"I've been having a great season at the plate again" said Dempsey after his 4 hit game against Omaha this week. "I've commented before about how well rested I feel now thanks to not playing every day earlier in the season. I feel ready for the stretch run now. And who knows, perhaps I can climb high enough to win that batting title."
Dempsey has had a solid bounce back season after an an injury plagued 2036 and 2037 season. He's hit over .300 in every month this year (except for August right now) and has hit as high as .386 back in June. However due to not facing lefty pitching for much of the year, Steve wasn't showing up on the leaderboards in average until recently. At .344 on the season, Dempsey is now tied for 4th in the Frick League in batting average. The problem is, catching number 1.
Dennis French is currently leading the Frick League with a .374 clip. French is injured and will miss another 3 weeks with a fractured finger. With 515 plate appearances, Dennis would not need to step foot on the field to be considered the FL batting champ for 2039.
"I probably have a better chance if he DOES play" said Dempsey with a chuckle. "I need him to come down to earth a little and me have a hot spell in September if I want any shot."
Dempsey, who collected his 2,500th hit earlier this month, won the batting crown back in 2031 and is looking for that elusive second one. He's finished 2nd in average 3 different times while also leading the league in base hits on 3 occassions.