the big picture

I often find myself -- and this blog -- getting lost in the day-to-day action of the Cape League, with no time taken to look at the bigger picture. I think it's a natural thing that happens across the board in Cape League coverage, be it at the Cape Cod Times or in team broadcast booths. It's hard to get a feel for the broader scope of the league.

So, in an effort to change things up a little bit, I'm going to try to post a weekly "Big Picture" feature, focused mostly on players. Who's shining, who's struggling, that kind of thing. We'll call this the inaugural installment. Enjoy.

Believe it or not, we're almost halfway through the 2008 season. Yes, that was fast. But at this point, it's safe to start really looking at which players are having standout summers. Guys who are hitting well and pitching well -- these aren't just great starts anymore. They're foundations on which to build a great summer.

Hitters

On the offensive side, there's a definite lack of average-power combos. But the high averages are making up for it. Three players are still hitting over .400, and this is pretty late in the season for numbers to be that high.

In general, I think the hitters aren't quite on par with last year's group, which produced a ton of first-round picks. But they're not too far behind.

Right now, I'd say Chatham's Grant Green is leading the way. The USC sophomore shortstop turned down Team USA, wanting to spend a full summer on the Cape. So far, that looks like a pretty wise decision. He's leading the league with a .429 batting average. He also has two home runs, six doubles and a league-best .521 on-base percentage. Already projected as a high pick for the 2009 draft, Green has only helped himself thus far.

At a close second, I'll go with Nick Liles. The Y-D third baseman, who plays at Western Carolina, has made the most of a big opportunity. He's hitting .411, and though he doesn't have a home run, he has 15 RBI, good for second on the team. But Liles really shines on the basepaths, where he leads the league with nine stolen bases. Liles is also versatile -- he's played second, third and outfield.

We'll jump off the batting average leaderboard for the next two -- Mike Bianucci and Conner Powers. Bianucci, in his second go-round with Cotuit, is a junior at Auburn who was an eighth-round pick this year. He's trying to improve his stock and he's doing a pretty good job. He's hitting .268 and he leads the league in home runs (5) and RBI (19). Powers, a sophomore third baseman from Mississippi State, has put up similar numbers. He has a .291 average with four home runs and 18 RBI.

Since this has apparently turned into an impromptu top five, we'll round it out with Bourne shortstop Dusty Coleman. Another guy who spurned Team USA, the Wichita State sophomore was draft-eligible this year but slipped to the late rounds. Since coming to the Cape, he's made a huge impact. He's hitting .340 with two home runs and 12 RBI.

There are plenty more guys who are in the conversation:

Kyle Roller, Bourne - East Carolina slugger is hitting .329 with 15 RBI
Marc Krauss, Bourne - Ohio first baseman has switched teams but still hitting .319
Brent Milleville, Brewster - Late-arriving Stanford big man has 13 hits in 8 games
Ryan Wheeler, Brewster - Loyola-Marymount star hitting .321 with 3 HR
Cory Olson, Chatham - Torrid start has UC Irvine outfielder hitting at .488
Kevin Patterson, Cotuit - Auburn frosh hitting .306 with 2 HR
Jimmy Cesario, Falmouth - Houston star has best AVG-RBI combo (.313, 18 RBI)
A.J. Pollock, Falmouth - Cooling a bit, but Notre Dame's best still at .400
Dustin Ackley, Harwich - Best pure hitter? UNC star is at .391 through 7 gms
Joseph Sanders, Harwich - Auburn infielder is hitting .312 with 3 HR
J.T. Wise, Harwich - Oklahoma DH/C is hitting .350 after late arrival
Trent Ashcraft, Hyannis - ECU outfielder still scorching (.375 AVG)
Matt Bowman, Orleans - Nevada star is Cardinals' most consistent hitter
Angelo Songco, Orleans - Loyola Marymount outfielder leads team with 3 HR
Tim Wheeler, Orleans - Sacramento State standout is hitting .304 with 2 HR
Raynor Campbell, Wareham - Baylor sophomore is hitting .328
Brett Eibner, Wareham - Nine extra-base hits for Arkansas frosh
DeAngelo Mack, Y-D - A temp no more, South Carolina OF hitting .333
Ryan Ortiz, Y-D - Back from Team USA, Oregon State catcher is at .33
Tony Sanchez, Y-D - Another Y-D catcher, BC star has 12 RBI

PITCHERS

With hitters adjusting to wood, it always seems like the pitchers get a head start, and this season has been no different. For quite awhile, the league leaders in ERA were sitting at 0.00. There are no starters in that category anymore, but a handful are still under 1.00.

Compared to last year, the pitching may be a little bit better, particularly in the strikeout column. Last year's league leader finished with an unusually low number. Several guys are on pace to finish ahead of that this year.

The closers -- Russell Brewer, Brad Boxberger and Kyle Kamppi -- have also been a major story. They've now combined for 25 saves.

We'll focus on starters here, and it's tough right now to pick the top guy. At this point, I think it's neck and neck between Andrew Carraway and Brandon Workman. Carraway, a junior at Virginia, continues to make teams look silly for letting him go undrafted. Pitching for Hyannis, Carraway is 2-1 with a .40 ERA. He has struck out 26 in 22.1 innings with just five walks. His WHIP is .77. As for Workman, the highly-touted Texas freshman has turned in the single best pitching performance of the summer -- a near no-hitter last week -- but he's also been solid in his other starts. He''s currently 2-1 with a 1.98 ERA. He leads the league in strikeouts with 38 in 27.1 innings and he has walked only eight.

Brewster's Tim Clubb, a redshirt sophomore from Missouri State, is behind those two only because of lower strikeout numbers. Clubb leads the league in wins (4) and ERA (.35). And his strikeout numbers aren't bad, just a little off the pace. He has struck out 22 in 26 innings.

Rounding out the top five: Chatham's Sammy Solis and Cotuit's Nick Hernandez. Solis, a freshman lefty from San Diego, has allowed two earned runs all summer for a 1.00 ERA. He has struck out 22 and walked only two in 18 innings. Hernandez, from Tennessee, made an immediate splash as a temporary player and has continued to be solid. He's 4-1 with a 1.48 ERA. He has 25 strikeouts and only four walks in 30.1 innings.

And the rest of the pack:

Ricky Bowen, Bourne - Miss. St. righty has a 5:1 K:BB ratio
Nick McCully, Bourne - Coastal Carolina sophomore tossed 5-inning perfect game
Bryce Stowell, Bourne - Two dominant starts in a row for UC Irvine sophomore
Buddy Baumann, Brewster - Missouri State lefty has 1.52 ERA in four starts
Caleb Cotham, Brewster - Vandy star has 26 K's in 22 innings
Sean Black, Harwich - Seton Hall righty has 1.88 ERA in two starts
J.J. Hoover, Harwich - Tenth-round pick out of JUCO has 2.38 ERA
Chris Manno, Harwich - Duke strikeout artist has 24 in 21.2 IP
Matt Zielinski, Harwich - Richmond standout 0-3 but has a 2.57 ERA
Austin Hudson, Hyannis - Not a lot of K's but a 1.93 ERA for Central Fla. righty
Eric Erickson, Orleans - Two good starts for late arrival from Miami
Rob Rasmussen, Orleans - ERA sits at 1.29 for UCLA southpaw
Martin Viramontes, Orleans - Tall Loyola Marymount righty has 1.80 ERA
Robby Broach, Wareham - Tulane frosh has turned in four solid starts
Dallas Keuchel, Wareham - Arkansas sophomore has 2.25 ERA
Max Perlman, Wareham - Righty from Harvard has 2.36 ERA
Craig Fritsch, Y-D - Baylor righty has been Y-D's best starter


So that's that. Look for something similar next Wednesday. Hopefully, this helps the big picture take shape a little bit.