Talahassee Federals - (SOM Dynasty)

[Breeze]

It’s been quite a while sense I have been active on this board, but I’ve decided to start a new dynasty. Last time I was active, I was running an interactive dynasty using Strat-o-matic baseball to create a team that could complete against teams full of hall of famers (LINK).(who knows, if this goes well, maybe I’ll get back to this one too).

Now I’ll be using that same game to do this dynasty. I’m back in a league which mixes the hall of fame players (along with Negro League, Japanese, and Caribbean Greats) with players from a single season in MBL (in this case it’s 1930).

The league is the Legends of Cooperstown (LOC) and it uses a rotisserie style system for player’s salaries. This ends up being a big year, because it’s the fourth season and almost all the players are RFA (meaning they will be in the pool to be bid on, but the team that currently has that player has the right to top the final bid and thus retain that player for $1 more). I’ll get more into who’s available shortly.

A little background on my team…

When I started in this league it was draft based only (no salaries), and I ended up with an expansion team. At the time I joined the Japanese, Caribbean, and Negro League 2 all start teams were added, so I was able to draft cut players or players from one of the above “created” teams. There were 3 other expansion teams the year I joined, and I was the last pick in the expansion draft, giving me picks 4,5, 12, 13…etc. My first two picks were both pitchers from the Caribbean All Stars – Luis Tiant Sr, and Jose Mendez. I followed up other Negro League players and basically I ended up with the following core:

<b>Luis Tiant Sr
Jose Mendez
Willie Wells
Martin DiHigo
Turkey Stearns
Miguel Gonzalez
Kid Nichols
Wild Bill Wright</b>

Because I had 3 pretty good pitchers (my first 2 picks and Kid Nichols), and because there are so many sluggers in this game I made my park huge – so there aren’t many ball-park homeruns. At the all-star break my first season I traded Stearns for Cristobal Torriente, because Torriente fit my philosophy of extra base power and OBP better than Stearns. I ended up making the playoffs as the third seed, but I lost in the first round to the Boston Americans and they went on to win the Championship.

My second season, the core was pretty much the same and the results were similar, but not quite as good. I just missed the playoffs.

The third season was the start of the salary structure, and I ended up with pretty much the same group of players. The only major change was that I added Lefty Grove to the rotation through the auction. I just missed the playoffs again.

The forth season I was managing in absentia, and my team managed to make the playoffs (shows you how good a manager I am).

The fifth season I just missed the playoffs, and again I was absent for the entire season.

That brings us to this season (and you are probably so bored by this time you aren’t reading anymore)…

My team has a budget of $275. Unfortunately, my inactivity has cost me some bonus money and therefore, I am tied for the lowest total payroll allowed. It’s not a huge difference, but it is $15 to $20 below some other teams (which is a good player or 2 solid players).

I currently have under contract:

- <b>Jose Mendez</b> - $42 (the first year of the draft he cost me $48 – so I made him available again and got him for $6 less)
- <b>Miguel Gonzalez</b> - $21 (got him back in the last auction)
- <b>Rollie Fingers</b> - $20 (mix up in bidding got him Fingers at this price – I didn’t want to go above $16)
- <b>Spotwood Poles</b> - $9 (a nice OFer with speed and defense – but not a great player in this league)
- <b>Max Manning</b> - $5 (innings eater from the pen – solid but not great)
- <b>Isao Harimoto</b> - $2 (decent lefty outfielder who hits lefties better than righties – useful in spots)

Restricted Free Agents that I can top the final bid on (the last contract is in parentheses):

- <b>Willie Wells</b> – ($28) - Verstile INF (3b and SS), good speed and power – not a superstar though
- <b>Luis Tiant Sr.</b>- ($26) - Great LH pitcher. Extremely undervalued at $26, might go for twice that this time around.
- <b>Cristobal Torriente</b> - ($23) – Nice extra base power, typically gets me 20+ HR too, good defense, great arm, good speed.
- <b>Martin DiHigo</b> - ($17) – talk about versatile, plays every position but P and C, good offensively. Versatility makes drafting easy – I can take the best player because I know he can fill in at a void.
- <b>Jud Wilson</b> - ($16) – Good hitter with power and average – terrible defensively at 3b and 1b.
- <b>Kid Nichols</b> - ($8) – undervalued pitcher who can start or relieve well. Good innings eater. Could go for much more if he ends up in the early rounds of bidding.
- <b>Wild Bill Wright </b>– ($3) – if I had been active in the league I would have renewed his contract for 1 more years and paid him $13 ($10 for the extension). Good defensively, speed and some power (mostly extra base power).
- <b>Roger Bresnahan</b> ($2) – a catcher to make sure I wasn’t void at the position heading into the draft. I don’t want to be forced to fill a need in the draft and hamstring myself.
- <b>Lefty Grove </b> - ($26) - great LH pitcher that helps for the core of my rotation.

My thoughts on the upcoming draft…

I want to protect my players. I like them. I know that I haven’t been overly successful with my roster, but I still like the players. To make sure I have the money I need to keep my players I’m going to cut all my players under contract except Mendez. That will clear $57 and give me a total of $233 to spend. I’ll probably use my topping rights on Tiant, Torriente, Wells, DiHigo, Wilson and Nichols. If things go well (my guys aren’t in the early rounds of bidding) I could have some extra money to spend. We’ll see.

I am interested in opinions so feel free to chime in. I’ll also post a list of who else is available.

[Breeze]

<b>Houston Colt 45’s
Team Cap - $280
Current Contracts - $76
Available - $204</b>

Mickey Mantle – RFA ($71)
Eddie Mathews – $42, $42, $52 (3 year contract)
Joe Morgan – RFA ($36)
Luke Easter - $4 (1 year contract)
Harmon Killebrew – RFA ($31)
Harry Heilmann – RFA ($22)
Leon Day - $15, $15 (2 year contract)
Joe Cronin – RFA ($13)
Carl Mays - $9 (1 year contract)
Pee Wee Reese - $4 (1 year contract)
Robin Roberts – RFA ($2)
Billy Williams – RFA ($1)
Manabu Kitabeppu - $1, $1 (2 year contract)
Ben Taylor - $1, $1 (2 year contract)

Of the players available, I have very little interest in most of these guys. Mantle would be great, but I’m not going to mortgage the team for 1 player. Morgan is good, but not good enough to justify what he’s going to pull in the auction. No interest in Killebrew, good power, but he has no defense and he wouldn’t be overly productive in my park. The low dollar guys will be low dollar again, and I won’t swear that I wouldn’t pay for any of them, but I’m not planning on bidding on them.

On the other side of the coin…

Heilmann interests me. I’m really a heavy LH hitting club in the middle of my order. I’ve tried to get my hands on a player like Heilmann for a while. He can really put the ball in play and hit for average and extra base power. He can’t run though…

Cronin would be one of my top choices to replace Wells if he gets too expensive. They are very similar from the plate, Wells has more speed and is more versatile.

[Breeze]

<b>Boston Americans
Team Cap - $295
Current - $0
Available - $295</b>

Oscar Charleston – RFA ($60)
Steve Carlton – RFA ($46)
Pop Lloyd – RFA ($40)
Rube Waddell – RFA ($30)
Tim Keefe – RFA ($30)
Bobby Doerr – RFA ($12)
Sam Thompson – RFA ($7)
George Kell – RFA ($3)
Ray Dandridge – RFA ($4)
Hugh Duffy – RFA ($4)
Vic Willis – RFA ($2)
Burleigh Grimes – RFA ($2)
Gabby Hartnett – RFA ($1)


This is perennially one of the best teams, and they have $20 more on the total budget than I do and they have the entire budget to spend. He will really control the early part of the auction. He’ll keep Charleston, beyond that, I’m not sure…

As far as I go:

I’d love to have Charleston, but as I mentioned above, I doubt he’s available and he’ll be too expensive anyway.

I’ll keep an eye on Pop Lloyd. I like him and if he goes in a later round of the auction he might not be much more than Wells. Waddell and Carlton are potential replacements for Tiant and Grove if they get too expensive. Keefe could be added if the money situation works out right. I’d like to have another good starter with my park. Duffy at a cheap price is also intriguing. The others might get late bids to fill spots.

[Breeze]

<b>Page Fence Giants
Team Cap - $275
Current - $188
Available - $87
</b>
Eddie Collins – RFA ($45)
Billy Hamilton - $31 (I year contract)
Jesse Burkett - $30 (1 year contract)
Rodolfo Puente - $25, $25 (2 year contract)
Luke Appling - $13 (1 year contract)
Enos Slaughter - $11 (1 year contract)
Pablo Mesa - $11 (1 year contract)
Frank Wickware - $11 (1 year contract)
Adolfo Luque - $10 (1 year contract)
Pete Rose - $9 (1 year contract)
Hector Espino - $8, $8 (2 year contract)
Roger Connor - $18 (1 year contract)
Fred Clarke – $6 (1 year contract)
Richie Ashburn - $5 (1 year contract)
Ray Schalk – RFA ($4)
Joe McGinnity RFA ($1)

The opposite of Boston, almost no available money compared to the rest of the league, and most of it is tied up in pretty mediocre talent (by this league’s standards). A lot of speed and leadoff hitters.

Ironically, the one guy I’d like to have off of this team is Collins. $45 would be too high for me, but I’ll keep an eye on him.

[Breeze]

<b>Chicago Whitestockings
Team Cap - $285
Current - $252
Available - $33</b>

Rogers Hornsby - $100, $100
Jimmie Foxx - $100, $100
Katsuya Nomura - $35, $35
Willie Stargell – RFA ($10)
Shigeo Nagashima – RFA ($10)
Red Ruffing - $5, $5
Red Faber - $4
Amos Rusie - $4
Early Wynn - $3
Yutaka Fukumoto - $1
Bill Terry – RFA ($4)
Lou Boudreau – RFA ($3)
Edd Roush – RFA ($2)
Joe Medwick – RFA ($1)

Now this team, really won’t be active. 2/3rds of the teams salary is tied up in 2 players. Good ones, but still that’s a bunch to place in just 2 producers (and where is the pitching?).

Not much interest in the RFA. I’ve had Roush and Medwick before, in fact, I used them as a platoon pair.

[Breeze]

<b>Detroit Stars
Team Cap - $290
Current - $44
Available - $246</b>

Stan Musial – RFA ($75)
Willie Mays – RFA ($65)
Hank Greenberg – RFA ($51)
Duke Snider – RFA ($45)
Warren Spahn – RFA ($12)
Chick Hafey - $24, $24
Fernando Valenzuela - $11
Pie Traynor – RFA - $8
Gary Carter – RFA - $5
Dave Bancroft - $4
Dizzy Dizmukes – RFA – ($4)
Sam Crawford – RFA – ($4)
Monte Irvin - $1, $1
Jake Beckley - $1, $1
Bill Mazeroski - $1, $1
Waite Hoyt - $2

Some good players here that will be on the market, but I’m not going to approach the prices of Musial, Mays, Greenburg or Snider. Spahn could be a replacement pitcher for my lefties if they get too costly, or I might consider adding him if the money breaks right for me.

[Breeze]

<b>Minnesota Loons
Team Cap - $290
Current - $167
Available - $123</b>

Ryne Sandberg - $45, $55
Mike Schmidt - $46
Dennis Eckersley - $39, $39
Don Drysdale - $18
Carlton Fisk - $19
Reggie Jackson – RFA ($7)
Arky Vaughn – RFA ($9)
Joe Sewell - RFA ($1)


Arky Vaughn is the only one I’d have interest in, but his defense isn’t good for this league, so I’ll have to consider a defensive replacement for late innings if I end up with him…(notice Joe Sewell on this roster served in that same capacity).

[Breeze]

<b>Hannibal Showboats
Team Cap - $275
Current - $206
Available - $69</b>

Pete Alexander - $70, $70
Johnny Mize - $33, $33
Nolan Ryan - RFA ($30)
Juan Marichal - $40
George Brett - RFA ($23)
Willard Brown – RFA ($20)
Catfish Hunter - RFA ($16)
Masaichi Kaneda - $15, $15
Ray Brown - $12, $12
Kirby Puckett - $19
Ross Youngs - $5
John Ward - $5, $5
Louis Santop – RFA ($4)
Koji Yamamoto - $4, $4
Heinie Manush - $2
Koichi Tabuchi - $1, $1
Rube Marquard – RFA ($1)
Nellie Fox – RFA ($1)


No interest in Ryan. He’ll go for more than he should. Brett is interesting, but he’d have to come in under $20 and at the right time for me to bid. Brown I love. He’s a Negro Leaguer that can hit and run and play numerous positions (including SS – though the defense isn’t great for this league). He’ll be one I watch. Santop is another Negro Leaguer I like a lot. He’s one of the reasons, I’m willing to cut Gonzalez. I’d take Santop for half the price and be very happy.

[Breeze]

<b>Norfolk Tars
Team Cap - $285
Current - $42
Available - $243</b>

Joe Dimaggio - RFA ($63)
Tom Seaver - RFA ($50)
Ernie Banks - RFA ($60)
Johnny Bench - RFA ($39)
Jim Palmer - RFA ($26)
Orlando Cepeda – RFA ($11)
Takehiko Bessho - $11, $11
Pancho Coimbre - RFA ($9)
Brooks Robinson - $9
Bob Lemon - $5, $5
Carl Hubbell - RFA ($4)
Red Schoendienst - $5
Joe Tinker - $4, $4
Harry Hooper - $3
Victor Starffin - $2
Freddie Lindstrom - $2, $2
Roberto Avila - $1, $1
Rick Ferrell - RFA ($1)
Ralph Kiner - RFA ($1)
Keishi Suzuki - RFA ($1)


The top 5 players are all too expensive for my taste. Hubble at $4 would be a nice addition. The bottom players in the list almost always go for those prices. Not sure why he didn’t just cut them and fee up another $25 bucks to package on a better player.

[Breeze]

<b>KC Monarchs
Team Cap - $285
Current - $91
Available - $194</b>

Josh Gibson - RFA ($69)
Satchel Paige - RFA ($60)
Joe Jackson - $51
Buck Leonard - RFA ($40)
Chino Smith - $21
Frank Grant - $7, $7
Alejandro Oms - $6, $6
Mule Suttles - $5, $5
Double-Duty Radcliffe – RFA ($1)
Dick Lundy - RFA ($1)
Judy Johnson - $1
Bill Foster - RFA ($1)

This is the guy that runs the league. As you can tell from the names he loves the Negro Leaguers too. He’s in an interesting spot. He'll want to keep Gibson, Paige and Leonard, and if he can't it's a problem for me. Because if he can’t get all of them, he’ll look at my team and try to get Torriente, Tiant or Wells or Turkey Stearns from whichever team he’s on or Willie Brown from Hannibal. Pops Lloyd is also a possibility for this team depending on how the chips fall. I’d love Gibson or Paige, but I probably won’t pay for them. Bill Foster will go for more than $1 (because I’ll get him for more than that). He’s a very solid pitcher in this game.

[Breeze]

<b>Tijuana Brass
Team Cap - $285
Current – $135
Available - $150</b>

Ted Williams - $91, $91
Cy Young - RFA ($40)
Frankie Frisch - RFA ($33)
Carl Yastrzemski - RFA ($26)
Bullet Joe Rogan - RFA ($26)
Al Kaline - $34
Bill Dickey - RFA ($21)
Gaylord Perry - RFA ($16)
Lefty Gomez -$8
Max Carey - RFA ($2)
George Kelly - $2
Sam Bankhead - RFA ($1)


$135 spent and $91 goes to Teddy Ballgame. I like Young, he’s a good pitcher here that gives you a chance to win. $40 is too high though. I’d spend low $30s. Rogan is another one I like, but he’s a few bucks to high for my taste too. Dickey will be on the watch list, another good catcher (again, why Gonzalez will be exposed). Bankhead is a low dollar player I like. He fits my team mold. Utility player with speed and defense.

[Breeze]

<b>Missouri River Bats
Team Cap - $290
Current - $59
Available - $231</b>

Honus Wagner - RFA ($75)
Ty Cobb - RFA ($70)
John Clarkson - RFA ($33)
Ferguson Jenkins - $31, $31
Goose Goslin - RFA ($15)
Wee Willie Keeler - RFA ($15)
Biz Mackey - RFA ($10)
Ted Lyons - $9
Hilton Smith - RFA ($8)
Home Run Baker - $5
Shigeru Sugishita- $12
Jimmie Crutchfield - $2, $2
Cap Anson - RFA ($1)
Bingo Demoss - RFA ($1)


This has arguably been the best team in the league, but they are under new ownership and I have no idea what they are going to do in the draft. Wagner and Cobb are as good as it gets, and they will probably fetch a very similar price this time around. Clarkston is a good pitcher, about like Cy Young. Mackey is another of the catchers I would be happy with, especially around $10. I’ve had both Lyons and Smith numerous times and they are good innings eaters. I’ll keep my eye on Smith, unfortunately, Lyons is under contract. Sugishita is another pitcher I’ve had and would gladly take again, but like Lyons, he’s unavailable.

[Breeze]

<b>Portsmouth Roadrunners
Team Cap – $275
Current - $68
Available - $207</b>


Bob Gibson - RFA ($41)
Turkey Stearnes - $26, $36
Roy Campanella - RFA ($21)
Jackie Robinson - $16, $26
Roberto Clemente - RFA ($15)
Luis Tiant Jr.- RFA ($12)
Dazzy Vance - RFA ($10)
Willie McCovey - $8, $18
Jesse Haines - $8, $8
Lloyd Waner - $7, $7
Billy Herman - RFA ($5)
Ozzie Smith - RFA ($2)
Earle Combs - $3, $3
Travis Jackson - RFA ($1)
Jim Bottomley - RFA ($1)


Gibson is a pitcher I’ve attempted to trade for in the past, so if his price is reasonable I’ll bid. Stearns I’ve had before and would bid on again, but he’s under contract. The first year we did the auction he went for $42 which is way to much. $26 sounds right to me, and $36 would be a little to much for me on him. Clemente would be nice, but he really isn’t a middle of the order hitter in this league, more like a 6. No way I’d have kept Little Poison for $7. There are tons of players like him in the game so you could get another one for half that. Tiant Jr is another pitcher I’ll keep an eye on, and Campy is another Catcher on my list.

[Breeze]

<b>New York Highlanders
Team Cap - $290
Current - $195
Available - $95</b>

Cool Papa Bell - RFA ($60)
Wade Boggs - $33
Hack Wilson - $27, $27
Yogi Berra - RFA ($20)
Smokey Joe Williams - $39, $39
George Sisler - $27
Hughie Jennings - RFA ($16)
Verdell Mathis - $14
Jim Bunning - $12
Kiki Cuyler - RFA ($11)
Whitey Ford - $10
Dave Winfield - $19
Robin Yount - $7, $7
Tony Lazzeri - RFA ($5)
Buck O'Neil - $3, $3
Kazuhisa Inao - RFA ($1)
Sam Rice $2, $2
Tsutomu Wakamatsu - $1, $1
Kenichi Yazawa - $1, $1


This team has some interesting players. But if they want to keep Bell and Berra, they are going to have a hard time doing it. My guess is Bell gets into the $70s and Berra will still go for $20. Most of the RFA are good pieces, but nothing special.

[Breeze]

<b>Paris Texas Rangers
Team Cap - $280
Current - $153
Available - $127</b>

Tris Speaker - $72
Old Hoss Radbourn - RFA ($31)
Paul Waner - $31
Eiji Sawamura - RFA ($21)
Phil Niekro - RFA ($19)
Dennis Martinez - $17, $37, $37
Joe Kelley - $26
Fleetwood Walker- $7, $27, $27
Dan Brouthers - RFA ($3)
Jim O'Rourke - RFA ($1)
Oliver Marcelle - RFA ($1)


Radborn is a pitcher I have interest in (like Young), Waner at $31 is an extension from an original bid of $21. Sawamura is a nice closer in the game and I’ll keep an eye on him. No way Niekro goes for 419 this time. I don’t understand $17 for Martinez and I certainly don’t understand extending him for $37 for 2 additional years. Same thing for Fleetwood Walker.

[Breeze]

<B>Scranton White Elephants
Team Cap - $295
Current $16
Available - $279</b>


Babe Ruth - RFA ($80)
Lou Gehrig - RFA ($61)
Nap Lajoie - RFA ($51)
Bid McPhee - $8, $8
Pud Galvin - RFA ($6)
Hal Newhouser - RFA ($4)
Eppa Rixey - RFA ($7)
Hiromitsu Ochiai - $3
Herb Pennock - $2, $2
Jimmy Collins - $1
Tetsuya Yoneda - $1
Rabbit Maranville - $1


This guys team has always been about HRs, and he’ll have to spend a good chunk of change to keep Gehrig and Ruth. It will be interesting to see what else he will spend his money on. Not sure about Lajoie, and I don’t know if he might spend on pitching this time (I hope not because he’s proposed trades to me for Tiant Sr – so if he decides to get pitching he’ll probably bid him up). No thank you on his other players, except maybe Newhouser – he’s not great but a lefty for $4 is decent and he wouldn’t be my ace like he is on this team.

[Breeze]

<b>Southside Sultans
Team Cap - $295
Current - $128
Available - $167</b>


Mel Ott - RFA ($60)
Hank Aaron $60
Perucho Cepeda - RFA ($46)
Antonio Pacheco - RFA ($30)
Chuck Klein - $35
John Beckwith - $33
Mickey Welch - RFA ($13)
Dizzy Dean - RFA ($10)
Hideo Fujimoto - RFA ($4)
Zack Wheat - RFA ($1)


No one here I’m particularly interested in, that is available. Welch and Dean will be watched, but unless the come up on the docket late, they probably won’t be bid on.

[Breeze]

<b>Tokyo Samurai
Team Cap – $295
Current - $55
Available - $240</b>

Sadaharu Oh - RFA ($47)
Al Simmons - RFA ($38)
Eddie Plank - RFA ($25)
Mickey Cochrane - RFA ($21)
Jack Chesbro - RFA ($19)
Rod Carew - $16
Andy Cooper - $14, $14
Chief Bender - RFA ($11)
Cannonball Redding - $11
Wally Yonamine - $7, $7, $7
Elmer Flick - $7
Webster McDonald - RFA ($1)


Tokyo is another really good team. Oh I’m not interested in, though he’s a good player, I’m not spending that much at 1b. Simmons like Heilmann is another player I’ve been trying to acquire. He’s a RH bat that can hit in the middle of the order – so I’ll watch him. $38 is too much, but I could see him slide to $28 based on when he is put on the docket. Cochrane is another catcher that is in the $20 range and will be watched. Chesbro is solid as a pitcher (in fact, I think he’d be better if he held runners better). Redding and Bender could be picked up if they are late on the docket. I’d actually prefer Redding to go earlier. I’ve seen him get bid on up to $20 (and I’ll let someone else spend that on him). McDonald isn’t a bad reliever and he’s someone I’ll bid on if it is at the right time.

[Breeze]

<b>Virginia Generals
Team Cap - $295
Current - $2
Available - $293</b>

Christy Mathewson - RFA ($60)
Sandy Koufax - RFA($51)
Addie Joss - RFA ($51)
Three Finger Brown - RFA ($49)
King Kelly - RFA ($16)
Don Sutton - RFA ($16)
Hoyt Wilhelm - RFA ($8)
Buck Ewing - RFA ($5)
Dave Barnhill - $2
Al Spalding - RFA ($1)

Another perennially great team. Of course with Mathewson, Koufax, Joss and Brown how bad could you be? I love all 4 of those pitcher, but I won’t be able to afford them. It will be interesting to see if he tries to keep all of them. King Kelly is a very versatile player that can run. He would be a nice pickup, so I’ll keep an eye on him. Wilhelm gives you some good innings in the pen, so he’ll be watched too.

[Breeze]

<b>Washington Monuments
Team Cap - $295
Current - $44
Available - $251</b>

Charlie Gehringer - RFA ($37)
Ed Walsh - RFA ($70)
Omar Linares - RFA ($31)
Frank Robinson - RFA ($26)
Earl Averill - RFA ($21)
Mike Cuellar - $19
Larry Doby - RFA ($15)
George Davis - RFA ($8)
Frank Chance - $8, $8
Mike Garcia - $5, $25, $25
Candy Cummings - $5, $5
Rube Foster - RFA ($4)
Julio Molina - $1, $1
Sol White - $2, $2
Minnie Minoso - RFA ($4)
Quincy Trouppe - $4, $24, $24


Gehringer, Walsh and Linares are going to be too pricey. Linares hasn’t performed well in the league so he might slide, but I doubt it. Most of the rest of the players don’t interest me. In fact, I’m shocked Garcia and Trouppe were extended for 2 more years. Rube Foster is one of my old players and I’ll keep him in mind and I’ll probably low bid him and see what happens.

[Breeze]

I'll post the list of UFA soon...

[Breeze]

Ok I did cut all the contracts but Jose Mendez, so I have $233 to play with in the draft. I need to project the costs of my players so I can see how much money I will need and if I'll have any additional money to look for a catcher or another starter or closer. I'll also need to project the cost of similar players to determine if I'm better off changing course with my plans or who my best plan B options are...

[Breeze]

UFA

Paul Molitor ($9)
Stan Coveleski ($14)
Makato Matsubara ($3)
Tetsuharu Kawakami ($2)
Bruce Sutter ($25)
Dave Concepcion ($11)
Tony Oliva ($12)
Johny Evers ($11)
Bobby Wallace ($6)
Tony Perez ($11)
Dave Malarcher ($10)
Phil Rizzuto ($9)
Sachio Kinugasa ($4)
Ed Delehanty ($35)
Ernie Lombardi ($12)
Hideji Kato ($1)
Charlie Comiskey ($2)
Walter Johnson ($80)
Eddie Murray ($11)
Bill Holland ($11)
Newt Allen ($10)
Al Lopez ($6)
Chet Brewer ($11)
Lazaro Salazar ($8)
Tommy McCarthy ($3)
Bob Feller ($36)
Lou Brock ($1)
Jelly Gardner ($1)
Sammy Hughes ($1)
Piper Davis ($5)
Keith Hernandez ($3)
Pete Hill ($2)
Ray Brown ($12)
Yutaka Fukumoto ($1)
Willie Stargell ($10)
Shigeo Nagashima ($10)
Bill Terry ($4)
Lou Boudreau ($3)
Edd Roush ($2)
Joe Medwick ($1)
George Sisler ($16)
Tsutomu Wakamatsu ($1)
Kenichi Yazawa ($1)
Jim Bunning ($12)
Dave Winfield ($19)
Sam Rice ($2)


First off, I realize that some of these are dupes from the teams listed above, but they are listed in both places in the spreadsheet I was given. I'll have to find out if they really are UFA (they probably are, because none of the dupes are high dollar guys, and it's probably another owner taking the same approach I am by freeing up as much money as possible).

Of the guys mentioned above, most are way overpaid...especially some of the Shortstops at the top of the list...i.e. why would I pay $11 for Concepcion, or Evers when I can get Ozzie Smith for $2? None of them provide much in the way of offense, and Smith is better defensively. There are a few that interest me. Ed Delehanty especially. He is like Al Simmons or Harry Heilmann, in that he gives me a RH bat that could hit in the middle of the order. Delehanty also has nice speed, and he can play a number of positions. I like Sisler, but I'm not playing $26 for him. Pete Hill for a couple of bucks would be nice. Chet Brewer could be an adequate innings eater and it will be interesting to see what Sutter goes for this time around. His $25 bid was the first time he was in the league (after induction), and I don't think some of the guy had any idea how to evaluate him. I think he could go as low as $10 this time around.

[BYU 14]

Nice job Breeze. I used to do leagues similar to this using the old Superstar Baseball game from Avalon Hill back in the Day. I'll be following along.

[Breeze]

Nice job Breeze. I used to do leagues similar to this using the old Superstar Baseball game from Avalon Hill back in the Day. I'll be following along.

I played Superstar Baseball too. In fact, I created my own cards for modern day players and Negro Leaguers...

Nice to have you aboard.

[Breeze]

The first round of the auction has started. Here are players available...


Player - Current Bid

Ed Walsh - 35
Babe Ruth - 73
Josh Gibson - 35
Walter Johnson - 45
Christy Mathewson - 40
Ernie Banks - 36
Willie Mays - 50
Lefty Grove - 25
Lou Gehrig - 65
Ty Cobb - 50

[Breeze]

Bidding on the players above closes tomorrow afternoon. Overnight there were some changes to the bidding...

Walsh - 35
Ruth - 90
Gibson - 35
Johnson - 55
Mathewson - 45
Banks - 36
Mays - 50
Grove - 25
Gehrig - 65
Cobb - 55

Hopefully, Grove is going to be overlooked in this bidding. It is possbile that the teams looking for pitching are going to bid up Mathewson, Johnson and Walsh. I still think Grove is going to cost me at minimum $35.

Currently Gibson and Walsh are good deals. I'll consider both if they don't jump before the deadline (however, I expect they will).

[Breeze]

First round of bidding is over and as I expected the salaries went through the roof...

Babe Ruth - Norfolk bids 104 - SWE Tops at $105
Josh Gibson - Boston bids 90 - NO TOP (Boston Gets Gibson)
Willie Mays - Boston bids 80 - NO TOP (Boston Gets Mays)
Ernie Banks - Boston bids 65 - NO TOP (Boston Gets Banks)
Lou Gehrig - Norfolk bids 66 - SWE Tops at $67
Ed Walsh - Boston bids 60 - WAS Tops at $61
Walter Johnson - Houston Bids 60 - POR Tops at $61
Christy Mathewson - New York bids 60 - VAG Tops at $61
Ty Cobb - Norfolk bids 61 - POB Tops at $62

And for me...

Lefty Grove - Portland bids 33 - TAL Tops at $34

So my prediction of Grove costing me at least $35 was pretty accurate. I can live with $34, I'm just hoping I can save enough money to snatch up another really good player or 2 more real solid ones...

Now on to the second period of bidding...

[Breeze]

By the way...feel free to make suggestions or comments. You won't hurt my feelings and you might help me decide what I want to do...

[Breeze]

round 2


Eiji Sawamura - $20
Ed Delehanty - $45
Mell Ott - $45
Tony Gwynn - $20
Honus Wagner - $40
Sandy Koufax - $30
Satchel Paige - $40
Mickey Mantle - $60
Martin DiHigo - $8
Old Hoss Radbourne - $13

Delehanty is a player that I've liked for a while and the fact that he is an UFA makes him even more interesting. Problem is that he's already about were I would bid on him. I might go $47, I'll have to consider it.

Sawamura would be a nice addition, but again he's about at the my max bid for him.

DiHigo is mine, and I'm hoping he doesn't increase too much. I'm figuring $18.

Radbourne is a nice pitcher, with one problem. If I remember correctly, he doesn't hold runners well, and in this game that's a problem, there are just too many guys that can run.

I'm not sure what will happen with Gwynn. In my opinion guys tend to overspend for the new players. Gwynn was a great player, and he would probably fit my style of play well, but I'g going to save my money and see if I can get Spotwood Poles or Pete Hill for single digit dollars instead.

Ott will probably go for close to what he is right now.

The rest will EXPLODE in value. Mantle will approach $100, Koufax and Paige will get into the 70's at least, and could make a run at $100. Wagner will get into the uppper 60's.

[Breeze]

well we are half an hour from the close of bidding and the prices haven't jumped yet...I'm really considering bidding on Delehanty (Still at 45), Koufax (still at 40) and Paige (still at 40). I still believe their prices will jump considerably, and in the case of Koufax and Paige, I think they will be topped, but I think I'm going to bid anyway...

[Izulde]

What do you think of the core that Boston got with the first round? Do you think they overpaid?

[path12]

Dihigo is a great choice there. If you can get Ott at a price that would be good also. I don't know how SOM does with translating the real old timers like Radbourne, my initial feeling would be that you could do better.

[Breeze]

Round 2 closed and as I expected the bidding jumped...

Mickey Mantle - Norfolk Bids 99 - Not Topped (Norfolk Gets Mantle)
Honus Wagner - Paris Texas Bids 82 - Not Topped (Paris Gets Wagner)
Sandy Koufax - Norfolk Bids 56 - VAG Topped at $57
Satchel Paige - Southside Bids 55 - KCM Topped at $56
Mel Ott - Norfolk Bids 51 - Not Topped (Norfolk Gets Ott)
Ed Delahanty - New York Bids - 47 - UFA so New York Gets Delehanty
Old Hoss Radbourne - Houston Bids 28 - PTR Topped at $29
Eiji Sawamura - Washington Bids 20 - Not Topped (Washington gets Sawamura)
Tony Gwynn - Houston Bids 20 - UFA so Houston Gets Gwynn
Martin Dihigo - New York Bids 12 - TAL Topped at $13

[Breeze]

Dihigo is a great choice there. If you can get Ott at a price that would be good also. I don't know how SOM does with translating the real old timers like Radbourne, my initial feeling would be that you could do better.

Path12,

Thanks for the input. I agree on DiHigo (which is why I topped on him). He's just too good and versitile to pass up, and the flexability he offers me going into the draft is really a help. As for Radbourne, I agree with your assessment. I like him, but I'll bet I can get a comporable pitcher for half the money later...

As for how SOM handles really old time pitchers in this version of the game...
What they did (for all players) was take their 7 best years and come up with a composite player. Then they compaired that person to an average player/pitcher at the same era and noted the difference from the norm. From there they established an average batting average (ex. .265 and then applied the players adjusted number to their era. So if Player X was typically .35 points higher in batting average than a typical person from their era, they was set up his card to be 35 points higher than the .265 they used as the game average - same idea for pitchers).

[Breeze]

What do you think of the core that Boston got with the first round? Do you think they overpaid?

Great question Izulde...and one I've been wrestling with for a while. It's hard for me to critisize him, because he has been so successful for so long (and he's put me out of the playoffs twice), but I don't really care for what he did. I love Gibson, but $90 is really high, even if he's the best catcher in the game. Mays is awesome...but again $80? And while I like Banks and he does provide power at a position that in this game is still really rare, I wouldn't play anyware need what he payed for Banks. Another thing is he is a very heavy RH power hitting line up. (of course he's in my division and I have 2 very good LHP ...assuming I can keep Tiant Sr.)

[Breeze]

Izulde's question got me thinking that I should break down what I think about the bidding so far...

<i>disclaimer...the following is my opinion and in no way reflects the opinion of this board, the Legends of Cooperstown League, SOM Baseball Company or the Tallahassee Federals...<b>and if you don't agree with my opinions feel free to chime in (my feelings won't get hurt)</b></i>

The first thing that catches my eye (besides Boston shelling out $230 - which is discussed above) is how active Norfolk was. They placed the high bid on 3 players - all were topped so Norfolk came away empty handed, but I think it's safe to assume he's going to be an owner that wants a few big time stars and will worry about the rest later...

I know Ruth is probably the best player in the game, but paying over 1/3rd of my entire salary for 1 player seems mighty high to me...

I actually felt some of the pitchers at $60 might be worth it, but I'm honestly not sure if Matty is worth $25 more than Grove. I guess you'd have to ask yourself...would you rather have Matty, Johnson or Walsh in your rotation or Grove and Rube Waddell?

Grove at $34 (as I stated above) is about what I expected, but it's also a raise of $8 from last time. So far that puts me -8 on my budget. (thought I wasn't maxed out the last few years anyway so I have some extra money to spend).

[Breeze]

Period 2 Break Down...


Period 2 was interesting because the bidding was furious late. I actually submitted a low bid on both Koufax and Paige (the bid was irrelevant based on where things ended up, but I did bid).


Norfolk gets one of their stars in this period (Mantle) and they pay $100 to do it.

Wagner at $82 is also too high in my opinion, and obviously the opinion of the former owner, because they didn't top.

Here are a few interesting bids, Koufax and Paige at the mid 50's seem a much better bargin to me than the 3 pitcher that cost $60s in the first group (my bids on these 2 were 44).

Delehanty was another I was going to bid on, but I had him priced in the upper 30s. I was going to bid $45, but he was on that number early and eventually went for $47. A little high, but not way off. I'm hoping that many of these teams are over spending so I can sneak in a similar player like Heilmann or Simmons for $10 less.

Ott is a nice and versitile player, but I wouldn't have bid over $42 for him.

The rest of the bids seem about right to me.

I actually lucked out on DiHigo. Another owner posted message that he was away from the computer on Friday night (when bidding closed) or he would have bid $20 on DiHigo. That would have left me with a very difficult decission. As it turns out I end up with the utility man extrordinare for $4 less than last year...

I'm now only -$4 on my budget...

[Breeze]

Period 3 is underway...

Cy Young - Southside 40
Sadaharu Oh - LA New 38
Nap Lajoie - Detroit 35
Eddie Collins - Portland 25
Oscar Charleston - Kansas City 40
Stan Musial - Brooklyn 27
Rollie Fingers - Brooklyn 15
Eddie Plank - LA New 28
Three Finger Brown - Southside 50
Bullet Joe Rogan - Southside 26

[Breeze]

Most of the guys in this round are already at my max bid for them.

If I already had Tiant Sr under contract I might go $42 on Young, but I wouldn't trade Tiant for Young, so I want to save my money for that bidding round. Collins in interesting and I'll keep an eye on him. Charleston is one worth watching - mostly because Boston has already spent a ton of money and I don't know if he'll be able to afford Charleston. Musial went in the $70s last time around (way to high in my opinion, but if he stays around 27, I might bid). Plank at $28 is fine, but I have a couple lefties already and I don't want to overpay for a 3rd. Brown is too pricey for me right now, and Rogan is about at the max I'd pay for him, but we'll see...

[Breeze]

The only change as of this morning in bidding is Oscar Charleston is now at $45...

[path12]

As for how SOM handles really old time pitchers in this version of the game...
What they did (for all players) was take their 7 best years and come up with a composite player. Then they compaired that person to an average player/pitcher at the same era and noted the difference from the norm. From there they established an average batting average (ex. .265 and then applied the players adjusted number to their era. So if Player X was typically .35 points higher in batting average than a typical person from their era, they was set up his card to be 35 points higher than the .265 they used as the game average - same idea for pitchers).

So that affects walk rate and innings pitched also? Those old timers pitched a bunch of innings, and the walk rules kept bouncing around in the late 1800's. I'd also imagine the error rate would have to be drastically dropped to compare with modern players (post 1901).

I played tons of the SOM board game a long time ago, but have always leaned toward career simulations on the computer rather than seasonal replays, so haven't checked into this game much.

[path12]

Looks like Charleston is going to get bid up, which is a shame because he'd be one of the players I'd really like to see on my team if I was playing.

Agree that 70 is too high for Musial, but I'd certainly go up to 40-50 for him. But I'm going on personal sentiment here as much as anything. :)

[Breeze]

<b>Period 3 - Final Bids</b>

Nap Lajoie - Detroit bids 70 - Not Topped
Oscar Charleston - Kansas City bids 59 - Not Topped
Sadaharu Oh - LA New 55 bids TOK Tops at 56
Stan Musial - Scranton bids 54 - DET Tops at 55
Three Finger Brown - Southside bids 50 - No word from VAG on Topping yet
Cy Young - Southside bids 40 - No word from TIJ on Topping yet
Eddie Plank - Detroit bids 37 - Not Topped
Eddie Collins - Scranton bids 33 - LAN Tops at 34
Bullet Joe Rogan - Detroit bids 32 - No word from TIJ on Topping yet
Rollie Fingers - Houston 17 - UFA - Houston wins the bid

[Breeze]

I probably should have paid a little closer attention to this period, because there were some good deals...

Charleston for less than $60 is amazing. Basically KC swapped Josh Gibson (who was allowed to go to Boston in period 1) for Oscar Charleston. I would have wrestled with bidding up to 62 here, but with Tiant still on the dockett for a later period, it would have been tough for me to do, and I believe that KC would have gone into the upper 60s to get him anyway.

Musial at $54 (topped at $55) seems about right to me.

Brown at $50 is a great deal considering he's every bid as good as the pitchers in the first bidding period

Young at 40 is about right

Collins at 33 is low. Had Collins been at 33 in the last group and DiHigo been in this group, I probably would have bid him up to at least 35, and if I won I would have let Martin walk. But as it is, Martin is my primary second baseman, and his production fits pretty well at that spot.

Rogan at 32 is to high for me. Mid 20's seems about right

Fingers is a touch high, but in this season where there aren't many closers his value will be increased

[Breeze]

<b>Bid Period 4</b>

Addie Joss
Nolan Ryan
Tom Seaver
Hank Greenberg
Cool Papa Bell
Johnny Bench
Cal Ripken Jr.
Ferguson Jenkins
Joe Dimaggio
Mickey Cochrane

[Breeze]

<b>Period 4 Assessment</b>

Most of these guys are going to be too pricey for me...

Joss is a fantastic pitcher in the game and judging from the prices pitcher went for in round 2 and 3, I expect he'll get into the 50s.

Ryan will be OVERPAID. Anything over low 20s will be too much. In a typical season Ryan is great, in this game, with all the old-time players and Negro Leaguers with exceptional speed and base running ability, combined with all the contact hitters you can't afford to walk people, and Ryan does.

Seaver is very similar to Joss.

Greenberg is a player I have no interest in. Great power threat, but there are a ton of powerful 1b men. and if he approaches $50 it's too much. Plus he doesn't fit my park.

Cool Papa Bell...now this guy fits my park. Unfortunately, he's going to approach or exceed the Charleston bid. I would love to have this guy, but I'm not sure if giving up Wells, Wilson, Nichols, and Torriente would be worth it.

Bench is a great defensive catcher (probably the best in the game), and he hits for power, but these pitchers really limit his productivity because - let's just say, he doesn't get a bunch of mistakes to hit. I would much rather pay 20 something dollars for a dickey, cochrane, gonzalez, or campanella then pay 30+ for Bench. (note: he could go for much less this time around)

Ripken Jr - I have no idea, because he's new to the game. I'm going to guess he'll go in the upper 30s, and he'll be like Banks but with a little less power.

Jenkins - went for $31 last time out, I would think it would be a little less this time. If bidding is slow here, I might consider throwing my hat in the ring to get another RH SP.

DiMaggio - WAY OUT OF MY PRICE RANGE. He'll go in the 60s as well, and though he could play well for me with the good defense and batting average, and I'd love to have his RH bat in the middle of my order, his HR production would be greatly reduced in my park. And I don't see paying 60 plus for a guy who would probably only give me 20 HR.

Cochrane is one of the many low 20 catchers that I like. I'll keep an eye on him (I honestly need to double check his Arm rating first), but I might consider a bid here. One of my only reservations here is that he bats LH.

[Breeze]

Here is the salary cap situation (to the best of my knowledge - and it is before the final topping decisions are announced from the end of period 3)

Houston - $176
Boston - $60
LA New - $53
Chicago - $34
Detriot - $84
Minnesota - $123
Brooklyn - $91
Norfolk - $93
KC - $79
Tijuana - $150
POB (not sure team name here) - $169
Portsmouth - $146
NY - $110
Paris Texas - $16
Scranton - $108
Southside - $167
<b>Tallahassee - $186</b>
Tokyo - $184
Virginia - $176
Washington - $170

[Breeze]

My assumptions on team's salaries was wrong (some of the new owners must have made some cuts prior to the draft, but after I received the spreadsheet). Here are the official numbers (still minus the final topper decisions by Tijuanna)



Portsmouth Roadrunners - $207 - 9 RFA still on the board
Portland Bambinos - $200 - 7 RFA still on the board
Tallahassee Federals - $186 - 7 RFA still on the board
Tokyo Samurai - $184 - 5 RFA still on the board
Washington Senators - $170 - 8 RFA still on the board
Houston Colt 45's - $167 - 6 RFA still on the board
Southside Sultans - $167 - 6 RFA still on the board
Tijuana Brass - $150 - 8 RFA still on the board
Virginia Generals - $124 - 6 RFA still on the board
LA New Bears - $124 - 2 RFA still on the board
Minnesota Loons - $123 - 3 RFA still on the board
New York Highlanders - $119 - 6 RFA still on the board
Norfolk Tars - $109 - 10 RFA still on the board
Scranton White Elephants - $107 - 3 RFA still on the board
Brooklyn Cyclones - $91 - 7 RFA still on the board
Detroit Stars - $84 - 7 RFA still on the board
Kansas City Monarchs - $79 - 4 RFA still on the board
Boston Americans -$60 - 12 RFA still on the board
Chicago Whitestockings - $34 - 0 RFA still on the board
Paris Texas Rangers - $16 - 5 RFA still on the board

[Breeze]

Tijuanna has announced they will keep both their pitchers...Young at $41, and Rogan at $33.

That leaves them with $76

[Breeze]

Update on Period 4 bidding...

Joss - 55 - Southside has the bid
Ryan - 15 - Tokyo has the bid
Seaver - 35 - Southside has the bid
Greenberg - 16 - Washington has the bid
Bell - 26 - Washington has the bid
Bench - 25 -Southside has the bid
Ripken - 15 - Tokyo has the bid
Jenkins - 6 - Washington has the bid
Dimaggio - 30 - LA New has the bid
Cochrane - 20 - LA New has the bid

[Breeze]

I did a quick budget check this morning where I projected out what I expect to have to spend to keep my current players (not assuming they will be the same price they are right now)...and here is what I came up with...


Jose Mendez - 42 - Currently under contract
Lefty Grove - 34 - Currently under contract
Martin DiHigo - 13 - Currently under contract

Luis Tiant Sr - 48
Cristobal Torriente - 35
Willie Wells - 33
Jud Wilson - 24
Kid Nichols - 20


These projections may be high (but I want to prepare for the worst)

These salaries add up to $249 (if my math is accurate). That leaves me with $26 to spend. That should allow me to get a catcher and maybe another innings eating starter or starter/reliever.

[Breeze]

interestingly - the bids have stayed under control for this period...

let's see if we get a mad rush right before closing...

[Breeze]

I bid $38 on both Bell and DiMaggio, I doubt I win the bidding on either and in even if I do I'll be shocked if they aren't topped, but I bid anyway...

I was getting bored :)

[path12]

I bid $38 on both Bell and DiMaggio, I doubt I win the bidding on either and in even if I do I'll be shocked if they aren't topped, but I bid anyway...

I was getting bored :)

Major shock if you get Joe D for that, but man, wouldn't Bell be a steal?

[path12]

Besides, regarding topping -- if you're pretty sure the other guy is going to and you want the player anyway, you might as well make him pay the max....

[Breeze]

Besides, regarding topping -- if you're pretty sure the other guy is going to and you want the player anyway, you might as well make him pay the max....


That's why I went ahead and bid. I figured I'd make the other guys pay as much as I can...

I've been topped on Bell (current bid is 42), but I'm considering going to 44 or 45 just to see what happens...

No new action yet on DiMaggio (but it's coming)

[Breeze]

by the way...if any readers are interested in how the bidding is going on a player that I'm not following, I'll be glad to let you know what's happening.

[Breeze]

well as it turns out, I went to 47 on Bell and I won the bid (ironically, it's $1 more than the DiMaggio bid). I'm really surprised on both counts. The interesting thing here is going to be the topper decission on Bell. The team that holds his rights (NY Highlanders), had 119 to spend, and they had 3 players in this round of bidding...

Bell - 47
Seaver - 35
Bench 32

To keep all these players - The Highlanders would have to pay out...116.

My bet is he let's Bench go and he tops on the other two, but we'll see.

[Breeze]

The following email just came through on the topper decisions...

"Well, it was tough. Leave myself with 2 dollars was unacceptable, so topping on all 3 wasn't going to work. So, the Highlanders top on Cool Papa Bell and Tom Seaver and bid farewell to Johnny Bench.

NY Highlanders"

As I expected

[Breeze]

Period 4 Final Bidding Info:

Addie Joss - Southside bids 55 - VAG (awaiting decision)
Cool Papa Bell - Tallahassee bids 47 - NYH tops $48
Joe Dimaggio - Portland bids 46 - NOR (awaiting decision)
Hank Greenberg - Scranton bids 40 - DET tops $41
Mickey Cochrane - Scranton bids 40 :eek: - TOK declines to top - Scranton wins bid
Tom Seaver - Southside bids 35 - NYH tops $36
Johnny Bench - Houston bids 32 - NYH declines to top - Houston wins bid
Nolan Ryan - Virginia bids 26 - BRK tops $27
Cal Ripken Jr. - Scranton bids 25 - UFA so Scranton wins bid
Ferguson Jenkins - Washington bids 24 - UFA so Washington wins bid

[Breeze]

Here is the bid list for period 5 and the early bids:


Willard Brown - Kansas City bids 15 - BRK holds rights
<b>Luis Tiant Sr.- LA New bids 30 - TAL holds rights </b>
Gaylord Perry - - TIJ holds rights
Jack Chesbro - LA New bids 30 - TOK holds rights
John Clarkson - LA New bids 30 - POB holds rights
Jim Palmer - - NOR holds rights
Wee Willie Keeler - - POB holds rights
Frank Robinson - - WAS holds rights
George Sisler - Washington bids 5 - UFA
Al Simmons - Washington bids 5 - TOK holds rights

[Breeze]

This is a big round for me. In addition to having Tiant Sr (and I'm already upset that he's reached $30 in bids), there are 5 others I have interest in.

If I'm going to be able to save money, I really need Tiant to come up under my projected number. If he does it may allow me to get another very good player.

[Breeze]

DiMaggio was topped at 47 - that leaves NOR with $15

[Breeze]

Virginia tops on Joss for 56 too..by my count that leaves them with $68

[Breeze]

where bidding currently stands...

Willard Brown - 17
<b>Luis Tiant Sr. - 31</B>
Gaylord Perry - 10
Jack Chesbro - 30
John Clarkston - 30
Jim Palmer - 15
Wee Willie Keeler -
Frank Robinson - 20
George Sisler - 8
Al Simmons - 20

[path12]

Is Washington going to be able to top Robinson? That might be worth a bid or two.

[Breeze]

Bidding for the period is now up...

Al Simmons - LA New bids 40 - TOK waiting on decision
John Clarkson - Minnesota bids 38 - POB tops at 39
<b>Luis Tiant Sr. - LA New bids 36 - TAL tops at $37</b>
Frank Robinson - Portland bids 35 - WAS waiting on decision
Jack Chesbro - LA New bids 32 - TOK waiting on decision
Willard Brown - Minnesota bids 30 - BRK waiting on decision
Gaylord Perry - Portland bids 25 - TIJ waiting on decision
Wee Willie Keeler - Minnesota bids 25 - POB waiting on decision
Jim Palmer - Houston bids 23 - NOR waiting on decision
George Sisler - Minnesota bids 19 - UFA, Minnesota wins the bid

[Breeze]

This bidding period really got high in my opinion...

I honestly thought of bidding on Simmons at the mid 30s, but at 40 I felt I needed to protect some money to resign Torriente and Wells.

Clarkston at $39 is about right (though I rather have Tiant for even money)

Path made a good point above about Washington not being able to keep Robinson, but he really doesn't fit my park and style of play so I decided to stay away from this bid.

Chesbro doesn't hold runners well enough to pay him in the 30s.

Willard Brown is a guy I was going to bid on, when he was in the low 20s. In fact, I might have gone all the way to 28 and if I had to let Wilson go, but when he reached 30 I felt it wasn't a good play. He has nice range at SS but he makes quite a few errors.

Perry is an innings eater, but I get one of those for half the money he was paid

Keeler I thought about bidding on because he's a good on base guy. But he has no power and for $25 I can do better (shoot I can get Spotwood Poles for a third of that price)

Palmer is like a cross between Ryan and Perry.

Sisler at 19 was intriguing, and if I wasn't so LH batter heavy, I might have made a bid here.

-----------------

As for Tiant, he went for more than I was hoping he would go for (I was honestly hoping for 32, but less than I expected). I'm actually at about 33 to play with in the budget by my estimation.

-----------------

Because so much money was shelled out this round (at least for a round this late in the process), topper decisions will really impact the next few rounds...

[Breeze]

Bid period 6



Bill Dickey - TIJ
Joe Morgan - HCF
Omar Linares - WAS
Roy Campanella - POR
Buck Leonard - KCM
Charlie Gehringer - WAS
Harry Heilman - HCF
George Brett - BRK
Reggie Jackson - MIN
Rube Waddell - BOA
Bruce Sutter - UFA
<b>Willie Wells - TAL </b>
Edd Roush - UFA
Bob Gibson - POR
Luis Tiant Jr. - POR

[Breeze]

We are getting to a point in the bidding now, where I'm going to have to decide what my extra money is going to be used for.

I've looked through the available players and there aren't many RH batters that will be able to help me (not that I'm opposed to another LH hitter, but a RH would be more helpful).

I could also use the extra money on another pitcher and there are few big names still out there (carlton, gibson and waddell to name a few).

I also like to have a catcher, and I think I can get one at a reasonable price, but even at $10, that will probably prevent me from spending money on the pitchers mentioned above.

One other note...in my budget posted earlier, I left off Wild Bill Wright. He won't go for much, but because he has posted such good numbers with my team, he might go for much more than his original salary. I'm hoping not, because he fits my park.

Basically here is how I see it right now...

I go with a catcher...I can probably keep Wright and get a moderate pitcher or 2 (rube foster, bill foster, tiant jr).

I can get a harry heilmann (terrible defensively and SLOW...but he can hit) and probably get 2 of the 3..(Wright, a moderate pitcher and a catcher).

Or I can go for the big pitcher, Gibson (who'll probably get in the 40s which will be too high), Carlton (mid 30s so possible) and Waddell (mid 30s as well), but that will leave me very little to spend on anything else (no wright, no catcher) and/or leave me vulnerable to not having the money to keep all my own players.

I'm open to comments...

[Breeze]

In case you were wondering...here are the players in the next couple bid periods

Cristobal Torriente TAL
Roberto Clemente POR
Ozzie Smith POR
Pud Galvin SWE
Yogi Berra NOR
Jim Bunning UFA
Phil Niekro PTR
Mickey Welch SSS
Harmon Killebrew HCF
Eddie Murray UFA
Bobby Doerr BOA
Frankie Frisch TIJ
Buck Ewing VAG
Dave Winfield UFA
Steve Carlton BOA


Biz Mackey POB
Joe Cronin HCF
Hal Newhouser SWE
Don Sutton VAG
Rodolfo Puente UFA
Eppa Rixey SWE
Tony Lazzeri NOR
Jud Wilson TAF
Bob Feller UFA
Goose Goslin POB
Dizzy Dean SSS
Willie Stargell UFA
Dazzy Vance POR
Stan Coveleski UFA
Antonio Pacheco SSS

[Breeze]

Current Bids


Bill Dickey Portsmouth 17 TIJ
Joe Morgan Southside 10 HCF
Omar Linares LA New 20 WAS
Roy Campanella Southside 11 POR
Buck Leonard LA New 20 KCM
Charlie Gehringer New York 15 WAS
Harry Heilman Chicago 10 HCF
George Brett Washington 7 BRK
Reggie Jackson LA New 15 MIN
Rube Waddell Southside 23 BOA
Bruce Sutter New York 5 UFA
Willie Wells Kansas City 15 TAF
Edd Roush Washington 6 UFA
Bob Gibson Southside 16 POR
Luis Tiant Jr. LA New 10 POR



A few interested things of note…

Almost all the players listed are under-priced right now. Obviously we’ll have the end of period run on bids – but I expect there may be some good deals on a few players when this round is over.

---------------------

Portsmouth has the rights to Campanella but is bidding on Dickey. If he wins the bid he’ll let Campy go to whoever wins that bid.

I’d be shocked if Morgan goes anywhere. Houston’s expiring contract on Morgan was $37, I don’t think he’ll reach that number this time, so it looks like Houston will save some money here

Kansas City only has $79 left to spend, but Leonard is their only remaining high dollar free agent. I expect he’ll top here and then look to get a pitcher later (or maybe this round)

I expect Washington to keep Gehringer and his bid on Brett, won’t hold up, so he’ll probably also top on Linares

Heilmann is a very interesting one. As I’ve mentioned before, I’d love to have his bat in my lineup. I just wish I wouldn’t be stuck with his defense and lack of speed. I am still considering a bid here, and it looks like the price might be right. To add some interest to this one…<b>I doubt that Houston will top. </b> Earlier in the bidding process Houston spent $20 on Gwynn is ranks as an RF-2 defensively (the lower the number the better), and a CF-4. You can’t be competitive in this league with a CF who can’t cover any ground – you’ll give up too many hits. This is important because Heilmann only qualifies in RF.

<b><i>NOTE: A little explanation on how the game works to clarify the comments above. Defensive rankings are divided into 2 parts, range and error rating. The lower the number the better the range, meaning the player will get to more balls, but the error rating is separate and it is ranked based on the number of errors that player actually had in the games they played, so if the player had 30 errors in a season their “e” rating would be e30.</b></i>

I’m a little surprised by the lack of action on Brett. I expect it to increase dramatically (last contract was $25), but I’m not sure he’ll reach his previous bid. Though I didn’t have much interest in him prior to this period, if his bidding doesn’t increase significantly, I may bid on him and pass on Jud Wilson if I win the bid and he isn’t topped.

Portsmouth has a bunch of money to spend and they have 2 pitchers on the docket (Gibson and Tiant Jr.). They already won the bidding for Walter Johnson, so I’m completely sure what they will do here. I do believe he’ll top on Gibson, but he may let Tiant go if the bidding gets above 12 to 15.

I have no interest in Reggie Jackson, Bruce Sutter or Edd Roush.

Willie Wells is mine, and I’m holding my breath that he isn’t bid up much more. If he can come in under budget, that will free up a good bit of money for me.

Rube Waddell is an interesting case, and I’ll cover him more in depth in a minute, when I give an update of each team’s status.

[Breeze]

I was going to go into a breakdown of each team and where they sit money vs player wise, but I'll wait until after this bidding period. One thing I will note is that Boston has some tough decisions coming. He has only $60 with 4 big name players left...

Waddell
Carlton
Keefe
Lloyd

He'll be hard pressed to even keep 2 of the 4...

Last year Keefe and Waddell were 30, while Lloyd was 40 and Carlton 46. Waddell is in this bidding period, and I believe he's currently at 26. If he gets any higher, I would expect Boston to let him go...

Carton is the next period and Lloyd and Keefe come up very late in the process.

Seeing what happens tonight and in the next period will give us a good idea of who Boston wants to keep.

By the way...I've though seriously about bidding on Waddell. I know it would give me another lefty, but he's a good one and if I can keep fire trucks from going by the park, we should be just fine...;)

[Breeze]

I was going to bid on Brett, but someone entered a bid higher than I was willing to go, before I got my bid in...

I bid on Campy (14), but someone jumped him up to 20 (which I expected)

I bid on Heilmann (16), but someone jumped him to 20, I thought about countering to 21, but I couldn't get the bid in before the deadline.

Surprisingly, I bid on Buck Leonard. I really had no interest in getting him (and I still think he'll be topped), But he was too good a value at 20, so I bid 23 (still too good). I figure if I end up with him, I'll let Jud Wilson go (I had 24 budgeted for him) and call it even...

The two pitchers, I was interested in, I let ride. I think Gibson topped 30 (still a good deal), and Waddell was just under (another good deal, but I'm hoping Boston elects to keep him, so I can get one of his other players later).

[Breeze]

Here is how the bidding ended:

Omar Linares - Tokyo bids 42 - WAS holds his rights
Bob Gibson - Minnesota bids 30 - POR holds his rights
Rube Waddell - LA New bids 27 - BOA holds his rights
Buck Leonard - Tallahassee bids 23 - KCM holds his rights
Bill Dickey - Portsmouth bids 20 - TIJ holds his rights
Roy Campanella - Tokyo bids 20 - POR holds his rights
Harry Heilman - Tokyo bids 20 - HCF holds his rights
George Brett - Boston bids 19 bids BRK holds his rights
Bruce Sutter - Scranton bids 16 - UFA
<b>Willie Wells - Washington bids 16 - TAF holds his rights</b>
Joe Morgan - Tokyo bids 15 - HCF holds his rights
Charlie Gehringer - New York bids 15 - WAS holds his rights
Reggie Jackson - LA New bids 15 - MIN holds his rights
Luis Tiant Jr. - LA New bids 10 - POR holds his rights
Edd Roush - Brooklyn bids 7 - UFA

[Breeze]

I am absolutely shocked by some of these bids...

Linaries jumped from 20 to 42, and his previous salary coming into this auction period was 32

Gibson and Waddell are a little low, but not way off...

Buck Leonard was a $36 player at the last auction...now he's down to 23 (24 if you count the fact he'll be topped)

Dickey, Heilmann, and Brett are about right where they should be.

I can't give you an opinion on Sutter because I haven't studied his card or seen stats from his seasons...

Wells at 16 seems low :) (I had 33 budgeted, though I though upper 20s was more likely)

Jackson, Tiant Jr and Roush are fine...

What really shocks me is Morgan and Gehringer for 15..:eek: :eek: These guys were mid 30's players in previous seasons. It really makes my 13 deal for DiHigo look bad. I had no idea these guys would stay so low...I really expected both to at least get into the low 20s. (I know...why didn't you bid then...:rolleyes: Probably because - though DiHigo is a utility player, 2nd base his where his numbers project out competitively, and I've already paid for him. I'd rather save my 18+ for another player or pitcher later...)

[Breeze]

Topper decisions from the previous bidding period

Linares topped at $43 by Washington
Gibson topped at 31 by Portsmouth
Waddell not topped - now property of LA New
Leonard topped at $24 by KC
Campanella topped at $21 by Portsmouth
Heilmann topped at $21 by Houston (not sure where he's going to play)
Brett topped at $20 by Brooklyn
Wells topped at $17 by Tallahassee
Morgan topped at $16 by Houston
Gehringer topped at $16 by Washington
Jackson not topped - property of LA New for $15
Tiant Jr topped at 11 by Portsmouth

[Breeze]

Current team situations

...

Team - Money to spend - RFA still to be bid on...

<table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1">
<tr>
<td>Southside Sultans </td>
<td>167</td>
<td>6</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Tokyo Samurai</td>
<td>143</td>
<td>2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Tallahassee Federals</td>
<td>132</td>
<td>5</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Portland Bambinos</td>
<td>101</td>
<td>6</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Houston Colt 45's</td>
<td>98</td>
<td>4</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Washington Senators</td>
<td>87</td>
<td>5</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Tijuana Brass</td>
<td>76</td>
<td>6</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Virginia Generals</td>
<td>68</td>
<td>5</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Portsmouth Roadrunners</td>
<td>63</td>
<td>6</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Boston Americans</td>
<td>60</td>
<td>12</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Kansas City Monarchs</td>
<td>55</td>
<td>3</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>LA New Bears</td>
<td>50</td>
<td>2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Minnesota Loons</td>
<td>49</td>
<td>3</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Brooklyn Cyclones</td>
<td>44</td>
<td>4</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Detroit Stars</td>
<td>43</td>
<td>6</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Norfolk Tars</td>
<td>38</td>
<td>8</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>New York Highlanders</td>
<td>35</td>
<td>3</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Chicago Whitestockings</td>
<td>34</td>
<td>0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Paris Texas Rangers</td>
<td>16</td>
<td>5</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Scranton White Elephants</td>
<td>14</td>
<td>3</td>
</tr>
</table>

Basically Tokyo can have whomever they want from this point forward...there 2 RFA that haven't been bid on yet are low dollar guys. Look for them to apply big bucks to the big names remaining...

[Breeze]

I need to pinpoint the players I want to try and get with my extra money...there are so many teams that have money to spend with very few RFA, that they'll be able to trump anyone I want if they want them as well. So I need to figure out a good time to roll the dice and try and get someone...

I love to get Lloyd, but my bet is he's going to be one of the crown jewels left over. I know 2 teams that have money left may be eyeing him and be willing to pay $50 for him.

If anyone has any suggestions for player or even just position...I'm listening...

[path12]

What's your roster look like right now? It's interesting (and probably makes sense) that the bidding in general has gotten lower as the rounds progress. Should give you the opportunity for some bargains.

[Breeze]

What's your roster look like right now? It's interesting (and probably makes sense) that the bidding in general has gotten lower as the rounds progress. Should give you the opportunity for some bargains.

Path,

Yeah, I expected salaries to go down too, but unfortunatley, when I look at the other teams I see too many that have more money to spend that I do (especially when you consider they don't have any RFA that are of high value).

As for my roster...

Currently I have 3 pitchers

Mendez - RH - SP/RP/Closer
Tiant Sr - LH - SP/RP/Closer
Grove - LH - SP/RP

Martin DiHigo - RH - UTL (will probably be my starting 2b)
Willie Wells - RH - SS/3b


I have topper rights on:

Torriente - LH - OF
Wilson - LH - 1b/3b
Nichols - RH - SP/RP/Closer

[path12]

Well, you were asking for suggestions, so here goes. Looks like you need some power in that lineup to me. I guess Wilson could be that but it would be easy enough to pitch around him. IIRC, Torriente, Wells and DiHigo are more on base guys rather than sluggers...

As for the pitching, I don't know Mendez, but you've got a couple good starters in Tiant and of course Grove, and Nichols should be a decent closer. You could certainly use another RH starter...

Just random two cents by someone who doesn't own the game. :)

[Breeze]

Well, you were asking for suggestions, so here goes. Looks like you need some power in that lineup to me. I guess Wilson could be that but it would be easy enough to pitch around him. IIRC, Torriente, Wells and DiHigo are more on base guys rather than sluggers...

As for the pitching, I don't know Mendez, but you've got a couple good starters in Tiant and of course Grove, and Nichols should be a decent closer. You could certainly use another RH starter...

Just random two cents by someone who doesn't own the game. :)

Good assessments...

I agree I need more power, problem is most of the power players that can hit in the middle of an order are already paid for. Plus the few that are left are on teams with tons of money to top or will be bid on by teams with tons of money left. Plus, while I need more power (preferably RH), I have to be careful, because I play in a huge park so I don't get cheap HRs, most of them turn to flyouts...thus the proliferation of line drive hitters with extra base power.

Let me give you a little break down of how the game sees the players I have on my roster...

Pitchers

Pitchers T W L ERA IP HITS BB K HR GS SV
Luis Tiant Sr. L 18 5 2.45 233 198 51 169 6 29 5
Lefty Grove L 18 7 2.55 220 200 59 139 8 25 4
Jose Mendez R 22 5 2.15 248 205 45 158 5 30 2
Kid Nichols R 18 8 2.82 231 223 56 84 7 25 1

The stats you read are the numbers the players card is built from...so it gives you an idea of what kind of player they are. In this league with all the superstar and HOFers, the results almost never approach the numbers you are reading, but that is what they have in mind when they design the player...

Players

Hitters AB DO TR HR BAVG BB K'S RBI OB% SL%
Jud Wilson 583 37 4 31 .336 66 76 110 .407 .549
Bill Wright 577 36 12 19 .324 45 52 95 .386 .532
Martin Dihigo 523 34 14 12 .311 64 58 105 .394 .495
C Torriente 576 36 14 22 .329 61 66 116 .408 .554
Willie Wells 532 28 10 12 .312 68 31 77 .403 .426

[Breeze]

Torriente went for only $15, so I'll top...

I also hold the top bid on Clemente at $12 (he'll probably get topped)

[Breeze]

A note from the Commish...

Jim Bunning is now a Loon and Dave Winfield a Monument as UFA's. Pud Galvin is now a member of the Samurai and Phil Niekro a Bear as their current teams cannot place a topper bid. All of topper decisions due and Period 8 is now open.

[path12]

Well, if you have a big park then it makes a ton of sense. You're in pretty good shape if all of those guys hit 12-20 homers but are fast and good with the bat.

[Breeze]

Thanks for the comments and questions...it not only does it make this more interesting for me, but it helps me sort out my thoughts.

Keep 'em coming

[Breeze]

Torriente coming in for only $17 is great, and it has really made it obvious I'm going to have money to spend even after I use topper rights on Wilson and Nichols…

However, there really aren’t many impact players (on this level) left in the draft that fit my team. I probably should have bid more on Clemente (though he really wouldn’t make a huge difference for the team). I’ve created a list of players that I have interest in…and they are split up into when they are scheduled to be on the docket…

Current Bid Period

C – Biz Mackey - $10 (currently) - Cost to Acquire $10 – 18
Overview: Nice catcher, good defense, decent bat, but nothing special
Observation: One of many catchers still available, not much difference in any of them.
Probable Action: Will most likely pass, save money and if everything else falls apart get a catcher later

SS – Joe Cronin - $13 – Cost to Acquire – $10 - $18
Overview – Nice SS, Good defense, Decent power for the position
Observation – Similar to Wells, without the speed
Probable Action: Will pass, he doesn’t offer enough of an impact to justify even the low bid.

3B – Jud Wilson - $16 – Cost to keep - $10 - $20
Overview – Terrible Defensively, but a nice power average combination
Observation – Is versatile, can play a lousy 1b or 3b (does help in draft portion though)
Probable Action: Will most likely top, we need his bat in the lineup


Bid Period 9

RHP - Hilton Smith - $8 – Cost to Acquire - $6 - $16
Overview – A nice innings eater, that gives you a chance to win games
Observation – there are several other innings eaters still available
Probable Action: might low bid and see what happens, but I’m not going to do much.

SS – Pops Lloyd - $40 – Cost to Acquire - $35 - $50
Overview – An excellent player, and one of the few truly impact players left
Observation – He is an awesome player, but he’s a top of the order table setter, not a power hitter
Probable Action : Boston is in a tough spot, they won’t be able to keep both Lloyd and Keefe so I might consider bidding here, even though he isn’t ideally what I need, because I could actually end up with this guy. If I get him, Wells moves to 3b. There could be several others that are interested in this guy too…especially KC and Boston will want to top.

1B/LF - Perucho Cepeda - $46 – Cost to Acquire - $42 - $62
Overview – The Crown Jewel of the remaining players
Observation – RH power hitting player with good defense. Truly a middle of the order guy.
Probable Action: I am at odds on what to do here. I could bid him up, but if I do, my money will be tied to this player, and no matter how much I bid I think that Southside is going to top. They currently have the money to spend, and in fact he has more money that they can possibly spend on good players. I think he’s been saving his money for this bid and won’t let him go at any cost.

CF – Will Bill Wright - $6 – Cost to Keep - $5 - $14
Overview – Similar to Clemente
Observation – A player who has been good for me since I started in the league and he’ll come cheap.
Probable Action : Most likely will top, unless the money is needed for one of the star players in this round.

RHP – Tim Keefe - $31 – Cost to Acquire - $35 - $48
Overview – Best pitcher still available
Observation – with so many teams holding so much money, this bidding could get high
Probable Action – Another of Boston’s players, and he can’t keep them all. I might bid high here and on Lloyd and force Boston to choose 1 or the other. Would love to have him in the rotation and he does fit my philosophy of pitching, speed, defense and extra base power.




Bid Period 10

RHP – Kid Nichols - $8 – Cost to Keep $10 - $25
Overview – a very underrated pitcher
Observation – With so few big time pitchers remaining, the price on the remaining pitchers could go up
Probable Action : Will top if the money is there.

OF – Pete Hill – UNK – Cost to Acquire - $6 - $14
Overview – Table setting outfielder with good defense
Observation – Not even an elite table setter, but a nice player to have. Won’t make a major impact on a season
Probable Action: None. Could get a bid ,if for some reason I lose Wright.

C – Gabby Hartnett - $1 – Cost to Acquire - $5 - $11
Overview – Defensive catcher with some power
Observation – One of many catchers still available
Probable Action – might low bid, just to make sure I have a catcher on the roster before the auction ends. Bids are more likely if cash is tight at this point (meaning I’ve acquired one of the impact players listed above)

C/UTL - King Kelly - $16 – Cost to Acquire - $15 - $25
Overview – Catcher/ Utility player with SPEED and decent defense. Can be an impact in games
Observation: He’s only allowed around 400 AB a season, so he’ll require a good backup player
Probable Action: If I whiff on all the big name stars above, he’ll get a bunch of money thrown his way. It might be for just one season, but if I have the cash to spend and no one to spend it on, might as well get the best player I can.

RHP – Rube Foster - $4 – Cost to Acquire - $5 - $12
Overview – See Hilton Smith
Observation: Basically the same player
Probable Action: Depending on what has happened above, he could get a bid. More likely he gets a bid because he comes a round later than Smith


The Remainder Don’t Have a Bid Period Assigned Yet:

C – Louis Santop - $4 – Cost to Acquire - $5 - $15
Overview – Nice combination of power, defense. See Biz Mackey (but LH batter)
Observation – Whenever he come up it will be time to start looking for a catcher with whatever money I have left (assuming I didn’t already get one).
Probable Action: If I don’t have a catcher yet, or if my catcher is Kelly, I will probably bid on him

C – Miguel Gonzalez - $21 – Cost to Acquire - $12 - $28
Overview – Has been a great player for me in the past, Decent all around player
Observation – Better than the rest of the catchers listed above
Probable Action – If I have whiffed on all counts, Stars and Kelly, Gonzalez will get my bid. He works well in my lineup.

LHP – Bill Foster - $4 – Cost to Acquire - $5 - $12
Overview – A LHP that kills Lefties.
Observation – Has thrived as a closer against lefties - Undervalued
Probable Action – Could get a bid, never hurts to have a guy like this in this league

P – Kaz Inao – $1 – Cost to Acquire - $UNK
<i>I’m going to get back to you on this one. There is a Japanese pitcher that I’ve taken a closer look at that appears to be very similar to Hilton Smith and Rube Foster, but I’m not sure if it is this guy. </i>

LHP – Warren Spahn - $12 – Cost to Acquire - $10 to $20
Overview - A player I think isn’t well represented in the game. He should be better. A solid pitcher.
Observation: A LHP that is good against RH batters.
Probable Action: If I a bunch of money left when he’s on the board I’ll probably bid him up.

RHP – Webster McDonald – $1 – Cost to Acquire - $3 - $9
Overview – A pitcher who has made a living as a closer, Kills RH batters
Observation – Would make a perfect complement to Bill Foster as a Closer tandem,
Probable Action – See Bill Foster. Actually might try to do the tandem thing if I have too much money at this point.

OF – Spotwood Poles - $9 – Cost to Acquire - $5 - $!2
See Pete Hill (A little more speed)

RHP – Chet Brewer – UNK – Cost to Acquire - $4 - $12
See Rube Foster and Hilton Smith. Maybe not quite as good.

OF – Isao Harimoto - $3 – Cost to Acquire $1 - $4
Overview – A nice spot player, LHB that kills lefties
Observation – Does extremely well against players like Spahn, Valenzeula, Hubble. Has a role and plays it well
Probable Action: Could be a player picked up for spot duty.

C – Ernie Lombardi - $10 – Cost to Acquire $6 - $15
Overview – OK defender, lacks a great arm (for this league) so teams can run on him (especially if the pitcher doesn’t hold runners well). But he can hit
Observation: Good contact hitter, some power, Really Really Really Slow. Could clog the bases for my team.
Probable Action: Another Catcher…I’ll probably end up with 1 of them. I would rank Lombardi 2 or 3 on the Catcher wish list (not counting Kelly)

[Breeze]

If you have a question why I'm not bidding on someone you like or think is real good, ask. Maybe I need to go back and evaluate my strategy.

[Breeze]

Bid Period 8

Biz Mackey POB
Joe Cronin HCF
Hal Newhouser SWE
Don Sutton VAG
Rodolfo Puente UFA
Eppa Rixey SWE
Tony Lazzeri NOR
Jud Wilson TAF
Bob Feller UFA
Goose Goslin POB
Dizzy Dean SSS
Willie Stargell UFA
Dazzy Vance POR
Stan Coveleski UFA
Antonio Pacheco SSS

[Breeze]

As expected bidding is slow this go round

Biz Mackey - Southside - 11 - POB
Joe Cronin - Southside - 9 - HCF
Hal Newhouser - Houston - 5 - SWE
Don Sutton - Southside - 13 - VAG
Rodolfo Puente - Washington - 5 - UFA
Eppa Rixey - Portland - 4 - SWE
Tony Lazzeri - Southside - 4 - NOR
Jud Wilson - washington - 8 - TAF
Bob Feller - Brooklyn - 5 -UFA
Goose Goslin - Brooklyn - 5 - POB
Dizzy Dean - New York - 10 - SSS
Willie Stargell - Southside - 6 - UFA
Dazzy Vance - washington - 9 - POR
Stan Coveleski - washington - 6 - UFA
Antonio Pacheco - New York - 12 - SSS

[Breeze]

Getting you caught up....

Here is how bidding on group 8 closed:

Biz Mackey - Southside bid 26 - POB topped at $27 (:eek: This guy was at 10 last contract)
Don Sutton - Houston bids 17 - VAG tops at $18
Rodolfo Puente - Tokyo bids 15 - UFA so Tokyo wins the bid
Eppa Rixey - Tokyo bids 15 - Not topped so Tokyo wins the bid
Jud Wilson - Houston bids 15 - TAF tops at $16
Bob Feller - Tokyo bids 15 - UFA so Tokyo wins the bid
Dizzy Dean - Kansas City bids 14 - Not topped so KC wins the bid
Dazzy Vance - Kansas City bids 14 - Not topped so KC wins the bid
Joe Cronin - Southside bids 12 - HCF tops at $13
Stan Coveleski - Southside bids 12 - UFA so Southside wins the bid
Antonio Pacheco - New York bids 12 - SSS top at $13
Willie Stargell - Southside bids 10 - UFA so Southside wins the bid
Hal Newhouser - New York bids 9 - SWE tops at $10
Tony Lazzeri - Southside bids 8 - Not topped so Southside wins the bid
Goose Goslin - Brooklyn bids 5 - POB tops at $6

[Breeze]

That left us with this salary breakdown heading into group 9

Tallahassee Federals - $100
Houston Colt 45's - $85
Southside Sultans - $77
Portland Bambinos - $68
Virginia Generals - $50
Washington Senators - $64
Tijuana Brass - $58
Boston Americans - $56
Tokyo Samurai - $46
Brooklyn Cyclones - $44
Kansas City Monarchs - $27
Portsmouth Roadrunners - $38
New York Highlanders - $35
LA New Bears - $34
Chicago Whitestockings - $34
Minnesota Loons - $27
Detroit Stars - $23
Paris Texas Rangers - $16
Norfolk Tars - $11
Scranton White Elephants - $4

[Breeze]

Here is how period 9 Closed:

Perucho Cepeda - Tallahassee 41 - SSS
Tim Keefe - Houston 40 - BOA
Pop Lloyd - Tallahassee 32 - BOA
Hilton Smith - Boston 24 - POB
Chief Bender - Houston 18 - TOK
Laz Salazar - Tijuana 15 - UFA
Carl Yaztrzemski - Chicago 13 - TIJ
Hoyt Wilhelm - Detroit 12 - VAG
Bill Terry - Portland 10 - UFA
Al Spaulding - Washington 9 - VAG
Roger Connor - Washington 5 - UFA
Cap Anson - Houston 5 - POB
Hughie Jennings - Portland 6 - NYH
Dan Brouthers - Washington 3 - PTR
Wild Bill Wright - Scranton 2 - TAF

[Breeze]

In period 9 I actually started my bidding with Keefe. KC had put 24 on Lloyd so I put 32 on Keefe, basically putting Boston in a pick or choose situation. I was planning to go back and put 38 on Keefe and 32 on Lloyd, but when I started to do that I noticed Houston had already topped my bid. I contemplated going to 41, but in stead placed that money on Cepeda (assuming it would be topped), but he is the RH middle of the order hitter that would help me the most.

Now I'm in a wait and see on what Boston does...He bid 24 on Smith...I happen to know that was topped so he has the money left to get either of his players. I'm starting to think he might let Keefe go and target Nichols, Foster, Foster and Spahn in the next few periods as a quantity replacement over quality (because Keefe is an Ace). We'll see.

I'll probably top on Wright...too productive to lose for $3.

If I end up with both Cepeda and Lloyd (unlikely), I might not have enough money to keep Nichols...(probably won't judging from Smith going for $25), but if I lose him, I'll also target the pitchers I mentioned for Boston plus a few relievers.

[Breeze]

Here is group 10:


Johnny Evers UFA
Bingo Demoss POB
George Kell BOA
Carl Hubbell NOR
Larry Doby WAS
<b>Kid Nichols TAF </b>
Pete Hill UFA
Tony Perez UFA
Pie Traynor DET
Gabby Hartnett BOA
King Kelly VAG
Earl Averill WAS
Gary Carter DET
Rube Foster WAS
Tony Oliva UFA

[Breeze]

Final Results from bid period 9

Perucho Cepeda - Tallahassee bids 41 -Not Topped Tallahassee wins the bid
Tim Keefe - Houston bids 40 - Not topped Houston wins the bid
Pop Lloyd - Tallahassee bids 32 - Not topped Tallahassee wins the bid
Hilton Smith - Boston bids 24 - POB Tops at $25
Chief Bender - Houston bids 18 - TOK tops at $19
Laz Salazar - Tijuana bids 15 - UFA so Tijuana wins the bid
Carl Yaztrzemski - Chicago bids 13 -TIJ tops at $14
Hoyt Wilhelm - Detroit bids 12 - VAG tops at $13
Bill Terry - Portland bids 10 -UFA so Portland wins the bid
Al Spaulding - Washington bids 9 -Not topped Washington wins the bid
Roger Connor -Washington bids 5 - UFA so Washington wins the bid
Cap Anson - Houston bids 5 -Not topped so Houston wins the bid
Hughie Jennings - Portland bids 6 - NYH tops at $7
Dan Brouthers - Washington bids 3 - PTR tops at $4
Wild Bill Wright - Scranton bids 2 - TAF tops at $3

[Breeze]

Bargain shopping now....probably won't be able to keep Nichols (especially with Smith going for $25). I'll bet Nichols clears $20, and I'll probably have to let him go.

New targets:

Rube Foster
Bill Foster
Webster McDonald
Dizzy Dizmukes
Warren Spahn (but he'll probably be about the same as Nichols).
Carl Hubbell (See Spahn)

[Breeze]

Here is the final results from bid period 10

Earl Averill - Houston bids 18 - Not topped so Houston wins the bid
Carl Hubbell - Southside bids 17 - Not topped so Southside wins the bid
King Kelly - New York bids 16 - VAG tops and keeps Kelly (I would have too for $17)
Gary Carter - Southside bids 16 - Not topped so Southside wins the bid
<b>Kid Nichols - Boston bids 15 - TAF has topper rights???? What to do</b>
Gabby Hartnett - Tokyo bids 15 - Not topped so Toyko wins the bid
Rube Foster - Houston bids 12 - WAS tops at $13
Larry Doby - Houston bids 10 - WAS tops at $11
Pete Hill - Minnesota bids 6 - UFA so Minnesota wins the bid
George Kell - Chicago bids 5 - BOA tops at $6
Pie Traynor - Boston bids 4 - DET tops at $5 (I would too at this price)
Johnny Evers - Tijuana bids 4 - UFA so Tijuana wins the bid
Bingo Demoss - Kansas City bids 3 - POB tops at $4
Tony Oliva - Washington bids 3 - UFA so Washington wins the bid
Tony Perez - Tijuana bids 3 - UFA so Tijuana wins the bid

[Breeze]

Originally I was excited because the email went out that the period was closed with Nichols only having a $12 bid, but an email server was slow and Bostons $15 bid was sent before the 8:59:59 deadline, it just didn't arrive until late. I had set a total spend amount to keep Nichols at 14 or 15, to top here would put me at 16 and leave me with just 8 to get a catcher and maybe slip in a 1 or 2 reliever. I would stick to my plan and pass here move on and try to load up on relievers and get a good catcher...but because Boston is in the division and because so many teams have money left to top the low dollar bids on relievers, I'll top on Nichols and hope $8 is enough to get a catcher or at least keep the one I have topper rights on - Bresnahan.

[Breeze]

Things have been pretty quiet here for a while, but when you only have $8 remaining there isn't much you can do with it. I was hoping it would be enough to retain Bresnahan at catcher...but he sold for $8 so I didn't have the dollar to top. That means I'll be headed into the draft needing a catcher. Not something I'm pleased about. Hopefully, there will be one that can play defense and who has at least a bit of offensive production.

[Breeze]

the draft is about to start and i head into it only truly needing pitching and catchers, plus some backup players. We are using the 1930 season plus the 1930 negro national league. I've looked and the pickings are slim for both the areas I need to address. The best pitcher available in my opinion only has about 116 innings he can pitch. I could pick him and make him my primary relief guy, but he wouldn't be able to start. And with the season we've chosen, there are no closers so I'll probably have to move one of my HOF players to the closer role. That will leave me with 2 rotation spots to fill.

I like the make up of my team moving forward, but this season could be a long one, because I am weak in areas where the season we are using for support is also weak.

[Breeze]

The draft started last night and my first round pick was Bump Hadley. He's a pitcher with 260+ innings pitched and is decent at keeping people off base. He isn't going to carry my team, but I have to add pitchers.

Moving forward their are quite a few good pitchers with around 100 innings pitched. I'll try to load up on these guys for my middle relief.

My second round pick ended up being Jimmy Wilson. A catcher with an average arm (hopefully it will be good enough) and 362 At Bats. The AB are important, because he'll be able to start over half my games. He is also a switch hitter who hits righties better (making it easier to find a platoon partner for him). Plus he hit .318, OBP of .367 and Slugging of .434.

Long term I'm going to try and get another catcher with a good arm that can go in late in games as a defensive replacement. It will save me some ABs and keep teams from running on me.

[Breeze]

The few good pitchers with sub 100 innings pitched went fast...in fact, I probably got the last one I had tagged with my 3rd round pick...

Whit Wyatt RHP - 4 - 5 3.57, 86 76 35 68

Not sure where I go from here. Hopefully, one of the halfway decent pitchers I have a marked for middle rounds will be available in the next few. I'm short on Innings Pitched and I'll need at least a couple more relievers or another starter who can eat innings, so I can move Nichols or one of my other pitchers to relief.

[Breeze]

I don't know if anyone is still reading this, but if you are, you may not be aware that I am running another dynasty using the same game (Dynasty League Baseball). I thought it might be interesting to see how the players I have under contract are doing at the half-way point of that season, so I looked them up...


Pitchers
NAME ERA W L PCT G GS CG SH SV IP H R ER HR BB SO
L.Grove 3.02 9 5 .643 17 17 8 5 0 134.0 99 49 45 10 52 82
L.Tiant Sr. 5.01 6 7 .462 20 20 2 1 0 125.2 131 75 70 19 49 105
J.Mendez 3.46 6 8 .429 19 19 6 2 0 132.2 110 53 51 16 31 91
K.Nichols 5.81 3 3 .500 30 0 0 0 1 57.1 69 40 37 6 34 19



Players
NAME BAVG GM AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO HB SH DP SB CS E
P.Cepeda .253 62 221 34 56 14 0 13 47 20 32 4 0 2 4 1 4
W.Wright .318 76 321 47 102 16 5 12 51 12 51 1 2 1 12 5 10
W.Wells .317 79 268 45 85 15 8 7 43 32 33 15 4 7 7 9 4
C.Torriente .265 55 185 20 49 7 0 9 23 13 36 1 0 2 7 1 0
M.Dihigo .264 66 239 36 63 14 10 6 23 24 41 0 4 6 5 2 2
P.Lloyd .267 65 262 38 70 11 5 5 37 29 43 0 3 3 16 2 7
J.Wilson .274 80 325 38 89 32 0 10 42 18 37 0 0 11 0 0 7

[Breeze]

I went 5 and 4 in my first set. I got swept by Portsmouth Bambinos in what were some close games.

Because of the lack of relief pitchers in the 30's I've had to take one of my starters and make them a closer (one that will pitch 3 innings). I started this set with Grove in that role, but he was't particularly good, in fact he cost me more than he helped me. I'm going to have to look at getting a closer in the auction and keeping one. I had planned to pick one up, but when I ended up Lloyd and Cepeda it tapped me out (I didn't expect to get both) so I saved my $8 hoping to be able to keep Bresnahan so I could have a catcher. As it turns out, the 2 catchers I drafted are pretty good, and even though they are both RH batters they platoon well, because 1 hits rh pitchers well while the other kills lefties.

Still waiting on my 9 road game results.

[Breeze]

So far I know I'm 4 and 2 on the road. I actually went 2 and 1 against Portsmouth at their place...

I'm still waiting on 1 teams results for the end of set 1, but barring a sweep, I'm going to be above .500