San Diego Chargers (74-72, .507, 2nd NL West) @ Los Angeles Lakers (85-62, .578, 1st NL West)
San Diego spent a good bit of the 2075 season humming along – solid, good, on the precipice of MLB greatness. They’d had kept on pace until late August when SP Heath Zody was lost for the season due to a torn flexor tendon. Heath wasn’t the be all, end all – he’s good, not great – but his loss due to injury seemed to be the straw that broke the camels back. He is their 3rd starter to go down this season, which has tested the Chargers depth at the position. They’ve lost Arnaldo Romero (a solid #2 guy, and a lefty) and Prior Balazs, who, along with Heath, filled that ¾ slot (depending on matchup) quite nicely. When healthy – the Chargers had a rotation that could be difficult to navigate for even the most offensively talented club. They’re still ranked #3 in Starters ERA, but after pillaging the pen to patch together a rotation are ranked 12th in Bullpen ERA and Pitcher WAR. The offense is good – 2nd in Batting WAR, 3rd in OBP, and 4th in both RS and AVG. This is a nice collection of sticks – who play a sturdy defense in the field – and have the speed and baserunning ability to wreck things in a hurry. The are led off by Travis Scharmer – hitting .298 this year with a .348 OBP and 69 stolen bags. With him setting the table, RF Kelford Jackson and 1B Benjamin Compton have 181 RBI between them and have a combined 34 round trippers this season. They’re 4-7 so far this month, but will, undoubtedly, come in with some focus as these division rivalry games tend to mean a bit more to all the players involved.
148 of 162: Rod Garcia (8-10, 3.98) @ Julen Morales (16-6, 2.96)
Hot Rod Garcia holds the La La’s scoreless for 7 innings until Newman drives in our only run on a two-out double, and Jude Varela hits a 2-run shot off of Morales in the 4th – San Diego gets the win by a score of 5-1. Newman and Daniels both finish with 2 hits, Otto gets rung up twice, and Julen gives up 5 total on the day to earn his 7th loss of the season – his ERA is back over three now. Flummoxed by Hot Rod in this one – the 28-year old Houston native acquits himself nicely here.
149 of 162: Burt McElheny (14-8, 2.95) @ Merl Crawford (10-8, 4.13)
Big Burt had zero chill over 8 innings while we stayed stuck in a mini-malaise that has had us under the weather for 3-straight losses – a 6-2 win for the Chargers. SDC 3B Jamie Burke did some damage – a 3-run triple in the top of the 6th. Merl was trash – poor command over 6, allowing 7 hits, 5 earned, and 4 free passes. Jenkins gets 2 hits, no one else does anything of note – Otto finishes 0 for 4. We did get a couple of nifty double-plays – fun, but not the kind of fun our fans are looking for.
Propers: RF Dylan Brockmiller, of the Decatur Donnybrooks, finished 2 for 3, with 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 runs, and a walk in Decatur’s 7-2 win over Jules and the Supremos. Brockmiller spent 10 seasons in the Majors before taking his talents to the Bush League, where he has played stints in Dearborn, Hagerstown, and now Decatur. The former Binghamton Bearcat was drafted 38th overall by the St. Louis Rams in 2064, won two championships with St. Louis and Chicago respectively, and made the all-star team in 2070 when he hit .298 with 36 HR’s and 99 RBI. He’s hit two grand slams this season for Decatur and is hitting .282 with 30 HR and 76 RBI so far this year.
150 of 162: Cameron Wan (1-1, 3.95) @ Michael Brisk (13-9, 3.68)
Late heroics from Otto save the day and help us avoid a sweep – a 2-run jack in the bottom of the 8th that put us up for good – La La’s get one by a score of 3-2. Wan hit us with his best shot but was left out there one batter too many – Kawka gets his 15th save (in 18 attempts) and Brisk, while dodgy, kept it close for 5.2 innings of 9-hit ball. A 2 for 4 day for Mr. Isaac and Mullens drive in a run early on a double. We get a sweet outfield assist from Mullens in this one too – a solid defensive effort for the Purple and Gold. Still, not anywhere near the form we need to rediscover though – as we continue to slog our way through the muck, we’ll need to find a way to rediscover some swag.
Propers: With the playoffs underway in the International League, Quirk Benoit of the Hartford Whalers, delivered a complete game, 6-hit, shutout against the Sacramento Kings in game 1 of their 3-game wildcard series. Hartford wins it 4-0 and gets a good offensive effort from 3B Arlen Braun who went 2 for 4 with 2 runs and an RBI. His first of the two hits was a solo homer in the 3rd inning with 2 outs on the board.
We have mathematically secured our spot at the dance – so, that’s cool, but also drop to 4th in the weekly power rank after our recent struggles. Green Bay, Chicago, and Montreal are all rated above us in the poll – in that order. I won’t mind if the La La’s don’t win it all – sure, it’d be disappointing – but I’ll be beside myself if Green Bay takes the crown. I hate them.