Chasing the Dream - A RTTS Dynasty (MLB '09 The Show)

[Sun Tzu]

Around the League - August Edition

Division Leaders
Yankees by 3.5
White Sox by 8
Mariners by 12
Mets by 8
Reds by 1 over the Brewcrew
Giants by 10.5

The Dodgers hold a 0.5 game lead over the Brewers for the NL Wild Card.
The Blue Jays hold a 7.5 game lead over the Indians, Orioles, Tigers, and Twins surprisingly for the AL Wild Card.

The Giants are sporting the leagues best record at 85-52

Tike Brewer of the Mariners is the AL batting leader with a .369 AVG
Brent Holloway of the Pirates is the NL batting leader with a .350 AVG

Tike Brewer is also the AL home run leader with 39
Ryan Braun, still with the Brewers, is the NL leader with 40

Tike Brewer is gunning for a triple crown, and leading the AL in RBI's with 140
Brent Holloway and Arnoldo Valdez of the Cards are tied at 111 atop the NL

Latroy Prince of the Blue Jays is leading the AL in wins with 18. he is 18-5 on the year
Jon-Su Na and Eldridge Hermansen are leading the NL in wins with 15. They are 15-5 and 15-6 respectively.

Latroy Prince is also leading the AL in ERA at 2.58
Jong-Su Na is also leading the NL in ERA at 2.83

Tim Lincecum of the Tigers is leading the AL in strikeouts with 169
Ivan Manuel of the Pirates is leading the NL with a very impressive 208

Latroy Prince as the AL's lowest WHIP at 1.13
Jong-Su Na not surprisingly has the NL's lowest at 1.18

My stats after August are...

9-8, 27 GS, 12 QS, 4.93 ERA, 149.2 IP, 22 BB, 105 K, 18 HR, 1.49 WHIP, .291 v RH, .360 v LH

I am #1 in the MLB in BB's, and #13 in the AL in strikeouts.

As a team we are 65-71, and for we are for all intensive purposes eliminated from the Playoffs.

[Sun Tzu]

9/1 - David Price pitches a respectable game and leaves with a 6-4 lead, but as per the usual, the bullpen gives up 4 runs in the top of the 8th and we lose 8-9

[Sun Tzu]

I am starting tonights game at home against the Mariners. On the hill for them is Stan Azzopardi who is 10-10 with a 3.87 ERA. I am openly not looking forward to this game, as my defensive support has been terrible and the bullpen is in one of the worst slumps I've seen in my life.

Defensively Soto is behind the plate, Burke is at Short, Esparza is in left, and Rios is the DH. Abdul has been given the day off

fly to center that Ellsbury takes just in front of the warning track for one...grounder to morneau for two...potential triple crown winner Tike Brewer steps up to the plate and dribles a grounder down teh 1st base line which Soto jumps on and hits morneau, inning over

RS - Longoria and Ian Kinsler both have RBI singles as we go up 2-0 after 1 inning!

pop to right that hart takes in for the first out...Chris Dickerson belts a line drive single to left...popped up to Hart in right for the second out...Dickerson steals second easily...easy grounder to kinsler who charges it and hits morneau for the last out

RS - Justin Morneau comes alive for the first time in weeks, hitting a 2 run shot over the wall and putting us up 4-0!

the first pitch is popped right to morneau for the first out...I'm feeling very good about this game suddenly...first pitch grounder to morneau for the second out...two hopper to longoria on the second pitch for the last out. I only threw 4 pitches that entire inning

I get some terrible calls from the homeplate ump and walk the leadoff guy, after being ahead 0-2...Tike Brewer comes to the plate...easy DP grounder to Kinsler but he has trouble getting it out of his glove, combined with Burkes very weak arm, and they can't get Brewer at first for the second out...Kinsler with a beautiful diving stop, he hits Burke at second for the first out, but Burke rainbows it to morneau and it's another missed DP...the runner steals second easily...Chris Dickerson up with a chance to knock in a run with a single...he slaps a hard grounder to the right side into the hole, but Kinsler makes another great diving stop! He gets to his knees and hits morneau for the third and final out

RS - Longoria has an RBI single, which is followed by a 2 RBI double by Ellsbury! We go up 7-0 after 4!!!

single through the hole on the right side to leadoff...the next man whiffs at some high inside heat for the first out...two strikeouts in a row as the next man swings way too early at a nice low changeup...single to the left side as it just barely squeaks over longoria glove...very easy grounder to kinsler who charges this one and hits morneau to end the inning

grounder to kinslers right and he dives over top of the ball...Brewer up to the plate...the ump has called several very blatant strikes as balls this inning...brewer walks on 4 pitches, and I start spouting off curse words directed at the home plate ump...and THEY PULL ME??!?!?!?! I pitch 5 shutout innings and they pull me after walking a batter

Vidro comes in to relieve me and I have a strong feeling that both of the runners I allowed on base will be scoring very shortly...and...I watch as Video allows three straight hits and gives up another run on top of that. How does this guy have a job?

Thankfully he is pulled after the 6th and our bullpen only allows 1 more run through the end of the game. We win 8-4!!!

Line - 5 IP, 4 H, 2 ER (sigh), 2 BB, 2 SO, and I get my 10th win of the year! That's a career high! My record improves to 10-8

[Sun Tzu]

After I got pulled I decided to talk to the coach about his decision. He told me that he knows I pitched a great game, and he doesn't want to say he made a mistake, but he will definitely give me a little longer to work out of those types of jams in the future.

[Sun Tzu]

9/4 - We travel to New York to play against the first place Yankees for two games. We win the first game as Josh Beckett becomes the teams second 10 game winner after me. 5-1

9/5 - We sweep the Yankees even though our Bullpen gets rocked. We win 9-8

9/7 - We then travel south to Tampa to play the Devil Rays in a 3 game series. We take the first game 9-2 as Clay Buchholz is the third pitcher on our staff to win 10 games.

9/8 - David Price pitches a strong game and leaves with a 4-2 lead, but our pen loses the game in the bottom of the 9th and Price misses out on a chance to be teh 4th pitcher with 10 wins...again

[Sun Tzu]

I am starting todays game at Tropicana Field. This is our last game against the terrible Devil Rays. They are 47-97 and on their way to losing 110 games. On the hill for them is their worst starter, Terrance Clevlen, who is 2-15 with a 7.15 ERA. I guess they just let any old pitcher play now

Defensively Abdul is starting in left, Soto is behind the plate, and a September callup Robert Douglas is starting at SS in place of burke...yes!

RS - We start the game strong as Abdul leads the game off with a solo homerun! Longoria has an RBI double later in the inning as we almost bat through the order. We're up 2-0 before I even take the mound.

Single to the left side past longorias diving glove to leadoff...the leadoff man tries to take second but I fire a heater outside off the plate and Soto is able to *just* get him out before he gets to 2nd...double down the left field line by their one major threat Bauer...fly to middle center that ellsbury takes in, and Bauer starts tagging up to third, but Ellsbury guns him down to end the inning! Yes!

RS - Longoria belts a fastball into the bleachers for a 2 run Homer and his third RBI of the game! We're up 4-0 already

grounder through my legs for a single...fly to left at the track but Abdul takes it in for an easy out...seeing eye single through the hole on the right side...runners on first and second with one away...a fly ball down the line in left actually bounces ON the line for a double scoring a run...Harden goes down waving at a slider way out of the zone on a 0-2 count...groundout to kinsler to end the inning with men on 2nd and 3rd...we're up 4-1

leadoff man waves at three straight pitches out of the zone for the strikeout...Bauer slaps a grounder to the Rook at shortstop, Douglas, and he hits morneau for his first assist of the day...grounder down the right side skips over first base for a two out double into the corner...I walk the next man as I miss on several pitches...my control isn't what it usually is today...the Rookie takes another grounder in and fires a strike to Morneau for the final out to end the 3rd

RS - Abdul hits his second homer of the day! this time it's a 2 run shot. 2 batters later Longoria hits his second homer of the day, and it's another 2 run shot! Up next is Ian Kinsler, and HE puts one into the stands! Three home runs in the top of the 4th, and we go up 9-1!!!

a hard hit grounder to the Rookie who again fires a perfect strike to Morneau...routine grounder to right center that ellsbury takes in for the second out...easy fly to center that ellsbury pulls down to end the 4th inning

line drive single to right that Hart almost snagged before it hit...DP grounder to Kinsler who underhands it to the Rookie, who then hits morneau for an easy 6-4-3...that's the first DP I've seen turned in 4 games...Bauer with a single up the gut...Osuna pops it up and the Rook pulls it down to end the 5th

RS - Justin Morneau leads the inning off with a Solo shot, and then two batters later Geovany Soto plants one in the bleacher for a 2 run blast of his own. The route is on, and we're up 12-1

hot shot to the left side just over longoria glove to leadoff...the ump starts squeezing me in the 6th just like last game and I walk the next guy...sonufabitch, are you serious? They pull me again after only 5 innings, that coach is going to get an earful. Seriously, after 68 pitches and only 1 earned run you're pulling me. My replacement gives up FIIIIIIIVE RUNS in relief. It's a good goddamn thing we were up by so much. We give up another 3 runs in the 8th inning, and get by with a 12-9 victory.

Line - 5 IP, 3 ER (2 by relief, yet again), 9 H, 2 BB, 2 SO, and my record improves to 11-8 on the year. I guess I can't complain...much

[Sun Tzu]

9/10 - We head back home for a 4 game series against the Blue Jays which I wont be a part of. Josh Beckett gets his 11th win of the year too, as we take game one 9-6

9/11 - We get shutout in game two, losing 0-3

9/12 - We get shutout in two straight games as the Wild Card Leading Jays win 0-6

9/13 - David Price pitches 7+ innings and allows only 1 earned run, but our closer gives up 3 runs in the 9th. We eventually win it in 11 innings 5-4, but Price is unbelievably still waiting for his 10th win. That's 4 games in a row that he left with the lead and got a ND.

[Sun Tzu]

The Yankees are in Boston for a 3 game series for the last time this year. They are still in first place in the East. A familiar foe in Scott Kazmir is on the mound for them, and he is 7-10 with a 4.62 ERA. The Yankees are in the top 6 in the MLB in pitching, in every single major category. Offensively they also rank 3rd in AVG and 4th in RBI's.

Defensively another september callup is starting tonight, this time in Justin Morneaus place. Virgil Braun is his name, a great name for a first baseman. Yabuta is behind the plate for Soto, Rios is the DH, Kinsler has the day off and he is replaced by Burke at 2nd. Kendrick is playing SS.

a line drive to the left side gets past longoria and it's a double by Ricky Weeks (who has absolutely ROCKED me throughout my career) to start the game...a pop to shallow right is taken by Hart, but I guess he didn't think Weeks was going to tag (OF COURSE HE IS!!!!) and he just lollygags around, looping a liner over to third after counting how many stars are in the sky...I intentionally walk texiera for the DP possibility...a ball that was 100% in the strike zone is called a ball as I shake my head in disgust, and the batter takes his base to load the bases with one away...I take down the next man with a great curve to make it two outs...the next man STRIKES OUT!!! three straight fastballs up high get him swinging and I get out of the jam without allowing a run

o...m...g...this ump is absolutely rediculous today...slow dribbler in front of the plate is taken by Yabuta and there's one away...a ball gets under burkes glove into right...the runner takes off for second but Yabuta guns him down with seconds to spare for out #2...at this point I'm about ready to start aiming for the umps head if he keeps this up...the last man goes down swinging at some 95 MPH heat

Ricky Weeks hits one to deep right, and Hart misses it trying to run it down, which then turns into a leadoff triple...I truly do despise Weeks...grounder to burke who throws a high ball to first, but it's still catchable for the first out, and Weeks scores...I throw several strike threes only to have them called balls, which works the count to 3-2, and then Texiera hits one well over the monster as the routine Yankee route begins...followed by another solo homer, surprise surprise. Here we go with "get no hit for 6 innings and give up 5 runs every single time we play the yankees"...longoria throws the next man out after a grounder...two away...I walk the next batter as I start cursing obscenities at the ump under my breath...grounder to kendrick to end the inning, and we're down 0-3

RS - We manage to get a couple hits

leadoff solo shot over the monster...grounder to kendrick for the first out...I peg Ricky Weeks, and I'll let you be the judge of whether it was intentional or not...grounder to the left side that should be a DP but instead bounces off of longoria's glove...Texiera hits a grounder to longoria that doesn't bounce off his glove this time, and he throws to Burke who then throws it in the dirt to Braun at first, but he scoops it for the final out

one hopper to Braun at first for the first out...liner up the middle for a one out single...another liner up the middle for a single...I get pulled and I fully expect both of the runners I've allowed, along with two more runners to score. A september callup gets his first appearance in relief of me.

I was wrong, he only allowed my inherited runners to score, then he was fine the rest of the game. We don't score once all game, and lose 0-6. That's the third time in 4 games that we have been shutout.

Line - 4.1 IP, 9 H, 6 ER (fourth game in a row pen has allowed inherited runs to score), 3 Bb, 3 SO, My record drops to 11-9.

Every day I pitch, I look forward to A.) not having the worst pen in baseball and B.) not being in the AL East.

[Sun Tzu]

9/15 - We lose game two to the Yankees 2-4

9/16 - We take the last game 11-3 as Jon Lester impresses

9/17 - We fly south to Baltimore to face off against the Orioles in a 3 game series. In the first game we blow a late lead and lose 8-10

9/18 - In the second game we blow another late lead, and David Price is robbed of his 10th win for the 6th consecutive game. We lose 8-9

9/19 - I started this game. I pitched six strong innings, only giving up 3 hits, but I walked 3 men, and allowed 2 runs. I thought that would be enough, but I was wrong. We only managed to score 1 run all game, and we lost 1-3.

Line - 6 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 SO, my record dropped to 11-10. I started to get worried that I wouldn't even finish the season with a winning record

9/21 - We travel to Detroitto face off against the Tigers who are fighting for a Wild Card spot. In game one Josh Beckett pitches excellent and is the firs pitcher on our staff to get to 12 wins. We win 8-2.

9/22 - In game two we come on strong in the late innings and win 9-3.

9/23 - Clay Buchholz loses his 13th game of the year in game three, as we can't seem to put any runs on the board. Score was 1-4

9/24 - We fly to Toronto for our last road series of the season. David Price is pitching in his second to last start in game one against the Jays and hoping to finally win his 10th game. He is unsuccessful as we are shutout...that poor bastard. We lose 0-7, and the Blue Jays secure a spot as the Wild Card team in the playoffs.

9/25 - I started game two of this series. I came into this game hoping I could nail down a guaranteed winning record. I pitched very solid, only holding them to no runs and one hit through the 5th inning, and giving up my only earned run in the 6th inning. In the 7th I was pulled with two men on and two away. I held my breath as I watched a young kid just called up take the mound, but he got the next man out. He did allow one run in the 8th, but our Closer came in and slammed the door in the 9th sealing the victory.

Line - 6.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 SO, and my record improves to 12-10...I only have one start left this year so I will have a winning record no matter what.

9/26 - Josh Beckett gets rocked for his 10th loss in his last start, and we lose the third game of the series 2-8.

9/27 - Jon Lester pitched an amazing game but we couldn't put a single run on the board for him, and he finishes the year with a loss too. 0-1 was the score

9/28 - We come back home for the last series of the year. The Orioles are in town and surprisingly have a winning record at 83-76. Clay Buchholz pitched a great game but our closer blows yet another save in the ninth inning. We lose 2-4

9/29 - David Price goes for his 10th win for the last time this season, and only allows 1 run over 7 innings. Unfortunately for David, we got shutout. Just unbelievable...we lose 0-1.

[Sun Tzu]

I am starting our last game of the season, here at Fenway, against the Division Rival Baltimore Orioles. They are 85-76 coming into this game, and we are 76-85. On the hill for the O's is Edmundo Varela who is 10-10 with a 4.71 ERA. There are 33,466 fans on hand to see our season finale.

Defensively Esparza is starting in left, while the september vet callup Schumaker is starting in place of Kinsler at 2nd.

This game was terrible, as my control was everywhere from the very first pitch. I allowed 5 runs, well 6 including the inherited runs the pen gave up, in 4 innings pitched. This game put my ERA above 5 for the year.

We lose 6-12

[Sun Tzu]

We ended the year a laughable 76-86. We are in full rebuild mode and I have zero intention of re-signing with the club.

We finished the year with a team ERA of 4.76. Our Bullpen had only one player with an ERA below 4.00. Here is our final statistical tally...

Evan Longoria ~ .302, 34, 98 RBI
Abdul Morneau ~ .305, 6 HR, 67 RBI
Justin Morneau ~ .278, 22 HR, 95 RBI
Jacoby Ellsbury ~ .281, 10 HR, 72 RBI
Alex Rios ~ .277, 6 HR, 56 RBI
Ian Kinsler ~ .279, 16 HR, 91 RBI
Howie Kendrick ~ .276, 6 HR, 60 RBI
Cory Hart ~ .250, 13 HR, 68 RBI <--very dissapointing as these are all career lows

David Price ~ 9-13, 3.68 ERA, 1.49 WHIP
Me ~ 12-11, 5.03 ERA, 1.51 WHIP
Josh Beckett ~ 12-10, 4.68 ERA, 1.50 WHIP
Clay Buchholz ~ 10-13, 6.64 ERA, 2.00 WHIP
Jon Lester ~ 9-9, 4.91 ERA, 1.48 WHIP

Our bullpen finished the year with a combined 25 blown saves.

[Sun Tzu]

The Playoff Brackets look like so...

AL

CHW
TOR

SEA
NYY

NL

SF
CHC

NYM
CIN

Tike Brewer ran away with the Triple Crown. He finished with a .373 AVG, 43 bombs, and 156 RBI's. He was awarded the AL MVP

Ryan Braun finished with a .316 AVG, 47 bombs (led the MLB), and 133 RBI's. He was awarded the NL MVP

Latroy Prince finished the year 22-5 with a 2.58 ERA and a league low 1.10 WHIP. He was awarded the AL Cy Young Award.

Jong-Su Na finished the year 17-6 with a 2.70 ERA and a NL low 1.11 WHIP. He was awarded the NL Cy Young Award.

Joakim Segovia of the Mariners finished with a .311 AVG, 21 HR's, and 87 RBI's. He was awarded the AL ROY.

Christian Stairs of the Brewers finished with a .258 AVG, 15 HR's, and 57 RBI's. He was awarded the NL ROY.

Red Sox award winners

Unbelievably, Geovany Soto won a gold glove award. He was only listed as having 2 errors on the year, and they must have both come while catching my games.

Justin Morneau collected another gold glove for his stellar work at 1st base.

Jacoby Ellsbury won another gold glove for his work in Center Field.

My final line for the year...

12-11, 5.03 ERA, 33 GS, 14 QS, 180.2 IP, 33 BB, 123 K, 1.51 WHIP.

I led the league once again in walks allowed.

I have decided that I would prefer to sign with a team in the NL. I have looked long at hard at a lot of teams rosters, and I have 3 top choices in this order.

1. San Francisco Giants - The Giants have, by far, the best pitching staff in the majors. They finished the year with the best record in the Majors, going 101-61 and winning the west by 13 games over the Dodgers. They have a team ERA of 3.79, and also finished 8th in the majors in runs scored.

2. Chicago Cubs - The Cubbies look great, and made it to the playoffs as a wild card team this year. They have a lot of talent in a lot of places, and they are younger than the Giants. They too finished near the top in most major categories.

3. Cincinnati Reds - The big red machine is in the same division as the Cubbies which would be tough, but they are built a lot like the Cubbies are as far as having an abundance of young talent.

I'm really hoping that at some point during the offseason, one of these teams offers me a contract for 3-5 years.

[Sun Tzu]

The Yankees won the ALDS 3 games to 1 over the Mariners.

The White sox won the ALDS 3 games to 2 (winning the last three) over the Blue Jays.

The Giants won the NLDS 3 games to 1 over the Cubbies.

The Mets won the NLDS 3 games to 0 over the Reds.

The Brackets now look like this.

AL

NYY
CHW

NL

NYM
SF

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The White Sox lost the first game of the ALCS to the Yankees, but then stormed back and won the next four games, advancing to the World Series.

The Mets were up 3 games to 1 against the Giants, then lose two in a row as they went to a game 7. The Giants had a 7-6 lead going into the 9th, but Grady Sizemore hit a 2 run homer to take the 8-7 lead, and the Mets advanced to the World Series to meet the White Sox.

This is a rematch of last years World Series, when the Mets took home the Trophy in 7 games.

The Mets were favored to win the World Series, and took game one as Johan Santana pitched a gem. The White Sox stormed back though, winning games 2, 3, and 4. In game 5 the Mets were facing elimination and the Sox were on the verge of a World Series Championship. The Sox went up early 5-0, but the Mets came back strong in the 4th and 5th innings, bringing the score to within 1, making it a 4-5 game. But the Sox pulled away, and won the game on big bats and strong pitching, 6-5.

The White Sox are the 2018 World Series Champions!

CF Yoslan Avalos of the White Sox takes home the MVP Trophy, hitting .412 with 4 RBI's against the Mets fine pitching.

[Sun Tzu]

We have advanced to the offseason. The following notable players have retired.

Ryan Garko
Dontrelle Willis
Matt Holliday (celebration!)
Matt Garza - SP of the Reds
Jeff Samardzija - SP of the Cubs

Mariano Rivera has been inducted into the Hall of Fame. He finished his career with 712 saves.

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On October 30th, in an attempt to retain my services, the Red Sox offered me a 3 year contract for $33.84m to be their staff ace. I respectfully decline and proceed to file my papers to become a free agent.

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On November 13th, the Cincinnati Reds offered me a 3 year contract for $31.77m to be their staff ace! It's very early in the FA year however, and I would like to see if the Giants are interested. I tell them I'm going to think about it and discuss this with my new Wife.

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On November 14th, the Houston Astros (76-86) offered me a 2 year contract for $22.78 to be their staff ace. I have no intention of signing with the Astros, but I think it's great that so many teams are already interested in me. I'm hoping this will drive up the cost of my contract, as I've been eyeing a house on the beach in Santa Barbara, CA.

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On November 16th, the Red Sox withdrew their contract offer.

One hour later, I recieved a call from the Anaheim Angels (76-86). They are offering me a 5 year contract for $62.65m to be their staff ace. I respectfully decline.

I start hoping that the Reds don't withdraw their offer...

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On November 19th the Reds withdrew their offer...shit! What now?

While I'm on the phone with the Reds GM, I get another call and switch lines. It's the Cubs! They are offering me a 2 year contract for $21.78m to be their staff ace. I'm not going to decide immediately, but it is *very* tempting to just jump on board and sign on the dotted line. I tell them I need a couple days to think about it before I sign, but I appreciated the offer and they were in my top couple teams to sign with.

The Astros have upped their offer to 5 years for $53.04m...

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On November 19th, The Reds re-offered and have upped their offer! They are now offering a 3 year contract for $34.56m

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The Reds have signed stud SP Kosuke Kobayashi to a 6 year/$88.62m contract. Damn...

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The Cubs have withdrawn their offer!

On November 26th, the Braves (79-83) offered a 5 year contract for $69.5m to be their staff ace. I respectfully decline.

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On November 29th, The Cardinals (65-97) offered a 5 year contract for an even $70m to be their staff ace. No way.

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On December 2nd, my former team the Twins offered me a 3 year contract for $38.88m to be their staff ace. I tell them I appreciate them giving me a chance when I was coming up as a young pitcher, but that time has past. I have no intention of returning to Minnesota.

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On December 2nd, the Rangers (78-84) offered me a 3 year contract for $39.00m to be their staff ace. I decline.

Later that night, the Dodgers offered me a 3 year contract for $40.86m...now I think long and hard about this. The Dodgers are a decent team, but they also are in the same division as the best team in Baseball, and the team I'm hoping will offer at some point, the Giants. I decline...

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December 8th - I decline Salary Arbitration with the Red Sox

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December 19th...oh boy...The World Champion Chicago White Sox have offered me a 4 year contract for $51.92m to be their staff ace. Wow...just wow. I am starting to wonder if the Giants are even interested. I decide I'm going to give the Giants 48 hours. If they don't offer, i'm going to sign with the Chisox.

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December 20th. The unthinkable has happened. The New York Yankees have offered me a 4 year contract for $51.52m to be their staff ace. I think about it, hard, but I just can't do it. I grew up hating the Yanks and I just can't imagine pitching regularly in that damn park.

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Ok...well after talking it over with my wife...we decide that we are going to decline the White Sox offer. Though I would love to play for them and possibly win a title, we want to raise our kids in the San Francisco Bay Area...The Sox GM understands and tell me that if I change my mind, or the Giants don't offer, to give him a call.

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December 31st. I've tried to get my mind off of the whole Free Agent market. It's stressing me out waiting for it, and I've already gotten pretty close to calling the White Sox back a couple times.

It's 11pm and we have all of our friends over for a new years party. Evan Longoria hands me my own phone (why the hell would he answer it?) and says it's someone asking for me. I ask who it is and it's the GM of the San Francisco Giants!!! He says he apologizes for waiting so long to offer me a contract, but they wanted to make sure they offered me something fair. They are offering me a 5 year contract worth $67.35m to be the ace of their staff! Hell yes! I tell him that I'll be there in the morning...well...maybe early afternoon

I celebrate like it's about to be 2019!!! WOOHOOO!!!

[Sun Tzu]

I fly into San Francisco International Airport on January 1st, 1019. A limo is there waiting to pick me and my wife up, and we head to AT&T Park. I get there and it is absolutely stunning. I couldn't be happier that not only am I going to get to play here for the next 5 years, but I'm going to be contending for a World Series title.

We decided that the asking price was fair, and I don't want to tie up too much of the clubs money to sign other people, so I accept under one condition. We add a player option to the 5th year...just in case. I'm still just ever so slightly cautious ever since the BoSox took a dive just a year after I signed with them.

So I sign the dotted line.

5 years, $67,350,000 with a player option in the last year. Staff Ace!

[Sun Tzu]

A closer look at the Giants roster shows they have an incredible amount of talent.

The Starting Rotation looks like this.

1. Me - Age - 28 - OVR A
2. Diego Quevedo - Age 26 - OVR A+
3. Jong-Su Na - Age 32 - OVR A (Last years Cy Young Winner)
4. Marcos Moreno - Age 27 - OVR A
5. Florencio Jaramillo - Age 33 - OVR A

Their Lineup looks like so...

CF - Shea Swain ~ Fast, perenial .300 hitter who hit .314/13/56 last year ~ 26 y/o
SS - Ambriorix Collazo ~ slower than molasses, but last year he hit .340 in 150 at bats. 26 y/o
1B - Miguel Cabrera ~ slow, but has hit 30 or more home runs while hitting .299 or higher each of the last 6 years. 35 y/o
RF - Jay Bruce ~ average speed, excellent power, perenial .275-.300 hitter. 31 y/o
LF - Melky Espinosa ~ slightly below average speed, perenial .300 hitter every year, hit .294/25/100 last year. 29 y/o
3B - Pablo Sandoval aka "Panda" ~ slightly below average speed, will hit .275-.295 every year. Last year hit .276/19/91. 32 y/o
C - Ryan Doumis ~ I'm desitined to play for a team with an awful catcher, and this is no different. Doumis has a great arm, he's just a bit innacure. Definitely an upgrade from Soto though. Last year he hit .277/13/67. This will more than likely be his last year, and we have a nice prospect waiting in AAA. 37 y/o
2B - Kelly Johnson ~ Johnson is a strong fielding 2B. He still contributes a surprisingly large amount at the plate, hitting .272/12/56 last year in the #8 spot. This is probably his last year too. 37 y/o

[Sun Tzu]

In the Spring we finished with the best recod in the Cactus League, going 23-15.

It is Openning day of the 2019 Baseball Season!

I am starting today, and we are playing at home in AT&T Park. Out opponent is the Cardinals who are starting their Ace, Keenan Sutherland. Last year Sutherland was 12-8 with a 3.76 ERA. This is only his third year in the big leagues. There are 41,503 on hand for the Season Openner today. It's a bit overcast, but this park is absolutely stunning.

on a 3-2 count I strike their leadoff man out looking at some heat at the knees...liner up the middle as I can't quite place a slider on the corner...I am having problems placing my curve as the next man slaps a single to the right side on a hit and run...men at the corners with one out...high fly ball to right and it goes to the brick wall, and it hits off of it while Jay Brue tries to jump up against the wall. A run scores and there are now runners on 2nd and 3rd...yeesh...I can't place anything on the outside corner to save my life...I throw 3 straight balls to start out the next batter, then I work the count back and get him swinging on a beautiful curve to get the 2nd out...easy grounder to Panda who guns the runner down at first to end the inning...huge jam that I'm lucky to get out of only down 0-1

SF - Melky Cabrera with a solo shot on his first at bat of the year, and we're tied up already

pop to Bruce in right to leadoff the 2nd...routine fly right to Espinosa in Left and he takes it down for the second out...tapper back to me for the 3rd out...

Panda makes a great play on a really bad hop at third, and throws the man out at first...tapper to me again and I flip it to Cabrera for the second out...routine groundout to johnson for the third out

SF - I'm coming to bat in the bottom of the 3rd. Kelly Johnson is on first base and there are no outs. The third base coach is telling me to do a sacrafice bunt. I bunt and it is popped up but the pitcher misses it! Unfortunately Johnson wasn't running when it was in the air and he is thrown out at second, while I reach safely at first on a FC...I run on contact and though I try to break it up at second, we get doubled up

grounder to Cabrera who takes it himself to first...bloop down the left field line for a single...Panda makes a diving stop down the line at third but when he gets up to throw it to second he drops the ball...a ball is slapped to the right side and Johnson can't quite get it as he dives, and the ball goes into right center scoring a run...men on 2nd and 3rd with 1 away...I elect to intentionally walk the next man to create a force at any plate and bring the Pitcher to the plate...god dammit my control has been awful all game and I let a fastball slip right down the middle, the pitcher laces it into center and 2 runs score...popped to very shallow right for the second out...strike three is called a ball, but the next pitch is grounded to Cabrera for the 3rd out. We're down 1-4...awful start to the season

ball hit to the warning track in right but it's a long loud out...struck the next man out as my control seems to come and go by the batter...slow grounder to cabrera who flips it underhand to me and I step on the bag for the 3rd out...

I am pulled after that, and I don't blame them. We score two more times and the pen holds, but it's not enough. We lose 3-4.

Line - 5 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO, and I get the loss.

[Sun Tzu]

4/3 - We take the second game of the openning series, 8-5

4/4 - We win the third game and take the series from the Cards! Jong-su Na pitches a great game and we win 10-1

4/5 - We travel just 8 hours south to San Diego for a 3 game series. Game one is ours thanks to some great pitching. We win 5-1

4/6 - Game two has more great pitching, but on both sides. We only allow 1 run, but they allow none. We lose 0-1

[Sun Tzu]

I'm starting tonights game against the Padres at Petco Park. This is the third and final game agains the Padres in this series. On the hill for them is Geovany Taveras who is 0-1 with a 7.71 ERA.

We have three different starting players in the lineup Today. Dexter Fowler is leading off and starting in place of Jay Bruce in RF. Casey Kotchman is batting 7th and starting in place of Melky Espinosa in LF. Emmanuel Burriss is batting 8th and starting in place of Kelly Johnson at 2B. Strange that both our #3 and #4 batters are off today...hopefully it wont come back to bite us.

Bj Upton pops it straight up to lead off...deep fly to center but Swain pulls it down for the second out just in front of the track...another popup for doumis behind the plate and the 1st inning is over

SF - I'm coming to bat with men on 2nd and 3rd with two outs. Coach said to swing away...the score is still 0-0. I swing at the first pitch and hit a ball in four territory that is just barely playable for the third out

their cleaup man goes down looking at a curve, as my control is spot on so far...I put my foot in my mouth and walk the next batter on 5 pitches...grounder to cabrera at first but we can't turn a DP, only getting the man at second...their hot hitter named "shackleford" who is hitting .440 with 2 jacks already goes down swinging at some low heat to end the inning

SF - Miguel Cabrera with an RBI double in the top of the 3rd to put us up 1-0

grounder to burriss for the first out...tiny tapper by the pitcher right to me and I tag him out...BJ Upton with a two out single to left...one hopper to cabrera who takes it to first himself to end the 3rd inning

SF - I'm coming up to bat in the top of the 4th. There is a man on 1st with two outs. Coach says to swing away...groundout to third

liner into the gap in left center to start the 5th inning with a double...Duane Clark puts a changeup that floats up over the plate into the right field stands for a 2 run homer...grounder to panda and he throws the man out at first for out #1...curveball grounded to burriss and he launches a ball into the dugout...thanks...another grounder to burriss and he hits the target this time for the second out...runner at third with two away...I go from 0-2 to 3-2 and then walk shierholtz on a very close sinker that could have gone either way...the pitcher comes up and waves at an inside fastball to end the 4th...the damage is done though and we're down 1-2

BJ upton looks at an inside fastball for strike three...grounder to burriss for the second out...I walk the next man on FIFTEEN pitches on a pitch that was a bonafide strike...a hard grounder to the right that bounces off of burriss' glove, they call it an infield single and there are men on 1st and 2nd now...single to left but the runner holds at third...bases loaded now with two down...man this was looking like a 1-2-3 what's going on?...high fly to the gap in left center and it's caught for the third out...whew!

SF - I may get pulled for a pinch hitter, I may not...and I'm being told to hit in the top of the 6th with men on 1st and 2nd with two outs. Swing away he says! I work the count to 3-2 but I go down swinging on a nasty curveball low

soft liner right at cabrera for the first out...Shierholtz grounds it right to panda for the second out...the pitcher coming up now...very soft very easy grounder right to burriss and it's a 1-2-3 6th inning

as expected i'm pulled after that, and I watch the rest of the game from the dugout hoping we can score some runs.

Unfortunately we can't score any more runs at all. We lose 1-3

Line - 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 SO, and my record drops to 0-2

[Sun Tzu]

4/8 - We travel to LA to face off against the hated Dodgers for a 3 game series. In game 1 the Dodgers win 1-2 off of some great pitching from both sides.

4/10 - We take game two as our defending Cy Young winner wins his second game. 7-4

4/11 - The Dodgers win this round, taking the third and final game 3-4.

4/12 - We head back to San Fran for a 3 game series against the Diamondbacks. They win the first game 7-10 off of some serious hot bats.