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08/02/2060
It was the perfect bell-curve type of week as four teams went 4-2 (Montreal, Denver, Wilmington, New Orleans), four teams went 2-4 (California, Washington, Pawtucket, LAD), and the other 16 teams went 3-3. The Domestic playoff picture still has six teams fighting for four Wildcard spots, while the Import looks to be down to five for four spots. We do have a new Power Ranking leader though as Seattle is back on top. Even with a.500 week featuring a 5.02 ERA they squeaked ahead of Baltimore. Strange considering the Bulldogs went 3-3 against two teams with winning records and the Pilots went 3-3 against two teams with losing records. Once again that's why they settle it on the field.
Power Rankings
1) Seattle Pilots (119.1, +)
2) Baltimore Bulldogs (116.1, -)
3) Phoenix Roadrunners (113.7, +)
4) Montreal Exports (106.1, o)
5) New York Cyclones (105.5, -)
6) Syracuse Snappers (99.4, ++)
7) Maine Guides (97.5, -)
8) Los Angeles Dinos (96.8, -)
9) Wilmington Wildcats (96.6, ++)
10) Toronto Canadians (92.2, ++)
11) Dallas Drillers (92.2, --)
12) Washington Bats (91.8, -)
13) New Orleans Voodoo (91.6, +)
14) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (89.2, --)
15) Denver Bulls (88.3, o)
16) Indianapolis Clowns (82.2, +)
17) Pittsburgh Millers (78.1, -)
18) Pawtucket Patriots (78.1, -)
19) Hartford Whalers (76.0, ++)
20) Carolina Tobs (73.2, +)
21) Windy City Blues (72.3, -)
22) Batavia Muckdogs (70.9, -)
23) Philadelphia Freedom (66.9, -)
24) California Kodiaks (66.5, o)
Performance of the Week
CF Devon Cundiff - He didn't make the Top Performances of the season but on August 7th against Hartford he sure put up what has to be close to one. In six at bats he had four hits, one home run, drove in five, and scored twice as Phoenix won 8-6. The 23 year old former first round pick is already in his third full season with the Birds and has made the All-Star team in each of them. This season he's hitting .320/.361/.583 with 18 HR, 72 RBI, 37 SB, and a 4.9 WAR. Super...star.
Prospect of the Week
P Raymond 'Fox' McCullough - The 16 year old is draft eligible next season and scouts believe he should rank among the best pitching prospect in any organization. He currently throws 96 mph...as a 16 year old...and his fastball, curve, and sinker all have the chance to be generating strikeouts. Throw in the fact that he has the stamina to start and finish games and he could be a top three pick.
Five Things We Think We Think
1. It's hard to see anyone get hurt, but it was especially painful on August 7th to see Dallas starter Dawson Lamb leave the game in the bottom of the fifth holding his elbow. An MRI later showed he has a partially torn UCL and will take at least eight months to get back on the field. Sadly it could be the end of the 41 year olds career. Drafted by Toronto in the fourth round of the 2039 draft he was traded to the Miami Baseball Team (Dallas) where he ended up playing for nine seasons. Considering that's a good career for most, it's astounding he wasn't even halfway through. After that he played for Pawtucket, New Orleans, New York, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and finally back to Dallas. This was his 20th season, and although he was only a 2x All-Star, he's been a better than average workhorse. He's started 573 career games which places him third all-time, and his 232 career wins is sixteenth all-time. If this is the end, it was quite the career.
2. Windy City stopper R.V. Weatherby is absolutely dealing this season. In 55 games and 114.1 innings pitched his 1.97 ERA and 191 ERA+ are tops among all pitchers. He throws a devastating slider, an almost equal as devastating sinker, and when he hits close to triple digits on the radar gun it's all she wrote for opposing batters. He was a 2054 All-Star and Last Call award winner, and went back to the All-Star game in 2056. Unfortunately he struggled in 2058 and 2059 and a few thought his best days were behind him. Well welcome to 2060 Mr Weatherby, where up is down and left is right! Chicago fans are sure excited to see you back and better than ever, as R.V. has become one of the most beloved athletes in the city.
3. Can Denver make a run to the playoffs? Currently they are 3.5 games behind Washington for the final Import playoff spot. After a demoralizing 10-16 record in July, they are 5-2 so far this month but have their work cut out for them. Even though their opponents SOS is .498 down the stretch, they have series against NYC, Seattle, and Baltimore coming up. The good news is those three series are sandwiched between six games against California. The Kodiaks are 43-70 and have thrown in the towel (multiple times this season alone), so these are must win games for the Bulls. Stats+ has Denver's playoff odds at 27.8%, thanks in part to a leagues worse -7 PYT. Will the ball finally bounce the Bulls way?
4. Baltimore's James 'Handyman' Hylton racked up five hits in five at bats this past week against Dallas, which helped elevate his Import leading .348 average. In the process it's almost making Seattle slugger Ryan Carr's quest to win the Triple Crown darn near impossible. Carr leads the Import in home runs (33) and RBI (91), but he's 'only' hitting .325, which puts him third in the Import. The last batting Triple Crown the league had was in 2043, when a kid by the name of Dominique Graham did it for the Snappers. That season Graham hit .341 with 46 HR and 122 RBI and also took home the Stout Slugger and Designated Driver. Can Carr do enough to close the gap, or will Hylton (who hit .356 last season) just continue to step on the gas.
5. What's on tap? This week we get a 1v1 as Montreal heads to Syracuse. The Exports have won four of the seven games against the Snappers to date, and this four-game series will be it between them for the regular season. The Exports had a bad April, then won 16, 17, and 18 games respectively the last three months. Now they are 5-2 in August as they hope to continue the winning trend. Meanwhile Syracuse is three games under .500 since June 1st. Maine is actually pushing them in the 'Awful Ale', but they've been coasting since a 20-9 record in May separated them from the pack. Some other series to watch: Maine at Dallas, Washington at Phoenix, and Toronto at New Orleans.
Stat of the Week
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| Teams With The Closest Balance Between Power and Speed (Top 25 Teams) |
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