Orcin's Story

[Orcin]

July 9, 2007

Subject: Week 14 Notes

Record: 54-35, .607, 1.5 GB
Position: 2nd place (behind Indianapolis)
Runs Scored: 386 – 9th in Federal
Runs Allowed: 291 – 1st in Federal
Defense: .705 – 5th in Federal
Power Ranking: 112.2 (5th in CBA)
Owner Mood: Ecstatic; Fan Interest: 100/100

• Last week (4-3): 2-1 at Los Angeles, 2-2 vs. Salt Lake City
• 07/02: LOU 7, LA 3 – Brown 3-5, HR, 4 RBI; Simon 4-5, solo HR, SB
• Aaron Wilkerson agreed to a 4-year contract extension worth $6.7M. The final year is a team option (no buyout) at less than his current arbitration estimate.
• CL George King really wants to stay here. He is now offering to sign for $3.2M/year on a 4-year deal. His previous offer was $4.6M/year.
• Baltimore (rebuilding) dealt overpaid veteran CF Fernando Martinez ($15M/year, hit .221 over past 4 seasons) to San Francisco for a good pitching prospect.
• 07/03: LOU 3, LA 2 – Rodriguez 2-5, GWRBI with 2-out in 9th
• Providence acquired well-traveled 28-year-old SP Julio Flores (3-9, 5.30) from Cincinnati for two prospects
• Philly CF Eduardo Sanchez hurt his hand running the bases and is out for 4 days. He should recover in time for the All-Star Game but he can’t be traded right now.
• 07/04: LA 4, LOU 3 – Guzman 2-3, DBL, HR, 3 RBI
• 07/05: LOU 6, SLC 1 – Simon 3-4, HR, 2 RBI, 2 SB, 3 RS
• It was an anxious moment in the 7th inning when Westaway felt a twinge and left the game. He has a mild shoulder strain and will likely miss the All-Star Game.
• San Francisco acquired SP Ed von Frankenberg (5-7, 4.21 ERA) from St. Louis in return for 18-year-old SP Nick Hill, the Seals first-round draft pick in 2006.
• 07/06: SLC 7, LOU 6 – Luna gave up 7 runs in the 6th to fall to 4-8 with a 4.30 ERA
• Chicago 2B Elijah Graham (.279/18/51) is out for the year with a broken hand.
• 07/07: SLC 2, LOU 0 (12) – picked up 8 walks and 5 stolen bases but still could not score with only 3 hits (all singles) in 12 innings; George King (0-5) took the loss
• 07/08: LOU 6, SLC 5 – Morgan 3-4, DBL, HR, 2 RBI; Simon 2-3, 3 SB
• Aaron Wilkerson recorded his first major league save in Sunday’s game
• C Herman Dodson was 5-5 in Dayton’s 7-6 victory over Fort Wayne.
• This week: All-Star break followed by the annual inter-league weekend special featuring a home (2) & away (2) series vs. the Providence Grays.

[Sal, The Barber]

Originally Posted by Orcin

To trade or not to trade… that is the question.

“To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub.”

“Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune…”

“Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them?”

Sal loves all this Shakespearean drama. Sal once played Petruccio in Taming of the Shrew. Sal thought he could take what he learned into his marriages. Sal soon found out that Shakespeare wasn't all they made him out to be.

Sal wishes he could quote the Bard back to Mr. Orcin, but Sal's Complete Works of Billy the Bard is in a pawn shop on Bourbon Street. Sal does know this about Hamlet--the play not the man. IT'S A TRAGEDY!

Sal sees that the Louievilles are a game and a half back, but Sal accepts no less than the first place. So Sal would say to Mr. Orcin what he would tell Hamlet, the man not the play. Make the trade already. Quit playing the paddy-cake with the upstarts from Indianapolis. Take the sword and stick it through the heart. Enough of all this hurry up and wait. Sal is an old man. He can no longer take it.

You know what happens when you wait around and check the stars and hide behind the screeens and kill the wrong man and inadvertantly offend the woman of your dreams and do not go back to school? Sal will tell you. Everybody dies!

Excuse Sal now. He must go evacuate his bowels.

[Orcin]

July 9, 2007

It’s been a busy morning. You have probably already seen last week’s report. (We know Sal has.) Jennifer was up late working on it (the report, not Sal - just wanted to make that clear). We got the espresso machine going early today because Philadelphia is one hour ahead of us.

I spent a long time on the phone with John Evans and then faxed over our final proposal. He said he would think it over and get back to me in a day or two. The offer was Chip Davidson, Juan Cortez, and $2 million in cash in return for Eduardo Sanchez, who is recovered from his four-day injury and eligible for a trade. It’s out of my hands now. We’ll see what Evans wants to do.

Next, I met with manager Chad Byrne and bench coach Stephen Burgess. The subject was our offense. The starters are not going anywhere, so perhaps a lineup shakeup would be in order. We need two sets of lineup revisions. Optimistically, we started with the scenario including Sanchez, fully intending to develop an alternate option later.

Byrne showed us a lineup that he had intended to use this year if Hartman got off to a quick start. The idea was to put his best three base stealers at the top of the order with Hartman leading off. Dominguez, the presumed best all-round hitter, would bat third and the right-handed Simon would hit second to break up the two left-handed batters. Byrne also liked Simon’s power there. The three big RBI men would follow with Morgan batting fourth, Bland fifth and Brown sixth. John and Rodriguez would finish off the order.

Byrne suggested that Sanchez might be even better than Hartman in the leadoff spot and he wants to try this lineup if the trade goes through. If there is no trade, he wants to use the same lineup with John in the leadoff spot. The right field platoon of Guzman and Gonzalez would bat seventh. Another option would be Jackson leading off and playing right field. Burgess commented that John is seeing the ball better lately, and he felt a big second half coming on for him. I don’t like Jackson’s defense and I think the chance of John getting hot is more likely. It was decided that the new lineup would be installed for Thursday’s game against Providence, with or without Eduardo Sanchez in right field.

The next meeting included Byrne and Pitching Coach Barry Melton. The topic was the starting rotation with and without Chip Davidson. Melton wants to move Alexander up to #2 in the rotation. Since Westaway and Alexander are both going to the All-Star game, we will start the Providence series with the #3 pitcher. This will set up Westaway and Alexander to pitch the final two games against Indianapolis in ten days. Otherwise, both of them would miss that key series. Luna is really struggling and there was discussion of moving him to the bullpen with Wilkerson taking his spot in the rotation. It was decided to leave Luna in the rotation at #3 and hope for a big second half from him.

If Davidson is dealt, the decision comes down to promoting Ordonez for the rotation or Phil Davies for the bullpen. Melton wants to see Ordonez in the majors and Byrne likes the idea of keeping Wilkerson in the bullpen for extra-inning games and early-inning injuries. So the young Ordonez doesn’t know it yet, but he might be making his major league debut next Friday night at home against the Providence Grays.

[Sal, The Barber]

Originally Posted by Orcin

July 9, 2007
Jennifer was up late working on it (the report, not Sal - just wanted to make that clear).

Sal can confirm this; if she had been working on Sal, Sal is pretty sure he would have remembered. And it probably would have killed him. That would have removed the thorn from Mr. Orcin's side, of course, but he would have to pay a lot more for the haircut.

By the way, Mr. Orcin, remember when Sal bumped into you the other day and suggested we have the cup of coffee? Then you excused yourself to use the rested room? Sal thanks his 3rd wife for that potion--she dubbed it the anti-Hamlet.

Oh, you who make fun of Sal's magic!

[Orcin]

July 11, 2007

Philadelphia GM John Evans called early this morning to continue our discussions. Before I could say “John, I have given you my final offer”, he urged me to hear him out. I had lots of free time today, so sure.

He explained that his budget was really tight, and he appreciated that I had agreed to pay the $2 million remaining on Chip Davidson’s salary for this season. He had also accepted the fact that there was no room for me to add any more cash to the deal to cover additional players. In fact, this was a lie. I had plenty of cash, but I wanted to box him into a corner. He basically admitted that I had done just that.

The salaries of Cortez and Sanchez cancelled each other out and, with my $2 million in cash, Davidson was essentially free. Since Evans was over budget, I knew that his owner would not allow him to take on more salaries. Thus, he could not counter my offer with the addition of a player on a major league contract. He could only propose players on minor league contracts, giving me a much greater chance of finding an expendable player to complete the deal.

Evans said, “I cannot agree to this trade, but it’s close to being alright. If you would add any of the following players, we would have a deal.” He began his list with two players that were greeted with a quick and decisive “NO”: 20-year-old minor league CF Rafael Valdez and 22-year-old minor league SP Edgardo Ordonez. I told him to get serious, and he gave me the following list. I added the extra information for your reference.

SP Will Spencer, AAA, age 22, throws R, 2.5-star, drafted 2004 round 4 (HS)
SP Matt Henry, AAA, age 26, throws R, 1-star, drafted 2002 round 18 (college)
MR Jeff “Refund” Carver, AAA, age 22, throws R, 1.5-star, drafted 2002 round 4 (HS)
MR Reginald Davis, AAA, age 22, throws R, 3-star, drafted 2003 round 6 (HS)
CL Jorge Merced, AAA, age 22, throws R, 4.5-star, drafted 2003 round 3 (HS)
1B Jesus Ramos, AAA, age 22, bats L, 2-star, discovered by Candelaria in 2002 (Cuba)
3B Antonio Pineda, AAA, age 24, bats R, 1-star, discovered 2001 (Venezuela)
RF Gerald Blair, AAA, age 24, bats L, 2-star, drafted 2004 round 1 (college)

Ordinarily, you would look at that list and pick Henry as the most expendable due to his advanced age. However, he is 10-4 with a 3.70 ERA at Lexington and I need pitchers for the AAA rotation. He doesn’t need to be protected from the Rule 5 draft because I don’t care if I lose him. So, in an odd way, he has value because he has no value.

Spencer, Merced, and Blair were pulled off the table immediately. Any or all of them could make our 40-man roster next year. Davis has the most trade value and Carver just hasn’t had enough innings to be fairly evaluated. Pineda is the most expendable.

I hung up the phone and sat down to write a press release. I handed it to Jennifer with a warning not to tell Chris about it yet, and headed down to the barbershop. I need a trim, but really I just want to see the look on Sal’s face when he hears about the soft cookie.

[Westheim]

I sometimes wonder why the AI asks for seemingly worthless players. Of course, they could have a blind scout that has rated the sucker quite high.

Let's hope that trade won't backfire. As mine always do.

[Orcin]

July 11, 2007 (BNN)

Subject: Davidson for Sanchez in Major Trade

It's a major deal that has everyone talking. The Louisville Colonels and Philadelphia Firebirds have reached an agreement. The Colonels will swap 24-year-old starting pitcher Chip Davidson, 24-year-old minor league left fielder Juan Cortéz, 24-year-old minor league third baseman António Pineda and $2,000,000 in cash for 23-year-old all-star center fielder Eduardo Sánchez.

"It's a huge shakeup," noted one reporter. "You don't see deals like this every day. A lot had to go right for this to happen."

This season Davidson has registered 4 wins and 2 losses in 8 starts with a 3.28 ERA. Davidson missed the first two months of the season while recovering from radial nerve compression that caused him to miss last year’s playoffs and World Series.

Sánchez is leading the Patriot League in batting this year at .346 with 5 home runs, 22 RBIs and 55 runs scored. He has 83 hits in 240 at-bats, 28 walks and a .426 on-base percentage. Sánchez has played in 60 games after missing three weeks with a knee injury. LF Jeffery Jackson was optioned to AAA to make room for Sanchez on the Colonels active roster. Sanchez will apparently move to right field with the Colonels.

Fan reaction in Louisville was very interesting. Fans were shocked that GM Otto Orcin did not keep Chip Davidson on the team. Fan interest almost crashed. But then, they gave it a second thought. The reaction of the fans to the acquisition of Sanchez was amazing. The overall fan interest increased significantly. In the end, fan interest still stands at 100 in the BNN online poll (unscientific, of course).

In a press conference this afternoon, Orcin revealed that Davidson’s spot in the rotation would be assumed by 20-year-old rookie Edgardo Ordonez. The young lefty is 13-1 with a 2.45 ERA in Lexington (AAA) and seems to have nothing left to prove in the minor leagues. Ordonez was obtained in an off-season trade with Washington that sent Lorenzo Olivares and Mariano Gonzalez to the Admirals.

[gehrig38]

I never grew attached to Chip, and it's likely because his name is Chip quite honestly. Not the way I feel about Morgan or Brown, or Duncan Bland for sure. But I do know the basements of many divisions are littered with teams that trade 24 year old stud pitchers....
You need 5 starters, on any given day your SP is the most important guy on the field with no one to 'protect' him like a guy with 8 teammates in the lineup
This move can clearly move this offense way out in front of the pack if the kid is who your scouts believe him to be....
But Davidson, man the thought of him having 200 wins in 10 years......

[jaysdailydose]

Originally Posted by gehrig38

I never grew attached to Chip, and it's likely because his name is Chip quite honestly. Not the way I feel about Morgan or Brown, or Duncan Bland for sure. But I do know the basements of many divisions are littered with teams that trade 24 year old stud pitchers....
You need 5 starters, on any given day your SP is the most important guy on the field with no one to 'protect' him like a guy with 8 teammates in the lineup
This move can clearly move this offense way out in front of the pack if the kid is who your scouts believe him to be....
But Davidson, man the thought of him having 200 wins in 10 years......

Well, someone has to win all those Jorge Figueroa Awards after Jorge Figueroa is done, and we have to have an all-world pitcher to follow once he hangs them up. So, at absolute worst case, we'll have someone we know in Jorge's spot when he calls it a career.

[gehrig38]

The depth Orcin has it's likely a move I make as well, especially with the kid tearing it up at AAA. I've done it before, and lived my nightmare as the 'kid' flopped in the big leagues.

[Orcin]

July 16, 2007

Subject: Week 15 Notes

Record: 55-38 .591, 2.5 GB
Position: 2nd place (behind Indianapolis)
Runs Scored: 397 – t11th in Federal
Runs Allowed: 304 – 1st in Federal
Defense: .705 – 5th in Federal
Power Ranking: 101.5 (7th in CBA)
Owner Mood: Ecstatic; Fan Interest: 100/100

• Last week (1-3): 1-1 vs. Providence, 0-2 at Providence
• The Patriot League won the All-Star Game 5-0. Duncan Bland played the entire game and was 2-5. Alexander pitched a perfect inning. Westaway did not appear.
• The Indianapolis Indians acquired SP Steve MacNamell (5-8, 4.22) from Phoenix in return for SP Galtero Chili, Indy’s #1 draft pick in 2006 and the CBA #49 prospect.
• 07/12: LOU 4, PVD 1 – Luna 6 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 5 K; Brooks SV(4)
• Sanchez went 1-4 in his first game with the Colonels, extending his hitting streak to 20 games
• 07/13: PVD 4, LOU 3 – Ordonez 6.2 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 5 BB, 3K (pretty good debut)
• Sanchez had his hitting streak snapped as he went 0-4 on Friday the 13th.
• 07/14: PVD 5, LOU 4 – Bennett 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; Team LOB = 9
• 07/15: PVD 3, LOU 0 – Martini (PVD) 8 IP, 0 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 6 K, W (6-7, 4.92)
• Hitless in 2 of 4 games, Sanchez is now 2-17 (.118) in his brief Louisville career.
• Nashville acquired veteran lefty SP Bryan Hancock (6-7, 4.42) from Denver for 30-year-old C Eric Atkinson. Hancock will be a free agent at the end of the season.
• This week: 3 at Salt Lake City, 3 at Indianapolis


The first three games of nine remaining with the Indians come up this weekend. These games could be crucial toward deciding the closest division race that we’ve had in years. Let’s take a brief look at the Indians to see how they were transformed from perennial doormat to contender, seemingly overnight.

GM Manuel Cuellar took over in 2004. He hired Manager Lorenzo Martinez in 2005. The two of them have done a great job with a team that was losing 90+ games every season in the early part of the decade. Amazingly, they have done it with only a small increase to the payroll, which is currently #26 of the 30 teams at $79 million.

Cuellar hit it big on a few draft picks and trades early in his tenure. All-Star closer Andrew Poole (4-1, 1.54 ERA, 24 SV) was Cuellar’s sixth-round pick in 2004. All-Star LF Anthony McDonald (.323/.418/.660, 24 HR, 90 RBI) was acquired from San Francisco in July 2004 for a prospect (still in AA). All-Star SP Fernando Oliva (11-3, 3.51 ERA) was obtained from Cincinnati in November 2005 for a prospect (still in AA).

Ace SP Robbie Scott is still around, having signed a long-term contract in 2006. Veteran Jim Hannah was signed to a big free agent deal in 2006, which looked rather silly at the time. Now, Hannah is providing versatility and veteran leadership for manager Martinez. CF Dave Brown was drafted by Cuellar’s predecessor, but the new management made room for him in the lineup and he is contributing with strong defense and a solid bat.

Indianapolis is 8 games better than their Pythagorean record. They are winning about 70% of their one-run games. These trends should even out over the course of the season and I keep thinking that the Indians will turn into a pumpkin any minute now. The clock hasn’t struck midnight yet.

[Sal, The Barber]

Sal has been busy! First to the airport to heckle the Chipster on his way out of town. Then into the "limousine" and down to Lexington to pick up the kid Ordonez. By the way, Mr. Orcin, Sal told you not to worry that he would take care of picking up the youngster and ushering him into town. But when Sal got there, Sal was told the boy had already left in the Yellow Cab? The Yellow Cab? Sal is perplexed. Sal had prepared the proper pick-up. The juleps were on ice in the back seat. The girls were on their third or fourth. Sal had found a red carpet which he had stuffed in the trunk. There must have been the miscommunication. Sal is very sorry he was not able to complete this task for you.

But never you worry. What was Sal to do with all that whiskey and the two former show girls?

Of course, Sal needs to talk with you about the expenses incurred in your service. Welcoming the kid to the bigs in style does not come cheap, and Sal, well, you've seen Sal's shop. No, no, those new lights Sal got at a discount from his contact at the junkyard, and the neon and LED--well, those are out of style and were discounted deeply ... (mumble, mumble).

But Sal will need tickets to the kid's home debut, right? This goes with the saying. And when and if Chippy comes back to town, Sal will have to be sitting close by so that he can hear Sal's voice the loud and the clear.

Sal will be by later for that check. You can just make it out to the cash. Thank you. Let Sal know how he can help in the future, Mr. Orcin.

[Orcin]

July 19, 2007 (BNN)

Subject: Stallions, Knights Swap Star Players

General Managers have a very difficult job and it never gets more difficult than when they pull off a huge trade. Today, the San Diego Stallions and Charlotte Knights did just that. San Diego will send 26-year-old starting pitcher Jim Payne, 30-year-old reliever José Rodríguez and $2,000,000 in cash to Charlotte in return for 27-year-old right fielder Jake Mullet and 19-year-old minor league second baseman Sergio Rivera.

It is very unusual to see two first-place teams exchange star players in mid-season. "Whenever you make a big trade like this, you worry a little bit about the affect it will have on your team," the Knights GM Juan Carlos Mendoza admitted. "Will the chemistry still be there? Will the fans approve the trade? There's always a risk, but you have to do whatever you can to improve your team. I think we've done that today."

Thus far this season Payne has posted a 10-8 record, started 20 games, struck out 115 batters in 144.1 innings and compiled a 2.81 ERA. Payne will move into the #1 position in the Charlotte rotation, currently ranked 7th in the Patriot League with a 4.24 ERA.

Thus far this year Mullet has hit .324 with 30 home runs and 94 RBIs. Mullett was selected for his third all-star appearance this season. He is slated to bat cleanup for the Stallions, who are 11th in the Federal League in runs scored this season.

Sergio Rivera is hardly a throw-in in this trade. Rivera is the #2 prospect in the CBA according to BNN rankings. He was discovered in Cuba in 2006 and signed by Charlotte scout Adam Barton.

[gehrig38]

That's an ENORMOUS deal! Holy crap.

[Orcin]

July 23, 2007

Subject: Week 16 Notes

Record: 58-41 .586, 3 GB
Position: 2nd place (behind Indianapolis)
Runs Scored: 420 – 14th in Federal
Runs Allowed: 327 – 1st in Federal
Defense: .704 – 5th in Federal
Power Ranking: 100.5 (9th in CBA)
Owner Mood: Ecstatic; Fan Interest: 100/100


• Last week (3-3): 3-0 at Salt Lake City, 0-3 at Indianapolis
• 07/17: LOU 7, SLC 5 – Morgan 2-4, HR, 3 RBI; Brown 3-4, solo HR
• Old friend Hugh McGlone was 5-5 for Cleveland in their 9-3 win over Washington.
• Evansville SP Jaime Moreno will miss 11 months with a damaged elbow ligament. Moreno (5-6, 3.67) was our first pick (#32 overall) in the 2005 draft.
• 07/18: LOU 4, SLC 3 – Bland 2-4, solo HR, GWRBI
• 07/19: LOU 5, SLC 3 – Ordonez 8 IP, 1 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 6 K, solo HR (wow)
• We start a 3-game series in Indianapolis tied for first place with the Indians at 58-38. Both teams have their three best pitchers set to go this weekend.
• 07/20: IND 4, LOU 3 – McDonald (IND) 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; Ramsey (IND) 3-5, 2 RBI
• 07/21: IND 5, LOU 2 – Ramsey (IND) 2-4, 2 RBI; Valentin (IND) 1-3, DBL, GWRBI
• 07/22: IND 3, LOU 2 – Alexander 7.1 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 1, BB, 2 K; Brooks BS(1)
• Sanchez was 9-24 (.375) during the week, with 5 doubles and 5 runs scored.
• Mike Guy was AAA Player of the Week, going 8-22 (.364) with 4 HR and 11 RBI.
• Lexington CF Rafael Valdez fractured his shoulder blade and will be out 4 weeks.
• This week: 3 vs. Chicago, 3 at San Francisco


Philadelphia GM John Evans is still not happy with his pitching. He wants to trade his all-star 1B Armando Estrada (.337/.395/.676, 32 HR, 99 RBI) for Ray Alexander. It is an intriguing offer but Alexander probably should be labeled as untouchable.

[Orcin]

July 24, 2007

The outcome of the series with Indianapolis was obviously very disappointing. However, it must be viewed in the proper perspective. The calendar says July, not September, and there’s a lot of baseball left to be played this year. We are only three games out and we lead in the wild card race. I don’t even want to think about the wild card though. Slipping into the playoffs through the back door is not among my goals.

Our offense is just putting a lot of pressure on our pitching right now. The brain trust (and I use the term sarcastically) spent yesterday’s off day reviewing the lineup again. The experimental lineup from last week generated almost four runs per game, so it was an improvement over recent weeks but not good enough. Indianapolis averages nearly five runs per game, and they don’t lead our league. We led the Federal League last year at 5.3 runs per game, and that’s where we should be now. Going from first to last in one season is just not acceptable, and we have to continue looking at all of our options. It is time to revisit the optimized lineup that was successful for us a couple of years ago.

Pierre-Louis See-MOAN is batting .187 with runners in scoring position. His on-base percentage is .314 for the season and .301 in the month of July. He leads the CBA with 36 stolen bases, but we need more people on base ahead of our big hitters. He needs to be moved toward the bottom of the order, and certainly out of the #2 spot. Simon has some power and would be the perfect #6 hitter for the optimized lineup.

Sanchez is the perfect leadoff hitter, so he stays there. Tom John has a .332 on-base percentage for the season, but it is .380 in July and he appears to be swinging the bat well lately. He will hit seventh and Cristo Rodriguez bats eighth.

Chris Brown and Duncan Bland are the best hitters on the team with men in scoring position. In fact, they are probably the best hitters on the team period this year, so they should bat fourth and fifth. Morgan is the obvious candidate for the less-important #3 position. He draws walks and doesn’t clog the bases. The switch-hitter Brown will hit fourth to split the two right-handed batters. That leaves Dominguez for the #2 position. He is ideal for the spot with his combination of power and speed, but we have to hope he picks up his production. He may be the key to our success in the second half.

We will probably give this lineup more than a week to settle in, because there is very little else to be done. We will also be giving the starters a couple of days off this week.

The trade deadline is approaching and I have abandoned the idea of moving George King. I am not getting offers that make it worthwhile, probably because he becomes a free agent after the season. I could sign him to an extension and then trade him, but that just doesn’t seem right to me. I have more respect for my players than that.

[Orcin]

July 30, 2007

Subject: Week 17 Notes

Record: 60-45 .571, 3.5 GB
Position: 2nd place (behind Indianapolis)
Runs Scored: 444 – 12th in Federal
Runs Allowed: 354 – 1st in Federal
Defense: .699 – 7th in Federal
Power Ranking: 95.9 (10th in CBA)
Owner Mood: Ecstatic; Fan Interest: 100/100

• Last week (2-4): 2-1 vs. Chicago, 0-3 at San Francisco
• 07/24: CHI 4, LOU 3 – Russell Griffin (CHI) 2-4, HR, 3 RBI (Griffin is the catcher that we lost to the Cougars in the Rule 5 draft)
• 07/25: LOU 3, CHI 2 – Ordonez 6 IP, 2 ER, 8 H, 2 BB, 7 K; winning run scored on a throwing error but we’ll take it
• Phoenix traded all-star LF Ramon Villegas to New York for three prospects. The Monarchs are only three games out of first place (behind Boston).
• 07/26: LOU 7, CHI 4 – Brown 2-3, HR, 3 RBI, SB, 3 RS
• Salt Lake City signed 31-year-old infielder Juan Aponte to a minor-league contract.
• 07/27: SF 6, LOU 5 – Matt Griffin (SF) 2-4, DBL, 2 RBI, GWRBI
• 07/28: SF 5, LOU 3 – Fernando Martinez (SF) 2-4, HR, 2 RBI, SB, GWRBI
• Los Angeles Vipers 1B Josh Haley slammed career home run #400.
• Third-string C Bill Landreth (AAA) has a torn labrum and is out for the season.
• 07/29: SF 6, LOU 3 – Luna (6-10) gave up 4 runs in 1st and the damage was done
• This week: 3 vs. Dallas, 3 at San Diego


We only had two expiring personnel contracts this year, and both were given extensions this week.
• Owensboro (Rookie) Pitching Coach Rodrigo Martinez accepted a 1-year extension. The pitching staff there is among the best in the league.
• Scout Jorge Enriquez signed a new 3-year contract at $150,000 per year.

The dollars involved would not prevent me from replacing Enriquez should a great scout become available, but I don’t want to risk being without a scout for the critical first day of the off-season. I am fairly pleased with his performance and won’t rush to replace him unless the perfect hire (neutral projection with outstanding ratings) is out there.

We have our work cut out for us over the final two months. I can’t remember when we were not in first place at the trade deadline. And our power ranking is #10?

[Westheim]

Well, your core is aging for sure. Those Simons and Blands are not the same as they were five or six years ago. You can't win the division forever, right?

[dawg_gone]

Originally Posted by Orcin

• Third-string C Bill Landreth (AAA) has a torn labrum and is out for the season.

Any decent defensive catchers out there on the FA list to provide emergency relief?

[Orcin]

Originally Posted by dawg_gone

Any decent defensive catchers out there on the FA list to provide emergency relief?

Actually, yes. There are a couple of guys so I don't need to sign anyone yet and can afford to wait to see if I need one. All-star C Herman Dodson was promoted from AA to fill the immediate need at Lexington.