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After a dissapointing 13-3 drubbing by Larimer to give the Knights the series, and victory in the first battle of the officers, Punxtawney headed back to Washington and won both of the next two games to improve their record to 35-20 for the season.
In their loss to Larimer, Jason Giambi and Jose Valentin both hit homers while Tony Batista and Ryan Klesko contributed 2 hits each. However, the team got little other offense and their pitching fell apart in the 6th and 7th innings as they allowed 11 runs, 7 of those in the 6th, to make a previous 2-1 game a 13-1 mockery. Starting pitcher Rocky Coppinger was responsible for most of that, allowing 9 runs in 6 innings on 10 hits, 3 walks, and 4 strikeouts. Jim Burright did no better, giving up 4 more in the 7th on 6 hits. The only bright spot was Rick Aguilera's scoreless inning in his first appearance for the Groundhogs after coming over as a PTBNL in a deal with the DC United. It was also his first game after coming off the DL.
Larimer was led by the masterful pitching of Ugueth Urbina who went 8 innings, allowing 1 run on 5 hits, walking 2, and striking out 5. Cal Eldred allowed 2 unimportant runs in the 9th to finish the game. Ex-Groundhog Brian Giles devoured his old teammates to the tune of 4-5, 3 runs, 4 RBI, with 2 doubles, a triple, and a home run. Jim Edmonds also contributed quite a bit, adding 5 RBI on 3 hits, one of which was a homer.
After a travelling day, Punxtawney began a series against the Washington Sea Dogs. They won the first game 10-5 with fine pitching by Jon Lieber, Sean Bergman, and Scott Ruffcorn (and only 3 earned runs allowed) being a major reason. Unfortunately, the stats for the game have vanished, so we can't give any further info.
The stats from the next game are still available. The was the first low scoring close game that the Hogs have had in quite some time and they emerged victorious with a 3-1 win. Although nobody on the team had an extra base hit, DH Jason Giambi provided most of the offense with a 3-4, 2 RBI game. He also scored a run. The other run scored on a Washington error, so there was no RBI. Jose Valentin was 2-4 in the game as well. Wilton Guerrero played in his first game as a Groundhog, coming in as a defensive replacement for Ryan Klesko late in the game.
The real story in this game was the dominant Groundhogs pitching. Dustin Hermanson, who was rocked in his last outing, had his best performance of the season in this game. He gave up just 4 hits over 7 1/3 innings (while walking 5 and striking out 3), allowing only 1 run. The greatly improved Groundhogs bullpen, possibly one of the best in the league now, came in and finished the game. Curt Leskanic, who had not pitching in over 2 weeks, entered with one out in the 8th and got the next 2 batters out, including a strikeout, to end the Sea Dogs threat. He got his second hold for this performance. Scott Ruffcorn came in to start the 9th and got one out but walked the bases loaded, most likely tired from a great deal of pitching in the last few Hogs games. With the bases loaded and just one out with his team leading by just two, Ricky Bottalico came in, looking to extend his thus far phenomenal season. He got 2 outs in a row without allowing anyone to score and recorded his 5th save, got Ruffcorn his 5th hold, and Hermanson his 5th win. Hermanson is now 5-2 in 7 starts. Sea Dogs starter Willie Adams made a valiant effort, but fell short even though he allowed just one earned run, throwing the entire game. An error by Sean Berry as well as an error by Adams himself cost him 2 more runs.
Punxatawney Stats Update and Other Stuff:
Slugger Ryan Klesko Recieved Honorable Mention for May Player of the Month. He was content to be even considered, stating, "[Mark] McGwire put on a clinic for all of us last month. For me and Finley to even be considered close to him is an honor."
Klesko has cooled off his home run hitting in the last few weeks, but his average has stayed high. He is currently hitting .385 with 25 HR and 66 RBI in 231 at bats.
Top of the order stars Rondell White and Roberto Kelly have each maintained their fine play into June. White is hitting .329 and now has 14 stolen bases while Kelly is hitting .350 with 8 HR and only 15 strikeouts in 214 at bats.
Two original Groundhogs (and those are a rare breed) that are still doing well are Jason Giambi and Scott Rolen. After a major slump in early May, Giambi has gotten his average back up to .313 and is second on the team with 14 HR. His 49 RBI are slowly catching up to Klesko. His offensive numbers have gotten much better since his move to DH as well. Rolen, who is making a bid for Rookie of the Year, is hitting .295 with 19 doubles and 5 homers in his first 207 at bats. His steady production from the bottom of the order has been a great help throughout the year.
Finally, the four new starters, Tony Batista, Jose Valentin, Marty Cordova, and Greg Myers, have all gotten better since their arrival in Punxtawney. Batista and Cordova are both hitting .293 and have contributed in most games since their arrival. Valentin has gotten through a minor injury and is getting stronger again, bringing his average back to .282 after a short slump. His 12 homers are 3rd on the club. Myers' offense has been fine, increasing his average from the .230s to .258 since his arrival, but his defense has forced OGGM Dan Shapiro to move him into a platoon with youngster Jorge Fabregas.
Now for the pitching side of the game. Newly acquired staff ace Mike Hampton will be making his first start against the Sea Dogs' Todd Stottlemyre tommorow. Hampton compiled a 3-3, 2.39 record with the Cockeysville Crazies before being traded for Pedro Martinez. Hampton's mix of pitches and fine accuracy have made him an excellent pitcher for Cockeysville and he is eager to prove himself here.
Jon Lieber has also had a strong season so far, going 6-2 with a 3.51 ERA. He has walked only 9 men in 66 2/3 innings, a major part of his success. Rocky Coppinger has struggled since early season success. He is now 4-6 with a 4.98 ERA. There has been talk about giving him some time in the bullpen and allowing Rick Aguilera to get some starts.
The other two pitchers on the staff have been somewhat erratic so far. Bobby Thomas has made 3 starts for Punxatawey so far. He is 2-1 in those games, with 2 dominating wins and one crushing defeat. Overall, he is 2-2 with a 3.58 ERA. Dustin Hermanson has pitched 7 games. 4 excellent games and 3 horrid ones. He is 5-2, 4.12 overall.
The new story in Punxtawney is the excellent bullpen. Shapiro decided that his team was losing too many games because of late inning blowups and decided to secure his club's victories better. After a deal a few weeks back to acquire Ricky Bottalico, he got a crew of the finest setup men in the game. Scott Ruffcorn has stayed around and is now 1-0 with a 2.67 ERA in 30 1/3 innings of work. Sean Bergman, a recent acquisition, has a 3.86 ERA with a save and a hold for the season. Bobby Munoz is 2-1 with a 2.59 ERA and 2 holds. Aguilera has done fine out of the bullpen but struggled earlier as a starter and currently has a 6.17 ERA. Tim Worrell is also part of the pen, and while his 6.00 ERA leaves something to be desired, he is no worse than Butch Henry, who he was traded for. Curt Leskanic has gotten very minimal use this year and has a 4.91 ERA in 3 2/3 innings. He does have 2 saves and 2 holds in 6 games, so Shapiro hopes to get more use out of him.
The gem of the bullpen has been Bottalico. He is 1-0 with 0.84 ERA and 5 saves in 9 games over 10 2/3 innings. He also has 3 holds. In other words, he has had a win, a save, or a hold in every outing. Opposing batters are hitting just .194 against him and he has walked just 2 men so far.
Trade Rumors:
Not much, actually. Punxtawney would like to get another strong starting pitcher and will offer any of their offensive players other than Klesko and Rolen to get one. Perhaps some kind of multiple player deal. We could part with an offensive starter and a pitcher for a good starting pitcher and a backup for the position of the starter I gave you. If you want someone I have (Marty Cordova, Jose Valentin, Greg Myers, Tony Batista, etc), let me know and I'll see what kind of pitching you have.
Written by Dan Shapiro