Go Sphinctres!

Game 79: Montreal gets 11 hits, but once again has trouble converting very many of them into runs. Aaron Cook, meanwhile, has a forgettable start (4.2 IP, 4R) and the Bootleggers take this game 5-2.

Game 80: Ken Griffey Jr. homers, Melvin Mora drives in four, and AJ Burnett throws a complete game as Montreal topples Chicago 11-3.

Game 81: Ken Griffey Jr. hits two more homers and is one of three Spectres with four hits (joining Carl Crawford and Khalil Greene); Montreal rolls to a 15-4 win at Wrigley to close out the first half.

Montreal places four players on the NL All Star team: pitchers AJ Burnett and Eddie Guardado, OF Carl Crawford, and 1B Carlos Delgado.

Montreal starts the second half of the season at home to face Houston.

Game 82: Montreal plates two runs in the first inning and Tomo Ohka makes them stand up, throwing a complete game 6-hitter for a 2-1 win.

Game 83: Ramon Hernandez hits two of Montreal's six home runs and Jake Westbrook throws a complete game as the Spectres beat Houston 11-1.

Game 84: Montreal has nine extra base hits out of 11 total and Houston's rally is too little, too late. The Spectres complete a sweep of the Lone Stars with a 9-5 win.

Interleague sets with  Orange County, Boston, and St. Paul are on deck.

Game 85: Montreal scores four times in the first off Glendon Rusch, then adds three more in the second off Pete Walker, and manages to hold on from there for a 7-5 win despite an unsightly performance by reliever Ryan Dempster.

Game 86: AJ Burnett pitches a complete-game 2-hit shutout for his ninth win as Montreal blanks OC, 2-0.

Game 87: Ichiro's seventh-inning homer gives Boston a hard-fought 3-2 win over the Spectres as Pedro Martinez outduels Jeremy Bonderman.

Game 88: Roger Clemens has his way with the Montreal lineup and the Brawn sweep the Spectres with a 6-1 win at Olympic Stadium, beating Tomo Ohka.

Game 89: At St. Paul, Carlos Zambrano throws a 3-hit shutout at the Spectres, walking none, and the Sarlaacs win 3-0.

Game 90: Montreal's losing streak reaches four games as St. Paul takes a 3-0 lead in the first and scores twice in the ninth to snap a 4-4 tie. Montreal scores one run on an error in the bottom half but Khalil Greene flies to left to end the game with two men on. St. Paul wins 6-5.

The Spectres return to NL play with a trip to Cincinnati.

Game 91: Geoff Jenkins and Melvin Mora hit consecutive triples in the first, keying a 4-run inning, and the Spectres add three more in the second on the way to a 9-3 win over the Stingers. Aaron Cook goes five innings and improves his record to 4-2.

Game 92: Montreal snaps a scoreless tie with two in the eighth and another in the ninth, but Cincy rallies for three in the bottom half of the ninth to send the game to extras. The Spectres take the lead in the 11th with two more runs, but Eddie Guardado can't locate his offspeed stuff and the Stingers rally for a 6-5 win, giving Guardado his fourth blown save of the season.

Game 93: Ken Griffey Jr. hits two home runs as he and Carlos Delgado drive in four apiece; the Spectres leave no doubt in the series finale, routing the Stingers 14-2. Jeremy Bonderman strikes out nine and walks none in eight innings.

The Spectres head west to face San Diego.

Game 94: Tomo Ohka allows 11 hits in six innings, former Spectre JD Closser drives in three runs, and the Conquistadors take the series opener, 8-5.

Game 95: The Spectres do a poor job of hitting with men on base, turning nine hits and five walks into a grand total of three runs, and lose it 4-3 when Dmitri Young doubles home Brian Roberts in the eighth, handing Salomon Torres the loss.

Game 96: Geoff Jenkins, Ken Griffey Jr., and Melvin Mora hit consecutive home runs in the first inning and the Spectres barely hang on for a 5-4 win to salvage the series finale. Eddie Guardado strikes out two of the three batters he faces in the ninth for the save.

The Spectres return home to face Milwaukee (58-38).

Game 97: Miguel Tejada hits a two-run homer in the top of the first for Milwaukee, but Montreal responds with four of their own in the bottom half, including consecutive home runs from Geoff Jenkins and Ken Griffey Jr. The Spectre bullpen throws four scoreless innings in relief of Aaron Cook and the Spectres win 9-5.

Game 98: AJ Burnett throws eight shutout innings and hits a triple; however, he weakens in the ninth. Montreal nearly chokes up the lead, letting Milwaukee get back within a run on Eric Chavez' three-run homer, but Eddie Guardado retires the only three batters he faces to save a 5-4 win.

Game 99: Jeremy Bonderman throws eight strong innings to get his tenth win as the Spectres sweep Milwaukee with a 5-1 victory.

The Spectres head west to face Los Angeles.

Game 100: Melvin Mora singlehandedly brings the Spectres back in this one, hitting a two-run homer in the seventh and then giving Montreal a 5-4 lead with a two-run single in the eighth. James Baldwin and Eddie Guardado keep the Granny Lovers off the board in the eighth and ninth to preserve the win.

Game 101: Cory Lidle (the guy with a 3-11 record and the 7+ ERA) throws three scoreless innings in relief and the Granny Lovers top the Spectres 4-3 to even the series.

Game 102: Cory Lidle strikes again, throwing 2.2 scoreless innings in relief, and the Spectres drop the series, losing a 9-8 slugfest in the finale. Angel Berroa hits his first home run of the season, as does Jorge Cantu for LA.

The Spectres will host St. Louis next.

Game 103: Aaron Cook pitches well into the sixth, Melvin Mora hits his 19th home run, and Eddie Guardado nails down his 28th save as the Spectres take the opener 5-1.

Game 104: Montreal greets reliever Tim Stauffer with a single and double in the eighth, snapping a 2-2 tie. Al Leiter fares no better with his two batters, allowing a walk and a two-run double. Ryan Drese then walks the first batter he faces before finally getting the first out of the inning, but he later allows two RBI singles. Montreal wins, 7-2.

Game 105: Montreal commits three errors and is baffled by 4-10 Matt Morris, managing only six hits and dropping a 6-1 decision in the series finale.

Now comes a trip to the West Coast to face the hated 69ers, who are smarting after losing five of our first six meetings this season.

Game 106: Mark Buerhle is brilliant for Frisco, while Jeremy Bonderman is awful for the Spectres. The 69ers score eight times in the third inning and take out a season's worth of frustration as they rout Montreal 10-0. Frisco gets only eight hits on the day but Bonderman walks five batters in two innings of work to help their cause.

Game 107: Montreal suffers a crushing 6-5 defeat as Eddie Guardado has his fifth blown save of the season, allowing run scoring hits to Cliff Floyd and Pat Burrell with one down in the bottom of the ninth. Can things get any worse?

Game 108: Montreal buckles down and gets a win, avoiding a humiliating sweep. Starting pitcher Jake Westbrook takes matters into his own hands, hitting a two-run single in the fourth, and Eddie Guardado redeems himself with a scoreless ninth to preserve a 4-2 victory.

Montreal comes home to face Chicago.

Game 109: Geoff Jenkins' eighth inning homer snaps a scoreless tie, and Eddie Guardado finishes off the shutout with a scoreless ninth; Montreal takes the opener 2-0.

Game 110: AJ Burnett hits his second home run of the season and goes eight strong innings for his 11th win as the Spectres beat the Bootleggers 10-1.

Game 111: Jeremy Bonderman matches Burnett with his 11th win, despite allowing three unearned runs during a four-run sixth, as the Spectres hold on for a 7-5 victory. Carl Crawford steals three bases, giving him 57 for the season.

The Spectres head to Houston to face the Lone Stars.

Game 112: Ken Griffey Jr. hits his 27th home run, a three-run shot in the first, and Luis Nieter puts together another solid performance (5 IP, 1 ER) as the Spectres beat Houston 6-2. Nieter is now 3-0 this season.

Game 113: Wilson Betemit hits a double and two triples, driving in four runs, and the Spectres get past the Lone Stars 7-5.

Game 114: Houston rallies for three runs over the final two innings to steal a 5-4 win from the Spectres. Juan Encarnnacion hits a two-out homer in the bottom of the ninth to win it.

Montreal hosts Cincinnati next.

Game 115: Wilson Betemit continues his hot hitting with two doubles and three RBI while AJ Burnett throws a complete game 5-hit shutout, improving to 12-3 with a 4-0 win over the Stingers.

Game 116: Montreal scores four times in the eighth to wipe out a 5-2 deficit and Eddie Guardado makes the lead stand up as the Spectres beat Cincy 6-5.

Game 117: Eddie Guardado's ninth inning is not so successful today as the Stingers score a run to send the game to extras, but prospect John Body gets Eddie off the hook with an RBI single in the 12th to win the game, 5-4.

Divisional play returns with a trip to Pittsburgh.