1917 FOOL-H Offseason Thread

[Young Drachma]

MON: Off-day
TUE: Sim to FA
WED: FA1
THUR: FA2
FRI: ST/DRAFT
SAT: SEASON
SUN: Post-season

AWARD WINNERS

AL MVP: Babe Ruth, Boston
NL MVP: Edd Roush, Pittsburgh

AL Outstanding Pitcher: Dave Davenport, Washington
NL Outstanding Pitcher, Jesse Barnes, Boston

AL Rookie of the Year: John Beckwith, Chicago
NL Rookie of the Year: George Kelly, St. Louis

[Young Drachma]

Saturday, October 28th, 1916
Baltimore Orioles: Signed SP A. Joss to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $17,700,000.
Boston Beaneaters: Signed SS P. Lloyd to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $6,410,000.
Boston Beaneaters: Signed MR R. Vowinkel to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $3,120,000.
Boston Beaneaters: Signed 2B E. Collins to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $57,665,000.
Boston Red Sox: Signed SS B. Sweeney to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $7,500,000.
Detroit Tigers: Signed 2B B. Herzog to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $3,600,000.
Detroit Tigers: Signed SS T. Shafer to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $9,750,000.
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed MR J. Nagle to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $1,870,000.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Signed 1B J. Fournier to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $2,070,000.
Baltimore Orioles: Signed CF B. Kauff to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $41,380,000.
Detroit Tigers: Signed SP C. Weilman to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $7,800,000.
Friday, October 27th, 1916
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed MR R. Miller to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $1,740,000.
Baltimore Orioles: Signed C M. Gonzalez to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $920,000.
Thursday, October 26th, 1916
Detroit Tigers: Signed CF T. Hendryx to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $4,600,000.
Chicago Cubs: Signed C S. O'Neill to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $22,290,000.
Baltimore Orioles: Signed MR G. Davis to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $480,000.
Detroit Tigers: Signed C W. Schang to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $40,500,000.
Wednesday, October 25th, 1916
Detroit Tigers: Signed LF T. Long to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $11,900,000.
Baltimore Orioles: Signed SP W. James to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $970,000.
Tuesday, October 24th, 1916
Boston Beaneaters: Signed CF T. Speaker to a 7-year contract extension worth a total of $36,305,000.
Baltimore Orioles: Signed SP H. Vaughn to a 5-year contract extension worth a total of $33,350,000.
New York Yankees: Signed 3B R. Smith to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $6,360,000.
Detroit Tigers: Signed SP G. Baumgardner to a 3-year contract extension worth a total of $11,700,000.

[Young Drachma]

File is up.

[spleen1015]

Bloody hell. Mike Donlin decided to hang them up. He retires with 41 hits to go for 4000. What a bummer. I thought my team was bad before....

[Young Drachma]

Monday, December 18th, 1916
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed free agent SP L. Cheney to a 3-year contract worth a total of $1,850,000.
Sunday, December 17th, 1916
Philadelphia Athletics: Signed free agent SS B. Fisher to a 1-year contract worth a total of $780,000.
Saturday, December 16th, 1916
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed free agent MR B. Boland to a 2-year contract worth a total of $1,155,000.
Thursday, December 14th, 1916
Philadelphia Athletics: Signed free agent SP E. Hamilton to a 1-year contract worth a total of $3,075,000.
Wednesday, December 13th, 1916
New York Yankees: Signed free agent 2B P. Baumann to a 4-year contract worth a total of $16,660,000.
Tuesday, December 12th, 1916
Philadelphia Athletics: Signed free agent 2B J. Delahanty to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,650,000.
Monday, December 11th, 1916
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed free agent RF F. Schulte to a 2-year contract worth a total of $3,660,000.
Philadelphia Athletics: Signed free agent RF G. Burns to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,560,000.
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed free agent MR P. Carter to a 2-year contract worth a total of $985,000.
Sunday, December 10th, 1916
New York Giants: Signed free agent CL T. Hughes to a 3-year contract worth a total of $7,230,000.
Friday, December 8th, 1916
New York Yankees: Signed free agent SP T. Seaton to a 5-year contract worth a total of $24,250,000.
Thursday, December 7th, 1916
New York Giants: Signed free agent C J. Henry to a 1-year contract worth a total of $715,000.
Wednesday, December 6th, 1916
St. Louis Cardinals: Signed free agent MR S. Harrell to a 3-year contract worth a total of $8,800,000.
Tuesday, December 5th, 1916
St. Louis Cardinals: Signed free agent CF V. Campbell to a 5-year contract worth a total of $14,650,000.
St. Louis Cardinals: Signed free agent CL J. Mendez to a 4-year contract worth a total of $17,480,000.
Sunday, December 3rd, 1916
New York Giants: Signed free agent CL E. Klepfer to a 1-year contract worth a total of $1,085,000.
Tuesday, November 21st, 1916
Louisville Black Caps: Signed SP T. Hughes to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $1,305,000.
Louisville Black Caps: Signed 1B J. Hummel to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $4,680,000.
Louisville Black Caps: Signed CL W. Mitchell to a 4-year contract extension worth a total of $7,980,000.

[Young Drachma]

File is up.

[Young Drachma]

Tuesday, December 26th, 1916
New York Yankees: Signed free agent C B. Carrigan to a 1-year contract worth a total of $2,870,000.
Wednesday, December 20th, 1916
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed CF D. Callahan to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $3,850,000.
Monday, December 18th, 1916
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed free agent SP L. Cheney to a 3-year contract worth a total of $1,850,000.
Brooklyn Dodgers: Purchased the contract of RF F. Nicholson from Triple A Saint Paul.
Philadelphia Phillies: Purchased the contract of SP L. Williams from Triple A Scranton.
Philadelphia Phillies: Purchased the contract of SP B. Grimes from Triple A Scranton.
Philadelphia Phillies: Purchased the contract of C V. Clemons from Triple A Scranton.
Philadelphia Phillies: Purchased the contract of 3B J. Evans from Triple A Scranton.
St. Louis Cardinals: Demoted LF H. Butcher to Triple A East St. Louis.
Sunday, December 17th, 1916
Philadelphia Athletics: Signed free agent SS B. Fisher to a 1-year contract worth a total of $780,000.
Saturday, December 16th, 1916
Brooklyn Dodgers: Signed free agent MR B. Boland to a 2-year contract worth a total of $1,155,000.
Thursday, December 14th, 1916
Philadelphia Athletics: Signed free agent SP E. Hamilton to a 1-year contract worth a total of $3,075,000.

[Young Drachma]

Sunday, January 21st, 1917
Chicago Cubs: Signed free agent MR F. Anderson to a 3-year contract worth a total of $2,910,000.
Friday, January 19th, 1917
Washington Senators: Signed free agent SS G. Perring to a 2-year contract worth a total of $4,460,000.
Tuesday, January 16th, 1917
Washington Senators: Signed free agent LF H. Wagner to a 2-year contract worth a total of $12,840,000.
Thursday, January 11th, 1917
Washington Senators: Signed free agent SP R. Walker to a 3-year contract worth a total of $1,545,000.
Tuesday, January 9th, 1917
Boston Red Sox: Signed free agent SS D. Bush to a 2-year contract worth a total of $2,500,000.
Washington Senators: Signed free agent SP R. Aitchison to a 3-year contract worth a total of $19,785,000.
Monday, January 8th, 1917
Washington Senators: Signed free agent RF C. Stengel to a 3-year contract worth a total of $7,670,000.
Thursday, January 4th, 1917
Boston Beaneaters: Signed free agent CL E. Barry to a 1-year contract worth a total of $685,000.
Wednesday, January 3rd, 1917
Boston Red Sox: Signed free agent LF B. Bescher to a 5-year contract worth a total of $9,000,000.
Tuesday, January 2nd, 1917
Boston Red Sox: Signed free agent MR G. Packard to a 3-year contract worth a total of $14,250,000.

[Young Drachma]

File is up.

[Young Drachma]

Here's a bit of info on this year's #1 pick of the draft:

Oscar McKinley Charleston (October 14, 1896 - October 5, 1954) was an American center fielder and manager in baseball's Negro Leagues from 1915 to 1945.

Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Charleston joined the Army at 15 and served in the Philippines. Returning to America, Charleston immediately began his baseball career with the Indianapolis ABC's in 1915. He served as a player and/or manager for the ABCs, Chicago American Giants, Lincoln Stars, St. Louis Giants, Harrisburg Giants, Philadelphia Hilldales, Homestead Grays, and Pittsburgh Crawfords.

An intense, focused, intelligent man, Charleston was among the most renowned players of his time, a tremendous power and contact hitter and one of the finest defensive center fielders of all time. His career batting average was .353 and he regularly finished among league leaders in both home runs and stolen bases. He was also known for his combative nature, getting into many brawls, including at least one memorable fight with an array of Cuban soldiers.

In 1932, Charleston became player-manager of the Pittsburgh Crawfords and presided over perhaps the best Negro League team of all time. His roster included Hall of Famers Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, and Judy Johnson. The team went 99-36 and Charleston himself batted .363.

In addition to his tremendous play in the Negro Leagues, Charleston excelled in exhibition play against all-white major league teams, batting .318 with 11 home runs in 53 games. Contemporary observers compared his play to that of Tris Speaker and Babe Ruth. [1] Baseball historians generally consider him one of the greatest players in history.[2] He died at age 57 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Charleston was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976. In 1999, he ranked Number 67 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, one of five players so honored who played all or most of their careers in pre-1947 black leagues, and was nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. Baseball writer Bill James in his The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract ranked Charleston as the fourth best ball player of all time.

That's some pretty high praise. It's great to know he'll get to hang with the best of his generation on even turf now.

[Young Drachma]

Round 1
Round 1, Pick 1 - Philadelphia Phillies: CF O. Charleston
Round 1, Pick 2 - Philadelphia Athletics: SS C. Hollocher
Round 1, Pick 3 - Pittsburgh Pirates: C B. Mackey
Round 1, Pick 4 - St. Louis Cardinals: 2B J. Mostil
Round 1, Pick 5 - Baltimore Orioles: SP W. Bell
Round 1, Pick 6 - Cincinnati Redlegs: LF A. McHenry
Round 1, Pick 7 - Washington Senators: SP J. Reid
Round 1, Pick 8 - Chicago Cubs: SP R. Causey
Round 1, Pick 9 - Washington Senators: SP A. Ferguson
Round 1, Pick 10 - Washington Senators: 2B J. Dykes
Round 1, Pick 11 - Louisville Black Caps: SP J. Haines
Round 1, Pick 12 - Brooklyn Dodgers: SP T. Zachary
Round 1, Pick 13 - Detroit Tigers: LF O. Carnegie
Round 1, Pick 14 - Chicago Whales: C A. Head
Round 1, Pick 15 - Boston Beaneaters: SP B. Sherdel
Round 1, Pick 16 - Boston Red Sox: SP H. McQuillan
Supplemental Round 1
Round 1 (Supplemental Round), Pick 1 - Philadelphia Phillies: CF C. Heathcote
Round 1 (Supplemental Round), Pick 2 - Philadelphia Athletics: SP G. Buckeye
Round 1 (Supplemental Round), Pick 3 - Washington Senators: CF R. Massey
Round 1 (Supplemental Round), Pick 4 - Washington Senators: 3B B. Pinelli
Round 1 (Supplemental Round), Pick 5 - Cincinnati Redlegs: LF B. Murphy
Round 1 (Supplemental Round), Pick 6 - Boston Red Sox: MR J. Northrop
Round 1 (Supplemental Round), Pick 7 - Washington Senators: 2B R. Sheridan
Round 1 (Supplemental Round), Pick 8 - Detroit Tigers: C T. Hannah
Round 2
Round 2, Pick 1 - Philadelphia Phillies: SP M. Watson
Round 2, Pick 2 - Philadelphia Athletics: C A. DeVormer
Round 2, Pick 3 - Pittsburgh Pirates: C M. Devine
Round 2, Pick 4 - Cincinnati Redlegs: MR L. Jacobus
Round 2, Pick 5 - Baltimore Orioles: MR O. Tuero
Round 2, Pick 6 - Cincinnati Redlegs: SP B. Pertica
Round 2, Pick 7 - Philadelphia Phillies: SP J. Ogden
Round 2, Pick 8 - Chicago Cubs: MR H. Canavan
Round 2, Pick 9 - Boston Red Sox: SP V. Keen
Round 2, Pick 10 - New York Yankees: MR B. Geary
Round 2, Pick 11 - Louisville Black Caps: MR F. Woodward
Round 2, Pick 12 - Brooklyn Dodgers: MR R. Wilkinson
Round 2, Pick 13 - Detroit Tigers: MR R. Kallio
Round 2, Pick 14 - Chicago Whales: MR W. Kinney
Round 2, Pick 15 - Boston Beaneaters: MR R. Shea
Round 2, Pick 16 - New York Giants: SS B. Larmore
Round 3
Round 3, Pick 1 - Philadelphia Phillies: MR F. Shellenback
Round 3, Pick 2 - Philadelphia Athletics: 2B B. McCabe
Round 3, Pick 3 - Pittsburgh Pirates: MR E. Hovlik
Round 3, Pick 4 - St. Louis Cardinals: LF K. Willson
Round 3, Pick 5 - Baltimore Orioles: MR C. Holmes
Round 3, Pick 6 - Cincinnati Redlegs: MR J. Hehl
Round 3, Pick 7 - Philadelphia Athletics: MR G. Ross
Round 3, Pick 8 - Chicago Cubs: MR E. Howard
Round 3, Pick 9 - Boston Red Sox: MR H. Heitmann
Round 3, Pick 10 - New York Yankees: MR R. Hansen
Round 3, Pick 11 - Louisville Black Caps: MR W. Bernhardt
Round 3, Pick 12 - Brooklyn Dodgers: MR E. Corey
Round 3, Pick 13 - Detroit Tigers: MR S. Rees
Round 3, Pick 14 - Chicago Whales: MR N. Plitt
Round 3, Pick 15 - Boston Beaneaters: MR D. McCabe
Round 3, Pick 16 - New York Giants: MR M. Herrmann
Round 4
Round 4, Pick 1 - Philadelphia Phillies: RF T. Pickup
Round 4, Pick 2 - Philadelphia Athletics: MR W. Pierson
Round 4, Pick 3 - Pittsburgh Pirates: MR L. Bauer
Round 4, Pick 4 - St. Louis Cardinals: 2B D. Distel
Round 4, Pick 5 - Baltimore Orioles: MR R. Sanders
Round 4, Pick 6 - Cincinnati Redlegs: 2B R. Conway
Round 4, Pick 7 - Washington Senators: C O. Jacobs
Round 4, Pick 8 - Chicago Cubs: MR R. Johnson
Round 4, Pick 9 - Boston Red Sox: MR H. Hall
Round 4, Pick 10 - New York Yankees: LF T. Menze
Round 4, Pick 11 - Louisville Black Caps: SS E. Gonzalez
Round 4, Pick 12 - Brooklyn Dodgers: MR B. Morris
Round 4, Pick 13 - Detroit Tigers: 3B G. Cochran
Round 4, Pick 14 - Chicago Whales: 1B J. Munch
Round 4, Pick 15 - Boston Beaneaters: RF D. Wheeler
Round 4, Pick 16 - New York Giants: C B. Berman
Round 5
Round 5, Pick 1 - Philadelphia Phillies: LF F. Fahey
Round 5, Pick 2 - Philadelphia Athletics: 2B C. Davidson
Round 5, Pick 3 - Pittsburgh Pirates: 3B J. Stansbury
Round 5, Pick 4 - St. Louis Cardinals: 1B D. Bass
Round 5, Pick 5 - Baltimore Orioles: 1B T. Miller
Round 5, Pick 6 - Cincinnati Redlegs: 1B R. Bluhm
Round 5, Pick 7 - Washington Senators: 1B P. Hardgrove
Round 5, Pick 8 - Chicago Cubs: 1B J. Cobb

[Young Drachma]

Here's some info about the 3rd pick, Biz Mackey

James Raleigh "Biz" Mackey (July 27, 1897 – September 22, 1965) was an American catcher and manager in Negro league baseball. He came to be regarded as black baseball's premier catcher in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

His superior defense and outstanding throwing arm were complemented by batting skill which placed him among the Negro Leagues' all-time leaders in total bases, RBIs and slugging percentage, while hitting .322 for his career.

Mackey was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.

I knew little to nothing about these guys, so I found it interesting to read about them a bit more, especially Charleston who I had no idea was that well regarded (But I recognized the name, so I decided to poke around a bit...)

[Young Drachma]

STANDINGS

AL
Detroit 21-3
Louisville 15-9
Philadelphia 13-11
Baltimore 13-11
New York 12-12
Chicago 11-13
Boston 6-18
Washington 5-19

NL
St. Louis 16-8
New York 14-10
Chicago 13-11
Boston 12-12
Philadelphia 11-13
Pittsburgh 11-13
Cincinnati 11-13
Brooklyn 8-16

[Young Drachma]

21-3 has to be some sort of league record. I've never seen that happen in ST. Alan, have you ever seen one better than that?

[Young Drachma]

Make sure your rosters are set to 25 man, too.

File is going up now.

[Alan T]

Originally Posted by Dark Cloud

21-3 has to be some sort of league record. I've never seen that happen in ST. Alan, have you ever seen one better than that?

I think I remember Cringer once going 3-20 or something in spring training, but off the top of my head don't rememeber anyone doing that well.

[gstelmack]

So I'm finally getting around to trying out having someone in the pitching rotation AND in my batting lineups. Doc Crandall will be a spot starter for us, plus backing up 1B and 2B (although it was a tossup to have him starting at 2B over Larry Doyle), while Babe Ruth will do some setup work in addition to anchoring RF. We'll see how this goes.

[spot]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

So I'm finally getting around to trying out having someone in the pitching rotation AND in my batting lineups. Doc Crandall will be a spot starter for us, plus backing up 1B and 2B (although it was a tossup to have him starting at 2B over Larry Doyle), while Babe Ruth will do some setup work in addition to anchoring RF. We'll see how this goes.

It's about time for Ruth. I expected that right out of the chute.

[TimGuru]

I'm not sure I'd trust the AI manager to use him correctly, I wouldn't take the chance of losing his bat in RF for random games because the manager decides he'd rather save him for the 'pen.

Actually, my scouting department informs me that they recommend he be used exclusively as a starter in a strict 6 man rotation. We will even supply a couple of the other 5 SPs, of course in the interest of looking out for Ruth's productivity and contribution to the game.

[Alan T]

I experimented with it some back in 1905 with George Mullin

The AI never did what i wanted with him in the fast sim format. If I could manually micro-manage each game I bet I could though.

[TimGuru]

Originally Posted by Alan T

I experimented with it some back in 1905 with George Mullin

The AI never did what i wanted with him in the fast sim format. If I could manually micro-manage each game I bet I could though.

SSSHHHHHH. Let him use ruth as his utility shortstop too for crissake.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by spot

It's about time for Ruth. I expected that right out of the chute.

He wasn't much of a pitcher up front.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Alan T

I experimented with it some back in 1905 with George Mullin

The AI never did what i wanted with him in the fast sim format. If I could manually micro-manage each game I bet I could though.

Ugh, you mean he only went in when he should have pitched?

What I'd love here is for Ruth to play RF, then move to pitcher with someone else moving into right if we needed him at setup. But if the game won't do that, I need his bat FAR more than his arm.

[cgould43]

just looked up and saw my draft pick Charlie Hollocher committed suicide. And that the cubs actually never wanted him. The athletics in this new universe want him.

[Alan T]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

Ugh, you mean he only went in when he should have pitched?

What I'd love here is for Ruth to play RF, then move to pitcher with someone else moving into right if we needed him at setup. But if the game won't do that, I need his bat FAR more than his arm.

Maybe it was 1904 I tried it then, it was a season that I ended up finding it would play him in the field and then not let him ever be the pitcher so he never showed up as a pitcher in any game.

Reading through forums from other people's experiences I found that at times people ran into weird bugs from trying this type of thing too, so after a season or two of it, I stopped myself.

With Mullin, he was a strong pitcher and good fielder and average bat, so I wanted his arm more than anything, so never pitching was a problem for me. Maybe with Ruth being the opposite, it will work better for you.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Alan T

With Mullin, he was a strong pitcher and good fielder and average bat, so I wanted his arm more than anything, so never pitching was a problem for me. Maybe with Ruth being the opposite, it will work better for you.

The sad part is Ruth might be my second best reliever, but I certainly can't have him not hitting.

[TimGuru]

I'll give you Smokey Joe Wood and Amos Strunk for him. Problem solved.