Thursday, December 21, 2017

CCJBL Tournament Preview

The time is here! This coming Monday the CCJBL Tournament begins!

Parity ruled in the CCJBL this regular season, with Savanna's Indians winning the regular season title with a 6-4 record. Chadwick was the lone bunch finishing sub-.500, with Milledgeville, Mt. Carroll, Shannon, and Lanark all finishing even at 5-5. Obviously the Indians secured the top seed and one of the first round byes for the tourney (also Chadwick is the 6 seed with their last place finish) but we had to go to a tie-breaker to determine the 2-5 seeds. The first tie-breaker is head-to-head and the second, in case there is a tie in head-to-head, is scoring differential. Without getting into all the details this is how it worked it's way out: Milledgeville by virtue of having the best head-to-head record against the other three became the tourney 2 seed with the all-important first round bye. Mt. Carroll ended up with the 3 seed and will play Chadwick in the first round. Finally, Lanark (4) will take on Shannon (5) in a first round matchup.

Mt. Carroll (3) vs. Chadwick (6)

The Hawks come in having won their last three in a row. Some early season offensive struggles appear to be a distant memory. Led by the leading home run slugger in the league, Mike Trout (4 HR, 7 RBI), and solid lead-off man Willie Wells (.375, 7 R, 6 RBI, 4 SB). Austin Jackson and Javier Baez have both contributed monster performances during the season. The pitching staff is anchored by eccentric Ebby Calvin LaLoosh (2.81, 2-2, 18 K). "Old Hoss" Radbourn finished the season strong but Johnny Vander Meer (5.87) struggled most of the summer.

The Streaks had a difficult summer with the bats, finishing with a team average of .226 and scoring only 25 runs. Dangerous lead-off man Vince Coleman (.273, 6 SB) is a huge key that could be his squad's biggest hope for an upset. Kirk Gibson cooled a bit after a hot start but still batted .360 with 2 homers and 8 RBI. But the rest of the bats did not come through often during the season. Jered Weaver could single-handedly hurl his team to victory after a stellar campaign featuring a currently league-leading 1.48 E.R.A. Charlie Root and Steven Karsay had their moments but were primarily inconsistent.

If Weaver pitches and dominates and Coleman can get on and cause havoc Chadwick has a chance but if not Trout and company should roll into round 2.

Lanark (4) vs. Shannon (5)

The Beavers looked like a team to beat early on but limped a bit to the finish. They hit for a high average (.271) with three guys hitting .394 or higher (Craig Grebeck, Johnny Ward, and Joshua Hamilton) but not a lot of pop. Ward did steal 6 bags at the top of the order so he can definitely make things happen. On the mound "Dizzy" Dean was an effective workhorse and piled up 4 wins. David Price (3.00 E.R.A., 3 saves) and Chuck Finley (2.70) both were at times spectacular.

The Eagles are led by the stellar Roberto Clemente (.448, 6 R, 6 RBI) and Adrian Gonzalez (.423, 3 HR). Kenny DeNunez is probably their most reliable hurler (4.05, 3-1) and also contributed a couple huge late-inning hits on the plate. Lawrence French was steady (2.70 E.R.A.) and "Satchel" Paige had a late-season great start to make up a bit for a real rough season on the hill.

If Lanark can get the win in this one they have the pitching staff most likely to have a shot at taking down Savanna, but they have to get there first. Can Clemente and Gonzalez come through? Can DeNunez (most likely) hurl a gem or deliver a clutch hit? The only thing for sure is a good team is going to be going home.

Milledgeville (2) vs ?

The Missiles won the tie-breakers against the other three .500 teams and have a first-round bye as a result. They will play the first round winner that is the highest seed. At the top of their order is the mystifying Rickey Henderson. Despite hitting only .120 he managed to spark Milledgeville's offense by drawing seven walks and stealing a ridiculous 10 bases during the regular season. "Dixie" Walker was effective out of the 2 spot, hitting .379 and scoring 6 runs with 2 home runs. The rest of the team didn't hit much, however, as they were under .200 as a team most of the season and currently have a team average of .215 and only three dingers.

Fernando Valenzuela won four games and was the Missiles most reliable pitcher. Ray Brown and Hilton Smith both were steady if unspectacular.

The Missiles defense is particularly stingy with only three errors. Despite not being dominant on offense or on the mound they found a way to the two seed. They just win. But they are vulnerable.

Savanna (1) vs. ?

Savanna's record is not indicative of how good they truly are. They have a very solid lineup and easily the most feared pitching staff in the CCJBL. Offensively the Indians are led by Mike Kingery (.393, 7 R, 7 RBI, 2 triples) and Frankie Frisch (.367, 6 R, 5 RBI). Cleanup hitter Mickey Mantle did not have great numbers (.217, 2 HR, 4 RBI) but is feared by opposing pitchers, as evidenced by his 8 walks.

The jewel of the team is their pitching, however. They sport a wonderful 2.44 E.R.A. led by the arguably the ace of the league, Greg Maddux. Maddux had a 2.32 E.R.A. 3-3 record, with one save. "Candy" Cummings was also impressive, with a 3-1 record and a 2.65 E.R.A. "Windy" McCall worked primarily out of the bullpen, saving 3 games with a 2.45 E.R.A. Teams will likely need a dominant performance from their pitchers to match this staff.

Savanna does have a weakness: defense. They have committed a league high ten errors with "Pee Wee" Reese committing five errors alone at shortstop.

The Indians will play the the first round winner who is the lowest seed.


Well there you have it. The first round games will be played at the home field of the top seed, in this case Mt. Carroll and Lanark. After that the semi-finals and finals will be played at the league's crown jewel ball field, Chadwick's Handel Park. The post-tournament All Star contest will also take place at Handel Park.

Milledgeville and Savanna gain a huge advantage with their byes because pitchers are limited to six innings per game and nine per week, just as in the regular season. But any team playing in the championship that did not get the bye will be on their third game of the week. They will have to manage their pitchers much more carefully than the top two seeds.

Let's get this party started!!!

Friday, December 15, 2017

CCJBL Week 5, 2017

This Week In CCJBL Baseball!!!

Monday June , 26

Shannon Eagles @ Chadwick Silver Streaks, Handel Park

Junk-baller Kenny DeNunez took the bump for the visiting Eagles and was opposed by ace Jered Weaver. And this lived up to the billing!

DeNunez got himself into a jam in the top of the first when he allowed two bases on balls and a single to Frankie Lindor to load the bases with two out but coerced Reggie Sanders into a harmless fly out to escape any permanent damage to his E.R.A. Weaver dodged a bullet in the bottom of the third when Chip Hale got himself thrown out at home on an Endy Chavez single to end the frame.

The games only score took place the next inning when Weaver gave up back-to-back doubles from Adrian Gonzalez and Rabbit Maranville with two outs. Larry French threw two hitless innings to close things out against the Streaks, who feel to 4-5 on the season, while Shannon improved to that identical record.

Final Score: Shannon 1, Chadwick 0

Chadwick Performance Highlights:
Lindor 1-3, E
Weaver 1-1, 2b: Pitching L, 5 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 5 K
Root 1 IP, BB

Shannon Performance Highlights:
Chavez 2-3
Gonzalez 2-3, R, K, 2B
Maranville 1-3, RBI, 2B
DeNunez W, 4 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 2 K
French S, 2 IP, BB, 2K

Savanna Indians @ Lanark Beavers, Eastland H.S.

Hector Espino gets things started against Beavers hurler "Dizzy" Dean in the first with a run-scoring SAC fly. Lanark answers back in it's half of the inning when superstar Craig Grebeck scores Johnny Ward with a safety squeeze! Lanark leaves the bases loaded against Greg Maddux in the third and soon regret that failure when reliever David Price was touched for two runs on a triple by Mikey Kingery the next inning!

Maddux and reliever "Windy " McCall cruise through the Beavers hitters the rest of the way to improve the Indians record to 6-3. Lanark falls to 5-4 having lost three of their last four ballgames.

Final Score: Savanna 3, Lanark 1

Lanark Performance Highlights:
Ward 2-3, R, SB
Dean 3 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 4 BB, K
Price L, 2 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, BB, K
Finley 1 IP

Savanna Performance Highlights:
Frisch 2-3, 2 R, BB
Kingery 1-2, 2 RBI, BB, 3B
Reese 1-2, BB, SB, E
Espino 0-1, RBI, BB, Sac Fly
Maddux 1-3, E: Pitching W, 5 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, BB, 5 K
McCall S, 1 IP

Mt. Carroll Hawks @ Milledgeville Missiles, Milledgeville H.S.

A quick start for both teams in this contest! Bases on balls machine Rickey Henderson gets on to the lead off the game against Mt. Carroll's Johnny Vander Meer, steals second as usual, and eventually scores on an Eric McNair fly out. Not to be outdone the scrappy Hawks taly one in thier half ot he first as well when Mikey Moustakas drives a Fernando Valenzuela screwball to the fence, scoring Willie Wells from second base!

Vander Meer struggles mightily in the second again, surrendering three straight hits and two runs before being pulled in favor of "Old Hoss" Radbourn. But Fernando cannot hold the lead and gives up two runs in the bottom of the third on a game-tying blast off of the bat of little powerhouse Mike Trout! Radbourn and Missiles reliver Ray Brown keep things tied up through six. Extra innings!

Milledgeville went down easily in the top of the seventh. "Gee" Walker ripped a lead-off double off of Brown in the bottom  half, however. Brown got Todd Benzinger on a strike out but Eddie Joost walked it off with a sharp single to drive home Walker for a Mt. Carroll victory!

Both teams now stand at 4-5.

Final Score: Mt. Carroll 4, Milledgeville 3

Milledgeville Performance Highlights:
Henderson 1-2, R, 2 BB, 2 SB, CS
McNair 0-2, RBI, Sac Fly
Kruk 1-2, R, 2B, K
Dyson 1-3, RBI, 3B
Valenzuela 1-1, R, RBI: Pitching 3 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, K
Brown L, 3 1/3, 1 ER, 4 H, K

Mt. Carroll Performance Highlights:
Wells 1-3, R
Jackson 1-2, R, 3B, Sac
Trout 2-3, R, 2 RBI, HR
Moustakas 1-2, RBI, 2B
Walker 1-1, R, 2B
Joost 2-2, RBI
Vander Meer 1 1/3 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, BB
Radbourn W, 5 2/3, 0 R, 4 H, BB, 4 K

Monday, June 29

Chadwick Silver Streaks @ Milledgeville Missiles, Milledgeville H.S.

Chadwick strikes early, scoring single runs in each of the first two inning off of Missiles starter Hilton Smith. Hank Bauer and Reggie Sanders with RBI's. Milledgeville cuts the lead in half in the bottom of the second when Martin Dihigo singled off of Steve Karsay, swiped second base and scored on a Jarrod Dyson hit.

Streaks reliever Charlie Root gave up a Dixie Walker double with two gone in the fifth and was subsequently pulled in favor of Jered Weaver. The Chadwick ace was rudely greeted by Eric McNair, who tied things up with a sharp run-scoring base hit. Nobody scored in the sixth, sending the game to extras, for Milledgeville the second game in a row!

They would come out on top of this one, unlike Monday, when Fernando Valenzuela singled off of Weaver to lead off the seventh, was moved to second and then third on ground outs and scored on a clutch tow-out hit by McNair!

For Chadwick their third straight loss dropped their record to 4-6 and Milledgeville improved to 5-5 entering tournament play.

Final Score: Milledgeville 3, Chadwick 2

Lanark Beavers @ Mt. Carroll Hawks, Point Rock Park

Lanark got "LaLooshed" in this contest by the Hawks eccentric starting pitcher. "Nuke" went the distance and got a shutout against the Beavers. Meanwhile, Mt. Carroll's bats got a run in the first off of Chuck Finley on a "Mookie" Betts single and added another in the fourth when Todd Benzinger took "Dizzy" Dean yard!

That was plenty with LaLoosh on the bump dealing. The Hawks even their record at 5-5 while Lanark, at one point 4-2, dropped to 5-5 also.

Final Score: Mt. Carroll 2, Lanark 0

Lanark Performance Highlights:
Finley L, 2 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, K
Dean 3 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 3 K

Mt. Carroll Performance Highlights:
Betts 1-2, RBI, SB
Benzinger 1-1, R, RBI, HR
LaLoosh, 6 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 1 BB, 3 K

Savanna Indians @ Shannon Eagles, Lions Park

A duel between two tough hurlers, "Satchel" Paige of Shannon, and "Candy" Cummings of Savanna!

Both pitchers cruise through four with nary a legitimate threat against them. Greg Maddux, on in relief of Cummings, is surprisingly the one to give up a run when Chip Hale scores on a Kenny DeNunez single in the fifth. DeNunez stays in the game to pitch the sxith for the Eagles and despite allowing two walks, finishes the game by shutting down the Indians bats.

Savanna falls to 6-4, but still secures to top tournament seed, while Shannon ups their record to an even 5-5.

Final Score: Shannon 1, Savanna 0

Savanna Performance Highlights:
Kingery 1-2, BB, K (only hit)
Cummings 4 IP, 0 R, 4 H
Maddux L, 1 IP, 1 ER, 3 H

Shannon Performance Highlights:
White 2-3, CS
Hale 1-1, 2b, R
DeNunez 1-1, RBi: Pitching S, 1 IP, 0 R 2 BB, K
Paige W, 5 Ip, 0 R, 1 H, BB, 7 K

CCJBL Standings
Savanna                                                                             6-4
Lanark, Milledgeville, Mt. Carroll, Shannon                    5-5
Chadwick                                                                           4-6

League Leaders (keep in mind tournament games DO count for league statistics. These are NOT final.

Batting Average
Clemente, Shannon                           .448
Gonzalez, Shannon                            .423
Grebeck, Lanark                                .417
Hamilton, Lanark                               .400
Ward, Lanark                                     .394
Kingery, Savanna                               .393
Manwaring, Milledgeville                .385
Walker, Milledgeville                        .379
Wells, Mt. Carroll                             .375
McNair, Milledgeville                      .370

Hits
Ward, Lanark                                    13
Clemente, Shannon                           13
Hamilton, Lanark                             12
Gonzalez, Shannon                          11
Kingery, Savanna                             11
Frisch, Savanna                                11
Walker, Milledgeville                       11

Runs
Wells, Mt. Carroll                             7
Kingery, Savanna                             7
8 tied with                                         6

RBI
Gibson, Chadwick                            8
Trout, Mt. Carroll                             7
Baez, mt. Carroll                              7
Kingery, Savanna                             7
Frisch, Savanna                                6
Walker, Milledgeville                       6
McNair, Milledgeville                      6
Clemente, Shannon                           6
Wells, Mt. Carroll                             6
Jackson, Mt. Carroll                         6

Doubles
Hamilton, Lanark                             4
Higgins, Lanark                               3
Gonzalez, Shannon                          3
Walker, Milledgeville                      3
Kingery, Savanna                            3

Triples
Kingery, Savanna                             2
Jackson, Mt. Carroll                        2
Samuel, Chadwick                          2

Home Runs
Trout, Mt. Carroll                            4
Gonzalez, Shannon                          3
Gibson, Chadwick                           2
Mantle, Savanna                             2
Jackson, Milledgeville                    2
Wells, Mt. Carroll                           2
Jackson, Mt. Carroll                       2

Stolen Bases
Henderson, Milledgeville                 10
Ward, Lanark                                     6
Coleman, Chadwick                          6
Wells, Mt. Carroll                              4
Reese, Savanna                                 3
White, Shannon                                 3

Walks
Mantle, Savanna                               8
Henderson, Milledgeville                 7
Lapp, Mt. Carroll                             6
Wells, Mt. Carroll                             5
Biggio, Chadwick                             5

Strikeouts
Dean, Lanark                                   9
Mantle, Savanna                              8
DeNunez, Shannon                          8
Betts, Mt Carroll                              7
Several Tied With                            6

Errors
Reese, Savanna                               5
Hornsby, Shannon                           2
Hale, Shannon                                2
Ward, Lanark                                 2
Grebeck, Lanark                            2
Iannetta, Lanark                            2
Wells, Mt. Carroll                          2
Lindor, Chadwick                         2
Dihigo, Milledgeville                   2

Team Average
Lanark                                          .271
Shannon                                       .268
Mt. Carroll                                   .260
Savanna                                        .253
Chadwick                                      .226
Milledgeville                                 .215

Runs Scored
Mt. Carroll                                    37
Savanna                                        28
Chadwick                                     25
Lanark                                          25
Shannon                                       24
Milledgeville                               22

Wins
Dean, Lanark                                4
Valenzuela, Milledgeville              4
Maddux, Savanna                         3
Cummings, Savanna                     3
DeNunez, Shannon                       3

Saves
Price, Lanark                                 3
Smith, Milledgeville                      3
McCall, Savanna                            3
DeNunez, Shannon                        2

E.R.A.
Weaver, Chadwick                          1.48
Maddux, Savanna                           2.32
McCall, Savanna                            2.45
Cummings, Savanna                      2.65
Finley, Lanark                                2.70
French, Shannon                            2.70
LaLoosh, Mt. Carroll                    2.81

Innings Pitched
Dean, Lanark                               33
Maddux, Savanna                        31
LaLoosh, Mt. Carroll                   25 2/3
Smith, Milledgeville                     24 2/3
Weaver, Chadwick                        24 1/3
Root, Chadwick                            23 1/3

Team E.R.A.
Savanna                                        2.44
Lanark                                          3.18
Chadwick                                     3.61
Mt. Carroll                                   3.81
Milledgeville                               4.12
Shannon                                      4.26

Run Differential
Savanna                                        +9
Mt. Carroll                                   +9
Lanark                                           0
Chadwick                                      -4
Shannon                                        -5
Milledgeville                                -7

Well, that's a wrap on the CCJBL regular season! Coming soon, my regular season and Tournament Preview!