1 July 2058
Boise, Idaho
**********************************
by Tony Toney
Lineup ShakeupWhile the Boise offense has not been bad this season, scoring 420 runs, they rank 8th in the JL and are constantly relying on pitching and defense to do the hard work (357 runs allowed - 2nd). GM Ben Teague worked closely with Manager Mario Contreras to see if they could even out the load by boosting runs and implemented a shuffle in the lineup right before the break. The first step was to move LF Sebastian 'Nino' Fradesso with his .556 SLG and 23 HR down from his leadoff spot to see if they could squeeze a bit more RBI out of him with runners ahead of him from the beginning of games. Next was a no-brainer with the first move, CF Lou Bayou (23 2B, 4 HR, 36 RBI, .340/.377/.456, 34 SB) was shifted back to leadoff where he spent all of last year.
Not wanting to take the bat out of Fradesso's or 3B Mahine Karetu's (18 2B, 16 HR, 53 RBI) hands with Bayou having the green light, the pair put some singles/gaps bats behind Bayou with 1B Roosevelt Davis and 1B Tracy Allison platooning at 1B. It remains to be seen if Allison can hold up that high in the order.
Fradesso and Karetu now swap the 3rd and 4th spots in the order depending on pitchers while slugging DH Alfonso Rúbio (17 HR, 46 RBI) takes up slot #5. The light-hitting C Sergei Bobrovsky has been a revelation vs lefties slashing .297/.416/.469 so he scoots up the order when facing them. The toughest call was where to put RF Héctor Holloway's hot bat. He is easily surpassing his career numbers so, while a thought was given to putting him 2nd, he'll drive in runners left by the top of the order and be the bottom of the order's table setter for now unless he continues to prove this year is not a fluke.
The results have been positive thus far with production boosted in the last 10 days of June, but changes are always lurking in Teague's head.
Rookie Wows
GM Ben Teague reliably does two things with the backend of his bullpen: have opposite-handed setup men and a lefty closer. The lefty closer bit hasn't been so reliable this season. Still, Teague stuck with his plan handing close leads to first Anthony Annear (10 saves in 15 opps) then Samir Qasim (8 saves in 11 opps). 18 of 26 is butt clenching when it comes to closing out games. So Teague turned his ear to a right-handed rookie getting rave reviews at AAA Salt Lake City in Mario Santos. He sported a 4-2 record there converting 14 of 15 save opps on a 1.06 WHIP. Still, jumping from AAA to ML for the first time is a high bar and closing games is about as critical a role as there is for a team.
On June 17th, Teague pulled the trigger on the gamble and called up the 22yo. All he has done since then is appear in 8 games converting 8 save opps into 8 saves. I mean, that'll do, right? He has not allowed a run and is working efficiently averaging just 14 pitches per outing. He still has some development in store and he'll have eyes on him all the way, but he has been solid gold thus far and shown no signs of rookie jitters.
Davis Getting it Done
1B Bastião Fardos went to the IL for 6 weeks in May. Las Vegas GM Matt Rectenwald had a talented left-fielder who he felt just wasn't getting enough at bats to meet his potential. So a trade landed Roosevelt Davis in Boise with his ability to play a decent first base and a wide-open opportunity. He has taken the chance and run with it slashing .316/.365/.509 with a double, triple, 2 HRs, and 8 RBI in 16 games. Fardos returns after the All-Star break but Teague has indicated that he damn sure will make sure Davis' bat stays in the lineup. His ability to play in the corner OF spots will help work that out. Well done, Mr. Davis!