OOTP5 Manager Career

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: First Base

John Swenson (Good/Brl/Brl,6/8/9,25yo) already has three solid seasons in the bigs (.797 overall OPS) under his belt. He hit .294 with 23 HR’s last year. He’s got “C” range. Another option is Michael “Porky” Sisco (Good/Brl/Brl,6/8/10,26yo). Sisco has had limited playing time, due to Swenson’s presence, over parts of the last four years. He has 406 at bats, and 18 HR’s. Swenson has “D” range. Also waiting in the wings is 5-star prospect Harry “Pluto” Reid (Good/Brl/Good,4/5/4,22yo). Reid spent all of 2002 in AAA, his first season at that level, and hit .299 with 22 HR’s. Finally, we also have a four-star prospect George Palafox (Good/Good/Avg,1/2/3,24yo). George has been in single-A for six seasons.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Talk about a logjam! I’ll play Reid in 3B or LF in AAA, and probably trade Sisco away, since Swenson is younger, more “proven” and plays a little better defense.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Second Base

For the last four years, Ronald Demuth (Good/Brl/Avg,6/10/6,27yo) has been the starter. He led the league in homers last year with 39, and was in the top ten in SLG, Runs and RBI. What is there not to like about this guy??? Well, there’s that “E” fielding range and 22 errors he had last year for one thing. Tyrone Sweeney (Avg/Avg/Avg,4/5/6,26yo) has “C” range, and can also play 3B, SS and CF. He’s super-fast and a switch-hitter. He should be a useful utility guy. Sweeney has a .753 OPS in 390 major league at bats, and is 29 for 34 in SB’s. There are no prospects above 2.5 stars.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: When I see the rest of the squad, I’ll make a decision as to whether or not I want to keep around a defensive liability such as Demuth at 2B. I already have good power hitters at C and 1B. If I have one more, I’ll likely trade away Demuth.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Third Base

Douglas Cox (Avg/Avg/Avg,6/4/6,35yo) started last year for the fifth year in a row. Cox isn’t that strong offensively anymore (.709 OPS last year), and has “E” range. No prospect has more than 2.5 stars at 3B either.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: I’ll probably trade 1B Sisco for a 3B. Cox only makes $684K this year, so he can back up.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Shortstop

Ryan Wiens (Good/Fair/Fair,7/4/5,32yo) has held down the fort at SS since ’98. He’s got “C” range and a lifetime .274 batting average. He’s got “B” range at 2B though. Last year, he hit .272 with 9HR’s and 69 RBI. This is another position with no prospects better than 2.5 stars.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Wiens looks like he’d be strong defensively at 2B, with a decent #7 or #8 bat. If I trade 2B Demuth, it would be for a better defensive SS.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Left Field

Earl Binbaum (Avg/Fair/Avg,7/3/6,26yo) is the returning starter. Earl looks like a solid no-speed #2-hitter. He had a .354 OBP last year, and finished 8th in hitting, with a .305 average. He has “C” range in LF. David Martin (Fair/Poor/Avg,4/3/4,32yo) is the utility OF. He has A or B range at every OF position. He’s only had 398 at bats despite spending all or part of seven seasons in the bigs. In Russ Mangan (Avg/Brl/Avg,4/5/6,24yo), we have an almost-ready prospect. Mangan’s got some all-around talent, with an “A” arm, and “A” speed and stealing ability. He can play LF or RF with C range. He’s a 4.5 star guy.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Mangan is the future, either here or in RF. Binbaum is fine as the starter until Mangan is ready.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Center Field

Paul Eckhoff (Avg/Fair/Fair,5/3/4,32yo) was the starter last year, unfortunately. He doesn’t provide much value at all. He had a .665 OPS, and only has “C” range. We have no prospect worth mentioning in CF either.
OVERALL THOUGHTS: We need help at CF.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Right Field

Ronald “Swordfish” Feely (Good/Brl/Avg,6/8/5,26yo) looks to have the potential to be a star, but so far he’s been just a little above average overall. He’s had three full seasons in the bigs, and is eligible to be a FA after this year. Feely has “D” range and an “A” arm. LF/RF Mangan (mentioned in LF info) is the only prospect worth mentioning.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: I like having three big bats in the 3-4-5 positions. I’ll probably risk trading away 2B Demuth to upgrade my defense, as I’ll still have C Camacho, 1B Swensen and Feely. Feely is the riskiest of those three.[/b]

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Starting Pitchers

The rotation has LOTS of potential, despite Montreal having a 4.37 ERA last year. In his first full season, Dewey Baumer (Brl/Avg/Brl,10/6/8,25yo) showed in his first full season that he’s probably got the goods to be the ace of the staff. He put up an 11-8 record with a 3.26 ERA, and was 2nd in the league in WHIP at 0.88. Steve Adams (Brl/Fair/Avg,9/6/6, age 27 can perhaps put up ace-like numbers as well with a little better defense. In four full seasons, he has 42 wins and a 4.23 ERA. He was 2nd in the league with 5 CG’s last year. Ronald Smith (Good/Avg/Good,7/6/8,33yo) looks like a solid #3 or #4 guy. He has a lifetime 4.39 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP. Five-star-prospect Freddy Castonguay (Brl/Brl/Brl,8/6/9,25yo) was 8-12 with a 4.46 ERA and 1.25 WHIP in his first full season last year. Finally, there’s Benjamin Lopez (Good/Good/Good,7/6/6,24yo). This youngster already has three full seasons in the majors under his belt. He hasn’t shown us too much yet (22-35, 5.08), but he’s still quite young. I have no problem putting a guy like him in the #5 spot.

There are also three four-star SP prospects: Hikoshirou Haruhiko (Good/Good/Avg,5/5/4,22yo), Ross Constantine (Good/Fair/Good,1/1/3,21yo), and Billy Hague (Avg/Brl/Good,4/7/5,25yo). It will be nice to watch them develop.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: I’m happy with those five guys in the rotation. If I need to improve an offer to get some of the position players I need, I’d be willing to trade away one of my SP prospects.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Relief Pitching

Left-hander Richard Brandl (Good/Avg/Avg,8/7/6,30yo) has been our closer since ’97. Last year, a small handful of bad outings gave him a 5.09 ERA. He was 40 for 49 in save opps. Righty Samuel Marmolejo (Good/Good/Good,9/9/7,32yo) looks like he may be a better option as the closer. He had a 2.59 ERA in 72 appearances last year. Another pretty solid right-hander is Edgar Thornley (Good/Good/Brl,8/7/8,31yo), who has a 3.87 ERA in 653 lifetime appearances. Five-star lefty prospect Daniel Houtz (Good/Brl/Brl,7/7/8,22yo) struggled as a rookie (2-3, 5.08), but looks like he has the goods to be an important part of the ‘pen. Finally, there’s 25-year-old 4.5 star prospect Dion Martinez (Good/Good/Brl,9/6/8,25yo). This right-hander should improve from his 5-3,5.76 ERA first full season.

There are several more good MR prospects—too many to list here one-by-one. I’ll list them in the monthly minor league reports when we get there.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: I’ll probably start the season with Marmolejo as the closer. If those good young arms can improve with age and (hopefully) a better defense behind them, the ‘pen will become a strength.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL FREE AGENCY PERIOD REPORT

TRADES
I pull off a BLOCKBUSTER deal with San Diego. They get C Whitener, 2B Demuth and 4-star pitching prospect Constantine. In return, we get SS Abel Pardo (Avg/Good/Avg,4/4/5,24yo and CF James “Handyman” Wuest (Good/Brl/Brl,7/9/10,32yo! Pardo has “A” range at SS. He hit .314 in AAA last year, but only .174 in 16 games after being called up. He’s a risk offensively, but should shore up the middle of the infield defensively. “Handyman” should be a great pickup for us. He actually was originally drafted by the Expos, and spent 4 ½ seasons with the Expos until being traded to SD in the deal that brought RP Dion Martinez to Montreal. He’s a 4-time All Star with a lifetime .495 slugging pct and .857 OPS. He’s got “B” range in CF. Handyman is in the last year of a contract that will pay him $7.01M this year.

I also ship 1B Cisco and a MR prospect to Cleveland for 3B Anthony Jones (Avg/Good/Brl,6/6/9,35yo) and LF/CF Bernard Romain (Fair/Brl/Avg,0/4/2,19yo). Romain could amount to something nice one day. Jones is a bit of a risk, as he’ll be 36 before the season starts. He has “B” range, and hit 25 homers last year. He’s a 3-time all-star.

After the trades, here’s the financial situation in Montreal:
Cash on Hand: $-5,000,000
Total Payroll: $47,001,700
Last Year Income: $49,135,432
Available Money: $0

DESIRES
Fortunately, I filled all my perceived needs via trades, as I have no money for FA signings.

POST-FREE AGENCY THOUGHTS
Well, this certainly looks like a squad that should exceed the expectation of not finishing last. If the pitching matures as I expect, with a little luck we could contend for the playoffs.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL SPRING TRAINING REPORT

John Galbreath showed good strike zone judgement!
Billy Hague has increased his throwing velocity!
Harry Reid has good batting practice sessions!
Harry Reid displays more power in batting practice!
Harry Reid showed good strike zone judgement!
Freddy Castonguay has increased his throwing velocity!
Winfred Dunaway has good batting practice sessions!
Bernard Romain has good batting practice sessions!
Bernard Romain displays more power in batting practice!
Bernard Romain showed good strike zone judgement!
Francis Pharris has increased his throwing velocity!
Francis Pharris has improved his control!
Paul Williams has good batting practice sessions!
Paul Williams displays more power in batting practice!
Paul Williams showed good strike zone judgement!
Franklyn Armstrong has good batting practice sessions!
Franklyn Armstrong displays more power in batting practice!
Norman Hovey has increased his throwing velocity!
Raphael Perez has increased his throwing velocity!
Alberto Martos has good batting practice sessions!
George Palafox has good batting practice sessions!
George Palafox displays more power in batting practice!
Vincent Fisher has good batting practice sessions!
Vincent Fisher displays more power in batting practice!
Roberto Santoro has good pitching sessions!
David Tejeda has good batting practice sessions!
Tatsuko Matsuta showed good strike zone judgement!
Leonardo Lera displays more power in batting practice!
Leonardo Lera showed good strike zone judgement!
Billy Reid displays more power in batting practice!
Billy Reid showed good strike zone judgement!
George Matta has good batting practice sessions!
George Matta displays more power in batting practice!
Matthew Desmond has good pitching sessions!
Matthew Desmond has improved his control!
Benjamin Lopez has increased his throwing velocity!
Benjamin Lopez has improved his control!
Carlos Saldivar has good pitching sessions!
Carlos Saldivar has increased his throwing velocity!
Harold Mcallister has increased his throwing velocity!
Allen Murray has good batting practice sessions!

[Ben E Lou]

2003 MONTREAL MAJOR LEAGUE LINEUPS AND ROTATIONS

Batting Order vs. RHP
1. LF Birnbaum (6/3/6)
2. 3B Jones (6/6/9)
3. CF Wuest (7/9/10)
4. 1B Swenson (6/8/9)
5. RF Feely (6/8/5)
6. C Camacho (4/9/6)
7. 2B Wiens (7/4/5)
8. SS Pardo (4/4/5)

Batting Order vs. LHP
1. 2B Wiens (7/4/5)
2. 3B Jones (6/6/9)
3. CF Wuest (7/9/10)
4. RF Feely (6/8/5)
5. 1B Swenson (6/8/9)
6. C Camacho (4/9/6)
7. LF Birnbaum (6/3/6)
8. SS Pardo (4/4/5)

Pitching Rotation
1. Baumer (10/6/8)
2. Castonguay (8/6/9)
3. Adams (9/6/6)
4. Lopez (8/6/6)
5. Smith (7/6/8)
CLOSER: Marmolejo (9/9/7)

Strategy
We should have a good bit of pop in the lineup. We’re not going to run much.

Outlook
There’s little/no reason to believe we won’t exceed expectations by a good bit this year. I feel like this is a playoff team..

[Ben E Lou]

APRIL 2003

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 8-12
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 8-12
CURRENT STANDING: Last, 3 games behind division-leading Mets. It is a very close division early on.

MAJOR INJURIES:
None.

TEAM NEWS FROM THIS MONTH

Tuesday 4/8/2003:
James Wuest crushes 2 homers against San Diego.

Monday 4/14/2003:
James Wuest hits a 452-foot homerun!!

Tuesday 4/22/2003:
Abel Pardo has 4 hits against Philadelphia.

Tuesday 4/29/2003:
Dewey Baumer strikes out 12 against Florida.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
SP Lopez has struggled early. He’s 0-1 with an 8.83 ERA in four starts. 25-year-old Castonguay starts off 3-0, 3.18. On the whole, we’re in the middle of the pack pitching-wise, with a 4.24 ERA (14th).

Offensively, we’re only hitting .235 (25th) as a team. CF Wuest (1.146 OPS, 9HR) and #8 hitting SS Pardo (.300) are the notable exceptions to our struggles offensively.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: CF Wuest--.333
HR: CF Wuest--9
RBI: CF Wuest--17
SB: UT Sweeney--4
SP ERA: Castonguay—3.18
RP ERA: Thornley—0.63
SAVES: Marmolejo--4
SP K’s: Castonguay--33

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 4/21/2003 :
Vincent Fisher seems to have lost some bat speed, resulting in less contact...
Richard Marano has lost some power...

Monday 4/28/2003 :
Michael Bedoya increased his bat control, resulting in more contact!
Daniel Houtz seems to have lost some of his feel for his stuff...

Bedoya becomes a 3.5 star prospect. Houtz drops a bit to four stars.

AAA NOTES
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—3-0, 1.39, (6/5/4), 4 stars
MR Harold Mcallister—1-0, 0.82, (7/6/7), 4.5 stars
3B/1B Harry “Pluto” Reid--.991 OPS (4/5/4), 5 stars
LF Russ Mangan--.902 OPS, (4/5/6), 4 stars

AA NOTES:
CL James Barta—0-2,4.73,8SV, (2/4/4), 5 stars
LF Michael Bedoya--.779 OPS, (3/3/2), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
1B George Palafox--.541 OPS, (1/2/3), 4 stars
CF Bernard Romain--.671 OPS, (1/4/2), 3.5 stars

PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
I asked Denise to marry me. She said too early.

TRADES
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Shawn Wilcox (MIN)!
He had a record of 2-0 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 1.27 and 1 shutouts.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Adam Spitz (TOR)!
He batted .493 in 75 AB, with 5 homers and 21 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Terry Hall (ARI)!
He had a record of 2-0 in 4 games started, with an ERA of 0.70.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Laurence Tobar (FLO)!
He batted .369 in 84 AB, with 7 homers and 29 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
None.

[Ben E Lou]

MAY 2003

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 16-13
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 24-25
CURRENT STANDING: T4. 5.5 games behind division-leading Mets.

KEY INJURIES:
None.

TEAM NEWS

Thursday 5/15/2003:
Jose Camacho crushes 2 homers against Arizona.
Jose Camacho has 5 RBI against Arizona.

Monday 5/26/2003:
Ryan Wiens has 4 hits against Arizona.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
The pitching improved across the board, dropping our team ERA to 3.98 (14th). Lopez rbounded nicely from his 8.83 start. He was 3-1 with a 3.55 during the month. Marmolejo is settling in nicely as closer. He has 10 saves and a 1.71 ERA now.

The offense is still struggling, with a .241 batting average (25th). However, we’re 10th in runs scored, primarily due to being in the top ten in both homers and walks.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: SS Pardo--.291
HR: CF Wuest--12
RBI: C Camacho--34
SB: UT Sweeney--11
SP ERA: Baumer—3.08
RP ERA: Marmolejo—1.71
SAVES: Marmolejo--10
SP K’s: Castonguay--63

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 5/5/2003 :
Paul Eckhoff has lost a step. His speed drops to B ...
Paul Eckhoff has lost some momentum, his range at LF drops to D ...
Paul Eckhoff has lost some momentum, his range at CF drops to D ...
Paul Eckhoff has lost some momentum, his range at RF drops to D ...
James Barta seems to have lost some of his feel for his stuff...
James Barta has lost some movement on his pitches...
James Barta has lost some lower body strength, his duration drops to B ...
John Swensen has lost some momentum, his range at 1B drops to D ...

Monday 5/12/2003:
Tyrone Sweeney plate discipline seems to have faded...
Franklyn Armstrong has lost some momentum, his range at 1B drops to D ...
David Martin has lost a step. His speed drops to B ...
David Martin has lost some momentum, his range at LF drops to B ...
David Martin has lost some momentum, his range at CF drops to C ...
David Martin has lost some momentum, his range at RF drops to C ...

Monday 5/19/2003:
Bernard Romain has lost some power...
Bernard Romain seems to have lost some bat speed, resulting in less contact...
Benjamin Lopez seems to have lost some of his feel for his stuff...

Monday 5/26/2003:
Tyrone Sweeney is getting faster, his speed increases to A ...
Michael Bedoya has lost some momentum, his range at LF drops to E …

Sheesh. A tough month development-wise.

AAA NOTES
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—5-1,3.69, (6/5/4), 4 stars
MR Harold Mcallister—1-1, 1.51, (8/7/8), 4.5 stars
3B/1B Harry “Pluto” Reid--.973 OPS (4/5/4), 5 stars
LF Russ Mangan--.933 OPS, (4/5/6), 4 stars

AA NOTES:
CL James Barta—0-6, 5.96, (2/2/4), 4 stars—I send him back down to single-A
LF/CF Michael Bedoya--.823 OPS, (3/3/2), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
1B George Palafox--.825 OPS, (1/2/3), 4 stars
CF Bernard Romain--.811 OPS, (0/4/2), 2 stars (dropped from 3.5 stars)

PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

TRADES
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
merican League-Pitcher of the Month:
Perry Edelstein (DET)!
He had a record of 4-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 0.69.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Al Mouser (OAK)!
He batted .427 in 103 AB, with 5 homers and 19 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
John Choy (NY)!
He had a record of 6-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 1.31 and 1 shutouts.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Paul Moak (LA)!
He batted .324 in 102 AB, with 11 homers and 24 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
Urso Ramos of LA tossed a perfect game against the Cubs. It is the 2nd no-hitter of Ramos’ career. He’s a 32-year-old with 89 career wins, and a 3.12 career ERA.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 AMATEUR DRAFT REPORT

DRAFT POSITION: 12

DRAFTEES
1. 2B/3B/SS Arthur Owens (Avg/Fair/Brl)—Owens has “C” range in all three of those positions, making him potentially valuable for his versatility.
2. LF Cecil Wendling (Avg/Good/Fair)—Could become a decent power hitter. Left-handed bat.
3. SP Max Conde (Fair/Good/Avg)—He’s got some potential. At only 18, we’ve got time for his stuff to improve.
4. SP/RP Robert Springer (Avg/Avg/Good)—E endurance as a starter. Could be something though.
5. CF/RF Ben Henriques (Fair/Fair/Fair)—A range at both positions.
6. 2B/3B Steven Smidt (Fair/poor/Fair)—Only 19. A range at 2b and 3b.
7. 2B/3B/SS/LF/RF Jaime Tyson (Fair/Poor/Fair—Only 19 and can play five different positions. Doubtful, but who knows?

POST-DRAFT TOP TEN MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEMS
1. Philly
2. Texas
3. SF
4. LA
5. Anaheim
6. Tampa Bay
7. Colorado
8. Cincinnati
9. Chicago (N)
10. Oakland

We’re #23.no

MONTREAL TOP 100 PROSPECTS
3B/1B Harry Reid—31st
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—62nd
LF Russ Mangan—82nd
1B George Palafox—97th

[Ben E Lou]

JUNE 2003

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 13-14
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 37-39
CURRENT STANDING: Third. 4 games behind Mets.

KEY INJURIES:
None.

TEAM NEWS

Sunday 6/1/2003:
Billy Reid has been released.

Tuesday 6/10/2003:
Anthony Jones slams 2 homers against Colorado.

Wednesday 6/11/2003:
Earl Birnbaum has 4 hits against Colorado.

Sunday 6/15/2003:
Benjamin Lopez fans 12 batters against Cincinnati.

Wednesday 6/18/2003:
Anthony Jones hits 2 homers against Los Angeles.

Thursday 6/19/2003:
Douglas Cox hits a 453-foot homerun!!

Friday 6/27/2003:
John Swensen slams 2 homers against Milwaukee.

Saturday 6/28/2003:
Dewey Baumer pitches a 2-hit shutout against Milwaukee!!

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
The pitching continues to improve, the team ERA dropping to 3.37 (8th). Adams had a particularly good month, going 3-0 with a 1.53 ERA in 6 starts. Baumer was even better: 4-1, 1.47. Marmolejo racked up 8 more saves, and had a 2.19 ERA for the month.

We’re still counting on walks (3rd) and homers (7th) to score runs (14th). We’re hitting .239 (28th). Feely showed signs of stepping it up. He had a .807 OPS and 6 HR’s for the month. The biggest underachiever this year has been 1B Swensen. He’s only hitting .211, with 9 HR’s and 44 RBI’s. I thought he’d take it to the next level this year. Instead, he’s right now having his worst season.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: CF Wuest--.272
HR: CF Wuest and C Camacho--15
RBI: C Camacho--45
SB: UT Sweeney--16
SP ERA: Baumer—2.50
RP ERA: Marmolejo—1.89
SAVES: Marmolejo--18
SP K’s: Castonguay--93

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 6/2/2003:
James Wuest plate discipline seems to have faded...

Monday 6/9/2003:
Douglas Cox has lost some power...
Douglas Cox plate discipline seems to have faded...
Allen Murray has gained more power!
Allen Murray has improved his plate disclipine!

Monday 6/16/2003:
Tyrone Sweeney increased his bat control, resulting in more contact!
Tyrone Sweeney has gained more power!
Tyrone Sweeney has improved his plate disclipine!

Monday 6/23/2003:
Gregorio Cruz seems to have improved his pure stuff!
Gregorio Cruz's pitches have more bite now, the movement has improved!
Gregorio Cruz is hitting his spots better, his command improved!

Monday 6/30/2003:
Carlos Davila has lost some momentum, his range at C drops to E ...

Wuest’s drop doesn’t appear to hurt him much….Cox is old, and that is expected….1B/3B Murray become a 3.5-star guy (Avg/Avg/Brl)…Super-sub Sweeney may earn a starting spot somewhere. He’s now rated Good/Good/Avg, 4/5/6…Cruz, a double-A SP, is now a 5-star guy! (Good/Brl/Good)…

AAA NOTES
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—8-3,4.07, (6/5/4), 4 stars
MR Harold Mcallister—2-3, 1.53, (7/6/8), 4.5 stars
1B/3B Allen Murray--.929 OPS, (4/3/5), 3.5 stars
3B/1B Harry “Pluto” Reid--.914 OPS (5/5/5), 5 stars
LF Russ Mangan--.852 OPS, (4/5/6), 4 stars

AA NOTES:
SP Gregorio Cruz—6-2, 3.42, (3/5/4), 5 stars—The AI says he’s ready for a call-up. I send him to AAA.
LF/CF Michael Bedoya--.744 OPS, (3/3/2), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
MR Antonio Latta—0-3, 5.40, (1/2/5), 4.5 stars
CL James Barta—2-0, 1.65, 7 SV, (2/4/4), 4 stars—I send him back up to AA.
1B George Palafox--.865 OPS, (1/2/3), 4 stars
CF Bernard Romain--.811 OPS, (0/4/2), 2 stars (dropped from 3.5 stars)

PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

TRADES
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Lester Vidal (BAL)!
He had a record of 2-0 in 3 games started, with an ERA of 1.45.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Luis Alcaraz (BAL)!
He batted .468 in 79 AB, with 7 homers and 19 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Pablo Sanchez (HOU)!
He had a record of 4-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 1.42.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Larry Entwistle (C()!
He batted .291 in 103 AB, with 12 homers and 26 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
None.

[Ben E Lou]

JULY 2003

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 19-7
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 56-46
CURRENT STANDING: First place, 4 games ahead of the 2nd-place Mets!!!

KEY INJURIES:
None.

TEAM NEWS

Wednesday 7/2/2003 :
John Swensen drives in 5 runs against New York (N).

Saturday 7/12/2003:
James Beazley slams 2 homers against Houston.

Sunday 7/27/2003:
Anthony Jones has 4 hits against Atlanta.

Wednesday 7/30/2003:
James Wuest has 4 hits against New York (N).

Thursday 7/31/2003:
Ronald Feely has 5 RBI against Milwaukee.

Thursday 8/1/2003:
Dewey Baumer was named National League-Pitcher of the Month !
He had a record of 4-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 1.08.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
The pitching, obviously led by Baumer this month, has now taken its place among the best in the league. The staff ERA is 3.43 (4th), and we’ve allowed a .228 average (1st)

The team batting average still is low at .240 (29th), but we’re scoring enough runs (16th) to get it done. RF Swordfish Feely had another good month, hitting .289 with 5 HR’s to raise his OPS to .775 for the year. CF Handyman Wuest had a stellar month, turning in a .943 OPS.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: CF Wuest--.280
HR: CF Wuest--20
RBI: RF Feely--60
SB: UT Sweeney--20
SP ERA: Baumer—2.08
RP ERA: Marmolejo—1.70
SAVES: Marmolejo--25
SP K’s: Castonguay--117

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 7/7/2003:
Harvey Baker has worked out more, his duration raises to C ...

Monday 7/14/2003:
Timothy Cadiz increased his bat control, resulting in more contact!

Monday 7/21/2003:
John Galbreath has lost some power...
Paul Chasse has lost some momentum, his stealing ability drops to E ...

None of these appear to be of much significance…

AAA NOTES
SP Gregorio Cruz—0-2, 8.66, (4/6/4), 5 stars—He developed higher ratings, so I guess I’ll keep him at AAA.
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—9-5,3.82, (6/5/4), 4 stars
MR Harold Mcallister—4-3,1.30, (7/7/8), 4.5 stars—Martinez has really struggled in the bigs (6.34), so I call up Mcallister and send Martinez down.
1B/3B Allen Murray--.615 OPS, (4/3/5), 3.5 stars
3B/1B Harry “Pluto” Reid--.885 OPS (5/5/5), 5 stars
LF Russ Mangan--.848 OPS, (4/7/6), 4 stars—One more point in any category, and he’s getting called up to The Show.

AA NOTES:
CL James Barta—1-8, 4.60, 19SV (2/4/4), 4 stars—He’s doing much better in this stinit in AA

LF/CF Michael Bedoya--.796 OPS, (3/3/2), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
MR Antonio Latta—2-4, 5.46, (1/2/5), 4.5 stars
1B George Palafox--.805 OPS, (1/2/3), 4 stars
SS Arthur Owens--.683 OPS (1/2/5), 3.5 stars

PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

TRADES
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Oscar Sabatini (TB)!
He had a record of 5-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 1.88 and 1 shutouts.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Moises Escobar (TEX)!
He batted .417 in 96 AB, with 5 homers and 19 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Dewey Baumer (MON)!
He had a record of 4-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 1.08.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Larry Entwistle (C()!
He batted .326 in 89 AB, with 11 homers and 25 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS

Tuesday 7/15/2003 :
These players were selected for the AL OOTP-Allstar Team:
P Jonathan Kiesel from New York (A)
P Patrick Spurling from Boston
P Perry Edelstein from Detroit
P Arthur Jan from Oakland
P Angel Alarcon from Texas
P Mark Harris from Detroit
P Josias Silva from Minnesota
P Odon Macedo from Seattle
P Alberto Pacheco from Oakland
P David Kramer from Kansas City
C Jared Barrows from Anaheim
C Amando Salerno from Baltimore
1B Al Mouser from Oakland
2B Josue Muñoz from Minnesota
3B Moises Escobar from Texas
SS Alonso Ejea from New York (A)
LF Jason Bevilacqua from Boston
CF Ralph Myler from Chicago (A)
RF Joe Stringfield from Baltimore
1B Michael Sisco from Cleveland (traded him away this year)
LF Silvio Freire from Detroit
CF Adrian Cortes from Detroit
LF John Hayes from Tampa Bay
2B Keith Thompson from Texas
2B Nathan Teran from Oakland
These players were selected for the NL OOTP-Allstar Team :
P John Choy from New York (N)
P Justin Ward from Los Angeles
P Pablo Sanchez from Houston
P Craig Smith from San Francisco
P Ramon Flores from Cincinnati
P Richard Matsumura from Los Angeles
P Kim Thomas from Arizona
P Alberto Plaza from Arizona
P Jeffery Prickett from Arizona
P Angel Hernandez from Colorado
C John Linville from Pittsburgh
C Bill Bankston from Chicago (N)
1B Stewart Harshman from St. Louis
2B Laurence Tobar from Florida
3B Paul Moak from Los Angeles
SS Ricardo Cazares from St. Louis (traded away when I was in Atlanta)
LF Justin Muirhead from Arizona
CF Adrian Apodaca from New York (N)
RF Elmer Connors from St. Louis
1B Walter Prisco from Colorado
RF Randy Argo from Cincinnati
CF Hector Montoya from Florida
RF Manuel Vizcarrondo from Houston
2B Raul Romero from Los Angeles
3B Larry Entwistle from Chicago (N)

[Ben E Lou]

AUGUST 2003

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 15-13
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 71-59
CURRENT STANDING: First place, 2 games ahead of the 2nd-place Mets.

KEY INJURIES:
None.

TEAM NEWS

Saturday 8/2/2003:
James Wuest slams 2 homers against Milwaukee.

Monday 8/4/2003:
John Swensen hits 2 homers against New York (N).
Ronald Feely crushes 2 homers against New York (N).

Saturday 8/9/2003:
James Wuest hits a 451-foot homerun!!
James Wuest crushes 2 homers against Pittsburgh.

Monday 8/11/2003:
Anthony Jones has 4 hits against New York (N).

Saturday 8/16/2003:
Ryan Wiens has 4 hits against Philadelphia.

Tuesday 8/19/2003:
Benjamin Lopez fans 11 batters against Atlanta.

Wednesday 8/20/2003:
Ronald Feely slams 2 homers against Atlanta.

Monday 8/25/2003:
Ronald Feely was named Player of the Week!
He batted .500 in 18 AB, with 4 HR and 12 RBI.

Wednesday 8/27/2003:
Anthony Jones slams 2 homers against Atlanta.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
The pitching continues to be among the best in baseball. Baumer continues to lead the way among the starters. He’s now 12-5, 2.18.

The team batting average comes up to .245 (25th), and we’re now 8th in runs scored. 3B Anthony Jones had a big month, turning in a 1.011 OPS and 6 HR’s, 19 RBI. RF Feely hit 10 homers and drove in 30 runs. CF Wuest chipped in 7 homers and 18 RBI’s.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: CF Wuest--.287
HR: RF Feely--28
RBI: RF Feely--90
SB: UT Sweeney--23
SP ERA: Baumer—2.18
RP ERA: Marmolejo—1.78
SAVES: Marmolejo--30
SP K’s: Lopez--148

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 8/4/2003:
James Wuest has improved his plate disclipine!
Tatsuko Matsuta seems to have lost some bat speed, resulting in less contact...

Monday 8/11/2003:
Harvey Baker has lost some lower body strength, his duration drops to D ...

Monday 8/18/2003:
Allen Murray seems to have lost some bat speed, resulting in less contact...

Monday 9/1/2003:
Gregory Alkire seems to have improved his pure stuff!
Gregory Alkire's pitches have more bite now, the movement has improved!

Murray drops off to 2.5 stars…SP Alkire becomes a 3.5-star guy…

AAA NOTES
SP Gregorio Cruz—2-3, 6.34, (5/6/5), 5 stars—He had a much better month, and his ratings continue to improve.
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—9-8,4.07, (6/5/4), 4 stars
MR Dion Martinez—1-0,0.74, (9/7/8). He’s now a 3.5 gold star guy. He struggled in the bigs, but clearly has outclassed AAA hitters. He’ll be with the big club in September.
3B/1B Harry “Pluto” Reid--.913 OPS (5/7/5), 5 stars
LF Russ Mangan--.862 OPS, (4/7/6), 4 stars—One more point in any category, and he’s getting called up to The Show.

AA NOTES:
CL James Barta—1-8, 3.67, 19SV (2/4/4), 4 stars—He’s doing much better in this stint in AA
LF/CF Michael Bedoya--.804 OPS, (3/3/3), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
SP Gregory Alkire—11-3, 3.46, (1/4/4), 3.5 stars
MR Antonio Latta—5-4, 4.37, (1/3/6), 4.5 stars
1B George Palafox--.791 OPS, (1/2/3), 4 stars
SS Arthur Owens--.692 OPS (1/2/5), 3.5 stars

PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Perry Edelstein (DET)!
He had a record of 2-0 in 4 games started, with an ERA of 0.78.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Armando Fresno (BOS)!
He batted .380 in 108 AB, with 6 homers and 29 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Justin Ward (LA)!
He had a record of 3-0 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 0.49.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Chris Rettig (CIN)!
He batted .376 in 93 AB, with 7 homers and 28 RBI.
American League-Player of the Week:
SS Alonso Ejea (NY)!
He batted .440 in 25 AB, with 1 HR and 6 RBI.
National League-Player of the Week:
LF Jerry Grimmer (SD)!
He batted .409 in 22 AB, with 5 HR and 12 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
None.

[Ben E Lou]

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2003

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 17-15
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 88-74
CURRENT STANDING: DIVISION CHAMPS by four games over the Mets!!!

KEY INJURIES:
None.

TEAM NEWS

Monday 9/1/2003:
Jonathan Streetman has been released.

Tuesday 9/2/2003:
Earl Birnbaum has 4 hits against Houston.

Thursday 9/11/2003:
Ryan Wiens has 4 hits against San Diego.

Saturday 9/20/2003:
Earl Birnbaum has 4 hits against Florida.

Sunday 9/28/2003:
Earl Birnbaum has 4 hits against Florida.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: LF Birnbaum .281
HR: CF Wuest--35
RBI: RF Feely--101
SB: UT Sweeney & SS Pardo--29
SP ERA: Baumer—2.46
RP ERA: Marmolejo—2.17
SAVES: Marmolejo--39
SP K’s: Castonguay--186

PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
Denise broke up with me.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Edward Muñoz (SEA)!
He had a record of 4-0 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 0.47 and 1 shutouts.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Billy Smith (TOR)!
He batted .292 in 96 AB, with 7 homers and 29 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Joseph Maldanado (MIL)!
He had a record of 3-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 0.92.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Paul Moak (LA)!
He batted .368 in 87 AB, with 7 homers and 21 RBI.
OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
None.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 POST-SEASON REPORT

POTENTIAL FREE AGENTS/CONTRACT EXTENSIONS
CF James “Handyman” Wuest—He made $7.01M this year. I sign him to a 6-year deal, for $8M per year. He’ll be 38 when it runs out.
3B Anthony Jones—He wants $3.03M for 3 years. With Harry “Pluto” Reid looking almost ready at AAA (5/7/5, .906OPS), I decide that Jones will not be re-signed.
SP Steve Adams—He went 14-10 with a 3.47 ERA, and is only 27. I sign him to a 4-year deal for $4.75M per year.
SP Ronald Smith—I’ve got two youngsters at AAA almost ready to go, but Smith only wants $1.26M per year for four years. That’s a nice insurance policy.
MR Edgar Thornley—He wants $3.05M per year for 3 years. He was my top setup guy, but with the depth I have at MR, I’d rather not spend that chunk of change.
SS James Beazley—He’s a 34-year-old backup, wanting $860K per year. He’s historically provided a good bat off the bench (.808 lifetime OPS). I sign him up
CF Craig Regner—Backup who can play all three OF positions. He only wants a 1-year deal for $500K. I keep him.

PLAYOFF REPORT

DIVISION SERIES VS. CINCINNATI

Reds Info
The Reds, like us, had no one put up “superstar” offensive stats, but they had some solid production out of several guys. They had five guys with 90+ RBI: 2B Lawrence Mcdaniel (.260-30-99), LF Chris Rettig (.276-27-100), RF Randy Argo (.254-26-91), SS Gene Maurice (.269-22-102) and 3B Earl Saenz (.292-22-91). Leadoff hitter Julian Gonzalez was a nice sparkplug (.280, 91R,36SB). The pitching staff was led by Cy Young candidate Ramon “Smokey” Flores (21-4, 2.54). Their #2 guy, Vernon Ferguson, also turned in a good year (13-11, 3.33). The rest of the rotation is suspect. Their bullpen is solid. 37-year-old closer Alton Homes had 41 saves and a 2.63 ERA.

Game 1
Baumer starts Game 1 for us, against their #3 guy, Fabian Valtierra, who was 7-12 with a 4.05 ERA on the year. We put runners on second and third with one out in the first, but Feely and Swenson are unable to deliver. However, in the top of the third, Birnbuam draws a one-out walk, and Anthony Jones goes yard to deep center, giving us a 2-0 lead. The Reds score an unearned run in the bottom of the inning, on a Baumer throwing error. In the top of the 7th, 2B Wiens gets a leadoff double, and Sweeney, pinch hitting for SS pardo, sacrifices him to third. Beazley pinch hits for Baumer, but grounds out to third, then Birnbaum K’s. In the bottom of the inning, the Reds get three runs off of new pitcher Brandl, and take a 4-2 lead. WE come right back in the top of the 8th, as Swenson doubles in Jones, and Camacho follows with a 2-run shot, to give us a 5-4 lead. Unfortunately, Mcallister and Thornley can’t hold ‘em. They give up five runs in the bottom of the eighth, and we go down quietly in the ninth. Reds win 9-5.

Game 2
We send Castonguay to the mound in game 2, against their ace, Flores. Early on, this one is a classic pitcher’s dual. Neither team gets a hit until the bottom of the 3rd, when Cincy’s 8 and 9 hitters start off the inning with back-to-back singles, but Castonguay holds ‘em right there. Neither team seriously threatens until the bottom of the fifth, when Cincy’s catcher, Gregory Nisbet, who had only 3 homers all year, hits a solo shot to left. Flores continues to shut us down, but we break through with an unlikely two-out rally in the top of the seventh. Swensen walks, Camacho gets an infield hit, then Wiens doubles them both in. Castonguay remains in the game through the 8th, giving up no more runs. In the top of the 9th, we blow it wide open off of RP’s Alberto Plaza and Ronnie Yarbro. Feely leads off with a solo homer, then Sweeney, who has subbed at 2B, follows with a single to left and a steal. He goes to third on a catchers throwing error. Camaco is intentionally walked, and Wiens hits a sac-fly to score Sweeney. Plaza is replaced by Yarbro, but does no better. He gives up a walk, then a 3-run homer to PH Paul Eckhoff. We lead 7-1, and the Reds go down humbly in the bottom of the 9th. Expos win 7-1.

Game 3
The series moves to Montreal for this one. We send Adams to the mound against Vernon Ferguson. Cincy breaks through first, in the top of the third, on a 3-run shot by Randy Argo. We get two back in the bottom of the 4th, on a Wiens DP and a Pardo triple. We get two more the next inning as Wuest doubles in Birnbaum and Jones. There’s no further scoring until the 9th, when Marmolejo comes in to shut ‘em down. Unfortunately, he’s unable to do so. Mcdaniel singles in a run to tie us up at four. We do nothing in the bottom of the 9th, and it goes to extra innings. Rettig leads off the top of the 10th with a homer off of Marmolejo, and they manage another run as well. We go quietly in the bottom of the 10th, and we’re down two games to one. Cincy 6, Montreal 4.

Game 4
With our backs against the wall, we send Baumer back out there on 3 days’ rest against rookie Samuel Cardenas (12-12, 5.20). Baumer doesn’t appear to have his best stuff today, and he gives up a single run in each of the first three innings. However, our offense jumps on the rookie early and often. Birnbaum leads off the bottom of the first with a solo homer, and by the time the inning is over we’ve sent 9 men to the plate and scored four runs. Feely hits a two-run shot in the bottom of the second as well. Baumer coasts from there, and ends up going 7 innings . Camacho puts the finishing touches on the win with a grand slam in the bottom of the 8th, giving him 6 RBI on the day! We take an 11-3 win to avoid elimination at home.

Game 5
This is a re-match of Game 2, pitching-wise: Castonguay vs. Flores. This time the offenses are able to break through though. The Reds get a two-run double from Mcdaniel in the bottom of the first to grab an early lead. We come back in the next frame as Pardo doubles in Wiens for one run. In the top of the third, Flores gets wild, walking three straight batters with one out. Swenson makes him pay with a sac fly, scoring Jones without a throw, and it is all tied up at 2-2. The pitchers hold ‘em until the top of the 6th, when Swenson leads off twith a single, and is followed by a Camacho double, scoring him. Wiens grounds to first, sending Camacho to third, then Pardo singles in Camacho, and we lead 4-2. Saenz gets a solo homer in the bottom of the inning, cutting the lead to 4-3. In the bottom of the 7th, backup catcher Ryan Porter delivers a pinch-hit homer off of Castonguay to tie the game. Just as in Game 2, we make it happen once Flores is gone in the top of the 8th. Swenson walks, and Sweeney pinch runs. Camacho strikes out, then Wiens singles to center, sending Sweeney to third. Pardo follows with a single, scoring Sweeney. Our scoring ends there, but it is enough. Thornley gives us a scoreless 8th, and Marmolejo gets ‘em 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 9th, and we advance to the NLCS!!! Montreal 5, Cincy 4

LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES VS ARIZONA
The D-Backs, last year’s World Champions, were the NL Wild Card team, with a record identical to ours: 88-74. The D-Backs relied on pitching to get them where they are. Their team batting average was .241 (29th), but their team ERA was 3.50 (3rd). Offensively, their two main weapons were RF Gregory “Air” Franko (.271-36-103) and LF Justin Muirhead (.285-29-98). CF James Parente chipped in 88 RBI’s while hitting .233. Apart from the three of them, no one had over 65 RBI. Their ace pitcher, Kim Thomas (13-9, 2.54) strained his rotator cuff in the last week of the regular season and will miss the entire postseason. They still have Terry Hall (12-5, 2.75) and Jamie Steigerwald (13-9, 3.33). Their bullpen is pretty strong also. Merle Grizzle had 10 saves and a 3.00 ERA, and Jeffery Pricket had 28 with a 1.87 ERA.

Game 1
The series opens in Arizona. Baumer goes out there against Douglas Treece (11-16, 4.20). “Air” Franko opens the scoring in the bottom of the first with a two-run shot off of Baumer. Feely answers with a solo homer leading off the 2nd. Franko and Parente get back-to-back homers to lead off the 4th, and we’re down 4-1. Pardo doubles in Wiens for a single run in the top of the 5th. Muirhead gets a solo homer to lead off the 6th, and that ends the scoring. The D-Backs follow their blueprint from the season: good pitching, and offense by Franko, Muirhead and Parente. Arizona 5-2

Game 2
Game 2 features Adams vs. Steigerwald. Our offense goes crazy in this one, chasing Steigerwald in the third inning. When the dust clears, we win by a touchdown, 14-7. Swenson drives in five runs, and Camacho has 4 RBI’s. We get seven doubles in the game. Adams gets the win. Montreal 14-7

Game 3
We send Castonguay to the hill in this one. He is opposed by Terry Hall. Muirhead doubles in a run in the top of the first but we come back with two in the bottom, from a Swenson sac-fly and a Camacho single. No other scoring happens until the bottom of the 6th, when Birnbaum singles in Swensen to give us a 3-1 lead. However, it falls apart in the top of the 7th. , as Castonguay gives up five runs. The big blow is a pinch-hit triple by Chase Smith—a .345 hitter in a backup role this year. We load the bases in the bottom of the ninth with two outs, but Feely strikes out looking, and we’re down 2 games to 1. Arizona wins 6-3

Game 4
Smith gets his first postseason start, and this one is utterly forgettable. Smith, Brandl and Bach all get rocked in this one. Muirhead has two homers for Arizona. We fall 17-2.

Game 5
Baumer refuses to have the NLCS lost on his watch. He carries a perfect game into the top of the ninth inning before giving up a one-out single to the 26th batter he’s faced on the day, and is replaced. Swensen and Wiens collect 2 RBI’s each. Baumer strikes out 12 in 8 1/3 innings, and we win 4-0

Game 6
Adams gets roughed up in the third inning, and we fall behind 6-0. Parente hits two homers and drives in 6 runs on the day. The D-Backs coast to and 11-5 win to take the NLCS

SEASON RECAP
Detroit beats Arizona 4 games to 3 to win it all.

Monday 11/3/2003:

American League Rookie Of The Year Award:
Jesus Quintana (TEX)!
He batted .283 in 502 AB, with 11 homers and 47 RBI.
National League Rookie Of The Year Award:
Samuel Cardenas (CIN)!
He had a record of 12-12 with an ERA of 5.20.
In 32 games started, he pitched 187 innings, fanning 159 and walking 109 batters.
American League Cy Young Award:
Perry Edelstein (DET)!
He had a record of 15-3 with an ERA of 1.71.
In 29 games started, he pitched 168.1 innings, fanning 139 and walking 19 batters.
American League MVP Award:
Moises Escobar (TEX)!
He batted .344 in 570 AB, with 34 homers and 103 RBI.
National League Cy Young Award:
Justin Ward (LA)!
He had a record of 18-1 with an ERA of 1.68 and 1 shutouts.
In 34 games started, he pitched 225.2 innings, fanning 170 and walking 42 batters.
National League MVP Award:
Larry Entwistle (C()!
He batted .266 in 575 AB, with 47 homers and 130 RBI.
American League Gold Glove Award Winners:
Pitcher: Mauro Uribe (BOS)
Catcher: Max Alvarez (NY)
First Base: Ronald Rodriguez (KC)
Second Base: Keith Thompson (TEX)
Third Base: Anthony Schuster (ANA)
Shortstop: George Francois (ANA)
Leftfield: Jason Bevilacqua (BOS)
Centerfield: Joaquin Fernandez (TB)
Rightfield: Matthew Wellman (CLE)
National League Gold Glove Award Winners:
Pitcher: Ramon Flores (CIN)
Catcher: Gregory Nisbet (CIN)
First Base: Peter Adams (CIN)
Second Base: Rodney Campbell (ATL)
Third Base: Richard Reel (PIT)
Shortstop: Jay Penning (FLO)
Leftfield: Hugo Reyes (NY)
Centerfield: Eduardo Reyes (HOU)
Rightfield: Antonio Mejia (NY)

MANAGER UPDATE

This was a pretty good year. I think I made the owner happy. I more than met his expectation.

Well, that much is definitely true. His mood rises to 100!

THOUGHTS
We bring the first Division Title to Montreal since 1952. What more can be said? We’re also returning a good bit of talent. This team could challenge for the world title for a few years.

[Ben E Lou]

2003 END OF SEASON REPORT

The end-of-2003 update has now been uploaded. It can be found HERE.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 BEGINNING OF YEAR TEAM NEWS

Team market grows to Good!
Tyrone Sweeney gets a new one-year contract worth $624,286 through salary arbitration.
Abel Pardo gets a new one-year contract worth $753,214 through salary arbitration.
John Swensen gets a new one-year contract worth $3,827,143 through salary arbitration.
Freddy Castonguay gets a new one-year contract worth $3,759,286 through salary arbitration.
Anthony Jones becomes a free agent.
Dion Martinez gets a new one-year contract worth $808,857 through salary arbitration.
Edgar Thornley becomes a free agent.
Earl Birnbaum gets a new one-year contract worth $583,571 through salary arbitration.
Dewey Baumer gets a new one-year contract worth $5,265,715 through salary arbitration.
Benjamin Lopez gets a new one-year contract worth $350,000 through salary arbitration.

Owner Mood: 100
Chemistry: 100
Owner Type: Good Man (rather patient)
Owner Expectation: Do not finish last in 2004!
Team Market: Good
Fan Loyalty: Fair
Fan Interest: 54

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Catchers

Jose “Wild Card” Camacho (Avg/Brl/Good,4/8/6,27yo) returns for his third season in the bigs. He hit .221 with 24 homers and 77 RBI’s in his first full season. If he can cut down on his strikeouts (173), he could take his game to the next level. The primary backup is Paul Chasse (Avg/Poor/Fair,5/4/3,27yo), who can also play 1B. Carlos “The Bull” Davila (Avg/Good/Good,4/5/7,27yo) batted .268 with 15 HR’s in AAA last year.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Camacho is eligible for arbitration after this year. If he can bring that batting average up just a bit, he’ll become the long-term solution at catcher. Davila is nice insurance.

[MizzouRah]

Skydog,

Great read! Easy to follow and just enough info without getting boring. Get fired at Atlanta, then return to win the division the following year... priceless.

Wishing you continued success....


Todd

[oykib]

Originally posted by MizzouRah
Skydog,

Great read! Easy to follow and just enough info without getting boring. Get fired at Atlanta, then return to win the division the following year... priceless.

Wishing you continued success....


Todd

Maybe the players were tired of him telling them how to wear their socks.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: First Base

John Swensen (Good/Brl/Brl,7/8/10,26yo) took a bit of a step back offensively, only hitting .233, but he chipped in 27 HR’s and 96 RBI. I’d like to see some of that “Good” contact this year. 3.5-star manGeorge Palafox (Good/Good/Avg,1/2/3,25yo) can’t seem to rise above single A. He’s spent seven years there. I need to just call him up to AA and see how he does I guess.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Swensen looks like a superstar in the making. I hoping he’ll have a monster year soon.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Second Base

Moving Ryan Wiens (Good/Fair/Fair,6/4/5,33yo) over from SS was one of the best decisions I’ve made. He responded with a 4.66 range factor and only 14 errors in 154 starts at 2B, not to mention batting .280 with 44 doubles and 81 RBI. He’s in the last year of his contract. Tyrone Sweeney (Good/Good/Avg,6/5/6,26yo) was our super-sub last year. He played six different positions, and appeared in 98 games, even though he only started 22. He has “C” range at 2B. Sweeney was also used effectively as a pinch runner—stealing 29 bases in 33 chances. His contact and power rose to Good and Good during the year.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Sweeney is a switch-hitter, and Wiens bats right-handed. Wiens dropped on point in contact in the off-season, from 7 to 6. I feel like Sweeney deserves a shot. I’ll platoon them, with Sweeney against RHP. Wiens will replace Sweeney defensively, and can also back up at SS.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Third Base

I let Anthony Jones become a free agent because Harry “Pluto” Reid (Good/Good/Good,6/7/5,23yo) is looking ready for the bigs. He had 25 homers and an .887 OPS in AAA last season. He’s got “E” range at 3B.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Hopefully SS Pardo’s A range will give us enough “D” on the left side of the infield. Jones had 24 homers, but only 62 RBI. I’m thinking/hoping Reid can match that RBI output this year, and he has more upside.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Shortstop

Abel Pardo (Avg/Good/Avg,4/4/6,25yo) came over in a trade and started 155 games at SS. The youngster hit .238 in the #8 hole, and played pretty solid defense. Arthur Owens (Avg/Fair/Brl,1/2/5,19yo) is a 3.5 star guy with C range at 2B/3B/SS. He has potential, but is a good ways away from the bigs. Angel Velasco (Fair/Poor/Brl,4/2/9,30yo) will get some time in the bigs this year, chiefly by virtue of the fact that he can play 1B/3B/SS/CF/RF

OVERALL THOUGHTS: If Pardo can give me “Good” power eventually, I’d be thrilled and see it as a bonus.. Right now, I’m happy with his defense. At #8 in the order, I don’t worry about his offense.

[Ben E Lou]

NEW POLL ADDED

I'm considering making every name in the pre-season report hyperlinked to his corresponding player card. This would require some extra time on my part, but would be worth it if it would be more useful than just giving you the main page URL: www.benelou.com/dynasty. You can vote in the poll and make comments by clicking HERE.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Left Field

Earl Birnbaum (Avg/Fair/Avg,6/3/6,27yo) is the returning starter. He was our primary leadoff man, despite having little/no speed. He turned in a .340 OBP last year. Russ Mangan (Avg/Brl/Avg,4/7/6,25yo), looks like he might be ready. He had 22 HR and an .842 OPS in AAA last year. Mangan’s an all-around talent, with an “A” arm, and “A” speed and stealing ability. He can play LF or RF with C range, and is a 4-star prospect.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: I’ve got to give Mangan a shot. Birnbaum, being a left-handed hitting who can play LF or CF, will get some at bats.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Center Field

James “Handyman” Wuest (Good/Brl/Brl,7/9/10,33yo) got a long-term deal (through 2009). He was among the league leaders in OBP, HR, R and BB, plus he has B range in CF.
OVERALL THOUGHTS: CF belongs to the Handyman. He’s a genuine star.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Right Field

Ronald “Swordfish” Feely (Good/Brl/Avg,6/8/5,27yo) took his game near the star level last year, tuning in a 30 HR, 101 RBI effort. He cut down a little on his strikeouts (from 188 to 155). If he can continue to lower that number, he’ll be a big-time threat. His range improved to “C” during last season and he has an “A” arm.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Feely took over the cleanup spot during the season. He had an OPS over 1.200 in the postseason. He looks poised to become a great one.[/b]

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Starting Pitchers

Dewey Baumer (Brl/Avg/Brl,10/7/8,26yo) has already become the bona-fide ace. He was third in the league in ERA (2.46) and WHIP (0.85) last year. Freddy Castonguay (Brl/Brl/Brl,10/8/9,26yo) began to show some of his potential in his second full season (13-6,3.46). He appears to have more upside than Baumer even. Lefty Steve Adams (Brl/Avg/Avg,9/6/6, age 28 led the staff in Wins last year with 14, and had a 3.47 ERA. Ronald Smith (Good/Avg/Good,7/5/7,34yo) looks like he could be getting a little shaky. He struggled in the postseason. Finally, there’s Benjamin Lopez (Avg/Good/Good,6/6/7,25yo). He had a decent-enough showing for his age (9-10,4.48).

We have three SP prospects worth mentioning at this point:: Hikoshirou Haruhiko (Good/Good/Avg,6/5/4,23yo, 4 stars), Gregorio Cruz (Good/Brl/Good,6/6/5,23yo, 5 stars), and Gregory Alkire (Avg/Good/Avg,1/4/4,20yo,3.5 stars). Haruhiko and Cruz both could probably use at least another half-season at AAA.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Baumer-Castonguay-Adams looks like the 2nd coming of Maddux-Glavine-Smoltz. Barring injury, I’ll try to keep these three around for a LONG time. Since I don’t have a lot of FA needs, and I do have some money available, I might look for a little more reliable option in the #4 slot. On the other hand, between Smith, Lopez, Haruhiko and Cruz, we can probably get by. We’ll see what is available.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL POSITION REPORT: Relief Pitching

Righty Samuel Marmolejo (Good/Good/Good,9/9/6,33yo) had 39 saves and a 2.17 ERA last season as the closer. Left-hander Richard Brandl (Good/Avg/Avg,8/7/6,31yo) is a former closer who had a 5.17 ERA in 63 appearances last year. Four-star lefty prospect Daniel Houtz (Avg/Brl/Brl,7/7/8,23yo) was a decent 5-3 with a 4.52 ERA. Dion Martinez (Good/Good/Brl,9/6/8,26yo), a right-hander, shuffled between the bigs and AAA. I think he’s ready now. Leonard Bach (Good/Good/Brl,8/6/8,25yo) could be a factor. Harold Mcalister (Good/Good/Brl,8/7/8,25yo), a right-hander, performed very well (3.09 ERA) after get called up at the beginning of August. Finally, there’s Eric Whiten (Avg/Good/Brl,7/6/8,29yo). Whiten spent 2003 in AAA, compiling a 2.82 ERA. Lefty Carlos Saldivar (Good/Brl/Fair,8/8/5,24yo) looks to be almost ready. He’s had three solid years in AAA.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Between these eight guys, I should probably be able to find enough talent to field six solid guys in the ‘pen, although I may try to sign one proven relief pitcher.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 FREE AGENCY PERIOD REPORT

TRADES
As opposed to last season, when I was shuffling things around like crazy in the offseason, I have no reason to make any trades right now.

Here’s the financial situation:
Cash on Hand: $7,233,994
Total Payroll: $44,886,072
Last Year Income: $55,229,085
Available Money: $22,577,007

DESIRES
I have no strong needs, but I have money available. I have a star, near-star or likely-star-to-be at C,1B, 3B, LF, CF and RF, and three SP’s. If there is a star/near-star 2B, SS, SP or RP out there, I’d go after them. Otherwise, I’d be content to stand pat. Here’s who gets signed:

SP Marcos Fernandez (Good/Avg/Brl,8/7/8,33yo)—3yrs@$5.75M—Fernandez has been a steady guy in six seasons in the bigs, all with Toronto. He is 54-49 with a 3.37 ERA, and has been in the top 10 in WHIP each of the last 5 seasons. He was 10-9,3.91 in ’03. He shores up the #4 spot in the rotation for now.

SS Matthew Erwin (Avg/Brl/Fair,4/9/6(—3 yrs@$5.5M--I just couldn’t resist this guy. He has only C range at SS, but he has 110 homers in the past three seasons with the Cubs. He was 2nd in the league with 47 last year. Pardo will be the defensive replacement, but this guy gives us another dangerous bat in the lineup.

RP Sol Steele (Good/Avg/Brl,9/7/9,27yo)—5yrs@$4.25M—He’s established himself as a reliable setup guy. He’s had an ERA under 4.00 for five straight seasons, and he’s only 27. He’ll be my top setup guy. He’s also got “E” endurance as a starter, so he could fill in there in case of multiple injuries.

3B Earl Gosser (Avg/Fair/Avg,6/3/6,31yo)—3yrs@$850K---Gosser has B range at 2B and 3B. He’s never been a full-time starter, but he has a lifetime .261 average in parts of seven seasons in the bigs. He’ll be a defensive replacement for 3B Pluto Reid and his “E” range.

POST-FREE AGENCY THOUGHTS
I decided to go ahead and spend the money to take us to the next level. I believe this is a 100-win, World Series caliber team now.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL SPRING TRAINING REPORT

Gregory Alkire has increased his throwing velocity!
Gregory Alkire has improved his control!
Abel Pardo has good batting practice sessions!
Harry Reid showed good strike zone judgement!
Harold Gingras has good batting practice sessions!
Harold Gingras displays more power in batting practice!
Harold Gingras showed good strike zone judgement!
Winfred Dunaway displays more power in batting practice!
Luis Borras has good batting practice sessions!
Luis Borras displays more power in batting practice!
Luis Borras showed good strike zone judgement!
Timothy Cadiz displays more power in batting practice!
Bernard Romain has good batting practice sessions!
Bernard Romain displays more power in batting practice!
Hikoshirou Haruhiko has good pitching sessions!
Paul Williams showed good strike zone judgement!
Franklyn Armstrong has good batting practice sessions!
Franklyn Armstrong displays more power in batting practice!
George Palafox has good batting practice sessions!
George Palafox displays more power in batting practice!
George Palafox showed good strike zone judgement!
Rodolfo Napoles has good batting practice sessions!
Rodolfo Napoles displays more power in batting practice!
Rodolfo Napoles showed good strike zone judgement!
Vincent Fisher has good batting practice sessions!
Vincent Fisher displays more power in batting practice!
Vincent Fisher showed good strike zone judgement!
Cecil Wendling has good batting practice sessions!
Max Conde has good pitching sessions!
Max Conde has increased his throwing velocity!
Steven Smidt has good batting practice sessions!
David Tejeda has good batting practice sessions!
David Tejeda displays more power in batting practice!
Jaime Tyson has good batting practice sessions!
Jaime Tyson displays more power in batting practice!
Jaime Tyson showed good strike zone judgement!
Michael Bedoya displays more power in batting practice!
Michael Bedoya showed good strike zone judgement!
Daniel Houtz has increased his throwing velocity!
George Matta showed good strike zone judgement!
Carlos Saldivar has good pitching sessions!
Carlos Saldivar has improved his control!
Allen Murray has good batting practice sessions!
Allen Murray displays more power in batting practice!
Allen Murray showed good strike zone judgement!

[Ben E Lou]

2004 MONTREAL MAJOR LEAGUE LINEUPS AND ROTATIONS

Batting Order vs. RHP
1. 2B Sweeney (6/5/6)
2. 1B Swensen (7/8/10)
3. CF Wuest (7/9/10)
4. SS Erwin (4/9/6)
5. RF Feely (6/8/5)
6. C Camacho (4/8/6)
7. LF Mangan (4/7/6)
8. 3B Reid (6/7/5)

Batting Order vs. LHP
1. 2B Sweeney (6/5/6)
2. 1B Swensen (7/8/10)
3. CF Wuest (7/9/10)
4. SS Erwin (4/9/6)
5. RF Feely (6/8/5)
6. C Camacho (4/8/6)
7. 3B Reid (6/7/5)
8. LF Mangan (4/7/6)

Pitching Rotation
1. Baumer (10/7/8)
2. Castonguay (10/8/9)
3. Adams (9/6/6)
4. Fernandez (8/7/8)
5. Smith (7/5/7)
CLOSER: Marmolejo (9/9/6)

Strategy
Sweeney will run a lot at the top of the order. Otherwise, with this lineup I’ll just try to bash people into submission.

Outlook
I said it earlier: this looks like a Championship-caliber ballclub.

[Ben E Lou]

APRIL 2004

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 11-14
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 11-14
CURRENT STANDING: Tied for last. 4.5 games behind Florida and the Mets.

MAJOR INJURIES:
None.

TEAM NEWS FROM THIS MONTH

Sunday 4/18/2004:
Tyrone Sweeney hits a 470-foot homerun!!
Tyrone Sweeney slams 2 homers against Florida.

Friday 4/23/2004:
Ronald Feely crushes 2 homers against Cincinnati.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
The pitching staff has a 4.60 ERA (21st). We’ve given up more homers (40) than any other staff in the league. The Big Three (Baumer-Castonguay-Adams) aren’t to blame though. They are at 3.22, 3.86 and 4.06. The other two starters and most of the ‘pen are struggling early. I won’t make any moves just yet.

Offensively, we’re hitting .246 (21st) as a team, but we’re 7th in the league with 27 homers. Feely is leading the way early (.321-7-21).

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: RF Feely--.321
HR: RF Feely--7
RBI: RF Feely--21
SB: LF Mangan--4
SP ERA: Baumer—3.22
RP ERA: Martinez—1.35
SAVES: Marmolejo--4
SP K’s: Baumer--34

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 4/5/2004:
Max Conde has lost some movement on his pitches…

Monday 4/26/2004
Roberto Santoro’s pitches have more bite now, the movement has improved!

Nothing major there.

AAA NOTES
SP Gregorio Cruz—1-1,4.22, (7/6/5),5 stars
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—2-1,4.13,(6/5/4), 4 stars
MR Leonard Bach—0-1,2.08,(8/6/8),4.5 stars
MR Carlos Saldivar—0-2, 3.86, (8/8/5), 3.5 stars

AA NOTES:
SP Gregory Alkire—0-3,5.81, (1/4/4), 3.5 stars
MR Antonio Latta—1-0-,8.64,(1/3/6), 4.5 stars
CL James Barta—1-0,1.13,5SV, (2/4/5), 4 stars
1B George Palafox--.494 OPS, (2/3/4), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
SS Arthur Owens--.811OPS,(1/2/5),3.5 stars

PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
I now have a relationship with a gal named Jillian.

TRADES
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
Friday 5/1/2004:
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Patrick Spurling (BOS)!
He had a record of 2-2 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 0.40 and 2 shutouts.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Brain Haveman (BOS)!
He batted .447 in 85 AB, with 7 homers and 20 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Justin Ward (LA)!
He had a record of 2-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 1.16.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Adrian Apodaca (NY)!
He batted .411 in 90 AB, with 10 homers and 28 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
None.

[Ben E Lou]

MAY 2004

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 21-8
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 32-22
CURRENT STANDING: First. One game ahead of the second-place Marlins.

We had a 14-game winning streak during the month, which greatly contributed to our taking over first.

MAJOR INJURIES:
MR Daniel Houtaz, who was 1-3, with 2 saves and a 4.20 ERA, is out for the season with bone chips in his shoulder. I called up Leonard Bach, who was 3-1 with a 3.22 ERA in AAA, to replace him

TEAM NEWS FROM THIS MONTH

John Swensen has 4 hits against Arizona.

Monday 5/10/2004
Harry Reid was named Player of the Week!
He batted .500 in 24 AB, with 2 HR and 4 RBI.

Friday 5/14/2004 :
Ronald Feely hits 2 homers against St. Louis.

Saturday 5/15/2004:
John Swensen hits 2 homers against St. Louis.

Monday 5/17/2004 :
Matthew Erwin was named Player of the Week!
He batted .480 in 25 AB, with 2 HR and 9 RBI.

Tuesday 5/18/2004:
Jose Camacho crushes 2 homers against Atlanta.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
The pitching staff lowered the ERA to 4.12 (17th). #4 starter Fernandez has gotten it together (6-2,4.15) and the Big Three are all having solid seasons as expected. The only pitcher on the entire staff with an ERA above 4.00 for the month of May was #5 starter Ronald Smith and he REALLY struggled (0-1,9.89) in 6 starts. He’s getting demoted (if he’ll accept the demotion). Whoever is doing best in AAA will replace him in the rotation.

Offensively, we’re hitting .256 (12th) as a team, but we lead the league in homers (75) which is a big reason why we’re leading the league in runs scored (280). Pretty much every starter had a good month in one way or another. Leadoff man Tyrone Sweeney was one of the major catalysts though. He turned in a .974 OPS, with 3 homers, 17 RBI and 15 stolen bases. He scored 25 runs during the month! RF Feely also had a big month--.290-10-29.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: RF Feely--.304
HR: RF Feely--17
RBI: RF Feely--50
SB: 2B Sweeney--18
SP ERA: Baumer—3.29
RP ERA: Martinez—2.20
SAVES: Marmolejo--11
SP K’s: Castonguay--66

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 5/10/2004:
Harold Gingras has learned reading pitchers better, his stealing ability raises to C ...
Hikoshirou Haruhiko has worked out more, his duration raises to A ...

Monday 5/24/2004:
Bernard Romain has lost some momentum, his stealing ability drops to D ...
Roberto Santoro has worked out more, his duration raises to B ...

Monday 5/31/2004:
Richard Brandl has worked out more, his duration raises to A ...

Nice to get some bumps in pitchers’ endurance. The SB changes aren’t a big deal either way.

AAA NOTES
SP Gregorio Cruz—4-1,3.33, (7/6/6),5 stars
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—3-3,4.98,(6/5/4), 4.5 stars
SP Billy Hague—4-2,1.96,(6/8/6), 1 gold star—He’s got the best ERA among starters at AAA. He gets the call-up as Smtih accepts the demotion to AAA.
MR Carlos Saldivar—0-2, 4.25, (8/8/5), 3.5 stars

AA NOTES:
SP Gregory Alkire—1-6,5.50, (1/4/4), 3.5 stars
MR Antonio Latta—1-1,3.91,(2/3/6), 4.5 stars
CL James Barta—3-2,2.75,11SV, (3/4/5), 4 stars
1B George Palafox--.559 OPS, (2/3/4), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
SS Arthur Owens--.830OPS,(1/2/5),3.5 stars

NEW PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

TRADES
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
William Hager (KC)!
He had a record of 5-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 1.79.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Ralph Myler (C()!
He batted .340 in 103 AB, with 10 homers and 26 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Ronnie Ramirez (MIL)!
He had a record of 4-0 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 1.15.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Raul Romero (LA)!
He batted .390 in 105 AB, with 5 homers and 20 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
None.

[ShagVT]

Not exactly the start you expect from a championship contender, eh?

One thing that would be nice would some sort of a season recap between end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs, so we have a better feel for who the achievers are on the team.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally posted by ShagVT
Not exactly the start you expect from a championship contender, eh?

One thing that would be nice would some sort of a season recap between end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs, so we have a better feel for who the achievers are on the team.

Good call. Since I haven't MADE the playoffs up to now, that hasn't been necessary.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 AMATEUR DRAFT REPORT

DRAFT POSITION: 25

DRAFTEES
1. LF/CF/RF Frank Chester (Avg/Fair/Avg)—He has A,B and A range, and is very fast (B speed, A steal). If his hitting can improve just a bit, he could be a stud.
2. SP George Martinez (Fair/Good/Avg),18yo,2.5 stars—He’s young, so he’s got a long time to improve..
3. 2B Francisco Labarbera (Fair/Fair/Fair),19yo,2 stars—B range, A speed.
4. 3B Lloyd Schulman (Fair/Avg/Fair),18yo,2 stars—He has C range.
5. MR Dean Linke (Avg/Avg/Avg),18yo,2.5 stars—Maybe one day…
6. SP/RP Jacob Poulson (Fair/Avg/Avg),18yo,2.0 stars—Knows 4 pitches. Could be a viable starter one day.
7. C Ralph Watson (Fair/Poor/Fair,19yo,1 star—Bottom o’ the barrel…

POST-DRAFT TOP TEN MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEMS
1. Philly
2. LA
3. Texas
4. SD
5. Houston
6. KC
7. Colorado
8. Anaheim
9. Atlanta
10. Chicago (A)

We’re #17 now.

MONTREAL TOP 100 PROSPECTS
SP Gregorio Cruz—27th
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—45th

[Ben E Lou]

JUNE 2004

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 12-15
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 44-37
CURRENT STANDING: Third. 2.5 games behind the Mets, and ½ game behind the Marlins, who lead the Wild Card race..

MAJOR INJURIES:
Dewey Baumer ruptures an elbow ligament on June 27th, and is set to be out 7-8 weeks. Ouch. Neither of my options at AAA looks like I want to go with him yet, so I sign FA SP/RP Harry Stickles (Avg/Avg/Good,8/7/7,34yo). Stickles was cut by the Brewers in April. He’s a left with a lifetime ERA of 4.37 in 10 seasons in the bigs, mostly as a reliever. He has “E” endurance as a starter. I sign him for $680K for the season.

TEAM NEWS FROM THIS MONTH

Tuesday 6/1/2004:
Richard Marano has been released.

Tuesday 6/8/2004:
Steve Adams strikes out 11 against St. Louis.

Friday 6/25/2004:
Matthew Erwin hits 2 homers against Houston.

We were no-hit by 25-year-old Keith Ewers during the month. He is 8-4 with a 2.72 ERA.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
Well, the staff ERA lowered to 3.95 (14th), but that was before losing Baumer. The top four pitchers in the rotation all had ERA’s under 3.30 for the month, and the ‘pen was pretty solid as well. Hague got bombed in his first two outings in the #5 rotation slot, but has been decent in the last two starts—11IP, 6ER. I’ll let him stick around another month in the rotation.

The offense cooled off a little, but we’re still tied for first in homers (95) and 4th in runs scored (382). Sweeney continues to DAZZLE in the leadoff role. He’s now got a .359 OBP, with 39 stolen bases in 46 tries.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: 2B Sweeney--.297
HR: RF Feely--17
RBI: RF Feely--55
SB: 2B Sweeney--39
SP ERA: Castonguay—3.10
RP ERA: Martinez—2.16
SAVES: Marmolejo--18
SP K’s: Adams--110

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 6/7/2004:
Freddy Castonguay has lost some movement on his pitches...

Monday 6/14/2004:
Raphael Perez seems to have lost some of his feel for his stuff...
Raphael Perez has lost some movement on his pitches...
Raphael Perez's control seems to have taken a bump...

Monday 6/21/2004:
Winfred Dunaway has lost some power...
Alberto Martos has lost some momentum, his range at RF drops to E ...

Monday 6/28/2004:
Paul Williams increased his bat control, resulting in more contact!
Paul Williams has improved his plate disclipine!
Harvey Baker has worked out more, his duration raises to C ...
Carlos Saldivar's control seems to have taken a bump...

None of these changes appear to be of major significance.

AAA NOTES
SP Gregorio Cruz—5-2,4.03, (7/6/6),5 stars
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—3-7,5.69,(6/6/5), 4.5 stars

AA NOTES:
SP Gregory Alkire—4-8,5.08, (1/4/4), 3.5 stars
MR Antonio Latta—1-1,2.65,(2/4/7), 4.5 stars
CL James Barta—4-2,2.05,18SV, (3/4/5), 4 stars
1B George Palafox--.598 OPS, (2/3/4), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
SS Arthur Owens--.781OPS,(1/2/6),3.5 stars

NEW PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

TRADES
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Perry Edelstein (DET)!
He had a record of 5-0 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 0.53.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Ralph Myler (CWS)!
He batted .281 in 96 AB, with 11 homers and 27 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Dale Yuan (CHC)!
He had a record of 4-0 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 1.54.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Clarence Howard (FLO)!
He batted .347 in 98 AB, with 9 homers and 20 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
Mark Harris of Detroit threw a no-hitter against Boston. He’s 4-5 with a 3.14 ERA.

[Ben E Lou]

JULY 2004

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 9-15
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 53-52
CURRENT STANDING: Third. 8.5 games behind the Mets. We’re 5 games behind the Brewers, who lead the pack for the Wild Card berth.

MAJOR INJURIES:
Ouch!!! Another MAJOR injury. This time it is Castonguay. He tears his rotator cuff, and is done for the year. Smith gets called back up. Then, to continue our incredible run of injuries to the pitching staff, Billy Hague, who was starting to put it together (4 ER in his last 20 IP) goes down for 6 weeks with bone chips in his elbow on 7/27. I decide to call up Cruz rather than trade for a SP immediately. Cruz pitches pretty well in his debut on 7/30 (5IP, 1 ER), so I decide to stand pat.

TEAM NEWS FROM THIS MONTH

Sunday 7/4/2004:
Freddy Castonguay fans 12 batters against San Diego.

Tuesday 7/13/2004:
P Steve Adams will play in the OOTP-Allstar game!

Wednesday 7/21/2004:
Ronald Smith fans 11 batters against Philadelphia.

Tuesday 7/27/2004:
Tyrone Sweeney has 4 hits against Milwaukee.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
Adams struggled this month (0-3, 6.06), and of course three members of the rotation are injured. FA pickup Stickles has done quite well (3-2,3.10). Most of the guys in the ‘pen had decent months.

We’re slumping offensively, down to 9th in runs scored, and hitting .242 (26th). We’re still first in homers with 123. One guy that sure isn’t slumping is Tyrone Sweeney though. He hit .303 this month to raise his overall average to .298

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: 2B Sweeney--.298
HR: RF Feely--22
RBI: RF Feely--72
SB: 2B Sweeney--47
SP ERA: Baumer—3.15
RP ERA: Martinez—3.00
SAVES: Marmolejo--23
SP K’s: Adams--140

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 7/5/2004:
Robert Springer's control seems to have taken a bump...
Robert Springer has lost some lower body strength, his duration drops to D ...

Monday 7/19/2004:
Earl Birnbaum has lost some momentum, his range at LF drops to D ...
Earl Birnbaum has lost some momentum, his range at CF drops to D ...
Francisco Labarbera increased his bat control, resulting in more contact!
Francisco Labarbera has improved his plate disclipine!

None of these changes appear to be of major significance yet, although if Labarbera can improve a little more, he could be a potential starter.

AAA NOTES
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—6-9,4.99,(7/6/5), 4.5 stars

AA NOTES:
SP Gregory Alkire—4-10,5.07, (1/4/4), 3.5 stars
MR Antonio Latta—1-2,2.36,(2/4/7), 4.5 stars
CL James Barta—5-2,1.73,22SV, (3/4/5), 4 stars
1B George Palafox--.649 OPS, (2/3/4), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
SS Arthur Owens--.772OPS,(1/2/6),3.5 stars

NEW PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

TRADES
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Esteban Mendez (MIN)!
He had a record of 3-1 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 1.00.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Ralph Myler (CWS)!
He batted .378 in 98 AB, with 11 homers and 30 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Oscar Melgoza (NYM)!
He had a record of 5-0 in 7 games started, with an ERA of 1.19 and 1 shutouts.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Hector Montoya (PHI)!
He batted .444 in 90 AB, with 4 homers and 15 RBI.

OTHER IMPORTANT LEAGUE NEWS
These players were selected for the AL OOTP-Allstar Team :
P William Hager from Kansas City
P Perry Edelstein from Detroit
P Carol Gallagher from Baltimore
P Patrick Spurling from Boston
P Josias Silva from Minnesota
P Jonathan Kiesel from New York (A)
P Antonio Rosas from Chicago (A)
P Percy Regnier from Oakland
P George Dam from Detroit
P Stephen Skinner from Tampa Bay
C Jared Barrows from Anaheim
C Rey Longoria from Toronto
1B Brain Haveman from Boston
2B Ronald Demuth from Toronto
3B Moises Escobar from Texas
SS Luis Szymanski from Detroit
LF Patrick Meredith from Anaheim
CF Ralph Myler from Chicago (A)
RF Jesus Quintana from Texas
1B David Mohn from New York (A)
LF Silvio Freire from Detroit
CF John Ucelay from Toronto
RF Manuel Vizcarrondo from Minnesota
2B Keith Thompson from Texas
2B Chet Hall from Seattle
These players were selected for the NL OOTP-Allstar Team :
P John Choy from New York (N)
P Virgil Valles from San Francisco
P Justin Ward from Los Angeles
P Steve Adams from Montreal
P Ronnie Ramirez from Milwaukee
P Dean Sipe from San Francisco
P Samuel Figueroa from Atlanta
P Jaime Ramirez from Florida
P Merle Grizzle from Arizona
P Miguel Vasquez from Los Angeles
C Walter Mcdonald from Atlanta
C Gregory Nisbet from Cincinnati
1B Peter Adams from Cincinnati
2B Raul Romero from Los Angeles
3B Rodney Jolly from Philadelphia
SS Jeffrey Ganey from Pittsburgh
LF Luis Ruano from Chicago (N)
CF Adrian Apodaca from New York (N)
RF Elmer Connors from New York (N)
1B Stewart Harshman from St. Louis
RF Clarence Howard from Florida
LF Jerry Grimmer from San Diego
RF Randy Argo from Cincinnati
3B Charles Gee from Milwaukee
3B Denver Banks from San Francisco

[Ben E Lou]

AUGUST 2004

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 20-8
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 73-60
CURRENT STANDING: First. Three games ahead of Florida. 3 ½ ahead of the Mets.

MAJOR INJURIES:
Baumer returns from the DL on the 18th, and Smith accepts assignment to AAA.

TEAM NEWS FROM THIS MONTH

Tuesday 8/3/2004 :

Jose Camacho hits a 457-foot homerun!!


Saturday 8/7/2004 :

John Swensen hits a 454-foot homerun!!


Monday 8/9/2004 :

Jose Camacho slams 2 homers against Philadelphia.
Jose Camacho has 6 RBI against Philadelphia.


Friday 8/13/2004 :

James Wuest hits a 457-foot homerun!!
James Wuest has 4 hits against New York (N).
James Wuest crushes 2 homers against New York (N).
James Wuest scores 4 runs against New York (N).


Wednesday 8/25/2004 :

John Swensen has 5 hits against Pittsburgh.
James Wuest slams 2 homers against Pittsburgh.
Matthew Erwin slams 2 homers against Pittsburgh.


Monday 8/30/2004 :

Earl Birnbaum has 4 hits against Atlanta.


Tuesday 9/1/2004 :

Dewey Baumer was named National League-Pitcher of the Month !
He had a record of 3-0 in 3 games started, with an ERA of 0.45.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
Well, as is obvious above, Baumer came back as good as ever! The rest of the staff was pretty solid as well. We’re at 3.88 ERA (13th).

The offense picked up this month as well. We’re up to .245 (22nd), still leading the league in homers, and are now 3rd in runs scored. John Swensen (.921 OPS), Handyman Wuest (.965) and Matthew Erwin (.883) led the way this month.

SEASON-TO-DATE TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: CF Wuest—283
HR: 1B Swensen—29
RBI: RF Feely—84
SB: 2B Sweeney—53
SP ERA: Baumer—2.71
RP ERA: Bach—3.02
SAVES: Marmolejo--29
SP K’s: Adams--172

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 8/2/2004:
Gregory Alkire has lost some movement on his pitches...
Carlos Davila has lost some power...

Monday 8/16/2004:
Bernard Romain has learned reading pitchers better, his stealing ability raises to C ...

Monday 8/23/2004
Raphael Perez has lost some lower body strength, his duration drops to C ...
George Martinez's pitches have more bite now, the movement has improved!

Monday 8/30/2004:
Ben Henriques increased his bat control, resulting in more contact!

Alkire drops to 3 stars…

AAA NOTES
SP Hikoshirou Haruhiko—9-11,4.17,(7/6/5), 4.5 stars

AA NOTES:
MR Antonio Latta—1-3,2.91,(3/4/7), 4.5 stars
CL James Barta—5-5,3.08,27SV, (4/5/5), 4 stars—I call him up to AAA.
1B George Palafox--.642 OPS, (2/3/4), 3.5 stars

A NOTES:
SS Arthur Owens--.800OPS,(1/2/6),3.5 stars

NEW PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Perry Edelstein (DET)!
He had a record of 5-0 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 0.72.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Rueben Thaler (OAK)!
He batted .388 in 98 AB, with 8 homers and 26 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Dewey Baumer (MON)!
He had a record of 3-0 in 3 games started, with an ERA of 0.45.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Gregory Franko (ARI)!
He batted .370 in 108 AB, with 11 homers and 32 RBI.

[Ben E Lou]

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2004

THIS MONTH’S RECORD: 12-17
OVERALL RECORD AT MONTH-END: 85-77
CURRENT STANDING: Tied for 2nd. 2 games behind Division Champion Mets 3 games out of Wildcard.

MAJOR INJURIES:
Baumer pulls his bicep tendon on 9/24. At the time we were 2 games out of first. He missed the final week-and-a-half of the regular season. We were 5-3 after he went out.

TEAM NEWS FROM THIS MONTH

Wednesday 9/1/2004 :
Ronald Feely has 4 hits against Atlanta.
Ronald Feely slams 2 homers against Atlanta.
Ronald Feely drives in 5 runs against Atlanta.
Ronald Feely scores 4 runs against Atlanta.

Saturday 9/11/2004:
Tyrone Sweeney sets a new season Team-Record for Stolen Bases with 56!

Friday 9/17/2004:
Matthew Erwin crushes 2 homers against Pittsburgh.

Friday 9/24/2004:
Ronald Feely hits 2 homers against San Francisco.

Wednesday 9/29/2004:
Tyrone Sweeney sets a new season NL-Record for Stolen Bases with 60!

Thursday 9/30/2004:
John Swensen has 4 hits against Colorado.

Thursday 10/1/200 :
Ronald Feely was named National League-Batter of the Month!
He batted .289 in 97 AB, with 10 homers and 24 RBI.

Sunday 10/3/2004:
Matthew Erwin has 4 hits against Philadelphia.

MAJOR LEAGUE PERFORMANCES OF NOTE/LINEUP CHANGES/ROTATION CHANGES:
Gregorio Cruz stunk it up this month (11.72 ERA), and was replaced in the rotation for his final 2 starts by Billy Hague, who was 1-0 in 2 starts. Adams had a very rough month (1-4,7.53), as did Stickles (2-4,7.33). Fernanded (3-0,2.91) was the only starter to fare well this month.

The offense had a strong final month, but couldn’t overcome the bad pitching. We ended up first in the league in runs with 759, and first in homers with 215. Camacho had a good month (.919OPS), as did Erwin (12HR,.989OPS), and Feely was player of the month with his 24 RBI’s.

YEAR-END TEAM STATISTICAL LEADERS
AVG: CF Wuest—.276
HR: SS Erwin--36
RBI: RF Feely—111
SB: 2B Sweeney—60
SP ERA: Baumer—3.05
RP ERA: Steele—3.36
SAVES: Marmolejo--35
SP K’s: Adams--195

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT:

Monday 9/6/2004:
Porfirio Leyva's control seems to have taken a bump...

Monday 9/13/2004:
George Palafox plate discipline seems to have faded...

Monday 9/20/2004:
Dion Martinez seems to have improved his pure stuff!
Lloyd Schulman seems to have lost some bat speed, resulting in less contact...

Monday 9/27/2004:
Winfred Dunaway increased his bat control, resulting in more contact!
Antonio Latta has worked out more, his duration raises to C ...

Monday 10/4/2004:
Max Conde seems to have improved his pure stuff!
Max Conde's pitches have more bite now, the movement has improved!
Dean Linke seems to have lost some of his feel for his stuff...
Dean Linke has lost some movement on his pitches...
Dean Linke has lost some lower body strength, his duration drops to D ...

Conde becomes a 3.5 star prospect…

NEW PERSONAL DIARY ENTRIES:
None.

MONTHLY AWARDS
American League-Pitcher of the Month:
Arthur Jan (OAK)!
He had a record of 3-1 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 0.79 and 1 shutouts.
American League-Batter of the Month:
Luis Szymanski (DET)!
He batted .304 in 92 AB, with 8 homers and 22 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month:
Avery Twiggs (MIL)!
He had a record of 2-0 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 0.46.
National League-Batter of the Month:
Ronald Feely (MON)!
He batted .289 in 97 AB, with 10 homers and 24 RBI.

OTHER LEAGUE NEWS OF INTEREST
Ronald Demuth, who we traded away in the deal that brought us CF Wuest and SS Pardo, hit 54 homers and drove in 131 runs this season for Toronto.
Atlanta still hasn’t come around. They went 72-90 this year. The AI traded “Superfly” Sylvain to Tampa Bay for three decent-or-better prospects. This looks like a smart trade for Atlanta, as Sylvain was in the last year of his contract.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 POST-SEASON REPORT

POTENTIAL FREE AGENTS/CONTRACT EXTENSIONS
1B James Swensen—I sign him to a 5-year deal for $6.25M per year. He looks to be entering his prime. He hit .266 with 32 homers this year.
CL Samuel Marmolejo—He’s 34, and we’ve got the rest of the bullpen all returning. Still, he’s been rock-solid as the closer. I’m able to get him to sign a 2-year deal for $5.5M per year.
2B Ryan Wiens—He was a backup and defensive replacement this year. He accepts a pay cut: 2 years @$1.9M.
LF Earl Birnbaum—Backup LF (6/3/6) signs a 3-year deal for only $900K per year. Nice!
CF Craig Regner—This guy had an .814 OPS in limited use, can play all three OF positions, and was willing to take $500K per year. I sign him.
SP/RP Harry Stickles—He can start or go in relief, and he had a decent year. He accepts $1M for 2 years.
CF Paul Eckhoff—Spent all year at AAA, and really has no hope to play in the bigs for us. He’s outta here.
CF David Martin—Ditto Eckhoff. Gone.

PLAYOFF REPORT
Detroit beats LA in 6 games to win back-to-back World Championships.

SEASON RECAP
Detroit beats Arizona 4 games to 3 to win it all.

American League Rookie Of The Year Award:
Manny Neyra (DET)!
He batted .327 in 520 AB, with 6 homers and 63 RBI.

National League Rookie Of The Year Award:
Harry Reid (MON)!
He batted .263 in 548 AB, with 24 homers and 65 RBI.

American League Cy Young Award:
Arthur Jan (OAK)!
He had a record of 16-10 with an ERA of 1.53 and 3 shutouts.
In 34 games started, he pitched 246.2 innings, fanning 241 and walking 51 batters.
That’s Jan’s 2nd Cy Young Award. The 35-year old has 199 career wins.

American League MVP Award:
Ralph Myler (CWS)!
He batted .312 in 596 AB, with 49 homers and 133 RBI.
Myler’s 27, and appears to be a mega-star in the making.

National League Cy Young Award:
Justin Ward (LA)!
He had a record of 17-4 with an ERA of 1.52 and 1 shutouts.
In 35 games started, he pitched 225.1 innings, fanning 167 and walking 40 batters.
Back-to-back Cy Young seasons or this 32-year old. He’s 50-15 over his last three seasons.

National League MVP Award:
Rodney Jolly (PHI)!
He batted .295 in 567 AB, with 32 homers and 137 RBI.
26-year-old wins the MVP in only his 3rd full season.

American League Gold Glove Award Winners:
Pitcher: Mark Harris (DET)
Catcher: Manny Neyra (DET)
First Base: Emanuel Whaley (MIN)
Second Base: Ronald Demuth (TOR) (AUGGGH!!! I traded this guy away because of his glove!!!)
Third Base: Brock Hettinger (BOS)
Shortstop: Simon Fuentes (MIN)
Leftfield: Hernan Gomez (CWS)
Centerfield: Michael Sylvain (TB)
Rightfield: Jacob Parker (TB)

National League Gold Glove Award Winners:
Pitcher: Dewey Baumer (MON)
Catcher: Filiberto Amezcua (MIL)
First Base: Peter Adams (CIN)
Second Base: Rodney Campbell (ATL)
Third Base: Richard Reel (PIT)
Shortstop: Jay Penning (FLO)
Leftfield: Keith Rosales (COL)
Centerfield: Nathan Bejarano (FLO)
Rightfield: Elmer Connors (NYM)

MANAGER UPDATE

This was a pretty good year. I think I made the owner happy. I more than met his expectation.

Yup. His mood is at 100. Jillian broke up with me. I’ll probably never have a kid in the bigs.…

THOUGHTS
Well, we had several key injuries in the year, and still finished only two games out. If SP’s Baumer and Castonguay come back full speed, we’ll likely be a serious contender once again next year.

[Ben E Lou]

2004 END OF SEASON REPORT

The end-of-2004 update has now been uploaded. It can be found HERE

[tucker342]

great stuff SkyDog, keep up the good work