Starscreams | Stars Rebound in June (53.06)

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Starscreams: A Valencia Stars Baseball Blog

Stars Rebound in June

07/01/2053
Brianna Robles, Starscreams contributor

The Stars bounced back in June, winning 18 of 27, playing their way into the playoff picture, but the division looks to be well out of reach. Sacramento appears to be back to their 100+ win form of a few seasons ago (they are on a torrid 114 win pace at the halfway mark), and have already left the chasing teams in the Pacific far behind.

With a few exceptions, the Valencia offense looked pretty good. Stars hitters pushed across 5.41 runs per game in June. Right fielder Donald Miller continued to improve after a slow start, putting up a more Miller-like wRC+ of 152. First baseman Yodo Sato, who saw his playing time significantly reduced, nevertheless shined brightly when he did appear (wRC+ 247, OBP .550). Center fielder Habib bin Ameen overcame a May arm injury in a big way (wRC+ 149). Daniel Pepper could not fully get with the upward trend. He managed a 93 wRC+ in June, worlds better than prior months, but still not quite a respectable performance for a presumptive Golden Bat candidate.

Defensively, Valencia gave up just 3.70 runs per game in June. Starting pitching got back on track, led by Brian King (173 ERA+), with all five starters sporting ERAs below 3.80 for the month. Australian starter Eddie Armstrong provided the quote of the month after Valencia's 6-2 win over Hawaii: “This is a very good team. We have the chance to do something special."

The Stars are back on track. Can they put together two good months in a row, or will they be an on-again, off-again team all season? Difficult to say. It looks like the top wildcard slot will be the best case scenario for Valencia in 2053.