Simulated 2020 Baseball Season (JosephC)

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 12 - Rockies 22, Brewers 3

 

There will be a second post today due to the All-Star Teams and Futures Game.

 

The pitching matchup was Jon Gray versus Freddy Peralta. Peralta simply didn't have it. He walked Garrett Hampson to lead off the game and then Nolen Arenado hit a 2-1 pitch for a 405 foot home run to left-center field. He allowed another first inning run and then allowed a 2-run homer to Trevor Story with one out in the third inning and that was all for Peralta. At only 2 1/3 innings pitched, this was Peralta's shortest outing of the season.

 

Outside of Ray Black, who pitched a scoreless fifth inning, the bullpen didn't fare any better. Drew Rasmussen allowed a solo home run to Tony Wolters and a triple to Hampson and was charged with two runs. David Phelps loaded the bases with one out, and was charged with all three of those runners scoring after Adrian Houser came in and allowed a grand slam to David Dahl on the first pitch he threw. Houser wasn't done yet, he walked a couple more batters in the seventh inning and then Devin Williams came in, walked Hampson and then gave up a grand slam to Arenado. With the team in a 12-run hole, Counsell decided he wasn't going to use Alex Claudio, Chris Lee and Josh Hader in this game (who can blame him?), and instead used Keston Hiura, Manny Pina, Keon Broxton and Jedd Gyorko. Those guys gave up 7 runs in the last two innings, which was actually an improvement as the regular relievers gave up 8 runs in innings 6 and 7. Had to question bum-elbow Hiura taking the mound, but as the now 108 ERA indicates, he probably wasn't really exerting himself while pitching.

 

Jon Gray was pretty masterful through five innings and then seemed to lose focus in the sixth as the winner/loser had been decided. Brock Holt drew a walk to lead off the inning, a couple outs where made, and then Avisail Garcia hit a 2-run home run to get the Brewers on the scoreboard. Omar Narvaez scored another run later in the inning on a Jon Gray error (Luis Urias hit an tapper right to Gray that should have been an easy out).

 

So the Brewers enter the break at 48-46, tied for second place with the Pirates, 1 1/2 games behind the Cardinals. The Reds have gone on a mini-slump and are now 5 games out of first place. The Cubs are 13 games back and have the 4th worst record in baseball.

 

[attachment=2]7_12_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_12_batters.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_12_pitchers.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

MLB All-Stars have been announced. There is a simulated fan vote that includes starting pitchers and relief pitchers, and the winners of the voting have an asterisk next to their name.

 

Three Brewers make the team, strangely enough all relief pitchers: Josh Hader, Ray Black and Chris Lee. Obviously no one will argue with Hader. Black and Lee haven't been that great lately but were excellent early on. Ironic that Lee was recently sent down, clearing waivers in the process, and then brought back up and is now on the All-Star team.

 

NL Batters

 

[attachment=3]NL Batters.jpg[/attachment]

 

NL Pitchers

 

[attachment=2]NL Pitchers.jpg[/attachment]

 

AL Batters

 

[attachment=1]AL Batters.jpg[/attachment]

 

AL Pitchers

 

[attachment=0]AL Pitchers.jpg[/attachment]

 

The Futures Game was held today. It looked like Brice Turang would be a lock to play in this game, but the recent AA stint where he bombed is likely what prevented him from being named to the NL team. Aaron Ashby was the only Brewer to make the team. Ashby has been outstanding - 86 1/3 innings, 2.50 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 3.61 FIP, 0.6 HR/9, 3.1 BB/9, 9.6 K/9.

 

The NL team won the game 4-3. Unfortunately, it was Ashby who allowed all three of the AL team's runs. He pitched the second inning and allowed 2 hits and 1 walk while striking out 1 batter. Trevor Larnach (Twins) hit a home run and Jordan Brewer (Astros) tripled in the inning. The NL team won the game in the 10th inning when Jazz Chisholm (Marlins) singled and Mike Aquino (Cubs) scored. The winning pitcher was Kyle Dohy (Phillies) and the losing pitcher was Aaron Fletcher (Mariners).

[sveumrules]

July 9 - Brewers 5, Rockies 4

July 10 - Brewers 4, Rockies 3

July 11 - Brewers 4, Rockies 0

 

(wow, looks like we could pull off the rare four game road sweep in Colorado)

 

(scrolls down...)

 

July 12 - Rockies 22, Brewers 3

 

(is this a simulation or real life?)

[owbc]

July 9 - Brewers 5, Rockies 4

July 10 - Brewers 4, Rockies 3

July 11 - Brewers 4, Rockies 0

 

(wow, looks like we could pull off the rare four game road sweep in Colorado)

 

(scrolls down...)

 

July 12 - Rockies 22, Brewers 3

 

(is this a simulation or real life?)

 

The best part is that the 22-3 game was at Miller Park

[sveumrules]

July 9 - Brewers 5, Rockies 4

July 10 - Brewers 4, Rockies 3

July 11 - Brewers 4, Rockies 0

 

(wow, looks like we could pull off the rare four game road sweep in Colorado)

 

(scrolls down...)

 

July 12 - Rockies 22, Brewers 3

 

(is this a simulation or real life?)

 

The best part is that the 22-3 game was at Miller Park

 

Whoops, totally misread the series as being in Colorado. Guess I need to slow my scroll.

 

In that case, I'll go for the "even in a simulation we can't close out a sweep on a Sunday home game" joke.

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 13 - scheduled day off

 

Roster move made-

Drew Rasmussen optioned to AAA, J.P. Feyereisen recalled

Kind of a goofy move as Rasmussen is very unlikely to make a AAA appearance (last time Rasmussen pitched in a minor league game was all the way back on April 19), and I'd bet he gets called back up before play resumes on Friday.

 

The home run derby contestants were Cody Bellinger, Giancarlo Stanton, Bryce Harper, Alex Bregman, Miguel Sano, Edwin Encarnacion, Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. Bryce Harper was the winner, defeating Edwin Encarnacion in the final round by a 23-18 margin.

 

In other league news, on the same day as the home run derby, we have the runner-up being involved in a trade.

Diamondbacks get - 1B-Edwin Encarnacion (373 plate appearances, .256/.359/.534/.894, 27 HR, 58 RBI), 4.19 million in cash.

White Sox get - RF-Ismael Jamie (20 years old, rookie ball, 109 plate appearances, .300/.349/.430/.779), CF-Asdrubal Martinez (18 years old, rookie ball, .296/.443/.389/.832)

Encarnacion has 4.62 million left on his deal, so the White Sox are essentially paying him 4.19 million and the Diamondbacks only 430k. Neither Jamie or Martinez is considered much of a prospect. Like the Nelson Cruz trade, another odd move with a DH moving to the National League. What is really odd is that the fallout of this move is Jake Lamb being sent to AAA. Lamb does have options remaining, but he also has 5+ years of service time and can refuse the assignment, which seems to always happen in the game. Kind of curious as to why it didn't happen here?

 

One thing that is for certain, when looking at the trades that have been made, that this is a big-time buyer's market. I hope the Brewers get in on this. Now watch the game go and make a Brice Turang + Aaron Ashby for Greg Holland trade or something ridiculous along those lines.

 

[attachment=3]NL Standings.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=2]AL Standings.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]NL Wild Card.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]AL Wild Card.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

Brewer stats at the All-Star Break-

 

[attachment=2]MLB team stats.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]MLB batters.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]MLB pitchers.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 14 - scheduled day off

 

All Star Game = National League 9, American League 4

 

All three Brewer pitchers appeared and all did well.

 

Chris Lee pitched the 4th inning: Jorge Solar strikes out, Cesar Hernandez grounds out weakly to short, Gary Sanchez flies out on medium hit ball to centerfield.

 

Ray Black pitched the 8th inning: Michael Brantley flies out to deep right field (thought it was a home run off the bat), Rafael Devers walks, Cesar Hernandez grounds into a 5-4-3 double play.

 

Josh Hader comes in with 2 outs in the 9th and strikes out Austin Hays to end the ballgame.

 

Also some other news from around the league-

 

Dodger pitcher Walker Buehler has a slight tear in a triceps and is out for 2 months. Buehler had thrown 111 2/3 innings with a 3.63 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 3.72 FIP. Ross Stripling, who has been pitching in the minors for most of the season, will take Buehler's spot in the rotation.

 

There has also been another trade-

A's get RHP - Anthony DeSclafani (106 2/3 innings, 4.81 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 5.33 FIP) and 1B - Bren Spillane (23 years old, AA stats - 261 plate appearances, .190/.293/.252/.546)

Reds get RF - Luis Barrera (24 years old, AA stats - 378 plate appearances, .297/.350/.453/.804) and 3B - T.J. Schofield-Sam (19 years old, rookie ball stats - 7 plate appearances, .143/.143/.429/.571)

Luis Barrera is a solid role-player type prospect. He goes into the Reds top prospect list at #20. Kind of strange that the A's trade away three relief pitchers and then trade for a starter. Only sense I can make out of it is that Daulton Jefferies (competitive balance round A pick in 2016, #37 overall) had been pushed in the rotation after having appeared out of the bullpen. Jefferies had only thrown 6 AAA innings and 64 AA innings, so maybe the A's don't want him in a MLB rotation just yet. Otherwise, this trade makes no sense. A's are 44-52 and seemingly going nowhere, and DeSclafani is free agent at the end of the year. No word on who will fill the open spot in the Red's rotation, but I'm guessing Lucas Sims will get yet another shot as he is currently in the Red's bullpen.

 

[attachment=3]All Star game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=2]All Star batting 1.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]All Star batting 2.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]All Star pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

AAA batting-

 

[attachment=3]AAA batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

AAA pitching-

 

[attachment=2]AAA pitching.jpg[/attachment]

 

AA batting-

 

[attachment=1]AA batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

AA pitching-

 

[attachment=0]AA pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

A+ batting:

 

A+ pitching.jpg[/attachment]

 

A batting:

 

A pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 15 - scheduled day off

 

Only one trade to report.

 

Red Sox get - RHP - Dan Altavilla (29 1/3 innings, 2.76 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 3.51 FIP)

Mariners get - RHP - Bryan Mata (21 years old, MLB stats = 9 2/3 innings, 6.52 ERA, 2.28 WHIP, 5.06 FIP) and SS - Lyonell James (17 years old, 1 rookie ball plate appearance, .000/.000/.000/.000)

Pretty interesting deal IMO. Altavilla is now up to 123 2/3 MLB innings and has been hard to hit (6.5 H/9) and strikes out a lot of batters (10.0 K/9), but he allows a ton of walks (4.9 BB/9). Unlike most of the veterans who have been traded so far, Altavilla will be under Red Sox control for 3 more seasons following this one. Mata is by far the highest rated prospect who has been traded so far. He is currently #94 on the Top 100 list and goes into Seattle's organizational ranking at #5. James is a rookie ball lottery-ticket type piece. Based on his current potential ratings, it doesn't seem likely he'll be an MLB'er but who knows with a 17 year old?

 

R+ batting

 

[attachment=3]R+ batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

R+ pitching

 

[attachment=2]R+ pitching.jpg[/attachment]

 

DSL batting

 

[attachment=1]DSL batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

DSL pitching

 

[attachment=0]DSL pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

R Gold batting

 

[attachment=3]R Gold batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

R Gold pitching

 

[attachment=2]R Gold pitching.jpg[/attachment]

 

R Blue batting

 

[attachment=1]R Blue batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

R Blue pitching

 

[attachment=0]R Blue pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 16 - scheduled day off

 

Indian's pitcher Mike Clevinger is suffering from shoulder inflammation and will miss the next four weeks. Clevinger missed a few weeks earlier in the season with a rotator cuff strain and missed almost all of spring training with a torn meniscus in his knee. He's been excellent when available- 79 innings, 2.96 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 4.05 FIP. Triston McKenzie takes his spot but not as a starter, but rather a follower. McKenzie hasn't been great in MLB appearances so far this season. 5 games, 19 1/3 innings, 6.52 ERA, 1.71 WHIP, 4.95 FIP.

 

Another trade-

Angels get - LF - Corey Dickerson (354 plate appearances, .307/.333/.449/.783, 7 HR, 42 RBI)

Marlins get - RHP - Jamie Barria (23 years old, in AA - 96 innings, 5.53 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 5.04 FIP), LHP - Denny Bentley (22 years old, in AAA - 2 innings, 0.00 ERA, 0.50 WHIP, 2.37 FIP), RHP - Kyle Molnar (23 years old, in A - 45 innings, 2.60 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 4.64 FIP)

Dickerson hasn't reproduced the slash line he had in 2020, but he's still been a good offensive performer and moves into a platoon situation with Justin Upton in left field. Upton has hit the long ball but is struggling to get on base (.216/.305/.401/.706, 16 HR, 49 RBIs). Berria had a solid showing in the majors in 2018 (26 starts, 129 1/3 innings, 3.41 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 4.75 FIP), but regressed last year and has struggled in AA this season. Neither of the pitching prospects rate as organizational top 50 types. Molnar's potential ratings give the indication that he might have a chance to have some success in the majors, Bentley looks like a real long shot.

 

The Brewers begin a 3 game series at San Diego tomorrow and then visit Dodger Stadium for 3 games. So a challenging west coast trip to begin the second half of the season.

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 17 - Padres 7, Brewers 2

 

Pitching matchup was Brandon Woodruff versus Chris Paddack. Both pitchers have been somewhat disappointing this year, especially Paddack, who entered the game with a miserable 6.32 ERA.

 

Woodruff pitched pretty well but continues to struggle with the long ball. He only allowed two runs in five inning, but both runs came on solo home runs (Eric Hosmer and Tommy Pham). Alex Claudio came into the game in the fifth inning. Jurickson Profar and Franchy Cordero both singled, and Claudio left the inning with two outs and runners on first and third. David Phelps came into the game only needing to get the one out, but instead he allowed a single to Hosmer and double to Paddack allowing the two inherited runners to score. I was surprised that Drew Rasmussen wasn't recalled before this game, and that decision may have cost the Brewers if this had been a closer loss. J.P. Feyereisen entered the game in the seventh, allowed a walk to Trent Grisham and then a 2-run home run to Fernando Tatis Jr. Hosmer hit his second homer of the game in the eighth inning off of Ray Black.

 

Paddack pretty much cruised for much of this game. He retired the first 9 batters he faced. The Brewers got both of their runs in the seventh inning on an Eric Sogard single that scored Ryan Braun and Omar Narvaez.

 

Keston Hiura got the golden sombrero in this game and it's getting to the point where he may need to be benched. He is now down to a .292 OBP and .695 OPS on the season, and his July numbers have been especially pitiful, .163/.180/.204/.384. At the very least, he should be moved down in the order until he gets it going again.

 

The red-hot Pirates win again which knocks the Brewers into third place. The Cardinals lead the division, the Pirates are 1/2 game back, the Brewers are 1 1/2 games back and the Reds are 5 games back.

 

In other league news, Astros first baseman Yordan Alvarez twisted an ankle and is listed as day-to-day for two weeks. Alvarez had a huge start to the season and currently has a .282/.394/.533/.947 slash line with 25 home runs and 71 RBIs.

 

[attachment=2]7_17_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_17_batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_17_pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 18 - Padres 4, Brewers 3

 

The Brewers sign Wade Miley to a minor league contract. Miley was released by the Reds on the 14th. He had done well in the majors...43 innings, 3.35 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 4.98 FIP...but for whatever reason the Reds weren't happy and cut him loose, even with another year left on his contract. I will say his ratings aren't very good, so maybe the game just doesn't like his future outlook. Miley has been assigned to the Arizona Blue team which is a pretty standard practice for the game. He'll probably get bumped to a higher level after a couple of appearances. Should be a pretty good insurance policy for the Brewers, although based on the game ratings I'd much rather see Eric Lauer, who probably should be on the 26-man roster anyway.

 

Pitching matchup in today's game was Corbin Burnes versus Dinelson Lamet.

 

The Brewers started the scoring in the second inning when Brock Holt knocked in Justin Smoak on a single. The Brewers had runners on first and third with nobody out after the Holt single, but couldn't score another run in the inning.

 

Burnes breezed through the first two innings. The Padres loaded the bases in the third inning, but Burnes got Manny Machado to ground out on a weakly hit ball to end the inning.

 

The Padres scored all four of their runs in the fifth inning. Pitcher Jacob Nix led off the inning with a single on a 1-2 pitch. Tommy Pham tried to cross the Brewers up by bunting on an 0-1 pitch but it didn't work and he bunted into a force out at second base. Trent Grisham came up and hit a 1-2 pitch for an opposite-field line drive home run that got just within the foul pole to give the Padres a 2-1 lead. Fernando Tatis Jr. was the next man up and he drew a walk. Chris Lee relieved Burnes. Manny Machado came up and walked. In perhaps what was the most crucial play in the game, Tatis Jr. and Machado pulled off a double steal. Franchy Cordero then singled, knocking in both base runners to give the Padres a 4-1 advantage.

 

The Brewers scored their final two runs in the sixth inning. Jacob Nix still on the mound for the Padres. Smoak and Luis Urias were the first two hitters and both flew out. Brock Holt singled. Ben Gamel then singled, and Franchy Cordero threw the ball away when trying to cut down Holt who was trying to go from first to third on the play. That allowed Holt to score and Gamel to advance to second. Manny Pina then singled to score Gamel, cutting the Padres lead to 4-3. Avisail Garcia came up as a pinch-hitter and hit a weak looping-liner that Machado caught to end the inning.

 

The Brewers did have a chance to tie the game in the ninth inning. Andres Munoz was on the hill for the Padres. Omar Narvaez pinch-hit and hit a hard single to right. He then advanced to second on a wild pitch. Man on second, nobody out. Lorenzo Cain struck out for the first out of the inning, his fourth strikeout of the day. Drew Pomeranz came into the ballgame. Pomeranz has been awful for the Padres and I was surprised to see him enter in this situation (5.63 ERA, 2.10 WHIP, 4.14 FIP). However, Pomeranz was good on this day as he got pinch-hitter Jedd Gyorko to fly out on a medium hit ball to centerfield and then struck out Keston Hiura looking to end the ballgame.

 

Burnes has done a good job of limiting runs but the pitch count is still a bit of problem. 94 pitches in only 4 1/3 innings in this game, previous start he left with 82 pitches in just 3 1/3 innings.

 

The loss drops the Brewers back to .500. The Cardinals win, so the Brewers are 2 1/2 games back in the NL Central.

 

[attachment=2]7_18_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_18_batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_18_pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

So after the Miley signing, I went to look at the free agent list to see what other veterans might be floating out there. This is pretty much mandatory if you are managing a team, but I've pretty much ignored this list for much of the season since I'm just an observer (only three exceptions so far that I can remember). I have been looking at the trading block every couple of days just to see who the Brewers might trade for (and, of course, they haven't made a trade so far)...but other than that haven't been paying much attention other than the Brewer games, standings, Brewer transaction list and league news.

 

So I am looking at the free agent list, and there sits ex-Dodger reliever Pedro Baez. Baez from 2017-2019 = 190 innings, 2.98 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 3.72 FIP, 0.9 HR/9, 3.6 BB/9, 9.2 K/9. Three year track record....excellent across the board.

 

So what has Baez done in 2020 to make him a member of the free agent market? 40 innings, 2.48 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 3.47 FIP, 1.1 HR/9, 2.7 BB/9, 11 K/9. There is no injury listed in the log. His game ratings look pretty good. He was released on June 28.

 

I'm not going to do it, but I'm really tempted to cheat and put him on the Brewer's roster. I do think OOTP is a really good game overall, but these little "oversights" like this are a bit annoying. No way a player like this should sit on the free agent market for this length of time.

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 19 - Padres 4, Brewers 3 (11 innings)

 

The Brewers squander one of the best performances by a starting pitcher all year and suffer another frustrating loss.

 

Brent Suter took the mound for the Brewers and really wasn't challenged until the eighth inning. That's right, a Brewer starting pitcher actually pitched into the eighth inning. The Padres had men on first and second in the first inning and Suter got Jurickson Profar to weakly ground out to end the threat. That was the last Padre baserunner to reach second base until the eighth inning.

 

The Brewers scored two runs in the second inning off of ex-Brewer Zach Davies. Luis Urias led off the inning with a ground out. Brock Holt singled and then Ben Gamel doubled. Brent Suter came up and grounded out with the infield drawn in, preventing Holt from scoring. Lorenzo Cain came up with 2 outs and 2 runners in scoring position, and hit a 1-1 pitch for a line drive single to right-center to score both runners. Sogard hit a weak grounder back to Davies to end the inning.

 

The Brewers then got a gift run in the seventh inning. With runners on first and third, Padre catcher Francisco Mejia tried to pick Omar Narvaez off of first base and threw the ball into right field, allowing Sogard to score from third. The only reason Sogard was on third base was because a wild pitch from earlier in the inning. This put the Brewers up 3-0 and things were looking really good.

 

Suter went to the mound to start the eighth and Eric Hosmer led off the inning with a home run. Wil Myers pinch-hit and doubled on the first pitch he saw. Tommy Pham was the next hitter, he grounded out but Myers advanced to third on the play. Adrian Houser came into the ballgame. Trent Grisham came to the plate and doubled to cut the score to 3-2. Houser then struck out Fernando Tatis Jr. and got Manny Machado on a ground out to preserve the lead.

 

There was no funny business on this day as Craig Counsell went straight to Josh Hader to start the ninth inning. Nelson Cruz pinch-hit and struck out looking. Yasiel Puig came up and doubled to left field. Mejia was the next batter and flew out weakly to left field. Hosmer ripped a 1-0 pitch for a single to right-center that scored Puig and tied the game. Hader struck out Greg Garcia to send the game to extra innings.

 

Manny Machado led off the bottom of the eleventh and hit 3-2 pitch from Devin Williams for a 345 foot home run that barely cleared the wall down the left field line. Brewers get swept and now face a three-game series on the road against the Dodgers.

 

The Cardinals won their ballgame. The Pirates are 2 1/2 games back, the Brewers are 3 1/2 games back and the Reds are 5 games back.

 

Pretty notable trade made-

Dodgers get - RHP - Trevor Bauer (116 innings, 4.19 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 4.27 FIP)

Reds get - RF - D.J. Peters (24 years old, in AA - 393 plate appearances, .292/.405/.495/.900), RF - Rolando Lebron (22 years old, in R - 7 plate appearances, .000/.000/.000/.000), C - Jefferson Valladares (18 years old, in R - 59 plate appearances, .214/.254/.500/.754)

Walker Buehler is out for two months with a torn triceps and David Price is out for three weeks with shoulder inflammation. Brusdar Graterol is in the rotation but has gone on the injury report twice this year (back tightness, strained forearm). So despite the huge stockpile of starting pitching for the Dodgers, the need was there to pick up another. I think D.J. Peters is a bit under-rated in the game. He's not in the top 500 prospects but is the top non-top 500 prospect in the Reds organizational list. He probably should be right around 300. There is raw power there but contact issues, if he gets on base enough the potential is there for him to be a pretty good major leaguer. That park in Cincinnati could be a wonderful fit for him. The other two players look like long shots to reach the majors. I thought Bauer and Mike Minor were the two most attractive pitchers on the market that are healthy, and Minor has pitched poorly recently. Really would have liked to see the Brewers in on this as an equivalent price (if going by the prospect ratings in the game) probably would have been something like Tyrone Taylor and a couple guys way down the list.

 

Reds pitcher Sonny Gray is done for the season (shoulder inflammation). He had missed all of June, came back and made three starts and now is being shutdown for the rest of the year. Gray finishes the season with 66 2/3 innings, 4.05 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, 4.80 FIP. The Reds rotation is Luis Castillo, Tyler Mahle, Lucas Sims (follower), Jose De Leon and Sal Romano.

 

Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer is still having problems with a sore wrist and is now expected to miss an additional four days.

 

[attachment=2]7_19_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_19_batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_19_pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 20 - Dodgers 6, Brewers 3

 

I had been thinking the Brewers would be on the wrong side of a horribly lopsided trade that would make me lose all interest in the simulation. A Brewer trade has finally been made and I’m happy to say the Brewers were the beneficiary of what looks like a terrible deal for the Royals.

 

Brewers get – RHP – Ian Kennedy (34 innings, 2.65 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 3.86 FIP), LHP – Daniel Lynch (23 years old, in AAA – 76 2/3 innings, 5.05 ERA, 1.47 FIP, 6.24 FIP), $2,887,500

Royals get – C – David Freitas (40 plate appearances, .167/.250/.333/.583)

 

Kennedy is ridiculously overpaid at 16.5 million this season. He is a free agent at the end of the year. There is roughly 6.417 million remaining on the contract, so the Royals are retaining $2,887,500 of the deal and the Brewers are paying Kennedy $3,529,167 for the next 2 1/2 months of work. He’s been pretty good this year, and will be a solid bullpen contributor if that continues. Lynch is rated just outside the top 100 prospects list (#109) but has been terrible this year. Outside of the 5.05 ERA/6.24 FIP he’s posted in AAA, he has also thrown 25 innings in AA and had an 8.28 ERA/4.91 FIP at that level. Could it be that Kansas City doesn’t think Lynch will progress any further and are just looking to dump as much of Kennedy’s remaining contract as possible? I guess that’s what one would have to think if trying to find reason in this trade. Kennedy will likely be on the 26-man roster for Tuesday’s game. Like Wade Miley, Lynch has initially been assigned to the Arizona Blue squad but expect him to move to a higher level within a few days.

 

Freddy Peralta took the hill versus Trevor Bauer, who is making his Dodger debut.

 

The Dodgers scored the first two runs of the game in the second inning when Corey Seager and A.J. Pollock hit back-to-back solo home runs. Peralta didn't have much of a problem with the rest of the Dodgers lineup outside of these home runs. He pitched 5 innings, allowed 4 hits with 1 walk and 7 strikeouts.

 

The Brewers tied the game in the fifth when Lorenzo Cain singled home Justin Smoak and Brock Holt.

 

The game-deciding half-inning was the bottom of the sixth. Ray Black relieved Peralta. Black had a terrible outing in which he walked Cody Bellinger, allowed a single to Mookie Betts and then hit Joc Pederson in the head with a pitch. Pederson had to leave the ballgame and is listed as day-to-day for 1-2 weeks with a concussion. Craig Counsell pulled Black and put J.P. Feyereisen into the game. Will Smith came to the plate, and hit a 393 foot grand slam to right-center field on the first pitch of the at-bat (seems like we've seen this a lot recently).

 

Jedd Gyorko hit a solo home run off of Blake Treinen in the seventh inning to make the score 6-3. The Brewers had a chance in the ninth. Kenley Jansen, who is having an excellent season, apparently was unavailable to pitch having thrown in three of the last four days. Dave Roberts went to Caleb Ferguson to pitch the ninth. Luis Urias led off with a single, and the Smoak drew a walk to bring the tying run to the plate. Counsell pinch-hit Ryan Braun for Brock Holt, and Braun got behind 0-2 and then grounded into a double-play which just about killed any chance the Brewers had. Ben Gamel then pinch-hit and ended the game with a strikeout.

 

Fifth loss in a row for the Brewers and the record drops to 48-50. They are still only 3 1/2 games back. The Cardinals in first, the Pirates are 2 games back and the Reds are 4 1/2 games back.

 

[attachment=2]7_20_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_20_batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_20_pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 21 - Dodgers 5, Brewers 2

 

Transaction notes-

Ian Kennedy placed on the 26-man roster, Chris Lee designated for assignment and placed on waivers

Wade Miley promoted to AAA

Daniel Lynch promoted to AA

Jacob Nottingham promoted to AAA

I thought the Rasmussen/Feyereisen yo-yo would come to an end with the acquisition of Ian Kennedy, but instead Chris Lee gets DFA'ed. Rasmussen started a game for San Antonio on Sunday, it was his first MiLB appearance April 19, so maybe he will stay in AAA for awhile. Wade Miley got the call to AAA, he's been put in the bullpen. The Brewers are down to 2 catchers on the 40-man roster with the trade of David Freitas. The AAA catchers are Jacob Nottingham, Tuffy Gosewisch and James Keller. Keller is a recent signing out of independent ball. Would have to think that Nottingham would be the replacement if Omar Narvaez or Manny Pina is injured.

 

The pitching matchup for today's game was Josh Lindblom versus Brusdar Graterol. Lindblom has pitched well lately, and Graterol entered this game with a 2.14 ERA and a 3.14 FIP. Gavin Lux and Will Smith got the day off, which made the bottom half of the Dodger lineup rather weak, making me think the Brewers had a good chance in this one.

 

The Brewers scored the game's first run in the second inning. Cain led off with a walk, and Braun ended up with a sacrifice when trying for a bunt single. Keston Hiura came up and doubled in Cain.

 

Lindblom ran into a minor jam in the fifth inning, but otherwise was cruising right along. He got the first two outs in the sixth, but then Cody Bellinger and Mookie Betts hit back-to-back solo home runs to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead.

 

Ian Kennedy made his Brewer debut in the seventh. He got Tyler White on an easy fly ball to centerfield, Enrique Hernandez on a pop out to second, and Austin Barnes on a weak fly ball to centerfield for an easy 3-up, 3-down inning.

 

Kennedy came back out in the eighth and gave up a single to the pinch-hitting Chris Taylor. Ray Black came into the ballgame and, with the trouble the Brewers have had with inherited runners recently, I figured Taylor would very likely score. It's didn't take long as Justin Turner doubled on a 0-1 pitch to bring Taylor all the way around the bases for the Dodger's third run. A.J. Pollock was the next hitter and singled to score Turner. Cody Bellinger was walked and that was the end for Black. Alex Claudio came into the game. Mookie Betts singled to load the bases. Corey Seager came up and was the first out as he struck out. Tyler White came up and hit a fly ball to center that was deep enough to score Pollock and give the Dodgers a 5-1 lead. Enrique Hernandez came up and singled, but fortunately Ryan Braun threw out Bellinger at the plate to end the inning.

 

At least the Brewers made it a bit interesting in the ninth. Blake Treinen was on the hill for the Dodgers. Manny Pina was the first batter up and he struck out. Brock Holt then reached base on a Hernandez error, then advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Cain was the next batter and he struck out. Ryan Braun came up and doubled in Holt. This put the tying run in the on-deck circle so Kenley Jansen came into the ballgame. Hiura was the first batter he faced and he walked him on five pitches. Avisail Garcia came to the plate as the tying run but Jansen struck him out to end the ballgame.

 

The Brewers have now lost 6 straight games. The Cardinals are in first place, the Pirates are 3 back, the Brewers fall to 4 1/2 back and the Reds are 5 1/2 back.

 

In other league news, Reds relief pitcher Robert Stephenson has a sore elbow and is listed as day-to-day for two weeks. Stephenson had a pretty good season last year but has struggled in 2020 - 33 innings, 5.18 ERA, 1.70 WHIP, 4.66 FIP.

 

[attachment=2]7_21_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_21_hitters.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_21_pitchers.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 21 - Dodgers 5, Brewers 2

 

Pitching matchup for today's game was Brandon Woodruff versus Clayton Kershaw. I thought Kershaw showed signs of age last year, but his BB/9 (1.4) and K/9 (11.5) have improved this year, resulting in a 3.47 FIP. With Woodruff pitching much better lately (2.74 ERA in July), this one had the look of being a close, low-scoring game.

 

Dodgers chipped away at Woodruff and scored a single run in the first and second inning. Corey Seager singled to score Gavin Lux in the first, and Chris Taylor scored an a Austin Barnes sacrifice fly in the second.

 

Meanwhile, the Brewers were getting runners on base but couldn't push any across the plate. 7 runners left on base in the first 5 innings with no runs scored. The Brewer offense finally broke through in the sixth inning. Omar Narvaez led off with a single. Kershaw was at 98 pitches, so Dave Roberts went to the pen and put Addison Reed in the ballgame. Luis Urias singled, and then Justin Smoak walked to load the bases with nobody out. Jedd Gyroko hit a weak fly ball to shallow right field for the first out. Brandon Woodruff came up and hit a fly ball to centerfield, deep enough to score Narvaez and advance Urias to third base. Lorenzo Cain was the next batter and walked, once again loading the bases. Avisail Garcia then singled to score Urias and tie the game at 2. Keston Hiura was the next batter and he struck out to end the inning. Hiura didn't come through here, but he finished the game with a double and 2 walks and it's the best offensive day he's had in awhile.

 

The game was still tied at 2 entering the bottom of the eighth inning. Counsell decided to start the inning with the man with the 8+ ERA, Adrian Houser. Cody Bellinger was the first batter and he walked. Mookie Betts came up and singled, advancing Bellinger to second base. Corey Seager struck out swinging for the first out. Houser then left the game with an undisclosed injury, the information was listed as "Pending..." after the game which can be a bad sign. Counsell decided to go with Devin Williams. The first batter to face Williams was Will Smith, and he walked, loading the bases. Chris Taylor came up and walked, scoring Bellinger and giving the Dodgers a 3-2 lead. Enrique Hernandez came up and walked, putting the Dodgers up 4-2. A.J. Pollock pinch-hit, watched 4 straight balls go by him as Williams walked in this third run in a row. David Phelps came into the ballgame, got Austin Barnes to hit into a force play at home and then struck out Justin Turner to end the inning with no further damage. Kenley Jansen came into the ballgame in the ninth and logged his 29th save of the season.

 

Another frustrating ending. IMO the talk should be about Devin Williams and exactly why he has been on the roster over the last two months? He does have a pretty remarkable, eye-popping 14.2 K/9 which is probably what saves him. But his BB/9 is a laughable 9.3, which is more bad than the K/9 is good. He also hasn't avoided giving up the base hits, and now has a WHIP of 2.02. One of the more interesting team statistics is that the Brewer pitchers have totaled 1001 strikeouts this season, which is second in the NL. But as we all know, overall the pitching has been bad. 12th in runs allowed and 13th in ERA.

 

I haven't talked too much about pitcher win/lose this year. Williams is the obvious goat in this game but Adrian Houser is the pitcher credited with the lose. That puts his season W-L at 2-12. We'll wait to see the seriousness of the injury, but frankly just about any replacement would figure to be an upgrade. 8.68 ERA, 1.86 WHIP, 5.87 FIP, opponent slash line of .325/.403/.573/.976...it doesn't get any worse than that.

 

Thankfully this 6 game west coast trip is over. It figured to be tough, but 0-6 and getting outscored 31-15 was even worse than anticipated. Offense is pretty much dead at this point. Thankfully Christian Yelich's injury time is only listed as 1 more day, so he could be back on Friday or a couple games later if he has a short rehab assignment. At least the schedule is looking better. Day off tomorrow and then the next 16 games all come against NL Central opponents and there is obviously no great team in that bunch (and the three games after those 16 games comes against the Marlins). A good chance to make up a bunch of ground.

 

Cardinals in first place, the Pirates are 3 games back and the Reds have moved into a third place tie with the Brewers at 5 1/2 games back.

 

Trade made-

Rays get C - James McCann (77 plate appearances, .294/.377/.544/.921)

White Sox get - RHP - Caleb Sampen (23 years old, in AA - 35 1/3 innings, 2.29 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 3.49 FIP), 3B - Kevin Padlo (24 years old, in AAA - 273 plate appearances, .286/.401/.551/.951), RHP-Alexis Pichardo (17 years old, in R - 28 innings, 4.82 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 3.56 FIP)

Sampen goes into the White Sox top prospect list at #10, Padlo is listed just outside the top 30 (#34) and Pichardo seems like an alright lottery ticket type.

 

Mets starting pitcher Marcus Stroman has suffered a flexor-pronator strain and will miss 2 weeks. Fortunately for the Mets, Jacob deGrom has just about finished his rehab assignment and will be back on the 26-man roster within the next couple of days.

 

[attachment=2]7_22_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_22_batters.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_22_pitchers.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 23 - scheduled day off

 

Roster move made-

Christian Yelich activated from the DL and put on 26-man roster, Ben Gamel optioned to AA

The Brewer offense has been so mediocre lately that they are not going to waste Yelich at-bats on a rehab assignment. Keon Broxton was called up on May 14th. So he's been with the club for over 2 months and has only gotten into 7 games and has a total of 5 plate appearances. Yet he stays, likely only because of centerfield defense, and the guy with the .998 OPS gets sent to AAA?

 

26 man roster-

Rotation = Brandon Woodruff, Corbin Burnes, Brent Suter, Freddy Peralta, Josh Lindblom

Bullpen = Josh Hader (closer), Adrian Houser - injured, information pending (setup), Devin Williams (setup), Alex Claudio (middle), Ray Black (middle), David Phelps (middle), Ian Kennedy (middle), J.P. Feyereisen (long)

Catchers = Omar Narvaez, Manny Pina

Infielders = Justin Smoak, Keston Hiura, Eric Sogard, Luis Urias, Brock Holt, Jedd Gyorko

Outfielders = Christian Yelich, Lorenzo Cain, Avisail Garcia, Ryan Braun, Keon Broxton

 

DL = Corey Knebel (torn ucl, out 12 months)

 

Other 40 man roster players (35 players)-

Pitchers = Drew Rasmussen, Chris Lee (on waivers), Eric Yardley

Infielders = Orlando Arcia, Ryon Healy, Ronny Rodriguez (elbow strain, out for 2 weeks)

Outfielders = Ben Gamel, Tyrone Taylor

 

In other league news, Baltimore reliever Hunter Harvey has shoulder inflammation and will be sidelined for 4 months, bringing his season to an end. Harvey had 18 2/3 MLB innings this year, and had posted a 4.82 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 3.82 FIP. He missed a couple months earlier in the season with elbow tendinitis. Pretty disappointing for the Orioles as his potential ratings, and status as a former first round pick, make him one of the team's building blocks for the future.

 

[attachment=2]7_23_team stats.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_23_batters.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_23_pitchers.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

Just noticed that I forgot to sim through the Thursday games before posting these. The Cardinals and Reds both played and won, so the Brewers are 6 games back and have dropped a 1/2 game behind the Reds and are in fourth place. I'm too lazy to go back and post new screenshots.

 

[attachment=3]7_23_NL Standings.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=2]7_23_AL Standings.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_23_NL Wild Card.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_23_AL Wild Card.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

So it's time to figure out what to do with this now that real baseball is here. I'm planning on going for at least one more week to see where things stand after the trade deadline. Note that the trade deadline in the game isn't like the trade deadline in real life, at least not in past versions of the game. There probably won't be a huge flurry of activity in the last couple of days, but it will probably be like 5 trades spread over the final seven days. I know I will continue to do a daily sim, but not sure if it's really worth posting anything at that point and waste the time and bandwidth when doing so.

 

July 24 - Pirates 16, Brewers 9

 

Adrian Houser has a strained oblique, has been put on the DL and is expected to miss five weeks. Drew Rasmussen has been recalled from AAA. Rasmussen got one appearance in while in San Antonio but that was on the 19th so he was available for today's game. Chris Lee has cleared waivers and been assigned to AAA.

 

I was anticipating a big bounce-back after the terrible west coast trip. Christian Yelich is back, and the Brewers had a 5-1 record against Pittsburgh. And frankly the Pirates have looked like last place quality in those six games. Then four games against the Cardinals, I would have predicted a nice little 5-2 run to get the Brewers to just 1 game under .500 heading into a three game series against a terrible Cub team.

 

However, as you can see by the final score, the Brewer pitching was a complete disaster. The pitching matchup was Trevor Williams, who has really struggled recently (9.15 ERA in July), against Corbin Burnes. Williams allowed 6 runs in 2 2/3 innings, but was still the better starter on this day. As far as my statement that almost anybody would be better than Houser...well Rasmussen was his replacement...Rasmussen entered this game with the bases loaded, allowed all three of those guys to score and then surrendered another three runs on top of that. The last four Brewer relievers that were used combined for 4 1/3 innings of scoreless baseball, which just gives you an idea of how bad the pitching was during the first five innings.

 

And to top it all off, Alex Claudio, who hasn't pitched very well but at least can (or previously had been able to) pitch pretty much everyday, had to be removed from the ballgame after the trainer examined his elbow. No word on the injury after the game but there could be a DL stint coming in the near future.

 

At least the Brewer offense looked good. Yelich had 2 doubles in his return. Keston Hiura had 3 hits and the ball seemed to be jumping off his bat, it was his first three-hit performance since June 17. Even Keon Broxton hit a pinch-hit home run. He's been with the club for over 2 months and this is only his second hit in those 2+ months (only was his sixth plate appearance).

 

The Cardinals win again. The Pirates are now 3 games back, the Reds are 6 1/2 games back and the Brewers are 7 games back.

 

At 5 games under .500, and seemingly no way to fix this pitching staff, have to wonder if the Brewers can sell off some pieces with the trade deadline only 1 week away?

 

In other league news, White Sox ace pitcher Lucas Giolito has a minor shoulder problem and is listed as day-to-day for one week. Giolito has been even better than he was last season - 94 2/3 innings, 2.66 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 2.93 FIP, 11.5 K/9.

 

[attachment=3]7_24_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=2]7_24_batting 1.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_24_batting 2.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_24_pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 25 - Brewers 3, Pirates 0

 

The 8-game losing streak comes to an end.

 

Roster move made-

Alex Claudio placed on the 60-day DL and removed from the 40-man roster, Alec Bettinger placed on the 26-man roster

 

The word is back on Alex Claudio, torn UCL and out for 11 months. Considering he'll miss half of next year, it's pretty likely that Claudio's time as a Brewer has come to an end. Guess he just couldn't keep up the ridiculous pace of his usage in the game (68 appearances in 101 games, was on pace to appear in 109 games). Claudio finishes the season with 53 innings, 5.09 ERA, 1.72 WHIP, 3.93 FIP. Surprise move that Alec Bettinger is the pitcher that gets the call to the majors, I figured it would be Chris Lee as the lefty would replace another lefty. Bettinger's numbers in AAA = 19 starts, 94 2/3 innings, 4.37 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 4.85 FIP, 16 home runs, 21 walks, 100 strikeouts. That home run number is troublesome, but the BB/K ratio is pretty good. He has been installed as the long reliever, and the last time he pitched was July 22. Josh Hader is the only lefty in the bullpen.

 

As far as today's game, Mitch Keller versus Brent Suter. Keller has shifted into high-gear and is looking like the real deal for the Pirates. He had an ERA of 9 after his fifth start which happened on May 2. His May ERA was 4.05, his June ERA was 0.92 and his July ERA is 2.45. After this game his season numbers are: 3.15 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 3.56 FIP. Brent Suter's last start may have been the best start for the Brewers all year, so this one had the look of being a pretty good pitching matchup.

 

And that's exactly what it was. Christian Yelich hit a 2-run homer off of Keller in the fourth, and Luis Urias hit a solo home run off of Richard Rodriguez in the seventh. That was it for the scoring. Suter was masterful. This may be the first time all year that I was upset to see Hader come into the ballgame. There didn't appear to be any reason for it. Suter was only at 88 pitches are rolling right along, would have loved to see him throw a complete game shutout and it certainly looked like he was going to do it. Suter retired the last seven batters he faced and the Pirates never even got a runner to second base. Looks like Freddy Peralta has legitimate competition for the title of "team's number one starter."

 

Cards lose. The Pirates are 3 games back, the Reds are 5 1/2 games back and the Brewers are 6 games back.

 

In other league news, Reds relief pitcher Cody Reed has suffered a torn flexor tendon in his elbow and will miss the next 14 months. Reed was having a pretty good season- 36 2/3 innings, 3.68 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 3.32 FIP. The Reds pitching staff has become a complete mess with injuries and trades. Rotation is now Luis Castillo, Tyler Mahle, Lucas Sims (follower), Tejay Antone (follower, has thrown 1/3 of an inning in major league career), Packy Naughton (has never pitched in the majors). Bullpen is Raisel Iglesias (closer), Michael Lorenzen (setup), Joel Kuhnel (setup), T.J. McFarland (middle), Amir Garrett (middle), Ryan Hendrix (middle), Jesus Reyes (long), Sal Romano (long).

 

[attachment=2]7_25_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=1]7_25_batting.jpg[/attachment]

 

[attachment=0]7_25_pitching.jpg[/attachment]

[JosephC]

https://www.ootpdevelopments.com/

 

July 26 - Brewers 6, Pirates 0

 

Easy win for the Brewers today. The Brewers are now 7-2 against the Pirates, and it's hard to believe that the Pirates are ahead of the Brewers when watching these head-to-head matchups.

 

The pitching matchup was Hector Noesi against Freddy Peralta. I've talked about Noesi's hot start in a prior post, but since then he's cooled off considerably. He allowed 8 runs in 2 1/3 innings against San Diego his last time out, and his July ERA will likely be north of 10. Peralta looked good his last time out, and has allowed 2 runs or less in 5 of his last 6 starts.

 

Noesi allowed 5 runs in the first inning but was really hurt by two errors (he committed one of them). Lorenzo Cain singled and stole second base, Avisail Garcia was hit by a pitch and then Keston Hiura reached on an error by shortstop Kevin Newman. Christian Yelich hit into a fielder's choice at second base that scored the first run. Luis Urias came up and hit a tapper back to Noesi that he botched for an error, allowing Garcia to score. Omar Narvaez came up and singled to score Yelich for the team's third run. Justin Smoak flew out for the second out of the inning. Eric Sogard came up and got what looked like the unintentional intentional walk to bring the pitcher to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded. Peralta came through with a single to score two runs. That was the end for Noesi. Geoff Hartlieb came into the game and Cain lined out to end the inning. Five runs for the Brewers, four of them unearned as Milwaukee takes full advantage of the Pirate errors.

 

Christian Yelich smashed a line drive, opposite field home run in the second inning to conclude the game's scoring.

 

Peralta threw six innings and did not allow a run. Alec Bettinger made his major league debut and pitched the seventh inning. He struck out Victor Caratini. Kevin Newman was the next batter and he singled. Jarrod Dyson hit into a fielder's choice at second base, and then stole second base. Pablo Reyes pinch-hit and ended the inning on a pop-up to Keston Hiura.

 

One piece of bad new, hopefully not too bad. Lorenzo Cain made a diving catch and strained a hamstring on the play. His status is listed as day-to-day for 1 week so hopefully he won't miss any games.

 

The Cardinals are now solidly in first place. The Pirates are 4 games back, the Reds are 5 1/2 games back and the Brewers are 6 games back.

 

One pretty significant piece of MLB news. The injury that Dodger second baseman Gavin Lux suffered in the June 22 game against Milwaukee turned out to be a torn MCL. He will be out the next 8 months. Lux was having a great rookie season. .296/.370/.497/.867 with 12 home runs, 42 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. Finishes at 3.1 WAR, was on pace for a 4.9 WAR season.

 

[attachment=2]7_26_game summary.jpg[/attachment]

 

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[attachment=0]7_26_pitching.jpg[/attachment]