The Denver Brewers of the W.P. Kinsella League

[BirdWatcher]

The Brewers are 3 games into the 1979 Spring Training Exhibition season and have suffered their first casualty: first baseman Bobby Stewart goes down with a back injury which is expected to keep him sidelined possibly right up to the beginning of the regular season.




Granted, Stewart wasn't expected to be a member of the Brewers in the coming season but the team was hoping to showcase him a bit as trade bait. But for now that will have to wait until perhaps a little ways into the coming regular season.

[BirdWatcher]

The San Francisco Velocity got very bad news when they learned that their young star catcher Andrew Litteral had torn a hamstring while running the bases in the Velocity's Tuesday win over Detroit.
A good case could be made that Litteral is the best current player on the San Francisco ballclub and he is emerging as possibly the best catcher in the MGL.

[BirdWatcher]

The Brooklyn Aces had moved their talented control-specialist right-handed pitcher Chris Justice into the bullpen last year in spite of the fact that he hadn't had fewer than 14 wins in any of the 4 seasons prior to that as part of their starting rotation. And he had a fine season as a multi-inning reliever in 1978. This year they were exploring the idea of moving him back into the rotation with a bit of weakness at the back end of the rotation.



That plan has now been put on hold as Justice was diagnosed with a labrum tear yesterday and is expected to be out for at least 4 months, which suggests it may have just been a partial tear or one would expect a much longer recovery period to be needed.

Still, it isn't good news for the perennially unlucky and under-achieving Brooklyn club as they try to finally unseat the Brewers at the top of the MGL standings this year.

[BirdWatcher]

Veteran slugging right fielder Nick Haran has joined the Los Angeles Spinners after he signed a 1-year contract as a free agent yesterday.



This means the middle of the Spinners batting order features three players in their late-30's (Nate Bennett- 39, Jesus Hernandez- 37, Haran- 37). Haran remains an above average defensive right fielder and a dangerous hitter and although he no longer possesses the speed he had as a young man (he has 230 career stolen bases) he is still a very savvy base stealer and base runner. On the other hand, many around the league have slapped the wrecked label on him, feeling that the Spinners will be lucky to get a full season out of him.

[BirdWatcher]

The Baltimore Lords' veteran left fielder Chia-ch'ing Chou, who the team signed as an international free agent out of Taiwan in late November of 1975, is one of the best pure power hitters in the game when he is healthy. Staying healthy is the problem though.



And yesterday it was announced that the oft-injured 31-year old would miss the entire 1979 season due to a ruptured MCL. It is a tough loss for the Lords who it appears will now turn the position over to 25-year old Eddie Evans, who was the 11th pick overall in the 1971 draft. The Lords got Evans in a trade with Brooklyn at the end of the 1977 season. Evans is a hard worker, has great speed and even better base stealing skills, and is a strong defensive player. The thing that has kept him from reaching his previously expected great potential is an inability to make consistent bat to ball contact. He likely will hit a fair number of home runs if he can just make better contact and he does have a good eye at the plate, so now is his time to show whether he can turn his raw tools into actual big league production.

[BirdWatcher]

Well, so much for Philly improving their bullpen by trading for Tyler Thies in the offseason.



Sure, he might help a bit in the second half.

[BirdWatcher]

The owner said make it so, the fans were clamoring for it, and given his status as the last of the original Brewers (last Brewer chosen in the inaugural draft), the decision was easy for the front office.
With his contract expiring at the end of this season it was time to lock Bobby Erbakan up to a deal that would make it likely that he retires a Brewer.



And thus it was done. He may have trouble staying healthy for a full season but Erbakan remains a great player and a key member of the club. And now, after several great seasons in which he was compensated well below market value, Bobby has earned his considerable raise in salary (after just making a bit over $188,000 this year he will get $730,000 for the 1980 season).

[BirdWatcher]

Spring Training:

So here we are at Opening Day of a new season so let's take a few moments to reflect upon some of the Spring Training storylines and to look ahead to the regular season which begins today.

The Brewers largely emerged from Spring Training healthy and ready to go, having finished the exhibition season with a 21-9 record (behind only Brooklyn, who went 23-7). Not that anyone in the Brewers organization puts much stock in pre-season records. In fact, at least one prominent member of the front office is said to harbor some superstition in this area, believing that a good pre-season record is a harbinger of a poor start to the regular season, if not a disappointing season altogether.

Most importantly the members of the team who have proven most injury-prone managed to stay healthy and will be in the lineup on Opening Day. The only player who was expected to be on the Opening Day roster who will be missing is utility infielder Joe Willemse, who is battling a strained oblique and was placed on the 10-day IL. Willemse is expected to be ready to play again before the beginning of the second week of the season. His place on the roster is taken for the moment by fifth outfielder Eric Hammock, who tore the cover off the ball in Spring Training and was recently named the 83rd best prospect in the WPK.

Another young outfield prospect, Matt Catlett, also had an impressive Spring Training. Although Catlett fell well outside of the Top 100 Prospects list this year (after being rated #75 going into last season), reports from the Brewers scouting staff are very encouraging and the sense is that he is likely to surprise a lot of the experts before too long.

Top prospect Bryant Cox (#27 in the WPK) also had a fine Spring and our scouting staff is becoming more and more convinced of his fine potential to be a strong #2 or #3 in a big league rotation.

Lefthanded starter Terry Dubiel, acquired in a trade with Charlotte last season, is ranked the 193rd best prospect in the WPK, and while he doesn't have top-line potential, he did pitch well in a few starts in the exhibition season and looks to provide solid depth down at AAA Chester in case of any emergency need in the Brewers rotation this coming season.

Val Guzman got off to a slow start but was the hottest Brewer hitter at the end of the exhibition season, providing the biggest power bat for the team this Spring. And he will surely have to give up some time in the outfield to Antonio Acuna who continues to emerge as a potential star in the league.

Among the starting rotation Jim Atwell probably had the most impressive Spring, but Sadahige Kawasaki and Steve Green were also quite good, with Sekien Hamasaki and Erik Sloan having somewhat more uneven exhibition season performances.

In the bullpen, Ben Flynn pitched a lot and mostly quite well. He was also given a decent number of opportunities to play first base, to keep his skills somewhat sharp there and let him bat more, as was Joe McPhillips, in anticipation that in the next few years he might need a bit more positional flexibility to make way for Matt Catlett in center (or even Antonio Acuna.)

The Opening Day Roster and ST transactions:

There are very few surprises in the Brewers Opening Day roster beyond the already mentioned inclusion of 5th outfielder Eric Hammock with Joe Willemse injured.

The Brewers did make a few minor moves during Spring Training, putting reliever Ryan Muilenburg, who was out of options and not going to crack the bullpen, on waivers. Muilenberg was claimed by Baltimore and is currently starting the season as a member of their 'pen.
The Brewers also traded away minor league outfielder Billy Ferguson, who has been a great minor league hitter and had a solid Spring Training, but can't play defense and didn't have a future in the Brewers crowded outfield, along with a non-prospect pitcher, to Philadelphia for a middling starting pitcher prospect named Taylor Blair. Blair doesn't look like he has a strong big league future, but he does possess a really fine curveball among his five offerings (all the rest being average at best), does induce groundballs, profiles as durable, and is a hard worker. So he adds some always needed pitching depth at the higher end of the minor league system (he will start the season at AA Nashville.)



The Brewers head into Opening Day with a starting pitching rotation of Sadahige Kawasaki, Sekien Hamasaki, Jim Atwell, Steve Green, and Erik Sloan, with young Bryant Cox waiting in the wings in the bullpen.

The rest of the 'pen consists of 33-year old closer Tim Shore, currently ranked as one of the premiere relievers in the game, right-handers Ben Flynn, Walter Hackler, and Javy Bermudez (who returned from his 1978 season-ending injury early this Spring), and left-handers Victor Colon and Rand Pinti.

As always, the Brewers catchers are Zacarias Martell and Kirk Patnode, but the team will also be looking to give 26-year old Erik Bettencourt more big league playing time this year, or they will probably need to look at trading him away soon.

Infield starters are first baseman extraordinaire (and reigning MGL MVP) Brett Taranto, veteran second baseman Bobby Erbakan, third baseman Jake DiCesare, and great fielding shortstop Rich White. To start the season they will be backed up by Nick Ward with his great defense at three infield positions (it appears Ward thinks he should be starting and is unhappy, so we'll have to monitor that situation) and Jose Figueroa, who is a terrific contact hitter and a solid defender at both second and third base. Of course, soon they will be joined by Joe Willemse as well.

Starting in the outfield are left fielder Val Guzman, center fielder Joe McPhillips, and right fielder Josh Schaeffer, but Antonio Acuna will be getting near starter's time as he can play all three outfield spots very well and his power bat and speed are needed in the lineup. And as mentioned above, young possible future right field starter Eric Hammock (great bat potential, mediocre defense) is also currently with the club, though likely to be sent back down to AAA when Willemse returns.

[BirdWatcher]

SJL:




Once again, the feeling is that the SJL will have a competitive race and this time the thought is that it will be the San Antonio Keys who will finally break through, as El Paso did last season, to win their first SJL pennant. If there is one thing that can said in the Keys favor it is that, with the emergence of the WPK's newest superstar, second baseman John Mussaw, they now have by the far the best keystone combination in the game. (Their shortstop is, of course, Bud Lindsay, just the best all-around player in the game.) Last year's second place Philadelphia Mud Hens are expected to finish in the same slot this year, though many think they might be poised to take the pennant. With their continued incredible pitching, the Columbus Whalers are expected to remain among the top contenders again. And there is no counting out the reigning WPK Champion Dawgs either. The feeling is that the Houston Cavaliers, who were very active in the off-season, will move up, though perhaps not as much as they would hope. And it is expected that the trend of formerly great Jacksonville Wolf Pack and Washington Night Train clubs dropping to the bottom of the standings will continue this season.

As for individual performances, there are few surprises here. Many expect Bud Lindsay to be a strong contender for his 4th straight MVP award, but likely with strong competition for many of the same stars as usual- Justin Vargas, Bill Winchester, Xiao-mei Mah, and young emerging superstars like Pete Wiederkehr, Matt Van der Heyden, and John Freeman.
There is one name in the top hitters list that is new and not like the other though: the prognosticators expect big things from young Columbus Whalers' 2-way player Jean Auge, who will be a member of the bullpen but is also expected to be the primary first baseman and hit in the clean-up slot in the order.

Among SJL top pitchers are expected to be a few new names. San Antonio's 22-year old Steven Wells could be a great one both on the mound and in the clubhouse, where he shows future team captain potential, but there are concerns about his durability. The Keys also have 24-year old Michael Noland and it is the promise of these two young pitchers that is really driving the prediction that the Keys will finally get to the top of the standings. Philadelphia's 27-year old southpaw Corey Harris is also expected to star this year, though the Brewers scouting staff is skeptical of this expectation.


MGL:




More of the same is expected in the MGL, with the feeling being that the Denver Brewers will continue to be the dominant regular-season team in the WPK, with the Brooklyn Aces and Los Angeles Spinners continuing to provide them with what little challenge they receive as they try to claim yet another MGL pennant.
There is some thought that the surprise team of the MGL this year will be the Detroit Falcons, though they are only expected to narrowly finish above .500. Still, it is nice to see some ray of hope for the usually beleaguered Detroit club. No surprises expected at the bottom of the standings, with Phoenix, Portland, Baltimore, and Charlotte once again battling it out for last place.

As for the expected top hitters probably the least well-known name is Phoenix first baseman Larry Carnell, who is finally getting a chance to be a starter with Devin Schwisow now a member of the Jacksonville Wolf Pack, who signed him as a free agent this past offseason. Among Brewers expected to perform well are usual suspects Brett Taranto, Bobby Erbakan, and Joe McPhillips. There is also a suspicion that the 1977 MGL MVP Chris Tobin, who had an off-year in 1978, will bounce back with a good '79 season.
As for pitching, the thought is that the two top ranked pitchers in the game, Denver's Sadahige Kawasaki and Brooklyn's Aaron McNally will remain among the best. The feeling is that Jim Atwell will continue his ascent to stardom and the experts also are foreseeing a comeback season for Denver's veteran left-handed starter Erik Sloan. (Secretly the Denver front office is highly skeptical about this call, but they will be thrilled if it comes to pass.) No real surprise names on the MGL predicted top pitchers list though Portland's Matt Toone might seem like a bit of a stretch (and might also indicate that pitching isn't terribly deep in the MGL at present.)

[BirdWatcher]

[EDIT: And whoops, apparently my brain is having a hard time turning the page from 1978 to 1979.]

(Apologies for the inconsistent, ever-changing approaches as to how to share the results for Brewers games. I'm always trying to find the right balance, the best way to convey the story while also making forward progress, admittedly slower than most, with the league. For now I'm going to try the series-by-series approach below which I think is a bit stronger visually and narratively and also a bit easier on me. And I also have to admit that consistency isn't really one of my core values. Persistence, yes. Consistency, well, not as much. )

The Brewers begin the 1979 regular season on the road against arch-nemesis Los Angeles.
Let's take a look at the preview of the series provided by Head Scout Ulrik Berthelsen:



And the results:



In the Spinners home opener they easily dispatched the Brewers, even more easily than the final score might seem to indicate, with the Brewers scoring all 3 of their runs against a tiring Eduardo Obando in the top of the 9th inning. It was not a good first start for Sekien Hamasaki, who allowed 6 runs on 8 hits in just 4 innings pitched. Ben Flynn gave up a pair of runs on 3 hits in his 3 innings pitched. Brett Taranto and Jake DiCesare both picked up a pair of hits in the game, with Taranto hitting his first double of the season.



The Brewers won the middle game of the series with Jim Atwell getting his first victory of 1979 in spite of giving up back-to-back homers in the 1st inning. Atwell was charged with 4 runs on 7 hits in his 7 innings pitched. Walter Hackler pitched a clean inning for his first hold of the season and Tim Shore closed it out for his first save. Antonio Acuna got the big hit for the Brewers, a 2-run triple in the 3-run 8th inning that provided the margin of victory. (He also drove in a run with a sacrifice fly earlier in the game.) The Brewers hit 5 doubles in the game: Bobby Erbakan, Jim Atwell, Rich White, Joe McPhillips, and Josh Schaeffer each getting his first of the season.



And in the rubber match at Avalon Park Brewers starter Steve Green deserved a better outcome. In spite of allowing 11 hits and walking 4 batters in his 7 1/3rd innings he held the home town nine to just 2 runs. But the Brewers failed to give him run support and the bullpen let him down. Youngster Rand Pinti took the loss and closer Tim Shore faced just one batter and gave up the game-winning hit. Val Guzman certainly tried to carry the team to victory. Not only did he throw out a runner at home plate in the bottom of the 1st inning but he followed that up with a 2nd inning triple, driving in Bobby Erbakan with the Brewers first run, and ended up going 2 for 3 with a run scored and an RBI and taking one for the team, in the form of a hit by pitch, in the 9th inning to put men on first and second (Erbakan had led off the inning with a single) with no outs, before the rally was snuffed out and the Spinners took the series.

[BirdWatcher]

The Brewers open the home portion of the 1979 regular season with three games against the Phoenix Speed Devils, a team in the early stages of a pretty serious rebuilding process.

Here is the scouting report for the series:





The Brewers disappoint the fans in the home opener, as reigning MGL Pitcher of the Year Sadahige Kawasaki experiences a rough start to the 1979 season, giving up 7 runs (6 earned) on 10 hits in his 8 innings pitched and absorbs the loss. Antonio Acuna provided pretty much all of the Denver offense in this one, going 3 for 4, scoring 1 run and driving in 5, hitting a 5th inning Grand Slam for most of the damage.



In game 2, veteran left-hander Erik Sloan took a 2-hit shutout into the 9th inning and in spite of allowing a lead-off home run in the top of that inning, held on for an impressive first win of the season. Sloan struck out 6 and walked 2 in the game. Zacarias Martell was 2 for 4 with 2 RBI in the game and hit his 1st double of the season and Brett Taranto hit his 1st home run of 1979, driving in 2 runs.




But the Brewers start the new season with two straight series losses when Phoenix outslugs them in the final game of the series. The Brewers had a good lead heading into the late innings but rookie Bryant Cox tired in the 6th inning and eventually was charged with 4 runs on 8 hits in just 5 2/3rds innings, though he did strike out 7 batters, a single-game high for the Brewers thus far this season. Cox did not get a decision but the loss instead went to Ben Flynn (0-1, 11.57), off to another rough start. Rookie outfielder Eric Hammock went 2 for 3 in the game, driving in 3 runs and hitting his first big league home run, but still found himself heading back to AAA Chester shortly thereafter to make room for Joe Willemse's return from the IL. The feeling being that Hammock will get more playing time at Chester for now but the expectation also being that he will be back in a Brewers uniform before too long.

Notes from around the league:



A universal truth in the WPK is that the Columbus Whalers know how to develop great starting pitchers and furthermore that they never seem to run out of new Pitcher of the Year candidates. For four straight seasons the SJL Pitcher of the Year has been a member of the Whalers rotation and this has also been true in six of the last nine seasons. Don't be too surprised if before long this guy adds to the list of Columbus hurlers with at least one of these trophies in their case.

[Andrej72]

Sorry to see that the Japanese (at least by name) guys in the rotation are having a slow start. I am sure that they will bounce back during the season.

[BirdWatcher]

Scouting report:




Game 1:



After a rough first outing of the season, Sekien Hamasaki bounces back in his second start and earns a victory. Hamasaki allowed 1 run on just 4 hits over 7 2/3rds innings pitched. Tim Shore pitched the 9th for his second save. Brett Taranto went 2 for 5, scoring twice and driving in 1 run while also picking up his 1st stolen base of the season. Joe McPhillips hit his 2nd double of 1979.

Game 2:



It wasn't pretty, but somehow Jim Atwell picked up his 2nd victory of the season in spite of not pitching well at all yet. Atwell gave up 6 runs on 7 hits over 7 innings pitched. Tim Shore pitched the 9th for his 3rd save in 3 tries. Val Guzman led the way on offense, going 3 for 5 with 2 runs scored and 3 RBI, hitting both his 1st double and 1st homer of the season. But in the end it was a huge pinch-hit triple off the bat of Joe Willemse in the 8th inning that gave the visitors the margin of victory. Jake DiCesare hit 2 doubles in the game, his first ones of 1979, and Bobby Erbakan hit his 2nd double of the season.

Game 3:



And the Brewers get their first series sweep of 1979 on the strength of a comeback win when they plate 5 runs in the 9th inning. Steve Green started and gave up 4 runs on just 4 hits over his 7 1/3rd innings pitched without getting a decision. The win went to young lefty reliever Rand Pinti and side-arming right-handed hurler Walter Hackler earned his 1st save. Bobby Erbakan went 2 for 5 and Steve Green collected 2 hits in his 3 at-bats.

Notes from around the league:



Oklahoma City's underrated right fielder Jaime Benjamin is carrying a 20-game hitting streak, stretching back of course to the 1978 season, into his team's next series, in Denver against the Brewers. Benjamin was also named the MGL Player of the Week for the first full week of 1979.

Early standings show the Jacksonville Wolf Pack off to a surprisingly strong 7-2 start to lead the SJL, with El Paso and San Antonio, less surprisingly, just behind them at 6-3. The poor Chicago Fire have yet to win a game and sit at 0-9 on the season.

The Detroit Falcons top the MGL at 7-2, with L.A. and Oklahoma City next at 6-2 apiece. The Baltimore Lords, having been swept by the Brewers, pull up the rear at 2-7.

[BirdWatcher]

Originally Posted by Andrej72

Sorry to see that the Japanese (at least by name) guys in the rotation are having a slow start. I am sure that they will bounce back during the season.

Yes, Kawasaki and Hamasaki are both from Japan. And Hamasaki had a good second game. Surely Kawasaki will start to dominate again soon as well. (Again, those pesky very small sample sizes that indicate so little in the long, long baseball season. )

[Andrej72]

Certainly annoying when you lose a series against a team that is predicted last in the league. Surely you expect to sweep them, but baseball can be cruel sometimes. In my current historical simulation the last two games were against the two weakest teams in the league, and we lost one (0-3), and barely won the other (3-2).

[BirdWatcher]

Originally Posted by Andrej72

Certainly annoying when you lose a series against a team that is predicted last in the league. Surely you expect to sweep them, but baseball can be cruel sometimes. In my current historical simulation the last two games were against the two weakest teams in the league, and we lost one (0-3), and barely won the other (3-2).

Well, again, I think it is important to understand that the nature of the game of baseball is that you should never expect to sweep a team in a series of 3 or more games. As Tommy Lasorda said, “No matter how good you are, you're going to lose one-third of your games. No matter how bad you are you're going to win one-third of your games. It's the other third that makes the difference.”
A good baseball team is one that can string together series wins. If you put together enough series wins where your team wins two games and the other team wins one (assuming for purposes of this argument 3-game series), even if you only barely win the series deciding game, you have a good chance of being the best club in the league.

Sometimes things will break just right and you will sweep a team you probably have no right sweeping and sometimes a team that isn't nearly as good as yours will get the sweep against you. That's baseball. And that's why it is a sport that requires a long-term focus and patience as well as great mental and physical endurance. It isn't a sport that game by game is as brutally taxing as many others, but boy is it a test of inner resources, consistency of approach, and persistence.

[Andrej72]

That's true, sweep is quite rare due to the nature of the game, but I always aim to win the majority of the games in a series. :-) I am sure the Brewers will recover.

[BirdWatcher]

The Scouting Report:



Game 1:



Another not great start by the reigning MGL Pitcher of the Year, Sadahige Kawasaki but in the end the Brewers manage to win this back-and-forth slugfest with a walk-off double by Val Guzman. Kawasaki gave up 4 runs on 10 hits in 6 2/3rds inning pitched. Javy Bermudez, who has pitched quite well thus far this season after returning from a long stint on the IL, earned the win. Rich White was named Player of the Game for his 4 for 4, 3 runs scored, 3 RBI, 2 homer game but that honor could also have gone to Bobby Erbakan who was 4 for 5 with 3 runs scored and 4 RBI and hit his 1st home run of the season.

Game 2:



The Brewers got another really fine start from veteran left-hander Erik Sloan in game 2. Sloan worked 8 innings, giving up 2 runs on 7 hits. Jake DiCesare had a big game, going 2 for 3 with a run scored and 3 driven in and hit his 3rd double of the season and first home run. Let's give some love to Val Guzman also, who is off to a great start, and went 1 for 2 in this one, walking twice, scoring 2 runs, hitting his 3rd double and stealing his 3rd base.

Game3:



And the Brewers bookend the series with walk-off wins, as a Brett Taranto one-out single scored Val Guzman, who had led off the bottom of the 9th with a walk and moved to second when pinch-hitter Josh Schaeffer also worked a free pass. Sekien Hamasaki gave up 10 hits in his 7 1/3rd innings pitched but only allowed 2 runs while striking out 5 and walking none. He did not get a decision but he certainly deserved a win in this one. Young left-handed sinker-ball specialist Rand Pinti, in spite of having an unsightly ERA of 15.00 picked up his 2nd win of the season. Jake DiCesare stays hot with a 2 for 4 game and backup catcher Kirk Patnode continues to produce and went 2 for 4 with an RBI in this one.

Although the Brewers got the home sweep of Oklahoma City Jaime Benjamin did manage to get one hit- and only one- in each of the games to extend his hitting streak to 23 games.

Notes from around the league:



In two straight games the Milwaukee Cadets held the reigning WPK Champions, the El Paso Dawgs, scoreless. In the first of these games they got a 1-hitter from their number 1 starter Javier Torres. The only hit the Dawgs managed off Torres was a one-out 7th inning groundball single through the left side of the infield. There hasn't been a no-hitter in the WPK since October 3 of the 1977 season. This is also tangentially a story about the Columbus Whalers. Torres was originally drafted by the Whalers as the number 17th overall pick of the 1971 draft out of Dallas College. He did struggle with injuries during his minor league career and eventually the Whalers put him on waivers and he was claimed by the Cadets. The moral of the story being that even the Whalers cast-offs become top of the rotation starters on other teams.

Speaking of the Whalers, they have been moving up the standings (thanks, of course, to great pitching mostly) and are now tied with the Boston Berserkers for first place in the SJL, both with 8-3 records. San Antonio is next at 8-4. The suddenly (predictably) slumping Jacksonville Wolf Pack drop to 7-5, tied with Pittsburgh, El Paso, and Washington.
Oh, and the Chicago Fire? 0-12 to start the season. Ouch!

The Los Angeles Spinners are at the top of the MGL standings at 9-3, followed by Detroit and Denver, both at 8-4.
The Baltimore Lords languish in last at 2-10.

[BirdWatcher]

The Scouting Report:




Game 1:



Jim Atwell gets his third win of the season, and perhaps the first one that he truly deserved. Atwell lasted 8 innings, giving up 2 runs on just 4 hits, striking out 7 and walking 2 batters. Joe McPhillips, off to a slow start, did go 3 for 5 with an RBI in this one. And Rich White, who is off to a strong start to the season as has been his trend during his years with the Brewers, went 2 for 3 with 2 runs scored and an RBI, hitting his 2nd double of the season and picking up his 2nd stolen base.

Game 2:



And then the bats went quiet. Steve Green, in what might be his last season with the club, has pitched extremely well in the early going and has pretty much nothing to show for it, except now his first loss in a game where he gave up just 2 runs on 7 hits over 7 2/3rds innings pitched. Granted, his control wasn't up to his usual standards as he walked 5 batters while striking out 6. Rich White provided pretty much all of the offense for the Brewers, going 2 for 4 and hitting his team-leading 3rd home run in the 6th inning.

Game 3:



And more of the same in game 3 when former Brewer Justin Peacock just shut down the Brewers offense completely. Sadahige Kawasaki had his best start of the season thus far and deserved a better outcome. Kawasaki gave up 2 runs- only 1 of them earned- on 7 hits over his 8 innings pitched. Ben Flynn's struggles continue as he allowed 4 runs on 3 hits and a walk while only recording 2 outs and sees his ERA balloon to 13.50. Brett Taranto went 2 for 4 in the loss and Val Guzman hit his 4th double but mostly this one was all Sting all the time as they take the series from Denver.

Notes from around the league:



And the Chicago Fire finally get their first win of the 1979 season after dropping 13 straight. And it took extra-inning walk-off heroics to accomplish it as former Brewer Jesus Hidalgo singled home Matt Robinson who had doubled to lead off the inning.

The Columbus Whalers, with their incredible pitching staff, have climbed to the top of the SJL standings at 11-3 with San Antonio right behind at 11-4. Boston is in third at 9-5 with Pittsburgh in fourth place with a 9-6 record.

The Detroit Falcons and Los Angeles Spinners are atop the MGL standings at 11-4 each and the Brewers are in third place, 2 games back, with our 9-6 mark.

[BirdWatcher]

The Scouting Report:



Game 1:



The Brewers got a great start from Sekien Hamasaki to get a tight win in Brooklyn with the great Aaron McNally on the mound for the Aces. Hamasaki lasted 7 1/3rd innings, giving up 2 runs on 6 hits with 6 strikeouts and 2 walks allowed. The bullpen was strong in this one with Rand Pinti and Walter Hackler bridging the gap to Tim Shore, who picked up his 4th save of the season. Val Guzman once again led the offense, going 3 for 4 with a run scored and another driven in, while also stealing his 4th base of the year (though he did also get caught trying for the first time this season as well.) Bobby Erbakan hit his 3rd double of the season.

Game 2:



The Brewers got a big come-from-behind victory in the middle game of the series when they scored 5 runs in the 7th inning to erase a 5-4 deficit. Erik Sloan had his weakest start of the year so far as he allowed 5 runs on 7 hits and an uncharacteristic 5 walks over his 5 innings pitched. Javy Bermudez continues his strong start and gets the win and Tim Shore is a perfect 5 for 5 in save opportunities and hasn't allowed an earned run this season. (Neither has Bermudez, for that matter.) Jake DiCesare had the biggest hit of the game, a 3-run home run in the 7th inning and he went 2 for 5 with 3 RBI in the game. Brett Taranto was 3 for 5 with 2 runs scored and hit his 1st triple of the season while Rich White hit his 3rd triple and swiped his 3rd base.

Game 3:



The Aces avoid being swept when they get a masterful performance from left-handed off-speed specialist Joel Travino, who is among the best in the game at getting strikeouts in spite of generally topping out in the mid-80's with his fastball. (Amazing changeup, wicked curveball.) This game was a scoreless tie until the Aces blew it open by scoring 7 runs in the 7th inning. Jim Atwell was charged with 4 runs on 8 hits over 6 1/3rd innings but he actually pitched much better than these stats would indicate. The bullpen let him, and the team, down. Victor Colon came in to put out a smallish fire in the 7th and doused it with plenty of gasoline, turning it into an inferno. And Ben Flynn allowed an inherited runner to score by giving up a hit to the first batter he faced before getting the final out in the bottom of the 8th. As for the Brewers offense, well, Bobby Erbakan hit his 5th double and then was caught trying to steal third base and Rich White hit a 9th inning single. And that was pretty much it.

Notes from around the league:



After their strong early start to the season the Jacksonville Wolf Pack have been steadily falling in the standings and now they get the news that they will once again be without the services of veteran left fielder Greg Koenig for an extended period of time. Koenig, a 3-time All-Star, has been a member of the Wolf Pack since mid-season in 1968 after being their first round draft pick in the 1966 draft. He was an important member of their 1973 WPK Championship club and a consistently solid player into his late 20's. But since then he has been injury plagued (he did stay healthy in 1977 and had a 3.8 WAR season) and he was only able to play in 11 games last season before suffering a ruptured MCL in his right knee. His current hip strain is thought to be serious enough to keep him out of action until probably late August or early September. (He is Wrecked.)

In the SJL, meanwhile, the Columbus Whalers are in 1st with a 13-4 record, with San Antonio right behind them at 13-5. Pittsburgh is now in 3rd at 11-7. The Chicago Fire are now 2-15 in last place.

The Detroit Falcons continue to surprise in the MGL and are now 14-4 to start the season. L.A. is still in 2nd place with a 12-6 record and Denver sits in 3rd at 11-7.