The American Baseball League

[gehrig38]

• RECORD: 4-1
• STANDINGS: 94-45 +17
• RUNS SCORED: 808 (1st)
• RUNS AGAINST: 490 (1st)
• DEFENSIVE EFF: .710 (1st)
• ZONE RATING: +32.4 (1st)
• ERRORS: 51 (1st)
• OWNERS MOOD: Happy
• FAN INTEREST: 83
• POWER RANKINGS: 1st

THIS WEEK: OFF DAY 3-0 @ Charlotte (71-63) OFF DAY 1-1 @ Detroit (75-59)

8/31 OFF DAY
9/1: AUS 5 CHA 3 Dziedzic 3-3 BB 2 2B (27) RBI (71) Archer 2-4 2B (39) R RBI (116) Comerford HR (11) 2 RBI (42) Pierce (W) 6 IP 4 K 4 H 2 ER (4-1 2.48) Godinez SV (6)
9/2: AUS 8 CHA 4 (11) Lach ND 7 IP 8 H 7 K 3 ER Godinez (W) 4-1 4.30 Hanna PH GW HR (12) 2 RBI (55) Becker PH HR (10) Nolasco HR (23) RBI (80)
9/3: AUS 15 CHA 3 Forney (W) 7 IP 5 H 13 K 3 ER 2-3 R 3 RBI (3) (14-6 3.33) Joshua 3-5 2 2B (15) HR (7) 3 R 3 RBI (33) SB (16) Becker HR (11) 2 RBI (41) Orozco 2-4 HR (17) 2 R 3 RBI (76)
9/4: OFF DAY
9/5: DET 7 AUS 5 (14) Godinez BS (4) 1 IP HR Adrian 3-7 HR (19) 3 RBI (84) Steele ND 5.1 IP 7 H 3 HR 4 K 4 BB 4 ER Jose Lopez (DET) 4-6 2B (31) HR (20) RBI Ridley (DET) walk off 2R HR (24)
9/6: AUS 5 DET 4 Miller (W) 7 IP 10 K 4 ER (15-6 3.88) Godinez SV (7) Del Bianco (DET) (L) 8 IP 11 K 10 H 5 ER (18-8 3.65) Adrian 2-5 HR (20) R 4 RBI (88)

NEXT WEEK: 1 @ Detroit (77-62) 3 vs NY Empire (75-65) 3 @ Dallas (77-62)

ABL HAPPENINGS:
9/1:

• Pittsburgh managed to snag closer Francisco Monge from Chicago for 3 top prospects. Monge is 5-4 23 SV this year with a 5.51 ERA. Lifetime he is 40-46 with 199 SV 3.97, all spent with Chicago.

9/5:

• Mike Hunter (MEM) fanned 15 and walked just 2 in a 2-hitter to beat Pittsburgh 5-2 and move to 11-9 3.98

9/6:

• Alco Wind (CHA) tossed a CG SHO allowing just 2 hits in a 6-0 win over the New York Punishers.
• Ron York (SJ) fanned 16 Blizzard batters in a 4-0 4-hit SHO.

RUSTLER NEWS:
9/1:

• Kevin Owens (AA) took home PotM honors hitting .258-7-19 14 R
• John Schwartz (A) won PotM by going 4-0 2.89
• Warren (AAA) is set to make the post-season so call-ups are limited today. P Masakazu Matusi, C Nick McGuire, Sam Reyes is recalled, and OF Alfredo Razo is put on the 40 man and recalled.

9/2:

• Brennan Jungles went 5-6 in a 17-2 win over the Lawrence Razorbacks.
• Ken Bruin went 5-5 in that same game after being recalled from AA.
• Warren won the AAA Wild Card.

9/5:

• CF Jesse Kucher has asked for an extension. He's a free agent at years end and has done a fantastic job. Problem is that even though he's not looking for a large sum, 1m per, I have Alfredo Razo in the wings, he plays more OF positions and will be about 900K cheaper. Kucher is also a comp eligible FA.
• 24th round pick Bill Ambrose (SA) tossed a CG 4-hit shutout in a 1-0 win over 1st place Albany.

9/6:

• Warren was swept 2-0 by the Mckinney Brahmas despite 1B Brennan Jungles being named series MVP.
• After the game Jungles, OF Kyle Brill, SS Ben Gallo, P's Alex Arregui, Francisco Castro, Manny DeSanto and Nick Hawker were all recalled. That leaves 38 players on the 40 man and 36 on the active roster as of today.

PATRIOT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Carl Aarnink C (SD) 12-20 4 HR 7 RBI 9 R
COLONIAL LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Andy Adrian (AUS) 11-25 2 HR 8 RBI


RUSTLER PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Tommy Dziedzic .355/.437/.697 6 2B 6 HR 17 RBI 12 K 11 BB
RUSTLER PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Jake Pierce 3-1 2.38 34 IP 35 K 7 BB .234 AVG
RUSTLER MiL PLAYER OF THE MONTH: David Bone (A) .289/.471/.908 15 HR 29 RBI 22 K 26 BB
RUSTLER MiL PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Francisco Castro (AAA) 4-2 2.23 36.1 IP 32 K .239 AVG

PATRIOT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Nobuhisa Abe CF (DET) .337-12-30 23 R
COLONIAL LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Abdul-Muta'al Rhodes RF (NE) .387-6-27 19 R
PATRIOT LEAGUE PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Randy Hayes 5-0 0.87 41.1 IP 20 K
COLONIAL LEAGUE PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Andy Nadeu (NE) 5-0 2.23 38 K 6 BB 36.1 IP
PATRIOT LEAGUE ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Ron York P (SJ) 1-1 4 SV 2.81
COLONIAL LEAGUE ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Rich Pace RF (HOU) .325-8-23

[gehrig38]

[gehrig38]

• RECORD: 5-2
• STANDINGS: 99-47 +20.5
• RUNS SCORED: 839 (1st)
• RUNS AGAINST: 517 (1st)
• DEFENSIVE EFF: .707 (1st)
• ZONE RATING: +32.5 (2nd)
• ERRORS: 53 (1st)
• OWNERS MOOD: Happy
• FAN INTEREST: 88
• POWER RANKINGS: 1st

THIS WEEK: 0-1 @ Detroit (77-62) 2-1 vs NY Empire (75-65) 3-0 @ Dallas (77-62)

9/7: DET 10 AUS 1 Keeton (DET) CG 3 H 7 K (14-8 2.60) 2-4 2 R 2 RBI (10) Pierce (L) 1.2 IP 7 H 4 ER
9/8: AUS 5 NYE 2 Lach (W) 6 IP 3 H 8 K 2 ER (14-5 3.27) Godinez SV (8) Orozco 3-4 HR (18) 2 R 3 RBI (79) McLaughlin 3-4 2 2B (20) 2 R Comerford HR (12) 2 RBI (45)
9/9: AUS 4 NYE 2 Forney (W) 7 IP 8 K 5 H 2 ER (15-6 3.30) Nolasco 2-4 HR (24) 2 R 2 RBI (84) SB (10) Russell (NYE) (L) 4 ER 6 IP (17-6 3.46)
9/10: NYE 4 AUS 2 (10) Rio (NYE) (W) 9 IP 11 H 8 K 2 ER Steele ND 9 IP 10 H 2 ER Spitler (NYE) 3-5 GW 2B
9/11: AUS 4 DAL 2 Miller (W) 6 IP 6 K 6 H 2 ER 1-2 2B (4) R (.308) (16-6 3.85) Godinez SV (10) Dziedzic HR (21) RBI (72) Adrian 2-4 2B (43) R RBI (89) Reyes 2-4 2B (11) SB (27)
9/12: AUS 6 DAL 2 Pierce (W) 6.1 IP 9 K 4 H 0 R Orozco 2B (37) GS (19) 4 RBI (83) E (14)
9/13: AUS 9 DAL 5 (10) Lach ND 5 IP 8 H 5 K 3 ER Nolasco GW HR (25) 3 RBI (87) Dziedzic PH 2 R 3B (4) 2 RBI (74) Bradbury 2-5 HR (8) 2 R 2 RBI (26)

NEXT WEEK: 4 vs San Antonio (77-68) 3 @ Lexington (83-62)

ABL HAPPENINGS:
9/9:

• Matt Barlow (PHX) went 5-5 in the Roadrunner's 5-2 win over Brooklyn.

9/11:

• Brooklyn 1B Balthazar Brown gave NY fans something to cheer about on 9/11 as he slammed 3 HR's and drove in 5 in a 6-3 win over the NY Punishers.

9/13:

• Cameron Mears (PHI) has endured a nightmare 2nd season in Philadelphia. The lefty is 9-15 4.94 but he put that off for a moment as he whiffed 16 Pittsburgh hitters in a 7-2 win to give him 238 K's in 209.2 IP this year.

RUSTLER NEWS:
9/10:

• The win clinched a post-season birth for the 5th straight season.

9/13:

• Today's win clinched the division title. This is the 7th division title in team history.

PATRIOT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Brian Harris C (PIT) 11-19 HR 6 RBI
COLONIAL LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Bryan Peoples 1B (CHA) 11-25 3 HR 10 RBI

[gehrig38]

• RECORD: 6-1
• STANDINGS: 105-48 +23
• RUNS SCORED: 896 (1st)
• RUNS AGAINST: 543 (1st)
• DEFENSIVE EFF: .707 (1st)
• ZONE RATING: +32 (2nd)
• ERRORS: 61 (1st)
• OWNERS MOOD: Happy
• FAN INTEREST: 1st
• POWER RANKINGS: 1st

THIS WEEK: 3-1 vs San Antonio (77-68) 3-0 @ Lexington (83-62)

9/14: AUS 11 SAN 3 Comerford 2-5 2 HR (14) 2 R 5 RBI (50) Archer 4-5 2 2B (42) 3 R RBI (118) Razo 4-5 2B (2) 2 R SB (1) Gallo PH HR (1) RBI (2) Forney (W) 6 IP 5 H 11 K 3 ER (16-6 3.34)
9/15: AUS 8 SAN 3 Steele (W) 8 IP 10 H 7 K 3 ER 1-4 R (16-5 3.81) Orozco 2-4 2B (38) HR (20) 2 R 2 RBI (85) E (15) Adrian HR (21) R 2 RBI (93)
9/16: AUS 10 SAN 5 Joshua 4-5 LO HR (8) 2 R RBI (36) Nolasco 2-5 3 R RBI (89) SB (11) Comerford 2-4 HR (15) 3 RBI (53) McLaughlin 3-5 R Orozco 2-3 HR (21) 4 RBI (89) Miller ND 6.1 IP 9 H 7 K 2 HR 5 ER
9/17: SAN 6 AUS 4 Pierce ND 7.1 IP 14 K 7 H 4 ER Godinez (L) 1 IP HR 0 ER (5-2) Nolasco 4-4 2 2B (31) R RBI (90) SB (12) Adrian 3 SB (55)
9/18: AUS 9 LEX 4 Lach (W) 6 IP 6 H 3 ER Hobart SV (3) Masuda (LEX) 6 IP 8 K 7 BB 5 ER (14-10 3.54) Reyes 0-1 3 BB SB (28) 2 R Hanna 2-4 HR (13) R 3 RBI (62) Nolasco HR (26) 2 RBI (92) Gallo HR (2) RBI (3)
9/19: AUS 7 LEX 4 Forney (W) 8.2 IP 2 H 3 ER 7 K 7-0 lead into the 9th (17-6 3.33) (also passes 300K's for the year) Adrian 4-5 R CS (15) Archer 3-5 HR (26) R 5 RBI (124) Orozco HR (22) 2 RBI (94)
9/20:AUS 8 LEX 1 Steele (W) 8 IP 5 H 7 K 1 ER (17-5 3.70) Adrian 1-3 BB 3 R RBI (94) SB (56) Nolasco 2-4 2B (32) HR (27) 5 RBI (97)

NEXT WEEK: OFF DAY 3 @ Green Bay (64-87) 3 @ San Antonio (79-73)


ABL HAPPENINGS:
9/16:

• Corey Tenhundfeld (FW) struck out 7 and went the distance with a 4-hitter to beat Dallas 2-0.

9/17:

• Brendan Biernacki (BUF) tossed a 4-hit CG SHO in beating Providence 6-0.
• Lexington's Mario Luna hit 3 solo HR's in the Rebels 8-2 win over Charlotte.
• Randy Winn hit a walk-off 2B to make SP Jon Hawkins (PHX) a 1-0 winner as Hawkins threw a 4-hitter fanning 5.
• Brett Goetsch (SJ) struck out 10 and walked 3 in a CG SHO to beat San Diego 7-0 and move to 13-11 4.60
• Jonathan Ray won his 14th (14-9 3.88) with a 3-hitter, striking out 5 in the Bandits 7-0 win over the 51's in Las Vegas.

9/19:

• Former Rustler Travis Brooks (NE) threw the season's 1st no-hitter as he fanned 9 in the 7-0 win over Memphis. It was his 1st career no-hitter and evened his record at 10-10 4.22.

PATRIOT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Mathew Welch 3B (SJ) 12-24 3 HR 10 RBI
COLONIAL LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Dave Nolasco RF (AUS) 12-27 2 HR 10 RBI 8 R

[gehrig38]

9 games left in the season and here are some milestones.

• 3 more wins will set the all-time record, breaking the 107 win 2011 season.
• The current team avg of .295 is tied for the highest ever, again with the 2011 team
• The teams 3.22 ERA will shatter the previous record of 3.48 set in 2013
• We end the season with a 9 game road trip meaning our 3.64 million will be the 2nd highest total ever to last year's 3.733 million.
• With 896 runs to date, this team will shatter the previous mark of 903 set in 2011
• With 174 SB we are 18 short of the record set last season of 192
• The teams .295 avg is tied with the 2011 team
• The OBP of .356 is .003 higher than the 2011 team which set the record
• The team is slugging .482 which is .002 behind the 2011 team as well.
• The OPS of .838 is the highest ever, once again surpassing the 2011 team by .002 to date.
• 20 wins is the single-season record. Forney and Steele will end short of that but only 8 pitchers have ever won 18 or more
• Dave Miller's 38 HRA is tied for 4th all time
• Steve Forney is the 1st Rustler pitcher to ever record a 300K season and his 304 are 12 more than his previous team-high 292 set last year.
• He's also at 13.1 K/9 which will set a new team record.
• His 0.98 WHIP is currently 2nd all-time to Chase Wilson who set the single-season record in the 1990 inaugural season at 0.96
• He also will crush the single-season OAVG. His .182 is 19 pts ahead of the previous record set by Chase Wilson in 1990 of .201
• His OSLG (.338) and OOPS (.603) are both 2nd all-time to Wilson's 1990 season as well.

And with 9 games left the following races are ones to watch
PL California

1. San Jose 84-68
2. San Francisco 82-70

PL Metro

1. Brooklyn 79-73
2. Pittsburgh 78-74
3. Philadelphia 76-77

PL Southwest

1. Phoenix 87-64
2. Mexico 87-65

In the CL New England is +5 over Providence, +6 over the NY Empire and Lexington leads Charlotte by 6 as well.

In the only WC race, Providence is +1 on the Empire, +1.5 on Dallas, and 4 up on both San Antonio and Charlotte.
We will face the winner of the WC game.

Andy Adrian has already set the single-season SB record with 56. He just passed Joe Tighe's 2014 total of 55. Joe Tighe's 46 this year is the 3rd highest total ever.

[gehrig38]

• RECORD: 1-5
• STANDINGS: 106-53 +21.5
• RUNS SCORED: 914 (1st)
• RUNS AGAINST: 570 (1st)
• DEFENSIVE EFF: .707 (1st)
• ZONE RATING: +32.8 (2nd)
• ERRORS: 66 (1st)
• OWNERS MOOD: Happy
• FAN INTEREST: 88
• POWER RANKINGS: 2nd

THIS WEEK: OFF DAY 3 @ Green Bay (64-87) 3 @ San Antonio (79-73)

9/21: OFF DAY
9/22:AUS 8 GB 0 Miller (W) 7 IP 3 H 10 K (17-6 3.82) 1-2 R Adrian 3-3 2B (46) 2 SB (58) R RBI (95) Dziedzic HR (22) 2 RBI (77) Nolasco HR (28) 2 R RBI (98)
9/23: GB 8 AUS 4 Pierce (L) 4.1 IP 4 H 3 BB 0 K 6 ER (5-3 3.77) Adrian HR (23) RBI (96) Nolasco HR (29) 2 RBI (100) Dziedzic HR (23) 2 R RBI (78)
9/24: GB 3 AUS 0 Lach (L) CG 5 H 6 K 4 BB 2 ER 4 pitchers (GB) combine on a 3-hitter
9/25: SAN 3 AUS 2 Holifield (SAN) ND 9 IP 8 H 7 K 2 ER Forney ND 6 IP 10 K 2 ER Archer 2-4 HR (27) RBI (125)
9/26: SAN 8 AUS 2 Steele (L) 2 IP 5 H 2 BB 6 ER (17-6 3.93) Robinson (SAN) CG 8 H 5 K 2 ER (16-10 4.14) Nolasco 3-4 R Archer HR (28) RBI (126)
9/27: SAN 5 AUS 2 Miller (L) 5.1 IP 7 H 2 K 4 BB 5 ER 1-2 2B (5) RBI (10) .306 for the season (17-7 3.94) Sullivan (SAN) (W) 8 IP 5 H 4 K 1 ER Roth (SAN) SV (48)

NEXT WEEK: OFF DAY 3 @ Houston END OF REGULAR SEASON

ABL HAPPENINGS:
9/21:

• Jeremy Daniels (LEX) fanned 10 en route to a 4-hit CG SHO to beat Memphis 4-0.
• Brett Gerber (MEX) tossed a 3-hitter, fanned 12 to beat Chicago and move to 13-2 2.61 on the year.

9/22:

• Brendon Biernacki (BUF) fanned 16 New England Patriots in a 6-2 win 5 days after he shut out Providence and struck out 18.
• Jimmy Williams (LA) evened his record at 10-10 4.30 with a 15K 4-hitter to beat San Diego 9-2

9/23:

• Jason Keeton (DET) whiffed 11, walked 2 and allowed just 2 hits in a 2-0 win over Montreak. He's 15-10 2.56 on the year
• Cameron Mears (PHI) threw a 4-hitter to beat Pittsburgh 5-0 and move to 10-15 4.73
• Brett Goetsch (SJ) tossed his 4th consecutive CG and his 2nd straight CG SHO beating San Francisco 3-0 with a 3-hitter. He fanned 5 and did not walk a batter to move to 14-11 4.41
• Greg Hartzler (BAL) upped his record to a league-best 18-4 2.40 fanning 15 Chicago hitters and allowing just 3 hits over 8.2 IP.

9/24:

• Wayne Noe (PHX) tossed his 2nd straight CG SHO beating Mexico 3-0 with a 5 hit 7 K performance to move to 15-11 3.60

9/27:

• 25-year old P Brendon Biernacki (BUF) set a new ABL record by fanning 19 Providence hitters and amassing a record 53 K's over his past 3 starts. He is 3-0 26 IP 53 K 7 BB and 7 H allowed. The 19 K's were a franchise record and 1 shy of the single-game record set by Lexington's Tomohiro Masuda.

RUSTLER NEWS:
Just when you think you've figured it out. In the season's final weeks I am resting and playing the everyday players sparingly, at least not full games. That led to a 1-5 week and it looks like barring a sweep we will not set a new single-season W record.
That's actually ok as long as we enter the post-season healthy.

PATRIOT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Sean Hoffman 1B (SD) 8-17 5 HR 10 RBI
COLONIAL LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Nick Mauzey CF (HOU) 14-28 5 RBI

And with 9 games left the following races are ones to watch (copied from last week with updates.
PL California

1. San Jose 84-68 (lost 3 straight)
2. San Francisco 82-70 (won 3 straight)

They are now tied with 3 games remaining. SJ plays LA, SF plays SD

PL Metro

1. Brooklyn 79-73
2. Pittsburgh 78-74 (won 4 straight)
3. Philadelphia 76-77

• Brooklyn and Pittsburgh are tied at 82-76 with Philadelphia 3 games out.

PL Southwest

1. Phoenix 87-64
2. Mexico 87-65 (won 3 straight)

• Mexico now leads the division by 2.5 games with 3 to play.
• Mexico is in Denver with Phoenix in Las Vegas.

In the CL New England is +5 over Providence, +6 over the NY Empire and Lexington leads Charlotte by 6 as well.
New England and Lexington both clinched this week

In the only WC race, Providence is +1 on the Empire, +1.5 on Dallas, and 4 up on both San Antonio and Charlotte.
New York has gone 7-3 to Providence and Dallas' 4-6 and now lead by 1 game. Providence is 1 out, Dallas and San Antonio are both 2 back.
In a dream scenario for schedule makers, New York and Providence play 4 head to head while Dallas and San Antonio do the same.

[gehrig38]

THIS WEEK: OFF DAY 3 @ Houston END OF REGULAR SEASON

9/28: OFF DAY
New York beats Providence while Dallas beats San Antonio. NY and Providence are now tied with Dallas 1GB and San Antonio 2.
San Jose and San Francisco remain tied as both lose while Pittsburgh wins and Brooklyn loses to put the Miners 1 game up.
9/29: HOU 7 AUS 2 Pierce (L) 5.1 IP 5 K 4 BB 4 H 4 ER (5-4 4.02) Stodder (HOU) CG 9 H 6 K 2 ER (13-11 4.14) 2-4 2B (2) R Orozco 3-4 Adrian 2-4 2B (48) 3B (4) R RBI (97)
9/30: AUS 11 HOU 6 Jungles 2-5 HR (2) 2 R 2 RBI (3) Hanna HR (14) 3 R 2 RBI (64) Comerford 2-3 2B (29) HR (16) R 4 RBI (60) Adrian 1-2 2 BB R RBI (98) SB (59) Antonelli (W) 5 IP 6 H 5 ER (3-1 2.47) 1-2
10/1: AUS 8 HOU 5 Hawker (W) 6 IP 7 H 3 ER Godinez SV (11) Adrian 3-3 HR (24) R 3 RBI (101) Dziedzic 2-4 HR (24) 3 RBI (81) R Gallo 2-4 HR (3) R RBI (4) White (HOU) 5-5 2B (37) 2 HR (31) 2 R 3 RBI (118)

NEXT WEEK: POSTSEASON BEGINS


PATRIOT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Nagahisa Takagi 2B (DEN) .426-6-14 20 R
COLONIAL LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Andy Adrian (AUS) .376-5-18 17 R
PATRIOT LEAGUE PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Jeremy Stuever (BAL) 5-0 1.08 41.2 IP 22 H 41 K 5 BB
COLONIAL LEAGUE PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Ryan Logan (BUF) 5-0 2.54 39 IP 46 K
PATRIOT LEAGUE ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Zach Bernhardt RF (BAL) .267-8-24
COLONIAL LEAGUE ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Cedric LeConte (LEX) 4-0 2.57

[gehrig38]

Providence has to start ace Rich Whittaker in the Wild Card game which means if they do win he won't be available for the 1st two of our series.
Larry Peet (PRO) homers twice and drives in 4 to back Whittaker's 7.1 IP 3 ER outing and Chris Haske saves the game as Providence beats Dallas 4-3.

[gehrig38]

• Lexington vs New England
• Brooklyn vs Baltimore
• San Francisco vs Mexico
• Providence vs Austin

• Mexico is the defending champions.
• Baltimore, San Francisco, New England and Austin are all looking for their 1st title.
• Lexington has won 4, Providence has won 3 Mexico and Brooklyn have each won 1.

GAME 1
Austin-Steve Forney (17-6 3.32) vs Providence-Juan Esquerra (10-5 4.60)

Neither SP is sharp as Forney gets a 1-0 lead and immediately surrenders it back in the 3rd.
In the bottom half, a last-second lineup change bears fruit.
Jeff Hanna hammered LHP this year as did Dave Nolasco. Nolasco hasn't been faring well vs LHP lately so the swap was made and Hanna drilled a 3R HR in the bottom of the 3rd to make it 4-1.
Forney comes out in the 6th after surrendering the lead and Laskey, Antonelli, Lytle, Scott, and then Godinez go 3.1 IP 2 H 5 K 0 R and the game is 4-4 into the 9th. None other than Chris Haske is on the mound for the Black Sox. Becker K's to lead it off and then Haske proceeds to walk Reyes on a full count, Adrian on a 3-1 count, and then Nick Archer on 4 pitches.
Tommy Dziedzic hits a walk-off sac fly to win it!
Austin 5 Providence 4
POTG-Jeff Hanna 1-3 HR (1) 3 RBI (4)
Godinez (W) Haske (L)
Austin leads the series 1-0

At New England Bob Shrader goes 62 IP 3 H 1 ER 6 K and Mario Luna's 2R HR is all they would get in a 2-1 win over the Patriots.
Lexington leads the series 1-0

[gehrig38]

Chris Lach (15-6 3.31) vs Jake Byers (12-13 4.02)
Lach gets hit early and is out after 4.1 IP 11 H 7 ER and Jake Byers goes 9, fanning 11, walking none in a 7-1 rout. Jeff Hanna hits his 2nd HR.
POTG-Jake Byers 9 IP 7 H 11 K 1 ER 1-4 2B R
Byers (W) Lach (L)
Series even 1-1

Some insane pitching
Jonathan Ray (MEX) goes 9, strikes out 16 and loses 2-1 to San Francisco on an Aaron Chisholm 2R HR. Xi-Li Au-Yong goes 7 IP 10 H 6 K 0 BB 1 R for the win.
SF leads the series 1-0

In Baltimore, Brooklyn Ace Dakota Eddleman throws a 4-hitter and the Blackhearts take game 1 2-0.
Brooklyn leads the series 1-0

In New England the Minutemen pound Tomohiro Masuda for 7 ER in just 3 IP and take game 2 9-3.
Series even at 1-1

[gehrig38]

• San Francisco gets a CG SHO from Danny Sanchez who allowed, or 'scattered' 10 hits and fanned 5 in a 4-0 win.
• SF leads the series 2-0

• In Baltimore Jonn Jones (BAL) goes 7-4-1-1-2-7 out dueling Brooklyn's Allen Gies who went 8-4-3-3-6-6 in a 3-1 Blackbirds win to even the series.
• Series tied 1-1

[gehrig38]

Dave Steele (17-6 3.93) vs Kyle Jill (16-12 3.45)
Son of a biscuit. Kyle Jill goes the distance on a 5-hit 7 K CG SHO.
Steele goes 7 IP 6 H 2 K 2 ER but the offense can't do a damn thing.
Providence 2 Austin 0
POTG-Kyle Jill 9 IP 7 K 5 H 0 R 1-3 R
Jill (W) Steele (L)
Providence leads the series 2-1
(and man I am sick to my stomach at the thought of another 1st round exit. I need the offense to wake up!)

• In Lexington Minuteman Romeo Pirelli hit a tie-breaking solo HR in the top of the 9th to give New England a 6-5 win.
• New England leads the series 2-1

[gehrig38]

Dave Miller (17-7 3.94) vs Rich Whittaker (16-11 3.74) oh the irony.
Miller goes 7 IP 6 H 6 K 2 ER and Ranan Laskey goes 2 perfect innings with 3 K's to beat Whittaker who went 6-7-5-5-3-8 in the loss. Scott Comerford was 2-3 2 RBI and Miller went 1-3 RBI with Nick Archer homering (1).
POTG-Dave Miller 7-6-2-2-2-6
Miller (W) Whittaker (L) Laskey (SV)
Series tied 2-2

• Mark Holmes (SF) goes 7 and gives up just 2 hits as the Bears take game 3 5-4.
• SF leads the series 3-0

• Brooklyn jumped out to an 8-0 lead after 5 and went on to win 9-6.
• Brooklyn leads the series 2-1

• Former Rustler Travis Brooks went 7 IP allowing just 4 hits as New England beat Lexington 4-1.
• New England leads the series 3-1

[gehrig38]

Steve Forney (17-6 3.32) vs Juan Esquerra (10-5 4.60)
Esquerra didn't allow a hit until the 4th and that was back-to-back solo HR's by Hanna (3) and Archer (2).
Forney took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the 9th but a leadoff walk and Nate Scott came on. He hit the only batter he faced before Jorge Godinez came on to close it out. An error and SB later and Bob Sheffer ties the game with a 2 out single.
Dave Nolasco comes on to PH to lead off the 10th and drills what would end up being a game-winning homer.
POTG-Steve Forney 8 IP 11 K 6 H 2 ER
Austin leads the series 3-2

• In San Francisco, 2B Brian Loon hit a series-winning walk off HR in the bottom of the 10th.
• San Francisco sweeps Mexico.
• SERIES MVP-Aaron Chisholm 2 HR 6 RBI

• Lexington got another huge outing from Bob Shrader and held on for a 4-2 win
• New England leads the series 3-2

• Brooklyn had just 4 hits but 2 were HR's, 1 by Alex Ochoa and C Chris Diment's 2R HR was the winner as they beat the Blackbirds 3-1.
• Brooklyn leads the series 3-1

[gehrig38]

• Greg Hartzler (BAL) went 5, fanning 10 and allowing 3 runs and Baltimore got 3 HR's in its 9 hits to beat Brooklyn 6-4
• Brooklyn leads the series 3-2

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Chris Lach (15-6 3.31) vs Jake Byers (12-13 4.02)
Game 2 rematch of what turned out to be G2 mismatch. Need big outing from Lach.
Lach was not sharp, again. But a 1st inning 2R HR from Nick Archer got things started and that held until the 6th when Chris Whitten hit his 2nd HR of the game and series. Lach walked 5 and K'd 7 in 5 innings. In the bottom of the 6th Steve Comerford, starting for his ability to shut down the run game, singled with 1 out to put runners on 1st and 2nd. Skyler Joshua punched out and Steve Bradbury made up for a season lost to the DL when he drilled a 2 out PH 3R HR to put Austin up 6-4. Scott, Lytle, Hobart got it to the 8th before Ranan Laskey came on. He managed to wiggle out of a 2 out jam in the 9th to seal the win and the series. Byers went 5.2 IP 10 K 4 BB 6 ER in the loss.
POTG-Chris Whitten
Scott (W) Byers (L) Laskey (SV)
Series MVP Jeff Hanna .429 3 HR 5 RBI 4 R

• Tomohiro Masuda redeemed himself going 7.2 IP allowing 2 ER as Lexington evened the series at 3 apiece.
• There's no chance I am getting to a World Series without Lexington being in the way.....

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• Todd Bean gave up 2 over 6 and Bob Giombetti homered as the Rebels downed New England 3-2 to advance to the LCS.
• Series MVP Bob Giombetti .393 HR 3 RBI 5 R

• Baltimore Got 7 innings of 2 R 9 K ball from Jon Jones and Jose Guerra hit a tie-breaking solo HR in the bottom of the 7th to send the series to a 7th game.

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• Jose Hernandez allowed 3 hits over 7 and struck out 4 as Brooklyn beat Baltimore 4-1 to advance to the LCS.
• Series MVP Ben Davis (BRK) .259 2 HR 7 RBI

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Corey Furr RF (SAN) 19,000,000
Jason Keeton SP (DET) 16,800,000
Cameron Mears SP (PHI) 14,200,000
John Del Bianco SP (DET) 14,000,000
Jorge Hernandez CF (SAN) 13,900,000

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1. Corey Furr RF (SAN) 19,000,000
2. Jason Keeton SP (DET) 16,800,000
3. Cameron Mears SP (PHI) 14,200,000
4. John Del Bianco SP (DET) 14,000,000
5. Jorge Hernandez CF (SAN) 13,900,000