Worst to First - The Sequel

[HerbertMcHoover]

Wow, good luck!

[illeracula]

Tough luck in the Red series, but I guess it goes to show that you need a bat or two to win the series. Can't be mad at the pitching that performed well, allowing just 13 runs in 4 games...

Best of luck in year 3 in Montreal, hopefully you can grow on last season and do it again.

[NYY #23]

Originally Posted by HerbertMcHoover

Wow, good luck!

Thank you!

[NYY #23]

Originally Posted by illeracula

Tough luck in the Red series, but I guess it goes to show that you need a bat or two to win the series. Can't be mad at the pitching that performed well, allowing just 13 runs in 4 games...

Best of luck in year 3 in Montreal, hopefully you can grow on last season and do it again.

Thanks, yeah, I definitely don't have any issues with our pitching. They definitely did their job. Our offense is definitely terrible though. I'm counting on a lot of internal improvements from our young guys, so hopefully they don't let me down!

[NYY #23]

It's not really having a losing 11-12 record that has me down, it's losing a player what seems like every day. We lost six players this month including, and while our offensive woes aren't necessarily too surprising, our starting pitchers are struggling, including Ricardo Moreno and Jeffery Sampson, expected to be our 1-2 starters.

It's certainly too early to panic though, and I hope that we'll begin to rebound in May.

[NYY #23]

The Expos pulled into second place after going 15-13 for the month. We're still just .500 on the season, and 6 1/2 games behind the Phillies, who I think are due to cool down.

I'm trying to practice patience. May was an interesting month, not for what we did, but what we didn't do. After losing Jose Ledesma for four months we had a series of three deals in place that would have shook up the team. I won't name all the names, but the trades would have involved four new position players, a new starting pitcher, and involved the departure of Howard McDonald.

I got cold feet for two reasons, the first being I'm not sold on the fact that the 22 year old McDonald is a bust. He's just 22, and has shown signs of life. The second is taking on a big salary on front loaded deal. I think it would have made us a better team this year, but I was convinced it would have put us over the edge.

But I didn't completely stand pat either, we sent minor league relievers Dave Jones and Jose Corona to the Rockies in exchange for catcher Joe Jefferson. It's an upgrade to our backup catcher, and I'm still not convinced we are as bad a team as we're playing.

Plus we're starting to see some signs of life from a couple players. Matt Smalls is one, hitting .272 with 4 home runs in May. Getting one or two of our young players will help quite a bit.

[HerbertMcHoover]

It's an encouraging sign, even with the injury surplus.

[NYY #23]

Originally Posted by HerbertMcHoover

It's an encouraging sign, even with the injury surplus.

Injuries have been brutal, but I'm hoping we get healthy, and the Phillies come back down to earth a little. It's been a weird year in the NL though, since we are at .500 and in tied for the second wild card.

[NYY #23]

I wasn't looking for a trade, but the Nationals came calling while offering the number 2 prospect in baseball, 3B Jorge Flores. They have a need at shortstop and wanted Jorge Salcido and our top prospect Eddie Richard. I wouldn't call Richard a deal breaker, but I didn't want to trade him, although the allure of adding Flores was strong.

We ended up switching Richard out with CF Miguel Colon, who is just a notch below Richard, and included Ray Bell, a 22 year old pitching prospect.

The big return was Flores, who will become our starting third baseman. Also coming back is 25 year old pitcher Mike Daniel and 20 year old reliever Travis Danvers. Daniels is in AA, and I think he's destined for a career in the bullpen.

It wasn't a trade we needed to make, but it was a trade I felt would benefit us in the future.

[NYY #23]

Things are slowly spiraling out of control in Montreal, at least for this year. We're 4-10 to start the month of June, and a very frustrating 9-15 in one run games this year. The biggest question I'm starting to ask is was last year a fluke, or is this just a bad year?

Our first pick of the amateur draft was 22nd overall. I didn't see eye to eye with our scout, and instead picked shortstop Dave Waters with our first round pick. We followed that up in the second round with shortstop Sergio Cobo. In the third round we add Andrew Ball, another shortstop before breaking the trend and picking centerfielder Mitchell McNaughton in the fourth round. We rounded out the top five with shortstop Miguel Price.

Despite the run on shortstops we really went for the best player available in each round, and I think they have the talent to switch to another infield position as they progress.

[NYY #23]

June was a month I'd like to forget in Montreal with the Expos going 10-18 for the month and dropping in to last place. The Expos have now lost 60% of our rotation with Jonathan Wheeler, Jose Ledesma, and Jeffery Sampson out with injuries. That did give Nick Seaton the chance to make his first major league start, and he delivered with 7 innings of 1 run ball, giving up 3 hits. Unfortunately he got the loss as the Expos couldn't score in the 1-0 loss.

With the return of Zhao-ji Shaw the Expos were forced to designate Joe Jefferson for assignment, and he was claimed by the Dodgers. I hate losing him for nothing, and really made a mistake not trying to trade him and waive him instead.

[NYY #23]

Just when I think I'm out the Expos pull me back in. With a 17-9 month the Expos have new signs of life, moving into third place and now just 6 1/2 games back. We're not dead yet, although we still have a long way to go.

It's been a busy month in Montreal though, and I think this is a first, but I accidentally traded the wrong player. I don't know why I keep getting Michael Cunningham and Juan Martinez confused. Martinez was on a rehab assignment in the minors so I decided to show him around, except I shopped Cunningham around, and shipped him off to the Yankees in exchange for Nelson Castaneda, a reserve outfielder/first baseman. The trade didn't hurt, but it didn't really help either, and it certainly didn't help me with my problem of how to get Martinez on the roster.

That led to a second trade of the day, and it was a fairly big one, at least in terms of salary. I made the decision to trade catcher Zhao-Ji Shaw to the Rockies along with infielder Joe Urbina in exchange for 25 year old starting pitcher Gustavo Hernandez. While Hernandez was 7-7 with a 3.67 ERA I think he's going to benefit by coming to Montreal. I also think Shaw is going to benefit from getting out of Montreal. He's already hit 4 home runs with the Rockies, and is hitting .245. Meanwhile Hernandez is 3-0 with a 2.16 ERA. Shaw is making a pretty reasonable $13 million per year, and last year was worth 3 WAR. A hit by pitch derailed his season so far, but both Shaw and Aleman should be starting. I think this is a trade that will benefit both teams.

That left me without a backup catcher, and I traded third baseman Ken Boone in a rare inter-division deal with the Mets, getting back backup catcher Gonzalo Villarreal.

The fourth and final deal was a trade I made to protect Nick Seaton. My manager has free reign, and doesn't like me to interfere. I'm pleased with the job he's doing, but it took losing 3 members of the rotation before Nick Seaton was put in the rotation. I want him to start, and he's 2-3 with a 3.79 ERA as a starter. So Jeffery Sampson was the casualty. For the second straight year I had high hopes for a free agent signing, only to see them fail. Although after a dreadful April, and bad May Sampson has pitched well in June (1-1, 2.41) and pitched 7 2/3 shutout innings in his only start in July (for the Expos).

I don't know if it's a trade I'd make at the end of the month, but all of the activity was in the first week of the month, and things weren't looking good in Montreal. I wanted to get something for Sampson, and the Cubs offered 23 year old Logan Howard. He's a back of the rotation candidate pitching in AAA, who has seen his one-time #16 prospect ranking fall, and fall, and fall. He's still young enough to not write off completely, but not someone to count on either.

My owner is fairly happy (although I bet he's happier at the end of the month than he was at the beginning). That's driven primarily by attendance continuing to rise in Montreal. I've still got his vote of confidence though, and I used some of our free money to sign international amateur Denie Abeele, a 16 year old who we signed to an $8.4 million contract. A lot of money, but I had money laying around and it's worth taking a chance on him, and we still have about $11 million we can tap in to if we need it.

Our lone all-star was Don Webb (3-3, 1 SV, 1.95 ERA, 60 IP). I'm happy for his success this year, and I'd love him back next year, but the 33 year old is trying to parlay his success this year into a long term deal. I wish him luck, but we won't be giving him a 5 year contract.

July was also a bad month for prospects, with Eddie Richard out for the next 5-6 months, reliever Alberto Torres out for the next 11 month, and reliever Ruben Vazquez calling it a career at the age of 23 after an injury.

Former Knight Ron Barker hit his 300th career home run, while Eric Laws was named Pitcher of the Month, going 5-0 with a 1.69 ERA for the Expos.

[NYY #23]

While the Expos had a winning month in August, the 14-12 record didn't help too much. We're still in third place, and five games behind the Phillies, and seven behind the Mets. Of course all hope isn't lost, as we have 21 games against those two teams before the end of the season. So we haven't lost all hope just yet, but it isn't too encouraging either.

We'll see what happens in September, and keep our fingers crossed.

In news around the league, Wilfred Small of the White Sox won the 200th game of his career this month. He's the seventh player to do that since 2012.

[NYY #23]

Fresh off a sweep of a doubleheader over the Mets the red hot Expos are 10-1 in September and have pulled into a first place tie with the Mets. This has definitely been an unusual, and inconsistent year.

Let's look at the pennant chase:



We've got 7 games left against the Mets, 7 games left against the Phillies, and 6 against the Pirates.

Taking a look back at one of my recent trades, Gustavo Hernandez is 6-1 with a 2.92 ERA for the Expos, Zhao-Ji Shaw is hitting .305 with 10 home runs for the Rockies. It appears to be working out well for both teams.



Around the League

Leo Long of the Angels became the second player this year to pitch a no-hitter, shutting down the Mariners. Luis Guzman was the first in April for the Padres.

Our paths never crossed, but Eric William of the Knights is just 3 hits away from 3000 career hits. He's already hit 593 career home runs, and the 41 year old seems destined for the Hall of Fame.

[NYY #23]

The Expos and Mets continue to be locked in a tight race for the NL East:



Our pitching has come up big in September, with Ricardo Moreno (3-0, 1.00) finally looking like the pitcher he is. With Eric Laws (2-0, 1.44) and Gustavo Hernandez (3-1, 2.75) forming a solid trio.

It looks like 3B Jorge Flores is beginning to turn things around. After hitting .115 and .151 his first two months with the Expos he hit .418 in August with 6 home runs, and he's hitting .260 with 4 home runs and 12 RBI in September.

Two milestones around the league:
• Alex Hunter of the Yankees won his 250th career game.
• Miguel Hernandez of the Cardinals saved his 300th game. You may remember the name with the Knights, as he came over with Mark Olsen and Eric Wolf in our championship year, going 5-1 with 18 saves and a 1.73 ERA

[NYY #23]

I don't think things can get any more crazy in the National League. Not just in the NL East where the Expos and Mets are tied for first after the Expos went 22-6 in September. We've had such an inconsistent season:

April: 10-12
May: 15-13
June: 10-18
July: 17-9
August: 14-12
September: 22-6

With the Padres have clinched the NL West, and the Cubs in the Central, the 89-69 Braves have a slim 1/2 game lead over the Nationals.

Meanwhile in the Wild Card race it's the Nationals with a 1/2 game lead over the Mets/Expos/Cardinals. It's be a three team race between the NL East and NL South runner ups, and the Cardinals.

The only thing that we have control over is our final four games, on the road against the Phillies, with three against the Mets.

Ricardo Moreno was named Pitcher of the Month in the National League after going 4-0 with a 0.95 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 57 innings.

[NYY #23]

The Expos had our chance to take control in the NL East yesterday, but instead fell to the Phillies 3-2. Outside of a home run by Howard McDonald, our bats were silent.

The Mets were defeated 6-2 by the Pirates, while the Braves fell 3-2 to the Reds.

Let's take a look at the NL East pennant chase:



And the Wild Card chase:

[NYY #23]

It was a wild game in New York after the Expos entered the final of series against the New York Mets tied for first place. Eric Laws was making the start for the Expos and for 5 1/3 innings Laws would allow 2 runs on 6 hits while walking 2. Laws would also drive in the Expos only run of the game, and left with the Mets leading 2-1.

Our bullpen has been a big strength this year, and Jose Ramos (1 2/3 IP), Bill Olson (1 IP), and Don Webb (1 IP) wouldn't allow a run the rest of the game. Webb in particular gave his all, striking out Toby Armstrong for the final out of the inning, and injuring his elbow in the process.

But the Expos still trailed 2-1 heading into the ninth inning, but John Bradshaw would hit his 13th home run of the season to tie the game at 2 to lead off the inning. Jason O'Muldoon would single, move to second on a sacrifice bunt by Cisco Aleman, third on a groundout by Carlos Longoria, and score on a wild pitch.

Olson would pick up his 8th win of the year, with Webb getting the save, and missing the rest of the season.

The Expos need to win of of the final two games of the season to capture the NL East. Two losses wouldn't eliminate the Expos from the postseason, with one game lead in the win column with the Cardinals playing two on the road against the Cubs and a make-up game on Monday against the Padres.

[NYY #23]

The Expos were completely dominated today by Olle Arvedson (14-7, 3.49), who allowed just 1 hit over 7 innings while striking out 15 batters with four relievers combining to pick up the final six outs for the Mets to preserve the one hit shutout.

While Gustavo Hernandez pitched well (6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 9 K) there wasn't much to be done when we can't score.

With the Cardinals beating the Cubs 4-1 today our backs are really against the wall. If we beat the Mets tomorrow we win the NL East, if we lose we root for the Cubs to beat the Cardinals, then the Padres to beat the Cardinals Monday, and then we'll need to beat the Cardinals to get a Wild Card.

Let's hope that Ricardo Moreno brings his A game tomorrow.

[NYY #23]

It was a playoff atmosphere in New York today where the winner captures the NL East, and the loser hopes for a miracle to get into the final Wild Card spot.

Ricardo Moreno (9-10, 3.24) was taking the ball for the Expos against Daniel Walker (10-10, 2.24) for the Mets. Despite his early season struggles there is no other pitcher I want on the mound rather than Moreno for the Expos. He's our ace, and is coming off a September where he went 4-0 with a 0.95 ERA.

We gave Moreno an early 1-0 lead when Matt Smalls, in his first game back off the disabled list, showed no signs of rust and hit a double on the first pitch he saw to lead off the top of the second. He moved to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly to give the Expos a 1-0 lead.

The Mets would tie the score in the bottom of the fifth when they picked up their only hit of the game off Moreno when John Conley doubled, and would come home to score.

The Expos would get a one out rally going in the top of the sixth when Howard McDonald and John Bradshaw drew back to back walks. One batter later Jason O'Muldoon would hit a three run homer to put the Expos up 4-1. It was O'Muldoon's third home run of the season, and definitely the most important.

Moreno would leave after the sixth inning with a final line of 6 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, and 91 pitches. Our bullpen wouldn't give up a run to preserve the win with Julio Mateo (1 IP), Luis Otero (1/3 IP), Bill Olson (1/3 IP), Logan Howard (1/3 IP), Jesus Franco (1/3 IP), and Jose Ramos (1 IP) all seeing action.

The Expos win their second straight NL East crown after the 4-1 victory, although the Mets aren't dead yet with the Cardinals losing, just on life support.

(Side note, I had a little bit of a panic attack when I had a crash that wiped out the past two games. I can't think of the last time I had a crash, so it's definitely rare, and luckily the outcomes were the same)