Transactions:
August 28th – LHRP
Mike Cosens(24, 3*, 1-0 3.24 7K 0.1WAR 8.1IP) was placed on the 15-day IL with
bone chips in his elbow 6 weeks.. LHRP
Luis Perez(29, 2*, 4-3 4.57 22K -0.3WAR) was recalled.
Cramer is injured himself…
September 1st – RF
Avsail Garcia(23, 2.5/3*, .371-31-103 1.051OPS 4.6WAR AAA) was called up as our lone September Callup.
September 1st – A LHRP
Mario Lujan(25, 1.5/2.5*, 2-0 2.87 47K 0.9WAR A ) was waived and designated for assignment. He was a scouting mistake last season and there is no reason to pay him $480k next season.
Series:
0-3 @ LAA
3-0 vs HOU (DH
Eugenio Suárez 3-4 2R 2RBI 2HR(28), LF
Nick Castellanos 2-4 2R 2RBI HR(13), 3B
Anthony Rendon 2-5 3R 5RBI DB HR(21))
1-2 @ KCR
2-1 vs TEX (SP
Chris Archer 5.1IP 5H 1ER 3BB 6K W(6-8 3.86), SP
Henderson Alvarez III 7.1IP 2H 0ER 4BB 3K ND(7-66 3.10))
2-1 @ DET (SP
Daniel Norris 6.1IP 2H 0ER 2BB 6K W(10-6 3.77), SP
Marcus Stroman 5.2IP 4H 0ER 1BB 6K W(6-7 2.90))
1-2 vs NYY (SP
Henderson Alvarez 6.1IP 5H 0ER 1BB 3K W(8-6 2.97))
2-1 vs SFG (1B
Adam Brzezinski 2-2 2R RBI 2BB HR(14), DH
Eugenio Suárez 2-4 2R 3RBI HR(31))
2-1 @ SEA (LF
Nick Castellanos 4-5 R 4RBI HR(17))
2-1 vs MIN (SP
Scott Kazmir 6.2IP 3H 0ER 0BB 4K W(9-7 3.05), SP
Chris Archer 5.1IP 4H 1ER 3BB 5K W(7-10 3.78))
2-0 @ TBR (SP
Marcus Stroman 7IP 1H 0ER 3BB 4K ND(6-7 2.94), DH
Eugenio Suárez 4-6 3R 2RBI TP)
Record: 71-63, 3rd in AL East, 4GB in Division, 1GB in Wild Card
August: 17-12
Runs Scored: 558(12th)
Batting AVG: .246(14th)
OBP: .311 (12th)
Home Runs: 147(6th)
Stolen Bases: 175 (2nd)
Runs Against: 537(3rd)
Starters ERA: 3.32(1st)
Bullpen ERA: 4.25(9th)
Defensive Eff.: .715(1st)
Zone Rating: +44.5(1st)
Toronto Pitcher of the Month: RHSP
Marcus Stroman 1-0 2.14 31K 33.2IP 0.9WAR 6GS
Toronto Position Player of the Month: 3B
Anthony Rendon .370/.407/.704 6HR 22RBI 28R +2.7ZR 1.2WAR 29G
Exactly one month to go! With a 17-12 August, we are now still 4 games behind in the division… but surprisingly, the Wild Card race has opened up for us as we are one behind the final Wild Card spot… currently held by the glowing white
Orioles with
Oakland Athletics tied with us at 71-63… it will be another close one.
We will play the
Orioles and
Athletics next month as well as the
Angels and
Rangers so this won’t be an easy pushover month…
Now, how did we do this? Well, the
Rendonian Devil has filled up to a complete 60/65/55/55/60 hitter with great defense that and he with 89 runs scored and our #3 hitter in
Eugenio Suárez scored 93 runs so far… they are easily our two best hitters this season. And after going back and forth… we hope to improve some parts of our offfense with our September callup of
Avsail Garcia… yes, I caved in. He was on the 40-man anyways.
We got a nice e-Mail from our friend
Scott Kazmir last month, asking for a contract extension. We were kinda intrigued… until his agent told us he wants 3y/$58M. NOPE. Outta here. Thank you for your services. If you want that money, we gladly take the draft pick.
Talking about the playoffs, Id say you have to get past the
Rangers in the AL and the
Washington Nationals and
Los Angeles Dodgers if you want to win something this year.
Looking around… in
San Francisco, catcher
Buster Posey(27, 5*, .340-14-84 .969 7.4WAR) is on pace for a ridiculous 8.9WAR year while in the AL, the only reason why
Mike Trout(23, 5*, .349-28-84 1.224OPS 6.3WAR) hasn’t broken a bunch of records… was a pesky elbow strain… he leads the AL in WAR with 84 games played…
Also, if he keeps doing this for three more years, 1B
Prince Fielder(30, .308-40-96 1.002OPS 4.8WAR) may one day have a Hall of Fame case if he lasts a bit longer after his prime. He is raking in what could well be his fifth season with an OPS over 1.000.
Minor League Report and Awards:
AAA RF
Avsail Garcia(23,2.5/3*) .385-10-30 1.087OPS 1.4WAR 30G
AA 2B
Erick Mejia(19, 1.5/2*) .357-7-30 1.070OPS 1.5WAR 28G
A SP
Matthew Stewart(19, 1.5/2.5*) 3-1 0.74 31K 1.1WAR 36.1IP
S A C
Rodrigo Valdivia(19, 1/2*) .333-7-19 1.023OPS 1.1WAR 24GS
R RHRP
Mike Amant(18, 1.5/3*) 3-0 3SV 2.93 19K 0.2WAR 15.1IP
R LHRP
Ozzie Cazares(17, 1.5/3*) 1-1 11SV 2.70 19K 0.5WAR 13.1IP
R CF
Steve Snyder(21, 1.5/4.5*) .413-5-16 1.153OPS 1.6WAR 26G
Won Monthly Awards
As you can see above, our 1st rounder is off to a good start in rookie ball and will most likely make the jump towards short A or above next season, and
Garcia won the PotM in AAA to say goodbye, hopefully for a long time. Looking to AAA,
Komosinski and
Hatfield are ready to join us next season… makes letting
Kazmir go easier.
International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
1B
Jerry Zapata(16, 3*) 55/55/60/50/55 with 45D at first base from
St. Louis Cardinals
We almost let him go as our lower minors are already stacked… but couldn’t.
In Other News:
August 1st –
Tigers 1B
Miguel Cabrera(31, 5*) hammered
3 home runs today in a 17-3 rout of the
Royals, going 3-5 3R 5RBI 3HR for the night. The 9x All-Star is batting .327-34-87 1.047OPS 4.2WAR in 104 games.
August 4th –
Marlins RF
Giancarlo Stanton(24, 3.5/4*) crushed three into the stands today, going 3-4 3R 5RBI 3HR in a 6-1 win over the
Diamondbacks. The 2x Silver Slugger is batting .268-19-71 .850OPS 3.3WAR in 94 games.
August 4th –
Guardians RHSP
Brandon McCarthy(31, 3*) blanked the
Orioles 12-0, throwing a complete game 4-hitter with 1BB and 7K. The veteran is 6-6 4.43 115K 3.7WAR in 23 games.
August 8th –
Phillies LHSP
John Danks(29, 2.5*) threw a 4-hit gem, walking one and striking out six in a 4-0 win over the
Braves. The lefty is 5-3 5.50 68K 0.6WAR in 26G/15GS.
August 10th –
Orioles RHSP
Mike Leake(26, 2.5*) blanked the
Brewers 13-0 with his own 4-hitter with 0BB and 3K. The righty is 10-8 4.64 100K 1.0WAR in 24 starts.
August 10th –
Rockies SS
Troy Tulowitzki(29, 4*) lasered
three home runs today, going 3-5 3R 5RBI 3HR in a 13-2 win over the
Pirates. The 2x Silver Slugger is batting .308-33-95 1.027OPS 5.8WAR in 107 games.
August 14th –
Padres 1B
Prince Fielder(30, 4.5*) added a
3 home run game to an offensive filled season, going 4-5 4R 4RBI 3HR in a 10-9 win over the
Giants. The 6x All-Star is batting .315-366-89 1.033OPS 4.8WAR in 118 games.
August 14th –
Rangers 3B
Adrian Beltre(35, 2.5*) collected career hit
#2500 today in a 8-3 triumph over the
Seattle Mariners. The 3x Gold Glover, 3x Silver Slugger and 3x All-Star is a career .279/.329/.473 385 HR 1357RBIs 2502H 1245R 46.7WAR hitter in 2371 games between LAD, SEA, BOS and TEX.
August 14th –
Rockies LF
Carl Crawford(33, 2.5*) has now amassed
#2000 career hits. The 5x All-Star, 1x Gold Glover and 1x Silver Slugger is a career .293/.334/.442 147HR 826RBI 1020R 2000H 467/573SB 36.1WAR hitter in 1750 games for TBR, BOS and COL.
August 15th –
Yankees 3B
Alex Rodriguez(39, 2.5*) has reached quite a milestone today,
3000 career hits. The 3x MvP, 2x Silver Slugger, 10x Silver Slugger and 14x All-Star is a career .300/.384/.560 668HR 2006RBI 1953R 3000H 324/405SB 112.1WAR hitter in 2629 games between SEA, TEX and NYY.
August 16th –
Braves RHSP
Johnny Cueto(28, 3*) has pitched the best game of his career, a 1-0
NO-HITTER with 1BB and 5K over the
Dodgers. The 2013 NL All-Star is 8-8 4.34 129K 2.6WAR in 25 starts.
August 19th –
Orioles 1B
Chris Davis(28, 3*) joined the
3 home run club today, going 3-5 3R 6rBI 3HR in a tough 12-10 loss to the
Astros. The first time All-Star is batting .273-34-977 .932OPS 3.5WAR in 119 games.
August 22nd –
Tigers 1B
Miguel Cabrera(31, 5*) joined the milestone fun with career hit
#2000 today. The 2012 AL MvP, 9x All-Star and 4x Silver Slugger is a career .320/.396/.570 367HR 1222RBI 1076R 2000H 62.3WAR hitter in 1670 games for MIA and DET.
August 27th –
Orioles RF
Adam Jones(29, 2.5*) boomed
3 home run in a 8-3 win over the
Tigers, going 4-5 3R 5RBI 3HR for the night. The 2x Gold Glover is batting .272-29-86 .812OPS 2.3WAR in 122 games.
August 31st –
Marlins RHSP
Jose Fernandez(22, 3/4*) kept the
Dodgers hitters from doing damage today, throwing a 9IP 5H 0ER 0BB 9K game in a 5-0 win. The young Cuban is 6-9 2.66 166K 3.3WAR in 28 games.
August 31st –
Yankees 1B
Mark Teixeira(34, 2.5*) swatted career home run
#400 today in a 3-0 win over the
Orioles. The 4x Gold Glover , 3x All-Star and 3x Silver Slugger is a career .270/.364/.513 400HR 1277RBI 1109R 1823H 52.4WAR hitter in 1813 games for TEX,ATL, LAA and NYY.
September 1st –
Orioles 1B
Chris Davis(28, 3*) was named AL Batter of the Month after batting .324 with 13 home runs, 34RBIs and 18 runs scored for the month. The first time All-Star is batting .268-36-100 .910OPS 3.5WAR in 130 games.
September 1st –
Padres RF
Carlos Gonzalez(28, 3.5*) was named NL Batter of the Month after batting .370 with 11 home runs, 27RBIs and 25 runs scored for the month. The 2010 NL Silver Slugger is batting .321-29-87.939OPS 46WAR in 129 games between SDP and COL.
September 1st –
White Sox LHSP
Chris Capuano(36, 2.5*) was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-0 2.23 27K in 40.1IP in 6 starts for the month. The 2006 NL All-Star is 8-3 2.52 60K 1.8WAR in 14G and 13 starts.
September 1st –
Padres RHSP
Clay Buchholz(30, 3*) was named NL Pitcher of the Month after going 4-0 1.39 17K in 32.1IP and 5 starts for the month. The 2010 All-Star is 15-5 3.05 105K 2.7WAR in 26 starts.
September 1st –
Royals RHSP
Jake Odorizzi(24, 2.5*) was named AL Rookie of the Month after going 4-0 2.36 31K in 34.1IP and 5 starts for the month. The flyball pitcher is 4-7 4.30 143K 1.6WAR in 37G/22GS.
September 1st –
Cubs LHRP
Justin Nicolino(22, 2.5*) was named NL Rookie of the Month after going 3-3 1SV 3.98 15K in 20.1IP and 11 games for the month. The Rule 5 draftee from TOR is 10-4 1SV 4.68 67K 0.7WAR in 42G/12GS.