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08/18/2053
The Pilots go 5-2 and stay atop the PR for another week. Coming up fast behind them are the Voodoo, who went 6-1, to move within four games of Dallas for the Lager lead. Other top weeks were Baltimore and Carolina who each went 6-1 as well. The Bulldogs are 57-62, yet have a 71% chance of making the playoffs. Meanwhile Carolina is back above .500 at 61-59 and has a 96% chance of being postseason bound. On the other side of life New York, Wilmington, LAD, and Denver all went 1-6. Sometimes you are the bat, sometimes you are the ball.
Power Ranking
1) Seattle Pilots (119.5, o)
2) New Orleans Voodoo (116.5, ++)
3) California Kodiaks (116.0, +)
4) Washington Bats (115.5, -)
5) Dallas Drillers (111.5, -)
6) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (107.0, -)
7) Indianapolis Clowns (101.2, +)
8) Carolina Tobs (99.5, ++)
9) Pittsburgh Millers (98.8, -)
10) Maine Guides (98.2, o)
11) Baltimore Bulldogs (93.2, ++)
12) Pawtucket Patriots (88.5, --)
13) Toronto Canadians (82.4, +)
14) Los Angeles Dinos (81.5, --)
15) Montreal Exports (81.5, --)
16) Windy City Blues (79.0, +)
17) Phoenix Roadrunners (78.8, ++)
18) Denver Bulls (78.3, --)
19) Batavia Muckdogs (75.9, ++)
20) Hartford Whalers (75.5, --)
21) Philadelphia Freedom (72.5, +)
22) Wilmington Wildcats (71.4, --)
23) Syracuse Snappers (69.0, --)
24) New York Cyclones (47.9, o)
Performance of the Week
Pat 'Melody' Nunes - Not a single player broke into the top performances of the season this past week, so we're gonna give it to ol' 'Melody'. At 44 years young the ageless one reached 613 home runs on August 16th, and then 3500 career hits on August 17th. In home runs he is now second all-time, behind only Robert 'Stretch' Jessee. In hits he is third all-time behind Steve Suarez and Dani Trujillo. Hit-wise he only trails Trujillo by 12, a number he is easily set to surpass this season. Nunes made his BLB debut in 2032, and what a career it has become.
Prospect of the Week
3B Wyatt Steinauer - The top ranked player in the CCBL helped lead the Harbor Hawks to two titles in three season, was selected to the 2052 All-Star game, and won the Glove Wizard award twice at third base. At only 19 he'll be draft eligible next year, and he's still raw, but scouts and coaches love his potential to be an "everyday third basemen who can make an impact on a top-tier team."
Five Things We Think We Think
1. Domestic League pitchers are just shaking their head this season. The DL batting average right now is sitting at .282, which would surpass the previous league high of .279 set in 2029. Meanwhile over the Import they are at .255, which is about the average over the previous 74 seasons played. In the Domestic there are two pitchers with a sub 3.00 ERA, Miller's Theodore Blume and Bert Franklin. In the Import there are four, with California's Colin Jackson sitting at 3.02. The year of the hitter?
2. Aubrey 'Gypsy' Albano is at it again, as he's reached yet another 20 game hitting streak. This is the ninth time in his career he has done so, and second this season alone. After being discovered by Miami scouts in 2037 he was traded to Pawtucket in 2041, where he debuted for the Patriots at 20 years old. He's now only 32 yet has been to eight All-Star games, was the Designated Driver at second base five times, and won the DWI at second three times. He's closing in on 2500 hits and is hitting .350 with 39 doubles, 48 RBI and 16 SB this season.
3. Josiah Foust is on the injury list once again, this time for good...well at least for this season. The 30 year old was a second round pick by Wilmington in 2040 where he played for six seasons. He was traded to California in 2050 and named to his first ever All-Star team in 2051. He is a phenomenal fielder who's won 6 DWI's at second, and this season was hitting .301 with 34 RBI and 46 SB. Sadly on August 16th he went down running the bases and was diagnosed with a hip injury that will keep him out the rest of the year. It is the seventh time he has been injured this year, with injuries to his hand, ankle, finger, knee, back, hamstring, and finally hip.
4. As August is more than half over it appears that Indy, Maine, and Pawtucket will fight it out for the final two wildcard spots in the Domestic. In the Import it looks like Denver and Baltimore will duke it out for the final wildcard spot there. Division wise Washington is the only lock, with Dallas being a 88% favorite, Pittsburgh a 75% favorite, and Seattle a 51% favorite to win their respective divisions.
5. What's on tap? This week we get another Dallas at New Orleans match-up as the Voodoo try and close the gap on the Drillers. They hold a 4-2 season advantage, and have one more three-game series in late September after this one. Good thing for Dallas they play Pawtucket after, who they are 7-0 against this year. We also get to see Seattle at LAD for three. They are tied at three each as the Dinos try and stop the slide. They are 4-11 this month and have lost six straight. Finally we get to see Pittsburgh at Indianapolis. The Clowns have turned it up since July 1st, where they have gone 27-15 and shrunk the division lead to just three games.
Stat of the Week
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