Possible Triple Crowns, 'Breaking' Ball: Ten Things to Know in the American Association this Week

Sports stats



AA American Association

Possible Triple Crowns, 'Breaking' Ball: Ten Things to Know in the American Association this Week

August 22, 2024 - American Association (AA) News Release


The American Association of Professional Baseball (@AA_Baseball) regular season concludes in just 12 days, with the playoffs looming on Sept. 4. All AAPB games are available for free live viewing at aabaseball.tv.

Here are 10 (or so) Things to Know about the AAPB this week:

Winnipeg Goldeyes righthander Joey Matulovich (Danville, Calif.) is currently first or second in each of the three "pitching triple crown" categories, sporting a 11-3 record (tied for first with Sioux Falls's Ty Culbreth (Bryan, Texas) after seven-inning scoreless stints and wins by both last night), 2.15 ERA (narrowly ahead of Kansas City's Julian Garcia (Broomfield, Colo.)) and 135 strikeouts (27 more whiffs than Garcia). And it might be a long shot, but Chicago Dogs infielder Jacob Teter is in the running for a batting triple crown. He'd need a big final push, but the Melbourne, Fla., native is fifth in batting (.330, trails Sioux City's John Nogoski at .340), second in home runs (24, four fewer than Ryan Hernandez (Hyde Park, Mass.) of Lake Country) and second in the league with 86 RBI (two fewer than Hernandez).

Seven of the eight playoff spots are still open, with the Cleburne Railroaders (55-34) clinching a berth on Tuesday. With a six-game lead over both Chicago and Kane County (49-40) in the East Division, Cleburne is closing in on clinching the number one seed, a feat never done before in franchise history.

The story about three Lake Country DockHounds, players Marek Chlup, Demetrius Sims, and broadcaster Dominic Stearn happening upon a bike accident scene has gained more attention, with the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Yahoo! News and Baseball Czech among the outlets posting items on their selfless, potentially life-saving actions earlier this month.

Baseball Hall of Famer Robin Yount is revered in Wisconsin more than anywhere, so when he took a turn as first base coach for the Lake Country DockHounds on Monday in Oconomowoc, the largest crowd of the season came out to celebrate at Wisconsin Brewing Company Park. The 3,208 fans saw a 14-1 DockHounds win to inch closer towards a playoff berth. Yount was also on hand in support of Robinade, his lemonade brand, with a portion of proceeds benefiting the MACC Fund for childhood cancer research. They kept the momentum on Tuesday with the return of Sterling Sharp (no, not the other Wisconsin legend Sterling Sharpe, but the pitcher of nearly the same name, back on the mound after a 10-week absence), when the Boston native tossed three scoreless innings in a 7-5 triumph.

Speaking of largest crowds of the year, Kane County checked in with a season-best 9,307 fans at Northwestern Medicine Field. The home team fell to Lake Country, 6-1, but the Cougars (now 49-40) are still in strong playoff position, with sole possession of second place in the East Division.

The Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks will hold Veterans Honor Flight Day on Sunday in support of the program that sends the area's war veterans, free of charge, to Washington D.C. to see their memorials. Veterans who served in a branch of the U.S. military during WWII, the Korean War, or Vietnam, or a veteran from any service era who is currently terminally ill, are eligible to go on an Honor Flight trip. The unique effort, which has been going on for nearly a decade, this year includes an auction of each player's specialty jersey through Sunday.

The Gary SouthShore RailCats connected with the 2024 Gary Air Show for two days of flyovers at the SteelYard. On Saturday, a North American SNJ T-6 Texan, a former World War 2 Navy Advanced Training Aircraft zoomed overhead during the National Anthem. Sunday's weather forced a slight change in timing, with the flights periodically during the game.

Winnipeg announcer Trevor Curl had some fun calling a different kind of play-by-play of last Wednesday's "goose delay" at Blue Cross Park, as outfielders Max Murphy (Pillager, Minn.) and Nick Anderson (Sugar Land, Texas) led a flock of Goldeyes doing their best to induce a gaggle off the playing surface after they decided they'd take to the field in the top of the sixth. Awful Announcing (just the Website name, not a commentary on Curl's work) amplified the story. Appropriately, Winnipeg was hosting the Sioux Falls Canaries.

It was a different kind of "Breaking" ball on Saturday when "Breaking Bad" and "Better Call Saul" star Bob Odenkirk threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Winnipeg Goldeyes vs. Sioux City Explorers game at Blue Cross Park. Odenkirk is in the city filming a new Netflix film, Nobody 2.

Chicago Dogs third baseman Dusty Stroup (Raymore, Mo.) made some team history on Sunday, homering in his fifth straight game in the team's 7-6 win over Fargo-Moorhead. Stroup, who has nine home runs in August, has 18 on the season, tied for fifth in the league but third on the Dogs, behind Jacob Teter (24) and Narciso Crook (23).

On Friday, Kane County celebrated American Girl Night, with nine lucky fans winning American Girl Dolls.

Some fun theme nights coming up:

Friday, HBCU Greek Night, Kansas City

Saturday, Disney Night, Kansas City

Saturday, Battle of the Badges: Fire & Police Exhibition, Milwaukee

Saturday, St. Patrick's Day, Chicago

Wednesday, Dance Party, Winnipeg

Check out the American Association Statistics

• Discuss this story on the American Association message board...

American Association Stories from August 22, 2024


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central