Whoa, Nelly, Not So Soon!

The Hornets continue to outperform expectations though little more than a third of the season, leading the TML in HRs, scoring, and OPS.  Star Bergeron is batting third and leading team in batting with a .335 BA and homeruns, with 15.  Veteran secondbaseman McLernon is leading in RBIs, with 45. 

The team was not expected to do well this early on, but the explosive offense and mostly-adequate pitching has helped them to be competitive.  Second-year starter Royce Butterfield leads the rotation with a 3.73 ERA at age 21.  Prospect Anthony Atkinson held his own in his first ML start, pitching 5 solid innings, allowing only 2 runs at the age of 19.  He is in his third level on the season, after starting at AA, where he had 6 starts and a .73 ERA, then moving to AAA, where he had 5 starts and a 1.95 ERA.   The Hornets need him to prove to be a consistent ML starter, because the starting rotation has proven to be the team's lone inconsistency to this point.

New Season, Better Look?

Eureka has gotten off to a good start in 2013, with a 9-5 record in the early going.  Eureka added only a few new names to the roster, including catcher Ronnie Wells via trade to fill the Hornets' biggest hole.  So far, Wells has not brought better lumber, going only 3 for his first 42 for an .071 average in the early going. 

With a young rotation and more young arms on the way in coming seasons, Eureka took steps to shore up its bullpen in the offseason, (re)signing closer Brad Austin, who was traded to Maple last season and signing setup man Jim Dorsey. So far, the bullpen has proven to be a strength, with the team going 1-0 in extra inning games, and 2-1 in one-run games.

The offense has also been productive in the early going.  Cleanup man Eduardo Gomez has 16 RBIs through the first 14 games, and secondbaseman Gary McLernon is batting .479 with a .597 on-base percentage.  So far in the early going the team has a .291 batting average, .371 on base percentage, and .467 slugging percentage, with a Thurman Munson League leading 86 runs.

The starting pitching will need to improve for Eureka to maintain good performance, but the early results are encouraging.

Limping to the End

Eureka is struggling to a sub-.500 finish, lower than the owner had hoped for.  The injury bug has continued to hit Eureka hard, which now lost starting SS Foster through the end of the season.  Those who follow the team closely are wondering if this season's injuries have just represented an inordinate amount of bad luck, or if the trainer needs to be replaced!  Oh, well.  There is always next year!

Rotation of the Future Looks Studly

Eureka is really, really struggling this year.  This was expected, since the focus early was youth, pitching, character, youth, fielding, hitting.  However, there are some young bucks who should load up a quality rotation in the very near future.  The prospects:

4-5 Star Potential:
1. Royce Butterfield (age: 21).  After seven AAA starts during which he was lights-out (3-1, 1.41 ERA), Royce was called up the the big leagues.  He has had some ups and downs, and currently stands at 3-4 with a 6.70 ERA.  However, he did show his potential on July 3rd when he pitched a six-hit shutout.

2. Jake Nelson (age: 18).  After 18 A starts and a 9-5 record with a 2.21 ERA, he was promoted to AA.  He has struggled some there, which is to be expected at this point in his career, going 3-1 with a 4.79 ERA.

3. Anthony "Pongo" Atkinson (age: 18).  He has spent the season in A ball, going 11-5 with a 2.71 ERA.

4. Dave Blake (age: 17).  He has spent the season in A ball also, going 8-9 with a 4.57 ERA.

3 Star Potential:

5. Jeff "Havoc" Olsen (age: 22).  He has struggled in AAA ball, with a 5-4 record and 5.12 ERA, but he is still very much in Eureka's plans.

The plan is to have all of them, with the possible exception of Olsen, move up a level next season.  In 2-3 years, the major league team should have a solid rotation.

Ouch!

Adding to Eureka's injury woes, firstbaseman Michael Brown suffered a broken kneecap, and will miss seven months.  Starting pitchers Francis Baker and Jerome Burnett, as well as outfielder Orlando Carranzo, were already lost for this season.

"It has been a tough season," Eureka GM Dalfiume said.  "We knew we were playing mostly young this season, but the injuries made what was going to be a challenging season even more challenging.  The upside is that other young players have had some opportunities to get their feet wet in the major leagues.  A bit ahead of schedule, but that is the way it works sometimes."

Gnats (A) Bat, Arm Both Players of the Month

18-year-old Martin Rivera, OF on the Nichols Gnats, won the player of the month award as the best Batter in the BOL for the month of June.  He batted .313 with 8 home runs, 16 RBIs, and 21 runs scored.  He has won the player of the week award three times this season, and has now added Batter of the Month.

Less of a surprise was that SP Anthony Atkinson, considered one of Eureka's top prospects, won the player of the month award as the best Pitcher in the BOL for the month of June.  He was 5-1 in six starts, 39.1 innings, with 42 Ks, and a miniscule 1.37 ERA. 

The Gnats are now 53-30 for the season.

Injuries Slamming Eureka!

Eureka has been beset by the injury bug.  Two of the five season-opening starters, Francis Baker and Jerome Burnett, are already out for the season.   OF and DH Orlando Carranzo is also.  Star Mike Bergeron is halfway through a month of inactivity, as are rightfielder Willis Parks and shortstop Dylan Foster.  The young team, which already had something of a AAA look, has an even stronger AAA look now!

Down on the farm, AAA reliever Eric Phillips and A reliever Gary Prince are out for the season.  AA reliever Sam Evans will be missing half the season.