NNY continues to Hypnotize, mesmerize opponents

Even New New York Manager Jason Renbarger knew a 16-win pace was not sustainable throughout the season.

“Even I knew a 16-win pace was not sustainable throughout the season,” said Renbarger after his Hypnotoads exploded out of the gate with a 16-4 March.

So it came as no surprise that in the month we celebrate Earth Day the Hypnotoads came back down to earth.

To a 15-5 record in April.

If you’re scoring at home, that’s 31-9 at the quarter pole, a pace for 124-36, which would topple the league’s win mark of 123-37 set by Phil Roselli’s Littleton Lumberjacks in 2005.

But Jason isn’t thinking that big. “I figured out if I go .500 for the rest of the season I still will end up with 91 wins on the year,” he said.

Jason, don’t let the Strat gods hear ya. Even a .500 month isn’t guaranteed. Look no further than:

• The 2022 Savannah Scorpions, who followed up a 14-7 June with a 7-13 July.
• The 2018 Bushwood Gophers, who negated a 14-6 June with a 4-16 July.
• Or even the 2021 Hypnotoads, who posted a 7-13 clunker in the same year as a 17-3 sparkler.

Still, 31-9 is the best March/April record any team has posted as far back as we have such records (2014). New New York’s 15-5 April featured 4-1 road wins over South Grand Prairie and Bismarck, a 2-3 setback at the hands of the Olympic Coast Orcas, and a 5-0 sweep of the Dyersville Treblemakers. That series saw No. 1 overall pick Julio Rodriguez go OFF, to the tune of six homers, a double, a triple and a .500 batting average. Rodriguez alone outhomered Dyersville in that series, as the Treblemakers were held to five while New New York exploded for 19.

Fast facts on NNY’s fast start:

• Rodriguez now has 18 homers on the year (one behind league leader Mike Trout) with eight doubles, two triples, eight stolen bases and a slash line of .298/.353/.735/1.088. His 111 total bases lead the league.
• The Hypnotoads lead the league in homers with 90 and runs scored with 246, while posting the second-lowest ERA at 3.60.
• The Hypnotoads’ top three relievers (Ryan Helsley, David Bednar and Yancy Almonte) have a combined 43 innings pitched with 59 strikeouts and only four earned runs allowed for a 0.84 ERA.

New New York opened up an 8-game lead in the Northbound Division after April, despite three other clubs (Margaritaville, Bushwood and Olympic Coast) all notching 11-win months.

There was a change at the top of the Southbound Division though, as Boulder escaped the grips of Greendale to surge one game ahead at 24-16 with a 13-win month to the Zealots’ 12. A 5-0 conquest of Carpe Diem highlighted a Tree Hugger month that otherwise was a mix of 3-2s and 2-3s. Trout’s 45 RBIs already puts him on pace for 180; he also leads the league in homers with 19 while hitting .316, fourth in the league.

One back of Boulder is Greendale at 23-17, riding the hot bat of Jose Ramirez, who leads the league in batting average (.339), hits (58) and doubles (15).

In the Westbound Division, Tatooine holds first place with the league’s second-best record at 25-15 following an 11-win month that no team in the division was able to improve upon. A glittering 3.00 team ERA and .214 batting average against have been the Rebels’ early hallmarks, along with allowing the fewest homers and walks in the league and striking out the most. The Rebels’ hot start comes in spite of a dismal offensive showing by Shohei, hitting .203 with three homers.

May’s marquee matchup will see the league’s top two teams (by record) squaring off as Tatooine (25-15) visits New New York (31-9). The Hypnotoads will be further tested by road challenges at Boulder (24-16) and Bushwood (21-19) along with a home series versus West Atlanta (17-23).