[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 1-2
Seasonal Record: 54-33 (1st, 3.5 GA)
Stars of the Week
Leo Mitchell : 16 AB, 11 H, 0 HR, 2 RBI, .688 AVG, 1.472 OPS
Hank Barnett : 13 AB, 4 H, 1 HR, 4 RBI, .308 AVG, 1.067 OPS
Art White : 1 Win, 9.0 IP, 1 BB, 0 K, 2.00 ERA

Schedule
7-15: Loss at Kings (3-4): 10 innings
7-16: Win at Kings (3-2)
7-16: Loss at Kings (8-13)

Recap
Hey guys? Remember when we used to win games? Can we go back to that! Please...

Not even the All Star break could get us back on track, as we struggled in Brooklyn with the last place Kings. They took the opener in 10 and even though we did split the double header, the loss was really bad as we imploded in the double header. The Wolves won all four of their games hosting the Foresters, so our once insurmountable lead is just a mere 3.5 games, and for the first time in what seems like months, a bad week could actually take us out of first place. I can blame some of the rust on the All Star game, but we are starting to run out of excuses. It was a tight 1-0 game that Harry Parker was supposed to start, but he instead threw the 5th and 6th, striking out one and allowing a single. Leo Mitchell started in left and was 1-for-3. Hank Barnett started at third and was 1-for-2. Harry Mead started behind the plate and was 0-for-3. Skipper came off the bench and was 0-for-3. Art White and Ben Curtin didn't pitch.

Our class is now complete, with 13 of our selections ranking inside the leagues top 500. Despite that, our system now ranks 10th in the league, but we are closer to the 4th ranked system (-34) then the 11th (+36). Our last draftee, second rounder Tom Jovin signed, and he was named the 126th prospect in baseball. Not only did Jovin jump Jimmy Hairston in the prospect rankings, but also in the class level, as Jovin does not share a down arrow in San Jose. He'll start every day in right, and he could beat Hairston on a race to Chicago to replace Cliff Moss and Rich Langton. Him and Hairston are four points a part in the prospect rankings, but I expect Jovin's to far surpass the .179/.330/.397 (84 OPS+) line his Hairston hit in 68 games at La Crosse last year.

If there was a bright spot this week, it was Leo Mitcheall, who had two three hit games and one four hit game against the Kings. He doubled, walked twice, drove in two, and scored four times in a great series despite his teammates lack of production. That gave him a Player of the "Week" award, and while his performance truly was excellent, it wasn't really much of a week. He's hitting a tad below .400 at .397/.435/.526 (175 OPS+) with a league high 57 RBIs, but since Hal Reynolds homered off Mike Murphy in our 4-3 loss, he is now a homer behind the triple crown pace. Hank Barnett had a decent showing, 3-for-11 with 2 walks, 2 doubles, 2 runs, a homer, and 4 RBIs. Orlin Yates was healthy and surprisingly effective, 3-for-13 with a double, walk, homer, and 3 runs scored. That was enough to keep his job one more week, but to be fair, a +15.5 zone rating and 1.064 efficiency in center definitely helps. Billy Hunter made two starts, going 2-for-7 with a walk, double, and 2 RBIs while Cliff Moss made one and was 2-for-4 with a walk and three run homer. We didn't score nearly enough this week, but if it wasn't for two bad innings in the second game of the double header, we would have faired a whole lot better.

Those two innings were the fault of Ben Curtin and Ken Matson, as they blew a poor start from Harry Parker. Parker went just 6 with 10 hits, 5 runs (4 earned), 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts. Despite that, we led 8-5 when he left, and generally when Ben Curtin comes in we do well. I think Clyde went to him a bit early, as 3 innings was a lot to ask after 2 hitless frames the day before, and the 38-year-old All Star was not his usual self. He was charged with 5 hits, 5 runs, and a walk in an inning and a third. It was his 4th blown save and second loss of the season. Matson got the final two outs, but it came after 4 hits, 3 runs, and a walk. With our recent skid, I've started to shop around a bit, which [spoiler alert] means Matson may be on his way down to Milwaukee. He was doing well until a dreadful game against the Foresters, and the 26-year-old is now 4-6 with a save, 4.90 ERA (70 ERA+), 1.70 WHIP, 35 walks, and 34 strikeouts in 9 starts and 8 relief appearances.

Our rotation was all scrambled due to the All Star game, but there was really no reason Mike Murphy should have started game one, as Dick Lyons is higher in the rotation and was far more rested. Murphy wasn't bad, but I'm sure Lyons would have been a bit better, going 6 with 5 hits, 3 runs, 2 walks, and a strikeout. Art White had a very good start, picking up our only win of the week. He went the distance, allowing 5 hits, 2 runs, and a walk. Merritt Thomas had a rough inning plus, allowing 4 hits, a run, and 2 walks as the Kings walked us off in the 10th. We'll need to be much better back at home, but we get two days off to put this awful road trip behind us.

Looking Ahead
As surprising as it may sound, in just 14 July games, we have already tied our previous two months lost total, and unless we win the rest of our July games, we will have a new monthly high for losses. That road trip really took a lot out of us, as we dropped 13 of 17 road games, dropping our season road record from an impressive 23-7 to a still respectable 27-21. Thankfully the rest of the month will be played in Chicago, and we get a pair of off days so the squad can enjoy a ton of homecooked meals and a few slices of deep dish pizza. What sucks is the month is filled with teams over .500, with just our next opponent losing more games then they've won. That would be the 39-47 Foresters, who are somewhat shockingly still the only team with an above .500 (6-5) record against us. Cleveland has also had a rough month, 5-10 compared to our 4-10, and they were recently swept by the pesky Toronto Wolves. With just three games, I'd love to miss All-Star rookie Ducky Davis (6-2, 2.71, 37), and instead get a full dose of Dave Rankin (3-11, 6.53, 23), Ben Turner (5-10, 4.38, 29), and the struggling Johnny Slaney (8-7, 4.22, 52). With our luck it will be Ducky and George Rotondi (10-8, 3.56, 59), and then Slaney will beat Harry Parker 1-0 to finish off the sweep. Lucky for our staff, the Foresters don't score much, so if we can quell the power of Lou Balk (.308, 7, 44, 3) and Brooks Meeks (.282, 7, 42, 5), we have a good chance at coming out on top. The Foresters are also responsible for half our wins on the month, so I'm hoping they'll also account for half our wins this week.

Our next guest will be the Sailors, who recently swept us out of Philly. At 46-38, they are 6.5 games out of first, but have recently placed ace Doc Newell (6-8, 2.56, 58) on the trade block. He won't be gone for our series, which will be a Saturday opener followed by a Sunday double header. If they move Newell, their only above average SP in terms of ERA+ will be Ray McCarthy (6-3, 3.47, 25) who tossed 8 shutout innings last time out against us to increase his ERA+ to 102. His 129 FIP- thinks that's unsustainable, and Newell aside, our bats should be able to get to their rotation. The offense is a bit trickier, as their 2-3-4 of Frank Covarrubias (.332, 1, 20), Marion Boismenu (.377, 2, 38, 4), and Joseph Mills (.265, 8, 42) is pretty tough to navigate through. Those three don't have much support, but the Sailors are notoriously good at winning games, and are a red hot 11-4 in July.

Minor League Report
LF Harry Austin (C La Crosse Lions): Can you have a better pro debut then Harry Austin? After slashing .525/.541/.747 in 21 games as a senior at New Athens, our last ever regional pick started off his La Crosse career a perfect 6-for-6 with a double, homer, 4 runs, and 5 RBIs as the Lions pummeled the Ottumwa Owls 18-3. Ironically Austin didn't record 6 hits in total the rest of the week, but the 17-year-old from Illinois finished the week 11-for-26 with 7 runs, 6 RBIs, 3 walks, and a second double. We have a bit of a logjam in the corner outfield at the lower levels (I tried moving one in the trade that will be announced later), so Austin will at least start his career as a first basemen. This has already paid dividends, as San Jose first basemen Alex Snyder got hurt, and with Billy Biggar returning from injury, I thought he'd move up to San Jose to take his spot. Instead, it will be Austin, as Biggar has a red arrow and he doesn't. It might be a quick spot, as he could just as easily get demoted and return to La Crosse, but considering more exciting prospects Jimmy Hairston and Bob Rogers have down arrows,

In all honesty, his position won't really matter much, as he can't field much anywhere and his bat is the only thing we are interested in. He projects to be an elite hitter. and I was very encouraged by his walking habits, already just 2 away from his high school season tallies. Any pop we can get from him would be appreciated, but Austin reminds me a lot of a young Leo Mitchell. And no, I'm not saying he'll ever have a season (or even month) like Mitchell is having now, but more a ~130 WRC+ hitter with a .300+ average and a fair amount of doubles. Right now, Austin hits the ball in the air a lot, which could really play well in Chicago, but the kid is extremely raw and has a lot of developing ahead of him. As of today, Austin checks in as our 30th best prospect, which is a bit higher then I expected as one dimensional players like him tend to be undervalued by the prospect people. As long as his hits he'll get to the big leagues, but he'll never be a super valuable or highly touted player, just a reliable bat that shows up everyday.