(OOTP19) All-Time Franchise League

[SirFozzie]

I'm trying to figure out what to do to deal with the long cold winter that is upon us.

No Red Sox.. till FEBRUARY? No games that COUNT until March 28th?

The All-Time Franchise Roster File looks fun. I'm doing a test run to make sure it works, and this is the opening day lineup for the All-Time Red Sox:

CF - Tris Speaker
DH - Carl Yastrzemski
LF - Ted Williams
1B - David Ortiz
SS - Nomar Garciaparra
3B - Wade Boggs
RF - Fred Lynn
2B - Dustin Pedroia
C- Carlton Fisk

SP: Cy Young

Facing off against: the All-Time Orioles

DH Gene Sisler
CF Baby Doll Jackson (who played for them when they were St Louis in the 1910's and 20's)
LF Ken Williams (Another 1910's-20's players when the franchise was in St Louis)
RF Frank Robinson
1B Eddy Murray
SS Cal Ripken
C Chris Hoiles
3B Brooks Robinson
2B Brian Roberts

SP: Jim Palmer

They're not a strong team on the field, but a pitching staff of Palmer, Mussina, McNally, Cuellar and Bedars isn't half bad. I'd take Cy Young, Dutch Leonard, Roger Clemens, Luis Tiant (El Tiante!), Smokey Joe Wood over them

Edit: I'll put the Preseason Predictions Here:

AL East
New York Yankees (97-65)
Boston (88-74)
Toronto (79-83)
Baltimore (70-92)
Tampa Bay (70-92)

AL Central
Chicago White Sox (96-66)
Cleveland (85-77)
Minnesota (84-78)
Detroit (77-85)
Kansas City (76-86)

AL West
Oakland (96-66)
Seattle (87-75)
Houston (80-82)
Texas (71-91)
Los Angeles Angels (67-95)

NL East:
Philadelphia (93-69)
New York Mets (84-78)
Washington Nationals (84-78) (remember, they get the Expos)
Atlanta (78-84)
Miami (67-95)

NL Central
St Louis (91-71)
Cincinnati (88-74)
Pittsburgh (88-74)
Milwaukee (72-90)
Chicago Cubs (59-103) (WOW, Really???)

NL West
San Francisco (106-56) (!!!!)
LA Dodgers (88-74)
San Diego (85-77)
Colorado 76-86
Arizona 55-107

[SirFozzie]

Game 1:

The Orioles had a major threat with none out in the bottom of the 2nd, where Frank Robinson singled to left, and Eddie Murray hit a ringing double to right center, Robinson unable to score because he had to make sure the ball wasn't caught.

However, Ripken popped out to short right field, Hoiles couldn't get the run home with a shallow fly to right field, and Brooks Robinson left Frank and Eddie hanging on the basepaths as he lined out to centerfield.

The Red Sox got their first run of the new season in the top of the fourth, when Yaz took 3 straight balls, took a 3-0 strike, and then when Palmer threw another ball over the plate trying to get the count full, Yaz CRUSHED it to right field, 434 feet, and the Sox took a 1-0 lead.

The Orioles left another runner in scoring position in the fifth, as Roberts reached on an infield single with two outs and promptly stole second, but Sisler grounded out to the pitcher Young to keep the Sox ahead.

Young had been flirting with danger, and he would do so again in the sixth, as with one out Ken Williams grounded a single back up the middle, and then Frank Robinson lined a single to centerfield to put two on with one out, but Murray hit a tailor made 6-4-3 double play ball (Garciaparra to Pedroia to Ortiz), and Young escaped the jam.

Young would pitch the seventh, and in his day, he would have another seven innings left in his arm, but in the modern era (which everything had been normalized to), 107 pitches were enough, and he would come out with Tom Gordon pitching a 1-2-3 8th, and turning it over to Jonathan Papelbon in the ninth. Papelbon was grimacing with every pitch as apparently he was dealing with a stiff neck that will leave him day to day, but despite walking Eddie Murray with two outs in the Ninth, he got Ripken to ground into a Fielders Choice to end the game

OOTP 19 Recap
Fans brought energy and enthusiasm to the Baltimore Orioles home opener. Jim Palmer started for the home team against Cy Young for the Boston Red Sox.

The Orioles were unable to reward the home crowd with a win. The final score was 1-0,Young was named player of the game. Young got the win, improving to 1-0. He allowed 5 hits and walked 1 over 7 innings.

The Red Sox got a big at-bat from designated hitter Carl Yastrzemski. For the game, Yastrzemski was 1-4 with a home run. In the top of the fourth, with the bases empty, he stroked a solo home run. His 1st home run of the season gave Boston a 1-0 lead.

"I tell our guys all the time, 'Every pitch is the right pitch if you put it in the right place, you believe in it and have conviction,'" was the post game comment from the Red Sox Manager


Red Sox: 1 Run, 6 Hits, No Errors, 2 Left On Base
Orioles: No Runs, 5 Hits, 4 Left On Base

Winning Pitcher: Cy Young (1-0, 0.00)
Losing Pitcher: Jim Palmer (0-1, 1.13)
Hold: Tom Gordon (1 HLD)
Save: Jonathan Papelbon (1 SV)

HR: Yastrzemski (1)

Time of Game: 2 hours, 45 minutes.

[SirFozzie]

Before Game 2, I was looking at some of the other rosters. Talk about a murderer's row in New York: The Yankees Lineup is enough to drive pitchers to drink:

Jeter (SS)
Gehrig (1B)
Ruth (LF)
Mantle (CF)
DiMaggio (RF)
Bernie Williams (DH)
Bill Dickey (C)
Robinson Cano (2B)
Graig Nettles (3B)

[SirFozzie]

Game 2: (Red Sox Win 7-1, improve to 2-0 on year)

Rough Start for Mussina in the first, as Speaker hit a double to deep center field, and Yaz smacked his second homer of the year, this time down the Right Field line (366 Feet). When Ted Williams smacked another hard liner for a single, it looked like it was going to be a quick night for Mussina, but he took a deep breath, and got Ortiz to ground into a 6-4-3 double play.

Smokey Joe Wood looked to be ready to give back the support to the Orioles, as he issued a leadoff walk to Sisler, and then Jacobson hit a grounder up the middle to give them two on with no one out, but Williams struck out swinging, and Robinson hit a grounder back to Wood, who started a 1-6-3 Double Play.

Sox wasted a leadoff double by Lynn in the second inning, as they couldn't move him past 2nd base, and then in the third with one out, Mussina gave up ANOTHER double (the third double in three innings) to Ted Williams, and then hung a slider to Ortiz, who promptly deposited it into the left field bleachers to double the Sox lead to 4-0.

The Red Sox had five extra base hits through the first three innings.

Yaz continued his hot start in the fifth with a 380 foot shot to right field (his third home run, just 14 innings into the new season) to make it 5-0. Two outs later, Fred Lynn singled in Nomar Garciaparra to make it 6-0, and ended Mussina's night early. Tippy Martinez closed the door without any further damage, but Mussina's final stats for the game were not easy reading for Orioles fans (4 and two-thirds innings, 11 hits allowed, 6 runs (all earned), 2 walks, 1 K).

It took Baltimore nearly 14 innings to score their first run of the year, as Wood got the first two batters in the fifth, but then gave consecutive four pitch walks to Brooks Robinson and then Brian Roberts, and Sisler finally ended the Orioles hoodoo with a single up the middle to make it 6-1 after five full innings.

It was a cold night in Baltimore and the ball was still jumping off the bat, as despite a 10MPH wind blowing in from center, Garciaparra hit a moonshot 434 foot homer to right center in the seventh to make it 7-1.

Wood ended a night where he could be described as effectively wild (7 scoreless innings, 4 hits, 1 run allowed, 5 Walks, 3 K, 94 Pitches) Dick "The Monster" Radatz came on in the 8th, and while the Orioles got the first two men on with a single and a walk, they couldn't move them up as Radatz got Williams to pop out to Pedroia, Robinson struck out swinging on a 3-2 pitch that likely would have been called ball four, and then Eddie Murray struck out on a 3-2 fastball as well.

Radatz started the ninth by letting Ripken flare a single to short left field, and after Jon Lester came on and struck out Hoiles with a nasty changeup, Brooks Robinson singled to center to put two men on and give the Orioles a little hope, but Roberts was slow out of the box on a lined groundball to first, and the Sox turned the rare 3-6-1 double play to end the game.


Red Sox had seven runs on 13 hits, no errors, and left three on base, while the Orioles had one run on seven hits, and left six on base.

Winning Pitcher: Smoky Joe Wood (1-0, 1.29 ERA)
Losing Pitcher: Mike Mussina (0-1, 11.57 ERA)

Homeruns: Yastrzemski 2 (3), Garciaparra (1), Ortiz (1)

Time of Game: 3 hours, 22 minutes

[SirFozzie]

The sad thing is Pedro Martinez is on the Washington Nationals (as they don't play for multiple teams, so he was put on the Expos-Nationals)

[SirFozzie]

Game 3 "Lowe wildness walks it off for the Orioles"

Orioles had two men in scoring position in the third, when Hoiles walked and Roberts blooped a double to right field, but Brady Anderson struckout, and one batter later with the bases loaded, Frank Robinson flew out tamely to center for another Orioles squander.

It took until the fifth inning to open the scores, as Carlton Fisk doubled to right, scoring Yaz. The Orioles kept it to one however, with Frank Robinson throwing a strike from the right field corner, and Roberts's relay to Hoiles was in plenty of time to get Pedroia at the plate as he tried to score as well.

Clemens got himself into a bit of a jam in the 6th, as he walked two in a row, but again the Orioles couldn't get that key hit to knock in a run.

In the 8th, Daniel Bard got the first two men easily, but then Ken Williams tied the game up with a home run. It was the Red Sox turn to squander in the bottom half of the inning, as Ted Williams led off with a four pitch walk, and pinch-runner Jimmy Collins moved to third on a single by David Ortiz. Garciaparra grounded into a fielder's choice to move Ortiz to 2nd, but Yaz grounded out to third, and after Pedroia was walked to load the bases, BJ Ryan struck out Fred Lynn to end the threat.

The game went to extra innings, and the Orioles had a great chance to win it in the 10th, but Eddie Murray grounded out with the bases loaded, and we would move to the 11th.

However, in the 12th, Murray would be the hero as the Orioles literally walked it off, as Derek Lowe, the fifth pitcher of the night for the Red Sox gave up a single, a hit batsman, a walk, and finally a two out walk to Eddie Murray on four pitches as the Orioles salvaged one of the three game series.Lowe only threw 4 of his 14 pitches for strikes.

Red Sox, 1 run, 8 hits, 9 Left on Base
Orioles 2 Runs, 5 Hits, 9 Left on Base

Winning Pitcher:Gregg Olson (1-0, 0.00)
Losing Pitcher: Derek Low (0-1, 13.50)
Blown Save: Daniel Bard (1)
HR: Ken Williams (1)
Time of game: 4:05

[SirFozzie]

Series Preview: Milwaukee Brewers

The Brewers are a pretty decent team when it comes to the infielders, with Cecil Cooper at 1st, a platoon of Hall and Vina at 2nd, and of course, Yount at Short and Molitor at 3rd. They have feast or famine outfielders, with Ryan Braun, Gorman Thomas and Rob Deer being big Homerun threats.

We'll be facing the 4th, 5th and 1st starters (Cal Eldred, Chris Bosio and then ace Mike Caldwell)

If it gets late in the game, the Brewers have a 1-2 closer punch of Dan Plesac and Rollie Fingers.

[SirFozzie]

Game 4: 4 Hit Day For Fred Lynn leads Sox to 4-2 win.

Brewers load them up in the top of the first, when Cooper singled past short, Yount reached on an infield single, and after Deer flew out to center, Gorman Thomas walked to load the bases, but Weeks swung at the first pitch he saw and grounded out to shortstop.

The Red Sox also loaded them up, as Speaker led off the first with a walk, Yaz singled to right, and Williams Walked on four pitches. Ortiz popped out on the infield to get the first out, but Garciaparra opened the scoring with a single over the shortsstop's head. Boggs made it 2-0 with a run scoring sacrifice fly to right field. Lynn then singled to center, and Gorman Thomas made a mighty throw to the plate. Williams was called out, but the television replay showed the Ump had blown the call. So it was 2-0 Sox after one, but it could and should have been more.

Garciaparra homered into the monster seats in the 3rd to make it 3-0.

The Brewers scored two with two outs in the fifth, as Burnitz singled in Cooper and Thomas to make it 3-2.

That would be as close as they would get, as Pedroia doubled off the wall in the 8th to bring in Fred Lynn, and Tom Gordon and Jonathan Papelbon got the final 8 outs in relief to give the Sox a 4-2 win.

For the Brewers 2 runs on 9 hits, 9 Left on Base
For the Red Sox, 4 runs on 13 hits, they also left 9 on base.

Winning Pitcher: Dutch Leonard (1-0, 2.84)
Losing Pitcher: Cal Eldred (0-1, 4.76)
Hold: Gordon (2)
Save: Papelbon (2)

Home Run: Garciaparra (2)

Time of Game: 3 hours, 21 minutes

[BYU 14]

The Cubs at a 59 win prediction is shocking, until you think of that void of mediocrity between deadball times and the 60's with only a couple of teams from the 30's with any talent at all.

Still hard to see a team that can field a staff of Mordecai Brown, Fergie Jenkins, Charlie Root, Hippo Vaughn and Ed Ruelbach with Bruce Sutter coming out the for pen not being able to win more than 59 games.

[SirFozzie]

Game 5:

El Tiante, Papelbon combine to shutout Brew Crew.


Ortiz singled in Lynn to give the Sox a 1-0 lead in the first. The Brewers looked to answer with three straight singles in the top of the 2nd, but Thomas ran RIGHT through a stop sign on Surhoff's single, and instead of having the bases loaded with 1 out, they had first and second with two out, and Yount popped out to end the threat.

Misadventures on the basepath in the third for the Brewers, as Hall led off with a single, and attempted to take third on a sharp single by Molitor, but was thrown out by Speaker. The comedy of base runner errors cost the Brewers ANOTHER chance in the sixth, as Braun doubled, Burnitz fought back from 1-2 to draw a walk. Thomas hit a fly to right field that moved Braun up to third, but Jenkins struck out looking, and then with a 3-0 count to BJ Surhoff, Burnitz was picked off first to end the inning.

Williams stretched the lead in the bottom of the seventh with a two out single that brought home Speaker to make it a 2-0 game. Despite the Red Sox squandering a bases loaded, no out chance in the eigth, Tiant pitched eight shutout innings, and Papelbon came on to get the Brewers 1-2-3 in the ninth. The Sox Move to 4-1 on the year.



Brewers 0 Runs, 7 Hits, 1 Error Left On Base: 5
Red Sox 2 Runs, 10 Hits, No Errors, Left on Base 11

Winning Pitcher: Luis Tiant (1-0, 0.00)
Losing Pitcher: Chris Bosio (0-1, 2.57)
Save: Papelbon (3)

Time of Game: 3:01

[SirFozzie]

still at it, about to play game 6 now.

[SirFozzie]

Game 6: KARDIAC KOMEBACK FOR SOX

Cy Young had a decent outing, but the Brewers brought across a pair in the first and the 2nd, and it looked like it was going to be enough, but the Red Sox scored 4 in the eighth with a solo Home Run for Speaker, Pedroia doubled two outs later, and Fred Lynn (who had came in for an injured Dwight Evans) singled him home, and then DH Rico Petrocelli hit what turned out to be the game winning Home Run. Papelbon came on for the ninth for another Sox Save.

Milwaukee 4 Runs 10 Hits 0 Errors, (4 LOB)
Boston 5 Runs 9 Hits 1 Error (2 LOB)

WP: Young (2-0, 1.80)
LP: Mark Caldwell (1-1, 3.45)
SV: Papelbon (4)

HR (MIL): Fielder (1) (BOS) Williams (1), Speaker (1), Petrocelli (1)

Time of Game: 2:58

[Vince, Pt. II]

Having fun thinking about that 106-win Giants team. If I had to guess the lineup...

1. Mel Ott, RF
2. Barry Bonds, LF
3. Willie Mays, CF
4. Willie McCovey, 1B
5. Jeff Kent, 2B
6. Matt Williams, 3B
7. Rich Aurilia, SS
8. Buster Posey, C
9. Christy Matthewson, SP

With a rotation behind him of:
SP Juan Marichal
SP Gaylord Perry
SP Carl Hubbell
SP Madison Bumgarner

Bench:
Orlando Cepeda, 1B
Bobby Thompson, OF
Frankie Frisch, 2B
Bobby Bonds, OF
Brandon Crawford, SS
Will Clark, 1B

Bullpen:
Robb Nen
Rod Beck
Brian Wilson
Sergio Romo
Javier Lopez
Hoyt Wilhelm

Guys that I didn't pick but I could see on the team easily:
Tim Lincecum
Matt Cain
Jason Schmidt
Kevin Mitchell
Jack Clark
Felipe Alou
Johnny Mize
Vida Blue