Los Angeles Leopards (SVMLB)

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (79-35, .692, 1st NL West) @ Las Vegas Outlaws (52-62, .456, 6th NL West)
The woefully inept, ill-equipped, and under-manned, Las Vegas Outlaws are shuffling along aimlessly in 2084… some Romero-esque zombie shuffle as they relentlessly chase mediocrity. Their offense is okay – perhaps best described as ho-hum – and ranked 5th in the NL while their pitching, if you could call it that, has been terrible, ranked dead last in our league with little hope of rising above their station. They’ve fallen on hard times, been caught trying to tilt the pinball machine, have been blacklisted at most casinos for attempting to count cards, and, try as they might, they’ll likely never land on a jackpot at the rate their front office is going. It’s all just poor decision after poor decision and throwing good money after bad. I just hope none of our guys gets hurt over these next three.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP L. Duarte (10-3, 3.25 ERA) vs RHP M. Martin (8-10, 4.59 ERA)
LHP L. Álvarez (11-7, 3.68 ERA) vs RHP P. Taylor (6-12, 4.62 ERA)
RHP H. Vaughn (7-5, 3.88 ERA) vs RHP R. Borovský (6-10, 5.06 ERA)

#115: Win, 7-4… Ethan finished 2-for-4 with a 2-run triple and a run and kicked off what would become a 4-run inning in the top of the 3rd that put this one out of reach just as we were getting started. A double and a homer for Luca, he’d drive two in like Ethan, a homer for Mason Click, his 11th, and a stolen base from Benavidez would round things out for us offensively while Leonardo Duarte secured his 11th win after giving us 6-inning of hard scrabble work.

#116: Loss, 2-3… Vegas’ 3B Shane Fukumoto drove two in during the bottom of the 5th which proved to be our undoing here as the boys could only muster 1 run during the top of the 9th after opening the game with a 1st inning solo shot courtesy of Humberto Benavidez. Larimel takes the loss as each of the Outlaws’ 3 runs were charged to his account, we fanned 14 times as a club, including 3 each for Oh Hong and Leo Bullock, and looked on in disgust as Dan Baker got caught with his hand in the honeypot trying to steal second. Not our finest hour, losing to a club as poorly constructed as these guys…

#117: Loss, 6-8… Oof. Done in by Sin City’s finest here as Bill Cox took Hunter Vaughn yard for a 3-run blast during the bottom of the 4th that would chase him from the game after just 3.1-innings and put our boys in a hole they’d not be able to dig out of the rest of the way. Vaughn is saddled with his first loss as a Leopard after allowing 7 earned in this one – he’d performed admirably up until now, here’s hoping his psyche will recover and this brutal dismissal in Las Vegas won’t inform the remainder of his season. In other, no good, terrible news… Oh Hong was injured in this one after being hit by a pitch – Our Team Doctor – Hidetoshi Hasegawa – tells me it’s a fractured finger that will require, at least, 5-weeks of recovery.

So, as Oh Hong is added to the IL, we’ve decided to bring 25yo 1B Frank Garcia up from Compton – he can man the bag admirably – he’s a PICKING MACHINE – but can’t hit a lick (though when he does connect, it generally leaves the yard).

Record: 80-37, .683, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll next travel to San Diego, home of some of the best sashimi I’ve ever had (not the best, just some of…), to get after it against the Skipjacks.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (80-37, .683, 1st NL West) @ San Diego Skipjacks (59-58, .504, 4th NL West)
Still running in place, operating in the middle of the pack, and looking for an opening to make their move, the Skipjacks are a solidly built club forced to ply their trade in a division full of them. They’re solid on both sides of the ball – 5th in Offense, 8th in Pitching – but need some improvements everywhere if they are to become the contender/dynasty their new owner promised they would become after moving the club from San Jose back in 2081. Still, they’re better than Las Vegas and we just got smoked by those guys, so, given our recent form, we may have our work cut out for us here.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP O. Arce (12-2, 2.27 ERA) vs RHP A. Barrientos (4-8, 3.63 ERA)
RHP C. Arnett (7-11, 4.11 ERA) vs RHP W. Felix (3-6, 3.44 ERA)
LHP L. Duarte (11-3, 3.23 ERA) vs RHP W. Doles (8-7, 5.63 ERA)

#118: Loss, 2-3 (14)… We’ve now lost 3 in a row, our longest losing streak since May, as the Skipjacks welcomed us to Paradise with a long, defensive slog where they’d lull us to sleep before striking during the bottom of the 14th to put us out of our misery. A run-scoring single from CF Archer Divers did us in as we had to trot out 6 total pitchers in this one with two more games in the set to go.

#119: Win, 5-4… we’d win it on a late, top of the 8th solo shot from Otto, his 25th, and get homers from Leo Bullock and Hernando Benavidez in this one to round out the offense. Arnett was okay in the start, going five while allowing 4, Owen Girolamo gets the win in relief, his 3rd such feat, and, as ever, our closer, Max Egner, shut the door with authority on 17 total pitches during the bottom of the 9th. We’ve afforded ourselves an opportunity to win the rubber match tomorrow. I’ve told the boys to avoid the San Diego night life – let’s hope they heard me.

#120: Loss, 2-8… San Diego arrived on our shores, stormed the castle, and razed everything in their path as we lose our second set in a row in the most brutal fashion possible… SP Wes Doles improved to 9-7 after holding us to 6 hits and a run, and 5 different San Diego batsmen drove runs in as they hit 4 doubles and a DING DONG as a club scoring 8 runs while leaving 9 more stranded. I guess the boys did not heed my call to avoid going out last night. For shame.

Record: 81-39, .675, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll head home to Los Angeles where the Austin Grackles will be waiting for us to do battle over the weekend. Let’s hope we can get back to our winning ways and quickly.

[pauwoo]

Austin Grackles (62-58, .517, 3rd NL West) @ Los Angeles Leopards (81-39, .675, 1st NL West)
After we suffered that indignity against the Skipjacks in San Diego, dropping two of three to a division rival, the Austin Grackles saw their lead over them reduced to just one game. And, as they are currently in a battle with SD for the last wild card slot in our league, to say that this set may end up being muy importante would be something of an understatement. Plainly said – Austin needs to keep us on our heels here, take advantage of our suspect form, and find a way to land some bad ones on us in our house should they want to solidify their standing in the National League.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP L. Álvarez (11-8, 3.74 ERA) vs RHP A. Adcock (9-11, 3.97 ERA)
RHP H. Vaughn (7-6, 4.33 ERA) vs RHP W. Peña (6-7, 4.80 ERA)
LHP O. Arce (12-2, 2.31 ERA) vs RHP A. Bundy (7-3, 3.09 ERA)

#121: Win, 6-5… Back on that good stuff after some late game heroics from Oh Hong replacement, Frank Garcia, who was the walk off hero in this one, smashing a dramatic solo homer, his 1st in the majors, to win the game. Max Egner took us on a bit of a journey at the end – he’d get credited with the win thanks to Frank after allowing 2-runs to score during the top of the 9th inning. Otto put out his 27th as well – which ties him with Oh Hong at 5th on the HR leaderboard where Tom Franzone leads Mexico City’s Satoru Ono by 9 jacks at 41 HRs so far this season. Tom’s trend has fallen to 55 tho… so, that’s not awesome, we need him to pick up the pace, DTD status be damned.

#122: Win, 8-0… Ah, yes, I remember these guys – this is the club I know & love. 2-run blast from Otto, 3-run TANK from Benavidez , and everything else just icing on the cake. Win for Hunter, his 4th with us & 6th overall, after holding Austin scoreless for 7-innings, and T-Rex was called on to close the show and credited with a 2-inning, 28-pitch save.

#123: Win, 7-1… Tinsle Town, Title Town, Sweep City, USA… call our home what you will, but, after losing two straight sets, the boys are back in town and dressed to kill in our Sunday alternate kits – Luca did the dirt offensively with a 2-run double during the 6 and his 6 home run, a solo shot, during the 8th, while Orlando Arce turning in a 6.1-inning masterpiece with 4 K’s to enter his 13th win into the permanent record…


Elsewhere: Seattle’s CF Bill Scot Bishop, a 22yo drafted 6th overall out of California just one short season ago, is already making a low-key splash in the bigs, going 4-for-5 with a 3B, HR, 2 RBI, and 2 runs for the Metros as the dispatched the Vancouver Mounties by a score of 6-5 in the Emerald City. With the win Skedaddle finds themselves a scant 2 games behind Vancouver for 3rd in their division and 2.5 games out of the last wildcard slot.

Record: 84-39, .682, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll take a day off and await the arrival of the Mexico City Jaguars for a 3-game set in our house. It’s a very, very, very fine house.

[pauwoo]

Mexico City Jaguars (69-54, .561, 2nd NL West) @ Los Angeles Leopards (84-39, .683, 1st NL West)
I could pontificate needlessly, in my confusing, altogether unstructured way about Mexico City, their performance so far this year, their various statistical rankings, and, how, in any other division, they’d have a real shot at ruling the roost. But… I won’t. Instead, I’ll just show you the league-wide power ranking as a means to say, hey, these guys are a pretty good, better-than-solid ballclub who are capable of giving any team fits…

Teams (Total Points, Tendency):
1) Los Angeles Leopards (127.9, o)
2) Charlotte Imperials (110.2, o)
3) Mexico City Jaguars (103.0, o)
4) New York Sluggers (103.0, ++)
5) Dallas Chaparrals (98.0, -)

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP C. Arnett (7-11, 4.24 ERA) vs LHP O. Sum (6-7, 4.63 ERA)
LHP L. Duarte (11-4, 3.52 ERA) vs RHP P. Torres (13-5, 3.01 ERA)
LHP L. Álvarez (11-8, 3.71 ERA) vs LHP H. Cartmel (7-9, 4.89 ERA)

#124: Loss, 0-2... silenced by Mexico City’s suspect staff with Owen Sum picking up win #7 after allowing just three hits, weak little dribblers one & all, in 6.1-innings of work – he’d get the nod as the man of the match for forcing ~45k of our hometown faithful to look on in disappointment as he sliced and diced our lineup like an A-grade sashimi chef in the heart of Tokyo. 0-for-3, 3 K day for Otto too – so, all those kids in the stands wearing his journey likely went home in their undershirt after tonight’s debacle.

#125: Win, 5-1… Hernando’s 2-run single to centerfield would represent the game-winning runs as we went up during the bottom of the fourth and wouldn’t look back from there – Ethan, Mason, and Dan Baker each contributed an RBI to the cause, Otto swiped a bag and scored, we fielded a crispy Blasko-Baker-Garcia double play, and Leonardo Duarte managed to secure his 12th win after turning in 6-innings of 4-hit, 1-run work with 6 Ks and 3 free passes.

#126: Win, 5-4… a run behind, down to our last out in the bottom of the 9th, so-so hitter, Dan Blasko, at the plate, 25yo closer, Jaden Davis, on the bump and our boy is in the hole, 0-2. Davis served up a well-placed fastball that Blasko turned in to a walk off, 2-run double to electrify the hometown faithful sending them out into the night on a win. Two doubles for Blasko tonight, another for Mason Click that plated a run, and Frank Garcia hit his first major league homerun to round out the offense. We trotted out 6 hurlers in this one, got the series win (we like that), but are looking a little thin in the pen as we welcome the Salt Lake Alpines to our park starting tomorrow night.


Elsewhere: Palmer Parker, putting it down something fierce for the Detroit Motors after spending last season in Seattle, had himself something of a top-notch day, securing 5 hits in his clubs 11-6 win over the AL East Division leading Charlotte Imperials. Palmer Parker struck out in the 1st, singled in the 3rd, singled in the 5th, hit an RBI single in the 6th, singled in the 8th, walked in the 10th and hit a GRAND SLAM off Cameron Bennett in the 11th. Currently, Parker is batting .296 and has collected 17 home runs, 60 RBIs, .347 OBP and scored 68 runs.

Record: 86-40, .682, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll welcome those vanilla ice cream loving, band of goody two shoes to our part when the Salt Lake Alpines saunter into town for a 3-game set.

[pauwoo]

Salt Lake Alpines (69-57, .548, t-1st AL West) @ Los Angeles Leopards (86-40, .683, 1st NL West)
The representative from Utah has the floor… for the first time in, oh, I don’t know, forever, it seems like the Salt Lake Alpines may have something significant to say. After not making the playoffs since 2078, this seems like it could be their year – winning at a 55% clip, outscoring their opponents by 44 runs in aggregate, on an 8-2 run over their last 10, and flexing a tip-top 37-26 record on the road, the Alpines are built to derail clubs like ours, to catch us looking, and to put us down before we’ve even realized that the fight has begun. Here, it’s all hands up and chin tucked as we attempt to win our 7th series in 8 tries this August.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP H. Vaughn (8-6, 4.07 ERA) vs RHP W. Allen (6-9, 5.19 ERA)
LHP O. Arce (13-2, 2.27 ERA) vs RHP R. Halbur (4-10, 3.62 ERA)
RHP C. Arnett (7-12, 4.19 ERA) vs LHP B. McElheny (15-3, 2.16 ERA)

#127: Loss, 2-3... The Alpines were patient, content to hang back until an opening presented itself during the top of the 8th when Owen Girolimo served up a meatball to Mason Duryea who put his 19th double into play and brought two around in the process, all but putting this one out of our reach after we’d been hypnotized by all the blandness emanating from Salt Lake’s dugout. Just two extra base hits and a swiped bag for the club in this one… it’s almost as if our squad forgot we were playing a baseball game.

#128: Loss, 8-3... The Alpines waited in the wings again – putting 5 runs on the board during the top of the 9th to set our heads spinning such that there was nothing we could put together to do about it during the bottom of the frame… Not a lot in the way of highlights for our team as these Salt Lake Alpines, former also rans of the American League, have successfully waltzed into Los Angeles and cribbed a set off the best team in baseball.

#129: Loss, 3-4 (14)… Good grief, undone by Salt Lake, late, once again – this time it would be an Andy Oransky run-scoring single against the 6th of 7 pitchers we’d trot out to the bump in this one. So, not only do we fail to win our 7th series of the month but are also swept for the first time, and at home no less. Rough stretch for the club as we head into a day before closing out the month in NYC against the Sluggers.

Record: 86-43, .667, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll attempt to get this train back on the rails in NYC against the 66-62 Sluggers.

[pauwoo]

First… RF Dalton Burch is back from the IL, finally, and will be rejoining the big club with 2B Oliver Koloski being DFA’s and placed on waivers. I fully expect someone to grab his – he’s dynamite in the field and good enough at the plate for most clubs.

Los Angeles Leopards (86-43, .667, 1st NL West) @ New York Sluggers (66-62, .515, 3rd AL East)
New York is in the thick of it, currently in the cake, clinging to a ½ game lead over the Vancouver Mounties for the final WC slot, and a scant 3.5 behinds their most hated divisional rival, the Boston Shamrocks. And, after finishing 2nd in their division over the last couple of years, with a very restrictive, division winner takes all, playoff qualifier, were not able to capitalize on their hard work… this season, while perhaps a step or two behind those clubs, they have a shot at getting into the party to reward their die hard fanbase for sticking with them year after year. Of course, if they want to catch Boston, to make their move, they’ll need to wait until after this set because the squad is hungry, pissed at our misfortune in that last series against SLC, and out for blood to close out the month of August. Or, at least that’s what we were telling ourselves on the flight to New York.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP L. Duarte (12-4, 3.44 ERA) vs RHP N. Holmberg (10-9, 3.75 ERA)
LHP L. Álvarez (11-8, 3.65 ERA) vs LHP N. Valadez (5-3, 3.88 ERA)
RHP H. Vaughn (8-6, 3.94 ERA) vs RHP R. Valentine (10-9, 4.07 ERA)

#130: Win, 6-5… we’d take a page out of SLC’s book in this one, waiting until the top of the 7th to make our move, putting 5-runs on the board starting with a 2-run HR courtesy of Frank Garcia who now has 2 of those as a major leaguer. Rad Taylor earns the win in relief, improving to 8-8 overall, after Duarte was lifted early, allowing 2 earned and 3 unearned due to two separate errors from SS Dan Baker who now has 5 of those in 34 starts.


Elsewhere: Mexico City’s Satoru Ono went 3-for-4 with a HR, 4 RBI, a run, and a walk to lead his club to a 9-4 dismantling of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He now has 33 TANKS so far this season which is good enough to place him at 2nd on the home run leaderboard, just 8 behind our leader, Tom Franzone, who’s still at 41, a number he’s been sitting on since August 6th when he put two out against the Seattle Metros.

#131: Win, 11-2… 17 hits, 5 homers for the club including two for Otto and one for Ethan, 2 SAC BUNTS, and 11 runs despite leaving 8 runners stranded? Sign me up! With this win we’ve made sure to win our final set of the month and, should we earn another victory tomorrow, we could go out on a sweep (after taking one of those on the chin our last time out).

#132: Win, 3-0… Another sweep, this one to end the month, and in the most satisfying way possible, by shutout… 3-for-3 and an RBI from Otto on a triple, his 4th this year, 5 swiped bags in total (3 for Burch (welcome back misplaced son!) and 2 for Otto), and win #5 for Hunter Vaughn who couldn’t be fitting in with our club any better thus far. Gotta love it!



Record: 89-43, .674, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll get September kicked off with a set in New Orleans against the Gators.

[pauwoo]

Some notes, updates, and suchlike…

First, the standings as of September 1st


Our team batting…


Our pitching…


Roster Expansion… So, on September 1st, as always, the rosters of our league expand from 25 to 28. This year, the fellas who were lucky enough to get called up were as follows:

Recalled SP Samuel Lane (46/46) from 3A Compton
Recalled RF Andrew Beck (49/49) from 3A Compton
Recalled 3B Sandro Brincat (51/54) from 3A Compton

League-wide Hitting & Pitching leaders are attached.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (89-43, .674, 1st NL West) @ New Orleans Gators (62-70, .469, 3rd NL East)
New Orleans, as if put in some sort of nefarious trance at the start of the season, has been sleepwalking through most of the 2084 campaign, unable to even muster the strength to put forth an effort good enough to make them a .500 ballclub. Their problem? Or, problems as it were, is their defense where they’ve committed more errors than any other team in the league, and their offense where categorical rankings like being 12th in HRs, 11th in OPS & wOBA, and 10th in AVG and WAR, have their order ranked 9th in the NL overall. They meet us in their park on a 3-game skid, having been swept by the Vancouver Mounties in British Columbia their last time out, and are 5-5 for their last 10. Here, we’ll do our level best to help them continue that trend…

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP O. Arce (13-2, 2.26 ERA) vs RHP K. Voll (7-10, 3.13 ERA)
RHP C. Arnett (7-12, 4.22 ERA) vs RHP J. Haugh (0-1, 6.43 ERA)
LHP L. Duarte (12-4, 3.47 ERA) vs RHP T. Abraham (7-5, 3.83 ERA)

#133: Loss, 4-5… our 2-run rally in the 8th came up short as Kevin Lentz’s bases-clearing double all but did us in during the bottom of the 3rd with his 2-run double during the bottom of the 5th giving them all the cushion they’d need to maintain their lead. Orlando, who gave up all 5 of New Orleans’ runs, takes the loss, falling to 13-3 on the year, and Dalton Burch’s 3 K’s served as a good description of how well our bats performed in this one.

#134: Win, 3-0 (10)… It was nothing doing for either club through 9-innings, but in the 10th, Hernando Benavidez took an opportunity to shine, hitting a 3-run MOONSHOT to break this one wide open and, ultimately, earn us the hard-fought victory. Great, 8-inning, 1-hitter turned in by Chris Arnett with T-Rex Stiles being gifted the win in this one after pitching the bottom of the 9th. Save #45 for Max Egner too – on 15 total pitches. I do love having a great closer.

#135: Loss, 5-6 (10)… It was New Orleans’ turn to dig deep in this one, winning it, in extras, on a Christian Dougherty run-scoring single during the bottom of the 10th, thereby getting themselves back on the winning track, kicking off September on a positive note, and sending us away with our collective tails tucked firmly between our legs. We were in it… but, alas, Max Egner, that bastion of consistency, gave up the ghost and dropped to 9-2 with 45 saves as a result. I mean, it’s no fun, but I’ll take that kind of season from my closer all day.

Note: Our 3A club, the CITY OF COMPTON Raiders, have clinched a playoff berth with 11-games left in their regular season.

Record: 90-45, .667, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll head home, take a day of rest, and then get back after it, in our park, against the visiting Miami Herons.

[pauwoo]

Miami Herons (58-77, .430, 6th NL East) @ Los Angeles Leopards (90-45, .667, 1st NL West)
Tied with Brooklyn at 58-77 in the NL East and in a bad way, it’s hard to believe that any member for the Miami Herons baseball club is playing for anything more than pride or their next contract. I mean, I’d put the guys right next to Toronto (57-78) and Las Vegas (61-74) as worst club in the majors. We’ll see what they’ll do with the money freed up by McGuire’s expiring contract during the offseason – they'll have some funds in the kitty, and, if the front office can shake its indifference, could make some real noise in free agency.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP L. Álvarez (12-8, 3.52 ERA) vs RHP G. Doyle (3-1, 3.50 ERA)
RHP H. Vaughn (9-6, 3.73 ERA) vs LHP R. McGuire (13-4, 3.23 ERA)
LHP O. Arce (13-3, 2.50 ERA) vs RHP D. Herrington (5-4, 4.37 ERA)

#136: Win, 3-1… Larimel earned the win after turning in 8-innings of 5-hit, 1-run work that included 9 K’s, Mason Click brought in two on a double, we fielded a crispy, Baker-Blasko-Garcia double play, and survived a ill-fated Herons rally attempt during the bottom of the 9th as they put runners on 1st and 2nd before Egner was able to dial it in for his 46th save.


Elsewhere: Mexico City’s SP Patrick Torres tossed a complete game, 4 hit, 9 K, shutout to lead his club to a 1-0 victory over the Montreal Alouettes in Quebec. This one marks his 3rd CG shutout so far this season… and, if you’re counting, his 8th complete game. Which is made wilder by the fact that no one else in all of the majors has more than… ONE.

#137: Win, 5-0… Mason Click’s 2-run dinger during the bottom of the 4th would serve as our opening salvo and game-winning runs as Hunter Vaughn (win #6 as a Leopard), Rad Taylor, and Sherwin Lane combined for the shutout in the 2nd of this 3-game set. Ethan went 0-for-5 in this one and has now officially earned that little snowflake icon next to his name. Get that man a coat!

#138: Win, 12-2… 3-run TANK from Otto, 4 RBI from Dan Blasko, 3 two out RBI, 6, count ‘em, SIX double plays, and another win, his 14th, for Orlando Arce who went 7-innings and allowed nothing to plate during his time on the mound. A nice sweep against a club that didn’t belong on the same field as us.

Here’s the DP’s that earned us the gold ‘turning two’ achievement…
Double Plays: 6 (Biacchi-Blasko-Garcia, Blasko-Baker-Garcia, Blasko-Baker-Garcia, Baker-Blasko-Garcia, Blasko-Baker-Garcia, Biacchi-Baker-Garcia)

Division Standings:
Los Angeles Leopards (93-45)
Mexico City Jaguars (79-59)
Austin Grackles (71-67)
San Diego Skipjacks (70-68)
Las Vegas Outlaws (63-75)
Phoenix Coyotes (62-76)

Up Next: We await the arrival of the Vancouver Mounties for a 3-game, interleague set in our house tomorrow night.

[pauwoo]

A quick update from down on the farm… our Short A club, the Brentwood Bishops, have clinched a playoff berth and are still in the running to win their division with 1-game left in their regular season.

Vancouver Mounties (72-66, .521, 3rd AL West) @ Los Angeles Leopards (93-45, .673, 1st NL West)
Clinging to the last wildcard slot in the American League, and only a scant 3-games behind the AL West division leading Dallas Chaparrals, these Vancouver Mounties are doing their level best to find a way to earn their ticket to the dance… they’ve got a good enough staff, ranked 5th in the AL, and a superb defense (2nd in ZR, Defensive Efficiency, and 1st in errors), but really need the offense to come together down the stretch.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP C. Arnett (7-12, 3.99 ERA) vs RHP M. Villalobos (12-8, 3.63 ERA)
LHP L. Duarte (12-4, 3.64 ERA) vs RHP K. Baeza (7-2, 4.08 ERA)
LHP L. Álvarez (13-8, 3.40 ERA) vs LHP A. Rodríguez (10-9, 4.55 ERA)

#139: Loss, 2-3 (10)… we’d knot things up on a Dan Blasko 2-run DINGER during the bottom of the 9th, sending this tight, taut contest into extras only to see our hopes and dreams come crashing down as Max Egner gave up the game winner during the top of the very next frame – done in by a Ryder Nieman solo shot, shell shocking the fans that bothered sticking around & sending them off into the night with a bad taste in their mouth.

Side Note: Brentwood was unable to win their division, losing their last contest of the regular season to the division-winning Hamilton Stingers (a Toronto affiliate) by a score of 8-9. They’ll face off against the Gainesville Hogs (a Miami affiliate) in the first round of the Short A playoffs – a solid squad that won their division on a 50-26 record.

#140: Win, 6-3… A 5-run bottom of the 7th would be all she wrote for Vancouver as the bottom of our lineup, Dan Baker & Frank Garcia specifically, did the dirt for us, driving in 2 runs each during that fateful frame. We’d also get 3 double plays, an outfield assist (Ethan struck Vancouver’s Baron Henry down at home), and another save from Max Egner as he shook off last night’s misstep to come in on form in this one.

#141: Win, 6-1… Larimel stymied the Mounties over 5.2-innings of work to secure his 14th victory of the season and Ethan Mullens contributed an RBI and a run during a 2-for-3 day at the plate to secure another series win for the La La’s. 2-run double from Sandro Brincat today too… the kid is coming along nicely – he’s no world beater, to be sure, but he mans the hot corner admirably and can hit it around a little bit. We always got room for a guy like that.

Some more quick notes: We punched our playoff ticket and are the first club in the majors to do so… the Compton Raiders secured their division in 3A, and the Inglewood Sentinels, our 2A club, secured a wild card slot. We’ve been successful at nearly every level this season. Meanwhile, in Watts, our A-ball club has missed the playoffs for the 3rd season in a row.

Record: 95-46, .673, 1st NL West
Up Next: the regular season slog continues with a trip to Seattle for a 3-game set against the Mighty Metros.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (95-46, .673, 1st NL West) @ Seattle Metros (70-71, .496, 4th AL West)
At sub-.500 and 3 games out of the wildcard race, Seattle’s hopes are fading fast… and why wouldn’t they be when all fans have to pin their hopes on is a 5th ranked offense and 8th ranked staff that hasn’t found a way to get on the same page all season.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP H. Vaughn (10-6, 3.60 ERA) vs RHP A. Quimby (10-11, 4.57 ERA)
LHP O. Arce (14-3, 2.38 ERA) vs RHP A. Mistele (5-12, 4.77 ERA)
RHP C. Arnett (7-12, 3.98 ERA) vs RHP M. Montemayor (7-6, 4.67 ERA)

#142: Loss, 2-3 (10)… Any opportunity to make yourself feel better by defeating the biggest bully on the block should not missed, and, here, the Seattle Metros took full advantage of a weary Max Egner as Dylan De La Rosa sent a 2-run TANK over the fence during the bottom of the 10th, walking us off much to the delight of their fans. This marks Egner’s second blown save and 4th loss overall.


Elsewhere: The Gainesville Hogs have taken a 2-0 in their series against our own Brentwood Bishops with LF Leonard Young leading the way for them tonight – 6-for-6 day at the plate with 2 RBI for the young man as the Hogs defeated our Bishops by a score of 5-4.

#143: Loss, 2-3… Seattle’s staff mowed down our road weary offense for the 2nd game in a row but wouldn’t require extras to get this one sorted, as Jalen Payton’s 2-run homer during the bottom of the 6th was enough to get it done. Jalen Payton, it should be noted, was traded to Seattle by San Diego for a young SP Zacarias Dupree. He struggled through 98 games with the Skipjacks but has had a good start in Seattle so far in 43 starts – 278/344/438, 6 HR, 26 RBI.

#144: Win, 7-4… we’d salvage some pride, cribbing this last one off the Metros thanks to a 2-run TANK from Frank Garcia, who’s now hit 4 homers in 27-games as Oh Hong’s injury replacement. Otto put out this 32nd, Ethan finished 3-for-5 with 2 RBI, Chris Arnett finally secures his 1st win in a Leopards kit, and Max Egner is now 2 saves away from tallying 50 on the year.

Elsewhere: The Gainesville Hogs swept our Brentwood Bishops out of the 1A playoffs. Bummer biscuits.

Record: 96-48, .667, 1st NL West
Up Next: the road trip continues with a 3-game set in Pittsburgh.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (96-48, .667, 1st NL West) @ Pittsburgh Pipers (66-78, .458, 4th NL East)
After winning their division in 2081, and placing 2nd in it just one short season ago, Pittsburgh has taken a step back on the big club as they look to retool their squad from within over the next few seasons of what is being described locally as a short-term rebuilding project. Of course, I, like their fans, would sure like to know what that means – look, they development system is only ranked 15th, so, they’ll need to find a way to get some more prospects into the fold as history tells us their owner won’t be looking to spend his way out of this post Tom Franzone mess.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP L. Duarte (12-4, 3.70 ERA) vs RHP C. Guzman (9-11, 4.09 ERA)
LHP L. Álvarez (14-8, 3.29 ERA) vs LHP K. Bartoli (8-10, 4.26 ERA)
RHP H. Vaughn (10-6, 3.51 ERA) vs RHP G. Cameron (12-9, 3.00 ERA)

#145: Loss, 3-5… Pittsburgh broke our 3-3 tie during the bottom of the 8th when JD Palmer sent a 2-run moonshot over the wall off RP Russell Harper, who dropped to 6-7 as a result. Not a lot to parse out for us on either side of the ball – we played uninspired offense, left 5 runners stranded, and looked on helplessly as our staff allowed 5 earned runs find their way home.

#146: Loss, 1-2… This time they’d punch the game-winner across during the bottom of the 7th, dealing us our second loss & second series loss in a row… Alvarez, who gave up the game-winning HR to 34yo C Steve Ratliff, was saddled with the loss and the offense fanned a total of 11 times with Luca Biacchi’s 3 K’s leading the club. We did get an OF Assist double play when Otto caught a shallow fly ball and roped one to Click to catch LF Santiago Correja at home after he tagged up and gave it a go. So, that’s cool.

Elsewhere: a game 1 loss for our Inglewood Sentinels…


#147: Win, 7-2… I mean, we won, but it was too little, too late as the damage of these last two sets has already been done… but, at least the flight home won’t be completely miserable. Hunter goes 7, earns his 7th win in our kit and 12th overall, Dalton hit a 2-run TANK, Ethan swiped his 15th bag, and we managed to plate 7 runners despite leaving 9 more stranded.

Record: 97-50, .659, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll meet the San Diego Skipjacks at home as we close out the season with 5, 3-game sets against divisional foes.

[pauwoo]

San Diego Skipjacks (73-74, .497, 4th NL West) @ Los Angeles Leopards (97-50, .660, 1st NL West)
At 3 games out of the last wild card slot and time running low, to say that these next three could determine San Diego’s fate would be something of an understatement – succinctly put, if they don’t at least win this series its game over on 2084 for these Skipjacks.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP O. Arce (14-4, 2.46 ERA) vs RHP A. Barrientos (6-10, 3.33 ERA)
RHP C. Arnett (8-12, 3.88 ERA) vs RHP W. Doles (11-8, 4.93 ERA)
LHP L. Duarte (12-4, 3.73 ERA) vs RHP C. Fox (9-8, 4.59 ERA)

#148: Win, 4-3… Frank Garcia, making the most of his time as Oh Hong is set to return in a couple of days, went 2-for-3 with a HR, a BB, and 2 scores, Ethan put out his 30th dinger, a career best toppling his previous mark of 29 set in 2074 while with my former club the Phoenix Suns, and Max Egner inched ever closer to 50 saves in 2084, recording his 49th as he shut the door on this one. Not quite a death knell for San Diego yet, but it may as well be…

#149: Win, 10-3… Otto’s 3-for-4, 2 HR, 5 RBI day was the story here as your La La’s beat the brakes off the Skipjacks in this one – thoroughly dismantling what was left of all their hopes & dreams. Arnett picked up the win in 6.1-innings of work, we put 8 extra base hits in play, hit two SAC FLIES, swiped a bag (Ethan’s 16th), and, finally, won a series after losing two of those in a row.

Elsewhere: The Opelousas Rougarou (a New Orleans affiliate) dropped our Inglewood, 3 games to 1, to advance to the second round of the 2A playoffs where they will face off against the Acapulco Archers (a Mexico City affiliate) in the next round. Also, your Yellow Tops were officially crowned the biggest bully on the NL West block as we won our 9th division title in the last 10 seasons.

#150: Win, 11-0… we’d win our 100th ballgame of the season in emphatic fashion – led, once again, by Otto’s multi-homerun game. He’d finish 2-for-2 with 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R, and 2 BB’s to fuel to USS Leopard while Starter Leonardo Duarte and Reliever Rad Taylor would twirl a combined shutout. Ethan hit another homer as well, his 31st, and Frank Garcia put his 6th ball out of the park since coming up to the big club on 8/15. Unfortunately for him, he’ll be headed back to Compton after the game to make room for Oh Hong’s, hopefully, glorious return to the fold.

Record: 100-50, .667, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll put our 4-game winning streak on the line in Las Vegas as we head out on a 7-day, 6-game road trip.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (100-50, .667, 1st NL West) @ Las Vegas Outlaws (68-82, .453, 6th NL West)
Our key here, and really the only thing worth thinking about in this set, is to come through it unscathed, injury free, and healthy enough to finish out the rest of the regular season campaign before really getting after it during the playoffs.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP L. Álvarez (14-9, 3.22 ERA) vs RHP P. Taylor (7-14, 4.32 ERA)
RHP H. Vaughn (11-6, 3.35 ERA) vs RHP R. Borovský (9-12, 4.32 ERA)
LHP O. Arce (14-4, 2.55 ERA) vs RHP C. Murphy (6-9, 5.04 ERA)

#151: Loss, 7-8… A nice, come from behind, walk off victory for the Outlaws who, entering the bottom of the 9th, were down by two until RF KC Raines hit a 3-run blast off CL Max Egner to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Max, who fell to 9-5 on the year after this one, has now blown his 3rd save. In his last 10 appearances, Max has earned 6 saves, blown 2, and found himself on the losing end of two others. This is run of up and down form that we’d like to see him get corrected well before the playoffs begin… so, like starting tomorrow.

#152: Win, 7-6… this time, after grabbing the lead with a 4-run top of the 6th, we’d find a way to hold onto it the rest of the way with RP’s Rad Taylor, Sherwin Lane, and T-Rex Stiles each put in scoreless work after Hunter Vaughn left just 2.2-innings into the game having allowed 6 earned runs over the first three frames. Ethan put another one out – he has 32 now, and Otto brought in 2-RBI on a double to run his ongoing tally in that category up to 103. He leads the team there and is 4th on the RBI leaderboard behind Tom Franzone (118), Alexander MacDonald (108), and Former Leopard, Satoru Ono (104).

#153: Win, 6-2… another nice start from Orlando, who improved to 15-4, 6 doubles from the team, including one from the recently resurfaced Oh Hong, and we’d get an RBI from 6 different batsmen as the offense spread the love around a little bit – just a nice, yet meaningless, team win.

Note: Isaac won the NL Player of the Week Award. The 35yo vet posted a .526 batting average with 4 home runs and 11 RBIs last week while scoring 7 runs. To date this year Isaac is batting .282 with 36 home runs. Also, Mexico City Clinched a WC berth… so far, it’s just us two in the NL with an official spot as the NL East is too close to call. Charlotte, at 92-61, is the only American League team to punch their ticket.

Record: 102-51, .667, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll travel to Phoenix to do battle against the Coyotes on their turf.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (102-51, .667, 1st NL West) @ Phoenix Coyotes (71-82, .464, 5th NL West)
While we haven’t been able to officially, mathematically eliminate the Phoenix Coyotes from the Playoffs, let’s be honest, at 8-games back there’s just no real shot at the various scenarios they need to happen playing out the rest of the way. Instead, the Phoenix faithful will have to chalk this one up as yet another wasted season in a history riddled with them.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP C. Arnett (9-12, 3.90 ERA) vs LHP N. Vera (9-4, 4.10 ERA)
LHP L. Duarte (13-4, 3.60 ERA) vs RHP G. Martínez (7-10, 4.55 ERA)
LHP L. Álvarez (14-9, 3.33 ERA) vs RHP E. Paul (6-6, 3.23 ERA)

#154: Win, 11-1… We’re an unstoppable force, a juggernaut smashing through everything impeding its path. Luca Biacchi hit a bases clearing double, Otto put his 37th over the fence, a 3-run shot, Ethan went 4-for-4 with 3 runs scored, Oh Hong came through with a 3-for-6, 2 RBI effort, and Chris Arnett picked up another win, his 3rd in as many starts. It was all Leopards, all the time in the desert tonight!

Elsewhere: Philadelphia punched their ticket to the dance.

#155: Loss, 4-6… Demetri Rodriguez, who we traded to Phoenix during the offseason, exacted some small measure of revenge in this one, hitting the run-scoring single during the bottom of the 7th that would put the Coyotes up for good and fit Duarte for the loss. Two doubles and two homers for Phoenix tonight as our staff was unable to hit their spots with any consistency in this one, instead serving up the tastiest meatballs Phoenix has seen all year.

Elsewhere: Charlotte clinched the AL East division. Denver is now just 1 game behind Salt Lake for the final playoff spot in the AL.

#156: Win, 11-1… Two homers for Ethan (34), another for Otto (38), and one for Dalton Burch (5) would be the story here as our Leopards offense battered, bruised, and utterly dismantled the forlorn Coyotes, on their turf, to close out our 2084 season campaign against them – we posted a 13-5 mark against them this year. For shame.

Note: We have eliminated Phoenix from the playoffs, officially, with that last victory.

Record: 104-52, .667, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll head home for the final regular season set in our park against the visiting Austin Grackles.

[pauwoo]

Austin Grackles (79-77, .506, 3rd NL West) @ Los Angeles Leopards (104-52, .667, 1st NL West)
With a 5-game lead for the last wild card slot, and with 6 games left, a series win, in our park, would go a long way towards securing Austin’s immediate future. Of course, we’re 11-4 against them so far this season… so, it’ll be a tall order for them to make that happen.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP H. Vaughn (11-6, 3.58 ERA) vs RHP A. Bundy (10-5, 3.60 ERA)
LHP O. Arce (15-4, 2.56 ERA) vs RHP A. Jensen (10-11, 4.09 ERA)
RHP C. Arnett (10-12, 3.82 ERA) vs RHP J. Matthiessen (12-8, 3.38 ERA)

#157: Loss, 5-7… So far, so good for Austin as they find a way to take control of their own destiny and deal us a loss in our park… Hunter Vaughn was lifted during the 6th after giving up two homeruns and allowing four runners to plate while Austin’s Heathcote Kinton put it down something fierce during a 2-for-5, 3 RBI day at the plate to lead his team to the promised land. With the win, the playoff entrants in the National League have been set… still waiting to see who will come out on top of the NL East though as Philadelphia currently enjoys a tenuous 2-game lead over the Montreal Alouettes.

#158: Loss, 5-8… Austin, seemingly on that good stuff now, stuck it to us once more, this time on the back of Pancho Sanchez’s GRAND SLAM off Russell Harper during the top of the 7th. Our starter, Orlando, was beat up a little bit in this one, allowing 3 runners to plate over 5-innings of work, and Sherwin Lane saw today’s loss added to his permanent record after he allowed 3 more runs during the 6th. Just three extra base hits for your Leopards and 5 runners left stranded.

With the end of the season so near, I’ll hold back on sharing a standings & stats update…

#159: Win, 4-2… We’d stave off complete embarrassment, get a much-needed win, and stay injury free in the process. Look, at this point, with everything essentially wrapped up as far as the regular season goes as long as we stay healthy, wins are just a bonus.


Oh, and Otto won Player of the Week again… old man still got it. He put up a .476 batting average, 10 hits in 21 at-bats, 4 home runs and 10 RBIs. Isaac also scored 8 runs. Isaac is presently hitting at a .289 pace with 40 home runs and 113 RBIs. He has played in 156 games and scored 115 times.

Record: 105-54, .660, 1st NL West
Up Next: We’ll travel to Mexico City for our final series of the regular season.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (105-54, .660, 1st NL West) @ Mexico City Jaguars (93-66, .585, 2nd NL West)
Look, at this stage of the game, there’s really not much to say, so… I’ll let the game generated text do that for me. “The Jaguars are playing .585 ball this season, compiling a record of 93 wins and 66 losses. They are in 2nd place in the West Division, 12.0 games behind the leader. Their number of runs scored of 810 rank 1st in the National League, their .276 batting average ranks 1st. On the other side of the diamond, they have given up 682 runs (7th) with their starters compiling an ERA of 4.03 which ranks 5th. Their bullpen sports an ERA of 4.05, ranking 10th. When playing against our Leopards this season, they have a record of 7 wins and 8 losses.”

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP L. Duarte (13-5, 3.65 ERA) vs LHP O. Sum (12-7, 4.03 ERA)
LHP L. Álvarez (15-9, 3.24 ERA) vs LHP J. Garcia (13-9, 4.17 ERA)
RHP H. Vaughn (11-6, 3.69 ERA) vs LHP H. Cartmel (11-10, 4.12 ERA)

Also, don’t look now, but there is a 3-way tie in the American League for the final wildcard slot with Seattle, Salt Lake, and Denver all sitting on identical 81-78 records. I should also note that the Boston Shamrocks are just 1-game ahead of that trio and have lost their last 4-games straight.

Here are the current playoff odds based on strength of schedule and whatever else OOTP uses:
Boston Shamrocks – 81.2%
Denver Miners – 45.6%
Seattle Metros – 40%
Salt Lake Alpines – 28.5%

#160: Win, 6-4… this night belonged to Otto who posted his 2000th career hit during a 3-for-4 day that included a HR and 2 RBI. Otto, our all-time Leopard leader in Games, Hits, and homers will surely have his number retired when he’s inducted into the baseball HOF. What a career he’s had and, while I wouldn’t say he’s been the best player in this save, it’s been a lot more fun with him in it, that’s for sure.

Elsewhere: Seattle beat Denver at home to improve their playoff lot by a score of 9-2, Salt Lake bested the Portland Pioneers in their park to stay the course, and Boston, those poor schleps from Massachusetts were set back a bit with a 6-2 loss, at home, at the hands of the lowly Toronto Maple Leafs. Also, the Kent Comments swept our Compton Raiders out of the 3A playoffs. If you’re counting, all of our development clubs that made their respective playoff brackets have been summarily dismissed from championship consideration.

Updated odds:
Boston Shamrocks – 59.8%
Salt Lake Alpines – 56.5%
Seattle Metros – 54.8%
Denver Miners – 19.5%

#161: Loss, 4-6… Mexico City scored five runs after the 6th, completing an improbable comeback to knot this series up as we head into that last game of the regular season. Satoru Ono did the dirt, he’s killed us this year, with a 2-run HR during the bottom of the 8th that completed the Jaguars comeback and improved their H2H record against us to 8-9.

Elsewhere: Denver got some of that sweet, sweet get back against the Seattle Metros, winning game two of their set by a score of 12-3. Meanwhile, the Boston Shamrocks, unravelling now, and the Salt Lake Alpines were both dealt losses, hurting their chances to advance to the American League playoffs.

Updated odds as we head into the final game of the regular season:
Denver Miners – 60.5%
Seattle Metros – 50.1%
Salt Lake Alpines – 45.8%
Boston Shamrocks – 43.7%

#162: Loss, 5-7… Mexico City, in something of a moral victory I presume, managed to even up the season series against us a 9-9 on a 2-run TANK from 2B Zack Francis off Rad Taylor… Zack finished 3-for-4 with that homer, and 2 runs of his own to pace the Jaguar offense. 3B Sandro Brincat his first Major League homerun, Ethan ran his total up to 35 this year with one of his own, and, while we did manage to plate 5, it was those 6 left stranded that really hurt us here – you gotta take advantage of the opportunities you create against teams like Mexico City.

Elsewhere: The Seattle Metros, after losing again to the Denver Miners, were eliminated from playoff consideration with Boston and Denver making it after the following play-in games…




Also, Tom Franzone’s 51 HR season tied him with Carl Fermin for 2nd all time on the leaderboard. Fermin first accomplished the feat way, way back in 2012.

Record: 106-56, .654, 1st NL West
Up Next: It’s playoff time, baby!

[pauwoo]

That Otto, at his age, is still putting it down like this is insane – great offensive club overall, maybe one of the best I’ve built.


Solid year for my staff – we need Larimel & Orlando to come correct in the postseason.

[pauwoo]

Montreal Alouettes (84-78, .519, 2nd NL East) @ Los Angeles Leopards (106-56, .654, 1st NL West)
Fresh off their 6-1 win over the Austin Grackles in the Circle Series, Montreal arrives in our park on a mission to shock the world… though, after outperforming the preseason predictions to nearly capture the NL East, missing the division title by a single game to the Philadelphia Founders, some would say that there’s nothing shocking about this club at all. The did it by playing rock solid baseball, with guile and real verve, and, mostly, on the back of their pitching staff that was good enough to finish second only to us in the National League, allowing a scant 3.9 r/g while leading the league in K’s at 1262. If anything, it’ll be the offense that holds these guys back – capable of producing just 3.7 r/g and being the only playoff club to finish the regular season with a negative RDiff. That, then, is our in – our route to victory… hold their offense’s head under water while finding a way to chip away at their otherworldly staff.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
LHP L. Álvarez (15-9, 3.29 ERA) vs RHP Q. Benoit (8-14, 5.12 ERA)
RHP H. Vaughn (11-7, 3.95 ERA) vs RHP T. Cox (10-5, 3.51 ERA)

#1: Win, 10-4… Otto came out gangbusters, finishing 3-for-4 with a solo homer and 3 runs, while Mason Click, Luca Biacchi, and Dan Baker each drove in two to help our club run it up on one of the best pitching staffs in the Major Leagues. A double, a triple, and homer for the club, two swiped bags, both belonging to Otto, and two, crispy, double plays would round out the highlights while Larimel Alvarez picked up his first win during these playoffs after turning in 6.2 innings of 6-hit, 2 earned, 4 K work.

#2: Loss, 3-4… this time Montreal’s much-vaunted staff would turn up and do the damn thing… holding our offense to 7 hits and 3 runs in front of the hometown faithful. Otto and Oh Hong each finished 1-for-4 with nothing else to show for it, we put just one extra base hit in play during the game, a triple from Burch, hit into three double plays, and left 8 runners stranded. Hunter Vaughn left early with tightness in his shoulder after putting 3.1 ho-hum innings of work, and Rad Taylor, credited with the loss here, gave up the ghost during the during the 7th, allowing two runners to plate on a Rex Engelstad double.

Playoff Record: 1-1
Up Next: We’ll make the trek to Montreal with work to do in this 5-game series.

[pauwoo]

Los Angeles Leopards (106-56, .654, 1st NL West) @ Montreal Alouettes (84-78, .519, 2nd NL East)
Arriving in the land of poutine and sourpuss attitudes, on a split, is less than ideal – which, is not to say that I don’t enjoy my time in Montreal whenever I visit, I do, it’s just that these circumstances, with our season hanging in the balance & needing to win at least one game in such a stingy and inhospitable environment, are not comforting to a General Manager with a tendency to worry about anything and everything. If beggars could be choosers, and, despite what the old saying would have you believe, they can & often are, I’d like to win both of these, outright, and to ride off into the sunset for a date with destiny in the League Championship Series. That’s the goal. I’ll settle for a split though. Can’t lie.

Here are the projected pitching matchups, our pitchers listed first:
RHP C. Arnett (10-12, 3.81 ERA) vs RHP N. Powell (10-11, 3.16 ERA)
LHP L. Álvarez (15-9, 3.29 ERA) vs LHP M. Gang (1-1, 7.13 ERA)

#3: Loss, 3-10… gutted, filleted, splayed open, and baked in a 9x9 pan – our hopes of winning both of these already out the window and, as a result, we face down the unenviable task of a must-win tomorrow. Here, SP Noah Powell gave us the business over 6-innings of 1-hit, 1 earned work, while Montreal’s suspect offense went buck with 3 HRs including a 3-run shot courtesy of LF Lynden Urmanski. The Alouettes defense was on point again too – 2 double plays in this one with 13 grounders and 7 pop ups successfully fielded over the course of the contest. Yikes.

Elsewhere: Mexico City defeated the Philadelphia Founders, 3 games to nil, and will anxiously await the winner of our series against Montreal to determine their opponent for the LCS. It should be noted that the Jaguars played us tough this season, finishing 9-9 H2H, always giving us a run. That series, should we be fortunate enough to get there, is a toss up if ever there was one.

#4: Win, 4-2 (11)… with our backs against the wall, death on the line, and a Sicilian sitting across from us, the boys managed to knot this series up on the back of a workmanlike offensive effort and some late-inning heroics from none other than Otto Isaac, whose 2-run TANK was the difference maker. Good stuff from Alvarez, 5.1-innings, 6 hits, 1 earned, and 3 K’s, a win for Max Egner, his first of the post season, and two run-scoring doubles for Dan Baker would round things out for us nicely here as we earned an opportunity to punch our ticket to the LCS in our park tomorrow.

Elsewhere: Vancouver defeated the Dallas Chaparrals 3 games to 2 while Denver defeated Charlotte by that same margin to completely upend the American League side of the bracket with both lower seeds punching their ticket to the LCS… to see the 99-win Imperials go out like that to the 84-win Miners only increases my already out of control anxiety.

Playoff Record: 2-2
Up Next: Game 5, in Los Angeles, with ~40K+ of our closest friends in attendance.