[pauwoo]

Philadelphia 76ers (71-59) @ Miami United (64-66, .492, 4th NL East)
After an 11-15 month in July, it seemed like the light at the end of the tunnel was moving further away with each loss… in August, where we have gone 11-11 so far, it’s like we’re walking on a moving sidewalk that is going in the wrong direction, a hamster on its wheel, where the light at the end of the tunnel is dimming, flickering like we’re in the midst of a thunderstorm. The 2079 season has not gone completely dark on us yet, but it’s getting there… and when you factor in that, after coming off an 8-game road trip, we will return home to face the Philadelphia 76ers it’s easy to feel like the end is, most assuredly, nigh. After their rip-roaring tricentennial campaign and the fire sale that followed, it would have been easy to dismiss the 76ers during the pre-season – they were, even with Palmer Parker on the roster, at least a year or two away from serious contention… but, that was then, and this is now. After a 15-10 July the 76ers started to take on the look of a serious ballclub, and, now that they’ve started off August on a 15-9 run, there are whispers that they may overtake the Pittsburgh Steelers to win the NL East. So, with the end of our runway rapidly approaching and our inability to get our Cessna up to speed, we are left with an opportunity to play the spoiler here – we can’t stop the 76ers, but we can make the road they have left to travel a bit bumpier and put their suspension to the test.

131 of 162: Jimmy Garcia (5-5, 3.98) @ Rad Taylor (4-3, 4.05)
Win, 5-0. Project ruin everything for Philly is off to a rip-roaring start. Rad Taylor gave us a 4-hit, complete-game shutout where he fanned only 2 batters and walked none, and OH HONG, back from his injury-induced sabbatical went 4 for 4 with 2 RBIs and a run in his return to action. Kyle Weaver went 2 for 3 with a double, an RBI, a run, and a walk, we hit three doubles, a SAC FLY, and even saw Anaconda steal a base. Oh Hong, while fierce at the plate, did commit his 6th error of the season at 1st… and, Rad Taylor, who has gone 2-2 in his last 5 starts, put his second CG and first CG shutout on the books in this one. After 5 seasons spent toiling in the minors, it’s starting to look like his time has come.

Elsewhere: SP Ferdinand Loving, of the Toronto Reds BC, pitched a 4-hit, complete-game shutout with 10 K’s over the New York Jets. Toronto won the game by a score of 2-0 and now find themselves only 5 ½ games off the Chicago Fire’s pace in the AL East. SP Abe Meinecke hurled a 5-hit, complete-game shutout for the Houston Dynamo in an 8-0 win over the Minnesota North Stars. Abe is now 9-12 with a 3.20 ERA for the floundering Houston-based ball club. SP Cassidy Town, currently plying his trade in the IL with the Calgary Flames, pitched a 4-hit, complete-game shutout against the Sacramento Kings. With the 4-0 win, the Calgary Flames improve to 65-63 on the season and Cassidy improves to a 16-8 record with a 2.61 ERA. And, lastly, the Continental League playoffs start tomorrow – the Barbados Tridents, unfortunately, did not make the cut.

132 of 162: Vin Uhlman (10-11, 5.79) @ Murray Wagner (6-6, 3.58)
Loss, 5-0. Philly picked themselves off the canvas in this one, caught us with a counter left hand, and put a bad one on us. They got a balanced contribution from their lineup today – 3B Jason Spears, 2B Cody Keenan, and LF Palmer Parker each contributed an RBI in the win. Murray got shelled early in this one – 3 innings, 9 hits, 5 earned, and 2 walks… and, Oh Hong committed his 7th error for the season and 2nd in as many days. Philly recorded a team shutout here with starter Vin Uhlman going 4.1 innings while RP Tim Gage lasted the other 4.2 innings.

Elsewhere: SP T-Rex Stiles, lead Timbales player on the Beuna Vista Social Club in Havana, gave the Sugar Kings an 8.1 inning, 7 hit, 0 earned, 0 walk, and 8 K performance. His effort had what the locals call verve. The Toronto Reds BC have made it official: Eric Harter is headed to the injured list. The 26-year-old first baseman has been out since 08/25/2079 with bone marrow edema in his wrist. He is expected to miss 5-6 weeks. According to the internet, ”A bone marrow edema — often referred to as bone marrow lesion — occurs when fluid builds up in the bone marrow. Bone marrow edema is typically a response to an injury such as a fracture or conditions such as osteoarthritis”. That sounds delightful…

133 of 162: Logan Maldonado (13-6, 3.15) @ Kordell Littles (8-10)
Win, 8-0. Annnnnnndd, we’re back! Kordell picked up where Rad left off in a 4-hit, complete-game shutout where he fanned 13 batters, Homer went 2 for 4 with TWO NAMESAKES, 5 RBIs, and 2 runs, and Donavan Taylor hit a 2-run moonshot in the bottom of the 7th to put this one way out of reach for Palmer Parker & the Cheesesteaks… a double, a homer, 2 stolen bases, and 3, 2-out RBIs for the club today. Also, Oh Hong did not commit an error today – your boy is slowly getting his sexy back.

Elsewhere: SS Hamza McDonnell went 4 for 4 with a HR, 2 RBIs, 3 runs, and a walk in Toronto’s 9-5 loss against the New York Jets – he did his level best to make up for the loss of Eric Harter in this one, but his teammates just couldn’t be bothered to join in the fray. SP Hank Wilson, of the Charleston Shiners, pitched a 2-hit, complete-game shutout with 6 K’s in a 4-0 win over the Inglewood Sentinels. Charleston now has a commanding 2-0 series lead in the 1st round of the CL playoffs. Also, 3B George Thomson, of the Winnipeg Jets, went 3 for 4 with a double, a dinger, 3 RBIs, and 2 runs in his clubs 8-2 win over the Amarillo Armadillos. Say that three times fast… do it. With the road victory, Winnipeg now has an early 1-0 lead in their 5-game series. Angry Eloy Delando hit his 32nd DING DONG of the year for his Mississippi Hound Dogs – the league-leading blast came during an 11-10 loss in Coney Island to the Footlongs. With this hard-fought series victory against the 76ers we’ve put ½ games worth of distance between ourselves and Brooklyn and are now just 2 ½ games behind STL. Philly managed to move even closer to Pittsburgh – they are now just a single game away from overtaking the Steelers to top the NL East table.

Roster Expansion: We’re calling SP Funky Martin, SP Orlando Vasquez, 2B Early Felger, and 1B Magee Ives (who got sent back down upon OH HONG’s return) up to the big club. We’re calling up other guys as well – but these are the guys that I see making the big club one day. Well, maybe not Magee – I’ll probably trade his for some low-key prospects in the offseason.