[Bub13]

August 17-19 vs CLEVELAND
When a team wins 91 games but fires its manager, surely they must know something we don't, right? Maybe, but in this case I'll just let the Indians' 53-64 record and last place standing in the Central speak instead. A speedy team that gets on base and manufactures runs (618, 3rd in the AL), but can't pitch its way out of a paper bag. Here's another question: what can you say about a team with a +2 run diff that is 11 games under .500?

#119: WIN 8-0 ... Jones goes 4 but is lifted after a rain delay, so the win goes to Stanley and his 4-innings in relief...both teams lose a player to injury after a HPB
#120: LOSS 3-5 ... Ah, Miller, you blew it again...this time, three runs in the ninth kills us...they outhit us 12-5 but we still had it in our hands
#121: Game Postponed due to rain; rescheduled for 9/6

So Miller's stay at closer lasted four appearances. Ryan Key has had two saves as a setup guy since Shewmake's injury, so I'll try him next. Still considering "no official closer" as my next guy should Key not work out. ELSEWHERE...Pittsburgh continues to slide, losing five in a row and falling to a tie for second with the Reds. Right now, they're out of the playoffs....3000 Hit Watch: our Cisco Videira is at 2989 hits, while the Nats Ty Cobb is at 2961. Both players have been mired in slumps the past month or so.


August 20-22 vs MILWAUKEE
We close out our homestand against the 60-61 Brewers. Decent hitting (but little power) but bad pitching, which hasn't been helped by having their top two starting pitchers gone for the season. They get some better pitching next year and they'll be a solid, playoff-level, team.

#121: LOSS 4-5 ... Brock struggles, giving up ten hits in six innings, including the winning 3-run blast in the sixth
#122: LOSS 7-8 ... more bullpen struggles, this time a grand slam as part of a five-run ninth...Little leaves early with a blister
#123: WIN 6-5 ... our turn tonight, with a pair of late-inning run-scoring doubles to squeeze out a win and avoid a sweep

Blech. Bad stretch for the bullpen recently, and they looked pretty bad in these three games. Still, we picked up a win, and remain ten games ahead of Oakland. Off now for a two-week, thirteen-game road trip. ELSEWHERE...Mets 1B Nate Johnson reaches 50 HR for the second year running....New Orleans is settling comfortably into overall last place, at 44-80, 5.5 games behind both Washington and Baltimore.


August 23 @ CHICAGO WHITE SOX
Sitting at 63-61, third place in the Central, is a positive result for the Sox, recently one of the more horrid league franchises. They hit a lot of home runs (176, 3rd), and their #3-#5 hitters have a combined 83 homers. They have an appalling nine players on the DL, and two more laboring with dtd injuries.

#124: WIN 2-1 ... yet another ninth inning decision, as Collins doubles home a runner and the bullpen functions for once, this time Key getting the save
#125: LOSS 2-6 ... Casillas has a rare bad game, and we can't do anything with our eleven singles
#126: LOSS 2-4 ... we zone out from start to finish...zzzz

Another meh series; we look pretty dull and uninterested against another mediocre team. Probably time to tweak the lineup again, keep the guys on their toes. Oakland now 8.5 back. ELSEWHERE...Cisco Videira (HAW) is now six hits from 3000. Washington's Ty Cobb is 32 away.


August 26-29 @ HOUSTON
Five regulars have topped 20 HR, and two starting pitchers (Jay Russo and Wes Sliker) are having stellar years. But the bullpen is a mess, and no regular player is hitting above .263. They've got a good prospect pile, tho, so one day...

#127: WIN 4-3 ... this time we score in the seventh to get the win...Little goes six, goes to 12-3 on the year...Videira 2 hits, now just four away from 3000
#128: WIN 6-1 ... Groff blasts two and drives in three, and Hart goes the distance, scattering just four hits...McArthur gets a month-long dtd injury
#129: WIN 9-2 ... Groff and Mullen get four hits each, and Mike Hunter goes 2-for-5 in his big league debut...Jones wins his 15th
#130: WIN 11-1 ... Groff (him again!) gets four more hits and Drayton powers two over the fence, while Casillas goes all nine to complete the sweep

Well that felt good. The only bad news was McArthur's injury, which while 'moderate' was enough for me to sideline him for a while to keep him from getting hurt worse....Videira is now 3 hits away....Mike Hunter's future is in the infield, but with that set right now, I'm using his surprisingly good outfield ratings to get him some big league experience. He went 3-for-10 in his two games, and will stay in the lineup as we head off to Oakland. ELSEWHERE...Everyone in the NL Central is playing .500 (or worse) lately, meaning no one has stepped up to threaten the suddenly average-looking Cubs. They're still ahead of the Pirates by 6, the Reds by 7, and Expos by 7.5....Cardinals have now lost 10 in a row....Milwaukee's won 6 in a row to sneak into the outer fringes of the AL wildcard race, while Arizona and LA are both 8-2 in their last ten to pull away in the NL West and wage their own private war.


August 30-31 @ OAKLAND
I keep trying to relegate the A's to also-ran status, but they're not having it. Still, they're 9.5 games back, and have won three in a row after sweeping the Angels. Vinny Vargas has been a house afire lately, with a handful of Best Batter (Week, Month) awards, and is up to .359/.446/.713 with 33 HR and 84 RBI. That's already a great season for 95% of the league. Fun fact: they have no injuries, zero. How? And Ben Hild, featured in the last post due to his awful hitting, is now up to .179.

#131: LOSS 3-9 ... Brock folds early, and we're out of this one after the third...Groff does hit another HR, is now hitting over .300
#132: LOSS 4-5 ... another walk-off loss, this time in the eleventh...plus we gave up the tying run in the ninth...bullpen is full of doubt now

Well, that's not good. Still hitting well, getting generally good games from the not-named-Steve-Brock parts of the rotation, but the bullpen is giving me all sorts of grief....Videira still holding at 2997 hits. ELSEWHERE...Cincy's Robbie Collier no-hit the Cubs on the 31st, and the Reds are now just 5 games out....The Red Sox have lost six straight and are in danger of falling into third place, and way out of the wildcard race.

Next up: Sailing into September