National League Pitcher of the Week – Curt Davis – West Michigan Retrogrades
1-0 record, 9.0 innings pitched, 0.00 ERA, 3 hits, 5 strikeouts, &1 walk
American League Pitcher of the Week – Sam Leever – New Westminster Salmonbellies
1-0 record, 9 innings pitched, 1.00 ERA, 3 hits allowed, 3 strikeouts, & 2 walks
National League Player of the Week – Sherry Magee – San Tan Valley Moonrakers
.389 avg / 0.722 slg, 7 for 18, 2 home runs, 4 runs, 7 RBIs, 1 walk, & 1 stolen base
American League Player of the Week – Ty Cobb – Middle Channel Sturgeon
.500 avg / 0.875 slg, 8 for 16, 2 doubles, 2 triples, 5 runs, 2 RBIs, & 4 walks
In the AMERICAN LEAGUE,…
Fort Worth’s Greg Maddux is continuing his quest for an undefeated season as he now leads the league with a 13-0 record. He also leads in ERA with a microscopic1.62 ERA. Paired with Justin Verlander (9-3 2.23 ERA), they make a formidable 1-2 punch in Fort Worth’s rotation. A good reason they are in first place with a 4 game lead over Cincinnati. However, when it comes to baffling batters, a 22-year-old kid from New Westminster is hard to beat. Dutch Leonard has a 26 K lead over Cincinnati’s Dazzy Vance as he has struck out 119 to Vance’s 90.
On the offensive side of the ball, Cincinnati’s Ted Williams’ .336 batting average holds the edge over Middle Channel’s Ty Cobb and his .324 average. However, Cobb does lead the league in hits with 91. In the race for the Home Run Crown, there is a three-way tie at this point in the season. Cecil Fielder (Las Vegas), John Mayberry (Chicago), and Mark McGwire (Jack Street) have all sent 22 balls over various walls throughout the league. And Jack Street’s Rogers Hornsby sits atop the lead in driving runs in with a total of 63 in his 66 games played. And let’s not forget the legs of the LEG League. Speedsters Ricky Henderson (Purry) with 32 and Luis Aparicio (Kansas City A’s) with 28 lead the league in thefts.
As the ALE and ALW continue to match up for the next few series, let’s see if Jack Street’s home record can catch up with their road record,…if Fort Worth can shake free from the determined Cincinnati Knights,…if Boston and Wrigleyville can turn their seasons around.
And as for some players,…Babe Ruth (Lewisberry) sports a real nice 2.74 ERA after 12 games but it doesn’t match up to his 4-6 record. Freddie Freeman’s .301 with 11 homers leads Ruth’s Blumpkins. John Mayberry (Chicago) is a beast! .318-22-50 in 60 games with a .720 slugging and 1.165 OPS! My favorite player in baseball is having a tough year. Indiana’s Mickey Mantle is batting an uncharacteristic .239 with only 6 long balls. But I am optimistic! I say he will finish the year with a .290-30-93 batting line. Just not sure which year. Two other pitchers having an unusual year reside in Boston. Pedro Martinez (2.54 ERA) and Don Newcombe (2.70 ERA) have great ERA’s yet their records lean toward the loss column. Bob has to be shaking his head. They’ll turn it around. Here’s a good one. Little Jose Altuve (Menomonee) leads teammate Barry “Bighead” Bonds 28-20 in extra-base hits. Go figure.
It’s too bad Martin Dihigo (New Westminister) doesn’t have enough PA’s to qualify for the batting title. The 21-year-old youngster is batting a blistering .371,…35 points better than leader Ted Williams. Dihigo also has 15 homers, showing a penchant for power as well. With 10 wins, 8 quality starts, and a 2.74 ERA, Javier Vazquez (Purry) has established himself as the ace of the Cowpokes. Todd Helton (Madison East) leads the Purgolders with 55 hits for a .296 average but is just behind teammate Carlos Gonzalez and his .319. Jacob DeGrom (Kansas City Blues) is not pitching like an 18 starter. At 3-7 with a 4.86 ERA he’s giving Sam headaches trying to figure out what’s wrong. Hang in there, Sam. By the way, J-Lo’s fiance’ leads the Blues with 12 steals. Jack Quinn (Wrigleyville) not only has a winning record (6-5) but a solid ERA (3.26) as well. Good job Jack!
Well, with 69 games in the books, it looks like about 5 teams in the East and 5 in the West are still in the hunt for the Division. We’ll have to see what shakes loose in the next few series.
In the NATIONAL LEAGUE,…
With 26 saves already, Bruce Sutter (Coastline) is on pace for 50+ saves. No undefeated pitchers in the NL, but Tom “Terrific” Seaver (Hoboken) is 12-2 and Chuck Finley (Coastline) is 11-1 and have a shot at 20+ wins on the year. Surprisingly, Noodles (I love that name) Hahn (Hoboken) leads in ERA with the same ERA as the AL Leader, 1.62. He is getting a lot of pressure from Christy Mathewson (Clockwork – I always want to call them Clockwork Orange like the old movie) – who has a sparkling 1.69 ERA. Clockwork also has Dick Donovan with a 1.91 ERA which helps them carry their 2.56 team ERA! Randy Johnson (San Tan) continued to throw goose eggs as he upped his shutout total to 6 on the year. The man is something! When it comes to making bats miss balls, three players stand out. Christy Mathewson (Clockwork), “Bullet” Bob Feller (Iowa), and Satchel Paige (Fantomz) have struck out 124, 122, and 120 batters. No wonder some stadiums don’t need airconditioning.
On the offensive side of the ball, Cal Ripken (Coastline) with a .342 batting average leads Mel Ott (Climax) by 20 points. Ripken also leads in hits 95-85 over Nap LaJoie (Detroit). In the realm of NL longballs, two players have moved to the top,…Hack Wilson (another Coastline) has blasted 23 and Ripper Collins (Detroit) 21. And when it comes to RBI’s, Stan Spence (Hoboken) has chased in 61 in 63 games making him a dangerous man with runners on. Right behind Spence is Hal Trosky (San Tan) with 55 RBI. Behind no one are the two speedsters of the NL, Kenny Lofton (Motown) and Joe Morgan (Iowa) who are tied with 18 thefts each. Somebody should tell the cops.
With all that good pitching in the National League, it’s a wonder the front-runners have been able to open up substantial leads. But they have and it’s probably due to the fact that both Coastline and Clockwork are in the top four of team pitching and team batting. Elsewhere, Fantomz and Virginia are slipping a bit while Hoboken and San Tan are trying to keep the pressure on Clockwork.
The “Iron-Man”, Lou Gehrig (Coastline) is having a rough season,….185 batting average, 6 homers, 20 RBI whereas, teammate Al “Bucketfoot” Simmons is having a great season with a .345 batting average,…but only 29 AB’s. Nap LaJoie (Detroit) has knocked out 32 doubles in his 69 games so far. At that rate, he could get 70+ by the end of the season. Ripper Collins (Detroit) is living up to his name with 42 extra-base hits. Frank Linzy (West Michigan) has pitched in relief to a minuscule ERA of 0.92! Satchel Paige (Fantomz) just keeps rolling along – 10-5, 2.14, 120 K’s in 134 innings. Amazing! Honus Wagner (Fantomz) hitting .210?? Well, he is 40 years old. Al Rosen (Virginia) is the only Cavalier with double-digit homers – 10. Sad.
Spud Chandler (Climax) has almost 1/3 of the teams wins with 9. Mel Ott (Climax) is hitting like Mel Ott with a .322 batting average. Joaquin Andujar (Nags Head) needs more wins,…he only has 2. Jimmie Foxx (Nags Head) is still cranking out extra-base hits with 36 so far including 12 homers. Jim Abbott (Pigtown) has a decent ERA at 3.39, he just needs some more wins for his efforts. Hank Greenberg (Pigtown) has poked 14 long balls so far despite his .232 average. Dick Wakefield (Who??) (Clockwork) is rolling along with a solid .307 batting average. Hoboken has three starters, – Noodles Hahn (1.62), Red Faber (2.18), and Tom Seaver (2.91) with ERA’s under 3.00. WOW! Talk about a tough rotation.
Jim Bottomly (Hoboken) is not at the bottom. His .326 batting average leads the Zephyrs. Don’t care what he does,…I just like Randy Johnson (San Tan) as a pitcher. He’s good. With 17 homers apiece, Hal Trosky (San Tan) and Vern Stephens (San Tan) are 2 points apart in batting average, – .275 to .277. Motown (loved their music) also has three starters with an ERA under 3.00 – Adam Wainwright (2.55), Carl Hubbell (2.69), and Dave Brown (2.88). Look out Hoboken!
The “Crime Dog” Fred McGriff (Motown) hasn’t committed any, but he is batting .291 so far. I wonder what John Smoltz the analyst would say about John Smoltz (Fire Lake) the pitcher and his 5.10 ERA? Pete Rose (Fire Lake) with 53 hits and a .255 average has a long way to go to get to 4,000. Just saying. In my opinion, Lefty Grove (Wainwright) is better than a 3.04 ERA. Tony Gwynn (Wainwright) is a professional hitter, batting .302. Iowa is better that they appear,…they beat me. I don’t care if Bob Feller (Iowa) has 13 losses, he’s still Bob Feller! Joe Morgan steals a lot of bases, he just needs to get on base more (.228 batting average). Walter Johnson (Hollywood) is good, very good (2.67 ERA). So why only 7 wins? Come on Steve.
Coastline and Clockwork,…then all the rest. Let’s see if it stays that way. On to the next series.
| Jack Street Hustlers @ Kansas City Blues | |
| Series Preview: | First place Hustlers come to Blues stadium hoping for the best |
| Game #1: | Both teams manage 10 hits E.Martinez and Kent homer for Hustlers and 8-5 win |
| Game #2: | Blues out hit Hustlers 12-9 Justice and Simmons both homer for Hustlers Blues Ray Ray Durham and Arod each have 3 hits but not enough Hustlers win 7-4 |
| Game #3: | Blues touch up Glavine for 7 ER with another 12 hits Greinke and Aguilera team up for Blues 9-5 win |
| Game #4: | Seibert vs Bridges in last game and they produce a pitching duel Hustlers make a run in bottom of 9th but Aguilera holds them off for Blues 2-1 win |
| Series Summary: | Blues hold off a good team for a 2-2 split |
| Lewisberry Country Blumpkins @ Fort Worth Cats | |
| Series Summary: | Cats sweep the Blumpkins
(what is a blumpkin? Hopefully something different than the Urban dictionary definition because that’s disgusting!) |
| Menomonee Minutemen @ Chicago Nine | |
| Series Preview: | Chicago playing surprisingly well & hanging around in the middle of the pack in the American League East plays host to the Minutemen Menomonee. Four games in Chicago with a +.600 team & the under .500 home team, the Chicago Nine. |
| Game #1: | The Nine put up a 3 spot in the first two innings however, 7 Runs for the Minutemen by the end of the 2nd, put the Nine out of it early. Wally Judnich goes 4 for 4 with 2 Home Runs & 7 RBI’s and the Minutemen, put a loss down on the standings board for the Nine.
Final Score: Menomonee 8 – Chicago 5 Win: Marv Grissom 6-4 (6.72) |
| Game #2: | Barry Bonds has a Grand Slam for the Minutemen in the 3rd. Chicago comes back and takes the lead in the bottom of the 8th. The Minutemen tied it at 1 in the 9th. The Nine walk it off in the 10th on a John Mayberry Home Run.
Final Score: Chicago 6 – Menomonee 5 (10 Innings) Win: Joe Nelson 2-0 (1.93) |
| Game #3: | Big offense from such little teams. Luke Appling & Joe Adcock both had solid days for the Minutemen. J.D. Martinez, Joe Cunningham & Omar Vizquel lead the way for Chicago. 2 Runs in the bottom of the 9th are walk-off style for the home team.
Final Score: Chicago 11 – Menomonee 10 Win: Scot Shields 3-2 (3.58) |
| Game #4: | Will this be a split, or will the home team take the series? After 1 in the 1st, the Minutemen score 3 Runs in the 5th including a Home Run by Socks Seybold gives the Minutemen a solid 4-0 lead. Chicago takes things into their own hands in the bottom of the 5th, scoring 6 Runs. Hank Thomson & John Mayberry both have 2 RBI’s for the Nine.
Final Score: Chicago 6 – Menomonee 4 Win: Felix Hernandez 8-3 (2.55) |
| Series Summary: | Chicago takes the series 3 games to 1, and are now over .500 standing at 35-34. The Minutemen still look strong at 40-29. |
| Madison East Purgolders @ Las Vegas Pirates | |
| Series Preview: | The Madison East Puregolders traveled to Sin City to play the Las Vegas Pirates at Forbes Field. I was hoping to play it through Team Viewer, but played solo when The Puregolders had to be elsewhere. This series pitted the solid Madison East team against the under achieving Pirates. |
| Game #1: | This game was a dual of two good pitchers, Dean Chance for the Pirates, who pitched a complete game 3 hitter but lost to Hooks Wiltse who gave up only 5 hits & only 1 run to lead his team to a 2-1 victory. Roberto Alomar & Todd Helton drove in the 2 Puregolder runs while Dick Groat doubled home Prince Fielder for the only Pirate win. It’s been a tough season for Chance as he dropped to 2-10. FINAL SCORE: Puregolders 2, Pirates 1 |
| Game #2: | This was also a close game. The PGolders scratched out a 3-0 in the 3rd before the Pirates came back with 3 in the 3rd & 4th, on Clemente’s RBI triple & Willie Stargell’s 2 run HR in 4th.The score remained tied until we traded another run in the 7th & 8th, then went to extra innings where Shoeless Joe Jackson hit a 2 run HR off of my ace lefty reliever, Mark Guthrie. in the 10th. FINAL SCORE: Puregolders 6, Pirates 4 |
| Game #3: | In one of his rare poor performances, Warren Spahn was less than himself. He went 8 & 2\3 before Guthrie screwed up another game by giving up the winning hit to Tod Helton. Bret Saberhagen shut down the Pirates with 2 & 1\3 scoreless innings for his 2nd victory. FINAL SCORE: Puregolders 5, Pirates 4 |
| Game #4: | This was an important game for the Pirates. Already down 3 games to 0, they needed this game to save face. The Pirates threw winless, hard luck starter, John Candelaria against Puregolder ace, Mark Buehrle. fortunately for the Pirates Buehrle wasn’t what he is billed to be. In the 6th inning where he had a 2-0 lead go, as he gave up a game breaking 3 run HR to Cecil (King) Fielder. Both Cecil & Dave Cash showed signs of coming out of theirmonth long slumps. Cash went 3 for 3 & is back to a .330 BA. John “Candy Man” Candelaria picked up his 1st victory of the year, while going 7 innings for 2 ER’s. While Mariano Rivera picked up save #8. FINAL SCORE: Pirates 5, Puregolders 3 |
| Series Summary: | This was truly a great series! Every game was close as reflected in the scores. Pitching was great (with the exception of Mark Guthrie). The series could’ve gone either way. I’m looking forward to the rematch. |
| Cincinnati Knights @ Middle Channel Sturgeon | |
| Series Preview: | Middle Channel hosts Cinci |
| Series Summary: | The Knights win the first 2. The Sturgeon win the last 2 for a split |
| Wrigleyville Whales @ Kansas City A’s | |
| Series Preview: | Wrigleyville Whales at Kansas City A’s, two teams going nowhere. |
| Game #1: | 2 of the hardest throwers form the 1960’s face off. Koufax vs. Sudden Sam McDowell: Koufax gets his 1st win of the year as Meusel and Ernie Banks slug homers in a 11-6 Whales win. White and Dale Murphy homer for the A’s. W – Koufax (1-13) L – McDowell (1-8) S- Rudolph (7) |
| Game #2: | Ruether Vs. Fergie Jenkins: Whales win again 7-3, Ruether goes all the way in the win and Hank Aaron homers for the A’s. W – Ruether ( 4-8 ) L – Jenkins ( 7-6 ) |
| Game #3: | Bob Welch Vs. Three Finger Brown: Meusel and Lazzeri homer in a 6 -3 Whales victory. Local boy Walker Cooper gets 2 doubles and a single in a losing effort. W – Welch ( 5-8 ) L – Brown ( 5 – 6 ) S – McMichael ( 4). |
| Game #4: | Carl Mays Vs. Cicotte: The Whales lead 7 -5 with 2 outs in the 9th when Billy Williams hits a 2 run game tying homer his 1st of the year, but it all goes for not as Ernie Banks didn’t want to play 2 today as he greeted Dick Hall with a leadoff homer in the 10th and Melancon gets the save in a 7 6 Whales win giving them the sweep. Fisk and Bob Horner also homer for the Whales. Walker Cooper and Billy Williams homer for the A’s. |
| Series Summary: | Wrigleyville sweeps the A’s improving to 26 – 43 as the A’s fall to 29 – 40. |
| Indiana Indians @ Purry Cowpokes | |
| Series Preview: | The Indiana Indians (26-39) travel to PURry to face the Cowpokes (36-29). I manage several IND franchises in other leagues, so my feeble brain is confused before we get started. |
| Game #1: | Luke Easter’s 2 run homer in the 8th is the difference-maker. The Indians score twice in the 9th but Billy Wagner pitches out of a jam with the tying run on third base. Final score Purry 6 Indiana 5 |
| Game #2: | Indiana breaks it open with 4 runs in the 7th and 5 in the 8th, The Indians top 4 hitters each collect 3 hits. Julio Franco goes 3-6 with a homer and 6 rbi’s and Jose Abreu goes 3-5 with a homer and drives in 4. Final score Indiana 12 Purry 3 |
| Game #3: | Javier Vazquez gets his 10th win and Rickey Henderson goes 2-4 with a homer, 3 rbi’s, and of course a stolen base. Final score Purry 7 Indiana 2 |
| Game #4: | Ted Radcliffe pitches 7 innings of 1 run ball and Ted Strong homers to lead the Cowpokes to victory. Final score Purry 4 Indiana 1 |
| Series Summary: | The Cowpokes win the series 3-1. |
| New Westminster Salmonbellies @ Boston Braves | |
| Series Preview: | The New Westminster Samonbellies traveled across the continent to let a little of their star power shine on Boston. The Samonbellies entered the series with 40 wins vs. 29 losses smack in the middle of the AL West while the Braves sported the AL Easts worse record insconsted in the AL east cellar. It was a treat for the Boston fans to see immortals like Willie Mays, Roy Campanella, Paul Waner, and a special treat to see Martin Dihigo baseball unrecognized very best two way player. Who was denied the chance to show his wears in the show due to the color line. Two of my all time favorites were there as well Dwight Gooden and Campy who was as great a human being as he was a star of the first magnitude. |
| Game #1: | New Westminster made the most of their five hits backing the complete game pitching of Billy Pierce besting hard luck Don Newcombe of the Braves in a two to one game. Bo Jackson a third of the Brave hits, with two doubles. |
| Game #2: | New Westminster was up 5-0 going into the sixth inning when a season first occurred for the Braves, they scored nine runs taking the lead in a nine to five Dolly Parton win. Nomar Garciaparra had three hit, one a double. The Braves only extra base hits and four of his teammates singled twice. Roy Campanella and the toy cannon Jimmy Wynn had two hits, Carlos Beltran plated two run with his timely hit for the Samonbellies. |
| Game #3: | Paul “Big Poison” Waners’ three hits’ keyed the New Westminster offense in a six to five win in game three for Ted Abernathy in relief of Dwight Gooden. Jim Rices’ grand slam was most of the Braves offense but Eddie Mathews did get three hit as well. |
| Game #4: | Sam Lever out dueled Pedro Martinez in an old time dual complete game performance yielding only three hits in a two to one for a third New Westminster win. First Baseman Ferris Fain had three hits for the winners. |
| Series Summary: | The Samonbellies won three of four games by one run each and without uncharacteristic unpresidented nine run inning from the anemic Brave offense in game two would have left with a sweep. Just goes to show you even a blind squirrel occasionally find an acorn. |
| Iowa Giants @ Coastline Bobcats | |
| Series Preview: | Iowa (26-39) travels into Coastline (45-20) for a 4 game series. Iowa is trying to right the ship and Coastline is hoping to extend its lead in the NL East. |
| Game #1: | IOWA opens the scoring in the T1 when Ellsbury 1bs and Morgan hits a 2-run HR. In the B2 Wilson 1bs, Gordon draws a bb, and M.Williams rbi-1b puts CLB on the board. CLB keeps the pressure on in the B3 when Jenkins 2bs and C.Ripken hits a 2-run HR for a 3-2 lead. In the B6 Gehrig bbs and M.Williams doubles him home, PH Goslin follows with a rbi-2b to make it 5-2 Bobcats. CLB adds another in the B& when Wilson 2bs, Howard is IW, and Gehrig rips an rbi-1b. CLB brings in Marberry to get some work in the T8 and it doesn’t go well as Morgan 1bs, and then with 2 out Sosa 1bs, followed by a Power 2-rbi 2b. Sutter is quickly called on and he closes out the 8th and 9th for his 26th save. Doak takes his 1st loss and Swift goes to (8-5) for CLB.
CLB 6, IOW 4 |
| Game #2: | CLB opens the scoring in the B1 when Ripken reaches on a Rojas throwing error, Wilson bbs, and Howard rips a 2-rbi 3b. CLB keeps it going in the B2 on a Gordon solo-HR, Becker rbi-2b, and Ripken rbi-1b. In the B4 Becker 2bs and scores on Jenkins rbi-1b. On the mound side of things C.Finley gets through the T5 and still hasn’t given up a hit to IOW. CLB closes out their scoring in the B5 with a Becker rbi-2b (his 3rd 2b of the game). Meanwhile, C.Finley has now gotten through the T8 without giving up a hit. In the T9 C.Finley gets Rojas 5-3, then PH Maranville 4-3, bringing up Ellsbury. Ellsbury then spoils the No-no with a 1b to RF! Morgan then follows with a 1b and Nieman rips a 2-run 3b to end the shutout. York follows with a 2-run HR to make it 7-4 CLB. After a mound visit, where Finley talks his way into staying in the game, he fans PH Sosa for the CG win. Finley goes to (11-1) with the win and Lemon falls to (1-1) with the loss.
CLB 7, IOW 4 |
| Game #3: | CLB jumps all over Feller in the B1 when Becker 1bs, Jenkins 2bs, Wilson bbs, E.Howard follows with a 2-run 1b, a Feller WP scores Wilson, and Gehrig’s rbi-3b closes out the scoring making it 4-0 ‘Cats. In the B3 Wilson’s solo-HR makes it 5-0 CLB. IOW gets to Stieb in the T4 when Morgan bb, Power 1bs, Sosa bbs, and Yelich hits into a FC-rbi. IOW B.Feller helps himself out with a solo-HR in the T5. But CLB gets 2 back in the B5 on a Gehrig 2-run HR. That would be all the scoring as IOW Hawkins closes down the ‘Cats over the 7th and 8th and CLB Marberry tosses a scoreless 7th, 8th, and 9th for the 3 inning save, his 1st. Stieb goes to (9-2) with the win, Feller falls to (3-13) with the loss.
CLB 7, IOW 2 |
| Game #4: | IOW Alfonzo leads off with a solo-HR in the T1 for a quick 1-0 IOW lead. CLB ties it in the B1 on back-to-back 2bs by Jenkins and Ripken. CLB takes the lead in the B2 on a M.Williams sac fly. In the B4 CLB Gehrig 2bs and scores on a M.Williams rbi-2b. CLB makes a mistake taking Brown out of the game in the B6 for a PH as Albers comes on in the T7 and gives up a Sosa 2b and a Power rbi-1b. The usually dependable ‘Cats bullpen continues to implode in the T8 as Marshall gives up a Morgan rbi-3b to tie the game followed by a Sosa rbi-2b to give up the lead. CLB ties the game in the B9 on a Becker solo-HR and we go to extra frames. CLB Sutter, who entered in the T9, proceeds to give up a C.Lemon solo-HR in the T10. IOW Gossage (1-1) tosses a perfect B10 for the win. CLB Sutter (1-2) takes the loss.
IOW 5, CLB 4 |
| Series Summary: | Coastline takes the series 3-1 over Iowa with some timely hitting. Iowa avoids the sweep with a gritty comeback in the 4th game. |
| Detroit DeLoreans @ San Tan Valley Moonrakers | |
| Series Preview: | Looks like two evenly matched NL teams go at it. Both are double digit games behind their divisionleaders, but it’s still kinda early. |
| Game #1: | Randy Johnson continues to make mincemeat of opponents, hurling a 4 hit shutout, his 7th complete game in 14 starts and his 6th shutout!!! Sherry McGee cracks a grand slam homer in support. Oscar Charleston and Cesar Cedeno also go long in the 8-0 whitewash. |
| Game #2: | Detroit smacks Virgil Trucks around for 9 runs in 3 innings. Joe Cronin leads off the game with a homer. Nap Lajoie triples home two as they gather 1 hits in the 1st 3 innings. AND THEN…their bats dry up. And San Tan bats come alive. Charleston hits another homer. Vern Stephens blasts a two run homer. Unbelievably, they come all the way back with a 3 run 9th to tie the game. And then they win it in the 12th on a Quincy Trouppe RBI walk off double!! The Moonrakers bullpen hold Detroit scoreless for 9 innings to come back and win 10-9! |
| Game #3: | Hal Trotsky hits two solo homers to negate an Anthony Rendon blast and Sparky Lyle saves Monty Stratton’s 5th win, 5-4. |
| Game #4: | Detroit’s Ripper Collins goes deep twice, good for 5 RBI but they let another lead go away as Ken Keltner a provides a key blast, a three run pinch hit homer to insure a 10-5 San Tan win and the series sweep. |
| Series Summary: | Sherry McGee went 7-18 with 2 homers, 4 runs, and 7 RBIs for the Moonrakers. Randy Johnson’s 4 hit shutout was the outstanding pitching performance of the series as San Tan swept Detroit. He now has 6 shutouts on the season. |
| West Michigan Retrogrades @ Fire Lake Segers | |
| Series Preview: | West Michigan (34-31) traveled to rainy Fire Lake (29-35) to take on the Segers.
This series was played via Team Viewer (Thanks Kevin!) |
| Game #1: | W. Foster (5-7,3.20) vs D. Mclain (4-7,3.53)
Heavy Johnson led off the game/series with a solo homerun (his 11th) and he added a 3-run homerun (his 12th) off Don Gullett in the 8th to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 lead for the Retrogrades. The usually strong Segers’ bullpen failed them in this one. Willie Foster allowed just 2 runs over 7 innings to earn win #6. Fire Lake’s Tony Perez went 3-for-4 with a double, homerun and all three of the home team’s rbis. WEST MICHIGAN 7, FIRE LAKE 3 |
| Game #2: | G. Mullin (0-0,4.70) vs R. Guidry (4-8,5.27)
Fire Lake got after George Mullin early and often in this one as the Segers reached base eleven times in the first 5 innings, grabbing a 4-0 lead. Johnny Bench drove in two of the 4 runs, one on a ground out and another on a run scoring single. On the other side, Ron Guidry was terrific through five shut out innings. His day was done after Tommy Davis blasted a two run triple to cut the lead in half. However, the Fire Lake bullpen was up for the challenge in this one. Smoltz, Sambito and Gullett allowed just a single hit over the final 3 1/3 innings. Reggie Sanders ran smack into the wall to catch the 27th out, and he paid a price for it – injured for most likely a month or more… FIRE LAKE 4, WEST MICHIGAN 2 |
| Game #3: | C. Davis (7-4,3.58) vs M. Soto (3-0,2.16)
Fresh off a shut out of Nags Head last week, Mario Soto took to the mound trying to get the home team a series lead. It didn’t happen. Soto walked the bases full in the first, and then plunked Adrian Beltre to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. In the top of the 3rd, Duke Snider’s 2-run double made it 3-0. In the 5th, Bill Dickey’s solo bomb (his 6th) made it 4-0 off Soto. That was way more than Curt Davis needed in this one, as the righthander shut down the Segers in tossing a nifty 3-hit shutout. Davis struck out 5, walked just 1, in earning a game score of 85. WEST MICHIGAN 4, FIRE LAKE 0 |
| Game #4: | H. Schumacher (7-3,6.17) vs D. Cone (4-7,3.41)
Down 2 games to one, the Fire Lake faithful showed up under a dreary sky that threatened rain at any moment. Too bad, it didn’t rain… Hal Schumacher matched Davis’ shut out with one of his own, limiting the home team to just 5 hits and nary a run. David Cone deserved a much better fate then he received. Cone allowed just a single hit and a single run in 8 innings of work. Bobby Wallace’s 2-out rbi double in the 2nd inning, scored Beltre (who had walked) with the game’s only run. Fire Lake did threaten in the bottom of the 9th. Joey Votto doubled to start the inning and was replaced by Eric Davis. However, Schumacher was able to retire Johnny Bench, Vada Pinson and Tony Perez to end the threat and the series. WEST MICHIGAN 1, FIRE LAKE 0 |
| Series Summary: | The Retrogrades win 3 of 4, limiting the Segers to just 7 runs total. On a somewhat comical note, everyone seemed to get a kick out of Denis Menke’s continued attempts to enter the Fire Lake dugout. Seems that most of his former teammates were in that dugout, and the poor guy must have felt like an orphan or something… Perhaps Kevin will do the right thing and trade him for a lefty reliever. Just saying.
Curt Davis should receive a look for Pitcher of the Week, with his 85 game score. Good night from Fire Lake and until next time… Who wants to play those eights and aces? |
| Wainwright Wranglers @ Virginia Cavaliers | |
| Series Preview: | The Wainwright Wranglers (27-38) headed east to take on the Virginia Cavaliers (33-32). Wainwright came in with a pitching staff allowing a half run more than the Cavaliers but a batting line that had them 6th best in the NL compared to Virginia’s lowly #14 ranking out of 16. |
| Game #1: | WWW 3-1 W- N.Rucker (4-6) L-E.Reukbach (5-5) SV-D.Ward (10)
For the briefest moment, Virginia thought they may pull one out. The Cavs A.Jones turned on a fastball and sent one deep into the CF seats for a 1-0 VIR lead in the 2nd inning. Reulbach kept baffling the Wrangler batters scattering 4 hits through the first 6 innings. But, all good things must come to an end. Wainwright got to Reulbach in the 7th. A walk, an out, a G.Brett RBI tying triple, a SF, a double, a walk, and T.Gwynn’s RBI single and just like that Wainwright led 3-1 and Reulbach’s day was finished. VIR tried to come back and even got the tying run to the plate in the 9th,…but D.Ward came in and got K.McReynolds to line out to 3rd to preserve the game for WWW. |
| Game #2: | WWW 3-0 W-L.Grove (10-4) L-P.Roe (2-3)
This was L.Grove’s game. CG shutout allowing just 2 hits. H.Manush supplied the power with a 3-run homer in the 4th. It would be the only homer Wainwright hit in the series and the only runs Grove would need in this game. Templeton and Prado were the only Cavaliers to scratch out hits as the rest of the lineup saw the BA’s continue to spiral downward. |
| Game #3: | VIR 7-2 W-B.Turley (5-7) L-V.Willis (5-12)
Surprise, surprise! Virginia somehow managed 12 hits and got runners to cross the plate 7 times for a Virginia win. After WWW scored on a FC in the 2nd, VIR tied it in the bottom of the 2nd on D.Mitchell’s RBI single. Then in the 3rd, VIR went ahead on a SF and a 2-run double off the wall from H.Heilman. VIR would later add 3 more runs including F.Robinson’s 8th homer. Meanwhile, Wild-man B.Turley sent Wrangler after Wrangler back to the dugout shaking their heads as he held Wainwright batters to 4 hits. |
| Game #4: | WWW 3-2 W-D.White (6-11) L-J.Key (3-3) SV-D.Ward (11)
RBI’s from B.Cree, D.Daulton, and T.Fernandez (who went 4-5), staked Wainwright to a 3-0 lead into the 7th. A.Jones and T.Pena tried to get things going for the Cavaliers but D.Ward was having none of that as he came in for a 2 inning, 7 batter save allowing 1 walk and no hits. |
| Series Summary: | Well, with all the good pitching in this league you gotta have a team that gets a few hits now and then if you are going to have a chance at winning any games. Virginia can’t hit. Wainwright takes the series 3-1 because they can hit AND they have decent pitching. Virginia’s GM is in discussion with the team on the subject of Manager. With a 13-20 Home record and a 21-15 Away record, maybe it’s time to turn ALL the managing over to Buck Miller. It’s either that or trade for Ruth, Gehrig, Williams, Cobb, Hornsby, and Wilson,…and that ain’t gonna happen. |
| Motown Yankees @ Fantomz Force | |
| Series Preview: | The 33-32 Motown Yankees headed to Force Field to face the 32-33 Fantomz Force, with both teams attempting to gain ground for a playoff spot … and Yankees’ manager Greg “Mo” Morgan looking to disrupt the Force any way possible, including stories about the Indians and technology challenges … |
| Game #1: | Game 66 – Carl Hubbell ‘32 (4-5) v. Gaylord Perry ‘74 (6-5)
Fantomz 7-3: The Force struck first in the 1st inning when Gil McDougald tripled home Shin-Soo Choo then scored on Ray Lankford’s double. The teams exchanged runs in the 3rd inning, then the Yankees drew within one run when Cristobal Torriente scored from 2nd base on Dave Bancroft’s 7th-inning single. The floodgates opened for Fantomz in the bottom of the 8th when they rallied for four runs, highlighted by pinch-hitter Eddie Miller’s two-run double. W – Perry (7-5) L – Hubbell (4-6) |
| Game #2: | Game 67 – Addie Joss ’03 (2-6) v. Stan Coveleski ’23 (1-9)
Motown 5-3: Two Hall-of-Fame Indians’ pitchers, who are both struggling, faced off for the second game. The Yankees scored the first five runs, including Fred McGriff’s two-run tape-measure 4th-inning blast. The Force finally reached Joss in the 5th inning for two runs, then added another one in the following frame. Stud reliever Steve Mingori entered the game for Motown and proceeded to throw three hitless innings to earn the save. Fantomz hit into three double plays to squash potential rallies. W – Joss (3-6) L – Coveleski (1-10) SV – Mingori (3) |
| Game #3: | Game 68 – Dave Brown ’20 (8-7) v. Carl Weilman ’14 (6-7)
Motown 3-2: The Yankees struck first when McGriff launched another drive into the night sky. The Force responded with a Choo walk, John Stone triple, and Lankford sacrifice fly. After that small outburst, Brown took control, allowing only two more hits for the rest of the game. Meanwhile, Motown tied the game in the 6th inning, then went ahead in the 7th inning when Torriente doubled home Richie Ashburn. Brown struck out seven for his ninth win. W – Brown (9-7) L – Weilman (6-8) |
| Game #4: | Game 69 – Adam Wainwright ’14 (9-3) v. Satchel Paige ‘41 (9-5)
Fantomz 2-0: Another close game featuring two aces closed out the series. In the 2nd inning, Honus Wagner beat the throw home on Al Lopez’ single. During the following frame, Lankford again tormented the Yankees’ managerial staff by plating Choo with an insurance run. Paige fired a four-hitter, striking out seven and walking one, as the evenly-matched teams split the series. W – Paige (10-5) L – Wainwright (9-4) |
| Series Summary: | The teams split an entertaining series with the last three games not decided until the late innings.
Player of the Week nominee: Fantomz’s Ray Lankford edged out Motown’s Fred McGriff, hitting 5-for-14 with three rbi. Interesting that Fantomz’s pinch-hitters plated more runs than the regulars … Pitcher of the Week nominee: Fantomz’s Satchel Paige, for pitching a four-hit shutout, striking out seven and reaching double digits in wins, with an 85 Game Score. |
| Hollywood Zombies @ Climax Cougars | |
| Series Preview: | With the Cranberries 1993 hit Zombie screaming from loudspeakers on the team Winnebago, Hollywood rolled into the sleepy hamlet of Climax, SK for a quick four-game set. |
| Game #1: | The Cougars were in trouble early in the series opener thanks to a less than spectacular start by Cougars’ wins leader Spud Chandler with a bit of credit also going to the top of the Zombies’ order. Zombies’ starter Eddie Plank of all people was the guy who got it going when he ran out a slow grounder to 2nd base for an infield hit. Brett Butler then walked on a full count and Jeff Bagwell blooped one down the right field line scoring Plank and sending Butler to 3rd with the double. Eddie Collins hit a roller to George Grantham at 2nd base and the ballsy Butler sped home beating the throw and putting men on the corners with none out. Chandler then got Shawn Green to ground into a double play but that brought home Bagwell to make it 3-0 with Plank going into the bottom of the inning with a no-hitter. not again! It wouldn’t be until the 5th inning that the Cougars were able to get a base hit with Grantham doing the honors with a liner that dropped just short of Green’s glove. Plank was able to get the next hitter but then Jose Mendez plopped one in the grass in left to move Grantham over to 3rd base. Chief Meyers came in to hit for Spudman and came through with a single to right field to make it 3-1. Mendez scored on Jim Fregosi’s deep flyball to centre and then a bloop double by Mel Ott scored Buck Leonard to tie the game 3-3. In the top of the 6th, the zombies had runners on 2nd and 3rd with none outs against new Cougars’ pitcher Frank Smith but three straight shallow line outs to the outfield were not enough to bring the go-ahead run home. Jose Bautista doubled to lead off the Cougars’ half of the 6th and scored on Mendez’s second hit of the game – a line drive single to right field to give Climax a 4-3 lead. Climax added another run in the 7th on Leonard’s double into the right field corner that allowed Fregosi to score from 1st base. Hollywood rallied in the 9th against reliever Eric Plunk with pinch hitter Solly Hemus doubling to lead off the inning and then Butler following it up with a walk. Bagwell popped out to 2nd base but then with Collins up Plunk tossed a pitch to the backstop allowing the runners to advance. Collins slapped the ball to 3rd base to Harlond Clift who changed his mind at the last minute and threw home instead of going for the easy out at 1st base and nailed Hemus at the plate. Green ended it with a grounder to 1st base and the promising inning and the game was over with Climax winning 5-3. |
| Game #2: | It was bittersweet for an Expos fan to watch Steve Rogers have his way with our hitters but good for him. Stevarino held Climax to just four hits over seven innings as the Zombies took it 3-1. Shawn Green drove in two runs with a sacrifice fly in the first inning and a home run off Sid Fernandez (0-4) in the 3rd. Robin Ventura had three hits including two doubles and Vlad Guerrero had a single and a double. Rogers improved to 5-10 with the win in which he fanned two and walked three. George Grantham (3) provided the only real offense for Climax with a pinch hit home run in the 7th. Yay him. |
| Game #3: | Walter Johnson was outduelled by Smoky Joe Wood … no really … as the Cougars took the game 5-3. Neither pitcher was close to being stellar. Johnson (7-8) gave up five runs on six hits in six innings and racked up five Ks. His downfall was giving up three walks in the Cougars’ four-run 5th inning which included an RBI double by Mel Ott and a bases loaded triple by Jim Fregosi. Wood (4-5) stuck out five and gave up five hits in seven innings with Eric Plunk closing out the game for his 5th save. |
| Game #4: | This game looked to be over almost before it began with the Cougars hammering starter Jordan Zimmermann as they jumped into a 10-2 lead by the end of the 4th. Zimmerman (0-1, 40.50 ERA) watched in silence from the Hollywood dugout after getting just four outs but by the end of the 7th he was up with the rest of his teammates cheering – the Zombies mashed their way back to a close 11-9 game. Unfortunately, it was not to be as Ellis Kinder and Eric Plunk (6) combined to close out the final two innings of the game to give Climax a 11-9 win. Lots of offense in this one obviously with Brett Butler leading the Zombies with three hits (two of them triples) and a walk and three RBIs. Jeff Bagwell (8) clubbed a two-run homer off Rube Waddell (5-4) and added a single. Miguel Tejada singled and doubled and drove in two. Johnny Mize finally got his first homer of the year with Sam Crawford slamming his 6th for Climax as well. Crawford had three hits in the game and drove in four runs with Jim Fregosi and Jose Bautista also getting three hits. Pop Lloyd had two hits and drove in three as he started to pick up some starts in place of wiffle-bat hitting George Grantham. |
| Series Summary: | The Cougars steal 3 of 4 from Hollywood with no game being decided by more than two runs. No clear player of the week candidates in this one although Brett Butler deserves at least honorable mention. |
| Hoboken Zephyrs @ Nags Head Surf Sox | |
| Series Preview: | HOBOKEN ZEPHYRS (40-25) vs. NAGS HEAD SURF SOX (27-38)
The N.L. West 2nd place Hoboken Zephyrs bring their elite pitching staff to town to visit Nags Head and the floundering Surf Sox. |
| Game #1: | Jared Weaver (8-3 2.92) vs. Jim Palmer (3-3 3.63)
Bottom 1 – Nags Head takes advantage of some early Jared Weaver ineffectiveness. Von Hayes singles before Jimmie Foxx clubs his 12th homerun of the season for an early 2-0 NH lead. Giancarlo Stanton singles. Weaver strikes out Dawson and walks Dave Winfield. With runners at 2nd and 3rd with 2 out Tim McCarver connects with a single to score Stanton putting NH up 3-0. Top 2 – Hoboken gets a run back quickly on a Jim Bottomley homerun, his 9th, to lead off the visitor 2nd. A Tommy Henrich triple and walks to Duncan and Dahlen load the bases for the “light” hitting Jared Weaver and his .432 batting average and .543 OBP. Weaver smacks a single to bring in Henrich. A Stankey SAC fly plates Duncan to tie the game. 3-3 after 1½. Bottom 3 – Winfield’s 2 run homerun puts the Sox back in front 5-3 NH Bottom 4 – Dawson SAC fly scores Samuel with the 6th NH run 6-3 NH Top 6 – Stan Spence doubles and scores on a Henrich RBI single to cut the Sox lead to 6-4. Top 8 – Stan Spence 2 run homerun ties the game at 6. Bottomley walks and scores on Henrich’s double for a 7-6 Zephyr lead. Bottom 9 – Jimmie Foxx triples with two outs to put the tying run at 3rd, but Bryan Harvey gets Stanton to strike out to strand Foxx and preserve the win. Henrich, 3 for 4 with 2 RBIs and a run scored, and Spence’s double and home run lead the way for Hoboken. Jimmie Fox was a double short of the cycle for NH. Very disappointing loss for the Sox, as they blow several leads and can’t take advantage of the poor Weaver start … it only gets more difficult from here. HOB 7 8 0 |
| Game #2: | Tom Seaver (11-2 3.00) vs. Cole Hamels (3-4 3.95)
Top 2 – Jeff Heath’s 7th homerun of the season stakes Hoboken to a 1-0 lead. Top 3 – Back to back Stan Spence (#16) and Jim Bottomley (#10) homeruns put the Zephyrs up 3-0 Top 5 – It’s Bottomley again, with another solo homerun – Hoboken 4-0 Top 6 – Yost RBI single plates Duncan for the 5th Zephyr run. Hoboken 5-0 Bottom 6 – MEANWHILE … Tom Seaver, perfect through 5, walks Gary Carter to start the Sox 6th, but he retires the side, still 5-0 Zephyrs. Top 7 – Henrich doubles and scores on a Jeter throwing error to up the Hoboken lead to 6-0 Bottom 7 – Von Hayes leads off the inning with a base hit to right to end Seaver’s no hit bid, but once again Seaver retires the side in order to preserve the shut out. Bottom 8 – Dave Kingman’s 2 out 2 run pinch hit homerun (#8) finally puts the Sox on the board, but that’s all NH can manage off of Seaver. Earning win #12, Seaver goes the distance for Hoboken, allowing only 2 runs on 3 hits, while walking 1 and striking out 11. HOB 6 12 0 |
| Game #3: | Red Faber (8-5 2.13) vs. Joaquin Andujar (2-12 6.28) – Andujar has lost 10 straight starts
Top 1 – Stanky walks, moves to 3rd on a Heath double, and scores on a Spence ground out for a 1-0 lead. I guess Andujar was frustrated because he plunks Kevin Youkilis with the next pitch. Youkilis can’t continue and is lost for 11 days. Bottom 1 – Sandberg singles, Foxx walks, and both score on Dave Kingman’s 2 run double. 2-1 Sox Andujar pitches his best outing in a LONG time, going 7 and scattering 5 hits. He’s pulled for a pinch hitter in the 7th. Going with the averages, and 3 lefty bats to start the 8th, Norm Charlton, who has struggled mightily, is called on to relieve Andujar. Jeff Heath singles to lead off the inning and steals second. Spence bunts one back to Charlton who overthrows first allowing Heath to score the tying run. 2-2 after 7½ Bottom 10 – Ryne Sandberg triples with one out, finally sending Faber to the showers. Bryan Harvey comes in to face Von Hayes, who sends one deep enough to center to score Sandberg for the Sox victory. HOB 2 7 0 |
| Game #4: | Ewell Blackwell (1-5 3.84) vs. Mike Mussina (5-5 3.03)
Top 1 – Zephyrs get off to a quick start thanks to a Stan Spence 2 run homerun. A Frank Duncan RBI single adds another – 3-0 Hoboken before all the fans are in their seats. Bottom 1 – back to back Samuel and Hayes doubles get a run back. One out later, Giancarlo Stanton doubles to cut the Hoboken lead to 3-2. Top 2 – Stan Spence’s 2 run triple chases Mussina. 5-2 Hoboken Top 3 – Ewell Blackwell helps himself with a 2 run double to increase the Zephyr lead to 7-2 Hoboken cruises the rest of the way. Blackwell goes the distance, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits, while striking out 11. Spence knocks in 4 and Duncan collects 3 hits and scores a pair to lead the Zephyr offense. Hayes and Stanton each have 2 hits for the Sox. HOB 9 12 0 |
| Series Summary: | Another 1-3 series loss for Nags Head. The Hoboken pitching is “as advertised”, but the offense was pretty potent too. |
| Pigtown Bombers @ Clockwork Heros | |
| Series Preview: | Last place Pigtown(22-43) at First place Clockwork(47-18) in a four game series. |
| Game #1: | Heartbeaker in game one as Pigtown was up 4-1 in the ninth as they hit 3 homers off Donovan, Mike Schmidt, Manny Ramirez and Simms. But four pitchers in the 9th could not stop Arky vaughn and co as they teid it and won it in 11 innings 5-4. Tekulve gets the win. |
| Game #2: | Clockwork blowout Blyleven wins his 11th. Injeuy firstbaseman Watson has the big blow a 2 run hoemr.12-3 Clockwork |
| Game #3: | Bob Watson huge 3 run homers and Clockwork with Matheson wins 4-2 as Sims breaks up the shutout with a 8th inning homer. |
| Game #4: | SchoolBoy Rowe was great in relief going 5 shutout innings allowing Clockwork to get the two runs they needs to over come Abbott and a Jackie Robinson homer. 2-1 Clockwork |
| Series Summary: | Series sweep by the Heros. The combination of excelling pitching and hitting was too much for Pigtown. Watson POW – 5 for 13 with 2 homers and 6 rbis as he is trying to take the job from an injured Terry, Tekulve POW – 3 games 1-0 2 saves 4 innings no runs. |