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05/03/2066
California love all the way as the Kodiaks go 6-1, move to 22-5, and have a death grip on the Power Rankings. California is first in nearly every offensive category, which means the GM office hasn't been remodeled since the beginning of the year. Other top weeks were New Orleans, Indy, Baltimore, Carolina, and Hartford who all went 5-1, while Dallas and Wilmington went 5-2. On the other side of life Maine went 0-7 and has lost 10 straight, but we'll talk more about them later.
1) California Kodiaks (160.7, o)
2) Wilmington Wildcats (128.7, o)
3) Hartford Whalers (123.2, ++)
4) Dallas Drillers (114.7, ++)
5) Carolina Tobs (108.9, ++)
6) Indianapolis Clowns (104.9, ++)
7) Pittsburgh Millers (104.1, ++)
8) Los Angeles Sharks (96.6, ++)
9) Washington Bats (96.6, ++)
10) Baltimore Bulldogs (96.0, ++)
11) Montreal Exports (86.0, --)
12) New Orleans Voodoo (85.2, ++)
13) New York Cyclones (84.4, --)
14) Denver Bulls (84.2, ++)
15) Windy City Blues (83.0, --)
16) Phoenix Roadrunners (81.6, --)
17) Pawtucket Patriots (81.0, --)
18) Batavia Muckdogs (78.2, --)
19) Toronto Canadians (78.2, +)
20) Santo Domingo Rum Runners (75.1, -)
21) Syracuse Snappers (74.2, --)
22) Seattle Pilots (66.2, --)
23) Philadelphia Freedom (50.6, o)
24) Maine Guides (-0.0, o)
Performance of the Week
CF Alex Cain - The first overall pick of the 2060 draft is still one of the best players in the league and showed why on April 29th. In a 17-3 drubbing of the Muckdogs, Cain hit two home runs and drove in four, while walking three times and scoring four runs. Denver opened the game with a five-run first and never looked back as they held Batavia to only a field goal on the day. On the season Cain is hitting .321/.396/.704 with 7 HR, 22 RBI, 11 SB, and a +.09 ZR in center field. He's a five tool player without a doubt.
Prospect of the Week
P Jarred 'Grasshopper' Alston - The question of the 2066 BLB draft is who is going to take the best closer the league has seen out of college since...well...maybe ever? Alston could literally go from being drafted to the BLB in mid-June and end up being a teams shutdown closer by the end of the June. The hard throwing lefty can hit 97 mph on the gun, his work ethic and intelligence are raved about, and scouts believe he's ready to play already. What's ironic is that he isn't that worn out this year because he was picked to play on Team USA in the WBC. Therefore he only pitched 10 innings for USC this season. He's literally a plug and play closer for the next decade...if he stays healthy.
Five Things We Think We Think
1. The first month of 2066 is here and gone. The big winner was California who went 20-5 while outscoring their opponents by 43 runs. Next up was Wilmington at 19-6, while finally Hartford went 15-9 and Indy went 15-10. On the other side was Maine at 3-22 and Philly at 8-16. Some team leaders: Cali scored 143 runs (Mai 64), Cali hit 51 home runs (Mai 21), Carolina stole 53 bases (Den 13), and Hartford hit .282 (Mai .214). On the pitching side Wilmington allowed just 68 runs (Paw 154), and teams hit .207 off Baltimore pitchers (PHI .300).
2. Look at Washington go. Last time we checked in they were 1-12 and the worst team in baseball. Then they went 12-2 since April 19th and are once again who we thought they were. Over that time pitcher Alex Landrum is 3-0 with a 1.17 ERA, Justin Casey is 3-0 with a 0.43 ERA, and Marc 'Mole' Dillard is 2-1 with a 1.04 ERA. They've also hit 18 home runs with Lon Leseberg hitting six of them in his last seven games. To be fair they started out the year playing Carolina, Windy City, Pawtucket and Pittsburgh, all teams .500 or above. The last few weeks they've played Batavia, Seattle, Baltimore, and Phoenix, all teams .500 or below. They probably aren't a .850 win percentage team, but they sure aren't a .077 one either. They have the best rotation in the league, and once the Bats bats come around they'll be on their way to another 90+ win season.
3. California is 22-5. Maine is 3-24. Never this early in the season have we seen such a discrepancy in the history of the BLB. If the Guides are trying to tank, we know where they can get a 'Mission Accomplished' banner. Maybe they got confused as the tanking for 'Agony' is supposed to happen for the 2068 draft. Currently the Guides have a Power Ranking of 0.0, which we've never seen either. They already have a -92 run differential in the first week of May, are last in nearly every offensive and pitching category, and are last with a -10.70 ZR. Last season starter Jason Decker went 1-16 with a 7.98 ERA. For most pitchers that means retirement. He's out there again though and is currently 1-3 with a 6.26 ERA. Maybe he's improving? With a top three pick last season, a top two pick this season, and the top pick next season at least they have a chance to right the ship in the next four to five years. Until then it's going to be a long few seasons for Guides fans.
4. Speaking of zone rating, our favorite stat check in the BLB is back. With a league total of +42.68 either people are reading the DK or decided to do something because they are just tired hearing about it. One team that needs no help is Wilmington, who leads all with a +14.41 ZR. Baltimore is next at +12.48, and Windy City is third at +11.10. On the other side of life, it's Maine, Philly, and New York as the bottom three. Maine and Philly have the two worst records in the league, while New York is holding on at 14-13. Last season New York and Philly finished with a combined -108.06 ZR. We're not sure how that is even possible. Then again this season Philly is running third basemen Keegan Jewett out to play short stop, while short stop Abraham Koziarz is playing third base. Does anyone wonder why the poor Freedom haven't had a winning record since 2052?
5. What's on tap?
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Streaking
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| Tommy Dunham (BAL) has a 14 game hitting streak |
| Isaac Pack (PIT) hit a HR in 3 straight games |
| Milton Hastings (CAL) has converted 12 straight save opportunities |
Who's Hot
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Milestones
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RF Evan Turner (PIT), 32 yo, reached 2000 hits
LF Byron Carlton (PIT), 29 yo, reached 1000 hits
P Benedict Zacarias (PIT), 30 yo, reached 50 wins
SS Keon Pryor (BAT), 30 yo, reached 100 home runs
CF Grant Spivey (IND), 23 yo, hit his first home run
LF Dalton Seaton (PHI), 28 yo, hit his first home run
SS Blade Richards (PHO), 24 yo, hit his first home run
3B Julius Simpson (TOR), 27 yo, reached 250 RBIs
2B Justin Reaves (HAR), 25 yo, reached 250 RBIs
1B Trent West (WIL), 30 yo, reached 500 extra base hits
1B Blake Simmons (MAI), 26 yo, reached 200 extra base hits
C Chandler Frazee (WIL), 28 yo, reached 100 extra base hits
LF Wyatt Tait (IND), 26 yo, reached 100 extra base hits
P Marc Dillard (WAS), 31 yo, reached 100 wins
P Liam Polyak (DEN), 38 yo, reached 100 wins
P Owen Ward (NO), 37 yo, reached 75 wins
P Guy Hunnicutt (PHI), 30 yo, reached 150 saves
P Tommy Pitz (NYC), 33 yo, reached 750 strikeouts
P Ervin Lee (CAL), 29 yo, reached 500 strikeouts
P Oscar Kiss (NO), 23 yo, reached 250 strikeouts
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Stat of the Week
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