2018 PLAYER / PITCHER OF THE WEEK #14

NAME	TEAM	AVG	SLG	G	AB	H	2B	3B	HR	R	RBI	K	W	IW	SB	CS	HBP
MARTINEZ, J.D.	CHI AL	.300	1.200	6	20	6	0	0	6	6	10	2	2	0	0	0	0

NAME	CLUB	G	W	L	S	ERA	IP	R	ER	H	K	BB	IBB	WP	BK	HB	HR
VELAZQUEZ,Hector	HOL AL	2	2	0	0	1.12	16	2	2	9	13	6	0	0	0	0	0

NAME	TEAM	AVG	SLG	G	AB	H	2B	3B	HR	R	RBI	K	W	IW	SB	CS	HBP
VOTTO,Joey	TEM NL	.412	1.294	6	17	7	0	0	5	9	11	2	9	1	0	0	1

NAME	CLUB	G	W	L	S	ERA	IP	R	ER	H	K	BB	IBB	WP	BK	HB	HR
CHACIN,Jhoulys	TEM NL	2	2	0	0	0.64	14	1	1	6	8	2	0	0	0	1	0

Portland Lumber Jax @ Harsens Island Walleye
Series Preview:	Portland flies cross country to visit beautiful Harsens Island.
Game #1:	The Walleye outlast the Jax 5-2. W. Bettis 1-4 L. Eflin 1-6 S. Rodney 16
Game #2:	Matt Andriese pitched a hell of a game striking out 11 in his 8 innings. The island hang on 3-0. W. Andriese 3-1 L Freeland 7-6 S. Rodney 17
Game #3:	The Lumberjax finally score some runs. Unfortunately for them they didn’t score enough losing 5-4. W. Hoover 1-0 L Freeman. 6-3 S. Rodney 18
Game #4:	It takes 11 innings but Portland finally gets in the win column 2-1. W. Freeman 7-3 L. Middleton 1-5 S. Petit 15
Game #5:	The Lumberjax win another one run game 2-1. W. Moore 3-2 L. Severino 4-10 S. Petit 16
Game #6:	Portland gets 3 in the 9th and win 3-0. W. Eflin 2-6 L. Urena 4-11 S. Petit 17
Series Summary:	Harsens Island throws the first punch. Portland throws the last. The fight ends in a 3-3 draw.

Detroit Crime @ Virginia Sluggers
Series Preview:	Fighting for a playoff spot, Detroit comes south to take on a Virginia team playing for respectability.
Game #1:	VIR 5-2 W-Trevor Cahill (3-9) L-R.A.Dickey (6-5) SV-Felipe Rivero (15) A Bryce Harper walk and a Manny Machado triple gave DET a 1-0 lead in the top of the 3rd. It was quickly erased in the bottom half of the 3rd with a Jorge Bonifacio solo shot and a 3-run Jimmy-Jack by George Springer. With a 3 run lead, Cahill settled in and pitched 7 innings of 4 hit ball. In the meantime, Springer wasn’t finished as he sent another ball far over the wall to stretch Virginia’s lead to 5-1. Though Luis Garcia allowed an Adam Jones RBI single in the 8th, Rivero came in and shut the door to give VIR the win.
Game #2:	VIR 13-1 W-Luis Castillo (4-2) L-Stephen Strasburg (10-3) The Sluggers brought the bats. Cranking out 14 hits, including 9 for extra bases, they tallied 13 runs against some good pitching. Strasburg started for the Crime and got no respect. On the first pitch of the game, Whit Merrifield took Strasburg deep over the wall. One batter later, Anthony Rizzo yanked a line drive that cleared the wall in the lower deck and gave Virginia a quick 2-0 lead. Two innings later, George Springer made the score 4-1 with a 2-run homer and the rout was on. Merrifield hit his 2nd homer of the game and Rafael Devers sent one deep as well. With a double and a triple, Clint Fraizer got in on the fun and collected 4 RBI. Meanwhile, Castillo was keeping the Crime bats at bay. Striking out 12 he only allowed 3 hits over 8 innings to get the win. For the Crime, after going 2-2 with 2 walks in game 1, Bryce Harper was 2-4.
Game #3:	DET 5-2 W-Aaron Nola (8-2) Trevor Williams (7-5) Sv-Mike Minor (6) Detroit gets the win as Bryce Harper continues to hit. Nola and Williams each pitched to zero runs for 4 innings. That’s when Harper decided to muscle up. In the 5th inning, after a Martin Maldonado RBI single and a Ryan Goins single, Harper got hold of a Williams pitch and deposited it in the upper deck for a Baltimore Special. Ben Zobrist added a 6th inning solo shot to give Detroit a 5-0 lead and Nola and Mike Minor did the rest by holding Virginia to 5 hits, their only runs coming from a Neil Walker double.
Game #4:	6) SV-Mike Minor (7) A homer by Anthony Rizzo and a 2-run homer by Jackie Bradley gave Virginia 3 runs in the 2nd inning. But Bryce Harper (yes he’s still crushing) took Luis Perdomo deep TWICE, once in the 1st and again in the 3rd. That kept Detroit only 1 run down at 3-2. For the next 4 innings Carlos Carrasco and Perdomo battled each other and kept the two teams from putting ant runs on the board. With a 1 run lead in the 8th, Virginia sent out Cory Gearrin to bridge the gap to Felipe Rivero. Bad move. Gearrin allows 2 runners to reach and faces Manny Machado, who promptly rifles the ball into the left field corner for a 2 RBI double and a 4-3 Detroit lead. Kendrys Morales follows with a RBI single to make it 5-3 and the Crime tack on 1 more in the 9th on a Hunter Pence RBI. With the comeback win, the series is now tied at 2 games each.
Game #5:	VIR 9-1 W-Chris Archer (10-5) L-Madison Bumgarner (6-5) Anthony Rizzo gives Virginia an early lead with a 2-run homer in the 1st and add another run in the 2nd to go up 3-0. Martin Maldonado puts Detroit on the board with a solo shot in the 3rd and the score stays 3-1 till the 8th. With the bases loaded, helped by an error and a walk, Jorge Bonifacio laces a pitch to the gap and all 3 runs cross the plate for a 3-run double. The Sluggers add 3 more for a total of 6 in the 8th and complete the come-back win.
Game #6:	VIR 3-2 W-Luis Garcia (1-3) L-Ken Giles (1-2) SV-Felipe Rivero (16) Hunter Pence and Ryan Goins drive in runs for Detroit. But R.A.Dickey gives up a game-tying homer to Clint Fraizer in the 7th and then Jean Segura ropes a RBI double in the 8th off Ken Giles and Rivero makes it hold up for a Virginia win.
Series Summary:	VIR 3-2 W-Luis Garcia (1-3) L-Ken Giles (1-2) SV-Felipe Rivero (16) Hunter Pence and Ryan Goins drive in runs for Detroit. But R.A.Dickey gives up a game-tying homer to Clint Fraizer in the 7th and then Jean Segura ropes a RBI double in the 8th off Ken Giles and Rivero makes it hold up for a Virginia win.

Sacramento Capitals @ Columbus Explorers
Series Preview:	All-Star break has come and gone. Columbus went to Sacramento before the break and got waxed – although most games were close. Then the went and picked up a couple of new starters. But Sacramento also picked up a stud hurler to add to their stellar rotation. Let’s see how this series of 6 plays out.
Game #1:	Columbus starts new acquistion Alex Meyer against Chris Sale. Capitals get when in the 2nd when Robinson Cano hits a solo homer (13). That was the only run Meyer gave up, but he left after 5 (3 hits) and was still trailing 1-0. Sale was cruising, giving up 1, but in the 7th he commits an error which leads to 1 and gives up 2 hits including a 2 run homer (15) by Paul DeJong. Things look good for Columbus with David Robertson on the mound in the 9th, but that homering maniac Giancarlo Stanton hits a 2 out 2 run tying homer (34) and we go to free baseball time. Game continues into the 12th when Russell Martin leads off the bottom half with a walk-off homer (5) off Alex Claudio. SAC 3-5-1 LP Claudio (2-2) COL 4-6-1 WP Avilan (2-0) BS Robertson (3)
Game #2:	Zack Greinke gets his first start for Sacremento and if this was any indication, the Capitals will be getting their moneys worth. He goes the distance, fanning 7, scoring a run, and giving up ONE hit for a CG shutout! And the 1 hit came in the 1st inning. And to top it off he got 4 runs of support including a 3 run Yadier Molina homer (8) in the 3rd. Ronald Torreyes had 3 hits in a nemesis role. SAC 4-11-0 WP Greinke (9-5) COL 0- 1-0 LP J.A. Happ (7-5)
Game #3:	So after you start Zack Greinke, then you throw Max Sherzer. He doesn’t quite do as well, gives up 4 hits in 8 inings and 1 unearned run (and fans 10). But Matt Shoemaker also goes 8 innings and gives up only 3 hits and fans 7. But he gives up 2 runs and the Capitals squeak out a 2-1 win. Mitch Moreland homes in the 1st (8) and Yadier Molina doubles in the 2nd run in the 8th. Columbus gets one back in the bottom half but Alex Claudio gets the save in the 9th. SAC 2-3-2 WP Scherzer (14-2) S Claudio (5) COL 1-4-0 LP Shoemaker (2-3)
Game #4:	Down 2-1 the Explorers seek to reverse last week’s drubbing by the Capitals so they score 3 runs in the 1st, a Paul DeJong 3 run blast (16). Starting his first Columbus game, Parker Bridwell goes 6, gives up 2 hits and no runs. He leaves with the score 4-0 and in spite of the a 2 run 8th by the Caps, the Explorers take the game and even the series. SAC 2-4-2 LP Duffy (6-6) COL 4-5-2 WP Bridwell (5-2) S Robertson (18)
Game #5:	Ervin Santana then scatter 5 hits over 8.1 innings and Columbus makes the most of 5 hits against Odrisamer Despaigne to win 3-0. The Caps commit 2 errors which accounted for 2 unearned runs. Columbus plated 2 in the 1st and 1 in the 4th. SAC 0-6-2 LP Despaigne (2-2) COL 3-5-0 WP Santana (9-2)
Game #6:	Explorers are up 3-2 as they go to game 6 which features a rematch of the game 1 pitchers, Chris Sale and Alex Meyer. Both did very well in game 1, both got an ND. Not so in this one. The only real issue Sale has had this year is the occasional long ball. In the 2nd Shin-Soo Choo unloads for a 3 run shot (12) and a 3-0 lead. The Capitals then get to Meyer and rough him up for 3 in the 4th to tie it. The tie lasted until the bottom half and then the Explorers add another in the 4th. Sale leaves after 6 giving up 7 hits and 4 runs. Meyer goes 6, no more runs and 3 Explorer relievers shut down Sacramento for the win. SAC 3-4-1 LP Sale (10-4) COL 6-9-2 WP Meyer (2-0) S David Robertson (19)
Series Summary:	Columbus takes a special bit of pleasure winning 4 of 6 this week after their 1-5 showing last series against Sacremento. They were a combined 2-11 against Sacremento and Tempe (all road games) until this week. They went shopping (dealing with Tempe???) and it’s off to a good start. Sacremento also got good results from their TEMPE transaction (Greinke) but it wasn’t enough to carry the series. Columbus hosts Portland next week, Sacramento travels to Rosemere.

Jersey Nor’easters @ Selkirk Steelers
Series Preview:	Sorry really time challenged this weekend. SO please forgive short summaries. Jersey at Selkirk.
Game #1:	5-4 Jersey as they hit 3 homers.
Game #2:	3-1 Jersey as Junis was great.
Game #3:	5-4 Selkirk as 2B Sanchez hits two homers and drives in 4.
Game #4:	Duda goes 5 for 5 with three homers! 7-5 Jersey
Game #5:	Duda homers again Jersey wins 12-0
Game #6:	Selkirk wins the final game 12-6 as Souze hits 2 homers and drives in 5.
Series Summary:	Jersey wins the series 4-2. Duda for player of the week with 4 homers and 9 rbis

Pittsburgh Lumber Company @ Long Beach Dirt Bags
Series Summary:	Pittsburgh takes 4 of the 6 games at Long Beach.

Rosemere Renegades @ Tempe Tempers
Series Preview:	The Tempe Tempers looked to continue their winning ways with another six game series against the cellar dwelling Rosemere Renegades.
Game #1:	Liriano started off wild walking six in just the first two innings and Tempe coasted to a victory behind Lester’s five solid innings. Tempe 7-2
Game #2:	Cespedes hit an RBI single and two run RBI triple to lead the scoring for Tempe. Chacin and Santiago combined for nine scoreless innings. Tempe 5-0
Game #3:	Votto crushed a three run homerun and a grandslam to lead Tempe to an easy victory. Vargas pitched eight scoreless innings in Tempe debut. Recently traded and frustrated Chris Davis made his one and only start of the series as he took himself out with a self diagnosed 8 day injury. Tempe 12-0
Game #4:	Dillion Peters may have pitched his best game of the season, but the Renegades offense refused to help him out. The Renegades did manage to score one run in the 3rd, but Tempe tied it up in the 6th. Peters finally surrendered another run in the bottom of the 10th with two outs. Bogaerts singled in Jackson after Jackson had reached first base and stolen second. Tempe 2-1
Game #5:	Chacin went the distance giving up only three hits and one run. Bogaerts and Votto each homered in the victory.
Game #6:	An Albies pinch hit single in the 5th broke open a 2-2 tie. Tempe later exploded for four more runs in the 8th to put the series away. Tempe did lose their other 3B to a 33 day injury in the 9th when Diaz ran into the backup catcher.
Series Summary:	Votto’s offensive numbers nearly doubled the output of the entire Rosemere club over the six game series. Votto hit 5 homeruns, drove in 11 runs and scored 9 runs. Rosemere only scored six runs the entire series. Votto was hit by a pitch and he walked 9 times as the Renegades even tried to avoid pitching to him. If my math is correct, he finished with a .411 AVG, a .703 OBP, and a 1.294 SLG for an insane 1.994 OPS.

Tijuana Bottle Rockets @ Fremont Cannons
Series Preview:	6 game series.
Series Summary:	Fremont surprises the home team and earns a split.

Mesa Solar Sox @ Coconut Creek Crushers
Series Summary:	Samardzija and Peacock combine for a shutout in the finale to avoid the sweep by Mesa.

Motor City Muscle @ Chicago Mobsters
Series Preview:	Chicago takes on the Muscle from the Motor City in a re-match of last weeks series.
Game #1:	The Muscle hold a 2-1 lead, but leave Verlander in “One More Batter” & it cost the team the win. J.D. Martinez with a Home Run. Final Score: Chicago 3 – Motor City 2 Win: Trevor Rosenthal 3-0 (2.53) Loss: Justin Verlander 8-6 (3.89) Save: Aroldis Chapman #22
Game #2:	J.D. Martinez has a Home Run & 3 RBI’s, but it was back up catcher Roberto Perez who Homers twice for the Mobsters. Final Score: Chicago 5 – Motor City 4 Win: Andrew Miller 2-1 (4.21) Loss: Jacob deGrom 10-6 (2.71) Save: Aroldis Chapman #23
Game #3:	Motor City comes back with some vengeance as Kyle Hendricks look dominant against the Mobsters hitters. However, J.D. Martinez has another Home Run. Final Score: Motor City 6 – Chicago 1 Win: Kyle Hendricks 14-1 (2.16) Loss: Carlos Matias Martinez 5-5 (3.26)
Game #4:	Again the Muscle just puts the Muscle on Chicago’s hitters allowing only 1 Run for the second game in a row. Mike Trout has 2 Home Runs. Final Score: Motor City 7 – Chicago 1 Win: Mike Leake 8-6 (3.09) Loss: C.C. Sabathia 5-5 (3.87)
Game #5:	The King returns to old form as Felix Hernandez goes the distance for the Mobsters. J.D. Martinez has 3 Home Runs, 5 RBI’s, 12 Total bases while going 3 for 4. Final Score: Chicago 8 – Motor City 2 Win: Felix Hernandez 5-1 (3.95) Loss: Ariel Miranda 4-8 (5.42)
Game #6:	The Muscle get a Mike Trout Home Run, but this time it’s their catcher Salvador Perez who hits 2 Bombs to give the win to Motor City & thus spliting the series. Final Score: Motor City 5 – Chicago 2 Win: Justin Verlander 9-6 (3.78) Loss: Marcus Stroman 7-6 (4.02)
Series Summary:	The series is a split & gives both teams hope for the playoffs.

Hollywood Werewolves & Southwest Detroit Fighting Chihuahuas
Series Summary:	Hollywood takes the series 4 games to 2.

Valdosta Snappers @ Corktown Cycle
Series Preview:	The Snappers come to Corktown for the 2nd consecutive series vs the Cycle. Before last week both teams were the 2 teams bidding on the final wild card spot. One team was very strong last week. Valdosta looks to put Corktown out of the race completly.
Game #1:	Snapper offense was so strong this series. Valdosta 11-3 W. Miguel Gonzalez 7-5 L. Alec Asher 2-5
Game #2:	Daniel Gossett was pounded for 6 runs in 3 innings. Valdosta 8-5 W. Adam Wainwright 5-8 L. Daniel Gossett 4-3
Game #3:	Corktown mismanages their pen as their lock down closer gives up the tying run in the 9th and was forced to pitch 4 total innings. Mark Reynolds gets the game winning homerun, his 2nd of the day. Valdosta 9-8 (12) W. Randell Delgado L. Corey Knebel 3-6 S. Craig Kimbrel (17)
Game #4:	Back to the Snapper dominance Valdosta 8-1 W. Dillon Gee 3-3 L. Jose Berrios 10-3
Game #5:	4 runs off the Cycle ace in the first 2 innings happened to be enough. Valdosta 4-3 W. Miguel Gonzalez 8-5 L. Robbie Ray 4-7 S. Craig Kimbrel (18)
Game #6:	Corktown leaves home with a victory. Jason Hammel comes in for the start and went the distance for Valdosta. Corktown 3-2 W. Carl Edwards 3-2 L. Jason Hammel 4-10 CG
Series Summary:	Valdosta wins the series 5-1 and it was in dominating fashion. They are looking really good for the final wild card spot as the second half kicks off.

Bethesda Bandicoots @ Triple Creek Patriots
Series Preview:	NL Leading Bandicoots take on an average Patriot squad.
Game #1:	Kevin Gausman has his first good start in long spell and the Patriot pen is near perfect. The home squad would need every bullet in stock to squeak this one out. Trayce Thompson’s late pinch hit RBI would be the difference. BB 1 TCP 2 WP – Logan (1) LP – Tepera (1) SV – None
Game #2:	Not-State-Farm-Jake allows just 3 hits over 5+ and Bethesda leads 2-1 after 6 full. Each team would score in the 8th but Triple Creek couldn’t bust through the Bandicoot red-rover line. Dyson 2-3 w/ 3 RBI paced the visitors. BB 4 TCP 2 WP – Arrieta (10) LP – Griffin (7) SV – Ramirez (1)
Game #3:	Game 3 featured all 1’s and 3’s on the scoreboard and a 2-2 score after 7 full. David Peralta launched a 3-run bomb in the top half of the 8th and the Coots add 1 more in the 9th for a comfy 6-2 lead. Andrew Benintendi MacGyver’d up his own 3-ball launcher in the bottom of the 9th to get the fans rockin’ but the Patriots come up just short. BB 6 TCP 5 WP – Madson (2) LP – Graveman (5) SV – None
Game #4:	After a slew of close games Bethesda hangs a 6-spot in the 5th on Jharel Cotton. Triple Creek outhits Bethesda 10-8 but not where it counts. Dyson piles up 5 RBIs and Cain went 3-6. BB 9 TCP 2 WP – Ross (3) LP – Cotton (6) SV – None
Game #5:	Not to be outdone, the Patriot bats pummel Might-Be-State-Farm-Jake for 7 runs in the 2nd. It would be all Triple Creek today as Wood gets some rare support. Bellinger pulled out the white bread and mustard.games. BB 2 TCP 9 WP – Wood (6) LP – Arrieta (6) SV – None
Game #6:	Ryu allows just 2 hits over 7 frames and the Coots plate 3 in the 1st. Trevor Story’s 3-4 3 RBI day was all Bethesda needed. Brad Miller goes down for 10 games. BB 5 TCP 2 WP – Ryu (5) LP – Gausman (7) SV – Madson (5)
Series Summary:	Bandicoots take the series 4-2.

Yonge Street Stalkers @ Manhattan Project
Series Preview:	Opening the second half of the season, the Stalkers want to reverse their losing record against Manhattan.
Game #1:	Yonge Street 11-4 WP Cole LP Leiter
Game #2:	Yonge Street 10-6 WP Stephenson LP Allen SV Kelly
Game #3:	Manhattan 6-3 WP Chatwood LP Estrada SV Swarzak
Game #4:	Manhattan 7-6 WP Tanaka LP Stephenson SV Swarzak
Game #5:	Manhattan 4-1 WP Porcello LP Nova SV Swarzak
Game #6:	Manhattan 6-3 WP Leiter LP Pineda SV Allen
Series Summary:	Manhattan takes series 4-2

Dallas Cougars @ Southbend Lynx
Series Preview:	Dallas comes into Southbend for a 6 game series.
Series Summary:	Southbend gains an unexpected split with Dallas.