Re: MLB The Show 23 Franchise Mode Discussion
September 29: Hot Shots 2, Hops 0
September 30: Hot Shots 3, Hops 2 (12)
October 1: Hops 1, Hot Shots 0
Flagstaff, AZ (AP) - Flagstaff managed to eek out a win in the finale to win the Mountain League West in wire-to-wire fashion as they were in first place the entire season. This was a tight three game series with great pitching and very little offense with the teams combining for only eight runs in the three games.
In the opener, the Hot Shots got a great pitching performance from Kelly Wolf as they shutout the Hops 2-0 to drop Flagstaff into a tie with Salt Lake for first place in the ML West. The Hops have now lost five straight.
Kelly Wolf (17-8) tossed 6 1/3 innings, allowing just three hits, while striking out five and walking two. The Prescott bullpen allowed just one hit over the final 2 2/3 innings with Xavier Doyle working a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his 16th save.
Offensively, the Hot Shots would get all that they would need in the second on a McGill bases loaded sacrifice fly. They would add a huge insurance run in the top of the ninth on an Alexis Lerma two-out, RBI single.
Ramon Garcia (12-8) took the loss, but he pitched well again. He went five innings, allowing one run and scattering seven hits while striking out five and walking one. Russell Fluty tossed three shutout innings in relief.
The loss dropped the Hops into a tie for first place. They have been in first since opening day but now are tied with Salt Lake and just one game ahead of Rio Rancho for the second Wild Card in the Mountain League with just two games left in the regular season.
On Saturday evening, the Hops would lose their sixth straight as they dropped a 3-2 decision in 12 innings. The Hot Shots only managed four hits in the game, but pulled out the win. The loss means that the ML West title will be decided on the final day of the season. Flagstaff has lead the division since opening day, but is tied with one game left in the season.
Prescott grabbed a 1-0 lead in the fourth after Paul Knapp doubled with one out and advanced to third on a Shoe-Lace O’Tying wild pitch. He then scored on a Matt Olson sacrifice fly to put the Hot Shots in front 1-0.
Oscar Aleman would change that in the bottom half with a two-run home run to left, his 18th on the year.
But Prescott immediately responded as Noah Wilson homered to left, his 13th on the season to tie the game at 2-2.
It would remain that way into the twelfth with Prescott only having two hits through 11 innings. In the 12th, they would get an infield single from Willie Reece with one out. He would steal second and then Khris Kovach muscled a bloop single to right that just fell over Josh Ortega to score Reece with the go ahead run.
The Hops would go down 1-2-3 to end it and their season will now rest on one game.
Hops pitchers struck out 18 batters in the game with Shoe-Lace O’Tying increasing his ML lead as he recorded nine in seven innings of work. Oliver Benedict worked three scoreless innings of relief and recorded seven strikeouts.
Flagstaff has been a train wreck since early July, but a win on Sunday will put them into the postseason.
In the finale, Josh Ortega hit a solo home run in the first, his 40th on the season, and Ryan Pressley made that stand up in a 1-0 victory for the Hops that clinched the ML West title.
Pressley (15-11) tossed eighth shutout innings, allowing just four hits and striking out five with no walks. Vic Miller would work a 1-2-3 ninth to nail down his 45th save and a division title for Flagstaff.
Kolby McAllister (10-10) was the hard luck loser for Prescott, throwing six innings and allowing just the one run on three hits, while striking out six and not issuing a walk.
Flagstaff (87-75) will face Austin in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. The schedule will be determined later this week.
Around the League: Josh Heupel hit his 50th home run on the season, and drove in two, as Gilbert defeated Salt Lake 10-7 to move into a tie for first place in the DL East. Their win, coupled with a Chandler loss, leaves the teams at (95-65) with two games left in the regular season.
Las Vegas was eliminated from playoff contention with a 7-5 loss in San Diego. Mark Mulder went 2 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs to lead the Seals to the victory.
Scottsdale scored five in the top of the first, then held on for a 9-6 victory over Glendale to open a big three game series to decide the DL Central crown. Mark Griffin went 4 for 5 with a home run to lead the Scorpions to the win and a two game lead with two games left in the regular season.
Mesa clinched the second Desert League Wild Card spot with a 10-2 victory at Long Beach. Clyde Floyd went 2 for 5 with a home run and five RBIs to lead the Solar Sox into the playoffs after a last place finish in 2022.
Austin clinched the ML East despite a 5-2 loss to Fort Worth, as San Antonio dropped a 4-3 decision at home to last lace Amarillo. The defending champions Javelinas will miss the postseason and will not have a chance to defend their title.
El Paso tied it up on the ninth and won it in the 12th as they slipped past Roswell 8-6 to move two games ahead of Santa Fe in the ML Central. Rio Rancho defeated Albuquerque 6-2 to keep the pressure on Salt Lake and Flagstaff for the second ML Wild Card spot.
Salt Lake defeated St George 3-1 to win for the sixth time in seven outings. Julio Cervantes two-run home run, his sixth, was the difference as the Chukars keep the pressure on Flagstaff.
On Saturday night, Steve Heupel homered again, his 51st, plus added a double and three RBIs as Gilbert defeated Salt River 6-3 to take over first place in the DL East. Heupel looks like the runaway MVP of the Desert League.
Scottsdale clinched the DL Central on Saturday evening with a 5-4 victory over Glendale. Tanner Bell’s three run home run in the top of the seventh put the Scorpions in front for good and sends Scottsdale into the playoffs with a first round matchup with Henderson on the horizon.
Austin clinched the ML East with a 4-3 walk off victory over Fort Worth. Chris Richardson’s solo home run to lead off the bottom of the ninth sends Austin into the playoffs for the first time. The bigger news may have been the loss of outfielder Blip Sanders, who injured his right knee diving awkwardly for a ball in the fourth inning. Sanders will be lost for the season. He was hitting .259 with 23 home runs and 72 RBIs for the Fire Frogs.
El Paso clinched the ML Central with a 6-2 victory over Roswell. Six different players drove in runs for the Blue Rocks as they will make their IBL playoff debut in 2023.
Albuquerque did Flagstaff a huge favor as they defeated Rio Rancho 8-6 on Saturday night, which means any combination of a Flagstaff win or Rio Rancho loss will clinch a playoff berth for the Hops.
Salt Lake dropped a 6-3 decision to St George on Saturday night. Jamaal McCormick’s three run home run in the sixth off of Thor Odinson (14-12) moved the Archers in front and they held on to end a five game losing streak as well as snap the Chukars four game winning streak. The loss gives Flagstaff the opportunity to win the ML West if they can win the final two games over Prescott.
On Sunday afternoon, Gilbert clinched the DL East with a 6-5 extra innings victory over Salt River. The Barnstormers scored twice in the top of the ninth to tie the game at 5-5 on a Steve Heupel two-run double, then won it with a Jonathan Tunick RBI single in the 12th.
Rio Rancho rallied from a 5-0 deficit, scoring three in the top of the ninth capped off by a Bill Olson two-run home run, to defeat Albuquerque 6-5 to keep their playoff hopes alive. Meanwhile Salt Lake dropped a 4-3 decision to St George. That leaves Salt Lake and Rio Rancho tied at (86-76). The teams will play a one game playoff on Monday evening to determine the second ML Wild Card team.
<img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53061519875_6660453e76_o.jpg" width="720" height="405" alt="Series52_23"/>
Shoe-Lace O’Tying has turned into a strikeout machine for Flagstaff.
Sept 29 - Oct 1: PRESCOTT (78-84) @ FLAGSTAFF (87-75)
Stadium: AutoZone Park (Capacity: 9,577)
Stadium: AutoZone Park (Capacity: 9,577)
September 29: Hot Shots 2, Hops 0
September 30: Hot Shots 3, Hops 2 (12)
October 1: Hops 1, Hot Shots 0
Flagstaff, AZ (AP) - Flagstaff managed to eek out a win in the finale to win the Mountain League West in wire-to-wire fashion as they were in first place the entire season. This was a tight three game series with great pitching and very little offense with the teams combining for only eight runs in the three games.
In the opener, the Hot Shots got a great pitching performance from Kelly Wolf as they shutout the Hops 2-0 to drop Flagstaff into a tie with Salt Lake for first place in the ML West. The Hops have now lost five straight.
Kelly Wolf (17-8) tossed 6 1/3 innings, allowing just three hits, while striking out five and walking two. The Prescott bullpen allowed just one hit over the final 2 2/3 innings with Xavier Doyle working a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his 16th save.
Offensively, the Hot Shots would get all that they would need in the second on a McGill bases loaded sacrifice fly. They would add a huge insurance run in the top of the ninth on an Alexis Lerma two-out, RBI single.
Ramon Garcia (12-8) took the loss, but he pitched well again. He went five innings, allowing one run and scattering seven hits while striking out five and walking one. Russell Fluty tossed three shutout innings in relief.
The loss dropped the Hops into a tie for first place. They have been in first since opening day but now are tied with Salt Lake and just one game ahead of Rio Rancho for the second Wild Card in the Mountain League with just two games left in the regular season.
On Saturday evening, the Hops would lose their sixth straight as they dropped a 3-2 decision in 12 innings. The Hot Shots only managed four hits in the game, but pulled out the win. The loss means that the ML West title will be decided on the final day of the season. Flagstaff has lead the division since opening day, but is tied with one game left in the season.
Prescott grabbed a 1-0 lead in the fourth after Paul Knapp doubled with one out and advanced to third on a Shoe-Lace O’Tying wild pitch. He then scored on a Matt Olson sacrifice fly to put the Hot Shots in front 1-0.
Oscar Aleman would change that in the bottom half with a two-run home run to left, his 18th on the year.
But Prescott immediately responded as Noah Wilson homered to left, his 13th on the season to tie the game at 2-2.
It would remain that way into the twelfth with Prescott only having two hits through 11 innings. In the 12th, they would get an infield single from Willie Reece with one out. He would steal second and then Khris Kovach muscled a bloop single to right that just fell over Josh Ortega to score Reece with the go ahead run.
The Hops would go down 1-2-3 to end it and their season will now rest on one game.
Hops pitchers struck out 18 batters in the game with Shoe-Lace O’Tying increasing his ML lead as he recorded nine in seven innings of work. Oliver Benedict worked three scoreless innings of relief and recorded seven strikeouts.
Flagstaff has been a train wreck since early July, but a win on Sunday will put them into the postseason.
In the finale, Josh Ortega hit a solo home run in the first, his 40th on the season, and Ryan Pressley made that stand up in a 1-0 victory for the Hops that clinched the ML West title.
Pressley (15-11) tossed eighth shutout innings, allowing just four hits and striking out five with no walks. Vic Miller would work a 1-2-3 ninth to nail down his 45th save and a division title for Flagstaff.
Kolby McAllister (10-10) was the hard luck loser for Prescott, throwing six innings and allowing just the one run on three hits, while striking out six and not issuing a walk.
Flagstaff (87-75) will face Austin in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. The schedule will be determined later this week.
Around the League: Josh Heupel hit his 50th home run on the season, and drove in two, as Gilbert defeated Salt Lake 10-7 to move into a tie for first place in the DL East. Their win, coupled with a Chandler loss, leaves the teams at (95-65) with two games left in the regular season.
Las Vegas was eliminated from playoff contention with a 7-5 loss in San Diego. Mark Mulder went 2 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs to lead the Seals to the victory.
Scottsdale scored five in the top of the first, then held on for a 9-6 victory over Glendale to open a big three game series to decide the DL Central crown. Mark Griffin went 4 for 5 with a home run to lead the Scorpions to the win and a two game lead with two games left in the regular season.
Mesa clinched the second Desert League Wild Card spot with a 10-2 victory at Long Beach. Clyde Floyd went 2 for 5 with a home run and five RBIs to lead the Solar Sox into the playoffs after a last place finish in 2022.
Austin clinched the ML East despite a 5-2 loss to Fort Worth, as San Antonio dropped a 4-3 decision at home to last lace Amarillo. The defending champions Javelinas will miss the postseason and will not have a chance to defend their title.
El Paso tied it up on the ninth and won it in the 12th as they slipped past Roswell 8-6 to move two games ahead of Santa Fe in the ML Central. Rio Rancho defeated Albuquerque 6-2 to keep the pressure on Salt Lake and Flagstaff for the second ML Wild Card spot.
Salt Lake defeated St George 3-1 to win for the sixth time in seven outings. Julio Cervantes two-run home run, his sixth, was the difference as the Chukars keep the pressure on Flagstaff.
On Saturday night, Steve Heupel homered again, his 51st, plus added a double and three RBIs as Gilbert defeated Salt River 6-3 to take over first place in the DL East. Heupel looks like the runaway MVP of the Desert League.
Scottsdale clinched the DL Central on Saturday evening with a 5-4 victory over Glendale. Tanner Bell’s three run home run in the top of the seventh put the Scorpions in front for good and sends Scottsdale into the playoffs with a first round matchup with Henderson on the horizon.
Austin clinched the ML East with a 4-3 walk off victory over Fort Worth. Chris Richardson’s solo home run to lead off the bottom of the ninth sends Austin into the playoffs for the first time. The bigger news may have been the loss of outfielder Blip Sanders, who injured his right knee diving awkwardly for a ball in the fourth inning. Sanders will be lost for the season. He was hitting .259 with 23 home runs and 72 RBIs for the Fire Frogs.
El Paso clinched the ML Central with a 6-2 victory over Roswell. Six different players drove in runs for the Blue Rocks as they will make their IBL playoff debut in 2023.
Albuquerque did Flagstaff a huge favor as they defeated Rio Rancho 8-6 on Saturday night, which means any combination of a Flagstaff win or Rio Rancho loss will clinch a playoff berth for the Hops.
Salt Lake dropped a 6-3 decision to St George on Saturday night. Jamaal McCormick’s three run home run in the sixth off of Thor Odinson (14-12) moved the Archers in front and they held on to end a five game losing streak as well as snap the Chukars four game winning streak. The loss gives Flagstaff the opportunity to win the ML West if they can win the final two games over Prescott.
On Sunday afternoon, Gilbert clinched the DL East with a 6-5 extra innings victory over Salt River. The Barnstormers scored twice in the top of the ninth to tie the game at 5-5 on a Steve Heupel two-run double, then won it with a Jonathan Tunick RBI single in the 12th.
Rio Rancho rallied from a 5-0 deficit, scoring three in the top of the ninth capped off by a Bill Olson two-run home run, to defeat Albuquerque 6-5 to keep their playoff hopes alive. Meanwhile Salt Lake dropped a 4-3 decision to St George. That leaves Salt Lake and Rio Rancho tied at (86-76). The teams will play a one game playoff on Monday evening to determine the second ML Wild Card team.
<img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53061519875_6660453e76_o.jpg" width="720" height="405" alt="Series52_23"/>
Shoe-Lace O’Tying has turned into a strikeout machine for Flagstaff.
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