[pauwoo]

Miami United (45-40, .529, 3rd NL East) @ Montreal Wanderers (39-43, .476, 5th NL East)
Montreal is 2-8 in their last ten, languishing through a 5-game skid, and mired in a season fraught with futility and unsatisfactory results. They are where I would’ve expected us to be at this point of the season. And, if not for our incredibly long home stand, maybe we would be… the Wanderers are the other side of Minnesota’s coin in that they pair a crackerjack staff (in a pitcher’s park) with a dreadful offense that couldn’t hit their way out of a wet paper bag. So, in short, they are the exact kind of club that inspires a level of worry known only to first-time moms and Alfred E. Neuman. Yeah, I got worry – there’s something about these ‘bad’ clubs that brings out the worst in us.

86 of 162: Thomas Deane (5-5, 4.41) @ Cliff Slavinski (6-7, 4.69)
Loss, 6-1. C-Slav, a nickname I just thought of on the fly and almost instantaneously regretted, is now 4-4 since we shipped him, express, to the Wanderers in exchange for some trading chips and a box of cream puffs. Here, in his 4th win secured while donning a Montreal kit, he went 7 strong while only allowing 2 hits, 1 run, and zero free passes to go along with his 9 K’s. Deane, in a near repeat of his most recent outing, gave up three runs in the bottom of the 1st and our offense struggled with life, pondered our human existence, and, basically, slept through this one. Archie Imanov hit his 13th long ball of the season for Montreal – he’s played well since being purchased from the San Marcos Supremos… money well spent, you ask me.

Elsewhere: SP Howard Min, not to be confused with Mr. Zinn, recorded a complete game, 5-hit shutout for his Columbus Blue Jackets in a 3-0 win over the Gwinnett Stripers – if the south is ever going to do it again, per the prediction of the Georgian Devil Slayer, Mr. Charlie Daniels, it won’t come against the representative from Ohio, it seems. Also, in AA news… everyone’s favorite prospect, Mortecai Flenderson, of the Chula Vista Terrapins in San Diego’s development system, was suspended for 6 games following an incident where he, in all his youthful chutzpah, ran up on SP Frederico Rodriguez after being pegged in his bicep by a wayward pitch. Flenderson, it turns out, has a solid jab / left cross combo - so, we’ll go ahead and upgrade him to a 6-tool prospect.

87 of 162: Lucas Brandt (3-4, 3.80) @ Hudson Dorsch (4-8, 3.18)
Win, 6-1. We’re now even on aggregate, even on the series, and find ourselves in a position to close this set out with a win in the rubber match if Rad Taylor can come correct on the bump. Brandt gave us 6, shut out innings, Travis Scharmer went 2 for 5 with a 3-run homer and 2 runs, and Oli Woodward went 3 for 4 with a run. New guy, Homer Wingard, had the day off – which, is just as well given the fact that he hasn’t done much of note since his arrival in Miami… We got two steals (Scharmer secured his 36th and still leads the league in that category), a tasty little double play, and an OF Assist from Weaver who caught C Ted Victor trying to get cute and make it to 3rd from 1st on a well-hit single.

Elsewhere: Look, I’m not sure what the deal is – I don’t get to talk about much other than shop with my former protégé, Megan Appel, but, for whatever reason, RF Kirk Johnson is doing work in the CITY OF COMPTON for now, and, despite being stuck in the doghouse, went 4 for 6 with a HR, 3 RBIs, and 3 runs in the Raiders 13-8 win over my Havana Sugar Kings… in Havana, where, as Cheech tells it, he’s been seen carousing with the local talent at the Buena Vista Social Club after each game. Trouble in paradise, it seems… I’ll need to get in touch with Loretta, I need the scuttlebutt and she’s the only Roller Derby Queen / Private Dick I trust to get it for me…

88 of 162: Rad Taylor (2-0, 4.15) @ Dylan Bauer (4-7, 4.34)
Loss, 11-7. Rad gave up the ghost early in this one – a four-run bottom of the 2nd was his undoing here, and, try as they might, our offense just didn’t have enough gas to get us over the finish line… Homer got a hit and struck out twice, Weaver drove two in, Magee went 3 for 5 with 2 runs and an RBI-double, and we hit two SAC FLIES… it was a valiant effort, but to the victor the spoils, the damsel in distress, and the gold, gem-encrusted crown goes… hey, look, at least we didn’t get swept, right?

Elsewhere: Kirk Johnson, having the time of his young life in Havana, went 3 for 5 with a two-bagger, 2 ribbies, and a run in Compton’s 7-5 win over my Sugar Kings… what’s worse – dropping two of three, at home, to the Compton Raiders or the fact that it was Kirk Johnson, in both wins, that brought it home for them? Or both? Probably both, right? But, hey! All is not lost – Barbados, on the road in Little Rock, Arkansas, secured a 2-1 win over the Rascals in Continental League play… I’m reaching a bit to find the silver lining here, but, when you’re desperate to convert lemons into lemonade, you put on your safety goggles and hope for the best.

Note: Still in 3rd, but now at 3 ½ games back… I’m cool with it because I have to be – and, with Philadelphia coming to town, we need to put this one behind us and push forward to do our level best to not be embarrassed at home by P-Squared and the Cheesesteaks…