Week 23 - Aug. 30, 2004  

Too Close to Call!

The 2004 DMBL season is going right down to the wire as everything is up for grabs with a week left to play! Four teams have clinched playoff spots, but no one has claimed the league's best record or either division title. And three teams are officially dead, with three others on life support; but four teams are still battling for two playoff spots.

The four teams at the top of the standings know they'll be in the post-season, but the final week will determine the seeding -- as well as the division titles, which means a first-round bye, and the league's best record, which guarantees home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. But the long, gruelling season is taking its toll as only one of the four contenders could manage a winning record this week -- the Newark Sugar Bears, who went 5-2 and have opened up a 4-game lead in the Hanover Division. It was Newark's first winning week since Week 17, going 16-17 over that stretch... The Arkansas Golden Falcons went 4-4 last week, falling into a tie for the league's best record with the Sugar Bears, but moving ahead of the Carolina Mudcats for the Morris Division lead. The 'Cats dropped six out of seven games this week and are now a game behind the Falcs and Bears... In 4th place, the Stanhope Mighty Men lost 3 games in the division standings after a 2-5 week, but at 4 games out, are still within striking distance of the division title and the league's best record.

The Honolulu Sharks jumped into 5th place overall and took control of their own destiny with an impressive 6-1 week. The Sharks can guarantee themselves a second-straight post-season appearance if they can go 4-2, no matter what the competition does... The 6th-place Columbia Rattlesnakes look like a marathon runner crawling toward the finish line, dropping 5 out of 7 this week, but they also control their own destiny: If they can win 5 out of their last 6, they'll make the playoffs for the first time in their 13-year history, even if the teams chasing them win out. But 5-1 is a tall order for a team that has gone 32-40 since the All-Star Break... The Tijuana Banditos leap-frogged from 9th place to 7th place after going 6-1 this week, including a four-game winning streak, but they still need some help if they're going to make the playoffs for the third time in five years. If the Banditos can stretch their current winning streak to 11 games by going 7-0 next week, they'll need the Rattlesnakes to do no better than 3-3, or the Sharks to drop at least four of their last six... Falling a rung in the standings to 8th place after a 3-4 week, the Vancouver Iron Fist will be out of the playoffs for just the second time in their glorious history unless they can run the table -- and even that wouldn't be enough without some help: If the Rattlesnakes win half of their 6 games next week, it's all over for the Fisters.

At the back of the pack, two more teams were officially knocked out of the post-season, joining the last-place Hillsborough Destroyers (eliminated last week) in the quest for the No. 1 pick in next year's lottery draft. The Westwood Deductions were the next team to go, slamming the door on themselves by dropping 5 out of 7 this week. The Deductions, at 64-92, have to win all 6 of their remaining games in order to avoid posting their worst record in franchise history... The Phoenix Dragons were able to split their 8 games this week, but it wasn't enough as they too were eliminated. What do they have left to play for? Well, if they win 5 out of their last 7 games, they could finish at 73-89 for a third straight season... Who's next? The Hoboken Cutters and Harrison Rats, tied for 10th place, were each able to stave off elimination -- Hoboken won 5 out of 7, while Harrison took 4 out of 6 -- but each team has a "tragic number" of 1, meaning another loss, or a win by the 6th-place team, makes the rest of the 2004 season irrelevant... In 9th place, the Philadelphia Endzone Animals hastened their departure by dropping 4 out of 6, and have a TN of 2.

The Week Ahead: The 7th-place Banditos almost certainly have to sweep their three-game series in Honolulu to have any chance of reaching the post-season this year, while the 5th-place Sharks can almost guarantee themselves a playoff berth by taking two out of three. But even if the Sharks get splashed by the Banditos, they'll have another chance to pop the champagne by winning their four-game series against 6th-place Columbia... The loser of this week's three-game series between the 4th-place Mighty Men and the 3rd-place Mudcats will likely have to settle for a wildcard berth, while the winner will be in excellent shape to challenge for their division title. But while Carolina gets to finish the season taking on the woeful Rats, the Mighty Men could have their hands full hosting a pissed-off Vancouver squad... With nothing left to play for this season, the Cutters and Destroyers can play the role of spoiler this week as each takes on a division leader: The Cutters host three games against Arkansas, while the Destroyers get a taste of the post-season with three games in Newark... Even if everything else is decided, next weekend will feature a series worth watching: The Toilet Bowl! Three games between 13th-place Westwood and 14th-place Hillsborough to determine the league's worst record.

Soup's On!

The Cutters will be eliminated with their next loss, but their respectable second half -- they've gone 36-34 since the All-Star Break -- they certainly have a foundation for success in 2005. But it's not just the youngsters -- like Miguel Cabrera, Juan Uribe and Jesus Colome -- that have Hoboken fans excited. The team also is likely to back a solid core of experienced veterans, including Jason Isringhausen, Vinny Castilla and Omar Vizquel, to spearhead a return to the playoffs for the first time since 2002. The veteran pitchers on the team tantalized Cutter fans with a glimpse of what could be to come next season as they led the squad to an impressive 5-2 record this week, including outstanding performances from Isringhausen (1 W, 1 SV, 1 ER, 5 H, 4 BB, 5 K in 4.1 IP), Mark Redman (1-0, 1 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 8 K in 9.0 IP) and, most of all, Jeff Suppan, who won the Which Star Wars Character Are You? Pitcher of the Week Award after going 2-0 while allowing just 1 ER, 8 H and 4 BB while striking out 9 in 14.0 IP (0.64 ERA, 7.7 R/9). Suppan, signed as a free agent soon after being cut by the Sugar Bears' Triple-A squad, is 6-3 with a 3.52 ERA, 11.5 R/9 in 10 starts with the Cutters. He has three complete games, two shutouts and five quality starts to his credit, making him one of the Cutters' most consistent starters. Hoboken fans can only wonder what their season would have been like if the Cutters had discovered Suppan before giving all those starts to Jae Seo (8-12, 5.28 ERA, 14.5 R/9), Darrell May (5-15, 5.29 ERA, 13.5 R/9) and Kurt Ainsworth (3-3, 7.05 ERA, 16.1 R/9).

Vancouver's Greg Maddux went 1-1 this week despite two brilliant starts. In his first start this week, against Westwood, Maddux cruised to a victory, allowing scattering 7 hits, no walks and no runs over 6.1 IP. But in Game 2, a must-win against the Rattlesnakes, Maddux was betrayed by his teammates as his offense left an astounding 15 runners on base to score just one run, his defense made three errors, and his bullpen gave up three runs. The end result was a 5-1 loss and another nail in the coffin on Vancouver's playoff hopes. Maddux took the loss despite giving up just 6 hits, no walks and 1 earned run in 7.0 IP. It's been a particularly frustrating season for the three-time Ben McDonald Award winner, who falls to 6-14 despite a relatively decent 4.77 ERA, 11.9 R/9, and .433 QS%. But the 37-year-old Maddux dismisses rumors that this will be his last season. "We have enough great young arms in this system to have two great rotations next year, with kids like Ben Sheets, Jake Peavy, Oliver Perez and Rich Harden all under age 25, and Jeff Weaver, Tomo Ohka and Brian Lawrence all under 30... Hell, I just hope I can make the team!"

This week's other top starters: Arkansas's C.C. Sabathia (1-0, 1.80 ERA, 8.4 R/9, 4 BB, 12 K in 15.0 IP); Hillsborough's Kevin Millwood (1-0, 1.88 ERA, 10.0 R/9, 3 BB, 14 K in 14.1 IP); Newark's Eric DuBose (1-0, 1.93 ERA, 9.0 R/9, 6 BB, 5 K in 14.0 IP); and Philly's Mark Prior (1-0, 1 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 14 K in 9.0 IP).

This year's only rookie closer, Hillsborough's Luis Ayala, hasn't had a very good campaign (4.44 ERA, 13.9 R/9), but this week he finally looked like the quality closer the Destroyers thought they were getting with their fifth-round pick, going a perfect 3-for-3 in save opportunities (0 R, 2 H, 0 BB, 2 K in 3.1 IP). He got plenty of support from set-up man LaTroy Hawkins (0 R, 3 H, 2 BB, 8 K in 4.0 IP).

Ayala has 3 wins and 25 saves, but he also has 13 losses and 12 blown saves, giving him 31 relief points this season -- ranking among the worst closers in baseball. With about a week left in the season, let's take a look at the Relief Points Leader Board. Remember, 2 relief points for a win or a save, -1 point for a loss or a blown save.

Relief Points Leader Board
Reliever	ERA	W	SV	L	BS	Pts
Smoltz, NWK	2.25	7	33	6	5	69
Kim, ARK	2.51	7	33	4	8	68
Gagne, TIJ	1.54	11	22	1	2	63
Rivera, STP	3.44	5	31	8	6	58
Mantei, COL	1.21	4	28	3	4	57
Urbina, HON	3.63	5	27	6	3	55
Izzy, HBK	2.98	6	25	7	1	54
Beck, CAR	3.78	3	32	9	8	53
Wagner, VAN	5.17	3	29	5	8	51

John Smoltz, who won the The Eck last year, is in good shape to repeat this year; his closest competitor, Byung-Hyun Kim, will sit out the rest of the season in order to get some dental work done before the playoffs. Smoltz would be the first back-to-back Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year Award since the guy the award is named after, Vancouver's Dennis Eckersley, won the first two (1991-1992). Of course, even without throwing another pitch during the regular season, Kim could still win the award should Smoltz pick up some losses or blown saves in the last week of the season. And Eric Gagne, lurking in third place, is certainly within striking distance thanks to his incredible 11 wins out of the 'pen this year, despite having just 2 blown saves. In fact, Tijuana's closer leads the league in vulture wins, followed by Harrison's Matt Herges (10-3), Stanhope's Paul Quantrill (10-3), Vancouver's Mike Timlin (9-4) and Julio Mateo (9-5), Newark's Keith Foulke (9-6) and Gagne's fellow Bandito, Guillermo Mota (9-6). But with just a handful of games left, it's all-but certain that the all-time record of 16 relief wins, set in 2000 by Vancouver's Jeff Zimmerman, will stand at least another year.

¡Los Banditos están en fuego!

Tijuana tied for the league's best record last week (6-1) thanks to a league-high 61 runs of offense -- an amazing barrage sparked by Edgar Renteria, who led the league in runs (10) and doubles (8); tied for the league lead in hits (17), extra bases (8), stolen bases (3) and stolen base percentage (1.000); was second in batting average (.486) and runs created (12.7); third in total average (1.526) and total bases (25); and was tied for fourth in OBP (.500). Renteria's table-setting earned him a helping portion of free beef as the Batter of the Week, thanks to the good people at OmahaSteaks.com. So can Renteria be considered a Kevin Mitchell Award candidate? Well, he does lead the league in hits (222) and is tied for first in doubles (48); he also ranks second in batting average (.340) and hits (120); third in stolen base percentage (.846) and fourth in stolen bases (22-4); and seventh in on-base percentage (.407). He also has that 31-game hitting streak from earlier this season, which was just one game shy of the all-time record set in 1997. Renteria's numbers may not be as gaudy as some other hitters, but consider this: Every batter ranking ahead of this shortstop in runs created is either an outfielder or a first baseman... Of course, after the table is set, someone has to clean it up. That job fell to Vladimir Guerrero, who hit .357 (1.259 OPS) with 4 HR and 10 RBI, ably assisted by Travis Lee (.423, 1.137 OPS, 6 2B, 7 R), Ramon Hernandez (.333, 1.027 OPS, 2 HR, 8 RBI) and Hank Blalock (.500, 1.600 OPS, 2 HR, 4 RBI) -- who, coincidentally, have three of the league's top-five longest active hitting streaks (Hernandez and Lee at 9 games, Blalock at 8).

Carolina's Aubrey Huff led the league in batting average (.607), OBP (.613), SLG (1.036), OPS (1.649), total average (2.818), total bases (29), runs created (18.4) and runs created per 27 outs (41.4), tied for the league lead in hits (17), and finished tied for second in runs scored (8) and tied for third in RBIs (9) and extra base hits (6). He's also tied for the league's longest hitting streak at 10 games. Yet his team scored just 28 runs in seven games this week, tied for third-lowest in the DMBL. In fact, take out Huff's production, and the rest of the Mudcats combine for a putrid .615 OPS. It's obvious the Mudcats are going to need Huff's bat if they're going to go far in the World Series; the question is, will opposing teams bother to pitch to him?

This week's other top batters: Arkansas's Kenny Lofton (.579, 1.442 OPS, 4 2B); Harrison's Frank Thomas (.368, 1.195 OPS, 2 HR, 6 RBI); Hoboken's Geoff Jenkins (.462, 1.080 OPS, 4 2B, 5 R) and Ryan Klesko (.350, 1.159 OPS, 2 HR, 8 RBI); Honolulu's Jacques Jones (.375, 1.179 OPS, 3 HR, 8 RBI) and Shawn Green (.323, 1.202 OPS, 4 HR, 13 RBI); Newark's Marcus Giles (.300, .967 OPS, 2 2B, 8 RBI); Philly's Magglio Ordonez; (.462, 1.135 OPS, 1 HR, 7 RBI); Phoenix's Todd Walker (.464, 1.143 OPS, 2 2B, 4 R); Stanhope's Nick Johnson (.296, 1.116 OPS, 4 HR, 8 RBI); and Westwood's Raul Ibanez (.481, 1.241 OPS, 3 2B, 5 RBI); and Andruw Jones (.345, 1.134 OPS, 3 HR, 6 RBI).

Getting Ready to Rumble

Not wanting to take any chances, the two division leaders have each sat down two key players to rest up from the long season and prepare for the playoffs. Last week, the Golden Falcons let Barry Bonds sit out the rest of the regular season in order to be at tip-top shape for the playoffs; yesterday, they announced they're shutting down closer-turned-starter Byung-Hyun Kim for the final week. The Sugar Bears -- who have faced Arkansas in two straight World Series contests -- followed suit by giving a rest to sluggers Manny Ramirez and Mike Piazza, even though the two were coming off huge weeks (.375, 1.253 OPS, 2 2B, 5 R in 16 AB for Ramirez; .556, 1.525 OPS, 3 2B, 2 R in 9 AB for Piazza). "We want to be sure these guys are at 100 percent for the Big Dance," Newark manager Don Mattingly said. "A big finish to the regular season doesn't mean squat if you don't have anything left in the tank for a Game 7."... Immediately after the Dragons were eliminated from post-season contention, starter Horacio Ramirez was shut down for the remainder of the 2004 season. Ramirez (5-15, 6.11 ERA, 15.4 R/9) had been gamely trying to pitch despite a sore left shoulder that could require off-season surgery, putting his 2005 season in doubt.

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.