Recap of the Latest Homestand

Trenton's last homestand was a very successful one, going 6-2. Here are the three series:

vs. Atlanta (2): The Traffic took both games in Trenton to make it 3 out of 4 in a home-and-home series. The highlight was the final game, a 4-0 victory which was Dwight Salmon's Traffic debut; he pitched 7 scoreless innings.

vs. Washington (3): The Traffic lost 2 out of 3 to divisonal opponent Washington. The only highlight was the 4-3 win in the middle game, where Enrique Park hit 2 home runs, including a solo shot in the 5th to break a 3-3 tie and provide the final margin of victory.

vs. Austin (3): The Traffic swept a good City Limits team, outscoring Austin 31-9. The final game of the series was an 11-0 laugher, with Salmon pitching 7 more scoreless innings. Dave Dunwoody pitched the first game of the series, winning his home debut 8-5.

Trenton passes Atlanta for sole posession of 1st

With exactly 50 games left to go, the Traffic now sit in 1st place by themselves for the first time all season. Trenton's 8-2 win at Philadelphia coupled with Atlanta's 4-0 loss at home to New Orleans gives the Traffic a one game lead in the division. When asked for his thoughts, GM gumbercules said, "The guys are excited, as they've been looking up at Atlanta all season, but they also realize this is far from over. They know there's 50 games left, and we'll see Atlanta again. We know they're the champs, and they're good and have always been well-run. But I'll admit, it's real nice to open the paper in the morning and see Trenton on top."

1st round pick update

Trenton GM gumbercules announced in a press conference yesterday that it is not likely to sign 1st round pick SS Mariano Martis. "We just don't have enough money to sign him", gumbercules said after receiving a reported figure of $6.5 million from Martis's agent, Louis Watson. Gumbercules continued, "This is not an attempt to negotiate in the press- I don't like to do that. We're just too far apart and at this point I don't see it happening. In order to raise enough money to fulfill Martis's demands, we would have to cut salary to the point where we would hurt our playoff chances this year and possibly down the road. I think that would be irresponsible." Martis was one of the top rated high school position players coming out of Baldwin Park High in California.

Traffic in the All-Star Game

Congratulations to CF Watty Miller, LF Bret King, and P Karl Coleman for being named to the All-Star Team. King made his 3rd All-Star team, although the other two were in the AL; Miller and Coleman were each named to the All-Star team for the first time. Miller started as the DH, King came in as a replacement for Alex Lim in the 5th, and Coleman was left in reserve. Miller went 0-2, flying out to left in the 1st and flying out to right in the 3rd. King walked in his only two plate appearances (6th and 8th innings). He was thrown out by Louisville's Steven O'Malley in the 6th trying to steal 2nd, and was stranded on first base after the walk in the 8th.

Wheeling and Dealing

The Traffic have made a few trades in the last week.

1. The Traffic sent CF Gary Nelson and IF Miguel Cerveza to St. Louis for minor leaguers Butch Russell and Ted Kelly. Russell is a speedy RF who can also hit fairly well. Kelly is a defensive SS who will be useful as a defensive replacement if he can't win the SS job someday. GM gumbercules said, "We expect Gary to be a quality player in St. Louis and we thank Miguel for all he's done for this team. But we couldn't pass up a chance to grab a potential RF and SS of the future". The Traffic also save about $10 million this season and next by dealing Cerveza.

2. Later in the week, the Traffic dealt underachieving Alex Sanchez to Salt Lake City for minor leaguers Tito Harris and Joey Hartman. Harris is a durable corner OF/1B type player who could get called up when the rosters expand. He's got a good bat against lefties in particular. Hartman is a decent player across the board- his role on this team is in question. This may have been a deal in which the Traffic were motivated more by money (Sanchez is still owed $21.5 million over the next 3 1/2 seasons) than by getting the most talent back.

3. The Traffic then pulled off a blockbuster deal, dealing Sammy Garrido, Curtis Smart, and Tito Mercedes to Salem for dual aces David Dunwoody and Dwight Salmon. Dunwoody and Salmon split the Season 1 Cy Young Award and led Salem to a World Series title that season. They've been to a combined 9 All-Star games and have won a combined 206 games. GM gumbercules expects they'll become the aces the franchise has never had.

Where we stand

OK, it's been a little while, but we're back in action. Here's where we are one game after the All-Star break:

Record: 53-39
Standing in NL East: 2nd. 4 games behind Atlanta, 10 games ahead of Norfolk, 14 games ahead of Washington
Playoff position: #5 seed, 3 games ahead of Cheyenne, 4 games ahead of Austin
Home record: 27-19
Road record: 26-20

Preview: Chicago Snake Tamers

The Traffic roll into Chicago, just having swept the New Orleans Voodoo at their place.

Chicago Snake Tamers

The Tamers are 18-28, tied with Philadelphia for 3rd in the N.L. North. They sit 10 1/2 games back of 1st place Fargo and 3 1/2 games back of second place Toronto. They've lost 11 of their last 14 games, including 3 games at home to the Traffic last week. The Traffic are 3-0 against Chicago this season.

Probable Pitching Matchups:

Game 1: Alex Sanchez (2-4, 5.06) vs. Mateo Guerrero (1-4, 4.08)
Game 2: York Watson (2-2, 4.25) vs. Jorge Guzman (1-3, 6.13)
Game 3: Damion Mays (0-1, 3.27) vs. Babe Broadhurst (4-4, 4.07)

Interestingly enough, these would be the same 3 pitchers the Traffic faced in their last 3 game series. Sanchez could be pitching for a spot in the rotation here. He'll get a chance to face a lineup that is quite good on paper but is only hitting .239 this season (only Philadelphia is worse).
Broadhurst struggled in his last outing against Trenton, but he's put together great games many times (particularly when he pitched in the NL East with Norfolk) against the Traffic.

Is Sandy Koufax next to be signed?

Trenton has announced they will hold a press conference at 10 A.M. tomorrow to officially announce the signing of international free-agent Juan Marichal (no, not THAT Juan Marichal). The Traffic's Marichal is an 18-year-old left-handed reliever from Tlalnepantla, Mexico. Traffic GM gumbercules is pleased he decided to sign with the NJ franchise. "He's a good signing", said one unnamed NL scout. "At the worst he'll be a very good setup guy- lefties won't touch him. He may end up as a closer". The press conference will be aired on WTRA radio tomorrow in its entirety.