[pauwoo]

There are any number of good stories to highlight after the 1st month of the 2074 season – the dominance of Phoenix, Brooklyn, and Pittsburgh in the National League or the strong start for the defending Champion Seattle Sounders (though the Los Angeles Galaxy are right in the mix in the AL West) – but, to me, the most interesting of the bunch is the poor start of Josiah and the Jaguars. Historically a so-so club (.500 lifetime record over the last 81 seasons, 38 playoff appearances & 4 championships), they’ve finished in 1st place in 2072 & 2073. 2072 was particularly painful as Josiah Weber had one of the best pitching campaigns the league has ever seen before getting hurt in the 1st round of the playoffs and while the Jags were able to rally together to make it to the World Series, it’s hard to believe that the outcome wouldn’t have been different with Josiah in the rotation. So far, while Josiah has been his usual excellent self (4-1, 2.00 ERA, 184 ERA +), everyone else on the staff has been trash. They are tops in hitting the long ball, but have been average or worse everywhere else – I hope that eventually, the 6-time Pacheco Award winning Josiah Weber will add a World Series to his list of accomplishments – but with the giant step back the Jaguars seem to have taken that seems unlikely to happen this season. Long way to go, of course… but, c’mon OOTP engine, cement this man’s legacy already!

Batters of the Month:
AL: RF Andrew Beck (TOR): .317 AVG, .402 OBP, 9 jacks, 29 RBIs – drafted 27th in 2068 out of Oregon State University.
NL: RF Paul Swift (BRK): .310 AVG, .352 OBP, 6 ding dongs, 21 RBIs – drafted 79th in 2070 out of Iowa

Pitchers of the Month:
AL: SP Alex Jackal (TOR): 5-1, 1.41 ERA – drafted 152nd in 2060 out of Texas. He’s a 3-Time Pacheco Award recipient.
NL: SP Vicente De La Cruz (ORL): 4-1, 1.49 ERA – undrafted international prospect.