[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 3-3
Seasonal Record: 9-9 (5th, 4 GB)
Stars of the Week
Tom Taylor : 29 AB, 14 H, 1 HR, 5 RBI, .483 AVG, 1.121 OPS
John Kincaid : 26 AB, 12 H, 0 HR, 3 RBI, .462 AVG, 1.171 OPS
Lou Kelly : 26 AB, 11 H, 0 HR, 4 RBI, .423 AVG, .926 OPS

Weekly Schedule
4-29: Loss vs Sailors (12-4)
4-30: Loss vs Sailors (7-3)
5-1: Loss vs Sailors (12-1)
5-3: Win at Stars (10-4)
5-4: Win at Stars (10-2)
5-5: Win at Stars (8-5)

Summary
Almost the exact same outcome as last week, as we got swept and then proceeded to do the sweeping. The Sailors series was just a nightmare and the pitching was awful. If we took all our runs and combined them to one game, it's just enough to force extras on their worst offensive performance. We really seemed to wake up their struggling bats as they put up a pair of 12 runs showings. William Jones tossed a gem in the finale as he looks to get back on track for them and we just looked out of sorts the entire series. Luckily, after an off day and a trip to New York, the bats woke back up. We got 8 or more in each game with a pair of ten run performances to start the series. I'm hoping we can eventually get back on track, as there is nothing more boring then a consistent .500 week showing.

It's pretty clear the pitching had their struggles, but it was another strong outing for Dave Rankin. He went seven with 6 hits, 2 runs, 2 walks, and 4 strikeouts in his only start of the week. Dick Leudtke and Dick Lyons both made a pair of starts, a rough one against the Sailors and a good one against the Stars. Lyons pitched better in terms of run prevention, but he allowed 22 hits in 13.2 innings. He allowed 8 runs (7 earned), 2 walks, and struck out 4. Leudtke went 14.1 with 14 runs (10 earned), 4 walks, and 2 strikeouts. Unfortunately, Dick Sexton's start was terrible, and he won't make another this week. He allowed 8 hits and 7 runs with a walk and 3 strikeouts in just 3 innings. Hank Spencer won't replace him, allowing 12 hits, 9 runs, and 7 walks with just 1 strikeout in 9 innings out of the pen. It's likely to be George Johnson, who's allowed 5 hits and a run with a walk and 2 strikeouts in 3.2 innings on the season. There's a full slate of games on the dossier this week, him, Ranking, and Lyons are set up to make two starts a piece with Lyons getting one. Hank Spencer has one more week to get his stuff together or he'll find his way down to Milwaukee.

On the offensive side, most of the bats were working. For the week, John Kincaid, Tom Taylor, Bill Ashbaugh, and Russ Combs all had OPS+ above 150 while Lou Kelly and Doc Love were both above 120. Taylor may have had the best week, slashing .483/.500/.621 with a homer, steal, 5 RBI's, and 8 runs scored. John Kincaid was comparable, batting .462/.517/.654. The Ashbaugh/Combs duo went 10-for-29 with a homer, 6 RBI's, and 5 runs scored. It wasn't all great, however, as Mike Taylor, Joe Masters, and Pete Asher had really tough weeks. The trio went 13-for-63, although Taylor homered and Masters drove in five.

Looking ahead, we continue on the road to Montreal. The Saints are 10-9 and sit a half game ahead of us. They've been really streaky, winning their first six and losing their last six on the season. Montreal is a pitcher's paradise, but ace George Thomas has had some issues atop of the rotation while still being their most productive arm. All five starters have below average ERA+, including rookie Augie Bertrand who I took in last year's Rule-5 Draft and released before Opening Day. They have a decent outfielder, with former Cougar Bobby Sprague, defensive superstar Pablo Reyes, and the bat first power/speed marvel Jim Watson. The lineup is pretty good, as it also includes young star infielder Hank Barnett and Vic Crawford. After that we'll see the last place Cannons for four in Baltimore. They're expected to finish towards the bottom, but have a nice 3-4 of Abel Man and former Cougar 3rd Rounder Jim Mason. Rookie and former 11th Overall Pick Ray Barnes is having a nice start atop the order, but the rest of the lineup has really struggled. The pitching isn't much better, although 1924 10th Overall Pick Dutch Leverett has looked good in a small sample. I think we can pull off a 5-2 this week, but I'm at least hoping for a winning sim.

Minor League Report
LF Nat Doane (C La Crosse Lions): Very few players have gotten off to a quicker start to the season then Nat Doane. The 1933 10th Rounder is hitting .472/.491/.736 (188 OPS+) with 3 homers, 2 steals, and 15 RBI's in just 55 trips to the plate. An outfielder by trade, he's been getting reps at first to keep his bat in the lineup as I wanted to try Melvin Salazar out in center over Dave Haight (looks like a corner outfielder) which means I needed to move Doane to a new spot.

C James Demastus (C La Corsse Lions): In 1930 I made the mistake of selecting the most obvious bust James Demastus in the first round. After two seasons in Class B, he just couldn't take it and is down to La Crosse at 23. But, now back at catcher, the bat decided to wake up this week. He went 16-for-23 with 4 homers and 14 RBI's in an absurdly impressive week that earned him UMVA Player of the Week. Demastus may never get above A ball and a week like this may never happen again, but back when I drafted him I thought he'd be doing this in the majors (or at least AAA), not still in the lowest level of our system.