Portland Raccoons (ABL)

[Bub13]

Originally Posted by Westheim

[I]Today, the Raccoons turn TEN years old.

[snip]

There has been shockingly little character development in that regard with me!

Ten years old! If this thread were a player it would have been traded to the Elks for a crate of maple syrup by now.

And we can't expect "character development" from our GMs! We only need heavy drinking and despair, leavened by a few light-at-the-end-of-a-tunnel moments.

[Westheim]

Originally Posted by Bub13

Ten years old! If this thread were a player it would have been traded to the Elks for a crate of maple syrup by now.

And we can't expect "character development" from our GMs! We only need heavy drinking and despair, leavened by a few light-at-the-end-of-a-tunnel moments.

If this thread was a player, he'd get a new 5-year deal at a spiffy rate even though his defense has been going down for a while already

I hear though that there's still cake and candy from the 10-year festivities left over!

[Westheim]

How about another decade of Coons baseball, everybody??

+++

Trade

The Raccoons sought a replacement for Manny Fernandez and found it, adding a near-geriatric defensively-challenged left-handed corner outfielder in a trade with the Scorpions on Monday.

Almost-34-year-old Chris Robinson (.305, 2 HR, 22 RBI) was on a cheap “whatever” contract, but at least he didn’t cost prospects. The Raccoons parted with equally defensively-challenged, though less geriatric, 27-year-old Brian Snyder in the deal. The “infielder” Snyder was hitting .243 with two homers in AAA, and had been up to Portland for cups of coffee in 2043 and 2047, batting a total of .147 with no RBI. Robinson was a career .281 hitter with 84 homers and 409 RBI.

Robinson’s addition meant that Roberto Medina was returned to AAA after three games and batting 2-for-8 with a swiped bag.

Raccoons (44-35) vs. Loggers (26-55) – July 6-9, 2048

Here came the Loggers, and everybody was afraid; …they’d stumble and break their noses flat-facing it on the three steps in front of the ballpark that Cristiano Carmona kept complaining about and I kept doing nothing about. The Loggers were very much bottoms in the CL North, and bottoms in runs allowed in the CL. They were not much better in scoring, second from the bottom, and had a whopping -115 run differential before the All Star Game, representing true futility. We’d play eight of our next eleven games against them, and so far were up 3-0 on the season series.

Projected matchups:
Jake Jackson (4-5, 4.14 ERA) vs. Victor Padilla (4-9, 6.24 ERA)
Sadaharu Okuda (5-1, 5.04 ERA) vs. Tony Ruiz (4-6, 2.97 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (4-4, 4.36 ERA) vs. John Morrill (3-11, 4.86 ERA)
Victor Merino (7-6, 3.82 ERA) vs. Ruben Guzman (5-3, 3.42 ERA)

Two left, two right, and hopefully the Coons offense would pounce.

Meanwhile, there’s no risk about anybody from our rotation going to the All Star Game, so we didn’t have to make arrangements for that, either.

Game 1
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – 1B E. Hernandez – 2B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C J. Davis – 3B M. Grant – P V. Padilla
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – CF Herrera – C Gonzalez – RF Glodowski – P Jackson

So of course the Loggers scored first; Bill Reeves tripled home Pat Lovell in the second inning, then was thrown out at home plate on Josh Davis’ fly to Matt Glodowski, which is what last-place teams do – get thrown out by *Matt Glodowski*! The Coons in turn got a free Bryce Toohey on second base to begin the bottom 2nd after a throwing error by Mike Grant, but never moved him an inch further. The Raccoons went on to have no hits in three innings, while the Loggers then kept raking triples. Zach Suggs opened the fourth with a triple into the leftfield corner, and soon scored on Ernesto Hernandez’ groundout, 2-0. Portland finally twitched in the bottom 4th; Toohey walked, and then scored on 2-out singles by Armando Herrera and Ruben Gonzalez, before Glodowski lined out to Suggs to end the inning. A Waters error put Reeves on base to begin the top 5th, however, and Jackson was taken very, very deep by Josh Davis, falling behind 4-1. When Jackson began the bottom 5th with a single and was then doubled up by Matt Watt, 4-6-3, I knew we had an L on our paws…

Oh me of little faith! While Jackson was taken deep by Ricky Espinoza in the sixth, 5-1, he also struck out seven and walked nobody in seven innings, then bunted Glodowski – leadoff single – to second base to begin the bottom 7th, since he had mileage left on his pitch count and remember, the game was lost anyway. Singles by Watt and Adame then brought home Glodowski, and also brought up Maldonado as the tying run all of a sudden. He gave me confirmation though, finding Suggs with a grounder for a 6-4-3 double play. Two singles then knocked out Jackson by the time there was one out in the eighth, with Lynn and Ibold inching the Raccoons out of that mess, Ibold leaving the bases loaded when he flew Pat Lovell out to Watt in left. The tying run was at the dish again in the bottom 8th, with Herrera and Gonzalez going to the corners with two outs. Glodowski slapped a single over Espinoza to plate Herrera, 5-3, but Pat Gurney, hitting for Ibold, flew out to left… Brent Allen put the game away for good in the ninth; Hitchcock opened the inning with a double allowed to Reeves, walked Grant later on, and almost seemed out of the jam when he was taken deep to left by Grant with two outs. 8-3 Loggers. Adame 2-5, 2B, RBI; Herrera 2-4; Gonzalez 2-3, BB, RBI; Glodowski 2-4, RBI;

Tuesday brought “weather” and a postponement, lining up a double header for Wednesday, creating a pitching pinch for Sunday after all – and against the Indians.

Thanks, “weather”. (looks skywards and shakes fist at the baseball gods)

Game 2
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – RF Lovell – 2B R. Espinoza – 1B E. Hernandez – C J. Davis – LF Reeves – 3B M. Grant – P T. Ruiz
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – CF Herrera – RF Glodowski – C Prow – P Okuda

Ruiz entered the first leg of the two-some with a sub-3 ERA, but without any sort of command whatsoever. He had already walked 55 batters in 97 innings this year, but cranked the wildness up to 11 in this game. He walked Matt Watt to begin the bottom 1st, and while the Coons twice hit into a fielder’s choice after that, they also took a 1-0 lead on a Toohey double with two outs, plating Maldonado. Ruiz then walked the bags full in the bottom 2nd, issuing free passes to Herrera, Pow, and Watt. Then, with two outs and the bases loaded, he ran a full count to Alex Adame, who laid off a pitch a foot outside to push home a run with yet another walk. Maldo drew ANOTHER walk for a 3-0 lead, but Toohey grounded out on the first pitch to end the parade.

Okuda walked one and allowed two hits in five shutout innings, while the Raccoons didn’t get a second base hit until Waters hit a 2-out single off Ruiz in the bottom 5th. Ruiz by then was on EIGHT walks, but the Loggers were apparently not concerned and wished to see him pitch to his capacity. The Raccoons failed to round up an out-of-whack pitcher, and it came as it had to come: Okuda blew the game in the seventh against the bottom of the order. He walked Reeves, Grant singled, and then PH Tony Sanchez cranked a homer to tie the game at three…

Right-hander Noah Hollis allowed a leadoff double to center to Matt Watt in the bottom 7th, putting the go-ahead run in scoring position. A grounder, a pop, and a K stranded Watt at third base. Pinch-hitter Will McIntyre hit a 2-out infield single off Kuo in the eighth, stole second, reached third when Adame could not contain Prow’s throw, but was stranded when Davis popped out foul to the catcher. Kuo got the Coons through the ninth against more right-handed opposition, as we were determined to somehow squeeze a W out of this ******* game without using our entire bullpen. Bottom 9th, righty Taylor Joachim faced pinch-hitters Al Martell, who grounded out, and Chris Robinson, who after three days finally made his first official appearance as a Critter, singling up the middle to put his bum on base as the winning run. Watt singled to move him to second, and Joachim walked Adame to fill the damn bases. Maldo, three on, one out – comebacker to the pitcher, force out at home, and Toohey popped out to Lovell. Extra innings, frustration, Capt’n Coma.

Preston Porter had a 1-2-3 tenth inning, while Joachim was still around in the bottom 10th. Waters opened with a single to center and stole second, with Herrera walking behind him. Gurney batted for a hitless Glodowski, but flew out to Allen. Gonzalez lined out softly to Suggs, which sugged. Derek Baskins for Porter emptied the bench, but filled the bases with ANOTHER walk drawn, setting up three on, two outs for Watt, who ended the affair by drawing the Coons’ dozenth walk of the game, in a full count. 4-3 Critters. Watt 2-3, 3 BB, 2B, RBI; Waters 2-4, BB; Robinson (PH) 1-1;

First decision for Porter (1-0, 1.35 ERA, 2 SV) this year, just as we reached the halfway point for the day AND the season.

Game 3
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Suggs – 1B E. Hernandez – 2B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C T. Sanchez – 3B M. Grant – P Morrill
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – 3B Martell – LF Baskins – P Wheatley

The entire game one bench was moved into the lineup for game two, with Wheats somewhat dismayed to find neither Maldo, nor Toohey for offensive support. Well, Wheats, how about not giving up any runs then…? Second half!

Scoring four came quicker to the Coons on Sunday, with Morrill filling the bases in the first inning by drilling Waters, allowing a single to Gurney, and walking Robinson. He then threw steady strikes to Ruben Gonzalez, one of which was cranked 412 feet to left-center for some instant offense – GRAAAAAAAAAND SLAAAAAAAAAAMMMM!!!!

Wheats whiffed four the first time through, allowing a double to Pat Lovell in the second, but nothing else. He made it through five unharmed, then issued a leadoff walk (…) to the opposing pitcher (…!!) in the sixth, and of course the Loggers turned that one around into a run with the aid of a 2-out single by Ernesto Hernandez, which made it 4-1. The Raccoons had seen both Watt and Adame caught stealing the half-inning prior to that, but pulled the run back in the bottom 6th, with Gurney doubling to left to begin the inning, then scoring on a Robinson triple to center…! From there we went to the unhappy three on, no outs situation with an intentional walk to Ruben Gonzalez and an unintentional walk to Al Martell. Baskins popped out, but Wheats got his first RBI of the year with a groundout, 6-1. Relief man Nick Pollock then got a grounder from Watt to strand two, but was scored upon in the seventh, as Adame doubled and Gurney singled him home. Robinson singled, Gonzalez walked, and the bags were full again. Martell’s sac fly was all that came out of that.

Jason Wheatley pitched finely into the eighth, beginning the inning on 86 pitches, so a complete game was unlikely. He had a 1-2-3 on 12 pitches, though, and with a 7-run lead batted for himself against lefty Bubba Poss to begin the bottom 8th, striking out as the Raccoons went in order. The 3-4-5 were up in the ninth. Hernandez grounded out to Waters. Espinoza was out on a 2-1 comebacker to Wheats, who thus just had to dispatch of Pat Lovell for the complete game – and did so on strikes! 8-1 Furballs! Adame 2-5, 2B; Gurney 3-4, 2B, RBI; Robinson 2-3, BB, 3B, RBI; Gonzalez 1-2, 2 BB, HR, 4 RBI; Martell 1-2, BB, RBI; Wheatley 9.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 9 K, W (5-4);

This was Wheats’ first complete game this year. He hasn’t had a shutout since ’46.

Both Okuda and Wheatley had thrown 100+ pitches, making neither a good pick to go on short rest on Sunday. We’d now try to set Hitchcock aside for a spot start. He had last started in Aumsville in ’43, but sometimes things get tough…

Game 4
MIL: CF B. Allen – LF Reeves – RF Lovell – 2B R. Espinoza – 1B E. Hernandez – C J. Davis – SS R. Lopez – 3B M. Grant – P Ru. Guzman
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Gurney – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Merino

Merino served up Ricky Espinoza’s 14th homer of the year in the top 1st, a 2-piece to left that collected Pat Lovell, who in turn had forced out Reeves earlier. Espinoza drove in Lovell again in the sixth inning with a 2-out RBI single to right. In between, nothing had happened whatsoever. Merino had been wonky, relying on defense while striking out absolutely nobody, and the Raccoons had been stifled for three hits in five innings by Guzman, never even touching third base in the process. Herrera hit a single in the bottom 6th, advanced on a wild pitch, and was stranded on a K and a pop by the two sluggers that Wheats complained about so badly the day before, then turned out not to be missing all that much.

100 pitches got Merino through seven innings and no strikeouts in a 3-0 losing effort. A leadoff double by Baskins in the bottom 8th then chased Guzman, with Taylor Joachim coming on to face pinch-hitter Matt Waters, who cranked a homer outta rightfield to slash the score to 3-2 while also dumping Maldo again for the team home run lead. The Loggers yanked Joachim at once, going to Noah Hollis, who got two outs before allowing a double to Maldo and a walk to Toohey. Bubba Poss was next, with Kevin Prow batting for Gurney against the southpaw, but he flew out to center to end the inning. The Loggers countered with an unearned run off Bonnie in the ninth, with Espinoza hitting a leadoff double before scoring on a Maldonado error… (grinds teeth) … Steve from Accounting, how much is left on that contract? – No, I just wanted to know because we might need more Capt’n Coma in the next couple of years. … The Raccoons went without much fuss in the bottom 9th, dropping into a series split. 4-2 Loggers. Adame 2-4; Maldonado 2-4, 2B; Waters (PH) 1-1, HR, 2 RBI;

Now for Indy.

Raccoons (46-37) @ Indians (47-39) – July 10-12, 2048

Winner of this series would have bragging rights over the division lead at the All Star Game; the Indians were third in the league in offense, sixth in opposition’s offense, and had a +46 run differential (Coons: +20). They led the CL in stolen bases, although one of their more annoying tools, Andrew Russ, was on the DL and could not annoy the heck out of me on this weekend. Bill Drury was the other notable DL dweller for them. We led the season series, 5-3.

Projected matchups:
Bubba Wolinsky (2-0, 2.08 ERA) vs. Enrique Ortiz (5-5, 4.24 ERA)
Jake Jackson (4-6, 4.19 ERA) vs. Casey Pinter (6-7, 4.97 ERA)
TBD vs. Brian Jackson (6-7, 3.43 ERA)

A righty, two lefties, and the Raccoons were not sure yet what they’d add after a lefty and a righty to begin the series. Kevin Hitchcock (0-1, 3.26 ERA) was *an* option. So – by Sunday – would be Jeremy Baker (5-3, 3.47 ERA) and Victor Salcido (0-1, 6.75 ERA) in AAA if we were so inclined; those were the only established starters on the 40-man roster.

Game 1
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – SS Martell – C Prow – P Wolinsky
IND: RF A. Mendez – 2B de Castro – LF D. Rivera – 3B B. Anderson – 1B Brayboy – CF Locke – C Torreo – SS Quintana – P E. Ortiz

Watt walked, advanced on a grounder, and scored on Maldo’s single to center for a quick 1-0 lead. Wolinsky got around Alex de Castro’s single in the bottom 1st, then to the plate with Robinson and Prow on the corners in the top 2nd, popping out to reigning CL Rookie of the Year Bobby Anderson for the second out. Watt grounded out to the pitcher to waste the chance. The inning after, Herrera hit a leadoff single, but was forced out by Maldonado. Toohey walked, and Waters hit a blast to center that made it four-zip. That lead seemed not in trouble with Wolinsky going without much flash, but steadily for sure, allowing just two hits and no walks through five innings, striking out three Indians. At 64 pitches, however, he seemed on the tight side of the shutout watch. He promptly ran into a tight sixth, walking Danny Rivera, who sat at 16 homers and 68 RBI while batting .302, with two outs, then suffered an infield single by Anderson, just before the frequent death of all things Portland, Aaron Brayboy, came to the plate. He grounded out to Toohey, however, stranding the pair on base.

The Coons were rather silent in the middle innings, sitting on only six hits off Ortiz themselves. Maldo drew a walk off the righty in the seventh and stole a base, reached third on Toohey’s groundout, then came home on a 2-out, 2-strike single up the middle by Waters, who notched his 40th RBI of the year, then ended the inning by getting caught stealing, but the Raccoons were up 5-0 now. That would have been ample lead to let Wolinsky go the distance, but he grinded his way to 105 pitches through eight shutout innings, and with a guy that had just missed a year on the DL and didn’t have the greatest stamina to begin with, the Raccoons weren’t gonna; Joy-shan Kuo would finish the game instead. 5-0 Raccoons. Waters 2-4, HR, 4 RBI; Prow 2-3, BB; Adame (PH) 1-1; Wolinsky 8.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K, W (3-0);

Spiffy 1.42 ERA for Wolinsky now, though, which looks nice after the abortive first two starts after returning from rehab!

Game 2
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – C Gonzalez – LF Watt – RF Glodowski – P J. Jackson
IND: RF A. Mendez – 2B de Castro – CF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 3B B. Anderson – 1B Brayboy – C Pedraza – SS Quintana – P Pinter

…and then a pitchers’ duel broke out! Through five innings, Pinter allowed one hit and one run, Jackson twice that amount, and neither team scored, although the Indians were close in the bottom 2nd when they had a pair in scoring position and Pinter batting with two outs. Pinter hit a squibbler to the left side that almost would have gotten home a run if not for a top-notch, bare-pawed play by Maldonado, who zinged to first JUST in time to beat the running pitcher. Back-to-back 1-out singles by Herrera and Maldo then put runners on the corners all of a sudden in the top 6th, the first time either team reached third base since that bottom 2nd. Toohey would have loved a breakout blast, but got only garbage from Pinter, who ended up walking him to fill the bases for Waters, who right now was probably a bigger threat, and grinded out a bases-loaded walk to send the Raccoons up 1-0. The inning then ended with a 6-4-3 double play grounder by Gonzalez, who seemed out of grand slams for the week. Jackson then came back and walked de Castro and Rivera in the bottom 6th, but struck out Anderson to get out of the inning. Alex Pedraza then whacked a leadoff double in the bottom 7th. He advanced on Angel Quintana’s fly to right, then went for home when Pinter flew to Watt – but was thrown out at the plate to end the inning!

A Herrera double and a Toohey RBI single doubled the Coons’ lead in the top 8th, but Jackson did not return, having thrown 101 pitches already. The ball went to Preston Porter instead, who retired Mendez and de Castro, before Mike Lynn struck out Bill Quinteros. Before we could go on, a summer storm suddenly broke over the ballpark and gave everybody a quick douse, but disappeared as fast as it had appeared, creating about a 25-minute rain delay only. When play resumed, Chris Robinson doubled in Glodowski’s spot off Sang-hoon Kim, while Adame reached on an Anderson error with two outs. Tommy Gardner replaced Kim in a bid to keep the Raccoons close, getting Herrera to pop out to short and strand runners on the corners. Lynn came back for the bottom 9th with a 2-0 lead, with Danny Rivera leading off, and nailed the runner, so when Nelson Moreno took over as scheduled for Anderson, the tying run was already at the plate, and Moreno had not pitched all week so far. In fact, he hadn’t pitched since July *2*, when he got exploded by the damn Elks for a blown save and loss. Anderson ran a full count, then grounded into a fielder’s choice to erase Lynn’s runner. So when Brayboy walked and Pedraza singled, the run was on Moreno already… He was read the Riot Act by the pitching coach after that, then proceeded to get a double play grounder from Quintana to save his striped tail. 2-1 Raccoons. Herrera 3-4, BB, 2B; Robinson (PH) 1-1, 2B; Jackson 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 5 K, W (5-6);

So that secured first place through the All Star break…!

Glodowski (.265, 1 HR, 5 RBI) would not witness the All Star Game on the roster, getting optioned back to the Alley Cats to bring up Jeremy Baker (5-3, 3.47 ERA) for the Sunday start.

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – C Gonzalez – LF Watt – RF Robinson – P Baker
IND: RF A. Mendez – 2B de Castro – CF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 3B B. Anderson – 1B Brayboy – C Pedraza – SS Quintana – P B. Jackson

Singles by Adame, Herrera, and Toohey gave Baker a 1-0 lead for his spot start, and Toohey got another RBI in the third with the second of two productive groundouts after a leadoff double for Armando Herrera, which put the Coons up 2-0. Baker was not really in trouble the first time through, although Anderson reached second base with two outs in the fourth on Gonzalez’ throwing error. Brayboy, who had yet to do any coonskinning in this series, flew to deep right – but the ball died with Robinson on the warning track.

Herrera, just nominated to his seventh All Star Game, then tripled home Adame in the fifth, which also put him a home run away from the cycle, just in case you weren’t keeping score at home. Brian Jackson then annoyed Maldonado with a very wild 1-1 pitch that Maldonado had to leap over to not have his legs torn off, but that allowed Herrera to score, 4-0, and took away the RBI chance. He flew out to Rivera as the inning fizzled out. The inning after, Baker – still on a 1-hitter – singled home Matt Waters with two outs to tack on, 5-0. The inning had started with Jackson walking Waters, who scooped second for his 12th steal of the year. Gonzalez walked, but was doubled off with Watt’s 4-6-3 grounder. Robinson then was walked intentionally to bring up Baker, who made the point moot with the first actual knock of the inning. Adame flew out to center to strand two then.

Angel Mendez opened the bottom 6th with a single to center, then was right away doubled off when de Castro grounded to Adame. And then Baker drowned in runners so fast we could not even get the pen up in time. Quinteros singled to right. Rivera singled to left. Anderson walked. Three on, two outs for Brayboy, who was a left-hander, and even with three lefties in the pen, the Raccoons still had hard-to-explain hesitations about yanking the lefty on the mound. Even with Brayboy at the dish! Brayboy got to 1-1 before hitting a spanker to the right side … and to Toohey, who made the play to end the inning! Herrera then began the seventh with a weak groundout, which was miles away from the homer needed for the cycle. Baker continued in the bottom 7th, put Pedraza and Quintana on base, and was yanked without getting another out. Bob Ibold replaced him, popped out Oscar Aguirre in a full count, but walked Mendez in another full count. De Castro also popped out on two pitches, after which the Raccoons went to Lynn with Quinteros and Rivera up. Quinteros ran another full count, then popped a grand slam to right to axe the Coons’ lead down to 5-4 with one slap.

Sigh!

Rivera was an easy out to end the seventh, and Sang-hoon Kim was back out for the eighth. The Raccoons got base runners; a catcher reaching on catcher’s interference, plus an ordinary walk drawn by Matt Watt. Robinson chased Quinteros for the second out in center, but Quinteros couldn’t reach Pat Gurney’s pinch-hit drive that was a tad deeper and dropped for a 2-run double. Adame flew out, keeping it at 7-4. Porter would get the baseball, with Gurney staying in the game at first, Toohey going to right, and the pitcher in the #8 spot. The Indians’ 5-6-7 went in order against Porter, and then Herrera got another chance against Kim, but had to settle for a single, and was doubled off by Toohey to end the inning. The ninth was Moreno’s, with Quintana and Philip Locke hitting leadoff singles before Mendez popped out and de Castro hit into another double play to complete the sweep. 7-4 Critters! Adame 2-5; Herrera 4-5, 3B, 2B, RBI; Gurney (PH) 1-1, 2B, 2 RBI;

In other news

July 6 – OCT 2B/SS Jonathan Ban (.356, 1 HR, 43 RBI) extends his hitting streak to 25 games with two hits, including a triple, in an 8-5 win over the Aces.
July 7 – The hitting streak of Oklahoma’s Jonathan Ban (.351, 1 HR, 43 RBI) ends with an 0-for-4 in a 9-5 loss to the Aces.
July 7 – But a new hitting streak in the CL South is born, with 20 straight games of knocking successfully for ATL 3B/SS/LF/RF Anton Venegas (.354, 3 HR, 36 RBI), who goes 3-for-6 in a 13-inning, 6-1 loss to the Condors.
July 7 – CHA SP Chris Jones (6-6, 3.11 ERA) 3-hits the Bayhawks for a 1-0 complete-game shutout.
July 7 – The Aces trade 3B Jeremy Hornig (.240, 5 HR, 26 RBI) to the Buffaloes for OF Gary Tabano (.237, 0 HR, 4 RBI).
July 7 – SAC 1B Steve Wyatt (.269, 15 HR, 51 RBI) homers off LAP MR Jay Coats (3-1, 3.64 ERA, 2 SV) to give the Scorpions a 1-0 win.
July 7 – NAS SP Danny Tankersley (4-5, 8.35 ERA) is sidelined and shut down for a month with a sprained UCL.
July 9 – The Falcons send SP Felix Castano (4-5, 5.26 ERA) to the Capitals for the #73 prospect, SP Joe Thomlinson.
July 9 – The Indians beat the Canadiens, 9-0, on just THREE base hits, two of which are homers. The Canadiens issue five walks, add two errors, and hit two batters; the Indians leave only one of their runners stranded in a display of peak efficiency.
July 10 – Bayhawks SP Chih Ke (8-3, 2.67 ERA) 3-hits the Thunder, 5-0, with six strikeouts and no walks on his ledger.
July 10 – The Crusaders deal SP Luke Moses (3-11, 4.66 ERA) to the Blue Sox for C Omar Ramirez (.343, 1 HR, 9 RBI).
July 10 – New York walks off in the ninth inning against the Canadiens, 5-4, when 3B/SS Tom Labedz (.364, 0 HR, 0 RBI) scampers home from third base on a wild pitch by VAN CL Sam Gibson (4-5, 4.14 ERA, 15 SV).
July 12 – The hitting streak of Atlanta’s Anton Venegas (.354, 3 HR, 36 RBI) ends on the last day before the All Star Game, at 24 games, in a 3-2 win over the Falcons.

FL Player of the Week: SAC 1B Steve Wyatt (.282, 17 HR, 61 RBI), swatting .500 (12-24) with 3 HR, 11 RBI
CL Player of the Week: OCT 1B Bill Jenkins (.295, 12 HR, 51 RBI), hitting .448 (13-29) with 2 HR, 9 RBI

Complaints and stuff

Despite the so-so performance by the Raccoons in the first half, they still managed to have three All Stars. None of them are pitchers, which isn’t that big a shocker. The three players are Waters, Maldo, and Herrera, who are a combined 95 years old.

For Maldonado, it is the sixth straight All Star appearance after not making the showcase at all until his age 29 season. Waters is an All Star for the first time (but had also never posted an OPS better than .769 before). Herrera led them with seven ASG nominations, and the second consecutive after a 4-year lull from 2043-46.

I nosed around the Scorpions for Robinson ever since Manny was injured, and at that time they were willing to trade him for human garbage, but it took four days to diagnose Manny with “needs surgery” and by then Robinson had been on a hot streak and they would no longer accept human garbage for him. de la Cruz would do, of course. He calmed down again now, and we could get him for mostly nothing, finally, on Monday. Almost a tit-for-tat Manny replacement, except for his roster spot in our hearts of course.

Yeah, Robinson had a better first week than Manny had usually, for sure. He batted .333/.444/.533 in the first week after joining the team. Of course, his defense is garbage, so we’ll mostly play him against right-handers and hide him as often as feasible.

The sweep on the weekend gave us our first breather for the division lead. Things still don’t gel over here, and the second half will remain interesting. We may have to spin another trade or two, somehow, despite little to give. Another freebie like Robinson would be great…! Nobody really believes in the Raccoons posting another title right now, and the team is only sixth in power rankings.

After the All Star Game, we’ll be in Milwaukee for four. After that it will be that 2-week 5-team homestand, with a makeup game against the Blue Sox, followed by 3-game sets with the Titans, Aces, Baybirds, and Falcons. And then it will already be August!

Fun Fact: Jeremy Baker is the team’s ERA leader.

And Jeremy Baker will likely be back with the Alley Cats by the weekend.

No, I don’t know how Nick Valdes isn’t just putting me on the curb. Maybe he doesn’t know that half of all the losses the Raccoons put up are squarely on me.

[Westheim]

All Star Game

The Federal League won a 7-6 game over the Continental League in the annual All Star Game. The teams were tied at four after regulation, with the CL scoring two runs in the top of the 10th inning, but being outdone for three in the bottom half. Denver’s Ivan Villa (.305, 10 HR, 52 RBI) won MVP honors with three hits, missing the cycle by the double, and an RBI.

The Portland complement did so-so. Armando Herrera and Jesus Maldonado started the game. The former went 0-for-1 with a walk before being double-switched out, while the latter had a 1-for-4 day. Matt Waters pinch-hit without success.

Raccoons (49-37) @ Loggers (28-60) – July 16-19, 2048

Back to the Loggers then, who had scratched a split from the Coons the week before, although we were still up 5-2 on them for the entire season. They were still 11th in runs scored and 12th in runs allowed in the CL and the potential for improvement was like limited.

Projected matchups:
Jason Wheatley (5-4, 4.08 ERA) vs. Victor Padilla (5-10, 6.00 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (3-0, 1.42 ERA) vs. Tony Ruiz (4-6, 3.06 ERA)
Victor Merino (7-7, 3.82 ERA) vs. John Morrill (3-13, 5.18 ERA)
Jake Jackson (5-6, 3.93 ERA) vs. Ruben Guzman (6-3, 3.30 ERA)

Padilla and Ruiz were the left-handers here.

The Raccoons returned Jeremy Baker – their ERA leader, wickedly – to AAA during the All Star break, then went with 1B/LF/RF Evan Van Hoy as roster filler for the weekend. Van Hoy had 3 RBI batting .278 in limited appearances with the Alley Cats, and last year had hit 5-for-17 as a Raccoon. How many first basemen do we need on the roster? Is three gonna be enough?

Game 1
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Toohey – 2B Waters – C Gonzalez – LF Watt – 1B Gurney – P Wheatley
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – 1B E. Hernandez – 2B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C J. Davis – 3B M. Grant – P V. Padilla

While Wheats dipped his ERA under four with three scoreless to begin the game, allowing only a single to Josh Davis the first time through, the Raccoons scored a run in the top 3rd when Alex Adame tripled and scored on a passed ball. Whatever works! Maybe the staying-calm approach would work again – in the fourth, Padilla loaded the bases exclusively with free passes to Toohey, Waters, and Watt, but with one out Pat Gurney grounded to Mike Grant, who threw out Toohey at home plate. That left the scoring runs to Wheatley … or maybe the Loggers battery, Padilla being called out for a balk at 1-1, which scored Waters automatically. Wheats ended up grounding out to short, then gave up a homer to Ernesto Hernandez to narrow the Loggers-provided lead to 2-1.

Top 6th, Gurney at the plate, three on once more, and one out as well, although this time Toohey had doubled and Ruben Gonzalez had walked rather than Matt Waters. Unlike last time, Gurney garnered an RBI with a sac fly to Bill Reeves, but Wheats grounded out again. Wheatley allowed a single in the sixth, a walk in the seventh, but I … weirdly didn’t *feel* like he was in trouble…? Sometimes it goes fast, though, even in Milwaukee… Besides, the Loggers were out-hitting the Raccoons, 4-3, through seven innings.

Then Gurney batted with three on and one out for the THIRD time in the game, this time with Waters on rather than Gonzalez again. Somehow Victor Padilla was allowed to continue by the grossly negligent Loggers, despite eight walks on his ledger. This time Gurney ended him with a 2-run single to center. The Loggers did away with Wheatley, who ended the inning once more with a double play grounder, in the same inning, Brent Allen drawing a walk with two outs and Zach Suggs singling through the left side. Kuo inherited the runners, allowed an RBI single to Hernandez on the first pitch, and then somehow got Ricky Espinoza to pop out. The Raccoons answered by battering Miguel Herrera; Alex Adame reached on a Suggs error to begin the top 9th, after which the Raccoons hit three straight singles, and Matt Waters hit a homer to right with all three singlers aboard – GRAAAAAAAAAAAAND SLAAAAAAAAAMMMM!!! … 10-2 Raccoons. Toohey 4-4, BB, 2 2B; Watt 0-1, 4 BB; Robinson (PH) 1-1; Wheatley 7.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, W (6-4);

A 10-run game and only two guys in the lineup did anything worth writing home about against the Loggers?

The Loggers!

Game 2
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Toohey – 2B Waters – C Gonzalez – LF Watt – 1B Gurney – P Wolinsky
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – 2B R. Espinoza – 1B E. Hernandez – C J. Davis – LF Reeves – RF McIntyre – 3B M. Grant – P T. Ruiz

Doubles by Espinoza and Hernandez up either line gave the Loggers a 1-0 lead in the first, after which Bubba ran four straight 3-ball counts in the bottom of the second inning, ending up issuing 2-out walks to Mike Grant and the pitcher before Brent Allen grounded out to Adame. His control remained off after that; while the Raccoons did nothing on offense, the Loggers kept getting on base. Davis began the fourth with a single, and Reeves drew another walk. Will McIntyre singled to left, and everybody tried to gain the extra base, but Matt Watt’s perfect throw killed off Davis at home plate. A trickler near the third base line by Grant kept the runners pinned in scoring position while Maldo got the second out on it, and Ruiz popped out foul to end the inning without a run scoring, somehow. The exact same combo – Davis single, Reeves walk, McIntyre single – WOULD yield a Loggers run in the sixth, however, and Wolinsky was ground to dust by the end of it, having thrown 98 pitches, most of them wayward.

The Raccoons were down 2-0 on three hits, but got Maldonado on base to begin the seventh when Hernandez committed an error. Toohey whiffed. Ruiz walked Waters to put the tying run aboard, then issued another walk to Gonzalez. And then Watt hit into a double play to end the inning… The Loggers doubled their lead against Bob Ibold in the seventh; Allen walked, Espinoza homered, and the game was officially in the bin. Tony Ruiz completed a 3-hit shutout. 4-0 Loggers.

To say that we had nothing would be an overstatement. Also, this damn ballpark sells only beer, no hard liquor. Granted, it’s 26 different brands of beer, but you can’t numb the pain with beer…!!

Game 3
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – SS Martell – C Prow – P Merino
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – RF Lovell – 2B R. Espinoza – C J. Davis – LF Reeves – 1B McIntyre – 3B M. Grant – P Morrill

Here was Merino, and there was a lineup without a lefty bat in it. I feared the worst, and indeed Merino did the baseball equivalent of beer: awful. He got poked for four singles by the first five batters, Maldo chipped in an error, and Merino also walked Grant on his way to give up three first-inning runs, of which only one was earned, somehow. Morrill grounded out with the bases loaded to short-circuit the Loggers’ stomping of Merino, who threw 38 pitches in that ********* first inning, then came back for more. Espinoza hit a leadoff double in the bottom 3rd and scored on two groundouts, 4-0, as the Raccoons again didn’t remember how to hit for the early innings. Morrill then helped them out, allowing a single to Toohey in the fourth, walked Waters, and then gave up a crusher to Chris Robinson, 451 feet, and his first blast on the Critters.

Merino got wackoed for ten hits in five innings, some of them quite loud, but the Loggers failed to score more on him and it was a 4-3 game, in which even the Raccoons had a chance to come back, given that the Loggers were also working with a certified arsonist on the mound. Alas, the inertia was so much to overcome… Maldo had a single in the fifth, which ended with a double play grounder by Robinson. Prow hit a single in the sixth, which led precisely nowhere. Maldo hit a single again in the seventh, and this time Toohey and Waters joined him, loading the bases with two more 1-out singles. But there was Robinson again, with another double play grounder….. Morrill was somehow still in the game in the eighth, allowing a 1-out, ground-rule double to Kevin Prow (although if I had to manage the Loggers’ pen, I would also do so by exclusion…); Baskins flew out, Gurney struck out, and the Raccoons didn’t score ******* YET AGAIN. Reeves’ leadoff triple off Mike Lynn in the bottom 8th led to a tack-on run for Milwaukee then. Their response to holding a 5-3 lead after eight was to send Miguel Herrera, who had retired nobody on Thursday. Herrera whiffed. Maldo singled, bringing up the tying run. Toohey hit a ****** infield roller, but Grant had to come in too far and all paws were safe. Waters grounded out, advancing the runners, which conveniently meant that there were two outs and Robinson could not possibly complete the double play trifecta. So he flew out to Reeves. 5-3 Loggers. Maldonado 3-5; Toohey 2-4, BB; Waters 2-4, BB; Martell 2-4; Prow 3-4, 2 2B;

Maud? – Yes, Maud. Listen. I have only two 10-dollar coins for this payphone. You need to send some Capt’n Coma by express to Milwaukee. – No, there is no hard liquor anywhere here, only *beer*! – But I can’t numb the pain with *beer*! – Well, have you SEEN them play?? – Maud? – Maud? – Hello? – Hello??

My life is horror.

Game 4
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – RF Robinson – 2B Martell – LF Baskins – P Jackson
MIL: CF B. Allen – C J. Davis – 1B E. Hernandez – 2B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – SS R. Lopez – 3B M. Grant – P Ru. Guzman

Facing mostly only right-handed bats helped Jake Jackson nothing; he drowned with two outs in the bottom 1st. Single, double, walk, single – two runs scored before Ricky Lopez struck out in a full count with some gentle help by the umpire. The second was even worse. Mike Grant singled, Jackson fudged Allen’s comebacker for an error, and Hernandez doubled in the pair of them, then scored on an Espinoza single. Pat Lovell grounded out, but it was already 5-0 and I wanted to go home and cry. The Raccoons would go on to score, under their own power even, in the fourth inning (better late than never), when Adame led off with a double and was singled home by Maldonado. Yay, 5-1. Guzman walked Gurney, then Gonzalez, gluttoning up the bases for Robinson, the master of the double play grounder. Down 2-2, he chopped a looper into shallow left-center for a 2-run single, which was miles better, but the inning then died with the bottom of the order, and the Raccoons stranded the tying runs in a 5-3 game.

Guzman issued leadoff walks in the fifth and sixth innings; Watt was ineptly doubled off by Adame, while Gurney was just as ineptly stranded by the next three guys in line. Matt Waters entered in a double switch in the middle of the sixth, then hit a single off Guzman in the seventh. Then he was ineptly doubled off by Watt. At about that point I was on my eighth quarter-gallon of $35 beer, and felt a slight urge to pee, but no relief.

The Raccoons didn’t get Guzman out of the game until the eighth when Maldo singled, advanced on a groundout, and scored on Gonzalez’ single to left with two outs. Robinson grounded out, leaving the tying run aboard, and then Miguel Herrera, who walked twice as many as he struck out and had an ERA of 12.07, came in for another save opportunity, just to mock us. Herrera struck out. Baskins struck out. Waters… oh, Waters…! Waters… grounded out. 5-4 Loggers. Gurney 1-2, 2 BB; Hitchcock 2.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K;

In other news

July 14 – The Blue Sox send OF/1B Mike Harmon (.275, 2 HR, 13 RBI) to the Cyclones for 3B/SS David Reid (.245, 7 HR, 41 RBI), a prospect, and cash.
July 14 – The Loggers trade SP Walt Wright (3-8, 4.42 ERA) to the Warriors for a prospect.
July 16 – The Cyclones appear still on break, getting 1-hit by WAS SP Cory Ellis (5-7, 3.85 ERA) in a 3-0 shutout. CIN 2B/SS Joe Tindle (.252, 1 HR, 22 RBI) has the lone base hit for Cincy, a single in the fourth inning.
July 17 – The Canadiens get INF/CF Nick DeMarco (.271, 3 HR, 28 RBI) from the Thunder in exchange for OF Mike Allen (.242, 4 HR, 19 RBI).
July 18 – RIC 2B/SS Lance Harrison (.340, 14 HR, 42 RBI) decides the Rebels’ game against the Blue Sox with a solo home run; Richmond wins 1-0.
July 19 – After a bout with rotator cuff inflammation, SFB CL John Steuer (0-0, 1.35 ERA, 4 SV) will now miss the rest of the season with shoulder inflammation.
July 19 – DEN LF/CF Sandy Castillo (.328, 10 HR, 61 RBI) might miss a month with a sprained ankle.

FL Player of the Week: DEN INF Ivan Villa (.318, 10 HR, 54 RBI), hitting .611 (11-18) with 1 HR, 3 RBI
CL Player of the Week: SFB C Sean Suggs (.332, 19 HR, 61 RBI), batting .591 (13-22) with 3 HR, 6 RBI

Complaints and stuff

There are no words, once again. There is no fixing this, as usual. They were unspeakably bad, again.

Losing three of four (and five of eight) to the Loggers should automatically disqualify them from postseason discussion, except that the division is the worst in baseball. Every other division has not one, but two teams with better records than the Critters, and it’s usually not close. And don’t you tell me that we technically outscored the Loggers for the series. Runs matter, but wins matter more.

I just… I just don’t know which screw to turn here…

That 5-team homestand will come up next. The Blue Sox are already giddy, getting to travel out here for ONE game in between series in Richmond and at home.

The Coons have expended $124k on international amateurs this year, signing four players in total. I don’t have a great urge to tell you about any of them, except that we signed 16-year-old Dominican Elias Diaz. You might remember former Raccoons catcher Elias (Matias) Tovias (Diaz). The younger Diaz, full name Elias Tobias Diaz Urias, is a nephew of Tovias on his mother’s side. He’s listed as a shortstop, but Pat Degenhardt says he moves more like a catcher. That might run in the family. *

Fun Fact: The Raccoons don’t need their 25th roster spot.

Ask Evan Van Hoy.

Also, if you got a clumsy fat kid with zero baseball talent that wants to be a major leaguer for a day, give us a call.

Meals included.

+++

*I didn’t plan for that, but they’re both from Santo Domingo, and then I couldn’t resist. This is the quality content you are subscribed to.

[Westheim]

Raccoons (50-40) vs. Blue Sox (34-57) – July 20, 2048

This was a makeup game for an earlier rainout; the other two games in the series had been split. The Sox were fifth in runs scored, but bottoms in runs allowed in the Federal League, with a -108 run differential. Not like the Coons could beat such a team… The pitching matchup was Sadaharu Okuda (5-1, 4.99 ERA) for Portland, and Chris Cornelius (2-2, 2.85 ERA), a right-handed swingman, for the Sox, who had left most of their other starting pitchers out East.

NAS: CF Pfeifer – 1B Ale. Ramos – C Santa Cruz – 3B Reid – SS O’Keefe – 2B Malkus – LF Jager – RF Magnussen – P Cornelius
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – CF Herrera – C Gonzalez – P Okuda

Hitting Okuda was hard, literally. Neither the batter nor the pitcher knew where the ball was going to in this start, which turned into a 1-hitter after five innings, but with four walks and six strikeouts escalating his pitch count. It also didn’t help that the Raccoons, who turned two double plays behind him to contain some of those walked base runners, didn’t manage to manufacture any meaningful offense of their own. We had two hits and a walk through five innings, and hadn’t even reached third base yet.

The Raccoons then reached what I would hope was the low point of the season in the seventh inning, when the bases filled up with consecutive errors by Maldonado and Waters, plus a walk to John Jager, all with one out. Okuda remained in for Adam Magnussen, whom he also walked to force in the game’s first, doubly-unearned, run. Cornelius struck out, after which Moises Avila pinch-hit for Mike Pfeifer to get up a righty bat with two outs and the bases packed. Preston Porter was sent in relief, got Avila to 1-2, then gave up a grand slam anyway. Five doubly-unearned runs in the inning, fantastic! (pats Slappy on the thigh) Farewell, old comrade. I’m gonna stab myself with your broomstick…! … While Maud knew ways to prevent that, the Raccoons remained wholly inept and allowed Cornelius to complete a 2-hit shutout. 5-0 Blue Sox.

In fact, NEITHER team had more than two base hits in this abomination of a game.

The Sox were in Portland for about five hours, but that was enough for a W and to send me into a dark corner, shivering.

Raccoons (50-41) vs. Titans (44-49) – July 21-23, 2048

Next in for some free wins were the Titans, who we led 6-3 in the season series. They were ninth in offense and seventh in pitching, and didn’t look quite as useless as in previous years. Of course, as the Loggers taught us all last weekend, it doesn’t matter how useless you are, it’s all about finding someone uselesser.

Projected matchups:
Jason Wheatley (6-4, 3.96 ERA) vs. David Barel (8-5, 2.73 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (3-1, 1.72 ERA) vs. Victor Mondragon (8-6, 2.67 ERA)
Victor Merino (7-8, 3.81 ERA) vs. Emanuel Caceiro (3-4, 3.12 ERA)

Left, right, left. Which was also the order in which I would unload the blunderbuss into my temples if things didn’t improve soon-ish.

Game 1
BOS: 3B Massey – SS C. Jimenez – 1B Haertling – CF T. Lopez – C W. Gardner – 2B Galaz – RF L. Estrada – LF C. Vega – P Barel
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – RF Watt – LF Baskins – C Prow – P Wheatley

Nate Massey opened the series with a single to center, but was stranded by the Bostonians, and the Wheats pitched five shutout innings to begin the game, which hadn’t helped Okuda the day before. The Raccoons had all of two base hits in five innings yet again, but at least one of them was a Maldo homer from the first inning for a 1-0 lead. If Adame hadn’t been caught stealing ahead of the dinger, it would even have counted for two. We finally did get to 2-0 in the seventh – yes, it was a snoozer – when Matt Watt walked, stole second, advanced on a wild pitch by Barel, and scored on Baskins’ sac fly.

And Wheats? He was solid through seven, with four hits and four strikeouts on the ledger, no walks, and no runs. But with lots of left-handed bats up, starting with Leo Estrada, in the eighth and the skinny lead, the Raccoons twitched and went for Mike Lynn, who allowed a single to Carlos Vega with one out, but otherwise sawed off the Titans in the inning. Bottom 8th, pinch-hitter Ruben Gonzalez singled and was run for by Al Martell, who scored after a wild pitch and a Herrera double to left, 3-0. Another run came together with a Maldo single and a Toohey sac fly, which sent the game to Bob Ibold rather than Nelson Moreno in the ninth. Chris Jimenez began the inning with an out to Waters, but Ibold walked Ed Haertling. That didn’t turn into a problem, with a 6-4-3 double play grounder coaxed from Tony Lopez to end the game. 4-0 Raccoons. Maldonado 3-4, HR, RBI; Gonzalez (PH) 1-1; Wheatley 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K, W (7-4);

Game 2
BOS: 3B Massey – C W. Gardner – RF C. Jimenez – CF T. Lopez – 1B Haertling – 2B Galaz – LF C. Vega – SS T. Thompson – P Mondragon
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – 3B Martell – CF Herrera – P Wolinsky

In the early innings on Wednesday, Bryce Toohey was involved on both sides of an RBI double that scored a runner that had walked. He first doubled home the walking Waters in the bottom 1st, then scored on a Chris Robinson double in the bottom 3rd; those were all the runs through three, and Wolinsky nursed a 1-hit shutout, but already on 43 pitches through three innings. He also blew the lead before he got an out in the fourth, allowing a single to Wade Gardner and a huge home run to Chris Jimenez, who hit his tenth blast of the year. Another homer by Tony Lopez gave the Titans the lead right away, 3-2…

Martell walked to begin the bottom 4th, and tried to score from second on Watt’s 2-out single to right, but was thrown out at home plate by Jimenez. There was no defending in the fifth, either, in which Mondragon hit a gapper for a 1-out double in right-center, then scored on Wade Gardner’s 2-out single, 4-2. Wolinsky lingered into the seventh before being removed in a double switch that exited Armando Herrera as well for Kevin Hitchcock – who got out of the inning – and Evan Van Hoy, who had gone almost a week of rotting on the bench without getting into a game, then became the initial spark for a “let’s pretend” rally in the bottom 7th, hitting a single up the middle. Watt also singled, and Adame coyly grounded to short and escaped punishment when Tom Thompson fumbled the grounder, but that in turn made it three on and nobody out. (throws towel) … Matt Waters didn’t look good in the fat spot, until he got dinked by a 2-2 pitch. One run in, Toohey had the tying run on third base now, but grounded poorly on 3-2 for a force out at home… Here, the Titans went to left-hander Tommy Griffith, who tied the game by walking Chris Robinson. Whatever ******* works…! Maldonado batted for a hitless Gonzalez, but was hitless in popping out, and Al Martell grounded out to second base to strand three runners in a four-all game.

Hitchcock and Kuo kept it together in the top 8th, after which Pat Gurney pinch-hit for Kuo in the #8 spot and singled. He then barely got not doubled off when Van Hoy lined out to Haertling at first, but reached third base on Watt’s single off Griffith. Adame fell behind 0-2, then still broke the tie by sending a rocket down the right-center gap. One run scored, two runs scored, and Adame went to third base with an 0-2 triple…! Waters and Toohey then left him on with poor outs… Still, Nelson Moreno got into this game, and saved it without major panic. 6-4 Coons. Watt 3-5; Robinson 2-2, 2 BB, 2B, 2 RBI; Gurney (PH) 1-1; Van Hoy (PH) 1-2;

Game 3
BOS: 3B Massey – C W. Gardner – RF C. Jimenez – CF T. Lopez – 1B Haertling – 2B Galaz – LF C. Vega – SS T. Thompson – P Caceiro
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Toohey – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Merino

His first two times up, Matt Waters hit a pair of homers on Thursday. Neither one was cheap. The first was a solo shot that opened the scoring in the bottom 2nd, while Raccoons started to accumulate on base the inning after, with Adame getting on and caught stealing before Herrera, Maldo, and Toohey all reached base. Then came Waters and uncorked a blast to left – GRAAAAAAAAAAND SLAAAAAAAMMMM!!!!

Victor Merino celebrated by immediately dropping his no-hitter bid and instead allowed two runs on knocks by Gardner and Jimenez, then a 2-out single by Gerardo Galaz, narrowing the lead to 5-2. Things got uglier after that; first Alex Adame homered to left in the bottom 4th, at which point Caceiro seemed to have enough and clearly threw a fastball into Armando Herrera’s shoulder. Herrera civilly opined that he hadn’t done anything to Caceiro and whether he would mind ceasing and desisting from such action, upon which Caceiro made a flicking movement with his glove hand that motivated Herrera to go out and explain it to him in person, by punching Caceiro in the kisser. The benches cleared after that, with both Caceiro and Herrera getting ejected; thankfully nobody noticed Wolinsky biting Tony Lopez in the calf in the fracas. Bubba didn’t make much, and food was expensive…! Matt Watt would replace Herrera, while the Titans went to David Barnes.

Things calmed down after that and the 6-2 lead remained on the board into the seventh. Galaz and Carlos Vega reached base there against Merino, who still got out Thompson, but when right-hander Tom Steffensen came out to pinch-hit with two outs, the Raccoons went to Preston Porter, who lost his guy on balls, but then struck out Massey as the tying run. The Raccoons would not tack on, but Jake Bonnie was taken deep by Galaz in the ninth inning to narrow the score to 6-3. Bob Ibold would then get the final out. 6-3 Raccoons. Herrera 1-2; Waters 2-4, 2 HR, 5 RBI; Gurney 2-4; Merino 6.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, W (8-8) and 1-3;

The commissioner’s office called, Maud? – What did they say about Herrera? – Six games? – (rewatches the hammer into Caceiro’s big mouth a few more times) – Sounds fair.

Raccoons (53-41) vs. Aces (49-45) – July 24-26, 2048

The Aces were third in the South, but already irretrievably behind, 16 games out in late July. Fourth in runs scored, but only ninth in runs allowed, with a +15 run differential (+34), but they *did* hold a 2-1 edge in the season series. The Raccoons had Manny Fernandez on the DL, while the Aces at Victor Fernandez on the DL. Who Fernandez? He had merely 2,112 fewer ABL games under his belt than Manny.

Projected matchups:
Jake Jackson (5-7, 3.91 ERA) vs. Jayden Woods (7-10, 4.60 ERA)
Sadaharu Okuda (5-2, 4.66 ERA) vs. Marty Madera (5-11, 4.97 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (7-4, 3.73 ERA) vs. Pablo Paez (9-4, 3.55 ERA)

We would see their three righty starters, and none of the pair of southpaws.

Game 1
LVA: CF Cramer – C Weese – LF Preble – 1B Witherspoon – RF M. Roberts – SS E. Luna – 2B Landstrom – 3B A. Rodriguez – P J. Woods
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Toohey – 2B Waters – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – 1B Van Hoy – P Jackson

Jackson had nothing, to make it brief. Mike Roberts hit a leadoff jack in the second, and three singles added another run, driven in with two outs by Jayden Woods, of all people. Mike Preble then homered in the third, making for a 3-0 deficit for the Critters, who had the tying run at the plate in the bottom 3rd, but Maldonado popped out and Toohey was called out on strikes, vociferously disagreed, and was told to get lost for the day by the home plate umpire… Robinson replaced him in rightfield.

It didn’t get better from there, with Jackson getting stuck for good in an endless fifth inning, walking two and giving up a single to Preble in between. With Preble at second, Sam Witherspoon at first, and one out, he was yanked from the 4-0 game in favor of Mike Lynn, who ended the inning with groundouts from Roberts and Eddy Luna without surrendering another run. Bottom 5th, Watt and Adame hit two singles, but Maldonado struck out as the Raccoons remained far away from the scoreboard. There wouldn’t be a comeback; Maldonado popped out to strand two more in the seventh, at which point at least Adame had singled home Van Hoy for *any* run on the scoreboard, but that was after Hitchcock had been whipped for three hits and two runs in the top of the inning. It was enough of a garbage game for Nelson Moreno to enter the game in an uncompetitive ninth inning – and also got socked for three hits and two more runs. Al Martell homered in the bottom of the ninth, but that wasn’t gonna overturn a lop-sided score anymore… 8-2 Aces. Watt 3-3, 2 BB; Adame 3-4, RBI; Martell 1-2, HR, RBI;

No suspension for Toohey – not that his bat was something we’d sorely miss at this junction. Nobody was hitting anymore…

Game 2
LVA: 3B A. Rodriguez – 2B Landstrom – C Weese – LF Preble – CF Cramer – SS E. Luna – RF Tabano – 1B Witherspoon – P Madera
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Toohey – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Okuda

Ruben Gonzalez found Waters and Gurney no the corners in the bottom 2nd, hit into a double play, but at least those were the first two outs of the inning and Matt Waters came in to score the middle game’s first run there… Okuda was not allowing a run in the early innings, but threw a stunning 67 pitches to get through three frames. He was basically 3-1 or 2-2 against *everybody*, issued three hits, two walks, and somehow handled a Cramer comebacker to strand the bases loaded in the third inning. The Coons also loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning. First Adame and Maldo reached base, with Toohey hitting a sac fly to make it a 2-0 game. Madera, with two gone, nailed Waters, then got singled off by Pat Gurney to fill ‘em up. With no double play available, Gonzalez grounded out to Luna all his lonesome…

Okuda wasn’t gonna go deep into the game, putting more strain on an already busy bullpen. He threw 90 pitches through five, and would return for the sixth by necessity, with the Aces still shut out. Cramer hit a 1-out triple to right, then for reasons best explained by himself tried to steal home on the first pitch to Luna, only to get slapped out by an alert Gonzalez, who kept the 2-0 score in order. Okuda walked Luna, but got out of the inning against Gary Tabano, completing his day with six shutout innings, although he still pitched a real mess together. Kuo struck out a pair in a 1-2-3 seventh, then was hit for with Martell to begin the bottom 7th. Martell walked, as did Watt. Adame then spanked into a double play and the Raccoons failed to score yet again. A Toohey single and Gurney getting nicked put more runners aboard in the eighth. I didn’t believe in it, but Derek Baskins poked a 2-out, 2-run single to center in the bottom 8th to create distance. It didn’t change the pitching assignment for the eighth; Mike Lynn would have gotten the ball regardless against a lefty-heavy selection of hitters in the ninth, after Moreno had gotten wobbled in a long inning the day before. Lynn struck out two, Witherspoon flew out to Baskins, and the series was even. 4-0 Coons. Gurney 2-3;

Winning week secured, despite playing rather poorly…

Maud, we feel lucky, let’s buy some lottery tickets!

Game 3
LVA: 2B Landstrom – C Weese – LF Preble – 1B Witherspoon – RF M. Roberts – SS E. Luna – CF Garbutt – 3B A. Rodriguez – P Paez
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – LF Baskins – C Prow – P Wheatley

The Aces didn’t score on Wheats with two singles in the second, a leadoff double by their pitcher Paez in the third, or even when Waters fumbled a Roberts grounder, Wheatley balked him onwards, and two sharp grounders went Toohey’s way after that, both converted into outs to end the fourth inning. The Raccoons meanwhile couldn’t even get a hit off Paez by that time, although he had walked a pair the first time through. He walked another pair in the fourth, Toohey and Robinson, then gave up a long drive to right to Baskins that fell between a reaching Roberts and the fence for a 2-out, 2-run triple. Prow was walked intentionally, Wheatley grounded out, and Baskins was stranded. Come the fifth, Watt hit a leadoff single and was doubled off by Adame’s grounder to short, and Maldo hit a single, and if there had been outs left, would have been doubled off by Toohey’s grounder to short. – Yeah, Slappy, I am sounding very repetitive. All those groans and moans…

Wheats was in the same spot as on Tuesday; up by precious little, not getting harmed per se, but also not overpowering. He had been lifted after 81 pitches in seven innings against the Titans, but reached 82 pitches in six innings in this game, but still with a 2-0 shutout. Roberts popped out to begin the seventh, and Luna was sat down on strikes, but Cole Garbutt hit a 2-out single with two strikes on him. Angel Rodriguez ran a full count, and while he flew out easily to right eventually, Wheats reached 100 pitches upon completion of the seventh inning, and would be batted for in the bottom of the inning then. Prow opened with a single, and Gurney singled in Wheatley’s spot. Watt also singled through a seam, and there were three on with nobody out all of a sudden. Oh goodness, more disappointment incoming! Adame hit a sac fly, and that was it. Maldo flew out to center, Toohey grounded out to short, and we didn’t get past 3-0.

That run was pulled back by Josh Landstrom, homering off Hitchcock in the eighth. Kevin Weese also singled off Hitchcock, while Witherspoon singled off his replacement, Kuo, who then rung up Roberts to strand the tying runs after all. The Critters got hits from Gonzalez and Baskins in the bottom 8th, but Prow stranded those. The 3-1 lead thus went to Moreno in the ninth, facing the 6-7-8 batters. Luna popped out to Waters, Garbutt whiffed, but ironically Rodriguez, the first righty hitter to come up, singled. Brent Cramer pinch-hit at that point, but grounded out easily to end the game. 3-1 Raccoons. Watt 2-3, BB; Gonzalez (PH) 1-1; Prow 2-3, BB; Wheatley 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K, W (8-4);

In other news

July 21 – Condors SS Tony Aparicio (.315, 7 HR, 33 RBI) will be on the DL until September due to a forearm strain.
July 22 – The Warriors’ Matt Diskin (.335, 11 HR, 68 RBI) and Manny Liberos (.234, 14 HR, 51 RBI) both have five RBI days in a 16-9 trouncing of the Stars.
July 23 – The Indians acquire 2B Hugo Acosta (.270, 0 HR, 17 RBI) from the Warriors in exchange for SP Casey Pinter (7-8, 4.66 ERA) and a prospect.
July 24 – In a dominant pitching display, ATL SP Brad Santry (5-8, 3.68 ERA) strikes out 15 Loggers while the Knights score just enough for a 2-1 win.
July 24 – Vancouver rakes in 3B Jesus Burgos (.244, 6 HR, 28 RBI) in a trade with the Cyclones, parting with LF/1B/RF Eddie Moreno (.234, 13 HR, 46 RBI). Vancouver also gets a prospect.
July 25 – Bayhawks SP Kevin Nolte (13-4, 2.06 ERA) spins a 2-hit shutout of the Crusaders in a 9-0 win for San Francisco.
July 25 – Falcons righty Chris Jones (8-6, 3.04 ERA) pitches a 3-hit shutout against the Indians, whiffing four in a 7-0 game.

FL Player of the Week: TOP OF Dave Lee (.279, 7 HR, 32 RBI), hitting .545 (12-22) with 3 HR, 3 RBI
CL Player of the Week: VAN 3B/RF/1B Adrian Higareda (.250, 9 HR, 37 RBI), batting .500 (7-14) with 3 HR, 6 RBI

Complaints and stuff

5-2 week, didn’t feel like it. It’s a gooey game right now with the Critters, who outscored the opposition only to the tune of 25-21 this week, so didn’t even score four runs per game. Yes, the rotation was a spot of bother early in the year, but right now it’s the offense. The hitter just can’t get untracked and we could really use an impact bat to kick the whole thing into fourth gear again.

Or third.

That being said, I have absolutely nothing lined up right now…

Bayhawks and Falcons to complete the month and homestand.

Fun Fact: 30 years ago today, Brian Furst pitched his second no-hitter in a 13-0 spanking of the Thunder against the Indians.

There are some quirks about Brian Furst, a right-hander from Canton, Ohio, that spent 12 seasons in the majors for the Condors, Rebels, and Thunder, going 115-151 with a 4.36 ERA in total. For example, while he pitched two no-hitters, he was an All Star only once, and that was prior to either of the no-nos.

Also, of all the pitchers that have thrown multiple no-hitters, Furst’s came closest together, not even 12 months apart:

TIME BETWEEN ABL NO-HITTERS (yy.ddd):
Brian Furst – 0.326
Bryan Hanson – 2.302
Henry Selph – 3.351
Jorge Villalobos – 5.318
Ben Lipsky – 10.033

[Westheim]

Trade

The Raccoons made another roll of the dice with the deadline approaching and traded with the Aces on Monday, a day off for them in this 5-team homestand. The Raccoons sent Sadaharu Okuda (6-2, 4.40 ERA), a free agent after this season, to the Aces for LF/RF Mike Preble (.310, 13 HR, 44 RBI), a switch-hitting corner outfielder with limited defense and speed, but an .885 OPS that would surely play in Portland. Maybe. Hopefully. Please.

To make up the numbers, 1B/LF/RF Evan Van Hoy (2-for-6) was returned to AAA, and the Raccoons brought back Jeremy Baker as permanent fifth starter.

Preble was under contract through 2049, making $2.88M per season. He would be 35 before the year was out, so that was that, and he had a history of run-ins with the media and teammates, but the Raccoons needed runs, and he looked like runs.

Raccoons (55-42) vs. Bayhawks (68-31) – July 28-30, 2048

The thusly up-gunned Raccoons would face the Baybirds for the fourth of five opponents on this endless homestand. The Baybirds led the South by lots, and were almost certainly what would await the wily team that would crawl across the finish line in the North. Weaknesses were hard to find – they led the CL in both runs scored and runs allowed, with a towering +149 run differential. Best rotation, solid bullpen, and they were up 3-0 on the Raccoons this year, too.

The Baybirds had also made a trade on the way in, acquiring righty reliever Jeremy Mayhall (3-3, 3.16 ERA, 1 SV) from the Cyclones for infielder Steve Diaz (.268, 6 HR, 32 RBI).

Projected matchups:
Bubba Wolinsky (3-1, 2.37 ERA) vs. Jesse Bulas (8-4, 3.47 ERA)
Victor Merino (8-8, 3.74 ERA) vs. Chih Ke (10-3, 2.49 ERA)
Jake Jackson (5-8, 4.07 ERA) vs. Rafael Pedraza (3-3, 5.65 ERA)

Only right-handed starters here!

For good news, the Bayhawks had constant Coons terror Ted Del Vecchio on the DL, along with Dan Riley and John Steuer, who was out for the season with his second major breakdown of the year. On the other paw, the Raccoons would be without Armando Herrera for the entire series, the centerfielder still serving his suspension for aggravated assault on the mound.

Game 1
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – C S. Suggs – LF Crum – 2B Quiroz – 1B A. Marquez – RF P. Colon – 3B McCutcheon – P Bulas
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – P Wolinsky

In just one inning, the Raccoons made two outs on the bases; Matt Watt doubled and was thrown out by Pedro Colon attempting three, and then Alex Adame singled and was caught stealing, which was one way to lose to the Bayhawks eventually. Preble hit a single in his first plate appearance for the Critters, but that was the extent of the Coons’ offense the first time through. Wolinsky held the Baybirds to one hit in the first three innings, but also only whiffed Lee McCutcheon, and the defense did some roaming to keep him together. Todd Dau opened the fourth with a sharp single to left, but got doubled up on Sean Suggs’ grounder to short.

Maldo and Toohey, no longer batting behind another, hit singles in the bottom 4th, but that was also not enough for a run. Wolinsky held it together for a 2-hitter through five, and a Matt Watt double in the bottom 5th saw him actually stop at second this time; reason being Wolinsky providing a roadblock ahead of him, and couldn’t go further than third base from first, where he had ended up after bunting badly, forcing out Ruben Gonzalez at second base after the catcher’s leadoff single. With two in scoring position and one out, Adame grounded out to third base, with no way for Wolinsky to advance. Maldo fell to two strikes, but then uncorked one, a huge 3-run homer to right for the first runs in the game!

The Baybirds answered with two *immediately*. McCutcheon singled to begin the sixth, PH Tony Romero walked, and Todd Dau and Sean Suggs both added RBI singles before Wolinsky got out of the inning with a pop from Ken Crum and a K on Sergio Quiroz. A leadoff single by Alex Marquez put the tying run on base in the seventh, and when righty hitter John Hill pinch-hit for Colon, the Raccoons went to Bob Ibold. Hill singled anyway, Ibold would walk PH Alex Moreno in the #9 hole, and the Bayhawks tied the game on John Fink’s sac fly to center before Dau struck out to strand two runs. Lynn and Porter then kept it together in the eighth, but Porter was taken deep by Andy Montes in the ninth to put the Baybirds up 4-3. Porter also put Fink and Suggs on the corners, but Crum flew out to end the inning. New Baybirds possession Jeremy Mayhall then got the save opportunity; Toohey grounded out to begin the bottom 9th, but Waters singled and Robinson walked. Al Martell pinch-hit for Ruben Gonzalez to get a) a lefty bat in there, and b) stay out of the double play. He whacked a ball through the left side that ran up the line a considerable distance for a double…! Waters scored to tie the game, and Robinson, the winning run, was held at third base. Derek Baskins then pinch-hit for Porter with a sac fly all that was needed. The Bayhawks reasoned that a double play was all THEY needed and walked him with intent, bringing up Watt with three on and one out. That sac fly thing was still true though – and when Watt flew out to John Fink in center, the ball was deep enough that Fink never threw home at all. Robinson scored – it was a walkoff! 5-4 Raccoons! Watt 2-3, BB, 2 2B, RBI; Maldonado 2-4, HR, 3 RBI; Waters 2-4; Martell (PH) 1-1, 2B, RBI;

A win!

Game 2
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – C S. Suggs – LF Crum – 2B Quiroz – 1B A. Marquez – RF P. Colon – 3B McCutcheon – P Ke
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 1B Toohey – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – P Merino

Matt Watt had ended the Tuesday game with a walkoff sac fly, but remember how he began it with a double and getting thrown out at third base for a denied triple? The same ******* thing happened on Wednesday, except that this time Fink did the outfield assist honors on him…! I immediately told Maud to call down to the dugout that somebody may hit Watt over the head with a rolled-up newspaper, or a bat for all I cared…

Things went Souther soon. McCutcheon opened the third with a single, after which both Ke and Fink hit poor bunts / grounders to get the lead runner forced out each time. The Bayhawks still opened the scoring with an RBI double to left by Dau and an RBI single to center from Suggs. To pile on, Merino had landed awkwardly on the final pitch to Suggs, and announced himself to be knocked up. He came out of the game with a sprained ankle, and the 2-0 deficit went to Kevin Hitchcock, who exited the damn inning with a fly to right by Ken Crum. The Coons took the lead though; after not hitting much at all the first time through, they got Adame on with a leadoff double in the fourth. Maldo and Toohey whiffed around a walk drawn by Preble, and with two outs Matt Waters cranked a homer down the rightfield line, his 17th of the year, to go up 3-2…!

Now, the lead didn’t *last*… Hitchcock allowed a 1-out single to Crum in the sixth, who stole a base and ended up on third on Sergio Quiroz’ groundout. After three innings, and with left-handers up, Hitchcock was lifted for Joy-shan Kuo, who nevertheless blew the lead with a single served to center. By pitching a clean seventh, Kuo was staked to a 4-3 lead when Bryce Toohey romped a leadoff jack off Ke after the seventh-inning stretch. Ibold walked Dau to begin the eighth, but him and Bonnie kept the runner on base with a grounder and two pops between them. Quiroz then served up a free runner in the bottom 8th, throwing away Watt’s leadoff grounder that the Coons should score for some insurance, Moreno having to face left-handers in the ninth. Adame popped out, Maldo grounded out, Preble did the same, and Watt was stranded at third base… Nelson Moreno then promptly walked leadoff man and pinch-hitter John Hill, but got a grounder from Colon. PH Andy Montes softly lined out to Adame, but with two outs, ex-Coon Tony Romero pinch-hit again and sent a drive to deep center – but Watt remained on top of hit and made the catch near the warning track…! 4-3 Raccoons! Gonzalez 1-2, BB, 2B;

Merino was day-to-day with the sprained ankle, and may or may not miss a start going forwards. There was no convenient off day available to get around him anymore, though.

Game 3
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – C S. Suggs – LF Crum – 2B Quiroz – 1B A. Marquez – RF P. Colon – 3B McCutcheon – P Pedraza
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Jackson

Jackson arrived for the Thursday game and had absolutely nothing. The Bayhawks stranded two in the first and two more in the second, but went up 1-0 there on three singles. Jackson kept leaking runners. San Francisco tacked on two in the fourth, assisted by a Waters error, on a walk and two more singles, and the Raccoons had yet to respond with much of anything. They scored a run in the bottom 4th, though. Preble doubled to center, advanced on a wild pitch, and scored on Waters’ groundout, 3-1. Surprisingly, the Bayhawks then let go of Jackson, who pitched three mostly unchallenged shutout innings after the token run scored by the Critters, and thus got all the way to the stretch to give the pen a little break. He remained on the hook, however, also courtesy of Pat Gurney, who hit into a double play after Waters drew a 1-out walk in the bottom 7th. Bottom 8th, Pedraza, who had walked no one through six, issued 2-out walks to Robinson and Watt. While the Baybirds pen scurried, Adame singled home one run, but Maldo grounded out on the first pitch to let Pedraza escape. Bonnie held the Birds close in the ninth, after which the new acquisitions opened the bottom 9th, Mayhall facing Preble with the tying run at the plate. Preble struck out, Waters grounded out, and Gurney flew out to left to end the game in just 11 more pitches. 3-2 Bayhawks.

This series concluded on July 30. Any last-minute deals…?

Raccoons (57-43) vs. Falcons (49-53) – July 31-August 2, 2048

A juicy 20 games out, the Falcons were already playing out the string. They were seventh in runs scored, but tenth in runs allowed, with a -30 run differential. They were almost at the bottom of the league in power with just 40 homers for the entire team, and just two players (Jordan Marroguin, Raul Sevilla) with more than four individually, but they could steal it, sitting on 94 swept bags. The season series was even at three.

Projected matchups:
Jeremy Baker (6-3, 3.44 ERA) vs. Hiroyuki Takagi (9-5, 3.31 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (8-4, 3.52 ERA) vs. Chris Jones (8-6, 3.04 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (3-1, 2.66 ERA) vs. Kurt Olson (3-4, 3.15 ERA)

It very much looked like a leftyless week, with three more right-handers lined up for the Falcons here.

Game 1
CHA: C Hoffmann – LF Allegood – CF M. Martinez – 1B Marroquin – RF de Luna – 3B Thibault – 2B Turley – SS Marroguin – P Takagi
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – RF Robinson – C Prow – P Baker

Jeremy Baker had made 29 starts (32 appearances) since late ’46 as the odd fill-in here and there, and now made the first start in which we’d pretend that he belonged. He struck out three in the first inning, but not without walking Miguel Martinez and allowing a run on Omar Marroquin’s double, and no, I wouldn’t get used to Marroquin and Marroguin either… Alex Adame’s homer to open the bottom 1st tied the game right away, but another walk to Bobby Thibault and another RBI double by Jordan Marroguin (…) gave the Falcons a new lead as early as the second inning. From there, the game settled into something like a “maybe later”, with no team mounting much offense against the other team’s guy until Marroquin (…!) woke everybody up with a loud solo homer in the sixth, extending Charlotte’s lead to 3-1.

Baker pitched seven alright innings on 91 pitches before getting hit for with Watt in the bottom 7th. Watt grounded out for the second out of the inning, after which righty Kyle Conner had Adame come on base on a single, then walked Herrera. Maldo was at that point losing his battle with the .300 mark and grounded out to strand the tying runs. Miguel Martinez singled off Porter in the eighth, stole a base, but was stranded eventually. Cooner went 1-2-3 with two strikeouts on the Coons’ 4-5-6 batters, but long-ago Critter Antonio Prieto, who got the save opportunity in the ninth, gave up a leadoff homer to Chris Robinson, reducing the deficit to 3-2. Martell and Gurney would bat for the battery, but made outs, and it took Adame and a 2-out walk to get the tying run on base. Gonzalez batted for Herrera, hoping for a walkoff homer, but he grounded out to Thibault to end the game in a decidedly unhappier way. 3-2 Falcons. Adame 3-4, BB, HR, RBI; Baker 7.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, L (6-4);

Interlude: Trade

Whiskers from the trade deadline on Friday night, the Raccoons swung another trade for more offense, maybe. We sent AAA 1B Alex Ramos, a scouting discovery from Panama that was now 24 and pretty unimpressive in St. Pete, to the Scorpions for 1B/C Jeff Wilson (.333, 1 HR, 19 RBI), who had been on the 2042 Critters for a half-season, and would replace the entirely lackluster Kevin Prow (.243, 1 HR, 3 RBI) on the roster, with Prow optioned to AAA.

Raccoons (57-43) vs. Falcons (49-53) – July 31-August 2, 2048

Game 2
CHA: 2B M. Martinez – C M. Castillo – 1B Sevilla – RF Allegood – LF Marroguin – 3B Thibault – SS E. Sandoval – CF Caballero – P C. Jones
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – CF Herrera – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – P Wheatley

Wheats was a bit out of shape, whiffing nobody until he arrived at Chris Jones the first time through, and by then had walked a pair, and while none of the walks came around to score, Bobby Thibault did after a triple in the second and a productive groundout from Esteban Sandoval. Chris Jones then ran full counts to the first three batters in the bottom 2nd, all of whom reached, with Toohey and Robinson drawing walks while Herrera chipped a single in between. That loaded the bases with nobody out for Ruben Gonzalez, who ticked the first pitch he got to center for an RBI single to tie the game at one. Wheats had a thick chance to give himself a lead, and indeed improved on his mark of batting 2-for-44 with 1 RBI this year, clipping a 2-run single to center…! He got forced out on Watt’s grounder and Adame’s fly to center was caught by Caballero and too shallow for Gonzalez to try, but Maldo came through with a clean RBI single to left with two outs, 4-1. Waters grounded out to end the inning.

Wheats remained out of shape though, allowing a leadoff single to Martinez in the third. He threw a wild pitch, but somehow Martinez got stranded at third base as three Falcons made outs in order, including Raul Sevilla lining out to Herrera in center. Bottom 3rd then, and the 4-5-6 reached base to begin the inning *again*, with a Toohey single, Herrera double, and another walk to Robinson. Gonzalez hit a sac fly, but Wheatley clonked a double play grounder to kill the inning, then gave up a 2-run bomb to Thibault in the top 4th, 5-3, and Marroguin doubled home Mike Allegood the inning after, 5-4. Wheatley pitched so shoddily, he was not back for the sixth after 81 pitches through five, with Bob Ibold doing that inning. Robinson got on against Josh Swindell to begin the bottom 6th, advanced on Gonzalez’ groundout, and then Preble batted for Ibold. Preble had no RBI with the Coons yet, and didn’t get one here, either, getting walked intentionally. Matt Watt clipped a long single to left though, with Robinson coming around to score from second base, extending the lead to 6-4. And then Adame found a double play…

Lynn struck out the side in the top 7th, after which Swindell offered a leadoff walk to Maldo in a full count. Maldo twitched to steal, which triggered a balk as Swindell twitched as well, and when Waters singled, Raccoons were on the corners with nobody out. The Coons croaked; Toohey grounded out poorly, and Herrera and Gurney, hitting for Lynn in the #7 hole, both popped out. Kuo ached through an array of switch-hitters in the eighth, and it was Moreno for the ninth after a 1-2-3 aw-shucks in the bottom 8th for the Coons. Moreno struck out Marroquin, then nicked Martinez, who gained a base on a passed ball charged to Gonzalez, then scored on Raul Sevilla’s 2-out single. Allegood’s grounder to Waters ended the game, though… 6-5 Raccoons. Maldonado 2-3, BB, RBI; Herrera 2-4, 2B; Robinson 1-2, 2 BB;

Can we do anything but 1-run games?

Game 3
CHA: LF Caballero – 2B E. Sandoval – CF M. Martinez – RF de Luna – 3B Thibault – C Hoffmann – 1B Allegood – SS Marroguin – P K. Olson
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 1B Gurney – CF Herrera – 2B Martell – C Wilson – P Wolinsky

A pair of 2-out walks and a Thibault single put the Falcons up 1-0 in the first before Steve Hoffmann grounded out to end the inning. Again, the Raccoons countered with a homer, Mike Preble getting his first RBI with a leadoff jack in the bottom 2nd. Jeff Wilson joined in, not with a homer, but with a 2-out RBI single to get home Gurney, who had doubled, to go up 2-1. Wolinsky singled after that, but Watt flew out to strand a pair.

That seemed to be hit for Coons offense, but the Falcons weren’t done with Wolinsky. It took them a few inning, but Allegood opened the fifth with a triple to right, scored on Marroguin’s (bangs fists on desk) single, and Marroguin reached third base on a stolen base and Wilson’s throwing error and brought his bum across with the go-ahead run on a Caballero groundout. Maldo tied the game again with a 2-out solo homer to left, with Wolinsky staying off the hook, squeezing out seven innings on 101 pitches, allowing three runs on just four hits. A win would not be in the books for him; Watt hit a 2-out single in the bottom 7th, stole second, but was stranded when Adame grounded out. And while Wolinsky took a no-decision with three runs on four hits, the Coons pen took an L in the eighth, with three runs on NO hits. Preston Porter failed his way to the decision, walking PH Raul Sevilla and Martinez for one out. Lynn took over, got an out, but also nailed Thibault and walked in a run against Hoffmann. Hitchcock was next, and ended the inning with a groundout by Robby Gomez… AFTER walking in not one, but TWO runs against Marroquin and Marroguin. – Maud, they need to get outta town, and quick. Or I need to go outta town, and quick. – What do you say, we both get to go outta town after this game? – Make it so, boys!

Preble hit a solo homer with one gone in the bottom 8th, 6-4, and Swindell went on to walk Herrera and give up a 2-out single to Martell. The tying runs aboard, and a new right-hander into the game in Rodger Arrendell, the Raccoons went to Toohey to bat for Wilson, but he grounded out. Hitchcock allowed two singles in the top 9th, but escaped without creating an even bigger mess, with Prieto taking over for the bottom 9th. Derek Baskins pinch-hit in the #9 hole to begin the inning, but popped out. Watt singled to right, bringing the tying run to the plate. Adame singled to center, putting it on base, and with the big guns up! And the first big gun, Maldo, found Sandoval with a sharp grounder for a double play… 6-4 Falcons. Watt 2-5; Adame 2-5, 2B; Preble 2-4, 2 HR, 2 RBI; Wilson 1-2, BB, RBI; Wolinsky 7.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K and 1-2;

In other news

July 27 – The Canadiens acquire SP Ayden Cobb (1-7, 3.96 ERA) from the Blue Sox, who get paid off with four prospects, none of them ranked.
July 28 – The Titans pick up SP Tony Ruiz (5-7, 3.03 ERA) from the Loggers, who receive INF/LF Jason Kohr (.262, 0 HR, 6 RBI).
July 29 – The Stars acquire SP Noe Candeloro (8-8, 2.45 ERA) from Los Angeles, parting with two prospects. The package includes #28 prospect OF John Gough.
July 29 – The Thunder try to shore up their bullpen by adding Topeka’s CL Brian Grohoski (2-1, 2.85 ERA, 14 SV) for two prospects.
July 30 – 1B Sterling Henderson (.281, 6 HR, 45 RBI) is traded from the Condors to the Capitals for MR Tony Granado (0-0, 3.86 ERA) and a prospect.
August 1 – SAC 3B Mike Crenshaw (.303, 12 HR, 46 RBI) is expected to miss all of August with a broken wrist.

FL Player of the Week: PIT 3B/SS/RF Ed Soberanes (.338, 16 HR, 71 RBI), swatting .409 (9-22) with 2 HR, 8 RBI
CL Player of the Week: ATL OF Jon Alade (.292, 7 HR, 42 RBI), poking .480 (12-25) with 1 HR, 3 RBI

FL Hitter of the Month: PIT 3B/SS/RF Ed Soberanes (.334, 15 HR, 67 RBI), hitting .353 with 5 HR, 18 RBI
CL Hitter of the Month: SFB C Sean Suggs (.330, 20 HR, 66 RBI), whacking .398 with 7 HR, 18 RBI
FL Pitcher of the Month: DAL SP Dave Hils (13-5, 2.82 ERA), going 5-0 with a 1.76 ERA and 24 K
CL Pitcher of the Month: IND SP Brian Jackson (9-8, 3.60 ERA), hurling for a 5-1 mark with 3.19 ERA, 26 K
FL Rookie of the Month: DAL INF/CF Mark Haney (.311, 2 HR, 25 RBI), hitting .289 with 2 HR, 16 RBI
CL Rookie of the Month: TIJ SS/2B Chris Navarro (.292, 0 HR, 38 RBI), batting .342 with 7 RBI

Complaints and stuff

Grinder of a week. Five 1-run games, then the utter collapse on Sunday, with three eighth-inning runs for the Falcons without a single measly base hit. That one got me most of all, I think. So far, getting Mike Preble has not amounted to much as he batted 4-for-20 in his first week here, and the two homers came in the sad loss on Sunday.

Pat Degenhardt gave me another player development report this week, and it started right away with some harsh words about Jesus Maldonado’s speed and defense, after which I teared up a bit and threw the report away. Mid-term (he’s under contract for another FOUR years) we’ll have to make room for him at first base, it seems, since he’ll be impossible to hide at the hot corner.

Jeff Wilson, age 35, is now in the Coons’ organization for the third time; in addition to two probably brief major league stints, we also selected him as #33 pick in the 2034 draft.

We will now follow the 2-week homestand with a 2-week road trip; those are always such a thrill. All games east of the hills, with a big loop through Atlanta, New York, Milwaukee, and Dallas coming up – and no off days until we come home from Texas.

I am not confident… the struggle might begin as early as Monday with Merino still questionable for the start.

Fun Fact: Jeff Wilson was traded from the Raccoons to the Scorpions and back, 11 years apart, and was traded for Troy Greenway, twice.

The first time came in 2037, when the Raccoons were also eager for more offense in July, and threw a mixed bag of prospects including Lazaro Cavazos, Melvin Lucero, Chris Wise, and Wilson, at Sacramento for Troy Greenway, resulting in a pennant, but no cigar.

Wilson was then traded again for Troy Greenway, this time packaged with Art McGreer, at the 2043 deadline, then going from the Blue Sox to the Buffos.

Greenway, age 37, by the way, is also still around, but made it into only five games with the Rebels this year, and has spent most of his time being in AAA and sore from top to bottom.

[Westheim]

Raccoons (58-45) @ Knights (48-53) – August 3-5, 2048

A long and relentless road trip began in Atlanta, where the Knights were bottoms in the CL South. They were ninth in runs scored and fifth in runs allowed with a +7 run differential (Critters: +33). They were neither hitting or power nor possessed great speed. We were up 4-2 this year on them.

Projected matchups:
Victor Merino (8-8, 3.81 ERA) vs. Brad Santry (5-9, 3.67 ERA)
Jake Jackson (5-9, 3.99 ERA) vs. Sal Chavez (4-5, 4.93 ERA)
Jeremy Baker (6-4, 3.47 ERA) vs. Brian Buttress (11-7, 3.24 ERA)

Barring any changes here, Buttress would be the first left-handed starter to oppose the Raccoons since Emanuel Caceiro of the Titans did on July 23 – a string of 11 consecutive right-handers.

Game 1
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – LF Toohey – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – P Merino
ATL: 1B van der Zanden – 3B Venegas – CF Alade – LF Hester – RF Marz – 2B S. Davison – C Toki – SS Ramires – P Santry

Adame reached with a single to begin the game, but was caught stealing. Maldo shrugged and hit his 15th homer of the year anyway, a ticket to right-center that gave Merino a 1-0 lead before he went out there on a still slightly balky ankle. Injury struck by the second inning – but it was Santry that left the game in the company of the Knights’ trainer, with 39-year-old Seth Green, twice a Raccoons, briefly, taking over.

Maldo doubled in the fourth inning against Green, then went to third on Matt Waters’ single. Toohey whiffed for two outs, and Gurney ran a full count, then also struck out – but Manichiro Toki, who had already thrown out two base stealers (Herrera getting nipped to end the top 3rd), and held the Knights’ only hit off Merino, lost the ball, and the uncaught third strike rolled away far enough for Gurney to reach first base and Maldo to score. Ruben Gonzalez then grounded out to end the inning. Merino then exploded at once; the Knights’ bottom 4th began with an Anton Venegas single, after which Merino walked Jon Alade and Billy Hester to fill the bags. John Marz tied the game with a loud double to left, after which the Knights choked; Scott Davison and Toki hit comebackers that kept the two runners in scoring position pinned, Antonio Ramires was cautiously walked, David Gonzales batted for Green, but grounded out to strand a full set.

By the top 5th, Maldo was a triple short of the cycle, hitting a 2-out single following on Herrera’s single off Kyle DuPlessis. No runs came of it, Jon Alade handling a fly to center from Mike Preble. A leadoff triple by Arnout van der Zanden and Venegas’ sac fly then gave the Knights the lead in the bottom 5th, 3-2. That was still the score when Merino was hit for with Matt Watt to begin the top 7th. Watt didn’t get on, but Adame and Herrera did, and Maldo singled both of them home to flip the score around, 4-3…! The Knights elected to not pitch to Preble, who was put on intentionally after Maldo went to second on Alade’s throw home, then got bombed by Matt Waters, #18 to left-center, and a 7-3 lead. Maldo got another cycle chance in the eighth with Chris Robinson and Armando Herrera on base and two outs, facing righty Bobby Klopotek, but ended up having to settle for ball four in the dirt with a full count. Nobody scored, Mike Preble popping out to strand a full set of runners. Waters cranked another homer off Klopotek to tack on a run, which looked like plenty until Bob Ibold, who had cleaned up behind Joy-shan Kuo in the bottom 8th, got to two outs in the ninth, and then gave up three straight singles to Ricardo Bejarano, van der Zanden, and Venegas, bringing out Nelson Moreno in what was suddenly a save opportunity. Jon Alade grounded out to Waters to end the game before it could get ugly. 8-3 Raccoons. Adame 2-5; Herrera 4-5; Maldonado 4-4, BB, HR, 2B, 3 RBI; Waters 3-5, 2 HR, 4 RBI; Robinson (PH) 1-2;

Game 2
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 2B Waters – LF Preble – 1B Gurney – RF Robinson – 3B Martell – C Gonzalez – P Jackson
ATL: 3B Venegas – CF Alade – LF Hester – C Cass – 1B van der Zanden – RF Marz – SS Ramires – 2B S. Davison – P S. Chavez

The Knights tended to hit Jackson hard the first time through, but somehow were retired in order by the defense until Sal Chavez hit a 2-out double in the bottom 3rd, because isn’t that how it always goes? Venegas flew out easily to Watt though, keeping the Raccoons up 1-0, the run coming in the second inning when Preble singled, was balked to second, and scored on Gurney’s wallbanger double in left-center. That lead didn’t stand up forever; the Knights would tie the game in the fifth with singles by van der Zanden and Ramires, then a Davison sac fly to Robinson in right. Alade then homered to left the inning after that, putting Atlanta up 2-1. The Raccoons appeared to counter with two singles of their own in the seventh, Robinson and Martell with one out, but Robinson strayed off the bag too far and was doubled up when Gonzalez lined out to Davison, ending the inning.

Jackson, who had lost three straight starts, got through seven innings on five hits and two runs, but that appeared enough to do his head in once more. Herrera pinch-hit for him to open the eighth, singled, and then was doubled off by Watt in a frustrating development of no offense. Bottom 8th, Bejarano – a former Coons minor leaguer – opened with a single off Preston Porter. He was forced out by Venegas, but Alade whacked another homer to tack on two runs, and the Raccoons were done. 4-1 Knights. Robinson 1-2, BB; Jackson 7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, L (5-10) and 1-1;

By Wednesday the Knights put Santry on the DL with elbow tendinitis, so that was what had bothered him after only two innings on Monday.

Meanwhile, all the losing was bothering me…

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – RF Robinson – C Wilson – P Baker
ATL: 1B van der Zanden – 3B Venegas – CF Alade – LF Hester – C Cass – RF Marz – SS Ramires – 2B S. Davison – P Buttress

Scott Davison and Billy Hester both hit 2-out RBI triples in the second and third innings, respectively, but were then each time stranded by the next batter, which was at least a consolation prize, I guess, while the Raccoons did precious little the first time through, amounting to a Herrera double and that was that. After a brief rain delay in the top of the fourth, the Raccoons would make up the deficit by ways of the power department, though. Preble hit a solo homer to left in the fourth, and Jeff Wilson did the same in the fifth, tying the game. Both teams were on four hits and two runs apiece through five.

The Raccoons then got Adame and Herrera to the corners with a walk and a single to begin the top 6th. Maldo didn’t cash in, grounding out to Venegas, who looked back Herrera, but lost the double play in turn, with Herrera moving up to second base. Preble singled to center, just in front of Alade, which grabbed the lead as RBI single, 3-2. Matt Waters then continued to have his tail on fire, mashing a 3-run homer to left for his 20th of the season, which doubled the output to 6-2…!

Baker went six before bumping into the 100 pitches mark, which brought about a pinch-hitter when his spot led off the seventh. Watt grounded out in the spot in what was a 1-2-3 inning for Buttress, who was then hit for himself to begin his team’s half of the seventh. Watt remained in over Robinson, with made Hitchcock and Lynn pitch out of the #7 hole to clear the bottom 7th. That spot came up with Maldo, Waters, and Toohey aboard against Nick Jones and one out in the top 8th, with Al Martell pinch-hitting and popping out. Wilson came through, however, dropping in a 2-out, 2-run single that oughta put the game away now, even though Preston Porter got taken deep again by John Marz in the bottom 8th; this was a solo homer. But then it was Jake Bonnie to set up another save opportunity in a bottom 9th that began with a 5-run lead. He nicked Fernando Garcia, walked Venegas, and allowed an RBI single to Alade. The next batter was the lefty-hitting Hester, whom Bonnie struck out for the second out, but then yielded again for Nelson Moreno, who grabbed another save by pitching to only one batter, getting a groundout from Tyler Cass. 8-4 Raccoons. Baskins (PH) 1-1; Herrera 2-5, 2B; Preble 2-5, HR, 2 RBI; Wilson 2-4, HR, 3 RBI;

Raccoons (60-46) @ Crusaders (47-61) – August 6-9, 2048

On to New York, where the Crusaders needed to be dealt with. They were up 5-2 in the season series despite not hitting, not scoring, and hardly pitching. Somehow the Raccoons couldn’t deal with that, and now would try to not not-deal with that for a four-game weekend. Bottoms in runs scored and eighth in runs allowed, the Crusaders already had a -103 run differential piled up.

Projected matchups:
Jason Wheatley (9-4, 3.66 ERA) vs. Mike Zeigler (11-5, 3.35 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (3-1, 2.82 ERA) vs. Ryan Fentress (2-3, 4.60 ERA)
Victor Merino (9-8, 3.85 ERA) vs. Taylor Stabile (0-1, 7.94 ERA)
Jake Jackson (5-10, 3.91 ERA) vs. Jim White (8-10, 3.38 ERA)

Zeigler for back-to-back southpaws would be followed by three right-handers, including two injury replacements for Tony Negrete and Carlos Malla, who were stowed away on the DL along with infielder Bob Nelson.

Game 1
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Toohey – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – P Wheatley
NYC: 3B Critzer – RF Garris – SS Gates – C O. Ramirez – 1B D. Hernandez – CF Rogers – LF Burch – 2B Rico – P Zeigler

The New Yorkers got three hits and a walk off Wheatley the first time through, and a run when Wheats threw a wild pitch with Kevin Burch and Danny Rico in scoring position, two outs, and the pitcher Zeigler at the plate… So that was a setback that annoyed me, and it didn’t get much better after that. Brad Critzer left with an injury in the top 3rd, getting replaced by Tom Labedz, who drew a leadoff walk in the bottom 3rd. After Josh Garris struck out, back-to-back RBI doubles by Prince Gates and Omar Ramirez extended the New York lead to 3-0. Dave Hernandez flew out to Toohey, Phil Rogers popped out to end the inning.

So Wheats struggled getting outs, and the rest of the team struggled getting on. An Adame double and an infield single by Maldonado did set up runners on the corners and brought the tying run to the plate with one out in the top 6th, finally, and one pitch later we were tied indeed, Preble cranking a lazy breaking ball over the fence in left to get us all even at three. Wheats went into the seventh inning, where he gave up a leadoff double to Zeigler, of all people, and while I groaned and was looking for a red pen to mark an L in my pocket schedule, Wheats struck out PH Angel Lara, got a pop from Garris, and a groundout from Gates to strand the go-ahead run. Then the bullpen gave it away in the eighth instead. Omar Ramirez singled off Kuo, Hitchcock got taken deep by Dave Hernandez, and that was that. 5-3 Crusaders. Adame 2-4, 2B; Maldonado 2-4, 2B;

New York is the new Boston, huh?

Game 2
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – SS Martell – P Wolinsky
NYC: LF Garris – 3B Critzer – SS Gates – 1B D. Hernandez – RF Rogers – CF Burch – C A. Lara – 2B Rico – P Fentress

Another day in New York, another early deficit. Kevin Burch drove in a pair batting with three on and two outs after Wolinsky had allowed a leadoff single to Garris and had walked a pair after that. Lara grounded out to Martell to end the inning, but Martell pulled a run back with an RBI single in the top 2nd, finding Gurney (single) and Gonzalez (walk) aboard with one out. Wolinsky whiffed, and Watt, in a deepening slump, grounded out to strand the remaining runners. Wolinsky remained wildly adrift, walking three in total in the first three innings and whiffing nobody, but actually got off the hook in the fourth, helped out by defense, Chris Robinson (single), and Gonzalez (RBI double to left). Fentress then rung up the next three in order to keep it at least tied at two.

Top 6th, three on, no outs. Robinson singled and stole second, after which Fentress filled the bags with walks. He remained in to face Wolinsky, who also remained in to face the melting – hopefully – Fentress. He got a sac fly to Burch in center, giving himself the 3-2 lead that way. Fentress also faced the slumping Watt, gave up a soft, bases-restacking single, and then was yanked for righty Ryan Dow. Herrera struck out, but Maldo eked out a bases-loaded walk for an extra run. Matt Waters did him one better or three, drive to right-center, high, deep – GRAAAAAAAAND SLAAAAAAAAAMMMM!!!

Bubba went six-and-a-third, leaving with an unearned runner on base due to a Robinson error. In fact, they went out together in a double switch that brought in Ibold and Baskins. Ibold got out of the inning, then loaded the bags with two hits and a walk in the bottom 8th. Lynn inherited PH Tom Labedz in the #9 hole and three on and one out, got a soft fly to Herrera that kept the runners pinned, and then whiffed up Garris to wiggle out of it. Nobody reached against Bonnie in the ninth. 8-2 Critters. Waters 2-3, 2 BB, HR, 4 RBI; Robinson 2-3, BB;

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Merino
NYC: CF E. Baker – 3B Critzer – SS Gates – 1B D. Hernandez – C O. Ramirez – RF Rogers – LF Garris – 2B Rico – P Stabile

Adame singled, stole second, then starved out there with three strikeouts to the 2-3-4 batters in the top 1st. By contrast, the Crusaders slapped four straight 2-out singles through every conceivable hole on the infield in the bottom 1st, with RBI’s for Omar Ramirez and Phil Rogers. Adame tried again, singling and stealing in the top 3rd, and this time Herrera also hit a 1-out single, putting them on the corners. Maldo grounded to short, but Herrera clobbered into Danny Rico to break up the double play… and Rico, too. The Crusaders had to go to 24-year-old sophomore Ricardo Martinez as replacement. Herrera’s bonebreaker move scored a run, but that was all the Coons got, Preble grounding out to short, too. Now, New York was the group that brought out the pitcher with a 7+ ERA (albeit on only 11.1 innings), but Merino was the one that kept getting dinked. While the score remained 2-1 through five, the Crusaders had eight base knocks off him through five. The Coons only got four hits off Stabile; three were already mentioned, and the other was a Merino single that led nowhere.

Top 6th, Preble hit a 2-out single to right before Stabile walked the bags full with Waters and Toohey. Ruben Gonzalez fell to 0-2 before hitting a grounder to left, and somehow the Gold Glover Critzer missed it…! Score-flipping, 2-out, 2-run single! The explosion continued: Derek Baskins zinged a gapper for an RBI double, and Merino drove in two more with another single. Those were his first RBI’s on the year (!), and they also chased Stabile, who had been stable through five, but not through six. Ben Powers rung up Adame to end the 5-run attack. Merino gave the two runs he tacked on with the stick right back with his paw, allowing hits to Phil Rogers and Josh Garris, a sac fly to the injury replacement Martinez, and then balked Garris across home plate, too, making it 6-4 through six… It got worse, too. Preston Porter was flogged for three singles and a run, getting only one out before being yoinked for Lynn in the seventh. Lynn popped out Ramirez, but walked Rogers… and Garris, too, tying the game with the bases-loaded free pass. Then Martinez tore a hole into the tie with a bases-clearing double into the leftfield corner. Say, Pat Degenhardt, I thought the Crusaders are bottoms in offense?? – Not anymore? – I see why!

Bob Ibold got romped for another two runs in the bottom 8th, one being unearned after Critzer reached on an uncaught third strike. Adame opened the top 9th with a double off ex-Critter Aaron Curl, but we were now down by five and it would take some more to get me excited. Herrera struck out, Maldo grounded out, and “more” only occurred with Preble, who homered to left to cut the gap to three. Waters then grounded out to end the game anyway. 11-8 Crusaders. Adame 3-5, 2B; Herrera 2-5; Preble 3-5, HR, 2 RBI;

That game … sucked. Scoring eight oughta be enough, especially against the team last in runs scored!

Yes, Pat, not anymore.

Game 4
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 2B Waters – LF Preble – 1B Gurney – RF Robinson – 3B Martell – C Wilson – P Jackson
NYC: 3B Critzer – RF Garris – SS Gates – C O. Ramirez – 1B D. Hernandez – CF Rogers – LF C. Walker – 2B R. Martinez – P J. White

Jackson was a complete mess again; the game began with a hard fly out by Critzer, then a Garris homer. Back-to-back doubles followed, and then he got the first pep talk by the pitching coach. Phil Rogers still singled home another run with two outs, and the Coons were in another 3-0 hole. The Raccoons answered with straight soft singles by their 6-7-8 batters in the top 2nd, loading the bases for … Jackson, batting .108 with one RBI. A single past a diving Martinez, a shortstop by trade that had hardly ever played on that side of the diamond, got him to .132 with two RBI! And then Adame struck out, Herrera grounded to short, and the inning ended in a real hurry…

The Coons scratched another run on a Robinson groundout in the top 3rd after Preble had reached third base on hits by him (single) and Gurney (double). Martell flew out to Rogers to keep the tying run in scoring position, and Omar Ramirez negated the run with a homer to right in the bottom 3rd, 4-2. Herrera drove home Jeff Wilson in the top of the fourth to inch closer again, but the scoring streak stopped in the fifth, although Robinson and Martell went to the corners with a 2-out walk and single, respectively. Wilson grounded out to Prince Gates to kill the effort. Herrera and Waters hit 2-out singles in the sixth, but Preble struck out. Jackson went into the bottom 6th, but took a hike after walking a pair. Hitchcock got an inning-ending double play grounder, 4-6-3, from Martinez to bow out of the jam, and the score remained 4-3 despite a plethora of runners. Gurney then hit a leadoff single in the seventh, but also got stranded… instead, the Crusaders got a pinch-hit leadoff single by Labedz off Hitchcock in the bottom 7th, and then maneuvered that runner around with a walk and another single, getting Hitchcock yanked and Kuo into the game to restore order. Watt, Adame, and Herrera went out in order against Dan Minelli in the eighth, and Ponce was back for the ninth. Waters whiffed, Preble flew out. Maldo hit for Gurney against the left-hander, but grounded out. 5-3 Crusaders. Herrera 2-4, BB, RBI; Gurney 2-4, 2B; Martell 2-4;

In other news

August 3 – The Blue Sox only have a single by OF Nick Berryman (.273, 3 HR, 21 RBI) against SAC SP Ryan Person (3-10, 3.90 ERA) and two relievers in a 1-0 loss to the Scorpions, while the only run scores on a ninth-inning home run by SAC 1B Steve Wyatt (.292, 20 HR, 65 RBI).
August 4 – DEN OF Tim Turner (.323, 12 HR, 85 RBI) is out until September with an abdominal strain.
August 6 – The Thunder out-hit the Knights, 11-3, but somehow manage to lose the game, 1-0 in 10 innings. ATL 3B/SS/LF/CF Anton Venegas (.343, 3 HR, 43 RBI) provides one of the three hits to drive in Antonio Ramires (.205, 1 HR, 8 RBI) for the game’s lone run.

FL Player of the Week: PIT 3B/SS/RF Ed Soberanes (.348, 18 HR, 80 RBI), knocking .483 (14-29) with 2 HR, 9 RBI
CL Player of the Week: NYC C Omar Ramirez (.346, 6 HR, 25 RBI), slapping .407 (11-27) with 3 HR, 8 RBI

Complaints and stuff

Awful week. However, the Indians put the “full” into an awfuller week, going 1-6 to the Coons’ 3-4. They won all but one game against the Condors (none) and Loggers (one). Not that that fills my heart with giddy – the Loggers are next on our plate after all (after that, the Stars).

The Preble pickup might work out after all for us, despite the .239 batting average in his first 12 games. Five homers in 12 games will give you some leeway. Wilson is hitting .364 (4-for-11) in limited action, and Robinson is batting .322 with two homers in 24 games with the team. So those pickups did work out – why are we still not scoring runs?

Well, the team is second in batting average and homers, but as usual doesn’t draw walks and then only comes out with the fifth-most runs in the CL (tied for that, too, and with the damn Elks to boot!). The Baybirds hit only for another eight points of batting average as a team, but they have over 70 more runs than us. They will also, should be hold off the Indians, make dinner out of us in the CLCS.

So, this is the point of a dynasty where you bring up the salaries ledger and check who will leave soon and who will drown you with their contract for a few more years after the winning stops. The latter group surely includes Maldo and Herrera, who have four and two years after this one, respectively. Wheats and Waters have longer deals, but they would have tremendous trade value. We should package them up to the Knights for their next flock of top prospects! Lynn for three years, Adame the same, and two for Moreno – although these might all still have value should we crash and burn in the next 12 months.

Who will be on the free agent market after the year? Eligible for free agency are, in order of their 2048 salary: Baskins ($2.1M), Bonnie ($1.7M), Jackson ($1.5M), Wilson ($1.4M), Manny ($725k), Martell ($700k), Prow ($494k), and Robinson ($422k). We should start to think about getting younger again, so it’s hard to see man(n)y of these returning. None of these eight players is under 31, and their average age today is almost 34.

Is it time for a clean cut and amputation of some cherished dynasty pieces?

Not on the list above just yet is Pat Gurney, who has a $1.9M player option for 2049. At age 30 he might just try to get a big deal once more. How far can he sail on the “best player not in the starting lineup in the league” ticket? He had a terribe season last year, but apart from that has always hit for a 110+ OPS+.

Any help coming soon? We already caught a glimpse of Victor Salcido, 22, who has a 3.42 ERA in AAA and was definitely pushing up. Ranked position player prospects in AAA are limited to Lorenzo Lavorano, 21, and Alan Puckeridge, 20, who were both only getting adjusted to the level and not even September options this year. And the most vaunted prospect of all, #4 overall Rafael de la Cruz? 3.18 ERA in Aumsville, and he only turned 18 last month! Since he cost $1.1M to sign and another mouthful more in penalty tax, he can sure hurry up to start pitching his debts away for the Critters…!

Fun Fact: 65 years ago today, Boston’s Isto Grönholm rapped out six base hits in a 13-3 win over the Crusaders.

The only Hungarian ABL player in history, Grönholm, a first baseman, was then a rookie and just warming up. Despite leading the CL in strikeouts every year from 1984 through 1987, he had a somewhat productive 10-year career, winning Rookie of the Year honors in 1983, and taking home two All Star nominations and two Gold Gloves along with that. He never led the CL in a good hitting category, but combined for the Titans, Loggers, and Bayhawks batted .279/.343/.425 with 128 HR and 628 RBI.

[Westheim]

Raccoons (61-49) @ Loggers (39-72) – August 10-13, 2048

The Raccoons were into Milwaukee next, where the Loggers were dwelling in last place. Well, it’s the Loggers. Nothing to see here. They were 11th in runs scored and runs allowed in the CL, with a ghastly -142 run differential. And yet we were only 6-5 against them this year. They had only one significant injury, closer Caleb Martin.

Projected matchups:
Jeremy Baker (7-4, 3.44 ERA) vs. Victor Padilla (7-13, 5.80 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (9-4, 3.67 ERA) vs. Noah Hollis (5-7, 4.62 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (4-1, 2.83 ERA) vs. Matsuichi Yazawa (0-0)
Victor Merino (9-8, 3.95 ERA) vs. John Morrill (4-15, 4.93 ERA)

Everybody’s gonna get a turn, even Yazawa, a 34-year-old right-hander with 21 major league appearances in the last three seasons, and only two of them starts – and for the Loggers of course. Padilla was the only southpaw here.

Game 1
POR: SS Adame – CF A. Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – LF Watt – C Wilson – P Baker
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – 2B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C Jo. Davis – 1B Napoles – 3B Kohr – P V. Padilla

The recent Raccoons tradition to fall behind early continued with Baker, who nicked Brent Allen to begin his day, and then gave up two runs on hits by Zach Suggs, Pat Lovell, and Bill Reeves before Josh Davis found Waters for a double play to end the bottom 1st. Two more scored in the third inning, which Suggs opened with another single, which, I found, sugged. Pat Lovell whacked an RBI double over Herrera, advanced on Reeves’ grounout, then scored on a wild pitch, because, y’know, why not. While Baker had the living crap beat out of him by THE LOGGERS, the Raccoons coyly hit into double plays in all of the first (Herrera), second (Toohey), and fourth (Preble) innings, killing any and all chance for a comeback way early, every time. Why no double play in the third? Padilla was 1-2-3 in that one. Waters hit a leadoff double to center in the fifth and scored on two not-entirely-pathetic outs to get the team on the board, but of course we were still down 4-1 with that. The Loggers countered immediately, scoring a run when Allen was drilled by Baker *again*, a Ricky Espinoza single sent him to third, and Lovell cashed the runner with a sac fly to Matt Watt. Baker was stuffed for another pair in the bottom 6th before and after getting yanked for Preston Porter, in a slump himself and surrendering the second run on a 2-out single by Allen, before giving up another run on three singles in the bottom 7th. Top 8th, the Raccoons had the bases loaded with no outs after singles by Watt and Wilson, and a walk drawn by Ruben Gonzalez, which of course also led nowhere nice. Adame struck out, Herrera hit a sac fly, and Maldo’s fly to right ended up with Lovell quite easily. 8-2 Loggers. Waters 3-4, 2 2B; Wilson 2-3;

Game 2
POR: SS Adame – CF Watt – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – P Wheatley
MIL: CF Allen – LF Reeves – RF Lovell – SS R. Espinoza – 1B E. Hernandez – 3B Napoles – C T. Sanchez – 2B Kohr – P Yazawa

With Yazawa moved up by a day for his first appearance of the year, the Raccoons hoped for an offensive outburst, but got Adame and Maldo to the corners in the first before Mike Preble killed the inning with a double play. Allen hit a leadoff single at 1-2 for Milwaukee in the bottom 1st, but also ended the inning in a strike-‘em-out-throw-‘em-out double play with Lovell. Portland then scored two in the top 2nd with singles from Waters and Gurney, a successful double steal that definitely didn’t exploit the elderly, and a Robinson sac fly and Gonzalez RBI groundout to get in the runners. Wheats even singled with two outs, but there were no further laurels to be earned from that. The inning after, Pat Gurney doubled home Preble and Waters, all with two outs, while Wheats was about to face the minimum the first time through until he served up a double to Yazawa, of course. Allen grounded out to strand the runner…

Ruben Gonzalez upped the score to 5-0 with a homer in the fifth before Wheats had his own meltdown the same inning. Singles by Ernesto Hernandez and Alfredo Napoles, a walk to Jason Kohr, then a pinch-hit 2-run double by Zach Suggs got the Loggers on the board, and Allen brought in another run with a groundout, bringing the score all the way back to 5-3. The sixth was uneventful, while the seventh began with Watt and Maldo singles off Kyle McRay to go to the corners. Preble hit a drive at 3-1 that was nevertheless intercepted by Reeves, but was good enough to get home Watt with a sac fly. Maldo was stranded altogether after that. Wheats lasted seven, after which Bob Ibold did his best to blow the game, but with Allen and Reeves aboard and two outs, Watt ran down a nasty Espinoza drive to end the inning. Loggers reliever Angelo Munoz then loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth, allowing singles to Maldo and Preble, then a walk to Waters. Another right-hander appeared in Miguel Herrera, he of a 9.96 ERA, but Gurney grounded out to strand everybody. At least Moreno ended the game in 10 pitches and without a base runner in the bottom of the ninth. 6-3 Raccoons. Adame 2-5; Maldonado 2-4; Preble 2-4, RBI; Waters 1-2, 3 BB; Gurney 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI; Gonzalez 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; Wheatley 7.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, W (10-4) and 1-2;

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF A. Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – RF Toohey – C Gonzalez – LF Watt – P Wolinsky
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – 2B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C Jo. Davis – 1B Napoles – 3B M. Grant – P Hollis

Another day with the Coons, another early deficit. Brent Allen hit a double to open the Wolinsky pinata, then scored on two groundouts in the first, and drew a walk in the third inning before coming around on Zach Suggs’ homer to left that made it 3-0 rather quickly. The Coons had three hits and two double plays (…!) off Hollis in five innings, and didn’t get remotely close to scoring a run themselves.

Wolinsky did not allow any more runs in the middle innings, but that didn’t mean that he was good, or that the Raccoons rallied him off the hook. Maldo hit a sac fly to bring in Adame and his leadoff double in the sixth, but when Toohey and Gonzalez opened the seventh with scratch singles to put the tying runs on base, Watt – slumping hard – hit into a 6-4-3 double play. Boys, the double plays are getting old…! Chris Robinson pinch-hit for Wolinsky and singled home the run, but that was only a 3-2 score then, and Adame flew out to end the inning.

Somehow, Wolinsky came off the hook after all. The eighth saw a parade of relievers once Hollis put Herrera on with a leadoff single. Munoz advanced him with a wild pitch, and Bubba Poss conceded the tying run with two outs on a Gurney single to center. Gurney zoomed up to second on Allen’s throw to home plate, but Toohey grounded out to Suggs to end the inning. Reeves doubled off Lynn in the bottom 8th, but Porter got Toohey to throw himself into a screaming liner by Josh Davis and somehow hold on to the baseball to keep the game tied at three. It didn’t feel like a W would be in the cards, and while Gonzalez opened the ninth with a single off Herrera, but was first forced out by Watt, and then Preble pinch-hit the Coons out of the inning with yet another ******* double play. Extras where upon us when the Loggers didn’t get past a 2-out single by Jason Kohr against Joy-shan Kuo, either.

Maldo and Waters reached the corners with a walk and single off Herrera, respectively, but that was with two outs already and Gurney reliably found Ricky Espinoza to ground out to, killing the 10th. Bob Ibold held on, and the 11th brought a new pitcher in righty Taylor Joachim with an ERA north of 10, and Coons on the corners again, and this time with nobody out after Toohey doubled and Gonzalez singled. We *barely* scratched out the go-ahead run; Al Martell hit for Watt and whiffed, but Baskins managed a sac fly to left when hitting for Ibold. Bottom 11th, Nelson Moreno got Reeves to ground out to Adame, and Davis to ground out to Martell at third base (Maldo had gone over to first). Jack Barrington struck out to end the game. 4-3 Critters. Waters 2-4, BB; Toohey 3-5, 2B; Gonzalez 3-5; Robinson (PH) 1-1, RBI;

First W for Bob Ibold since May; normally he’s the expert at snatching odd wins in relief as his 19-6 career record will hint at.

Game 4
POR: LF Watt – CF A. Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – SS Martell – P Merino
MIL: 1B Napoles – SS Z. Suggs – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – C Jo. Davis – CF McIntyre – 2B Barrington – 3B M. Grant – P Morrill

Morrill gave up but one hit in the first inning, yet that was a bases-clearing double by Chris Robinson, bringing in all the runner he had carelessly walked (Watt, Maldo) or nailed (Waters). Mike Grant took an initially wonky Merino deep in the bottom 3rd, but Maldo pulled the run back at the next opportunity, doubling home Merino with two outs in the fourth to extend the lead to 4-1 again. Merino then went on to load the bases in the bottom 5th, issuing two walks to Barrington and Alfredo Napoles, while Morrill singled, annoyingly. There were two outs for Suggs with the tying runs aboard, and he grounded out to Waters up the middle, which sugged for the Loggers.

Maldo made an error in the bottom 6th to put Lovell on base, but Reeves hit into a 6-4-3 right away. Maldo then reached base in the seventh when nicked by Morrill, after which Waters grounded to Barrington for two – … no, actually Barrington flubbed it for an error of his own, and the Coons had two on with one out. But trust in Chris Robinson – he found a double play grounder to make up for Barrington’s error.

After a shoddy start, Merino settled in by the middle innings and clicked off Loggers in quick succession. He wouldn’t go the distance, but he made it through eight innings after an extra-inning game the day before, expending 111 pitches in a 3-hit effort…! Adame batted for him, but struck out against Munoz, to begin the ninth. Preble then tripled for Watt and scored on a Herrera sac fly, taking off the save opportunity for now. The ball went to Bonnie, the only reliever who hadn’t pitched the day before, and Moreno got stretching after a 1-out walk to Reeves. The next batter ended the game though, with Josh Davis grounding to Waters for a 4-6-3 double play. 5-1 Raccoons. Watt 1-2, 2 BB; Robinson 1-4, 2B, 3 RBI; Preble (PH) 1-1, 3B; Merino 8.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, W (10-8) and 1-3;

Raccoons (64-50) @ Stars (70-45) – August 14-16, 2048

The penultimate regular-season interleague matchup for this year would be a rematch of the prior season’s World Series. The Stars had the better record, but trailed the Gold Sox by half a game on Friday morning, while the Raccoons were up 3 1/2 games in a shoddy CL North that was already 37 games under .500 and showed no signs of stopping any time soon. The Stars would be a tough challenge, though, leading the league in runs scored (5.3 per game) and hitting a whopping .294 as a team. On the other paw, their pitching was porous, allowing the eighth-most runs. That still made for a +116 run differential (Critters: +40). We had beaten them in five in the 2047 World Series, but enough for the victory laps – the regular season meeting last year went in the Stars’ favor, two to one.

Nothing like winning the ones that count, though…! (stupid grin)

Projected matchups:
Jake Jackson (5-11, 4.02 ERA) vs. Adam Middleton (9-5, 4.17 ERA)
Jeremy Baker (7-5, 3.85 ERA) vs. Dave Hils (13-6, 2.95 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (10-4, 3.68 ERA) vs. Arthur Pickett (11-4, 3.51 ERA)

Nothing but right-handers to see here.

Game 1
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 1B Gurney – CF Herrera – 2B Martell – C Wilson – P Jackson
DAL: LF O. Gonzalez – SS Villacorta – CF del Toro – RF Cecil – 1B D. Martinez – 2B Sedillo – 3B Haney – C Rollin – P Middleton

Jake Jackson continued to come apart, throwing 36 pitches in the bottom 1st, none of them great. He offered up three walks and surrendered a run on a Leo Villacorta hit to center, but the Stars left the bases loaded. The second was better, but the third was just the same crap, with three walks (one intentional though) and an RBI single for Tylor Cecil somewhere in the middle, which gave Cecil 103 RBI in the middle of August. Again the Stars left the bags full, this time with a K to Middleton. But Jackson was obviously not gonna be long for this game, and was done after five completely awful innings, though without giving up another run. Much the contrary, he got the Coons on the board with a sac fly in the fifth, bringing home Al Martell after back-to-back singles by Martell and Wilson. Apart from that, the Raccoons were utterly harmless in the early going, but somehow still managed to tie up the game in the sixth. Adame singled to right to begin the inning, went to second on Maldo’s groundout, and scored on a soft single to left slapped by Mike Preble. Whatever works…!

So Jackson didn’t get the loss when he really deserved it, but maybe Bonnie could. He came in to pitch the sixth in a double switch, gave up a leadoff single to the ******* opposing pitcher, and after an Omar Gonzalez groundout advanced Middleton to second base, the go-ahead run on another Villacorta RBI single. Derek Baskins was also in the game for about three minutes there, entering in a double switch with Bonnie, and exiting after feeling a twinge in his shoulder after throwing home on the Villacorta single. He was in turn replaced by Bryce Toohey in left, with Watt in center and the pitcher in the #6 hole. Toohey hit a single with two outs in the seventh and had his bum moved to second when Watt walked, but also had it stranded there when Adame flew out. Preble was the tying run at second in the top 8th, but was also stranded. The tying run reached second base again in the ninth with a 1-out double to left off Jeff Wilson’s stick. Dale Mrazek got a groundout from Toohey that kept Wilson at second, then walked Watt. Adame grounded up the middle, the ball got past Villacorta, and the Coons tied the game with two outs, getting Wilson around to score on the play…! And with a Maldo single to right on a 2-2 pitch, they took the lead…! Preble made it 3-or-3 in 2-out RBI singles, poking a 1-2 pitch to shallow center, which killed Mrazek and brought on another righty in Ryan Porter (no relation to Preston Porter), who rung up Gurney to end the inning. The Coons still had Joy-shan Kuo in the game after he had pitched the eighth on nine pitches, and would leave him in to begin the bottom 9th against the death of pitchers, Tylor Cecil, who grounded out on the first pitch. Then we went to Moreno, and depressingly he loaded the bases with a Ryan Lorensen double and walks issued to Mark Haney and Govaart van Eijk. PH Alvin Zuazo singled to left-center to re-tie the game, and only a K to Gonzalez sent us to extra innings in a very unhappy mood.

Chris Robinson hit for Moreno and singled to begin the 10th, but the inning led nowhere. Mike Lynn was out in the bottom 10th, allowed two singles, but not the game to end. Top 11th, Adame singled off former Logger Alex Banderas in his second inning of work, decided he had stuff to watch in his Flickerbox account that night and no more time for baseball, and stole second base. That didn’t immediately lead anywhere, as Maldo flew out easily and Preble walked, but Gurney came through again with an RBI single to right, giving Portland another lead. Gonzalez batted for Lynn as the last bat off the bench and broke the game wide open with a 3-run homer to left! He was not the only catcher to go yard in that inning, with Jeff Wilson following up a Martell single off Daniel Hernandez with a homer of his own! Preston Porter (no relation to Ryan Porter) would put the game away without blowing the 6-run lead. 11-5 Raccoons. Adame 3-6, BB, RBI; Maldonado 2-6, RBI; Preble 3-5, BB, 2 RBI; Gonzalez (PH) 1-1, HR, 3 RBI; Martell 2-6; Wilson 5-6, HR, 2B, 2 RBI;

Well, well, Jeff Wilson had himself quite a day there! He was now hitting .550 for the Coons since being acquired at the deadline.

So the Coons won that game, but lost Derek Baskins to shoulder tendinitis. He was off to the DL, and Matt Glodowski was called up once more.

Game 2
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Toohey – C R. Gonzalez – 1B Wilson – P Baker
DAL: LF O. Gonzalez – SS Villacorta – CF del Toro – RF Cecil – 2B Sedillo – 3B Haney – 1B van Eijk – C Rollin – P Hils

For the first time in an eternity, the Raccoons faced a righty pitcher without a true left-handed batter after Jeff Wilson won himself an extra start, though they still had the two switch-hitters in there. Wilson struck out however with Toohey and Ruben Gonzalez aboard to end the top 2nd. Omar Gonzalez struck out with the bases loaded against Baker in the bottom 2nd, leaving those guys on the roadside, so we were about even in terms of futility early on. The futile poking continued intermittently, neither team scoring through six innings, with four hits for the Stars, plus three walks, and three hits and one walk for the Critters. Then came the top 7th, and the Raccoons put Preble on with a leadoff double, Toohey walked, and Gonzalez hurried out an infield single. One pitch later, the dream was over, with Jeff Wilson’s 6-4-3 grounder ending the inning.

Baker completed seven shutout innings, but was hit for to begin the eighth, Watt hitting a single in his spot. Watt was then also doubled off by Herrera, as I slowly went insane from all the double plays. Instead, singles by Jamie King, Dario Martinez, and van Eijk gave the Stars a 1-0 lead against Ibold in the bottom 8th. Was another ninth-inning comeback in the cards? Hils was still pitching on a 5-hitter, got Maldo to ground out, then had to see King fumble a Preble grounder for an error. Then he walked Waters to push the tying run to scoring position. But, alas, the Coons… Toohey flew out to left. Gonzalez grounded out to third. 1-0 Stars. Gonzalez 2-4; Watt (PH) 1-1; Baker 7.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K;

Arf.

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Gurney – C R. Gonzalez – P Wheatley
DAL: LF O. Gonzalez – SS Villacorta – CF del Toro – RF Cecil – 1B D. Martinez – 2B Sedillo – 3B Haney – C Rollin – P Pickett

Armando Herrera hit a solo jack in the first, but Wheats gave it back in the bottom 2nd, allowing singles to Tylor Cecil, Mario Sedillo, and Dan Rollin, the last of the three driving home the first with two outs. The Stars had an interesting approach to Ruben Gonzalez, who was not walked intentionally with Robinson on second and two outs in the top 2nd, and struck out, but was intentionally walked in the fourth with Robinson and Gurney both in scoring position. Wheats struck out to strand them all. Instead, Rollin gave Dallas the 2-1 lead with a sac fly after back-to-back singles by Sedillo and Mark Haney had put runners on the corners in the bottom 4th, with Wheats not being all that sharp in this Sunday rubber game…

The Coons flipped it around in the top 5th, though, and without making an out, let alone two at once. Adame and Herrera both reached, pulled off a double steal, and both came around on a clean-as-a-whistle single to right by Maldonado… who was then caught stealing, but it was 3-2 Coons… at least until Wheats got paws on that again. He got ticked for another three hits, including leadoff singles by Juan del Toro and Tylor Cecil, and came apart for the score-flipping runs in the bottom 6th, eventually leaving on a 4-3 hook.

Adame led off the seventh with an infield single, but also limped north of first base, which made me slightly nauseous. Dr. Padilla retrieved him from the game, with Glodowski pinch-running. Glodowski stood and watched in awe as the Raccoons struck out, struck out, and … flew out to center to strand him. Waters was on to begin the eighth and stranded just the same, and the tying run reached once more in the ninth with Mrazek’s 1-out walk to Herrera. Maldo grounded to second for a fielder’s choice, and Preble flew out to del Toro. 4-3 Stars. Adame 2-3, BB; Herrera 2-4, BB, HR, RBI; Robinson 1-2, BB;

In other news

August 11 – Richmond LF/RF Pablo Gonzalez (.355, 8 HR, 22 RBI) whacks five hits, including three doubles, and drives in two runs in a 14-6 whacking of the Blue Sox.
August 13 – OCT OF Juan Benavides (.274, 6 HR, 21 RBI) drives in five on two home runs in a 12-0 rout of the Aces.
August 13 – The Blue Sox take the Rebels to extra innings before being really fed up with them and emptying a sixpack of runs on them, taking a 9-3 win in 10 innings.
August 14 – PIT 1B/2B Mario Briones (.280, 9 HR, 78 RBI) is out for the season after being diagnosed with a tear in an abdominal muscle.
August 14 – Every player in the Crusaders lineup gets a hit, and all but one get a run and an RBI in a 13-3 thrashing of the Gold Sox. NYC SP Jim White (10-10, 3.33 ERA) somehow also manages to lead the team with 3 RBI, all coming on a bases-clearing double.
August 15 – SFW SP Walt Wright (3-12, 4.63 ERA) is done for the year, having come down with shoulder soreness.

FL Player of the Week: RIC C Juan Jimenez (.268, 9 HR, 48 RBI), batting .632 (12-19) with 2 HR, 8 RBI
CL Player of the Week: SFB OF/1B Ken Crum (.295, 15 HR, 72 RBI), slugging .444 (12-27) with 3 HR, 10 RBI

Complaints and stuff

Ah, **** it, we’ll just beat the Stars in the World Series again then…! That’s resolved, boys – now make it happen!

4-3 week, not brilliant, but at least the Indians went 3-3 as well. The Titans and Elks are below .500 but they are not far enough behind to be entirely discarded by now. They both had enough games against the Coons left to zoom within 1 1/2 if they won those out.

Glodowski, who pinch-ran and went 0-1 on Sunday as the injury call-up for Baskins, might go right back to AAA to get up a backup shortstop now that Adame is out. Adame has a tweaked quad, and it’s not bad enough to send him to the DL, but he will surely miss at least the Rebels series to begin next week. He will go with the team to Elk City on the weekend, though.

Fun Fact: The extra-inning win over the Loggers on Wednesday was our 700th total win against them since the ABL began play.

That’s the most against any team – well, it’s the Loggers. The other CL North teams are obviously there to complete the top 5 in terms of wins against other teams:

Loggers – 701
Indians – 682
Crusaders – 668
Canadiens – 646
Titans – 639

The Loggers…!!

[Westheim]

Raccoons (65-52) vs. Rebels (70-46) – August 18-20, 2048

The last meeting with the Rebs had taken place in ’46, when the Raccoons had won two out of three from them. Now the teams met in Portland after a common off day on Monday. The Rebels were fourth in runs scored and fifth in runs allowed in the Federal League, with the second-most homers as their best rank in any major category.

Projected matchups:
Bubba Wolinsky (4-1, 2.98 ERA) vs. Zach Tubbs (14-4, 3.07 ERA)
Victor Merino (10-8, 3.78 ERA) vs. Marc Hubbard (8-6, 3.80 ERA)
Jake Jackson (5-11, 4.01 ERA) vs. Omar Lara (13-7, 2.66 ERA)

Righty, righty, lefty from the Rebs. They only had a reliver on the DL in Gustavo Chapa, while the Coons fought with a short bench once more, with Alex Adame expected to miss the entire series with the iffy quad.

The Coons sent Matt Glodowski back to AAA and brought up Josh Floyd as extra middle infielder.

Game 1
RIC: RF C. Morris – 3B R. Sifuentes – CF G. Cabrera – 1B W. Hernandez – 2B L. Harrison – SS Lujan – LF Mills – C J. Jimenez – P Tubbs
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C R. Gonzalez – SS Martell – P Wolinsky

While the Coons had no hits the first time through and nothing beyond a walk drawn by Al Martell altogether, the Rebels were on base in every inning against Bubba Wolinsky. They only reached with two outs in the first two innings, didn’t score, then twice put on their first two batters in the third and fourth – in the former inning with a Gurney error to begin things – and still didn’t score, somehow. They eventually broke through in the fifth inning as Wolinsky kept failing to deliver proper pitches. Chris Morris and Gil Cabrera singled, Willie Hernandez smashed a homer to center, and it was 3-0 Rebels. The Coons got two singles of their own in the bottom 5th, putting Martell an Watt on the corners, but Armando Herrera made the final out to Lance Harrison when he came up as the tying run. Waters would hit a single and steal second with two outs in the sixth before getting stranded by Gurney, and the Rebels put the game away the half-inning after that. Wolinsky put Morris on base with a 1-out single, got yoinked, and Bob Ibold was slapped around for three hits and two runs (one charged to Bubba) as the Rebels went up 5-0. The Coons didn’t score until the eighth, when Maldonado doubled home Watt for a token run, also knocking out Tubbs, who had been working on a 4-hit shutout so far. The next play saw Chris Morris take a tumble as he caught a Mike Preble drive into the right-center gap, leaving the game with an injury, replaced by Nick Crocker. That was as close as the Portlanders got to hurting the Rebels in the game; nobody after Maldonado reached base anymore. 5-1 Rebels. Watt 1-2, 2 BB; Martell 1-2, BB;

Game 2
RIC: RF P. Gonzalez – 3B R. Sifuentes – CF G. Cabrera – 1B W. Hernandez – 2B L. Harrison – SS Lujan – LF Mills – C J. Jimenez – P Hubbard
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – C R. Gonzalez – SS Martell – P Merino

Hitting in appreciable amounts remained absent for the Raccoons on Wednesday, although they did scratch out a 1-0 lead on little more than a soft single and stolen base by Martell in the bottom 3rd, the runner coming around to score on groundouts by Merino and Watt. Merino was off with his control, walking three in the first three innings while giving up only one hit, but he had already thrown 49 pitches. He then struck out Lance Harrison in the fourth, with Harrison objecting and talking back to the umpire, who gave him multiple chances to shut up and retreat to the dugout before finally tossing him. This was not great – he was replaced by prominent scratch-out Coons scare Ken Wiersma… With one out, Merino then filled the bases, allowing a single to T.J. Lujan, a double to ex-Coon Ken Mills, and flatout drilled the current FL Player of the Week, Juan Jimenez. Hubbard then flew out to Herrera, Lujan went for home – and was thrown out at the plate to end the inning…!

Willie Hernandez shrugged and doubled home Cabrera with two outs in the fifth instead, tying the game at one after all. The offense was held to three hits in six innings, leaving Merino to fend for himself. He made it into the seventh, retiring Hubbard and Pablo Gonzalez to begin that, but then allowed a triple to Ramon Sifuentes on his 109th pitch, which turned out to be the final one. Ibold replaced him, walked Cabrera, and then got Hernandez to ground out to Maldonado after all, keeping the game tied.

Al Martell appeared to be the only piece that functioned in the lineup. He singled again to begin the bottom 8th, but then was doubled off by Chris Robinson, who pinch-hit for Jake Bonnie. Watt and Herrera then clipped 2-out singles, but were left on when Maldo grounded out to Ramon Sifuentes. Nelson Moreno followed on Ibold and Bonnie with scoreless relief in the ninth, still giving the Critters a walkoff opportunity against Hubbard, who had thrown 92 pitches through eight. Preble, Waters, and Toohey made sad outs in order, sending the game to extras. Moreno continued in the 10th, allowed a leadoff single to Hernandez, who was then doubled off by Wiersma (!), then walked Lujan. Toohey then grabbed a Josh Frazier bouncer to end the inning. And then we were STILL up against Hubbard in the bottom 10th…! The bugger kept surviving, pitching around a Gurney single in the bottom 10th before getting hit for with Crocker as the Rebels took Lynn apart for an unearned run in the 11th. Ruben Gonzalez made a throwing error on the Crocker grounder, which moved Jimenez to third base with nobody out. Pablo Gonzalez struck out, but a Sifuentes groundout plated the go-ahead run. Lynn held them there, after which Josh Rella (sounds familiar) appeared for the bottom 11th. Groundouts by Herrera and Maldonado were not exactly soul-soothing. Preble singled to right with two outs, then gained a base on a passed ball. Waters then walked onto the open base in a full count. Toohey also reached 3-2, then grounded out to short. 2-1 Rebels. Preble 2-5; Martell 2-4; Gurney (PH) 1-1; Merino 6.2 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K; Moreno 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K;

Maud, can we call the league office? – I need to trade for yet more offense! – Because it kinda sucks when other teams then claim good players on revocable waivers…!

Game 3
RIC: RF P. Gonzalez – 3B R. Sifuentes – CF G. Cabrera – 1B W. Hernandez – 2B L. Harrison – LF Mills – SS Lujan – C J. Jimenez – P O. Lara
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – C Wilson – 1B Toohey – SS Floyd – P Jackson

Jackson loaded the bases in the top 1st without allowing as much a base hit, walking Sifuentes and Harrison, while nailing Hernandez in between. No runs scored, Mills grounding out harmlessly to kill the effort for Richmond. The Coons got two walks to begin the bottom 1st, then a K from Maldo and a 6-4-3 mood dampener from Preble… But we took the lead in the bottom 2nd, which began with Waters singling. Wilson doubled, Toohey hit a sac fly to left for a 1-0 lead, an Josh Floyd walked. A soft Jackson single loaded the bases with one out and brought back the top of the order, with additional runs scoring on Watt scratching out a bases-loaded walk, and then Herrera legging out the return throw on a grounder to short to break up a double play. Maldo grounded out to strand runners on the corners, and Harrison singled home a run in the top 3rd against Jackson. Preble’s leadoff double and Waters’ single put runners on the corners with nobody out in the bottom 3rd, and Lara continued to melt, giving up an RBI double to center to Wilson and another sac fly to Toohey.

While Jackson wobbled on, allowing another run on two sharp hits in the fifth, that was already way beyond Lara’s time at the controls in this game, as he was pinch-hit for in the fourth. Replacement Jimmy Anderson didn’t last long either before leaving with an injury, while the third pitcher in line, righty Carlos Vasquez, gave up a leadoff jack to right to Matt Waters, #22 for the slugging infielder, and gave up another RBI hit to Waters an inning later, when Waters came up with Watt and Herrera on the corners, two outs, and singled home Matt Watt, 7-2. Wilson then grounded out.

The Coons pushed Jackson to 110 pitches, which meant he gave up singles to Gonzalez and Sifuentes in the top 7th without getting an out, then left anyway. Porter took over and got two grounders to Maldonado from Cabrera and Hernandez, the first of them turned for a double play, and the other one to end the inning. Vasquez put Toohey, Floyd, and Robinson all on base with nobody out in the bottom 7th to set up a chance for a knockout blow. Lefty Ricky Contreras inherited the unhappy mess, who got pops from Watt and Herrera that didn’t drive nobody in before melting for bases-loaded walks to Maldo and Preble. Waters, unretired in the game heretofore, then hacked out aiming for a slam. The Rebels were defeated though, and would not reach scoring position against Kuo and Bonnie in the last two innings. 9-2 Raccoons. Herrera 2-4, BB, BI; Waters 4-5, HR, 2 RBI; Wilson 4-5, 2 2B, RBI;

We lost a game on the Indians here, who beat the Buffos, two out of three, and would go to Elk City up by two-and-a-half.

This was without Josh Floyd, who had bettered his season average from .080 to .100 in three days – whee. – but was sent back to AAA with Adame back in the lineup by Friday night. Glodowski returned for no really good reason.

Raccoons (66-54) @ Canadiens (58-63) – August 21-23, 2048

The damn Elks could still sniff the playoffs with a spirited rally, with the Raccoons the perfect team to start it against. Down 8 1/2 and in fourth place in late August, they still had a shot, especially with seven games left against the Critters. Their pitching was a major problem, though, with the second-most runs allowed in the CL for their staff. They were sixth in runs scored, with a -83 run differential. The Coons were up 7-4 in the season series.

Projected matchups:
Jeremy Baker (7-5, 3.61 ERA) vs. Mario Godinez (5-11, 5.16 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (10-5, 3.77 ERA) vs. Bill McMichael (12-8, 4.16 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (4-2, 3.23 ERA) vs. Ayden Cobb (3-9, 3.94 ERA)

One more southpaw in this set, that being McMichael. Hisami Furuya was the only player on the DL for the Elks.

Game 1
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – C Gonzalez – 1B Toohey – P Baker
VAN: 2B I. Jaramillo – LF F. Rojas – 3B Burgos – RF Outram – 1B Mancini – C Julio Diaz – CF Escobido – SS R. Price – P Godinez

Adame returned with a single, stolen base, and a run on two groundouts in the top 1st on Friday. He then drove home Toohey in the second inning for a 2-0 lead before Baker broke into a million pieces in the bottom 2nd. He had already given up two hits in the first, then gave up two more to begin the second, a Julio Diaz single, then an RBI triple into the leftfield corner to Angel Escobido. Rick Price’s groundout tied the game. Baker then walked Godinez, which made me yell in agony at home on the couch loud enough to be heard where they were playing in Iceland. Israel Jaramillo doubled home his pitcher, getting the Elks up 3-2, but was then caught stealing third base, which was about the only thing that prevented him from scoring two, with Felix Rojas singling behind him. the inning ended with a Jesus Burgos groundout…

Maldo, Preble, and Robinson loaded the bases in the third on two singles and a walk, bringing up Ruben Gonzalez with a thick chance. He popped out, but Toohey with two outs laid off the garbage for a moment, drew a walk, and tied the game. Better yet, Baker flicked a 2-out, 2-run single to right-center. Hey, our pitchers can do damage, too!? I didn’t know that! Godinez was fully ablaze then, walked Adame and dinked Herrera, which forced home another run, 6-3, before the inning ended with Maldonado – not that the didn’t come through, he whacked a 2-run double, but Herrera was thrown out at the plate as he tried to score as well. That curtailed a 6-spot, and the Coons were now up 8-3, hesitantly giving the ball back to Baker. He remained completely awful, gave up a solo homer to Jerry Outram on the way to somehow being dragged through five innings by the pen, and was then mothballed without another word to be lost about that shambolic outing, with nine hits, two walks, and only one strikeout on his ledger, but at least with an 8-4 lead maintained through five.

Somehow I felt, 300 miles away, that this game was far from one and pressed Honeypaws even tighter against my chest. It was a bit of a relief when Matt Waters singled home Mike Preble, who had hit a 2-out double off lefty Jordan Calderon, in th sixth inning, extending the lead to five again. A wild pitch moved Waters to second, and he scored on a scratch single by Robinson, 10-4, who was then double-switched out after Gonzalez ended the inning with a grounder, so that Kevin Hitchcock could go longer than an inning with 12 outs to get and the pen having been all busy bees against the Rebels before. Hitchcock promptly loaded the bases with 10 pitches in the bottom 6th before getting an inning-ending double play, 5-4-3 from one third-sacker to the other. Hitchcock got torn up in the seventh instead, walking two and giving up a 1-out triple to Escobido to get the damn Elks into slam range. Kuo replaced him and struck out both Price and Antonio Peralta to strand Escobido on third base, which might yet turn out huge for the Coons. Porter had an uneventful eighth, though, and the Coons brought Lynn out for the ninth, which began with Outram. He popped out to Maldo, but Bob Mancini singled. I winced, but was able to unclench my fuzzy bum cheeks just a minute later when Diaz spanked a ball to Adame, who started a game-sealing 6-4-3 double play. 10-6 Raccoons. Adame 3-5, BB, RBI; Maldonado 2-5, 2B, 3 RBI; Preble 4-5, 2B; Waters 2-5, 2 BB, RBI;

So maybe it would all be well after all?

Nah.

First thing Saturday morning, Dr. Padilla called me from Elk City. Apparently Al Martell had tried to pat a cat in front of the hotel in Elk City. In the darkness, apparently, what looked like a cat was a panther escaped from he Elk City zoo that objected to being touched in any way, touched back, then chased Martell up the nearest tree, and back down again on the other side. Martell escaped with scratches all over, but was in no condition to play for at least a few weeks.

The panther was fine, allegedly.

I sighed, arranged for Martell to be put on the DL, and then called Maud to have Ben Coen’s bum shipped to Elk City pronto. Coen was 1-for-15 this year with the Coons, but had hit .286 in 105 at-bats in ’47.

Game 2
POR: SS Adame – CF Watt – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – C Gonzalez – 1B Toohey – RF Glodowski – P Wheatley
VAN: SS R. Price – CF I. Jaramillo – 3B Burgos – RF Outram – 1B Mancini – C Julio Diaz – LF Escobido – 2B DeMarco – P McMichael

Four singles in the first were barely enough for a run for the Coons, with Watt doubling off Adame before the 3-4-5 batters all chopped 2-out knocks and Gonzalez stranded two floating out. Wheats’ first pitch then almost tore off Rick Price’s foot. The shortstop limped off the field and was replaced by Chris Walley, who got intimately involved in Jaramillo’s 5-4-3 grounder. McMichael then nailed Toohey, who was also doubled off by Glodowski. It was quite a forgettable baseball game in the early goings…

Except that after the Glodowski double play, Wheats singled, McMichael walked the bags full, and Maldo drove home two with another 2-out single. Preble grounded out to leave two aboard. Waters was drilled in the third, but wouldn’t score, but Adame did after a leadoff double in the fourth. Maldo singled him to third base, and Preble got him in with a sac fly to Escobido, 4-0. Did I feel good, with Wheats pitching rather decently – two hits, four strikeouts through five shutout innings, but with an elevated pitch count – at the same time? No. It was Elk City. The place was cursed, and normal laws of physics and baseball did not apply there.

Bottom 7th. Leadoff single for Burgos, who was then caught stealing. Outram grounded out. Looking good, Honeypaws, huh? Why are your whiskers twitching? Mancini hit a 2-out infield single. Then Diaz was given pointers to first pace by the umpire after one pitch to him, courtesy of Gonzalez pawing into his swing and being called out for catcher’s interference. Suddenly the tying run was not all that far away. Wheats was on 96 pitches, but remained in to face Escobido – who struck out! Maybe it would still all be fine!? It was certainly for Wheatley, who tacked on another 1-2-3 inning to relief the bullpen some more, which … technically made him a reliever-reliever…? Honeypaws, why do you visibly frown? …

Bottom 9th. Ibold came in, struck out Jaramillo, then allowed a single to Burgos. Outram cranked another homer, just like in the olden days. It also narrowed the score to 4-2, and the Raccoons quickly flicked in the nearest available left-hander, which was Mike Lynn. He got grounders to second base from both Mancini and Diaz to end the ballgame. 4-2 Raccoons. Watt 2-4, BB, 2B; Maldonado 3-5, 2 RBI; Preble 2-4, RBI; Waters 2-4, RBI; Wheatley 8.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K, W (11-5) and 1-4;

Ibold getting a few in the snout here or there, this W secured at least a split in the season series against the damn Elks, with five games to spare.

Don’t let up, boys! Keep the hindpaws on their throats!!

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – SS Herrera – 2B Waters – LF Preble – RF Robinson – 1B Gurney – C Wilson – 3B Coen – P Wolinsky
VAN: 2B I. Jaramilo – LF F. Rojas – RF Outram – 1B Mancini – C Julio Diaz – CF Escobido – 3B Higareda – SS R. Price – P A. Cobb

Some things never change – like Jerry Outram homering in every game against the Critters, ever. He did so right in the first against Bubba, but at least Jaramillo had by then been caught stealing after a leadoff single and the homer only made for a 1-0 deficit. Still annoying, as I was hoping for a sweep, although that target receded into the distance pretty quickly. Robinson doubled in the top 2nd, but was left on, and a Diaz homer and another three singles off a sucky Wolinsky made it 3-0 in a real hurry in the bottom 2nd.

But there was a comeback – a single by Herrera began the fourth rather inauspiciously, but the Coons then cranked back-to-back homers with Waters and Preble, both to center, to tie it all up at three! I jubilated, tossing Honeypaws into the air, for which he hissed at me. Robinson had a drive to left caught, while Gurney singled and stole second, but was then left on; Wilson popped out, Coen was not pitched to despite a .063 average, and Wolinsky popped out to Adrian Higareda, then probably only escaped more flogging in the bottom 4th because Escobido was thrown out trying to steal third base after drawing a leadoff walk and taking second on Higareda’s single to center. Alex Adame stole second base after a leadoff single in the top 5th, however, and two productive outs got him around on a Waters sac fly, 4-3. But there was no way around it – Bubba sucked, hard. He blew the lead with another walk and two hits in the bottom 5th, the last a 2-out RBI double by Diaz, then was yanked with runners in scoring position. Preston Porter inherited the situation, bailed out on a grounder to short by Escobido, and the game would begin anew with the score even at four.

Cobb was still struggling in the sixth, giving up leadoff singles to Robinson and Gurney. Robinson bid for third base on Gurney’s single to right, drew a bad throw from Outram, and that allowed Gurney to second. After Wilson popped out and Coen struck out, Maldonado batted for Porter while I was already ready to tear a few bushels of my fur out. Maldo popped out to Jaramillo, getting me dangerously close to an aneurysm, but for now I settled for a screaming attack that only subsided when Preble sent Herrera around to score from second base with a 2-out single in the top 7th, which was also finally the end for Cobb. The lead was in danger in the bottom 7th; Julio Diaz singled off Bonnie (in his second inning of work), and before Hitchcock solved the situation with two outs, he allowed a single to Escobido that sent the tying run to third base. Burgos pinch-hit for Higareda, but was out on a comebacker to keep it 5-4 Critters. Bottom 8th, leadoff single for Rick Price, then an RBI double by PH Andy Graham. Who? Anyway, tied ballgame. I sobbed, while Graham advanced on a Jaramillo fly to left-center. Kuo came in for the lefty Rojas, but the Elks countered with right-handed Antonio Peralta as pinch-hitter, who brought home the go-ahead run with a groundout up the middle. And then Outram singled and scored on a Mancini triple to center. (bites into clenched fist) The ninth brought right-hander Sam Gibson, and once Herrera drew a leadoff walk, the tying run to the plate with nobody out. Herrera stole second when Waters whiffed on a hit-and-run and would eventually strike out altogether, but Preble singled to put the tying runs on the corners in the 7-5 game. Kuo was in the #5 hole, and there were only double play threats left on the bench. The Coons went with Gonzalez, who ran a full count, grounded to short, and only escaped the double play shame because Preble took out Nick DeMarco with a slide that could have been classified as a crime against humanity. Herrera scored, but we were down to our final out, which turned out to be Gurney on strikes. 7-6 Canadiens. Herrera 2-4, BB; Preble 3-5, HR, 2 RBI; Robinson 2-4, 2B; Gurney 2-5;

In other news

August 17 – ATL SP Jay Carroll (8-7, 3.45 ERA) fires a 1-hit shutout against the Gold Sox, taking a 3-0 victory. DEN INF Ronnie Thompson (.276, 0 HR, 28 RBI) singles in the third inning for the Sox’ only hitting success.
August 17 – A broken thumb could cost CHA OF/1B Mike Allegood (.285, 7 HR, 57 RBI) the rest of the season.
August 21 – The Loggers pick up 2B/3B Travis Malkus (.264, 6 HR, 42 RBI) in a deal with the Blue Sox, who receive INF/LF/RF Alfredo Napoles (.300, 3 HR, 28 RBI).
August 22 – SAC SP Adam Messer (9-6, 3.64 ERA) will get cut up for Tommy John surgery after being diagnosed with a partially torn UCL and is expected to miss up to 12 months. *

FL Player of the Week: DAL LF/CF Juan del Toro (.347, 19 HR, 71 RBI), batting .500 (13-26) with 3 HR, 12 RBI
CL Player of the Week: ATL LF/RF/1B Billy Hester (.251, 13 HR, 58 RBI), swatting .375 (9-24) with 3 HR, 10 RBI

Complaints and stuff

Trying week. 3-3 (the Indians made up a game eventually), and in every game it seemed either the offense or the pitching was shoddy. The exception could have been Saturday, and then Bob Ibold chose to get outrammed in the ninth… Jerry Outram in this series? .357 with three homers and four RBI. Please don’t tell me he’s gonna be a ******* 23 again…!

Speaking of 23, Matt Waters reached that many dingers, which actually ties for the lead in the ABL right now, even with Sean Suggs of the Baybirds, who might yet go yard off our hickory staff in the CLCS if we can somehow hold off these Arrowheads. Suggs was also second in batting average in the CL, but was 18 RBI behind Danny Rivera and thus not really a triple crown threat going into September.

Gene Pellicano is still in AAA. He didn’t hit a lick in the majors this year, and after months in AAA, he’s still not hitting a lick there.

The team returns home for a 6-game homestand now. Monday will be off, and then it’s the Titans and Condors in our cozy four walls. We’ll go on the road after that, hitting Vegas and New York, with roster expansion hitting during the former series. Seven left with the Indians in September/October, so the division is still wide open.

Fun Fact: The Raccoons have four of the top 10 players in batting average in the CL.

But none in the top 5; Adame is sixth at .320, and Preble, Herrera, and Waters grab the last three spots in the top 10. Preble and Waters are 2nd and 4th in slugging, though, and Waters is also top 5 in OPS, WAR, and wOBA, whatever the heck that is.

More and more it looks like that 2040 trade with the Knights that sent the brittling Ryan Bedrosian and three other players over for Wheats and Waters was a *massive* W for the Raccoons.

Bedrosian won another ring before coming apart entirely, but with the 2042 Wolves. The two other established major leaguers in the deal were Rico Sanchez (who is still actively pitching) and Brad Ledford, a neat platoon outfielder that retired a few years back. The fourth player was an unranked, toss-in prospect, right-hander Willie Morales, who erred from town to town in the last eight years, but finally broke into the majors this year with the Titans at age 30. He’s 3-2 with a 3.41 ERA and six saves in 21 games (3 starts). He actually made his debut *against* the Coons on June 24, tossing a garbage inning in an 8-4 loss for the Titans.

+++

*Another pun for like two people; Messer means knife in German.

[Westheim]

The team returned back home after a medium-pleasant weekend trip to Elk City, but Monday was a day off for most of them. The city of Portland was launching a new PR campaign under its long-established “City of Roses” moniker at this time, and asked a variety of Portland-connected people for contributions. The Raccoons’ contribution would be to send a pair of its players, along with every other major league team in the city, for a photo shoot, where they had nothing more to do than to hold a rose and look not too disheveled. Sounded easy enough.

So there was two of our players – they were not picky about who, two batters, two pitchers, they didn’t care; we ended up sending Maldo and Bubba Wolinsky – along with two players from every other Portland team: the hoops Fail Chasers, the soccerball Lumbers, and the eggball Patriots.

Now hold a rose, boys, and don’t look like outright bandits!

In the end, though, the pictures came out less than ideal. There were six hoops, soccerball, and eggball players smiling over their rose in the picture, and on the left side there was Maldo salivating as he looked at his rose….. and Wolinsky with thick munching cheeks as he had already nommed off the rose bud and was lusting for more.

Raccoons (68-55) vs. Titans (60-64) – August 25-27, 2048

While the mayor called Nick Valdes to complain, and I pretended to be furniture when Maud wanted to put Nick Valdes’ call through to me, the Titans came to town, which was a welcome distraction after another PR disaster. The Titans meanwhile were tenth in runs scored, sixth in runs allowed, and had a -36 run differential, but if they turned their fortunes against the Raccoons around pronto – we were up 9-3 on them for the year – they still had a slight chance, somehow, to win the division. Their biggest issue was their bullpen, which somehow had an ERA a full TWO runs worse than the resilient rotation…

Projected matchups:
Victor Merino (10-8, 3.67 ERA) vs. Kyle Turay (11-9, 3.10 ERA)
Jake Jackson (6-11, 3.97 ERA) vs. Victor Mondragon (11-7, 2.75 ERA)
Jeremy Baker (8-5, 3.76 ERA) vs. Tony Ruiz (8-7, 3.03 ERA)

Two right-handers and a lefty to try and score off.

Game 1
BOS: 3B Massey – C W. Gardner – RF C. Jimenez – CF T. Lopez – 1B Haertling – 2B Galaz – LF C. Vega – SS T. Thompson – P Turay
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – P Merino

Portland took an early lead with two outs in the bottom 1st; both Maldo and Preble singled through the right side, while Matt Waters then cranked a homer to right-center for a quick 3-0 lead. Better yet, Waters romped another one, a 2-out, 2-run homer to right in the bottom 3rd that brought in Alex Adame, 5-0! Almost as good, Victor Merino shed only two hits in five innings, although he had also only one strikeout; but he kept the Titans off the scoreboard, which at the end of the day would – fun fact – be the only determinant for the distribution of wins and losses. Waters’ third time at-bat was not as successful, hitting to second base to get Preble forced out, but he then stole second base instead, and eventually scored on a 2-out single by Bryce Toohey.

Merino lost his shutout in the seventh, giving up leadoff hits to Chris Jimenez and Tony Lopez, and eventually allowed a run on a groundout, but he wouldn’t have made it through nine on accounts of an elevated pitch count anyway. He was hit for to begin the bottom 7th, Armando Herrera doubling in his place. He advanced on Watt’s groundout, and scored on Adame’s sac fly to Carlos Vega. The inning continued, with the Titans’ Tommy Griffith giving up two more runs on a Maldo single and a Preble homer, the 20th for Mike Preble on the year, and the seventh since being acquired from the Aces. Both Maldo and Preble were replaced after the inning, with Coen and Glodowski taking over. Pitching in turn was taken over by Bob Ibold and Jake Bonnie; neither was perfect in their innings, but they also didn’t allow any runs to the Titans to close out the power romp. 9-1 Raccoons. Maldonado 2-4; Preble 3-4, HR, 2 RBI; Waters 2-4, 2 HR, 5 RBI; Herrera (PH) 1-1, 2B; Wilson (PH) 1-1; Merino 7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, W (11-8);

Game 2
BOS: 3B Massey – SS C. Jimenez – 1B Haertling – CF T. Lopez – C W. Gardner – 2B Galaz – RF L. Estrada – LF Mangual – P Mondragon
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C Wilson – LF Watt – P Jackson

Preble hit a leadoff jack in the second for the only run in the early innings. While Watt and Adame reached base in the third, Herrera grounded out and Maldonado popped out to strand those runners. Jackson meanwhile issued no hits the first time through, but by the time Gerardo Galaz broke into the H column with a double in the fourth, he already issued four walks – including two in the inning to Ed Haertling and Tony Lopez, both of whom scored to flip the score to 2-1 Titans. Galaz was stranded, while the Coons opened the bottom 4th with Preble and Waters singles, only for Gurney to hit into a double play and Wilson to strike out.

Through five, the Coons out-hit the Titans 6-1, but still trailed 2-1. Tony Lopez hit a leadoff double to right in the sixth, and Wade Gardner chased Jackson with a 2-run homer well up the rightfield stands. Preble hit a leadoff double in the bottom 6th, but was stranded with a Waters groundout, Gurney whiffing, and Wilson’s groundout. The Titans then hung two more on Joy-shan Kuo in the seventh; Kuo had followed Jackson after the Gardner home run, but then walked the first two batters in the seventh, Chris Jimenez and Ed Haertling. Preston Porter came on, allowed two singles, and both runs to score, and that game was pretty much in the bin by then. Bottom 8th, the Titans’ Willie Morales got two outs, then snapped and walked the bags full with the 5-6-7 batters. Right-hander Bryan McDuffie came on, and the Coons rolled the dice and sent Toohey to bat for the soft-hitting Watt, betting on one big whack to get the team back into the game. Toohey popped out with the count at 1-2, and that was that. 6-1 Titans. Adame 3-5, 2B; Preble 3-4, HR, 2B, RBI; Waters 2-4;

Well, we kept out-hitting them. 9-7.

They ain’t giving out no wins for that, though!

Game 3
BOS: LF C. Vega – C W. Gardner – RF C. Jimenez – CF T. Lopez – 1B Haertling – 2B Galaz – 3B J. Rodriguez – SS T. Thompson – P T. Ruiz
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Glodowski – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – P Baker

Tony Ruiz entered on 90 each in walks and strikeouts, walked Maldo and Preble in the first, but then struck out Waters to keep those on. Baker also put runners on base without discriminating much; he allowed three hits and two walks in the first three innings, but no runs. Twice the Titans had a runner on third with one out, but each time Baker got in a K to the next batter, Jose Rodriguez in the second and Tony Lopez in the third.

Nobody scored until the fifth, when the Raccoons scratched Ruiz for 2-out singles by Herrera and Maldonado. Preble didn’t wait around and ripped away at the first pitch he got, hitting it 383 feet to left for a 3-run homer. That seemed to be all that Baker needed (and all that he got) while pitching seven shutout innings, but with his stamina being on the low end anyway, he would go no further after 98 mostly pretty fine pitches. Ruiz, allowing five hits through six, was still going in the bottom 7th, but appeared to melt. Adame singled but was caught stealing, yet Herrera singled, Maldo walked, and Preble hit an RBI single to center. Waters was walked intentionally, and while Ruiz had yet to retire anybody through a contribution by himself, the bags were now loaded with one gone. Matt Glodowski hit a sac fly to right for a tack-on run, but the badly slumping Toohey was rung up. Toohey did contribute on defense, ironically, making a leaping grab on a Tony Lopez liner in the top 8th and stepped on first base to double off Jimenez to end the inning, just when Bob Ibold tried to make it interesting by putting two aboard with one out. The Coons would put Gonzalez, Coen, and Adame on base with nobody out in the bottom 8th. Herrera hit a 2-run single off McDuffie, which was the only countable event in the inning before McDuffie staggered out of the jam. 7-0 Raccoons. Adame 3-5; Herrera 3-5, 2 RBI; Preble 2-4, BB, 2 HR, 4 RBI; Gonzalez 1-2, 2 BB; Coen (PH) 1-1; Baker 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K, W (9-5);

We made up a game on the Indians during this series, as they lost two of three to the Crusaders. They had the Knights to contend with on the weekend, now 3 1/2 back, while the Raccoons got the Condors in.

Raccoons (70-56) vs. Condors (60-66) – August 28-30, 2048

The Condors were 28 1/2 games out in the CL South, which meant they had been playing out the string for at least a month now, had lost seven games in a row now, and also had lost all six games against the Portlanders this year. They were ninth in runs scored, second in runs allowed, and after seeing (not much of) the worst pen in the league with the Titans, the Condors presented the best pen in the league to us, with a 2.95 ERA.

Projected matchups:
Jason Wheatley (11-5, 3.59 ERA) vs. Kellen Lanning (14-7, 3.06 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (4-2, 3.51 ERA) vs. Matt Weber (6-10, 4.26 ERA)
Victor Merino (11-8, 3.56 ERA) vs. Jason Jacobs (6-10, 4.26 ERA)

Only right-handers in the Condors’ rotation; and yes, the rookie Weber and Jacobs were not even coming in with the same record and ERA, but also the same amount of innings pitched, 129 apiece.

Game 1
TIJ: 2B C. Navarro – CF Blackburn – SS Aparicio – C Mittleider – RF Tortora – LF M. Gray – 3B Ottinger – 1B Austin – P Lanning
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C Wilson – LF Watt – P Wheatley

Wheats unfortunately had absolutely nothing, which was atypical for the second half of the year. Chris Navarro’s double and singles by Brian Blackburn and Jon Mittleider amounted to one run in the first, and the top of the order roasted him further in the third, which began when a Maldo error put Navarro on base again. Blackburn singled, Tony Aparicio walked, and there were three on with nobody out. Mittleider hit a comebacker for a force out at home plate, but Cullen Tortora’s bloop single scored a run after that. Mike Gray kindly hit into a 4-6-3 double play to help Wheats out of the mess. While Wheatley threw 55 pitches through three innings and looked soul-searching in the dugout between innings, Lanning faced the minimum the first time through.

The middle innings were less awful for Wheatley, who allowed no more hits and just one walk before bumping into triple digit pitches at the completion of six. The Raccoons finally broke up Lanning’s no-hitter with a 1-out double by Matt Watt in the bottom 6th, after which Robinson batted for Wheats, but struck out. Adame clipped an RBI single to right, 2-1, but Herrera grounded out. Top 7th, Preston Porter allowed a leadoff single to Navarro, the CL’s stole base leader, who was then caught stealing by Jeff Wilson. Porter walked PH Ethan Moore in the #2 hole, with Moore thrown out at home plate by Watt on Tony Aparicio’s double to left. Somehow, Porter got out of the inning without allowing a run on a Mittleider popout. Maldo drew a leadoff walk in the bottom 7th, but was doubled off by Preble. Waters whacked a double, but Gurney grounded out. (groans!) The Coons went 1-2-3, then used Nelson Moreno – who had been idle for the entire Boston series – in a 2-1 loss in the top 9th to keep the Condors close. Right-hander Javy Santana was on the mound for the bottom 9th, trying to put away the Critters, who were stuck on three base hits. The top of the order was up, with Adame hitting a single to left to put the tying run – and 35 stolen bags to Navarro’s 44 – on base. He didn’t get a steal off, but took second on a long Herrera fly to left, which apparently surprised Mike Gray. Maldo grounded out to move Adame to third, and Preble grounded out to lose the ballgame. 2-1 Condors. Adame 2-4, RBI;

Game 2
TIJ: 2B C. Navarro – RF Tortora – SS Aparicio – C Mittleider – CF Blackburn – LF M. Gray – 3B Ottinger – 1B Austin – P Weber
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – SS Waters – 2B Gurney – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – P Wolinsky

Preble whacked his third longball of the week, a 2-piece that picked up Matt Watt in the bottom of the first on Saturday. And maybe we could even get the kids on the struggle bus – Toohey and Gonzalez – unclogged. For a nice start, the two combined for a single and another 2-run homer in the bottom 2nd, putting Bubba ahead 4-0. An Aparicio double and a Blackburn single would get the Condors on the board with a run in the top 4th, but the Coons counterattacked with a Waters double and Toohey’s RBI single in the same inning, 5-1.

Weber was hit for in the fifth inning, in which Ethan Moore walked in his spot, Navarro singled and was forced out by a Tortora grounder, and with two outs and runners on the corners Aparicio bashed a high fly to left that sounded like a homer, but it died just short of reaching the great black void and then dropped into Watt’s mitten on the warning track, ending the inning. Runners – Blackburn and Gray – were on the corners again in the sixth, and now Reed Ottinger hit a drive to deep center. Herrera caught that one, but it was good enough for a sac fly, 5-2. Wolinsky walked Tom Austin, then rung up the tying run, PH Benito Mendoza.

Bubba went six and two thirds before being lifted for Ibold after 105 pitches, with Ibold and Ben Coen entering in a double switch; Coen went to *second*, with Gurney going to first, and Toohey going to dinner. While Ibold would get four outs, Armando Herrera hit a 2-piece in the bottom 7th to create some additional distance. The Coons then put three on with nobody out in the bottom 8th against Ramon Montes de Oca, a right-handed rookie,

and Chris Robinson batted for Ibold in that spot, hitting a deep drive to center that somehow ended up with Blackburn, holding Robinson to a sac fly. Leonardo Ramos replaced Montes, but gave up an RBI single to Gonzalez before getting out of the mess. Hitchcock pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to put the game to bed. 9-2 Critters. Toohey 2-3, RBI; Gonzalez 2-4, HR, 3 RBI;

Game 3
TIJ: 2B C. Navarro – RF Tortora – SS Aparicio – CF Blackburn – LF M. Gray – 3B Ottinger – C Robbinson – 1B Austin – P Jacobs
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 2B Waters – LF Preble – RF Robinson – 1B Toohey – C Wilson – 3B Coen – P Merino

Ryan Robbinson dropped the baseball when Adame and Herrera, who had both singled, went off on a double steal in the bottom 1st, so both runners reached scoring position unmolested. Waters struck out, but a Preble single and Chris Robinson sac fly brought in both of the runners for a 2-0 lead. Reed Ottinger stole second after drawing a walk in the top 2nd and was singled home by Robbinson, so this was going both ways. – I know, Slappy, I know. That guy should be drawing walks, if anything…!

Waters hit a solo blast in the third, and Robinson singled home Herrera in the fifth, extending the lead to 4-1 through five innings, while Merino was nursing a 2-hitter, albeit with three walks against him and up to 84 pitches already, so he, too, would not last the distance. He issued another leadoff walk in the sixth to Tortora, but turned Aparicio’s comebacker for a double play afterwards. Blackburn struck out to complete six. Wilson opened the bottom 6th with a single to left, but was forced out by Ben Coen. Merino bunted Coen to second, and Adame singled him all the way home, 5-1. Herrera walked, but Waters popped out to short to end the inning. Merino would complete seven, and Porter allowed two singles in the eighth before getting dug out by Kuo. Bonnie got the ninth, walked the leadoff man Blackburn, then struck out the next three to take the series. 5-1 Raccoons. Adame 2-4, RBI; Herrera 2-3, BB; Preble 2-4, RBI; Wilson 2-4; Coen 1-2, BB; Merino 7.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, W (12-8);

In other news

August 24 – With a single against the Scorpions in a 6-4 Gold Sox loss, DEN INF Ronnie Thompson (.286, 0 HR, 32 RBI) has a 20-game hitting streak going.
August 24 – The Knights lose 3B/SS/LF/CF Anton Venegas (.349, 3 HR, 49 RBI) for the rest of the season due to a strained oblique. Ironically, this might win him the batting title race, which he is leading by 17 points at this stage, with a sufficient amount of plate appearances to his name already.
August 26 – The Capitals have only three hits against the Buffaloes, but one of them is a homer by 1B Sterling Henderson (.289, 9 HR, 70 RBI), and that is enough to win a 1-0 ballgame.
August 27 – DEN SP Josh Brown (12-9, 4.43 ERA) needs to have bone chips scratched out of his elbow, ending his season.
August 28 – Crusaders and Aces go to extra innings in a scoreless game before NYC LF/CF Kevin Burch (.295, 4 HR, 20 RBI) lifts a home run to decide the game, 1-0 in favor of the Crusaders.
August 28 – Could be season over for VAN C Julio Diaz (.266, 11 HR, 54 RBI) as well; the 26-year-old was out with a strained hamstring.
August 29 – The Bayhawks have one of the weirder meltdowns in a 2-1 walkoff loss to the Canadiens. SFB CL Jeremy Mayhall (4-5, 3.06 ERA, 9 SV) first has a runner put on base by an error by Sergio Quiroz, then with two outs walks the Elks’ Nick DeMarco (.281, 6 HR, 51 RBI) and ends the game by hitting consecutive batters, Ismael Jaramillo (.289, 2 HR, 26 RBI) and Jesus Burgos (.268, 7 HR, 33 RBI).
August 29 – Three teams score precisely 14 runs on Saturday, with the Falcons beating the Titans 14-8, the Blue Sox routing the Stars 14-1, and the Rebels downing the Warriors, also by the score of 14-8.
August 30 – SAC LF/RF/1B Nate Culp (.284, 20 HR, 55 RBI) will need two weeks of rest for a herniated disc in his back.

FL Player of the Week: RIC OF/1B Gil Cabrera (.327, 5 HR, 62 RBI), batting .478 (11-23) with 1 HR, 8 RBI
CL Player of the Week: POR LF/RF Mike Preble (.323, 23 HR, 70 RBI), going off for .478 (11-23) with 4 HR, 10 RBI

Complaints and stuff

With four homers this week, a Player of the Week title came Mike Preble’s way. Preble is now hitting .350 with 10 homers in 120 at-bats with the Critters. OPS of 1.043! He’s the only acquisition that has another year on his contract, too, so that is one motivation to try and keep the dynasty going one more year although there are visible cracks in Maldo and Toohey now and the pitching needs some revamps, never mind that the Baybirds look three sizes too big right now.

Indy had two wins and a rainout against the Knights, with no date available to make that game up until *after* the nominal final day of the season. Speaking of the Indians, the BNN postseason predictions weren’t out yet, but maybe it wouldn’t hurt to look at the remaining program for those two teams:

POR (72-57) – IND (7), NYC (7), VAN (4), BOS (3), LVA (3), MIL (3), OCT (3), SFB (3)
IND (69-60) – MIL (7), POR (7), BOS (3), CHA (3), NYC (3), OCT (3), SFB (3), VAN (3), ATL (1)

Seven left with the Loggers might be a little advantage for the Arrowheads. Nobody else within ten games right now, so it might be a two-horse race after all.

Derek Baskins came off the DL on the weekend, but was sent on a rehab assignment to AAA first, a cheap cheat to have an additional eligible player come the time for playoff roster considerations. Baskins would be back on Tuesday, when rosters would expand.

We will visit the Aces and Crusaders next week.

Fun Fact: The Raccoons have still never gone 9-0 against a CL South team for an entire season.

The complete and exhaustive list of CL South teams the Raccoons went 8-1 against:

1986 Bayhawks
1989 Thunder
1991 Thunder ^
1995 Knights
1996 Knights
2007 Aces
2007 Knights
2016 Falcons
2018 Bayhawks ^
2019 Knights ^
2024 Bayhawks *
2026 Aces ^
2026 Falcons
2027 Thunder
2037 Thunder
2039 Bayhawks *^
2040 Bayhawks
2048 Condors

*Raccoons posted a losing season
^CL South team posted a winning season

[Westheim]

Raccoons (72-57) @ Aces (59-70) – August 31-September 2, 2048

Long out in the South that was getting crushed by the Bayhawks, the Aces awaited the final games against the Raccoons while sitting sixth in runs scored and ninth in runs allowed, with a -29 run differential (Critters: +71). The season series was even at three. Rosters would expand on Tuesday, in time for the second game in the series.

Projected matchups:
Jake Jackson (6-12, 4.07 ERA) vs. Pablo Paez (10-9, 4.16 ERA)
Jeremy Baker (9-5, 3.55 ERA) vs. Marty Madera (6-16, 5.10 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (11-6, 3.56 ERA) vs. B.J. Brantley (11-11, 3.60 ERA)

As things were, we’d see two right-handers and a left-hander, but they could of course shake things up by Tuesday. In any case, Sadaharu Okuda (8-4, 4.14 ERA) was not an option, as he had pitched on Sunday. Since we had traded him to Vegas, he had gone 2-2 with a 3.56 ERA.

Game 1
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – P Jackson
LVA: CF Cramer – 2B Landstrom – C Weese – 1B Witherspoon – RF A. Austin – SS E. Luna – LF Garbutt – 3B V. Fernandez – P Paez

Alex Adame reached a 12-game hitting streak with a double to left in the first inning, but was also thrown out at home on a Preble single to end the inning. Brent Cramer got the outfield assist, but had the favor returned to him in the third inning, trying to go first-to-third on a Josh Landstrom single, and was then thrown out by Matt Watt. The game remained scoreless through three, despite Jake Jackson’s best attempts to get blown out of the ballpark. The Aces consistently made solid contact off him, but were held to three base hits by the Raccoons’ defense. There was no defending the moonshot Sam Witherspoon bashed to open the bottom 4th, though, which gave Vegas a 1-0 lead, and various failures, including a Toohey error, but mostly ****** pitching, then loaded the bases with the next three batters as Aubrey Austin, Eddy Luna, and Cole Garbutt all reached, and Victor Fernandez singled home a pair with a looper over Adame at short, 3-0. Paez’ bunt and two groundouts to corner infielders then ended the inning without any more runs scoring, but if anyone asked me whether I was kinda relieved that Jake Jackson’s contract was up, I wouldn’t be able to lie about it…

Jackson was hit for in the top 5th with three on and nobody out, Chris Robinson having walked and Ruben Gonzalez having singled to left. Toohey had reached on an error by Luna – which was the second time in the game he hit a double play ball to Luna and Luna fudged it. Gurney batted for Jackson, but struck out, and the Coons only got a run on Watt’s grounder to Witherspoon. Adame grounded out to Landstrom to end the inning with the tying runs still aboard. Waters singled in the sixth and was stranded, and in the seventh Glodowski and Watt dropped 2-out singles, but Jon Craig – the ex-Coon, a.k.a. the white one – got the third out from Adame. While nobody reached in the eighth for the Critters and the pen held up after taking over from a terrible Jake Jackson, the top 9th began with a Robison single off right-hander David Williams, promoting the tying run back to the plate. At his third attempt, Bryce Toohey finally hit into that double play he had trying to get so hard all day, and Gonzalez grounded out to Landstrom, too. 3-1 Aces. Robinson 2-3, BB; Glodowski (PH) 1-1;

With that sad loss (but the Indians also lost and we remained up by three) the month of September was reached. The Raccoons wanted to see some more of Victor Salcido, a bright young pitching prospect in AAA that had gotten a spot start earlier in the season, but not necessarily in the thick of the division race. He’d remain in AAA until that season finished. We did bring up a pair of right-handed relievers that was on the 40-man roster anyway and had been up in prior years already in Adam Bates (2.45 ERA in St. Pete) and Danny Cancel (3.97 ERA). We also added a left-hander, not that we needed left-handers, but Steve Richardson had been very impressive in AAA in his age 23 season, posting a 1.71 ERA and four strikeouts for every walk (although he had missed some time on the DL). Richardson had been an 11th-rounder for the Wolves in ’44, had been released, and fished out of the Willamette as he washed down the river two years ago.

Kevin Prow returned as the third catcher, not that anybody was hot to see him again. Derek Baskins was added off his rehab assignment, and the final call-up for the time being went to Josh Floyd. No hot prospects there, nor Gene Pellicano, who continued to hit absolutely nothing in AAA.

Game 2
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – LF Baskins – C Gonzalez – P Baker
LVA: LF Stern – 1B Blair – C Weese – RF A. Austin – CF Cramer – 2B A. Rodriguez – 3B E. Serrano – SS E. Luna – P Madera

Freshly-anointed CL Hitter of the Month Mike Preble opened the second inning with a single, Waters walked, and Baskins’ sac fly to right gave the Raccoons a 1-0 lead. Baker retired the first seven Aces, then got torn up in the bottom 3rd. He walked Eddy Luna, and Rusty Stern flipped the score with a homer to left. After that, another three Aces reached with two outs, costing another run, before Brent Cramer finally grounded out to Gurney, putting the Raccoons in another 3-1 hole. Once more they didn’t look like the Raccoons could emerge from that, or from anything else than the fridge after they had closed its door behind their furry tushes. It took until the sixth to get Herrera and Waters on with two singles, but Gurney then flew out to Cramer. Baker surrendered another run that inning on an Edgar Serrano triple, the last one he participated in, leaving after six innings with a 4-1 rock around his neck.

Baskins tripled to open the top 7th, which was at least *something*. Gonzalez struck out, Robinson grounded out as pinch-hitter, but at least got the run home, and the inning died a quick death after that. Nobody reached in the eighth for either team, and Williams put Waters, Gurney, and Baskins away in order to win the season series for the Aces. 4-2 Aces.

The good news? The Indians kept losing, too. The bad news? The damn Elks were within ten again.

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 1B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – C Wilson – RF Glodowski – 3B Coen – P Wheatley
LVA: CF Cramer – 2B Landstrom – C Weese – 1B Witherspoon – RF A. Austin – SS E. Luna – LF Garbutt – 3B V. Fernandez – P Brantley

While the Raccoons were retired in order the first time through, Wheats only shed a single to Landstrom while whiffing three in the first three innings. Brantley continued a perfect run into the fifth inning, when Waters caught up with a hanger and belted it for his 27th homer of the season, which made it 1-0 Critters. Wheats tried to make work what little the offense would give him. He gave up doubles in the fifth (to Cole Garbutt) and sixth (to Cramer), but each time stranded the runner at third base to protect the 1-0 lead. Waters narrowly missed another homer to left in the seventh, ending the inning by flying out to Garbutt on the warning track, while Wheats maintained a 3-hitter with six strikeouts through seven. He might have had enough for a shutout, but when his spot came up in the eighth with Glodowski on second (after forcing out Jeff Wilson, who had hit a leadoff single) and two outs, the Raccoons went for the pinch-hitter. Ruben Gonzalez flew out to Garbutt…

Mike Lynn retired the 7-8-9 batters in order in the bottom 8th, keeping the 1-0 lead together. Brantley was still pitching in the ninth, giving up a leadoff single to Adame and plunking Herrera. That brought up Maldonado – in a spectacular 1-for-26 slump, but with only TWO strikeouts, so he was DEFINITELY due a big thump, because that was how baseball worked, right? 0-1 count, a zinger slapped to left and up the line there, bang, 2-run double…! Preble was walked intentionally, which was such a dubious move with Matt Waters leading the world in home runs – and he made Brantley cry all the way home when he hit a 3-run crusher to left-center; no doubt about it, gone! Up 6-0, the Raccoons would give the ball to debutee Steve Richardson in the bottom 9th, although Nelson Moreno kept himself warm, just in case. Brent Cramer opened the inning with a single, while Landstrom flew out to Baskins in left. Baskins took a wild tumble, then flapped his wing awkwardly and drew the attention of Dr. Padilla, who eventually lifted him from the game after he had just entered it pinch-hitting in the top of the frame. Matt Watt was to fill in. Richardson then got a fly to right from Kevin Weese and a pop to short from Sam Witherspoon to complete the game. 6-0 Critters. Adame 2-4; Waters 2-4, 2 HR, 4 RBI; Wheatley 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K, W (12-6);

This game brought about mathematical elimination for the Aces, but I think they saw it coming.

The Indians continued to match our result every day of the midweek series as they lost two of three to the Falcons, and would continue to do so on Thursday, which was off for both prime contenders in the North. We went to New York after that, while they were in Milwaukee for the weekend.

Derek Baskins was diagnosed with a shoulder subluxation that would definitely keep him out of games for about a week, but was not sent back to the DL, nor did we bring up another player.

Raccoons (73-59) @ Crusaders (62-71) – September 4-6, 2048

New York was the new Boston for the Raccoons, who had gone a staggering 3-8 against the mediocre Crusaders this year. Nothing was going right when playing against them. New York had lost four in a row, they were bottoms in runs scored, batting average, and a million other offensive metrics, and merely seventh in runs allowed, with a -97 run differential, but while they scored a paltry 3.5 runs per game overall this year, against Portland they cranked it up to … 4.2 runs per game. No, really, it might be *us* that’s the problem here…

Projected matchups:
Bubba Wolinsky (5-2, 3.44 ERA) vs. Jim White (12-10, 3.12 ERA)
Victor Merino (12-8, 3.45 ERA) vs. Jeff Johnson (10-17, 4.04 ERA)
Jake Jackson (6-13, 4.08 ERA) vs. Tony Negrete (4-5, 3.95 ERA)

Southpaw Sunday with ex-Coon Tony Negrete? Him or Mike Zeigler (14-6, 3.06 ERA) were lefty options for the series. They had some significant DL occupancy, with Carlos Malla, Phil Rogers, Bob Nelson, and Danny Rico all gone.

Game 1
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – CF Herrera – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – P Wolinsky
NYC: 2B R. Martinez – 3B Critzer – SS Gates – 1B Yamamoto – C O. Ramirez – RF C. Cortes – LF Garris – CF MacLeod – P J. White

While Ricardo Martinez’ leadoff double to left in the bottom 1st quickly became a run on two productive outs by Brad Critzer and Prince Gates, the Raccoons saw Adame get on base with a single, steal second, and get stranded in the first, and Waters reach base with a walk, steal second, and get stranded in the second. Maldo and Preble opened the fourth with a pair of singles. Maldo was sent for home when Waters singled to center, but was thrown out by David MacLeod. Preble and Waters went into scoring position, but something in me preferred second and third with one out to three on, no outs anyway….. Herrera hit a sac fly, Gurney hit an RBI single, and Portland took a 2-1 lead…! And that’s why!

The lead lasted about five minutes. Omar Ramirez opened the bottom 4th with a bloop single, Carlos Cortes also singled, and the Crusaders inched the tying run around with two groundouts, MacLeod tying it up at two. Top 6th, Maldo and Preble opened another inning with singles, going to the corners this time. Waters hit a comebacker that forced out Preble, then was picked off first base himself as I began to despair of the team as a whole again. White dinked Herrera, but Gurney flew out to center on a 3-1 pitch to strand a displeased Maldo at third base. Wolinsky went six on just over 100 pitches, getting a no-decision for his bothers. Chris Robinson singled in his spot in the top 7th, but was doubled up by Matt Watt’s grounder to short.

Bob Ibold pitched four outs without allowing a base runner, then yielded to Kuo in the bottom 8th. Kuo retired Omar Ramirez, but Cortes singled off him. When Scott Bayless batted for the left-handed hitting Josh Garris, the Raccoons went to Hitchcock, who allowed singles to both Bayless and Adrian Tinoco, then got Waters to handle a Dave Hernandez grounder to strand the bases loaded in the 2-2 game… Waters would get on base to begin the top 9th against Julian Ponce. Toohey walked in Gurney’s spot against the left-hander, but Gonzalez tumbled into a double play to kill the effort as I was getting increasingly annoyed by their inability to play a .450 team. Jake Bonnie moved the game to extras, where Josh Floyd began the 10th by hitting for him and singling off Ponce, livening up that .100 batting average of his. Ponce walked Watt, then ran another full count to Adame, who clipped an RBI single to left to break the tie that had persisted since the fourth inning. Maldo walked, Preble whiffed, Waters hit a sac fly, and Herrera popped out to end the inning. Nelson Moreno put the game away after that. 4-2 Raccoons. Adame 2-5, RBI; Maldonado 2-4, BB; Preble 2-5; Waters 2-3, BB, RBI; Gurney 1-2, RBI; Robinson (PH) 1-1; Floyd (PH) 1-1;

11 base hits, all singles, which always makes for gooey scoring…

Game 2
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Gurney – C Wilson – P Merino
NYC: 2B R. Martinez – 3B Critzer – SS Gates – 1B Yamamoto – C O. Ramirez – RF C. Cortes – LF Garris – CF Burch – P J. Johnson

Maybe, just maybe, Maldo’s weeklong death slump was over – he singled home Watt for a first-inning run on Saturday at least. Merino was up against a mostly right-handed lineup, though, and that was always a source of concern. He retired the Crusaders 1-2-3 in the first, but Shuta Yamamoto, another ex-Coon always lusting for revenge, doubled to left to begin the bottom 2nd. Omar Ramirez’ grounder moved him to third, and he went for home when Cortes flew out to center – but was thrown out at the plate by Matt Watt. Huzzah! Yamamoto however still tied the game at one, just from the other end of the stick; Merino faced the minimum through three, but gave up hard singles to Martinez and Critzer to begin the bottom 4th. Gates hit into a double play, but Yamamoto singled home Martinez from third base to tie the contest.

A few innings of nothing followed, Merino and Johnson both retiring almost everything that came up against them until the eighth. Watt got on base by walking in a full count with one out. Adame grounded out, moving him to second, and Maldo came through again with another RBI single, 2-1…! Maldo, somewhat hyperactively, then stole second base, just before Mike Preble unloaded for a homer to right-center, 4-1! Merino went back to the mound, but was ticked for a single by Kevin Burch and, with two gone, for an RBI double by Martinez. Preston Porter replaced him after that, getting out of the inning with a single pitch on which Critzer grounded out to Maldo.

Robinson drew a walk against Jeff Frank to begin the ninth, then reached third base on Gurney’s single to right. Wilson grounded out, advancing Gurney to second, but Robinson was shooed back to his base by Ramirez before he threw to first for the inning’s initial out. Armando Herrera batted for Porter, but was waved straight on base to load them up and set up a double play opportunity. Too bad that Frank also walked Watt to force in a run, plated another run with a wild pitch, and eventually refilled the bags by nicking Maldonado. Preble gave him the appropriate punishment for his multiple transgressions, hitting a long one to right – GRAAAAAAAAAAAAND SLAAAAAAAAAMMMMM!!!!

Waters would hit another single after that before the inning fizzled out. Danny Cancel then got the ball for his season debut in the bottom 9th, with two pops and a grounder putting the Crusaders away for the night. 10-2 Critters! Maldonado 2-4, 2 RBI; Preble 2-4, 2 HR, 6 RBI; Merino 7.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, W (13-8);

For the first time all week, the Indians fell out of step, losing to the Loggers, 9-7. This gave us a 4-game lead heading into Sunday.

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 1B Maldonado – LF Preble – C Gonzalez – RF Toohey – 3B Coen – 2B Floyd – P Jackson
NYC: 2B R. Martinez – 3B Critzer – SS Gates – C O. Ramirez – 1B Yamamoto – LF Garris – RF Arens – CF Burch – P Negrete

Portland went up 1-0 in the first in unearned fashion getting singles from Herrera and Preble, and a error from Gates when Maldo tried to hit into an inning-ending double play. Gonzalez eventually succeeded where Maldo had faltered, 6-4-3. The Coons would waste more precious runners; Toohey and Coen got on in the second, but between the 8-9-1 hitters neither hits or runs would be forthcoming. Maldo doubled, Preble reached on an error by Burch, and Toohey walked, but then Coen grounded out to Critzer to strand the bases loaded in the third. At least Jackson seemed to hold up with the 1-0 lead, keeping the Crusaders off the board the first time through, and refusing to explode eve when a Floyd error put Ramirez on base with two outs in the bottom 4th. Yamamoto singled, but Jackson rung up Garris as he dipped his ERA into the threes again.

And the Coons? Preble and Gonzalez reached base with two outs in the fifth, but Toohey struck out. Next inning, Ben Coen led off with a single. Floyd made a poor out, and Jackson bunted the runner to second. A soft single by Adame put runners on the corners and also chased Negrete for right-hander Ryan Fentress, who failed to keep Adame tucked away at first – he stole his 38th base – and then conceded both runners on a 1-2 pitch to Herrera that was ticked to center for a single, 3-0! Herrera stole second, but Fentress got a K on Maldo with some help from the umpire to bugger out of the inning.

Cracks began to show in Jackson by the sixth as he walked Critzer and Ramirez. Yamamoto was up with two outs, and he had to get him out – after that were lefty bats, and Mike Lynn was up in the pen, ready to intervene in case of more shenanigans. No such things occurred, Yamamoto lobbing out to Adame to end the inning. That was the last out Jackson got despite returning in the bottom 7th. Garris and Ron Arens slapped singles, although by now it was Preston Porter that came in and surrendered both runs on a pinch-hit double by Adrian Tinoco, but at least kept the lead together, 3-2 after seven.

Omar Ramirez singled off Hitchcock in the bottom 8th to put the tying run aboard again. Hitchcock got a pop from Yamamoto, then left for Kuo to face Garris, but New York countered with the righty-hitting Bayless. He hit Kuo’s first pitch up the middle, but Adame was there and fired a zinger to first to end the inning. Preble and Gonzalez then reached against Ponce and were stranded when Toohey flew out in the top 9th. No cushion thus for Moreno – and after Dave Hernandez whiffed, both Burch and Angel Lara singled to center. Moreno got another K in on Martinez before Carlos Cortes pinch-hit for the pitcher in the #2 hole. Oh well, at least a righty prone to whiff. The game was gonna end one way or another with Cortes, I reasoned. And indeed, it did! … – with a homer to left. 5-3 Crusaders. Herrera 2-5, 2 RBI; Preble 3-5, RBI; Coen 2-4;

In other news

August 31 – The hitting streak of Denver’s Ronnie Thompson (.289, 0 HR, 34 RBI) reaches 25 games with a ninth-inning single in a 13-10 win over the Blue Sox. Thompson goes 1-for-3 in the game after walking in each of his first three plate appearances.
August 31 – A 5-run rally in the bottom 9th is capped by a walkoff grand slam by LAP OF Chaz Kokel (.246, 7 HR, 40 RBI). The third-year player gives the Pacifics a 9-7 win over the Buffaloes.
September 1 – SAC swingman Angel Velasquez (3-0, 3.72 ERA) throws a 3-hit shutout against the Capitals, Sacramento winning 6-0.
September 1 – Facing the Crusaders, September call-up SFB C Mike Jaros comes off the bench and hits a walkoff home run in the 15th inning, 9-8. It’s the 30-year-old Jaros’ first major-league at-bat of the season.
September 1 – The Cyclones are shut out by four Stars pitchers in a 3-0 loss despite putting out 12 base hits and a walk. They hit into a double play and strand the other 12 runners mercilessly.
September 2 – SFB SP Kevin Nolte (20-4, 1.74 ERA) 2-hits the Crusaders for a 2-0 shutout.
September 2 – The hitting streak of Denver’s Ronnie Thompson (.286, 0 HR, 34 RBI) ends at 26 games with an 0-for-4 appearance against the Blue Sox, who also win the game, 6-0, with a combined 1-hitter between SP Matt Sealock (9-10, 4.69 ERA) and two relievers.
September 4 – The Buffaloes put eight on the Blue Sox in the first two innings, blow it all in a 9-run third for Nashville, and then come back to win anyway, 14-12. TOP C Brett Banks (.266, 17 HR, 66 RBI) has two hits, a homer and a single, and drives home four in the game.

FL Player of the Week: SFW LF Mario Villa (.343, 6 HR, 64 RBI), being unretireable with a .696 clip (16-23) and 5 RBI
CL Player of the Week: SFB 2B/SS Sergio Quiroz (.289, 13 HR, 79 RBI), hitting .500 (14-28) with 2 HR, 9 RBI

FL Hitter of the Month: LAP 1B Larry Rodriguez (.297, 25 HR, 69 RBI), murdering pitchers with a line of .364, 13 HR, 34 RBI
CL Hitter of the Month: POR LF/RF Mike Preble (.322, 23 HR, 70 RBI), socking .376 with 10 HR, 26 RBI
FL Pitcher of the Month: RIC SP Zach Tubbs (17-4, 3.19 ERA), hurling to a 5-0 record with 3.09 ERA, 33 K
CL Pitcher of the Month: SFB SP Chih Ke (16-4, 2.36 ERA), tossing for a 6-0 record with 1.71 ERA, 37 K
FL Rookie of the Month: LAP 1B Larry Rodriguez (.297, 25 HR, 69 RBI), who took advantage of those pitchers not seeing it coming as he hit .364 with 13 HR, 34 RBI
CL Rookie of the Month: MIL INF Zach Suggs (.324, 6 HR, 23 RBI), hitting .395 with 5 HR, 15 RBI

Complaints and stuff

I looked up “playoff form” in the dictionary, and apparently going 3-3 against two losing teams isn’t it. The Indians returned to three games out with a 13-inning win over the Loggers, which was not great for them in terms of “it took a while”, but still beat watching a former Critter bury Nelson Moreno with a 3-run walkoff piece in the ******* slum that was New York City. The division very much remains up for grabs:

POR (75-60) – IND (7), NYC (4), VAN (4), BOS (3), MIL (3), OCT (3), SFB (3) – .511 – 74.7%
IND (72-63) – POR (7), MIL (4), BOS (3), NYC (3), OCT (3), SFB (3), VAN (3), ATL (1) – .513 – 25.3%

**** will come down in Portland starting on Monday when we’ll have the Arrowheads in for the first four of those seven head-to-head games. The other three? That’ll be the final weekend of the season. For now though it’s an 11-game homestand with the Indians, Loggers, and Crusaders. After that, nine on the road against the Baybirds, Thunder, and Titans, and then the last week with the damn Elks and Indians at home.

Fun Fact: Matt Waters needs another five bombs to enter the Coons’ single-season top 10 for homers.

Four would tie him with Al Martin and Rich Hereford for 10th:

1st – Troy Greenway (2038) – 42
t-2nd – Royce Green (1994) – 38
t-2nd – Hugo Mendoza (2020) – 38
t-4th – Tetsu Osanai (1989) – 35
t-4th – Ron Alston (2009) – 35
t-6th – Liam Wedemeyer (1996) – 33
t-6th – Luke Black (2008) – 33
t-6th – Hugo Mendoza (2021) – 33
t-6th – Justin Fowler (2037) – 33
t-10th – Al Martin (2002) – 32
t-10th – Rich Hereford (2028) – 32

Middle infielders among that group? Zilch.

Who else hit 28 or more in a year for the Critters?

t-12th – Testu Osanai (1986) – 31
t-12th – Mark Dawson (1988) – 31
t-12th – Luke Black (2007) – 31
t-12th – R.J. DeWeese (2016) – 31
t-16th – Al Martin (2003) – 30
t-16th – Bryce Toohey (2046) – 30
18th – Daniel Hall (1984) – 29
t-19th – Ben Simon (1979) – 28
t-19th – Jesus Maldonado (2045) – 28

So Waters‘ 28-homer season is only the 21st time a Raccoon has socked that many dingers. And while Preble has 25 dingers right now, he won’t join him on the list this year unless he has the month of months in September, since 13 of those 25 were hit for the Aces – one even *against* the Raccoons.

Fun Fact (Bonus Round): Right-handed former Raccoons relievers rank 1-2 in saves in both leagues.

This should come with an asterisk, since Josh Livingston made all but two of his appearances with the Critters as a starter, got on the snout, and was then shipped to Charlotte in the deal that principally got us Bryce Sparkes and a pennant in 2037. He has saved 296 games for an assortment of teams.

Josh Rella was of course the full time closer from mid-2042 through most of 2046 before falling out of favor. Livingston never saved a game as a Critter, but Rella ferried 175 wins across safely before being traded to the Rebels (and 40 more since) for … uh, Kevin Prow and Ed Crispin. Gotta bank on Crispin to not make that trade an L now… He hit .255 with 8 homers in Ham Lake this year.

Rico Sanchez was only here for half a season, had a bad half-season at that, and was then wrapped up in the Bedrosian-Waters-Wheatley deal to the Knights in 2040, so I have no complaints there. He saved 19 for the Critters, and blew and lost five each. He has a whopping 466 career saves, though.

Antonio Prieto was never the anointed closer for the Raccoons, but gobbled up a few here and there in his 7-year tenure ending in 2039, nipping a total of nine saves that way. He only became a full-time closer at age 31 with the Miners, and has since piled up another 252 of them.

[Westheim]

Raccoons (75-60) vs. Indians (72-63) – September 7-10, 2048

Despite leading the season series against the Arrowheads quite significantly, 8-3, the Raccoons were only ahead by three games going into this crucial series. Four games now, three to end the season. Hopefully with a division crown then! The Indians were third in runs scored and fifth in runs allowed with a +43 run differential (Coons: +81). They led the CL in bullpen ERA and stolen bases, with Andrew Russ being a principal contributor in the latter category, but the infielder was day-to-day with a mild oblique strain, which might yet slow him down on the bases. That was the only injury worth mentioning that bothered Indy right now.

Projected matchups:
Jeremy Baker (9-6, 3.66 ERA) vs. Alex Flores (0-0, 3.14 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (12-6, 3.42 ERA) vs. Brian Jackson (11-11, 3.87 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (5-2, 3.41 ERA) vs. Bill Drury (4-3, 2.33 ERA)
Victor Merino (13-8, 3.40 ERA) vs. Bill Nichol (11-12, 4.18 ERA)

Brian Jackson was the sole Indians left-hander up in the series, while the Raccoons’ sole Jackson, Jake, was not scheduled to pitch.

Game 1
IND: SS Russ – 1B de Castro – CF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 2B H. Acosta – 3B B. Anderson – RF A. Mendez – C N. Nunez – P A. Flores
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Gurney – LF Toohey – C Gonzalez – P Baker

Six singles were hit in the first inning, and three runs scored, but all the runs went to the Indians, who slapped Baker around for four hits through every conceivable hole on the infield, starting with Russ, who notably made no attempt for second base, which was much out of character. He didn’t need to, with Bill Quinteros, Danny Rivera, and Bobby Anderson all chipping in and piling on for a 3-0 lead. Pat Gurney hit a leadoff single in the bottom 2nd, after which Bryce Toohey cranked his first home run since *July* to cut the gap to a lone run. Ruben Gonzalez and Armando Herrera would reach the corners by the time there were two outs in the inning, but Anderson handled Maldonado’s grounder to end the inning.

Baker kept leaking hits, allowing nine in total, but no more runs. The defense helped drag him through, turning two double plays to get him through six innings without falling any further behind. At the same time the Raccoons also failed to get even and steadfastly kept him on a 3-2 hook. Gonzalez hit a leadoff single in the bottom 7th, with Baker already out of the game. He was run for by Glodowski, with Mike Preble batting for Adam Bates, who had pitched a scoreless top of the inning, but now mashed into a double play. Quinteros hit a solo home run off Mike Lynn in the eighth for an insurance run, while the Raccoons failed to get Flores – who made his first start of the season – out of the game or a full eight innings. Tommy Gardner was sent in to close out the 4-2 game in the ninth. Robinson struck out. Gurney grounded out. Toohey struck out. 4-2 Indians. Herrera 2-4; Gonzalez 2-3;

Shambolic.

Despite the Raccoons losing, the Loggers mathematically eliminated themselves with a loss against the Titans.

Game 2
IND: SS Russ – 1B de Castro – CF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 2B H. Acosta – 3B B. Anderson – RF A. Mendez – C Whitley – P B. Jackson
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – RF Glodowski – P Wheatley

Herrera singled, stole second, and scored on a Preble single to put the home team up 1-0 in the first on Tuesday. Herrera then was at the plate with two outs and the bags full in the bottom 2nd, as Jackson had lost command over his entire arsenal; in putting Gonzalez, Glodowski, and Adame on base, he had already issued two walks in the inning, and tossed ball four to Herrera, too, forcing in the game’s second run. He had Maldo at two strikes, then drilled him, 3-0. When Preble swung at the first pitch, I squealed and pressed Honeypaws’ soft belly onto my eyes, but Preble blooped a soft single into shallow center for another run. Waters grounded out to Alex de Castro to end the inning at 4-0. Wheats whiffed three against two singles the first time through, but found a tight spot with two outs in the top 3rd, conceding a double to de Castro before losing Quinteros in a full count. Danny Rivera flew out to Herrera, though, ending the inning, while Herrera came to bat with three on and two outs *again* in the bottom 3rd, with the same personnel on base, though this time a Bobby Anderson error was involved and the entire situation was unearned. Herrera grounded out on a 3-2 pitch, stranding three.

The Indians got a run off Wheats by the fifth, which began with a Dan Whitley double over Preble’s head in left. Russ hit a 1-out single to score the runner, 4-1, but still could not steal bases and was wrapped up in de Castro’s grounder to short for a 6-4-3 exit from the inning. Defensive shenanigans then cost two more runs (one earned) in the sixth. Rivera singled to right, while Hugo Acosta hit a floater to left-center, where Preble and Herrera should have had enough experience to pick a guy to pick the ball – but neither went for it and it dropped between them for an I’m-gonna-bite-a-chunk-outta-my-desk base hit that scored Rivera. Acosta then scored on a 2-out error by Waters on Angel Mendez’ grounder, and suddenly a 4-0 lead was scrubbed down to a single run. Whitley grounded out to end the inning.

But the Coons had a comeback in the bottom 6th – Herrera hit a 1-out double to left, Maldo whacked an RBI double to center, and that extended the score to 5-3 again. Preble was walked with intent, but Waters grinded out a walk the hard way, after which Jackson was lifted. Toohey drew a bases-loaded walk with right-hander Tan Brink replacing Jackson in the jam. Gonzalez grounded out, but plated another run, while Glodowski was walked intentionally to get to Wheats, who was already 0-for-3 with 5 LOB in the game and popped out to strand the Coons’ third three-set of the game in just six innings. Wheats turned in another 1-2-3 inning before being lifted against the notorious left-handed pair of Quinteros and Rivera in the eighth. Kuo got only half of them, but together with Hitchcock at least kept the Indians off the board. We then tried to sneak the ninth with Danny Cancel, which backfired quickly. Angel Mendez and Dan Whitley both singled, which in a 4-run game made for a save opportunity for Nelson Moreno, but also with nobody out. Steven Jennings popped out to Glodowski in shallow right, while Russ grounded to short for a force out at second base, but beat the throw to first. When Maldo snagged de Castro’s pop in foul ground, however, the Raccoons had successfully evened the series. 7-3 Critters. Herrera 3-4, BB, 2B, RBI; Maldonado 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI; Preble 2-3, 2 BB, 2 RBI; Glodowski 3-3, BB; Wheatley 7.0 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, W (13-6);

Game 3
IND: SS Russ – 1B de Castro – CF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 2B H. Acosta – 3B B. Anderson – RF A. Mendez – C N. Nunez – P Drury
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Gurney – LF Baskins – C Wilson – P Wolinsky

Once through either order, it was a 1-1 game, both runs being driven in by the doubling #7 hitters in the second inning. Mendez brought home Rivera with a double to right, while Baskins plated Robinson with a zinger to left-center. I remained nervous and kept twisting and twirling Honeypaws’ whiskers, and refused all of Maud’s offers of a piece of cake. Too nervous to eat – let me just have a Capt’n Coma with some laxatives in it so I can melt into the couch more easily…!

Adame doubled home Matt Watt to give Portland a 2-1 lead in the bottom 3rd, then scored when Matt Waters womped the living crap out of a curveball, hitting it almost out of the stadium in right-center…! That made it a 4-1 game, and Maldo singled home Adame, who had stolen his 39th bag, in the fourth to get to 5-1, while we were out-hitting the Arrowheads by precisely twice those amounts. The next two innings were uneventful, but Bobby Anderson’s double and Angel Mendez’ single with two outs in the seventh scored them Arrowheads another run, 5-2. I was rocking back and forth hard enough to make the couch wail and Slappy wobble along in the next seat over, and it didn’t get better when Wolinsky walked Ron Kurtz in the #9 hole to begin the eighth. That was the hook and exit stage right for him; Preston Porter retired the next two, with Lynn and Preble then entering in a double switch that removed Robinson for defense at the same time. Lynn hung a K on Quinteros to bow out of the eighth. Lynn also began the ninth with a chance for a save, given that the first two batters were Rivera, who grounded out, and the switch-hitter Acosta, who lived off right-handers, but snuck a triple into the gap and thus led to Lynn’s exit. Moreno came in, but gave up the run in a full count to Anderson, allowing a single to left. He did strike out Aaron Brayboy, whose pinch-hitting appearance as the tying run made me nauseous, and got Whitley to ground out to short to end the game. 5-3 Critters. Adame 3-4, 2B, RBI; Baskins 2-4, 2B, RBI; Wilson 2-4; Wolinsky 7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, W (6-2);

By Thursday, Al Martell rejoined the team from the DL.

Game 4
IND: SS Russ – 1B de Castro – CF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 2B H. Acosta – 3B B. Anderson – RF A. Mendez – C N. Nunez – P Nichol
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – LF Preble – 1B Gurney – RF Toohey – C Gonzalez – P Merino

Same lineup again for Indy? Booooring! Looooosers! (makes L sign on his forehead) Yes, I started the game already with plenty of happy juice in my veins, and probably hadn’t really stopped drinking from the day before. A win behind Merino in this game could be a tiny little indicator that the Raccoons would pull through, giving them a 5-game lead with 23 to play. But first they had to actually go out and do it, so, how did Merino plan to pitch us to that 5-game lead?

(sharply draws air in between rows of teeth)

The first was fine, but the second was a riot, and not in a good sense. Acosta hit another triple, and Merino balked him home, which was not that horrendous… yet. With two outs, Merino tossed eight straight balls to walk the 7-8 hitters, then gave up a 2-run double to Nichol, and another double to Russ, bringing home another three runs total for a 4-0 deficit. After a leadoff walk to Rivera, an infield single by Acosta, and an RBI single by Mendez, Merino was yanked in the third inning. Bob Ibold got a pop from Nick Nunez, then allowed a run on a 2-out single by the ******* opposing pitcher. Russ hit another RBI single. Well, Ibold had to get the final out here, he had been put in the #9 spot that would lead off the bottom 3rd in anticipation of a quick resolution to the Merino-sponsored jam in the top 3rd. That didn’t happen. Ibold allowed a ******* five 2-out singles in a row, conceded both of Merino’s runs and three of his own, and only then did Acosta ground out to Maldonado. It was now a 10-0 game, and Lynn, Moreno, and all the other meaningful relievers were changing into their eating clothes, since this game was going to be turned over to the September call-ups.

Cancel pitched a scoreless fourth, but was hit for with Chris Robinson when the Raccoons loaded the bases in the bottom of that inning, with one run already in when Gurney brought around Preble. Robinson at 3-2 grounded into a double play, so I unscrewed another bottle of Capt’n Coma, and that was that. Richardson was next out of the pen and got lit up for three runs, two earned, in the top 5th. Rivera homered to right for a 3-piece, but what was infuriating me even more was the leadoff single by Nichol. That ****** was now 3-for-3 in the game. The Raccoons were 3-for-too-much. Richardson allowed another run in the sixth, but at the very ******* least pitched three innings on sludge sweeping duty. I blew another fuse by the top 8th when Angel Mendez, after reaching against Adam Bates, stole second base with the Indians holding a ******* THIRTEEN-RUN LEAD. Although Maud managed to wrestle the blunderbuss from me, in my drunken stupor I still managed to phone down to the clubhouse and order a beanball on a priced hitter of theirs in the ninth. Bates failed even at that, only drilling Quinteros in the shoulder. The Indians did not seem to get any ideas there – they had just spent the last three-and-a-half hours watching inane and listless tossing by guys in brown hats. They just wanted to even the series and get the **** outta here. Which they did. 14-1 Indians. Gurney 2-4, RBI;

(sits with grim expression on the trusty brown couch, clutching a bat with impressive chew marks on the handle)

Raccoons (77-62) vs. Loggers (49-90) – September 11-13, 2048

Final series of the year against the Loggers, who had fully embraced the idea of losing a hundred once again. Second from the bottom in runs scored, absolute bottom in runs allowed – that was never a good combination. Despite that we were only a mild 9-6 against them this year.

Projected matchups:
Jake Jackson (6-13, 4.04 ERA) vs. Ruben Guzman (9-7, 3.61 ERA)
Jeremy Baker (9-7, 3.70 ERA) vs. Victor Padilla (11-14, 5.27 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (13-6, 3.39 ERA) vs. Ryan Clements (1-0, 3.24 ERA)

Padilla was the only left-hander here, while Clements was the worst sort – a 29-year-old rookie with only 16.2 innings in the majors. That spelled like a 2-hit shutout for the Loggers there…

Before we could get through Sunday, or any game at all, we had to sit out a rainy Friday, though. No game was played, and a double-header scheduled or Saturday. The Indians beat the Elks, 5-1, while we were forced to sit idle.

The Friday game would have been a day off for Adame and Gurney anyway, and with the double header upon us, we’d try to rest most regulars.

Game 1
MIL: CF B. Allen – LF Reeves – RF Lovell – 1B E. Hernandez – 3B Kohr – SS R. Lopez – 2B Z. Suggs – C T. Sanchez – P Ru. Guzman
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Preble – 1B Toohey – SS Martell – C Wilson – P Jackson

Guzman ran full counts to the first three batters he faced, all of whom reached. Watt singled, Herrera slashed an RBI double, and Maldo drew a walk before getting forced out by Waters. Preble’s RBI single made it 2-0, and a walk to Bryce Toohey loaded the bases, only for Al Martell to hit one to Zach Suggs for a double play. Jackson retired the first seven Loggers to dip his ERA under four again, and didn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning, but that hit then was a solo home run for Ricky Lopez, pulling back a run the Raccoons had scored in the bottom 3rd on back-to-back doubles by Herrera and Maldo. When Jackson's day went in the bin, it did so rather quickly, with back-to-back doubles to begin the sixth inning, the first being whacked by Guzman, who scored on Brent Allen’s double, who was then singled in by Pat Lovell to tie the game.

While Jackson was spotted another lead with three singles, Jeff Wilson bringing in Mike Preble, in the bottom 6th, he did not return to the mound up 4-3, being hit for Chris Robinson, who popped out to strand a pair. Preston Porter defended that lead in the top 7th, after which Herrera slapped his third extra-base hit of the game, an RBI triple that brought home Matt Watt, who had reached base on an Ernesto Hernandez error to begin the bottom of the seventh. Despite Maldo’s poor groundout that kept Herrera pinned, the inning turned into a 3-spot; Waters singled to score Herrera, stole second, and came in on a Toohey single to get up to 7-3. Jake Bonnie then did his part in the eighth, not allowing a run, while the ninth went to Adam Bates. Ricky Lopez hit a leadoff double and scored on two productive outs, but Bates retired Chris Lowe to put the game away without bothering the more laureled members of the bullpen. 7-4 Raccoons. Herrera 3-5, 3B, 2 2B, 2 RBI;

Every position player in the starting lineup had exactly one base hit – except for Herrera.

Game 2
MIL: CF B. Allen – SS Z. Suggs – 1B R. Espinoza – RF Lovell – LF Reeves – 2B Malkus – 3B Kohr – C Nagel – P V. Padilla
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 2B Waters – LF Preble – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – RF Glodowski – 3B Coen – P Baker

The first time through the order, the Loggers got three singles, two of them of the infield variety, a throwing error by Gonzalez on top of that, and somehow scored only one run off Baker, who also issued a walk. Two double plays turned helped quite a bit, and the run was unearned. The Coons could not convert a 2-base throwing error that put Toohey on second base in the second inning, but Matt Waters tripled home Matt Watt to tie the game in the third instead. He was stranded by Preble, though, and Pat Lovell answered with a leadoff jack to center to give the Loggers a new lead right away. Doubles chucked by Toohey and Glodowski tied the game again in the bottom 4th, but taking a lead didn’t seem to be in the cards. Glodowski was left on base, and the Raccoons stranded two more in the fifth. The sixth began with two singles by Gonzalez and Glodowski, but Coen and Baker struck out, and Watt popped out to Travis Malkus… Baker ran out of juice in the seventh after holding up nicely so far. He walked a pair, left with two outs, and then had to watch Bob Ibold walk PH Ernesto Hernandez to fill them up, then concede a pair on a Suggs single, which I found sugged.

The Raccoons remained utterly annoying. Adame drew a leadoff walk in the seventh, then was stranded. They didn’t get on until there were two outs in the eighth, but then Coen, Maldo, and Watt all piled onto the bases. Adame batted in that spot while I was grimly holding onto a bat myself again, but I didn’t have to insert my old butt into the game – Adame took care of business, laced a liner down the leftfield line, and cleared the bases, flipping the score to 5-4 for the home team…! Matt Waters one-upped him yet, crashing a homer to left-center, the 30th for him this season! The rally stuck, with Nelson Moreno retiring the Loggers for only a Ricky Lopez hit in the ninth. 7-4 Raccoons, again! Adame 2-5, 2B, 3 RBI; Waters 2-4, BB, HR, 3B, 3 RBI; Gonzalez 2-4; Glodowski 2-4, 2B, RBI; Maldonado (PH) 1-1;

The Arrowheads shut out the Elks, 9-0, to stick to their 3-game distance.

Game 3
MIL: 3B Kohr – LF Reeves – SS R. Espinoza – 2B Malkus – CF J. Gray – 1B Edsell – RF McIntyre – C T. Sanchez – P Clements
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Robinson – CF Herrera – 1B Gurney – 2B Martell – C Gonzalez – P Wheatley

Wheats struck out two the first time through, including Tony Sanchez, who disagreed audibly and was sent or an early vacation by the home plate umpire, with David Nagel replacing him; Wheats also brought in the first run of the game, kindly assisted by Kyle Edsell, who dropped Ricky Espinoza’s feed on Wheats’ grounder to short with Gurney and Martell in scoring position (thanks to a wild pitch) and two outs. The Raccoons then failed to pounce when Adame hit a leadoff double in the third, and generally remained anemic through five against a pitcher that could ONLY make his debut with a 49-92-and-counting team… That was still a 1-0 lead through five, because Wheatley scattered three hits and struck out five, looking determined to make the unearned lead stand up.

Bottom 6th, Maldo and Robinson opened with soft singles, and Clements walked Herrera. I know, Cristiano, three on, no outs, we should score two or three runs here, but have you actually watched a game instead of your tables lately? Like, the last 35 years? … Gurney popped out, after which the Loggers went to Kyle McRay, who got Martell to hit into a double play. I looked over at Cristiano again, who rolled his eyes, then out of the room. – Yes, Cristiano, do penance in your room!

Wheats bunted into a double play in the seventh, but was still winging a shutout on just 74 pitches at that point. He struck out Will McIntyre and Nagel to start the eighth, but gave up a single to Suggs. Hernandez then pinch-hit for Jason Kohr in the #1 slot. Wheats tried to hiss the pitching coach back when he went out there, snarled he’d get him, and then he got him, with strikes, his ninth K in the game.

With a shutout possible, the Raccoons’ 3-4-5 hitters again reached base as a group, this time with one out in the bottom 8th against right-hander Nick Johns. Gurney swiped at the first pitch he got, straight to Malkus, double play. JESUS H. CHRIST. Wheats wouldn’t let go of the ball, so he was back out there for the ninth, on 90 pitches, bidding for a 5-hit shutout in a 1-0 game. Reeves flew out easily to Robinson, but Espinoza singled to left on an 0-1. Tony Ferrusquia then ran for him. Wheats tried to pick him off a few times, but couldn’t, then had him steal second base. Slightly angrier now, he struck out Malkus. Chris Lowe batted for Josh Gray, ran a full count, and walked. There was the pitching coach again, 21 pitches into the top 9th, for 111 in total. Wheats hissed him back again – but Edsell would be his last chance, and probably that was already one chance too much.

Yes, indeed. Edsell singled up the middle at 1-1, Ferrusquia scored, and the game was tied. Wheats was yanked for Porter, then went on to demolish the bat rack while Lovell grounded out. Nothing like a competitive spirit, except maybe a W. The game went to extras, though, where Hitchcock had a 1-2-3 top of the 10th, and when Miguel Herrera allowed nothing to the Critters in the 10th (just like the ninth), Hitchcock also did a 1-2-3 11th. Bottom 11th, righty Angelo Munoz in to pitch, and there was a leadoff walk to Robinson. Herrera singled. Gurney walked. Bases stuffed, nobody out. – Cristiano, I saw your front wheel poke around the corner even before your nose. If you have something to say, say it like a ******* man! (has the remote wrestled away by Maud before he can throw it) … In any case, Al Martell ended the game with a single past a lunging Lovell at first base. 2-1 Raccoons. Maldonado 2-4; Robinson 2-4, BB; Herrera 2-4, BB; Martell 2-5, RBI; Wheatley 8.2 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 10 K; Hitchcock 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, W (1-2);

In other news

September 8 – ATL SP Brian Buttress (13-10, 3.35 ERA) shines with a 3-hit shutout against the Falcons, whiffing six in a 6-0 win.
September 8 – The Bayhawks walk off against the Thunder, 2-1 in 12 innings, and walking off they do indeed, drawing four walks off Oklahoma lefty Nelson Garcilazo (0-2, 3.00 ERA, 1 SV) for the win.
September 8 – The Capitals out-hit the Miners, 13-1, but still only manage to squeeze out a 1-0 walkoff in the ninth, and that run is unearned. PIT LF/RF Pat Stipp (.245, 8 HR, 60 RBI) has the only Miners hit, a second-inning double.
September 8 – SAC 3B Mike Crenshaw (.306, 15 HR, 51 RBI) ends a 17-inning marathon with a walkoff double off Stars southpaw Tony Martinez (1-2, 4.05 ERA), the Scorpions winning 5-4 after neither team had gotten a run across in the prior 11 innings.
September 12 – It’s a scoreless game through nine innings, but the Pacifics break out in the top 10th with home runs by 3B/2B Tony Batista (.228, 5 HR, 33 RBI) and 2B Mark Mooney (.229, 2 HR, 6 RBI) to take a 4-0 victory over the Scorpions.
September 13 – The Thunder score 11 runs in the seventh inning in downing the Aces, 16-5. They hit five homers, two of them by OF Juan Benavides (.283, 11 HR, 38 RBI), who drives in six runs.

FL Player of the Week: DEN OF Tim Turner (.325, 15 HR, 98 RBI), batting .417 (10-24) with 2 HR, 5 RBI
CL Player of the Week: OCT OF Juan Benavides (.283, 11 HR, 38 RBI), socking .400 (8-20) with 3 HR, 8 RBI

Complaints and stuff

The Indians were rushed on Sunday, 10-1, costing them a game in the standings after all. We were now up by four, with 20 to play.

POR (80-62) – NYC (4), VAN (4), BOS (3), IND (3), OCT (3), SFB (3) – .531 – 86.2% (+11.5%)
IND (76-66) – MIL (4), BOS (3), NYC (3), OCT (3), POR (3), SFB (3), ATL (1) – .509 – 13.8% (-11.5%)

Next up are four with the Crusaders, and then a probably rather unhappy trip down to the Bay. If we make it out of San Fran in good shape by next Sunday, then I might start to sound confident.

Fun Fact: Matt Waters is in the second year of a 10-year, $17.16M contract.

If he keeps raking like that for his prime, it will have been worth every penny in there!

[Westheim]

Raccoons (80-62) vs. Crusaders (64-78) – September 14-17, 2048

Now would be a great time to stop fudging up against the Crusaders; the Raccoons were only 5-9 against the worst offensive team in the league, and the New Yorkers were also no better than eighth in runs allowed, with a -124 run differential (Critters: +79).

Projected matchups:
Victor Salcido (0-1, 6.75 ERA) vs. Jim White (12-11, 3.17 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (6-2, 3.35 ERA) vs. Yataro Tanabe (0-0, 6.14 ERA)
Victor Merino (13-9, 3.73 ERA) vs. Jeff Johnson (10-19, 4.03 ERA)
Jake Jackson (7-13, 4.06 ERA) vs. Tony Negrete (4-6, 4.12 ERA)

Right, left, right, left from them. The keen-eyed may have noticed the Raccoons made another addition to the roster with #51 prospect Victor Salcido, who would make his second career start on Monday. He had previously lost to the Thunder in May. Salcido was added to cope with the double header from Saturday and push everybody back a day, especially also with Wheats in mind, who had thrown 114 pitches for no reward on Sunday.

Game 1
NYC: 2B R. Martinez – 3B Critzer – SS Gates – C O. Ramirez – LF Garris – 1B Tinoco – RF Arens – CF Burch – P J. White
POR: LF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – CF Herrera – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – P Salcido

The Raccoons were dealt a blow right in the first inning when Matt Waters took a hit to the knee from Ricardo Martinez as the Coons tried to turn a double play. After a lengthy consultation by Dr. Padilla on the field, Waters walked off the field with him, to be replaced with Al Martell, while I calmly opened a bottle of Backwoods Bob’s Brain Bleach, because Capt’n Coma wouldn’t do it in this case. Martell singled home Adame, who had stolen his 40th bag, to tie the game in the bottom 1st, after Salcido gave up a run on three singles in the first, partly also because that Waters-slaying double play was not actually turned. Salcido held on for the next few innings before being spotted a 5-1 lead in the bottom 3rd, an inning in which the Raccoons pounded out four doubles – by Watt, Adame, Martell, and Robinson – and Pat Gurney slipped a 2-out RBI single past Martinez for the fourth run to score. Salcido’s day continued with drawing a walk himself in the fourth, but getting doubled up by Matt Watt, then making a error to put Martinez on base the half-inning after that, but he held the Crusaders to four hits and one run through five, walking none and whiffing two.

Salcido had a 1-2-3 sixth, then allowed leadoff singles to Adrian Tinoco and Ron Arens in the seventh and was removed. Bob Ibold replaced him, rung up Kevin Burch, and got PH Carlos Cortes to ground to short, but Adame threw the ball past Martell to cost at least one and most likely two outs. The Coons got the double play eventually – but only on Brad Critzer’s grounder, after Martinez had singled home a run on an 0-2 pitch. The Coons pulled the run back in the same inning; New York reliever Jeff Frank walked Watt to start the bottom 7th. Adame popped out, but Maldo doubled to center. With runners in scoring position, Martell flew out to Arens in right, deep enough to get Watt home, 6-2. Robinson grounded out to strand Maldo. Ibold faced Prince Gates to begin the eighth, but gave up a double, then was lifted for Bonnie against left-handed batters. He got two outs, then surrendered the run on Tinoco’s double to left, but ended the inning against Arens. Nelson Moreno had a 1-2-3 ninth to put the game away. 6-3 Raccoons. Adame 2-4, 2B, RBI; Martell 3-3, 2B, 3 RBI; Gurney 2-4, RBI; Salcido 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, W (1-1);

First career win for Salcido, who may or may not make more starts here this September, but we think he’ll collect plenty more maybe as early as next season.

Also, kinda good news / bad news here. Matt Waters was out with a knee contusion – but it might only cost him one week. He remained on the roster and would certainly not miss the playoffs. But I did hate losing a .302, 30 HR, 90 RBI bat…..

The New Yorkers also flipped pitchers, sending right-hander Jeff Johnson on Tuesday already.

Game 2
NYC: 2B R. Martinez – 3B Critzer – SS Gates – 1B Yamamoto – RF Garris – C Bayless – LF MacLeod – CF E. Baker – P J. Johnson
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – RF Robinson – 2B Gurney – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – P Wolinsky

Shuta Yamamoto homered to begin the second inning, but the Raccoons countered on a homer to right by Matt Watt in the third. Toohey had been on base after drawing a leadoff walk, so Portland took a 2-1 lead. Gurney and Toohey found their way on base with two outs in the fourth and Gonzalez hit a DEEP drive to center, but it died on the warning track and somehow Eddie Baker managed to warp himself out there for an inning-ending catch.

New York took the lead back in the sixth; a so far steady Wolinsky melted for a walk to Martinez, a Critzer double, Gates RBI single, and a Yamamoto double play grounder that still got the go-ahead run across. A Robinson double and Gurney single, both to center and with two outs in the bottom 6th, would immediately re-tie the game again, though, and we were all even at three. Gurney stole second, but Toohey whiffed to leave him on. The go-ahead run also reached second with two outs in the bottom 7th by stealing a base, this time in form of Watt, who had been nicked by Frank. Adame grounded out, however. The Crusaders scored instead; Joy-shan Kuo issued a leadoff walk to PH Angel Lara in he eighth, and the runner came around to score against Hitchcock. Mike Preble to the rescue – the slugger socked his 26th homer, half of them for the Furballs, to tie the game again in the bottom 8th against Dan Minelli. Baskins batted for the pitcher and grounded out, but Gurney singled his way on after that. Oh, and Bryce Toohey’s here still, too – he popped a homer over the fence in left to give the Critters the lead…! Moreno saved that one, too, whiffing a pair after Ron Arens hit a 1-out single in the ninth. 6-4 Raccoons. Watt 1-2, BB, HR, 2 RBI; Gurney 3-4, RBI; Toohey 1-2, BB, HR, 2 RBI; Wolinsky 7.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K;

Fourth-string lefty Steve Richardson got the final out in the eighth inning and thus earned the W, the first of his career.

Another righty was inserted for Wednesday by the Crusaders, who would send up Taylor Stabile (3-2, 5.47 ERA).

Game 3
NYC: 2B R. Martinez – 3B Critzer – SS Gates – 1B Yamamoto – C O. Ramirez – LF Burch – RF Rico – CF E. Baker – P Stabile
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Martell – 1B Toohey – LF Baskins – C Wilson – P Merino

Merino wasn’t threatened until the fourth inning, when the Crusaders reached the corners on hits by Gates and Yamamoto, but were also stranded there; Omar Ramirez lined out to short, and Kevin Burch popped out to end the inning. The Raccoons were up 1-0 at that point, the run coming in the bottom 3rd when Merino drew a 1-out walk and was subsequently forced out by Adame’s grounder. Adame stole second, then scored on a Herrera double to left. We then opened the bottom 4th with straight hits by Preble, Martell, and Toohey. Preble went for home and scored on Toohey’s ball to center, and Baker’s throw home was not only late but also advanced the trailing runners into scoring position. From there, Baskins whiffed, Jeff Wilson was walked intentionally, and Merino grounded out to the right side, at least getting one more run home. The Coons were held to 3-0 when Adame did hit a mighty fly to left-center, but Eddie Baker robbed him with a flying catch before tumbling for another 15 feet, but never lost the baseball. Baker made it up to the Critters in the fifth, hitting into a 6-4-3 double play after Danny Rico had opened the inning with a single, while Herrera reached base for Portland in the bottom 5th, stole second, reached third on Preble’s single, and was scored on Martell’s groundout, 4-0.

How about a shutout? Merino had thrown only 49 pitches through five innings. He had a flawless sixth, allowed a leadoff single to ex-Coon Shuta Yamamoto in the seventh, but the got a comebacker from Ramirez that he spun for a double play. Merino survived a walk to Baker in the eighth as well, the runner being stranded at second, and his pitch count only at 82 through eight innings. With the lead over three runs anyway, without a doubt he’d get the baseball back for the ninth. And then – disaster. Leadoff walk to Critzer, and then Prince Gates stuffed a triple into the rightfield corner. Shutout gone, and audible deflation in the crowed. Merino was not lifted, however – Moreno was tired and he still had to give. He popped out both Yamamoto and Ramirez, then fell to a Burch single that drove home the second run. With Rico up as the tying run now, the Raccoons went to Preston Porter, finally. A strikeout ended the game. 4-2 Critters. Adame 2-5, 2 2B; Herrera 3-5, 2B, RBI; Toohey 2-3, BB, RBI; Merino 8.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, W (14-9) and 1-3, BB, RBI;

How dismayed am I about the lost shutout? Yes.

The Crusaders might be more dismayed about the entire situation, though. This game mathematically eliminated them from contention.

Wednesday also saw the Arrowheads miss a step – they had taken two games from the Loggers to start the week, but starved against Victor Padilla and had only three hits in a 2-1 loss today. This increased our lead to five games, with a magic number of 13.

Game 4
NYC: 3B Critzer – LF Garris – SS Gates – C O. Ramirez – RF C. Cortes – 1B D. Hernandez – CF MacLeod – 2B Rico – P Negrete
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – C Gonzalez – LF Preble – 1B Toohey – RF Glodowski – 2B Martell – 3B Coen – P Jackson

While Adame swiped his 42nd base and was then singled home by Herrera for a 1-0 lead in the third inning, Jake Jackson had dropped his ERA under four again with a clean start to the game, and now we waited for the scheduled collapse that happened to him each and every time after that. Gates hit a 1-out single in the fourth, the second hit off Jackson in the game, but was doubled up by Ramirez to end the inning. The bags filled up in the fifth then, with Dave Hernandez doubling to center. He was still on second with two outs when an intentional walk was issued to Danny Rico. Unfortunately, Ben Coen farted on Negrete’s bunt and all sacks were occupied all of a sudden. They remained as such, Critzer flying out to Armando Herrera at 2-2. Supported by a sixth-inning solo homer by Preble (#27 and 2-0), Jackson went into the seventh until with two outs he nicked Rico and walked Tinoco. Yamamoto batted for Critzer, drew Bob Ibold, and grounded out harmlessly to end the inning. Lynn chipped in the eighth, retiring the 2-3-4 batters in order, while Preble added another run in the bottom 8th, which the Coons opened with back-to-back doubles, Gonzalez and Preble, off Frank. Gurney hit for Toohey and was nicked, while Maldo hit for Glodowski and flew out to center ineffectively. Martell popped out, Baskins grounded out in Coen’s place, two were left on, and Nelson Moreno got his third assignment of the series. He struck out both Cortes and David MacLeod in retiring New York in order to complete the sweep. 3-0 Raccoons! Herrera 2-4, RBI; Preble 2-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBI; Martell 2-4, 2B; Robinson (PH) 1-1; Jackson 6.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K, W (8-13);

This secured a 9-9 split against the Crusaders after all this year, and also a 6-game lead over the Arrowheads, who lost another one to the Loggers.

It would now be Bayhawks and Thunder for both contenders in the North; we were at the Bay first, then would go to Oklahoma, where the Indians were already for this weekend. They’d host the Baybirds starting next Tuesday.

Raccoons (84-62) @ Bayhawks (101-45) – September 18-20, 2048

Oh well. Better get a taste of the impending wobble coming for us in the CLCS. The Bayhawks were first in runs scored, first in runs allowed (+224 run differential). Best rotation, top in homers, highest team batting average – you would be hard pressed to find a weakness about this team. They led the season series, 4-2, and with a 14-game lead over the Thunder would clinch the division if they swept the Coons – less if the Indians did damage against the Thunder.

Projected matchups:
Jeremy Baker (9-7, 3.78 ERA) vs. Kevin Nolte (20-5, 1.87 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (13-6, 3.28 ERA) vs. Craig Czyszczon (16-6, 2.87 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (6-2, 3.39 ERA) vs. Rafael Pedraza (9-4, 4.77 ERA)

Only right-handers coming up here. The Coons would not feed Salcido to the Baybirds; the assignment went to Wolinsky, and Salcido would instead face the Thunder next week.

Game 1
POR: SS Martell – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – RF Robinson – 2B Gurney – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – P Baker
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – C S. Suggs – LF Crum – 3B Copeland – 2B Quiroz – RF Bednarz – 1B A. Marquez – P Nolte

There were a few fillers in that Bayhawks lineup, but they went up 1-0 in the first anyway, Ken Crum singling home Sean Suggs, who had smacked a 2-out double. The Coons had also landed a double and a single in the first but in the wrong order, and Martell and Maldo had been stranded in scoring position when Preble popped out foul and Robinson whiffed. We wasted another two singles in the second, then got Herrera on base with a leadoff triple in the third. Maldo doubled to center, tying the game, then scored on a Robinson knock for a 2-1 lead. Gurney singled, a wild pitch moved the runners into scoring position, and allowed Toohey to bring in a run with a grounder to short that otherwise would have ended the inning. Ruben Gonzalez was put on intentionally, but Jeremy Baker slapped a single to right to drive home Gurney, 4-1…! Martell then grounded out to strand a pair, and Herrera and Maldo got on base in the fourth and were also stranded.

Andy Montes batted for a whacked Nolte in the bottom 5th when the Bayhawks had just put Mike Bednarz and Alex Marquez on base to begin the inning, on a walk and single, respectivey. He grounded to Maldo, who started a 5-4-3 double play, but John Fink then singled home a run for San Fran, 4-2. Fink would also knock out Baker his next time up, hitting a 2-out single through the right side. Nobody was on at that point, and the score was still 4-2, so Todd Dau came up as the tying run. The Coons went to Porter, who gave up a single to Dau, but got Suggs to end the inning. Come the top 8th, Herrera was nicked by Brad Barnes with two outs. He stole second, then was singled home by Maldonado, 5-2. Preble grounded out, while Porter turned in a 1-2-3 bottom 8th. Nelson Moreno was in for the fourth time in five days then, which seemed to be a bit too much, although the Bayhawks also bombarded him with lefty pinch-hitters, a single by Marquez, and a 2-run homer by Dan Riley. Fink and PH Pedro Colon made the last two outs though and the lead just stood up. 5-4 Raccoons. Martell 2-5; Maldonado 3-5, 2 2B, 2 RBI; Robinson 2-5, RBI; Gurney 2-5; Baker 6.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, W (10-7) and 1-3, RBI;

Indy won as well, so the magic number was now 10.

Game 2
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Martell – 1B Gurney – LF Baskins – C Wilson – P Wheatley
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – C S. Suggs – LF Crum – 2B Quiroz – RF P. Colon – 3B Del Vecchio – 1B A. Marquez – P Czyszczon

After Preble gave Portland a 1-0 lead with his 28th homer to lead off the top 2nd, Wheats had a grinding experience in the bottom of the same frame, running long counts, including three full counts, while giving up a run on two hits and a walk, but struck out Marquez and got a roller for the third out from Craig Something to bugger out of the jam. And while Wheatley was hitting under .100 for the year, he opened the third with a single to center. Watt walked, then was doubled off by Adame, but Maldonado singled home Wheats from second base. Preble walked, and Martell singled home Maldonado, again to center. Gurney grounded out, the Coons up 3-1.

Wheats shed a run in the fourth on a leadoff double by Ken Crum, who stole third base and scored on a sac fly by Colon after Quiroz had been hung with a K. Wheats had a 1-2-3 fifth against the 8-9-1 batters, whiffing the last two, but both in long full counts, and was over 90 pitches after just five innings. He struck out Dau to begin the sixth, then was lifted for Lynn against the switch-hitting Suggs, who was hitting .329 with 26 homers, and ate mostly right-handers. Lynn allowed a single at 0-2, then walked Crum. Quiroz singled, and Colon singled too, flipping the score to 4-3 Bayhawks. Lynn was then purged, upon which Hitchcock walked Ted Del Vecchio (grumbles) and got bombed for a grand slam by Marquez. And that was more or less the ballgame…

The Coons never mounted a substantial rally. In the eighth, Preble drew a 2-out walk off Sebastien Parham and was tripled home by Martell with a screamer in the right-center gap, but Martell was then left on by Gurney. San Fran grabbed that run back from Bonnie in the bottom 8th, getting two singles and a walk off the left-hander. 9-4 Bayhawks. Watt 1-2, BB; Preble 1-2, 2 BB, HR, RBI; Martell 2-4, 3B, 2 RBI; Coen (PH) 1-1;

The winning streak of eight games was snapped, but the Indians lost as well, so the magic number went down to nine.

At least the Thunder were playing a good game, huh? Regardless, the next W would clinch the South for the Bayhawks.

Game 3
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 2B Martell – 1B Toohey – RF Glodowski – C Prow – P Wolinsky
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – C S. Suggs – LF Crum – 3B Copeland – 2B Quiroz – RF Del Vecchio – 1B A. Marquez – P Pedraza

The Raccoons got a 1-0 lead in the first when Martell found runners on the corners and whacked a 2-out double to center. Herrera scored, but Preble was thrown out at the plate, ending the inning. Marquez had a double in the bottom 3rd, the only hit against Wolinsky the first time through in what was his 50th career start in the majors. The Coons at least tried to give him a cushion for the anniversary, loading the bases with one out in the fourth on singles by Preble and Martell, and a Sebastian Copeland error that added Toohey, too. Matt Glodowski struck out in a full count, and Kevin Prow – useless – flew out to Fink in center, and nobody scored. So it was left to Quiroz to flip the score with a 2-out, 2-run triple in the bottom 4th. Crum and Copeland had both reached with two outs against Wolinsky, on a double and walk, respectively.

That was not the end yet, though. The fifth was uneventful, but Preble singled to begin the sixth and then scored from first on a wallbanger double by Bryce Toohey – the same send that hadn’t worked in the first inning, but now tied the game at two. The throw home allowed Toohey into third base with the go-ahead run, but Glodowski grounded out poorly. The Bayhawks walked Prow intentionally for whatever reason, then filled the bags when Pedraza drilled Robinson, hitting for Bubba, to fill the bases. Adame hit a comebacker, however, and the inning ended, leaving Bubba with a no-decision. Full-count hits by Crum and Quiroz and a Del Vecchio sac fly, all off Ibold, then gave the Bayhawks a 3-2 lead in the bottom 6th.

Kuo and Bates followed Ibold with scoreless appearances, but the Raccoons couldn’t get the offense going and arrived in the ninth trailing. Jeremy Mayhall was in for the ninth, which began with the #8 slot. Watt, Gurney, and Adame made soft outs in a real hurry to give the game away and allow the Bayhawks to dance on the field before we could get outta town. 3-2 Bayhawks. Herrera 3-4, 3B; Preble 2-3, BB; Martell 2-4, 2B, RBI;

In other news

September 14 – SFB INF Sebastian Copeland (.289, 7 HR, 36 RBI) fires off three home runs and drives in a handful of runs in a 13-5 win over the Aces.
September 15 – Oklahoma’s Angel Montes de Oca (.266, 11 HR, 55 RBI) drives in six runs on our hits, including two homers, from the leadoff spot in a 14-0 rout of the Knights.
September 15 – IND OF Danny Rivera (.303, 25 HR, 105 RBI) crushes a walkoff grand slam in come-from-behind fashion off the Loggers’ Miguel Herrera (4-8, 9.90 ERA, 17 SV) for a 7-5 Indians win.
September 16 – WAS INF Chris Strohm (.319, 8 HR, 64 RBI) will miss the rest of the season with an intercostal strain.
September 16 – The only run in the Aces’ 1-0 win over the Bayhawks comes in form of LVA 1B Sam Witherspoon (.231, 26 H, 73 RBI) whacking a walkoff homer in the bottom of the ninth.
September 16 – The Stars take the Gold Sox apart in a 19-6 blowout. DAL OF Juan del Toro (.359, 24 HR, 89 RBI) drives in six runs on three base hits.
September 17 – Buffaloes CL Trent O’Sullivan (4-8, 3.65 ERA, 20 SV) is mugged after a visit to a nightclub and suffers a knee contusion in the incident. He might miss at least one week.
September 19 – VAN INF/RF Rick Price (.269, 10 HR, 62 RBI) homes for the only run in a 1-0 win over the Aces.
September 20 – SAC SP Paul Paris (10-13, 3.71 ERA) 3-hits the Rebels for a 4-0 shutout win, striking out eight while walking five.
September 20 – CIN INF/LF Chris Delgado (.257, 8 HR, 73 RBI) homers to decide a 1-0 game against the Gold Sox.

FL Player of the Week: DAL OF Juan del Toro (.363, 24 HR, 93 RBI), batting .536 (15-28) with 2 HR, 12 RBI
CL Player of the Week: TIJ SS Tony Aparicio (.339, 11 HR, 51 RBI), hitting .478 (11-23) with 2 HR, 7 RBI

Complaints and stuff

The Indians won on Sunday, so they reduced the gap to five games, and for the first time all week the magic number didn’t budge, remaining at five. We’ll now swap opponents and let them try their luck against the Baybirds. I am NOT looking forward to that CLCS….. I like going in with a whiff of hope.

POR (85-64) – VAN (4), BOS (3), IND (3), OCT (3) – .521 – 94.5% (+8.3%)
IND (80-69) – BOS (3), NYC (3), POR (3), SFB (3), ATL (1) – .539 – 5.5% (-8.3%)

Even if we emerge from that road trip with a 5-game lead or so, it won’t be over. The Elks are always an awful matchup; and the last three are against the Indians anyway, so I like to calculate what we have as a 2-game lead to begin with. Always expecting the worst, done so since ’77, and hardly have I been disappointed!

While he still leads the CL in homers (tied with LAP Larry Rodriguez), Matt Waters won’t be back against the Thunder yet, but will probably return on the weekend when the Coons hit Boston.

Fun Fact: Kevin Nolte led the lead in losses in 2046 and posted a 6.13 ERA.

I hear a lot about changes in diet turning his career around, but I can’t imagine how that would help the Raccoons, to get more runs out of them, or fewer wobblings for our pitchers. We have tried every diet imaginable! The hot wings diet, the schnitzel diet, the donuts diet, the tortilla diet…..

[Westheim]

Raccoons (85-64) @ Thunder (88-61) – September 21-23, 2048

The second-most runs scored and the third-fewest runs allowed, along with a +142 run differential had not been enough for the Thunder, who had been eliminated on the weekend. All that was left to them now was to take out their anger on the Raccoons, against whom they were up 4-2 in the season series.

Projected matchups:
Victor Salcido (1-1, 3.97 ERA) vs. Victor Marquez (18-7, 2.82 ERA)
Victor Merino (14-9, 3.65 ERA) vs. Danny Orozco (13-9, 3.70 ERA)
Jake Jackson (8-13, 3.91 ERA) vs. Felix Alvarez (5-1, 2.96 ERA)

Two left-handed pitchers, then a right-hander. I was briefly concerned for the clash of Victors here – how would the universe *actually* decide which Victor was gonna be the winner?

Game 1
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 1B Toohey – RF Glodowski – C Gonzalez – 2B Floyd – P Salcido
OCT: 3B A. Montes de Oca – 2B Ban – SS R. Cox – LF Humphreys – RF Benavides – 1B B. Jenkins – C Adames – CF M. Allen – P V. Marquez

The Raccoons couldn’t score when the Thunder made not one, but two errors in the top 2nd, leaving Preble and Glodowski on base, while the Thunder’s top half of the lineup was a bit too chewy for the rookie Salcido. Juan Benavides singled home Jonathan Ban in the first inning, and in the third Angel Montes de Oca singled, stole second, and scored on two productive outs by Ban and Ryan Cox. Maldonado then put Steve Humphreys on with a throwing error, but Benavides popped out. Rain ended Salcido’s third career start after four innings, but not until after he had given up a homer to Mike Allen in the fourth to fall 3-0 behind.

After the rain, Maldo had yet another throwing error in the bottom 5th, placing Montes in scoring position with nobody out, but he also started an inning-ending 5-4-3 double play after Kevin Hitchcock had walked Jonathan Ban and was 3-1 behind on Humphreys. To celebrate, Maldo hit into his own double play to erase Armando Herrera in the top of the sixth. To say that the Raccoons had nothing cooking against Marquez would have been a mild understatement. We had four hits, all singles, at the stretch, and Marquez opened the bottom 7th with a triple off Bonnie. Danny Cancel ended up surrendering that run against Montes, who singled to center, and down 4-0 the game seemed very much over. When the Raccoons suddenly did string together three 2-out singles in the top 8th and Preble thus drove home their first run, Bryce Toohey as the tying run struck out. Jesus Adames would then put the game away for good with a 2-run homer off Steve Richardson in the bottom 8th. 6-1 Thunder. Herrera 2-3, BB; Preble 2-4, RBI;

The Indians were idle, reducing our lead to 4 1/2 after this Monday loss. The Titans lost to the Condors, mathematically eliminating themselves.

Game 2
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 1B Toohey – RF Glodowski – C Wilson – 2B Martell – P Merino
OCT: 3B A. Montes de Oca – 2B Ban – 1B B. Jenkins – LF Humphreys – CF Benavides – SS R. Cox – C Burnham – RF Zurita – P Orozco

Merino didn’t look sharp, filled the bases within the first four batters he faced, but got off comparably easy with a Benavides sac fly and Cox’ grounder to short to bugger out of the first inning. Matt Glodowski, of all people, tied the game with a solo homer in the second, but Merino was way off, threw way too many pitches – 48 in the first three innings – and looked like he’d give me an even bigger headache any time now, but the Thunder were sure slow to break through and couldn’t buy a hit with a runner in scoring position. Neither could the Critters – Maldonado hit two hard flies with a guy on base, and both were tracked down and snatched on the warning track by Angelo Zurita in the third and fifth innings, respectively.

When Mike Preble slapped a leadoff double in the sixth, the Thunder extended an intentional walk to Toohey, who had done little besides whiffing so far in this series. Glodowski dutifully hit into a 4-6-3, and Jeff Wilson grounded out as well, making the whole effort moot. Then some pain got added to the mix; Martell opened the seventh with a single and was bunted to second by Merino. Watt grounded out, moving the go-ahead run to third base, and Alex Adame couldn’t get out of the way of a wayward fastball that struck him in the knee and instantly collapsed him into the batter’s box. Great. And that had to happen visiting the only team in the league playing in a dry county…! (draws dark bottle from the inside pocket of his trenchcoat; the Capt’n Coma logo has been shoddily relabeled with a paw-scrawled label reading “MEDICINE”) … Adame limped off the field, Josh Floyd pinch-running for him. Maldo grounded out to Bill Jenkins, ending the inning, and making it all or nothing again.

Bottom 7th, Merino walked leadoff man Luke Burnham and wobbled on through two more outs before leaving with the top of the order up. Preston Porter came in to face Montes, but the Thunder sent a lefty stick in Jon Lopez, who struck out anyway to keep the game tied. Preble began the eighth with a deep out, but then Toohey and Glodowski broke the tie with a pair of doubles, and with two outs a pinch-hitting Herrera singled home Glodowski to extend the lead to 3-1. Watt flew out to center to strand a pair. The Thunder pulled a run back right away with a Jenkins double and Humphreys RBI single off Bob Ibold, and Mike Lynn dug the Coons out of the bottom 8th still with a 3-2 lead on the board. Bottom 9th, Rick Urfer hit a leadoff single off Nelson Moreno, but tried to get to second base and was thrown out by Herrera. Whatever works! …and then Mike Allen hit a pinch-hit homer off Moreno to tie the game anyway. Moreno didn’t even get to extras, losing the game on two singles, then two walks, the last one with the bases loaded to Daniel Hertenstein. 4-3 Thunder. Adame 2-3, 2B; Floyd 1-1; Toohey 2-3, BB, 2B; Glodowski 2-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBI; Herrera (PH) 1-1, RBI;

Oh boy.

The Indians beat the Bayhawks with a late comeback (moans), so things promised to become more interesting on that front, and the Raccoons were also without their entire starting middle infield now. Waters was not expected back before the weekend anyway, and Adame had a thick knee on Wednesday morning and was ruled out for the rest of the week at least by Dr. Padilla.

I had some more medicine.

Game 3
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Martell – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – SS Floyd – P Jackson
OCT: 3B A. Montes de Oca – 2B Ban – SS R. Cox – RF Benavides – 1B B. Jenkins – C Adames – LF Hertenstein – CF M. Allen – P F. Alvarez

The Coons took the lead for a change, and without making an out, sorta, when Matt Watt reached on an uncaught third strike, stole second, and was singled home by Herrera. Maldo stole second base as well after forcing out Herrera with a grounder, then scored when Al Martell doubled to left, 2-0. Toohey grounded out to end the top 1st. Then Jake Jackson went out there, and there was a visible fork in his back before the first inning was over. He threw 45 pitches to the entire Thunder lineup, giving up three runs on three hits and walks each, Adames singling home a pair, and Allen holding out for a 2-walk with the bags full. Alvarez lined out to a leaping Floyd on the first pitch. We *tried* to get some more out of him, but the 1-2-3 hitters went on base 1-2-3 in the bottom 2nd, and Jackson was yanked without much celebration. Hitchcock inherited three on, nobody out, and surrendered all the runs on an RBI single for Juan Benavides and then two sac flies. Perfect timing – with the season on the line, the Raccoons gave their best impression of a drowned otter…

Hitchcock pitched into the bottom 4th, but gave up a leadoff double to Ban and nailed Cox. Kuo replaced him, giving up a run on a sac fly to Jenkins, 7-2. Not that it got better after that; not only was their no visibly discernible rally attempt by the brown-clad team, but the Thunder just zoomed further ahead. Adam Bates entered the game in the bottom 5th, threw eight straight balls, and eventually gave up another run on another sac fly to Montes. Bates was back for the bottom 6th, walked the bases full without retiring a batter, then was given up a rough hook. Jake Bonnie replaced him, walked in a run, and while I was contemplating a quick escape and a move to Aruba, far away from them Critters, Bonnie somehow escaped with a K to Allen and a double play grounder from Alvarez. The Raccoons accepted the sweep and pitched the rest of the game with the September call-ups, of whom Richardson allowed another run in the seventh. Armando Herrera hit a 2-run homer out of the blue in the eighth, but Alvarez aside nobody particularly cared. 10-4 Thunder. Herrera 2-4, HR, 3 RBI;

The Indians lost as well, dropping the magic number for the first time this week, down to eight. The damn Elks eliminated themselves for good with a loss to the Falcons.

Thursday saw the Raccoons off then, and the Indians drop another one to the Bayhawks, reducing the magic number to seven and giving the Raccoons a 4-game lead with ten games to play.

Raccoons (85-67) @ Titans (74-79) – September 25-27, 2048

Was it a good time to move over to Boston for a road series, where nothing good had ever happened to the Critters? But was it *worse* than having to play the damn Elks and Indians in the final week? Besides, we had owned the Titans for seven years now, winning the season series every time, and never with fewer than 11 W’s. It was however already 11-4 this year, so that was that… Boston was eighth in runs scored, fifth in runs allowed, and ready to spit into the Raccoons’ soup.

Projected matchups:
Jeremy Baker (10-7, 3.73 ERA) vs. Kyle Turay (12-13, 3.30 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (13-6, 3.28 ERA) vs. Victor Mondragon (16-8, 2.92 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (6-2, 3.40 ERA) vs. Tony Ruiz (9-11, 3.59 ERA)

After two right-handers, a scheduled Southpaw Sunday. Now, what could go wrong now…!?

Game 1
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – SS Martell – C Wilson – P Baker
BOS: 3B Massey – 1B Wheeler – RF C. Jimenez – CF T. Lopez – LF Haertling – C W. Gardner – 2B J. Rodriguez – SS T. Thompson – P Turay

Nate Massey drew a leadoff walk, then scored on a 2-out double by Tony Lopez, and the Raccoons were trailing again. Preble and Waters, who reported back for duty, opened the second inning with singles before the bottom of the order thoroughly ignored the scoring opportunity. Baker struck out four in a row, then gave up another run on a Massey triple and Jeff Wheeler’s RBI single in the bottom 3rd, while the Raccoons had yet to wake up in any appreciable form. Martell walked and Wilson singled in the fifth, but after Baker bunted them into scoring position, Watt flew out to Chris Jimenez to strand them there. Baker only pitched into the sixth, then got stuck and was retrieved by Ibold, who stranded Jimenez on base, but it was still a rather sad 2-0 deficit that the scoreboard kindly beamed down on me.

Then Pat Gurney suddenly erupted for a leadoff jack in the seventh, wrapping a fastball around the right foul pole to get the Raccoons on that board. Martell laced a triple, and the tying run was 90 feet away, just like that, and with nobody out. Wilson hit a shoddy roller that somehow eluded Wheeler and Jose Rodriguez on the right side for a game-tying single. Huzzah, the Coons!! Robinson, batting for Ibold, and Watt made outs, but Herrera whacked an RBI double to give Portland the lead, reaching third base on an errant throw home. Turay nicked Maldo at 1-2, then threw a wild pitch to score Herrera, and finally gave up an RBI single in a full count to Mike Preble. The Raccoons scored a 5-spot in such a hurry that they caught the Titans pen with the pants down – only after the Preble single did they find somebody to lift Turay, lefty Victor Scott. Waters ended the inning, while Kuo and Bates pieced the bottom 7th together. Tony Lopez singled off Bates to begin the eighth, but Mike Lynn came on and got a double play grounder from Ed Haertling – and THEN put two Titans on base with two outs before whiffing Tom Thompson. Nelson Moreno even saved the game this time…! 5-2 Raccoons. Preble 3-4, RBI; Wilson 2-4, RBI;

Look, who snuck another win, Bob Ibold! It was the 21st of his career in 230 relief appearances, and the 17th since the start of ’46.

The magic number reached six and the lead reached 4 1/2 – the Indians’ game against the Crusaders was rained out. They’d play two on Saturday.

Game 2
POR: CF Herrera – 2B Waters – 3B Maldonado – LF Preble – 1B Gurney – RF Toohey – SS Martell – C Gonzalez – P Wheatley
BOS: 3B Massey – 2B Wheeler – SS C. Jimenez – CF T. Lopez – 1B Haertling – C W. Gardner – RF L. Estrada – LF Mangual – P Mondragon

Wheats had a 1.50 ERA in his last six starts, lasting seven innings on average, so there was your second-half pitcher of choice. Jeff Wheeler singled off him in the bottom 1st, but was also picked off by Wheats, so no harm was done there. With Martell aboard, Ruben Gonzalez bashed a 2-run homer in the second for a Raccoons lead, but the Titans would make up the difference in a shoddily pitched third inning. Wheats walked Leo Estrada, Ruben Mangual singled, and after a bunt by Mondragon, Massey doubled them both home.

By the fifth the Raccoons loaded the bases without a base hit, getting two throwing errors and a walk to present Matt Waters, aiming to become the CL’s home run king, with a fine selection of base runners in Martell, Gonzalez, and Herrera. Waters ran a full count, then popped out. Maldo flew out to Estrada, and the game remained tied.

While Wheats pitched seven innings again, it wasn’t hard to see that he lacked his best stuff. He had struck out over eight per nine innings in his last six starts, but got only two Titans in seven innings, and the game was still tied at two. 1-out singles by Preble and Gurney off Dave Serio in the eighth vaguely looked like a threat. Chris Robinson batted for Toohey, singled to right, but Preble only reached third base, having to dive back into second base initially when Wheeler almost reached the ball as it whizzed past him. Three on, one out thus for Martell, who ran a full count and whiffed. Gonzalez grounded out to Wheeler to kill the inning. Playoff form!

Wheats had to settle for a no-decision here, with Preston Porter taking the ball in the bottom 8th. A single and a Preble error put Wheeler at third base by the time there were two outs in the inning, with left-hander Ed Haertling up. Lynn came in, gave up a screamer to deep left-center, but the ball had too much hangtime and Matt Watt – inserted to bat ninth after the failure of the top 8th – managed to race into the gap and snatch it, keeping the game locked a bit longer. Ironically it was then Watt that emptied a double into the same left-center gap against Jim Cushing to begin the ninth inning. The Coons still failed to score. Herrera popped out to shallow center. Waters walked, then was forced out by Maldo, and Preble left them on the corners by grounding out. The game reached extras from there, with Gurney hitting a leadoff single in the 10th before being caught stealing. Herrera and Maldo hit singles in the 11th, but Preble grounded out to strand those, and the Titans walked off on Jake Bonnie in the bottom of the inning with a Jimenez single, a walk to Lopez, and a Haertling single. 3-2 Titans. Herrera 3-5, RBI; Gurney 2-5; Robinson (PH) 1-1; Wilson (PH) 1-1; Wheatley 7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K;

On the plus side, the Indians got swept in their double header, increasing our lead to five, and dropping the magic number to four.

How kind of the Crusaders to win the division for us.

Game 3
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – RF Glodowski – SS Floyd – P Wolinsky
BOS: 3B Massey – 1B Wheeler – RF C. Jimenez – CF T. Lopez – LF Haertling – C W. Gardner – 2B C. Vega – SS J. Rodriguez – P T. Ruiz

In the second, Wolinsky struck out to strand a full set of Raccoons base runners, then fell 1-0 behind on a walk, a single, and Jose Rodriguez’ sac fly to center. Things just weren’t clicking right now… Herrera and Maldo were on base in the third, but Waters hit into a double play to end that. Come the fourth, Gonzalez and Glodowski wobbled their furry bums aboard, but Floyd flew out to right for the second out. Desperation high, Gonzalez was sent from second base when Bubba poked a single to center, and actually scored ahead of Tony Lopez’ throw to tie the game. Watt slapped a soft single to load the bases, and then Armando Herrera came through, socking a bases-clearing double into the left-center gap to put the team up 4-1.

After that 4-run fourth ended with Maldo, the Titans put a runner on base in each of the middle innings, but never got far with them, including when their pitcher Ruiz hit a leadoff single in the fifth. The Coons had a substantial threat up in the seventh, in which Waters hit a 1-out single, stole second, and then saw Toohey walking anyway. That was the end for Ruiz, with righty Bryan McDuffie replacing him. He struck out Gonzalez, while Baskins batted for Glodowski, but grounded out. Bubba held his own through seven, then was hit for with Robinson in the top 8th. Back-to-back 1-out singles put him and Watt on the corners, and Herrera scratched out another run with a groundout before the inning fizzled out. Hitchcock and Kuo then put the game away without shedding a run. 5-1 Critters. Watt 3-5; Herrera 2-5, 2B, 4 RBI; Waters 3-5; Wolinsky 7.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, W (7-2) and 1-2, RBI;

In other news

September 21 – A strained triceps ends the season of Gold Sox INF Ronnie Thompson (.286, 0 HR, 44 RBI).
September 22 – DEN OF Tim Turner (.317, 17 HR, 104 RBI) crushes a walkoff grand slam for a 5-4 win over the Capitals against WAS CL Leif Squires (5-6, 3.03 ERA, 28 SV).
September 23 – Miners CL Josh Livingston (6-4, 2.14 ERA, 45 SV) puts away the Pacifics for his 300th career save. The 37-year-old right-hander was the Reliever of the Year in 2046 and an All Star five times. Or his career, he had a 79-71 record with 2.99 ERA.
September 23 – A first-inning home run by ATL 3B/2B Jon Loyola (.232, 12 HR, 65 RBI) is enough to beat the Crusaders, 1-0.
September 26 – In a 13-2 rout of the Loggers, VAN OF Angel Escobido (.263, 7 HR, 46 RBI) hits for the cycle while going 4-for-6 with 4 RBI.
September 27 – A torn meniscus ends the season of DAL RF/LF/1B Dario Martinez (.291, 14 HR, 46 RBI).

FL Player of the Week: SFW RF Matt Diskin (.328, 19 HR, 106 RBI), batting .429 (12-28) with 2 HR, 7 RBI
CL Player of the Week: POR CF Armando Herrera (.326, 4 HR, 60 RBI), slashing .500 (11-22) with 1 HR, 9 RBI

Complaints and stuff

The Raccoons had a miserable week, going 2-4, and yet gained ground thanks to the Indians doing even worse, winning one game from San Fran and getting swept by the fifth-place Crusaders. The Coons could now clinch the division as early as Monday:

POR (87-68) – VAN (4), IND (3) – .504 – 99.6% (+5.1%)
IND (81-74) – BOS (3), POR (3), ATL (1) – .510 – 0.4% (-5.1%)

That would be five division titles in a row for the Critters. And who knows what happens next year – I’ll have an entire winter to trade Rafael de la Cruz’s potential Hall of Fame career for a brief summer of another geriatric corner outfielder!

After three straight years of going 14-4 against the Titans, we sagged to 13-5 this year. Shambles.

All our minor league teams posted losing records, so don’t get your hopes up for a quick turnaround as this dynasty has entered its twilight phase.

Fun Fact: All the cycles the damn Elks have ever hit for have come against the Loggers.

That’s Jesse LeJeune in 2037, Jerry Outram in 2044, and now Angel Escobido. Only Outram did the feat at home, so two of the three team cycles have come at the Loggers’ place.

On top of that, the last EIGHT cycles hit at Loggers Ballpark have been put together by the opposing team, including the one Gene Pellicano hit for as a Raccoon in 2044. The last Loggers cycle at home? Not this millennium. Try Jerry Fletcher in 1999, and before that, Jim Stein in 1992 – in a losing effort against the Thunder.

The Loggers!

[Westheim]

Raccoons (87-68) vs. Canadiens (76-79) – September 28-October 1, 2048

Final week, final chance to stumble over the damn Elks. They were still scoring well, fourth in the CL anyway, but couldn’t keep the opposing teams off the board, giving up the second-most runs in the CL. Their -75 run differential had proved detrimental to any ambitions they might have had, but the Raccoons still had to try and not get swept… We were up 9-5 in the season series.

Projected matchups:
Victor Salcido (1-2, 4.70 ERA) vs. Ayden Cobb (4-13, 3.97 ERA)
Victor Merino (14-9, 3.57 ERA) vs. David Farris (8-14, 4.90 ERA)
Jake Jackson (8-14, 4.19 ERA) vs. Mario Godinez (9-13, 4.79 ERA)
Jeremy Baker (10-7, 3.72 ERA) vs. Bill McMichael (15-10, 3.93 ERA)

Three right-handers, one left-hander right at the end, although there was potential for a jumble with Hisami Furuya (3-11, 4.49 ERA) close to returning from the DL. They also had both of their established catchers, Julio Diaz and Tim Phillips, on the DL, while the Coons’ Alex Adame was not on the DL, but also not likely to get back into the action in this series yet. But he was totally gonna be playoff ready. Totally!

Game 1
VAN: LF F. Rojas – CF I. Jaramillo – RF Outram – SS R. Price – 2B DeMarco – C Graham – 3B A. Soto – 1B Scannell – P Cobb
POR: CF Watt – SS Martell – 2B Waters – LF Preble – RF Robinson – 1B Gurney – C Wilson – 3B Coen – P Salcido

Rick Price singled home Ismael Jaramillo in the first inning, but the Raccoons answered with two, Pat Gurney doubling home Martell and Waters, while Chris Robinson was thrown out at the plate when he tried to make it three runs in one scoop, ending the inning. The lead didn’t last, nor get tacked onto; the Coons stranded two in the second, and Waters got on and stole second base with nobody out in the third, but was also left on second base. I was not confident, and when Salcido walked Price to begin the fourth inning, the writing was on the wall. Nick DeMarco also walked, but Andy Graham hit into a double play; yet a single by Alex Soto to center tied the game at two. Steve Scannell singled, too, but at least Cobb made the final out. After the Coons left Ben Coen on second base in the fourth as well, and went down 1-2-3 in the fifth, I sighed audibly, getting a pat on the head by Maud, and a muffin she had baked for my sorrows.

Chris Robinson’s leadoff jack in the bottom 6th brightened the day a bit, giving the Coons a 3-2 lead. Gurney and Wilson made outs, but when Ben Coen hit a 2-out single, Derek Baskins batted for Salcido after six decent innings, and also singled. Watt lashed a single to center that allowed Coen to score. Martell grounded out, stranding two and sending a potential clincher to the bullpen (depending on the Indians’ result, however). Kuo had a clean seventh, but put Felix Rojas on base with a leadoff single to center in the eighth. Porter struck out PH Angel Escobido before Bonnie entered. He popped out a so-far-harmless Jerry Outram, but walked Rick Price. Pinch-hitter Bob Mancini went down on strikes, however, ending the inning. The Coons tacked on a run in the bottom 8th with 2-out hits off Tim Abraham by Toohey, Watt, and Martell, before Matt Waters popped out to short. That gave the ball and a now 3-run lead to Nelson Moreno. Graham grounded out to Waters. Soto flew out to Robinson. And Scannell filed another groundout to Waters. 5-2 Raccoons! Martell 2-5, RBI; Waters 2-5; Robinson 2-3, BB, HR, 2B, RBI; Coen 2-4; Baskins (PH) 1-1; Toohey (PH) 1-1; Salcido 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, W (2-2);

After the end of the game, the Raccoons team remained on the field – the Indians game in Boston had started three hours later there, and thus actually at the same time as the Raccoons’ contest. They took a bit longer, but eventually David Barel completed a complete-game 6-hitter for a 7-2 Titans win and put the Raccoons into the playoffs for the fifth straight year! An on-field celebration with a couple of thousand fans that had hung around to watch the final inning in Boston on the Videocube ™ ensued.

Coooooooooooooons!!!!

Also, Salcido – hardly dry behind the fuzzy ears and already pitched a division clincher! Future star!

Game 2
VAN: 2B DeMarco – LF F. Rojas – RF Outram – 1B Mancini – CF Escobido – SS Mullen – 3B Higareda – C K. Morris – P Farris
POR: SS Martell – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Robinson – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Merino

Celebrations ceased in the first inning on Tuesday, which Chris Robinson left with a knee sprain that might yet jeopardize his CLCS participation. Matt Glodowski replaced him, then stepped into the box in the bottom 1st with a 3-0 lead on the board after Matt Waters had emptied his 31st homer of the year into the rightfield stands. Nothing came of Glodowski’s time at-bat, but he soon got to watch a Nick DeMarco moonshot that shortened the score to 3-1 in the top 3rd, but then Glodowski doubled with two outs in the bottom 3rd and was singled home by Gurney, 4-1.

But the Elks countered with their own 2-out run through hits by Dan Mullen and Adrian Higareda in the fourth, then had Escobido double home Mancini in the sixth to get yet closer, 4-3. The Elks got the tying runs aboard in the seventh against Adam Bates, who had Lynn clean up behind him, and again in the eighth against Lynn, when Jerry Outram legged out an infield single, which was a whole new experience for everybody involved. Alex Soto pinch-ran for him, but got wrapped up in Mancini’s double play grounder to Maldonado all the same. Maldo got an early chance to kick up the legs with a cold one as reward, getting subbed out in a double switch for Ibold and Coen, the former getting a good start for a 4-out save when he popped out Escobido to Waters to end the inning.

We then loaded the sacks against a parade of Elks relievers; Waters walked and stole second. Gurney walked with one out. The hit-and-run was on with Coen, because this was the time of the year to have some fun, and in their faces, too. Coen hacked and missed, but Kevin Morris also never got a throw off and Waters and Gurney had a double steal, but were also pinned in position when Coen eventually hit a sorry 0-2 roller that died halfway up the third base line, but also legged it out for an infield single. Bases loaded for Baskins then, who whiffed against Tim Abraham. Jeff Wilson popped out to strand the full set. Ibold then got an out to begin the ninth, but also stretched awkwardly afterwards and was collected by Dr. Padilla. I groaned and opened another bottle of Capt’n Coma. Nelson Moreno got the last two outs, as if that would help any now… 4-3 Raccoons. Gurney 2-3, BB, RBI; Coen 1-1;

So, here’s the damage report. Chris Robinson was now out with a knee sprain, and Bob Ibold had a tweaked quad. Both were out for the rest of the week, and both were also highly questionable for the CLCS, and probably a “no”.

The Raccoons went for a free refill and called up Oscar Alcala, the only AAA pitcher that was on the 40-man roster at a time where the 40-man roster was full. Alcala was a lefty; he had made a few shoddy appearances last season for a 6.97 ERA.

Game 3
VAN: C Graham – CF I. Jaramillo – RF Outram – 3B Burgos – SS R. Price – 2B DeMarco – LF Escobido – 1B Scannell – P Godinez
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 1B Maldonado – 2B Waters – C Gonzalez – RF Toohey – 3B Martell – SS Floyd – P Jackson

Everybody knew that this was Jake Jackson’s final regular season start for the Raccoons, even his mom Janet, so people came out in droves for the Wednesday game, showing appreciation for the only starter that had hung around from the mediocre times of the start of the decade through three rings and until now.

Maldo ended a seemingly endless homer drought with a 2-run shot to left in the first inning, giving the Coons a 2-0 lead. It was 3-0 by the end of the inning when Waters walked, moved up on a wild pitch, and was singled home by Bryce Toohey. Those were the only early runs in the game, especially with Jackson suddenly starting to pitch a no-hitter, shedding two walks, but no knocks through five innings. He walked Jaramillo in the sixth, with the centerfielder stealing his 36th bag of the year, then scoring on a Jerry Outram single. Outram, for once again taking all the fun out of baseball, was then rigorously booed for the rest of the game whenever he got near the ball. As he should be!

Jackson pitched seven totally fine innings, then was pinch-hit for with Martell and Floyd on the corners and nobody out in the bottom 7th. Mike Preble slapped an RBI single to center in his place, then was forced out by Watt; Herrera brought in another run with a groundout, though. The Elks got a run back in the eighth with a Brandon Eaton double and Andy Graham single off Steve Richardson, with Hitchcock digging him out of the inning. The Coons got Baskins and Martell on in the bottom 8th, but they were stranded when Josh Floyd whiffed. Thus it was three runs in the ninth, and with Moreno out for two days straight, Preston Porter got the ball this time. Jesus Burgos, Rick Price, and Bob Mancini went down in order, ending the game. 5-2 Coons! Baskins (PH) 1-1; Martell 3-4; Preble (PH) 1-1, RBI; Jackson 7.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, W (9-14);

As the record indicates, Jackson’s seventh and final Raccoons season was nothing to make much of a highlights tape of – but this was a goodie.

Game 4
VAN: SS I. Jaramillo – LF F. Rojas – 3B Burgos – RF Outram – 1B Mancini – CF Escobido – 2B R. Price – C K. Morris – P McMichael
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – C Gonzalez – RF Glodowski – SS Floyd – P Baker

There was no early offense on Thursday, and if a team threatened, it was the pink one, but Outram hit into a double play to kill runners-on-the-corners in the top 1st, and Kevin Morris was thrown out at the plate by Watt in the fourth, trying to go home from second on a Jaramillo single. Morris *did* eventually break the ice, but then with a 2-run homer to right in the fifth inning, driving home Rick Price, too. Somehow, this woke up the Critters. Toohey and Gonzalez tied the game with back-to-back bombs to begin the bottom 5th, and Glodowski and Floyd both singled. Baker bunted into a force at third base and Watt struck out, but Herrera singled home Floyd to give the home team a 3-2 lead. McMichael ended up walking Maldo, but the inning ended with three aboard when Jaramillo made a nifty play on a Waters grounder.

Rain moved in and quickly intensified. Looking skywards, the Raccoons decided to hit for Baker, who had some juice left, when his spot came up with the 6-7-8 batters all on base and one out in the bottom 6th, taking him out before the weather could. Preble batted for him and brought in a run with a groundout, and then the tarp came on already. A 45-minute rain delay later, Watt singled home a pair with two outs as Jordan Calderon oversaw the Elks’ tumble into a 4-game sweep… although then Adam Bates got a few in the kisser, allowing a walk and two doubles for two runs in the top 7th, narrowing the score to 6-4 before being bailed out by Bonnie. Maldo’s leadoff double in the bottom 7th eventually led to him scoring on Gonzalez’ sac fly, all against righty Sam Heisler. Cancel and Moreno would also pitch in the completion of the game, the former getting a chance for a wicked 4-out save after ending the eighth and a Preble homer in the bottom 8th that ran the score to 8-4. But Cancel put on a pair in the ninth, then had to yield to Moreno, who got his third save in the series as he completed the sweep. 8-4 Furballs. Gonzalez 2-3, HR, 2 RBI; Floyd 2-4; Preble (PH) 1-2, HR, 2 RBI; Baker 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, W (11-7);

Raccoons (91-68) vs. Indians (83-75) – October 2-4, 2048

Third in runs scored, sixth in runs allowed, and also beaten to the playoffs again by the Critters. But we’re friends, right, Arrowheads? We’re friends. No need to get hurt here. Right? We led the season series 10-5, anyway.

Projected matchups:
Jason Wheatley (13-6, 3.26 ERA) vs. Bill Nichol (13-12, 3.91 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (7-2, 3.27 ERA) vs. Enrique Ortiz (9-12, 3.97 ERA)
Victor Salcido (2-2, 4.22 ERA) vs. Brian Jackson (11-15, 4.33 ERA)

Two right-handers, then a final Southpaw Sunday to the season! The regular season at least.

Game 1
IND: CF A. Mendez – SS Russ – RF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 2B H. Acosta – 3B B. Anderson – 1B de Castro – C Nunez – P Nichol
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – C Gonzalez – 2B Martell – 1B Toohey – LF Baskins – P Wheatley

Jason Wheatley’s season had begun with a waffling by the Indians, and also ended with one. Angel Mendez opened with a single and stole second. Andrew Russ, the pest, reached on a Toohey error and stole second. Bill Quinteros walked, and Danny Rivera emptied the bases with a double into the leftfield corner, then also came around to score for an early 4-0 deficit. The Coons began with an Adame triple in the bottom 1st. Herrera grounded out poorly, but Maldo hit a sac fly to right. Then the bases filled up with the 4-5-6 hitters, only for Toohey to ground out to short to waste it all. Baskins doubled and Wheats singled to begin the bottom 2nd, with Adame’s sac fly narrowing the score to 4-2, but Wheats was stranded. From all the stranding, he then had enough sand between his gears to get yanked in the top 3rd, giving up four straight singles for two runs. All the Indians’ hits were on the soft side, but it still made for a ghastly line – six runs, five earned, in 2.1 innings. Hitchcock got a double play grounder from Alex de Castro to end the inning.

The Coons crept back to 6-4 in the fourth with a Baskins single, then back-to-back 2-out RBI doubles crashed by Adame and Herrera. Maldo lined out to the pitcher to end the inning. The Raccoons sought length from Oscar Alcala, and got only a longer score on the board; in two innings, Alcala was romped for four runs, the first two coming on a Bobby Anderson homer in the fifth and the other two in a quagmire inning in the sixth. Further garbage relief by Cancel and Richardson was more efficient, allowing no further runs to the Indians, and no Raccoons rally ever materialized anyway… 10-4 Indians. Adame 3-4, 3B, 2B, 2 RBI; Preble 3-4; Baskins 2-4, 2B;

Ack.

Game 2
IND: CF A. Mendez – SS Russ – RF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 2B H. Acosta – 3B B. Anderson – 1B de Castro – C Nunez – P E. Ortiz
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 1B Gurney – 2B Martell – C Wilson – LF Baskins – P Wolinsky

Mendez and Russ did to Wolinsky what they did to Wheatley, opening the game with hits, stealing a bag, and scoring in the first, although the inning fizzled out quicker behind them. Maldo came close to a game-tying homer with Adame on first in the bottom 1st, but was caught on the warning track by Danny Rivera. Adame and Maldo then followed Watt on base in the bottom 3rd, bringing up Preble with a full selection of runners and one gone. Preble hit the first pitch into a double play. Wilson hit into another double play the inning after, but the Coons actually did manage to tie the game by the fifth, after some gritty pitching by Bubba kept them in the game. Baskins doubled, Watt doubled, and Maldo singled to produce the two runs needed, and for what? For the top 6th. Infield single by Mendez, infield single by Russ, nobody out. Oh for ****’* sake…!! Quinteros popped out. Rivera whiffed. Hugo Acosta popped out. Nobody scored…! (jumps up and pokes fists into the air)

But… top 7th. Leadoff walk to Bobby Anderson, and the Wilson threw away de Castro’s grounder for a 2-base error. Two were on again, and now in scoring position, with nobody out. And Bubba? BUBBA STRUCK OUT THE ******* SIDE!! And yet, all he got was a no-decision… Waters hit for him in the bottom 7th, but to no avail, as the Critters went down 1-2-3.

Bottom 8th, Adame singled, Maldo was nicked, and they pulled off a double steal, all with nobody out. The Indians walked Preble intentionally to sabotage the effort, but didn’t remove Ortiz, who went on to drill Gurney with the very next pitch, pushing the go-ahead run across. Martell added a sac fly, ending Ortiz’ season and bringing in Sang-hoon Kim. Toohey batted for Wilson and walked the bags full again, but Baskins popped out. (groans!) Glodowski batted for Kuo, in line for the W now, and walked, but not until after Kim had already brought in a run with a wild pitch. Watt flew out to center to end the inning, and the 3-run lead went to Nelson Moreno, who walked Nick Nunez with two outs, but then struck out Aaron Brayboy, which was as good an end to a game as any. 5-2 Raccoons. Watt 1-2, 3 BB, 2B, RBI; Adame 2-4; Maldonado 2-3, RBI; Wolinsky 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K;

Game 3
IND: CF A. Mendez – SS Russ – RF B. Quinteros – LF D. Rivera – 2B H. Acosta – 3B B. Anderson – 1B Quintana – C Whitley – P B. Jackson
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 1B Maldonado – 2B Waters – LF Toohey – RF Glodowski – 3B Coen – C Prow – P Salcido

To close out the regular season, both teams littered runners left and right in the first five innings, putting six on apiece, and scoring not a soul. The Indians got three hits and three walks off Salcido, but hit into a double play and were caught stealing once, stranding the other four. The Coons had five hits and a walk and stranded absolutely ******* everybody.

Salcido got the first two outs in the sixth from Quinteros and Rivera, who you’d assume were the tough outs for a right-hander with little experience, but then gave up three singles to load the bases, which ended his cup of coffee. Preston Porter struck out Dan Whitley to keep the runners from scoring, then saw PH Ron Kurtz and Russ reach on singles in the seventh. Jake Bonnie came in, got romped for two hits, a walk, and three runs by the middle of the order, and as things were going, this was gonna be the ballgame.

Bates, Hitchcock, and Alcala pitched to the end of regulation, with the Raccoons not even getting another base hit until Waters legged out an infield single to begin the bottom 9th of a 3-0 game against Tommy Gardner. Gurney hit for Toohey, then reached on an Anderson error. Glodowski whacked a double over Philip Locke in center, driving home a run and putting the tying runs into scoring position with nobody out. Martell hit for Coen, but popped out. Gonzalez hit for Prow, singled to right, tied the game, and chased Gardner, too. Mike Lechowicz then sent the game to extras by retiring Watt and Adame. Good, more chances to get hurt! (reaches for the Capt’n Coma)

Lynn retired the Arrowheads in order in the top 10th, with Lechowicz continuing against the 2-3-4 hitters afterwards, and also got them in order. Lynn had another flawless inning in the 11th, while the Indians sent right-hander Bill Quinn. Martell singled with two outs, but that was it. Quinteros singled off Richardson in the top 12th, but was then wrapped up with Danny Rivera – those two had 51 homers and 226 RBI, with 35 stolen bases between them – in a strike-em-out-throw-em-out to end the inning. A leadoff triple into the rightfield corner off Quinn by Matt Watt in the bottom 12th should put the thing to rest, shouldn’t it? Baskins batted for Richardson in the #1 slot, but grounded out poorly and Watt had to hold. Herrera was walked intentionally, and Maldo was drilled unintentionally. Waters next – how about ending the year with a slam? Nope – double play grounder. The band played on, and we were about to run out of pitchers. Nelson Moreno was at it for the 13th. Angel Quintana was nicked and Dan Whitley singled, but the Indians didn’t break through. Glodowski’s 1-out double off Tan Brink put the winning run in scoring position once more, but Martell and Gonzalez both struck out. Kuo turned in the 14th, and by then Jake Jackson was warming in the bullpen for *one more* outing. Watt walked and Wilson singled to begin the bottom 14th, taking up space on the corners, but we had seen that before… This was the final time though, the game ending on a sac fly to center by Armando Herrera. 4-3 Critters. Wilson (PH) 1-1; Waters 3-6; Glodowski 3-6, 3 2B, RBI; Watt (PH) 1-2, BB; Salcido 5.2 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 3 K; Lynn 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K;

In other news

September 30 – MIL SP John Morrill (6-21, 4.92 ERA) ends his rotten season with a 2-hit shutout of the Crusaders, striking out four in a 1-0 win, all the offense being supplied with a homer by 1B Kyle Edsell (.235, 1 HR, 3 RBI).
October 2 – The Stars seal their division with a 4-0 win over the Scorpions.
October 2 – Thunder and Bayhawks both blow ninth-inning leads, then go to extras tied at four. The Thunder put up four more runs in the top 10th, only to get outdone for five by the Bayhawks. SFB SS/2B Todd Dau (.244, 5 HR, 32 RBI) doubles home the winning run for a 9-8 walkoff.
October 2 – SAL INF Randolph Nash (.264, 8 HR, 50 RBI) drives in five runs from the #8 spot in a 15-2 rout of the Warriors.
October 3 – The Miners take the FL East with a game to spare by beating the Capitals, 7-3.
October 3 – Dallas outfielder Juan del Toro (.368, 26 HR, 103 RBI) has a 20-game hitting streak after a double in a 4-2 loss to the Scorpions.

FL Hitter of the Month: DAL LF/CF Juan del Toro (.368, 25 HR, 102 RBI), killing it with a .443 average, 5 HR, 29 RBI
CL Hitter of the Month: TIJ SS Tony Aparicio (.352, 12 HR, 58 RBI), killing it just as good with a .440 bat, 5 HR, 25 RBI
FL Pitcher of the Month: NAS SP Marcus Wilkins (8-10, 5.05 ERA), spinning a 4-0 record with 2.25 ERA, 27 K
CL Pitcher of the Month: BOS SP David Barel (15-10, 2.93 ERA), hurling for a 4-2 record with 2.25 ERA, 36 K
FL Rookie of the Month: LAP LF/RF/1B Justin Bradley (.279, 14 HR, 58 RBI), batting .390 with 5 HR, 21 RBI
CL Rookie of the Month: TIJ 2B/SS Chris Navarro (.303, 0 HR, 64 RBI), poking .330 with 12 RBI

Complaints and stuff

45 players were used in the Sunday game, but at least no one died. Matt Waters won the home run title in the CL with 31 (but Larry Rodriguez hit 34 for L.A.), but Mike Preble came second in OPS and Nelson Moreno second in saves, narrowly missing league-highs, in Moreno’s case to one of the horde of former Raccoons that were now closers somewhere else – Antonio Prieto!

I hoped Wheats would sneak a Pitcher of the Month award, but the committee didn’t buy into his pathetic two wins, the 1.80 ERA and 30 K be damned.

Kevin Nolte, who was run over by one bus after another just a few years ago, missed a triple crown by all of seven strikeouts compared to Milwaukee’s Ruben Guzman. – Yes, Slappy; the Loggers…!

(looks back and forth between Pat Degenhardt and the scouting report he just filed) Man, those graphs on Jesus Maldonado are rough. (tugs reports into a drawer in the desk) We will go into these after the playoffs…

Speaking of the playoffs, how’s it looking for Chris Robinson (knee) and Bob Ibold (quad) for the CLCS? Not all that rosy, to be honest. We might have to leave both of them off the roster, since they will miss *at least* the first two games at the Bay, and might not even be ready for when the series will come to Portland, and what’s the point then? Both would be available for the World Series, but the Baybirds won 112 and I am already protecting my head with two paws from the incoming drubbing. Remember we lost the season series, 6-3 by games, 44-31 by runs. BUT … six of the games were decided by one run, so there’s that.

Fun Fact: For the first time in 38 years, the Raccoons have won 13 games from the damn Elks in a season.

(grins stupidly)

+++

Service announcement: Tomorrow could be busy for me, and I hate to cram in a playoff series… but Thursday is a federal holiday over here, so **** it and let’s just say that the CLCS will come to you on Thursday!

[Westheim]

2048 CONTINENTAL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Portland Raccoons (93-69) vs. San Francisco Bayhawks (112-50)

The fifth straight CLCS appearance for the Raccoons brought them up against their scariest opponent yet, the 112-win Bayhawks that had won the season series against the Critters, 6-3. They brought along a +233 run differential, having led the league in runs scored, runs allowed, homers, starters’ ERA, and a million other categories that were just too bothersome to list.

The Baybirds’ dense lineup has almost everybody on double-digit homers, and they had batted .269 as a team, just one point lower than the CL-leading Critters. There were also three switch-hitters in that lineup in Sean Suggs, Ken Crum, and Sergio Quiroz, making them all the harder to pitch to. Their rotation meanwhile was entirely right-handed for this series, which made the lack of Chris Robinson the more annoying.

Speaking of injuries, while the Bayhawks had one notable absence in closer John Steuer, the Raccoons had technically three, but Manny Fernandez had gone down months ago and nobody had ever expected him back by October anyway. But Chris Robinson and Bob Ibold had only hurt themselves in the season’s final week. Neither of them would be available to begin the series, and both were also questionable for when the series would swing to Portland with Game 3 and at that point there was just no point in bothering with them. They were both shipped to the DL, which created at least some leverage for roster construction, although if you watched the 2048 Coons carefully you’ll have realized that they were quite a bit top heavy and the whole construction had been put on ceramic feet that were showing some serious cracks at this point.

Matt Glodowski, as right-handed and as much of a 28-year-old rookie (…) as he was, was the only outfielder available for addition to the playoff roster; nobody else was eligible (prior to the two injury wild cards we’d get). For remaining position players that ended the regular season with the team and that weren’t obvious inclusions on the playoff roster, Ben Coen was technically eligible, while Kevin Prow and Josh Floyd were not. None of them were added to the roster anyway.

With the demise of Ibold, only 11 eligible pitchers remained, so the final inclusion on the playoff roster would be a right-handed Danny Cancel, who had been a bit less annoying than Adam Bates in garbage duty in late September.

And, boy, was I worried about having to select pitchers for garbage duty in this CLCS……

[Westheim]

2048 CONTINENTAL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Portland Raccoons (93-69) @ San Francisco Bayhawks (112-50)

The series would begin in San Francisco due to the Bayhawks having squeezed out home field advantage by a narrow 19 games margin, and they were sure lusting for some revenge on the Raccoons for previous transgressions. The CLCS history between these two teams was very much painted brown, with the Raccoons winning four of five meetings, including the last two in 2037 and 2044. The Bayhawks had only beaten the Raccoons in the 2017 CLCS, which was the era of us winning the division every year, but not getting to the World Series even once.

Game 1 – Jason Wheatley (13-7, 3.44 ERA) vs. Kevin Nolte (22-7, 2.06 ERA)

Jason Wheatley lined up for the opener of the series on regular rest after having thrown only 43 pitches in a shelling against the Indians (and not the first one) on the final weekend of the regular season. He had faced the Bayhawks only one this season, pitching to a no-decision in September. Nolte had faced Portland twice, pitching a complete-game 7-hitter for a 7-1 win in May, but took an L in a less stellar start in September. It added up to a 2.57 ERA for him against the Coons overall.

POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Wheatley
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – C S. Suggs – LF Crum – 2B Quiroz – 3B Copeland – RF P. Colon – 1B A. Marquez – P Nolte

Hard stats here, his GM’s lack of confidence there, Jesus Maldonado had more honors to win and rocked Kevin Nolte’s little world with a 2-run homer in the first inning after Armando Herrera had already hit a double into the rightfield corner! Todd Dau singled up the middle and Ken Crum wrestled a full-count walk from Wheatley in the bottom 1st in response, but Sergio Quiroz popped out behind home plate to strand those. There was another single and walk to the Bayhawks in the bottom 2nd, putting Sebastian Copeland and Pedro Colon on base, but those were stranded by a groundout, pop, and groundout by the 8-9-1 hitters. This was not the second-half Wheats I kept banging the drum for in every dreary April, though….

Maldo gave another ball a ride in the third, but this time John Fink had space to work with in the outfield and made a catch. Adame jiggered from second to third on the play however, having drawn a leadoff walk ahead of an Herrera single to begin the inning. Mike Preble had some raking to do, too, however, and whacked a gapper in right-center. The runners scored from the corners, although Preble was caught in a rundown between second and third after bidding for three when settling for two would have been more prudent.

And Wheats? Up 4-0, he kept putting people on base, loading them up in the bottom 3rd. Dau and Quiroz singled, and Copeland drew a 2-out walk, bringing up Colon, who had hit .285 with 12 homers in the regular season. Wheats, 59 pitches into a gig on the struggle bus, got some good pep talk in a mound conference, then got a 1-1 flare to shallow center from Colon that Herrera hustled for and caught to strand another three runners.

A Gurney triple and Baskins groundout made it 5-0 in the fourth, which ended Nolte’s day once his spot came up in the bottom 4th. Andy Montes hit for him, but also into a double play, erasing Alex Marquez and his leadoff single. Nope, Wheats was no good – but maybe the Raccoons could make enough of a fire to win the opener regardless. Adame socked another leadoff triple in the fifth and scored on a Maldo sac fly to right-center, 6-0, while Wheatley both got his first K of the game (!) in the bottom 5th against Todd Dau, then right away got knocked over for a solo homer by Sean Suggs, which sugged. Wheats batted for himself in the top 6th and singled, but was left on, and then came back for two singles and no outs in the bottom 6th before getting unceremoniously yanked. With Copeland and Colon aboard, Mike Lynn popped out Alex Marquez, then walked PH Dan Riley. John Fink flew out to Herrera, Copeland tagged from third base and went home – and was thrown out to end the inning…!

The Raccoons had two singles in the seventh before Mike Preble hit into a double play rather than a game-decider. From there, Kevin Hitchcock pitched five of the nine outs still required without allowing a Baybird aboard, after which Jake Bonnie was put into the game in a double switch, Matt Watt entering the #9 hole and leftfield over Derek Baskins. Colon hit a 2-out single off Bonnie, but the bottom 8th ended with a K to Marquez. More trouble in the ninth: Ted Del Vecchio pinch-hit and singled (bites into his fist), while John Fink drew a walk from Bonnie. Todd Dau sent a spanker to Maldo, though, which started a 5-4-3 double play! Herrera got hold of a Suggs fly, and that ended the series opener…!

Raccoons 6, Bayhawks 1 – (Raccoons lead series 1-0)

Herrera 3-5, 2B; Maldonado 2-3, HR, 3 RBI;

Oy!

Game 2 – Bubba Wolinsky (7-2, 3.23 ERA) vs. Jesse Bulas (12-7, 3.31 ERA)

After a slight surprise W in the opener, the Raccoons kept banking on pitchers whose names started with the winningest letter in the alphabet, while the Bayhawks turned to Jesse Bulas for emotional relief.

Wolinsky had faced the Bayhawks twice this year despite not returning to the majors until late June, cashing two no-decisions with a 4.09 ERA. Bulas also had two outings and no-decisions to show for, but with a 6.00 ERA. We made no changes to the winning lineup from Game 1.

POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Wolinsky
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – C S. Suggs – LF Crum – 3B Copeland – 2B Quiroz – 1B A. Marquez – RF P. Colon – P Bulas

This game went pear-shaped really fast; while the Coons got Adame on with a leadoff walk and Maldo was brushed in the shirt for another runner, Preble hit into a double play and that was that. The Baybirds placed Dau and Crum aboard, then got a 2-out, 2-run knock from Sebastian Copeland, and a throwing error by Adame on Quiroz’ grounder plated a third run before long. A Gurney double and Gonzalez homer narrowed the gap to one run in the top 2nd, but a cavalcade of misplays exploded the score in the bottom 2nd. Colon reached on an infield single to begin the inning, with Gonzalez making a sloppy play. Bulas grounded to Gurney, who tried to get the lead runner, but pulled Waters off the bag and got nobody. Fink popped out, but Dau singled home a run to center, and Suggs drove in another run with a double to left, which sugged. He also pulled something, which sugged mostly for him, and had to be removed from the game. John Hill would take over as pinch-runner and catcher. Crum’s grounder to Maldo and a Copeland fly to left ended the inning without any more runs scoring – not like they hadn’t already scored enough in a 5-2 game.

Maldo had a hit in the third that led nowhere, but Gurney whacked another triple in the fourth and was brought in by Gonzalez to shorten the gap to 5-3, while Bubba was still pitching, but was yoinked after three straight 1-out hits by the 5-6-7 hitters in the bottom 5th. Joy-shan Kuo conceded all the runs on a 2-run double by Colon and a Bulas sac fly, and that was pretty much the ballgame, Portland now down 8-3.

Maldo hit a leadoff single in the sixth, but was doubled off by Preble, who wasn’t having a great series so far, and the Raccoons gave up, the ball to Jake Jackson, the odd one out in the rotation, and told him to have fun for the last three innings. Jackson retired the first six batters he faced, but gave up a run in the eighth on hits by Colon and Dau. Not that this ruined our day – the Coons had done nothing in the previous few innings, and only made another twitch with the striped tail in the ninth when Matt Waters hit a leadoff jack against Brad Barnes, 9-4. Enough of this, the Bayhawks decided, and went to closer Jeremy Mayhall, who was done with the Coons three batters later.

Bayhawks 9, Raccoons 4 – (series tied 1-1)

Maldonado 2-3, 2B; Gurney 2-3, 3B; Martell (PH) 1-1;

That was a rough one to watch. And to be fair, with a little less rotten luck in the opener, the Baybirds would easily be up 2-0 now…

Off to Portland now!

[Westheim]

2048 CONTINENTAL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Portland Raccoons (93-69) vs. San Francisco Bayhawks (112-50)

The series shifted North with the Raccoons’ starters having gotten a few good whackings (although it hadn’t translated into many runs on Wheats). With the series now shortened to a best-of-five, my confidence still wasn’t very high.

By the off day between games two and three, however, the Bayhawks announced that a sprained ankle would render Sean Suggs out for the remainder of the playoffs, which sure sugged for them, removing his .326 twig and 29 homers from the lineup. John Hill had hit all of .218 with one homer in the regular season, and injury replacement Mike Jaros had appeared in only seven games.

Game 3 – Victor Merino (15-9, 3.60 ERA) vs. Craig Czyszczon (18-7, 3.21 ERA)

It’s pronounced “Schon”, Nick. – But when I tell you…! – Fine, make clicking noises if that makes you happy.

The Raccoons were opening their 3-game home slate with Victor Merino, with Jeremy Baker waiting for Game 4. It was almost a coin toss between those, and we went with experience for the potential double start in Game 7, while for the ceremonial first pitch we went with flair, Maud having brought in Portland’s honorary homosexuals’ mayor, Flips Flannagan, who tossed a perfect strike to Jeff Wilson. I was still miffed. – No, Maud, I’m a traditionalist! I want them to wear a Raccoons cap when they throw out the first pitch. – Yes, Maud, nobody pulls off a fedora with a rainbow-colored feather tugged into the band like Flips Flannagan……

SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – LF Crum – 3B Copeland – 2B Quiroz – 1B A. Marquez – C J. Hill – RF P. Colon – P Czyszczon
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – LF Baskins – P Merino

Was Flips Flannagan the most gayness to be squeezed out of Game 3? Fink opened the game with a double in the gap, but was also stranded, with a crucial K on Todd Dau helping Merino out of the inning. Also, Mike Preble arose from his slumber and singled home Herrera from second with two outs in the bottom 1st, giving the Raccoons a 1-0 lead and joy abounded!

While Nick Valdes explained the applications and benefits of direct discharges of acidic waste into the ecosystem in his latest business endeavor – crypto food farming – Merino got some nice defensive assistance on the field. Fink tried to hit another extra-base knock in the third, but Preble tracked down the ball in right-center, and the Baybirds remained off the board early on.

Bottom 3rd, and a collective “Hhhh!!” resounded over Portland, as 40,000+ held their breath when Czyszczon smacked Maldo in the paw after a leadoff single and stolen base by Herrera. Maldo was not pleased, and Dr. Padilla was concerned. I reached for the Capt’n Coma once it became clear that Maldo was to be taken out of the game. Al Martell would replace him, not quite the #3 hitter I was envisioning in a lineup. Could we at least make them pay? When Preble drew a walk that filled the bags with no outs, I wailed in agony. Waters’ sac fly was as colorful as it got, with Gurney then grounding into a drab double play, keeping it 2-0 after three.

A deep Colon fly aside, the fourth and fifth were uneventful, but Merino allowed a sharp leadoff single to Fink to begin the sixth. Fink took off on the 1-1 to Dau and was caught stealing, even while Nick was too slow in pressing the inconspicuous button on the wristband he was wearing, which suddenly sprung a trip wire out of the infield dirt between first and second base, and which Matt Waters then quickly ripped out and stuffed into his pants while the other infielders distracted the umpires. Dau singled on the next pitch by Merino, but was then doubled up by Ken Crum’s grounder to Waters.

Speechlessness reigned come the seventh. Merino walked Quiroz with one out, and Marquez singled. John Hill strafed an RBI double to left, putting the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position, but when Andy Montes pinch-hit – lefty-for-lefty! – for Colon, the Raccoons kept Merino on the mound and got a pop out of Montes for the second out. And then – nobody pinch-hit for Czyszczon. Apparently the Baybirds had banked on the Raccoons getting a righty pitcher for the righty-hitting pitcher, but if you’re not gonna make us get a new pitcher, we’re not gonna make YOU come up with a pinch-hitter, either! Czyszczon looked to his dugout with eyes begging for help, but he got none. He popped out harmlessly, choking off the Bayhawks’ almost-rally.

Merino got Fink on a groundout to begin the top 8th, then was lifted for Preston Porter with Dau up. Dau grounded out to short, Crum whiffed, and Nelson Moreno was getting ready now. Dan Riley would pinch-hit for Copeland to begin the ninth, with no cushion on the board, it was still a 2-1 game. Moreno lost Riley on balls, then got two fly outs to center from Quiroz and Marquez before the replacement catcher, Jaros, batted for Hill, throwing another lefty bat up there. He went down on strikes to end the game!

Raccoons 2, Bayhawks 1 – (Raccoons lead series 2-1)

Oh, do I feel gay today!!

Game 4 – Jeremy Baker (11-7, 3.69 ERA) vs. Kevin Nolte (22-7, 2.06 ERA)

The Bayhawks felt urgency by Game 4, bringing back Nolte on short rest for a potential third outing of the series in Game 7. The Raccoons calmly proceeded to Baker for this game, but replaced Derek Baskins with Matt Watt in the lineup.

Game 4 was delayed by 11 minutes for … unforeseen events. The first pitch, in a special stunt, was to be thrown by Portland-born actress Tallullah Tennyson from the Woodyear blimp hovering high above Raccoons Ballpark. All the calculations proved correct and she threw the ball right to Ruben Gonzalez – except that we had neglected what missile the baseball would become after being thrown from 2,000 feet. Gonzalez squealed and scattered at the last second before impact, after which the grounds crew went out to repair the small crater left by the impact.

Maldo’s paw was a little sore after getting hit the day before, but there was no way to talk him out of the lineup. Not that I tried all that hard.

SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – LF Crum – 3B Copeland – 2B Quiroz – 1B A. Marquez – C J. Hill – RF P. Colon – P Nolte
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – LF Watt – C Gonzalez – P Baker

After a clean first, Baker had quite the meltdown in the second inning once Maldonado fumbled a grounder by Quiroz. Marquez and Hill hit singles after that, the latter driving in Quiroz for an unearned run, before Baker walked both Colon and the ******* opposing pitcher, the latter with the bases loaded. That run was earned, deserved, and would see him getting flogged in front of the ballpark the next morning, I’d make sure of that. After Fink popped out, Dau singled home two more unearned runs to put the Coons in a 4-0 hole, Crum flying out to Herrera to end the miserable inning.

Baker allowed another run on two hits in the third inning, then was already pinch-hit for in the bottom 3rd, where his spot led off the inning. Jake Jackson pitched two scoreless innings after that, but the Raccoons didn’t make the slightest rallying noises, making the game a rather depressing experience, just like the average Tallullah Tennyson movie.

With pitching duties taken over by Danny Cancel by the sixth inning, the Raccoons scored a run in the bottom 6th on an Adame double and Preble single, but were then still a slam away and Waters struck out to end the inning. Cancel rung up the 7-8-9 batters in order in the sixth, then got romped in the seventh. Dau walked, Crum got nicked, and Copeland doubled them both in. Marquez and Hill hit singles with two outs, extending the score to 8-1, with the rather useless Kuo replacing Cancel and giving up a 2-run triple to Colon for a 5-spot. – I know, Nick, I know. I also would have preferred to have Bob Ibold and somebody to score some runs!

Herrera singled home Al Martell for a meaningless run in the bottom 8th, which was with Nolte already gone from the game to give him more of a chance to be fresh in Game 7. Rafael Pedraza was presiding over a long bottom 8th that saw the Coons load the bags eventually and Pat Gurney drawing a walk to force in another run. Not that there was any chance to salvage the mess left by Baker and Cancel anyway. Colon hit another jack off Bonnie in the ninth inning for some window dressing.

Bayhawks 11, Raccoons 3 – (series tied 2-2)

Adame 3-5, 2B; Preble 2-4, RBI; Gurney 2-3, BB, RBI; Martell (PH) 1-1, 2B; Jackson 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K;

I start to see how they won 112 this year…

Game 5 – Jason Wheatley (13-7, 3.44 ERA) vs. Chih Ke (17-7, 2.54 ERA)

The Raccoons were now also back to their Game 1 starter, hoping that Wheats had done some thinking about what had almost gone horribly wrong at the Bay. The Bayhawks brought a new guy, with Ke taking a loss for eight innings of 4-run ball in his only outing against Portland this year.

The ceremonial first pitch was thrown out by local cat lady Cynthia Green, who was followed onto the field by no fewer than 14 cats in various states of visible disrepair. All of them but the two deaf ones scattered once the band started thundering the national anthem, and only half of them were found again before the game actually began – one of them somehow managing to drown itself in a barrel with their choice of electrolytic drink in the Bayhawks dugout.

SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – LF Crum – 2B Quiroz – 3B Copeland – RF P. Colon – 1B A. Marquez – C Jaros – P Ke
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – LF Watt – C Gonzalez – P Wheatley

The Coons had the bases loaded in the bottom 1st after soft singles by Adame and Herrera, then a Marquez error on Preble’s grounder. Ke was wiping his sweaty forehead and briefly lifted his cap, revealing a small tabby cat with one eye blue and one green stowing away on his head. Ke didn’t realize that still, and kept pitching to Matt Waters, who hit a gapper to right-center for a 2-run double, the first runs in the game. Gurney scored two more with a single zinged to center, so Wheats now had a sizable lead to work with early on. He walked Copeland, but didn’t allow any hits the first time through in this pivotal Game 5.

Pat Gurney homered to right in the bottom 3rd, extending the score to 5-0. Watt singled and stole second after that, but was stranded by the battery. Wheatley saw Dau reach base on a Maldonado error to begin the fourth, but pitched around that without allowing the runner into scoring position.

Ke’s day ended with back-to-back leadoff doubles by Adame and Herrera in the bottom 4th, down deep in a 6-0 hole. Waters singled home the runner with two outs against Ron Purcell after Maldo and Preble had failed, the latter having accidentally taken a cat rather than a bat out to home plate.

A Colon single in the fifth took the no-hitter away, to Nick Valdes' infinite dismay, but Wheats was all business and kept grinding, getting out of the inning unharmed, then bunted Watt and Gonzalez into scoring position in the bottom 5th. Alex Adame then ended the game as a contest, raking a 3-run homer to left-center that ran the tally to 10-0 and ensured the Raccoons in the catbird seat in San Francisco unless the Collapse of Collapse would ensue now.

Andy Montes pinch-hit and singled to begin the sixth, but was doubled off on Dau’s grounder to Adame to short-circuit another inning. The Coons shored up defense with Martell and Glodowski over Maldo and Preble as early as the seventh inning.

Wheats shook off a Quiroz single in the seventh, then finally unleashed the cat from the bag in the eighth with Marquez and Riley singles, plus nicking former Coon Tony Romero, who was batting for Fink. Three on, one out, Wheats would get one chance against Dau, but the pen was armed and ready. Wheats rung up Dau with vigor, then got a groundout from Ken Crum to choke out the Baybirds for the eighth, then hissed at everybody trying to take the ball away from him between the eighth and ninth. There, Quiroz opened with a groundout to Waters. Ted Del Vecchio went down on strikes. Pedro Colon, for last? 0-1 pitch, grounder to Waters, zinged to first – ballgame!!

Raccoons 10, Bayhawks 0 – (Raccoons lead series 3-2)

Adame 3-4, HR, 2B, 3 RBI; Herrera 2-5, 2B, RBI; Waters 2-4, 2B, 3 RBI; Gurney 2-4, HR, 3 RBI; Watt 3-4; Wheatley 9.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K, W (2-0);

That’s the Wheats I love!! First career complete-game in the postseason for him in eight attempts! Including a relief outing in his debut season in ’44, he was now a 5-2 pitcher with a 2.25 ERA in the playoffs.

Back to the Bay then!

[Westheim]

Remember, Games 6 and 7 always get their own posts so as not to spoiler whether there is a Game 7 by the length/position of the scroll bar in your browser alone.

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2048 CONTINENTAL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Portland Raccoons (93-69) @ San Francisco Bayhawks (112-50)

Game 2 opponents Bubba Wolinsky and Jesse Bulas would meet again as the series returned to the Bay, with the Raccoons now holding a 3-2 edge and looking grimly determined to not have to throw the dice with Nolte again in Game 7.

Game 6 – Bubba Wolinsky (7-2, 3.23 ERA) vs. Jesse Bulas (12-7, 3.31 ERA)

Wolinsky had been lit up quite badly in Game 2, but with the shutout in Game 5 and the day off after that, the bullpen was completely reset and had three long guys available, so we would probably not waiting around forever for Bubba to find his mojo. Speaking of the bullpen, none of the eight relievers had been in more than two games so far, and the top three of Moreno, Porter, and Lynn had all just made one appearance for a total of 2.2 innings.

POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – RF Preble – 2B Waters – 1B Gurney – LF Watt – C Gonzalez – P Wolinsky
SFB: CF Fink – SS Dau – LF Crum – 3B Copeland – 2B Quiroz – 1B A. Marquez – C J. Hill – RF P. Colon – P Bulas

Wolinsky soon made it a habit to put the leadoff man on base. Fink doubled in the first, but was stranded three poor outs, while Quiroz drew a leadoff walk in the second, was forced out by Marquez, and then Marquez was stranded with a K and a pop. Bulas, who retired the Raccoons in order the first time through, then singled to begin the bottom 3rd. Sigh! Fink flew out, Dau doubled, and a run scored on Ken Crum’s groundout before Copeland struck out. Not ideal…

Armando Herrera took it upon himself to tie the game in the fourth, hitting a liner into the cavernous left-center parkland and by the time John Fink retrieved the ball, Herrera was already taking a big turn for third base. He was waved on for home plate, Dau relayed Fink’s throw to home plate, but it was too late – Herrera tied the game with an inside-the-park home run!!

The Coons continued with a Maldo single to center, while Preble grounded to Quiroz for what oughta have been two, but became none with a wide throw past Todd Dau. Waters hit into a force at second base, but Gurney singled through the right side to chase home Maldonado from third base, giving Portland a 2-1 lead…! Waters dashed to third on the play, but Watt stranded them on the corners by whiffing.

Bottom 4th, and AGAIN the leadoff man was on base with a leadoff single for Quiroz…! Oh, Bubba!! The tying run in Quiroz was at third base by the time there were two outs, and the #8 spot was up. Show us what you got, Baybirds – Colon was walked intentionally, bringing up Bulas, with double action in the Raccoons’ pen to counter any move for a pinch-hitter with an appropriate reliever. No pinch-hitter game forth again, Bulas hitting for himself, and grounding out to Maldo. The fifth was the first inning where Wolinsky got out the leadoff man, then walked Dau with one gone instead, but that run also stuck to the bases.

Hill’s 2-out single in the sixth led nowhere, while Waters got on to begin the seventh, but was caught stealing. It was still 2-1 for the Critters, with Wolinsky coming back for two outs in the bottom 7th, but that put him at 101 pitches, which was well enough. Preston Porter came on in a double switch, Baskins replacing Watt in left. He walked Dau in a full count, but rung up the switch-hitter Crum, who didn’t have much luck from either side of the plate in this series.

While Baskins crammed a double with one out in the eighth into the corner, neither Adame nor Herrera found a hit to plate him against Bulas. Porter returned for the bottom 8th with Lynn lined up behind him. Porter conceded singles to both Copeland and Quiroz, and now we were in the ****. Lynn came on for Marquez, but the Baybirds countered with the Coons’ right-handed nemesis, Ted ********* Del Vecchio. Lynn got a strike in before Del Vecchio slapped a sharp grounder into play. Adame! To Waters! To Gurney! Double play! Copeland moved the tying run to third, however, and John Hill had batted .500 since taking over for the fallen Sean Suggs. The righty wouldn’t get to hit, as we waved the go-ahead run on base to get to Colon. Montes batted for Colon, but that was *still* a lefty bat – Tony Romero would have been a righty option on the bench. Montes grounded out to Waters on the first pitch, ending the inning.

Top 9th, Maldo socked a leadoff double off Jeremy Mayhall, and yes please, I would very much like an insurance run. I didn’t get it though. Preble was now walked with intent, Waters whiffed, and Gurney kicked into a double play to throw the chance away.

BUT – Gurney’s double play preserved Lynn’s existence in the #7 spot and thus the game, and when the Bayhawks began the bottom 9th with Mike Jaros batting in the #9 hole, the Raccoons held back Moreno and instead continued with Lynn on the mound – mind that Fink in the #1 hole was also a lefty. Lynn secured a groundout and a strikeout from those two, and THEN the Coons went to Moreno with two outs on the board, tying to get the last one from Dau. Moreno entered with Glodowski in another double switch that took Preble out of the game and Moreno’s fuzzy bum out of the leadoff spot in a potential 10th inning. There was no 10th inning. Dau held out until 2-2, then grounded up the middle. Adame zoomed over, threw to first, and thus ended a 112-win team.

Raccoons 2, Bayhawks 1 – (Raccoons win 4-2!)

Maldonado 2-4, 2B; Baskins 1-1, 2B; Wolinsky 6.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, W (1-1); Lynn 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K;

The Coons go to the World Series! The Coons go to the World Series!!

[Westheim]

2048 FLCS

Starting one day after the CLCS, the Federal League also went out to try and crown a champion.

Qualifying from the eastern half of the country were the 94-68 Pittsburgh Miners, winning their division by three games. They led the league in stolen bases, and stolen bases only, but put together solid pitching and offense; they were fourth in runs scored and third in runs allowed in the Federal League, with a +87 run differential. While their rotation however was solid and second in ERA in the FL, the bullpen was more on the crumbly side, with an ERA over four. Their offense was led by Ed Soberanes (.337, 25 HR, 113 RBI), which was a problem, since Soberanes twisted an ankle on his morning run the day after the regular season ended, and would miss the entire playoffs. Without him, the team highs in offense were suddenly a .288 bat (Alex Vasquez), 15 homers, and 79 RBI (Giampaolo Petroni). Soberanes was joined on the DL by veteran Mario Briones. Their lineup leaned lefty, while their starters were all right-handers.

The Dallas Stars put 100 wins together, which turned out to be just enough to beat the 99-win Gold Sox to the FL West. They had the most prolific offense in the league, pumping out a staggering 895 runs this season, which also allowed them to survive casual pitching and a rotation ranked sixth by ERA, and a bullpen in the bottom three in the FL. They gave up the fifth-most runs overall, but still came out with a +178 run differential. They also were without three important players in SP Arthur Pickett, 1B Dario Martinez, and C Rafael Castaneda. That still left them with four .310+ hitters, including .369 monster Juan del Toro, who had 26 homers and 104 RBI, and Tylor Cecil looked like another Player of the Year award was coming for him, as he finished the year with a .310 average, 29 homers, and *149* RBI. That mark broke his own single-season league record set just the year before. Soft spots were hard to find in the lineup for sure.

This was the 13th playoff appearance for the Stars. They had won three championships, but none since 2006. The Miners were in the postseason for the 14th time, but had never won the crown. This was the third time the teams met in the FLCS after 2036 and the year before. The Miners had won the ’36 series, but the Stars had gone through in ’47, but had lost the World Series to the Raccoons.

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PIT @ DAL … 2-1 (10) … (Miners lead 1-0) … PIT Dan Meyer (PH) 1-1, 2B, RBI; DAL Tylor Cecil 2-4, BB, HR, 2B, RBI; DAL Dave Hils 8.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K;

PIT @ DAL … 4-8 … (series tied 1-1) … DAL Juan del Toro 2-4, 3B, RBI; DAL Mario Sedillo 3-4, 3B, 2B, 3 RBI; DAL Dan Rollin 2-4, HR, 3B, RBI;

DAL @ PIT … 1-5 … (Miners lead 2-1) … PIT Pat Stipp 2-4, BB, 2B, 2 RBI; PIT Jesus Sanchez 8.0 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 10 K, W (1-0);

DAL @ PIT … 4-8 … (Miners lead 3-1) … DAL Tylor Cecil 3-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBI; PIT Pat Stipp 2-5, 2 RBI;

The Miners score all their runs in a rather decisive fifth inning, erasing a 3-0 deficit and storming away for the victory.

DAL @ PIT … 3-1 … (Miners lead 3-2) … DAL Jamie King (PH) 1-1, HR, RBI;

PIT @ DAL … 0-12 … (series tied 3-3) … DAL Omar Gonzalez 3-5, 2B, RBI; DAL Govaart van Eijk 4-4, BB, 2B, RBI; DAL Juan del Toro 3-5, HR, 5 RBI; DAL Tylor Cecil 2-4, BB, 2B, 2 RBI; DAL Noe Candeloro 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K, W (2-0);

PIT @ DAL … 1-8 … (Stars win 4-3) … DAL Orlando Leos 9.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, W (1-1);

Orlando Leos pitches a complete-game 6-hitter to complete a chokeout of the Miners in the last three games of the series, while the offense erupts for six runs in the sixth inning to decide the FLCS.

There will thus be a rematch of the previous year’s World Series between the Stars and Raccoons, who also faced another in 1983. The Stars won back then, but the Raccoons took the title last year.

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Only eight team in league history have won 110 games or more. Shockingly, only three of them actually won the championship, and just as many didn’t even win as much as the pennant:

1991 Capitals (113-49) – Champions – beat Pacifics, Raccoons
2001 Warriors (112-50) – Mouth full of Ashes – lost to Buffaloes (lost to Titans*)
2004 Titans (117-45) – Champions – beat Thunder, Wolves
2012 Thunder (110-52) – Pennant – beat Elks, lost to Pacifics
2014 Crusaders (112-50) – Champions – beat Bayhawks, Warriors
2045 Gold Sox (113-49) – Mouth full of Ashes – lost to Rebels (beat Raccoons)
2046 Gold Sox (110-52) – Pennant – beat Cyclones, lost to Raccoons
2048 Bayhawks (112-50) – Mouth full of Ashes – lost to Raccoons

* the (in)famous Vern Kinnear walkoff infield single in Game 7. Yellow #16 on a blue shirt, poked fist. Nightmares forever.