Unseasonable Doldrums

Canberra: L (-2) – 3; (.105, .128, .211;  8 ip , 2 er).  Ervin Santana poured his heart out for 8 strong innings, but the Kangaroo hitters left their hearts at home, going 4 for 38 with a walk and a homer (Chris Carter!).  You know it was a joke, don’t you, when I wrote about the Fall of the Ryan Empire? It’s not like I can issue an executive order and make you fall from first.

Haviland: L, 4 – 4. (.294, .316, .294; no pitching)  In 18 team plate appearances, the Dragons collected 5 hits and a walk, with no extra bases.  It’s not a heroic charge up the hill, but it was enough to keep the Dragons in second place and move them a little closer to the top spot.

Old Detroit: “L”, 8 – 4. (.278, .381, .611; no pitching).  Only 21 plate appearances, but they were productive, especially thanks to Gregory Polanco’s homer and double in 5 trips to the plate. Polanco accounted for 7 of the W’s 11 total bases.

Portland: W (-1), L 2; 2 – 10.  (.083, .154, .083; 18. 3 ip, 14 er). Now here’s an honest, full-bore loss — two of them, in fact.  Only 4 batters supplied all 13 of the Rosebuds’ sad plate appearances, achieving 1 single and 1 walk.  Jon Gray nearly triple chulked (3.3 ip, 9 earned runs) and Jason Hammel didn’t cover himself with glory (6 ip, 4 er).  This is how the Rosebuds crumpled up Chris Sale’s latest brilliant start (9 ip, 1 er) and tossed it in the trash.

Pittsburgh: W, 10 – (-1).  (.348, .423, .609 — Happy Second EMD in a Row!  15.7 ip, 2 er).  Four teams still lead Pittsburgh, but not a one of them looks like it’s ready to make a stand against the upthrusting Alleghenys.  Mike Trout is back at it, folks:  2 for 3 with a homer and a walk Thursday, .373, .455, .672 for the month. There is no good news here for lovers of EFL liberty…

Flint Hill: W, 7 – 2.  (.333, .379, .630; 16 ip, 3 er)  The Tornados showed the spirit necessary to defend a lead, but in their case it serves another purpose: to creep into the edges of the pennant race.  If Leonys Martin keeps going 2 for 3 with a homer and a walk, and John Jaso continues doing 3 for 4 with a triple and a walk… and Samardzija and McHugh combine for 15 ip, 3 er …

Peshastin: “L”, 8 – 6. (.333, .371, .697; 5.7 ip 5 er)  That hitting! Carlos Santana’s two homers and a walk in 5 plate appearances!  Trevor Story’s 3 for 5 with a double and a homer!  Zach Cozart’s 2 for 3 with a double and a walk! Anthony Rendon’s 3 for 4 with a double!  All wonderful stuff…. Ross Stripling’s 5 er in 4.7 ip takes some of the luster off, as does Peshastin’s seventh place standing.  But still, it seems the Pears might be shaking off their early-season doldrums.

Kaline: L, 3 – 7.  (.171, .231, .371; 1 ip, 0 er).  Dexter Fowler is still rumbling — he hit a  homer yesterday, as did Carlos Perez, to give the Drive what little offensive pop they had.  Dellin Betances got through a scoreless inning, but he was relieving replacements, so the livestock had already fled the barn.

Cottage: “W”, 1 – 4.  (.195, .216, .250; 9.7 ip, 4 er).  I suppose Matt Adams’ 2 for 3 counts as the highlight of the day for the Cheese. Kendal Graveman’s modest 5.7 ip, 2 er was also good.  The Cheesy Doldrums continue. Mmmm…. Cheesy Doldrums….

D.C.:  L, 2 – 2. (.143, .250, .143;  7.7 ip, 2 er)   The Balk continue to skim just ahead of the Atlanta Braves in the NL East, thanks to Josh Tomlin’s fine 7.7 ip, 2 er start.  And now the Twins have fallen behind D.C., too — albeit just barely. This is an exciting race, or at least an excruciating one. Can our expansion team outperform two venerable MLB franchises?