Danger!

[Mr. Baseball]

Injury Bug Has No Mercy -- Pollard Out
May 21st, 1991



It was bound to happen sometime. The injury bug has officially struck the Danger for the first time in the 1991 season, with the victim this time being catcher Denver Pollard. The sophomore sensation, drafted in the 1st round of the 1989 draft out of Michigan, suffered a shoulder injury during a home-plate collision in Game 1 of a three-game set against the Lake Monsters. The stud catcher had been a very large part of Duluth's early success this season, batting .344 with 2 HR and 22 RBI. The 24 year-old is expected to miss four weeks.

During his absence, backup catcher Don Lindsay will take his place as the starter. Lindsay is 12-for-36 thus far in 1991 with no homers and 5 RBI. This will be Lindsay's first real opportunity in the HBL, having spent four seasons as the backup and third string catcher in Jefferson City prior to being signed by the Danger as a free agent this off season.

Pollard will be temporarily replaced on the active roster by Ron Clark, a catcher claimed off waivers from Bay City earlier this season. Clark will be making his professional debut at age 31 after nearly ten seasons in the minor leagues.

[Mr. Baseball]

Danger Recap: May 1991



Duluth improved significantly in the month of May, going from a 13-12 record in April to a 16-12 record for this month. Nevertheless, despite more productive play, the Danger still slipped in the standings. On the final day of April, Duluth was just 1 1/2 games behind Bay City for the division lead, now four games out. Oshkosh has also managed to surpass the Danger by one game with South Bend chasing our tails in fourth place.

The biggest concern for Duluth in the month of April was undoubtedly the starting rotation. Though the group did improve, at least moderately, they're still not playing up to their high expectations. Although Steven Hembrow and Robert Snyder kept their ERA's below 4.00 in May, Pedro Lopez and Alfred Warren were both over 6.00, with Warren allowing 31 runs in just over 33 innings of work. Fans have suggested that the organization demote Warren, but management remains confident in his ability to pitch. Furthermore, the Danger have essentially no pitching depth in the minor leagues. Once you get past our fifth man in the rotation (Logan Gleeson), there is nobody worthy of pitching for any team in the HBL. Lack of rotational depth is an issue the front office as tried to address the last two years, with limited success.

The bullpen continues to be extremely productive, posting the lowest ERA of any club in the North. Closer Tom Simmons has a 1.73 ERA so far complimented by an extremely high strikeout rate and 1.00 WHIP. Nevertheless, Simmons has blown two of nine save opportunities thus far in 1991. The brightest spot in the bullpen though is John Henson. Henson has pitched in 21.0 innings this year and has only allowed one earned run.

As for the offensive production, it remains extremely high. Duluth leads the entire HBL in both batting average and on-base percentage, with five starters having batting averages above .330. Despite having plenty of runners on base, the Danger are failing to drive them home, ranking just 4th in the North in runs scored. Much of this can be attributed to a lack of run-producers. Michael Sanders is one of the most powerful hitters the North League has to offer, but past Sanders, there isn't anybody on the roster that has proven capable of being hitting 30 homers and driving in over 100 runs.

May Batting:


May Pitching:


Top 100 Prospect Watch:


#44 Prospect: OF Leonard Reid
Reid was called up to Triple-A at the start of May and has thus far been very productive. In 96 at-bats, Reid is batting .302 with a .424 OBP. He is the only Top 100 Prospect on the Duluth roster after the organization traded away all their minor league talent for immediate help the last few seasons.

Injury Report:
C Denver Pollard - As I mentioned in my last update, Pollard was injured in a home-plate collision against Bay City. He should return in two weeks, which will be MUCH appreciated given his production prior to his injury.

[Mr. Baseball]

North Monthly Awards: May 1991

Batter Of The Month:


1B Mitchell Hilton (Bay City)
After a slow start in April with just four home runs, Hilton rebounded with 12 homers and 31 RBI to go along with 22 RS and a .308 batting average for the month of May. Though he likely won't be repeating his Triple Crown in 1991 (HBL hitters have gone berserk thus far), he may have a case for another Hitter Of The Year honor. Hilton has now earned five Batter Of The Month titles in his career.

Pitcher Of The Month + Rookie Of The Month


SP Ron Husted (Rochester)
Rochester top prospect and former 1st overall draft pick back in 1989 completed the double honor this month by being awarded both the Rookie Of The Month and Pitcher Of The Month titles. Husted began the season in Triple-A where he made four unimpressive starts before being called upon by Robert Dyck (GM of the Reapers). He sure can't be disappointed about his performance so far! Husted was 5-0 this month, striking out 23 in 47.2 innings and allowing a 2.45 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. As of June 1st, the Reapers are just three games under .500, which is a huge step in the right direction for an organization that has never experienced success.

South Monthly Awards: May 1991

Batter Of The Month:

OF Elvin James (Evansville)
The South League batting leader had a huge month, compiling 40 hits in 94 at bats for a .426 average, hitting 10 home runs, driving in 18, and scoring 28 times. This is his second batter of the month award, with his last coming in August of 1990.

Pitcher Of The Month:

SP Bruce McIntyre (Poplar Bluff)
Although the Predators rotation has been filled with disappointment and under-performance this year, Bruce McIntyre managed to pick up the pace in May and really stuck it to South Batters. Bruce was a perfect 4-0 this month with a 3.35 ERA, and 9.00 K/9 ratio. This is the first time in McIntyre's career that he's won the pitcher of the month award, despite two all-star appearances.

Rookie Of The Month:

RF Nick Boyd (Springfield)
For the second consecutive month a Springfield player has won the rookie of the month honors in the South. This is a good sign for the Storm! This time it's outfielder Nick Boyd, a 25 year-old drafted in the 3rd round of the 1988 draft. Boyd batted .364 this month with 36 hits, 4 HR, and 20 RBI. That's a big step up from April when he batted just .218 in 87 at-bats. Boyd's month was highlighted by a May 5th performance in Rochester where he went 4-for-4.