Days 41-50 - Sluggers continue to thrive!

 

Not much change in the standings this block of games, but certainly some performances worth highlighting.  Mark McGwire clouted six more home runs, extending his league-leading total to 24.  Jeromy Burnitz hit .433 with 4 HRs for Bill Marx, and John Wisely's Jeff Bagwell hit .348 with 4 HRs and 10 RBIs.  However, they all took a back seat to this week's Player Of The Block, Larry Walker of Midland!  Walker hit an incredible .606, going 20-33 with 10 RBIs.  He also walked 10 times, giving him an on-base percentage of  .698!  Walker is also a defensive dynamo, winning the Gold Glove that year and getting Strat-O-Matic ratings of 1e6 with a cannon -4 arm.  He is one of the most underrated players of this era, as evidenced by this analysis of his career...

 

Larry Walker sporting a strange Rockies jersey!

Walker was an all-around player, too, a true five-tooler. He hit at least .320 six times, walked more than he struck out five times, topped 35 homers four times, stole at least 15 bases seven times, had at least 10 outfield assists eight times and won seven Gold Gloves. He was a five-time All-Star and also won three Silver Sluggers.  In terms of career acumen, Walker's rate stats are more than good enough to be a Hall of Famer. He's 81st in career batting average, 56th in on-base percentage and 12th in slugging percentage. His .965 OPS is 15th in baseball history and even when adjusting for ballpark (we'll get to that), his OPS+ is 72nd best in history.

But enough of the history lesson, let's go the film!  Walker, featured here with Dante Bichette, certainly won't make the Acting Hall of Fame....

 

 

 

 

Should show some pitchers some love as well, not an easy job to do in this bulked-up league.  Backwoods Bastards closer Tom "Flash" Gordon earned three saves, and Jamie Moyer only allowed 2 runs in 15 innings, had 13 K's, and picked up 2 wins.

Day 41  Pitching seemed to be in order today, as three teams pitched shutouts using several pitchers. Chan Ho Park, Bartolo Colon, and Mark Gardner were the starters in those games.   Ken Griffey swatted two HR's though, and Fort Wayne won a dandy when Luis Gonzalez homered in the 9th

Day 42  New Fremont Tony Gwynn hit a home run (Wham! Another home-ah!).  The Juicers racked up 15 hits, and Jim Thome got 4 RBIs.  Larry Walker gave Midland 4 hits, 2 singles, a triple, and a homer.  Randy Johnson moved to 6-2 for Fort Wayne, adding 12 K's to his total. 

Day 43  Fort Wayne wins their 4th in a row behind Mark McGwire's HR and 3 RBIs.  Brooklyn's Kevin Brown shut out the Juicers, John Wisely edged Midland 8-7, and sane human being John Rocker earned his second save for Bill Marx. 

Day 44  Brooklyn picks up an 11-7 win over Bill Marx, Midland's Dean Palmer had 2 HRs and 5 RBIs, Jim Edmonds lifted PED-Co over the Rickeys, and it was a happy Lima Time again for the Jimmys. 

Day 45  Brooklyn's Chipper Jones had 2 HRs and 4 RBIs, as did Mark McGwire of Fort Wayne.  Travis Fryman belts a grand slam for Verona Ridge.

Day 46  Ray Lankford racked up a league-high 7 RBIs in tonight's game.  Dean Palmer of Midland had another big game with 4 hits and 4 RBIs, and Pedro Martinez moved to 8-2 on the season.

Day 47  Fort Wayne and Midland had a 14 inning battle, ultimately won when  <shifting to Howard Cosell voice> "that man, Dean Palmer, slammed one over the right-field wall"!  The Bastards won 8-2 over Verona Ridge, and the Fremonts won 6-3 with Shawn Green knocking in three runs.

Day 48  Verona Ridge wins 4-1 over the Goombies, Jose Lima lifts Getting Jimmy with 9 innings only allowing 4 hits and 1 run.  Vladimir Guerrero had 2 HRs and 4 RBIs as the Juicers out-slugged the Bastards 9-7, in a game featuring a combined 29 hits. 

Day 49  The Goombies got 10 K's from Denny Neagle and 4 hits and 4 RBIs from Larry Walker.  The Bastard's Mike Maddux pitched like his better brother Greg, and Getting Jimmy edged Fort Wayne. 

Day 50  Roger Clemens struck out 12 Andy Willnus batters for Jimmy, the Bastard's Rafael Palmeiro hit two doubles and a homer, Steve Willnus' favorite player Neifi Perez contributed two doubles to Verona Ridge, and the Henderson Rickeys get a complete game effort from Masato Yoshii.

Here's a picture of Henderson's Masato Yoshii
(thinking only Michael and PJ will get this one!)