Vancouver Whitecaps (77-79, .494, 3rd NL West) @ Los Angeles Lakers (94-62, .603, 1st NL West)
The Whitecaps playoff prospects look solid – they have two against us (could go either way… we’re 8-7 against them) and four against the Minnesota Timberwolves (could go either way… they’re 6-7 against them). Solid, in this case, doesn’t necessarily mean good – they have their work cut out for them here and at 4-6 over their last 10, something will have to give if they are to navigate this stretch successfully. Or, more likely, a lot of little things will have to give – they’ll need LF Arthur Grant to add to his 24 total HRs, they’ll also need Bill Marvin to keep hitters off-balance deep into the game so that they don’t have to call on their bullpen (12th in BP ERA), and they’ll definitely need Adam Gunter to add to his 206 K’s. Basically, if they want to earn a ticket to the dance, they’ll need to get themselves all gussied up and convince someone to extend them an invite.
158 of 162: Bill Marvin (11-10, 2.74) @ Michael Brisk (17-7, 3.43)
Loss, 2-1. Put a check next to Bill Marvin’s name – he went deep (8-strong), kept it close (only 1 allowed), and kept the hitters off-balance (6 total hits). Great effort from their Ace when nothing else would suffice… Brisky, obviously, did not fare as well – he gave us 6.2 and gave up 2 runs. PEPPER went 3 for 4 and his solo HR was the only score we had – a one-man show for us here. Otto & Ethan combined to go 1 for 8, Kwaku committed an error, Ethan got caught trying to steal a bag, and, as a team, we stranded 6 runners – we had some opportunities, but in keeping with recent trends, declined to capitalize on any of them.
159 of 162: Steve Unger (11-12, 4.40) @ Nat Millard (15-7, 3.06)
Loss, 5-0. Anything Bill Marvin can do, Steve Unger can do better. Did he go deep? Yeah – deeper, actually… your boy scored a CG. Did he keep it close? Yeah – I mean, he pitched a shut out, is that close enough? Did he keep the hitters off-balance? Well, I’m not sure about where you’re from, but around here 7 total hits and 6 K’s makes folks look noodle-legged. Nat – well, not so much… he gave us 6 with 8 hits, 3 runs, and 5 K’s. SMH… I’ll make sure not to put this series on my resume. Otto, Rollins, and Mullens combined to go 0 for 12, Cooke committed an error, and Newman got caught trying to steal a bag. Déjà vu much?
Elsewhere, sorta… Some good news for the La La’s… it seems that everyone’s favorite Laker, SP Michael Brisk, won the NL Pitcher of the Month award. Brisky went 5-1 with 36 K’s and a 1.76 ERA over the 46 innings he pitched in September.
Also, Seattle’s 1B Frodo Gonzales won the AL RoTM honors – it seems that everyone’s favorite 6’2” hobbit is starting to get his bearings despite being so far from home.
And, finally, in Bush League news – the Hagerstown Hummers defeated the Quincy Quackers by a score of 7-0 to advance to Round 2 where they will face the Naperville Nibblers in a best of 5 series. Bae is still about one week out from returning – let’s hope he makes it back in time.
