Now that's more like it! After getting off to a 9-11 start to this season, our Mulligans have gone a remarkable 28-8 (.778) in the 36 games since then. We finished Chapter Two with a 21-7 record, and as I type, we sit two games ahead in the McGowan Division, all alone in first place for the first time this season.
YEEEEEE-HA!
We began this chapter in the most improbable way imaginable, by sweeping our first two series against the D.C. Memorials and Cleveland Rocks. If we've ever before swept two series back-to-back in the 25 years of this franchise, that memory escapes me. We then ended the chapter with our third sweep over the Virginia Sovereigns. In between, we won two tough series against the South Carolina Sea Cats and South Loop Furies and split with the Charlotte Mustangs. The only series loss we suffered this chapter came against the last-place Las Vegas Flamingos, in a bizarre series in which our entire team simply forgot how to hit a baseball.
We actually hit worse as a team in Chapter Two than Chapter One. We scored nine fewer runs and posted a lower OPS as a whole. However, our pitching staff staged a tremendous turnaround in Chapter Two. Our 4.94 team ERA in Chapter One ranked among the bottom of the league. We walked over four batters per nine and served up 38 homers in 246 innings. In Chapter Two, we posted a miniscule 2.53 ERA, walked "just" 3.3 batters per nine, and allowed only 14 homers in 249 innings.
Our starting rotation was led, once again, by Shohei Ohtani. He went a perfect 6-0 on the chapter, which makes him 10-0 on the season. Believe it or not, his 1.57 ERA in Chapter Two ranks only THIRD on our team among starting pitchers! Jon Gray (1.32) and Luis Garcia (1.43) both topped Ohtani's mark.
On the offensive side, Trea Turner (.321/.369/.518 in Chapter One) continues to rake like an MVP candidate. Andrew Benintendi (.333/.419/.440) continued his surprising Chapter One performance into Chapter Two. Mark Canha (.281/.381/.438), the OL Hitter of the Chapter last chapter, also continues to mash.
On the plus side, Adley Rutschman (.256/.330/.476) and Rafael Devers (.265/.327/.439) both broke out of their slumps, somewhat, although they're still not hitting anywhere near as well as they should be. On the minus side, our first base platoon of David Villar (.167/.333/.389 in Chapter One) and Luis Rivas (.151/.262/.226) is just about useless.
To help address that first base issue, and also to solve our quickly-approaching usage issues, I made a deal with the Flagstaff Peaks in which we added first baseman Wilmer Flores and reliever Chase De Jong. At first glance, adding a guy who is hitting .218/.288/.406 this season hardly seems like an upgrade. However, we believe Flores will enjoy hitting in The Sand Trap, and he brings a stellar Vg glove with him as well.
De Jong currently leads the Peaks with a 2.35 ERA in 23 innings. He's allowed just 13 hits and 8 walks, and has struck out 19. We have some serious usage issues in our bullpen already, so his innings will greatly help there.
In exchange, we had to part with yet another outstanding young prospect. Just add Aiden Miller's name to a LOOOOOOOONG list of prospects we regret trading. I believe this kid has the potential to be the next Austin Riley. However, we have a logjam at third base on our farm, with Brayden Taylor and Brock Wilken both having outstanding seasons in the NCAA this year. They're likely closer to the big leagues than Miller, and we have to give something to get something, so...that explains why I made that decision.
In an ideal world, that would be the last trade I make this year. I don't want to give up any more of our prospects, and we have enough usage and firepower to get by this year. I fully expect us to fall back into second place at some point over the next six weeks, but if that doesn't happen, I may be forced to make a bigger move. Time will tell.
