Baseball with a few twists: The Vincent Memorial League

[Honolulu Blue]

I finally got around to trying something I've wanted to do for a long time.

BACKSTORY: After the great strike and lockout of 2008-09, Major League Baseball, its league and its teams blew apart. But baseball was far too big of a sport to be ignored, so baseball reorganized into the Vincent Memorial League. Instead of organizing on regional or philosophical grounds, they reorganized into four divisions based on the size of the owners' pocketbooks.

These are the teams in each division:

Division I: New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves, Long Island Mets, Seattle Mariners.

Division II - East: St. Louis Cardinals, Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, Philadelphia Phillies, Baltimore Orioles, Toronto Blue Jays, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds.

Division II - West: San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros, Colorado Rockies, Anaheim Angels, Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres, South Chicago White Sox.

Division III: Grand Rapids Whitecaps, Battle Creek Master Batters, Lansing Lugnuts, Flint Roadmasters, Saginaw Gears, Troy Suburbans, Traverse City Cherries, Iron Mountain Miners.

All teams will have a more or less even start in their division. The regular season winners of Divisions I and III will play for the AL Cup, while the pennant winners of Divisions II will contest the NL Cup. The Cup winners in each league will play for the Champions Cup.

Oh, and one more thing - the first place finisher in Divisions II and III is promoted to the next higher division, while the last place finisher in Divisions I and II is relegated to the next lower division.

I'm not taking charge of any teams for now; I'll wait 5-10 years for the league to settle down, and then I'll take over the worst team in Division IV and see what I can do with them.

There are several purposes to this dynasty:

1) Can Division III teams with their $20 million budgets ever be competitive with Division I teams with their $80 mil+ budgets?
2) How will promotion and relegation affect the ebb and flow of the power of each division? Will the same teams be relegated and promoted each year, or will the teams move around?
3) Who will be the stars of this new league?
4) Can I lead my chosen team to glory and Division I?

NEXT: Nuts and bolts. It's more technical than usual, so you might want to skip it if that's not your thing.

[Honolulu Blue]

This is a big, hairy project that took me several hours to set up and had more than a few setbacks. I'm using OOTP4. Yes, I've heard the rumors that there's a new and better version. If anyone is willing to send me $35, I'd be glad to pick it up. Anyway, here are the initial specs for each division:

DIVISION I:

* Big team market
* Very Good fan loyalty
* Fan interest of 75
* Local and national TV revenue are $20 million each per year
* Merchandising kicks in another $20 million per year
* Team stocked with 40 round initial draft; Div I teams go first in each round

DIVISION II:

* Small team market
* Fair fan loyalty
* Fan interest of 40
* Starts with $5 million in cash
* Local TV revenue is $5 million per year
* No national TV revenue
* Merchandising kicks in another $5 million per year
* Team stocked with 40 round initial draft; Div II teams go last in each round

DIVISION III:

* Almost Nonexistent team market
* Extremely Poor fan loyalty
* Fan interest of 10
* Starts with $1 million in cash
* Local TV revenue is $1 million each per year - no national TV revenue
* Merchandising kicks in another $1 million per year
* Team stocked with two A "fills"

What I'm trying to do here is create a league where there are three distinct classes of teams. Division I teams figure to spend $80 million and up per year. The best players should all congregate there. Division II teams will probably spend about $30-50 million per. They'll have decent rosters, but should get thumped by Div I teams more often than not. Division III teams will be lucky to generate $20 million. They will serve as collections of the young and incompetent.

There are some special promotion/releations rules that I'll try to remember:

After promotion:
1. The team moves up two levels in team market and one levels in fan loyalty.
2. If moving up to Division I, the team signs a new national TV contract equal to the standard for its division. LOCAL TV REVENUE ALWAYS STAYS THE SAME, NO MATTER WHAT DIVISION A TEAM PLAYS IN.
3. The team increases its merchandise revenue to the standard for its division.
4. Special rule for teams originally in Division III: A 15,000 seat stadium expansion is authorized when a team first makes it to a new division and stays there for at least two full seasons. The expansion takes effect at the beginning of the third season.

After relegation:
1. The team moves down two levels in team market and one levels in fan loyalty.
2. The team gives up its old national TV contract (if any).
3. The team's merchandise revenue decreases to the standard for its division.

One more little thing: The teams play 20-40 games outside of their division. I didn't want it this way, but the schedule maker I'm using won't let me have games exclusively within one division. It's pretty irrelevant for the Div II teams, but the Div III teams figure to lose almost all the Div I games, at least for awhile. This will make the Div I teams look a little better than they are.

I know this all sounds complicated, but I'll try to walk you through everything that matters. For now, let's watch while the league unfolds.

NEXT: The first three years

[Honolulu Blue]

The first three years are filled with me tweaking the settings to get the batting numbers right, and also to get the "right" players on the "right" teams. I also didn't do any promotion or relegation in these years. So I'll just summarize them briefly:

2010 SEASON

AL Cup: Atlanta (100-62) over Flint (82-80), 4-0
NL Cup: Seattle (92-70) over Cincinnati (92-70), 4-1
Champions Cup: Atlanta over Seattle, 4-1

2011 SEASON

AL Cup: Atlanta (99-63) over Saginaw (77-85), 4-0
NL Cup: Houston (88-74) over Detroit (87-75), 4-0
Champions Cup: Houston over Atlanta, 4-3

2012 SEASON

AL Cup: LA (108-54) over Traverse City (78-85), 4-1
NL Cup: Philadelphia (93-69) over Seattle (113-49), 4-3
Champions Cup: LA over Philadelphia, 4-1

BTW, in case you were wondering, the tie breaker for division titles is a one game playoff. For relegation, it's poorer ratio of runs scored to runs against.

NEXT: Continuing on, in slightly more detail

[Honolulu Blue]

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Atlanta 103 59 .636 -- .263 3.15
Arizona 100 62 .617 3 .259 3.46
Los Angeles 100 62 .617 3 .253 3.00
Texas 96 66 .593 7 .273 3.49
Long Island 84 78 .519 19 .244 3.99
New York 84 78 .519 19 .260 3.77
Boston 80 82 .494 23 .252 4.26
San Francisco 77 85 .475 26 .258 4.27
Division III
Saginaw 84 78 .519 -- .268 4.51
Traverse City 82 80 .506 2 .268 4.24
Battle Creek 74 88 .457 10 .250 4.86
Grand Rapids 74 88 .457 10 .252 4.24
Troy 74 88 .457 10 .268 4.62
Lansing 68 94 .420 16 .263 5.28
Flint 65 97 .401 19 .243 4.72
Iron Mountain 51 111 .315 33 .221 4.77

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Cleveland 98 65 .601 -- .265 3.17
Philadelphia 97 66 .595 1 .255 3.60
Toronto 91 71 .562 6.5 .249 3.31
Detroit 78 84 .481 19.5 .227 2.98
Cincinnati 72 90 .444 25.5 .242 3.92
Baltimore 69 93 .426 28.5 .227 3.61
Chicago 64 98 .395 33.5 .215 4.20
Pittsburgh 64 98 .395 33.5 .243 4.13
Division II - West
Seattle 106 56 .654 -- .267 2.61
St. Louis 104 58 .642 2 .254 2.83
Houston 82 80 .506 24 .255 4.39
San Diego 80 82 .494 26 .266 4.03
South Chicago 79 83 .488 27 .251 4.05
Anaheim 74 88 .457 32 .242 3.18
Oakland 73 89 .451 33 .237 4.29
Colorado 66 96 .407 40 .258 5.26

The Braves fought off the Diamondbacks and Dodgers for the Division I title. Saginaw took the Div III pennant. Cleveland won a playoff to take the II-East nod, while Seattle barely avoided a playoff to win II-West. San Francisco, despite a superficially decent record, was the worst in Division I and will be heading down. The Cubs lost the tiebreaker to the Pirates and move into Division III.

AL Cup: Atlanta over Saginaw, 4-0
NL Cup: Seattle over Cleveland, 4-3
Champions Cup: Atlanta over Seattle, 4-2

Movin' up: Saginaw, Seattle
Movin' down: San Fran, Chicago

[Honolulu Blue]

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Texas 114 48 .704 -- .284 3.25
Seattle 96 66 .593 18 .239 2.84
Atlanta 88 74 .543 26 .244 3.34
Los Angeles 87 75 .537 27 .244 3.51
Long Island 85 77 .525 29 .255 3.36
Arizona 82 80 .506 32 .261 3.61
Boston 81 81 .500 33 .235 4.02
New York 77 85 .475 37 .244 4.06
Division III
Traverse City 113 49 .698 -- .288 3.37
Troy 79 83 .488 34 .263 4.26
Flint 71 91 .438 42 .241 4.54
Grand Rapids 70 92 .432 43 .230 4.39
Iron Mountain 70 92 .432 43 .228 3.93
Battle Creek 62 100 .383 51 .240 4.86
Chicago 61 101 .377 52 .235 4.29
Lansing 60 102 .370 53 .249 5.72

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Cleveland 92 70 .568 -- .264 3.59
Philadelphia 88 74 .543 4 .274 3.71
Toronto 85 77 .525 7 .236 4.23
Detroit 82 80 .506 10 .258 3.54
Saginaw 81 81 .500 11 .251 4.07
Cincinnati 77 85 .475 15 .246 4.55
Baltimore 67 95 .414 25 .257 3.85
Pittsburgh 63 99 .389 29 .260 4.85
Division II - West
St. Louis 117 45 .722 -- .269 3.28
San Francisco 100 62 .617 17 .274 3.36
San Diego 90 72 .556 27 .276 3.72
Oakland 88 74 .543 29 .249 3.43
Anaheim 78 84 .481 39 .242 3.93
Houston 75 87 .463 42 .260 4.57
South Chicago 60 102 .370 57 .259 5.40
Colorado 53 109 .327 64 .257 6.60

Unlike last year, three of the four pennant races were blowouts. Texas, Seattle, and St. Louis each won over 110 games. Cleveland took the Division II-East title by a decent four game margin. New York and Colorado found themselves relegated for next season.

AL Cup: Texas over Traverse City 4-1
NL Cup: St. Louis over Cleveland 4-1
Champions Cup: Texas over St. Louis 4-3

Movin' up: St. Louis, Traverse City
Movin' down: New York, Colorado

[Honolulu Blue]

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Texas 103 59 .636 -- .263 3.00
Atlanta 98 64 .605 5 .237 2.87
Seattle 96 66 .593 7 .238 2.88
Los Angeles 95 67 .586 8 .245 2.93
St. Louis 89 73 .549 14 .248 3.37
Arizona 88 74 .543 15 .261 3.70
Long Island 83 79 .512 20 .245 3.15
Boston 65 97 .401 38 .232 4.38
Division III
Colorado 86 77 .528 -- .280 4.68
Battle Creek 85 78 .521 1 .245 4.40
Chicago 77 85 .475 8.5 .234 3.95
Troy 74 88 .457 11.5 .254 4.61
Grand Rapids 72 90 .444 13.5 .236 3.95
Flint 66 96 .407 19.5 .234 4.34
Iron Mountain 62 100 .383 23.5 .228 3.78
Lansing 58 104 .358 27.5 .245 5.28

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Philadelphia 97 66 .595 -- .278 4.22
Cincinnati 96 67 .589 1 .254 3.50
Cleveland 91 71 .562 5.5 .261 3.50
Toronto 88 74 .543 8.5 .261 3.57
Saginaw 79 83 .488 17.5 .243 3.72
Detroit 72 90 .444 24.5 .259 4.67
Baltimore 68 94 .420 28.5 .247 4.20
Pittsburgh 54 108 .333 42.5 .255 5.29
Division II - West
New York 101 61 .623 -- .264 3.32
Traverse City 89 73 .549 12 .262 3.95
Houston 86 76 .531 15 .261 3.93
San Francisco 86 76 .531 15 .261 3.46
Anaheim 82 80 .506 19 .244 3.53
San Diego 77 85 .475 24 .262 4.00
Oakland 75 87 .463 26 .250 3.62
South Chicago 56 106 .346 45 .250 4.93

Two teams had to survive playoff games to win their respective pennants - the Phillies in II-East and the Rockies in Division III. The Rockies were glad to get out of the obscurity of Div III so quickly. The Yankees cruised to a title over surpringly solid Traverse City. Texas took the Division I title. Boston and Pittsburgh earned their tickets out.

AL Cup: Texas over Colorado, 4-1
NL Cup: New York over Philadelphia, 4-3
Champions Cup: Texas over New York, 4-0

Movin' up: New York, Colorado
Movin' down: Boston, Pittsburgh

[Honolulu Blue]

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Seattle 102 60 .630 -- .249 2.52
Arizona 100 62 .617 2 .253 3.47
Atlanta 99 63 .611 3 .254 2.94
New York 99 63 .611 3 .254 3.15
Texas 95 67 .586 7 .251 3.26
Los Angeles 88 74 .543 14 .233 3.02
St. Louis 78 84 .481 24 .249 3.63
Long Island 72 90 .444 30 .236 3.36
Division III
Chicago 83 79 .512 -- .246 3.76
Grand Rapids 77 85 .475 6 .242 4.69
Troy 76 86 .469 7 .259 4.68
Battle Creek 74 88 .457 9 .242 4.48
Pittsburgh 68 94 .420 15 .259 5.29
Lansing 64 98 .395 19 .260 5.03
Iron Mountain 63 99 .389 20 .242 4.28
Flint 58 104 .358 25 .234 4.58

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Toronto 99 63 .611 -- .258 3.12
Philadelphia 98 64 .605 1 .278 3.90
Cincinnati 92 70 .568 7 .243 3.44
Cleveland 84 78 .519 15 .260 4.05
Saginaw 78 84 .481 21 .253 4.28
Boston 71 91 .438 28 .242 3.96
Baltimore 69 93 .426 30 .244 4.07
Detroit 62 100 .383 37 .252 4.58
Division II - West
Oakland 105 57 .648 -- .255 3.19
Colorado 94 68 .580 11 .283 4.35
Traverse City 89 73 .549 16 .261 3.66
San Diego 81 81 .500 24 .268 4.19
San Francisco 78 84 .481 27 .257 3.52
Houston 77 85 .475 28 .243 4.25
South Chicago 60 102 .370 45 .254 5.14
Anaheim 59 103 .364 46 .245 4.59

After two years away, the Cubs finally get back to Division II by earning their pennant. The Athletics had a pretty easy time in II-West. The Mariners got back to the postseason by holding off the Diamondbacks and others. Toronto won the other title, in II-East. The Mets pay a (hopefully temporary) visit to Division II, while Anaheim slinks over to Div III.

AL Cup: Seattle over Chicago, 4-2
NL Cup: Oakland over Toronto, 4-3
Champions Cup: Seattle over Oakland, 4-2

Movin' up: Chicago, Oakland
Movin' down: Long Island, Anaheim

[Honolulu Blue]

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Los Angeles 106 57 .650 -- .242 2.79
Texas 105 58 .644 1 .268 3.20
Arizona 91 71 .562 14.5 .248 3.32
St. Louis 91 71 .562 14.5 .257 3.40
New York 90 72 .556 15.5 .242 2.98
Seattle 90 72 .556 15.5 .236 2.79
Oakland 81 81 .500 24.5 .239 3.43
Atlanta 80 82 .494 25.5 .249 3.25
Division III
Battle Creek 84 79 .515 -- .253 4.04
Anaheim 83 80 .509 1 .253 3.88
Troy 74 88 .457 9.5 .264 4.80
Iron Mountain 73 89 .451 10.5 .244 3.67
Lansing 73 89 .451 10.5 .271 5.34
Grand Rapids 63 99 .389 20.5 .250 4.77
Pittsburgh 59 103 .364 24.5 .250 5.24
Flint 55 107 .340 28.5 .237 5.54

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Toronto 101 61 .623 -- .271 3.52
Long Island 100 62 .617 1 .264 2.95
Philadelphia 97 65 .599 4 .275 3.60
Cincinnati 95 67 .586 6 .253 3.61
Cleveland 79 83 .488 22 .261 3.99
Detroit 75 87 .463 26 .261 4.17
Baltimore 64 98 .395 37 .236 4.21
Boston 52 110 .321 49 .237 4.59
Division II - West
Chicago 99 63 .611 -- .277 4.25
Colorado 92 70 .568 7 .285 4.40
Traverse City 86 76 .531 13 .251 3.59
Saginaw 85 77 .525 14 .269 4.06
San Francisco 83 79 .512 16 .263 3.95
Houston 71 91 .438 28 .244 4.60
South Chicago 59 103 .364 40 .260 5.87
San Diego 58 104 .358 41 .248 5.00

Wow! Another year with hotly contested pennant races, two requiring a playoff. In the big money division, the Dodgers held off the Rangers. In Division III, Battle Creek won the playoff against Anaheim. Toronto didn't need a playoff to beat Long Island, but they only won by one anyway. The only relatively blowout was the Cubbies in II-West. The bad news is Atlanta heads for Division II, while in the "what the heck happened?" department, Boston will find themselves in Division III next year.

AL Cup: Battle Creek(!) over LA 4-3
NL Cup: Toronto over Chicago 4-3
Champions Cup: Toronto over Battle Creek 4-3

Movin' up: Battle Creek, Toronto
Movin' down: Atlanta, Boston

NEXT: It's time to get off my duff and pick my challenge. Which one will it be?

[Honolulu Blue]

Originally posted by Ronnie Dobbs2
I'd be interested in seeing what the average salaries for the teams are. Do the small squads have any "money" players?

Well, since you asked, here are the payrolls as of the offseason of 2017-18. Free agents and scouts/coaches haven't been signed, so these numbers will probably go up by opening day:

Payrolls:
1. Seattle...........$ 105,865,300
2. Atlanta...........$ 87,898,400
3. Texas.............$ 85,864,500
4. New York..........$ 83,673,300
5. Arizona...........$ 79,929,300
6. St. Louis.........$ 71,651,900
7. Oakland...........$ 63,718,700
8. Los Angeles.......$ 61,129,100
9. Long Island.......$ 56,774,700
10. Toronto..........$ 50,770,700
11. Philadelphia.....$ 48,983,700
12. Colorado.........$ 43,781,000
13. Cincinnati.......$ 36,666,500
14. Chicago..........$ 34,503,200
15. San Francisco....$ 33,509,400
16. Saginaw..........$ 30,221,900
17. Boston...........$ 29,796,600
18. Cleveland........$ 29,746,100
19. Baltimore........$ 26,022,700
20. San Diego........$ 24,987,000
21. Detroit..........$ 22,708,700
22. Houston..........$ 20,092,300
23. Anaheim..........$ 19,609,400
24. Traverse City....$ 17,932,700
25. Pittsburgh.......$ 16,844,000
26. Battle Creek.....$ 14,922,500
27. South Chicago....$ 14,013,000
28. Troy.............$ 13,020,000
29. Flint............$ 10,699,800
30. Iron Mountain....$ 8,793,600
31. Lansing..........$ 8,693,400
32. Grand Rapids.....$ 8,245,800

Since each team has a different number of players, I can't give you an exact average salary without going through all of the teams' front office windows. 30 players per team should be close enough for government work.

Obviously, the smaller teams do have some players making decent salaries, though none show up on the top 25 salaries list.

And what the heck is Boston wasting its money and market size on to be doing so poorly?

First, Boston's financial history:


Year Win Loss Pct Pos Attendance Revenue Payroll +/-
2017 52 110 .321 8 1,875,483 $37,684,302 $46,761,460 $-9,077,158
2016 71 91 .438 6 2,061,472 $39,247,523 $64,836,826 $-25,589,303
2015 65 97 .401 8 2,135,663 $74,609,240 $76,926,190 $-2,316,950
2014 81 81 .500 7 2,374,779 $79,730,628 $79,037,934 $692,694
2013 80 82 .494 7 2,527,720 $84,247,022 $91,157,322 $-6,910,300
2012 83 79 .512 7 2,710,171 $90,995,458 $86,326,417 $4,669,041
2011 97 65 .599 3 2,769,600 $91,335,039 $101,953,544 $-10,618,505
2010 94 68 .580 5 2,769,778 $90,570,576 $112,317,982 $-21,747,406

Their current salaries:

Pos Name Salary Through Left

MR C Velazquez $ 3,800,000 2018 NONE
SP J Weiss $ 3,420,000 2018 NONE
3B B Mayn $ 3,192,000 2019 1 year(s)
MR A Blankenchip $ 2,945,000 2020 2 year(s)
SP S Brouillard $ 2,495,000 2018 NONE
CF J Formella $ 2,280,000 2020 2 year(s)
SP L James $ 2,090,000 2020 2 year(s)
2B M Warzecha $ 1,710,000 2020 2 year(s)
2B L Murphy $ 1,596,000 2019 1 year(s)
SS R Cha $ 855,000 2020 2 year(s)
LF C Hadleman $ 684,000 2020 2 year(s)
CL J Cato $ 311,000 2019 1 year(s)
C J Canz $ 258,900 2018 NONE
1B O Gomez $ 241,700 2018 NONE
CF R Mathysik $ 233,800 2018 NONE
MR T Viele $ 134,600 2018 NONE
1B L Odemark $ 128,400 2018 NONE
CL L Penalver $ 110,800 2018 NONE
SP L Jaimes $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
SP A Guthrie $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
CF D Deegan $ 100,000 2018 NONE
LF R Meyers $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
SP P Virgilio $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
SP E Basford $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
MR V Barrientos $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
1B D Begerow $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
SP J Fernie $ 100,000 2018 NONE
MR L Lopez $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
SS M Bledsoe $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
3B R Sanchez $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
MR B Morcom $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
RF E Settle $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
SP J Angers $ 100,000 2018 NONE
MR R Mayorga $ 100,000 2018 Automatic
SP J Autellet $ 100,000 2018 Automatic

And their current ratings:

BATTERS :
ACTUAL RATINGS RUNNING DEF.
Name Age Pos CONTACT POWER EYE SP STA RANGE
M. Warzecha 29 2B 4 5 3 D C E
J. Formella 34 CF 4 5 5 B C A
B. Mayn 37 3B 4 5 4 C C C
R. Cha 30 SS 3 5 5 D B D
L. Murphy 38 2B 3 6 4 C C C
M. Bledsoe 24 SS 4 2 6 E D C
R. Sanchez 23 3B 4 3 5 D D C
C. Hadleman 25 LF 4 3 4 B E B
D. Begerow 29 1B 5 2 6 C D C
D. Deegan 25 CF 1 5 5 B A B
A. Park 22 2B 3 3 6 D B B
O. Gomez 34 1B 3 3 5 E E C
E. Settle 24 RF 2 3 5 C A C
R. Mathysik 32 CF 2 3 4 B D C
J. Canz 31 C 2 4 6 E C B
L. Martinez 23 3B 3 2 4 D D D
B. Dufour 23 RF 2 3 3 D D C
P. Deuchar 30 CF 0 3 5 C C D
C. Hempy 19 2B 0 3 4 D B C
L. Odemark 23 1B 0 2 3 E D C
R. Meyers 24 LF 0 2 2 C B C

PITCHERS :
ACTUAL RATINGS DURATION
Name Age Role STUFF MOVEM. CON STA REL
C. Velazquez 34 MR 9 7 4 * C
A. Blankenchip 25 MR 7 7 7 * D
J. Weiss 36 SP 4 7 7 E *
L. James 34 SP 4 6 7 B *
P. Virgilio 25 SP 7 6 4 D *
V. Barrientos 23 MR 6 6 7 * B
E. Basford 25 SP 3 5 7 D *
J. Angers 25 SP 2 4 7 C *
J. Autellet 25 SP 3 6 3 B *
S. Brouillard 37 SP 3 4 5 D *
J. Fernie 28 SP 3 5 4 D *
A. Guthrie 26 SP 1 5 7 E *
L. Lopez 21 MR 6 5 7 * A
L. Jaimes 31 SP 0 4 5 C *
A. Keaton 26 SP 2 5 5 C *
M. Pendleton 22 SP 1 2 4 B *
J. Cato 29 CL 3 6 6 * C
K. Hartsch 26 SP 1 2 5 E *
B. Collins 21 SP 2 5 2 C *
J. Portillo 22 SP 2 1 5 B *
R. Mayorga 25 MR 3 3 5 * C
B. Morcom 23 MR 3 6 4 * C
L. Penalver 31 CL 1 5 3 * E
S. Salomon 22 MR 2 5 4 * A
T. Viele 31 MR 1 3 5 * B
J. Trulson 32 MR 0 5 4 * A
C. Perrone 22 MR 2 3 3 * C

It looks like they got in over their heads from the very start and they've been shedding payroll ever since. They still need to shed some payroll.

Looking at their ratings, they have decent pitchers, but their hitters wouldn't make a good AAA squad. I know what I'd do if I ran them, but I'm sorry to say that the computer is going to have some rough times with the Red Sox before they get better. Perhaps they'll find a superstar in the draft.

[Honolulu Blue]

2017-18 OFFSEASON

I've chosen to head to Flint to take over the Roadmasters. The goal is to make it to Division I within 20 years and win the Champions Cup while in Division I.

House rules:

* Limit on ticket prices - $7 in Division III, $10 in Division II, $15 in Division I
* Can raise ticket prices $1 per year to the maximum for the division
* Limited to two free agents per year - one unlimited, and one "project" (under 26 years old with fewer than 50 major league games or 50 IP)
* Limited to $5 million in cash in Division III, $15 million in Division II, and $50 million in Division I
* No initiating trades, but can accept computer trades
* No offers for coaches or minor league managers on the first day
* Must use 5 man rotation until playoffs

OK, now that that's out of the way, let's take a look at the team. First, the financial side.

The good news is that we have very loyal fans and have sold out the park every year. We also have over $3 million available to resign our players. The bad news is multi-pronged:

1) The team market remains almost nonexistent
2) Fan interest is at 15
3) I'm over $1 million in the hole
4) The team lost almost $2 million last year
5) We have only one big salary, SP Nathaniel Montgomery's $2.9 million tag
6) We have 15 players whose contracts will expire at the end of this season

So I'm in quite a hole even before I start. I'm almost scared to look at the roster...

BATTERS :
ACTUAL RATINGS RUNNING DEF.
Name Age Pos CONTACT POWER EYE SP STA RANGE
M. Bute 29 1B 3 6 5 E D D
G. Bailey 26 C 5 3 6 D E C
J. Reah 29 2B 2 5 4 C E C
A. Wooten 30 2B 2 5 3 C A C
G. Halfacre 25 SS 4 4 6 D D C
R. Gradwohl 24 1B 3 3 7 D D D
A. Bejarano 35 LF 3 4 6 D D D
L. Conley 32 CF 1 5 4 C C B
R. Marrero 30 RF 1 5 4 D D C
J. Hall 24 RF 3 3 6 B D C
J. Ladrig 32 2B 1 4 6 C B B
L. Muni 23 3B 3 3 5 D E C
R. Jackson 33 C 4 3 6 E E C
R. Mendes 26 SS 2 3 5 E D D
R. Keizo 32 CF 2 2 2 C C C
L. Beliel 25 SS 2 2 8 D B C
T. Moldonado 30 LF 1 2 3 C D C
A. Perz 26 2B 1 4 5 E C E
V. Paulk 22 CF 1 3 3 A A B
A. Dillon 24 2B 0 3 4 D B E
J. Hallion 25 RF 2 2 4 C B D
H. Palacios 22 1B 0 3 2 D E C
C. Spelius 23 1B 0 2 2 D D E
C. Bianco 21 3B 1 2 4 D D A
K. Samuels 22 SS 0 2 2 E E E
L. Yasuyuki 22 CF 1 2 2 C D C

PITCHERS :
ACTUAL RATINGS DURATION
Name Age Role STUFF MOVEM. CON STA REL
N. Montgomery 28 SP 5 6 4 B *
G. Aladren 22 SP 4 3 5 B *
R. Prada 26 SP 4 6 5 C *
M. Broadlake 23 SP 2 2 4 A *
M. Hausrath 31 SP 0 3 7 B *
M. Baldy 30 SP 1 5 5 B *
J. Israel 26 SP 1 5 4 A *
B. Abendschon 30 SP 0 5 5 B *
M. Vargas 22 SP 1 2 5 C *
W. Cuomo 32 SP 0 5 4 C *
J. Kortum 24 MR 5 5 9 * B
F. English 21 SP 0 3 3 C *
S. Quezada 24 CL 2 2 4 * D
M. Vergara 30 MR 1 6 6 * D
B. Hempel 31 MR 0 4 4 E C
P. Jones 24 MR 2 4 2 E C
M. Fisher 30 MR 1 3 5 * D
J. Roenigk 21 MR 2 3 4 * C
BATTERS :
TALENT RATINGS RUNNING DEF.
Name Age Pos CONTACT POWER EYE/DIS. SP STA RANGE
M. Bute 29 1B Fair Good Good E D D
G. Bailey 26 C Good Fair Good D E C
J. Reah 29 2B Fair Good Average C E C
A. Wooten 30 2B Fair Average Fair C A C
G. Halfacre 25 SS Average Fair Good D D C
R. Gradwohl 24 1B Fair Average Brilliant D D D
A. Bejarano 35 LF Fair Fair Good D D D
L. Conley 32 CF Poor Average Average C C B
R. Marrero 30 RF Poor Average Fair D D C
J. Hall 24 RF Average Fair Good B D C
J. Ladrig 32 2B Poor Fair Good C B B
L. Muni 23 3B Fair Fair Brilliant D E C
R. Jackson 33 C Fair Fair Good E E C
R. Mendes 26 SS Poor Average Good E D D
R. Keizo 32 CF Poor Fair Poor C C C
L. Beliel 25 SS Fair Poor Brilliant D B C
T. Moldonado 30 LF Poor Average Fair C D C
A. Perz 26 2B Poor Good Good E C E
V. Paulk 22 CF Fair Fair Average A A B
A. Dillon 24 2B Average Good Brilliant D B E
J. Hallion 25 RF Average Fair Average C B D
H. Palacios 22 1B Fair Average Average D E C
C. Spelius 23 1B Average Fair Fair D D E
C. Bianco 21 3B Fair Average Good D D A
K. Samuels 22 SS Poor Fair Fair E E E
L. Yasuyuki 22 CF Fair Fair Fair C D C

PITCHERS :
TALENT RATINGS
Name Age Role STUFF MOVEMENT CONTROL DUR
N. Montgomery 28 SP Average Average Average B
G. Aladren 22 SP Brilliant Brilliant Good B
R. Prada 26 SP Good Good Average C
M. Broadlake 23 SP Average Average Average A
M. Hausrath 31 SP Poor Poor Good B
M. Baldy 30 SP Fair Average Average B
J. Israel 26 SP Average Average Average A
B. Abendschon 30 SP Fair Average Average B
M. Vargas 22 SP Average Average Good C
W. Cuomo 32 SP Fair Good Average C
J. Kortum 24 MR Brilliant Brilliant Brilliant B
F. English 21 SP Good Good Average C
S. Quezada 24 CL Average Average Brilliant D
M. Vergara 30 MR Fair Average Average D
B. Hempel 31 MR Fair Fair Fair C
P. Jones 24 MR Good Good Good C
M. Fisher 30 MR Poor Fair Average D
J. Roenigk 21 MR Good Average Fair C

Let's go around the horn and look at the roster, starting with 1st base (age in parentheses):

1B Mike Bute (29) - Hit .248 with 12 HR and 64 RBI last year. The computer listed him as the cleanup and #3 hitter (depending on whether the pitcher was a lefty or righty). He's spent his whole 8-year career with Flint and this past season was his best one. Career: .230 BA, 48 HR in 3011 AB. It's sad to think he's my best hitter, but he probably is. Not really adequate, but I have bigger problems.

2B Anderson Wooten (30) - Hit .235 with 49 doubles last year. Career: .221 BA in 7-year career with Saginaw, Cleveland, and Flint. Shouldn't be anything more than a platoon player/pinch runner/utility infielder, but again he probably has to start for now.

2B Josh Reah (29) - Hit .269 with a .407 slugging% in limited action (145 AB). Career: .223 BA in 3-year career with Iron Mountain & Flint (457 AB). Reah has a little pop and a decent eye, but that .269 looks like a fluke and he would probably slip some with extended play. Little to choose from between Wooten and Reah.

SS George Halfacre (25) - Hit .237 in limited play (160 AB). Career: .244 BA in 2-year career, all with Flint. Decent enough fielder and willing to take a walk, but not a good batting average and no power. Not championship quality, but a good enough solution for now.

3B Lowell Muni (23) - No major league stats. Based on his ratings he could be a decent utility infielder who can play both 2B and 3B. He has a good eye, but average and speed won't be adequate to be a top-flight leadoff man. Still, he's a good man to have around - if not as a starter. Could develop a little, and we hope for some.

LF Alphonso Bejarano (35) - Hit .210 with limited power in 130 games. Career: .279 BA in 5-year career (1209 AB) with Troy and Flint. Bad outfielder, slow, quickly declining as a hitter, no pop. What is this man doing on my team?

CF Larry Conley (32) - Hit .140 (that's right - one-forty) in 299 AB. Career: .192 BA in 738 games over 7-year career with Grand Rapids and Flint. Had a decent season back in 2010, but hasn't hit over .200 since. No way should he be starting, and really shouldn't be on the team. I should note that he is a great bunter.

RF Rudolf Marrero (30) - Hit .262 with 12 doubles and 4 homers in pinch hitting duty (107 AB). Career: .221 BA in 326 AB (5 years with Battle Creek, Grand Rapids, and Flint). I think I've found my cleanup hitter, at least against lefties (.318 with .705 SLG against them last year). His ratings aren't all that good, and figures to regress to somewhere near his career average. Tough to know what to do with him.

RF John Hall (24) - No major league action last year. Career: .184 BA in two cups of coffee (49 AB) with Flint. The scouts say he has some potential as a leadoff guy, with his good eye, decent hitting skills, and speed (though he can't steal bases). Perhaps I'll give him some time at AAA and see what happens. He's someone to watch.

C Gerald Bailey (26) - Hit .283 with a .379 OBP in 466 AB. Career: .255 BA in 268 games, all with Flint. Finally, a decent ballplayer! No power and no speed, but he can get on base reasonably well. Gotta start somewhere.

Bench players:

C/3B Ray Jackson (33) - .328 in 122 AB last year, .301 for his career. Good, valuable bench player, but nearing the end.
1B Ron Gradwohl (24) - .125 in 40 AB, but with 11 walks; first year in the majors. Probably should spend some time in AAA. Has significant potential.
SS Rafael Mendes (26) - No major league stats. Scouting report says it all, "clearly not a big league player". Doesn't do anything well.
OF Tomas Maldonado (30) - .231 in 26 AB, .244 over his career (189 games). Stats better than his ratings. Which to believe?
CF Ray Keizo (32) - .232 BA in 220 AB last season, .224 BA in his career (1166 AB). Looks almost as bad as Conley.

And now we get to the pitching staff. First, the starting rotation:

Ace Nathaniel Montgomery (28) - 15-13 with a 2.93 ERA in 32 starts last year. Career: 79-81, 3.72 ERA in 205 games over 7 years, all with Flint. Montgomery is the only All-Star I can see, having made that team back in 2015 when he won 20. Mediocre starter, inning eater, but by far the best I have. His $2.9 million salary is tough to swallow, but I'd like to have him around when we start winning. I don't think he'll make it, though.

SP Gerald Aladren (22) - 9-19 with a 5.90 ERA in 34 starts last year. Career: 11-25, 5.55 ERA in 62 games over 3 years, all with Flint. Aladren was a 1st round pick back in 2014 and my scouts say the sky's the limit. For now, I'd like to see him stop giving up so many homers (43 last year). Probably needs another season of seasoning, but I don't think we can spare him.

SP Raneiro Prada (26) - 7-14 (1 save) with a 4.66 ERA in 32 games (25 starts), his first in the majors. Good potential, a definite keeper in the rotation. I think he'll come around.

SP Michael Broadlake (23) - 4-17 with a 7.26 ERA in 25 starts, his first season in the majors. Another guy with some potential, but was hit HARD last year and his ratings don't indicate a change. Probably best if we give him some time at AAA and lose with someone else.

SP Magnus Hausrath (31) - 4-18 with a 6.94 ERA in 30 starts. Career: 42-99, 6.60 ERA in 7 years (176 games) with Troy and Flint. Hausrath doesn't walk many but he's another one that gets lit up early and often. Don't look for him on the roster next year.

Swingman Micheal Baldy (30) - 4-6 (1 save) with a 4.00 ERA in 23 games (11 starts). Career: 49-53, 4.46 ERA in 6 seasons (149 games) with Battle Creek and Flint. Baldy's not great or anything, but I can't understand why he wasn't given a bigger role on this team.

And now the relievers:

MR Manny "Blue Pill" Vergara (30) - 3-3, 1 save, 6.34 ERA in 68 games; 7.20 ERA in his career. I can do better than this.
MR Sherwood Quezada (24) - 2-3, 1 save, 5.93 ERA in 60 games; 5.99 career ERA. Young and figures to improve. Probably needs time in the minors, but will probably be pressed into duty.
MR Beau Hempel (31) - 2-4, 6.94 ERA in 58 games; 7.52 ERA in 134 career games. Beau knows nothing about getting people out. Beau will get to know the unemployment line.
CL John Kortum (24) - 0-8, 25 saves, 3.39 ERA in 61 games; 5.59 ERA over 3 seasons (134 games). Took his knocks the past two years. His current ratings are pretty good, but his potentials are knockouts. I don't think I'll be able to afford to see it.

In the minors is some decent pitching talent, but very little among position players. It's all in A or AA, so it'll be awhile before we see their full potential.

The scouting and coaching staff is pretty good and we hope to not make too many changes to it.

That's the wrapup from the Flint front office. As you can see, I have my work cut out for me.

NEXT: The hatchet falls and the fur flies.

[Honolulu Blue]

My first act is to put most of the team on the trading block. Not that I expect many offers, but you never know where they might come from.

Since my staff is already signed through the end of this season (at least), that process goes quickly. Free agency should go just as quickly - unless we get a trade - because we have no money for it.

Pittburgh offers us a trade - SS Simon Romo and MR Antonio Guerriero for LF Alphonso Bejarano. This trade makes a lot of sense for two reasons:

1) Romo and Guerriero, though nothing special, are upgrades over what we have on the roster.
2) Bejarano is ineffective and getting old.

Consider it done.

Two offers the next day - Iron Mountain is offering OF Sean Nylund for RF Rudolf Marrero. Nyland has an outstanding .418 career OBP, albeit in spot play. Doesn't do anything else great, but we could use guys on the team who get on base. This one's getting done, as soon as I pick up line two...

Detroit is offering RF Juan Segarra and CF Kenny Ronolo for 1B Mike Bute. Segarra hit over .300 last year in limited play, but his career average (.235) more truly reflects his current skills. With few walks, no power, and a $500k salary, it's easy to take a pass on him. Ronolo may never hit for a high enough average to be useful, though he does have other skills. We pass on this one.

On Day 4, Cleveland offers us former All-Star 3B Michael Harmon for SP Nathaniel Montgomery. I thought we'd get an offer something like this. Harmon's still an effective hitter (.318 last year), but he's 36, and our scouts say his skills are eroding quickly. Besides, he makes more than Montgomery ($3.4 mil a year). Much as I'd like to, I can't pull the trigger here.

The next day, South Chicago offers us MR Daniel Vint for C Ray Jackson. Vint's ratings aren't much, and his performance is worse. No thanks.

On Day 7, Detroit makes another offer for Bute. This time they offer SP William Stevenson and RF Terry Barmore. Stevenson was 8-14 with a 5.71 ERA last year. He'd be an improvement over what we have now, and our scouts see lots of potential in him. Barmore is just a roster filler for the low minors. We'll miss Bute, but our rotation needs fixing more, so we say yes.

Two days later, Battle Creek offers us MR Tray Gardenne for Jackson. Gardenne has bounced around the league and through the minors too, not being very effective anywhere. Pass.

The next day South Chicago comes back with a counteroffer for Jackson - OFs Kevin Stetzer and Vincent Palladino. Stetzer's .216 average last year was his best since his rookie season. Vincent is just another non-prospect. I like having warm bodies, but I'm not this desperate.

On day 12, Cleveland offers MR Jim Howard for Montgomery. 5-5 with 5 saves and a 3.82 ERA with San Francisco last year. Cleveland just signed him as a free agent a few days ago; interesting that they want to trade him already. He'll be making $1.8 million a year and might be worth it on another team. I'd like to dump Montgomery's salary, but not this badly. With some reluctance, we tell the Indians no.

On day 14, Philadelphia offers us SS John Burleson for Montgomery. Burleson is a pretty fair player; he hit .290 last year with some pop and is a great fielder at this key position. His salary is fair ($3.6 million). The big problem is he's 35, so there's not a lot of long-term value here. Nice offer, but I have to pass it up.

It's day 16 and we get another offer for Montgomery, this time from Anaheim. They offer MR Brian Plowman. Decent enough player, but we're hoping for more value.

Five days between phone calls, but Battle Creek makes yet another offer for Jackson. RF Leonard Maldonado was never that good, and he's now 30. We'll stick with the devil we know.

The next day, the Master Batters make yet another offer for Jackson - must be desperate for a catcher. Averill was a pretty good player several years ago, but now he's major league fringe. I don't know what happened to him. I don't care to find out.

No more trade offers during free agent season. Now it's time for the draft.

The draft is a traditional 5 rounder. We're at position #24 (ought to be much higher, but when teams switch divisions, the order gets a little screwy, and I'm not inclined to fix it). We badly need some players with power.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: 1B Andrew Raible (22)
Round 2 pick: C Chris Almendarez (21)
Round 3 pick: RF Hassan Belote (23)
Round 4 pick: P Lloyd Drummond (18)
Round 5 pick: 3B Soetsu Miyazaki (18)

Raible sure looked a lot better when we drafted him than he does now. Still, he does have some power and a good eye, and we hope his average will come around. Almendarez is a marginal catcher who should excel at getting on base. There are no other catchers in the system now, and he should shoot straight through. Belote is another guy who looked better on draft day. He'll need to develop some to make the show. Drummond is a star in the making. He's slated to start in AA and could be in the majors as soon as midseason. Miyazaki is a roster filler.

Meanwhile, we come upon opening day. This is our roster:

BATTERS :
ACTUAL RATINGS RUNNING DEF.
Name Age Pos CONTACT POWER EYE SP STA RANGE
G. Bailey 26 C 5 3 6 D E C
S. Romo 22 SS 3 3 2 C B B
J. Reah 29 2B 2 5 4 C E C
A. Wooten 31 2B 2 5 3 C A C
G. Halfacre 25 SS 4 4 6 D D C
R. Gradwohl 24 1B 3 3 7 D D D
L. Conley 32 CF 1 5 4 C C B
S. Nylund 30 LF 4 3 10 C D C
J. Hall 24 RF 3 3 6 B D C
R. Mendes 26 SS 2 3 5 E D D
J. Ladrig 32 2B 1 4 6 C B B
L. Muni 24 3B 3 3 5 D E C
R. Jackson 34 C 4 3 6 E E C
R. Keizo 33 CF 2 2 2 C C C
L. Beliel 25 SS 2 2 8 D B C
A. Perz 27 2B 1 5 4 E C E
T. Moldonado 30 RF 1 2 3 C D C
V. Paulk 22 CF 1 3 3 A A B
A. Raible 22 1B 0 2 2 E E C
A. Dillon 24 2B 0 3 4 D B D
J. Hallion 25 LF 2 2 4 C B C
H. Palacios 22 1B 0 3 2 D E C
C. Spelius 23 1B 0 2 2 D D D
K. Samuels 22 SS 0 2 2 E E E
C. Bianco 21 3B 1 2 4 D D A
L. Yasuyuki 22 CF 1 2 2 C D C
H. Belote 23 RF 0 2 3 C D B
C. Almendarez 22 C 1 2 6 E D D
S. Miyazaki 18 3B 1 1 3 C A B

PITCHERS :
ACTUAL RATINGS DURATION
Name Age Role STUFF MOVEM. CON STA REL
N. Montgomery 28 SP 5 6 4 B *
R. Prada 27 SP 4 7 5 C *
G. Aladren 22 SP 4 3 5 B *
W. Stevenson 26 SP 3 5 6 C *
M. Broadlake 23 SP 2 2 4 A *
M. Hausrath 32 SP 0 3 7 B *
M. Baldy 30 SP 1 5 5 B *
J. Israel 26 SP 1 5 4 A *
B. Abendschon 31 SP 0 5 5 B *
M. Vargas 22 SP 1 2 5 C *
J. Kortum 24 MR 5 5 9 * B
W. Cuomo 32 SP 0 5 4 C *
F. English 21 SP 1 3 3 C *
A. Guerriero 32 MR 3 6 4 * D
S. Quezada 24 CL 2 2 4 * D
M. Vergara 30 MR 1 6 6 * D
L. Drummond 18 MR 2 3 5 E E
B. Hempel 32 MR 0 4 4 E C
P. Jones 24 MR 2 4 2 E C
J. Roenigk 21 MR 2 3 4 * C
M. Fisher 30 MR 1 3 5 * D

Going around the horn, we have Gradwohl at first, Reah at 2nd, Halfacre and Romo platooning at short, Muni at third, Nylund in left, Keizo in center, Hall in right, and Bailey behind the plate.

The rotation is Montgomery, Aladren, Prada, Stevenson, and Baldy. Broadlake is the swingman. Vergara, Quezada, and Guerriero set things up, and Kortum is the closer.

Things are subject to change without notice.

NEXT: My opening season in Flint. Can I avoid finishing last?

[Honolulu Blue]

April - We end the month 10-14. Alas, that's 9 games behind the sizzling hot pace of Iron Mountain. But at least we're in 6th and not last. Hitting and pitching are both OK. We have some weaknesses, but no plugs at the present time. We shuffle the lineup and rotation around a bit.

May - Went almost .500 this month to end up at 23-28. The good news is we gained a game on Iron Mountain. The bad news is we fell back to 7th.

June - Now we sit at 36-43, 13 games behind Boston. This is good enough for 5th. We continue to do the best we can with what we have. I wish we had a true cleanup hitter and a couple of extra middle relievers. But without them, we'll muddle on. Nathaniel Montgomery looks likely to be selected for the All-Star game with his 10-6 record with a 2.17 ERA.

July - Montomery made the All-Star team, but didn't play.

Got a trade offer from Iron Mountain - 1B/OF Michael Myllyharju for CF Mike Conley. Conley had been sitting on the bench most of the season, hitting .217 in 46 tries. Mikey (I'm not even going to try to pronounce that last name) is no hitter (.194 in 222 AB, but 12 HR), but a good first baseman and decent overall outfielder. And he's cheap and he's signed for 3 more years. Done deal.

We're hanging tough at 47-57. The pennant seems out of reach, as Boston is now 17 in front of us. But we're well clear of last at least. We're in 6th.

August - Another slightly under .500 month puts us at 60-73 for the year. Boston remains in first, and we're 19 games out. We're clinging to 5th place. Next month is going to be rough because we mostly play Division I teams, and we're simply not at that level.

September - We ended up at 67-95, 22 games behind the pennant winning Red Sox.

Team leaders:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Jackson, .303
Hits - Reah, 148
Doubles - Keizo, 43
Triples - Reah, 10
Homers - Reah, 14
RBI - Reah, 91
Runs - Nylund, 74
Walks - Nylund, 113
Steals - Nylund, 5
OBP - Gradwohl, .372
SLG - Reah, .410

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Montgomery, 2.02
Wins - Montgomery, 19
Losses - Baldy, 16
Saves - Kortum, 18
Games - Quezada, 67
Innings - Montgomery, 280.0
Strikeouts - Prada, 202

Best batter - Josh Reah. Close between him and Nyland, but I chose the one with the most power.

Best pitcher - Nathaniel Montgomery. I'm kind of glad I didn't trade him, even though he is a budget breaker.

Slickest fielder - Larry Muni. Did well at third base with only 16 errors in 428 chances.

MVP - Montgomery. A starter who can win over half his starts is extremely valuable indeed.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
New York 100 62 .617 -- .251 2.61
Texas 98 64 .605 2 .249 3.04
Oakland 92 70 .568 8 .244 3.01
Seattle 92 70 .568 8 .229 2.81
Arizona 91 71 .562 9 .236 3.44
Toronto 85 77 .525 15 .238 2.82
Los Angeles 83 79 .512 17 .226 2.81
St. Louis 81 81 .500 19 .226 2.93
Division III
Boston 89 73 .549 -- .256 4.00
Anaheim 85 77 .525 4 .253 3.72
Iron Mountain 80 82 .494 9 .245 3.57
Pittsburgh 75 87 .463 14 .256 4.54
FLINT 67 95 .414 22 .227 3.91
Troy 65 97 .401 24 .263 4.94
Grand Rapids 63 99 .389 26 .240 4.78
Lansing 50 112 .309 39 .246 4.98

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Atlanta 99 63 .611 -- .276 3.16
Cincinnati 97 65 .599 2 .242 3.28
Long Island 83 79 .512 16 .241 3.19
Philadelphia 81 81 .500 18 .249 3.81
Cleveland 80 82 .494 19 .255 3.93
Battle Creek 74 88 .457 25 .229 3.92
Detroit 67 95 .414 32 .254 4.72
Baltimore 65 97 .401 34 .237 4.34
Division II - West
Traverse City 100 62 .617 -- .268 3.61
Chicago 93 69 .574 7 .277 3.87
Colorado 91 71 .562 9 .280 4.57
San Francisco 83 79 .512 17 .264 3.88
Saginaw 80 82 .494 20 .267 4.37
Houston 78 84 .481 22 .260 4.85
San Diego 68 94 .420 32 .243 3.56
South Chicago 57 105 .352 43 .218 4.80

AL Cup: New York over Boston, 4-3
NL Cup: Atlanta over Traverse City, 4-3
Champions Cup: New York over Atlanta, 4-2

Movin' up: Atlanta, Boston
Movin' down: St. Louis, South Chicago

I'd have to say this was a moderately successful season. We avoided finishing last, we acquired some good players for the future, and we got rid of some dead weight. Things are looking up.

NEXT: The offseason. Can this one be as fruitful as the last?

[Honolulu Blue]

This just in... 1B Ron Gradwohl won the Charboneau Award. He hit .257 and drew 102 walks. No power, but my scouts say that will come. Anyway, the honor is nice, but it must have been a slow year for rookies.

Our fan loyalty is great, not that it helps much. Fan interest is at 16. Payroll is down to $8 million. We have about the same for signing contract extensions, and $2 million available for free agents. I can probably get a decent one for that price. Cash is still negative, but by only about $200,000. We about broke even last year.

We sign Hank Knudsen as our hitting coach. He is rated good by his peers. We sign Don Lang as our pitching coach, who is merely average. Salaries were reasonable for both.

On to free agency. We make offers to OF Gary Simenon ($570,000 for 3 years) and OF Cedric Doel ($150,000 for 2 years). Simenon has a little pop and isn't afraid to draw walks. Doel needs a little seasoning but could be a leadoff type in time. Simenon signs on day 8. Doel got an offer from Pittsburgh and he wasn't willing to talk to us anymore. Instead we go for MR Jesus Rojas, who has some solid potential. He signs for $120,000 per for 4 years. Doel ended up in Lansing, I heard through the grapevine.

Late in free agent season, I'm offered three players for Gerald Aladren. His contract is up this year and he could be tough to sign. The only player worth anything is SS Andy Swift. He's the real deal, good average, some power. He's making $3 million a year, but Aladren figures to demand about that. It's so tough, but I think I have to decline.

We're in the #30 position in the draft; hope there are some good power hitters left. Nope.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: SP Kenny Daly (20)
Round 2 pick: SP Emmanuel Larocco (21)
Round 3 pick: MR Nathan Macaulay (18)
Round 4 pick: RF Tanyu Hidetada (20)
Round 5 pick: CF Ray Deetz (20)

No good position players in the draft at all by the time my position came up. Daly has good potential and is relatively well developed for his age. Larocco has great control and we hope his other skills will come in time. Macaulay is one of those middle relievers the other teams love to ignore. He's got all the skills and just needs time to hone them. He starts out at AA. Hidetada is a great outfielder, nothing else special about him. Deetz is the same as Hidetada, only less so.

NEXT: The season. Can we show improvement?

[Honolulu Blue]

April - We could be in some trouble. 9-16 this month, already 9 games behind Troy and in last place. Our batting average is very low, lower than I expected, and it's causing us problems. My hands are tied. The pitching staff has a few holes, but nothing I can do about them either.

May - Got an offer for Montgomery - a solid cheap middle reliever (Justin Michelin) and a roster filler (1B Wade Driskill). Since he's not interested in signing with us at any price, we pull the trigger on this one. Montgomery was only 4-5 this season anyhow.

Of course we lose four in a row after the trade and end the month at 20-32, 10 games behind Iron Mountina, Pittsburgh, and Troy, who are all tied for the lead.

June - Another bad month leaves us at 32-48, in last and 13 behind Pittsburgh. I look at my roster... nope, not much I can do without the talent.

July - I'm offered CL Kevin Brosnan and SP Bob Cannon for Kortum. I'm unlikely to be able to sign Kortum, so I have to pull the trigger. The guys are getting are pretty good (Cannon is a prospect type). Brosnan is making $3 million per and is 32, so there may be another move coming.

The rest of the month was bad. We're now 41-64 and deeper in last place. We're 22 games behind Iron Mountain.

August - Getting worse. 50-84 and heading into the backbreaking part of our schedule. In last, of course, behind Iron Mountain, 28 1/2 games out. I make a few it's-September-and-we're-out-of-the-race type moves.

September - Yep, this is what you get for trading your best players. 55-107, last, 31 games behind Iron Mountain. Oh well.

Team leaders:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Halfacre, .272
Hits - Gradwohl, 145
Doubles - Simenon, 32
Triples - Simenon, 9
Homers - Simenon, 15
RBI - Reah, 71
Runs - Simenon, 84
Walks - Simenon, 118
Steals - Simenon, 7
OBP - Bailey, .378
SLG - Bailey, .393

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Quezada, 3.26
Wins - Aladren, 11
Losses - Broadlake, 19
Saves - Brosnan, 6
Games - Michelin, 73
Innings - Aladren, 254.0
Strikeouts - Prada, 221

Best batter - Gerald Bailey. Simenon dominates the list above, but only hit .194. Effective, but not as effective as Bailey.

Best pitcher - Rameiro Prada. Gets strikeouts and doesn't give up homers (only 6 this year).

Slickest fielder - Josh Reah. .990 fielding percentage and 143 DPs in 158 games will get your attention.

MVP - Bailey. Best hitter + catcher = value.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
New York 112 50 .691 -- .265 2.57
Arizona 95 67 .586 17 .243 3.36
Los Angeles 91 71 .562 21 .230 2.97
Texas 91 71 .562 21 .267 3.43
Toronto 90 72 .556 22 .228 3.48
Seattle 83 79 .512 29 .240 3.35
Atlanta 82 80 .506 30 .247 3.87
Oakland 78 84 .481 34 .257 3.88
Division III
Iron Mountain 86 76 .531 -- .258 3.76
Pittsburgh 83 79 .512 3 .252 3.96
Anaheim 79 83 .488 7 .258 4.29
Troy 73 89 .451 13 .258 4.69
Grand Rapids 68 94 .420 18 .262 4.63
South Chicago 66 96 .407 20 .229 4.34
Lansing 64 98 .395 22 .248 4.39
Flint 55 107 .340 31 .222 4.70

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Cincinnati 104 58 .642 -- .245 3.34
Boston 102 60 .630 2 .259 3.51
Long Island 83 79 .512 21 .246 3.42
Baltimore 79 83 .488 25 .243 4.17
Battle Creek 78 84 .481 26 .238 3.55
Philadelphia 77 85 .475 27 .258 3.96
Cleveland 69 93 .426 35 .246 3.94
Detroit 62 100 .383 42 .248 4.88
Division II - West
Colorado 104 58 .642 -- .279 3.98
Chicago 90 72 .556 14 .282 3.97
St. Louis 85 77 .525 19 .242 3.51
Traverse City 81 81 .500 23 .248 4.04
Saginaw 78 84 .481 26 .254 4.49
San Francisco 69 93 .426 35 .248 3.96
San Diego 68 94 .420 36 .239 3.95
Houston 67 95 .414 37 .250 4.91

AL Cup: New York over Iron Mountain, 4-1
NL Cup: Colorado over Cincinnati, 4-1
Champions Cup: New York over Colorado, 4-0

Movin' up: Iron Mountain, Colorado
Movin' down: Oakland, Detroit

NEXT: The offseason. Can I undo the damage I've done?

[Honolulu Blue]

We made almost $2 million last year, moving us into the black. Current payroll is around $10.6 million, and we'd like to reduce that while improving our club. Good luck.

We sign Lloyd Wolff as our scout. Hugh Lancaster agrees to take over AAA, Mark Logan AA, and Jim Daly will handle A ball. Decent/good guys at reasonable salaries.

Free agent time. We still need a true cleanup guy at a bargain price. We sign C Ricky Foley and OF Walter Polk. Neither of them are quite what we're looking for, but they do have some potential.

On to the draft, where we're #22:

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: 1B Olin Mccarthy (21)
Round 2 pick: SP Gabriel Ritondo (18)
Round 3 pick: SP Thomas Benda (22)
Round 4 pick: MR Duane Bek (19)
Round 5 pick: MR Vaasco Ceasar (20)

McCarthy has a good power stroke, but not much else to recommend him. Ritondo and Benda have good stuff and should be the mainstays of our staff in a few years. Bek and Ceasar fill out the staff for A ball, but could move up.

Yikes. Opening day already?

NEXT: Are we ready?

[Godzilla Blitz]

Enjoying this a lot! Great idea! Looks like it's providing ample challenge in single player.

I take it you are manually reassigning teams, adjusting revenues, changing fan interest, etc. at the end of the year?

[Honolulu Blue]

Originally posted by Godzilla Blitz
Enjoying this a lot! Great idea! Looks like it's providing ample challenge in single player.

I take it you are manually reassigning teams, adjusting revenues, changing fan interest, etc. at the end of the year?

Glad you're enjoying it, GB. So far it's certainly been challenging, but I enjoy that kind of thing. I've been putting the customizability of OOTP to the test.

Yes, I'm manually making all of those changes in the offseason.

[Buccaneer]

I have just started reading this fantastic conecpt and my thought is you really need to do this in OOTP5 (probably too late). I will give you the money to buy it, let me know.

[rjolley]

Great idea for a league. I've thought about baseball having levels like soccer, but I could never figure out a good way to do it.

Great job. I may have to steal this idea sometime soon. :-)

[Honolulu Blue]

Bucc & rjolley: glad you like the idea. I'll try to keep the writing as interesting as the concept and its execution. There are a lot of stories here and unfortunately, I can't cover them all.

rjolley: Steal away. No copyrights or patents on good ideas (or bad ones). If you think this is something you might enjoy, go right ahead.

Bucc: I was kidding about the subsidy. But thanks for offering. I like OOTP4 and have grown used to its quirks. What's different about OOTP5 that would help this dynasty and/or the concept? You can PM me.

[Honolulu Blue]

April - The beatings go on - 7-14 this month, 7th place, 9 games behind Anaheim. The offense is decent but the pitching staff is getting thumped. I make some small adjustments.

May - We make a minor deal - OF Galvano Fuentes for SS Rafael Mendes. Mendes was of no use to me and Fuentes might be. We'll probably send him to AAA for now.

Things are looking up. We had our first over .500 month under my watch. Our record is now 22-26, tied for 5th, but 13 games behind Anaheim. Our hitting is starting to come around, and the starting rotation is attempting to stabilize. There are still some holes here and there. We try to fix them.

June - Another minor deal - MR Richard White for 1B Andrew Raible. White should be more effective than he has been. Perhaps we can get it worked out. Raible doesn't figure into our long-term plans.

We sneak above .500 for the first time at 39-37, good for 3rd place, but 14 1/2 games behind Anaheim. Our guy Marius Vargas was Pitcher of the Month. 4-0 with 0.55 ERA will do that for you. I should also give some credit to Jim Israel, who has gone 9-1 since being promoted from AA. Things are definitely looking up, but we don't want to kid ourselves about how great we are.

July - Hit a bit of a cold spell as we found ourselves at 48-54 for the year, good for 6th place, 21 1/2 games behind Anaheim. I do a few tweaks here and there.

August - Another long month. We find ourselves 59-71, still in 6th, but 27 1/2 games behind Anaheim.

Sept/Oct - We end the season 68-94, 34 games behind Anaheim. We drifted up into fifth place.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
New York 114 48 .704 -- .291 2.66
Texas 93 69 .574 21 .272 3.60
Colorado 89 73 .549 25 .269 3.97
Los Angeles 88 74 .543 26 .233 3.10
Seattle 84 78 .519 30 .229 3.28
Arizona 82 80 .506 32 .258 4.02
Atlanta 82 80 .506 32 .266 3.82
Toronto 76 86 .469 38 .232 3.06
Division III
Anaheim 102 60 .630 -- .276 3.57
Pittsburgh 94 68 .580 8 .274 3.70
South Chicago 76 86 .469 26 .233 3.85
Lansing 72 90 .444 30 .249 4.91
Flint 68 94 .420 34 .239 4.87
Grand Rapids 67 95 .414 35 .237 4.32
Troy 57 105 .352 45 .250 5.02
Detroit 52 110 .321 50 .248 5.65

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Boston 95 67 .586 -- .262 3.55
Cincinnati 94 68 .580 1 .249 3.87
Iron Mountain 88 74 .543 7 .256 3.61
Cleveland 86 76 .531 9 .259 3.84
Long Island 85 77 .525 10 .252 3.42
Philadelphia 81 81 .500 14 .261 3.71
Battle Creek 72 90 .444 23 .239 4.23
Baltimore 50 112 .309 45 .212 4.50
Division II - West
Oakland 103 59 .636 -- .271 3.37
San Diego 89 73 .549 14 .238 3.10
Traverse City 88 74 .543 15 .251 3.44
Chicago 86 76 .531 17 .236 3.42
St. Louis 85 77 .525 18 .240 3.14
Houston 74 88 .457 29 .243 4.45
San Francisco 65 97 .401 38 .215 4.07
Saginaw 55 107 .340 48 .235 4.03

AL Cup: New York over Anaheim 4-1
NL Cup: Oakland over Boston 4-1
Champions Cup: Oakland over New York 4-2

Movin' up: Oakland, Anaheim
Movin' down: Toronto, Baltimore

After a decent season, we put our heads together to try to make things better for next year.

NEXT: What do we come up with?

[Honolulu Blue]

Almost forgot, our team leaders:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Romo, .306
Hits - Reah, 151
Doubles - Simenon, 32
Triples - Simenon, 14
Homers - Simenon, 17
RBI - Reah, 101
Runs - Simenon, 109
Walks - Gradwohl, 118
Steals - Simenon, 12
OBP - Gradwohl, .400
SLG - Reah, .438

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Brosnan, 2.22
Wins - Israel, 15
Losses - Broadlake, 17
Saves - Brosnan, 33
Games - Michelin, 73
Innings - Broadlake, 246.0
Strikeouts - Prada, 214

Best batter - Simon Romo. Hard to pick against either Simenon or Reah, but I think Romo was the best.

Best pitcher - Marius Vargas. In the minors for part of the season, but effective when given a chance.

Slickest fielder - Walter Polk. 19 assists in just 94 games in center! His arm is quite a weapon.

MVP - Romo. May be outgrowing the platoon role he's been in for the past several years.

This is our roster as of the end of the season:

BATTERS :
ACTUAL RATINGS RUNNING DEF.
Name Age Pos CONTACT POWER EYE SP STA RANGE
S. Romo 25 SS 5 4 5 C B B
W. Polk 24 CF 6 3 5 C B C
R. Gradwohl 27 1B 4 3 8 D D D
G. Simenon 32 LF 2 7 10 B C C
G. Halfacre 27 SS 4 3 8 D D B
J. Reah 32 2B 3 5 5 B E C
G. Bailey 29 C 4 3 6 D E C
L. Muni 26 3B 4 3 8 D E C
G. Fuentes 34 RF 3 4 6 C B D
V. Paulk 25 CF 3 3 6 A A B
J. Hall 27 RF 2 4 7 B E D
S. Nylund 33 RF 3 5 10 C D E
R. Keizo 35 CF 2 4 3 C C B
L. Beliel 28 SS 2 2 9 D B C
H. Belote 25 RF 1 3 5 B D B
R. Jackson 36 C 4 2 4 E E C
W. Driskill 23 1B 3 2 3 D C C
A. Dillon 26 2B 1 4 4 D B D
M. Myllyharju 34 LF 0 3 5 E E C
C. Almendarez 24 C 2 2 9 E D D
C. Bianco 23 3B 0 3 5 D D A
O. Mccarthy 22 1B 1 4 3 D C E
J. Hallion 28 LF 1 2 5 B B C
H. Palacios 25 1B 0 3 4 E E C
T. Hidetada 22 RF 1 2 3 B B A
L. Yasuyuki 25 CF 2 1 3 C D C
K. Samuels 25 SS 0 2 2 E E E
S. Miyazaki 21 3B 1 1 4 C A B
R. Deetz 22 RF 0 2 3 C A B
R. Foley 20 C 1 1 3 E D C

PITCHERS :
ACTUAL RATINGS DURATION
Name Age Role STUFF MOVEM. CON STA REL
K. Brosnan 34 CL 7 6 8 * B
J. Michelin 27 MR 7 7 7 * B
R. Prada 29 SP 6 7 6 C *
M. Broadlake 26 SP 3 4 6 A *
M. Vargas 25 SP 3 5 6 C *
F. English 24 SP 4 7 5 D *
W. Stevenson 28 SP 2 3 4 C *
K. Daly 22 SP 1 4 4 C *
M. Baldy 33 SP 2 6 5 A *
J. Israel 29 SP 2 5 2 B *
B. Cannon 23 SP 1 3 4 D *
B. Abendschon 33 SP 2 5 4 B *
E. Larocco 22 SP 0 2 4 A *
S. Quezada 27 CL 2 4 6 * E
T. Benda 23 SP 1 4 3 B *
R. White 26 MR 5 5 7 * E
G. Ritondo 19 SP 2 2 2 C *
L. Drummond 21 MR 2 4 5 E E
A. Guerriero 35 MR 2 6 4 * D
P. Jones 27 MR 2 5 6 E C
J. Rojas 25 MR 2 3 4 * A
N. Macaulay 20 MR 1 4 5 * B
J. Roenigk 24 MR 2 5 2 * D
D. Bek 19 MR 1 2 7 * B
V. Ceasar 21 MR 1 3 4 * B
BATTERS :
TALENT RATINGS RUNNING DEF.
Name Age Pos CONTACT POWER EYE/DIS. SP STA RANGE
S. Romo 25 SS Good Good Good C B B
W. Polk 24 CF Good Average Good C B C
R. Gradwohl 27 1B Average Average Brilliant D D D
G. Simenon 32 LF Poor Good Brilliant B C C
G. Halfacre 27 SS Average Fair Brilliant D D B
J. Reah 32 2B Fair Average Good B E C
G. Bailey 29 C Average Fair Good D E C
L. Muni 26 3B Average Fair Brilliant D E C
G. Fuentes 34 RF Fair Fair Average C B D
V. Paulk 25 CF Fair Average Brilliant A A B
J. Hall 27 RF Fair Average Brilliant B E D
S. Nylund 33 RF Fair Average Brilliant C D E
R. Keizo 35 CF Poor Average Fair C C B
L. Beliel 28 SS Fair Poor Brilliant D B C
H. Belote 25 RF Poor Average Good B D B
R. Jackson 36 C Fair Fair Average E E C
W. Driskill 23 1B Average Average Brilliant D C C
A. Dillon 26 2B Average Good Brilliant D B D
M. Myllyharju 34 LF Poor Fair Good E E C
C. Almendarez 24 C Fair Fair Brilliant E D D
C. Bianco 23 3B Poor Average Good D D A
O. Mccarthy 22 1B Average Good Average D C E
J. Hallion 28 LF Poor Fair Average B B C
H. Palacios 25 1B Fair Average Good E E C
T. Hidetada 22 RF Fair Fair Fair B B A
L. Yasuyuki 25 CF Fair Poor Average C D C
K. Samuels 25 SS Poor Average Average E E E
S. Miyazaki 21 3B Fair Fair Good C A B
R. Deetz 22 RF Poor Fair Average C A B
R. Foley 20 C Average Fair Fair E D C

PITCHERS :
TALENT RATINGS
Name Age Role STUFF MOVEMENT CONTROL DUR
K. Brosnan 34 CL Good Average Good B
J. Michelin 27 MR Good Good Good B
R. Prada 29 SP Brilliant Brilliant Good C
M. Broadlake 26 SP Average Average Good A
M. Vargas 25 SP Average Average Brilliant C
F. English 24 SP Good Good Average D
W. Stevenson 28 SP Fair Fair Good C
K. Daly 22 SP Good Good Average C
M. Baldy 33 SP Fair Good Average A
J. Israel 29 SP Fair Average Fair B
B. Cannon 23 SP Good Good Good D
B. Abendschon 33 SP Fair Average Fair B
E. Larocco 22 SP Fair Fair Good A
S. Quezada 27 CL Average Average Good E
T. Benda 23 SP Average Good Average B
R. White 26 MR Average Good Good E
G. Ritondo 19 SP Good Good Good C
L. Drummond 21 MR Fair Average Good E
A. Guerriero 35 MR Fair Average Average D
P. Jones 27 MR Fair Average Good C
J. Rojas 25 MR Average Fair Average A
N. Macaulay 20 MR Average Average Average B
J. Roenigk 24 MR Average Average Fair D
D. Bek 19 MR Good Good Good B
V. Ceasar 21 MR Average Average Good B

The hitters are unquestionably better than when I started. Part of this is due to solid development, some of it is good trading, and a little (for now) is the draft. The pitchers it looks like I broke even on - some are better, some are worse. But there are certainly more to choose from now.

The biggest part of the offseason deals with who to sign and who not to. Here's the current salary list:

Flint Salary Report :

Pos Name Salary Through Left

CL K Brosnan $ 3,021,000 2021 1 year(s)
SS S Romo $ 1,370,000 2022 2 year(s)
CF W Polk $ 800,000 2024 4 year(s)
LF G Simenon $ 570,000 2021 1 year(s)
SP M Baldy $ 550,000 2022 2 year(s)
2B J Reah $ 500,000 2021 1 year(s)
MR A Guerriero $ 450,000 2020 NONE
CF R Keizo $ 400,000 2021 1 year(s)
RF S Nylund $ 360,000 2020 NONE
C R Foley $ 216,000 2024 4 year(s)
C R Jackson $ 200,000 2021 1 year(s)
LF M Myllyharju $ 161,100 2020 NONE
RF G Fuentes $ 145,000 2020 NONE
MR J Rojas $ 122,000 2022 2 year(s)
C G Bailey $ 100,000 2020 NONE
SP R Prada $ 100,000 2020 Automatic
MR R White $ 100,000 2020 NONE
SP W Stevenson $ 100,000 2020 NONE
SP M Vargas $ 100,000 2020 Automatic
C C Almendarez $ 100,000 2020 Automatic
SP M Broadlake $ 100,000 2020 Automatic
SP J Israel $ 100,000 2020 Automatic
CL S Quezada $ 100,000 2020 NONE
1B R Gradwohl $ 100,000 2020 Automatic
SS G Halfacre $ 100,000 2020 NONE
MR J Michelin $ 100,000 2020 Automatic

Extensions Signed :

Name Salary Years

S Nylund $ 408,000 3
S Quezada $ 420,000 2
G Halfacre $ 950,000 4

Free Agents after this season :

Name

A Guerriero
M Myllyharju
G Fuentes
G Bailey
R White
W Stevenson

I've already re-signed Nylund, Quesada and Halfacre to reasonably sized long-term contracts. I may end up trading either Halfacre or Romo because while I love having both of them platoon, neither of them can play any other position and $2 mil is too much for me to tie up at any one position.

Fuentes and Guerriero spent most of the season in the minors, so they may sign a minor league deal. Mikey's a fun player, but he's getting old and we have replacements on the way, so we won't tender him a deal. I'd love to sign Bailey, but he's demanding about $900,000 a year and we only have about half that in available space. White and Stevenson are role players I don't want to lose, but probably will unless I can somehow trade Brosnan.

In the minors, OF Paulk is about ready and SP English may be ready. MR Drummond is coming in a hurry. So the future is not as bleak as it might be.

We sign Don Lang as our pitching coach for the next two years. He's all right, I suppose.

There's no money available to sign free agents, so we hope that we can get rid of some of our higher priced players to get some.

We take a trade from Anaheim - MR Dean Drips for LF Gary Simenon. Drips is cheap and good; we'll miss Simenon, but we can replace him easily enough.

At the end of free agency we get an offer from Arizona - LF Dickey Perkowski for MR/CL Sherwood Quezada and SS Ken Samuels. Perkowski is 26, hit a little as a pinch hitter the last two seasons for the Diamondbacks (.275 in 69 career ABs), has a good eye and a little pop, and best of all he's a lefty. We'll miss Quezada, but we have other middle relievers on the roster and in the minors to take up the slack. I think Samuels is still down in A ball and not looking very good there, so losing him means nothing. This is a deal we can do.

Lucky us, we draft all the way up at #14 this year. Perhaps we'll get our long-awaited power hitter this year.

There are a fair number of good prospects at my spot. There's the 19-year-old second baseman (Willie Melton) who could be a batting champion a few years down the line, an 18-year-old catcher (Fermin Tesoro) who has lots of ability as a hitter, and an 18-year-old first baseman (Gary Cibik) who's the power hitting prospect I've been searching for for years. Decisions, decisions...

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: C Fermin Tesoro (18)
Round 2 pick: OF Jose Rivera (20)
Round 3 pick: SP Matthew Coulter (22)
Round 4 pick: SS Harley Wood (21)
Round 5 pick: P Benito Miraglia (20)

Tesoro is our catcher of the future and we hope it comes quickly, because we're in need. Rivera is a good hitting prospect and will steal a few bases. Don't ask about his glove, OK? Coulter is a roster filler who could develop into a big leaguer. We're grooming Wood as a utility infielder; versatility is his one good trait. Miraglia is basically a middle reliever who can start and go 5 or 6 innings on occasion. I like that versatility.

I'm kinda liking this roster as we head into opening day.

NEXT: Will it be a step up or a step down for the Roadmasters?

[Honolulu Blue]

April - After being in first place very early on, we settle for a 12-10 record for the month, good for 3rd place, 2 behind Balimore and Troy. The hitting is very good, except for one or two spots; the pitching is spotty. We tweak the lineup and rotation.

May - We continue to do decently, but the rest of the division is getting away from us. We get to this waypoint at 25-24, 4th place and 5 games behind Baltimore. The starting rotation continues to be shaky, but there's nothing for us to do but struggle through it.

June - The air is slowly going out of our sails, due to injuries and players coming down to their true levels. We're 36-41 now, in 6th place 12 1/2 games behind Baltimore.

The good news is that CF Walter Polk is hitting .400 in 185 ABs. He was platooned earlier in the year, but obviously he's too good for that. Nobody expects him to hit .400 for the full year, but a top 5 finish in the batting race would be a real coup. I'll keep you posted.

More good news: We sign SPs Broadlake and Prada, and 2B Reah to long-term deals. We think their signings will help Flint make it to the promised land.

July - Pretty decent month. We end up at 50-53 and move up a spot to fifth. Still 12 1/2 behind Baltimore, so our pennant hopes are pretty faint.

Polk is at .385 in 283 ABs. Officially he should be the league leader, but OOTP is requiring more plate appearances, I guess. He should be able to get them.

August - It's all good this month. We end it over .500 at 66-65. That's good enough for third. We remain 12 1/2 behind Baltimore, though.

Walter Polk had his worst month as he probably tired some. He only hit .297. Actually his average has gone down in every month this year - April .422, May .419, June .381, July .357, August .297. He's the league leader at .359, but the pack is slowly catching him. He probably won't win the batting title, but it'll be fun to watch the race.

The hitting is pretty good for a team with no true power hitter. Pitching is down a couple of cylinders, but not all bad considering. No September callups because those start the contract clock ticking, and we can't afford that.

We don't expect to finish with a winning record because this is the rough part of our schedule. 76-86 should be fine and will probably keep us where we are.

September & October - The end of the season was actually pretty exciting for a team out of the race. On the last day of the season, Polk held the batting title lead at .344, percentage points ahead of the Phillies' Jared Mathis. Several other players were within striking distance. Also, Prada had a chance to win his 20th. We played the Rockies in Colorado. They took the lead early and after six it was 4-0 Rockies. We crawled back for one in the 7th and two in the 9th to come up one run short. Prada had to settle for a 19-11 record on the season, and some serious Clemens Award consideration. Polk? Oh yeah, he went 0 for 4. But so did Mathis. However, another Phillie, Tom Paragin, was just behind. He got two hits and grabbed the title from both of them. BTW, Paragin just missed the Triple Crown - he led the league in RBIs and his 40 homers were three away from the league lead shared by three players.

Anyway, we did better than we thought we would. A 79-83 record put us only 7 behind Pittsburgh.

Team leaders:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Polk, .342
Hits - Polk, 175
Doubles - Reah, 30
Triples - Reah, 8
Homers - Reah, 18
RBI - Reah, 105
Runs - Nylund and Reah, 100
Walks - Gradwohl, 137
Steals - Romo, 9
OBP - Polk, .413
SLG - Polk, .438

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Brosnan, 1.63
Wins - Prada, 19
Losses - Israel, 15
Saves - Brosnan, 23
Games - Michelin, 85
Innings - Prada, 256.1
Strikeouts - Prada, 220

Best batter - Walter Polk. Reah may have the big power numbers, but .342 hitters are tough to find.

Best pitcher - Rameiro Prada. Finally starting to live up to all that potential.

Slickest fielder - Polk. 16 assists in only 129 games. That's actually down from last year as runners decided not to test that gun of his.

MVP - Polk. I never, ever thought he'd be this good.


American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
New York 113 49 .698 -- .279 2.62
Texas 105 57 .648 8 .261 3.16
Atlanta 90 72 .556 23 .253 3.46
Oakland 89 73 .549 24 .251 3.74
Arizona 88 74 .543 25 .251 3.66
Colorado 83 79 .512 30 .254 4.35
Seattle 75 87 .463 38 .222 3.55
Los Angeles 71 91 .438 42 .226 3.43
Division III
Pittsburgh 86 76 .531 -- .267 3.81
Baltimore 85 77 .525 1 .256 3.92
Flint 79 83 .488 7 .251 4.33
Troy 72 90 .444 14 .242 4.92
South Chicago 71 91 .438 15 .233 3.90
Grand Rapids 68 94 .420 18 .246 4.35
Lansing 62 100 .383 24 .246 4.26
Detroit 59 103 .364 27 .227 4.81

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Boston 97 65 .599 -- .274 3.83
Long Island 92 70 .568 5 .261 3.47
Toronto 91 71 .562 6 .249 2.94
Cleveland 88 74 .543 9 .250 3.47
Iron Mountain 78 84 .481 19 .270 4.41
Philadelphia 75 87 .463 22 .269 4.53
Battle Creek 66 96 .407 31 .239 5.01
Cincinnati 65 97 .401 32 .247 4.82
Division II - West
St. Louis 95 67 .586 -- .249 3.16
Chicago 89 73 .549 6 .257 4.06
San Francisco 84 78 .519 11 .246 3.32
Anaheim 81 81 .500 14 .227 3.49
Traverse City 80 82 .494 15 .229 3.55
San Diego 78 84 .481 17 .234 3.93
Saginaw 74 88 .457 21 .247 3.76
Houston 63 99 .389 32 .229 4.49

AL Cup: New York over Pittsburgh, 4-1
NL Cup: St. Louis over Boston, 4-3
Champions Cup: New York over St. Louis, 4-2

Ho hum, New York wins another one, their third in four years. The more things change, the more things stay the same, huh?

Movin' up: St. Louis, Pittsburgh
Movin' down: Los Angeles, Houston

NEXT: The ever important offseason.

[Honolulu Blue]

For those of you interested in MLB and the possible effects of promotion/relegation, check out:

this article from U.S. National Soccer Players Association (http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/resource_center/questions_answers/356966.html),
this one from Derek Zumsteg and Baseball Prospectus (http://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/20030218zumsteg.shtml),
another one from Jim Caple and ESPN (http://espn.go.com/mlb/columns/caple_jim/1393115.html), and
this last one from Tim Gutowski and Onmilwaukee.com (http://www.onmilwaukee.com/sports/articles/relegation.html).

[Honolulu Blue]

After four seasons in Flint and a mild title run, bigger things are expected from me. The owner, the fans, and the media all sense that the team is starting to gel and we could be making a pennant run in the next year or two. Obviously I want that too, so I'll do my best to achieve it.

Financially the past season was not a good one. We lost over $1.5 million to put us a few hundred thousand in the hole. No money for free agents and only about $2.7 mil to re-sign our own players. Fortunately there are only five players that need to be signed. The good news is that fan interest is up to 20. Payroll is around $10.8 million.

We sign Luke Casey to a 3-year deal as our hitting coach. He's good, he'll do fine.

On day 2 we take a minor deal sending 2B Alan Dillon to the Suburbans for C Brian Barker. Barker's nothing special, but he does have a little speed, and Jackson is getting old and could retire at any time. Dillon still has huge potentials, but has lived up to none of it.

We make another deal on day 6. Iron Mountain offered MR Michael Gaudreault and 1B Jason Paeplow for SP Jim Israel. Israel's contract is up this season and we have no confidence we'll be able to sign him. Gaudreault hasn't pitched well so far, but he has all the tools to do so. Paeplow doesn't look like much, but he'll be in the mix for the open 1B job.

One more small deal - LF Dan Boyce and 1B Angelo Cedeno for SP Micheal Baldy. Baldy hadn't done much for us and was going to get pressed by others from the minors. Boyce is a marginally useful lefty. Cedeno may or may not fit in; not critical that he does.

Just before the draft we get a call from our counterpart in the Saginaw Gears' office. They're offering a blockbuster - SP Esequiel Soto (7-15, 4.30) for SS Simon Romo and OF Lee Yasuyuki. Soto's ratings are very good, mostly, but what I like most about him is his tiny contract. I think he'll be a very good fit for us. Yasuyuki is an overage prospect and we need to clear out room for better & younger ones. Romo I like very much and hate to lose him, but he and his agent hinted to us that negotiations for his upcoming contract would be contentious. So we say yes to this trade.

On to the draft. We get the #7 position. Should get a potential superstar here.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: SP Joe Beauvais (21)
Round 2 pick: 2B Hipolito Villeneuve (18)
Round 3 pick: RF Robert Jantz (21)
Round 4 pick: MR Carlos Guercio (18)
Round 5 pick: SS Howard Zahnweh (20)

Beauvais isn't quite what we're looking for, but as another talented starter, we'll take him. Villeneuve is quick, a slick fielder, has a great eye and a sweet little stroke. The bad news is he'll never hit for power. I like him in the long run anyway. Jantz is a fair hitter with an iron glove. Guercio is a typical late round middle reliever, which is to say he's pretty good. Zahnweh doesn't have the stroke of a major leaguer, and never will, but could blunder into a utility infield slot sometime.

I make some last minute changes and head for opening day. This should be a good season.

NEXT: Will it be a good season?

[Honolulu Blue]

April - Disappointing but not too terrible is how I'd describe our 11-12 month. We're tied for third but already six behind Baltimore. The hitters are continuing to get on base at an impressive clip. We have some weak pitchers, but help is coming soon. I make a few changes.

May - Still holding our own, kinda sort of. 24-27, in 5th place, but now 12 1/2 behind red hot Baltimore. The pitching staff is starting to even out. I make more tweaks.

June - South Chicago offers us MR Alvaro Garcia for OF Dan Boyce. Always good to have another middle reliever, and Boyce is expendable, so we make this deal.

Otherwise it was an up and down month. 39-40, still in 5th, still 12 1/2 behind Baltimore.

July - SP Esequiel Soto made the All-Star team. At 12-3 with a 2.60 ERA, he was certainly worthy of this honor. He didn't play though.

The rest of the month was pretty bad. We're now 48-55, which puts us in 6th and now 20 1/2 games behind Baltimore. Our title hopes have gone out the window for another season, it seems. We have two holes on an otherwise solid pitching staff - Michael Broadlake is 5-8, 6.69. Obviously ineffective, it seems likely he'll take a seat on the bench come September. Fabian English is more mystifying. The 4.87 ERA isn't great, but from the back of the staff I can live with it. But his record is 1-11. I guess I'll just have to take my lumps with him.

August - We played a little better overall this month to scramble to a mark of 63-68. That leaves us fifth, 25 games behind Baltimore, but not too far out of third. We call up SP Billy Cannon and OF Tanyu Hidetada for evaluation and hole filling. I'm a little disappointed that we didn't make more progress this season, but that's the way the ball bounces, I s'pose.

September/October - It could have been worse. We finished up at 72-90, drifting into 3rd by default. We were 23 behind the Orioles, who took the pennant.

Team leaders:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Halfacre, .304
Hits - Polk, 186
Doubles - Paulk, 31
Triples - Hall, 9
Homers - Reah, 20
RBI - Reah, 103
Runs - Halfacre, 93
Walks - Halfacre, 106
Steals - Paulk, 16
OBP - Halfacre, .416
SLG - Halfacre, .418

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Soto, 2.90
Wins - Soto, 16
Losses - English, 16
Saves - Drips, 23
Games - Macaulay, 100
Innings - Vargas, 256.2
Strikeouts - Prada, 196

Best batter - George Halfacre. He's no John Christopher, but stepped up and did very well for us.

Best pitcher - Esequiel Soto. We knew he had potential when we traded for him; we didn't know he would shine for us this quickly.

Slickest fielder - Halfacre. .978 fielding percentage over 156 games along with 94 DPs. Not bad.

MVP - Halfacre. Solid performer at a key position.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Texas 109 53 .673 -- .274 3.19
Seattle 101 61 .623 8 .233 2.83
Atlanta 95 67 .586 14 .256 3.20
New York 95 67 .586 14 .247 2.70
St. Louis 86 76 .531 23 .243 3.08
Arizona 83 79 .512 26 .251 3.52
Oakland 82 80 .506 27 .249 3.71
Colorado 71 91 .438 38 .244 4.68
Division III
Baltimore 95 67 .586 -- .273 3.60
South Chicago 82 80 .506 13 .222 3.60
Flint 72 90 .444 23 .237 3.97
Houston 70 92 .432 25 .244 4.42
Grand Rapids 68 94 .420 27 .241 4.32
Troy 68 94 .420 27 .245 4.71
Lansing 60 102 .370 35 .240 4.43
Detroit 59 103 .364 36 .221 4.24

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Cleveland 105 57 .648 -- .260 3.33
Boston 86 76 .531 19 .267 4.10
Philadelphia 84 78 .519 21 .266 3.71
Long Island 83 79 .512 22 .271 3.90
Toronto 82 80 .506 23 .241 3.16
Cincinnati 79 83 .488 26 .244 4.35
Pittsburgh 79 83 .488 26 .252 4.03
Battle Creek 63 99 .389 42 .250 4.82
Division II - West
Los Angeles 96 66 .593 -- .219 2.28
San Francisco 94 68 .580 2 .235 2.70
Chicago 92 70 .568 4 .255 3.44
Anaheim 79 83 .488 17 .228 3.51
San Diego 76 86 .469 20 .239 3.59
Traverse City 71 91 .438 25 .221 3.84
Saginaw 69 93 .426 27 .232 3.35
Iron Mountain 58 104 .358 38 .223 4.92

AL Cup: Texas over Baltimore, 4-1
NL Cup: LA over Cleveland, 4-0
Champions Cup: Texas over LA, 4-2

Movin' up: Los Angeles, Baltimore
Movin' down: Colorado, Iron Mountain

NEXT: Consolidation moves. Can I find myself a power hitter?

[tucker342]

Great idea for a dynasty, I'll be reading:)

[Honolulu Blue]

Tucker342: Glad you could join us in reading this complicated and involved dynasty. Stick around; I'm sure the journey will be interesting.

Payrolls: Div-Pl
1. New York..........$ 112,311,500 I-4
2. Texas.............$ 103,035,900 I-1
3. St. Louis.........$ 89,562,100 I-5
4. Atlanta...........$ 83,962,200 I-3
5. Seattle...........$ 82,184,400 I-2
6. Arizona...........$ 77,694,800 I-6
7. Colorado..........$ 72,437,200 I-8
8. Oakland...........$ 70,365,200 I-7
9. Los Angeles.......$ 65,793,600 IIw-1
10. Boston...........$ 63,660,900 IIe-2
11. Cincinnati.......$ 51,685,900 IIe-6
12. Toronto..........$ 47,727,900 IIe-5
13. Chicago..........$ 46,227,800 IIw-3
14. Cleveland........$ 45,730,200 IIe-1
15. Long Island......$ 45,539,600 IIe-4
16. Pittsburgh.......$ 44,748,300 IIe-7
17. Anaheim..........$ 42,635,900 IIw-4
18. San Diego........$ 38,769,600 IIw-5
19. San Francisco....$ 36,795,400 IIw-2
20. Baltimore........$ 36,122,700 III-1
21. Philadelphia.....$ 36,117,700 IIe-3
22. Traverse City....$ 30,399,000 IIw-6
23. Battle Creek.....$ 26,011,300 IIe-8
24. Iron Mountain....$ 21,693,700 IIw-8
25. Saginaw..........$ 19,272,400 IIw-7
26. Houston..........$ 19,111,100 III-4
27. Troy.............$ 16,411,400 III-6
28. South Chicago....$ 16,062,900 III-2
29. Lansing..........$ 13,396,700 III-7
30. Grand Rapids.....$ 11,597,600 III-5
31. Detroit..........$ 11,595,100 III-8
32. Flint............$ 10,411,600 III-3


Top 25 Highest Paid Players:
1. P A.Ferrara, TEX, ....$ 11,663,000
2. P R.Applebury, STL, ..$ 10,700,000
3. P E.Salinas, TOR, ....$ 10,573,500
4. P A.Kallenbach, NY, ..$ 10,560,000
5. P M.Perez, STL, ......$ 10,546,800
6. RF W.Nicols, TEX, .....$ 10,374,000
7. P B.Lacasse, LA, .....$ 10,260,000
8. P M.Jutka, OAK, ......$ 10,260,000
9. P J.Pickworth, NY, ...$ 10,157,400
10. P F.Valentino, BOS, .$ 9,603,400
11. P J.Campos, NY, .....$ 9,246,800
12. P T.Gekko, COL, .....$ 9,210,900
13. CF J.Mccourt, ATL, ...$ 8,611,300
14. P M.Cohen, LA, ......$ 8,550,000
15. P K.Rodriguez, LI, ..$ 8,550,000
16. P A.Eaton, ATL, .....$ 8,550,000
17. P M.Delgado, LA, ....$ 8,294,600
18. P B.Quartermain, ARI, $ 8,285,000
19. P N.Servantes, TEX, .$ 8,122,500
20. P A.Rabelo, ATL, ....$ 7,980,000
21. P L.Venezia, SEA, ...$ 7,921,600
22. P B.Alonso, SF, .....$ 7,848,900
23. P A.Santos, PIT, ....$ 7,776,200
24. 3B A.Goni, NY, .......$ 7,682,700
25. 1B J.Bell, ATL, ......$ 7,680,800

A few notes about these figures. The distribution of payrolls in the game is very nice, better than I expected. About a 10:1 spread between top and bottom. The Division I teams are spending more than the Division II teams, and the Division II teams are spending more than the Division III teams, with some limited exceptions. Most of the top salaries are on Division I clubs, as you'd expect. Unlike some OOTP leagues I've heard about, the computer teams are not hoarding cash; the most any one team has is less than $10 million. The one distressing sign I see is that the four teams that were originally in Division III and moved up finished as the bottom four teams in Division II. Perhaps they are losing their competitiveness? Only time will tell.

And yes, I noticed that 21 of the top 25 salaries are going to pitchers. That's quite odd, but it could reflect the relative scarcity of quality pitchers in this particular league. Probably not, but it could.

[Honolulu Blue]

We have our first Hall of Famer, and he's a well deserving one. 3B Alvin "Going Going" Goni excelled from the very start of the league. He was picked by Kansas City in the second round of the reallocation draft and spent all of 2010 in the minors. His contract ran out and he was signed by Traverse City to a 5-year deal. It singlehandedly put them in the second division as he hit an almost incomprehensible .440 in his first big league season. He added .400 seasons in 2012 and 2013 as well. He made the All-Star team all five years he was in Traverse City.

The big story in the offseason of 2015-16 was his inability to reach a deal with TC. He signed a deal with the Yankees for a fairly reasonable 7-year deal for $7.7 million per. He continued to hit well over .300, though his days of serious flirtation with .400 had long passed. He made the All-Star team in four of his seven years with the Yankees. Perhaps more importantly are the three Champions Cup rings he earned with the Yanks.

With a .356 career average, an OBP of .420, a slugging% of .504, three Christopher Awards, and a slew of more minor honors, Goni is a first ballot HOFer in anyone's league.

Meanwhile, in less rareified territory, the search goes on for the missing pieces to Flint's playoff puzzle. We have the nucleus of a good team; we just need a couple of power hitters, a starter, and perhaps a reliever or two. Maybe we'll find some answers in the free agent market or draft.

We lost a smidge last year, but now have money in the bank. Thank goodness for revenue sharing ($1.9 million this year; usually just a few hundred thousand). Current payroll is at $8.9 million, with $4 million available for re-signs and $2 mil for free agents, but I have to hire most of my coaches/managers yet, so I'm not getting too excited.

Lead Scout Nicholas Corbucca signs with us. Basil Costner is my new pitching coach, James Supernaw will manage AAA, and David Reynolds takes over the A team. They're not as good as I would like, but our options are limited, given our budget and all.

Free agent room is down to $800,000 - not enough for the elite free agents, but maybe enough for a flier or two.

We sign OF David Harrill cheaply, long-term - my favorite kind of deal. He's got enough power and walks that if he could hit .220 he would be dangerous. He probably won't, but it's my coaches' job to try to teach him not to swing for the fences all the time.

We also sign MR Anthony Hadley to a deal. Hadley had a 2.40 ERA in about 48 innings with Toronto last year, and he might be even better than that.

On to the draft, where we pick #11. Always in search of that big boomer.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: 2B Gregg Katsuyuki (20)
Round 2 pick: SP John Jenkins (18)
Round 3 pick: CL Junior Calo (18)
Round 4 pick: LF Roland Zerr (20)
Round 5 pick: MR Granville Walker (19)

Katsuyuki has a fantastic power stroke, at least with aluminum bats, and figures to be very valuable if he can raise his average just a little. Jenkins figures to be a good pitcher in time - throws strikes, puts the ball in play, you know the drill. Calo was kind of a roster filler, but not a bad player in his own right. Zerr does all the little things well but has no power. Walker is yet another warm body in the pen.

We're cautiously optimistic about our chances this year. The team doesn't look like a pennant winner, but it's getting close. It had better be, because if we don't win in the next year or two, this team is likely to bust up and I'll have to start all over.

NEXT: Is this the year we hang a pennant from the rafters?

[Honolulu Blue]

April - We lost our first three games, then rallied to finish at an even 12-12 for the month. We're in fourth, but only three games behind Grand Rapids and Houston. We're also one game out of 7th. The hitters are off to a slow start; most of the pitchers are doing well.

May - It's ON, baby! We had one of our best months since I've been here and settled in at 28-22, close enough to Houston's butt to sniff it. That's right, just a game and a half out. Pennant fever has officially come to Flint, and not a moment too soon!

June - We took first place in early June and swapped the lead almost daily with Grand Rapids and Iron Mountain. Then we had a losing streak and fell back. Meanwhile the Whitecaps got hot. Finally the month ended with us at 45-31. Grand Rapids is at 49-31. Iron Mountain is 2 1/2 games further behind us. The offense is doing all right, but the pitching staff has really come on. For the first time since I've been here, none of our pitchers have an ERA above 5.00. Things are going so well I'm afraid to make any changes.

July - Soto was selected for the All-Star team, but the game was canceled (my fault; I didn't schedule it)

Right after the break we took the lead away from Grand Rapids. We swapped the lead for a few days, then Iron Mountain joined the party and the Whitecaps fell away. The month ends with us at 62-40, 1 slim game ahead of the Miners. Grand Rapids is 6 back. In Division I, Texas is holding a 3 1/2 game lead on Seattle.

The trade that got away: Iron Mountain offered me SS Lonnie Dieroff for SP Esequiel Soto and OF Ray Deetz. Deetz looks like he's headed for a life in the minors, so forget him. Dieroff is hitting .302 with 16 HR and 46 RBI (76 runs) in 397 ABs. Soto is having another big season, 14-4 with an ERA of 2.31. Dieroff would be my cleanup hitter if I took him. Three reasons I had to turn down this trade:

1) I already have a decent/good SS, Halfacre.
2) Dieroff's contract (about $900,000) runs out at the end of this season, and he'd almost certainly be too expensive to re-sign. Soto still has a cheap year left.
3) Soto is too hard to replace.

With regrets, I turn this one down. Why can't somebody send a power hitting 1B or outfielder my way?

August - We had a decent month, but Iron Mountain had a better one. They're at 82-51, and we're at 78-53, 3 games behind. South Chicago is in third, a long way back. I make some final tweaks to the lineup, hope we stay injury free, and pray that the rough schedule ahead hurts the Miners more than it does us.

September - Started out behind but made up ground so that by the 20th or so we were trading the lead most every day. It was all even with 2 to go. They won, we lost. That was the deciding game as we both lost the last one. We finish with our most wins ever, at 88-74, but one game short of the title and a ticket to Divsion II. It hurts. You turn over all those strategic moves in your mind - what if I shifted him to the lineup sooner? What if I didn't swap rotation spots? What if I'd done this? What if I'd done that? It looks like we've got one more season of relative stability, then we're going to have to start all over and hope we can piece together a good team again. Sigh.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Texas 110 52 .679 -- .261 2.73
Seattle 99 63 .611 11 .243 2.70
Atlanta 98 64 .605 12 .229 3.01
New York 91 71 .562 19 .226 2.70
Oakland 83 79 .512 27 .236 3.44
St. Louis 83 79 .512 27 .234 3.01
Los Angeles 76 86 .469 34 .221 2.80
Arizona 72 90 .444 38 .248 3.95
Division III
Iron Mountain 89 73 .549 -- .259 3.27
Flint 88 74 .543 1 .232 3.52
South Chicago 77 85 .475 12 .252 4.22
Houston 74 88 .457 15 .239 4.27
Grand Rapids 72 90 .444 17 .245 3.88
Detroit 66 96 .407 23 .229 4.11
Lansing 63 99 .389 26 .232 3.71
Troy 55 107 .340 34 .238 4.90

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Long Island 96 66 .593 -- .254 3.19
Cleveland 89 73 .549 7 .264 3.80
Boston 87 75 .537 9 .260 4.05
Baltimore 82 80 .506 14 .239 3.74
Philadelphia 73 89 .451 23 .243 3.66
Toronto 73 89 .451 23 .225 3.55
Pittsburgh 68 94 .420 28 .246 4.45
Cincinnati 57 105 .352 39 .218 4.48
Division II - West
San Francisco 110 52 .679 -- .246 2.47
Colorado 99 63 .611 11 .258 4.16
Chicago 95 67 .586 15 .260 3.50
Anaheim 86 76 .531 24 .239 3.33
Battle Creek 82 80 .506 28 .236 3.83
Saginaw 77 85 .475 33 .230 3.97
Traverse City 66 96 .407 44 .228 3.89
San Diego 56 106 .346 54 .230 4.06

AL Cup: Texas over Iron Mountain, 4-2
NL Cup: Long Island over San Francisco, 4-2
Champions Cup: Texas over Long Island, 4-1

Movin' up: Iron Mountain, Long Island
Movin' down: Arizona, San Diego

NEXT: Given our limits, can we put all the right pieces in place?

[Honolulu Blue]

Have I mentioned that Iron Mountain had a $35 million payroll, and we had an $11 million payroll? Not that I'm jealous or bitter or anything...

Anyway, the team leaders list:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Polk, .287
Hits - Polk, 177
Doubles - Muni, 31
Triples - Reah, 12
Homers - Reah, 15
RBI - Reah, 96
Runs - Muni, 105
Walks - Muni, 99
Steals - Paulk, 31
OBP - Almendarez, .370
SLG - Nylund, .413

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Soto, 2.76
Wins - Soto, 17
Losses - Vargas, 14
Saves - Drips, 20
Games - Drips, 83
Innings - Vargas, 267.0
Strikeouts - Prada, 219

Best batter - Muni. Close call, but he stepped up as our leadoff hitter this season and did a good job.

Best pitcher - Esequiel Soto. Still doing the things we expect from him.

Slickest fielder - not awarded. Nobody earned it, IMO.

MVP - Soto. Great, great pitcher. Wish we could keep him forever, but that's not going to happen.

Fan interest has risen to 53, thanks to our run last season.

In other news, the Hall of Fame has inducted its second member, OF Tim Flanders. He was drafted in the 2nd round of the reallocation draft and played his whole career for San Diego, making the All-Star team just once, but hitting consistently above .330 with 20+ steals a year and a little pop. He was also a great outfielder. His career average was .344 with 2654 hits and 469 career stolen bases. It's hard to argue that he's not worthy of this honor.

The owner has given me the official order: time to make a pennant push. I have to say I agree. We lost a bit over $800,000 this past year, eating up most of our cash. There's no money in the kitty for free agents, but we have over $5 million available to re-sign our players. We're going to need every bit of it, because key members of this team are heading into their final years - including Soto, Halfacre, Polk, and Vargas. I figure to be lucky to sign two of that group, so it's time to put them on the trading block and see what I can get for them. Or maybe I'll keep them, win the friggin' pennant, watch the core of my team split apart, and try to reassemble things in Division II.

We sign Jed Daems to a 3-year deal as our new AA manager. He specializes in working with young pitchers. We have a great many of them on that level, and we want them to do well.

On to the free agents. This should be fairly quick, since he have no money to sign any. We're willing to listen to any trade offers, though.

After receiving lots of intriguing offers, we make a minor trade with the Red Sox on day 8 - 1B/3B Lamont Martinez for 1B Dean Driskill. Driskill is 26 and finally made it to AA, and wasn't exactly tearing it up there. He could surprise us, but I wouldn't want to bet on it. Martinez offers cheap depth at both positions, and he's a .300 career hitter (in 213 AB). He's not that good, I don't think, but he should be all right.

That sets up the dominoes for a trade that Houston made to me previously - 2B Alik Docksey for 1B/OF John Hall. Hall had been a perennial disappointment for us in Flint; his ratings aren't too bad but his .204 average and medium range power just wasn't getting it done. I'll miss him because he essentially played for free (minor league contract). Docksey provides some flexibility - a platoon partner for Reah (he's a switch hitter, career average .307), backup and he could even be the regular if we end up dumping Reah's salary. Docksey is 33 and only signed for this year, so he's not a long-term solution. But we'll figure out something by then. I hope.

Toronto offers an interesting deal - OF Ken Geitlinger for 2B Josh Reah. Reah's been my leading power source for the past five years or so, but he's clearly slowing down, and it's best if we part this way rather than me seeing him decline further. Geitlinger is an OK hitter, nothing special. Likes to steal bases. He'll be all right as a 4th outfielder. Done.

In the draft we're in position #13. Always on the hunt for a potential superstar.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: 1B Pedro Huezo (18)
Round 2 pick: SP Casey Hines (22)
Round 3 pick: 3B Mike Giacobe (18)
Round 4 pick: MR Luis Casella (22)
Round 5 pick: CL Eric Kinsman (22)

Huezo, alas, is no superstar, but should be solid when he fully develops. Hines isn't a top-fliight prospect, but I suspect he can get the job done, and we'll give him some chances to do so. Giacobe is suitable for ordinary use. Casella is the usual middle reliever type. It's rare that I get a closer as good as Kinsman in the 5th round, so when I saw him there, I had to take him. No superstar potential, but should make it up the ladder.

Now I present to you this year's Division III champions, Flint:

1B Jason Paeplow (26) - His ratings have skyrockted in the past year; he's gone from being a fringe player to a near superstar. He has real power, a fine eye, some speed and a decent glove. The average may be a little low. He's my cleanup hitter, more or less by default.

2B Alik Docksey (33) - I described him above. He's got the job all to himself, and it's his contract year this year.

SS George Halfacre (31) - One of the few players left from before I came. The drop in OBP from .414 to .336 concerns me. He's not too old, so I expect some recovery, which will make winning the title even easier.

3B Lowell Muni (30) - Still rolling along, playing a decent 3B and getting on base. Expect the same this year.

LF Sean Nylund (36) - Did a good job in a platoon role last year; has been decent in the past as a regular but playing against righties tends to drive his average down. Age is a concern. Will we get the one more good season we need from him?

CF Walter Polk (27) - After finishing second in the batting chase in '21, he has hit around .290 both seasons with some speed and limited power. He still has that cannon arm, but only fools try to run against him anymore. We definitely need a big season from Walter to fulfill our goals.

RF Vincent Paulk (28) - Like most of the team, doesn't hit for average but draws plenty of walks. Unlike most of the team, he does have some power. He's a good outfielder and a AA runner. He'll probably take the #5 slot in the lineup.

C Chris Almendarez (28) - Typical Flint player - draws lots of walks, no power, low average. Defense and speed are not helpful. Contract is up after this season. He's the lefty half of the platoon.

C Fermin Tesoro (21) - Coming up straight from AA, where he had a decent season. His ratings say he's ready, and he'd better be because we're counting on him.

Reserves:

1B/3B Lamont Martinez (29) - Backs up Muni and Paeplow. He'll pinch hit some.
IF Luigi Beliel (31) - Only rated at SS but will get a little time at 2B also. Probably won't hit above the Mendoza line, but draws enough walks to be marginally useful.
OF Ken Geitlinger (28) - Described above. He's our 4th outfielder/pinch hitter. Contract is up this year.
OF Tanyu Hidetada (25) - Our best outfielder, too bad he doesn't hit.

Starting pitchers:

Ace Esequiel Soto (26) - Fantastic pitcher and two-time All-Star for us. Only two questions about him - can he win 20 this year? And will we break the bank to retain him?

SP Michael Broadlake (29) - Started showing signs of living up to his potential with a 6-5, 3.06 mark in 14 games (12 starts). He's been trade bait for several seasons but no decent bites. He might be swingman again this year.

SP Bob Cannon (26) - 8-5, 3.53 ERA in 20 games (14 starts). Could end up being the ace once Soto leaves. For now he's probably our #5 starter.

SP Fabian English (27) - 13-8, 3.62 ERA in 31 starts. Could be the weak link in our rotation. Ratings do not impress and his K/W ratios have never been good. But he usually wins, and it's tough to take a winner out of the rotation.

SP Raneiro Prada (33) - 8-12, 3.79 ERA in 35 starts. Our high salary guy at $1.8 million, generally matched his career totals last year. A step down could be costly for him (and us).

SP Marius Vargas (28) - 12-14, 3.94 ERA in 35 starts. Vargas has always been around .500 for us and we expect the same this year. His contract expires at the end of this season.

Bullpen:

CL Alvaro Garcia (33) - Had his best season last year. His ratings look good.
CL Dean Drips (30) - Pretty good last year. Needs to stay at that level.
MR Michael Gaudreault (28) - Well placed as setup/long man.
MR Anthony Hadley (26) - Too wild to be a closer, but effective otherwise. Has room to improve.
MR Nathan Macaulay (24) - Didn't pitch very well last year (5-5, 1 save, 6.04 ERA in 73 games) but has the best ratings of anyone. We need him to take a step forward.

Prospects:

SP Ken Daly (25) - The fallback in case any of our starters gets hurt or loses effectiveness. Pretty decent already.
MR Jesus Rojas (28) - If we need a reliever that can get a 5.00 ERA, we know who to call.
2B Gregg Katsuyuki (21) - Shot up to AAA in one year with unimpressive stats. Figures to get the 2B job when Docksey meets the end of the line. Bigtime uppercutter.
3B Soetzu Miyazaki (24) - He's been in the minors for a long time and is now ready for a small role in the majors. No place for him yet, though.

Looking around the league, newcomer San Diego could be tough, but we think we have better pitching. The other teams aren't in the same class.

So, let's get this party started.

NEXT: Will I get the pennant I've been bragging about?

[Honolulu Blue]

April - I pull off a minor deal: 2B Rufino Guajardo and SS Elvis Cao for SP/MR Paul Jones. Jones had always been disappointing on the major league level and hadn't done well at AAA in a long time. Guajardo is getting old (32) but is a legit power/speed guy. He's never hit for average and won't start now. Range isn't great but he's steady. I'll find a way to make him useful. Cao is nothing more than a low-level roster filler.

Otherwise the pennant push is not going well. We end the month at 10-16, 7th place, and 6 games behind Grand Rapids. Our hitting has been horrible and the pitching has sprung several leaks. Broadlake and Drips both got hurt and will miss some time. There isn't a lot I can do about the lineup but hope they come out of it before it's too late.

May - We followed our most disappointing month with our best month, going 20-6. We're now 30-22 and find ourselves 2 1/2 games behind San Diego. Grand Rapids has fallen out of the race for now. Our hitters have awakened from the slump they were in and are actually doing the things they're paid to do. The pitching has stabilized.

Contract time. As I've mentioned a few times, we have several key contracts up for negotiations. The news is mixed:

Vargas signs for $850,000 per year for 4 years. This is good news as Vargas is a roster stabilizer who will give us the best he has every time out.
Almendarez and Martinez sign contracts for about $250,000 each for 4 years. Martinez hasn't done anything this season but figures to be a valuable backup sometime. Almendarez is a lefty bat, a catcher, and draws walks like a madman. He's worth his pay.

That's the good news. The bad news is Polk is demanding $4.5 million a year. Absolutely no way we can afford that, even if we thought he was worth it.
Soto dismissed our first offer ($1.5 mil per year for 5 yrs) out of hand. I figured as much. We can't go too much higher without breaking the bank.
Geidlinger is demanding almost a million per. Questionable whether he's worth that much.
Drips wants $2.7 mil a year. See ya.
Docksey wants $390,000 for one year. Katsuyuki looks about ready in AAA and with Guajardo waiting in the wings, there's little need for Docksey. Still, we'll evaluate his status later.
Garcia and Halfacre haven't made their demands known yet. I would guess that we can squeeze in both with the room we have ($3.5 mil or so). The question is whether that would be the best move.

June - Just as we take first place for the first time this season, the red phone rings. Battle Creek is on the phone offering SS Cody Nachbauer for MR Nathan Macauley. Macauley continues to disappoint (3-3, 5.67) despite great ratings. Nachbauer is cheap, for this year and next and looks pretty decent though he hasn't put up big numbers. We make this deal.

To replace Macauley in the pen, we call up MR Jesus Rojas. His 5.00 ERA should be good enough in long relief.

After being at or near first the whole month, a losing streak put us back to 44-35, fourth but only 4 games behind Houston. We tweak the lineup and the rotation.

July - The fire sale begins. First we trade MR Dean Drips to Houston for SP Brandon Belilovsky. Belilovsky is decent, not really a rotation anchor type but should win more often than he loses. He carries a $2.7 million salary. In the more controversial deal, I give up SS George Halfacre for CL Will Nevitt and 3B Russell Miller. Miller is a decent prospect, Nevitt getting old but still effective. Nevitt is going to leave after this season because we no longer have any money to sign anyone (I made some signings before, BTW; I'll tell you about them shortly). Miller goes to A ball.

In the last deal of the season, I trade SP Raneiro Prada for MR John Bethea and CF Jack Preston. Prada (5-5, 4.32) looked like he was slowing down just a bit and we're happy to get out from under that contract of his. Bethea looks pretty decent, though we may not be able to sign him for next season.

In the contract department, I gave Geidinger a $750k, 4 year deal, and Garcia one for $650,000 and 3 years.

Otherwise the month was mixed. We ended it at 58-47, still 4th, but now 7 1/2 behind Houston. The pennant is slowly slipping out of reach. I make some tweaks to the lineups, in case it matters.

August - Don't count us out yet. Another awesome month pushes us to 76-57, into second place and one game behind Houston and South Chicago. The rough part of our schedules are coming and perhaps we'll be able to make up the ground we need. Some last minute tweaks. Wish me luck...

September - We took the lead early in the month and slowly built it to 3 games by mid month. Soto got hurt down the stretch, and then our lead slowly eroded until it was down to one over the Astros on the final day. We faced the Dodgers, who were heading for relegation, while Houston took on Atlanta, who ended up 7th. Vargas was the starter as we took a 2-0 lead after three, but LA scored one each in the 5th and 7th. Hadley gave up two walks in the 8th and Gaudreault allowed them both to score when he allowed a double. And that's all she wrote. Later Houston won against Atlanta as their ace starter won his 22nd. We ended the regular season with identical 89-73 records.

So we headed to a playoff game. We lost the coin flip and the game was played at Houston. It was Broadlake against Gerbeck - not the ideal matchup for either of us. We both scored two in the first and we scored two more in the second. That's the way it stayed until the 6th when the Astros hit a solo shot. Bethea was brought on in the 9th to hold the 4-3 lead. He gave up a single, a sacrifice, and then a home run. Game over. Season over.

Our second pennant lost by one game in two years. This one hurts even worse because we gave away several chances to win the one game we needed.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Texas 107 55 .660 -- .267 3.18
Long Island 96 66 .593 11 .241 2.98
Seattle 96 66 .593 11 .228 2.63
New York 89 73 .549 18 .236 2.61
St. Louis 88 74 .543 19 .245 3.27
Oakland 83 79 .512 24 .232 3.11
Atlanta 74 88 .457 33 .233 3.26
Los Angeles 70 92 .432 37 .214 3.28
Division III
Houston 90 73 .552 -- .250 3.89
Flint 89 74 .546 1 .237 3.42
South Chicago 85 77 .525 4.5 .235 3.56
San Diego 83 79 .512 6.5 .252 3.54
Detroit 70 92 .432 19.5 .223 3.74
Grand Rapids 70 92 .432 19.5 .240 4.17
Lansing 60 102 .370 29.5 .207 4.04
Troy 47 115 .290 42.5 .232 5.18

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Cleveland 100 62 .617 -- .271 3.01
Philadelphia 94 68 .580 6 .245 3.45
Baltimore 87 75 .537 13 .229 3.10
Boston 78 84 .481 22 .242 3.67
Cincinnati 75 87 .463 25 .234 4.04
Pittsburgh 73 89 .451 27 .240 4.05
Iron Mountain 71 91 .438 29 .235 3.98
Toronto 68 94 .420 32 .232 3.80
Division II - West
San Francisco 111 51 .685 -- .254 2.60
Chicago 91 71 .562 20 .265 3.67
Colorado 84 78 .519 27 .257 4.73
Anaheim 80 82 .494 31 .245 3.66
Arizona 79 83 .488 32 .250 3.91
Saginaw 75 87 .463 36 .242 3.74
Battle Creek 65 97 .401 46 .230 4.15
Traverse City 65 97 .401 46 .224 4.39

Team leaders:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Polk, .280
Hits - Polk, 186
Doubles - Muni, 31
Triples - Paulk, 6
Homers - Paeplow, 33
RBI - Paeplow, 107
Runs - Paeplow, 98
Walks - Paeplow, 89
Steals - Paulk, 31
OBP - Tesoro, .376
SLG - Geitlinger, .423

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Soto, 2.06
Wins - Belilovsky*, 20; Cannon, 15
*Belilovsky won 6 games for us, 14 for Houston
Losses - Broadlake, 13
Saves - Garcia, 25
Games - Hadley, 97
Innings - Vargas, 253.0
Strikeouts - Cannon, 193

Best batter - Jason Paeplow. We finally have a legitimate cleanup hitter! He draws walks too!

Best pitcher - Esequiel Soto. Again. No surpise here.

Slickest fielder - Walter Polk. 14 assists and 441 total chances against only three errors. Played every inning of every game.

MVP - Paeplow. I think he has better years ahead of him.

AL Cup: Texas over Houston, 4-0
NL Cup: San Francisco over Cleveland, 4-3
Champions Cup: San Francisco over Texas, 4-3

Movin' up: San Francisco, Houston
Movin' down: Los Angeles, Traverse City

NEXT: What can I do in the offseason to turn our near misses into success?

[Honolulu Blue]

With the loss of Esequiel Soto we enter a new era. It's time to find some talent, whenever and however I can, and win that blasted pennant!

In the front office department, we find that fan interest is up to 71. We lost another $650,000 last year, but got some government checks adding up to almost $1 million. That gives us about $3.3 million to sign extensions and $500,000 to sign free agents. Don't get too excited; we have three coaches/scouts to sign and that comes out of the free agent money. Unless we trade Belilovsky, we don't figure to be a player in the free agency game.

OF Hassan Belote decided to retire at the relatively young age of 29. He was going to compete for the vacant outfield job, but I guess he didn't like his chances of making the club. Oh well, on to plan B.

We sign Rod Blithe as our hitting coach, Josh Lazzara as our manager in A ball, and Rich Wardle as our lead scout. Wardle is not up to our usual standards and that may hurt us when we evaluate players. We'll see.

Free agency. Should be quiet. Perhaps we'll get a trade offer or two.

We accept an offer from Baltimore - CF Laurencho Varga for P Michael Gaudreault. I'm reluctant to give up on Gaudreault, but his ratings have been very good while his performances have been up and down (mostly down). Varga has had three seasons as a regular for the Orioles - he's shown a disappointing average, low OBP, and not much power. His ratings are better than this. We're in dire need of a CF and Varga qualifies, so we say yes. This may not be the final answer.

The next day we acquire MR Doug Scorer from Grand Rapids for 2B/SS Rufino Guajardo. Guajardo is 33 now and while he does some things well, we have better 2nd sackers and utility infielders in front of him. Scorer is pretty average, but there are spots available for middle relievers and he should snag one. He's also young enough (25) to improve.

BTW, I heard Soto went to Long Island and signed a 5-year contract for $6.2 million per. Definitely out of our price range.

And now the draft, where we are at #21 each round.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: CF Cori Crawford (20)
Round 2 pick: C Gary Robinson (20)
Round 3 pick: P Michael Isselton (21)
Round 4 pick: P Kelmo Hernandez (20)
Round 5 pick: C Gary Fagan (20)

Crawford has almost all the tools - he can run, field, hit, hit for power, and has a keen eye. He has some superstar potential. Robinson is a good hitter with a bit of an uppercut. Don't ask about his arm, OK? Isselton should be decent in time. Hernandez could be an All-Star if he ever finds home plate. Fagan is a better than average roster filler.

I don't know what to make of this team. This crew doesn't look quite as good as last year's bunch, but I think they still have a shot. Should be another close one.

NEXT: Will we finally win the pennant?

[Honolulu Blue]

April - This is one of our better months as we go 13-8. Unfortunately, South Chicago has decided not to lose and we're 4 full games back. The hitters are doing quite well and so is the bullpen. The starters could use some shuffling so I do that and tweak the lineup.

May - Something went horribly wrong; we're now 21-27 and 14 1/2 games behind South Chicago. We're in fifth and uncomfortably close to 7th. Paeplow and Varga, the #4 and 5 hitters, both hit under .150 with minimal power. And most of the pitchers came crashing to earth. Probably time to write this season off.

June - Some recovery. We're at 34-40, 6th place, and 15 behind South Chicago.

We reach deals with MR Rojas, SP English, and OF Paulk, all valuable players in their roles. Broadlake and Nachbauer look to be heading elsewhere.

July - The headache continues. 45-53, 6th place, 16 games behind South Chicago. It's all but over as we go into rebuilding mode.

August - So-so month, we finish it at 60-67, deep in 6th, 23 behind South Chicago. The fat lady is warming up...

September & October - We made it through the season. It ended up as a 70-92 torture test, 6th place, 26 behind South Chicago. We lost 15 in a row to end the season - yay.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Texas 112 50 .691 -- .268 3.08
Seattle 103 59 .636 9 .228 2.55
Long Island 95 67 .586 17 .244 2.78
San Francisco 92 70 .568 20 .252 3.07
Atlanta 89 73 .549 23 .236 3.27
New York 82 80 .506 30 .239 2.99
Oakland 78 84 .481 34 .230 3.36
St. Louis 69 93 .426 43 .240 3.83
Division III
South Chicago 96 66 .593 -- .245 3.11
Grand Rapids 80 82 .494 16 .226 4.06
Traverse City 78 84 .481 18 .237 3.32
Detroit 76 86 .469 20 .237 3.72
San Diego 74 88 .457 22 .248 3.65
Flint 70 92 .432 26 .239 3.82
Troy 55 107 .340 41 .249 5.06
Lansing 47 115 .290 49 .217 4.63

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Boston 97 65 .599 -- .246 3.24
Baltimore 86 76 .531 11 .245 3.19
Cleveland 86 76 .531 11 .244 3.27
Iron Mountain 83 79 .512 14 .242 3.62
Philadelphia 75 87 .463 22 .256 3.97
Cincinnati 74 88 .457 23 .236 4.37
Toronto 70 92 .432 27 .226 3.77
Pittsburgh 62 100 .383 35 .243 3.98
Division II - West
Los Angeles 101 61 .623 -- .239 2.47
Chicago 99 63 .611 2 .256 3.38
Houston 98 64 .605 3 .276 3.71
Arizona 89 73 .549 12 .265 3.62
Colorado 87 75 .537 14 .257 4.16
Anaheim 76 86 .469 25 .239 3.53
Battle Creek 61 101 .377 40 .221 4.29
Saginaw 52 110 .321 49 .236 4.86

AL Cup: Texas over South Chicago, 4-1
NL Cup: Boston over Los Angeles, 4-3
Champions Cup: Boston over Texas, 4-2

Movin' up: Boston, South Chicago
Movin' down: St. Louis, Saginaw

Texas has given away two Champions Cups to Division II teams in the past two years, despite having the highest payroll. Perhaps they need to improve their clutch performance?

Team leaders list:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Nachbauer, .297
Hits - Nachbauer, 183
Doubles - Geitlinger, 32
Triples - Nachbauer, 6
Homers - Paeplow, 23
RBI - Paeplow, 93
Runs - Paeplow, 93
Walks - Paeplow, 107
Steals - Paulk, 21 (zero CS!)
OBP - Tesoro, .387
SLG - Nachbauer, .411

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Ceasar, 2.79
Wins - Belilovsky, 13
Losses - Belilovsky, 12
Saves - Garcia, 29
Games - Ceasar, 81
Innings - Belilovsky, 236.1
Strikeouts - Cannon, 202

Best batter - Fermin Tesoro. Gets on base and has a little pop. The best we had this year.

Best pitcher - Bradon Belilovsky. Could have given it to Cannon or Garcia; they did about the same things.

Slickest fielder - None.

MVP - Tesoro. I could have picked Nachbauer, but he's leaving us after this year and we don't want to give him any more satisfaction. Nyah.

NEXT: Can we get back into contention?

[Honolulu Blue]

We've written off '25 as a transition season for Flint as the old stars departed and the new stars either struggled or were still in the minors. Now is the time to begin our comeback.

Two aging players in the minors retire. We'll miss them, a little. Meanwhile, I look at the front office and don't like what I see. Fan interest is down to 56 - not surprising, given last year's performance. Team payroll is already up to $11.5 million. We lost almost $1.8 million last year; subsidies helped, but we're still in the hole. There's no money for free agents or re-siginings. Fortunately there are only three people who need their contracts extended - unfortunately, Cannon and Paeplow are among those three. I make it a priority to unload Belilovsky and his $2.7 million salary.

But first, I need to fill some openings on the coaching staff. We sign Christian Dattilo as our pitching coach and Ed Weston will take over the key AAA team.

I make a minor deal with Traverse City as they send me 1B Jim Jackson for MR Jason Roenigk. Roenigk has modest ratings and would be about 10th on our MR depth chart. He's not of any use. Jackson is an odd bird - a first baseman who can fly like the wind. Unfortunately his other talents are marginal, as his disappointing first season as a regular showed (.203, 8, 50). But if Paeplow leaves us, I could use a backup option, and he would be that.

On to the draft. We go #21 this time around.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: 3B Cletus Stamos (22)
Round 2 pick: LF Hugo Alberto (19)
Round 3 pick: SP Valentin Mohamed (22)
Round 4 pick: MR Scott Partch (19)
Round 5 pick: SS Marcos Garza (20)

Stamos has solid potential - though probably isn't a budding superstar, and as a bonus he can play short (though not well). Alberto should have good skills for getting on base when he fully develops. He needs them because his other skills are very limited. Mohamed is a decent enough pitcher, should make it higher. Partch is a typical middle reliever, and Garza strictly a roster filler.

NEXT: More adventures from Flint and the Vincent Memorial League.

[Honolulu Blue]

April - Not a bad month, all things considered. We ended up 10-11. That's good for 5th, 4 1/2 games behind Grand Rapids. Half the hitters are doing well, half aren't. The same for the pitching staff. We make some changes.

May - Things started to click for us as we went on a hot streak near mid month. By the end of the month we cooled off some. Still, we'll take a 28-21 record at this point. That's good for second, but 5 games behind San Diego. The hitters and pitchers are starting to click.

Cannon is demanding $2 million and Paeplow $3 million. There's no way we can afford to keep them unless we unload some players. I may do just that.

June - The team held their own, but went through a losing streak near the end of the month to end up at 39-36. Traverse City passed us and we're now in third, 5 1/2 behind San Diego.

July - The season is slowly slipping away... we're now 50-49, in 4th, 7 games behind the Padres. No trade offers; therefore, no trades.

August - Not destined to be our season, I suppose. 62-66, 4th, 18 games behind San Diego.

September/October - Scant improvement overall. We end the season at 72-90, 24 games behind the Padres.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Texas 102 60 .630 -- .267 3.24
New York 98 64 .605 4 .241 2.61
Seattle 96 66 .593 6 .228 2.56
Boston 94 68 .580 8 .245 3.68
Atlanta 92 70 .568 10 .240 3.48
San Francisco 86 76 .531 16 .236 3.02
Long Island 81 81 .500 21 .243 3.38
Oakland 69 93 .426 33 .226 3.40
Division III
San Diego 96 66 .593 -- .262 3.13
Detroit 80 82 .494 16 .245 3.64
Grand Rapids 79 83 .488 17 .233 4.05
Flint 72 90 .444 24 .226 4.18
Traverse City 69 93 .426 27 .245 4.02
Lansing 61 101 .377 35 .227 4.46
Troy 61 101 .377 35 .239 4.51
Saginaw 60 102 .370 36 .250 5.14

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Cleveland 95 67 .586 -- .257 3.32
St. Louis 94 68 .580 1 .255 3.07
Philadelphia 88 74 .543 7 .257 3.60
Baltimore 79 83 .488 16 .236 3.66
Toronto 78 84 .481 17 .237 3.58
Cincinnati 69 93 .426 26 .219 3.76
Iron Mountain 64 98 .395 31 .230 4.21
Pittsburgh 55 107 .340 40 .232 4.33
Division II - West
Los Angeles 109 53 .673 -- .251 2.48
Houston 97 65 .599 12 .270 4.00
Arizona 91 71 .562 18 .257 3.45
Chicago 87 75 .537 22 .264 3.64
South Chicago 83 79 .512 26 .252 3.42
Colorado 78 84 .481 31 .270 4.69
Anaheim 66 96 .407 43 .214 3.70
Battle Creek 63 99 .389 46 .230 4.39

AL Cup: Texas over San Diego, 4-3
NL Cup: Cleveland over LA, 4-0
Champions Cup: Texas over Cleveland, 4-0

Movin' up: Cleveland, San Diego
Movin' down: Oakland, Pittsburgh

Finally, Texas puts that league leading $120 million payroll to good use.

NEXT: What will it take to win? Will I ever find out?

[Honolulu Blue]

Some modified house rules go into effect starting next season:

* I can charge for tickets however much the market will bear, but they can only be raised $1 in a year.
* If I am relegated, ticket prices will be reduced by $3 the next season. This cut will be in place for the full season.
* I can make one trade offer per year.

With those modifications I feel I will have a better chance of developing players, retaining talent, and winning.

As I look at the financial situation, it remains discouraging. We lost over $2 million last year, the 7th straight season we've lost money. $1.5 million in government money didn't help much; we're still over a million in the hole. Fan interest is at 50. We have $4.3 million in extension room, thanks to Belilovsky's contract expiring this season. Other key contracts are OF Varga, MR/CL Garcia, and MR Hadley. Belilovsky is as good as gone, and we should be able to ink at least two of those three. So things will be looking up soon.

We sign Dustin Chang to manage our AA team, and James Roma for the A team. Neither should hurt me too much.

In the free agency month, we work the phones and find a deal that works for us - Iron Mountain sends us 1B Brice Gallander and we deal SP Fabian English to them. I liked the record English compiled for us, but his ratings were never the best and he may be in for a decline. Gallender is already declining at 34, but remains effective at getting on base. He'll be good for us for two years, by which time our 1B prospects should be ready. Now I have to find a starter somewhere...

The Tigers make us a challenge trade - MR Phillip Oswald for MR/CL Alvaro Garcia. This is part salary dump, part fresh young face. Garcia has been mostly effective for us, but he's 35 and can't keep going like this forever. Oswald is wild, tough to hit, and signed cheaply until 2029. He's also 27. This could blow up in our faces, but I don't think so.

Saginaw offers us MR Alex Miguel and OF Lee Yasuyuki for SP Emmanuel Larocco. Larocco is decent, but he's 29 and can't get out of AA ball. I'm thrilled to get something of value for him. Yasuyuki is worthless and figures to be released before opening day. If you've been paying close attention, you may remember I traded him to Saginaw some years back as part payment for Esequiel Soto. Good times... anyway, Miguel is a decent talent who hasn't done too badly with the Gears. He'll probably make the big club but not in a key role.

On to the draft, where we draw the 28th position.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: SP Carlos Martinez (18)
Round 2 pick: RF Oswaldo Arrendondon (23)
Round 3 pick: SP Jeff Kautter (20)
Round 4 pick: MR Aaron Baez (21)
Round 5 pick: CF Jorge Garcia (21)

Martinez has the look of a star; we hope nothing bad happens to him. Arrendondon has a funny name but ordinary skills, except his propensity to walk. "Welcome Back" Kautter is a decent addition to the team and should develop in time. Baez is a typical middle reliever. Garcia fills out the roster; big things are not expected from him.

I spend spring training trying to teach four of my middle relievers the art of starting. I succeed with two of them, which gives us some much needed flexibility.

With that, we head to opening day.

NEXT: Will this be the year?

[Honolulu Blue]

April - Pennant fever is slowly making its way back to Flint. We played well all month and finished out at 13-9, just one game behind leader Saginaw. Our hitting is pretty good, and so is the pitching. We make the usual tweaks.

May - A bit of a slump takes us to 24-26, tied for 6th but only 3 1/2 behind Detroit and Troy. It's a division that anyone can take, including us, if we play our cards right.

We sign MR Scorer to a 5-year deal at $450k per, and also SP Belilovsky takes a big salary cut to re-sign with us for 3 years at $1,150,000 per year. That's good news, but he may be slowing down a bit. Will he be effective through the end of this deal? It remains to be seen.

June - The Padres make an offer - CL Enrique Martinez and SP Dominick Childers for MR Doug Scorer. We like Scorer, since we just signed him to a deal, but Childers is just about as good as he is, cheaper (for the next two years at least), and the prospect Childers is no writeoff. It's a deal we have to do.

A .500 month gets us to 37-39, still tied for 6th, but 9 games behind Detroit. The whole rotation is pitching great, except for Belilovsky (4-10, 5.70). Yes, I know I signed him to an extension, but I may have to get rid of him if he's slowing down this much already. Kenny Daly is 8-3 with a 1.88 ERA; there's a chance he could get the call for the All-Star team.

July - Daly didn't make the All-Star team, and after a bad month, probably showed he didn't deserve it.

The title and the rest of the division is slowly slipping away. We're now 48-52, 7th place, and 12 games behind Detroit. The offense seems OK, and so is the pitching - except for Belilovsky. He continues to underperform. No replacements yet, so I have to keep running him out there.

August - We're playing a little better down the stretch. 65-64, 4th place, 7 behind Detroit. We don't think we'll finish about .500 this year, but we'll take every bit of encouragement we can get.

September/October - We end the season at 73-89, tied for 5th, 9 1/2 games behind Detroit. Those two years in contention are starting to look more and more like flukes.

Team leaders list:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Gallander, .301
Hits - Gallander, 175
Doubles - Katsuyuki, 54
Triples - Paulk, 8
Homers - Katsuyuki, 33
RBI - Katsuyuki, 109
Runs - Katsuyuki, 88
Walks - Tesoro, 107
Steals - Paulk, 23
OBP - Tesoro, .374
SLG - Katsuyuki, .527

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Ceasar, 2.90
Wins - Daly, 14
Losses - Belilovsky, 21
Saves - Ceasar, 33
Games - Ceasar, 80
Innings - Belilovsky, 249.2
Strikeouts - Daly, 158

Best batter - Gregg Katsuyuki. Finally lived up to his potential, smashing 91 extra base hits and batting well clear of the Mendoza line.

Best pitcher - Vaasco Ceasar. Moved to closer this year and didn't miss a beat.

Slickest fielder - Harley Wood. Not terribly mobile, but did have 724 total chances, 102 DPs and onnly made 12 errors (.983 FP).

MVP - Katsuyuki. It's been a long time coming, but let the good times roll.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Boston 101 61 .623 -- .248 2.83
Texas 97 65 .599 4 .264 3.30
Seattle 95 67 .586 6 .231 2.80
New York 93 69 .574 8 .241 2.67
Atlanta 86 76 .531 15 .234 2.78
Cleveland 83 79 .512 18 .257 3.71
San Francisco 80 82 .494 21 .240 3.26
Long Island 75 87 .463 26 .238 3.06
Division III
Detroit 83 80 .509 -- .246 3.47
Pittsburgh 82 81 .503 1 .258 3.66
Grand Rapids 80 82 .494 2.5 .238 3.74
Saginaw 77 85 .475 5.5 .245 3.95
Flint 73 89 .451 9.5 .234 4.04
Traverse City 73 89 .451 9.5 .232 3.30
Troy 71 91 .438 11.5 .229 3.68
Lansing 48 114 .296 34.5 .224 4.53

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
Oakland 95 67 .586 -- .249 3.23
Chicago 91 71 .562 4 .263 3.64
Toronto 84 78 .519 11 .236 3.06
Battle Creek 81 81 .500 14 .228 3.51
Baltimore 79 83 .488 16 .245 3.91
Philadelphia 76 86 .469 19 .233 3.87
Cincinnati 75 87 .463 20 .221 3.58
St. Louis 74 88 .457 21 .234 3.45
Division II - West
Arizona 105 57 .648 -- .264 2.85
South Chicago 92 70 .568 13 .246 3.19
Houston 89 73 .549 16 .257 3.74
Los Angeles 86 76 .531 19 .245 3.11
San Diego 74 88 .457 31 .243 4.08
Colorado 73 89 .451 32 .260 4.89
Iron Mountain 68 94 .420 37 .258 4.77
Anaheim 54 108 .333 51 .216 4.03

AL Cup: Boston over Detroit, 4-3
NL Cup: Arizona over Oakland, 4-3
Champions Cup: Boston over Arizona, 4-2

Movin' up: Arizona, Detroit
Movin' down: Long Island, Anaheim

The Red Sox really inflated their payroll upon their return to Division I, taking the lead in that category from Texas. I can't see it working in the long run, but it obviously paid off this year.

NEXT: More of the same, only different.

[Honolulu Blue]

We learn of a new player for our Hall of Fame. OF Walt Taylor had been a 4th round pick by the Rockies in 2012 and played 126 games with the big club that year. He wasn't ready and struggled for the next two years. In 2014 he hit .310 and never hit below .287 again. Taylor had good speed and some pop in his bat and was considered a good outfielder. The naysayers would point out that Walt was helped across the board by playing in Coors his whole career, and he got caught stealing a lot.

But with 2555 hits and a .303 career average in 2222 career games over 15 seasons, no one can say that Taylor wasn't a very good player for a long time.

Back to more local matters, this is going to be a partial rebuiliding year as we call up several players from AAA to replace veterans whom we decide against re-sigining. It's a way to reduce the age of the team and also cut down on payroll.

In other financial news, things are improving. We sold out every game despite raising our ticket prices to $8. That narrowed our losses to a bit under $1 million. We also got about $1.1 million in revenue sharing, so we're still in the hole by roughly that amount. Current payroll is at $8.5 million. We have $6.7 million in extension room and 7 players to fit under it, so we should be able to retain most of our desired talent. We even have $1.9 mil to play in the free agent market. Coaches will eat into that, but we should be able to sign one or two players this time around. Fan interest has declined, but only to 50. Another pennant run will see that shoot up rapidly. We'll try to give it to them.

We sign William Harris as our new hitting coach and Jasper Szimko as lead scout. Szimko is relatively cheap, but not good. We'll see how well he does.

For the first time in years, we can test the free agent market. With only about $1.2 million to work with, we obviously can't talk to the elite players, but there are always niches to fill, and we aim to use free agents to help us do that. We can use two outfielders (preferably lefties), a middle reliever, and any kind of prospect that can play at AA or higher. Let's see what we can come up with.

We sign 1B Lloyd Estrada to a cheapie deal. My current plans have him in AA or AAA to await further developments.

Lansing is willing to trade OF Rosco Abrego for MR Duane Bek. Bek has modest ratings and stats, and figured to be an end-of-the-roster type of guy. Abrego is kind of the same, but... he draws lots of walks and has some power. Not much of an outfielder, though, and is never ever going to hit for average. He'll be in the mix for a 4th or 5th outfield job. Sold!

Just got off the phone with the Padres. I'm hyperventilating. They're offering OFs Justin Pederson and Brian Prior for 1B Jim Jackson. Jackson isn't very talented, doesn't have a lot of potential, and is now 28. He would have been a candidate for the release pile. Pederson is modestly talented and should be in the outfield mix for us. Prior's not the usual scrubbini throwaway. Oh no. He was the #1 overall pick last year and he still has a whale of potential. It can't be a salary dump because Pederson is making less than $300,000. I don't know why they're making this deal, but to me it looks like Christmas 11 months early. Let me take it before the power goes out...

OF Aaron Muzzall signs with us. His hitting skills are ordinary, and his career stats less so, but I think his last year with Troy (.218 BA, .304 OBP, .365 SLG) represents his true skill and could even get a little better. He'll battle for one of our outfield slots.

The fun continues at Roadmaster headquarters. Saginaw calls us and offers MR Jim Cantu and SP Jon St. Laurent for LF Ken Geitlinger. Cantu is decent - too wild for a key role, but should be fine for long relief. St. Laurent is a decent prospect that could emerge down the line. Geitlinger is OK, at least in a platoon role, but this offer is too good to resist.

We finally trade Belilovsky - it's to Grand Rapids for 3B prospect Floris Rabelo. Rabelo is a traditional Flint player - fair average, lots of walks, no power. Has an outside shot at the 3B job, but will probably start in the minors.

Payroll is at $8.7 million as we head into the draft - as low as it's been in a long time. It'll creep up as we bring players from the minors.

And now we head for the draft. For some reason, we're in position #2! This almost makes up for all the cruddy draft positions we'd gotten previously. We're sure to get a great player here; I only hope we choose wisely.

The big superstar in this year's draft is CF Dookie Wieghorst. 18 years old and brilliant potentials all around. And he's a switch hitter. His fielding and running are nothing special, but he has to have some flaws. Other big talents include 3B/SS Lawrence Reyher (19, bigtime power stroke, can also hit for average), C Jason Jackson (18, good all-around hitter, don't ask about his other skills), and SP Troy Connell (18, throwing velocity of 10!, good enough to pitch at AAA right now). But we really, really want Dookie. But the Giants pick first...

"With the first pick in the 2028 amateur allocation draft, the San Francisco Giants select... center fielder Dookie Wieghorst."

Aw, shucks, darn. I wish him well. Who to choose? Well, not too much debate about it.

"With the second pick in the 2028 amateur allocation draft, the Flint Roadmasters select... pitcher Troy Connell."

Connell can throw 95, has a wicked slider and a pretty change. If the coaches don't ruin him or injure him, he should be with Flint within two years.

There were other players available to be drafted, of course.

Draft Picks :
Round 1 pick: SP Troy Connell (18)
Round 2 pick: SP Tim Robinson (18)
Round 3 pick: 2B Mike Bang (18)
Round 4 pick: CL Thurman Wilmer (22)
Round 5 pick: MR Rob Welch (21)

Connell I've described above. He starts in AA, at the recommendation of my scouts. I would have thought he would have gone straight to AAA. No rush; I'm sure he'll get there eventually. As you can kind of tell, this was a big draft for quality pitchers. Robinson has good command of five pitches and gets lots of grounders. He should be a good one in time. "Bang and Blame" can bang out the hits and also work the pitchers for walks. Not much power or defense. Wilmer is another guy with good control who gets grounders. Rob Welch is not in any way related to Bob Welch. That said, we'll keep him away from the bars and convenience stores, just in case.

BTW, Connell is listed as the #4 prospect in the league. Dookie is #2, sandwiched between two shortstops drafted in previous years. Prior is #6. I'd say given a little luck, our future looks bright. Don't you?

NEXT: Getting to the future as quickly as I can.

[Honolulu Blue]

While the really exciting players are in the minors, we have a season to run in Division III. Five players are making their first roster appearances for the Roadmasters - 3B/OF Soetsu Miyazaki (28), SS/3B Russel Miller (24), OF Cori Crawford (23), SP Casey Hines (26), and MR Carlos Guercio (24). Are they the leaders of a whole new golden era for Flint? Only time will tell.

April - We overcame a 2-7 start to take the division lead at 12-8, then slipped back to 12-12. That's good for a tie for 4th place, 2 1/2 games behind Saginaw. The pitching staff has been great, except for a couple of slots. The hitting is episodic.

In other news, superstar prospect Troy Connell started 5 times in AA, went 4-0 with a 2.70 ERA, striking out only 25 in 36 2/3 innings. He sucks. Just kidding. He was toying with them in AA and everybody knew it. My staff is telling me to send him to AAA, which we do forthwith.

May - We stayed in the pennant race the whole month, ending up at 27-25 tied for 2nd but 3 games behind Pittsburgh. We tweak the lineup and rotation, though both are basically going well.

June - Still hanging on by a thread. Now we're 39-38, in 5th, 6 1/2 games behind Pittsburgh, but only one game out of second.

July - 1B Brice Gallander made the All-Star team. He went 0-1. He was hitting about .330 at the time, so he was having a nice season.

We're still hanging around after a good month. We sit at 54-48, in second, 4 behind Pittsburgh.

SP Casey Hines is making a strong case for the Charboneau Award. He's 12-4 with a 1.89 ERA.

August - The injury bug struck hard this month. Connell was hit first; he tore a ligament in his elbow. Out for the season; no damage to current or future ratings, thank goodness. Then came Daly; strained bicep. He'll be out a couple of weeks. Thankfully, no damage to HIS ratings either. Add in SP Miguel (bone chips in his elbow) and minor league MR Scott Partch (pulled bicep muscle) who were injured last month and are still out, and this has been a trying season.

Eventually, slowly, those guys got healthy. Miraculously, we're still in the pennant hunt at 71-61. Pittsburgh is 4 1/2 games ahead of us. We need to continue to play well, and I think we can.

September - We took the lead for the first time at mid month, then stretched it out to as much as 2 1/2. We backed into the pennant on Saturday, September 30, when the Pirates lost. There was a somewhat muted celebration in Flint, but a pennant is a pennant. I'm sure all the ramifications will sink in a little later, but for now we have a playoff to prepare for.

The bad news is in the runup to the title, SP Casey Hines tore his rotator cuff and is out for the season. No damage to his ratings. We think he'll be back and effective next year. He ended the season 16-7 with a 1.93 ERA. Sounds like a Charboneau Award winner to me.

We won the last game against Seattle for good measure. Our 85-77 record beat Pittsburgh's 83-79 mark. So finally we're on the winning end of a close race.

Oh, and looky who we play in the AL Cup - the M's. They won 107 in Division I and had a fantastic ERA of 2.23. So we don't expect to score a lot. Indeed, we'll be lucky to make the second trip to Seattle. But we're here, and that's all that matters right now.

The rotation is up in the air; without Daly, we don't have a rotation anchor, just a bunch of guys who went .500 or so. We have a few days to rest, so we'll figure something out.

Game 1 - It's their ace Allaire (22-5, 1.70) against Vargas (12-13, 3.96). Vargas got the start because he'd been with Flint a long time through some very dry times and he should share in the good times. Allaire was tough, scattering 6 hits over 7 2/3 innings. The only hit that did any damage was a leadoff homer by Katsuyuki in the 2nd. That was the margin of victory as Vargas and Ceasar combined for a 3-hit shutout.

Game 2 - They send out #2 starter Eisuke (18-7, 1.64) against Beauvais (9-17, 3.67). Beauvais had pitched in some hard luck this season, but we're hoping that streak ends tonight. Tesoro cracked a solo shot in the 3rd for Flint's only run. This time it didn't hold up as the Mariners scored one in each of the first three innings for a 3-1 win.

Game 3 - We head to cozy Eubanks Field for three games. The owner and I are thinking of all the extra money these games will make for us. But we're also thinking about winning too. Seattle sends out Demarco (18-7, 2.02) against Daly (6-10, 3.51). Again we scored exactly one run, Katsuyuki blasting a double that drove home Gallander. That didn't hold up either as Daly gave up 10(!) walks and a couple of hits in 5 1/3 innings of work. 5 runs scored on his watch and another scored later as the Mariners won 6-1.

Game 4 - Vargas goes for his second win in this series. He faces off against #4 starter Gerbeck (18-9, 2.78). We scored two runs this time around. It was almost enough as Seattle took a 3-0 lead after 3 1/2 innings and held on.

Game 5 - We send out Gabriel Ritondo (1-0, 1.08) in this must-win matchup. Ritondo had two good starts late in the season after his callup from AAA. We're hoping his luck continues. Eisuke goes again for the Mariners. No good as Ritondo was ineffective, giving up 4 runs in 5 innings. We did score 3, but Seattle added an insurance run late to take it 5-3.

In the NL Cup, St. Louis took out LA, 4-2.
The Champions Cup was a slaughter as the Mariners won them all against the Cardinals. Ha ha, we did better than they did.

Honors:

Daly won the Charboneau Award, which was completely expected. Not expected was Gregg Katsuyuki taking home the prestigious Christopher Award. Yeah, he led the AL in homers (37) and RBI (134), but his average was a meager .236, which ordinarily disqualifies one from top honors.

Team leaders list:

Batting average (min. 200 AB) - Crawford, .295
Hits - Gallander, 168
Doubles - Katsuyuki, 38
Triples - Katsuyuki, 6
Homers - Katsuyuki, 37
RBI - Katsuyuki, 134
Runs - Katsuyuki, 89
Walks - Tesoro, 94
Steals - Crawford, 30
OBP - Gallander, .382
SLG - Katsuyuki, .498

ERA (min. 50 innings) - Ceasar, 1.76
Wins - Hines, 16
Losses - Beauvais, 17
Saves - Ceasar, 36
Games - Martinez, 74
Innings - Vargas, 225.0
Strikeouts - Hines, 169

Best batter - Robert Jantz. It's hard to go against the league MVP, but Katsuyuki's year wasn't all that impressive, except for the extra base hits. Jantz drew more walks and hit for a much higher average. And he has some power too.

Best pitcher - Casey Hines. Ceasar continues to be great, but Hines was fantastic.

Slickest fielder - Justin Pederson. 15 assists and 6 errors in 418 total chances (.986 FP).

MVP - Hines. The vote would've been clearer had he been able to finish out the season.

American Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division I
Seattle 107 55 .660 -- .236 2.23
Arizona 100 62 .617 7 .245 2.87
Atlanta 95 67 .586 12 .254 2.89
Boston 91 71 .562 16 .245 3.10
Texas 88 74 .543 19 .253 3.18
New York 85 77 .525 22 .230 2.98
San Francisco 82 80 .506 25 .240 3.28
Cleveland 67 95 .414 40 .245 4.19
Division III
Flint 85 77 .525 -- .251 3.23
Pittsburgh 83 79 .512 2 .270 3.72
Troy 74 88 .457 11 .223 3.25
Traverse City 73 89 .451 12 .236 3.86
Saginaw 71 91 .438 14 .242 4.08
Grand Rapids 70 92 .432 15 .246 4.36
Anaheim 69 93 .426 16 .225 4.13
Lansing 56 106 .346 29 .219 4.07

National Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
Division II - East
St. Louis 100 62 .617 -- .248 2.87
Long Island 90 72 .556 10 .255 3.09
Chicago 89 73 .549 11 .248 3.81
Toronto 81 81 .500 19 .242 3.77
Cincinnati 79 83 .488 21 .232 3.60
Baltimore 76 86 .469 24 .245 3.80
Philadelphia 73 89 .451 27 .237 3.96
Oakland 72 90 .444 28 .252 4.23
Division II - West
Los Angeles 96 66 .593 -- .239 3.15
Detroit 91 71 .562 5 .257 3.23
Colorado 85 77 .525 11 .279 4.75
Houston 85 77 .525 11 .249 3.91
San Diego 75 87 .463 21 .248 3.85
Battle Creek 74 88 .457 22 .226 3.73
Iron Mountain 68 94 .420 28 .241 4.41
South Chicago 62 100 .383 34 .239 3.99

AL Cup: Seattle over Flint, 4-1
NL Cup: St. Louis over LA, 4-2
Champions Cup: Seattle over St. Louis, 4-0

Movin' up: St. Louis, Flint
Movin' down: Cleveland, South Chicago

NEXT: Preparing for our big move to Division II!

[Mikekem]

WOOHOO way to go Flint!!! I'm completely wrapped up in your team, Blue. I can't wait to see what happens when you play in Division II. Good Luck!!

[Honolulu Blue]

In honor of our move to Division II, I have decided to start a new thread here (http://dynamic2.gamespy.com/~fof/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=210233#post210233).

In the meantime, feel free to vote (http://dynamic2.gamespy.com/~fof/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12903) in the poll I set up.

As always, thanks for reading.