Week 3: April 14th-20th
Probably the best thing that happened this week was Wichita managed to snap a six-game losing streak, and I suppose we were able to grab a win off Rockville. Two narrow losses to New Orleans didn’t please anybody in Wichita though.
Game 13 vs Las Vegas Hustlers
4/14 vs Las Vegas L 3-4 (32,558)
Three hits in the first innings enabled Aviators to take an early 2-0 lead which they extended to 3-0 after four innings, but once more they just couldn’t stop Hustlers coming back. Three runs in the seventh & eighth innings turned it into another one-run loss, all three games this series going that way. Ramon Guerrero again the unlucky starter, pitched into the eighth and only allowed three hits, three runs (only two earned) with one walk and six K’s. He is our most unlucky rookie, started four games, allowed 18 hits & 10 runs in 25 innings pitched and 0-1 record with a 3.55 ERA.
Games 14, 15 & 16 vs Rockville Pikemen
4/15 vs Rockville L 0-4 (36,808)
4/16 vs Rockville W 4-2 (35,334)
4/17 vs Rockville L 1-6 (35,957)
Rockville came into town and walked all over Wichita in game one. Outhitting Aviators 15-8 they plated four unanswered runs. Jorge Rincon though was the only Wichita starter not to get a hit as he went 0-3 at the plate. The first rain delay of 2044 in Wichita, of 24 minutes in the ninth, had no effect. In game two Wichita opened the scoring when Rincon crossed home plate in the third innings and went up 3-0 after five innings. The Pikemen clawed it back to 3-2 after six, but there was no comeback as Aviators sealed the win in the seventh. Mario Rodriguez went 3 for 3, scoring once from the nine-hole while former Rule 5 pick Chet Dickinson, who went 3-10 in his BBA rookie season, pitched seven innings allowing three hits & two runs to up his 2044 record to 2-1. Tony Alomar finally picked up his first save of 2044. The rubber game saw Rockville fired up again, scoring three runs in the top of the first. Luis Maldonado’s second homer of 2044 was Aviators only reply, Takanori Goto, last year’s nine-game winner, slumped to 0-3 after giving up eight hits and four runs in 6 IP.
Games 17 & 18 vs New Orleans Crawdads
4/19 vs New Orleans L 0-1 (32,721)
4/20 vs New Orleans L 3-5 (33,576)
The first game against the Crawdads turned out to be Wichita’s 11th home defeat in 13 games at Thomas Magnum Stadium, but by the narrowest of margins. The only run of the game came in the fourth innings after a double & single by New Orleans. Four Aviators managed a single hit each, starter Damon Tipping had given up just one hit when he left after two innings complaining of ankle discomfort. Julio Velasco dropped his record to 0-2, giving up five hits and the game’s only run in his 3,2 IP. The lead swapped hands several times in the second game before settling on yet another Aviators home defeat. Wichita up 1-0, Crawdads up 2-1, Aviators up 3-2 before New Orleans scored three in the seventh to seal the 5-3 win on only five hits. Duane Whitley Jr went 2-4 and collected his 20th RBI while Ramon Guerrero suffered another no-decision after allowing four hits and three runs in six innings.
Regular Season Standings (April 20th)
2044 Record v Johnson League
| Frontier | HW | HL | AW | AL | Atlantic | HW | HL | AW | AL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boise | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Atlantic City | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Calgary | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Brooklyn | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Edmonton | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Charlotte | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Las Vegas | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Charm City | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mexico City | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | Jacksonville | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Phoenix | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Montreal | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| San Antonio | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New Orleans | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Wichita | X | X | X | X | Rockville | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| TOTALS | 1 | 8 | 2 | 2 | TOTALS | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
Wichita have now lost 12 out of 14 home games but seven of those have been by two runs or less. Looking like yet another dismal year
