DAVENPORT, Iowa — Right now in the Midwest League West standings, it feels a lot like the Wisconsin Timber Rattler, the Cedar Rapids Kernels and then everybody else.
The Timber Rattlers sit in first place at 36-21 and have a 3.5 game lead over the second-place Kernels (32-24). But Wisconsin has a comfortable 10-lead on the third-place South Bend Cubs, who are 26-31.
The Sky Carp are right there with the Cubs, who are 10.5 games out of first place at 25-31.
This week’s road trip will prove to be a pivotal one for both Beloit and the hosting Quad Cities River Bandits, who are breathing down the neck of our feathered squad, sitting 11 games behind the top spot at 25-32.
Beloit is coming off back-to-back homestands at ABC Supply Stadium. It split a six-game series with the Dayton Dragons (28-29), who are in fifth in the MWL East, and then went 2-4 against a strong Lake County Captains’ squad, which is in first place in the East at 34-23.
With a month until the All-Star break, the Sky Carp still have plenty of time to make a run at the first half title, which would guarantee them a spot in the MWL playoffs.
The team with the best record in the first half of the season plays the team in their division that had the most wins in the second half in the first round of the postseason. If the same team were to repeat at the top, it would go to the second-place squad. The winner from each divisional series then plays each other for the MWL championship title.
Beloit would greatly benefit from getting some separation from itself and the River Bandits in the middle of the standings. Tuesday through Friday’s games all begin at 6:30 p.m. CT while Saturday’s is at 6 p.m. and Sunday’s starts at 1 p.m.
Beloit will return to ABC Supply Stadium on Tuesday, June 18 for a six-game series with the Lansing Lugnuts.
• WHO’S HOT: Outfielder Jake DeLeo has really started to catch a hot bat since his average bottomed out at .143 on May 16. The 2023 sixth-round pick out of Georgia Tech is hitting .286 in his past 15 games. In that span he has scored five runs, driven in six and blasted two homers and a double. He is now hitting .215 on the season, and his OPS is at .637.
Josh Zamora may not be here to experience the dog days of summer as his stellar season continued with another great series from the plate, this time against the Captains.
The second baseman out of Nevada upped his stats by hitting .300 in 20 at-bats against Lake County. He scored a run and drew four walks in comparison to seven strikeouts.
Zamora leads the current Sky Carp roster with a .259 average on the season, and he has driven in 36 runs, scored 25, blasted 10 home runs and eight doubles while sporting an OPS of .824.
• WHITE AND MEYER WATCH: The pitching duo who sit atop the Miami Marlins’ prospect rankings via MLB Pipeline have continued to impress in their starts at ABC Supply Stadium.
Nobel Meyer, the Marlins’ top prospect in the system, allowed three earned runs on three hits and three walks with three strikeouts in 4 1-3 innings on Saturday. The 2023 first-round pick has a 2.89 ERA in 9 1-3 innings while striking out nine and walking just three in his two starts.
Thomas White, who is ranked No. 3, threw 4 1-3 innings and allowed two earned runs on just three hits and two walks while striking out eight. The 35th overall pick from 2023 now possesses a 2.16 ERA in two starts while walking four and striking out 14.
• A SUCCESSFUL HOMESTAND: The Sky Carp broke the all-time weekend record at ABC Supply Stadium against the Peoria Chiefs with 6,963 fans flocking to the stadium from May 10-12. Well, the Sky Carp smashed that record in its series against the Dragons with 8,806 fans enjoying the ballpark from Friday through Sunday. And this past weekend’s three set of games against the Captains is the second-highest in ABC Supply Stadium history with 7,127 fans in attendance.
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