Troubled times

One overused saying that coaches in all sports rely on is this: You are what your record says you are.

Today, the Wild Things are the worst team in the Frontier League's East Division with a 2-7 record. Only Rockford (2-8) in the West Division has a worse record.

That doesn't mean much when you're nine games into a 96-game season. Yes, 2-7 is lousy. No one wanted or expected this kind of start, but it's not predictive of anything. The season is not over. Keep in mind that Washington started 1-5 during its inaugural season (2002) and ended up setting the league record for wins.

Is this a team that can rebound from a 2-7 start to be a playoff contender? Can it even play .500 ball? We don't know. It's too early to draw any definitive conclusions. There are, however, some alarming numbers and trends that indicate things that must change in a hurry. For example:

* The 2-7 record is the Wild Things' worst after nine games. In other words, this is the worst start in franchise history.

* Prior to today, Washington has been five games under .500 for only one day (May 28, 2008) in its eight-year history. The Wild Things have never been six games under .500.

* The recent six-game swing to the St. Louis area ended with a 1-5 record. It was the 27th six-game road trip in team history. It was the first time the Wild Things have failed to win at least two games on a such a trip (that the Wild Things went seven years with no worse than a 2-4 record on six-game trips is an amazing statistic that is probably unmatched in league history).

* The current five-game losing streak is tied for the longest in team history. Washington lost five in a row back in 2005 (Aug. 29-Sept. 3) but that was after the club had clinched the East Division title and was simply playing out a string of meaningless games.

* Washington's pitching staff has been - insert your favorite adjective here because there is no sugar-coating it - bad, awful, putrid, etc. You get the idea. Washington has given up 50 walks in nine games. Only Gateway (54) has allowed more, but the Grizzlies have played one more game. The Wild Things also are tied for the league lead in hit batsmen with nine. The 6.63 team ERA is next-to-last. Again, only Gateway is worse.

* Washington's hitters lead the league in strikeouts and are next-to-last with only three stolen bases, but offense hasn't been the problem. Washington's hitters have done enough to win seven games.

* The bullpen is 0-for-3 in save opportunities.

It all adds up to an ugly start, which will make for some interesting decisions for manager Mark Mason during the homestand that begins Tuesday against Gateway. The Wild Things' track record indicates that no major roster overhaul is in the works. The philosophy in Washington has been to stick with the core group of players and add a couple of former college guys following Major League Baseball's draft. You don't blow up your roster after nine games.

However, there will surely be some moves made this week. Pitcher Aaron Fuhrman will come off the disabled list during the homestand. He could trade places with pitcher Kedrick Martin, who left Sunday's game with an injury.

Another candidate for the DL is closer Jon Lewis, who was brought in during the offseason to solve the bullpen woes that plagued the Wild Things all last year. Lewis has pitched 1 2/3 innings and given up 10 walks and thrown three wild pitches. Saturday at River City, Lewis walked six batters in just 2/3 of an inning. Only 12 of his 40 pitches were strikes. Keep in mind that Lewis walked only 11 batters in half a season with Evansville last year, and in his previous 82 pro games walked more than two hitters only once.

When a pitcher with that kind of track record goes Steve Blass, it has to be because of an injury or a major problem with his mechanics. Either way, a trip to the DL is likely.

Not all the struggles have been on the pitchers' mound. There were concerns before the season about outfielder Chris Demons' ability to hit. He was only a .232 career hitter in two pro seasons, but the Wild Things love his speed and arm. Demons might be the fastest player in the league. But he's also 2-for-26 (.077) with 13 strikeouts. Starting the season with only four outfielders (including DH Jacob Dempsey) was a gamble that hasn't worked. Mason probably has several outfielders on speed dial.

How long will the Wild Things wait to shuffle their roster? The draft is June 9-11, which also is the beginning of a nine-day road trip for Washington. The Wild Things don't like to make roster moves while on the road, which means if things don't turn around this week the earliest the roster can undergo a makeover is June 18.

Up in smoke

The Wild Things awaken today with a 2-4 record and without a series win. They should be 5-1 and coming off their second series win.

The reason for the three-game difference can be summed up by two words: relief pitching.

After tying for the league lead in blown saves last year with 15, the Wild Things have failed to convert three save opportunities in the last four games, including both games of a doubleheader Thursday at Gateway. In Washington's last three losses, the opponent scored the winning run in its final at-bat.

The bullpen received a major overhaul in the offseason, but it seems the more things change the more they stay the same. Jon Lewis was brought in to be the closer, but he has two blown saves in as many opportunities, including Game 1 Thursday, when the winning run scored on a wild pitch. In the nightcap, Washington had a 7-4 lead in the seventh inning (doubleheaders are seven innings) but gave up three solo home runs that forced extra innings. Chris Demons homered in the 8th to put the Wild Things back in the lead, but Gateway scored in the bottom of the eighth and won the game on a bases-loaded hit batsman in the ninth.

For the season, Washington relievers have pitched 20 1/3 innings and given up 18 hits, 20 walks and hit four batters for a 6.21 ERA. They have a 1-3 record.

Manager Mark Mason left himself open to some second-guessing during the doubleheader. In the opener, he took out starting pitcher Zach Groh after six innings. Groh was throwing a three-hit shutout with eight strikeouts and just one walk. In the second game, Matt Maradeo, who has been Washington's best reliever to date with 4 1/3 scoreless innings and no walks, was taken out after throwing two perfect innings and the game heading to the bottom of the seventh.

I wrote about this last year, but it's worth mentioning again: To me, the most impressive season by a Wild Things player was not Josh Loggins' MVP year in 2003, but Robert Garvin's 2002 season. Garvin began the year as just another arm in the bullpen but won the closer's job early in the season. He went 2-2 with 18 saves and a 2.20 ERA in 33 games. Those numbers are good, but not great, right?

Looking deeper into Garvin's season you'll find that he converted 18 of 20 save opportunities, including 18 straight. His two blown saves were in his first appearance of the year (in middle relief) and in his last outing of the regular season which, as it turned out, was a meaningless game because the Wild Things had clinched the division title only minutes earlier because of Richmond loss.

The most impressive aspect of Garvin's season was that he pitched 47 innings and issued only four walks. Think about that for a moment. Four walks in 47 innings. During one stretch, Garvin went 15 consecutive outings and 17 1/3 innings without walking a batter. Over that span, Garvin struck out 24 batters. Twenty-four strikeouts to zero walks. You think the Wild Things would like to have someone with those numbers today?

Another note from the doubleheader is Washington catcher Alan Robbins is facing a suspension after bumping the home-plate umpire following the game-ending wild pitch and play the the plate. It's never a good idea to make contact with an umpire, but it's even worse to do it when the league commissioner is in the ballpark.