[EMSoccerCoach]

Pastime Baseball League – Baseball Bi-Weekly
Vol. 5, Monday, June 1, 2009 (cont.)

Southern League Profiles

Memphis Strummers
Record: Last 2 Weeks (8-3), Overall 32-15

2-Week Synopsis: Split 4 at New Orleans, Swept 2 at Sacramento, Swept 2 at Wichita, Won 2 of 3 vs Arizona

Leaders:
Avg - Deacon White .355
HRs - Cap Anson 8
RBIs - Deacon White 36

Wins – Lady Baldwin, Jesse Tannehill 8
ERA – Lady Baldwin 2.16
Ks - Tim Lincecum 81

Top Performance: Ryan Braun went 2-for-4 with two homers, a walk, and 4 RBI in a 7-5 win over Arizona on May 31.

Round Trip (Four miscellaneous points about the team):
1) The Strummers followed up their 10-2 homestand with a 6-2 roadtrip before returning home to take 2 of 3 from Arizona, bringing the Strummers to 18-5 in their last 23.

2) Lady Baldwin earned Southern League Pitcher of the Month honors, going 5-1 with a 1.26 ERA for the month.

3) The devlopment of Oscar Charleston continues, as the 21-year-old center fielder hit .348 with a .419 OBP in May. His slugging percentage went from .390 in April to .478 in May, lending credence to the belief he will develop power before long.

4) The outfield corners produced in May: one who was expected to be a role player, and the other who was expected to be a catalyst but who took a while to get going. LF Josh Willingham hit .333 with 4 homers and a .987 OPS for May while RF Ichiro Suzuki hit .388 with 12 runs scored and a .971 OPS. Add those two to Charleston, and the outfield has been tough to match.

New Orleans Knights

Record: Last 2 Weeks (7-4), Overall 18-27

2-Week Synopsis: Split 4 vs Memphis, Split 2 at Louisville, Swept 2 vs Charlotte, Won 2 of 3 vs San Antonio

Leaders:
Avg – Sam Thompson .345
HRs – Ross Barnes/Sam Thompson 7
RBIs – Sam Thompson 29

Wins - Doc McJames 7
ERA - Doc McJames 1.54
Ks – Doc McJames 79

Top Performance: Doc McJames threw a 4-hit shutout, striking out 8 and walking 2 in a 4-0 win against Charlotte.

Injuries: Topsy Hartsel has seen his season go into a nosedive since earning Player of the Week honors April 20. After a vicious cold spell, Hartsel has now been shelved with a torn ligament in his thumb suffered diving for a ball against Los Angeles May 11. He’s expected to miss 2 months.

Round Trip (Four miscellaneous points about the team):
1) The aftermath of Tony LaRussa's termination has been, quite simply, improved play. New skipper Walter Alston came right in and set his team up to take a 4-game set against a powerhouse Memphis squad as a test to see if it could recover its season. They split, an improvement from how things had gone and a renewed confidence seemed to spread quickly in the clubhouse.

2) Dual awards, as 1B Prince Fielder won Southern League Player of the Week by going 8-for-16 with 2 homers and 6 RBI; and 2B Ross Barnes won Southern League Player of the Month, hitting .381 with 7 homers and 19 RBI for the month, during which he posted a 1.133 OPS.

3) The Knights are putting forth a double threat on mound, as Doc McJames leads the league in ERA, and went 4-0 with an 0.94 ERA in five May starts - while Jack Chesbro went 1-1 despite a 1.91 ERA.

4) Following a hideous April, Dontrelle Willis rebounded to do some decent work out of the bullpen, posting a 2.35 ERA in 6 appearances. He then got a spot start and allowed 5 runs over 7, but struck out 7 and 2 of the runs came as he tired after hitting the 100-pitch mark.