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Westheim · 08-05-2014, 04:04 PM

After shedding salary six weeks earlier, we had just crawled back into the green zone when it came to our budget. That sliver of budget room would be enough to f.e. pay a minimum salary player for the rest of the year. Checking the waiver wire on Monday morning, I found two players on there that did not appear to be part of a waiver deal. One of them was a player we had faced just this last week. The other was southpaw Tim Mallandain. I claimed one of them. Hint: it was not Mallandain.

Raccoons (45-67) @ Indians (45-67) – August 11-13, 1997

Last place playoffs, so we were bound for losses of 2-1, 3-2, and 14-5… The Indians weren’t scoring at all, ranking dead last in offense in the Continental League. Their pitching was average, with a pretty sound bullpen, which ranked 3rd in ERA. (By the way, the collection of failures the Raccoons sat behind the right field fence day in and day out was right now 8th in the league, the starters however ranked 5th)

Projected matchups:
Jose Ramos (4-4, 3.66 ERA) vs. Robbie Campbell (8-10, 4.02 ERA)
Kisho Saito (8-9, 3.06 ERA) vs. Ruben Prado (3-4, 4.43 ERA)
Scott Wade (4-6, 4.90 ERA) vs. Dan George (7-11, 3.67 ERA)

Game 1
POR: 2B Brewer – SS Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Green – LF Buell – 3B Crowe – C Vinson – P Ramos
IND: SS C. Gonzalez – 2B M. Carter – 1B M. Brown – RF A. Roldán – CF Paredes – LF Sakaguchi – C T. Thompson – 3B Whaley – P Campbell

Jose Ramos’ stuff didn’t bite today, and he struck out only one batter while pitching into the sixth, from which he couldn’t get out of. With one out and runners on the corners, Daniel Miller was brought in to protect a 6-2 lead, but one run scored off him with a 2-out RBI single by Terence Thompson. How had the Coons scored six runs so far? Brute power. Green had homered in the second inning, and Neil Reece had provided a pair of 2-run home runs, in a 3-run third and then again in the fifth. Reece however struck out with the bags full in the sixth inning, missing history with three homers in one game. He came up again in the eighth, facing Cesar Salcido, but “only” hit an RBI single. Thanks to a bases-clearing double by Buell later in the inning, Salcido got soiled with four earned runs, making my heart of darkness laugh really madly. Although Donis and Santana tried to blow the game really hard in the final innings, this was a rout. 12-4 Raccoons! Ingall 5-6, 2B, RBI; Reece 3-5, BB, 2 HR, 5 RBI; Green 2-4, 2 BB, HR, 2 RBI; Buell 2-6, 2 2B, 3 RBI; Vinson 2-4, BB, 2B, RBI; Miller 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K;

For the first time since god-knows-when we are not last or tied for last. But of course, Saito pitches the next one, so we will score minus three runs.

When was David Vinson’s last multi-hit game? How about JUNE THIRTEEN!? Two months of going 6-69 … what the hell has become of him!?

Game 2
POR: 2B Brewer – SS Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Green – LF Kinnear – C Aycock – 3B Caddock – P Saito
IND: 1B G. Flores – 2B M. Carter – C Cicalina – RF Sakaguchi – LF L. Maldonado – CF Alarcon – 3B C. Gonzalez – SS Cerdeira – P Prado

Saito faced an all-righty lineup here, but the Coons rolled up Ruben Prado early on with four singles for three runs in the first inning, twice beating the arm of Francisco Alarcon to be safe at home. The Coons added two in the third, but just like in his last start, Saito crumbled badly in the fourth, allowed a homer to Cicalina, and the Indians came back to 5-2, and they had two on in the fifth when Neil Reece made a strong catch to end that inning. Saito mightily wobbled through seven, but the Indians didn’t get more off him, while in turn the Raccoons stomped Prado and the relief corps for four runs in the seventh inning to lead 9-2. The Coons didn’t make an out in the eighth until after a 3-run homer by Weeds, another run scoring on an error by Gonzalez, and them loading the bags, when Guerin bounced out to second, but that still brought home the fifth run of the frame. With Jim Durden in, Brewer and Ingall hit RBI singles, and Reece brought home another run on a groundout before Weeds struck out: eight runs scored in the inning. If the last game was a rout, this was a dismantling: 17-3 Critters!! Brewer 3-6, RBI; Ingall 3-6, RBI; Reece 2-4, 2 BB, 2B, RBI; Wedemeyer 2-6, HR, 3 RBI; Green 3-5, BB, 2B, 2 RBI; Kinnear 2-3, 2 BB, 2 RBI; Aycock 2-6, 4 RBI; Saito 7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, W (9-9) and 1-4, RBI;

Game 3
POR: 2B Brewer – 1B Ingall – CF Reece – RF Green – LF Buell – 3B Crowe – C Aycock – SS Guerin – P Wade
IND: SS C. Gonzalez – C Cicalina – 1B M. Brown – RF A. Roldán – LF Sakaguchi – CF L. Maldonado – 2B Cerdeira – 3B Alarcon – P George

At some point, things had to reverse. They reversed in Wade’s game, they reversed soon, and they reversed hard, as the Indians romped over him for five runs in the first inning. Well, amazing. We lose. Then came the top 2nd: Green singled; Buell singled; Crowe grounded out, advancing the runners; George then balked a run in, and walked Aycock; Guerin singled, scoring Buell; Wade walked; Brewer grounded to Cerdeira, who only got Wade at second, and a run scored; Ingall came up, took a strike, then ripped a homer out of right center; if you counted, that’s six runs. But Wade had NOTHING and was yanked in the third inning, down 7-6 and another man on. What was wrong with him!? Zuniga was brought in, as we ached for several innings. He held Wade’s run on, and neither pitcher saw daylight in the fourth, as George was hit for in the third. With a more rested pen, the Raccoons still had a good chance of reversing that 7-6 deficit. Zuniga pitched three innings, but allowed two runs in the fifth, which the Coons got back in the sixth, but we still trailed by a run. The Indians left the bags full in the bottom 6th while putting four men on – but Aycock gunned down Roldán trying to nab second base – and the Raccoons also left them full in the top 7th. Top 8th, two down, nobody on, Brewer got on. And then Ingall, and then Reece. Bags full against Jim Durden, Royce Green worked a walk, and we were tied! And then Buell grounded out and we left them full again. We went to extra innings, and into the bottom 10th, where Miller walked Gonzalez, but Thompson, now batting second, hit into a double play. That brought up Brown, who was not going to hit a home run here and was put on intentionally to pitch to Roldán. And Roldán hit that home run. 11-9 Indians. Ingall 2-5, BB, HR, 3 RBI; Green 2-4, BB, RBI; Crowe 2-4, BB, 2B, RBI; Guerin 2-5, 2 RBI; De La Rosa 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K;

Waiver claim

On Thursday, the Raccoons had an off day, plus they were awarded utility man Jai Utting off waivers by the Atlanta Knights. With the 40-man roster full, SP Jose Rivera was transferred to the 60-day DL to make room for Jai Utting. Rivera is not expected back until very late in the season (if at all this season), so we will deal with the issue when it arises in six weeks or later.

The 29-year old Utting, from Melbourne, Victoria, is the Steve Walker type player* that the Raccoons have not had for many years, able to play capably in the infield and the outfield on almost all positions. His best positions are the corner infield and left field positions, but he also plays a very competent middle infield and a serviceable centerfield. He has never played much in right, but his range is good and his arm is strong, so maybe that could also work for him?

Utting was the Loggers’ 9th round pick in the 1986 draft (back then the draft went only ten rounds!), but didn’t surface in the Bigs until 1992 with the Knights. His career slash line is .273/.329/.383 with 9 HR and 130 RBI in 1,141 AB. He was a regular only this and last season. The bad news are that he has very little power and no speed: he has not a single stolen base in his major league career. Utting will be arbitration eligible for the first time this fall.

With Utting on board we can divest ourself of Steve Caddock, who had not batted enough despite great defense all around the infield.

*For the newcomers: Steve Walker was a utility player for the Raccoons from 1982 to 1988, forming a dazzling if unlikely sterling middle infield combo with Winston Thompson starting in 1983, when he was not subbing elsewhere. Walker (.249/.328/.335 with 32 HR, 254 RBI and only 9 SB) is still 11th in at-bats among all Raccoons. Thompson, who was a true scrap heap pickup prior to the ’83 season, when we first made the playoffs (and what a surprise that was), is still 16th. And yes, these two just belong together. Both exited after the train wreck that was 1988. Neither played in the Bigs again.

Yes, we now have four Aussies on the roster! Utting joins Wedemeyer, Kinnear, and Tamburrino.

Do all Australians have names that are somewhat strange, but in a nice way?

Raccoons (47-68) @ Pacifics (48-67) – August 15-17, 1997

The Pacifics were 11th in runs scored in the FL, with a good rotation, but a shabby bullpen.

Projected matchups:
Miguel Lopez (9-7, 3.80 ERA) vs. Jonathan Dumont (5-5, 4.79 ERA)
Hector Lara (5-4, 3.63 ERA) vs. Manuel Paredes (3-11, 5.71 ERA)
Jose Ramos (5-4, 3.75 ERA) vs. Bastyao Caixinha (11-10, 3.19 ERA)

No reunion with Jason Turner (6-14, 4.82 ERA) in this series, unfortunately. Caixinha was also the only left-hander we got in the set, and we had another off day right away on Monday. However, at the moment, all our starters (except Wade, somehow…) performed mostly reasonably adept so I was not inclined to skip anybody. Except maybe Wade next Wednesday.

Game 1
POR: 2B Brewer – SS Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Green – LF Kinnear – 3B Crowe – C Aycock – P M. Lopez
LAP: SS Austin – 1B Donaldson – RF A. Rodriguez – C Branch – LF Quintela – CF J. Thompson – 2B E. Edwards – 3B Cook – P Dumont

The Raccoons stormed out of the gates with a 3-run homer by Weeds in the first, and loaded the bags in the second inning when Aycock singled, and Carlos Cook threw away Lopez’ bunt, followed by a walk to Brewer. Unfortunately Marvin Ingall decided to hit right to Mark Austin in his at-bat, and the Raccoons only got the run that scored on the double play (which went second and first). In return, Lance Branch hit a double in a 2-strike count to open the bottom 2nd, followed by a Carlos Quintela single in a 2-strike count, and then Jim Thompson homered. The Pacifics batted around the lineup, scoring four runs to tie the game. Great. Crowe scored Kinnear with a sac fly in the fifth for a 5-4 lead, but Lopez was drummed with home runs from Douglas Donaldson and another one by Thompson and was finally sent home. While we were well on the way to lose another game we had led by umpteen runs early on, we still had time to insert Donis to ramp the score to 8-5 Pacifics after six. Top 8th, Crowe and Aycock hit singles to start the inning, bringing the tying run to the plate in PH Luke Newton against ex-VAN/BOS Holden Gorman. The Pacifics used three relievers here to match our three batters, including Brewer and Ingall, and got them all. Jai Utting made his Raccoons debut as defensive replacement for Brewer (not that his defense was better, I just didn’t want Brewer to break a random number of legs in a lost game), and handled his one chance for an out. We still got another shot against Pete Sanders in the ninth, who walked Weeds with one out, and then Ed Edwards dropped Royce Green’s pop fly. Two on, one out, Kinnear countered Sanders, who remained in the game. Kinnear walked. We had no left-handed pats on the bench to bat for Crowe, who singled, or Aycock, who struck out. Guerin batted for Santana with two down, the bags booked, and two runs down. And struck out. 8-6 Pacifics. Ingall 2-5; Wedemeyer 2-4, BB, HR, 3 RBI; Kinnear 3-4, BB, 2B; Crowe 2-3, BB, 2 RBI; Aycock 2-5;

Two points: maybe I suck at managing? First. And second: now what did I just say about our starting pitching??

This Ed Edwards guy. I was after him a few years ago, but I can’t remember when and why. Maybe it was right when he was drafted, in 1994? Gotta check. He’s a decent second baseman now, a solid .725 OPS or so bat, yet without power (1 HR in 1,015 ML AB).

Game 2
POR: 2B Brewer – SS Ingall – LF Kinnear – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Buell – CF Newton – 3B Crowe – C Aycock – P Lara
LAP: 1B Battle – SS Austin – RF A. Rodriguez – C Branch – CF J. Thompson – 2B Donaldson – LF Lacombe – 3B Sutton – P Paredes

Hector Lara retired none of the first four batters he faced, and only escaped the first inning alive thanks to Joe Lacombe hitting into an inning-ending double play, keeping the score at 2-0. Lara actually hit two doubles himself, but that was nowhere near to being close to being almost sufficient to make up his abysmal mound performance, for which he got yanked in the fifth, down 5-3 with Jim Thompson, who had just hit the second of back-to-back doubles to lead off the inning, on second base. The game was declared lost, as Diaz came in, got five outs before he put two men on in the sixth, and Zuniga surrendered them to lefty Lance Branch. The Raccoons never raised another bat in anger, and lost their third straight. 7-3 Pacifics. Ingall 2-3, BB, RBI; Newton 2-4;

Game 3
POR: 2B Ingall – LF Kinnear – CF Reece – RF Green – 3B Crowe – 1B Utting – C Aycock – SS Guerin – P Ramos
LAP: 1B Battle – SS Austin – RF A. Rodriguez – C Branch – CF J. Thompson – LF Quintela – 2B Donaldson – 3B Sutton – P Caixinha

More suckerball from our pitching corps in this game, as Ramos allowed a 2-run homer to Thompson (that bastard) in the second inning, and with two out and nobody on in the third melted away to put four Pacifics on that plated another two runs. For the third straight day, our starter was showering by the time the sixth inning began, this time with a Caixinha double, a wild pitch, an RBI single by Austin, and another bomb by Anibal Rodriguez in the bottom 5th. 7-0. What the hell. There was not a lot to report about the Raccoons, who managed to rack up two hits through six innings, and then crowded Caixinha some more, but … well, the Raccoons left three men on in the seventh, two in the eighth, and two more in the ninth, and Caixinha spun a 7-hit shutout, fanning ten. 7-0 Pacifics. Kinnear 2-4; Utting 2-4, 2B; Wedemeyer (PH) 1-1; Newton (PH) 1-1; Santana 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K; Donis 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K;

In other news

August 12 – SFB CL William Henderson (1-4, 2.56 ERA, 27 SV) is out for the season with tendinitis in his elbow.
August 17 – Milwaukee’s latest young hotshot, 22-yr old 2B/SS Bartolo Hernandez (.331, 0 HR, 16 RBI), has crafted a 20-game hitting streak despite not being a regular on the team.

Complaints and stuff

BNN reported that David Brewer asked to be traded (which is true), and that he was unhappy with the fans and the team management, and the pressure of playing in Portland. David, tell me. What pressures are there, playing in Portland. We ask you two things: have an OBP of .425, and don’t break your spine; is that so much asked!? (actually, it’s three things; the third thing is to shut the f*** up)

On Tuesday, after thumping the Indians twice, we were 20 games under .500; our run differential was actually +19!! Is this a case of horrible management in close games? Have I finally lost it? Have I finally gone nuts?

Would the Furballs be better off without me?

08-05-2014, 04:04 PM	#962
Westheim Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Germany Posts: 13,821	After shedding salary six weeks earlier, we had just crawled back into the green zone when it came to our budget. That sliver of budget room would be enough to f.e. pay a minimum salary player for the rest of the year. Checking the waiver wire on Monday morning, I found two players on there that did not appear to be part of a waiver deal. One of them was a player we had faced just this last week. The other was southpaw Tim Mallandain. I claimed one of them. Hint: it was not Mallandain. Raccoons (45-67) @ Indians (45-67) – August 11-13, 1997 Last place playoffs, so we were bound for losses of 2-1, 3-2, and 14-5… The Indians weren’t scoring at all, ranking dead last in offense in the Continental League. Their pitching was average, with a pretty sound bullpen, which ranked 3rd in ERA. (By the way, the collection of failures the Raccoons sat behind the right field fence day in and day out was right now 8th in the league, the starters however ranked 5th) Projected matchups: Jose Ramos (4-4, 3.66 ERA) vs. Robbie Campbell (8-10, 4.02 ERA) Kisho Saito (8-9, 3.06 ERA) vs. Ruben Prado (3-4, 4.43 ERA) Scott Wade (4-6, 4.90 ERA) vs. Dan George (7-11, 3.67 ERA) Game 1 POR: 2B Brewer – SS Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Green – LF Buell – 3B Crowe – C Vinson – P Ramos IND: SS C. Gonzalez – 2B M. Carter – 1B M. Brown – RF A. Roldán – CF Paredes – LF Sakaguchi – C T. Thompson – 3B Whaley – P Campbell Jose Ramos’ stuff didn’t bite today, and he struck out only one batter while pitching into the sixth, from which he couldn’t get out of. With one out and runners on the corners, Daniel Miller was brought in to protect a 6-2 lead, but one run scored off him with a 2-out RBI single by Terence Thompson. How had the Coons scored six runs so far? Brute power. Green had homered in the second inning, and Neil Reece had provided a pair of 2-run home runs, in a 3-run third and then again in the fifth. Reece however struck out with the bags full in the sixth inning, missing history with three homers in one game. He came up again in the eighth, facing Cesar Salcido, but “only” hit an RBI single. Thanks to a bases-clearing double by Buell later in the inning, Salcido got soiled with four earned runs, making my heart of darkness laugh really madly. Although Donis and Santana tried to blow the game really hard in the final innings, this was a rout. 12-4 Raccoons! Ingall 5-6, 2B, RBI; Reece 3-5, BB, 2 HR, 5 RBI; Green 2-4, 2 BB, HR, 2 RBI; Buell 2-6, 2 2B, 3 RBI; Vinson 2-4, BB, 2B, RBI; Miller 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K; For the first time since god-knows-when we are not last or tied for last. But of course, Saito pitches the next one, so we will score minus three runs. When was David Vinson’s last multi-hit game? How about JUNE THIRTEEN!? Two months of going 6-69 … what the hell has become of him!? Game 2 POR: 2B Brewer – SS Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Green – LF Kinnear – C Aycock – 3B Caddock – P Saito IND: 1B G. Flores – 2B M. Carter – C Cicalina – RF Sakaguchi – LF L. Maldonado – CF Alarcon – 3B C. Gonzalez – SS Cerdeira – P Prado Saito faced an all-righty lineup here, but the Coons rolled up Ruben Prado early on with four singles for three runs in the first inning, twice beating the arm of Francisco Alarcon to be safe at home. The Coons added two in the third, but just like in his last start, Saito crumbled badly in the fourth, allowed a homer to Cicalina, and the Indians came back to 5-2, and they had two on in the fifth when Neil Reece made a strong catch to end that inning. Saito mightily wobbled through seven, but the Indians didn’t get more off him, while in turn the Raccoons stomped Prado and the relief corps for four runs in the seventh inning to lead 9-2. The Coons didn’t make an out in the eighth until after a 3-run homer by Weeds, another run scoring on an error by Gonzalez, and them loading the bags, when Guerin bounced out to second, but that still brought home the fifth run of the frame. With Jim Durden in, Brewer and Ingall hit RBI singles, and Reece brought home another run on a groundout before Weeds struck out: eight runs scored in the inning. If the last game was a rout, this was a dismantling: 17-3 Critters!! Brewer 3-6, RBI; Ingall 3-6, RBI; Reece 2-4, 2 BB, 2B, RBI; Wedemeyer 2-6, HR, 3 RBI; Green 3-5, BB, 2B, 2 RBI; Kinnear 2-3, 2 BB, 2 RBI; Aycock 2-6, 4 RBI; Saito 7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, W (9-9) and 1-4, RBI; Game 3 POR: 2B Brewer – 1B Ingall – CF Reece – RF Green – LF Buell – 3B Crowe – C Aycock – SS Guerin – P Wade IND: SS C. Gonzalez – C Cicalina – 1B M. Brown – RF A. Roldán – LF Sakaguchi – CF L. Maldonado – 2B Cerdeira – 3B Alarcon – P George At some point, things had to reverse. They reversed in Wade’s game, they reversed soon, and they reversed hard, as the Indians romped over him for five runs in the first inning. Well, amazing. We lose. Then came the top 2nd: Green singled; Buell singled; Crowe grounded out, advancing the runners; George then balked a run in, and walked Aycock; Guerin singled, scoring Buell; Wade walked; Brewer grounded to Cerdeira, who only got Wade at second, and a run scored; Ingall came up, took a strike, then ripped a homer out of right center; if you counted, that’s six runs. But Wade had NOTHING and was yanked in the third inning, down 7-6 and another man on. What was wrong with him!? Zuniga was brought in, as we ached for several innings. He held Wade’s run on, and neither pitcher saw daylight in the fourth, as George was hit for in the third. With a more rested pen, the Raccoons still had a good chance of reversing that 7-6 deficit. Zuniga pitched three innings, but allowed two runs in the fifth, which the Coons got back in the sixth, but we still trailed by a run. The Indians left the bags full in the bottom 6th while putting four men on – but Aycock gunned down Roldán trying to nab second base – and the Raccoons also left them full in the top 7th. Top 8th, two down, nobody on, Brewer got on. And then Ingall, and then Reece. Bags full against Jim Durden, Royce Green worked a walk, and we were tied! And then Buell grounded out and we left them full again. We went to extra innings, and into the bottom 10th, where Miller walked Gonzalez, but Thompson, now batting second, hit into a double play. That brought up Brown, who was not going to hit a home run here and was put on intentionally to pitch to Roldán. And Roldán hit that home run. 11-9 Indians. Ingall 2-5, BB, HR, 3 RBI; Green 2-4, BB, RBI; Crowe 2-4, BB, 2B, RBI; Guerin 2-5, 2 RBI; De La Rosa 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K; Waiver claim On Thursday, the Raccoons had an off day, plus they were awarded utility man Jai Utting off waivers by the Atlanta Knights. With the 40-man roster full, SP Jose Rivera was transferred to the 60-day DL to make room for Jai Utting. Rivera is not expected back until very late in the season (if at all this season), so we will deal with the issue when it arises in six weeks or later. The 29-year old Utting, from Melbourne, Victoria, is the Steve Walker type player* that the Raccoons have not had for many years, able to play capably in the infield and the outfield on almost all positions. His best positions are the corner infield and left field positions, but he also plays a very competent middle infield and a serviceable centerfield. He has never played much in right, but his range is good and his arm is strong, so maybe that could also work for him? Utting was the Loggers’ 9th round pick in the 1986 draft (back then the draft went only ten rounds!), but didn’t surface in the Bigs until 1992 with the Knights. His career slash line is .273/.329/.383 with 9 HR and 130 RBI in 1,141 AB. He was a regular only this and last season. The bad news are that he has very little power and no speed: he has not a single stolen base in his major league career. Utting will be arbitration eligible for the first time this fall. With Utting on board we can divest ourself of Steve Caddock, who had not batted enough despite great defense all around the infield. For the newcomers: Steve Walker was a utility player for the Raccoons from 1982 to 1988, forming a dazzling if unlikely sterling middle infield combo with Winston Thompson starting in 1983, when he was not subbing elsewhere. Walker (.249/.328/.335 with 32 HR, 254 RBI and only 9 SB) is still 11th in at-bats among all Raccoons. Thompson, who was a true scrap heap pickup prior to the ’83 season, when we first made the playoffs (and what a surprise that was), is still 16th. And yes, these two just belong together. Both exited after the train wreck that was 1988. Neither played in the Bigs again. Yes, we now have four Aussies on the roster! Utting joins Wedemeyer, Kinnear, and Tamburrino. Do all Australians have names that are somewhat strange, but in a nice way? Raccoons (47-68) @ Pacifics (48-67)* – August 15-17, 1997 The Pacifics were 11th in runs scored in the FL, with a good rotation, but a shabby bullpen. Projected matchups: Miguel Lopez (9-7, 3.80 ERA) vs. Jonathan Dumont (5-5, 4.79 ERA) Hector Lara (5-4, 3.63 ERA) vs. Manuel Paredes (3-11, 5.71 ERA) Jose Ramos (5-4, 3.75 ERA) vs. Bastyao Caixinha (11-10, 3.19 ERA) No reunion with Jason Turner (6-14, 4.82 ERA) in this series, unfortunately. Caixinha was also the only left-hander we got in the set, and we had another off day right away on Monday. However, at the moment, all our starters (except Wade, somehow…) performed mostly reasonably adept so I was not inclined to skip anybody. Except maybe Wade next Wednesday. Game 1 POR: 2B Brewer – SS Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Green – LF Kinnear – 3B Crowe – C Aycock – P M. Lopez LAP: SS Austin – 1B Donaldson – RF A. Rodriguez – C Branch – LF Quintela – CF J. Thompson – 2B E. Edwards – 3B Cook – P Dumont The Raccoons stormed out of the gates with a 3-run homer by Weeds in the first, and loaded the bags in the second inning when Aycock singled, and Carlos Cook threw away Lopez’ bunt, followed by a walk to Brewer. Unfortunately Marvin Ingall decided to hit right to Mark Austin in his at-bat, and the Raccoons only got the run that scored on the double play (which went second and first). In return, Lance Branch hit a double in a 2-strike count to open the bottom 2nd, followed by a Carlos Quintela single in a 2-strike count, and then Jim Thompson homered. The Pacifics batted around the lineup, scoring four runs to tie the game. Great. Crowe scored Kinnear with a sac fly in the fifth for a 5-4 lead, but Lopez was drummed with home runs from Douglas Donaldson and another one by Thompson and was finally sent home. While we were well on the way to lose another game we had led by umpteen runs early on, we still had time to insert Donis to ramp the score to 8-5 Pacifics after six. Top 8th, Crowe and Aycock hit singles to start the inning, bringing the tying run to the plate in PH Luke Newton against ex-VAN/BOS Holden Gorman. The Pacifics used three relievers here to match our three batters, including Brewer and Ingall, and got them all. Jai Utting made his Raccoons debut as defensive replacement for Brewer (not that his defense was better, I just didn’t want Brewer to break a random number of legs in a lost game), and handled his one chance for an out. We still got another shot against Pete Sanders in the ninth, who walked Weeds with one out, and then Ed Edwards dropped Royce Green’s pop fly. Two on, one out, Kinnear countered Sanders, who remained in the game. Kinnear walked. We had no left-handed pats on the bench to bat for Crowe, who singled, or Aycock, who struck out. Guerin batted for Santana with two down, the bags booked, and two runs down. And struck out. 8-6 Pacifics. Ingall 2-5; Wedemeyer 2-4, BB, HR, 3 RBI; Kinnear 3-4, BB, 2B; Crowe 2-3, BB, 2 RBI; Aycock 2-5; Two points: maybe I suck at managing? First. And second: now what did I just say about our starting pitching?? This Ed Edwards guy. I was after him a few years ago, but I can’t remember when and why. Maybe it was right when he was drafted, in 1994? Gotta check. He’s a decent second baseman now, a solid .725 OPS or so bat, yet without power (1 HR in 1,015 ML AB). Game 2 POR: 2B Brewer – SS Ingall – LF Kinnear – 1B Wedemeyer – RF Buell – CF Newton – 3B Crowe – C Aycock – P Lara LAP: 1B Battle – SS Austin – RF A. Rodriguez – C Branch – CF J. Thompson – 2B Donaldson – LF Lacombe – 3B Sutton – P Paredes Hector Lara retired none of the first four batters he faced, and only escaped the first inning alive thanks to Joe Lacombe hitting into an inning-ending double play, keeping the score at 2-0. Lara actually hit two doubles himself, but that was nowhere near to being close to being almost sufficient to make up his abysmal mound performance, for which he got yanked in the fifth, down 5-3 with Jim Thompson, who had just hit the second of back-to-back doubles to lead off the inning, on second base. The game was declared lost, as Diaz came in, got five outs before he put two men on in the sixth, and Zuniga surrendered them to lefty Lance Branch. The Raccoons never raised another bat in anger, and lost their third straight. 7-3 Pacifics. Ingall 2-3, BB, RBI; Newton 2-4; Game 3 POR: 2B Ingall – LF Kinnear – CF Reece – RF Green – 3B Crowe – 1B Utting – C Aycock – SS Guerin – P Ramos LAP: 1B Battle – SS Austin – RF A. Rodriguez – C Branch – CF J. Thompson – LF Quintela – 2B Donaldson – 3B Sutton – P Caixinha More suckerball from our pitching corps in this game, as Ramos allowed a 2-run homer to Thompson (that bastard) in the second inning, and with two out and nobody on in the third melted away to put four Pacifics on that plated another two runs. For the third straight day, our starter was showering by the time the sixth inning began, this time with a Caixinha double, a wild pitch, an RBI single by Austin, and another bomb by Anibal Rodriguez in the bottom 5th. 7-0. What the hell. There was not a lot to report about the Raccoons, who managed to rack up two hits through six innings, and then crowded Caixinha some more, but … well, the Raccoons left three men on in the seventh, two in the eighth, and two more in the ninth, and Caixinha spun a 7-hit shutout, fanning ten. 7-0 Pacifics. Kinnear 2-4; Utting 2-4, 2B; Wedemeyer (PH) 1-1; Newton (PH) 1-1; Santana 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K; Donis 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K; In other news August 12 – SFB CL William Henderson (1-4, 2.56 ERA, 27 SV) is out for the season with tendinitis in his elbow. August 17 – Milwaukee’s latest young hotshot, 22-yr old 2B/SS Bartolo Hernandez (.331, 0 HR, 16 RBI), has crafted a 20-game hitting streak despite not being a regular on the team. Complaints and stuff BNN reported that David Brewer asked to be traded (which is true), and that he was unhappy with the fans and the team management, and the pressure of playing in Portland. David, tell me. What pressures are there, playing in Portland. We ask you two things: have an OBP of .425, and don’t break your spine; is that so much asked!? (actually, it’s three things; the third thing is to shut the f*** up) On Tuesday, after thumping the Indians twice, we were 20 games under .500; our run differential was actually +19!! Is this a case of horrible management in close games? Have I finally lost it? Have I finally gone nuts? Would the Furballs be better off without me? Attached Images __________________ Portland Raccoons, 92 years of excell-.... of baseball: Furballs here! 1983 * 1989 * 1991 * 1992 * 1993 * 1995 * 1996 * 2010 * 2017 * 2018 * 2019 * 2026 * 2028 * 2035 * 2037 * 2044 * 2045 * 2046 * 2047 * 2048 * 2051 * 2054 * 2055 * 2061 1 OSANAI : 2 POWELL : 7 NOMURA \| RAMOS : 8 REECE : 10 BROWN : 15 HALL : 27 FERNANDEZ : 28 CASAS : 31 CARMONA : 32 WEST : 39 TONER : 46 SAITO Resident Mets Cynic - The Mets from 1962 onwards, here. Last edited by Westheim; 08-05-2014 at 04:26 PM.