The Mustangs managed to be even at 14-14 in May. There better be some vast improvement in June for them to have any shot of overcoming the brutal 0-7 in the division opening week. Likely it is over for 2015.
I could go on for days about everything that is broken in Denver. Last years ABL best starter ERA dropping to 7th in the TML. A grand total of three batters with an OPS over .800. Zero help from any of the seven AAA call ups that have been made trying to find some spark. Daniel Rodriguez (prime candidate to replace Eric Black) is has 4 hits in 45 AB. That is just the tip of the ice berg. Instead, mostly because I am lazy, let's take a look at what is going well. That is a much shorter article.
1) SP Scott Wilson - Now 23 years old and in his second year in the bigs. Wilson has come out of the gates on fire. In 10 starts he is 6-2 with a 1.69 ERA. It seems like every year one Mustang pitcher really steps up. Two years ago it was Durden, last year Berry. No doubt that Wilson is the man for 2015. It better continue too. Previous hurlers were fighting for the number two spot. It is looking like Wilson may need to step up to be the stopper since Ruiz has mysteriously lost all recognition of his craft since winning the Cy Young last year.
2) The Bullpen. After a rough April, the Mustang bullpen has had a very effective May to rise back to their accustomed place as the league's top unit.
3) Middle Infield. Jeff Wade and Callum Ritchie are following the Bullpens lead. Both were atrocious out of the gate but have started to hit their stride over the last couple of weeks. Wade used the month of May to raise his batting average by 81 points. We are also hoping his April errors stay locked away in that forgettable month. Ritchie has also started to slowly dig his way out of the cellar with a recent power surge. Still, his .189 batting average with runners in scoring position simply has to improve.
4) 1B/DH Fernando Garza continues his all star caliber production and remains the best hitter on the squad. He was sorely missed for the three weeks he was injured.
5) 3B Francisco Morales. Drafted in the 16th round of the inaugural draft. Morales was a panic pick because all of the good third basemen were gone. Every year, including this one, he was part of a spring training competition to see who would win this spot. Each time he has fought off the contender and proved to be the better choice when put in platoon situations. The Mustangs liked his defense and his bat enough to bypass arbitration and go ahead and commit to him for 6 years at 1.12 million per. This has the potential to be a brilliant move if the first two months of 2015 turn out to be trend and not mirage. Morales is sporting a 300 batting average and a 17.4 VORP. Even better he has that intangible Mustangs have found so rare. He is clutch going 14 of 37 with 14 rbi and 7 with runners in scoring position.
That's pretty much all of the good. Here's to hoping next month finds us in a better spot.
