[mikev]

Now That's A Hell Of A Start To The Season!

Welp, one sim down. The Crusaders are feeling good after opening the season with a sweep of the Las Vegas Hustlers, then they took 3 of 4 from Vancouver before losing 2 of 3 to the Long Beach Surfers.

Still, a 7-3 sim is plenty acceptable, given that we totally sucked last year and didn't have many winning sims at all.

Sim Recap

Highlights of the sim included Opening Day starter Andy MacGregor tossing a 102 pitch complete-game against Vegas, with 5 strikeouts and 1 walk. A pair of 2-run innings were the only flaws of the day, and Pedro Cisneros allowed a baserunner but had no problems closing out the game.

Henry McHaney gave a glimpse of what he's capable of, tossing 8.1 shutout innings against Vegas allowing 5 hits, striking out 4, and walking none. Cisneros picked up his second save in as many games.

The Crusaders went for the sweep behind Griz Hayagawa. His line wasn't quite as sexy as MacGregor or McHaney, but he pitched into the 7th inning allowing 1 run on 5 hits, striking out 7 and walking only 1. A combination of Cacheira, Gregory, and Alvarado kept the Hustlers at bay, and the sweep was completed.

Lorenzo Diaz tossed the second complete game of the young season for the Crusaders, this time against the Vancouver Mounties, who shortly after announced a change in the front office. Diaz scattered 6 hits, K'd 5, and walked only 1, and California picked up the win after Jakob Forest scored in the bottom of the 9th after hitting a double to get into scoring position.

The team's fifth straight win came behind yet another stellar pitching performance, this time it was youngster Joaquin Martinez who managed to carry a shutout into the 9th inning before running out of gas with 2 outs and being charged with all 3 Vancouver runs. The Crusaders bats woke up in a big way, however, as home runs by Forest, catcher Carlos Becerra, and third baseman Pedro Cruz led the way in a 12 run onslaught.

Vancouver would return the favor next game, handing California their first loss of the season in a 10-4 laugher. Crusaders starter Tony Alvarado was hit early and often, making it through just 4 innings allowing 6 runs and earning the loss.

Andy MacGregor returned to the mound and notched his second win in as many starts, tossing 7 innings and allowing 2 runs with 7 strikeouts and only 1 walk. Three runs in the 4th and a run in the 5th would be enough for the Crusaders to win the game and the series.

Henry McHaney's complete game win in the first game of the Long Beach series was the third CG in 8 starts for the Crusaders this season, and 2 home runs from Becerra along with the first bomb from shortstop Tony Leslie in a Crusaders uniform led the 12 run offensive outburst and a 7-1 record on the season.

Pedro Cisneros would get his first blown save and his first loss in game 2 against LBC, allowing 2 runs in the top of the 9th. Surfers closer Dogface Robinson would shut down California in the bottom of the inning to notch his 4th save.

The Surfers would then ride a pair of four run innings to a win in the deciding game of the series, handing Lorenzo Diaz his first loss as a big leaguer in an 8-4 Long Beach victory.

I Love My Scouts

Some of you might remember that I wasn't too excited about Luis Molina as our everyday second baseman. Well, our scouts happened across Pedro Vargas who was promptly inked to a 1.7M contract and will be our new starter at second. Every scout on my team already thinks that he's one of the better players at the position in the MBBA, and his ceiling projects him to be one of the 10 best hitters in the entire league. Exciting, isn't it?

Also, Evan Dotson finally reported to the team and will be slotted into the starting centerfield position. To make room for the two players, 2B Ken Carter was optioned to AAA Oakland and CF Nick Cox was placed on the 15 day disabled list after injuring his eye being hit by a pitch.

The Next Crusade

4/18 - v. Manhattan
4/19 - v. Manhattan
4/20 - v. Manhattan

4/22 - @ Greenville
4/23 - @ Greenville
4/24 - @ Greenville

4/25 - v. Des Moines
4/26 - v. Des Moines
4/27 - v. Des Moines

4/27 - @ Vancouver
4/28 - @ Vancouver
4/29 - @ Vancouver
4/30 - @ Vancouver