tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65315951568698960412024-03-05T05:29:17.513-08:00Rob's APBA BlogRob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-10270634181812739782021-12-30T12:33:00.000-08:002021-12-30T12:33:17.542-08:00Minutemen Take Down Axemen in Game 7 Playoff Classic<p>Just when it seemed the Axemen were set to advance to the next round of the 2021 MDTL Playoffs, Culpeper got a two-out double by Cesar Hernandez to keep them alive in the top of the 10th. Next up, late-inning defensive sub Byron Buxton to face P-Town closer Brad Hand.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhto1i8LWwqn1X1hG12MmR716lyEX3HFgGZdiuaQZV40niGz4pFa2_7Lgcrhyq9QWOdZkSma6KjJUDrwL_DPV7qkp1YJ1_3SBWqaHhUuQq4c2fSEemPYCB-ERZMMOXWR6LoadoZzstVrZ5yMI-DtTseS_HBc7cGftx0mVwx8kauCLSdg7IUJR7K_aNvkA=s1050" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1050" data-original-width="733" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhto1i8LWwqn1X1hG12MmR716lyEX3HFgGZdiuaQZV40niGz4pFa2_7Lgcrhyq9QWOdZkSma6KjJUDrwL_DPV7qkp1YJ1_3SBWqaHhUuQq4c2fSEemPYCB-ERZMMOXWR6LoadoZzstVrZ5yMI-DtTseS_HBc7cGftx0mVwx8kauCLSdg7IUJR7K_aNvkA=w139-h200" width="139" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Byron Buxton</td></tr></tbody></table>With Hernandez taking his lead against the P-Town left-hander, Buxton deposited Hand's next pitch over the outfield fence, giving the Minutemen a 6-4 lead in Game 7 of the back-and-forth classic that the Axemen had looked to wrap up just an inning before.</p>Alas, James Hoyt closed out the Axemen after Trevor Story reached on an error, a fielder's choice and a double-play grounder by Eric Hosmer. The win sent Culpeper onto the next round, where they will face the County Road Rebels. <p>The late-inning triumph gave Culpeper a 4-3 series victory, and concluded P-Town's season. A familiar late-season surge had propelled P-Town to a 95-67 record and the top spot in the Frey Division of the <a href="https://masondixontabletop.wixsite.com/mdtl" target="_blank">Mason-Dixon Tabletop League,</a> now in its 49th season. </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh9IjM-P2yTOc7w0SJylFS-L676T4R-cK0Hpasu6-Uj1OuyVfCytih_FBUH1tWd1v6Wjm90_IPDJ9G6h6Zmo_RRT-eK3N8eFbuO610L_9Mc5G2RZItp5-1ma_e03BLzya0PDY-y1e2pQH2-4HVYg1rnNE06u_o5WjqHrRm_ABhiht2XL5oq1I-_pgxXqg=s1050" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1050" data-original-width="730" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh9IjM-P2yTOc7w0SJylFS-L676T4R-cK0Hpasu6-Uj1OuyVfCytih_FBUH1tWd1v6Wjm90_IPDJ9G6h6Zmo_RRT-eK3N8eFbuO610L_9Mc5G2RZItp5-1ma_e03BLzya0PDY-y1e2pQH2-4HVYg1rnNE06u_o5WjqHrRm_ABhiht2XL5oq1I-_pgxXqg=w139-h200" width="139" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anthony Rendon</td></tr></tbody></table>As Axemen fans silently exited P-Town Stadium, GM/Manager Rob Priewe could utter but a single word to sum up the series versus Culpeper, "Wow." </p><p>(<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16VqxTwfEtnc0s0ObyCZTl3ab0sNU2fzTMQJv6EdDbpg/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Click here for complete P-Town stats.</a>)</p><p>With the squads trading off series victories, the difference proved to be Culpeper's 21-14 edge in home runs, including dingers from Buxton, Mitch Moreland, Anthony Rendon and Anthony Santander in Game 7. </p><p>Here's Culpeper Manager Mike McClurg Jr.'s fine summary of the series:</p><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game 1 </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> <span> </span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | | R | H | E |</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | 8 | 11 | 0 |</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">P-Town | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | | | 4 | 4 | 0 |</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">WP: Lamet LP: Plesac </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">HR: CM - Walsh, Betts, Moreland, Santander PT - None </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper gets 3 runs in 2nd inning on Betts 3R HR. CM adds another run in 3rd when Dalbec doubles to score Locastro, Culpeper takes a commanding 6-0 lead in 4th on back-to-back HR's by Santander and Walsh. CM goes up 8-0 in 6th with a Moreland 2R HR. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">PT finally gets on the scoreboard with 4 runs in the 7th, McNiel has an RBI double and Grisham a bases-loaded double. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game 2</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | | R | H | E | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | | 1 | 4 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">P-Town | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | | | 6 | 6 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">WP: Cole LP: Kim </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">HR: CM - Buxton PT - Grisham, Moncada </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">PT gets 2 runs in first when Hosmer hits a 2R double, scoring Verdugo and McNiel. PT gets 2 more in 2nd on a Moncada 2R HR. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper finally gets a run in 7th to make it 4-1 on Buxton HR. PT jumps back on CM for 2 runs in bottom of inning</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">with a solo HR by Grisham and an RBI double by Story.</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game 3 </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | | R | H | E | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">P-Town | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | | 4 | 8 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | | | 10 | 11 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">WP: Sanchez LP: Bundy </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">HR: PT - Story 2, Upton CM - Walsh, Dalbec, Castro, Betts, Rendon, Buxton </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">PT gets 2 runs in first inning for 2nd game in a row on Story's 2R HR. CM gets 3 in 2nd with a Rendon 3R HR. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">PT ties game in 3rd on Story's 2nd HR in the game. Castro makes it 4-3 with a solo shot in 4th. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper blows open game in the 5th with 4 runs on Walsh solo HR, Dalbec solo HR, and a 2R HR by Betts. Culpeper cruises to a 10-4 win. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game 4 </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | R | H | E |</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">P-Town | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 13 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">WP: Pressley Save: A.J. Cole LP: Urias </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">HR: PT - Story, McNiel, Stassi, Grisham CM - Walsh, Hernandez, Suarez </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Marathon game going 16 innings. P-Town scores in the 1st inning for 3rd game in a row with 4 runs powered by Stassi 3R HR. Culpeper cuts it to 4-3 with 3 in the 2nd on a 2R HR by Hernandez and a solo shot by Suarez. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">McNiel hits a solo HR in 3rd to make it 5-3. PT gets a unearned run in 5th on a steal of 3rd and a throwing error by Perez. Walsh hits a solo HR in bottom of inning to make it 6-4. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pitchers hold both teams scoreless for next 3 innings. Culpeper rallies to tie game in 9th on an RBI double by Rendon and then Walsh singles him home. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game goes scoreless until 14th, when Cronenworth hits a solo HR but Culpeper ties game in bottom of inning on a Walsh RBI double. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">PT blows open game in the 16th inning for the win with 4 runs powered by 2R HR's by Grisham and Story.</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game 5 </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | | R | H | E | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">P-Town <span> </span><span> </span>| 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | 1 | 2 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper<span> </span><span> </span> | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | | | 5 | 6 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">WP: Kim LP: Cole </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">HR: PT - None CM - Santander, Rendon, Rosario </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper finally holds PT scoreless in 1st inning and gets a run in bottom of inning on Santander solo HR. CM goes up 3-0 in 3rd on Rosario 2R HR. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">PT gets on scoreboard in 4th when McNiel doubles in Verdugo. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">CM gets 2 insurance runs in 7th on Rendon's 2R HR. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Kim gets CGW for Minutemen, allowing only 2 hits.</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game 6 </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | | | R | H | E | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper <span> </span><span> </span>| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | 0 | 4 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">P-Town <span> </span><span> </span>| 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | | | 5 | 8 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">WP: Bundy LP: Sanchez</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">HR: CM - None PT - Cooper 2 </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">P-Town scores in 1st inning for the 4th game in the series on Cooper's 2R HR. Verdugo doubles in Moncada in 3rd to make it 3-0. PT adds 2 insurance runs in 8th on Cooper's second 2 run HR of the game. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bundy cruises to complete game shutout for the Axemen. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Series is now tied 3 games each. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game 7 </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> <span> </span><span> </span></span>| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | | R | H | E | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Culpeper | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | | 6 | 7 | 0 |</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">P-Town | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | | 4 | 8 | 0 | </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">WP: Hoyt LP: Hand </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">HR: CM - Santander, Rendon, Moreland, Buxton PT - Cronenworth, Cooper </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game is a pitchers' duel between Plesac and Lamet until Culpeper gets back-to-back Home Runs by Santander and Rendon in 6th. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">PT is held scoreless for 7 innings but rallies for a 3-2 lead in the 8th. Cooper starts the rally with a pinch-hit 2-run HR and Hosmer singles in Grisham who was on second base with a double. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The 9th inning starts quietly for Culpeper with Plesac quickly retiring the first 2 batters in the inning. Betts then hits a single and then Moreland hits a 2-run HR to put Culpeper up 4-3. Cronenworth quickly ties game on back-to-back dice rolls of 11 and the Axemen crowd erupts after having their hearts ripped out in top of inning. Verdugo then hits a double but is stranded at second base when Grisham grounds out to end the inning and send game to extra innings. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hand strikes out Suarez to start the 10th, then Hernandez hits a double and then Buxton, who had entered game in the 9th for defense, hits a 2-run HR to put Minutemen up 6-4. </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Story leads off bottom of inning, reaching base on a Correa error but after a fielder's choice by McNiel, Hosmer hits into a game-ending double play and Culpeper wins the series. Hoyt gets the win.</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Buxton and Rendon are co-MVPs for the Minutemen.</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Buxton -- AB 20 H 6 R 4 RBI 5 HR 3 ... Series-winning home run</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rendon -- AB 21 H 8 R 5 RBI 8 HR 3</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">--</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><b>Note:</b> Word leaked during the series that several P-Town players might be traded after the season, which definitely may have impacted performances by McNiel, Hosmer and Gurriel ... </i></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><b>Update: </b>Indeed, within hours of the series end, McNiel, Hosmer, Gurriel, Kiermaier and several others were dealt as P-Town quickly began retooling for 2022 ... </i></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;">rp</div><div style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Helvetica Neue", "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; text-align: center; white-space: pre-wrap;">-- 66 --</div>Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-76668712044551119622021-12-24T17:53:00.004-08:002021-12-24T18:07:33.063-08:00Discovering the Baseball Art of Graig Kreindler ... Just, Wow!<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhEiIDVcUbEnSosFB4J0sEpg_KwbmKXQZxQvfMWp1ApxdLTxZmnOspjb3x9n-roLlVhpIURDPmsUj55oZynYcWXOI_cV-QU0L8PI_zvsLl81PY4C0BzhV0r0Q6Ovd4Ml_sibWV9AAJILRCYcA95zmf4I9m2K6TMgs8iGy18Y8e0k6kNO3dOQGThx4pA1A=s562" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="562" data-original-width="397" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhEiIDVcUbEnSosFB4J0sEpg_KwbmKXQZxQvfMWp1ApxdLTxZmnOspjb3x9n-roLlVhpIURDPmsUj55oZynYcWXOI_cV-QU0L8PI_zvsLl81PY4C0BzhV0r0Q6Ovd4Ml_sibWV9AAJILRCYcA95zmf4I9m2K6TMgs8iGy18Y8e0k6kNO3dOQGThx4pA1A=s320" width="226" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Johnny Vander Meer</td></tr></tbody></table><br />If you haven't seen Graig Kreindler's work ... you really must ...<p></p><p>The artist's homepage: <a href="https://www.graigkreindler.com" target="_blank">www.graigkreindler.com</a> </p><p>A very cool 5-minute video: <a href="https://youtu.be/fih3vaEPwlA" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/fih3vaEPwlA</a> </p><p>I learned about it today listening to <a href="https://blogs.fangraphs.com/effectively-wild-episode-1788-toil-on-canvas/" target="_blank">one of the latest installments of Ben Lindbergh's "Effectively Wild"</a> baseball podcast on Fangraphs.</p><p>Enjoy.</p><p>rp</p><p style="text-align: center;">-- 66 --</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-81715254864020129572021-12-20T13:34:00.007-08:002021-12-20T13:58:39.060-08:00Loggers 2021: Ugh! Better Luck Next Year ... <p>Given how many of its star players had "off" years, it shouldn't have been surprising that the P-Town Loggers slumped to such a sad finish of its 2021 season in the Sunrise Baseball Association. </p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEixbHWAbNmNPg8ZScp6yzMritf2QHjKKW1dB8jgO87FcZr4AluJJ9Ha617gcbjV1k1y8n4NOr_SGNEXv35yS5g7YWt0j358FujwsvxHUa_BX4Z9uphTouA8HQHp_LzIJ8x0hQ8tqbUYE0ZH2YZMcacTstH54mfodPT2hpCX3aFPGWQCxCSyUfaP9ARjXg=s1106" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1106" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEixbHWAbNmNPg8ZScp6yzMritf2QHjKKW1dB8jgO87FcZr4AluJJ9Ha617gcbjV1k1y8n4NOr_SGNEXv35yS5g7YWt0j358FujwsvxHUa_BX4Z9uphTouA8HQHp_LzIJ8x0hQ8tqbUYE0ZH2YZMcacTstH54mfodPT2hpCX3aFPGWQCxCSyUfaP9ARjXg=s320" width="231" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loggers MVP Bryce Harper.</td></tr></tbody></table>Nevertheless, who could have predicted the team would lose 12 of its final 13 games and once again miss the playoffs. The Loggers finished 74-88, putting them in fifth place in their division, 31 games behind Jerry Conca's Yankees squad, which would go on to win this year's SBA Championship. (Congrats to Jerry on his first SBA title!)<p></p><p>Although this year's edition of the Loggers scored a few more runs (771 vs. 757) than in 2020 they allowed way more (820 vs. 703)! Yikes! And that pretty much sums up this dismal season, though things were looking pretty good at midseason at 50-48.</p><p>So not everyone sucked ... </p><p>Bryce Harper (.246/.346/.504) led the offense, scoring 104 runs, driving in 130, smashing 40 HR's and stealing 21 bases. It helped that he walked a team-high 92 times. </p><p>Leadoff guy Brandon Nimmo scored 115 runs and hit a whopping 30 home runs. His .356 OBP was driven by 88 walks and 27 HBP's. </p><p>Starling Marte (.269/.329/.408) also contributed mightily in the two hole: 113 runs, 45 doubles, 28 stolen bases. </p><p>Chris Taylor just missed the century mark in RBI, driving in 99, scoring 77 runs and hitting 25 home runs, though he also lead the team in whiffs with 175 and errors with 37, mainly at second base, where he is rated a 7. </p><p>In part-time duty, Edwin Rios contributed 27 HR's, 38 doubles and 70 RBI. </p><p>On the flip side, the Loggers suffered from down years by its perennial MVP Nolan Arenado (.209/.246/.372), whose pandemic slump resulted in only 20 HR's and 64 RBI. Likewise, shortstop Brandon Crawford could manage only a .195 batting average, though he did hit 29 dingers.</p><p>The pitching is where things really went off the rails, with Gerrit Cole (BXZ) avoiding losing 20 games, barely, finishing 10-19 with a 5.55 ERA! (He had gone 19-10 the year before ...)</p><p>Antonio Senzatela (BRZ) led the starters with a 12-15 record, 3.56 ERA and 10 complete games and 5 shutouts. Other starters were: Zach Eflin (7-12, 5.08); Lance McCullers (8-11, 5.34); rookie Triston McKenzie (8-6, 5.14); and Drew Smyly (5-6, 4.04). </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj9rFQOjl8iIWODPhO5ANa43xJsyBaGkEq3SYR3gwzp8Fl5amWXCIEP9CDtnHWag4-l8heMTAdHDAIPzPUYpCa4V-sVB7vkay-V0N8wWqw7bh9uc-bWcxpbZQk0APi1KhxVfhwsEMd4XHicdu74-4AdDHbLgvb6RVkN4n6Fnu6hDd31AumfJXVe-s6-Rg=s3173" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2454" data-original-width="3173" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj9rFQOjl8iIWODPhO5ANa43xJsyBaGkEq3SYR3gwzp8Fl5amWXCIEP9CDtnHWag4-l8heMTAdHDAIPzPUYpCa4V-sVB7vkay-V0N8wWqw7bh9uc-bWcxpbZQk0APi1KhxVfhwsEMd4XHicdu74-4AdDHbLgvb6RVkN4n6Fnu6hDd31AumfJXVe-s6-Rg=s320" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/haderjo01.shtml" target="_blank">Fan fave Josh Hader.</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The bullpen was equally below par, though Yimi Garcia (A&BX) led the team with 25 saves and a 2.23 ERA. Grant Dayton (AY) contributed a 9-7 record, 4 saves and an ERA of 4.50. Sadly, the team's most popular player, Josh Hader (CXYW), only pitched 23 innings with an 8.87 ERA. Ouch!<p></p><p>The team ERA was 4.66, compared to 3.91 the year before. (<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1F-2BD7z2AXPJbs8O6hxDhXQM3QHk4NQrfppS7d6Dd5A/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Click here for all team stats</a>.)</p><p>As noted, the team hit about the same as the year before ... .230/.305/.426 compared to .228/.303/.435, though home runs were down to 230 from 255 in 2020. </p><p>It was a disappointing end to a disappointing season, though there is definitely hope for the year ahead with strong bounce-back years for Arenado, Crawford and Hader. H<a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/harpebr03.shtml" target="_blank">arper, of course, earned the NL MVP</a> and we're looking forward to rolling for his 1-1-0-0-0-10 APBA card. </p><p>(BREAKING NEWS: Next year's offense will have some more pop with the addition of <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/alonspe01.shtml" target="_blank">Polar Bear Pete Alonso</a> and his 1-1-0-0 card, though the Loggers waved goodbye to Starling Marte, who along with Arenado, Cole and Crawford have been the foundation of the Loggers lineup all these years.) </p><p>Who knows? Maybe get a few better arms in the draft to go with all those home runs and things are already looking up for 2022. (rp)</p><p style="text-align: center;">-- 66 --</p>Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-55643849597261097992020-12-06T17:22:00.001-08:002020-12-06T17:22:32.582-08:00Loggers finish even; come up short in SBA playoffs race<p>The P-Town Loggers limped to season's end with a disappointing 1-5 homestand vs. Mike MacNeill's Myrtle Beach Bombers, wrapping up their season with an 81-81 record.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUFd_C1w-mGpAK9FecIeKJd76wLPgACgSMze-4fFxoY1GSUc_Z-fAp7G1t-UD_WfZNpBsSwbtUw7c7JyYXMYcCNM_MJlPcM3x8rZfmQC4WQ8LLCLbykSTxOx9Cm6Q62aC1cw1o3iew9_8Z/s1114/arenado+2020.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1114" data-original-width="800" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUFd_C1w-mGpAK9FecIeKJd76wLPgACgSMze-4fFxoY1GSUc_Z-fAp7G1t-UD_WfZNpBsSwbtUw7c7JyYXMYcCNM_MJlPcM3x8rZfmQC4WQ8LLCLbykSTxOx9Cm6Q62aC1cw1o3iew9_8Z/w294-h410/arenado+2020.jpg" width="294" /></a></div>The 2020 season split left the Loggers needing a miracle to return to the playoffs in the Sunrise Baseball Association. And it didn't happen. They finished five games behind Rick Burton's Gamblers and six behind Pete Oddo's New York Doubledowns. <p></p><p>The Loggers' lack of luck was best shown by outscoring their opponents 757-703, which according to Bill James' <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pythagorean_expectation" target="_blank">"Pythagorean Win Expectation"</a> formula translates to a record of 87-75 (.537 expected win percentage), which would have qualified P-Town for this year's postseason.</p><p>While the Loggers may have come up short as a team, individual players again exceeded expectations, especially third baseman Nolan Arenado, rightfielder Bryce Harper, first baseman Eric Thames, starter Gerrit Cole and closer Josh Hader. </p><p>Team MVP Arenado slugged 52 home runs, scored 116 runs and drove in 121; Harper followed with 39/109/88; and Thames contributed 36/93/106. </p><p>Rookie second baseman Keston Hiura torched opponents for 20 homers, 55 runs and 50 RBI in half a season. Steady leadoff man Starling Marte contributed 23 HR's, 86 runs and 51 RBI, while leading the Loggers in stolen bases with 22.</p><p>As a team, P-Town set a franchise record with 255 home runs, and as a team batted .228, with an on-base percentage of .303 and .428 slugging percentage. <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/12KyVf0u5nfvJ2jgaMArOa9w4g9ctJrNj-ZmtagmL5AM/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">(Click here to see season stats.)</a></p><p>On the bump, Gerrit Cole went 19-10, coming up just short of becoming P-Town's first 20-game winner. He set a new team record with a stunning 429 K's in 281 innings. He compiled 23 complete games and an ERA of 3.19. The rest of the Loggers rotation included James Paxton (10-15); Tanner Roark (11-9); Wade Miley (11-16); Adam Plutko (8-7) and Adrian Houser (6-6).</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXGUxLmG-12uo1TqyW18VCVB-IQgjeiZd-S6kK0bovdGndE7NqIrF8BQ_hSojaNJo902m4tC9nF0zkY-0QtU7XrVXk3Iro8SnBNlrFqQOy69OVpfxjM_gde_kodSwNYA9Ju_vojxFF2Cj3/s445/hader+2020.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="318" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXGUxLmG-12uo1TqyW18VCVB-IQgjeiZd-S6kK0bovdGndE7NqIrF8BQ_hSojaNJo902m4tC9nF0zkY-0QtU7XrVXk3Iro8SnBNlrFqQOy69OVpfxjM_gde_kodSwNYA9Ju_vojxFF2Cj3/w254-h356/hader+2020.jpg" width="254" /></a></div>In the bullpen, closer Josh Hader led the team with a 2.84 ERA and 23 saves. He ended with a 5-8 win-loss record. The relief corps was rounded out by Matt Barnes, Tyler Clippard, Hector Rondon and Tommy Kahnle. <p> </p><p><br /></p>Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-73783246489837025332020-06-24T10:10:00.000-07:002020-06-24T10:10:31.637-07:00Loggers Looking for Second-half Surge in Sunrise Baseball Association<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpQ4xrXVri2RHU-O3XYktGaXMUBJOAIKBkZrd5znXbiayT5Ej8b_YKxoKYu3dq-J7w1JeT_St7DIkbUceC7dTHGUYr_Va2mdC-IZWNQUOs4YRbf85z3WpmTL_tV4WY2RTFShYhrxD4bm3V/s1600/arenado.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="458" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpQ4xrXVri2RHU-O3XYktGaXMUBJOAIKBkZrd5znXbiayT5Ej8b_YKxoKYu3dq-J7w1JeT_St7DIkbUceC7dTHGUYr_Va2mdC-IZWNQUOs4YRbf85z3WpmTL_tV4WY2RTFShYhrxD4bm3V/s400/arenado.jpg" width="286" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nolan Arendo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The P-Town Loggers of the SBA are looking for a return to the playoffs this season but it's going to take more than splitting their remaining schedule.<br />
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The Loggers sit at 46-46 as they enter the second half of the season in the Sunrise Baseball Association, several games out of the final playoff spot. While the Loggers are stronger this year than their recent past, they're going to have to step it up if they hope to play extra games this season.<br />
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"I've been waiting all season for this team to get on a roll," said P-Town Manager/GM Rob Priewe. "Not sure we can wait a lot longer..."<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivAC09UVwY1db850MNJzRYgXtV_kjjw4OFaPQ17ujtLED-JkOs0HbARf_K53b1sLQ2uo4n0voVHNj6ayuosJv_nNjQFhWlEhgpr9KNCYESzYUsnMBG4YtAUhCVjcsJ4vGmUm8laizluWI-/s1600/cole+vert.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivAC09UVwY1db850MNJzRYgXtV_kjjw4OFaPQ17ujtLED-JkOs0HbARf_K53b1sLQ2uo4n0voVHNj6ayuosJv_nNjQFhWlEhgpr9KNCYESzYUsnMBG4YtAUhCVjcsJ4vGmUm8laizluWI-/s320/cole+vert.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gerrit Cole</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Since arriving in P-Town five years ago, the Loggers as always are led by Nolan Arenado, who's having another stellar season. The all-star thirdbaseman leads the team in runs with 65, RBI with 66 and home runs with 31. He's backed up by the Loggers' power-hitting firstbaseman Eric Thames, who has 62 runs, a matching 66 RBI and 25 HR's. Bryce Harper has been setting the table for his fellow sluggers, scoring 59, driving in 52 and clubbing 22 homers. The top of the Loggers lineup is rounded out by Starling Marte and Keston Hiura.<br />
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On the mound, the Loggers are anchored by Gerrit Cole, whose record stands at 12-8. He's struck out a whopping 309 batters already in 188 innings! James Paxton and Wade Miley each have eight wins. The bullpen is highlighted by Josh Hader, who has figured in nine decisions with a 3-6 record and 12 saves. (<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/12KyVf0u5nfvJ2jgaMArOa9w4g9ctJrNj-ZmtagmL5AM/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Click here for team stats.</a>)<br />
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The Loggers will begin their stretch run later this week versus the defending SBA champions, the Babylon Tight Lines, managed by Rob Jordan. Babylon stands at 34-41 heading into the matchup.<br />
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P-Town sputtered on their way to wrapping up last year, finishing with a record of 78-84. The only good part about that finish, it gave them the third spot in the league draft, which they turned into Harper and Hiura. Onward!<br />
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-- 66 --</div>
Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-71924716505697067422020-06-23T17:12:00.000-07:002020-06-23T17:17:58.464-07:00Axemen 2020 Update: "Timber!" Returns to MM-MDTL<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJUZL42ZYuwdN7BM0gR5WJzWkvJek9gUWEVhnAYnESO1DxQ0Z6vd5yPiu075XH4F7eCqzkOwG7OicUiXfTkVnoh5hSLinf3tjM9BGmrSATcYTgKhn9kK5qMoVs-RRjOu6ufHQNfkzfpp9/s1600/Cruz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1111" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJUZL42ZYuwdN7BM0gR5WJzWkvJek9gUWEVhnAYnESO1DxQ0Z6vd5yPiu075XH4F7eCqzkOwG7OicUiXfTkVnoh5hSLinf3tjM9BGmrSATcYTgKhn9kK5qMoVs-RRjOu6ufHQNfkzfpp9/s400/Cruz.jpg" width="287" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nelson Cruz</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Timber! Boom! The Axemen bats are back in 2020!<br />
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Three months into the season and the P-Town Axemen are back in first place, atop the Howard Frey Division of the <a href="https://masondixontabletop.wixsite.com/mdtl" target="_blank">Mike McClurg Sr. - Mason Dixon Tabletop League</a>.<br />
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With a record of 36-25, the Axemen are doing it with their bats, already booming 131 home runs in their first 61 games.<br />
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"I knew we needed some fresh lumber this season," said P-Town Skipper Rob Priewe, now in his third year. "I just hope they can maintain this pace through the rest of the season."<br />
<br />
Nelson "Boomstick" Cruz is leading the way with 19 round-trippers, followed by Trevor Story (17), Yoan Moncada (14), Yasiel Puig (12) and Gary Sanchez and Hunter Pence (11 each). With the power resurgence, the Axemen are averaging nearly six runs per game, a two-run improvement over the year before. (<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1OI4_DK53pr3R7bcoMWk-HhNDiE3aOdHiaw5qUwCn9To/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Click for stats</a>.)<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh357vGcVX8WOUBL_VAj_XPwV19U_w22yezhxPx0XLzDyBpj8lZZ32QoVMqaZW1JIXOY5UaQE8EFCiD2-rbfCKarvafa3p3FMaBifhoA5sDeEpAXcKtEXRmrNWm1kZQJWJZGivNUWUiyl7d/s1600/cole.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="472" data-original-width="640" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh357vGcVX8WOUBL_VAj_XPwV19U_w22yezhxPx0XLzDyBpj8lZZ32QoVMqaZW1JIXOY5UaQE8EFCiD2-rbfCKarvafa3p3FMaBifhoA5sDeEpAXcKtEXRmrNWm1kZQJWJZGivNUWUiyl7d/s320/cole.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gerrit Cole</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
On the mount, Gerrit Cole is off to a 10-1 start to lead the staff. Newcomer Spencer Turnbull is 7-4 and Zack Greinke stands at 6-5. In the pen, Aaron Bummer has taken over the closer role, going 4-2 with eight saves.<br />
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Although the team ERA has ticked up to 4.49, it's still early, Priewe said, and the offense has given the pitching staff some breathing room.<br />
<br />
While some of the offensive mainstays are familiar -- Story, Cruz, Puig, Sanchez -- the retooled lineup includes Moncada getting his shot at third, along with Jeff McNeil at second and Eric Hosmer at first (acquired during the offseason for Josh Donaldson and Joey Votto). The outfield got a boost in the draft with the addition of Pence, Mike Tauchman and Alex Verdugo.<br />
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While some of the pitchers are still finding their stride, Priewe has no complaints about the offensive firepower demonstrated so far.<br />
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"We'll need all the runs we can get this year in a very competitive league," he said.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
-- 66 -- </div>
Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-69239779078013382542020-06-23T16:24:00.001-07:002020-12-05T15:02:09.220-08:00Axemen Fall in Follow-up to Championship Season; Miss Playoffs in 2019<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jenzbie/43862535354/" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5unGUH-wGDnmHPqrXcyEwCmdzFnIAOcmo6qUgJMUJjzLHmsV6S6GTTxfK2_LazW8tDTVvDBPMop2DcbAmtNooC1oF8Hbr7j5NCYzlnD3EcImqLiNY5-Rtd262xQRoumDqKxtVX7PNgWOC/s400/43862535354_bd84a3f001_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Shortstop Trevor Story -- Photo courtesy of <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jenzbie/43862535354/" target="_blank">jenniferlinneaphotography</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
With the P-Town Axemen sitting at an identical 63-58 record midway through defending their 2018 championship season, who could blame their fans for wondering whether 2019 might be "deja vu all over again."*<br />
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Alas, the Axemen never got it going at the end of their second season in the MM-MDTL, falling off instead of catching fire, and missing the playoffs with their 83-79 finish. Their 20-21 record down the stretch paled in comparison to the 30-11 surge from the year before that propelled them to the top of the <a href="https://masondixontabletop.wixsite.com/mdtl" target="_blank">Mike McClurg Sr - Mason Dixon Tabletop League</a>.<br />
<br />
The difference? Nearly every position player failed to equal their offensive output from the year before, despite some stellar starting pitching.<br />
<br />
For example, Joey Votto saw his production plummet from .390 OBA, 113 runs, 100 RBI, 43 doubles and 39 home runs to .348, 57, 59, 32 and 14. Likewise, Marwin Gonzalez went from near-MVP (.338 OBA, 94 runs, 115 RBI, 46 doubles and 35 HR's) to platooning with oft-injured Josh Donaldson, who only got into 66 games, according to the team's <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1khsdDEryLQGdxiI1s76BO0uZ0h4olJ7iVCVcF3-FSoQ/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">2019 final stats</a>.<br />
<br />
Shortstop Trevor Story was one of the few bright spots, leading the team in nearly every offensive category with a .323 OBA, 97 runs, 91 RBI, 46 doubles, 9 triples, 37 home runs and 28 stolen bases. Even Nelson Cruz "slumped," though leading the team with 40 home runs and 92 RBI.<br />
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Newcomers <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/lowrije01.shtml" target="_blank">Jed Lowrie</a> (a hometown favorite from Salem, Oregon) and mercurial Yasiel Puig were ... let's just say ... less than exceptional after being acquired in the offseason.<br />
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On the pitching side, Luis Severino went 19-13 with four shutouts and a 3.09 ERA; Zack Greinke and Gerrit Cole each notched 15 wins. All three compiled more than 200 strikeouts. Greinke led the team with five shutouts and 11 complete games and a team-best 2.90 ERA.<br />
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The bullpen once again was anchored by Brad Hand, who went 9-6 with 19 saves. Wily Peralta added 10 saves.<br />
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Overall, P-Town's pitchers lowered the team ERA to 3.84 and reduced the number of runs allowed from 708 to 646.<br />
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The problem, however, was on the offensive side, where hitters went from batting .238/.321/.468 to .217/.294/.409 and connecting for fewer home runs (291 vs. 236) and nearly 200 fewer runs (847 to 656).<br />
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"Needless to say, our offense really let us down this season," Axemen Manager Rob Priewe said. "I think our fans know where we plan to focus during the offseason."<br />
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--<br />
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*From the popular Yogi Berra quote, "It's deja vu all over again," from <i>The Yogi Book</i>, where he repeatedly recalled seeing back-to-back homers by Yankees teammates Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris in the early 1960s.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
-- 66 -- </div>
Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-7513223715750311212020-06-22T16:24:00.000-07:002020-06-23T17:16:06.755-07:00P-Town Axemen Win 2018 MM-MDTL Title to Cap Off Inaugural SeasonAfter 10th-inning home runs by Joey Votto and Steven Souza, P-Town closer Brad Hand shut the door on the Culpepper Minutemen, striking out Jordan Zimmerman to preserve an 8-5 victory as the Axemen took the 2018 <a href="https://masondixontabletop.wixsite.com/mdtl" target="_blank">MM-MDTL</a> World Series Championship in their first season in the league.<br />
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The championship victory capped off an improbable playoff run for league-newcomer P-Town, which rolled to the title after knocking off three of the top teams in the league after nabbing one of the last playoff berths with their second-place finish in the Central Division.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Y8Hhxn-ml2pzT832_iQDiZDmsHeMJo_g2mh42MJlGpxbJHMKwJUTS8Nlta97vfv6Sg-C32acoQbJTVfQXmTk5GTdjMgPRZtU3Yv91COlQ6n1YsUdMoSbNRuW9pBuQrgO27RPnyqZjB_S/s1600/IMG_3389.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1203" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Y8Hhxn-ml2pzT832_iQDiZDmsHeMJo_g2mh42MJlGpxbJHMKwJUTS8Nlta97vfv6Sg-C32acoQbJTVfQXmTk5GTdjMgPRZtU3Yv91COlQ6n1YsUdMoSbNRuW9pBuQrgO27RPnyqZjB_S/s320/IMG_3389.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Axemen Skipper Rob Priewe</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
"Wow!" was all P-Town Manager Rob Priewe could muster after winning the title in his first year in the league, which has been going strong for more than four decades.<br />
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Along with some incredible late-season luck, Priewe credited his predecessor Terry Evans with acquiring the core of the team, including Votto, Trevor Story, Nelson Cruz and Josh Donaldson, along with pitchers Zack Greinke, Sonny Gray and Brad Hand.<br />
<br />
Two-thirds of the way through the season, however, it didn't look like the Axemen would even qualify for the playoffs. Entering September, P-Town sat with a record of 63-58, barely above break even. But with a 30-11 finish, the Axemen entered the postseason on a roll.<br />
<br />
In the first round, they knocked off favored DevLan four games to two, taking the first three games, before closing out Game 6 5-2 behind a three-run eighth-inning home run by Cruz.<br />
<br />
In the next round, P-Town's pitchers held the heavy hitting Walthall Warriors bats in check, taking the series 4-1. As seemed typical in the season's closing weeks, they punched out Walthall with a 10th-inning walkoff single by seldom-used infielder Yoan Moncada, who had entered the game as a pinch runner the inning before.<br />
<br />
The win sent the Axemen onto the title matchup with league powerhose Culpepper.<br />
<br />
After dropping Game 1, the Axemen rebounded with a 10-8 win in Game 2. They followed that with a 3-2 walkoff win in Game 3 on a double by Marwin Gonzalez to drive in Souza, who had walked with two out. James Paxton shut out the Axemen 6-0 in Game 4, tallying 13 strikeouts in a complete game.<br />
<br />
P-Town took yet another extra-innings walk-off win in Game 5, this time backup catcher Christian Vazquez scoring on a two-out single by Justin Upton in the bottom of the 11th. Upton finished the game going 4-for-5 with a pair of home runs, a double, two runs and five RBI. Jackie Bradley Jr. had kept the Axemen in the game with a game-tying single in the bottom of the ninth. Trevor Rosenthal held the Minutemen in check, striking out the last five batters he faced.<br />
<br />
The deciding Game 6 was another classic comeback for P-Town as Culpepper banged four home runs to take a 5-2 lead into the sixth inning. Story then cut the deficit to one with a two-run homer; followed by Donaldson's pinch-hit home run in the seventh. With Hand on his way to shutting down the Minutemen over the last three innings, Votto gave the Axemen all they would need with a solo home run in the 10th, followed by Souza's two-run insurance shot. (A special shout-out to fellow manager Wayne Humphreys who rolled for the Axemen as Priewe managed by phone from the opposite coast!)<br />
<br />
Looking at P-Town's <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1khsdDEryLQGdxiI1s76BO0uZ0h4olJ7iVCVcF3-FSoQ/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">season stats</a>, it may not have been a shock that they prevailed in the playoffs. The Axemen brought the lumber, clubbing 291 home runs during the regular season, with seven members of their starting lineup hitting 30 or more home runs. They scored 847 runs during the 93-69 season.<br />
<br />
As for pitching, Gray led the staff with a record of 17-5, followed by Gerrit Cole's 16 wins. The other starters -- Greinke, Luis Severino and Ivan Nova -- each tallied 13 wins. In the bullpen, Hand set the pace with 23 saves and a 1.72 ERA.<br />
<br />
Votto's .390 on-base average and 39 home runs lead the offense, along with his 113 runs and 100 RBI. Gonzalez drove in 115 runs, batting .285 and scoring 94 runs; Cruz hit 34 dingers and drove in 103 runs; Upton scored 109 runs batting leadoff ... while striking out a whopping 206 times!<br />
<br />
As noted, Evans' County Road team set P-Town up for success in 2018, along with a few key draft additions, including Moncada (53k), Vazquez (21k), defensive standout Yolmer Sanchez (2k) and Severino (150k)!<br />
<br />
Priewe felt extremely fortunate in his first year in the league, setting a high bar for success that he hopes he can match again someday ...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
-- 66 -- </div>
Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-47476620899291685762017-12-20T13:11:00.000-08:002017-12-20T13:11:57.269-08:00P-Town Axemen Ready for Foray into Mike McClurg-Mason Dixon Tabletop League<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3PkDT3XvSDpfGKTQBnFDGJQ8IxSabzI5rjJfQNBGm6kNHR24YQ2mUi1ynAUq5QB8gXnpCY3ex_arb9Fz3diIrLTBxOfxpoNx-9d7Q-bHNjUg8XfPlzePb0mLGBfJ9fdFFVUvDaJHoGPEy/s1600/Joey-Votto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="425" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3PkDT3XvSDpfGKTQBnFDGJQ8IxSabzI5rjJfQNBGm6kNHR24YQ2mUi1ynAUq5QB8gXnpCY3ex_arb9Fz3diIrLTBxOfxpoNx-9d7Q-bHNjUg8XfPlzePb0mLGBfJ9fdFFVUvDaJHoGPEy/s400/Joey-Votto.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First baseman Joey Votto is expected to anchor a powerful P-Town Axemen<br />lineup that will take the field during the 46th year of the Mike McClurg-Mason<br />Dixon Tabletop League.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />The P-Town Axemen -- loaded with a high-powered collection of returning players, including Joey Votto, Justin Upton and Zach Greinke -- are gearing up for their manager's first year in the <a href="http://www.mdtl.us/" target="_blank">Mike McClurg-Mason Dixon Tabletop League</a>, which has been rolling since 1973.<br />
<br />
"It's a great honor to be invited into the MM-MDTL," said Axemen GM and Manager Rob Priewe.<br />
<br />
The Axemen are comprised of the roster that formerly competed as the County Road Rebels, under the direction of Terry Evans of Tishomingo, Mississippi. During 24 seasons in the MM-MDTL, Evans compiled a record of 2157-1731, including<a href="http://www.mdtl.us/champions/" target="_blank"> five championships</a>. Whoa!<br />
<br />
Easing the transition will be a roster bursting with talent, both in the field and on the mound.<br />
<br />
"I can't thank Terry enough for the team he has handed off to me," Priewe said. "I can only hope to have the kind of success that Terry's squads have enjoyed over the years."<br />
<br />
At present, the Axemen <a href="https://docs.google.com/a/linnbenton.edu/spreadsheets/d/17pFAwOQFM1WpEpquEYfzWHkUYDLgU25_zgvPtjiVUV4/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">depth chart</a> looks like this:<br />
<br />
Catcher - <b>Gary Sanchez</b><br />
First base - <b>Joey Votto</b><br />
Second base - <b>Marwin Gonzalez, Logan Forsythe</b><br />
Shortstop - <b>Trevor Story, Adrelton Simmons</b><br />
Third base - <b>Josh Donaldson</b><br />
Outfield - <b>Justin Upton, Jackie Bradley Jr., Steven Souza, Kevin Kiermaier </b><br />
Designated hitter - <b>Nelson Cruz</b><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjThNqQJmU4HN9zctLdecZAD7ja-NAsmknnNFysj04BNNTlJ5uUHyhVZaOxDtDTrOzs0tuXj9pM9USN6pl-911mj_uQ2_YY6Fz6ECXl6Eie_BdOXoYt9UPIo1PaRuSDoFLp2EDvXrGOrkHe/s1600/Gerrit+Cole.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="213" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjThNqQJmU4HN9zctLdecZAD7ja-NAsmknnNFysj04BNNTlJ5uUHyhVZaOxDtDTrOzs0tuXj9pM9USN6pl-911mj_uQ2_YY6Fz6ECXl6Eie_BdOXoYt9UPIo1PaRuSDoFLp2EDvXrGOrkHe/s200/Gerrit+Cole.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gerrit Cole</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Starting pitchers - <b>Gerrit Cole, Zach Greinke, Sonny Gray, Ivan Nova, Kevin Gausman, Joe Ross, Steven Matz, Brandon Finnegan</b><br />
<br />
Relief pitchers - <b>Brad Hand, Kyle Barraclough, Trevor Rosenthal, Hector Rondon</b><br />
<br />
The MM-MDTL Draft/World Series is set for Saturday, Feb. 24, 2018, beginning at 1 p.m. ET. <br />
<br />
The MM-MDTL is a 20-team APBA baseball game league, which uses the basic game with modifications and a 25-player roster.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>-rp-</i></div>
Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-49053524181387746732017-12-18T18:13:00.000-08:002017-12-19T13:28:17.264-08:00Loggers Struggle to Stay Even in Sunrise Baseball Association<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_cARN0jUvtYbGPexpXgFzURF45-vpL-rWG0rbJay1t21uTAuyX0lMxsTEoGNdN-eIeD2UOzhV0CLMybAb5drjBEjX6tyFQ8SE0jn-Cg25s79qBbZu157eKwzoEOTIqt6tVTr2Pqs8Maq/s1600/Arenado.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="1500" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_cARN0jUvtYbGPexpXgFzURF45-vpL-rWG0rbJay1t21uTAuyX0lMxsTEoGNdN-eIeD2UOzhV0CLMybAb5drjBEjX6tyFQ8SE0jn-Cg25s79qBbZu157eKwzoEOTIqt6tVTr2Pqs8Maq/s400/Arenado.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nolan Arenado once again led the Loggers offense with 33 home runs and 115 RBI<br />
during the 2017 season of the Sunrise Baseball Association. <br />
Photo credit: MLB.com</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
A year after playing in the SBA World Series, the P-Town Loggers struggled in year two to stay at or above .500, eventually falling to fifth-place with a 79-83 record.<br />
<br />
The Loggers finished 14 games behind the Eastern Division-winning Reno Gamblers (93-69), managed by my brother, Phil Priewe, also in his second year in the Sunrise Baseball Association. Ultimately, the Tidewater Skippers led by Pat Lowery took home this year's SBA Championship.<br />
<br />
While improving in most hitting categories, especially batting average and on-base percentage, the Loggers had a significant drop-off in home runs, along with a decline in pitching from the year before, when they came within two games of winning it all in the 12-team APBA dice baseball game league.<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglKKnp0ctj6OYeOkYuBsU1Q0OUkivJfjwfNAbM_aJiFPFEwaA0S-pD3CyMsaxlWxtPHyf-r3d76MJ03jt_Mpa_gVOSdoXgux9n0zc9GNBY3UYqeBxc4LX7ZuNPM1VoVZ2fSlOdUPkc7aAN/s1600/brandon-crawford-480-400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="480" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglKKnp0ctj6OYeOkYuBsU1Q0OUkivJfjwfNAbM_aJiFPFEwaA0S-pD3CyMsaxlWxtPHyf-r3d76MJ03jt_Mpa_gVOSdoXgux9n0zc9GNBY3UYqeBxc4LX7ZuNPM1VoVZ2fSlOdUPkc7aAN/s200/brandon-crawford-480-400.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leadoff hitter Brandon Crawford set a new <br />
team record, scoring 99 runs in 2017. <br />
Photo credit: Rawlings</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Similar to the year before, the Loggers' offense centered around third-baseman Nolan Arenado and shortstop Brandon Crawford. Batting lead-off, Crawford set new team records for hits (177), runs (99) and triples (15). Arenado set a new team record with 115 RBI, to go along with 33 home runs and 79 runs. However, he batted only .225, and his home runs were down from 51 the year before.<br />
<br />
The most frequently used Loggers lineup looked like this:<br />
<ol>
<li>Brandon Crawford, SS, .266, 18 HR's, 99 runs, 45 doubles</li>
<li>Starling Marte, LF, .293, 11 HR's, 79 runs, 55 stolen bases</li>
<li>Dustin Pedroia, 2B, .277, 13 HR's, 79 RBI</li>
<li>Nolan Arenado, 3B, .225, 33 HR's, 115 RBI</li>
<li>Yangervis Solarte, 1B, .269, 10 HR's, 45 RBI</li>
<li>Sean Rodriquez, RF, .204, 25 HR's, 66 RBI</li>
<li>Jacoby Ellsbury, CF, .214, 4 HR's, 38 runs</li>
<li>Jason Castro, C, .215, 12 HR's, 39 RBI</li>
</ol>
Marte set team records for batting average and stolen bases, while Pedroia set a new team record for on-base percentage at .337.<br />
<br />
Overall, the team raised its batting average to .234 and on-base percentage to .294. However, slugging fell to .387, while home runs dropped to 164 -- a tally the Loggers don't want to repeat in 2018.<br />
<br />
The Loggers' pitching also declined from the previous year.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqkueAT-tzjp3DkTqRsIhWZsUZj5GS1P7Fu0QT9peY3h1T5joMb0WKHOJ4C8xLjU4MnrREaQKOS8cPY2jJgu-aQmXNQz1r69WYU5L_N9vuDh-XDWH0x4hgdcJCSkaxBw5pRD_mieE2j0Oq/s1600/Graveman.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="539" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqkueAT-tzjp3DkTqRsIhWZsUZj5GS1P7Fu0QT9peY3h1T5joMb0WKHOJ4C8xLjU4MnrREaQKOS8cPY2jJgu-aQmXNQz1r69WYU5L_N9vuDh-XDWH0x4hgdcJCSkaxBw5pRD_mieE2j0Oq/s320/Graveman.gif" width="234" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kendall Graveman led the Loggers with<br />12 wins in 31 starts. Photo credit: Topps</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Newcomer Kendall Graveman led the team in wins with 12, followed by Collin McHugh (10), Steven Wright (9), and Gerrit Cole (8) and Marco Estrada (8), who was acquired mid-season in hopes of helping push the Axemen to the playoffs. Unfortunately, Wright set a new team high for losses with 13. James Paxton went 6-8 and Lance McCullers posted a record of 4-8.<br />
<br />
The bullpen continued to be one of the Loggers' strengths, led by Blake Treinen's team-high 20 saves in 57 games, a new team record. Paced by Treinen (3-3) and his 2.15 ERA, the relievers compiled a combined 2.76 ERA. Hansel Robles went 3-4 in 61 innings, followed by Tyler Clippard's 3-3 record and 3 saves in 54 innings. Mark Rzepczynski was 6-7 with 4 saves in 48 innings.<br />
<br />
Hitters' higher batting averages and on-base percentage were aided slightly by a new league rule resulting in a single on a bases empty 65-35 dice roll, which league members instituted in part to combat the league's abundance of A- and B-grade pitchers. (The league voted to discontinue the 35-65 rule for 2018 ... Bummer!)<br />
<br />
Two-thirds of the way through the 2017 season the Loggers stood at 57-57, with some hope of making the playoffs. However, P-Town went 6-12 versus their arch rivals the Gamblers and never fully recovered.<br />
<br />
Onward to 2018!<br />
<br />
--<br />
<a href="https://docs.google.com/a/linnbenton.edu/spreadsheets/d/1c1IZp0bNCHaTt9nfEmD6aczyYmmInpmGPnaXE4c48G4/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><br /></a>
<i><a href="https://docs.google.com/a/linnbenton.edu/spreadsheets/d/1c1IZp0bNCHaTt9nfEmD6aczyYmmInpmGPnaXE4c48G4/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Click here</a> to see the full 2017 P-Town Loggers stats. </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>-rp-</i><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-69474576665178649802016-12-19T14:18:00.000-08:002016-12-19T14:18:56.146-08:00Bouton, "Ball Four" Inspire 1969 Seattle Pilots APBA ReplayTook the opportunity this past summer to re-read "Ball Four," Jim Bouton's classic<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Twentieth-Anniversary-Bouton-Leonard-Shecter/dp/B004HS7IUQ/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1482183297&sr=1-6&keywords=ball+four" target="_blank"> tell-all baseball book</a> focusing primarily on his exploits with the 1969 Seattle Pilots.<br />
<br />
I have to admit a morbid curiosity for the one-year wonders of that Seattle squad, who would go on to ditch the Emerald City and become my favorite team -- the Milwaukee Brewers -- the next season. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFo0XgLEfJhjqlBnVNh9ic8l-geBI2CHyR7ZwvK-WmOD1YZ4AGWIZHxslmfCZu6L6JxlBw8nnujyUo-jXh4kIzjideki8Y0azdogY070xarhzFnF1Gtd5Ro0kvBAzDpPpgOz8VFfboP0iW/s1600/Jim_Bouton-1969.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFo0XgLEfJhjqlBnVNh9ic8l-geBI2CHyR7ZwvK-WmOD1YZ4AGWIZHxslmfCZu6L6JxlBw8nnujyUo-jXh4kIzjideki8Y0azdogY070xarhzFnF1Gtd5Ro0kvBAzDpPpgOz8VFfboP0iW/s320/Jim_Bouton-1969.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
Throughout the book, Bouton complains about his lack of playing time, both as a starter and reliever, despite his growing proficiency in tossing the knuckleball and what little toll it took on his ancient arm. <br />
<br />
So that got me to thinking ... What if the Pilots had listened to Bouton and used him more often on the mound? Would it have significantly improved the outcome for a team that finished last in the new AL West Division with a record of <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SEP/1969.shtml" target="_blank">64-98</a>? Spoiler alert: The answer is ... no.<br />
<br />
Through the magic of the APBA Baseball Game, I took it upon myself to answer that age-old question posed by Bouton, who is convinced he could have made a difference had he been given the chance.<br />
<br />
Before embarking on this expedition, let me note that this would be my first one-team season replay using a losing team. Like many other APBA replay enthusiasts out there, I don't see any fun in the prospects of replaying a season for a team that wasn't finding any joy in real life. Previously, I relished replaying winning seasons for the 2008 Brewers as well as the 1969 Cubs.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj17F9btKTMQ7F8hvbzlb2KVb6SqvRrEi7NKhs-5iQMDQyvJEN1MvfjQKqDnRJvKEa4Ma7OyZiJyaX3IqT34FzV_xtLpnRuBBPyodrmgOylhn2aMd7RS8QcRQbR2b5i5b5wnb80Y-R-FdXq/s1600/sweet+lou.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj17F9btKTMQ7F8hvbzlb2KVb6SqvRrEi7NKhs-5iQMDQyvJEN1MvfjQKqDnRJvKEa4Ma7OyZiJyaX3IqT34FzV_xtLpnRuBBPyodrmgOylhn2aMd7RS8QcRQbR2b5i5b5wnb80Y-R-FdXq/s320/sweet+lou.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
In addition to eliminating any limits on using Bouton, I wondered what would have happened had the Pilots not traded rookie of the year Lou Piniella to the Royals before the start of the season. So, Piniella became the Pilots left fielder and away we went ... <br />
<br />
One of the great things about APBA's reprinted 1969 card set is that it includes every player who took the mound or batted at least once, making it possible for me to use the actual lineups of the Pilots' opponents. With few exceptions, including Bouton's added starts, I used the Pilots' actual pitching rotation, then managed the rest of the squad as I saw fit. I limited all other players to 110 percent of their actual at-bats and innings pitched. I also worked in the team's other transactions, so there was somewhat of a revolving door in the personnel I could use throughout the season. <br />
<br />
So, how did it turn out? First of all, it was a joy playing this team, partly because it was such an interesting collection of players, from base-stealing maven Tommy Harper and Tommy Davis to Mr. Versatility Diego Segui, who was equally good as a starter or ace reliever. Besides, 1969 was a great year for the AL, with the seemingly unbeatable Baltimore Orioles and the heavy-hitting Minnesota Twins, making it just plain cool to replay.<br />
<br />
Predictably, I didn't fare much better than ill-fated Pilots manager Joe Schultz. I guided them to a <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1p-m_1PeTgbQsKo535IJi6miq1VGUlX3daZQnL9UI_aM/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">68-94 record</a>, which just goes to show that expanding the role of your knuckleballer and adding one potent bat in the three hole does not a contender make. Nice try, however. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/boutoji01.shtml" target="_blank">Bouton</a> (rated a DX starter and a C* reliever) got 9 more starts and 62 more innings for the Pilots, which resulted in a 6-8 record, better than his 2-1 in actuality. He matched his save total: 1. (Note: Toward the end of August, I granted Bouton's trade to the Astros, bringing to the Pilots Dooley Womack, who piled up some decent stats in 27 games out of the bullpen.)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/pinielo01.shtml" target="_blank">Piniella</a> also exceeded expectations. Sweet Lou batted .306/.352/.437 in 142 games, scoring 71 runs and leading the team in runs batted in with 89. He hit 30 doubles, along with 10 triples and 7 home runs. <br />
<br />
What this team lacked in power, it more than made up with speed, swiping 194 bases, compared to only 122 homers. The speed brigade was led by Harper, who stole 95 bases, which helped him score a team-high 105 runs. First baseman Don Mincher lead the team in home runs with 26. <br />
<br />
Overall, the team batting average (.242), slugging percentage (.354), ERA (4.33) and other stats pretty closely matched the real-life Seattle stats for the year, just another testimonial to the accuracy of the APBA game. <br />
<br />
In addition to Segui, who went 8-10 with 5 saves; Bob Locker lead the team with an 11-6 record and 8 saves. Gene Brabender was the hard-luck hurler, going 4-14 in 29 starts and 192 innings. <br />
<br />
Despite the disappointing, yet predictable, win-loss record, this was still among my most satisfying APBA projects. It reinforced the fun that can be had when you tweak reality by playing "what if ..."<br />
<br />
I think Jim Bouton would be OK with the outcome.<br />
<br />
--66--<br />
<br />
Note:<i> Click </i><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1p-m_1PeTgbQsKo535IJi6miq1VGUlX3daZQnL9UI_aM/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank"><i>here for the complete replay stats</i></a>. <br />
<br />
Note II: Here's a great link to a new post by baseball historian John Thorn, "<a href="https://ourgame.mlblogs.com/jim-bouton-an-improvisational-life-5237aa5d438a#.84qbfkexh" target="_blank">Jim Bouton: An Improvisational Life</a>." Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-34770667500674210352016-05-28T16:21:00.001-07:002021-12-20T13:38:55.861-08:00Timber! Loggers Chop Down Competition in First Season in Sunrise Baseball Association<b><i>Update: </i></b>The Loggers finished the 2016 season strong, compiling a 98-64 record, good for second in the Western Division of the Sunrise Baseball Association. Ultimately, the Loggers fell in six games to the Lions in the SBA World Series.<br />
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Except for falling a couple games short of a championship, the Loggers couldn't have performed much better in their inaugural season in the SBA.<br />
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11xjRi6Mm7cPBR4X8HL3RppzuUF_Nh4jlkZ8rlZvyLyw/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Click here</a> to check out the Loggers' final stats.<br />
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<i>-rp-</i><br />
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Led by Nolan Arenado, Lucas Duda and Gerrit Cole, the P-Town Loggers have rebounded from a slow start to challenge for the playoffs in their first season in the Sunrise Baseball Association.<br />
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As the league approaches the midway point of the 2016 season, the Loggers stand at 42-30, good enough for second place in the <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1owWScrAz3MGAoRtin1O7N_F5c73mgLPszsbo_T9RHAI/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">SBA's six-team Western Division</a>.<br />
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Sunrise is a 12-team APBA Baseball Game league that's been around for more than two decades. This year, members are spread across the United States, with most of the managers on the East Coast. (This is my first year in the league, along with my brother, Phillip Priewe, who is managing the Carson City Gamblers.)<br />
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The league uses the advanced version of APBA's basic game, with some modifications. Pitchers bat, and players are limited to their actual number of games, starts or relief innings. Games are played in person or via telephone or Skype. Teams play a 162-game season.<br />
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After 72 games, the Loggers are led by third baseman Nolan Arenado (.269/.294/.638), who's belted 25 home runs, driving in 53 and scoring 40. He's also stroked 28 doubles.<br />
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At first base, Lucas Duda supplanted Adrian Gonzalez early in the season, sparking a series of Loggers victories. Duda (.229/.327/.559) has 13 home runs, 33 RBI and 26 runs scored in the cleanup spot.<br />
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The Loggers' lineup is comprised of:<br />
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C- Travis d'Arnaud (.229/.284/.534) 11 HR's, 28 RBI<br />
1B - Lucas Duda (.229/.327/.559) 13 HR's, 33 RBI<br />
2B - Matt Duffy (.259/.305/.427) 22 runs, 18 RBI<br />
SS - Brandon Crawford (.215/.300/.411) 29 runs, 23 RBI<br />
3B - Nolan Arenado (.269/.294/.638) 25 HR's, 53 RBI<br />
LF - Andre Ethier (.225/.299/.360) 26 runs, 17 RBI<br />
CF - Gregor Blanco (.238/.303/.308) 27 runs, 11 stolen bases<br />
RF - Starling Marte (.213/.269/.333) 21 runs, 14 stolen bases<br />
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Also logging playing time have been outfielder Trayce Thompson, Adrian Gonzalez, and second baseman Dustin Pedroia. (Click to view complete <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11xjRi6Mm7cPBR4X8HL3RppzuUF_Nh4jlkZ8rlZvyLyw/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Loggers stats</a>.)<br />
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On the pitching side, a trio of starters have anchored the Loggers rotation: Gerrit Cole (8-6, 2.64), Collin McHugh (7-3, 3.91) and Edinson Volquez (7-5, 3.71). Out of the bullpen, Hector Rondon has 15 saves, and is backed by Mark Lowe (4-1, 0.92) and Tyler Clippard (3-1, 3.45).<br />
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The staff has combined for 19 complete games -- 10 by Cole -- and four shutouts. It has a combined ERA of 3.10.<br />
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In a league dominated by A and B pitchers, batting averages are well below average. The Loggers are hitting .217 as a team, with a .278 OBA and slugging percentage of .396. They have smacked 80 home runs.<br />
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It's been fun so far. Most of the guys in the league have multiple SBA seasons to their credit, and all of them simply enjoy playing the game, regardless of the score. I'm looking forward to the rest of the season! <br />
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-- 66 -- </div>
Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-33408424156903481002016-01-18T21:17:00.000-08:002016-01-18T21:17:03.422-08:00All-time Great Cheeseheads Roll to 108 Wins!Led by hall-of-famers Al Simmons and Burleigh Grimes, a squad of ballplayers born in Wisconsin showed they could go toe-to-toe with any APBA foe. <br />
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This group of cheeseheads racked up 108 wins against competition that included a slew of World Series champions, division winners and other assorted all-time great ballclubs scattered among my APBA Baseball Game card collection.<br />
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In putting together this 25-man crew, the main criteria was that each member must have been born in Wisconsin. And I found plenty of talent to fill the roster, including a bevy of hall-of-fame players, namely Simmons and Grimes, along with fellow pitchers Kid Nichols and Addie Joss. The rest of the lineup boasted plenty of all-stars.<br />
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At the end of the 162-game season, the <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1hN6hJChkSzZRIwhPS-Ziq7ORPkpiv4tuy04xShbTQ5g/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Wisconsin greats</a> compiled a 108-54 record. Simmons led the way, batting .335 with 40 home runs and 148 RBI; "Happy" Felsch of the infamous Black Sox hit .320, scoring 100 runs and driving in 96; Fred Merkle lead the team in runs with 117 and stolen bases with 59.<br />
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On the mound, Grimes led the squad with a 23-8 record. He pitched 273 innings in 34 starts, striking out 233. As for the rest of the hall-of-fame trio, Nichols went 18-7, leading the team in strikeouts with 241 in 285 innings and 36 starts; Joss put up a 19-11 record, setting down 224 batters in 262 innings over 35 starts.<br />
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Combining 20 starts and 25 relief appearances, Dick Bosman went 19-5, with a 2.10 ERA. Also anchoring the bullpen were Bob Wickman (17 saves) and Pat Neshek, who tallied 8 wins and 8 saves in 48 games.<br />
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The staff compiled a 2.95 team ERA in its 108 victories, which included 20 shutouts (6 by Joss!) and 66 complete games. Nichols, Grimes and Joss each went the distance 19 times.<br />
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At the plate, the team batted .264, with a .322 on-base percentage and .452 slugging percentage. They went yard 177 times (Simmons, 40; Ken Keltner, 32; and Andy Pafko, 31). They had almost as many triples (96) as stolen bases (100)! They outscored their opponents 867 to 511.<br />
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Like most of my projects, batting averages were down overall (Simmons batted .381 and Kuenn hit .353 in real life those years!). Most of this was due to the higher level of competition and the plethora of A starters and relievers. I also have a tendency to use too many B relievers, even in mop-up duty, when that assignment more often fell to C's and D's. <br />
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This project comes on the heels of a season with the all-time great <a href="http://robsapbablog.blogspot.com/2015/11/junior-king-felix-and-big-unit-lead-ms.html" target="_blank">Seattle Mariners</a>, who went 128-34. Unlike that squad, which primarily matched up against the M's 2014 regular season schedule, this bunch took on more top-notch opponents, along with squads from APBA's Baseball All-Time Set 2. <br />
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Those Mariners got the better of the cheeseheads, winning three of four games; the '69 World Series Mets and Orioles each won two of three. Against a variety of Cubs teams, including the '69 crew and the 2008 unit, the Wisconsinites went 7-9.<br />
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They had better luck versus other NL Central Division foes, including sweeping the World Series-winning '79 Pirates. They went 5-1 against the Big Red Machine of '75 and '76. Nichols tossed a no-hitter against the '75 Reds. <br />
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The team was assembled from the listings on Baseball Reference and the APBA cards in my collection, especially players from BATS. Merkle came from some generous folks on the APBA Facebook page, who were kind enough to post his 1911 card. Cards for Andy Pafko, Brad Radke and Wickman were created using <a href="http://www.jrat.net/steve/compuduck/cardcomp/" target="_blank">Steve's APBA Card Computer</a>. Thanks, man. <br />
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Here was the primary starting lineup:<br />
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1. Happy Felsch ('20) CF -- .320/.358/.529 (100 runs, 96 RBI, 37 doubles, 17 triples, 15 HRs)<br />
2. Fred Merkle ('11) 1B -- .294/.339/465 (117 runs, 16 triples, 59 SBs)<br />
3. Harvey Kuenn ('59) SS -- .299/.350/.460 (91 runs, 87 RBI, 48 doubles)<br />
4. Al Simmons ('30) LF -- .335/.377/.686 (148 RBI, 43 doubles, 16 triples, 40 HRs)<br />
5. Andy Pafko ('50) RF -- .218/.308/.465 (94 RBI, 31 HRs)<br />
6. Ken Keltner ('48) 3B -- .222/.328/.454 (85 runs, 88 RBI, 32 HRs)<br />
7. Damian Miller ('02) C -- .188/.258/.366 (10 HRs, 36 RBI) and Don Pavletich ('69) C -- .263/.343/.500 (10 HRs, 41 RBI)<br />
8. Jim Gantner ('83) 2B -- .236/.285/.344 (66 runs, 61 RBI)<br />
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A strong bench included the likes of Joe Randa ('99), Tom Poquette ('76), Tony Kubek ('57) and my personal favorite, Milwaukee's own Bob Uecker ('65). <br />
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For all the stats, <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1hN6hJChkSzZRIwhPS-Ziq7ORPkpiv4tuy04xShbTQ5g/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">click here</a>.<br />
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<br />Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-41301164510181879352015-11-01T15:06:00.000-08:002015-11-01T15:08:01.458-08:00Junior, King Felix and the Big Unit Lead M's to Big Finish<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Give Felix Hernandez some run support and he can win a few games -- 27 to be exact!<br />
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And let Ken Griffey Jr. play a 162-game schedule in his prime and he can set a new single-season home run record -- 74!<br />
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Back him with the Mariners' all-time best lineup and Randy Johnson can post a new career high in wins with 25!<br />
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Led by Hernandez, Griffey and Johnson, the all-time Mariners compiled a 128-34 record against the team's 2014 schedule, with a few more interleague games thrown into the mix. The initial motivation behind this "what if" APBA baseball game replay project was to see how many games King Felix could win if he was backed by the best Mariners team ever. He didn't disappoint.<br />
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King Felix ('14) piled up a 27-2 record with a 1.64 ERA and 276 K's in 31 starts. He completed 12 games, including 9 shutouts. It helps to have a great defense behind you as well.<br />
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<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/g/griffke02.shtml" target="_blank">Griffey</a> ('94) was the squad's offensive MVP, compiling a .291/.364/.747 slash line to go with his 74 home runs, 139 runs and 155 RBI, showing what might have been during the strike-shortened 1994 season.<br />
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<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/j/johnsra05.shtml" target="_blank">Johnson</a> ('95) combined with <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/hernafe02.shtml" target="_blank">Hernandez</a> to provide a potent 1-2 pitching punch -- posting a 25-3 record with an ERA of 2.41 and 271 strikeouts in 32 starts. He completed 6 games, with 4 shutouts.<br />
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The rest of the M's powerful lineup featured:<br />
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<li>Designated hitter Edgar Martinez ('95) -- .306/.441/.573 with 106 runs, 97 RBI, 56 doubles and 27 home runs.</li>
<li>Leadoff man Ichiro Suzuki ('04) -- .326/.354/.425 with 215 hits, 107 runs and 43 stolen bases.</li>
<li>Second baseman Robinson Cano ('13) -- .317/.374/.560 with 114 runs, 113 RBI 54 doubles and 28 home runs.</li>
<li>Third baseman Adrian Beltre ('04) -- .271/.336/.569 with 42 home runs and 101 RBI.</li>
<li>Outfielder Jay Buhner ('96) -- .219/.291/.523 with 37 home runs and 101 RBI.</li>
<li>Shortstop Omar Vizquel ('92) -- .296/.331/.372 with 68 runs and 41 stolen bases.</li>
<li>First baseman Alvin Davis ('87) -- .274/.352/.524 with 27 home runs and 93 RBI.</li>
<li>Catcher Dan Wilson ('96) -- .212/.259/.341 with 13 homers and 68 RBI.</li>
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As a team the Mariners batted .274/.339/.493 with 273 home runs. The M's averaged nearly 6 runs per game.<br />
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Meanwhile, the pitching staff held opponents to half that, posting a 2.74 ERA. Other starters included Hisashi Iwakuma ('13) at 18-5, Jamie Moyer ('03) at 15-5 and Mark Langston ('87) at 12-2.<br />
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The bullpen was led by J.J. Putz ('07) at 5-3 with 32 saves; Jeff Nelson ('95) at 6-5 with 5 saves; and Mike Schooler ('90) at 6-0 with 4 saves. <br />
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For complete season stats, <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w2hMtwXV2-5WbSNxnLERqbN-t5U_RElW5Yf21KddTYA/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">click here</a>. <br />
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This replay had it all: Lots of offense, great pitching and plenty of clutch hitting and defense. And it showed that even the most powerful teams still have off days from time to time ...<br />
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Nevertheless, they had a pair of ridiculous win streaks -- 15 games in April and 19 in a row in July/August.<br />
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This was a treat, from start to finish. And makes me wonder "what if" for my next project ...<br />
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<br />Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-49507252797035692642015-09-03T15:00:00.000-07:002015-09-03T15:00:23.161-07:00King Felix Dominates with Perfect Game in 2014 Mariners Replay<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It was like deja vu all over again ... as Felix Hernandez threw his second perfect game in three years at Safeco Field.<br />
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This time, King Felix dominated the Astros in an 11-0 victory on May 23, 2014 during an APBA baseball game replay of the Mariners' 2014 season. (In real life, Hernandez tossed his perfect game Aug. 15, 2012 in a 1-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.)<br />
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Against the Astros, Hernandez finished with 15 strikeouts, including shortstop Jonathan Villar for the final out of the game. Catcher Jason Castro and designated hitter Matt Dominquez each struck out in all three at-bats versus The King.<br />
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The Mariners' offense was led by third baseman Adrian Beltre, who went 5-for-5 with a double, a home run, three runs scored and five RBI. Ichiro Suzuki added three hits, scoring a pair of runs, hitting two doubles and stealing a base. In all, the Mariners pounded Houston's pitchers for 14 hits.<br />
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Compiling double digit hits is practically a given every game for this Mariners lineup, which is comprised of the team's all-time greatest players, from Ken Griffey Jr. in center field to Edgar Martinez at DH. Second baseman Robinson Cano opened the scoring in this game with a two-run home run in the first inning. First baseman Alvin Davis broke the game open in the fifth inning with a two-run double that extended the M's lead to 7-0.<br />
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The victory, the team's 11th in a row, moved the Mariners' win-loss record to 41-6 on the season, as they continue to crush their opponents almost every outing. And just a month earlier, Randy Johnson hurled a no-hitter against the Marlins in Miami. So their pitching has been OK, too. <br />
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For me, this was the second time I had experienced King Felix tossing a perfect game, though I must say the "actual" game against the Rays was a tad more dramatic! My wife and I had the good fortune to be in Seattle back in August 2012 and just happened to stop by for the afternoon game before heading back to our home in Oregon.<br />
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And back in the day in what very well may have been my first MLB game, I witnessed Steve Busby's second no-hitter. I was one of 9,019 fans at old Milwaukee County Stadium on June 19, 1974 who saw Busby and the Royals defeat my beloved Brew Crew 2-0. <br />
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As an 11-year-old grade schooler I remember leaving the stadium disappointed that the Brewers had lost ... again. (They went 76-86 that year, though they had the beginnings of their Bambi's Bombers days with the arrival of Robin Yount, Don Money and Gorman Thomas ...)<br />
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I recall my dad responding with something like ... "The Brewers may have lost, but you got to see some baseball history tonight ..." (About five years earlier, he had had the good fortune to be at Wrigley Field for Ken Holtzman's first no-hitter, a 3-0 win over the Braves on Aug. 19, 1969.)<br />
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The way things are going in this Mariners replay, I have a feeling that Felix just might get that elusive first 20-win season ... Now that would be some history!<br />
<br />
(<i>Note: As of this blog post, the Mariners have gone on to build a 69-16 record and Felix stands at 16-0! For the complete stats, click <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w2hMtwXV2-5WbSNxnLERqbN-t5U_RElW5Yf21KddTYA/edit#gid=1" target="_blank">here</a></i>.) <br />
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Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-62151240712124336322015-07-15T10:33:00.001-07:002015-07-15T10:33:59.085-07:00Johnson Tosses No-hitter; All-time Mariners Stretch Win Streak to 12As a big fan of The Big Unit, it was a thrill to have Randy Johnson toss a no-hitter in this APBA baseball game replay of the Mariners 2014 season.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSJuOu7zzWeJ2LurFBCFRULSeuEyCJ5OCMUIKVhOE1hgekUx__pHvWZSFXv4vRX0xTbe26yDVqx6FSUfx52t1aqR8FO_bwnITj1RTb5Mapa7joByx070CduGBBksu9Tzty_n-zT_1qb2gw/s1600/1996-topps-150-randy-johnson-best-action-shot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSJuOu7zzWeJ2LurFBCFRULSeuEyCJ5OCMUIKVhOE1hgekUx__pHvWZSFXv4vRX0xTbe26yDVqx6FSUfx52t1aqR8FO_bwnITj1RTb5Mapa7joByx070CduGBBksu9Tzty_n-zT_1qb2gw/s320/1996-topps-150-randy-johnson-best-action-shot.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>
What's that, you say? <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/j/johnsra05.shtml" target="_blank">Johnson</a> retired after the 2009 season ... Correct. However, Johnson is one of my starters as I replay the M's 2014 schedule using the team's all-time greats. So in addition to Johnson on the mound, Ken Griffey Jr. is taking care of centerfield, and Edgar Martinez has the DH duties covered.<br />
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As you might expect, playing the Mariners greats has resulted in an above-average number of victories, including 12-straight on the current win streak! As of April 20, 2014, the Mariners stand at 16-2, after a three-game sweep of the Miami Marlins.<br />
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Johnson highlighted the series with his no-no in game two, a 5-0 win. In holding the Marlins hitless, Johnson piled up 12 strikeouts, while walking only five batters. He struck out the side in both the fourth and the seventh innings. Giancarlo Stanton went down swinging three times, as did catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia (I just love to say and type that guy's last name ...).<br />
<br />
Johnson was aided in the victory by a trio of home runs: a two-run blast by first baseman Alvin Davis in the second; a solo homer by Martinez in the fourth; and another two-run smash by Griffey in the fifth.<br />
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The Marlins offense struggled, to say the least. The day before, Jaime Moyer held them to a single hit while striking out 15! Leadoff hitter Christian Yelich fell victim to Moyer by striking out four times.<br />
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With a team batting average of .284 and an ERA of 2.77, it's not hard to believe the M's good fortune, so far.<br />
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Johnson's no-hitter improved his record to 3-0 with a 1.34 ERA and 33 strikeouts in 33-plus innings. King <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/hernafe02.shtml" target="_blank">Felix Hernandez</a> has been equally effective, matching Johnson's 3-0 record with a 1.75 ERA and 39 K's in 36 innings over four starts.<br />
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This replay got started when I wondered how many wins might Felix have had last year if given some offense. So I surrounded The King with the best the Mariners could muster, and the results are evident.<br />
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Ichiro Suzuki is batting .342 in the leadoff spot, with 11 runs scored and 10 RBI. He's followed by second baseman Robinson Cano (.286, 9 runs, 13 RBI); Griffey (.231, 15 runs, 8 RBI); Martinez (.435, 13 runs, 12 RBI) and third baseman Adrian Beltre (.352, 11 runs, 13 RBI). Beltre leads the team in home runs with six, followed by Griffey with four, and Davis, Cano and Jay Buhner with three apiece.<br />
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Hernandez is pitching the same games in the replay that he did in real-life during 2014, including facing the actual lineups of his opponents. For the rest of the games, I've filled in Johnson and the rest of the starters against the lineups/pitchers the Mariners faced last year. I'll be limiting pitchers to actual innings pitched and batters to their actual ABs. <br />
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For complete stats, click <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w2hMtwXV2-5WbSNxnLERqbN-t5U_RElW5Yf21KddTYA/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-46785880050892992012015-07-10T15:57:00.000-07:002015-07-10T16:01:01.007-07:00King Felix Teams Up with Mariners' All-time Greats in 2014 Replay<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibBIhglLsB745J446_QqvdtMznswmFvo3hbKetBGyksCOWZKqAVSsutfj4VzFDPnCl3gS6ATd_9BIu2l1hdo9bDkvSvneZRsMwws62WJKOdCOdLhFQ9-9OF4O7CnP6aSNE-4gX6cqOcd9S/s1600/Felix+edited+by+Keith+Allison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibBIhglLsB745J446_QqvdtMznswmFvo3hbKetBGyksCOWZKqAVSsutfj4VzFDPnCl3gS6ATd_9BIu2l1hdo9bDkvSvneZRsMwws62WJKOdCOdLhFQ9-9OF4O7CnP6aSNE-4gX6cqOcd9S/s320/Felix+edited+by+Keith+Allison.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: right;">Photo courtesy of <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/keithallison/17301535153/sizes/l/" target="_blank">Keith Allison via Flickr.com</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Just how many games could King Felix win if the Mariners ever provided him with some offense? We're going to find out ...<br />
<br />
I've just embarked on an APBA baseball game replay of the Mariners 2014 schedule ... with some modifications.<br />
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The biggest change? Instead of the anemic M's offense that has plagued the franchise for years, Seattle will be fielding its all-time greats.<br />
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That's right, after leading off with Ichiro and Robinson Cano, opponents will face the likes of Ken Griffey Jr., Edgar Martinez and Adrian Beltre in the meat of the batting order.<br />
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<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/hernafe02.shtml" target="_blank">Felix Hernandez</a> (AXYZ) will be joined in the pitching rotation by Randy Johnson (AXYZ), Hisashi Iwakuma (AYZ), Mark Langston (BXY), Jaime Moyer (B) and James Paxton (AXZ). The bullpen's not too shabby, either, with the likes of J.J. Putz (A&CXYZ), Jeff Nelson (AXYZ) and "The Sheriff," Norm Charlton (BXY).<br />
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I'm looking forward to a lineup something like this:<br />
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1. Ichiro ('04) RF<br />
2. Robinson Cano ('13) 2B<br />
3. Ken Griffey Jr. ('94) CF<br />
4. Edgar Martinez ('95) DH<br />
5. Adrian Belte ('04) 3B<br />
6. Jay Buhner ('96) or Mike Cameron ('02) LF<br />
7. Alvin Davis ('87), Bruce Bochte ('79), John Olerud ('93) or Tino Martinez ('95) 1B<br />
8. Omar Vizquel ('92) or Craig Reynolds ('78) SS<br />
9. Dan Wilson ('96)<br />
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The bench includes the pride of Corvallis, Ore., Harold Reynolds ('87), Raul Ibanez ('06) and Bret Boone ('01).<br />
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Notice anyone in particular missing? Let's just say I have a hard time penciling A-Rod into the lineup after his year-long suspension and all the shenanigans that surrounded it ... So Alex Rodriguez will not be involved in this quest ...<br />
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The most wins that King Felix has tallied in a season was 19 in 2009. I'm hoping with this supporting cast he can top that. And I'm banking on <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/j/johnsra05.shtml" target="_blank">The Big Unit</a> giving him a run for most wins on the staff.<br />
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<i><b>Update:</b> Eight games into the replay and Felix is 2-0 with a shutout, 1.00 ERA and 18 K's in 18 innings. For all the team stats, click <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w2hMtwXV2-5WbSNxnLERqbN-t5U_RElW5Yf21KddTYA/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">here. </a></i><br />
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<br />Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-40481582076353990882015-06-30T22:25:00.000-07:002015-06-30T22:25:27.507-07:00Giants Triumph in Great Teams Tourney<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBUiQ7cwgSHgdREe2KR9AO5-hUD66b9UA_b399jnNa3ejWZ7N-ErPygTf4QhqGvMRGMxn9ceGvVcCPYUmpMfteTw5gxQJkU-8hZWZTNmi__iuCxYZyy_KrdwWdL2F3Gb28gwyCTm4MMk5u/s1600/willie+mays+1955.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBUiQ7cwgSHgdREe2KR9AO5-hUD66b9UA_b399jnNa3ejWZ7N-ErPygTf4QhqGvMRGMxn9ceGvVcCPYUmpMfteTw5gxQJkU-8hZWZTNmi__iuCxYZyy_KrdwWdL2F3Gb28gwyCTm4MMk5u/s320/willie+mays+1955.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Jeff Kent's solo home run in the top of the 10th inning propelled the all-time-great Giants to a 9-8 win over the best-of-the-best St. Louis Cardinals and a 4-2 series win in a GTOP2 APBA tournament.<br />
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After 39 games in the double-elimination tourney, the Giants and Cardinals were the last teams standing, having defeated the Yankees, Dodgers, Cubs and A's along the way.Ultimately, the Giants scored 48 runs in the six-game finale.<br />
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Despite the prevalence of plenty of A&C and A-grade pitchers, the Great Teams of the Past set is noteworthy for all the hitting! No doubt about it, this is my new favorite set of APBA cards!<br />
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More details to come ... Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-32341659169933270502015-03-25T19:25:00.001-07:002015-03-26T09:56:34.453-07:00Edgar Martinez HR's Lead Puerto Rico All-stars Past Dominican RepublicFormer Seattle Mariners standout Edgar Martinez hit a pair of home runs to lead a team of Puerto Rican all-stars to a win over players from the Dominican Republic in an APBA baseball game featuring Latin players.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEMMeEY1MSMuyLSUcJw62_p_3lvkrcJtZpOIg8gnYFG4vxSbpdSNfAlHmivUFW1uAx9UYGQpliqdUdr7Nj6WUsMqhvZGpbWsPvlTpMULBRYDEDoB4H3OFLiOjJkLmj1TgT2EI1nxbziyw/s1600/Edgar-Martinez.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEMMeEY1MSMuyLSUcJw62_p_3lvkrcJtZpOIg8gnYFG4vxSbpdSNfAlHmivUFW1uAx9UYGQpliqdUdr7Nj6WUsMqhvZGpbWsPvlTpMULBRYDEDoB4H3OFLiOjJkLmj1TgT2EI1nxbziyw/s1600/Edgar-Martinez.jpg" height="320" width="227" /></a></div>
<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/martied01.shtml" target="_blank">Martinez</a>, who was born in New York City but grew up in Puerto Rico, lead off the bottom of the seventh inning with a home run off Dominican starter Pedro Martinez. The home run by Edgar Martinez tied the game at 3-3.<br />
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Martinez stroked another solo home run the next inning off reliever Francisco Cordero. Puerto Rico went on to win 6-4.<br />
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One of the best parts of the APBA baseball game is the ability to create all sorts of fantasy teams. Lately, I've been going through all my sets -- about 20 seasons ranging from 1949 to 2014 -- to create teams of players born in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Cuba.<br />
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All the squads are essentially all-star teams populated by assorted hall-of-famers and grade-A pitchers. (And easily identified using the sorted lists on Baseball Almanac and Baseball Reference!)<br />
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So, for example, Puerto Rico's starting lineup featured:<br />
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Roberto Alomar, 2B<br />
Bernie Williams, CF<br />
Roberto Clemente, RF<br />
Edgar Martinez, DH<br />
Juan Gonzalez, LF<br />
Carlos Delgado, 1B<br />
Mike Lowell, 3B<br />
Ivan Rodriguez, C<br />
Ivan DeJesus, SS<br />
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In this contest, Javier Vazquez (BXYZ) started the game, yielding to relief from Eduardo Rodriguez and Ramon Hernandez.<br />
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Among those available on the bench? Yadier Molina and Jorge Posada, Orlando Cepeda, Carlos Beltran and <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/lezcasi01.shtml" target="_blank">Sixto Lezcano</a>, one of my favorite players from the late-'70s Brewers teams! <br />
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In this particular game, Dominican second baseman Robinson Cano got the visitors on the board with a two-run home run in the first inning. Lead-off man center fielder Cesar Cedeno had reached on an error by left fielder Gonzalez to start the game.<br />
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Williams and Gonzalez each hit a solo home run for Puerto Rico to tie the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning.<br />
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After a walk to Dominican DH Manny Ramirez in the seventh, pinch runner Alfonso Soriano stole second, went to third on a deep fly ball to right by Vlad Guerrero, then scored on a balk by Vazquez.<br />
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Martinez tied the game in the bottom of the seventh with his first homer. Gonzalez followed with a single. Jose Cruz then came on to pinch run, stealing second. Delgado walked. While I seldom call for a sacrifice, Lowell executed a perfect bunt, advancing the runners to second and third. Rodriquez then hit a single to drive in one run, and Beltran followed with a sacrifice fly to score Delgado and give Puerto Rico a 5-3 lead.<br />
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In the top of the eighth, Cedeno lead off the inning with a single off Rodriquez, who gave way to Ramon Hernandez. After Cano advanced Cedeno to second with a grounder to second, Albert Pujols drove in Cedeno with a single before Hernandez ended the threat. Score: 5-4.<br />
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Edgar Martinez closed out the scoring with his second home run in the bottom of the eighth inning. Hernandez returned to the mound in the ninth, earning the save. Rodriguez got the win over Pedro Martinez.<br />
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I'm looking forward to many interesting match-ups in the weeks ahead.<br />
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Here are the rosters:<br />
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<b>PUERTO RICO: </b><br />
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C-Ivan Rodriguez, Yadier Molina, Jorge Posada<br />
1B-Orlando Cepeda, Carlos Delgado<br />
2B-Roberto Alomar, Carlos Baerga, Joey Cora, Rey Sanchez<br />
SS-Ivan DeJesus, Alex Cora<br />
3B-Mike Lowell, Edgar Martinez<br />
OF-Carlos Beltran, Roberto Clemente, Jose Cruz, Juan Gonzalez, Sixto Lezcano, Bernie Williams<br />
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SP-Javier Vazquez (BXYZ), John Candelaria* (AYZ), Jaime Navarro (BZ), Ed Figueroa (BZ), Juan Pizarro (C(B*)W)<br />
RP-Javier Lopez (A), Juan Romero (A&CX), Luis DeLeon (AYZ), Eduardo Rodriguez (D(B*)Y), Willie Hernandez (C(B*)YZ), Pedro Feliciano (BXZ), Roberto Hernandez (BKY), Ramon Hernandez (A&CYZ)<br />
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*<i>Note: Candelaria, like Edgar Martinez, was born in New York City to Puerto Rican parents.</i><br />
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<b>DOMINICAN REPUBLIC:</b><br />
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C-Tony Pena, Miguel Olivo, Wilin Rosario<br />
1B-Albert Pujols, David Ortiz, Edwin Encarnacion<br />
2B-Robinson Cano, Juan Uribe<br />
SS-Miguel Tejada, Hanley Ramirez<br />
3B-Adrian Beltre, Aramis Ramirez<br />
OF-Cesar Cedeno, Nelson Cruz, Cesar Geronimo, Pedro Guerrero, Vlad Guerrero, Manny Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano, Sammy Sosa<br />
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SP-Juan Marichal (AYZ), Pedro Martinez (AXYZ), Johnny Cueto (AX), Joaquin Andujar (AZ), Ubaldo Jimenez (AX), Mario Soto (BXYZ), Joel Pineiro (BY)<br />
RP-Bill Castro (AZ), Armando Benitez (AX), Fernando Rodney (A&BXYZ), Francisco Cordero (AX), Rafael Soriano (A&CXZ)<br />
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<b>VENEZUELA:</b><br />
<br />
C-Miguel Montero, Victor Martinez<br />
1B-Miguel Cabrera, Andres Galarraga<br />
2B-Marcos Scutaro, Jose Altuve<br />
SS-Dave Concepcion, Asdrubal Cabrera<br />
3B-Pablo Sandoval, Melvin Mora<br />
OF-Magglio Ordonez, Carlos Gonzalez, Bobby Abreu, Gerardo Parra, Endy Chavez, Franklin Gutierrez<br />
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SP-Felix Hernandez (AXYZ), Johan Santana (AXZ), Kelvim Escobar (BY), Freddy Garcia (BZ), Anibal Sanchez (AXY)<br />
RP-Yoevis Medina (AXW), Edward Mujica (BYZ), Jose Mijares (AX), Ugueth Urbina (BXYZ), Francisco "K-Rod" Rodriguez (A&CXYW)<br />
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<b> CUBA:</b><br />
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C-Yasmani Grandal, Brayan Pena, Paul Casanova<br />
1B-Rafael Palmeiro, Jose Abreu, Kendrys Morales<br />
2B-Tony Taylor, Tito Fuentes<br />
SS-Bert Campaneris, Yunel Escobar, Yuniesky Betancourt, Orlando Martinez<br />
3B-Tony Perez, Jose Iglesias<br />
OF-Yasiel Puig, Minnie Minoso, Tony Oliva, Yoenis Cespedes, Jose Canseco, Jorge Soler, Leonys Martin<br />
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SP-Luis Tiant (AY), Mike Cuellar (AYZ), Jose Fernandez (AXY), Roenis Elias (CY), Livan Hernandez (C),<br />
RP-Tony Fossas (A&CXYZ), Aroldis Chapman (A&CXY), Vladimir Nunez (BY), Diego Segui (C(B*)X), Oscar Zamora (BZ), Jose Contreras (BXZ)<br />
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Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-10925591027088300702015-03-08T21:45:00.001-07:002015-03-21T11:47:22.043-07:00Minoso, Cuban All-stars Split Series vs. '79 World ChampsFour home runs, including one by "Mr. White Sox" Minnie Minoso, were enough for a collection of Cuban all-stars to hang on for a victory over the 1979 World Champion Pittsburgh Pirates in a game of APBA baseball.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUYPLbCqv5hNZbDKAIyiVQxgRB8GwzSxCANCqtvhDEWdkDFwbE9OAlUTkNirv-0MXz5EW1XK1PP5NRKvc3fgo5amUn__8EVFO4LY0B6XPzE9qv5SAYNWSkqV_WqUrUkx2kJPsUrH7vv33S/s1600/Minnie_Min%CC%83oso_1953_Bowman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUYPLbCqv5hNZbDKAIyiVQxgRB8GwzSxCANCqtvhDEWdkDFwbE9OAlUTkNirv-0MXz5EW1XK1PP5NRKvc3fgo5amUn__8EVFO4LY0B6XPzE9qv5SAYNWSkqV_WqUrUkx2kJPsUrH7vv33S/s1600/Minnie_Min%CC%83oso_1953_Bowman.jpg" height="320" width="205" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Minnie Minoso</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnie_Mi%C3%B1oso#Hall_of_Fame_candidacy" target="_blank">Minoso</a>, the first black player in White Sox history and a nine-time MLB all-star left fielder, died March 1, in Chicago. His passing at the age of 92 offered an opportunity to honor his outstanding career and his impact on Major League Baseball.<br />
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Minoso is just one of two dozen players born in Cuba that I organized into a team of APBA all-stars from the sets in my collection spanning 1959 to 2014. Among the others on the team? Hall-of-Famer Tony Perez, shortstop Bert Campaneris and Twins great Tony Oliva. Modern stars on the squad include Yasiel Puig, Aroldis Chapman and Yoenis Cespedes.<br />
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(In similar fashion, I've got some Northwest all-star teams comprised of players born in Oregon and Washington.)<br />
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For whatever reason, this weekend I matched the Cuban all-stars against the "We Are Family" World Champions, which featured their own Hall-of-Famers, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_Stargell" target="_blank">Willie "Pops" Stargell</a> and Bert Blyleven, along with Dave Parker, Phil "Scrap Iron" Garner and leadoff phenom Omar Moreno. The Pirates' deep pitching staff also included starter John "Candy" Candelaria and submariner closer Kent Tekulve. (<i>Maybe I was inspired to play the Pirates by Kevin Burghardt's <a href="http://kevburgh23.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Best Teams of the 1970's </a>tournament!</i>) <br />
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The teams split the doubleheader, with the Pirates rallying for a pair of runs in the top of the ninth inning to take game one, 4-3. Cuba earned the win in game two, 7-6.<br />
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<b>Game One</b><br />
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The first game featured a pair of lefties on the mound, Candelaria (BZ) vs. Mike Cuellar (AYZ) of the '69 Orioles. <br />
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In the bottom of the first, Campaneris led off with a single, and came around to score on a double by the next hitter, Oliva. <br />
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The Pirates tied it in the top of the third. Moreno, who walked to start the inning, scored on a double by Parker. Campaneris, of the '74 A's, had a double of his own in the bottom of the third, scoring later on a single by Perez.<br />
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Raffy Palmeiro ('95 O's) put Cuba up 3-1 with a solo home run in the sixth as Cuellar seemed to be cruising with a four-hitter heading into the eighth inning.<br />
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However, Moreno walked again, stole second, and came home on a single by shortstop Tim Foli. That marked the end of Cuellar's day, as Tony Fossas ('95 Cards) retired the next three hitters -- Parker, Stargell and Bill Madlock.<br />
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Still holding a 3-2 lead, Cuba called on Chapman to close the door. But Bill Robinson lead off with a double, then scored on a single by catcher Steve Nicosia. After two outs, Nicosia scored what would be the game-winner on a double by Moreno.<br />
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Tekulve earned the save, finishing off Cuba by striking out Perez, Palmeiro and getting Cespedes (2012 A's) to fly to center. Reliever Henry Romo got the victory, Chapman the loss.<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Game Two</b><br />
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After going 0-for-4 in the opener, Minoso bounced back with a two-run home run in the third inning of game two to give Cuba a 3-1 lead. Palmeiro got Cuba on the board first with a solo homer in the second inning. He hit his third homer of the day, another solo shot, in the third inning, giving his team a 4-1 lead.<br />
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Robinson had put the Pirates on the scoreboard with a solo home run of his own in the bottom of the second inning.<br />
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Cuba looked like it would put this one away early as Perez ('69 Reds) pounded a two-run homer in the fifth inning off Blyleven (BY), the Pirate starter. Tony Taylor ('69 Phils) stole his second base of the game and scored in the sixth inning on a sac fly by Cuban starter Jose Fernandez (AXY) of the 2013 Marlins. That made the score 7-1.<br />
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Fernandez had already struck out seven batters, when Foli hit a two-out double in the bottom of the sixth and scored when Parker followed with a single. When the Pirates scored three more in the bottom of the seventh, Fernandez gave way to Fossas, who surrendered two more hits and suddenly the Pirates trailed only 7-6. Pittsburgh's four-run inning included doubles by Garner and Foli (his second in two innings) and singles/stolen bases by Madlock to lead off, Robinson and then Moreno.<br />
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While Cuba failed to score against the Pirates bullpen, including Jim Bibby, Romo and Tekulve, the Pirates' bats would have to rally once again versus Chapman, who took the loss in game one.<br />
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This time, however, Chapman retired the first five batters he faced in the bottom of the eighth and ninth. With two outs, Lee Lacy got a pinch-hit single, then stole second with Moreno at the plate. As Moreno already had scored three runs and driven in two more in two games, he was intentionally sent to first as the potential winning run.<br />
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Fortunately for Chapman and his Cuban teammates, Foli struck out to end the game. Fernandez got the win, Chapman the save. Blyleven took the loss. <br />
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Next up? Perhaps a team of all-stars from Venezuela led by Felix Hernandez ...<br />
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Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-64679759508011576392015-02-06T19:18:00.000-08:002015-02-06T19:44:44.784-08:00Padres Win Title in 2015 Preseason Tourney ... Really!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGCYnun6anflnosdZDL9c_k_zo36fMROu2M13C5aFWOCVE3CYCZYa2Rc8aMFvwJBCC8bfzUVaC6-Ov8SWdjEbxwd-mWFNEqCTlmgQx4Bv8g49bcajiRIEHkdq3-z_epWuMQQFB3_1eg6C0/s1600/san-diego-padres-kemp-upton-myers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGCYnun6anflnosdZDL9c_k_zo36fMROu2M13C5aFWOCVE3CYCZYa2Rc8aMFvwJBCC8bfzUVaC6-Ov8SWdjEbxwd-mWFNEqCTlmgQx4Bv8g49bcajiRIEHkdq3-z_epWuMQQFB3_1eg6C0/s1600/san-diego-padres-kemp-upton-myers.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Matt Kemp, Wil Myers and Justin Upton give Padres fans three reasons to be<br />
optimistic about the upcoming baseball season in San Diego. </td></tr>
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Fans of the San Diego Padres have a lot to look forward to this summer, if the APBA Baseball Game is any indication.<br />
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The Padres triumphed over the likes of the World Champion Giants, the Seattle Mariners and King Felix, and their West Coast brethren the Oakland A's on the way to winning an eight-term tournament using the newly released 2014 season APBA player cards. The Padres rallied from a 3-0 deficit to defeat Felix Hernandez and the M's 6-5 in the championship matchup.<br />
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How did this squad, which finished 77-85 last summer, even make it to the final?<br />
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This tourney featured teams comprised of their current 40-man roster using the 2014 player cards. So the Padres offense got a considerable boost with the addition of Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, Derek Norris and Wil Myers. The improved offense complemented a strong bullpen, featuring three A relievers (Thayer, Quackenbush and Benoit) along with a pair of B starters, Ian Kennedy and Andrew Cashner.<br />
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The other teams included in this tournament, formatted along the lines of the double-elimination College World Series, were the Kansas City Royals, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs and my favorite team, the Milwaukee Brewers. While a few squads lost players (e.g. Billie Butler from the Royals to the A's, and Pablo Sandoval from the Giants to the Sox), some saw significant additions, such as Nelson Cruz (double 1's) to the Mariners and Jon Lester (AXZ) to the Cubs.<br />
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In addition to current rosters, teams also could use their number-one starter in every game. (No need to rest in APBA!) So Madison Bumgarner started every game for the Giants while King Felix got the call for the M's. The designated hitter also was in use.<br />
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Not only was this a fun tournament to see how these "new and improved" teams might fare in 2015, but it also was a great way to get acquainted with the newly minted player cards.<br />
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San Diego's road to the title included an opening-round 6-4 win over the A's, followed by a 2-1 victory against the Cubs. The Padres defeated the Giants 2-0 on a three-hit shutout by Kennedy and a two-run single by Kemp.<br />
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After an opening round win over the Red Sox, 4-3, the Mariners got bounced to the loser's bracket, falling to the Giants 8-6. The M's rebounded with a 5-3 win over the Cubs; then a 7-1 pasting of the A's in the only blowout of the tourney. The Mariners earned a spot in the title game with a 5-3 revenge victory over the Giants.<br />
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Based on these tourney results, it's conceivable that all these teams may meet or exceed their records from last summer, though it may be difficult for the Giants to repeat as champions with the loss of "The Panda" and a weak starting rotation after Bumgarner. In fact, it's hard to believe that the Giants would win the title again in an APBA replay of the 2014 season, given the over-abundance of C starters in their rotation!<br />
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Here are some of the highlights:<br />
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<b>Giants 5, Royals 3:</b><br />
Angel Pagan smacks a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Giants and Madison Bumgarner the win in the tourney opener.<br />
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<b>Mariners 4, Red Sox 3</b><br />
New right fielder Seth Smith singles in Robinson Cano with the winning run in the bottom of the ninth. King Felix goes the distance for the win.<br />
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<b>Padres 6, A's 4</b><br />
Justin Upton leads off the second inning with a solo home run, followed by a two-run homer by Yonder Alonso. The Padres score five runs off A's starter Sonny Gray.<br />
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<b>Cubs 5, Brewers 4</b><br />
Cubs second baseman Arismendy Alcantara hits a three-run seventh-inning home run to lead the Cubs to the win. Jon Lester gets the victory, with help from Hector Rondon.<br />
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<b>Red Sox 4, Royals 3</b><br />
David Ortiz hits a three-run homer, driving in Hanley Ramirez and eliminating the Royals. Rick Porcello, acquired from Detroit, gets the win.<br />
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<b>A's 4, Brewers 3</b><br />
Coco Crisp drives in Sam Fuld with a sac fly in the 12th inning for the win over the Brewers. New A's third baseman Brett Lawrie hits a solo home run. Brewers' new first baseman Adam Lind goes 3-for-5, with three doubles, a run and two RBI.<br />
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<b>Giants 8, Mariners 6</b><br />
Pagan is the hero again for the Giants, driving in two runs in the top of the 12th inning to beat the Mariners. For the game Pagan drives in four runs. Justin Ruggiano, obtained from the Cubs, hits a home run for the M's with two out in the bottom of the ninth to send the game into extra innings.<br />
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<b>Padres 2, Cubs 0</b><br />
Ian Kennedy, Dale Thayer and Joaquin Benoit shut out the Cubs, with the offense coming in the form of two solo home runs, one by Wil Myers and one by Tommy Medica.<br />
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<b>A's 3, Red Sox 2</b><br />
The A's eliminate the Sox on the strength of another home run by Brett Lawrie, this one a three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh off Koji Uehara.<br />
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<b>Mariners 5, Cubs 3</b><br />
The M's score two runs on back-to-back-to-back doubles in the 13th inning by Kyle Seager, Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz to drop the Cubs out of the tournament. Cruz added a pair of home runs, driving in four runs. Dominic Leone got the win in relief, with a save by Fernando Rodney. Jorge Soler and Mike Olt homered for the Cubs.<br />
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<b>Padres 2, Giants 0</b><br />
Ian Kennedy knocks the Giants into the loser's bracket with a three-hit shutout over Bumgarner. Kemp drives in both runs with a single in the fourth inning.<br />
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<b>Mariners 7, A's 1</b><br />
Felix Hernandez holds the A's to one run on four hits, and is supported by Seth Smith, who smacks of pair of home runs, and a two-run homer by Cano.<br />
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<b>Mariners 5, Giants 3</b><br />
Nelson Cruz comes through again for the M's, driving in the winning runs with a two-out, two-run double in the top of the 10th inning. Hernandez was cruising until the bottom of the ninth, when Brandon Belt led off with a home run, and Brandon Crawford drove in the tying run with a two-out double. Leone got another win in relief.<br />
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<b>Padres 6, Mariners 5</b><br />
Nelson Cruz hit two more home runs for the Mariners, but it wasn't enough as the Padres rallied in the late innings to win the tournament. The M's took a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the fifth inning. Ex-A's catcher Derek Norris drove in the Padres first run with a single in the fifth. He drove in another with a single in the seventh. In between, Justin Upton hit a sixth-inning home run. The Padres took the lead for good in the bottom of the eighth on a run-scoring single by Wil Myers. Hernandez took the loss for the M's; Kevin Quackenbush got the win in relief, with another save by Benoit.<br />
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<br />Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-13163626774820684002015-01-04T17:45:00.000-08:002015-01-04T18:03:29.199-08:00Clutch Cards Defeat Brewers in '82 Series ReplayST. LOUIS -- Even 30-plus years later, the Brewers still couldn't get the best of their nemesis, the St. Louis Cardinals.<br />
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Behind their aces -- Joaquin Andujar and Bruce Sutter -- the Cards defeated the Brew Crew 3-0 in Game 7 of an APBA Baseball Game World Series replay that matched the real thing, where St. Louis out-dueled the Brewers four games to three in Milwaukee's only trip to the fall classic. <br />
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I was hoping the Brewers could reverse the outcome, after piling up 106 wins in my <a href="http://robsapbablog.blogspot.com/2015/01/brewers-pile-up-106-wins-in-1982-season.html" target="_blank">regular season replay</a>. But it was not to be ...<br />
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The Cardinals jumped to 2-0 lead by edging the Brewers in the first two games, and had the Brewers playing catch-up the rest of the series. Sutter, the NL's top reliever, earned a save in all four Cardinals victories. Clutch hitting throughout the lineup keyed the Cardinals offense.<br />
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<b>Game 1 -- Cards win 3-2, take series lead</b><br />
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George Hendrick drove in a pair of runs in the first inning, and Darrell Porter scored from second base on an error in the sixth to put the Cards ahead 3-2 in their opening game win. Bob Forsch earned the win, pitching 8-plus innings before yielding to Sutter.<br />
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Pete Vuckovich took the loss, though matching Forsch almost pitch for pitch. The Brewers scored first, after Paul Molitor led off the game with a single and scored on a double by AL MVP Robin Yount. Fellow all-star Cecil Cooper drove in the tying run with a double in the sixth inning, after a leadoff walk by Yount. <br />
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Porter, the former Brewers backstop, lead off the bottom of the sixth with a double. He scored after leftfielder Ben Oglivie bobbled then dropped a fly ball by Lonnie Smith. Forsch and Sutter then did the rest.<br />
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<b>Game 2 -- Cards win 3-1, lead series 2-0</b><br />
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But for a ninth-inning solo home run by Oglivie, the Brewers mustered little offense versus Cards starter John Stuper. Once again, the Cards got off to a fast start, with leadoff hitters Tommy Herr and Ken Oberkfell getting on base with a pair of singles, then scoring on sacrifice flyouts by Keith Hernandez and George Hendrick. Hernandez scored an insurance run in the eighth, hitting a single then scoring on a triple by Porter.<br />
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After Oglivie's home run, Sutter closed the door on any further comeback by striking out Gorman Thomas and Ted Simmons. Don Sutton took the loss.<br />
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<b>Game 3 -- Brewers rally for 8-7 win</b><br />
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It seemed grim for the Brewers as the Cardinals dinged starter Mike Caldwell for six runs in the fourth inning, including a two-run homer by Hendrick and and a two-out, bases-loaded double by Herr to put the Cards ahead 6-2. Andujar was cruising with a 7-2 lead when the Brewers scored three in the bottom of the seventh. After Molitor drove in one with a single, Yount smacked a two-out double to drive in two more. Doug Bair retired Cooper to end the threat and maintain the Cards' 7-5 lead.<br />
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Bair, however, surrendered a leadoff walk to Oglivie. After Sutter came on to retire Thomas, designated hitter Don Money and Simmons hit back-to-back home runs to put the Brewers ahead 8-7.<br />
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In the top of the ninth, Brewers reliever Jamie Easterly allowed Hendrick to reach first on a single. That prompted a call to the bullpen, and Rollie Fingers. (<i>Note: Unlike in real life, Fingers rallied miraculously from a season-ending injury to pitch in the Series!</i>) Fingers came on to retire the side, including striking out David Green to end the game and get the Brewers back on track. (<i>Note: Green platooned throughout the series. He had been traded to St. Louis two years earlier in the deal that brought the Brewers Simmons, Vuckovich and Fingers!</i>). Easterly got the win in relief, Sutter took the loss.<br />
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<b>Game 4 -- Brewers rally again, win 3-2 and even the series</b><br />
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Gorman Thomas hit a solo home run off Doug Bair in the bottom of the eighth inning to break a 2-2 tie and even the series at two games apiece. Easterly once again picked up the win in relief, with another save by Fingers.<br />
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Both starters -- Moose Haas for the Brewers and Dave LaPoint for the Cards -- gave way to the bullpens after allowing a pair of runs. (<i>Note: LaPoint also had been traded to the Cards from the Brewers in the Fingers deal ... )</i><br />
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<b>Game 5 -- Vuckovich pounded as Cards regain series lead with 8-3 win</b><br />
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Pete Vuckovich took his second loss of the series as he allowed five runs over three-plus innings; the Cards went on to win 8-3. Lonnie Smith went 3-for-4 in the leadoff spot, scoring two runs and driving in another; Porter had a double and a home run, scoring two runs; and McGee added a two-run triple. Forsch got his second win of the series, with another save from Sutter.<br />
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Thomas hit his second home run in two games, and Yount added a two-run home run in the seventh that cut the lead to 5-3. But the Cards added three runs in the eighth and ninth to put them one win away from the championship.<br />
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<b>Game 6 -- Sutton saves the day as Brewers win 8-2 to force Game 7</b><br />
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Don Sutton held the Cardinals to four hits and a pair of runs in the fourth inning as the Brewers pounded the Cardinals for 12 hits in an 8-2 win. Oglivie got the scoring started with a two-run bomb in the first inning, followed by Thomas' third homer of the series in the third. Simmons drove in two more runs in the third inning to chase Cards starter John Stuper. Cooper went 3-for-5 with a double, a run and two RBI.<br />
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<b>Game 7 -- Brewers held scoreless in 3-0 series finale</b><br />
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The Brewers could scatter only six hits as they fell 3-0 to the Cardinals. St. Louis starter Joaquin Andujar got the win, with Sutter coming on to close out the eighth and ninth innings. Willie McGee gave the Cards all the runs they would need with a one-out, bases-loaded single to drive in two runs in the fourth inning off losing pitcher Mike Caldwell. <br />
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The Brewers made it exciting to the end, with Oglivie leading off the ninth with a double against Sutter. After a flyout by Money to deep left, Edwards hit a sharp single to left. However, Green gunned down Oglivie at the plate. Sutter then ended the threat and the series by striking out Ted Simmons.<br />
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How ironic that so much of the series turned on key plays by players who had been dealt between the teams just two years earlier!<br />
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... And so ended my long-awaited <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmxYRe7bH9LKdE81V2lSemxpcUd3Zmd0UGVnUmRvY1E&usp=sharing" target="_blank">replay of the Milwaukee Brewers</a> mythic 1982 season!<br />
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<br />Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-72189746929471738612015-01-02T11:41:00.000-08:002015-01-02T11:41:45.781-08:00Brewers Pile Up 106 Wins in 1982 Season Replay<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Brewers raced to a fast start and never let up on the gas as they cruised to a 106-56 record in this 1982 APBA Baseball Game season replay.<br />
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As in real life, the Brewers pounded opponents with their hitting and had plenty of pitching -- especially with the late-season addition of Don Sutton -- to assure Milwaukee the AL East Division title. They outscored their opponents 844-630!<br />
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The Brew Crew put an exclamation point on their season by finishing with a three-game road sweep of their closest division rivals, the Baltimore Orioles. The sweep included a 15-5 demolition and a ninth-inning come from behind victory.<br />
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Trailing 4-2 in their last at bat, second baseman Jim Gantner led off the inning with a single, followed by a home run by catcher Charlie Moore. After a triple by Marshall Edwards, third baseman/leadoff hitter supreme Paul Molitor drove him in with a single. Pete Vuckovich wrapped up his 22nd win with a one, two, three-out bottom of the ninth.<br />
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It's no wonder Vuckovich earned the Cy Young Award, going 22-3 with a 2.76 ERA. He pitched 251 innings in 30 starts, with 17 complete games. Mike Caldwell and Moose Haas contributed 16 wins apiece. Sutton compiled a 5-1 record in his six starts after arriving from Houston.<br />
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The bullpen was led by Hall-of-Famer Rollie Fingers, who went 7-9 with 29 saves. Jim Slaton added 3 saves along with his 10-5 record; Dwight Bernard also had 3 saves and a 7-2 win/loss tally. <br />
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In the replay, all-star shortstop <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/y/yountro01.shtml" target="_blank">Robin Yount</a> nearly duplicated his MVP stat line -- batting .346, scoring 124 runs, driving in 117, and smacking 54 doubles, 14 triples and 26 home runs! Molitor, The Igniter, lived up to his nickname, batting .343 and scoring 140 runs! His stats included 230 hits, 86 RBI, 29 doubles, 27 home runs and 42 stolen bases.<br />
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First baseman Cecil Cooper and left fielder Ben Oglivie anchored the middle of the lineup. Cooper batted .304 in the three spot, scoring 100 runs, and driving in 115 with 42 doubles and 22 home runs. Oglivie led the team in home runs with 45, matching Cooper with 115 RBI and 101 runs scored.<br />
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Center fielder Gorman Thomas contributed 93 RBI, with 27 home runs and 37 doubles. The bottom of the order did its share of damage as well. Catcher Ted Simmons batted .258 with 12 home runs and 67 RBI; Gantner batted .331, scoring 61 and driving in 57; and part-time designated hitter Don Money batted .323 with 16 homers and 59 RBI.<br />
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As a team, the Brewers batted a stellar .284, with 202 home runs, a .330 on-base percentage and a .453 slugging percentage. Here's a link to <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmxYRe7bH9LKdE81V2lSemxpcUd3Zmd0UGVnUmRvY1E&usp=sharing" target="_blank">all the stats</a>. <br />
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As I mentioned in an earlier post, the 1982 Brewers World Series squad is my most favorite, having grown up in Milwaukee. It's surprising it took this long to get to a season replay. I've been playing APBA baseball since 1976.<br />
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This is the third season replay I've completed this year, the others being the <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14vI6lWwTr6DHWXCzoizWWIsPbE_ZBaE59bH2q_PG3Rs/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">2008 Brewers</a> playoff team and the <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1opeflGHNPmUzIgbCibU1tIAtPZHsLwOnEhnPDn1MDO8/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">1969 Cubs</a>, who also managed to win more than 100 games in my replay.<br />
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In replaying the 1982 Brewers I used the team's actual starting pitching rotation and opponents' starting lineups. I kept pitchers close of their actual innings pitched; and batters close to their actual number of plate appearances. I also mixed in an interleague schedule, with four games against each of the National League squads.The Brewers went 32-16 against the NL.<br />
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I'm looking forward to replaying the 1982 World Series against the Cardinals, who defeated the Brewers in three out of four games during the replay. One twist I plan for the Series is including Rollie Fingers, who missed the actual World Series due to injury. What the heck, it's my replay!<br />
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<i>Note: As always, here's a link to my <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmxYRe7bH9LKdE81V2lSemxpcUd3Zmd0UGVnUmRvY1E&usp=sharing" target="_blank">Brewers replay stats</a> ... </i><br />
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Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-52977150618645186142014-11-11T21:00:00.002-08:002014-11-14T17:13:24.900-08:00NL Shuts Out AL to Take '82 All-Star Game, 6-0 MONTREAL -- Charlie Hustle beat out a bobbled grounder in the first inning, eventually coming around to score the first and only run the National League would need to dominate the American League, 6-0, in a <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/allstar/1982-allstar-game.shtml" target="_blank">1982 APBA All-Star Game replay</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/rosepe01.shtml" target="_blank">Pete Rose</a> got the Nationals started in the third inning as well, slapping a lead-off single and scoring on another single by hometown favorite Gary Carter. The pair of runs earned Rose the game's MVP award at Stade Olympique before 59,057 fans.<br />
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Montreal starter Steve Rogers got the win, pitching two scoreless innings. He set the tone early, striking out Oakland's Ricky Henderson to start the game. Boston starter Dennis Eckersley took the loss, after allowing Rose to score the unearned run in the bottom of the first inning.<br />
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The NL all-stars outhit the AL 13-2. LA outfielder Dusty Baker went 2-for-2, including a double and drove in two runs. Also smacking doubles for the National League were Lonnie Smith, John Stearns and Bob Horner.<br />
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A pair of double plays by the NL helped keep the American League from mounting any kind of comeback, as all they could muster were a pair of singles by Carlton Fisk and Paul Molitor. Only one American League runner, Henderson, reached second, after stealing the base following a walk in the third inning.<br />
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In succession, Fernando Valenzuela, Phil Niekro, Steve Carlton, Greg Minton and Steve Howe followed Rogers in shutting out the Americans. Howe struck out Hal McRae to end the game in the top of the ninth.<br />
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The Brewers, who lead the majors in victories with a 55-30 record at the break, were well-represented. Cecil Cooper started the game at first base, with Robin Yount at shortstop. Yount walked in his first at-bat, giving the AL its first base runner. Ben Oglivie grounded into a double play in the fifth inning while pinch-hitting for Brewer hurler Pete Vuckovich. Molitor went 1-for-2, striking out in addition to his sixth-inning single.<br />
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Vuckovich struggled in two innings of work, giving up two runs on four hits after relieving Eckersley. Bullpen ace Rollie Fingers fared a bit better, getting out of the seventh inning after allowing the run-scoring double by Stearns.<br />
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Molitor and Vuckovich were added to the AL squad after their outstanding performance for Milwaukee over the first half of the season.<br />
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<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/MIL/1982-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">The Brewers</a> will continue their drive to the team's first American League pennant when they resume play against the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park.<br />
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<i>Here are the latest <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmxYRe7bH9LKdE81V2lSemxpcUd3Zmd0UGVnUmRvY1E&usp=sharing#gid=1" target="_blank">stats from the Brewers replay</a>. </i><br />
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<br />Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6531595156869896041.post-60553174306003519592014-11-09T21:59:00.000-08:002014-11-10T17:53:56.215-08:00Brewers Reach 55 Wins by '82 All-star BreakWith a 13th-inning walk-off three-run home run by Gorman Thomas, the Brewers cruised into the 1982 all-star break with an 8-5 win over the Braves and a 55-30 record.<br />
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The <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/MIL/1982.shtml" target="_blank">Brewers</a> closed the first-half of this APBA baseball season replay on a two-game win streak, defeating the Braves for the second straight day. Jim Slaton earned his eighth victory with three innings of scoreless relief. <br />
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Meanwhile, fans voted shortstop Robin Yount and first-baseman Cecil Cooper into the starting lineup for the <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/allstar/1982-allstar-game.shtml" target="_blank">American League all-stars</a>. They will be joined in Montreal by teammates Paul Molitor, Ben Oglivie, Pete Vuckovich and Rollie Fingers.<br />
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The Brewers' league-leading offensive attack has been led by the one-two punch of Molitor and Yount. Molitor already has tallied 74 runs, 17 home runs, 24 stolen bases and a .337 batting average. Likewise, Yount has piled up <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/y/yountro01.shtml" target="_blank">MVP numbers</a> including a .354 batting average, 57 runs, 66 RBI, 29 doubles and 14 home runs.<br />
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While Cooper started the season slowly, the all-star is now batting .312 with 58 RBI and 13 home runs.<br />
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The Brewers have already crushed 115 home runs, led by Oglivie with 22. Thomas and designated hitter Don Money have added 15 homers apiece. Money also is batting .325 and has driven in 46 runs in the cleanup spot.<br />
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With his 12-2 record, Vuckovich leads a pitching staff that has a combined 3.30 ERA. Among the starters, Moose Haas is 9-4; Randy Lerch stands at 7-4 and Mike Caldwell is even at 6-6. In addition to his eight wins, Slaton has compiled three saves while pitching mostly in relief.<br />
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Fingers, the all-star and future hall-of-famer, has four wins to go along with his 15 saves.<br />
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To this point, the Brewers have compiled a 28-14 record at home and are 27-16 on the road. The Brew Crew has amassed a 16-9 record so far in interleague play. (The AL Brewers' schedule was tweaked to include 48 interleague games, four against each of the 12 National League squads.)<br />
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This Brewers team, my favorite all-time, started quickly in this replay, sweeping the Blue Jays and winning their first five games. They built up a 12-5 record in April, followed by a 20-9 record in May. They went 17-11 in June and are 6-5 so far in July.<br />
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Among the season highlights so far: <br />
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April 9 -- The Brewers opened the season with a 10-0 win in Toronto on opening day. Vuckovich tossed the day one shutout. The offense included three-run homers by Yount and Thomas and a two-run shot by Molitor.<br />
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April 21 -- Money hits a two-run walk-off home run to down the Blue Jays 3-2. Buck Martinez had hit a solo homer in the top of the ninth to put Toronto ahead.<br />
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April 22 -- For the second straight day, the Brewers win 5-3on a two-run walk-off home run, this time by Oglivie in the bottom of the 10th inning versus the Blue Jays.<br />
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April 28 -- Second-baseman Jim Gantner led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a game-typing solo home run. Later in the inning, Cooper drove in Yount with the winning run. The Brewers hit four homers in the game, a 7-6 win over the White Sox.<br />
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May 1 -- Oglivie hits a pair of home runs in a 9-1 win over the Twins. Vuckovich throws a six-hitter.<br />
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May 2 -- Roy Howell hits a two-run homer in the 13th inning for a 4-3 win over the Twins.<br />
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May 6 -- The Brewers destroy the Cardinals 11-1 as Vuckovich gets another complete game win.<br />
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May 9 -- Gantner is the hero again, hitting one to the wall to drive in a pair of runs for a 6-5 win in the bottom of the 11th inning against the Twins. Gantner went 3-for-5 with a double, home run and four RBI.<br />
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May 15 -- Haas shuts out the Cubs 6-0, defeating hall-of-famer Fergie Jenkins.<br />
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May 23 -- Money hits a pair of homers in a 10-2 blowout of the Mariners. Molitor and Thomas also hit round-trippers.<br />
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May 27 -- Cooper and Money hit back-to-back homers to defeat the Angels 3-2 in Anaheim. Vuckovich gets the win, with a save by Fingers.<br />
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June 2 -- Oglivie's two-run homer in the 11th inning propels the Brewers to a 3-1 win over the Astros in the Astrodome.<br />
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June 8 -- Every batter in the lineup gets at least one hit in the Brewers' 7-1 win over the Orioles. Lerch gets the win.<br />
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June 9 -- Thomas gets a walk-off bases-loaded walk to defeat the Orioles 6-5. The free pass was the third in a row by O's reliever Tim Stoddard.<br />
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June 18 -- Yount and Cooper go a combined 8-for-9 with five runs, four RBI and four doubles in an 8-6 win over the Tigers.<br />
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June 19 -- Haas shuts out the Tigers on three hits for a 1-0 win at old Tiger Stadium. Oglivie hit a solo home run in the ninth inning against his former team for the only score.<br />
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June 23 -- The Crew scores seven runs in the bottom of the first inning off Mike Morgan on their way to a 9-1 win over the Yankees.<br />
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July 4 -- The Brewers complete a three-game sweep of the Red Sox with an 8-2 win on Independence Day.<br />
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July 7 -- Molitor hits a leadoff home run as the Brewers pound the Padres 13-6. Yount scored three runs and drove in five with a double, triple and a home run.<br />
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July 9 -- The Expos rally to score three runs, including two off Fingers, in the ninth inning to drop the Brewers 4-3. D'oh!<br />
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July 11 -- The Brewers pound out 19 hits in a 12-3 victory over the Braves, including a triple and a home run by Yount, who scored two and drove in five.<br />
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<i><b>Note:</b> Check out the Brewers' up-to-date stats <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AmxYRe7bH9LKdE81V2lSemxpcUd3Zmd0UGVnUmRvY1E&usp=sharing" target="_blank">here</a>.</i><br />
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<br />Rob's Media Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15851021589057412155noreply@blogger.com1