Boxing Challenge

The boxing weekend has three very intriguing fights that look to be not only competitive but have ramifications that will carry through the remainder of the boxing calendar.

The PBC card on Fox from Oxon Hill Maryland has the biggest name of the night as WBA and IBF junior middleweight champion Jarrett Hurd defends his titles for the first time in his home area against mandatory contender Julian "J-Rock" Williams.

Hurd, who would have been facing Jermell Charlo in a title unification fight in this slot had Charlo not been upset via controversial decision by Tony Harrison in his last outing (the rematch will be held next month), instead tackles Williams, who was once thought to be a rising star before being brutally knocked out by Jermall Charlo in his previous title challenge.

Williams has worked his way back to title contention with four straight victories against good, but not great competition and this is a second chance for stardom in the division.

I've always liked Williams skills and I think he'll have some moments against Hurd, but I'm not sure Williams can hurt Hurd and the size difference that was visible at the press conference is likely to play a part in the outcome as the larger Hurd wears down Williams in what could be a good fight.

The other two televised fights on the Fox slate are worth a look, as well as undefeated junior welterweight Mario Barrios, faces Juan Jose Velasco and middleweight contender Matt Korobov tackles Immanuel Aleem.

Barrios is an exciting prospect against Velasco, who lost his first fight in his last appearance, in a fight that should expose Barrios to viewers as the PBC entry in a 140-pound division filled with promising young contenders.

Korobov is coming off a spirited close loss to Jermall Charlo as a late substitute and is a favorite against Aleem, who has been in several good scraps against average competition but is taking a jump up in level against Korobov.

The Fox card looks like it has the potential to have three strong fights and should be a very interesting evening from rockin' MD.

ESPN is live from Tucson, Arizona and the home of "Bear Down" will have two title rematches at the top of the card and both could be entertaining.

WBC junior lightweight champion Miguel Berchelt faces the man that he defeated for his title in Francisco Vargas after four successful title defenses.

The always aggressive Vargas always makes great action outings, but his walk forward style is tailor-made for the long and lean Berchelt, who I think has an argument as the best fighter in the division along with WBA champion Gervonta Davis and I think this fight ends in a similar fashion as their first with Berchelt grinding down Vargas for a late round stoppage.

The other bout is a rematch from last year as WBO junior featherweight champion Emmanuel Navarrete battles former champion Isaac Dogboe after Navarrete's upset decision win last December.

Navarrete's surprising win ended a streak of quality wins by Dogboe, who seemed a bit weary from that run entering the fight.

Navarrete's five-inch height advantage was used well in the first fight and the bigger fighter can make an argument to being the bigger puncher as well.

I think Dogboe will be improved in this one and I think it will be closer than the first, but the physical edge for the champion and ability to hold Dogboe at bay from the outside will make the difference for the more versatile Navarrete.

In the boxing challenge, I lead Ramon Malpica 116-100.

WBA/IBF Junior Middleweight Titles 12 Rds

Jarrett Hurd vs Julian Williams

R.L: Hurd KO 8

TRS: Hurd KO 10

Junior Welterweights. 10 Rds

Mario Barrios vs Juan Jose Velasco

R.L; Barrios Unanimous Decision

TRS: Barrios KO 6

Middleweights. 10 Rds

Matt Korobov vs Immanuel Aleem

R.L: Korobov Unanimous Decision

TRS: Korobov KO 8

WBC Junior Lightweight Title. 12 rds

Miguel Berchelt vs Francisco Vargas

R.L: Berchelt KO 7

TRS: Berchelt KO 10

WBO Junior Featherweight Title. 12 Rds

Emmanuel Navarrete vs Isaac Dogboe

Both: Navarrete Unanimous Decision

Boxing Challenge: Canelo decisions Jacobs

Las Vegas Nevada was the host for another event that was highly anticipated as three of the four middleweight championships were unified as Canelo Alvarez walked away adding the IBF championship to his WBA and WBC versions after his unanimous decision over Daniel Jacobs.
The three titles returned to one man after Gennady Golovkin had held all three of those titles until the period in between the two Alvarez-Golovkin fights when the IBF stripped Golovkin for fighting Vanes Martirosyan after Alvarez's failed PED test postponed their rematch.
This one was an OK fight that wasn't up to the Canelo-GGG fights but wasn't a stinker either with Canelo winning 116-112 and 115-113 on two cards.
I had it 116-112, but I didn't think anyone could see it closer than that in a matchup that saw Canelo outwork Jacobs and land the bigger blows.
Neither fighter scored a knockdown or even came close to doing so and with the exception of a few times in the later rounds, didn't have a lot of exchanges.
Canelo Alvarez is basically an underrated boxer and an overrated puncher as he continued a string of fights against his best opponents without scoring a knockdown and in fact other than one knockdown against Austin Trout, Alvarez has only that knockdown to avoid a zero in that category,
Alvarez does take out fighters that are a notch below that, which helps keep a puncher's reputation intact, but his boxing skills are way underrated as he's looked very sharp in avoiding punches and controlling the pace in this one.
Jacobs rarely threw a lot of punches until the final third of the fight and Jacobs did have a few moments down the stretch, but those moments were too few and never strong enough to turn the tide in a fight that to me felt more lopsided than I scored it, not closer.

The undercard was as awful as predicted and other than an upset loss by Sadam Ali to Anthony Young, there was little of note with only one bout for the boxing challenge.
Hot junior welterweight prospect Vergil Ortiz blasted out long time spoiler Mauricio Herrera with a highlight film knockout in the third round.
Ortiz knocked Herrera down late in the second and only the end of the round saved Herrera from being stopped right there.
The loss was the first time that Herrera has been knocked out and this might be the beginning of the end for the veteran, who looked a little shot in his previous fight which was a decision loss to Sadam Ali.
Ortiz looked spectacular in doing what had never previously been done and even though the win was over a shopworn Herrera, still it's quite an achievement for the flashy prospect.

ESPN televised Top Rank's card from Stockton, California, not because of counter-programming the DAZN card, but because of Artur Beterbiev wanting to get a fight in before his observation of Ramadan, this was the only date available for the IBF champion's title defense.
The main event was a fun one as Beterbiev walked down and stopped Radislav Kalajdzic in five rounds that saw both fighters land plenty of power punches in toe to toe exchanges.
Kalajdzic tried to use his superior reach to keep Beterbiev at bay and landed his share of big punches, but Beterbiev shrugged them off and just kept coming as Kalajdzic simply couldn't keep Beterbiev off of him.
Beterbiev knocked down Kalajdzic in the third when Kalajdzic was knocked into the ropes for a technical knockdown, but Kalajdzic battled back in a fourth-round spent exchanging bombs with the champion before the end came in the fifth.
Beterbiev will make a great fight against anyone and his amateur win over WBO champion Sergey Kovalev has made an eventual match between the two a fight that fans have wanted for years, but Beterbiev could also just as easily be placed against WBC titleholder Oleksandr Gvozdyk or former super middleweight champion Gilberto Ramirez in anticipated bouts.

The co-feature showcased IBF junior bantamweight champion Jerwin Ancajas defeating mandatory challenger Ryuichi Funai when the doctor stopped the bout with a battered Funai unable to continue following the doctor's evaluation for the beginning of the seventh round.
Ancajas controlled the action against the brave Funai, who constantly moved forward, but took about every punch from the champion's toolbox that one could take.
The stoppage was the correct one as Funai didn't possess the power to turn the fight around, but didn't seem to have any plans on giving up, which is the recipe for a fighter to take a ridiculous beating and in turn taking the chance of getting a warrior hurt.
Ancajas seems to be in the same boat with Top Rank as Terence Crawford, although not to Crawford's level, of course, a top fighter in a division that has the other top fighters with another promotion.

In the boxing challenge, I added eight points to Ramon Malpica's five to lengthen my lead to 116-100.
My points came from Artur Beterbiev Three (including KO round bonus)
                                    Canelo Alvarez and Jerwin Ancajas Two points each
                                    Vergil Ortiz one
Ramon's points came from Beterbiev two points
                                            Alvarez, Ancajas and Ortiz one point each

Boxing Challenge

The biggest fight of the weekend takes place in Las Vegas as DAZN presents a unification title match in the middleweight division with WBA and WBC champion Canelo Alvarez defending the titles that he won from Gennady Golovkin via close and somewhat controversial split decision against Daniel Jacobs, who won the IBF title that Golovkin was unfairly stripped in a split decision win over Sergiy Dereyvanchenko for the vacant title in his last fight.

I'm not against this fight at all as the more titles unified the better and short of Golovkin, only WBO champion Demetrius Andrade and maybe the still untested Jermall Charlo, Jacobs doesn't rank behind anyone else in the division, so he's deserving of this fight.
Still, I've always thought that Jacobs has been overrated in building a reputation off a better than expected effort (although in no way, shape, or form did he win that fight, no matter the dimwits that cling to that notion) against Golovkin, a one round KO of an equally overrated Peter Quillin and an interesting back story and what few (not all ) have ignored is how Jacobs hasn't looked very good in his three fights after his loss to Golovkin.
Jacobs has looked a little worn against Luis Arias, Maciej Sulecki, and Sergey Dereyvancenko, the latter in which he would have received a draw on the card, if not for an early flash knockdown.
As for Canelo, even though I thought he lost both fights to Golovkin, he is rounding into his prime and his very sturdy chin takes away the one chance that Jacobs might have-throwing a right hand and taking his opponent out.
This fight looks closer on paper than it will be in the ring and even though Jacobs might have some moments, I think Canelo wears Jacobs down and either will win a clear decision or takes Jacobs out in the second half of the fight.

The undercard is pretty weak with the usual Joseph Diaz appearance among others and as a result, there is only one other challenge fight with undefeated welterweight Vergil Ortiz tackling former contender Mauricio Herrera.
Herrera has fought a laundry list of top fighters in the 140 and 147-pound divisions but has lost four of his last seven fights and looked spent in his last outing, a lopsided decision loss to Sadam Ali.
Those combined factors make Herrera perfect as the next step for a young fighter approaching contention.

Over at ESPN, Top Rank has two world titles on the line with the IBF light heavyweight title of Artur Beterbiev being defended against Radajvoje Kalajdzic.
Top Rank reported that they didn't really want this date against the DAZN card, but Beterbiev's new contract with the company required a fight before his observation of Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting, which begins on Sunday.
Beterbiev walked through the always aggressive Callum Johnson in his first title defense but was knocked down by Johnson, who is a hard hitter himself.
Kalajdzic has done little of note, except arguably the most controversial decision in the "time buy" era of PBC, where he scored a knockdown over former Olympian and current top contender Marcus Browne, had a knockdown scored against him when he clearly slipped and outboxed Browne over eight rounds and deserved a breakout upset win.
What Kalajdzic received in return was a split decision loss and he has fought no one of note since, making the Browne fight really the only point of reference for Kalajdzic.
Kalajdzic is taller, younger and has some kick to his punch, although I would think not to the point of Beterbiev.
The track record for Beterbiev has been this- he hits, he hurts, he finishes and one would think the same happens here against Kalajdzic. but I can't get past Kalajdzic's effort against Marcus Browne.
Kalajdzic is a very live underdog here and considering his physical advantages if Kalajdzic can repeat that performance, an upset is very possible.

The co-feature is in the junior bantamweight division as IBF champion Jerwin Ancajas defends his belt against Ryuichi Funai of Japan.
Funai is the mandatory contender for Ancajas, but has seven losses in his career, has never fought outside of Japan and only his upset KO of Victor Olivo in his last fight qualifies him for a world title challenge.
On paper and only on paper because I've never seen Funai fight, this looks like a mismatch to me and a chance for Ancajas to redeem himself for a surprising draw against Alejandro Santiago. (I scored Santiago a close 115-113 victor) in his last defense in September.

In the boxing challenge, I lead Ramon Malpica 108-95.

Unification WBA/WBC-IBF Middleweight Titles. 12 Rds
Canelo Alvarez vs Daniel Jacobs
R.L: Alvarez Split Decision
TRS: Alvarez Unanimous Decision

Welterweights. 10 Rds
Vergil Ortiz vs Mauricio Herrera
Both: Ortiz Unanimous Decision

IBF Light Heavyweight Title. 12 Rds
Artur Beterbiev vs Radislav Kalajdzic
R.L: Beterbiev KO 4
TRS: Beterbiev KO 5

IBF Junior Bantamweight Title. 12 Rds
Jerwin Ancajas vs Ryuichi Funai
R.L: Ancajas Unanimous Decision
TRS: Ancajas KO 8

Cleveland Browns-Drafting Rounds Six and Seven

Wrapping our look at the Cleveland Browns draft picks with the Browns sixth and seventh rounders and then a brief look at the complete team draft and how I believe that they performed in the draft.

In the sixth round, the Browns selected their only player on the offensive side of the football when Cleveland pulled the name of Drew Forbes out of the remaining player list,
Forbes is a 6'5, 305-pound lineman from 1-AA Southeast Missouri State that played tackle for the Redhawks but will be slotted as a guard in Cleveland for the Browns.
Forbes was "Prospect X" the player followed throughout the draft process by Sports Illustrated along with his wife, but not identified until after the draft.
Forbes will be moved to guard, as mentioned earlier so there will be a learning process and playing at 1-AA level will also require an adjustment that might see Forbes either come up with an "injury" that protects him on injured reserve for a year or see practice squad duty, but that comes with the risk of another team swooping in to sign Forbes away.
Dane Brugler saw Forbes as a fourth or fifth rounder and likes his power, although he'll have to work on technique against quicker defensive tackles as he moves to guard.
Forbes is a project but has the type of background and strength that might stick around for a while and when you can refine a sixth-rounder with hopes of an eventual starter, you have to be pleased with the pick.


The Browns final pick in the seventh round saw them select their third defensive back of the draft when they took Tulane cornerback Donnie Lee Lewis.
In the seventh round, every player has a blemish or two because if they didn't have blemishes-they wouldn't be available in the seventh round!
Lewis started 44 games for the Green Wave of the American Athletic Conference and according to Dane Brugler is quick and has good ball skills, but lacks strength and can get pushed off the ball.
How much can Lewis contribute on special teams might be the difference in whether Lewis makes the team, the practice squad or gets released in camp.


In conclusion, I'm more than pleased with this draft.
When you consider that the Browns lacked a first rounder from the Odell Beckham trade, one cannot help but be happy with a player looked at by some as the best cornerback available in Greedy Williams.
That opinion isn't universal, but enough hold that opinion that it at least has to be considered as a first-round talent being added in the second round.
Linebacker Sione Takitaki is another player that is rated higher by some than others, but those that like him love his speed and intensity.
I think Mack Wilson in the fifth round could eventually be an out and out theft and Drew Forbes is the type of low-risk (6th round) high reward player that might need some development time but could be an eventual starter with some good fortune.
Sheldrick Redwine at minimum should be an immediate special teamer and maybe a starter down the road.
And with the undrafted free agent bunch adding big armed Purdue quarterback David Blough, who I mentioned as a developmental quarterback
All things considered, the Browns couldn't ask for more from a draft without a first rounder.

Draft Grade B+

Cleveland Browns: Drafting Rounds Four and Five

I usually don't miss the NFL Draft.
At all, but with the Lynchburg/Salem trip planned for months and the schedule not falling as favorably, after all, I reluctantly missed the final day of the draft.

Which is why I have been writing trip recaps rather than the final picks of the Cleveland Browns, so I wanted to add the day three thoughts before other things start piling up and I forget.
I'll be doing this in two posts with this one covering the three players selected in the fourth and fifth rounds and the followup detailing the players tabbed in the sixth and seventh round, along with a review of the total draft.

In the fourth round for the Browns, the selection was Sheldrick Redwine, a defensive back from Miami.
Redwine played both on the corner and at safety for the Hurricanes, starting last season as a safety.
The versatility to play both will help Redwine see the field this season, but he's reported to be a bit of a thumper from the safety position and it's not out of the question that this pick isn't as much for 2019, where Redwine will more than likely use his hitting and athleticism on special teams for the most part.
The selection of Redwine could be a hint that the Browns may not pay Demerious Randall what he could ask for following the 2019 season when Randall will be eligible for free agency, which perhaps could give Redwine the first chance to take the open free safety spot for 2020.


I had been pretty vocal about Alabama's Mack Wilson, who I rated as the third-best linebacker (non-edge rusher) in this draft and stated in our persons of interest, that the Browns would likely have to take him in the second round as I didn't think he would slide much farther.
I had hoped that the Browns would take Wilson in the third when he was still available and was disappointed that Cleveland took another player at the same position in Brigham Young linebacker Sione Takitaki.
Nothing against Takitaki, who may turn out to be a fine player, but I preferred Wilson and hoped the Browns could take him on the third day when you consider the Browns depth problems at linebacker.

All of that considered, I thought someone was going to get a day three steal and when the Browns took Sheldrick Redwine (drafted while we were on the road to the D-Day Memorial) in the fourth, I figured that the chance to add Wilson had disappeared.
Imagine my happiness (I believe a happy exclamation was uttered and a high five with Fred Landucci) at the World Famous Stadium Inn, when the draft ticker rolled across with the name Mack Wilson to Cleveland.

Wilson is a fast linebacker that isn't strictly a speed linebacker that lacks the strength to take the man with the ball down once they arrive there-Wilson is more than strong enough to knock ball carriers back.
Wilson looks to me to be a three-down linebacker that you don't have to situationally substitute for and considering that both Joe Schobert and Christian Kirksey missed multiple games last season due to injuries along with John Dorsey may very well choose not to pay Kirksey twenty million between 2020 and 2021 when he has Wilson and/or Takitaki in their place at a far cheaper rate.
So why could Wilson have fallen this far?
Some draft observers think that for all of the physical skills that Wilson doesn't have a freelance 'feel' for the position, preferring to stay home and not to take chances.
I'm not saying that may or may not be true, but how many times do scouts give minuses to a player that freelances too much for overrunning the play?
Wilson also only played full time for one season and that may have worked against him as well.
A real case can be made that Wilson should have returned to Alabama and had Wilson done that and performed well that he could have been a top 20 pick in next season's draft.
Whatever the reasons were for Wilson's plummet if Wilson cannot be motivated by the drop in rounds and the money that comes with that, then few are going to get anything out of him.
I think he's going to at least be an eventual starter, likely by 2020 and is going to be a steal.


The Browns had two fifth rounders (they did have three, but traded one to the Colts to move up to take Greedy Williams) and they seemed to reach a little in selecting Oklahoma kicker Austin Seibert.
Now, I would have no problem taking a challenger for Greg Joseph in the draft and I still wouldn't be against signing a veteran free agent to fight for the kicking job even now, but the fifth round seems a bit early for Siebert.
Siebert was the third-rated kicker in the draft but was the first booter taken off the board and when you consider the Browns investment of a fifth rounder in him, you would have to think that the position is Siebert's to lose even if the team hasn't come out and stated that.
Siebert kicked 63 field goals in 79 attempts at Oklahoma and had a career long of 51 yards, but that was one of only two career field goals over 45 yards.
I'm sure the Browns have seen his workouts and don't question his leg, but workouts aren't game conditions.
Siebert also served as the Oklahoma punter but was not mentioned as a challenger for the punting position held by Britton Colquitt.
Siebert has an above average chance to start the season as the Browns kicker, however, I believe the Browns could have still gotten him in the seventh round.


I hope to finish up the Browns draft series tomorrow or over the weekend.

Road Trip: Salem

When planning the trip, we had two options depending on how well we did at Lynchburg.
If things went poorly, we would return to Lynchburg for another chance, but conversely, should things go well enough, we would drive the little over an hour to the home of the Salem Red Sox.

After doing decently after Saturday's game, we decided to take our victory and see what we could in Salem.
I usually send Fred a handful of restaurant suggestions and then he'll pick what he thinks looks best.
I sent a few after being in the hotel that night, but Mike and I then decided to let this be Fred's day and see what he wanted, whether those few or one of his own finds.
Fred selected a place called Mac and Bob's, which turned out to be a Red Sox sponsor.
It's always nice when it suits to reward the businesses that sponsor a local team and although we found that out in hindsight, it still was a pleasure.

Mac and Bob's was a place with plenty of seating and they said they were serving brunch.
Fred visibly winced and audibly groaned as he still talks a few years later about a place in Charleston WV serving a "Betwixt" menu.
Still, we decided to check their brunch menu out and if that is a reduced version, I wonder about their offerings on their regular card!
I thought about one of the burgers, but I had been eating a decent amount of those, so I asked about the chicken tenders appetizer (fries added for one dollar).

Many times, places serve some chicken tenders that can be pretty scrawny and I knew that we likely wouldn't be eating for a while, so I asked about the size.
Our waitress said there were five "hefty" tenders and that it would be no problem holding me for a while.
Sure enough, they were huge and took multiple bites to finish one-plus they were delicious with the buffalo sauce that I mixed with bleu' cheese.
I'm almost positive that should we ever return to Salem, Mac and Bob's will be a must stop.
My problem is chicken or burger???

I had been to Salem a few times, so I had a general idea of the layout and how best to position ourselves for the day.
I had gotten most of the home Red Sox earlier in the month when Salem visited Frederick, but the visiting Myrtle Beach Pelicans (Chicago Cubs) would not make their first visit to Maryland until late in May, so they were the target, mainly due to the presence of the top prospect of the Cubs- Panamanian catcher Miguel Amaya.

Amaya was the biggest catch with his entry into this years Top 100 set and after we nabbed a few pitchers from various team sets, Amaya moved out for warmups. If you look straight down at the picture shown, the other two graphers were located there, where Amaya signed for them.
We called for Amaya and he started to walk down, when he was called by other players to warm up, he stopped and told us "I have to go, but I'll be right back".
You hear that a lot from players and only occasionally do they come through and even rarer than that are they friendly, so we were wondering just what he would do.
Sure enough, as soon as warmups concluded, Amaya jogged right over and said "Sorry about that, I had to warm up".
Amaya spoke with us and signed all four of my cards, a ball for Fred and whatever cards Mike had before saying thanks guys and trotting to the dugout.
The player that I needed most had signed and that was all four Top 100's for the trip!

The two other players that I wanted most were returning Pelicans from last season.
I had gotten a few Alex Lange's since I last saw Myrtle Beach last season, but Lange was the starter, so I didn't bother him.
Lange's April might have placed him in a bad mood anyway as after this outing- Lange had pitched only nine innings over four starts with a season ERA of TWENTY ONE!
Twenty-year-old shortstop Aramis Ademan played last season for the Pelicans as a heavily hyped prospect but struggled in hitting only .207 in 114 games, so returning Ademan to Myrtle Beach made plenty of sense for both the shortstop and the Cubs.
Last year, Ademan was one per and not always that, so I didn't count on my two cards (Eugene Emeralds and Bowman) getting signed.
Fred asked him to sign and he said "after the game", which is a refrain often heard of late, but Fred was digging in "We won't be here, we have a four-hour drive home, so we are only staying a bit".
I was more than surprised to see Ademan smile, walk over, ask how we were and where we were going back to as he signed both.
Great job-Fred!

We watched a little bit and started moving towards home, stopping this at Jess' Lunch, which is the place that Mike wanted to stop on the way down but was closed.
I wasn't starved, but I had what Mike had- two hot dogs and a side of fries.
It was about as basic as one could get and since they cater to the students at local James Madison University, it's exactly how to build a local icon.
After that, it was straight home and we were at the end of the weekend trip.

I'd make this trip again in the future, should the schedules align.
Lynchburg is a bit better than Salem for graphing since postgame at Salem is dependent on being allowed into a certain area, which from what we have been told isn't always the case there.
Still, Salem isn't awful and you can get some things done there.

Another successful trip and I had a great time with Fred and Mike.
May looks light other than the usual circuit, but June is looking fun and I'll be looking forward to the next road trip.
I'm going to try to work on day three of the Browns draft in the next post unless breaking news shoves that down the road.

A new memory in Frederick

Baseball is a funny game.
Especially when you see as many games as I do, they tend to run together and if I see just a little bit before I have to leave or an entire game, usually what you see is unremarkable or memorable for other reasons.

Then again, there are those few nights that catch you off guard and leave you with something indelible in the memory banks.
There was the night that Suns manager Darnell Coles threw his own player (Stephen King) off to the side to keep the player from arguing with an umpire so that HE could argue with him and after being ejected, threw a bucket of balls on the field with some bats to boot!
The Suns opening series against big bonus baby Stetson Allie of West Virginia, who then pitched an inning that would have made Nuke LaLoosh blush with wild pitches that would have killed a batboy had one been in their normal spot, 100 MPH radar clockings and a dugout meltdown has stuck with me as has the night that Juan Soto snapped his ankle avoiding the batboy (that somehow missed the media report, yet if you were one of the 100 people there-you saw how it happened) and Cleveland prospect Dylan Baker throwing five perfect innings on a Frederick home opener for Lynchburg and watching him leave the game warming up for the sixth to miss the rest of the year with a torn elbow ligament.
There have been other nights that have been better remembered for off the field incidents than anything that remembered on the field, but I was able to see something Tuesday night in Frederick with Bill Cover that I hadn't seen before and I'm unlikely to ever see again.

I've never attended a no-hitter in person and we almost saw one on Tuesday,
Instead, we may have seen something more memorable.
Frederick's Michael Baumann was unhittable and that word is often used lightly, but in this case, it's true.
Baumann struck out 12 and walked only two without allowing a hit over six and two-thirds innings, but dominance goes beyond the numbers and Baumann never even had balls hit hard or needed to have his fielders make plays behind him.
Baumann was that strong and you had the feeling if the pitch count didn't exist, he could pitch all night and Wilmington wasn't going to hit him!
Baumann was the Orioles third rounder in 2017 and split last season between Delmarva and Frederick, so he is someone to keep an eye on.

Fast forward to the ninth with Frederick holding a 4-0 lead and the no-hitter intact as Travis Seabrooke took the mound after getting the final out of the seventh and the three in the eighth without allowing a hit.
Wilmington manager Scott Thorman clearly was trying to avoid his prospect-laden squad being no-hit and began to send pinch-hitters to the plate, which in A level baseball usually only happens if a player is injured or you see a cow flying over the moon in mid-game against Seabrooke.
Pinch-hitter Marten Gasparini was called out on strikes- two outs away.
Next, former Hagerstown Sun Blake Perkins was the chosen pinch-hitter and drew a walk.
One out, no-hitter still alive.
Nick Pratto was the next pinch-hitter and as a touted prospect that had the evening off, loomed as a dangerous impediment to the no-hitter, and Pratto drew a walk.
Two on, One out, No-hitter intact.
Seabrooke is removed by Frederick for Luis Perez with Perez facing Seuly Matias, who at Low A Lexington hit 31 homers in 2018 and walked only 24 times.
So of course, Matias draws a walk.
Bases Loaded, One out, No-hitter still intact

At this point, this is where I screw up, I turn to Bill and say "this is about the time someone kicks one".
Sebastian Rivero raps a routine hopper to Keys shortstop Yeltsin Gudino-perfect double play ball to end the game.
Gudino kicks it, Perkins scores, the score is 4-1 Frederick with the shutout gone, but the no-hitter still in play with the bases still loaded.
Catching prospect and 2017 second rounder M.J.Melendez strides to the plate with a batting average of.138. Perez walks him.
No-hitter still on the line, the game is 4-2, bases once again loaded.

Infielder Dennicher Carrasco bats next and with Carrasco at the plate, Perez throws the ball past catcher Stuart Levy and Matias scores.
Now the score is 4-3, the tying run is on third and the lead run is at second and Wilmington STILL doesn't have a hit!
Carrasco won't stop that string either as he pops out to first baseman Trevor Craport, who makes a nice catch near the stands for the second out.
Two on Two out- no hits and shortstop Cristian Perez at the plate.
Perez finally drills a hit as he smacks a line drive by the diving third baseman Willy Yahn down the line to score Rivero and Melendez (the ball wound up being called a ground rule double as it was stuck around the fence.
No-hitter ruined and Frederick is actually losing, Perez then fans Angelo Castellano to finally finish this inning from hell.
Frederick did put the tying runner on base, but Wilmington held on for a stunning 5-4 win off one hit with two out in the final inning and under crazy circumstances.

I've still never seen a no-hitter live, but this meltdown will be just as memorable as if the Keys had polished off the Blue Rocks and completed it.
Baseball indeed is a crazy game.

The evening wouldn't be complete, if not for a graphing story.
I wrote yesterday about graphing the Blue Rocks in Lynchburg and the work getting a few of their prospects.
That enabled me to just enjoy the evening for the most part (I did add a few players from last season's Lexington set) and if I was able to finish any of the cards for Brett Shaw, that's an added bonus.
I decided I would forego my card if Brady Singer or Jackson Kowar signed and try to get them for Brett.
Kowar did sign for others after the game as I was getting two other players, so he signed, but I was unable to nab his card for Brett.
Here's the funny story, the few remaining people after the game (a rain shower delayed the start by an hour) waited for players at a spot near the stadium exit, to the left of the locker room exit, a short walk away.
A player opened the door, looked to the right of the door (not the left) towards the stadium, saw no one and audibly said: "Brady, the coast is clear".
Singer and this player quickly left to walk down the concourse and around most of the stadium to reach their bus all to avoid five or six people.
It was a small walk away for us, to be near our cars and exactly where they had to walk by us anyway.
Singer did stop and sign one for everyone, so I was happy to have Brett's card signed, but I wonder is it that hard to do that all the avoiding and the hassle that's done, all of that is easier than signing one card?
I think about that sometimes, what goes through the mind of someone to go to all that trouble to avoid a few people?
I might understand Tom Brady avoiding 300 people in Boston to be worth the problems, but for a minor league player to go through that to dodge five people in Frederick Maryland?
I thought it was funny- "The coast is clear, Brady" like they were casing the joint in an old Western!

A fun and memorable night in Frederick that between on the field and off the field won't be forgotten anytime soon.

I moved my day in Salem back a day to write this story and I still need to write about the Browns final day draft picks so those will be on their way soon.