I have non-gaming-related social obligations tomorrow – how I hate those – and probably won’t be able to fashion an update, and today, due to shenanigans found below, I can’t finish with a weekend set, but I didn’t want to put up only the back end of the four-and-four with the Elks. So, this update starts with the post-ASG weekend set and ends with the Titans midweek.
The Continental League beat the Federal League 3-2 in this year’s All Star game. Antonio Donis and Curtis Tobitt were the starters, and neither allowed a run. Jerry Dobson claims the deciding knock with a 2-run homer off Ian Johnson in the eighth inning. With Randy Farley, Dan Nordahl, and Jesus Palacios three more ex-Raccoons appear in the game, but none of them does anything spectacular.
Raccoons (38-47) @ Canadiens (43-44) – July 13-16, 2006
The Raccoons were 4-2 on the year against the most repulsive of all creatures, the Elks. Good offense, not-quite average pitching was still their way, but it hadn’t been that long that we had squared off after all.
Projected matchups:
Kenichi Watanabe (5-8, 4.11 ERA) vs. Rod Taylor (10-7, 4.31 ERA)
Ralph Ford (7-9, 3.66 ERA) vs. Scott Spears (2-10, 4.90 ERA)
Kelly Fairchild (2-5, 5.18 ERA) vs. Carlos Camacho (2-6, 5.44 ERA)
Tim Webster (0-0, 3.89 ERA) vs. Daniel Dickerson (11-5, 2.35 ERA)
We started the series with another rainout. Turns out the weather is **** all across the Pacific Northwest, all year long. Thursday’s contest was pushed to Friday, as we were by now six games behind some other teams, but we’d play a double header on Friday. This may or may not put a crimp into the plan to make it to next Saturday without a fifth starter. The Canadiens also juggled their rotation, since all their guys were more than perfectly rested now.
Game 1
POR: 2B Nomura – SS V. Flores – RF Brady – 1B Quebell – LF Castro – 3B Sharp – CF Trevino – C Wood – P Watanabe
VAN: 2B Dobson – CF E. Garcia – C G. Ortíz – LF J. Gonzalez – 1B Theobald – RF Richardson – 3B Rivas – SS J. Phillips – P Dickerson
The Raccoons had runners on second base in the second and fourth innings, but never anybody on third base, while Watanabe faced the minimum in the first three innings of the opening half of Friday’s double header, before the situation worsened quickly. Enrique Garcia’s fourth inning single spun out of control with two wild pitches before Jose Gonzalez and Paul Theobald hit consecutive 2-out RBI hits to send the Elks up 2-0. Dickerson was dialed in, expending only 46 pitches in the first five innings. Granted, the fact that Watanabe twice hit leadoff singles in the game and twice some bloke grounded into a double play didn’t help the Coons, either. For Dickerson, it was all cruising until that same defense that had sucked up every pathetic grounder for seven and two thirds innings stopped doing that. Nomura hit a clean single before Flores reached on an abysmal error by Alex Rivas, who threw a ball completely past Henry Harmon at first. There came Clyde Brady, and if someone had thrown a tear gas grenade into my office, the effect couldn’t have been more profound. Brady’s grounder to the mound was so embarrassingly poor, Dickerson had time to order and consume a pizza before throwing him out at first. 2-0 Canadiens. Watanabe 8.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, L (5-9) and 2-3;
Bright sides: no relief pitchers used.
Game 2
POR: SS Yamada – LF Crespo – 1B Quebell – 3B Sharp – C Bowen – CF Fernandez – 2B Pena – RF Lugo – P Ford
VAN: 2B Dobson – CF E. Garcia – LF J. Gonzalez – 3B Suzuki – RF P. Flores – C F. Diéguez – 1B Trinidad – SS J. Phillips – P R. Taylor
When Ralph Ford plunked Pedro Flores and issued walks to Fernando Diéguez and Ramón Trinidad to start the second inning, the pitching coach let him know that Senora Valdés jr. wished to add to her collection of furs, and we had to pick ingredients by game’s end. It worked, as Ford got Phillips to pop out to first before whiffing Taylor and Dobson. Nevertheless, the game was as much about tunnel construction as it was about wardrobes. Taylor blasted a path to victory through a remarkably pathetic lineup, striking out eight of the first eleven batters he faced. Then Quebell doubled to right, but didn’t stop at second base. Flores nabbed him at third base. Then it was suddenly the Raccoons to have the bases loaded with nobody out in the fifth inning. Bowen had walked with Fernandez pushing a single past a diving Dobson by a whisker’s width, and Cesar Pena grounded hard to Suzuki for a potential double play, but Suzuki took a bounce to the chin and kicked the ball away for no play at all. Lugo only hit a sac fly, and while Ford singled, Yamada and Crespo would strike out to leave only one run for the Critters. By the sixth inning, however, that flimsy 1-0 lead was history. Ford walked leadoff man Jose Gonzalez, who reached third base on a combo of stealing second and advancing to third on Bowen’s laughable throw to centerfield on which Pena leapt in vain – the ball passed ten feet above him. Flores singled in the run to tie the game, and when Diéguez reached as well, Ford was yanked in a 1-1 game he couldn’t be trusted with. Law Rockburn cleaned up, then was hit for with Brady with two outs and Pena on third base in the seventh. Brady became the 12th striped tail on Taylor’s belt, and since Daniel Sharp found it necessary to hit into an inning-ending double play in the eighth with J.C. Crespo waiting on third base, and Bruno and Moreno did their jobs, the game went to extras. Top 10th, Nomura hit for Moreno, was drilled, and scored on a Crespo double, which made it Angel time in the bottom of the inning. Angel faced the reliever who had given up the run in the 10th, Juan Sanchez, since the Elks had spent their bench – and Sanchez singled. Angel Casas was hell-bent on losing this game, also adding a walk, but Yoshi Yamada, while useless with the bat, snagged a liner off Suzuki’s bat and also made the final play on Diéguez grounder to end the game. 2-1 Raccoons. Crespo 2-5, 2B, RBI; Quebell 3-5, 2B; Fernandez 2-4;
Good thing Watanabe went eight. That little soldier.
After this game, Jose Lugo was waived and designated for assignment, batting .207 for the Raccoons and not even .200 in total this season. Bob Mays rejoined us from his rehab assignment.
Game 3
POR: 2B Nomura – SS V. Flores – LF Crespo – RF Brady – 1B Quebell – 3B Sharp – CF Trevino – C Wood – P Fairchild
VAN: 2B Dobson – CF E. Garcia – C G. Ortíz – 1B Theobald – 3B Suzuki – RF Richardson – LF P. Flores – SS J. Phillips – P Spears
While the Raccoons were silenced completely by a pitcher with a .167 winning percentage, the Elks only waited for Gabriel Ortíz to come to the plate. After Enrique Garcia had reached on a single that a horrible misplay by Trevino turned into a double in the first inning, Ortíz launched a no-doubter to put his team up 2-0. The next time he came up, two Elks were on, another moonshot, 5-0 in the third. Games can be over this quickly.
It took the Critters until the seventh inning to get a paw onto the table on which a bowl held juicy grapes. Spears held them to two hits through six innings before Crespo snipped a single in the seventh and Brady got hold of a mediocre fastball and sent it well on its way to Alaska. Spears continued to drift in a 5-2 game, put Quebell on, put Trevino on, before with two outs Bob Mays hit for Bob Wood, fell behind 0-2, then cleared the bases on a tremendous homer to right. That also tied up the score, knotted at five.
After Jerry Dobson was just barely stopped at third base in the seventh, Riddle and Bruno kept the Canadiens at bay and got the game to extra innings again. Batting for Bruno, Cesar Pena singled to start the 10th but instantly was caught up in Nomura’s double play en route to 0-5 on the day. By the bottom 12th, we had arrived at Kaz, who gave up a 1-out double to Dobson. With the lefty Enrique Garcia next, we added him intentionally even if that meant facing Gabriel Ortíz, but at least Ortíz was a right-hander. EVEN if Ortíz had already gone well deep twice. Here, he grounded to Sharp, five to four to three, see ya in the 13th. Or later. In the 14th, the Elks resorted to walk machine Ralph Davis, who issued freebies almost nine times per nine innings. Sharp drew a leadoff walk and was run for with Yamada, as we emptied our bench, but he couldn’t steal and moved up on outs – which put him at third with two outs and Kaz at the plate. Desperate, Yamada got a sign to go if he liked. He liked, and he was out at home.
No action until the 17th, when the Raccoons left Trevino on third base, while Angel Casas ran completely out of juice in his third inning, allowed a double to Gonzalez and then walked the bags full. Law Rockburn, last pitcher available, came into the game and struck out Paul Theobald for the platinum sombrero and an 18th inning of play. Long man Cal Holbrook had a hit off Rockburn in the 18th – yet still on result. It took those two teams of scum a dozen innings to score again, and then it was – of all things! – a leadoff jack off Holbrook in the 19th, hit by YAMADA. Trevino singled, Mays singled, and the Elks had nobody available right now. Rockburn’s bunt was misfielded by Holbrook to load the bases before Yoshi livened up an 0-7 day with an RBI single. Bowen, batting third, would plate another run to make it 8-5. No closer available: Rockburn faced Gonzalez, Dobson, and Garcia in the bottom 19th. Pop fly to center, groundout to third (Flores there), groundout to first, ballgame. 8-5 Raccoons…! Bowen 2-5, BB, RBI; Yamada 1-2, HR, RBI; Trevino 4-8; Mays (PH) 2-6, HR, 3 RBI; Pena (PH) 1-1; Fernandez (PH) 1-1; Riddle 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K; Bruno 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K; Moreno 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K; Kichida 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K; Casas 2.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K; Rockburn 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, W (3-0);
Four Raccoons went 1-for-8 or worse in this game. You can probably find them yourself.
And then…
Interlude: Trade
We were able to cut our losses with Angel Romero, thanks to the perpetually ******ed general management of the Pacifics. 13 years ago they took Tetsu Osanai’s contract off our hands, now they happily took Romero, who had cleared waivers, but refused an assignment to AAA.
The Raccoons received 28-year old C Antonio Ramirez (.262, 6 HR, 37 RBI), who was defense first, and a lot of pain after that. He was in his third year as the Pacifics’ primary catcher, and had posted a .605 OPS last year. For his career since 2001 between Salem and Los Angeles, he was .251/.316/.368 with 22 HR and 215 RBI.
To get Ramirez onto the roster, Bob Wood, batting .198, was sent to St. Petersburg.
Romero started his career with the Pacifics and played for them from 1990 to 1997, including a 22-10, 2.45 ERA season in 1995, when he ran away with the FL Pitcher of the Year award. We’ve had good to great last-breath starting pitchers before (Juan Correa, Manuel Movonda), but Romero was NOT that.
Raccoons (38-47) @ Canadiens (43-44) – July 13-16, 2006
We had used every reliever for four or more outs, excluding Ed Bryan who had walked his only batter faced in the eighth inning, on Saturday, so the bullpen was kind of short with breath for the Sunday game. An off day was smiling at us after that, but now it was on Tim Webster to get a decent start in. Hey, maybe he might actually win a game!
Game 4
POR: 3B V. Flores – 2B Nomura – CF Fernandez – RF Brady – LF Crespo – C A. Ramirez – 1B Sharp – SS Pena – P Webster
VAN: 2B Dobson – RF Theobald – C G. Ortíz – LF J. Gonzalez – 1B Harmon – 3B Suzuki – CF P. Flores – SS Rivas – P Camacho
Yoshi Nomura had spent the series gagged and bound, but had a clutch 2-run single in the third inning to score Webster and Flores and get the first numbers onto the scoreboard. Crespo would add two more runs with a double in the same inning, and this was the start Webster had to win now, leading 4-0 in the middle of the third. He managed to face the minimum through four innings, allowing one hit, before Harmon hit a double in the fifth and the Elks had two on before Alex Rivas grounded out to end the inning. They had two men on again in the seventh when the inning ended with Pedro Flores lining out to Vic Flores. Vic Flores would also end the first Coons threat since the third inning when he stranded Quebell and Pena in scoring position with a soft pop to … Pedro Flores. The score was still 4-0, the pitcher for the road team was still Tim Webster in the bottom 9th, and he faced the 2-3-4 batters. Paul Theobald lofted an easy fly to Fernandez. Gabriel Ortíz struck out in a 1-2 count. The same count saw Jose Gonzalez hit a single to right. That brought up Henry Harmon and we got Riddle and Bruno ready, the only guys we could reasonably expect to throw something other than scrambled eggs today. Harmon also fell to two strikes, then froze on a pitch that started outside, but cut back over the plate – ballgame! 4-0 Coons! Webster 9.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K, W (1-0) and 1-3;
Tim Webster, 26, now has 12 career starts. He spun a complete game last year, but this is his first shutout! Really not shabby, not all fifth rounders manage to toss a shutout eventually. He was our fifth round pick in 2000. He might have no stuff whatsoever, not have the faintest luck, and despite being black he looks kind of pale and malnutritioned, but nobody else on this ****ty staff managed a shutout so far this year!
Raccoons (41-48) vs. Titans (50-44) – July 18-20, 2006
The harder you looked, the less likely the Titans were to go to the playoffs. They were hardly scoring runs, ranking 10th in the league (although they had the 11th place Raccoons beat by 40 runs), and were just barely above average in keeping the opposition from scoring. Their run differential was a paltry +2. Was that really the same team that had owned the division for all of this century? At least they got a slight advantage over the Raccoons, beating them five out of nine so far this year.
The Titans had intensified their bid to return to the playoffs on the weekend, however, acquiring SS Dave Hutchinson (.319, 5 HR, 56 RBI) from the Wolves for five prospects. Two of these are ranked: #65 AA CL Ruslan Kobulidze and #118 AA OF Jaime Marino.
Projected matchups:
Ralph Ford (7-9, 3.58 ERA) vs. Bryce Hildred (6-7, 4.55 ERA)
Kenichi Watanabe (5-9, 3.97 ERA) vs. Jorge Chapa (8-6, 3.25 ERA)
Kelly Fairchild (2-5, 5.34 ERA) vs. Jason O’Halloran (10-6, 3.19 ERA)
Chapa and O’Halloran might be switched or even pushed back. Both pitched in the Titans’ double header on Friday. Opening a 2-week homestand, we switched Ford and Watanabe since both had pitched in our very own double header on Friday, but Ford had been removed in the sixth inning while Watanabe had gone eight frames in a losing effort. This series runs through Thursday, and we will need another pitcher by Saturday. A crazy voice in my head tells me to spot start Kaz on Saturday, and delay the inevitable to next week, but …
Game 1
BOS: LF Walls – 1B Heffer – SS Hutchinson – RF G. Munoz – C Rosa – CF Garrison – 2B Metting – 3B M. Austin – P Hildred
POR: 2B Nomura – SS Flores – RF Brady – 1B Quebell – LF Castro – C A. Ramirez – 3B Sharp – CF Fernandez – P Ford
No batter reached base for three innings until Dave Heffer singled up the middle in the top 4th. Things threatened to take a turn for the nasty when Heffer stole second and was on third on Hutchinson’s infield single, but Ford recovered to strike out Munoz and Rosa, which already gave him half a dozen whiffs on the day. Hildred also fanned six through four, but was still perfect, but perfect went out of the window quickly in the fifth. Castro walked, and Ramirez then added his first hit as a Raccoon, a single. Sharp flew out, but Eddie Fernandez got something on the board with a double to left. Ramirez was held and stranded; while Ford hit a hard grounder, it was well into Hutchinson’s range. All was swell for Ford through six innings, striking out eight. In the seventh, he walked Hutchinson, then had Munoz single into center, and Fernandez botched the pickup, putting the runners into scoring position. Then Rosa grounded out to Sharp, who kept everybody put while surrendering the snail-paced catcher, and Garrison popped out to second. Metting was put onto the empty base to pitch to the lefty Mark Austin, and Austin became Ford’s ninth trophy. After that it was three quick outs for Ford in the eighth, but he was now over 100 pitches and that on short rest, so he would not get a run at a shutout, regardless of production in the bottom of the eighth (there was none). Marcos Bruno got the assignment after Casas had thrown roughly 50 pitches on Saturday. He retired Hutchinson and Munoz easily before PH Luis Lopez singled up the middle. Daniel Silva, the pest, ran for him. Rudy Garrison singled to center, Silva turned for third base, Fernandez unleashed a rocket, and Silva was out!! 1-0 Raccoons!! Ramirez 2-3; Ford 8.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 9 K, W (8-9);
Amazingly, the Raccoons have not surrendered a run for 34 consecutive innings! Where’s that coming from!?
Game 2
BOS: 2B D. Silva – 3B M. Austin – SS Hutchinson – RF G. Munoz – CF Garrison – C Rosa – 1B Heffer – LF Walls – P M. Castro
POR: 2B Nomura – SS Flores – LF Brady – 1B Quebell – C A. Ramirez – RF Mays – 3B Sharp – CF Trevino – P Watanabe
Mauro Castro (8-4, 3.89 ERA) had not pitched since the All Star game and was inserted into this game, pushing the veteran left-handers back.
Freddy Rosa annoyingly ended a 37-inning scoreless streak for the Coons’ pitching staff with a bases-loaded, 2-run double in the fourth inning off Watanabe. That was with no outs, and the Titans plated three total in the inning after Hutchinson, Munoz, and Garrison had all singled to start the inning. The 3-spot killed a 1-0 lead for the Raccoons, who were hitless, having scored on Flores walking, stealing, moving up on a wild pitch, and scoring on Quebell’s sac fly in the first. Then it had been dry, but it started to rain in the third and a 55-minute delay was enforced right after Watanabe had disintegrated. Watanabe allowed another two runs in the sixth, which he didn’t finish. Antonio Ramirez would finally break up the no-hitter in the seventh inning with a 2-out single, but they were sitting in a pretty deep hole by then.
But the game was not over. Sharp led off the eighth with a double, Trevino singled him in, and then Crespo hit a pinch-hit home run to quickly assault Castro and the Titans and cut their lead down to a single run, with no outs in the inning. Three singles by Nomura, Brady, and Quebell loaded the bases with one out. The Titans STAYED with Castro! And he struck out Ramirez! And then the Titans STILL stayed with Castro! And Mays got them – a soft bouncer eluded both Heffer and Silva on the right side, and Brady got a perfect jump going from second base to score the go-ahead run behind Nomura on that single!! Risto Mäkelä put the pinch-hitter Yamada away, but suddenly the Titans were blinking in a state of shock, looking at an armed and ready Angel Casas in the ninth. Luis Lopez grounded out to Yamada at short, Mark Austin struck out, and Dave Hutchinson sent a drive to deep right that the ranging Bob Mays caught on the warning track. Boo-yah, comeback!! 6-5 Critters!! Mays 1-3, BB, 2 RBI; Crespo (PH) 1-1, HR, 2 RBI;
That’s a 5-run comeback to win five straight games, which might inspire a mediocre game, but next up is a less-than-mediocre pitcher.
Game 3
BOS: 1B Heffer – 3B M. Austin – SS Hutchinson – RF G. Munoz – CF Garrison – C Rosa – 2B Metting – LF Walls – P O’Halloran
POR: 2B Flores – CF Fernandez – LF Crespo – 1B Quebell – RF Mays – 3B Sharp – C Bowen – SS Pena – P Fairchild
The Dork on Duty plunked batters in the first and second, and both times escaped with two men in scoring position when Fernandez threw his frail body at screaming drives to center, making the catch successfully both times to keep the Titans off the board early. After a clean third, an error by Pena put the meltdown in full gear however, as Fairchild started to serve batting practice and was quickly clubbed for two runs before Fernandez had to stretch that fragile body again to end the inning with two men on. The defense kept the damage against Fairchild to those two runs, one earned, while O’Halloran did what he did to the Raccoons. Precise pitches, poor contact – he was not the power pitcher of earlier years anymore, with only 89 K in 135.1 IP this season – and more often than not really shabby results for the opposition. We were still trailing 2-0 in the bottom 9th, facing old friend Manuel Martinez. Clyde Brady started with a PH appearance for Law Rockburn, grounded to deep short, and was still thrown out. Flores made the second out before Castro hit for Fernandez and singled. Hope got choked to death quickly, though: Crespo flew out to right on a 3-1 pitch. 2-0 Titans. Castro (PH) 1-1; Nomura (PH) 1-1;
Well, you can’t win them all. Five in a row is decent for a team with no spine, no luck, and no chance.
In other news
July 10 – The Thunder decide to retool and trade C Felix Hernandez (.245, 7 HR, 36 RBI) to the Cyclones for OF Wes McCormick (.371, 5 HR, 17 RBI in 35 AB) and unranked outfield prospect Tom Reese.
July 13 – The Loggers grab two prospects, including interesting but unranked outfielder J.R. Richardson, for their run-over MR Alan Crowley (1-3, 7.38 ERA, 1 SV), who’s picked up by the Warriors.
June 16 – DEN INF Jose Correa (.303, 2 HR, 28 RBI) will be on the shelf for the rest of the month, having suffered a knee sprain.
June 18 – The ABL season is in its fourth month, and NYC LF/RF Stanton Martin (.311, 10 HR, 50 RBI) is on his fourth DL stint. Bruised wrist, three weeks.
Complaints and stuff
Full box score for the 19-inning game:
http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...ml#post3918168
Well, Kaz is still aligned for Saturday, and I think I’m gonna do it. Our AAA rotation:
Rhett Carpenter (4-5, 5.50 ERA)
Felipe Garcia (2-7, 3.82 ERA)
Cesar Lopez (1-5, 6.22 ERA)
Sergio Vega (3-5, 3.80 ERA)
… and a variety of strange birds rotating through the final spot since the departure of Amador to L.A. and Brown to D.L.
Jimmy Eichelkraut hit his first professional home run on Friday, a 3-piece key in beating the Indians’ affiliate, the Birmingham Freedom, 10-7. His OPS through 30 games is still a pathetic .542 …
We are currently watching 20-year old AA 3B Ricardo Martinez, who’s having a good season with a .785 OPS. He will never amount to much, but the Raccoons spent years with Cam Green, and he was a bat-first third baseman. Daniel Sharp is falling out of favor sharply here…