[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 2-4
Seasonal Record: 59-50 (4th, 4 GB)
Stars of the Week
Ray Ford : 26 AB, 13 H, 0 HR, 8 RBI, .500 AVG, 1.221 OPS
Leo Mitchell : 28 AB, 10 H, 0 HR, 1 RBI, .357 AVG, .786 OPS
Carlos Montes : 27 AB, 7 H, 0 HR, 3 RBI, .259 AVG, .693 OPS

Schedule
8-5: Loss vs Saints (4-1): 10 innings
8-7: Loss at Saints (3-12)
8-8: Loss at Saints (2-3)
8-9: Win at Kings (7-5)
8-10: Win at Kings (7-1)
8-11: Loss at Kings (1-2): 18 innings

Recap
Well this was a wasted opportunity... We had every chance to come within striking distance of the Wolves, but instead, we decided to let the Saints sweep us as we fell back to 4th. For one reason or another, we couldn't score on arguably the worst pitching staff in our league, just an average of two runs in each game. Thankfully, we managed 7 in the first two with the Kings before dropping our second one run game of the week. I was really hoping that we could have made continued to make up ground. Luckily we'll get a pair of players back soon, with Freddie Jones and Billy Hunter starting rehab assignments. Since I want Hunter getting more time at second, that will mean Freddie Jones will try out a first base glove. Hunter's stay should be only a week, but I expect Jones to get a least two weeks if not more, as he hasn't played in over two months. Next week Hunter will replace Dick Earl, and then Jones will eventually replace Bobby Mills. Earl did make his debut, 0-for-2 with a walk in 3 separate pinch hit appearances. Walker Pearce also made his debut, a start for the Gothams, but he was hit hard. The soon-to-be 26-year-old allowed 8 hits, 7 runs, and 5 walks with a single strikeout in five and a third. That makes it 20 members of the 1932 draft class to debut, and sure, I inflated it with Earl, but I'd like to think this is the first team class to debut 20 players!

Ray Ford had a much needed good week, hitting an even 13-for-26 to pick up a Player of the Week. He drove in 8 with 2 doubles and a triple. His season line was getting close to dipping under an average mark, but his season line is now back up to .290/.350/.413 (110 OPS+), but his homers (8) and RBIs (56) are a bit down. If we fall just short, a down season from Ford could end up the nail in the coffin, but there is still time for the 29-year-old to return to his normal production. Unlucky for us, the only player to have an average or better week and more then 5 PAs was Leo Mitchell. He was 10-for-28 with 2 doubles, 4 runs, an RBI and of course, five more strikeouts. His 88 are most in the CA (although three Fed hitters have more then 100), but he's at an 124 pace which would be a new career high for him. I'll never understand how he can maintain a BABIP over .380 for basically five seasons, but that's what Mitchell has done! John Lawson now no longer holds the CA batting lead, as his 5-for-23 week dropped him to .355, a point below Dave Trowbridge. Lawson did double twice, walked seven times, and scored four times, and was arguably better then all our bats other then Ford and Mitchell last week, so even in his bad weeks he still finds a way to be useful. We need much more help from our offense this coming week, because if we don't, we're going to keep falling in the standings.

Pete Papenfus managed to pitch in both of our extra inning losses, but only one was charged to him. The first he went all ten with 10 hits, 4 runs, 5 walks, and 7 strikeouts. Of course, even with 170 pitches in that one and his ability to consistently pass 150, he did not pitch all 18 against the Kings. He deserved a win, 11 innings with 5 hits, a run, 8 walks, and 7 strikeouts. Dick Lyons had a rare misstep, 13 hits, 8 runs, 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts in 7 shaky innings. Milt Fritz did the same, and while not as poor, he allowed 10 hits, 5 runs, and 4 walks with 2 strikeouts in a complete game loss. Harry Parker, however, tossed a gem, 8 hits, a run, a walk, and 3 strikeouts in a complete game win. Jim Lonardo dropped his ERA below 4, going 8 with 6 hits, 2 runs, 3 walks, and a strikeout. Pug Bryan allowed a run, well, four, in his six consecutives outing, charged with 4 hits and 2 walks in a single inning. Rusty Watts and Joe Brown both allowed a run in 3 innings, and picked up a loss, but Brown's run was unearned. Rusty added a walk and strikeout in the 18 inning extravaganza.

Looking Ahead
Off to start the week, and we'll head home to prep for a three game set with the Stars. New York is on a nice little hot streak, and is now 59-48. They sit three games out of first in third place, and have won 13 of their last 16. It's time for us to change that, but their rotation has been outstanding so it will be a very tough challenge. Lou Robertson may have allowed 4 runs in each of his last three starts, but the red hot rookie is 7-2 with a 2.34 ERA (166 ERA+), 1.26 WHIP, 30 walks, and 32 strikeouts on the season. Ahead of him our three 9-loss pitchers, with their ERA's inverse of their wins. Chuck Cole has the best ERA, 3.06 (127 ERA+), but the fewest wins with 9. He has a 1.22 WHIP, 48 walks, and 65 strikeouts in a nice comeback year for the Stars. George Phillips leads the staff, 12-9 with a 3.17 ERA (122 ERA), 1.38 WHIP, 66 walks, and 80 strikeouts. Billy Riley has had a somewhat similar season, 13-9 with a 3.58 ERA (108 ERA+), 1.40 WHIP, 74 walks, and 89 strikeouts. It will be tough to score off them, and tough to keep them off the scoreboard as well. Dave Trowbridge leads the CA batting title, slashing .356/.415/.501 (146 OPS+) and just celebrated his 42nd birthday on the 8th. He hasn't drove in many runs, just 39, but he has 32 doubles and 7 homers in yet another outstanding year at the plate. Ahead of him hits Chink Stickels, as the former Cougar farmhand is hitting .296/.360/.483 (126 OPS+) with 22 doubles, 17 triples, 8 homers, 7 steals, and 78 RBIs. Behind Trowbridge is Bill Barrett, who's slashing a superb .319/.378/.484 (131 OPS+) with 22 doubles, 9 triples, 8 homers, and 66 RBIs. And if that wasn't enough to scare most staffs, the top 7 in their lineup have OPS+ above 90, with just leadoff man Joe Angevine (94) below 100. It's going to be a tough series, but considering we played bad in the supposedly easy series, maybe we'll play well in the tough series!

We finish the week with an annoying series, a single game against the Kings, followed by a double header after and before an off day. We did take two of three from the now 56-52 Kings in Brooklyn, so I'm hoping it will be more of the same in Chicago. The Kings have done a lot of shuffling with their lineup, and now have Frank LeMieux back at the hot corner. In his 216 trips to the plate he's hit an impressive .337/.375/.495 (130 OPS+) with 18 doubles, a triple, 4 homers, and 29 RBIs. Harry Barrell is having a bit of a rough season with the bat, hitting just .273/.314/.354 (78 OPS+) with 27 doubles, 3 triples, and 36 RBIs. Same for brother Fred, who's .238/.308/.298 (62 OPS+) line leaves a lot to be desired. On the mound, Bob Cummings has hit a really rough patch, 8 runs against the Foresters and 7 against us in his last two starts. This dropped him to 9-11 with a 4.01 ERA (98 ERA+), 1.39 WHIP, 81 walks, and 66 strikeouts. Interesting enough, former Cougar World Champion Jim Crawford has filled up the 5 spot, and has done a good job as well. He's 3-0 with a 3.59 ERA (110 ERA+), 1.43 WHIP, 14 walks, and 13 strikeouts in 5 starts and a relief outing. I do feel like Brooklyn has been pretty lucky, as their Pythagorean is a reverse of their record at 52-56, and I like our chances in this series. This could be a big week for us, but it's been a tough season and nothing will come easy.

Minor League Report
RF Chick Browning (AA Mobile Commodores): He's taken his lumps in AA, but this may have been the week needed to push lefty Chick Browning to the next level. The former 8th Rounder from the Windy City was 10-for-19 with a homer and 6 RBIs as he came home with the Dixie League Player of the Week. For most it's a solid line, but his .289/.395/.419 (107 OPS+) line looks almost disappointing for the guy who twice slugged over .700 in over 100 PAs at La Crosse and San Jose. The power is a bit down, just 5 homers and 38 RBIs, and he's three homers away from double digits overall. He does have 19 doubles and 49 walks with just 20 strikeouts, but the Commodores' comedian has been a bit challenged by the older pitchers. Browning does have a great feel for the strike zone, as demonstrated by his high OBP and low K-rate, but I want to see more power from the corner outfielder. He'll never play much defense, and some pop can really work wonders for his big league future. He has never and will never rank very highly as a prospect, but that's true for a lot of corner bats like himself. He'll need to do something to separate himself from the pack, and it's impossible for a guy with 20+ home run power to get ignored. I'm not saying Browning is that guy, although he did have 20 or more homers in each of the last two seasons, but a lot of batters see their power dry up as they advance up the ladder. Just ask Freddie Bennett, who homered 25 times as a 19-year-old with the Lions and has just 27 since. Browning has managed to rise past a few more interesting prospects, but his luck may run out soon, and he could be a AAAA type player the rest of the way.

SS Eddie Curtis (A Lincoln Legislators): I was a little worried I moved Eddie Cutis up from San Jose a bit early, but he's managed to perform well in 76 games with the Legislators. Sure, a 17-for-26 week definitely helped juice his season line, but the Heartland Player of the Week still has a more then respectable .309/.358/.382 (103 OPS+) batting line. The versatile infielder known best as "Slick Eddie" doesn't have much power, just a single homer this season after two last season, but he does have 8 doubles, 6 triples, 13 steals, and 25 RBIs in his 347 trips to the plate. These aren't the most encouraging numbers, but Curtis is a light hitter valued for his defensive ability, speed, and ability to put the ball in play. He rarely strikes out, just 14 times here and 7 in San Jose compared to 31 walks split between, and he does an outstanding job doing anything he can with tough pitches. He'll go opposite field if he needs to, finds away to hit it where they ain't, and when on the basepaths, he can wreck some havoc. All ideal skillsets for a bench player, but he actually checks in at the fringes of the prospect rankings. He's 45th of 48 and 448th of 500, and the 7th Rounder has done well to stick in the system four years after being drafted. OSA thinks he can force his way into a lineup, I think he'll need more then enough injuries, but I could see his versatility earning him an extended look with a struggling franchise looking to unearth a hidden gem with stellar work ethic.

RHP Newt Jackson (A Lincoln Legislators): Just when it looked like injuries derailed the career of our former 2nd Round Pick, Newt Jackson got a nice little rating boost, turning back to a projected starter and returning to the to 250. After spending most of the season in San Jose as a reliever, his last five appearances there were starts and he now has 8 with the Legislators. His most recent was easily the best, a 5-hit, 2 strikeout shutout as we beat the Cedar Rapids Chiefs 7-0. This snapped a four game losing streak and evened his record at 4-4. Jackson has an impressive 2.56 ERA (152 ERA+) and 0.96 WHIP with 9 walks and 19 strikeouts. A very influential member in the clubhouse, Newt has turned into a captain despite being just 22, and he does a great job working with and commanding his teammates. A plus for any player, that's exactly what you want from a potential stopper, and while I obviously want him to be more then that, I think that's where Jackson's future lies. Still, he's recently upped his velocity to 91-93, and his four pitch mix is very well developed. His best pitch is his cutter, but his slider, change, and splitter don't really look like anything more then average pitches. Regardless, his turnaround has made me very happy, as you have to see young pitchers ruined by major arm injuries. Just debuting now will be a huge accomplishment for him, as a torn UCL (even a partial like his) tends to spell disaster for most youngsters, and his leadership and draft pedigree should be able to secure that for him.

RHP Fred Thaxton (B San Jose Cougars): It's been a bit of an up and down season for our 7th Rounder this season, but in his fourth start with the Cougars, he tossed a wonderful 6-hit shutout and struck out 2 in a 6-0 win over Vancouver. It was his fourth of five starts with San Jose so far, and if you take out the first and last, he's allowed just 3 runs in 26 innings. The 21-year-old was one of the first in our class to crack the top 500 list, and now he ranks 42nd in our system and 434th overall. He's a pretty well developed young arm, and is now 3-2 with a 2.97 ERA (160 ERA+), 0.99 WHIP, 6 walks, and 12 strikeouts. He doesn't throw too hard, just 86-88 with his fastball and cutter, while his third offering is a changeup that will only get more effective with more velocity. He does have a little issues with command, and while his change is pretty outstanding, he'll have to either polish it or throw harder, and I feel like better command is an easier task to complete. Until he starts to throw more strikes, it will be tough for him to move up in the rotation, but he has a low floor and worst case ends up a productive inning eater.

RF Edmund Mann (B San Jose Cougars): It was a good week for 7th Rounders in San Jose, as while Thaxton tossed a shutout, last year's 7th Rounder Edmund Mann had a much needed 5-for-5 in what has been a tough sophomore season. The switch hitting teen is hitting just .251/.321/.345 (71 OPS+) with 16 doubles, 4 triples, 3 homers, 13 steals, and 37 RBIs. The hard worker actually hit much better last season, sporting an ever so slightly above average .289/.399/.343 (101 OPS+) in about 100 fewer trips to the plate. The natural centerfielder has spent most of his time in right, and has put up strong defensive numbers, recording a 4.3 zone rating and 1.051 efficiency in 520 innings. He's looked capable in center, actually owning a higher fielding percentage (.988 vs. 9.79) with a respectable 2.7 zone rating and 1.023 efficiency in just shy of 200 innings. I think he can end up in center, with OSA loving his range and Tom calling his defense big league ready, and with regional selection Bill Rich not having the most success in center, Mann may end up supplanting him before the season ends. He looks like the perfect leadoff hitter too, mixing great speed with an above average contact tool while also walking much more frequently then he strikes out. Still, it looks like his bat has a lot of developing to do, and unless he makes major strides, he'll end up as a 4th outfielder at best.