1 June 2062
Boise, Idaho
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by Stubby Bardenwerper
Well, May was an improvement over April. Bad news: it was still horrid at 13-16. Through the same lens, the offense was better scoring 4.6 runs/game which is better but still icky. And with the team allowing 5.1 per, the ledger was still in the red. That 5.1 is just blinding.
SPUDS OF THE MONTH - MAY
Pitcher
P Brian Groves
10 G, 1 SV, 0.93 ERA, 9.2 IP, 0.76 WHIP, 6.8 K/9, 0.98 BB/9
It happens way too often but there are stretches every season where Groves looks to deserve the closer job over Mario Santos and May was one of those months. While Santos was going 1-3 with 3 blown saves, Groves was teeing up perfect opps for him. Meanwhile, Buddhapalita Kankipati continued his "maybe this guy IS a starter" stuff navigating 6 starts with a 1-0 record, 2.08 ERA, and 8.3 K/9 in 30.1 IP. Does Teague want his dominating 70 pitches all in one game or spread out in the pen? It's a conundrum. Juan Guzmán is similar in that he's frequently called in as a spot starter and excels in the role. In May he appeared in 6 games, starting 3, posting a 1.86 ERA, 2-1 record in 19.1 IP. Veteran Gerald Rogers made 10 appearances going 1-1 with 2 holds, an ERA of 2.04, 1.41 WHIP, and 1.9 K/BB.
Batter
1B Pedro 'Pocket Rocket' Hozven
24 G, 10 2B, 7 HR, 22 RBI, .370/.446/.795
Whoa! Look who it is providing even more production. C Tadanobu Otani spent the month of May driving in 19 runs on 7 doubles, 7 HR, and a slash of .289/.348/.627. 2B Ryan Geauxinue is a sketchy defensive second baseman, but good enough at the plate to keep a spot in the lineup. In May he slashed .368/.393/.528 and drove in 15 runs with 4 doubles, 2 triples, and 3 HR. And we would be remiss in overlooking 1B Tracy Allison's 14 SB and .345/.415/.488 slash. But Hozven, who slid over to DH to make room for Allison, is bringing back memories of 2060 Pedro spending the month driving in 22 runs on 2 doubles, 7 HR, and putting up a ridiculous 1.240 OPS.
May: P Brian Groves, DH Pedro Hozven
April: P Buddhapalita Kankipati, 3B Bill Kuhn