Kansas City Monarchs: A Fictional OOTP Dynasty

[JetsIn06]

1922 Off-Season: Expansion Draft

Four new clubs will enter play for the 1922 season, and today, they will take the first steps in filling their rosters. The rules for the draft have been slightly modified, with each team now able to protect 35 players, down from 40, and each team is now limited to two players taken from them, up from one.

We lost CF Mike Frazier and SP Don Augustin to Cleveland.

[JetsIn06]

1922 Season: Spring Training

We finish Spring Training with a not-so-great 11-12 record. We also have been ranked as the 12th worst farm system in baseball, only trailed by the four expansion teams. That's worrisome, but we're going to do our best to rectify that with some young international signings.

[JetsIn06]

1922 Season: Amateur Draft

Last year, we were unable to sign our top pick, so we have the 11th and the 20th pick in this year's amateur draft.

With the 11th pick, we select SP Jay Ernst, a 6'2" right-hander from Indiana University. His calling card is his command, but he sports a fastball in the 94-96 MPH range with good splitter in his arsenal. With the 20th pick, we re-select 2B Louis Blake, who we didn't sign last year.

We're currently 31-20, 2.5 GB of the 1st place St. Louis Terriers.

[JetsIn06]

1922 Season: International Signings

We spend $2.75m on international amateurs, staying under the $3m cap which will allow us to spend freely in the market again next year. We sign no less than seven players of varying abilities, with the hope that just one of them pans out.

[JetsIn06]

1922 Season: Presidents Cup Series

Another year, another attempt at the Presidents Cup. This is our fourth attempt in a row, and despite a 99-win season, I'm worried moving forward. SP Tom Crumpler, who was once our ace, finished with a 4.14 ERA, a far cry from his 2.70 ERA season in 1920. SP Paul Mach, the #1 pick in the 1917 draft, came back from a year-long injury to start six games and he had a 7.47 ERA in those games, and our scouts ratings of him have fell.

On offense, our future third-baseman 3B Andy Davis has struggled in his big-league time, hitting .240/.306/.342, and won't be on the playoff roster, replaced by a mid-season trade pickup 3B Niel Knox, who's been on fire, hitting .405 in 16 games with us, but he's not a long-term solution.

By the end of the season, our minor-league system has dropped a spot to 13th. The future isn't looking bright, but hey...a 99-win season is pretty damn good, and if we win it all, I'll feel a lot better. We'll face off in a rematch of the 1921 series, Kansas City vs. Chicago.

Game 1

C Lee Sheppard and CF Russ Ashley have stellar games against us, going 2-3 with a HR, 3 RBI, and a run, and 4-4, with 2 2B an 3 R, respectively. We at least score 5 to make it close, but we lose 7-5 after two big 3-run innings from Chicago.

Game 2

SP Paul Mach tells us to go screw ourselves for worrying about him by going 8 innings, giving up 2 ER with 6 K's. Our offense struggles though, and we go to extras tied 2-2. In the top of the 11th, our backup catcher C Clive Monroe doubles on a deep shot over the CF's head, bringing OF Jaime Gutierrez to third. With two outs, pinch-hitter 3B Bob McTeir smacks a groundball between 1st and 2nd, and the 2B bobbles it on an error, bringing home a run. The bottom of the 11th saw MR Larry Gibson come in, who's been pitching out of the bullpen all year, and doing it extremely well. This time wasn't so easy. After a quick flyout, an infield single and then a line-drive single made it 1st and 2nd, and then a dribbler to 3B got an out, but the runners advanced. With two outs on the first pitch, Gibson got an easy flyout to CF, and we win 3-2.

Game 3

SP Cesar Hernandez dominates, but rookie MR Gustav Boden comes in to take care of the 8th and tanks, allowing three hits and a wild pitch, and creating a bad situation for MR Larry Gibson, who promptly gives up a two-run homer. Luckily, we exited the inning with an 8-5 lead, and the score wouldn't change. We win 8-5, and take a 2-1 lead in the series.

Game 4

SP Frank Wagner, a surprise hit the year with a 14-8 record and a 3.05 ERA makes the start in Game 4, and we lose a close one. After taking a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the 1st, Wagner quickly gave up three runs, the third of which was on a bases loaded balk. That would be the difference, as we lose 5-4, and Chicago ties the series at two.

Game 5

We head to Chicago for games 5 and 6, and the first of those is a wild one. We go into the bottom of the 8th with a 6-0 lead, and Chicago scores 4, then takes it to the 9th down 6-4. With two outs, 1B John Searle launched a double off the center-field wall, scoring two to tie the game. The game would be scoreless until the top of the 14th, when RF Mark Cooper kicked things off with a double, and was driven in by another double with two outs by CF Mike Hawkins. Chicago's 1B John Searle made another heroic attempt, missing a home run by inches and taking a two-out double instead, but MR Gustav Bolden got the final groundout to seal the win, 7-6.

Game 6

Another close one, but no late-game heroics needed. We score three runs in the top of the 4th when SP Cesar Hernandez helped himself out with an RBI-single, and tacked on two more with a 2RBI-single, making it 3-0. Hernandez didn't have his best stuff, but still held Chicago to just two runs. Our bullpen shut down the 8th and 9th, and we head back to Kansas City, up 4 games to 2.

Game 7

SP Paul Mach will try to bring the first Presidents Cup to Kansas City, and do it in front of our home crowd of 48,828. Things start very poorly, with a lead-off home run for Chicago.

We answer back in the 5th with an RBI-single from 3B Steve Jacobs, and then heroics from LF Charlie Stewart, who makes Chicago pay for their mistakes. With one out, 2B Adrian Black smacks a double down the first-base line, and they intentionally walk CF Mike Hawkins. It looks like it will pay off when C John Acton hits a hard-ground ball to the SS for an easy double play, but he boots it, and the bases are loaded for LF Charlie Stewart. On the first pitch, Stewart crushes a line drive down the right-field line and IT. IS. GONE! A GRAND SLAM for Stewart, and we're now up 5-1. Mach shuts the door on them in the 7th, and with 99 pitches, it's the end of his amazing day. 7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 8 K, 0 BB.

In the top of the 8th, MR Larry Gibson gets a quick groundball out, but then gives up a single up the middle and then an infield single, so rookie MR Gustav Boden comes in to clean up the mess. He strikes out CF Russ Ashley, and now MR Greg Sommer comes in to face the right-handed power hitter 1B John Searle. One swing could get them back in the game.

On an 0-1 pitch, Sommer throws a sinker up in the zone. Searle doesn't let it go, and hammers it deep into left-center field. LF Charlie Stewart has to dig for it, and our hearts are in our throats. As he approaches the wall, he slows down, takes a breath, and makes the catch on the warning track. We're out of the 8th, and we're three outs away.

In the bottom of the 8th, who else but LF Charlie Stewart smacks a triple, scoring two more runs, making it 7-1, and Stewart will likely finish the game 2-for-4, with 6 RBI. C Clive Monroe (who's playing 1B) drives in two more before the inning is over, and we head into the 9th with a 9-1 lead.

Sommer stays in the game to face their 4, 5, and 6 hitters.

Strikeout. Two outs away.

Groundout to third. We're one out away.

It won't be a 1-2-3 inning, with a ground-rule double.

LF Murray Bennet is at the plate. Sommer deals on the 1-2...and THAT'S IT! KANSAS CITY WINS THE PRESIDENTS CUP SERIES! The first in our history, with hopefully many more to come!

Kansas City wins the Presidents Cup Series, 5 games to 2!

[JetsIn06]

1922 Season: Final Standings and Awards



Columbia League Rookie of the Year:

1B Randy MacDonald (St. Louis)
.277/.341/.518
25 HR/91 RBI
2.0 WAR

United League Rookie of the Year:

2B Shusaku Kokawa (Boston)
.288/.350/.437
17 HR/67 RBI
2.1 WAR

Columbia League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Cesar Hernandez (Kansas City)
22-3
2.59 ERA 217 K/52 BB
7.3 WAR

United League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Miguel Romero (Detroit)
19-7
2.92 ERA 221 K/54 BB
7.7 WAR

Columbia League Hitter of the Year:

CF Mike Hawkins (Kansas City)
.368/.449/.645
30 HR/87 RBI
7.9 WAR

United League Hitter of the Year:

1B John Searle (Chicago)
.345/.418/.650
43 HR/122 RBI
8.7 WAR

[JetsIn06]

1923 Off-Season: Looking Back at the 1912 Draft

With ten full seasons under our belt since the 1912 amateur draft, let's take a look back at how we did in that draft.

Here's how I commented on that draft:

If I'm going to be completely frank here, I'm not all that impressed with the available youngsters, despite one player's (SS Adrian Black) demand of a $10.5m signing bonus. The 21-year-old clearly believes himself to be the top player in the draft, and my $8.5m budget from ownership not withstanding, he is merely good, not great. His range looks quite good enough (7) to play his natural position at shortstop, but his arm (4) leaves a lot to be desired. His offense fits the profile; a contact-hitting (6p), no-power (2p), speedy kind of guy (7sp/6st).
I'm having trouble finding another player to compare him to, with the two top raw-talents being relievers (who I won't even consider selecting with this pick).

1B Otto Mason is an alternative, and by alternative, I mean a completely different direction. This 18-year-old hometown kid (he is from Missouri) is already 6'5" and weighs 250, and as you could guess, he's got massive power (7p). He can't run, he can't field, but the guy can mash. Unfortunately, he doesn't have a very good eye (4p) but unlike a lot of other massive power hitters, he may not strike out a lot (6p).

SP Jon Goulding and SP Dave Keeling are two other guys I'd at least consider. Both have very similar raw skill sets, each rated the same in stuff, movement, and control (5p, 5p, 6p, respectfully), although Goulding has better stamina and also better individual pitch ratings. Goulding, 20, is coming out of college and did very well on that stage facing great competition, while Keeling had better stats but did it against a fairly weak conference.

Looking at our minor-league system, we have six players who are ranked as Top-50 prospects, and four of them are pitchers, one is a catcher, and one is a center-fielder. I think we could really use a young infielder to balance out the system. We'll figure out the budget.

SS Adrian Black, welcome to the Kansas City Monarchs.

It's safe to say that I did well with this pick. 2B Adrian Black is still with the team and has put together eight full seasons, and is under contract for another two seasons, and has a player option for a third. Right now, he currently stands in 9th place in career WAR among hitters, with 36.17 wins for his career. He also hold three Golden Glove Awards, and has been named to two All-Star teams. He's 13th in career hits with 1,404, and 4th in stolen bases with 377.

1B Otto Mason ended up going 8th to the Philadelphia Athletics, where he still plays. He was three years younger, so his rookie season wasn't until 1918. He's struggled mightily since then, playing in just 27 games in 1921 and 57 games this past season. His power hasn't showed up yet either, although he's done well in the minors in that regard.

SP Dave Keeling went 5th to Newark, but was traded to Detroit before his UBA debut. He spent his first three seasons out of the bullpen, but has been starting since, and ended up being traded to Baltimore after a bad start in 1916. He redeemed himself there, having four fantastic years before signing with New York as a free agent, where he remains.

SP Jon Goulding went one pick later to Brooklyn, but was also traded before his debut to St. Louis. After making a solid debut in 1917 as a reliever in 54 games, he's been okay, having a few good years but also having a terrible final year in St. Louis. Prior to this last season, he was signed to the expansion Boston Minutemen on a minor-league deal, where he pitched in just seven games.

The draft class as a whole wasn't very good aside from 2B Adrian Black and 3B John Boyd, who also spent some time with us, who has a career WAR of 32.7.

[JetsIn06]

1923 Off-Season: Arbitration and Free Agents

We have five players eligible for arbitration, all but one first-timers, and three free agents.

SP Paul Mach and SP Frank Wagner are the major players, both eligible for their first time, and both candidates for a long-term extension, but I'd really like to see another year from both of these guys before committing a large chunk of money towards them. On top of that, we don't have the budget for any kind of extension, so I don't even know why I brought it up.

SS Steve Jacobs is asking for $2.6m to be a backup infielder, and I think I can get by without him, despite four years of excellent contribution from the bench. This year was a down year for him though, and I can't commit that money when we're already over budget. CF Mike Gibbs is only asking for $750k, and he's a solid backup OF, so he'll get a one-year offer. Same with MR Lance Eldridge. who was drafted in the 3rd round of the above mentioned 1912 draft.

As for free agents, the'll all be leaving for now since we are out of budget room. MR Jose Antonio Hernandez, 3B Neil Knox, and 3B Bob McTeir will all walk.

[JetsIn06]

1923 Off-Season: Outlook and Overview

Before I show the organizational chart, here's a look at our salary commitments up through the next ten seasons:





We're losing a few key guys next year, and fairly obviously, we don't have very much depth in the minors. Luckily, these guys are making quite a bit of money so a lot will come off the books, but at the same time, I've sort of put myself in a mess with this payroll, and keeping some more flexibility will be a goal moving forward, which may mean filling both 1B and RF with only 50% of the available budget, perhaps. Then again, because of SP Cesar Hernandez's massive $5m yearly raise, I'm actually only dropping less than $3m in payroll, although he could decline his player option. Our best course of action right now is to stay put. We won't be taking part in free agency, though we do pick up MR Cristo Velez and SS Aurelio Castillo in the Rule-5 draft.

[JetsIn06]

1923 Off-Season: SP Cesar Hernandez Signs Extension

I think we just made a pretty great deal for one, if not the best, pitcher in baseball. His contract will remain as is for the following two seasons, except next season becomes guaranteed at $20m. However, we get another four years, starting at $15.75 and rising $1m per year, ending at $18.75m for the 1928 season. We'll deal with another year for a lot of money but then get a discount moving forward.

[JetsIn06]

1923 Season: Spring Training

Well, we had a bad spring training last year, and went on to win 99 games and a Presidents Cup trophy, but a 9-15 record this year is causing just a little bit of concern.

We do have some injury concerns, with 2B Adrian Black out for the first two weeks, SP Frank Wagner out for four weeks, and MR Bobby Fann out for two months.

[JetsIn06]

1923 Season: Amateur Draft

Hmm. We're 5.5 GB with a 23-23 record. The culprit? Our offense has been bad. We're 6th in the Columbia League in OPS, 7th in runs scored, 8th in extra-base hits. We have the fewest strikeouts, which is a positive, but...what happened?

LF Charlie Stewart has a .351 OBP, but is only hitting .206 and has just 1 HR. 1B Sean Sawicki is hitting just .255 with a .294 OBP and just 5 HR. SS Ed Coffelt, who was never a great hitter, is having the worst year of his career, hitting just .204/.268/.259. We'll have to start manufacturing some runs, because the big hits just aren't coming. We're still in it, of course, but this is worrying.

We have the 15th pick in the draft, which seems to be very deep overall. We should get a pretty good player even that far down. With the pick, there's three players we are interested in, each offering something different. First, there's CF Bruce Jordan, an 18-year old power hitting switch-hitter with good speed and enough range to stay in CF. His discipline at the plane leaves a lot to be desired, though.

Next is SS Kinnard Rowe, a very good defender with good contact skills and a great eye, but no power. There's also 17-year-old SS Dwayne Frazier, who has a similar defensive skillset as Rowe, but terrible discipline. However, he has some more power.

We take to take SS Dwayne Frazier with the pick, and hope that his eye can develop. If it does, he'd be a five-tool player.

[JetsIn06]

1923 Season: Presidents Cup Series

Disappointment. The season ends with us looking up at five other teams, with a final record of 74-80. How did this championship team do so terribly this season? We did lose SP Cesar Hernandez in the beginning of August, but things were already pretty much over at that point. We finished 6th in runs scored and 5th in runs allowed.

1B Sean Sawicki had a terrible final year with us so I'm really happy to see him go, but I can't say the same about RF Mark Cooper. He hit .307/.354/.382, but only played in 113 games because of injury. Our doctors tell us his body is breaking down because of all the injuries, we won't re-sign him, but it'll be sad to see him go.

The most concerning development this year was 2B Adrian Black, who finished with 0.4 WAR. His defense was below average, and he hit just .238, down from his career .278 average.

The Presidents Cup Series sees the Chicago Packers return for the third straight season to face off against first-time Columbia League pennant winner St. Louis Terriers. There's a few close games but Chicago dominates, and the Packers defeat the Terriers, 5 games to 1.

[JetsIn06]

1923 Season: Final Standings and Awards



Columbia League Rookie of the Year:

SP Frank Sommerville (St. Louis)
12-6
3.28 ERA 261 K/78 BB
6.4 WAR

United League Rookie of the Year:

2B Al Everette (New York)
.286/.329/.540
26 HR/93 RBI
2.4 WAR

Columbia League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Reynaldo Trevino (St. Louis)
23-8
2.64 ERA 206 K/38 BB
5.9 WAR

United League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Mick Angwin (Chicago)
20-3
2.42 ERA 167 K/59 BB
5.8 WAR

Columbia League Hitter of the Year:

CF Carlos Gamboa (Brooklyn)
.323/.361/.587
43 HR/110 RBI
5.7 WAR

United League Hitter of the Year:

1B John Searle (Chicago)
.331/.394/.611
37 HR/118 RBI
6.4 WAR

[JetsIn06]

1924 Off-Season: Looking Back at the 1913 Draft

Now, to the draft. We once again have the first pick in the draft, along with a couple picks in the supplemental round and the top two picks in the 2nd round, which gives us five of the top twenty-three picks.

At the top, there's really only one guy that I like. CF Mark Cooper is, in my opinion, the best player available and also fills a massive need for us. At 21, he'll hopefully be ready in a year or two. He has no power and his discipline is pretty suspect, but he's got great contact (6p) and the defensive skill set to play CF pretty well. At Rice, he hit .376 and stole 35 bases in 52 games.

With the first of our supplemental picks, we take the Salvadoran-American 3B Luis Rey, a power hitter with good range and a great arm. Next is SP John Nicholson, a 23-year-old RHP from Fordham.

Seems like a fitting time to look back at this draft with RF Mark Cooper about to hit free agency. This was another big hit. Cooper has had a wonderful career with us, having a career batting line of .315/.356/.393 with 1,444 career hits, good for 15th all-time. Cooper holds the record for singles in a season, with 176, set in the 1918 season. We also took 3B Luis Rey, who is still in the organization but has only had a few cups of coffee with the big-league club. SP John Nicholson turned into a reliever and had some good years in AAA, but never made it to the majors. You may know 5th round pick CF Mike Gibbs, who also remains in the organization as a bench outfielder, playing in 194 games over six seasons. No other players taken made it to the UBA.

[JetsIn06]

1924 Off-Season: Team Options

Typically, these are easy to accept or decline, but with our bad year, it might be time to move on from some of these guys.

SP Tom Crumpler has a team option, but it's an easy decline. He's become a shell of himself over the last two seasons, this year finishing 8-14 with a 4.95 ERA and 103 BB to 101 K.

SP Larry Gibson is another guy who was once amazing, and now can't even take a spot in the rotation. He's been great in the bullpen, but now his stamina is no longer what it once was, and I'm not going to pay him the $8.5m he's owed to pitch out of the pen.

Finally, LF Charlie Stewart has an option worth $13m. He had a solid .358 OBP, but hit .239 with just 10 HR, finishing with 0.6 WAR. His option will also be declined.

[JetsIn06]

1924 Off-Season: Arbitration and Free Agents

My core is just disappearing before my eyes. The guys who sent us to four Presidents Cup Series in a row are gone, and we'll have to think about the direction we want to take the club over the next few years to get back there.

We have nine arbitration eligible players, and five free agents. SP Paul Mach and SP Frank Wagner are the two major players that get tendered a one-year contract, but some depth and bench guys will also stay.

In free agency, we'll lose Tom Crumpler, SP Larry Gibson, 1B Sean Sawicki, LF Charlie Stewart, RF Mark Cooper, and RF Jaime Gutierrez. Sadly, these guys have dropped off so much that only Mark Cooper is attached to compensation, and it's only Type-B.

[JetsIn06]

1924 Off-Season: Monarchs Trade SS Coffelt

SS Ed Coffelt has three years and $43.5m left on his deal, and his offense is getting bad enough to not justify the stellar defense he plays. Brooklyn is willing to take his contract on, but in return, want us to take on their bad contract, 1B Wayne Keeler. Keeler is one of the worst defenders in the league, but he can still hit very, very well. We're in need of a 1B, so he'll fit in there. He's still owed $34 over two years (with next year a player option), so we'll get rid of the bad contract faster with him than Coffelt.

[JetsIn06]

Back to the game after a couple days of massive amounts of work/real-life things to do.

1924 Offseason: Outlook and Overview



So, yea. We are not looking good here long-term. We might put together a .500 season, maybe even a winning season, but it won't last, and we only have $5m in budget to play with right now, without looking at our scouting/player development budget.

Now that I've looked, they're high, which is where I want them, but we do have quite a few holes to fill. More to come soon.

[JetsIn06]

1924 Off-Season: Free Agency

So with the long-term future of our club where it's at, and the sub-.500 season we just woefully achieved, I'd feel like I'm sacrificing the long-term future of the team if I took money away from scouting and such. The problem is that unless I sign some decent guys, I'll be starting at least two players I'd prefer to be on my bench, and likely not have a shortstop who's even capable of playing the position.

SS/OF Cristobal Campos could be the next SS Ed Coffelt, a defense-first shortstop that could put up 3 WAR while hitting .220/.290/.310. But that's the kind of guy I'd like to test out while we're rebuilding, not in the late stages of a run (despite our failures last year, we still are in the final stages of some big contracts, so now's the time).

Shit. I didn't even realize that because of my cash situation, which is in the red, I actually only have $1.8m to spend, so I probably will have to re-allocate some funds to get us at the very least, a competent SS and CF.

***

After doing so, and adjusting to league average or slightly above in scouting and player development, I have $12.6m, probably just enough to fill in those two holes.

Our first offer goes to SS Roberto Marquez, who's never left the northeast region, spending time with New York, Brooklyn, and most recently Newark. The 28-year-old has eight seasons under his belt, and his most dangerous tool is his speed. Rated 8 across the board in speed, stealing, and baserunning (out of a possible 8, if you're just catching up), and has 292 steals to his name. He's a lifetime .246/.302/.349 hitter. His defense is good, but not great, but he could start for a year. He gets a 1-year, $4.3m offer.

Next offer goes to CF Bill Watts, a 29yo switch hitter who's had three down years after a .244/.314/.445, 28 HR season in 1920. He's cheap, so there's no risk. He gets a one-year, $1.25 offer.

We find another reclamation project in 3B/RF Leo Schleicher, who's been on a downward slope for the last three years. But he's got something left. Over the last four years, he's gone from 28 HR to 23, 20, and then just 13 last year. Even if he can give us 10, I'd be happy. More worrying though, is his trending average, .251, .231, .217, .193. Yikes. But his walk-rate hasn't changed all that much, so I think he can post about a .320 OBP and fill in for a year, hopefully adding some power to the lineup. One-year, $900k should get it done.

Final offer goes to MR Mike Boyle, who sat out most of last season (until September, only appearing in 4 games) for reasons unknown. $2.4m should get it done, and I think he can offer a very solid late-inning arm to the pen.

[JetsIn06]

1924 Season: Spring Training

15-9. A good sign, perhaps? I feel good about the signings we made in the off-season. Very low risk, high reward type of guys. We'll see what happens. To the season we go.

[JetsIn06]

1924 Season: Amateur Draft

Well, things started off really well, then slowed down a bit, but we're doing okay. 26-23 so far with very good pitching from our top three in the rotation and lots of instability from #4 and #5. New signing SS Roberto Marquez was excellent in his first 30 games, hitting .291/.352/.464, but has been out since then (a six-week injury, three weeks left). CF Bill Watts another new signing, has been incredible, hitting .340/.426/.468,

In the draft, we have the 6th pick, and it's clear, RF David Timberlake is the guy to take. By all accounts he has heavy-duty power, and our scout thinks he'll be able to hit for average in the future. Not a great eye at the plate, and no speed whatsoever, but he's actually a pretty good fielder despite that.

[JetsIn06]

1924 Season: September

This is gonna be crazy. On August 1st, we were 6.5 GB of Pittsburgh, with both St. Louis and Brooklyn also in front of us. To get there, after a 14-15 June, we had an 18-11 August, but we lost our ace pitcher SP Cesar Hernandez to a season-ending injury.

It's now September 1st, and five teams are in it. Brooklyn, Pittsburgh, and ourselves are tied with a 74-56 record. St. Louis is just one game back at 73-57, and Newark is hanging in there with a 68-59 record.

We kick off September with a four-game sweep of Broolyn, then take two-of-three from bottom feeders Cleveland. Then, Brooklyn comes to our place for three games and we sweep again! They're now six games out, Newark is eight out, and it looks like it's us, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis, who are all 1.5 games within each other.

Big series against Washington. They're terrible, so a sweep is definitely in the cards. We pull it off, and now three against Pittsburgh, who are now 2GB after our six-game streak.

The first game goes fifteen innings and we win! We take game two but lose the final game of the series, but gain a game and are now three up with eight games to play.

We take two of three from Newark and gain another game on Pittsburgh, who are now four games back with five to play.

Shit. St. Louis wins two and we lose two, finding their way back in it, and now they're three games back with three to play, and we have to play in Brooklyn, while they have one more game against Pittsburgh, and then travel for a two-game series to finish the season in Cleveland.

Oh no. St. Louis beats Cleveland, and now it's down to this final series. We win and we're in.

And we do! We win the first game of the series, and we're headed back to the Presidents Cup Series to face off against Minnesota!

[JetsIn06]

Don't have much time, have to wake up in three hours Sorry for the rush. Be back Sunday.

1924 Season: Presidents Cup Series

We lose Games 1 and 2, but win Game 3.

Game 4 is a heartbreaker. Down three runs in the bottom of the 9th, we hit two one-out solo shots to get within one run. Next guy gets a single, then a balk, then a walk, and then another single that get the run home, but the bases are loaded with one out. OF Jaime Campos comes to bat, and the infield comes in. 6-2-3 double play. Game over.

We lose Game 5, once again, in heartbreaking fashion, giving up a one-run lead in the 9th by a home run and then letting them win in the bottom of the 10th with a leadoff triple, intentional walk, hit by pitch, and then a single between 3B and SS.

Game 6 seals the deal, as we get effectively blown out 5-1 with no offense to speak of. Another series visit, another loss. We've been there five of the last six years, and have just one Presidents Cup trophy to show for it.

[JetsIn06]

1924 Season: Final Standings and Awards



Columbia League Rookie of the Year:

1B Maximo Padilla (Newark)
.249/.311/.426
24 HR/116 RBI
0.1 WAR

United League Rookie of the Year:

CF Antonio Guerrero (Chicago)
.259/.310/.479
27 HR/68 RBI
+24.4 UZR/1.113 EFF
5.0 WAR

Columbia League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Frank Wagner (Kansas City)
16-2
2.65 ERA 160 K/65 BB
4.7 WAR

United League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Jose Martinez (Minnesota)
18-2
2.55 ERA 127 K/61 BB
2.7 WAR

Columbia League Hitter of the Year:

CF Mike Hawkins (Kansas City)
.312/.381/.585
44 HR/113 RBI
7.7 WAR

United League Hitter of the Year:

1B Jose Feliciano (Philadelphia)
.347/.434/.671
46 HR/118 RBI
9.4 WAR

[JetsIn06]

1925 Off-Season: Looking Back at the 1914 Draft

Our first pick in the 1914 draft, which back then was unsurprisingly the top choice overall, was SP Tom Crumpler. Crumpler made his debut in 1918, going 10-1 with a 2.67 ERA in 20 starts. What was an incredible start to his career over the first few seasons faded away in 1922, when he walked over 100 batters and finished with a 4.14 ERA, following it up with a 4.95 ERA in 1923, his final year with Kansas City. His control just disappeared, and he found some success in Baltimore this past season with a 3.18 ERA, despite a 1.3 KK/BB ratio.

[JetsIn06]

1925 Off-Season: Arbitration and Free Agents

I didn't have much choice with the way our budget was last off-season, but there was a one-year deal I signed that really outperformed the contract, and now I wish I had tacked on a team option or something. 3B Leo Schleicher was coming off a .193/.302/.323 season, and we signed him to a one-year, $900k deal. He proceeded to hit .276/.380/.455 with 21 HR for a 5.2 WAR total, and now, he's looking for a six-year, $77m deal. The upside is he is a Type-A free agent, so we'll at least get two picks in return.

Also leaving will be SS Roberto Marquez, who has Type-B compensation attached. He did okay for us in limited action over 285 AB with 1.4 WAR.

As far as arbitration, we have ten players eligible, but we currently don't have enough budget room to consider any long-term deals, so everyone that signs will just get one-year. However, one non-tendered player will be MR Lance Eldridge, who was drafted in the first 1912 draft class in the third round. After posting very good numbers the previous two seasons, his ERA jumped to 5.18 despite a very low .260 BABIP, which doesn't imply any bad luck or a reason to believe he'll bounce back easily.

We'll also non-tender C Clive Monroe, the long-serving backup catcher of the team, who only appeared 21 times at the plate due to the superior abilities of C Roberto Burra. Same with 2B Scott Adams, who appeared to have a breakout year last season, posting a 3.0 WAR value, but dropping precipitously down to a -1.2 value this year.

[JetsIn06]

1925 Off-Season: Outlook and Overview

Quick look at our salary commitments:



There's no use even posting the organizational depth chart when I only have two decent prospects, both who could make their debut this season, in SP Carlin Sanxter and SP Jay Ernst. We have the 14th ranked minor-league system in baseball, with the only Top-100 prospect being Ernst.

For the major-league club, we have holes at RF, CF, and SS, in that order. However, we have zero budget room. We have one more year with 1B Wayne Keeler, who actually did very well for us last year, hitting .266/.330/.497 with 37 HR and a 2.3 WAR, and one more year with fan-favorite 2B Adrian Black. I'm considering doing some searching for trades involving SP Cesar Hernandez, our only remaining long-term commitment. If we could trade him to a team willing to send back a good starter back with a one-year deal, it may be worth it, and it could save us some money to help fill those three holes, but we'll have to wait a bit, as he's still injured for 4-5 weeks.

[JetsIn06]

1925 Off-Season: Monarchs Trade Cesar Hernandez to Brooklyn

This guy really changed the face of our entire team, and will be looked upon fondly for the remainder of our history, but the way the rest of the roster is constructed financially really made it hard to turn this down. In return, we get 24yo SP Gary Whitaker, who posted a 4.04 ERA over 42 games, 18 of them starts. We also get 23yo MR Dan Rowe, who over 45 games out of the pen last season posted a 3.18 ERA. They both make the minimum salary, so a bunch of room is opened up to maybe get a RF and/or CF on a one-year deal to make one final push for a playoff spot before the inevitable rebuild.

[JetsIn06]

1925 Off-Season: Free Agency

I should note that we made FOUR picks in the Rule-5 draft. They're very, very much of a gamble, and most of them could just play good defense at positions of need. They chances of them sticking are slim, but I figured I'd make a note in case one of them breaks out.

So, after the SP Cesar Hernandez trade, we still are slim at RF and CF, and possibly SS if we still have the budget. We only have $9.9m to spend, and after looking at a projected lineup for the team, it looks like CF is the most pressing need, so we go after CF Jose Mejia with a one-year, $7.4m offer with a team option for a second year at the same price. We also go after CF Juan Fuentes, a 29-year-old from Cuba who has yet to play in a single game. He gets a one-year, $800k offer.

They both sign a few days later, and we call free agency quits after making one final small offer to SP Donald Vidrine.

[JetsIn06]

1925 Season: Spring Training

We finish the spring with no injuries and a record of 13-11.

[Izulde]

I swear, you guys are like the Atlanta Braves of this league, and one win away from being the Buffalo Bills.

[JetsIn06]

1925 Season: Amateur Draft

The one-final-push plan isn't working so well. We're 24-30 with terrible pitching and not good offense. But, at least today is about the future. We have five picks in the first two rounds, which should help replenish our farm system a bit.

With our first selection, the 15th overall pick, we take SS Kurt Fenner, a 19-year-old with absolutely brilliant defensive skills and a well-rounded offensive skill-set to go with it.

[JetsIn06]

1925 Season: Presidents Cup Series

The Brooklyn Robins and St. Louis Terriers fought it out in the Columbia League, each winning their final five games and finishing just one game apart, but it was the Robins that took care of their own business, winning the pennant for the first time since 1916. In the United League, it was also close, as the Philadelphia Athletics made a bid by winning their final six games, but Chicago won 9 of their last 10 to keep their lead, and they'll head back to the series for the fourth time in five seasons.

While Brooklyn took the first two games, Chicago answered back, dominating the next two games 10-2 and 12-2, bringing the series back to Brooklyn. The trend of home teams winning continued through Game 6, as Brooklyn wins both games at home to go up 4-2 in the series. Chicago goes home for Game 7 and 8, and take Game 7 in a close battle, 7-6, but finally, a road team wins, and Brooklyn defeats Chicago, 5 games to 3.

[JetsIn06]

Originally Posted by Izulde

I swear, you guys are like the Atlanta Braves of this league, and one win away from being the Buffalo Bills.

Yep. Ran into a New York dynasty and the beginnings of a Chicago dynasty. And now, my run could be over depending on what happens this off-season. Will have some money to spend (though, less because of my crappy season and attendance) but I have two very tough team options to consider. I can start the rebuild now or I can try and hold on for another two seasons or so, but my decisions on them will probably revolve around re-signing some of my own free agents. It's going to be tricky, because declining the options could net me some extra picks in compensation, so I could try to get the most return from them in case they end their contracts poorly. Here's the league history and team history for a visual:

[JetsIn06]

1925 Season: Final Standings and Awards



Columbia League Rookie of the Year:

C Diego Castro (Baltimore)
.303/.353/.454
15 HR/62 RBI
2.9 WAR

United League Rookie of the Year:

1B Raul Duarte (Minnesota)
.309/.435/.554
22 HR/80 RBI
5.0 WAR

Columbia League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Cesar Hernandez (Brooklyn)
21-7
2.97 ERA 181 K/63 BB
6.1 WAR

United League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Dean Woody (Chicago)
18-8
2.95 ERA 192 K/53 BB
7.0 WAR

Columbia League Hitter of the Year:

CF Carlos Gamboa (Brooklyn)
.324/.370/.536
32 HR/113 RBI
4.1 WAR

United League Hitter of the Year:

1B Jose Feliciano (Philadelphia)
.344/.452/.630
37 HR/104 RBI
9.2 WAR

[JetsIn06]

All-Time Leaderboard Through 1925

Figure this is a good time to post the all-time single season and career leaderboards so far through the 1925 season. I will try to remember to post this every decade from hear on out, so expect the next one in 1935.

[JetsIn06]

1926 Off-Season: Team Options

Long-time Monarchs C John Acton, OF Mike Hawkins, and CL Bill Alexander, along with recent acquisition CF Jose Mejia, all have team options for the 1926 season.

But, before I make the decisions, let's look at the rest of the squad. The decision is: Do I let these guys go and take the compensation, trade them (I haven't had much success dealing veterans for prospects, really), or pick up the option and use the freed up cash from the departure of 2B Adrian Black and 1B Wayne Keeler to try and go for it for two more years?

The thing is, this team was not good with all of these players, and despite the fact that the team is still intact from our four-series-in-a-row run, we've had two losing seasons in the last three years.

In free agency, we're set to lose SP Paul Mach, who is open to a decent extension monetarily but for six years, 1B Wayne Keeler, who I never really had plans to keep long-term, and 2B Adrian Black, who has been the face of the franchise since 1912, when we drafted him #1 overall. He wants $40m over four years, but at 34yo, I'm not willing to do that.

What that means is, despite have lots of cash sitting around to make acquisitions, I have so many holes to fill, with a farm system with no real talent.

I dangle Hawkins, and get a bite from Brooklyn. We send CF Mike Hawkins, minor-league filler SS Andy Hill, and backup C Roberto Burra and get three prospects, SP Jose Zuniga, C Edward Luxton, and CF Anselmo Rivera.

And that pretty much makes the decision for us. We'll either trade or decline Acton's option, trade away anyone else we can, and start this rebuilding process now.

***

We can't find a partner for Acton, so we decline the option, and he is indeed a Type-A free agent, which is great. We'll get two young players in the draft for him. We decline all options, and also trade MR Gary Whitaker to Boston for 1B Jean-Paul Le Gall, who has what is most likely the best name in the league.

[JetsIn06]

1926 Off-Season: Arbitration and Free Agents

All free agents will be let go, and that means the end for 2B Adrian Black, the first draft pick in UBA history and Kansas City history. He finishes his time with us as a 34-year-old with 1,787 hits, 426 stolen bases, and a career .276/.358/.351 batting line and 40.01 WAR, good for 10th all-time.

Unfortunately, he leaves with an injury he'll have to rehab all off-season that could impact his next contract, considering he won't be back until the end of May or early June.

It's also sad to see C John Acton go. He started his career in Kansas City, and was a part of our Single-A team when the franchise began in 1912. He made his debut in 1917, and took the starting job halfway through 1918. He has 1,131 hits, 211 home runs, and a career line of .269/.337/.479 and 26.4 WAR, already third all-time among catchers, and he's still just 30-years-old.

[JetsIn06]

1926 Off-Season: Overview and Outlook

We have just $20.6m in salary committed to the upcoming season, but I don't see us doing anything crazy, instead focusing on the draft, developing our system, and finally going through with the plan to bring in international amateur talent with the huge amount of money we have. However, we're not going to tank the season, so we'll try to be smart with our money but still try to put a competitive team on the field.



We're ranked as the #6 farm system with the most recent draft and a couple international discoveries (not signings, just random discoveries). Still, C Edward Luxton is still on the list, but will be starting in the majors, and our top pick from last year's draft SS Kurt Fenner, isn't found on the Top-100 list. FYI, the (#) listed next to certain players is their overall prospect rating throughout baseball. Some previous charts I've posted have #'s, but those were team rankings.

[JetsIn06]

1926 Off-Season: Free Agency

We make offers to eight players, most notably to LF Gerald Greenfield, now 40, who's a ten-time All-Star and winner of eight HOTY awards. It's a one-year deal for around $1.5m, but he can come off the bench for us and ride into the sunset with our team, hopefully bringing some more fans to the games. We also offered a contract to OF Russ Ashley, now 37, who can still play the field fairly well and he's still got a great eye. He'll likely start in LF for us. Otherwise, we made some offers to three starting pitchers and some arms for the pen, who you'll hear about if they're worth hearing about. Every offer is for one year, though one offer to a MR has a team option attached.

[JetsIn06]

1926 Season: Spring Training

We go a surprising 13-11, though we lose new signee MR David Webb until late July. Also, 2B Adrian Black has gone unsigned, likely due to his injury, so we offer him a one-year deal worth $4.5m. He'll be out for a bit, but maybe he can help us down the stretch.

[JetsIn06]

1926 Season: Amateur Draft

Well, huh. We're actually not that bad! We're 26-28, and we're getting some decent performance from our rotation, specifically SP Earl Davis, who's been pretty good consistently for us throughout his career. Through 11 starts, he has a 4-2 record with a 2.96 ERA.

On offense, we're led by 3B Andy Davis, who's bounced back to being his normal self. After a 2.3 WAR season in 1924, he finished with a 0 WAR last season. Now, he leads the team with 1.7 so far, hitting .264/.330/.443 with 7 HR, on pace for a 20 HR, 80 RBI season.

In the draft, we have 6 of the first 37 picks, which should go a long way in getting us back to having a great farm system. In the first round, we have the 6th and the 14th pick.

With the 6th pick, we have a few options, each of which has their own flaws. However, the guy I like at this pick is CF Shane Carleton. He's only 18, and he's small, standing 5-foot-9 and weighing just 150 pounds. His arm in the outfield leaves a lot to be desired, but he's already showing some power with his small frame, and our scouts think he can still bulk up a bit. He's also very, very fast, rated a 7-of-8 in all baserunning skills, which also translates to the field, where he has amazing range.

We take him with the 6th pick, and with the 14th pick go with RF Christopher Anderson, another left-handed hitting outfielder whose defensive skillset is precisely the opposite. Very little speed, but a great arm. He has a much bigger frame, and is already hitting with power. He's almost 22, and he can probably make an impact in a year or two.

[JetsIn06]

1926 Season: Presidents Cup Series

Our good luck didn't last, and we finish with a 68-86 record. There was no good pennant race this season, as the Chicago Packers and the Brooklyn Robins once again head to the series, but each league was won by 12 and 19 games, respectively.

The Packers head to the series for their 5th time in 6 years, and Brooklyn returns for the second year in a row to attempt to defend their title in a rematch of the 1925 series.

Up 3-2 in the series, Game 6 was a classic, putting Chicago up 4 games to 2 after a 14-inning affair, but Brooklyn wins the next two to make it 4 games to 4, with the series headed back to Brooklyn.

After 8 1/2 innings, Chicago leads 3-1, but Brooklyn has their 2-3-4 hitters up. The first batter comes to the plate and smokes one to third, where rookie 3B Frank Qualls makes an error, and Brooklyn has life!

With none out and a man on first, SS Alfonso Perez comes to the plate, but strikes out swinging! One away!

Now, 1B Darren Stanley, the power-hitting 32-year-old who set the single-season home run record with 52 this season! If anyone can tie the game up with one swing, it's him. On a 1-1 pitch, he swings for the fences, but it's an easy pop-up to the second baseman, and Chicago is one out away from winning the 1926 President's Cup Series. It's up to CF Carlos Gamboa.

He smokes a groundball up the middle, it looks like it's going to get through, but Chicago's SS Rick McLeod makes an incredible play, fires to first, and that's it!

Chicago defeats Brooklyn 5 games to 4 in a thrilling series!

[JetsIn06]

1926 Season: Final Standings and Awards



Columbia League Rookie of the Year:

C Edward Luxton (Kansas City)
.245/.309/.403
16 HR/75 RBI
0.9 WAR

United League Rookie of the Year:

CF Pedro Benitez (Philadelphia)
.323/.386/.563
32 HR/109 RBI
8.1 WAR

Columbia League Pitcher of the Year:

CL Ken Moody (Brooklyn)
41 SV
2.17 ERA 90 K/26 BB
2.1 WAR

United League Pitcher of the Year:

SP Dean Woody (Chicago)
23-3
2.52 ERA 175 K/53 BB
5.8 WAR

Columbia League Hitter of the Year:

1B Darren Stanley (Brooklyn)
.286/.326/.604
52 HR (A new record!)/169 RBI (A new record!)
5.4 WAR

United League Hitter of the Year:

1B Rodrigo Salinas (Chicago)
.320/.348/.659
51 HR/135 RBI
6.2 WAR

[JetsIn06]

1927 Off-Season: Arbitration and Free Agents

Naturally, we have a ton of free agents leaving this year, but no one will return. We have ten players who are eligible for arbitration, and all will be tendered one-year contracts.

[JetsIn06]

1927 Off-Season: Overview and Outlook



What a difference a few drafts make. We now have the #2 ranked system, but it's still a bit away, so we won't do anything crazy in free agency yet. We really don't have a ton of holes, but could use some bullpen help and some outfield bench help.

[JetsIn06]

1927 Off-Season: Free Agency

Our first offer is to a left-handed reliever, which we desperately need. MR Roger Basset, a tall, lanky left-hander who posted a 3.42 ERA last season in 68 1/3 innings with Newark gets a $2.9m offer.

We make four small offers for our bench, including a $1.5m offer to 2B Adrian Black.

[JetsIn06]

1927 Season: Amateur Draft

We're having another rough year as we work through the rebuild, with a 26-36 record thus far. We're enjoying another great year by SP Earl Davis, who will be a free agent after this year. He's projected to have Type-B compensation attached, so we may see what we can get in a trade later on.

We're really struggling on offense with our best peformance from RF Mike Campbell, who we signed to a one-year deal in the offseason. 2B Adrian Black is really struggling, and may have to get cut before the season is out. He's hitting .167/.237/.204, but is just coming off the bench at this point.

This year, we have the 9th pick in the draft thanks to a few unsigned picks last year. When our turn comes up, SP Kevin Bird catches my eye. He's a 19-year-old from Iowa, has two very good pitched and a changeup that could develop into an average pitch, but he throws 95-97 and has swing and miss stuff.

[JetsIn06]

1927 Season: Presidents Cup Series

In a rematch of the 1916 Series, the Brooklyn Robins will take on their cross-town rivals, the New York Giants in the 1927 Presidents Cup Series. As for us? Well, we didn't do very well, as expected. We finished 68-85, scoring 580 runs, 7th worst in the CL, and allowing 640, which was good for 4th in the league. It's clear, offense was our issue. As a team, we hit .236 and had a .304 OBP as a team.

In the series, after losing their first two games, Brooklyn proceeded to win five games in a row, and Brooklyn wins the series, 5 games to 2!