Friday night brings the Yuma Scorpions to town for what can only be described as an exhausting series. Double-headers on Friday and Saturday night, followed by an afternoon game on Sunday. Sounds like a softball tournament, and those of us who have played 5 games in a weekend can appreciate the difficulty getting up and to the park for the Sunday game. But hey, these guys are professionals!
Yuma is also a team in dire shape right now. As Gus eluded to in a post late last week, Yuma has been dumping so many players lately, you would expect to see Mr. Floatie protesting the team's arrival. Apart from the Seal's own acquisition of Tim Rodriguez, a quick check of their roster shows forty-one players have worn the Scorpion this year and are no longer on the team. There continues to be talk of disgruntled (and unpaid) players, potential for the team to be moved, and possible owner changes.
Tale of the Tape:
Victoria sits at 3-2 in the second half, good for 3rd place in the North.
Yuma comes in at 2-6, barely ahead of Tijuana for the basement in the South.
Yuma is in the midst of a Canadian holiday they would rather forget, winning only one of four from Edmonton and being swept in three by Calgary this past week. The team hit a paltry .264 combined with only a single home run in Alberta. Yuma pitching staff was rocked all week for a combined 8.93 ERA.
Who's Hot (or more importantly, who's left) - Yuma
Second baseman Eric Scriven, who was acquired mid-season from Tijuana has had a great trip North, going 10 for 24 with five walks for a .417 average. Even with those numbers, he was unable to post a single RBI.
Pitching is interesting... Of the 28 wins the Scorpions have posted this year, 25 of those are credited to pitchers no longer with the team. Relievers Dan Ramos-Dominko and Jose Rojas are the only pitchers remaining with wins. The Scorpions come to town without a single starter with a win this season.
Who's Hot - Seals
It might be easier to talk about who isn't hot. The team is batting a combined .306 with 9 home runs and 44 runs scored since the all-star break. Starters MacClain, Rios, Kavanaugh, and Edgecombe are hitting lights-out since the break, with T-Mac leading the pack with an incredible .958 slugging percentage. Perez continues to blaze up the base paths, averaging a steal a game lately. Watch for a GBL record to be broken this weekend...
Starting pitching has a bit of a mixed bag with both Hess and Kershner getting roughed up last week, while Jino Gonzalez continues to shine as the Seal's most consistent starter. Aaron Easton has had a tough week on the road, but for the most part the bullpen has been solid, giving the Seal's offense a chance to win each night
Series Prediction
For the first time this season, I'm going to predict a Seals sweep. Sweeps are incredibly tough to do in baseball, but this one seems ripe to me. Unless Yuma picks up a solid starter on the flight here, this could be a long series for them.
Games are Friday night at 5:00 for the first game, somewhere around 8:00 for the second. Same on Saturday (5:00 and 8:00). Sunday is a matinee game with a 1:30 start.
Don't forget that on double-header days your ticket is good for both games so you can't beat that value. Also, Saturday is "Paint the Park Pink" night, with jersey auctions to support the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. Come out and show your support for this worthy cause.
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