Andre is married! At least, that is what the picture and Dave seem to indicate. And what better way to combat the awful fires raging all around the west coast than to see two people in love, smiles radiating more warmth than any fire could produce, reminding us that even in the difficult times there are beautiful things on which to fix our eyes.
Each of our teams responded to this momentous occasion in different ways, but all of us are supremely excited for you, Andre, and extend our love and congratulations to you and your bride.
And a hearty congratulations to Dave, too, who has managed to successfully take on another role among his many others (even though he is retired). The EFL is proud to call you members of our league, and more importantly, friends.
Congratulations!!!
EFL Standings for 2020
| EFL | ||||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB | RS | RA |
| Kaline Drive | 24 | 18 | .581 | — | 197.5 | 166.5 |
| Haviland Dragons | 23 | 19 | .554 | 1.1 | 216.3 | 194.1 |
| Flint Hill Tornadoes | 23 | 21 | .533 | 2 | 244.8 | 231.0 |
| Bellingham Cascades | 21 | 22 | .484 | 4.1 | 227.1 | 246.7 |
| Peshastin Pears | 21 | 24 | .469 | 4.8 | 222.3 | 234.4 |
| Cottage Cheese | 21 | 24 | .467 | 4.9 | 232.3 | 249.6 |
| D.C. Balk | 20 | 24 | .460 | 5.2 | 203.7 | 220.8 |
| Canberra Kangaroos | 19 | 25 | .436 | 6.2 | 224.9 | 257.1 |
| Old Detroit Wolverines | 17 | 27 | .389 | 8.3 | 205.0 | 257.0 |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys | 16 | 27 | .382 | 8.5 | 205.1 | 260.8 |
| Portland Rosebuds | 14 | 31 | .318 | 11.6 | 216.0 | 317.1 |
Kaline: “L,” 7-5 (38PA; 13IP)
| AVG: 0.333 | OBP: 0.395 | SLG: 0.636 | OPS: 1.031 |
| ERA: 4.15 | WHIP: 1.077 |
Though the Drive received a loss in the system, they earned a win. Indeed, their day spurred a tiny amount of separation between them and the 2nd place Dragons. How did they do it? It only took two Cubs and a Giant. Willson Contreras was the MVP on the day, going 4 for with 2 2Bs and a BB. Kris Bryant added two more hits and a BB, and Wilmer Flores went 2 for 4 with a 2B and a HR. The pitching was pretty good, led by Jose Urquidy and his 6IP and 2 ER, but would have been even better if Aaron Civale wouldn’t have given up 4 runs in 6 IP. Though the Drive did manage to add .1 games to their lead over the Dragons, their lead over the Tornadoes shrunk by .3 games, making driving conditions a little less lovely than Andre’s wedding day.
Haviland: L, 4-4 (33PA; 2IP)
| AVG: 0.200 | OBP: 0.273 | SLG: 0.433 | OPS: 0.706 |
| ERA: 0.00 | WHIP: 0.500 |
The Dragons, unlike Andre on his wedding day, did not look sharp. The two Cardinals (Bader and Wong) combined for a lackluster 3 for 14 with 4 Ks from Bader alone. The one Phillie, Realmuto, was Realloudo at the plate, going 2 for 4 with a 2B and a HR. Brandon Lowe chipped in a HR, but the 2IP from Alex Reyes, though scoreless, were not enough to send the Dragons to victory, nor any closer to the Drive. But they did get closer to the Tornadoes, which can sometimes be a product of seeing two people get happily married – you become even more thankful for your own family and want to be nearer to them. How sweet!
Flint Hill: W, 9-1 (33PA; 12.7IP)
| AVG: 0.259 | OBP: 0.394 | SLG: 0.444 | OPS: 0.838 |
| ERA: 5.67 | WHIP: 0.866 |
The Tornadoes are a team who love to see love flourishing all around them. There’s only one thing that makes us happier than watching two people commit to one another in marriage – and that is winning a game in the EFL. So today feels like we won two games, though the record shows only one win added to our record. The star of the day was Sean Manaea (whom the Oakland announcers have dubbed, “The Manaeaical One,” even though he doesn’t look that crazy to me). He went 7IP and gave up only 1 run, and threw only 61 pitches! The Tornado pitching line on the day looks bad, but the two culprits (Jimenez and Cahill are on the EFL bench…whew!), so our team ERA was 1.00 for the day, and now sits at 2.25 on the month. I hope I didn’t just jinx us. Most of the good hitting came from the two holiest players on the team, Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon, who combined to go 4 for 9 with a 2B and a HR, and who tonight face Tornado pitcher German Marquez at Coors Field. Yikes!
Bellingham: DNP, 2-0 (33PA; no pitching)
| AVG: 0.179 | OBP: 0.303 | SLG: 0.500 | OPS: 0.803 |
Good for you, Andre, for taking a day off after your wedding! In the midst of a busy season in which your team is making a run to the top in the last two weeks, you were able to carve out time for a one day honeymoon. I imagine, because of time and current world conditions, you didn’t get to go to the sunny destination of your dreams, but when you are with the person you love, it doesn’t matter where you go, just as long as you go together. Ronald Acuna, Jr. hit his 6th HR of the month (if you aren’t keeping track, he has 9 hits this month, 6 of them HRs, in 29ABs – yes, one HR per every 5 ABs or so). Paul Goldschmidt and Lane Thomas also chipped in HRs to celebrate the Cascadian Covenant. What a nice gift!
Peshastin: L, 3-3 (34PA; 11.3IP)
| AVG: 0.154 | OBP: 0.353 | SLG: 0.346 | OPS: 0.699 |
| ERA: 3.98 | WHIP: 1.593 |
Yesterday’s Pear effort at the plate was done almost entirely by one person, Tommy Edman, who collected 3 of the Pears 4 hits, 1 of their two doubles and their only HR. The only other player to do anything was Juan Soto who added one 2B, and that’s it! It’s as if the Pear management was demonstrating to Andre that in a healthy relationship there has to be more than one person doing all the work, which is generally good advice. The pitchers seemed to understand, with 6 of them appearing yesterday, and 4 of them allowing either one or two runs to spread out the damage so as to make sure not one person was the main culprit. And it worked! Their team ERA of 3.98 allowed their team to eke out a tie on a day when their hitters didn’t care to contribute.
Cottage: W, 4-(-7) (21PA; 19IP)
| AVG: 0.263 | OBP: 0.333 | SLG: 0.421 | OPS: 0.754 |
| ERA: 2.37 | WHIP: 0.737 |
The Cheese were in celebration mode yesterday, and why not? Their daughter married the man of her dreams, and a very successful EFL manager became an official member of the family, proving that Cheese management is both a wonderful father and also an incredible mentor. The hitting was fairly good, led by the two Coreys (Seager and Dickerson) who combined to go 4 for 9 with a HR. But the stars on the day were the pitchers! 4 Cheese pitchers toed the rubber, and over 19 IP allowed only 5 earned runs. The best effort came from debutant Brady Singer who nearly threw 2020s second no-hitter (he lost it in the 8th inning), giving up 0 runs in 8 innings. If the Cheese celebrations will continue on the rest of the month, we all might be celebrating a Cheese championship.
DC: W, 9-3 (33PA; 7.3IP)
| AVG: 0.345 | OBP: 0.424 | SLG: 0.621 | OPS: 1.045 |
| ERA: 2.47 | WHIP: 0.685 |
The Balk captured a smooth win yesterday, almost as smooth as Andre’s tuxedo (nice choice, Andre – you look good!) on his wedding day. 7 batters came to the plate, and 4 of them got 2 hits apiece, 2 of them 1 hit apiece and only one of them had no hits (would you believe his name was Mookie Betts? Would you believe he started at 2B last night?). The pitching was equally awesome, with Dylan Bundy the lone pitcher tossing 7 innings and giving up 2 runs.
Canberra: L, 2-7 (42PA; 1IP)
| AVG: 0.175 | OBP: 0.214 | SLG: 0.250 | OPS: 0.464 |
| ERA: 0.00 | WHIP: 0.000 |
The Roo players played as though they wished they were somewhere else (perhaps at Andre’s wedding?). They sent more players to the plate than any other EFL team, but something wasn’t clicking. Manuel Margot led the team with 2 hits and 2 SBs, and also his first CS of the season. Daulton Varsho, a catcher, did manage to hit a triple, and I imagine that created some excitement in the dugout (some nights you’ll take what you can get…)
Old Detroit: W, 9-3 (28PA; 7.3IP)
| AVG: 0.458 | OBP: 0.519 | SLG: 0.708 | OPS: 1.227 |
| ERA: 3.70 | WHIP: 1.644 |
Usually at a wedding the minister presiding over the ceremony will call on those gathered to serve as witnesses to the commitment being made on the altar. Weddings in the time of COVID-19 don’t often have very many witnesses, but hopefully there was someone at Andre’s wedding to witness the monumental occasion. Today in the EFL we also have another monumental occasion to witness – the Wolverines passing the Alleghenys! (I think it is monumental…at least is talked about quite a bit, which makes it important, right?) The Wolverines did so with an excellent all around day. Youngsters Will Smith and Rafael Devers combined to go 7 for 8 with a 2B and a HR, and the entire team OPSed 1.227. And the pitchers kept pace with a combined effort from Morejon, Minter, and Fleming. The Wolverines also made a move to be closer to their offspring, which is what happens when true love flourishes before your eyes. An the Roos are moving geographically closer to the Wolverine management, will a move in the standings follow?
Pittsburgh: W(-1), L1 (-2)-7 (15PA; 5.3IP)
| AVG: 0.154 | OBP: 0.267 | SLG: 0.385 | OPS: 0.651 |
| ERA: 18.68 | WHIP: 3.019 |
Sometimes weddings have a way of making you look past what might at other times cause one consternation. Just last weekend I attended a wedding and sat in a chair just a few feet from the DJ. As the wedding party was walking down the aisle, they music just stopped. He started checking all the wires, plugging and unplugging, cursing under his breath, while the audience stared in his direction wondering when the music would begin again. But the wedding party hardly seemed to notice or care, continuing on as though nothing was wrong. Perhaps that is how the Alleghenys feel this morning? I mean, this line is a trainwreck. But Andre got married! And that makes everything feel a little better, no?
Portland: L, 2-8 (25PA; 3.7IP)
| AVG: 0.091 | OBP: 0.200 | SLG: 0.227 | OPS: 0.427 |
| ERA: 7.30 | WHIP: 1.351 |
Look, I don’t know why Rosebud players put up a bunch of putrid numbers yesterday. Besides the Cascade and Cheese owners, the Rosebuds were the only other EFL member actually in the wedding. Look at that bouquet! So why would they players protest in such an ugly manner? The only thing I can think of is that in order to take the collective eyes off of their beauty in order to retrain everyone else’s gaze towards this beautiful ceremony, they had to stink. The problem is too many people are rubberneckers, and so it is difficult to look away.
Combined MLB + EFL Standings for 2020
| AL East | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 28 | 16 | .636 | — |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 24 | 19 | .558 | 3.5 |
| Flint Hill Tornadoes | 23 | 21 | .533 | 4.5 |
| New York Yankees | 22 | 21 | .512 | 5.5 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 20 | 22 | .476 | 7 |
| Old Detroit Wolverines | 17 | 27 | .389 | 10.9 |
| Boston Red Sox | 16 | 29 | .356 | 12.5 |
| NL East | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Atlanta Braves | 26 | 18 | .591 | — |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 21 | 19 | .525 | 3 |
| Miami Marlins | 20 | 19 | .513 | 3.5 |
| D.C. Balk | 20 | 24 | .460 | 5.8 |
| New York Mets | 20 | 24 | .455 | 6 |
| Canberra Kangaroos | 19 | 25 | .436 | 6.8 |
| Washington Nationals | 16 | 26 | .381 | 9 |
| AL Central | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Chicago White Sox | 27 | 16 | .628 | — |
| Minnesota Twins | 27 | 18 | .600 | 1 |
| Cleveland Indians | 26 | 18 | .591 | 1.5 |
| Bellingham Cascades | 21 | 22 | .484 | 6.2 |
| Detroit Tigers | 20 | 23 | .465 | 7 |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys | 16 | 27 | .382 | 10.6 |
| Kansas City Royals | 17 | 28 | .378 | 11 |
| NL Central | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Chicago Cubs | 26 | 19 | .578 | — |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 19 | 18 | .514 | 3 |
| Cottage Cheese | 21 | 24 | .467 | 5 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 19 | 22 | .463 | 5 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 19 | 25 | .432 | 6.5 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 14 | 27 | .341 | 10 |
| AL West | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Oakland A’s | 27 | 15 | .643 | — |
| Kaline Drive | 24 | 18 | .581 | 2.6 |
| Haviland Dragons | 23 | 19 | .554 | 3.7 |
| Houston Astros | 22 | 23 | .489 | 6.5 |
| Seattle Mariners | 19 | 24 | .442 | 8.5 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 18 | 27 | .400 | 10.5 |
| Texas Rangers | 15 | 28 | .349 | 12.5 |
| NL West | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 32 | 13 | .711 | — |
| San Diego Padres | 29 | 17 | .630 | 3.5 |
| San Francisco Giants | 23 | 22 | .511 | 9 |
| Peshastin Pears | 21 | 24 | .469 | 10.9 |
| Colorado Rockies | 20 | 23 | .465 | 11 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | 16 | 29 | .356 | 16 |
| Portland Rosebuds | 14 | 31 | .318 | 17.7 |
Thanks so much, appreciate it!
Now got out and win a game tomorrow to celebrate!!