[sethisthegoat]

Through the first month of the I206 season, the Westish Harpooners are leading their division with a 15-11 record, 2.5 games up on 2nd place. The club sits in 9th place overall, 1 game back from a Promotion spot at this time.

"We've been really excited about the start of the season," Manager Henry Skrimshander said. "We're hitting the snot out of the ball."

It's true...the team is in the top 3 in the conference in every offensive category except for steals. Leadoff man CF Clyde Milan (1912 Washington) has a .343/.384/.410 line and has stolen 11 bases in 13 attempts.1929 RF Chuck Klein has a .330/.384/.495 hitting from the 3-spot.

It's from the mound that things get a bit more problematic. Supposed ace "Rookie Sensation" Josh Johnson has been dreadful, going 1-5 with an 8.02 ERA in his 7 games. His WHIP is at 1.96. The only possibly encouraging thing about his statline is his .412 BABIP, which surely has to improve...right???

Fellow Starter Jose Berrios is leading the team with a 4-1 record and 2.95 ERA, and a 1.2 WHIP. His BABIP is at .278. Closer Pedro Strop has 6 saves in his 8 appearances with a 0 ERA and .68 WHIP in 7.1 innings.

As a team, the Harpooners rank 10th in Runs against and Starters ERA, 7th in FIP, Pitching WAR and Strikeouts; 11th in Defensive Efficiency and Errors, and has a Zone Rating of -4.9, which is good enough for just 15th in the conference. (Last I checked...there are 15 teams in the conference. Eek!)

There's still a long, long way to go in the season. In the meantime, the team is holding pat. If the current trends continue through month 2, they'll be looking for some pitching and defense through free agency.