[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 3-4
Seasonal Record: 11-9 (2nd, 2.5 GB)
Stars of the Week
Red Bond : 19 AB, 8 H, 2 HR, 4 RBI, .421 AVG, 1.237 OPS
John Moss : 25 AB, 7 H, 3 HR, 6 RBI, .280 AVG, 1.007 OPS
Donnie Jones : 2 Wins, 17.0 IP, 8 BB, 9 K, 1.59 ERA

Schedule
4-30: Loss vs Saints (16-4)
5-1: Win vs Sailors (1-2)
5-2: Loss vs Sailors (3-0)
5-3: Loss vs Foresters (8-7)
5-4: Win vs Foresters (9-10): 10 innings
5-5: Loss vs Foresters (4-3)
5-6: Win vs Wolves (2-6)

Recap
This was a painful week...

Sure, we were just 3-4, but all the games were at home, we got blown out by the Saints, suffered through three one-run games with the Foresters, and saw the staff get absolutely hammered (aside from Donnie who was the one getting hammered) as we dropped to 2.5 games out of first since we were the only team to not lose a series to the Sailors this week. And it was just a split.

On the plus side, John Moss may be back, as the veteran center fielder has already matched his 1950 home run total after hitting three out of the park this week. Moss has 4 in 13 games, and finished his week 7-for-25 with 4 walks, 6 runs, and 6 RBIs. He now has a 135 WRC+ and 3.1 zone rating (1.034 eff) on the season, hitting 6 extra base hits, scoring 15 runs, and drawing 11 walks in 85 trips to the plate. After such an awful debut season, it's nice to see Moss off to such a great start, as I don't think he had a stretch like this at any point last year. He was one of six Cougars this week to hit a home run, though no one matched his three. Red Bond had two, with the better overall week, 8-for-19 with 4 runs, 4 RBIs, and 3 walks. He's been red hot to start the season, with a perfect 3-for-3 against the Wolves upping his season line to .375/.483/.604 (181 OPS+) with 3 homers, 10 RBIs, and 10 walks. Moss' backup Don Lee had a pair of homers, going 3-for-7 with a trio of RBIs in a start and three appearances off the bench. Otto Christian and Billy Hunter both hit homers, starting two games a piece on the week, while George Sutterfield hit one in his first good week of the year. Sutterfield finished 8-for-22 with a triple, 2 runs, 2 walks, and 2 RBIs.

Leo Mitchell didn't have a good week, just 4-for-22 with a triple, but that didn't stop him from adding two more steals to his FABL leading seven. He's now surpassed his five from last season, and is on pace to swipe 54 bases -- the same amount he swiped in the first 8,074 plate appearances he took as a Cougar. He seems destined to shatter his record of 9 stolen bases, and that came in 1938 when he was just 9-for-14. He has been caught just once, as Cougars hold the top three spots in the CA. Both Skipper and Sal have stolen five bases, with Skipper getting two and Sal one in weeks they struggled at the plate. It's no surprise Sal is stealing a ton of base, but seeing him tied with Skipper and behind Mitchell is rather funny, but it's been a blast having a team that is so lethal on the bases. Seven teams have seven or less steals on the year, while the only other CA team with double digit steals is the 11 the first place Sailors have recorded.

I also might have overstated how poor our pitching was, we still rank 1st in a bunch of those categories like starter's ERA and strikeouts, but that's because there were some bad outings and our pen has been brutal. Charlie Kelsey is making me wish I DFA'd him, as he couldn't get an out, allowing 5 runs on 4 hits and a walk. To be fair, the other three relievers gave up runs too, with David Molina allowing 9 off 10 hits and 5 walks in 5.1 innings. I don't know what's wrong with him, as his 2.48 WHIP looks like his ERA and his 12.15 ERA looks like someone was beating in the Rockies pitching at Coors on Rookie difficulty. He's on pace for 100 walks due to an elevated 17.6 BB%, and I'm afraid the conversion absolutely destroyed him. That's made worse considering Amos Peterson is now a top 20 prospect, but I just don't know what happened. Crazy thing is, he still ranks 3rd among relievers, down from 1st when the year started, so I guess it's bad luck? Is he about to bless us with 50 shutout innings as we win a pennant? Please!!!

Buzz Turner was the "best" reliever, as he allowed just 2 runs in 2 innings, allowing a pair of hits with a walk and strikeout. And despite picking up a win, Jim Kenny was roughed up too, with 7 hits, 5 runs (4 earned), 3 walks and 4 strikeouts in his 3 innings. Somehow the relievers allowed 21 runs to the rotation's 22, and I'm sure you can guess who had more innings...

Donnie Jones was brilliant, even if he walked too many guys, as he beat both the Sailors and Wolves. He went all nine against Philly, finishing with 6 hits, a run, 3 walks, and 2 strikeouts. He then went 8 against the Wolves, charged with 4 hits, 2 runs, and 5 walks, but the vet sent 7 down on strikes to improve to 3-1. Believe it or not, his 3.05 ERA (143 ERA+) is worst on the staff, as the other four starters rank 3rd through 6th in the CA. His brother Johnnie leads the team, even after allowing 8 hits, 5 runs (4 earned), and 7 walks with 5 strikeouts in a no-decision. Duke Bybee continued his great start, despite getting the loss, as he went 8 with 6 hits, 3 runs, a walk, and 4 strikeouts. Two homers did him in, he's already allowed 5 in 24.2 innings, but his 0.93 WHIP and 2.8 K/BB are excellent. Jim Morrison had a good start and a bad start, and if he could have just finished the good one, we would have came out victorious. He came an out away from a complete game, allowing just 2 hits, a run, and 2 walks with 2 strikeouts. Unfortunately Molina allowed the inherited run (Eddie Morris' eight pitch walk) and three more to score, and we went down without a whimper in the 9th. Morison has done well for us, most importantly allowing just one homer in 28.2 innings, and so far he's made me quite glad I decided to keep him for 1951.

Looking Ahead
We have our first chance for a sweep, as if we can beat the Wolves to start the week, we'll pick up a nice two game sweep. I'm really hoping they go with old friend Frank Sartori (0-2, 5.59, 8), who they took from us in the Rule-5 draft. The thing is, George Garrison (0-3, 3.00, 9) is also fully rested, but he's pitched more recently then Sartori. Regardless, they'll have to outduel the most overqualified fifth starter in existence, Duke Bybee (2-1, 2.55, 14), who should have no trouble with an offense that ranks bottom two in pretty much everything. It's let down an offense that's actually allowed less runs then us, though that's more because of the pen then the starters. Initially I would have been worried about Marion Boismenu, who the Wolves traded to Brooklyn for a pair of prospects including former Cougar 2nd Rounder Carl Clark, but now the only guy I'm really worried about is Kirby Copeland (.375, 1, 9, 2). He's done a good job carrying the load, as Fred McCormick (.231, 1, 8) looks 41, but at least Hank Giordano (.317, 2, 8, 2) is starting to rebuild some of his value. This really should be an easy win, we've gotten good at beating the Wolves, but you can never underestimate a FABL opponent.

All you can underestimate is the Cougars' chance of winning a title!

The long, sadly not-so-successful homestand then ends with three against the Cannons, who are 8-10 and tied on games back for 6th with the Wolves. The Cannons have four pitchers with an ERA above 4, with the potential Mickey Mills 2.0 Harry Thomas (2-0, 2.96, 11) the only pitcher having much success. The 26-year-old was awful in 12.2 innings out of the pen last year (7.82 ERA, 2.21 WHIP, 5 K), but his 3.76 FIP was more then half his inflated ERA. I don't buy his early success, even if the 3.44 FIP (76 FIP-) in 24.1 innings is pretty good, but the former 8th Rounder has been huge replacing the injured Jim Anderson. He's a hard thrower with a nice slider, but I think as the season goes on, his ERA and Rufus Barrell's (1-0, 4.34, 11) ERA will go in the opposite directions. Offensively the Cannons aren't scoring, 7th in the league, but that hasn't stopped Mike T. Taylor (.408, 3, 14, 3) and Chuck Adams (.356, 1, 12, 1) from tearing the cover off the ball. Unfortunately for the Cannon faithful, no one else has an average above .250, and only the disciplined Jim Hensley (.234, 1, 6), largely due to his 11-to-3 walk-to-strikeout ratio, has a WRC+ (106) above 100. This is a great matchup for us, and anything less then a series win will feel like a missed opportunity, even if we are stuck with Barrell and Thomas.

Our long stretch of games then ends with three in Brooklyn before an off day to start the week. Here we'll see Boismenu, who is shifting Ken Newman (.308, 2, 8, 1) to second and Chuck Lewis (.205, 1, 10) to short. That's in part due to the injury to Billy Bryant (.286, 8), who strained his hamstring and will miss at least the next two months. Lewis did come up as a shortstop, even if he wasn't great there, but I'm hoping we can take advantage of their infield defense. The Kings score a ton of runs, making up for all their pitchers having an ERA of 4 or higher, as each of their top six hitters are hitting above .300. Leadoff man Charlie Rogers (.416, 2, 20, 3) and his 188 WRC+ lead the way, while Ralph Johnson (.330, 6, 20, 1) and Chuck Collins (.347, 4, 14) have WRC+ above 150. It's still early, but I'm happy the Kings stuck with the 25-year-old Collins, who's been one of the best hitters early on. I don't think we have a chance of slowing down their bats, so the key will be piling on runs for whoever they send out. We're still middle of the pack in runs, but we are top four in all but three offensive categories. Sure, one is runs (97), where we're fifth, but aside from the struggling Hal Wood (.222, 6), we've hit pretty well as a team.

Let's see if we can keep it up!

Minor League Report
LF Clyde Parker (AAA Milwaukee Blues): It was an excellent week for young outfielder Clyde Parker, who took home Century League Player of the Week as he helped the Blues get within half a game of first. The red-hot Parker was an even 12-for-24 with 8 runs, a double, a homer, 7 RBIs, and 3 walks, increasing his lofty triple slash to .381/.429/.508 (182 OPS+) in 16 games. His WRC+ is a point away from being twice as good as the average hitter, as he's picked up 2 doubles, 2 homers, 10 RBIs, and 6 walks. The 24-year-old has dropped a bit in the prospect rankings, as the former top-100 spec is at 26th in the system and 258th overall, but both Dixie and OSA think he's a FABL quality player. The hit tool is great, as he'll be able ot hit over .300, but even as a member of the 40 he's stuck in a crowded outfield situation. It would take multiple injuries to get him in the starting lineup, though I could see him semi-platooning with Chubby Hall on the off chance iron man Leo Mitchell gets hurt stealing bases. He has another option after this year, so even at 25 he's likely in Milwaukee, but as long as he stays healthy he should be in Chicago at least for September. hopefully playing a big role off the bench in a pennant race that we finally win.

RHP Marty Czyzewski (B San Jose Cougars): After going 4-3 with a 4.50 ERA (98 ERA+), 1.73 WHIP, and 0.6 K/BB ratio in 8 starts for San Jose, Marty Czyzewski was at risk of his starting spot. So like some of the other guys on the fringes, he responded in a big way.

His season debut went about as well as you could expect, as the 21-year-old from Poland threw an 8-hit shutout with 3 walks and 4 strikeouts. A former 7th Rounder, he was actually demoted to La Crosse last season, and was the last starting pitcher to get a rotation spot on the four teams that started. With the injury to teammate Hal Lewis (0-2, 3.27, 8), who tore his meniscus and may miss the rest of the season, he now has a little breathing room, but with a few more starts like this he could have a more secure role on the staff. Just 21, he could have a little more in him, as he's got an interesting four pitch arsenal. A soft tosser in the mid 80s, he features a fastball and sinker, and his change may be the best pitch, but the stuff is so raw. He's going to be Rule-5 eligible, so at any point he could leave the organization. Even if he keeps pitching like this, I don't see him getting selected, as he'll have to work his way up the organizational ladder before I have to worry about that.