Phantoms Phanatics Week in Review: July 28-Aug. 3, 2039
Huntsville played .500 ball last week, and still managed to slide into last place in the JL Southeast Division. The Phantoms took the last game of the Phoenix series, lost 2 of 3 to Brooklyn, and split the first 2 of a 3-game set against Charm City.
If their lackluster play and last-place standings weren’t signal enough that Huntsville has thrown in the towel for its last season in Alabama, the team also traded one of its better infielders for a pair of raw A-level minor league prospects.
The Phantoms sent INF Hakim Ngowa to California for CF Jim Lorenzen, who figures to go to Huntsville’s Single A affiliate in Grand Junction, and shortstop Juan Lozano, who likely will go to Short A San Pedro de Macoris.
Hardly earthshaking, but indicative of the team’s mindset as it prepares to move north at season’s end: go young, build for the future.
And that may well be the best thing for the health of the franchise, but it’s a bitter pill for its few remaining Huntsville fans who will have little to root for as the Phantoms play out the string.
See ya, Phantoms. Or, most likely, not.
Batter of the Week
Rocky Wattson, 2B: 18 AB, 7 H, 1 HR, 3 RBI, .389 AVG, 1.167 OPS
Pitcher of the Week
Juan Nicto, SP: 2 Wins, 13.1 IP, 3 BB, 14 K, 0.67 ERA
News and Notes
Huntsville GM Vic Caleca has made just two trades since joining the team, both with California. The first was last December, with former Crusaders GM Ted Schmidt, who acquired RF Luis Gonzalez in exchange for C Spencer Hillson and CF Andre Ly. The second, of course, was last week with the new Crusaders GM, Shoeless.db. Details of that deal are in the preceding section … The Phantoms’ impending move and their slide from respectability has taken a serious toll at the box office. Huntsville now ranks 29th out of 30 BBA teams in attendance, with just 1,316,774 so far this season. That’s an average of 24,385 per game, a decline of 8.3 percent from last year’s 26,000 per game … Even so, league sources say Huntsville is projecting a season-ending balance of $35,457,707 – a considerable improvement over last year’s deficit of $13,895,386. Losing, apparently, pays.
JL Southeast Division Standings
As of the morning of Aug. 4, 2039
| Team | Wins | Losses | Win% | GB | RD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Orleans | 62 | 48 | .564 | - | +80 |
| Jacksonville | 56 | 54 | .509 | 6.0 | +44 |
| Louisville | 53 | 57 | .482 | 9.0 | -3 |
| Nashville | 51 | 57 | .472 | 10.0 | -40 |
| Huntsville | 51 | 59 | .464 | 11.0 | -64 |
AAA Carolina went 4-2 last week, bringing the Flight’s season record to 61-44 – and landing them in a first-place tie with Gotham atop the GL East Coast Division … SP Roberto Cruz has been a key contributor of late. Over his last 3 starts, he has gone 2-0 with an ERA of 0.92 and 20 Ks in 19.2 IP … AA Beloit put up a 4-2 week to climb above the .500 once again, at 54-53. That places them in third in the DNL Mid-Central Division, 16 games behind first place Duluth … 2B Tomás Durán has been on fire, going 10-21 over his last 6 games for a .476 BA with 3 HRs and 3 RBIs … Single A Grand Junction was 2-4 last week, dropping its season record to 45-59. The Gold Sox rank third in the, well, rank PL West Central Division, 7.5 games behind Pahrump … RP Jorge Baca has been playing well, though. Over his last 10 games, he’s thrown 17.2 innings and allowed no runs while striking out 8 and going 2-0 … San Pedro de Macoris went 2-2 in a week shortened by the Sunshine League All-Star Game on July 30 ... RF Wally Poole was the Green Sox lone All Star, striking out in his only at-bat in the bottom of the 7th inning … Rookie League affiliate Monclova suffered through a catastrophic week, going 1-6 to slide to 18-22 on the season. The Aqua Sox are in 5th Place in the HL Mexican-American Division, 8 games behind first place Ogden … RF Mario Vega had a nice week amid all the losing, going 7-22 in his last 6 games. That’s a .318 BA, with 3 HRs and 7 RBIs.
