Duluth and Toledo up next then Milwaukee
As we close in on the All-Star break and the mid-way point of the season, the Architects have a big series at 1st place Duluth and then 6 home games against 2nd-place Toledo and then last place Milwaukee visits. But first is an off-day on Monday June 12th.
June 12th - Off-day
June 13th-15th 2056
Chicago 31-29 3rd place USA @ Duluth Sea Gulls 36-24 1st Place in USA
Still before the halfway point but this feels like a big series on the road against Duluth as we then follow that up with 3 games at home against Toledo. The two clubs that are ahead of us in the standings, this could be a real Make……or Break week
Today we begin a 3-game series with the Duluth Sea Gulls on the road. We will meet in Sea Gulls Field, which seats 40000 and plays like a ballpark slightly favoring hitters.
Going 36-24 so far this year, the Sea Gulls have compiled a .600 winning percentage. They are leading the South of the Border. Their number of runs scored of 291 rank 5th in the USA, their .267 batting average ranks 6th. On the other side of the diamond, they have given up 264 runs (1st) with their starters compiling an ERA of 3.95 which ranks 1st. Their bullpen sports an ERA of 3.65, ranking 1st. When playing against our Architects this season, they have a record of 4 wins and 5 losses.
Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP Val Imbert (3-4, 4.41 ERA) vs RHP Will McNeely (5-3, 3.93 ERA)
RHP Motoyuki Inoue (7-5, 3.51 ERA) vs RHP Chris Collier (4-4, 3.84 ERA)
RHP Jose Cedeno (7-2 3.54 ERA) vs LHP Tim Gross (4-2, 4.09 ERA)
The top 5 players on their team are:
1. 1B Jorge Rangel (Age: 25, Overall : 3.5, Potential: 4.0)
2. 2B Carlos Figueroa (30, 3.5, 3.5)
3. CF Carlos Sánchez (25, 3.0, 3.5)
4. RP Pedro Saldaña (25, 3.0, 3.0)
5. SP Chris Collier (24, 3.0, 3.0)
Game #1 - Tuesday June 13th 2056
Chicago 31-29 @ Duluth 36-24
RHP Val Imbert (3-4, 4.41 ERA) vs RHP Will McNeely (5-3, 3.93 ERA)
A - 39,710
Chicago’s José Aranda sets the tone with a three-run home run in the first. Teammate Rodeo Leroy goes 4-for-4 with a home run, a walk, two runs scored, and two RBIs.
Chicago 13, Duluth 8.
LF R LeRoy 4-4 HR 2R 2RBI BB, 1B D Kenney 3-5 HR 2R 3RBI, CF J Justice 2-5 DB HR 2R 3RBI
HR - CH DH J Aranda (6), 1B D Kenney (3), LF R LeRoy (20), CF J Justice (6) Dul - none
POTG - Chicago LF Robert LeRoy (8)
Game #2 - Wednesday June 14th 2056
Chicago 32-29 @ Duluth 36-25
RHP Motoyuki Inoue (7-5, 3.51 ERA) vs RHP Chris Collier (4-4, 3.84 ERA)
A - 39,847
Duluth’s middle infield was a problem at the beginning of the season, but promoting Jeff Beasley, 24, seems to have solved the problem at shortstop. Today, Beasley goes 3-for-4 with two home runs (one of which was a grand slam), three runs scored, and five RBIs. In 84 at-bats this season, he’s hitting .321/.380/.607. Teammate Rick Barnard also goes yard twice, and Carlos Sánchez hits a three-run home run.
Duluth 12, Chicago 5.
SS Mulford 3-4 HR R 2 RBI
HR - CH SS K Mulford (3), 1B R Osborn (12), Dul - SS J Beasley 2 (6), DH R Barnard 2 (2), CF C Sanchez (5)
POTG - Duluth SS Jeff Beasley
Game #3 - Thursday June 15th 2056
Chicago 32-30 @ Duluth 37-25
RHP Jose Cedeno (7-2 3.54 ERA) vs LHP Tim Gross (4-2, 4.09 ERA)
A - 39,741
Duluth’s Tim Gross (7 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 7 K) earns his fifth win. Tim Goyette, 22, hits his first major-league home run. Congrats, Tim! Carlos Figueroa singles in a run and hits a sac fly.
Duluth 4, Chicago 3.
1B R Osborn 2-4 DB 2R, LF R LeRoy 2-4 2DB RBI
HR - CH CF C Luna (6) Dul - C T Goyette (1)
POTG - Duluth SP Tim Gross
Summary - The Architects seem to often have trouble with Duluth SP Tim Gross and once again he does enough to pick up a huge win for the Sea Gulls. RP Larry Stott (1-1) lost his one, giving up a walk and a hit in the 8th. Last season we won this type of game, this year we lose them all too often. Even with the loss we have played the Sea Gulls even up during the first half with both sides winning 6 each. Now we have to change the directory of our season matchup with Toledo where the Neptunes have won 7 out of 9 games.
Toledo Neptunes 36-27 2nd place in US vs Chicago Architects 32-31 T-3rd US
June 16th through 19th 2056
Chicago’s Pier IV Grounds
After dropping 2 out of 3 in Duluth, this series is our chance to get back into things with Toledo. We are 4 games behind Toledo right now and getting this season series back on track (like last season at this point) would be a huge step in the right direction.
Today we begin a 3-game series with the Toledo Neptunes at home.
The Neptunes are playing .571 ball this season, compiling a record of 36 wins and 27 losses. They are in 2nd place in the South of the Border, 2.0 games behind the leader. Their number of runs scored of 358 rank tied for 1st in the USA, their .280 batting average ranks 2nd. On the other side of the diamond, they have given up 286 runs (2nd) with their starters compiling an ERA of 4.20 which ranks 2nd. Their bullpen sports an ERA of 4.20, ranking 2nd. When playing against our Architects this season, they have a record of 7 wins and 2 losses.
Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP Yale Hulbert (3-1, 8.31 ERA) vs RHP Nick Keddy (6-2, 2.83 ERA)
RHP Terry Noble (4-2 5.88 ERA) vs RHP Christopher Bouchard (7-2, 3.06 ERA)
RHP Motoyuki. Inoue (7-6, 3.70 ERA) vs RHP Warren Townsend (7-3, 4.06 ERA)
The top 5 players on their team are:
1. SP Nick Keddy (Age: 29, Overall : 4.5, Potential: 4.5)
2. RP Ricardo Valentín (30, 4.0, 4.0)
3. SP Christopher Bouchard (29, 3.5, 3.5)
4. 1B Eric Molina (30, 3.5, 3.5)
5. 2B Xing-fu Sen (25, 3.5, 4.0)
Game #1 -Friday June 15th 2056
Toledo 36-27 vs Chicago 32-31
RHP Nick Keddy (6-2, 2.83 ERA) vs RHP Yale Hulbert (3-1, 8.31 ERA)
A - 36,381
Too much SP Nick Keddy (6.2IP 4H 1R 2BB 6K) and not enough (good) SP Yale Hulburt. Toledo takes a 2-1 lead into the sixth, where Hulburt loads the bases and makes a huge mistake as Luîs González hits a grand slam.
Toledo 7, Chicago 2.
LF R LeRoy 2-4, CF C Luna 2-4 HR R RBI
HR - Tol C JP Richard (6) CH - CF C Luna (7)
POTG - Toledo SP Nick Keddy
Game #2 -Saturday June 16th 2056
Toledo 37-27 vs Chicago 32-32
RHP Christopher Bouchard (7-2, 3.06 ERA) vsRHP Terry Noble (4-2 5.88 ERA)
A - 36,361
Toledo’s Luis González goes 4-for-5 with a home run, a double, two runs scored, and two RBIs. Xing-Fu Sen hit three RBI singles. Christopher Bouchard (8 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 7 K) picks up his league-leading eighth win of the season. The Tects scored five in the ninth, but they needed four more.
Toledo 10, Chicago 6.
1B R Osborn 2-5 HR R 2RBI, 3B K Noseworthy 2-3
HR - Tol 3B L Gonzalez (7) CH - 1B R Osborn (13), DH J Aranda (7)
POTG - Toledo 3B Luis Gonzalez
Game #3 -Subday June 17th 2056
Toledo 38-27 vs Chicago 32-33
RHP Christopher Bouchard (7-2, 3.06 ERA) vsRHP Terry Noble (4-2 5.88 ERA)
A - 36,186
Chicago’s SP Motojuki Inoue was sailing through the game when he left the game in the 5th inning with an injury (4.2IP 1H 0R 2BB 4K). After Inoue leaves the game we pick things up in the sixth. Chicago has a 2-0 lead. Toledo’s Luis González doubles in a run, then scores the tying run on Xing-Fu Sen single. Chicago comes right back with a run of their own: Juan Durán reaches base on an error, then comes around to score on a single and two groundouts to second. In the eighth, Toledo’s González strikes again. He singles in the tying run. Eric Molina scores the winning run on sac fly.
Toledo 4, Chicago 3.
POTG - Toledo 3B Luis Gonzalez
Special Note - Chicago SP Motoyuki Inoue was injured while pitching
Summary -
Wow…………..This club completely crapped the bed, losing their last 5 games against the teams in front of them. Just an inexcusable performance by a team that felt like they were going back to the playoffs and perhaps their 3rd straight World Series at the beginning of the season. Coming home and playing like this, I’m at a loss for words. It is a total system breakdown and after these 6 games we are now 6 games behind 2nd place Toledo for the Wildcard, Detroit has even snuck in front of us.
Second time this week that RP Larry Stott has come in and given up the winning runs late. This time he blew the save and we lost another 1-run game. The kind we used to win and we did that a lot against Toledo last season.
Sunday, June 18th , 2056 - Chicago Architects:
SP Motoyuki Inoue was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: tender shoulder. Fortunately for the Architects this is a day-to-day injury expected to last 4 days.
We definitely dodged a bullet there. Could Chicago have won this game if Inoue had been able to go farther? He certainly had the Neptunes number through his 4 ⅔ innings giving up just 1 hit. The bigger thing is we have to hope this isn’t the start of an issue with Inoue who has been very resilient in his career just having 3 minor injuries and none of them that landed him on the DL. With the off-day on Monday he could have probably pitched the 3rd game against Milwaukee but we will see how he is doing and then make a decision before any games against Traverse City to end the first half.
Monday June 19th - Much needed off-day as far as games. The team is taking extra batting and fielding while the pitchers are going over scouting reports etc for the last 6 games before the All-Star Break. They also received quite the tongue lashing from the Manager.
Milwaukee Eagles 21-45 last in the US vs Chicago Architects 32-34 4th in the US
June 20th through June 22nd 2056
Chicago’s Pier IV Grounds
The players are starting to concern me. The club is below 500 now and is in very clear danger of digging a hole too big to overcome in the 2nd half. With 6th-place Milwaukee now at home for 3 and then off to 5th-place Traverse City to end the first half, we need a really big turn around starting now.
Today we begin a 3-game series with the Milwaukee Eagles at home.
Going 21-45 so far this year, the Eagles have compiled a .318 winning percentage. They are in 6th place in the South of the Border, 19.5 games behind the leader. The Eagles are on a cold streak, losing their last 3 games. Their number of runs scored of 294 rank 6th in the USA, their .272 batting average ranks 5th. On the other side of the diamond, they have given up 391 runs (6th) with their starters compiling an ERA of 5.37 which ranks 6th. Their bullpen sports an ERA of 6.25, ranking 6th. When playing against our Architects this season, they have a record of 4 wins and 5 losses.
Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP Jose Cedeno (7-2 3.65 ERA) vs RHP M. Belding (1-5, 6.28 ERA)
RHP Yale Hulbert (3-2, 8.78 ERA) vs RHP K. Bennett (4-4, 3.55 ERA)
RHP John Moore (3-1 3.46 ERA) vs RHP J. Atkinson (2-5, 6.40 ERA)
The top 5 players on their team are:
1. C Cecil Phillips (Age: 33, Overall : 4.0, Potential: 4.0)
2. 1B John Crosby (28, 3.0, 3.0)
3. RF Luo-lang Petit (25, 2.5, 2.5)
4. SS Alexandre Gasnier (24, 2.5, 3.0)
5. SP Mike Emery (23, 2.5, 3.0)
Game #1 Tuesday June 20th 2056
Milwaukee 21-45 vs Chicago 32-34
RHP M. Belding (1-5, 6.28 ERA) vs RHP Jose Cedeno (7-2 3.65 ERA)
A - 31,993
It’s appropriate that, for the 10th Anniversary of the league, we get a matchup of the league’s first big rivalry: the Milwaukee Eagles and Chicago Architects. These two teams squared off in four of the first five USA League Championship series. In the fifth, Chicago’s Joe Hunt homers. In the sixth, Milwaukee’s Cecil Phillips hits a two-run single. In the seventh, Hunt hit a two-run home run. SP Jose “Pongo” Cedeno reverts back to early season form and to pick up his 8th win of the season (8IP 6H 2R 1BB 6K W 8-2)
Chicago 3, Milwaukee 2.
C J Hunt 2-3 2HR 2R 3 RBI
HR Mil - none CH - C J Hunt 2 (8)
POTG - Chicago C Joe Hunt (1)
Game #2 Wednesday June 21st 2056
Milwaukee 21-46 vs Chicago 33-34
RHP K. Bennett (4-4, 3.55 ERA) vs RHP Yale Hulbert (3-2, 8.78 ERA)
A - 31,533
Rodeo Leroy hits a three-run home run, Joe Hunt hits a three-run double, and ex-Eagle Yale Hulbert (7.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 B, 7 K) holds his old team quiet.
Chicago 8, Milwaukee 1.
LF R LeRoy 3-5 HR 2R 3RBI, 1B R Osborn 1-3 DB 2BB 2R, 2B R Lambert 2-4 R BB SB
HR - Mil - none CH - LF R LeRoy (21), CF C Luna (8)
POTG - Chicago SP Yale Hulburt (2)
Game #3 Thursday June 22nd 2056
Milwaukee 21-46 vs Chicago 33-34
RHP J. Atkinson (2-5, 6.40 ERA) vs RHP John Moore (3-1 3.46 ERA)
A - 32,416
Chicago catcher Joe Hunt goes 4-for-5 with two home runs, a double, three RBIs, and four runs scored. José Aranda, John Lambert, and Reagan Osborn also homer. SP John Moore also makes his return to the starting rotation after a very successful stint to start the season in the bullpen after he came back from injury. Moore goes 7IP allowing 4 hits, 3 runs which just 2 were earned walking 1 and striking out 8. Chicago 13, Milwaukee 3.
SP J Moore 7IP 4H 3R 2ER 1BB 8K W (4-1) , RF T Stone 2-5 2DB 2R RBI, 1B R Osborn 3-5 HR 2R 2 RBI, LF R LeRoy 2-5 2 DB R 2 RBI, C J Hunt 4-5 2HR DB 4R 3RBI, SS K Mulford 3-4 RBI BB, SB
HR - Mil none, CH - C J Hunt 2 (10), DH J Aranda (8), 2B J Lambert (11), 1B R Osborn (14)
POTG - Chicago C Joe Hunt (2)
Summary - Just what the doctor ordered, a home series against last place Milwaukee. That makes things feel a little better as the Architects are back above 500 with a 35-34 record. Just three more games until the All-Star Break and we are back into a tie for 3rd place and clawed a game back on Toledo. Now standing 5 games back of the wildcard spot.