Outlaws take a step back in Chapter Two

With all the things that went in the first month of the season, a couple of poor results toward the end of the second month really soured Flagstaff GM Greg Newgard.

“This game is pretty funny,” Newgard told the local press that gathered for their month interview. “Everything seems to go very well and then hit a pothole and the wheels fell off. Getting swept by Joplin and Bear Country really was a stomach punch that left this team reeling.”

Flagstaff finished the month at 10-18, thanks to those sweeps, falling to 24-32 overall.

“We left three or four wins on the table that chapter,” Newgard said. “We will just see if we can get those back somewhere along the way.”

When asked about the reasons for the letdown, Newgard was upfront. “We didn’t execute. The pitching staff disappointed to the tune of a 4.68 ERA and we couldn’t score any runs with a slugging percentage of .367. 102 runs was second-worst in the Ozzie League because of it.”

When asked about the prospects of the June schedule, Newgard was a bit more upbeat.

“Well, it’s interleague time, so that’s always a kick for everyone,” Newgard said. “We’ll see a couple of starters make their season debut, including Alex Wood. Having to juggle so many starters on innings limits is tough, but the plan is working so far. we just have to get better results.”

The Outlaw Hitter of the Month was award to second baseman Joe Panik. Panik only started 13 games, but played in 24 games coming off the bench and amassed a .915 OPS across 60 plate appearances. “That isn’t an easy task when you aren’t getting regular playing time, but we recognize his effort is always being ready to start or pinch hit and deliver.”

Pitcher of the Month was hard to award, given there weren’t many solid performances to choose from. Fernando Romero finished his second with three final start, going 2-0 and racking up a 0.54 ERA over 16 2/3 innings in what is easily the best Outlaw starter so far. “It’s hard to go into the season knowing you’re only going to throw 60 innings, but Romero owned what was given to him and he certainly did what was asked of him.”