The IBL's Chicago Iron Pigs

[gehrig38]

We’re picking 1, 3 and 4, and 32, in round 1. So with the early picks we’ll disregard bonus demands as much as possible, given our feeling the draft is NOT that deep after the first 10 or so players, and if we cannot sign the player we’ll hope for a deeper pool and the same pick next year.

1st Round
1) Chicago Iron Pigs-Rob Bright LHP 6’2” 170 Eckerd College, St Pete, FLA-He was our #1 pick a year ago and failed to sign for bonus demands. At 22 he’s eased off and while still asking close to 7m, word is he’s signable this year. David Ellis, a SS out of USC was our scouts choice, and if Providence doesn’t take him at 2, we will. He’s asking 7.5 though.
2) Providence Black Sox-Manny Caballero RHP 6’ 195 U. of California-Mid to upper 90’s 3.5 pitch guy who looks to be a horse, innings eater. Their 1st ever draft choice, and a good one.
3) Chicago Iron Pigs-David Ellis RH SS 6’ 170 USC-Scouts believe he could win the gold glove at short right now. Above average speed, with a leadoff hitters eye and zone discipline. Has enough pop that he could hit 3rd and be a big RBI guy as well. Bonus could be a problem.
4) Chicago Iron Pigs-Guillermo Rodriguez C 6’ 210 Mississippi State-Scouts wanted Rodriguez, a 22 year old catcher and a potential monster bat that comes with a monster bonus demand. There are some others on the board, and I’m almost thinking that by taking him I can save this spot for next years draft if he doesn’t come way down. If he does? I get a consensus top 5 pick at top 20 money. I waffled quite a bit on this one. I really want Edward McBrieve, a 21 year old flamethrowing reliever out of Mississippi who’s AA ready now. The hope is he’ll be there at 32, but I doubt it as he’s someone’s closer next year. If I do grab him he’s close enough that Casas and he could form the nucleus of what could end up a pen of nuclear arms.
5) Dallas Texans-Carlos “Country Boy” Hernandez RHP (18) 6’1” 180 Martensdale-St Mary’s HS, IA-power arm with a huge bonus ask (7.5). 4 pitch pitcher already who appears to have 230+ IP written all over.
6) Arizona Rattlers-Aaron “Tapper” Jones RHP (18) 5’11” 170 Rogers HS, Ohio-mid 90’s power starter, on the short side for us. Outstanding change up.
7) Pittsburgh Bulldogs-Brennan Keller RHP (21) 6’6” 230 Rutgers-Top of the rotation body, huge arm. Close to ready now. Scouts biggest concern, besides the 7M ask, is his ability to work deep into games.
8) Dayton Dragons-Bryce “Carny” Hicks RH OF(22) 6’2” 220 Hawaii-Hilo College-long lanky burner who scouts feel has the best eyes and zone discipline in the draft. Decent gap power, but nothing else power wise. 2 way athlete, big time basketball prospect as well. Top of the charts runner, stealer already.
9) Fresno Grizzlies-Stu Lucott RH OF (20) 6’1” 210 U. of Alabama-Good to great defender, huge range in the OF. Very good runner (15) with a potential 4-5 hole bat. 4.8M ask. Was on our radar as well after being taken 9th overall by Houston last year out of Abbott HS in Texas.
10) Houston Roughriders-Rafael Valentin RHP (22) 5’10” 185 Eastern Illinois U.-Mid 90’s upper rotation arm. Great presence in the clubhouse and a guy that influences teammates in a good way. Asking 4.4

Pick 4 (32nd overall pick round 1)
Patrick Hinson LHP (21) 6’ 180 USC-Scouts wanted Hinson, who’s a 4 pitch ‘pitcher’ in every sense of the word. We wanted to grab the reliever, but have decided to stay with the scouts and grab the arm, hoping Mcbrieve is there in the supplemental round 9 picks from now.

Pick 5 (41st overall pick, supplemental round)
Edward McBrieve RH Closer (21) 6’6” 225 Mississippi-Scouts wanted us to take Russell Davis a 19 year old SS taken by Dayton in the 2nd round (1st pick) last year who failed to sign. We stick with McBrieve, knowing he won’t be around next time we pick. He’s a monster, 6’6” who relies on cutter/slider, which he already hits 96-98 with. He’ll go straight to AA, and if able will hit Tulsa by years end. (Davis was taken on the very next pick by Hawaii)

Pick 6 (47th overall pick, 2nd round)
Juan Martinez 2B/SS (21) 6’2” 190 College of Siskyous, CA-Rated a 19 at 2nd already, outstanding runner too. Competition was a concern but his arm and legs are good enough that the pick was deemed worth it.

Pick 7 (71st overall pick, 2nd round)
Felipe Gonzalez LHP (20) 6’2” 200 Cal State-Fullerton-FB, Slider with a change that’s raw at best, and the main concern about his ability to stay a SP. 92-94 with the stamina to go deep into games.

8th Pick (16th Round 5) Jim Hall RHP (21) 6’1” 190 Coastal Carolina
9th Pick (32nd Round 5) Craig Mitchell LHP (18) 6’2” 185 Forsyth Central HS, GA
10th Lee Crum SS (21) 6’2” 190 Rice
11th Jim Jackman (22) RHP 5’10” 175 U. of Mississippi
12th Jorge Herrera (18) 1B 6’2” 200 Mauston HS, WI
13th Arnie Butler (19) 1B 6’5” 225 Beachwood HS, OH
14th In-Gu Mun (21) LHP 6’5” 165 Alabama
15th Otis Miller (21) C 6’3” 220 Texas
16th Bobby Rice (18) SS 6’1” 175 Madison Academy HS, AL
17th Paul Hayes (19) SS 5’10” 170 Covenant Christian HS, MI
18th Jamie Alfaro (21) OF 6’2” 195 U of Washington
19th Nathan Johnson (18) OF 6’ 180 Yates HS, TX
20th Adam Chandler (18) RHP 6’ 175 Hunter College HS, NY
21st Kelsey Anderson (18) OF 6’ 175 Dulles HS, TX
22nd Colin Peterson (18) SS 6’2” 175 Graceland Christian HS, IN (asking 2.2M)

[gehrig38]

WEEK 12
RECORD: 5-1
OVERALL: 46-25 +4
RUNS SCORED: 401 (27) 4th
RUNS AGAINST: 308 (17) 2nd
OWNERS MOOD: Good
FAN INTEREST: 93/100
WEEK AHEAD: 1 vs Tulsa/3 vs Edmonton/Off Day/2 @ Hawaii

6/13 CHI 8 TUL 5
W-Tucker (2-1) L-Fritz (1-3) S-Cruz (18)
HR TUL-Vance (15) Haynes (13) Whimster (11) CHI-Castro (6) Jackson (10) Collins (13)
Whimster, Vance, Haynes go back to back to back. Castro 3-5 3 RBI's (22) Collins 3 RBI's (41)

6/14 CHI 7 EDM 4 (10)
W-Jones (6-0) L-Pearson (1-5)
HR EDM-Alfred (11) CHI-Chavez 2 (17)
Chavez walk off 3R HR in the 10th. 3-5 5 RBI's (50) Castro 3-5

6/15 (DRAFT) CHI 4 EDM 3
W-Morgan (6-3) L-Morales (6-4) S-Cruz (19)
HR EDM-Sandoval (14) Brewer (10) CHI-Salinas (13)
Morgan 7.1-4-1-1-4-6 Salinas 2 RBI's (41)

6/16 CHI 2 EDM 1
W-Martinez (2-1) L-Zamora (8-4) S-Cruz (20)
HR CHI-Jackson (11)
Martinez 8-5-1-1-0-11 Cruz comes in with 2nd 3rd 0 outs and gets out of it. Zamora (EDM) 7.1-2-2-2-3-6 for the Loss. Jackson's homer in the 5th is all the offense.

MINORS NEWS-Matt Cook went 4-5 with an RBI and hit for the cycle in a 6-2 Tulsa win over the Thomasville Leopards. Cook is hitting .330-11-43 in 63 games.

6/17 Off Day A(S) All Stars- Hector Angel SP 10-2 2.80, Karl Gardner SP 6-3 3.40, Pepe Macias RP 4-2 11SV 3.06, Ray Brown 1B .298/.355/.452, Bill Heard 1B .282/.394/.470, Michael McGrath 3B .288/.403/.503, Manuel Torres SS .338/.383/.484, Paul Stout OF .259/.353/.477, Tim Harvey CF .288/.402/.401, Alfonso Flores RF .281/.396/.478

6/18 CHI 6 HAW 3
W-Hall (6-2) L-Potter (6-5) S-Cruz (21)
HR CHI-Vela (3) Hudson (7)
Cruz bails out Watanabe in the 9th. Hall 6-4-2-1-5-6 Castro 2-5 2B (6) Vela 2-3 Hudson goes 1-4 to extend his hitting streak to 20.

6/19 HAW 1 CHI 0
W-Cook (5-3) L-McKinley (5-4) S-Courtney (15)
HR HAW-Molina (10)
7 total hits. McKinley 8-4-1-1-1-9 CG Loss Cook (HAW) 7-1-0-0-3-5. Moline 7th inning solo HR wins it. Castro PH 1st and 2nd in the 9th lines into DP.

WEEK 12 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Ernesto Gutierrez (AZ) 15-29 5 RBI's (.324-4-31)
CL POTW-Jesus Becerra (LV) 9-24 3 HR's 8 RBI's (.278-16-59)

WEEK 12 POWER RANKINGS
1) West Michigan
2) Corpus Christi
3) Chicago
4) Fresno
5) Green Bay

AAA Tulsa (2) 45-27 +1 (Overhill .323-13-44/Davis .330-6-45/Cook .319-11-43/Rea 6-1 1.81)
AA Bakersfield (4) 43-29 6 GB (Cordero 13-43/Swagat 13 for his first 26, youngest player in AA/Russell .343-5-35)
A(N) Belleview (1) 48-24 +5 (Torrez .341-7-37/Angel 10-2 2.80/Macis 12SV 2.97)
A(S) Denison (22) 31-41 9 GB (Herrera 12SV 1.83)

[gehrig38]

A milestone reached..

[gehrig38]

WEEK 13
RECORD: 6-1
OVERALL: 52-26 +6
RUNS SCORED: 451 (50) 1st
RUNS AGAINST: 333 (25) 2nd
OWNERS MOOD: Happy (+1)
FAN INTEREST: 93/100
WEEK AHEAD: 1 @ Hawaii/3 @ Staten Island/3 @ Dayton

STREAKS-Jeffrey Hudsons 21 game streak is now 2 shy of Pedro Salinas' Iron Pig record of 23, set in 2017.

6/20 CHI 5 HAW 4 (11)
W-Tucker (3-1) L-Espinoza (1-1) S-Cruz (22)
HR CHI-Chavez (18) HAW-Davis (1)
Collins 3-5 RBI (52) SB (16) Romero (HAW) 3-6 2B (6) Hudson 1-3 22 Game Hitting Streak

6/21 CHI 13 SI 2
W-Morgan (7-3) L-Gray (2-7)
HR CHI-Collins (14) Shaw (10) Jackson (12) Chavez (19)
Shaw 2-3 4 runs Salinas 2-3 2 2B's (18) 3 RBI's (44) Hudson 2-5 2B (6) 3 RBI's (37) ties Iron Pig record of 23 straight games with a hit. Salinas comes out in the 8th with a sore groin, he'll be DtD. Guerrero (SI) 3-4 2B (12) Morgan 7-5-2-2-3-8 Miller (SI) SP leaves after the 1st hitter, Collins, Shaw and Chavez go back to back to back. Miller ends up with a torn labrum and will be out for the saeson.


6/22 SI 2 CHI 1
W-Rodriguez (8-4 3.18) L-Martinez (2-2) S-Mitchell (16)
HR NONE
Rodriguez 8-2-1-1-4-4 for the W, Martinez 7-7-2-2-3-8. Hudson on deck when Salinas makes the final out, streak ends at 23. Miranda 3 BB

DRAFT NEWS-We've managed to sign 4th pick (32nd overall) Patrick Hinson (SP) 5th pick (41st overall) Ed McBrieve (CL) 6th pick (47th overall) Juan Martinez (IF) 7th pick (71st overall) Felipe Gonzalez (SP). Our 1st 3 picks, Bright, Ellis and Rodriguez, as well as our 2 5th rounders Hall and Mitchell, all remain unsigned. This is going to be harder than I originally thought. Ellis appears to still be considering a very low 1st offer (3.72M when he was asking 7.5) but both Bright and Rodriguez want better offers.

TRADE NEWS-Former Iron Pig 2B Paul Riggs was sent to Dayton today. The New Orleans Voodoo sent Riggs and 17 year old minor league C Luis Silva (2022 4th rounder) to the Dragons and received slugger Ricardo Flores in return. The 26 year old OF hit .258-24-81 in 109 games last season and was hitting .243-5-31 in 62 so far this year. Riggs is hitting .272-3-32 in 73 games this year after coming off a career worst .218-2-18 season in El Paso last year.

Chicago sends prospect and pick to San Antonio
The Iron Pigs have dealt 23 year old IF prospect Matt Cook and their 2023 2nd round draft pick to the San Antonio Silver Stars for their 2023 2nd round draft choice and 3M dollars in cash.

REASONING-The pick moves us up about 5-8 spots in round 2, as of now. The deal was more for the cash than anything. I am desperately trying to find enough to grab 1 or more of the picks I took, but I don't think it's looking good right now. San Antonio called him up and inserted him into the leadoff spot vs RHP, and he'll play 2B. They lead the Southern Division by 2.5 games over Las Vegas.

6/23 CHI 7 SI 5
W-Hall (7-2) L-Holmes (4-4) S-Cruz (23)
HR CHI-Jackson (13) Chavez (20)
Hall 6.1-11-4-4-2-3 Chavez 3-4 Salinas 2 RBI's (46) Jackson 2-4 2 RBI's (40) Hayes (SI) 3-5 Barlow (SI) 3-5)

MILESTONES-Ernesto Cruz became the 1st pitcher in IBL history to record 400 Saves in the win today. The milestone took him 542 appearances over the past 11 IBL seaosns.

6/24 CHI 7 DAY 4
W-McKinley (6-4) L-Foster (3-5) S-Cruz (24)
HR CHI-Salinas (14) DAY-Torres (13)
Foster walks 10 in 5.2 IP McKinley 7-7-4-4-2-7 Salinas GS 5 RBI's (51) Chavez 3 BB's Torres (DAY) 2-4 2B (1) 3 RBI's (38)

6/25 CHI 9 DAY 5
W-Trujillo (7-4) L-Alexander (3-5) S-Jones (1)
HR CHI-Hudson (8) Collins (15) DAY-Greene (17)
Horrible defense, Trujillo 5.1-5-4-1-2-5. Salinas 2-3 2B (20) 3 RBI's (54)

6/26 CHI 8 DAY 3
W-Morgan (8-3) L-O'Dell (7-7)
HR DAY-Greene (18)
Miranda 3-3 2B (14) 3 RBI's (31) Vela 3-5 2B (5) Morgan 7-3-3-3-7-5

WEEK 13 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Hector Hernandez (PRO) 11-26 3 HR's 7 RBI's (.276-12-34)
CL POTW-Pete Merritt (PHI) 14-24 HR 4 RBI's (.339-6-47)

IBL SINGLE SEASON RECORD: RBI'S
Gerald Wright (DAL) 176 '15
Bill Alexander (-) 167 '15
Cy May (AAA) 157 '12
Bill Hill (-) 156 '13
Stefan Conway (-) 156 '16

WEEK 13 POWER RANKINGS
1) Corpus Christi
2) Chicago
3) Arizona
4) West Michigan
5) Boston

AAA Tulsa (2) 49-29 1 GB (Overhill .319-14-46/Davis .337/Aragon .299-15-55/Rea 7-1 1.80/Casas 24SV 3.13)
AA Bakersfield (6) 47-31 6 GB (Cordero .239-15-51/Swagat .438/Russell .336-6-39)
A(N) Belleview (2) 52-26 +6 (Torres .340-8-42/Heard .276-11-55/Stout .249-14-49/Angel 10-2 2.85)
A(S) Denison (22) 35-43 7 GB (St. John .304-3-31/Kehoe 7-1 1.98/Herrera 14SV 2.15)
SS Heavener (23) 2-4 2 GB
R Omaha (36) 2-4 3 GB

[gehrig38]

LEAGUE RECORDS THROUGH 81 GAMES (bold are records set this year)
AVG-.398 Rich Stone (FRE) '12
HR-35 Tony Greene (DAY) '21
RBI- 88 Jorge Garza (LA) '12
SB-43 Jimmy Rollins (PHI) '20
W- 13 Ken Lee (CHI) '16 Ivan Martinez (EDM) '22 Mike Lewis (CC) '22
Saves- 33 Michael Ross (HOU)
K- 158 Esteban Figueroa (SAC) '22
ERA- 1.75 Ernie Kelly (DAY) '12 '13
BEST RECORD- 60-21 .741 Chicago Iron Pigs '18 Columbus Clippers '20

[gehrig38]

Doing this more to show off the new uni's the guys have made for me, simply amazing work

[gehrig38]

Some VERY cool new logos and uni's

[gehrig38]

Some serious issues in the pen, not happy at all with the inconsistency of the lefties, can't seem to count on any of them to come into an inning in progress.
I also have noticed a gaping hole now, something I thought I knew, but forgot. I have no one on the IBL roster that can play anything close to a decent 2B when Hudson comes back, as a backup.
Overhill's versatility is huge, but his bat isn't there yet.

[gehrig38]

JUNE SUMMARY
FL HITTER- Allen Hunter (WMI) .350-6-21 (.294-21-65)
CL HITTER- Jesus Becerra (LV) .311-12-33 (.296-22-74)
FL PITCHER- Jimmy Mason (MICH) 5-0 1.56 (10-2 3.20)
CL PITCHER- Adolfo Gobbi (CC) 6-0 2.33 (11-3 3.48)
FL ROOKIE- David Brooks (GB) .366 6 RBI's (.312-1-14)
CL ROOKIE- Lorenzo Bermudez (PHI) .299-8-24 (.255-13-38)

[gehrig38]

2012 Coastal 6 Frontier 5 W Hanna (FRE) (1-0) L Wells (EP) (0-1) S Suhayb (LV) (1) HR Tunstall (PIT) (1) Davis (EDM) (1) MVP Ross Tunstall (PIT)
2013 Coastal 9 Frontier 3 W Suhayb (LV) (1-0) L Mendez (EDM) (0-1) HR Whimster (TUL) (1) MVP Lando Jongmans (BAL)
2014 Frontier 10 Coastal 4 W Barlow (DAY) (1-0) L Holmes (COL) (0-1) HR Pitzi (SAC) 2 (2) Rosa (WMI) (1) Soto (LA) (1) Boyd (BAL) (1) Evans (CC) (1) Strong (COL) (1) MVP Vasco Pitzi (SAC)
2015 Frontier 8 Coastal 1 W Barlow (DAY) (2-0) L Medina (FRE) (0-1) HR NONE MVP Jean Chartier (CHI)
2016 Frontier 5 Coastal 4 W Potts (ALK) (1-0) L Gonzalez (LA) (0-1) HR Young (TUL) (1) Garza (FRE) (1) Moore (NY) (1) Villanueva (SI) (1) MVP Matthew Moore (NY)
2017 Frontier 7 Coastal 6 W Courtney (EDM) (1-0) L Gonzalez (LA) (0-2) S Cruz (CHI) (1) HR Chavez (CHI) (1) Helton (GB) (1) Riggs (CHI) (1) MVP Todd Helton (GB)
2018 Frontier 10 Coastal 4 W Copeland (PHI) (1-0) L Dejesus (COL) (0-1) HR Morgan (CHI) 2 (2) Hudson (COL) (1) MVP Wesley Morgan (CHI)
2019 Frontier 2 Coastal 1 W Cruz (CHI) (1-0) L Barlow (2-1) HR NONE MVP Scott Rolen (GB)
2020 Frontier 9 Coastal 3 W Gonzalez (NY) (1-2) L Figueroa (SAC) (1-0) HR Rolen (GB) (1) Quinn (PHI) (1) MVP Dean Strong (COL)
2021 Coastal 4 Frontier 3*W Artlano (FRE) (1-0) L Peters (EDM) HR Walker (GB) (1)MVP David Walker (GB)
2022 Frontier 4 Coastal 3 W Mason (MICH) (1-0) L Kelley (BOS) (0-1) S Cruz (CHI) (2) HR NONE MVP John Drake (WMI)

[gehrig38]

WEEK 14
RECORD: 4-1
OVERALL: 56-27 +8
RUNS SCORED: 497 (46) 1st
RUNS AGAINST: 352 (19) 2nd
OWNERS MOOD: Happy
FAN INTEREST: 92/100 (-1)
WEEK AHEAD: 1 @ Dayton/4 @ Green Bay/All Star Break

6/27 CHI 5 DAY 3
W-Martinez (3-2) L-Morris (5-9) S-Cruz (25)
HR CHI-Jackson (14) Chavez (21) DAY-Rivera (6)
Cruz escapes bases loaded jam in the 8th, K's the side in the 9th. Hudson 3 BB's Shaw 2-3 3B (1) Martinez 7.2-5-3-3-2-7

TRADE NEWS
Dayton, Fresno swap
Fresno has sent 33 year old RP Antonio Espinoza and 19 year old SS prospect Jesse Winters (4* 2021 Clipper supplemental pick (36th overall) traded to Fresno 1/18/22) to Dayton for 1B Antonio Altagracia. Espinoza is an 11 year veteran having played for 7 clubs (2nd tour with Fresno) and compiled an 89-105 5.05 ERA in 369 games, 247 starts. Altagracia was drafted in the 1st round in 2018 by Sacramento and failed to sign, then selected in the 3rd round in 2019 (65th overall) by Dayton. Career he is a .221-12-48 hitter in 130 IBL games and was the IBL POTW for the 4/11/22 week this year. He's got middle of the order power and is a switch hitter who dominates from the left side. Fresno is 5 games up on Sacramento and will have him hitting 3rd vs RHP. Miller was the focal point of this trade for a Dayton club that's 26.5 GB.

TRADE NEWS
Chicago sends Lorenzelli and prospect to Staten Island
Yankee GM Tom Vantassell announced to completion of a trade between Staten Island and Chicago. The Iron Pigs have sent veteran IF Massimiliano Lorenzelli and top RP prospect Mario Vasquez to the Yankees for 24 year old 1B/3B Steve Rush, 25 year old IF prospect Eric Holt and 22 year old 2B prospect Kevin Vaughn. Vazquez was immediately placed on the 40 man and called up to the active roster. Lorenzelli will back up an injured infield.

REASONING-Hated to move Lorenzelli but the savings, combined with Rush being 6 years younger and a top tier corner IF defender, along with Vaughn who's a GG caliber defender and a very good switch hitting prospect, and Holt, a top tier SS who can fly, and has legit IBL potential as a defensive SS or backup. Vazquez is a huge arm, but RH and one of 'many' honestly. Good enough and young enough for Staten Island to move these three, and take Lorenzelli's contract. Still trying to squeeze every ounce of savings I can to work these draft picks. FWIW Lorenzelli was the only player on the 40 man unsigned through next season.

6/28 GB 7 CHI 6
W-Stewart (4-2) L-Andre (2-3) S-Martinez (4)
HR NONE
Pen blows 4-2 lead in the 7th. Hall 6.1-10-3-3-0-10 (ND) Brooks (GB) 3-5 2B (13) Alvarado (GB) 3-5 2B (20) Walker (GB) 2-4 3 RBI's (45) Hamlyn 2-3 2B (1)

DRAFT NEWS-#1 overall pick Rob Bright and 9th pick (5th rounder) Craig Mitchell both agreed to terms today. Leaving the #3 and #4 overall picks (Ellis and Rodriguez) as well as 5th rounder Jim Hall and 20th rounder Colin Peterson unsigned.

6/29 CHI 9 GB 2
W-McKinley (7-4) L-Lopez (4-10)
HR CHI-Collins (16)
Martinez 2-3 3 RBI's (12) Collins 3-5 4 RBI's (52) Hamlyn 2-3 3 runs McKinley 6.1-5-2-2-5-6

GREAT GAMES-Colts SP Ramon Roa tossed a 5-hitter at Pittsburgh today, striking out a career high 15 against his former club to move to 8-5 3.02 in 18 starts this year.

DRAFT NEWS-3rd overall pick David Ellis has agreed to terms today.

6/30 CHI 10 GB 6
W-Trujillo (8-4) L-Bedard (4-6)
HR NONE
Jackson 4-5 2 RBI's (44) Rush 3-5 2B (4) Rolen (GB) 3-5 2B (15) 2 RBI's (47) Trujillo struggles 5-10-6-6-0-6 early but hangs on as offense pounds the way back in.

7/1 CHI 16 GB 1
W-Morgan (9-3) L-Hart (3-3)
HR CHI-Hudson 2 (10)
Chavez 2-5 2 2B's (7) 3 RBI's (61) Salinas 2-5 2 2B's (25) 3 runs Hudson 3-4 5 runs 3 RBI's (44) Jackson 3-5 Morgan 6-8-1-1-4-8

GREAT GAMES-Hooks SP Mike Lewis finished an amazing first half (14-1 2.74) with his 4th SHO of the year, beating Tulsa 8-0 on a 2-hitter with 9K's.

TRADE NEWS:
Yankees make a pair of deals to grab prospects
Staten Island sent 30 year old slugger Jim Roberts to El Paso for 25 year old IF Bartolo Vazquez (+ defender 2B/3B ok speed, 2 hole bat) and 21 year old IF Anibal Canales (Patriots supp. Pick 2021 (35th overall) 1.5* ++ 3B defender + 2B D, very good runner, potential top of the order (1-2) bat). El Paso No real good answers why El Paso made this move. Roberts has huge power but is a career .190 hitter, and he's 30. Both players they dealt are IBL caliber players, and they're 23.5 games back.

In the second deal Staten Island sent star OF Lonnie Vaughan to Buffalo for 28 year old RP Eitel Frankl and 20 year old CL prospect Michael Byington. Vaughan is a career .244 hitter with 154 HR's in 561 games, his best season coming in 2021 when he hit .275-41-117 in 133 games. He led the FL in HR's in 2020 with 43. Frankl has been told he's going to close for the Yanks (currently 9 out of the Empire) and the Yankees have told Byington he's going to be converted to a SP if he can handle the workload and make the change up a usable pitch.

7/2 Off Day Andre Blakeway will do a 4 day AS Break rehab in Tulsa and hopefully be activated if all goes well.

TRADE NEWS:
Sacramento sends 4 prospects to New Hampshire for Larson
He was announced as a Frontier League all star, and will play, but against his new league. CF Kent Larson was shipped to Sacramento for 22 year old SP Tim Haynes (2* mid 90's starter) SP Russell Wright (3* power arm) who was immediately recalled and put in the Fisher Cat bullpen, 22 year old 1B/3B Ivan Vigil (1* good 3B, decent wheels serviceable bat) and 20 year old SP Miguel Cruz (1* potential 4 or 5). Larson is hitting .316-19-47 in 80 games this year. He's a .287/.356/.386 career hitter in 574 games with 215 SB's. He'll leadoff for the River Cats who sit 6 back of 1st place Fresno.

Wizards acquire SP Hurt from Voodoo for prospects
Zach Hurt was 14-8 4.93 in Philly last season, signed a 1-year deal with New Orleans and is now headed to the Wizards rotation, along with 610K cash, for 22 year old SS George Hester (1*good defender, base stealer, Switch hit) and 20 year old CL prospect Bobby White (2* 25th Rounder in 2020 with good FB)

7/3 Off Day

WEEK 14 SUMMARY
FL POTW- Ernesto Gutierrez (AZ) 10-21 3 HR's 7 RBI's (.328-7-39)
CL POTW- Marcos Oginlara (LV) 7-18 6 HR's 13 RBI's (.233-19-48)

WEEK 14 POWER RANKINGS
1) Corpus Christi
2) Chicago
3) West Michigan
4) Arizona
5) San Antonio

AAA Tulsa (8) 51-34 4 GB (Aragon .297-17-50/Overhill .307-15-50/Rea 7-2 2.01/Casas 26SV 2.91)
AA Bakersfield (6) 51-34 6 GB (Cordero .249-18-60/Russell .324-8-43/Swagat .382)
A(N) Belleview (2) 55-30 +5 (Torres .339-8-47/Brown .302-10-53)
A(S) Denison (25) 37-48 8 GB
SS Heavener (18) 6-7 2 GB
R Omaha (35) 5-8 6 GB

[gehrig38]

Wondering if posting trades this way won't be cooler?

Arizona's making a bid to win it, dealing a bevy of prospects for all-star Tim Davis a 2-time all star with 265 career homers.

[gehrig38]

WEEK 15
RECORD: 3-1
OVERALL: 59-28 +9
RUNS SCORED: 521 (24) 1st
RUNS AGAINST: 363 (11) 2nd
OWNERS MOOD: Happy
FAN INTEREST: 91/100
WEEK AHEAD: AS Game/ Off Day/Off Day/4 vs Columbus

6/4 All Star Game
6/5 Off Day
6/6 Off Day

6/7 CHI 6 COL 5
W-Andre (3-3) L-Amaya (2-2)
HR COL-Tanner 2 (16) CHI-Salinas (15) Chavez (22)
Chavez walk off HR Salinas 3 RBI's (61) Tanner 2-4 3 RBI's (56)

6/8 CHI 3 COL 1
W-Hall (8-2) L-Jones (8-5) S-Cruz (26)
HR CHI-Martinez (2) Vela (4) Collins (17)
Hall 7.2-9-1-1-2-4 Jones (COL) 8-6-3-3-1-3 CG (L)

6/9 COL 2 CHI 1 (10)
W-Amaya (3-2) L-Jones (6-1)
HR COL-Gomez (15) Debesa (11) CHI-Salinas (16)
Debesa GW HR. Morgan 8-7-1-1-2-14 (ND) Chavez 3-5

6/10 CHI 14 COL 3
W-Trujillo (9-4) L-Barnes (0-4)
HR COL-Ryan (4) CHI-Shaw (11) Salinas 2 (18) Hudson 2 (12)
Trujillo 8.2-6-3-3-1-7 Shaw 2-5 3 RBI's (41) Salinas 3-5 3 runs 3 RBI's (65) Hudson 2-4 4 RBI's (48) Blakeway 3-4 Tanner (COL) 3-4

WEEK 15 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Ricardo Lozano (MICH) 6-11 2 HR's 2 RBI's (.308-14-42)
CL POTW-Lorenzo Bermudez (PHI) 7-11 2 HR's 6 RBI's (.271-15-46)

WEEK 15 POWER RANKINGS
1) Corpus Christi
2) Chicago
3) West Michigan
4) San Antonio
5) Arizona

AAA Tulsa (4) 54-37 5 GB
AA Bakersfield (6) 55-36 5 GB
A(N) Belleview (1) 60-31 +6
A(S) Denison (27) 39-52 10 GB
SS Heavener (13) 10-9 2 GB
R Omaha (22) 9-10 6 GB

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Fiermonte is a former top prospect and a top of the order bat, Wheeler is a huge arm and a potential all star closer.

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WEEK 16
RECORD: 1-5 (check out the nightmare turn around the rotation!)
OVERALL: 60-33 +7.5
RUNS SCORED: 549 (28) 1st
RUNS AGAINST: 405 (42) 2nd
OWNERS MOOD: Good
FAN INTEREST: 91/100
WEEK AHEAD: 4 vs Dayton/Off Day/2 @ New York

DRAFT NEWS
#4 overall pick Guillermo Rodriguez remains unsigned, as does 20th rounder Colin Peterson. Rodriguez is about 1.4M apart, Peterson was a late round flyer we don't have the cash to sign.

7/11 DAY 7 CHI 3
W-Espinoza (4-3) L-McKinley (7-5) S-Foster (1)
HR DAY-Greene (21) CHI-Hudson (13)
Greene 3 RBI's (71) Tunstall 3 RBI's (33) Collins 3-5 2B (11)

7/12 DAY 7 CHI 4
W-O'Dell (9-8) L-Martinez (3-3) S-Gallagher (15)
HR DAY-Greene (22) Hunter (3) CHI-Martinez (3)
Martinez 3 RBI's (16) R.Martinez 5.2-6-7-7-4-5

7/13 CHI 10 DAY 9 (10)
W-Watanabe (2-1) L_Gallagher (1-6)
HR DAY-Rodriguez (5) Hunter (4) CHI-Blakeway (3) Hudson (14) Collins (18)
Jackson walk off RBI single. Shaw and Chavez 4-6 Blakeway 3 RBI's (28) Greene (DAY) 4-6 Torres (DAY) 3-4 2B (16) Rivera (DAY) 3 BB Hall 4.2-8-8-8-4-4

7/14 DAY 8 CHI 4
W-Howell (5-11) L-Morgan (9-4)
HR DAY-Arroyo (1) CHI-Hudson (15)
3rd straight nightmare start, Morgan 6-7-7-7-3-2 Howell (DAY) 9-5-4-3-4-3 Torres 3 RBI's (50) Arroyo 3 RBI's (3)

7/15 Off Day

7/16 NY 5 CHI 2
W-Dansen (8-7) L-Trujillo (9-5) S-Gonzales (19)
HR NY-Snider (3)
Dansen (NY) 6.2-5-2-2-3-5 Trujillo 7-7-4-3-0-6

7/17 NY 6 CHI 5
W-Hudson (12-3) L-McKinley (7-6) S-Gonzales (20)
HR CHI-Castro (7) Hudson (16) Chavez (23) NY-Harlow (4)
McKinley bomb 3.1-9-6-6-2-4 Hudson 8-8-5-4-2-2 Harlow (NY) 3 RBI's (19) Gomez (NY) 3-3 Hinojosa (NY) 3-4 3B (2) Castro 3-5 3 RBI's (31)

WEEK 16 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Roberto Alvarado (GB) 12-26 4 HR's 7 RBI's (.333-12-62)
CL POTW-Abel Bernarda (EP) 10-26 3 HR's 11 RBI's (.271-17-63)

WEEK 16 POWER RANKINGS
1) Corpus Christi
2) San Antonio
3) West Michigan
4) Chicago
5) Boston

AAA Tulsa (7) 59-39 4 GB (Overhill .303-17-64/Davis .341-9-60/Aragon .300-20-67/Casas 29SV 2.92
AA Bakersfield (6) 59-39 4 GB (Cordero .248-19-63/Russell .305-10-51/J.Martinez 10-2 2.97)
A(N) Belleview (2) 64-34 +6 (Torres .347-8-47/Brown .293-11-63/Heard .288-13-68)
A(S) Denison (28) 40-58 13 GB (Vaughn .322-5-24/Bright 2-2 2.74/Herrera 16SV 2.70)
SS Heavener (15) 13-12 4 GB
R Omaha (20) 13-13 7 GB

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Sacramento makes a pair of deals

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WEEK 17
RECORD: 4-3
OVERALL: 64-36 +8
RUNS SCORED: 588 (39) 1st
RUNS AGAINST: 432 (27) 2nd
OWNERS MOOD: Good
FAN INTEREST: 90/100 (-1)
WEEK AHEAD: 1 @ New York/3 vs El Paso/3 @ Houston

7/18 NY 5 CHI 2
W-Romano (9-10) L-Martinez (3-4) S-Ivey (6)
HR NONE
Romano 8-9-2-2-3-6 Martinez 6-7-5-4-1-3

7/19 CHI 8 EP 5
W-Hall (9-2) L-MacCammon (1-4) S-Cruz (27)
HR EP-Ishida (1) Rios (10) CHI-Jackson (15) Collins 2 (20)
Carr (EP) 4-4 2B (25) Rios (EP) 2-4 2B (26) 3 RBI's (67) Collins 2-3 3 runs 3 RBI's (60) Hall 7-8-5-5-0-9

7/20 CHI 9 EP 3
W-Morgan (10-4) L-Ortiz (7-5) S-Jones (2)
HR CHI-Hudson (17)
Hudson 3-5 Rios (EP) 3-5 2B (27) Shaw 2-4 2 RBI's (47)

7/21 CHI 7 EP 1
W-Trujillo (10-5) L-Morris (9-8)
HR NONE
Trujillo 9-5-1-1-2-6 1st QS in about 10 weeks it seems. Rios (EP) 3-4

NOTES-In case you haven't noticed, I define 'noteworthy' in boxscores by '3's'. Meaning anything a hitter does 3 of, is worth calling out.

GREAT GAMES-Joaquin Vargas (WMI) tossed a CG 6-hitter, striking out 15, in a 7-3 win over Dallas. Vargas is 12-5 2.67 with 173 K's in 158.1 IP.

7/22 HOU 3 CHI 1
W-Sanchez (7-8) L-McKinley (7-7) S-Garcia (17)
HR HOU-Pujols (17)
Sanchez (HOU) 7.1-6-1-1-4-4

7/23 HOU 8 CHI 7 (11)
W-Garcia (4-3) L-Tucker (3-2)
HR HOU-Pujols (18)
Cruz BS 9th, blows lead in 10th. Blakeway 3-5 SB (3) Kessler (HOU) 3-6 2 2B's (7)

INJURY NEWS-The Bulldogs, trailing Boston by 4, will be without the CL leader in HR's Julio Morin for the next 3 weeks. He's hitting .272-29-71.

7/24 CHI 5 HOU 2
W-Hall (10-2) L-Montgomery (5-10) S-Cruz (28)
HR CHI-Collins (21) HOU-Harvey (5)
Hall 7.2-4-2-2-3-10

WEEK 17 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Will Lee (WMI) 12-22 HR 1 RBI (.321-10-39)
CL POTW-Gonzalo Rios (EP) 13-26 HR 6 RBI's (.339-10-72)

WEEK 17 POWER RANKINGS
1) San Antonio (2)
2) Corpus Christi (1)
3) Chicago (4)
4) West Michigan (3)
5) Michigan (11)
OUT Boston (10)

AAA Tulsa (6 +1) 63-41 3 GB (Overhill .304-18-70/Davis .336-10-64/Aragon .297-23-74/Swagat .419/Casas 32SV 2.73)
AA Bakersfield ( 6 -) 63-41 5 GB (Cordero .249-20-66/Russell .313-11-59)
A(N) Belleview (2 -) 68-36 +7 (McGrath .311-10-46/McBrieve 4SV 3.48)
A(S) Denison (22 +6) 44-60 12 GB
SS Heavener (17 -2) 16-16 4 GB (Blankenship .291-3-19/Villanueva 4-0 0.28)
R Omaha (13 +7) 17-15 9 GB

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