07/15/2047
We go away for a week just to come back and find the Kodiaks still on top. This week they went 4-2, along with a smattering of other teams, to maintain the best record in the league at 60-31. The best of the week award though belongs to the Seattle Pilots. After starting to trade off pieces, and looking to unload a lot more, they went 6-0 with sweeps of Hartford and Maine. Their PYT still sits at an unbelievable -7, tied with New York for worst in the league. Can they stay hot and right the ship? On the other side of life Windy City and Carolina went 1-5 while Hartford went 0-6. The Whalers have now lost 15 in a row and are 21-69.
Power Rankings
1) California Kodiaks (119.7, ++)
2) Dallas Drillers (119.3, +)
3) New Orleans Voodoo (118.4, -)
4) Washington Bats (113.5, -)
5) Pawtucket Patriots (110.8, +)
6) Los Angeles Dinos (99.9, ++)
7) Wilmington Clowns (99.1, o)
8) Denver Bulls (99.0, --)
9) Syracuse Snappers (98.9, ++)
10) Pittsburgh Millers (97.9, -)
11) Seattle Pilots (97.9, ++)
12) Phoenix Roadrunners (97.8, --)
13) Baltimore Bulldogs (95.9, -)
14) Montreal Exports (94.0, -)
15) Toronto Canadians (84.1, -)
16) Indianapolis Racers (79.1, o)
17) Philadelphia Freedom (79.1, +)
18) Batavia Red Jackets (79.0, ++)
19) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (76.1, --)
20) New York Knights (75.1, -)
21) Maine Guides (72.6, +)
22) Carolina Tobs (69.0, --)
23) Windy City Blues (54.3, -)
24) Hartford Whalers (17.0, o)
Performance of the Week
P Cordarius Gomez - The Millers ace turned in the #1 performance of the season on July 8th against the Denver Bulls. Over the course of the game he pitched a two-hit shutout with no walks and 17 strikeouts. It was the most ever by a Millers pitcher, and tied him for second all-time in the Domestic. On the season the 32 year old is 10-2 with a 2.96 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 136 ERA+.
Prospect of the Week
SS Devon Keen - The 1.1 pick of the 2044 draft made his debut for Batavia this week and recorded three hits in 20 at bats for a .150 average. He's listed as #7 on the Top Prospect list but the Red Jackets brought him up even though he still struggles with contact and strikeouts. His gap and power potential is loved by scouts, and his work ethic is admired by coaches, so Batavia must be hoping he fully develops with some major league playing time.
Five Things We Think We Think
1. We talked earlier about Seattle's luck this season...or bad luck...as they sit at a -7 PYT. Did we also mention they have a run differential of +30? We currently have two teams in the BLB with winning records but negative run differentials. Syracuse is 48-43 (-34) while Montreal is 47-44 (-22). Throw in Batavia who's 43-46 but sitting at -50 and those poor Seattle fans just have to be shaking their heads. Even at 41-48 though they still have a playoff probability of 40%, because sooner or later the odds have to come up in their favor.
2. It's a short week as the Brewers League Baseball All-Stars will square off on July 19th in Washington. The Bats get the honor of hosting the game as defending champions and will be represented by Karson 'Super' Blair. The 30 year old will make his second appearance for Washington, in the second season he's played for them. He was previously an All-Star in '43 for Toronto and '44 for Montreal, and is a two-time champion as well. Do winning teams acquire 'Super', or does 'Super' make teams win? Probably a little of both.
3. Looking at the top vote receivers to date we should have a few first time All-Star selections. First basemen Zander Howard (CAR), SP Denard Brown (CAL), C Drake Cates (NO), 1B Al Flanagan (SDR), CF Jackob Lopez (WIL), and SP Cameron Copland (PAW) are all stated to be selected. Congrats to them as it's nice to see some new blood in the Midsummer Classic.
4. The playoff races don't appear as tight this season, at least in the Domestic. Over there it appears Pawtucket, Wilmington, New Orleans, and Dallas are near locks. The remaining two teams looks to be a three-way battle between Pittsburgh, Syracuse, and Montreal. In the Import California, LAD, Washington, and Baltimore are projected to go. At least there the final two spots will be a battle between Phoenix, Denver, Batavia, Seattle and New York. That should create a little bit of excitement and maybe produce a few big trades.
5. What's on tap? Well the 69th Brewers League Baseball All-Star game for one. In the Domestic we get to see Pittsburgh travel to Pawtucket. The Patriots have built a five game lead in the Ale while Pittsburgh has righted the ship for the time being after a 10-19 May. In the Import we get to watch New York at Baltimore. The Knights find themselves nine games under .500, which is a disappointment to the fans after they opened the season 7-0. Meanwhile Baltimore started out the season 10-12, but went 33-23 in May and June to get back on track. This will also be the first series that JD 'Hurricane' Rice faces his old team...now playing for his old old team.
Stat of the Week
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Longest Winning Streak To Finish a Season (Top 25 Teams) |
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