Last night was, in my opinion, one of the most fun nights in recent memory in Major League Baseball. The reason? Well, it has everything to do with Jerry Dipoto and his love of the trade.
Many of you are Mariners fans, so perhaps this is old news to you. The Houston Astros are in Seattle this week for a very big series. Houston leads the AL west by 6 games over Oakland and 7 games over the Mariners. In the Wild Card standings, however, the Mariners are only one game back – a true testament to how the team has outperformed people’s expectations this season. Many fans had been clamoring for a trade to bolster the Mariners starting rotation, but instead, with the Astros already at the ballpark and with both teams warming, Dealing Dipoto struck a deal for…a third baseman and a reliever (Abraham Toro and Joe Smith).
The outcry was loud, especially considering Dipoto dealt to their division rivals the suddenly excellent Kendall Graveman (along with the struggling Rafael Montero). What was Dipoto thinking? The Mariners have a stalwart third baseman in Kyle Seager, a team leader and fan favorite. Dipoto suggested the fans be patient, and see what else he was going to do (two hours later he dealt two minor leaguers for Tyler Anderson, a LH starting pitcher).
Only Jerry and his closest associates knows what might happen over the next few days, but I loved what ensued in the game after the trade was completed. Toro and Smith donned Mariners jerseys while Graveman and Montero donned their new Astros jerseys. While the two new Astros sat on the bench the entire game, the two newest Mariners were used right away by Scott Servais, and it worked perfectly. Joe Smith came in to relieve against the guys with whom he ate breakfast that morning, getting all three batters he faced out easily. Then, in the ninth inning, Servais sent Toro to his for the previous night’s hero, Dylan Moore. With the count 1-1, no outs, and Jared Kelenic on base, Toro sent a ball high into the night sky and it cleared the right field fence by about 10 inches for a home run.
Can you imagine the bravado with which Dipoto must have been strutting around his office? Of course, the Mariners ended up losing the game, but the two guys he traded for made a mark in their first game with their new team, just hours removed from stripping off their Astros to put on the much more aesthetically please Mariners uniform. Hopefully the fans will calm down a little, and once they see what they got on Toro, they may never question Dipoto again. At least until his next trade.
EFL Standings for 2021
| EFL | ||||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB | RS | RA |
| Old Detroit Wolverines | 70 | 31 | .693 | — | 572.1 | 380.1 |
| Flint Hill Tornadoes | 68 | 33 | .671 | 2.2 | 526.1 | 365.0 |
| Peshastin Pears | 64 | 36 | .637 | 5.8 | 496.3 | 377.7 |
| D.C. Balk | 63 | 36 | .632 | 6.4 | 543.7 | 414.9 |
| Kaline Drive | 63 | 39 | .615 | 7.8 | 539.6 | 428.1 |
| Haviland Dragons | 60 | 42 | .590 | 10.3 | 524.8 | 450.0 |
| Canberra Kangaroos | 56 | 43 | .571 | 12.5 | 507.9 | 449.9 |
| Cottage Cheese | 55 | 46 | .547 | 14.7 | 577.7 | 538.8 |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys | 52 | 49 | .517 | 17.7 | 504.0 | 484.8 |
| Bellingham Cascades | 51 | 50 | .507 | 18.8 | 426.0 | 421.2 |
| Portland Rosebuds | 43 | 57 | .432 | 26.2 | 503.0 | 583.1 |
Old Detroit: DNP, 1-(-1); 40PA, 8.7IP
| AVG: 0.216 | OBP: 0.275 | SLG: 0.595 | OPS: 0.870 |
| ERA: 3.10 | WHIP: 1.379 |
The Wolverines didn’t play a game yesterday, due to the rainout in Boston. But they did manage to add a little cushion of .2 games to their lead over the Tornadoes. Old Detroit has got a shot in the arm (non-vaccine related, though he has that shot in his arm, too) with the return of Eloy Jimenez. Last night, Jimenez saved 2 runs with his glove for the White Sox (doesn’t do much for the Wolverines in the short term) but also contributed at least a run, probably two, with his bat as he went 2 for 4 with a home run. Pumped to have his EFL teammate back, Austin Riley joined in the fun by belting two home runs (one a grand slam), and Josh Bell added one of his own. Chris Paddack tossed 6 innings, giving up 3 runs, and Jonathan Loaisiga returned to his former self, tossing a scoreless inning. Had it not been for shrewd allocation use enacted by the Tornadoes yesterday, the Wolverine lead would have been larger, but I am sure they will take 2.2 games with 4 days left in the month.
Flint Hill: DNP, 2-2; 29PA, 10.7IP
| AVG: 0.286 | OBP: 0.310 | SLG: 0.571 | OPS: 0.882 |
| ERA: 7.57 | WHIP: 1.402 |
Last month I entered a transaction on a day when I thought my pitcher (German Marquez) had a good chance of being bad. Then, he went out and tossed a complete game with no runs scored outing. Yesterday morning, I once again entered a transaction (James Kaprielian to the bench 100%) thinking his outing might do more damage than good. This time I was right – so his 6 runs over 4.3 innings were tossed in Stone Valley and did nothing to impact the Tornadoes. What a relief! However, Jake Brentz was not reallocated, and he gave up 2 runs in 2/3 of an inning, while Julio Urias pitched well, giving up one run in 5.7 innings. The hitting was pretty strong for an off day, with Sean Murphy and Jared Kelenic each collecting two hits apiece, Murphy making one of his a home run and the other a double.
Peshastin: L, 2-8; 34PA, no pitching
| AVG: 0.161 | OBP: 0.235 | SLG: 0.355 | OPS: 0.590 |
It was a rough day in Peshastin yesterday, beginning with no one going to the mound to pitch. That action (or lack of action) proved too costly, especially on a day when the hitters showed up but didn’t do much at the plate. Juan Soto and Ozzie Albies can’t be blamed, to be certain. Soto went 2 for 4 with a home run and Albies went 1 for 4 with a home run and a walk. But little else happened from the plate, and the Pears lost almost an entire game off the leaders, now sitting 5.8 games out of first.
DC: W(2), L(-1), 10-3; 44PA, 7IP
| AVG: 0.359 | OBP: 0.432 | SLG: 0.718 | OPS: 1.150 |
| ERA: 2.57 | WHIP: 1.000 |
The Balk had an excellent day, earning two wins and shedding a loss, climbing a half game closer to the Wolverines and now sitting 6.4 games back. Still a distance, but a few more days like yesterday and the Balk might be too close for comfort – well, maybe DC will be comfortable, but no one else will be! Yesterday’s heroes were Bryce Harper (3 for 5 with a double and in inside the park home run), Sam Hilliard (3 for 3 with a home run and a walk) and Pete Alonso (2 for 5 with a double). Joey Gallo, one of the hottest commodities on the trading block, went 1 for 4 with a home run and made a couple nifty plays in the field. Dylan Cease started and went 6 innings with 2 earned runs allowed.
Kaline: “W,” 6-7; 64PA, 1IP
| AVG: 0.241 | OBP: 0.313 | SLG: 0.448 | OPS: 0.761 |
| ERA: 0.00 | WHIP: 0.000 |
I have to admit, one of the things I most enjoy each update is seeing how many PAs the Drive get each time they play. They are machine-like in their volume, with no one seemingly on the injured list and everyone racking up the plate appearances as though they are a scarce commodity. The main issue for the Drive is the lack of pitching, now having gained 21.3 replacement innings – second most this month. The Drive hit three home runs last night (Jesse Winker, Akil Badoo, and Omar Narvaez. They also had three doubles for the day – Badoo, Michael Conforto and Jose Altuve. But with only one inning of pitching from Mark Melancon – though it was scoreless – they could not score enough to overcome the 7 runs allowed by replacements.
Haviland: W, 12-7; 50PA, 3.7IP
| AVG: 0.333 | OBP: 0.360 | SLG: 0.625 | OPS: 0.985 |
| ERA: 4.86 | WHIP: 0.811 |
At 41.6 replacement innings pitched, Haviland is leading the EFL in a category I am certain they did not set out to win. But the batters were bent on making sure the lack of pitching did not steal a win from the team. Three different batters collected 3 hits apiece – Harrison Bader (3 for 4 with 2 doubles and a home run), Brandon Lowe (3 for 4 with a home run) and Ramon Laureano (3 for 4 with a double). Three other hitters got two hits apiece – Jake Cronenworth (2 for 4), Gio Urshela (2 for 4 with two doubles), and Brendan Rodgers (2 for 5 with a home run). Four relievers appeared, and it didn’t go super well for one of them – Chad Green, who gave up 2 runs – but it did for the other three.
Canberra: L, 7-9; 37PA, 10.3IP
| AVG: 0.250 | OBP: 0.351 | SLG: 0.500 | OPS: 0.851 |
| ERA: 7.86 | WHIP: 1.650 |
The Roos put up a solid offensive line yesterday, getting 7 runs on the strength of 8 hits (2 doubles, 2 home runs) and 4 walks. Kyle Tucker was one of the Astros who got to ride to T-Mobile park in the same bus as Joe Smith, and then face him that same day in the game. Tucker flied out in that at bat, but he tortured Chris Flexen (didn’t he know Flexen is also a Roo?), getting two hits off of him, one of them a double. Nate Lowe went 2 for 3 with a double and a stolen base, and I just imagine every good game Lowe has proliferates another pickle in the Dundee OD headquarters. As already mentioned, Chris Flexen did not have a great game, and it cost Canberra. Flexen gave up 7 runs in 4 innings, to offset Dane Dunning’s 2 runs in 6 innings.
Cottage: L, 8-8; 31PA, 1IP
| AVG: 0.286 | OBP: 0.355 | SLG: 0.679 | OPS: 1.033 |
| ERA: 0.00 | WHIP: 1.000 |
Another EFL team with great offense on the day, but not enough to overcome the replacement innings they earned. I imagine the frustration in Cheeseland is high, with its team scoring 8 runs – 8! – and being unable to win. Jeff McNeil led the way for the Cheese, going 2 for 5 with a double and a home run. And you’ll be surprised, I’m sure, to learn that Ohtani hit another ball very far for his 36th home run this season. And what do you know…Abraham Toro, who came to the park in an Astros uniform but stepped to the plate in a Mariners uniform, had one at bat and used it to endear himself to the Mariners fan base by hitting a home run. I saw a lot of shade thrown towards Dipoto for this deal, but I don’t think people know how good Toro is/will be in the coming year. The Mariners got a steal. But the Cheese did not, at least in terms of yesterday’s outcome.
Pittsburgh: W, 2-(-2), 26PA, 91.3IP
| AVG: 0.174 | OBP: 0.269 | SLG: 0.217 | OPS: 0.487 |
| ERA: 1.40 | WHIP: 0.933 |
Apparently the rest of the EFL was washed away by the rising tide of the Allegheny pitching line – one that was, frankly, incredible! Three starters – Cody Ponce, Logan Webb and Vladimir Gutierrez – combined for 17.3 innings and 3 earned runs. Nick Sandlin and Anthony Bender contributed 2 innings and 0 runs, and just like that the Alleghenys erased two runs from the monthly total. It was a good thing their pitching was so good, because their hitting was not. Dansby Swanson went 2 for 4 with a double and a walk, but the only other hits were singles – one by Max Muncy and the other by Andrew Vaughn.
Bellingham: W, 7-2; 24PA, 18.3IP
| AVG: 0.333 | OBP: 0.417 | SLG: 0.619 | OPS: 1.036 |
| ERA: 2.95 | WHIP: 1.257 |
The best performances yesterday came from bottom of the standings, and they were excellent performances in every regard. If you don’t look at the Allegheny pitching line, you might be really impressed with the Cascade pitching line. Who am I kidding? We should be impressed with both lines! The Cascades were led by Brett Anderson who went 6 scoreless innings. He was joined by two other starters – Shane McClanahan and Charlie Morton – who combined for 11 innings and 6 earned runs. But unlike the Alleghenys, the Cascades also contributed offensively, scoring 7 runs to win convincingly using only 24 plate appearances to do so. DJ Lemahieu, Rowdy Tellez and Rhys Hoskins all got two hits apiece, whith Hoskins and DJLM each getting a double. The team had more walks (3) than strikeouts (2), and more extra base hits than singles.
Portland: L, 3-3; 40PA, 8.7IP
| AVG: 0.200 | OBP: 0.300 | SLG: 0.343 | OPS: 0.643 |
| ERA: 4.14 | WHIP: 1.034 |
Following the Alleghenys and Cascades makes this line seem paltry. In truth, it is somewhat paltry. The pitching performance was not anything like the two teams above them, but it also wasn’t that bad. Three relievers combined for almost 4 innings of scoreless pitching. Adbert Alzolay gave up 4 runs in 5 innings, though. Andrew Benintendi went 2 for 4 with a double and Jorge Polanco almost matched him, going 2 for 5 with his own double.
Combined MLB + EFL Standings for 2021
| AL East | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Old Detroit Wolverines | 70 | 31 | .693 | — |
| Flint Hill Tornadoes | 68 | 33 | .671 | 2.2 |
| Boston Red Sox | 62 | 39 | .614 | 8 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 60 | 41 | .594 | 10 |
| New York Yankees | 52 | 47 | .525 | 17 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 49 | 47 | .510 | 18.5 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 34 | 65 | .343 | 35 |
| NL East | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| D.C. Balk | 63 | 36 | .632 | — |
| Canberra Kangaroos | 56 | 43 | .571 | 6.1 |
| New York Mets | 53 | 46 | .535 | 9.6 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 50 | 50 | .500 | 13.1 |
| Atlanta Braves | 50 | 51 | .495 | 13.6 |
| Washington Nationals | 46 | 54 | .460 | 17.1 |
| Miami Marlins | 44 | 57 | .436 | 19.6 |
| AL Central | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Chicago White Sox | 60 | 41 | .594 | — |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys | 52 | 49 | .517 | 7.8 |
| Bellingham Cascades | 51 | 50 | .507 | 8.8 |
| Cleveland Indians | 49 | 49 | .500 | 9.5 |
| Detroit Tigers | 48 | 55 | .466 | 13 |
| Kansas City Royals | 43 | 56 | .434 | 16 |
| Minnesota Twins | 43 | 59 | .422 | 17.5 |
| NL Central | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 59 | 42 | .584 | — |
| Cottage Cheese | 55 | 46 | .547 | 3.7 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 52 | 49 | .515 | 7 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 51 | 50 | .505 | 8 |
| Chicago Cubs | 50 | 52 | .490 | 9.5 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 38 | 62 | .380 | 20.5 |
| AL West | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Kaline Drive | 63 | 39 | .615 | — |
| Houston Astros | 62 | 40 | .608 | 0.7 |
| Haviland Dragons | 60 | 42 | .590 | 2.5 |
| Oakland A’s | 56 | 46 | .549 | 6.7 |
| Seattle Mariners | 55 | 47 | .539 | 7.7 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 50 | 50 | .500 | 11.7 |
| Texas Rangers | 36 | 65 | .356 | 26.2 |
| NL West | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Peshastin Pears | 64 | 36 | .637 | — |
| San Francisco Giants | 63 | 37 | .630 | 0.7 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 61 | 41 | .598 | 3.7 |
| San Diego Padres | 59 | 44 | .573 | 6.2 |
| Colorado Rockies | 44 | 57 | .436 | 20.2 |
| Portland Rosebuds | 43 | 57 | .432 | 20.5 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | 31 | 71 | .304 | 33.7 |