Stars Playoff Push Must Start With Diamond Jaxx

Connor Shreve

A midseason turnaround has the Huntsville Stars baseball team in the thick of the 2010 Southern League playoff race. The 2010 campaign started well enough but Huntsville could not keep pace with it’s solid April record, finishing the first half in fourth place at 33-37. Huntsville started the second half well also with a league best 15-11 July record but has avoided the drop off in performance that doomed the first half chase.

Before the Stars current five game losing streak began, the squad had not shown any signs of stumbling to the finish line. Huntsville now hopes that a sweep, the season’s first, on the road at the hands of the first placed Tennessee Smokies will be nothing more than a fluke with the most important five games of the season beginning Thursday in Huntsville.

The Stars skid coming against the Cubs affiliate has almost certainly guaranteed that a playoff berth will have to come via the wild card competition. The wild card comes in to play if the divisions first half winner also takes the second half, which the Smokies with a six game lead in the Northern Division, seem poised to do. Barring a major Tennessee meltdown, the North’s other playoff team will be determined by the wild card race, meaning overall record. Heading in to Thursday night play, the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx hold a 4.5 game lead over the Stars for overall record.

The Diamond Jaxx, for whatever reason, has been one of the Stars least favorite opponents this season. West Tennessee struggled early against Huntsville but seems to have gained the advantage, winning 9 of the last 11 games between the two teams en route to a nine games to five season advantage. The Stars are also hoping for a home turnaround having been at the losing end of seven of the nine games with West Tennessee at Joe Davis Stadium.

The struggle at home for Huntsville is a season long trend not strictly limited to play against The Diamond Jaxx. It is a trend, though, that may be in the rear view mirror. The Milwaukee Brewers AA squad only won 15 first half games at home but has taken eight of its last ten helping the team to a 14-9 second half home record. However the Stars last impressive home stretch, which included dominating series wins over Mississippi and Carolina, came immediately after West Tennessee pocketed four of five games in Huntsville while outscoring the Stars 35-21.

With only 24 games left, The Stars sit in a promising yet precarious position. A good set at “The Joe” will simply lead to an incredible race the rest of the way but a poor series, could force Huntsville to set its sights on 2011.