[Bub13]

There were over a dozen trades in the week leading up to the trade deadline, but no big ones, other than those pointed out last post. Relief pitchers are, again, overvalued here, as several teams send decent-enough MR for (frankly better) prospect or prospects. Good for them, I suppose. We made no trades, as I'm going to go with what brung us this far. Let's hope it's the right decision.

The August schedule is...weird. We'll play 28 games; guess how many at home? 25. First we'll finish up with two games against Houston, then travel to Boston for three, then spend the rest of the month at home. Nice, huh? (September will get us back: we'll finish the season on a 14-game road trip.)

......

August 1-2 vs HOUSTON
Final two games of a four-game set against the Astros. Momentum, guys!

HAW pitchers: Taylor Barnett (7-8, 4.29) / Khalil Palmer (11-3, 3.92)
HOU pitchers: Dustin Springer (5-12, 4.22) / Mike Huddleston (5-6, 5.66)

#107: LOSS 3-4 ... Springer outpitches Barnett, as we manage just 5 hits...Moore puts five runners on in the 8th and takes the loss...2 hits for Rich, but still no HR for him
#108: WIN 9-5 ... HR for Rich! I wish it was always that easy...Palmer lasts just 4.1 IP, gives up 10 H and 5 R...Stanley goes the rest of the way, yields just 1 hit

Rich finally pops his first homer, leaving just Simmons as the only guy without one. He also didn't hit one out last year.... Masuda hit two out this series, and has brought his average up about 20 points since coming off the DL. Klump, however, is slumping and has dropped about 20 points.... ELSEWHERE: The Cubs have now won 9 in a row, and are a game up on the Reds. And New Orleans, and Pittsburgh. Quite a race here.... At the dull end of the stick, Texas has still not won 40 games yet (39-69).... After 13 years in the AL, Dodgers pitcher Eddy Llamas is enjoying his first season in the NL: 13-4, 2.45 ERA, 6.0 WAR. The 35-year-old is signed through 2049, and really needs all of those years to be good ones if he's going to have a chance at any Hall votes (55 career WAR, 170 wins, 2934 K, as of today).


August 3-5 @ BOSTON
At 54-54, tied for third with New York, 9 games behind Tampa. A sluggish (12-13) July didn't help their playoff chances. They don't hit for much--14th in AVG, 12th in HR--but have the 4th most runs in the AL. Pitching has not been good, at 15th in runs against. Their odd lineup means the 4 through 7 hitters are batting a combined .227, and too many guys are hitting a good 20 to 30 points below their career averages. Somehow they just swindled closer Tim Wormald away from the hot Cubs: he had a 1.34 ERA with Chicago, but has a 4.76 with the Sox so far. System review: 20th ranked, with four in the top 100. All are pitchers, with two--Jonathan Esquivel and John Sutton--already with the big club. Their best batter is probably 2B Ger Van Mourik, who should hit well and with power, but is definitely not the type to run any bases or field a ball.

HAW pitchers: Eric Jones (15-1, 3.06) / Ryan Ratliff (9-2, 3.72) / Rob "Fingers Crossed" Hart (3-4, 7.04)
BOS pitchers: Jonathan Esquivel (3-2, 3.34) / Fernando Alameda (8-4, 4.17) / Wally McDermott (4-6, 6.43)

#109: LOSS 0-5 ... first loss in some time for Jones, who lasts just 5.2 innings...we manage only 5 hits, all singles
#110: LOSS 5-6 ... we get a few more hits this time, including two HR, but it's not enough...Ramirez takes the loss with a shabby 7th inning, putting 5 runners on
#111: WIN 7-5 ... RHart is blah again (6 IP, 11 H, 5 R, 4 BB) but we pound out 12 hits, led by Masuda's 2-run GW HR...Rangel goes 2-for-3 with 2 RBI

The rotation is looking a bit out of sorts again, and even Jones can't save us. Hart is still not getting it done, sadly.... Our outfielders have made six errors this year, all by center fielders.... Rangel moves into the #2 slot in the lineup for now, as JHart is in a bit of a slump and not hitting for any power of late.... ELSEWHERE: The injury hammer fell hard this week: Milwaukee closer Edgar Tinajero is done for the season; so is Dodgers SP Eddy Llamas (see above, poor sod) strained his hamstring so hard that he's done for three months; and Detroit SS Dan Munoz will also be shut down for the year. With Llamas out, following Brewers ace Jay Russo, that's both league's leading Cy Young candidates done for the year.... NYY has won three straight, closing to 6.5 games out of first. And newly acquired Matt Anderson is .306/4/11 in 10 games.


August 7-9 vs MIAMI
Was it really four years ago that this team made the World Series and looked like it had a bright future? Yeah, it was. Sadly, they've been in sharp decline since, and are currently last in the East with a 47-64 mark. Hitting is 13th or thereabouts, right across the board. Pitching is wild: dead last rotation ERA, first place bullpen ERA, for the 8th ranked staff overall. Run diff is -41. RF Nick Meehan (.304/23/86) and LF Ricky Beard (.266/22/69) are the only offensive stars of note. Pitching should get better now that #1 starter Matt Rubin is off the DL. They also just traded 1/2 of a long-term (as in 7 years long) 2B platoon, George Bradshaw, to Minny. (Bradshaw is a .300 hitter with zero power and an inability to hit lefties, so of course MIN just threw $70M at him.) This is a team that needs a serious overhaul and rejuvanation. System review: 15th, with three top 100ers. Top guy Chris Milano has big-time stuff, but movement and control will keep him from being a star. SS Mario Rivera looks like a nice hitter, but will be better off at second. And their other high-rated pitchers--Jose Jimenez, Adam Parker, and Tim Bruns, all suffer from a lack of movement to their pitches that has me questioning the vision of their scouting department.

HAW pitchers: Taylor Barnett (7-8, 4.20) / Khalil Palmer (11-3, 4.12) / Eric Jones (15-2, 3.17)
MIA pitchers: Levi Brady (7-8, 5.87) / Tim Bruns (1-2, 5.13) / Matt Rubin (4-4, 3.44)

#112: LOSS 4-5 ... uuuunnnngh...JHart smacks a HR and Rangel gets 3 hits, but Barnett is left in too long and fades hard and fast in the 7th
#113: LOSS 4-8 ... a nice, quiet 4-1 win is lost to the winds after we give up 7 late runs...Palmer struggles again, and Pinksen explodes on the mound...I really traded for these guys?
#114: WIN 5-4 ... after another late-inning pitching collapse, ingominy is spared thanks to a 2-run 9th, with Masuda and JHart driving in runs...Jones is solid, Moore earns a BS for his paltry efforts

Very nearly swept by a last-place team coming off their own sweep at the hands of the Rangers. The RANGERS. Sheesh.... Okay, relax. We're still way up on the Mariners, and will very likely win the division. But I can see I'm going to have to do some maneuvering with the pitching staff to see who's got what going for them down the stretch. To that end, I send down the now-struggling Nate Moore to reclaim his mojo, and bring up Ben Willard. Willard did not do much for us earlier this season, but he's been great in AAA (with a nifty 38-to-4 K-BB ratio), so go to it, big guy.... I also move Rick Ramirez back into a setup role. He's been much better since I kicked him out of the closer role, and frankly needs to prove that he's worth the $4M or so he wants as a raise for next year.... ELSEWHERE: So the Dodgers have won 7 out of 10, heating up for a late run. Sure, they're still 9 games back, but I can see them winning 70% of their games from here on out and sneaking into the post-season. Jerks.... Speaking of the Rangers, they're no longer in last place, as the Angels are playing worse of all right now.... Washington's Pat Gayer is the first in the NL to reach 30 HR. The career .240 hitter is having a career season, batting .310/30/70.


August 10-12 vs TORONTO
It's now the Jays' turn to live in the AL East basement. Dead last in batting, and 16th in runs scored. Pitching is 12th, with the 16th-ranked rotation ERA. So, not a lot of good things happening here. Only 3B Paul Foster--who I wanted to sign last winter--(.293/23/48) is hitting well, and he's 34 and not a long-term solution. (No starters are under 27, fyi.) Oh, and the legendary Jordan Cruz is back to batting 9th, and is ripping it up with a .165 average and 158 K in 363 AB. Good thing he's signed for two more seasons. System review: 19th, with 3 in the top 100. SS Sam Moore (#21) is in AA and is already WAY better than the above-mentioned Cruz. After him, and the capable-looking OF Trevor Evans, there's not much...

HAW pitchers: Ryan Ratliff (9-2, 3.83) / Rob Hart (4-4, 7.08) / Taylor Barnett (7-9, 4.32)
TOR pitchers: Daniel Becker (9-7, 4.21) / Luke Weaver (10-6, 3.70) / Phil Eckert (6-10, 5.97)

#115: WIN 6-3 ... Sanborn's 2-run HR keys the offense, and Simmons doubles home the GW run...Ratliff fans 11 through 7.1 innings, although Ramirez nearly chokes on his first game back in a setup role
#116: LOSS 3-7 ... Masuda hits his 20th HR, but RHart is again completely ineffective, pulled in the 5th after allowing 11 hits and 6 runs. Sigh
#117: LOSS 6-10 ... six late runs kills any good vibes...Barnett is no good tonight, and we walk a combined 9 batters

We can afford to lose games, standings-wise, but any confidence in my pitching staff is fast floating away.... So I make a couple more changes: Barnett and RP Ben Willard go down, and Rob Hart moves to the pen. Coming up from Santa Barbara are Shamar Jackson and Ben Germann. Both were also up earlier this season, and neither impressed. But both are decent-looking prospects, and deserve longer looks sooner than later.... ELSEWHERE: NL Central race is still tight, with Chicago 2 up on Cincy, over Pittsburgh by 2.5, New Orleans by 3, and St Louis by 7.... Hawaii still has the best record in MLB, at 75-42, but Milwaukee is catching up, at 72-46. No other teams have reached 70 wins.... Cincy catcher Antonio Chamorro has 23 HR, but also owns an amazing slash of .189/.232/.408, and has struck out 155 times in 360 AB, with only 18 walks. Add to that a reputation for dogging it, and you wonder how he stays employed.


August 13-15 vs DETROIT
They don't hit quite like they have in recent years (15th AVG), but are 5th in runs, mostly due to ranking 4th in HR. Four batters have passed 20 HR, led by 2B Sean West with 33. Pitching is still strong: 2nd in runs, with the 3rd best rotation ERA. Ace Raul Bravo has an ERA a run and a half better than last year, and more wins already too. At 9 games behind division-leading Milwaukee, they look more like a wildcard possibility than a division winner; but anything can still happen. System review: 33rd. Top prospect 1B Andy Howard is already in the bigs, and has 11 HR in 244 AB. He is a big-time power bat, perfect for this team. OF Jesus Villegas looks like another typical Tigers-type power bat; but there's little quality pitching in the pipeline, outside of SP Ian Cochran, a #3/#4 starter at best.

HAW pitchers: Khalil Palmer (11-4, 4.19) / Eric Jones (15-2, 3.09) / Ryan Ratliff (10-2, 3.75)
DET pitchers: Raul Bravo (9-5, 3.61) / T.J. Bohanan (3-2, 4.50) / Mike Cote (8-9, 4.34)

#118: WIN 6-1 ... complete game 5-hitter for Palmer...Rangel gets 3 hits, 2 RBI, with 2 doubles, and Groff triples home another 2 runs
#119: WIN 8-5 ... 2 H and 4 RBI--including a bases-clearing double--for Simmons...3 H and 3 RBI for Sanborn...Jones is off tonight, but picks up the win
#120: WIN 4-3 ... Klein and Sanborn homer, and Groff and Simmons get multiple hits...Ratliff goes 8 IP, yields just 5 hits...Brown gets the save but gets hurt

Well, that's a surprise sweep. Good hitting, good pitching. Next series, let's see what the new mound callups can do.... Brown's diagnosis is pending, so fingers crossed that he won't be out long.... Ratliff leads the team with 128 K, a big comedown from recent years with Hart and Messinger racking up 250+ whiffs.... ELSEWHERE: Tampa's Chris Goldthwait reaches 7 WAR, the first player to do so. The pitchers leading in WAR in both leagues are both out for the season--Jay Russo and Eddy Llamas--and yet may not give up those leads until September. Cy Young voting should be interesting this fall.... Portland's cooling off, allowing San Diego (1 GB) and LA (5 GB) back into the division race.

......

TL;DR Version: That last sweep salvages a 7-7 run through the first half of August. Still, we're 78-42 and own the best record in baseball. But of course I fret. What else am I supposed to do? Gloat? (Well, sometimes...) Anyway, while our hitting is still league best, our pitching is showing some cracks. Rotation ERA is now 9th (4.48) while the bullpen has dropped a bit, to 6th (4.09). We're about to run out two recent call-ups in our next two games, guys who struggled mightily back in April, but have been pitching well in AAA. I want to get a look at them a bit before spring training (never too early to think about next year), since both will have a serious shot at cracking the rotation for 2047. Only one player is on the DL at the moment: SS Rich Stoneback, due to return in 3-4 weeks.