July 222, 2002  

With four weeks left in the season, it's time to look at the match-ups and see who has the best chance for survival as we head into the playoffs!

The schedule gets a little funky next week, as everyone is paired up for nine straight games against the same opponent. But it will ensure that, by the end of this week, a number of teams will be out of contention.

Vancouver (76-65) vs Hoboken (72-65)
The 3rd-place Vancouver Iron Fist match up with the 5th-place Hoboken Cutters for nine straight (six in Vancouver) in what could be a preview of the first round of the playoffs. This series could be the last time the Iron Fist will face a team with a winning record this year, while the Cutters still have 10 games remaining against the league's best. On the other hand, Hoboken is 2-1 against the Iron Fist this season, with brilliant performances from Joel Pineiro (1-0, 7.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) and Brian Giles (6-11, 2 2B, 1 HR, 5 R, 4 RBI). Vancouver's best have been Edgar Martinez (3-6, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 1 R, 3 RBI) and Eric Chavez (4-13, 2 2B, 1 R, 2 RBI).

Wanaque (70-69) vs Harrison (45-97)
The 6th-place Wanaque Wolverines can improve on their position with nine against the last-place Harrison Rats, including six at home. So far this season, the Rats are 0-4 against the Wolverines, but two of the losses have been by one run. Carlos Delgado (9-17, 2 HR, 7 R, 8 RBI), Alex Rodriguez (6-15, 1 2B, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 SB), Matt Morris (1-0, 7 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K) and Bret Prinz (2 SV, 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K) have been the top performers for Wanaque, while Mike Sweeney (7-16, 2 HR, 2 R, 3 RBI), Denny Hocking (5-16, 1 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI) and Ramiro Mendoza (3.1 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K) will hope to answer for Harrison.

Honolulu (73-65) vs Tijuana (68-72)
To get back into the playoff picture, the 7th-place Tijuana Banditos will need a strong performance against the 4th-place Honolulu Sharks, with six in Tijuana. The Sharks are 3-1 against the Banditos this season, winning three straight. So far it's been all offense, with the two teams combining for 52 runs in four games -- and injuries to Aaron Boone, Sean Casey and Dmitri Young. So far, the top performers for the Banditos have been Vladimir Guerrero (5-19, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 2B), Ellis Burks (4-12, 2 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI) and D'Angelo Jimenez (7-15, 2 R, 2 RBI). The Sharks have been led by Jason Giambi (5-17, 2 2B, 2 HR, 4 R, 6 RBI), Shawn Green (5-15, 3 HR, 5 R, 9 RBI), Miguel Tejada (5-17, 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI) and Gabe Kapler (8-19, 2 2B, 1 HR, 6 R, 4 RBI, 2 SB).

Columbia (66-73) vs Stanhope (59-81)
The 8th-place Columbia Rattlesnakes can get healthy in a hurry with nine against the 13th-place Stanhope Mighty Men. But the Mighty Men, a playoff team last year and the World Champs the year before that, would love to play spoiler: They're 4-0 against the 'Snakes this season, and six of the games are in Stanhope. Ivan Rodriguez (5-16, 2 RBI) and Luis Castillo (6-15, 2 R, 2 RBI) have been Columbia's top hitters, while Derek Jeter (6-19, 3 R, 1 RBI, 2 2B), Todd Helton (6-17, 4 R, 1 RBI, 4 2B, 1 3B), Bernie Williams (4-15, 1 R, 3 RBI), Mariano Rivera (2 SV, 7 IP, 5 H, 1 BB, 1 K) and Rick Reed (2-0, 15.1 IP, 13 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) have been hot for Stanhope.

Phoenix (65-73) and Carolina (65-76)
The 9th- and 10th-place teams, the Phoenix Dragons and Carolina Mudcats, get nine against each other. Phoenix is 3-1 against the Mudcats and they're a game ahead of them in the standings, but Carolina gets six games in their building. It only gets worse for Phoenix, who follow up this series with nine straight against playoff-bound teams. The top 'Cats have been Rondell White (5-16, 2 R, 2 RBI, 1 3B, 1 HR) and Rich Aurilia (4-17, 1 R); the Dragons have relied on Luis Gonzalez (4-14, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 2B), Ichiro (4-16, 4 R, 2 RBI, 1 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR), Scott Sullivan (1 SV, 7.1 IP, 5 H, 0 BB, 5 K) and Troy Percival (2 SV, 3 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K).

Newark (93-45) vs Philadelphia (61-78)
You can stick a fork in the 11th-place Philadelphia Endzone Animals, who get the 2nd-place Newark Sugar Bears -- though six of the games are in Philly. The Animals are 1-3 against the Sugar Bears this season. After this series, Philly embarks on a nine-game road trip, all against teams with winning records. Newark and Philly have combined for 48 runs in their four games, with 20 doubles and 16 home runs. The Animals' best hitters have been Carlos Beltran (7-18, 1 HR, 5 R, 1 RBI), J.D. Drew (4-15, 1 2B, 2 HR, 3 R, 5 RBI) and Albert Pujols (4-17, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI), while Newark has turned to Jeremy Giambi (8-15, 4 2B, 1 HR, 5 R, 3 RBI), Chipper Jones (7-16, 1 2B, 2 HR, 4 R, 5 RBI, 1 SB), Bobby Abreu (4-10, 2 2B, 1 HR, 5 R, 2 RBI, 1 SB) and Eric Milton (2-0, 15 IP, 15 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 16 K).

Arkansas (101-37) vs Brooklyn (60-78)
The 12th-place Brooklyn Bean Counters are the unlucky bastards to draw the 1st-place Arkansas Golden Falcons, including six at Quisenberry Memorial Park, where the Golden Falcons have a league-best .784 winning percentage. Not that it makes much difference -- Arkansas also have the league's best road record, .672. Perhaps the only bright spot: The Bean Counters are the only team with a winning record against the Golden Falcons this season, taking 2 of 3 -- but both their wins were by a single run. Arkansas's Juan Gonzalez (3-11, 1 2B, 2 HR, 2 R, 3 RBI), Barry Bonds (3-8, 4 BB, 2 R, 2 RBI) and Kevin Brown (1-0, 7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 K) have led the Morris Division champs, while Bobby Higginson (4-11, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 R, 2 RBI), John Vander Wal (1-5, 5 BB, 1 2B, 1 R, 3 RBI), Ricky Gutierrez (5-11, 1 3B, 2 R, 1 RBI) and Vladimir Nunez (2-0, 5.2 IP, 1 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K) have led the Bean Counters.

Cecil Fielder was the first selection in the DMBL's inaugural draft in 1991. Since then he's enjoyed a solid career as a member of seven DMBL teams. He is now retired and serves as the color man for the Columbia Rattlesnakes radio team. Click Here for past articles.