Abercrombie breaks AA's all-time home run record

It was only a matter of time, and tonight (July 14) Reggie Abercrombie tied and broke the American Association's all-time home run record with his 87 and 88th shots over the wall. The homers helped The Fish to a 6-4 victory over a decimated Sioux City Explorers squad. Coming off a 17-3 loss the previous evening, the Xs made a game of it with two pitchers in their batting rotation (Rob Wort and Jake Kuebler).

Watching the Southern Arms Race

A few key movements down south this week with the St. Paul Saints and the Sioux City Explorers. These two teams were big rivals for the 2015 schedule and are looking for another battle in 2016. The Saints lose their third player to the MLB system with the signing of Anthony Phillips to the California Angels of Anaheim, while the Explorers have signed 2015 All-Star Ryan Court for 2016. So far the Saints appear to be losing troops for all the right reasons (Vinny DiFazio, Noah Perio Jr. and Phillips all deserve another shot), but the way players like Court and Michael Lang have been playing for the Xs, they could be getting another look from the majors as well.

Xs re-sign All-Stars Lang and Perio Jr. for 2016

The Sioux City Explorers signed a key player from their record-breaking 2015 year today, securing all-star outfielder Michael Lang for the upcoming season. Lang ranked in the top 5 in 4 different AA stat categories. He led the entire league in triples (10), ranked second in stolen bases (45), scored the third most runs in the league (75), and earned the 4th highest batting average at .343. This comes on the heels of last week's inking of all-star short stop Noah Perio Jr. Both signings make a whole lot of sense as the Xs look to replicate their successes from last year.

Bucs buy Xs' Johnson

The Sioux City Explorers made the record books in 2015, with a 74 win season; a crucial element of that success was Patrick Johnson, who logged an impressive 15-1 record with a 2.08 ERA. No surprise that several major league teams gave the RHP a second look. On Friday (Nov. 20), the Pittsburgh Pirates bought Johnson's contract, so it looks like the Xs have a huge hole to fill in their 2016 roster.

Laredo Lemurs take the American Association Championships

There will be a lot of questions about what went wrong for Sioux City in this year's American Association Championships. After a record-breaking season for wins, they were the heavy favourites matching up with Laredo. But it came down to pitching as it does so often. Should the Explorers have started Johnson one more time instead of Wordekemper for Game 4? One of many nagging questions that will trouble Explorers fans for a while. It will be interesting to see who Sioux City brings back next year after coming so close to nirvana.

American Association Championships Game 3

Laredo's Ryan Beckman worked 7 innings of relief and retired 15 straight batters to give the Lemurs a surprise 6-4 victory at Lewis and Clark Park tonight. Lemurs lead the series 2-1, something that I don't think many pundits envisioned at the start of these 2015 finals. After winning Game 1 by a huge margin, the Explorers have to be wondering where it's gone wrong so far in this series...and if the Lemurs have any more pitching surprises in store on the mound.

American Association Playoffs, Night Four

The St. Paul Saints amazing first season at CHS Field has come to an end, as Sioux City pulls out a narrow 2-1 victory. Lared and Wichita are going down to one last dance!

American Association Playoffs, Night Three

There's no place like home in the American Association, apparently, as the Wichita and St. Paul deliver wins in their own ballparks. By all reports, the crowd in St. Paul was electric (as they have been all season long), so good to see the fans were rewarded with a win.

American Association Playoffs, Night Two

Laredo and Sioux City jump to 2-0 leads in their respective series before hitting the road. The Explorers looked every bit like the record-setting team they've been all season long, but it was another tough night at the plate for St. Paul. While I've picked the Xs to go all the way this year (not a Nostradamus-level prediction by any means), I'd love to see St. Paul take this series the distance. The fans at CHS Field are going to be incredible, and these two teams deserve to play in front of a sold-out ballpark. Game 3 should be a treat!

American Association Playoffs, Night One

Game 1 is in the books for both of the American Association's playoff series. Laredo ripped up the visiting Nuts, while the Saints struggled at the plate in Sioux City. Game 2 in each respective series goes down tomorrow night. On a side note, tonight is the first appearance of a guest photographer to The Battery. Elizabeth Nelson, who has done an amazing job of capturing the action down in Fargo-Moorhead this season, was kind enough to provide me access to her archives for shots of the three "missing teams" who didn't get to Winnipeg this season (Laredo, Wichita and Grand Prairie). I will credit her shots whenever they appear; big thanks to Beth for allowing me to use her work on The Battery's twitter account and here.

Sioux City reaches a historic 74 wins

With their 5-2 win over Grand Prairie tonight (Sept. 4), the Sioux City Explorers have reached 74 wins, a new American Association record. (**Post-Script: the Xs ended the season with 75 wins altogether). Here's some of the crew that made it happen:

Unstoppable force, meet immovable object...

Two streaks on the line tonight in Sioux City: The Explorers (seen here with Michael Lang) put their 13 win string on the line against Willie Argo and the St. Paul Saints' 10 win streak. The AA record is 15 games. Both teams have impressive records this season, and although much has been made of the Saints season in their new building, Sioux City is equally formidable. Should be a great game!

Ryan Court, Sioux City Explorers

#24 Ryan Court slides home, June 29 at Shaw Park, Winnipeg. Photo by Dan LeMoal

Ryan Zimmerman, RHP, Sioux City Explorers

Sioux City Explorers RHP Ryan Zimmerman winds up at Shaw Park, Winnipeg, July 1, 2015. Photo by Dan LeMoal. Zimmerman was named the American Association Rawlings Pitcher of the Month for June 2015.