@ Dallas Chaparrals (27-30, .473, 5th AL West)
While not in a bad way, per se, that Dallas is off to this poor of a start is something of a surprise – 8 games off the pace with a little over a 3rd of the season already entered into the permanent record after being our divisions top dog for two straight seasons and its runner up for the 4 seasons before that obviously isn’t sitting too well with their fanbase. To be clear – they still have time (we all do), it’s just that, given their 12th ranked staff, it’s hard to see any significant route back to respectability for the Chaparrals. No, this will likely be chalked up as a lost season, perhaps the beginning of a prolonged period of poor showings, and maybe, just maybe the start of a long, slow descent for the former kings of the American League West.
Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP W. Macomber (4-4, 2.77) vs RHP A. Barrientos (2-0, 5.08)
RHP B. Sánchez (9-1, 2.78) vs RHP R. Straub (0-5, 6.03)
RHP D. Hornbrook (2-4, 4.64) vs RHP C. Gould (1-4, 6.99)
#58: Loss, 4-6… We’ve lost four in a row, to lowly competition one & all…
JJ Barbari did the dirt for Dallas, finishing 2-for-4 with a double, 2 RBI, and a run while the Chaparral bullpen held is in check after their starter,
Alan Barrientos, gave up 4 runs in less than 5-innings of work. Our starter,
Macomber, did the same, though he managed to put in a full 5-innings of work, while our bullpen, namely
Peter Yamaguchi and
Payton Inzen could not stand as tall as the Dallas relievers, giving up the game winner during the 6th and insurance run during the 8th. Our highlights? Well, there was a 2-run double for
Fukumoto and we did manage to swipe three bags as a club – 1 each for
Shane,
Simon, and
Micky – but couldn’t match the Chaps’ energy, taking game one on the chin and looking at two more of the same if we can’t get it together and fast.
And, with that, we’ve put another month in the books… so, as always, we’ll take a gander at the standings, league leaders, and the Pioneers’ clubhouse…
NL Leaders...
AL Leaders...
The Clubhouse...
#59: Loss, 4-5 (14)… We’re in a real bad way folks – nothing is going right, our energy level is non-existent, and, try as we might, we just can’t buy a win at this point… 22yo backup backstop,
Chaz Gildea, hit a run-scoring double during the top of the 8th to knot this thing up and ultimately helped secure a chance to get this win into the books in extras, but his effort would not go unpunished as no one else could muster anything significant from there as we shuffled along aimlessly until
CF Mick Miller hit a walk off SAC FLY off
Payton Inzen to send the Dallas crowd into a tizzy and us off into the night, losers of 5-straight. The wheels have come off… all of them. We’re talking steering wheel too, folks.
#60: Loss, 5-6… this loss, our 6th straight, was as gut wrenching a defeat I’ve experienced since taking on the Portland Pioneers – up 5-1 entering the bottom of the 9th with youngster
Nuno Vera on the mound, Dallas wasted no time putting two bad ones on him, both on run-scoring singles, to pull within two. No problem, right? We’ll just throw our closer,
Noah DiMaio, at them… it’s no worries.
WRONG.
DiMaio, Mr. Inconsistency, allowed the Chaparrals to come the rest of the way back on, get this, back-to-back-to-back run-scoring singles, earning his 2nd blown save and 6th loss in the process, as the Dallas Chaps, despite hitting just one double and one triple on the day, would score five furious runs during the bottom of the very last frame to climb back to .500 on the year while pulling us down to that same mark. Good grief.
Other News: We reactivated
RF Rowan Calvin from the injured list… which, sadly for him, meant that
DH Bruce Sarmiento would head back to Eugene to once again don our Ducks kit down in AAA.
Record: 30-30, .500, 5th AL West
Up Next: We’ll travel to Colorado to do battle against the biggest bully on the AL West block.