American Baseball Association.

[gehrig38]

• AL PLAYER OF THE MONTH – Sergio Robles (OH) .418-4-14 (.306-9-45)
• NL PLAYER OF THE MONTH – Dan Goodman (PIT) .372-6-20 (.317-15-52)
• AL PITCHER OF THE MONTH – Ezequiel Cordero (CHI) 5-1 1.84 (10-5 1.83)
• NL PITCHER OF THE MONTH – Kelyn Harrow (SAN) 4-0 0.69 (8-3 2.64)
• AL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH – Harland Daig (FLA) .370-5-17 (.365-6-25)
• NL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH – Jonathan Huber (NE) .256-5-15 (.254-11-35)

Wow. League leaders on pace for 35 or so home runs and 110 RBI's. That was a 1st half home run total a few years ago. MVP and Koufax races all tightened up. Clearly, the running game is in full swing in both leagues.
Check out Chicago and the AL stolen base leaders.

I did a double take looking at the NL West. All 4 teams had abysmal May's and/or Junes. The worm turns in the NL East. A few seasons ago Pittsburgh had to win on the final day to win the division AND finish at .500. The power in the NL has clearly shifted. Central is heading the same way as the west. The great thing is there are 8 teams that will likely be, actually 11 in the NL, in buy mode over the next month. Including the AL you could have close to 20 teams. Also some obvious sellers, St Louis, Milwaukee, Austin.

Beating Detroit to open the series has us tied July 1st. Domenic Loetzsch is back at it. Both New York clubs were on fire early but appear to either be slumping or regressing to their true selves. I didn't have either team as a top of the division club entering the season. There's going to be some GM's and Managers getting the axes soon.

[gehrig38]

2 of the 5 negative WAR guys aren't on the active roster. However, you may see a correlation between my desire to get R/L guys in the OF and strengthen my defense and the bottom 3 hitters in WAR. I didn't expect any of them to be top of the lineup bats but I also didn't see them anywhere near this bad. Having said that offense around the league is atrocious.
No doubt there are disappointments on this list but none bigger than Mike Haupt.
Harland Daig 3rd in WAR in just 35 games tells you how much offense he has provided. Can't fathom Saldana nor Hayashi finishing under 30 homers but it's likely I won't have a single 30 HR bat on this team. Eric Borrows has been a very pleasant surprise.
Cortezo shot out of the gate in April but his numbers are pedestrian at best.



4/5ths of the rotation has taken every turn and all 4 are under 3.84 ERA. The lack of strikeouts is alarming, to say the least. Naclerio threw well in his 1st AAA start and will likely, barring injury, remain there. Seb Broomhall will take over the 5th starters job and we'll skip on days we can afford it and put in him the long man role. Brad Turner sneakily made the All-Star team and certainly deserved it. Having a fantastic year so far. Galindo and Grab are too and those three take the bulk of the 7th+ innings in games we are in.

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK NOTES
SCHEDULE:
2 vs Alaska
3 @ Chicago
OFF DAY
1 vs Las Vegas

RESULTS:

• 7/7: FLA 6 AK 4 Haupt 3-4 2B (12) 2 RBI (37) Cortezo 3-4 2B (14) RBI (44) Alatorre W (9-4 3.29) 8 IP 5 H 7 K 4 ER Galindo SV (21)
• Kelyn Harrow (SAN) beat Portland today 6-0 on a 1-hitter and struck out 7. He's 9-4 2.45
• Jonathan Huber (NE) went 4-5 hitting 3 HR's in a 5-2 win over Kansas City
• Top pick Andy Elizondo went 5-6 2 2B 3 RBI and is now hitting .453-3-18 in his first 19 games.
• 7/8: FLA 4 AK 1 Samvdio W (7-7 3.52) 8 IP 5 K 5 H 1 ER Galindo SV (22) Haupt 2-4 2 2B (14) 2 RBI (39)
• 7/9: FLA 8 CHI 5 (10) 4 more errors Hallamore (21) Grab BS W (3-1 2.23) Pollock 5 IP 6 H 5 K 2 ER Saldana HR (12) 2 RBI (47)
• A few weeks back I managed to sign 32-year-old journeyman Gabe Monforte to a minor league deal. He's a career .269/.323/.426 hitter in 795 games with 78 HR and 359 RBI. He also won a gold glove in LF in 2003 with Alaska. I had some depth concerns in Florida and wanted some potential veteran insurance at Alamogordo in case of an injury. Juan Renovato has been struggling (.238/.289/.320) so far this year so I decided to send him down to get at-bats and added Monforte to the roster and recalled him. Renovato hit a 3 run HR in his 1st start at AAA.
• Up against Ezekiel Cordero tomorrow, pretty much the games best pitcher to date.
• 7/10: FLA 9 CHI 4 Willoughby W (6-5 3.26) 5 IP 5 H 2 ER Turner SV (4) 2.1 IP 0 baserunners 5 K's Haupt HR (5) 4 RBI (43) Cortezo HR (7) RBI (46) Borrows HR (9) RBI (48)
• Cordero L (10-7 2.25) 7 IP 7 H 4 K 4 ER
• Dave Young (BRK) punched out 10 in a 9-0 win over Denver. He gave up just 4 hits. He's 10-5 2.96 on the year.

GM'S OFFICE
Ohio GM Dave Littlefield came skulking around. He's shopping 23-year-old pitcher Yasushi Sugihara. Signed out of the Nippon Baseball league back in 2003 he was the games 18th ranked prospect entering the 2006 season. He's out of options and in their bullpen having a great year. He's a starter for sure, just not getting starts. He clearly needs some more time in AAA but that's not an option because there's zero chance a kid this talented clears waivers. No health issues, we checked, so I bit. Sam Ginn is someone who we think is a very good pitcher, but right now he's the opposite of a very good pitcher and he just doesn't seem like he can get it done here for some unknown reason. He's young and likely to have a good career in the ABA as a reliever. But Dave likes him and has asked me to wait a bit and get back to him.

• 7/11: FLA 4 CHI 3 Broomhall W (3-7 6 IP 4 H 1 K 1 ER Galindo SV (23)
• Raita Yamada L (10-4 3.35) 7.1 IP 9 H 4 ER
• Hobbs continues to wreck the Arizona League and today they won 14-6 over Port Saint Lucie. In that game, 2B Tim Mccormack went 5-5 with 3 singles a double and a triple with 4 RBI's.
• Kinnon Mendelson threw 8.1 scoreless innings in a 4-0 win over Pembroke Pines (A). He struck out 11 to move to 5-4 3.51 with 90 K's in 89.2 IP.
• 7/12: OFF DAY
• 7/13: FLA 4 LV 2 Alatorre W (10-4 3.22) 8 IP 6 K 0 BB 2 ER Galindo SV (24)
• Toshiyoshi Nakata threw a no-hitter in Austin today. The 30-year-old righty faced just 1 batter over the minimum and struck out 3.

AL POTW - Jeremy Pannebaker (DET) 13-24 2 HR 8 RBI (.295-14-53)
NL POTW – Jonathan Huber (NE) 10-21 4 HR 7 RBI (.260-16-45)

RECORD: 6-0 (50-38)
PLACE: 1st +1
RUNS SCORED: 415 2nd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 364 5th
DEFENSE: .707 3rd
OWNER MOOD: Undecided
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Florida!
2) Detroit
3) Pittsburgh
4) Minnesota
5) Washington

[gehrig38]

TARPONS, GENERALS AGREE TO SWAP
Sources close to Tarpons GM Gehrig Schilling have indicated a trade has been agreed to in principle to trade 23 year old Yasushi Sugihara to Florida in exchange for 26-year-old reliever Sam Ginn. Ginn is 1-2 7.53 in 14.1 IP with 18 K's this year while Sugihara is 9-3 3.14 in 13 starts. He was recently sent to the bullpen. Ohio is 48-38 and trails 1st place Chicago by just 2 games. They've had major issues with their 12th ranked bullpen and apparently, this move was made to bolster that group. But at what cost?

GM'S OFFICE
Don't ask me.... This kid is legit and while they are struggling with their bullpen how on earth is moving him the answer? His arm would have helped them down there. I'll take it. Ginn will immediately step into their late-inning group and I'll keep this kid in a long relief, spot start role as he develops. This could be one of those off the radar franchise makers.
Also thought I would mention this. Our farm system has shot up to #2. It appears 3 of our 2008 draft picks are already ranked. Andy Elizondo is the 30th ranked ABA prospect, Danny Sharp 172nd, and Jimmy Helms 196th.

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 16 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
2 vs Las Vegas
3 @ Memphis
2 @ Brooklyn

RESULTS:

• 7/14: FLA 3 LV 0 Grab W (4-1) Galindo SV (25) Samvdio 6.1 IP 5 H 5 BB 7 K Monforte PH GW 2B
• Tony Richardson CG L (8-7 4.14) 8 H 1 BB 0 K 3 ER
• 7/15: LV 3 FLA 2 Tousei Sato W (9-6 2.84) 8 IP 3 H 0 R 5 K Helmrich SV (22)
• Pollock L (7-5 3.91) 7 IP 10 H 3 K 3 BB 3 ER Haupt HR (6)
• 7/16: FLA 12 MEM 7 5 run 9th Hayashi 3-5 2 2B (9) 2 R 3 RBI (36)
• Lou-lang Koo 4-5 HR (12) 3 R RBI (35)
• Chris Smith (STL) threw a 1-hitter in a 3-0 win over Denver. He struck out 5. He's 3-11 5.46 on the year
• 7/17: Mem 5 FLA 1 Broomhall L (3-8 6.53) CG 8 IP 3 K 8 H 3 ER Saldana HR (13)
• Eric Hecht 3-4 HR (16) RBI (63)
• Michiyo Fujimoto (JAX) went 5-5 4 RBI in a 9-2 win over Buffalo
• Sean Cockley (TEX) beat Portland 4-0 on a 1 hitter striking out 7 He's 7-6 2.97
• I had to reach out to the minor league FA market to fill some gaps in the lower minors this year and 18-year-old Shojiro Sato was signed to help the rotation at Rio Ranco. He threw one game and dealt, and I had an injury at Hobbs. He was called up and has made 2 starts so far and is 2-0 1.76 after his CG 4 hitter yesterday in a 5-0 win over the Harrisburg Cottonmouths

MINNESOTA DEALT CRUCIAL BLOW AS RICK IS FINISHED IN 2008
Husky superstar Korey Rick was diagnosed with a ruptured MCL yesterday and will undergo surgery to repair that today. No word on a timetable but he will miss the rest of the 2008 season at a minimum. The 5-time all-star was hitting .280-17-60.

• 7/18: FLA 7 MEM 3 Alatorre W (11-4 3.21) 6 IP 6 H 2 ER Daig 3-6 SB (18) Haupt 3-4 3B (2) 2 RBI (47) Borrows HR (11) 3 RBI (54)
• Mike Carlson (JAX) beat Buffalo with a 1-hitter in a 5-0 win. He struck out 5 to move to 8-6 3.28 on the year

Holy crap....

AUSTIN SENDS BURMEISTER TO DETROIT
In a shocking move today the Austin Colts sent the 1st overall pick in the 2008 draft Jeremy Burmeister and 36-year-old RP Josh Lanman to the Detroit Phantom for 22-year-old IF prospect Viriato Carrapto.
Carrapto was signed out of Venezuela in 2002 and many think he MAY turn into a decent everyday 2B.
But the unanimous opinion was and is that Burmeister is a generational talent and the resources spent to sign him were significant.
The Colts are in the throes of a nightmarish 37-56 season while Detroit sits atop the AL East, tied with Florida.
One story surfacing late in the day out of Austin the Burmeister's father, and agent, had demanded their son be traded away from the Colts or he would have refused to sign. Many thought the Colts should just let him return to the draft and taken the pick, but that same source said they felt Carrapto is a far better player than many think.
This will be a trade worth following.

• 7/19: FLA 5 BRK 1 Samvdio W (8-7 3.15) 8.1 IP 5 H 4 K 1 ER Galindo SV (26)
• 7/20: FLA 7 BRK 0 Pollock CG 8 H 4 K 1 BB 3 DP's Hayashi HR (7) 3 RBI (42)
• IF Juan Guevara fractured his hand today. He'll miss the next 5-6 weeks at a minimum. Greg DiGangi will be recalled.

AL POTW – Sid Kennealy (NY) 13-28 HR 10 RBI (.264-9-58)
NL POTW – Jimmy Owen (SD) 11-27 3 HR 10 RBI (.337-9-59)

RECORD: 5-2 (55-40)
PLACE: 1st +2
RUNS SCORED: 452 3rd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 383 5th
DEFENSE: .706 4th
OWNER MOOD:
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Florida
2) New England
3) Kansas City
4) Pittsburgh
5) Jacksonville

[gehrig38]

I think that's what it's called when a movie interacts with an audience.
I just wanted anyone that might be following to know the personal stories I introduce with players, both good, bad and controversial, are stories from my actual playing career.
Yes, I know of a player whose dad did that exact thing
And yes I know of a player who "did' that to another player's wife...
Just wanted you guys to know that.
Sort of a way to tell 'my story' without naming names

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK NOTES
SCHEDULE:
1 @ Brooklyn
3 vs Phoenix
OFF DAY
2 @ St Louis

RESULTS:

• 7/21: FLA 4 BRK 2 Willoughby W (7-5 3.36) 7.2 IP 7 K 1 ER Galindo SV (27) Turner H (9) 1.00 ERA Cortezo 2-3 2B (17) HR (8) 3 RBI (53)
• Gabe Clark 2-4 2 solo HR's (16) 2 RBI (54)
• 7/22: PHX 9 FLA 5 Broomhall L (3-9 6.83) 5.2 IP 9 H 7 ER Cortezo 4-4 2 3B (11) RBI (54) Hallamore Error (24) Wow, that's insane.
• 2007 2nd rounder (57th overall) CF Kevin Kass was off to a great start (.317/.433/.604 7 HR 29 RBI 27 games) but has a shoulder issue and will be out 4-5 weeks.
• Arturo Mendoza went 4-5 HR (13) 4 RBI (39) in Alamogordo's 7-4 win. He's hitting .353-13-39. The temptation to call him up has been almost overwhelming but I want him to be ready to be that two-way player when I do and he's not ready as a pitcher.
• Kinnon Mendelson came out of his 4th start this year with a physical issue. The first 3 were all minor, DtD things. Unsure about this one, but this absolutely raises red flags. He's starting to take on the appearance of a “5 and dive” guy and given his physical ceiling that would be a tragedy.
• Former Tarpon Ted Barlow threw a 3-hitter striking out 8 in a 4-0 win over Brooklyn to move to 9-4 3.23. Since being dealt in 2006 as part of the deal that brought Pollock, Willoughby, Sam Ginn and Tomiji Takimoto (and a 2nd round pick) he's gone 30-11 3.13 in 64 starts and 416.2 IP. He's been a horse. He's led the league 5 times in games started and twice in IP. These two guys starting for me need to turn out as top end guys or that deal was at best a tie, at least for now they are the winners.
• 7/23: FLA 3 PHX 2 (11) Borrows GW 1B Alatorre ND 8 IP 3 H 1 ER Galindo BS (3) Turner 2 IP 2 K W (4-0 0.95)
• Dusty Barber is off the DL and on rehab. When he's done I need to trade or waive him. I got some bites but mostly contract dumps.
• Arturo Mendoza has thrown 16 IP 10 H 16 K 2 ER in his last 2 starts and since 6/14 when he was 4-5 7.48 he's gone 4-2 in 7 starts throwing 46 IP 36 H 39 K's 16 BB and a 2.74 ERA
• 2008 2nd rounder (53rd overall) Josh Thompson got off to a great start at Hobbs. He was promoted to Farmington and his first two starts were rough (9.2 IP 12 H 10 R) but he got his 1st win today going 7.2 IP 4 H 1 ER 9 K
• Veteran SP Joe Weiss (LV) was struggling a bit this year at 5-10 4.51 but was starting to turn it around. Yesterday he came out of the game in the 1st inning with what appeared to be a shoulder issue. He shocked everyone when he announced his retirement today. He helped the Aces to their 2005 world series win going 16-8 that year and 3-0 in 4 postseason starts. Vegas recalled 27-year-old April waiver claim Luis Gordillo who was 8-2 3.79 at AAA. Astute readers may remember Gordillo was a Tarpon, for all of 5 days, in 2005 after he was acquired from the Miners and then sent to Memphis 5 days later in a deal for OF Jim Shelley and Cletus Owry.
• 7/24: PHX 6 FLA 3 Samvdio L (8-8 3.37) 6 IP 4 H 4 BB 5 ER
• The knuckleballer giveth and the knuckleballer taketh away. Robbie Givens has progressed far more than we ever hoped. But every now and then the knuckleballer can have days like no one else, both good and bad. Today was bad. He went 4.1 IP and gave up 13 ER.....
• At Farmington Jeff Phares, the young P prospect we acquired from St Louis last year made his 4th start of the season after spending his first 29 appearances in the bullpen. In those 4 he's gone 3-0 over 32.1 IP 26 H 24 K 12 BB and an ERA of 2.51. He's a very odd case. St Louis called him up light years before he was ready and the consequence now is that he's out of options after this season and he's still nowhere near ready to be a starter in the ABA.

ABA'S #1 PROSPECT TO UNDERGO ELBOW RECONSTRUCTION
Florida GM Gehrig Schilling announced today that the ABA's #1 rated prospect Kinnon Mendelson will undergo elbow reconstruction and be lost for at least a year. The 20-year-old right-hander left his start 2 days ago for Class A Farmington reported elbow soreness and a 'hot' sensation after throwing his 22nd pitch of the game. The diagnosis, a torn UCL, was made after multiple MRI's and a second opinion. Kinnon is the first professional baseball player to ever hail from Mississauga, Ontario, Canda. He was 5-5 3.76 over 19 starts with 95.2 IP and 93 K's. He had 4 starts this year where he left early complaining of issues with the same elbow.

GM'S OFFICE
What a blow. His ceiling is literally beyond comprehension. But now there is absolutely no way to know what pitcher will emerge from the year-long hiatus. Every ounce of that is determined by his commitment to rehab. Delaware Surgeon Craig Morgan will do the procedure.

• 7/25: OFF DAY
• 7/26: FLA 10 STL 6 Pollock W (9-5 3.53) 6 IP 4 H 1 ER Hallamore Grand Slam (10) 4 RBI (51) Saldana 3-5 2B (13) DiGangi 3-4 2 R Mendoza HR (9) 3 RBI (37)
• Yosaburo Kawai RP 1-0 1.17 ERA Mitch Barrows RP 1-1 2.86 made the Rookie League All-Star Team for Rio Rancho
• 7/27: FLA 3 STL 1 Hallamore GW 2 R HR in the 8th 2-4 HR (11) 2 RBI (53) Allen W (3-0 2.36) 3 IP 0 H Galindo SV (28)
• Whitney Ruttan L (4-2 3.02) 8.1 IP 8 H 2 ER
• Shojiro Sato (SA) went 9.1 IP 1 ER and took the loss in a 1-0 10 inning defeat.
• For Hobbs, they sent SP Luis Garza (3-1 3.67) SP Steve Pratt (6-1 3.60) SP Shojiro Sato (2-2 2.43) RP Xiao-mei Chen 0-0 1.74 C Eddie Ellerbee .319/.407/.585 LF Andy Elizondo .420/.476/.594 to the Short-Season All-Star game

PLAYER PROFILE
24-year-old Tyshawn Ogarro is the starting 1B for the Milwaukee Hawks. The former Wisconsin Badger was an all-American and the 3rd overall selection in the 2005 ABA draft. He's a left-handed hitter with arguably as much power as any player in the game. His 2007 season was his 'coming out' campaign as he hit .308-30-115 and took home the AL Gold Glove at first base. After his first 385 ABA games, his 162 averages look like this. .280/.356/.464 25 HR 93 RBI's.

AL POTW - Domenic Ackland (MIN) 13-27 2 HR 7 RBI (.267-9-39)
NL POTW – Dan Goodman (PIT) 9-19 4 HR 9 RBI (.330-25-74)

RECORD: 4-2 (59-42)
PLACE: 1st +2
RUNS SCORED: 480 t-2nd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 409 5th
DEFENSE: .709 2nd
OWNER MOOD: Worried
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Pittsburgh
2) Florida
3) Texas
4) Detroit
5) Jacksonville

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK NOTES
SCHEDULE:
1 @ St Louis
3 vs Denver
3 @ Ohio

RESULTS:

• 7/28: FLA 8 STL 5 (10) Daig 3-6 2B (13) R RBI (34) Saldana 2-4 HR (14) 2 RBI (54) Mendoza 2-3 2 2B (17) 2 RBI (39) Turner W (5-0 0.92) Galindo SV (29)
• Camden Braine 4-4 HR (10) 3 RBI (43)
• Heading into Denver when news broke.

DENVER'S ALWARD SEASON COMES TO AN END
2006 Sandy Koufax Award winner Winton Alward was told his season is over today. The righty will have exploratory surgery to determine the reason behind his shoulder pain. Team doctors say it will be at least 6 months before he can begin a throwing program.

• 7/29: FLA 2 DEN 1 Alatorre W (12-4 3.01) 7 IP 7 K 2 H 1 ER Turner SV (5) 2 IP 3 H 1 K (0.88 ERA)
• Ben Austin CG L (7-7 4.18) 8 IP 5 H 2 ER
• 7/30: DEN 2 FLA 1 Zaire Kirlew W (6-5 3.71) 7 IP 4 H 1 ER Tim Reese SV (31)
• Samvdio L (8-9 3.28) 6 IP 5 K 5 BB 1 ER Saldana HR (15) RBI (55)
• 7/31: FLA 4 DEN 1 Pollock W (10-5 3.33) 8 IP 3 H 4 K 4 BB 0 R Saldana 2-4 HR (16) 2 RBI (57)
• Micah Stolz CG L (3-9 4.77) 9 H 1 K 2 ER
• 8/1: OH 5 FLA 4 Willoughby L (7-6 3.44) 5 IP 4 H 7 BB 4 ER Daig 3-5 2B (14) HR (8) SB (20) RBI (35) Borrows 3-5 HR (12) 2 RBI (60) SB (6)
• 8/2: OH 8 FLA 2 Bobby Rone W (14-6 3.52) 6 IP 7 H 2 ER Robles Grand Slam (14) 5 RBI (73)
• Satoyuki Ouchi (A) tossed a 3 hitter in a 10-0 win over Georgetown. He struck out 6 and walked none, facing just 3 batters over the minimum. He's 12-4 4.47
• Pittsburgh's prized free agent signing Andy Messana gave up 5 hits and struck out 7 in an 8-0 win over New England. He's 12-6 3.16 on the year.
• 8/3: FLA 5 OH 4 Grab W (5-1 1.76) 2 IP 0 H 1 K Galindo SV (30)
• Cortezo removed from the game after being HBP. Diagnosis pending.

TRADE RUMORS SURFACE OUT OF MILWAUKEE
The word from a league source has that the Milwaukee Hawks were minutes away from trading star 1B Tyshawn Ogarro at this year's deadline. The 24-year-old was asked about the story after last nights game and he replied “I don't know, don't care. I'm here to play baseball, hit, and make a lot of money, go ask the GM about this crap”
Sources say Milwaukee was close to landing a 'franchise' prospect for the star but that the team on the other side of the deal backed away amidst concerns around Ogarro's 'off the field' issues.
“The deal was literally ready to be called into the league, at 11:55 on the 31st when the GM of the 2nd team told me “I'm not risking a future Koufax winner for a guy who can destroy righthanders, barely survive lefties and is on an island in the clubhouse. Plus we hear he's a nightmare to keep under his weight clause”.
Many baseball people believe the 2nd team was either Minnesota and involved P prospects Kinimichi Mikami and Alfredo Canino or Florida and the games #1 ranked prospect Kinnon Mendelson. Even though Mendelson underwent Tommy John surgery recently and will not return until mid 2009 at the earliest.

AL POTW - Jayakar Anand (BRK) 13-28 HR 4 RBI (.293-7-34)
NL POTW – Deshawn Snowton (POR) 11-22 3 HR 5 RBI (.254-20-52)

RECORD: 4-3 (63-45)
PLACE: 1st +2
RUNS SCORED: 506 2nd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 435 5th
DEFENSE: .713 2nd
OWNER MOOD: Worried
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Pittsburgh
2) Washington
3) Florida
4) Chicago
5) Detroit

[gehrig38]

• AL PLAYER OF THE MONTH – Sergio Robles (OH) .368-4-23 (.325-13-68)
• NL PLAYER OF THE MONTH – Dan Goodman (PIT) .351-10-24 (.326-25-76)
• AL PITCHER OF THE MONTH – Juan Alatorre (FLA) 5-0 2.35 (12-4 3.01)
• NL PITCHER OF THE MONTH – Ian Taylor (NE) 5-0 3.07 (11-4 3.77)
• AL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH – Danny Schroeder (OH) .333-6-15 (.280-15-58)
• NL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH – Jorge Renderos (KC) .351-4-17 (.266-7-39)

Domenic Loetzsch and Dan Goodman didn't get the 'offense is down' memo. Rob Anderson has done nothing but strengthens his MVP credentials. Chicago running itself into the record books and finally a Tarpon on the leaderboards as Galindo appears to have settled in.

Things starting to sort themselves out in the standings.
The injury to Korey Rick was devastating to Minnesota. Ohio and Chicago appear to be a two dog hunt in the AL Central and per the norm, Las Vegas is atop the west once again.

Pittsburgh is back on top but the East overall is a vastly improved group. Not sure what to make of the Central yet.
The West has come back to the pack and appears to be over their division-wide early season slump.



Blue = Numbers, players I am ecstatic with
Green = Numbers, players I am happy with
Yellow = areas of concern
Red = Troubling/issue situation that needs addressing

A sort of 30,000 foot look at the ABA club.

The extra-inning record is directly tied to having the leagues top-ranked bullpen.
I am far more pleased than I expected to be at our record vs LHP. Our biggest LH bats are not nearly as effective vs LHP and that could be something that rears its head in a postseason series vs a rotation and pen stacked with LHH. It makes the RHH vs LHP a far more important factor than it might otherwise be.

I couldn't be happier with the top 4 in the rotation. They've taken their turns and pitched exceptionally. Alatorre's pitcher of the month was well deserved and a large factor in the 20-9 July.
The back end of our pen is lethal. Brad Turner is having a monster season and has been a huge piece of the 29 saves Galindo has. Jake Grab makes that a perfect L/R bridge.

The 5th spot in the rotation, long man in the pen slot is a 2 headed 'monster' I guess. Seb Broomhall can't get to AAA to get consistent starts, nor can I send Sugihara down due to options. Both are mid to top end rotation guys if done right but I can't seem to get to 'right' to get them the innings they need.

The top-ranked OBP in the AL is a huge part of being a top scoring club but the K's number is troublesome. Also concerning is the staffs walks per 9. That has to improve.

From an individual player perspective, I am 'happy' overall with the offense. These numbers in another year could be those of a last-place offense but given the dearth of offense this year they are performing. I have Hallamore's name in yellow not because he's a problem offensively. He has committed an insane 24 errors on the year. He's performing almost exactly the opposite of what I acquired him for. I expected over the top defense with a young bat that could mature into a legitimate 2 hole hitter. He's surpassed by a long shot my offensive expectations but the defense is incredibly troublesome.
What is there to say about Mike Haupt. This is a relationship I would liken to a bad date. I just can't wait to end it. I worked my ass off at the deadline to move him but there was no way I was getting anything equal of value in return. And Lord knows I tried. I think the “upside” here is that he can't get much worse at the plate, and if by some quirk of fate he goes off in the 2nd half the team will benefit.
I said it earlier, but my concern about the offense is the potential lack of punch vs LHP. Haupt is the only left-handed hitter I feel good vs LHP about and that's not by much.

Clearly excited as hell about our minor league system.

Here's a look at the big picture with our system singled out.



Milwaukee has stacked up the prospects while Kendleson remains the top overall player, despite the fact he's a year away from returning to the mound. Still reeling from the fact Detroit acquired the games 4th rated prospect in a trade for a player no one thinks will be better than an average 2B in the ABA at best.

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK NOTES
SCHEDULE:
3 vs Milwaukee
OFF DAY
3 vs New York

RESULTS:

• 8/4: MIL 11 FLA 9 Sam Deaton 3-5 3B (11) 3 R 2 RBI (28) Tyshawn Ogarro 2-5 HR (16) 4 RBI (61) Yunieski Gurriel 3-5 2B (20) 2 HR (10) 3 RBI (49)
• Samvdio L (8-10) 3.1 IP 7 H 2 K 6 BB 8 ER Saldana 3B (4) 3 RBI (60) Mendoza Grand Slam (10) 4 RBI (46)
• 1B Guiomar Cortezo has concussion-like symptoms and is suffering from blurred vision. He'll be out a few days while we wait for him to clear concussion protocol.
• Former Tarpon Chris Hastings went 5-6 and drove in 5 in Texas 18-3 win over Buffalo.
• 8/5: FLA 8 MIL 1 Pollock W (11-5 3.25) 6 IP 7 K 0 BB 1 ER Allen SV (2) 3 IP 1 H 6 K Daig 3-4 R Monforte 3-5 2B (4) 2 R Mendoza 3-4 HR (11) 2 RBI (48)
• 8/6: FLA 3 MIL 1 Willoughby W (8-6 3.31) 8 IP 5 K 1 ER Galindo SV (31) Mendoza HR (12) 2 RBI (50) Hallamore error (28)
• Jeff Phares (A) scattered 9 hits in a CG 14-2 win over Coeur D'Alene. He's now 9-2 3.59
• 8/7: OFF DAY
• 8/8: FLA 2 NY 1 Sugihara W (1-1) 7 IP 5 H 6 K 1 ER Galindo SV (32)
• 8/9: NY 6 FLA 3 Luis Flores W (8-10 4.19) 8 IP 5 H 3 ER Bobby Ross SV (33)
• Alatorre L (12-5 3.23) 6.1 IP 8 H 5 ER Hallamore 3-3 HR (12) 3 RBI (56)
• 8/10: FLA 2 NY 1 (12) Pollock ND 7 IP 5 H 5 H 1 ER Turner 1 IP 2 K (0.81) Grab W (6-1 1.68) Borrows GW 1B

AL POTW - Joe Vertz (OH) 9-22 2 HR 5 RBI (.290-14-62)
NL POTW – Dave Manzer (KC) 9-25 2 HR 11 RBI (.319-21-94)

2006 2nd rounder Jamie Okereke (A) went 13-31 2 HR 12 RBI to take home Class A POTW. He's hitting .278-18-79 in 107 games. He's one of the top defensive CF in the minor leagues.

RECORD: 4-2 (67-47)
PLACE: 1st +3
RUNS SCORED: 533 2nd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 456 5th
DEFENSE: .712 2nd
OWNER MOOD: Worried
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Pittsburgh
2) Florida
3) Washington
4) Chicago
5) Denver

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 20 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
3 @ Detroit
3 vs Minnesota
1 @ Alaska

Big week. Detroit trails by 2, Minnesota on the outside looking in at 10 GB but 6 GB in the Wild Card

RESULTS:

• 8/11: DET 6 FLA 5 (10) Samvdio 7 IP 5 H 1 K 3 BB 4 ER Galindo L (5-2 2.52) Haupt 3-5 R Daig HR (9) 2 RBI (38)
• Prospect Luis Salinas (AA) went 6-6 2 2B 2 R 6 RBI (81) in their 10-4 win. He's hitting .326-14-81 in 106 games
• 8/12: DET 6 FLA 5 (11) Willoughby 7 IP 6 H 1 ER Galindo BS (4) Broomhall L (3-10) Hallamore 4-6 2B (18) 3B (10) 2 R RBI (57) 2 SB (29) Error (29) Hayashi HR (9)
• 8/13: DET 13 FLA 0 Jim Brooks CG (13-5 3.31) 4 H 10 K Jeremy Pannebaker 3-5 2B (26) HR (20) 2 RBI (69)
• Sugihara L (1-2) 4 IP 6 H 5 BB 7 ER
• Two tough losses and a drubbing equal a tied division
• Aydan Laughren (SD) hit 3 HR's and drove in 6 in San Diego's 11-7 win over Portland
• 8/14: MIN 2 FLA 0 Tanner Roark W (7-7 4.21) 8 IP 4 H 1 K Phil Myres SV (31)
• Alatorre CG L (12-6 3.16) 9 IP 5 H 6 K 2 ER
• 8/15: FLA 6 MIN 3 Pollock W (12-5 3.23) 5 IP 5 H 6 K 3 ER Galindo SV (33) Hallamore 2-4 HR (13) 2 RBI (59) SB (31) Borrows 2-3 HR (13) 3 RBI (68) Daig 2-4 HR (10) 2 R RBI (39)
• Cortezo has cleared protocol and returns to the lineup tomorrow.
• 8/16: MIN 6 FLA 5 Samvdio CG L (8-11 3.88) 9 IP 8 H 7 K 5 ER Cortezo 3-4 HR (10) 4 RBI (61)
• 8/17: AK 2 FLA 1 Willoughby L (8-7 3.21) 6 IP 7 H 4 K 2 ER
• Recently acquired Phoenix Roadrunner Curt Ray tossed his 2nd straight CG SHO in a 4-0 win over New York. 5 days after shutting down Memphis 5-0. He's 5-8 4.11 on the year. 2-2 3.95 since joining Phoenix in a trade with St Louis.

AL POTW - Sergio Robles (OH) 13-25 HR 6 RBI (.329-15-79)
NL POTW – Dave Manzer (KC) 11-30 4 HR 9 RBI (.322-25-103)

RECORD: 1-6 (68-53)
PLACE: 2nd 1.5 GB
RUNS SCORED: 555 2nd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 494 7th
DEFENSE: .712 2nd
OWNER MOOD: Worried
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Pittsburgh
2) Detroit
3) Ohio
4) Kansas City
5) Chicago
…..'
11) Florida (that was fast)

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 21 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
2 @ Alaska
OFF DAY
3 vs Chicago
1 @ Las Vegas

RESULTS:

• 8/18: ALK 6 FLA 5 Grab L (6-2 2.02) 1.1 IP 3 H BB 3 K 3 ER Sugihara 6 IP 6 H 3 ER
• Josh Thompson (A) followed up his 8 scoreless with 7.2 IP and 13 punchouts in a 1-0 win over Fairbanks
• 8/19: FLA 5 ALK 3 Alatorre W (13-6 3.03) 7 IP 9 H 0 ER Galindo SV (34) Cortezo 3-4 2 2B (21) HR (11) 2 RBI (63)
• A day after San Francisco's Chris Edge shut them out, Pittsburgh's Man-Keung Yuen returned the favor with a 5 hitter, striking out 10 to move to 14-8 3.91.
• 8/20: OFF DAY
• David Weller (AAA) continued his outstanding season. He went 4-4 2 HR 2 R 5 RBI in an 11-7 loss. He's hitting .299-21-77 in 97 games at Alamogordo.
• RJ Stanton tomorrow, Chicago in for 3 before Vegas.
• 8/21: FLA 3 CHI 1 Pollock W (13-5 3.15) 7 IP 9 K 3 H 1 ER Galindo SV (35)
• Stanton CG L (11-7 3.32) 8 IP 6 K 3 H 2 ER
• Juan Guevara is ready to come off the DL and will head down to AAA for a short rehab stint
• 8/22: FLA 4 CHI 3 Mendoza walk off 2 out 3B Turner W (6-0 1.34)
• Elvis Andrus 4-5 2 2B (18) SB (53)
• IF Dusty Barber has been given his unconditional release. There's really no room for him, and any potential trade had me accepting someone's nightmare contract.
• Chris Davidson (NE) fanned 9 in a 3-hit shutout of Kansas City.
• 8/23: CHI 2 FLA 1 Raita Yamada W (13-6) 8 IP 4 H 2 K 0 ER Steve Knightner SV (30)
• Willoughby L (8-8 3.18) 7 IP 4 H 2 ER
• 8/24: LV 6 FLA 4 Loetzsch HR (27) 2 RBI (83) Whip Sonier HR (7) 3 RBI (37) Jaque Piggue 3-4 HR (14) RBI (66) Helmrich SV (27) His 300th Career Save
• Hayashi HR (10) 3 RBI (52) Alatorre L (13-7 3.03) 6 IP 5 H 5 R 2 ER 3 Errors Daig (14) Digangi (2) Hallamore (30)!!
• Ignacio Justiniano (MIN) threw a 1-hit shutout in a 7-0 win over Alaska. He's 8-10 3.48 on the year
• Class A Farmington clinched their division today. Led on offense by Zach Astor (.300-35-97) Jeremy Jones (.285-19-74) and Hidetoshi Matsuoka (.318-11-55) and on the mound, by Jeff Phares (10-3 3.56) Mike Carpenter (12-7 2.99) Masuoka Okimoto (7-1 3.44) and Brendan Huffine (9-2 3.45), they are 84-42.

AL POTW - Ignacio Justiniano (MIN) 2-0 17 IP 0 R 10 K
NL POTW – Jonathan Huber (NE) 7-16 3 HR 9 RBI (.263-27-73)

RECORD: 3-3 (71-56)
PLACE: 2nd 0.5 GB
RUNS SCORED: 577 3rd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 515 6th
DEFENSE: .712 3rd
OWNER MOOD: Worried
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Pittsburgh
2) New England
3) Chicago
4) Washington
5) Ohio
….
10) Florida

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 22 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
2 @ Las Vegas
3 vs Memphis
2 vs BRK

RESULTS:

• 8:25: LV 11 FLA 1 Juan Guerra 4-5 2B (24) 3 R Juan Gallegos W (16-6 2.93) 6 IP 3 H 1 ER Mike Burleigh 2-5 2 HR (10) 2 R 3 RBI (25)
• Pollock L (13-6 3.33) 4.2 IP 10 H 5 ER Broomhall 2.2 IP 7 H 5 ER
• 8/26: FLA 8 LV 3 Samvdio W (9-11 3.92) 5 IP 4 H 2 ER Turner SV (6) Daig 3-5 2B (18) 2 SB (28) 2 R Cortezo 3-5 2 RBI (65)
• 8/27: FLA 2 MEM 1 Willoughby ND 7 IP 3 H 7 K 1 ER Galindo W (6-2) Digangi GW 2B (6)
• Luis Anguiano ND 7 IP 5 H 1 ER
• Sergio Robles (OH) went down with a strained back and will miss at least the next 3 weeks. Ohio is 73-57 and 2 games back of Chicago in the Central while being 0.5 games up in the WC race for the 1 spot.
• 8/28: MEM 5 FLA 2 Chris Kantor W (5-14 3.95) 8 IP 5 K 5 H 2 ER
• Cortezo 3-4 2B (23) HR (12) RBI (66) Sugihara L (1-3) 6 IP 4 H 4 BB 5 K 3 ER
• 2005 3rd rounder P Mike Carpenter (12-8 3.22) will miss the remainder of the 2008 season to have arthroscopic surgery to removed scar tissue from his shoulder.
• 8/29: MEM 6 FLA 5 Josh Mutschler (12-8 3.57) 7 IP 3 H 7 BB 0 K 3 ER Eric Hecht 3-5 RBI (82)
• Alatorre L (13-8 3.24) 5 IP 10 H 5 K 0 BB 6 ER
• 8/30: BRK 6 FLA 3 Pollock L (13-7 3.44) 5 IP 6 H 4 ER
• 8/31: FLA 2 BRK 0 Samvdio W (10-11 3.73) 8 IP 2 H 9 K Galindo SV (36) Saldana HR (17) RBI (66) Haupt 14th error
• Teagan Meloche (A) took home POTW honors for his 12-27 5 HR 12 RBI week.
• Eric Husbands ® took home POTW honors after hitting 15-32 3 HR 10 RBI

AL POTW - Juan Guerra (LV) 17-31 HR 2 RBI (.303-4-43)
NL POTW – Chris Silverstone (SD) 14-27 2 HR 8 RBI (.298-26-88)

RECORD: 4-3 (74-60)
PLACE: 2nd 0.5 GB
RUNS SCORED: 600 3rd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 547 6th
DEFENSE: .711 3rd
OWNER MOOD: Worried
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Washington
2) Ohio
3) Jacksonville
4) Pittsburgh
5) Chicago
…..
7) Florida

[gehrig38]

• AL PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Juan Garza (MIN) .425-3-9 (.326-9-41)
• NL PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Humberto Camacho (SD) .360-9-27 (.271-21-76)
• AL PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Ezequiel Cordero (CHI) 5-0 2.74 (18-7 2.36)
• NL PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Tim Kerr (SAN) 4-0 1.50 (10-8 4.78)
• AL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Jerry Hamilton (OH) .338-6-20 (.320-10-45)
• NL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Josh Roberts .343-1-9 10 2B (.245-4-40)

Robles injury might help him win/lose a batting title. Good HR races though amazing how low the totals will be on the leaders. Robles is the clear MVP in the AL and I assumed it would be Anderson in the NL but Juan Burriel is having a monster 2nd half.

This last month is going to be a dogfight, we have 3 left with Detroit. Need to be either at or ahead when that series comes in mid-September. Ohio and Chicago in the Central and once again Las Vegas and Alaska in the west. You could argue there are 6 teams in the AL WC race, 7-8 if Phoenix or Memphis heat up.

Pittsburgh is having another great year, amazing that it looks like 3 teams from the East are going to get in. The central is going to be, as is the west, win or go home. KC, Texas and San Antonio, only 1 makes it, same in the west as Portland has managed to sneak in there.

TARPONS IN AUGUST



Same color code
It's not really their fault but Sugihara and Broomhall are presenting a 5th starter long man issue. Both should be in AAA but neither can be due to their exhausted options. I am going to skip the 5th starter all month when off days permit.

The back end of the pen is and has been the MVP this year. Brad Turner is absolutely a candidate for the Gossage award and I think Galindo may be in the Rivera running since it uses the Rolaids pt formula. Our record in 1 run games is getting worse and the month was a disaster at 12-17. 11th in HR as an offense is honestly inexplicable given how much power this lineup has.

One of my winter goals will be to get an everyday catcher I can put out there 125-135 games. Not going to be easy but that's on the to-do list. Ron Turner has to hit a bit more to be a legit backup IF option. Kennan Hallamore's error total needs addressing though I am unsure how.

For the most part, the rest of the infield has been fine, nothing extraordinary.
And the two issues in our OF are Hayashi's HR total, which is mind-boggling and the continued disgust I have looking at Mike Haupt's numbers. Look at his WAR, and look at that offense. That's how good a defender he is. What a huge mistake that trade turns out to have been. I have some elite defenders in the minors that will be CF prospects.

Couldn't be happier with the minor league development. Alamogordo has had a rough year but Mendoza, Faulkner and a few others are on the map and near ready. Our lower minors is stacked, and Hobbs has been a dominant team. So much talent down there with our 4th best prospect still at the complex. Mendelsons injury was a blow for sure but I do think Arturo Mendoza will be ABA ready come next year which may allow for a move with Borrows and and maybe a pitcher to get that Catcher I want.

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 23 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
1 vs Brooklyn
OFF DAY
3 @ Phoenix
2 vs St Louis

RESULTS:

• 9/1: FLA 7 BRK 2 Willoughby W (9-8 3.07) 7.2 IP 6 K 6 BB 2 ER Daig 3-5 3B (7) SB (30) 2 RBI (43) Borrows 2-4 2B (26) 3B (6) 2 RBI (76) Hallamore 34th error
• 9/2: OFF DAY
• 9/3: FLA 1 PHX 0 Alatorre W (14-8 3.11) 8 IP 2 H 6 K Galindo SV (37)
• Alatorre comes up huge as we skip our 5th starter.
• 9/4: FLA 7 PHX 1 Pollock W (14-7 3.39) 5 IP 6 H 1 ER Turner 2 IP 2 H 3 K (1.38) Daig 3-5 2B (20) 2 SB (32) 2 R Haupt 2-4 HR (7) RBI (55) Borrows 2-3 2B (27) 3 RBI (79)
• 3007 1st rounder Brendan Huffine moved to 11-2 3.18 after punching out a personal best 15 over 8 innings.
• 2006 1st rounder (13th overall) Kelyn Rathwell (NE) tossed a 4-hit shutout to beat San Francisco 1-0 yesterday and move to 2-0 on the year. He's made 3 starts for the Minutemen going 22 IP and surrendering 12 hits and still has not given up a single run. His BABIP stands at an ungodly .164
• 9/5: FLA 13 PHX 5 Sugihara W (2-3) 5 IP 4 H 0 K 2 BB 2 ER Cortezo 3-3 3 HR (15) 5 R 4 RBI (71) (ties org record for HR in a game, breaks org record for R in a game) Saldana 3-5 HR (18) 2 RBI (70)
• Former Tarpon Jace Camp (LA) was diagnosed with a ruptured UCL and will undergo surgery and miss the next 10-12 months. He was 10-10 2.71 on the year. He was also part of the trade that brought Cortezo to Florida. LA is just 2 games up on San Francisco in a division fight that will see the loser go home as neither will be able to qualify for the NL Wildcard. Frisco is currently 10 GB of 2nd place Jacksonville. The other pitcher in that trade, Jeff Chase, is 10-9 4.28 this year.
• 9/6: FLA 4 STL 3 Samvdio W (11-11 3.71) Grab H (9) Galindo SV (38) Borrows 3-4 2B (29) 2 R RBI (82) Daig 2-5 3B (8) 3 SB (35) R
• Jon Arthur 3-3 2B (20) HR (8) 2 RBI (40)
• 9/7: FLA 7 STL 1 Willoughby W (10-8 3.01) 7 IP 1 H 4 K 1 ER Broomhall 2 IP 3 K Daig 3-5 R Saldana 2-4 HR (19) 2 RBI (72) Cortezo 3-3 HR (16) RBI (72)

AL POTW - Guiomar Cortezo (FLA) 11-18 4 HR 5 RBI (.307-16-72)
NL POTW – Doug Schneider (SAN) 11-20 8 RBI (.296-6-47)

RECORD: 6-0 (80-60)
PLACE: 1st +1.5 (Detroit kept up)
RUNS SCORED: 639 3rd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 559 6th
DEFENSE: .713 2nd
OWNER MOOD: Undecided
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Florida
2) Washington
3) Pittsburgh
4) Detroit
5) Denver

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 24 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
1 vs St Louis
3 @ Denver
3 vs Ohio

RESULTS:

• 9/8: FLA 5 STL 2 Alatorre W (15-8 3.07) 8 IP 6 H 2 ER Galindo SV (39) Cortezo 2-3 2B (26) RBI (73)
• 9/9: FLA 4 DEN 3 Pollock W (15-7 3.41) 7 IP 6 K 3 ER Turner H (12) 1.36 ERA Galindo SV (40) Daig 3-4 Hayashi 2-3 HR (12) 3 RBI (61)
• 9/10: DEN 6 FLA 1 'Pen 2 IP 2 H 4 BB 4 ER Sugihara L (2-4) 6 IP 2 ER Saldana 2-4 HR (20) RBI (73)
• Zaire Kirlew W (10-8 3.24) 7 IP 4 H 6 K 0 BB 1 ER Time Reese SV (44) Zaire Stimage PH Grand Slam in the 8th off Brad Turner
• Arturo Mendoza made his final start at AAA and will be called up today to backup and maybe get a start depending on how the final 3 weeks play out.
• 9/11: FLA 4 DEN 0 Samvdio CG SHO (12-11 3.52) 6 H 7 K 3 BB Daig 3-5 3B (9) Arturo Mendoza homers in his first career at-bat off Saints starter Ben Austin. He goes 2-4 HR 2 RBI in his first big league start. Hallamore 2 RBI (67) 2 SB (33)
• IF Prospect Jake Fox goes 4-6 2B 3B R 5 RBI in his 1st AAA start.
• Big series versus Ohio coming up.
• 9/12: OH 7 FLA 4 Willoughby L (10-9 2.92) Turner error leads to 5 unearned. Willoughby 5 IP 7 H 6 R 1 ER Mendoza homers again in his 2nd start. Hayashi 3-4 2B (12)
• Alamogordo season ends and Jon Naclerio is recalled even though he didn't throw well at all.
• Short season Hobbs clinched a wild card berth today.
• I've been debating Dave Weller. He's had three amazingly good years since being picked in the 7th round in 2005. He hit .311-12-41 in 64 games at Hobbs, .273-29-106 in 118 games at Farmington, .270-39-129 in 129 games at Clovis and this year in 111 games at AAA he hit .297-26-94 in a down year for offense. He's also stolen 81 bases and hit 67 2B and 30 3B. Our scouts don't see the ceiling and are surprised he's been this good, but he has. I have 37 of 38 spots taken on the roster. But I can't look at his body of work and not think he absolutely deserves a call-up. In the end, I add him to the roster and call him up.
• 9/13: FLA 3 OH 0 Alatorre W (16-8 2.97) 7 IP 7 K 5 H Turner H (13) Galindo SV (41) Daig 4-4 2B (22) 3B (10) 2 R
• Juan Alatorre's last 3 starts. 3-0 23 IP 13 H 18 K 6 BB 0.78 ERA. He's coming up huge at the most crucial moment in the season
• Up against Bobby Rone tomorrow. He's 16-7 3.16 this year.
• 9/14: FLA 3 OH 0 Pollock CG SHO (16-7 3.25) 3 H 3 K 1 BB Cortezo 2-4 HR (17) 2 RBI (76) SB (18)
• Rone L (16-8 3.16) 6 IP 7 H 0 K 4 BB 2 ER
• Two huge pitching performances. We head to Milwaukee, then New York before coming home for 3 versus Detroit. 2.5 up on them as of today which puts us 6 up on Ohio for the top WC spot and 8 up on Vegas for the 2nd spot.

AL POTW - Eric Hecht (MEM) 12-27 2 HR 5 RBI (.323-27-91)
NL POTW – CJ Reisner (PIT) 11-23 2 HR 8 RBI (.294-20-83)

RECORD: 5-2 (85-62)
PLACE: 1st +2.5
RUNS SCORED: 663 3rd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 577 5th
DEFENSE: .715 2nd
OWNER MOOD: Worried
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Florida
2) Washington
3) Detroit
4) Pittsburgh
5) Kansas City

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 25 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
OFF DAY
3 @ Milwaukee
3 @ New York



Two weeks to go. The NL West is the only ABA division where the leader has a lead large than 3 games. LA leads Portland by 5. The NL Wild Card looks like it will be 2 teams from the East as you can see the Jets lead is 4, 9 over the next closest team in Texas.

RESULTS:

• 9/15: OFF DAY
• Farmington took their 1st series 2-0 and are heading to New Rochelle to play the Lancers, Single-A club of the Milwaukee Hawks in the semis.
• Hobbs beat the Eugene Aces (Portland) in the short-season play-in game and advanced. They'll face the Flint Lakers in the next round. Flint is Detroit's short-season club.
• 9/16: MIL 8 FLA 4 Amari Simpson 3-4 2B (25) HR (15) 3 RBI (57)
• Sugihara 5 IP 8 H 5 BB 7 ER
• 9/17: FLA 6 MIL 3 Samvdio W (13-11 3.51) Galindo SV (42) C Mendoza HR (13) 2 RBI (64) A Mendoza 2-4 2 R
• 9/18: FLA 6 MIL 3 Turner W (7-0 1.62) 1 IP 3 K Galindo SV (43) Saldana HR (21) 2 RBI (77)
• Farmington won their series and are headed to the AAA Series Final
• Hobbs has advanced to the Short-season final as well
• 9/19: NY 5 FLA 2 Almaguer W (11-7 2.82) 7 IP 7 K 3 H 1 ER Ross SV (44)
• Alatorre CG L (16-9 3.07) 8 IP 7 H 5 BB 5 ERA Mendoza HR (3) RBI (5) Hayashi 2-4 HR (13) RBI (65) Hallamore error (35)
• 9/20: FLA 4 NY 3 (12) Dave Haynes ND 8 IP 6 K 1 ER
• Pollock ND 6.1 IP 8 K 3 H 1 ER Galindo 3.1 IP 0 H 4 K W (7-2) Matsui SV (1) Hallamore error (36) Borrows 3-5 2B (30) RBI (86)
• Wow. The Detroit Phantoms continue to stockpile franchise talent. Somehow they managed to get St Louis to part with 2007 1st overall pick Juan Moorman. This comes just a few weeks after acquiring this year's top pick in Jeremy Burmeister. They have actually moved ahead of us in the ranking of minor league systems.
• 9/21: NY 7 FLA 5 Ross SV (45) Quintin Hewat 3-3 3B (7) 2 R SB (55)
• Hallamore 2-5 HR (15) 2 R 2 RBI (72) 2 SB (36) Hayashi 2-4 HR (14) 2 RBI (67)

AL POTW - Loan Auffret (DET) 11-22 3 HR 10 RBI (.242-13-68)
NL POTW – Chris Silverstone (SD) 10-23 2 HR 6 RBI (.300-29-98)

RECORD: 3-3 (88-65)
PLACE: 1st +1.5
RUNS SCORED: 690 3rd
RUNS GIVEN UP: 606 6th
DEFENSE: .714 2nd
OWNER MOOD: Worried
POWER RANKINGS:
1) Washington
2) Florida
3) Detroit
4) Jacksonville
5) New England

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 26 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
3 vs Detroit
3 @ Minnesota
OFF DAY

Huge 3 games to start the week with former Tarpon Ted Barlow (14-7 2.76) getting the ball in game 1, Chris Mattingly (11-9) in game 2 and another former Tarpon in Leith Southorn (12-11 3.85) in game 3.
We will counter with Samvdio 13-11 3.51, Willoughby 10-9 2.97 and Alatorre 16-9 3.07

RESULTS:

• 9/22: DET 6 FLA 3 (11) 'Pen fails us. Turner and Galindo combine to blow the save and lose it for the first time this year. Turner 1 IP 3 H HR 2 ER Galindo 2 IP 1 H 4 K 2 ER
• Naoaki Fuchigami 4-5 2B (34) 2 R Barlow goes 7.2 IP 7 H 5 K 0 BB 3 ER
• Hobbs loses the series finale 2 games to 0.
• 9/23: DET 8 FLA 7 'Pen implodes again, 4 runs in the last 4 innings. Bombed Mattingly for 7 runs 9 hits in 2.1 IP. Saldana 2-3 2 HR (23) 5 RBI (83) homered in the 2nd and 3rd innings off Mattingly.
• Luis Barela 2-4 2 HR (5) 4 RBI (12)
• Farmington won it all, sweeping through the series finale 3 games to 0.
• 9/24: FLA 5 DET 3 Alatorre W (17-9 3.11) 6 IP 3 ER Grab H (11) Galindo SV (44) Cortezo HR (18) 2 RBI (79) Hallamore 2-4 HR (16) 2 RBI (76) Error (37)
• Southorn L (12-12 3.95) 6.2 IP 11 H 5 ER
• LA clinches the NL West title. Incredibly it is their 16th division title in 19 years and will be their 17th postseason appearance.
• 9/25: FLA 7 MIN 2 Pollock W (17-7 3.18) 6.2 IP 5 K 2 ER Grab H (12) Turner SV (7) Hallamore 3-4 2 RBI (78)
• Postseason berth clinched with 5 games to go. Two games up on Detroit in a race to NOT have to play a wild-card play-in game.
• Denver's Tim Reese tied the ABA record with his 50th save today.
• Ezekiel Cordero continued his Koufax campaign winning his 22nd game, which is one off the single-season record.
• 9/26: FLA 5 MIN 2 Kid comes up huge in a huge game. Sugihara tosses 8 on 2 hits 2 earned for PotG honors. Galindo extends club record to 45 Saves. Hallamore 3 hits, 2B (28) 2 R Mike Haupt 2 hits, 3B (4) and 2 RBI's 62.
• Detroit loses but clinches at least a WC berth. They're 3 back with 4 to play.
• Chicago clinches the AL Central for their 6th division title and 10th post-season appearance. They are still looking for their 1st world series title.
• 9/27: FLA 5 MIN 3 Down 3-2 entering the 9th, Saldana plates 2 on GW 1B. Luis Samvdio snags the W (14-11 3.43) with 8 innings of 3 run ball 6 K 0 BB. Galindo saves #46
• NY Punishers rookie Jim Haselden tossed a 1-hitter to help us to the division title in a 1-0 win over Detroit. He punched out 11 and walked 2. He's 13-11 3.86 this year.
• Yes, we clinched our 1st division title.
• 9/28: OFF DAY

AL POTW - Greg Wortruba (PHX) 11-25 2 HR 5 RBI (.285-24-85)
NL POTW – Dave Manzer (KC) 10-20 HR 6 RBI (.319-30-126)

POWER RANKINGS:
1) Chicago
2) Florida
3) San Antonio
4) Washington
5) Jacksonville

[gehrig38]

SUBJECT: WEEK 27 NOTES
SCHEDULE:
3 vs Alaska

• Seasons final 3 days and the postseason picture is cleared up but for these races.
• Alaska is 3 up on Denver and Vegas with 3 to play so it looks like the AL Division winners will be us, Chicago and Alaska and we will have the #1 seed most likely (92 wins to 90 for Chicago).
• The AL Wild card will be wild. Denver and Vegas are tied and Ohio sits one game back.
• Ohio ends the season in Las Vegas and Vegas has Sato (16-11 2.55) Noh (15-6 3.75) and Gallegos (18-8 3.37) going up against Rocky Lloyd (6-7 3.82) Banderas (11-13 3.53) and Bobby Rone (16-10 3.55) in that order.

• In the NL East Washington is 1 up on Pittsburgh (without star SS Luis Andrade) 2 up on Jacksonville (8-2 in their last 10 to make up 5 on the Miners) and New England is 3 back.
• KC is 1 up on San Antonio (9-1 in their last 10, going from 5 back to 1).
• LA clinched the west already.
• The Wild Card has Pittsburgh 1 up on Jacksonville for the top spot and the Panthers 1 up on New England and 2 up on San Antonio.
• New England hosts the Jets for the seasons final 3.

RESULTS:

• 9/29: FLA 8 ALK 5 Galindo saves #47, Cortezo (83) and Hallamore (PotG) (80) drive in 2 each. Cortezo hits 2 2B (32). Hallamore steals 2 bases (38) Willoughby goes 6 on 6 hits 2 K's to finish 11-9 3.16.

GM'S OFFICE
A more shocking story I didn't think possible. Mike Haupt, yes that Mike Haupt, has just left my office after a meeting in which he has stated he now would like to see if we can work out a deal? I got down to brass tax very quickly on my feelings. The only possible way I would even think to discuss this would be if there were drastic changes off the field. His place on the team, inside the clubhouse, and his work ethic, would need to dramatically change. I am unsure how to feel but if the deal isn't somewhere in a ballpark I am comfortable with this has no shot. Especially given his crap-tastic season.

(FYI if he does accept a deal I will alter his work ethic and attitude to reflect as much in the settings. Maybe that's a cheat? But I like the idea of players 'changing' and I've seen it so I know it's not some sort of unrealistic thing.)

• Denver and Vegas both won, so they are still tied. Ohio lost essentially eliminating them.
• The Jets lost, all three teams trailing won. They are tied now with Pittsburgh and 1 up on Jacksonville 2 on New England.
• They are also tied atop the Wild Card. Jacksonville has the 2nd spot 1 up on New England.
• We have clinched the #1 seed so will give the regulars a few days rest. Seb Broomhall will get the ball tomorrow and Arturo Mendoza will start the final regular season game
• 9/30: FLA 6 ALK 4 Kevin Pollock came in relief to get some work and ended up with his 18th win in 2 innings.
• Denver and Vegas both lose, Alaska loses as well but clinches the AL West. Saints, Aces are tied and Ohio sits just 1 game back heading into the seasons final day.
• In the NL Jacksonville wins and both Washington and Pittsburgh lose. All three teams are tied for the division lead and 1 up on New England with the same exact scenario in the Wild Card. KC and San Antonio win so the Broncos go into the final day 1 back.

• 10/1: FLA 3 ALK 2 Eddie Collins gets his 1st ABA win with 6 innings of 2 hit ball, striking out 5 and walking 6. Alatorre works the games final 3 innings for the save.
  
• 10/2: Jacksonville will play Pittsburgh, the winner takes the NL East and San Antonio will play Kansas City with the winner taking the NL Central and the loser going home.
• Las Vegas and Denver will play in Denver with the winner taking the 2nd AL WC spot and the loser going home.
• In the NL it remains to be seen what happens next, as the loser of the Panthers, Miners game will be 0.5 games up on the Jets and Minutemen, who are tied for the 2nd WC spot.
• 10/3: Denver beats Vegas 5-3, beating Aces ace Tousei Sato.
• Pittsburgh destroys Jacksonville behind 2 homers and 7 RBI's from Luis Andrade in his 1st game back off the DL and the Spartans down San Antonio 4-2 behind knuckleballer Jon Girard and his 15th win.
• 10/4: Washington pounds out 16 hits, scoring 6 times in the top of the 1st to beat Josh Daugherty (14-9 3.01)

[gehrig38]

TARPONS, HAUPT BREAK OFF TALKS.
Word out of Florida today has superstar Mike Haupt saying he will not re-sign with Florida and will instead test the free agent market.
“ I asked them last year to post me, I wanted to go overseas, they would not do that. I then approached them later in the season telling them I would like to stay, they would not do that either. I'll sign somewhere else and they'll end up 'paying' anyway.
“Mike was a valued member of this organization for his time here. We felt, all things considered, that the club and Mike needed to go our separate ways. We wish him nothing but the best” GM Gehrig Schilling said in a press release following the post-game comments. Haupt is a compensation-eligible free agent and the Tarpons will receive a compensation pick. The team signing him will forfeit their 1st round selection unless that pick is within the top 10, at which point they will forfeit their next highest draft choice.