Oakland Ballers Manager Micah Franklin Relieved of Duties

Jason Burke, Madison Montez | Jul 22, 2024

Josh Leslie of the Oakland Ballers points to the crowd / Oakland Ballers

The Ballers started the second half with a six-game series against the Yolo High Wheelers, going 2-4 last week.. They'll face the High Wheelers again on Tuesday for a separate three-game series. After that series is completed, Oakland will head back home on the July 26 to face the High Wheelers again for a three-game series. 

Offense hasn’t been a huge problem for Oakland scoring 31 runs in six games. Their bats have been led by hit leaders Payton Harden, Dondrei Hubbard, and Noah Martinez who happen to be the leadoff, second, and fourth and in the lineup.

Harden was a high contributor in the Ballers 8-1 win on July 19 and in the series in general. He recorded two singles and a double, scoring two out of the three times he got on base. Harden kept it going in game 4 where he recorded three singles, scoring all three times. Not stopping there, in game 5 he went 3-for-5 scoring three runs. Finishing up the six-game series, Harden went 2-for-3 with a hit-by-pitch, scoring once tallying up to 14-for-25 (.560) in this series.

Hubbard, who is in his fifth year of eligibility, has gotten at least one hit in four out of the six games they have played. He has slugged 10 hits, scoring three runs himself and bringing in five runs. His best game was on the 18th where he went 4-for-5 hitting four singles, scoring once, and being left stranded three times. 

Martinez was awarded the Player Of The Week for the Pioneer League from July 1-8 after hitting .542 with 11 RBI and five doubles. There is no doubt that he has kept the momentum going because he has nine hits, five runs, and two RBI in this series. Because of his performance, Noah was playing in the DH spot on Sunday to stay consistent, and he did just that, going 2-for-4 with a double in the first inning where he scored and also collected a single in the 8th where he was left stranded on third. 

The Ballers won their first game of the series on the 19th by a score of 8-1 with Christian Cosby getting the win. Crosby was the Pitcher Of The Week for the Pioneer League from July 8-14 with six scoreless innings pitched, two hits, and nine strikeouts against the Great Falls Voyagers. Cosby did it again against the High wheelers on July 19, throwing 5 1/3 scoreless innings with four hits, seven strikeouts, and two walks.

The Ballers picked up their second win of the series on July 20 winning 2-1 in a knockout round. The High Wheelers bullpen came together through for seven innings playing with the 1-0 lead but in the top of the 8th, Brad Burckel scored on an Austin Davis groundout. Going into the knockout round, the Ballers called upon relief pitcher Jake Dahle. Seeing only two pitches, Dahle smashed a solo home run giving the Ballers the 2-1 win. 

Following the game on Sunday, the Ballers announced on social media that manager Micah Franklin has been relieved of his duties as manager. "We would like to thank Micah for his efforts and we wish him success in all his future endeavors. Aaron Miles has been appointed as our Interim Manager. In addition, James Harris, Oakland Tech graduate and 2011 MLB first round draft pick, will join our coaching staff as an Assistant Coach."