Shredders Self-Immolate Hitting the High Notes TN 60.06

[Chuck V]

AUSTIN, TX -

There is a scene in every vampire movie where the vampire, right before the evil vampire is about ready to snack on the good guys or girls and suddenly the sun comes up and the vampire looks shocked (Why? He's centuries old? Surely he knows that the sun rises?) then he starts screaming and smoldering then bursts into flames. Sometimes he just explodes in a fiery smash, sometime he just burns to a crisp or he just dissolves into a cheap CG effect. Whatever, the point is that every time the Shredders approach .500 the sun comes out, they get exposed, and they drop back into obscurity.

This time it was rapid and unstoppable. In early April the team approached within four games of .500 with a 29-33 record. Then the dawn arrived. The sunlight revealed that the team had the 14th best rotation and the 15th best bullpen, Then they self immolated. By the end of the month the team was 12 games under .500 and are 5-9 in the month of July. The question is why? The answer is pitching! It's always pitching!

Pitching Coach Paco Rivera is at a loss. "I just can't understand it. It is especially frustrating not being able to get consistent performance from our two top starts in Hargrove and Amr. Hargrove pitches two CG, including a shutout then he can't past the third inning in three of his next five starts. Amr shows some spark two starts ago with eight innings of five hit ball and the next start he is in the showers before the second inning is over." The consistent inconsistency of Hargrove and Amr have Shredders GM contemplating a complete teardown. "We could have lost all these games without the guys we have here now."

The offense has also been a puzzle. The team is 8th in batting average, 7th in OBP and slugging percentage, sixth in homers and in walks. Yet the team is 12th in runs scored? Defensively, despite The Professor at short and Hoskins at 1B and other solid gloves around the infield, this is one of the worst fielding teams in the league. Can't score, can't catch, can't pitch. A pretty tough hill to climb.

One bright spot has been the emergence of Luis Rubio. Last years 1st round pick is already in the big leagues and making his presence felt. He is batting .293 with six homers and a .404 on base percentage. He is proving to have been worth the #3 overall pick.

What should the Shredders do? They have a fairly inexpensive $73 million dollar payroll that drops lower next year. They have some decent pieces offensively between Rubio, Brent Gilbert Glenn Fox and Ted Benson who can all mash. But they need some defense, especially as Socrates Kazantziakis slows down in his twilight years. Expect Socrates to make the move to third base possibly this year or next and a new shortstop to take over. Maybe a CF with wider range than Fox and a catcher with a solid glove and a good rep for calling a good game.

But all those are in the future for now. And at the moment the Shredders need to Stop Drop and Roll id they are to have any chance to put this self immolation out.

[shoeless.db]

Have you tried garlic? Wait, I have that backwards.

Have you tried building a dome to keep the sun out?

[Trebro]

Totally understand this frustration