[Bub13]

July 20-22 @ BALTIMORE
Sliding in July, with a 4-10 record, which has dropped them a half game behind Tampa in the East. Eighth in runs, and 7th in pitching, for a +16 run diff. Sixth in home runs, but three regulars have already topped 20, including reigning MVP Cesar Alvarenga (.341/28/52) and 25-year-old rookie Justin Singleton (.268/22/70). 2B Jason Powell is hitting .341 but has just been relegated to the bench in favor of .237-hitting J.R. Evans. Oh, okay. Closer Curt Paddock blew up at the all-star game, but otherwise he's been just fine, with 19 saves and a 2.23 ERA. We dropped 2 of 3 against these guys to open the season. System review: ranked 22nd, with three in the top 100. RP Cameron Harris is the top dog, at #33: he looks to be a decent-enough MR one day. Ten of their next 11 prospects are listed as SP, but none look like great shakes to me right now.

HAW pitchers: Ryan Ratliff (8-2, 2.90) / Rob Hart (2-3, 6.88) / Taylor Barnett (7-7, 4.14)
BAL pitchers: Jonathan Bell (8-6, 3.79) / Pablo Aguero (1-3, 7.77) / Ken Newman (2-5, 6.02)

#95: WIN 8-6 ... a 4-run 9th wins this one, sparked by Klein's 2-run triple and Flygare's 2-run single...Ratliff struggles, is lifted after 5, but the pen tosses 4 IP of no-hit relief
#96: WIN 8-7 ... another late comeback, this time 5 runs in the 9th...Hart is pretty terrible today, walking 6 in just 4.1 IP, giving up 6 runs too
#97: LOSS 2-6 ... no late heroics here, despite outhitting the O's 10-9...Barnett is lifted in the 4th, yielding 3 HR and all the runs (and hits) in that span

We only won those two games b/c of timely and powerful hitting. Pitching in this series was pretty forgettable. We did, however, put two Baltimore pitchers on the DL.... Ramon Davila hurt his shoulder in the last TB game, and is dtd for a few days. Flygare starts in his stead for two games, going 2-for-7 with a walk and a pair of doubles.... Second game was rained out, so we played a double-header; pretty entertaining, for the fans at least. Not for my ulcers.... ELSEWHERE: Baltimore trades the above-mentioned Singleton to New Orleans (along with a mediocre prospect) for OF Terry Bishop. Bishop moves right into the starting lineup and goes 2-for-7 with a double. Singleton? He's sitting on the bench, behind a guy (vet Jonathan Emilien) with a .198/6/15 line. Really.... And Milwaukee's Jay Russo, owner of a dandy 1.60 ERA and current top AL Cy Young candidate? Done for the season (and beyond) with a torn UCL. Harsh.... Fifteen straight wins now for New Orleans, so maybe they're okay sitting Singleton, despite his hot hitting.


July 23-25 @ SEATTLE
Currently 51-48, a half game up on Houston for 2nd place in the division. Hitting is okay, 8th in runs, while 4th in AVG, but just 12th in OBP. Most steals in the AL, tho. Pitching has really hurt them, at 14th in runs against, for a -7 run diff. Worst team defense too. Individually, the lineup looks good: three guys over .300, with two more close; seven guys in double figures in HR; even #9 batter 3B Luis Cantu is batting .293 with 19 HR. Ace Miguel Moreno has been sharp, but most of the rotation has been subpar. Two-way guy Steve Mellon has been moved out of the rotation in middle relief, and is also batting .288 as DH. System review: 31st overall, with only SP Jesus Aguilar (#58) in the top 100. Aguilar, frankly, is overrated, as he looks like a straight-throwing flyball pitcher--not a lovely combo. Probably their best prospects are in the outfield: #3 Aaron Lenhard and #4 Josh Hagaman look like starters in a year or so.

HAW pitchers: Khalil Palmer (10-3, 3.86) / Eric Jones (13-1, 3.33) / Ryan Ratliff (8-2, 3.31)
SEA pitchers: Brett McGee (4-9, 6.16) / Miguel Moreno (8-3, 2.61) / Jimmy Porreca (4-9, 5.79)

#98: LOSS 4-6 ... Groff whacks a 2-run HR to keep us in it early, but Palmer is loose all night and is done after 5...we outhit them 12-9, but give up three critical HR
#99: WIN 11-1 ... 2 HR and 5 RBI for Masuda, and McCollum gets 4 hits and 3 RBI...7 solid IP for Jones, and Stanley finishes with a quiet 2 IP
#100: WIN 9-8 ... this one's 9-6 after 4, and we hold on late...2 HR and 5 RBI for Groff, while Klein, Stoneback, and Simmons each add 3 H...nobody pitches well tonight

Pitching is still leaky (rotation ERA now 10th), but we are cranking out the hits and runs with regularity.... Groff's second HR in that last game was his 1700th career hit.... In the rotation, Palmer and Barnett have been very shaky lately, and Pinksen has been better in long relief. A couple of guys in AAA have been pretty good too, but I'm not sure if they're ready for a callup. Not saying I'll make a change in the rotation imminently, but it bears watching.... ELSEWHERE: A 17-2 run in July for New Orleans has them at 53-48, now 4 games out of first.... The Dodgers and Yankees made a trade, with LA sending disgruntled 1B Matt Anderson (reigning AL batting champ, who had just 63 AB this year) to the Bombers for 1B Corey Jarell and oft-injured OF Daizo Yonamine. LA also sends OF Jim Hudson, a useful utility guy and spot starter. Anderson is signed through next year, and despite being 38, still looks like a premier hitter. He's gone 4-for-8 with a HR in his first two games in NY. He's closing in on 2500 hits, and looks like a sure-thing Hall of Famer.


July 26-29 vs TEXAS
Dead last in MLB with 37 wins, one of three teams (LAA and ARI) under 40 wins. Last in runs, and next-to-last in pitching, with a -138 run differential. Bright spots? SP Mike Messinger has pitched well, and 1B Manuel Cervantes has hit .267/23/63. Cervantes, however, is not a long-term solution. Only three batters on the roster are 26 or under, and all will be free agents this fall. Messinger and rookie Greg Buchanan look like building blocks for a rotation, and two young relievers look pretty good too. But it's hard to see a plan for the future here. The budget is 30th in baseball, player payroll 33rd. Season tickets and attendance are down, but the fans still seem loyal, and the market is big. Can they build something, and soon? Eh, there's not much from within, to be honest, so we'll see...

HAW pitchers: Rob Hart (2-3, 7.31) / Taylor Barnett (7-8, 4.46) / Khalil Palmer (10-3, 3.99) / Eric Jones (14-1, 3.24)
TEX pitchers: Greg Buchanan (2-5, 5.10) / Lorenzo Rangel (5-10, 5.80) / Luis Otero (4-9, 5.75) / Mike Messinger (9-8, 3.50)

#101: WIN 9-6 ... 4-for-4 with 2 HR for Davila...HR also for Masuda and Stoneback...RHart struggles again, 5 R and 3 BB in 5 IP
#102: WIN 3-2 ... Texas ties it up in the 8th, then Groff wins it with an RBI double in the bottom half...7 hits for each team, and we survive putting on 6 runners in the last two innings
#103: WIN 7-2 ... Stoneback's 6th inning GRAND SLAM is the key today...he adds 2 more RBI, while Simmons goes 3-for-3 and scores twice...Palmer walks 5, but is otherwise okay
#104: WIN 1-0 ... a Klein triple followed by a Stoneback's single is all we need...each pitcher yields just 4 hits, and Jones' win gives him 15 on the season

Finally a good series for the rotation, outside of Hart's troubles.... Brown now has 29 saves, tops in the AL.... We're the first to 70 wins, and now sport a 16 game lead over Seattle.... With two days left until the trade deadline, frankly I'm not looking to make any deals. We've received a number of offers, most including top prospect Dante Padilla, all of which I've turned down. No, we don't need a 30something RP or a mediocre catcher for promising prospects.... ELSEWHERE: New Orleans is now 20-2 in July, and with the Cubs winners of 5 straight, there is now a four team race for the NL Central crown, including Cincy and Pittsburgh.... Despite losing ace SP Jay Russo for the season, the Brewers are hanging tough, still in first in the AL Central, 3.5 up on KC.... Tampa's Chris Goldthwait (.351/38/97) is still in line for the AL Triple Crown.


July 30-31 vs HOUSTON
First two of a four-game set. They've dropped off after a solid April, to 53-53 currently. Which is, frankly, a step up from where they usually are by late July. Despite sitting 4th in AVG, they're only 11th in runs. Likewise, the rotation ERA is 6th but they're 15th in runs against, with a -31 run diff. Six players are on the DL, including future star Alejandro Gonzales (season). Young SP Chris Harris has been solid, and will make a solid 1-2 punch once Gonzales is back. Second-year RF Hughie Noonan is another building block, batting .301/21/62. With baseball's smallest budget and next-to-last payroll, they're not exactly paying for success right now. However, season tix and attendance are way up, and profit is being generated. Will that bring the fans back? Wins would help most; they're coming too, albeit slowly.

HAW pitchers: Ryan Ratliff (9-2, 3.67) / Rob Hart (3-3, 7.44)
HOU pitchers: Chris Driscoll (5-7, 5.24) / Chris Harris (9-4, 3.20)

#105: WIN 8-3 ... Rich wakes up with 3 hits and 3 RBI, and Klein adds a 3-run HR...but victory comes at a cost: Stoneback tears ankle ligaments and is out for six weeks
#106: LOSS 2-7 ... RHart takes the loss, but throws better: 7.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 7 K...but he walks 6 again...we get more hits (11-10), but allow 7 walks; just too many runners

Stoneback's injury is no good, but hopefully having built up a 17-game lead over Seattle, we'll be okay. Manny Rangel moves back into the lineup at 2B, with Simmons sliding over to short. OF Glenn Heath comes back up from AAA.... Rays 1B Goldthwait leads in most offensive categories, but Groff is first in hits (143) and tied for first in XBH (61).... I'm on the verge of moving Rob Hart back to the bullpen and giving Pinksen another shot. He's giving up 1 run in 14.1 relief innings. Hmm, maybe I'll keep him there.... ELSEWHERE: New Orleans ends the month with a 22-3 record, while the Cubs finish 18-7. They're tied, at just a game behind the Reds in the Central.... NYY's Tony Flores bashes 3 HR on the last day of the month, to reach 31 on the season, making his 7th straight year of 30+ dingers. He just passed Yogi Berra to move into 5th all-time in franchise home runs.

......

TL;DR Version: 9-3 to finish the month, and 17-8 overall. Odd news: Eric Jones is named AL Pitcher of the Month, going 5-0 in 5 starts, with a 1.55 ERA. He just keeps rolling along somehow. Stoneback's injury will hurt, but we'll manage. He's been good again (.302/17/58), despite not coming near the 42 HR and .559 SLG from last year. We'll miss his defense too, but Simmons is a Gold Glove-level fielder. Rangel isn't quite as good at second, but he's no slouch.