League Transactions:
Castille-Wessex Trade: Ohara for García: It came down to the last hour of a self-imposed trade deadline, but the Castille Buscadores and Wessex Warriors finally came to an agreement on a trade that had been rumored for weeks. The trade sends Castille's 25-year-old 2B Agustin Ohara to Wessex in a swap for 27-year-old RHP Ricardo García and 17-year-old minor league 1B Dan Rumsey. Both GMs seemed relieved that the deal had been completed with one stating, "We had to set a deadline to get it done." The players are expected to report to their new teams by tomorrow.
Ohara is hitting .297 this year with 6 home runs and 47 RBIs. He also has an OBP of .355, 39 walks and scored 62 times.
García has taken the mound for 18 relief appearances this season, nailing down 7 saves while notching a 4-8 record with a 4.99 ERA. The Castille reliever has limited opposing batters to a .269 batting average.
San Isabella Armada Ship Alexander to Mersey: Both sides appear content with the trade finalized today that will send 28-year-old minor league RF William Alexander to the Mersey Rivermen, while the San Isabella Armada will receive 29-year-old 2B Milton Vazquez and 23-year-old minor league 3B Michael Díaz.
"This is a move that filled a few gaps in our roster," said Eddie Sharp, Armada general manager.
For his part, the Rivermen GM said the trade was made "in the best interest of our organization's future." BNN analysts reported that on paper the trade seemed to be a plus for both ball clubs. The players involved are expected to join their new teams for the next scheduled game.
Currently Alexander is batting .278 with 7 home runs, 27 RBIs and 22 runs scored.
This season Vazquez is hitting .265 with 3 home runs.
San Isabella-Leon Trade: Ashford for Thai: Done deal! The San Isabella Armada have agreed to send 33-year-old 3B Martin Ashford and 24-year-old RF C.J. Jeronimo to the Leon Garzas Azul for 37-year-old minor league RF Josu Thai. The trade, rumored for days, was completed in the wee hours this morning.
Ashford is currently hitting at a .302 pace with 6 home runs, 57 RBIs and has scored 54 times.
Game Performances:
Capote 5-for-5 for Leopards: The Brittany Leopards stopped the Wessex Warriors by a score of 5-0 at Warriors Ballpark today, with the lion's share of the credit going to left fielder Carlos Capote. The 23-year-old had a career day, collecting 5 hits.
"Every batter wants to have a quality at-bat every time he steps up to the plate," Capote said later. "He wants to hit the ball hard."
Capote did just that in his 5 at-bats, much to the chagrin of the Warriors.
"Not much that I can say," offered Wessex manager Tomy Peralez. "He just hammered the heck out of us."
Carlos Capote singled in the 1st, hit an RBI triple in the 3rd, singled in the 4th, singled in the 6th and hit an RBI double in the 7th.
This year Capote is batting .328 with 4 home runs.
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM! 4 HR for Wright: The only thing better for Badger Wright than hitting 4 home runs in a game would have been hitting them in a win.
Wright put up a monster display of hitting for the Wessex Warriors but had it spoiled as the Toledo Tarpons pulled out a 10-7 win.
"Ten years from now," Wright said, "I'll probably look back on this day with more satisfaction than I feel right now."
On his historic day at Warriors Ballpark, the Wessex second baseman belted 4 home runs and put up a 4-for-4 line. He scored 4 times and had 7 RBIs.
Badger Wright hit a two-run home run off Gervasio Taveras in the 1st, hit a solo-shot off Gervasio Taveras in the 3rd, walked in the 5th, hit a three-run home run off Gervasio Taveras in the 7th and hit a solo-shot off Cesar Cunnington in the 9th.
This season Wright is batting at a .317 clip with 11 home runs and 65 RBIs.
Miscellaneous Baseball News:
Tarp Trip More Serious Than Thought for Hong: What seemed comical at the time has turned out to be no laughing matter for Dario Hong of the Rivermen. The closer joked with teammates after stumbling over the renegade tarp and twisting his left ankle. However, the ankle swelled over the next few days and tests revealed Hong had actually suffered a high ankle sprain. The revised diagnosis is bad news for Mersey, since it means Hong may be out for a month or more. The Rivermen are currently at 46-45 and in 5th place in their division. Asked if the team may need to explore trade options, manager Virgilio Salvador said, "It's too early to tell at this point. We'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it."
Salisbury Players Find Life After Poker: There's more to a good clubhouse than an available poker game, members of the Salisbury Sea Dogs have found out.
Only a short time after manager Pascoal Gómez banned poker games from the clubhouse in an effort to improve his team's focus, some members of the team are saying the move had a positive impact on the clubhouse.
"We probably did spend too much time playing cards," said Agustin Rivera. "Guys are actually just talking to each other more, and I guess we're talking about the game and our opponents more to."
Leandro Longoria was a vocal opponent of the skipper's decision to ban poker games and while he said he's still not overly pleased about it, it's not the worst thing in the world.
"I always lost money in those games anyway," he said.
Monthly Player Awards:
Belez Claims ABL Batter of the Month Award: For a rookie just breaking in, Julián Belez certainly put together a successful month. It was good enough to win the ABL Batter of the Month award for July.
The 27-year-old third baseman for the Castille Buscadores hit .441 with 6 home runs, 20 RBIs and 26 runs scored.
This season Belez has banged out 149 hits in 381 at-bats for a .391 average with 14 home runs. He is getting on base at a .443 pace and his totals also include 57 RBIs and 82 runs scored.
Eguia Nabs ABL #1 Pitcher Trophy: Any time a rookie makes a splash on the scene, it's got to be great for his career potential. Just ask Mauro Eguia, who put together a stellar month out of the pen. The Tortuga Bucaneros closer, 25, kept the opposition off balance all month as he held them to a .230 average and walked away with the Andros Baseball League Pitcher of the Month award for July.
Eguia posted a 4-0 mark and a 1.70 ERA in 21 relief appearances. In 37 innings, he had 6 saves, 33 strikeouts, and 24 walks.
This year Eguia has 15 saves. In 72 relief appearances he has hurled 130.1 innings, fanned 130 and given up 77 walks with a 11-8 record. The Tortuga reliever has recorded a 4.49 ERA and allowed the opposition to hit .267 when he is in the game.
Tortuga Newcomer July's Best Rookie: Yes, Mauro Eguia is just a rookie. But he is a special rookie. Today the 25-year-old Tortuga starter was awarded the Andros Baseball League Rookie of the Month trophy for his standout performance in July.
He dominated the rookie class, registering 4 wins and no losses in 0 starts with 33 strikeouts in 37 innings and a 1.70 ERA.
Not bad for a first-year man.
To date this year Eguia has 15 saves with a 11-8 mark and 4.49 ERA.
August Wrap Up in next post!
Song of the Day:
Some good ol' Bobby Timmons, excellent Jazz pianist and composer from 1950s to 70s.
https://youtu.be/a3dlBI87A9Q
