AL East Report, 8/12/08.

1. Augusta Vacationers (40-18, 4 game lead, 11-6 since last report)

Reliever Vic Ordonez has appeared in 35 of the 58 games so far and has compiled 3 wins, 6 saves and a 2.57 ERA. He has also only walked 9 hitters in 63 innings. Jeff Prince has been the most inconsistent of the starters with a 4-4 record and a 4.58 ERA. Opponents are hitting .298. Chris Wright is also just 4-4 as a starter making the rest of the staff 32-10 besides those two. Cookie Whang refuses to show his age as he now has an ERA of 2.80 after 11 starts.John Rolen is the only Vacs player with an average above .290 with a .316 average.

Harold Martin has been on a tear of late with 9 HR’s in his last 17 games. He also leads the team with 53 RBI. Flip Hill is headed in the other direction has he is just 5 for his last 32 sinking his average to .269. Rule 5 Draftee Guillermo Mosa had never played above High-A before this season but in a limited role has 7 HR’s in 66 AB’s and a .988 OPS.

Minor League Watch

Pitcher- Dorian Whitehead (LA) 6-3, 2.75 73k’s in 72 IP’s
Hitter- Cam Greisinger (AA) .356-22-74, 1.231 OPS

Interesting Fact- The AA Vacs started 12-14. They have been on fire winning 28 of their last 31 games and are now 40-17.

2. Baltimore O’s (36-22, 4 games back, 11-6 since last report)

The O’s are keeping up with the Vacs having won 9 of their last 10. Miguel Estrella leads the team in wins with 8 yet has the worst ERA among the starters at 4.91. Willie Rios has dropped 2 out of his last 3 decisions and in that stretch his ERA jumped from 1.98 to 3.20. Closer Felipe Cora is bidding to become Fireman of the Year as he is still perfect in save opportunities (19 for 19) and opponents are hitting just .172 against him.

Walt Seneca is 15 for his last 37 raising his average to .280. He is also on a 10 game hitting streak and for the 2nd time this season has a hitting streak in double digits. His 44 RBI is tied for the team lead with Douglas Cardona. Cardona’s 15 bombs leads the team. Chad Mercker is just 3 for his last 26 dropping his average to .248. Speedy Albert Sosa and Michael Kingland are a combined 42 for 46 on the basepaths while the team as a whole is 67 for 78 (86%).

Minor League Watch

Pitcher- York Schmidt (AA) 11 saves in 12 ops, 21k’s in 22 IP’s
Hitter- Boots Brunette (AAA) .356-16-62, 1.181 OPS

Interesting Fact- AAA, AA & HA are a combined 101-70. LA is a dismal 15-42.

3. San Juan Slugging Diablos (23-35, 17 back, 8-9 since last report)

Rick Douglas is among league leaders with 66 k’s. Closer Tanyon Dunn looks more comfortable in San Juan now allowing just 1 run in his last 8 appearances while opponents are hitting just .213 off of him. Last season’s top draft pick Dwight Thurman allowed 1 run in 6 innings while striking out 6 in his best ML performance in his last start. Monte Stewart was demoted after allowing his embarrassing 12th homer in just 51 innings of work.

Lew Rivera has been on a prolonged tear with 36 hits in his last 75 AB’s raising his overall average to .396. He has also scored runs in 13 of his last 16 games and has a phenomenal .452 OBP. After a mini slump, Fred Eyre has come to life again and overall is hitting .311-16-51. Davey Vazquez is still perfect on the basepaths with 33 steals without being caught.

Minor League Watch

Pitcher- Jacque Burns (HA) 9-1, 2.47 ERA 1.23 WHIP.
Hitter- Philip Forrester (HA) .357-19-91, 1.130 OPS

Interesting Fact- The High-A Diablos’ 46-11 record is tops in all of baseball.

4. Florida Beach Bums (15-43, 25 back, 2-15 since last report)

While the Bums appeared to have been playing better on the last report, they hit bottom in the last 17 games winning just 2. Reliever Paul Clifton is still the lone pitcher with a sub 4 ERA and his 1.42 WHIP is tops on a team that carries a 1.68 WHIP. Cesar Lecouna has offered up 17 HR’s in 68 innings while his 8 losses leads the staff. Even former All Star closer Craig Rivers is struggling with a 8.10 ERA. Opponents have an astonishing .376 OBP against the Bums staff.

Brad Roosevelt, (FDR’s great grandson) leads the team with 9 HR’s and 16 doubles. The former 2nd round draft pick also has swiped 6 bags while leading the team in runs scored with 29. Scott Bradley is 11 for his last 26 raising his average to .291 during his current 7 game hitting streak.

Minor League Watch

Pitcher- Ted Valentin (HA) 2-1, 1.85 ERA, 0.92 WHIP.
Hitter- Tim Powell (AA) .326-20-73, 1.132 OPS 50 walks 29 k’s

Interesting Fact- The High A Bums are the only team in the organization that has a Sub-5 ERA at 4.70.

AL East HR, RBI & SB Leaders.

HR
1. Harold Martin, Augusta 19
2. Lorenzo Perez, San Juan 17
3. Fred Eyre, San Juan 16
4. Douglas Cardonas, Baltimore 15
4. Flip Hill, Augusta 15

RBI
1. Lorenzo Perez, San Juan 55
2. Harold Martin, Augusta 53
3. Fred Eyre, San Juan 51
4. Junior Urbina, San Juan 45
5. Walt Seneca, Baltimore 44
5. Douglas Cardonas, Baltimore 44

SB
1. Davey Vazquez, San Juan 33
2. Albert Sosa, Baltimore 24
3. Michael Kingland, Baltimore 18
4. Phil Carver, Florida 16
5. Adam O’Malley, Augusta 14
5. Luis Concepcion, Florida 14