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The Skokie News
your report John Rawlings
One of the most difficult things a manager
can do is to try to create a very competitive
team, year in and year out. The original
Montreal Royals, now known as the
Skokie Wolfmen, for the four years that
the Wolfman has held the reigns he
has created a competitive team. In
his four two years it took, two 7 games
series to eliminate him in the first round
and the last two years he finally found
his way to the series, last year he
had the worst record of any playoff team.
In the past, how the Wolfman has achieved
this success is through a combination of
filling holes during the draft and schrewd
trades. He and Trader Wayne, for the
last two years have been doing trades
before the draft where the Wolfman
has given his high draft picks for the
future to get players for the current season.
So lets look at some of the key players
for the Wolfmen that helped with their
success this season.
Last year during the draft, Bonds was
offered for a draft pick and led the team
in 2007 in HRs and RBIs and this year
was not bad for limited play with 35
homers (72 in 2 seaons) - of course for
next year Skokie loses the homerun
King but for two years he helped a lot
to help the team make the series.
Chipper Jones has been coveted for
the first two years of the Wolfman,
but in a trade last year Chipper was
brought to Skokie and the team
didn't need to give up any star players.
Last year Chipper did well but this
season he excelled and could be
the MVP of the league leading in
average and was second in homers.
Chipper had 4 homers in the first
two series in the playoffs. So via
trade Skokie was able to bring
in its top two sluggers.
Another player picked up that
was a castoff last year due to
limited play was Gary Sheffield
who hit 34 homers for Skokie this
season and brought back another
power hitting outfielder to go
with Bonds.
Tim Hudson was picked up last
year because Skokie needed badly
a starter with innings. Although
Wang and Clemens were the
aces last year, Hudson led the
team with victories with 13. This
year he became the Skokie ace
winning 18 games so again a lucky
move.
Speaking of Clemens - many people
were surprised when Skokie traded
for him in 2005, assuming that would
be his last season but he gave Skokie
four good years, winning 9 games in 2008
with limited innings and has been doing
a great job as the middle reliever (due
to an infraction that prevented Heilman
from being there)
Again last year, Skokie needed another
good starter with innings and picked up
Wang who helped Skokie greatly in
the playoffs last year - with Wang and
Hudson able to pitch at full strength
in the World series, Skokie has 5 games
where Indy hitters will only be able to
get home runs off their own cards. This
could be a key.
Another key player Skokie traded for
but was limited use but effectively
was Bradley - again picking up
Bradley last year for a player and
draft pick -- he helped Skokie verse
lefthanded pitching and a defensive
outfielder.
Now lets look at the draft - Skokie's first
pick was Soria, who normally is used
as a master closer but became the
setup man for Nathan. Skokie just
went for the best pitcher -- tried to
trade Soria to get some improvement
in their hitting but now we are sure
glad we kept him, he has excelled
in the playoffs.
Another weakness that Skokie had
was at 1B -- they used an effective
platoon system of Giambi/Aurilla/Speizio
last year but all three players had down
seasons. So they chose D. Young,
a switch hitter but poor fielder to fill
the whole. Young hit an unbelievable
.338 in the season with 20 homers
and gave 1B some stability.
The biggest lost to Skokie was
Piazza, the Pizza man, their most
valuable player in 2007. Fortunately
they were able to draft 2 catchers
in Molina (who hit .380) and Estrada,
along with Castro picked last year
as a backup, combined for 21 Homers
and 88 RBIs in the season, not what
Piazza did but good enough
The combination of Itzuris and Wilson
held at SS with Wilson hitting 18 homers
and Counsell, a RFA pickup early in
the season allowed only 6 erros at 2B
between him and Grudzielanek
Pitching wise, draft picks Redding as
a 5th starter along with Schroeder and
Shouse in the pullpen helped to give
Skokie a strong pen which saved 42
games - Sherill a key reliever picked
in the draft last year helped to anchor
the pullpen.
So through luck, good trades in the beginning
of the year and good draft picks, Skokie
was able to build a balanced team, perhaps
the best team they have had in the four years.
But is this team good enough to beat the
mighty Indiana Redbirds who are loaded?
The strange thing about Skokie this year is
they could not make any trades during the
season. Whereas the mighty Redbirds
picked up some amazing players. This
single factor could determine the 2008
World Series.
Anyway John Miller, a well known opponent
to Bob Fidler -- will be matched with the
Wolfman, off on another trip helping from
behind the scenes.
Earlier Mr. Filder made a mistake saying
the Skokie and Indiana had played in the
series before, he must have been psychic.
If you go to the Indiana webpage on the
CBA site, you can see a photo of Fidler
and Wolfman - that was taken at the
beginning of the season - little did these
two managers know as they were
ready to punch each other that they
would be squaring up for the 2008
CBA Championship.
May the best team win -- will it be
Skokie's first championship or will
Indiana take its second championship in 3 years
who are you routing for??
This is John Rawling, Skokie reporter
anxiously awaiting the 2008 CBA Championship
__._,_.___
Rd 2 Skokie-Joliet showdown in Staub...Indiana Clemente champs
Results due Tuesday Nov 25th, 2008.
Look at our history...The Contenders: The year 2000 was the CBA
revolution January the month that made history.
2000 was a year of controversy. Rules changes skewed our precious
stats with rediculous usage rules and overusage aboaund. Records could be
asterisked from that year. However 8 years later our playoff teams remind
of us of our CBA roots. Some of our teams in the playoffs are fighting to
exorcise the ghosts of the past. Doom and failure that gripped some long
forgotten franchises have gone away, or have they? Perhaps some of our
playoff contenders have the answer. As most of us know of the playoff
teams, Brooklyn Superbas (Marc Wass), Philly Phantastics (Rob Hite) are
the lone original owners in the dance. Lets look around.
The month that shook history, January 2000 perhaps put CBA into it's
dark years of 2001 and 2002. The CBA archives have been cracked open and
the in the historic vaults we saw a transition from the old founding
members to a new set of GM's who mostly hailed from the home region of
Quebec. We see on our time line that original Louisville Mob Squad, a
team who was quite popular moved to the north as the Jonquiere Lifesavers.
Perhaps CBA's worst team of all time. But that franchise is a laughing
sack no more in 2008.
Louisville Mob Squad:
BallPark: (Minnesota Twins)
Owned By: Dan Noonan (Member since foundation (97))
Residence: Louisville, Kentucky
Strat-o-Matic Experience: 6 years.
Thu, 06 Jan 2000 20:28:04 -0500
Thu, 06 Jan 2000 18:26:05 -0500
A GM was taken without checking credentials or reference.
Tue, 04 Jan 2000 00:05:41 -0500
Tue, 04 Jan 2000 00:06:52 -0500
Mon, 03 Jan 2000 15:48:35 -0500
The woeful Lifesavers made a series of deals at the onset, moving away
players and getting some poor return. A case could be made for bad luck,
they needed a lifesaver. The original GM was Dom Tremblay. He started a
mess of epic proportions and quickly left behind his mess to Pierre "Pete"
Janneau. Janneau was a knowledgeable strat player, and set out to correct
the roster issues left by Tremblay. The effects were devastating for the
franchise as they posted two of the worst seasons in CBA history. They
were followed by a succession of forgettable teams. They became the Green
bay Roches in 2002, then the Portland Sea Dogs. This team became the
Carolina Copperheads in 2006
On the other hand there was the Wilmington Blue Rocks.. Their profile
looks like this...
March 1997: Franchise foundation under the name Flamingos Parma owned
by Lou Bloss
October 1997: The Parmas finis second with a 91-71 season.
March 1998: Serge Robitaille acquire the franchise and renamed it
Darknight after a move to Kirkland.
October 1998: Kirkland Dark Knights finish with a second place finish had
a 92-70 season.
January 1999: Acquired by John MacDonald the franchise is renamed
Bluerocks and moved to Wilmington. 'Mack' had to give up his team after 1
season due to some personal issues, but when Sebastien Roberge took over,
he lost interest very quickly and was replaced after the council pushed
for his immediate removal due to non participation.
Of note a little known GM whose role in CBA remains a mystery is one GM
Dany LaPointe. Rumor had it that he was an office worker friend of
someone. It is the LaPointe mystery as to who the heck he was that
spurred a more discriminating selection process when the new regime change
came in late 2002 season. Just a side note:
In 2002 Marc Wass, Gerald Benoit took the reigns from
Claude LaMarre whose spirit was broken by Jeff Loria and his beloved Expos
MLB catastrophe. It was a sad time for CBA as baseballs greed affected
our league to the core. When baseball was left for dead in Quebec and our
Quebec colleagues followed suit, CBA went through it's transition. In
2002 Chris "Bouts" Boutin ran the games and brought in some more Strat
friends. As the original teams switched ownership so did the loyalty to
their home town fans.
Wilmington started as as the Parma Flamingoes by famed
Strat review columnist Lou Bloss. Lou left CBA and Strat after 1997 and
that team became the Kirkland Dark knights for a year in 98. John
MacDonald took em in 99, and his replacement Dany LaPointe proved unable
to assume duties after a very brief stay. Mac returned and moved his
stadium, but Mac would not put the same heart into his team he had before.
In 2002, Mac left and Clyde Elkins came in with the City Heights
Clydesdales. One of the wackiest logos I ever saw. You must check it
out. That franchise folded and is now going to be assigned to a new
franchise.
Manager of the Beauport Gamblers Martin Boulet brought on assistant GM
in Sebastien Roberge who in 2001 took over and renamed The once Grambling
Gamblers (1998 Jay Shapiro), the Westmount Gamblers. Sebas left as
baseball left Quebec, and Doug Vandermark changed the name to the Farnham
Chiefs. In 2003 Chris Thomas took over and named them the Houston Aeros.
Thomas had a turbulent history in CBA, and the Aeros franchises was
awarded to current GM Bob Fidler. Fidler rebuilt much of the team and
developed the Aeros in the Indiana Redbirds, already a Parker division
legend. They won the 2006 WS championship and want it back in the worst
way. They are proud Indiana Redbirds.
Washington was a new franchise in 2000 as Jon Calder's Alexandria Assault, stepped aside for Strat Vet Dan DiVirgilio. He lasted 3 years finishing the 2000 season 55-107 and finishing worse in 2001 at 45-117. Nick Yurchuk came aboard in 2002 and brought home a 17 game improvement to 62-100 . He was quite overwhelmed by the dizzying possibilties of rebuilding, and left after the season. In 2003 That franchise later became the present Dawson champion Joliet Jackhammers under the initials JJS in the Schmidt division. In 2004 they moved to Dawson. It's now 4 years later and Jack Frost is in the hunt. He joins the big boys and the possibilities of making CBA history in his tenure are in his control.
SD has been in CBA since 2002, and 2007 was their first ever playoff appearance as Wallace built this team from scratch out of the lowest winning team in CBA. Originally owned by Don Jensen and known as the Hamilton Harbors. Hamilton was best known for their dogfight in 1998 with then Dawson title winner Brooklyn Superbas (Moved to Parker in 99) Hamilton fought with Longue Pointe, Quebec, and Limoilou in 1999 and 2000, but were just shy. They'd not return anywhere closew again until 2007's Wallace led San Diego team. A team on the decline when Jensen retired. Wallace began to build with key trades and mostly draft picks and swaps. A true worst to first case, Wallace's plan was to take years to develop a bit at a time until he built what should be a strong contender for years to come. His attitude and dedication to CBA were evident in his very strong playoff effort and management in 2007. Joe Wallace is a class act, and quality GM whose time has arrived in the CBA. SD is an elite CBA team. Here is Hamilton/ San Diego's overall record 1997-2001 as Hamilton 2002-2007 as San Diego. Wallace's team has shown a win increase in 4 consecutive years. Although their regular season record is not as strong in 2008, they too are in the dance. Who knows where they'll go in 2008.
|
WON |
LOST |
|
|
1997 |
74 |
88 |
|
1998 |
98 |
64 |
|
1999 |
88 |
74 |
|
2000 |
89 |
73 |
|
2001 |
75 |
87 |
|
2002* |
61 |
101 |
|
2003 |
62 |
100 |
|
2004 |
52 |
110 |
|
2005 |
65 |
97 |
|
2006 |
82 |
80 |
|
2007 |
92 |
70 |
Skokie was the Montreal Royals before Wolfman took them over. They
were original founder Gerlad Benoit's team. Looking how Shapiro improved
his team to that of a perrenial winner was quite accomplishment. Here is
with CBA's runaway Carter div champions again. 93 wins in 2008 was quite
a job, but he wants the World Series after going to the finals last year
to lose to Rob Hite and Philly.
| 1997 Bodega Bay - Gerald Benoit | 75 | 87 |
| 1998 Bodega Bay - Gerald Benoit | 75 | 87 |
| 1999 Bodega Bay - Gerald Benoit | 77 | 85 |
| 2000 Bodega Bay - Gerald Benoit | 85 | 77 |
| 2001 Bodega Bay - Gerald Benoit | 65 | 97 |
| 2002 Vermont Expos - Mario Fleming | 85 | 77 |
| 2003 Montreal Royals - Gerald Benoit | 80 | 82 |
| 2004 Montreal Royals - Gerald Benoit | 78 | 84 |
| 2005 Montreal Royals - Wolfman Shapiro Wild card | 95 | 67 |
| 2006 Skokie Wolfmen - Wolfman Shapiro Wildcard | 97 | 65 |
| 2007 Skokie Wolfmen - Wolfman Shapiro Staub Champion | 87 | 75 |
Thu, 06 Jan 2000 20:28:04 -0500
Thu, 06 Jan 2000 18:26:05 -0500
Tue, 04 Jan 2000 00:05:41 -0500
Tue, 04 Jan 2000 00:06:52 -0500
Mon, 03 Jan 2000 15:48:35 -0500
Click
http://www.cba-bb.net/logos_page.htm
To see the old logos, a real treat.
Bob Fidler on right, and Skokie GM Josh "Wolfman" Shapiro show muscle not only in the photo, but on the Strat diamond as well. Both GM's lead two of the more successful franchises in CBA both are perennial playoff GM's.
Bryan LF Brad Wilkerson makes history with two Grand Slams in same game.
Never been done before in CBA's previous 19744 games. Amazing
LP's second triple play. Last one was Counsell, Sexson....This one against Ohio features Vidro
, McDonald, and Sexson.
2008 Longue Pointe Loggers At 2008 Ohio Thundercats 7/29/2008
Loggers AB R H RBI AVG Thundercats AB R H RBI AVG
I.Suzuki RF 5 0 2 0 .335 C.Guillen SS 3 0 1 0 .273
J.Vidro 2B 3 0 0 0 .301 C-E.Aybar SS 2 1 1 0 .161
F-J.Cirillo 2B 1 0 0 0 .212 K.Johnson 2B 4 1 2 1 .291
A.Ramirez 3B 4 1 2 0 .283 M.Teixeira 1B 3 0 0 0 .267
R.Sexson 1B 4 0 0 0 .207 M.Diaz LF 3 2 3 0 .332
T.Hunter CF 3 1 1 2 .264 W.Pena RF 3 0 1 0 .259
H.Matsui LF 4 0 1 0 .239 D-M.Cabrera RF 1 0 0 0 .269
J.McDonald SS 4 0 1 0 .234 M.Ensberg 3B 3 0 0 0 .194
J.Varitek C 2 0 0 0 .248 E-A.Gordon 3B 1 1 1 1 .209
T.Lincecum P 2 0 0 0 .038 C.Young CF 3 0 1 1 .238
A-C.Kotchman PH 1 0 0 0 .248 D.Ross C 3 0 0 1 .148
R.Dempster P 0 0 0 0 .000 K.Millwood P 2 0 0 0 .147
T.Byrdak P 0 0 0 0 ---- B-J.Kubel PH 1 0 0 0 .321
K.Calero P 0 0 0 0 .000 M.Delcarmen P 1 0 1 11.000
D.Marte P 0 0 0 0 .000
G-N.Morgan PH 1 0 0 0 .220
-- -- -- --- -- -- -- ---
Totals 34 2 7 2 Totals 33 5 11 5
A-Pinch Hit For Lincecum In 7th Inning
B-Pinch Hit For Millwood In 7th Inning
C-Subbed Defensively (SS) For Guillen In 8th Inning
D-Subbed Defensively (RF) For Pena In 8th Inning
E-Subbed Defensively (3B) For Ensberg In 8th Inning
F-Subbed Defensively (2B) For Vidro In 8th Inning
G-Pinch Hit For Marte In 9th Inning
Loggers......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 - 2 7 0
Thundercats..... 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 4 - 5 11 0
Loggers (60-56) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA
T.Lincecum 6 6 1 1 2 6 0 2.97
R.Dempster LOSS(2-3) 1 1/3 3 3 3 0 3 0 3.35
T.Byrdak 0 1/3 1 1 1 1 1 0 6.51
K.Calero 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 4.40
D.Marte 0 1/3 1 0 0 0 0 0 4.56
Totals 8 11 5 5 4 10 0
Thundercats (45-68) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA
K.Millwood 7 5 0 0 3 5 0 4.99
M.Delcarmen W(4-0)B(1st) 2 2 2 2 1 3 1 2.61
Totals 9 7 2 2 4 8 1
ATTENDANCE- 39,288 DATE- Sunday, July 29th 2008 TIME- Day WEATHER- Good
UMPIRES- Paul Schreiber, Larry Young, Mike Winters, Ron Kulpa
T- 3:15
LEFT ON BASE- Loggers: 9 Thundercats: 8
DOUBLE PLAYS- Loggers: 0 Thundercats: 0
TRIPLE PLAYS- Loggers: 1 Thundercats: 0
DOUBLES- C.Guillen(30th), M.Diaz(15th), A.Gordon(19th), C.Young(15th)
HOME RUNS- T.Hunter(18th)
STOLEN BASES- E.Aybar(5th)
WALKS- J.Vidro, T.Hunter, J.Varitek-2, M.Teixeira, M.Diaz, C.Young, D.Ross
STRIKE OUTS- I.Suzuki, J.Vidro, R.Sexson, H.Matsui, J.Varitek-2, T.Lincecum-2,
K.Johnson-2, M.Teixeira, W.Pena-2, M.Cabrera, D.Ross-2, K.Millwood,
J.Kubel
WILD PITCHES- R.Dempster, M.Delcarmen
WEB GEMS- Bot 4th: Longue Pointe turns a triple play!
Maine throws a No hitter.
BOXSCORE: 2008 Joliet Jackhammers At 2008 Belfast Brawlers 8/7/2008
Joliet's John Maine throws a no hitter!
Jackhammers AB R H RBI AVG Brawlers AB R H RBI AVG
D.Eckstein SS 5 1 1 1 .347 R.Davis LF 4 0 0 0 .277
A.Hill 2B 5 1 1 0 .289 A.Miles 2B 3 0 0 0 .306
M.Ordonez RF 5 3 3 2 .359 S.Hatteberg 1B 3 0 0 0 .320
A.Soriano LF 5 1 2 0 .251 A.Rios RF 3 0 0 0 .276
M.Lowell 3B 5 2 3 2 .318 N.McLouth CF 2 0 0 0 .266
A.Pierzynski C 5 3 3 4 .256 M.Napoli C 3 0 0 0 .235
R.Gload 1B 5 1 2 3 .317 A.Amezaga SS 3 0 0 0 .332
J.Pierre CF 4 0 0 0 .268 C.Figgins 3B 3 0 0 0 .328
J.Maine P 4 0 1 0 .208 C.Sampson P 0 0 0 0 .280
C.Baek P 0 0 0 0 .222
B.Tomko P 0 0 0 0 .269
T.Pena P 1 0 0 0 .667
R.Perez P 0 0 0 0 .000
A-A.Huff PH 1 0 0 0 .260
V.Chulk P 0 0 0 0 .500
M.Corpas P 0 0 0 0 .000
B-F.Sanchez PH 1 0 0 0 .255
A.Sonnanstine P 0 0 0 0 .179
-- -- -- --- -- -- -- ---
Totals 43 12 16 12 Totals 27 0 0 0
A-Pinch Hit For Perez In 6th Inning
B-Pinch Hit For Corpas In 8th Inning
Jackhammers..... 5 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 3 - 12 16 0
Brawlers........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 2
Jackhammers (66-53) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA
J.Maine WIN(12-5) 9 0 0 0 3 6 0 3.65
Totals 9 0 0 0 3 6 0
Brawlers (54-65) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA
C.Sampson LOSS(4-9) 0 2/3 5 5 5 0 0 1 6.34
C.Baek 1 2 2 2 0 2 2 4.11
B.Tomko 0 2/3 2 1 1 0 1 0 5.63
T.Pena 1 2/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.82
R.Perez 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 2.96
V.Chulk 0 1/3 3 1 1 0 0 0 4.12
M.Corpas 1 2/3 0 0 0 0 3 0 3.21
A.Sonnanstin 1 3 3 3 0 1 2 3.94
Totals 9 16 12 12 0 8 5
ATTENDANCE- 51,523 DATE- Tuesday, August 7th 2008 TIME- Night WEATHER- Bad
UMPIRES- Tim Timmons, Mike Dimuro, Hunter Wendlestadt, Dale Scott
T- 2:48
LEFT ON BASE- Jackhammers: 4 Brawlers: 3
DOUBLE PLAYS- Jackhammers: 0 Brawlers: 1
ERRORS- C.Figgins, R.Perez
DOUBLES- A.Pierzynski(12th)
HOME RUNS- D.Eckstein(3rd), M.Ordonez-2(18th), A.Pierzynski(5th), R.Gload(1st)
WALKS- A.Miles, S.Hatteberg, N.McLouth
STRIKE OUTS- D.Eckstein, A.Hill, A.Soriano, M.Lowell-2, A.Pierzynski, J.Maine-2,
R.Davis, S.Hatteberg, A.Rios, N.McLouth, M.Napoli, F.Sanchez
GIDP- J.Pierre
John Maine(12-5) thrilled the fans at PNC Park as he crafted a no-hit
masterpiece against the Belfast Brawlers. The Joliet Jackhammers won by a
final score of 12 to 0.
Maine was spectacular. He walked 3 Belfast batters. The tension was mounting
with every inning after the 6th. Maine appeared oblivious himself to the
mounting history until two were out in the 9th. Only then, did he allow
himself one deep sigh and a slow trip around the mound. Joliet rapped out 16
hits for the night.
Chris Sampson(4-9) took the loss. He pitched 2/3 of an inning allowing 5 hits
and no walks. After the game, Maine was heard to say, 'This is something I
have dreamt about since I was a little boy - to have it come true is just
amazing!'
Block 22 Highlights.
BOXSCORE: 2008 Joliet Jackhammers At 2008 Belfast Brawlers 8/7/2008
Joliet's John Maine throws a no hitter!
Jackhammers AB R H RBI AVG Brawlers AB R H RBI AVG
D.Eckstein SS 5 1 1 1 .347 R.Davis LF 4 0 0 0 .277
A.Hill 2B 5 1 1 0 .289 A.Miles 2B 3 0 0 0 .306
M.Ordonez RF 5 3 3 2 .359 S.Hatteberg 1B 3 0 0 0 .320
A.Soriano LF 5 1 2 0 .251 A.Rios RF 3 0 0 0 .276
M.Lowell 3B 5 2 3 2 .318 N.McLouth CF 2 0 0 0 .266
A.Pierzynski C 5 3 3 4 .256 M.Napoli C 3 0 0 0 .235
R.Gload 1B 5 1 2 3 .317 A.Amezaga SS 3 0 0 0 .332
J.Pierre CF 4 0 0 0 .268 C.Figgins 3B 3 0 0 0 .328
J.Maine P 4 0 1 0 .208 C.Sampson P 0 0 0 0 .280
C.Baek P 0 0 0 0 .222
B.Tomko P 0 0 0 0 .269
T.Pena P 1 0 0 0 .667
R.Perez P 0 0 0 0 .000
A-A.Huff PH 1 0 0 0 .260
V.Chulk P 0 0 0 0 .500
M.Corpas P 0 0 0 0 .000
B-F.Sanchez PH 1 0 0 0 .255
A.Sonnanstine P 0 0 0 0 .179
-- -- -- --- -- -- -- ---
Totals 43 12 16 12 Totals 27 0 0 0
A-Pinch Hit For Perez In 6th Inning
B-Pinch Hit For Corpas In 8th Inning
Jackhammers.
LP's second triple play. Last one was Counsell, Sexson....This one against Ohio features Vidro
, McDonald, and Sexson.
2008 Longue Pointe Loggers At 2008 Ohio Thundercats 7/29/2008
Loggers AB R H RBI AVG Thundercats AB R H RBI AVG
I.Suzuki RF 5 0 2 0 .335 C.Guillen SS 3 0 1 0 .273
J.Vidro 2B 3 0 0 0 .301 C-E.Aybar SS 2 1 1 0 .161
F-J.Cirillo 2B 1 0 0 0 .212 K.Johnson 2B 4 1 2 1 .291
A.Ramirez 3B 4 1 2 0 .283 M.Teixeira 1B 3 0 0 0 .267
R.Sexson 1B 4 0 0 0 .207 M.Diaz LF 3 2 3 0 .332
T.Hunter CF 3 1 1 2 .264 W.Pena RF 3 0 1 0 .259
H.Matsui LF 4 0 1 0 .239 D-M.Cabrera RF 1 0 0 0 .269
J.McDonald SS 4 0 1 0 .234 M.Ensberg 3B 3 0 0 0 .194
J.Varitek C 2 0 0 0 .248 E-A.Gordon 3B 1 1 1 1 .209
T.Lincecum P 2 0 0 0 .038 C.Young CF 3 0 1 1 .238
A-C.Kotchman PH 1 0 0 0 .248 D.Ross C 3 0 0 1 .148
R.Dempster P 0 0 0 0 .000 K.Millwood P 2 0 0 0 .147
T.Byrdak P 0 0 0 0 ---- B-J.Kubel PH 1 0 0 0 .321
K.Calero P 0 0 0 0 .000 M.Delcarmen P 1 0 1 11.000
D.Marte P 0 0 0 0 .000
G-N.Morgan PH 1 0 0 0 .220
-- -- -- --- -- -- -- ---
Totals 34 2 7 2 Totals 33 5 11 5
A-Pinch Hit For Lincecum In 7th Inning
B-Pinch Hit For Millwood In 7th Inning
C-Subbed Defensively (SS) For Guillen In 8th Inning
D-Subbed Defensively (RF) For Pena In 8th Inning
E-Subbed Defensively (3B) For Ensberg In 8th Inning
F-Subbed Defensively (2B) For Vidro In 8th Inning
G-Pinch Hit For Marte In 9th Inning
Loggers......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 - 2 7 0
Thundercats..... 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 4 - 5 11 0
Loggers (60-56) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA
T.Lincecum 6 6 1 1 2 6 0 2.97
R.Dempster LOSS(2-3) 1 1/3 3 3 3 0 3 0 3.35
T.Byrdak 0 1/3 1 1 1 1 1 0 6.51
K.Calero 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 4.40
D.Marte 0 1/3 1 0 0 0 0 0 4.56
Totals 8 11 5 5 4 10 0
Thundercats (45-68) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA
K.Millwood 7 5 0 0 3 5 0 4.99
M.Delcarmen W(4-0)B(1st) 2 2 2 2 1 3 1 2.61
Totals 9 7 2 2 4 8 1
ATTENDANCE- 39,288 DATE- Sunday, July 29th 2008 TIME- Day WEATHER- Good
UMPIRES- Paul Schreiber, Larry Young, Mike Winters, Ron Kulpa
T- 3:15
LEFT ON BASE- Loggers: 9 Thundercats: 8
DOUBLE PLAYS- Loggers: 0 Thundercats: 0
TRIPLE PLAYS- Loggers: 1 Thundercats: 0
DOUBLES- C.Guillen(30th), M.Diaz(15th), A.Gordon(19th), C.Young(15th)
HOME RUNS- T.Hunter(18th)
STOLEN BASES- E.Aybar(5th)
WALKS- J.Vidro, T.Hunter, J.Varitek-2, M.Teixeira, M.Diaz, C.Young, D.Ross
STRIKE OUTS- I.Suzuki, J.Vidro, R.Sexson, H.Matsui, J.Varitek-2, T.Lincecum-2,
K.Johnson-2, M.Teixeira, W.Pena-2, M.Cabrera, D.Ross-2, K.Millwood,
J.Kubel
WILD PITCHES- R.Dempster, M.Delcarmen
WEB GEMS- Bot 4th: Longue Pointe turns a triple play!
Carlos Pena over 3 days
July 28th, 2008 July 29th 2008
July 30th
1-4. HR RBI 2-4 2 HR
4RBI 3-5, 3 HR 5 RBI
Casey Blake July 30th, 2008 5-6, 2b, 4 RBI vs
Stirling
Aug 1st 2008 David Wright goes 2-4, 5 RBI, 2 HR vs IRP
August 2nd, 2008 Sosa hits 2 HR, 4 RBI, in 2-4Aug 2nd 2008
Zimmerman went 4-6, HR 4 RBI performance vs Lake County
Eric Chavez 3-4, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 3 runs, Aug 2nd Stirling vs Carolina
Matt Kemp went 6 for 8 and SB Aug 3rd in a C Town 14 inn win.
Tulowitsky stops Cooperstown streak with 2-4 , 2 HR, 3 RBI, Aug 5th
August 25th, 2008
Skokie's Gar3 Sheffield went 4 for 6 with 3 HR and 7 RBI vs SW in a13-11 win July 29th 2008
Nick Markakis of Cooperstown vs. Carolina in 4 at-bat, 3 HR
July 23rd Shawn Hill of Limoilou vs. Maine struck out 13 in 7 innings (10 inning game)
Vlad Guerrero goes bananas. Ottawa whips both Brooklyn and Indiana. He Hit game winning 9th inning 3 run HR in a tie game vs Brooklyn July 29th 2008 9-6.
August 8th, 2008
Batting Key Performers
Carter Division
NAME TM BA GM AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO HB SH DP SB CS E The Skinny
J.Gathrt MEC.356 78 188 47 67 5 0 0 14 27 24 2 7 3 18 11 2 platooner who performs
A.GonzalezMEC.281 110 441 68 124 34 1 23 77 39108 3 0 5 0 0 1 SD cleanup hitter
H.Ramirez MEC.331 108 444 76 147 35 4 15 67 40 63 3 0 9 61 16 13offense yes!defense no!
J.Kent MEC.320 97 341 55 109 27 1 17 72 45 55 2 0 9 3 4 9 Been terrific at 2nd
B.Upton MEC.317 95 328 69 104 19 2 21 58 45 95 6 0 6 6 3 1 One of CBA's best CF
E.Encncn KWC.325 68 203 25 66 5 0 9 37 10 32 6 0 4 0 0 1 Lots of production platoon
J.Loney KWC.308 64 221 32 68 9 1 13 36 19 32 2 0 6 0 0 6 Part time pop
J.Kubel OTC.330 65 212 30 70 23 2 8 41 20 29 0 0 7 5 0 3 Lots of RBIs as platoon
M.Diaz OTC.326 82 215 35 70 14 0 10 32 9 44 5 0 7 2 0 2 platoon force
J.Jones OTC.321 68 218 23 70 16 0 2 25 23 30 0 1 8 4 0 2 platoon big time
M.TeixeiraOTC.268 103 340 55 91 18 1 22 65 45 87 6 0 4 0 0 3 Ohio's cleanup man
C.Jones SWC.355 105 397 82 141 35 2 35 90 56 54 0 0 13 4 2 8 Jones having career year
M.Bradley SWC.339 70 183 37 62 7 0 14 32 26 37 3 0 5 1 3 1 Awesome 10th man
D.Young SWC.325 99 357 58 116 29 0 17 60 35 60 0 0 12 0 0 3 Skokie's consistent offense
B.Bonds SWC.278 94 284 63 79 16 0 26 70 57 44 4 0 13 0 0 2 Big bat and OBA
M.Hollday SLS.329 111 441 82 145 38 2 29 87 46 89 9 0 18 6 0 5 Awesome numbers
Dawson Division
NAME TM BA GM AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO HB SH DP SB CS E The Skinny
A.Amezaga BBD.353 66 167 28 59 11 8 1 21 13 23 4 3 3 11 3 3 Belfast surprise
C.Figgins BBD.340 99 321 57 109 24 6 1 33 49 63 0 0 2 39 14 9 Figgins is whole offense
BBD PITCHERS .247 105 178 18 44 3 1 0 18 5 66 0 23 3 0 0 15The pitchers can hit!
S.HattbergBBD.332 96 310 45 103 25 3 5 45 38 44 1 0 8 0 0 9 Hatteberg is on base
M.Ordonez JJD.357 101 353 63 126 35 0 15 60 49 60 2 0 15 1 0 1 MVP candidate, #'s lie
D.EcksteinJJD.351 72 242 35 85 13 1 2 34 8 22 8 0 4 3 1 8 Eckstein career year
M.Lowell JJD.310 103 339 51 105 12 2 12 50 31 39 6 0 18 1 2 12More valuable than #'s
JJD PTCHERS .186 108 188 22 35 7 0 2 17 8 73 0 26 0 0 0 5 More hitting hurlers
C.Grndrsn LWD.319 88 348 63 111 23 17 12 67 33 68 4 0 7 9 1 3 Grand isn't he?
P.Fielder LWD.245 105 424 68 104 21 0 45 93 42 87 10 0 10 0 2 18Tons of HR,needs guys on
T.Perez LLD.419 47 74 8 31 7 1 0 8 5 8 0 0 0 1 0 1 Super PH
I.Suzuki LLD.331 111 478 65 158 15 3 4 49 29 48 2 8 4 33 14 0 Creates runs for LP
J.Vidro LLD.310 101 377 48 117 18 0 6 40 35 36 0 5 11 0 0 16 Key cog in LP offense
D.Wright SSD.357 94 311 62 111 35 1 14 64 52 55 4 0 9 18 2 7 Wright stuff
E.Rentria SSD.332 87 334 72 111 29 0 8 32 46 45 0 3 9 3 1 7 Having career year
Parker Division
NAME TM BA GM AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO HB SH DP SB CS E The Skinny
M.Young KBP.311 93 396 59 123 18 1 3 29 35 64 3 1 15 6 0 11 Key Bryan all around guy
J.Gomes KBP.291 87 354 57 103 23 2 31 82 30 133 4 0 3 9 2 2 unbelievable season
R.Ibanez CIP.328 109 418 61 137 31 3 25 64 35 68 1 0 12 0 0 7 Big time for Raul
B.Harris CIP.313 94 336 46 105 26 4 9 53 30 70 3 6 4 2 1 11 Harris with solid #s
J.Morneau CIP.311 110 425 68 132 28 3 28 82 36 55 0 0 14 0 4 7 Morneau having big yr
J.Posada IRP.366 101 369 69 135 39 0 21 82 59 67 4 0 13 2 0 2 Career year, Gaudy stats
A.Pujols IRP.310 105 422 86 131 28 0 33 85 63 57 7 0 18 1 3 4 Pujols power
J.Reyes IRP.302 105 427 60 129 23 8 6 62 31 59 0 11 4 31 13 9 Reyes runs Redbirds
A.RodrguezIRP.302 103 414 94 125 21 1 31 72 55 95 19 0 14 6 1 10 No problems in clutch here
J.Thome IRP.297 78 306 54 91 20 0 28 68 39 93 7 0 5 0 0 0 Thome thumps HRs
H.Pence IRP.312 61 221 44 69 12 5 6 41 21 52 0 0 9 3 1 2 Pence platoon RBI
P.Polanco IRP.330 104 437 75 144 35 1 11 60 31 49 12 6 11 7 1 0 Career year
M.Cabrera BSP.367 101 390 91 143 25 1 32 93 49 85 5 0 12 5 0 14 MVP candidate carries BSP
E.Byrnes BSP.288 101 410 78 118 18 5 14 58 41 78 10 0 10 44 18 5 Lots of steals leading off
R.Howard BSP.265 97 351 70 93 27 0 27 79 40 140 2 0 2 2 0 0 Homers
M.Stairs BSP.314 61 191 33 60 16 0 10 42 36 43 0 0 8 2 1 1 Stairs platoon power
T.Helton BSP.326 101 380 76 124 24 3 14 55 59 71 1 0 5 0 0 1 Helton still produces
V.GuerreroOOP.351 108 442 86 155 33 0 39 120 41 42 5 0 14 0 1 7 MVP candidate career year
D.Ortiz OOP.281 108 420 89 118 20 2 26 59 83 105 2 0 26 4 2 16 Papi pops
J.Mauer OOP.317 92 344 51 109 22 3 6 45 48 40 4 0 8 0 0 4 Mauer under rated receiver
Schmidt Division
NAME TM BA GM AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO HB SH DP SB CS E
J.Werth CCS.347 61 150 39 52 8 0 9 28 25 29 0 0 1 4 0 3 Carolina super sub
M.Tejada CCS.326 108 426 68 139 18 2 23 63 27 43 7 3 15 2 0 14 Having great year
B.Roberts CCS.301 108 462 88 139 37 3 5 37 56 75 0 1 2 34 13 5 Premiere leadoff man
W.Taveras LLS.328 80 296 51 97 15 5 0 12 17 41 7 7 5 32 10 5 Taveras great leadoff guy
J.Rollins LLS.278 111 479 70 133 28 12 17 83 21 52 7 0 16 19 4 12 Rollins does it all
R.Raburn LLS.330 31 100 17 33 6 0 5 20 11 23 0 0 2 2 0 2 Super sub
R.Ankiel PPS.352 39 122 25 43 14 0 14 45 9 24 0 0 4 0 1 0 Ankiel unbelievable power
J.Keppngr PPS.335 53 185 36 62 14 1 4 19 14 19 4 6 6 3 1 4 Kep keeps producing
B.Hawpe PPS.326 85 316 61 103 28 2 16 59 40 84 0 0 8 0 0 3 Hawpe is hot
C.Utley PPS.316 87 335 70 106 26 4 12 42 32 49 12 0 11 4 0 9 Utley hits
C.Lee PPS.275 98 375 54 103 19 0 23 69 29 40 1 0 24 5 1 0 Lee a key performer
R.BelliardSRS.359 72 273 33 98 27 2 3 22 16 41 0 2 4 1 0 3 How is this happening?
D.Pedroia SRS.350 84 371 58 130 25 1 6 33 25 34 3 3 9 5 0 9 Rookie of the year?
C.CrawfordSRS.350 108 452 72 158 29 5 19 63 24 73 9 2 8 34 6 4 Sensational MVP candidate
M.Ramirez SRS.324 108 423 53 137 33 0 19 73 45 95 7 0 9 0 0 0 Manny mauls
C.Pena SRS.259 108 397 76 103 20 0 34 97 78 130 5 0 6 1 0 7 Pena HRs
Interesting season so far. A few surprises and some
improvements for some franchises. Lets take a look around in our mid
season after 110 games or so...
Giving credit where it's due. Skokie remains the class of CBA. Each year
the Wolfmen seem to get better. Could this be their year? After getting
a close as can be make no mistake the Wolves are going all out. 67 wins
leads CBA with Indy and Brooklyn at 65 and 64wins. Chipper Jones has
carried this team on his back. He is a triple crown contender as is
Ottawa's Vlad Guerrero. In Staub, 2nd in HR with 35, 10 behind Fielder,
2nd in RBI's 3 behind the top with 93. 3rd in BA with .355 just .002
behind the leader Maglio of Joliet, and Wright of SD. Skokie leads the
Staub in BA .279, HR 167, Runs 572. The P staff has a 3.77 ERA best in
Staub. This team does it all. Even a .735 X rating is pretty good.
Maine is 8 games behind but what a story of rags to riches. Reminds me of
this years MLB Devil Rays. Maine has a .331 OBA, and .477 Slg. The slug
is good, the OBA not as good as could be. A .74 X rating helps the
pitching who has a 4.41 ERA. The Maine TEAM gets some production from
everyone. The mid infield of Uggla and Greene account for 33 HR's Adrian
Gonzalez solid and clutch with 23 HR 77 RBI. BJ Upton redhot after his
arrival has 6 HR 20 RBI in 71 AB's since the trade. Gathright again is a
supersub stealing 18 bases after stealing 44 last year. He is batting
.356 in 78 games. Hill, Snell, and Bergman have pitching well as
starters. Though the bullpen ERA looks good, they have allowed .41
inherited runners to score. Pretty awful. Imagine with some more pop and
some bullpen work what Maine could do/ A wildcard is within the
possibilities. They are battling against San Diego, Longue Pointe,
Limoilou and Joliet for now. With one Dawson winning the top spot (Take
your pick who) the others will compete. Belfast isnt out yet and if they
put together a hot streak could sneak in there. Alllentown has been on
fire of late and is making a strong push towards a wildcard and .500.
With a majority of the contenders just a bit over .500, A Town could be a
player here.They may have what it takes. 8-2 in their last 10, Allentown
may not have the power but they have bats. Hanley Ramirez has been awesome
a combo of all offense. His defense hurts though. .596 X at SS is
pathetic. With literally hundreds of opportunities not getting the play
done out there, He gives away what he takes. He is better suited at DH.
Kent has given them a lift and is hitting a high .324 with some pop at
2B. The defense up the middle isnt too good, but the bats are real. Russ
Martin has 27 SB and could set a CBA record as a catcher. 10 HR 51 RBI
.283, Corey Hart has another 17 HR's. The story is James Shields. 14-3 a
CBA leading 2.45 ERA 147 K's and leads CBA with quality starts.
Longue POinte has won some series and lost some just hovering around .500
as the Bruise brothers of Quebec Jeff Boutet's Limoilou Wendigo and the
Belfast Brawlers k'bash heads with Joliet and San Diego. No one teams has
a distinct advantage however Joliet has been a cut above the rest staying
in first place the longest. Nothing to be taken for granted in Dawson
where usage really matters and depth is a huge factor. The Wendigo have
been playing better and slipped back in to the picture. They are now 5
games above .500 and are perhaps CBA's most improved next to A Town. Jeff
always manages to bring his team into contention. He is perhaps CBA's
most consistent winner over the past 11 years. Great bullpen work spells
their success. The starters have really struggled. Dutin McGowan expected
to be a winner is 5-11 4.89 ERA. The pen has accumulated most of the
wins. The offense is Carlos Beltran 19 HR 67 RBI, and Prince 45 HR
Fielder. Granderson .319 12HR 67 RBI has helped quite a bit too.
Longue Pointe again is relying on an impressive defense .811 X rating, and
a pitching staff witha 3.98 ERA. Zanbrano is 10-9 4.58 not really the
numbers he's used to. Tim Lincecum 10-2 3.06 is the ace. Maddux 8-7 3.44
ERA, Sabathia 9-11, 3.94 ERA. Todd Jones has 17 saves and a 1.56 ERA.
How does he do it year after year for LP? Again with LP its the bench
players with key contributions, Timo Perez .419 as PH, Augie Ojeda .331.
A few guys with between 12-19 HR's. Sexson has provided a power lift
hitting 19, while Ramirez' numbers aredown, Torri Hunter has picked it up
some. Suzuki is back to form hitting.339 with 33 SB, McDonald has played
great defense at SS and stole 11 bases, Varitek's 16 Hr's all help keep LP
in the game.
San Diego has had ups and downs after last years great season. The horses
are there for Joe Wallace. The offense has been mediocre with a .266 BA
and only 95 HR. David Wright 14 HR 64 RBI 18 SB .357 BA has carried them
along with Edgar Renteria 8 32 .332 BA. Chris Duncan has added 19 HR's.
The pitching is great with 3.84 ERA although the starters and pen are
victimized by lack of offense. With some added power, SD could move up
quick. Peavy 10-10 3.25 has been hard luck, King Felix, and Meche have
great mid 3's ERA's. Dan Haren has 9 wins too and a 4.25 ERA. Should be
good enough to win.
Belfast started to win some and then slumped. Expect them to make more
noise as the August days roll around. Only 61 HR's is nowhere near
enough. Only Alex Rios has 15 HR 58 RBI .270. They steal alot. 120 SB's.
Figgins agian having a great year .339 BA and 39 SB. Hatteberg is hitting
a great .332. The pitching is decent too with a 4.63 ERA and some good
ERA's for the pen too. Its only power that would keep the Brawlers from
being in it. The .394 slug won't help.
Joliet is the class here. The offense is carried by a few key performers.
Pierre has gotten on base and stolen 63 bases. Ordonez 15 60 .357 is a
batting average leader, but he gets walked alot intentionally. Lowell 12
HR 50 RBI .310 BA is pretty efficient. Soriano has gotten untracked yet.
When he does, Joliet will make their lead grow.
Great pitching 3.98. The pen is awesome .307 IRSC, Putz 27 saves and
great set up men. Wolfe, Capps, Lewis, Burton, Pinto, Vizcaino. All are
key contributors. Perhaps if Looper and Chukt James did better Joliet
would be the winningest team in Staub.
In Clemente it been Indiana holding a 2 1/2 game lead over Brooklyn. The
rivalry so intense that Indiana acquired Loney, Griffey, Billy Wagner and
Chico Ruiz for the pennant drive leaving nothing to chance, and nothing in
draft pick tank for 2009. Fidler is looking to be a repeat champion as he
was in 2006's storybook season and playoff. Indiana is loaded and will be
devastingly potent in a playoff series. All the pieces are in place. The
bench as much fire power as the starters. Then theres Pujols and ARod.
If everyone else wherent enough. Fidler was blessed when the dispersal
draft gave a prior owner him his first pick of A Rod. The acquistion of
Wagner should shore up the pen. The bench depth will help Indy erase
their 13-18 1 run game record and below .500 record in extra innings.
Brooklyn better watch out.
Brooklyn has struggled the past few blocks as rest and non productive
pitching have hurt. The odds were in Coors the team pitching couldn't
stay at a low level too long and its has risen. It has gone up about .34
the past 4 blocks to 4.32. A brght spot is the undefeated Eric Bedard
who is 14-0 3.07 ERA. He has 140 K's in 111 innings. His usage is good
too. In fact Brooklyn's usage may become and advantage as the season winds
down. Miguel Cabrera 32 HR 93 RBI .367 BA last years MVP having another
MVP type year. Howard has 27 HR's 79 RBI, Todd Helton 15HR 55 RBI .326
among the CBA's alltime leaders in most catagories is having another great
season. He and another of CBA's old time career leaders Sammy Sosa 16HR 48
RBI ,272 are locks for the CBA HOF. Sosa adds to his all time HR and RBI
lead. Brandon Phillips 20 HR 61 RBI and 27 SB has played great defense at
2B to compensate for Furcals 19 errors, 2nd in CBA. Byrnes 14 58 .288 with
44 SB has been an ideal leadoff hitter. A .798 X rating for the D is
outstanding. It accounts for much of the pitching success of 2008.
Ottawa is capable of beating anyone. They have swept teams like Brooklyn,
Indiana, & San Diego, and are 25-17 in the ever tough Parker division. At
55-53 they are fighting for the second wild card along with the teams of
Schmidt. They hit righties fine, but struggle vs the lefties. The HOF
dudo of Vlad and Papi are devastating again. Vlad is on a triple crown
type tear. He is well up in RBI's 120. 39 HR just 6 off of Fileder, and
.351 BA. Awesome Vlad. Papi adds 26 taters. Mauer is at .317, Patterson
at .312, and theres a drop in productivity after that. Its safe to say
Vlad and Papi are carrying this team. The pitching is poor with a 4.93
ERA. Only Webb stands out at 12-6 4.19 ERA. The pen is adequate
Bororwski closing 21 saves and Bradford, Tavares, and Downs holding games
in late innings. They are just behind Carolina and a game up on Lake
County for the second WC spot.
Cooperstown been playing much better in the second half. At one point in
June 20 games under .500 they are now only 14 games under, and looking for
respectabilty. In a tough division, C Town could be a spoiler. Lead by
Raul Ibanez 25 HR 64 RBI .325 BA. Morneau is hitting .311 with 28 HR 81
RBI. Markakis has had 14 more HR. C Town Iron horses could be moving up
some in the next few weeks. The goal for now is .500. The addition of
Reynolds could prove huge in the next few weeks.
Caroliner is finer than at season beginning. Loads of power 161 HR's but
low .266 BA. 7 guys with double digit HR's. M Tejada is having a great
year .326 23 HR 63 RBI. Hafner with a ,221 BA is a disappointment.
Carolina needs him to stay in the WC chase. They are only 3 behind front
running Philly. A 58-50 record and good pitching. Marquis is a
surprising 13-4 4.30. Must be steroids for the Staten Island horses ass.
Valverde has been sensational 1.89 ERA 16 saves. Johann, and Harang could
be a factor down the stretch since they are under achieving right now.
Look out for the Copperheads.
Philly is hitting .285 with 148 HR's and stars at all positions. So why
are they not way out ahead/ Pitching 4.71 is starting to get better.
Heath Bell in 33 games is lights out 5-2 1.76 ERA 76 K's 8 saves in 66
Inn. The pen is by committee. A .321 IRSC. Percival, R Soriano, all
good. The rest of the pitchers, not so good. Dontrelle started tough and
has faded some is 12-5 but a high 5.36 ERA.
escobar is only 5-7 but has a 3.96 ERA I guess hard luck. Philly will
need pitching or more offense from guys like Jeter 4 HR 32 RBI .286 to
stay in 1st place and maybe repeat as CBA World Champions. Rob ite always
finds a way.
Wayne McGee was unsure he would be able to stya in CBA at season
beginning, but he caught draft fever and was glad he stayed on. He has a
good team and of late they are CBA's hottest team. They're climbing back
to the Wild card race slowly but surely. As the pitching numbers come down
the wins go up. The team is batting .289 so offense isn;t the problem.
Carl Crawford 19 HR 63 RBI .350 34 Sb is an MVP candidate. Manny having
abnother fine year has 19 HR 73 RBI .324 BA. Carlos Pena has 34 HR.
Pedroia is hitting .350 in a full time role. With some pitching, the
Redsox could be trouble. '
Southwest is building their squad for the future and is looking forward to
the next draft. They only have Matt Holliday who is 29 HR 87 RBI .327 BA
who is starring. Griffey just traded to Indy had 17 HR's. Only place to
go from here is down toward a high draft pick.
May 20th 2008
Belfast: Took a bad week 1-5, dropping them 4 off the pace set by Joliet. Armando Rios and Nate McClouth have led the way with 6 and 7 HR respectively. Figgins has 14 SB, McClouth and Davis both have 9 SB. Belfast is at .500 21-21. The pitching ERA is 4.42, with DiNardo the ace at 4-2 3.09 era. Corpas 8 saves and R Perez 2 saves both big time in relief.
Longue Pointe: has had its ups and downs but with an improved offense and defense, the Loggers should stay in the mix. They can boast 5 ones in the lineup on any given day with that kind of defense, the pitching will have less toiling to do. The 4.06 ERA is low considering the Loggers once thought weakness in the bullpen. Pettitte 1-3 7.71, Sabathia 4-5 despite a 3.32 era, Zambrano last years Cy Young is mired at 5-4 4.02 era, Moyer a 6+ era. Not too good and will need to do better. Linsecum is now the staff ace at 5-2 3.99 era. The pen is by Committee. Richie Sexson bats been hot of late 6 HR 22 RBI .269, Varitek 7 HR 17 RBI, Torii Hunter has slowed some in the cleanup role is hitting 6 HR 24 RBI .286 with 10 SB. Ichiro off to a slower start is hitting .318 with only 12 SB.
Limoilou: Slowly rising again after a terrible stretch, LWD has had a red hot Prince Fielder with 18 HR, 32 RBI. Granderson is hitting 7 HR, 28 RBI .320ba. Beltran had better start hitting. Despite 9 HR 30 RBi, is hitting .205. No one stands out on the pitching staff.
San Diego is hanging tough with LP, Belfast, and Joliet. The Surf have a league best pitching staff with a 3.45 era. Frank Rodriguez has been lights out with 8 saves, Peavy and Haren both have won 5. The starters ERA's are all below Haren's 3.67 except for Santana. 341 K's in 423 innings. Wright is on fire hitting 7HR 33 RBI, .347. Delmon Young is hitting .375 in 144 AB's. McCann is at .321.
Joliet is a contender in 2008. Magglio is hitting .367 with 6 HR 23 RBI's. If the Jacks need anything its another power bat to protect the lineup. a .281 BA but only 29 HR in 42 games may catch up to the Jack. Usage may be of concern for the pitching staff unless some deals come along. Lowell's .329 bat has been a major plus for JJD, however no one is scared of the lineup. Only 7 intentional passes for the .328 OBA, .406 slug team.
.292 IRSC and .745X % is adequate though not outstanding. It will be a dogfight in Dawson.The Carter is all Skokie. Miller and Wolfman have put together perhaps a team for the ages. They could challenge for the Philly Phantastics 120 win record of 2000. 62 HR's, lots of power. Chipper is an MVP candidiate with 12 HR 32 RBI .342 BA. Bradley and Bonds the killer B's have 8 HR's and are at .324 for Bonds and Brads.314 the team has an .816 OB/SLG. A 3.43 Team ERA keeps 'em in any game. Hudson is at 6-2 and Clemens 6-1. Bullpen is by situational committee.
Allentown: Hanley Ramirez is looking quite like an MVP candidate 5 HR, 24 RBI, 28 SB, .366 BA carrying the team along with Corey Hart 7 HR 24 RBI, and Russell Martins 6 HR 28 RBI and 11 SB. When all is said and done Martin could break CBA's catchers SB record whatever that is. A .271 team BA is an improvement over last season, and 19-23 puts them squarely in the wildcard race in Staub. A Town needs James Shields is the staff ace with a 6-1 record and a miniscule 1.86 ERA. He has 72K's in 87 inn. A .407 IRSC and .709 X rating will not win games for A Town.
Kennesaw Mt has been inconsistant. When you think they can make a break, they regress. Billingsley 3-3 2.77 and Kendrick 4-2 3.14 have pitching well enough to win, but little else has gone well. The offense is ok to win with Loney hitting 8 HR 22 RBI .370, and R Braun 7 HR 18 RBI .352. They have no one to drive home or be driven home by. The end of the order is awful so far.
The Maine Express: You'll be hearing from this team in 2008. They must get bullpen help to win. A .398 IRSC is bad Aside from Jenks, Beimel, Tallet, Lyon,Yuser Petit, Morrow have been rediculous. Cost them big games already. Meanwhile the offense has shined. A .271, lots of runs and solid cards. Iwamura has hit well at .333. Adrian Gonzalez 8 HR 29 RBI, .316 is dangerous.Uggla, Rowand, and Francouer have been consistant producers. This team could win with the starters and offense keep on rollin...
Ohio: Struggling along, the Thundercats are in rebuild and have little highlites to mention at this time. Stay tuned. The offense has a few wins in 'em, but a 5.99 ERA staff has nothing to do with the art of winning.
The Schmidt division of Clemente promises an interesting race this year, 2008. Last years champion team Philly comes right out of Schmidt. They again lead the division although the stakes have been raised as there has been improvement all along.
Philly: At 26-19 looks solid. They've scored 10+ runs 13 times only allowing 10 runs 2 times. They're 13-5 in their own division faring better as a road team. They need to improve their middle defense. Turning Dp's is not a strength and could only help out a suspect pitching staff which has a high 4.89 era. Willis is 6-1 but has an above 6 ERA. Verlander is 5-3 with an acceptable era but is hardly an ace in 2008. Its the offense that makes 'em go. Both Carlos Lee and Lants Berkman have 13 HR, and 5 others have hit 5 + HR.
Carolina: Has played better after a slow start. They too have power, hitting 71 HR. Adim Dunn has 14 HR, while Tejada has 9, and Benj3 Molina has 8. As a whole they are only hitting .257. At 21-27 they will need to string together alot of wins to get back into contention. Its a longshot but can be done.
Stirling also has a good offense averaging .294 near CBA's best. Only 51 HR, isn't bad but will be hard pressed to outslug some of the beefier teams in Clemente a DH league. Pedroia has been a revelation hitting .360 at 2B, displacing long time 2B Belliard. Carl Crawford is having an MVP year hitting .395 with 11 HR, 29 RBI, and 10 SB. Manny Ramirez is on fire lately hitting 3 HR in 1 game and 8 for the year to go along with an impressive .328 BA. Ollie Cabrera is hitting .335 with 10 SB as well.
The Lakers of Lake County are on a roll coming up with 11 wins in 15 games to pull closer to Philly in the Schmidt. Solid offense led by Jenkins 9 HR, and All world Jimm3 Rollins have carried the offense. Willy Taveras is hitting .350 with 15 SB as a leadoff man. Not bad. The record is at 23-25, and climbing. The 4.59 team ERA could be better. Once the pen starts to propser, the Lakers could be in the wildcard or division hunt.
The Southwest Lizard Kings had been cold of late as Eric Lindner contemplated diving from the Golden Gate bridge. Right now their story is Matt "doc" Holliday who is front running for MVP. Orlando Hudson's .314 BA isn't bad, but there is no pitching to speak of outside of Dean er..Matt Cain. Better times may be ahead as adjustments are made...
The Parker is all Indiana right now. Brooklyn and Ottawa are close by. 92 HR in 45 games is remarkable as the Redbirds pound opponents into submission. Pujols 12 HR, Posada 13 HR, ARod 15 HR, Thome 16 HR. The addition of Thome cemented what could becaome CBA's most prolific offense. The starters are adequate with Ace Oswalt 7-0 2.88. Garland is 6-1, but afterwards the staff struggles somewhat and that could be important with Pitching heavy Brooklyn nearby.
Brooklyn has great balance of pitching defense and power. The pen has a low .235 IRSC with Feliciano, Mahay, Reyes, Mariano, and more. Bedard is 5-0, while Halladay has 5 more wins. Ryan Howard is red hot of late hitting 14 HR 42 RBI and .292. Miguel Cabrera is an MVP candidate again with 16 HR, 39 RBI, .356 BA. Byrnes has been a quality leadoff man 6 HR 31 RBI .331 BA 25 SB. They will be there in the end.
Ottawa is having a great year. Vlad is impaling opponents 16 HR 46 RBI .366 BA a triple crown candidate. Cust has added 12 HR, and Ortiz bat is coming alive. Brandon Webb leads the staff at 6-1 4.04, while Lackey has 5 wins. A wildcard place could be theirs.
Cooperstown is improved though they will need to generate more than a .254 BA and 46 HR to compete in Parker. The team ERA at 5.11 isn't good and the Iron Horses will have their work cut out for them.
May 2nd