Though there is not a lot happening in Kansas City this season, there is one interesting thing to watch as the season winds down. His name is Salvador Perez, and with 41 home runs this season, he is just 5 shy of the single-season record for home runs by a catcher. The leader? Some guy named Johnny Bench with 45 in 1970. Perez certainly has a shot at breaking this record in the next month. If you want to read more about slugging catchers, you can do so here.
The good news is we can ALL root for Perez, since he doesn’t belong to any one EFL team. Let’s Go Salvy!
EFL Standings for 2021
| TEAM |
WINS |
LOSSES |
PCT. |
GB |
RS |
RA |
| Old Detroit Wolverines |
94 |
43 |
.686 |
— |
786.8 |
533.2 |
| Flint Hill Tornadoes |
89 |
48 |
.653 |
4.6 |
732.2 |
530.8 |
| D.C. Balk |
85 |
51 |
.626 |
8.3 |
773.4 |
597.0 |
| Kaline Drive |
83 |
53 |
.612 |
10.2 |
730.2 |
580.5 |
| Peshastin Pears |
84 |
53 |
.611 |
10.3 |
685.9 |
553.2 |
| Cottage Cheese |
78 |
60 |
.564 |
16.7 |
779.5 |
704.6 |
| Canberra Kangaroos |
76 |
60 |
.559 |
17.5 |
715.8 |
645.5 |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys |
74 |
63 |
.537 |
20.4 |
685.0 |
634.4 |
| Haviland Dragons |
73 |
63 |
.537 |
20.5 |
699.6 |
675.0 |
| Bellingham Cascades |
71 |
66 |
.521 |
22.5 |
588.6 |
565.4 |
| Portland Rosebuds |
66 |
71 |
.483 |
27.8 |
732.3 |
763.4 |
Old Detroit: L, 9-10; 54PA, 11IP
| AVG: 0.250 |
OBP: 0.370 |
SLG: 0.568 |
OPS: 0.939 |
The Wolverines had perhaps their worst team pitching performance since the All-Star Break, and the good news for them is that their hitting was able to keep the game close enough to not lose much ground in the EFL. Starting with the bad news, Walker Buehler gave up one fewer run in 3 innings (6) as he gave up the entire month of August (7). That hole was too deep for both the Dodgers and the Wolverines. Chris Paddack inverted Buehler’s numbers, giving up 3 runs in 6 innings, which was ok but when added with Buehler’s really stung. In fact, Nate Pearson’s 1 inning and no runs allowed was the only clean sheet, as Andrew Kittredge also gave up a run in 1 inning. To top it all off, the Wolverines learned yesterday that their ace reliever, Jonathan Loaisiga, is injured with a strained rotator cuff. The hitters did what they could to salvage some dignity, and they did a decent job of it. Byron Buxton had two hits, including a double, and the following players all hit a home run: Marcus Semien, Josh Bell, Austin Riley and Carlos Correa. Despite the bad day on the mound, the Wolverine hitters helped them to only lose a miniscule .1 games of their first place lead.
Flint Hill: L, 5-7; 68PA, 3.1IP
| AVG: 0.305 |
OBP: 0.382 |
SLG: 0.390 |
OPS: 0.772 |
The Tornadoes, who have begun September in a way that seems to demonstrate a desire to fight until the end, didn’t do enough yesterday to really take advantage of the bad Wolverine pitching. The biggest issue was no pitching on our end, and bad pitching from one guy (Jake Cousins) for 2/3 of an inning (he gave up 2 runs). The hitting was hot and cold. Bo Bichette went 4 for 4 with a double, and darling Frank Schwindel (whom the Tornadoes did not dither about – that was the currently unallocated Adam Frazier) went 3 for 4 with another home run. It took the Tornadoes 5 days to get back within 4.6 games of the Wolverines. That pace will put them just under 2 games back come September 15, with plenty of time for the race to really heat up! With no first round draft pick next year, the Tornadoes are sold on trying to give OD a reason to pull out the stinking pickles.
DC: W, 6-2; 28PA, 7.6IP
| AVG: 0.273 |
OBP: 0.370 |
SLG: 0.500 |
OPS: 0.870 |
The Balk earned a convincing win, due to Pete Alonso and Bryce Harper’s bats. Alonso went 3 for 5 with two doubles and Bryce Harper went 1 for 3 with a home run. Those efforts were enough to overcome a somewhat rough start from Dylan Cease, who gave up 3 runs in 5 innings, including 3 walks and a home run, though he did record 9 strikeouts. DC has a firm hold on third place right now, and it whether or not he will be challenged for that spot will depend on a couple of teams (the Pears and the Drive) deciding to either go for it or work towards better draft picks next year.
Kaline: “W,” 4-4; 47PA, 2IP
| AVG: 0.289 |
OBP: 0.319 |
SLG: 0.422 |
OPS: 0.741 |
The Drive snuck ahead of the Pears into 4th place, though there could be a month-long battle between these two teams who seem content to swap places every few days. Hunter Renfroe continued his hot hitting, going 3 for 5 with a double. Yuli Gurriel added a home run but also a GIDP. Their were only two pitchers who appeared for an inning each, Mark Melancon and Aaron Loup, but neither gave up a hit (though Melancon made things interesting with 3 walks!) and neither allowed a run.
Peshastin: “W,” 6-8; 38PA, 5IP
| AVG: 0.219 |
OBP: 0.316 |
SLG: 0.500 |
OPS: 0.816 |
Youngster Luis Patino had a hiccup on the mound which spelled doom for the Pears, though the database did give them a win for the day. Patino gave up 4 runs in 2.7 innings, which was just too much for the offense to overcome. But the offense did try! Jo Adell hit 2 home runs and a single in 4 trips to the plate, and Ozzie Albies proved that getting carried off the field one night does not mean you can’t hit a home run a day or two later.
Cottage: “W,” 8-9; 49PA, 15.3IP
| AVG: 0.293 |
OBP: 0.388 |
SLG: 0.488 |
OPS: 0.876 |
Well, the good August pitching hasn’t quite carried over for the Cheese. That’s not entirely true, I suppose. Robbie Ray, making a case for an AL Cy Young award, tossed 6 shutout innings yesterday. But the goodness stopped there. Josiah Gray and Taijuan Walker combined to give up 12 runs in 7.3 innings (6 runs allowed by each of them) to sink the Cheese hopes for the day. One month after his trade, which at the time upset the entire Mariners team it seemed, for Abraham Toro, Jerry Dipoto was given an extension. That says all you need to know about how the team feels about the trade. Toro went 2 for 5 with a double and a stolen base last night. Alejandro Kirk went 2 for 3 with a double and a home run.
Canberra: W, 10-(-1); 39PA, 11.3IP
| AVG: 0.333 |
OBP: 0.385 |
SLG: 0.556 |
OPS: 0.940 |
The Roos made a case for the best day in the EFL yesterday. It started at the plate, with Javier Baez going 4 for 4 with a home run, Vlad Jr. going 3 for 4 and Wander Franco going 2 for 5 with a double. On the mound, Casey Mize pitched three scoreless innings and Paul Sewald and Emanuel Clase both added a scoreless inning in relief. It appears as though the Roos and Cheese will be locked in a contentious battle for the rest of the month!
Pittsburgh: “W,” 2-5; 30PA, 4.7IP
| AVG: 0.233 |
OBP: 0.233 |
SLG: 0.267 |
OPS: 0.500 |
Yesterday was just a crummy pitching day for most of the EFL. The Alleghenys were half-thwarted by Will Crowe’s putrid effort, in which he surrendered 7 runs in 3 innings – good thing he as only 50% allocated! Pittsburgh got 7 hits on the day, but six of them were singles (one double from Bobby Dalbec). They also failed to record a team walk. The database awarding them a win seems like an ultra-generous gift. Maybe that’s a sign that today will be a great day in Pittsburgh, come what may.
Haviland: L, 7-8; 40PA, 5IP
| AVG: 0.229 |
OBP: 0.325 |
SLG: 0.514 |
OPS: 0.839 |
I was with the Dragon owner all weekend at a lovely cabin in Neskowin, OR. The weather was beautiful and the cabin’s fireplace was roaring all weekend, thanks in large part to the Dragon’s diligence (they are known to be good with fire). Yet, the mood in Haviland was foreboding, with more than one comment made about perhaps finishing the year in last place due to his team’s lack of drive. Yesterday’s outcome didn’t help matters, to be sure. The only two runs surrendered by the pitching staff were by two guys (Alex Reyes and Jose Alvarez) who didn’t record an out. The rest of the pitchers were good, tossing 5 innings of scoreless baseball. Three guys collected 2 hits (Cronenworth, Lowe and Rosario) and three guys hit a home run (Tsutsugo replaced Rosario from the previous list). But the Dragons lost again.
Bellingham: W, 7-3; 58PA, 11.6IP
| AVG: 0.255 |
OBP: 0.345 |
SLG: 0.412 |
OPS: 0.757 |
The Cascades earned one of the few actual wins yesterday, getting a strong performance on the mound to go with some clutch hitting. Charlie Morton was the darling of the day, tossing 7 innings and giving up only two runs. A bunch of other relievers joined in, giving up 2 more runs on the day. Bryan de la Cruz (he plays for Miami, in case you were in the dark, as I was), went 1 for 3 with a home run. Jace Peterson, Jack Mayfield and Curt Casali all notched 2 hits with a double included.
Portland: W, 10-0; 47PA, 2IP
| AVG: 0.243 |
OBP: 0.404 |
SLG: 0.514 |
OPS: 0.918 |
The Rosebuds climbed to 5-0 on the month with a resounding win. As a team they collected a total of 11 walks on the day, to go with 9 hits (including 3 home runs and one double). Gary Sanchez hit two of those home runs, and Tyler O’Neill added another. The Rosebuds, also enjoyers of the beach this weekend, seemed certain to get the first pick of the draft next spring. But too many more days like this might spell doom for them.
Combined MLB + EFL Standings for 2021
| TEAM |
WINS |
LOSSES |
PCT. |
GB |
| Old Detroit Wolverines |
94 |
43 |
.686 |
— |
| Flint Hill Tornadoes |
89 |
48 |
.653 |
4.6 |
| Tampa Bay Rays |
86 |
51 |
.628 |
8 |
| New York Yankees |
78 |
58 |
.574 |
15.5 |
| Boston Red Sox |
79 |
60 |
.568 |
16 |
| Toronto Blue Jays |
73 |
62 |
.541 |
20 |
| Baltimore Orioles |
43 |
92 |
.319 |
50 |
| TEAM |
WINS |
LOSSES |
PCT. |
GB |
| D.C. Balk |
85 |
51 |
.626 |
— |
| Canberra Kangaroos |
76 |
60 |
.559 |
9.2 |
| Atlanta Braves |
72 |
64 |
.529 |
13.2 |
| Philadelphia Phillies |
70 |
66 |
.515 |
15.2 |
| New York Mets |
69 |
68 |
.504 |
16.7 |
| Miami Marlins |
57 |
80 |
.416 |
28.7 |
| Washington Nationals |
56 |
80 |
.412 |
29.2 |
| TEAM |
WINS |
LOSSES |
PCT. |
GB |
| Chicago White Sox |
79 |
58 |
.577 |
— |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys |
74 |
63 |
.537 |
5.4 |
| Bellingham Cascades |
71 |
66 |
.521 |
7.6 |
| Cleveland Indians |
68 |
66 |
.507 |
9.5 |
| Detroit Tigers |
65 |
73 |
.471 |
14.5 |
| Kansas City Royals |
61 |
75 |
.449 |
17.5 |
| Minnesota Twins |
59 |
77 |
.434 |
19.5 |
| TEAM |
WINS |
LOSSES |
PCT. |
GB |
| Milwaukee Brewers |
84 |
54 |
.609 |
— |
| Cottage Cheese |
78 |
60 |
.564 |
6.2 |
| Cincinnati Reds |
73 |
65 |
.529 |
11 |
| St. Louis Cardinals |
69 |
66 |
.511 |
13.5 |
| Chicago Cubs |
63 |
75 |
.457 |
21 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates |
48 |
89 |
.350 |
35.5 |
| TEAM |
WINS |
LOSSES |
PCT. |
GB |
| Kaline Drive |
83 |
53 |
.612 |
— |
| Houston Astros |
79 |
57 |
.581 |
4.3 |
| Seattle Mariners |
75 |
62 |
.547 |
8.8 |
| Oakland A’s |
74 |
63 |
.540 |
9.8 |
| Haviland Dragons |
73 |
63 |
.537 |
10.3 |
| Los Angeles Angels |
68 |
69 |
.496 |
15.8 |
| Texas Rangers |
48 |
88 |
.353 |
35.3 |
| TEAM |
WINS |
LOSSES |
PCT. |
GB |
| San Francisco Giants |
87 |
50 |
.635 |
— |
| Los Angeles Dodgers |
86 |
51 |
.628 |
1 |
| Peshastin Pears |
84 |
53 |
.611 |
3.3 |
| San Diego Padres |
73 |
64 |
.533 |
14 |
| Portland Rosebuds |
66 |
71 |
.483 |
20.9 |
| Colorado Rockies |
63 |
74 |
.460 |
24 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks |
45 |
93 |
.326 |
42.5 |
