The Around the Horn League (AtHoL)

[luckymann]

He hasn't done much for us since we acquired him, slashing 242/303/315 with 0 HR, 19 RBI and an ISO of just 073, but we know what Slug is capable of and he'll be missed. We call up young infielder Felipe Lopez in his place, keen to get a look at him at this level.

[luckymann]

Another feather in the mighty Chuck Klein's cap, as he becomes the first AtHoL player to reach 1000 hits.

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

The 32-30 defending champs have been a bit sluggish in their title defence to date, but liven up here behind Andre in a game that features 11 home runs all told.

[luckymann]

I just noticed that the Rafa Devers in my AtHoL Whales squad is actually exactly one week younger than the IRL Rafa of today, with the AtHoL at June 14 of his age-25 season.

The two performances year to date line up remarkably close given the AI has no stats to work off.



And career to date.



Ignoring the WAR, which is obviously calculated differently between the two, that's fairly close on a pro-rata basis. Especially given he is facing different pitchers using different seasonal LTMs and in a different park.

I'll have a look at the end of the MLB season for a comparison.

Man, I love this game.

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

Here are the 1951 3BL All-Stars:






Dayan Viciedo of the Port City Roosters wins the HR Challenge, while St. Paul's Darrin Jackson leads the Parks Conference to a 4-0 victory over the Lewis Conference in the ASG.

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

Some action at opposite ends of the offensive-defensive continuum today.

Firstly, Newark's Bill Dahlen shows some unexpected pop, almost doubling his season HR tally in three fell swoops against Philly.




Meanwhile, Fernando Valenzuela hasn't let being traded faze him, with his ERA now under 2 after this sparkler against Buffalo's big bats.

[luckymann]

Sometimes you do the trades you want to do, other times the trades you have to do, other times the trades you are able to do.

This one is a bit of all three.

The boss is still on me about upgrading at CF and the one thing he and I agree upon in this regard is that Cesar Cedeno is not our player of choice at that position moving forward. He's a fine player, but I think we can do better. I think we have to do better.

No doubt Tris Speaker is the player we want, but attempts to trade for him went nowhere fast, with Indy simply wanting too much for a guy who is an FA at season-end. So we'll just have to sweat them not trading or re-signing him and then go chase him with both hands when the time comes.

In the meantime, to alleviate the impasse with the boss and hopefully provide some spark into an offence that has really sputtered of late, we offload Cesar to Walden for another imminent FA who is a fairly similar player to him.



I don't see Bernie as Mr Right, just as Mr Right Now. But that may change should the Spoke situation not pan out how we want. He has 60-odd games to wow me.

[luckymann]

Always a pleasure to be in these sorts of games, especially up against one of our chief rivals, but I'd prefer we win them...




... like we do the following day.




The decider is not as close, but fascinating all the same as Lefty gives up a slam in the 3rd against his old club and we respond with 8 in the bottom half - all with two out - and win it 10-4.




That leaves the season series split at 3-3, with total runs scored 29-28 in our favour. These two teams are evenly-matched to say the least and, if as is a good chance of happening, they meet in the playoffs then I expect it to be a ferocious contest.

[luckymann]

... around the AtHoL.

Jack Jones of Rochester registers his 100th win, the first in the league to do so. He is also the current leader in Games Started (204), Complete Games (102 - exactly half of his starts), Innings Pitched (1643), Strikeouts (1347), and pWAR (44.97).




Meanwhile, Detroit outfielder Pete Ward gives his home fans a ride - and some souvenirs, to boot - as he pumps three into the stands in a 7-6 win over Houston.




Frank Robinson has a 5-hit game to lead Newark past Raleigh 8-1.




And finally, with the deadline upon us once again, there has been a fair bit of trade action, with these the three most noteworthy.

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

An outstanding performance by Brooklyn's Chicken Wolf in one of the contests of the season, as the Blues score 4 in the 9th to send it into extras and then walk it off in the 14th on Wolf's sixth hit of the game.

[luckymann]

Some big scores on a big day for the hitters. Pensacola thrashes Philly 22-1, Winston-Salem humbles Mobile 15-2, and Chris Carter's 3-bomb attack helps Dayton crush Newark 18-5. Meanwhile, Toronto's Roy Johnson hits for the cycle against Rochester.





By contrast, there are also two 1-0 games and shutout wins for Cannonball Titcomb (best baseball name ever??) of Norfolk against Columbus, Indy's Verdell Mathis against Boston and Detroit ace Al Spalding against Taunton.

The AtHoL, offering something for everyone!

[luckymann]

We get Lefty and Rafa in as starters, and Big Cat as a reserve.





Montreal's Joe Kelly wins the HR Derby, while our own Johnny Mize belts 2 homers to win the MVP in a losing effort as the KA takes the ASG 9-8.

[luckymann]

A bit of a down year in progress for the 56-62 Troy Trojans and playoff action looks unlikely, the first time they'll have missed out. Still, there's a bit of time left and they're not completely without hope - perhaps this performance by Fred Miller will be the catalyst. It's just the third no-no in 3BL history and the first this season.

[luckymann]

Mike is back to career-best form after a slight dip in 1950. This big game takes him to 40 homers on the season, well within reach of his high of 47 a couple years back. His Twins are looking strong again and appear set for yet another playoff run, hopefully one that sees them get past the Freedom Band Series, unlike the past three campaigns.

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

While we have come out of the All-Star break in dreadful nick, losing four of our first five, our looming playoff rivals seem to be just hitting their straps, as Roberto has a fine night out against KC.