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05/11/2048
California and Syracuse go 6-1, as the Kodiaks go from potential fire-sale to second in the Bock...but it's still a Clowns world we are living in. Wilmington stays on top of the Power Rankings by going 5-2, and remains a game ahead of Maine for the Ale lead. Other nice weeks were had by LAD, Batavia, and Windy City who also went 5-2. On the other side of life Hartford and Phoenix went 1-5. Stats wise the Snappers scored 53 runs, 15 more than the second place Dinos, Maine swiped 11 bases, Wilmington only allowed 14 runs, and California held opponents to a .161 average.
Power Rankings
1) Wilmington Clowns (117.5, o)
2) Maine Guides (106.9, o)
3) Los Angeles Dinos (105.3, ++)
4) Pawtucket Patriots (101.6, +)
5) Montreal Exports (99.2, ++)
6) Carolina Tobs (98.6, ++)
7) Toronto Canadians (98.3, ++)
8) California Kodiaks (98.0, ++)
9) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (97.6, -)
10) Dallas Drillers (97.2, --)
11) Batavia Red Jackets (95.0, ++)
12) Syracuse Snappers (92.3, ++)
13) New York Cyclones (92.0, --)
14) Baltimore Bulldogs (91.3, --)
15) Windy City Blues (90.3, ++)
16) Pittsburgh Millers (89.0, --)
17) New Orleans Voodoo (88.3, +)
18) Phoenix Roadrunners (84.3, --)
19) Denver Bulls (80.7, --)
20) Washington Bats (78.4, -)
21) Indianapolis Racers (74.1, --)
22) Philadelphia Freedom (72.4, --)
23) Seattle Pilots (63.9, -)
24) Hartford Whalers (47.3, o)
Performance of the Week
P Seth 'Icebox' Cobb - The Ice Man has the Clowns on top of the league and continues to mow down anyone in his path. The victim this past week was Pittsburgh who he shut down on May 5th with a four hit shutout. He also added in 10 K's with no walks as Wilmington easily won 9-0. On the season Cobb is 5-0 with a 2.22 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 2.0 WAR, and 182 ERA+.
Prospect of the Week
P Cayden Wittmeyer - The kid is only 22, playing in AAA, and looks to be almost ready for the majors. He is 0-3 this season in five starts, but that's because he hasn't gotten much help. His 2.59 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 140 ERA+ and 44 K's to only 8 BB's mean that he's special, and the BLB better be on watch because he's coming.
Five Things We Think We Think
1. Syracuse is back in the thick of things after their 6-1 week thanks in part to Dominique Graham, who won his 11th Player of the Week award. The 6x All-Star drove in 15 runs over the seven games, bringing his league leading total to 32. His 15 RBI were only two short of what Pittsburgh managed to score over their last seven games total.
2. Only team two are more than five games back in their division...Seattle at 5.5 and Hartford at 10. The poor Pilots already have a -4 PYT, worst in the league, and we'd like to think they will rebound. Sadly last season though they ended up with a -8 PYT and it just seems like lately the only luck they have is bad luck. Meanwhile Hartford has the first overall pick in this draft and could be zeroing in on the first pick in next years draft as well. They are 10th in runs allowed, 12th in runs scored, and their -47 run differential is worst in the league. As of now them and Indy are the only teams with a 0% in the playoff probability charts.
3. With the draft coming up that means the so called 'feeder' leagues to the BLB are in playoff mode. At the HS level they are in the Semifinals as Bishop Gorman is playing White Hall, and Seton Hall Prep takes on Harvard-Westlake. In the NCAA the Sweet 16 is in full force as six of the eight series are tied 1-1. Only Clemson and Oklahoma State have advanced to the Regionals. Finally in the Cape Cod we have Hyannis, Brewster, and Falmouth advancing to round two, with only the Yarmouth and Orleans still tied at one.
4. In the milestone club this past week Robert 'Stretch' Jessee reached 1000 extra base hits, while Rory Elia reached 900. 'Stretch' is the 21st player in BLB history to reach that mark, while Elia is the 45th to reach his milestone. Some soon to be broken milestones: Dominique Graham is one home run away from 300, Roddy Sierra is nine runs short of 1000, Jimmy Jeffs is five away from 600 career doubles, Richie 'Powder' van Luik is four stolen bases from 800 and one triple from 100, and Pat 'Baja' Arballo is still one win shy of being the first player in BLB history to reach 300 wins.
5. What's on tap? We are back to interleague as the Domestic and Import do battle. Two of the match-ups we're looking forward to are Dallas at Los Angeles, and Baltimore at Wilmington. The Drillers are tied for 3rd in the Lager in a division that could see four teams go to the playoffs. For a team that is on the downturn and selling assets they sure seem to keep winning. In the other series which Baltimore team will show up? The team that went 7-0...or the team that went 1-6 the following week? They lead the IL in runs, home runs, and OBP...and they are worst in the league in hits and runs allowed. If they shore up their pitching then look out, if not then it will be a wild ride.
Stat of the Week
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