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07/14/2053
We took a week off, missed a 15 game winning streak by Dallas, and come back to interleague play and the same ol' Bats being in first place. This week Washington went 5-1 that included a three game sweep of Montreal, to boost their record to a league best 61-30. Other great weeks were had by Wilmington and Phoenix who each went 5-1. On the flip side Pawtucket, Philly, Hartford, and Syracuse all went 1-5. With everyone playing six here are some team leaders: Wilmington scored 39 runs (Syr 18), LAD hit 10 home runs (PAW 1), Phoenix swiped 15 bases (DEN 0), Seattle allowed only 16 runs (BAT 40), and opponents hit .211 off of the Pilots (BAL .348).
Power Rankings
1) Washington Bats (127.7, +)
2) Dallas Drillers (119.7, -)
3) Seattle Pilots (117.8, o)
4) California Kodiaks (117.7, o)
5) New Orleans Voodoo (107.6, o)
6) Los Angeles Dinos (100.8, ++)
7) Pittsburgh Millers (99.9, -)
8) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (97.9, -)
9) Carolina Tobs (96.0, +)
10) Toronto Canadians (95.0, ++)
11) Pawtucket Patriots (92.1, --)
12) Indianapolis Clowns (90.0, ++)
13) Maine Guides (87.0, -)
14) Wilmington Wildcats (82.1, ++)
15) Montreal Exports (82.1, -)
16) Phoenix Roadrunners (81.9, ++)
17) Denver Bulls (80.1, --)
18) Windy City Blues (77.1, ++)
19) Baltimore Bulldogs (76.1, --)
20) Hartford Whalers (72.1, --)
21) Syracuse Snappers (69.0, -)
22) Batavia Muckdogs (68.6, --)
23) Philadelphia Freedom (64.2, -)
24) New York Cyclones (57.7, o)
Performance of the Week
RF Justin Knight - The 22 year old started out the season slow but hit .353 in June and is hitting .356 in July. He also turned in the #3 performance of the season on July 12th against Baltimore. In the 12-5 win he had five hits, two home runs, drove in five, and scored three times. On the season the rook is now hitting .304 with 13 HR and 45 RBI while putting up a 126 OPS+.
Prospect of the Week
LF Allan Jett - The UCLA freshman set the NCAA on fire as he finished this season hitting .385/.491/.736 with 16 HR and 40 RBI in 48 games. He was an All-Star, finished second for the NCAA Outstanding Hitter award, and won the Platinum Stick in left field. Coaches love his work ethic, consider him one of the smartest guys on the team, and scouts think he can be a .320 hitter someday in the BLB. He has a long way to go before even getting drafted, but he could easily turn into a top three pick when that day comes.
Five Things We Think We Think
1. Congrats to Denver's Xzavier 'Blockhead' Medellin who reached 1000 extra base hits this past week, making him the 26th player in the history of the league to do so. Drafted 11th overall in the 2034 draft by Phoenix he was the 2039 Refreshing New Brew for the Roadrunners and went to two All-Star games for them. He signed a 7 year/$124.5m contract with Indy in 2045, went to another All-Star game with them, before opting out in 2047. He then signed an 8 year/$199m contract with Denver and went to another All-Star game.
Unfortunately for the Bulls he opted in on this contract, and they are on the hook for another $80 million. That wouldn't be bad if he was still in All-Star form, but at 36 years old he is hitting .243 with 8 HR, 41 RBI, and a -0.2 WAR. He is a fan favorite though and helps fill the seats, which takes away some of the sting.
2. The 2053 All-Star selections are made this week and we have a few guys who lead in votes and should make their first appearance. Over in the Domestic we have 2B Dennis Brantley (NO), OF Devin Welninski (PIT), OF Jaret Foley (DAL), and OF Ed Baker (MON). In the Import we have C Bert Thoma (LAD), 2B Douglas Morrison (SEA), SS Kynan Shaw (SEA), and OF Evan Turner (CAR). Congrats to all the new blood. Meanwhile it appears that Colby 'Mirror' Hullinger (SEA) will be making his 9th trip, while Andy Phillips (BAL) will be making his 10th.
3. We have a lot of PYT angst in the Import this season as the negative numbers just keep piling up. Seattle, Baltimore, and Los Angeles 'lead' all coming in at -5, with Batavia right behind them at -4. Meanwhile the worst in the Domestic is Hartford at just -3. On the plus side those pesky Bats lead everyone with a +6, with Philly at +5, and Windy City and Cali at +4. Over in the Domestic, Toronto is +4 with several teams coming in at +3.
4. Some big extensions this past week as Washington locked up Julian 'Skeeter' Ludin for another six years at a cool $123,000,000, and Baltimore signed Andy Phillips for another two years at $19,400,000. Ludin was the 14th pick in the second round by the Bats in 2043 and at 27 is one of the premier second basemen in the league. Last season he helped lead Washington to the title while hitting .345/.385/.616 with 18 HR, 75 RBI, 47 SB, and a 5.3 WAR. It would have been higher but he was forced to play shortstop out of necessity and his -11.2 ZR there hurt him.
Phillips was the first overall pick of the 2040 draft that was acquired when Baltimore sent Dominique Graham to Syracuse for the rights to that pick. They had hopes of making him a starter, but apparently only late round picks for the Bulldogs turn into top flight prospects. Phillips ended up being a shutdown late innings reliever/closer where as mentioned he is heading to his 10th All-Star game and has taken home four Last Call Relief awards.
5. What's on tap? In the short All-Star week we get a battle as New Orleans travels to Dallas for three. The Drillers are having their best offensive season in...well forever. They are hitting .302 (previous high .286 in 2046), slugging .479 (previous high .460 in 2046), and have an .841 OPS (previous high .805 in yes...2046). All those numbers are leading the league. Throw in the fact that they have scored 530 runs, which is an astounding 74 runs more than second place New Orleans. The Voodoo don't have those numbers but they are top three in the league in each of those categories as well. They also only trail the Drillers by 4.5 games in the Lager. New Orleans does have a 2-1 series lead over Dallas, and with nine more games against each other (counting this series) we are excited to see the fireworks.
Stat of the Week
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| Unluckiest Teams Based on Pythagorean Record (Top 25 Teams) |
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| Cumulative Franchise Pythagorean Difference (Using pythagenpat exponent for pythagorean record) |
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