The IBL's Alaska Avalanche

[gehrig38]

Lineups
Shuffling the infield around, moving Ledezma from SS to 3B, Ibarbia from 3B to 2B and Garcia from 2B to SS. All three are ++ defenders at all three positions, this is the optimal IF alignment for them though.

Lineup vs RHP

1) David Ledezma (3B) 27 LHH-Managed only 117 games last season but was good when he played. Hit .316/.370/.404 with 17 steals and 24 doubles. Outstanding defender at both left side positions. Signed a 4 year 19.7M dollar deal last winter with the 4th season a 6.4M team option (200K buyout)
2) David Peterson (DH) 29 LHH-Missed half the season after tearing his meniscus in spring training. Then hurt his shoulder 2 days before the playoffs began. 2.8M through arbitration and likely 1 more arbitration year before he becomes a free agent. When he did play hit .303/.375/.403 in 330 AB's with 23 doubles and 54 RBI's. Below average runner but a guy wit big time gap power who doesn't punch out (just 110 in 1210 career AB's). Hard worker with a great clubhouse presence. Can play both corner OF positions well, but really a guy we're keeping as a placeholder for the next year or so. Need a power bat to occupy this spot.
3) Manuel Rodriguez (RF) 29 LHH-Snagged him with a 2 year 15M dollar deal last May but he missed 3 months with various ailments. When healthy a legitimate 3 hole hitter and superstar. Had 2 20+ HR 100+ RBI seasons before his trouble finding work last winter. Good enough to anchor any lineup. He's a very good runner, 20/20 guy, and an outstanding corner OF. He was the #1 overall pick out of FSU in 2019 by Dayton after failing to sign with Staten Island in 2018. He's a free agent after this season, and I am unsure of which direction I'll go. If he is healthy and the price tag is reasonable, he's a very good option.
4) Bob Harrell (1B) 24 LHH-Hit .301/.363/.483 in 125 games last year with 17 homers and 83 RBI's. Also punched out 124 times and hit 35 doubles. Good defender but limited to 1B only, base clogging runner. Has legit 30+ HR power but has yet to show it. Hit 42 in AA during the 2024 season, hoping he breaks out this year. This is one of the places where we begin to see 'holes' in the offense. In Chicago I built a relentless offense, top to bottom, power threats up and down the lineup. Not only do we lack a true 40 homer power threat, but the guys other teams 'fear' are limited to the middle spots of the lineup, if that. Bob goes a long way to changing that if he can drive the ball out of the yard consistently. Has just 1 year of service.
5) Dirk McBryde (LF) 28 LHH-Hit .286/.384/.447 in 119 games last season (his first full IBL season). Hit 16 HR's and drove in 74 with 25 doubles and 18 SB's. Another guy that makes it clear where this team is. Dirk's a good player, on a dynasty or championship caliber offense he's a 4th or 5th OF. He'll do fine and is a great clubhouse guy but another spot where we need 'more' to make this offense truly one to fear.
6) Matt Edwards (C) 25 SWITCH-The first position player I dealt for last year. A very good defending switch hitting catcher. Though he's a dominant lefty as a hitter, only playing vs LHP in a desperate situation. Combined to play 97 games last year hitting .251/.371/.437 with 16 homers and 52 RBI's. Counting AAA he hit 22 homers last year. His forte is getting on. Likely a .420 or better OBP guy going forward with monster pop when he does put it in play. Will most likely be a 100 K 100 walk guy when he plays 130 games or more. In a perfect world he hits 6th behind a power/OBP bat, or even 7th.
7) Mauro Ibarbia (2B) 25 LHH-Likely to win a gold glove or two before all is said and done. His ability to play gold glove caliber defense at 2B, SS AND 3B is huge. Moving to 2B this year after putting up a +5.3 ZR and 1.019 EFF at 3B last year. Hit .267/.340/.434 in 146 games with 19 HR's and 81 RBI's while stealing 37 of 53 bases. That was likely his peak for power, which is fine. Can fly and is a great baserunner and base stealer. At 25 he's got just 2 years of service. In a perfect world he's my 4th infielder and a late inning defensive guy.
8) Kevin Olson (CF) 24 LHH-Split time between AAA Eagan and here last season. Is likely the guy manning CF when this team gets to the next level. Top tier defender and outstanding base stealer/runner. His inability to draw walks will likely keep him hitting 8th or 9th, but his defense will likely keep him on the field. Combined to hit 41 2B's and 15 homers last year between the two stops. Still has a ways to go with his offensive skills, which is promising.
9) Enrique Garcia (SS) 25 LHH-Hit .318/.348/.371 in 151 games with 21 doubles and 42 stolen bases in 61 tries, also drove in 75. Won the gold glove at 2B and is moving to SS this year. Arguably the best defender in the game right now at 2B, 3B and SS. Obviously has Olympic speed, and uses that with smarts and preparation to be a premier base stealing threat (was 2nd in the FL in SB last year). Was the Grizzlies 4th rounder (106th overall) out of Wishkah HS, Aberdeen, WA in 2018 and dealt for SP Cordell Bond in 2020 (was the IBL's #67 prospect that year). Refuses to walk, but also doesn't swing and miss, so he'll likely K very few times but he'll have to hit his way on.

Vs LHP

1) Duane Long (2B) 26 RHH-Hit .274/.411/.436 bouncing back and forth last year. No pop to speak of but great gap power and an OBP machine vs LHP. Could play everyday at 2B if need be. Also plays a decent short. Slightly above average speed but nothing special as a threat to steal. Has played 150 IBL games to a .258/.363/.424 slash line with 43 doubles and 15 triples with 104 K's and 85 BB's.
2) Ash Carter (1B) 26 RHH-I drafted him in the 3rd round (88th overall) out of HS in 2017 when I was with Chicago. He never panned out, or at least we never thought he did, and after helping 4 minor league clubs win titles (Belleview, Bakersfield and Tulsa 2x) he was let go. Had 2 5 hit games in the minors and a 5 hit game last year against Providence. Won 3 minor league Gold Gloves. Hit .326/.337/.462 in 51 games last year with 16 XBH 25 K's and just 1 walk in 185 AB's. Has always been able to hit, and likely will continue, but it won't be for power. Runs very well for a 1B and is a very good defender but is another guy who'd be a AAA 1B or 25th man on a championship roster.
3) Wes Webb (DH) 33 RHH-I traded for Wes in 2017 while in Chicago. A premier power bat from the right side, combined with his ability to defend well above average at 1B, 2B and 3B as well as play SS in a bind, he's a perfect 4th infielder for a LH heavy team. Has played 817 career games and hit .267/.294/.429 with 124 HR's and 427 RBI's. Has 3 seasons (including this one) at 800K per year remaining. A nice chip if this thing gets good faster than expected, or a perfect complimentary player if we keep him. Was part of the 2019 WS winning Chicago team.
4) Manuel Rodriguez (RF)
5) Dirk McBryde (LF)
6) David Ledezma (3B)
7) Carlos Gomez (C) 28 RHH-In his 5th year in Alaska as a career .288/.322/.413 hitter in 389 games with 32 HR's and 189 RBI's. Started in '23 and '24 and with '23 being a career year (.311/.357/.460 in 142 games). Extremely durable backup who'd be vying for the every day job if he was a better than average defender. Does not K but also runs like he's standing in quicksand.
8) Tim Harvey (CF) 25 SWITCH-I took Tim with the supplemental pick (30th overall) in 2019 out of HS. The backlog of talented outfielders in Chicago and his injuries took him from a ranked IBL prospect to a 4th or 5th outfielder there but I rule 5'd him this year because the skill set that I drafted him for is still there. An outstanding center fielder and a premier base runner and base stealing threat make him a very nice addition. He's a stronger RH hitter but not by much. Stole 208 bases in his professional career. Last year in AAA Tulsa he hit .279 with 23 2B's 15 3B's while stealing 29-31 bases. If he could stay healthy he could legitimately be an everyday CF for just about anyone.
9) Enrique Garcia (SS)

[gehrig38]

PITCHING PROSPECTS

AAA

Carlos Hernandez (22) RH SP-The other 'half' of the monster deal with Chicago. A 5 star top of the rotation arm who's close to ready. Drafted 5th overall in 2022 by Dallas, 3rd overall in 2023 by Chicago (me) and 4th overall in 2024 by Chicago (me again) before signing. The IBL's #12 prospect last year. Works mid to upper 90's with a 4 pitch mix, his fastball and change being his best 2. Will eat a ton of innings. 10-5 4.65 at AA after going 3-0 1.22 in 7 A ball starts. Will get time to find his way at Eagan this year. 4.5-5 star prospect.

Wesley Leese RH SP (25), Cam Hale LH SP (25) Bill Caldwell LH SP (24) and Manny Caballero RH SP (26) are all potential IBL starters with Leese being the highest ceiling guy to our scouts. None are top of the rotation guys right now though.

In the pen it's 8 guys, 23-27 years old with Keith Hansen whom we just acquired being the only guy our scouts have over 4 stars. At 26 he's a bit old to label a prospect but he'll close and be on call for the big league pen if we have trouble.

AA

David Rodgers LH SP (23) Hector Rivera RH SP (23) and Harris Boucher RH SP (21) are the only real SP prospects at Kodiak. Rodgers made 1 AAA start at the end of the year and tossed a CG 2-hit shutout. A former 2nd round pick out of HS he took home A(S) Pitcher of the year in 2023. He's a potential 3 or 4 if he continues his current path. Rivera was 9-13 4.39 in AA last year with 162 K's in 155.2 IP. A low 90's lefty with outstanding control he took home SS Pitcher of the year in 2023. A 2nd rounder in 2021 who re-entered the draft where Alaska took him in the 3rd round (101st overall) in 2022. Harris Boucher was 4-9 3.29 in A ball last year and made 1 start in AA at the end of the year. Entered 2025 as the IBL's #34 prospect he was the 18th overall pick out of HS in 2024. Scouts are all saying his mid to upper 90's stuff will play if he can get control of it. 2 ++ pitches in his sinker and curve he's a 70+% ground ball guy when he's on.

Francisco Rodriguez RH CL (22) is the only pen guy worth a look. His control has to improve, but if it does there's huge upside.

A

Mike Bowman RH SP (21) My 1st draft pick as Alaska GM (2nd overall) out of Regis College. Went 5-6 5.03 in 14 starts and will return to Yakima to start this year. Everyone still high on him. Mid to upper 90's 2 and 4 seamer combined with big time change up. Needs to get his innings.

Short Season and Rookie League

Lloyd Cole LH SP (18) 1st pick of the 2nd round last year. Went 0-2 5.89 in 20 games, 6 starts. 91-93 with a power sinker power slider combo. Change coming along. 63 K's but 53 walks in 47.1 IP. Will start for Fairbanks ® again this year.
Luis Diaz RH SP (18) Signed to our international complex out of Venezuela. 1-5 6.59 in 7 starts in rookie ball last year. Still very raw but huge upside. 4 pitch kid with outstanding cutter.

POSITION PLAYERS

AAA

Luke Stover (C) L (21) 7th rounder in 2023 by Houston who was released in June of 2024, no idea why. Signed a 4 year deal this winter and our scouts really like him. Outstanding ability behind the plate with a bat projected to hit for big power and a fantastic eye for the strike zone.

AA

Francisco Lopez (C) R (23)-Big time power projections and a decent defender who hopefully gets better. Good zone discipline as well.
Jorge Viera (2B) R (19)-Signed out of the Dominican last year he's just 19. Already a ++ defender at 2B with huge range and big league ability to turn the DP. 50 SB speed and a middle of the lineup bat if all goes right. Not a real bright kid, sort of a wind up and point him in the right direction. Will let him get 500 AB's in AA this year.
Paco Martinez (SS) R (20)-Another kid signed out fo the Dominican 2 years ago. Huge defensive upside. Will strike out a bunch, not walk a ton but a 15-20 homer 40+ extra base hit bat who can run. Hit .284 in 81 AA games last year.
Chris Wheeler (LF) L (23)-Bit older prospect for AA. LF/CF outstanding defender, leadoff legs and big time SB threat. His strength is his gap power. The worry is he won't be able to keep the average anywhere near good enough to warrant an everyday job.

A

Henry Allen (IF) R (22)-Singed a 4 year deal this winter. Too young and too raw for anything higher than A ball right now but looks to be a low risk high reward gamble. Needs to improve the defense, runs very well and has a bat that could surprise. Could be a .400+ OBP guy if he matures right. Big gap power with 15-20 HR potential.

Looking at the list below it's clear, and I knew it at the time, where our strength lies, and where we have some HUGE holes. Ton of pitching depth, with literally zero position players to speak of.

[gehrig38]

Mr. Lane has raised his expectations, and is expecting a team that reaches the playoffs. Can't argue that one.

And here are the top 10 prospects and the organizations ranked by prospects. In a year we've gotten to #2, can't complain about that. 5 of the top 25 pitching prospects in the game. I still have my doubts about van der Ham as an everyday bat. But we dealt the 7th and 34th prospects in that deal, getting back the 19th and 23rd.

Miguel Cabrera to open the season as the Fisher Cats everyday 3B.

[gehrig38]

Well that didn't take long. 1 year in and the pundits say 112 wins for the home team. An IBL best 112. Another pasting in our division, with the only real race being in the Empire.

Looking at the numbers a bit deeper, and the individual predictions all 5, yes, all 5 of our starters are in the top 10 pitchers list with Stan Hall leading the way. Chicago figures to have another monster season at the plate, with Luis Chavez getting back to his old ways. Rodriguez the only bat worth mentioning in our lineup. Horst Grueter with another big year and a return to the MVP circle for Tony Greene?



Over in the Coastal it looks like a return to prominence for Philadelphia. Tulsa, Fresno and Dallas to win as well. The Lone Star a 3 team race? That'd be cool.

Bing Kang with another big year? If he and Dudley Williams put those numbers up San Antonio is a whole lot closer than 10 games to Dallas. Another strikeout title for Bryant Thomas, and a new K record in the making? That's a pretty unique year they're predicting for Pennington. First year I can remember that Angelo Esparza's name isn't mentioned here. I know Sacramento's counting on him having a huge season.

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 1
RECORD: 3-2
OVERALL: 3-2 1.5 GB
RUNS SCORED: 16 13th
RUNS AGAINST: 13 t-3rd
OWNER/FANS: Ecstatic 83/100
SCHEDULE: 4 vs Hawaii/1 @ Michigan

4/1
ALK 3 HAW 2 (10)
W-Wheeler (1-0) L-Gonzalez (0-1)
HR Sandoval (1) ALK-Olson (1)
Sandoval hits a game tying HR off Wheeler to lead off the 9th spoiling a gem by Stan Hall (7.2-5-1-1-3-10) Vincente Castillo battled going 7.1-11-2-2-1-5. Ledezma was 3-5 with a double and Mark Edwards was 3-4. Harvey's 1 out PH double if followed an out later by Wes Webbs walk off single.

4/2
ALK 1 HAW 0
W-Drake (1-0) L-Montgomery (0-1) S-Casas (1)
HR ALK-Ledezma (1)
John Drake goes 7-3-0-0-1-7 on 102 pitches with Durham H(1) Valdes H(1) and Casas closing it out. David Ledezma's 4th inning HR is the only run. Gary Montgomery goes the route 8-3-1-1-1-6 in the loss. Alfonso Soriano goes 3-4.

4/3
HAW 5 ALK 3
W-Harvey (1-0) L-C.Durham (0-1) S-T.Gonzalez (1)
HR HAW-Harris (1)
Josh Harvey goes 7.1-8-3-3-2-4 on 119 pitches, outpitching Colin Durham (5.2-6-5-5-3-4) with the big blow being Rod Harris' 3 run homer. Enrique Garcia goes 3-3 with an RBI (1) in the loss.

4/4
ALK 6 HAW 0
W-Solis (1-0) L-Tucker (0-1)
HR NONE
Solis opens in good fashion going 7.1-7-0-0-1-6 on 102 pitches before tiring. A 3 run 3rd sparked by Rodriguez's 2 run 2B (he went 3-5 2B (1) 3 runs 3 RBI's (4)

4/5
MICH 6 ALK 3
W-Adams (1-0) L-Buckley (0-1) S-Ivey (2)
HR MICH-Welch (1) Stuart (2)
Gerald Buckley hit some bumps in his first Avalanche start. 2 homers and 6 earned runs on 9 hits in just 3 innings. David Welch went 3-4 with a HR and an RBI (1) and Harry Stuart was 2-3 with a homer and 3 RBI's (6). Enrique Garcia was 3-4 with a double (1) and 2 stolen bases (3).

WEEK 1 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Matt Savage (AZ) 7-11 HR 8 RBI's
CL POTW-Roberto Alvarado (LV) 9-20 2 HR's 8 RBI's

WEEK 1 POWER RANKINGS
1) Las Vegas
2) Chicago
3) Corpus Christi
4) Arizona
5) Dallas

MINORS NEWS
Eagan's off to a 4-1 start.

NEWS/NOTES
West Michigan squeeks in under the wire grabbing Ricardo Flores on the cheap. 20.4M for the next 3 years for a guy that, when he's healthy (BIG if) he's a franchise bat.
That's the 4th career 5-hit day for Curt Whimster.
Pretty major news out of Chicago on ace Andy Morgan. Just the 2nd DL stint of his career.
The Miranda deal with Edmonton is a 2 year 12M deal, with the 2nd being a 6M dollar player option. If he wasn't a physical wreck at 30 he'd have gotten something huge. That being said he joins Grueter now in the Trapper lineup (and they're off to an 0-3 start)
The Flores deal plugs the 51's hole at 2nd. Veli Heikkinen is out at least 4 more months, Flores is a real nice stop gap. Vegas is off to a 4-0 start.

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 2
RECORD: 3-3
OVERALL: 6-5 1.5 GB
RUNS SCORED: 54 (38) 11th
RUNS AGAINST: 38 (25) 1st
OWNER/FANS: Ecstatic 83/100
SCHEDULE: 2 @ Michigan/Off Day/3 @ New Hampshire/1 vs Brooklyn

4/6
MICH 5 ALK 4
W-Larkman (2-0) L-Hall (0-1)
HR ALK-Carter (1) McBryde (1) Ibarbia (1) MICH-Reyes (1) Powers (1) Lopez (2)
Stan Hall pushed to stay in and his 99th pitch was his last as Jesus Reyes lead off the bottom of the 9th with a walk off homer. Hall went 8-8-5-5-1-6 yielding 3 homers. Dan McGowan went 8-7-2-2-1-3 in a ND. Dirk McBryde's 1st HR of the year tied it at 4 in the 9th. Duane Long left with a stiff back early on, and is DtD for the next 3-4.

4/7
MICH 2 ALK 1
W-Raines (2-0) L-Drake (1-1) S-Castro (1)
HR NONE
Another CG loss. Drake goes 8-5-2-2-2-9 on 105 pitches but Isaac Raines goes 7-4-1-1-6-5 on 128 and gets pen help to close it out. 9 hits combined in the game.

4/8
Off Day

4/9
ALK 6 NH 3
W-C.Durham (1-1) L-Lou (0-2) S-Wheeler (1)
HR ALK-Ibarbia 2 (3) NH-Dominguez (2)
Colin Durham is in and out of trouble before a long rain delay in the 6th (5-8-3-2-1-4) and the pen comes up huge. John Durham works out of a bases loaded 0 out jam in the 7th. Mauro Ibarbia slams 2 homers and drives in 4 and Bob Harrell goes 3-4 with a double (3). Vincente Dominguez goes 3-5 with a homer in the loss. David Ledezma goes down running the bases, no word on how bad yet.

4/10
ALK 17 NH 7
W-Solis (2-0) L-Barron (0-1)
HR ALK-Harrell (1) McBryde (2) Ibarbia 2 (5) NH-Dominguez (3) Bond (1)
A 5 run 1st and an 8 run 6th made it a blow out. Solis managed to give 5 back in the 6th but the damage was done. Garcia scored 3 times and stole 3 bases (7) Harrell hit a 3 run homer (5) and Dirk McBryde was 2-4 scoring 3 times and driving in 3 (7) and Manny Ibarbia doubled twice (2) homered twice, including a grand slam (for the 2nd time in 2 days) in a 4-4 3 run 6 RBI (11) day. Vincente Dominguez was 3-4 and Lawrence Bond hit a grand slam (1) in the loss.

4/11
NH 2 ALK 1
W-Pena (1-0) L-Buckley (0-2) S-Quintero (3)
HR NONE
Another CG loss. Buckley goes 8-7-2-1-2-4 on 96 pitches but the offense can't solve Pena and their pen.

INJURY NEWS-David Ledezma has an achilles issue and is sidelined for about 2 weeks. 24 year old Jason Kelly will be added to the 40 man roster and recalled from AA Kodiak. Kelley was a 3rd round pick (91st overall) out of the University of Arizona in 2024 and has won 2 gold gloves in the minors.

4/12
ALK 9 BRO 6
W-Wheeler (2-0) L-Sharp (0-2)
HR ALK-Harrell WO (2) Ibarbia (6)
Wheeler blows another save in the 9th but Bob Harrell walks it off with a 3 run shot. Stan Hall remains winless, going 7-5-3-3-2-9 on 106 pitches. Enrique Garcia goes 3-5 with a double (2) scoring twice and stealing a base (8) while Mauro Ibarbia is 2-4 with his league leading 6th homer, driving in 3 (14) and stealing his 1st.

WEEK 2 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Mauro Ibarbia (ALK) 11-23 5 HR's 11 RBI's (.350-6-14)
CL POTW-Tony Quintana (TUL) 11-26 4 HR's 9 RBI's (.311-4-10)

WEEK 2 POWER RANKINGS
1) Michigan (-)
2) West Michigan (-)
3) Philadelphia (-)
4) Arizona (4)
5) New York (-)
OUT Las Vegas (7) Chicago (8) Corpus Christi (10) Dallas (13)

NEWS/NOTES
Two interesting performances on Monday, former Avalanche SP Raul Rubio is off to a great start and #1 prospect Miguel Cabrera is as well.

Park returns to Sacramento on a 1 year deal.

[gehrig38]

.

[gehrig38]

Wouldn't you know it. Stockpiled pitching, only to have what scouts are calling 'the deepest pitching draft' they've ever seen.
Cook, Summers, Wells, Velazquez are my top 4 and I've sent out cross checkers. I don't pick until 36th so I doub't I'll see any of them around, but I will take the best position player available at that pick.

[gehrig38]

400 Homer runs, by age (Bold = youngest underlined = oldest)
Curt Whimster 9/24/21 (33 years 122 days)
Hugh Collins 7/14/24 (34 years 317 days)
Wes Morgan 5/25/24 (35 years 120 days)
Jeffrey Hudson 4/17/26 (33 years 111 days)

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 3
RECORD: 4-2
OVERALL: 10-7 2 GB
RUNS SCORED: 88 (34) 9th
RUNS AGAINST: 64 (26) 1st
OWNER/FANS: Delighted 83/100
SCHEDULE: 2 vs Brooklyn/3 vs Staten Island/Off Day/1 vs Edmonton

4/13
ALK 8 BRO 6
W-Sheppard (1-0) L-Espinoza (0-1) S-Wheeler (2)
HR BRO-Bowers 2 (3) ALK-Olson (2) McBryde (3) Garcia (1) Ibarbia (7)
Drake gets crushed in a 2.1-6-6-6-3-1 nightmare but the offense puts up 6 in the 4th to take the lead and the pen clutches up yet again. McBryde drove in 3 (10) and Ibarbia stayed hot as heck hitting his league leading 7th. Robert Bowers was 2-2 with 2 homers and 4 RBI's in the loss.

4/14
ALK 3 BRO 2
W-C.Durham (2-1) L-Walker (1-2) S-J.Durham (1)
HR ALK-McBryde (4)
Durham saves for Durham, 1st time in IBL history a brothers have done that. Colin goes 6-5-2-2-3-3 and Valdes (4) and Alexander (3) hold for John to punch out the side in the 9th. Brad Walker went 7-8-3-3-6-2 on 127 pitches in the loss. Dirk McBryde homered for the 2nd straight day in a 2-3 effort and Mark Edwards was 1-1 with 3 walks.

4/15
SI 7 ALK 6 (14)
W-Rea (1-0) L-Sheppard (1-1)
HR SI-Bond (2) Molina (2) Salgado (3) ALK-Harrell (3) Rodriguez (1)
Nightmare. A wiped out pen has to must 8 innings of relief after Solis leaves. No one was left untouched and everyone is tired. Casas went 4-0-0-0-1-4. Manny Rodriguez was 3-6 with his 1st homer, Bob Harrell 3-7, homering and driving in 3 (11) and Garcia stole his league leading 11th.

ROSTER MOVES-SP/RP Gary Turner will be recalled to help the pen out a few days. 3B Jason Kelley will head to AA.

4/16
ALK 7 SI 6
W-Buckley (1-2) L-Villarreal (0-1) S-Wheeler (3)
HR SI-Hernandez (2) Molina (3) ALK-Edwards (1)
Gerald Buckley gets his 1st IBL win with a 6-8-3-3-1-2 effort. Manny Rodriguez goes 2-3 with a 2B (4) and 2 RBI's (12) and hurts himself in the 8th. Mark Edwards goes 3-4 with his 1st homer and drives in 4 (10) Keng-chi Fan goes 3-4 in the loss.

ROSTER NEWS-Our best bat is out, 2-3 months, with a bad bone bruise on his knee. 28 year old minor league FA Angel Vargas will be added to the 40 man and recalled.

4/17
ALK 10 SI 0
W-Hall (1-1) L-Miller (1-2)
HR ALK-Edwards (2) Webb (1)
Stan Hall gives EVERYONE a much needed rest with a 135 pitch 7-hit shutout. He punched out 10 and walked 1. Tim Harvey was 3-5 with 3 RBI's (5) and 2 stolen bases (4) and Enrique Garcia was 2-4 with 3 stolen bases (13) and scored 4 times. Mark Edwards homered for the 2nd straight game and drove in 3 (13) and Kevin Olson went 3-3 scoring twice and stealing a base (2). Manuel Samudid was 3-4 with a double (3) in the loss.

4/18
Off Day

4/19
EDM 5 ALK 0
W-Espinoza (1-1) L-Drake (1-2)
HR EDM-White (5) Grueter (4)
Missed a bunch of early chances before Grueter and White hammered Drake in the 5th. Espinoza went 7-9-0-0-1-5 for the win. Luis Gil was 3-5 with a double (7). Drake gave up 5 earned and 7 hits in 5.1 IP. Sheppard managed to pickup the final 3.2 innings to help the pen.

WEEK 3 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Luis Chavez (CHI) 14-29 5 HR's 15 RBI's (.385-9-26)
CL POTW-Gary Scheid (LA) 9-26 6 HR's 15 RBI's (.296-7-16)

WEEK 3 POWER RANKINGS
1) El Paso (-)
2) Arizona (4)
3) Michigan (1)
4) Sacramento (-)
5) Philadelphia (3)
OUT West Michigan (14) New York (8)

NEWS/NOTES
Bad news in Providence and Boston. The Bombers pen is/was a strength coming into the season.

Interesting deal in Corpus Christi. Medina gets 3 more years at 9.5 per, even after red flags being thrown everywhere due to his health. This is Carlos' second go around with the Hooks. He was their 1st pick, and 1st overall, in the 2013 player draft out of Harrison HS in Georgia. Was the 2014 #1 prospect as well. He's a 2 time all star. The next day they get bad news, Ron Carr will miss at least the next 4 weeks.

Angelo Esparza is up to his old tricks, and another good start.

Buffalo loses one of the games young up and coming pitchers for at least 3 months.

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 4
RECORD: 6-0
OVERALL: 16-7 +2
RUNS SCORED: 136 (48) 3rd
RUNS AGAINST: 85 (21) 1st
OWNER/FANS: Very Happy 83/100
SCHEDULE: 2 vs Edmonton/3 vs Arizona/Off Day/1 @ Green Bay

4/20
ALK 4 EDM 0
W-C.Durham (3-1) L-M.Jones (1-2)
HR NONE
Colin Durham goes 7.1-7-0-0-0-1 and Ash Carters 7th inning bases loaded double makes a 1-0 game a 4-0 win. Carter was 2-4 with 2 doubles driving in 3 (4). Mike Jones went the distance in the CG loss (8-7-4-4-4-1)

4/21
ALK 6 EDM 5
W-Sheppard (2-1) L-Springer (1-3) S-Wheeler (4)
HR EDM-Cruz (3) Brooks (2) ALK-Edwards (3) McBryde (5)
Michael Wheeler gave up a leadoff homer to make it 6-5 in the 9th, then loaded the bases with 0 outs only to get a double play and punchout to end it. Matt Edwards was 2-3 with a double (2) homer and scored 3 times while driving in a run (14). David Brooks was 3-4 with a double (2) homer and an RBI (7) in the loss.

4/22
ALK 7 AZ 5
W-Buckley (2-2) L-Hayes (2-2) S-Wheeler (5)
HR AZ-Boyce (3) Peterson (1) ALK-Edwards (4) Harrell (4) McBryde 2 (7)
Buckley gives up 2 in the 2nd and holds as the offense puts up 4 in the 4th and 2 in the 5th. Buckley goes 7-8-4-4-1-2 as Dirk McBryde is 3-4 with 2 homers 3 runs and 2 RBI's (15) Matt Edwards homers for the 2nd day in a row.

4/23
ALK 9 AZ 3
W-Hall (2-1) L-Lujan (3-1)
HR ALK-Webb (2) Gomez 2 (2) Vargas (1)
Stan Hall trailed 3-2 before another mid game rally as the offense grabbed the lead for good with a 5 run 6th. Carlos Gomez was 2-4 with 2 homers 2 runs and 2 RBI's (2) and Angel Vargas was 2-4 with a home run and 2 RBI's (2). Ash Carter strained his groin and will be DtD for the next week or so.

4/24
ALK 6 AZ 5 (15)
W-Turner (1-0) L-Powell (1-1)
HR AZ-Reeves 2 (9) ALK-Edwards (5) Webb (3)
The downside of a great pen and average offense is extra inning games. John Drake went 6-6-1-1-0-8 and John Durham gave up 2 (1 earned) and Casas came in to save it. Paul Reeves hit a solo shot in the 8th, and a 2 run shot in the 9th to tie it (Casas went 2.1 IP and struck out all 7 of his outs but surrendered the game tying 2 run homer). Marc Sheppard came in and threw 61 pitches over 4 scoreless innings, walking 2 and punching out 4 with 3 hits. Wes Webb hit a walk off homer in the bottom of the 15th, his 3rd hit of the day. Ibarbia was 3-7 with a double (3) and 2 RBI's (18) and Matt Edwards was 3-6 with his 5th homer, driving in a run (16). Rattler Ben Hall went 8-13-5-4-2-1 in a 134 pitch no-decision.

4/25
Off Day

4/26
ALK 16 GB 3
W-C.Durham (4-1) L-Morris (1-4)
HR ALK-Ibarbia (8) Gomez (3) GB-Cannon (2) Martinez (2)
Colin Durham tosses 8 solid innings (8-4-2-2-3-6) and the offense explodes for 16 runs on 15 hits and 10 walks. Matt Edwards goes 0-1, scores 3 times and walks 3 times Mauro Ibarbia goes 2-4 and drives in 4 (22) with his 8th home. Kevin Olson drivesin 3 (8) and Tim Harvey goes 3-4 and scores twice but is hurt stealing a base in the 8th. No word yet.

WEEK 4 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Ramon Castro (CHI) 12-26 HR 9 RBI's (.350-7-32)
CL POTW-Cesar Cordero (BOS) 11-25 4 HR's 8 RBI's (.263-4-9)

WEEK 4 POWER RANKINGS
1) Fresno (-)
2) Alaska (-)
3) Pittsburgh (-)
4) Chicago (-)
5) El Paso (1)
OUT Arizona (7) Michigan (6) Sacramento (23) Philadelphia (18)

NEWS/NOTES
Major injury news out of Philly. Bermudez is lost for the year with a torn ACL. 26 year old Jonathan Waycott will man RF for now but this is a huge blow for them.

Benton Crowder won the 2025 All Star Game MVP, and it seems like he's been on the DL every since. The Yanks are just 2 back in the Empire.

In Corpus Christi's run to the title in 2021 Nate Sipes hit just .180 in 23 games, but his 6 home runs were a huge reason why they won. He's just back from a labrum injury and that's the major concern with him, his durability. When he's on the field he's real good.

The Ellis injury will hurt the IF defense big time. Not sure why but they called up 1B Antonio Salas to take Ellis' roster spot.

[gehrig38]

April Records (Bold denotes record set/tied this year)
AVG .482 Luis Gil (EDM) '26 (Old Record) .479 Todd Helton (GB) '16
HR 14 Julio Morin (PIT) '22 Pedro Roman (FRE) '25
RBI's 42 Tony Green (DAY) '23 old record 39 Todd Helton (PHI) '19
SB's 17 Carl Crawford (GB) '18 Jimmy Rollins (PHI) '20 Enrique Garcia (ALK) '26
Wins 6 Raul Gonzalez (HOU) '13 Chris O'Slattery (BAL) '14 Barry Zito (EP) '19
Saves 18 Michael Ross (HOU) '13
K's 61 Ramon Roa (PIT) '19 Esteban Figueroa (SAC) '23

Not sure I've ever seen a team sweep the monthly awards, and Tulsa isn't even in 1st!

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 5
RECORD: 4-2
OVERALL: 20-9 +4
RUNS SCORED: 163 6th
RUNS AGAINST: 111 1st
OWNER/FANS: Very Happy 84/100
SCHEDULE: 2 vs Green Bay/3 @ Dayton/Off Day/1 @ Sacramento

4/27
ALK 7 GB 3
W-Solis (3-0) L-Hart (0-4)
HR ALK-Edwards (6) Harrell (5) Ibarbia (9) GB-Slater (2)
Solis goes 6-5-3-3-5-4 to barely hold on until Mauro Ibarbia launched a backbreaking 3 run homer in the 7th. Ibarbia was 2-5 with a double (4) the home run and 3 RBI's (25) while scoring twice. Matt Edwards was 3-4 with a double (3) HR and 2 RBI's (18)

ROSTER NEWS-Another big injury. Tim Harvey will miss the next 5 weeks with a severe hamstring strain. While I work around this I am going to talk to Pete Merritt, who's languishing without a home right now. He's down to 7M as an ask, but I wonder how much lower that will go?

4/28
ALK 3 GB 1
W-Buckley (3-2) L-Althusser (1-3) S-Wheeler (6)
HR NONE
Buckley throws well (7-7-1-1-3-4) and the pen finishes it off. Harrell goes 3-4 with a double (8) and Kevin Olson 2-4 with a double, scoring and driving in 1 (9). Garcia steals his 14th. Althusser went 6.2-9-3-3-3-4 in the loss.

FREE AGENCY-I'm talking to a few free agent outfielders. I made Merritt a 1 year offer, for far less than the 7 he wants, and super utility man Alex Covington, I made him a 5 year offer at almost no money. The guy is the best defensive player in the leagues history, able to play every single position on the field. He was the 1st overall pick in 2018 by the Hooks and was the #4 prospect in 2020. He's a career .255/.351/.384 hitter in 801 games. His best season came in 20222 when he hit .275-23-73 in 134 games.

GOOD GAMES-Raul Rubio (COL) won his 2nd game of the year today, and he threw real well, giving up a run in 8.1 IP. He could have given up 18 more and still won. Check out the day former Iron Pig Hugh Collins had and the milestone he hit. Columbus won 20-1.

2000 HIT CLUB
Curt Whimster 8/15/22 (33 years 262 days)
Gerald Wright 7/22/23 (35 years 125 days)
Rich Stone 9/15/23 (32 years 195 days)
Jeffrey Hudson 8/8/25 (32 years 223 days)
Luis Chavez 8/19/25 (30 years 271 days)
Hugh Collins 4/27/26 (36 years 271 days)



And in Arizona Charlie Woodroffe won his 3rd game of the year with 7.2 strong innings, giving up 2 runs. He too could have given up more, 19 more to be exact. Check out the day Jose Torres had leading off. Dayton won 22-5.



4/29
ALK 6 DAY 1
W-Hall (3-1) L-Kelley (2-1)
HR ALK-Harrell (6) McBryde (8)
Stan Hall goes 8 strong (8-9-1-1-2-8) and Mauro Ibarbia goes 3-5 while Dirk McBryde hits his 8th and drives in 3 (18). John Cooper goes 3-4 with a double (4) and a SB (1)

4/30
ALK 7 DAY 6
W-Drake (2-2) L-Hogan (1-4) S-Wheeler (7)
HR ALK-McBryde (9) Vargas (2) Webb (4)
Drake struggles through a 6-7-5-5-3-5 outing and Valdes gives up his 2 runners and another before John Durham and Wheeler get the last 7 outs. Ash Carter goes 3-5 with a SB (1) Angel Vargas goes 2-3 with 2 homers and 4 RBI's (6). Garcia steals 2 more to tie the April record for stolen bases.

5/1
DAY 7 ALK 2
W-Foster (3-3) L-C.Durham (4-2)
HR DAY-Cooper (8) Torres 2 (3) Thornton (6)
Durham was real bad from the outset, 3 homers 6 ER in 4.2 IP on 9 hits. Foster went 7.1-3-2-2-6-5 on 119 pitches. The offense managed just 3 hits. Sozui Kokawa was 3-4 with a 2B (8) and Jose Torres homered twice in a 2-5 day scoring 2 and driving in 2 (10).

5/2
Off Day

5/3
SAC 8 ALK 2
W-Freestone (4-1) L-Solis (3-1)
HR ALK-Olson (3) SAC-Martinez (7)
Matt Freestone goes the distance on a 6-hitter (9-6-2-2-1-9) and Jesus Solis struggles early and often in a 5-9-6-6-0-6 loss. Jesus Castro was 3-5 with a double (9) scoring 3 times and driving in 2 (12) and Javier Martinez drove in 3 (27) in a 2-4 day with his 7th homer.

WEEK 5 SUMMARY
FL POTW-David Welch (MICH) 12-25 4 HR's 12 RBI's (.321-13-30) off his April PotM award
CL POTW-Marcos Oginlara (PHI) 11-21 3 HR's 10 RBI's (.263-8-25) With Bermudez out for the year he and Quinn are going to have to come up huge. Philly is 4.5 back of Pittsburgh now.

WEEK 5 POWER RANKINGS
1) Pittsburgh
2) Corpus Christi
3) Alaska
4) Michigan
5) Chicago

MINORS
The minors are now stronger all around, still work to do but the clubs are competitive.
AAA Eagan (9) 17-14 7 GB 1st RA 3rd AVG/SB/BP ERA 4th SP ERA
AA Kodiak (13) 16-15 6 GB 2nd AVG 3rd HR
A(S) Spokane (10) 17-14 +1.5 3rd SB 5th Def Eff
A(N) Yakima (23) 12-19 6 GB 5th SB

NEWS/NOTES
I put the Freestone gem in the news because the guys seemingly back on track after struggling mightily the past few years. He went from 15-3 4.97 to 8-23 the next 2 seasons in Hawaii. He had a 5 year run when he never won fewer than 14 or lost more than 11. He's 93-65 4.82 lifetime.

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 6
RECORD: 4-3
OVERALL: 24-12 +6
RUNS SCORED: 197 (34) 7th
RUNS AGAINST: 132 (21) 1st
OWNER/FANS: Happy 86/100 (+2)
SCHEDULE: 2 @ Sacramento/3 @ San Jose/2 vs Hawaii

5/4
ALK 6 SAC 2
W-Buckley (4-2) L-Esparza (2-3) S-Wheeler (8)
HR ALK-Edwards (7) SAC-Ramsey (5)
Buckley outpitches Esparza by going 6-7-2-2-2-4 and the pen holds before the offense busts it open late. Esparza goes the distance, scattering 11 hits and 5 earned runs. David Ledezma goes 3-5 with a double (6) and Matt Edwards drives in 2 with his 7th homer.

5/5
SAC 4 ALK 3
W-O'Halloran (1-1) L-Wheeler)
HR SAC-Morris (5)
Hall leaves a runner on 2nd 2 outs in the 8th, Wheeler gives up a game tying single to blow his 3rd save and then proceeds to walk 4 batters in the 9th, including walking in the winning run. Hall went 7.2-6-3-3-1-10. Vincent Meredith went 7-4-3-3-6-4 on 123 pitches. Andrew Morris went 3-4 with a homer and 3 RBI's (18).

5/6
ALK 13 SJ 3
W-Drake (3-2) L-Baker (1-3)
HR ALK-Ibarbia (10)
John Drake is dominating as he punches out 7 in the first 3 innings, and ends up with 12 in 7 while yielding 1 earned run. David Ledezma led off and was 3-3 driving in 3 (8) and walking twice and Peter Merritt went 3-5 with 2 doubles in his 1st game with the club. Mauro Ibarbia stole his 5th base and hit a 3 run homer.

5/7
SJ 6 ALK 4
W-J.Hamilton (2-2) L-C.Durham (4-3) S-Mathis (7)
HR ALK-Edwards (8)
Durham's in trouble in the 2nd and is out in the 5th after giving up 5 on 9 hits. Jerome Hamilton goes 8-8-4-3-1-9 for the win. David Ledezma is 4-5 with 2 RBI's (10) as Garcia steals his 18th.

5/8
SJ 6 ALK 3
W-B.Webb (1-5) L-Solis (3-2) S-Mathis (8)
HR ALK-Edwards (9) SJ-Lewis (1) Ammanati (2)
Brandon Webb wins his 1st of the year going 8-7-2-2-1-7 on 115 pitches. Solis is pounded for 5 runs on 10 hits in 5+ innings and is sporting a 6+ ERA as we near mid May.

5/9
ALK 2 HAW 0
W-Buckley (5-2) L-Montgomery (3-4)
HR NONE
Gerald Buckley gets his first IBL CG, and shutout by giving up just 4 hits and 3 walks over 9 strong innings, needing only 101 pitches and getting 2 double plays to outpitch Gary Montgomery who went 8-10-2-2-1-2 on 113 pitches for the loss. Pete Merritt was 3-4 with an RBI (2).

STUFF-If I could find a serious interest in Solis there's talk that the move could be bringing Hernandez up and sliding him into the rotation. Can't get anyone to bite on the contract though.

5/10
ALK 3 HAW 0
W-Hall (4-1) L-R.Smith (0-4)
HR NONE
Stan Hall tosses the 2nd straight 4-hit CG shutout, walking just 1 and punching out 9 to move to 4-1 2.27 on the year. David Ledezma went 2-4 to raise his average to .389, and drove in a run on his 9th double. Pete Merritt was 2-4 and is hitting .450 since signing.

STREAKS-Mario Gomez became the 4th player in IBL history to hit in 30 or more consecutive games when he went 1-4 today. He's 1 game shy of the all time record.

WEEK 6 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Todd Harlow (PROV) 15-28 5 HR's 13 RBI's (.315-8-24)
CL POTW-George Quinn (PHI) 18-32 4 HR's 11 RBI's (.394-10-35)

WEEK 6 POWER RANKINGS
1) Michigan (4)
2) Alaska (3)
3) Corpus Christi (2)
4) Fresno (-)
5) Pittsburgh (1)
OUT Chicago (6)

NEWS/NOTES
Both Pete Merritt and Alex Covington agreed to free agent contracts today. Merritt is a huge get, with Rodriguez out for an extended period of time he'll hit 3rd vs RHP and hopefully jump start the offense. Covington will play anywhere and everywhere against LHP. His insane versatility will be huge.

Chicago and Philly get bad news on some older veterans they were hoping would be key pieces. Oginlara joins Bermudez on the Patriot DL and they're now 2.5 back.

I knew when I drafted him Bright was an ace in the making, and it's happening. A 15K gem.

Juan Chavez was an undrafted free agent that Arizona signed, and then released in 2024. We signed him in February of last year and he shot past A and AA and is having a great AAA season at 22.

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 7
RECORD: 7-0
OVERALL: 31-12 +9.5
RUNS SCORED: 232 (35) 5th
RUNS AGAINST: 149 (17) 1st
OWNER/FANS: Very Happy 85/100
SCHEDULE: 2 vs Hawaii/4 @ Edmonton/1 @ West Michigan

5/11
ALK 5 HAW 4
W-Casas (1-0) L-Graham (1-1) S-Wheeler (9)
HR HAW-Riario (7)
Drake goes 6-7-3-3-2-5 before running out of gas and David Ledezma hits a 2 out 2 run triple in the 8th to give us the win. Ledezma was 2-4 with 2 RBI's (3) and Pete Merritt went 3-4 with a double (3). Ash Carter tripled and drove in 2 (8).

STREAKS-Mario Gomez ties the all time hitting streak at 31 games, going 2-5 in a 9-1 win over Dayton



5/12
ALK 6 HAW 2
W-Durham (5-3) L-Butler (1-3)
HR NONE
Colin Durham came with 1 out of a CG before tiring, ending up going 8.2-5-2-2-5-6 on 115 pitches. Ledezma was 3-5 with a double (10), Angel Vargas was 3-4 with 2 doubles (2) and Ash Carter was 3-4 with 3 RBI's (11) and a stolen base (2). Enrique Garcia was 2-4 with his league leading 20th SB.

STREAKS-Mario Gomez fails in his bid to break Luis Chavez record, ending at 31 games.



5/13
ALK 4 EDM 3
W-Solis (4-2) L-I.Martinez (2-5) S-Wheeler (10)
HR EDM-J.Cruz (6)
Solis uses 3 double plays to counter 6 walks in 6 innings. John Durham (7) Casas (6) Valdes (10) get the ball to Wheeler. David Ledezma went 3-5 with a triple (2) and Ibarbia and Merritt were 2-5, Merritt doubling (4) and stealing his 1st base. Ivan Martinez went 8-11-4-4-3-6 on 133 pitches for the loss.

5/14
ALK 6 EDM 4
W-Buckley (6-2) L-Dicken (2-4) S-Wheeler (11)
HR ALK-Edwards (10) Olson (4) Merritt (1)
Buckley battles through a 6-10-4-2-2-5 outing and Marc Sheppard goes 2-1-0-0-0-3 for the hold (1). Chris Dicken goes 7.1-10-6-3-1-7 in the loss. David Ledezma has his 3rd straight 3-hit game, going 3-5, raising his average to .422. Pete Merritt hits his 1st HR and drives in 3 (5).

MILESTONES-Two guys make their marks.

500 HR CLUB
Curt Whimster 5/14/26 (37 years 356 days)






2000 HIT CLUB
Curt Whimster 8/15/22 (33 years 262 days)
Gerald Wright 7/22/23 (35 years 125 days)
Rich Stone 9/15/23 (32 years 195 days)
Jeffrey Hudson 8/8/25 (32 years 223 days)
Luis Chavez 8/19/25 (30 years 271 days)
Hugh Collins 4/27/26 (36 years 271 days)
Ernesto Garza 5/14/26 (37 years 288 days)

5/15
ALK 4 EDM 2
W-Hall (5-1) L-M.Jones (3-4) S-Casas (2)
HR ALK-Carter (2)
Great pitchers duel, Hall prevails with an 8-4-2-2-1-9 outing, Mike Jones goess 8-8-4-4-1-4. Ash Carters 2 run homer was the winner. Garzia stole his 21st. Hall is now 5-1 2.27.

5/16
ALK 3 EDM 2
W-Drake (4-2) L-Springer (2-5) S-Casas (3)
HR ALK-Olson (5) EDM-Grueter (7)
Drake is sharp in a 7.2-3-1-1-2-8 outing and Casas gives Wheeler 1 more day off going 1.1 to get the save. Pete Merritt goes 3-3 with a double (6) (now hitting .455 since signing). Nick Springer is outstanding as well, going 8-8-3-3-2-5 for the tough luck loss.

5/17
ALK 7 WMI 0
W-C.Durham (6-3) L-MacDonald (3-3)
HR ALK-Ledezma (2) Harrell (7) Covington (1)
Colin Durham needed just 101 pitches to toss a 4-hit shutout, walking none with 5 punch outs. David Ledezma led off the game with a homer and went 2-2 in the 1st 2 innings before turning his ankle and coming out. Bob Harrell was 2-4 with a double (7) home run and 3 RBII's (24)
Ledezma will be DtD for 3-4 days.

WEEK 7 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Ramon Castro (CHI) 17-30 3 HR's 10 RBI's (.389-14-60) (60 RBI's in just 43 games)
CL POTW-Curt Whimster (PIT) 12-28 3 HR's 5 RBI's (.318-6-21)

WEEK 7 POWER RANKINGS
1) Alaska (2)
2) Philadelphia (-)
3) Michigan (1)
4) Pittsburgh (5)
5) Chicago (6)
Corpus Christi (7) Fresno (6)

NEWS/NOTES
That's the 5th career 15+ K game for Bryant Thomas who just surpassed 2000 career strikeouts. Our 1st pick last year, Mike Bowman, was promoted to AA and made his 1st start, going 7.1-5-1-1-3-8 for the win.

[gehrig38]

Cisco Segura (BUF) started the week hitting an even .500, 35+ games into the season....

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 8
RECORD: 3-3
OVERALL: 34-15 +9.5
RUNS SCORED: 254 (22) 8th
RUNS AGAINST: 169 (20) 1st
OWNER/FANS: Happy 84/100 (-1)
SCHEDULE: 2 @ West Michigan/3 @ Providence/Off Day/1 @ Buffalo

5/18
ALK 4 WMI 2
W-Solis (5-2) L-Vargas (1-6) S-Wheeler (12)
HR NONE
Jesus Solis works around early trouble to go 6-5-1-1-0-5 and John Durham (8) Alexander (4) and Valdes (11) hold for Wheelers 12th. Joaquin Vargas is off to a night 1-6 8.19 start. Angel Vargas was 2-3 with an RBI (9) and Kevin Olson drove in 2 (16)

5/19
WMI 7 ALK 4
W-Crow (2-1) L-Buckley (6-3) S-Franklin (10)
HR ALK-Olson (6) Webb (5) WMI-Jongmans (4)
Buckley leaves in the 8th, 4-3, 2 on 0 outs and Casas and Valdes can't hold the lead. Carlos Vargas goes 7.2-8-4-4-2-7 for a ND. Allen Hunter goes 3-4 with a double (10) and 2 RBI's (24) and Lando Jongmans went 2-4 with a homer and 5 RBI's (24) and his 2nd SB.

5/20
ALK 5 PROV 0
W-Hall (6-1) L-Dansen (2-7)
HR ALK-Vargas (4)
Stan Hall tosses another shutout, this time a 2-hitter with 11 K's. Alex Covington walked 3 times, Mauro Ibarbia went 3-5 and Angel Vargas was 3-3 with a double (3) homer and 2 RBI's.

STUFF-Since losing his 2nd start of the year, Stan Hall has made 8 starts. He's 6-0 1.67 with 3 complete games, 3 shutouts and 64.2 IP, 44 hits 72 K's and 10 BB while yielding just 1 home run. For the year he is 6-1 2.02.

5/21
PROV 4 ALK 3 (11)
W-Dailey (6-0) L-Sheppard (2-2)
HR NONE
Drake dominates going 7.1-7-2-2-1-11 but Freddy Valdes gives up a leadoff single and Mike Wheeler a 2 out game tying single to blow the lead. Manny Ramirez doubles (11) and triples (4) before scoring the walk off winner in the 11th. Vincent Daily went 4-3-0-0-0-2 for the win. Ash Carter was 3-5 scoring twice.

5/22
ALK 4 PROV 2
W-C.Durham (7-3) L-Ferguson (2-5) S-Casas (4)
HR PROV-Wood (9)
Combined 3-hitter by Colin Durham 7-3-2-2-1-8 John Durham H(10) and Casas closes. Pete Merritt continues to hit going 3-5 with a double (7) scores twice and steals a base (2).

5/23
Off Day

5/24
BUF 5 ALK 2
W-R.Martinez (4-4) L-Solis (5-3) S-Melendez (11)
HR NONE
A crucial Garcia error leads to 3 unearned runs as Solis goes 5.1-8-4-1-1-3. The bigger news is 2 center fielders going down. Kevin Olson in the 6th on a base running play, and Alex Covington in the 9th on the same. David Ledezma was 3-5 with a double (12)

INJURY NEWS-Olson has a sprained elbow, and is out for at least 2 weeks. IF Duane Long will be recalled, and we'll wait and see on Covington.

WEEK 8 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Christian Wilkins (AZ) 11-27 3 HR's 6 RBI's (.250-6-33)
CL POTW-John Naylor (CC) 9-20 4 HR's 13 RBI's (.309-21-56)

WEEK 8 POWER RANKINGS
1) Alaska (1)
2) Michigan (3)
3) El Paso (-)
4) Chicago (5)
5) New Hampshire (-)
OUT Philadelphia (6) Pittsburgh (9)

NEWS/NOTES
The 15-34 Edmonton Trappers have given manager Phil Cambell his walking papers after just 49 games on the job. They hired him away from Baltimore this past off season. He managed LA 2013-15, helping them to the post season in 2014, and was the bench coach in New York 2015-23, with them making the playoffs 6 straight seasons.

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 9
RECORD: 5-2
OVERALL: 39-17 +11.5
RUNS SCORED: 288 (34) 8th
RUNS AGAINST: 199 (30) 1st
OWNER/FANS: Very Happy 82/100 (-2)
SCHEDULE: 2 @ Buffalo/3 vs New York/2 @ Arizona

5/25
ALK 4 BUF 3
W-Romero (4-2) L-Wheeler (2-2)
HR ALK-Gomez 2 (5)
Gerald Buckley went 8-6-1-1-0-6 and handed a 3-1 lead to Wheeler to start the 9th, 4 hitters later the game was over, a 4-3 loss after Scott Rolens 2 run walk off double. Vincente Romero went the distance in a 9-7-3-3-1-5 outing.

INJURY NEWS-Catcher Matt Edwards strained in intercostal, and is lost for at least a month. Lefty prospect Luke Stover will be recalled.

5/26
BUF 6 ALK 1
W-Henry (4-3) L-Hall (6-2)
HR ALK-Gomez (6) BUF-Dieguez (3) Gill (12)
Hall doesn't have it today (5-9-4-4-2-2) and 24 year old Mike Henry does as he goes 6.1-6-1-1-2-1.

MILETSONES-Stephen Watkins joins the 300 save club.



300 SAVES
Ernesto Cruz 9/15/19 (33 years 310 days)
Julio Gonzales 4/23/20 (32 years 259 days)
Ivan Lopez 4/16/21 (34 years 115 days)
Bill Barlow 8/5/22 (37 years 5 days)
Joe Boswell 6/24/20 (38 years 66 days)
Tom Conklin 7/28/21 (37 years 240 days)
Stephen Watkins 5/26/26 (34 years 139 days)

5/27
ALK 6 NY 1
W-Drake (5-2) L-Kurota (5-5) S-J.Durham (2)
HR NONE
Drake goes 6.2-4-1-1-3-7 and Valdes (13) gets it to Durham who gets a huge DP in the 8th. Angel Varfas goes 3-4 and Pete Merritt 3-3 with 2 RBI's (9) as Garcia steals 2 more (25) and we use a 3 run 8th to open it up.

INJURY NEWS-Alex Covington has a major shoulder injury that will require surgery. Looking at 9-10 months. 27 year old Estefan Ortega is added to the roster and recalled. Tim Harvey is due back in a few days, Olson 1-2 weeks.

5/28
ALK 6 NY 5
W-J.Durham (1-0) L-Bonnet (3-3)
HR NY-Henley (1)
Ortega gets a PH appearance in his 1st IBL game, and delivers a game winning walk off single. Colin Durham left a 4-4 game after an 8-10-4-4-1-8 outing and Valdes and John Durham gave up the lead. PH Ash Carter scored the game winner after his PH single. Edwin Henley was 3-4 with a homer and 4 RBI's (7) in the loss.

5/29
ALK 5 NY 4 (11)
W-Casas (2-0) L-Davis (1-4)
HR NY-Glaus 2 (13) ALK-Harrell (8) McBryde 2 (11)
Down from the beginning we tied it in the 8th, and David Ledezma's walk off single in the 11th won it. Solis went 6-7-4-4-1-4 with Cisco Casas going 3-2-0-0-0-4 in the win. Two guys mired in huge slumps busted out a bit, Bob Harrell going 4-4 with a homer and 2 RBI's (26) and Dirk McBryde (who's gone 6-63 in May (.095)) went 2-3 scoring twice and driving in 2 (24) on 2 home runs. Troy Glaus went 3-5 with 2 homers (13) and 3 RBI's (37).

INJURY NEWS-Duane Long will be unavailable except for emergencies for most of the week as he battles a bad case of the flu.

5/30
ALK 6 AZ 4
W-Buckley (7-3) L-Molina (2-3) S-Wheeler (13)
HR ALK-McBryde (12) AZ-Ortiz (5)
Buckley goes 7-7-4-2-1-3 and Dirk McBryde's 3 run homer in the 8th makes him the winner. McBryde drove in 4 (28) and Pete Merritt went 4-5 with a double (8) and an RBI (10) (now hitting .404) Tim Harvey was 2-5 leading off with a run and a SB (6). Chris Gomez made the error and also had 2 passed balls.

STUFF-Pete Merritt would like to sign an extension, which is nice. Here's the thing, he didn't have a job until we signed him in May, and now he'd like a 6 year 90 million extension? Wait, what? I'll talk, but I don't have the money nor the patience to give a 29 year old player, who has physical issues and wasn't employed when the season started, a lengthy talk about what he thinks he's entitled to.

5/31
ALK 7 AZ 6
W-Hall (7-2) L-Hayes (3-8) S-Wheeler (14)
HR AZ-Boyce (9) Schall (3)
Stan Hall goes 7-3-2-2-1-6 and leaves a 7-3 game, which Alexander, then Wheeler, make a contest, leaving the tying run on 2nd in the 9th with 2 outs. Pete Merritt had his 2nd straight 4 hit game, going 4-4 with a triple (1) and Tim Harvey was 2-5 with a double and 2 RBI's (12).



400 HOME RUN CLUB
Curt Whimster 9/24/21 (33 years 122 days)
Hugh Collins 7/14/24 (34 years 317 days)
Wes Morgan 5/25/24 (35 years 120 days)
Jeffrey Hudson 4/17/26 (33 years 111 days)
Luis Chavez 5/31/26 (31 years 193 days)

WEEK 9 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Asiman Swagat (CHI) 14-25 5 RBI's (.382-0-34)
CL POTW-Curt Whimster (PIT) 12-27 3 HR's 9 RBI's (.324-11-35)

WEEK 9 POWER RANKINGS
1) Alaska
2) Fresno
3) Chicago
4) El Paso
5) Michigan

MINORS
Eagan (2) 35-22 +1 1st Runs against/SP ERA 2nd AVG/SB/BP ERA/Def Eff 3rd HR 4th Runs 5th OBP
Kodiak (5) 35-22 2 GB 2nd HR 3rd AVG 5th Runs/Runs against/BP ERA
Spokane (10) 32-25 +3.5 3rd SB/Def Eff 4th AVG 5th OBP
Yakima (21) 27-30 4 GB 2nd SB

NEWS/NOTES
Castro challenging teammate Luis Chavez's 31 game streak.
Chavez is bucking for a promotion, and it'll need to be considered if Covington is out for any length of time.
El Paso has moved to 2 up on Corpus Christi and 7.5 on both Houston and Tulsa (who were both within 3.5 11 days ago).
Castro's streak is the 5th longest in history, and the only streak of 28 or more games that didn't reach 30.
The Diablos streak ends at 10, but Park moves his streak to 25.
Big injury in Arizona, especially for a team already struggling.
Not sure what two rebuilding teams trading 3B accomplishes, one's younger, one's older...
Montoya is 2 seasons removed from hitting 50 homers, Samudid is a 5 tool guy who can't stay healthy, when he does he makes an impact. Played in 99 games in 2022, 61 in '23 and 109 last year. In 2024 he played in 159 hitting .299-25-118 with 43 doubles 11 triples and 28 stolen bases while scoring 108 runs on 196 hits. Lima, just 20, is a huge power bat signed out of Venezuela in 2022.

[gehrig38]

Stan Hall is having a wonderful season.

[gehrig38]

2026 WEEK 10
RECORD: 4-2
OVERALL: 43-19 +13.5
RUNS SCORED: 317 (29) 10th
RUNS AGAINST: 226 (27) 1st
OWNER/FANS: Very Happy 82/100
SCHEDULE: 2 @ Arizona/Off Day/3 @ Hawaii/1 vs Fresno

6/1
AZ 6 ALK 5
W-Hall (4-3) L-Sheppard (2-3) S-Castle (13)
HR ALK-Harrell (9) Ibarbia (11) AZ-Lopez (11) Schall (4)
Drake tires after a 5-7-3-3-1-4 100 pitch outing and leaves with a 5-3 lead, Marc Sheppard needs just 1 inning to give up 3 runs on 5 hits and lose the game. Harrell and Ibarbia went back to back in the 1st to make it 4-0. Christian Schall went 3-4 with a double (3) homer run and an RBI. Tim Harvey stole 2 bases (8)

6/2
ALK 8 AZ 6
W-C.Durham (8-3) L-Lujan (5-4) S-Wheeler (15)
HR AZ-Wilkins (7) Schall (5)
Schall homers in all 3 games. Durham goes 8 giving up 3 and Valdes comes in to mop up, but can't. Wheeler has to be used to save it. David Ledezma continues his torrid season, going 4-5 with 2 doubles (15) and scoring 3 times while stealing his 4th. Tim Harvey leads off and goes 3-5 with a double (5) and scores twice. Ibarbia drives in 3 (39) and Gomez stays hot in Edwards absence, going 3-5.

STUFF-Something needs to be done with regards to Valdes. I have moved prospect Bill Caldwell into the AAA pen since he's a lefty, and was actually going to call him up, but Valdez is out of options, and shopping him netted me nothing. I've extended minor league offers to three lefties, all veterans, and will see what happens.

6/3
Off Day Stan Park's streak ends at 27 games.

6/4
HAW 8 ALK 4
W-Butler (4-3) L-Solis (5-4)
HR HAW-Riario (8) Hamilton (5)
Solis stinks again, giving up 6 runs on 7 hits in just 3 innings. Sheppard takes one for the team, giving up 2 on 7 hits over the next 3. Rafael Salas goes 3-5 with a SB (5) and our old friend Eric Coates goes 3-4 with 3 RBI's (9). Garcia goes 3-4 and Tim Harvey steals 2 (10) in the loss. Pete Butler goes 7.1-10-4-4-4-5 for the W.

6/5
ALK 5 HAW 3
W-Buckley (8-3) L-Jones (1-2) S-Wheeler (16)
HR ALK-Stover (1)
Gerald Buckley gave up 3 early, Luke Stovers 1st IBL homer tied it up in the 6th and David Petersons tie breaking 2 run single in the 8th won it. Buckley had another very sollid outing, going 7-8-3-3-0-3 on 106 pitches. John Durham (11) Casas (8) held for Wheeler. Valdes came in to face the lefty (Eric Coates) and gave up a hit. Vincente Castillo went 7-4-3-3-5-3 in the no-decision. Galimberto Riario went 3-5 with a double (11) And Alfonso Soriano was 3-4 with 2 RBI's (23).

6/6
ALK 3 HAW 1
W-Hall (8-2) L-Montgomery (6-6)
HR HAW-Soriano (5)
Alfonso Soriano homered with 2 strikes and 2 outs in the 9th to thwart Stan Hall's shutout effort. Hall completed the game, going 9-4-1-1-1-12 for his 8th win and the 7th start this year in which he's gone 7 or more and surrendered 5 or fewer hits. It's also the 6th start he's giving up 1 or fewer earned runs. He raised his league leading K total to 108 and lowered his league leading ERA to 2.22.

6/7
ALK 4 FRE 3
W-Valdes (1-0) L-R.Cruz (3-3)
HR ALK-Harrell (10) McBryde WO (13)
Bob Harrell's solo shot in the 8th tied it and Dirk McBrydes solo shot in the bottom of the 9th won it as John Drake threw 8 outstanding innings (8-4-3-3-0-3) and Freddy Valdes got a huge double play in the 9th. Pete Merritt was 2-4 with a double (9) and Harvey (11) Garcia (26) and Mario Ibarbia (12) stole a base. Jerry Bond was 2-4 with a double (12) and 3 RBI's (32), and he hit into the 4-6-3 inning ending DP in the 9th.

WEEK 10 SUMMARY
FL POTW-Jesus Reyes (MICH) 10-24 5 HR's 11 RBI's (.295-13-38)
CL POTW-Diogo Ameixieira (TUL) 19-30 4 HR's 10 RBI's (.380-13-39)

WEEK 10 POWER RANKINGS
1) Alaska (1)
2) Chicago (3)
3) El Paso (4)
4) Michigan (5)
5) Fresno (2)

MINORS
Eagan (1 +1) 40-23 +3 1st Runs against/SP ERA 2nd AVG 3rd HR/SB/BP ERA 4th Runs/OBP/Def Eff
Kodiak (4 +1) 39-24 2 GB 2nd HR 3rd AVG 4th Runs against 5th Runs/BP ERA
Spokane (9 +1) 32-25 +4.5 2nd Def Eff 3rd SB 4th AVG 5th OBP
Yakima (22 -1) 29-34 5 GB 3rd SB

NEWS/NOTES
Coleman, now of San Antonio, is a big time defensive guy, one of the better gloves, and arms, in the game. Kijani is a pretty big prospect too.

As for the Baltimore Philly trade? I don't have the 1st clue what Baltimore could possibly be thinking on this one. Juan Garcia is a nice player, decent bat, decent guy, not much defensively but plays 1st, 2nd and 3rd. More a 5 hitter than anything, but to give up the #2 prospect in the game? When you're in last place? Garcia is signed for 5 more years too, and maybe they feel like he's a piece and they're going to contend sooner rather than later?

22 year old T.J. Miller is a major reason for the Diablo's resurgence, tossing his 1st career IBL shutout and his 3rd CG of the season. He was their 4th round pick out of HS (122nd overall) in 2022.

Tamura entered the league as a free agent from Japan in 2022, and has won the gold glove at 3B every year in the league. He's in the final year of his deal, as is Bond, both huge power bats. Almost a straight up swap until you look at the 5 year age difference and the fact that if both become free agents the Yankees just got a 5 star closing prospect for a few months of swapped clean up hitters. This is the 3rd time in 6 months Kijani has been dealt, the second time in the past week. Fresno had just acquired him, along with P Harris Witheycombe, from San Antonio for C Albert Coleman.

Allen Hunter was the 2021 Frontier League Rookie of the Year.

The Battle injury has sparked rumors that Fresno may sign star free agent, and still unemployed Raul Carmona. Coming off a 40 homer 117 RBI season Carmona and his agent priced themselves out of a buyers market to the point he remains unsigned. Fresno has a 6 game lead on Sacramento right now, and is 13th in home runs, 10th in OBP and 11th in both runs and average. These rumors come the day we begin hosting Fresno in a 3 game interleague series.

Carlos Hernandez is starting to heat up at AAA Eagan. If an injury, or someone to take on Solis' contract is found, he'll be called up.