Radar’s quiet for now. Just a little spotty green along the I-81 corridor south of Roanoke, so it looks like we’re on for some baseball tonight. That thunderburst that came through this afternoon had me worried a bit, I’ll admit. I think everyone around City Stadium is a little gunshy when it comes to the weather. Lots of tarp pulls around here, even when the team is away.

Some points of discussion before tonight’s Hillcats-Indians game, which is set to get underway in about an hour or so:

—The Hillcats have already set a club record for wins in one half of a season. They enter tonight’s game at 44-22 and have already wrapped up the Northern Division championship and a playoff berth. Hillcats broadcaster Scott Bacon made a good point here in the press box earlier. Lynchburg really has no incentive to do anything in the season’s second half. The first-half champion gets home-field advantage in the playoffs, which was expanded to a best-of-five series last year. And no matter what, there will be a Northern Division championship series, as the Carolina League long ago did away with the rule that if a team won both halves, it automatically advances to the league championship series. Also, if Lynchburg should win the second half title as well, the other playoff berth would go to the second-place team in the second half, so any jockeying Wilmington and Potomac are doing right now is pointless.

The 44 wins is a club record, but not a franchise record. That belongs to the 1983 Lynchburg Mets, which won 49 games in the first half.

A quick look at Lynchburg’s other teams that have won 40 in a half, and the eventual season result:

1973—40-28 in the first half, lost 3-2 to Winston-Salem in championship series

1974—40-30 in first half, no playoffs

1978—43-27 in first half, beat Peninsula 3-2 in championship series

1983—49-20 in first half, 47-23 in second half, beat Winston-Salem 3-0 in championship series

1984—43-27 in first half, 46-22 in second half, beat Durham 3-1 in championship series

1985—48-22 in first half, 47-23 in second half, lost 3-1 to Winston-Salem in championship series

1988—43-27 in second half, beat Salem 2-1 in divisional playoffs, lost 3-2 to Kinston in championship series

1997—40-30 in first half, 42-28 in second half, beat Frederick 2-0 in divisional playoffs, beat Kinston 3-1 in championship series

2002—47-23 in first half, 40-30 in second half, beat Wilmington 2-1 in divisional playoffs, beat Kinston 3-1 in championship series

2005—40-30 in first half, lost 2-0 to Frederick in divisional playoffs

—It’ll be interesting to see how the Pirates handle this club come Monday, the first day of the three-day All-Star break. No one in Altoona is exactly tearing it up at the plate, and there’s some thought that there could be some wholesale changes to both clubs.

The most likely candidates for promotion from Lynchburg are (all speculation):

* OF Miles Durham, who is batting .290 with seven home runs, 38 RBIs, 17 doubles and four triples. Durham struggled to adjust to Carolina League pitching last year upon his original call-up from Low-A Hickory, batting .220 with four homers and 24 RBs in 218 at-bats. But he came out of the gates hot this season and has sustained his pace throughout the year. OF Jamie Romak is well below the Mendoza line in Altoona, and it’s possible that he could come back to Lynchburg to try to get his head straight.

* SP Matt McSwain, who in his second trip through Lynchburg has been outstanding. He’s 6-2 with a 3.30 ERA in 13 starts.

* RP Michael Dubee, who seemed to be a throwaway part in an early-season deal between the Pirates and White Sox. But he’s been filthy in Lynchburg. His K-BB ratio is absurd (50:3), especially considering he struck out 90 and walked 37 last year in Winston-Salem. Wouldn’t be shocked at all if he was gone next week.

—Last night was my first chance to see Kinston, as I was covering golf the first time the Indians came to town. A quick look at the top prospects on the Kinston roster, according to Baseball America’s Cleveland Indians system player rankings:

6. Lonnie Chisenhall. The transition from short-season A ball to High-A has been smooth for the 6-foot-1, 200-pound third baseman, who was voted a Carolina League All-Star. He’s hitting .283 with 12 homers and 49 RBIs, already showing more power promise than he did last year in 276 at-bats in Mahoning Valley. The strikeout numbers at this level (53 in 244 ABs) have been a little alarming, considering he rarely struck out at Pitt (N.C.) Community College (8 Ks in 218 plate appearances). Seeing as this is Chisenhall’s first full season of pro ball, I wouldn’t be surprised if he remained in Kinston for the duration of the year.

23. Tim Fedroff. A seventh-round draft pick out of North Carolina in 2008, Fedroff was inked by the same scout who signed Chisenhall (Bob Mayer). The 5-11, 220-pound outfielder had a pesky game last night in the series opener, finishing with a single, a walk, a stolen base, two runs and a sacrifice fly. He showed decent power at UNC but that hasn’t translated at the pro level, as he has just four home runs in 251 at-bats between Mahoning Valley and Kinston. Good speed, but his outfield arm is a bit shaky. He was drafted as a center fielder, but Kinston has him playing right.

24. Cord Phelps. The 6-2, 200-pound second baseman batted third in the series opener Thursday. He’s been remarkably patient this year, drawing 45 walks, by far the best on the team. Baseball American praises Phelps’ instincts.

27. Bryce Stowell. A 22nd-round pick out of UC Irvine in 2008, Stowell was the starting pitcher here Thursday and didn’t fare all that well. He struggled with his control, walked two, hit a batter and failed to get out of trouble in the fourth inning, when Lynchburg scored four runs to take the lead for good. Changeup development is the key to Stowell remaining a starting pitcher. Otherwise, he has an average fastball (89-91 MPH) and a hard slider. But starters don’t get by on two pitches in the big leagues.