The Brewster

Regular Season, Week 24: Sept. 8-14

Last Week’s Results


9/8: Chicago Black Sox @ Louisville Sluggers - Win, 5-3.
Black Sox Top Sluggers in Extras, 5-3
W: G. Sosa (8-7) L: O. Coujoe (2-4) .
HR - CHI: D. Dave (28), A. Budding (12), R. Clements 2 (9) LOU: B. White (38), J. Alba (7)


9/10: Chicago Black Sox @ Nashville Bluebirds - Win, 6-1.
Black Sox Upend Bluebirds, 6-1
W: D. Bates (14-9) L: C. Moran (12-10) .
HR - CHI: G. Lee (24), H. Hang (24)

9/11: Chicago Black Sox @ Nashville Bluebirds - Win, 8-5.
Black Sox Drop Bluebirds, 8-5
W: A. Moelling (12-10) L: E. Buckland (16-9) S: G. Sosa (33).
HR - CHI: J. Figueroa (16), H. Hang (25) NSH: J. Geerdinkck 2 (26), T. Frost (29)

9/12: Chicago Black Sox @ Nashville Bluebirds - Win, 3-0.
Black Sox Squelch Bluebirds Offense in Shutout Win
W: J. McClain (1-0) L: C. Kim (7-15) S: G. Sosa (34).
HR – None


9/13: Twin Cities River Monsters @ Chicago Black Sox - Win, 4-5.
River Monsters Fall Short, 5-4, at Chicago
W: J. Nicto (12-7) L: J. Brown (10-15) S: G. Sosa (35).
HR - CHI: R. Wattson (28)

9/14: Twin Cities River Monsters @ Chicago Black Sox - Loss, 2-1.
River Monsters Top Black Sox, 2-1, Behind Kelly
W: C. Kelly (11-5) L: P. Jaramillo (12-12) S: J. Cerda (13).
HR - TWC: J. Calderón (26), F. Arredondo (32) CHI: D. Dave (29)

Heroes of the Week
Gilberto Sosa, CL: 1 Win, 3 Saves, 5.0 IP, 0 BB, 9 K, 0.00 ERA
Robby Clements, 1B: 23 AB, 9 H, 2 HR, 3 RBI, .391 AVG, 1.069 OPS
Juan Nicto, SP: 1 Win, 6.0 IP, 2 BB, 5 K, 0.00 ERA

Zeroes of the Week
Hotha Popo, C: 18 AB, 3 H, 0 HR, 2 RBI, .167 AVG, .417 OPS
Tomás Durán, 3B: 18 AB, 3 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, .167 AVG, .377 OPS
James Matarazzo, RP: 3 G, 5.1 IP, 8 HA, 4 R, 1 BB, 7 K, 6.75 ERA

Injuries of Note
SP Romeu Tameiro, ace of the Carolina Flight pitching staff (20-5, 2.68 ERA), strained his triceps while pitching against Richmond in the second round of the AAA playoffs. Trainers characterized it as a moderate strain and listed him as day-to-day for the next three weeks.

Although the Flight are tied at a game apiece against Richmond and could go on to the championship series, team officials said they will shut Tameiro down for the balance of the playoffs out of an abundance of caution.

The Black Sox have made it widely known they want Tameiro to join the big league starting rotation next season and don’t want to risk any further injury to their prize prospect.

Record as of Sept. 14
W-L Record for Week 24: 5-1, .834
Overall Record: 82-67, .550
Position in Standings: In 2nd place in the Frick Heartland Division, 20.5 games behind Yellow Springs. Eliminated from division championship race.
Position in Wildcard Standings: In 2nd place in the Wildcard race, 5 games ahead of Twin Cities, which is challenging for the last WC spot.
StatsPlus Playoff Odds: 85 percent for a Wildcard spot.

Hot Take

Sox fans are cautiously optimistic that Chicago can eke out a playoff spot in the final two weeks of the season, but certainly aren’t taking anything for granted. The Sox have a well-earned reputation for squandering even the best of opportunities.

What will be will be.

Of more interest was the big league debut of SP prospect John McClain, who beat Nashville on Sept. 12 in a scoreless but, um, adventuresome start.

McClain, 20, threw 5.2 innings, allowing 0 runs, 5 hits, 3 walks and 1 strikeout as part of a 3-0 Sox win.

He replaced two-way star Paul Kemp as the 5th starter. Kemp, following career form, pitched extremely well through the first several months of the season, but has faltered in the heat of August and September. As a result, the team has moved him back to long relief, and also has been playing him in left field and at DH.

Kemp currently has an 8-4 record with a 3.36 ERA over 118 innings, but has been touched up frequently in recent weeks. In has last 5 appearances, Kemp has gone 1-1 with an 8.74 ERA in 11.1 innings.

McClain, meanwhile, arrived from AA Beloit with high hopes after a 16-6 season with a 2.78 ERA in 165.1 innings.

Assuming he can hold his own in the final two weeks of the BBA season and turns in a decent Spring Training, McClain likely will find himself in the middle of the Black Sox rotation next season.

Yippie Ki-Yay, MFs!

The Week Ahead


1 Game vs Twin Cities at Chicago

3 Games vs Madison at Chicago


2 Games at Yellow Springs