Metro Stars Week In Review, 7/14/39-7/20/39 (2039 - #15)

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Metro Stars Week In Review, 7/14/39-7/20/39 (2039 - #15)

Post by ThePreyingManta » Sat Aug 03, 2019 10:06 pm

Record: 5-1 Run Differential: +16

After taking the first game of the series from Baghdad, the Metro Stars would send SP Tim Oliver to the mound to start game two. Oliver did not pitch particularly well, allowing 11 baserunners over 5.2 innings but only allowing 2 runs. 3B Toshio Taguchi and RF Robert Gowron both had big nights, going a combined 5-8 with 3 RBI. The bullpen held the lead, and CL Aurelio Fernandez got his 7th save of the season. The series finale began with no score for the first four innings before the Kings struck first. Down 3-0 in the bottom of the 6th, Jose Olivarez hit his 8th homer of the year to narrow the margin. Homers from Juan Parra and Rafael Diaz in the 7th gave the Metro Stars the lead, and Dave Molina’s 5th home run of the month provided insurance in the 8th inning. Aurelio Fernandez pitched a perfect 9th to get another save and lower his ERA to 1.90 on the season.

Jerusalem returned to the subcontinent on June 17 for a big series. Sitting 6 games back going into the series, a win or sweep would be huge for the Hebrew Hammers in the divisional race. They exploded for a 7-run 2nd inning off of Mumbai starter Kane Dunham in the first game to put the game out of reach early. Jerusalem pitching also kept the Metro Stars offense off-balance, as the top four hitters went a combined 0-15. The Hammers took game one 8-4. Riding a brief streak of hot starts since the All-Star Break, Stars’ starter Leonardo Gomez was determined to not allow Jerusalem to gain any more games in the division. The 24-year-old right-hander threw 8.2 innings of scoreless ball before handing the ball over to Motoichi Fujita to get the final out. Home runs from Toshio Taguchi, Dave Molina, and Juan Parra scored all 5 runs for Mumbai on the night, giving the second game to the Metro Stars. The pitching was once again on fire in game three with Irving Espinoza pitching his second consecutive scoreless start. Espinoza lasted 8.1 innings while allowing 5 hits and 2 walks and striking out 1. In an abnormal performance by the offense, 7 runs were scored with the benefit of only 1 home run (by Honorio Queixada). The bottom two hitters in the lineup, 2B Antony Henderson and SS Rafael Diaz, pitched in for 3 hits a piece and a combined 4 RBI and 2 runs. The Metro Stars took the final game of the series to go ahead of the Hebrew Hammers by 7 games.

After putting Jerusalem in the rear-view mirror for a little while, the Metro Stars hoped to do the same with Bucharest. The Impalers have been lagging just behind Mumbai almost all season, and they started this series at a mere 3 games back. Bucharest struck first off of Tim Oliver, scoring 2 runs in the 1st inning. The Metro Stars stormed back with 6 in the 2nd, capped off by a 3-run homer from Toshio Taguchi for his 31st of the season. Later in the 3rd, 1B Juan Parra contributed his 7th homer in only 16 games with the team, a pace of 70 over 162 games. The bullpen was once again lights out, holding onto the lead and giving the Metro Stars another big win, 7-3.




Hitter of the Week: 1B Juan Parra
.316/.459/.789 5 R 5 RBI 3 HR

Since joining the Metro Stars after the All-Star Break, Parra has simply been fantastic. The first baseman has an OPS+ of 189 and 0.7 WAR in 16 games. GM Will Gibson decided to take a chance on a struggling player, and it seems to have paid off so far. The combination of Parra, C Jose Romero, and RF Robert Gowron has paid massive dividends for the Metro Stars in their first few weeks with the club. Hopes are that Parra will be one of the leaders in a deep playoff run for the Metro Stars.

Pitcher of the Week: SP Leonardo Gomez
8.2 IP 1 W 0 ER 3 K 0.00 ERA 0.69 WHIP

Taking home his third consecutive Pitcher of the Week, Gomez had another typical start last week. Not striking out or walking many means that Gomez is able to go very deep into games when he’s on, and he has definitely been on lately. With only a 4.9 K/9 for the year, Gomez’s starts aren’t the most entertaining, but they are effective. Gomez lowered his season ERA to 3.81 in his most recent start, moving into 1st place in the Bancroft League.



Other Notes

RF Daniel McDaniel has been sent to AAA Lagos on a rehab assignment after being out for the past two months with biceps tendinitis. In 26 games with the Metro Stars, McDaniel has hit 8 home runs with a 161 OPS+ and 1.1 WAR. Although he should be assured a spot on the club with those numbers, it is yet to be seen where he will fit in. All of the positions that he can potentially play are already filled by a player who has been equally great. Slumping LF Alfredo Gonzalez is the likely candidate, but Gonzalez has a 131 OPS+ and 2.1 WAR on the year. It is possible that a trade is made to clear up the logjam, but it is not believed that Mumbai is engaged in any talks at the time.

After a disastrous start last week, SP Kane Dunham has been sent back to Lagos. SP Kevin Hicken will be joining the team but will not immediately enter the rotation. Mike Manning will instead take Dunham’s place for at least the next turn through the rotation.
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Re: Metro Stars Week In Review, 7/14/39-7/20/39 (2039 - #15)

Post by RonCo » Sun Aug 04, 2019 1:45 am

If +15 is good, +16 must be marvelous.
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