The Edinburgh News
May 10, 2029
Claymores Week in Review May 14-20
Scotland played .500 ball last week, slipping from first place into a tie for second with San Juan, as a result. The Claymores started well enough, taking 2 of 3 games from San Antonio, but then dropped 2 of 3 to surging division nemesis Havana, which roared to life with a 6-1 week.
1B Orlando Barrón and RF Pat Barry both hit well for a second week in a row to power the offense – Barrón slashing .350/.350/.450 and Barry slashing .318/.348/.591.
On the mound, offseason acquisition Manuel Hernández continued to impress in his long relief role, throwing 5.0 innings over 3 appearances and allowing just 1 unearned run. For the season, Hernández has pitched 25.1 innings and has a 1-0 record with a 1.44 ERA.
In the coming week, the Scottish with host Havana for the series closer on Monday, then welcome Hartford for a 2-game series before jetting off to Texas and a 4-game set with San Antonio.
With the top three teams in the Trans Atlantic all crowded within half a game of each other, this figures to be yet another tense week for the Claymores faithful.
Top Hitter
Pat Berry, RF: .318/.348/.591, .939 OPS, 2 HRs, 4 RBIs, 3 Runs
Top Pitcher
Allen Guthrie, SP: 1-0, 8.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 7 K’s, 0 BB’s, 0.5 WAR
Top GameA 5-hit, 8-inning gem by Allen Guthrie and a 2-0 win over highly-regarded international free agent Ronald Turton on May 15 is our game of the week. Scotland jumped ahead in the bottom of the second inning when LF José Guillén lashed a double to right center, moved to third on a single by 2B José Escobido, then jogged home when CF Teruo Nagai grounded a sharp single between third and short. The Scottish completed their scoring in the next inning when 1B Peter Casey led off with a double, moved to third on a ground out, and then came home on a sac fly to deep left center off the bat of DH Vincent Powell. Turton, who the Scottish pursued aggressively during free agency, shut things down the rest of the way, but Guthrie had all the cushion he would need for the victory, as he scattered just 5 hits across his 8 innings of work, with no walks and 8 strikeouts. Closer Ken Fisher pitched the 9th and picked up the save.
News and Notes
The Scottish continued using a six-man starting rotation last week, but it’s unknown how long manager Hayato Sasaki will stick with that strategy. Should the bullpen show signs of unraveling in the wake of the May 12 injury to RP Subaru Adachi, one of the backend starters could move into a relief role ... Front office sources said the Scottish tried to pick up former Hartford RP Doug Wells from waivers, but lost that claim to Manchester … Meanwhile, the Scottish reportedly have offers out to a couple of free agent relievers, but have yet to hear back from their agents. Stay tuned … Scotland’s defensive efficiency continues to surprise, ticking up to 4th in the Imperial League. Analysts believe Orlando Barrón’s move to, more or less, full-time duty at first has played a key role in that development. He’s a significant upgrade over last season’s rotation of Joshua Ligonier and Yosuke Imai, while Eric Jacobs has been an improvement over Bob Swift, who’s on rehab assignment in Aberdeen following a hamstring injury.
IL Trans Atlantic Division Standings
As of the morning of May 21, 2029
|Team...........|W | L | W % |GB |RD |
|Havana|.......|27|16|.628|-- |+47|
|Scotland|.....|26|16|.619|0.5|+35|
|San Juan......|27|17|.614|0.5| +8|
|London........|20|22|.476|6.5|-28|
|Amsterdam..|20|24|.455|7.5| +1|
Fresh From the Farm
AAA Aberdeen cruised to a 5-2 record last week, splitting the final two games of a series against Allentown, sweeping three games from Chesapeake Bay, and then splitting two against Eindhoven. The Golden Sands finished the week at 26-19, in first by three games in the AML Europe and Islands Division … RF Manuel Mejia has been hot, going 10-20 with 3 HRs and 7 RBIs over his last six games. On the season, he’s slashing .255/.289/.511 with 10 homers and 30 RBIs … AA Inverness struggled a bit last week, going 3-4 to slip to 23-21 on the season. The Highlanders are in third, 8 games back if Euro-Caribbean Division leader Port-au-Prince … Last season’s organization minor league Player of the Year, 1B Bob Sutherland, is heating up after a slow start: he’s batting .318 with 5 HRs and 7 RBIs over his last 18 games. He’s been playing behind the younger Manuel González, who’s struggled to a .173/.256/.321 slash line … Govan’s week was a 1-6 disaster. The Shipbuilders slipped to 11-22, 13.5 games behind Utrecht in the AWL Intercontinental Division. Pretty much the sole bright spot was SS Thomas Windus, who hit .476 over his last 7 games to raise his season slash line to an admittedly lackluster .228/.297/.287. He continues to play elite defense in the field, however.