I was curious as to how successful I was on my preseason predictions. So here goes:
NL North:
Milwaukee Twindyans
Prediction: 98-64, NL North Champions
Actual: 109-53, NL North Champions
Difference: +11
Columbus Santa Marias
Prediction: 64-98, 3rd place
Actual: 56-106, 4th place
Difference: -8
Cleveland Redbirds
Prediction: 91-71, WC
Actual: 95-67, WC
Difference: +4
Hartford Dark Blues
Prediction: 53-109, 4th place
Actual: 63-99, 3rd place
Difference: +10
NL East:
Chicago Jayhawks
Prediction: 94-68, NL East Champions
Actual: 77-85, 3rd place
Difference: -17 (oops)
New York Yankees
Prediction: 90-72, maybe WC
Actual: 97-65, NL East Champs
Difference: +7
Scranton Nard Doggs
Prediction: 71-91, 3rd place
Actual: 80-82, 2nd place
Difference: +9
Washington Bureaucrats
Prediction: 60-102, 4th place
Actual: 67-95, 4th place
Difference: +7
NL South:
Oklahoma City Twins
Prediction: 85-77, NL South Champs
Actual: 80-82, 3rd place
Difference: -5
Iowa City Comics
Prediction: 78-84, 4th place
Actual: 74-88, 4th place
Difference: -4
St. Louis Greys
Prediction: 83-79, 2nd place
Actual: 87-75, NL South Champs
Difference: +4
Nashville Havoc
Prediction: 81-81, 3rd place
Actual: 84-78, 2nd place
Difference: +3
Average Difference Between Prediction and Actual: 7.4 wins
Worst Prediction: -17 (Chicago Jayhawks)
Best Prediction: +3 (Nashville Havoc)
Monday, May 9, 2011
Sunday, April 10, 2011
S9 AL West Preview
Los Angeles Anteaters of Irvine
Season 8 Record: 94-68, AL West Champ
Key Additions: Harry Cora, Wesley Cook
Key Losses: Glenn Simmons, Raul Trevino
The four-time reigning AL West champs and now 2 years removed from the franchise’s first World Series appearance, the Anteaters are in a position of having reached their likely peak and now hope to contend for as many years as possible with much of the same roster from the last few seasons. While they have remained steady (92, 93, and 94 wins in S6-S8), the rest of the division is showing signs of strength and it will likely be difficult to improve on their win total.
The strength of this team remains its pitching, with Pablo Jose coming back from a horrific injury, defending Cy Young Darwin Martin, and former Cy Young winner Adam Ducey. With Felipe Machado rounding out the normal 4-man rotation, this is still one of the best staffs in baseball. The bullpen welcomes the aforementioned Cook along with team veteran and fellow stamina-starved stud Gerald Ward. Unfortunately, the defense is average at best, especially with iron gloved Edgar Mesa at SS. All things considered, last year’s team 3.55 ERA/1.29 WHIP should be within reach.
The lineup returns with minor changes, the most notable with new addition and likely leadoff man Harry Cora replacing the departed Glenn Simmons in LF. This team led the Majors in HR’s last year (277 to the Bloggers’ 263), but its issue remains getting on base, with the team posting a.257/.318/.439 line last season. Signing Barry Peterson to a 4-year $42.7M contract helped them solidify 3B for the future, and they still have lineup anchors Moises Martin and Philip Wolf. Patrick Osbourne delivered a phenomenal performance last season in his platoon role against LHP, but it will be hard to repeat. This season LA is relying on their investment in Cora (2 yrs $8.2M) to improve their OBP, but it will likely be more of the same…relying on the long ball to give their pitching enough to work with.
Outlook: They could make another run at the World Series and are a likely playoff team, but the competition will be thick in the AL this season. Worst case is 85 wins and just missing the wild card.
Predicted division finish: 1st
Cheyenne Morning Star
Season 8 record: 82-80, 4th in AL West
Key additions: Pascual Roque, Carlos Valentin, Miguel Alcantara
Key losses: Don Murray, Cliff Carter, Edgar Bautista, Al Baerga
Cheyenne hit a lull last year, seeing their win total fall from 86 and just barely missing the playoffs in S7 to 82 in S8. They’ve made up huge ground throughout the last few years as they were a 61-win team as recently as Season 6. The last couple of offseasons have featured some heavy free agent investments that coincide with the arrival of some of the team’s promising young stars. The last two offseasons they committed an astounding $242.5M over 17 seasons to 8 different players (an average of $14.3M/season per player), with another $55M/3 yrs contract that began in S7. So they are playing with $300M of FA’s and some pretty decent youth…does the math finally add up to a playoff appearance?
The staff is led by inning-eaters Steve Barrett and Brady Murray, the aging but effective Andrew Burks, and Alex Donahue. A 2-year $36M deal brought S8 Fireman of the Year Roque into the bullpen to join Del Cubillan to round out a squad that should improve on the 4.00 ERA/1.33 WHIP from last year. With the experienced rotation, this team could fare well in what would be the franchise’s first playoff series.
Slugger Albert Ortega anchors the lineup, and Cheyenne is hoping for a bounce back season from Steve Coleman and still boast RHP platoon slugger Walt Kelly. They are trying to replace Baerga and Bautista’s production with Valentin and Alcantra, and it’s probably a push. Cliff Carter and his .888 OPS will be missed the most, and Ed Howell has seen his best years. They won’t set any scoring records, but if Coleman and Valentin rediscover themselves they could overcome the .261/.326/.431 team batting stats from last season. Or perhaps the biggest question is how soon we’ll see future stud Kelly Johnson or fellow prospect Miguel Padilla. Is their time now?
Outlook: This is very likely the season they break through for their first playoff berth, and the promotion of Johnson could help ensure that. Cheyenne has certainly opened their wallet to try to buy success, so anything short of the playoffs would be a major disappointment.
Predicted division finish: 2nd (Wild Card)
Colorado Springs Eternal
Season 8 record: 85-77, 2nd in AL West
Key additions: Bob Gilmore, Lee Cone
Key losses: Yamid Felix, Bill Castillo, Bob Walbeck
You’ve got to tip your cap to what jnewfry has accomplished in the first 8 seasons – his team has never been worse than .500. The continued competitiveness has helped keep this division so strong through the years, but has the success helped or hurt this team? 3 of the last 4 years Colorado Springs has won between 81 and 85 games, which hasn’t gotten them in the playoffs and hasn’t quite allowed them to rebuild either. This team is getting older (17 players are older than 30) so it will be decision time very soon…do they make another run at the playoffs or hit the rebuild button?
The rotation is anchored by veterans Cole Perkins, Josh King, Antone Hill, and Alex DeSoto. None of them are shutdown starters, but they are also pretty consistent. Delino Holt is one of the better relievers in the league, but there is not a lot of depth here. The team’s 4.04 ERA/1.32 WHIP from last year will likely be delivered again as there hasn’t been a lot of movement in the staff overall.
The loss of Bob Walbeck looms large…he’ll be difficult to replace in CF. The addition of Lee Cone (5 yrs, $40.6) is the biggest change, and if he can return to his career .817 OPS rather than the .697 of last year, he could help improve on the team’s overall .261/.326/.417 line. All-Star SS Eric Montgomery also returns, and Billy Karnuth is a dependable DH. However, I’m not buying Earl Mulholland ever doing anything better than the .733 OPS he posted last season, and at 1B and 3 yrs/$13.2M he’s probably been overextended with this latest contract. And Ricardo Rincon’s last season is not likely to be repeated again, either. All things considered, this offense looks to be in for a year of decline.
Outlook: Colorado Springs will be competitive, but unless they get career years out of some of their key players they may struggle to stay in the playoff race the entire season. It still seems like extending the streak of winning seasons to 9 is a good possibility, but the aging roster and lack of prime prospects means these days may be numbered.
Predicted division finish: 3rd
Albuquerque From "Life Goes On"
Season 8 record: 84-78, 3rd in AL West
Key additions:None
Key losses: Luis Cruz, Paul Jackson, William Tamura, Junior Spencer
It appears that Albuquerque is heading into a transition, which is clearly evident by the lack of any key signings in the offseason while letting a few major contributors from last year’s team walk in free agency. Star slugger Paul Bang is on the Trade Block along with Peaches Washington and SP Peter Larson. How long will each of them remain with the team? It always seems that Robot gets the most out of his players, as this team was counted out in each of the last few years but remained in contention the whole way through, so while this team review may come off as negative, you never know what this owner can pull off.
The starting pitching is definitely the worst of the AL West. The team put up a cumulative 4.37 ERA/1.36 WHIP last season, but the fact that it wasn’t worse is attributable almost entirely to the bullpen. With Junior Spencer and Luis Cruz gone from the rotation, the only bright spots the aforementioned tradeable Larson, and younger pitchers Hamlet Donovan and Alberto Ontiveros. All-Star closer Travis Lewis returns, but with guys like Cesar Piedra on the roster, will he even be necessary?
As for the lineup, if Bang and Washington get traded, this team will struggle to score runs, and it will signal the official countdown starting to the day stud prospect Lou Lindsey arrives in the majors. The returning J.T. Timlin helped this squad hit a combined .267/.324/.413 – they can hit for average, but there’s not a lot of pop. Being conservative in the FA market has meant that while there isn’t a lot of talent here, it’s relatively young and inexpensive, which will allow for some flexibility in the coming years. And if the aforementioned trades occur, this team could find itself with a sub $40M roster quickly.
Outlook: Count these guys out for contention this season – I think Robot has already squeezed as much as he could out of these guys. But they are positioned well for a rebuild with some valuable veterans and plenty of cap room. We probably won’t see the entire AL West at or above .500 this year, but this team won’t embarrass the division either.
Predicted division finish: 4th
Season 8 Record: 94-68, AL West Champ
Key Additions: Harry Cora, Wesley Cook
Key Losses: Glenn Simmons, Raul Trevino
The four-time reigning AL West champs and now 2 years removed from the franchise’s first World Series appearance, the Anteaters are in a position of having reached their likely peak and now hope to contend for as many years as possible with much of the same roster from the last few seasons. While they have remained steady (92, 93, and 94 wins in S6-S8), the rest of the division is showing signs of strength and it will likely be difficult to improve on their win total.
The strength of this team remains its pitching, with Pablo Jose coming back from a horrific injury, defending Cy Young Darwin Martin, and former Cy Young winner Adam Ducey. With Felipe Machado rounding out the normal 4-man rotation, this is still one of the best staffs in baseball. The bullpen welcomes the aforementioned Cook along with team veteran and fellow stamina-starved stud Gerald Ward. Unfortunately, the defense is average at best, especially with iron gloved Edgar Mesa at SS. All things considered, last year’s team 3.55 ERA/1.29 WHIP should be within reach.
The lineup returns with minor changes, the most notable with new addition and likely leadoff man Harry Cora replacing the departed Glenn Simmons in LF. This team led the Majors in HR’s last year (277 to the Bloggers’ 263), but its issue remains getting on base, with the team posting a.257/.318/.439 line last season. Signing Barry Peterson to a 4-year $42.7M contract helped them solidify 3B for the future, and they still have lineup anchors Moises Martin and Philip Wolf. Patrick Osbourne delivered a phenomenal performance last season in his platoon role against LHP, but it will be hard to repeat. This season LA is relying on their investment in Cora (2 yrs $8.2M) to improve their OBP, but it will likely be more of the same…relying on the long ball to give their pitching enough to work with.
Outlook: They could make another run at the World Series and are a likely playoff team, but the competition will be thick in the AL this season. Worst case is 85 wins and just missing the wild card.
Predicted division finish: 1st
Cheyenne Morning Star
Season 8 record: 82-80, 4th in AL West
Key additions: Pascual Roque, Carlos Valentin, Miguel Alcantara
Key losses: Don Murray, Cliff Carter, Edgar Bautista, Al Baerga
Cheyenne hit a lull last year, seeing their win total fall from 86 and just barely missing the playoffs in S7 to 82 in S8. They’ve made up huge ground throughout the last few years as they were a 61-win team as recently as Season 6. The last couple of offseasons have featured some heavy free agent investments that coincide with the arrival of some of the team’s promising young stars. The last two offseasons they committed an astounding $242.5M over 17 seasons to 8 different players (an average of $14.3M/season per player), with another $55M/3 yrs contract that began in S7. So they are playing with $300M of FA’s and some pretty decent youth…does the math finally add up to a playoff appearance?
The staff is led by inning-eaters Steve Barrett and Brady Murray, the aging but effective Andrew Burks, and Alex Donahue. A 2-year $36M deal brought S8 Fireman of the Year Roque into the bullpen to join Del Cubillan to round out a squad that should improve on the 4.00 ERA/1.33 WHIP from last year. With the experienced rotation, this team could fare well in what would be the franchise’s first playoff series.
Slugger Albert Ortega anchors the lineup, and Cheyenne is hoping for a bounce back season from Steve Coleman and still boast RHP platoon slugger Walt Kelly. They are trying to replace Baerga and Bautista’s production with Valentin and Alcantra, and it’s probably a push. Cliff Carter and his .888 OPS will be missed the most, and Ed Howell has seen his best years. They won’t set any scoring records, but if Coleman and Valentin rediscover themselves they could overcome the .261/.326/.431 team batting stats from last season. Or perhaps the biggest question is how soon we’ll see future stud Kelly Johnson or fellow prospect Miguel Padilla. Is their time now?
Outlook: This is very likely the season they break through for their first playoff berth, and the promotion of Johnson could help ensure that. Cheyenne has certainly opened their wallet to try to buy success, so anything short of the playoffs would be a major disappointment.
Predicted division finish: 2nd (Wild Card)
Colorado Springs Eternal
Season 8 record: 85-77, 2nd in AL West
Key additions: Bob Gilmore, Lee Cone
Key losses: Yamid Felix, Bill Castillo, Bob Walbeck
You’ve got to tip your cap to what jnewfry has accomplished in the first 8 seasons – his team has never been worse than .500. The continued competitiveness has helped keep this division so strong through the years, but has the success helped or hurt this team? 3 of the last 4 years Colorado Springs has won between 81 and 85 games, which hasn’t gotten them in the playoffs and hasn’t quite allowed them to rebuild either. This team is getting older (17 players are older than 30) so it will be decision time very soon…do they make another run at the playoffs or hit the rebuild button?
The rotation is anchored by veterans Cole Perkins, Josh King, Antone Hill, and Alex DeSoto. None of them are shutdown starters, but they are also pretty consistent. Delino Holt is one of the better relievers in the league, but there is not a lot of depth here. The team’s 4.04 ERA/1.32 WHIP from last year will likely be delivered again as there hasn’t been a lot of movement in the staff overall.
The loss of Bob Walbeck looms large…he’ll be difficult to replace in CF. The addition of Lee Cone (5 yrs, $40.6) is the biggest change, and if he can return to his career .817 OPS rather than the .697 of last year, he could help improve on the team’s overall .261/.326/.417 line. All-Star SS Eric Montgomery also returns, and Billy Karnuth is a dependable DH. However, I’m not buying Earl Mulholland ever doing anything better than the .733 OPS he posted last season, and at 1B and 3 yrs/$13.2M he’s probably been overextended with this latest contract. And Ricardo Rincon’s last season is not likely to be repeated again, either. All things considered, this offense looks to be in for a year of decline.
Outlook: Colorado Springs will be competitive, but unless they get career years out of some of their key players they may struggle to stay in the playoff race the entire season. It still seems like extending the streak of winning seasons to 9 is a good possibility, but the aging roster and lack of prime prospects means these days may be numbered.
Predicted division finish: 3rd
Albuquerque From "Life Goes On"
Season 8 record: 84-78, 3rd in AL West
Key additions:None
Key losses: Luis Cruz, Paul Jackson, William Tamura, Junior Spencer
It appears that Albuquerque is heading into a transition, which is clearly evident by the lack of any key signings in the offseason while letting a few major contributors from last year’s team walk in free agency. Star slugger Paul Bang is on the Trade Block along with Peaches Washington and SP Peter Larson. How long will each of them remain with the team? It always seems that Robot gets the most out of his players, as this team was counted out in each of the last few years but remained in contention the whole way through, so while this team review may come off as negative, you never know what this owner can pull off.
The starting pitching is definitely the worst of the AL West. The team put up a cumulative 4.37 ERA/1.36 WHIP last season, but the fact that it wasn’t worse is attributable almost entirely to the bullpen. With Junior Spencer and Luis Cruz gone from the rotation, the only bright spots the aforementioned tradeable Larson, and younger pitchers Hamlet Donovan and Alberto Ontiveros. All-Star closer Travis Lewis returns, but with guys like Cesar Piedra on the roster, will he even be necessary?
As for the lineup, if Bang and Washington get traded, this team will struggle to score runs, and it will signal the official countdown starting to the day stud prospect Lou Lindsey arrives in the majors. The returning J.T. Timlin helped this squad hit a combined .267/.324/.413 – they can hit for average, but there’s not a lot of pop. Being conservative in the FA market has meant that while there isn’t a lot of talent here, it’s relatively young and inexpensive, which will allow for some flexibility in the coming years. And if the aforementioned trades occur, this team could find itself with a sub $40M roster quickly.
Outlook: Count these guys out for contention this season – I think Robot has already squeezed as much as he could out of these guys. But they are positioned well for a rebuild with some valuable veterans and plenty of cap room. We probably won’t see the entire AL West at or above .500 this year, but this team won’t embarrass the division either.
Predicted division finish: 4th
Sunday, March 27, 2011
GW1 Hall of Fame - Correct Positions
I find it mildly annoying that player positions for the Hall of Fame are listed as what the AI thought the player should be playing when he retired, instead of say something logical, obvious, and simple to program like say... which position said player accumlated the most innings (or more starts or relief appearances for pitchers) or his career.
So I went ahead and did it myself, no love for non-first base infielders!
Catcher
First Base
Second Base
none
Third Base
none
Shortstop
none
Left Field
Center Field
Right Field
Starting Pitcher
Relief Pitcher
Friday, March 18, 2011
GW2 Noteworthy Games
No-hitters
Season 1
Jayson Bagwell: 1 BB, 5 K in Iowa City's 2-0 win over Atlanta, 3/30/09PM2
Bucky Kelly: 5 BB, 6 K in Louisville's 10-0 win over Oakland, 4/28/09PM2
Season 2
Bucky Kelly: 3 BB, 4 K in Louisville's 6-0 win over Wichita, 8/25/09AM
Season 3
Kenny DiSarcina: 4 BB, 5 K in Minnesota's 6-0 win over Boston, 10/13/09PM2
Earl Buckley: 1 BB, 6 K in Oakland's 3-0 win over Seattle, 10/25/09PM2
Zeus Webster: 3 BB, 6 K in Nashville's 6-0 win over Scranton, 11/13/09PM
Charles Franco: 4 BB, 6 K in Fargo's 6-0 win over Atlanta, 11/29/09PM2 (postseason)
Season 1
Jayson Bagwell: 1 BB, 5 K in Iowa City's 2-0 win over Atlanta, 3/30/09PM2
Bucky Kelly: 5 BB, 6 K in Louisville's 10-0 win over Oakland, 4/28/09PM2
Season 2
Bucky Kelly: 3 BB, 4 K in Louisville's 6-0 win over Wichita, 8/25/09AM
Season 3
Kenny DiSarcina: 4 BB, 5 K in Minnesota's 6-0 win over Boston, 10/13/09PM2
Earl Buckley: 1 BB, 6 K in Oakland's 3-0 win over Seattle, 10/25/09PM2
Zeus Webster: 3 BB, 6 K in Nashville's 6-0 win over Scranton, 11/13/09PM
Charles Franco: 4 BB, 6 K in Fargo's 6-0 win over Atlanta, 11/29/09PM2 (postseason)
Season 4
None
Season 5
Neil Castillo: 2 BB, 9 K in Helena's 3-0 win over Vancouver, 5/5/10AM
Season 6
Posiedon Lamb (8.1 IP) and Carlos James (0.2 IP): 3 BB, 3 K (all by Lamb) in San Antonio's 6-0 win over Philadelphia, 7/14/10PM
Season 7
Ed McMillan (perfect game): 7 K in Austin's 1-0 win over Minnesota, 12/15/10PM2 (postseason)
Season 8
Ariel Andujar (perfect game): 5K in Helena's 1-0 win over Baltimore, 1/3/11PM
Pat McGee: 1BB, 7K in Pittsburgh's 10-0 win over Nashville, 2/18/11AM
Cycles
Season 1
David Mora: 4-for-5, 2 R, 4 RBI in Chicago Manual of Style's 16-1 win over Trenton, 4/12/09AM
Season 2
Chan Dong: 4-for-5, 3 R, 6 RBI in Trenton's 14-8 win over Los Angeles, 7/11/09AM
Season 3
Eric Allen: 4-for-6, BB, 2 R, 5 RBI in Toledo's 9-7 win over Florida, 10/13/09AM
Cliff Carter: 4-for-8, 3 R, 2 RBI in Hartford's 26-16 win over Kansas City, 10/29/09PM
Hal Price: 4-for-5, 3 R, 2 RBI in Louisville's 11-2 win over St. Louis, 11/22/09PM
Season 5
Neil Castillo: 2 BB, 9 K in Helena's 3-0 win over Vancouver, 5/5/10AM
Season 6
Posiedon Lamb (8.1 IP) and Carlos James (0.2 IP): 3 BB, 3 K (all by Lamb) in San Antonio's 6-0 win over Philadelphia, 7/14/10PM
Season 7
Ed McMillan (perfect game): 7 K in Austin's 1-0 win over Minnesota, 12/15/10PM2 (postseason)
Season 8
Ariel Andujar (perfect game): 5K in Helena's 1-0 win over Baltimore, 1/3/11PM
Pat McGee: 1BB, 7K in Pittsburgh's 10-0 win over Nashville, 2/18/11AM
Cycles
Season 1
David Mora: 4-for-5, 2 R, 4 RBI in Chicago Manual of Style's 16-1 win over Trenton, 4/12/09AM
Season 2
Chan Dong: 4-for-5, 3 R, 6 RBI in Trenton's 14-8 win over Los Angeles, 7/11/09AM
Season 3
Eric Allen: 4-for-6, BB, 2 R, 5 RBI in Toledo's 9-7 win over Florida, 10/13/09AM
Cliff Carter: 4-for-8, 3 R, 2 RBI in Hartford's 26-16 win over Kansas City, 10/29/09PM
Hal Price: 4-for-5, 3 R, 2 RBI in Louisville's 11-2 win over St. Louis, 11/22/09PM
Season 4
Roger Barclay: 4-for-6, 2 R, 2 RBI in Fargo's 11-3 win over Iowa City, /28/10AM
Season 5
Cliff Carter: 4-for-5, R, 3 RBI in St. Louis' 6-1 win over Helena, 5/7/10PM
Season 6
Guy Nicholas: 4-for-5, 4 R, 5 RBI in Austin's 12-1 win over Wichita, 7/5/10AM
Season 7
None
Roger Barclay: 4-for-6, 2 R, 2 RBI in Fargo's 11-3 win over Iowa City, /28/10AM
Season 5
Cliff Carter: 4-for-5, R, 3 RBI in St. Louis' 6-1 win over Helena, 5/7/10PM
Season 6
Guy Nicholas: 4-for-5, 4 R, 5 RBI in Austin's 12-1 win over Wichita, 7/5/10AM
Season 7
None
Hit milestones
Season 1
6 - Jeromy Wingo 6-for-6, 2B, 5 R, 3 RBI in Honolulu's 23-5 win over Chicago Apple Hurlers, 4/16/09AM
Season 2
6 - Brendan Borland 6-for-7, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI in Scranton's 6-5 win over Mexico City, 7/1/09AM
Season 3
6 - Quentin Cepicky 6-for-6, 3B, 2 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI in Hartford's 13-12 loss to Kansas City, 10/31/09AM
Season 4
7 - Timo Smith 7-for-7, 2B, HR, BB, 6 R, 8 RBI in San Antonio's 36-1 win over Nashville, 1/24/10PM
6 - Hal Price 6-for-6, HR, 3 R, 3 RBI in Louisville's 12-4 win over Austin, 2/7/10PM
6 - Alex McGee 6-for-7, 4 HR, 4 R, 7 RBI in Durham's 27-7 win over Nashville, 1/26/10AM
6 - Bartolo Lee 6-for-7, 3 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 6 R, 11 RBI in Oklahoma City's 37-7 win over Nashville, 1/16/10PM
Season 5
5 - Accomplished at least 15 times
Season 6
5 - Accomplished at least 10 times
Season 7
6 - Parker Lennon 6-for-6, 3 HR, SB, 5 R, 6 RBI in St. Louis' 15-1 win over Nashville, 10/19/10PM
Season 8
6 - Blake Kennedy 6-for-7, 2B, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI in Helena's 8-7 win over Madison, 2/27/11PM2
6 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, 4 HR, BB, 6 R, 10 RBI in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM
HR milestones
Season 1
4 - Carlos Martinez 4-for-4, 3 BB, 5 R, 8 RBI in Fargo's 28-9 win over Wichita, 4/14/09PM2
Season 2
4 - Norman Sutton 5-for-5, 2B, 4 R, 8 RBI in Florida's 11-4 win over Philadelphia, 7/11/09PM
4 - Emilio Moya 5-for-5, 1B, 5 R, 7 RBI in Los Angeles' 13-1 win over Florida, 8/12/09PM2
Season 3
4 - Albert Gonzalez 4-for-6, BB, 5 R, 8 RBI in Durham's 26-5 win over Hartford, 10/14/09PM
Season 4
4 - Alex McGee 6-for-7, 4 R, 7 RBI in Durham's 27-7 win over Nashville, 1/26/10AM
Season 8
4 - Bryan Butler 4-for-5, 4 R, 8 RBI in Fargo's 11-6 win over Scranton, 1/11/11PM
4 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, BB, 6 R, 10 RBI in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM
4 - Omar Andrus 4-for-4, 4 R, 5 RBI in Austin's 11-9 win over Pittsburgh, 3/4/11PM
RBI milestones
Season 1
9 - Vic Javier 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in New York's 14-0 win over Augusta, 3/30/09PM2
Season 2
9 - Ted Wakeland 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in Louisville's 18-8 win over Boston, 8/13/09PM2
Season 3
9 - Matthew Forbes 3-for-4, 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 3 R in Fargo's 19-3 win over Nashville, 10/18/09AM
Season 4
11 - Bartolo Lee 6-for-7, 3 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 6 R in Oklahoma City's 37-7 win over Nashville, 1/16/10PM
Season 5
8 - Pedro Nunez 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in Fargo's 14-1 win over Atlanta, 4/29/10PM
8 - Hamlet Henry 3-for-3, 2 HR, SF, 3 R in Washington's 12-6 win over San Antonio, 5/5/10AM
Season 6
8 - Nicholas Hollingsworth, Jack Hoffman, Orel Sierra, Miguel Carrara
Season 7
8 - Louie Martin, Sammy Barrett, Benji Flores
Season 8
10 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, 4 HR BB, 6 R in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM
Stolen base milestones
Season 4
6 - Bobby Towers 4-for-5, 2B, 3 R, 2 RBI in Iowa City's 9-3 win over Los Angeles, 1/11/10AM
Strikeout milestones
Season 1 (NL)
13 - Whitey Nichting in Wichita's 13-8 loss to St. Louis, 5/18/09PM2
13 - Glen Herzog in Baltimore's 11-3 win over Fargo, 4/13/09PM2
Season 1 (AL)
12 - Jon Cedeno in Iowa City's 5-0 loss to Texas, 4/2/09AM
12 - Louie Jackson in Atlanta's 7-0 win over Seattle, 5/17/09AM
12 - Marc Rolison in Los Angeles' 4-3 win over Wichita, 4/22/09PM2
Season 2 (NL)
13 - Darby Butler in Louisville's 8-4 win over Minnesota, 8/8/09PM
Season 2 (AL)
11 - 6 pitchers (Salem's Peter Larson, New York's Antone Hill, San Antonio's Pat Tipton, Atlanta's Jayson Bagwell, Durham's Willie Castilla, Chicago's Wilfredo Martin)
Season 3 (NL)
12 - 4 pitchers (Louisville's Bob Trammell, St. Louis' Dante Walker, Louisville's Bucky Kelly, Baltimore's David Flores)
Season 3 (AL)
12 - 5 pitchers (Colorado Springs' Lon Cashman, Salem's Cole Perkins, Florida's Cliff Perez, N.Y. Yankees' Antone Hill, Kansas City's Jon Cedeno)
Season 4 (NL)
13 - Sam Ganzel in Austin's 3-1 win over Boston, 1/30/10PM
Season 4 (AL)
13 - Pat Tipton in Toledo's 2-0 win over Kansas City, 1/12/10PM
Season 5 (NL)
13 - Jon Cedeno in Vancouver's 1-0 win over Wichita, 5/13/10PM
Season 5 (AL)
14 - Antone Hill in Washington D.C.'s 7-3 win over Boise, 5/22/10PM
Season 6 (NL)
12 - Andy Atchley in Rochester's 11-0 win over Baltimore, 7/8/10PM2
12 - Jumbo Gil in Oakland's 3-0 win over Atlanta, 8/13/10PM2
Season 6 (AL)
14 - Clint Clark in Iowa City's 5-2 win over Cheyenne, 8/21/10PM2
13 - David Telemaco in Philadelphia's 2-1 win over Toledo, 7/6/10PM2
Season 1
6 - Jeromy Wingo 6-for-6, 2B, 5 R, 3 RBI in Honolulu's 23-5 win over Chicago Apple Hurlers, 4/16/09AM
Season 2
6 - Brendan Borland 6-for-7, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI in Scranton's 6-5 win over Mexico City, 7/1/09AM
Season 3
6 - Quentin Cepicky 6-for-6, 3B, 2 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI in Hartford's 13-12 loss to Kansas City, 10/31/09AM
Season 4
7 - Timo Smith 7-for-7, 2B, HR, BB, 6 R, 8 RBI in San Antonio's 36-1 win over Nashville, 1/24/10PM
6 - Hal Price 6-for-6, HR, 3 R, 3 RBI in Louisville's 12-4 win over Austin, 2/7/10PM
6 - Alex McGee 6-for-7, 4 HR, 4 R, 7 RBI in Durham's 27-7 win over Nashville, 1/26/10AM
6 - Bartolo Lee 6-for-7, 3 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 6 R, 11 RBI in Oklahoma City's 37-7 win over Nashville, 1/16/10PM
Season 5
5 - Accomplished at least 15 times
Season 6
5 - Accomplished at least 10 times
Season 7
6 - Parker Lennon 6-for-6, 3 HR, SB, 5 R, 6 RBI in St. Louis' 15-1 win over Nashville, 10/19/10PM
Season 8
6 - Blake Kennedy 6-for-7, 2B, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI in Helena's 8-7 win over Madison, 2/27/11PM2
6 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, 4 HR, BB, 6 R, 10 RBI in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM
HR milestones
Season 1
4 - Carlos Martinez 4-for-4, 3 BB, 5 R, 8 RBI in Fargo's 28-9 win over Wichita, 4/14/09PM2
Season 2
4 - Norman Sutton 5-for-5, 2B, 4 R, 8 RBI in Florida's 11-4 win over Philadelphia, 7/11/09PM
4 - Emilio Moya 5-for-5, 1B, 5 R, 7 RBI in Los Angeles' 13-1 win over Florida, 8/12/09PM2
Season 3
4 - Albert Gonzalez 4-for-6, BB, 5 R, 8 RBI in Durham's 26-5 win over Hartford, 10/14/09PM
Season 4
4 - Alex McGee 6-for-7, 4 R, 7 RBI in Durham's 27-7 win over Nashville, 1/26/10AM
Season 8
4 - Bryan Butler 4-for-5, 4 R, 8 RBI in Fargo's 11-6 win over Scranton, 1/11/11PM
4 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, BB, 6 R, 10 RBI in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM
4 - Omar Andrus 4-for-4, 4 R, 5 RBI in Austin's 11-9 win over Pittsburgh, 3/4/11PM
RBI milestones
Season 1
9 - Vic Javier 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in New York's 14-0 win over Augusta, 3/30/09PM2
Season 2
9 - Ted Wakeland 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in Louisville's 18-8 win over Boston, 8/13/09PM2
Season 3
9 - Matthew Forbes 3-for-4, 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 3 R in Fargo's 19-3 win over Nashville, 10/18/09AM
Season 4
11 - Bartolo Lee 6-for-7, 3 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB, 6 R in Oklahoma City's 37-7 win over Nashville, 1/16/10PM
Season 5
8 - Pedro Nunez 3-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R in Fargo's 14-1 win over Atlanta, 4/29/10PM
8 - Hamlet Henry 3-for-3, 2 HR, SF, 3 R in Washington's 12-6 win over San Antonio, 5/5/10AM
Season 6
8 - Nicholas Hollingsworth, Jack Hoffman, Orel Sierra, Miguel Carrara
Season 7
8 - Louie Martin, Sammy Barrett, Benji Flores
Season 8
10 - Alberto Crespo 6-for-6, 2 2B, 4 HR BB, 6 R in Austin's 20-3 win over Oakland, 1/15/11PM
Stolen base milestones
Season 4
6 - Bobby Towers 4-for-5, 2B, 3 R, 2 RBI in Iowa City's 9-3 win over Los Angeles, 1/11/10AM
Strikeout milestones
Season 1 (NL)
13 - Whitey Nichting in Wichita's 13-8 loss to St. Louis, 5/18/09PM2
13 - Glen Herzog in Baltimore's 11-3 win over Fargo, 4/13/09PM2
Season 1 (AL)
12 - Jon Cedeno in Iowa City's 5-0 loss to Texas, 4/2/09AM
12 - Louie Jackson in Atlanta's 7-0 win over Seattle, 5/17/09AM
12 - Marc Rolison in Los Angeles' 4-3 win over Wichita, 4/22/09PM2
Season 2 (NL)
13 - Darby Butler in Louisville's 8-4 win over Minnesota, 8/8/09PM
Season 2 (AL)
11 - 6 pitchers (Salem's Peter Larson, New York's Antone Hill, San Antonio's Pat Tipton, Atlanta's Jayson Bagwell, Durham's Willie Castilla, Chicago's Wilfredo Martin)
Season 3 (NL)
12 - 4 pitchers (Louisville's Bob Trammell, St. Louis' Dante Walker, Louisville's Bucky Kelly, Baltimore's David Flores)
Season 3 (AL)
12 - 5 pitchers (Colorado Springs' Lon Cashman, Salem's Cole Perkins, Florida's Cliff Perez, N.Y. Yankees' Antone Hill, Kansas City's Jon Cedeno)
Season 4 (NL)
13 - Sam Ganzel in Austin's 3-1 win over Boston, 1/30/10PM
Season 4 (AL)
13 - Pat Tipton in Toledo's 2-0 win over Kansas City, 1/12/10PM
Season 5 (NL)
13 - Jon Cedeno in Vancouver's 1-0 win over Wichita, 5/13/10PM
Season 5 (AL)
14 - Antone Hill in Washington D.C.'s 7-3 win over Boise, 5/22/10PM
Season 6 (NL)
12 - Andy Atchley in Rochester's 11-0 win over Baltimore, 7/8/10PM2
12 - Jumbo Gil in Oakland's 3-0 win over Atlanta, 8/13/10PM2
Season 6 (AL)
14 - Clint Clark in Iowa City's 5-2 win over Cheyenne, 8/21/10PM2
13 - David Telemaco in Philadelphia's 2-1 win over Toledo, 7/6/10PM2
Sunday, February 27, 2011
NL South Preview, Season 18
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Season 17 Record: 90-72, Division Champions, lost to the New York Yankees in the Play-in Series
EXP W%: .536 (projected out to 87-75 over 162 games)
Notable acquisitions: LF Marino Reyes, P Moe Farley
Notable departures: P Vic Lopez, 1B Juan Lira, CF Bernie Crespo, LF Mendy Knight
In one of the most predictable player pairings (try saying that three times fast) in Gleeman World history, the Twins traded for the speedy Marino Reyes. He'll fit right in as the best baserunner on the fastest team in baseball (7 different players stole 30+ bases last season). It won't amount to a ton of runs, but it might be enough to support the National League's top run prevention unit. The pitching staff doesn't walk anybody (2nd fewest issued in the NL), the defense converts balls in play into outs (fewest hits allowed, below average strikeout rate), and they don't give up the long ball (once again, 2nd fewest allowed in the NL). Part of that is from the park, but most of that is simply from the design of the team. You know the Twins will always struggle to score, and that they'll always prevent runs. The problem here is that they've had stretches where their offense wasn't just bad, but awful (not 2010 Mariners awful, but awful enough), to the point where no level of pitching could salvage them. This squad is better than that, but I'm not altogether convinced that they won't regress a bit.
Prediction: 85-77, Division Champions
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Season 17 Record: 82-80, tied for 2nd place
EXP W%: .483 (78-84)
Notable acquisitions: P Alex Rojas, P Grant Westbrook, 1B Charles Shibata
Notable departures: CF Branch Laker, SS Leonardo Nen, P Happy Magadan, C Damion Chen, P Davey Jacquez
Last season, the Comics made a 13 game jump over S16 to post their first winning season in 10 (Gleeman World) years. Despite this, they still look to be somewhat of a long shot in contending this season, even within a weak division. Much of that stems from the curious decision to trade away CF Branch Laker, the team's best position player, in return for a couple of relievers. Granted, the pen looks to be much improved as a result, and Laker didn't hit all that well last season. However, Eduardo Oliva's glovework in CF is much worse than Laker's, and the move might force someone like Ken Petrov into action; while a fine bench player, he's stretched as an everyday option. The acquisition of Shibata is a bit strange as well. While a fine hitter, Shibata is exactly what Iowa City doesn't need: a left-handed hitter defensively limited to 1B (Jamie Zheng, Nash McCartin). The rotation is top-heavy; Fausto Rosado is a stud, and The Other Rosado (as he'll forever be known as) was outstanding last year; although scouts are still waiting for the other shoe to drop, it's hard to deny his performance so far. Alan Womack and Walt Aldred, however, have both proven to be filler, and Hideki Sakamoto is coming off of an awful rookie season. One would think Sakamoto is a prime bounce-back candidate; on the other hand, The Other Rosado looks primed for a date with Ms. Regression. As it stands, the team should be competitive. Just not competitive enough.
*By the way, how are Sean Watkins and Vern Ryal still in HiA?
Prediction: 78-84, 4th place
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Season 17 Record: 82-80, tied for 2nd place
EXP W%: .529 (86-76)
Notable acquisitions: 1B Chipper Velandia
Notable departures: 2B Solly Alexander, P Del Martin
The inevitable changing of the guard in St. Louis is right around the corner; faces of the franchise John Carroll and Bronson Ritz are clearly closing in on the twilight of their careers, nearly ready to be replaced by the kiddie corps. There's not much to say about this team as opposed to last season's team; the same familiar faces are still there, though it's not clear how much Carroll or Ritz have left at this point. The problem here is that for the first time in franchise history, the Greys don't have any star power to augment their modestly talented roster. The end result is a vanilla squad that should hold their own, but don't have much hope for anything more than that. Maybe young 1B Tuck Mathis rebounds from a disappointing rookie campaign. Maybe Carroll and Ritz have one last hurrah in them. Maybe a few of their players find God and clean living and decide to have career seasons. It's all the Greys can hope for this season. As noted above, the Greys do have some young talent in the minors (C Warren O'Connor and IF Homer Bird look ready). Should they be called up, they could easily make the division race more interesting. Regardless of who comes out of this division, though, that team will likely be the worst playoff team in the NL.
Prediction: 83-79 (if O'Connor + Bird are promoted), 2nd place
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Season 17 Record: 79-83, 4th place (as the Monterrey Conquistadores)
EXP W%: .494 (80-82)
Notable acquisitions: 3B Vladimir Pichardo, P Clark Murphy
Notable departures: P Danny Brower, P Rigo Gutierrez, P Max Moehler, 3B Jim Kirk
The surprising resignation of Monterrey's longtime GM evelandz23 coincided with the relocation of the Conquistadores. As a result, the franchise, now in Nashville, has been re-branded as the Havoc, run by scottlaz, the recently-deposed head honcho of the now-Santa Cruz Slugs. The Havoc fit right in with the rest of the division; they're hardly a bad team, but they don't figure to scare anyone, either. Losing Max Moehler doesn't figure to hurt as badly as one might think, as he was largely ineffective last season. Vladimir Pichardo should be an upgrade over recently departed Jim Kirk, too. Furthermore, the franchise is only a season removed from back-to-back 90+ win campaigns, with much of the same core group of players. It's hardly a great team, but it's not outrageous to think that they can compete. Just don't expect too much past that.
Prediction: 81-81, 3rd place
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
NL East Preview, Season 18
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Season 17 Record: 101-61, Division Champions, lost to the Milwaukee Twindyans in the NLCS
EXP W%: .595 (projected out to 96-66 over 162 games)
Notable acquisitions: P Jim Gonzalez, P Quilvio Rodriguez, P Sparky Rando, P Wilfredo Trajano, SS Phillip Combs, SS Corey Boehringer
Notable departures: SS Glenallen Simontacchi, P Bartolo Estrada, P Orber Benitez, P Stuart Burnett, P Ted LeCroy (pending, via trade with Washington)
The Jayhawks once again look like the class of the NL East, though they look less formidable than in years past. First, the departure of Glenallen Simontacchi leaves the Jayhawks without a legitimate starting SS. New acquisitions Phillip Combs and Corey Boehringer aren't awful hitters, and incumbent Maximo Bailey can pick it, but each of them profiles better as a backup. Replicating Simontacchi's S17 performance shouldn't be too difficult; his .638 OPS last season was the second worst of his career (the worst, a .630 OPS back in S13, was at least partially a product of playing in Tacoma's pitcher-friendly ballpark), and his defense is easily worse than any of Chicago's current options. On the pitching side, it'll be far tougher to duplicate the performance of Estrada, Benitez, and Burnett; the trio combined for over 430 IP and an ERA ~ 3.60. The Jayhawks decided to fill the holes with quantity; bringing in Rodriguez, Gonzalez (a longtime Jayhawk), Rando, and Trajano ensures that they'll have arms to fill in for the departed. The problem is that they're simply not as good. Complicating matters is the squad's heavy reliance on ace Marty Melhuse, who's immensely talented but always one pitch away from ending up on the surgeon's table. There's not much help left in the farm system, either, so an injury to any of their ML pitchers will be a challenge to replace. The 'Hawks still have the most talented team in the division, but there's a lot that can go wrong.
Prediction: 94-68, NL East Champions
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Season 17 Record: 87-75, Wildcard, lost to the Milwaukee Twindyans in the NLDS
EXP W%: .561 (91-71)
Notable acquisitions: 1B Walt Lambert (OK, he was technically a Yankee last year, but only for 22 games)
Notable departures: P Birdie Cornelius, CF Felipe Cordero
While they've made the playoffs in three straight seasons, one could label the Yankees' revival as a bit of a disappointment, finishing their past three seasons with 87, 86, and 87 wins. The Yankees have traditionally built their teams around strong pitching (Haywood Towers, Brian Murata, Andres Silva, Jay Cosby, etc). However, faced with the dilemma of only being able to re-sign one of their two departing stars, GM goosegoslin elected to spurn Cornelius, instead offering Lambert a generous 5 year, $110MM contract. Even with his inclusion, it's still a stretch to call this a great lineup; Lambert is a very good hitter, but no one would mistake him for an elite talent. Still, they should score their share of runs. Unfortunately, they might end up giving back most, if not all of their gains in run prevention. The Yankees have a plethora of middling 5th starter options* sitting in AAA right now, but nothing approximating a replacement for one of the best pitchers in the league. Adding Lambert makes the offense better, but losing Cornelius makes the offseason a wash at best for the S18 fortunes of the Yankees. Expect them to tread water.
*As an aside, does any team churn out as many of these guys as the Yankees? Dewayne Christians, Juan Leon, Rico Garces, Slash Ardoin, Hod Kroon...
EDIT: I forgot that P David Calderon was injured for all of S17. Having Adams at SS will help, too, although I don't really think he's all that great. I'll boost the team from 86 wins to 90.
Prediction: 90-72, 2nd place (WC possible? I haven't assessed the NL West; I think at least one WC will come from there)
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Season 17 Record: 79-83, 3rd place
EXP W%: .500 (81-81)
Notable acquisitions: P Norm Ellenwood
Notable departures: LF Marino Reyes, 3B/OF Victor Thomas, P Roosevelt Anderson, SS Santiago Chantres
After spending most of last season in contention, the Nard Doggs faded badly down the stretch, finishing below .500 and notching a 4th consecutive season of mediocrity. Scranton could be looking at a 5th; the Nard Doggs did little to improve the team this season, choosing instead to shed some payroll and play for the future. GM schnoogens aggressively shopped the expensive Marino Reyes, dumping $15MM of his $20MM on the Oklahoma City Twins. He then let Thomas, Anderson, and Chantres walk, filling in holes through internal promotions and the lone signing of starter Norm Ellenwood. He'll join a solid but thoroughly unexciting rotation, headed by appropriately named workhorse Mule Hardy. Star reliever Sammy Gonzalez is outstanding, but the rest of the pen is shaky. Calvin Faulk and Jake Henry are excellent players, and Jacob Sauer can hit righties, but they don't have much of a supporting cast surrounding them; additionally, aside from the two aforementioned stars, none of the starters penciled to play on Opening Day are good defensively, either. No, Scranton shouldn't be awful, but the Nard Doggs have clearly taken a step backwards.
Prediction: 71-91, 3rd place
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Season 17 Record: 67-95, 4th place
EXP W%: .397 (64-98)
Notable acquisitions: P Toby LeCroy (pending, via trade with Chicago), P Del Martin, C Willie Hogan
Notable departures: P Gerard Tomlinson, P Howard Murphy, LF Jim Brown
Once the premier franchise of the National League, the Bureaucrats blew it all up last season. It was just as ugly as expected. Year 2 of the rebuild likely won't be any better. Most notable was the departure of veteran pitcher Gerard Tomlinson. Prodigal son Toby LeCroy and free agent Del Martin will help, but probably not enough, and the offense is miserable. Face of the franchise Al Iglesias is going to be a lonely, lonely man.
The big question isn't whether this team will contend, but whether they'll avoid stinking enough to prevent ownership from blowing it all up and firing the mastermind behind the 4-time champions, themoff02. It's certainly something worth following.
Prediction: 60-102, 4th place
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
NL North Preview, Season 18
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Season 17 Record: 96-66, lost to the Minnesota Fatboys in the World Series.
EXP W%: .618 (projected out to 100-62 over 162 games)
Notable acquisitions: none
Notable departures: none
The Twindyans culminated their most successful regular season since S8 with a somewhat surprising playoff run that ended in a World Series loss to the 3-time champion Fatboys. Whether it stemmed from complacency, a desire to keep the same faces around, or an unwillingness to spend in the free agent market, management elected to return every member on the 25 man roster. Given that the team's 96 wins last season were actually 4 wins below its expected winning percentage, there's little doubt that the Twindyans will contend again. There are some warning signs; 7 of the returnees are 34 or older, and scouts suggest sluggers Kareem Duckworth and Jin-Chi Choi may not age particularly gracefully. There isn't much help coming through the minor league pipeline, either. However, these issues are hardly relevant for the upcoming season. This is a playoff team.
Prediction: 98-64, NL North Champions
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Season 17 Record: 71-91, 2nd place
Exp W%: .436 (71-91)
Notable acquisitions: none
Notable departures: OF Joaquin Cordero, 3B Del Tavarez, P Sam Roberts, P Gary Hermanson, P Carlos Santiago, P Chili Coles
The Santa Marias, after another dismal season, have decided to blow it all up and start from scratch. Gone are several core veteran players, replaced by a smattering of modestly talented (and even that's a stretch) kids tasked with the job of keeping the franchise from plummeting to new lows. LF Willie Espinoza might be the only above average position player in a punchless lineup (.688 OPS in S17), and GM mrincubus may end up moving him at some point during the season. The pitching, supposedly the team's strength, took a significant hit; innings-eater Chili Coles opted for free agency, and the team's best pitcher, Sam Roberts, was flipped to Minnesota. With no talent coming in to replace any of the holes, this could get ugly quickly.
Prediction: 64-98, 3rd place
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Season 17 Record: 67-95, 3rd place
EXP W%: .425 (69-93)
Notable acquisitions: CF Branch Laker, 3B Del Tavarez, SS Leonardo Nen, P Birdie Cornelius, P Max Moehler, P Gerard Tomlinson
Notable departures: P Alex Rojas, P Grant Westbrook, P Dennis Cohen, P Ted Roskos, 3B Sting Berger, P Aaron McGowan
The Redbirds turned out to be the surprise team of the offseason, trading for 2-time All-Star CF Branch Laker and defensive whiz 3B Del Tavarez, then committing a combined $161.5MM on three starting pitchers through free agency. Sluggers Brent O'Donnell and Tony Guerrero return, along with the rest of the supporting cast, to form an offense that should be at least adequate. The pitching goes from terrible (4.70 ERA, 2nd worst in the NL) to a point of strength. Cornelius is a legitimate ace, Moehler will give the Redbirds quality innings, if not quantity, and Tomlinson is more than an innings-eater. And while the bullpen could be a problem, it's hardly a disaster, and they do have prospects waiting in the wings at AAA to take over, should somebody falter. It's not a team built to last, but look for them to challenge for a wildcard slot this season.
Prediction: 91-71, WC
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Season 17 Record: 60-102, 4th place
EXP W%: .349 (57-105)
Notable acquisitions: 1B Matt Governale
Notable departures: CF Shane Raben, P Kenneth Thomas, P Paul Wilson, P Jay Piazza, SS Brian Hendricksen, P Javy Gomez, P Jesus Santos
The Dark Blues were, by any measure, the worst team in the National League in S17. Understandably, GM tjefferson jettisoned many of the players that received the most playing time, including disasters Javy Gomez (146 1/3 IP, 6.83 ERA) and Jay Piazza (86 2/3 IP, 6.65 ERA). Unfortunately, the replacements don't figure to be a whole lot better. Pretend you know nothing about the team. If someone told you that the 25 man roster on Opening Day would consist of 4 waiver-wire castoffs, and 5(!) Rule 5 draft picks, how good would you think that team was?
Exactly.
Additionally, not every player leaving Hartford was terrible. The Dark Blues lost their best position player in Shane Raben and a quality reliever in Thomas. The lineup isn't a complete disaster; Esteban Lecuona was terrific last season, and both Enrique Melendez and Ronnie Malloy can hit as well. However, the National League's worst pitching staff doesn't really look any better this season, the lineup still has far too many holes, and there's absolutely no depth anywhere, should anyone get hurt. There's no reason to think that this team will improve on last season's record, and that's saying a lot.
Prediction: 53-109, 4th place
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