[Westheim]

Raccoons (13-25) vs. Titans (24-14) – May 17-20, 1999

I smell slaughter coming upon us with the #7 offense and #1 pitching of the league coming upon us. And for four games. I thought our record was low enough already?

Projected matchups:
Bob Joly (2-4, 5.71 ERA) vs. Sergio Gonzalez (2-2, 3.49 ERA)
Kisho Saito (1-6, 6.22 ERA) vs. Kenny Frye (2-0, 4.25 ERA)
Jose Rivera (4-3, 3.60 ERA) vs. Kent Cahill (4-1, 2.81 ERA)
Esteban Flores (0-1, 10.57 ERA) vs. Jason O’Halloran (4-4, 3.55 ERA)

O’Halloran is the only left-hander they have to offer. Well, we only put up Saito. Will his last start, which I want to call the almost-shutout, be indicative of his future performance? And give or take what you want, but at least we miss Jesus Bautista (7-2, 1.94 ERA)!

Game 1
BOS: SS D. Silva – 2B Henry – RF Thomas – C L. Lopez – 1B G. Douglas – CF Reid – LF Alonso – 3B Baker – P S. Gonzalez
POR: SS Guerin – RF Brady – CF Reece – 3B Gonzalez – C Branch – LF Buell – 2B Caddock – 1B Michel – P Joly

Slaughter was the call of the day. Joly was struck down, had his limbs dismembered, eyes poked and tongue torn out, and finally his intestines distributed all over the place, as the Titans led this game 10-1 after the top 2nd. Luckily, 50 Cent Beer Night was scheduled for *Wednesday*. Sergio Gonzalez gave up all of two hits while pitching a complete game. 13-1 Titans.

Really not much more to tell here, and I grabbed the last seven innings from the box score only, anyway, having made for the concession stands while the grounds crew had still been busy wiping up the remains of Bob Joly.

I have seen enough of him. Options are Fairchild, and – at AAA – blue chip Ralph Ford (4-2, 4.22 ERA) and Anthony Mosher (5-2, 6.34 ERA). I can see Ford getting torn up but Mosher, seriously? That AAA team was not really scoring plenty, by the way. Don’t know how Mosher can have these numbers at the same time.

As a stop gap, Mosher was called up to replace Joly, who was demoted to AAA. Mosher’s pitching day fell on game 4 in this series, so we would leave him on his 5-day routine, and push back Flores to the bottom spot in the order.

Mosher, a 24-year old southpaw, was the Bayhawks’ first round pick in 1993. He had all kinds of nagging injuries his first two years, before we acquired him for Tim “Suckerface” Mallandain. I don’t expect him to make many starts. I rather expect another nightmare like this one.

Game 2
BOS: SS D. Silva – 3B Nakayama – RF Reid – 1B G. Douglas – C L. Lopez – CF Alonso – LF Baker – 2B Henry – P Frye
POR: SS Guerin – LF Brady – CF Reece – 1B Gonzalez – C Branch – 2B Ingall – RF Newton – 3B Crowe – P Saito

Saito didn’t appear to be as locked in as in his last start and Daniel Silva hit a double to start the game. Nakayama got on, but Saito would eventually pick him off first base and that helped him to get out of the first inning. Both teams scored a run in the third, before Saito came to bat in the bottom 5th with Newton, who had walked, and Crowe, who had singled, on the corners and no outs. Chance to score, so why would you bunt. Saito still slammed the ball into the ground two feet in front of home plate. Luis Lopez jumped out as Newton scrambled back to third, and threw to second to start a double play. Wait, he threw well over second and into center, Newton scrambled in the other direction, and by the time Luis Alonso had hustled in, Crowe and Saito were in scoring position, but only Crowe would score in the inning. A Douglas triple led to a run in the top 6th to cut the lead back to 3-2 quickly. The Furballs then loaded the bags in the bottom 6th with no outs as Gonzalez and Branch drew walks and Ingall singled to center. Newton doubled to left, two runs scored, Crowe was put on with four wide ones, bringing up Saito, and Frye was still not removed from the game. While he got Saito to pop out, Newton singled to left, and two more runs scored, knocking out Frye. Saito pitched seven and left with a 7-2 lead. Six outs with five runs of lead, sounds doable.

Au contraire.

Donis came in to face Silva, who would have been Saito’s, but I went for a double switch so the pitcher wouldn’t bat in the eighth, and Ingall had been hit for, and that slot was open after seven, and yeah, Donis put Silva on. Then came Tamburrino, struck out one batter, then walked two. Wade came in, and walked a run in. With two down, Baker singled to center, 7-4. Horace Henry was next, struck out every time by Saito, but he took Wade to deep center. Deeep center. Deeeeep – Reece must have gone with warp 8 to get that ball! Top 9th. Vicente Elizondo struck out. Then Silva doubled once more, his fifth hit on the day. Nakayama drove him in with a single. Wade was yelled at by the manager, then got Reid to float out to Reece. Douglas for the money – struck him out!! 7-5 Raccoons. Guerin 2-3, BB, 4 RBI; Saito 7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, W (2-6);

I was shaking for some time even after the final out had been collected.

So did Saito.

Game 3
BOS: SS D. Silva – 2B Henry – RF Thomas – C L. Lopez – 1B G. Douglas – CF Reid – LF Munoz – 3B Nakayama – P Cahill
POR: SS Guerin – RF Brady – CF Reece – 3B Gonzalez – C Castillo – 2B Ingall – LF Buell – 1B Michel – P Rivera

After the Titans left runners on third base in the first two innings, and Ingall gave him a 1-0 lead with a leadoff jack in the bottom 2nd, Rivera again had a Titan at third with two down in the top 3rd. Sick of the tension, he balked him home, game tied. On the next pitch, Luis Lopez lined out softly to Guerin. Then it was the Coons’ time to leave runners on third base, which they did in the fourth and fifth innings, both times with pops to short, Rivera and Castillo doing the honors, but Rivera would come through with a go-ahead RBI single in the sixth, scoring Buell. In light rain then, Dave Reid reached on an Ingall error to start the top 7th. Rivera hit PH Elizondo, and walked another pinch-hitter in Alonso before Donis came in to face Silva with the bases loaded. It hadn’t worked the day before, why would it work now? Silva grounded to Ingall, Guerin couldn’t turn the double play, and the game was tied. A Gonzalez home run gave us a new lead in the bottom 7th, and Donis was still in to face Thomas and Lopez, the switch-hitters, and actually got them both. The score was 3-2 through eighth, but the resolution of the game would have to wait for an hour, as the rain intensified and forced a delay. When the storms had moved past, it was Lagarde’s time to shine. Wade and Martinez both had pitched three of the last four days (Wade for 77 pitches) and were spent. Lagarde was the only rested arm available, and we really didn’t have much beyond him but Tamburrino. Lagarde came through, pitching around a leadoff single by Reid to retire the next three guys. 3-2 Coons. Guerin 2-5; Gonzalez 2-4, HR, RBI; Ingall 3-4, HR, 2 2B, RBI;

Anthony Mosher would make his big league debut with an expended bullpen behind(?) him. We really didn’t have any fresh pitcher, which almost put Flores into a long relief role for this game, which would delay the problem until later in the week at best. We could possibly cobble three innings together. Miller had faced only one batter in game 3, and was possibly available for two frames, but … oh well.

Game 4
BOS: SS D. Silva – 3B Nakayama – RF Reid – 1B G. Douglas – C L. Lopez – CF Alonso – LF Thomas – 2B Baker – P O’Halloran
POR: SS Guerin – 2B Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Gonzalez – C Branch – LF Buell – RF Newton – 3B Crowe – P Mosher

Mosher was wild, Mosher was hittable, Mosher was unlucky, Mosher was ripped apart. The Titans got two in the first, two in the second, and knocked out in the fifth with two out and two in scoring position. Lagarde came in, got a bloop from Thomas, but that bloop fell into no man’s land and plated Mosher’s runners to ramp the score to then 6-2. Not that the Raccoons had anything going. The Titans donated them another run in the bottom 7th with a wild pitch plating Buell from third base. However, our bullpen eventually collapsed, and Tamburrino once more was right in the middle of things, being charged with three runs in the eighth. 9-3 Titans. Ingall 2-4, 2 2B; Gonzalez 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; Miller 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K;

Cesar Gonzalez relieved Ricardo Castillo atop the home run column with his fifth long ball, hit here in the fourth inning. Also in the fourth, but in the top half, we lost Stephen Buell on a breakneck play. Ya, he better hurry up with getting ouchies, otherwise he won’t make it to the DL four times this year. By the next morning we were sure that he had not hurt himself too badly, but would miss a week with a hand contusion.

Which was bad just as well. I was on the verge of adding a 13th pitcher again because our pitching is so crap, but I can’t get by with a 3-man bench!

Raccoons (15-27) vs. Condors (22-18) – May 21-23, 1999

The Condors were 5th in runs scored and 7th in runs allowed in the league,

Projected matchups:
Randy Farley (3-3, 3.15 ERA) vs. Harry Griggs (3-4, 4.18 ERA)
Esteban Flores (0-1, 10.57 ERA) vs. Woody Roberts (5-2, 1.66 ERA)
Kisho Saito (2-6, 5.74 ERA) vs. Bastyao Caixinha (4-5, 4.76 ERA)

Pitching matchups in each game match in their handedness here, but regardless of all things like matchups, we NEED a long outing from Farley. We NEED to get that bullpen recovered because Flores can be expected to blow up again, and with Saito you can’t be sure this year. Farley NEEDS to go deep into the game, a complete game if I have to say something about it.

Game 1
TIJ: LF Horn – 2B Brewer – RF Wales – 1B Mosley – 3B O’Morrissey – SS Boyle – C Vinson – CF Gorden – P Griggs
POR: SS Guerin – RF Brady – CF Reece – 3B Gonzalez – C Branch – 2B Ingall – 1B Castillo – LF Parker – P Farley

We needed Farley, and Farley delivered. Although the score was 1-1 quickly with solo shots in the second by Ben O’Morrissey and Lance Branch, neither pitcher gave up a lot over the next few innings, although occasionally one team would advance a runner into scoring position. Farley twice got key strikeouts to wiggle out of such situations, and when Ingall singled home the go-ahead run in the bottom 6th, that appeared to be the difference maker. Farley went through eight without too many issues, leading 2-1. The ninth, depleted bullpen or a dominating starter? Farley, on 90 pitches, remained in there. Mosley soared a flyer to Brady, and O’Morrissey rolled out to short. And then Farley walked Boyle, his first walk on the day. Uh-oh. Vinson up. Ha! Vinson played in Portland for almost TEN years and hasn’t gotten a key hit since ’90! Randy will have Vinson for breakfast! Vinson took Farley’s first pitch to right center, and Brady was waiting for it long before it came down. 2-1 Coons! Branch 2-4, HR, RBI; Farley 9.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, W (4-3) and 1-2;

ALL HAIL RANDY!!!

Game 2
TIJ: LF Horn – 2B Brewer – RF Wales – 1B Mosley – 3B O’Morrissey – SS Boyle – C Vinson – CF Gorden – P Roberts
POR: SS Guerin – LF Brady – CF Reece – 1B Gonzalez – C Branch – 2B Ingall – RF Newton – 3B Crowe – P Flores

Difference between starters’ ERA’s: almost nine. Brace for the worst, and hope for Flores to make it through six for a change. To anybody’s surprise, Flores made it through six in shutout fashion, twice getting key strikeouts with runners on third base to escape jams, but through the top 6th the Raccoons were up 1-0 after a Branch sac fly in the fourth. Flores would not go any further though – for a rain shower forcing a delay north of an hour, knocking him from the game after six. Lagarde pitched the seventh, and Martinez got the eighth, putting a man on third base with two out and Brewer up. You know, we carry Donis, we should use him occasionally. Brewer rolled out to Ingall on the first pitch, and the 1-0 lived on. In the bottom 8th we couldn’t score despite a leadoff double from Luke Newton, so Scott Wade had no cushion, got two groundouts, and then struck out his old friend O-Mo. 1-0 Coons!! Guerin 2-4; Flores 6.0 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K, W (1-1);

WINNING WEEK!!!! Yes, this is our FIRST this year!

Now for the bad news. Jackie Lagarde had discomfort in his forearm after this game, and it really looked like only forearm stiffness, so it was not another case of season over, but he would have to rest for at least one week. This is where the problem arises. We already play one man short. We can’t play another man short, since I expected the pitching to implode any given day.

So, Jackie Lagarde was heading for the DL, and we added Manuel Martinez again for the time being. The Condors’ Bruce Boyle was also hurt in this game and hit the DL with back soreness.

Game 3
TIJ: 2B Brewer – SS J. Barrón – RF Wales – LF Horn – 1B O’Morrissey – CF Gorden – C MacIntosh – 3B M. Valdes – P Caixinha
POR: SS Guerin – 2B Ingall – CF Reece – 1B Gonzalez – C Branch – 3B Crowe – LF Newton – RF Brady – P Saito

The semi-dominating Saito from the last two starts was gone, as the Condors rocked him for four runs in the first three innings. Well, O’Morrissey rocked him for three innings between a 2-out, 2-run double in the first, and a double in the third, in which he scored, while a Guerin error put the leadoff man MacIntosh on in the second, and he was also brought around to score. A 3-run third by the Coons was not enough to make that deficit up. Saito stayed in the game though and the score was still 4-3 into the bottom 6th. Branch – who had killed the third inning rally with a double play – doubled, Crowe singled, runners on the corners with no outs. Between a Newton pop and Crowe being picked off first, they BARELY got Branch home on a Brady sac fly to tie the score. Saito left after seven, and Tamburrino came in, retired nobody, and was taken very, very deep by O’Morrissey for a 3-run home run, and that before a horror ninth in which the Condors plated three more on Fairchild, but only one was earned after errors by Ingall and Gonzalez. 10-4 Condors. Guerin 2-5; Ingall 3-4, 2B, RBI; Reece 2-4, RBI; Caddock (PH) 1-1;

Sigh. Two steps forward, eight steps back…..

In other news

May 22 – Not only did the Loggers CRUSH the Knights, 26-1, but MIL Jerry Fletcher (.384, 1 HR, 20 RBI), who is leading the CL batting race, hit for the CYCLE. The 25th ABL cycle, and third for the Loggers franchise (Emilio Román, 1989; Jim Stein, 1992) comes almost exactly one year after the last cycle in the league, hit for by Tijuana’s Martin Horn on May 26, 1998.

Complaints and stuff

I like the Buell kid, but boy, the long ago last mentioned Jeremiah Carrell bobblehead was WAY less fragile than this boy. We’ll have him checked for brittle bone disease, just to be sure……

The offense was not very good this week. Reece had a bad week, and Lance Branch hasn’t been good for a while. We got SOME good starting pitching, from Farley and Saito once, and also from Flores. The bullpen was a gaping abyss in which all hopes were dropped and vanquished. It continues to be grossly overworked. Juan Martinez is on pace to pitch 78 innings this year, which I deem too high for a reliever. I don’t really want them to pitch more than 60-70 innings, depending on stamina. Well, the starting pitching for the most part this year has not given us a chance to rest guys…

And if Tamburrino doesn’t give up his refusing stance to demotion to St. Petersburg, I will have to think of something. There’s a construction company at the edge of town, the owner of which is named Martini. I’m sure he knows of ways of getting Tamburrino down to the land of fishes…

We had both our 200th win and 200th loss against the Titans this week, in game 2 and 4, respectively.