NEWSLETTER
The Peoria Chiefs wrapped their season on Monday with a lackluster overall record of 63-75. Continuing a trend, the Chiefs were among the youngest teams in the league; they were also not a very good one.
The offense finished second in triples and fifth in walks, but they were near the bottom in many other significant categories. Despite ranking dead last in SLG they did manage to finish near the middle of the pack in OPS due to a respectable OBP. Their 1085 strikeouts was the third highest total in the league, and their 4.33 runs per game was the second lowest. Hitting just wasn’t Peoria’s strong suit.
Nor was pitching, to be perfectly honest. The Chiefs finished squarely in the middle of the league in most of the key pitching categories (ERA, WHIP, HR/9, SO/BB). They did hit the second highest number of batters and threw the third most wild pitches, but those are not generally stats in which we like to see farm teams putting up large numbers. The pitching was not helped any by the defense; the Chiefs were the worst in the league.
Despite overall numbers that scream mediocrity, Peoria fans actually saw some of the best talent in the Cubs farm system this season. For example, Javier Baez spent part of his season there. No sooner had he left than Jorge Soler arrived. Pitchers Michael Jensen, P.J. Francescon, Yao-Lin Wang, Sheldon McDonald, and Jose Rosario all put up good numbers while they were part of the Chiefs.
Next season should produce some very different results. The current Boise Hawks, arguably the most loaded team in all of short-season baseball, will be injecting a significant amount of talent into the Cubs Low-A franchise. With the expected arrival of Almora, Vogelbach, Candelario, Amaya, and more, the 2013 team – wherever it is located – should have the talent to contend for the Midwest League title.
The Game
We are down to just one minor league team still playing, and that means we are down to just one game. The Boise Hawks continued their playoff series in Yakima last night with an 11-5 win. Boise scored seven times in the ninth inning to tie up the series and earn another game.
The best of three series concludes tonight in Yakima.
