[Bub13]

28 games this month, with two of the off days sandwiching the Cleveland series, on the 13th and the 17th. Best opponents this month are Oakland, Cleveland, and Toronto, all at or near the top of their divisions.

August 1-2 @ OAKLAND
Continuation from July. Let's try not to have any more injuries, ok?

#104: LOSS 1-8...welcome to the AL, Justin Ragland. Now bring your arm with you next game...more bad news, re Adam Groff
#105: WIN 14-5...I like abusing opposing pitching staffs...Wunderlich stinks up the joint again, tho...Videira goes 5-for-5, 3 RBI

Back spasms for Groff, in addition to his ankle sprain, so he goes on the DL. Dang. He was on a pace to hit 50 HR until now. Josh Robertson comes up again, will play 2B, with Hebert moving back over to third...At least we didn't get swept.


August 3-6 vs. TEXAS
Quick 4-game homestand against the Rangers. We're 5-2 vs. them so far. Rangers are 47-59, tied for fifth with the Angels. Their pitching and hitting are struggling right now, and they're down to 16th in the AL in runs scored.

#106: WIN 3-1...Holguin hits his 1st career HR, a 2-run walk-off in the ninth...Clark yields 1 hit in 7.2, with 13 K
#107: LOSS 2-7...eh, forget this game...Dull, dull, dull...DiFranco leaves his game at home, we get only 7 hits
#108: LOSS 1-7...wow, we are stumbling now...just 3 hits...LF McArthur is the latest to suffer a dtd injury, for a month...damn
#109: LOSS 6-12...holy crap but Ragland has been a disgrace in his two starts...plus our excellent bullpen is taking it on the chin right now

Terrible start to the month. Who will get injured next? Which pitcher will decide to not throw batting practice during a live game? New guy Ragland has been terrible in two starts; I'm not sure how much leash to give him...Oakland is now 4.5 back, and is 7-3 in their last ten (we're 4-6).


August 7-9 @ MILWAUKEE
We took 2 of 3 from the Brewers back in May. They're playing well of late, sitting at 56-53, second place just 5 games back of Cleveland. 2B Justin Long has powered 34 home runs, but is hitting just .233 and strikes out over a third of the time. MLB #2 prospect Nick Shockley has been strong in his 10 starts this season, and #3 prospect Jim Horvath has 28 saves, and a nearly 5-to-1 K/BB ratio.

#110: LOSS 6-7...three runs in the ninth get us to extras, but we go quietly in the tenth...I'm no longer talking to SP Wunderlich
#111: WIN 6-4...Clark gives us six good innings, and the bullpen tries but doesn't actually blow it
#112: WIN 7-3...DiFranco whiffs 8 in 6.1 innings, and Dunklee hits his 18th to give us the win...Videira now hitting .331

Phew, we manage to stop the bleeding a bit. No more injuries, so that's something...Dunklee is finally completely healthy and is starting to hit 'em out of the yard again...And I decided to offer Videira an extension for next year, which he signs, for 1.8M. The fans go nuts, and our Fan Interest has hit 94. 94! Fun fact: in game 112, Milwaukee reliever Bill Adan threw six no-hit innings. Also, Oakland SP Ricky Hose has pitched three consecutive complete games, giving up just 12 total hits. The A's are still hanging out at 4.5 games back.


August 10-12 @ KANSAS CITY
Currently 53-58, fourth in the Central, 9 behind Cleveland. Offense is below average, but they do get hits (7th in BA). Pitching is better, led by their #2 bullpen. Last month they traded their leadoff hitter, CF Corey Jarrell, to Arizona, and installed prospect Marcos Zuniga. He's hitting .310, but has a pending injury diagnosis. 32-year-old rookie 1B Hakaru Watanabe is back from injury, and has hit 13 HR in 108 AB. 3B Zack Pusz leads the offense, at .283/20/60. Fun fact: each of their minor league teams currently has a winning record.

#113: WIN 7-2...Hebert 3 hits and 2 steals, now hitting .296....Shewmake suffers and injury, diagnosis pending
#114: LOSS 0-11...Justin Ragland hammered again, has now given up 21 runs and 35 hits in 15 innings...nice trade by me
#115: LOSS 3-4...Wunderlich goes 8 innings and we outhit our opponents in a loss (again)

We're now 4-6 in August (and 3-3 vs KC). Luckily, Oakland and Seattle are matching that and have gained no ground....Shewmake's injury was just for 3 days, so that's fine....Worse, our new boy Ragland has blown chunks all over our rotation in his three starts, and the guy I sent down to make room for him just went on the DL for two weeks...and trainer Jordan Villalobos tells me that SS Jim Mullen--scheduled to come off the DL in four days--now has an "unknown recovery time" from his injury. Sigh.


August 14-16 vs. CLEVELAND
The Indians are 64-48, 7.5 games ahead of the Twins and Brewers. Their defense and bullpen have been outstanding, and their hitting and starting pitching has been good enough to sustain them. Three starters are hitting .300, with RF Eddie Lopez leading the way at .315/19/50. Original Islanders Chance Muller leads the pitchers with 12 wins and a 3.82 ERA. They have seven players on the DL.

#116: WIN 5-2...Clark gives up 2 more HR, but only four other hits, and Ks 10...we've gone five games without a homer now
#117: WIN 8-3...DiFranco 3 K in 6 innings, reliever Glass gets 6 K in 3 innings...we hit three HR, nice after the drought
#118: WIN 3-2...Muller shuts us out for 8 innings, but three hits, two HR, and three runs later we complete the sweep...

Well, that was unexpected. We're now 6.5 up in Oakland, 10 on Seattle....The left side of the infield remains on the DL, with Mullen's injury now extended indefinitely, and Groff gone for two more weeks; Hebert's back at third, and hitting .350 the last six weeks, while callup Danny Holguin is holding his own at .267/.352/.719 in 18 starts.


Next up: August, part 2