[Westheim]

Raccoons (86-70) @ Indians (69-87) – September 29-October 1, 2025

The worst offense in the league had landed the Indians in last place in the North. They had scored hardly 3.6 runs per game this season and had batted a dismal .232 as a team. Solid pitching with the fourth-best rotation in the CL and the fifth-fewest runs allowed had been thrown to the dogs by a complete lack of punch. The Coons had already bagged the season series, which stood at 10-5 before this final 3-game set.

Projected matchups:
Dan Delgadillo (2-3, 5.59 ERA) vs. Mark Matthews (11-9, 4.40 ERA)
Jack Sander (10-11, 4.02 ERA) vs. Tom Shumway (12-8, 2.71 ERA)
Mark Roberts (19-7, 2.33 ERA) vs. Ernesto Lozano (9-16, 3.62 ERA)

Right-left-right, and a top 5 loser of games in the CL for Mark Roberts to face, well, well!

The Raccoons had also brought up the Yeshiva Rambam kid, promoting 22-year-old Colombian outfielder Juan Magallanes to the major league roster after the Greg Borg injury, because even if this was the final week and the games didn't exactly matter anymore, seeing Dwayne Metts for an entire week was just too much to swallow…

Game 1
POR: 2B Spencer – RF Alfaro – C Tovias – 1B Gonzalez – LF Kopp – SS Stalker – CF Magallanes – 3B Grigsby – P Delgadillo
IND: SS Pizano – 1B Ri. Mendez – LF Cooper – RF T. Ruiz – C T. Perez – CF Linnell – 2B Folk – 3B Ju. Jackson – P Matthews

Juan Magallanes had his first major league hit in the fourth inning of this series opener, pushing a single through the right side to load the bases with nobody out for the Raccoons, who nevertheless wouldn't score – totally out of character here! – once Mike Grigsby struck out and Dan Delgadillo grounded into a double play. Delgadillo's last start of the year brought no noticeable improvement in his fortunes, or, really, much improvement at all, which his best performance being his legging out of a grounder for a 2-out RBI infield single in the top of the second inning. Rich Mendez homered off him in the first, then scored again in the third after doubling and being singled home by Andrew Cooper. The fourth saw Richard Linnell with a double to right and they wouldn't get to keep him on, either. Portland still managed to tie the score in the fifth inning on Jon Gonzalez's 2-run homer, which got him to 20 on the season – what a lofty height for a slugger in Raccoons Ballpark … While Delgadillo was spanked for ten hits in six innings, somehow he managed to keep the damage to the three runs – what a "quality" start! – and hung with a no-decision to end his season. The Raccoons failed to push through against Matthews, too, even when Gonzalez and Kopp reached base to start the eighth inning. Nick Derks drilling leadoff batter and pinch-hitter Ricardo Vargas in the bottom 8th, plus a walk to Linnell put enough ponies on the bases to cause trouble in the bottom 8th, with Justin Jackson driving in the go-ahead run with a 2-out single. Nick Salinas retired Ramos, Spencer, and Alfaro in order and without the least bit of hope coming up, or any ball coming out of the infield at all. 4-3 Indians. Alfaro 2-5; Kopp 2-4;

Gotta hook up with the Indians over the offseason. Maybe we can exchange Nicks. (grunts knowingly)

Greg Borg was sent to the DL with wrist tendinitis at this point, while Cookie Carmona was activated from said DL.

Game 2
POR: LF Spencer – SS Bullock – 2B Otis – 1B Gonzalez – RF Alfaro – C O'Dell – CF Magallanes – 3B Grigsby – P Sander
IND: SS Pizano – 1B Ri. Mendez – LF Cooper – RF T. Ruiz – C T. Perez – CF Linnell – 2B Folk – 3B Ju. Jackson – P Shumway

That very bad offense (…) went to work on Jack Sander more or less instantly, with two runs falling out of him by the second inning, one of those singled in by Tom Shumway himself. Shumway was hard to be touched by the Raccoons, holding them to very little and would have been pitching a shutout in the middle innings if not for Tony Perez' throwing error on Daniel Bullock's stolen base attempt that sent him to third base and ultimately allowed him to score on Matt Otis' groundout in the fourth inning. The bottom 4th saw Sander rocked for three more runs, two of those unearned, but you shouldn't always focus on the errors (Otis fielding, O'Dell throwing), but maybe also on the three base hits that Sander surrendered anyway. Tony Ruiz drove home Andrew Cooper in the bottom 5th, extending the gap to 6-1 in a game that was long out of hand.

Sander hung around just long enough to surrender a seventh run in the bottom 6th on a Mario Pizano homer to left, and Pizano really wasn't hitting many of those. The Raccoons got leadoff men on in the sixth (Otis) and seventh (O'Dell), but always found goons (Gonzalez, Grigsby) to hit into a double play, in the latter case of the 3-unassisted variety with O'Dell being caught napping far off the base when Grigsby lined out to Rich Mendez. The last two innings for Portland went six up, six down, leaving Tom Shumway with a well-deserved complete-game 4-hitter. 7-1 Indians. Grigsby 2-3;

Game 3
POR: 2B Spencer – SS Ramos – C Tovias – 1B Gonzalez – RF Kopp – LF Carmona – 3B Grigsby – CF Metts – P Roberts
IND: 2B Ri. Mendez – CF Folk – SS Pizano – 3B Ju. Jackson – C T. Perez – LF Cooper – 1B Linnell – RF Kim – P Lozano

Mark Roberts probably understood his situation, and at least one other Coon was quickly identified that the team had to score RUNS, RUNS, RUNS here and now and GET SCORING ALREADY. Ramos reached on a throwing error by Pizano, and after that Elias Matias Tovias Diaz cracked a 2-run homer to left for an early lead for Roberts, who was vying for his 20th win. While the Indians hit a few balls hard early on, they also struck out a bid, and Jarod Spencer's 2-out RBI single that plated Metts in the second inning already stretched the advantage to 3-0.

Then the offense stopped, completely. Mark Roberts was generally good, but used too many pitches and was reaching 100 in the sixth inning, in which Pizano walked, advanced on a groundout, then stole third base… and home, too. Quite the way to get on board for Indy, who amounted to five hits and eight strikeouts against Roberts, who didn't figure to come back for the seventh inning, so it was on the pen now. And I had a BAD feeling. Spencer singled, stole second, then was stranded in the top of the seventh, with Vince D retiring Man-su Kim, Rogelio Medina, and Rich Mendez in order and quickly in the bottom of the inning. Top 8th, leadoff single by Cookie! Then a double play grounder by Grigbsy before Cookie could think much about stealing… Ohl it was for the bottom 8th, with Brody Folk hitting a leadoff single to right. Oh, you ****ing Elk! ONCE AN ELK, ALWAYS AN ELK!! Pizano however remained true to Indians form, hitting a grounder at Spencer for a double play. Justin Jackson struck out, leaving only three outs to be collected after a depressing top of the ninth in which both Spencer and Ramos reached base and were both caught stealing. Jonathan Snyder it was in the bottom 9th, and his first pitch was driven a great distance by Tony Perez. Kopp back, back, further back, to the fence, up and he snared it! Good lord, Snyder, keep your **** in order!! He did, and the Indians made the poorest way out of the game possible when both John Staebell and Richard Linnell were retired on foul pops behind home plate. 3-1 Coons! Spencer 3-5, RBI; Ramos 2-5; Carmona 2-4; Roberts 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K, W (20-7) and 1-3;

Damn ex-Elks, cursed shall they be forever!

Except of course if you're Kisho Saito or Tetsu Osanai. David Brewer is a tricky case since he's in the Hall of Fame as an Elk.

In terms of the here and now, Roberts held all the leads in the triple crown when play ended on Wednesday, tying Morgan Shepherd in wins, leading him by 11 K, and was up on Tom Shumway by .33 earned runs.

This lasted only one night; Morgan Shepherd started for the Titans on Thursday and beat the Loggers, 9-6, while pitching only 5.2 innings and conceding four runs. He struck out only four, handing the strikeout title to Roberts for sure. Regardless, a win was a win, it was his 21st of the year, and Roberts had to deliver on Sunday on short rest.

Raccoons (87-72) @ Crusaders (81-78) – October 3-5, 2025

Let's be honest, nobody in baseball cared much about this series with three division races still raging on the final weekend of the regular season. Crusaders seventh in offense, fourth in pitching, and the season series stood at 8-7 in our favor. If we could win the weekend series, we would beat four of our division rivals this season – all except the Titans (8-10).

Projected matchups:
Lance Legleiter (2-3, 2.63 ERA) vs. Alejandro Mendez (6-9, 4.50 ERA)
Rico Gutierrez (11-7, 2.85 ERA) vs. Eddie Cannon (3-6, 4.50 ERA)
Mark Roberts (20-7, 2.31 ERA) vs. Ed Hague (12-12, 4.87 ERA)

Three right-handers in all likelihood, unless the Crusaders manage to find a southpaw spoiler on short notice.

Game 1
POR: 2B Spencer – SS Ramos – RF Alfaro – 1B Gonzalez – C Tovias – 3B Nunley – LF Carmona – CF Magallanes – P Legleiter
NYC: 1B X. Garcia – LF Espinosa – 3B Schmit – RF Ellis – C Asay – SS McWhorter – 2B Walter – CF Loya – P A. Mendez

Lance Legleiter loogied five the first time through the order and conceded no hits, at least until Xavier Garcia went yard with two outs in the bottom 3rd. This cut the Coons' lead in half, their two runs in the top 3rd having been courtesy of an Alberto Ramos single and Omar Alfaro's 2-piece to right. Alfaro then had a prime spot to marvel at Jason Asay's 2-run homer that flipped the score in the bottom 4th. Legleiter was ringing them up in droves, which as alright, but he also gave the Crusaders increasingly fat pitches to drive, also began to miss the zone. The Crusaders got another run in the bottom 5th, Shane Walter reaching base with a single, advancing on a bunt and wild pitch, then scoring on a groundout. Legleiter appeared in the bottom 6th, walked Andy Schmit and drilled Nate Ellis, and then was not seen again. The Raccoons continued to not retire anybody at all with Vince D replacing Legleiter, allowing a single to Asay, then walking in a run against Tom McWhorter. On to Justin Hess, who got drubbed for a 2-run double by Shane Walter, then after a K to Ricky Loya conceded an RBI single to "Ant" Mendez, another one to Xavier Garcia, then received the maximum penalty of being replaced by Matt Wilson, who without hesitation walked Juan Espinosa to reload the bases, then surrendered two more runs to Andy Schmit's full-count single. Nate Ellis accidentally made an out to Cookie, but that still didn't end the inning. There would be one more RBI single by Asay, then off Jimmy Lee, giving the Crusaders an 8-run inning and a 10-run lead. Well, now they got that out of their system and Roberts might have it easier on Sunday! Sometimes you have to talk things nice to make them bearable. 12-2 Crusaders. Gerace (PH) 1-1; Alfaro 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; Tovias 2-4;

Two games left, still three division races live. In the FL West and CL South, the leaders were level, while the Cyclones held a 2-game lead over the Buffaloes now.

Game 2
POR: 2B Spencer – SS Ramos – CF Alfaro – 1B Gonzalez – RF Kopp – C Tovias – LF Gerace – 3B Nunley – P Gutierrez
NYC: 1B X. Garcia – CF Espinosa – 3B Schmit – SS McWhorter – 2B Doering – RF Hodgers – C Leal – LF Loya – P Cannon

Rico declared before the game that he would pitch 200 innings this year, which meant he had to get somebody out in the eighth inning. The Crusaders surely had their own plans for this game, in which they also got on the board first with a 2-run homer by Ricky Loya in the bottom 3rd after both teams had sprayed a few inconsequential singles early on. It didn't get better; Blake Doering singled in the fourth, Gutierrez lost Victor Hodgers on four pitches, then served up a 2-run triple into the depths of centerfield to Armando Leal. Eddie Cannon singled in a run, the Coons couldn't turn a double play on Garcia's grounder, and after Gutierrez walked Espinosa on four pitches his season was over. Down 5-0 and with three on in the bottom 4th he was hauled in, after which he went on to demolish some of the dugout and most of the tunnel to the clubhouse in a fit of rage. And that was before he knew that Jimmy Lee conceded two more of his runs on a Schmit single.

Defeated again, soundly, the Raccoons had nothing much left but looking forward to Sunday, although at the pace things were going at the Crusaders would probably also rip Roberts a new one and he'd lose the ERA title, too. Another run would fall out of Matt Wilson in the seventh. No run ever fell out of Eddie Cannon, Sean Byrd, and Jason Stone. 8-0 Crusaders. Spencer 2-4; Stalker (PH) 1-1; Surginer 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K;

And all the other division races WILL go into the final day of the season!

We remain chiefly concerned about getting Mark Roberts through five with a lead, though. All the goodish pieces of the pen are well rested at least.

I just wonder where we're gonna steal a run from. In any case, there was a pitching change, with Mike Rutkowski (8-7, 3.69 ERA) assigned to the season finale.

Game 3
POR: 2B Spencer – SS Ramos – LF Alfaro – 1B Gonzalez – RF Kopp – C Tovias – 3B Nunley – CF Magallanes – P Roberts
NYC: 1B X. Garcia – 2B R. Soto – 3B Schmit – RF Ellis – SS McWhorter – C F. Delgado – CF Espinosa – LF Hodgers – P Rutkowski

Jarod Spencer got a 46th stolen base after drawing a game-opening walk, and Jon Gonzalez got an 87th RBI when he singled him in from second base to give Roberts an instant lead in the game. In between, Alfaro had also walked, moved ahead of Gonzalez into third base when Terry Kopp grounded out, then scored along with Gonzalez on Tovias' single to left, putting the early tally at 3-0. Alfaro hit a solo homer the next time around, running the score to 4-0 in the third inning, and now it was really on Roberts to deliver a strong outing and first make it through five innings, and then if possible at all shorten the game far enough that we don't have to employ the soft underbelly of the pen and can mostly only utilize our big four. And Roberts lived up to hopes early on, retiring the Crusaders not only in order in his first run through their lineup, but also struck out five batters (although K were no longer relevant to the triple crown conversation). The clobbering of Rutkowski continued, as the Crusader, who had escaped the third inning with the bases loaded when Roberts grounded out, allowed another two runs in the fourth inning. Ramos singled, was doubled home by Alfaro, and Kopp would plate Omar with a single. New York first reached base in the bottom 4th after 11 straight retirements out of the box when Andy Schmit hit a double to left, but was stranded when Nate Ellis flew out to Terry Kopp. Felipe Delgado had a single in the fifth, but Roberts pressed on relentlessly and reached qualifying distance with two hits and seven strikeouts on his ledger, but also 75 pitches, and we wouldn't likely push him past the sixth inning.

The question became less and less "if". Mike Kress was pitching in relief in the sixth inning. Spencer lobbed a leadoff single, Ramos walked. Alfaro went down on strikes trying to hit another bomb. But that still left Jon Gonzalez, who with a 6-run lead could also afford to try and hit a long one. In full swing mode in a 2-2 count, Gonzalez murdered a helpless fastball for a 420-footer, a screeching 3-run homer into the leftfield stands that extended the Coons' lead to 9-0! The Crusaders had two strikeouts to begin the bottom 6th, after which Robby Soto singled, then stole second base, his 34th of the season. Roberts had Andy Schmit at 1-2 before surrendering a single to right, and a run. He got Nate Ellis on a groundout, his final batter of his triple crown season, to complete six innings of 1-run ball. Y'know, triple crown season UNLESS the Coons managed to give up eight runs before they got nine outs. To some teams, this could be a challenge…

Actually, eight runs wouldn't be enough; the Crusaders had Bryce Neal in to pitch in garbage innings in the seventh, and Stalker, Spencer, Ramos, Alfaro, and Gonzalez ripped him a new one with five straight singles for three additional runs. Tim Stalker hit an RBI triple off Keith Roofener in the eighth to further rob the Crusaders of any hopes to play spoilers. The Coons even optioned to not go to the big four in the pen as of now, instead sending out Nick Derks in a perfect seventh before progressing to Justin Hess. Andy Schmit would hit a home run off Hess in the ninth, but that was indeed all the rally the Crusaders had in them. 13-2 Furballs!! Spencer 2-5, BB; Ramos 2-4, BB, RBI; Otis 1-1; Alfaro 3-5, BB, HR, 2B, 3 RBI; Gonzalez 4-6, HR, 5 RBI; Tovias 2-5, 2 RBI; Stalker (PH) 1-1, BB, 3B, RBI; Roberts 6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 9 K, W (21-7) and 1-3;

ROBEEEEEEEEEERTS!!!!

The season as a whole was not over, however; while the Scorpions and Cyclones won their divisions on Sunday, both doing so in beating the direct competition, the CL South remained deadlocked between the Aces and Condors. The Aces creamed the Knights, 10-4, on Sunday, while the Condors only survived with a late rally against the Bayhawks. These teams played a tie-breaker on Monday in addition to one makeup game in the FL West for last-place honors between the Stars and Wolves.

In other news

September 29 – The Pacifics, in a dead heat with the Scorpions for the FL West crown, lose INF/LF John Hansen (.311, 12 HR, 87 RBI) for the season. The 27-year-old is suffering from a separated shoulder.
September 30 – The Aces celebrate a crucial, yet low-key walkoff in extra innings over the Bayhawks, winning 3-2 after San Fran's CL Manny Sosa (3-13, 4.96 ERA, 33 SV) drills a batter, walks two, and plates the winning run with a wild pitch in the bottom of the 10th.
October 5 – TIJ C Danny Zarate (.208, 7 HR, 38 RBI) is expected to miss the start of next year with a broken kneecap.
October 5 – The Thunder plate ten runs in the fourth inning, which is all their offense in a 10-7 win over the Falcons.
October 7 – LVA CL Franklin Alvarado (8-5, 3.09 ERA, 37 SV) blows the Aces' 4-3 lead in the tie-breaker against the Condors by surrendering a double to Joel Denzler (.246, 1 HR, 21 RBI) and an RBI single to Chad Highsmith (.220, 2 HR, 23 RBI) in the ninth inning. The inning ends with Highsmith being caught stealing, leaving the Aces to bat in the bottom of the ninth of a tied game. TIJ CL John Waker (6-7, 2.60 ERA, 39 SV) walks leadoff man Casimiro Schoeppen (.184, 2 HR, 9 RBI), also walked Ron Raynor, eventually walks the bases full against Tim Dunlap, and finally sees his team's season end by the 2-out RBI single of September call-up INF Nick Thornley (.222, 0 HR, 1 RBI), sending the Aces off 5-4 winners and into the playoffs.

Complaints and stuff

Oh, wonderful, you came here just in time for my triple crown dance! (stands up and moves hip once) Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Cramp! Cramp! Mena! MENAAAAA!!

…

[one injection of Feelgood later]

…

Now that we have found out that Cristiano Carmona has better mobility than me, let's dissect final points from this season. Lance Douglas did not steal another base all week and Jarod Spencer easily won the stolen base title in the Continental League, although his 46 bags were easily dwarfed by WAS Guillermo Obando's 61 in the FL.

We got a good look at Alberto Ramos this season and I declare him The Future, just like I declared Omar Alfaro to have an entire age named after him about four years ago.

Given that he finished the season with an .813 OPS, maybe that age will actually ****ing dawn.

Fun Fact: Mark Roberts' triple crown is the fourth pitching triple crown in the last eight seasons, joining those by Jose Lerma in 2023 and Jonny Toner's pair in 2018 and 2020.

Jonny Toner …! (lower lip twitches)