Report card time

It is almost halfway through the season and time for the boys to bring home their report cards. And since there is no such thing in the GBL, we have taken the liberty of grading the team based on the first couple of months. You may not agree with everything, but...that's baseball. So here we go:

A+
We had to choose a first half "stud" and even with a bit of a slow start, Josh Arhart has come through in a big way. As well as leading on the field, he has the extra duties as playing coach and has excelled at both.

A
Just barely a step away from top of the class, we have Brian Rios and Terrance McClain. Rios is also on fire after a slow start and has climbed into the league leaders in hitting. T-Mac has been solid since day 1 and plays well and bats well wherever you put him.

A-
Rounding out the top of the class, there is Wilver Perez, Andrew Arreola and Brandon Villafuerte. Slumping a little bit recently, the Scrap at the RAP seems to have fired Wilver up and he continues to steal everything in sight. Only some breaks in concentration in the field keep Perez from moving up a notch in our eyes. After starting in relief, Arreola has made the transition nicely to a starter, is now the most consistent pitcher the Seals have and sports an economical WHIP. Villafuerte has progressively gotten better as the season has rolled along and seems to be locked in as the closer.

B+
Colin Moro, Aaron Easton and Anthony Pluta slide in at B+. All are solid contributors for the Seals and need to keep it up in the second half. Moro weighs in as a great clutch hitter while Easton leads the team in appearances has had a few good outings recently, getting his starters out of jams. "The Handyman" has been cutting down on his hits and BB's and fits nicely in the setup role. "Wild Thing" Pluta has improved his control and also fits well into the role of starter. He hasn't given up a home run yet either! Let's hope that keeps up.

B
The Special K's slot in here - Jason Kershner and Matt Kavanaugh. "Kersh" had some good outings early and flirted with a no-no recently but had some rough outings in between and I am hoping he can build on his latest outing against Tijuana. Kavanaugh can play catcher and first base effectively and had a hot streak at the plate for a while earlier in the year when everyone else was struggling. He's settled in to hit a respectable .280.

B-
Four Seals fall into this category - Dale Swinford, Jino Gonzalez, Mike Mooney and Jeff Duda. Swinford has been hitting well lately and fits better as a #2 hitter. His glove has let him down at times but he remains an everyday player. Gonzalez has had hard luck as a starter in terms of wins/losses and 4 of his last 5 outings have been quality starts. A bonus is his .333 batting average. Mooney had a great debut but has struggled recently, getting mostly pinch hit duties. He needs to wake up the lumber to win back a starting job. Duda also sparkled in his first Seals game but has settled in to be an average pitcher, but with a decent ERA. Would be good to see him step it up and repeat that first game.

C+
Next come the Chris' - van Rossum and Bodishbaugh. Van Rossum had a nice start to the year but has fallen below the Mendoza line and will not get many starts until he can string a few hits together. Chris Bodisbaugh began the year as a starter and is now in middle relief where he has had some decent outings but has an ERA over five and tends to give up the long ball.

C
P.J. Bevis and Charlie Strandlund fall into this next category. The whole city is pulling for Charlie but he isn't getting much of a chance to show what he can do. He needs to stay ready, hang on to the ball and get some pinch hits in order to work his way into some more innings. He has shown his versatility with a couple of scoreless innings pitched - there may be something in that, Kip?? Bevis needs to get a few good innings under his belt as well. He has an ERA above seven and has given up 3 dingers in just over 8 innings of work.

C-
Somewhat unfairly, we have Kyle Orr as our only C-. Kyle has just a few games of pro ball above Rookie League under his belt and needs to find his footing. Just like with Charlie, we're all pulling for the local lad but he has to start making contact and cutting down on the K's.

NR
Off the hook for now are Issac Hess and Matt Edgecombe since they only have a game or two with the Seals. We expect big things from both of them though!