[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 5-1
Seasonal Record: 32-28 (t-2nd, 1.5 GB)
Stars of the Week
L. Mitchell : 26 AB, 11 H, 1 HR, 7 RBI, .423 AVG, 1.060 OPS
C. Hall : 24 AB, 7 H, 2 HR, 5 RBI, .292 AVG, 1.013 OPS
R. Bond : 23 AB, 8 H, 1 HR, 2 RBI, .348 AVG, .988 OPS

Schedule
6-13: Win vs Cannons (2-3)
6-14: Win vs Cannons (1-2): 10 innings
6-15: Win vs Cannons (2-16)
6-16: Win vs Wolves (5-13)
6-17: Win vs Wolves (0-2)
6-18: Loss vs Wolves (9-4)

Recap
Oh boy!

Oh man oh man oh MAN!!!

THE CHICAGO COUGARS AREEEEEEEEEEEEE

BACKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!! !!

I don't know why it took us so long to resemble a competent baseball team, but after throttling the "best pitching staff in baseball" for 16 runs before piling on another 13 to our next visitor, I am back to where I was when the season began: this team is going to win a pennant.

June has been everything May wasn't, as not only did we crush a few teams, we have played eleven games that ended in a save situation. Cougars teams of the past would be lucky to win three of those games. And that's being optimistic.

We won nine of them!

After winning 13 of our last 15, the Cougars are 14-4 in June, 32-28 overall, and just a game and a half behind the now first place Stars. Just like every week prior, we can thank Leo Mitchell for anything that went right, though this week even our starting pitchers (especially Duke Bybee and his double and base clearing triple!) were hitting the ball with authority. Mitchell was rewarded for another impressive week, as after going 11-for-26 with 2 doubles, a homer, 4 runs, 7 RBIs, and a steal, our veteran slugger was named Player of the Week, something he's now done 14 times since his 1935 debut. Now qualified for the batting title, no player in either association has a higher average then Mitchell, who's slashing a picturesque .407/.455/.548 (167 OPS+) with 6 doubles, 2 triples, 5 homers, and 27 RBIs. Among qualifiers, he leads in average, OBP, OPS (.993), OPS+ (167), and wOBA (.453), while third in slugging. And despite just 191 trips to the plate, he's top five in WAR (4th, 2.6) and hits (4th, 72). At this point, he has to be the favorite for the Whitney, and he's been our most valuable hitter by a landslide.

It was nice seeing him receive plenty of help from his teammates, especially the struggling Chubby Hall, who was thrusted back into a starting role. He hit two more homers, going 7-for-24 with a double, triple, 2 walks, 5 runs, and 5 RBIs. His triple slash is an adjusted league average .203/.317/.428 (100 OPS+) with an even better 110 WRC+. Obviously the average is low, but he's been hitting plenty of extra base hits, contributing 8 doubles, a triple, and 7 homers while driving in 23 runs and walking 23 times. He's tied for the team lead in homers with Red Bond, who hit one himself this week, finishing 8-for-23 with a triple, 2 RBIs, 3 walks, and 6 runs. He's hitting a below average .254/.335/.380 (93 OPS+), as he's hit just .230/.319/.344 (79 OPS+) in June despite a nice week. Same for Eddie Howard, who did all his June hitting this week, a nice 8-for-22 with 4 doubles, 3 runs, and 4 RBIs. Charlie Woodbury continues to hit in regular playing time, going 6-for-21 with a double, homer, 4 walks, 4 runs, and 2 RBIs. John Moss is staying hot, 6-for-19 with 2 doubles, 5 walks, 5 runs, and 6 RBIs. If these guys can keep it up, our season will quickly turn, as our staff continues its great run.

Add a third shutout for Donnie Jones, who's now tied with Wally Reif and Juan Tostado for the FABL lead, giving him a shutout in 42.9% of his wins and because we can't give him run support, he's allowed one or fewer runs in six of his seven starts. His win over the Wolves was quite impressive, just 4 hits and a walk with 6 strikeouts to jump back over .500 at 7-6. That's not a record worthy of a guy with a 2.62 ERA (154 ERA+), 1.05 WHIP, and 3.1 WAR, but our ace is making a really good case to start the All-Star game yet again. Peter the Heater matched him with 4 hits in nine no decision innings, but he allowed a run and 4 walks with 5 strikeouts. Duke Bybee has caught fire, as along with his double extra base night, he allowed 5 hits, a run, and 3 walks with 4 strikeouts. Johnnie Jones picked up a complete game win, though he also got the only loss. In the win, he went all nine, allowing 8 hits, 2 runs, and 6 walks with 3 strikeouts. Aside from one less walk and one more strikeout, the Wolves hit him much better then the Cannons, as Toronto got 8 hits and 7 runs in just 6.2 innings. George Oddo got a rare undeserved win, up to 5-4 after allowing 10 hits, 5 runs, and 2 walks with 5 strikeouts. David Molina finished that start, striking out one in a perfect ninth. He also picked up the extra inning win after a John Moss walk-off single, walking one in a scoreless ninth. That's now 5 wins, 8 saves, and 17 total games finished for Molina, who despite one poor week, has been as good as expected since his acquisition.

Looking Ahead
Can we stay hot?!?!? We'll find out!

Well, after a day off...

Granted, that didn't slow us down this week, which again is two, three game series before another Monday day off. Our first task is Cleveland Foresters, who are back up to six at 28-31. They're 3.5 games behind us and 5 behind the Stars, improved by their 12-7 June. They're off too, but after a double header sweep of the Stars, they won't get to adjust their rotation. The opener will be must-see baseball, as fellow Allen Winners Pete Papenfus (4-5, 3.05, 54) and Adrian Czerwinski (7-6, 3.56, 42) will square off in the opener. After that star-studded matchup, we'll look to keep young rookie Larry Beebe (0-2, 4.24, 10) out of the win column in his third big league start. Not only was he on my super shortlist for the 1946 draft, but the former 4th Overall Pick is currently ranked as the 13th best prospect and both Dixie and OSA expect him to one day lead a rotation. A polished four-pitch pitcher, he projects to have excellent command, and aside from Bob Allen and Les Ledbetter, I don't think there's an unproven pitcher that can match his upside. After that, we'll get Ducky Davis (2-7, 4.10, 24) to wrap it up, which could be a series where our offense struggles. The hard part is that theirs has been great, even with sluggers Lorenzo Samuels (.250, 3, 25) and Orie Martinez (.213, 1, 17) have struggled. Young outfielder Sherry Doyal (.297, 6, 40) has really heated up for them, slashing .400/.476/.529 (161 OPS+) in 19 June games. I always trust our pitching, especially against a team that doesn't hit many home runs.

Then it's three with the Sailors, who have fallen back to last place, now 25-35 and 8.5 games out of first. That's still not too far out, I mean, we were further out then that just a few weeks ago, but the Sailors stopped scoring and stopped preventing runs. Yes, Ed Reyes (.446, 18) is hitting .400 in limited time, and yes, they're still leading the CA in average, but it's almost ten points lower then it was a few weeks ago and now just Marion Boismenu (.329, 2, 19, 2) is qualified and hitting above .300. Rip Lee (.253, 2, 26) has cooled since his hot start, Solly Skidmore (.262, 3, 24) has had a rough June, and after avoiding a sophomore slump, Joe Scott (.254, 1, 12) has had a brutal third year. Now just Boismenu and Billy Forbes (.294, 4, 28, 10) are putting up above average offensive production, and with rough years from Art Hull (2-6, 5.75, 31) and Slick Wesolowski (1-5, 6.71, 25), the Sailors are not going to be winning more games unless something changes. It's crazy to see how quickly they've dropped off, but perhaps all they need is a quick reset this Summer to get back to regular contention that they're used to.

Then there's the draft tomorrow, which of course coincides with a super busy day for me, so we may not get any update on the draftees until Wednesday. The final mock holds Andy Robinson at 4th, though Ike dropped to 2.16. Other entries include Ed Freeman (4.4), Ernie Tisdale (4.13), and Frank Hernandez (5.1), which is somewhat of a good sign. There is one guy I left I really want, who I was considering taking towards the end of the draft, but I'm not expecting too many late gems, as most of what's left should be scooped up early.

Minor League Report
RHP Jim Williams (AA Little Rock Governors): It's been an excellent season for Jim Williams, who's now thrown a shutout in two of his last four starts. The most recent was a 6-hitter, where he walked and struck out 3 in a nice 5-0 win over the New Orleans Showboats. That's improved him to 6-2 in his 10 starts, and he has an impressive 2.66 ERA (160 ERA+) in 88 innings pitched. As good as that looks, he has walked (39) more hitters then he's struck out (31), and while a 1.32 WHIP isn't bad, it's actually third among Governors with six or more starts. Not one of the more exciting prospect in our system, he's towards the back of our system, ranked 41st among our prospects and 419th overall. The former 8th Rounder has a decent three pitch arsenal and does a good job keeping the ball on the ground, but the command could use some work. He doesn't strike too many guys out, with more effort put on getting batters to role over his sinker, and I don't think he's going to develop a true out pitch. He's really just "try to hit my low 90s sinker" with the occasional curve or circle change to keep batters off balance. OSA and Dixie don't think he can be a FABL starter, but there's something to be said about a 6'4'' guy with a great sinker and the stamina to throw 178 pitches in a game. That came in an 11 inning effort, and he's thrown 107 or more pitches each time out so far. There's something to be said about being a reliable innings eater, and that's exactly what Williams is.

RHP George Carter (AA Little Rock Governors): Jim Williams wasn't the only Governor (I was so good at writing this until I accidentally wrote Little Rock Commodores...) to throw a shutout, as the surging George Carter picked one up in a 2-0 win over Atlanta. This was his fourth consecutive win, allowing 8 hits and 4 walks with 4 strikeouts. A big strikeout arm, Carter now has 57 in 92.1 innings pitched, even better then our very own Peter the Heater (54 in 97.1), who's tied with Cougar draftee Ron Berry for third in the CA. In his 10 starts, Carter is now 6-3 with a 3.51 ERA, but his 1.55 WHIP is inflated due to 48 walks. As you might guess, as good as the stuff is, part of what makes it so is the wildness, though I'm worried better batters will be able to work him into trouble. Ranked a bit higher then Williams (37th, 391st), I'm still a big fan of Carter, even if we aren't able to solve his command issues. His change is impressive, and when located, his sinker, slider, and fastball are decent offerings too. That will work well in the pen, where he can eat a lot of innings. Even if that means 238 pitches in a 15-inning complete game! He hasn't thrown fewer then 125 pitches in a start, so if there is a plus on his lack of command, it's that it doesn't tire him out. This guy is the definition of a rubber arm, that should allow him to stick around with us so long as no one decides to take a risk on him in the Rule-5 draft.

3B Lou Jackson (B San Jose Cougars): Pitching didn't get all the fun this week, as Lou Jackson had himself a perfect end to an eventual Player of the Week, hitting for the cycle in San Jose's 15-2 thwacking of the Bakersfield Bears. Along with the basic parts, Jackson added another single, 5-for-6 with 3 runs and 6 RBIs. A natural outfielder, I've pretty much used Jackson exclusively at third, just as a way to get him in the lineup. A natural speedster, the 6th Rounder is an awful base stealer, 2-for-10 last year and 5-for-15 this year, but lucky for us he more then makes up for it with extra base hits. He has 17 doubles and 10 triples in 251 trips to the plate, slashing .283/.382/.514 (142 OPS+) in his second stint in San Jose. I've been dying to promote him, but there's absolutely no room in Milwaukee or Mobile, and Lincoln is pretty full. But, with a 1-day injury to Johnnie Love, I decided "hey let's IL him and hope someone else gets hurt later," allowing Jackson to move up a level as he rightfully deserves. Ranked 48th in our system and 469th overall, I don't think the 22-year-old gets nearly enough credit. He has a strong hit tool and a good eye, and I just can't get over how many triples he hits. Is that enough to start in the majors? Maybe not, but it's surely enough to earn a roster spot as a utility player, and I'm really hoping the switch hitter can keep hitting his way to Chicago.

He just has to work a little harder...

RHP Steve Davis (B San Jose Cougars): I guess the new thing for San Jose is to have a pitcher who starts the year on a crazy run. Last year it was Dixie Gaines, this year it's Steve Davis.

Sure, he has two no decisions this season, but Steve Davis is a perfect 7-0 and has allowed one or fewer runs in eight of his nine starts. And the season high? A terrible three!

Taken in the 7th Round of the 1945 draft, Davis has an awe-inspiring 1.18 ERA through 68.2 innings, and while obviously he needs a promotion, I think I'm going to let him hang out here until he inevitably loses, as "Scuff" is on an impressive run. His 1.19 WHIP isn't as dominant, partly due to his 31 walks, but he's struck out an impressive 56 batters so far. Not generally known for his stuff, Davis is one of those kitchen sink guys who throws six pitches, with Dixie not thinking they're good enough to make him anything more then an emergency starter. Perhaps this run of dominance is more due to his age and competition level then his overall skill, but for a guy who's never really projected as much of a big league candidate, I'm hoping he's enjoying every second of his crazy stretch.