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Akron, Ohio —
It’s been a fun summer for baseball thus far in Downtown Akron, and it’s expected to get a lot more fun in the next month and a half.
After a mid-season leveling out caused mainly by the loss of a good number of their top players to the Class AAA Columbus Clippers and, in one brief instance, the parent club, the Cleveland Indians, as well, the Class AA Akron Aeros have regained their mojo from the first half of the season and are once again rolling their way through the Eastern League.
Case in point, what happened Monday night at Canal Park, when the Aeros overwhelmed the Erie SeaWolves (Detroit Tigers) 11-1 in a game that was decided before most fans had a chance to make their third or fourth trip to the concession stand on Dollar Dog Night.
In front of one of the biggest home crowds of the season, 8,243, the Aeros roared to a 6-1 lead through five innings and sealed the deal with a five-run seventh, capped off by Thomas Neal’s grand slam home run. It was Neal’s ninth homer of the year.
Adam Abraham (12th) and Ryan Rohlinger (fifth) also homered for the Aeros, who banged out 15 hits altogether. All but two Aeros who batted hit safely.
That was more than enough offensive support for knuckleballer Steve Wright, who scattered five hits and allowed just the one run in raising his record to 8-6. Wright, one of the team’s participants in the recent EL All-Star Game, did not have his usual control, but he was able to get out of the few jams he encountered by striking out six.
The victory increased the Aeros’ league-best mark to 21 games over .500 at 62-41, putting them 9.5 games ahead of the second-place Bowie Baysox (Baltimore Orioles) in the Western Division through Tuesday’s game.
The rest of the division - and really, the rest of the EL (the Eastern Division-leading Trenton Thunder are the only team close at 59-43) - has been chasing the Aeros from the get-go. Akron quickly distanced itself from the field.
What's happening this season is actually a carryover from 2011, when, after a mediocre start, the Aeros righted themselves and went 39-30 the rest of the way to finish 73-69. While it was their second straight fourth-place finish and kept them out of the playoffs for the second consecutive time after making the postseason five straight years and winning two EL championships, it provided momentum heading into 2012. And the Aeros have taken that momentum and ran with it.
It’s been a fun summer for baseball thus far in Downtown Akron, and it’s expected to get a lot more fun in the next month and a half.
After a mid-season leveling out caused mainly by the loss of a good number of their top players to the Class AAA Columbus Clippers and, in one brief instance, the parent club, the Cleveland Indians, as well, the Class AA Akron Aeros have regained their mojo from the first half of the season and are once again rolling their way through the Eastern League.
Case in point, what happened Monday night at Canal Park, when the Aeros overwhelmed the Erie SeaWolves (Detroit Tigers) 11-1 in a game that was decided before most fans had a chance to make their third or fourth trip to the concession stand on Dollar Dog Night.
In front of one of the biggest home crowds of the season, 8,243, the Aeros roared to a 6-1 lead through five innings and sealed the deal with a five-run seventh, capped off by Thomas Neal’s grand slam home run. It was Neal’s ninth homer of the year.
Adam Abraham (12th) and Ryan Rohlinger (fifth) also homered for the Aeros, who banged out 15 hits altogether. All but two Aeros who batted hit safely.
That was more than enough offensive support for knuckleballer Steve Wright, who scattered five hits and allowed just the one run in raising his record to 8-6. Wright, one of the team’s participants in the recent EL All-Star Game, did not have his usual control, but he was able to get out of the few jams he encountered by striking out six.
The victory increased the Aeros’ league-best mark to 21 games over .500 at 62-41, putting them 9.5 games ahead of the second-place Bowie Baysox (Baltimore Orioles) in the Western Division through Tuesday’s game.
The rest of the division - and really, the rest of the EL (the Eastern Division-leading Trenton Thunder are the only team close at 59-43) - has been chasing the Aeros from the get-go. Akron quickly distanced itself from the field.
What's happening this season is actually a carryover from 2011, when, after a mediocre start, the Aeros righted themselves and went 39-30 the rest of the way to finish 73-69. While it was their second straight fourth-place finish and kept them out of the playoffs for the second consecutive time after making the postseason five straight years and winning two EL championships, it provided momentum heading into 2012. And the Aeros have taken that momentum and ran with it.
Wright, who has a 2.54 ERA and is one of the few kuckleball pitchers left in pro baseball, and right fielder Neal are two of the Aeros' top prospects.
Wright will be 28 in a month - not exactly the optimum age for a player still at AA - but because knuckleballers have a long shelf life and he has been almost unhittable at times this year - the Cleveland brass is willing to be patient and give him time to develop.
Neal, the closest thing the club has to a five-tool player, is third on the Aeros in hitting at .306 and second in RBIs with 45.
A giant of a shortstop at 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, Juan Diaz played a few games with the Indians earlier this season when they ran short on middle infielders, is hitting just .259 but has 10 homers and 45 RBI.
Abraham, a first baseman, is second on the Aeros with those 12 home runs and has a club-leading 47 RBIs. However, his batting average of .252 needs to be better.
An outfielder, Nick Weglarz tops the team with 13 homers to go along with 43 RBI, but he, too, has struggled with his batting average (.241). He has also struck out a team-high 105 times in 282 at-bats.
First baseman/designated hitter Chun Chen has talent, as evidenced by his .321 batting average, tops among the regulars, but his power numbers (four home runs and 37 RBI) need an upgrade.
The Indians have high hopes for catcher Roberto Perez, but he's hitting just .210.
The biggest story of the season individually, though, was the performance of pitcher Giovanni Soto on July 15. He threw the first no-hitter at Canal Park when he beat the Altoona Curve (Pittsburgh Pirates) 2-1.
Teams are always looking for left-handed pitching, so the athletic Soto (6-7, 3.72), who is just 22, is someone to watch.
Pitching coach Tony Arnold, who has spent over 30 years in baseball, has done a fine job not just in bringing along Soto, but in working with the entire staff.
Manager Chris Tremie has also built a nice resume for himself in the last one and a half seasons. His steady demeanor has enabled him to handle the variety of personalities in clubhouse.
Like some of the Aeros' best prospects, Tremie might not be in Akron for long.
But all that will work itself out down the road. For right now, the Aeros goal is to win the division title for the first time in three years and then capture their third EL crown since 2003.
The regular season, as always, ends on Labor Day, Sept. 3, then the Aeros are hoping the real fun begins in the playoffs. By the middle of September when everything is done, we'll know, exactly, just how much fun it's been.
