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04/24/2045
Phoenix wins the week as the BLB has the first interleague match-ups of the season. The Roadrunners went 5-1 with a sweep of Montreal while taking two of three from New Orleans. Six teams had four wins, while New York and Los Angeles brought up the rear at 1-5. The season is young though. Keep calm and R-E-L-A-X.
Power Rankings
1) Hartford Whalers (130.6, ++)
2) Carolina Tobs (124.6, -)
3) California Kodiaks (124.0, -)
4) Wilmington Clowns (123.0, +)
5) Phoenix Roadrunners (119.8, ++)
6) Washington Bats (116.8, +)
7) Baltimore Bulldogs (113.8, --)
8) Pawtucket Patriots (111.8, --)
9) Indianapolis Racers (109.0, +)
10) Seattle Pilots (100.9, o)
11) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (95.9, +)
12) Pittsburgh Millers (86.1, ++)
13) Toronto Canadians (82.1, --)
14) Windy City Blues (82.1, ++)
15) Dallas Drillers (81.1, -)
16) New Orleans Voodoo (81.1, --)
17) Batavia Red Jackets (72.0, +)
18) Denver Bulls (69.2, ++)
19) Philadelphia Freedom (68.2, +)
20) Maine Guides (65.2, --)
21) Syracuse Snappers (65.2, --)
22) Montreal Exports (64.2, +)
23) Los Angeles Dinos (47.4, --)
24) New York Knights (33.5, --)
Performance of the Week
LF Seth Blankenship - Old man Blank is back and better than ever...wait he's only 34. Well anyways, on his fourth team in five years the 3x All-Star lit up Toronto on April 17th with three home runs and six RBI's during an 8-3 Blues victory. He now has 438 career home runs, 23rd all-time in the BLB. He's also one of six players in the history of the BLB to have 300 or more home runs and 300 or more stolen bases. Considering he was the second overall pick of the 2031 draft we'd say his current and past employers have gotten their moneys worth.
Prospect of the Week
P Lon Redding - The 20 year old will be eligible in this years draft and is putting together quite a resume at Long Beach State. So far in six starts this season he's 5-0 with a 1.65 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and 301 ERA+. He throws up to 99 mph, has the stamina to start, but scouts wonder does he have the third pitch to be a legit BLB starter. Coaches love his attitude around the clubhouse and we think he could be a late first or early second round selection.
Game of the Week
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Not so fast though my friend as New Orleans scored six runs in the bottom of the 5th and 6th to take the lead. In the 5th Alan Gerber hit a three run home run, then in the 6th the speedy Clarke 'Kiwi' Cunningham walked, stole second and then advanced to third after Phoenix catcher Elias Lefranc threw the ball into center field. In the same at bat Harrison Manley was walked, and Cunningham caught Lefranc once again sleeping and stole home! A few batters later with runners on second and third Hullinger singled them home and it was 8-7 New Orleans.
In the 7th the first two Raodrunners were walked, Rory Levin got them home with a double, and then the next batter Lofton Shepherd hit a two run home run. Just like that it was 11-8 in favor of the Roadrunners. The Voodoo would just not go away though. In the bottom of the 7th Dawson Mansfield led off with a home run, then two two-out singles scored two more runs and the game was tied once again. In the very next inning though Lofton Sheppard singled home Chadd "My Contract is Illegal" Chua and Phoenix regained the lead. The Voodoo got a runner on in the bottom of the 9th with two outs, but Zak Marroquin was thrown out stealing second to end the game. Even going home after a loss the fans sure had a lot to talk about from this one.
Five Things We Think We Think
1. The Snappers are 5-8 and tied for last in the Ale but there was much rejoicing as Christian Vines was back in the rotation for two starts. The 26 year old back to back Pale Ale winner injured his elbow in spring training but returned to duty on April 17th for 4.1 innings against Washington and then again on April 21st for 4.2 innings against California. In the nine innings combined he allowed one earned run, walked four, and struck out an amazing 20 batters. We're not sure but that looks pretty good. He also signed a four year extension this past week that will keep in Syracuse for a cool $74m, an absolute steal for the best pitcher in the game.
2. Like Blankenship it seems as if Sheng 'Admiral' Jong has been around forever. The 37 year old is on his 5th BLB team but shows no sign of slowing down. On April 20th he pitched a four hit shutout against Windy City for his 197th career victory, tying him with Ed Carroll for 36th all-time. The third pick of the 2028 draft by Denver has turned into a 2x Pale Ale winner, 7x All-Star, and 2x Brewmasters Cup champion.
3. The batting average just continues to drop. This last week Denver and Hartford both led the league with a .299 team average. The IL is currently hitting .238, the lowest ever in the history of the BLB. We know it's early but the pitchers have been dominating the BLB the past few seasons and it looks like that trend will continue.
4. We're not far enough in the season to check out any single season record breakers, but we do have some career records to keep watching. First is the stolen base record held by the infamous Jerry Daly of Virginia. Before being banned from the league for performance enhancing substances, Daly swiped 677 bases. Currently we have two in the running to break it. Washington's Erwijn 'Moriarity' de Jong, who is 33 years old, has 576 career stolen bases while 29 year old Richie 'Powder' van Luik of Seattle has 575. On the pitching side Philly starter Pat 'Baja' Arballo has 273 career victories, only 13 short of Fernando Hernandez' all-time record. The three-time Pale Ale winner is 39 this season and so far is 0-1 with a 4.63 ERA in two starts.
5. With the BLB draft coming up that means the NCAA, Cape Cod, and High School seasons are almost over. Both the NCAA and CCBL have two weeks left, and just played their All-Star games yesterday. Meanwhile the High School All-Star game was played last week and they finish up their regular season this week. Time to see how the future stars of the BLB handle the postseason pressure!
Stat of the Week
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| Most 100 RBI Seasons (Top 25 Players) |
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