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08/23/2060
We come back from a short break to see some huge weeks by playoff contenders. First up is Syracuse, who went 6-0 and have won eight straight. They also swept Maine in the process as the Snappers now have a commanding 6.5 game lead in the Ale. Then we had Toronto who went 6-1 to shoot back into the playoff race, as they now sit third in the Wildcard race. Finally we had Windy City who went 6-0. The Blues are 24.5 games back from Seattle in the Bock, but only 5.5 back from the Wildcard. On the other side of life Hartford, New York, and LAD all went 1-6, while Batavia and SDR went 1-5.
Power Rankings
1) Seattle Pilots (123.6, o)
2) Syracuse Snappers (118.3, ++)
3) Phoenix Roadrunners (117.3, -)
4) Baltimore Bulldogs (109.0, o)
5) Montreal Exports (105.3, o)
6) Toronto Canadians (104.6, ++)
7) New York Cyclones (99.9, --)
8) Windy City Blues (95.4, ++)
9) Maine Guides (94.0, -)
10) Wilmington Wildcats (93.1, -)
11) New Orleans Voodoo (93.0, o)
12) Dallas Drillers (91.4, +)
13) Los Angeles Dinos (90.0, --)
14) Pittsburgh Millers (83.6, o)
15) Washington Bats (83.3, +)
16) Denver Bulls (82.6, +)
17) Indianapolis Clowns (82.4, +)
18) Pawtucket Patriots (82.1, --)
19) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (79.1, --)
20) California Kodiaks (73.4, o)
21) Philadelphia Freedom (71.9, +)
22) Carolina Tobs (70.4, +)
23) Hartford Whalers (65.7, -)
24) Batavia Muckdogs (56.7, -)
Performance of the Week
LF Cade McCormick - The Seattle slugger is only 26, but in his 6th full season with the Pilots he's established himself as the heart and soul of the team. This past week on August 19th against New York he smashed two home runs, drove in five, and scored twice as Seattle won 7-3. For as good as Ryan Carr is, McCormick is just Mr Consistent who's once again hitting .275 with 22 HR, 68 RBI and a 142 OPS+.
Prospect of the Week
2B Kearney Gallegos - He has the ability to play every position in the field, as well as hit for average, hit for power, and steal bases. Sounds like a promising combo to us. Last season for the Ducks he hit .330 with 12 HR, 33 RBI, and 15 SB while playing all 48 games at second. He also stays after games to lift a few times a week according to his coaches. Gallegos could be a star in the making.
Five Things We Think We Think
1. We missed it two weeks ago, but a big cheers to Dane Jennings who recorded his 3000th BLB hit on August 11th. He was the 21st player in the history of the league to reach the accomplishment, and now with 3,015 total hits he just passed Mel 'Doorbell' Woodbury to move up to 20th all-time. Drafted 15th overall in 2040 by Dallas, he was traded to Toronto in the Dave Nichols deal in 2043. He went on to play for the Canadians for nine seasons before being traded to Santo Domingo. During his time in Canada he had one of the greatest runs in BLB history from 2047 to 2051. Over those five seasons he won the Stout Slugger in 2049, 2050, and 2051, and he racked up a 40.7 WAR. How far ahead of everyone else was he, well second place was Colby 'Mirror' Hullinger, who put up a 29.9 WAR. Jennings has also been selected to eight All-Star games and has won eight DWI's at shortstop.
2. The playoff picture is a little clearer...okay maybe not so much. We'll just say it's a little more narrowed down...kind of. In the Import, Denver and Windy City trail by four and 5.5 games respectively. The Bulls now have a -8 PYT, which is double second place Toronto at -4. It looks to be a race between those two and Washington for the final Wildcard spot. In the Domestic there are nine teams within 9.5 games of each other. Maine and New Orleans are first for the Wildcard at 67-60, while Indy is at 57-69. Between them are Toronto, Wilmington, Dallas, Santo Domingo, Pittsburgh, and Pawtucket. In fact Montreal is the only team with a 100% chance of postseason play thanks to our friends at Stats+, while in the Import the 100% club features Baltimore, New York, Phoenix, and Seattle. Needless to say it could be a wild September in the DL.
3. The Preseason Predictions had Syracuse finishing 74-88 and in fifth place in the Ale. Yet here they are 73-53 and holding a 6.5 game lead in the division. The PP must not have foreseen the breakout seasons had by Asher Kappler and Ben Piche, as well as the rookie campaign of Spencer Buccheri. The 23 year old Kappler was a first round pick in 2057 who's hitting .338 with 25 HR, 101 RBI, 9 SB and a 7.5 WAR. His 1.5 WAR over second place Brian Wheat is one of the largest we've seen this early in the year. Then we have the 22 year old Piche who was a 2055 second round pick by Pawtucket, and hit .286 last season. In his second year he's hitting .351, which is tops in the Domestic. Finally we have the 21 year old Buccheri, who was a second round pick in 2056 by Syracuse. In his first season he's hitting .262 while smashing 22 home runs and starting 106 games at first base. Throw in 25 year old Charlie 'Mailman' Jones and it's a youth movement in Syracuse.
4. Windy City is finally winning and they deserve it. After a disastrous April and May (15-38), they rebound in June and July (28-26) before dominating August so far (14-5). They have been a pretty good pitching team, that has been completely hamstrung by poor offense. In the Import they are 10th in runs scored, 11th in slugging and walks, and 12th in extra-base hits and home runs. What they are very good at is defense. They have a combined Zone Rating of +40.14, which is 10.43 points higher than second place Montreal. On the other end we have poor Batavia at -50.09. They have some pretty good players in the field, but things just haven't worked out there way this season. Mama said there would be years like this.
5. What's on tap? We get a 1v1 again as Baltimore travels to Seattle for a four game series. So far the Bulldogs are 2-1 against the Pilots this season with eight more to play (counting this series). We also get to see some Lager match-ups as New Orleans travels to Toronto, Dallas heads to Santo Domingo, and Wilmington goes north to Montreal. All of those series with impact the Wildcard race in the Domestic. Streak wise Syracuse has won eight straight, Windy City has won six straight, and Henry 'The Artist' Miller (MON) has a 16 game hitting streak.
Stat of the Week
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