Thursday, December 13, 2012

The National League
(Also Know As Who Gives a Crap League!)
NL North
Montreal Otters have had a nice start to the season. They have a bit of a youth movement going on.
  • Pitching: Chris Jackson has front of the rotation potential and he is backed up a fairly strong starting staff. Ramon Martin is one of the top bullpen arms in the NL. The rest of the bullpen is a strong asset of the team.
  • Hitting: There is not a big scare bat in the line-up but they do have enough hitters to score a few runs.
  • Fielding: Defense is another strong point here. Last season they had the fewest errors in the world and had a good +/- ratio. They should finish near the top in fielding again this season.
Wins 89-94
Buffalo Freeze  is a team built for post season success.
  • Pitching: There staff starts with one of the best in the world Russell Reitz. He is backed up by Will Patel, Shane Kraemer, and Darren Hamilton to give the team an outstanding starting staff. The bullpen features the aging but still great Norm Garcia and Daniel Ransom giving them a great bridge from first inning to the ninth.
  • Hitting: Rey Mason,  Damaso Roque, and Yovani Lima gives this team a chance to score.
  • Fielding: Over the last few seasons there have been improvement to the defense here. They are still a bit below average but on the rise.
Wins 89-94


Toledo LittleGREENmen just missed the post season last year and are looking for a way to get that all important one more win.
  • Pitching: Clay Henry, Hank Xavier, Alberto Villalona, John Masato, and Rabbit McClellan gives the team a very nice quality rotation. One down side to this rotation is the lack of stamina to go along with a below average bullpen.
  • Hitting: Nothing is too scary about this line-up though last season they posted the 5th best OPS in the NL.
  • Fielding: The raw ratings of their defense makes this team look below average in the field.
Wins 88-93


New York Midtowners have had a little turn over the last few season but are still an aging squad.
  • Pitching: Angel Cueto is the ace of the staff and is supported by a couple of solid starters behind him. The bullpen has enough arms to pull out wins late in the game.
  • Hitting: Last season they had the second best OPS in the NL despite not have many great hitters. They have a solid 1-8 line-up though.
  • Fielding. The % was good and they had a solid +/- ratio on defense. Also the ratings look solid so they could be a top five fielding team this season.
Wins 78-82
NL East

Washington D.C. Black Bears have had half a decade sub 70 win totals and are about ready to make the turnaround.
  • Pitching: At this time the starters are fairly... Well lets just call them back of the rotation guys. As we reach the 20 game mark though this will change and a brilliant star will be called up. Victor Ayala AAA time is almost near the end. The second he touches the hill in the bigs he will be one of the top three pitchers in the world. Joel Priest may also be called upon to give them a very nice one-two punch. With those promotion the bullpen will be given a bit of a boost with the exiled starters.
  • Hitting: The front of the line-up is in nice shape with Bernie Winn, and Al Matos. Once Again though, AAA Super Stars are just about to be on the conference call. Ryuu Shigetoshi was acquired via a trade with the Mighty Millers of Minnesota for Dario Lee and Roger Jamison. Shigetoshi is going to run circles around the bases. Bo Parnell will also bring in a power bat into the line-up.
  • Fielding: This is a terrible fielding team. Last season they were way upside down in +/- while also having a bottom three %. This season might be a bit better but still very near the bottom.
Wins 93-97

Philadelphia Phillies are a NL traditional power house looking to regain the steam engine this season.
  • Pitching: Clayton Serra leads the rotation and they just received Trevor Wilkins by way of trade. Alex Clyburn still has a bunch of good innings in him as well. The bullpen is in good shape and can be trusted.
  • Hitting: The FA additions of Former MVPs Davey Fick and Victor Pulido make this already strong line-up even better. With Harvey Linton destine for FA or a pay cut you can almost add Jerry Leonard to the line-up next season.
  • Fielding: This is a very good defensive team. One of the best in the NL.
Wins 90-95


Pittsburgh Flying Dutchmen have found themselves in the post season in each of the last three years.
  • Pitching: The Rotation is not the prettiest girl at the dance but it will turn a few heads. The bullpen though is rock solid.
  • Hitting: Mega bat Danny Ramirez is the heart and soul of the line-up.
  • Fielding: Upside down on +/- last season and no improvements made the will find themselves very near the bottom.
Wins 80-85


Scranton Spam are in a bit of a twirl right now with a very large gap from the top players to the bottom guys.
  • Pitching: Deivi Trinidad is the staff ace and has had good success in the Majors so far. Pat Lillibridge is a very nice compliment to Trinidad. The bullpen is good enough but could be better.
  • Hitting: Einar Rodriguez needs to hit better or at least a little closer to his ratings. It does look like this season he is doing just that. Last season the won the rights to Roger Jamison in FA and traded for Julio Torres. Jamison really needs to start earning that huge pay check.
  • Fielding: I don't really see much in the raw ratings to think that the defense is very good. The Numbers though have them at 66+ plays to 33- and a .982%. I will call them below average for now.
Wins 76-81

 
NL South
 
Charleston Ashley Coopers have a chance to make the post season for the first time since S15.
 
  • Pitching: Three time CY winner Ted Timlin was brought in this off-season to lead the rotation. Add in the young arms of Hector Prado and Rafael Torres and you have yourself a solid front three. The bullpen is rather unimpressive though.
  • Hitting: The line-up doesn't have much stand-out star power but it also doesn't have many easy outs either.
  • Fielding: Fielding would improve with a move of Gill Cho to SS instead of CF and Rolando Puente into CF from RF. Last season they were a bottom five fielding squad.
Wins 83-87


 
Wichita Waves have been in total rebuild for the last few season. This is still a team for the future rather then this season. Loads of quality prospects here.
  • Pitching: Miguel Nieves is in his twilight but still has good inning to give.
  • Hitting: Ruben Espinoza is talented but right now the rest of the line-up is not that pretty.
  • Fielding: Terrible.
Wins 70-75


 
Houston Grandes have had a great run of nine straight division championships but now heading to reloading.
 
  • Pitching: Nothing too great in the rotation but still a pretty good pen.
  • Hitting: About a middle of the road or just below line-up.
  • Fielding: Since there has been a bunch of movement I just glanced at the ratings and they should hold up in the field just fine.
Wins 72-77


 
Charlotte Shock... GO ARMY!!!!!! With Houston in decline this team has a chance to make the post season.
  • Pitching: The starters are just not very exciting. The bullpen on the other hand is very talented.
  • Hitting: When you have a guy named Johnny Wayne in the middle of the line-up it adds points with me. Also, Max Valentin hits very well.
  • Fielding: Leave it to the marines to completely forget about defense. Pretty terrible right now. With the lack of a strong rotation the combination could be the downfall.
Wins 83-87


 NL West
 
 

Sacramento Renegades have had two World Series titles in the last five season but years with a lack of training budget has finally caught up with them.
 
  • Pitching: They still have an OK rotation but it is far from what it was. The bullpen still has Matt Burns as he make is way to Tony Ontiveros save record.
  • Hitting: The line-up is below average.
  • Fielding: Top five fielding team in the NL.
Wins 75-80
Vancouver Whitecaps are a solid team top to bottom but missing a little star power.
 
  • Pitching: The bullpen is the talk of this staff. Maybe the best bullpen in the NL. The rotation is not that good to look at though. They do give the team a chance I think though.
  • Hitting: The line-up is capable of scoring plenty of runs to help out the starters. Not too many holes up and down.
  • Fielding: Way too many - plays last season. -82 is just too many.
Wins 83-87
Las Vegas Xfinity have not been over .500 in 9 seasons.
  • Pitching: From top to bottom it really isn't that bad of a staff here.
  • Hitting: The line-up on the other hand is not that good.
  • Fielding: The defense here is great. Top three for sure.
Wins 80-85
Salem EliteDucks have been on the runner-up for the last six season.
 
  • Pitching: Big Dick Randall will always be one of me favorite plays in this world and I hope to add him to my roster next season. Overall though this team is lacking quality pitching and getting old.
  • Hitting: Four time MVP Jordan Weiss will continue to build his Hall of Fame resume. The line-up as a whole is above average.
  • Fielding: Top Five or better.
Wins 82-86
 
Post Season
 
  1. Washington D.C. Black Bears
     

Buffalo take the NLCS over Washington in 7. Reitz over Ayala in a great pitching match-up. One for the story books.
 
The World Series Goes to Buffalo in six over The Red Legs.
 
 
Awards
 
AL MVP
Jerry Leonard
 
NL MVP
Victor Pulido
 
AL Cy Young Graham Romero
 
NL Cy Young Russell Reitz
 
AL ROY Tex House

NL ROY Victor Ayala
 

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Season 26 Kick-Off Party
AL North
The Seattle Grunge have been the team to beat the last 3 seasons as is the case this season.
  • Pitching: They added ace Jarrod Walker  to their rotation giving them a great one-two with Dave Allen. Bud Cassidy, Candy McCarthy, and Fernando Ramirez put up great numbers last season as well. Fergie Hemingway,  Sam Woodson and Mac Lowe give them a a strong bullpen that will hold down leads after the starters are pulled. Safeco Fields did help them with the overall pitching numbers last season but even when they were on the road they put up top five numbers.
  • Hitting: To me, it was strange to see that they hit better at home then on the road. In fact, they were tied for 5th in the AL in OPS last season. The line-up is stocked with young talent led by ROY winning 2nd basemen Piper James. Jake Jennings had a career year last year on his way to winning the Silver Slugger for Right Fielders in a league that is stacked with great hitting Right Fields. All-Stars Marty MillsAlan LandrumDavid Bolivar andTrenidad Andujar make this line-up tough to work through.
  • Defense: Last season this was a top five fielding team and with little turn over in the off season they should still be right around there. They had 86+ plays to just 18- plays.
Wins 98-102
 
The Might Millers Of Minnesota(Tacoma?) have had a couple of off seasons after a nice run. There is a philosophy change going on here.
  • Pitching: Changing the ballpark is sort of a chicken shit way to improve a pitching staff. I never claimed to be all that brave though. One though Four in the rotation is as good as it gets around here. Former CY winners Bryce McMillon, Lyle Moran, Vladimir Olivares and Dario Lee gives them a chance to win every game. Last season each of them gave over 230 inning. Olivares had a very poor season last season but with the new park things should turn around. Rather then going with a four man rotation this season Pedro Rodriguez will be the fifth starter. With that the starters are going to be given a much larger pitch count so the bullpen doesn't mess up too many games again. The bullpen has been reworked a bit with the additions of Earl Russell, and Endy Simpson. I believe that this bullpen should be good.
  • Hitting:... Crickets. It seems like a long time since this was a good hitting team. Cookie Gandarillas is about the brightest star they have in the line-up. Dennis Yoshii can be helpful but only in a platoon. He did have a very nice HR/AB ratio last season though. Other then that it is a cream puff line-up. We might steal some bases this season though. We also might get caught a bunch too though.
  • Fielding: Last season the team only had 8- plays and 109+ plays. They were already the best fielding team in the world and they added Randy Kane and Kennie Morgan to to the work behind the plate because the CS% was .167! They also added Hong-Jin Feng and Felix Okajima to play some amazing defense.We will either loss 90 or win 90 I just don't know.
Wins 70-75

Pawtucket Juggernauts always seems to have a tough team to beat.
  • Pitching: Geraldo Belliard is one of the best bullpen arms in all of baseball and he is the anchor of strong bullpen. The rotation features Trevor Wilkins and Anthony Rivera at the front. After that it is a few place holder for few prospects to get ML ready.
  • Hitting: The line-up is fairly solid up and down like just about every year. Otis Richard can still hit very well and produce a ton of runs. Willis Richardson has a career OPS above .850 and also makes things happen with his bat. Nicholas Spruill and Yamid Bennett bring in nice depth.
  • Fielding: There is not much of a standout in the field here. Last season they were a bottom five defensive squad and I think that is about where they will be this season.
Wins 69-74
The Detroit Miracles might need just that to compete this season. The budget is a bit of a mess but tons of cash is coming off the books in the couple of season.
  • Pitching: The rotation is stocked up with 3-4 starters. Santiago Tarasco is young and has a good upside to work with. Benjamin Allen is a talented bullpen arm.
  • Hitting: The line-up is below average this season and should find themselves in the bottom five of hitting.
  • Fielding: Last season they were almost even in +/- and below the league average in % which will lead to a bottom five team.
Wins 55-60
AL East

Baltimore Baybirds brings this world together. Love them or hate them they are and have been for a long time the team to beat.
  • Pitching: The best in baseball. One through Five aces starting rotation. Armando Ramirez, Andy Markakis, Jonathan Knott, Ron Garcia, and Timothy Cather are the starting five. Hipolito Iglesias is the bullpen ace. They do have Piper McBride with a 50 overall rating! I don't ever remember them having a guy rated that low.
  • Hitting: No team hits better. Just a stacked line-up with plenty of MVPs and Silver Sluggers.
  • Fielding: One of the best fielding % in baseball last season to go along with nice +/- ratio made them a top three fielding team. Should be around there this season too.
Wins 110-115


Cincinnati Red Legs pushed their way into the post season last year losing to Baltimore in the ALCS. and only will get better this season.
  • Pitching: Graham Romero, Onan Takada, Willie Martin, Vic Colome, and Dave Barnes makes this one of the finest rotation in the league. The bullpen has a few solid arms and should hold the lead most of the time. They have two of the best Bullpen prospect in baseball with Hank Sears and Melvin Hasegawa so if things don't go well they have a couple of internal options to work with.
  • Hitting: Adding Harley Nunnally this off season gives them a mega bat in the middle of the line-up. As a team last season they posted a nice OPS of .760 so they are fairly solid up and down.
  • Fielding: Rigo Soto is one of the best shortstop in the league but has issues hitting right handed pitchers. Overall they are middle of the pack.
Wins 94-99


New York Knights are an upstart team with post season dreams this season.
Wins 88-92


Indianapolis Devils are in face lift mode.
  • Pitching: A very nice bullpen but not much up front. Tanner Meusel has a nice upside though.
  • Hitting: The Line-up a bit below average.
  • Fielding: Middle of the road
Wins 60-65



AL South
(Preview is going to get a little cheaper from here on out)

Little Rock Rollers have a new owner but should still be pushing for bye in the post season. They had some roster turnover but still have a very strong club.
Wins 98-102

Jackson Rollin Rebels had 95 wins last season and even traded away one of the best hitters in the game.
  • Pitching: Nothing stand-out. But finish towards the top last season.
  •  Hitting: Last season they had an OPS of .760 and should hover around there again.
  • Fielding:They are always near the top in fielding.
Wins 90-95
Durham Spitoons have been in hover mode below the .500 mark for many season in a row now.
  • Pitching: Erubiel Colome is the ace of the staff. After that is a few 3-5 guys. The pen is in pretty good shape though.
  • Hitting: Cristobal Mercado and J.B. Justice are pretty nice hitters. Pete Stein also brings a little offense in the line-up.
  • Fielding: Top Three
Wins 75-80
Memphis Packers are almost complete with their rebuild and could make a push this season for a post season spot.
  • Pitching: Right now, Starting pitching is a weak spot. There is some younger arms that will improve though and AAA has a couple of starters that are about ready. The bullpen is well armed and should hold teams from scoring.
  • Hitting: The line-up is well put together with guys that can work the count and get the starters out of the game early.
  • Fielding: Middle of the pack or just below.
Wins 78-82

AL West
 
 
Tucson Vendetta Ride are for sure ready to contend this season. The minors are stacked too.
 
  • Pitching: The rotation in solid and has young guys with a nice upside. They also have some of their best arms still in AAA waiting to get their chance to shine.
  • Hitting: This line-up might be as powerful as Baltimore's by mid-season. Robinson Lanier, Luis Contreras, and Vic Posada are just the tip right now. In AAA Tex House and Rickey Torres are waiting for their call.
  • Fielding: Yuck! But with those hitters I guess you have to get them in there.
Wins 96-100
Scottsdale Slam are in a bit of decline right now.
 
  • Pitching: They should be in the middle this season.
  • Hitting: Above average
  • Fielding: just above average.
Wins 79-84
Fresno Grizzlies should continue to improve this season but not at a post season level yet.
  • Pitching: They should be about middle of the pack or just below.
  • Hitting: Some real big time bats here and some nice complementary hitters as well.
  • Fielding: About average.
Wins 61-66
Los Angeles Scandals need some fine tuning.
  • Pitching: The rotation has a few 4-5 guys but the bullpen is in ok shape.
  • Hitting: After Rafael Alarcon there is not much here to scare pitchers.
  • Fielding: Terrible!
Wins 55-60
 
Post Season
 
  1. Baltimore
  2. Seattle
  3. Little Rock
  4. Tucson
  5. Cincinnati
  6. New York
Cincinnati take the ALCS in 6 over Tucson.