BNN Weekly Report
This Week in the CBO, BMU, and GBRL
by Nat Wright-Kawolski
11 June 2023
Angry Emogene Calms Down
By the end of May, Nordhagen Beach Party Boys owner Emogene Cabot had had about enough of her team's struggles. Reportedly threatening firing, trading, and verbs we cannot mention here, Cabot told her team in no uncertain terms that winning was the only option.
The Boys responded the past week with a six-game winning streak before falling yesterday to Fort Hagen to break that streak. Now at 25-24, the Party Boys are tied with the Starlight Lady Killers for 5th seed in the NCA with a weekend date with the last-place The Slog Ghouls.
Two parts of the Nordhagen Beach team not working per its usual are the hitting and bullpen. The Boys ae 10th in the NCA with a .247 average with their best hitter being CF Maxx Murtagh (.290). The bullpen is a surprising 11th in ERA at 5.72 with CL Matt Breakball (5.47) standing out for his lack of success. Some within the organization believe that Breakball, not Tom Mannequin should have been the closer traded away to FHE. Mannequin has a 1.48 ERA and has recorded an SCA-best 17 saves as the Yao Guai closer.
Despite their bad hitting, Nordhagen Beach is tied for first with 60 home runs, helping them to a decent 7th in runs scored at 217. RF Jonathan Angelou (15), Murtagh (13), and LF Michael Fogcrawler (11) have hit the most. 1B Dustin Mart and 3B Dirty Dog Sapienza have each hit 7.
Starting pitching also has been doing what it does despite the much lower run support. SPs Beahboy Nut (7-3, 2.25), Ugio Church (5-3, 2.92), and Chet Arthur (4-3, 3.31) always seem to keep the Party Boys in games when they pitch. Tommy Beach (4-6, 4.85) is struggling, but he can pitch a great game here and there.
The bullpen, though, has been an enigma. Along with Breakball, four other relievers have an ERA above 5.00: Ted Iam (11.57), Marc Woodsman (8.44), Handsome Frank (7.20), and Julian Shed (5.14). Longtime Lexington Synth starter, Lawdog Whipple (1-1, 2.63), has been the best reliever for the Boys.
Cabot's rage is not only directed at players. There are questions about the long-term commitment of Mgr Matt Ballhawk Getman and GM Brendan Kneecapped. Both guys are still under 40 and have had success in the organization. However, as Nate Howard usually states, complacency wins you a seat in the stands.
Cabot has probably cooled down now that her Boys are back in the playoff hunt. Should they keep losing, though, some of the Boys may find themselves sharing cell space with Emogene's dad in Parsons State Insane Asylum. Or they just might get fired, cut, or traded.