[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 2-4
Seasonal Record: 27-27 (5th, 4 GB)
Stars of the Week
Hal Sharp : 19 AB, 9 H, 2 HR, 5 RBI, .474 AVG, 1.373 OPS
Skipper Schneider : 22 AB, 7 H, 2 HR, 5 RBI, .318 AVG, 1.055 OPS
Clark Car : 16 AB, 6 H, 0 HR, 1 RBI, .375 AVG, 1.349 OPS

Schedule
6-8: Loss at Foresters (1-2)
6-9: Win at Sailors (3-1)
6-10: Loss at Sailors (6-7)
6-11: Loss at Sailors (6-7): 15 innings
6-12: Loss at Cannons (3-8)
6-13: Win at Cannons (8-6)

Recap
I am really starting to hate this team....

I don't know what it is, but we just can't do anything right. We don't play complete games, we'll either hit or pitch, and so many of our games are decided by thin margins. This week all but one game was decided by two or fewer runs, including three more one run losses. The absolute bane of our existence, 1948 is just like every year, where we lose (11) more one-run games then we win (8), allowing us to perpetually win less games then our run differential would suggest. We were also dealt a minor injury, as Clark Car is dealing with back spasms and is day-to-day for four more days. It comes at an inopportune time, as Car is coming off an excellent 6-for-16 week with 2 doubles, 3 triples, 3 walks, 2 runs, a steal, and an RBI. He's shaken off a slow start and has hit a slightly below average .250/.286/.450 (97 OPS+) with 7 doubles, 7 triples, a homer, 3 steals, and 13 RBIs. The 34-year-old has played more time at second over the past month or so then Billy Hunter, who is hitting just .234/.273/.339 (63 OPS+) in 25 fewer PAs. In Car's absence, Hunter and George Sutterfield will split starts at second, but we expect Car. Setback aside, this will only cover three games (off to start the week) and Car should be able to return to the lineup for our weekend series against the Cannons.

Hal Sharp finally produced at the plate this week, going 9-for-19 with 2 homers, 4 runs, 5 walks, and 5 RBIs. The veteran outfielder is hitting a slightly below average .292/.345/.385 (98 OPS+), but is slashing .314/.415/.486 (144 OPS+) in 11 June games. Unfortunately Sharp's success came at the expense of Red Bond and Walt Pack, as the sluggers went just 7-for-44 with 4 runs, 6 walks, and 5 RBIs. Both did hit home runs, but if they hit anything like they did the rest of the year, we probably steal a few extra wins. Leo Mitchell is hitting just like he has, but as of recently that's not a good thing. He was just 4-for-23 with a double, 3 walks, and 3 runs, and has hit just .265/.308/.318 (70 OPS+) in 52 games. I'm already looking for a righty bat to replace him in the outfield, but we're getting to the point where I'm seriously considering calling up Johnny Peters from AAA to replace him. He had a slow start, but just picked up Player of the Week by going 13-for-30 with 2 homers and 4 RBIs. The 24-year-old is now Rule-5 eligible, so he'll need to be protected eventually, and now has a strong .317/.411/.437 (113 OPS+) line -- good for a 123 WRC+ in 235 PAs. He's added 9 doubles, 5 homers, 20 RBIs, and 4 steals with an impressive 30 walks. He doesn't have much experience in left, but he's gotten some time in right and could push Hal Sharp to left if I want to bench Mitchell. I'm not sure that's the course of action I want to take, but we're running out of time to get things going, and we need a winning season after our collapse last year.

The pitching wasn't great, but Duke Bybee has really started to heat up, but we had four errors which led to two unearned runs. He went just 8 in a no-decision that should have been a win, allowing 8 hits, 5 runs, and 2 walks with 3 strikeouts. That snapped a streak of four consecutive victories, but the young lefty has allowed three or fewer earned runs in each of his last five starts. Pete Papenfus had a big victory, going all nine against the Sailors with 4 hits, a run, 4 walks, and 6 strikeouts. He's now an even 5-5 with a 3.17 ERA (122 ERA+) and 1.12 WHIP in 11 starts. Donnie Jones was our two start pitcher, but went just 6.2 and 7 innings in his two starts. He split the decisions, allowing 13 hits, 5 runs, and 8 walks with 8 strikeouts. It's somewhat concerning to see Jones not going very deep in starts this season, as after averaging over 8 innings a start last year, he's only gone 8 or more on 5 occurrences this year.

The previously hot Johnnie Jones ran into a wall in Philly, allowing 8 hits, 6 runs, and 5 walks with 3 strikeouts before leaving with two outs in the 8th. This rose Johnnie's ERA from 1.89 to 2.36 (164 ERA+) and it was is first start this year where he allowed more then five runs. George Oddo struggled with a weak Cannons lineup, charged with 11 hits, 7 runs (5 earned), and 2 walks. He struck out just two and left with two outs in the sixth, and it was his first start this season where he failed to record at least five outs. Despite this roadblock, it's hard to be upset with Oddo, who's gone 3-3 with a 3.11 ERA (124 ERA+) while ranking 3rd in the CA with 51 strikeouts. The pen had it's issues, with Eddie Howard's scoreless streak snapped at 13. He allowed 6 hits, a run, and 2 walks in 4.2 innings this week, and was charged with the loss in our 15-inning affair in Philly. Ken Matson made three appearances, picking up a loss and going 4 with 5 hits, 2 runs (1 earned), a walk, and a strikeout. Charlie Kelsey allowed 2 hits, a run, and a walk in 3.1 innings. Jim Kenny was hit hard with 3 hits, 3 runs, and a walk. He did strike out one, but got only one other out, which inflated his ERA from 2.25 to 5.19 (74 ERA+). The only pen member not to allow a run this week was Harry Parker, who allowed runs in each of his three previous outings. He struck out one in a perfect inning and a third. This week really illustrated the shakiness of our pen, and I make make one or two adjustments to it if we can't get back on track.

Looking Ahead
Luckily the miserable road trip is over, as after winning the first three, we dropped 8 of the last 11 and lowered are road record to a poor 15-19. I'm hoping the off day and return to Chicago can get us going. Our first guest is the last place Foresters, who as expected, won the finale as Ollie White (3-7, 4.34, 56) was an Eddie Morris (.233, 4, 22, 2) error away from a 5-strikeout shutout. He just beat the Kings in Cleveland, so luckily we'll avoid him this time around. They have an off day as well, so they can adjust their rotation as they please, but I expect Davey Morris (3-6, 4.29, 24), John Jackson (4-4, 4.74, 29), and Augie Hayes Jr. (4-7, 4.74, 24). One thing we can do is hit homers, and this trio has allowed 17 so far. That's close to how many they've hit (29) and Orie Martinez (.286, 6, 28, 2) is the team leader with six. Jim Adams Jr. (.235, 1, 5, 3) has yet to get going, but with an impressive 28-to-12 walk-to-strikeout ratio he still finds his way on base. Ivey Henley (.339, 3, 26) has dropped out of the top three in average and him and Orie are the only lineup members with WRC+ above 100. With Pap (5-5, 3.17, 49), Johnnie (4-4, 2.36, 36), and Duke (6-3, 2.95, 32) lined up it's going to be tough for them to score, so if we can put some balls in the seats I like our chances of securing a much needed series win.

We finish the week with three with the seventh place Cannons. Getting the two worst teams at home should be good for us, but this week will show if we should be taken seriously as a contender. I think we're stuck facing Rufus Barrell (7-2, 2.02, 46), who has bounced back from a "down" season where he went 14-13 with a 3.48 ERA (111 ERA+). He's dropped his WHIP from 1.21 to an even 1 and he has 46 strikeouts and 24 walks in 89 innings pitched. It seems we're stuck facing "Jersey Jim" too as breakout veteran Jim Anderson (5-3, 1.91, 37) is fresh off a 1-run complete game victory. The rest of the rotation has ERAs above 4 with Charlie Griffith (5-4, 4.32, 32) the only one below 5. Denny Andrews (.183, 5, 20) was just 3-for-27 after his excellent week, and they will be without Charley McCullough (.219, 4) for 2-3 months with a bone bruise. He recently replaced Charlie Rivera (.215, 2, 14, 4) in the lineup, and Rivera could reclaim the starting role. They have Clifton Smith and Nellie Walters on the 40 in AAA Indianapolis and the former early round draftees could be in line for another chance in the big leagues. This may be tough for us with the pitching matchups, so our offense really needs to step it up. We have done well at home, so I am holding out hope for a Leo Mitchell led win streak. Please let it happen!

The AI portion of the draft is quickly approaching, as we'll get players for the 11th through 25th rounds. I don't expect too much from those picks, and I imagine I'll let most of the guys that don't have a future with us return to school. We actually have two open roster spots in La Crosse but with such a large class their will be plenty of cuts. We've been really healthy so far, with just one player currently on the injured list. There are plenty of cuttable players, but there's no reason to bring on guys who wouldn't have a role with us.

Minor League Report
RHP George Carter (B San Jose Cougars): It's been a rough start to the season for George Carter, who entered his most recent start 2-3 with 30 strikeouts a 6.05 ERA. He didn't look like that same pitcher on Saturday, as Carter set down 10 Captains in a 2-hit, 2-walk shutout. It was a dominating performance from the Maywood native, who has a 5.24 ERA (87 ERA+) and 1.31 WHIP in 67 innings. The surface numbers aren't great, but Carter has an impressive 3.67 FIP (80 FIP-) with 40 strikeouts and just 14 walks. Our 25th ranked prospect (317th Overall), Carter was selected in the 9th Round last season, and split time between then pen and rotation for the Lions. The Bluegrass State alum has excellent stuff, but his command can desert him at times. He's done a good job so far, as his 4.9 BB% is very impressive, and he's walking batters much less then he did in college. His stuff is still raw, but is fastball hits 88 and he mixes his four pitches well. He may end up with home run issues, but he's allowed just 3 so far this season. If he can keep the ball around the zone and limit the longballs he'll have his share of success as a big league starter, but he's got a lot of work. His stuff isn't quite good enough where he can dominate for long stretches, but he's done a great job adding velocity. He's gone up a mile in each of the last two seasons, and the harder he throws the more effective he's going to be. Right now he's no more then a spot starter, but he has some exciting tools that can be refined.

Cougars in the GWL
RHP Danny Goff Jr. (Oakland Grays): The war really sabotaged Danny Goff Jr's FABL career, as after debuting in 1942 (2-0, 1.90, 11), he was in line for the fifth spot in our rotation. Instead, he got drafted in the Navy, and when he returned from overseas he was no longer a Cougar. He spent time in the Gothams and Dynamos organization before joining the Oakland Grays in 1947. He pitched sparingly, throwing just 34.1 innings in 11 games, but the Grays decided to give him a shot in the rotation this season. It's certainly paid off, and Danny just put together a 5-hit, 3-strikeout shutout with no walks in a 10-0 win over the Dallas Centurions. The Grays are starting to run away with the GWL, 4.5 games above the Los Angeles Knights for first. Goff has made 9 starts, going 4-3 with a 2.78 ERA (120 ERA+) and 1.31 WHIP. He's struck out 30 and walked 25, but Goff has thrown 8 or more innings in all but one of his starts. Unfortunately the former two-way player hasn't hit very well, just .200/.245/.289 (50 OPS+) in 49 PAs this season. Even though he's the sixth starter, he's one of their more reliable arms.