[Westheim]

Raccoons (36-32) vs. Indians (31-38) – June 21-23, 2021

The Indians were not going anywhere in particular, sitting fifth in the division and already double-digit games out of the top spot. They were sixth in runs scored, but their pitching was a bottomless bucket, allowing almost precisely five runs per game, the worst mark in the Continental League. By ERA, both their starters and relievers ranked second from the bottom. Yet, Portland failed to perform against them – the Indians held a 4-2 edge in the season series.

Projected matchups:
Jonathan Toner (8-2, 3.36 ERA) vs. Tom Shumway (4-5, 3.67 ERA)
Hector Santos (6-3, 4.40 ERA) vs. Jared D’Attilo (4-5, 5.63 ERA)
Tadasu Abe (2-4, 4.78 ERA) vs. Dan Lambert (8-2, 3.75 ERA)

The series starts with a southpaw in Shumway, and we will get the Indians‘ two starters with sub-4 ERA’s, too. They have no injuries, but it’s not like they need injuries to struggle. This was not a lineup to pitch light-heartedly to, though. While they were struggling in most regards, they were hitting the most home runs in the CL, and Mike Rucker led the category with 16 dingers, ahead of Mendoza’s 13.

The Raccoons would sit Matt Hamilton for the second consecutive day after he wasn’t in the lineup against Chris Sinkhorn on Sunday. He was in a .125 stretch, and perhaps D’Attilo would be a better rejuvenation opportunity.

Game 1
IND: CF D. Morales – C T. Delgado – 1B M. Rucker – RF C. Martinez – LF Genge – SS Matias – 2B Rolland – 3B Ventura – P Shumway
POR: LF Carmona – 2B Nomura – RF Jackson – 1B Mendoza – C Margolis – SS McKnight – CF Stevenson – 3B Petracek – P Toner

In the most recent edition of ‘Toner’s inning from hell’, Jonny allowed a leadoff homer to Cesar Martinez (his 11th) in the second inning, then walked Lowell Genge and Raul Matias. While Jaylen Rolland and Jeremie Ventura both struck out, there would be no happy end. Toner threw a wild pitch through a leaping Shumway’s legs, and Shumway singled in the runners that had advanced to give the Indians a 3-0 lead. While they didn’t get the lead even through the bottom of the second inning with Shumway suffering an explosion himself as starting with Mendoza the Raccoons logged four straight singles in the inning, there was still reason to wonder as to why Toner was so terrible this year. The Critters would tally a total of six base hits in the bottom 2nd, all singles. With one run in, and three men on, Petracek flew out to Martinez in shallow right, while Toner grounded into a fielder’s choice at home. With two outs, Cookie tied the game with a single through Ventura, a wild pitch advanced Toner and Cookie into scoring position, and Yoshi brought them in with a go-ahead, 2-run single to centerfield. Up 5-3, Toner struck out the side in the next two innings – an error by McKnight in the fourth on the only ball in play aside – then hit a triple in the bottom 4th, but was left stranded. The triple also wasn’t good for his pitching; Danny Morales and Tony Delgado opened the fifth with singles and went to the corners. Rucker’s groundout to first scored a run, but a pop and a grounder to Yoshi ended the inning with the Critters still up 5-4 and Toner already at 101 pitches… He did find a way to retire the side including two strikeouts in the sixth, and on ten pitches, but after that was clearly done.

How about an insurance run? The Coons hadn’t done anything with Toner’s triple in the fourth, they hadn’t done anything with Margolis’ 1-out double in the fifth, but started the sixth against right-hander Rafael Urbano (ERA north of 7) with a Petracek single and Hamilton walking in Toner’s spot before Cookie grounded into a fielder’s choice, Yoshi struck out, and Jackson popped out to Martinez in shallow right. Boynton, Kaiser, and Bricker maintained the lead for two innings. The bottom 8th was led off with Nunley hitting for Stevenson, singling to left off right-hander Jerry Counts, and then being run for by Dwayne Metts, who stole second base. Petracek flew out, and Hamilton was walked intentionally. Cookie singled to left, loading the bases for Yoshi Nomura, who would have rolled into a double play if Cookie hadn’t taken out Matias at second base just as he had caught Rucker’s throw. A run scored, and that was all; Olivares hit for Bricker and grounded out. The perpetual Brett Lillis retired the side in order to put the game away regardless, thankfully. 6-4 Coons. Carmona 2-5, 2 RBI; Nomura 2-4, BB, 3 RBI; Margolis 2-4, 2B; Nunley (PH) 1-1;

Only 2017 Jonny Toner can strike out ten and look like **** while doing so, BUT take the win. It’s his ninth of the season. Only four of those wins came in qualifying starts of 6+ innings and three runs or less.

Game 2
IND: CF D. Morales – 2B B. Reyes – 1B M. Rucker – RF C. Martinez – LF Genge – SS Matias – C T. Delgado – 3B Ruggeri – P D’Attilo
POR: LF Carmona – 2B Nomura – RF Mendoza – 1B Hamilton – 3B Nunley – SS McKnight – C Olivares – CF Metts – P Santos

Elsewhere these were the longest days of the year in terms of sunshine, but in Portland it was just another pseudo day under grey clouds that could open at any moment for some unpleasant rain. But for starters, the Coons delivered another unpleasant second inning to an Indians hurler. After being retired in order in the first inning, Hamilton’s single and Nunley’s double to start the second immediately put pressure on D’Attilo, who didn’t respond too well. Despite K’ing Ronnie McKnight, he brought in the first run on a wild pitch, while Nunley came home on Olivares’ single. Metts also got on, Santos bunted them over, and Cookie plated both runners with a single to left center, putting Santos up 4-0. Santos meanwhile allowed only one hit the first time through the order, an infield single to D’Attilo, but that one sure as heck bred issues in a hurry. Santos lost Morales on four pitches, but got Bob Reyes to pop up over the infield. Rucker batted with two down and singled hard to right, chasing home D’Attilo with the Indians’ first run. While the contact off him hadn’t been that hard early on, a Lowell Genge drive to the fence in rightfield that was caught by Mendoza in the fourth surely indicated that safety was a foreign concept for Santos these days. But before things could derail for him, D’Attilo’s defense threw a wrench or two into his gears. The Indians made two errors in the bottom of the fourth to bring up Cookie with men on and two outs again, and he came through again, plating one run this time with a single to right.

The Indians had enough of their pitcher after that anyway. Rolland batted for him leading off the fifth and promptly tripled to center. Mendoza retired Morales on a very long sac fly that was also in the vicinity of the fence, 5-2, and with two outs Santos couldn’t field Rucker’s grounder, leaving the Indians slugger with an infield single, then walked Martinez. Genge didn’t get all of a fastball as he flew out to Cookie Carmona in left, and somehow the Coons had gotten Santos through five innings with a lead, too, but like Toner on Monday all Santos had in himself turned out to be six innings, spottily pitched. The bottom of the inning saw Olivares reach on a throwing error by Reyes in an inning that soon degraded into a crooked number for reliever Brandon Smith. Metts drove in Olivares, 6-2, Cookie got on, and Yoshi doubled both runners in, 8-2. The clouds finally opened after that and we got into a rain delay that took almost an hour and at the other end of which would be a Mendoza fly to center and a grievous error by Danny Morales that let another run across. That was even before a 430-footer by Hamilton off Miguel Morales over the fence in dead center.

The 6-run inning, 11-2 total, brought Adam Cowen into the game, while a few regulars got the rest of the day off, because after his strong extra-inning outing last week we didn’t guess that the Indians would shoot him with arrows into both eyes before he could even make one good pitch. Top 7th, Morales singled, Reyes singled, Rucker hit a 2-run double and was thrown out at third base by Metts, and then Martinez homered. As sudden as that the lead was down to six. Cowen allowed a leadoff single to Tony Delgado in the eighth and was yanked for Chun, who conceded two more singles and the run without getting out of the inning. Manobu Sugano struck out an unretired Rucker to end the inning and keep the Indians at a distance. Sugano’s spot, the #6 hole, came up in the bottom 8th after Killian Savoie had loaded the bases on a hit and two walks. Margolis came out to bat and smashed a hapless fastball over the wall in left center – GRAAAAAAAAAAND SLAAAAAAAAAMMMMM!!!

Let’s just not talk about Jeff Boynton walking the bases loaded in the ninth inning and Dwayne Metts making a flying grab in the gap on C.J. Tanner’s 2-out drive to end the game. 15-6 Furballs! Carmona 2-4, BB, 3 RBI; Nomura 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI; Hamilton 2-4, BB, HR, 2 RBI; Nunley 2-3, BB, 2B; Margolis (PH) 1-1, HR, 4 RBI;

Game 3
IND: CF D. Morales – 2B B. Reyes – 1B M. Rucker – RF C. Martinez – LF Genge – SS Matias – C T. Delgado – 3B Ruggeri – P Lambert
POR: LF Carmona – 2B Nomura – RF Mendoza – 1B Hamilton – 3B Nunley – C Margolis – SS McKnight – CF Metts – P Abe

After Martinez’ leadoff walk in the second inning, Genge’s single to center sent him to third base. The run scored on Matias’ grounding into a 3-6-3 double play, and Lambert also became the first starter for the Arrowheads to not get hurt seriously in the bottom of the second inning. But maybe the leadoff double that Abe hit in the bottom of the third was something of a bad sign? Cookie’s groundout was followed by a walk drawn by Nomura, and then Mendoza singled to left on the first pitch, plating Abe with the tying run. Hamilton’s flare to left fell for a single, loading the bases, and the Raccoons took a 2-1 lead on Nunley’s sac fly before Margolis’ strikeout ended the inning and stranded a pair.

But Abe was still Abe from this year and not from 2019. Martinez murdered a pitch for a solo homer to tie the game in the fourth – giving him dingers in all games in the series – and Abe walked two in the fifth before wobbling out of a jam on Lambert’s bad bunt and a flailing strikeout on Morales. Abe got himself yanked in the sixth, loading the bases with a walk, a single, and then by throwing an 0-2 pitch into Genge’s fat butt. All runs scored despite Noah Bricker being thrown into the game in a desperate rescue attempt. Raul Matias plated two with a 1-out single, and D.J. Ruggeri plated one with a 2-out single… The Critters failed to exploit Margolis’ leadoff double in the bottom 6th and didn’t push Lambert again until the eighth. Nunley hit a leadoff single and two hapless outs later Eddie Jackson batted for Metts, doubling into the gap in left center to score Nunley from first base. Stevenson grounded out afterwards, though. But not only did the Indians pull the run right back in the top of the ninth inning against Cowen, no, the Raccoons’ top of the order would only amount to three harmless groundouts against Tony Lino in the last of the ninth. 6-3 Indians. Mendoza 3-5, RBI; Hamilton 2-4; Jackson (PH) 1-1, 2B, RBI; Chun 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K;

Mendoza has a 12-game hitting streak now.

Interlude: Trade

By now it was pretty apparent, that the Raccoons, first in runs scored in the CL, needed pitching help. And on a budget!

The Raccoons made a bid for acquiring such help on Thursday night, the news being announced on Friday morning: the Raccoons acquired 24-year old sophomore right-hander Cory Dew (2-2, 2.13 ERA, 2 SV) from the Elks in exchange for AA OF Guillermo Morales.

Dew throws 92 with the heater and has a nasty curve. He also has an appealing 2.8 BB/9 while striking out seven per full game. He had so far piled up 38 innings on the year being used in a long relief role with the Elks. Him and Chun would probably split long relief duties now, while Adam Cowen was waived and designated for assignment.

Morales had been signed during the 2017 IFA period, having cost the Raccoons $9,800. He had just been promoted to Ham Lake after the Amateur Draft last week.

Raccoons (38-33) @ Aces (27-46) – June 25-27, 2021

Whatever had happened to the Aces, it was hopefully not contagious, but also reminded me of the 1997 Coons every time I noticed them at the very bottom of the CL South. They ranked in the bottom three in both runs scored and runs given up. They had a more or less solid pen, but not so much confidence in the porous rotation. The one thing to watch out for was their aggressive baserunning. Despite being 11th in batting average and on-base percentage, they led the CL with 66 stolen bases, and it wasn’t close. Armando Martinez held the individual lead with 20 bags taken. The Raccoons were up 2-1 in the season series.

Projected matchups:
Michael Foreman (7-3, 1.91 ERA) vs. Juan Valdevez (5-7, 4.27 ERA)
Jesus Chavez (1-1, 2.08 ERA) vs. Bobby Guerrero (1-7, 3.10 ERA)
Jonathan Toner (9-2, 3.52 ERA) vs. Enrique Guzman (2-3, 4.06 ERA)

They had recently placed “Nem” Jones of 2018 CLCS infamy on the disabled list with a herniated disc, creating more holes in an entirely right-handed rotation. And to Bobby Guerrero: I am very sorry.

Game 1
POR: LF Carmona – 2B Nomura – RF Mendoza – 1B Hamilton – 3B Nunley – C Margolis – SS McKnight – CF Stevenson – P Foreman
LVA: CF A. Martinez – 2B Hebberd – LF D. Brown – 1B S. Butler – C Ayala – RF Curro – 3B Navarro – SS Medina – P Valdevez

Cookie singled, was caught stealing, and that was the Coons’ new first-inning mojo. Both teams brought their pitchers to the plate with two on and two outs in the second inning. Foreman flew out ineffectively, then allowed an RBI single to Valdevez on that guy’s turn. He went on to smack Martinez, and allowed 2-run singles to Bill Hebberd and an RBI single to Dan Brown before McKnight got paws on a Steve Butler grounder. Top 3rd, it took three singles by Cookie, Yoshi, and Nunley to get even one run in, and then Margolis was retired on a sliding catch by Brown. Outhitting the Aces 7-4 early, but trailing 4-1, the Raccoons were heading for another disappointment. The teams would soon enough be level on hits, and the bottom 4th saw Valdevez hit a leadoff single that was immediately followed by the Aces’ seventh base hit off Foreman, a Martinez double into the rightfield corner. Hebberd’s sac fly made it 5-1 Aces, McKnight made a nifty play to retire Brown, and Cookie took Butler’s fly, but Foreman looked like Abe … helpless and hopeless … in this start.

Foreman was totally done after six innings, and the Raccoons still had to make any move towards a comeback that would look at least semi-believable. Metts singled in Foreman’s spot to lead off the seventh, so hey, there was that speed on the base paths! How many runs can he score for us? We need five to win. Before Metts could go anywhere, Cookie hit a sharp rocket at Hebberd, who had a 50/50 chance of turning two or getting punched a hole into the guts. He rolled the former, emptying the bags for Yoshi to hit a 2-out double. Mendoza grounded out anyway. The Raccoons would only get one more base runner when Olivares singled with the team down to its last out in the ninth. Cookie flew out to right. 5-1 Aces. Carmona 2-5; Nomura 3-5, 2B; Margolis 2-4, 2B; Metts (PH) 1-1; Olivares (PH) 1-1;

We had 12 hits to their eight. How can you come up with this ****ty result? THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE!! (yells at Chad in full costume)

Cory Dew made his Raccoons debut right away, pitching a scoreless eighth with a strikeout while keeping Jose Navarro, whom Jason Kaiser had put on second base to begin the inning, exactly there.

Game 2
POR: LF Carmona – 2B Nomura – RF Mendoza – 1B Hamilton – 3B Nunley – C Margolis – SS McKnight – CF Stevenson – P Chavez
LVA: CF A. Martinez – 2B Hebberd – LF D. Brown – 1B S. Butler – C Ayala – RF Curro – 3B Navarro – SS Medina – P B. Guerrero

Dan Brown’s fielding gaffe on Cookie’s leadoff single put Carmona at second base, from where he scored on Yoshi’s single to center, so maybe that was our new system to get him to scoring position; wait for the other team to do something stupid. Mendoza, of having hit in 13 straight contests, restored order by grounding into a double play, and Hamilton also couldn’t get out of the infield to make up for Brown’s silly mistake. In terms of overcompensation, Armando Martinez walked to start the Aces’ first, and stole his 21st bag against the rookie Chavez. Dan Brown singled to center to plate the runner, score even at one, and soon enough Steve Butler also singled and the runners advanced into scoring position on Victor Ayala’s groundout. Skill or luck? Nunley’s swipe on a crazed liner by Corey Curro found the ball and ended the inning before it could get truly ugly.

Back-to-back doubles by Nunley and Margolis to lead off the second gave the Coons a new lead, with the trailing runner eventually scoring on a passed ball charged to Ayala. The lead was 5-1 by the third, with Matt Hamilton hitting a 2-run shot off Guerrero that went over the fence in right. Remember: those two were traded for another the previous winter. The Coons had two more men on base in the fourth against Guerrero and almost had them out of the game until they choked; Guerrero came back in the bottom of the same inning, after Chavez had allowed a bomb to Butler and walked a pair. Batting with two outs, Guerrero drove a liner up the leftfield line for a 2-run double, the Aces were back in a 5-4 game and I kept scoring the waiver wire for free pitching.

On the other side of the misery display on the field was Bill Hebberd’s throwing error on Nunley’s grounder in the fifth that could have been a double play to end the inning, but was wild and past Andres Medina. The Aces got neither Nunley nor the runner Hamilton, and Margolis’ single loaded the bases for McKnight, who was in a hole deeper than numbers could explain, fell to an 0-2 hole in this specific at-bat, and then flew out to Brown in shallow left, keeping Hamilton pinned. Two out, Stevenson up, and he poked at a 3-1 pitch, which led me to shreak sharply in my suite. His floater dropped into shallow center, though, plating two, but the Coons also managed to make the third out at third base with Margolis. Which pitcher would explode into flames first? Chavez had a good shot in the bottom of the fifth, allowing a leadoff single to Hebberd and then three more sharply hit balls that somehow miraculously all ended up with the defense, nursing the 7-4 lead through five.

Guerrero wouldn’t be back for the sixth, replaced by left-hander Chris Wickham, but the Coons were always keen to leech another out or two from their clearly overwhelmed starters, and so Chavez was back in the bottom of the sixth, where Corey Curro reached on an infield single to begin things. PH Danny Serrano would also hit an infield single with two outs, because the Raccoons clearly were doomed, and Martinez’ RBI single to center knocked out Chavez. Kaiser replaced him, walked the bases loaded against Hebberd, and somehow Nunley spoiled Brown’s sharp grounder for the third out, still up 7-5. After Kaiser got two outs in the bottom 7th, Boynton was called on for Corey Curro, second in a line of four switch-hitters in the lineup, but the only one that was a natural right-hander. Curro duly singled, as did Jose Navarro, and Boynton allowed an RBI single to Medina before getting beaten into the dugout by the pitching coach. Noah Bricker’s appearance sparked no actual relief, for he walked Errol Spears to load the bases, after which the damned Armando Martinez legged out an infield single that brought in the tying run. Hebberd’s strikeout marked the end of five straight base runners for Las Vegas.

The Coons refused to score a gift runner in the top 8th that reached on a Martinez error and was wild pitched to third base by Justin Guerin. One out collected by Bricker and five by Sugano (with a near-walkoff homer by Curro in the bottom 9th) sent the game to extra innings. Corey Dew was close to soaking the loss in the 10th after a throwing error by McKnight put Martinez on second base to start the frame, but the Aces couldn’t get the ball past the infielders just once more. Bottom 11th, leadoff walk to Ayala, then a 1-out double by Navarro. The runner had to hold at third as Cookie threw the ball back in, and batting with one out Matt Iannuzzi fouled out behind home plate. Rich Arrieta hit in the #9 hole now, a left-hander, but the Raccoons weren’t going to use Lillis now, who had not exactly been fool proof the last few weeks. Arrieta was put on intentionally to get Dew to face a right-handed batter, even if it was Martinez, who grounded to short on the first pitch. This time McKnight managed to make any ****ing play and the game continued to the 12th, where Nomura’s single and Jackson’s pinch-hit double weren’t enough to overcome righty Mike Espinoza. Margolis on 3-1 flew out to center to leave them in scoring position. Hebberd and Brown started the bottom 12th with singles off Lillis before Butler hit into a 4-6-3. Ayala was down to two strikes before driving a 1-2 pitch to deep left. Cookie made the catch in full flight backwards and glancing over his shoulder, greatly prolonging everybody’s suffering.

Top 13th… McKnight led off with a single. When Stevenson bunted, Espinoza tried to get the lead runner, but threw the ball wildly to centerfield. Two on, no outs, Petracek batting, having replaced Nunley in a double switch a few hours ago. Now HE bunted, moving the runners to scoring position for Cookie, who was only 1-for-6 in the game and due a ****ing hit. Carmona hit one sharply to right, Butler dove but missed it, and the go-ahead run scored indeed! After Yoshi’s sac fly, 9-7, Cookie stole second base and scored on Mendoza’s single to center, 10-7. That single put Mendoza at 1-for-7 in the game and extended his hitting streak undeservedly to 14 games. Hamilton grounded out, and Lillis retired the Aces on three grounders in the bottom 10th. 10-7 Blighters. Nomura 3-6, 2 RBI; Nunley 2-4, 2B; Jackson (PH) 1-1, 2B; Margolis 2-6, 2B, RBI; McKnight 2-6; Sugano 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K; Dew 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 K; Lillis 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, W (2-4);

No starter has logged an out in the seventh all week for the Critters. Toner’s better gonna, because we have no pen left. And it would open us to all kinds of issues, but Margolis would get the day off after catching all 13 innings in this endless affair. Olivares would catch Toner in the rubber game.

Game 3
POR: LF Carmona – 2B Nomura – RF Mendoza – 1B Hamilton – 3B Nunley – SS Zuhlke – CF Metts – C Olivares – P Toner
LVA: CF A. Martinez – 3B Navarro – LF D. Brown – 1B S. Butler – C Ayala – 2B Iannuzzi – RF Serrano – SS Medina – P E. Guzman

Cookie drove in a go-ahead run for the second day in a row, batting with one out and the bases loaded (due to a walk, a single, and an error) in the second inning. His single to right scored Zuhlke, with the slow Olivares being held at third base and then forced out at home on Yoshi’s grounder to the mound. Mendoza worked a full count for a 2-out walk to force home Jonny Toner with the second run of the game before Hamilton grounded out to Iannuzzi. In terms of further oddities, Toner allowed a single and a walk the first time through the order, but actually struck out only one batter, Medina, while getting four grounders to Yoshi for a change. Iannuzzi’s leadoff double in the bottom 5th signaled that tough times might be ahead, but somehow Toner even without his killer stuff wiggled out of the inning, getting a grounder to Yoshi from Serrano and then took two grounders himself with the runner already at third base, retiring Medina and Jimmy Hubbard, who hit for Guzman.

Bottom 6th, leadoff single by Martinez to center. The Coons hadn’t done anything in the middle innings, so the score was still 2-0. Navarro grounded out before Toner lost the zone and walked Brown and Butler to fill the bases, which was when the Aces got another one of their ****ing infield singles that had screwed over the Coons the entire weekend. Ayala legged one out against Toner, pushing in a run, 2-1, and then Iannuzzi’s grounder got past Nomura for a proper RBI single and a tied ballgame. Serrano struck out, Medina grounded out, everything sucked, and the Aces got Curro on with a leadoff walk in the seventh. Toner labored on and retired Martinez and Navarro before Brown beat him with the 2-out, go-ahead single to center. Mendoza hit a leadoff single in the eighth. Hamilton grounded out, Nunley hit into a double play. Instead, the Aces got an insurance run during another depressing appearance by Chun in the bottom of the inning. Leadoff walk, came around to score, as usual. The Raccoons, down 4-2, got the tying run to the plate right away in the ninth inning when Zuhlke singled to center off Alex Silva, a right-hander. The terrible Metts was hit for, though, McKnight appearing in his spot. Silva balked the runner to second before McKnight’s groundout moved him to third, which was not helpful right now. We needed more runners! Like Olivares, who hit the ****tiest bloop for a single to center, 4-3, and Eddie Jackson pinch-hit as the go-ahead run now. At 0-2 he hit another sorry blooper to shallow center, and this also fell for a single. And then Cookie and Yoshi both grounded out… 4-3 Aces. Zuhlke 3-4, 2B; Jackson (PH) 1-1;

In other news

June 21 – The Wolves clobber the floundering Stars, 16-4, on 21 hits. Four of those are landed by SAL RF/LF Nate Ellis (.322, 11 HR, 47 RBI), who drives in five runs on a homer, a double, and two singles.
June 22 – Shoulder inflammation fells CIN CL Nestor Munoz (2-2, 3.04 ERA, 15 SV) who is not expected to be back in 2017.
June 24 – DAL INF Raul Maldonado (.374, 0 HR, 33 RBI) had his hitting streak broken on Sunday, then broke his foot on Wednesday, and was placed on the DL on Thursday. The Stars consider him able to come back before the end of July.
June 24 – WAS SP Jose “Butch” Diaz (5-4, 4.03 ERA) holds the Cyclones scoreless and to only two hits while going the distance in the Capitals’ 4-0 win.
June 25 – The Cyclones lose 13-6 to the Scorpions, but the performer of the day is still Cincy’s 3B/1B Eddie Moreno (.342, 13 HR, 63 RBI), who goes 5-for-5 with a home run and one RBI.
June 27 – NYC INF Sergio Valdez (.276, 6 HR, 49 RBI) will miss two weeks with a knee contusion.
June 27 – The Pacifics and Blue Sox play 15 innings, but actually score single runs each in both the 11th and 12th innings. L.A. eventually prevails, 4-3.

Complaints and stuff

Everything is pointless. Except for cyanide. Cyanide has applications.

Interesting side piece to the Dew trade: he was drafted in the second round in 2016 by the Condors, who flipped him only a year later to the Canadiens in a deal for … Adrian Quebell!

Not that any of this matters with a team rotten to the core.

ABL CAREER STRIKEOUT LEADERS
65th – Vernon Robertson – 1,961
66th – Ricardo Sanchez – 1,948
67th – Fernando Chavez – 1,946
68th – Fernando Cruz – 1,934 – active
69th – Jim Harrington – 1,907
70th – Jonathan Toner – 1,903 – active
71st – Andres Ramirez – 1,895 – HOF
72nd – Jorge Chapa – 1,886
73rd – Greg Cain – 1,875
[…]
84th – Dave Crawford – 1,816
85th – Manuel Ortíz – 1,801 – active
86th – Raimundo Beato – 1,791
87th – John Collins – 1,758
88th – Hector Santos – 1,747 – active
89th – Samuel McMullen – 1,745 – active
90th – Ramón Jimenez – 1,743
91st – Pedro Alvarado – 1,738 – active, free agent

Although Toner continues to only further my depressions, he made another name appear ahead of himself on the strikeout board this week. If Vernon Robertson doesn’t cry out “ELKS!!” few things do. He was the 1990 Pitcher of the Year while in the disgusting red uniform, and overall spent ten seasons with them in the 80s and 90s. An All Star six times, he led the CL in wins in his POTY year and in ERA in ’94 when he was with the Indians. He finished his career a strong 227-167 with a 3.72 ERA, also pitching with the Capitals and Loggers towards the end.