The Captain lost for the rest of the season.
 

The Brewers long-time team captain, Abel Pennington, who was off to a fine start in 1972, suffered a ruptured bicep tendon in his latest start and has been lost for the remainder of the season.

Justin Peacock was re-called from AAA Chester to take his place on the roster and presumably in the rotation (though he might share the last spot in the rotation with lefty Matt Helm.)

April 28-30, 1972, versus San Francisco
 

The Brewers return home to finish the month of April with 3 games against the San Francisco Velocity.

The Velocity are a pretty poor pitching team with a potent lineup that inexplicably has struggled thus far to score runs. (They are 10th in the league in runs against and 8th in runs scored.)

In game 1 of the series the Brewers continue their pattern of scoring runs in bunches or pretty much not at all. They win game 1, 12-1. Cheol-han Lee improves to 4-0 with a 1.80 ERA in getting the complete game victory. He gave up 5 hits while striking out 7 and walking none. Antonio Puente, having recently returned from the IL (Paul Mackins, who did a good job in his absence, was sent back down to AAA Chester), went 2 for 3 with 3 RBI and 2 walks and hit his first homer of the season. Youngster Joe McPhillips (.290/.333/.613) hit his 2nd homerun and now has 11 RBI in only 34 plate appearances. Bobby Erbakan (.291/.381/.436) went 2 for 4 and hit his 1st homer of the season also.

The Brewers lose game 2, 5-1, as veteran knuckle-baller Dennis Daniel keeps them out of rhythm all game. Abel Pennington got the start for Denver and as previously reported had to leave the game early with what proved to be a season-ending injury. Bobby Erbakan (.310/.403/.448) is really heating up and went 2 for 3 in the game. Jamison Bash (.212/.279/.404), off to a slow start after his MVP season of 1971, did hit his 3rd homer of 1972.

The Brewers lose a heart-breaker on the last day of April as they carry a 4-3 lead into the 9th inning only to see superstar reliever Jose de los Santos give up a 2-run homerun by Velocity centerfielder Antonio Sosa as the Brewers lose 5-4. Harry Lyerly pitched a solid game, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits in 7 innings pitched, striking out 8 and walking 3. Amazingly enough, Lyerly, whose known great weakness is a propensity to give up homeruns, has not allowed one yet this season in his 4 starts. One good sign in the game was Jamison Bash (.250/.318/.429) apparently starting to heat up at the plate as he went 3 for 4.

The Brewers finish the month of April with a 10-7 record, tied with the Brooklyn Aces for 3rd place in the MGL, behind the Los Angeles Spinners who are now 13-4. Though it is a little too early in the season for this to significant, the Brewers do lead the MGL in run differential at +30, while L.A. is +26.

Tomlin wins Player of the Month award (AA Nashville)
 

Nashville Red Wing thirdbaseman Mike Tomlin had a great opening month and won the Player of the Month award for his league. Granted, this is Tomlin's third year at AA Nashville and he's a seasoned veteran at age 24.
He still has the potential to play a bit at the WPK level, though likely in a very limited role, but he is blocked in the Brewers organization by Jose Careaga and Mike Foster.

When your Iron Man superstar injures himself arm wrestling
 

Silly, Ryan Rodgers. What was he trying to prove getting into an arm wrestling match at a local bar.
At nearly 34 years old and in the middle of the baseball season, he should maybe just skip the bar scene altogether.

With Rodgers heading to the Injured List, Paul Mackins will rejoin the club from AAA and Andrew Kennedy will get the lion's share of starts in leftfield.

May 1-2, 1972, versus Phoenix
 

The Brewers then host their arch-rivals, the Phoenix Speed Devils, in a brief 2-game set.

As has often been the case this season, when the Brewers score more than a couple of runs, they score them in bunches. In game 1 the Brewers pounded the Speed Devils 13-1. Steve Green pitched a much better game than he really needed to, allowing just 1 run (unearned) on 6 hits over 7 1/3rd innings, with 9 strikeouts and nary a walk allowed. He improves to 1-1 with a 2.10 ERA.
Offensive stars were numerous but let's focus on two:
Bobby Erbakan (.328/.416/.463) appears to be having a breakout season at the plate. He went 3 for 5 in this one, hitting his 6th double and scoring twice.
Andrew Kennedy (.267/.302/.450) got off to a slow start this season but has been heating up of late and in this one he went 3 for 5 with 3 runs scored, 3 RBI, and hit his first triple and second HR of the season.

It wasn't as spectacular a win in game 2, but it was another win over the dreaded Speed Devils nevertheless. Bobby Erbakan (.357/.444/.514) was again front and center as he went 3 for 3 with 2 doubles (giving him 8 for the season) and picked up his 5th stolen base in as many tries. Daniel Torres got the win, his first of the season, to improve to 1-2 with a 3.24 ERA.

May 3-4, 1972, versus Charlotte
 

Next the Brewers host the Charlotte Sting for 2 games at Centennial Stadium.
The Sting, after years of futility, are seemingly a team on the rise. In their first six years of existence, the Sting never finished better than 8th place (in a 10-team league). Last season they rose a bit to 6th but still finished well under .500. But the expectation for this year is that could at least reach the break-even mark and they are off to a solid start. The Sting are 3rd in the league in batting average but closer to the middle of the pack in all other offensive categories. But with a much improved bullpen- led by free agent acquisition Jamel McNeil, arguably the most talented reliever in the game but also the most despised player in the WPK- they are 3rd in runs against in the MGL and have the best bullpen ERA.

The Sting and the Brewers played to a 3-3 draw after 9 innings in the first game but the Sting then broke through for 4 runs in the top of the 12th against Eric Singer and the Brewers could not counter and lost 7-3. (The starting pitcher for the Sting was former Brewer Adam Getchell, marking the third game in a row where the Brewers faced a former teammate in that role- prior to this it was Joey Brown and Lani Malolu of Phoenix.)

The Brewers dropped a tight one in game 2 as the Sting prevailed 3-2 and swept the short series to move 1 1/2 ahead of the Brewers in 2nd place (Denver drops to 4th behind the surging Brooklyn Aces.) Lefty Matt Helm got his first start for the Brewers this season and pitched quite well- allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 9 hits over 8 innings pitched (4 K, 2 BB) but was handed the loss to fall to 1-1 with a 1.40 ERA. Jamison Bash hit his 4th HR of the season in the loss.

1972 Draft Pool Announced
 

Today is the day when the official pool of players eligible to be selected in the upcoming amateur player draft is announced and team's can really start to shore up their lists of potential picks.

According to the OSA, a few of the players expected to go very early in the draft are 18-year old prep star starting pitcher Kyle Newsome, 21-year old collegiate firstbaseman Edward Woods, and 18-year old USC reliever Mike McBride.
It should be noted that the Brewers scouting staff isn't nearly so high on these three players. They see Newsome as a borderline prospect at best as they aren't sold on either his movement or his control developing as much as the OSA believes. While they share the OSA's opinion about Woods' great homerun power potential, they believe his gap power will top out at average at best and they do not see him improving his K rate as much as the OSA does and therefore predict that his contact ability will be only slightly above average at best. They are closest to the OSA on their assessment of McBride, but they have doubts about him developing his movement beyond slightly above average and they think his splitter will be quite good but not as elite as the OSA seems to believe.

On the other hand, the Brewers scouting department is much higher on Nation Ford High School (Ft. Mill, South Carolina) outfielder Danny Knepp than the OSA is, though this might reflect an organizational bias in favor of defensively gifted players with top-of-the-scale speed and running abilities. Secondbaseman Robert Marinko, out of Bloomfield High School in Bloomfield, New Jersey is another favorite of the Brewers scouting department. They see him as projecting as a solid big league bat-first second sacker with above average speed and acceptable, if not first-rate, defense.

Overall, it does not appear to be a very top-heavy draft class but it goes rather deep in terms of potentially big league useful players, so the Brewers hope to find someone of value left when they get their first pick in the supplemental first round.

(Please note that the first three players listed here are showing with the OSA scouting ratings and the last two have the Brewers scouting staff ratings displayed.)

My favorite name in the new draft class. Now I'll forever be on the lookout for a Lou Trammell.

Well, Golly!
 

Second favorite.

May 5-7, 1972, versus Oklahoma City
 

The Brewers stay at home and host the Oklahoma City Diamond Kings for 3 games.

Harry Lyerly starts the first game and finally gives up his first long ball of 1972. Unfortunately it was a big one- a 3-run shot in the 6th inning that broke a 1-1 tie. The Brewers end up losing 5-3 and Lyerly falls to 2-1 with a 3.45 ERA. Lyerly did strike out 10 batters in just 6 1/3rd innings pitched while walking only 2 but he also gave up all 5 runs in 10 hits. Rookie Joe McPhillips (.279/.340/.535) had another good game, going 3 for 4, hitting his first double of the season.

The final score in the second game was nearly identical, with the Brewers again on the losing end, this time by a score of 5-2. Steve Green had a game much like the one Lyerly had the day before, striking out 9 while walking just 2 in 6 2/3rds innings, but also allowing 5 runs on 9 hits. Green drops to 1-2 with a 2.95 ERA. Joe McPhillips collects the only extra base hit for the Brewers (they only managed 5 hits in the game) as he hits his second double of the season.

It took 16 innings, but the Brewers eventually once again lost by a 5-3 score. The bright spot for the Brewers in the game was the play of Bobby Erbakan (.341/.434/.505) who went 2 for 6, hitting his 9th double of the season and his 2nd homerun.

The Brewers have now dropped 5 straight and fall to .500 (12-12), putting them 5 games behind the Los Angeles Spinners in 5th place in the MGL. And wouldn't you know it, their next opponent is the Spinners in what is scheduled to be a 4-game series in L.A.

Erbakan MGL Player of the Week
 

If there is one Brewer who certainly can't be blamed for the team's poor play lately it is firstbaseman Bobby Erbakan.
In addition to his usual gold glove play at first, Erbakan lately has been hitting the cover off the ball and this past week that earned him the MGL Player of the Week honors.

May 8-11, 1972, at Los Angeles
 

The Brewers face the first place Spinners at the lovely new Avalon Park for a four game series.
The Brewers leave the series in the same situation as when they started it, with a .500 record, having gained a series split.

In game 1, they were able to stop their five game skid behind the strong pitching of ace Cheol-han Lee. Lee goes the distance, allowing just 1 run on 8 hits with 3 strikeouts and 1 walk allowed, and he improves to 5-0 with a 1.74 ERA. The Brewers win 3-1 and get 2 hits apiece from Andrew Kennedy (.269/.305/.423), Jamison Bash (.256/.302/.465) and the surprising Spencer Wilson (.350/.381/.375).

The Brewers lose 8-6 in the second game when young starting pitcher Justin Peacock struggled for 3 2/3rds innings, giving up 6 runs (4 earned) on 6 hits, walking 4 and striking out 3. The bullpen calmed things down a bit and the Brewers made a late push, scoring 3 runs in the 9th, but unfortunately Joe McPhillips hit a harmless flyball out with runners on the corners to end the game with the Brewers falling short.

The Brewers win a pitching duel in the third game of the series, with Harry Lyerly and the bullpen out-lasting the veteran star and Spinners captain, Jose Santos. Lyerly lasted 7 innings, allowing just 1 run on 2 hits (1 of them a HR), while striking out 5 and walking 3. Lyerly improves to 3-1 with a 3.03 ERA. Bobby Erbakan (.346/.429/.529) hit his 10th double of the season in the game. Andrew Kennedy is getting hot at the plate now (.279/.311/.430) and he went 2 for 3 and hit his 5th double.

The Brewers drop the final game, 5-1. Steve Green is off to an inconsistent start to 1972, as he takes the loss having given up 3 runs on 5 hits in 7 1/3rds innings pitched, walking 3 and striking out the same amount. Green is now 1-3 with a 3.07 ERA. Rookie centerfielder Joe McPhillips (.242/.299/.484) has another one of those games that reminds the team why they are so excited about his future, going 2 for 4, hitting his 3rd double and 3rd triple of the season.

(Interesting/funny note from the second game of the series. Thirdbaseman Jamison Bash needed a breather, so I inserted defensive specialist Oscar Vargas into the game to take his place. But forgot to re-arrange the lineup so that he wasn't hitting in Bash's customary clean-up slot. Vargas, you might remember, is probably the weakest hitter on the team. Once the game started I realized my mistake but decided to just go with it. So what did Vargas do? Oh, he just went 3 for 5 with 2 RBI. Perhaps he was excited about the apparent vote of confidence. :laugh:)

So with the surprising Charlotte Sting red-hot and having just over-taken Los Angeles for first in the MGL, naturally that is where the Brewers are next headed (Charlotte, that is) for a three game series.

"Wild Man" Edwards impressive early on
 

Boy has this guy come out of nowhere.
Jonathan Edwards, a 15th round draft pick in 1967, is off to the best start of any Pittsburgh starting pitcher this year, and better than most any pitcher in the SJL.
Granted, Edwards had a good deal of success in the minors in 1971, being named the Pitcher of the Month three times during the season. But that was at AA. He came into this season just outside of the Top 100 Prospects list at #101. Most scouts seem to perceive him as a middle of the rotation starter at best but more likely a back-end of the rotation guy. And 5 starts is hardly enough to form any great judgments upon, but still, it's a fine start for the kid.
Now about that Wild Man nickname. Ironic, perhaps? After all, we are talking about a guy whose best quality as a pitcher (other than a plus plus slider) is his very fine control.

Good start. He'll probably come down to earth and be about what he was like in AA. Still has some potential, too.

Agreed. Of course he is helped by the fact that homeruns aren't plentiful so far this year so that low movement isn't really killing him.
(Then again, my guy Harry Lyerly has pretty much the same low movement and was Pitcher of the Year in 1970, so this league has some history of being kind to low movement starters. Of course, this guy doesn't have nearly the stuff Lyerly has.)

I suspect he'll be a decent mid-rotation starter if that control gets anywhere near the potential that is projected. Unless the WPK experiences a big boost in power hitting. And if that screwball develops a bit more he will have a fine 4-pitch arsenal.

However it turns out, I just love stories like this in my fictional universe. :D

May 12-14, 1972, at Charlotte
 

The Brewers faced off against the now first place Charlotte Sting at BB&T Ballpark for a three game series.
BB&T and is the smallest park in the MGL, in terms of seating capacity, as it holds a maximum of 34,800 fans. It plays as a slightly hitter friendly park, even friendlier for left-handed hitters than right-handers.

The Brewers got a 5-1 win in the first game as veteran lefty Daniel Torres had his best start of the young season, getting the complete game victory, allowing the 1 run on just 4 hits while striking out 6 and walking just 1 (rare for the control challenged Torres.) He improves to 2-2 with a 2.92 ERA. Rookie Paul Mackins (.235/.235/.353) had a nice game, going 2 for 4, scoring 2 runs and hitting his first big league triple.

Former Brewer Adam Getchell held the visitors to a single run on 6 hits (though also 4 walks) in 6 innings pitched and the Sting beat Denver 2-1 in the second game of the series. The dominant Jamel McNeil pitched the last 3 innings for Charlotte, giving up 3 hits but essentially shutting down the Brewers and earning his 6th save (0.69 ERA.) Andrew Kennedy (.295/.323/.453) hit 2 doubles in the game to give him 7 on the season and Bobby Erbakan (.345/.422/.522) hit double #11 his single at-bat (pinch-hitting.)

In game 3 the Brewers dropped another low-scoring game, ending up on the wrong end of a 3-1 final score. Matt Helm (1-1, 1.95) did a nice job in his 6 innings- allowing just 1 run on 4 hits while striking out 5 and walking 1. The game was tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the 9th inning, but stopper Jose de los Santos was not sharp, giving up 2 runs on 2 hits and taking the loss, dropping to 1-3 with a 3.18 ERA. Catcher Kevin Curtis (.209/.303/.313), off to a very slow start with the bat, is showing some signs of heating up and went 2 for 4 with a pair of doubles in the game, giving him 7 on the season. Bobby Erbakan hit his 12th double, tying him with Portland's Jay Ebersole for the league lead in that category.

With the series loss the Brewers drop under .500 and are in a virtual tie with Phoenix and an exact tie with Baltimore for 4th place in the MGL.

May 16-18, 1972, versus Los Angeles
 

The Brewers return home to Denver to take on the Los Angeles Spinners in a 3-game, mid-week series, hoping that their fortunes might turn in front of the hometown faithful.
That didn't happen.

Although it started out pretty well with a victory in game 1 behind the solid pitching of Harry Lyerly. Lyerly worked 7 innings, giving up 2 runs on just 5 hits while striking out 8 and walking 1. Andrew Kennedy (.310/.337/.470) and Chad Brown (.313/.336/.430) were the hitting stars for the Brewers. Kennedy went 3 for 4 with 2 RBI and hit his 8th double. Brown, in the lead-off slot, went 3 for 5, scored 2 runs, and picked up his 5th stolen base of the season. With the 4-2 win, Lyerly improves to 4-1 with a 2.95 ERA. Jose de los Santos, who has been inconsistent thus far, worked the final 2 innings to get his 4th save (2.84 ERA.)

Game 2 saw another disappointing start by Steve Green, as he was provided a 6-3 lead going into the 4th inning and could not hold it. Green allowed 6 runs on 11 hits in 6 innings pitched, giving up 2 HR's, though also striking out 6 with no walks allowed. In the end the Brewers lost by just one run, 8-7. Green did not figure in the decision and reliever Liann-wei Hua took the loss and drops to 1-1 with a 1.59. With the bad start, Green sees his ERA rise to 3.78. The offense saw quite a few good performances. Among them, Pat Rondeau (.308/.326/.385), who has been one of the most consistently good hitters thus far on the team, went 3 for 5 and hit his 3rd double. Jamison Bash (.254/.307/.439) was also 3 for 5 and hit his 5th HR.

In spite of another fine start by staff ace Cheol-han Lee, the Brewers lost the rubber match of the series 4-2. Lee gave up 2 runs on 5 hits over 8 innings, striking out 6 and walking just 1. At the end of 9 innings the score was tied 2-2. Both bullpens were solid through the 12th, but then in the top of the 13th Eric Singer, who is having a miserable season thus far, gave up 2 runs and the Brewers were unable to counter in the bottom of the frame. Singer falls to 0-2 with a 6.43 ERA. One nice note for the Brewers in the game is that youngster Jonathan Koch, recently brought up from AAA Chester as slumping Danny Roman was sent down to clear his head a bit, collected his first big league hit, an 8th inning double, and came around to score his first WPK run as well.

Kennedy inks 6-year extension!
 

In the midst of a very rough month for the Brewers, one bright spot has certainly been the play of Andrew Kennedy. The left-fielder with the sweet left-handed swing has not only emerged as one of the better players on the team (currently 4th in WAR among position players on the Brewers squad) but he is unquestionably one of the most respected players in the clubhouse, where, at the still tender age of 25, he is looked to as a leader.

Rumor has it that Brewers management had approached Kennedy's agent with an offer to keep him in purple for next year (he was arbitration eligible at the end of the season) but were surprised to find that Kennedy had other ideas, reportedly seeking an 8-year contract. While that was a bit more than team management was prepared to offer, they eventually decided that he was valuable enough, and his demands reasonable enough, that they did ink him to contract that will extend through his age 31 season (with a team option for that last year.)

The Brewers outfield picture is a bit crowded, admittedly, but with veteran superstar Ryan Rodgers having an opt out after next season, Antonio Puente's contract expiring at the end of 1974, and Pat Rondeau only under team control for one more season, Kennedy is the youngest and most reliable of the experienced outfielders on the team. (Joe McPhillips is still considered the future centerfielder, but he has been struggling at the plate quite a bit of late in this his rookie season.) Plus, with Kennedy being the best backup at first for Bobby Erbakan, management is convinced they will be able to find ample playing time for him in the future.

Baltimore's Sutherland Hurls First No-No of 1972
 

In just his 3rd big league start, the Baltimore Lords' 25-year old righty Chris Sutherland threw the first no-hitter of the 1972 season, blanking the Phoenix Speed Devils potent offense, 3-0.

It wasn't the prettiest of no-hitters as Sutherland managed to walk 9 Speed Devils (while striking out 8) and still get the shutout along with the no-hitter.
Sutherland isn't considered a premium talent but he is a very hard worker, and today that work paid off in spectacular fashion.

***The View from Outside the Park***
 

I wanted to fill in some blanks and add some context about the WPK, especially for any of you who might just be getting acquainted with this thread and didn't follow along during the OOTP19 portion of this fictional universe.

So first a little information about some processes that I use that are mostly analog but interact with and inform the WPK.

1) The creation of WPK relatives of current players. Basically this is to ensure that at least some current WPK players will have relatives who also exist at some point of time in the WPK universe. This consists of an analog process which identifies on an annual basis two current WPK players who will have a relative who also plays baseball professionally. These relatives could be from the same generation as the current player (brother, cousin), or the next generation (son, son-in-law), or the generation after that (grandson). The process establishes a date of birth and name for the relative to be created and populated into the WPK universe and identifies what year they will enter via the amateur player draft. The process also involves identification of position and player type. I won't go into the details about this here, but essentially it involves having some player archetypes (speedster, defensive whiz, slugger, etc. among hitters, flame thrower (2 types), control artist (2 types), workhorse, etc. for pitchers, plus the rare Superstar (regardless of position.) There are then a series of templates for ratings for the various player (arche-)types and it is identified before-hand which template will be used for each created relative player. Early in the year that the player is to enter the draft I create a new player in the WPK OOTP universe to be part of the upcoming draft pool. The system is built so that most of these relative players will either never make it to the big leagues or will be marginal players in the WPK (Superstars being the obvious exception) but with the potential for some to turn into solid players or even stars.

2) WPK retired player deaths. Like the process described above, this is an analog approach for adding more full immersion to my OOTP fictional universe. Nobody lives forever and identifying when WPK (former) players pass away provides a more expansive view of the history of the league. It is a good time to look back at the past and one player's role in the WPK. And it provides the possibility of some interesting storylines around a player turning a milestone age (90, even 100?) and/or having the distinction of being the oldest living former WPK player. I'll leave the details aside here, but will just say that this involves maintaining a list of retired WPK players grouped into age categories, with an analog process (all of this gives me a chance to have the joy of rolling the 20-sided die) to identify, on January 1st, what former players will pass away during the current calendar year, what the date of their death will be, and what their cause of death will be. Thus far, given that we are early in the history of the WPK and the oldest former player is only in his upper-40's, no deaths have yet been identified. (This process is restricted to players who had at least one appearance in the WPK- career minor leaguers are not included.)

3) Statistical modifiers. The WPK started in 1965, mirrored on the structure, finances, and strategic norms of that season in the MLB. And for the time being anyway, I am letting the league move forward with finances and strategies mirroring the MLB season that matches the current WPK season. But for statistical modifiers I decided to pick a 20-year major league span (I settled on 1972-1991) and just prior to each WPK season (day before Opening Day) I roll a 20-sided die which dictates which MLB season to base statistical modifiers upon.

Some notes about league settings:
While I cannot remember the details of all of the settings I used to start the WPK (but could certainly share these later if anyone is interested), I can say that I use a setting that is pretty forgiving of aging and leads to somewhat longer careers and more graceful declines than might be strictly realistic in terms of what actually happens in the MLB.

I do use league evolution, but (for now, anyway) a few options are not allowed-primarily the institution of the DH and any change in the 40-man roster.
Thus far just one instance of league evolution has occurred in the WPK when, prior to the 1971 season, the number of major league service years required for free agency was increased to 7, with a corresponding increase in years of arbitration eligibility.

There is one feeder league that operates in the WPK universe and it is on the collegiate level. I am toying with creating others but so far it is just the one.

It is quite likely that I will be creating an independent league sometime in the next few seasons.

There is an existing Arizona Fall League and has been for several years now. (Current Brewers rookie Joe McPhillips starred in it early in his minor league career as did Bobby Erbakan.)

I also occasionally identify former WPK players who might make good coaches/managers, etc. (high leadership, high intelligence, mostly) and go into commish mode to make sure they are added to the available personnel list. I also have earmarked some minor leaguers, likely never to make the WPK, who could become coaches/managers after their professional playing careers end and will do the same with them.

That is all I can think of right now and probably more than most of you really want or need to know. But just wanted to fill in a few of the details for the few of you who might find this interesting.

May 18-21, 1972, versus Brooklyn
 

The Brewers end the home-stand with a 4 game series against the 3rd place Brooklyn Aces.

In game 1 the Aces just make the Brewers look silly, winning 12-2. Starter Daniel Torres lasts just 4 1/3rd innings, giving up 9 runs (6 earned) on 6 hits while walking 4 and striking out 4. Torres drops to 2-3 with a 3.86 ERA. Matt Helm works the next 4 innings, doing just a bit better, allowing 3 runs on 7 hits, but he also hits his first HR of the season and his second as a big leaguer (the least one coming in 1969 as a member of the Charlotte Sting.) The Brewers manage just 6 hits in the game and 2 of them are off the bat of the recently hot Andrew Kennedy (.300/.325/.445).

The Brewers bounce back for a 4-2 victory in game 2, getting a much better start from Justin Peacock than in his first, disastrous start. Peacock worked 6 2/3rds innings, giving up 1 run (unearned) on 6 hits, striking out 5 and walking 4. He improves to 1-1 with a 3.48 ERA. Another good game for Andrew Kennedy (.310/.333/.460), who went 2 for 3 and hit his 9th double of the season. Rookie Jonathan Koch, recently promoted from AAA Chester, continues his strong start in a Brewers uniform, going 2 for 4 in the game and driving in a pair of runs.

The first game of the Sunday doubleheader saw a rare start for Jaden Francis, who originally was drafted as a starting pitcher. This was Francis first start of 1972 but he started 3 games for the Brewers in 1970 and with not bad results. On this day though, very bad results. Francis gave up 8 runs (5 earned) on 8 hits in just 3 innings pitched. In spite of Francis putting the Brewers in the hole (well, some shoddy defense didn't help) early on, the home team did manage to fight back to get within striking distance, but they couldn't get all the way back and the game ended with an 8-6 loss for the Brewers. Francis falls to 0-1 with a horrible 6.55 ERA. Jonathan Koch (.455/.455/.818) once again paced the offense, going 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored, hitting his 1st big league HR in the 9th inning. Pat Rondeau hit his 3rd triple of the season and went 2 for 5 in the lead-off slot.

It wasn't easy but the Brewers managed to get a series split by taking the night-cap of the doubleheader, winning 7-5. Harry Lyerly wasn't at his best in the start- working 6 innings and giving up 5 runs (4 earned) in spite of allowing only 4 hits and once again no HR's. Granted he did walk 4 while striking out 6 and 3 of the 4 hits he allowed were doubles. Lyerly was taken off the hook and got a no-decision but sees his ERA rise to 3.33. Eric Singer (1-2, 4.35) got the win and Jose de los Santos picked up his 5th save and dropped his ERA back down to 2.45 with a perfect 9th inning. The big hitter in the game was (once again, surprisingly) utility infielder/great glove man Oscar Vargas (.218/.271/.308) who went 2 for 3 with 2 runs scored and hit his 4th double of the season and his first homer. Joe McPhillips (.217/.286/.434) hit his 4th triple of the season.

Next up for the Brewers is a 4-game series in Phoenix against the Speed Devils, with whom the Brewers are in a virtual tie for 5th place in the MGL.

Tribble Tremendous, No-Hits Wolf Pack
 

Philadelphia Mud Hens 25-year old right-handed starter Jeff Tribble hurled the second no-hitter of the 1972 WPK season, just two days after the first.

Tribble has been in the league for 4 seasons now, the first two pitching out of the bullpen for his original team, the Milwaukee Cadets, who picked him in the 2nd round of the 1965 draft. Tribble was traded to the Mud Hens in November of 1970 and started 33 games for them last season, putting up very solid numbers. He is off to a very fine start this season (5-2, 2.39). He needed to be very good indeed today as the game went into the bottom of the 9th inning in a scoreless tie. The Mud Hens put together a pair of singles, an error by Jacksonville, and a 1-out bases loaded walk to claim the walk-off (literally) win and let Tribble exhale and celebrate his 1-0 no-hit victory.

Enjoy the occasional ball park graphic when they show up.

For awhile anyway they will be showing up whenever the Brewers hit the road to play in a city they haven't played in yet this season.
So more to come soon.

Eventually I will find a way to also feature the parks in the SJL. As this universe moves forward I am trying to make sure that I paint a complete picture (even if just in small snapshots) of the WPK beyond just the Brewers.

May 22-25, 1972, at Phoenix
 

The Brewers visit the brand new Phoenix Municipal Stadium for the first time as they take on the Speed Devils in a 4-game series. Phoenix Municipal holds up to 38,400 fans and profiles as a very good hitters park.

Game 1 goes to the home team, 5-3. Steve Green, off to a very disappointing start, allows all 5 runs on 6 hits (3 of them home runs) over 6 innings pitched and falls to 1-4 with a 4.18 ERA. Bobby Erbakan (.333/.412/.486) gets half of the Brewers 6 hits, going 3 for 4 with 2 runs scored.

The Brewers get a narrow 4-3 victory in the second game, largely on the strength of the slugging of rightfielder Antonio Puente. Puente (.211/.311/.378), off to a very poor start at the plate, clubbed 2 HR's in the game to raise his season total to 4, and drove in 3 runs. Cheol-han Lee had a solid start- 7 IP, 3 R, 9 H, 3 K, 1 BB- but did not figure in the decision. The win went to reliever Jose de los Santos who is now 2-3 with a 2.25 ERA.

In game 1 of the Thursday afternoon double-header, the Brewers edged out the Speed Devils 2-1. In a great pitcher's duel all the scoring on both sides came in the 8th inning. Young lefty Matt Helm was superb for the Brewers, working 7 1/3rd innings, giving up just 1 run on 5 hits while striking out a pair and walking a pair. Helm improves to 2-1 with a 2.20 ERA and is making a strong case for inclusion in the rotation. The big hit in the game was a 2-out triple off the bat of Pat Rondeau (.313/.326/.406), his 4th three-bagger of the season. Rondeau went 2 for 4 in the game and continues to be one of the better hitters on the club in 1972.

The Speed Devils won easily in the second game of the double-header, 8-1, as veteran lefty Daniel Torres allowed 4 runs (3 earned) over just 5 innings pitched while walking 4 and striking out 2. Torres drops to 2-4 with a 4.01 ERA. Reliever Jaden Francis pitched the final 3 innings and continued his recent struggles- allowing 4 runs (3 earned) on 5 hits (2 of them HR's) and sees his ERA balloon to 7.07. Rookie Joe McPhillips, who has often looked over-matched at the WPK level this season, once again had one of those games where his great talent was on display, as he went 3 for 4, hitting his 5th double and 3rd HR of the season. Most impressively, McPhillips (.241/.305/.494), a left-handed batter, did all of this against the tough lefty veteran, Joey Brown.

Francis demoted to AAA, Stephens joins Brewers
 

Brewers management felt that reliever Jaden Francis perhaps needed a bit of chance to re-fresh his approach and gain a bit of his confidence back and therefore sent him down to AAA Chester to try to get his mojo back.

In his place they brought up Jordan Stephens, who also potentially gives them another power bat off the bench and someone who can spell Jamison Bash at third base.

(So this is one of those decisions I've referred to that make more sense in the fictional context than in the game. Francis has a very small sample size this season- just 14 innings pitched- and his BABIP is extremely high indicating he has probably had some back luck. He has given up 4 HR's in those innings, which is of concern, but given his overall ratings he is likely a better option on the Brewers squad then Stephens at this point. Well, as a pitcher anyway, not factoring in Stephens potential value as a hitter. But Stephens was very unhappy at AAA, Francis is struggling mightily, and the team is playing very flat, so this all seemed to make sense in the context of this reality.)

May 26-28, 1972, at Brooklyn
 

Brooklyn's Heritage Field was the site of the Brewers next series, a 3-game affair against the 3rd place Aces. Heritage Field is a park that slightly favors pitchers, though it is a bit friendlier to right-handed hitters than left-handers.
It seats up to 42,000 fans.

The 19,697 fans who filed in for game 1 were presumably quite happy with what they witnessed, as the Aces defeated the Brewers 4-0. Harry Lyerly was on the mound for the visitors, and while he wasn't at his best, he probably deserved a better outcome. He hurled 7 innings, giving up 4 runs (3 earned) while striking out 7 and not issuing a single base on balls, but he did give up 12 hits. With the loss he drops to 4-2 with a 3.40 ERA. The Brewers bats were largely silent, although Chad Brown (.294/.313/.388) went 3 for 5. Joe McPhillips (.244/.306/.511) hit his 5th triple of the season, which gives him a share of the league lead in that category.

The Brewers bounced back in the second game as Steve Green had perhaps his best start of 1972 thus far and went the distance, giving up just 1 run on 5 hits, striking out 5 and walking 2 and the Brewers won 5-1. Green improves to 2-4 with a 3.74 ERA. Jamison Bash (.238/.293/.401) went 2 for 5 with his 6th HR of the season. Back-up catcher Spencer Wilson (.328/.366/.358) continued his fine start to his rookie season, going 3 for 4.

Behind staff ace Cheol-han Lee the Brewers take game 3, 2-1, earning their first series win since they got a 2-game sweep of Phoenix at the very beginning of the month. Lee pitched 7 innings, giving up 1 run on just 4 hits, striking out 5 and walking none. He improves to 6-1 with a 2.01 ERA. The Brewers maximized their 3 hits as a Jamison Bash (.238/.292/.417) solo HR in the 2nd gave them their first run and they combined a 1-out walk (Kevin Curtis), a sacrifice bunt (Lee) and a Chad Brown (.295/.321/.386) single to plate their second, and ultimately winning, run.

With the series victory the Brewers climb to within a game of .500 and are in 5th place in the MGL, 7 1/2 games behind first place Charlotte.

May 31-June 1, 1972, at Oklahoma City
 

The Brewers head down to Oklahoma to face the Diamond Kings at their new home, Chickasaw Brickyard Ballpark. Chickasaw plays as a fairly neutral park though it looks like it might depress home run totals a bit. (Which, as we will see, is probably good news for someone like Harry Lyerly.) It is one of the smaller parks in the MGL in terms of seating capacity at a maximum of 37,500.

In the first game of three (original first game was postponed by bad weather, and this make-up game is the first of unplanned double-header) the Brewers come out on the wrong end, as the tough veteran Reece Vaughan out-pitches Matt Helm and the Brewers lose by a score of 4-2. Helm did not pitch a bad game, allowing 4 runs (3 earned) over 6 1/3rd innings pitched, striking out 4 and walking 4, but 2 HR's allowed hurt him. Antonio Puente, putting up gold glove defensive numbers in rightfield this season but very sub-par offensive numbers (.216/.310/.369), went 2 for 4 with both of his hits doubles (3).

The Brewers bounced back in the night-cap of the double-header. They got a great performance from rookie righty Justin Peacock, who gets his first big league complete game victory. Peacock allowed 1 run on just 3 hits while striking out 4 and walking 2. Impressively he got the complete game victory with only 95 pitches thrown (he was in the 70's still entering the 9th.) Peacock improves to 2-1 with a 2.33 ERA. Chad Brown (.300/.324/.394) went 2 for 4 in the win, including hitting his 6th double. Joe McPhillips (.257/.324/.495), showing great development of late, also went 2 for 4 and scored 1 run.

The third game was a classic Harry Lyerly start, his best of 1972 thus far. Lyerly went the distance, allowing just 3 hits while striking out 12 and walking 1 (that wasn't until the 9th) in a 92-pitch shutout. As if that wasn't enough, Lyerly also went 1 for 2 at the plate with a walk and 2 RBI. Lyerly ups his record to 5-2 and now has a 2.92 ERA. He also got plenty of run support as the Brewers won easily, 7-0. Andrew Kennedy (.285/.308/.404), who has been slumping lately, went 2 for 4, scoring a run and drawing one walk. Antonio Puente (.226/.321/.383) also was 2 for 4 and hit his 4th double (his 3rd in the last 3 games). Catcher Kevin Curtis, still the pre-eminent defensive catcher in the MGL (1st in ZR, 2nd in RNG, 1st in CS% with an impressive 68.2%, 6th in CERA), had a nice game at the plate as well as behind it, as he went 2 for 3 with 2 runs scored, 1 walk, and an 8th inning HR, his first of the season.

With their second series win in a row the Brewers have finally clawed their way back to .500 on the 1st of June. They remain 7 1/2 games behind the still hot Charlotte Sting in 5th place, but with plenty of season left there is some hope they can still compete for their 4th straight MGL title.

Harry Lyerly, FIP, and BABIP
 

I meant to post this prior to this latest gem by Harry Lyerly, as it was true then even though now it is even more true.

Prior to this last CG shutout dominant performance, Lyerly's numbers for the year were decent if unspectacular. But his FIP was still among the best in the league and his BABIP was quite high. Granted, it is not a high HR environment thus far in the WPK this season and this has really helped Lyerly. He has a by far career best HR/9 so far at 0.4. That won't likely hold as the weather warms up and given that his home park, Centennial Stadium, is a pretty good park for power hitters. His BB/9 is up this year though his last few starts have mitigated that somewhat. But his K/9 is also up and is now 10.2.
With his latest outing Lyerly now has a FIP of 1.79 and a FIP- of 57. Really impressive numbers and he is now 4th in the MGL in FIP and 7th in WAR among pitchers.

Still a lot of season to go, but with some fear prior to the season that Lyerly might really take a step backwards, in fact he is performing pretty much as he always has and is on pace at this point to have a season quite comparable to his 1970 Pitcher of the Year campaign.

June 1st Development Update from Nick Meskill
 

As is tradition, the Brewers scouting department head, Nick Meskill, delivered an update of the scouting team's current take on Brewers players, both at the major league level and in the farm system.

And the upshot was basically this: aging players bad, young players good.

While a few of the older players on the club- the currently injured Ryan Rodgers, thirdbaseman Jamison Bash, ace starting pitcher Cheol-han Lee- are still considered high quality players, even superstars- others, in particular veteran southpaw Daniel Torres, team captain Abel Pennington, and reliever Miguel Solis, are seen as trending very much in the wrong direction at this stage of their careers.

Torres, who led the league in ERA the past two seasons and is the Brewers career leader in wins, ERA, WAR among pitchers and rWAR, strikeouts, innings pitched, opponent batting average/SLG/OOPS, etc., is having his worst big league season at age 37. Indications are that his velocity, which in his prime was in the low to mid-90's, is down to 86-88 mph. His still has good movement but his stuff is mediocre at best and his control, which has always been an issue, is just getting worse with age. He is under contract for one more season but the team has a buy-out option for that 1973 season. With this latest scouting report and given Torres performance this season, it is likely the team will use that option.

Pennington is out for the season with a ruptured bicep tendon. He is still under team control for next year, after which he becomes eligible for free agency. He has been the captain of the team for many years now and it would be hard for the team to part with him. On the other hand, with the emergence of Kevin Curtis as a great team leader as well as the designation of Matt Helm as a sort of captain-in-waiting, not to mention the solid leadership provided by Andrew Kennedy, Pennington's clubhouse role may not be as important as in the past. It is unclear whether the team is likely to retain Pennington's services for the 1973 season, especially if Helm and Justin Peacock continue to develop as solid back-end-of-the-rotation options.

Miguel Solis is the most storied reliever in Brewers history. He is easily the leader in career saves (86), games pitched (252), is 5th in strikeouts (tops among relievers), and 4th in WAR (again, 1st among relievers.) But he also has missed the second half of each of the last two seasons with season-ending arm injuries. He is considered fragile at age 32 and, while he is having a fine season thus far in 1972, our scouting staff sees trouble, or at least less success, ahead. Solis is a free agent at the end of the season. He has expressed an interest in remaining with the club. But at this point there is no word on whether management is willing to take that risk. Much will probably depend upon his performance the rest of this season and whether he remains injury-free.

But the reality is that there are positive reports about several young Brewers relievers, both on the current big league squad (Dave Duncan) and in the minors (Justin Bismark, Dave Harder, Sam Pruiett), so Solis is likely expendable and will not be re-signed.

The latest report indicates the scouting staff is quite bullish on several young Brewers. Spencer Wilson, having a great rookie season as the Brewers second catcher, is considered a solid option for the future. The trick might be getting him enough playing time with the very solid Kevin Curtis owning the starting job. The Brewers have several other solid catchers coming up the ranks also, led by the defensive wiz and highly regarded Zacarias Martell. The recently promoted Jonathan Koch looks to be primed to take over the starting second base job from Tanner Yurek in the near future. And rookie Joe McPhillips is increasingly coming to be seen as a potential superstar and the scouting staff believes his defense at centerfield is even better than they perceived earlier this season and he could well be a legitimate gold glove candidate before long.

June 2-4, 1972, at San Francisco
 

The Brewers travel west to the Bay area to take on the San Francisco Velocity at Bank of the West Ballpark. This is the largest park in the MGL, seating 52,800 and is also the best pitcher's park in the league.

Brewers hitters didn't find it too unfriendly in their first game there, however, as the team won 7-1. Chad Brown (.316/.338/.411) led the way by going 5 for 5, scoring 2 runs, and hitting his 7th double of 1972. Jamison Bash (.226/.274/.405) and Joe McPhillips (.257/.333/.514) each contributed HR's to the cause, Bash's 8th and McPhillips' 4th. Cheol-han Lee got the win, improving to 7-1 with a 1.92 ERA.

Game 2 was nearly the same story with the Brewers prevailing 5-1. Steve Green got the win, improving to 3-4 with a 3.50 ERA. Green threw 7 innings, allowing the 1 run on just 4 hits while striking out 6 and walking 3. Chad Brown (.320/.342/.412) again paced the attack with a 2 for 4 game.

In a much tighter contest, the Brewers prevailed again in the final game of the series, 3-2. Veteran lefty Daniel Torres, perhaps having heard the rumors of his perceived decline, pitched with a purpose, working 7 innings while giving up 2 runs on 5 hits, striking out 6 and walking not a soul. He improves to 3-4 with a 3.83 ERA. Rookie Joe McPhillips (.266/.339/.514) continues to impress and went 2 for 4 in the win. This is the first series sweep for the Brewers this year in a series of more than 2 games and gives them a current winning streak of 5 games. It helps that they are finally facing some of the bottom feeders of the MGL, but the team is hopeful that this means they have finally turned the corner after a miserable month of May.
The Brewers move into 4th place, 6 1/2 games behind Charlotte and 3 games over .500.

1972 Amateur Draft
 

The day has come once again when, in the midst of a WPK season, teams (especially those who already can see that contention this season is very unlikely) turn their focus to the future. The annual amateur draft is upon us and young collegiate and prep baseball stars from around the country are anxious to see what, if any, WPK franchise chooses to take a chance on them becoming future big league players.

This year's first pick went to the El Paso Dawgs and with that pick they chose 18-year old prep star starting pitcher Kyle Newsome out of L.A.'s Venice High School.
The second player chosen was collegiate hurler Alberto Aleman, who has starred for the past 3 years for the New York College Priests. Aleman has already reported to the Portland Wild Things class A Minneapolis Mastodons.
Another collegiate starting pitcher was chosen third overall by the Baltimore Lords, Sako Zakian out of Oklahoma City College.
The first position player taken in the draft was chosen with the fourth pick by the San Antonio Keys. That would be second baseman John Mussaw out of Oregon State.
Another starting pitcher was chosen with the fifth pick: Aaron Henry, an 18-year old who pitched this season for Rutgers University.

Clearly there was a run on starting pitchers early in the draft but nine of the remaining fifteen picks in the round were position players, with a few premium relief pitchers also chosen.

(It should be noted that the ratings reflected in the screenshots below represent the OSA scouting for these players. The Brewers scouting staff was far less bullish on Newsome, who they see as having serious control issues going forward and not developing movement to the point the OSA suggests. Denver scouting staff like Aleman better, but still not quite as much as the OSA, and they see him having less lethal stuff than the OSA thinks but better control potential. Similarly, Denver scouts like Zakian, but not quite as enthusiastically as the OSA. Interestingly, while our scouts don't give Mussaw as high an overall potential score, they do rate him a bit more highly in several specific areas, including defensive range, speed, and contact potential. Henry is another pitcher that the Brewers scouting team is more cautious about than the OSA.)

Brewers first five draft picks- 1972
 

The Brewers first pick didn't happen until the supplemental portion of round 1, 34th overall.
With that pick the Brewers chose outfielder Val Guzman out of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Guzman profiles as with a speed/power combination but might have only an average hit tool. He should be a fine defender though his arm is a bit weak. Brewers management likes his sparkplug attitude and believe he would be an asset in any clubhouse in the organization.
In the second round the Brewers chose 21-year old first baseman out of Las Vegas College, Sepi Koller. Koller is considered an advanced hitter with good power potential and defensive skills adequate to the position and won't hurt a team too much on the base paths. He is also renowned for his great baseball smarts, though he also has a reputation of being a bit inflexible in his attitudes.
The Brewers third round choice was relief pitcher Cory Degano, who pitched very well in the Brooklyn College bullpen for the past 3 seasons. Degano is a hard worker with moderate potential, but if his already solid fastball develops to the point expected and his slider also reaches its full potential, he could earn a spot in the Brewers bullpen sometime in the next 3-4 years.
In the fourth round the Brewers decide to take a chance on a young man who at barely over 18 has one collegiate season under his belt (UC-Berkeley), possesses great speed and defensive abilities and profiles as a player who will draw a high number of walks once fully developed. The downside is that his hit tool at this point is unimpressive. He is a hard worker and reportedly has a great attitude, so perhaps he will develop to be a better hitter. If not, he at least profiles as having the potential to provide speed and defense off the bench at the big league level.
The fifth round pick for the Brewers was another relief pitcher, 18-year old Mike Alfaro, who pitched for the Baylor Bears this season. The belief is that Alfaro could develop both his slider and fastball to elite levels which should give him nasty stuff at his peak. There are concerns though that his movement and control will always hold him back. But, as is a strong preference in the Brewers organization, Alfaro is considered a very hard worker and he is still young and the hope is he will exceed expectations.

With the remainder of their draft picks the Brewers did what they typically do: grabbed a number of very athletic middle infielders and center fielders, at least one very fine defensive catcher, a few starting pitchers with likely limited ceilings but multi-pitch arsenals, and a few first baseman with good power potential. Did they find any diamonds in the rough along the way? Only time will tell.

Brewers trade Roman, Lujan to Brooklyn for 2 prospects
 

With Jonathan Koch looking very much like the heir apparent to Tanner Yurek at second base, and a few of the best Brewers prospects in the organization also being natural second basemen, it was decided that Danny Roman, who performed so well in a utility role in 1971 but got off to a horrible start at the plate this season, deserved a chance to find a big league role elsewhere. Roman, along with fellow AAA middle infielder and great glove man, Juan Lujan, who served as a back-up infielder on the Brewers squad from 1968-1970, were packaged off to Brooklyn for a pair of minor league prospects. (Brooklyn is pretty loaded with prospects and these are far from their two best.)
Relief pitcher Brian Murray, who would/could profile as a solid starting pitcher other than the fact that he doesn't appear to the have the stamina for the job, is nevertheless an intriguing prospect and could well earn a role in the Brewers pitching staff within the next few seasons. He is a hard-throwing 22-year old righty with a great fastball, a very promising cutter, and a slider that is serviceable and has room for a bit of development still. He will likely struggle with control issues going forward but could rack up the strikeouts and has decent movement.
23-year old outfielder John Flores isn't likely to earn a significant spot in the crowded Denver outfield, but he still has the potential of providing some value off the bench, especially as a right-handed hitter in an outfield picture dominated by left-handed hitters.

The move also freed up a bit of budget and 40-man roster space for the Brewers.

June 5-8, 1972, versus Detroit
 

The Brewers return home to Centennial Stadium and start a 3-series home stand with a scheduled 4-game series against the Detroit Falcons.

In game 1 the Brewers extend their winning streak to 6. It didn't look good early as Matt Helm gave up 3 runs in the top of the 1st inning, giving up 5 straight singles to start the game. But the Brewers answered with 6 runs in the bottom of the inning, Helm mostly settled in after that, and the Brewers won 9-5. Helm lasted into the 9th inning (8 1/3rd IP), allowing 5 runs on 11 hits but got the win to improve to 3-2 with a 2.91 ERA. Rookie Jonathan Koch (.278/.333/.472) had a nice game, going 2 for 4, hitting his first triple of the season and driving in 3 runs. Kevin Curtis (.204/.323/.336) hit his 2nd HR of the season and drove in 2 runs. And Antonio Puente (.212/.302/.379) hit his 5th HR of 1972.

The winning streak ended in the second game of the series, as the Falcons prevailed 7-3. Harry Lyerly lasted 7 innings and when he left the game it was tied 3-3 but stopper Jose de los Santos had a disastrous outing, giving up 4 runs on 5 hits in the 8th inning and he fell to 2-4 with a 2.93 ERA. As for Lyerly, he gave up his 3 runs on 6 hits but also struck out 10 batters while walking just 2, and deserved a better fate. His ERA rises to 3.01.

One bad inning for Cheol-han Lee doomed the Brewers in the third game of the series. Lee allowed 3 runs in the 4th inning and other than that was very strong. He lasted 8 2/3rds, giving up 7 hits, striking out 8 and walking 4. With the loss he drops to 7-2 with a 2.03 ERA. Rookie Paul Mackins (.275/.275/.348) had a fine game in the lead-off slot, going 3 for 3. (He had to leave the game early though due to a hamstring pull while running the bases and is day-to-day for 3 days.)

The Brewers did not have a chance to salvage a series split as bad weather postponed the final game until later in the season.

With the series loss the Brewers are now just 2 games over .500 but do remain in 4th place, just a game and a half ahead of their next opponents, the Baltimore Lords.

Chester Big Stick Leftfielder bin Nadeem Player of Week
 

Having been drafted by the Brewers in the 8th round in the 1967 amateur draft, Troy bin Nadeem has quietly moved his way up the minor league ranks and currently plays for the Brewers AAA club, Chester, where he is putting up great numbers at age 23. This past week he took Player of the Week honors in his league.
bin Nadeem is one of the plethora of Brewers outfield prospects who could be big leaguers in an organization with a weaker outfield picture. He is a decent hitter with average power and a rifle arm. Although his outfield range is acceptable at best (he is not blessed with speed) he also won't hurt you with unforced gaffes.

Whether he has any future in the Brewers organization beyond being a potential injury replacement/late season call-up is questionable but he could still surprise.

(Note: I really need to get around to re-naming the minor league sub-leagues. I'm getting sick of reading articles about Sub League 1 and Sub League 2.)

June 9-11, 1972, versus Baltimore
 

The Brewers face the 5th place Baltimore Lords for 4 games at Centennial Stadium with a chance to put more distance between them and the team immediately behind them in the standings and try to climb up closer to contention.
Instead, the drop 3 of 4 and fall behind Baltimore into 5th place.

Things got off to a good start in the first game as the Brewers won 6-2. Steve Green got the win, working 8 innings and giving up 2 runs on 6 hits while striking out 8 and walking 3 batters. He improves to 4-4 with a 3.38 ERA. The offense is once again led by Bobby Erbakan and rookie Joe McPhillips. Erbakan (.304/.383/.433) went 4 for 5 and hit his 14th double of the season. McPhillips (.270/.354/.513) was 2 for 3, driving in a pair of runs, hitting his 6th double of the year.

The following day, though, the Brewers could only manage 2 hits against Chris Sutherland. Sutherland, you might recall, tossed a no-hitter against Phoenix earlier in the season. It was tough luck for young Justin Peacock, who hurled another fine game, lasting 6 1/3rd, giving up 2 runs (only 1 earned) on 7 hits while striking out 6 and walking 2. Although Peacock's record dropped to 2-2 with the loss, he now sports an impressive 2.10 ERA in his 4 starts this year. (Peacock has a 2.17 ERA in his 13 major league appearances, including 7 starts, spread over the 1971 and 1972 seasons.)

The Brewers were defeated by the Lords, 6-3, in the opening game of a Sunday double-header. Veteran lefty Daniel Torres, on a roller-coaster ride this season, had another horrible start, working 4 1/3rd innings, allowing 6 runs on 8 hits and 6 walks (3 K). He drops to 3-5 with a 4.45 ERA. After winning consecutive ERA titles the past 2 seasons (2.14 and 1.96) it seems pretty clear and third is not in the offering. Antonio Puente (.230/.325/.405) went 2 for 4 in the loss and hit his 6th HR of the year.

It took 14 innings but the Lords managed to win the series by taking a 5-4 win in the night-cap. Harry Lyerly got the start for the Brewers and lasted for 7 1/3rd, allowing 4 runs on 7 hits while striking out 8 and walking 3 (but amazingly once again not allowing a single HR.) Lyerly obviously didn't get a decision in the game and sees his ERA rise to 3.19. Eric Singer suffered the loss and falls to 1-3 with a 3.77 ERA. Oscar Vargas (.212/.262/.313), getting the start at third, went 2 for 5 and hit his 2nd HR of the season.

Mid-June Review/Outlook
 

Having reached the middle of June (games played through June 15, will report latest series tonight), the Denver Brewers, having set a WPK season record with 108 wins in 1971, are still fighting to remain somewhere around .500 (just slightly above at the moment) in the 1972 season.

The biggest difference has been in team pitching. The Brewers have been the dominant pitching (and defense) team in the league for the past few years but this season they are just pretty middle of the road in that area. While staff ace Cheol-han Lee is having another Pitcher of the Year caliber season thus far, and Harry Lyerly is once again solid (actually on pace for a WAR that equals his 1970 Pitcher of the Year campaign), Steve Green has been inconsistent, Daniel Torres has mostly fallen off the cliff after being the most consistently solid Brewers starting pitcher for many years, and Abel Pennington was lost early on to a season-ending injury. Youngsters Matt Helm and Justin Peacock have shown signs of good potential and may well earn spots at the back end of the rotation for next season.
As diminished as the starting rotation has been this season, it is the bullpen where things have at times been completely disastrous. Veteran stoppers Jose de los Santos and Eric Singer have both been disappointing. Longtime Brewers closer (now set-up man) Miguel Solis is having another good season but at 32 years of age and having been lost to season-ending injuries mid-season the past two years, Solis is considered a season- or even career-ending injury waiting to happen. With his contract expiring at the end of this season, it is considered unlikely that he will return in a Brewers uniform in 1973. Lefty Liann-wei Hua has been a bright spot and likely will anchor the 'pen going forward but he is currently on the IL with a nagging hamstring issue. Jaden Francis has struggled so much that he was sent down to AAA to get his head straight. Dave Duncan has done quite well and will be given opportunities for an increased role. And Jordan Stephens and Sam Pruiett have moved back and forth between AAA Chester and Denver and could earn permanent spots in the bullpen next season.

Denver's offense has been inconsistent but overall has been pretty good. (Though once again, after rising to near the top of the league in this category in 1971, the Brewers are one of the worst home run hitting teams in the MGL.) Bobby Erbakan is having a break-out season, Chad Brown continues to be solid both at the plate and in the field (and of course Erbakan remains the most gifted fielding first baseman in the game), Andrew Kennedy and Pat Rondeau have both contributed with their bats and Rondeau remains a premium defender at all 3 outfield positions.
On the other hand, veteran Jamison Bash, who was the MVP of the MGL last season, is having a dismal season at the plate, though he does remain the team's best HR hitter. Ryan Rodgers has been out with an injury most of the first half of the season. Antonio Puente still has one of the better WAR totals on the team, but his batting average and OBP are quite poor and his premium defense in right field as well as his power help counteract that in terms of WAR. Tanner Yurek is a negative both at the plate and in the field (well, maybe more neutral in the field.)

So what now? If the Brewers continue to underachieve (and last I checked we still had one of the best run differentials in the league and were under-performing our pythagorean expectation by quite a few wins), then it is conceivable they will be active traders prior to the deadline. Likely they will be trying to unload veterans who might still be attractive to contending teams (Yurek, Singer, possibly Bash- though he likely is too expensive and old to get real value for him) and looking to younger players to help them rebound in 1973.

And on that front things are looking promising. More and more as the season progresses rookie center fielder Joe McPhillips looks like a budding star. And young second baseman Jonathan Koch, while not looking like he has that kind of ceiling, does look like a very good option to take over second from Yurek, especially with his superb defensive skills. If the Brewers can somehow unload Bash, Jose Careaga could still be an acceptable option at third for the short-term (not nearly the power Bash offers, but a decent hitter and a better fielder), and Mike Foster is also looking like someone who could inherit this job eventually. Our young catchers both provide great defense and good on base skills (both are around .350 in OBP, hitting in the 7th or 8th slots in the lineup, and hit a fair share of doubles). Erbakan, Brown, and Kennedy are all just now entering their prime and should provide great value.

So while the season has been frustrating, in some ways I'm hoping we do continue to under-achieve as it will make pulling the plug on veterans (especially someone like Yurek who remains a fan favorite and for whom parting ways will pay a bit of a price at the box office) and turning to the young players to take over and begin the next chapter for the team easier.

June 12-15, 1972, versus Portland
 

Perhaps 4 games against the last place Portland Wild Things at home is what the doctor ordered to get the Brewers back on the right track.

Then again, maybe not.

Game 1 saw a great performance by Cheol-han Lee and every bit of it was needed as the Brewers just barely won, 1-0. Lee improves to 8-2 with the victory and now has a 1.86 ERA. He allowed 7 hits in the complete game shutout while striking out 9 and walking none. Andrew Kennedy (.283/.307/.399) went 2 for 3 in the game, hitting his 12th double and scoring the lone Brewers run. That run was driven in by Joe McPhillips (.252/.340/.480) with his 7th double of the year.

In the second game of the series the Brewers lost in 10 innings, 5-4. (The Brewers are 2-6 in extra innings games.) With a long stretch of games the Brewers found themselves with an exhausted rotation and no good option out of the bullpen and had to reach down to AAA to bring up a fresh arm to start the game. Unfortunately, all of their best options at AAA were also not well rested and they were forced to go with Jack Hinkel, hardly a prospect. Then again, the 23-year old Hinkel does have two exceptional pitches- a nasty slider and a great change-up- to go along with a decent fastball. His stuff is nearly Harry Lyerly quality, but his movement is also Lyerly-like and his control is well-below average. In a pinch I suppose one could do worse. And Hinkel, in his first major league start, wasn't bad. He lasted 6 1/3rd, giving up 3 runs on 5 hits while striking out 5 and walking 2. He kept his team in the game, at least. Which is more than one can say for Jorge de los Santos, who took the loss, and Eric Singer, who walked three and threw a wild pitch coming on after de los Santos and failing to strand the runner he inherited with one out. Bobby Erbakan (.302/.382/.423) went 3 for 5 and hit his 15th double in the loss.

Game 3 saw the Brewers return the favor with a 4-3, 10-inning walk-off win. The walk-off hero was rookie Paul Mackins (.263/.273/.329), who hit a 2-out pinch-hit single to win it. Steve Green pitched 8 strong innings- allowing 3 runs on just 5 hits while striking out 10 and walking only 1 (he did give up 2 HR's)- but didn't get a decision. Andrew Kennedy (.285/.316/.402) went 2 for 4 and hit his 13th double in the game.

Lefty Matt Helm started game 4 for the Brewers but had to leave the game with a sore back after throwing just 4 pitches. The bullpen was solid (Dave Duncan, Sam Pruiett, and Miguel Solis- along with 1 pitch by Eric Singer who then also had to leave the game with an as yet un-diagnosed injury) but the offense went cold and the Brewers lost 3-1. Bobby Erbakan (.305/.382/.427) and Andrew Kennedy (.291/.325/.407) were again the bright spots for the offense, Erbakan going 2 for 4 with his 16th double and Kennedy 2 for 3 with a pair of singles and a walk.

With the series split the Brewers once again fall back to .500 with 31 wins and 31 losses. They are in 4th place, 8 1/2 games behind the first place L.A. Spinners, and 7 1/2 behind the Charlotte Sting and Brooklyn Aces, who are in a virtual tie for 2nd place. On the other hand, at least they aren't the Phoenix Speed Devils, who were widely predicted to win the MGL this season. The Speed Devils have dropped to 9th place and are now 7 games under .500.

WPK Player Spotlight: Felix Lopez (Brooklyn Aces)
 

Now seems like a good time to talk about Felix Lopez (again.)
The 29-year old Brooklyn centerfielder is one of the premier players in the WPK- a supremely gifted hitter and base-stealer with gold glove range in center (he won the award in 1971) and a dynamic competitive spirit.

He has collected at least 200 hits in a season in 6 of his 7 full season in the bigs (and fell short by just 5 in the other season) and has led the league in batting average 3 times. He has never failed to led the league in stolen bases, and also holds both the single season and current career record for triples.

But this year is shaping up to be something special beyond all else he has accomplished. In a season where currently there are only 7 players in all of the WPK, among those with enough plate appearances to qualify, hitting .300 or better, Lopez is hitting 381. The next best, Lazaro Lowndes in the SJL, is hitting .344. In the MGL, of Lopez three nearest competitors are two Brewers- Chad Brown, at .314, and Bobby Erbakan, tied with Portland's Chris Tobin at .305. Lopez is currently on a pace to hit 51 doubles and 13 triples among 234 hits while stealing 26 bases and racking up a WAR of 12.3.

Singer sidelined, Hua suffers setback
 

Eric Singer had to leave the game on June 15th with a strained abdominal muscle and has been placed on the 10 day injured list. The thought is that Singer might need a couple of weeks for full recovery.
Jaden Francis was brought back up from AAA to take his spot in the bullpen.

Meanwhile, Liann-wei Hua's recovery from a mild hamstring strain took a complicating turn and it looks like he might need a bit more time before he's ready to return to action. At this point the training staff believes it might be a week or two before he can rejoin the Brewers 'pen.

The Brewers head to Baltimore for the second time this season to take on the Lords. Coming into the series the Lords are sitting just a game behind the Brewers in 5th place.

And with a win in the first game of the four-game series the Lords catch the Brewers for a 4th place tie. Harry Lyerly takes the loss for the Brewers in a low-scoring game as the Lords win 3-1. Lyerly allowed the 3 runs on 6 hits in 7 innings pitched while striking out only 2 and walking 6. All things considered, given how much Harry struggled with his control in this game, things could have been much work and he gutted his way through some tough innings. But the Brewers offense went cold and he didn't get much help. Lyerly drops to 5-3 with a 3.24 ERA.

The Brewers bounce back with a narrow victory in game 2. Justin Peacock pitched another good game, working 7 innings, giving up just 1 run on 4 hits, in the 2-1 victory. Peacock improves to 3-2 with a 1.93 ERA. Jose de los Santos pitched 2 strong innings in relief to pick up his 9th save (2.56 ERA.) Jonathan Koch (.262/.304/.462) was the big hitting hero, going 2 for 3 and hitting his 2nd HR of the season.

The low-scoring continued in the two games of the Sunday double-header, but the results were very good for the Brewers as they won a pair of 2-0 games. In the first game they got a good outing from Daniel Torres. The veteran lefty lasted 7 shutout innings, scattering 5 hits while striking out 3 and walking only 2. Torres improves to 4-5 with a 3.99 ERA. Sam Pruiett and Miguel Solis combine for the last 2 innings to preserve the shutout. Big contributions at the plate from back-up catcher Spencer Wilson (.298/.347/.330). Wilson went 2 for 3 and hit his 3rd double of the season.

And Cheol-han Lee got his second shutout of the season as he went the distance in the night-cap, allowing just 2 hits while striking out 5 and walking 1. Lee improves to 9-2 with a 1.71 ERA. The Brewers committed 3 errors in the game (Lee, Oscar Vargas, Chad Brown) but also turned a couple of double-plays and worked around the errors successfully. They also got 3 doubles among their 7 hits- Jonathan Koch hit his 4th, Kevin Curtis his 12th (he also walked twice) and Andrew Kennedy his 14th.

With the 3-1 series win the Brewers move a couple of games above .500 again and back into sole possession of 4th place, now 3 games ahead of 5th place Baltimore.

Lee MGL Player of Week, more accolades for bin Nadeem
 

Cheol-han Lee pitched 2 gems during the week just ended to take MGL Player of the Week honors.

And AAA outfielder Troy bin Nadeem continues his great season and earns another Player of the Week selection.

June 20-22, 1972, at Detroit
 

The Brewers then travel to the Motor City to take on the Falcons at East Lake Park.
East Lake is a slight pitcher's park that seats 44,400 fans, slightly above the league average.

Brewers pitching has been better of late, and that continued in game 1, but the offense has gone cold and that also continued. Fortunately for Steve Green, who pitched 8 strong innings, giving up 1 run on 5 hits while striking out 9 and walking 4, the Brewers managed just enough offense to win 2-1 in 11 innings. Green sees his ERA drop to 3.19 in the no-decision. Jose de los Santos gets the win in relief and now has a 3-5 record with a 2.43 ERA. Pat Rondeau (.301/.317/.366) went 2 for 4 and scored both of the Brewers runs, while also stealing 2 bases (7).

The Denver bats stayed silent again in game 2 as they lost 3-1. Matt Helm pitched pretty well for the Brewers in his 6 innings- giving up 3 runs on 6 hits- but was tagged with the loss, dropping him to 3-3 (2.91 ERA).

More of the same in game 3 but the Brewers got a great performance from starter Harry Lyerly and won 2-0 to take the series. Lyerly worked 8 scoreless innings, giving up just 2 hits while striking out 9 and walking 2. With the victory, Lyerly improves to 6-3 with a 2.97 ERA. Jose de los Santos pitched the 9th for his 10th save (2.38 ERA.)

Brewers send Bash, Yurek to Charlotte for Sloan, prospect
 

Although the team has been playing better lately, the Brewers remain 9 games behind the MGL leading Charlotte Sting in 4th place.

And with the offense sputtering the Brewers made what many might consider an odd decision, trading two of their biggest name position players, third baseman Jamison Bash, the reigning MGL MVP, and long-time second baseman Tanner Yurek, a two-time All-Star and fan favorite, to those same Sting for 29-year old left-handed starting pitcher Erik Sloan and a borderline prospect.

The reality is that Bash and Yurek, both heading into their later years as professional ballplayers, are putting up horrible numbers at the plate this season and neither provides particularly good defense. Bash was the best power hitter on the team but has a slash line of .209/.275/.350 and is being paid 350 K to do so little. Yurek's slash line is not much better at .219/.300/.298. And after years of being one of the Brewers more consistent power hitters, he has hit exactly zero HR's this season.

Rookie Jonathan Koch has earned the lion's share of the starts at second base and he will be supported by defensive specialist Oscar Vargas. Rookie Mike Foster was promoted from AAA to take over at third and show the team what he can do, again with assistance from the versatile Vargas. Plus, Jack Hinkel is sent back to AAA and reliever Jordan Stephens rejoins the Brewers bullpen. Stephens provides the additional skill of being a fine hitter, with plus power, who can also play third base.

In Sloan the Brewers add a lefty to the rotation as a hedge against the probably loss of Daniel Torres, who has shown great declines in performance this year, at the end of the season. Sloan is a ground-ball pitcher with great control whose strongest pitch is the screwball and who is under contract through the 1975 season.

Bash is a superstar and Yurek was a local favorite and their loss has affected the local fans greatly. The addition of Sloan helps a bit, as he is a well-known player who was a fan favorite in Charlotte. But in the short run, and with the Brewers disappointing season thus far, all indications are that this is a net loss for the team in terms of fan support and interest. But it was a decision made not for the short-term but for perceived long-term gain, if nothing more than addition by subtraction- purging aging high-cost, under-performing players with an eye towards giving younger up-and-comers a chance to prove their value.

Curtis' good works.
 

Two-time gold glove winning Brewer catcher Kevin Curtis is a Denver fan favorite and has a reputation as one of the game's more beloved players.

Here is an example of why:

June 23-25, 1972, at Portland
 

The Brewers head to the Pacific Northwest to take on the last place Portland Wild Things for 3 games.

Despite another terrific start by rookie Justin Peacock (after his disastrous first game of the season, Peacock has been very impressive since), the Brewers lose the first game of the series 1-0. Peacock allows the 1 run on just 4 hits over the course of 7 innings pitched, while striking out 9 and walking 2. He drops to 3-3 on the season but with an excellent 1.82 ERA.

Denver bounces back in game 2 with a narrow 3-1 victory. Ace Cheol-han Lee allows 2 runs on 5 hits in 7 innings pitched (6 K, 1 BB) but does not get the decision. (His ERA is now 1.76.) Miguel Solis gets the win to improve to 1-1 with a miniscule 0.42 ERA. Andrew Kennedy (.298/.333/.415), one of the only Brewers who has been hitting well during this offensive cold spell for the team, went 2 for 3 and hit 2 doubles in the game to give him a season total of 16.

Having only just joined the team after being traded from Charlotte, starter Erik Singer pitched a gem in his first game in Brewers' purple. Singer got a complete game victory in a 4-1 Brewers triumph, allowing just 5 hits while striking out 10 and walking 1. He improves to 9-3 with a 2.08 ERA on the season between the Sting and the Brewers. Chad Brown (.301/.326/.381) was one of the hitting heroes for the Brewers in this one as he collected 4 hits in 5 tries including 2 doubles which gives him 12 for the season. Rookie center fielder Joe McPhillips, who has been slumping for weeks, showed signs of getting back on track with a 2 for 4 performance and he hit his 8th double of the season.

June 27-29, 1972, versus San Francisco
 

The Brewers return home to Denver and start the home stand with a 3-game series against the San Francisco Velocity. The Brewers haven't been very good at home thus far in their new park, Centennial Stadium. Coming into this series they had a home record of 14-20.

Maybe they are making the adjustment to their new home finally though, as they sweep the Velocity.

Game 1 required extra innings but a Bobby Erbakan (.284/.359/.391) two-out single to drive in Pat Rondeau with the walk-off win, the Brewers prevailing 4-3. Erbakan, who got off to such a wonderful start this season, like much of the team has been very cold at the plate for several weeks- at one point his batting average dropped as low as .278- but is showing some signs of coming out of it and collected 2 hits in 6 at-bats in the game. Harry Lyerly got the start for the Brewers and lasted 7 innings, giving up 3 runs on 5 hits while striking out 7 and walking 2. Dave Duncan got the win in relief and improves to 1-2 with a 1.27 ERA. Rookie third baseman Mike Foster got his first big league hit in the 4th inning and it was a big one- a 424 foot HR deep into the leftfield stands. Foster went 2 for 5 with 2 RBI.

Game 2 was another tight one and lasted even longer- 15 innings to be exact. Daniel Torres had one of his best starts of the season, working 8 innings, giving up 2 runs on 7 hits while striking out 3 and walking none. Four Brewers relievers combined for nearly perfect 7 innings (Miguel Solis, Jose de los Santos, Dave Duncan, and Sam Pruiett) with Sam Pruiett pitching the last 3 innings to pick up his first win of the season (1.50 ERA.) Chad Brown (.298/.322/.378) went 3 for 7 in the game including hitting his 13th double.

Then, finally, in game 3, the Denver offense busted out. The Brewers won easily, 11-3. Bobby Erbakan (.295/.371/.421) served notice that he is back as he went 4 for 5, hitting his 2nd triple of the season and his 4th home run, driving in 5 runs. Rookie second baseman Jonathan Koch (.278/.327/.454) had a big game, going 3 for 4 with 4 runs scored and hitting his 3rd triple of the season. Steve Green was not very sharp in the start- working just 4 1/3rd innings and allowing 3 runs on 7 hits, but the bullpen was great once again, with Jaden Francis getting the win with 3 fine innings. Francis improves to 1-1 with a 5.21 ERA.

Thus far the youth movement at second and third base is going very well with Jonathan Koch and Mike Foster not only solidifying the infield defense but both have made significant contributions with their bats since former starters Jamison Bash and Tanner Yurek were traded away.

Erbakan signed to long-term extension!
 

With a few years of arbitration eligibility left for Bobby Erbakan, he and the team decided to get things settled contractually for the foreseeable future and let him join fellow 25-year old Chad Brown as two of the pillars the future of the team will be built upon.

Rumor has it that Erbakan and his agent originally were seeking a 9 year contract but when management came back with an 8 year offer that eliminated an asked for player opt out and suggested a team option for the final year rather than a player option, Erbakan countered with a shorter (5 year) term at a higher annual salary. Apparently the team then offered a 7-year deal while actually even sweetening the pot a bit in terms of annual average dollar amounts and Erbakan decided this was acceptable.

With the team largely turning towards younger players among non-pitchers- Joe McPhillips in center field, Jonathan Koch at second, Mike Foster at third- the feeling is that Erbakan and Brown will lead the way on the field while Andrew Kennedy, who inked a 6-year deal earlier this season and is also 25, will provide a great deal of leadership in the clubhouse as well as being perhaps the best pure hitter on the club.