By Tim Shoemaker
Bethlehem A’s manager has one goal as his team enters the final two weekends of the Lehigh Valley Baseball League’s AAA Premier Division regular season.
“My goal is to get into the top four,” he said. “We can only do what we can do. You can’t just score runs, you have to play good defense,” he said. “Anything can happen in a nine-inning game.”
Anything can happen, and usually does.
The Premier Division has an interesting Sunday scheduled, weather permitting, as four of the top teams square off against each other. Salisbury plays a doubleheader at Alpha and Bethlehem has an important game with the Lehigh Valley Cardinals.
Bethlehem (8-5-1) has one of the top pitchers in the league in Delaware native Darrien Ragins (5-1, 0.79), who has 73 strikeouts and nine hits allowed in 34 innings. He is also batting .485. The A’s also are getting offensive production from Richard Carey (.480 BA) and Shay Gustafson (.441 BA, 9 RBI).
This is the first time that Poretta has managed a game versus Cardinals manager Ron Cahill.
“It’s going to be fun,” Poretta said. “We have a history together. This is the first tine we’ve coached against each other.”
Here is a closer look at the leading teams heading into the weekend:
Division leaders
Alpha Braves (10-2) – Remaining opponents: Falcons (2 games on July 17), Expos (2 games on July 18), Brewers (2 games on July 25). Prognosis: Magic number to clinch North Division over Reeders is 4 and over Bethlehem is 3. Saturday’s doubleheader with Salisbury has many playoff ramifications. The Braves can knock the Falcons almost out of the playoffs with a sweep; if the Falcons sweep, Alpha’s hold on first place in the North is in jeopardy. A split can have effects, depending on the outcome of other games.
LV Cardinals (12-3) – Remaining opponents: A; s (1 game on July 18, 1 game July 25), Nationals (1 game on July 18). Prognosis: Magic number to clinch over Salisbury is 2. Something to ponder: If the Cardinals and Braves tie for the top seed in the playoffs, the tiebreaker is run differential. The Cardinals have outscored opponents 112-38 for plus-74. The Braves have outscored opponents 85-46. In other words, the Cardinals are in good shape for the tiebreaker if it comes to it, but understand that Alpha has six games left and the Cardinals have three.
Wild card contenders
Salisbury Falcons (9-5) – Remaining opponents: Braves (2 on July 17), Oilers (2 on July 25). Prognosis: Big doubleheader Saturday at Alpha. The Falcons cannot afford to lose two. One loss will hurt because the other wild card contenders have five or six losses.
Bethlehem A’s (8-5-1) – Remaining opponents: Cardinals (1 game on July 18, one game July 25), Diamondbacks (2 games on July 24). Prognosis: Must find a way to take one from the Cardinals. Two losses to the South Division leader would hurt.
Reeders Rangers (7-5) – Remaining opponents: Oilers (2 games July 17), Brewers (2 games July 18), Nationals (2 games July 25). Prognosis: In good position despite being behind at the moment, in the playoff chase. Could run the table and challenge the Cardinals if the Cardinals stumble.
Boyertown Nationals (7-6-1) – Remaining opponents: Diamondbacks (1 game TBA), Cardinals (1 game, July 18), Rangers (two games, July 25). Prognosis: Still a longshot, but not completely out of it. Must get to 11 wins and hope that two of the three others ahead of them in the wild card race do not.
