2081: Desperation in Denver

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Denver       57 33 .633    -   58-32   -1 29-15 28-18  2-6 13-10  W2    4-6 
Memphis      47 41 .534  9.0   47-41    0 23-21 24-20  3-2 12-10  W4    6-4 
Tucson       47 41 .534  9.0   48-40   -1 25-20 22-21  4-5 10-16  L4    4-6 
Green Bay    40 48 .455 16.0   35-53    5 20-25 20-23  4-4 18- 9  L4    4-6 
Grand Rapids 40 50 .444 17.0   38-52    2 24-22 16-28  4-5 11-10  L5    4-6 
Kansas City  31 56 .356 24.5   36-51   -5 12-31 19-25  1-4  5-13  L2    4-6

Atlanta 14 @ Denver 5
Atlanta 6 @ Denver 1
Atlanta 3 @ Denver 4
Atlanta 16 @ Denver 5
Denver 1 @ Charlotte 4
Denver 9 @ Charlotte 0
Denver 9 @ Charlotte 7



Denver had its second straight poor week. In the first game against Atlanta, a 2-1 lead evaporated in the sixth inning when the Braves exploded for 8 runs. Atlanta banged out 20 hits in that rout. The Broncos managed only 4 hits in the second game, and couldn't manage more than 1 run. Kenny Pillsbury performed in his role as the stopper and, backed by 3 RBI from Marvin Lore, shut down Atlanta enough in the third game for a victory. Unfortunately, Robert McNett endured his worst start of the season in the final game against the Braves, and was shelled off the mound in the fourth inning with the Broncos trailing, 13-4.

In the first game against Charlotte, Thomas Fons pitched effectively for 5 innings, and the Broncos led 1-0 heading into the sixth. In the sixth inning, however, he fell apart. Fons gave up a leadoff double to Panthers' left-fielder Modesto Hensler, and then walked catcher William Flowers. He retired center-fielder Keith O'Berry for the first out. Then he made two mistake pitches. The first mistake was smoked for a run-scoring double by second-baseman Daryl Scott. Designated hitter Joseph Ishmael blasted the second mistake for his 24th homerun of the year, a 3-run shot. Veteran starter Jacob Barros throttled Denver's offense to preserve the Charlotte win. The Broncos began to salvage the week by hammering the Panthers in the second game. George Buentello tossed 7 scoreless innings, and a 7-run third inning put the game out of reach early. The final game of the series did not begin well. Ray Lockridge served up 3 homeruns, and the Broncos trailed 6-0 after 4 innings. Denver got on the board with 2 runs in the fifth inning, and then erupted for 7 runs in the sixth inning to take the lead. Despite allowing a 9th inning homerun to right-fielder James Wysocki, Denver reliever James Virgen escaped with his 12th save of the season.



There weren't a lot of strong performances among Denver's hitters this week. Marvin Lore produced a 1.119 OPS, and had a triple, 2 homeruns, 6 RBI, and 5 runs scored. Jose Fuensanta was 5 for 12, with a .917 OPS, and a double. Arthur Elbert managed an .857 OPS despite collecting just 4 hits in 20 at bats. He had 2 doubles, a homerun, 7 walks, and 5 RBI.

On the other hand, there were plenty of ugly performances. Booker Romero managed a .646 OPS in 20 at bats. Michael Phillips had a .641 OPS in 24 at bats. Jack Rumfelt was 3 for 17, with a .544 OPS. Lee Chappel was 3 for 19, with a .449 OPS. Masahachirou Shunji returned from the disabled list and went 1 for 11, with a .396 OPS. Brooks Branco went 1 for 14, with a .349 OPS.

Kenny Pillsbury was the only starter with an overall good performance. He allowed 2 runs in 7 innings, and struck out 8 batters. Thomas Fons was decent, with 4 runs allowed in 8 innings. George Buentello did have the one good start, but his other start during the week was a disaster, and he finished with 17 hits and 9 runs allowed in 13 innings. Ray Lockridge made 2 starts as well, and gave up 19 hits and 10 runs in 11 2/3 innings. Robert McNett's meltdown ended with 10 hits, 13 runs(11 earned), and 6 walks allowed in 3 innings.

No one in the bullpen distinguished themselves. Omar Lopez pitched 2 scoreless innings, but he was the only good performer. Newcomer Lawrence McCullum did not impress much in his Denver debut. In 6 innings, he surrendered 10 hits and 5 runs.


Things are looking up on the injury front for Denver. Both Masahachirou Shunji and Asbel Fuentez returned from the disabled list this week. Ellis Bolling should be back by the end of the week, and Russell Thomas should be back in 2 weeks.



Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Hartford's shortstop, Ralph Jennings. It is Jennings' 7th career POTW award. He hit .500(14 for 28), with a 1.732 OPS, 2 doubles, 6 homeruns, 14 RBI, and 8 runs scored. Jennings doubled twice and drove in 2 runs in a 4-3 loss to Pittsburgh. He had 2 hits, including a homerun, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 9-7 loss to the Pirates. The homerun was a 2-out, 3-run bomb that tied the game at 6-all in the seventh inning. Hartford would take the lead in the eighth inning, only to blow it in the ninth. He singled, homered, drove in 2 runs, and scored 2 runs in an 11-0 pasting of Pittsburgh. Jennings hit a 2-run homerun in a 9-5 loss to Harrisburg, and had a solo homerun in a 7-4 loss to the Capitals. In the final game against Harrisburg, he exploded for 5 hits(2 homeruns), 4 RBI, and 2 runs scored, and the Whalers avoided getting swept by winning 7-5.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Atlanta's left-fielder, Joey Campos. It is the 6th POTW award of Campos' career. He hit .478(11 for 23), with a 1.495 OPS, 2 doubles, 3 homeruns, 11 RBI, and 7 runs scored. He had 2 hits, including a grand slam homerun, and 5 RBI in a 14-5 thumping of Denver. He doubled twice, homered, drove in 4 runs, and scored 3 runs in a 16-5 rout over the Broncos. He had 2 hits, including a solo homerun, and 2 runs scored in a 6-4 win over Nashville. He had 3 hits, a walk, and an RBI in 9-6 defeat to the Braves.



Division Races:

In the West, San Diego(60-29) has started to pull away from San Jose(50-38). The Padres were helped out by New Jersey, which swept the Sharks in a 4-game series. Sacramento(45-42) remains in the mix for second place, while Los Angeles(44-43) has started to slump. The Dodgers are on a 3-game losing streak and have lost 8 times in its last 10 games.

New Jersey(51-38) had a 10-game winning streak snapped on the final day of the week, but the Devils are still firmly in first place in the Northeast. Buffalo(46-41) has caught fire, though, with 5 straight wins.

Miami(65-25) just keeps on rolling. The Southeast-leading Dolphins have won 4 in a row, and 7 of their last 10. That has helped to maintain the wide gap between them and second place Knoxville(50-38), which has won 3 in a row, and 7 of its last 10. Atlanta(46-43) sits in third place, but the Braves have lost 2 straight game.

Denver's(57-33) recent struggles continue to prevent the Broncos from opening up a Miami-like lead in the Central Division. Memphis(47-41) and Tucson(47-41) are tied for second place after the Grizzlies swept a 3-game series from the Diamondbacks.



Trading News:

There were two trades during the week. The Portland Trailblazerz kept busy, this time with a 6-player deal involving Kansas City. Heading to Portland is third-baseman Adam Chilson(.810 OPS, 12 homeruns), and a couple of minor leaguers: 19 year old reliever Robert Hooser, and 19 year old starter Grant Smith. The former has some talent, but the latter appears to be more minor league fodder than anything else. Headed to the Royals are veteran starter Angel Marciano(5-7, 5.58 ERA), third-baseman Don Guan(.681 OPS, 40 stolen bases), and 22 year old starting pitching prospect Fausto Cortez. As both of these teams are in last place, this trade isn't likely to have much impact on any of the payoff races. Chilson is an upgrade at third base for Portland, and Marciano isn't much of a loss. Meanwhile, Cortez is probably the best of the three prospects involved in the trade. Neither team really seems to have "won" this trade.

The second trade involved Atlanta and Nashville. The Braves acquired first-baseman Tommy Smith(1.044 OPS in 81 at bats) in exchange for starting pitcher Jaime Alemany(4-6, 5.53 ERA), and 20 year old second base prospect Joe Hutchins. I would give Nashville a slight edge in this trade. Alemany isn't great, but he's better than anyone the Predators have trotted out to the mound this season, so he should make them a bit more competitive this season. Hutchins isn't a fantastic prospect, but he's relatively intriguing. The Braves, on other hand, have been a surprising contender this season, and they weakened their rotation for what is probably a fairly mild upgrade at first base. David Hardeman had posted an .828 OPS in 197 at bats as the Braves' starting first-baseman. They had also gotten an .838 OPS in 75 at bats from rookie Bill Wilkinson. Atlanta's offense hasn't really been a problem this season(3rd in runs scored), but the pitching has(19th in runs allowed). As mediocre as Alemany might be, he was still the Braves' 3rd best starter.



Following the All Star break, Denver concludes the week with a 4 game series at Miami(65-25).



Coming up: The National League and American League All Star Teams

[jamus23]

The National League All Star Team is pretty balanced this year in terms of representation. San Diego and Phoenix lead the way with 4 representatives each. San Jose and New Jersey both have 3, while Rochester, Sacramento, Pittsburgh, and Buffalo all have 2 players on the squad. Los Angeles, Harrisburg, and Hartford all managed 1 player. Portland is the only team that failed to produce an All Star representative.




Catcher:

Larry Seishisai(Los Angeles)

-.338/.396/.595/.991, 13 2B, 2 3B, 20 HR, 68 RBI, 64 R

This is Larry Seishisai's 3rd All Star appearance, and first since 2078. The 35 year old catcher ranks 9th in the National League in batting average. He also recently hit his 400th career homerun(he's currently at 406). If he can keep his batting average up, it will be just the second time in his career that's he has hit .300 in a season. He hit .300 on the nose back in 2074.

Paul Bibbs(Rochester)

-.307/.395/.509/.903, 17 2B, 14 HR, 68 RBI, 49 R

Joining Seishisai at catcher on the NL team is 31 year old, first time All Star, Paul Bibbs. He ranks 17th in the National League in on base percentage, 21st in OPS, and 13th in RBI. He has the 4th best OPS among all catchers.

First Base:

Amaury Lucia(New Jersey)

-.378/.441/.726/1.167, 32 2B, 1 3B, 28 HR, 70 RBI, 73 R

This is Amaury Lucia's 2nd nomination to the All Star game. The 27 year old first-baseman leads the NL in OPS and slugging percentage, is 3rd in batting average, 3rd in on base percentage, 5th in doubles, 4th in homeruns, and 5th in runs scored.

Emil Cuestas(Phoenix)

-.381/.415/.641/1.057, 28 2B, 1 3B, 21 HR, 72 RBI, 67 R

Emil Cuestas is making his 6th trip to the All Star game. The 34 year old is 2nd in the league in batting average, 7th in on base percentage, 7th in slugging percentage, 5th in OPS, 7th in doubles, tied for 7th in homeruns, and tied for 5th in RBI. The 2083 Silver Slugger winner is on pace to set career highs in all of the rate stats, and is only 41 hits away from 2,600 for his career.

Second Base:

Andrew Burdick(San Diego)

-.401/.474/.636/1.110, 10 2B, 4 3B, 19 HR, 59 RBI, 60 R

If you didn't know better, you might have thought that Andrew Burdick was 27 years old, instead of being 37. I mean, who the heck hits .400 at the age of 37? But that's exactly what this future Hall of Famer has done through the first half of the season, and not surprisingly, he has been rewarded with his 12th trip to the mid-summer classic. He leads all of baseball in both batting average and on base percentage, is 8th in the National League in slugging percentage, and is 2nd in the NL in OPS. The 3-time Silver Slugger winner has climbed to 6th all time in hits(3,452), and he needs only 36 more to reach the top 5. He has reached 16th place on the homerun list(594), and needs only 5 more to crack the top 15. He is 20th on the walk list(1,564). Finally, he has moved into 3rd place on the all time runs scored list(2,201), and he needs only 31 more runs scored to move past Hector Abad and into second place. Truly, he is one of the greatest players of all time.

Third Base:

Louis Guerriero(Rochester)

-.358/.433/.645/1.079, 38 2B, 19 HR, 57 RBI, 78 R

One of the most explosive power hitters in the game, this is Louis Guerriero's 7th All Star appearance. The 31 year old leads the National League in runs scored, and ranks 6th in the league in batting average, 5th in on base percentage, 6th in slugging percentage, 3rd in OPS, and 2nd in doubles.

Anthony Nicklas(Phoenix)

-.292/.367/.686/1.053, 21 2B, 3 3B, 32 HR, 79 RBI, 71 R

Last year's NL Silver Slugger winner, Anthony Nicklas is again having a fine season as he makes his 2nd trip to the All Star game. The 27 year old, who blasted 61 homeruns last year, leads all of baseball in that category this season, and is 2nd in the National League in slugging percentage, 7th in OPS, 2nd in RBI, and tied for 7th in runs scored.

Coy Drews(Harrisburg)

-.298/.406/.647/1.053, 10 2B, 1 3B, 30 HR, 88 RBI, 59 R, 55 BB

The 28 year old Coy Drews hasn't always been the most consistent player, but after having one of the worst seasons of his career last year(.773 OPS), he has rebounded in a big way. This will be his 3rd trip to the All Star game. He is tied for the big league lead in runs batted in, and is 4th in the National League in slugging percentage, 6th in OPS, 2nd in homeruns, and 4th in walks. He already has more homeruns and RBI than he did all of last season(26 and 84, respectively).

Shortstop:

Ralph Jennings(Hartford)

-.329/.390/.601/.991, 20 2B, 3 3B, 21 HR, 72 RBI, 74 R

It's been a good year for National League shortstops, as five have posted an OPS of .900 or better, and the 30 year old Ralph Jennings is the best of the bunch. This is his 5th All Star appearance. He is 10th in the NL in slugging percentage, tied for 7th in homeruns, tied for 5th in RBI, and tied for 2nd in runs scored. Jennings' most recent homerun was the 300th of his career.

Left Field:

Ramon Montalvo(Sacramento)

-.350/.420/.647/1.067, 7 2B, 6 3B, 26 HR, 71 RBI, 71 R

After making 0 All Star appearances from the time he broke into the league(2070) through the 2083 season, the 33 year old Ramon Montalvo has now been nominated to 2 straight All Star games. He is 7th in the NL in batting average, 6th in on base percentage, 5th in slugging percentage, 4th in OPS, tied for 1st in triples, 5th in homeruns, tied for 8th in RBI, and tied for 7th in runs scored. He is also only 46 homeruns away from 500 for his career.

Jerry Harmer, Jr.(Pittsburgh)

-.365/.472/.536/1.007, 35 2B, 1 3B, 6 HR, 46 RBI, 72 R, 64 BB

The 33 year old Jerry Harmer, Jr. has appeared to make a complete recovery from last season's lingering hamstring injury, and has posted some of the best numbers of his career this year. To earn his 4th trip to the All Star game, Harmer has led the National League in walks, and posted its 4th best batting average, 2nd best on base percentage, 10th best OPS, 3rd most doubles, and 6th most runs scored. Harmer is on pace to set career highs in batting average, on base percentage, and OPS.

Marcos Esparza(Phoenix)

-.277/.368/.649/1.017, 23 2B, 6 3B, 29 HR, 71 RBI, 71 R, 23 SB

After winning the Rookie of the Year Award last year, the 28 year old Marcos Esparza has taken his game to the next level. The first time All Star ranks 3rd in the NL in slugging percentage, 9th in OPS, tied for 1st in triples, 3rd in homeruns, tied for 8th in RBI, tied for 7th in runs scored, and 5th in stolen bases. He has already surpassed his homerun total from last season(27).

Center Field:

Eduardo Braza(Phoenix)

-.334/.365/.573/.937, 16 2B, 3 3B, 20 HR, 66 RBI, 63 R, 16 SB

Eduardo Braza just keeps getting better, and the 28 year old was rewarded with his first trip to the All Star game. Braza ranks 12th in the NL in batting average, 13th in slugging percentage, 15th in OPS, tied for 12th in homeruns, and 9th in stolen bases. Since first receiving regular playing time in 2081, Braza has improved his OPS in every season. This season, he is also on pace to shatter his career high in homeruns(21).

Dennis Barrientos(Pittburgh)

-.315/.339/.506/.844, 24 2B, 3 3B, 13 HR, 73 RBI, 63 R

Although Pittsburgh's season hasn't gone the way that the Pirates would have liked, they have to be pleased with the performance of 26 year old Dennis Barrientos. The second year center-fielder was named to his first All Star team after a first half in which he tied for 3rd in the league in RBI, tied for 14th in doubles, and tied for 15th in runs scored.

Right Field:

John Kling(Buffalo)

-.310/.408/.623/1.031, 39 2B, 4 3B, 17 HR, 68 RBI, 74 R, 52 BB

The Buffalo Bills' lineup, which ranks 18th in baseball in runs scored, doesn't have too many hitters that strike fear into opposing pitchers. John Kling is one of the few that do. The 29 year old Kling makes his 2nd All Star appearance this year. He leads the National League in doubles, and ranks 9th in on base percentage, 9th in slugging percentage, 8th in OPS, and tied for 2nd in runs scored. With 1 more double, Kling will have tied his career high of 40.

Starting Pitcher:

Carloz Lozoya(San Diego)

-13-2, 2.22 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 111/46 K/BB, 8 CG, 4 SH

There is no question that Carlos Lozoya is one of the best pitchers in the game today. The 29 year old makes his 3rd All Star appearance after a first half in which he led the National League in ERA, complete games, and shutouts, tied for the league lead in wins, and ranked 3rd in strikeouts. Lozoya is gunning hard for his third straight Cy Young Award. The list of pitchers who have won 3 straight Cy Youngs include: Edson Villegas(2040-42), Hector Soriano(2041-46), Robert Padgett(2048-51), Thomas Plaza(2063-65), and Segundo Narbaiza(2077-81).

Casey Greene(San Diego)

-13-4, 2.26 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 71/22 K/BB, 1 CG

Lozoya's main competition for the Cy Young may come from teammate Casey Greene. This is the 31 year old's 3rd All Star nomination. Greene is tied for the league lead in wins, and ranks 2nd in the league in ERA. Greene also leads the National League with 21 double plays induced.

Delbert Spicher(San Diego)

-12-3, 3.72 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 67/30 K/BB, 4 CG

Delbert Spicher is the third San Diego pitcher to be represented on the All Star team. This will be the 2nd All Star game for the 31 year old Spicher. He ranks 3rd in the National League in wins, 12th in ERA, and tied for 5th in complete games.

Carl Strothers(Sacramento)

-11-3, 3.02 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 119/21 K/BB, 4 CG, 2 SH

This is the 3rd All Star game of Carl Strothers' career, but the first since 2080. The 33 year old Strothers leads the NL in strikeouts, and ranks 4th in the NL in wins, 5th in ERA, tied for 5th in complete games, and tied for 2nd in shutouts.

Kenneth Chancey(New Jersey)

-10-2, 2.85 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 73/31 K/BB, 2 CG

New Jersey's rise to the top of the Northeast Division has come on the strength of Kenneth Chancey's arm. This is the first All Star game for the 32 year old Chancey, who is enjoying the best season of his career. He is tied for 5th in the NL in wins, and ranks 4th in ERA. He has never before had an ERA under 3.00, and his career best is 3.34, set in 2080. His strong start has also gotten his career record over .500(137-134).

Bill Simmerman(San Jose)

-10-4, 3.56 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 79/29 K/BB, 3 CG, 1 SH

San Jose's resurgence this year has been aided by a pair of relatively inexperienced starting pitchers. The first is 27 year old Bill Simmerman, who entered this season with 20 big league starts to his name. The first time All Star is tied for 5th in the NL in wins, ranks 10th in ERA, and is tied for 8th in complete games.

Juan Echeveste(San Jose)

-10-5, 3.67 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 57/26 K/BB, 1 CG

The second of those Sharks' starting pitchers is 27 year old Juan Echeveste, who is also making his first trip to the All Star game. Echeveste had 27 big league starts at the beginning of the season. He is tied for 5th in the NL in wins, and ranks 11th in ERA.

Relief Pitcher:

Clinton Blanton(San Jose)

-26 G, 4-4, 8 SV, 1.69 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 33/4 K/BB, 37 1/3 IP

San Jose's bullpen, traditionally very strong, has produced at least one All Star on 5 of the last 7 National League All Star teams. This year's representative is 27 year old Clinton Blanton, who is making his 2nd trip to the mid-summer classic. Blanton has the second best ERA among National League relievers, and ranks 12th in saves.

Abel Mota(New Jersey)

-29 G, 3-1, 19 SV, 3.09 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 25/11 K/BB, 32 IP

This is 29 year old Abel Mota's 1st trip to the All Star game. He is tied for 2nd in the league in saves, and, with only 2 blown saves, he has the 2nd best save percentage among NL closers.

Glenn Johnson(Buffalo)

-35 G, 0-4, 19 SV, 4.68 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 31/9 K/BB, 32 2/3 IP

Glenn Johnson is also a 1st time All Star. He is also one of the more suspect selections. The 31 year old Johnson is tied for 2nd in the league in saves, but San Diego's Lamont Ruvalcaba leads the league with 20, has a better ERA(3.98), and fewer blown saves(4 to Johnson's 5). It seems as though Ruvalcaba would have been a better choice.

[jamus23]

Somewhat surprisingly, Washington has the most All Star representatives this season, with 5. Denver, Miami, and Knoxville all have 4 players on the team. Atlanta has 3 representatives and Memphis has 2. Grand Rapids, Charlotte, and Tucson each have 1 representative. Nashville, Green Bay, and Kansas City do not have any All Star representation.




Catcher:

Lee Chappel(Denver)

-.331/.424/.678/1.102, 40 2B, 1 3B, 24 HR, 85 RBI, 82 R, 51 BB

Although Lee Chappel's numbers have dropped considerably over the past month, they didn't drop far enough to prevent the 34 year old catcher from being named to his 9th All Star team. Chappel leads all of baseball in doubles, and ranks 10th in the American League in batting average, 6th in on base percentage, 2nd in slugging percentage, 2nd in OPS, tied for 6th in homeruns, 2nd in RBI, and 2nd in runs scored.

Edmond McGurk(Miami)

-.256/.368/.594/.962, 20 2B, 3 3B, 26 HR, 70 RBI, 61 R, 57 BB

Edmond McGurk isn't challenging the single season homerun record like he was last year, but as the 30 year old catcher prepares to make his second All Star appearance, he is tied for 3rd in the AL in homeruns. He is also 8th in slugging percentage, 12th in OPS, and tied for 8th in RBI.

First Base:

Sabas Laureano(Washington)

-.341/.459/.607/1.065, 32 2B, 2 3B, 15 HR, 66 RBI, 65 R, 67 BB

Only 26, Sabas Laureano is one of the most dangerous hitters in the league. This is the 3rd All Star game for the young first-baseman. He ranks 7th in the American League in batting average, 1st in on base percentage, 6th in slugging percentage, 4th in OPS, tied for 5th in doubles, and 4th in walks.

Arthur Taylor(Knoxville)

-.300/.422/.580/1.002, 21 2B, 21 HR, 70 RBI, 64 R, 63 BB

For the second year in a row, the young Laureano is paired with veteran Arthur Taylor as the American League's first-basemen. This is the 34 year old Taylor's 5th trip to the All Star game. So far this year, he ranks 7th in the AL in on base percentage, 9th in slugging percentage, 7th in OPS, tied for 10th in homeruns, tied for 8th in RBI, and 7th in walks. Taylor is also only 26 homeruns away from 400 for his career.

Second Base:

Arthur Marcellus(Washington)

-.308/.340/.497/.837, 21 2B, 3 3B, 12 HR, 62 RBI, 45 R, 13 SB

Arthur Marcellus' 2nd trip to the All Star game is just as questionable as his first(last season). The only offensive category that the 27 year old second-baseman ranks in the top 10 in, is stolen bases, and even there, he is only tied for 10th place. Among American League second-basemen, Marcellus ranks 2nd in OPS to Knoxville's Jack Forrester(.839). He does lead AL second-basemen in RBI.

Third Base:

Mike Sanders(Washington)

-.319/.356/.513/.870, 25 2B, 2 3B, 12 HR, 64 RBI, 56 R

An even more dubious selection is 35 year old Mike Sanders. The 5-time All Star ranks just 5th among American League third-basemen in OPS, although he does lead in batting average and RBI. The biggest snub is probably Grand Rapids' Andres Garcia, whose .959 OPS leads all AL third-basemen and ranks 13th in the entire American League. Garcia's 18 homeruns, 73 runs scored, and 70 walks are also tops among AL third-basemen.

Shortstop:

Roger Attaway(Atlanta)

-.292/.381/.623/1.004, 23 2B, 4 3B, 26 HR, 77 RBI, 71 R

The 30 year old Roger Attaway is probably the most complete shortstop in the game. This is his 4th All Star appearance. He is 4th in the American League in slugging percentage, 6th in OPS, tied for 3rd in homeruns, 4th in RBI, and 5th in runs scored. He reached 400 homeruns this year(and currently sits at 420), and is only 10 doubles away from 400 in that category, as well.

Roy Chouinard(Memphis)

-.320/.353/.611/.964, 15 2B, 1 3B, 27 HR, 73 RBI, 51 R

After down years in 2082 and 2083, Roy Chouinard has now produced two straight All Star campaigns. This is the 4th overall All Star game for the 33 year old Chouinard. He is 5th in the AL in slugging percentage, 11th in OPS, 2nd in homeruns, and 7th in RBI. He is currently 47 homeruns away from 400 for his career.

Anthony Champ(Grand Rapids)

-.312/.367/.517/.883, 15 2B, 7 3B, 13 HR, 55 RBI, 63 R

Though he has had a fine season, one wonders why the 31 year old Anthony Champ was named to his first All Star team. There are 10 American League batters with a superior OPS than Champ, and any one of them would seem to be a worthier candidate. At any rate, Champ does lead the American League in triples, and his performance this season is significantly better than last season, when he hit .242 with a .671 OPS.

Left Field:

Joey Campos(Atlanta)

-.333/.416/.654/1.070, 30 2B, 1 3B, 24 HR, 84 RBI, 69 R

Atlanta has been surprisingly competitive this season, and 33 year old slugger Joey Campos is a big reason why. His efforts this season have been rewarded with his 6th trip to the All Star game. He ranks 9th in the AL in batting average, 9th in on base percentage, 3rd in slugging percentage, 3rd in OPS, 8th in doubles, tied for 6th in homeruns, 3rd in RBI, and tied for 6th in runs scored. He is currently 30 doubles and 50 homeruns away from 400 in both categories.

Alexis Vazquez(Denver)

-.360/.408/.562/.970, 10 2B, 1 3B, 21 HR, 75 RBI, 67 R

Alexis Vazquez has had one of the most fascinating careers. The 36 year old outfielder made only 1 All Star game from 2073 to 2081, but, starting in 2082, he hasn't missed a mid-summer classic since, giving him 5 total All Star appearances. He is currently 2nd in the American League in batting average, 10th in OPS, tied for 10th in homeruns, 5th in RBI, and tied for 9th in runs scored.

Center Field:

Roy Springs(Washington)

-.363/.415/.598/1.013, 13 2B, 3 3B, 20 HR, 74 RBI, 69 R

Not many players have career years at the age of 35, but Roy Springs may just accomplish that. The 8-time All Star leads the league in batting average, and ranks 10th in on base percentage, 7th in slugging percentage, 5th in OPS, 6th in RBI, and tied for 6th in runs scored. He is currently on pace to set career highs in batting average, on base percentage, and OPS, and he could make a run at his personal bests in RBI(158) and runs scored(130). Springs is also 75 homeruns away from 500.

Right Field:

Burl Wyatt(Knoxville)

-.328/.452/.695/1.147, 14 2B, 3 3B, 31 HR, 88 RBI, 87 R, 73 BB, 32 SB

Burl Wyatt appears to be the front-runner for the American League Silver Slugger Award. The 31 year old right-fielder, who is making his 3rd All Star appearance, is tied for the big league lead in RBI, and leads the American League in slugging percentage, OPS, homeruns, runs scored, and walks. He is also second in the AL in both on base percentage and stolen bases. He currently sits 2 homeruns away from 300 for his career.

Flavio Trujillo(Atlanta)

-.356/.446/.534/.981, 33 2B, 8 HR, 53 RBI, 75 R, 55 BB

Flavio Trujillo is a first time All Star at the age of 35. He ranks 4th in the American League in batting average, 3rd in on base percentage, 9th in OPS, 4th in doubles, and 3rd in runs scored. Currently, Trujillo is hitting 84 points above his career average of .272. He is also 40 homeruns away from 400.

James Wysocki(Charlotte)

-.299/.416/.574/.990, 16 2B, 22 HR, 61 RBI, 68 R, 59 BB

The youngest All Star on either squad is 25 year old James Wysocki, who is making his 2nd trip to the All Star game. He is 8th in the AL in on base percentage, 10th in slugging percentage, 8th in OPS, tied for 8th in homeruns, and 8th in runs scored.

Starting Pitcher:

Christian Hokusai(Miami)

-14-2, 1.93 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, 110/23 K/BB, 4 CG, 3 SH

The 30 year old Hokusai has been the best pitcher in the American League this season. The 4-time All Star leads the league in wins and ERA, is tied for the league lead in shutouts, ranks 4th in strikeouts, and tied for 10th in complete games.

Kenny Pillsbury(Denver)

-13-4, 2.77 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 121/12 K/BB, 5 CG, 3 SH

Hokusai's main challenger for the Cy Young Award is 33 year old Kenny Pillsbury, who is making his 5th trip to the All Star game. Pillsbury is 2nd in the league in wins, 2nd in ERA, 3rd in strikeouts, tied for 6th in complete games, and tied for 1st in shutouts.

Roy Kelemen(Memphis)

-12-5, 3.29 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 84/38 K/BB, 7 CG, 2 SH

Veteran Roy Kelemen has helped to keep Memphis competitive this season. This is the 34 year old pitcher's 3rd All Star appearance. He is tied for 3rd in the league in wins, ranks 8th in ERA, and is tied for 4th in both complete games and shutouts. He is just 14 wins away from 200 for his career.

Christopher Kirk(Tucson)

-12-7, 3.12 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 85/20 K/BB, 9 CG, 2 SH

In his first season away from Denver, 32 year old Christopher Kirk makes his first trip to the All Star game. He is tied for 3rd in the league in wins, ranks 5th in ERA, leads the league in complete games, and is tied for 4th in shutouts.

Ramon Baston(Miami)

-11-4, 2.96 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 104/64 K/BB, 5 CG, 2 SH

The biggest question for 33 year old Ramon Baston is whether he can keep pitching as well as he has so far this season. The 2-time All Star rolled into the All Star break last season with the best numbers in the league(12-3, 2.02 ERA), but a second half swoon left him with a 19-8 record and a 3.49 ERA. Still excellent numbers, of course, but very disappointing after the way he started. This year, Baston is tied for 5th in the league in wins, 3rd in ERA, 6th in strikeouts, tied for 6th in complete games, and tied for 4th in shutouts.

Rene Romero(Knoxville)

-10-3, 4.48 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 97/38 K/BB, 5 CG, 2 SH

First time All Star Rene Romero is a somewhat questionable selection. The 26 year old's record is impressive, but his ERA isn't particularly exceptional. He is tied for 9th in the league in wins, ranks 15th in ERA, tied for 6th in complete games, and tied for 4th in shutouts.

Ray Lockridge(Denver)

-11-5, 5.10 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 97/25 K/BB, 1 CG

If Romero is a questionable selection, then 33 year old Ray Lockridge is an absurd selection. Although the 3-time All Star is tied for 5th in the league in wins, his ERA ranks just 23rd in the American League, and would be the worst of his career. Lockridge's record has been inflated by the fact that he has received the best run support in all of baseball, with the Broncos' lineup scoring 8.6 runs per game for him.

Relief Pitcher:

Salvador Fierros(Miami)

-29 G, 8-2, 14 SV, 1.28 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 36/12 K/BB, 49 1/3 IP

Miami expected Salvador Fierros to emerge as a dominant relief ace last season, but it didn't really happen as he suffered through an injury-plagued season and managed just an ugly 5.00 ERA in 54 innings pitched. The 29 year old has broken out this season, and his efforts have been rewarded with his first trip to the All Star game. He leads all American League relievers in ERA and wins, and ranks 8th in saves. As a testament to his dominance, he has yet to allow a homerun this season.

Jordon Odle(Knoxville)

-32 G, 3-1, 21 SV, 2.14 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, 32/24 K/BB, 46 1/3 IP

This is the 2nd All Star game for the 37 year old Jordon Odle. The veteran closer is tied for the league lead in saves, and has the third best ERA among AL relievers. With only 2 blown saves, he has the 3rd best save percentage in the league. He has held opposing hitters to a mind-bogglingly low .101 batting average, and has not allowed any of the 14 base-runners that he has inherited to score. Odle recently cracked the top 25 saves list, and with 360 career saves, he currently ranks 23rd all time. With 15 more saves, he could jump all the way to 19th.

James Smith(Washington)

32 G, 4-3, 21 SV, 2.66 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 21/5 K/BB, 40 2/3 IP

This is the 6th time that 35 year old James Smith has been named to the All Star team. He is tied for 1st in the league in saves, and ranks 4th among AL relievers in ERA. He has only 1 blown save, which gives him the best save percentage in the American League. With 339 career saves, Smith needs only 19 more to break into the top 25 all time.

[jamus23]

On a cool, breezy day in Portland, the National League All Stars soundly defeated the American League All Stars by a final score of 12-5. Leading the way for the National League was New Jersey first-baseman, Amaury Lucia, who collected 4 hits, a walk, 4 runs batted in, and 5 runs scored to earn MVP honors. Among those 4 hits was a pair of homeruns.

Lucia got the NL on the board first, when he smacked a 2-out, 2-run homerun in the bottom of the first inning. Washington center-fielder, Roy Springs returned the favor with a 2-run shot in the top of the second inning.

Miami's Christian Hokusai struck out the side in the bottom of the second, and the American League grabbed the lead in the top of the third inning. Atlanta shortstop Roger Attaway belted a 2-run homerun to give the AL a 4-2 lead. That lead was short-lived, however. In the bottom of the third inning, Hartford shortstop Ralph Jennings, and Rochester third-baseman Louis Guerriero each hit 2-out RBI singles, and the game was tied up at 4-all.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, the National League retook the lead, and never looked back. Buffalo right-fielder John Kling drew a bases-loaded walk to drive in the go-ahead run, and Phoenix center-fielder Eduardo Braza delivered a 2-run single to make it 7-4.

The National League turned the game into a rout in the bottom of the sixth. Miami's Salvador Fierros began the inning by walking two batters. After a third reached on an error, Fierros then walked Amaury Lucia to bring in run number 8. Fierros was pulled in favor of Washington's James Smith, who managed to get one out before giving up a 3-run double to Louis Guerriero.

The American League got its final run in the top of the seventh inning. Knoxville right-fielder Burl Wyatt hit a run-scoring double to make it 11-5. Lucia completed the scoring with a homerun to lead off the eighth inning.

New Jersey's Kenneth Chancey picked up the win; he pitched 1 scoreless inning, with 2 hits allowed, and 2 strikeouts. The loss went to Miami's Ramon Baston, who gave up 2 hits, 3 walks, and 3 runs in 2/3 of an inning.



This is how Denver's All Stars fared:

Lee Chappel: 2 for 5, with a run scored
Alexis Vazquez: 1 for 2, with a strikeout
Kenny Pillsbury: 2 innings pitched, 4 hits allowed, 2 runs allowed
Ray Lockridge: Did not pitch

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Denver       58 36 .617    -   59-35   -1 29-15 29-21  2-7 13-10  W1    4-6 
Memphis      49 42 .538  7.5   48-43    1 23-21 26-21  3-2 13-10  W1    7-3 
Tucson       49 42 .538  7.5   50-41   -1 25-20 24-22  4-5 11-17  W2    4-6 
Green Bay    42 50 .457 15.0   37-55    5 20-25 22-25  4-4 18-10  L1    3-7 
Grand Rapids 41 52 .441 16.5   40-53    1 25-24 16-28  4-5 11-11  L1    3-7 
Kansas City  33 58 .363 23.5   38-53   -5 14-33 19-25  1-4  6-13  W1    4-6

Denver 0 @ Miami 17
Denver 5 @ Miami 7(12 innings)
Denver 3 @ Miami 8
Denver 3 @ Miami 1



Denver's first series after the All Star break was a disaster. Kenny Pillsbury left in the second inning of the first game against Miami with a back injury(he will miss a start, but otherwise, it's not too serious), and the bullpen was unable to keep the team in the game. Lyndon Gwinn wasn't too bad, with 2 runs allowed in 3 innings of work, but Omar Lopez and Laverne McCullum were beaten into submission by the Dolphins. The coup de grâce came in the 7th inning, when Miami scored 10 runs to put the game completely out of reach. Meanwhile, Denver's offense was helpless against Ramon Baston, who twirled a 3-hit, 8-strikeout, complete game shutout. In the second game, Denver rallied from a 4-2 deficit to tie the game in the 8th inning. The Broncos took the lead in the top of the 12th inning, but Omar Lopez served up a game-winning, 2-run homerun to Edmond McGurk in the bottom half of the 12th. Denver fell behind quickly in the third game, as Miami scored 3 runs in the first inning, but evened the score with 2 runs in the fifth inning and another run in the top of the sixth. The Dolphins retook the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning, however, and then tacked on 4 insurance runs in the seventh. In the final game of the series, the Broncos trailed 1-0 from the third inning into the eighth inning. In the eighth, however, Lee Chappel slammed a go-ahead, 3-run homerun, and James Virgen pitched 2 scoreless innings for the save.



Lee Chappel was pretty much the only hitter who did anything this week. He posted a 1.146 OPS, with 2 doubles, 2 homeruns, and 5 RBI. The next best hitter who saw significant action was Marvin Lore, who managed a .732 OPS, with a double.

The worst performers were Masahachirou Shunji(2 for 14, .357 OPS), Alexis Vazquez(3 for 19, .316 OPS), Booker Romero(1 for 11, .258 OPS), and Michael Phillips(1 for 16, .180 OPS).

Ray Lockridge had a good start(7 innings, 6 hits allowed, 1 run, 0 walks, and 5 strikeouts), but no one else did. Pillsbury threw a scoreless inning before his injury. Robert McNett gave up 4 runs in 6 innings pitched. George Buentello gave up 8 runs(6 earned) in 8 innings of work.

James Virgen had a good week out of the 'pen. In 2 appearances, he pitched 4 scoreless innings, gave up 1 hit and 1 walk, and struck out 3 batters. Larry Waltz only allowed 1 run in 3 1/3 innings, but he did give up 4 hits. Omar Lopez finished with 10 hits and 9 runs allowed in 2 innings, while Laverne McCullum gave up 6 hits and 8 runs in 2 innings.

On the injury front, Ellis Bolling returned from the disabled list, while Russell Thomas may return by the end of the upcoming week. Kenny Pillsbury will miss one start with his back injury, though it is not certain who will get a spot start in place of him. If Larry Waltz was having a better season, he might have gotten the nod, as he as filled that role in the past. As it is, giving him a start seems like a really bad idea, so the most likely candidate right now is 30 year old Walter Ortiz, who has a 4.00 ERA in 15 starts at AAA this season. Ortiz made 2 relief appearances for the Broncos in 2082(12.00 ERA in 3 innings), but hasn't pitched in the big leagues since. He'll get the opportunity because no one else at AAA will be rested enough.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Phoenix's third-baseman, Anthony Nicklas. It is his second career POTW award. Nicklas hit .529(9 for 17), with a 1.967 OPS, 3 doubles, 4 homeruns, 11 RBI, and 6 runs scored. He doubles, homered, drove in 2 runs, and scored 2 runs in a 15-8 loss to Portland. He had 4 hits, including a double and 2 homeruns, 6 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 14-7 thumping of the Trailblazerz. Finally, he had 2 hits, including another homerun, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 10-5 win over Portland.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Knoxville's third-baseman, Donald Noles. It is the 4th POTW award of Noles' career. He hit .529(9 for 17), with a 1.932 OPS, 2 doubles, 4 homeruns, 5 RBI, and 9 runs scored. Noles hit a pair of solo homeruns, walked once, and score 3 runs in a 10-6 win over Nashville. He had 4 hits, including 2 doubles and a homerun, 1 RBI, and 3 runs scored in a 16-3 pasting of the Predators. Finally, he had 3 hits, including another homerun, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 10-5 win over Nashville.




Division Races:

There was a big showdown in the West this week, as first place San Diego(63-30) took on second place San Jose(51-41). A series win for the Padres would likely make the rest of the regular season only a formality in terms of who is going to win the division. A series win for the Sharks would at least keep the slim possibility that they could close the gap alive for a little bit longer. San Diego took the first 3 games, and with an 11 1/2 game lead right now, I'd say first place is pretty much wrapped up. The Sharks, meanwhile, have other things to worry about. Third place Sacramento(48-43) took 3 of 4 from Pittsburgh(40-52), and the Kings sit only 2 1/2 games back of San Jose. Los Angeles(44-46) has continued its tailspin. The Dodgers have lost 6 in a row, and 9 of their last 10, and are in danger of falling out of the playoff race entirely.

There was also a battle between first place and second place teams in the Northeast Division, as New Jersey(52-40) took on Buffalo(48-42). The Bills won 2 out of 3, and they trail the Devils by only 3 games now.

In the Southeast, second place Knoxville(54-38) just can't seem to gain any ground on the first place Dolphins(68-26). The 79ers have won 7 straight games, and 8 of their last 10, but Miami had also won 7 in a row before the last game against Denver, and the Dolphins have won 8 of their last 10, as well. Still, Knoxville has opened up a 7 game lead on third place Atlanta(47-45), and this division could turn into a 2-team race very shortly.

Denver's(58-36) problems have allowed Memphis(49-42) and Tucson(49-42) to creep back into the Central Division race. A repeat of the 2081 race, when Denver won the division by 1 game over Tucson, and 3 games over Memphis, would be very exciting.




Injury News:

There was only one serious injury this week, and that was to Knoxville starting pitcher, Paul Leigh(3-5, 7.16 ERA). He will be out for about a month and a half with a rotator cuff injury. Given that he hasn't pitched very well, it is probably not a big loss.




Ahead on Denver's schedule this week is a 3 game series against Knoxville(54-38) and a 3 game series against Tucson(49-42).

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Denver       62 38 .620    -   62-38    0 33-17 29-21  2-7 15-10  W1    5-5 
Memphis      53 45 .541  8.0   52-46    1 25-22 28-23  3-3 14-11  L1    6-4 
Tucson       51 47 .520 10.0   52-46   -1 26-23 25-24  4-5 12-19  L1    4-6 
Green Bay    46 52 .469 15.0   41-57    5 24-27 22-25  4-4 19-10  W3    6-4 
Grand Rapids 44 55 .444 17.5   43-56    1 25-24 19-31  4-5 11-11  L2    4-6 
Kansas City  34 64 .347 27.0   41-57   -7 14-33 20-31  1-4  6-15  L5    3-7

Knoxville 10 @ Denver 11
Knoxville 9 @ Denver 10
Knoxville 16 @ Denver 11
Tucson 3 @ Denver 14
Tucson 9 @ Denver 7
Tucson 5 @ Denver 8



When two strong offensive teams with questionable pitching go head to head in a hitters' paradise, you are going to get a lot of high-scoring games. And that's exactly what happened when Knoxville came to Denver for a 3-game tilt. In the first game, the 79ers jumped to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning. Denver tied it in the fourth, but fell behind 3-2 in the top of the fifth inning. In the bottom of the fifth, the Broncos took a 5-3 lead, only to fall behind 7-5 in the top of the sixth inning. Denver tied it once again, in the bottom of the sixth, but Knoxville took one more lead in the seventh inning. In the bottom of the seventh, Denver struck for 4 runs to take an 11-8 lead, and then had to hang as Knoxville mounted a ninth inning rally. The second game was almost a carbon copy of the first. Knoxville scored 3 first inning runs, but the Broncos responded with 4 of their own. The 79ers took a 5-4 lead in the second inning, made it 6-4 in the third, and then made it 7-4 in the top of the sixth inning. Denver erupted for 3 runs in the bottom of the sixth, however, and the game was tied up. The Broncos took the lead on an Ellis Bolling homerun in the seventh inning, but Knoxville wasn't finished. The 79ers retook the lead with 2 runs in the eighth inning. Unfortunately for them, Denver got to closer Jordon Odle in the bottom of the ninth inning, and escaped with another 1-run victory. The third time was the charm for Knoxville, though the win did not come without difficulty. The 79ers opened up a 3-0 lead after 3 1/2 innings, but the Broncos tied the game in the bottom of the fourth inning. Knoxville struck for 4 runs in the top of the fifth, but Denver got 3 of the runs back in the bottom half of the fifth inning. Knoxville pushed its lead to 10-6 heading into the bottom of the seventh, but the Broncos cut it to 10-7. Knoxville made it 12-7 in the eighth inning, but Denver closed the gap to 12-10 with 3 runs in the bottom of the eighth. The 79ers finally put away the Broncos with 4 runs in the ninth inning, although Denver still managed to plate a run in the bottom of the ninth. The 79ers clubbed 6 homeruns in this contest- 2 each by outfielders Burl Wyatt and Joshua Kier- compared to none for Denver.

Denver finished the week with an important series against division rival Tucson. While the Broncos have a comfortable lead in the division, they haven't been able to really take control. A series win against the Diamondbacks would allow them to tighten their grip on the Central. The first game turned into a rout very quickly. Michael Phillips hit a 3-run homer in the first inning, and Denver led 5-1 after 2 innings. In the fifth inning, Alexis Vazquez and Marvin Lore each hit 2-run homeruns, and the Broncos opened up a 10-2 lead on Tucson. Vazquez would later hit another 2-run homerun, and Denver cruised to an easy victory. The second game was similar to the battles between Denver and Knoxville earlier in the week. Tucson jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning, but after 4 innings, the Diamondbacks clung to a 4-3 lead. They made it 5-3 in the fifth inning, but Denver grabbed a 6-5 lead with 3 runs in the sixth. Tucson went back ahead with a couple of runs in the seventh inning. The Broncos tied the game in the eighth. In the ninth inning, however, Tucson scored 2 unearned runs to pull out the victory. Three Denver errors led to 5 of Tucson's 9 runs being unearned, while a Tucson error led to 3 of Denver's 7 runs being unearned. Booker Romero and Michael Phillips each drove in 2 runs in the third game, and the Broncos outlasted Tucson.



This week was completely different from last week's lackluster offensive showing. There were an abundance of Denver hitters who had good weeks, starting with Booker Romero, who had a 1.540 OPS, 11 hits, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homeruns, and 9 runs scored. Alexis Vazquez had a 1.485 OPS, 15 hits, 2 doubles, 2 homeruns, 9 RBI, and 7 runs scored. Jack Rumfelt produced a 1.250 OPS, with 2 doubles, a homerun, and 7 RBI. Shifusa Ryo delivered a 1.214 OPS, a double, a homerun, and 5 RBI. Jose Fuensanta posted a 1.196 OPS, with 2 doubles, and a homerun. Ellis Bolling had a 1.114 OPS, with 3 doubles, a homerun, 6 RBI, and 7 runs scored. Marvin Lore's OPS was only .767, but he had 10 hits, a homerun, 8 RBI, and 6 runs scored. Michael Phillips had only a .789 OPS, but he hit a double and a homerun, drove in 7 runs, and scored 7 runs.

Despite all that, there were a few less than stellar performances. Lee Chappel managed only a .735 OPS, and although he had a .385 on base percentage, he somehow failed to score any runs. Asbel Fuentez, meanwhile, was 2 for 12, with a .397 OPS.

Not surprisingly, the picture was not so rosy on the mound. Only George Buentello managed a quality start, with 3 runs allowed in 8 1/3 innings pitched. Kenny Pillsbury and Ray Lockridge had identical ERAs, as they both gave up 4 earned runs in 7 innings; Pillsbury allowed 7 total runs, however. Walter Ortiz's first big league start was decidedly unimpressive, as he gave up 13 hits and 7 runs in 6 innings of work. Still, he wasn't as bad as Thomas Fons, who gave up 8 runs in 6 innings, or Robert McNett, who continued his sudden slump by allowing 10 hits and 8 runs in 5 1/3 innings pitched.

With such wonderful starting pitching, it is also not surprising that the bullpen saw a lot of use this past week. Like with the rotation, there weren't many positive performances. James Virgen gave up 4 hits and 2, unearned, runs in 2 innings of work. Laverne McCullum pitched 2/3 scoreless innings, but did allow 2 hits. Robert Soto made 3 appearances, and pitched 4 innings, with 7 hits and 3 runs allowed. Larry Waltz gave up 5 hits and 2 runs in 2 innings. Omar Lopez gave up 5 hits and 4 runs in 3 2/3 innings. Lyndon Gwinn gave up 3 hits, 2 walks, and 4 runs in 2 innings pitched.

For the first time in about 2 months, the Broncos are completely healthy. Center-fielder Russell Thomas was activated from the disabled list at the end of the week.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Pittsburgh's first-baseman, James Sequeira. This is Sequeira's 2nd career POTW award. He hit .591(13 for 22), with a 1.700 OPS, 2 doubles, 3 homeruns, 10 RBI, and 8 runs scored. He had 2 hits and a run scored in a 4-2 win over Phoenix. He had 3 hits, including a homerun, and 4 RBI in an 8-3 win over the Cardinals. He went 5 for 5, with 2 homeruns, 5 RBI, and 3 runs scored in a 15-0 stomping of Phoenix. He had 2 hits and 2 runs scored in a 5-4 loss to Portland; Pittsburgh blew a 4-2 lead in the ninth inning to lose that game. In a 6-2 loss to the Trailblazers, Sequeira doubled in one of the runs, and scored the other.

The American League Player of the Week went to Denver's Alexis Vazquez. It is the 10th POTW award of Vazquez's career, and 2nd this season. He had 2 hits, a walk, and a run scored in Denver's 11-10 win over Knoxville. He had 3 hits, 1 RBI, and 2 runs scored in the Broncos' 10-9 win over the 79ers. He had 2 hits, 2 RBI, and a run scored in the 16-11 loss to Knoxville. He had 3 hits, including 2 homeruns, a walk, 4 RBI, and 3 runs scored in the 14-3 thumping of Tucson. He had 3 hits and an RBI in the 9-7 loss to the Diamondbacks. Finally, he had 2 hits, a walk, and an RBI in the 8-5 win over Tucson.

It has taken more than half the season, but the league has finally had a player hit for the cycle this year. San Jose outfielder Simon Martinez accomplished the feat as he collected 6 hits in a 13-12 victory over Hartford. He also drove in 2 runs, and scored 5 runs in that contest. He got things started with a single to lead off the first inning. In the second inning, he delivered a run-scoring triple- his 6th of the season- and helped San Jose take a 5-3 lead. In the fourth inning, he added another single. The Sharks scored 4 runs in that inning, and held a 10-4 lead through four innings. In the fifth inning, he hit the first of 2 doubles, and San Jose added 2 runs to its lead. The second double- his 29th of the season- came in the seventh inning. Hartford staged a furious rally, with 1 run in the bottom of the 7th, and 6 runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, and the Whalers trailed 12-11 heading into the ninth inning. With 2 outs in the ninth, Martinez completed the cycle with his first homerun of the season. That insurance run proved invaluable, as Hartford managed to score another run in the bottom of the ninth. Although it was Martinez's first career cycle, it was actually his 2nd career 6-hit game(he had one 2 years ago).




Division Races:

In the West Division, San Diego(68-32) opened up a little more ground between it and San Jose(54-44), but the Padres did close out the week with 2 straight defeats. Third place Sacramento(51-46) has won 2 in a row and are only 2 1/2 back of the Sharks.

In the Northeast, second place Buffalo(52-44) gained a game on first place New Jersey(55-43), and the Bills now sit only 2 games out of first. Rochester(46-50) meanwhile has started to get its act together. The Rhinos have won 2 in a row, and are only 6 games behind Buffalo.

Miami(71-29) remains in firm control of the Southeast over second place Knoxville(57-42), but the 79ers' lead over third place Atlanta(52-47) has dropped from 7 games to 5 games.

Denver(62-38) increased its lead in the Central by 1/2 a game, while Memphis(53-45) took over sole control of second place. Tucson(51-47) slipped to third place.



Ahead on Denver's schedule this week is a 3-game series at Memphis(53-45), and a 3-game series against Green Bay(46-52).

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Denver       66 40 .623    -   66-40    0 35-18 31-22  2-7 15-10  W1    6-4 
Tucson       55 49 .529 10.0   56-48   -1 30-25 25-24  4-5 14-19  W2    5-5 
Memphis      55 50 .524 10.5   54-51    1 27-27 28-23  3-3 15-12  L2    4-6 
Green Bay    48 56 .462 17.0   43-61    5 24-27 24-29  4-4 19-11  L1    5-5 
Grand Rapids 47 59 .443 19.0   45-61    2 28-28 19-31  4-5 11-12  L1    4-6 
Kansas City  39 66 .371 26.5   45-60   -6 19-35 20-31  2-5  8-15  L1    5-5

Denver 14 @ Memphis 2
Denver 3 @ Memphis 7
Denver 7 @ Memphis 5
Green Bay 6 @ Denver 13
Green Bay 6 @ Denver 3
Green Bay 6 @ Denver 8



The week began with a bang as the Broncos bludgeoned the Grizzlies in the first game of a three game series. Memphis scored 2 runs in the first inning, but after that, it was all Denver. The Broncos scored 4 runs in the second, and 2 runs in the third to chase Memphis starter Myron Snoddy. In the fifth inning, the Broncos put the game out of reach by scoring 7 runs. They tacked on another run in the seventh inning. Brooks Branco had 4 hits, a walk, 2 RBI, and 3 runs scored in the contest. In the second game, the Grizzlies again plated 2 runs in the first inning. Denver tied the game in the second inning on a 2-run homerun from Jose Fuensanta. Memphis, however, quickly retook the lead in the third inning, and made it 5-2 in the fourth inning. Booker Romero homered in the fifth, but that was all the Broncos could manage. Memphis added some insurance runs in the sixth and eighth innings. In the rubber game, Denver raced to a 5-0 lead, with 2 first inning runs and 3 third inning runs. That lead evaporated in the middle innings, as the Grizzlies scored 3 in the fourth, 1 in the fifth, and 1 in the sixth. In the top of the ninth inning, however, Jose Fuensanta delivered a 2-run double to give the Broncos the lead again. Robert Soto pitched a scoreless ninth to secure the victory.

After a lengthy stretch of games against some of the best teams in the league, Denver was happy to get a breather against the struggling Green Bay Packers. The Broncos jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning, but Green Bay wasn't about to go down without a fight. Heading into the bottom of the fifth inning, the Packers trailed only 4-3. But they could keep it close only for so long. Denver scored a run in the fifth inning, and then erupted for 4 runs in the sixth. Green Bay scored 2 in the seventh inning, but Denver got one back. Then the Packers made it 10-6 in the top of the eighth, but the Broncos put the game out of reach with 3 runs of their own in the bottom of the eighth inning. The second game went much better for Green Bay. Second-baseman Jorge Gonzalez hit a 2-out grand slam in the first inning, and emerging pitcher Armando Reynoso blanked the Broncos for the first 4 innings. Denver got on the board in the fifth inning, and scored a second run in the sixth inning. Gonzalez struck again, however, with a 2-run single in the eighth inning. The Broncos got another run in the bottom of the eighth, but that was all. In the third and final game, the Packers again scored quickly, with 2 first inning runs. The Broncos got one back in the bottom of the first, and then exploded for 5 runs in the second inning. Green Bay got one on the third inning, and 2 more in the sixth inning to cut Denver's lead to 1 run. The Broncos got 2 insurance runs in the seventh inning, which proved important when James Virgen coughed up a run in the ninth inning in the process of recording his 14th save of the season.


Leading the offense this week was Lee Chappel. The Denver catcher posted a 1.560 OPS, with 11 hits, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homeruns, 11 RBI, and 11 runs scored. Jose Fuensanta produced a 1.362 OPS, with a double, a homerun, 4 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Marvin Lore had a 1.222 OPS, with 2 homeruns, and 7 RBI. Ellis Bolling managed a 1.069 OPS, with 2 doubles, a homerun, 5 RBI, 5 runs scored, and 5 walks.

Jack Rumfelt managed just a .638 OPS in 21 at bats. Russell Thomas hit .286, but it was pretty empty, as his OPS was just .619. Michael Phillips' 6 walks helped to give him a .400 on base percentage during the week, but overall, he had a pathetic .567 OPS. The worst of the worst during the week, however, was left-fielder Masahachirou Shunji, who went 0 for 17 with a .056 OPS.

None of the starting pitchers stood out much. Kenny Pillsbury's 3.86 ERA was the best, but that was only because 2 of the 5 runs he allowed in 7 innings were unearned. Robert McNett made 2 starts and combined to give up 13 hits and 6 runs in 11 1/3 innings pitched. He did strike out 10 batters. Ray Lockridge gave up 10 hits and 5 runs in 8 innings of work. George Buentello surrendered 5 runs in 6 innings pitched. Thomas Fons allowed 7 runs in 8 innings.

Larry Waltz had a good week out of the bullpen, as he pitched 2 2/3 hit-less and scoreless innings, and struck out 3 batters. Laverne McCullum managed 2 scoreless innings. The worst reliever of the week was Omar Lopez, who gave up 2 hits, a walk, and 2 runs in 2 innings pitched.

On the injury front, the Broncos couldn't even go one full game without another injury. In the rout over Memphis, Alexis Vazquez, who went 3 for 3 with a walk and 2 RBI, got injured while running the bases. He tweaked his back a little bit, and had to go on the disabled list. He'll return in a little more than a week from now. Shifusa Ryo was recalled to take his spot.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Phoenix's third-baseman, Anthony Nicklas. It is the 3rd POTW award of Nicklas' career, and the second this season. Nicklas hit .429(12 for 28), with a 1.555 OPS, 3 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homeruns, 19 RBI, and 7 runs scored. He doubled, homered, walked, drove in 4 runs, and scored 2 runs in an 11-10 loss to Harrisburg. His homerun was a first inning grand slam that gave Phoenix and early lead. He homered twice, and drove in 4 runs in a 14-9 loss to the Capitals. His first homerun was a 3-run blast in the first inning that helped the Cardinals erase an early 4-0 Capitals' lead. Nicklas had 2 hits, including a double, 4 RBI, and a run scored in a 5-4, 10-inning win over Harrisburg. With the Cardinals trailing 4-0 in the fourth inning, Nicklas hit a 3-run double, and then was himself doubled in to tie up the game. Nicklas then produced a run-scoring single in the tenth to win the game. In a 9-2 triumph over Los Angeles, Nicklas doubled, tripled, and drove in 4 runs. He tripled, homered, and drove in 3 runs in a 14-7 loss to the Dodgers.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Denver's Lee Chappel. It is the 8th POTW award of Chappel's career, and his 3rd this season. He had 2 hits, including a triple, 2 walks, 4 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 14-2 thumping of Memphis. The triple came with 2 outs and 2 on the second inning, and helped the Broncos erase an early 2-0 deficit. He had 3 hits and 3 runs scored in a 7-5 win over the Grizzlies. In a 13-6 win over Green Bay, he had 4 hits, including 2 doubles and a homerun, 4 RBI, and 4 runs scored. He hit a solo homerun in a 6-3 loss to the Packers. Finally, he doubled, walked, and drove in 2 runs in an 8-6 win over Green Bay.




Division Races:

In the West Division, San Diego's(72-34) lead over San Jose(57-47) didn't change much, but the Sharks increased their lead over third place Sacramento(52-52) to 5 games.

New Jersey(61-44) upped its lead over Buffalo(57-46) in the Northeast to 3 games, while the Bills increased their lead over third place Rochester(50-53) to 7 games.

In the Southeast, Miami(75-31) remained comfortably ahead of Knoxville(61-45), while the third place Atlanta Braves(56-49) cut the 79ers' lead over them to 4 1/2 games.

In the Central Division, Tucson(55-49) moved ahead of Memphis(55-50) for second place, although the Diamondbacks remained 10 games behind first place Denver(66-40).




Injury News:

Rochester lost 24 year old center-fielder Nicanor Aguiar(30 2B, .768 OPS) for about 2 months with an ACL injury. Aguiar had taken over the center-field job from Gerald Schuyler, who was lost for the season with a broken foot in early May. Tucson lost right-fielder Richard Billips(42 2B, 11 HR, .846 OPS) for over a month with a torn groin muscle. Pittsburgh lost veteran relief ace Joe O'Donoghue(11 saves, 4.07 ERA in 48 2/3 innings pitched) for about 3 weeks with an injury to his biceps.





Trading News:

The trading deadline is only a few days away, and this past week saw a lot of activity on this front. Portland, which has been very trade-happy this season, continued its wheeling and dealing. First, the Trailblazers sent left-fielder Robert Perkins(.365 OBP, .782 OPS) to Hartford in exchange for starting pitcher Bill Leatherman(10-7, 4.70 ERA) and outfield prospect Karl Wilcox(.588 OPS at A-ball). Because this trade actually sparked a series of other trades, I'm going to go through all of those trades first, before offering any kind of analysis. After acquiring the left-fielder Perkins, Hartford then traded incumbent left-fielder John Gans(.364 AVG, .879 OPS) to Washington in exchange for several prospects: 18 year old starting pitcher Ronald Trost(3.92 ERA in A-ball), 20 year old second-baseman Mitchell Sok(.642 OPS in A-ball), and 25 year old first-baseman Bill Herrin(.526 OPS at AA). This trade was a bit of a shock, as Gans has been with the Whalers since 2074, and was a key player on the the '77 team that reached the World Series. Meanwhile, Portland, after having acquired a starting pitcher, decided to ship out a starter. Bruce Congdon(7-3, 4.12 ERA), who was acquired via trade at the beginning of July, and Wilcox were sent to Green Bay for catcher Gary Jones(.323 AVG, .833 OPS). Yes, that is correct. Less than two months after sending Jones to the Packers, Portland decided to reacquire him. Having now traded Jones, Green Bay was suddenly in need of a catcher, while Hartford was now interested in a starting pitcher. So the Packers turned around and dealt both Congdon and Wilcox to the Whalers in exchange for catcher Benito Breton(.301 AVG, .784 OPS). And yes, Karl Wilcox did wind up back where he started.

So after all of that, were there any winners or losers? Well, Portland did rectify its earlier mistake of trading Jones, by reacquiring him, and the Trailblazers reduced payroll a bit by replacing Congdon($3.7 million per year) with Leatherman($2.9 million per year). The downside is that Leatherman is going to be a free agent after this season, while Congdon was signed through next season. Hartford, meanwhile, got a lot younger and reduced its payroll by quite a bit by replacing the 36 year old Gans($8.5 million per year) with the 28 year old Perkins($1.800 million per year). Plus, Gans will be a free agent after this season, while Perkins is still in his arbitration years. A similar situation exists with Congdon replacing Leatherman. The latter may be making less money, but the former won't be a free agent at the end of the season. On the other hand, trading the 25 year old Breton was somewhat questionable, as it forces 28 year old William Carter(.947 OPS in 118 at bats) into the starting lineup. While Carter has played very well this season, his .789 career OPS indicates that he may not really be a starting caliber player. Hartford doesn't have great catching depth either, so it wouldn't shock me at all to see the Whalers make another deal before the deadline to acquire another backstop. The Whalers did also pick up a fairly nice pitching prospect in Ronald Trost, though he is a very long way off from the big leagues. As for Washington, its trade was a bit more suspect. Gans is an upgrade over incumbent left-fielder, 38 year old Leon Pino(.630 OPS), but it's not as though he is a young guy, either. Additionally, Washington is pretty much out of the playoff race at this point(26 1/2 games out of first and 12 1/2 out of second). Giving up several prospects for an expensive veteran doesn't seem like a very smart deal for a mediocre team. Especially when Gans could leave as a free agent, and the Senators will have accomplished absolutely nothing. The Packers, meanwhile, simply exchanged one young, decent catcher for another. As hitters, Jones and Breton are fairly similar. Breton is a bit better defensively, while Jones is a dangerous base-stealing threat. One good thing is that Breton is just now hitting his arbitration years, while Jones will be eligible for free agency after next season.

There were two other trades during the week, and they were somewhat connected, as well. First, Sacramento acquired second-baseman Daryl Scott(.739 OPS) from Charlotte in exchange for starting pitcher Alfred Ambriz(8-9, 4.90 ERA) and third base prospect Bernard Gibb(.617 OPS at A-ball). Then, the Panthers sent Gibb and relief pitching prospect Christopher Todd(3.26 ERA in 91 innings pitched at A-ball) to Buffalo in exchange for second-baseman Ciro Joubert(.683 OPS). For everyone involved, these trades are questionable. Only 5 games behind second place San Jose, the Sacramento Kings are still very much in the playoff race. So why would they trade away an average starting pitcher when their rotation currently includes two rookies who may not be ready for the big leagues? Ambriz's departure forced them to recall 30 year old Ulysses Swain, who has a 5.72 career ERA in 77 big league games, and a 7.58 ERA in 8 starts this season. Ambriz may not have been great, but he at least gave the Kings a third credible starter after Carl Strothers and Pedro Godinez. Meanwhile, the acquisition of Scott has, inexplicably, led the Kings to bench veteran Jacob DeStefano, who has posted an .860 OPS with 12 homeruns this season. Sure, the 35 year old DeStefano might be outperforming his .776 career OPS by quite a bit, but even that would be a lot better than Scott. As for Charlotte, it is true that Ambriz is a huge improvement to the Panthers' pitching staff, but that's not really saying much; the Panthers' rotation has been awful this season. Worse, Ambriz is set to become a free agent, so Charlotte might lose him for nothing. Meanwhile, replacing the 26 year old Scott with the 34 year old Joubert makes no sense for a team that is well out of the playoff race. At this point in his career, Joubert isn't really starting material. He would make a fine utility player for a contender, however. Hey, wait a minute.... that's exactly what he was in Buffalo. Joubert has played every infield position this season for the second place Bills. So why the heck did the Bills trade him for a couple of prospects? In their defense, I suppose, Christopher Todd is a rather solid looking relief prospect, though it will be a few years yet before he's ready to play in the big leagues.




Ahead for Denver this week is a 3 game series at Nashville(35-71), and a 3 game series versus Kansas City(39-66).

[jamus23]

Denver 14 @ Nashville 4
Denver 3 @ Nashville 8
Denver 3 @ Nashville 4
Kansas City 11 @ Denver 2
Kansas City 1 @ Denver 7
Kansas City 5 @ Denver 11



The Broncos ended the month of July and began the month of August with a slate of games that was expected to be a breather. After playing almost exclusively playoff contenders throughout July, back to back series against the two worst teams in baseball should have been a cakewalk. But even in a first game rout over Nashville, the Broncos had some difficulties. Denver actually trailed 2-1 in that game through five innings. In the sixth inning, however, the floodgates opened. Russell Thomas and Marvin Lore each hit 3-run homeruns in that inning, and Denver's offense erupted for 11 runs. Both teams added 2 more runs after that to complete the scoring. In the second game, Nashville returned the favor. The Broncos led 2-1 after 5 1/2 innings, but the Predators exploded for 7 runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Denver's offense was inexplicably shut down by Nashville starter Robert Coy, he of the 6+ ERA, and Nashville earned a comfortable victory. The Broncos lost the third game when reliever Omar Lopez served up a walk-off homerun to left-fielder Jonathan Constantino to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning.

Robert McNett continued his slump in the first game against Kansas City with a 4th inning collapse that saw the Royals score 5 runs. Denver managed to get 2 runs on the board in the 5th inning, but the bullpen couldn't keep the game within reach, and the offense disappeared. Ray Lockridge took a shutout into the ninth inning in the second game, and pretty much everyone in the lineup contributed to the easy victory. Every hitter managed at least 1 hit or walk, and five hitters managed at least 2 hits and walks combined. Six different players drove in runs, and five different players scored runs. In the final game against Kansas City, the Broncos scored 6 runs in the first inning and never looked back. Russell Thomas and Jack Rumfelt both drove in 3 runs in the game.



Russell Thomas was the offensive leader this week, although he had some stiff competition. Thomas posted a 1.204 OPS, with 12 hits, a double, 2 homeruns, 8 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Marvin Lore produced a 1.195 OPS, with 10 hits, 1 homerun, and 6 RBI. Lee Chappel had a 1.033 OPS, with 10 hits, 5 doubles, 2 homeruns, 7 RBI, and 6 runs scored. Asbel Fuentez's OPS was only .790, but he doubled twice, tripled once, walked 4 times, and scored a team-high 8 runs. Ellis Bolling doubled 3 times, walked 6 times, and scored 6 runs.

Michael Phillips drew 6 walks and had a .417 on base percentage, however, he was just 3 for 17, and had only a .593 OPS. Booker Romero, who is having an excellent season, struggled quite a bit this week, as he was just 4 for 19 with a .461 OPS. Masahachirou Shunji continued his struggles by going 0 for 5 with 3 strikeouts.

On the pitching side, Ray Lockridge was the most effective starter during the week. He allowed only 5 hits and 1 run in 8 1/3 innings pitched. Kenny Pillsbury was a bit shaky, with 10 hits allowed in 7 innings, but he gave up only 3 runs. George Buentello allowed 4 runs(3 earned) in 5 1/3 innings pitched. Thomas Fons made 2 starts, and gave up 19 hits and 9 runs in 14 2/3 innings. Robert McNett surrendered 9 hits and 5 runs in 5 2/3 innings pitched, although he did also record 9 strikeouts.

Robert Soto had a busy, and solid, week. In 3 appearances and 4 1/3 innings pitched, he gave up 2 runs(1 earned), and struck out 3 batters. Lyndon Gwinn tossed 3 1/3 scoreless innings and struck out 4 batters. James Virgen had a disastrous week. He pitched 1/3 of an inning, and gave up 5 hits and 4 runs. Newcomer Jason Todd(see below) did not impress in his first outing with the Broncos: 1 1/3 innings, 6 hits, 4 runs(3 earned).

On the injury front, there were no new injuries. Alexis Vazquez will come off of the disabled list in 2 days.

The trading deadline came and went, and Denver wound up being quite busy, although only one of the trades affected the big league roster(at least for now). The rest involved exclusively players currently in the minor leagues. First, the Broncos sent 25 year old center-fielder Arlie Raines(.830 OPS at AA), 27 year old left-handed reliever Robert Ramos(7.31 ERA at AAA), and 26 year old reliever Bill Willbanks(2.55 ERA at AA) to Phoenix in exchange for 25 year old strong-armed catcher Walter Knott(.735 OPS at AA) and 21 year old starting pitcher Steven Gabbert(3.17 ERA at A). Knott projects as a backup catcher, while Gabbert's main asset at this point is his age. Next, Denver sent 26 year old catcher John Landon(.753 OPS at AAA), 25 year old first-baseman Luis Dieguez(.658 OPS at AA), and 26 year old left-fielder Michale Ruark(.697 OPS at AA) to Washington in exchange for a pair of 26 year old relievers, Alex Haider(3.60 ERA and 98 strikeouts in 80 innings at AA) and Phillip Wass(3.93 ERA at AA). Haider has very good stuff, but has been slow to develop, while Wass is a left-hander who gets a lot of ground balls. The Broncos' third trade was the only one that involved a current big league player. Denver sent 25 year old left-handed starting pitcher Carmelo Dros(3.86 ERA at AA), 27 year old shortstop Randall Naughton(.702 OPS at AAA), and 25 year old reliever Jerry Schuyler(5.96 ERA at A) to Charlotte in exchange for 37 year old right-handed reliever Jason Todd(6.85 ERA in 50 appearances) and 21 year old left-handed starting pitcher Curtis Shaw(3.11 ERA at A-ball). Todd has a 4.80 ERA in 773 career games, and was an All Star in 2075. He throws very hard, gets a ton of ground balls, and can throw plenty of pitches before getting tired. His control is pretty shaky, though, and he struggles against lefties. He will be a free agent at the end of the season. To make room for Todd on the big league roster, the Broncos sent Laverne McCullum to AAA. The final trade that Denver made had the Broncos sending 26 year old catcher David Weber(.690 OPS at AA), 28 year old starting pitcher Charles Yost(4.53 ERA at AAA), and 25 year old starting pitcher Jesse Valecillo(6.63 ERA at AA) to Portland in exchange for 23 year old starting pitcher Bernard Garza(4.19 ERA at AA). Garza was the 6th overall pick in the 2082 draft, but despite having great velocity, he has never developed much. More than anything else, these trades were an attempt to offer a change of scenery to some guys that had become afterthoughts in the Denver organization, while bringing in some players that who might also have been in need of a new environment.




Around the league:

The National League Batter of the Month Award went to Phoenix's third-baseman, Anthony Nicklas. It is Nicklas' 2nd career BOTM award. In the month of July, Nicklas hit .361/.417/.876/1.293, with 10 doubles, 2 triples, 12 homeruns, 40 RBI, and 23 runs scored. For the season, he has hit .307/.379/.722/1.101, with 28 doubles, 5 triples, 41 homeruns, 115 RBI, and 90 runs scored. The homerun and RBI totals rank first in all of baseball, while his OPS ranks third in the National League.

The National League Pitcher of the Month Award went to Buffalo's Joseph Oliver. It is his first ever POTM award. Oliver was 4-1 in 5 July starts, with a 1.59 ERA, a 0.91 WHIP, and a 30/10 K/BB ratio in 34 innings pitched. This season, Oliver has shown no ill effects from the injury that limited him to 5 starts last year. In 24 starts, Oliver has a record of 11-6, a 2.52 ERA, a 1.04 WHIP, and a 129/59 K/BB ratio in 157 1/3 innings pitched. The ERA ranks second in the National League.

The American League Batter of the Month Award went to Atlanta's left-fielder, Joey Campos. It is Campos' 4th career BOTM award. In the month of July, he hit .460/.538/1.046/1.584, with 12 doubles, 13 homeruns, 40 RBI, and 23 runs scored. Campos is having his best season ever this year, with a .349/.431/.713/1.144 batting line, 43 doubles, 1 triple, 34 homeruns, 113 RBI, and 85 runs scored. This is the tenth season in a row that he has reached 30 homeruns, and he needs only 9 more to tie his career high of 43. He leads all of baseball in OPS, is first in the AL in runs batted in, and tied for second in homeruns.

The American League Pitcher of the Month Award went to Green Bay's Anibal Reynoso. It is his first career POTM award. Reynoso was 5-0 in 6 July starts, with a 1.80 ERA, a 0.94 WHIP, and a 33/8 K/BB ratio in 50 innings pitched. He also tossed a pair of complete game shutouts: a 4-hit, 7 K, 3 BB outing against Kansas City, and a 5-hit, 9 K, 0 BB game against Tucson. The 30 year old Reynoso has come out of nowhere in only his second full season as a starter. Last season, he was 11-17, with a 6.26 ERA. So far this season, Reynoso is 10-8, with a 2.76 ERA, a 1.00 WHIP, a 110/31 K/BB ratio in 159 2/3 innings pitched, 10 complete games, and 5 shutouts. His ERA ranks third in the American League, and he is second in complete games, and first in shutouts.

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Portland's right-fielder, David New. It is New's 2nd career POTW award, and both have come this season. New hit .480(12 for 25), with a 1.376 OPS, 3 homeruns, 6 RBI, and 7 runs scored. He had 2 hits, a walk, 1 RBI, and a run scored in an 11-9 victory over Sacramento. He had 4 hits, including a homerun, 2 RBI, and 3 runs scored in an 8-4 win over the Kings. His 2-run homerun in the first inning helped Portland build an early 4-0 lead in that game. He had 2 hits, including a solo homerun, in a 9-1 loss to Sacramento. He had 2 hits, including a homerun, a walk, 1 RBI, and 1 run scored in a 3-1 win over the Kings.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Grand Rapids' catcher, Ramon Martinez. It is his first career POTW award. Martinez hit .462(12 for 26), with a 1.577 OPS, 1 double, 5 homeruns, 6 RBI, and 6 runs scored during the week. He had 3 hits, including a homerun, 2 RBI, and a run scored in a 5-4, 10-inning, loss to Atlanta. He had 3 hits, including 2 homeruns, a walk, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored in an 8-3 loss to the Braves. He had 3 hits, including 2 homeruns, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 13-4 loss to Memphis.




Injury News:

There was one big injury during the week, and that was to Phoenix's Anthony Nicklas, who suffered a fractured hand when he was hit by a pitch. He is not expected to return until the middle of September. This injury pretty much ends any chance of Nicklas duplicating his 61 homeruns from last season. At 41, he was only 20 homeruns away, which could certainly have been accomplished with two months left in the season. Not anymore, unfortunately.




Trading News:

Denver wasn't the only active team in the final days before the trade deadline. Portland and Los Angeles swapped mediocre veteran relief pitchers when the Trailblazers sent 30 year old Denny Catoe(5.35 ERA in 62 games) to the Dodgers for 36 year old Eric Repass(5.56 ERA in 49 games) and 18 year old first-baseman Everette Gonshiro(.633 OPS at A-ball). Los Angeles also acquired 32 year old starting pitcher William Bergan(10-10, 4.81 ERA) from Tucson in exchange for 32 year old second-baseman, Lewis Lagunas(.824 OPS, 11 homeruns). San Diego sent 27 year old left-handed reliever Samuel Rodriguez(7.65 ERA* in 31 games), 26 year old second-baseman Raul Mijangos(.712 OPS at AA), and 28 year old left-fielder David Blackburn(.768 OPS at AAA) to Rochester in exchange for 22 year old LF Jose Diaz(.816 OPS at A-ball) and 21 year old starting pitcher Andrew Cole(4.03 ERA at A-ball). The Padres also sent 29 year old left-handed reliever Arthur Geren(6.51 ERA at AAA) to Nashville in exchange for 21 year old starting pitcher Jefferey Bradberry(7.17 ERA at A-ball). Harrisburg shipped off 35 year old reliever Leo Salguero(4.47 ERA in 40 games) to Sacramento in return for 23 year old starting pitcher Gary Spada(4.15 ERA at A-ball). The Capitals also sent 26 year old left-handed starting pitcher Paul Hilson(4.67 ERA at AAA) and 28 year old left-handed reliever Juan Morison(5.47 ERA at AAA) to Knoxville in return for 26 year old left-handed reliever Eddie Marrufo(2.41 ERA at AA).

All in all, none of these trades are likely to impact the playoff races much. Rochester and Sacramento tried to bolster their bullpens with the acquisitions of Rodriguez and Salguero, respectively. Maybe those guys will help, and maybe they won't. Tucson tried to improve its defense by acquiring the 4-time Gold Glove winner Lagunas, sending Joseph Swayze and his 24 homeruns to the bench in the process. Hilson and Morison might help improve Knoxville's depth, but neither are likely to provide much beyond that.

*Note: Rodriguez's ERA was at 4.50 before a disastrous outing in his second appearance with Rochester, in which he surrendered 8 runs in 2 innings against Harrisburg.



Ahead for Denver this week is a 3 game series at Green Bay(52-58), and a 3 game series at Nashville(37-76).

[jamus23]

National League Standings 
 
West Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
San Diego    76 37 .673    -   71-42    5 40-16 36-21  8-5 23-10  L1    5-5 
San Jose     61 50 .550 14.0   64-47   -3 27-28 34-22  5-6 16-16  L1    5-5 
Sacramento   53 58 .477 22.0   56-55   -3 29-31 24-27  9-3 15-15  L1    2-8 
Phoenix      53 59 .473 22.5   54-58   -1 26-33 27-26  7-5 17-17  W3    7-3 
Los Angeles  48 62 .436 26.5   46-64    2 27-29 21-33  6-2 16- 9  W1    3-7 
Portland     46 65 .414 29.0   45-66    1 19-33 27-32  5-5  9-17  W1    5-5 
 
Northeast Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
New Jersey   64 48 .571    -   56-56    8 33-22 31-26  4-4 11- 9  L3    5-5 
Buffalo      60 50 .545  3.0   64-46   -4 30-22 30-28  1-4  8-18  W1    6-4 
Rochester    55 55 .500  8.0   55-55    0 30-27 25-28  6-9 14-17  L2    5-5 
Harrisburg   51 61 .455 13.0   53-59   -2 29-26 22-35  5-7 15-13  W2    7-3 
Pittsburgh   51 61 .455 13.0   59-53   -8 27-27 24-34  2-5 11-17  W3    5-5 
Hartford     50 62 .446 14.0   48-64    2 25-32 25-30  2-5 17-14  L4    5-5 
 
American League Standings 
 
Southeast Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Miami        81 31 .723    -   83-29   -2 44-13 37-18  8-4 19-10  W6    8-2 
Knoxville    64 48 .571 17.0   65-47   -1 34-24 30-24  7-3 10-11  W1    6-4 
Atlanta      59 52 .532 21.5   59-52    0 27-25 32-27  4-2 13-11  L3    6-4 
Washington   53 59 .473 28.0   53-59    0 25-30 28-29  4-0 14-14  W5    6-4 
Charlotte    50 63 .442 31.5   45-68    5 22-35 28-28  3-5 13-11  L3    5-5 
Nashville    37 76 .327 44.5   43-70   -6 18-41 19-35  2-4  8-21  L4    4-6 
 
Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Denver       69 43 .616    -   70-42   -1 37-19 32-24  2-7 15-11  W2    6-4 
Memphis      60 52 .536  9.0   59-53    1 30-28 30-24  5-3 16-13  W2    6-4 
Tucson       58 53 .523 10.5   58-53    0 30-25 28-28  5-5 14-20  L1    5-5 
Green Bay    52 58 .473 16.0   46-64    6 25-29 27-29  4-5 21-11  W4    5-5 
Grand Rapids 48 65 .425 21.5   46-67    2 28-28 20-37  4-7 12-14  L2    2-8 
Kansas City  40 71 .360 28.5   46-65   -6 19-35 21-36  2-5  8-16  L2    3-7

Thoughts:

With two months to go, it could be argued that three of the division races are already wrapped up. San Diego and Miami for sure, and, at this point, it would take a lot for Denver to blow its lead. Only the Northeast Division remains undecided, with New Jersey and Buffalo as the main competitors, and Rochester hanging around on the fringes.

The second place races are a bit more interesting, with San Jose ahead of a fading Sacramento team by 8 games and a surging Phoenix team by 8 1/2, Buffalo ahead of Rochester by 5, Knoxville ahead of surprising Atlanta by 4 1/2, and Memphis ahead of Tucson 1 1/2.

Miami will be especially interesting to watch down the stretch. The franchise record for wins is 117, which comes out to a .722 winning percentage- pretty much what the Dolphins have achieved so far this season.

Among other interesting battles, is the battle for last place in the Northeast Division. Hartford has slipped into the spot with the help of a 4-game losing streak. The Whalers haven't finished in last place since 2059. Pittsburgh, a game ahead of Hartford, hasn't finished at the bottom of the Northeast since this league's inaugural season of 2003. Harrisburg, tied with the Pirates, has brought up the rear in each of the past two seasons.

[jamus23]

Denver's batting statistics:

Name          G  AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI   R BB  K  AVG  OBP  SLG SB CS
A. Vasquez   95 420 155 13  1 23  87  74 32 44 .369 .415 .569  7  7
L. Chappel   98 419 141 52  2 30 111 102 60 27 .337 .421 .685  7  0
J. Rumfelt  101 379 112 17  1  4  56  53 44 24 .296 .369 .377  1  0
M. Phillips  99 367  97 20  2 11  48  75 77 36 .264 .397 .420  2  0
R. Thomas    66 308 111  9  1 11  57  58 22 17 .360 .407 .503 10  4
B. Romero    80 303 100 19  2 10  60  73 37 60 .330 .402 .505 17  3
M. Lore      79 290 103 11  1 13  66  45 23 35 .355 .410 .534  0  0
E. Bolling   74 298  78 35  4 14  63  58 36 57 .262 .342 .547  3  0
A. Fuentez   62 247  76 20  2  3  39  50 30 22 .308 .380 .441  6  1
M. Shunji    60 214  46  9  2  7  25  37 34 60 .215 .321 .374  3  3
B. Branco    48 179  43  9  5  9  36  39 31 43 .240 .361 .497  1  0
J. Fuensanta 42 148  62  6  1  9  36  32 13  9 .419 .460 .655  0  0
A. Elbert    31 112  23  8  0  8  22  14 14 40 .205 .291 .491  3  1
A. Mingo     35 103  24  2  3  0   7  21 24 10 .233 .383 .311  2  1
T. Teika     21  76  20  3  0  3  15  15 12 18 .263 .364 .421  0  0
G. Esqueda   22  75  21  4  0  5  14  13  7  6 .280 .341 .533  0  0
S. Ryo       23  68  22  4  0  2   9  13 11  9 .324 .420 .471  0  0
E. Abadia    12  44   3  0  0  2   3   2  2 16 .068 .128 .205  1  0
S. Lattimer   9  30   8  3  0  0   3   2  2 11 .267 .313 .367  0  0
S. Skiba      4  18   7  1  0  0   2   3  1  3 .389 .421 .444  0  0

Thoughts:

With all of the injuries this season, Denver has gotten a lot of contributions from a lot of different players, many of whom weren't really expected to be called upon that much. Marvin Lore and Jose Fuensanta have been the biggest unsung heroes, as they have both made the absolute most of their increased playing time. Booker Romero playing out of his mind has been a huge boost, as well.

The biggest disappointment has been Masahachirou Shunji. He got off to a pretty good start, but sometime around the end of May/beginning of June, he went into a bad slump and then he got hurt. Since coming back from injury, he's done absolutely nothing.

Lee Chappel still has a shot at the Silver Slugger Award, but he's got a lot of competition this season, and I kind of doubt that he will win it.




Denver's pitching statistics:

Name          G GS  W L SV   ERA    IP  HA   R  ER BB   K CG SH
K. Pillsbury 23 23 14 4  0  2.96 158.1 148  59  52 15 138  5  3
R. Lockridge 23 23 15 5  0  4.74 152.0 164  83  80 30 113  1  0
R. Mcnett    24 24 10 5  0  4.74 148.0 173  85  78 44 126  2  2
G. Buentello 22 22  9 8  0  4.68 148.0 140  81  77 43  95  2  0
T. Fons      19 19  7 8  0  7.00 133.2 179 106 104 56  58  5  1
J. Todd      50  0  5 2  3  6.85  86.2 101  75  66 57  72  0  0
J. Virgen    34  0  5 4 14  4.06  57.2  66  30  26 11  35  0  0
O. Lopez     28  0  2 6  2  6.39  49.1  70  39  35  8  44  0  0
R. Soto      37  0  4 0  5  4.25  48.2  49  25  23  9  27  0  0
L. Gwinn     26  0  2 2  1  6.80  47.2  52  36  36 17  50  0  0
L. Waltz     33  0  1 1  1  6.60  45.0  71  37  33 17  33  0  0
L. Mccullum  11  0  1 0  0  8.05  19.0  32  17  17  7  10  0  0
W. Ortiz      1  1  0 0  0 10.50   6.0  13   7   7  1   1  0  0

Thoughts:

Kenny Pillsbury has a chance to win the Cy Young for the second straight year. I have no idea what's happened to Robert McNett. He was pitching great, but in the last month, he's pretty much collapsed. Ray Lockridge and George Buentello are what they are, I guess. They'll have some good starts, but they'll also have a lot more mediocre-to-bad starts. Thomas Fons occasionally keeps the team in games, but his rookie season has been decidedly unimpressive.

The bullpen sucks. Period. Pretty much none of the relievers can be trusted at all on a consistent basis. James Virgen is mostly o.k., but like we saw this week, he'll have some outings where he just doesn't have it. Robert Soto is decent enough, as long he's facing primarily left-handed hitters. Ask him to do more too many times, and bad things will happen. As for the rest.... well, let's not talk about them.



Some general thoughts as Denver prepares for the home stretch:

1. This Denver team is just not as good as it has been the last couple of seasons. The rotation is definitely worse and the bullpen is a lot worse. The offense is still very good, but a couple of the more veteran players(Fuentez and Bolling, in particular) are just a little bit worse.

2. I don't know what that will mean in regard to the playoffs. The past couple years, the Broncos were incredibly good, and they didn't do jack in the playoffs. Logically, they shouldn't be expected to do better with a team that is worse. But really, who knows?

3. One key to any playoff success that the Broncos might manage is staying healthy. They've had a lot of guys get hurt this year, which is fine when it happens in the middle of the year and none of the injuries are really serious. If guys start going down in September, Denver will have no chance at doing anything. That means that some of the reserves that have done so well this season are probably going to continue to play a lot to reduce the injury risk to the regulars. Furthermore, a guy like Thomas Fons is going to continue to take his regular turn in most cases, no matter how poorly he pitches. An injury to somebody like Pillsbury would be absolutely devastating, so he's not going to start any more than he has to. Reliever Jason Todd was brought in to eat some bullpen innings. Hopefully, that will allow guys like Virgen and Soto to stay fresher, and maybe that will help their performance improve

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Denver       74 44 .627    -   75-43   -1 37-19 37-25  3-7 17-11  W5    7-3 
Tucson       63 55 .534 11.0   64-54   -1 35-27 28-28  7-6 16-20  W4    7-3 
Memphis      63 56 .529 11.5   61-58    2 33-29 30-27  5-3 17-13  W3    5-5 
Green Bay    53 64 .453 20.5   47-70    6 26-31 27-33  4-7 21-14  L6    4-6 
Grand Rapids 49 70 .412 25.5   47-72    2 29-33 20-37  4-7 12-15  L3    2-8 
Kansas City  43 75 .364 31.0   50-68   -7 21-36 22-39  2-5  8-17  L3    4-6

Denver 4 @ Green Bay 6
Denver 4 @ Green Bay 3
Denver 11 @ Green Bay 4
Denver 12 @ Nashville 5
Denver 13 @ Nashville 2
Denver 5 @ Nashville 4(11 innings)




It was expected to be another light week for the Broncos, but Denver did not get off to a good start. The very first batter that Kenny Pillsbury faced was left-fielder Ernie Willis, and Green Bay's power-hitting outfielder smacked his 27th homerun of the season. The Packers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning of the first game, and after the Broncos had battled back to take a 3-2 lead heading into the bottom of the fourth inning, Green Bay struck for 3 more runs. Not even 2 homeruns from Masahachirou Shunji could deliver a Denver victory. In the second game, it was Denver that grabbed a quick 2-0 lead. The Packers erased the deficit, and led 3-2 after three innings. That lead held up until the Broncos came up with 2 runs in the seventh inning to take the lead. George Buentello went the distance to preserve the Denver victory. The third game against the Packers was much easier. A 5-run third inning gave the Broncos a 6-0 lead, and it got to 9-0 before Green Bay got on the board. Though the Packers mounted a brief rally- scoring 3 runs off of Larry Waltz- the Broncos added 2 insurance runs and Jason Todd pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings. Four Packers' errors in that game led to 5 of the Broncos' runs being unearned.

In the first game against Nashville, the Broncos chased rookie starting pitcher Sam Sutton from the mound, with 6 runs in the first 3 innings. The Predators closed to within 3 runs by scoring a couple in the fifth inning, but Denver put the game out of reach with 6 runs in the final 3 innings. A week ago, Denver's offense was inexplicably throttled by Robert Coy(career ERA: 7.23), who gave up just 2 runs in 6 1/3 innings. In a rematch, things were just a bit different. This time, the Broncos tagged Coy for 7 runs(5 earned) in 5 2/3 innings pitched. Alexis Vazquez homered twice in the game, and drove in 5 runs in the rout. After getting whipped in the first two games, Nashville dug a little deeper and managed a competitive third game. Lee Chappel homered in the first inning to put Denver up early, but Nashville struck for 2 runs in the bottom of the first.The Broncos retook the lead with 2 runs in the third inning, but then the Predators went ahead again with a couple of runs in the sixth inning. Denver tied it up at 4-all in the eighth inning. James Virgen took the mound to start the bottom of the eighth, and was simply brilliant. The veteran reliever put up zeroes in the 8th, 9th, and 10th innings. In the top of the 11th, Masahachirou Shunji belted a homerun to give the Broncos the lead once again, and Virgen gutted out one final inning to secure the victory.



Playing against bad pitching staffs will do wonders for a slumping hitter. Masahachirou Shunji was the offensive leader this week, with a 1.598 OPS, 3 homeruns, and 5 RBI. Lee Chappel produced a 1.487 OPS, 3 doubles, 2 homeruns, 4 RBI, 8 runs scored, and 5 walks. Alexis Vazquez had a 1.403 OPS, 11 hits, a double, 2 homeruns, 7 RBI, and 5 runs scored. Jack Rumfelt managed a 1.023 OPS, with 2 doubles, a triple, a homerun, and 5 RBI. Asbel Fuentez's OPS was only .793, but he had 9 hits, including 2 doubles, and 8 runs scored.

Ellis Bolling struggled to get many hits this past week, with only 5 in 27 at bats, for a .185 batting average. However, when he did get one, he made it count, with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 1 homerun, and 5 RBI. Overall, though, he had a lackluster .723 OPS. Russell Thomas managed just a .632 OPS, yet still came up with 5 RBI and 6 runs scored. Booker Romero mustered just a .481 OPS, with no extra base hits, no RBI, and only 1 run scored.

I never thought I'd say this, but the most effective starter during the week was Thomas Fons, and no, that is not damning him with faint praise. Fons surrendered just 2 runs(1 earned) in 9 innings, as he tossed a team-high 6th complete game. He allowed just 5 hits. Robert McNett had a strong start, with only 3 hits and 1 run allowed in 6 innings. He also struck out 6 batters. Ray Lockridge had a solid start, with 3 runs allowed in 7 innings. He had 7 strikeouts and 0 walks. George Buentello made 2 starts during the week, and allowed 7 runs in 16 innings, for a respectable 3.94 ERA. He tossed his 3rd complete game of the season. The worst starter during the week was Kenny Pillsbury, who was battered for 13 hits and 6 runs in 7 innings pitched.

In the bullpen, James Virgen and Jason Todd looked good. Virgen pitched 4, no-hit, no-run innings, and had 4 strikeouts against 1 walk. Todd hurled 2 2/3 scoreless innings, with 3 strikeouts, and 2 hits allowed. Lyndon Gwinn and Larry Waltz did not look good. Gwinn gave up 2 hits, 2 runs, and 2 walks in 2 innings pitched. He also struck out 2 batters. Waltz pitched 1/3 of an innings, and surrendered 3 hits and 3 runs.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to New Jersey's third-baseman, Alfredo Escalera. It is the 2nd POTW award of Escalera's career. He hit .476(10 for 21), with a 1.786 OPS, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 4 homeruns, 12 RBI, and 8 runs scored. Escalera doubled, homered, walked, drove in 3 runs, and scored 2 runs in a 12-7 win over Hartford. He had 3 hits, including 2 homeruns, 5 RBI, and 3 runs scored in a 12-9 loss to the Whalers. The first homerun was a grand slam in a 6-run 6th inning that helped to erase 6-2 Hartford lead. The second homerun gave the Devils a 9-8 lead in the eighth inning after the Whalers had tied it up. Hartford then scored 4 runs in the ninth to pull out the victory. He had 4 hits, including 2 doubles, a triple, and a homerun, 2 RBI, and 3 runs scored in a 10-9, 10-inning victory over Hartford. The triple came with one out in the 10th inning, and he wound up scoring the winning run.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Atlanta's shortstop, Roger Attaway. It is Attaway's 9th career POTW award, and 2nd this season. He hit .480(12 for 25), with a 1.741 OPS, 4 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homeruns, 15 RBI, 13 runs scored, and 6 walks. He hit a solo homerun in a 7-6 loss to Knoxville. The homerun was part of a 3-run 2nd inning for the Braves, who had a 4-1 lead at one point in this game. He had 4 hits, including a double and 2 triples, a walk, 2 RBI, and 3 runs scored in a 14-9 loss to the 79ers. Both triples drove in runs, and they helped Atlanta build a 7-2 lead through 3 innings. He had 3 hits, including 2 doubles, 4 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 12-8 win over Knoxville. Atlanta had a 10-1 lead at one point in this game, and just barely managed to avoid blowing it. Attaway hit a 3-run homerun, walked, and scored 2 runs in a 14-1 walloping of Grand Rapids. He doubled, walked 3 times, drove in 2 runs, and scored 3 runs in a 12-5 win over the Tigers. He had 2 hits, including a homerun, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 5-3 win over Grand Rapids.




Division Races:

In the NL West, San Diego added another game to its lead over San Jose, which now stands at 15 games. Meanwhile, the defending National League champions, Sacramento, slipped into 4th place. Taking over third place are the Phoenix Cardinals, who aren't really a factor in the playoff race, as they sit 8 1/2 games behind the Sharks.

In the Northeast Division, Buffalo has crept to within 2 1/2 games of first place New Jersey. Third place Rochester lost a game on Buffalo, and half a game on New Jersey.

In the Southeast, Miami's commanding lead increased by half a game over Knoxville. Third place Atlanta moved from 4 1/2 games behind the 79ers to 3 1/2 games.

In the American League Central, Tucson moved from 1 1/2 games behind Memphis to 1/2 a game ahead. The Diamondbacks trail Denver by 11 games.


Injury News:

There were several notable injuries this week. Veteran Atlanta reliever Dennis Rank(3.35 ERA in 46 games) will be out for at least another month with a torn biceps. That could have an impact on Atlanta's quest for a playoff spot. Kansas City reliever Chet Speakman(4.37 ERA in 33 games) was lost for the season after bone chips were detected in his shoulder. The bizarre saga of Portland's catcher Gary Jones(.830 OPS, 17 SB) added another chapter as he suffered a broken finger which will likely have him on the disabled list for the next month and a half. Finally, Pittsburgh infielder Michael Robinson(.573 OPS) will more than a month with a fracture knee. Given how miserable his season has gone, I doubt that Pittsburgh will miss him that much.


On the schedule for Denver this week is a 3 game series against Memphis(63-56), and a 4 game series against Kansas City(43-75).

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Denver       80 45 .640    -   81-44   -1 43-20 37-25  3-7 18-11  W4   9- 1 
Tucson       68 57 .544 12.0   70-55   -2 35-27 33-30  7-6 17-21  W2   8- 2 
Memphis      66 59 .528 14.0   63-62    3 33-29 33-30  5-3 18-13  L1   6- 4 
Green Bay    57 67 .460 22.5   50-74    7 28-32 29-35  4-7 22-14  L1   4- 6 
Grand Rapids 51 74 .408 29.0   49-76    2 29-33 22-41  4-7 12-16  L2   3- 7 
Kansas City  43 82 .344 37.0   50-75   -7 21-39 22-43  2-5  8-18 L10   0-10

Memphis 4 @ Denver 12
Memphis 0 @ Denver 8
Memphis 4 @ Denver 2
Kansas City 10 @ Denver 11
Kansas City 8 @ Denver 21
Kansas City 0 @ Denver 4
Kansas City 3 @ Denver 7




Playing against Memphis was expected to be tougher than most of Denver's last few games, but that's not how this series started off. In the first game, the Broncos jumped out a 3-0 lead after one inning, led 5-1 after three innings, and then opened up a 12-2 lead through six innings. The Grizzlies managed a couple of meaningless runs in the late innings, but it was far too little, far too late. In the second game, Robert McNett produced a strong performance on the mound, with 7 scoreless innings, and the Broncos' offense provided plenty of run support to earn another victory. Memphis salvaged the final game of the series when Roy Kelemen(8 innings, 2 runs, both unearned) out-dueled Ray Lockridge(7 innings, 4 runs, 3 earned runs).

Following the Memphis series was a 4-game battle against the free-falling Royals. Kansas City came into the series having lost 6 consecutive games, and had been outscored 26-5 in a three game sweep by Tucson. Despite that, the Royals put up a hell of a fight in a wild first game. Kansas City raced to a 5-0 lead in the top of the first inning, only to give it right back in the bottom of the first. The Broncos started to take control, with runs in the second and third innings, but the Royals tied the game up at 7-all with runs in the fourth and fifth innings. Catcher Ron Chien belted a solo homerun in the seventh inning to give the Royals the lead, but Marvin Lore responded with a 2-out, 2-run homer of his own in the bottom half of the seventh. In the eighth, third-baseman Don Guan and first-baseman Paul Shealy each went deep- for Shealy, it was his second homerun of the game- and Kansas City held a 10-9 lead. In the bottom of the ninth inning, however, catcher Lee Chappel, who had not started, delivered a 2-out, pinch-hit, 2-run double- off of a left-handed reliever, no less- to win the game for the Broncos. That loss may have taken all of the fight out of Kansas City. In the second game of the series, the Broncos erupted for 7 runs in the first inning, and led 13-0 after four innings. Although the Royals managed a few runs here and there, Denver just kept scoring and scoring. Center-fielder Russell Thomas finished with 5 hits and 7 runs batted in. As a team, the Broncos rapped out 21 hits(none of which were homeruns, by the way) and drew 11 walks. Tack on 3 Royals' errors, and that's going to lead to a lot of runs being scored. In the third game, Kenny Pillsbury twirled a 3-hit, 10-strikeout shutout- his 4th of the season- and Denver had another victory. Robert McNett had another strong start, and a 3-run fifth and 4-run seventh proved to be enough to complete the sweep of Kansas City.


The offensive leader this week was somewhat surprising. Backup catcher Gabriel Esqueda produced a 1.530 OPS, with 13 hits, a double, 3 homeruns, 11 RBI, and 6 runs scored. Lee Chappel had a 1.220 OPS, with 5 doubles, 1 homerun, 9 RBI, and 6 runs scored. Marvin Lore had a 1.176 OPS, with a double and a homerun, 5 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Asbel Fuentez posted a 1.114 OPS, with 11 hits, a double, a triple, a homerun, 8 RBI, and 6 runs scored. Despite collecting only 4 hits in 20 at bats, Ellis Bolling had an .873 OPS. That's because his 4 hits consisted of 2 doubles and 2 homeruns. He also drove in 5 runs and scored 6 runs. Russell Thomas had an .806 OPS, 12 hits, 1 double, 8 RBI, and 10 runs scored.

There weren't too many particularly bad performances this week. Alexis Vazquez managed just a .725 OPS and had no extra base hits or RBI. Jack Rumfelt went 5 for 23 with a .525 OPS. Adrian Mingo was 1 for 8 with a .425 OPS.

Robert McNett had an outstanding week. In 2 starts, he tossed 15 scoreless innings. Kenny Pillsbury also had a very good week. In 2 starts, he gave up 2 runs in 16 innings, struck out 14 batters, and had a complete game shutout. Ray Lockridge gave up 4 runs(3 earned) in 7 innings of work. George Buentello surrendered 4 runs in 6 2/3 innings pitched. Thomas Fons got knocked around for 15 hits and 10 runs(8 earned) in 7 2/3 innings.

Omar Lopez had a good week out of the bullpen with 4 scoreless innings pitched in 3 appearances, a win, and a save. Robert Soto pitched 2 scoreless innings. Larry Waltz got roughed up for 8 hits, 2 walks, and 5 runs in 2 innings pitched. Jason Todd was even worse, with 3 hits, 2 walks, and 3 runs allowed in 1/3 of an inning.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to San Diego's left-fielder, Gregorio Ruiz. It is the 5th POTW award of Ruiz's career. He hit .565(13 for 23), with a 1.643 OPS, 2 doubles, 3 homeruns, 11 RBI, and 7 runs scored. He hit a 2-run homerun in a 9-0 rout of New Jersey. He had a solo homerun, and 2 runs scored, in an 8-4 win over the Devils. He had 2 hits and a run scored in a 2-1 win over Pittsburgh. He had 2 hits, including a homerun, and 4 RBI in a 10-9, 11-inning loss to the Pirates. The homerun was a 3-run blast in a 5-run 6th inning that helped the Padres rally from a 9-2 deficit. Finally, Ruiz went 5 for 5, with a double, 4 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 10-4 thumping of Pittsburgh.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Denver's Gabriel Esqueda. It is the first POTW of the 34-year old Esqueda's career. He had 4 hits, including 2 homeruns, 5 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 12-4 rout over Memphis. He doubled, walked, and drove in a run in an 8-0 shutout of the Grizzlies. He had 3 hits, including a homerun, and 2 RBI in an 11-10 win over Kansas City. He had 2 hits, 1 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 21-8 humiliation of the Royals. Finally, he had 2 hits, a walk, 2 RBI, and a run scored in a 7-3 win over Kansas City.




Division Races:

There weren't any significant changes in the NL West Division. San Diego(86-39) leads San Jose(71-53) by 14 1/2 games, although the Sharks have won 6 consecutive games. Phoenix(59-65) remains a distant third, a 1/2 game in front of Sacramento(59-66).

In the Northeast, second place Buffalo(67-57) continues to inch closer to first place New Jersey(69-55). The Bills cut the Devils' lead to 2 games. Third place Rochester(64-60) has come on strong, with 6 straight wins, and the Rhinos sit only 5 games out of first.

Southeast Division leader Miami(87-38) ended the week on a rough note by getting swept by fourth place Washington(61-64). Third place Atlanta(66-58) slipped to 4 1/2 games behind second place Knoxville(71-54).

In the Central Division, second place Tucson(68-57) increased its lead over Memphis(66-59) to 2 games. The first place Broncos(80-45) are 1 win away from clinching their 14th consecutive .500-or-better season, and 2 wins away from clinching their 13th consecutive above .500 season. Last place Kansas City(43-82) has completely imploded, and the Royals are now tied with Nashville(43-82) for the worst record in baseball. In the Royals' defense, however, their 10-game losing streak has come against Memphis, Tucson, and Denver.




Injury News:

This week had numerous injuries of note, especially if you were a middle infielder. Kansas City lost second-baseman Lucas Bustamante(.797 OPS) for about 6 weeks with an ACL injury. Pittsburgh lost second-baseman Robert Able(.776 OPS, 13 homeruns, 90 runs scored) for 2 weeks with an injury to his triceps. Veteran Washington starting pitcher Cleveland Lauria(8-12, 6.36 ERA) had his season come to an end after rupturing a triceps tendon. At age 37, this may be the end of the line for Lauria, who has 234 career wins. Miami's shortstop Francisco Alvarez(.774 OPS, 15 homeruns, 65 RBI) will miss about 3 weeks with a torn hip muscle.




Ahead on Denver's schedule this week is a 4-game series at Tucson(68-57), and a 3 game series at Kansas City(43-82).

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run Stk Last10 
Denver       82 50 .621    -   84-48   -2 43-20 39-30  4-8 19-13  W2    5-5 
Tucson       75 57 .568  7.0   75-57    0 42-27 33-30  8-6 20-21  W9    9-1 
Memphis      69 63 .523 13.0   67-65    2 36-30 33-33  5-3 19-14  L3    5-5 
Green Bay    60 71 .458 21.5   53-78    7 30-33 30-38  4-7 23-16  W2    4-6 
Grand Rapids 54 78 .409 28.0   52-80    2 30-36 24-42  4-7 13-16  L3    4-6 
Kansas City  46 85 .351 35.5   52-79   -6 24-42 22-43  2-6  8-19  L2    3-7

Denver 1 @ Tucson 10
Denver 2 @ Tucson 4
Denver 2 @ Tucson 3(10 innings)
Denver 0 @ Tucson 1
Denver 0 @ Kansas City 5
Denver 12 @ Kansas City 4
Denver 3 @ Tucson 2(11 innings)




Well now, we just might have a division race, after all. A four game tilt in Tucson turned into a frustrating disaster for the Broncos. Ray Lockridge got hammered for 8 runs in 6+ innings, and the Broncos were helpless against Peter Boughner, who tossed a complete game 6-hitter in the first game of the series. Denver managed only 5 hits in the second game, and a 3-run fifth inning for the Diamondbacks broke a 1-1 tie. In the third game, Denver got on the board first with a run in the first inning, but the Broncos failed to do much after that. Tucson took the lead with 2 runs in the sixth inning, but Michael Phillips, who drove in both of Denver's runs, managed to knock in the tying run in the eighth inning. An old friend, however, had the last laugh. Former Broncos' infielder Joseph Swayze delivered a game-winning, pinch-hit, RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning. Tucson completed the sweep of Denver when Aaron Williams tossed a 3-hit shutout in the fourth game, out-dueling Kenny Pillsbury. Center-fielder Marcus Murrin's homerun to lead off the 7th inning was the difference in this game. It is just the 5th time all season that the Broncos' have been shutout.

Shutout number 6 came in the first game against the hapless Royals. Kosami Masaru scattered 5 hits and 2 walks over 9 innings for his 10th complete game and 1st shutout of the season. The second game against Kansas City got off to a bad start, as well. Infielder Moises Izaguirre(.125 batting average in 32 at bats) led off the game with a triple, and eventually came around to score, giving the Royals an early 1-0 lead. Fortunately, Denver's offense finally woke up. The Broncos tied the game in the 2nd inning, and took the lead with a 3-run third inning. They sent veteran starter Angel Marciano to the showers with a 5-run fifth inning, and cruised to a victory. Asbel Fuentez, Lee Chappel, and Brooks Branco each had 2 RBI in this game. In the rubber game, Thomas Fons had a good start, but squandered a 2-1 lead in the 8th inning. Denver prevailed anyways when Ellis Bolling delivered a 2-out, run-scoring double in the 11th inning.




Not surprisingly, there were not very many strong offensive performances this week. Only 3 players managed an OPS above .800. Booker Romero produced a 1.008 OPS, with 2 doubles and a triple. He tied for the team-lead with 3 runs scored and 4 walks. Lee Chappel had a 1.003 OPS, with 10 hits, 3 doubles, 2 RBI, 2 runs scored, and 4 walks. Jose Fuensanta managed to go 3 for 8 with an .819 OPS.

So, of all the putrid performances then, who was the worst of the worst? Alexis Vazquez was 4 for 22, with a .490 OPS, 0 RBI, and 0 runs scored. Jack Rumfelt was 2 for 18, with a .449 OPS. He did have 2 doubles and 3 RBI. Asbel Fuentez was 3 for 24, with a .431 OPS. He did have a triple, 3 RBI, and 3 run scored. Russell Thomas was 5 for 28, with a .393 OPS, and 0 RBI. Marvin Lore was 3 for 19, with a .358 OPS, and 0 RBI.

The pitching was all right, for the most part. Kenny Pillsbury allowed just 4 hits and 1 run in 8 innings of work. George Buentello gave up 2 runs in 7 innings pitched. Thomas Fons made 2 starts, and gave up 6 runs in 13 2/3 innings pitched, for a respectable 3.95 ERA. Robert McNett allowed 3 runs in 6 innings. Only Ray Lockridge had an overall bad performance, as he surrendered 11 runs in 12 1/3 innings, for an 8.03 ERA.

Robert Soto had a pretty good week out of the bullpen. In 3 appearances, he pitched 6 innings, and allowed just 1 run. Larry Waltz's numbers are deceptively good. In 2 2/3 innings, he gave up just 1 run, for a 3.38 ERA. However, in the 12-4 win over the Royals, Waltz replaced Lockridge with 2 runners on and 1 out in the 7th inning. The first batter he faced, left-fielder John Zabala, promptly ripped a homerun. He did pitch solidly after that, though. James Virgen and Lyndon Gwinn did not have great weeks. Virgen allowed 2 runs in 3 2/3 innings, while Gwinn gave up 5 hits and 2 runs in 2 innings pitched.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Hartford's left-fielder, Robert Perkins. It is his first ever POTW award. Perkins hit .625(10 for 16), with a 1.802 OPS, a double, 3 triples, 5 RBI, 6 runs scored, and 7 walks. He had 3 hits and a run scored in a 7-3 loss to San Jose. He had 3 hits, including a triple, 2 walks, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored in an 8-5 win over the Sharks. His 2-run triple in the 7th inning erased a 5-4 Sharks' lead. He had 2 hits, including a triple, a walk, and a run scored in a 9-4 loss to San Jose. Perkins tripled, walked 3 times, drove in 2 runs, and scored 2 runs in a 10-9 loss to Pittsburgh. His 2-run triple in the second inning helped give the Whalers an 8-3 lead, which they subsequently frittered away.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Tucson's center-fielder, Marcus Murrin. It is the 5th POTW award of Murrin's career, and 2nd this season. He hit .524(11 for 21), with a 1.470 OPS, 2 doubles, 2 homeruns, 8 RBI, and 6 runs scored. Murrin had 2 hits, a walk, 1 RBI, and 3 runs scored in a 10-1 shellacking of Denver. He had 3 hits, 2 RBI, and a run scored in a 4-2 win over the Broncos. He had 1 hit and 1 RBI in a 3-2, 10-inning win over Denver. He had 2 hits, including a homerun for the only score in a 1-0 win over the Broncos. Finally, he had 3 hits, including a double and a homerun, 3 RBI, and a run scored in a 6-5 win over Memphis. His 2-out, 2-run double in the 7th inning helped the Diamondbacks rally from a 5-2 deficit.




Division Races:

The West Division race remained unchanged for the most part. San Diego(89-42) leads San Jose(75-55) by 13 1/2 games, while the second place Sharks lead third place Phoenix(62-69) by the same amount. With a little over a month left in the season, it is highly unlikely that this situation changes.

The same cannot be said for the Northeast Division. This week saw a big match-up between New Jersey and Buffalo, and by taking 3 of 4 games, the Devils(74-57) strengthened their hold on first place. Unfortunately for the Bills(69-62), not only did they waste a golden opportunity to take over the division, they actually wound up slipping into third place. Red-hot Rochester(69-61) roared into second place, a 1/2 a game in front of Buffalo. The Rhinos trail New Jersey by 4 1/2 games.

In the Southeast Division, Miami(90-41) remains comfortably ahead of Knoxville(75-56), with a 15 game lead, although the Dolphins have lost 6 of their last 10 games. Despite finishing the week with a 3-game winning streak, third place Atlanta(70-61) trails Knoxville by 5 games. This upcoming week could be very interesting, however, as Knoxville faces off against Miami and Atlanta, while the Braves precede their series against the 79ers with one against Charlotte(59-72). This week could make or break Atlanta's season.

In the Central, of course, the streaking Diamondbacks(75-57) closed the gap between Denver(82-50) and themselves to just 7 games, while opening up a 6 game lead over third place Memphis(69-63). They swept both of their division-mates this past week. The upcoming schedule is also very favorable for Tucson. This week, the Diamondbacks get Grand Rapids(54-78) and Nashville(44-87). While things do get a little tougher in September, Tucson plays 9 of its final 30 games against Nashville, plus 6 against Grand Rapids. Denver, meanwhile, has only 9 total games remaining against teams under .500, and 3 of those come against Washington(64-67) which isn't that bad of a team. Of course, Memphis has a whopping 21 games remaining against teams with a losing record. Seven games is a lot to make up in a month, but it just might be doable. At any rate, this division has suddenly gotten much more interesting.




Injury News:

There were three significant injuries this week, and two of them could have a major impact on the playoff races. First, Buffalo reliever Silvio Granado(3.77 ERA and 8 saves in 51 games) may miss the rest of the regular season with some very serious back spasms. With Buffalo suddenly in danger of missing the playoffs, this could be a devastating blow to the Bills' pitching staff. The second important injury was to Tucson's starting pitcher, Christopher Kirk(17-10, 3.04 ERA). He is expected to miss the next 2 weeks with a bicep injury. Not having him around for a couple of weeks could hinder Tucson's chances of threatening Denver for the Central Division crown. The third injury was to Charlotte's 37 year old left-hander, Keven Landon(3-5, 5.18 ERA). He suffered a torn back muscle, which will end his season, and, given his age, possibly his career, as well.



On the schedule for Denver as the month of August comes to a close and the month of September begins is a 3-game series against Washington(64-67), and a 3-game series against Miami(90-41).

[Rondell Tate]

After the first couple years, it hurts just reading this. Go Broncos!

[jamus23]

Washington 5 @ Denver 6
Washington 6 @ Denver 7
Washington 2 @ Denver 5
Miami 8 @ Denver 11
Miami 10 @ Denver 4
Miami 6 @ Denver 2




With their once comfortable lead in the Central Division shrinking at a frightening speed, the Broncos desperately needed a strong series to hold the surging Tucson Diamondbacks at bay. They got that strong series in a sweep of Washington. It sure wasn't easy, though. In the first game, the Senators led 5-0 through 5 1/2 innings. In the bottom of the sixth inning, however, Denver erupted for 6 runs to take the lead. Lee Chappel delivered the knockout blow: a 2-out, 3-run homerun that put the Broncos in front. Kenny Pillsbury overcame a shaky start, and put up goose eggs in the 7th and 8th innings. Robert Soto did the same in the ninth inning, and Denver escaped with the victory. The second game, incredibly enough, was almost a carbon copy of the first. Washington scored 3 runs in both the first and second innings to jump out to a 6-0 lead. In the bottom of the fourth, Alexis Vazquez sparked a 7-run rally by leading off with a homerun. He would add an RBI double later in the same inning. Robert McNett shook off his own poor start and he, along with relievers Omar Lopez, Robert Soto, and James Virgen, shut down the Senators the rest of the way for another 1-run victory. Denver took control of the third game early, with 2 runs in both the second and third innings, and George Buentello had a strong start to protect that lead.

The Broncos continued their come-from-behind ways in the first game against Miami. Ray Lockridge got rocked for 8 runs in the first three innings by the Dolphins, and it looked very bleak indeed for Denver. But the Broncos struck for 4 runs in the fourth inning(3 from a Masahachirou Shunji homerun), 1 run in the fifth inning, and 2 runs in the sixth inning- chasing rookie starting pitcher Adam Otte in the process- to cut Miami's lead to 8-7. Two runs in the seventh, and two runs in the eighth completed the comeback and gave the Broncos a 3-run lead. Omar Lopez and James Virgen combined to pitch 3 scoreless innings to secure the win. Unfortunately, the Broncos ran out of miracles. In the second game, Miami ace Christian Hokusai blanked the Broncos for 8 innings as the Dolphins built a comfortable 10-0 lead. Booker Romero and Lee Chappel each produced 2-out, 2-run doubles in the ninth inning, but it was too little, too late for Denver. In the third game, Kenny Pillsbury had another mediocre start, and the Dolphins raced to a 5-0 lead in the first two innings. Denver's offense never really got going, and it meant another loss to Miami.




Alexis Vazquez had the strongest week of those who played regularly for Denver. He had a 1.175 OPS, 11 hits, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 1 homerun, 5 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Masahachirou Shunji was 6 for 9, with a 1.769 OPS, 1 homerun, 3 RBI, 3 runs scored, and 4 walks. Gabriel Esqueda was 4 for 8, with a 1.625 OPS, 2 doubles, 1 homerun, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored. Lee Chappel had an .804 OPS, with 2 doubles, a homerun, and a team-high 7 RBI.

Booker Romero's week was a mixed bag. He was just 3 for 17, with a .616 OPS; however, all 3 of his hits were doubles, he drove in 5 runs, and he scored 4 runs. Michael Phillips was 4 for 16, with a .607 OPS. Jack Rumfelt was 4 for 17, with a .585 OPS. Ellis Bolling had the roughest week of all, going 3 for 22, with a .348 OPS.

George Buentello was the only starter to distinguish himself in a positive way. He tossed 8 innings, and gave up just 2 runs. Robert McNett gave up 8 hits and 6 runs(3 earned) in 5 1/3 innings. Kenny Pillsbury made 2 starts, and gave up 24 hits and 11 runs(9 earned) in 15 2/3 innings for a 5.17 ERA. Ray Lockridge surrendered a career-worst 16 hits, and allowed 8 runs(7 earned) in 6 innings pitched. Thomas Fons got tagged for 13 hits and 9 runs in 6 innings.

The bullpen had one of its strongest weeks of the season. As a group, Denver's relievers combined to pitch 13 innings, with just 1 run(unearned) allowed, and 8 strikeouts against 2 walks. Omar Lopez led the bullpen with 4 scoreless innings, Robert Soto pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings, and James Virgen tossed 2 scoreless innings.


With the month of September comes the expansion of the active roster to 40 players. With all of the injuries Denver has had, many of this year's call-ups have already seen playing time for the Broncos. Starting with the position players, we have veteran catcher Stephen Skiba. The 38 year old Skiba hit .288 with a .668 OPS in 250 at bats at AAA this season. Twenty-four year old first-baseman Tamiko Teika finished the minor league season with a batting line of .312/.371/.543/.914, and hit 19 homeruns in 324 AAA at bats. 2083 1st round draft pick Henry Lewis, Jr. will make his big league debut. The 25 year old first-baseman was considered well polished when he was drafted, but didn't have any outstanding tools. After hitting .310/.367/.453/.821, with 34 doubles and 8 homeruns in his first season at AAA, his scouting report remains much the same. Second-baseman Dale Churchill will provide a defensive replacement option in the middle infield. The 26 year old will also make his big league debut. He didn't really impress at AAA this season, as he hit .254/.331/.394/.725, with 31 doubles, and 10 homeruns. The left-handed hitting third-baseman Terry Melton posted a .688 OPS at AAA this season, with 30 doubles and 9 homeruns. The 31 year old has hit .250/.308/.343/.650 in 108 career big league at bats. Another former 1st round pick is infielder Robert Shults. The 27 year old posted a .794 OPS at AAA this season, with 49 doubles and 14 homeruns. In his big league debut last season, he went 3 for 9, with 2 doubles, 2 RBI, 2 runs scored, and a walk. The switch-hitting left-fielder Arthur Elbert hit 16 homeruns with an .817 OPS at AAA this season. 31 year old center-fielder Emanuel Abadia had a .775 OPS and 25 homeruns at AAA. Veteran center-fielder Shifusa Ryo had a .404 on base percentage and an .820 OPS in 113 at bats at AAA. Shane Lattimer, who began the year on the big league roster, hit .304/.394/.380/.775 in 276 at bats at AAA after being sent down. Right-fielder Thomas Vassallo is another player preparing to make his big league debut. Once one of Denver's best prospects, the 26 year old Vassallo seemed to stagnate a little bit after reaching AA a couple of seasons ago. In his first full season at AAA, he hit .298/.338/.439/.777, with 28 doubles and 11 homeruns.

On the pitching side, the Broncos called up one starting pitcher and 3 relievers. 30 year old Valentine McGurk struggled at AAA this season, with a 5.24 ERA. He did have 185 strikeouts in 139 innings pitched. In 14 big league starts, McGurk is 2-8, with a 10.74 ERA. Trade acquisition Alex Haider will make his big league debut. The 26 year old right-hander split this season between AA and AAA. At AA, he posted a 3.60 ERA in 50 games, and had a 98/21 K/BB ratio in 80 innings. At AAA, he posted a 7.82 ERA in 10 games, but did manage a 19/8 K/BB ratio in 12 2/3 innings pitched. Veteran Laverne McCullum posted a 4.82 ERA in 23 games after being demoted to AAA, and had a 23/9 K/BB ratio in 18 2/3 innings. 30 year old Daniel Weingartner functioned as Denver's AAA closer this season, and recorded 20 saves in 47 appearances. He posted a 3.56 ERA and a 58/22 K/BB ratio in 60 2/3 innings. Weingartner has a 5.17 career ERA in 12 big league games and 15 2/3 innings pitched.




Around the league:

The National League Batter of the Month Award went to San Diego's left-fielder, Gregorio Ruiz. It is the first BOTM award in the 34 year old Ruiz's career. During the month of August, Ruiz hit .427/.465/.787/1.251, with 38 hits, 8 doubles, 8 homeruns, 31 RBI, and 16 runs scored. For the year, the veteran slugger has hit .328/.394/.578/.971, with 39 doubles, 2 triples, 23 homeruns, 89 RBI, and 72 runs scored. He recently hit his 400th career homerun, and currently sits at 409 for his career. He is also only 1 hit away from 2000 for his career.

The National League Pitcher of the Month Award went to San Jose's Juan Echeveste. It is the first POTM award for the 28 year old Echeveste, who is in his first full season. During the month of August, Echeveste was 5-1 in 6 starts. In 47 innings pitched, he had a 1.91 ERA, a 0.85 WHIP, and a 20/4 K/BB ratio. He also tossed back to back complete game shutouts: a 2-hitter with 2 K's against Pittsburgh, and a 7-hitter with 7 K's against Buffalo. For the year, Echeveste is 16-8, with a 3.52 ERA, a 1.16 WHIP, a 88/36 K/BB ratio in 197 innings pitched, 3 complete games, and 2 shutouts.

The American League Batter of the Month Award went to Atlanta's shortstop, Roger Attaway. It is the 30 year old Attaway's 3rd career BOTM award. In August, Attaway hit .377/.459/.726/1.185, with 40 hits, 10 doubles, 3 triples, 7 homeruns, 35 RBI, and 28 runs scored. For the year, Attaway has hit .311/.399/.634/1.033, with 38 doubles, 9 triples, 36 homeruns, 121 RBI, 117 runs scored, and 74 walks.

The American League Pitcher of the Month Award went to Tucson's Christopher Kirk. It is the 32 year old Kirk's 2nd career POTM award, and both have come this season. In the month of August, Kirk was 4-0 in 5 starts, with a 2.09 ERA, a 1.05 WHIP, a 39/9 K/BB ratio in 43 innings pitched, and 1 complete game. For the year, Kirk is 17-10, with a 3.04 ERA, a 1.23 WHIP, a 142/33 K/BB ratio in 222 1/3 innings pitched, 12 complete games, and 2 shutouts.

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Portland's third-baseman, Adam Chilson. It is his 2nd career POTW award. Chilson hit .500(14 for 28) during the past week, with a 1.214 OPS, 2 homeruns, 7 RBI, and 5 runs scored. He had 3 hits, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 14-13 loss to Phoenix. He was 3 for 3 in a 7-5 win over the Cardinals. He had 4 hits, including a homerun, 1 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 6-4 loss to Phoenix. Chilson hit a 2-run homerun in a 4-1 win over Sacramento. The homerun erased a 1-0 Kings' lead in the 4th inning. He was also 1 for 4 with an RBI in a 4-2 win over Sacramento.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Memphis' shortstop, Roy Chouinard. It is Chouinard's 9th career POTW award, and 3rd this season. He hit .435(10 for 23), with a 1.481 OPS, a double, 4 homeruns, 10 RBI, and 6 runs scored. He doubled, homered, drove in a run, and scored a run in 6-4 win over Nashville. He drove in 1 of Memphis' 2 runs in a 13-2 defeat against the Predators. He also had a solo homerun in a 5-3 loss to Nashville. The homerun came in the first inning, when the Grizzlies jumped out to a 2-0 lead. He had a 3-run homerun, and 4 RBI overall, in a 9-1 thumping of Charlotte. He had 4 hits, including a 2-run homerun, a walk, 3 RBI, and 3 runs scored in a 9-5 victory over the Panthers.


In other league news, Phoenix's first-baseman Emil Cuestas became the second player this season to hit for the cycle. In a wild 14-13 win over Portland, Cuestas was 4 for 6, with 4 runs batted in, and 3 runs scored. With 2 outs in the first inning, he ripped a solo homerun- his 28th of the season- to give the Cardinals an early 1-0 lead. After Portland scored 8 runs in the second inning, and added a 9th in the top of the third, Cuestas delivered a 2-out, 2-run triple- his 2nd of the season. Through 6 1/2 innings, Portland led 11-4, but Cuestas would help trigger a 3-run outburst in the bottom of the seventh inning. He led off the 7th with his 42nd double of the season, and after shortstop Mike Morales made an out, catcher Gary Hunter and right-fielder Ezekiel Ketterer belted back to back homeruns. Cuestas would complete the cycle with a single in a 6-run eighth inning that gave the Cardinals a 13-12 lead. Although Portland tied the game up in the top of the ninth, Phoenix prevailed with a run in the bottom of the ninth inning. Though a terrific hitter, Cuestas isn't the most likely candidate to have hit for the cycle, as he is quite slow, and has just 18 triples in 8628 career at bats. Singles, doubles, and homeruns, sure, but triples just haven't been his forte.

The other big news of the week involved San Diego's second-baseman, Andrew Burdick, who became the 15th player in league history to reach 600 career homeruns. He accomplished the feat in a 6-2 victory over Hartford. Even at age 37, Burdick remains one of the most dominant pure hitters in the league. He is 2nd in the National League with a .382 batting average, 2nd in on base percentage with a .455 total, 9th in slugging percentage with a .584 mark, and 5th with a 1.039 OPS. He is also 3rd in the league with 191 hits. Burdick ranks 11th all time in batting average, with a .338 career total. He is 5th all time in hits, with 3,515. He is 15th in homeruns, with 600 on the nose, but is only 8 behind the 14th ranked Earl Quon. He is 19th all time in walks, with 1,587. He is 2nd all time in runs scored, with 2,235, and is only 70 behind all time leader, Felipe Mira.
(By the way, Denver's Ellis Bolling currently sits at 597 career homeruns, so he, too, could join the 600 club very soon.)




The upcoming week for Denver features a 3 game series at Memphis(73-65), and a 3 game series versus Tucson(80-58). These games could go a long way towards determining the outcome of the Central Division.


Coming up: The league standings thus far, and Denver's batting and pitching statistics thus far.

[jamus23]

National League Standings 
 
West Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
San Diego    94 44 .681    -   91-47    3 49-20 45-24  9-6 27-12 11  W3    6-4 
San Jose     79 58 .577 14.5   84-53   -5 36-32 43-26  7-6 18-20  -  L2    6-4 
Phoenix      67 71 .486 27.0   67-71    0 30-39 37-32  9-5 22-20  -  W1    7-3 
Sacramento   64 74 .464 30.0   69-69   -5 32-37 32-37 10-6 18-20  -  L1    4-6 
Los Angeles  62 75 .453 31.5   59-78    3 30-39 32-36  7-2 18-12  -  L1    4-6 
Portland     55 82 .401 38.5   53-84    2 25-44 30-38  5-5 11-19  -  W1    3-7 
 
Northeast Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
New Jersey   77 60 .562    -   69-68    8 41-27 36-33 6- 5 13-13 20  L2    6-4 
Rochester    71 66 .518  6.0   70-67    1 35-33 36-33 7-10 17-19  -  L3    5-5 
Buffalo      71 67 .514  6.5   79-59   -8 37-32 34-35 1- 8 11-27  -  L1    3-7 
Harrisburg   63 75 .457 14.5   64-74   -1 36-36 27-39 5- 7 20-13  -  W2    6-4 
Hartford     62 76 .449 15.5   61-77    1 29-37 33-39 2- 7 21-18  -  W1    5-5 
Pittsburgh   60 77 .438 17.0   67-70   -7 32-37 28-40 4- 5 16-19  -  W2    6-4 
 
American League Standings 
 
Southeast Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
Miami        96 42 .696    -   99-39   -3 48-18 48-24  8-6 23-13 6   W2    8-2 
Knoxville    77 61 .558 19.0   78-60   -1 40-32 37-29  9-4 16-18 -   W1    3-7 
Atlanta      72 65 .526 23.5   74-63   -2 32-33 40-32  4-3 14-16 -   L1    5-5 
Washington   64 73 .467 31.5   66-71   -2 31-37 33-36  6-1 18-17 -   L6    2-8 
Charlotte    61 76 .445 34.5   56-81    5 27-42 34-34  4-5 15-13 -   L3    4-6 
Nashville    46 91 .336 49.5   53-84   -7 19-49 27-42  3-5  9-24 -   L3    3-7 
 
Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
Denver       86 52 .623    -   87-51   -1 47-22 39-30  4-8 21-13 19  L2    6-4 
Tucson       80 58 .580  6.0   80-58    0 45-27 35-31  8-6 20-21  -  W5    9-1 
Memphis      73 65 .529 13.0   70-68    3 37-32 36-33  5-3 19-14  -  W3    5-5 
Green Bay    62 75 .453 23.5   56-81    6 32-37 30-38  4-7 24-18  -  L1    4-6 
Grand Rapids 57 81 .413 29.0   54-84    3 31-38 26-43  4-7 14-16  -  W1    4-6 
Kansas City  51 86 .372 34.5   56-81   -5 27-42 24-44  2-6 10-20  -  W5    7-3

Thoughts:


The NL West Division is pretty much wrapped up. At this point, the only interesting thing to pay attention to is whether or not third place Phoenix can finish above .500 for the first time in franchise history. Currently, the Cardinals are 4 games under.


In the Northeast, New Jersey continues to hold a somewhat comfortable lead, while Rochester and Buffalo battle it out for second. None of the teams are playing especially well at the moment. Pittsburgh's descent into last place has been the biggest story of this season for this division. Somehow, I doubt that any of the Pirates' long-suffering division-mates are feeling especially sympathetic to their sudden and unexpected plight.

Before the week is out, Miami could very well have clinched its 13th consecutive Southeast Division title. Meanwhile, Atlanta blew a tremendous opportunity to close the gap between it and Knoxville. The 79ers spent the early part of the week getting swept by Miami, but the Braves flubbed a series against Charlotte, dropping 2 of 3 games. Then, Atlanta dropped 2 of 3 to Knoxville. The Braves still have a chance to catch up to Knoxville, but they have little margin for error.

Tucson continues to play extremely well, and with the Broncos dropping their last 2 games to Miami, the Diamondbacks are now only 6 games out of first. Memphis, meanwhile, trails Tucson by 7 games. The Grizzlies do have the easiest schedule down the stretch, but if they want to make the playoffs, they can't afford any slip-ups. For example, earlier in the past week, they dropped 2 of 3 games to Nashville. They simply have to take care of business against the bottom feeders when they face them.

[jamus23]

Denver's batting statistics:

Name          G  AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI   R BB  K  AVG  OBP  SLG SB CS
A. Vasquez  116 508 187 17  2 26  99  87 39 58 .368 .417 .563  9  9
L. Chappel  120 502 171 65  2 34 133 121 74 29 .341 .426 .681  7  0
J. Rumfelt  124 456 128 21  2  5  68  59 57 27 .281 .360 .368  1  0
M. Phillips 119 443 118 23  2 11  58  88 88 46 .266 .391 .402  3  0
R. Thomas    90 420 142 13  1 13  72  81 24 26 .338 .379 .467 12  5
E. Bolling   97 389  94 44  5 17  75  70 43 72 .242 .317 .512  5  0
B. Romero   100 368 118 25  3 10  68  84 46 71 .321 .397 .486 18  4
M. Lore      97 354 123 14  1 14  79  52 27 46 .347 .400 .511  0  0
A. Fuentez   84 345 107 23  4  4  55  71 40 28 .310 .380 .435  7  3
M. Shunji    75 258  63  9  2 11  36  50 41 65 .244 .347 .422  3  3
B. Branco    59 214  49  9  6 10  40  45 34 53 .229 .345 .467  1  0
J. Fuensanta 55 187  74  9  1 10  44  41 19 11 .396 .443 .615  1  0
A. Mingo     42 125  28  4  3  0   9  27 28 17 .224 .370 .304  2  1
G. Esqueda   34 122  42  7  0 10  30  23 11  7 .344 .403 .648  0  0
A. Elbert    31 112  23  8  0  8  22  14 14 40 .205 .291 .491  3  1
T. Teika     21  76  20  3  0  3  15  15 12 18 .263 .364 .421  0  0
S. Ryo       23  68  22  4  0  2   9  13 11  9 .324 .420 .471  0  0
E. Abadia    12  44   3  0  0  2   3   2  2 16 .068 .128 .205  1  0
S. Skiba      4  18   7  1  0  0   2   3  1  3 .389 .421 .444  0  0
S. Lattimer   9  30   8  3  0  0   3   2  2 11 .267 .313 .367  0  0

Thoughts:

So much for the idea of getting the backups more playing time down the stretch. With Denver's lead over Tucson suddenly in danger, the Broncos will have to keep their best hitters in the lineup until the division is clinched. Lee Chappel is one of three front-runners for the Silver Slugger Award, with the others being Knoxville's Burl Wyatt and Atlanta's Joey Campos.



Denver's pitching statistics:

Name          G GS  W  L SV   ERA    IP  HA   R  ER BB   K CG SH
K. Pillsbury 29 29 17  7  0  3.07 205.0 199  79  70 18 165  7  4
G. Buentello 27 27 12  8  0  4.46 185.2 179  96  92 48 117  3  0
R. Lockridge 28 28 17  7  0  5.08 184.1 210 109 104 36 136  1  0 
R. Mcnett    29 29 14  6  0  4.24 180.1 200  95  85 53 152  2  2
T. Fons      24 24  8 10  0  6.78 170.0 232 133 128 68  71  6  1
J. Todd      52  0  5  2  3  6.93  89.2 106  78  69 59  75  0  0
J. Virgen    40  0  6  4 17  3.74  67.1  68  32  28 13  43  0  0
R. Soto      44  0  5  1  7  3.64  59.1  58  26  24  9  33  0  0
O. Lopez     34  0  4  6  3  5.40  58.1  81  39  35  8  49  0  0
L. Gwinn     31  0  2  2  1  6.67  55.1  63  41  41 19  57  0  0
L. Waltz     38  0  1  1  1  7.41  51.0  87  47  42 20  36  0  0
L. Mccullum  12  0  1  0  0  7.91  19.1  32  17  17  7  10  0  0
W. Ortiz      1  1  0  0  0 10.50   6.0  13   7   7  1   1  0  0
A. Haider     1  0  0  0  0  0.00   1.2   1   0   0  1   0  0  0

Thoughts:

Well, Kenny Pillsbury doesn't have much chance at winning the Cy Young anymore, barring a really dominant September. Denver's chances of success in the playoffs would seem to be less than the past couple of seasons because of how mediocre the rest of the pitching has been.

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
Denver       89 55 .618    -   90-54   -1 48-24 41-31  4-8 22-13 14  L2    5-5 
Tucson       84 60 .583  5.0   83-61    1 45-27 39-33  9-7 21-22  -  W2    8-2 
Memphis      77 67 .535 12.0   74-70    3 38-34 39-33  5-3 20-15  -  W4    7-3 
Green Bay    66 78 .458 23.0   60-84    6 33-39 33-39  4-7 25-18  -  L1    5-5 
Grand Rapids 60 84 .417 29.0   58-86    2 34-41 26-43  4-7 15-17  -  L3    5-5 
Kansas City  52 92 .361 37.0   58-86   -6 27-42 25-50  2-6 10-20  -  L6    4-6

Denver 6 @ Memphis 1
Denver 5 @ Memphis 4
Denver 1 @ Memphis 7
Tucson 3 @ Denver 7
Tucson 13 @ Denver 10
Tucson 6 @ Denver 3




Denver began the week by damaging Memphis' chances of catching up to second place Tucson. In the first game, Robert McNett tossed 8 scoreless innings, and the Broncos parlayed 7 hits and 13 walks into 6 runs, 4 of which came in the 4th inning. In the second game, Denver squandered a 4-2 lead when Robert Soto served up a 2 out, 2-run homerun to second-baseman Eric Phillips in the bottom of the 8th inning. However, an unlikely hero emerged in the form of Jack Rumfelt, who led off the top of the 9th inning with his 6th homerun of the year. James Virgen struck out 2 batters in the bottom of the ninth to preserve the victory. The Grizzlies managed to salvage the final game of the series when Ray Lockridge ran out of gas in the 7th inning, no thanks to shortstop Booker Romero, who committed 3 errors in the game. The errors helped the floodgates open, and Memphis struck for 6 runs in the seventh. Of course, Lockridge is not entirely blameless, however. Although 5 of the 7 total runs he allowed were unearned, he did give up 3 homeruns in that disastrous inning.

Then, of course, there was the showdown with Tucson. At the start of the series, the Diamondbacks trailed the Broncos by 6 games. In the first game, Denver struck quickly, and led 4-1 after 2 innings. A 3-run 6th inning put the game out of reach, though Tucson did mount an unsuccessful rally, with 1 run in both the 8th and 9th innings. The second game may come back to haunt the Broncos, if their control of the Central Division eventually wanes. Tucson's Danny Guzman got things started with a grand slam in the 2nd inning. Denver responded with 2 runs in the bottom half of the second. The Diamondbacks grabbed 2 in the fourth inning, and led 6-2. The Broncos rallied, with a run in the fifth, and 3 runs in the sixth inning. The game was tied at six. But just as quickly, it all fell apart again. Tucson scored 2 runs in the seventh inning, as Guzman went deep for a second time. Then in the eighth, disaster struck. Marcus Murrin ripped a 2-run homerun, and the next batter, Thomas Stallman, also went deep. Richard Billips hit a run-scoring double with 1 out, though he himself was thrown out trying to advance to third. With 2 outs, then, Danny Guzman smashed his 3rd homerun of the game, giving the Diamondbacks a 13-6 lead. Denver still had hope, however. The Broncos plated 4 runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, 3 from a 2-out homerun by Russell Thomas. In the ninth, unfortunately, they came up empty. The third game went badly from the start. Tucson scored 3 runs in the first inning, and 2 more in the third inning. Ellis Bolling hit a 2-run homer in the 4th, but the Diamondbacks immediately got one of the runs back in the top of the fifth inning. Denver scored once in the eighth inning, and threatened in the ninth with a leadoff double by Bolling, but the rally fizzled.




Ellis Bolling was the offensive leader during the week. Bolling posted a 1.191 OPS, with 2 doubles, a triple, 2 homeruns, 3 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Marvin Lore had a 1.095 OPS, with 10 hits, and 3 doubles. Russell Thomas had an .810 OPS, with a homerun, and a team-high 8 RBI. Lee Chappel mustered just a .733 OPS, but he drove in 6 runs.

Only one player seemed to have a particularly poor week, and that was Michael Phillips, who was 2 for 19, with a .333 OPS, and 0 RBI. Jose Fuensanta and Masahachirou Shunji combined to go 0 for 10, with 4 strikeouts.

The starting pitching was fairly solid. George Buentello allowed only 2 runs, both unearned, in 7 innings pitched. Kenny Pillsbury gave up just 2 runs in 8 innings. Ray Lockridge's 2.57 ERA makes it appear as though he pitched better than he actually did, as he gave up 9 hits, including 3 homeruns, and 7 runs(only 2 earned) in 7 innings. Robert McNett had once excellent start, and one poor start. Against Memphis, he gave up just 3 hits and 0 runs in 8 innings, and struck out 6 batters. Against Tucson, he allowed 11 hits and 6 runs in 6 innings of work. Thomas Fons was ineffective, with 9 hits , 5 walks, and 6 runs allowed in 5 2/3 innings pitched.

Omar Lopez pitched 2 scoreless innings of relief, with 3 strikeouts. Unfortunately, no one else in the bullpen had much success. James Virgen gave up 3 hits and 2 runs in 3 innings of work. Robert Soto allowed 4 hits and 4 runs in 2 1/3 innings. Lyndon Gwinn gave up 3 hits and 3 runs in 1 inning.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week went to New Jersey's left-fielder, Russell McCrimmon. It is his 2nd career POTW award. McCrimmon hit .550(11 for 20), with a 1.709 OPS, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homeruns, 6 RBI, and 6 runs scored. His exploits came primarily in one game, and included becoming the third player this season to hit for the cycle. New Jersey was on a 4-game losing streak, and had dropped the first 2 games of a 3 game series against Sacramento. In the third game, however, the Devils administered once of the most impressive beatdowns this season. McCrimmon contributed a run-scoring single, and a run scored, to a 4-run first inning. He, and first-baseman Amaury Lucia, hit back to back 2-out homeruns(McCrimmon's 25th of the season) in the second inning, giving New Jersey an early 6-0 lead. He doubled(35th) and scored another run in the 5th inning; by that point, New Jersey was ahead by a score of 10-1. He completed the cycle with an RBI triple(4th) in the seventh inning, and also scored in that inning. All told, he had 4 hits, 3 RBI, and 4 runs scored in a 17-3 walloping of the Kings. He also stole his 34th base in the contest. McCrimmon had 4 hits(including 2 doubles and a homerun), a walk, 3 RBI, and a run scored in a 6-5, 15-inning defeat to Pittsburgh. His homerun tied the game at 1-1 in the 4th inning. His first double drove in a run in the 5th inning to give New Jersey a 2-1 lead. His second double drove in a run, and helped the Devils tie the game at 4-4 in the 7th inning. He also 2 hits, a walk, and a run scored in a 5-2 defeat to the Pirates.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Miami's catcher/designated hitter, Edmond McGurk. It is his 4th career POTW award, and second this season. He hit .400(10 for 25), with a double, a triple, 4 homeruns, 8 RBI, and 8 runs scored. He homered twice, walked, droved in 3 runs, and scored 2 runs in an 11-7 loss to Kansas City. The first homerun gave Miami a 2-0 lead in the first inning, while the second cut a 6-2 Kansas City lead in the third inning to 6-3. He had 2 hits, including a double, and a run scored in a 7-0 rout over the Royals. He had 2 hits, including a homerun, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored in 12-6 win over Kansas City. He tripled, homered, walked, drove in 2 runs, and scored 3 runs in an 11-6 win over Charlotte. The homerun was a 2-run shot in a 6-run first inning for the Dolphins.


Earlier, I mentioned that Tucson's Danny Guzman homered 3 times in a game against Denver. As it happens, Guzman's performance represented the 500th time in league history that a player has hit at least 3 homeruns in one game. In total, 334 different players have managed the feat, 106 have accomplished it at least twice, 41 have done it 3 times or more(Guzman is one of those), 12 have done it at least 4 times, 5 have managed it at least 5 times, and 2 players have done it as many as 6 times. Those 2 players are Hall of Fame third-baseman Howard Kinch, and current Denver first-baseman, Ellis Bolling. One of the players who has done it at least 3 times is current Phoenix left-fielder, Marcos Esparza. Now, all three of Esparza's 3-homerun games have, in fact, come this season. That makes him just the second player to achieve the feat 3 times in one season. The first player to do it was Hall of Fame outfielder, Billy Stoltzfus, back in 2043. Atlanta and Washington have had the most players with 3-HR games, with 33, while Charlotte and Green Bay have had players accomplish the feat only 6 times, for the fewest in the league. The year 2077 saw the most 3-HR games, with 16. 2016 and 2046 had the fewest with just 1. The 3-HR game has become much more prevalent in recent seasons. From 2003 to 2063, there was an average of just under 5 3-HR games per season. Since the second expansion(2064), however, that number has nearly doubled, up to a little over 9 per season. From 2003 to 2071, there were just 3 seasons with more than 10 3-HR games, but from 2072 to the current season, there have been 9 such seasons. The current year has seen 10 3-HR games so far.




Division Races:

In the West, second place San Jose(83-61) helped to delay first place San Diego's(98-46) clinching of the division by taking 2 of 3 games from the Padres. Still, San Diego's magic number sits at 4, so the Padres' 2nd straight division title is all but wrapped up. It will be the first time since 2038-39 that the Padres have won consecutive division titles. Third place Phoenix(70-74), meanwhile, trails San Jose by nearly as many games as the Sharks trail San Diego, so the second place playoff spot is also on the verge of being clinched.

The Northeast Division, on the other hand, is far from secured. New Jersey(78-65) still clings to first place, but the Devils are fresh off a 3 game sweep by last place Pittsburgh(63-80), and they have lost 7 of their last 8 games. Sitting just 1 1/2 games out of first are both Buffalo(77-67) and Rochester(77-67). The upcoming week starts off with a bang, as New Jersey heads to Buffalo for a 3 game tilt, and concludes with the Bills heading to Rochester for 3 games. While the first series takes place, Rochester hosts Phoenix, and while the second is happening, New Jersey hosts recent thorn, Pittsburgh, for a 4 game series. The Pirates have won 5 straight games against the Devils.

It is likely that Miami(100-44) will be the first team to clinch its division, as the Dolphins magic number sits at 1. However, with their next 15 games all coming against current contenders(Tucson, Denver, Memphis, Tucson again, and Atlanta), the Dolphins may be reluctant to ease up, and by doing so, affecting the other playoff races in an "unfair" manner. As for the second place race, Knoxville(82-62) continues to hold off Atlanta(77-67). The 79ers have won 5 in a row, while the Braves have 4 straight.

In the Central, second place Tucson(84-60) has crept to within 5 games of Denver(89-55). Third place Memphis(77-67) trails Tucson by 7 games, but the Grizzlies have won 4 straight games.




Injury News:

Knoxville lost starting pitcher Aldo Barnes(10-11, 6.78 ERA) for the next two weeks with an elbow injury. Grand Rapids lost veteran third-baseman Andres Garcia(.855 OPS, 22 homeruns, 101 walks) for the remainder of the season with a fractured wrist.




Ahead for Denver this week is a 3 game series at Memphis(77-67), and a 3 game series against Miami(100-44).

[jamus23]

Central Division 
 
Team          W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
Denver       91 59 .607    -   92-58   -1 49-26 42-33  5-8 23-14 10  L2    3-7 
Tucson       88 62 .587  3.0   87-63    1 47-28 41-34  9-8 22-24  -  W1    7-3 
Memphis      81 69 .540 10.0   78-72    3 40-35 41-34  5-3 21-15  -  W2    8-2 
Green Bay    68 82 .453 23.0   62-88    6 35-43 33-39  5-7 26-19  -  L2    5-5 
Grand Rapids 63 87 .420 28.0   62-88    1 36-42 27-45  4-7 15-19  -  W2    4-6 
Kansas City  53 97 .353 38.0   59-91   -6 28-47 25-50  2-6 10-20  -  L2    1-9

Denver 0 @ Memphis 8
Denver 3 @ Memphis 1
Denver 0 @ Memphis 4
Miami 2 @ Denver 3(10 innings)
Miami 10 @ Denver 4
Miami 5 @ Denver 4




Denver's late season swoon continued. No-name right-hander Leon Carter(5.23 ERA in 13 career big league games) tossed a 7-hit shutout against the Broncos in the first game, and the Grizzlies roughed up George Buentello for 7 runs in 5 innings. In the second game, Kenny Pillsbury gave a strong performance and the Broncos snapped a 3-game losing streak despite striking out 11 times against Memphis starter Rickie Standley. In the rubber game, Memphis' Roy Kelemen earned his 20th win of the season by blanking the Broncos on 5 hits.

The Broncos won a hard-fought, extra inning game against the Southeast Division-leading Dolphins in the first game of that series. James Virgen and Omar Lopez combined for 4 scoreless innings of relief in that contest. Unfortunately, the second game didn't go in Denver's favor. Miami slugger Edmond McGurk led the way in a Dolphins' rout, with a single, a double, and a homer, 3 RBI, and 3 runs scored. In the final game of the series, it was the Dolphins' third-baseman, Thomas Fuentes, Jr., who did in the Broncos, with 2 singles, a homerun, 3 RBI, and a run scored in a 1-run Miami victory. The Broncos managed only 4 hits, 2 of which were homeruns(a 2-out solo shot by Asbel Fuentez in the 5th inning and a 3-run blast by Gabriel Esqueda in the 6th).




Getting shutout twice in one week is bound to limit the number of good offensive performances. Asbel Fuentez had a strong week, with a 1.162 OPS, 3 doubles, 1 homerun, 1 RBI, and 3 runs scored. He was pretty much the only regular to have a good week. A few backups contributed a little bit, however. Gabriel Esqueda had a 1.250 OPS, as he went 3 for 8, with a double, a homerun, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored. Tamiko Teika was 2 for 5, with a double, a walk, and a hit by pitch. Henry Lewis, Jr. and Dale Churchill both collected their first big league hits, as the former went 2 for 3, with an RBI, and a hit by pitch, while the latter was 2 for 4, with a double, and 2 RBI.

There were plenty of bad performances. Russell Thomas had a .563 OPS in 19 at bats, and had just 1 RBI, and 0 runs scored. Alexis Vazquez had a homerun and 2 RBI, but was only 3 for 19 with a .554 OPS. Lee Chappel managed a double and a homerun, but had just a .512 OPS. Ellis Bolling was 2 for 15 with a .454 OPS. Both hits were doubles. Marvin Lore was 2 for 12, with a .333 OPS. Booker Romero collected just 3 hits in 23 at bats, and had a .304 OPS, 0 RBI or runs scored, and 10 strikeouts.

The starting pitching wasn't much better than the hitting. Kenny Pillsbury gave up 11 hits and 1 run in 7 2/3 innings pitched. Robert McNett allowed 2 runs in 5 2/3 innings. Ray Lockridge gave up 4 runs in 7 innings pitched. George Buentello gave up 15 hits and 12 runs(9 earned) in 12 innings pitched. He did strike out 12 batters. Thomas Fons surrendered 6 runs(5 earned), 7 hits, and 5 walks in 5 innings of work.

The bullpen did a solid job, for the most part. James Virgen made 2 appearances and pitched 4 scoreless innings. Omar Lopez made 2 appearances and tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings. Alex Haider gave up 1 run in 3 innings pitched. Larry Waltz gave up 1 run in 2 innings. Robert Soto had 3 outings, and gave up 3 runs in 3 1/3 innings pitched.

Injury news: Altough Denver has had numerous injuries this season, ultimately, none of them have been all that serious. Until now. In the 4-0 loss to Memphis, 32 year old second-baseman Jack Rumfelt(.721 OPS) was injured while throwing a ball. The diagnosis was a torn rotator cuff, and it is believed that this is a very serious injury. For sure, Rumfelt will not play again this season, and it is possible that the injury is career-threatening. Taking over the bulk of the second base duties will likely be rookie Brooks Branco(.821 OPS, 10 HR). Branco's bat is better, but he is a vastly inferior defensive player.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to San Diego's right-fielder, Jack Ector. It is his 5th career POTW award. Ector hit .538(14 for 26), with a 1.552 OPS, 3 doubles, 3 homeruns, 7 RBI, and 10 runs scored. He homered and drove in 2 runs in a 4-1 win over Sacramento. He doubled, walked twice, and scored 2 runs in an 8-7 win over the Kings. He had 4 hits, including a double, 1 RBI, and 3 runs scored in an 8-3 win over Harrisburg. He had 4 hits, including a double, 1 RBI, and 1 run scored in a 7-6 win over the Capitals. San Diego rallied from an early 5-0 deficit in that game. Finally, he had 3 hits, including a pair of homeruns, 3 RBI, and 3 runs scored in a 7-6, 13-inning loss to Harrisburg. The first homerun was a 2-run blast in the 5th inning that closed a 4-1 Harrisburg lead to 4-3. The second homerun came in the bottom of the 12th inning, after the Capitals had taken a 6-4 lead. Ector led off the inning with a homerun, and the Padres scrounged up another run to even the score at 6-6.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Green Bay's first-baseman, Peter Peed. It is the 27 year old Peed's first ever POTW award. He hit .609(14 for 23), with a 1.944 OPS, 4 doubles, 4 homeruns, 12 RBI, and 5 runs scored. Peed doubled, homered twice, walked twice, drove in 5 runs, and scored 2 runs in a 10-9, 10-inning victory over Knoxville. He had 2 of Green Bay's 5 hits in a 4-0 loss to the 79ers, including a double. He doubled, homered, drove in 3 runs, and scored a run in a 10-5 loss to Knoxville. He had 4 hits, including a double, and 2 RBI in a 5-2 win over Memphis. He had 3 hits, including a homerun, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored in an 8-7 loss to the Grizzlies. The Packers blew a lead of 5-0 in that game.




Division Races:

In the NL West, San Diego(103-47) officially clinched its second straight division title. It's the first time in nearly 50 years that the Padres have won back to back division titles(2038 and 2039). Second place San Jose(85-65) leads third place Phoenix(73-77) by 12 games with 12 games remaining for both teams, so the Sharks can clinch a playoff spot with a win or a Cardinals' loss. The Cardinals had actually gotten to within 1 game of .500 this past week, but a 3-game sweep by Sacramento prevented them from passing that elusive hurdle.

For one day this past week, first place New Jersey(83-67) had slipped to second place in the Northeast Division. But then Buffalo(79-71), which had moved 1/2 a game in front of the Devils by winning the first two games of a three game series against them, collapsed. The Bills dropped the final game to fall back into second place, and then got swept by Rochester(80-70) in a 3 game series. The Rhinos now sit in second place, 3 games behind New Jersey, and a game ahead of Buffalo.

The Miami Dolphins(103-47) officially clinched their 13th consecutive Southeast Division title this week. Second place Knoxville(85-65) leads Atlanta(81-69) by 4 games. The 79ers and Braves face off early this upcoming week in a 3 game series. A Knoxville series win could all but put away the Braves, while an Atlanta series win could keep a faint glimmer of hope alive for the Braves. Atlanta hasn't made the playoffs since 2069. Last place Nashville(50-100) became the first team to 100 losses this season. It's the first time in over 20 years that the Predators have lost 100 games in a season(2064).

In the Central Division, Denver's(91-59) lead continued to get smaller and smaller. Tucson(88-62) is now just 3 games out of first. It's amazing to think that about a month ago(August 20th), the Diamondbacks trailed the Broncos by 12 games. Now, one good week for Tucson and one bad week for Denver could potentially put the Diamondbacks in first place. Third place Memphis(81-69) still has a shot at the playoffs, but at this point it would probably take a miracle.




Ahead for Denver this week is a 3 game series versus Grand Rapids(63-87), and a 3 game series at Nashville(50-100).

[jamus23]

Grand Rapids 6 @ Denver 12
Grand Rapids 14 @ Denver 5
Grand Rapids 5 @ Denver 11
Denver 6 @ Nashville 7
Denver 3 @ Nashville 4
Denver 11 @ Nashville 12




With Denver's hold on the Central Division slipping away, the second to last week of the season was the Broncos' best chance to reassert its control. Grand Rapids and Nashville have been among the worst teams in the league this season, and the two teams should have represented a nice breather for Denver after playing contender after contender for the last three weeks. But nothing has come easily for the Broncos this season. In the first game against Grand Rapids, the Tigers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning. Denver rallied for 5 runs in the third inning, and after the Tigers made it 5-4 in the top of the seventh inning, the Broncos pulled away with 3 in the 7th and 4 in the 8th. Grand Rapids added 2 runs in the ninth inning, but it wasn't enough to prevent Kenny Pillsbury from earning his 20th win of the season. It is Pillsbury's 4th straight season with at least 20 wins. Grand Rapids jumped out to an early lead in the second game, but this time, the Tigers just kept on scoring. They scored 2 in the first inning, 2 in the third inning, and then exploded for 7 runs in the fourth inning, sending Ray Lockridge to the showers in the process. The Broncos rallied a little bit, with 1 run in the fourth inning, and 4 runs in the fifth inning. Grand Rapids tacked on a few insurance runs to secure the victory, however. Led by shortstop Anthony Champ, who homered twice and drove in 7 runs, the Tigers banged out 21 hits in the game. The Broncos took the rubber game with a 5-run first inning and a strong performance by Robert McNett. Leading the offense was Russell Thomas, who had 4 hits, a walk, and 4 runs scored.

Denver's rival, Tucson, also had an easy start to the week. The Diamondbacks faced off against hapless Nashville, and took 2 of 3 from the Predators. But while the Broncos would also get to face Nashvillle during the week, Tucson had to close out the week with a home series against the best team in baseball- the Miami Dolphins. This was Denver's opportunity to lock up the division once and for all. Unfortunately, the Broncos completely blew it. Miami did its part. The Dolphins went into Tucson and swept the Diamondbacks, outscoring them 27-10. Just a win or 2 would have given the Broncos a 4 or a 5 game lead with 6 games remaining. But they couldn't even manage one win against Nashville. The first game turned ugly almost immediately. With one out in the first inning, first-baseman Henry Lewis, Jr. committed errors on consecutive plays, allowing 2 runners to reach base. Thomas Fons unraveled, and walked the next 2 batters, bringing in a run. A wild pitch allowed another run to score, and Nashville had a quick, 2-0 lead. Fons regrouped, and the Broncos battled back. Denver got on the board with a run in the third inning, and took a 3-2 lead with a pair of runs in the fifth. And then Fons collapsed again. He gave up back to back homeruns to center-fielder Carlo Romero and designated hitter Alvin Carillo to start the bottom of the fifth inning. Another run gave Nashville the lead again. In the top of the 7th, Denver got some clutch hitting. Alexis Vazquez delivered a pinch hit single, and Michael Phillips and Tamiko Teika followed with back to back, pinch hit homeruns. The Broncos had a 6-5 lead. But in the ninth inning, relievers Robert Soto and James Virgen got into trouble, and Virgen gave up a 2-run single to Alvin Carillo to lose the game. In the second game, the Broncos struck first, with a run in the 2nd inning. Denver clung to that 1-0 lead until getting a second run in the top of the 6th inning. At which point, ace Kenny Pillsbury imploded. With 2 outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, Carlo Romero hit a run-scoring double, and Alvin Carillo followed with a 2-run homerun. Carillo homered again in the 8th inning. Denver got one of the runs back in the 9th, but could not complete the comeback. The Broncos raced to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning in the final game of the series, but Ray Lockridge gave it right back. Nashville scored 5 runs in the bottom of the first. Alvin Carillo hit a grand slam for 4 of those runs. The Predators made it 7-3 in the fourth inning, and after the Broncos scored twice in the top of the fifth, Nashville scored 3 in the bottom of the fifth inning. Carlo Romero and first-baseman Edward Shuh belted homeruns in that inning. But Denver kept up the rally. Lee Chappel smacked a 2-run homerun in the sixth inning, and the Broncos exploded for 4 runs in the top of the seventh to take an 11-10 lead. Robert Soto blanked Nashville in the seventh and eighth innings, and after getting the first out of the ninth inning, he gave way to James Virgen. The veteran right-hander immediately served up back to back homeruns to Carlo Romero and Alvin Carillo. Game over.




Russell Thomas had an outstanding week. He posted a 1.547 OPS, with 16 hits, 4 doubles, a triple, a homerun, 5 RBI, and 9 runs scored. Close behind him was Marvin Lore, who had a 1.486 OPS, 12 hits, 5 doubles, 13 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Asbel Fuentez had a .982 OPS, with 8 hits, 3 doubles, and 5 runs scored. Lee Chappel had a .979 OPS, a double, a homerun, 3 RBI, and 4 runs scored. Alexis Vazquez managed a .930 OPS, with a triple, a homerun, 5 RBI, and 7 runs scored. Michael Phillips had an .844 OPS, with 2 homeruns, 6 RBI, and 5 runs scored.

On the negative side, Booker Romero was 6 for 26, with a .528 OPS, and only 1 RBI. Ellis Bolling was 2 for 13, with a .574 OPS.

Robert McNett was the top pitcher. He allowed only 2 runs(1 earned) in 7 innings of work. Overall, Kenny Pillsbury was pretty good, with 8 runs(5 earned) allowed in 14 1/3 innings, for a 3.14 ERA. Thomas Fons gave up 5 runs(3 earned) in 6 1/3 innings. Ray Lockridge had a nightmarish week. In 2 starts, he pitched 10 1/3 innings, gave up 29 hits, and 21 runs, all of which were earned. Lockridge has been absolutely terrible so far in September, by the way. In 4 starts, he is 0-3 with a 9.99 ERA.

There weren't any especially outstanding bullpen performances. Laverne Mccullum pitched 2 2/3 innings, and allowed only 1 run while striking out 4 batters. Robert Soto made 4 appearances, and gave up 3 runs in 5 2/3 innings for a 4.77 ERA. Lyndon Gwinn and Valentine McGurk both gave up 2 runs in 1 inning of work. James Virgen had the worst week of all, however. In 2 appearances, he recorded only 1 out, gave up 4 hits and 3 runs, and took 2 losses.




Around the league:

The National League Player of the Week Award went to Rochester's second-baseman, Sergio Salo. It is Salo's 2nd career POTW award. He hit .476(10 for 21), with a 1.640 OPS, 3 doubles, 3 homeruns, 7 RBI, 6 runs scored, and 4 walks. Salo singled, doubled, homered, drove in a run, and scored 2 runs in a 6-2 win over Los Angeles. He had 1 hit, 3 walks, an RBI, and a run scored in a 10-5 win over San Jose. He doubled, homered twice, drove in 4 runs, and scored 2 runs in an 8-1 whipping of the Sharks.

The American League Player of the Week Award went to Atlanta's third-baseman, Raymond Stair. It is his first ever POTW award. Stair hit .478(11 for 23), with a 1.804 OPS, 3 doubles, a triple, 4 homeruns, 13 RBI, 9 runs scored, and 4 walks. He doubled and drove in 2 runs in a 6-5 win over Knoxville. He singled, homered, drove in 2 runs, and scored 3 runs in an 18-7 loss to the 79ers. He had 3 hits, including 2 doubles, a walk, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored in a 10-4 thumping of Knoxville. He singled, homered, walked, drove in 2 runs, and scored 2 runs in a 13-9 loss to Washington. Atlanta had leads of 7-0 and 9-1 in that game. Stair walked and hit a 3-run homerun in an 8-6 loss to the Senators. The Braves had leads of 5-0 and 6-2 in that game. He tripled, homered, walked, drove in 2 runs, and scored a run in a 9-8 win over Washington. Much like the previous two games, Atlanta blew a sizable lead in that game. The Braves had leads of 6-0 and 7-3, but fell behind 8-7 in the top of the eighth inning. The third time was the charm, however, as they managed to rally and pull out the victory.




Division Races:


Here is a look at the current standings, modified to show only the playoff picture.

  National League Standings 
 
  West Division 
 
  Team        W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
x-San Diego 105 51 .673    -  101-55    4 55-23 50-28  9-7 29-14  *  L1    5-5 
y-San Jose   87 69 .558 18.0   92-64   -5 40-38 47-31  8-7 19-22  -  L1    3-7 
 
  Northeast Division 
 
  Team        W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
  New Jersey 87 69 .558    -   80-76    7 48-30 39-39  6-6 13-15  3  W1    8-2 
  Rochester  83 73 .532  4.0   80-76    3 42-36 41-37 8-10 19-20  -  W1    6-4 
  Buffalo    82 74 .526  5.0   91-65   -9 44-34 38-40  1-9 14-30  -  L1    3-7 
 
  American League Standings 
 
  Southeast Division 
 
  Team        W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
x-Miami     109 47 .699    -  112-44   -3 53-22 56-25  8-7 26-15  *  W8    8-2 
  Knoxville  88 68 .564 21.0   89-67   -1 43-35 45-33 10-5 19-21  -  L1    5-5 
  Atlanta    84 72 .538 25.0   84-72    0 40-38 44-34  5-4 19-17  -  W1    5-5 
 
  Central Division 
 
  Team        W  L  PCT   GB Pyt.Rec Diff  Home  Away XInn  1Run M# Stk Last10 
y-Denver     93 63 .596    -   95-61   -2 51-27 42-36  5-8 23-17  4  L3    3-7 
y-Tucson     90 66 .577  3.0   90-66    0 47-31 43-35  9-8 22-24  -  L3    5-5 
 


x = Clinched division
y = Clinched playoff spot

The West Division is all wrapped up. San Diego(105-51) has its second straight division title, and San Jose(87-69) returns to the playoffs after a one year absence.

The Northeast remains undecided, although New Jersey(87-69) is very close to capturing its first ever division title and first ever playoff appearance. Rochester(83-73) and Buffalo(82-74) will likely go down to the wire to decide second place.

Southeast Division-leading Miami(109-47) spent the week thwarting other teams' playoff hopes. A crushing sweep of Memphis officially eliminated the Grizzlies from playoff contention. The Dolphins outscored Memphis 32-7 in the three game series. Then a sweep of Tucson prevented the Diamondbacks from taking advantage of Denver's repeated collapses against Nashville. As for the second place race, Atlanta(82-74) squandered a series victory over Knoxville(88-68) by dropping 2 of 3 games to Washington, blowing big leads in all 3 of the games. For its part, Knoxville took 2 of 3 from Green Bay after its series with Atlanta. Now, the 79ers hold a 4 game lead with 6 games remaining. Both teams start the week with difficult series: Knoxville plays at Denver, while Atlanta plays at Miami.

For the sixth year in a row, the Central Division playoff representatives will be Denver(93-63) and Tucson(90-66). The only question now is whether it will be Denver in first place and Tucson in second place for the fifth year in a row, or whether the Diamondbacks can capture their first division title since 2080. Tucson's remaining schedule is decidedly easier. The Diamondbacks face Nashville(54-102) and Grand Rapids(65-91), while Denver gets Knoxville and Atlanta.




Injury News:

Only one contending team had an injury of note this past week. Tucson's left-fielder, Reggie Melendez(.354 average, .849 OPS, 40 doubles) pulled a hip muscle. Though he'll be back to 100% by the end of the week, he won't come off the disabled list for another 10 days, which will likely prevent him from being placed on Tucson's playoff roster for the first round of the playoffs. There were two other notable injuries. Washington's first-baseman, Sabas Laureano(.979 OPS, 46 doubles, 26 homeruns, 101 RBI, 103 runs scored, 103 walks) suffered a hyper-extended knee. It's not overly serious, but he probably won't play again this season. Another player who has had his season come to an end is Charlotte's right-fielder, James Wysocki(.322 average, 1.029 OPS, 35 homeruns, 108 RBI, 130 runs scored, 111 walks). The 26 year old slugger fractured his foot.




The final week of the regular season has Denver hosting Knoxville(88-68) for 3 games, and then heading to Atlanta(84-72) for 3 more.