[Westheim]

Raccoons (61-49) @ Loggers (39-72) – August 10-13, 2048

The Raccoons were into Milwaukee next, where the Loggers were dwelling in last place. Well, it’s the Loggers. Nothing to see here. They were 11th in runs scored and runs allowed in the CL, with a ghastly -142 run differential. And yet we were only 6-5 against them this year. They had only one significant injury, closer Caleb Martin.

Projected matchups:
Jeremy Baker (7-4, 3.44 ERA) vs. Victor Padilla (7-13, 5.80 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (9-4, 3.67 ERA) vs. Noah Hollis (5-7, 4.62 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (4-1, 2.83 ERA) vs. Matsuichi Yazawa (0-0)
Victor Merino (9-8, 3.95 ERA) vs. John Morrill (4-15, 4.93 ERA)

Everybody’s gonna get a turn, even Yazawa, a 34-year-old right-hander with 21 major league appearances in the last three seasons, and only two of them starts – and for the Loggers of course. Padilla was the only southpaw here.

Game 1
POR: SS Adame – CF A. Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – LF Watt – C Wilson – P Baker
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – 2B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C Jo. Davis – 1B Napoles – 3B Kohr – P V. Padilla

The recent Raccoons tradition to fall behind early continued with Baker, who nicked Brent Allen to begin his day, and then gave up two runs on hits by Zach Suggs, Pat Lovell, and Bill Reeves before Josh Davis found Waters for a double play to end the bottom 1st. Two more scored in the third inning, which Suggs opened with another single, which, I found, sugged. Pat Lovell whacked an RBI double over Herrera, advanced on Reeves’ grounout, then scored on a wild pitch, because, y’know, why not. While Baker had the living crap beat out of him by THE LOGGERS, the Raccoons coyly hit into double plays in all of the first (Herrera), second (Toohey), and fourth (Preble) innings, killing any and all chance for a comeback way early, every time. Why no double play in the third? Padilla was 1-2-3 in that one. Waters hit a leadoff double to center in the fifth and scored on two not-entirely-pathetic outs to get the team on the board, but of course we were still down 4-1 with that. The Loggers countered immediately, scoring a run when Allen was drilled by Baker *again*, a Ricky Espinoza single sent him to third, and Lovell cashed the runner with a sac fly to Matt Watt. Baker was stuffed for another pair in the bottom 6th before and after getting yanked for Preston Porter, in a slump himself and surrendering the second run on a 2-out single by Allen, before giving up another run on three singles in the bottom 7th. Top 8th, the Raccoons had the bases loaded with no outs after singles by Watt and Wilson, and a walk drawn by Ruben Gonzalez, which of course also led nowhere nice. Adame struck out, Herrera hit a sac fly, and Maldo’s fly to right ended up with Lovell quite easily. 8-2 Loggers. Waters 3-4, 2 2B; Wilson 2-3;

Game 2
POR: SS Adame – CF Watt – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – P Wheatley
MIL: CF Allen – LF Reeves – RF Lovell – SS R. Espinoza – 1B E. Hernandez – 3B Napoles – C T. Sanchez – 2B Kohr – P Yazawa

With Yazawa moved up by a day for his first appearance of the year, the Raccoons hoped for an offensive outburst, but got Adame and Maldo to the corners in the first before Mike Preble killed the inning with a double play. Allen hit a leadoff single at 1-2 for Milwaukee in the bottom 1st, but also ended the inning in a strike-‘em-out-throw-‘em-out double play with Lovell. Portland then scored two in the top 2nd with singles from Waters and Gurney, a successful double steal that definitely didn’t exploit the elderly, and a Robinson sac fly and Gonzalez RBI groundout to get in the runners. Wheats even singled with two outs, but there were no further laurels to be earned from that. The inning after, Pat Gurney doubled home Preble and Waters, all with two outs, while Wheats was about to face the minimum the first time through until he served up a double to Yazawa, of course. Allen grounded out to strand the runner…

Ruben Gonzalez upped the score to 5-0 with a homer in the fifth before Wheats had his own meltdown the same inning. Singles by Ernesto Hernandez and Alfredo Napoles, a walk to Jason Kohr, then a pinch-hit 2-run double by Zach Suggs got the Loggers on the board, and Allen brought in another run with a groundout, bringing the score all the way back to 5-3. The sixth was uneventful, while the seventh began with Watt and Maldo singles off Kyle McRay to go to the corners. Preble hit a drive at 3-1 that was nevertheless intercepted by Reeves, but was good enough to get home Watt with a sac fly. Maldo was stranded altogether after that. Wheats lasted seven, after which Bob Ibold did his best to blow the game, but with Allen and Reeves aboard and two outs, Watt ran down a nasty Espinoza drive to end the inning. Loggers reliever Angelo Munoz then loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth, allowing singles to Maldo and Preble, then a walk to Waters. Another right-hander appeared in Miguel Herrera, he of a 9.96 ERA, but Gurney grounded out to strand everybody. At least Moreno ended the game in 10 pitches and without a base runner in the bottom of the ninth. 6-3 Raccoons. Adame 2-5; Maldonado 2-4; Preble 2-4, RBI; Waters 1-2, 3 BB; Gurney 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI; Gonzalez 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; Wheatley 7.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, W (10-4) and 1-2;

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF A. Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – RF Toohey – C Gonzalez – LF Watt – P Wolinsky
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – 2B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C Jo. Davis – 1B Napoles – 3B M. Grant – P Hollis

Another day with the Coons, another early deficit. Brent Allen hit a double to open the Wolinsky pinata, then scored on two groundouts in the first, and drew a walk in the third inning before coming around on Zach Suggs’ homer to left that made it 3-0 rather quickly. The Coons had three hits and two double plays (…!) off Hollis in five innings, and didn’t get remotely close to scoring a run themselves.

Wolinsky did not allow any more runs in the middle innings, but that didn’t mean that he was good, or that the Raccoons rallied him off the hook. Maldo hit a sac fly to bring in Adame and his leadoff double in the sixth, but when Toohey and Gonzalez opened the seventh with scratch singles to put the tying runs on base, Watt – slumping hard – hit into a 6-4-3 double play. Boys, the double plays are getting old…! Chris Robinson pinch-hit for Wolinsky and singled home the run, but that was only a 3-2 score then, and Adame flew out to end the inning.

Somehow, Wolinsky came off the hook after all. The eighth saw a parade of relievers once Hollis put Herrera on with a leadoff single. Munoz advanced him with a wild pitch, and Bubba Poss conceded the tying run with two outs on a Gurney single to center. Gurney zoomed up to second on Allen’s throw to home plate, but Toohey grounded out to Suggs to end the inning. Reeves doubled off Lynn in the bottom 8th, but Porter got Toohey to throw himself into a screaming liner by Josh Davis and somehow hold on to the baseball to keep the game tied at three. It didn’t feel like a W would be in the cards, and while Gonzalez opened the ninth with a single off Herrera, but was first forced out by Watt, and then Preble pinch-hit the Coons out of the inning with yet another ******* double play. Extras where upon us when the Loggers didn’t get past a 2-out single by Jason Kohr against Joy-shan Kuo, either.

Maldo and Waters reached the corners with a walk and single off Herrera, respectively, but that was with two outs already and Gurney reliably found Ricky Espinoza to ground out to, killing the 10th. Bob Ibold held on, and the 11th brought a new pitcher in righty Taylor Joachim with an ERA north of 10, and Coons on the corners again, and this time with nobody out after Toohey doubled and Gonzalez singled. We *barely* scratched out the go-ahead run; Al Martell hit for Watt and whiffed, but Baskins managed a sac fly to left when hitting for Ibold. Bottom 11th, Nelson Moreno got Reeves to ground out to Adame, and Davis to ground out to Martell at third base (Maldo had gone over to first). Jack Barrington struck out to end the game. 4-3 Critters. Waters 2-4, BB; Toohey 3-5, 2B; Gonzalez 3-5; Robinson (PH) 1-1, RBI;

First W for Bob Ibold since May; normally he’s the expert at snatching odd wins in relief as his 19-6 career record will hint at.

Game 4
POR: LF Watt – CF A. Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – SS Martell – P Merino
MIL: 1B Napoles – SS Z. Suggs – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C Jo. Davis – CF McIntyre – 2B Barrington – 3B M. Grant – P Morrill

Morrill gave up but one hit in the first inning, yet that was a bases-clearing double by Chris Robinson, bringing in all the runner he had carelessly walked (Watt, Maldo) or nailed (Waters). Mike Grant took an initially wonky Merino deep in the bottom 3rd, but Maldo pulled the run back at the next opportunity, doubling home Merino with two outs in the fourth to extend the lead to 4-1 again. Merino then went on to load the bases in the bottom 5th, issuing two walks to Barrington and Alfredo Napoles, while Morrill singled, annoyingly. There were two outs for Suggs with the tying runs aboard, and he grounded out to Waters up the middle, which sugged for the Loggers.

Maldo made an error in the bottom 6th to put Lovell on base, but Reeves hit into a 6-4-3 right away. Maldo then reached base in the seventh when nicked by Morrill, after which Waters grounded to Barrington for two – … no, actually Barrington flubbed it for an error of his own, and the Coons had two on with one out. But trust in Chris Robinson – he found a double play grounder to make up for Barrington’s error.

After a shoddy start, Merino settled in by the middle innings and clicked off Loggers in quick succession. He wouldn’t go the distance, but he made it through eight innings after an extra-inning game the day before, expending 111 pitches in a 3-hit effort…! Adame batted for him, but struck out against Munoz, to begin the ninth. Preble then tripled for Watt and scored on a Herrera sac fly, taking off the save opportunity for now. The ball went to Bonnie, the only reliever who hadn’t pitched the day before, and Moreno got stretching after a 1-out walk to Reeves. The next batter ended the game though, with Josh Davis grounding to Waters for a 4-6-3 double play. 5-1 Raccoons. Watt 1-2, 2 BB; Robinson 1-4, 2B, 3 RBI; Preble (PH) 1-1, 3B; Merino 8.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, W (10-8) and 1-3;

Raccoons (64-50) @ Stars (70-45) – August 14-16, 2048

The penultimate regular-season interleague matchup for this year would be a rematch of the prior season’s World Series. The Stars had the better record, but trailed the Gold Sox by half a game on Friday morning, while the Raccoons were up 3 1/2 games in a shoddy CL North that was already 37 games under .500 and showed no signs of stopping any time soon. The Stars would be a tough challenge, though, leading the league in runs scored (5.3 per game) and hitting a whopping .294 as a team. On the other paw, their pitching was porous, allowing the eighth-most runs. That still made for a +116 run differential (Critters: +40). We had beaten them in five in the 2047 World Series, but enough for the victory laps – the regular season meeting last year went in the Stars’ favor, two to one.

Nothing like winning the ones that count, though…! (stupid grin)

Projected matchups:
Jake Jackson (5-11, 4.02 ERA) vs. Adam Middleton (9-5, 4.17 ERA)
Jeremy Baker (7-5, 3.85 ERA) vs. Dave Hils (13-6, 2.95 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (10-4, 3.68 ERA) vs. Arthur Pickett (11-4, 3.51 ERA)

Nothing but right-handers to see here.

Game 1
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 1B Gurney – CF Herrera – 2B Martell – C Wilson – P Jackson
DAL: LF O. Gonzalez – SS Villacorta – CF del Toro – RF Cecil – 1B D. Martinez – 2B Sedillo – 3B Haney – C Rollin – P Middleton

Jake Jackson continued to come apart, throwing 36 pitches in the bottom 1st, none of them great. He offered up three walks and surrendered a run on a Leo Villacorta hit to center, but the Stars left the bases loaded. The second was better, but the third was just the same crap, with three walks (one intentional though) and an RBI single for Tylor Cecil somewhere in the middle, which gave Cecil 103 RBI in the middle of August. Again the Stars left the bags full, this time with a K to Middleton. But Jackson was obviously not gonna be long for this game, and was done after five completely awful innings, though without giving up another run. Much the contrary, he got the Coons on the board with a sac fly in the fifth, bringing home Al Martell after back-to-back singles by Martell and Wilson. Apart from that, the Raccoons were utterly harmless in the early going, but somehow still managed to tie up the game in the sixth. Adame singled to right to begin the inning, went to second on Maldo’s groundout, and scored on a soft single to left slapped by Mike Preble. Whatever works…!

So Jackson didn’t get the loss when he really deserved it, but maybe Bonnie could. He came in to pitch the sixth in a double switch, gave up a leadoff single to the ******* opposing pitcher, and after an Omar Gonzalez groundout advanced Middleton to second base, the go-ahead run on another Villacorta RBI single. Derek Baskins was also in the game for about three minutes there, entering in a double switch with Bonnie, and exiting after feeling a twinge in his shoulder after throwing home on the Villacorta single. He was in turn replaced by Bryce Toohey in left, with Watt in center and the pitcher in the #6 hole. Toohey hit a single with two outs in the seventh and had his bum moved to second when Watt walked, but also had it stranded there when Adame flew out. Preble was the tying run at second in the top 8th, but was also stranded. The tying run reached second base again in the ninth with a 1-out double to left off Jeff Wilson’s stick. Dale Mrazek got a groundout from Toohey that kept Wilson at second, then walked Watt. Adame grounded up the middle, the ball got past Villacorta, and the Coons tied the game with two outs, getting Wilson around to score on the play…! And with a Maldo single to right on a 2-2 pitch, they took the lead…! Preble made it 3-or-3 in 2-out RBI singles, poking a 1-2 pitch to shallow center, which killed Mrazek and brought on another righty in Ryan Porter (no relation to Preston Porter), who rung up Gurney to end the inning. The Coons still had Joy-shan Kuo in the game after he had pitched the eighth on nine pitches, and would leave him in to begin the bottom 9th against the death of pitchers, Tylor Cecil, who grounded out on the first pitch. Then we went to Moreno, and depressingly he loaded the bases with a Ryan Lorensen double and walks issued to Mark Haney and Govaart van Eijk. PH Alvin Zuazo singled to left-center to re-tie the game, and only a K to Gonzalez sent us to extra innings in a very unhappy mood.

Chris Robinson hit for Moreno and singled to begin the 10th, but the inning led nowhere. Mike Lynn was out in the bottom 10th, allowed two singles, but not the game to end. Top 11th, Adame singled off former Logger Alex Banderas in his second inning of work, decided he had stuff to watch in his Flickerbox account that night and no more time for baseball, and stole second base. That didn’t immediately lead anywhere, as Maldo flew out easily and Preble walked, but Gurney came through again with an RBI single to right, giving Portland another lead. Gonzalez batted for Lynn as the last bat off the bench and broke the game wide open with a 3-run homer to left! He was not the only catcher to go yard in that inning, with Jeff Wilson following up a Martell single off Daniel Hernandez with a homer of his own! Preston Porter (no relation to Ryan Porter) would put the game away without blowing the 6-run lead. 11-5 Raccoons. Adame 3-6, BB, RBI; Maldonado 2-6, RBI; Preble 3-5, BB, 2 RBI; Gonzalez (PH) 1-1, HR, 3 RBI; Martell 2-6; Wilson 5-6, HR, 2B, 2 RBI;

Well, well, Jeff Wilson had himself quite a day there! He was now hitting .550 for the Coons since being acquired at the deadline.

So the Coons won that game, but lost Derek Baskins to shoulder tendinitis. He was off to the DL, and Matt Glodowski was called up once more.

Game 2
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Toohey – C R. Gonzalez – 1B Wilson – P Baker
DAL: LF O. Gonzalez – SS Villacorta – CF del Toro – RF Cecil – 2B Sedillo – 3B Haney – 1B van Eijk – C Rollin – P Hils

For the first time in an eternity, the Raccoons faced a righty pitcher without a true left-handed batter after Jeff Wilson won himself an extra start, though they still had the two switch-hitters in there. Wilson struck out however with Toohey and Ruben Gonzalez aboard to end the top 2nd. Omar Gonzalez struck out with the bases loaded against Baker in the bottom 2nd, leaving those guys on the roadside, so we were about even in terms of futility early on. The futile poking continued intermittently, neither team scoring through six innings, with four hits for the Stars, plus three walks, and three hits and one walk for the Critters. Then came the top 7th, and the Raccoons put Preble on with a leadoff double, Toohey walked, and Gonzalez hurried out an infield single. One pitch later, the dream was over, with Jeff Wilson’s 6-4-3 grounder ending the inning.

Baker completed seven shutout innings, but was hit for to begin the eighth, Watt hitting a single in his spot. Watt was then also doubled off by Herrera, as I slowly went insane from all the double plays. Instead, singles by Jamie King, Dario Martinez, and van Eijk gave the Stars a 1-0 lead against Ibold in the bottom 8th. Was another ninth-inning comeback in the cards? Hils was still pitching on a 5-hitter, got Maldo to ground out, then had to see King fumble a Preble grounder for an error. Then he walked Waters to push the tying run to scoring position. But, alas, the Coons… Toohey flew out to left. Gonzalez grounded out to third. 1-0 Stars. Gonzalez 2-4; Watt (PH) 1-1; Baker 7.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K;

Arf.

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Gurney – C R. Gonzalez – P Wheatley
DAL: LF O. Gonzalez – SS Villacorta – CF del Toro – RF Cecil – 1B D. Martinez – 2B Sedillo – 3B Haney – C Rollin – P Pickett

Armando Herrera hit a solo jack in the first, but Wheats gave it back in the bottom 2nd, allowing singles to Tylor Cecil, Mario Sedillo, and Dan Rollin, the last of the three driving home the first with two outs. The Stars had an interesting approach to Ruben Gonzalez, who was not walked intentionally with Robinson on second and two outs in the top 2nd, and struck out, but was intentionally walked in the fourth with Robinson and Gurney both in scoring position. Wheats struck out to strand them all. Instead, Rollin gave Dallas the 2-1 lead with a sac fly after back-to-back singles by Sedillo and Mark Haney had put runners on the corners in the bottom 4th, with Wheats not being all that sharp in this Sunday rubber game…

The Coons flipped it around in the top 5th, though, and without making an out, let alone two at once. Adame and Herrera both reached, pulled off a double steal, and both came around on a clean-as-a-whistle single to right by Maldonado… who was then caught stealing, but it was 3-2 Coons… at least until Wheats got paws on that again. He got ticked for another three hits, including leadoff singles by Juan del Toro and Tylor Cecil, and came apart for the score-flipping runs in the bottom 6th, eventually leaving on a 4-3 hook.

Adame led off the seventh with an infield single, but also limped north of first base, which made me slightly nauseous. Dr. Padilla retrieved him from the game, with Glodowski pinch-running. Glodowski stood and watched in awe as the Raccoons struck out, struck out, and … flew out to center to strand him. Waters was on to begin the eighth and stranded just the same, and the tying run reached once more in the ninth with Mrazek’s 1-out walk to Herrera. Maldo grounded to second for a fielder’s choice, and Preble flew out to del Toro. 4-3 Stars. Adame 2-3, BB; Herrera 2-4, BB, HR, RBI; Robinson 1-2, BB;

In other news

August 11 – Richmond LF/RF Pablo Gonzalez (.355, 8 HR, 22 RBI) whacks five hits, including three doubles, and drives in two runs in a 14-6 whacking of the Blue Sox.
August 13 – OCT OF Juan Benavides (.274, 6 HR, 21 RBI) drives in five on two home runs in a 12-0 rout of the Aces.
August 13 – The Blue Sox take the Rebels to extra innings before being really fed up with them and emptying a sixpack of runs on them, taking a 9-3 win in 10 innings.
August 14 – PIT 1B/2B Mario Briones (.280, 9 HR, 78 RBI) is out for the season after being diagnosed with a tear in an abdominal muscle.
August 14 – Every player in the Crusaders lineup gets a hit, and all but one get a run and an RBI in a 13-3 thrashing of the Gold Sox. NYC SP Jim White (10-10, 3.33 ERA) somehow also manages to lead the team with 3 RBI, all coming on a bases-clearing double.
August 15 – SFW SP Walt Wright (3-12, 4.63 ERA) is done for the year, having come down with shoulder soreness.

FL Player of the Week: RIC C Juan Jimenez (.268, 9 HR, 48 RBI), batting .632 (12-19) with 2 HR, 8 RBI
CL Player of the Week: SFB OF/1B Ken Crum (.295, 15 HR, 72 RBI), slugging .444 (12-27) with 3 HR, 10 RBI

Complaints and stuff

Ah, **** it, we’ll just beat the Stars in the World Series again then…! That’s resolved, boys – now make it happen!

4-3 week, not brilliant, but at least the Indians went 3-3 as well. The Titans and Elks are below .500 but they are not far enough behind to be entirely discarded by now. They both had enough games against the Coons left to zoom within 1 1/2 if they won those out.

Glodowski, who pinch-ran and went 0-1 on Sunday as the injury call-up for Baskins, might go right back to AAA to get up a backup shortstop now that Adame is out. Adame has a tweaked quad, and it’s not bad enough to send him to the DL, but he will surely miss at least the Rebels series to begin next week. He will go with the team to Elk City on the weekend, though.

Fun Fact: The extra-inning win over the Loggers on Wednesday was our 700th total win against them since the ABL began play.

That’s the most against any team – well, it’s the Loggers. The other CL North teams are obviously there to complete the top 5 in terms of wins against other teams:

Loggers – 701
Indians – 682
Crusaders – 668
Canadiens – 646
Titans – 639

The Loggers…!!