After 42 games, the Piasa sit at 22-20. In the tight Frontier League, they sit in 4th place, 6 games out of first.
The Good
Greg Hammond has 15 homeruns
Clarence Thomas with 13 Homeruns
Ed Jackson .301 average and 18 steals
The pitching of Wallace, MacIntosh, and Teal.
The Bad
Jose Gonzalez and Artie White have struggled. For White, gotta figure this is the end for him - at 38 with a few 2B prospects in the system. Gonzalez battled an oblique injury and once might say it is still bothering him.
Closer Jacobs has only 7 saves and has looked shakier than he did last year. He is still striking out a zillion guys tho.
Bin Zhu 1-4, not bad stats, but some bad luck.
The Ugly
Stan Anderson was sent back to AAA after hitting a meager .168 in over 100 at bats. Chris Kelly was awful and released. Zach Moore is struggling as a reliever.
Newcomers
Dan Allen, after killing the ball in AA and AAA is up to play RF. SO far, 8 games, 4 RBI and a .233 average. Looks to have a promising future.
Jim Hawkins has come around after a touch start. ERA under 4.50 and starting to exert himself as a setup man (and potential future closer).
Brad Morcom, acquired in the Kurota deal, has been an excellent reliever. Sporting a 2.41 ERA and good control he has been an excellent find.
Moving Forward
The Piasa are hoping Bin Zhu gets some better luck and that 3B Gonzalez finds his stride as we head into the second quarter of the season. Artie White is being phased out a little as he begins to share time with new arrival (courtesy of the Kurota trade) Andy Clark. The playoffs are attainable for this squad, but more run production is needed.
