GW1: Tacoma In preparation for the offseason

I'm mostly set with my team for next year. I'm going to be making some moves at the margins, but don't expect to make any huge trades after the deals I've made the last couple of seasons. With that said, due to the internal promotions and the improve of the talent base I've had over the last couple seasons a couple of players who are good regulars have found themselves without a position.

Steven Piper Tacoma Down Pour Age: 28 B/T: R/R Born: Miami, FL Position(s): LF/1B/RF View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Piper has good ratings across the board and can play either corner outfield slot of first base. This will be his second year of arbitration. The right handed hitter, has struggled in translating his strong ratings into solid statistics. Can be had for a low level prospect.

Herman Grace Tacoma Down Pour Age: 29 B/T: R/R Born: Augusta, IL Position(s): 2B/CIF/COF/DH View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Herman Grace is an offensive minded infielder who has played 1b/2b/3b over the last two years. He had a very strong offensive year in season 9, but his production decreased when highly regarded prospects or trade acquisitions took much of his playing time. Grace has strong ratings for his positions and would help many teams.

Both players can be had for low level prospects or can be moved in a package. Would also consider a solid veteran short reliever if on a short contract.

GW1 Historical extremes

Ten regular seasons are in the books in Gleeman World, and the most recent one saw some history made in a few ways. Buffalo tied Los Angeles (Season 1) for the fewest wins by a team with the best record in the world (100-62). Los Angeles set a record for the most wins by a team with the worst record in the world (61-101). And the difference between Buffalo and Los Angeles (39 games) easily set a record for the fewest games between the best and worst teams in the world.

Here's a look at the best team, worst team and difference between the two over the first 10 seasons.

Season 1
Best team: Los Angeles Hangars 100-62
Worst team: San Diego Whales 41-121
Difference: 59 games

Season 2
Best team: Los Angeles Hangars 107-55
Worst team: Colorado Coyotes 59-103
Difference: 48 games

Season 3
Best team: New York Metropolitans 102-60
Worst team: San Antonio Sting 57-105
Difference: 45 games

Season 4
Best team: Chicago Jayhawks 113-49
Worst team: San Antonio Sting 58-104
Difference: 55 games

Season 5
Best team: Chicago Jayhawks 114-48
Worst team: San Antonio Sting 54-108
Difference: 60 games

Season 6
Best team: New York Metropolitans 117-45
Worst team: Tacoma Down Pour 51-111
Difference: 66 games

Season 7
Best team: New York Metropolitans 108-54
Worst team: Colorado Springs Silver Stars 48-114
Difference: 60 games

Season 8
Best team: New York Metropolitans 114-48
Worst team: Las Vegas Armijos 44-118
Difference: 70 games

Season 9
Best team: Minnesota Fatboys and Anaheim Anteaters 112-50
Worst team: Salem Sidehill Gougers 54-108
Difference: 58 games

Season 10
Best team: Buffalo Europeans 100-62
Worst team: Los Angeles Hangars 61-101
Difference: 39 games

Minnesota Bloggers' firesale

Thanks to my No. 1 starter, No. 3 starter, and No. 1 prospect all going down with season-ending injuries already I'm giving serious thought to just blowing the whole team up for a full-on rebuilding effort. Rather than list everyone on the message board, I thought it might be easier to post a blog entry laying out my most valuable players for trade. If you're interested in anyone listed below, please let me know as soon as possible via trade chat, e-mail, or instant message.

Don Murray - 32 years old, reliever
A workhorse reliever with 45 stamina and 66 durability, he can basically pitch every day for you in a late-inning role with 81/74 splits, 91 control, 87 velocity, and 86/99 pitch ratings.

Harry Oliva - 31 years old, second baseman
One of the top 20 hitters in GW2, Olivo has 81 power and 79 eye to go with 66/61 splits and decent contact. He's also a passable defender at second base with 88 durability, and is hitting .280/.319/.636 with 10 homers through 26 games. Signed for the next two seasons at $6.5 million per year, he'd be a middle-of-the-order threat in any lineup.

P.T. Beltre - 33 years old, starting pitcher
A very nice mid-rotation starter who can eat a ton of innings with 83 stamina and 30 durability to go with 78 control and 62/59 splits. An impending free agent with a 75 overall rating, you'll get a draft pick when he signs as a Type B free agent.

Steve Dobson - 33 years old, reliever
Solid setup man with 70/58 splits, 85 velocity, and three usable pitches. He has a 13/3 K/BB ratio through 11 appearances as my Setup B.

Harry Lopez - 30 years old, starting pitcher
A nice mid-rotation starter with 78/66 splits who's making just $1.6 million.

Mike Cashman - 34 years old, shortstop
Top-notch defensive shortstop with 81 range and 90 glove, plus 44 power, 55/42 splits, and 47 eye.

Miguel Nunez - 26 years old, shortstop
Switch-hitter who can play anywhere defensively and offers decent ratings across the board offensively. Signed cheaply for the next two seasons.

GW2 International Free Agents Update

The amateur draft scouting results are just one week away in GW2, but three owners already have invested large pieces of their prospect budget into players they hope will be big time contributors down the road. It's been discussed on the league message board that the big checks being cut are the result of having too much money to spend. Hopefully this Int'l FA Bubble doesn't have detrimental affects down the line.

Dennis Kuo Augusta Whitewash Age: 18 B/T: S/R Born: Inchon, KR Position(s): RF View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Kuo is your typical top International FA with a huge overall rating requiring a big league contract and a huge signing bonus, a check with August GM Sickchangeup had no problem writing. Armed with a $29 MM prospect budget, the Whitewash got a RF with great power, a keen eye, decent contact, and above average versus ratings. Kuo isn't even a a liability in the field. One does wonder if promoting the 18-year old Korean to the show right off the bat was the right move as he's at least 30+ points away from his projections.

Willie Diaz Minnesota Bloggers Age: 18 B/T: L/L Born: St. Thomas, VI Position(s): P (P) View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The Bloggers have the early lead on the top pitcher coming off the international market. While Willie Diaz will never be a workhorse arm; he projects to have great control, can bring the heat, possesses solid ratings against both righties and lefities, and brings two solid with him to the mound. GM Aaron Gleeman also had a nice war chest available to sign prospects using $20.1 MM of his $25 MM available to sign Diaz to a minor league deal. The lefty from the Virgin Islands will start his pro career in RL.

Felix Nomo Trenton Dirty Jerz Age: 18 B/T: L/L Born: Yokosuka, JP Position(s): P (SP1) View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The most intriguing international free agent so far is Felix Nomo. As franchises were still submitting bids for Kuo and Diaz, GM mrauseo stepped up to the plate and signed Japanese prospect Nomo to a 3-year minor league deal worth $26.1 MM. Placing the 18-year-old in LoA to start the season, early reports suggest he'll develop good control and dominate lefties. It's hard to say whether or not Nomo is worth the money, as the Dirty Jerz currently only have 900k left to fill out their system in the draft.

Remaining International Free Agent Buyers
(Teams with $14 MM Invested into Int'l Scouting)

• Los Angeles Anteaters of Irvine $30 MM (#1 and #42 picks)
  
• Vancouver Rubes $26 MM (#69 is first pick)
  
• Wichita Worgs $22 MM (#14 and #56 picks)
  
• Atlanta Orphans $20 MM (#12, #33, #39, #54 picks)
  
• Chicago Apple Hurlers $20 MM (#16 and #58 picks)
  
• Seattle Slews $20 MM (#10 and #52 picks)
• Colorado Springs Eternal $20 MM (#19, #41 and #61 picks)
• San Antonio Banderas' $16 MM (#22 and #64 picks)
• Tampa Bay PoisonArrowDartFrogs $16MM (#13 and #55 picks)

NL West: Tight Race Expected

Oakland Killdeer (NL) broadwayevns View Hardball Dynasty Profile

GM Broadwayevns took over the Killdeer and thought one thing--start the youth movement now. The new GM has had success with his other franchise, making the playoffs 50 percent of the time and saw the talent there to win now. Al Sutton is one of the call-ups and has the makings of a go to closer. Miguel Lopez is the final key call-up as a player who has been up and down for the franchise, but should be there to stay as a competent catcher and big bat.

Position Players

Lopez is a nice part of a lineup which also includes a classic CF contact hitter Erik Graffanino, along with steady bats SS Allen Harris, 3B Ted Haynes, and their best player who has already signed an extension LF Duke Shunick. The Bloomfield, NM native doesn't provide much help defensively and will play in left, but he is a balanced bat with nice speed. Les Clark is really the only power threat in the lineup, but this team is built to play in the wide open spaces of Network Associates Coliseum (-1, -2, -2, -1, -1)

Pitching Staff
The youth movement applies to the pitching staff as well. Vic Cruz is call-up to the rotation, and while he gives up a lot of flyballs he should do okay with the extra room in the ballpark. Oswaldo Franco is also another key starter in the youthanization movement, Franco rates pretty well in GW2 and should see his fair share of innings with the Killdeer. Although the true strength of this team is its international aces Pascual Esposito and Fausto Castillo. The Dominican and Venezuelan are both young and should give division rivals fits seeing them every couple days.

In the System
While there's not a lot of power in the bigs, there is some sitting in AAA. Randy Stewart was left in the minors to delay his ML service time and will likely be called up sometime during the season. The Hobart, OK native has patiently been bidding his time in the minors for 7 years and should contribute quickly if the Killdeer can find a position for him to play.

Prediction 90-72

Honolulu Anuenue Koa Pu'ali (NL) morneau33hr View Hardball Dynasty Profile

While some GMs like to sit back and try not to over-manage their rosters, GM Morneau33hr loves to tinker. Building his lineup for his first season as GM, he called up six prospects from the system, signed five free agents, acquired three major leaguers by trade, and claimed a player off the waiver wire. He even found time to lock up two of his players to long term deals. Time will tell whether he regrets parting with Albert Gonzalez, but a balanced lineup and strong staff will have the Koa Pu'ali competing from opening day.

Position Players

Louis Sikorski is a great player to have behind the plate, Sikorski has great fielding skills for a player with his bat although he might strikeout more than a manger would like. 2B Chuck Karl, 3B Ron Francis, SS Eduardo Ramirez, and MIF Horacio Rodriguez make up a solid infield for the Koa Pu'ali--all bring good gloves and good bats. The outfield might be a weakness in Honolulu, but not because of Mariano Lee. Lee has tremendous glove and rare power for a center fielder--he'll sure make a lot of plus plays in the field and pound out HRs at the plate.

Pitching Staff

Wilfredo Nunez is the big man out of the pen, but he may suffer from being rushed to the bigs. The rotation is headed by Neil Castillo, Troy Rivers, and Esteban Flores. The trio form a nice potential playoff rotation, although they are all very young and don't have a lot of support after the first five innings.

In the System

The Koa Pu'ali were blessed with a lot of talented middle infielders, and the best might be Ernie Lowell. The Iowan native has played three years of minor league ball and there's no need to rush the young man up to the majors as the five-tool SS develops his fielding to an acceptable level.

Prediction 89-73

Helena Handbasket (NL) frymaster23 View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Helena GM Frymaster23 was one of the more active franchises in the offseason and maybe they did enough to make something happen. The franchise brought in five players by trade and seven by free agency.

Position Players

Gookie Michaels is the captain of the infield for Helena and provides a pretty steady bat and glove for GM Frymaster's squad. He has the ability to play all 162 games, but will struggle a bit against righties. Marc Stephens came in a trade during the Anteaters of Irvine Firesale 2009 and should provide solid offensive production in LF for years to come. Zachrey Daniels is a competent bat in the other corner outfield spot and will provide similar production. Scott Lowry might be the team MVP though as he will compete for a gold glove and hold his own at the plate.

Pitching Staff

The problem for Helena will be pitching and the GM knew it coming into the season. Four arms were brought in via trade and seven through free agency, but when Buster Riske is your number one starter there could be issues. Time will tell whether the 13-man staff can keep Helena in the division race, but there's not a lot of sand in the hourglass.

In the System

There are two young arms in the system though worth being patient for to develop. Ruben Alicea has two years under his belt and has some solid stuff coming together this year in LoA. Clint Darnell came into the system at the same time and has the makeup to contribute in the show.

Prediction 80-82

St. Louis Belgians (NL) bryanbecker View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The Belgians are loves of high alcohol beer and their roster. GM Bryanbecker didn't do much to his roster in the offseason adding a CF in the free agent market, but staying away from the trade market and focused on browsing the beer selection at the Four Firkins. Still, the Belgians have enough talent on their roster to be competitive.

Position Players

The Belgians have few quality bats which will hold them back, they have a few good on-base guys, but they lack the slugging guys to get 'em in. 2B Orlando Campos, 3B George Shaw, and free agent signing CF Brian Perry can all get on base. Yet they'll be relying on 1B Jim Rooney to drive them in... time will tell if that lineup can generate enough offense, but this pundit thinks it won't.

Pitching Staff

GM Bryanbecker is going to have some tough decisions come the trade deadline. He's got some good aging arms, but whether they be pitching will enough leads is TBD. Tito Veres and Miguel Herrera are the top two starters for the Belgians and both are steady veteran arms. The strength of the staff is in the bullpen though. Don Murray, Red Reed, and call-up Frank Shigetoshi can all come into tough situations and deliver--so any leads the Belgians happen to have should be safe.

In the System

While they might be faced with having to decide if they're buys or sellers at the deadline, they already know they have at least one player with a great chance at the show. Ted Park looks to develop into a fine option out of the bullpen with some nasty pitches and great movement.

Prediction 70-92

GW2 AL East Preview: Season 1

The AL East is an early contender for the worst division in GW2. Two of the teams are openly rebuilding and the other two appear to be mediocre at best. Here's a look at how the division should shake out.

Augusta Whitewash

Unhappy with the talent at the ML level, GM sickchangeup went about unloading some of his best players, trading Hal Price and George Bailey for prospects. But Augusta hasn't completely blown up its big league team, and the Whitewash made a savvy trade for Jose Belliard while also signing discount deals for Steve Sweeney, Corban Thompson and Tracy Gaillard.

While the Whitewash won't be contending for a playoff spot, the team isn't completely devoid of talent. The rotation has three quality starters in Richie Wolf, Andy Reagan and Thurman Brown, though none of them will be able to shoulder a ton of innings. The back of the rotation will be more problematic and the bullpen is a two-man show, with Belliard and Paul Wanatabe.

The lineup has only one complete hitter: DH Ed Howell, who likely will spend the first 20 or so games of the season in AAA. 2B Barry Peterson is a nice hitter for his position and could grow into a true star. Outside of that, the team will rely on flawed sluggers like Luis Pizzaro, Andre Fitzgerald and Eric Witt. And you don't even want to consider how bad a hitter CF Virgil Wright is going to be.

Augusta has pockets of talent here and there, but probably not enough to be even average on either side of the ball.

Prediction: 68-94

New York Yankees

The Yankees didn't have an overly active offseason, although they did make a few moves. They traded away a couple talented players in Charlie Moran and Frank Chen and acquired a nice starting pitcher in Ray Hall, and they also signed a couple minor free agents.

Hall joins the clear strength of the team: a starting rotation that also includes Antone Hill and Bert Hughes. Even the back end of the rotation isn't terrible with Kenny Bollea and Gene Doyle.

The bullpen also has several promising pitchers in it, including Javier Romano, Kirk Relaford, Luther Brock and Wilt Root.

The starting lineup has strong hitters where you would expect them: 1B Orber Johnson and DH Vic Javier. But it has serviceable hitters, at worst, throughout the rest of the field and the defense seems competent as well.

All in all, the Yankees should be an above average pitching team and maybe average or a bit above on offense.

Prediction: 86-76, AL East champions

Tampa Bay PoisonArrowDartFrogs

Tampa Bay's biggest moves in the offseason were to trade away one of its better hitters in Jesus Arroyo and to sign a decent aging OF in Lucas Hunter.

Hunter, despite his diminished range, appears to be the team's starting CF. The defense will be much better in the middle infield with Paul Bang and Juan Lee. The team lacks a true star hitter, though, as corner outfielders Miguel Alcantara and Jeffrey Morgan are merely OK and 1B Johan Bates and Arnold Abbott both have flaws that will detract from their obvious strengths.

The rotation is fine at the top with Hideo Tamura and Randy Thurman, and even Zeus Webster and Greg Levis have the potential to be serviceable. Carlos Silva, however, is a disaster waiting to happen in the fifth spot.

The bullpen has a couple respectable pitchers in Troy Anderson and Willie Sierra, but not a lot else.

Depending on how much they can limit Silva's innings, the PADFs could be a solid pitching team with a just below average offense.

Prediction: 77-85

Trenton Dirty Jerz

Trenton had one of the busiest offseasons of any team in the league. The Dirty Jerz traded away some of its best players, including J.P. Alonso, Rob Kirby and Cliff Carter and traded for solid but unspectacular infielders Pedro Perez and Louie Cabrera. They also made a whole slew of discount free agent signings: Cristobal Sanchez, Allen Hamilton, Jesus Rivera, Dee Butler, Ricardo Posada, Louis White, Art Newson and Carl Moran, each for less than $2.5 million a year.

The end result isn't pretty, but it shouldn't be the worst team in the league either.

2B Chan Dong is far and away the best player on the team and the only really good hitter. Of the players above who were acquired in the offseason, Newson, Perez, Cabrera, White and Hamilton all figure to find their way into the starting lineup.

The rotation features just one quality pitcher, and he's still in AAA at the moment: Justin Brooks. It gets ugly quickly after that with the above-mentioned Sanchez, Jack Barry, Pete Wilkerson and an as-yet-unknown fifth starter.

The bullpen's just as big a mess, with Keith Moss probably the only decent pitcher out there.

Trenton can expect to be significantly below average on the pitching side, and just slightly better offensively.

Prediction: 64-98

GW2 NL North Preview: Season 1

Minnesota Bloggers (NL) aarongleeman View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Outside of a controversial trade with Honolulu that was ultimately vetoed, the Bloggers had a fairly uneventful offseason. Regardless, the team is certainly capable of going deep into October with its current roster, where the 3-headed monster of Yoo-Nah Chen, John Sung, and Willie Bennett should prove to be intimidating, to say the least. Beyond that, the Bloggers have plenty of depth; they have as many as 5 pitchers on their active roster that could do an admirable job of holding down the last two slots in the rotation. The pen could prove to be a bit of a problem, though, as only FA acquisition Kevin Pryce really stands out. The lineup isn't quite as strong, especially at shortstop. Mike Cashman is the only credible defender there, and he isn't much of a hitter; options like Micah Purcell or Miguel Nunez provide considerably more offense, but are serious liabilities with the glove. Outside of Chico Rincon (and maybe Harry Oliva), the team doesn't really have any other quality bats. Still, the pitching looks good enough to merit a playoff berth, and they could prove to be as dangerous as anyone if they make it.

Prediction: 91-71, NL North Champs

Scranton Northern Attack (NL) sdedalus View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The Northern Attack have talent, but a couple of fatal flaws may doom them in the end. For instance, take the rotation. The starters, on paper, are Paul Dong, Solly McKnight, Tiny Kelley, Barney Hughes, and Jackson Shermann. Talent-wise, that's a solid group of pitchers, despite the lack of a star performer among them. The problem here is that aside from Kelley, none of them can be counted on to go past the 6th (or even 5th) inning on a regular basis, and the bullpen isn't nearly strong enough to make up for this. Fausto Martin will be a godsend when he gets called up, but it's not clear if he'll be enough. As for position players, the team, led by Brendan Borland, has its share of good hitters. However, the only SS on the roster is Les Bradley, and he's a butcher at the position. Conversely, the only 2B on the roster is Cliff Heffner, a smooth fielder with all the hitting prowess of your average beer leaguer. AAA shortstop Brandon Redding could prove to be a big defensive upgrade, but he's helpless against lefties, and there are no viable in-house alternatives at 2B.

Prediction: 75-87, 4th place

Fargo Woodchippers (NL) calolson View Hardball Dynasty Profile

By signing seven different ML FAs and promoting four others from their minor league system, Fargo is clearly looking to win now. The rotation, headed by Charles Franco is decent, but is bolstered by a strong pen. Relief aces like Wesley Cook, Raul Trevino, and Carl Lee won't blow many leads between them. Star RF Roger Barclay has plenty of help in the lineup; along with Carlos Martinez and Andres Escuela, the Woodchippers have a solid core of hitters in place. Felipe Martin and Quinn Vernon aren't half bad, either, although both of them play positions currently filled by superior players. Regardless, they'll certainly make their way into the lineup, one way or another.

Prediction: 88-74, 2nd place

Vancouver Rubes (NL) evegoe View Hardball Dynasty Profile

During the offseason, the Rubes traded for relievers George Bailey and Frank Chen, while also signing reliever Richie Martin. That's good, because every starting pitcher on the roster outside of Darwin Duran comes with a question mark (Is Matty Wright's stuff or control good enough? Can Matty Whitaker find the strike zone? Does Yonder Duran have the stamina to go more than 5 innings?). The lineup is interesting; Ramiro Rijo is an atypical hitter for a right fielder, with excellent bat control and outstanding plate discipline, but very little power. Al Surkamp is a rising star, and a decent bet to finish in the Top 5 in MVP voting a couple of times in his prime. The defense should also be solid, with plus defenders patrolling shortstop and centerfield, although the Rubes could really use a backup for James Rose, and Dante Pong's defense looks pretty iffy at best. They're not the best team in the division, but Vancouver should be good enough to make things interesting, at the very least.

Prediction: 83-79, 3rd place