The two-time defending North Charles Association champions are off to a terrible start by their standards, currently tied for last place in the Institute League. At 8-12, they are four games back of the wildcard spot and six games back of first-place Concord. Can the Silver Shroud recover? Their history would say yes, but let's look at a few factors.
First of all, the injury bug has affected two 2300 playoff teams, The Slog and the Shroud.
As you can see, three key players are out, including the season-ending injury for 2B Mark Miller, a huge blow. 1B Jim Tiller will be back in a week, and Well Done Dungan will be back in late May. So, there is still some time to turn around their offense.
Looking at the team page and team stats, you will notice a few factors beyond just the injuries.
With the team currently 9th in runs scored, it will be tough to win games when there so far has been at least one guaranteed loss through the rotation. We'll get to that guaranteed loss later.
Looking at the lineup, you can also see several people starting the season with a below .200 average. 3B Micah Morals (.197/1/7), 1B Grognak Inman (.190/1/4), and SS Organizae Brown (.170/1/5) have been detrimental. LF Andrew Nuka (.212/4/8) is not hitting well, but he does lead the team in homers. Fort Hagen is actually not doing badly in power hitting; it's just the rest of the hitting statistics that look horrible. CF Ben Pawlak (.304/3/11) and RF David Driftwood (.315/3/9) are carrying the offense.
The Starters ERA (3.94, 5th) would look much better if it were not for the player we will feature below, Matt Hope (0-4, 8.84). Derek Green (1-1, 3.51) is not pitching great, certainly a lot better than he looked in the Sole Survivor Series, but nowhere near his 2300 regular season statistics. Brent Hooker (2-0, 2.88) has had the most success, and Mike Cartrette (0-2, 3.03) has pitched well without any run support. The bullpen has also been decent, though closer Curtis Thriceshot (5 SV, 1 BS, 7.27) has been rocked a couple of times, including this weekend in his first blown save where he allowed four earned runs in 2/3 innings.
The major concern has been Hope. Coming into this season, Hope was 26-13 in his first two seasons in Fort Hagen. Not only that, but he was the ace in Atom while being the fourth option with the Shroud. The scouting reports have not changed about him with no apparent ratings drops. He still struggles versus lefties, sporting a career-worst 12.71 currently (career = 5.44). The crazy part was that he is matching his 2296 numbers in ERA versus righties (7/11 with a career of 4.98).
If the 2301 Fort Hagen Silver Shroud want to turn things around, they may need to make a few moves. Considering unloading Hope may be at the top of that list. Of course, if they suffer more injuries, they can start getting ready for 2302 by the end of May. Either way, they may have no Hope.