It appears Eric Hecht and Domenic Loetzsch are going to give it a run. Both are all over the leaderboards in the 3 triple crown categories. I think that 30 pt gap in Avg will be as daunting for Loetzsch as the gap in HR's will be for Hecht.
Jeff Chase is 2nd in the league in ERA and tied for 1st in wins. Readers will remember when I signed him last year I had hoped he could be a part of this moving forward as a mid-rotation guy but he's outperformed my wildest expectations.
Mike Haupt is 'quietly' having an outstanding season. Alward and Stanton appear to both want the single-season K record. Masahiro Tanaka set the record in 1998 at 331. They are both on pace to surpass 350 and Dave Young, lurking in 3rd is on a 326 K pace.
All those Portland names in the offensive leaders are offset by a staff ranked 12th in runs given up, 9th in starters ERA and 12th in both Bullpen ERA and defense. They lead the NL in home runs at 161.
I am not boasting but it appears one of us is winning this division and the other is going to likely be the Wild Card. It feels like the only real questions for a postseason spot rest with the AL Central winner and the 1-2 seeding for the Wild Card. Obviously, health will be a huge factor but this could be a situation where every postseason team might have a chance to set up their playoff rotation. Likely the single most important factor for me if I am a potential WC. I honestly think if I had to choose today I'd take Ramirez for the play in game.
How the mighty have fallen. LA is in the midst of a nightmare. San Francisco has been white hot since opening day. New England is starting to pull away in the East and it appears to be a 2 horse race, aptly enough, between the Broncos and Cowboys in the Central. I think it's a 3 dog hunt for the Wild Card and there could potentially be 3 of the 4 teams from the West in the post-season.
My impatience last year cost me this year. I can't even begin to get onto the field at these numbers. I'm going to sit back and hope some of the long shots drop as they stay out there.
Here's a look at the players currently in my complex. I love the mix, 8 pitchers, and 10 position players. Would love to see 1 if not 2 of the catchers blossom but right now I am hoping for Portio, Mendelson on the mound and Kumagai and Estrella as position guys. I think we are looking at moving both Ramirez and Turcios off the mound. Turcios is a giant at 6'7”.
