enjoyed a couple of games in December where he went 4-5 and 4-6 at the plate. Alas, he collected no RBI and only 2 R for his efforts, illustrating Downie’s struggles with run production. Key Injury: SP Bradley Paris (4-3, 3.29 ERA, 1.22 WHIP) remains out for 8 more weeks due to a partially tore his labrum suffered in a game against the Kingston Pelicans on November 10. -------- If it wasn’t for their disastrous 6-21 October, the Cobourg Red Stockings would be considered close to a .500 ball club. Cobourg went 13-15 in December; not great, but certainly an improvement over their earlier struggles. Over the past two months, their record is 26-27. But there’s a reason why they are mired in last place. The pitching and offence have been lacklustre to say the least. There have been some modest improvements in their hitting performance and the bullpen ERA is respectable. But it has been nowhere near enough to improve their fortunes. Top Position Player: There were quite a few performances in December worthy of mention, but my selection is SS Ninfa Puzon (.298/.328/.457, 3 HR, 36 RBI, 59 R, 17 BB, 16 SB) who batted .313/.331/.548 with 11-2B, 5-3B and 2 HR. Top Pitcher: RP Larry Parrish (3-2, 5 SV, 2.78 ERA, 1.36 WHIP) gets the nod again, as he was sensational in December, going 2-0, 3 SV, 0.89 ERA, with 13 K and 7 BB. Honourable mention goes to SP Carlo Foronda (4-9, 3.94 ERA, 1.53 WHIP) who went 2-3, 2.49 ERA in 5 starts. Noteworthy: Whatever my misgivings about the wisdom behind Cobourg’s acquisition of CF Clint Jones (.315/.376/.479, 7 HR, 52 RBI, 65 R, 32 BB, 15 SB) last month from the Cambria Cannons, there’s no denying his talent. On December 18, Jones went 4-5 with 2 HR, 2 RBI and 4 R. He also won a Player of the Week Award later in the month. Key Injuries: None. -------- __________________ United Leagues of Braeland Last edited by reds1; 07-03-2017 at 01:42 AM.