[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 4-3
Seasonal Record: 37-30 (2nd, 2.5 GB)
Stars of the Week
Duke Bybee : 2 Wins, 16.0 IP, 8 BB, 8 K, 1.69 ERA
Sal Pestilli : 25 AB, 7 H, 1 HR, 2 RBI, .280 AVG, .939 OPS
Clark Car : 17 AB, 6 H, 1 HR, 4 RBI, .353 AVG, .929 OPS

Schedule
6-21: Loss vs Sailors (4-1)
6-22: Win vs Sailors (0-3)
6-23: Loss vs Sailors (3-0)
6-24: Loss vs Sailors (3-2): 10 innings
6-25: Win vs Wolves (1-3)
6-26: Win vs Wolves (2-6)
6-27: Win vs Wolves (3-7)

Recap
Its not exactly two steps back, but following up a perfect 6-0 week with a 4-3 week seems very underwhelming. Underwhelming is also the best way to describe our performance against the Sailors, as they took three of four and held us to just six runs. We were lucky to win even one of the games, but luckily we heated back up when the Wolves came to town. We won all three contests, giving us three sweeps in our last four series. We dropped half a game in the standings, but are up to second as the Kings had a tough week and dropped half a game behind us.

The pitching kept us in every game this week, as after allowing 4 in the opener, we allowed 3 or fewer runs in the next six games. Duke Bybee was brilliant, twirling a 6-hit, 6-strikeout shutout of the Sailors in his first start of the week. He then saw his command fall with the Wolves, walking 6 in 7 innings, but he left with 6 hits, 3 runs, and 2 strikeout, which was enough for the win. Bybee has now won each of his last seven decisions and he hasn't lost a start since May 18th. He's an impressive 9-3 with a 2.77 ERA (141 ERA+), 1.21 WHIP, and 43 strikeouts through 110.1 innings pitched. Johnnie Jones was the other two start starter, but his command was nowhere to be found. He walked 8 in a loss to the Sailors and 7 in a win over the Wolves, going 15.2 total with 9 hits, 6 runs, and 7 strikeouts. He's now back to walking (56) more batters then he's struck out (51), but his 2.32 ERA (169 ERA+) is the lowest of any qualified pitcher this year. Still, the walks are starting to pile up, and he's allowed 5 free passes in each of his last four starts.

Peter the Heater was brilliant, and if it wasn't for a 66 minute rain delay with two outs in the 9th, he'd have come home with a sub-100 pitch (just 89!) complete game win. He allowed just 3 hits and a run with 2 strikeouts. Pap has now won each of his last four starts, allowing two or fewer runs and four or fewer hits each time out. With 8 wins in 14 starts, he's already one victory away from his season total last year, and it comes with an elite 2.69 ERA (145 ERA+) and 1.03 WHIP. His 62 strikeouts are third in the CA, and with 113.2 innings pitched he's on pace for another 250+ inning season. Donnie Jones had a nice start as well, going all nine with just 4 hits, 2 runs (1 earned), 3 walks, and 2 strikeouts. George Oddo had the last start, but picked up a loss despite a nice bounce-back. He went 8 with 6 hits, 3 runs, 3 walks, and 2 strikeouts. Ken Matson was the only busy member of the pen, throwing 4.2 innings across 4 games. He picked up a loss and save, allowing 3 hits, a run, and a walk. Harry Parker and Eddie Howard both threw scoreless innings, with Howard allowing a hit while Parker was perfect. I don't know what we'd do without our staff, as they've been as dominant as you could expect, and we lead in numerous pitching categories.

Now if only we could score...

There wasn't much of that this week, but Sal Pestilli continues his strong bounce-back season after posting uncharacteristically poor numbers last year. He went 7-for-25 with 2 doubles, a triple, steal, homer, 2 RBIs, 3 runs, and 4 walks. Clark Car is fully healed and certainly hitting like it, going 6-for-17 with a homer, 2 walks, 3 runs, 4 RBIs, and 3 steals. Car has slashed an impressive .327/.383/.577 (157 OPS+) with 2 doubles, 4 triples, a homer, 4 steals, and 9 RBIs in 14 June games. His .264/.299/.465 (104 OPS+) batting line is back above average, a huge increase from the career low .238/.289/.323 (73 OPS+) he hit in 84 games last year. Unfortunately most of the other everyday guys struggled, with Pack, Mitchell, Sharp, Bond, and Skipper combining to go 19-for-97 with just four extra base hits. Pack's 10th homer was this groups only homer, and Bond (double and third) was responsible for half of them. It extended Leo Mitchell's homerless streak to 32 games. as he may be pressing a bit. He's just two homers from tying the Cougars All-Time home run record, and since his only home run is on the road, he may feel the pressure of the home fans. The team captain is not used to extended slumps like this, and his .264/.309/.321 (71 OPS+) batting line is significantly lower then the pedestrian .270/.314/.391 (98 OPS+) he posted last season. Time is starting to run out this season for him, as this coming week may be the last one he remains a full-time starter.

Looking Ahead
The draft officially occurred in game, so later tonight I'll cover the fifteen newest members of the organization. At least one of our draftees will not sign, as 21st Rounder Dick Senatore announced he has no intention to sign, and will instead enroll at Johnstown State this fall. There will be plenty of others not to sign, but I expect to sign everyone in the first ten rounds. I'll also tender offers to the college seniors, but the priority will be the high upside prospects. You know, the Amos Peterson's (2nd, $31,000), Bob Allie's (3rd, $8,000), and Elmer Grace (4th, $2,500). In total, I sent out $60,150 to just eight players. This is almost all of our draft budget ($64,230), so I will have to take money away from the overall budget. Plus with eight additional players, there are six potential cuts to make. The Lions start up next Monday, so last year's draftees don't have much of a head start on their new competition.

We're off to start the week, but it's crazy to think that we could be back in first place at some point this week. That's because we host the leading New York Saints for three, and at 41-29, they would fall behind us if we pulled off the sweep. We do have a chance, as we'll miss ace Eli Panneton (9-4, 3.63, 47), who is one of the co-leaders in wins with Duke Bybee (9-3, 2.77, 43). Instead, it's Vern Hubbard (7-3, 3.11, 37), Chuck Cole (5-8, 5.36, 24), and Richie Hughes (6-6, 5.04, 58), which seems really winnable. Our offense hasn't been great, but with the home fans behind them they could put on a show. I'm worried Bill Barrett will do exactly that, as the Whitney frontrunner comes into the series hitting .337/.433/.658 (186 OPS+) with 11 doubles, 21 homers,44 walks, and 67 RBIs. His 197 WRC+ is the best in all of baseball, and he seems to love hitting against us. But if we can keep Barrett under control, the series could be ours. Third basemen Mack Sutton (.208, 10, 35) is scuffling through a down year, Bob Riggins (.249, 4, 25, 4) has fought injuries, and skilled shortstop Joe Angevine (.225, 15, 15) has not provided much with the bat. They have gotten another great season from "Jersey Jack" Welch (.268, 18, 45), and the duo looks primed for 30+ home run seasons. This may be the biggest series of the year, and I'm worried we'll once more crumble under the pressure. The Stars seem to always get in the way of our pennant races, and I cannot wait until Bill Barrett leaves the CA. Or becomes a Cougar. The second one please!

I'm hoping after a sweep the first place Cougars would be hosting the Montreal Saints, who are 35-34 and 5.5 games out of first. They have a tough series in Brooklyn before ours, so we could take advantage of a defeated team to finish our homestand. The Saints have the second best pitching staff in the league, allowing 264 runs. Unfortunately, they've only scored one more then that, so it's fitting they're basically .500. Wally Reif has been this year's breakout, as the 28-year-old is 9-3 with a 2.43 ERA (167 ERA+), 1.20 WHIP, and 51 strikeouts in 14 starts. His 15th start is scheduled for our series, but their Monday day off could change who we see. I'm hoping to avoid Bert Cupid (7-6, 2.47, 41), as he's the only other rotation member with an ERA below 4. Starters aside, Bud Robbins (3-1, 10, 1.44, 9) has been useful in the pen and I can already imagine all the one run losses. The lineup doesn't score much, and while they may not start him, they did acquire Gil London (.087, 3) from the Kings. He won't take any time from talented shortstop Gordie Perkins (.287, 4, 27, 6), but second basemen Bob Jennings (.231, 1, 13) is off to a slow start. and could get time off against lefties. If we can keep slugger Maurice Carter (.248, 11, 38) and Pinky Pierce (.260, 9, 30) in the park I like our chances, but with two similar teams these three games might all be close. And that worries me...

Minor League Report
1B Harry Austin (A Lincoln Legislators): What is it with our first basemen and hitting streaks? Bill Payne's may have been snapped at 25, but now Harry Austin has one that is 24 games strong. That's pretty much the entirety of his June, and the former regional pick has hit .370/.417/.480 (134 OPS+) with 6 doubles, a triple, a homer, and 11 RBIs. The Illinois native reached A ball for the first time this season at 21, and he followed up a strong 37 game sample with San Jose last year where produced a 131 WRC+ while hitting .309 with 8 doubles, 3 homers, and 16 RBIs. There's not much power from the converted outfielder, who has just 2 homers this season. Despite that, his .309/.379/.410 (106 OPS+) in productive for someone his age. He's walked (26) more then he's struck out (15) and he has an above average 119 WRC+ in 280 trips to the plate. With Biggar in Mobile, Austin is stuck here the rest of the season, but it will be nice to see how he handles his first full season, having never played more then the 64 games he's played this year.

1B Cal Rice (B San Jose Cougars): No hit streak for Cal Rice, but the 20-year-old first basemen did take home Player of the Week in the California-Oregon-Washington League. The former 10th Rounder went 12-for-21 with 2 doubles, 2 triples, a homer, 7 RBIs, 7 runs, and 3 walks. That upped the Canadian's triple slash to .289/.363/.452 (109 OPS+) with 22 doubles, 4 triples, 3 homers, and 38 RBIs. Somewhat surprisingly, the move to 24 has turned him into one of our higher ranked prospects, currently 9th in the system and 114th overall. This is higher then last year's third rounder Dudley Sapp (13th, 151st) and former second rounder Frank Reece (10th, 134) ranks one spot behind him in our system. I think that may be a bit too much praise, as while he has the tools to start, I don't expect him to be an extremely reliable regular without any power. He may hit around .300, but without 15+ home runs he doesn't have the ideal bat for first base. At 6'3'' there's hope he'll build the requisite power, but for now I just hope he can keep his strikeouts low (13.2%) and continue to record doubles.

RHP Al Robison (B San Jose Cougars): More callups will happen tomorrow, but I went ahead and sent 21-year-old Al Robison to Lincoln. The former 8th Rounder has dominated all season, going 7-2 with a 1.64 ERA (278 ERA+), 1.23 WHIP, 36 walks, and 57 strikeouts in 11 starts. This is a huge improvement from last season, where his struggles force him into the pen at the end of the season. He started just 12 of the 20 games he pitched for San Jose last season, going 1-10 with a 6.08 ERA (62 ERA+) and 1.85 WHIP. A four pitch pitcher, Robison has a nasty slider and the 6'4'' righty can touch 92 with his fastball. He'll need to develop a third pitch, as neither his curve or change can be relied on yet. As a ground baller with solid velocity a strong changeup would be ideal, and it could turn him into a very productive pitcher. I hope he can get off to a good start for the Legislators and finish his season off with them. He's not one of our higher ranked prospects, but he's still young and an intriguing development project with his height and velocity.