Better JetHawks hope to build on first-half success

If Lancaster can continue its solid firsthalf play, the team should challenge for a Cal League playoff spot in the second half

"I know I could go home and get a message that one or more of these guys is going somewhere, and everything could change," Burleson said.

After the way the JetHawks wrapped up the first half of 1998, Burleson would prefer not to see too many changes for the second half of the season, which starts today when Lancaster hosts Rancho Cucamonga.

The JetHawks finished the season's first half 10 games over .500 (40-30) for their best first-half finish during their three seasons in Lancaster. Lancaster's record was the second best mark in the league.

Unfortunately, the JetHawks found themselves in the wrong division. They finished six games behind San Jose, which claimed the Valley Division's first-half crown.

"We made a run at San Jose," Brendan Kingman said. "But our slow start really hurt us. I think if you look at what they did in the last third of the season, they just played great baseball, and we couldn't catch up."

The fact that the JetHawks would even give the Giants a run for the division title would have been hard to fathom five weeks into the season.

After winning their first two games of the season against the Quakes, Lancaster began to struggle, falling as many as four games under .500.

The main reason for the JetHawks' troubles was a sluggish offense that ranked at or near the bottom of the Cal League standings for most of the first month.

"For a while there, we were real concerned about the ability to score runs on that team," Mariners Director of Player Development Benny Looper said.

Burleson said he knew it wasn't a matter of offensive talent, but rather just a lack of production.

"Coming into this year, I felt we had a better club than we did last year," Burleson said. "But during the first month, we didn't play like it. We got off to a very slow start."

The JetHawks started turning things around on May 8 at High Desert. Lancaster lost the first game of a doubleheader 5-3 to the Mavericks to fall to 15-19, but rebounded to claim the second game with a 10-2 victory. That started a string of four consecutive wins, which got Lancaster back to .500.

On May 20 at Lake Elsinore, the JetHawks finally moved above .500 for good with a 10-0 victory over the Storm. In all, Lancaster won 25 of its final 36 games.

The reason for the turnaround was simple - offensive production to go along with the solid pitching they were already getting. Lancaster finished the first half tied with Stockton for the league lead with a .268 team batting average - a surprising improvement for a team that struggled to keep its head above .200 most of April.

Lancaster also leads the league in run production with 5.92 runs per game, is tops with 97 stolen bases and is tied for second with 50 home runs.

"We were real happy to see the hitting finish so well," Looper said. "Things really turned around for those guys. It took a couple of weeks, but everybody starting hitting a lot better."

Kingman, who stands second in the league with a .350 average, Adonis Harrison, who is third with a .345 average, and Cirilo Cruz Jr. have been the JetHawks' most consistent offensive weapons all season. Jason Regan, like many of his teammates, came on after a rough April to prove that his 22 home runs in the second half of last season weren't a fluke. He finished the first half with 12 homers and a .288 batting average.

All four players made it to the Cal League All-Star Game, along with pitchers Patrick Dunham and Brian Sweeney, who were big parts of a very productive Lancaster pitching staff.

Entering 1998, the JetHawks were confident they had a solid bullpen, but had many questions surrounding their starting rotation because of inexperience and injuries.

Those questions started to look like gaping holes, when Opening Night starter Denny Stark went on the disabled list April 26 with an arm injury and Jason Bond, who was among the league leaders in strikeouts at the time, followed him a week later with an elbow injury. Making matters worse, highly regarded Jordan Zimmerman, who was supposed to start in Lancaster, was injured in spring training.

"We thought we started the season with a good pitching staff," Looper said. "But with all those injuries it made it tough."

The only two constants in the Lancaster starting lineup have been Dunham and Julio Ayala, who have both been outstanding at times this season. Dunham went 8-3 with a 2.20 ERA during the first half, while Ayala was 5-2 with a 3.44 ERA.

Sweeney stepped in and filled any role the JetHawks needed, either in the bullpen or as a spot starter, going 6-0 with a 3.24 ERA.

Those three, plus reliever Aaron Scheffer, who had nine saves in the first half, anchored a Lancaster staff that battled through all the injuries and uncertainties to finish second in the league with a 3.66 team ERA, behind only San Jose.

"With the exception of those injuries, which are frustrating for everybody, I think the pitching in Lancaster was outstanding for the most part," Looper said. "We're expecting even better things in the second half."

If Lancaster can continue to get that sort of pitching and avoid the offensive slump they had early in the first half, they should have an excellent opportunity to claim one of the two remaining playoff bids from the Valley Division.

The JetHawks will mostly likely compete with High Desert and Modesto for those two playoff spots. They lead High Desert by two games and Modesto by five.

"We had some guys that came together really well during the last month and a half," Burleson said. "It would be nice to see all of those guys stay together to make a run during the second half.

"Obviously that doesn't always happen. But as long as they get promoted for the right reasons, I'll be happy for all of them."