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05/17/2049
The interleague rivalry is over once again and the teams that came out on top were Pawtucket, Phoenix, Wilmington, and California. All four of those teams went 5-1 against their interleague foes, with the Patriots and Kodiaks using the week to take control of their respective divisions. On the other side Baltimore went 0-6 as they were swept by Pittsburgh and Wilmington. It's been a rough road lately for the Bulldogs, but we'll talk about that later. Meanwhile Washington, Denver, and Windy City didn't fare much better as they all went 1-5.
Power Rankings
1) Pawtucket Patriots (132.0, +)
2) California Kodiaks (123.4, +)
3) Hartford Whalers (109.9, ++)
4) Los Angeles Dinos (109.9, --)
5) New Orleans Voodoo (107.8, +)
6) Montreal Exports (106.5, +)
7) Wilmington Clowns (106.5, ++)
8) Seattle Pilots (100.5, --)
9) Phoenix Roadrunners (99.9, ++)
10) Toronto Canadians (99.7, o)
11) Syracuse Snappers (95.3, +)
12) Washington Bats (94.0, --)
13) Dallas Drillers (93.3, --)
14) Pittsburgh Millers (93.0, -)
15) Maine Guides (84.0, +)
16) Indianapolis Racers (74.1, ++)
17) Carolina Tobs (72.8, ++)
18) Philadelphia Freedom (72.5, -)
19) Denver Bulls (68.5, --)
20) Batavia Red Jackets (68.1, +)
21) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (67.0, ++)
22) Windy City Blues (60.2, --)
23) New York Cyclones (58.6, o)
24) Baltimore Bulldogs (50.0, --)
Performance of the Week
P Zelton 'Deathblow' Marrero - The 21st overall pick of the 2035 draft by Batavia was traded to Santo Domingo in the Sheng Jong trade of 2038. Always serviceable but never a star, 'Deathblow' has amassed a 72-76 record with a career 4.38 ERA and 90 ERA+. On May 14th against Philly though Marrero was on top of his game as he pitched the best game of his career, and the 111th no-hitter in the history of the BLB. Over his outing he allowed no hits, no runs, walked two, and struck out eight as the Rum Runners won 3-0. On the season Merrero is now 2-4 with a 2.64 ERA and 155 ERA+.
Prospect of the Week
1B Mitch Marcinkowski - The 25 year old is the 26th overall prospect in the league and is unhappy about still being in the minors. Acquired from Maine in trade last season for Dominique Graham, Mitch helped lead the Barre Greys to the 2046 Bush League Championship. During that season he was selected to the All-Star team, the Futures Game, was named the championship MVP, and won the Platinum Stick and Outstanding Hitter award. Scouts love his work ethic and say he has all the skills to be a starting first basemen in the BLB. Time to see what the kid can do!
Five Things We Think We Think
1. We think we might have a broken record this season. Chadd Chua stole five more bases this week, giving him a league leading 29 on the season. He's on pace to swipe 120 bases for the season, which would far surpass the record of 92 set by Richie 'Powder' van Luik in 2039. Luik is the only player to ever steal more than 90 bases in a season, and he also holds the second, fourth, and seventh highest totals in a single season. 'Powder' now has 844 career stolen bases, or 167 more than Jerry 'Juiced' Daly. The next active player on the list is Wilmington's Erwijn 'Moriarity' de Jong who sits at 671. At 37 years old he only needs seven 'swipes' to surpass Daly and move into second place all-time.
2. We think that things don't look good for 'Moriarity'. The Clowns aren't known for running the bases this year. They only have 25 total on the season...or four less than Chua has by himself. Wilmington has also been thrown out 19 times, and their stolen base percentage of 56.8% is the worst in the league. Apparently first base coach Dave Wagner is having a hard time getting through while teaching base running. Wagner played for Syracuse from 2026 to 2036 where he amassed 206 stolen bases of his own and was a 2031 DL All-Star.
3. With the 2049 draft right around the corner that can only mean that the so called 'feeder leagues' are almost at a close. The Cape Cod League is in the final four, the NCAA is in the Regionals, and at the High School level the TC Roberson Red Claws are up 1-0 on the Harvard-West Lake Wildcats. We're excited to see how the future stars of the BLB fare.
4. Baltimore was 16-12 a few short weeks since ago. Since then they've lost 12 in a row...one of the longest losing streaks we've seen in quite some time in the BLB. During the streak they have posted a 6.12 ERA and .194 average, both the worst in the league, while having a run differential of -50. The Bulldogs haven't broken the 80 win mark the last three seasons, and things don't look promising this year. Rumors are that first year manager Edgar Luna is already feeling the heat from the GM. He won the AAA championship last season for Juarez, Batavia's AAA team, but that success hasn't translated to the bigs quite yet.
5. What's on tap? Streak wise, besides the Bulldogs, the Patriots have a four game winning streak. It's currently the longest in the league. Led by Aubrey 'Gypsy' Albano, who has a 24 game hitting streak, the Patriots have built a four game lead over the surprising Whalers. Series wise those Patriots and Whalers square off for three games starting today. Pawtucket is at home, where they are a deadly 15-2 on the season. It's time to see if Hartford is for real. Meanwhile in the Import we get to see first place Washington travel to first place California for a four game series. It's the first time they have met this season in what has become quite a rivalry over the past decade.
Stat of the Week
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| Longest Losing Streak To Finish a Season (Top 25 Teams) |
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