[jamus23]

Grand Rapids 6 @ Denver 12
Grand Rapids 14 @ Denver 5
Grand Rapids 5 @ Denver 11
Denver 6 @ Nashville 7
Denver 3 @ Nashville 4
Denver 11 @ Nashville 12




With Denver's hold on the Central Division slipping away, the second to last week of the season was the Broncos' best chance to reassert its control. Grand Rapids and Nashville have been among the worst teams in the league this season, and the two teams should have represented a nice breather for Denver after playing contender after contender for the last three weeks. But nothing has come easily for the Broncos this season. In the first game against Grand Rapids, the Tigers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning. Denver rallied for 5 runs in the third inning, and after the Tigers made it 5-4 in the top of the seventh inning, the Broncos pulled away with 3 in the 7th and 4 in the 8th. Grand Rapids added 2 runs in the ninth inning, but it wasn't enough to prevent Kenny Pillsbury from earning his 20th win of the season. It is Pillsbury's 4th straight season with at least 20 wins. Grand Rapids jumped out to an early lead in the second game, but this time, the Tigers just kept on scoring. They scored 2 in the first inning, 2 in the third inning, and then exploded for 7 runs in the fourth inning, sending Ray Lockridge to the showers in the process. The Broncos rallied a little bit, with 1 run in the fourth inning, and 4 runs in the fifth inning. Grand Rapids tacked on a few insurance runs to secure the victory, however. Led by shortstop Anthony Champ, who homered twice and drove in 7 runs, the Tigers banged out 21 hits in the game. The Broncos took the rubber game with a 5-run first inning and a strong performance by Robert McNett. Leading the offense was Russell Thomas, who had 4 hits, a walk, and 4 runs scored.

Denver's rival, Tucson, also had an easy start to the week. The Diamondbacks faced off against hapless Nashville, and took 2 of 3 from the Predators. But while the Broncos would also get to face Nashvillle during the week, Tucson had to close out the week with a home series against the best team in baseball- the Miami Dolphins. This was Denver's opportunity to lock up the division once and for all. Unfortunately, the Broncos completely blew it. Miami did its part. The Dolphins went into Tucson and swept the Diamondbacks, outscoring them 27-10. Just a win or 2 would have given the Broncos a 4 or a 5 game lead with 6 games remaining. But they couldn't even manage one win against Nashville. The first game turned ugly almost immediately. With one out in the first inning, first-baseman Henry Lewis, Jr. committed errors on consecutive plays, allowing 2 runners to reach base. Thomas Fons unraveled, and walked the next 2 batters, bringing in a run. A wild pitch allowed another run to score, and Nashville had a quick, 2-0 lead. Fons regrouped, and the Broncos battled back. Denver got on the board with a run in the third inning, and took a 3-2 lead with a pair of runs in the fifth. And then Fons collapsed again. He gave up back to back homeruns to center-fielder Carlo Romero and designated hitter Alvin Carillo to start the bottom of the fifth inning. Another run gave Nashville the lead again. In the top of the 7th, Denver got some clutch hitting. Alexis Vazquez delivered a pinch hit single, and Michael Phillips and Tamiko Teika followed with back to back, pinch hit homeruns. The Broncos had a 6-5 lead. But in the ninth inning, relievers Robert Soto and James Virgen got into trouble, and Virgen gave up a 2-run single to Alvin Carillo to lose the game. In the second game, the Broncos struck first, with a run in the 2nd inning. Denver clung to that 1-0 lead until getting a second run in the top of the 6th inning. At which point, ace Kenny Pillsbury imploded. With 2 outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, Carlo Romero hit a run-scoring double, and Alvin Carillo followed with a 2-run homerun. Carillo homered again in the 8th inning. Denver got one of the runs back in the 9th, but could not complete the comeback. The Broncos raced to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning in the final game of the series, but Ray Lockridge gave it right back. Nashville scored 5 runs in the bottom of the first. Alvin Carillo hit a grand slam for 4 of those runs. The Predators made it 7-3 in the fourth inning, and after the Broncos scored twice in the top of the fifth, Nashville scored 3 in the bottom of the fifth inning. Carlo Romero and first-baseman Edward Shuh belted homeruns in that inning. But Denver kept up the rally. Lee Chappel smacked a 2-run homerun in the sixth inning, and the Broncos exploded for 4 runs in the top of the seventh to take an 11-10 lead. Robert Soto blanked Nashville in the seventh and eighth innings, and after getting the first out of the ninth inning, he gave way to James Virgen. The veteran right-hander immediately served up back to back homeruns to Carlo Romero and Alvin Carillo. Game over.




Russell Thomas had an outstanding week. He posted a 1.547 OPS, with 16 hits, 4 doubles, a triple, a homerun, 5 RBI, and 9 runs scored. Close behind him was Marvin Lore, who had a 1.486 OPS, 12 hits, 5 doubles, 13 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Asbel Fuentez had a .982 OPS, with 8 hits, 3 doubles, and 5 runs scored. Lee Chappel had a .979 OPS, a double, a homerun, 3 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Alexis Vazquez managed a .930 OPS, with a triple, a homerun, 5 RBI, and 7 runs scored. Michael Phillips had an .844 OPS, with 2 homeruns, 6 RBI, and 5 runs scored.

On the negative side, Booker Romero was 6 for 26, with a .528 OPS, and only 1 RBI. Ellis Bolling was 2 for 13, with a .574 OPS.

Robert McNett was the top pitcher. He allowed only 2 runs(1 earned) in 7 innings of work. Overall, Kenny Pillsbury was pretty good, with 8 runs(5 earned) allowed in 14 1/3 innings, for a 3.14 ERA. Thomas Fons gave up 5 runs(3 earned) in 6 1/3 innings. Ray Lockridge had a nightmarish week. In 2 starts, he pitched 10 1/3 innings, gave up 29 hits, and 21 runs, all of which were earned. Lockridge has been absolutely terrible so far in September, by the way. In 4 starts, he is 0-3 with a 9.99 ERA.

There weren't any especially outstanding bullpen performances. Laverne Mccullum pitched 2 2/3 innings, and allowed only 1 run while striking out 4 batters. Robert Soto made 4 appearances, and gave up 3 runs in 5 2/3 innings for a 4.77 ERA. Lyndon Gwinn and Valentine McGurk both gave up 2 runs in 1 inning of work. James Virgen had the worst week of all, however. In 2 appearances, he recorded only 1 out, gave up 4 hits and 3 runs, and took 2 losses.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Rochester's second-baseman, Sergio Salo. It is Salo's 2nd career POTW award. He hit .476(10 for 21), with a 1.640 OPS, 3 doubles, 3 homeruns, 7 RBI, 6 runs scored, and 4 walks. Salo singled, doubled, homered, drove in a run, and scored 2 runs in a 6-2 win over Los Angeles. He had 1 hit, 3 walks, an RBI, and a run scored in a 10-5 win over San Jose. He doubled, homered twice, drove in 4 runs, and scored 2 runs in an 8-1 whipping of the Sharks.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Atlanta's third-baseman, Raymond Stair. It is his first ever POTW award. Stair hit .478(11 for 23), with a 1.804 OPS, 3 doubles, a triple, 4 homeruns, 13 RBI, 9 runs scored, and 4 walks. He doubled and drove in 2 runs in a 6-5 win over Knoxville. He singled, homered, drove in 2 runs, and scored 3 runs in an 18-7 loss to the 79ers. He had 3 hits, including 2 doubles, a walk, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 10-4 thumping of Knoxville. He singled, homered, walked, drove in 2 runs, and scored 2 runs in a 13-9 loss to Washington. Atlanta had leads of 7-0 and 9-1 in that game. Stair walked and hit a 3-run homerun in an 8-6 loss to the Senators. The Braves had leads of 5-0 and 6-2 in that game. He tripled, homered, walked, drove in 2 runs, and scored a run in a 9-8 win over Washington. Much like the previous two games, Atlanta blew a sizable lead in that game. The Braves had leads of 6-0 and 7-3, but fell behind 8-7 in the top of the eighth inning. The third time was the charm, however, as they managed to rally and pull out the victory.




Division Races:


Here is a look at the current standings, modified to show only the playoff picture.

  National League Standings 
 
  West Division 
 
  Team        W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
x-San Diego 105 51 .673    -  101-55    4 55-23 50-28  9-7 29-14  *  L1    5-5 
y-San Jose   87 69 .558 18.0   92-64   -5 40-38 47-31  8-7 19-22  -  L1    3-7 
 
  Northeast Division 
 
  Team        W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
  New Jersey 87 69 .558    -   80-76    7 48-30 39-39  6-6 13-15  3  W1    8-2 
  Rochester  83 73 .532  4.0   80-76    3 42-36 41-37 8-10 19-20  -  W1    6-4 
  Buffalo    82 74 .526  5.0   91-65   -9 44-34 38-40  1-9 14-30  -  L1    3-7 
 
  American League Standings 
 
  Southeast Division 
 
  Team        W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
x-Miami     109 47 .699    -  112-44   -3 53-22 56-25  8-7 26-15  *  W8    8-2 
  Knoxville  88 68 .564 21.0   89-67   -1 43-35 45-33 10-5 19-21  -  L1    5-5 
  Atlanta    84 72 .538 25.0   84-72    0 40-38 44-34  5-4 19-17  -  W1    5-5 
 
  Central Division 
 
  Team        W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
y-Denver     93 63 .596    -   95-61   -2 51-27 42-36  5-8 23-17  4  L3    3-7 
y-Tucson     90 66 .577  3.0   90-66    0 47-31 43-35  9-8 22-24  -  L3    5-5 
 


x = Clinched division
y = Clinched playoff spot

The West Division is all wrapped up. San Diego(105-51) has its second straight division title, and San Jose(87-69) returns to the playoffs after a one year absence.

The Northeast remains undecided, although New Jersey(87-69) is very close to capturing its first ever division title and first ever playoff appearance. Rochester(83-73) and Buffalo(82-74) will likely go down to the wire to decide second place.

Southeast Division-leading Miami(109-47) spent the week thwarting other teams' playoff hopes. A crushing sweep of Memphis officially eliminated the Grizzlies from playoff contention. The Dolphins outscored Memphis 32-7 in the three game series. Then a sweep of Tucson prevented the Diamondbacks from taking advantage of Denver's repeated collapses against Nashville. As for the second place race, Atlanta(82-74) squandered a series victory over Knoxville(88-68) by dropping 2 of 3 games to Washington, blowing big leads in all 3 of the games. For its part, Knoxville took 2 of 3 from Green Bay after its series with Atlanta. Now, the 79ers hold a 4 game lead with 6 games remaining. Both teams start the week with difficult series: Knoxville plays at Denver, while Atlanta plays at Miami.

For the sixth year in a row, the Central Division playoff representatives will be Denver(93-63) and Tucson(90-66). The only question now is whether it will be Denver in first place and Tucson in second place for the fifth year in a row, or whether the Diamondbacks can capture their first division title since 2080. Tucson's remaining schedule is decidedly easier. The Diamondbacks face Nashville(54-102) and Grand Rapids(65-91), while Denver gets Knoxville and Atlanta.




Injury News:

Only one contending team had an injury of note this past week. Tucson's left-fielder, Reggie Melendez(.354 average, .849 OPS, 40 doubles) pulled a hip muscle. Though he'll be back to 100% by the end of the week, he won't come off the disabled list for another 10 days, which will likely prevent him from being placed on Tucson's playoff roster for the first round of the playoffs. There were two other notable injuries. Washington's first-baseman, Sabas Laureano(.979 OPS, 46 doubles, 26 homeruns, 101 RBI, 103 runs scored, 103 walks) suffered a hyper-extended knee. It's not overly serious, but he probably won't play again this season. Another player who has had his season come to an end is Charlotte's right-fielder, James Wysocki(.322 average, 1.029 OPS, 35 homeruns, 108 RBI, 130 runs scored, 111 walks). The 26 year old slugger fractured his foot.




The final week of the regular season has Denver hosting Knoxville(88-68) for 3 games, and then heading to Atlanta(84-72) for 3 more.