Brantley's 2018 #s Through August

hey, Brantley fans! can you believe we're into September already? seriously, how have five months of baseball season gone by so fast? and it's very bittersweet this year because that means we have also come upon the final month in the regular season that Michael will play as an Indian before he explores the free agent market. the Michael Brantley Era in Cleveland is truly almost over. ugh. i can't even process that reality yet...😞😟😢😭💔

okay, now that i've depressed the hell out of everyone, let me try to pick things back up. Michael's 2018 campaign has gone extremely well so far. he did much better in some months than others, but he's currently on the upswing and right track with his hitting. highlights to this point include his 19-game hitting streak, his career high 27-game on-base streak at home, hitting his first and second career grand slams, hitting his sixth career walk-off, and being named an All Star for the third time. lowlights include difficulty finding consistency out of the break, continued problem areas, specifically hitting with RISP and 2 outs, struggles against left-handed pitching, and an inexplicable inability to hit well on road (until last month, that is). but overall, he's mainly got exceptional season stats.

and let me remind y'all, too, that the most important thing to focus on might just be the fact that he's healthy! for the first time since 2015, Michael is not

Brantley's 2018 #s Through July

hi there, Brantley fans! we are two-thirds of the way through with the 2018 baseball campaign, can you believe it? i mean, where has the time gone, am i right? sadder still is this means Cleveland Indians fans only have two months left (in the regular season, at least) to enjoy watching Michael play in a Tribe uniform before he becomes a free agent and most likely signs somewhere else. sigh.😟💔

to give you a brief summary of what's occurred thus far in Michael's season, he put up excellent performances in both April and May, but the past two months have been challenging to say the least. he's been struggling in some areas that he generally does very well in, particularly with runners in scoring position, on the road, and against left-handed pitching. normally one of the most consistent, reliable, and clutch hitters in the game, it's surprising that Michael is having trouble in these specific categories. there is definite room for improvement, as you will soon see, and i know he'd agree. with this being his walk-year especially, him playing well is very important. the good news is, he still has a good amount of time to turn things around. oh and on another positive note, he's remained healthy this year, too!😀🙏

okay, let's get to the numbers. in this blog, you will find Michael's 2018 regular season numbers and statistics covering March 29 - July 31.

so far in 2018, Michael has

Brantley's 2018 #s Through June (+ All Star Ballot Results)

hey, Brantley fans! so we're already halfway through the season in terms of both games--81 down, 81 to go--and months. the year is just flying by. luckily, i've been keeping busy with my blog work in an attempt to distract myself from the reality that there are only three months left in the Michael Brantley Era in Cleveland... the tears will be coming, but for now, i'm trying to enjoy every day that he's still playing in a Tribe uniform.😔

to recap Michael's season thus far, he had a very hot start to 2018, but has since cooled off. if you read through my Brantley's June 2018 #s blog, then you know he struggled in just about every facet of the game. it was very disheartening to see Michael go from batting .366 (30-for-82) during his 19-game hitting streak in May, to batting .243 (25-for-103) over his next 26 games, including nine 0-fers, since then. however, because he excelled so much in both March/April and May, the majority of his overall numbers and situational statistics remain strong.

another big positive is, he's been healthy. not only that, but the extra off days Terry Francona was giving Michael in the beginning of the campaign are no longer necessary. i think we can officially stop worrying about his ankle now (knock on wood👊). and here's hoping that the new calendar month will bring Michael back to the high level of performance that we're used to and he's capable of.

this post contains Michael's

Brantley's June 2018 #s

hello, Brantley fans! i'm back with another monthly blog. thank you for reading my previous Brantley's May 2018 #s blog and Brantley's 2018 # Through May blog. i know there was A LOT going on in Michael's May, so i hope you enjoyed all the content i provided spotlighting everything.✍

i didn't see any new viewer countries on my blog this month, but that's okay because heavy traffic continues to come through from some certain regulars.😉 in June, the United States, Germany, and Italy🥇🥈🥉 represented my top 3 visitors, specifically (with France, Brazil, and Spain very close behind!). thanks to all of you in those locations for stopping by and checking out my posts.👏 let know know you were here by leaving a comment! and if you aren't from one of the places listed, feel free to shout out your country in the comments, too.🌎 i'm sure my top audience will change over the course of the next month again, so be sure to come back at the end of July to find out which areas are reading about Brant the most! as always, you can share my posts on social media to increase your chances of being in the top and then recognized here.👍

reminder: if you haven't voted for Michael to go to the 2018 All Star Game yet, you've still got six days to cast 25 ballots.🗹 please help Brant get to his third career Midsummer Classic, and final as a Cleveland Indian.🙏 click here for details, tips, and tricks!

now let's get into Michael's June!

Brantley's 2017 #s Through August

okay, so maybe i was on to something when i wrote in the Brantley's 2017 #s Through July blog that this year might need to be a "Just Get Through It" type of season for Michael Brantley. (if you haven't seen it or would like to re-read my theory, it's at the bottom of the post.) except, he's hit a snag in that game plan due to his lingering right ankle sprain, of which the latest status can be found in the DL Updates section of my Brantley's August 2017 #s blog.

Michael will be lucky if he even plays 100 games this year. at no point this season did i ever think that would be the case--until now. in my preseason predictions blog, i assumed he'd accumulate at least 125 games, and that was including some extra off days to give his right shoulder a break. i could never have anticipated that he'd miss so much time because his ankle would give out on him. i know it's not his fault, but i can't hide my disappointment in the situation and i'm sure other fans feel the same. forget about Comeback Player of the Year. at the moment, we just need him to come back, period.😞

so when will Michael return? it's unclear because he has yet to resume running and, according to one of the last August updates from Terry Francona, his ankle still needs to heal. but hopefully Michael will be back sooner rather than later in September so that he can get himself going again and finish out the regular season strong and on a good note, or at least try to, before he and the Cleveland Indians embark on playoff baseball!🤞

since Michael barely played in August, his overall numbers have

Brantley's 2017 #s Through July

Michael Brantley has done an admirable and inspiring job so far in 2017 after missing all but 11 games last year. no one can say otherwise. in fact, he's got a very good chance to be a candidate for AL Comeback Player of the Year.👍 however, i am going to make an argument at the bottom of this post that Michael's not fully back to his ordinary self yet, and likely won't be until next season. so make sure you read all the way to the end for that.📖

but first, let's get into the numbers. this blog consists of Michael's 2017 regular season numbers and statistics from April 3 - July 31.


so far in 2017, Michael has 350 plate appearances and 314 at bats in 82 games (686.0 innings). in total, he has 94 hits, 29 extra base hits, 65 singles, 20 doubles, 1 triple, 8 home runs, 49 RBI, 4 sac flies, 42 runs, 30 walks, 3 intentional walks, 2 hit by pitches, 11 stolen bases (9 - 2nd, 2 - 3rd), 1 caught stealing (2nd), 7 GIDP, 49 strikeouts (40 swinging, 9 looking), 21 first at bat hits, 140 total bases, 128 left on base, 127 putouts, 8 assists, 1 error, and 1 double play.

2017 batting average through July:

Brantley's 2017 #s Through June (+ All Star Ballot Results)

these first three months of Michael Brantley's 2017 baseball campaign haven't exactly gone off without a hitch. April was great for Dr. Smooth--his best month so far--which gave every Indians fan the impression that he was back to his old self. conversely, in May, he suffered a right ankle sprain and struggled in some offensive categories, making that month slightly pedestrian. then in June, Michael was unable to significantly add on to his overall stats because he not only spent time on the Paternity List after welcoming a new baby into his family, but was also on the disabled list while dealing with continued ankle soreness. combine that with a couple extra days off early in the season and Michael has missed more games than anticipated to this point.

still, it hasn't all been bad. i mean, his shoulder seems to be holding up quite well. (knock on wood.) and if his ankle issue is now in the past, i think we're going to see some vintage Brantley numbers coming in these last three months of the year. but before we get to that, let's recap what he's done through June.

this blog tallies Michael's 2017 regular season numbers and statistics from April 3 - June 30.


so far in 2017, Michael has 240 plate appearances and 216 at bats in 57 games (484.0 innings). in total, he has 66 hits, 20

Brantley's June 2017 #s

hey there, Brantley fans! it's time for another blog recounting Michael's performance over the past month. but let me first thank everyone who read my Brantley's May 2017 #s blog and Brantley's 2017 #s Through May blog. i did notice some new views from Nepal and Kazakhstan in June, so i also have to give a special welcome to my audience in South and Central Asia!👋 if anyone else is a fairly new reader here, tell me where you're from by shouting out your city/state/country/continent in the comments!

now without further ado, here is everything you need to know about Michael's month of June.


June Overview

if you thought May wasn't Michael's greatest performance, then you might be indifferent to his June. he started the month out kind of slow, missed some time due to the birth of his child, and then was placed on the 10-Day DL with a right ankle sprain immediately following his paternity leave. upon his return, he had some early struggles, but then seemingly got back on a roll. when it was all said and done, Michael missed almost half the games on the Tribe's June schedule, playing just 13 of 27. so it's a small sample size that we're working with to critique and,

Brantley's 2016 #s Through August

by now i'm sure everybody has heard that Michael Brantley's 2016 season officially came to an end when he underwent biceps tenodesis for his chronic right biceps tendinitis on August 15. the good news is he's expected to make a full recovery in four months. the bad news is he has no chance to build on his numbers for the year anymore. as a result, this is going to be another "#s Through" blog much like the previous two i've posted. once again, if you see (unchanged) next to a section, it means nothing was added to it, and sections without that marking include new/different information from the last time you viewed them.

note: even though Michael's season is over and his statistics will not be changing, i am going to continue using the present tense when listing them below. i'm also still going to address his numbers and stats throughout this blog using the terms "through August" and "after five months" simply to keep the timeline of the season straight. however, i am no longer using "so far" and "thus far" when describing his stats because they are indeed final.


in 2016, Michael has 43 plate appearances and 39 at bats in 11 games (89.1 innings). in total, he has 9 hits, 2 extra base hits, 7 singles, 2 doubles, 7 RBI, 1 sac fly, 5 runs, 3 walks, 1 intentional walk, 1 stolen base (3rd), 1 GIDP, 6 strikeouts (3 swinging, 3 looking), 1 first at bat hit, 11 total bases, 14 left on base, 18 putouts, and 1 assist.

2016 batting average through August:

Brantley's 2016 #s Through July

Michael Brantley has not added to his overall season numbers since May 9, but that very well could [finally!] change in August lol until then, we've got another "#s Through" blog that's vastly similar to the last one i posted a month ago. for your convenience, i have denoted sections that weren't modified in any way with (unchanged) next to them. otherwise, everything else contains new information and was updated accordingly.


so far in 2016, Michael has 43 plate appearances and 39 at bats in 11 games (89.1 innings). in total, he has 9 hits, 2 extra base hits, 7 singles, 2 doubles, 7 RBI, 1 sac fly, 5 runs, 3 walks, 1 intentional walk, 1 stolen base (3rd), 1 GIDP, 6 strikeouts (3 swinging, 3 looking), 1 first at bat hit, 11 total bases, 14 left on base, 18 putouts, and 1 assist.

2016 batting average through July:

Brantley's 2016 #s Through June (w/ All Star Voting Updates)

this blog is going to be very similar to the "#s Through May" blog. why is that? because Michael hasn't played a game since May 9!

Michael has never missed an entire month of a season as long as i've been documenting and blogging about his numbers, so i've never faced this conundrum before. while it might seem pointless to you for me to list out all his numbers again, i came to the conclusion that it was necessary because despite him not having any June statistics, most of the sections in this blog did still change slightly and were updated accordingly.


so far in 2016, Michael has 43 plate appearances and 39 at bats in 11 games (89.1 innings). in total, he has 9 hits, 2 extra base hits, 7 singles, 2 doubles, 7 RBI, 1 sac fly, 5 runs, 3 walks, 1 intentional walk, 1 stolen base (3rd), 1 GIDP, 6 strikeouts (3 swinging, 3 looking), 1 first at bat hit, 11 total bases, 14 left on base, 18 putouts, and 1 assist.

2016 batting average through June:

Brantley's June 2016 (w/ DL Updates)

hey there, Brantley fans! i'm gonna start this blog with another thank you to everyone who read my Brantley's May 2016 #s blog and Brantley's 2016 #s Through May blog. and once again, i gained some new viewers in the last month, this time from Kenya and Latvia! welcome!

now let me address the abnormality that is this month's blog. it's going to be very different from all my previous monthlies because Michael did not play any games in June. as a result, the majority of sections you'd expect to find here have been omitted. still, i had plenty to write about. this blog mainly contains Michael's DL updates along with some other information i came across throughout the duration of June. (hence why it's not titled Brantley's June "#s" as per usual.)


June Overview

the Indians played a total of 28 games in June. Michael played zero and the Indians went 22-6 without him. (Michael who? yeah, no kidding. to see the team do THAT well in his absence was quite surprising.) never did i imagine Michael would miss the entire month of June. i truly thought he'd be back by the middle of the month, but that turned out to be not realistic whatsoever.

he started June hitting off a tee and after a week moved on to flip toss. another week passed and Michael had not yet advanced to taking batting practice, though he was building up the intensity and volume of his soft-toss program. shortly after that, it was revealed that Michael had experienced some

Brantley's 2015 #s Through August

Michael just got done putting together a colossal month in August and that moved him right into the thick of things regarding team highs, league rankings, and even the American League batting race. it was incredible and i am so proud of him! he now has up to 32 games to play in before 2015 comes to an end, and if Michael can do anything close to what he did in August in these final weeks, then strap in tight folks because we are gonna be in for a really fun ride to the finish line. go Brantley!



so far in 2015, Michael has a total of 516 plate appearances and 453 at bats in 117 games (885.1 innings). in total, he has 146 hits, 51 extra base hits, 95 singles, 40 doubles, 11 home runs, 73 RBI, 5 sac flies, 60 runs, 56 walks, 8 intentional walks, 2 hit by pitches, 14 stolen bases (13 - 2nd, 1 - 3rd), 1 caught stealing (3rd), 12 GIDP, 43 strikeouts (31 swinging, 12 looking), 32 first at bat hits, 219 total bases, 187 left on base, 181 putouts, 7 assists, 2 errors, and 1 double play.

2015 batting average through August: .322 (146-453)

OBP: .395

SLG: .483

OPS: .879


Michael's .322 batting average is currently the highest on the team out of all the qualifying players. he now has a 3-point lead on Jason Kipnis, who's batting .319.


note: never before in Michael's career has he been

Brantley's 2015 #s Through July

sorry for the delay on this blog. as i said in the blog i posted yesterday, the worst thing that can happen at the end of a month is the Indians playing late night West Coast games because it cuts my calculation time in half. but everything's all done now so let's jump right into it.

Michael's been looking really good since he got those 4 days off during the All Star break, but as a whole, his stats so far just don't rank very high around the league. it's no secret he's been dealing with a back strain since the first day he reported to spring training, so i don't think you can expect much more from him at this point. that's not to say he's doing bad, but he won't be in the MVP race this year or win another Silver Slugger award. nonetheless, his numbers through July are much better than what some other players would be putting up if they had been playing hurt all season. (just check the stats of some of the Indians who played hurt last year.) with 2 months left in 2015, anything can happen, and for Michael, i hope it's nothing but positive things so he can finish the year out strong.



so far in 2015, Michael has a total of 408 plate appearances and 357 at bats in 93 games (734.0 innings). in total, he has 107 hits, 38 extra base hits, 69 singles, 30 doubles, 8 home runs, 56 RBI, 4 sac flies, 41 runs, 46 walks, 5 intentional walks, 1 hit by pitch, 11 stolen bases (10 - 2nd, 1 - 3rd), 1 caught stealing (3rd), 9 GIDP, 30 strikeouts (19 swinging, 11 looking), 28 first at bat hits, 161 total bases, 149 left on base, 145 putouts, 7 assists, 1 error, and 1 double play.

2015 batting average through July:

Brantley's 2015 #s Through June

before i get into this, let me just say that some of Michael's numbers to this point are not where anyone would have expected them to be. in order to get the full story as to why that is, be sure to read my Brantley's June 2015 #s blog in advance of this blog, which contains his overall statistics thus far.

**blogger's note: even though it's been somewhat difficult personally for me to watch various stats of Michael's decrease on a nightly basis, my blogs for this season are not going to stop. yes, Michael may be playing too much and not getting any significant time off to rest and potentially gain some strength back in his back, and consequently his numbers may be suffering. but i started documenting Michael's numbers years ago for a reason and i am no quitter. granted, it has not been as fun this year as in the past because he's having a rough go due to injury. and while there may not be a turnaround coming for him any time soon, i will support him regardless, defend him continuously, and make sure the truth is out there.

Michael is still doing an overall sufficient job, all things considered, but he certainly had higher expectations put upon him this year because of his outstanding 2014 AL MVP-3 season. so far, many could argue there have been numerous times when he

Brantley's June 2015 #s

how are ya, Brantley fans? thank you to everyone who read my last 2 blogs, Brantley's May 2015 #s and Brantley's 2015 #s Through May. i noticed i got a lot of views from France in the last month, too. merci! beaucoup d'amour à vous!


June Overview

if i was going to give Michael's June a title, i could easily call it "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly." it was just an odd month for Michael. he had good games, he had bad games, and he had games where it looked like his back was killing him. he's no longer the consistent player that he's become known as, but i guess that's to be expected considering he's been battling a back strain since day 1 of spring. still, it's unfortunate.

Michael had at least 1 hit in his opening 9 games from June 2-13, batting .333 (11-for-33). but unlike last month, he didn't have a dominating first half of June. in his first 13 games, Michael bat .319 (15-for-47). by no means is that bad, but it wasn't enough to compensate for the remaining 11 games, when he bat only .273 (12-for-44). all-in-all he earned himself a June batting average of

Brantley's June 2014 #s

my blog got a lot of views last month from outside the United States, which was very surprising to me. i'm glad to know that Brantley has fans all over the world and i'm grateful that they have found my blog. so i just want to take a minute to say HI! and thank you to my readers in Russia and Germany. you guys rock! ;D

Michael's May was so outstanding, i knew that it would be hard to keep up. but to my delight, he started out June very hot and it seemed like it would never end. unfortunately, it did when Michael was diagnosed with a mild concussion and had to miss a few games. (more on that later.) shortly after he was cleared to play again, the hot streak died off. he had some ups and downs, faced some tough pitching, and was robbed of a few would-be hits. for the third month in a row, he struggled during his last few games of the month, including an interleague game on June 30. (why do we always play IL games at the end of the month?!) and so his batting average and OPS were noticeably lowered before i could start all my June calculations.

he's still doing well as a whole, don't get me wrong. once again his batting average has improved, up .011 since the end of May. and he still leads the team in all the major categories. so how can i really be upset with a guy batting .314 after 3 months of the season? a .314 batting average that ranks 5th in the American League, tied for 8th in the majors, and tied for 1st among major league outfielders, no less?

well it's because he got his batting average up as high as .326 this month, and it was .325 before the end of the month road trip. not to mention his June OPS was .991 ten days ago. when you bat .182 (4-for-22) in 6 games at the end of the month, and go 1-for-13 in your last 4 games, that's not finishing the month strong. he peaked (then "plummeted") and that spoiled me lol i'm so proud of Michael and everything he's accomplished so far, of course. but there's part of me that just can't help but wonder, if he hadn't missed some time with a concussion, would the month have ended differently? probably not, yeah i know.

this month differed from May in that Michael had a lot of "loud" outs, otherwise known as line drive outs. he hit balls hard, no question. but loud or not, an out is still an out lol and the majority of his outs continue to come via grounders rather than fly balls; he now has 109 groundouts compared to 76 flyouts through June. the good news is you can normally count on Michael to make contact at the plate, as he remains one of the hardest batters in the league to strike out.

Michael almost played the entire month in the 3 hole, where he continued to do well. but he did enter one game as a pinch hitter when he was coming back from a minor concussion, and hit in the 9th spot (where he recorded a single). but that shouldn't ever happen again. so it looks like Michael's new BOP is going to be 3, barring major injury or regression. i'm so glad Francona did not move Michael down after he missed a few games with the concussion and that there's finally some regularity for him in our lineup.

because of the sporadic hitting of Bourn and Cabrera ahead of him, Michael had a lot of at bats with no one on base and 2 outs in June. this partially explains why he didn't get as many RBI this month as he did in the last 2 months. 21-ish% of his RBIs in June came from his 3 solo home runs. but the hits kept on coming regardless, as evidenced by his improved batting average and on-base percentage. and with Santana heating up this month behind Michael, that really helped Michael add to his runs scored total.

Michael's 2-out hitting is good, yet when there are RISP and 2 outs, he's not hitting as much. it could just be the way he's being pitched to when someone is on base as opposed to when the bases are empty. maybe he's seeing tougher pitches to hit in those instances. or it could be due to a different strategy employed by Michael at the plate. in any case, this is certainly something i'd like to see him improve on as the second half of the season starts.

some quick at bats is another reason Michael didn't rack up many RBI in June. Michael had his share of opportunities to drive guys in this month, trust me. it seemed like he either had at bats with 2 outs and no one on, or when runners were in scoring position. there wasn’t much in between. anyways, instead of taking his time, working the count and having a quality at bat, he'd be first pitch swinging a lot. and before i knew it, his at bat was over and he got out. he started doing this last month, and it didn't seem to hurt his numbers too much, but he definitely missed out on adding more RBIs to his total this month.

says Michael, "that comes down to being comfortable at this level and having a different mindset. the game kind of dictates what you need to do, whether it's driving guys in or working the count. i've tried to be more aggressive this year at times, putting good swings on quality pitches, maybe earlier than i did in the past. the more you play, the more you understand the game, and you pick out your times."

this new aggressive attitude that he's adopted at the plate doesn't always work out. i understand sometimes you get a good pitch to hit early in your AB and you have to go for it. but i'd prefer he work the count more when guys are in scoring position. i was rightfully concerned the more i saw how quick some of his ABs were going this month. he left several guys on base in crucial game situations, an area of the game he usually excels at. i think it'd be more advantageous for him if he stopped being so antsy in certain situations in the future.

Michael had a hit in 18 of the 24 games he played in June and reached base safely in 21 games. Michael reached base in 16 straight games (over 20 days) from June 1-20.

Michael had a modest 9-game hitting streak this month from June 9-20 (over 12 days). during his streak, he bat .552 (16-for-29) with 16 hits, 5 for extra bases. he hit 3 doubles and 2 home runs, giving him 25 total bases. he had 4 RBI, 9 runs, 3 walks, 3 hit by pitches, 1 stolen base and just 3 strikeouts. his OBP was .629, his SLG was .862, and his OPS was 1.491. he also recorded 2 more outfield assists. this was all very good, but in the back of my mind i will always question how much longer his streak could have gone on had he not sat out a few days with a concussion…

additionally, Michael had 5-straight multi-hit games from June 11-15. during this streak, he bat .500 (10-for-20) with 10 hits and 15 total bases. he hit 2 doubles and 1 home run, giving him 3 extra base hits. he also had 2 RBI, 3 runs, 1 walk, 1 hit by pitch, 1 stolen base, and only 2 strikeouts. his OBP was .545 and his SLG was .750, making his OPS 1.295. he recorded 2 of his 3 outfield assists for the month during this time as well. this streak ended when Michael left the June 16 game early (after 2 at bats) with the concussion.

Michael had a 10-game road hitting streak that began back on May 14, continued from May 22-28, and ran through June 6-7. he bat .325 (13-for-40) throughout this streak with 10 singles, 2 doubles, and 1 triple for 13 hits--3 extra base hits--and 17 total bases. Michael also totaled 3 RBI, 8 runs, 3 walks, 1 hit by pitch, 2 stolen bases, 3 GIDP, and 4 strikeouts. in left field, he recorded 1 assist.

shortly thereafter, Michael put together a 9-game road hitting streak from June 9-15 and June 24-25. he bat .486 (17-for-35) during the streak with 17 hits, including 3 doubles and 3 home runs, totaling 6 extra base hits and 29 total bases. he also had 5 RBI, 13 runs, 5 walks, 3 hit by pitches, 1 stolen base, and 3 strikeouts. he had an OBP of .581, a SLG of .829, and OPS of 1.410. defensively, he had 2 assists too.

he also had a 12-game reached base streak on the road that spanned from June 6-15 and June 24-25. add that to his 8-game reached base streak on the road from May 14 and May 22-28, and he had a grand total 20-game reached base streak on the road.

Michael is now batting .327 (67-for-205) against right-handed pitchers and .287 (27-for-94) against left-handed pitchers. his average against righties increased nicely, whereas his lefty BA more or less remained the same. although it may seem like Michael's been struggling against lefty pitchers, the wider difference between the two is mainly due to Michael having faced more righties than lefties in the month of June. Francona always plays Michael against the tough lefties, and the fact that he only has 94 at bats against them shows that we tend to face more righties than lefties. if Michael faced as many lefties as righties, the batting averages would probably be closer together.

Michael's batting .350 (49-for-140) at home and .283 (45-for-159) on the road. prior to June, he had a conspicuously lower batting average on the road. thankfully, this month he started hitting exceptionally better away from Progressive Field, giving his road BA a 40 point jump despite his end of the month road troubles.

Michael continues to put up good numbers when the team needs him. he's now batting .338 (25-for-74) with runners in scoring position, producing 40 RBI, a nice increase from the end of May. he's also hitting .400 (6-for-15) with 0 outs and runners in scoring position and .407 (11-for-27) with 1 out and RISP, also both an increase. he stays put batting .250 (8-for-32) with 2 outs and RISP and 14 RBI. Michael increased his batting average to .355 (44-for-124) with 44 RBI with runners on base, but went all the way to down .600 (6-for-10) with 17 RBI when the bases are loaded lol as i pointed out before, Michael had quite a few ABs this month with 2 outs in an inning, and is still batting a respectable .294 (30-for-102) with 19 RBI.

Michael's power potential was put on display again this month. he hit 3 more (solo) home runs in June. he tied his career high in homers on June 9, then set a new career high on June 15 with his 11th home run. any other home runs he hit from that day on would only add to his new career high. he's now tied for the team lead with 12 home runs. Michael is well on his way to passing his father’s career high HR total (15).

Michael remains the team leader with 53 RBI, also a career high for him through June. his 53rd RBI didn't come last year until August 4. he's ranked 5th among major league outfielders, 10th in the American League, and tied 12th overall in the majors with his 53 RBI as well. but compared to how many RBI he had in March/April (20) and May (19), his 14 for this month is a bit of a drop. as i mentioned earlier, that's a result of both Michael going to bat without any runners in scoring position, and also him missing a lot of chances to bring guys home because he'd first pitch swing/get out fast. maybe i'm just being greedy now because Michael had so many career high RBI in April and May, but 14 RBI this month seems low lol let's try for 15 or more next month ;D

have you noticed that Michael mostly hits solo home runs? 9 of his 12 have been solo, and the other 3 were 2-run homers. therefore, 9 of his 53 RBI have come from solo homers, and 15 of his 53 RBI (just under 30%) have come from all 12 of his home runs. i think the reason is twofold. first, Michael's had the majority of his at bats (175) when no one was on base. and second, again, i believe that pitchers pitch to him differently when the bases are empty. this allows him to hit more line drive homers. however, i would love to see Michael hit a 3-run homer sometime this year. and if he ever hits his first granny, i will cry lol (and then blog LOL)

aside from once again leading the team in home runs (12)* and RBI (53)*, Michael also leads the team with: 94 hits*, 32 extra base hits*, 151 total bases*, 54 runs*, 6 hit by pitches (tied)*, 9 stolen bases, 78 games*, 335 plate appearances*, 299 at bats*, .314 BA*, .382 OBP*, .505 SLG*, and .887 OPS*. he also leads the outfielders with 9 assists*.

he's tied for 2nd on the team with 19 doubles, and is 3rd with 28 walks. he has the least amount of strikeouts with 30 as well.

(*denotes these are also career highs for Michael through June. these rankings include qualifiers only.)

this was by far the best June that Michael's had in the big leagues. after doing more extensive research, i found that Michael set career highs for himself in the month of June with the following: 31 hits, 10 extra base hits, 47 total bases, 20 runs, 3 hit by pitches, 0 caught stealing, 3 assists, .341 BA, .413 OBP, .516 SLG, and .930 OPS.

now let's get into some other facts about Michael's season up to this point. he's hit safely in 30 of 36 home games overall. he now has 24 multi-hit games and 13 multi-RBI games. he also has 17 go-ahead hits and 17 go-ahead RBI this season. plus, his 17 go-ahead RBI rank towards the top of the American League.

Michael had a few big moments this month, the first taking place on June 9 when he hit his 10th home run, tying his career high. but the bigger highlight of this game was that he scored a career high 5 runs in the game. his 5 runs tied the Indians single-game club record and were the most runs scored in a game since Joe Carter's 5 runs scored on September 6, 1986 at Milwaukee. in addition, Michael joined Charlie Jamieson as the only Indians hitter to have at least 1 home run, 5 runs, and 2 walks in one game. Charlie accomplished this all the way back on September 15, 1921.

on June 10, Michael set a new career high in hit by pitches, when he was hit by 2 pitches in a game against the Kansas City Royals. he first got hit by Jason Vargas with 1 out in the top of the 6th inning, then was hit for a second time by Vargas with 2 outs and Asdrubal Cabrera on 1st base in the top of the 8th inning. that 2nd hit by pitch gave Michael his 5th HBP of the year and a new career high.

a career benchmark occurred for Michael on June 15. on the 7th pitch of a 2-2 count from Brandon Workman of the Boston Red Sox and 2 outs in the top of the 1st inning, Michael hit home run #11, a new career high at that time. his 10th home run also came against Workman, so i felt like Michael would hit another one. because this was a momentous occasion for someone not projected to be much of a home run hitter, i wrote a special blog about this here.

Michael followed that up with his 8th OF assist (2nd most in the AL at that time) in the bottom of the 1st inning of the same game. he got his 8th assist last year on July 10. he played that left field green monster wall perfectly, catching the ball off the carom and then firing it in to get David Ortiz out at 2nd base.

and there's one more thing that happened on June 15 worth mentioning. Michael had an at bat in the 8th inning versus left-handed pitcher Andrew Miller. the count was 3-2 when Michael fouled off a slider. then the next pitch, another slider, away, was called strike 3 and Michael was out looking. and it was crystal clear on my Gameday that the home plate umpire fucked up the ball 4 call. if you look at Michael's track record, you know he rarely strikes out looking. hell, he doesn't strike out much period. he's a very smart player with a good eye and knows enough when and when not to swing. that slider was so far outside i don't know how anyone could have missed it. but the ump did and Michael was robbed of a walk.

another thing you know about Michael if you've been following him for any time at all is that he's not one to verbally complain about calls to home plate umpires. but this time, in this case, he spoke up, saying, "there's no way that's a strike." and his complaint was warranted. so much so that Francona brought his ass out of the dugout to defend Michael and also give the ump a what for. even while walking back to the dugout, Michael was still pissed, yelling, "come on!" and it pissed me off as well because that's one bullshit strikeout now in his statistics. can we just put an asterisk next to that? =/ umpires make bad calls in baseball all the time, that's nothing new. but this blown call cost the Indians a leadoff runner late in a tie game. luckily, we still managed to come back and win it, although the game did take 11 innings.

on June 16, Michael was named American League Player of the Week for June 9-15. this was the first time in his career that he'd ever been given this honor. Michael bat .538 (14-for-26) with 3 doubles, 2 homers, 3 RBI, 3 walks, and 9 runs scored during this time period. he led all major leaguers in batting average, runs scored, and OBP (.665). he led all AL hitters in hits (14), total bases (23), and times on base (20). Michael was the first Indians player to be named AL POTW since Jason Kipnis was named POTW on July 1, 2013. i wrote a blog with more information about this here.

on the same day Michael was named AL POTW, he got hurt and left that night's game after 4 innings. he hit a go-ahead RBI single in the bottom of the 3rd inning. then when Kip grounded into an inning ending double play, Michael had some kind of grimace on his face after he was called out at 2nd. i was fortunate enough to have a live look-in of that on my computer as it happened and it worried me. he did play the top of the 4th inning, but did not go back out there for the top of the 5th. it was later announced that he took a blow to the head/neck area (from former Cleveland Indian John McDonald) while sliding into 2nd base trying to break up the double play, and was taken out of the game as a precaution. immediately i thought worst case scenario he'd end up on the 7-day concussion DL. but i wasn't actually prepared for that reality.

Michael had originally been listed in the starting lineup on June 17, but after going through his pregame baseball activities, he said he wasn't 100%. his neck felt stiff and he felt pressure in his head, so they sent him to the Cleveland Clinic for more evaluation. the Indians listed him as day-to-day with head/neck soreness, but i had that sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that he had a concussion and that the DL was coming. on June 18, i learned that Michael just had a mild concussion. the Indians decided not to put him on the 7-day concussion DL because they believed he would progress quickly and would not need a full 7 days off. if all that wasn't enough explanation for ya, read my blog about Michael's concussion here.

Michael has never had a concussion of any kind in the big leagues, so i wasn't sure how he'd respond. my biggest worry was that he'd lose all the momentum he had built before the head injury. i was nervous that the streaks he was on would quickly end as well, fearing he would need several at bats to get his timing back and possibly have a few 0-for games. i also had concerns that once he came back, Francona wouldn't put him back in the 3 hole, where he'd been thriving so much for the last 6 weeks, and that he'd end up in his original 5th spot in the order. not to mention i feared he would lose out on an All Star nod if the injury messed his numbers up once he returned. it was so much unnecessary drama!

sadly, some of my worries did materialize. on June 20, the day before Michael was supposed to return to the starting lineup, he pinch hit in the bottom of the 9th inning. to my surprise and delight, he got a hit. but the next day, he looked rusty. on June 21, he was reinserted into the 3 spot in the lineup, but went 0-for-5 at the plate, and i could clearly see that the downtime from the concussion was affecting him. his 9-game hitting streak and 16-game reached base streak ended, and with me there of course.

once the Indians began their end of the month road trip, Michael was not like his usual self. he did well enough in Arizona, but slumped in Seattle. then as irony would have it, the final game in June began another interleague series, an area where Michael has not performed well this year. (remember, interleague play in April killed his numbers towards the end of that month, and his home and overall hitting streaks ended on the last day of May during an interleague game as well.) so typically, Michael went 0-for-3 in that game, bringing his overall numbers for June down. and while i don't really believe his recent poor play was a result of the concussion, i still wish that accident had never happened so i'd know for sure that it had no bearing whatsoever on his game play.

as Michael's offensive numbers continue to go up, his trip to the All Star game this year is almost a given. when the first All Star ballot was released, Michael was unranked among AL outfielders. then on June 2, he was the 9th ranked outfielder on the AL ballot. he moved up to 7th on June 8, and then to 6th on June 22. he's currently 222,806 votes behind Adam Jones, who's in 5th place, and 311,101 votes behind Yoenis Cespedes, who recently moved into the 3rd and final starting spot. it's unlikely that Michael will get bumped up to 3rd in these last couple of days, so he's not going to be a starter, but i highly expect him to be named as a reserve player to the American League team. and he deserves it.

compared with other qualifying outfielders in the American League, Michael is tied for 1st in batting average (.314), tied for 1st in runs scored (54), 4th in RBI (53), 4th in OBP (.382), 4th in SLG (.505), 4th in OPS (.887), 5th in doubles (19), 6th in total bases (151), tied for 6th in extra base hits (32), and 7th in home runs (12). (and unlike last month, these rankings do include Nelson Cruz, although i still don't think that's fair when he's only played 45 games in the OF and 36 as a DH.)

switching gears now to defense, Michael spent all his time in June in left field. and for a second straight month, he did not commit one error, giving him a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in June. however, he only had 28 putouts this month. there were several games where he didn't record any putouts, not necessarily due to missed catches, but due to the majority of balls being hit out to center or right and ground balls being hit on the infield. a prime example of this came on June 24, when Michael played 13.1 innings in left field without recording any putouts. that's 0.1 innings more than the 13 inning game he played in last month where he also had zero putouts. but he's still a ways away from the major league record held by Chuck Hinton (zero putouts in 18 innings on June 14, 1963.)

continuing to prove that his arm is strong, Michael had 3 more assists. his 9 total outfield assists are tied for the 2nd most in the American League and in the major leagues, and are a career high. all of his assists this month came on the road, and 2 of them came when he was playing left field at Fenway Park, which i think makes them extra impressive.

on June 27, Michael was part of his first double play this season. he jumped up, prematurely according to him, at the left field wall in Safeco Field to make the catch, then fired the ball in to Cabrera, who relayed it to Santana at 1st base to complete the double play. as Michael was walking back towards his place in left, he pointed to Cabby on the infield and said, "that a boy." but i think the credit there should start with Michael. if he doesn't make that catch at the wall, no dp can be turned. he's so modest and i love that about him. if this keeps up, he'll have to be considered for a Gold Glove this year.



now let's break down the numbers. i am going to document his June #s, the 3rd spot #s, the 9th spot #s, and the PH #s, as well as the left field #s and overall outfield #s.

June batting average: .341

OBP: .413

SLG: .516

OPS: .930


Michael played in 24 (of 26) games, 21 complete, in June. he started and played left in 23 games, completing 21 of those games. he was subbed out of 1 game after 7 innings because the Indians had a solid lead. he left 1 game early after a blow to the head/neck area and played 4 innings. he came in to PH in the bottom of the 9th inning for 1 game. he missed 2 full games due to a mild concussion from the blow.

Michael bat 3rd in 23 games.

Michael bat 9th in 1 game. (PH)


Michael played left field in 23 games. (21 complete, 2 started: 11 innings)

Michael was the PH in 1 game.

Michael played in 21 complete games.



in June, Michael had a total of 104 plate appearances and 91 at bats. here is how he fared:

31 hits

21 singles

7 doubles

3 home runs

14 RBI

1 sac fly

20 runs scored

9 walks

3 hit by pitches

1 stolen base

1 GIDP

11 strikeouts (9 swinging, 2 looking)

11 first at bat hits

47 total bases


22 left on base

28 putouts

3 assists

1 double play

202.1 innings, 24 games

(21 complete games)

June batting average: .341 (31-91) (24 games)


now let's break down his numbers based on where he hit in the lineup.


when Michael bat 3rd in June, he had a total of 103 plate appearances and 90 at bats in 23 games. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

30 hits

20 singles

7 doubles

3 home runs

14 RBI

1 sac fly

20 runs scored

9 walks

3 hit by pitches

1 stolen base

1 GIDP

11 strikeouts (9 swinging, 2 looking)

10 first at bat hits

46 total bases


22 left on base

28 putouts

3 assists

1 double play

202.1 innings, 23 games

(21 complete games)

June batting average in the 3rd spot: .333 (30-90) (23 games)

overall batting average so far in the 3rd spot: .333 (65-195) (49 games) (425.2 innings)


when Michael bat 3rd and played left in June, he had a total of 103 plate appearances and 90 at bats in 23 games. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

30 hits

20 singles

7 doubles

3 home runs

14 RBI

1 sac fly

20 runs scored

9 walks

3 hit by pitches

1 stolen base

1 GIDP

11 strikeouts (9 swinging, 2 looking)

10 first at bat hits

46 total bases


22 left on base

28 putouts

3 assists

1 double play

202.1 innings, 23 games

(21 complete games)

June batting average in the 3rd spot while playing left: .333 (30-90) (23 games)

overall batting average so far in the 3rd spot while playing left: .342 (63-184) (47 games) (407.2 innings)


when Michael bat 9th in June, he had a total of 1 plate appearance and 1 at bat in 1 game. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

1 hit

1 single

1 first at bat hit

1 total base


1 game

June batting average in the 9th spot: 1.000 (1-1) (1 game)


when Michael bat 9th, he was the PH in June for 1 game. he had a total of 1 plate appearance and 1 at bat. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

1 hit

1 single

1 first at bat hit

1 total base


1 game

June batting average as a PH in the 9th spot: 1.000 (1-1) (1 game)


when Michael came in to PH in June, he had a total of 1 plate appearance and 1 at bat in 1 game. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

1 hit

1 single

1 first at bat hit

1 total base


1 game

June batting average as a PH: 1.000 (1-1) (1 game)
overall batting average so far as a PH: 1.000 (1-1) (1 game)

now let's break down his outfield numbers.

when Michael played the outfield in June, he had a total of 103 plate appearances and 90 at bats in 23 games. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

30 hits

20 singles

7 doubles

3 home runs

14 RBI

1 sac fly

20 runs scored

9 walks

3 hit by pitches

1 stolen base

1 GIDP

11 strikeouts (9 swinging, 2 looking)

10 first at bat hits

46 total bases


22 left on base

28 putouts

3 assists

1 double play

202.1 innings, 23 games

(21 complete games)

June batting average while playing the outfield: .333 (30-90) (23 games)
overall batting average so far while playing the outfield: .313 (92-294) (76 games) (668.2 innings)


now let's break down his numbers specific to where he played in the outfield.


when Michael played left in June, he had a total of 103 plate appearances and 90 at bats in 23 games. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

30 hits

20 singles

7 doubles

3 home runs

14 RBI

1 sac fly

20 runs scored

9 walks

3 hit by pitches

1 stolen base

1 GIDP

11 strikeouts (9 swinging, 2 looking)

10 first at bat hits

46 total bases


22 left on base

28 putouts

3 assists

1 double play

202.1 innings, 23 games

(21 complete games)

June batting average while playing left: .333 (30-90) (23 games)
overall batting average so far while playing left: .324 (84-259) (68 games) (579.1 innings)


 
June #s while playing left: 28 putouts, 3 assists, 1 double play, 0 errors, 1.000 fielding percentage (202.1 innings, 23 games)

overall #s so far while playing left: 96 putouts, 8 assists, 1 double play, 0 errors, 1.000 fielding percentage (579.1 innings, 68 games)

overall #s so far while playing center: 24 putouts, 1 assist, 1 error, 0.962 fielding percentage (89.1 innings, 13 games)

June #s while playing the outfield: 28 putouts, 3 assists, 1 double play, 0 errors, 1.000 fielding percentage (202.1 innings, 23 games)

overall #s so far while playing the outfield: 120 putouts, 9 assists, 1 double play, 1 error, 0.992 fielding percentage (668.2 innings, 76 games)



now my game-by-game numbers and notes.

Game 55/Game 1, June 1: 2-4, RBI single (first at bat), run scored, double, run scored. AVG: .307
(3rd/LF/CG9)

Game 56/Game 2, June 2: 0-3, walk (first at bat), run scored. AVG: .302
(3rd/LF/CG9)

Game 57/Game 3, June 3: 1-4, RBI single (first at bat), run scored. AVG: .301
(3rd/LF/CG9)

Game 58/Game 4, June 4: 3-5, RBI single (first at bat), single, single, run scored. AVG: .308
(3rd/LF/CG12)

Game 59/Game 5, June 6: 1-4, walk (first at bat), single. AVG: .307
(3rd/LF/CG8)

Game 60/Game 6, June 7: 1-5, double, run scored. AVG: .305
(3rd/LF/CG9) 

**Michael's 10-game road hitting streak and 10-game road on-base streak end**

Game 61/Game 7, June 8: 0-5, reached on fielder's choice. AVG: .298
(3rd/LF/CG9)

Game 62/Game 8, June 9: 3-3, walk (first at bat), run scored, walk, run scored, home run, run scored, single, run scored, single, run scored. AVG: .307
(3rd/LF/GS7)

Game 63/Game 9, June 10: 1-3, double (first at bat), hit by pitch, hit by pitch, run scored. AVG: .307
(3rd/CF/CG8)

Game 64/Game 10, June 11: 2-4, single (first at bat), single. AVG: .310

(3rd/LF/CG8)

Game 65/Game 11, June 12: 2-4, single, double, run scored. AVG: .313
(3rd/LF/CG8)

Game 66/Game 12, June 13: 2-4, single (first at bat), RBI double, reached on fielding error. AVG: .316
(3rd/LF/CG8)

Game 67/Game 13, June 14: 2-4, hit by pitch, stolen base, single, run scored, single. AVG: .319
(3rd/LF/CG9)

Game 68/Game 14, June 15: 2-4, home run (first at bat), run scored, single, walk. AVG: .322
(3rd/LF/CG11) 

^^Michael sets new career high in home runs with 11^^

Game 69/Game 15, June 16: 1-2, RBI single. AVG: .323
(3rd/LF/GS4)

^^Michael was removed from the game after the top of the 4th inning for precautionary reasons after taking a blow to the head/neck from John McDonald on slide into 2nd base while trying to break up a double play^^

June 17: scratched from lineup at 4 pm. went through his pregame baseball activities and felt stiffness in his neck and pressure in his head. went to Cleveland Clinic for further evaluation and is currently day-to-day with head/neck soreness.
(3rd/LF)

June 18: has mild concussion, passing tests each day, hit off tee and played catch. might be back on field tomorrow, hopes to play June 21. game postponed, to be made up September 8.

June 19: ran on the field and threw before game, plus hit in the cage. tentative return still June 21.

June 20: ran the bases at full speed and took batting practice on the field. no ill effects. he was cleared to play in the 3rd/4th inning tonight, so...

Game 70/Game 16, June 20: 1-1, single (first at bat). AVG: .326
(9th/PH)

**Michael's 9-game hitting streak and 16-game reached base streak end**

Game 71/Game 17, June 21: 0-5. AVG: .320
(3rd/LF/CG10)

Game 72/Game 18, June 22: 3-5, single (first at bat), RBI double, 2-run double. AVG: .325
(3rd/LF/CG9)

Game 73/Game 19, June 24: 1-5, single, run scored, walk, walk, run scored. AVG: .323
(3rd/LF/CG13.1)

Game 74/Game 20, June 25: 2-4, single (first at bat), RBI groundout, home run, run scored, walk, run scored. AVG: .325
(3rd/LF/CG9)

**Michael's 9-game road hitting streak and 20-game road reached base streak end**

Game 75/Game 21, June 27: 0-3, RBI sac fly. AVG: .322
(3rd/LF/CG8)

Game 76/Game 22, June 28: 1-4, RBI single (first at bat), run scored. AVG: .321
(3rd/LF/CG9)

Game 77/Game 23, June 29: 0-3, walk (first at bat). AVG: .318
(3rd/LF/CG8)

Game 78/Game 24, June 30: 0-3. AVG: .314
(3rd/LF/CG8)



so far in 2014, Michael has a total of 335 plate appearances and 299 at bats in 78 games (668.2 innings). in total, he has 94 hits, 62 singles, 19 doubles, 1 triple, 12 home runs, 53 RBI, 2 sac flies, 54 runs scored, 28 walks, 6 hit by pitches, 9 stolen bases, 8 GIDP, 30 strikeouts (23 swinging, 7 looking), 23 first at bat hits, 151 total bases, 111 left on base, 120 putouts, 9 assists, 1 double play, and 1 error.

2014 season batting average: .314 (94-299)

OBP: .382

SLG: .505

OPS: .887

Brantley's 1st Career American League Player of the Week Honor

let me take a minute to get my scream outta the way... AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH! lol

Michael Brantley has been named the American League Player of the Week for June 9-15, 2014! this is Michael's first career AL POTW honor. he's also the first AL POTW for the Tribe this season. the last Indian to receive this honor was Jason Kipnis on July 1, 2013.

Michael led all major leaguers in batting average (.538), runs scored (9), and on base percentage (.625). he led all American League players in hits (14), total bases (23), and times on base (20). and mind you, he did all this on the road.

Michael had a hit in 7 of the 7 games he played from June 9-15 and reached base safely in 7 games. he currently has a 7-game hitting streak and 14-game reached base streak. he also had 6 multi-hit games during this time.

in the past week, Michael bat. 588 (10-for-17) against right-handed pitchers and .444 (4-for-9) against left-handed pitchers. he bat .333 (2-for-6) with runners in scoring position, with 1 single, 1 double, 1 RBI, and 2 walks. he also hit .667 (2-for-3) with 0 outs and runners in scoring position and .429 (6-for-14) with 2 outs in an inning.

on June 9, Michael hit his 10th home run of the season, tying his career high from last year. then on June 15, Michael hit his career high 11th home run. i have a blog about that here.

additionally, Michael had 2 nice outfield assists, both at Fenway Park. my boy knows how to work that left field Green Monster wall lol


June 9-15 batting average: .538

OBP: .625

SLG: .885

OPS: 1.510


Michael played in 7 (of 7) games, 6 complete, from June 9-15. he started and played left in 7 games, completing 6 of those games. he left 1 game early after 7 innings because it was a blowout and Michael had done more than enough.


Michael bat 3rd in 7 games.

Michael played left field in 7 games. (6 complete, 1 started: 7 innings)


from June 9-15, Michael had a total of 32 plate appearances and 26 at bats. here is how he fared:

14 hits

9 singles

3 doubles

2 home runs

5 extra base hits

3 RBI

9 runs scored

3 walks

3 hit by pitches

1 stolen base

3 strikeouts (2 swinging, 1 looking)

4 first at bat hits

23 total bases


6 left on base

10 putouts

2 assists

59 innings, 7 games

(6 complete games)

June 9-15 batting average: .538 (14-26) (7 games)



everyone knows i'm well aware of all the stats Michael's been racking up lately, but i never once thought about him being named the AL Player of the Week. this season just seems to be getting better and better by the day for my boy. congratulations, Michael!