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07/29/2058
The champs are back on top. After a 5-1 week that featured a sweep of Pittsburgh, and taking two of three from rival Dallas, the Wildcats are back to #1 in the Power Rankings. Other top weeks were had by Philly and Dallas who each went 5-2. Looks like the Freedom are trying to play themselves out of that number one pick, while the Drillers are looking to go back to the playoffs for the sixth straight season. On the other side of life Hartford went 1-5. The poor Whalers are having a horrible month as they are 5-17 in July and now 16 games under .500. Those fans are just hoping August gets here quick.
Power Rankings
1) Wilmington Wildcats (119.8, +)
2) Los Angeles Dinos (114.5, o)
3) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (109.9, -)
4) Dallas Drillers (109.6, ++)
5) Baltimore Bulldogs (108.6, o)
6) New Orleans Voodoo (107.3, -)
7) Washington Bats (103.6, -)
8) Toronto Canadians (100.2, ++)
9) Seattle Pilots (100.0, -)
10) Maine Guides (95.8, ++)
11) New York Cyclones (95.2, --)
12) Indianapolis Clowns (90.5, +)
13) Phoenix Roadrunners (88.6, --)
14) California Kodiaks (88.2, -)
15) Pittsburgh Millers (80.0, +)
16) Windy City Blues (80.0, ++)
17) Carolina Tobs (79.8, +)
18) Pawtucket Patriots (74.1, --)
19) Montreal Exports (72.8, +)
20) Philadelphia Freedom (71.3, ++)
21) Batavia Muckdogs (71.1, ++)
22) Denver Bulls (68.5, -)
23) Hartford Whalers (66.6, -)
24) Syracuse Snappers (66.0, --)
Performance of the Week
P Tucker Key - The 24 year old Key was the 3rd overall of the 2054 draft and is in his third season with the club. He's bounced between his roles, but after his performance against LAD a few days ago he might stay in the starter role. On July 26th he crushed the Dinos with a two-hit, no run, no walk, 14 strikeout performance in a 6-0 victory. His 97 game score was the second highest of the season, and he's now 3-7 with two saves and a 4.85 ERA on the season.
Prospect of the Week
3B Armond 'Slappy' Chaidez - No one smacks the long ball like 'Slappy', the fourth overall pick of this years draft. So far in 37 Rookie League games he's hitting .322 with 17 HR and 43 RBI, with a nice 191 OPS+. He's the 48th ranked prospect, and has helped Batavia build a top three minor league system in the league.
Five Things We Think We Think
1. On July 1st the Voodoo had an eight game lead in the Lager over Wilmington. As of today that lead is down to a game and a half as the Wildcats are 15-6 in July and coming on strong. The main problem with New Orleans is they forgot how to score runs. Their 71 runs this month is second...to last...in the league. They've hit 23 home runs, which is tied for ninth, but apparently no one happens to be on base. They went 20-8 last month, but at 10-12 they will need a sweep of Toronto to finish July in the plus column.
2. It looks like the Domestic is going to be Maine, and then five teams from the Lager. The Guides have a 78.2% of making the playoffs. Meanwhile the five Lager teams are New Orleans (100%), Santo Domingo (99.9%), Wilmington (99.9%), Dallas (99.3%), and Toronto (89.2%). Meanwhile the Import isn't much more exciting as we have Baltimore (99.9%), Washington (99.4%), and New York (98.8%) in the Stout, and Los Angeles (100%), Seattle (96.7%) and Phoenix (80.8%) in the Bock. At least the wildcard races and home field advantage is completely up in the air.
3. The BNN headlines scream "Will Freedom Trade Raper" as Amonte Raper is asking to get out of town. The 33 year old was a second round pick by Phoenix in 2042, but traded to Toronto in 2043. He ended up a 2x All-Star there before joining Denver in free agency, where he went to the All-Star game for the third time. Since then he's played for New Orleans and was just signed this off-season by Philly to a three year deal. Unfortunately he's not in the starting lineup, and has publicly stated that he's sick and tired of the "disruptive influences" on the team. He's a lifetime .306 hitter with a 123 OPS+, but sadly his best days in the field are behind him. We're not sure what Philly could get for him, but someone might want to take a chance.
4. Charlie Spence struck out 15 batters this last week against Denver, the 14th such time he's had 15 or more strikeouts in a game during his illustrious career. That's five more times that second place Christian Vines, and seven more than third place Oliver Lanham. We say 'career' like he's in his 30's, but Spence is still just 28 years old. He's on pace for 322 K's once again this season, which would be the fifth straight season he's exceeded 300 strikeouts. The feat has been done 12 times in the history of the league, and Spence has four of them.
5. What's on tap? Once against some top tier series as we get the friends battling in Santo Domingo at Wilmington, the family battling in Phoenix at Seattle, and the commishes battling in Pittsburgh at Dallas. Streak wise Maine, Dallas and Wilmington have won four straight, and JaQawn Schiegl (SDR) has a 14 game hitting streak.
Stat of the Week
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