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Old 04-27-2019, 09:52 PM   #141
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August 4-6, 1972, versus Portland

The Brewers return to Centennial Stadium for a 10-game home stand starting with 3 against the last place Portland Wild Things.

Game 1 was an absolute heart-breaker. The Brewers and Wild Things fought to a 2-2 tie after 7 innings. Then Portland scored a go-ahead run in the 8th inning on a solo HR off Eric Singer. The Brewers bounced back with 2 runs of their own in the bottom of the inning thanks to a 2-run HR by Bobby Erbakan (.275/.345/.389), who went 2 for 4 in the game while driving in 3 runs. The HR was his 6th of the season. Singer stayed in the game to try to get the save in the 9th but after getting the first batter to ground out, he was victimized by an Antonio Puente error on what should have been the second out of the inning and then gave up a single and was pulled for stopper Jose de los Santos. He did not have a good outing. He got the first batter he faced but then gave up 2 singles and 2 walks as the Wild Things plated 3 runs. Kevin Curtis (.190/.326/.321) hit his 4th HR with 1 out in the bottom of the 9th but that was the most the Brewers could muster as they lost 6-5.

The Brewers got their first win of August in the middle game of the series with an extra inning win thanks largely to a great start by Cheol-han Lee, some wonderful bullpen work, and the bat of Pat Rondeau. Rondeau (.288/.308/.363) went 3 for 5 in the game but his biggest hit was a two-out game-winning triple in the bottom of the 12th inning, scoring Bobby Erbakan who had earned a two-out base on balls. Jordan Stephens, the last of 3 relievers to pitch in the game for Denver, got the win and improves to 2-0 with a 1.04 ERA. Cheol-han Lee did not get the decision but struck out 11 batters while walking just 1 and giving up 5 hits and 1 unearned run in 8 innings pitched. His ERA drops to 2.09.

The Brewers get the series win by taking game 3 by a score of 6-3. Kevin Curtis (.196/.328/.338) was named Player of the Game as he went 2 for 4 with 5 RBI and hit a big 3-run HR to give the Brewers a 4-0 lead in the 2nd inning. It was Curtis 2nd HR in his past 2 games played and his 5th of the season. Harry Lyerly got the start and the win, striking out 11 and walking just 1 but also giving up 3 runs on 6 hits in 7 2/3rds innings. Lyerly improves to 10-5 with a 2.71 ERA. Lyerly also went 2 for 3 at the plate. Jaden Francis gets his first save of the season and now has an ERA of 3.38.
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Old 04-29-2019, 01:39 AM   #142
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WPK Franchise Report: the Columbus Whalers (SJL)

History/Overview: The Columbus Whalers are second only to the Jacksonville Wolf Pack in team winning percentage in WPK history (your Brewers are 3rd.) Columbus has a .563 winning percentage and has twice won both the SJL pennant and the WPK Championship (1968-1969.) They currently have taken over 1st place in the SJL this season as well. They finished in 8th place in the league's first season (1965) but since then they have never finished below .500, although they did finish as low as 5th place once since (1967.) Columbus ranks as an above average market in the WPK and the Whalers fan base is also thought of as above average in terms of loyalty. Currently though, even with the team in 1st place, fan interest is only good but certainly not as high as it should probably be. The Whalers are blessed with having an owner who is lenient, charitable, and hands-off. His priority is profit and some suspect he might not always inspire the management team to get the most out of the team in terms of winning. But mostly he is reportedly a pleasure to work for.

The Park: Starting this season, the Whalers play at Huntington Park, which holds a maximum of 38,500 fans, which does make it one of the smallest parks in the league. Huntington seems to favor hitters a bit more than pitchers, and is particularly friendly to left-handed hitters.

The Face of the Franchise: While center fielder Brad Tesh may be the most popular Whaler among local fans, starting pitcher Jake Harris is almost surely to be the first WPK Hall-of-Famer representing the franchise. Along with the Brewers Cheol-han Lee and the San Antonio Keys Chris Hernandez, Harris is arguably one of the three best starting pitchers of his generation. He is a 2-time Pitcher of the Year, a 7-time All-Star, and has a career win-loss record of 139-58 with an astounding career ERA of 2.27. At age 33, Harris is showing no signs of slowing down as he is 12-4 with a 2.22 ERA this season. He has led the league in wins 4 times, in ERA once, and in WAR twice. And unlike Lee and Hernandez, Harris has pitched his entire career for the same team and, as he is under contract through the 1976 season, may well never pitch in another uniform.

Greatest former player: Most of the great Whalers in the short history of the franchise thus far still play their home games in Columbus. But right fielder Ricky Salinas, who is now a member of the Jacksonville Wolf Pack, is the career leader in batting average for Columbus (.297) and among the career leaders in several other offensive categories. Salinas played his first 6 seasons as a Whaler and collected 2 Gold Gloves as a member of the team. He was also an important member of both championship teams for Columbus and indeed was the MVP of the 1969 World Series.
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Old 05-01-2019, 12:26 AM   #143
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August 7-9, 1972, versus Detroit

The Brewers next take on the 9th place Detroit Falcons.

The four-game series starts with a Monday double-header.
The Brewers get a narrow 2-1 victory in the opening game behind a very fine performance by veteran lefty Daniel Torres, who allows just 1 run on 6 hits in 6 1/3rd innings pitched, striking out 7 and walking 1. Left fielder Ryan Rodgers (.316/.414/.368) paces the offense with a 2 for 3, 1 RBI game and gets a huge outfield assist, throwing out Falcons third baseman Eddie Siegmund at home plate to end the 4th inning. Eric Singer works the last 2 innings to get the save, his 2nd (3.15 ERA.)

A fine performance by starter Steve Green (7 IP, 2 R, 1 ER, 5 HA, 9 K, 2 BB) and a great game at the plate by rookie Joe McPhillips lead the Brewers to a 5-2 victory in the night cap. McPhillips (.228/.326/.374) went 3 for 4, scoring 2 runs and driving in 1, hitting his 11th double and 5th HR of the season. Green improves to 7-6 with a 3.05 ERA. Another rookie, Mike Foster (.276/.306/.366) also homered, his 3rd, while going 2 for 3 and driving in 3 runs.

A disastrous 6-run 3rd inning against Brewers starter Matt Helm proved to be too much for the home team to overcome in game 3 and they lost 7-5. Helm lasted just 4 1/3rd innings, giving up the 6 runs (4 earned) on 9 hits, while striking out 5 and walking 2. Helm drops to 4-5 with a 2.67 ERA. The Brewers fought to climb back into the game behind some good hitting by Bobby Erbakan (.271/.342/.381), who went 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored and 1 RBI, Andrew Kennedy (.289/.320/.380), who was 3 for 4 and hit his 22nd double, and Joe McPhillips, who hit a monster solo HR in the 8th inning to get the Brewers within 2 runs of the Falcons. But in the end they fell short.

And in the final game of the series the Falcons lefty ace, Colby Muir, handcuffed the Brewers hitters to get a 5-0 victory (with a little help from his bullpen.) The Brewers manage only a single hit in the game (an Andrew Kennedy single) along with a pair of walks drawn by Ryan Rodgers. Erik Sloan, meanwhile, gives up 5 runs (3 earned) over 7 innings pitched to get take the loss (he did strike out 8 while only walking 1.) Sloan falls to 3-3 with a 1.85 ERA with Denver and 11-6, 2.05 for the season.

Having to settle for a series split after such a promising start was a blow for the team, especially at home, and they remain 8 1/2 games behind the first place Charlotte Sting, still in 3rd place.
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Old 05-01-2019, 12:56 AM   #144
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Wolf Pack lose veteran lefty Diaz for rest of season

Tough blow today for the Jacksonville Wolf Pack, who are currently in 3rd place in the SJL, 2 1/2 games off the pace.
Veteran left-handed starter Ricky Diaz, who was having a fine season, suffered a season-ending elbow injury and will need elbow ligament reconstruction surgery which is expected to keep him out of commission for up to a year. Given that he turned 38 recently it is questionable how much of a career he has left after such a serious injury.

(Diaz was briefly a Brewer back in 1967 when he started 15 games in Brewers purple, going 5-3 with a 2.74 ERA.)
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Old 05-02-2019, 12:12 AM   #145
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August 11-13, 1972, versus Baltimore

The home stand concludes with a 3-game series against the 7th place Baltimore Lords.

Sometimes one of those games comes along where all cylinders are firing for your team and you have to wonder what it would look like if they could just put it together like this more consistently. Game 1 of this series was just such a game for the Brewers. Great pitching? Check. Cheol-han Lee pitched a complete game, 2-hit shutout, striking out 8 while walking 4. Great hitting? Check. The Brewers collected 19 hits in the game, including 4 doubles, turning that into 9 runs. Some speed on the bases? Check. Pat Rondeau picked up his 13th stolen base. Defense? Well, in addition to the usual great range at most every position, Pat Rondeau, playing center field, threw out a runner at third base. Lee improves to 12-5 on the season and sees his ERA drop to 1.99. Every batter in the Brewers starting lineup had at least one hit, including Lee who singled twice, scored a run and drove one in as well. Four Brewers batters collected 3 apiece in the game: Chad Brown (.303/.328/.402), Pat Rondeau (.287/.305/.357), Bobby Erbakan (.273/.345/.381), and Andrew Kennedy (.294/.324/.388). Chad Brown hit his 27th double, Andrew Kennedy hit 2 to get to 24 on the season, and Mike Foster hit his 2nd.
Brewers win game 1, 9-0.

Game 2 was much the same- Brewers winning 8-2. Harry Lyerly got the start, and the win, as he allowed 2 runs on 4 hits in 7 1/3rd innings pitched. Lyerly struggled with his control a bit, walking 6 batters but he also struck out 9. With the win he improves to 11-5 with a 2.69 ERA. Antonio Puente (.209/.306/.342) came through big for the home side as he went 3 for 4 with 2 HR's and 5 RBI. Andrew Kennedy (.299/.329/.392) stays red-hot at the plate as he went 3 for 4 with 3 runs scored. Bobby Erbakan (.275/.346/.390) chipped in with a 2 for 4, 2 run, 1 HR game (his 7th HR.)

The final game of the series required a bit more drama. The Brewers are out-hit by the Lords 12-8 and enter the bottom of the 9th trailing 5-2. Then they really got to work. Kevin Curtis (.188/.323/.322) walked to start the inning. Andrew Kennedy (.299/.331/.392) came in to pinch hit for pitcher Dave Duncan. And he walked. Chad Brown then struck out for the first out of the inning. (After striking out only 11 times the entire 1971 season, Chad has now struck out 30 times in 1972.) But then the recently torrid Pat Rondeau (.291/.311/.360) singled, loading the bases. Ryan Rodgers (.313/.415/.361) followed with a single of his own, driving in Curtis and re-filling the bases. Antonio Puente (.211/.313/.343) then walked in a run. With 1 out and the bases loaded the Brewers now trail 6-4. The Lords bring in a new pitcher, John Velasco, who has great stuff but questionable control. Bobby Erbakan is up. Perfect time for the young budding superstar to come up with the big game-winning hit. Nope. Erbakan strikes out. Last chance, Oscar Vargas, who came into the game as a defensive replacement at third base to begin the 9th, when the score was still 5-2, comes to the plate. With a slash line of .203/.257/.278 he is one of the weakest hitters on the club. It is decided to let him hit anyway. And after working to a 3-2 count, Vargas slashes a line drive to the opposite (right) field. The speedy Pat Rondeau scores easily. Ryan Rodgers rounds third and heads for home. He makes it, easily. And the team comes out to mob Vargas, the ultimate hero of the game.

The Brewers get an exciting sweep of the Lords before heading out on the road for a 13 games in 13 days stretch (after a day off for travel.) That's the good news. The bad news is that the Charlotte Sting are also playing well and the Brewers remain 9 games off the pace.
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Old 05-02-2019, 12:26 AM   #146
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The Denver Brewers and the K

Let's talk about strikeouts.
Let's talk about the Denver Brewers pitching staff and strikeouts, in particular.
Although the team pitching coach specializes in working with groundball pitchers and the Brewers have some fine groundballers who, in conjunction with a great middle infield, get plenty of double play balls, the real strength of the staff is getting opponents out without them making any fair territory contact at all.

The Brewers have struck out 963 batters this season. The next best in the MGL is Charlotte with 837. The best total in the SJL? Jacksonville at 861. So, not that I need to do the math for you, but that means the Brewers pitching staff has recorded 100 more K's than the next best staff (in this category) in all of the WPK. Likely one of the good reasons the Brewers staff leads the MGL in FIP at 2.45.
Meanwhile, Brewers hitters are pretty good at avoiding the whiff as they rank at 3rd best in the MGL in avoiding being struck out.
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Old 05-03-2019, 12:23 AM   #147
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August 15-17, 1972, at Portland

To begin their long road-trip, the Brewers fly to Portland to take on the last place Wild Things for 3 games.

The Brewers extend their winning streak to 4 games behind the pitching of Erik Sloan as they win 5-1 in game 1 of the series. Sloan gets the complete game win, allowing the single run on just 4 hits while striking out 7 and walking 1. He improves to 4-3 with a 1.75 ERA for Denver and 12-6 with a 2.00 ERA for the season. Chad Brown (.298/.322/.394) paces the offense with a 2 for 5 game, scoring a run and driving in another. He also picks up his 21st stolen base, 3rd most in the MGL.

The winning streak comes to an end in game 2 as Portland starter Orlando Vidal, in the midst of a nice rookie campaign, shuts out the Brewers on 5 hits. Vidal was the Wild Things first round draft pick (5th overall) in the 1971 draft. In this game he out-dueled likely future Hall-of-Famer Cheol-han Lee for the 2-0 victory. Lee also went the distance, allowing the 2 runs on 5 hits, striking out 8 and walking none. He drops to 12-6 with a 2.00 ERA. (Yes, that's right- Lee and Sloan now have not only identical records, but identical ERA's as well. Spooky.) Jonathan Koch (.233/.265/.359), who went 2 for 4 the day before, fared best against Vidal with a 2 for 3 day at the plate and his first stolen base of the season. Chad Brown hit his 28th double of 1972 in the loss. Brown is 2nd in the MGL in doubles and batting average, in both cases trailing Brooklyn's Felix Lopez by a good margin.

In the game 3 rubber match the Brewers carry a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the 7th inning. And then the wheels fall off. Harry Lyerly, who was pitching a shutout in spite of some control issues, sees the first batter he faces in the bottom of the 7th reach on a error by Chad Brown. He then strikes out the next batter. The opposing pitcher is up next and Lyerly inexplicably walks him. After giving up a run-scoring single to the next batter, Lyerly is lifted for reliever Jaden Francis. The Brewers still lead 2-1 at this point. But not for long. Francis gives up another single which loads the bases. Then gets the very dangerous Chris Tobin to fly out to center, not deep enough to advance any runners. Almost out of the jam with the lead preserved. But a 2-out single scores 2 runs. The lead is gone as is Francis, though not before walking the bases loaded again. Liann-wei Hua comes in to face a tough lefty in Jay Ebersole. And allows a single scoring 2 more runs. And, well, you get the picture. Before the final out was recorded the Wild Things had scored 6 times.The Brewers lose the game 6-2 and drop 2 of 3 in the series. Lyerly falls to 11-6 though his ERA also drops, having not allowed any earned runs, and is now 2.59. He struck out 5 but also walked 5, though he only gave up 4 hits in his 6 1/3rd innings pitched. Although only scoring 2 runs, the Brewers managed to collect 4 doubles in their 8 hits on the evening. Andrew Kennedy collects double #25, Kevin Curtis #16, Jonathan Koch #12, and Mike Foster (.277/.304/.365), who went 2 for 3 in the game, gets his 3rd double of 1972.

With the series loss the Brewers once again fall behind the suddenly again hot Charlotte Sting by double digits (10 games behind.) With September no longer that far away it is looking more and more like the Brewers will not be able to catch the front-runners to earn their 4th straight MGL pennant.
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Old 05-03-2019, 01:13 AM   #148
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First round draft pick progress report: 1965

One of the many things I like to monitor about the WPK is the progress of players chosen in the first rounds of the annual amateur draft.
I keep spreadsheets to track every player chosen with one of the first 20 picks- the first round proper at this point of league development, not counting any players chosen in the supplemental first round.

And I will henceforth periodically provide updates on how these players have fared.

Let's start today with the very first amateur draft held in the WPK, which occurred during the inaugural 1965 season.

An overview: Three of the first five players chosen in the 1965 draft were starting pitchers. And the last nine players in the round were also staring pitchers. Altogether, 15 of the 20 players chosen were starting pitchers. Though, admittedly, some of these players, like the Brewers own Jaden Francis, become relief pitchers while still in the minors. Two other pitchers were chosen as relief pitchers. Leaving just three position players: 2 center fielders and 1 shortstop.
Of the 20 players chosen in the first round of the 1965 draft, 2 retired from professional baseball having never made it to the majors (More on that below.) Two others have made it as high as AAA but have not yet played at the WPK level. Of the remainder most have had marginal impacts at the big league level thus far, with a few exceptions.


The Stars: The two primary exceptions are two of the three position players. Almost certainly the biggest star of the class thus far is Seattle Alligator shortstop Mike Silveira. Silveira is in his 4th big league season and is already a 4-time All-Star and won the Silver Slugger award last season. He hit over .300 his first three seasons but is having a bit of down year in 1972 with a slash line currently at .243/.288/.361. He is a well-above average defender with great speed and excellent gap power (he led the league in triples in 1971 with 16.) At 25 years of age, he should have many fine seasons ahead of him. Silveira was chosen 10th overall.

The other star thus far is Jacksonville first baseman Hector Alvares. Alvares is a one-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner in right field. (Alvares really should be in the outfield, but currently is blocked by Ricky Salinas in right field, Greg Koenig in center, and Kurt Penn, the weak link, in left.) In the 1971 season he led the league in both runs scored and walks. He has been a regular starter since 1970 but has played at least part of seasons in the WPK since 1967. Alvares is a speedy player who likely will find himself in the outfield once again in the future as his talents are really being wasted at first. Alvares was the 5th pick overall in the 1965 draft.

The Busts: Rich Sharpe was chosen by the Baltimore Lords with the 12th pick of the 1965 draft. While he was selected as a starting pitcher he also played first base a bit when not on the mound. Although he put up some decent numbers as a pitcher in his age 21 season in A ball, he never made it to his age 22 season. He was released by the Lords in April of 1969 and quietly retired from baseball in the Autumn of that same year. He was a 1-time All-Star at the minor league level but could never develop the control needed to become a big league hurler.

Lefty Ivan Figueredo, chosen with the 14th pick by the Detroit Falcons, lasted a bit longer but also never made it above AA before retiring at the end of the 1971 season. He suffered a series of mostly not very serious injuries over his minor league career which may have contributed to his inability to fulfill his early promise. Oddly, for a pitcher not known for his skills at the plate, his biggest accomplishment in his minor league career was a 5-hit, 3-RBI game in the Rookie League on July 5th, 1967.

One to watch: Starting pitcher Gibson Fiedler of the San Francisco Velocity, chosen with the 19th pick, has been trending in the right direction and has the best big league WAR thus far among the pitchers chosen in the first round of this draft. Fielder has been a full-time starter since 1970 and pitched out of the bullpen for parts of the two seasons prior to that at the WPK level. He was in his first All-Star game earlier this season and is putting up great numbers in 1972. On the other hand, many fear he may prove to be too fragile for an extended big league career and he also has a reputation as a selfish player.

As alluded to above, the Brewers pick in this draft was Jaden Francis, chosen originally as a starting pitcher but now a member of the Brewers bullpen, off and on, since 1968. Jaden was chosen 16th overall in the 1965 draft. He is not a star but with his excellent curve ball and solidly above average stuff, movement, and control he should be a valuable member of the pen for the foreseeable future.
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Old 05-04-2019, 12:36 PM   #149
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August 18-20, 1972, at Detroit

In the first game of 3-game set at Detroit, veteran lefty Daniel Torres pitches a good game but the Brewers offense fail to score even once and they lose 2-0. Torres worked 7 innings, giving up 1 run on just 3 hits. He falls to 6-6 with a 3.39 ERA. Rookie third baseman Mike Foster (.282/.309/.368) gets half of the Brewers hits in the game, going 2 for 4.

The Brewers hold on to an early lead to get a narrow 4-3 victory in the middle game of the series. Steve Green gets the win with a 7 inning, 3 runs allowed (but none earned), 5 hits allowed, 6 strikeout and 3 walks allowed performance. Green improves to 8-6 with a 2.96 ERA. Bobby Erbakan (.275/.347/.386) led the Brewers offense with a 3 for 4, 3 RBI game, hitting his 22nd double. Jose de los Santos picked up his 15th save of the season (1.84 ERA.)

In the rubber match, the Brewers took a 5-1 lead into the bottom of the 8th with lefty ace Erik Sloan on the mound. A series win seemed nearly assured. And then disaster struck. Sloan allowed a pair of singles to start the inning. Then he got the dangerous Shawn Hanl to fly out harmlessly to right field. The next batter, however, also singled, loading the bases. Sloan's night was done and long-time Brewers closer Miguel Solis came in to put out the fire. He would face the Falcons power-hitting first baseman Nate Kuykendall first. His first pitch to Kukendall was a ball. The second pitch wasn't. With an exit velocity of 106.3 mph it sailed into the left field stands for a Grand Slam. Game tied, 5-5. Solis limps off the field with a pulled hamstring. Perhaps he moved a bit too quickly to turn around and watch that one leave the yard? Dave Duncan comes in and gets the final two outs to preserve the tie. But the momentum has clearly shifted.
In the bottom of the 9th Duncan strikes out the first batter he faces, but then allows a double to the next batter. On a 2-2 count to pinch-hitter James Watson, Duncan uncorks a wild pitch. Runner to third. Duncan throws a ball to the next batter. And then. Another wild pitch. Game over.

With the series loss the Brewers drop to 10 1/2 games behind the first place Sting. While they hold onto 3rd place for now, the Los Angeles Spinners are gaining ground and are 3 games behind Denver in 4th place. The Phoenix Speed Devils, meanwhile, are once again slumping and while they are tied with the San Francisco Velocity for 5th place, at 4 games under .500 and 19 games off the pace any hopes for a first place finish are basically extinguished at this point for the pre-season favorites.
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Old 05-04-2019, 12:48 PM   #150
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Koch lost for at least a month, Dube promoted from AAA

The Brewers might need to prioritize pre-game stretches a big more as in the same game in which reliever Miguel Solis exits with a mild hamstring strain (only expected to be out of commission for a day), rookie second baseman Jonathan Koch suffers a more serious hamstring strain which will keep him out of action for a least a month, according to the training staff.

Koch is placed on the 10-day injured list and long-time Brewer farmhand Ian Dube (selected by the team in the 4th round of the 1967 draft) is promoted to the big league club for the first time. Dube won't bring the defensive excellence to the position that Koch does, but he's quite acceptable in the field. As a hitter Dube is a borderline big leaguer. On the plus side, Dube has a great clubhouse reputation and is heralded for both his baseball smarts and his strong work ethic. As a left-handed hitter Dube will likely split time at second with veteran utility infielder Oscar Vargas.
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Old 05-04-2019, 03:32 PM   #151
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Foster hits for cycle!

In what is proving to be a really fine rookie season for third baseman Mike Foster, new heights were reached today.
With a double in the second inning, a home run in the fourth, a single in the sixth, and a 2-run scoring triple in the eighth, Mike Foster hit for the cycle. It was just the 8th cycle in WPK history and the very first for a Brewer. For good measure Foster also hit a second double in the 9th inning to go 5 for 5 on the day. The pair of doubles gives him 6 for the season. It was his 4th HR and his 3rd triple.

Foster now has a slash line of .310/.332/.440 in his 196 plate appearances. He has performed solidly in the field. He is sixth on the team in WAR among position players, with more than 100 fewer PA's than everyone ahead of him on the list.

If he can keep this up he is most surely going to be the Brewers starting third baseman for years to come.
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Old 05-04-2019, 05:44 PM   #152
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August 21-23, 1972, at Baltimore

A trip to a good hitters park- Baltimore's Community Stadium- certainly helped wake up the Brewers bats.

In game 1 the offense, led by Pat Rondeau (.286/.311/.352) who went 3 for 4 with 2 RBI and Mike Foster (.291/.316/.389), who also went 3 for 4, scoring 2 runs and hitting his 4th double and 2nd triple of the season, put up 8 runs in game 1 to get an 8-3 victory. Cheol-han Lee went 7 innings, giving up 3 runs on 10 hits, got the victory to improve to 13-6 with a 2.06 ERA.

The Brewers and Lords were tied 3-3 going into the bottom of the 9th in game 2 but reliever Jaden Francis gave up a lead-off single, threw a wild pitch to send the runner to second, got a fly out to deep right-center that advanced the runner to third and then surrendered a two-out, game-ending single. Harry Lyerly got the start for Denver, giving up 3 runs on 8 hits in 7 innings pitched and earned a no-decision. Bobby Erbakan (.275/.346/.390) went 2 for 5 with 3 RBI and hit his 8th HR in the loss.

The bats were booming again in the rubber match, led, as earlier reported, by Mike Foster's 5 for 5, cycle-hitting performance. Also notable is that second baseman Ian Dube, playing in his first big league game, went 3 for 5 and drove in 3 runs. Dube's very first big league at-bat resulted in a run scoring single. A good way to start his big league career. Bobby Erbakan had only 1 hit in the game but it was a massive 3rd inning HR. Matt Helm had a fine start, working 7 1/3rd innings while allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on just 3 hits, striking out 9 and walking 2. Helm improves to 5-5 with a 2.66 ERA. Dave Duncan gets his 2nd save of the season (1.73 ERA.)
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Old 05-04-2019, 09:13 PM   #153
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Foster MGL Player of the Week

Mike Foster earns well deserved accolades for his great week.
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Old 05-04-2019, 09:44 PM   #154
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August 24-27, 1972, at San Francisco

From one of the better hitter's parks to probably the best pitcher's park in all of the WPK, San Francisco's Bank of the West Ballpark. The Brewers face the Velocity in a 4-game set.

It takes extra frames, but the Brewers start the series with 4-3 win. Improbably, it was a 12th inning 2-out dribbler that the not even remotely speedy Kevin Curtis hustled into an infield single that won the game for the Brewers. Steve Green pitched a very good 8 innings without getting a decision- allowing 2 runs on only 3 hits with 5 strikeouts and no walks. (Green's ERA drops to 2.93.) After Jose de los Santos blows the save in the 9th, Miguel Solis pitches 2 scoreless innings to get the win (4-4, 1.60) and Liann-wei Hua pitches the bottom of the 12th and earns his 2nd save (0.87 ERA.) Andrew Kennedy (.286/.318/.375) helped pace the offense, going 3 for 6 and hitting his 26th double.

Game 2 was a great pitching duel between the Brewers Erik Sloan and the Velocity's Gibson Fiedler. Sloan came out on top, barely, as the Brewers win 1-0. In the complete game shutout Sloan gives up just 5 hits while striking out 5 and walking none. He improves to 5-3 with a 1.74 ERA as a Brewer and 13-6, 1.97 on the season. The lone run of the game came in the top of the 1st inning when Pat Rondeau (.285/.310/.353) hit his 8th triple of the season and came in to score on a Ryan Rodgers (.293/.407/.339) single.

As has so often been the case in the past, the Brewers struggled to hit against Velocity starter Yi-ti Lau. In spite of a solid start from ace Cheol-han Lee- 8 IP, 2 runs, 6 hits, 3 K, 2 BB- the Brewers drop game 3 by a score of 2-1. Lee falls to 13-7 with a 2.07 ERA.

The Brewers get a narrow 3-2 win in the final game of the series to take 3 of 4 from the Velocity. Harry Lyerly finally gets another win, allowing 1 run on just 3 hits in 7 innings pitched, striking out 5 and walking 1. Lyerly is now 12-6 with a 2.59 ERA on the season as he remains one of the most reliable starters for the Brewers since he came up as a rookie in 1969. Miguel Solis got the save, his 9th, and has an ERA of 1.58. Reliever Jordan Stephens (.316/.350/.316) gets a rare start at third base (Mike Foster needed a breather) and goes 3 for 4. Joe McPhilips (.217/.315/.359) went 1 for 2, hitting his 12th double, walking twice, and scoring twice.

With the series victory the Brewers move to within a half a game of the second place Brooklyn Aces, but remain 8 1/2 games behind the first place Charlotte Sting. The Brewers next opponent is Brooklyn, with whom they have a 2-game series in Denver, so they have a chance to move into second place in the next few days.
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Old 05-05-2019, 12:54 AM   #155
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August 28-29, 1972, versus Brooklyn

In a short 2 game series the Brewers host the Brooklyn Aces with the chance to pass them in the standings and take over 2nd place in the MGL.

And they do just that.

In game 1 the Brewers get an unlikely homer from Chad Brown to tie the game in the bottom of the 9th at 2 apiece and then get a less unlikely 2-run HR off the bat of Bobby Erbakan to win the game in the bottom of the 12th. Brown (.303/.332/.399) went 2 for 5 in the game, scoring 2 runs, and the HR was his 3rd of the season. Erbakan (.272/.342/.392) was 2 for 6 and the HR was his 10th. Jordan Stephens got the win in relief and improves to 3-0 with an ERA of 0.77.

Mike Foster was again the story in the second game of the series. Foster (.304/.327/.440) went 3 for 4, scoring 3 runs and driving in 3 and it was his 2-out, 2-run HR in the bottom of the 8th that made the difference in the 6-4 win for the Brewers. (I was listening to the David Bowie song Heroes when Foster hit the homer. And I thought, yup, this kid is a hero.) Foster also hit his 7th double of the season. Jaden Francis pitched the last 3 innings of the game in relief of Steve Green (who wasn't that sharp) to get the win and he improves to 4-2 with a 3.41 ERA. Andrew Kennedy (.293/.325/.388) went 4 for 4 in the win and hit 3 doubles to get to 30 on the season.

With the short series sweep the Brewers do move into 2nd place in the MGL but remain 8 1/2 games behind the still formidable Charlotte Sting. (Interestingly, the Brewers have the best run differential in the MGL now, just slightly better than Charlotte so with the Sting over-achieving quite a bit and the Brewers under-achieving a bit, this race is not nearly as close as it probably should be.)
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Old 05-05-2019, 11:04 PM   #156
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August 30-31, 1972, versus Los Angeles

The Brewers finish up the month of August with a 2-game series against the 4th place L.A. Spinners.

The story of game 1: Mike Foster- Brewers Hero!
With Erik Sloan on the mound the Brewers took a 4-0 lead into the 8th inning. And then, as has been a trend lately, they let it slip away. The Spinners plated 4 runs in the 8th against Sloan and relievers Dave Duncan and Liann-wei Hua. The game remained tied 4-4 at the end of 9 innings. Jose de los Santos got the Spinners 1-2-3 in the 10th. In the bottom of the 10th Andrew Kennedy led off with a single, moved to second on an error by the second baseman on what should have been a routine ground out by Bobby Erbakan, and moved to third on a fielder's choice by Joe McPhillips. With runners on the corners and 1 out , Mike Foster stepped to the plate. Foster hadn't had a great day at the plate, having gone 0 for 3 with a walk up to that point. But was there really any doubt the rookie would come through in this situation. If there was, he erased it with a sharp grounder under the glove of the Spinner's second baseman on a 1-2 count. Game over, Brewers win 5-4. Mike Foster- hero!
(But let's give some credit to Andrew Kennedy too. Kennedy (.300/.331/.396) went 4 for 5 in the game and scored 3 runs. He also hit his 31st double of the season. And Bobby Erbakan (.270/.339/.397), who went 2 for 5 with 4 RBI, hitting his 11th HR and 23rd double.)

Game 2 looked like an uneven pitching match-up with young lefty Matt Helm on the mound for the Brewers and veteran star Jose Santos pitching for L.A. But while Helm only lasted 5 2/3rd innings and did struggle with wildness, walking 6 batters, he actually out-dueled Santos, not allowing a single run. With good performances from 3 relievers (Eric Singer, Jaden Francis, and Jose de los Santos) the Brewers got the shutout and a 3-0 win. Singer got the win in relief and improves to 3-4 with a 3.60 ERA. de los Santos gets his 16th save and now has a 1.90 ERA. Bobby Erbakan (.274/.342/.400) was 3 for 4 in the game and got his 14th stolen base.

With these 2 wins the Brewers have now won 5 straight and end August on a very good note, having won 10 of their last 13 games. They have closed to within 7 games of Charlotte and remain in 2nd place.
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Old 05-05-2019, 11:14 PM   #157
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Rodgers on IL again!

Veteran superstar left fielder Ryan Rodgers entered the 1972 season having never been on the Injured List in his career.
Then early in the season he suffered an undisclosed injury while arm wrestling in a local bar which put him out of commission for over 2 months. And now, for the second time this season, he has to be placed on the IL, struggling with a herniated disc which is expected to keep him out of action for up to 2 weeks.
(He has been downgraded from Iron Man to Durable.)
At least he picked a good time to get injured- just as roster expansion hits and the Brewers promote several players from AAA Chester to join the team ASAP.
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Old 05-06-2019, 01:45 AM   #158
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September 1st WPK Standings Update

As we enter the final full month of the 1972 season let's take a look at the current standings and also get our first look at the pennant race projections.

As you can see, the SJL is pretty much up for grabs with the Columbus Whalers and the Jacksonville Wolf Pack tied atop the standings. San Antonio, who briefly held first place in the middle of August, is still in the hunt at 4 1/2 games back. The reigning WPK champs and pre-season favorites, the Washington Night Train, currently sit in 6th place and are 3 games under .500. While no team has been mathematically eliminated yet in the SJL, there is virtually no chance of the Night Train getting the chance to defend their title this season.

In the MGL, Charlotte has been stumbling a bit of late and the Brewers now trail them by 7 games. The Brooklyn Aces are still somewhat within striking distance at 8 1/2 games out. The 4th place L.A. Spinners have lost 4 straight and are a distant 13 1/2 games behind Charlotte. And the pre-season favorites in the MGL, the Phoenix Speed Devils, are next at 18 games out, and are 2 games under .500. Again, virtually no chance they achieve what many expected from them this season.

In terms of how teams are performing relative to their run differential and pythagorean win expectancy, the Jacksonville Wolf Pack certainly look like they should have the advantage over Columbus and in fact have the highest positive run differential in all of the WPK. The Seattle Alligators and the Philadelphia Mud Hens look like the biggest over-achievers in the SJL but neither are likely to play a role in the pennant race. The Washington Night Train certainly do seem to have under-achieved a bit but not so much as to indicate that they should be in contention.
In the MGL, the Brewers have the best run differential while the first place Sting, although their run differential isn't far behind ours, certainly appear to have over-achieved a bit this season. But mostly things are pretty much as you would expect them to be in the MGL.

When it comes to pennant race odds, the Columbus Whalers are thought to have a slight edge in the SJL due to having a more favorable schedule down the stretch. San Antonio still has a slight chance as well, according to the mathematical projections. In the MGL, Charlotte is a prohibitive favorite. The Brewers, at this point given a 4% chance of winning the MGL, have a tougher schedule down the stretch and still plenty of ground to make up. They will likely need a minor miracle to get a 4th straight MGL pennant.
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Old 05-06-2019, 11:45 PM   #159
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September call-ups

With rosters expanding to a maximum of 40 players, the Brewers promote 4 players from AAA Chester on September 1st. Likely at least a few more will follow later.

The bullpen gains two relievers: 25-year old Sam Pruiett who has appeared in 18 games in a Brewers uniform since 1970 and is expected to complete for a spot in next years 'pen, with the hope that he will earn a season long spot in the bigs. 23-year old lefty Jeremy Walker will be getting his first experience of big league ball. Walker has a plus curveball and an above average sinker, has great movement and should seldom allow the long ball, has decent stuff with the potential still for plus stuff, but will likely struggle with control his whole career.

Two outfielders were also promoted. First, Paul Mackins, who was a member of the Brewers for a little over 2 months earlier this season while Ryan Rodgers was on the Injured List, and performed admirably. When he returned to AAA Chester he pretty much tore up the league. He may or may not have a future as a 5th outfielder on the team but at least he is getting another opportunity to prove his worth.
At the end of July the Brewers signed veteran free agent outfielder Steve Herzog to a minor league contract, and today they brought up him up to the big league club to provide another power right-handed bat off the bench down the stretch. Herzog has never been a star and he got off to a horrible start this season for the Philadelphia Mud Hens before being released on July 11th. But he still has the potential to hit a ball hard and he has a plus eye at the plate, and although he possesses only average speed at this point he is a good base stealer and a very good base runner.
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Old 05-07-2019, 09:19 PM   #160
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Brewers prospect updates: September 1972 edition

With the season winding down it is a good time to take a look at how 1972 has gone for Brewers minor league prospects.

Let's look at an overview by broad positional categories and then we'll focus down on a few players.

Pitching: Pitching, especially starting pitching, isn't an area of great strength at the present time in the Brewers minor league system. There are a few AAA starting pitchers who still have some potential for back-end of the rotation jobs, or at the very least to provide some spot starts in case of injury problems with the big league rotation. Eric Johnson remains an interesting case as he is once again having good success in the minors in spite of no real standout skills and a questionable work ethic. At age 25, Johnson isn't likely to develop a whole lot more but he does have a solid curveball and the potential for above average control and decent stuff. He will, however, likely groove a lot mediocre fastballs that could be turned into a good number of homers.
Probably the most interesting lower level, younger prospect, is 19-year old righty John Weaver. While his current ceiling appears to be that of a 5th starter, he does possess a plus fastball with good velocity, projects to be a durable pitcher, and is seen as having big league makeup with a very strong work ethic. Control will be an issue. But if his changeup and/or knuckle curve develop a bit more, at his age and with his intangibles, he could turn into a solid member of the Brewers rotation someday.
Among relief pitcher prospects, the recently promoted Sam Pruiett is clearly the most talented of the lot. There are several other possible future big leaguers up and down the system but really none who currently profile as premiere bullpen pieces. Perhaps the most intriguing though is Mike Lizarraga, who was drafted as a 2-way player out of El Paso College in last year's amateur player draft but is being used exclusively as a relief pitcher since joining the organization. Lizarraga is considered a high quality character with great intelligence and a good work ethic but his morale is very low this season, playing on a losing team and being very discouraged by his performance. But if he develops the way it is thought he has the potential to, he would have two plus pitches (cutter, curveball). If he does, the thought is his stuff could approach excellence, while his movement and control likely stay somewhere near league average.

Catchers: The catching position is a relative strength for the organization, both at the WPK level and at many levels below. There are no budding superstars in the making, but plenty of the type of catchers the Brewers have become enamored of: great defensive, high work ethic players with decent on-base skills and some measure of gap power. The prime example in the minors is 22-year old Zacarias Martell, currently playing at AA Nashville. Martell has defensive skills very comparable to the current Brewers starting catcher Kevin Curtis, a 2-time Gold Glove winner. Martell has the potential to be a better contact hitter than Curtis, though he likely won't draw as many walks as Curtis.
Another possible future major leaguer is the under-sized but durable Alex Hernandez, currently playing at AAA Chester. He is not as talented a defender as either Curtis or Martell, but he's solid defensively, a hard worker, and a switch-hitter whose offensive ceiling is probably not great but could be acceptable for a back-up role.

I'll finish this up in the next post with infielders and outfielders.
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