[Westheim]

Raccoons (20-17) vs. Canadiens (24-12) – May 18-20, 2049

We had yet to face the division-leading Elks (twitches in agony), and the grace period ran out on Tuesday when they came in for a 3-game set. They did so while being only eighth in runs scored, but somehow seemed to have fixed their pitching. For years they had been bottoms or rather close to bottoms in runs allowed, but suddenly they were giving up the second-fewest markers in the CL. We had beaten them 13-5 over the 2048 season series, and that +8 was also how far we were now above .500 against them all-time, a lead I was begging the team to defend with their lives in a clubhouse address as the series began.

Projected matchups:
Victor Merino (3-1, 3.57 ERA) vs. Mario de Anda (6-0, 2.44 ERA)
Jason Wheatley (3-3, 3.06 ERA) vs. Mario Godinez (4-2, 2.76 ERA)
Bubba Wolinsky (2-3, 5.95 ERA) vs. Terry Herman (3-1, 2.35 ERA)

The opener would be against an undefeated left-hander, then two righties. De Anda was pitching 1.5 runs under his career ERA, so there was technically hope.

The Raccoons got Bryce Toohey back from the DL, parting with Rich “Who?” Seymour.

Game 1
VAN: CF Escobido – 3B Burgos – RF Outram – 1B S. Henderson – LF Mancini – C Julio Diaz – SS R. Price – 2B DeMarco – P de Anda
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – 1B Toohey – LF Preble – RF Avila – C Gonzalez – P Merino

The Raccoons scored first, with de Anda beginning his day by nicking Adame. Two singles by Herrera and Maldo scored Adame for a 1-0 lead in the first, but just as quickly as that had come together, the inning fell apart with pops on the infield for Waters and Toohey, and Mike Preble grounding out to short. The damn Elks countered right away with leadoff hits for Bob Mancini and Julio Diaz in the top 2nd, Mancini bid for third base on Diaz’ single, drew a throw from Eduardo Avila, the useless pelt, and that allowed Diaz to second base and eventually cost the go-ahead run, as the Elks plated both runners with RBI groundouts. De Anda would, perhaps even more annoyingly, hit singles his first two times up. One came with two outs in the second and led nowhere, but the other drove in Rick Price and his leadoff double in the fourth, half an inning after the Raccoons had stranded Maldonado and his double to left. The Elks added a fourth run in the fifth inning with three leadoff singles by Jesus Burgos, Jerry Outram, and Sterling Henderson, before Mancini hit into a double play and Diaz popped out.

While Merino turned in his seven meh innings, the Raccoons had that terrible habit of getting one base runner per inning, and as consequence absolutely nowhere overall… if they didn’t hit into a double play anyway like Preble did to kill the bottom 6th. Ruben Gonzalez interrupted the drudge with a solo homer in the bottom 7th, but the Raccoons didn’t make much permanent gain, with Mike Lynn giving up a counter homer to Mancini as soon as the top of the eighth began. Gonzalez would end the game with the unhappy distinction of landing the Coons’ last two hits in the game, adding a single off Sam Gibson in the ninth. Gurney and Adame made poor outs after that, and the Raccoons opened the series with a hapless L. 5-2 Canadiens. Maldonado 2-3, BB, 2B, RBI; Gonzalez 3-4, HR, RBI;

Game 2
VAN: LF Escobido – 3B Burgos – RF Outram – SS R. Price – C Julio Diaz – 2B DeMarco – 1B Mancini – CF Tomasello – P Godinez
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Preble – 1B Gurney – SS Adame – C Gonzalez – P Wheatley

The hapless defense continued on Wednesday, with two leadoff singles for Angel Escobido and Jesus Burgos, who pulled off a double steal, and while Wheats got a big K on Jerry Outram, who was fighting the general aging process as much as the .300 mark, one run scored on Rick Price’s grounder. Diaz also grounded out, leaving Wheats in his usual position – behind. Nick DeMarco hit a leadoff jack in the top 2nd, upon which I groaned and wish myself to the 2054 season, when I approximately would have sorted this mess out finally… Although the Raccoons countered with a walk drawn by Matt Waters and a 2-run homer to right off the stick of Pat Gurney in the bottom 2nd, tying the game at two, the damn Elks took a new lead in the top 3rd, Price singling home Jesus Burgos for a 3-2 lead.

So, no, Wheats didn’t have it again on Wednesday, even after we went to the bother of skipping Chris Crowell’s turn to get him back to the hill five minutes sooner. He didn’t allow a run in the middle innings, but then the offense didn’t do anything to help him out once more. Waters hit a double at one point, but nobody reached as far as third base until a walk drawn by Matt Watt and a Maldonado single put runners on the corners with one gone in the bottom 6th. Waters popped out to short, leading to me howling in actual physical pain, but before things could get too wild, Mike Preble shoved a 2-out single to right, tying the game at three by bringing home Watt. Godinez then walked Gurney to fill the bases, but Adame grounded out and stranded everybody.

Top 7th, Wheats put on Adrian Higareda with a pinch-hit single, nailed Escobido, and couldn’t turn two on a Burgos grounder. The result was runners in scoring position with two outs, and Outram up. The Raccoons chose to bother a southpaw in Julian Ponce, while the damn Elks did the unthinkable and battd right-handed Sterling Henderson for Outram, which, although I had no sympathies for either one of them, felt like sacrilege. We were tempted to walk Henderson with intent to bring up another lefty in Rick Price, but there was plenty of righty sticks still in that dugout and room would run out. So of course Ponce gave up a 2-run single to center to Henderson, but in the end it didn’t matter, because he didn’t retire Price and Diaz, either. Porter got a flyout from DeMarco instead, stranding three, while I shrugged and got a Capt’n Coma opened.

The tying runs reached base in the bottom 7th, not on offensive heroics, but on consecutive errors by DeMarco. No actual base hits occurred, and the runners were stranded. Waters hit a leadoff single in the bottom 8th, but … that was that. Gibson went 1-2-3 in the ninth, and that was THAT. 5-3 Canadiens. Waters 1-2, 2 BB, 2B;

Aye….

Game 3
VAN: CF Escobido – 3B Burgos – RF Outram – 1B S. Henderson – C Julio Diaz – SS R. Price – LF Montana – 2B DeMarco – P Herman
POR: CF Watt – SS Adame – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – LF Preble – 1B Toohey – RF Gurney – C Brooks – P Wolinsky

Escobido opened Thursday’s unhappy scheduling with a jack to left, although the Coons tied it up when Waters singled home Watt in the bottom 1st. Preble also singled, but Toohey flew out too easily to strand a pair. Wolinsky, who was hopefully near the end of an ERA explosion (the Escobido jack briefly put him over six), allowed leadoff hits to Herman (…) and Escobido in the third, but then the 2-3-4 hitters all made poor contact and stranded the runners in what felt to me like it would eventually become a sweep.

Preble hit a homer to right in the fourth to give the Coons a 2-1 lead, but Wolinsky ran out of glue in the sixth, walked Henderson and conceded a double to Diaz, which put the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position with one out. Preston Porter conceded a game-tying sac fly to Price, then got Bob Montana to ground out, leaving Wolinsky with a no-decision. That was all that Porter did, his spot coming up with three on and one out in the bottom 6th after Herman allowed a double to Preble, walked Toohey, and nicked Brooks (at 0-2 at that); Armando Herrera grabbed a stick, smacked a wallbanger to center for a double, but Escobido got within two feet of the ball, and so the batters had to wait and only two of them scored for a 4-2 lead. Watt then did fly out to Escobido, Brooks was sent for home – and thrown out. The Coons blew the lead real quick then; Nate Norris was waffled for two screaming hits and a run, while Lynn came on with the tying run on third base an two outs in the top 7th, and Outram up again. This time he wasn’t hit for and promptly whomped an RBI double. There was no joy in this team anymore…

Bottom 7th, the home team took a lead for the third time in the game. Pedro de Leon walked the first guy he faced, Adame, who then stole second base. Maldo rocked a double to right, and that broke the 4-4 tie, but Maldo was left stranded. Maybe at least hold on to this one? Maybe at least not get swept? Please? Lynn got Diaz and Price to begin the eighth, and Nelson Moreno then came on for a 4-out save, beginning with a Montana pop to short to end the top 8th. With de Leon still on, the Raccoons put three on with nobody out in the bottom 8th. Brooks doubled to right, Herrera walked, and Eduardo Avila hit a scratch single. Adame grounded into a force at home with a sharp bouncer to the shortstop, and the most the Raccoons could get from the fat chance was a Maldo sac fly that made it 6-4 for Moreno. Would that be enough? A leadoff walk to DeMarco made me wince in the ninth, but Moreno then struck out two before Burgos singled up the middle. Of course that brought up Jerry Outram, who had not done *a lot* of damage in this series (two hits, one RBI). Here he walked, and I stuffed the bottle of booze deeper into my snout. Bases loaded, Henderson – a sorry comebacker to the mound, Moreno to first, and ballgame…! 6-4 Critters. Avila 1-1; Maldonado 3-4, 2B, 2 RBI; Preble 3-3, BB, 2B, RBI; Herrera (PH) 1-1, BB, 2B, 2 RBI;

Raccoons (21-19) vs. Condors (27-14) – May 21-23, 2049

Six, seven, seven, eight – those were the Raccoons’ win totals against Tijuana the last four years. I wasn’t quite sure about that string continuing in appreciable form, given that they somehow led the CL South out of the blue. They were second in runs scored, fourth in runs allowed, and besides a lack of home run power they seemed to excel or at least present themselves well enough in all important aspects of the game.

Projected matchups:
Dave Hils (3-2, 5.12 ERA) vs. Matt Weber (4-1, 2.72 ERA)
Chris Crowell (0-1, 6.05 ERA) vs. Aaron Erwin (5-1, 4.63 ERA)
Victor Merino (3-2, 3.80 ERA) vs. Sam Geren (2-3, 5.06 ERA)

Only righties to see here.

Game 1
TIJ: SS C. Navarro – 3B Ottinger – LF G. Cabrera – 1B Yamamoto – C Mittleider – CF Burkhart – RF Tortora – 2B C. Vega – P M. Weber
POR: SS Adame – CF Herrera – 2B Waters – LF Preble – 1B Gurney – C Gonzalez – 3B Luna – RF Avila – P Hils

I had fears for Hils to get stomped, but after putting two on and getting a double play from ex-Coon Shuta Yamamoto to bail out in the first, he was dispatching the Condors rather quickly, and also got a lead in the bottom 2nd when Eddy Luna doubled home Gurney for a 1-0 lead. Waters, who had hit into a double play in the bottom 1st, homered in the fourth to go to 2-0. Hils was on 46 pitches through four, then stumbled with two outs in the fifth. Carlos Vega and Weber (…) hit singles, and while Vega went to third base, Avila’s throw there was errant and allowed Vega to turn and head for home and score. Chris Navarro grounded out, stranding the tying run at second base in a 2-1 game.

Hils hit a single himself in the fifth, but nobody else got on base. On the hill, he put Gil Cabrera on in the sixth, but got a double play from Yamamoto again, then reached two outs in the seventh before the lefty sticks at the bottom of the order drew up. It was still a 2-1 game, but the Raccoons were tricked into thinking Hils might have found confidence by the fact that he was mostly unshaken and had thrown only 67 pitches for 6.2 innings. He remained in the game, but of course immediately blew the lead with a Cullen Tortora double, a pinch-hit RBI single by Matt O’Reilly, and I had another gulp. He did stumble out of the inning somehow, the got another lead when Eddy Luna homered in the bottom 7th, 3-2. Hitchcock then held the fort in the eighth despite nicking speed demon Chris Navarro to put the tying run aboard with nobody out. A strikeout, pop, and groundout held Navarro at first, however, and the Raccoons stayed ahead. Nelson Moreno was kind enough to finish it in the ninth without unnecessary drama. 3-2 Raccoons. Waters 2-3, HR, RBI; Luna 2-3, HR, 2 RBI; Hils 7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, W (4-2) and 1-2;

Game 2
TIJ: 3B Ottinger – RF Blackburn – LF G. Cabrera – C Mittleider – SS A. Lopez – 1B Tortora – CF O’Reilly – 2B C. Vega – P Erwin
POR: LF Watt – CF Herrera – 3B Maldonado – 2B Waters – RF Preble – 1B Toohey – SS Luna – C Gonzalez – P Crowell

It took the Coons four innings to find an answer to a Gil Cabrera homer in the first, and I was mildly amazed that Crowell held out that long without getting entirely obliterated. But Preble doubled and scored on a Toohey single to tie the game at one in the bottom 4th, after the team had done next to nothing the first time through. Coons were on the corners in the bottom 5th on the merits of Gonzalez getting drilled and, after he was bunted to second, an infield single for Matt Watt with one gone. Herrera flew out to shallow left, Maldo grounded out to Carlos Vega, and I contemplated whether we should start to look for alternate personnel. Technically, Chad in the raccoon mascot was already wearing a Raccoons uniform, so maybe he could be an option to hit cleanup…?

Roster move musings ended just as soon as Crowell’s day with leadoff singles in the sixth for Cabrera and Jon Mittleider. Two on, no outs, four left-handed batters coming up, the Raccoons went to Ponce, who was usually accompanied by blowup noises as soon as he left the pen, but now stuck out both Alex Lopez and Cullen Tortora, then gave up a screamer to O’Reilly, but Watt was in the way in left and made the catch, keeping the score tied.

Waters walked and stole second, but was still stranded in the bottom 6th, and Herrera scratched out a 2-out single against righty Leonardo Ramos in the bottom 7th and also stole second. Maldo then crashed the 1-1 pitch past a diving Tortora for an RBI double, putting the Coons on top, 2-1…! While Maldo was lifted for D after that, Preston Porter needed lifting for rescue after two 1-out singles by Cabrera and Mittleider in the eighth. Lynn came on, gave up a bases-filling single to Lopez, but then whiffed the pinch-hitter Yamamoto, who would be my top pick to hit a ****** slam against the Coons, giving how ineffective his tenure here was. Lynn hung a K on O’Reilly, ending the inning. With Moreno having pitched two days in a row, and another lefty stick up to begin the ninth, Lynn hung around when the Coons were done with stranding a pair in the bottom 8th, whiffed Vega, got a grounder from Ricky Cruz, and had Reed Ottinger fly out to Watt to finish the deal. 2-1 Coons. Preble 3-4, 2B; Gurney (PH) 1-1; Lynn 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, SV (3);

Three in a row! None of them convincing or pretty, but they all count the same in the end.

Still 4 1/2 back though after losing the series to the damn Elks earlier in the week…

…and we would not get closer under our own power, because the week ended early, the finale of the homestand getting washed down the Willamette by steady rains. (It was a Northwest thing, the Elks getting rained out too against Vegas)

Monday would be off as well by schedule.

In other news

May 17 – Capitals SP Cory Ellis (5-1, 3.14 ERA) will spend the next two months rehabbing a partial tear in his labrum.
May 18 – PIT SS/2B Tony Aparicio (.368, 4 HR, 23 RBI) will be missing for a month with a herniated disc.
May 19 – The Capitals have a 5-run rally in the bottom 9th on nothing but singles and walks, base by base, to overturn the Rebels, 6-5.
May 20 – A fractured coracoid bone in his shoulder puts Atlanta ace SP Brian Buttress (4-3, 3.24 ERA) out of action for the season.
May 20 – CIN RF/LF/1B Salvador Montecino (.268, 3 HR, 12 RBI) hits a seventh-inning pinch-hit single for the only Cyclones knock in a 7-1 loss to Pittsburgh’s SP Marcos Nabo (2-6, 3.44 ERA), who turns in a complete-game 1-hitter.
May 21 – Owing to a sprained ankle, the Falcons will be without 2B/OF Miguel Martinez (.250, 0 HR, 9 RBI) for a month.

FL Player of the Week: SFW LF/RF Danny Munn (.321, 11 HR, 48 RBI), crushing .407 (11-27) with 5 HR, 12 RBI
CL Player of the Week: NYC LF/CF Joe Besaw (.415, 7 HR, 26 RBI), clicking .583 (14-24) with 1 HR, 2 RBI

Complaints and stuff

3-2 with a rainout and not a lot of vigor. It’s hard to make out bright spots, but I’ll try.

Maldo f.e. is 35, beyond redemption on defense, and makes more dosh a year than I have ever seen in an actual pile in my lifetime. But after a slow and injury-bugged start, he’s now up to a .768 OPS, which is at least as good as he was last year after sliding in the second half. Only two homers though in 105 at-bats, so that’s not great… Matt Waters looks the same as last year; right on pace for 31 homers at the first quarterpost, and well more than the 93 RBI he had last time ‘round. OPS just over .900, also just like last year.

The bad? Insert a pitcher of your choice, or the general rotten luck with their BABIP. It’s hard to actually blame the pitchers, it is *also* a baseball god’s vengeful escapades thing. And it’s hard to bring the baseball gods to reason.

Trust me, I have tried a lot of times.

Next week, road trip to Vegas and Atlanta, then another week at home for the Falcons and Indians as we’ll slide into June. Our rainout is scheduled to be made up in a double header on June 28, where a spot starter will have to be employed.

Fun Fact: In all of the Federal League, there are two winning teams, and none in the East.

The 21-22 Buffos are probably delighted to lead that shambolic division. On merit it might be the Blue Sox, 22-20 by expected record, and the only one actually above .500 even then. The entire FL is 10 games under .500.