What a way to win a game

The Wild Things managed to stave off elimination for at least one more day by beating the Florence Freedom 6-5 in 12 innings Sunday afternoon at Champion Window Field. The winning run scored when Brad Arnett hit an inside-the-park homer.

Arnett's fly ball down the left-field line dropped just inside fair territory out of the reach of the Florence left fielder, who tumbled over the retaining wall. By the time he could climb back over the wall and get the ball, Arnett was on his way to the inside-the-park homer.

Above is a photo of Champion Window Field from our friends at digitalballparks.com. You can click ont he image for a larger view and see the wall the outfielder went over while trying to catch Arnett's hit down the line.

If you haven't visited digitalballparks.com, then you should. Trust me, you'll like it and spend at least 30 minutes on the site.

Big pickup for Rockford

The Rockford Riverhawks made a move Thursday they hope will help secure a wild-card berth and Frontier League championship.

The Riverhawks signed Mark Rogers, a pitcher who was the Oakland A's second-round draft pick in 2004. Rogers had an 11-win season at the high-Class A level and pitched in 17 games (eight starts) at Class AA.

Rogers had control problems last year and was released this spring.

Though the FL transaction deadline has passed, Rockford was able to pick up Rogers (classified as a veteran by FL roster standards) because it had only 23 players, and no veterans, on its active roster.

The end is near

The end might come this weekend in Florence, Ky. It might not happen until Labor Day back home at Consol Energy Park. It doesn't matter where or when it happens. It's only a matter of time until the 2008 Wild Things officially reach the end of the line.

Forget that the Wild Things still have a mathematical chance to make the Frontier League playoffs. Forget that there are still six games left in the regular season. Forget all that stuff. The Wild Things' season ended Thursday when they were swept in a doubleheader by the East Division champion Kalamazoo Kings on a rainy, dreary night.

For the record, the magic number for the Wild Things' elimination is 3. Any combination of Washington losses or Rockford wins equaling 3 eliminates the Wild Things from the playoff race.

But let's face it, Washington has been out of the playoff race for a couple of weeks. Sheer mathematics has kept the Wild Things in contention but their play has eliminated them. The Wild Things are 9-17 in August with three of the wins coming over the lowly Midwest Sliders.

The Wild Things had a chance to make the playoffs. A real good chance, in fact. They began August six games above .500. But given a chance to push forward and into the postseason, the Wild Things dropped the ball. And that's not a reference to the poor defense from the corner outfield spots.

Washington has lost to good teams and bad teams this month. It was swept by Evansville, the last-place team in the West. That's the same Evansville team that was swept this week by Rockford, which has earned its way into the final wild-card spot by winning. Washington lost four of six games at home to Kalamazoo, and it took a miracle just to win one of those games.

Those who saw the games against Kalamazoo and the three at home against playoff-bound Windy City this month had to come away with one impression: the Wild Things aren't a playoff-caliber team. The hitters for Kalamazoo and Windy City can crush the baseball. Washington has a middling lineup. Kalamazoo and Windy City are deeper than Washington. The Kings also have a better bullpen and better defense.

Unless another baseball miracle happens, there will be no playoff baseball in Washington for the first time in the Wild Things' existence. Heck, there might not even be a winning record.

So what happened? What went wrong? What must be done in the offseason to prevent another season like this one? On this blog, I'll give my opinions and try to answer these questions. I'll also let the players and coaches answer them.

But, to put it in baseball terms, I'll be in the on-deck circle for a few days. Your name has been penciled onto the lineup card ahead of mine. You're the leadoff hitter. It's time to step to the plate. You get the first shot at analyzing what went right and what went wrong this season. You can offer your plan for making improvements for 2009.

"Now batting..."

Talking comebacks

As I was leaving the pressbox following the final out last night, I was asked, "That's the Wild Things' biggest comeback, right?"

I really didn't know.

It's hard to top overcoming a 9-run deficit and winning 14-13, but I didn't know if that was indeed the Wild Things' biggest comeback. There was one game in 2003, also against Kalamazoo, that stuck in my mind being a huge come-from-behind win.

After checking the boxscores, I found the game in question was played July 1, 2003. Kalamazoo scored 7 runs (all unearned) in the top of the first inning against Washington pitcher Ben Ally and led 10-2 in the fourth.

Washington overcame the 8-run deficit by scoring three times in the fourth, four runs in the seventh and three in the eighth for a 12-11 win. Just like Tuesday, the winning run was scored on a homer as Jason Kane hit a three-run shot to right centerfield.

That was only an 8-run comeback so, as far as I'm concerned, Tuesday night's comeback was one for the record book.

Revenge of the Baseball Gods

Thanks to Traverse City broadcaster Tim Calderwood for finding this story and video from ESPN and its "Outside the Lines" program.

This story is about Danny Almonte and Matthew Cerda (actually, it's more about the latter). Almonte, pcitured, was the pitcher who seven years ago charmed the nation by throwing a perfect game in the Little League World Series, only to have his records purged from the books after it was discovered he was 14 years old, two years over the age limit. Cerda was the youngest player on his Little league team and made the final out in the World Series against Almonte.

Almonte, you might recall, was signed by the Southern Illinois Miners last year and made six starts before being released. Almonte had an 0-1 record and 5.28 ERA. he struck out 17 and walked 19 in 30.1 innings with the Miners. After being released from the Frontier League, Almonte re-emerged this year at Western Oklahoma State Junior College and had a 7-1 record and 5.59 ERA for the baseball team. he also had a team-high .497 batting average and 14 home runs.

Cerda, meanwhile, was drafted in the 4th round this year by the Chicago Cubs and is hitting .273 in the Arizona Rookie League.

It's an interesting story and video.


See story, video here.

Evansville manager story

If you listened to the Wild Things' game Friday night, you probably heard WJPA Radio's Randy Gore mention that Evansville manager Jason Verdugo collapsed during batting practice and was rushed to the hospital. Verdugo was suffering from dehydration and exhaustion. Below is a link to the Evansville Courier-Press story about Verdugo.

The Otters were managed by pitching coach Brandon Sagara and responded with an 8-0 victory over Washington. It was a costly loss for the Wild Things, who could have moved to within one game of Traverse City in the wild-card standings. Washington remains two back and was passed by Gateway, which is one game behind the Beach Bums. You have to like the Grizzlies' chances of at least pulling even with Traverse City this weekend. Gateway has two more games left against Midwest.

Sagara, by the way, knows a little about crushing losses by the Wild Things. He was Windy City's pitching coach last year. His teams are 6-1 in their last seven games against Washington.

Evansville manager story.

Back in baseball mode

Sorry I haven't posted anything in the last few days. This is the time of the year - football tabloid time - when a sports writer's life involves production of the daily edition and the football tab and nothing else. A member of the O-R's staff said it best about a week ago when he uttered "My wife could leave me today and I wouldn't notice for another eight days." Sadly, he probably wasn't exaggerating.

Anyway, moving on the Wild Things, who are two games behind Traverse City for the final playoff spot with 12 games (6 at home, 6 on the road) remaining. Here are a few links to check out. The first is from Bob Gregg at WJPA Radio. It's the wild card standings with remaining schedules for each contender. The second is a story about former Wild Things second baseman Kyle Werman getting a new coaching job and the last is the Frontier League power ratings from a service that uses only statistical data. Enjoy:

Wild card standings, schedules.

Werman story.

FL power ratings.

Sauget sights

Following a leaguewide off day, the Wild Things begin a three-game series Tuesday night in Sauget, Ill. (at last check, population 249) at GCS Ballpark against the Gateway Grizzlies. I haven't been to every ballpark in the Frontier League but GCS Ballpark is defintely my favorite of those I've seen.

Before entering the park on the third-base side, you get a view of the St. Louis Arch in the distance. The park has a short porch in right field - 301 feet down the line with a four-foot high fence - with a lawn area and huge scoreboard atop the back wall. Left field also is a hitter's delight at 317 feet down the line and a high wall.

Here are two photos of the 6,000-seat ballpark, courtesy of WJPA Radio's Randy Gore. When looking at the first photo, keep in mind that one of Mario Garza's two home runs in Game 2 of the playoffs last year went over the left corner of the Budweiser sign atop the scoreboard. You can click on each photo to increase the size.

Search Dunn

Here is a link to my story from the Wild Things' 4-2 win over Midwest last night that, because of another early Saturday night deadline, did not make most editions:

Wild Things 4, Sliders 2.

* Shortly after he joined the Wild Things, lefty pitcher Brooks Dunn said he wanted to "find the pitcher" that he was before this season began.

Following a check of the Lost and Found, and after another solid outing Saturday night in a win over Midwest, Dunn has called off the search party.

"He's back," Dunn said with a smile.

In his last six starts, Dunn has given up two earned runs or less five times. The exception was a seven-inning, four-run outing against Chillicothe that until Saturday was Dunn's only win.

Even with a less-than-stellar 2-5 record, Washington manager Greg Jelks called Dunn his No. 1 pitcher. You can't argue with that evaluation. Dunn has been throwing better than any pitcher on the staff over the last seven weeks. The wins weren't there but Dunn's sinker was.

"I've got my two-seamer back," Dunn said. "It's not flat anymore. I have that movement back. There was a time when Chris Rivera and I were both struggling, and he's a similar pitcher to me, a hard-sinker guy. We went to the bullpen and worked on the pitch. I can say that we helped each other."

Dunn played high school baseball in Daphne, Ala., where one of his high school teammates was West Virginia quarterback Pat White. Dunn took his sinker to Mississippi State and had an 18-9 record playing alongside Bulldogs pitchers Paul Maholm (Pirates) and Jonathan Papelbon (Red Sox). San Diego drafted Dunn in 2006 and he won eight games with an impressive 2.27 ERA in 53 outings (18 starts) over two seasons. He advanced to high-Class A.

Returning to the California League this year, Dunn was the Lake Elsinore Storm's opening day starter in the California League. But his sinker stopped sinking and Dunn had a 1-2 record after seven starts when he was sent back to the bullpen. Four weeks later, he was released and signed with the Wild Things.

"Brooks realizes he can win at this level," Jelks said. "Look at his minor-league statistics, they're good numbers. He has fit in well with these kids. He's pitching with a comfort level right now."

Almost a no-no

The Wild Things' Zach Groh, pictured, was pitching a no-hitter through five innings in the second game of a doubleheader Friday night against the Midwest Sliders. It was only a seven-inning game and Groh appeared as strong, if not stronger, in the fifth inning as he did in the first.

The easy thing for Washington manager Greg Jelks and pitching coach Larry Wayman would have been to let Groh finish the game. He earned it. It was his game. Why shouldn't the rookie right-hander from Reading close it out and take a shot at a no-hitter, something Groh has never thrown at any level of baseball? If he could get six more outs without allowing a hit, it would be a nice memory to look back on years from now.

"I felt strong, like I could keep going," Groh said.

But a rule is a rule, and Groh had reached - even exceeded - his team-imposed maximum pitch count. If Groh had been throwing a perfect game, it wouldn't have changed the coaching staff's thinking.

It was time to take him out, Jelks said. Groh had thrown 84 pitches. His pitch count was set at 70.

Of course, Groh was upset when he was told he was done for the night. He also knew that the pitch count was to protect him, not to stand in the way of his glory.

Groh had pitched only two innings over two appearances since June. He had spent time on injured reserve because of an impingement in his shoulder. He had not thrown more than 30 pitches in a game in more than six weeks.

Groh knows the coaches were simply looking out for him.

"I can't argue with what they did," Groh said.

Chris Rivera replaced Groh and pitched a hitless sixth inning. Midwest's Jonnie Knoble ruined the no-hit bid with a clean double into the left-field corner to open the seventh. Washington settled for a one-hit shutout.

Even without a no-hitter to his credit, Groh raised some questions with his performance. The Wild Things had planned to use a four-man rotation for the remainder of the regular season, but should Groh get another start based on this outing? Groh has made four starts with the Wild Things and taken a no-hitter into the sixth inning in two of them.

"I'll have to talk to the coaches about that," Jelks said. "Groh opened some eyes. We might go to a five-man rotation, or we might move someone from the starting rotation into the bullpen and keep the four-man rotation. We have a lot to discuss because of that tremendous performance by (Groh)."

Groh did tell me that it wasn't the first time he had been taken out of a game while working on a no-hitter. During the summer after his freshman year at Binghamton University, Groh was playing in a sandlot league and had a no-hitter after six innings of a seven-inning game. Groh's coach took him out and brought in a pitcher who had minor-league experience at the Double-A level in the Phillies' system.

"The coach didn't know I had a no-hitter going," Groh said.

More suspensions possible

Washington manager Greg Jelks said he and Wild Things third baseman Brad Arnett face possible suspensions because of Arnett's ejection during the eighth inning Wednesday night.

According to Jelks, a Frontier League manager is suspended for three games following his team's fifth ejection of the season, and the penalty doubles with each ensuing ejection. This is why Jelks was suspended for three games (reduced to two) and Rockford's Bob Koopman for six games following the ejection-filled game at Consol Energy Park earlier this month.

Jelks also said he would not be surprised if the league suspends Arnett, who was ejected by home-plate umpire Matt Neader after Arnett was called out on strikes in the eighth. Arnett apparently said something to Neader as he walked back to the dugout, which sparked the quick heave-ho from the umpire.

Call for help

The Wild Things needed to win Wednesday night against Kalamazoo for, oh, about 100 reasons. They needed a win to right a sinking ship. They needed a win to pull to within 2 1/2 games of the final wild card spot. They needed a win to prove to Kalamazoo that they can indeed beat the Kings...

So, trailing by one run in the seventh inning, Washington manager Greg Jelks turned to his bullpen and summoned a relief pitcher with an ERA of 37.80.

Is that the best the Wild Things can do?

OK, so that was after only one appearance in the Frontier League for Burke Baldwin, but that shows the difference between the Wild Things and Kings. Washington's relief pitchers (5.55 ERA) have been lit up on must nights. Kalamazoo's bullpen, meanwhile, has been lights out.

After Washington tied the game 5-5 in the seventh inning and had the bases loaded with one out, Kalamazoo manager Fran Riordan went to his bullpen and called upon reliever Joe Catanese, who entered the game with a 2-3 record, one save and 2.54 ERA.

Cantanese got out of the full-blown jam without surrendering another run, and the Kings scored twice against Baldwin in the eighth to win the game 7-5. Kalamazoo closer Brandon Parillo pitched a scoreless ninth for his 19th save. Parillo has 11 more saves than the entire Washington team.

"No doubt (the Kings') bullpen is something that separates them for other teams," Jelks said. "They have three guys down there (Cantanese, Parillo and Dan Baerlocher) are pretty effective."

Entering Wednesday, the league was batting only .153 against Baerlocher, .222 against Cantanese and .230 against Parillo. Those are numbers Washington relief pitchers used to put up, but not this year. Washington relievers pitchers have produced only one save since June 30.

There's little doubt that rebuilding the bullpen will be the No. 1 offseason priority for the Wild Things.

The clock is ticking

With the clock ticking and the transaction deadline less than 10 minutes away, the only move the Wild Things (as found on the Frontier League homepage) have made is catcher Josh Geric was placed on the retired list and outfielder Rob Vernon, a former Wild Thing, was signed.

Vernon batted .258 last year with 15 stolen bases in 41 games. He was traded in the offseason to Midwest in the Phil Butch deal. With the Sliders, Vernon batted .257 in 20 games and was released. He was picked up by Chillicothe and played 14 games with the Paints, batting only .174 with four stolen bases before again being released.

Vernon will likely be a late-innings defensive replacement and pinch-runner.

Vernon wasn't the only former Wild Thing picked up at the deadline. Pitcher Andy Schon was acquired by Florence in a trade with Laredo of the independent United League. Schon was dealt to Laredo by the Wild Things in the offseason after going 2-2 with a 5.84 ERA for Washington in 2007. Schon was 8-5 with a 4.61 ERA and three complete games with Laredo.

Circle the wagons

Sunday was designated circles the wagons day for the Wild Things.

There was a team meeting in the afternoon at which manager Greg Jelks, coach Chris Carter, general manager Ross Vecchio and at least one player, shortstop Brett Grandstrand, addressed the club.

The subject of the meeting? The season's final 23 games.

"Having a team meeting is something unusual for us," Grandstrand said Sunday night. "But we had some guys come in Sunday, probably thinking we have no shot at the playoffs. We had to say, 'Guys, we still have 23 games left. We're only 3 1/2 games out of the playoffs, three games back in the loss column."

Grandstrand said he could draw upon his experiences last year when he played for the Columbus Catfish (a Tampa Bay affiliate) who won the championship in the Class A South Atlantic League.

"Right after the all-star break, we were eight or nine games out of first place," Grandstrand recalled. "We were terrible. But we got together, said it's not about you, me or some guy's stats, it's about winning. Winning a championship, at any level, is what makes everything worthwhile. After that, things fell into place for us. We won the division in the second half and didn't lose a game in the playoffs.

"What we have to do, is realize we still have a shot at the playoffs. We have to find a way to get into the playoffs, whether it's as No. 1 or No. 4. It doesn't matter how we do it, we just have to get in."

Heading into Tuesday's game at home against Kalamazoo (47-28), which brings with it the best record in the league, Washington is 37-37 and 2 1/2 games - two games in the loss column - behind Gateway (40-35), which is currently in fourth place, the final wild-card spot. The Wild Things, however, are eighth overall and there are three teams between them and a playoff spot. It's going to take more than just being three games better than Gateway down the stretch to make the postseason.

That one left a vapor trail

One leftover thought from the Wild Things' 22-7 loss Saturday night to Windy City:

I remarked to several people that the 10 home runs hit in that game was easily the most ever hit at Consol Energy Park. I feel safe stating that baseball can be played for another 50 years at the ballpark and there won't be a game in which wood bats - possibly even metal bats - are used that will include 10 home runs. There are several reasons: it's a big ballpark, deep in the gaps and in centerfield; the ball usually doesn't carry unless it's one of those hot, muggy nights that you get in southwestern Pennsylvania from mid-June to early August.

The latter reason is what made Saturday's longballfest so amazing. It was a comfortable night with little humidity. If anything, it was a night better suited for pitchers than hitters. Yet there were 10 home runs (not one of them the cheap variety, including one over the center field batter's eye). There also was at least two fly balls that were caught on the warning track and another missile of a shot that hit the wall in left centerfield.

I'm making a shirt-pocket note to myself to check back in 50 years and remind us all that Saturday's game is still the record for home runs at the ballpark. I plan on being around that long.

Dealing at the deadline

If you're a regular at Consol Energy Park, then there's little doubt the Wild Things have occasionally left you scratching your head and asking "how did that happen?" as you leave the ballpark. Whether it's a late-innings comeback, a policy decision or an in-game promotion - either good or bad - you sometimes left wondering what just happened.

For me, the latest such case was Friday night.

This story begins Tuesday, the first night of the current homestand. I went to the ballpark to confirm that the Frontier League's transaction deadline was Aug. 12, as I had seen noted in another newspaper. I was told by the Wild Things that the Aug. 12 date was not correct and that the deadline was midnight the night of Aug. 18. I posted this information on this blog.

Much to my surprise, I was informed Friday night by the Wild Things that what I was told earlier this week was wrong. The transaction deadline is midnight Monday night. The Wild Things, it seems, were under the impression that the deadline was a week later than it is.
That left me wondering just how a baseball team doesn't know when the final day is to make a trade or a roster move? I didn't think this was possible.

Well, the following is a story I had originally planned to run next week instead of today:

For at least eight teams in the Frontier League, this weekend will be a bargain-hunting shopping spree. And for one of the few times in the league’s 16-year history, there are more buyers than sellers.

The transaction deadline is midnight Monday night. After that time, rosters are frozen. Only if a player suffers a season-ending injury or is signed by an affiliated team can a team make an adjustment to its roster. Trades among teams within the league will not be permitted.

With the wild-card picture still muddled, it might be difficult for teams like the Wild Things to acquire a player who could be the final piece to a playoff push.

Kalamazoo is running away with the East Division and is a lock for one of the four postseason spots. In the West, Southern Illinois and surging Windy City are separated by 1 1/2 games heading into Saturday night. Both seem to be bound for the playoffs, either as a division champion or one of the two wild cards.

The last wild-card berth won’t be decided until the season’s final week and possibly final day (Sept. 3). Only 2 1/2 games separate Gateway, Florence, Traverse City, Rockford and Washington. River City is hanging around, 3 1/2 games out of the final playoff spot.

One good trade could make the difference between making and missing the postseason. But it might be difficult to finalize a trade because there are so many buyers this year.

“It’s tough to make a deal with the playoff format the way it is,” Wild Things general manager Ross Vecchio said. “It’s a case of not many teams being out of it. We’re still talking. We have feelers out in our league and other independent leagues. We still have time. A lot can change between now and the deadline.

“One thing you don’t want to do is make a trade just for the sake of making a move. It has to be with the thought process that it’s going to improve your club. You also need a willing partner to make a trade.”

There is no doubt what the Wild Things are shopping for.
“We need a stopper,” manager Greg Jelks said. “Am I going to give up somebody who is definitely going to help me next year for somebody who will be here for two or three weeks? No. I’m not giving up a guy who will be a key player next year for a closer.”

The Wild Things’ need for a ninth-inning relief pitcher has been glaring for more than month. Washington is last in the league with a mere eight saves. No other team has less than 12.

While there are a number of factors that can determine the order of finish, the biggest is pitching.

“Everyone is looking for pitching,” Vecchio said. “We’ll see what transpires. We’ll be aggressive, but any move we make will be to make our club better, not just to change the roster.”

From the 'Net

Here are links to a pair of stories I found today. One is is on former Wild Things infielder T.J. Graves, who was named head coach at a high school in Indiana. The other is a short story quoting Frontier League commissioner Bill Lee, who indicates he wants the league to grow to 16 teams and mentions some possible locations for future teams. This is not anything new. Lee has been saying for years that his goal is 16 teams for the FL.

I'm not a big proponent of expansion in the Frontier League. Judging by this season and last year, there is an obvious lack of quality pitching for independent leagues and expanding to 16 teams will simply thin out the pitching staffs. It seems that major-league teams aren't releasing as many pitchers from their minor-league camps at the end of spring training as they used to.

Twelve is a workable number for the FL, though the the quality of pitching was better in 2006 when it was a 10-team league.

TJ Graves story.

FL expansion story.

Suspensions and fines

Though the Frontier League does not release such information to the media, here is what I've been able to come up with concerning the fallout from Tuesday night's ejection-filled game between the Wild Things and Rockford Riverhawks:

Washington:
Manager Greg Jelks - Suspended for two games. Jelks received an auotmatic three-game suspension based on the number of ejections of Wild Things players and coaches (6) this season. The three-game suspension was reduced to two games by the league office.

Pitcher Dan Horvath - Suspended for one game.

Rockford:
Manager Bob Koopmann - Suspended for six games.

Outfielder Jason James - Suspended for three games.

Pitcher Kyle Dempsey - Suspended for two games.

Pitcher Kyle Pawelczyk - Suspended for one game.

Coach Sam Knaack - Fined.

Also, if you are planning to listen to WJPA Radio's broadcast of tonight's game, make sure you listen to the pregame show. I've been told there is an interesting interview.

Around the league

A few quick notes from around the league (I'll be back later today with some thoughts on the hit batsmanfest last night):

* Windy City's Isaac Hess threw the season's first no-hitter last night in a 13-0 ThunderBolts win over Midwest. Here is something interesting from the Daily Southtown's story about the game:

Hess appeared to lose his no-hit bid in the seventh when Miguel Magrass led off with a bouncer that went off the glove of third baseman Josh Horn and into left field. The play was originally called a single, but was later changed to an error, keeping the no-hitter intact.


* There was almost two no-hitters on the same night. Gateway's Devin Collis threw a one-hitter at Traverse City. Collis gave up a hit early in the game to the Beach Bums' Brad Roblin and then retired 20 straight.

* I had stated earlier in this blog that the league's transactions deadline was Aug. 12. That's wrong (that's what I get for lifting the information from a story in another newspaper). The deadline is midnight the night of Aug. 18. This is an off day for the Wild Things.

* Traverse City has put pitcher David Nathanson on injured reserve because of a back problem. Nathanson (9-2, 2.05) leads the league in ERA.

* Entering tonight's game against the Wild Things, Rockford has the top four hitters in the league - second baseman Joe Anthonsen (.347), outfielder Jason James (.338), infielder Robbie Knapp (.333) and third baseman Brad Dutton (.331). The Riverhawks, however, are fourth in the league in batting at .278.

* Washington's Jacob Dempsey is tied for the league lead in RBI with 60.

* Here is a link to a story about former Wild Things pitcher Tom Cochran, who is 11-0 with a 1.90 ERA for Worcester of the independent Can-Am League:

Read the story here.

An exploding issue

One of the hot topics in pro and college summer league baseball this year has been the dangers of maple bats. The problem is when a maple bat breaks, it tends to shatter into large chunks with sharp and pointed ends. When bats made of ash break, they tend to simply crack or have a clean break.

Earlier this season, Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki broke a maple bat in frustration, with a jagged piece slamming into his hand and opening a gash that required 16 stitches to close. Pirates hitting coach Don Long and fan Susan Rhodes were injured in separate incidents at Dodger Stadium, with each hit by a flying chunk of a maple bat. Long's cheek was sliced open and Rhodes suffered two jaw fractures and a concussion.

In another game, major league umpire Brian O'Nora was struck on the head by a piece of broken maple bat and left bleeding from his head.

Maple bats, which were first used in 1997, are the bats of choice for the majority of players, though they are more popular at the big-league level because of the cost factor. Maple bats are more expensive than ash bats or the relatively new birch bats.

Major League Baseball is considering its options. It is trying to come up with ways to make maple bats safer when they break. There also is talk that the bats will be banned.

My guess is MLB will ban the maple bats, then some of the bat companies will file lawsuits and it will become a messy situation.

Maple bats are used in the Frontier League. Chances are, the next time you see a bat shatter and leave a pointed end, it's a maple bat.

The River City Rascals have announced their players will not be permitted to use maple bats in 2009. I've attached a link to a story about the Gateway Grizzlies considering making the same ban on maple.

Read story here.

The clock is ticking

Another night, another bullpen blowup, another last at-bat loss for the Wild Things.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

And that is the problem.

Following the 14th blown save of the season - remember, Washington had six blown saves in 2007 - and the third last at-bat loss in as many nights, I keep coming back to what manager Greg Jelks said following a 4-3 loss to Evanville back on July 12:

"If there are guys out there who can get the job done, we've got to find them. ... We might have to make some trades. We'll probably have to give up someone good to get a reliever. We'll go to the Atlantic League or the Can-Am League (two other independent leagues) if we have to."

So far, Jelks and general manager Ross Vecchio have struck out. They have failed to find a relief pitcher who can protect a lead late in games. And time is running out. Aug. 12 is reportedly the transaction deadline for the league.

Think about this for a moment: Washington has 14 blown saves and only eight saves, and today the Wild Things awake to find themselves in sixth place in the Frontier League standings - they lost two positions Sunday night. Of the five teams ahead of them, only Windy City has more than seven blown saves.

It's easy to see where Washington needs immediate help. The bullpen has been the trouble spot all season. Yet the only trade the Wild Things have made since Jelks' comment was to acquire an outfielder.

Your Normal $12 million stadium

The ballpark that will be home to a Frontier League team in Normal, Ill., in 2010 will have a $12 million price tag. Here is a link to a story about the park along with an artist's rendering that doesn't show much:

Normal, Ill. ballpark.

Oops! Wrong guy

Was listening to WJPA Radio's Randy Gore and his pregame interview tonight with Wild Things third-base coach Bob Bozzuto. The subject was the benches-clearing incident in Saturday night's game.

According to Boz, the tag on the rundown happened about six feet from third base. With Windy City pitcher Ross Stout standing in the baseline ready to make the tag, Chris Sidick tried to run through Stout to get to the bag. After the collision, Stout came up swinging. Because the play happened at third base and in the first inning, the umpires got confused about who made the tag and threw the first punch. They reasoned that the play happened at third base, then it had to be ThunderBolts third baseman Josh Horn.

Horn was ejected, but it was actually Stout who was involved in the fight. Bozzuto said he tried to explain their mistake to the umpires, but it wasn't until later in the game that they figured out what he was telling them.

Apparently, that's why Horn didn't draw the automatic suspension that comes with an ejection for fighting.

Back to work

The family vacation is over and I'm back in ole southwestern Pennsylvania, just in time to listen to another late-innings collapse, this one a five-run bottom of the ninth at Windy City.

While I was gone, the Wild Things did manage to win a season-high five in a row, climb to a season-best six games above .500, have a benches-clearing incident with Windy City and play the longest game in franchise history, a 5-hour, 11-minute marathon at Rockford.

They also racked up two more blown saves (in the same game) and simply refused to go to the bullpen Saturday night, which brought back shades of a game last month at Kalamazoo.

I'll touch on the longest game in another post, but this one has to center around the continuing and well-documented bullpen woes.

Washington leads the league in blown saves and has 13 last at-bat losses. Still, the Wild Things would make the playoffs - by a mere half-game - if they started today.

But, do you think they can stay in that position if the status quo is kept in the bullpen? If I were manager Greg Jelks or GM Ross Vecchio, I wouldn't take that chance. It seems the current plan for late-innings situations, depending on the day, is either leave the starting pitcher in until his arm falls off or simply pick a name out of a hat and give that guy a chance for a save. Neither has been working.

As I see it, there are three options available for the Wild Things and the latter two aren't appealing:

1. Make a move to bring in a proven closer. By this, I mean make a trade. Don't bring in a guy who has recently been released by some other independent team or couldn't get an out in the New York-Penn League.

The Frontier League's transactions deadline is Aug. 12. Jelks and Vecchio must make a strong pitch now for a proven guy. Doing nothing will be the wrong thing.

One player who might be available is Evansville's Justin Smith. He's hardly a proven stopper because he didn't become the Otters' closer until a week before the all-star break, but Smith does have seven saves. Opponents are batting less than .200 against Smith and he has struck out 21 in 18 innings.

Evansville is in last place in the West Division and in danger of falling out of the playoff race. The Otters might be willing to shake things up at the deadline.

Earl Oakes of Midwest also could be worth making a run at acquiring.

Another option along this line of thinking is to trade with another league. Some are harder to deal with than others because of waiver rules and split-season formats, but there are capable closers out there playing on teams that have no chance of making the postseason.

The Wild Things have an open L2 roster spot, so there is room for some maneuvering.

2. Pick someone in the bullpen, tell him he's the closer, use him in every late-game save situation and hope for the best. The most likely candidates are Rick Austin and Dan Horvath. Jelks, however, has shown no willingness to make either the go-to guy, so this probably won't happen.

3. Try to find another starting pitcher - again, this will likely require a trade - and move J.J. Hollenbeck into the closer's role. Hollenbeck has proven he won't buckle under pressure and was a reliever in past seasons. Moving one of your four capable starting pitchers to the bullpen is never desirable, but these are desperate times for the Wild Things.