the dog days

As I was looking at some stats for the guys I had listed as all-star snubs, I realized something: a lot of them saw their batting averages drop over the last week. So I investigated further, and indeed, a lot of guys everywhere saw their batting averages drop this week.

Now, I haven't done this on a week-to-week basis, so maybe it's something that happens every week, since this is a pitchers' league. But I don't think so. I think there's a downward trend, something that probably happens every year. And this is just about the right time for it. Players have been on the Cape for six weeks. They've played nearly every day, something they haven't done much in their careers. They're tired.

And the hitters are more tired. The pitchers, they may be fatigued, but starters are still just going every five days, maybe more. It's the everyday players who are getting worn down.

Here's a closer look at the numbers.

TEAM	PLAYERS WITH AVG. UP	PLAYERS WITH AVG. DOWN
Bourne	3	9
Brewster	4	7
Chatham	7	6
Cotuit	5	8
Falmouth	7	4
Harwich	3	9
Hyannis	6	7
Orleans	4	7
Wareham	6	7
Y-D	7	6

So, six teams have more guys with falling averages than guys with rising averages. Interestingly, the three who have things going the other way -- Chatham, Falmouth, and Y-D -- are near the top of the standings.

A look at team batting averages.

TEAM	JULY 21	JULY 27
Bourne	.272	.260 (-12)
Brewster	.249	.247 (-2)
Chatham	.256	.257 (+1)
Cotuit	.248	.244 (-4)
Falmouth	.247	.248 (+1)
Harwich	.232	.231 (-1)
Hyannis	.245	.243 (-2)
Orleans	.225	.220 (-5)
Wareham	.224	.214 (-10)
Y-D	.272	.272 (0)

Most teams have seen their averages drop, and the ones who haven't are essentially holding steady. The biggest positive change is one point.

As far as players go, the guys who had higher batting averages feel the brunt of struggles a little more, or at least their averages do. Bourne's Kevin Hoef, for instance, was hitting .350 on July 21. With a 1-for-13 stretch, he's down to .312.

I find it very interesting that the all-star selections came right before the dog days. As a result, a lot of guys who got the nod find themselves in slumps right now. Of the 12 hitters on the West squad, 10 have had their averages take a dip this week. It's a little better in the East where only seven of 12 have seen a drop.

The players you have to be most impressed with are the guys who are on the upswing. And while we can give some credit to guys who were struggling and are now improving, it's the guys who were doing well and are now fighting through the dog days to keep doing well that really deserve some kudos. In some sense, the upswings for these players are perhaps just a hot streak at a time when most players aren't on hot streaks. But the fact that these players had gotten off to fast starts and are doing even better now, is still impressive in my book.

A few players who fit that bill:

PLAYER	JULY 21	JULY 27
Jason Castro - Y-D	.333	.350 (+17)
Yonder Alonso - Brewster	.316	.342 (+26)
Jermaine Curtis - Chatham	.299	.320 (+21)
Collin Cowgill - Y-D	.301	.310 (+9)
Dennis Raben - Orleans	.272	.298 (+26)
Allan Dykstra - Chatham	.306	.322 (+16)
Conor Gillaspie - Falmouth	.356	.367 (+11)
Reese Havens - Cotuit	.299	.311 (+12)

Gillaspie is probably the most impressive of that bunch, because a .356 average is pretty difficult to raise. He did it with seven hits in 17 at-bats. Alonso had a big week with 10 hits in 22 at-bats.

So that's about all I have. Any way you slice it, I think it's been a pretty rough week for hitters.