2014 Around the League News

[Matt]

BLB News: Opening Day: Brewers League Baseball fans have been pining for Opening Day ever since the league published its 2014 schedule several months ago. It is finally here! The slate for the first day of the new season includes:

Dallas Sharks @ Maine Guides
Batavia Muckdogs @ Philadelphia Freedom
Toronto Canadians @ Pittsburgh Millers
Hartford Whalers @ Los Angeles Dinos
Washington Bats @ Carolina Tobs
Syracuse Slammers @ Indianapolis Clowns
Wilmington Wildcats @ Morgantown Mohawks
Windy City Playboys @ Baltimore Bulldogs
New Orleans Dukes @ Pawtucket Patriots
New York Knights @ Denver BC
Death Valley Scorpions @ Davenport Brawlers
California Kodiaks @ Los Alamos Amigos

Garton Tosses Shutout Against Playboys: Tom Garton held the Playboys to 2 harmless hits as the Washington Bats whitewashed Windy City by the score of 13-0. Garton had 1 walk and 8 strikeouts in the win.

Hits Blitz for Bats Nelson: The big buzz in the baseball world is about D.J. Nelson's performance today at The Mansion against Windy City. Nelson had 5 hits en route to hitting for the cycle, leading the charge for the Washington 13-0 triumph over the Playboys. A cycle requires each of the four types of hits possible -- single, double, triple and home run. A batter has to have power, speed, and a little luck to do it.

"It was one of those games you dream about," Nelson told the press. "I never expected to do something like this when I showed up at the park today. All you really want to do is hit it hard and put it into play. The hits will come." And the hits did come today. The 29-year-old left fielder rounded out his superb batting display with 5 hits in 5 at-bats, 4 RBI, and 2 runs scored.

D.J. Nelson hit a solo-shot off Chris Aguilar in the 1st, singled in the 3rd, doubled in the 6th, hit a two-run double in the 7th and hit an RBI triple in the 8th.

So far this year Nelson has hit .478 with 1 home run, 5 RBIs and 4 runs scored.

BNN Stats: Single-Season Records: Who holds the single season record in the Brewers League Baseball for on-base percentage?

Mel Woodbury, -, .4855, 1995
Mel Woodbury, -, .4848, 1993
Everardo Gremades, -, .4836, 1989
Mel Woodbury, -, .4796, 1991
Everardo Gremades, -, .4780, 1988

BLB News: Draft Pool Revealed: The deadline has passed for players to declare for the first-year player draft. Brewers League Baseball officials have released a list to all teams with players who can be chosen on draft day. Teams now have a chance to scout the draft pool for 65 days before the draft is held.

The top players available (in no particular order) seem to be:
1. Dave Teel, 19 year-old starting pitcher out of college.
2. Chaz Stanley, 20 year-old starting pitcher out of college.
3. Garrek Finn, 20 year-old right fielder out of college.
4. Jimmy Cooper, 20 year-old starting pitcher out of college.
5. C.J. Baase, 20 year-old starting pitcher out of college.
6. Dave Walker, 20 year-old starting pitcher out of college.
7. Erik Surmeier, 17 year-old right fielder out of high-school.
8. Gil Mullins, 20 year-old right fielder out of college.
9. Johnny Knott, 20 year-old shortstop out of college.
10. Dave Baldwin, 20 year-old starting pitcher out of college.

[Carlos]

Mel Woodbury, -, .4855, 1995
Mel Woodbury, -, .4848, 1993
Everardo Gremades, -, .4836, 1989
Mel Woodbury, -, .4796, 1991
Everardo Gremades, -, .4780, 1988


LOL

[Delandis]

Shitty was a beast.

[Matt]

Dallas Whitewashed by Donovan: Troy Donovan of the Los Angeles Dinos was on top of his game today. He tantalized the Dallas Sharks with crisp curves and changeups, mixed in with just enough fastballs to keep the batters honest and came away with a 15-0 shutout.

In the postgame comments, the Dallas skipper said, "He had the changeup working. You knew it was coming and you still grounded out -- and then he threw it even slower."

The Los Angeles hurler had 5 strikeouts, gave up 1 walk and surrendered 3 hits in his complete-game effort.

Donovan told reporters after the game, "To be successful in this league, you have to keep the ball down. If you don't, they'll make you pay."


Elias Socks it to Slammers, Cracks 5 Hits: It was a big day with the bat for Billy Elias of the Hartford Whalers as he bashed out hit after hit after hit against Syracuse. To the press after the ballgame he modestly said, "Guys, it's just one game in a long season. I hit it hard and found some holes today... and Bingo! -- 5 hits in 7 tries! But my hits are not the big story in the game. We lost the game 9-8. That's the story. The Slammers flat out beat us!" At the end of the game Elias had collected 5 hits in 7 at-bats and a small mention in the record book. He was happy for his big day with the bat, but not too happy with the outcome of the game. The beat writers were happy, too. They had their big story -- they could write about his big day with the bat. Billy Elias singled in the 2nd, hit an RBI double in the 4th, flied out in the 5th, hit an RBI double in the 7th, struck out in the 9th, doubled in the 12th and singled in the 14th.

So far this season Elias has put up a .250 batting average with 11 hits, 2 home runs and 5 RBIs.


Wyatt Makes 300 HR Mark: The New York Knights had something to celebrate today even though they dropped a 9-8 decision to Toronto. The reason -- the splendid slugger Travis Wyatt hit his 300th career homer in today's contest at Toronto Stadium.

"I'm fortunate to be here," Wyatt told the media after the game. "The Knights have a classy organization and some great fans. Homer #300 was for them."

Lifetime Wyatt has played in 1659 games, batted .288 with 300 home runs and 1662 base hits.


Verba Signs for 2 years: Fans hailed the signing of Pat Verba today as the New Orleans Dukes left fielder came to terms with the club.

Set to make $19,000,000 over the upcoming 2 years, Verba signed primarily out of loyalty to the organization, thrilling the most diehard supporters who think there isn't much loyalty in a market driven by free agency.

This year Verba is hitting .217, produced 6 RBIs and 2 home runs, scored 3 times and gotten on base at a .308 rate.


BNN Stats: Single-Season Records: Who holds the single season record in the Brewers League Baseball for RBI?

T.J. Dunn, PAW, 157, 2009
Don Castor, -, 153, 1992
Henry Rodriques, MAI, 152, 2010
Ismael Reyes, -, 151, 1996
Harry Keppel, -, 149, 1981

[Carlos]

Billy Elias!

sent from my mobile device

[Matt]

Good job Wyatt.

299 HR's - Batavia
1 HR - New York

At least he stayed in-state. And I like the snide comment about how it was for them...sorry buddy.

[Z]

Good for him. 300 is a lot in this league. 42nd all-time.

[funclown]

Good job Wyatt.

299 HR's - Batavia
1 HR - New York

At least he stayed in-state. And I like the snide comment about how it was for them...sorry buddy.

So, so close to signing him this past offseason. Just couldn't stomach his defense at this stage of his career.

[Matt]

Grooming for Greatness: California Selects Cee to Make it Happen: It's official. Paul E Cee is the new GM for the California Kodiaks. This hiring has been in the rumor mill for the past few weeks, but the club made it official today.

Terms of the deal were not announced.


League Punishes Pair for Fighting: It was a pretty intense fight, so David Santoyo and Jimmy August were both suspended today for 7 games for their part in a brawl which happened in a game between the Batavia Muckdogs and the California Kodiaks at Lawrence Stadium.

Santoyo said, "Luckily nobody was hurt. I think we both overreacted to the situation."

Looking at his season stats, Santoyo has compiled a .265 batting average and a .359 on-base percentage, while hitting no home runs and driving in 3 runs.


Hot Bat Cooled, Douglas Hitless Against Amigos: The Morgantown Mohawks lost to the Los Alamos Amigos 3-2 today at Mountaineer Park, but perhaps the bigger news was the end of Jimmy Douglas's 30-game hitting streak.

"We felt if we could slow down Douglas, we would win the game," the Amigos manager explained after the game. "They really seemed to feed off of his streak, so we really wanted to make sure they had nothing to feed off of."

For the season Douglas has produced 21 hits in 73 at-bats for a .288 average with 1 home run and gotten on base at a .297 clip.


BNN Stats: Batting Leaders: So, who leads the Brewers League Baseball in wins above replacement (WAR)?

Hector Gutierrez, DVS, 1.9
Abraham Santana, BAL, 1.8
Roberto Goto, NYK, 1.5
Danny Gomez, SYR, 1.3
Israel Morales, DEN, 1.2

[liquidcrash]

I didn't realize Goto was still playing. There's a name from the past for me.

[umd]

Gutz is killing it.

[Carlos]

Gutz is killing it.

It's like he enjoys playing in Death Valley so much that he's willing to help you get the prospects necessary to continue building a potential champion.

[umd]

It's like he enjoys playing in Death Valley so much that he's willing to help you get the prospects necessary to continue building a potential champion.

Won't happen. He will be here all season. He's just one of those guys who is worth more to us than will bring back in trade. Chuck Durham was like that too towards his 30s.

[Matt]

Syracuse-Pittsburgh Free-for-All Gets 3-Game Suspensions: The league commissioner has issued 3-game suspensions to B.J. Brazeel of Syracuse and Jarrod Syvertsen of Pittsburgh. The two players were involved in a confrontation during a recent Slammers-Millers game at Syracuse Stadium and now will miss time because of it. Neither player would comment on the suspensions.

So far this season, Brazeel has recorded a .297 batting average with 22 hits, 4 home runs, 12 RBIs, 6 runs scored and a .369 OBP.

Syvertsen has fashioned a 1-2 mark for the season, 3.82 ERA and thrown 30.2 innings in 5 starts. Opposing clubs are batting .269 against him.

Will Evers Leave Whalers?: Several teams have surfaced as a possible trading partner with Hartford for Fred Evers -- or so rumor has it. Sources inside the Whalers organization report that teams have inquired about making a deal for the 33-year-old reliever.

Feliciano on Fire, 5-5 Against Hartford: It was a big day for Hector Feliciano of the Morgantown Mohawks. He led his club to a 11-4 victory over the Hartford Whalers today at Samuel Stone Memorial Field. The 34-year-old first baseman smoked Whalers pitching for 5 hits in 5 at-bats. Hector Feliciano hit an RBI double in the 1st, singled in the 3rd, singled in the 5th, hit a two-run single in the 7th and doubled in the 9th.

This season Feliciano is batting at a .319 clip with 2 home runs and 13 RBIs.

Xiang Claims DL Batter of the Month Award: Tzu-jao Xiang let his bat do the talking in April and the Domestic League heard him loud and clear. He made plenty of noise as he put together a .358 batting average and was named the top hitter of the month.

Xiang's month to remember saw him accumulate 29 hits, 8 home runs, 25 runs batted in, 15 runs, 7 walks and a .404 on-base percentage.

Guides Hurler Named DL's Best Starter: Despite the number of years he's been in the league, Adan Neubauer still gets excited when he puts together a quality stretch like he had in April. The 34-year-old starter for Maine was named Domestic League Pitcher of the Month earlier today.

He collected 3 wins and no losses with 47 strikeouts in his 5 starts, putting up a fine 0.48 ERA in 37.1 innings of work.

April's Best Batter Announced: Abraham Santana battered Import League pitchers all April and wound up taking home the Batter of the Month Award.

"I've been around Brewers League Baseball long enough to know you really have to work hard day in and day out to be able to put up this kind of consistency," the 33-year-old Santana told reporters. "I put in a lot of work, even on the days I might not take the field, and it's always nice when everything comes together for me like it did this last month."

In 20 games, Santana hit .403 with 5 home runs, 20 RBIs and scored 16 runs.

Gonzalez Collects IL Pitching Award: Danny Gonzalez's been around the league long enough to appreciate the honor he received today. After going 3-1 in April, the 33-year-old Death Valley hurler has been named Import League Pitcher of the Month.

He fanned 30 in 33.1 innings, logged an ERA of 1.08 and allowed opponents to hit .207 against him.

[Delandis]

Syracuse-Pittsburgh Free-for-All Gets 3-Game Suspensions:

That is so awesome.