Another week of Sim Rockies baseball down. This week, the team went 2-6 against the Sim Cardinals and Sim Padres, only winning the finale of each series. In both of their wins, they scored more runs in the single game than they did in both of the previous two combined. Against the Sim Cardinals, they were outscored 5-1 in the first two games, but then scored eight runs in the finale. Against the Sim Padres, they were outscored 12-6 in the first two games, but then scored 16 in the finale. Long story short, the offense is the key to victory.
Under the radar
When you think of the Sim Rockies offense, names like Nolan Arenado, Charlie Blackmon, David Dahl, and Trevor Story are usually the first three to come to mind. While they all continued their hot streaks, Drew Butera, Sam Hilliard, and Daniel Murphy stood out this week.
Drew Butera made two starts behind the dish and went 4-for-8 (.500) in those two starts. He also walked three times and struck out twice.
Sam Hilliard had a breakout game on Sunday, going 3-for-5 with three home runs and five RBI. On the week, he went 4-for-12 with the three home runs and five RBI, as well as three runs scored, a walk, and three strikeouts. That moved his slash from .180/.255/.380 to .210/.279/.532.
Daniel Murphy went 7-for-18 (.389) with an RBI, two runs scored, and a strikeout. His slash went from .252/.299/.372 to .262/.307/.377.
Arenado, Blackmon, Dahl, and Story combined to go 32-for-90 (.356) with five home runs, 17 RBI, 17 runs scored, nine walks, and 20 strikeouts. Nine of those strikeouts came from Trevor Story, who had the worst week of the four.
Sim Rockies Batting Stats through July 12, 2020
| Name | AB | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | R | H | OBP | SLG | OPS | BB | K | WAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | AB | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | R | H | OBP | SLG | OPS | BB | K | WAR |
| Nolan Arenado | 359 | 27 | 68 | 0 | 0.326 | 65 | 117 | 0.402 | 0.632 | 1.035 | 46 | 66 | 5.2 |
| Charlie Blackmon* | 305 | 17 | 42 | 1 | 0.298 | 49 | 91 | 0.351 | 0.570 | 0.931 | 30 | 70 | 2.4 |
| Drew Butera | 92 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 0.283 | 10 | 26 | 0.383 | 0.370 | 0.753 | 14 | 19 | 0.8 |
| David Dahl | 353 | 13 | 46 | 1 | 0.249 | 42 | 88 | 0.303 | 0.470 | 0.773 | 27 | 79 | 0.7 |
| Yonathan Daza | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.250 | 1 | 2 | 0.250 | 0.250 | 0.500 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 |
| Elias Díaz | 154 | 3 | 17 | 0 | 0.273 | 8 | 42 | 0.315 | 0.383 | 0.698 | 10 | 30 | 1.2 |
| Garrett Hampson | 150 | 5 | 14 | 2 | 0.247 | 25 | 37 | 0.323 | 0.400 | 0.723 | 15 | 31 | -0.1 |
| Sam Hilliard | 124 | 10 | 20 | 1 | 0.234 | 17 | 29 | 0.291 | 0.565 | 0.856 | 10 | 38 | 1.0 |
| Matt Kemp | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.320 | 5 | 8 | 0.393 | 0.560 | 0.953 | 3 | 4 | 0.3 |
| Ryan McMahon | 329 | 24 | 53 | 0 | 0.240 | 52 | 79 | 0.324 | 0.535 | 0.858 | 38 | 112 | 0.8 |
| Brian Mundell | 32 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0.344 | 8 | 11 | 0.421 | 0.375 | 0.796 | 5 | 3 | 0.3 |
| Daniel Murphy | 318 | 6 | 30 | 1 | 0.261 | 31 | 83 | 0.310 | 0.396 | 0.706 | 21 | 47 | 0.0 |
| Trevor Story | 374 | 24 | 59 | 11 | 0.251 | 56 | 94 | 0.316 | 0.543 | 0.858 | 36 | 112 | 2.6 |
| Raimel Tapia | 68 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0.162 | 6 | 11 | 0.247 | 0.235 | 0.482 | 8 | 11 | -0.3 |
| *IL |
Bullpen trending up, starters trending down
The Sim Rockies starters continue to struggle, but the bullpen is trending in the right direction. Kyle Freeland made two starts this week for a total of 9 2⁄3 innings, but one of those was a 3 2⁄3 inning start in the Father’s Day home run showcase. In those 9 2⁄3 innings, Freeland gave up seven runs (all earned and all on Sunday) and struck out six. He also gave up one walk.
Evan Grills started the other Sim Rockies’ win this week against the Sim Cardinals. He pitched six innings, striking out three and walking two. He also gave up four runs, which pushed his ERA from 2.37 to 3.24. He still has the lowest ERA amongst starters by nearly a point. Kyle Freeland’s is 4.14.
On the bullpen side of things, Carlos Estévez and James Pazos are really settling in after some early struggles. Estévez made five appearances for a total of 4 1⁄3 innings. He struck out ten batters and lowered his ERA by over half a run. Pazos made four appearances for a total of four innings, and struck out six and walked one. He also lowered his ERA by nearly half a run. Neither of them yielded a single run.
Sim Rockies Pitching Stats through July 12, 2020
| Name | W | L | IP | K | ERA | WHIP | SV | BB | G | GS | R | ER | WAR | K/9 | BB/9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | W | L | IP | K | ERA | WHIP | SV | BB | G | GS | R | ER | WAR | K/9 | BB/9 |
| Tim Collins | 2 | 1 | 29.0 | 30 | 3.41 | 1.620 | 0 | 19 | 34 | 0 | 12 | 11 | 0.1 | 9.3 | 5.9 |
| Wade Davis | 1 | 3 | 37.1 | 39 | 6.51 | 1.580 | 3 | 12 | 47 | 0 | 27 | 27 | 0.5 | 9.4 | 2.9 |
| Carlos Estevéz | 1 | 4 | 54.0 | 77 | 4.50 | 1.130 | 0 | 14 | 56 | 0 | 28 | 27 | 0.3 | 12.8 | 2.3 |
| Kyle Freeland | 3 | 8 | 89.0 | 47 | 4.15 | 1.290 | 0 | 21 | 17 | 17 | 49 | 41 | 0.6 | 4.8 | 2.1 |
| Jon Gray | 2 | 9 | 77.0 | 69 | 5.84 | 1.520 | 0 | 39 | 15 | 15 | 50 | 50 | 0.2 | 8.1 | 4.6 |
| Joe Harvey | 0 | 2 | 9.2 | 8 | 14.90 | 2.170 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 17 | 16 | -0.3 | 7.5 | 0.9 |
| Jeff Hoffman | 5 | 1 | 74.1 | 55 | 5.45 | 1.450 | 0 | 27 | 44 | 2 | 45 | 45 | 0.5 | 6.7 | 3.3 |
| Tyler Kinley | 3 | 0 | 29.2 | 36 | 2.12 | 0.910 | 9 | 11 | 29 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0.6 | 10.9 | 3.3 |
| Germán Márquez | 7 | 8 | 89.2 | 87 | 6.22 | 1.670 | 0 | 33 | 18 | 18 | 65 | 62 | 0.1 | 8.7 | 3.3 |
| Scott Oberg | 0 | 1 | 23.0 | 28 | 2.35 | 1.090 | 16 | 13 | 26 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0.6 | 11.0 | 5.1 |
| James Pazos | 1 | 1 | 51.2 | 52 | 3.14 | 1.350 | 0 | 18 | 50 | 0 | 18 | 18 | 1.0 | 9.1 | 3.1 |
| Antonio Senzatela | 5 | 4 | 74.2 | 61 | 4.70 | 1.500 | 1 | 24 | 25 | 12 | 42 | 39 | 0.5 | 7.4 | 2.9 |
| Jack Wynkoop | 0 | 0 | 12.0 | 9 | 2.25 | 0.670 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 0.4 | 6.8 | 1.5 |
★ ★ ★
The Sim Rockies will spend this week in interleague play. They begin with a three game set against the Sim Royals tonight and then head north to play the Sim Twins over the weekend.
As always, check out Ben Kouchnerkavich’s YouTube channel for all the Sim Rockies action. We will broadcast tonight and on Friday for sure, and possibly on Wednesday and Sunday if the Sim Rockies are in line to sweep either team.
Sim NL West Standings through July 12, 2020
| Team | W | L | GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | GB |
| Dodgers | 57 | 39 | -- |
| Padres | 56 | 41 | 1.5 |
| Diamondbacks | 49 | 47 | 8.0 |
| Giants | 45 | 50 | 11.5 |
| Rockies | 42 | 54 | 15.0 |
Sim NL Wild Card Standings through July 12, 2020
| Team | W | L | GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | GB |
| Padres | 56 | 41 | -- |
| Pirates | 51 | 45 | -- |
| Nationals | 50 | 47 | 1.5 |
| Diamondbacks | 49 | 47 | 2.0 |
| Reds | 47 | 49 | 4.0 |
| Cardinals | 46 | 51 | 5.5 |
| Giants | 45 | 50 | 5.5 |
| Marlins | 45 | 51 | 6.0 |
| Cubs | 45 | 51 | 6.0 |
| Phillies | 45 | 51 | 6.0 |
| Rockies | 42 | 54 | 9.0 |
| Mets | 42 | 54 | 9.0 |