The Montreal Expos... Exposing the New MLB?

[Griever20]

Week 9: 3@ Jacksonville Patriots(28-19), 4@ Miami Marlins(21-25)

June 1st

Santos Walks Off Expos in 14

The Jacksonville Patriots handed the Montreal Expos a 5-4 loss in 14 innings at Patriots Park. Alex Santos was the star on offense. He went 3-6 with a home run, a double, and was hit by a pitch. He scored 2 times and drove in 3. Jeff Bleau snagged the win in relief. He goes to 2-0 on the season. Jon Marquardt suffered the loss. The win elevated the Patriots to 29-20.

The game was still up for grabs in the bottom of the 14th. With no one out, Santos hit a fastball from Jon Marquardt for a run-scoring single. The Patriots, in dramatic fashion, had a walk-off win.

"The ending was a real humdinger," Santos told reporters after the game. The 23-year old only had his third game of the season in NMLB, but it was a big one.

Adrian Hilscher(R, 0-5 6.32) – Jose Pena(R, 3-4 3.60) tomorrow. Electric stuff, low stamina.

SP Sam Rush 6.2IP 8H 2R 2ER 1BB 6K ND
RF Ian Messer 2-6 RBI BB DB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-6 R
SS Franklin Reyes 2-6 R 2RBI HR
C Jordan Chavis 2-4 2R RBI 2BB HR
HR MON: Reyes(1), Chavis(1)
HR JAC: Santos(1)
W: Jeff Bleau(2-0 2.89) L: Jon Marquardt(1-2 6.35) SV : none
Rush pitched a solid start, Silva a scoreless one, Rasbach blew the save(…) and Marquardt couldn’t hold the tie… happy days.

News:
Houston Astros SP Gong-Sun Zhào(30, 4.5*) pitched eight scoreless today, allowing four hits and five walks while striking our four in a 4-0 win in Toronto. The 2020 EL Rookie of the Year joined the league from Taiwan in 2020 and is 4-3 3.56 53K in 10 starts.

June 2nd

Patriots Lose at Home, 4-2

Brian Oatley batted in 3 runs to lead Montreal to a win over Jacksonville. The final score was 4-2. Oatley chipped in 1 single and 1 home run. Montreal reliever Rich Nelson picked up the win, upping his record to 2-0. Jose Pena was saddled with the loss. Picking up his 1st save was 22-year old right-handed pitcher Adam Rudolph.

Early in the game, Oatley had a 3-run home run for Montreal. It was his 1st home run of the season and put the Expos on top, 3-0.

"It's nice to step up when your team needs you," said Oatley. Being a backup option after losing his platoon job earlier this season, he is batting .186-1-5 .502OPS in 15G/10GS.

The victory makes Montreal 16-33.

Sam Griffin(R, 2-6 4.70) – Dante Rodriguez(R, 1-4 6.27) tomorrow. Got shelled the last two games…

SP Adrian Hilscher 4.2IP 4H 1R 1ER 4BB 2K ND
DH Dan Cook 2-4 2R
1B Cody Kerzner 0-3 R BB
RF Brian Oatley 2-4 R 3RBI HR
HR MON: Oatley(1)
HR JAC: none
W: Rich Nelson (2-0 3.38) L: Jose Pena(3-5 3.78) SV : Adam Rudolph(1 2.93)
Hilscher couldn’t last five…

June 3rd

Miami Earns 4-3 Win in Series Opener

The Miami Marlins picked up a win at LoanDepot Park, knocking off the Montreal Expos, 4-3. Starting pitcher Dante Rodriguez played a key role in the triumph. He worked 6.1 innings of 3-run ball and struck out nine.

The loss makes Montreal 16-34.

Miami got a knockout punch from Sam Fitzmaurice. The first baseman hammered a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to win the game. It might've been his only hit, but it decided the outcome.

"I just tried to make good contact," said Fitzmaurice. The 3x All-Star is batting .232-12-23 .737OPS in 47 games.

Dan Hinton(R, 0-0 1.98) – Jesus Huerta(R, 2-2 3.51) tomorrow. Duel of aces.

SP Sam Griffin 5.2IP 6H 2R 2ER 0BB 2K ND
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 R RBI HR
DH Dan Cook 1-2 2BB DB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R RBI HR
SS Jose Robles 2-3 R RBI BB HR
HR MON: Ferguson(5), Kerzner(3), Robles(5)
HR MIA: Fitzmaurice(12)
W: Mike McNeil (2-3 2.41) L: Freddy Silva(0-1 7.36) SV : none
Griffin had a decent outing but we only managed some solo shots and didn’t get on base enough.

News:
Pittsburgh Kings CF Brian Jones(25, 2.5*) not only brought his strong glove, but his bat to the park, going 5-5 3R 4RBI 2HR in a 18-3 rout in Chicago. He is batting .261-7-21 .735OPS in 49 games.

June 4th

Expos Drop Marlins, 6-1, in Hinton’s First Win

Getting a good performance from third baseman Franklin Reyes, the Montreal Expos defeated the Miami Marlins, 6-1. Reyes was 2 for 4 with a home run and a double, while scoring 2 times and driving in 3 for the Expos.

Dan Hinton, who went 6.1 innings, was the winning pitcher. He was charged with 1 run on 6 hits, while walking 1 and striking out 4. His record now stands at 1-0. Montreal, with the win, climbs to 17-34.

With Montreal leading 3-0 in the top of the third, Reyes hit a cutter from Jesus Huerta for a 3-run home run. It was his 2nd home run of the season and put the Expos ahead, 6-0. He is now batting .238-2-6 .649OPS in 29 games.

"Whenever we hold the other team to one run," said Expos manager Aaron McCreery, "I like our chances."

Danny Sandoval (R, 0-4 5.29) – Arnel Acasio(L, 3-0 3.00) tomorrow. Control pitcher with a lot of grounders.

SP Dan Hinton 6.1IP 6H 1R 1ER 1BB 4K W
CF Vicente Rodriguez 3-5
DH Dan Cook 3-4 R DB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R
3B Franklin Reyes 2-4 2R 3RBI DB HR
2B Dave Quiros 1-4 R RBI
C Steve Fitch 2-4 R RBI 2DB
SS Jose Robles 1-4 RBI
HR MON: Reyes(2)
HR MIA: none
W: Dan Hinton(1-0 1.80) L: Jesus Huerta(2-3 4.33) SV : none
Hinton acing around, great work. Reyes got a lifeline.

June 5th

Marlins Shut Out Expos, 6-0

Miami and Montreal put this game in the books despite some rain.

Montreal had no answer for Miami Marlins starter Arnel Acasio, who flummoxed Expos hitters as the Marlins cruised to victory, 6-0. The winning pitcher was Acasio, now 4-0. He tossed 5 innings of 4-hit ball, while walking 1 and fanning 4.

Dustin Detrick had a big 3-run home run for the Marlins in the bottom of the seventh inning. With Miami leading 3-0 and runners on 1st and 2nd, he sized up a sinker from 25-year old right-handed pitcher Andy Pelletier and punished it. The result was his 2nd home run of the season, which put the Marlins on top, 6-0.

"Arnel's as tough as he is talented," said Miami manager Matt Knight. Miami is now 24-28.

The Montreal Expos however got some bad news as Danny Sandoval left the game with arm problems and things took a turn to the worse. He suffered a ruptured UCL and is our for 13 months.

Cesar Alvarado(DNP) – Arnel Acasio(L, 3-0 3.00) tomorrow. Throw him right in…

SP Danny Sandoval 1IP 1H 1R 1ER 2BB 0K L
DH Dan Cook 2-4 2DB
2B Franklin Reyes 2-4
LF Brian Oatley 2-3
HR MON: none
HR MIA: Detrick(2)
W: Arnel Acasio(4-0 2.48) L: Danny Sandoval(0-5 5.36) SV : none
That is the end of the road for Danny Sandoval this year and we called up Cesar Alvarado as I couldn’t stand the face of Victor Lopez again so soon…

News:
Seattle 2B Giobbe DeMeo(29, 3.5*) had a 5-hit day at the park, going 5-5 2R 3RBI 2DB TP in a 10-1 win over Oakland. The 3x All-Star is batting .241-3-23 .718OPS in 48 games and raising concerns about his 7y/$172M contract.

June 6th

Transactions:
RHRP Glen McKeen(21, 2.5*) was claimed off waivers from the Seahawks organization. The 21-year old was 0-0 4.15 5K 4.1IP in NMLB with them, and was placed on the active roster. He was a 7th round pick in 2017 and features a 96-98mph fastball with a still developing changeup.

RHRP Andy Pelletier(25, 2.5*, 0-1 8.38 17K 19.1IP -0.2WAR) was demoted to AAA.

Montreal Beats Miami, 5-2 in Alvarado Debut

The Miami Marlins got a superb performance from pitcher Eibe Hoekstra, but the Montreal Expos still won the game, 5-2. Hoekstra threw 5.1 innings allowing 2 runs. John Martinez, credited with the win in relief, is now 1-0. He allowed no runs on no hits in 2 innings. Ryan Rasbach, who is a two-time All-Star, earned the save for Montreal.

Montreal took control in the top of the sixth. With two out and runners on 1st and 2nd, Jose Robles hit a run-scoring single to make it 3-2, Expos. He is batting .214-5-14 .636OPS in 50 games.

Said losing manager Matt Knight: "Obviously, we wished for a better outcome."

The win has Montreal at 18-35. Cesar Alvarado made his NMLB debut today, going four innings of 2-run ball but wasn’t able to last longer.

John Sanchez (R, 4-2 4.37) – Sam Rush(R, 0-1 4.26) tomorrow. Jacksonville again…

SP Cesar Alvarado 4IP 4H 2R 2ER 5BB 3K ND
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-5 2RBI TP
RF Ian Messer 2-5
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 R BB
DH Dan Cook 2-4 BB
3B Vince Roman 1-4 R RBI BB
2B Dave Quiros 2-5 R RBI DB
C Jordan Chavis 0-2 R 2BB
SS Jose Robles 2-3 R RBI BB SB(3)
HR MON: none
HR MIA: none
W: John Martinez(1-0 1.08) L: Jerry Rodriguez(0-2 5.82) SV: Ryan Rasbach(10 3.20)
Alvarado at least didn’t blow up so…

Record: 18-35, 5th in EL Northeast, 13.5GB
Week: 4-3(2-1@ JAC, 2-2@ MIA)
Power Rankings: #30(+-0)
Runs scored: 167(15th)
Runs against: 272(14th)
Starters ERA: 5.23(15th)
Bullpen ERA: 4.33(12th)
Defensive Eff.: .671(15th)
Fan Interest: 85(+-0)

Who's hot?
SP Sam Griffin 2G 1-0 2.25 12IP 4K
SP Sam Rush 7G 0-0 0.77 23.1IP 20K

Who's not?
SP Adrian Hilscher 3G 0-2 8.74 11.1IP 10K
2B David Quiros 13G 7-49 .142 0HR 3RBIs
CF Brian Schill 12G 3-37 .081 0HR 0RBIs
LF Karl Ferguson 11G 3-46 .065 1HR 1RBIs
RF Ian Messer 7G 4-31 .129 0HR 1RBI

Pittsburgh Kings RF Angelo Paima(24, 3/3.5*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 10-21 2HR 9RBIs. The versatile position player is batting .325-8-35 1.001OPS in 42 games.

Salt Lake City Bearcats CF Brian Ward(28, 3*) was named WL Player of the Week for the second week in a row, going 8-20 4HR 7RBIs 6R. The 3x All-Star is batting .285-10-32 .817OPS in 53 games.

[Griever20]

Expos Sent Estrada, Flores to San Francisco
stadiumreport.bbn

June 7th, 2021

Proving the old adage that one man's trash is another man's treasure, the Expos announced today the acquisition of 23-year old minor league 1B Matt Talbert(2/3* HS, 1.5/2.5* OSA) from the San Francisco Red Devils. Drafted in the second round in 2019, the college senior has struggled to adapt to professional baseball but improved to hit .275-3-7 .851OPS in A ball in 11 games.

Going back to San Francisco will be 26-year old minor league 2B Victor Estrada(2.5*) and 29-year old minor league 1B Alfonso Flores(2*). "This isn't the deal of the century," acknowledged the Expos, "but we think it will improve the direction of both teams."

With this deal, the Montreal Expos close the chapter Alfonso Flores for good after 12 years. Signed as a international amateur free agent, Flores was an All-Star in 2017 and was part of the 2015 World Series winning season. For his career, he has hit .245/.297/.455 165HR 502RBI 391R in 821games, good for a total of 1.6WAR. He is due $8.9M this year and next year.

With Victor Estrada, the Montreal Expos lose a player that contributed to 0.9WAR at the major league level last season, but wasn’t able to break through into the opening day roster due to their increased focus on defense. He hit .204-3-15 .619OPS in 48 games in AAA this season.

--

We created ourselves quite a logjam of first baseman and infielders in the higher minors and trading Victor Estrada was a little try solve that problem. Talbert came up in talks, and with Dave G. rating his power potential at 65 compared to 55 from the OSA, we decided this could be the deal. Make no mistake, Talbert will be 24 in August and juuust played his first games above rookie ball… he may just be a bust.

The shock in my eyes when they were willing to accept Flores in that deal must’ve been real. Thank you guys tho, we happily unload the salary to you.

[Griever20]

Big Win for Gamblers Fletcher, Gets Save #300
stadiumreport.bbn

June 9th, 2021

With one well-thrown pitch, Las Vegas's 32-year-old reliever Noah Fletcher(32, 3.5*) found himself a new place in the record books. As the teams left the field at the end of the Gamblers 7-5 win over Seattle Mariners, the official scorer gave Fletcher the save, making him the newest member of the 300-save club. The T-Mobile Park crowd recognized this outstanding achievement with a standing ovation as he made his way to the dugout.

Fletcher has saved 300 games in his career with 716 strikeouts in 727.1 innings pitched. He has also racked up a 54-59 record and a 2.77 ERA and a career total of 22.1WAR. Since his debut in 2010, he has been named an All-Star five times and was the 2018 WL Reliever of the Year.

--

Kansas City Held Hitless by Eisenberg
stadiumreport.bbn

June 9th, 2021

Is it better to be lucky or good?

After leading the New York Mets to victory, 6-0, and tossing a no-hitter over the Kansas City Royals, Josh Eisenberg(26, 2.5*) didn't have the answer.

"I don't know," Eisenberg said. "To do what I did today, I'm pretty sure it takes both."

On his big day at Citi Field, Eisenberg fanned 8 and had 3 walks. And it seemed that when the Royals managed to hit the ball hard, it went right at a defender.

"That's how you get a no-hitter," Eisenberg said with a smile. "A lot of skill mixed with a little luck."

In 12 starts this season, Eisenberg has fashioned a 5-4 record and a 4.99 ERA, striking our 50 in 66.2 innings of work.

[Griever20]

Week 10: 3vs Jacksonville Patriots(31-22), 3vs Atlanta Minuteman(25-28)

June 7th

Expos Popped by Patriots, 9-2

Behind an impressive start by John Sanchez, Jacksonville beat Montreal, 9-2. Sanchez, now 5-2, was the winner. In 7 innings, he gave up 5 hits, while striking out 5, walking 0, and allowing 2 runs. The 22-year old moved to 5-2 4.18 55K in 11 starts.

In the top of the second, Mario Salvador delivered a clutch hit. With two gone and runners on 2nd and 3rd, the Jacksonville catcher hit a 2-run single, putting the Patriots in front, 9-2.

"It feels good to get this one," Salvador told the Jacksonville Daily News. Once an All-Star in 2014, the veteran is batting .297 in 17 games. Jacksonville leads the Eastern League South East Division by 2½ games.

Jose Pena(R, 3-5 3.78) – Adrian Hilscher(R, 0-5 5.75) tomorrow. Hilscher’s last chance before getting replaced by the mascot.

SP Sam Rush 2.2IP 9H 7R 7ER 0BB 1K L
RF Ian Messer 1-4 R RBI HR
DH Dan Cook 1-4
1B Cody Kerzner 1-3 R RBI HR
SS Franklin Reyes 1-3
CF Brian Schill 1-2 DB
HR JAC: none
HR MON: Messer(5), Kerzner(4)
W: John Sanchez(5-2 4.18) L: Sam Rush(0-2 5.53) SV : none
Your heard that? That was the Sam Rush bubble getting popped as well…

June 8th
Transactions:
RHRP Jon Marquardt(23, 2.5*, 1-2 5.27 13K 13.2IP) was banished to AAA with RHRP Chris Ball(22, 2.5/3*, 0-0 4.09 16K 22IP) returning from the DL.

Patriots Deal Expos 7-3 Loss

Led by Alex Santos, the Jacksonville Patriots defeated the Montreal Expos, 7-3. Santos went 2-4 with a home run and was hit by a pitch, while scoring 2 times and driving in 2 for the Patriots. Jacksonville goes to 33-22. The win puts them 3½ games up in their division.

Jacksonville left fielder Brian Clinton contributed a timely at-bat in the top of the sixth. With two down, he hit a fastball to center field for a 2-run single. It was his 33rd hit of the season and put the Patriots ahead, 6-2. A Silver Slugger in 2018, he is batting .183 in 48 games, losing his team 0.4WAR.

"Solid performance from our side," said Patriots manager Dave Meyer. It was also a solid performance by Montreal starter Adrian Hilscher who worked five innings of 2-run ball today.

Paul Kirksey(L, 5-2 3.40) – Sam Griffin(R, 2-6 4.55) tomorrow. Young lefty ace in development…

SP Adrian Hilscher 5IP 4H 2R 2ER 4BB 4K ND
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-5 DB
DH Dan Cook 1-3 R RBI BB HR
3B Vince Roman 1-4 R RBI HR
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R RBI HR
HR JAC: Santos(2)
HR MON: Cook(5), Kerzner(5), Roman(4)
W: Jose Pena(4-5 3.90) L: John Martinez(1-1 5.00) SV : none
It’s not the mascot, at least not yet. By the way, it is solo home run week in Montreal! We give back souvenirs for the fans and still lose!
In other news, Victor Lopez pitched a 6-hitter in AAA… I can’t…

June 9th

Griffin, Expos Get 6-0 Win

Montreal Expos starter Sam Griffin pitched well against the Jacksonville Patriots at Olympic Stadium, leading his team to a win, 6-0. The Expos raised their record to 19-37.

Montreal starter Sam Griffin pitched like a boss. The 2.00 m right-hander allowed no runs on 3 hits over 7.2 innings.

"Sam gave us a huge shot in the arm," said Montreal manager Aaron McCreery. He moved to 3-6 with an ERA of 4.03 and 37 strikeouts in 12 starts.

On the offensive side of things, Cody Kerzner and Jordan Chavis continued the home run surge for Montreal with one apiece today.

Davin Bennett (R, 2-8 4.50) – Dan Hinton(R, 1-0 1.80) the day after tomorrow. Don’t get fooled, Bennett is their #2 on merit.

SP Sam Griffin 7.2IP 3H 0R 0ER 1BB 5K W
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-5 R
1B Cody Kerzner 3-4 2R 2RBI DB HR
LF Brian Oatley 2-4 RBI DB
3B Dave Quiros 1-4 R DB
C Jordan Chavis 2-4 2R RBI HR
SS Jose Robles 3-4 2RBI DB
HR JAC: none
HR MON: Kerzner(6), Chavis(2)
W: Sam Griffin(3-6 4.03) L: Paul Kirksey(5-3 3.69) SV : none
Whoa. Didn’t see that one coming. Those home runs are nice, and we got some solid starts this series with Griffin and Hilscher.

June 10th
Offday

June 11th

Expos Win at Home, 12-3

The Montreal Expos stopped the Atlanta Minutemen, 12-3, at Olympic Stadium. The Expos got a big game from Vinny Roman, who went 1-3 with a home run and 2 walks, while scoring 2 times and driving in 4.

Dan Hinton was the winner. Over 6.2 innings, he yielded 3 runs on 6 hits, with 1 walk and 7 strikeouts. He moved to 2-0 2.36. The win has Montreal at 20-37.

Roman went 1 for 3 with a home run and 2 walks. He scored 2 runs and drove in 4 against the Minutemen. In the bottom of the first inning, he drew a walk, driving in 1 run that put Montreal in front, 1-0.

"It's nice to deliver when your team's counting on you," said Roman. The 4x All-Star also had a nice moment in this game as he collected his career RBI #1000. He is batting .205-5-22 .601OPS in 51 games.

Marty Murrietta (R, 5-2 3.10) – Cesar Alvarado (R, 0-0 4.50) tomorrow. Second start for our rookie against a tough cookie.

SP Dan Hinton 6.2IP 6H 3R 3ER 1BB 7K W
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-5 R RBI BB
LF Karl Ferguson 2-4 2R BB
DH Dan Cook 2-4 3R BB
3B Vinny Roman 1-3 2R 4RBI BB HR
1B Cody Kerzner 3-5 2R 2RBI
C Steve Fitch 2-4 R 2RBI BB
SS Jose Robles 3-5 2RBI
HR ATL: none
HR MON: Roman(5)
W: Dan Hinton(2-0 2.36) L: Devin Bennett(2-9 4.97) SV : none
Roman is still one of the worst 3.5* veteran talents I have ever had… Hinton is amazing tho, the development complex training made him an ace of a pitcher.

News:
Philadelphia Grizzlies SP Jessie Dittus(26, 3.5*) pitched 8.1 scoreless today in a 6-3 win at Boston, striking out 6 and allowing six hits and walking two. The 2018 EL Reliever of the year is now 6-3 2.83 65K in 11 starts as a starter.

June 12th

Ornelas Hits 2 Home runs in Minuteman Win

Atlanta second baseman Bobby Ornelas was a significant contributor in his team's 9-4 triumph over the Montreal Expos. He went 3-4 with 2 home runs, a double, and was hit by a pitch. He scored 3 runs and drove in 6 for the Minutemen. The last-place Minutemen improved to 27-31.

With Atlanta leading 3-2 in the top of the fourth, Ornelas hit a cutter from Cesar Alvarado for a grand slam home run. It was his 11th home run of the season and put the Minutemen ahead, 7-2.

"I just tried to make good contact," said Ornelas. The 2018 EL All-Star is batting .296-11-29 .953OPS in 53 games.

Eddie Aguilera Jr.(R, 4-2 4.95) – Sam Rush(R, 0-2 5.53) tomorrow. Due for a good start, and I’m not talking about our pitcher.

SP Cesar Alvarado 3.2IP 6H 7R 7ER 3BB 2K L
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4 R RBI
RF Ian Messer 3-5 R RBI HR
LF Karl Ferguson 1-3 BB
3B Vince Roman 1-4 RBI
2B Dave Quiros 1-3 R RBI BB
C Steve Fitch 1-4 DB
HR ATL: Ornelas 2(11)
HR MON: Messer(6)
W: Marty Murrietta(6-2 3.05) L: Cesar Alvarado(0-1 10.57) SV : none
Pain. Alvarado now got a real taste of the big leagues. He didn’t like it.

June 13th

Expos Solve Aguilera Jr., Minuteman, 6-2

Montreal turned a good effort from starter Sam Rush into a win over the Atlanta Minutemen at Olympic Stadium. The final score was 6-2. Rush got the win, improving to 1-2. He gave up 5 hits and walked 3 over 5 innings. He allowed 2 runs.

"I executed the game plan," said Rush. The victory puts Montreal at 21-38.

The Expos got a big at-bat from first baseman Cody Kerzner. For the game, Kerzner was 1-4 with a home run. He drove in 2 runs and scored once. In the bottom of the first, with a runner on 1st, he stroked a 2-run home run. His 7th home run of the season gave Montreal a 2-0 lead. He is batting .289-7-15 .935OPS in 20 games since he got claimed off waivers.

Jessie Bahena(R, 9-3 3.32) – Adrian Hilscher(R, 0-5 5.49) the day after tomorrow. That is already an L…

SP Sam Rush 5IP 5H 2R 2ER 3BB 5K W
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 2R 2RBI HR
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R 2RBI HR
RF Ian Messer 2-4 3R BB DB
3B Vince Roman 1-4 RBI DB
SS Jose Robles 2-3 R RBI SB(4)
HR ATL: none
HR MON: Ferguson(6), Kerzner(7)
W: Sam Rush(1-2 5.32) L: Eddie Aguilera Jr.(4-3 5.17) SV : none
Kerzner was a steal. That is 0.7WAR in 20 games with us. I don’t care if that is only a hot streak.

Record: 21-38, 5th in EL Northeast, 13GB
Week: 3-3 (1-2vs JAC, 2-1vs ATL)
Power Rankings: #29(+1)
Runs scored: 200(15th)
Runs against: 302(13th)
Starters ERA: 5.23(15th)
Bullpen ERA: 4.2(10th)
Defensive Eff.: .673(15th)
Fan Interest: 85(+-0)

Who's hot?
SP Sam Griffin 3G 2-0 1.37 19.2IP 9K

Who's not?
CF Brian Schill 13G 4-39 .102 0HR 0RBIs

Boston Aeros RF Kurt Alexander(26, 3*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 11-23 4HR 9RBIs. The 2020 EL Silver Slugger is batting .266-13-39 .878OPS in 56 games.

Salt Lake City Bearcats 1B Fernando Rodriguez(28, 3*) was named WL Player of the Week for the second week in a row, going 12-20 4HR 7RBIs 6R. The 2x All-Star is batting .270-20-48 .881OPS in 59 games.

[Griever20]

Thrice IS Nice: Hinojosa Unleads 3 Homers
stadiumreport.bbn

June 20th, 2021

San Francisco Red Devils first baseman Gary Hinojosa had a magnificent game against the Los Angeles Angels, rocketing three balls out of Angel Stadium of Anaheim to help the Red Devils win, 13-12.

"I got some good pitches to hit and I creamed them," he said after the game. "The first was a big, fat fastball and the last two were hanging curves. All three were mistakes."

For the game, Hinojosa went 3-for-5 with 5 RBIs and 3 runs scored.

"There's a fine line between hitting home runs and line drives," San Francisco manager Micah Lavelle said later. "Seems like Gary found his home run stroke today."

Gary Hinojosa flied out in the 2nd, hit a solo-shot off Alberto Vilchis in the 4th, hit a two-run home run off Alberto Vilchis in the 6th, hit a two-run home run off Kevin Binkley in the 7th, grounded out in the 9th and walked in the 10th.

Hinojosa is batting .279 this season in 26 games with 4 home runs, 8 RBIs and 5 runs scored. He has 19 hits in 68 at-bats.

[Griever20]

Week 11: 2vs Las Vegas Gamblers(39-20), 3@ Toronto Blue Jays(35-26)
We get both aces from Las Vegas plus our division leader… happy days.

June 14th
Offday

June 15th

Gamblers Win Squeaker, 3-2, Over Expos

The Las Vegas Gamblers topped the Montreal Expos, 3-2, in Western League action at Olympic Stadium. The standout performance belonged to Las Vegas pitcher and Kearney, Nebraska, native Jesse Bahena. He worked 7.2 innings of 2-run ball.

Tony Bauck picked up the win in relief. His record improves to 1-3. Ryan Rasbach suffered the loss. The Gamblers sport a record of 40-20.

Marvin Almanza, who finished 3rd in the EL in wins above replacement with 6.4 in 2016, had a direct impact on the outcome. Almanza contributed a 2-run single in the top of the ninth inning to put Las Vegas up, 3-2.

Almanza called the win a testament to his team's "tenacity." The 2x MvP is batting .381-2-5 in five games.

Chris Harkless(R, 6-3 4.34) – Sam Griffin(R 3-6 4.03) tomorrow. They lined their aces up nicely…

SP Adrian Hilscher 6IP 6H 1R 1ER 2BB 6K ND
CF Vicente Rodriguez 2-3 R TP
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 RBI
HR LVG: none
HR MON: none
W: Tony Bauck(1-3 4.88) L: Ryan Rasbach(2-3 3.74) SV : Noah Fletcher(23 1.78)
Damn. Rasbach’s fourth blown save… and in other news…

Transaction:
RF Ian Messer(25, 2.5/3*) was placed on the 10-day DL with a mild hamstring strain that will other him for 1-2 weeks.
AAA LF/RF Huai-Yu Mah(26, 2.5*) .291-4-18 .799OPS 47G 1.0WAR was recalled.

June 16th

Late Rally by Expos Locks Up 4-2 Win

The Las Vegas Gamblers got a superb performance from pitcher Chris Harkless, but the Montreal Expos still won the game, 4-2. Harkless threw 6.0 innings of 2-hit ball. Montreal reliever John Martinez picked up the win, raising his record to 2-1. Jose Santos was tagged with the loss. Dusty Leone notched his 3rd save in 4 chances.

Montreal took a 4-2 lead on Cody Kerzner's 8th home run of the season. The 3-run home run, which Kerzner hit in the bottom of the eighth, left Las Vegas pitcher Jose Santos visibly frustrated.

Kerzner attributed the win to "everyone pulling their weight." He is hitting .286-8-19 .941OPS in 22 games.

The Expos raised their record to 22-39.

Dan Hinton(R, 2-0 2.36) – David Rodgers(R, 1-2 4.79) the day after tomorrow. Our ace is still unbeaten so…

SP Sam Griffin 5IP 6H 2R 2ER 1BB 4K ND
CF Vicente Rodriguez 0-4 R BB
DH Dan Cook 2-2 R RBI 2BB DB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R 3RBI HR
RF Huai-Yu Mah 1-3 BB TP
2B Dave Quiros 1-2 2BB
HR LVG: Wolthuis(14)
HR MON: Kerzner(8)
W: John Martinez(2-1 3.21) L: Jose Santos(1-3 5.68) SV : Dusty Leone(3 1.71)
Griffin with a good start and we escape that series with a draw.

June 17th
Offday

June 18th

Montreal Beats Toronto, 4-2

Montreal registered a win at Skydome by beating the Toronto Blue Jays, 4-2. Pitcher Dan Hinton was one reason why the Expos triumphed. He worked 6.1 innings of 1-run ball and got his third win.

The victory puts Montreal at 23-39.

Who knows how it might've ended, had it not been for Cody Kerzner? The Montreal first baseman had a run-scoring double in the top of the first inning to put the Expos on top, 1-0. For the game, Kerzner had 1 double and 1 single in 3 at-bats.

"We took home the win," said Kerzner. "What's not to like?" He is batting .299-8-20 .973PS in 23 games and on a hot streak.

Cesar Alvarado(R, 0-1 10.57) – Stefano Sanchez(R, 2-2 4.25) tomorrow. This won’t be as fun as today’s game…

SP Dan Hinton 6.1IP 5H 1R 1ER 2BB 8K W
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-5 R
DH Dan Cook 1-4 BB DB
LF Karl Ferguson 2-5 R RBI
1B Cody Kerzner 2-3 RBI BB DB
3B Vince Roman 1-2 R 2BB SB(7)
2B Dave Quiros 2-4 RBI
HR MON: none
HR TOR: Torres(11)
W: Dan Hinton(3-0 2.18) L: David Rodgers(1-3 4.86) SV : Dusty Leone(4 1.64)
Hinton party!

June 19th

Extra-Inning Walk-Off Win for Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Montreal Expos, 5-3. Toronto pitcher and Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela, native Stefano Sanchez led the way. He worked six innings of 2-run ball.

"It never gets old," said Sanchez. "Winning, that is."

Reliever Ron Palovich picked up the win. His record improves to 6-3. Ryan Rasbach, who finished 5th in the EL in saves with 32 in 2019, took the loss. With the victory, the Blue Jays upped their record to 37-28.

Toronto got a knockout punch from Ricardo Orta. The right fielder hammered a 2-run home run in the bottom of the tenth inning to win the game. It might've been his only hit, but it decided the outcome. The 2x Silver Slugger is batting .270-14-36 .893OPS in 57 games.

Sam Rush(R, 1-2 5.32) – Doug Williams(R, 0-0 4.91) tomorrow. 28-year old AAAA pitcher…

SP Cesar Alvarado 5IP 4H 1R 1ER 3BB 3K ND
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R DB
RF Huai-yu Mah 1-4 R RBI DB
3B Vince Roman 1-2 R RBI 2BB SB(8)
HR MON: none
HR TOR: Lopez(6), Orta(14)
W: Ron Pavlovich(6-3 1.95) L: Ryan Rasbach(2-4 4.30) SV : none
Alvarado pitched well today but the pen couldn’t stop the bleeding except Silva.

June 20th

Expos Prevail, 4-3, Over Toronto

Montreal pitcher Sam Rush did his part in helping his team beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 4-3. The right-hander kept opposing batters from doing too much damage. He worked 5.2 innings of 1-run ball.

John Martinez was credited with the save. He has now successfully converted 1 of 1 save opportunities. The win puts Montreal at 24-40.

Montreal used the hitting of Dan Cook to pick up the win. The designated hitter clubbed a 2-run home run in the top of the third inning to put the Expos on top, 2-1. For the game, Cook had 1 home run and 1 single in 5 at-bats. He is batting .283-6-24 .793OPS in 63 games.

"We came out on the wrong end of this one," said Toronto skipper Art Tierney.

Adrian Hilscher(R, 1-2 5.32) – Bill Harper(L, 1-7 4.95) tomorrow. The Minuteman(27-37) are back with us…

SP Sam Rush 5.2IP 5H 1R 1ER 1BB 5K W
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-5 R SB(6)
DH Dan Cook 2-5 R 2RBI HR
LF Karl Ferguson 2-5 DB
1B Cody Kerzner 2-3 R BB DB
RF Huai-yu Mah 1-4 R RBI
2B Dave Quiros 1-3 RBI DB
SS Jose Robles 2-4 DB
HR MON: Dan Cook(6)
HR TOR: Orta(15)
W: Sam Rush(2-2 4.91) L: Doug Williams(0-1 4.32) SV : John Martinez(1 3.63)
Insane what we can do with some good starting pitching…

Record: 24-40, 5th in EL Northeast, 12GB
Week: 3-2 (1-1vs LVG, 2-1@ TOR)
Power Rankings: #25(+3)
Runs scored: 217(15th)
Runs against: 317(11th)
Starters ERA: 5.03(13th)
Bullpen ERA: 4.27(8th)
Defensive Eff.: .674(15th)
Fan Interest: 85(+-0)

Who's hot?
SP Sam Griffin 2G 1-0 1.42 12.2IP 9K
SP Adrian Hilscher 3G 0-0 2.30 15.2IP 12K 
SP Sam Rush 2G 2-0 2.53 10.2IP 10K


Who's not?
C Steve Fitch 6G 2-21 .095 0HR 2RBIs

CF Brian Schill 14G 4-40 .100 0HR 0RBIs

Pittsburgh Kings C Elias Mora(28, 5*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 9-21 5HR 11RBIs 4R. The 2020 EL MvP is batting .306-17-46 1.037OPS in 52 games.

Salt Lake City Bearcats RF Josh Smith(26, 2.5*) was named WL Player of the Week, going 8-14 3HR 6RBIs 5R. The 2019 EL All-Star is batting .200-12-25 .703OPS in 49 games.

[Griever20]

Sorry in advance, that one escalated quickly...

Expos Unload Roman, Add All-Star in Multi-Team Trade
stadiumreport.bbn

June 20th, 2021

K.C. Martin surely does not do trades easy. In a trade involving the Montreal Expos(24-40), the Calgary Beavers(31-34), the Los Angeles Angels(24-41) and the Salt Lake City Bearcats(33-32), Martin kept his cool and moved some players around.

Calgary Beavers(31-34) receive:
3B Vinny Roman(33,3*) .205-5-25 .611OPS 58G 0.2WAR from MON (5y/$89.8M left on contract) from MON
RHRP Jon Marquardt(23, 2.5*) 1-2 5.27 13K 13.2IP 0.1WAR from MON
AAA 2B Felix Acosta(31, 2.5*) .259-6-20 .745OPS 36G 0.1WAR AAA from MON

Los Angeles Angels(24-41) receive:
1B Tim Jammal(25, 3/3.5*) .266-4-11 .778OPS 32G 0.1WAR from CAL

Salt Lake City Bearcats(33-32)
2B Kelly Benson(26, 3.5*) .245-17-33 .948OPS 53G 1.3WAR from CAL
AA C Travis Carpenter(27, 2.5*) .205-4-23 .638OPS 46G 0.9WAR AA from MON

Montreal Expos(24-40) receive:
RHSP Austin Roy(23, 3.5*) 3-7 4.93 75K 80.1IP 13GS 1.1WAR from SLC
AAA 2B Robbie Weltzer(24, 2.5/3*) .323-2-27 .802OPS 16/20SB 55G 2.3 WAR AAA from LAA
R OF Esteban Andrade(19, 0.5/2.5*) DNP from LAA

After Alfonso Flores, now Vinny Roman leaves Montreal for greener pastures after 1 ½ seasons. The veteran was due for $89.8M remaining on his contract and not producing at all.

Going back to Canada in this complex trade with be 2x All-Star starter Austin Roy. The kid led the WL in ERA with 2.98, in WAR with 5.6, in HR/9 with 0.6 and with WHIP(1.14) but struggled this season so far. He throws 96-98 with a strong slider, changup and sinker and good movement.

Also an interesting player going back here is 2B/SS Bobby Weltzer who is a slick fielding shortstop that not only hit .323 in AAA with SLC, but also was producing 1.0WAR in the majors last season with Seattle.

In corresponding roster moves, RHSP Cesar Alvarado(21, 2.5*) and 2B Franklin Reyes(27, 2.5*) were sent down to AAA and 3B/SS Orlando Gonzalez(26, 2.5*) was recalled to the majors.

This was a tough nut to crack. I was fairly optimisitc about the Roman + Marquardt trade but my follow up didn't work the way I hoped. Benson and Jammal are above average infielders for sure, but we don’t really want then right now as we have good prospects coming for the middle infield, and didn’t really want to axe Kerzner or Cook as they are producing right now.

My idea was to trade both away for a top prospect from a contender, but the most we could get was a first base prospect with a 3.5* ceiling that does not hit for power...

So, we tried to find something worth our value, and at least we replaced an aging 3* third baseman with a 3.5* starter and some pieces, but to be honest, I hoped for more when I saw Roman on the roster for the first time...

Getting Roy was a surprise, but a good one. He will reach arbitration this winter and is due for at least $4.2M next year, but that is not too much money compared to what we saved with Roman. Weltzer will get a chance at second base as a regular as his bat is solid and is Glove is very good…

[Griever20]

Massie Join 3-HR Club
stadiumreport.bbn

June 24th, 2021

Toronto first baseman Mike Massie led the Blue Jays to a triumph, 13-5, over the Chicago Rangers, crushing three home runs.

"He's scary good when he's swinging the bat like that," said Toronto skipper Art Tierney.

Indeed, Massie put up some "scary good" numbers: three homers, 4 hits in 5 at-bats with 4 runs and 7 RBIs.

"I'm just thinkin' about winning ballgames," Massie said. "When you think about home runs, you very seldom get 'em."

Mike Massie hit a two-run home run off Jacob Smucker in the 1st, hit a two-run home run off Jacob Smucker in the 3rd, hit a two-run home run off Jaylen Brown in the 4th, hit an RBI double in the 6th and struck out in the 8th.

So far this year, Massie has 15 home runs and a .287 batting average, 41 RBIs and an OPS of .874 in 60 games. He was named EL MvP and Silver Slugger in 2019 and is a 2x All-Star.

--

Bearcats Connolly Smacks 5 Hits
stadiumreport.bbn

June 25th, 2021

Salt Lake City Bearcats left fielder Ken Connolly(24, 3.5*) went ballistic with the bat. He hammered the Portland Bears for 5 hits to help Salt Lake City win, 6-2, over Portland at Bearsdome.

Ken Connolly singled in the 1st, singled in the 3rd, hit a solo-shot off Henry Rodriguez in the 5th, hit an RBI double in the 7th and hit a two-run home run off David Cabrera in the 9th.

For the season, Connolly is currently batting .266 with 8 home runs and 23 RBIs. In 65 games he has reached base at a .362 rate and scored 44 runs to date while scoring 16/18 bases and amassing 2.7WAR.

[Griever20]

Week 12: 4@ Atlanta Minuteman(27-37), 3vs New York Mets(27-37)
Easier opponents? We are not the only team below .500? What sorcery is this.

June 21st
Due to roster moves, we go into the series with Griffin, Roy, Hilscher and we want to give a spot start to Rich Nelson, so
Sam Griffin (R, 3-6 4.00) – Bill Harper(L, 1-7 4.95) it is today.

Expos Rally to Eke Out Win in 10th

The Montreal Expos downed the Atlanta Minutemen, 5-4, in 10 innings at SunTrust Park. The Expos were led by Cody Kerzner. Kerzner slugged 2 home runs. Ryan Rasbach notched his 11th save in 15 chances. The Minutemen, now 27-38, have lost 7 in a row.

Kerzner had a game-changing home run in the top of the tenth. On a 0-1 fastball from Jaden Simon, he banged a solo home run to left-center, giving the Expos a 5-4 lead. It was the 10th home run of the year for Kerzner. He red hot first baseman is batting .313-10-22 1.042OPS in 26 games for Montreal.

"There's no quit in this team," said Expos manager Aaron McCreery.

Austin Roy (R, 3-7 4.93) – Eddie Scammell(L, 2-3 5.48) tomorrow. Let’s see if the kid can pitch.

SP Sam Griffin 5.1IP 5H 2R 2ER 3BB 3K ND
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4
DH Dan Cook 1-5 R RBI HR
1B Cody Kerzner 2-5 2R RBI 2HR
3B Orlando Gonzalez 2-5 R RBI
2B Robby Weltzer 1-3 RBI DB
SS Jose Robles 1-3 BB DB
HR MON: Cook(7), Kerzner 2(10)
HR ATL: Jackson(11)
W: Adam Rudolph(3-1 2.41) L: Jaden Simon(1-3 4.12) SV : Ryan Rasbach(11 4.12)
We were ahead already when Freddy Silva blew the game in the sixth with two runs, but thankfully, Rudolph was sharp. Our trade acquisition and callup collected hits in their first game!

June 22nd
Kevin Craddock suffered a setback when he grabbed a woman on her ass… I mean at home when he fell on something, and his fractured thumb will require another week to heal.

Jackson Spoils Roy’s Debut in 8-4 Atlanta Triumph

Minutemen right fielder Ryan Jackson put his stamp on his team's 8-4 win over the Montreal Expos. Jackson was 3 for 4 with a home run, 2 singles, and a walk. He scored 2 times and drove in 4 for Atlanta in the contest. Atlanta is 28-38 and Montreal, with the loss, 25-41.

With Atlanta leading 2-0 in the bottom of the third, Jackson hit a 2-run single off Montreal hurler Austin Roy. It was the 65th hit of the season for Jackson and put his team ahead, 4-0. He is batting .279-12-30 .843OPS in 61 games.

"We cashed in when we had the chance," said Atlanta manager Tom Middleton.

Adrian Hilscher(R, 0-5 4.98) – Devin Bennett(R, 2-10 5.38) tomorrow. Bennett had a hard season so far…

SP Austin Roy 5.2IP 7H 4R 4ER 4BB 7K L
CF Vicente Rodriguez 3-5 2R DB
DH Dan Cook 3-5 2RBI 2DB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R RBI HR
3B Orlando Gonzalez 2-5 R RBI
C Steve Fitch 1-3 R RBI BB HR
SS Jose Robles 1-4
HR MON: Fitch(3), Kerzner(11)
HR ATL: Jackson(12)
W: Eddie Scammell(3-3 5.30) L: Austin Roy(3-8 5.02) SV : none
Martinez added 4ER to get his ERA to 5.50… Kerzner is hitting bombs for fun right now… according to our scout, he is not yet fully developed at power potential… development center in the offseason?

News:
Detroit CF Pedro Figueroa(29, 3*) drove in six runs in a 3-5 2R 6RBI DB 2HR performance in a 8-4 win over Pittsburgh. The 4x All-Star is batting .264-6-28 .722OPS in 61 games.

June 23rd

Expos Suffer One-Run Loss at Atlanta

Adrian Hilscher pitched well enough to win, but it was not to be. The Montreal Expos, despite Hilscher's fine outing, dropped a 2-1 decision to the Atlanta Minutemen at SunTrust Park. He worked 6 innings of 2-hit and 2ER ball, but got saddled with the loss.

The last-place Minutemen improved to 29-38.

With scoring opportunities rare, the Minutemen had to cash in when they had the chance. One such opportunity presented itself in the bottom of the third, when left fielder Robbie Thompson hit a run-scoring single. The single came off Adrian Hilscher and made the score 2-0, Minutemen. Thompson was 1 for 4. The 3x All-Star is batting .265-9-44 .732OPS in 65 games.

"Both teams played hard," said Atlanta manager Tom Middleton.

Rich Nelson(L, 2-0 3.45) – Eddie Aguilera Jr.(R, 4-4 5.59) tomorrow. We don’t have a lefty in the rotation, and he ‘can’ pitch as a starter, so why not try.

SP Adrian Hilscher 6IP 2H 2R 2ER 5BB 3K L
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4
DH Dan Cook 1-4
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4
1B Cody Kerzner 2-4
RF Huai-yu Mah 1-4
2B Robby Weltzer 2-4 R RBI HR
C Steve Fitch 1-3
SS Jose Robles 3-4
HR MON: Weltzer(1)
HR ATL: none
W: Antonio Tamayo(1-1 4.62) L: Adrian Hilscher(0-6 4.75) SV : Adam Warren(6 3.48)
Hilscher does not deserve this loss… We had 12 hits and left 17 stranded… five stranded by Ferguson who hits nothing…

News:
Las Vegas Gamblers SP Emilio Hinojosa(28, 2.5/3*) blanked San Diego through eight innings of 3-hit, one walk and 6K today, winning 3-0. The former 3rd round pick is 7-4 4.33 74K 1.9WAR in 14 starts.

June 24th

Minuteman Top Expos, 5-2, Behind Aguilera Jr.

The Atlanta Minutemen picked up a win at SunTrust Park, taking down the Montreal Expos, 5-2. Starting pitcher Eddie Aguilera Jr. was a big reason why. The Atlanta win streak is now 3 games.

Atlanta starter Eddie Aguilera Jr. was exceptional. The 1.87 m right-hander allowed 2 runs on 4 hits over 8 innings of work.

"It's a mindset," said Aguilera Jr.. "Just trying to do your job, trying to be consistent."

Montreal lefty Rich Nelson got the start today, and the kid worked a good game of 5.1 innings of 2-run ball and got a no-decision.

Josh Eisenberg(L, 6-4 4.54) – Dan Hinton(R, 3-0 2.18) tomorrow. Run of the mill starter against our ace…

SP Rich Nelson 5.4IP 4H 2R 2ER 4BB 2K ND
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-4DB
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 R RBI HR
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4
C Jordan Chavis 1-3 RBI DB
HR MON: Ferguson(7)
HR ATL: none
W: Eddie Aguilera Jr.(5-4 5.27) L: Glen McKeen(0-1 5.62) SV : Jaden Simon(13 3.96)
Nelson was fine in this experiment, but his 50 stamina make me shy away from him doing this as his main job. And btw, McKeen(2ER), Silva(1ER)… this bullpen…

June 25th

Expos Earn 5-2 Home Win

Montreal beat New York on the strength of starting pitcher Dan Hinton's fine effort. The right-hander led his team to a win, 5-2. Hinton picked up the win for Montreal, going 6.2 innings. He gave up 1 run on 4 hits. He now sports a record of 4-0.

"Dan was in tempo tonight," said Montreal skipper Aaron McCreery. The victory puts Montreal at 26-43.

Brian Schill had a big 2-run home run for the Expos in the bottom of the fourth inning. With Montreal leading 2-0 and a runner on 1st, he sized up a fastball from Josh Eisenberg, who is tied for 2nd in the EL in complete games with 1, and punished it. The result was his 1st home run of the season, which put the Expos on top, 4-0. The backup outfielder is batting .136 in 16 games.

Josh Dalton(L, 5-5 4.04) – Sam Rush(R, 2-2 4.91) tomorrow. Evenly matched pitching matchup.

SP Dan Hinton 6.2IP 4H 1R 1ER 1BB 8K W
2B Dave Quiros 2-5 R 2DB
DH Dan Cook 1-5 R RBI
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 RBI DB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-3 BB
3B Orlando Gonzalez 2-4 R
RF Brian Oatley 1-2 R BB DB
CF Brian Schill 1-3 R 3RBI HR
C Steve Fitch 2-4
HR NYM: Davis(5)
HR MON: Schill(1)
W: Dan Hinton(4-0 2.04) L: Jesse Eisenberg(6-5 4.64) SV : John Martinez(2 5.31)
We rested a lot of guys today and our replacements came through with Oakley, Schill and Quiros.

June 26th
Transactions:
RF/LF Huai-yu Mah(26, 2.5*) was sent back to AAA after hitting .167 in 7 games and RF Ian Messer(25, 2.5/3*, .225-6-13 .633OPS) was activated off the IL.

Expos Take Down Mets, 6-4, in Walk-Off Win

New York right fielder Yong-gwan Lee had a good game in a losing cause. His team fell, 6-4, to Montreal at Olympic Stadium. Lee went 3-5 with a double and 2 singles. He drove in 3 runs. The 26-year old is batting .271-11-32 .772OPS 1.1WAR in 65 games.

Montreal got a clutch hit from Cody Kerzner. The first baseman launched a 2-run home run in the bottom of the tenth inning to win the game. It was his only hit in 4 at-bats, but it was a kill shot. He glowing white first baseman is batting .314-12-25 1.037OPS in 31 games.

"Feels good to be on the winning side," said Kerzner. The win has Montreal at 27-43. Ryan Rasbach, now 3-4, picked up the win in relief. He allowed no runs on 1 hit in 2 innings.

Zach Laurents(R, 3-7 4.77) – Sam Griffin(R, 3-6 3.96) tomorrow. Can we get a sweep here?

SP Sam Rush 5.1IP 6H 4R 4ER 3BB 4K ND
CF Vicente Rodriguez 0-3 R RBI BB
DH Dan Cook 3-5 R RBI
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R 2RBI BB HR
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-4 R
2B Robby Weltzer 1-4 RBI DB
RF Ian Messer 0-2 R HBP
SS Dave Quiros 1-4 R
HR NYM: none
HR MON: Kerzner(12)
W: Ryan Rasbach(3-4 3.81) L: Ron Millett(1-3 2.60) SV : none
Kerzner by the way is riding a 12-game hitting streak…

June 27th

Mets Suffer 2-1 Road Loss

Olympic Stadium hosted an old-fashioned pitchers' duel.

The Montreal Expos picked up a win at Olympic Stadium, downing the New York Mets, 2-1. On the mound for Montreal was right-hander Sam Griffin, who played a pivotal role in the win. Montreal has 3 straight wins, New York 3 straight losses.

Orlando Gonzalez had a big solo home run for the Expos in the bottom of the fourth inning. With Montreal leading 1-0 and the bases empty, he got a slider from Zach Laurents, who is tied for 2nd in the EL in complete games with 1, and swatted a home run to right. It was his 1st home run of the season, and more importantly, it put the Expos ahead, 2-0.

"The old adage is true," said Griffin. "Good pitching stops good hitting."

Bret Engling(L, 1-1 3.58) – Austin Roy(R, 3-8 5.02) tomorrow. 2x All-Star that retuned from a strained oblique.

SP Sam Griffin 6IP 7H 1R 1ER 0BB 5K W
CF Vicente Rodriguez 1-2 DB concussion 3 weeks
DH Dan Cook 2-4 DB
LF Karl Ferguson 1-3 RBI
RF Ian Messer 1-3 BB
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-4 R RBI HR
2B Robby Weltzer 2-3
HR NYM: none
HR MON: Gonzalez(1)
W: Sam Griffin(4-6 3.78) L: Zach Laurents(3-8 4.52) SV : Dusty Leone(5 1.80)
Another win! The dizzy heights!

Transactions:
Vicente collided with the second baseman on his double and then saw two second bases… so we took him out and put him on the 10-day IL. RF/LF Huai-yu Mah(26, 2.5*) was recalled and Oatley will work as center field backup with Schill in the lineup… this removes 0.9WAR from our lineup.

Record: 28-43, 5th in EL Northeast, 10GB
Week: 4-3 (1-3@ ATL, 3-0vs NYM)
Power Rankings: #24(+1)
Runs scored: 242(15th)
Runs against: 343(9th)
Starters ERA: 4.87(10th)
Bullpen ERA: 4.26(8th)
Defensive Eff.: .678(14th)
Fan Interest: 84(-1)

Who's hot?
SP Sam Griffin 2G 1-0 2.38 11.1IP 8K
SP Adrian Hilscher 2G 0-1 2.25 12.0IP 9K
SP Dan Hinton 2G 2-0 1.38 13.0IP 16K
SP Austin Roy 3G 1-1 2.61 20.2IP 22K

Who's not?
nobody

Washington Nationals C Luis Mendez(24, 3.5*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 9-17 5HR 110BIs 7R. A team leader at his young age, he is batting .299-9-17 1.015OPS in 34 games.

Los Angeles Angels 1B Tim Jammal(25, 3/3.5*) was named WL Player of the Week, going 13-20 1HR 6RBIs 5R. This is his first week after the 4-team trade, and he is batting .326-5-17 .898OPS in 37 games between CAL and LAA.

[Griever20]

Expos Hinton Gone for Year
stadiumreport.bbn

June 30th, 2021

The Montreal Expos and their fans were rocked today by the news that star starting pitcher Dan Hinton would miss the rest of the season due to injury. Hinton was hurt in a recent game against the Detroit Trains while throwing a pitch. He was immediately removed from the game and taken for examination. Tests today revealed the injury was a torn flexor tendon in his elbow. His doctors think that Hinton will miss about 8-9 months.

So far this year, Hinton has compiled a 4-0 record with a 1.93 ERA and 38K in 42IP, good for 1.7WAR.

Next Headline: Montreal Expos GM jumps off Olympic Stadium roof… so much for the last bit of excitement in this season and the chance to sent Hinton to the development camp to improve on his strength and injury proneness...

---

Week 13: 3vs Detroit Trains(31-40), 4@ New York Mets(29-42)

June 28th

On Road, Detroit Drops Montreal, 3-0

The Detroit Trains locked up a win at Olympic Stadium, knocking off the Montreal Expos, 3-0. On the mound for Detroit was left-hander Bret Engling. He played a major role in the triumph. Engling picked up the win for Detroit, going 7.1 innings. He gave up no runs on 6 hits. He now sports a record of 2-1. Detroit is now 32-40, Montreal 28-44.

David Rodriguez, who is a two-time Gold Glove Award winner, had a direct impact on the outcome. Rodriguez contributed a run-scoring single in the top of the second inning to put Detroit up, 2-0. He is batting .263-6-23 .703OPS in 54 games.

"If you pitch well, you give yourself some opportunities," said Detroit manager Andy Musa.

James Gallo(R, 3-6 6.24) – Adrian Hilscher(R, 0-6 4.75) tomorrow. 32-year old that is as good as his ERA…

SP Austin Roy 7.1IP 6H 3R 3ER 2BB 6K L
CF Brian Schill 1-4
DH Dan Cook 2-4
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4
2B Robby Weltzer 1-4
C Steve Fitch 2-4
HR DET: Velez(11)
HR MON: none
W: Bret Engling(2-1 2.92) L: Austin Roy(3-9 4.92) SV : Elliot Malloy(1 0.00)
Roy with a great start, but we had nothing today and to add injury to insult, RF Ian Messer suffers from a tired arm. We will not him on the DL, but use Mah and Oatley instead.

June 29th

Trains Deal Expos 5-3 Defeat

The Detroit Trains topped the Montreal Expos, 5-3, in Eastern League action at Olympic Stadium. The game was highlighted by the performance of Detroit pitcher James Gallo. The win belonged to Tom Zufelt in relief. His record improves to 1-0. Adrian Hilscher took the loss for Montreal. The Detroit win streak is now 3 games.

Juan Velez came through with a big-time hit for Detroit. The first baseman smacked a 2-run home run in the top of the seventh inning to give his team the lead, 5-3. It was his only hit, but it was clutch.

Velez called the win "a team effort." The 2020 EL All-Star is batting .294-12-37 .836POPS 1.2WAR in 68 games.

Trevor Oien(R, 5-3 4.52) – Dan Hinton(R, 4-0 2.04) tomorrow. Can we at least avoid the sweep???

SP Adrian Hilscher 6IP 6H 4R 4ER 3BB 5K L
DH Dan Cook 3-4 R 2DB
LF Brian Oatley 3-4 R RBI
RF Huai-yu Mah 2-4 R 2RBI
3B Dave Quiros 1-4
SS Jose Robles 1-3 BB DB
HR DET: Velez(12), Blatter(12)
HR MON: Mah(1)
W: Tom Zufelt(1-0 7.36) L: Adrian Hilscher(0-7 4.88) SV : Nelson Cardenas(20 2.91)
Mah comes in with a homer and to make things worse…

Transaction:
RHRP Adam Rudolph(22, 3*, 3-1 1SV 2.34 42K 42.1IP) was placed on the 15-day DL with a strained back that will hamper him for one week. RHRP Andy Pelletier(25, 2.5*, 0-1 8.38 17K 19.1IP) was recalled from AAA.

June 30th

Transaction:
C Jordan Chavis(23, 2*, .250-2-3 .940OPS 0.4WAR) was sent back down to AAA and C Kevin Craddock(24, 2.5*, .158-0-1 .449OPS -0.2WAR) was activated off the DL.

Expos, Lose Game, 4-1, and Hinton for the Season

Detroit got a strong outing from Trevor Oien as the Trains defeated the Montreal Expos, 4-1, at Olympic Stadium. Oien yielded 1 run over 6.2 innings to notch the win. He scattered 5 hits, walked 3, and struck out 7. His record improves to 6-3. Detroit has 4 straight wins, Montreal 3 straight losses.

Mark MacAskill, who finished 4th in the EL in extra base hits with 68 in 2012, had a direct impact on the outcome. MacAskill contributed a 2-run home run in the top of the fourth inning to put Detroit up, 4-1. The 33-year old veteran and 2x All-Star is batting .239-10-29 .756OPS in 54 games.

"We'll pop the top on a cold beverage and get back to work tomorrow," Oien said.

The Montreal Expos may pop the top on a cold beverage for other reasons as Dan Hinton left the game in pain and was diagnosed with a torn flexor tendon and will be out for 8-9 months

Josh Eisenberg(R, 6-5 4.64) – Sam Rush(R, 2-2 5.08) tomorrow. Lost against us last week…

SP Dan Hinton 2.2IP 1H 0R 0ER 1BB 3K ND torn flexor tendon 8-9 months
CF Brian Schill 1-4
DH Dan Cook 1-4
1B Cody Kerzner 2-3 R BB DB
RF Huai-yu Mah 1-4
3B Orlando Gonzalez 0-2 BB
SS Jose Robles 1-3
HR DET: MacAskill(10)
HR MON: none
W: Trevor Oien (6-3 4.22) L: Chris Ball(0-1 4.97) SV : Nelson Cardenas(21 2.83)
Can someone please kill me?

Transactions:
After I blacked out in the GM’s office, I realized that my assistant GM called up the 27-year old wrecked body of Melvin Magana(27, 2.5*, 2-4 3.53 62K 71.1IP 1.0WAR AAA). A career 45-48 4.47 660K pitcher in 152G/121GS with 731.2IP that won double digit games in his first three seasons, injuries wrecked his body.

We decided to not call up our prospect SP Juan Miranda(23, 2.5/3*) as we really wanted him to get the full season in AAA and there was no reason to start his service time with this rotten team…

News:
Philadelphia Grizzlies SP Jessie Dittus(26, 4*) pitched eight strong innings of 1-hit, 2BB and 6K ball in a 6-0 win in Toronto. The 2018 EL Reliever of the Year is now 7-4 3.09 78K in 14 starts and batting .259-4-10 .870OPS in 17 games as a catcher/DH. no kiddin’

[Griever20]

EL Awards:
Batter of the Month: Cincinnati CF Francisco Canales(24, 3.5*) .411-10-23 1.262OPS 2.0WAR 2020 EL Silver Slugger, 3rd in season WAR with 3.4
Pitcher of the Month: Pittsburgh RHCL T.J. Hoffman(25, 4*) 2-0 7SV 0.00 19K 14.1IP 0.7WAR What is it with those closers…
Rookie of the Month: Memphis SP Isiah Parker(24, 2.5*) 4-0 2.73 5GS 20K 33IP 0.0WAR Not a great crop of rookies this season here.

WL Awards:
Batter of the Month: Portland 1B Willie Chacon(26, 4*) .378-7-25 1.123OPS 1.7WAR 2nd month in a row for him, leads league in BA(.370), RBIs(69), OBP(.450) and WAR(4.3)
Pitcher of the Month: Arizona SP Jonathan Bashor(24, 2.5*) 5-1 3.26 29K 6GS 38.2IP 0.6WAR genuine 4.50WAR pitcher over a season
Rookie of the Month: Arizona 3B Marco Lemus(23, 3*) -337-11-23 1-158OPS 25G 1.6WAR 2nd overall pick in 2019.

When I woke up, my head on my keyboard, I startled the cleaning lady in my office. Must have been quite a sight to see me, head on keyboard, sleeping, a bottle of jack in my right hand, a half full glas in the other hand. The fact that the sun is up tells me it’s July 1st… so 10 days till the First Year Player draft and a month until the trade deadline. Time to sober up.

The month of June was our betst so far with 13-14, even though it does not feel like it was anymore. We are still +3 over our pythagorean record and rank dead last in most offensive categories. Fun times. With Dan Hinton’s elbow in pieces, we lost the last star quality player on our roster for good, and now, the strategy for the trade deadline remains to be determined.

We can a.) look for smaller deals without trading away some of our better players, or b.) go full rebuild.

Now, if we are honest, the players with trade value on or NMLB roster seem to be.
SP Austin Roy
SP Sam Rush
LHRP Dusty Leone
RHCL Ryan Rasbach
1B Cody Kerzner
LF Karl Ferguson

We have to decide what to do with them. I kinda want to keep Austin Roy and Cody Kerzner as they have either not sucked (yet?) or shall be given a chance to suck. Trading away Leone and Rasbach and completely emptying our pen is an option, but Rasbach is on a 3y/$12.3M extension that is rather cheap, and Leone is a quality lefty that is only 25 and has a great personality. Both are fan favorites as well…

Difficult.

Pitching:

DL: SP Dan Hinton(22, 4/5*) torn flexor tendon (elbow) 8-9 months 4-0 1.93 38K 42IP 7GS 1.7WAR
DL: SP Danny Sandoval(23, 2.5*) ruptured UCL 12 months 0-5 5.36 59K 50.1IP 11GS 0.1WAR
DL: RHRP Adam Rudolph(22, 3*) strained back 14 days 3-1 2.34 42K 42.1IP 27G 0.5WAR

NMBL Montreal Expos Players on the leaderboard:
none

While some of it may have been the Hinton effect, we crawled up to 10th inn ERA, 10th in runs allowed, 6th in WAR and are not awful anymore in this department. That still masks the fact that apart from a few standouts, we are throwing AAAA pitchers at our opponents and hope that we can catch lightning in a bottle. We have a lot of unconvincing options in AAA that basically are as bad as Hilscher and Rush, but won’t move things along.

The biggest boost has been given to us by Sam Griffin who pitched a 2-0 2.12 month with a respectable 3.16FIP and in the bullpen, Freddy Silva earnd himself Reliever of the Month for us with 11G 17.2IP 2.55 13K. Interesting stat, waiver claim Glen McKeen had a 1.51FIP in 10.2 innings for us…

Position Players:

DL: CF Vicente Rodiguez (23 2.5*) concussion 3 weeks .275-1-14 .678OPS 6/8SB 66G/65GS 0.9WAR

NMBL Montreal Expos Players on the leaderboard:
1B Dan Cook 23 DB – 3rd

Side note, we will give Kevin Craddock a month of starts behind the plate… can’t be worse than Fitch.

Our first base/DH duo with Dan Cook and Cody Kerzner have been our two most productive batters outside of Rodriguez who is still seeing more than one ball due to his concussion. Kerzner has been a stroke of luck for a waiver wire claim and I am very curious if we can get some late development out of the 26-year old. Cook, despite hitting for a .823OPS has zero trade value…

In the outfield, Karl Ferguson and Ian Messer have been huge disappointments again and combine for -1.0WAR, not hitting anything with Ferguson also being a liability in left field… great.

Now, praise to one guy. Jose Robles picked up the slack and hit .302-1-8 .732OPS in June, hood for 0.3WAR with the bat, and improved greatly with the glove, so he may keep his job. Also looking for more at bats seems to be Brian Oatley with a .44-1-6 1.126OPS in 11 games… he may have a case with Messer and Ferguson struggling.

Overall, the lineup still is plain bad.

Prospect Watch:

AAA SS Julian Hernandez(5*) .248-7-25 .686OPS 54G 1.7WAR knee tendinits 2 weeks

AAA RHRP Kevin Cowden(3.5*) 2-4 16SV 5.61 18K 25.2IP -0.9WAR
AAA SP Juan Miranda(3*) 5-5 3.69 65K 75.2IP 17G/12GS 1.5WAR
A LHSP Brett Asselin(4*) 1-9 4.58 60K 72.2IP 15G 0.0WAR
R SP Matt Porter(3*) 3-5 1.30 79K 83IP 15GS 1.6WAR
R 1B Joe Townsend(4*) .250-3-5 .790OPS 12G 0.9WAR broken bone in elbow 6-7 months
R LF Santiago Rodriguez(4*) .220-14-29 .718OPS 66G 4.6WAR

Nothing too special here. We added a good number of 3* prospects over the last month that are not listed here (yet), but they are developing and that is a good thing. Those guys may slowly grow into our NMLB roster over the next years, maybe at least rising the floor on our horrible roster…

[Griever20]

Pitching:

RHSP Jonathan Brown, 17-years of age, out of Halifax Academy (Roanoke Rapids, NC)
Average Competition: 11-0 0.65 192K 15GS 110.2IP 8.4WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $6.5M
The kid has shown velocities of 94-96 and can go deep into games. As it always is for a high school pitcher, control is work in progress, but the ceiling is high according to our scouts. However, the lingering issue that makes me shy back from him is that his arsenal is a fastball, a sinking fastball, and a cut fastball… so he throws fastballs, fastballs, and when they are spend, fastballs.
Head Scout: 5* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: Normal
Personality: Unknown

RHSP Jake Hawkins, 18-years of age, out of White Plains High School (NY)
Average Competition: 10-0 0.95 181K 14GS 104.2IP 7.5WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $7.0M
A more traditional four-pitch guy with a fastball(95-97mph), curve, sinker and changeup, the changeup is the weak link here, leaving him with a variation of two fastballs and a good curve. Stamina seems to be good, and he is a good kid that leads men, is intelligent and not too greedy, but also not to loyal. Control is at 55 max, so that could hurt him if that does not develop accordingly.
Head Scout: 5* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: Normal
Personality: Leader, Intelligence and Financial Ambition , Loyalty

RHSP Chris Stolte, 17-years of age, out of Clake High School (Osceola, IA)
Average Competition: 11-0 0.99 175K 11GS 109.1IP 7.5WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $10.0M
Working of a devastating splitter with decent control and movement, added with a sinking fastball, a changeup and a knuckle curve, he can fool a lot of batters if he wants to. But, the red flags are plenty. Injury prone, bad personality. Not in the first round for us bro.
Head Scout: 5* potential
OSA: 4.5* potential
Injury Proneness: fragile
Personality: Financial Ambition, Adaptability, Work Ethic

RHSP Jamie Roberts, 18-years of age, out of De La Salle High School (Concord, CA)
Average Competition: 9-1 1.11 144K 15GS 105IP 6.1WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $1.2M
A leader of man, and with an arsenal of a 92-94 mph fastball with a good sinker and a changeup, the righty is not a bad shout, but with a 50-rated stamina and a history of injuries, we flagged him as talented, but one to avoid unless he falls to the second or third round.
Head Scout: 4* potential
OSA: 4* potential
Injury Proneness: fragile
Personality: Leader

If we were to select a pitcher first overall, it would be Brown or Hawkins as both are are flagged with tremendous upside. I have personal preference here, but we will wait till draft day for the final scouting reports… IF we select a pitcher. By the way, the best college guy is a 21-year old lefty named James Knisley(3.5*). Will be a steal for a team in the middle of the first round.

Position Players:

CF Tyler Dean, 18-years of age, out of Oviedo High School (Oviedo, FL)
Average Competition: .477/.547/1.078 20HR 59RBI 36G 5.5WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $8.5M
Scouts have him graded at 80 potential power and 70 potential contact while being a good defender at all three outfield positions, and as someone that can steal a base. Im unsure to that as I’d hate to fall for the ‘generational talent high school kid’ with the first overall pick. The kid impressed with his bat and his self-confidence, and adapted well to everything that got thrown at him so far.
Head Scout: 5* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability

RF Zach Stephens, 18-years of age, out of Horizon High School (Scottsdale, AZ)
Average Competition: .471/.520/1.344 11HR 47RBI 35G 4.0WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $5.5M
A line drive hitter with a 70 graded contact potential, he is an interesting conundrum. He is a average defender in left and right field, not a fast runner and not a big slugger, but one that can hit .300+ and will be a “multiple All-Star” according to Dave G. On the plus side, he is an intelligent and adaptable kid that should fullfill his potential…
Head Scout: 5* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability, Intelligence

1B Josh Matthews, 22-years of age, out of Northeastern University (Boston, MA)
Good Competition: .306/.393/1.022 18HR 55RBI 50G 3.0WAR
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: $4.2M
You prototypical first baseman from college that you can draft, develop, and that will hit 30+ home runs for someone one day. Was the first overall pick in 2020 by Sacramento, but didn’t sign so we aren’t the only ones high on him. Durable legs under him an a good kid...
Head Scout: 4.5* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: durable
Personality: Loyalty, Work Ethic

1B Benito Morfin, 21-years of age, out of Concordia University of Ann Arbor (Ann Arbor, MI)
Fair Competition: .292/.401/1.001 20HR 66RBI 57G 3.3WAR
Signability: Normal, Bonus Demand: $6.5M
A junior in college, Morfin is another prototypical player as a slow, hard hitting outfielder that should slug some home runs for someone very soon. Given his body, outfield work is an issue and so is his personality as he is a bit lazy…
Head Scout: 4.5* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability, Work Ethic

1B Mike Cobble, 18-years of age, out of The Woodlands High School (The Woodlands, TX)
Average Competition: .433/.500/1.239 10HR 47RBI 36G 3.6WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $5.5M
You look at him and you see a slugger. Despite his body looking like a small barrel, he works hard on his swing and loves to go for the fences. Doubles and triples aren’t his strong suit and he wont walk a lot, and the industry has a higher opinion on him than we have.
Head Scout: 4* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Financial Ambition, Work Ethic, Adaptability

RF Marshall Laughrey, 21-years of age, out of University of Oklahoma (Norman, OK)
Great Competition: .301/.377/.634 23HR 70RBI 66G 3.7WAR
Signability: Normal, Bonus Demand: $6.5M
Another corner outfielder, this time a college junior. He projects as typical corner outfielder, however the ceiling is in discussion. OSA has him as 70 power potential, we as 65. He is describes as greedy as **** so there is that.
Head Scout: 4* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Intelligence, Work Ethic, Loyalty, Financial Ambition

SS Jonathan Wengler, 18-years of age, out of Liberty High School (MO)
Average Competition: .451/.507/.841 10HR 53RBI 42G 4.7WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $1.6M
Five tools guy, power, speed, contact, good infielder, the question is his power ceiling. Baseball America have him at 75, we at 65. The fact that he wants only $1.6M made us think that he either undervalues himself, or something is wrong…
Head Scout: 4* potential
OSA: 5* potential
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Unknown

So, if we are in for a batter, the decision is between Dean as the highest potential player in the pool, Stephens as the best consensus college bat with good probability of development, or Josh Matthews as the safest thing I have seen in this draft pool.

[Griever20]

Ridin’ High: Hemphill Hits for Cycle
stadiumreport.bbn

July 4th, 2021

B.J. Hemphill(24, 2.5*) cracked out all four legs of the cycle at Canadians Field, but the Seattle Mariners still lost to the Vancouver Canadians by a final score of 7-5.

In a sensational performance, Hemphill had 4 hits in 5 tries with 4 runs batted in and scored 1 run.

"It feels terrible to go 4-for-5 and lose," Hemphill said when asked about the big day. "But I keep reminding myself that there will be a day soon where I'll go 0-for-5 and we'll win, so everything balances out."

B.J. Hemphill hit a three-run home run off Burgess Steen in the 1st, doubled in the 3rd, struck out in the 5th, hit an RBI triple in the 7th and singled in the 9th.

This season, Hemphill is batting .286/.348/.667 with 12 RBIs, 8 runs scored and 4 home runs in 11 games.

[Griever20]

Week 13: 3vs Detroit Trains(31-40), 4@ New York Mets(29-42)

July 1st

Mets, Ruiz Blast Expos, 18-0

New York left fielder Roberto Ruiz was a significant contributor in his team's 18-0 triumph over the Montreal Expos. He was 3 for 5 with a home run and a double, while scoring 3 and driving in 4 for the Mets. Josh Eisenberg, who is tied for 5th in the EL in wins with 7, was the winning pitcher. Over 6.2 innings, he allowed no runs on 4 hits, with no walks and 6 strikeouts. The last-place Expos have lost 4 consecutive games.

With New York leading 5-0 in the bottom of the sixth, Ruiz came up to bat against Montreal pitcher John Martinez. Ruiz hit a cutter to left-center for a 3-run home run. His 9th home run of the season put the Mets on top, 8-0. He is batting .233-9-28 .744OPS in 47 games.

"You can't sugarcoat this one," said Montreal manager Aaron McCreery. "They smoked us."

Sam Griffin(R, 4-6 3.78) – Josh Dalton(L, 5-5 4.08) tomorrow. Two equal pitchers, with our offense that is a L…

SP Sam Rush 5IP 8H 7R 7ER 2BB 7K L
CF Brian Schill 1-4
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4
1B Cody Kerzner 1-3
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-3
HR MON: none
HR NYM: Lee(12), Ruiz(9)
W: Jesse Eisenberg(7-5 4.30) L: Sam Rush(2-3 5.69) SV : none
That is how you make an impression on the league… 18-0!!! Back to booze.

News:
Arizona Diamondbacks SP Miguel Ricketts(22, 4/5*) hurled 8 innings of 1-hit, 4BB and 5K ball in a 6-0 win in Kansas City. The young phenom is 10-4 2.15 88K 108.2IP in 16 starts.

July 2nd

Expos Earn Clutch Win, 7-6 in Ten

The Montreal Expos beat the New York Mets, 7-6 -- though it took them 10 innings. Montreal center fielder Brian Schill had a pretty good game. He went 2-5 with 2 home runs. He drove in 5 runs and scored twice. The 26-year old is batting .162-3-8 .524OPS in 22 games. The win has Montreal at 29-47.

The game was at a stalemate until third baseman Robby Weltzer came to bat in the top of the tenth. Facing New York pitcher Ron Millett, he hit a 1-1 fastball for a run-scoring single. It was a game-changer, putting Montreal on top, 7-6. Weltzer has hit .270 since coming over via trade last month.

"The game is never over 'til it's over," said a jubilant Aaron McCreery, the Montreal skipper.

Austin Roy(R, 3-9 4.92) – Zach Laurents(R, 3-8 4.52) tomorrow. Their team captain and has a better ERA than our trade acquisition…

SP Sam Griffin 4.2IP 8H 5R 5ER 0BB 2K ND
CF Brian Schill 2-5 2R 5RBI 2HR PotG
DH Dan Cook 2-4 DB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 R BB
RF Brian Oatley 2-5 DB ruptured Achilles tendon 6 months
2B Robby Weltzer 2-5 2RBI
C Kyle Craddock 1-5 R DB
SS Jose Robles 2-4 R
HR MON: Schill 2(3)
HR NYM: Romo(1),
W: Ryan Rasbach(4-4 3.54) L: Ron Millett(1-4 2.73) SV : none
Griffin was lit on fire, but the bullpen held up for our backup outfielder and our light hitting 2B to turn things around… oh, talking about outfielders…

Transaction:
RF Brian Oatley(27, 2.5*, .2891-8 .728OPS 27G 0.5WAR) is out for the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon. He was placed on the 60-day IL and OF Ignacio Benavides(24, 2.5*, .356-2-15 .980OPS 1.8WAR AAA) was called up to the NMLB roster…

News:
Pittsburgh Kings SP Jon Russo(26, 2.5*) missed a shutout by one out, working 8.2IP 2H 0ER 1BB 7K in a 5-0 win over Houston. The 2018 EL All-Star is 7-3 3.40 52K in 15 starts.

Chicago Rangers SS Juan Ramos(25, 3/4*) had a 5-hit night in Miami today, going 5-5 R 2RBI DB in a 11-4 road win. The third year pro is batting .281-7-40 .782OPS 5/7SB in 72 games.

July 3rd

Mets Need Extra Innings to Top Expos, 5-4

Citi Field was the site of a competitive game between the Montreal Expos and New York Mets.

The New York Mets topped the Montreal Expos by a score of 5-4 in 11 innings. Leading the way was right fielder Josh Davis. Davis was 2 for 4 with 2 singles and 2 walks, while adding 2 RBI and scoring once for the Mets. New York reliever Nate Warren picked up the win to move to 2-0. Andy Pelletier suffered the loss.

Batting in the bottom of the 11th, 26-year old first baseman Seb Stuart had a real shot to win the game. Montreal pitcher Andy Pelletier was determined not to let it happen. But with two outs, Stuart hit a run-scoring single. The Mets had a walk-off triumph. The first baseman is batting .237-11-32 .798OPS in 51 games.

"It doesn't matter if you're 10 games over .500 or 10 games under, it feels good to win," Stuart told the New York Citizen.

The Mets sport a record of 31-45.

Adrian Hilscher(R, 0-7 4.88) – Andy Siler(R, 4-8 4.83) tomorrow. All-Star last season…

SP Austin Roy 4.2IP 5H 2R 2ER 4BB 5K ND
RF Ian Messer 1-5
LF Karl Ferguson 2-4 2R BB DB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 2R
CF Brian Schill 1-5 RBI DB
3B Orlando Gonzalez 2-4 2RBI DB
C Kyle Craddock 1-4
HR MON: none
HR NYM: Martin(4)
W: Nate Warren(2-0 3.46) L: Andy Pelletier(0-2 8.27) SV : none
You were supposed to be the chosen one! *shakes fist towards Austin Roy* Rasbach had save chance in the 9th and blew it with 2 unearned runs as we committed 3 errors today…

July 4th

Mets Need Extra Innings to Top Expos, 5-4

Despite a fine performance by left fielder Karl Ferguson, the Montreal Expos lost to the New York Mets, 5-4. Ferguson was 3 for 5 with a home run and a double. He drove in 3 runs and scored once. The 4th-place Mets hiked their record to 32-45.

Volker Martin was the walk-off hero for New York. With the game tied in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Mets center fielder hit a dramatic run-scoring single to send the teams home. He Is batting .312-4-20 .860OPS in 29 games.

"I was a little disappointed," said Montreal manager Aaron McCreery. "We could've and should've scored more runs."

Melvin Magana(R, 2-4 3.53 AAA) – Trevor Oien(R, 6-3 4.22) tomorrow. Detroit(35-43) again…

SP Adrian Hilscher 2.1IP 5H 1R 1ER 1BB 4K ND bone chips (elbow) 5 weeks
RF Ian Messer 1-5 R
LF Karl Ferguson 3-5 R 3RBI DB HR PotG
C Kyle Craddock 1-4 R BB TP
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-4
CF Ignacio Benavides 0-2 RBI BB
2B David Quiros 2-4DB
SS Jose Robles 2-3 R DB
HR MON: Ferguson(8)
HR NYM: none
W: Ron Millett(2-4 3.23) L: John Martinez(1-1 6.75) SV : none
Millett blew the save and then we could not hold on to the win in the bottom of the ninth… we just don’t want to win huh?

Transaction:
SP Adrian Hilscher(26, 2.5*, 0-7 4.84 56K 61.1IP 0.9WAR) was placed on the 15-day IL with bone chips (elbow) and will be out 5 weeks. Throwing a dice, we recalled SP Cesar Alvarado(21, 2.5* 4-2 2.89 34K 46.2IP 1.0WAR AAA) as I still could not stand Victor Lopez.

Record: 29-49 , 5th in EL Northeast, 12.5GB
Week: 1-6 (0-3 vs DET, 1-4 @ NYM)
Power Rankings: #28(-4)
Runs scored: 261(15th)
Runs against: 389(12th)
Starters ERA: 4.97(13th)
Bullpen ERA: 4.38(9th)
Defensive Eff.: .672(15th)
Zone Rating: +10.2(6th)
Fan Interest: 84(+-0)

Who's hot?
nobody

Who's not?
SP Sam Rush 2G 0-1 9.58 10.1IP 11K
RHRP John Martinez 10G 2SV 9.53 17IP 12K
RHRP Andy Pelletier 20G 0-2 8.84 19.1IP 17K

Cincinnati Eagles CF Francisco Canales(24, 3.5*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 13-22 1HR 6BIs 3R. Also the PotM of July, he is now batting .321-14-49 .930OPS in 73 games.

Denver Seahawks RF Armando Caraza(27, 3/3.5*) was named WL Player of the Week, going 10-21 3HR 8RBIs 4R. The 3x All-Star is batting .285-13-55 .814OPS in 73 games.

[Griever20]

Flip Him Again! Expos Orchestrate another 3-Team Deal Around Espinoza
stadiumreport.bbn

July 8th, 2021

It feels like I wrote the same news half a year ago. The Expos once again orchestrated a three team deal centred around right handed closer Alex Espinosa that not only landed them some prospects, but saved some money.

Chicago Rangers receive:
RHCL Alex Espinosa(35, 4*, $14.7M, 0-4 15SV 3.69 39K 31.2IP 1.0WAR) from WSH
C Steve Fitch(29, 2.5*, $11.8M, .221-3-18 .560OPS -0.7WAR) from MON
R C Joaquin Quintanilla(18, 0.5/2.5*, .234/.264/.314 4HR 6RBI 58G 1.5WAR R ball) from MON

Washington Nationals receive:
AAA LHRP Danny Parsons(28, 2.5*, 1-1 2.82 40K 44.2IP 0.6WAR AAA)

Montreal Expos receive:
S A 2B/3B/SS Jorge Flores(19, 0.5/3*, .067-0-1 .192OPS 12G -0.2WAR)
R RHRP Javier Baca(16, 0.5/4*, 3-5 6SV 3.06 25K 32.1IP -1.7WAR)

For the Montreal Expos, this closes the book on veteran catcher Steve Fitch. The 29-year old first lost his batspeed, and then his job to Kevin Craddock and now his roster spot in Montreal. Over a 546 game career, he hit .255/.301/.414 68HR 247RBI 208R 6.9WAR over seven seasons. He is due $11.8M this and next season.

When the Nats put Alex Espinosa, I knew I had to try it. Parsons was a minor league signee that was in there for depth and nothing else, so that wasn’t costly at all.

In order to get Fitch off the books, we had to trade Quintanilla as well. The 18-year old came up often in trade talks but Dave G. has him as a 2.5* prospect with defensive ratings that do not match my standards for a NMLB catcher. We may be wrong about him, but things happen.

On the other hand, Flores is another 3* guy that could give us some depth in a few years, and Baca was one of the international amateur free agents we didn’t manage to get last season, but they weren’t putting a lot of trade value on him, so I grabbed him for free.

[Griever20]

NMLB News Flash: First-Year Player Draft
stadiumreport.bbn

July 11th, 2021

For the newcomer to professional baseball, today's amateur draft is a rite of passage. Every young player in the country is filtered through the draft pool, assessed, reassessed, scrutinized and run through several mock drafts even before they get to the real thing. But on draft day, once you've been picked, you have a shot to do what so few men in history have done, become a New Major League Baseball ballplayer. Montreal, Sacramento, Vancouver, Los Angeles and Memphis will have the first five picks. The top ten players, as rated by BNN, are:

1. Tyler Dean, 18 year-old CF out of high-school.
2. Josh Matthews, 22 year-old 1B out of college.
3. Noah Parrish, 22 year-old 3B out of college.
4. Paul Hodge, 22 year-old LF out of college.
5. Andy Branson, 21 year-old RF out of college.
6. Zach Stephens, 18 year-old RF out of high-school.
7. Benito Morfin, 21 year-old LF out of college.
8. Marshall Laughrey, 21 year-old CF out of college.
9. Nick Neapolitan, 20 year-old CF out of college.
10. Chris Stolte, 17 year-old RHP out of high-school.

The Montreal Expos are on the clock…

1st Round, 1st Pick(1st overall) Montreal Expos select CF Tyler Dean(18, 5*) out of Oviedo High School (Oviedo, FL)
Average Competition: .477/.547/1.078 20HR 59RBI 36G 5.5WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $8.5M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability
There ya go. We will blow $8.5M on a high school kid that is years away from the majors. 80 rated power potential, 70 rated contact, the best hitting prospect in this draft when you look at pure potential. Let’s pray he will pan out.

Forgot to take the screenshot right away, tried to get rid of all spoilers...

1st Round, 2nd Pick(2nd overall) Sacramento Cavaliers
select 1B Josh Matthews(22, 4.5* HS, 5* OSA), out of Northeastern University (Boston, MA)
Good Competition: .306/.393/1.022 18HR 55RBI 50G 3.0WAR
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: $4.2M
Injury Proneness: durable
Personality: Loyalty, Work Ethic
Interesting pick, they went for the sure thing college kid that will hit some solid bombs in in their lineup soon enough. Good personality, and not to costly.

1st Round, 3rd Pick(3rd overall) Vancouver Canadians
select 1B/LF Benito Morfin(21, 4* HS, 5* OSA) out of Concordia University of Ann Arbor (Ann Arbor, MI)
Fair Competition: .292/.401/1.001 20HR 66RBI 57G 3.3WAR
Signability: Normal, Bonus Demand: $6.5M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability, Work Ethic
We were a bit down on him due to his outfield defence and his personality, but he undeniably has shown power potential and above average contact ratings.

1st Round, 4th Pick(4th overall) Los Angeles Angels select 3B Noah Parrish(22, 4* HS, 3* OSA) out of University of Tennessee(Knoxville, TN)
Great Competition: .312/.439/.605 20HR 70RBI 62G 4.1WAR
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: $5.54M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability, Work Ethic, Financial Ambition
Not that high on our list as we were looking to swing for the fences, Parrish is not a bad pick here as a college player. A good defender at 3B, he as a great batting eye and will take bunch of walks and should not be too many years away from playing 3B at the NMLB level.

1st Round, 5th Pick(5th overall) Memphis Bolts select LF Paul Hodge(22, 3.5* HS, 4* OSA) out of Tulane University (New Orleans, LA)
Great Competition: .310/.355/.535 6HR 50RBI 59G 2.2WAR
Signability: Normal, Bonus Demand: $5.36M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability, Work Ethic
A great contact hitter and potential leadoff man, his defensive skills lack a bit and his personality was a bit of a red flag. Could be on a fast track to the majors tho.

1st Round, 6th Pick(6th overall) San Francisco Red Devils select RHSP Jake Hawkins(18, 4.5* HS, 5*) out of White Plains High School (NY)
Average Competition: 10-0 0.95 181K 14GS 104.2IP 7.5WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $7.0M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Leader, Intelligence and Financial Ambition
,Loyalty
We shied away from selecting a pitcher here, but if we had, he would’ve been it. Leadership, intelligence, three strong pitches without a risk, good stamina, not injury prone, this could be a fine pick.

1st Round, 7th Pick(7th overall) Sacramento Cavaliers select OF Marshall Laughrey(21, 4* HS, 4.5* OSA) out of University of Oklahoma (Norman, OK)
Great Competition: .301/.377/.634 23HR 70RBI 66G 3.7WAR
Signability: Normal, Bonus Demand: $6.5M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Intelligence, Work Ethic, Loyalty, Financial Ambition
Outfielder with good power potential and dynamite defense at the corners, he may become costly down the line, but save to a sure thing again. Sacramento really swung for the fences if they can sign their 2nd overall pick(Comp.) and this one.

1st Round, 8th Pick(8th overall) Seattle Mariners select CF Mark Saccoccio(18, 4*) out of Nogales High School (La Puente, CA)
Average Competition: .449/.512/.810 8HR 43RBI 34G 3.8WAR
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Intelligence, Work Ethic, Adaptability
Not on anyone’s top 10 list and a surprise for me as I would’ve preferred other bats here or a pitcher. Nevertheless, Saccoccio is not a bad pick as he should one day hit for a high average and can win a Gold Glove or two in the outfield. He lacks the pure speed and stealing ability to become elite, but the personality is great.

1st Round, 9th Pick(9th overall) Calgary Beavers select RF Andy Branson(21, 2.5*) out of Iona College (New Rochelle, NY)
Average Competition: .290/.405/.570 16HR 71RBI 70G 3.8WAR
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Financial Ambition, Loyalty
Either they know something nobody else does, or this makes no sense. Yes, speed is there, defence is average, bat is ok with good batting eye, but this kid is going way over his true value I think.

1st Round, 10th Pick(10th overall) Jacksonville Patriots select RHSP Chris Stolte(17, 5* HS, 4.5* OSA) out of Clake High School (Osceola, IA)
Average Competition: 11-0 0.99 175K 11GS 109.1IP 7.5WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $10.0M
Injury Proneness: fragile
Personality: Financial Ambition, Adaptability, Work Ethic
So, they went for the high risk guy. Bad Personality, injury prone, but stuff for days. If he develop, his 75 rated splitter will kill batters together with 92-94 mph fastballs right now, and groundball tendencies.

At that time, off our big board, SP Jonathan Brown and RF Zach Stephens, who was veery high on the board for us were still on… Brown went to Oakland 17th overall, Stephens 21st overall to San Francisco Red Devils.

Rest of the draft:
2nd Round, 1st Pick(36th overall) Montreal Expos select RHSP Paul Ramsay(17, 4* HS, 3.5* OSA) out of Bob Jones High School (Madison, AL)
Average Competition: 9-0 0.69 176K 91.2IP 12G 7.3WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: slot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Financial Ambition
Very young high school arm with a 94-96 fastball, a dynamite slider and a good changeup that needs a lot of development time. He can go deep into games and there are not too many red flags on his personality. Movement and control are 55 potential tops, but for a second rounder, a solid pick I’d say. Demands $1.8M

3rd Round, 1st Pick(68th overall) Montreal Expos select RHRP Randy Aubuchon(18, 3.5* HS, 4* OSA) out of Lehigh Valley Christian High School (Allentown, PA)
Average Competition: 3-0 12SV 1.16 98K 54.1IP 19G/3GS 3.0WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: slot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Intelligence, Leader
A clever kid and the best reliever left in the draft. Throws 94-96 on the gun, but the real weapon should be the curveball that is absolute filth. He may be prone to the long ball and that may be what will hold him back to become elite, but could be a good setup man some day. Wants only $130k

4th Round, 1st Pick(97th overall) Montreal Expos select RHSP Bobby Haggerty(18, 3.5* HS, 4* OSA) out of Madison Country Day High School (Waunakee, WI)
Average Competition: 11-1 1.44 162K 125.1IP 16GS 7.2WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $3.4M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Financial Ambition, Loyalty
Yes, we are going extremely high risk with high school guys, but this is the way I want this to go. Haggerty is using a 92-94 heater with a great splitter, a changup ,and a sinker that does not sink… ohwell. Genuinly rated 55/55/55 in the main pitching categories, his 70 stamina also tickles me. Wants $3.4M


5th Round, 1st Pick(127th overall) Montreal Expos select C Dave Witkowski(18, 3* HS, 2.5* OSA) out of Benbrook Middle-High School (Benbrook, TX)
Average Competition: .453/.494/.634 3HR 43RBI 36G 3.0WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $470k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Intelligence
Standout defensive catcher with above average contact ability(65) that won’t strike out a lot. Not an offensive catcher, but a good intelligent kid that won’t hurt you behind the plate.

6th Round, 1st Pick(157th overall) Montreal Expos select OF Nate Schultz(18, 3*) out of Green Valley High School (Henderson, NY)
Average Competition: .433/.500/.663 6HR 47RBI 41G 3.6WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $470k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Leader
Not a great baserunner by trait, but a good defender in left and decent in right, he projects as a solid bat that won’t fall off too much.

7th Round, 1st Pick(187th overall) Montreal Expos select OF Art Benrud(18, 3* HS, 4* OSA) out of Muscle Shoals High School (AL)
Average Competition: .429/.480/.731 8HR 46RBI 39G 3.7WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $600k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Leader, Adaptability, Work Ethic
The OSA even likes him more than we did, but the truth is that his personality looks promising, his defense is solid, and his bat is average to above average.

8th Round, 1st Pick(217th overall) Montreal Expos select C Stephen Buechner(18, 3* HS, 3.5* OSA) out of DuBois High School (PA)
Average Competition: .450/.509/.675 6HR 42RBI 36G 3.2WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: slot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability, Work Ethic, Financial Ambition, Leader, Loyalty
Similar to Quintanilla who we just traded away, his defence is probably not good enough for us to consider him behind the plate, but a 60 contact, 65 Avoid K’s bat could hold some trade value in the future, and there is still a chance we stick him in the development camp.

9th Round, 1st Pick(247th overall) Montreal Expos select 3B Cesar Romanos(18, 2.5*) out of Windham High School (Willimantic, CT)
Average Competition: .489/.522/.814 5HR 53RBI 41G 4.7WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $470k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability, Work Ethic, Leader
Vicente Rodriguez vibes at 3B? Not a great defender and we may have to think about that, but the biggest speedster left here. 60 contact potential, 75 gap, 65 Avoid K’s. Swiped 42 bags in high school competition.

10th Round, 1st Pick(277th overall) Montreal Expos select LHSP Mack Faddis(18, 2.5*) out of Northpoint High School (Southhaven, MS)
Average Competition: 8-2 1.06 170K 102IP 13G 6.6WAR
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: slot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Adaptability , Intelligence
What we liked about Faddis was that he is a.) left handed, and b.) has a stamina of 70 and 65 rated control potential.

From here on out, we kept our strategy and selected good high school kids… See you in 5 years to find out if that draft was a good one.

[Griever20]

Bolts No Match for Aguilera Jr., Minuteman in 10-0 Thumping
stadiumreport.bbn

July 5th, 2021

Eddie Aguilera Jr.(24, 4*) of the Atlanta Minutemen was lights-out while 2-hitting the Memphis Bolts.

"I had my good stuff and it went where I wanted it to go," he told BNN reporters after the contest.

Aguilera Jr. registered 2 strikeouts and no walks in shutting out Memphis, 10-0.

This year, Aguilera Jr. has made 17 starts, thrown 97.2 innings, fanned 91 batters and walked 30. His won-lost record is 7-4 with a 4.52 ERA. The righty won a Gold Glove last season and also was an All-Star.

[Griever20]

Week 14: 3@ Detroit Trains(35-43), 3@ Washington Nationals(34-44)

July 5th

Transaction:
In a minor trade, the Montreal Expos sent SP Jake Burton(24, 2*, 500k) to the San Francisco Red Devils in exchange for minor league C Ryan Perry(23, 2.5*). Burton was the #10 SP in our depth chart and earning money on the 40-man, and we are a bit short on catchers in the minors. Nothing to see here, move on.

Expos Jolt Trains, 7-4, with Late Rally

The Montreal Expos defeated the Detroit Trains, 7-4, at Comerica Park. Montreal was led by 25-year old second baseman David Quiros, who was 3-4 with a double and 2 singles, while scoring 2. The 25-year old is batting .233-2-18 .591OPS in 66 games.

Glen McKeen was credited with the save. He has now successfully converted 1 of 2 save opportunities. The Expos go to 30-49 with the win.

Montreal needed the clutch hitting of Dan Cook to seal the deal. The designated hitter swatted a 3-run home run in the top of the ninth inning to put the Expos on top, 7-4. For the game, Cook had 1 home run and 1 single in 5 at-bats. The late blooming designated hitter is batting .297-8-32 .819OPS in 77 games.

"Very pleased with the effort on our side," said Cook.

Sam Rush(R, 2-3 5.69) – Jeremy Walker(L, 3-9 6.08) tomorrow. Come on, a lefty with a 6.08ERA? Let’s win two in a row!

SP Melvin Magana 6IP 7H 4R 4ER 1BB 2K ND
RF Ian Messer 1-5
DH Dan Cook 2-5 R 3RBI HR
LF Karl Ferguson 2-4 RBI
CF Brian Schill 1-3 R 2BB
3B Dave Quiros 3-4 2R RBI DB PotG
SS Jose Robles 0-2 R BB
C Steve Fitch 0-2 R RBI BB
HR MON: Cook(8)
HR DET: Rodriguez(8), Mason(12), Blatter(15)
W: Dusty Leone(5-0 1.59) L: Mike Burgess(2-3 3.81) SV : Glen McKeen(1 3.65)
Magana didn’t get a quality start but lasted six, our bullpen worked for once and we cobbled together some runs… what a treat.

News:
Houston Astros LF Salomé Penhascos(29, 2.5*) had a career game in a 19-3 rout of the Philadelphia Grizzlies, going 4-6 3R 6RBI DB 2HR. Never a regular in the last five seasons with the team, Penhascos is batting .238-7-34 .690OPS in 66 games.

July 6th

Trains Walker No-Hits Expos

In a seldom seen sight, Jeremy Walker threw a no-hitter at Comerica Park as the Detroit Trains topped the Montreal Expos, 3-0.

In a dominating performance, Walker struck out 7 and walked 2 while facing only 27 batters.

"He had great stuff," Trains manager Andy Musa told BNN reporters. "Jeremy is a real gamer, a real competitor. He doesn't give in to anybody out there."

This season, Walker has 4 wins and 9 losses and a 5.46 ERA and 80 strikeouts in 89 innings. However, he was a 16-game winner last season and the EL LCS MvP as well.

Sam Griffin(R, 4-6 4.09) – Seth Dykstra(R, 8-4 3.87) tomorrow. Of course we did not miss the 3x PotY.

SP Sam Rush 6IP 3H 3R 3ER 4BB 5K L
CF Brian Schill 0-2 BB
C Kevin Craddock 0-2 BB
HR MON: none
HR DET: none
W: Jeremy Walker(4-9 5.46) L: Sam Rush(2-4 5.59) SV : none
A 6.08ERA lefty that never did anything no-hits us… of course…

July 7th

Trains Get Gritty, 4-3 Win

The Montreal Expos got a sterling performance from pitcher Sam Griffin, but the Detroit Trains still prevailed, 4-3. Griffin threw 7.0 innings allowing 2 runs. Justin Mauldin was the winner in relief. His record is now 1-1. The losing pitcher was John Martinez. Nelson Cardenas got the save, his 22nd in 26 chances.

Detroit took a 4-3 lead on Joe Welshman's 6th home run of the season. The 2-run home run, which Welshman hit in the bottom of the eighth, left Montreal pitcher John Martinez visibly frustrated.

Welshman told a Detroit Citizen reporter that he was "satisfied" with the win. He 30-year old was claimed off waivers last month and is now batting .261-6-17 .722OPS in 56 games between SF and DET.

Detroit is now 37-44.

Austin Roy(R, 3-9 4.87) – Nelson Flores(R, 2-2 6.00) tomorrow. 3x All-Star and better than an ERA of 6

SP Sam Griffin 7IP 3H 2R 2ER 0BB 5K ND PotG
RF Ian Messer 2-5 RBI DB
DH Dan Cook 0-3 R 2BB
LF Karl Ferguson 2-5
CF Brian Schill 1-4 R RBI BB SB(1)
3B Orlando Gonzalez 2-5 RBI DB
2B Robby Weltzer 1-4 R BB DB
C Kevin Craddock 0-3 BB
SS Jose Robles 0-2 2BB
HR MON: none
HR DET: Welshman(1)
W: Justin Mauldin (1-1 5.23) L: John Martinez(2-3 7.18) SV : Nelson Cardenas(22 4.26)
I took the liberty to manage the game myself… my poor manager, he has to deal with this **** every day. We left the bases loaded in the first, gave up two, returned to lead 3-2 for Martinez, that dork, to blow the game.

News:
Oakland Oaks SP Amir Fletcher(26, 2.5*) had a dominant outing versus Seattle today, going 8IP 3H 0ER 0BB 10K in a 1-0 win. The righty won 12 games despite a 5.55ERA last season and is 4-5 5.02 77K in 15 starts this season.

July 8th
Offday

July 9th

Transaction:
With us saying goodbye to Steve Fitch today, we recalled C Jordan Chavis(23, 2.5*, .250-2-3 .940OPS 7G 0.4WAR NMLB)

Nationals Bridle Expos, 3-1

Washington and Montreal duked it out and the Nationals came out victorious.

In a low-scoring affair between the Washington Nationals and the Montreal Expos, pitcher Nelson Flores was the difference between victory and defeat. The Washington right-hander earned accolades for his stellar performance in the 3-1 Nationals win. The winning pitcher was Flores, now 3-2. He tossed 5.2 innings of 5-hit ball, while walking 2 and fanning 3. The veteran moved to 3-2 5.40 18K in eight starts.

Pete Dimick was credited with the save. He has now successfully converted 3 of 4 save opportunities.

Montreal had a runner on 2nd in the top of the eighth. With one out, Orlando Gonzalez stood at the plate, hoping to find a gap. Instead, he flied out. The score remained 3-1, Washington. The Expos never could mount a comeback.

The last-place Nationals have a record of 37-46.

Cesar Alvarado(R, 0-1 7.11) – Ian Munson(R, 7-3 3.91) tomorrow. That will go well…

SP Austin Roy 6.1IP 8H 3R 3ER 1BB 5K L
RF Ian Messer 0-4 BB
DH Dan Cook 1-4 BB
LF Karl Ferguson 0-3 BB
1B Cody Kerzner 2-4
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-2 R BB SB(1)
2B Robby Weltzer 2-4 RBI
HR MON: none
HR WSH: Newcomb(15)
W: Nelson Flores (3-2 5.40) L: Austin Roy(3-10 4.83) SV : Pete Dimick(3 3.99)
Roy pitched his best game as an Expos player, but we collected no extra base hits in a anemic offensive display.

July 10th

Expos Trip Nationals, 6-5, in Extra Innings

Montreal beat Washington at Nationals Park, escaping with a 6-5 win. The win in large part was due to shortstop Jose Robles. He was 2 for 4 with a home run and a walk. He drove in 2 runs and scored once. He is batting .245-6-21 .679OPS in 77 games.

The winner in relief was Ryan Rasbach. He is now 5-4. The right-hander allowed no runs on no hits in 2 innings. The Expos sport a record of 31-52.

Robles had an important at-bat with runners on 1st and 3rd in the top of the eighth, when he hit a run-scoring single. The Expos went on to win. In postgame comments to the Montreal News, Robles said, "If the effort is there, the wins will come."

Melvin Magana(R, 0-0 6.00) – Steve Behanna(R, 4-5 5.36) tomorrow. Let’s see if Melvin is worth the $500k we pay him.

SP Cesar Alvarado 2.1IP 8H 5R 5ER 0BB 1K ND
RF Ian Messer 2-6 R DB
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 R BB
1B Cody Kerzner 2-5 R RBI
3B Orlando Gonzalez 2-4 R SB(2)
C Kevin Craddock 2-3 2BB
SS Jose Robles 2-4 R 2RBI BB HR PotG
HR MON: Robles(6)
HR WSH: Saldana(8)
W: Ryan Rasbach (5-4 3.19) L: Rob Bushey(0-1 5.40) SV : none
Alvarado was a hot mess but our pen did a good job. By the way, Jose Robles is now at 1.1WAR… may be his high point but I didn’t expect that after that bad January.

July 11th

Expos Drop Nationals, 3-1

Melvin Magana brought his A-game to help Montreal defeat the Washington Nationals, 3-1. Magana yielded 1 run over 6 innings to notch the win. He scattered 4 hits, walked 1, and struck out 5. His record improves to 1-0 with an ERA of 3.75. Ryan Rasbach notched his 12th save in 17 chances.

Brian Schill had a direct impact on the outcome. Schill contributed a run-scoring sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth inning to put Montreal up, 2-1. "The effort we put into this one paid off," Schill said. He got dropped down the lineup for this game, batting -161-3-12 .541OPS in 29 games

The win has Montreal at 32-52.

Jesse Eisenberg(L, 8-5 3.99) – Sam Rush(R, 2-4 5.59) the day after tomorrow. The Mets(35-48) come to town again.

SP Melvin Magana 6IP 4H 1R 1ER 1BB 5K W PotG
RF Ian Messer 1-4 BB
DH Dan Cook 2-5
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 R RBI HR
1B Cody Kerzner 1-5 DB
3B Orlando Gonzalez 3-4 R BB DB
2B Robby Weltzer 3-5 R RBI HR
SS Jose Robles 2-5
CF Brian Schill 1-2 RBI HBP
HR MON: Ferguson(9), Weltzer(2)
HR WSH: none
W: Melvin Magana(1-0 3.75) L: Xavier Montgomery(1-4 6.49) SV : Ryan Rasbach(12 3.09)
Magana was pretty good today and our offense showed up enough to get him the win. Extra props to our bullpen that was flawless through three.

Record: 32-52 , 5th in EL Northeast, 12GB
Week: 3-3 (1-2 @ DET, 2-1 @ WSH)
Power Rankings: #29(-1)
Runs scored: 281(15th)
Runs against: 409(12th)
Starters ERA: 4.96(14th)
Bullpen ERA: 4.18(7th)
Defensive Eff.: .675(15th)
Zone Rating: +12.4(4th)
Fan Interest: 83(-1)

Who's hot?
LHRP Dusty Leone 21G 5SV 0.84 21.1IP 18K

Who's not?
SP Sam Rush 2G 0-2 8.18 11IP 12K
SP Cesar Alvarado 3G 0-1 10.64 11IP 6K
RHRP John Martinez 11G 2SV 10.00 18IP 14K
RHRP Andy Pelletier 21G 0-2 8.14 21IP 17K

Washington Nationals SS Brandon Slaughter(26, 4*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 11-22 4HR 7BIs 5R. The 2020 EL All-Star and Silver Slugger is batting .292-19-53 .866OPS in 80 games.

Sacramento Cavaliers RF Tony Perez(25, 3.5*) was named WL Player of the Week, going 12-29 4HR 7RBIs 4R. The scouting discovery from Venezuela is batting .334-15-53 .964OPS in 80 games.

[Griever20]

Bolts, Archuleta Stonewall Pittsburgh, 4-0
stadiumreport.bbn

July 14th, 2021

Jose Archuleta(2.5/3*) of the Memphis Bolts was impressive in blanking the Pittsburgh Kings, 4-0, at PMC Park. He crafted a 5-hit shutout and chalked up 4 strikeouts with 2 walks in the contest.

A 22-year old scouting discovery from the Dominican Republic, the righty was the #59 prospect in 2020 before making his NMLB debut in 2020 in the bullpen.

To date Archuleta is 7-6 in 18 starts with a 3.52 ERA and has 84 strikeouts in 110 innings, good for 1.8WAR.

--

Denver’s Grose Gets 2500th Hit
stadiumreport.bbn

July 14th, 2021

Devin Grose(36, 4*) of the Denver Seahawks collected career hit number 2500 against the Sacramento Cavaliers today. The 36-year-old third baseman went 1 for 4 in a 6-4 Denver victory at Cavaliers Park.

For his career, Grose has hit at a .312/.406.588 clip. Among his lifetime numbers are 2500 hits, 507 doubles, 20 triples, 554 home runs and 1739 RBIs as well as 1493 runs scored. The 3x Mvp, 3x Gold Glover, 10x Silver Slugger and 12x All-Star has amassed 93.6 career WAR and is a surefire Wall of Legends player.

--

Thrice is Nice: Lopez Unloads 3 Homers
stadiumreport.bbn

July 16th, 2021

It was a good day for the Toronto Blue Jays and an exceptional one for Mario Lopez(2.5/3.5*). The 23-year-old center fielder sent three bombs out of the park to help the Blue Jays beat the New York Mets, 7-2, at Skydome.

"When you're in the zone, the game really slows down," Lopez said when asked about his performance later. "I couldn't even tell you what pitches were thrown. Today feels great, but it is a long season and tomorrow is another day."

For the day, he scored 3 times, drove in 6 runs and smacked 3 hits in 4 at-bats.

Mario Lopez hit a solo-shot off Andy Siler in the 2nd, hit a three-run home run off Andy Siler in the 3rd, hit a two-run home run off Hector Elias in the 5th and grounded out in the 7th.

At present, the #83 prospect prior to the season is batting .249 and has collected 10 home runs, 29 RBIs, .305 OBP and scored 32 runs.

[Griever20]

Week 15: 3vs New York Mets(35-48), 3vs Miami Marlins(43-42)

July 12th
Offday

Transactions:
3rd Rounder RHRP Randy Aubuchon(18, 3.5*) has signed.
5th Rounder C David Witkowski(18, 3*) has signed.
9th Rounder 3B Cesar Romanos(18, 2.5*) has signed.

News:
Denver Seahawks 1B Jeff Urban(33, 4.5*) collected a five hit game in a 10-6 win over the Sacramento Cavaliers, going 5-5 3R 2RBI 2DB HR for the game. The 8x All-Star is batting .298-13-47 .902OPS in 82 games.

July 13th

Mets Rough Up Expos, 8-1

Yong-gwan Lee knocked in 3 runs to help New York beat Montreal, 8-1. The Kentwood, Michigan native tallied 1 single and 2 home runs. Josh Eisenberg, who went 6.2 innings, was the winning pitcher. He was charged with 1 run on 7 hits, while walking 0 and striking out 9. His record now stands at 9-5. Aaron Soderstrom notched his 1st save in 2 chances.

With New York leading 2-1 in the top of the seventh, Lee hit a fastball from Freddy Silva for a solo home run. It was his 14th home run of the season and put the Mets ahead, 3-1.

"If it's down the middle," said Lee, "you might as well hit it." He is batting .282-14-72 .819OPS 1.9WAR in 78 games.

New York, at 36-48, holds down 4th place in the Eastern League North East Division.

Josh Dalton(L, 6-5 3.96) – Sam Griffin(R, 4-6 3.98) tomorrow. Had two ND’s against us so far.

SP Sam Rush 5IP 5H 2R 2ER 2BB 6K L
DH Dan Cook 1-4 RBI
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4
3B Orlando Gonzalez 2-3 BB DB
RF Ignacio Benavides 1-4
SS Jose Robles 1-4 R
C Kevin Craddock 1-4
HR NYM: Lee 2(14)
HR MON: none
W: Jesse Eisenberg(9-5 3.82) L: Sam Rush(2-5 5.45) SV : Aaron Soderstrom(1 5.79)
Rush pitched decent enough but Andy Pelletier blew up for 5ER and won’t survive Adam Rudolph coming off the DL in two days.

July 14th

Transaction:
4th Rounder SP Bobby Haggerty(18 ,3.5*) has signed.

Expos Win at Home, 4-1, Behind Griffin

The Montreal Expos got a stellar effort from pitcher Sam Griffin, helping Montreal score a win over the visiting New York Mets, 4-1. Griffin, now 5-6, was the winner. In 6.2 innings, he gave up 6 hits, while striking out 5, walking 2, and allowing 1 run. Ryan Rasbach got the save, his 13th in 18 chances.

Ignacio Benavides had a big 3-run home run for the Expos in the bottom of the fourth inning. With Montreal leading 1-0 and runners on 1st and 2nd, he sized up a slider from 31-year old left-handed pitcher Josh Dalton and punished it. The result was his 1st home run of the season, which put the Expos on top, 4-0. Acquired via trade from Cincinnati last offseason, he hit .356 in AAA before getting the callup.

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

The win puts Montreal at 33-53.

Zach Laurents(R, 3-9 4.82) – Austin Roy(R, 3-10 4.83) tomorrow. Struggles with control lately.

SP Sam Griffin 6.2IP 6H 1R 1ER 2BB 5K W PotG
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 DB
1B Cody Kerzner 2-4 2R RBI HR
2B Robby Weltzer 1-2 strained hamstring 4 weeks
RF Ignacio Benavides 1-2 R 3RBI BB HR
HR NYM: none
HR MON: Kerzner(13), Benavides(1)
W: Sam Griffin(5-6 3.81) L: Josh Dalton(6-6 4.14) SV : Ryan Rasbach(13 3.00)
Griffin was clutch once again and Benavides with his first homer… sweet. However…

Transactions:
2B Robby Weltzer(24, 2.5/3*, .254-2-9 .659OPS 0.3WAR 19G) was placed on the 10-day IL with a strained hamstring 4 weeks. 2B Franklin Reyes(27, 2.5*, .242-2-6 .637OPS -0.3WAR 34G) was recalled from AAA.

July 15th

Transaction:
6th Rounder CF Nate Schultz(18 ,3*) has signed.
RHRP Andy Pelletier(25, 2.5*, 0-2 9.00 17K 24IP -0.3WAR) and RHRP John Martinez(23, 2.5*, 2-3 2SV 7.18 22K 26.1IP 0.2WAR) were demoted to AAA
RHRP Adam Rudolph(23, 2.5*, 3-1 1SV 2.34 42K 42.1IP 0.5WAR) was activated off the IL.
RHRP Tim Thrower(24, 2.5*, 4-1 7SV 3.20 32K 39.1IP 0.1WAR) was put on the 40-man and sent to Montreal. Just because of his name…

Expos Score Late to Beat Mets, 5-4, in 11

The Montreal Expos downed the New York Mets, 5-4, in 11 innings at Olympic Stadium. The Expos were led by David Quiros. Quiros was 3 for 5 with 3 singles. He drove in 2 runs and scored once. He is now batting .226-2-20 .591OPS -0.2WAR in 70 games.

Montreal reliever Glen McKeen picked up the win, upping his record to 1-1. Ron Millett took the loss. The Expos raised their record to 34-53.

The Expos got a clutch hit from shortstop Franklin Reyes. In the bottom of the 11th, he delivered a run-scoring single to win the game for the Expos.

"This place was jumping at the end," Reyes said. This was his first game since he was recalled from AAA.

Eibe Hoekstra(R, 4-5 4.80) – Cesar Alvarado(R, 0-1 9.00) tomorrow. Here are the Marlins(44-44)

SP Austin Roy 5.2IP 7H 3R 3ER 2BB 6K ND
LF Karl Ferguson 1-5 R
1B Cody Kerzner 2-5 R
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-4 R BB DB
2B David Quiros 3-5 R 2RBI PotG
CF Brian Schill 2-3 R RBI BB DB
HR NYM: Romo(2), Toscano(11)
HR MON: none
W: McKeen(1-1 3.00) L: Ron Millett(2-5 3.15) SV : none
Rudolph blew the lead in the 8th but we recovered very well with both 2B platoon players chiming in.

July 16th

Transactions:
7th Rounder CF Art Benrud(18 ,3*) has signed.

Expos Sunk by Marlins, 5-3

Miami starter Eibe Hoekstra pitched well against the Montreal Expos at Olympic Stadium. The right-hander led his team to a win, 5-3. In 6.1 innings, Hoekstra surrendered 5 hits, while striking out 9 and walking 2. He allowed 3 runs. Miami raised its record to 45-44 with the win.

Miami used a clutch at-bat from Ricardo Garcia to capture the win. The shortstop hammered a 3-run home run in the top of the first inning to put the Marlins ahead, 4-0. It was his lone hit in 4 at-bats, but it was a humdinger.

Garcia attributed the win to "everyone pulling their weight." The Rule 5 Draftee in 2019 is batting .268-4-43 .706OPS -0.5WAR in 82 games.

Scott Burns(R, 6-6 5.84) – Melvin Magana(R, 1-0 3.75) tomorrow. Curious if Magana can keep up the performance.

SP Cesar Alvarado 2.1IP 6H 5R 5ER 1BB 0K L
RF Ian Messer 1-5 RBI DB
DH Dan Cook 0-2 2BB
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-3 R
2B David Quiros 1-3 R
CF Brian Schill 1-4 2RBI DB
C Jordan Chavis 1-4 R
HR MIA: Garcia(4)
HR MON: none
W: Eibe Hoekstra(5-5 4.76) L: Cesar Alvarado(0-2 10.38) SV : Brian Umbaugh(26 0.85)
Alvarado gets one more start before his NMLB season is done for good. Despite the scouting ratings, I think his 45 rated changeup isn’t cutting it.

July 17th

Marlins Roll to 9-3 Win Over Expos

Joey Lawrence was a major factor in the 9-3 Miami win over Montreal. The Marlins designated hitter went 3 for 5 with a home run and 2 singles, while adding 4 RBI and scoring once. Scott Burns was the winner. He's now 7-6. The loser was 27-year old right-handed pitcher Melvin Magana. The win puts Miami at 46-44 this season.

Miami left fielder Dustin Detrick contributed a timely at-bat in the top of the fifth. With two down, he hit a fastball to right field for a 2-run single. It was his 34th hit of the season and put the Marlins ahead, 7-3. The 2x All-Star is batting .254-11-27 .911OPS in 39 games.

"The name of the game is scoring runs," Lawrence said. "We did a good job of that today."

Jesus Huerta(R, 3-7 4.60) – Sam Rush(R, 2-5 5.45) tomorrow. One more until the All-Star Break…

SP Melvin Magana 2.1IP 6H 5R 5ER 2BB 2K L
DH Dan Cook 3-4 R DB
LF Karl Ferguson 1-4 R RBI
2B David Quiros 1-4 R RBI DB
SS Jose Robles 1-3 RBI DB HBP
CF Brian Schill 3-4 SB(2)
HR MIA: Lawrence(12)
HR MON: none
W: Scott Burns(7-6 5.67) L: Melvin Magana(1-1 6.28) SV : none
Magana is the second starter in two days to not get out of the 3rd… our poor pen.

July 18th

Marlins Absorb 13-5 Loss at Olympic Stadium

Orlando Gonzalez left his imprint on the 13-5 Montreal win against the Miami Marlins. Gonzalez was 1-3 with a home run and a walk, while scoring 2 and driving in 3. The 26-year old is batting .277-2-8 .754OPS 0.4WAR in 23 games since replacing Vinny Roman. The win has Montreal at 35-55.

Cody Kerzner hit a bases-clearing triple off Jesus Huerta in the bottom of the third, which put the Expos in front, 3-0. Kerzner had 1 walk, in addition to the triple. For the game, he went 1 for 4.

"Win or lose, we always try to grind it out and stay even-keeled," Kerzner said in reaction to the win that avoided a three-game sweep.

All-Star game next week!

SP Sam Rush 5.1IP 6H 2R 2ER 4BB 2K W
RF Ian Messer 2-4 2R 2RBI HBP
DH Dan Cook 2-4 R 2RBI DB
C Kevin Craddock 1-4 2R BB
1B Cody Kerzner 1-4 2R 3RBI BB TP
3B Orlando Gonzalez 1-3 2R 3RBI BB HR PotG
2B David Quiros 1-4 DB
LF Huai-yu Mah 1-4 2R 2RBI BB DB
CF Brian Schill 1-4 R RBI BB
SS Jose Robles 2-4 R BB
HR MIA: Fleming(11)
HR MON: Gonzalez(2)
W: Sam Rush(3-5 5.31) L: Jesus Huerta(3-8 4.93) SV : Adam Rudolph(2 2.85)
Rush pitched well enough and our offense exploded one time!

Record: 35-55 , 5th in EL Northeast, 13GB
Week: 3-3 (2-1 vs NYM, 1-2 vs MIA)
Power Rankings: #28(+1)
Runs scored: 310(15th)
Runs against: 441(12th)
Starters ERA: 5.02(14th)
Bullpen ERA: 4.20(7th)
Defensive Eff.: .675(15th)
Zone Rating: +13.7(4th)
Fan Interest: 83(+-0)

Who's hot?
SP Sam Griffin 2G 1-0 1.98 13.2IP 10K
LHRP Dusty Leone 23G 5SV 0.75 24IP 21K

Who's not?
SP Cesar Alvarado 2G 0-1 19.29 4.2IP 1K

Philadelphia Grizzlies 2B Manny Olmos(25, 3*) was named EL Player of the Week after going 12-25 4HR 6BIs 4R. The 2021 EL All-Star is batting .287-29-69 .964OPS in 85 games.

Vancouver Canadians C Jake Williams(25, 5*) was named WL Player of the Week, going 12-20 1HR 6RBIs 5R. The 2021 WL All-Star is batting .326-16-48 .939OPS in 77 games.