Week 8 - May 17, 2004  

Carolina On My Mind

For the first time since the first week of the season, the Vancouver Iron Fist are out of 1st place in the Morris Division! The Fisters dropped four out of seven this week to fall two games in the standings, 1½ games behind the Carolina Mudcats -- who now sport the best record in baseball after a 5-2 week... The Columbia Rattlesnakes hung onto 3rd place in the division despite dropping five out of eight, including four in a row to end the week. The Arkansas Golden Falcons are now 1½ games behind them after going 4-3.. The Philadelphia Endzone Animals continue to limp back to .500 after a 5-3 week. They've won 9 out of their last 15 and are just a half-game behind the Tijuana Banditos, who went 2-5... The Hillsborough Destroyers are just 3½ games out of last place after a miserable 2-5 week.

The Stanhope Mighty Men continue to be one of the hottest teams in baseball and this week they finally pulled into a first-place tie in the Hanover Division with the Newark Sugar Bears. The Mites opened the week with a 1-3 record, but finished it off with three straight wins, while the Crunch With Punch could only split their six games this week... The Harrison Rats crept to within two games of .500 after winning four out of seven, while the Phoenix Dragons rode a three-game winning streak to the same record... The Honolulu Sharks went 4-4, while the  Hoboken Cutters went 3-4 and are now just 2 games behind Hillsborough for the league's third-worst record... The Westwood Deductions took a baby step toward respectability by posting a winning week for the first time all season, going 4-3.

It's a Big Deal!

Usually we talk about the league's hottest batters and pitchers before we look at the week's transactions, but we have to make an exception as the big story this week was the second blockbuster trade in as many weeks pulled off by the Rats. But while Harrison drew praise for the deal last week that landed them CF Carlos Beltran, this week the pundits were scratching their heads after the Rats announced their second annual rebuilding deal with Stanhope (last year was SP Derek Lowe, SP Tom Glavine and a third-round pick for OF Ken Griffey, C Mike Lieberthal and a first-round pick). The deal amounts to a surrender trade, giving up their leading htiter and their closer to a team in their own division -- when they were just two games under .500 and nearly two months before the trade deadline!

The Rats give up Gary Sheffield, 35, one of the greatest hitters in the team's brief history and a lock for the DMBL Hall of Fame, with a .293 BA (.878 OPS) with 272 2B, 237 HR and 900 RBI over a DMBL career that began with the Newark Crimewave in 1991. He's in the midst of a career year, hitting .312 (1.034 OPS) with 16 HR, 40 R and 37 RBI, and ranks among the league leaders in just about every other offensive category. They also lose their top reliever in Shigetoshi Hasegawa, also 35. A journeyman pitcher who has bounced between the majors and the minors over the last six years, Hasegawa had blossomed as the Rats' closer, ranking among the league leaders in saves (10), save percentage (1.000), ERA (0.66), BB/9 (0.7), R/9 (6.6) and IR% (.214). Interestingly enough, the Rats claimed Hasegawa off waivers last season after he'd been released... by the Mighty Men.

So what did the Rats get in exchange for punting away the 2004 season? Alfonso Soriano, who is hitting .229 with a .714 OPS, and former Shark starter Freddy Garcia, who is back in Triple-A this season (but was 1-2 with a 2.34 ERA, 1.14 WHIP for Stroudsburg). No draft picks were exchanged in the swap.

Soriano and Garcia are both 28 years old and neither has had a stellar DMBL career -- Soriano entered the season with a career .246 BA (.675 OPS) with 282 Ks against 50 walks in 1216 career ABs, while Garcia, over his four-year career, is 46-38 with a 5.09 ERA, 1.51 WHIP -- but the Rats' front office is convinced that Soriano and Garcia will put up huge numbers next season, joining Beltran, Mark Teixeira and Wade Miller to form the foundation of a DMBL dynasty as the team moves into its new stadium in Las Vegas.

"We're building for the future -- the very near future," Harrison owner/GM Eric Wickstrom said after the deal was consummated. "I fully expect to compete for the World Series crown next year, in our new ballpark!"

Last but certainly not least, the trade also erases a bitter memory from Wickstrom's mind: The 2002 DMBL Draft.Wickstrom had the fifth pick in one of the deepest drafts in league history, and even after the top four picks went as expected (Albert Pujols, Roy Oswalt, Mark Buehrle and Joel Piñeiro), he still had a chance to take a player who would become the franchise's foundation. But it wouldn't be Soriano, taken with the 9th pick by Stanhope; rookie catcher Paul Lo Duca, taken 7th by Brooklyn; starting pitcher Roy Halladay, selected 11th by Carolina; or pitching prospect Josh Beckett, taken 20th by Tijuana. Instead, the Rats grabbed 28-year-old Frank Catalanotto, who had a solid but unspectacular season (.286, .730 OPS in 623 AB) and then missed all of 2003 after entering the witness relocation program. After the draft, Wickstrom said he had intended to take Soriano but somehow blurted out the wrong name when it was his turn to make a selection. Sources in Harrison's front office, however, said that Wickstorm actually had said "Soriano," but was so drunk that no one could understand his slurred speech and then he passed out before the name could be confirmed. Whatever the real story, Soriano is finally a Rat.

That was the week's biggest deal, but it wasn't the only one. A day after announcing the Sheffield trade, the Mighty Men patched their hole at second base by trading their fifth outfielder, 25-year-old rookie Larry Bigbie (.308, .726 OPS in 39 AB), to the Cutters for 2B Roberto Alomar. Alomar is also a no-brainer for the DMBL Hall of Fame, a career .298 hitter with a .810 OPS over 7170 ABs, but he was in the midst of a brutal season for the Cutters (.160, .500 OPS in 100 AB). At the age of 35, and having struggled for most of last season (.243, .607 OPS) as well, it's possible that Alomar is at the end of the line -- and that the 13th-place Cutters were doing him a favor by trading him to a team in contention to give him one last chance at his first DMBL ring. But the trade is a shocker for long-time fans of this oft-moved franchise: Alomar had never been traded or released over his DMBL career, even though Stanhope is his seventh DMBL team! Alomar's long strange trip began with the Maine Lobsters in 1991, taken in the 15th round (#73 overall) in the inaugural DMBL draft. Alomar was then passed along, through dispersal and expansion drafts, to the San Antonio Gun Slingers (1992) to the Sacramento Seahawks (1993-1997) to the New York Amazins (1998) to the Hawaii Volcanoes (1999-2000) to the Cutters (2001-2004) before Tuesday's trade.

Stanhope did make three other "deals" this week, in a sense. With all the new additions, the Mighty Men had to clear up some roster space, and other teams were quick to capitalize. On Monday, the Mites released RP Dan Plesac (4.44 ERA, 11.1 R/9, 7.4 R/9 in 24.1 IP), who was signed by Tijuana two days later; on Wednesday, they cut RP David Weathers (1.59 ERA, 11.1 R/9, 7.5 K/9 in 22.2 IP), who was signed by Hoboken three days later; and on Friday, they released C Brandon Inge (3-for-9, 2 2B, 1 RBI), who was signed by Columbia two days later. 

First Impressions

As the clichè goes, "You never get a second chance to make a first impression." Well, Stanhope's newest acquistion, Gary Sheffield, made quite an impression on Mighty Man Nation by leading the league in OPS (1.702), hits (15), runs batted in (14), doubles (6), extra base hits (10), total bases (32), slugging percentage (1.143), runs created (18.0), isolated power (.607), total average (2.571) and secondary average (.750) to win his first OmahaSteaks.com Batter of the Week Award on the season. Sheffield also ranked second in batting average (.536), second in on-base percentage (.559), tied for first in runs (9),  tied for second in triples (1) and tied for fifth in home runs (3). Roberto Alomar, the team's other new addition to the lineup, also had a tremendous debut, putting up his best numbers in a couple years by hitting .368 (.899 OPS) in 19 AB... Harrison's acquisition, Alfonso Soriano, didn't have as solid a debut (.259, .688 OPS), but the player the Cutters got for Alomar, Larry Bigbie, got fans excited by hitting .318 (.830 OPS) with a HR and stealing home in Sunday's 7-4 win over the Sharks. With the Cutters winning 1-0 in the third, Bigbie reached on a one-out infield single, then, after a flyout by fellow rookie Morgan Ensberg, advanced to third on a long single by Ryan Klesko. Then, after batter Dmitri Young fell behind 0-2 to pitcher Roy Oswalt, bench coach Jorge Velandia decided it was a good time to gamble. Klesko broke for second on Oswalt's next pitch, drawing a throw from catcher Jason Kendall just as Bigbie started racing home. Klesko slid safely under the tag just as Bigbie crossed the plate for a textbook double-steal.

Carolina's Aubrey Huff (.345, .973 OPS, 1 HR, 6 R) continues to scorch the ball, and he's getting plenty of protection in the lineup from red-hot teammates Randy Winn (.579, 1.426 OPS, 1 HR, 6 RBI) and Richie Sexson (.346, 1.203 OPS, 3 HR, 7 R)... Several of the "usual suspects" are also hot: Arkansas's Barry Bonds (.310, 1.222 OPS, 5 HR, 9 R, 11 RBI); Columbia's Trot Nixon (.333, .980 OPS, 1 HR, 3 RBI); Hillsborough's Alex Rodriguez (.400, 1.323 OPS, 3 HR, 6 RBI); Hoboken's Brian Giles (.455, 1.364 OPS, 3 HR, 9 RBI); Newark's Bobby Abreu (.412, 1.062 OPS); Philly's Albert Pujols (.313, 1.028 OPS, 3 HR, 8 RBI); and Vancouver's Edgar Martinez (.423, 1.426 OPS, 4 HR, 6 RBI).

Listach Watch: In addition to Bigbie, several rookies were en fuego this week, including Arkansas's Sean Burroughs (.385, 1.192 OPS, 1 HR, 4 R, 3 RBI); Carolina's Angel Berroa (.519, 1.330 OPS, 4 2B, 8 R); Hoboken's Morgan Ensberg (.409, 1.186 OPS, 2 HR, 5 R); Newark's Marcus Giles (.414, 1.261 OPS, 3 HR, 6 RBI) and Hideki Matsui (.467, 1.233 OPS, 1 HR, 5 RBI); Philly's Matt LeCroy (.320, .850 OPS, 4 2B, 3 RBI); Vancouver's Alex Cintron (.370, .926 OPS, 2 2B, 4 RBI); and Westwood's Jose Reyes (.433, 1.185 OPS, 2 3B, 5 R). But which rookie hitters are looking like the favorites to win the coveted Pat Listach Rookie of the Year Award? Find out in our upcoming edition of Rookie Watch with Phil Plantier!

Two Gems from Jason

Honolulu's Jason Schmidt turned around his awful '04 season with two great starts this week, including a dominating one-hit shutout of Hillsborough on Tuesday, followed by a solid 6-3 effort over Philly on Sunday. Overall, Schmidt was 2-0 while giving up 3 ER, 6 H and 2 BB with 15 K in 16.1 IP (1.65 ERA, 4.4 R/9), good enough to secure the  Michael Winslow's Now Hear This Pitcher of the Week Award!

Vancouver's Ben Sheets moved to an amazing 10-0 after getting a win and a no-decision in two terrific starts this week (3 ER, 11 H, 3 BB, 11 K in 14.2 IP)... Carolina's Barry Zito went 2-0 despite giving up 6 earned runs, 13 hits and 5 walks in 10.2 IP. The 'Cats scored Zito 17 runs in his two starts... Hoboken veteran Mike Mussina is beginning to turn around his season, going 2-0 with a 2.51 ERA, 7.5 R/9 in 14.1 IP this week.

Philly reliever Danny Kolb picked up a win and two saves while giving up just 1 walk (no runs, no hits) in 3.2 IP, while teammates Kyle Farnsworth and Francisco Rodriguez combined to give up 3 H, 3 BB and 0 R in 6 IP... Tijuana's Eric Gagne faced one batter over the minimum, giving up just one hit while retiring 19 batters, without yielding a run in his five appearances this week... Honolulu's Rafael Soriano picked up a win and a save while giving up just 1 hit and fanning 5 in 3 IP... Phoenix's Troy Percival picked up three saves while allowing 0 R, 3 H, 1 BB and 3 K in 2.1 IP.

Keeping Up With Kris

Former Brooklyn uber-prospect Kris Benson is once again riding the merry-go-round. Benson endured a typically rough rookie season (8-15, 4.99 ERA) in 2000, but really blossomed the following year, going 16-6 with a 3.84 ERA and 156 K in 208.2 IP for the Bean Counters. But, perhaps predictably, his young arm didn't fare well after piling up 400 innings in those first two big-league seasons, and the entire 2002 and 2003 seasons were missed due to shoulder and elbow woes. But teams continued to be intrigued by Benson's once limitless ceiling, only to kick him to the curb once team trainers get a closer look at his beleaguered right arm: This year, Benson was drafted by Arkansas in the fifth round of the supplemental draft, released on March 9, brought back eight days later, and then released again on March 21. On May 1, the Iron Fist decided to see what he had left in the tank, and gave him seven days in Triple-A before they sent him packing -- right to Stanhope, who signed him May 12 to another minor-league deal. It's Benson's third team this year, but he still hasn't thrown a pitch in a DMBL game in three years. Team GMs continue to insist all these transactions have nothing at all to do with Benson's hottie wife. "No no, not at all," insisted Arkansas assistant to the traveling secretary George Costanza. "Just because every time we sign the guy his wife shows up in that low-cut dress, I mean, that's no reason to keep signing and releasing a guy. Not at all."

Team doctors are reporting they've finally gotten a grip on the various epidemics that had sweeped across the DMBL over the last month. This week's only major injuries were of a much more normal nature: Columbia's Ivan Rodriguez blew out his rotator cuff while flying a kite, Hoboken's Mark Redman tore his ACL while playing NHL 2004 and Honolulu's Jacques Jones separated his shoulder while baling hay on his uncle's farm. "It's nice to see the league getting back to normal," said Newark team trainer Leonard "Bones" McCoy.

This week's other moves: Arkansas released 2B Adam Kennedy and C Vance Wilson; Harrison released prospect Jose Contreras and signed OF Craig Biggio; Hoboken released RP Felix Rodriguez and signed RP Kevin Gryboski; Newark dropped pitchers Eric Milton and Jeff Suppan in exchange for pitchers Brian Meadows and <Rodrigo Lopez; Philly signed P Carlos Silva and released SP R.A. Dickey; Stanhope signed pitcher Jon Garland.

TWIB may have Ozzie Smith, but we have the better Smith! Zane Smith, former pitcher for the San Antonio Slingers and Sacramento Seahawks, now writes this column exclusively for the Diamond Mind Baseball League. Click Here for past articles.