[
local hero and Wolves fan reacts to losing Cruz...
WOLVES WEEKLY: BAD MOON RISING — GERTIE SNAPSlocal hero and Wolves fan reacts to losing Cruz...
July 2, 2063 Edition
8–2 in our last 10. The Wolves were clawing back toward the living, rising from the ashes of that 8–21 May abomination. The bats were buzzing, the bullpen was breathing fire, and the air around Shotz Stadium was thick with possibility.
And then — bam — the gods of baseball ripped our hearts clean out of our chest.
Carlos Cruz — out 4 months with a forearm injury.
Four months?! Are you KIDDING ME?! My beloved rookie flame-slinger, a revelation, a lighthouse in the storm — shelved until winter like a damn snow shovel!
Oh, and don’t get me started on the pitching coach.
“We kept him on a low pitch count, Gertie,” he says.
“We pulled him early at the first sign of fatigue,” he says.
Well, guess what, sweetpea: you pulled him right into the injury report! And now we’re left patching this rotation together with duct tape, chewing gum, and blind hope.
“This is a real kick in the old bunt bucket,” as my mother used to say. (Though what she actually meant by “bunt bucket” is anyone’s guess.)
Still, despite the cruel twist, the Wolves keep winning. We went 5–2 this sim, and the bats showed teeth again. Kensaku Kato had himself a lightning-quick little heater: .500 AVG, 1.681 OPS, and a homer in just 3 games. Curt Holter added two more dingers to his growing collection, hitting .308 with a .973 OPS.
On the mound, our surviving starters did their best Cruz impressions:
Frank Ostrom: 7.1 IP, 1 ER, 0 BB
Jesus Gil: 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 K
Tyler Murray 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 BB
In the pen, Alejandro Ramiraze and Clint Thomas were damn near spotless, combining for 8.2 IP, 0 ER, 6 K and enough late-inning swagger to make a bourbon blush.
We also saw a new face:
Miguel Castillo, 24, came up from the farm to plug the bullpen leak. He was a little wobbly (3.0 IP, 2 ER) but didn’t collapse, and sometimes that’s all you can ask.
The future? Well honey, it’s about to get real complicated.
We’re dangerously thin in the minors when it comes to arms. I looked at the AAA depth chart this morning and nearly passed out from the fumes. We’re talkin’ cobwebs and wishful thinking. Hopefully my boy Miyamoto can work some of that deep-in-the-dugout wizardry and find a golden arm before the next crack in the rotation opens up.
One small note of joy:
Otto Holstein, all 29 years of him, picked up his 100th hit in just his 120th career game. Not flashy. Not loud. Just keeps chuggin’. The little engine that could… and usually grounds out to second.
So yes, we’re battered. But we are not broken.
Keep the iron hot, baby — and tell the bullpen to ice their everything. We’re gonna need all of ‘em.
— Gertie
