The Montreal Expos... Exposing the New MLB?

[Griever20]

Week 22: 3@ Miami Marlins(54-72), 4vs Washington Nationals(56-71)

August 29th

Expos Bring Home 6-5 Win Despite Bullpen Woes

The Montreal Expos picked up a win at LoanDepot Park, knocking off the Miami Marlins, 6-5. On the mound for Montreal was right-hander Austin Roy. He played a key role in the triumph. Roy, now 9-10, was the winner. In 6.2 innings, he gave up 5 hits, while striking out 7, walking 1, and allowing 3 runs. Adam Rudolph converted his 13th save in 14 tries.

Huai-yu Mah went 1 for 2 with a walk and was hit by a pitch, while adding 2 RBI and scoring once for Montreal. The 27-year old left fielder had a key at-bat in the top of the second. With one out and the bases loaded, he broke a 0-0 tie with a run-scoring ground out off Gerry Smith. It was his 31st RBI of the season.

"We had some nice at-bats at the right time," said Expos manager Aaron McCreery.

The current losing streak for Miami has reached 4 games.

Dan Hinton(R, 7-8 3.43) - Angelo Romero(R, 0-0 5.01 17G/0GS) tomorrow. Spot start for the long man.

SP Austin Roy 6.2IP 5H 3R 1ER 7BB 7K W PotG
2B Robby Weltzer 1-5 RBI
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-5 R
DH Matt Talbert 1-5 R 2RBI HR
1B Tim McKusick 2-4 2R DB
CF Bobby Martinez 1-2 R 2RBI BB DB SB(4)
RF Huai-yu Mah 1-2 R 2RBI BB
HR MON: Talbert(8)
HR MIA: none
W: Austin Roy(9-10 3.88) L: Gerry Smith(7-10 3.99) SV: Adam Rudolph(13 2.08)
Jenkins and Rudolph gave up runs in relief and Kazemd committed a 2-run error… but we prevailed.

August 30th

Expos Trip Marlins in Extra Innings

The Montreal Expos and Miami Marlins completed their game despite the rain.

The Montreal Expos defeated the Miami Marlins, 5-4, in 10 innings in Eastern League action at LoanDepot Park. Montreal pitcher Dan Hinton had a standout performance. Montreal reliever Freddy Silva picked up the win, raising his record to 3-1. Brian Umbaugh was tagged with the loss.

Montreal used the timely hitting of Huai-yu Mah to seize the win. The right fielder stroked a run-scoring single in the top of the tenth inning to put the Expos on top, 5-4. It was his only hit in 5 at-bats, but it was a game-changer.

"What a great win for our team," said a jubilant Aaron McCreery, the Montreal manager.

The Marlins, at 54-74, have lost 5 straight games.

Sam Griffin(R, 13-9 4.17) - Eibe Hoekstra(R, 7-13 3.99) tomorrow. He cut down the walks… and therefore, the ERA.

SP Dan Hinton 5IP 4H 2R 2ER 3BB 6K ND PotG
2B Robby Weltzer 2-5 R RBI
1B Dave Grochowski 2-5 R
C Gabriel Cervantes 1-4 R RBI BB DB
DH Tim McKusick 0-1 R 2RBI 2BB
RF Huai-yu Mah 1-5 R RBI
CF Bobby Martinez 2-5
HR MON: none
HR MIA: none
W: Freddy Silva(3-1 3.62) L: Brian Umbaugh(4-9 4.33) SV: none
Alvarado was the one to give up 2ER in relief after a rain delay and 100 pitches chased Danny… but another W.

August 31st

Marlins Stop Skid, Win 7-1 at Home

Eibe Hoekstra pitched a gem to lead Miami to victory over the Montreal Expos, 7-1. Miami is last in the Eastern League South East Division with a record of 55-74.

"Throwing strikes was the main thing," Hoekstra said.


The Marlins got a big at-bat from catcher Chris Malloy. For the game, Malloy went 1-4 with a home run, while adding 4 RBI and scoring once. In the bottom of the second, with the bases loaded, he stroked a grand slam home run. His 13th home run of the season gave Miami a 4-0 lead. The 24-year old is batting .214-13-44 .625OPS 0.8WAR in 98 games in his rookie season.

Tony Allmon(R, 8-9 2.46) - Juan Miranda(R, 8-10 4.29) tomorrow. 23-year old waiver claim that turned into an All-Star..

SP Dan Hinton 4.2IP 8H 4R 4ER 4BB 1K L
2B Robby Weltzer 1-4 R DB
1B Dave Grochowski 1-4
DH Tim McKusick 0-3 BB
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-4
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-3
SS Rich Meilleur 1-3
HR MON: none
HR MIA: Malloy(13), Clinton(22)
W: Eibe Hoekstra(8-13 3.83) L: Sam Griffin(13-10 4.27) SV: none
Griffin very un-Griffin like started to nibble early and then got burned.

END OF AUGUST

[Griever20]

EL Awards:
Batter of the Month: Philadelphia 2B Fidel de Leon(30, 4*) .333-5-17 1.028OPS 1.6WAR 5x All-Star, 2016 EL MvP
Pitcher of the Month: Detroit RHRP Elliot Malloy(24, 3.5*) 3-0 9SV 2.19 14K 12.1IP 0.2WAR Leads EL in SV(37)
Rookie of the Month: Montreal 1B Dave Grochowski(24, 3.5*) .359-4-16 .916OPS 1.1WAR All Hail Grok for the second month in a row!


WL Awards:
Batter of the Month: Oakland RF Tye Dowling(28, 3.5*) .345-11-29 1.048OPS 1.7WAR 2019 All-Star
Pitcher of the Month: San Diego RHSP Jerry Sullivan(23, 3.5/4*) 4-1 2.66 46K 6GS 44IP 0.8WAR First time All-Star this year
Rookie of the Month: San Francisco RHSP Josue Griffin(23, 2.5*) 4-1 3.08 27K 38IP 6GS 0.3WAR 11th rounder in 2016.

We went 15-13 in the month of August and while that is out second best month in terms of wins, and third best in terms of win percentage, that also means we have no shot for playoffs… no surprise there. Our Pythagorean record is one game better, so we are about where we should be, and I painfully have to agree with that. That being said, the two teams ahead of us have the worst minor league system (Philadelphia) and the 22nd (Boston), so there is a good chance that the future is ours… unless the New York Mets don’t start spending their excess money…

Around the league, there are the Detroit Trains, Las Vegas Gamblers, Arizona Diamondbacks and San Francisco Red Devils are fighting it out for the best record in baseball and I still believe that the Las Vegas Gamblers should be the favorites here… They have the pitching with 2021 WL PotY Jesse Bahena(25, 3.5/4*, 11-7 3.43 204K 27G 5.2WAR) and phenom Chris Harkless(24, 3.5*, 14-6 2.87 172K 27GS 4.9WAR) and the hitting with 2B Sean Thomason(30, 3.5*, ,.277-16-44 .808 117G 3.6WAR), 2021 WL MvP C Omar Vega(24, 5*, .278-29-81 .889OPS 98G 4.3WAR) as well as hard hitting OF/1B Trevor Wolthuis(29, 3*, .215-33-71 .800OPS 121G 1.7WAR)… they are scary,


Now, how about some fun, players we traded away since I got GM here:
LHRP Dusty Leone(26, 2.5* to SDP) 0-3 3SV 4.18 41K 47.1IP 43G 0.3WAR
The scouting update was right about him sadly, and we only got some fringe prospects back.
C Danny Tutton(30, 2.5* to CIN) .190-7-20 .558OPS -0.1WAR 2.2ZR, 3.84CERA
We got back 2.6WAR in Alvarado, Benavides and O-Gon back…
C Elias Mendia(25, 2.5* to BOS) .279-2-14 .706OPS 40G 0.6WAR -0.4ZR 4.01CERA
I got scared when he won a RotM last year, hit 3HR in one game against us, and finished with 2.1WAR, but he lost his starting job this year, still, 2.8WAR vs 1.9WAR by Messer.
2B Brent Lynn(29, 3* to JAC) .255-15-45 .741OPS 107G 2.5WAR 5.2ZR at 2B
Would’ve been a good servant in our infield, but not for $11.2M.
3B Vinny Roman(34, 3* to CAL) .244-18-51 .735OPS 114G 2.1WAR 0.0ZR
He got 3.1WAR since the trade, we got Roy(2.2) and Weltzer(2.8) back…

Pitching:

DL: LHRP Joe Herzer(24, 3.5*) back spasms 10 days 3-3 2.88 59K 65.2IP 0.5WAR

NMBL Montreal Expos Players on the leaderboard:
RHSP Sam Griffin 13 W – tied 2nd
RHSP Sam Griffin 2 CG – tied 4th
RHSP Sam Griffin 1.7 BB/9 – 4th
RHSP Marty Murrietta 58 BB – tied 4th

Dan Hinton had a nice month looking at the underlying numbers and our stats department gave him some nice 0.8WAR for August, just in front of Austin Roy with 0.7WAR. Our starting pitching this month was really good in stretches, and one decision helped us win more ballgames… making Adam Rudolph the new closer and demoting Kevin Cowden to setup… where he still went 0-1 11.74ERA last month… boy, the AAA stats didn’t lie.

In other news, Aaron McCreery really likes our trade acquisition Pablo Mendoza and asked whether we can sent down John Mannino instead of Mendoza when Joe Herzer is back healthy… I tend to not do this in order to not burn an option on Mannino in a meaningless September, but something to keep an eye on for 2023. Oh, and McCreery loves Alvarado in the pen, and so do I.

Position Players:

DL: CF Vicente Rodriguez(24, 2.5*) hamstring strain 1 week .257-2-26 .628OPS 90G/86GS 0.7WAR

NMBL Montreal Expos Players on the leaderboard:
1B Dave Grochowski .349 Batting Average – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski .417 OBP – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski .927 OPS – 2nd
1B Dave Grochowski 156 H – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski 158 OPS+ – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski 3.93 WPA – 2nd
CF Vicente Rodriguez 6 TP – tied 2nd

Offense is still… challenging. The three hitters on our roster with an OPS > .800 in August are… Grok, Matt Talbert in 18G/9GS… and Joe Hawk who hit .319/.396/.468 with Kansas City Royals before they sent him back to us. On the other hand, the only regular with a negative Zone Rating in August was Huai-yu Mah with -3.7 and he won’t be around for long.

That being said, help is underway… so we hope. In order for this to work as we hope, we need some luck in development and in the development lab to get the power up here for spring ball…


Prospect Watch:
AAA 2B/SS/3B Julian Hernandez(2.5/4*) .304-8-33 .805OPS 102G 16/19SB 4.4WAR knee tendinitis 2-3 weeks
AAA LHSP Brett Asselin(3/4*) 2-3 2.96 62K 67IP 11GS 0.4WAR
AA RHSP Jorge Estrella(2.5/3*) 6-10 3.88 74K 125.1IP 21GS 1.8WAR torn rotator cuff CAREER ENDING INJURY
AA 2B Fernando Perez(22, 2.5/3*) .231-17-49 .727OPS 103G 3.8WAR
A RHSP Alejandro Corral(2/3*) 11-7 2.45 138K 139.2IP 25G 2.2WAR
A LF Santiago Rodriguez(2/3.5*) .242-14-40 .697OPS 113G 14/17SB 0.3WAR
A 1B Joe Townsend(1.5/3*) .173-9-31 .549OPS 116G -0.5WAR
S A SS Bryan Booth(21, 1.5/4*) .231-4-14 .708OPS 3/4SB 27G 0.9WAR
R CF Tyler Dean(19, 1.5/5*) .219-15-41 .687OPS 11/13SB 111G 6.6WAR
R 2B/SS Manny Ramirez(1/5*) .163-6-21 .435OPS 1/2SB 113G 2.2WAR
R 1B Tyler Aurand(18, 0.5/3.5*) .192-8-14 .704OPS 35G 1.8WAR

To spell it out. We lost the #50 prospect in injury to torn rotator cuff CAREER ENDING INJURY. **** me. You hate to see that happening.

In other news, Manny Ramirez has finished learning 2B and is now a 65 rated defender at the position… we continue with 3B, I want him to be a versatile infielder if nothing else. The others… are progressing well enough. Especially good: Brett Asselin looks like the real deal and is already rated as good as Miranda and better than Griffin… Will be an interesting spring, and we have to figure out in the winter what to do…

As for minor league playoffs, our AAA & A & S A teams are out by a wide margin, AA Golden Valley is 0.5G behind in the Wildcard, and our All-Year Rookie League Leadmine Canucks are a proud 68-52 and leading their division… with our 1st, 2nd and 4th round picks from the 2021 draft in there, trade acquisition Mike Sather and international amateur free agent signings Luis Solano and of course Manny Ramirez… we got some real talent at the age of 17-20.

[Griever20]

Week 22: 3@ Miami Marlins(54-72), 4vs Washington Nationals(56-71)

September 1st

Expos Win Slugfest, 10-6 On Grand Slam Walk-Off Homer

A good performance from third baseman Mitku Kazemd helped the Montreal Expos defeat the Washington Nationals, 10-6. Kazemd went 3-4 with a home run, a double, and a walk. He scored 3 times and drove in 2 for the Expos. The 22-year old is batting .246-11-31 .664OPS 0.6WAR in 96 games.

After today's action, Montreal sits at 64-68, while Washington falls to 56-74.

The decisive blow was delivered by Huai-yu Mah in the bottom of the ninth when he hit a grand slam home run off 25-year old left-handed pitcher Pete Dimick to win the game for Montreal. The home crowd went nuts.

"It's nice to deliver when your team's counting on you," said Mah.

Ian Munson(R, 9-7 3.46) - Marty Murrietta(R, 10-10 4.00) tomorrow. Fragile right hander in his second year

SP Juan Miranda 5.2IP 7H 5R 3ER 1BB 6K ND
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-4 BB
1B Dave Grochowski 1-5
DH Matt Talbert 1-3 R BB HBP
SS Orlando Gonzalez 2-2 2R 2RBI BB HR
3B Mitku Kazemd 3-4 3R 2RBI BB DB HR PotG
RF Huai-yu Mah 2-4 R 4RBI HBP HR
PH/2B Joe Hawk 1-2 R 2RBI HR
HR WSH: Anderson(6), Lahoda(1), McFadyen(15), Matsumura(12)
HR MON: Mah(7), Gonzalez(8), Kazemd(11), Hawk(14)
W: Adam Rudolph(1-2 2.21) L: Pete Dimick(3-2 4.33) SV: none
Instant classic. Home runs over home runs and the storylines. Mah gets hit by pitch and then hits a grand slam walk-off in the 9th to win it, Joe Hawk comes in and hits a home run in his second AB for us after being a Rule 5 draftee… Wild Game.

September 2nd

Expos Beat Munson, Nationals 4-2

The Montreal Expos had to overcome a fine effort from Washington pitcher Ian Munson to win, 4-2, at Olympic Stadium. Munson went 6.1 innings and allowed 3 runs. John Mannino picked up the win in relief, improving his record to 2-2. Ian Munson was tagged with the loss. Montreal is now 65-68, Washington 56-75.

Montreal took a 3-2 lead on Tim McKusick's 8th double of the season. The 2-run double, which McKusick hit in the bottom of the seventh, left Washington pitcher Antonio Barcia visibly frustrated. Coming off the bench as a pinch hitter today, McKusick is batting .201-5-30 .603OPS -0.6WAR in 45 games.

"I like what I saw today," said Montreal manager Aaron McCreery, "and I can't wait to get back out there and do it again."

John Wasielewski(R, 0-0 5.40) - Austin Roy(R, 9-10 3.88) tomorrow. 26-year old AAA with a weak third pitch.

SP Marty Murrietta 6.1IP 7H 2R 2ER 1BB 5K ND
DH Joe Hawk 1-4 SB(1)
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-4 R
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-4 R
RF Ian Messer 1-2 R
PH Tim McKusick 1-1 R 2RBI DB
SS Rich Meilleur 1-2 RBI BB
HR WSH: none
HR MON: none
W: John Mannino(2-2 4.33) L: Ian Munson(9-8 3.44) SV: Adam Rudolph(14 2.17)
Rudolph bounced back after blowing the save yesterday, and McKusick made our only extra base hit count today.

September 3rd

Nats Return Favor, Win 4-2

Washington turned a good performance from starting pitcher John Wasielewski into a 4-2 triumph over the Montreal Expos at Olympic Stadium. The winner was Wasielewski. He threw 8.0 innings of 7-hit ball. The loser was Austin Roy.

"I was able to get good plays made behind me," Wasielewski said. "And I was able to make pitches when I needed to make pitches." Washington is now 57-75, Montreal 65-69.

Had Jonathan McFadyen not delivered a key base hit in the top of the eighth, the outcome might have been different. Instead, with two down and runners on 1st and 2nd, McFadyen hit a run-scoring single. That made the score 2-1, in favor of the Nationals. The 2020 EL Silver Slugger at DH is batting .244-15-41 .680OPS -1.3WAR in 118 games, a far cry from a .297-47-129 2020.

Manny Garcia(R, 8-10 4.12) - Dan Hinton(R, 7-8 3.44) tomorrow. 2019 All-Star and their second best pitcher.

SP Austin Roy 7.2IP 4H 3R 3ER 4BB 7K L
1B Dave Grochowski 2-4 R RBI DB
C Gabriel Cervantes 3-4 RBI
3B Mitku Kazemd 1-3 R
PH Tim McKusick 1-1
HR WSH: Mendez(2)
HR MON: none
W: John Wasielewski(1-0 4.12) L: Austin Roy(9-11 3.87) SV: Zachary Welborn(32 4.58)
Not enough offense to support Roy who pitched a strong game.

September 4th

Hinton Strong as Expos Win, 2-0

Montreal Expos starter Dan Hinton pitched a strong game against the Washington Nationals at Olympic Stadium, leading the Expos to victory, 2-0. Hinton picked up the win for Montreal, going 7.2 innings. He gave up no runs on 9 hits. He now sports a record of 8-8. Adam Rudolph got the save, his 15th in 17 chances.

Joe Hawk came through for Montreal with a run-scoring double in the bottom of the third. The designated hitter went 2 for 4 for the game, including 1 home run and 1 double. He scored 1 run and collected 2 RBI.

"We faced good pitching and still got it done," said Hawk. The 24-year old is batting .266-15-57 .763OPS 1.7WAR between MON and KCR.

The setback makes Washington 57-76.

Sam Griffin(R, 13-10 4.27) - Jessie Dittus(R, 8-5 4.34) tomorrow. Maxed out at 10 wins/season the last two years.

SP Dan Hinton 7.2IP 9H 0R 0ER 1BB 4K W PotG
1B Dave Grochowski 2-4
DH Joe Hawk 2-4 R 2RBI DB HR
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-4
SS Rick Meilleur 1-4 DB
C Kyle Craddock 1-2 BB
HR WSH: none
HR MON: Hawk(15)
W: Dan Hinton(8-8 3.28) L: Manny Garcia(8-11 4.03) SV: Adam Rudolph(15 2.13)
Danny! Those are close games that we win on pitching, but we win them.

Record: 66-69, 3rd in EL Northeast, 8.5GB
Week: 5-2 (2-1@ MIA, 3-1vs WSH)
Power Rankings: #12(+7)
Runs scored: 534(11th)
Runs against: 539(6th)
Starters ERA: 3.90(8th)
Bullpen ERA: 3.38(2th)
Defensive Eff.: .712(1st)
Zone Rating: +35.7(1st)
Fan Interest: 73(-2)

Who's hot?
SP Sam Griffin 4G 3-1 2.22 24.1IP 12K
SP Dan Hinton 3G 1-0 1.37 19.2IP 16K

Who's not?
RHRP Kevin Cowden 19G 5SV 9.39 15.1IP 18K

News:
August 30th - Las Vegas LF/1B Trevor Wolthuis(29, 3*) had a special day today, collecting home run #300 and #301 today for his career in a 9-5 loss in Calgary. The 5x All-Star, 3x Silver Slugger and 4x Home run king is a career .232-301-678 .869OPS 556R 16.4WAR hitter in 907 games and 8 seasons.

September 4th - Detroit LHSP Bret Engling(31, 3.5*) collected a 2-hit shutout today in a 5-0 win at Boston, walking three and striking out 9. The 3x All-Star is 11-6 3.45 131K 3.8WAR in 25 starts.

September 5th - Philadelphia 2B Fidel de Leon(30, 4*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 9-23 4HR 12RBI 7R. The 5x All-Star is batting .274-28-86 .891OPS 5.9WAR in 118 games.

September 5th - Arizona 1B Marco Lemus(24, 4*) was named WL Player of the Week after going 10-22 4HR 9RBI 7R. The 2021 EL Rookie of the Year is batting .292-36-101 .935OPS 5.2WAR in 127 games.

September 5th - Leadmine Canucks CF Tyler Dean(19, 1.5/5*) was named All-Year Rookie League East Player of the Week after going 10-24 2HR 6RBI 6R. The 2021 First overall Pick is batting .229-17-46 .717OPS 6.9WAR in 115 games in his first full season in All-Year Rookie ball.

Next: 3@ Philadelphia Grizzlies(73-59), 3@ Boston Aeros(69-65)

[Griever20]

Week 23: 3@ Philadelphia Grizzlies(73-59), 3@ Boston Aeros(69-65)

September 5th

Montreal Wins Opener, 8-3

Starting pitcher Sam Griffin pitched well enough to help the Montreal Expos beat the Philadelphia Grizzlies, 8-3. Griffin got the win, improving to 14-10. He gave up 6 hits and walked 2 over 6.2 innings. He allowed 3 runs. Cesar Alvarado was credited with the save, his 2nd in 3 tries.

With one out in the top of the seventh, Gabriel Cervantes had a game-changing hit. The Expos catcher slammed a run-scoring single off Jessie Dittus, making the score 5-3, Montreal.

Cervantes attributed the win to his team's "focus and intensity." The 27-year old is batting .291-17-67 .828OPS 3.5WAR in 103 games.

Montreal is now 67-69. Philadelphia is 73-60.

Juan Miranda(R, 13-10 4.27) - Ruben Torrez(L, 7-5 2.93) tomorrow. Don’t want to face him, can we get a refund?

SP Sam Griffin 6.2IP 6H 3R 2ER 2BB 4K W PotG
2B Robby Weltzer 3-5 2R RBI
CF Bobby Martinez 1-4 2R RBI 2SB(6)
C Gabriel Cervantes 2-4 3RBI
DH Joe Hawk 2-3 R RBI DB SB(15)
RF Ian Messer 1-4 RBI HBP
SS Rick Meilleur 2-4 2R
HR MON: none
HR PHI: none
W: Sam Griffin(14-10 4.21) L: Jesse Dittus(8-6 4.41) SV: Cesar Alvarado(2 1.98)
Alvarado with a 2.1IP save as him and Griffin brought that one home.

September 6th

Philadelphia Gets Riveting Walk-Off Win

Fans watched the Philadelphia Grizzlies and the Montreal Expos fight to the finish.

The Philadelphia Grizzlies picked up a win at Citizens Bank Park, knocking off the Montreal Expos, 5-4. On the mound for Philadelphia was left-hander Ruben Torrez. He played a key role in the triumph, working eight scoreless innings with 14K but got the ND. Philadelphia raised its record to 74-60 with the win.

The Grizzlies got a clutch hit from catcher Juan Cardenas. In the bottom of the 14th, he delivered a run-scoring single to win the game for the Grizzlies.

"What a buzz," said Cardenas after it was over. The 24-year old catcher is batting .251-5-33 .657OPS 1.6WAR in 97 games.

Marty Murrietta(R, 10-10 3.95) - Hugh Kieninger(R, 9-8 2.46) tomorrow. Where do they find those guys.

SP Juan Miranda 7.1IP 5H 2R 2ER 0BB 9K ND
2B Robby Weltzer 1-7
1B Dave Grochowski 1-3
PH Kyle Craddock 1-1 R DB
C Gabriel Cervantes 1-5 2RBI BB
DH Matt Talbert 1-6 R
SS Orlando Gonzalez 2-6 R 2RBI HR
3B Mitku Kazemd 2-6 DB
HR MON: Gonzalez(9)
HR PHI: Maradiaga(20), Jimenez(14), Cardens(5)
W: T.J. Delaney(2-1 3.52) L: Pablo Mendoza(0-1 2.45) SV: none
We scored four off their pen, Rudolph blew the save and Mendoza the game…

September 7th

Transactions:
CF Vicente Rodriguez(24, 2.5*, .257-2-26 .628OPS 0.7WAR 90G) was sent to AAA Spring Valley for a rehab assignment after his pesky hamstring strain.

Murrietta, Expos Win 4-1 at Philadelphia

Montreal beat Philadelphia on the strength of starting pitcher Marty Murrietta's fine effort. The right-hander led his team to a win, 4-1. Murrietta, the winner, moves to 7-5. He threw 6.2 innings of 4-hit ball, while fanning 9 and giving up 2 walks. Picking up the save was Kevin Cowden. He's now 24 for 29 in save chances.

"I liked his command," said Montreal manager Aaron McCreery. "Marty was throwing strikes."

Montreal used a clutch at-bat from Mitku Kazemd to capture the win. The second baseman hammered a grand slam home run in the top of the fourth inning to put the Expos ahead, 4-1. It was his lone hit in 4 at-bats, but it was a humdinger. The 22-year old is batting .247-12-35 .670OPS 0.7WAR in 100 games.

Montreal is now 68-70, Philadelphia 74-61.

Austin Roy(R, 9-11 3.87) - Jordan Arroyo(R, 3-3 4.97) the day after tomorrow. 25-year old AAAA player.

SP Marty Murrietta 6.2IP 4H 1R 1ER 2BB 9K W PotG
CF Chris Allen 3-5 2SB(9)
1B Dave Grochowski 2-4
RF Ian Messer 0-4 R
DH Joe Hawk 1-4 R
LF Ignacio Benavides 2-4 R
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-4 DB
3B Mitku Kazemd 1-4 R 4RBI HR
PH Matt Talbert 0-0 BB back stiffness 2 weeks
HR MON: Kazemd(12)
HR PHI : none
W: Marty Murrietta(11-10 3.84) L: Hugh Kieninger(9-9 2.53) SV: Kevin Cowden(24 6.04)
Talbert collided at with the second baseman on a tight play and will be struggling with his back…

September 8th
Offday

September 9th

Transactions:
1B Matt Talbert(25, 3*, .242-8-22 .755OPS 0.5WAR 65G) was placed on the 10-day DL and
CF Vicente Rodriguez(24, 2.5*, .257-2-26 .628OPS 0.7WAR 90G) was recalled as we needed to find a right-handed hitter to balance out the lineup.

Aeros Rack Up 10-6 Win Versus Montreal

The Boston Aeros defeated the Montreal Expos, 10-6, in part because of third baseman Alex Torres. Torres went 2-4 with a home run, while scoring 2 runs and driving in 4 for the Aeros. Jordan Arroyo, the winning pitcher, is now 4-3. He went 7.1 innings, allowing 4 runs on 6 hits, while fanning 5 and walking 1. With the win, the Aeros sit at 72-66.

"It feels good to get this one," Torres told the Boston Herald. The 2x Gold Glover is batting .268-6-34 .702OPS 1.6WAR in 105 games.

Savion Smith helped out the Boston cause in the bottom of the seventh inning with a run-scoring walk. For the game, the catcher went 1 for 3 with a walk.

Dan Hinton(R, 8-8 3.28) - Steve Behanna(R, 4-4 4.99) tomorrow. Trade acquisition from WSH at the deadline.

SP Austin Roy 4.1IP 8H 5R 5ER 2BB 7K L
RF Ian Messer 1-4 R RBI HR
DH Joe Hawk 2-4 2R 2RBI 2HR
C Gabriel Cervantes 2-4 R DB
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-4 R RBI DB TP
2B Robby Weltzer 2-4 R RBI DB HR
HR MON: Hawk 2(17), Weltzer(9), Messer(5)
HR BOS: Kessler(15), Torres(6)
W: Jordan Arroyo(4-3 4.19) L: Austin Roy(9-12 4.04) SV: none
Hawk is glowing white since we got him into the lineup with a 1.231OPS in 8 games… just wasn’t enough today.

September 10th

Hinton Dominates As Expos Wins, 4-0

Montreal registered a win at Fenway Park by beating the Boston Aeros, 4-0. Pitcher Dan Hinton was one reason why the Expos triumphed. Adam Rudolph converted his 16th save in 19 tries. With the win over Boston, the Expos improved to 69-71.

Hinton scattered 5 hits over 7.2 innings for the Expos. With the win, Hinton moves to 9-8 on the year with 148 strikeouts.

"Dan is tough when he's hitting his spots," said Montreal manager Aaron McCreery.

Sam Griffin(R, 14-10 4.21) - T.J. Birdwell(R, 3-4 3.18) tomorrow. Another AAAA starter.

SP Dan Hinton 7.2IP 5H 0R 0ER 1BB 9K W PotG
RF Ian Messer 3-5 R 2RBI HR
1B Dave Grochowski 2-5 R RBI DB HR
C Gabriel Cervantes 2-4 R
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4
SS Rich Meilleur 2-3 R
2B Robby Weltzer 2-4 R DB
HR MON: Messer(5), Grochowski(15)
HR BOS: none
W: Dan Hinton(9-8 3.13) L: Steve Behanna(4-5 5.01) SV: Adam Rudolph(16 2.31)
Danny! nuff said.

September 11th

Transactions:
After a strong cup of coffee, LHRP Pablo Mendoza(24, 3* 0-1 2.45 5K 0.2WAR) was sent back to AAA to make room for the return of LHRP Joe Herzer(24, 3.5*, 3-3 2.88 59K 65.2IP 0.5WAR)… but Mendoza will be in play for 2023 for sure.

Expos Win Series and Game, 6-3, Over Aeros

Montreal pitcher Sam Griffin had a large part in his team beating the Boston Aeros, 6-3. The right-hander kept opposing batters in check throughout the game. By defeating Boston, the third-place Expos improved to 70-71.

Montreal relied on the hitting of Ignacio Benavides to pick up the win. The left fielder ripped a run-scoring triple in the top of the fifth inning to put the Expos on top, 3-0. For the game, Benavides had 1 triple and 3 singles in 5 at-bats.

"Sam did a nice job," said Expos manager Aaron McCreery.

Alfredo Baca(R, 1-4 7.31) - Juan Miranda(R, 8-10 4.22) the day after tomorrow. 27-year old waiver claim from ATL in June.

SP Sam Griffin 6.2IP 6H 1R 1ER 0BB 7K W PotG
LF Ignacio Benavides 4-5 2RBI TP
RF Ian Messer 1-5
1B Dave Grochowski 2-5 2R 2RBI HR
DH Joe Hawk 2-4 R 2RBI BB DB HR
SS Rich Meilleur 0-3 R strained rib cage muscle 4 weeks
2B Robby Weltzer 2-3 2R BB
HR MON: Hawk(18), Grochowski(16)
HR BOS: none
W: Sam Griffin(15-10 4.10) L: T.J. Birdwell(4-5 3.51) SV: Kevin Cowden(25 5.96)
Good news, we are winning games. Bad news, we are losing players.

Transactions:
SS Rich Meilleur(24, 2.5*, .213-2-10 .565OPS 0.4WAR 59G) was placed on the 10-day IL. 2B Franklin Reyes(28, 2.5*, .179-1-10 .527OPS -1.0WAR AAA) was activated as there was no use to put another infielder on the 40-man for this season.

Record: 70-71, 3rd in EL Northeast, 7.5GB
Week: 4-2 (2-1@ PHI, 2-1@ BOS)
Power Rankings: #10(+2)
Runs scored: 566(10th)
Runs against: 561(4th)
Starters ERA: 3.84(6th)
Bullpen ERA: 3.45(3rd)
Defensive Eff.: .711(2nd)
Zone Rating: +36.5(2nd)
Fan Interest: 73(+-0)

Who's hot?
SP Dan Hinton 2G 2-0 0.00 15.1IP 13K
DH Joe Hawk 7G 9-24 .375 4HR 7RBI

Who's not?
RHRP Kevin Cowden 21G 6SV 8.64 16.2IP 22K

News:
September 7th - San José SP Eddie Baiamonte(30, 3*) brought home a 4-0 shutout with 4 hits and 1BB while striking out 8 Salt Lake City hitters. The 5x All-Star is 10-10 4.04 126K 3.0WAR in 28 starts.

September 7th - Detroit CF Pedro Figueroa(30, 3.5*) collected a rare 5-hit game, collecting five singles and two RBI’s in a 6-0 win over the Atlanta Minuteman. The 3x Gold Glover and 2x Silver Slugger is batting .281-17-48 .791OPS 5.1WAR in 123 games.

September 12th - New York 2B Mario Garcia(27, 3*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 11-26 2HR 8RBI 4R. The Dominican is batting .268-22-75 .784OPS 2.9WAR in 123 games between NY and BOS.

September 12th - Las Vegas RF Josh Davis(30, 2.5*) was named WL Player of the Week after going 11-20 2HR 8RBI 6R. Another trade deadline deal, he is batting .275-10-75 .763OPS 1.6WAR in 121 games between NY and LV.


Next: 2vs New York Mets(61-80), 3vs Memphis Bolts(61-80)

--

Hawk is hitting bombs left, right and center as they say. A good week against strong opponents… can we follow that up with a strong week against weak opponents?

[Griever20]

Week 24: 2vs New York Mets(61-80), 3vs Memphis Bolts(61-80)

September 12th
Offday

September 13th

Expos Need Eleven Innings to Win, 2-1

Starting pitcher Juan Miranda gave the Montreal Expos a rock-solid performance, helping them defeat the New York Mets, 2-1, in 11 innings. He worked seven scoreless innings of 4-hit, 1BB and 6K ball, but lost the win when Kevin Cowden gave up a run in the 9th.

Montreal reliever Freddy Silva was the winner. His record is now 4-1. The losing pitcher was Brian Sirianni. The Montreal win streak is now 3 games.

The decisive blow was delivered by Tim McKusick in the bottom of the 11th when he hit a run-scoring double off 26-year old right-handed pitcher Brian Sirianni to win the game for Montreal. The home crowd went nuts.

"We did just enough to win," McKusick said. The 28-year old is batting .207-5-31 .615OPS -0.6WAR in 48 games.

Doug Williams(R, 8-6 4.70) - Marty Murrietta(R, 11-10 3.84) tomorrow. Another waiver claim, this time with low stamina.

SP Juan Miranda 7IP 0H 0R 0ER 1BB 6K W PotG
RF Ian Messer 2-4 2DB HBP
1B Dave Grochowski 1-4 BB
C Gabriel Cervantes 2-5 2R DB
PH/2B Tim McKusick 1-2 RBI DB
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-3 RBI TP
3B Mitku Kazemd 1-4
HR NYM: none
HR MON: none
W: Freddy Silva(4-1 3.48) L: Brian Sirianni(6-6 4.22) SV: none
That was a thriller. We had eight hits in total and five extra base hits, but failed to cash those in too often.

September 14th

Mets and Expos Split Series as New York Wins, 9-3

The New York Mets powered past the Montreal Expos, 9-3, at Olympic Stadium. Mike Naccari provided some of the pop. Naccari went 2-4 with a home run and a walk, while scoring 2 times and driving in 2.

Naccari told a New York Today reporter that he was "gratified" with the win. He is batting .236-16-42 .705OPS 1.6WAR in 112 games. New York is now 62-81, while Montreal is 71-72.

New York used the hitting of Frank Espinosa to pick up the win. The shortstop clubbed a solo home run in the top of the third inning to put the Mets on top, 2-0. For the game, Espinosa had 1 home run and 1 single in 4 at-bats.

Eric Brooks(L, 2-2 3.13) - Austin Roy(R, 9-12 4.04) the day after tomorrow. 23-year old rookie that worked out of the pen before now getting his 3rd start.

SP Marty Murrietta 5.1IP 9H 5R 5ER 1BB 4K L
LF Ignacio Benavides 2-5 R
1B Dave Grochowski 3-4 3RBI 2DB TP
C Gabriel Cervantes 1-4
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-4 R
3B Mitku Kazemd 2-4 R
HR NYM: Espinosa(1), Naccari(16)
HR MON: none
W: Doug Williams(3-1 3.55) L: Marty Murrietta(9-6 4.53) SV: Ron Millett(6 2.14)
Shame, Murrietta and Alvarado(4R 2ER) got lit today.

September 15th
Offday

September 16th

Bolts Sent Expos Home with 7-0 Loss

In the 7-0 Memphis win over Montreal, the impact of Dave Liranzo was substantial. Liranzo went 2-4 with a home run and a walk, while scoring 2 runs and driving in 3. Eric Brooks got the win, improving to 3-2. He pitched 7 innings, giving up 8 hits and no runs, while striking out 3 and walking 2. Memphis is now 63-82, while Montreal is 71-73.

Early in the game, Liranzo had a 2-run home run for Memphis. It was his 8th home run of the season and put the Bolts on top, 2-0.

In postgame comments to the Memphis Gazette, Liranzo said, "If the effort is there, the wins will come." He 22-year old is batting .265-8-42 .688OPS 0.4WAR in 107 games.

Chad Orlich(R, 4-10 3.51) - Dan Hinton(R, 9-8 3.13) tomorrow. Another waiver claim…

SP Austin Roy 5.1IP 6H 5R 5ER 3BB 7K L
LF Ignacio Benavides 2-3
DH Vicente Rodriguez 1-2 2BB
3B Mitku Kazemd 3-4 HBP
PH/LF Chris Allen 1-2 DB
2B Robby Weltzer 2-4 SB(21)
HR MEM: Liranzo(8), Marquez(14)
HR MON: none
W: Eric Brooks(3-2 2.77) L: Austin Roy(9-13 4.19) SV: none
Roy was bad, Mannino allowed two more. We beat the two teams ahead of us last week, and now get lit up by some 80 loss teams…

September 17th

Hinton Snaps 2 Game Losing Streak as Expos Wins 5-3

Montreal Expos starter Dan Hinton pitched well against the Memphis Bolts at Olympic Stadium, leading his team to a win, 5-3. Hinton picked up the win for Montreal, going 7.2 innings. He gave up no runs on 7 hits. He now sports a record of 10-8. Adam Rudolph was credited with the save. He has now successfully converted 17 of 20 save opportunities.

Gabriel Cervantes took Memphis hurler Chad Orlich deep in the bottom of the first. His 3-run home run put the Expos on top, 3-0. In all, Cervantes had 1 single in addition to the home run, while going 2 for 3.

"It never gets old," said Cervantes. "Winning, that is." The 27-year old is batting .291-18-72 .822OPS 3.5WAR in 111 games.

The Expos now have a record of 72-73 with the win over Memphis.

Nick Schluter(L, 1-0 5.93) - Sam Griffin(R, 15-10 4.10) tomorrow. The next waiver claim… and 2-way player as he hits .229 in RF

SP Dan Hinton 7.2IP 7H 0R 0ER 1BB 5K W PotG
RF Ian Messer 2-4 R
DH Vicente Rodriguez 1-4 R
C Gabriel Cervantes 2-3 2R 3RBI HR
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-3
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-2 RBI TP
3B Mitku Kazemd 1-2 RBI
HR MEM: none
HR MON: Cervantes(18)
W: Dan Hinton(10-8 3.00) L: Chad Orlich(4-11 3.55) SV: Adam Rudolph(17 2.24)
Danny! That was what we needed.

September 18th

Bolts Escape Montreal With Series Win

The Montreal Expos and Memphis Bolts provided some drama for the home crowd.

Montreal first baseman Tim McKusick had a terrific game, but it still wasn't enough to get his team a win. McKusick was 1-1 with a home run and a walk. He drove in 2 runs and scored once, even as Memphis beat the Expos, 6-5. Memphis is now 64-83. Montreal is 72-74.

Abe Rodriguez, who leads the EL in stolen bases with 66, helped out the Memphis cause in the top of the seventh inning with a run-scoring sacrifice fly. For the game, the center fielder drove in 2 runs.

"We put a lot of pressure on ourselves," Rodriguez told a Memphis Gazette reporter. "Sometimes we just need to relax." The 28-year old leadoff man is batting .241-1-26 .575OPS 66/70SB 0.6WAR in 128 games.

Juan Miranda(R, 8-10 4.04) - Christian Cannata(R, 8-8 3.76) the day after tomorrow. Rule 5 Pick from LAA last winter.

SP Sam Griffin 7.2IP 7H 4R 4ER 2BB 4K L
LF Ignacio Benavides 2-5 R
DH Vicente Rodriguez 0-1 2BB
1B Dave Grochowski 1-2
C Kevin Craddock 1-3 RBI BB
3B Mitku Kazemd 1-4
CF Bobby Martinez 1-4 R RBI HR
2B Robby Weltzer 1-2 R
PH/1B Tim McKusick 1-1 R 2RBI BB HR
HR MEM: Crawford(6)
HR MON: Martinez(4), McKusick(6)
W: Frank Kennedy(4-2 3.02) L: Sam Griffin(15-11 4.14) SV: Mike Rodriguez(20 4.39)
Annoying. Cowden 2ER to make sure the game is out of reach.

Record: 72-74, 3rd in EL Northeast, 7.5GB
Week: 2-3 (1-1vs NYM, 1-2vs MEM)
Power Rankings: #19(+9)
Runs scored: 581(11th)
Runs against: 587(4th)
Starters ERA: 3.84(5th)
Bullpen ERA: 3.54(3rd)
Defensive Eff.: .708(2nd)
Zone Rating: +35.0(2nd)
Fan Interest: 72(-1)

Who's hot?
SP Dan Hinton 3G 3-0 0.00 23IP 18K
SP Juan Miranda 2G 0-0 1.26 14.1IP 15K

Who's not?
RHRP Kevin Cowden 19G 6SV 8.62 15.2IP 22K
3B/SS Orlando Gonzalez 8G 1-24 .041 0HR 0RBI

News:
September 12th - Los Angeles 1B Tim Jammal(26, 3/3.5*) had a 5-6 day at the plate today scoring a run and driving in a run with all singles. Driving is team to a 6-4 win @ Kansas City, he is batting .258-13-71 .756OPS 1.2WAR in 124 games.

September 19th - Toronto 1B Oscar Cabrera(31, 3*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 13-32 3HR 7RBI 8R. The 2021 EL Silver Slugger is batting .221-15-42 .639OPS -0.1WAR in 139 games.

September 19th - Seattle 3B Joey McLaughlin(27, 2.5*) was named WL Player of the Week after going 11-17 4HR 6RBI 8R. The 2013 2nd rounder is batting .267-9-27 .798OPS 1.1WAR in 50 games.


Next: 2@ Oakland Oaks(71-76), 4@ New York Mets(64-82)

--

There is just a little bit missing, I feel it.

[Griever20]

Week 25: 2@ Oakland Oaks(71-76), 4@ New York Mets(64-82)

September 19th
Offday

Transaction:
CF Chris Allen(25, 2*, .235-4-15 .666OPS 9/10SB 0.3WAR 36G) was sent down to AAA to make room on the expanded roster for 1B Matt Talbert(25, 3*, .242-8-22 .755OPS 0.5WAR 65G) coming off the IL.

September 20th

Expos Win 3-2 After Late Inning Drama

Montreal parlayed a decent outing from starter Juan Miranda into a solid win over the Oakland Oaks. The final score was 3-2. With the win, Montreal has a record of 73-74. Oakland falls to 71-77.

"I was able to really locate my pitches tonight," said Miranda. He worked seven innings of 8-hit and 1-run ball, walking none and striking out six.

Montreal used a timely hit from Joe Hawk to get the win. The designated hitter stroked a run-scoring double in the top of the ninth inning to put the Expos ahead, 2-1. It was his only hit in 4 at-bats, but it made an impact. He is now batting .263-18-63 .772OPS 1.9WAR in 119 games between MON and KCR.

Marty Murrietta(R, 11-11 3.99) - Amir Fletcher(R, 3-4 5.80) tomorrow. Lost a ton of time to injury, AAAA player with wrecked body.

SP Juan Miranda 7.0IP 8H 1R 1ER 0BB 6K ND
LF Ignacio Benavides 2-4 R
C Gabriel Cervantes 3-4 R RBI DB
DH Joe Hawk 1-4 R RBI DB
1B Dave Grochowski 1-3
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-4 RBI
HR MON: none
HR OAK: Goodman(10)
W: Kevin Cowden(3-7 6.13) L: Christian Cannata(8-9 3.74) SV: Adam Rudolph(18 2.35)
Cowden pitched a scoreless inning in relief and got the win. Believe me, I’m as shocked as you are.

September 21st

Slugfest Goes Expos Way, 10-7, at Oakland

A good performance from designated hitter Joe Hawk helped the Montreal Expos defeat the Oakland Oaks, 10-7. Hawk was 3 for 4 with a home run, a double, and a walk. He scored 3 runs for the Expos. The winning pitcher was Marty Murrietta. He's now 8-6. He went 6.2 innings, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits for the Expos. Adam Rudolph was credited with the save. He has now successfully converted 19 of 22 save opportunities.

Early in the game, first baseman Dave Grochowski had a 2-run home run for Montreal. It was his 18th home run of the season and put the Expos on top, 4-2.

"We take it day by day here," said Grochowski, "and today was a good one for us." He is batting .346-18-85 .933OPS 5.1WAR in 142 games.

The Expos now have a record of 74-74 with the win over Oakland.

Austin Roy(R, 9-13 4.19) - Zach Laurents(R, 10-13 4.32) tomorrow. 1-1 3.94 against us for the year.

SP Marty Murrietta 6.2IP 3H 2R 2ER 4BB 7K ND
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-5 R 2RBI HR
RF Ian Messer 2-5 R
C Gabriel Cervantes 2-5 2R 3RBI 2HR
DH Joe Hawk 3-4 3R RBI BB HR PotG
1B Dave Grochowski 2-4 2R 3RBI BB 2HR
SS Orlando Gonzalez 2-5 RBI
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4
2B Robby Weltzer 2-4 R SB(22)
HR MON: Hawk(19), Grochowski 2(18), Benavides(14), Cervantes 2(20)
HR OAK: Stanley(18), Jimenez(12)
W: Marty Murrietta(12-11 3.94) L: Sam Dryden(3-7 4.28) SV: Adam Rudolph(19 2.34)
Whoa offense. That has to hurt for Oakland. Side note: McKeen gave up a total of 5 earned run and both homers in relief…

September 22nd

Mets Capture Close Win

Both teams had their opportunities, but in the end, the New York Mets got the win.

New York picked up a win at Citi Field, bumping off the Montreal Expos, 3-2. Pitcher Zach Laurents was a major reason the Mets emerged victorious. He worked seven innings of 2-run ball. Brian Sirianni notched his 30th save in 32 chances.

Bernie Castillo, who led the EL in hits with 198 in 2020, helped out the New York cause in the bottom of the eighth inning with a run-scoring single. For the game, the third baseman went 3-4 with 3 singles. The 2x Silver Slugger is batting .311-15-67 .812OPS 3.8WAR in 139 games.

"Tough loss," said Montreal manager Aaron McCreery. "But we'll learn from it."

New York has run its win streak to 4 consecutive.

Dan Hinton(R, 10-8 3.00) - Josh Eisenberg(L, 6-16 5.08) tomorrow. Maybe buy a win against the weak lefty?

SP Austin Roy 6.2IP 5H 1R 1ER 1BB 5K ND
LF Ignacio Benavides 0-3 BB
RF Ian Messer 1-3
DH Joe Hawk 2-3 R 2SB(17)
1B Dave Grochowski 2-4 R RBI HR
SS Orlando Gonzalez 0-4 BB
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-4
HR MON: Grochowski(19)
HR NYM: Lemke(10)
W: Chris Walker(2-0 3.06) L: Kevin Cowden(3-8 6.38) SV: Brian Sirianni(30 4.10)
Cowden is really on the edge here despite his favourable scouting report and McCreery’s love for him…

September 23rd

Hinton Leads Montreal to 3-1 Win

Montreal pitcher Dan Hinton did his part in helping his team beat the New York Mets, 3-1. The right-hander kept opposing batters from doing too much damage, allowing only two hits and one run through seven.

"I had everything working," said Hinton. Adam Rudolph got the save, his 20th in 23 chances. Montreal is now 75-75, New York 67-83.

Montreal used the hitting of Matt Talbert to pick up the win. The designated hitter clubbed a solo home run in the top of the sixth inning to put the Expos on top, 1-0. For the game, Talbert had 1 home run and 1 single in 4 at-bats. The 25-year old is batting .245-9-23 .768OPS 0.6WAR in 68 games.

Sam Griffin(R, 15-11 4.14) - Nelson Flores(R, 10-10 4.39) tomorrow. 35-year old former 3x All-Star that juuust keeps hanging on to a job.

SP Dan Hinton 7IP 2H 1R 1ER 3BB 7K W PotG
LF Ignacio Benavides 2-5 RBI DB
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-5 DB
1B Dave Grochowski 0-3 BB
DH Matt Talbert 2-4 R RBI HR
C Gabriel Cervantes 1-4 R RBI HR
3B Mitku Kazemd 1-4
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-4 R DB
HR MON: Talbert(9), Cervantes(21)
HR NYM: Garcia(23)
W: Dan Hinton(11-8 2.94) L: Jesse Eisenberg(6-17 4.96) SV: Adam Rudolph(20 2.30)
You know what’s coming… Danny!

September 24th

Mets Stymied By Expos, Griffin

Montreal Expos starter Sam Griffin turned in an exceptional performance against the New York Mets at Citi Field, resulting in a Montreal win, 7-0. Montreal now sits at 76-75, while New York falls to 67-84.

Griffin yielded no runs on 2 hits over 7.1 innings for the Expos. For the season, Griffin has a record of 16-11 with 100 strikeouts.

Griffin attributed the win to his team's "focus and intensity."

Juan Miranda(R, 8-10 3.93) - Doug Williams(R, 9-6 4.57) tomorrow. 1-1 4.40 against us this year.

SP Sam Griffin 7.1IP 2H 0R 0ER 1BB 6K W PotG
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-4 RBI BB
RF Ian Messer 1-4 RBI BB DB
1B Dave Grochowski 1-3 R 2BB
3B Mitku Kazemd 2-4 R 2RBI DB
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-4 2R RBI DB
2B Robby Weltzer 1-4 R
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-2 RBI 2BB
HR MON: none
HR NYM: none
W: Sam Griffin(16-11 3.97) L: Nelson Flores(10-11 4.35) SV: none
Griffin is somehow owner of 16 wins. Given that our scouts want him gone for Asselin… spring 2023 will be interesting. OVER .500!

September 25th

Mets Rack Up 4-3 Win Versus Montreal

New York Mets starter Doug Williams pitched a strong game against the Montreal Expos at Citi Field, leading the Mets to victory, 4-3. Williams got the win, improving to 4-1. He gave up 4 hits and walked 2 over 5 innings. He allowed 2 runs.

"We have a lot of confidence in Doug," said New York manager Nathan Sandlin. Brian Sirianni converted his 31st save in 33 tries.

The Expos had been locked in a 2-2 tie with the Mets going into the bottom of the fourth inning. That changed quickly when the four-time All-Star Bernie Castillo came to the plate. Castillo hit a 2-run double on a 0-2 slider from Montreal hurler Juan Miranda. It was Castillo's 38th double of the year. He is now batting .312-15-69 3.8WAR in 142 games.

New York is now 68-84, Montreal 76-76.

Jordan Arroyo(R, 5-3 4.54) - Marty Murrietta(R, 12-11 3.94) tomorrow. 5-3 3.80 with BOS after getting traded for.

SP Juan Miranda 5IP 7H 4R 4ER 3BB 5K L
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-4
RF Ian Messer 1-3 R
C Gabriel Cervantes 2-4 R DB
DH Joe Hawk 1-3 R BB
1B Dave Grochowski 2-4 2RBI
HR MON: none
HR NYM: none
W: Doug Williams(10-6 4.54) L: Juan Miranda(8-11 4.02) SV: Brian Sirianni(31, 4.18)
It is just that little bit that we lack to win some more ballgames.

Record: 76-76, 3rd in EL Northeast, 5.5GB
Week: 4-2 (2-0@ OAK, 2-2@ NYM)
Power Rankings: #18(+1)
Runs scored: 609(11th)
Runs against: 604(3rd)
Starters ERA: 3.76(5th)
Bullpen ERA: 3.50(4th)
Defensive Eff.: .709(2nd)
Zone Rating: +38.4(2nd)
Fan Interest: 72(+-0)

Who's hot?
SP Dan Hinton 4G 4-0 0.30 30IP 25K
C Gabriel Cervantes 7G 10-24 .417 4HR 8RBI
1B Dave Grochowski 6G 8-20 .400 3HR 6RBI

Who's not?
RHRP Kevin Cowden 19G 3SV 9.00 16IP 22K
3B/SS Orlando Gonzalez 15G 6-51 .117 0HR 4RBI

News:
September 20th - Calgary 3B Vinny Roman(34, 3*) collected career home run #300 today in a 7-4 loss to the San Francisco Red Devils. The 3x Silver Slugger, 4x All-Star and 2020 EL Gold Glover is a career .256/.328/.445 300HR 1099RBI 1740G 955R 42.4WAR hitter in 1770 games.

September 22nd - Cincinnati RHSP Andy Spicer(24, 3.5/4.5*) pitched his first career shutout today, a 3-hitter with 1BB and 10K in a 4-0 win over the Nationals. The kid is still struggling with consistency, going 11-14 4.18 220K 3.8WAR in 31 games.

September 23rd - Blue Jays RF Ricardo Orta(32, 3*) had a big 5-hit night today, 5-5 3RBI 2DB in a 5-4 win over the Phillies. The 2x Silver Slugger is batting .248-27-78 .794OPS 1.9WAR in 144 games.

September 26th - Atlanta LF Robbie Thompson(31, 3*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 13-23 3HR 7RBI 5R. The 4x All-Star is batting .289-24-81 .808OPS 2.1WAR in 146 games.

September 26th - San Francisco 1B Mark Schwarz(27, 3.5*) was named WL Player of the Week after going 14-33 4HR 9RBI 7R. The 2022 All-Star is batting .357-22-74 .1.006OPS 4.4WAR in 112 games.

Next: 4vs Boston Aeros(80-72), 3@ Toronto Blue Jays(68-85)

--

The ‘Who is hot’ list is accurate I would say. Now, we have 10 games to go, and are 5.5 GB in the division and 4.5GB in the wild card… I know there are fans screaming miracle playoff run but I doubt it. We will let it play out.

[Griever20]

Week 26: 4vs Boston Aeros(80-72), 3@ Toronto Blue Jays(68-85)

September 26th

Expos Win Opener, 4-2

The home crowd had a good time watching the Boston Aeros and Montreal Expos get after it.

Montreal Expos starter Marty Murrietta found his groove in his team's 4-2 win over the Boston Aeros. He pitched 5.2 innings of 2-run ball. Adam Rudolph, credited with the save, is now 21 for 24 in save opportunities.

Ian Messer had a big run-scoring double for the Expos in the bottom of the fourth inning. With Montreal leading 3-2 and a runner on 1st, he got a fastball from fan favorite Jordan Arroyo and swatted a double to left. It was his 20th double of the season, and more importantly, it put the Expos ahead, 4-2. He is batting .277-6-26 .767OPS 1.0WAR in 65 games after a number of IL stints.

Montreal manager Aaron McCreery commended his team for exhibiting "no shortage of effort."

After today's action, Montreal sits at 77-76; Boston slips to 80-73.

Patrick Kallemeyn(L, 13-8 5.00) - Austin Roy(R, 9-13 4.08) tomorrow. This could be good…

SP Marty Murrietta 5.2IP 6H 2R 2ER 0BB 4K W PotG
LF Ignacio Benavides 2-5 R
RF Ian Messer 2-4 R RBI DB
C Gabriel Cervantes 1-3 R BB
DH Joe Hawk 1-4 SB(18)
1B Dave Grochowski 2-3 RBI BB
3B Mitku Kazemd 1-4 RBI
2B Robby Weltzer 1-4 R RBI HR
HR BOS: Perez(1)
HR MON: Weltzer(10)
W: Marty Murrietta(13-11 3.92) L: Jordan Arroyo(5-4 4.65) SV: Adam Rudolph(21 2.26)
YES! 5GB in the division and 4GB in the Wild Card. Not that I’m looking.

September 27th

Aeros Equal Series with 4-2 Win

Boston Aeros starter Patrick Kallemeyn pitched well against the Montreal Expos at Olympic Stadium, leading his team to a win, 4-2. The winning pitcher was Kallemeyn, now 14-8. He tossed 7 innings of 3-hit ball, while walking 3 and fanning 4. With the win, Boston upped its record to 81-73.

Savion Smith had a direct impact on the outcome. Smith contributed a 2-run single in the top of the fourth inning to put Boston up, 2-0.

"We did enough to win," said Smith. The catcher is batting .193-8-30 .611OPS 1.0WAR in 92 games.

T.J. Birdwell(R, 3-7 3.67) - Dan Hinton(R, 11-8 2.94) tomorrow. Sparkplug says is personality report…

SP Austin Roy 5.1IP 6H 3R 3ER 2BB 5K L
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-3 R BB
PH Bobby Martinez 1-1 RBI DB
RF Ian Messer 1-3
3B Mitku Kazemd 2-4 R RBI HR
2B Robby Weltzer 1-3
HR BOS: Munoz(17)
HR MON: Kazemd(13)
W: Patrick Kallemeyn(14-8 4.78) L: Austin Roy(9-14 4.11) SV: none
As I said, I’m not looking.

September 28th

Aeros Beat Expos As Defence Collapses

Good production from center fielder Tony Munoz helped the Boston Aeros topple the Montreal Expos, 8-5. Munoz was 2-4 with a double, while adding 2 RBI and scoring once for the Aeros. The winner in relief was A.J. Pinkerton. The right-hander allowed no runs on 2 hits in 2.1 innings. He now owns a record of 2-0. Today's win puts Boston at 82-73, while Montreal falls to 77-78.

With Boston leading 1-0 in the top of the fourth, Munoz hit a sinker from Dan Hinton for a 2-run double. It was his 20th double of the season and put the Aeros ahead, 3-0. He is batting .237-17-68 .663OPS 1.8WAR in 143 games.

"We came out aggressive," said Aeros manager Tony Rodriguez. "We came out swinging the bats." Adding to the misery, four unearned runs were scored off Dan Hinton as shortstop Franklin Reyes dropped a routine grounder that would’ve been the final out of the inning.

Tyrese Speed (R, 12-11 3.72) - Sam Griffin(R, 16-11 3.97) tomorrow. Best season so far for the 25-year old.

SP Dan Hinton 4IP 4H 5R 1ER 0BB 5K L
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-4 R BB
RF Ian Messer 2-5 R 2RBI DB
DH Joe Hawk 2-4 R RBI SB(19)
3B Mitku Kazemd 2-4 RBI
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4
HR BOS: Torres( 7), Rodriguez(26)
HR MON: none
W: A.J. Pinkerton(2-0 3.76) L: Dan Hinton(11-9 2.92) SV: Sam Rush(3 5.06)
Yeah. Rush with the save. Rub it in…

September 29th

Aeros Nip Expos, 3-2

Boston pitcher Tyrese Speed did his part in helping his team defeat the Montreal Expos, 3-2. The opposition could never get too much going against the right-hander. He worked six innings of 2-run ball.

"Tyrese gets tougher when he has to, makes a big pitch when he has to," said Boston skipper Tony Rodriguez. The Aeros improved their record to 83-73 by beating Montreal.

The game was at a stalemate until shortstop Tim Kessler came to bat in the top of the ninth. Facing Montreal pitcher Adam Rudolph, he hit a 1-2 curveball for a run-scoring single. It was a game-changer, putting Boston on top, 3-2. The 25-year old is batting .283-15-59 .741OPS 5.2WAR in 143 games.

Juan Miranda(R, 8-11 4.02) - Brendan Lucas(R, 13-7 3.18) tomorrow. Still don’t know how he got an ERA that low.

SP Sam Griffin 6IP 7H 2R 2ER 0BB 3K ND
2B Robby Weltzer 1-4
RF Ian Messer 2-4
DH Joe Hawk 1-2 R RBI BB HR
1B Dave Grochowski 1-3 R RBI HR
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-4
HR BOS: Aguilar(27)
HR MON: Grochowski(20), Hawk(20)
W: Paul Ide(3-6 3.57) L: Adam Rudolph(1-3 2.37) SV: none
In the end, we see the problem of our whole season. The inability to score more than 2-3 runs on any given night. That finishes this season series 8-11.

September 30th

Blue Jays Win, 9-1, in Dominant Fashion

Montreal had no answer for 23-year old right-handed pitcher Brendan Lucas. The Toronto Blue Jays starter stymied Expos hitters, helping the Blue Jays cruise to victory, 9-1. Lucas, the winner, moves to 14-7. He threw 8.1 innings of 4-hit ball, while fanning 3 and giving up 1 walk.

"Brendan was hitting his spots and everything had life," said Toronto manager Art Tierney. Toronto has now won 4 games in a row.

The Blue Jays benefited from an error in the bottom of the first inning. Toronto was leading 1-0 when Paul Ludgate hit a 2-run single that was misplayed. It put Toronto in front, 3-0. He is batting .242-10-56 .656OPS 0.7WAR in 117 games.

Marty Murrietta(R, 13-11 3.92) - Kyle McCall(R, 12-10 3.94) tomorrow. 3-0 against us…

SP Juan Miranda 3.2IP 10H 7R 6ER 1BB 3K L
RF Bobby Martinez 2-4 R
1B Dave Grochowski 1-4
DH Joe Hawk 0-3 RBI
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-2 BB
HR MON: none
HR TOR: Garcia(6), Orta(29), Huerta(9)
W: Brendan Lucas(14-7 3.05) L: Juan Miranda(8-12 4.24) SV: none
Same story as yesterday. And with that. We are Eliminated.

October 1st

Montreal Downed 4-2, by Blue Jays

Getting an impressive start from Kyle McCall, Toronto beat Montreal by the score of 4-2. Jorge Segura snagged the win in relief. The left-hander allowed no runs on 1 hit over 3 innings. He's now 2-2 on the season. Montreal now owns a losing streak of 5 games.

"Kyle gave us a really strong effort," said Toronto manager Art Tierney.

Joe Wurth drove in one run for Toronto. With no one out and the game tied in the bottom of the eighth inning, Wurth had a clutch at-bat. Facing Montreal hurler Joe Herzer, he hit a sacrifice fly to give the Blue Jays a 3-2 lead. The backup catcher is batting .257-10-34 .767OPS 0.8WAR in 71 games.

Austin Roy(R, 9-14 4.11) - Paul Davis(R, 4-10 5.18) tomorrow. Sophomore that got his ERA down from 6.12 to 5.18…

SP Marty Murrietta 5.2IP 3H 2R 1ER 2BB 2K ND
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-4
C Gabriel Cervantes 1-4 RBI
DH Joe Hawk 1-2 R BB SB(20)
3B Mitku Kazemd 0-2 2BB
SS Orlando Gonzalez 1-2 RBI
RF Bobby Martinez 0-3 R BB SB(8)
HR MON: none
HR TOR: Orta(30)
W: Jorge Segura(2-2 2.66) L: Cesar Alvarado(4-1 2.66) SV: Manny Ayala(6 3.60)
I swear we are not tanking for draft rank.

October 2nd

Roy Dominant in 5-1 Win

Austin Roy, who is a two-time All-Star, propelled his team to victory over the Toronto Blue Jays. The final score was 5-1, Montreal. After today's action, Montreal sits at 78-81, while Toronto falls to 73-86.

The famously hardworking Roy handled the Blue Jays all day, notching 8 strikeouts in 8.1 innings while allowing 6 hits. Roy, who is a two-time All-Star, goes to 10-14 on the year with 155 strikeouts.

Montreal manager Aaron McCreery commended his team for "banging out a nice win."

Ruben Torrez(R, 8-6 3.34) - Dan Hinton(R, 11-9 2.92) tomorrow. Just don’t get injured Danny.

SP Austin Roy 8.1IP 6H 1R 1ER 0BB 8K W PotG
DH Joe Hawk 1-4 R
1B Dave Grochowski 2-3 2R BB SB(6)
3B Mitku Kazemd 1-4 R RBI HR
SS Orlando Gonzalez 2-4 R 4RBI HR
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4
HR MON: Gonzalez(10), Kazemd(14)
HR TOR: none
W: Austin Roy(10-14 3.97) L: Paul Davis(4-11 5.18) SV: none
At least one. That is a 7-12 season series to the blue.

Record: 78-81, 3rd in EL Northeast, 7GB
Week: 2-5 (1-3vs BOS, 1-2@ TOR)
Power Rankings: #18(+-0)
Runs scored: 630(11th)
Runs against: 635(3rd)
Starters ERA: 3.76(5th)
Bullpen ERA: 3.57(4th)
Defensive Eff.: .706(3rd)
Zone Rating: +39.2(2nd)
Fan Interest: 72(+-0)

Who's hot?
SP Dan Hinton 5G 4-1 0.53 34IP 30K
SP Sam Griffin 2G 1-0 1.35 13.1IP 9K
1B Dave Grochowski 13G 16-39 .410 4HR 9RBI

Who's not?
RHRP Kevin Cowden 21G 3SV 8.31 17.1IP 24K
C Kevin Craddock 12G 1-23 .043 0HR 1RBI

News:
October 2nd - San Francisco SS Jordan Ocegueda(23, 3.5*) had a big 5-hit day today, going 5-5 3R 2RBI 2DB with a stolen base in a 13-1 win over Portland. The 2022 WL All-Star is batting .283-13-66 .804OPS 2.8WAR in 110 games.

October 3rd - Jacksonville RF Mike Ostos(28, 3*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 8-21 4HR 9RBI 5R. The 3x All-Star is batting .250-32-67 .770OPS 1.9WAR in 147 games.

October 3rd - San Diego 1B David Dose(29, 4*) was named WL Player of the Week after going 11-21 2HR 6RBI 3R. The 2021 All-Star is batting .292-8-72 .762OPS 35/44SB 3.0WAR in 141 games.

Next: 3@ Philadelphia Grizzlies(85-74)

--

Let’s just end this mess.

[Griever20]

Week 27: 3@ Philadelphia Grizzlies(85-74)

October 3rd

Grizzles Hammer Expos As Hinton Leaves Injured

The Philadelphia Grizzlies topped the Montreal Expos, 10-1, in Eastern League action at Olympic Stadium. The standout performance belonged to Philadelphia pitcher and San Carlos, Venezuela, native Ruben Torrez. Torrez yielded 1 run over 7 innings to notch the win. He scattered 8 hits, walked 0, and struck out 7. His record improves to 9-6.

The win elevated the Grizzlies to 86-74. "Ruben was able to execute his pitches," said Philadelphia manager Pat Pierce. "Simple as that." The Montreal Expos got a little injury scare as ace starter Dan Hinton had to leave with what lucky only was a mild oblique strain.

With two out in the top of the seventh, Jesus Maradiaga had a game-changing hit. The Grizzlies left fielder slammed a 2-run single off Freddy Silva, making the score 5-1, Philadelphia. He is batting .265-21-58 .795OPS 0.9WAR in 125 games.

Hugh Kieninger(R, 10-11 2.65) - Sam Griffin(R, 16-11 3.94) tomorrow. How Griffin got to 16 is a miracle.

SP Dan Hinton 2.2IP 2H 2R 2ER 1BB 3K L mild oblique strain 3 days
LF Ignacio Benavides 1-4 DB
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4
1B Dave Grochowski 2-4 RBI
DH Matt Talbert 1-4
C Kevin Craddock 2-4
SS Franklin Reyes 1-4
2B Robby Weltzer 1-3 R
HR PHI: Olmos(13)
HR MON: none
W: Ruben Torrez(9-6 3.24) L: Dan Hinton(11-10 2.97) SV: none
Ouch. That was lucky on Danny and hard on our team.

October 4th

Forbes Helps Grizzlies Defeat Expos, 11-7

John Forbes added some punch to the Philadelphia offense, helping them outmuscle the Montreal Expos, 11-7. In the game, Forbes was 3 for 5 with a home run and a double, while scoring 2 times and driving in 5. Philadelphia is now 87-74, while Montreal is 78-83.

With Philadelphia leading 4-0 in the top of the third, Forbes came up to bat against Montreal pitcher Sam Griffin. Forbes hit a slider to left for a grand slam home run. His 1st home run of the season put the Grizzlies on top, 8-0.

"Trying isn't good enough in this league," said Forbes. "You've got to get results." He is batting .229-11-39 .656OPS 1.5WAR in 1126 games between MIA and PHI.

Albero Cordoba(R, 7-3 2.86) - Juan Miranda(R, 8-12 4.24) tomorrow. One last ride.

SP Sam Griffin 2.2IP 8H 8R 8ER 0BB 0K L
LF Bobby Martinez 1-4 R 2RBI BB DB
RF Ian Messer 2-3 2R RBI SB(5)
PH Matt Talbert 1-1
C Gabriel Cervantes 1-3 R RBI 2BB DB
DH Joe Hawk 1-5 R 3RBI HR
1B Dave Grochowski 2-4
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4 R
2B Franklin Reyes 1-4 R
HR PHI: Cano(37), Forbes(5)
HR MON: Hawk(21)
W: Brian Stevens(4-1 5.64) L: Sam Griffin(16-12 4.26) SV: none
Sammy was due.

October 5th

Expos Season Ends on High Node As They Snag Win, 3-2

Montreal turned a fine outing from starter Juan Miranda into a victory over the Philadelphia Grizzlies at Olympic Stadium. The righty worked 7.1 innings of 4-hit and 1-run ball. The final score was 3-2. Adam Rudolph earned his 22nd save in 25 chances. The setback makes Philadelphia 87-75.

Montreal took a 3-1 lead on Gabriel Cervantes's 12th double of the season. The run-scoring double, which Cervantes hit in the bottom of the eighth, left Philadelphia pitcher Alberto Cordoba visibly frustrated.

Cervantes said he was "thrilled" the fans had something to get excited about. He finishes the season batting .288-21-80 .826OPS 4.0WAR in 124 games.

SP Juan Miranda 7.1IP 4H 1R 1ER 0BB 8K W PotG
RF Ian Messer 1-4
C Gabriel Cervantes 1-4 RBI DB
1B Dave Grochowski 1-3 R DB
3B Franklin Reyes 2-3 R RBI
CF Bobby Martinez 2-3 R RBI DB SB(9)
HR PHI: Jimenez(18), Ortiz(3)
HR MON: none
W: Juan Miranda(9-12 4.12) L: Alberto Cordoba(7-4 2.91) SV: Adam Rudolph(22 2.71)
Miranda brought us home with a good outing. That closes the book on this season.

Record: 79-83, 3rd in EL Northeast, 8GB
Week: 1-2 (1-2@ PHI)
Power Rankings: ---
Runs scored: 641(11th)
Runs against: 658(5th)
Starters ERA: 3.81(5th)
Bullpen ERA: 3.61(4th)
Defensive Eff.: .704(3rd)
Zone Rating: +36.8(2nd)
Fan Interest: 72(+-0)

Who's hot?
SP Dan Hinton 6G 4-2 0.98 36.2IP 33K

Who's not?
RHRP Kevin Cowden 22G 3SV 7.71 18.2IP 27K
RHRP Dustin Jenkins 9G 0-0 7.80 15IP 12K
2B Robby Weltzer 6G 2-20 .100 0HR 0RBI
LF Ignacio Benavides 7G 2-26 .076 0HR 0RBI

[Griever20]

EL Awards:
Batter of the Month: Atlanta LF Robbie Thompson(31, 3*) .333-8-18 .968OPS 1.2WAR 3x Gold Glover, 4x All-Star, 1x Silver Slugger
Pitcher of the Month: Pittsburgh RHSP Victor Alvarez(24, 3.5*) 5-0 0 2.29 37K 39.1IP 5GS 1.4WAR 2nd in W(18) in EL
Rookie of the Month: Toronto RHSP Brendan Lucas(23, 2.5*) 4-0 2.06 28K 35IP 5GS 1.0WAR 2-0 4.05 against us for 2022.


WL Awards:
Batter of the Month: Las Vegas 1B Pablo Mayorga(24, 3.5*) .359-5-18 1.233OPS 1.6WAR 2022 All-Star, Leads WL in SLG(.588) and OPS(.954)
Pitcher of the Month: San José RHSP Eddie Baiamonte(31, 3*) 4-0 1.71 41K 6GS 47.1IP 2.0WAR 5x All-Star
Rookie of the Month: Portland 3B Justin Lowe(25, 2.5/3*) .330-5-21 .910OPS 24G 1.0WAR 3rd rounder in 2018.

Another season of Montreal Expos baseball in the books. It was only a brief time before reality hit, but we actually flirted with a .500 season for a moment before the last 10 games hit us like a truck, but we improved our winning percentage from .340 to .426 to now .488, so we are on the rise and have a clear path for further improvement. The outline for 2023 shows a budget increase by $4M which will come in handy, but there is not much to spend it on.

The best upcoming free agent is 1B Sal Masariegos(30, .272-10-54 .738OPS 0.3WAR 95G) from Jacksonville, which isn’t particularly interesting with Grok on our roster. There are some 3* right-handed relievers in the mix and we may tap into one of them, but free agency remains a questionable way to improve our roster as the market seems quite barren.

Looking around the league, it was actually the San Francisco Red Devils that posted the best record in baseball with 98-64, and they did it by scoring a league leading 817 runs. WL stolen base and runs leader CF Mario Hernandez(24, 3*, .270-28-80 .786OPS 44/54SB 4.3WAR) leads their offense from the leadoff spot (hitting 28 HR as leadoff is mean) and 2x All-Star 2B Ralph Pelletier(25, 4*, .287-23-90 .848OPS 6.1WAR) and star catcher Danny Smith(27, 4.5*, .307-30-98 .895OPS 5.6WAR) are hitting in the middle of the lineup, and did so well. The rest of their roster is littered with 3-4* players, so there is merit to this…

My money on the playoffs is on the Western League teams, San Francisco or Las Vegas.

Pitching:

DL: none

NMBL Montreal Expos Players on the leaderboard:
RHSP Sam Griffin 16 W – tied 3rd
RHSP Sam Griffin 1.6 BB/9 – 4th
RHSP Dan Hinton 1.07 WHIP – 3rd
RHSP Dan Hinton .270 BABIP – 5th
RHSP Dan Hinton .224 OAVG – 2nd

Danny really had a strong second half and actually survived without a lengthy DL stint, and that alone picked up 2.8WAR compared to 2021 on one player. He is still 23 and will play another season for the minimum, but depending on his time in the development lab to work on his fragile tag, he is in for a long term extension locking him up through three years of arbitration and the first years of free agency. Marty Murrietta picked things up since we got him and not only got off the walks leaderboard, but also pitched a 9-6 3.49 103K 1.4WAR stint in 20 starts with us… he will also go to the lab for strength and stuff to lessen the risk of injury.

Starting Pitching (# of options left, arb. estimate, Trade Chips in Red):
Save Roster Spot: Hinton, Roy, Murrietta
In the Battle: Griffin(2), Miranda(2), Asselin(Minor League contract)
40-man minimum contract: Ball(2)
40-man arbitration: none
To be waived and DFA’ed: none
Rule 5 eligible: Bowman, Harrison, Lange, Watanabe, Bernstein

Looking at the list, we will see a battle for the 3-5 spots in the rotation between 16-game winner Sam Griffin, sophomore Juan Miranda and top prospect Brett Asselin. This will be fun. Hidden in the RHRP list below is Cesar Alvarado who was great as a starter, so he is in the mix if we need a starter as well. We should make room for one of the Rule 5 eligible guys to have an additional layer of depth. Don’t know who tho.

LHRP (# of options left, arb. estimate, Trade Chips in Red):
Save Roster Spot: Herzer
40-man minimum contract: Mannino(2), Costa(1), Mendoza(2)
Rule 5 eligible: none

There is not much to be talked about here. Mendoza is slated to be the second lefty in our pen according to our scouting department and Aaron McCreery, and we have two more options with options, sorry for the pun.

RHRP (# of options left, arb. estimate, Trade Chips in Red):
Save Roster Spot: Rudolph, Alvarado, Silva
40-man minimum contract: McKeen(2), Thrower(2), Jenkins(2), Cowden(3)
40-man arbitration: Matt Bow(2, $909k)
To be waived and DFA’ed: Thrower(2)
Rule 5 eligible: Bell, Martinez, Ross
Minor League Free agent: Hilscher

If you are asking yourself, who is Matt Bow… yes. He and Thrower were on the 40-man for depth, and Thrower even was demoted to AA as he was too wild for AAA. Bow did a good job in this minor league season, going 3-1 1.50 50K 42IP 0.7WAR in 33 gaes after we claimed him off waivers from Seattle, but we ultimately didn’t need him, so he may just get the golden watch and let go.

Position Players:

DL: none

NMBL Montreal Expos Players on the leaderboard:
1B Dave Grochowski .351 Batting Average – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski .416 OBP – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski .529 SLG – 5th
1B Dave Grochowski .945 OPS – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski 92 RBI – 4th
1B Dave Grochowski 194 H – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski 162 OPS+ – 1st
1B Dave Grochowski 4.96 WPA – 2nd
1B Dave Grochowski 5.8 WAR – 2nd
CF Vicente Rodriguez 9 TP – tied 2nd

If Grok does not win Rookie of the Year, I’m going to resign. This kid may even have a shot at the MvP after his strong finish to a strong year. I did NOT see that coming when we put him on the 26-man, winning the job over Cook and Kerzner and even Matt Talbert. Adding to that, we got a cheap improvement to our lineup in 2B Joe Hawk who hit .283-8-17 .934OPS 8/9SB 0.9WAR in 27 games since returning from KCR due to their Rule 5 misread of the situation… Dave G. has Hawk up to a 3* player.

With him, and with Weltzer making a big jump with a season we did NOT see coming, the infield suddenly looks like a place where we will see spring battles for every position apart 1B… this will be interesting.

Now, add the fact that our outfield got a good boost with Bobby Martinez giving C-Rod a run for his money…

Catcher (# of options left, arb. estimate, Trade Chips in Red):
Save Roster Spot: Cervantes
40-man minimum contract: Craddock(3), Chavis(1)
Rule 5 eligible: Martinez
Minor League Free Agent: none

Nothing to see here, move on.

Infield (# of options left, arb. estimate, Trade Chips in Red):
Save Roster Spot: 1B Grochowski
40-man minimum contract: 1B Talbert(2), 2B/DH Hawk(3), 2B Weltzer(2), 3B Gonzalez(2), 3B Kazemd(2), SS Meilleur(3), 3B/SS Hernandez(2)
To be waived and DFA’ed: 2B Reyes(1), 2B McKusick(1)
Rule 5 eligible: 2B Perez, IF/UT Slowik
Minor League Free Agents: 1B/2B Bendezu, 1B Cook, 2B Donald, 3B Anderson

Ok, this is going to be a knife fight in a phone booth in spring. The two jokers in this list definitely will be 2B Fernando Perez and 3B/SS Julian Hernandez who are quality prospects AND will get some time in the development lap to be ready to win the job in spring training. There is a lot of minor league free agents that were signed or kept around for depth… that we will let go. Bye Dan Cook and thank you for your .278-17-64 .775OPS 1.4WAR year in 2021… but hitting .247 with -0.6WAR in AAA is not going to cut it.

Outfield (# of options left, arb. estimate, Trade Chips in Red):
Save Roster Spot: CF Rodriguez, LF Benavides
40-man minimum contract: CF Martinez(3), LF/RF Mah(1), CF Allen(1)
40-man arbitration: LF/RF Messer(2, $1.818M)
To be waived and DFA’ed: none
Rule 5 eligible: LF/RF Pedraza, LF/RF Burhoe, LF/RF Spangler, LF/RF Urraques

Also, this one is pretty much set apart from one spot that will go to a LF/RF backup. We have four good outfielders in AAA/AA that are Rule 5 eligible, and we will have to make a decision who to put on the 40-man to protect 100%. Messer will get his arbitration estimate and no long term contract as with the rise of Hawk as left-handed DH option, some prospects underway and him becoming fragile after getting HBP 812 times this season, his outlook has changed for us a bit.

We would love to grab another quality center fielder to get Allen down the depth chart as his 2.5* value point was inflated as our scouts now tell us, but with V-Rod and Martinez out there, we are not set up badly.


Prospect Watch:
AAA 2B/SS/3B Julian Hernandez(2.5/4*) .304-8-33 .805OPS 102G 16/19SB 4.5WAR
AAA LHSP Brett Asselin(3/4*) 3-4 2.52 88K 93IP 15GS 1.3WAR
AA 2B Fernando Perez(22, 2.5/3*) .230-18-54 .718OPS 111G 3.9WAR
A RHSP Alejandro Corral(2/3*) 12-7 2.36 155K 156.1IP 28G 2.7WAR
A LF Santiago Rodriguez(2/3.5*) .242-14-41 .698OPS 116G 14/17SB 0.1WAR
A 1B Joe Townsend(1.5/3*) .197-14-43 .624OPS 127G 0.4WAR
S A SS Bryan Booth(21, 1.5/4*) .256-6-21 .748OPS 3/4SB 39G 1.5WAR
R LHSP Chris Alberti(1,5/3.5*) 1-3 2.77 33K 39IP 8GS 0.4WAR
R LF/CF Tyler Dean(19, 1.5/5*) .231-18-50 .715OPS 11/14SB 122G 6.8WAR
R 2B/SS Manny Ramirez(1/5*) .169-7-26 .454OPS 1/2SB 123G 2.0WAR
R 1B Tyler Aurand(18, 0.5/3.5*) .198-8-14 .700OPS 38G 1.7WAR

Plan: Hernandez, Asselin and Perez are a lock for the development lab, and I think Dean and Ramirez if we can cramp them in there. Love this group and the last draft class and I hope our scouts don’t disappoint us.

[Griever20]

Good thing I am not a betting man. I was right that the WL team would win the World Series, but it was neither the San Francisco Red Devils nor the Las Vegas Gamblers, but the 86-76(!) San Diego Padres that won it all in five. Did not see that one coming. For them, it is the first World Series! Congratulations!

Transactions:
October 8th – Our scouting just discovered a 16-year old first baseman named Jesus Galindo, rated Contact 45, Gap Power 45, Power 80, Eye 60, Avoid K’s 40, overall with a 3.5* potential they say. We will keep scouting him, but he is in international camp!

October 10th – Pitchers Tim Thrower and Matt Bow as well as IF Tim McKusick and Franklin Reyes passed through waivers and were designated to AAA.

October 11th – AAA RHRP John Martinez(24, 2.5*), 2B Luis Diaz(23, 2/2.5*), 1B Ivan Reyes(23, 2/2.5*), 1B Efrain Cruz(23, 2/2.5*) and C Izzy Martinez(23, 2/2.5*) all agreed to minor league contract extensions.

October 23rd – R OF Tyler Dean(19, 1.5/5*) was named All-Year Rookie League MvP, batting .231/.300/.415 18HR 50RBI 44R 11/14SB 6.9WAR in 122 games.

[Griever20]

November 5th, 2022

• Check for open overhead positions
• Make decisions on team options
• Arbitration decisions
• Make decisions about free agents/minor league free agents
• Take a look at the owner goals
• Take a look at the new budget
• Set up Development Facilities

• Check for open overhead positions

Open Positions:
NMBL Montreal Expos:
3B Coach

A Newark Ducks:
Manager

R Farrah Silverbacks:
Pitching Coach

R Newport News Barons:
Manager

For the minor league jobs, we went looking for young guys with upside and have gotten some solid offers our for good to excellent coaches that should work out well for us. As for the third base coach, we have a pending offer to 70-year old veteran Tom Acvedo, an outstanding in-game running manager that is legendary in teaching catching defense, exactly what we need.

• Make decisions on team options

None, move on.

• Arbitration decisions

RHRP Matt Bow(25, 2.5*) 3-1 1SV 1.50 50K 42IP 33G 0.7WAR – Estimate $909k – non-tender or trade
RF Ian Messer(26, 2.5/3*) .277-6-29 .753OPS 73G 1.0WAR – Estimate $1.818M – offered 1y/$1.8M

• Make decisions about free agents/minor league free agents

We already did our work during the playoffs so not a lot to do.

• Take a look at the owner goals

Our owner was happy with:
Play around .500 ball
Upgrade at Center Field (Bobby Martinez)

Indifferent:
Improve you team On-Base Percentage
Acquire a Pitcher of the Year Award Winner (Gabriel Cervantes counted as good enough)
Increase attendance from 25.903 to 39.000 per game

Unhappy:
Improve your international amateur finds

New Goals:
Don’t suck completely
Upgrade at Center Field
Improve you team On-Base Percentage (current 11th)
Increase attendance from 32.734 to 39.000 per game
Improve Fan interest from 72 up.
Improve your international amateur finds
Keep building the team up, in order to reach the playoffs in the next 5 seasons

• Take a look at the new budget

And there we go. Our budget is up again to $190M, maybe because we generated a lot of profit and the attendance is up? And of course, we are winning more games, which helps.

Comparing that to the rest of the league, out budget is ranked 13th out of 30. The Sacramento Cavaliers have the lowest budget with $142M(-2M), the Houston Astros the highest again with $288M(-4M).

• Set up Development Facilities

MLB RHRP Kevin Cowden(23, 3*) ->> Improve Control
MLB RHSP Juan Miranda(24, 3*) ->> Secondary Pitch Improvement
AAA SS Julian Hernandez(23, 2.5/4*) ->> Generate Batspeed
AAA LHSP Brett Asselin(23, 3/4*) ->> Improve Control
AA IF Fernando Perez(22, 2.5/3*) ->> Generate Batspeed
S A IF Bryan Booth(20, 1.5/4*) ->> Plate Discipline
R CF Tyler Dean(19, 1.5/5*) ->> Generate Batspeed
R SS Manny Ramirez(17, 1/5*) ->> Generate Batspeed

Our plans changed as neither Danny nor Murrietta were eligible for strength and conditioning training, so we had to switch gears here. Our MLB roster will get some love here with two arms that either have room for growth, or the need for control in Cowden. We went some high risk here, but I think that it is worth to use the lab on the six most important prospects we have.

---

News:
Some news from the EL. The Detroit Trains, owner of a 92-70 record in 2022, have been sold… and that is not good news. The new owner, Jeff McNicholas, owner of a furniture producing company, is regarded as lenient in expectations, but charitable!

As for other General Managers, it was the last day for Memphis Bolts(76-86) GM Danny Ulbright. A GM for five years with Memphis and before that, three years (2007-2009) with the Philadelphia Grizzlies, he has never had a winning season as a GM…

The San José Killer Whales(70-92) also let go their GM in Kevin Pierre. The 51-year old has been the GM of this team since 2009 and build up the franchise to make the playoffs eight straight years from 20014-2021, winning the World Series in 2019! The team fell down to 92 losses and the ownership group was of the opinion that it would need a new GM to rebuild the team.

[Griever20]

Some additional thoughts. I would not expect us to be super active this offseason. No hot free agents as it seems right now, and only minor league trade chips as our 40-man is not that clogged with junk as it was the last seasons.

Some things on the shopping list tho:
Left-handed Catcher with defensive qualities (we only have right-handed bats)
Ace reliever that can hold down the closers job for the next years
Alternatively: The hottest relief prospect we can find.

And looking through the players list… this is a nearly impossible task. 4* and above closers are rare, relief prospects above 3.5* are non-existent and left-handed defensive catchers 2* or above below 25-years are… rare.

Guess it has to be the unaimed arrow that may hit the target. It may just be a boring offseason.

News:
November 5th - In a minor league deal, the Montreal Expos traded AAA LHSP Hitoshi Watanabe(23, 2.5*, 8-8 3.82 113K 2.8WAR 20GS) to the Detroit Trains in exchange for R RHSP Jimmy Payne(19, 1.5/3*, 1-2 2.01 30K 0.2WAR 6GS).
Watanabe was eligible for the Rule 5 and is not really the hottest talent in town. Also, he was deemed as fragile. On the other hand, our scouting department was hot on Payne, their 7th rounder in 2021.

November 6th – Another minor league transaction. The Montreal Expos sent 24-year old AA RF Oscar Burhoe(24, 2.5*, .250-6-23 .694OPS 1.5WAR) to the Vancouver Canadians in exchange for AA RHRP Robert Estrada(23, 2.5/3*, 2-3 25SV 3.19 58K 48IP 1.5WAR).
Burhoe was one of four options for our last outfielder spot, and we decided against him Instead, we will get a potentially strong reliever. Estrada throws triple digits and has a strong slider and is a good humble personality… and may audition for our pen next spring.

November 8th – Our new third base coach has signed in Tom Acvedo has signed a 3-year contract for $320k per year. He will work with our catchers and with our runners to improve the running game and therefore our on-field performance.

November 9th – RF Ian Messer(26, 2.5/3*) agreed to a 1y/$1.8M contract extension, buying out arbitration. Yaay.

[Griever20]

2022 Gold Glove Winners

Pitcher
EL - Cincinnati Eagles SP J.R. Heilman(34, 3*) 9-9 3.38 167K 30GS 3.5WAR – 1st Award, 2019 WL All-Star
WL – San Diego Padres SP Burgess Streen(31, 2.5*) 1-70 7.32 54K 13G 0.0WAR - 8th Award

Catcher
EL – Chicago Rangers C Jesus Jaramillo(287, 4*) .233/.316/.372 14HR 57RBI’s 126G 2.2WAR +0.6ZR .957EFF – 3rd Award
WL – Sacramento Cavaliers C Roger Lindemann(29, 3*) .219/.257/.330 9HR 44RBI’s 124G 0.8WAR +0.0ZR .999EFF – 6th Award

First Base
EL - Philadelphia Grizzlies 1B Jose Maldonado(24, 4*) .291/.355/.465 8HR 68RBIs 151G 5.0WAR +4.5ZR 1.041EFF – 1st Award
WL - Calgary Beavers 1B Arturo Melendez(26, 3*) .248/.312/.415 20HR 67RBIs 142G 1.1WAR +3.4ZR 1.025EFF – 2nd Award

Second Base
EL - Chicago Rangers 2B Josh Scott(30, 3*) .192/.284/.326 12HR 43RBIs 148G 2.2WAR +20.5ZR 1.091EFF – 2nd Award
WL Salt Lake City 2B Keith Roehm(26, 3.5*) .240/.307/.368 13HR 64RBIs 147G 3.4WAR +16.5ZR 1.126EFF – 1st Award

Third Base
EL - Pittsburgh Kings 3B Bill Howe(27, 3*) .251/.308/.424 15HR 49RBI 122G 3.2WAR +6.6ZR 1.083 EFF – 2nd Award
WL Portland Bears 3B Victor Oseguera(26, 4*) .293/.339/.489 22HR 78RBI 132G 5.0WAR +8.7ZR 1.073 EFF – 1st Award

Shortstop
EL - Boston Aeros SS Tim Kessler(25, 3.5*) .281/.323/.418 17HR 65RBI 149G 5.3WAR +18.0ZR 1.061EFF – 1st Award
WL Sacramento Cavaliers SS Justin Tears(34, 2,5*) .205/.275/.321 10HR 43RBI 135G 1.3WAR +16.2ZR 1.070EFF – 4th Award

Left Field
EL - Cincinnati Eagles LF Ricardo Acosta(37, retired) .188/.240/.268 2HR 20RBI 90G -1.9WAR +3.8ZR 1.007 EFF – 4th Award
WL Portland Bears LF Mike Marino(27, 4*) .303/.375/.482 13HR 58RBI 117G 4.1WAR +3.3ZR 1.049EFF – 2nd Award

Center Field
EL - Detroit Trains CF Pedro Figueroa(30, 3.5*) .273/.321/.450 20HR 52RBI 143G 5.5WAR +19.1ZR 1.081 EFF – 4th Award
WL Arizona Diamondbacks CF Josh Haddad(28, 3*) .260/.329/.398 12HR 46RBI 142G 4.5WAR +18.4ZR 1.084EFF – 3rd Award

Right Field
EL - Detroit Trains RF Yovanni Soria(28, 3*) .251/.316/.367 3HR 21RBI 91G 1.8WAR +9ZR 1.000EFF – 1st Award
WL Sacramento Cavaliers RF Byron Patterson(26, 3*) .259/.320/.371 12HR 52RBI 139G 2.3WAR +11.7ZR 1.073 EFF – 2nd Award

2022 Reliever of the Year

EL - Atlanta Minuteman RHCL Jaden Simon(28, 3.5*) 7-5 32SV 2.54 60.1IP 1.8WAR– 1st Award
WL – Sacramento Cavaliers RHCL Austin Williams(28, 3.5*) 6-2 36SV 85K 69IP 3.4WAR - 1st Award

2022 Silver Slugger Award Winner

Catcher
EL – Houston Astros C Hector Zamora(31, 5*) .300/.369/.524 23HR 90RBI 128G 5.3WAR – 4th Award
WL – San Francisco Red Devils C Danny Smith(27, 4.5*) .307/.344/.551 30HR 98RBI 130G 5.6WAR – 2nd Award

First Base
EL Montreal Expos 1B Dave Grochowski(24, 4*) .351/.416/.529 20HR 91RBI 156G 5.8WAR – 1st Award, leads league in 8000 things
WL Arizona Diamondbacks 1B Marco Lemus(25, 4*) .282/.355/.546 42HR 122RBI 154G 5.4WAR – 2nd Award, leads league in RBI

Second Base
EL Philadelphia Grizzlies 2B Fidel De Leon(30, 4*) .267/.352/.517 28HR 86RBI 123G 5.9WAR – 4th Award, leads league in WAR
WL San Francisco Red Devils 2B Ralph Pelletier(25, 4*) .287/.363/.484 23HR 90RBIs 145G 6.1WAR– 2nd Award

Third Base
EL Jacksonville Patriots 3B Fernando Robles(27, 4*) .270/.334/.491 31HR 88RBI 148G 3.8WAR – 2nd Award
WL San Diego Padres 3B Octavio Gonzalos(25, 3.5*) .298/.353/.555 39HR 112RBI 147G 6.2WAR – 1st Award, leads league in WAR

Shortstop
EL Chicago Rangers SS Lazaro Miranda(23, 4*) .283/.360/.474 21HR 62RBI 132G 3.4WAR – 2nd Award
WL Denver Seahawks SS Danny Santiago(24, 3.5*) .271/.313/.449 19HR 57RBI 129G 4.7WAR – 1st Award

Left Field
EL - Philadelphia Grizzlies LF Alejandro Cano(23, 4*) .282/.332/.562 37HR 112RBI 141G 5.1WAR – 1st Award, leads league in SLG
WL Sn Francisco Red Devils LF Mario Hernandez(24, 3*) .270/.315/.471 28HR 80RBI 150G 4.3WAR – 1st Award

Center Field
EL - Cincinnati Eagles LF Francisco Canales(26, 4*) .271/.354/.484 19HR 84RBI 131G 4.8WAR – 3rd Award
WL Salt Lake City Bearcats CF Ken Connolly(26, 4*) .278/.335/.4452 17HR 63RBI 150G 4.7WAR – 2nd Award, leads league in DB(46)

Right Field
EL Cincinnati Eagles RF Chisen Nakamura(27, 3*) .287/.327/.505 27HR 80RBI 145G 1.7WAR – 1st Award
WL Arizona Diamondbacks 1B Miguel Martinez(31, 4.5*) .303/.359/.552 36HR 92RBI 131G 4.7WAR – 5th Award

Designated Hitter
EL - Boston Aeros DH Tim Aguilar(35, 4*) .295/.373/.545 29HR 76RBI 134G 5.1WAR – 6th Award
WL – Las Vegas Gamblers DH Pablo Mayorga(24, 3.5*) .309/.366/.588 36HR 106RBI 143G 4.7WAR – 1st Award, leading league in SLG and OPS

[Griever20]

Rookie of the Year

Pitcher of the Year

Most Valuable Player

Congrats to Seth Dykstra for his fifth Pitcher of the Year Award at age 30 and to Jesse Bahena for his second at age 26 as both repeat their PotY Awards.

Happy days! Thanks to Dave Grochowski’s Rookie of the Year Award, we receive a supplemental first round draft pick due to his Prospect Promotion Incentive eligibility.

News:
November 20th – In another minor deal, the Montreal Expos sent AAA RHRP Matt Bow(25, 2.5*, 3-1 1.50 50K 42IP 0.7WAR) to the Memphis Bolts in exchange for A RHRP Adam Krebs(23, 2/2.5*, 3-1 4SV 1.98 13K -0.2WAR 10G).
Since we non-tendered Bow in arbitration, we would’ve taken a bag of baseballs.

November 20th – Similar to the deal above, the Montreal Expos also trade 2B Tim McKusick(28, 2.5*, .206-6-34 .625OPS -0.5WAR 56G) to the Portland Bears in exchange for AAA RHRP Jeff Strauss(23, 2.5*, 7-0 10SV 0.27 20K 0.9WAR 25G).
Same idea, Tim McKusick is a minor league free agent anyways.

[Griever20]

Nov. 28th
Today marks the beginning of New Major League Baseball's free agent filing period. With it comes the uncertainty of an offseason filled with the potential for blockbuster signings, off-the-wall trades and a mad scramble to improve your club before you get left out in the cold.

General managers have the entire offseason in which to sign free agents. The biggest names on this year's market include:

Starting Pitchers:
LHSP Joel Gaspar(36, 3*) ex-NY 5-5 4.19 112K 23GS 2.5WAR – 4x All-Star, 3x Gold Glover – 1y/$12.8M wrecked body
RHSP Hector Mata(29, 3*) ex-SAC 14-7 3.10 162K 34GS 3.6WAR – 2x All-Star, 2020 WL PotY – 5y/$63.6M
RHSP Hagane Noguchi(37, 3*) ex-CHI 3-5 5.17 77K 16GS 1.0WAR – 6x All-Star, 2018 WL PotY – 3y/$30M fragile

Position Players:
1B Sal Masariegos(30, 4*) ex-JAC .272/.324/.414 10HR 54RBIs 95G 0.3WAR – 1x All-Star – 8y/$128M wrecked body
1B Ruben Garcia(32, 3*) ex-JAC .228/.283/.454 24HR 62RBIs 99G -0.2WAR – 1x All-Star, 1x Silver Slugger, 2015 WL RotY – 2y/$18M
That’s it.

Now, to get things done, onto the 40-man go:
RHRP Robert Estrada(23, 2.5/3*, 2-3 25SV 3.19 58K 48IP 1.3WAR AA)
2B Fernando Perez(22, 2.5/3*, .230-18-54 .718OPS 4.0WAR 111G AA)
UT James Slowik(25, 2.5*, .246-2-19 .618OPS 0.5WAR A/AA)
LF Roberto Pedraza(25, 2.5*, .231-7-40 .632OPS 0.1WAR AAA)

And now into the free agent… snoozefest. It will be a boring offseason I feel.

[Griever20]

Montreal Inks SP Hinton to Big Extension
stadiumreport.bbn

December 2nd, 2022

Montreal fans celebrated as word of a signing became reality. Dan Hinton won't be pulling up stakes anytime soon, as he has signed a 7-year extension at a pay rate of $15,785,714 per annum.

Since he is widely seen as an integral part of the club, Montreal officials had to keep Hinton from jumping ship.

Hinton has gone 15-16 with an ERA of 3.46 in his career, piling up 250 strikeouts in 286.1 innings pitched. Fan interest has risen two points.

[Griever20]

Three-Team Deal Sends Matthews to Pittsburgh
stadiumreport.bbn

December 3rd, 2022

The Montreal Expos orchestrated a three team deal today that will shape the future of the Pittsburgh Kings and San José Killer Whales as well as their own future.

A centerpiece will be first baseman Bill Matthews(29, .308-32-101 .904OPS 4.2WAR) who will make his way from San José to Pittsburgh with Montreal and the Killer Whales splitting the $21.8M left on his contract.

For Montreal, they give up a depth piece in AAA RHSP Chris Ball(24, 3*, 8-12 2.92 129K 2.3WAR) and a minor prospect in A RHSP Oscar Gonzales(22, 2*, 4-2 2SV 3.01 56K 22G/9GS 0.0WAR).

The price for one year of Matthews will be #15 prospect SS Gabe Rivera(21, 1.5/3.5*, 2.7WAR between R and A ball) and R 2B Alex Oyoque(20, 0.5/3*, .192-5-20 .480OPS 1.1WAR R), filling up their minor league system.

[Griever20]

K.C. Martin Special Lands Outfield Prospect for Montreal
stadiumreport.bbn

December 5th, 2022

Another day, another deal. The phone never stands still these days in Montreal as the Expos worked out a 3-team deal with the San Diego Padres and Portland Bears for another prospect.

To Portland Bears:
A RHSP Ricky Perez(22, 2/2.5*) 3-3 1SV 2.79 56K 62.2IP 25G/9GS 0.5WAR A from MON

To San Diego Padres:
RHCL Logan Worden(29, 3.5*, $20M paid by MON) 5-5 36SV 2.37 69K 68.1IP 1.2WAR from POR

To Montreal Expos:
R LF Antonio Estrada(17, 4* HS, 4.5* OSA) .108-2-6 .319OPS -1.2WAR 56G R

The 17-year old was signed for $3.6M as an international free agent in 2021 and projects as an average fielder and a 55/50/65/55/55 hitter, but was not yet ranked as a top 100 prospect.

--

Still $76M on the budget for 2023 and those trades somehow got our fan interest up to 80. But, there needs to be teams willing to give veterans for a small price, and teams willing to pay big prospects for those guys… Still, we are printing prospects.
Corresponding move, AAA LHSP Cody Bowman(25, 2.5*, 4-6 2SV 4.42 47K 0.7WAR 28G/3GS) was placed on the 40-man as depth starting option.

[Griever20]

The New Major League Baseball winter meetings are a godsend to a gabby baseball media hungry for rumors, intrigue and talk of a brighter day. Free agents will meet with prospective clubs. The fraternity of managers will gather in little clusters, assessing the past season, while GMs sit in their own little covens concocting intricate potions in the hope that they will be able to pull off a magical trade before the meetings close in three days.

And the truth is, we are still talking about trades. There is a ton of players on our AAA and AA roster eligible to be picked in the Rule 5, but the only guy generating trade interest is LHSP Rich Lange, and I kinda want to take my chance that he can sneak through the Draft so we did not do anything and the only big news of the Winter Meetings was RHSP Hagane Noguchi(37, 3*) signing a 1y/$8.2m contract with the Vancouver Canadians… this would’ve been the year of bargains but our roster has moved past that stage.

And so, we eventually... stood pat this offseason.

Wall of Legends Results

This is a true duo of legends. Memphis Bolts legendary center fielder George Fritch in numbers. .317/.376/.456 97HR 832RBI 2636H 1466R 586SB 1976G 98.8WAR and 2007/2009/2013 EL MvP, 2004 EL Rookie of the Year, a 3x Gold Glover, a 6x Silver Slugger and 9x All-Star and finally, World Series Winner in 2009.

And then, there is San Francisco Red Devils center fielder Jonathan Taylor to partner him. .321/.402/.523 294HR 1276RBI 2511H 1327R 2124G 101.5WAR, 2001/2003/2007 WL MvP, a 8x Gold Glover, a 10x Silver Slugger, 11x All-Star, yet the World Series win escaped him.

News:
December 29th – RHSP Hector Mata(29, 3*) signed a 3y/$9.3M offer sheet of the San Diego Padres today.

December 30th – Prior to the Rule 5 Draft, we last minute put RHRP Bill Bell(23, 2/3*, 4-7 19SV 63K 57.2IP 0.5WAR AAA) on the 40-man. In the end, we picked nobody, and we lost nobody.

January 17th – And the San Diego Padres strike again and sign 1B Sal Masariegos(30, 3.5*) on a 7y/$127.4M contract.

January 20th – Our first success on the international free agent market, RHRP Jose Herrera(16, 1.5/4.5*) signed with us on a $3.6M signing bonus. Stuff 65, Movement 80, Control 50 with a fastball and a splitter.

January 29th – And the second one, LHRP Manuel Sanchez(17, ¼*) signed with us on a bargain $320k.

February 7th – And #3 goes to RHRP Bobby Corrales(17, 1/3*) joined us for $550k.. his control is iffy tho.

February 12th – And #4 is RHRP Dan Fabela(17, 1/3*) is the next one in the van, $1.8M for a righty that is pretty good, but fragile.

February 17th – And #5 and the final signing is C David Guzman(16, 0.5/2.5*) for $750k, a decent defensive catcher that can hit for some average.

[Griever20]

Pre-Spring Situation:
We got into the spring with some position battles ongoing here as we have six starters competing for five spots with

Starting rotation: Juan Miranda, Sam Griffin, Brett Asselin

Fighting for the last two spots.

Then, as every season there are

Various Infield Spots: 2B Fernando Perez, 2B Robby Weltzer, 2B James Slowik, 3B Orlando Gonzalez, 3B Mitku Kazemd, SS Rich Meilleur, SS/3B Julian Hernandez

And of course the whole bullpen as usual. We hope for a injury free spring and some development so that we will go into opening day with the best roster in my tenure as a GM! With that being said, here are our development lap reports:

MLB RHRP Kevin Cowden(23, 3*) ->> Improve Control OUTSTANDING
MLB RHSP Juan Miranda(24, 3*) ->> Splitter Improvement SUCCESSFUL
AAA SS Julian Hernandez(23, 2.5/4*) ->> Generate Batspeed NO IMPROVEMENT
AAA LHSP Brett Asselin(23, 3/4*) ->> Improve Control SUCCESSFUL
AA IF Fernando Perez(22, 2.5/3*) ->> Generate Batspeed OUTSTANDING
S A IF Bryan Booth(20, 1.5/4*) ->> Plate Discipline OUTSTANDING
R CF Tyler Dean(19, 1.5/5*) ->> Generate Batspeed SUCCESSFUL
R SS Manny Ramirez(17, 1/5*) ->> Generate Batspeed NO IMPROVEMENT

Injury Report:
RHSP Marty Murrietta strained triceps 4-5 weeks
LHRP Bill Costa Torn meniscus (knee) 3-4 months

Spring Results:

Not that anybody really cares, but we went 18-10 in spring and looked pretty good overall, and while it took some time, we figured out the remaining open roster spots… for now. For the starting pitching, the call was easy with Marty Murrietta on the IL, and Aaron McCreery was adamant that lefty Pablo Mendoza HAS to be on the opening day roster as second lefty sooo… we went with that while the rest of the pen stayed as it was with Adam Rudolph keeping the closer role after a scoreless spring training.

For the rest of the team, we went according to the plan and that means that opening day will be the first Major League start for Julian Hernandez and Fernando Perez… as Perez’ development lab performance translated into a 3HR spring. The emergence of the two top prospects on the other hand meant that some infielders had to lose their jobs… and with a heavy heart, we decided to platoon Meilleur and Weltzer at second and send down Kazemd and O-Go to AAA.

As for the outfield, the group is the same we ended the season on, just the jobs changed a bit. McCreery and the spring stats say that Bobby Martinez(.338 5/6SB) should play every day, relegating V-Rod to platooning with Messer in right field. Let me tell you something. I think this team is going to be pretty good.

Spring Training Pitcher of the Month:
SP Dan Hinton 2-1 3.77 15K 2BB 14.1IP 0.5WAR

Spring Training MvP:
LF Ignacio Benavides .377/.452/.547 1HR 9RBI 27G/23GS

Spring Training Dud:
RHRP Dustin Jenkins 0-1 1SV 8.64 5K 3BB 8.1IP 0.1WAR

Baseball America announced their Top 100 prospect list:
#1 CF Tyler Dean, 20, Montreal Expos (A)(+1)
#2 LF Jason Barlett, 23, San Francisco Red Devils(NMLB)(-1)
#3 2B Manny Ramirez, 18, Montreal Expos (R)(+14)
#4 3B Tony Rodriguez, 19, Denver Seahawks (R)(-1)
#5 3B Julian Hernandez, 23, Montreal Expos (NMLB)(+15)
#6 LF Jim Sherwood, 21, Washington Nationals (A)(+37)
#7 RHSP Fernando Pena, 18, Denver Seahawks (R)(+8)
#8 RHSP Jason Dawson, 19, San Francisco Red Devils(R)(NEW)
#9 CF Aaron Levine, 23, Memphis Bolts (S A)(-5)
#10 RHSP John Flannery, 21, Las Vegas Gamblers(S A)(+14)

Expos further on that list:
#11 LHSP Brett Asselin, 23 (NMLB)(-5) (1st Rounder 2020)
#18 SS Bryan Booth, 22 (A) (NEW) (1st Rounder 2022)
#22 LF Santiago Rodriguez, 21 (A) (+21) (Trade WSH)
#27 SS Gabe Rivera, 21, (AA) (NEW) (Trade PIT)
#70 2B Fernando Perez, 23 (NMLB) (NEW) (Trade JAC)
#71 RHSP Alejandro Corral, 21 (AA) (-50) (4th Rounder 2019)
#88 RHSP Jorge Ortega, 20 (S A) (NEW) (IFA signing 2020)
#99 CF Sam Spangler, 22 (AAA) (NEW) (14th Rounder in 2019)

Unranked, yet promising:
Our trade acquisition R LF Antonio Estrada, a bunch of 3* guys and some relievers.

I was surprised that Dean made it up there OVER Barlett who will start torturing WL hitting starting opening day, and a lot of those guys are up in the majors here… which means we are good this season? PLEASE!