[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 3-4
Seasonal Record: 59-63 (6th, 19 GB)
Stars of the Week
Lou Kelly : 26 AB, 10 H, 1 HR, 4 RBI, .385 AVG, 1.192 OPS
Tom Taylor : 31 AB, 10 H, 1 HR, 3 RBI, .323 AVG, .855 OPS
Mike Taylor : 18 AB, 6 H, 1 HR, 2 RBI, .333 AVG, 1.056 OPS

Weekly Schedule
8-20: Win at Stars (8-4)
8-21: Loss at Stars (5-10)
8-22: Loss at Stars (6-7)
8-23: Loss at Stars (2-4)
8-24: Loss at Saints (4-5)
8-25: Win at Saints (5-2)
8-26: Win at Saints (5-2)

Summary
Another mediocre week during the mediocre season where we sandwiched a four game losing streak in the middle. Two more one run losses and no more one run wins, but a pair of 5-2 wins in the middle of the Montreal (58-61) series. We did get a win on my birthday to finish the week, but I almost rather lose so we pick higher. We've been stuck in the six spot most of the past couple months, but we just hang around winning and losing almost an equally amount of games. We're off after a final game with the Saints and then we head to Baltimore (41-82) for three with the Cannons before another off day. That off day is roster expansion, so expect some new Cougars to join the team. For sure Herb Lowman will come back from rehab next sim. Bill Ashbaugh is finally healthy, so he'll get at least the week in the minors. I think I'm going to give him some reps at third to see how he can handle it. The goal for next year is to have him and Russ Combs split reps at second so they can hopefully stay healthy the whole season.

We don't need a fifth starter this week, but I think Ace McSherry earned a few more. He made two this week and won both. Against the Stars he went 6 with 5 hits, 4 runs, and a strikeout. He did walk seven, which is very concerning, but it's not like George Johnson is any better. His second start was much better, a complete game victory with 5 hits, 2 runs, a walk, and a strikeout. He hasn't made a big league start since the 13 he made in 1930, but the flamethrowing sidewinder has put together a rather solid season. He's 3-2 with 2 saves, a 2.72 ERA (168 ERA+), 1.15 WHIP, 19 walks, and 15 strikeouts in 43 innings. The 31-year-old still profiles as more of a pen arm, and if I bring up someone like Black, Stewart, or the now struggling Johnny Walker, McSherry will give up some starts to them. I'm thinking about running a more lax rotation in September to make sure Lyons, Leudtke, and Rankin all stay healthy. I'm already down one starter for 1934 plus the fact we don't really have a reliable fourth option. I'm likely going to search for a starter in the offseason, but I think our new contention goal is 1935. We have a few holes now and without our best player it is going to be hard to compete with Brooklyn and Cleveland next year.

Speaking of struggling to compete, both Dick Lyons and Dick Leudtke had rough outings. Lyons also had a good one, a complete game win on the 26th with 7 hits and 2 runs, but the Stars destroyed him. He allowed 10 hits and 7 runs with a walk and strikeout in just 2.2 innings pitched. He did excellent the first four months of the season, but August has just sucked. He's 2-2, but with a 6.90 ERA, 1.70 WHIP, 3 walks, and 5 strikeouts in 30 innings. He's averaging just 6 innings a start and he just forgot how to strikeout hitters. For the season he's 10-8 with a 4.39 ERA (104 ERA+), 1.54 WHIP, 41 walks, and 58 strikeouts in 180.1 innings pitched. Leudtke didn't really do that bad, but he was so hot that it felt worse. He lost the 7-6 game, going 7 with 10 hits, 4 runs, a walk, and 3 strikeouts. Dave Rankin pitched fine in his start, 8 innings with 8 hits, 4 runs (2 earned), 3 walks, and 4 strikeouts.

I did a little restructuring in the bullpen as well. Chick Meehan has really struggled, allowing 6 runs (4 earned), 5 hits, 3 walks, and 2 strikeouts in his last two appearances (2.2 innings). The generally automatic Meehan has allowed 17 earned runs in 23 innings since July 1st. 6 of his 13 walks have come in August and he's really inflated his season stats. His ERA is up to 4.80 (95 ERA+) and his WHIP up to 1.60. He's struck out 25 in 45 innings, which is still really good, but the pressure has gotten to him and I'm moving him down to middle relief for likely the rest of the season. The new stopper will be former Minor League Rule-5 pick Don Grossman. Way back when, I posted this:

Starting with the minor league draft, I got SP Don Grossman and lost no one. Grossman is a 24-year-old who the Boston Minutemen took in the 4th Round of the 1924 draft. He's been in that organization ever since, and spent most of last year in AAA. He was 2-9 with a 4.33 ERA (95 ERA+), 1.52 WHIP, and 111 strikeouts. I took him because of his height, he stands 6'6'' and throws a devastating sinker that is almost impossible to hit. He gets a ton of downward movement to generate numerous double plays with his mid to low 90s sinker. His problem is that none of his other pitches are any good, so if he throws anything other then a sinker he gets hit hard. I plan to use him as a pen arm and he could develop into an excellent stopper.(1930 Offseason)

After training Grossman as a reliever for a long time, I'm starting to reap the rewards. The 28-year-old ranks as the best relief pitcher in our organization and he's looked really good as a rookie. He's 2-1 with a 2.89 ERA (158 ERA+), 1.26 WHIP, 18 walks, and 13 strikeouts. I really thought he'd strike out more batters, but I expect him to pick up the numbers as he gets more comfortable in the big leagues. More likely then not, even if he gives up more runs then innings, he'll remain the stopper the rest of the season. Meehan is 37 and won't pitch forever, so either him or Bill Kline will likely start next season as the stopper. Kline, our former 2nd Rounder, has had another strong season. He's 4-2 with 3 saves, a 3.45 ERA (133 ERA+), 1.15 WHIP, 7 walks, and 16 strikeouts and he's done really well as a setup man. In parts of four seasons he's tossed 96.2 innings with a 2.70 ERA (168 ERA+), 1.24 WHIP, 24 walks, and 36 strikeouts.

Enough about pitching though. After complaining about how Lou Kelly has been letting me down all year, he decides to have his first good week of the year. He hit homer #11 and was 10-for-26 with 5 walks, 7 runs scored, and 4 driven in. He even added a steal and his .293/.355/.443 batting line is just one percent below average. 1934 is still likely going to be the worst season of his 8 year career as the Illinois' natives homecoming has not gone as planned. Of course, all will be forgiven if he and the rest of the offense decide that after simultaneously planning their worst seasons, they'll surprise and give their best next year. Fellow struggler Mike Taylor also turned things up this week. He was 6-for-18 with a homer, 2 RBI's, 3 runs, and 6 walks (two intentional). He's up to 15 homers on the season and still has a chance to reach 20 on the year. His decline has been the most surprising, as he was always so reliable with the bat. There are very few top notch catchers, so his OPS+ is fourth in the league while only two catchers (T.R. Goins and George Cleaves) boast an above average batting line this year.

Tom Taylor added another homer to his total and he's up to 26. He swiped three bags as well while driving in 3 runs. The Canadian Club is on pace for a 30/20/100 season, something a Cougar player has never accomplished (he was so close in 1931). The three time champion has had his lowest average and on base percentage as a Cougar this year, but he's likely to pass his Cougar best for homers (30). I still haven't decided if he's going to be our starting center fielder next season, but if Cy Bryant continues to suck, it might not be too hard of a decision. His batting line has dropped all the way down to .278/.363/.351 (80 OPS+) and he has just one homer and 5 steals. Starting this week I gave Taylor a few of Bryant's starts, and it'll continue this week. As good as his glove is, he's become an automatic out at the plate. He's hit .203/.250/.215 this month with just one extra base hit.

We did really struggle with the bat this week, as other then the Taylors and Kelly, Woody Armstrong and Joe Masters shared the 4th highest OPS+ of 60. Doc Love continues to struggle on the road, as his batting line has dropped back down to .328/.377/.515 (122 OPS+) and he hasn't hit a homer since the 13th and only two the entire month of August. He's just two away from 20, and the middle of September is mostly at home, so I expect him to reach it, but I'd love to see him have a strong week before returning home. He's hitting just .280/.355/.392 with 3 homers and 24 RBI's on the road compared to .382/.426/.655 with 15 homers and 51 RBI's at the North Side Grounds. Even better, my shortstops combined to go 5-for-31 (.161) with a double (Armstrong) and 2 RBI's (Bloom). I already have two targets for the offseason to fill my gaping hole at shortstop, but the one I want more probably isn't available. The other is a AAA shortstop who is likely blocked forever, so I'm hoping he'll at least be available.

Our farm is really good now (somehow Ray Ford got good?) and I know we have the prospect capital to land a potential top shortstop, but it may be hard to find someone willing to get rid of them. Worst case, I can wait until the #22 prospect in all of baseball Billy Hunter is big league ready, but at 19 that wait may be until 1936. With 11 top 100 prospects and 11 more between 101 and 200, we're still locked and loaded to try and buy our way back in. I'm going to try my best to limit myself to trades for a shortstop and starting pitcher because those are the most glaring needs, but centerfield could be upgraded as well. Bill May ranks 6th in baseball and is currently starting games for the Kings, so he's likely to graduate before the season ends and Leo Mitchell should be bumped up from 11 to 10. I genuinely don't think we've ever had two top 10 prospects, and even though the prospect rankings mean absolutely nothing, when you're severely failing to meet expectations in the majors any sort of minor league consolation feels better.

Minor League Report
While browsing my top 100 prospects, I came across an interesting scouting report for Ducky Jordan. "He is a quality defensive shortstop. Jordan is projected to be a speedy, switch hitter that can man centerfield." Jordan has position ratings at first, second, third, and short, but nothing in center. Last year I did play him seven games out in center, but it was pretty bad. I think it's worth giving him some time in center, especially because we don't have a real prospect there in Lincoln. I view him as a shortstop, but it would be nice if he turns into a strong centerfielder. He'll get a few starts each week out in center and we'll see if it becomes his longterm position. Jordan ranks 10th in our system and 95th overall, and is hitting .270/.342/.455 (106 OPS+) in 241 plate appearances with the Legislators. The 1932 6th Rounder has had a nice climb this season as he looked great in San Jose. He's probably going to spend the rest of the year here, but there are no shortstop prospects ahead of him (level wise) so he can ascend at his own pace.

Herb Lowman's rehab has gone well, as he was named Dixie League Player of the Week. His first start was a 6-hit, 2 strikeout shutout and his second one was a complete came victory that saw him allow 8 hits, 2 runs, and a walk with 8 strikeouts. The 32-year-old will spend one more week down in Mobile, and then he's likely to make at least his fourth start of the season in Chicago when he returns. In the majors he's 2-1 with a 3.91 ERA (117 ERA+), 1.68 WHIP, 31 strikeouts, and 21 walks. His three starts haven't gone great, but other then Tommy Wilcox, none of our starters have had many great starts this year. Unlike most of the other options, none of them have a 14-10 season with a 3.58 ERA (127 ERA+), 1.19 WHIP, 62 walks, and 81 strikeouts in 228.2 innings. Lowman has always been devastated by the longball, which really plays poorly at our stadium, but he's been pretty reliable for us this year.

Amateur Report
I don't care if it's in just 26 games and 99 at bats, but hitting over .500 at any level is amazing. And that is what Evansville HS and Evansville native Fred "The Mouse" Galloway did as a senior. He slashed an absurd .515/.617/.737 with a homer, 24 steals, and 29 RBI's in probably the most impressive season I've seen in the pool. Standing just 5'5'', it makes it even all that more impressive. He's an excellent defender, does a great job working the count, and should always hit for a high average. Sure, he'll never hit .500 again, but Galloway has a strong commitment to Central Kentucky where he could probably hit .450. It'll be interesting to see if he goes to college as he'd likely be a first round selection in three years. You can never have too many centerfielders, but if he doesn't get taken in the first couple of rounds, I can see him not signing.