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johnstone1987 · 05-15-2018, 07:05 PM

That's awesome. And as a BASEBALL FAN I was stoked as hell to see the Cubs win the Series.

My Mariners have yet to accomplish that

Anyway good luck bro i'll be following!

saintrules · 05-16-2018, 12:18 PM

Cubs Preview

It's time to take a look at my 2018 Cubs! As previously mentioned in the season preview, I have question marks about this team, but from an overall standpoint, it is built very well. I'll detail each position group & then finish off with a small section on the top prospects in our organization.

Chicago Cubs Depth Chart - 2018

Catcher
Wilson Contreras (67)
Chris Gimenez (24)

First Base
Anthony Rizzo (67)

Second Base
Ben Zobrist (44)
Javier Baez (35)
Tommy La Stella (28)

Third Base
Kris Bryant (75)

Shortstop
Addison Russell (51)

Left Field
Kyle Schwarber (51)
Chris Coghlan (29)

Center Field
Albert Almora (45)
Ian Happ (40)

Right Field
Jason Heyward (45)

Starting Pitcher
Jose Quintana (70)
Yu Darvish (63)
Jon Lester (59)
Kyle Hendricks (60)
Tyler Chatwood (44)

Relief Pitcher
Justin Wilson (64)
Carl Edwards Jr (57)
Pedro Strop (57)
Steve Cishek (55)
Brian Duensing (44)
Mike Montgomery (30)

Closer
Brandon Morrow (65)

Starting Pitching
We might as well start off at the biggest question mark of all. This group is undoubtedly different from the rotation that brought Chicago it's first World Series in over 100 years back in 2016. No Arrieta, a regressed Lester, no Lackey, a similar Hendricks, and no Hammel. That rotation was great, one of the best in the business at the time. Let's start off with the positives with this bunch. Quintana is a solid starter, maybe not an ace, but a pretty darn good number two. It'll be interesting to see what he can bring to the table, and given the fact he's been playing for a bad team for years and years, he's probably underrated. While I'd like a real ace, I will take Quintana as our big guy for the moment. Darvish had a great start to his career in Texas & he did look like the next big thing. Injuries, bad performances, and the likely confidence crush, has transformed him into a shell of his former 2012/2013 Yu Darvish self. Flat out, I don't think he's very good, and signing him was probably one of the worst moves the Cubs have made over the last few years, granted, they haven't made many bad moves. He's got good stuff, but he's average in terms of movement and control. I'm going to proceed with caution & just hope I get some form of early career Darvish here in 2018. Lester, hmm, where do I start here. Jon Lester was a good pitcher back in 2016, I wouldn't have called him great. His control and relationship with Grandpa Ross definitely elevated his game, but if you watched him enough through the season and playoffs, you could tell issues were forming. I'm not exactly sure where he's at via contract, so we will need to do some more investigating. Hendricks is a good rotation guy, he's not flashy in strikeouts, but he's got the best control in the starting rotation and that's a big plus. Chatwood and our long relief, Mike Montgomery, are pretty interchangeable. I have Chatwood starting because he's got just slightly better stuff than Montgomery. With some decent arms coming through the farm, there's a chance for movement here at the bottom of the rotation, rather often.

Bullpen
Here's where we make up for some of our rotation issues. Morrow, Wilson, and Edwards Jr, are a solid three to close games out. Justin Wilson and Carl Edwards Jr have nasty stuff between the two of them & combined with Morrow, I like where we stand. The early bullpen is good where it's at, I particularly like Pedro Strop, who will likely get the majority of middle relief nods. This isn't an elite bunch, certainly nothing like the Yankees or Cleveland's pen, but I do like it.

Infield
The heart and soul of the Cubs organization in 2018 resides on the corners of the infield. Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo are our bread and butter, PB&J, ying and yang. Rizzo has been ultra consistent for the better part of the this decade and we can basically count on him, barring no injuries, to hit 30+ homeruns and drive in 110+ RBI's, while maintaining a big OBP, thanks to his awesome ability of getting hit by pitches and walked. I'm likely going to float Rizzo somewhere around leadoff and batting second. I am a firm believer that the guy with the highest opportunity to get on base should be leading off, regardless of whether he's a power hitter, speedster, or contact guy. As for Kris Bryant, he's currently regarded as the best talent in our organization. We really do need him to come through, 2016 MVP style, and be a force in our lineup. Rounding out the infield is Wilson Contreras, Addison Russell, and Ben Zobrist. Contreras still has some growing to do, but I really do think he's going to turn into quite the talent at catcher. He's got a big bat and he's defensively reliable, a true gem. Addison Russell goes through ebbs and flows of hitting, while maintaining a pretty good glove at short. He'll bat lower in the lineup and we'll keep an eye on how he does. Zobrist is a great utility guy, capable of playing a couple different places & is a true blue-collar, get the job done type guy. We'll likely platoon him with Baez because I think Javier is a better hitter, but Zobrist does have a better glove, which is very crucial there at second. Overall, our infield is one of the strongest in the National League.

Outfield
The outfield will serve as somewhat of a garden this season. We're going to water Schwarber and Almora, give them some sun, and watch them grow. I am interested to see what kind of power numbers we are talking about with Schwarber, he's got 70 power and that's the best on the team, five more than both Rizzo and Bryant. Almora is going to need some time to come into his own, but he will definitely get the at bats to do so. Heyward is a gold glove right fielder who is purely out there to do defensive work. I don't feel I can count on his bat very often and he will be hitting lower in the lineup.

Bench
Our bench is headlined by Baez who will often take over for Zobrist at second base and sometimes Russell at short. Per the future, I do believe Baez will become our every day second baseman, and while there is potential for that to happen this season, I need to trust Baez at the plate with runners in scoring position. Ian Happ is a project, an interesting one at that. He's actually more talented than Baez and he's a power bat in center, kind of different. I don't think he is going to win a starting battle over Almora in the early goings, but we'll monitor how he fares as a pinch hitter over the course of April and into May. La Stella, Coghlan, and Giminez, will strictly serve as backups for when the starters need rest & or are injured, these three are that of journeymen.

Top Prospects
The once top notch farm system in Chicago has definitely slid, but that is directly due to graduations and promotions that has brought nothing but success to the northside. Do we will have a great farm? Not exactly. Do we still have a good one? I believe so. For the top prospects, we're looking at shortstop, Aramis Ademan, reliever, Brendon Little, and starter, Adbert Alzolay. Of those three, I'd keep my personal eye on Alzolay to work his way up. He looked excellent in double A last season, racking up 7 wins, a 2.98 ERA, and a 78:22 K/BB ratio, in 81.2 innings. Another big prospect to keep watch on is Jeremiah Estrada, a starter who's 19 years old and is currently playing single A ball for us. In terms of potential, he's got the highest of any prospect in our organization, currently listed at 63. With an iffy rotation whom is certainly prone to injuries, there may be a good deal of movement through our farm come a few months down the road. Rounding out the top prospects is Oscar De La Cruz, a 23 year old starter in single A advanced, his teammate, Alex Lange, a 22 year old starter, Bryan Hudson, a 20 year old double A starter, and Victor Caratini, a triple A first baseman. As we go through the weeks and months, I'll provide some updates on these guys. The point of this paragraph was just to familiarize myself with their names, positions, ages, and what team they're on at the moment.

saintrules · 05-18-2018, 11:34 AM

April Statistics

The first month of baseball has officially come to an end with our Cubbies sporting a 13-15 record after 28 games played. That record is thankfully good for second in the NL Central, trailing the Cardinals by eight games as they have the best record in the MLB at 21-7. We are currently three games back in the Wild Card & league standings will follow this post.

Starting Lineup
1. 2B Javier Baez (.315/9 Runs/2 HR/10 RBI/4 BB/20 K)
2. CF Albert Almora (.298/10 Runs/4 HR/12 RBI/1 BB/11 K)
3. 1B Anthony Rizzo (.289/21 Runs/10 HR/21 RBI/19 BB/15 K)
4. LF Kyle Schwarber (.218/15 Runs/4 HR/8 RBI/14 BB/24 K)
5. 3B Kris Bryant (.198/11 Runs/3 HR/16 RBI/17 BB/32 K)
6. C Wilson Contreras (.278/13 Runs/3 HR/15 RBI/9 BB/23 K)
7. SS Addison Russell (.211/5 Runs/1 HR/5 RBI/9 BB/19 K)
8. RF Jason Heyward (.168/8 Runs/0 HR/6 RBI/12 BB/19 K)

Let's start with the positives, shall we? Anthony Rizzo has been tearing the seams off the ball through 97 AB's, and is currently second in the NL for homeruns, trailing San Diego's Will Myers, who has 11. On top of slugging the ball, Rizzo has also drawn 19 walks and has been hit by nine pitches. This is nothing out of the ordinary from the OBP monster, but it's always a welcomed sight. Baez and Almora are hitting pretty solid at the top, albeit Baez only has 73 AB's since Zobrist was originally in the starting lineup. Almora has been a very welcomed surprise in terms of his contact and also his power, he's got 31 hits and leads our team. Wilson Contreras is in the sixth spot batting .278 with 15 RBI's, though he may move up around as time moves forward. Now let's shift things into the not so positive. Kris Bryant is awful right now, I mean downright awful. The only thing somewhat salvaging him right now is that opposing pitchers have walked him a good amount of times. He has left runners on base more times than I have cared to count & he's struck out with the bases loaded at least twice in critical moments. Schwarber has also had a rough start to the season & is pretty much go big or go home. He has managed to come through a couple of times, but like Bryant, he's failed to deliver in most critical moments. Addison Russell and Jason Heyward have kind of come on as of late, so their very low average may see some movement in the near future. The two actually lead the team in XBH with six a piece and they seem to hit in bunches. The two have shown me they are capable hitters, so there's no threat to them in the starting lineup day in and day out. Heyward has had a beast of an arm from right as well, so that has been big. We are currently 12th in National League Runs Scored, 13th in AVG, 10th in OBP, and 8th in HR. This is far from what our National League Pennant contending team should be doing. I know the talent is there, so let's chalk this up to April showers.

Bench
2B Ben Zobrist (.174/4 Runs/0 HR/1 RBI/10 BB/4 K)
CF Ian Happ (.220/7 Runs/0 HR/4 RBI/5 BB/17 K)
LF Chris Coghlan (.250/0 Runs/0 HR/2 RBI/0 BB/1 K)
2B Tommy La Stella (.333/3 Runs/1 HR/6 RBI/2 BB/3 K)
C Chris Gimenez (.143/2 Runs/0 HR/0 RBI/0 BB/4 K)

Zobrist fell out of the starting lineup because of his bat. Baez isn't as good of a defender, but he's got way more pop than Zobrist. The former starting 2B is hitting a lowly .174 through 46 AB's and has just not been able to find his groove. He's managing one of only two positive BB:K ratios on the team at the moment, so that's something. Ian Happ hasn't seen the ball particularly well through 50 AB's and is still looking for his first long ball. Happ has subbed in for Almora a couple of times and has flashed his glove, but with the starting CF off to a good start, there's no chance he's going to see extended playing time unless his bat heats up. Coghlan and La Stella have actually been hitting pretty well as our third and fourth pinch hitters. La Stella, in particular, has two doubles and a long ball that helped produce a victory. Gimenez has been pretty non-existent, not expecting much anyways.

Starting Rotation
1. Jose Quintana (1-3/39.2 IP/4.54 ERA/11 BB/32 K)
2. Yu Darvish (1-2/34.0 IP/4.24 ERA/12 BB/35 K)
3. Jon Lester (0-5/30.2 IP/5.87 ERA/11 BB/28 K)
4. Kyle Hendricks (1-3/30.1 IP/2.97 ERA/9 BB/39 K)
5. Tyler Chatwood (4-1/27.2 IP/4.88 ERA/13 BB/22 K)

Alright, let's keep the trend going and start with the positives. Kyle Hendricks is on fire right now, despite his 1-3 record. He's pitching extremely well for us right now and boasts the best BB:K ratio in our rotation, as well as leading the team in strikeouts. Our hitting and pen has let Hendricks down so far, hopefully it can come through while he's still pitching well for us. I wouldn't call Chatwood's pitching great so far, but he has managed the only positive record on the team so far. I'm not crazy surprised by this, given the fact he's typically squaring off against other team's four and five guys, which means our bats come out strong. We've kept him in the shortest amount of time because Mike Montgomery is in the pen, which I think we'll continue to do. So far so good, however. Quintana and Darvish have pretty much been victim to our poor hitting thus far. Don't get me wrong, they aren't throwing great, but most of their struggles have been late inning woes when our lineup has been quiet. We should see a little turn around when the bats start to heat up, I hope. Jon Lester, man, where do I start? There has been at least two starts from old man Lester where he could have been pulled in the first or second inning, and most of his starts he SHOULD have been pulled by the third. I've let him go a few times, maybe too long, because I was hoping the bats would come through, which they never did. I don't really know what to do with him right now & he's a huge question mark moving forward. Overall, the starting staff is hovering around 12th in the National League for ERA, a cringe worthy statistic for what was thought of to be a pennant chasing club.

Bullpen
LRP Mike Montgomery (0-0/11.0 IP/4.09 ERA/1 BB/14 K/3 HD)
MRP Dillon Maples (0-0/4.2 IP/13.50 ERA/5 BB/5 K/3 HD)
MRP Brian Duensing (0-0/14.2 IP/6.14 ERA/6 BB/14 K/1 HD)
MRP Steve Cishek (1-0/16.0 IP/4.50 ERA/8 BB/19 K/2 HD)
SU Justin Wilson (0-1/7.0 IP/16.71 ERA/10 BB/10 K/2 HD)
SU Carl Edwards Jr (0-0/9.0 IP/4.00 ERA/7 BB/15 K/3 HD)
CP Brandon Morrow (2-0/16.2 IP/1.08 ERA/5 BB/16 K/7 SV)

One quick thing to note is that Pedro Strop is injured for 6 months and is on the 60-day DL. I called up Dillon Maples from Triple A to take his spot in the pen. Alright, let's do this. Brandon Morrow and somewhat of Mike Montgomery are the only two positives in the pen at the moment. Morrow has been fantastic, earning seven saves so far on the year, tied for fourth in the National League. He's sporting a strong 1.08 ERA with an alright BB:K ratio, I'd like to see him limit those walks moving forward, especially as our closer. He's managed two wins so far thanks to the lineup coming through in the 8th/9th inning in a couple of wins. He's a guy I can throw in as both a setup and closer at the moment, I trust him. Mike Montgomery has been great in terms of his control. There's a big opportunity for Montgomery to take some starts from Lester has he continues to struggle as he's already been the main go to once the old man starts stinking the place up. Maples, Duensing, and Chishek, have had their ups and downs. It's been tough to trust any one of them to come out and truly hold a lineup, though Cishek has shown the ability to do it the best. Justin Wilson and Carl Edwards Jr have been bad, with most of that bad coming from Wilson. Through just 7.0 IP, he's allowed 13 earned runs, and has walked 10 batters. As far as I know, he's up for a contract renewal, and as far as that goes, it's sitting in the garbage at the moment. Edwards Jr has been victim to taking over for Wilson a couple of times, but has also not been very good. The pen overall is second worst in National League ERA at 5.44, this is a big problem.

saintrules · 05-21-2018, 01:25 PM

April Standings

Welcome to the first edition of the league standings here at the end of April. This is how I will deliver news from the league at the end of each month and take a look at both divisional standings as well as the Wild Card. I have included both the team's record and a player highlight for each club. I'll probably rotate doing standings with some form of power rankings or something of that nature, just to keep it fresh. Enjoy.

American League East
1. New York Yankees (20-10) - Giancarlo Stanton (.336/16 HR/30 RBI)
2. Toronto Blue Jays (18-12) - Josh Donaldson (.352/8 HR/24 RBI)
3. Boston Red Sox (16-13) - Chris Sale (4-1/1.69 ERA/39 K)
4. Baltimore Orioles (13-17) - Manny Machado (.327/10 HR/22 RBI)
5. Tampa Bay Rays (11-17) - Wilson Ramos (.375/6 HR/17 RBI)

The Yankees top the East with a 20-10 record, good for second in the American League. Stanton has gone yard 16 times already, that's a long ball in over half of their played games, and he easily leads the majors. The rest of the baby bombers are in full form as well, Judge has 10 bombs with 21 RBI's, and Sanchez has 6 with 18 RBI's. The Yanks hitting has been phenomenal, their pitching however, leaves something to be desired. Luis Severino is 7-0, sporting a fantastic 1.85 ERA with a mind blowing, league leading, 56 K's through 48.2 IP. Sonny Gray is at 3-1 with a 2.48 ERA. However, that's almost where it ends as Masahiro Tanaka has a 4.70 ERA, CC Sabathia, a 5.47 ERA, and Nestor Molina has a 7.00 ERA. The staff is certainly top loaded with Severino & Sonny Gray, so they will need to even things out if they want to hold this lead. The Blue Jays have gotten off to a very good start thanks almost entirely to Donaldson. The veteran third baseman is hitting .352 and is beyond the driving force for the Toronto offense. He's getting some good help from Marco Estrada who is 4-0 with a 2.41 ERA, but J.A. Happ is 0-5 with a 6.39 ERA and I foresee the Jays slowing down heading into May. Boston isn't leading the East or the Wild Card, but I expect them to blow up rather shortly. They currently sport the best staff in the AL with Chris Sale leading the pack at 4-1 with a 1.69 ERA and 39 K's, Rick Porcello at 4-1 with a 2.27 ERA, and Eduardo Rodriguez at 2-1 with a 2.11 ERA. Though their hitting lacks a little power, they've managed a .341 OBP and have scored 141 runs thus far, good for 4th in the AL. With the exception of Machado, Baltimore is struggling everywhere. Machado is the only qualified hitter in their lineup batting over .263 and they sport the worst OBP in the AL at .290. A bright note in their staff has been Dylan Bundy who is 3-1 with a 1.95 ERA and 34 K's. Willy Ramos is raking right now for Tampa with a .375 average, good for second in the AL. He, Matt Duffy, and Brad Miller, are actually hitting really well, and have Tampa sitting at 2nd best in the AL for average. You're only going to win games if you can score & hold opponents, however, and their staff is easily the worst. Archer, Snell, Faria, Andriese, and Yarbrough, sport a 4.95 combined ERA and their pen is even worse at 6.52.

American League Central
1. Cleveland Indians (15-13) - Carlos Carrasco (5-0/1.62 ERA/42 K)
2. Minnesota Twins (13-15) - Byron Buxton (.296/7 HR/22 RBI)
3. Chicago White Sox (12-17) - Jose Abreu (.288/9 HR/22 RBI)
4. Detroit Tigers (12-17) - Miguel Cabrera (.313/3 HR/16 RBI)
5. Kansas City Royals (9-20) - Whit Merrifield (.325/1 HR/10 RBI)

The Indians haven't gotten off to as hot of a start as I expected, though, they are still leading the AL Central. Lindor, Brantley, Ramirez, and Encarnacion, are fantastic, with Lindor leading the pack with a .347 average. That's kind of where things fall off, however, as Yonder Alonso, Jason Kipnis, Lonnie Chisenhall, Bradley Zimmer, and Roberto Perez, are pretty dang poor. Thankfully, the Indians rotation and pen have been great, with Carlos Carrasco an early AL CY Young candidate. Kluber is 2-3 with a 4.55 ERA and I think that'll even out as time goes on. Andrew Miller has six saves with a 0.69 ERA and Cody Allen is 2-1 with a 1.86 ERA. This staff is scary good. The Twins, Sox, and Tigers, are all in the same boat at the moment. Eddie Rosario and Byron Buxton are keeping things afloat for Minnesota, Jose Abreu is doing his part and then some in Chicago, and Miggy is still hitting over .300 in his elder years. Of these three I'd still put my money on Minnesota to keep it going, Buxton looks pretty nice for their future out there. Whit Merrifield is the only positive thing happening in Kansas City right now, they are struggling big time. Mike Moustakas is looking alright at .265 with 8 HR's, but he's only batted in 16 and this team just isn't scoring runs. Couple this with a rotation ERA of 4.47 and that's why you've only won 9 games in 29 attempts.

American League West
1. Houston Astros (21-9) - Carlos Correa (.385/8 HR/23 RBI)
2. Los Angeles Angels (19-10) - Mike Trout (.343/2 HR/6 RBI)
3. Oakland Athletics (13-15) - Kris Davis (.327/10 HR/25 RBI)
4. Seattle Mariners (13-15) - Kyle Seager (.304/6 HR/15 RBI)
5. Texas Rangers (11-19) - Joey Gallo (.231/11 HR/19 RBI)

Houston is off to the best start in the American League and I am far from surprised. Correa and Altuve are probably the best duo in the major, based on their ability to hit for average, power, and field. The two sport a combined .369 average with 17 HR's and 47 RBI's. The good for Houston doesn't end there as Keuchel, Verlander, McCullers, Cole, and McHugh, have the second best ERA in the AL at 3.38. It's only April, but it may as well be July, they're in mid-season form. Speaking of form, Los Angeles is in a good one, and Trout is not only doing the work. Showtime Shohei Ohtani is hitting .273 atop the Angels lineup and is 2-2 with a 5.40 ERA as their ace. I expect his hitting to remain the same but his pitching to improve a bit, regardless, he's a fantastic contender for AL RoY. The Angels aren't hitting the best for average, but they've scored a good deal of runs, third best in the AL, and have the 3rd best rotation ERA at 3.69. I don't see them toppling Houston in the West, but as for the Wild Card, you're looking at a very solid contender. As expected, the A's, Mariners, and Rangers, are all in a "what do we do here?", situation. Of the three I would still give Seattle the best chance at fighting for a spot in the Wild Card, Seager is hitting .304, Cano, .296, Segura, .292, and Dee Gordon has 16 stolen bases. The Mariners are practically completely held back by their rotation, the worst in the AL, with a 5.58 ERA. Not a single starter has less than a 5.23 ERA, led by James Paxton. Over time this staff will probably even out a bit, which means they're likely going to improve. Khris Davis is hitting .327 for the Athletics and has 10 HR's. Overall, their hitting is what's keeping them relatively competitive, and much like Seattle, their staff is what's holding them back. I don't think Sean Manaea, Kendall Graveman, and Andrew Triggs, are as good as Paxton, Mike Leake, and King Felix, so Seattle will likely stay afloat above Oakland. The Rangers look pretty rough on all accounts, hitting, pitching, and defensively. I'm not entirely sure what their long term plan is here, they need to figure it out.

American League Wild Card
1. Los Angeles Angels (19-10)
2. Toronto Blue Jays (18-12)
3. Boston Red Sox (16-13)
4. Seattle Mariners (13-15)
5. Oakland Athletics (13-15)

The Red Sox, Angels, and Jays, will likely be the three contenders for the Wild Card, albeit, Boston doesn't take over in the East. I don't really see a scenario where Los Angeles is taken down by Seattle or Oakland for that Wild Card spot and Toronto will probably slow down at some point, they're a bit ahead of themselves at the moment.

National League East
1. Miami Marlins (18-10) - Sugar Ray Marimon (4-1/2.01 ERA/31 K)
2. Philadelphia Phillies (16-12) - Aaron Nola (2-0/2.29 ERA/31 K)
3. New York Mets (14-13) - Noah Syndergaard (2-3/4.11 ERA/49 K)
4. Washington Nationals (14-15) - Stephen Strasburg (5-1/1.76 ERA/45 K)
5. Atlanta Braves (12-17) - Freddie Freeman (.311/7 HR/21 RBI)

What a weird makeup in the East, typical April shenanigans. The Marlins are leading the division with 18 wins thus far, followed behind by Philly with 16, and New York with 14. Washington is currently negative at 14-15 and Atlanta is where they should probably be at with 12 wins. Miami isn't hitting that well, 11th in runs scored and 10th in average, though they are stealing bases thanks to Cameron Maybin. Maybin and Castro lead their hitting at .287 and .289 a piece. What's winning them games is their staff, currently sporting a 3.71 ERA in the rotation and a 2.54 in the pen. If I were a betting man, I'd put a large sum of money on the fact that Sugar Ray Marimon cools off a bit, he's way over performing. Regardless, I think Miami fans are pretty dang happy right now. Who's not so happy? Oh man, Washington fans. With the exception of Strasburg looking like an NL CY Young candidate at 5-1 with a 1.76 ERA & 45 K's, the Nats have struggled. Scherzer is 1-2 with a 4.13 ERA, though he is still striking batters out. Harper's bat has been very quiet with just 3 HR's and 11 RBI's, afaik he's been struggling with some lingering injuries, and Trea Turner is hitting .181 thus far. Again, it's April, but we've seen injuries hurt this Nats team a lot, the saga continues. The Phillies are a surprise at 16-12 and their power is paving the way for their young offense. They are 4th in the NL in HR's with 36 overall and are 6th in OBP. Their average is a bit wonky at 11th in the NL as Cesar Hernandez leads the charge at .300. Aaron Nola has really helped Philly's cause so far at 2-0 with a 2.29 ERA and 31 K's. If Washington begins to rebound, I don't know how much longer Philly will stick around, but as for right now, the city of brotherly love is feeling pretty good. New York is entirely dependent on their staff as deGrom, Syndergaard, Matz, and Vargas, lead the charge. Matz is sporting a 1.93 ERA and deGrom has struck out 49 batters. Their hitting you ask? Bad. Worst in the NL, bad. Amed Rosario leads them in average at .254 and Jay Bruce has batted in 17 runners. They've scored 99 runs collectively as a team and if it wasn't for their rotation, this club would probably have 10 or less wins. These aren't bad hitters in New York, so I suppose it'll pick up. Will it pick up enough to contend in the East? Probably not. Wild Card? Their rotation can do a lot of damage, so I'd say yes. The Braves called up Acuna who is hitting .212 with 3 HR's and 17 RBI's right now in the two spot for Atlanta. He's a work in progress, as is Swanson, Albies, and Luiz Gohara, in the rotation. The Braves look bright for the future, just not so much right now.

National League Central
1. St. Louis Cardinals (21-7) - Carlos Martinez (4-0/2.19 ERA/37 K)
2. Chicago Cubs (13-15) - Anthony Rizzo (.289/10 HR/21 RBI)
3. Pittsburgh Pirates (13-16) - Adam Frazier (.375/1 HR/9 RBI)
4. Milwaukee Brewers (13-17) - Lorenzo Cain (.339/5 HR/12 RBI)
5. Cincinnati Reds (10-20) - Scooter Gennett (.333/4 HR/19 RBI)

Home, at last. Well, if there anything I can say positive right now, it's that Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, and Cincinnati, haven't taken off. The Cards are playing out of their mind, leading the NL in runs scored, OBP, HR's, starting rotation ERA, and pen ERA. Carlos Martinez, Michael Wacha, Luke Weaver, and Adam Wainwright, look in tip top, career form, at the moment. Do I expect this to continue? No, they are collectively over performing, but I must admit this is concerning seeing the potential form they can reach. Matt Carpenter leads them in average at .313, Tommy Pham in HR's with 7 and RBI's with 21, plus, youngster, Tyler O'Neill, is hitting .297 with 6 HR's and 13 RBI's. We got swept by St. Louis in a three game series, outscored 19-5. We took three of four in early April against Milwaukee, but they did get revenge late in the month, taking three of four from us. Their pitching is pretty bad, collectively sporting a 4.95 ERA from their rotation and a 4.84 ERA from their pen. Their hitting, however, isn't too shabby, 8th best in the NL, and Cain has stolen 13 bases thus far. They're a quick team and we must keep them off the base paths when we play them. We took both games we've played against Cincinnati and it wouldn't surprise me if we manage that almost every series we see against them. Scooter Gennett is hitting pretty nicely, but their starting staff is really bad, worst in the NL, I might add. Tyler Mahle is their only, and I mean only, saving grace. He's got a 2.80 ERA through 35.1 IP. Pittsburgh will probably give us a run for our money a few times, we took the three game set, two to one, but it was a barn burner. They are hitting really well, second best average wise in the NL and third best in OBP. Their staff leaves something to be desired, but when Jameson Taillon settles in, he could be very good.

National League West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers (19-9) - Corey Seager (.348/4 HR/14 RBI)
5. San Diego Padres (19-10) - Will Myers (.346/11 HR/33 RBI)
2. Arizona Diamondbacks (16-12) - Paul Goldschmidt (.279/9 HR/27 RBI)
4. San Francisco Giants (11-17) - Johnny Cueto (3-0/1.29 ERA/22 K)
3. Colorado Rockies (7-23) - Nolan Arenado (.319/6 HR/16 RBI)

The Corey Seager led Dodgers are out in front in the West, barely I might add, with San Diego hot on their tail. The anticipated tough division has delivered, though it is San Diego, instead of Colorado, who is making their play. Corey Seager and Cody Bellinger have led the Dodgers offense thus far who isn't necessarily performing as well as they could be, in my opinion, at least not for a 19 win club. Their staff? Performing, and it's not even the Kershaw show. Alex Wood, Kenta Maeda, and Rich Hill, have a collective 8-1 record and 1.70 ERA, easily one of the best in the entire majors. Kershaw is 2-1 with a 4.41 ERA and once he settles in, this is going to get scary. Given the fact this division is hitter friendly, the Dodgers staff will probably get back to normality, but like St. Louis, the potential is very good. San Diego has been a big time surprise at 19 wins, led in large part by Will Myers. The youngin is hitting .346 with 11 HR's and 33 RBI's and has practically been the entire offense up to this point. I expect this to slow down a bit, but for San Diego who's rebuilding, this is promising in the young stud. Goldschmidt and the D'backs have the best offense in the NL at the moment, tied for most runs scored, best in average, fifth in OBP, and third in HR's. Nick Ahmed and David Peralta lead the charge with a combined average of .315, Goldschmidt has belted 9 bombs, Lamb 6, and Pollock has swiped five bags. This whole lineup looks pretty solid, but they do need their staff to come around. Robbie Ray is 0-2 with a 5.46 ERA and they lost Greinke for a week to an injury. Johnny Cueto looks solid for San Fran right now and Evan Longoria is batting .327. There are some good hitters in this club, and pitchers I might add, I think San Francisco might recover from this tough start. Colorado is led solely by Arenado and Blackmon, who are hitting a combined .318 average. That's pretty much where the positives end, however, as they are struggling to get on base elsewhere, in addition to holding teams from getting on base. The Rockies are last in the NL in runs against, second to last in rotation ERA, worst in pen ERA, and second to last in defensive efficiency.

National League Wild Card
1. San Diego Padres (19-10)
2. Philadelphia Phillies (16-12)
3. Arizona Diamondbacks (16-12)
4. New York Mets (14-13)
5. Washington Nationals (14-15)

Things should return to normal in the NL East, which means the Nats take over as division leader. San Diego is over performing, in my opinion, as is Philly. The D'Backs have probably the strongest shot if their hot offense keeps up and their rotation will probably eventually come around. New York's staff makes them a contender, regardless of their hitting, though they do have some decent pop in that lineup.

saintrules · 05-22-2018, 11:23 AM

May Statistics

Ah, April has come and gone & we are back in the mix. After a pretty poor start to the season at 13-15, we've managed to string 18 wins in 27 games, bringing us a 31-24 record to end the league's second month of play. While our bats are still remarkably weak, our rotation has completely cleaned up it's act and is now sporting a 3.67 combined ERA, fifth best in the NL.

Starting Lineup
1. 2B Javier Baez (.319/25 Runs/9 HR/25 RBI/9 BB/44 K/1.7 WAR)
2. 3B Kris Bryant (.240/18 Runs/6 HR/23 RBI/28 BB/66 K/1.0 WAR)
3. 1B Anthony Rizzo (.265/37 Runs/18 HR/36 RBI/35 BB/37 K/2.5 WAR)
4. C Wilson Contreras (.272/22 Runs/5 HR/22 RBI/19 BB/47 K/1.0 WAR)
5. LF Kyle Schwarber (.222/23 Runs/8 HR/19 RBI/19 BB/43 K/0.3 WAR)
6. RF Jason Heyward (.208/17 Runs/4 HR/17 RBI/21 BB/41 K/-0.1 WAR)
7. SS Addison Russell (.216/11 Runs/3 HR/13 RBI/16 BB/44 K/-0.1 WAR)
8. CF Albert Almora (.257/16 Runs/4 HR/14 RBI/6 BB/29 K/0.2 WAR)

Well, there's been zero doubt we've improved so far overall as a team, but in terms of hitting, we've actually gotten worse. We originally ranked 12th in runs scored to end April, 13th in average, and 10th in OBP. Here at the end of May, we are 14th in scoring, 15th in average, and 11th in OBP. At this point, Rizzo is godsent, a near lock as an All-Star first baseman, racking up 18 long balls with 36 RBI's, not to mention is 35 walks. He tends to hit in bunches, with multiple two HR games and even a three HR game during this month. Beyond Rizzo, however, what's our next best? I could make an argument for Baez with his .319 average and 9 HR's, but he's also sporting a disgusting 9:44 BB to K ratio as our leadoff. The only reason I have him atop the order is because if he doesn't strikeout, he usually makes some solid contact behind his .542 slugging. I've moved Bryant around in the order a bunch, from third, to fifth, to now, second. He's managed to improve his average from a gross .198 to .240 over the month, but his power remains non-existent, at least from what we'd expect to see from him. He has struck out 66 times and leads the team, leaving more runners on base than I am sure the combined amount of other clubs. The only thing preventing me from exploding on him is that he draws walks, thank the lord. Contreras has remained stable, so I suppose, he's our third best? Schwarber, Heyward, and Russell, have been rough. If Schwarber doesn't hit a homerun, he typically strikes out, maybe a double here and there. Heyward and Russell lead the team in doubles, but they also lead the team in worst average. We originally had Heyward hitting leadoff for a while, which seemed to work and get his average up, but once Baez started heating up, we sent him down. Maybe I will try this again. Almora has been moved down from the two spot to the 9th spot in hopes to at least give the bottom of the order some juice. I think he's a decent hitter, albeit, not as good as Baez to leadoff. There's opportunity for him to move around in the bottom.

Bench
2B Ben Zobrist (.179/6 Runs/0 HR/2 RBI/13 BB/5 K/0.0 WAR)
CF Ian Happ (.216/17 Runs/3 HR/11 RBI/14 BB/38 K/0.2 WAR)
LF Chris Coghlan (.280/1 Runs/0 HR/2 RBI/0 BB/8 K/-0.1 WAR)
LF Mark Zagunis (.000/1 Runs/0 HR/1 RBI/1 BB/2 K/-0.1 WAR)
C Chris Gimenez (.179/3 Runs/1 HR/5 RBI/0 BB/7 K/-0.1 WAR)

The bench looks a little different this month due to us sending down Tommy La Stella and promoting Mark Zagunis. La Stella is really capped out in his ability and didn't do much as a pinch hitter, so we've given Zagunis the go ahead. In eight AB's he's still searching for his first hit, but has drawn a walk and hit a sac fly to score a run. Happ has continued to struggle as a pinch hitter, his strikeouts are an issue. It's difficult to keep putting him in for important PH situations and him getting fanned, so we may re-explore Zobrist who at least sports a positive BB:K ratio, even though he hasn't hit well. Coghlan and Gimenez continue to be emergency options, though Gimenez did hit a granny during a blowout victory.

Starting Rotation
1. Jose Quintana (5-3/84.0 IP/2.89 ERA/18 BB/76 K/2.1 WAR)
2. Yu Darvish (2-5/62.2 IP/4.16 ERA/18 BB/53 K/0.9 WAR)
3. Jon Lester (2-7/59.1 IP/4.55 ERA/19 BB/56 K/0.8 WAR)
4. Kyle Hendricks (6-4/74.2 IP/3.01 ERA/22 BB/73 K/1.5 WAR)
5. Tyler Chatwood (6-3/58.0 IP/4.19 ERA/25 BB/48 K/0.4 WAR)

The sole reason we have won 18 games this month is our rotation (and Rizzo). Quintana is currently 4-0 and has lowered his ERA from 4.54 to 2.89 in the span of 30 days, while most notably, sporting a insane 7:44 BB to K ratio in that time frame. Quintana won the NL Pitcher of the Month Award, rightfully so, and he's starting to look like the pitcher we need to lead us to the postseason. Darvish has gotten slightly better, lowering his ERA from 4.24 to 4.16, striking out 18 batters while only walking 6. We struggle supporting him with runs and that's why he's 1-3 this month, so let's not give up hope just yet, Quintana certainly came around and he was in the same boat just 30 days ago. Lester... I promise I really don't have something against the guy, it just bothers me he's still touted as a "solid" pitcher when I know he's really not. On the month, he lowered his ERA from 5.87 to 4.55, struck out 28 batters, only walking 9, and had some quality starts in the process. He still struggles in the first inning and both of his losses this month came from getting blasted in the early goings. If he gets passed the first three innings, he seems to win. Second only to Quintana for Cubbies pitcher of the month is Hendricks, who improved his record from 1-3 to 6-4, going 5-1 over the last 30 days. He's maintained his ERA, though it's risen just a tad over 3.00. He's not the flashiest arm in the game and is normally not teeing guys up left and right, but he's been a fantastic blue-collar arm for us and has really been working the swing and miss. Chatwood has maintained the good work he did in April through May. He's lowered his ERA in that process and has definitely earned himself the spot in the rotation for the month of June. Overall, our rotation ERA dropped from 4.49, 12th best in the NL, to 3.67, 5th best, a great sign moving forward.

Bullpen
LRP Mike Montgomery (0-0/19.2 IP/5.49 ERA/4 BB/23 K/4 HD/0.2 WAR)
MRP Eddie Butler (0-0/3.0 IP/21.00 ERA/2 BB/3 K/0 HD/-0.2 WAR)
MRP Dillon Maples (1-0/17.1 IP/4.15 ERA/12 BB/27 K/6 HD/0.1 WAR)
MRP Brian Duensing (3-0/23.1 IP/5.40 ERA/8 BB/20 K/1 HD/0.2 WAR)
MRP Steve Cishek (1-0/21.2 IP/5.82 ERA/11 BB/26 K/2 HD/-0.3 WAR)
SU Justin Wilson (0-2/17.1 IP/6.75 ERA/14 BB/20 K/2 HD/3 SV/0.3 WAR)
CP Carl Edwards Jr (2-0/19.2 IP/2.75 ERA/12 BB/38 K/7 HD/1 SV/0.8 WAR)

Our pen has seen two injuries so far, one to Strop which happened in early April, and the other to Morrow, which happened just recently. I can't recall what injury Morrow suffered, but he will be out 5-6 weeks. He was pitching beyond fantastic for us, lowering his ERA from 1.08 to 0.70, collecting 7 more saves in that process, second best in the NL. In place of Morrow, I have Carl Edwards Jr. So far as our closer he's looked strong, earning a save and a couple of holds during 9th inning ties and extra innings. He's got a 5:23 BB to K ratio and the arm looks solid. Justin Wilson is still iffy, despite earning 3 saves since the injury to Morrow. He lowered his inflated ERA of 16.71 to 6.75, but his walks are a continuing issue, especially for a setup specialist. Our owner has asked us to resign him and I am really not sold on keeping him just yet. With the injury to Strop I promoted Maples and he has actually pitched very well thus far, almost securing the middle relief nod each time. Brian Duensing and Steve Cishek get their moments, Duensing in particular has been blessed with run support in his outings, earning him 3 victories over the month. Eddie Butler was promoted with the injury to Morrow and he's been on mop up duty so far. Mike Montgomery has been pretty dang good despite his higher ERA, mostly from early game takeovers when Lester gets blow out. I may experiment with Montgomery as a setup guy, he's got some nasty stuff.

Injuries
CP Brandon Morrow (2-0/25.2 IP/0.70 ERA/8 BB/23 K/14 SV/0.7 WAR)
MRP Pedro Strop (1-0/8.2 IP/4.15 ERA/6 BB/7 K/0 HD/-0.1 WAR)

Morrow will be out 5-6 weeks and Strop 4-5 months. There's a good chance Morrow may make the NL All-Star team as a RP, I'll keep you updated.

saintrules · 05-23-2018, 04:42 PM

May Power Rankings

The second month of baseball is officially in the books and the league is beginning to take shape. Following a rough start to our campaign, we've salvaged our record, now 31-24, and have began chipping away at the big lead St. Louis built throughout April. While we're still behind the Cards, we've managed to climb the Wild Card ladder and sit in first for the National League. I've separated the American and National League for the Power Rankings, call me old school, because I am.

American League

#1 Houston Astros (37-21, 1st in AL West)
Top Hitter: SS Carlos Correa (.371/14 HR/39 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Collin McHugh (5-0/2.93 ERA/56 K)
Top Category: 1st in Runs Scored/1st in AVG/1st in Starters ERA

The reigning champs are playing like the coming champs, nuff said. The Astros are already in pure mid-season form & have had no problem flexing their extremely talented offense & rotation over the American League. Correa currently leads the AL in average at a ridiculous .371 and a WAR of 3.7 for his club. You don't have to scroll too far to find the next Astros stud as Altuve is hitting .341 with a club leading 16 long balls and 41 RBI's. Oh, and don't even get me started on their staff, the Houston Five lead the league in ERA with only future Hall-of-Famer, Justin Verlander, above a 3.68 ERA.

#2 Cleveland Indians (33-22, 1st in AL Central)
Top Hitter: SS Francisco Lindor (.321/8 HR/34 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Carlos Carrasco (10-0/2.27 ERA/80 K)
Top Category: 1st in OBP/1st in Runs Against/1st in Defensive Effeciency

Though Cleveland led the AL Central following the month of April, they certainly did not look like themselves. Fast forward to the end of May, and we've got the Indians back looking like they belong here. Carlos Carrasco is straight dominating and is the first pitcher to reach double digit wins on the season. Combine his arm with fantastic hitting from Lindor, who's batting .321, Jose Ramirez, who's batting .336 with 40 RBI's, and Yonder Alonso, who's hit 13 bombs so far this year, and you've got the makings of a team who should compete with Houston come October.

#3 Boston Red Sox (34-23, 1st in AL East)
Top Hitter: DH J.D. Martinez (.283/21 HR/43 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Chris Sale (6-2/2.97 ERA/77 K)
Top Category: 2nd in Runs Against/2nd in Starters ERA

Following April, it was easy to look past Boston. They weren't leading the East, that was New York, and they weren't atop the Wild Card, that was Los Angeles and Toronto. Well, Boston has officially made it's move, and they are out in front at the end of May. J.D. Martinez has come alive in the early goings, making long ball contact 21 times, second only to Stanton for the lead in the majors. The young Benintendi is hitting .323 in the two spot with 9 HR's and 33 RBI's, while Betts, Devers, and Bogaerts, have a combined 26 HR's between the three. Chris Sale, you ask? Six wins with a sub 3.00 ERA and 77 K's. Boston looks really, really good, as of late.

#4 New York Yankees (30-27, 3rd in AL East)
Top Hitter: DH Giancarlo Stanton (.308/23 HR/49 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Luis Severino (8-1/2.95 ERA/83 K)
Top Category: 3rd in Runs Scored/3rd in HR

Losers of five straight and seventeen of their past 27 games? Why #4 in the rankings? I'll give you three names: Stanton, Judge, and Severino. There's no denying New York has hit a rough patch, there's also no denying these three are performing as some of the best players in the majors right now. Stanton has hit a majors leading 23 HR's and is batting over .300, Judge isn't far behind with 17 HR's, and Severino leads the AL in strikeouts and has 8 wins on the year. The back end of the Bronx staff is struggling, badly, and if they want any chance at competing with Boston, they need to clean it up. Tanaka is 5-2 with a 5.01 ERA, Gray is 4-4 with a 3.92 ERA, Sabathia, 2-4 with a 5.53 ERA, and Nestor Molina is sporting a gross 6.94 ERA. Nonetheless, they've still got Sanchez, who's got 11 bombs, Neil Walker, and Didi Gregorius, to supply run support, even if their staff continues to struggle.

#5 Los Angeles Angels (32-26, 2nd in AL West)
Top Hitter: CF Mike Trout (.261/11 HR/32 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Shohei Ohtani (5-3/5.55 ERA/59 K)
Top Category: 1st in Stolen Bases

It's hard to pinpoint exactly what Los Angeles is doing so well, it just seems to be working. They're first in stolen bases, but that's not winning them 32 games. How about their hitting? 7th in Runs Scored, 14th in AVG, and 9th in OBP. Okay, their pitching then? 5th in Runs Against, 8th in Starters ERA, 5th in Bullpen ERA. This is a solid team, and a club I got behind before the season started to compete for the Wild Card, I just expected to see what was working at this point, not have it unknown. Ohtani looks to be the front runner for the AL RoY honor, no real surprise there. Trout is hitting alright at the moment, certainly not at Mike Trout levels, so if he improves, we can start from there.

#6 Toronto Blue Jays (30-26, 2nd in AL East)
Top Hitter: 3B Josh Donaldson (.327/13 HR/38 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Marco Estrada (5-2/3.48 ERA/57 K)
Top Category: 3rd in Defensive Effeciency

The Jays are sandwiched between a hot Boston and a struggling New York. The good news? Josh Donaldson is looking like his career prime self, batting .327 with 13 HR's and 38 RBI's. The bad news? Donaldson gets hurt, a lot. If you take Donaldson out, this lineup is actually struggling, and even with him in they are 15th in AVG and OBP, not a good sign when you're trying to compete for a Wild Card spot. Estrada has been pretty good so far and Marcus Stroman has a 3.97 ERA with 3 wins to his name. Their pen? Not so good, especially considering Roberto Osuna will be out three weeks with an injury. My suggestion? Call up the game's top prospect, Vladimir Guerrero Jr, and have him DH, at least he gets batting experience and is already up if something happens to Donaldson.

#7 Minnesota Twins (28-27, 2nd in AL Central)
Top Hitter: LF Eddie Rosario (.317/15 HR/40 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Jose Berrios (5-3/3.49 ERA/67 K)
Top Category: 2nd in OBP

Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton, and Miguel Sano, are tearing the seams off the ball at the moment. The Twins' club is 2nd in OBP, 4th in Runs Scored, and 5th in AVG, that's with Brian Dozier only hitting .210, as well. The Twins have some hot bats, but I don't think they have the staff to topple New York, Los Angeles, or Toronto, for a Wild Card spot, at least not right now. This is a club, who in my opinion, needs to be a buyer and find some help for the rotation, or they'll continue be on the outside looking in come September.

#8 Seattle Mariners (28-28, 3rd in AL West)
Top Hitter: DH Nelson Cruz (.238/11 HR/38 RBI)
Top Pitcher: CL Edwin Diaz (1.84 ERA/16 SV)
Top Category: 1st in Bullpen ERA

In my opinion, there's a large gap between Minnesota and Seattle, and this is where things start to trend South for ballclubs. It's been two months and the Mariners are 15th in Runs Scored, 10th in AVG, and 14th in OBP. Pitching wise, 11th in Starting ERA, albeit Edwin Diaz is killing it with 16 saves and a 1.84 ERA. If I were the Seattle GM, I'd blow this thing up. Dee Gordon, Kyle Seager, Nelson Cruz, Robinson Cano, and Mitch Haniger, can be used elsewhere, there's a lot of prospect talent out in the National League to get some good returns for these names.

#9 Oakland Athletics (27-30, 4th in AL West)
Top Hitter: DH Khris Davis (.285/18 HR/38 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Sean Manaea (4-6/3.94 ERA/56 K)
Top Category: 5th in Starters ERA

Oakland is in a different boat than that of Seattle. They're younger, they've got more pop, and their staff isn't performing nearly as bad. Is this a contending team for the Wild Card? I'm not sold just yet, but if they can add someone to their lineup or staff throughout the season, they've got probably the best chance of anyone this low in the rankings.

#10 Baltimore Orioles (27-31, 4th in AL East)
Top Hitter: 3B Manny Machado (.326/16 HR/38 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Dylan Bundy (5-2/1.77 ERA/52 K)
Top Category: 1st in HR

Alright Baltimore, let's get a little realistic here. Their club is listed as "Win Now", despite being 4th in their own division and 8th in the Wild Card race. I have to start giving credit where credit's due, they are launching baseballs. They've got four players in double digits with Machado leading the charge at 16 and they will soon make it five as Tim Beckham has 9. That's where the good stops and the bad rolls in. Even with Dylan Bundy pitching out of his mind, their starting staff and pen ERA is 14th best in the AL. You clearly cannot prevent teams from scoring, and in a division with Stanton, Judge, Sanchez, Betts, Martinez, Benintendi, Bogaerts, Devers, and Donaldson, what's your plan?

#11 Texas Rangers (27-32, 5th in AL West)
Top Hitter: RF Nomar Mazara (.324/16 HR/46 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Cole Hamels (3-4/4.07 ERA/53 K)
Top Category: 4th in AVG/4th in HR

The Rangers are a great hitting club, headlined by Nomar Mazara, Joey Gallo, and Tommy Joseph, who've got a combined 50 HR's, just one short of Stanton, Judge, and Sanchez. The future is bright between these three, but this team does need some help in the staff, they're rough, 13th in Starters ERA. This isn't a short term fix, plug and chug type team, they need a complete staff overhaul, so it'll be interesting to see how they get there.

#12 Chicago White Sox (23-33, 4th in AL Central)
Top Hitter: 1B Jose Abreu (.301/15 HR/37 RBI)
Top Pitcher: RP Luis Avilan (4-1/3.89 ERA/37 K)
Top Category: 6th in AVG

The Sox are rebuilding properly, I have to give them credit. Moncada's got 10 HR's and 33 RBI's, on top of hitting .308 for the club, Abreu, .301 with 15 HR's, Nicky Delmoncio, .302 with 9 HR's, , and Tim Anderson has 11 HR's with 32 RBI's on a .288 average. The Southsiders have also already called up Eloy Jimenez, the org's top prospect, who's hitting .273 with 2 HR's in 44 AB's. Their rotation is struggling, 15th in Starters ERA at 5.60, so it won't be long till they hand the ball to Michael Kopech, the org's best pitching prospect. Will the Sox challenge anyone this season? No, but practice makes perfect.

#13 Tampa Bay Rays (23-32, 5th in AL East)
Top Hitter: C Wilson Ramos (.311/8 HR/24 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Jacob Faria (2-3/3.10 ERA/59 K)
Top Category: 5th in Defensive Efficiency

You can't count anyone out after two months, but the Rays don't necessarily look to be in it, either. It's time to move on from Chris Archer, Tampa, he's needed elsewhere. The Rays have some pretty darn good prospects in Triple and Double A right now, including: 2B Willy Adames, SP Brent Honeywell, SP Brendan McKay, and SS Christian Arroyo. Ship out, send up, and make Tampa like Chicago and Atlanta.

#14 Detroit Tigers (25-33, 3rd in AL Central)
Top Hitter: 1B Miguel Cabrera (.302/12 HR/40 RBI)
Top Pitcher: CL Shane Greene (2.63 ERA/14 SV)
Top Category: 6th in Starters ERA

Given how weak the AL Central is, don't be fooled by Detroit's third place standing, moreover don't be fooled by their 6th ranked Starters ERA. In any other division, I think the Tigers would be dead last, and they've had more rotation turnover than any other team in the league. Jordan Zimmerman and Matt Boyd are going to be out for 4-5 months a piece and they don't really have a farm to speak of. It's remarkable Miggy is still hitting above .300. I'm usually optimistic about prospects, but with Detroit, I don't really see it. This is a ballclub that's going to have a fairly long next five years.

#15 Kansas City Royals (21-36, 5th in AL Central)
Top Hitter: 2B Whit Merrifield (.345/3 HR/20 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Jason Hammel (5-3/2.93 ERA/50 K)
Top Category: 4th in Defensive Efficiency

The worst team in the majors' worst division must be pretty bad right? Yes, you are absolutely correct. With the exception of Whit Merrifield and Mike Moustakas, there's practically zero hitting on this team. With the exception of Jason Hammel, who mind you, is playing above his level, there's really no pitching. The Royals don't have much coming through the pipes either, definitely not in the short term, that is. This is a team, much like Detroit, that's setup to have a rather long next five years.

National League

#1 Los Angeles Dodgers (39-17, 1st in NL West)
Top Hitter: SS Corey Seager (.321/10 HR/32 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Kenta Maeda (7-1/1.48 ERA/66 K)
Top Category: 1st in Runs Against/1st in Starters ERA

You know things are going well when your ace, MLB's best pitcher, isn't pitching the best on your team & that you could argue he isn't even pitching second best. Kenta Maeda is going off right now, earning 7 wins in 8 decisions, sporting a 1.48 ERA and 66 K's through 67.0 IP. The Dodgers next best? Honestly, either Rich Hill or Alex Wood, both at 3 wins with a 2.26 ERA or better. Kershaw has 6 wins with a 3.21 ERA and a team leading 77 K's. I expect that ERA to come back down to normal Kershaw levels, which is very, very scary, for NL affiliates. Corey Seager has been leading a team who has hit a notch or two above average thus far, granted, Cody Bellinger and Joc Pederson have been in and out with injuries.

#2 St. Louis Cardinals (36-19, 1st in NL Central)
Top Hitter: SS Paul Dejong (.237/9 HR/34 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Carlos Martinez (6-1/2.47 ERA/70 K)
Top Category: 1st in HR

It was actually more difficult to find the Cardinals' best hitter than I thought. I settled on Paul Dejong because at the end of the day, he's got the second most HR's on the club leading the NL, most RBI's, and he bats third, leading his club to a first place standing. The Cardinals are 2nd in Runs Scored and OBP, but 9th in AVG. It seems like they've been a go big or go home lineup, and if they don't go big, they usually don't go home because Carlos Martinez and the rest of the rotation is on fire. Martinez and Weaver both sport a sub 2.49 ERA and Michael Wacha, Adam Wainwright, and Mike Mayers, sport a 3.75 or better. At the moment, there doesn't seem to be a weak link in the staff like a lot of other clubs have going for them. The Cardinals are always a big threat & this year has proven to be no different.

#3 Washington Nationals (31-26, 2nd in NL East)
Top Hitter: RF Bryce Harper (.325/11 HR/40 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Stephen Strasburg (7-1/2.33 ERA/76 K)
Top Category: 1st in Runs Scored/1st in AVG

This Washington ballclub really never has it easy, injuries are pretty common, and it seems like they've caught the bug here at the end of May. Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer have both suffered injuries keeping them both out anywhere from 5-7 weeks. Strasburg has led the team in both ERA, Wins, and strikeouts, thus far, while Scherzer has struggled a little bit with a 3.84 ERA, though he has K'd up 73 batsmen. Washington's saving grace in the staff for the next two months is going to need to be Gio Gonzalez who is 3-3 with a 2.71 ERA. In the lineup, all systems seem to be a go. Harper is doing Harper things, hitting very well & is matched in terms of average by Adam Eaton at .325. Anthony Rendon and Daniel Murphy are also producing nicely, in particular, Murphy is hitting .318 with 7 HR's and 34 RBI's, while Rendon is at .306 with 8 HR's and 33 RBI's. The bats from Washington can probably carry them to the division title as no lineup in the NL East, at the moment, can compete.

#4 Chicago Cubs (31-24, 2nd in NL Central)
Top Hitter: 1B Anthony Rizzo (.265/18 HR/36 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Jose Quintana (5-3/2.89 ERA/76 K)
Top Category: 2nd in Defensive Efficiency

Well, we're back in the thick of it. Things looked rather bleak after our pedestrian 13-15 start to the season, but we've shined our shoes and we're back on the prowl, winners of 18 of our last 27. Our hitting woes have continued and as good as Rizzo has looked for us, he typically hits in bunches, and that often comes when we're already winning. If it wasn't for Quintana bouncing back and looking exceptional in he recent four starts, we'd probably be a good 5 spots lower in these rankings. Trading away prospects for hitting help isn't in the game plan at this very second, I'm still holding onto hope that Bryant will get a power surge, Schwarber will wake up, and Russell/Heyward will kick up their average.

#5 New York Mets (30-25, 1st in NL East)
Top Hitter: LF Michael Conforto (.297/8 HR/22 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Jacob deGrom (6-5/2.55 ERA/97 K)
Top Category: 2nd in Starters ERA

Syndergaard WAR: 2.7. deGrom WAR: 2.5. Need I say more? The New York fireballers are at it again and if they had any, and I mean any, run support, they'd probably combine for 20 wins by now. The Mets are completely one sided, led by the two aforementioned starters and I suppose you can throw in Steven Matz who has been excellent as well, 3-2 with a 2.80 ERA. Their lineup? Awful. Conforto leads the charge with the best average thus far and Jay Bruce has 12 long balls which leads the club. The Mets are 15th in Runs Scored, 13th in AVG, 13th in OBP, 11th in HR, and 15th in Stolen Bases. Compare that to 2nd in Runs Against, 2nd in Starters ERA, 5th in Bullpen ERA, and 4th in Defensive Efficiency. Like I said, complete one sided affair.

#6 San Francisco Giants (31-25, 2nd in NL West)
Top Hitter: 3B Evan Longoria (.336/6 HR/31 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Johnny Cueto (5-1/3.60 ERA/44 K)
Top Category: 1st in OBP

By far the biggest turn around so far has been San Francisco who has put together a 20-8 record in May. First of all, could you imagine this club if everyone was in their prime? Andrew McCutchen, Evan Longoria, Buster Posey, Madison Bumgarner, Jeff Samardzija, and Johnny Cueto? Well, as of late, they are playing in some form of it, that's for sure. McCutchen, Joe Panik, Evan Longoria, and Buster Posey, are all hitting very well, getting on base, and scoring runs. The club is 1st in OBP, 4th in AVG, and 6th in Runs Scored. They don't necessarily have the pop as other teams in the league do, but small ball seems to be the name of their game. The staff has actually not been at full strength either as they've battled a great deal of rotation injuries. Bumgarner is finally back after missing the first two months of the season and is slated to make his first start. Ty Blach, Scott Kazmir, and Jeff Samardzija, have all pitched under the IP to qualify for the leaderboards, though once Kazmir gets on, he'll be rocking a sub 2.00 ERA at 1.66. Cueto has been their only non injured arm so far and he's doing okay so far, could be a little better.

#7 Arizona Diamondbacks (30-25, 3rd in NL West)
Top Hitter: 1B Paul Goldschmidt (.234/13 HR/36 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Patrick Corbin (4-0/2.55 ERA/61 K)
Top Category: 3rd in AVG

Between AJ Pollock, David Peralta, Paul Goldschmidt, Jake Lamb, Steven Souza Jr, and Nick Ahmed, this lineup is hitting very well. Third in average and 6th in OBP has helped Arizona to a 30-25 record and third place standing in the NL Wild Card. At the moment, Patrick Corbin has been this staff's saving grace and Greinke, Ray, Godley, and Walker, have struggled. Most notably, Zach Greinke is 2-4 with a 5.56 ERA and Robbie Ray is 0-6 with a 6.32 ERA. There's no denying there are a lot of big bats in the West, but Los Angeles hasn't seem to have had a big issue, so it's not impossible to pitch well. Arizona is kind of at a middle ground right now, if they want to compete, they better start pitching, or they're gonna get left in the dust.

#8 San Diego Padres (29-29, 4th in NL West)
Top Hitter: RF Will Meyers (.282/14 HR/45 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Joel De La Cruz (5-1/3.16 ERA/49 K)
Top Category: 1st in Defensive Efficiency

Was San Diego over performing a bit in April? You could make that argument. Since their hot start in April they've gone 10-19 and have fallen a ways out of the NL West, 11 games back, and are pretty far out in the Wild Card. After clobbering 11 HR's in the club's first 29 games, Will Meyers has since cooled off and has only hit 3 since. He's still been the team's best hitter, so I can't take that away from him. The Padres staff has seen it's better days and even though they are 7th in Starters ERA, they only have two pitchers qualified to make the ERA leaderboard. Joel De La Cruz and Bryant Mitchell sport a 3.16 and 3.66 ERA respectively, while Dinelson Lamet, Scott Diamond, and Tyson Ross, haven't pitched over 50 innings. There's promise in this club, especially with the crazy deep farm system they've got.

#9 Miami Marlins (29-27, 3rd in NL East)
Top Hitter: 1B Justin Bour (.252/11 HR/42 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Sugar Ray Marimon (6-2/2.81 ERA/46 K)
Top Category: 1st in Bullpen ERA

Similar to San Diego, Miami got off to a rocking start, but have since fallen back down to earth, losers of 19 of 30. As a Marlins fan, you can't really be mad, that hot start was fun. This is a club who is going through the proper channels to rebuild and have completely cleaned house, I can respect that. We'll keep an eye on Lewis Brinson who they've called up, their top prospect is hitting .204 with 5 HR's and 25 RBI's thus far. Sugar Ray Marimon is still performing, pretty surprising, I'd say.

#10 Philadelphia Phillies (26-30, 4th in NL East)
Top Hitter: 3B Maikel Franco (.274/13 HR/35 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Aaron Nola (2-1/2.24 ERA/62 K)
Top Category: 8th in OBP/8th in HR/8th in Starters ERA/8th in Defensive Efficiency

The Phillies are similar to the White Sox, they've brought their talent up, and they are getting experience. J.P. Crawful, Rhys Hoskins, Odubel Herrera, and Maikel Franco, are the future of this team, so it'll be interesting to see how they fare over the course of the long season. Aaron Nola is pitching quite well for the club, a 2.24 ERA leads the team and he's also got support from Jake Arrieta who's 2-2 with a 2.74 ERA, though he's pitched just under the IP qualifer.

#11 Pittsburgh Pirates (25-31, 3rd in NL Central)
Top Hitter: RF Gregory Polanco (.298/6 HR/31 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Chad Kuhl (5-4/4.30 ERA/53 K)
Top Category: 2nd in AVG

Adam Frazier was leading this ballclub in average there for a while, but a couple week injury has now taken him out of the leaderboards. This team can hit, 2nd in AVG, 3rd in OBP, but they struggle to score runs. Why is that? Probably their 14th ranking in HR's. This team doesn't have much pop to speak of with Josh Bell and Corey Dickerson leading the charge with 7 a piece. On the pitching side, their 13th ranking in Starters ERA hasn't helped their cause one bit. The Pirates are probably in the earlier stages of a rebuild season, they just don't quite know it, yet.

#12 Milwaukee Brewers (23-34, 4th in NL Central)
Top Hitter: RF Ryan Bruan (.300/8 HR/36 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Chase Anderson (5-3/3.56 ERA/57 K)
Top Category: 2nd in HR

The Brew crew are a club who could probably string something together for the Wild Card if they had a rotation worth fighting with. The problem is, they don't, and this will probably limit their success through the season. Chase Anderson has been their best arm so far and that's not much to speak of. Josh Hader is a gem in the pen and he's got a team leading 58 K's through like 20 some innings pitched, that's crazy. I'm not entirely sure what Milwaukee should do here, but they do need to figure it out, the Wild Card is going to be very tough to get through.

#13 Atlanta Braves (22-35, 5th in NL East)
Top Hitter: 1B Freddie Freeman (.297/11 HR/35 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Julio Teheran (4-0/2.99 ERA/61 K)
Top Category: 1st in Stolen Bases

The Braves are basically a year ahead version of Philly and the White Sox. Acuna, Freeman, Albies, Camargo, Swanson, and Gohara, are the future of this org, and they've also got Kyle Wright, Mike Soroka, and Austin Riley, coming through the farm. The rebuild isn't over till this team starts producing, but that's also not far away. Acuna has 9 HR's so far in his young career and Ozzie Albies is raking with a .326 average, 4 HR's, and 34 RBI's.

#14 Colorado Rockies (21-35, 5th in NL West)
Top Hitter: 3B Nolan Arenado (.311/11 HR/29 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Antonio Senzatela (3-4/4.59 ERA/43 K)
Top Category: 5th in Runs Scored

At the start of the season, it was easy to look at Colorado and say, "hey look it's Arenado and Blackmon, they're going to win some games!" Well, it's also easy to forget that the Colorado rotation is pretty bad and they hit in the most hitter friendly park in the majors. Their starting staff and pen are among the worst in not just the NL, but the majors as a whole. Their lineup seems to be hitting pretty well, given their 5th ranking in Runs Scored and 6th in AVG, but a 12th ranking in Starters ERA and 15th in Bullpen ERA, doesn't get much worse.

#15 Cincinnati Reds (19-38, 5th in NL Central)
Top Hitter: 3B Eugenio Suarez (.294/12 HR/33 RBI)
Top Pitcher: SP Tyler Mahle (2-3/4.72 ERA/62 K)
Top Category: 9th in OBP/9th in Bullpen ERA/9th in Defensive Efficiency

The Reds will likely end up as the worst team in the majors come September, but that's not really a surprise. This is a club who needs more prospects and I wouldn't be shocked if they just tank all the way through the year. They need to clean house, draft prospects, bring up Nick Senzel, and let this team work itself out.

saintrules · 05-29-2018, 12:23 PM

June Statistics

We'll call it June gloom as the Cubbies have once again hit a wall after a great month of May. The month of June saw only 10 wins for the club with 18 losses, our worst 30 day stretch thus far. Hot and cold hitting has been the main source of our difficulties as consistency in scoring runs is at a minimum. Our starting pitching has gotten better, however, the bullpen has let the rotation down a couple of times, leading to quality starts being erased.

Starting Lineup
1. LF Ben Zobrist (.204/14 Runs/1 HR/5 RBI/19 BB/12 K/0.2 WAR)
2. 2B Javier Baez (.294/37 Runs/17 HR/42 RBI/13 BB/76 K/2.4 WAR)
3. 1B Anthony Rizzo (.266/53 Runs/25 HR/51 RBI/49 BB/55 K/3.5 WAR)
4. 3B Kris Bryant (.233/33 Runs/9 HR/29 RBI/42 BB/99 K/1.3 WAR)
5. C Wilson Contreras (.257/35 Runs/12 HR/40 RBI/28 BB/67 K/1.6 WAR)
6. CF Ian Happ (.253/33 Runs/12 HR/23 RBI/26 BB/69 K/1.5 WAR)
8. RF Jason Heyward (.220/22 Runs/6 HR/29 RBI/33 BB/60 K/0.2 WAR)
9. SS Addison Russell (.195/13 Runs/4 HR/15 RBI/25 BB/61 K/-0.8 WAR)

The starting lineup has once again seen a shakeup as I try to find some consistency. Originally, Zobrist was taken out for Baez as the hot hitting Javier was producing for us. As I would bring Zobrist to the plate for pinch hitting, I started to notice a trend. The vet doesn't strikeout very often at all and has very good plate vision, something we desperately needed at the top of his strikeout prone lineup. Since bring him back in, Zobrist has improved his average from .179 to .204 and has drawn 6 walks in the leadoff role. Baez and Rizzo are still smashing balls and Rizzo still leads the NL in long balls, followed by Baez, in fourth. We lost Schwarber to an oblique strain on June 8th and although he has been cleared to return, he hasn't yet made it back yet as the injury is still flaring up. We recently lost Albert Almora to an unknown injury on June 29th and we are still waiting for details. In Almora's place, we brought Ian Happ into the lineup and he has absolutely produced in the starting role. The young CF has improved his average from a lowly .216 with just 3 HR's to .253 with 12 HR's. This has given me more confidence with this roster and I am looking forward to when Schwarber can pickup the fulltime duties in LF once again. Bryant and Contreras are still hitting fair, I wouldn't necessarily call it good, at the moment. Heyward and Russell are certainly not hitting well and Russell's starting spot at SS is definitely going to be threatened once Schwarber moves back into LF, putting Zobrist at 2B and Baez at SS.

Bench
LF Chris Coghlan (.220/2 Runs/0 HR/4 RBI/5 BB/13 K/-0.1 WAR)
C Chris Gimenez (.241/7 Runs/1 HR/10 RBI/6 BB/13 K/0.0 WAR)
1B Victor Caratini (.91/0 Runs/0 HR/0 RBI/0 BB/1 K/-0.2 WAR)

With the injuries to Schwarber and Almora, we had room on the bench. I called up first baseman, Victor Caratini, to test what the 24 year old was made of. Caratini's days in the big leagues are numbered at this point and it won't be long until we send him back to Triple A for more playing time.

Lineup Injuries
CF Albert Almora (.265/26 Runs/6 HR/24 RBI/10 BB/43 K/1.5 WAR)
LF Kyle Schwarber (.225/24 Runs/9 HR/21 RBI/21 BB/51 K/0.4 WAR)

Losing Almora really didn't have an impact on June stats since he was hurt on the 29th of the month. He's basically in the same boat as Bryant and Contreras where he's hitting good, just not great. Regardless, at the current state of our starting lineup, that .265 average is basically gold, we need him back. Schwarber's lingering oblique strain is healed, but he's still not 100% ready to go. I gauge him being back in the lineup around the end of the first week in July.

Starting Rotation
1. Jose Quintana (7-5/117.3 IP/2.99 ERA/29 BB/105 K/2.5 WAR)
2. Yu Darvish (4-8/101.2 IP/4.34 ERA/30 BB/102 K/2.0 WAR)
3. Jon Lester (2-9/82.1 IP/4.92 ERA/32 BB/73 K/0.2 WAR)
4. Kyle Hendricks (7-4/104.1 IP/2.76 ERA/32 BB/99 K/2.2 WAR)
5. Tyler Chatwood (6-7/92.0 IP/4.50 ERA/35 BB/69 K/0.7 WAR)

For all the skepticism I had before the season, our starting rotation continues to be the golden child of this year's club. Despite our Starting ERA slightly rising to 3.83 from 3.67, we've improved in the NL rankings from 5th best to 4th best. Quintana, Darvish, and Hendricks, have all seen a very good month, specifically Hendricks, who notched another win, lowered his ERA from 3.01 to 2.76, and put forth a 10:26 BB to K ratio. Speaking of strikeout's, nobody had a better month than Darvish in that category as the first year Cubbie sported a 12:49 BB to K ratio over the month. Darvish is still struggling in the ERA department and went 2-3 over the last 30 days, but improved his WAR by over 1 point and has definitely made strides. Chatwood took four losses, but a lot of that can be attributed to failed run production by the lineup.

Bullpen
ESP Oscar De La Cruz (0-1/12.0 IP/3.75 ERA/7 BB/12 K/0 HD/0.1 WAR)
MRP Mike Montgomery (0-2/30.2 IP/5.28 ERA/9 BB/29 K/6 HD/0.0 WAR)
MRP Jose Junior Rosario (0-1/7.2 IP/0.00 ERA/1 BB/7 K/1 HD/0.2 WAR)
MRP Brian Duensing (4-0/38.0 IP/5.68 ERA/12 BB/26 K/1 HD/-0.1 WAR)
MRP Dillon Maples (3-1/31.2 IP/4.26 ERA/29 BB/51 K/7 HD/-0.4 WAR)
SU/CL Justin Wilson (1-3/27.0 IP/7.00 ERA/25 BB/29 K/8 HD/5 SV/-0.2 WAR)
SU/CL Carl Edwards Jr (3-1/30.0 IP/3.00 ERA/22 BB/55 K/7 HD/4 SV/1.1 WAR)

With the injuries to Morrow, Strop, and now, Cishek, the pen has seen a couple of call-ups throughout this campaign. We recently brought up both Oscar De La Cruz and Jose Junior Rosario from the farm. De La Cruz received a starting opportunity to give the rotation some extra rest, and although he looked decent, he did take the loss from a lack of run production...nothing new. From what I did see, I did like, and he will get another chance. Jose Junior Rosario has been lights out thus far and he may actually stay up as time moves on, he hasn't allowed a run in 7.2 IP and has struck out 7, only walking 1. Mike Montgomery, Brian Duensing, and Dillon Maples, have been so-so over the month, though it's important to note that they have seen mop up duty, inflating their ERA's quite a bit. Speaking of ERA's, Justin Wilson continues to be terrible, and I am at the point where I may have to shop him around just to get something before his contract runs out at the end of the season. Carl Edwards Jr is basically an example of what Wilson should be doing up to this point.

Staff Injuries
CP Brandon Morrow (2-0/25.2 IP/0.70 ERA/8 BB/23 K/14 SV/0.7 WAR)
MRP Pedro Strop (1-0/8.2 IP/4.15 ERA/6 BB/7 K/0 HD/-0.1 WAR)
MRP Steve Cishek (1-0/25.1 IP/4.97 ERA/11 BB/28 K/2 HD/-0.2 WAR)

With Justin Wilson struggling, we really need Brandon Morrow back. Luckily, we're only looking at one more week without the closer, so that's fantastic. Strop will still be out four more months, and we officially got word that Cishek will miss the rest of the season, plus some of next, with a torn rotator cuff, nasty.

saintrules · 05-29-2018, 03:50 PM

Mid-Season Standings

June has come to an end & we are officially at the halfway point for the league. Below I have compiled the current standings accompanied by their individual team highlight:

American League East
1. Boston Red Sox (44-39) - J.D. Martinez (.292/31 HR/65 RBI)
2. New York Yankees (42-40) - Giancarlo Stanton (.281/34 HR/70 RBI)
3. Toronto Blue Jays (42-40) - Josh Donaldson (.280/16 HR/46 RBI)
4. Baltimore Orioles (41-44) - Manny Machado (.288/23 HR/57 RBI)
5. Tampa Bay Rays (36-46) - Wilson Ramos (.297/12 HR/40 RBI)

Three months through and first to fourth place separated by just 4 games. What does that mean? Dogfight. This division was thought of to be a war between Boston and New York, with the loser making the best case for a Wild Card spot. Instead, It's Boston vs. New York, featuring Toronto, with a special guest appearance by Baltimore. The Sox just lost Chris Sale for the rest of the year, a massive blow to a rotation that doesn't really have another standout. As well as Boston is hitting (2nd in AVG), it's likely going to come down to their staff to keep them afloat.

American League Central
1. Cleveland Indians (49-32) - Carlos Carrasco (11-3/2.27 ERA/112 K)
2. Minnesota Twins (40-41) - Eddie Rosario (.302/18 HR/57 RBI)
3. Chicago White Sox (37-46) - Jose Abreu (.293/25 HR/62 RBI)
4. Detroit Tigers (35-49) - Miguel Cabrera (.288/19 HR/59 RBI)
5. Kansas City Royals (30-52) - Mike Moustakas (.281/21 HR/59 RBI)

Like it has been for most of the year, the AL Central is firmly in the grip of Cleveland. Carlos Carrasco currently leads the shortlist of AL Cy Young candidates and it's almost safe to say he occupies second place on that list, as well. The AL Central can either be the most or least interesting division come the trade deadline as Minnesota, Detroit, and Kansas City, all have assets worth shipping off. Most notably, Mike Moustakas and Whit Merrifield have continued to light things up for a more than struggling Royals club, contending teams have to have taken note.

American League West
1. Houston Astros (58-27) - Jose Altuve (.316/19 HR/52 RBI)
2. Los Angeles Angels (47-37) - Mike Trout (.289/17 HR/50 RBI)
3. Seattle Mariners (45-39) - James Paxton (9-4/2.69 ERA/105 K)
4. Texas Rangers (40-44) - Nomar Mazara (.313/18 HR/59 RBI)
5. Oakland Athletics (38-46) - Khris Davis (.290/22 HR/45 RBI)

The Astros are so good that they have basically stopped competing against the AL West and have just began competing against themselves. Carlos Correa (.349/16 HR/50 RBI) vs. Jose Altuve (.316/19 HR/52 RBI), Collin McHugh (8-1/2.43/92 K) vs. Lance McCullers Jr (9-2/2.80 ERA/104 K), heck, even Brad Peacock (8-0/2.20 ERA) vs. Ken Giles (2.75 ERA/20 SV). The Angels have remained in the driver's seat for the Wild Card & will likely continue to do so, while Seattle has gotten their act together behind James Paxton's fantastic season and some good hitting from Gordon, Cano, Seager, and Cruz.

American League Wild Card
1. Los Angeles Angels (47-37)
2. Seattle Mariners (45-39)
3. New York Yankees (42-40)
4. Toronto Blue Jays (42-40)
5. Minnesota Twins (40-41)

It's rather shocking to see New York hanging around in that three spot for the Wild Card. With the state of the AL East, it may be a win the division, or die trying, type of season. The Angels and Mariners hold the lead at the moment, but with more meetings with Houston on the schedule, that lead may be trimmed down following a three or four game set.

National League East
1. New York Mets (42-39) - Jacob deGrom (9-4/3.05 ERA/133 K)
2. Philadelphia Phillies (43-40) - Aaron Nola (6-2/1.90 ERA/99 K)
3. Washington Nationals (39-42) - Bryce Harper (.325/18 HR/55 RBI)
4. Atlanta Braves (38-44) - Freddie Freeman (.306/17 HR/48 RBI)
5. Miami Marlins (35-49) - Justin Bour (.262/14 HR/54 RBI)

The Nationals proved their dependency on Strasburg and Scherzer, rightfully so I might add, as they skidded to an 8-16 record through the month of June. Meanwhile, Syndergaard and deGrom have continued to completely carry the Mets, combining for 16 wins, a 2.83 ERA, and 248 K's. It's no different in Philly as Aaron Nola stands alone in the sub 2.00 ERA category with a mind boggling 1.90 ERA through 109.0 IP. In terms of completeness, Washington still has the best shot at finding themselves at the top of the East as Daniel Murphy (.335), Bryce Harper (.325), Adam Eaton (.320), and Trea Turner (.292), keep their bats rolling.

National League Central
1. St. Louis Cardinals (51-30) - Carlos Martinez (7-3/2.89 ERA/101 K)
2. Chicago Cubs (41-42) - Anthony Rizzo (.266/25 HR/51 RBI)
3. Pittsburgh Pirates (37-46) - Josh Bell (.284/12 HR/53 RBI)
4. Milwaukee Brewers (35-48) - Chase Anderson (8-3/2.96 ERA/74 K)
5. Cincinnati Reds (32-50) - Eugenio Suarez (.282/14 HR/39 RBI)

We lost April, we won May, and we lost June. Our hot and cold hitting has dug us into an 11 games back hole with the All-Star break on the horizon. The tough thing is that St. Louis isn't really all that good, but to beat them, we have to string at least two winning months together, or we aren't catching them at all. It's greatly to our benefit that Milwaukee and Cincinnati are among two of the worst teams in the National League, so we have to pounce on every opportunity in those series.

National League West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers (57-25) - Kenta Maeda (8-1/2.13 ERA/83 K)
2. Arizona Diamondbacks (48-35) - Patrick Corbin (7-1/2.11 ERA/91 K)
3. San Francisco Giants (47-37) - Buster Posey (.335/11 HR/49 RBI)
4. San Diego Padres (40-45) - Will Meyers (.284/19 HR/59 RBI)
5. Colorado Rockies (34-49) - Charlie Blackmon (.300/13 HR/44 RBI)

Similar to the AL West, the Dodgers are so far out in front at the moment that they are also just competing against one another. Kenta Maeda is basically just the shiniest trophy in the trophy room as he, Alex Wood (2.58 ERA), Ross Stripling (3.09 ERA), and Clayton Kershaw (3.35 ERA), all sport below the lowest ERA of the Giants, Padres, and Rockies, combined.

National League Wild Card
1. Arizona Diamondbacks (48-35)
2. San Francisco Giants (47-37)
3. New York Mets (42-39)
4. Philadelphia Phillies (43-40)
5. Chicago Cubs (41-42)

The Diamondbacks and Giants lead the race, but I do have my reservations about San Francisco's chances. With the exception of Johnny Cueto (3.80 ERA), they don't really have much of a staff to speak of. Madison Bumgarner has made his way back, but sports a 1-2 record through three starts and a 5.53 ERA. They've chosen to put Scott Kazmir back in the bullpen, despite him being 6-1 with a 1.92 ERA, so that could change over time. If we want to compete in this Wild Card, we probably still have to string two winning months together.

05-29-2018, 03:50 PM	#16
saintrules MVP OVR: 0 Join Date: May 2016	Re: The Loveable Winners: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty (OOTP 19) Mid-Season Standings June has come to an end & we are officially at the halfway point for the league. Below I have compiled the current standings accompanied by their individual team highlight: American League East 1. Boston Red Sox (44-39) - J.D. Martinez (.292/31 HR/65 RBI) 2. New York Yankees (42-40) - Giancarlo Stanton (.281/34 HR/70 RBI) 3. Toronto Blue Jays (42-40) - Josh Donaldson (.280/16 HR/46 RBI) 4. Baltimore Orioles (41-44) - Manny Machado (.288/23 HR/57 RBI) 5. Tampa Bay Rays (36-46) - Wilson Ramos (.297/12 HR/40 RBI) Three months through and first to fourth place separated by just 4 games. What does that mean? Dogfight. This division was thought of to be a war between Boston and New York, with the loser making the best case for a Wild Card spot. Instead, It's Boston vs. New York, featuring Toronto, with a special guest appearance by Baltimore. The Sox just lost Chris Sale for the rest of the year, a massive blow to a rotation that doesn't really have another standout. As well as Boston is hitting (2nd in AVG), it's likely going to come down to their staff to keep them afloat. American League Central 1. Cleveland Indians (49-32) - Carlos Carrasco (11-3/2.27 ERA/112 K) 2. Minnesota Twins (40-41) - Eddie Rosario (.302/18 HR/57 RBI) 3. Chicago White Sox (37-46) - Jose Abreu (.293/25 HR/62 RBI) 4. Detroit Tigers (35-49) - Miguel Cabrera (.288/19 HR/59 RBI) 5. Kansas City Royals (30-52) - Mike Moustakas (.281/21 HR/59 RBI) Like it has been for most of the year, the AL Central is firmly in the grip of Cleveland. Carlos Carrasco currently leads the shortlist of AL Cy Young candidates and it's almost safe to say he occupies second place on that list, as well. The AL Central can either be the most or least interesting division come the trade deadline as Minnesota, Detroit, and Kansas City, all have assets worth shipping off. Most notably, Mike Moustakas and Whit Merrifield have continued to light things up for a more than struggling Royals club, contending teams have to have taken note. American League West 1. Houston Astros (58-27) - Jose Altuve (.316/19 HR/52 RBI) 2. Los Angeles Angels (47-37) - Mike Trout (.289/17 HR/50 RBI) 3. Seattle Mariners (45-39) - James Paxton (9-4/2.69 ERA/105 K) 4. Texas Rangers (40-44) - Nomar Mazara (.313/18 HR/59 RBI) 5. Oakland Athletics (38-46) - Khris Davis (.290/22 HR/45 RBI) The Astros are so good that they have basically stopped competing against the AL West and have just began competing against themselves. Carlos Correa (.349/16 HR/50 RBI) vs. Jose Altuve (.316/19 HR/52 RBI), Collin McHugh (8-1/2.43/92 K) vs. Lance McCullers Jr (9-2/2.80 ERA/104 K), heck, even Brad Peacock (8-0/2.20 ERA) vs. Ken Giles (2.75 ERA/20 SV). The Angels have remained in the driver's seat for the Wild Card & will likely continue to do so, while Seattle has gotten their act together behind James Paxton's fantastic season and some good hitting from Gordon, Cano, Seager, and Cruz. American League Wild Card 1. Los Angeles Angels (47-37) 2. Seattle Mariners (45-39) 3. New York Yankees (42-40) 4. Toronto Blue Jays (42-40) 5. Minnesota Twins (40-41) It's rather shocking to see New York hanging around in that three spot for the Wild Card. With the state of the AL East, it may be a win the division, or die trying, type of season. The Angels and Mariners hold the lead at the moment, but with more meetings with Houston on the schedule, that lead may be trimmed down following a three or four game set. National League East 1. New York Mets (42-39) - Jacob deGrom (9-4/3.05 ERA/133 K) 2. Philadelphia Phillies (43-40) - Aaron Nola (6-2/1.90 ERA/99 K) 3. Washington Nationals (39-42) - Bryce Harper (.325/18 HR/55 RBI) 4. Atlanta Braves (38-44) - Freddie Freeman (.306/17 HR/48 RBI) 5. Miami Marlins (35-49) - Justin Bour (.262/14 HR/54 RBI) The Nationals proved their dependency on Strasburg and Scherzer, rightfully so I might add, as they skidded to an 8-16 record through the month of June. Meanwhile, Syndergaard and deGrom have continued to completely carry the Mets, combining for 16 wins, a 2.83 ERA, and 248 K's. It's no different in Philly as Aaron Nola stands alone in the sub 2.00 ERA category with a mind boggling 1.90 ERA through 109.0 IP. In terms of completeness, Washington still has the best shot at finding themselves at the top of the East as Daniel Murphy (.335), Bryce Harper (.325), Adam Eaton (.320), and Trea Turner (.292), keep their bats rolling. National League Central 1. St. Louis Cardinals (51-30) - Carlos Martinez (7-3/2.89 ERA/101 K) 2. Chicago Cubs (41-42) - Anthony Rizzo (.266/25 HR/51 RBI) 3. Pittsburgh Pirates (37-46) - Josh Bell (.284/12 HR/53 RBI) 4. Milwaukee Brewers (35-48) - Chase Anderson (8-3/2.96 ERA/74 K) 5. Cincinnati Reds (32-50) - Eugenio Suarez (.282/14 HR/39 RBI) We lost April, we won May, and we lost June. Our hot and cold hitting has dug us into an 11 games back hole with the All-Star break on the horizon. The tough thing is that St. Louis isn't really all that good, but to beat them, we have to string at least two winning months together, or we aren't catching them at all. It's greatly to our benefit that Milwaukee and Cincinnati are among two of the worst teams in the National League, so we have to pounce on every opportunity in those series. National League West 1. Los Angeles Dodgers (57-25) - Kenta Maeda (8-1/2.13 ERA/83 K) 2. Arizona Diamondbacks (48-35) - Patrick Corbin (7-1/2.11 ERA/91 K) 3. San Francisco Giants (47-37) - Buster Posey (.335/11 HR/49 RBI) 4. San Diego Padres (40-45) - Will Meyers (.284/19 HR/59 RBI) 5. Colorado Rockies (34-49) - Charlie Blackmon (.300/13 HR/44 RBI) Similar to the AL West, the Dodgers are so far out in front at the moment that they are also just competing against one another. Kenta Maeda is basically just the shiniest trophy in the trophy room as he, Alex Wood (2.58 ERA), Ross Stripling (3.09 ERA), and Clayton Kershaw (3.35 ERA), all sport below the lowest ERA of the Giants, Padres, and Rockies, combined. National League Wild Card 1. Arizona Diamondbacks (48-35) 2. San Francisco Giants (47-37) 3. New York Mets (42-39) 4. Philadelphia Phillies (43-40) 5. Chicago Cubs (41-42) The Diamondbacks and Giants lead the race, but I do have my reservations about San Francisco's chances. With the exception of Johnny Cueto (3.80 ERA), they don't really have much of a staff to speak of. Madison Bumgarner has made his way back, but sports a 1-2 record through three starts and a 5.53 ERA. They've chosen to put Scott Kazmir back in the bullpen, despite him being 6-1 with a 1.92 ERA, so that could change over time. If we want to compete in this Wild Card, we probably still have to string two winning months together. __________________ ~ Return of the King ~ Last edited by saintrules; 05-31-2018 at 10:21 AM.

	MLB The Show 24 Review: Another Solid Hit for the Series
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05-15-2018, 07:05 PM	#9
johnstone1987 MVP OVR: 0 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Reno,NV	Re: The Loveable Winners: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty (OOTP 19) That's awesome. And as a BASEBALL FAN I was stoked as hell to see the Cubs win the Series. My Mariners have yet to accomplish that Anyway good luck bro i'll be following! saintrules likes this. __________________ Dynasties WWE 2k20 Universe San Jose Sharks Dynasty NHL 19

05-16-2018, 12:18 PM	#10
saintrules MVP OVR: 0 Join Date: May 2016	Re: The Loveable Winners: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty (OOTP 19) Cubs Preview It's time to take a look at my 2018 Cubs! As previously mentioned in the season preview, I have question marks about this team, but from an overall standpoint, it is built very well. I'll detail each position group & then finish off with a small section on the top prospects in our organization. Chicago Cubs Depth Chart - 2018 Catcher Wilson Contreras (67) Chris Gimenez (24) First Base Anthony Rizzo (67) Second Base Ben Zobrist (44) Javier Baez (35) Tommy La Stella (28) Third Base Kris Bryant (75) Shortstop Addison Russell (51) Left Field Kyle Schwarber (51) Chris Coghlan (29) Center Field Albert Almora (45) Ian Happ (40) Right Field Jason Heyward (45) Starting Pitcher Jose Quintana (70) Yu Darvish (63) Jon Lester (59) Kyle Hendricks (60) Tyler Chatwood (44) Relief Pitcher Justin Wilson (64) Carl Edwards Jr (57) Pedro Strop (57) Steve Cishek (55) Brian Duensing (44) Mike Montgomery (30) Closer Brandon Morrow (65) Starting Pitching We might as well start off at the biggest question mark of all. This group is undoubtedly different from the rotation that brought Chicago it's first World Series in over 100 years back in 2016. No Arrieta, a regressed Lester, no Lackey, a similar Hendricks, and no Hammel. That rotation was great, one of the best in the business at the time. Let's start off with the positives with this bunch. Quintana is a solid starter, maybe not an ace, but a pretty darn good number two. It'll be interesting to see what he can bring to the table, and given the fact he's been playing for a bad team for years and years, he's probably underrated. While I'd like a real ace, I will take Quintana as our big guy for the moment. Darvish had a great start to his career in Texas & he did look like the next big thing. Injuries, bad performances, and the likely confidence crush, has transformed him into a shell of his former 2012/2013 Yu Darvish self. Flat out, I don't think he's very good, and signing him was probably one of the worst moves the Cubs have made over the last few years, granted, they haven't made many bad moves. He's got good stuff, but he's average in terms of movement and control. I'm going to proceed with caution & just hope I get some form of early career Darvish here in 2018. Lester, hmm, where do I start here. Jon Lester was a good pitcher back in 2016, I wouldn't have called him great. His control and relationship with Grandpa Ross definitely elevated his game, but if you watched him enough through the season and playoffs, you could tell issues were forming. I'm not exactly sure where he's at via contract, so we will need to do some more investigating. Hendricks is a good rotation guy, he's not flashy in strikeouts, but he's got the best control in the starting rotation and that's a big plus. Chatwood and our long relief, Mike Montgomery, are pretty interchangeable. I have Chatwood starting because he's got just slightly better stuff than Montgomery. With some decent arms coming through the farm, there's a chance for movement here at the bottom of the rotation, rather often. Bullpen Here's where we make up for some of our rotation issues. Morrow, Wilson, and Edwards Jr, are a solid three to close games out. Justin Wilson and Carl Edwards Jr have nasty stuff between the two of them & combined with Morrow, I like where we stand. The early bullpen is good where it's at, I particularly like Pedro Strop, who will likely get the majority of middle relief nods. This isn't an elite bunch, certainly nothing like the Yankees or Cleveland's pen, but I do like it. Infield The heart and soul of the Cubs organization in 2018 resides on the corners of the infield. Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo are our bread and butter, PB&J, ying and yang. Rizzo has been ultra consistent for the better part of the this decade and we can basically count on him, barring no injuries, to hit 30+ homeruns and drive in 110+ RBI's, while maintaining a big OBP, thanks to his awesome ability of getting hit by pitches and walked. I'm likely going to float Rizzo somewhere around leadoff and batting second. I am a firm believer that the guy with the highest opportunity to get on base should be leading off, regardless of whether he's a power hitter, speedster, or contact guy. As for Kris Bryant, he's currently regarded as the best talent in our organization. We really do need him to come through, 2016 MVP style, and be a force in our lineup. Rounding out the infield is Wilson Contreras, Addison Russell, and Ben Zobrist. Contreras still has some growing to do, but I really do think he's going to turn into quite the talent at catcher. He's got a big bat and he's defensively reliable, a true gem. Addison Russell goes through ebbs and flows of hitting, while maintaining a pretty good glove at short. He'll bat lower in the lineup and we'll keep an eye on how he does. Zobrist is a great utility guy, capable of playing a couple different places & is a true blue-collar, get the job done type guy. We'll likely platoon him with Baez because I think Javier is a better hitter, but Zobrist does have a better glove, which is very crucial there at second. Overall, our infield is one of the strongest in the National League. Outfield The outfield will serve as somewhat of a garden this season. We're going to water Schwarber and Almora, give them some sun, and watch them grow. I am interested to see what kind of power numbers we are talking about with Schwarber, he's got 70 power and that's the best on the team, five more than both Rizzo and Bryant. Almora is going to need some time to come into his own, but he will definitely get the at bats to do so. Heyward is a gold glove right fielder who is purely out there to do defensive work. I don't feel I can count on his bat very often and he will be hitting lower in the lineup. Bench Our bench is headlined by Baez who will often take over for Zobrist at second base and sometimes Russell at short. Per the future, I do believe Baez will become our every day second baseman, and while there is potential for that to happen this season, I need to trust Baez at the plate with runners in scoring position. Ian Happ is a project, an interesting one at that. He's actually more talented than Baez and he's a power bat in center, kind of different. I don't think he is going to win a starting battle over Almora in the early goings, but we'll monitor how he fares as a pinch hitter over the course of April and into May. La Stella, Coghlan, and Giminez, will strictly serve as backups for when the starters need rest & or are injured, these three are that of journeymen. Top Prospects The once top notch farm system in Chicago has definitely slid, but that is directly due to graduations and promotions that has brought nothing but success to the northside. Do we will have a great farm? Not exactly. Do we still have a good one? I believe so. For the top prospects, we're looking at shortstop, Aramis Ademan, reliever, Brendon Little, and starter, Adbert Alzolay. Of those three, I'd keep my personal eye on Alzolay to work his way up. He looked excellent in double A last season, racking up 7 wins, a 2.98 ERA, and a 78:22 K/BB ratio, in 81.2 innings. Another big prospect to keep watch on is Jeremiah Estrada, a starter who's 19 years old and is currently playing single A ball for us. In terms of potential, he's got the highest of any prospect in our organization, currently listed at 63. With an iffy rotation whom is certainly prone to injuries, there may be a good deal of movement through our farm come a few months down the road. Rounding out the top prospects is Oscar De La Cruz, a 23 year old starter in single A advanced, his teammate, Alex Lange, a 22 year old starter, Bryan Hudson, a 20 year old double A starter, and Victor Caratini, a triple A first baseman. As we go through the weeks and months, I'll provide some updates on these guys. The point of this paragraph was just to familiarize myself with their names, positions, ages, and what team they're on at the moment. __________________ ~ Return of the King ~

05-18-2018, 11:34 AM	#11
saintrules MVP OVR: 0 Join Date: May 2016	Re: The Loveable Winners: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty (OOTP 19) April Statistics The first month of baseball has officially come to an end with our Cubbies sporting a 13-15 record after 28 games played. That record is thankfully good for second in the NL Central, trailing the Cardinals by eight games as they have the best record in the MLB at 21-7. We are currently three games back in the Wild Card & league standings will follow this post. Starting Lineup 1. 2B Javier Baez (.315/9 Runs/2 HR/10 RBI/4 BB/20 K) 2. CF Albert Almora (.298/10 Runs/4 HR/12 RBI/1 BB/11 K) 3. 1B Anthony Rizzo (.289/21 Runs/10 HR/21 RBI/19 BB/15 K) 4. LF Kyle Schwarber (.218/15 Runs/4 HR/8 RBI/14 BB/24 K) 5. 3B Kris Bryant (.198/11 Runs/3 HR/16 RBI/17 BB/32 K) 6. C Wilson Contreras (.278/13 Runs/3 HR/15 RBI/9 BB/23 K) 7. SS Addison Russell (.211/5 Runs/1 HR/5 RBI/9 BB/19 K) 8. RF Jason Heyward (.168/8 Runs/0 HR/6 RBI/12 BB/19 K) Let's start with the positives, shall we? Anthony Rizzo has been tearing the seams off the ball through 97 AB's, and is currently second in the NL for homeruns, trailing San Diego's Will Myers, who has 11. On top of slugging the ball, Rizzo has also drawn 19 walks and has been hit by nine pitches. This is nothing out of the ordinary from the OBP monster, but it's always a welcomed sight. Baez and Almora are hitting pretty solid at the top, albeit Baez only has 73 AB's since Zobrist was originally in the starting lineup. Almora has been a very welcomed surprise in terms of his contact and also his power, he's got 31 hits and leads our team. Wilson Contreras is in the sixth spot batting .278 with 15 RBI's, though he may move up around as time moves forward. Now let's shift things into the not so positive. Kris Bryant is awful right now, I mean downright awful. The only thing somewhat salvaging him right now is that opposing pitchers have walked him a good amount of times. He has left runners on base more times than I have cared to count & he's struck out with the bases loaded at least twice in critical moments. Schwarber has also had a rough start to the season & is pretty much go big or go home. He has managed to come through a couple of times, but like Bryant, he's failed to deliver in most critical moments. Addison Russell and Jason Heyward have kind of come on as of late, so their very low average may see some movement in the near future. The two actually lead the team in XBH with six a piece and they seem to hit in bunches. The two have shown me they are capable hitters, so there's no threat to them in the starting lineup day in and day out. Heyward has had a beast of an arm from right as well, so that has been big. We are currently 12th in National League Runs Scored, 13th in AVG, 10th in OBP, and 8th in HR. This is far from what our National League Pennant contending team should be doing. I know the talent is there, so let's chalk this up to April showers. Bench 2B Ben Zobrist (.174/4 Runs/0 HR/1 RBI/10 BB/4 K) CF Ian Happ (.220/7 Runs/0 HR/4 RBI/5 BB/17 K) LF Chris Coghlan (.250/0 Runs/0 HR/2 RBI/0 BB/1 K) 2B Tommy La Stella (.333/3 Runs/1 HR/6 RBI/2 BB/3 K) C Chris Gimenez (.143/2 Runs/0 HR/0 RBI/0 BB/4 K) Zobrist fell out of the starting lineup because of his bat. Baez isn't as good of a defender, but he's got way more pop than Zobrist. The former starting 2B is hitting a lowly .174 through 46 AB's and has just not been able to find his groove. He's managing one of only two positive BB:K ratios on the team at the moment, so that's something. Ian Happ hasn't seen the ball particularly well through 50 AB's and is still looking for his first long ball. Happ has subbed in for Almora a couple of times and has flashed his glove, but with the starting CF off to a good start, there's no chance he's going to see extended playing time unless his bat heats up. Coghlan and La Stella have actually been hitting pretty well as our third and fourth pinch hitters. La Stella, in particular, has two doubles and a long ball that helped produce a victory. Gimenez has been pretty non-existent, not expecting much anyways. Starting Rotation 1. Jose Quintana (1-3/39.2 IP/4.54 ERA/11 BB/32 K) 2. Yu Darvish (1-2/34.0 IP/4.24 ERA/12 BB/35 K) 3. Jon Lester (0-5/30.2 IP/5.87 ERA/11 BB/28 K) 4. Kyle Hendricks (1-3/30.1 IP/2.97 ERA/9 BB/39 K) 5. Tyler Chatwood (4-1/27.2 IP/4.88 ERA/13 BB/22 K) Alright, let's keep the trend going and start with the positives. Kyle Hendricks is on fire right now, despite his 1-3 record. He's pitching extremely well for us right now and boasts the best BB:K ratio in our rotation, as well as leading the team in strikeouts. Our hitting and pen has let Hendricks down so far, hopefully it can come through while he's still pitching well for us. I wouldn't call Chatwood's pitching great so far, but he has managed the only positive record on the team so far. I'm not crazy surprised by this, given the fact he's typically squaring off against other team's four and five guys, which means our bats come out strong. We've kept him in the shortest amount of time because Mike Montgomery is in the pen, which I think we'll continue to do. So far so good, however. Quintana and Darvish have pretty much been victim to our poor hitting thus far. Don't get me wrong, they aren't throwing great, but most of their struggles have been late inning woes when our lineup has been quiet. We should see a little turn around when the bats start to heat up, I hope. Jon Lester, man, where do I start? There has been at least two starts from old man Lester where he could have been pulled in the first or second inning, and most of his starts he SHOULD have been pulled by the third. I've let him go a few times, maybe too long, because I was hoping the bats would come through, which they never did. I don't really know what to do with him right now & he's a huge question mark moving forward. Overall, the starting staff is hovering around 12th in the National League for ERA, a cringe worthy statistic for what was thought of to be a pennant chasing club. Bullpen LRP Mike Montgomery (0-0/11.0 IP/4.09 ERA/1 BB/14 K/3 HD) MRP Dillon Maples (0-0/4.2 IP/13.50 ERA/5 BB/5 K/3 HD) MRP Brian Duensing (0-0/14.2 IP/6.14 ERA/6 BB/14 K/1 HD) MRP Steve Cishek (1-0/16.0 IP/4.50 ERA/8 BB/19 K/2 HD) SU Justin Wilson (0-1/7.0 IP/16.71 ERA/10 BB/10 K/2 HD) SU Carl Edwards Jr (0-0/9.0 IP/4.00 ERA/7 BB/15 K/3 HD) CP Brandon Morrow (2-0/16.2 IP/1.08 ERA/5 BB/16 K/7 SV) One quick thing to note is that Pedro Strop is injured for 6 months and is on the 60-day DL. I called up Dillon Maples from Triple A to take his spot in the pen. Alright, let's do this. Brandon Morrow and somewhat of Mike Montgomery are the only two positives in the pen at the moment. Morrow has been fantastic, earning seven saves so far on the year, tied for fourth in the National League. He's sporting a strong 1.08 ERA with an alright BB:K ratio, I'd like to see him limit those walks moving forward, especially as our closer. He's managed two wins so far thanks to the lineup coming through in the 8th/9th inning in a couple of wins. He's a guy I can throw in as both a setup and closer at the moment, I trust him. Mike Montgomery has been great in terms of his control. There's a big opportunity for Montgomery to take some starts from Lester has he continues to struggle as he's already been the main go to once the old man starts stinking the place up. Maples, Duensing, and Chishek, have had their ups and downs. It's been tough to trust any one of them to come out and truly hold a lineup, though Cishek has shown the ability to do it the best. Justin Wilson and Carl Edwards Jr have been bad, with most of that bad coming from Wilson. Through just 7.0 IP, he's allowed 13 earned runs, and has walked 10 batters. As far as I know, he's up for a contract renewal, and as far as that goes, it's sitting in the garbage at the moment. Edwards Jr has been victim to taking over for Wilson a couple of times, but has also not been very good. The pen overall is second worst in National League ERA at 5.44, this is a big problem. johnstone1987 likes this. __________________ ~ Return of the King ~ Last edited by saintrules; 05-18-2018 at 12:07 PM.

05-21-2018, 01:25 PM	#12
saintrules MVP OVR: 0 Join Date: May 2016	Re: The Loveable Winners: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty (OOTP 19) April Standings Welcome to the first edition of the league standings here at the end of April. This is how I will deliver news from the league at the end of each month and take a look at both divisional standings as well as the Wild Card. I have included both the team's record and a player highlight for each club. I'll probably rotate doing standings with some form of power rankings or something of that nature, just to keep it fresh. Enjoy. American League East 1. New York Yankees (20-10) - Giancarlo Stanton (.336/16 HR/30 RBI) 2. Toronto Blue Jays (18-12) - Josh Donaldson (.352/8 HR/24 RBI) 3. Boston Red Sox (16-13) - Chris Sale (4-1/1.69 ERA/39 K) 4. Baltimore Orioles (13-17) - Manny Machado (.327/10 HR/22 RBI) 5. Tampa Bay Rays (11-17) - Wilson Ramos (.375/6 HR/17 RBI) The Yankees top the East with a 20-10 record, good for second in the American League. Stanton has gone yard 16 times already, that's a long ball in over half of their played games, and he easily leads the majors. The rest of the baby bombers are in full form as well, Judge has 10 bombs with 21 RBI's, and Sanchez has 6 with 18 RBI's. The Yanks hitting has been phenomenal, their pitching however, leaves something to be desired. Luis Severino is 7-0, sporting a fantastic 1.85 ERA with a mind blowing, league leading, 56 K's through 48.2 IP. Sonny Gray is at 3-1 with a 2.48 ERA. However, that's almost where it ends as Masahiro Tanaka has a 4.70 ERA, CC Sabathia, a 5.47 ERA, and Nestor Molina has a 7.00 ERA. The staff is certainly top loaded with Severino & Sonny Gray, so they will need to even things out if they want to hold this lead. The Blue Jays have gotten off to a very good start thanks almost entirely to Donaldson. The veteran third baseman is hitting .352 and is beyond the driving force for the Toronto offense. He's getting some good help from Marco Estrada who is 4-0 with a 2.41 ERA, but J.A. Happ is 0-5 with a 6.39 ERA and I foresee the Jays slowing down heading into May. Boston isn't leading the East or the Wild Card, but I expect them to blow up rather shortly. They currently sport the best staff in the AL with Chris Sale leading the pack at 4-1 with a 1.69 ERA and 39 K's, Rick Porcello at 4-1 with a 2.27 ERA, and Eduardo Rodriguez at 2-1 with a 2.11 ERA. Though their hitting lacks a little power, they've managed a .341 OBP and have scored 141 runs thus far, good for 4th in the AL. With the exception of Machado, Baltimore is struggling everywhere. Machado is the only qualified hitter in their lineup batting over .263 and they sport the worst OBP in the AL at .290. A bright note in their staff has been Dylan Bundy who is 3-1 with a 1.95 ERA and 34 K's. Willy Ramos is raking right now for Tampa with a .375 average, good for second in the AL. He, Matt Duffy, and Brad Miller, are actually hitting really well, and have Tampa sitting at 2nd best in the AL for average. You're only going to win games if you can score & hold opponents, however, and their staff is easily the worst. Archer, Snell, Faria, Andriese, and Yarbrough, sport a 4.95 combined ERA and their pen is even worse at 6.52. American League Central 1. Cleveland Indians (15-13) - Carlos Carrasco (5-0/1.62 ERA/42 K) 2. Minnesota Twins (13-15) - Byron Buxton (.296/7 HR/22 RBI) 3. Chicago White Sox (12-17) - Jose Abreu (.288/9 HR/22 RBI) 4. Detroit Tigers (12-17) - Miguel Cabrera (.313/3 HR/16 RBI) 5. Kansas City Royals (9-20) - Whit Merrifield (.325/1 HR/10 RBI) The Indians haven't gotten off to as hot of a start as I expected, though, they are still leading the AL Central. Lindor, Brantley, Ramirez, and Encarnacion, are fantastic, with Lindor leading the pack with a .347 average. That's kind of where things fall off, however, as Yonder Alonso, Jason Kipnis, Lonnie Chisenhall, Bradley Zimmer, and Roberto Perez, are pretty dang poor. Thankfully, the Indians rotation and pen have been great, with Carlos Carrasco an early AL CY Young candidate. Kluber is 2-3 with a 4.55 ERA and I think that'll even out as time goes on. Andrew Miller has six saves with a 0.69 ERA and Cody Allen is 2-1 with a 1.86 ERA. This staff is scary good. The Twins, Sox, and Tigers, are all in the same boat at the moment. Eddie Rosario and Byron Buxton are keeping things afloat for Minnesota, Jose Abreu is doing his part and then some in Chicago, and Miggy is still hitting over .300 in his elder years. Of these three I'd still put my money on Minnesota to keep it going, Buxton looks pretty nice for their future out there. Whit Merrifield is the only positive thing happening in Kansas City right now, they are struggling big time. Mike Moustakas is looking alright at .265 with 8 HR's, but he's only batted in 16 and this team just isn't scoring runs. Couple this with a rotation ERA of 4.47 and that's why you've only won 9 games in 29 attempts. American League West 1. Houston Astros (21-9) - Carlos Correa (.385/8 HR/23 RBI) 2. Los Angeles Angels (19-10) - Mike Trout (.343/2 HR/6 RBI) 3. Oakland Athletics (13-15) - Kris Davis (.327/10 HR/25 RBI) 4. Seattle Mariners (13-15) - Kyle Seager (.304/6 HR/15 RBI) 5. Texas Rangers (11-19) - Joey Gallo (.231/11 HR/19 RBI) Houston is off to the best start in the American League and I am far from surprised. Correa and Altuve are probably the best duo in the major, based on their ability to hit for average, power, and field. The two sport a combined .369 average with 17 HR's and 47 RBI's. The good for Houston doesn't end there as Keuchel, Verlander, McCullers, Cole, and McHugh, have the second best ERA in the AL at 3.38. It's only April, but it may as well be July, they're in mid-season form. Speaking of form, Los Angeles is in a good one, and Trout is not only doing the work. Showtime Shohei Ohtani is hitting .273 atop the Angels lineup and is 2-2 with a 5.40 ERA as their ace. I expect his hitting to remain the same but his pitching to improve a bit, regardless, he's a fantastic contender for AL RoY. The Angels aren't hitting the best for average, but they've scored a good deal of runs, third best in the AL, and have the 3rd best rotation ERA at 3.69. I don't see them toppling Houston in the West, but as for the Wild Card, you're looking at a very solid contender. As expected, the A's, Mariners, and Rangers, are all in a "what do we do here?", situation. Of the three I would still give Seattle the best chance at fighting for a spot in the Wild Card, Seager is hitting .304, Cano, .296, Segura, .292, and Dee Gordon has 16 stolen bases. The Mariners are practically completely held back by their rotation, the worst in the AL, with a 5.58 ERA. Not a single starter has less than a 5.23 ERA, led by James Paxton. Over time this staff will probably even out a bit, which means they're likely going to improve. Khris Davis is hitting .327 for the Athletics and has 10 HR's. Overall, their hitting is what's keeping them relatively competitive, and much like Seattle, their staff is what's holding them back. I don't think Sean Manaea, Kendall Graveman, and Andrew Triggs, are as good as Paxton, Mike Leake, and King Felix, so Seattle will likely stay afloat above Oakland. The Rangers look pretty rough on all accounts, hitting, pitching, and defensively. I'm not entirely sure what their long term plan is here, they need to figure it out. American League Wild Card 1. Los Angeles Angels (19-10) 2. Toronto Blue Jays (18-12) 3. Boston Red Sox (16-13) 4. Seattle Mariners (13-15) 5. Oakland Athletics (13-15) The Red Sox, Angels, and Jays, will likely be the three contenders for the Wild Card, albeit, Boston doesn't take over in the East. I don't really see a scenario where Los Angeles is taken down by Seattle or Oakland for that Wild Card spot and Toronto will probably slow down at some point, they're a bit ahead of themselves at the moment. National League East 1. Miami Marlins (18-10) - Sugar Ray Marimon (4-1/2.01 ERA/31 K) 2. Philadelphia Phillies (16-12) - Aaron Nola (2-0/2.29 ERA/31 K) 3. New York Mets (14-13) - Noah Syndergaard (2-3/4.11 ERA/49 K) 4. Washington Nationals (14-15) - Stephen Strasburg (5-1/1.76 ERA/45 K) 5. Atlanta Braves (12-17) - Freddie Freeman (.311/7 HR/21 RBI) What a weird makeup in the East, typical April shenanigans. The Marlins are leading the division with 18 wins thus far, followed behind by Philly with 16, and New York with 14. Washington is currently negative at 14-15 and Atlanta is where they should probably be at with 12 wins. Miami isn't hitting that well, 11th in runs scored and 10th in average, though they are stealing bases thanks to Cameron Maybin. Maybin and Castro lead their hitting at .287 and .289 a piece. What's winning them games is their staff, currently sporting a 3.71 ERA in the rotation and a 2.54 in the pen. If I were a betting man, I'd put a large sum of money on the fact that Sugar Ray Marimon cools off a bit, he's way over performing. Regardless, I think Miami fans are pretty dang happy right now. Who's not so happy? Oh man, Washington fans. With the exception of Strasburg looking like an NL CY Young candidate at 5-1 with a 1.76 ERA & 45 K's, the Nats have struggled. Scherzer is 1-2 with a 4.13 ERA, though he is still striking batters out. Harper's bat has been very quiet with just 3 HR's and 11 RBI's, afaik he's been struggling with some lingering injuries, and Trea Turner is hitting .181 thus far. Again, it's April, but we've seen injuries hurt this Nats team a lot, the saga continues. The Phillies are a surprise at 16-12 and their power is paving the way for their young offense. They are 4th in the NL in HR's with 36 overall and are 6th in OBP. Their average is a bit wonky at 11th in the NL as Cesar Hernandez leads the charge at .300. Aaron Nola has really helped Philly's cause so far at 2-0 with a 2.29 ERA and 31 K's. If Washington begins to rebound, I don't know how much longer Philly will stick around, but as for right now, the city of brotherly love is feeling pretty good. New York is entirely dependent on their staff as deGrom, Syndergaard, Matz, and Vargas, lead the charge. Matz is sporting a 1.93 ERA and deGrom has struck out 49 batters. Their hitting you ask? Bad. Worst in the NL, bad. Amed Rosario leads them in average at .254 and Jay Bruce has batted in 17 runners. They've scored 99 runs collectively as a team and if it wasn't for their rotation, this club would probably have 10 or less wins. These aren't bad hitters in New York, so I suppose it'll pick up. Will it pick up enough to contend in the East? Probably not. Wild Card? Their rotation can do a lot of damage, so I'd say yes. The Braves called up Acuna who is hitting .212 with 3 HR's and 17 RBI's right now in the two spot for Atlanta. He's a work in progress, as is Swanson, Albies, and Luiz Gohara, in the rotation. The Braves look bright for the future, just not so much right now. National League Central 1. St. Louis Cardinals (21-7) - Carlos Martinez (4-0/2.19 ERA/37 K) 2. Chicago Cubs (13-15) - Anthony Rizzo (.289/10 HR/21 RBI) 3. Pittsburgh Pirates (13-16) - Adam Frazier (.375/1 HR/9 RBI) 4. Milwaukee Brewers (13-17) - Lorenzo Cain (.339/5 HR/12 RBI) 5. Cincinnati Reds (10-20) - Scooter Gennett (.333/4 HR/19 RBI) Home, at last. Well, if there anything I can say positive right now, it's that Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, and Cincinnati, haven't taken off. The Cards are playing out of their mind, leading the NL in runs scored, OBP, HR's, starting rotation ERA, and pen ERA. Carlos Martinez, Michael Wacha, Luke Weaver, and Adam Wainwright, look in tip top, career form, at the moment. Do I expect this to continue? No, they are collectively over performing, but I must admit this is concerning seeing the potential form they can reach. Matt Carpenter leads them in average at .313, Tommy Pham in HR's with 7 and RBI's with 21, plus, youngster, Tyler O'Neill, is hitting .297 with 6 HR's and 13 RBI's. We got swept by St. Louis in a three game series, outscored 19-5. We took three of four in early April against Milwaukee, but they did get revenge late in the month, taking three of four from us. Their pitching is pretty bad, collectively sporting a 4.95 ERA from their rotation and a 4.84 ERA from their pen. Their hitting, however, isn't too shabby, 8th best in the NL, and Cain has stolen 13 bases thus far. They're a quick team and we must keep them off the base paths when we play them. We took both games we've played against Cincinnati and it wouldn't surprise me if we manage that almost every series we see against them. Scooter Gennett is hitting pretty nicely, but their starting staff is really bad, worst in the NL, I might add. Tyler Mahle is their only, and I mean only, saving grace. He's got a 2.80 ERA through 35.1 IP. Pittsburgh will probably give us a run for our money a few times, we took the three game set, two to one, but it was a barn burner. They are hitting really well, second best average wise in the NL and third best in OBP. Their staff leaves something to be desired, but when Jameson Taillon settles in, he could be very good. National League West 1. Los Angeles Dodgers (19-9) - Corey Seager (.348/4 HR/14 RBI) 5. San Diego Padres (19-10) - Will Myers (.346/11 HR/33 RBI) 2. Arizona Diamondbacks (16-12) - Paul Goldschmidt (.279/9 HR/27 RBI) 4. San Francisco Giants (11-17) - Johnny Cueto (3-0/1.29 ERA/22 K) 3. Colorado Rockies (7-23) - Nolan Arenado (.319/6 HR/16 RBI) The Corey Seager led Dodgers are out in front in the West, barely I might add, with San Diego hot on their tail. The anticipated tough division has delivered, though it is San Diego, instead of Colorado, who is making their play. Corey Seager and Cody Bellinger have led the Dodgers offense thus far who isn't necessarily performing as well as they could be, in my opinion, at least not for a 19 win club. Their staff? Performing, and it's not even the Kershaw show. Alex Wood, Kenta Maeda, and Rich Hill, have a collective 8-1 record and 1.70 ERA, easily one of the best in the entire majors. Kershaw is 2-1 with a 4.41 ERA and once he settles in, this is going to get scary. Given the fact this division is hitter friendly, the Dodgers staff will probably get back to normality, but like St. Louis, the potential is very good. San Diego has been a big time surprise at 19 wins, led in large part by Will Myers. The youngin is hitting .346 with 11 HR's and 33 RBI's and has practically been the entire offense up to this point. I expect this to slow down a bit, but for San Diego who's rebuilding, this is promising in the young stud. Goldschmidt and the D'backs have the best offense in the NL at the moment, tied for most runs scored, best in average, fifth in OBP, and third in HR's. Nick Ahmed and David Peralta lead the charge with a combined average of .315, Goldschmidt has belted 9 bombs, Lamb 6, and Pollock has swiped five bags. This whole lineup looks pretty solid, but they do need their staff to come around. Robbie Ray is 0-2 with a 5.46 ERA and they lost Greinke for a week to an injury. Johnny Cueto looks solid for San Fran right now and Evan Longoria is batting .327. There are some good hitters in this club, and pitchers I might add, I think San Francisco might recover from this tough start. Colorado is led solely by Arenado and Blackmon, who are hitting a combined .318 average. That's pretty much where the positives end, however, as they are struggling to get on base elsewhere, in addition to holding teams from getting on base. The Rockies are last in the NL in runs against, second to last in rotation ERA, worst in pen ERA, and second to last in defensive efficiency. National League Wild Card 1. San Diego Padres (19-10) 2. Philadelphia Phillies (16-12) 3. Arizona Diamondbacks (16-12) 4. New York Mets (14-13) 5. Washington Nationals (14-15) Things should return to normal in the NL East, which means the Nats take over as division leader. San Diego is over performing, in my opinion, as is Philly. The D'Backs have probably the strongest shot if their hot offense keeps up and their rotation will probably eventually come around. New York's staff makes them a contender, regardless of their hitting, though they do have some decent pop in that lineup. __________________ ~ Return of the King ~

05-22-2018, 11:23 AM	#13
saintrules MVP OVR: 0 Join Date: May 2016	Re: The Loveable Winners: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty (OOTP 19) May Statistics Ah, April has come and gone & we are back in the mix. After a pretty poor start to the season at 13-15, we've managed to string 18 wins in 27 games, bringing us a 31-24 record to end the league's second month of play. While our bats are still remarkably weak, our rotation has completely cleaned up it's act and is now sporting a 3.67 combined ERA, fifth best in the NL. Starting Lineup 1. 2B Javier Baez (.319/25 Runs/9 HR/25 RBI/9 BB/44 K/1.7 WAR) 2. 3B Kris Bryant (.240/18 Runs/6 HR/23 RBI/28 BB/66 K/1.0 WAR) 3. 1B Anthony Rizzo (.265/37 Runs/18 HR/36 RBI/35 BB/37 K/2.5 WAR) 4. C Wilson Contreras (.272/22 Runs/5 HR/22 RBI/19 BB/47 K/1.0 WAR) 5. LF Kyle Schwarber (.222/23 Runs/8 HR/19 RBI/19 BB/43 K/0.3 WAR) 6. RF Jason Heyward (.208/17 Runs/4 HR/17 RBI/21 BB/41 K/-0.1 WAR) 7. SS Addison Russell (.216/11 Runs/3 HR/13 RBI/16 BB/44 K/-0.1 WAR) 8. CF Albert Almora (.257/16 Runs/4 HR/14 RBI/6 BB/29 K/0.2 WAR) Well, there's been zero doubt we've improved so far overall as a team, but in terms of hitting, we've actually gotten worse. We originally ranked 12th in runs scored to end April, 13th in average, and 10th in OBP. Here at the end of May, we are 14th in scoring, 15th in average, and 11th in OBP. At this point, Rizzo is godsent, a near lock as an All-Star first baseman, racking up 18 long balls with 36 RBI's, not to mention is 35 walks. He tends to hit in bunches, with multiple two HR games and even a three HR game during this month. Beyond Rizzo, however, what's our next best? I could make an argument for Baez with his .319 average and 9 HR's, but he's also sporting a disgusting 9:44 BB to K ratio as our leadoff. The only reason I have him atop the order is because if he doesn't strikeout, he usually makes some solid contact behind his .542 slugging. I've moved Bryant around in the order a bunch, from third, to fifth, to now, second. He's managed to improve his average from a gross .198 to .240 over the month, but his power remains non-existent, at least from what we'd expect to see from him. He has struck out 66 times and leads the team, leaving more runners on base than I am sure the combined amount of other clubs. The only thing preventing me from exploding on him is that he draws walks, thank the lord. Contreras has remained stable, so I suppose, he's our third best? Schwarber, Heyward, and Russell, have been rough. If Schwarber doesn't hit a homerun, he typically strikes out, maybe a double here and there. Heyward and Russell lead the team in doubles, but they also lead the team in worst average. We originally had Heyward hitting leadoff for a while, which seemed to work and get his average up, but once Baez started heating up, we sent him down. Maybe I will try this again. Almora has been moved down from the two spot to the 9th spot in hopes to at least give the bottom of the order some juice. I think he's a decent hitter, albeit, not as good as Baez to leadoff. There's opportunity for him to move around in the bottom. Bench 2B Ben Zobrist (.179/6 Runs/0 HR/2 RBI/13 BB/5 K/0.0 WAR) CF Ian Happ (.216/17 Runs/3 HR/11 RBI/14 BB/38 K/0.2 WAR) LF Chris Coghlan (.280/1 Runs/0 HR/2 RBI/0 BB/8 K/-0.1 WAR) LF Mark Zagunis (.000/1 Runs/0 HR/1 RBI/1 BB/2 K/-0.1 WAR) C Chris Gimenez (.179/3 Runs/1 HR/5 RBI/0 BB/7 K/-0.1 WAR) The bench looks a little different this month due to us sending down Tommy La Stella and promoting Mark Zagunis. La Stella is really capped out in his ability and didn't do much as a pinch hitter, so we've given Zagunis the go ahead. In eight AB's he's still searching for his first hit, but has drawn a walk and hit a sac fly to score a run. Happ has continued to struggle as a pinch hitter, his strikeouts are an issue. It's difficult to keep putting him in for important PH situations and him getting fanned, so we may re-explore Zobrist who at least sports a positive BB:K ratio, even though he hasn't hit well. Coghlan and Gimenez continue to be emergency options, though Gimenez did hit a granny during a blowout victory. Starting Rotation 1. Jose Quintana (5-3/84.0 IP/2.89 ERA/18 BB/76 K/2.1 WAR) 2. Yu Darvish (2-5/62.2 IP/4.16 ERA/18 BB/53 K/0.9 WAR) 3. Jon Lester (2-7/59.1 IP/4.55 ERA/19 BB/56 K/0.8 WAR) 4. Kyle Hendricks (6-4/74.2 IP/3.01 ERA/22 BB/73 K/1.5 WAR) 5. Tyler Chatwood (6-3/58.0 IP/4.19 ERA/25 BB/48 K/0.4 WAR) The sole reason we have won 18 games this month is our rotation (and Rizzo). Quintana is currently 4-0 and has lowered his ERA from 4.54 to 2.89 in the span of 30 days, while most notably, sporting a insane 7:44 BB to K ratio in that time frame. Quintana won the NL Pitcher of the Month Award, rightfully so, and he's starting to look like the pitcher we need to lead us to the postseason. Darvish has gotten slightly better, lowering his ERA from 4.24 to 4.16, striking out 18 batters while only walking 6. We struggle supporting him with runs and that's why he's 1-3 this month, so let's not give up hope just yet, Quintana certainly came around and he was in the same boat just 30 days ago. Lester... I promise I really don't have something against the guy, it just bothers me he's still touted as a "solid" pitcher when I know he's really not. On the month, he lowered his ERA from 5.87 to 4.55, struck out 28 batters, only walking 9, and had some quality starts in the process. He still struggles in the first inning and both of his losses this month came from getting blasted in the early goings. If he gets passed the first three innings, he seems to win. Second only to Quintana for Cubbies pitcher of the month is Hendricks, who improved his record from 1-3 to 6-4, going 5-1 over the last 30 days. He's maintained his ERA, though it's risen just a tad over 3.00. He's not the flashiest arm in the game and is normally not teeing guys up left and right, but he's been a fantastic blue-collar arm for us and has really been working the swing and miss. Chatwood has maintained the good work he did in April through May. He's lowered his ERA in that process and has definitely earned himself the spot in the rotation for the month of June. Overall, our rotation ERA dropped from 4.49, 12th best in the NL, to 3.67, 5th best, a great sign moving forward. Bullpen LRP Mike Montgomery (0-0/19.2 IP/5.49 ERA/4 BB/23 K/4 HD/0.2 WAR) MRP Eddie Butler (0-0/3.0 IP/21.00 ERA/2 BB/3 K/0 HD/-0.2 WAR) MRP Dillon Maples (1-0/17.1 IP/4.15 ERA/12 BB/27 K/6 HD/0.1 WAR) MRP Brian Duensing (3-0/23.1 IP/5.40 ERA/8 BB/20 K/1 HD/0.2 WAR) MRP Steve Cishek (1-0/21.2 IP/5.82 ERA/11 BB/26 K/2 HD/-0.3 WAR) SU Justin Wilson (0-2/17.1 IP/6.75 ERA/14 BB/20 K/2 HD/3 SV/0.3 WAR) CP Carl Edwards Jr (2-0/19.2 IP/2.75 ERA/12 BB/38 K/7 HD/1 SV/0.8 WAR) Our pen has seen two injuries so far, one to Strop which happened in early April, and the other to Morrow, which happened just recently. I can't recall what injury Morrow suffered, but he will be out 5-6 weeks. He was pitching beyond fantastic for us, lowering his ERA from 1.08 to 0.70, collecting 7 more saves in that process, second best in the NL. In place of Morrow, I have Carl Edwards Jr. So far as our closer he's looked strong, earning a save and a couple of holds during 9th inning ties and extra innings. He's got a 5:23 BB to K ratio and the arm looks solid. Justin Wilson is still iffy, despite earning 3 saves since the injury to Morrow. He lowered his inflated ERA of 16.71 to 6.75, but his walks are a continuing issue, especially for a setup specialist. Our owner has asked us to resign him and I am really not sold on keeping him just yet. With the injury to Strop I promoted Maples and he has actually pitched very well thus far, almost securing the middle relief nod each time. Brian Duensing and Steve Cishek get their moments, Duensing in particular has been blessed with run support in his outings, earning him 3 victories over the month. Eddie Butler was promoted with the injury to Morrow and he's been on mop up duty so far. Mike Montgomery has been pretty dang good despite his higher ERA, mostly from early game takeovers when Lester gets blow out. I may experiment with Montgomery as a setup guy, he's got some nasty stuff. Injuries CP Brandon Morrow (2-0/25.2 IP/0.70 ERA/8 BB/23 K/14 SV/0.7 WAR) MRP Pedro Strop (1-0/8.2 IP/4.15 ERA/6 BB/7 K/0 HD/-0.1 WAR) Morrow will be out 5-6 weeks and Strop 4-5 months. There's a good chance Morrow may make the NL All-Star team as a RP, I'll keep you updated. __________________ ~ Return of the King ~ Last edited by saintrules; 05-22-2018 at 04:05 PM.

05-29-2018, 12:23 PM	#15
saintrules MVP OVR: 0 Join Date: May 2016	Re: The Loveable Winners: A Chicago Cubs Dynasty (OOTP 19) June Statistics We'll call it June gloom as the Cubbies have once again hit a wall after a great month of May. The month of June saw only 10 wins for the club with 18 losses, our worst 30 day stretch thus far. Hot and cold hitting has been the main source of our difficulties as consistency in scoring runs is at a minimum. Our starting pitching has gotten better, however, the bullpen has let the rotation down a couple of times, leading to quality starts being erased. Starting Lineup 1. LF Ben Zobrist (.204/14 Runs/1 HR/5 RBI/19 BB/12 K/0.2 WAR) 2. 2B Javier Baez (.294/37 Runs/17 HR/42 RBI/13 BB/76 K/2.4 WAR) 3. 1B Anthony Rizzo (.266/53 Runs/25 HR/51 RBI/49 BB/55 K/3.5 WAR) 4. 3B Kris Bryant (.233/33 Runs/9 HR/29 RBI/42 BB/99 K/1.3 WAR) 5. C Wilson Contreras (.257/35 Runs/12 HR/40 RBI/28 BB/67 K/1.6 WAR) 6. CF Ian Happ (.253/33 Runs/12 HR/23 RBI/26 BB/69 K/1.5 WAR) 8. RF Jason Heyward (.220/22 Runs/6 HR/29 RBI/33 BB/60 K/0.2 WAR) 9. SS Addison Russell (.195/13 Runs/4 HR/15 RBI/25 BB/61 K/-0.8 WAR) The starting lineup has once again seen a shakeup as I try to find some consistency. Originally, Zobrist was taken out for Baez as the hot hitting Javier was producing for us. As I would bring Zobrist to the plate for pinch hitting, I started to notice a trend. The vet doesn't strikeout very often at all and has very good plate vision, something we desperately needed at the top of his strikeout prone lineup. Since bring him back in, Zobrist has improved his average from .179 to .204 and has drawn 6 walks in the leadoff role. Baez and Rizzo are still smashing balls and Rizzo still leads the NL in long balls, followed by Baez, in fourth. We lost Schwarber to an oblique strain on June 8th and although he has been cleared to return, he hasn't yet made it back yet as the injury is still flaring up. We recently lost Albert Almora to an unknown injury on June 29th and we are still waiting for details. In Almora's place, we brought Ian Happ into the lineup and he has absolutely produced in the starting role. The young CF has improved his average from a lowly .216 with just 3 HR's to .253 with 12 HR's. This has given me more confidence with this roster and I am looking forward to when Schwarber can pickup the fulltime duties in LF once again. Bryant and Contreras are still hitting fair, I wouldn't necessarily call it good, at the moment. Heyward and Russell are certainly not hitting well and Russell's starting spot at SS is definitely going to be threatened once Schwarber moves back into LF, putting Zobrist at 2B and Baez at SS. Bench LF Chris Coghlan (.220/2 Runs/0 HR/4 RBI/5 BB/13 K/-0.1 WAR) C Chris Gimenez (.241/7 Runs/1 HR/10 RBI/6 BB/13 K/0.0 WAR) 1B Victor Caratini (.91/0 Runs/0 HR/0 RBI/0 BB/1 K/-0.2 WAR) With the injuries to Schwarber and Almora, we had room on the bench. I called up first baseman, Victor Caratini, to test what the 24 year old was made of. Caratini's days in the big leagues are numbered at this point and it won't be long until we send him back to Triple A for more playing time. Lineup Injuries CF Albert Almora (.265/26 Runs/6 HR/24 RBI/10 BB/43 K/1.5 WAR) LF Kyle Schwarber (.225/24 Runs/9 HR/21 RBI/21 BB/51 K/0.4 WAR) Losing Almora really didn't have an impact on June stats since he was hurt on the 29th of the month. He's basically in the same boat as Bryant and Contreras where he's hitting good, just not great. Regardless, at the current state of our starting lineup, that .265 average is basically gold, we need him back. Schwarber's lingering oblique strain is healed, but he's still not 100% ready to go. I gauge him being back in the lineup around the end of the first week in July. Starting Rotation 1. Jose Quintana (7-5/117.3 IP/2.99 ERA/29 BB/105 K/2.5 WAR) 2. Yu Darvish (4-8/101.2 IP/4.34 ERA/30 BB/102 K/2.0 WAR) 3. Jon Lester (2-9/82.1 IP/4.92 ERA/32 BB/73 K/0.2 WAR) 4. Kyle Hendricks (7-4/104.1 IP/2.76 ERA/32 BB/99 K/2.2 WAR) 5. Tyler Chatwood (6-7/92.0 IP/4.50 ERA/35 BB/69 K/0.7 WAR) For all the skepticism I had before the season, our starting rotation continues to be the golden child of this year's club. Despite our Starting ERA slightly rising to 3.83 from 3.67, we've improved in the NL rankings from 5th best to 4th best. Quintana, Darvish, and Hendricks, have all seen a very good month, specifically Hendricks, who notched another win, lowered his ERA from 3.01 to 2.76, and put forth a 10:26 BB to K ratio. Speaking of strikeout's, nobody had a better month than Darvish in that category as the first year Cubbie sported a 12:49 BB to K ratio over the month. Darvish is still struggling in the ERA department and went 2-3 over the last 30 days, but improved his WAR by over 1 point and has definitely made strides. Chatwood took four losses, but a lot of that can be attributed to failed run production by the lineup. Bullpen ESP Oscar De La Cruz (0-1/12.0 IP/3.75 ERA/7 BB/12 K/0 HD/0.1 WAR) MRP Mike Montgomery (0-2/30.2 IP/5.28 ERA/9 BB/29 K/6 HD/0.0 WAR) MRP Jose Junior Rosario (0-1/7.2 IP/0.00 ERA/1 BB/7 K/1 HD/0.2 WAR) MRP Brian Duensing (4-0/38.0 IP/5.68 ERA/12 BB/26 K/1 HD/-0.1 WAR) MRP Dillon Maples (3-1/31.2 IP/4.26 ERA/29 BB/51 K/7 HD/-0.4 WAR) SU/CL Justin Wilson (1-3/27.0 IP/7.00 ERA/25 BB/29 K/8 HD/5 SV/-0.2 WAR) SU/CL Carl Edwards Jr (3-1/30.0 IP/3.00 ERA/22 BB/55 K/7 HD/4 SV/1.1 WAR) With the injuries to Morrow, Strop, and now, Cishek, the pen has seen a couple of call-ups throughout this campaign. We recently brought up both Oscar De La Cruz and Jose Junior Rosario from the farm. De La Cruz received a starting opportunity to give the rotation some extra rest, and although he looked decent, he did take the loss from a lack of run production...nothing new. From what I did see, I did like, and he will get another chance. Jose Junior Rosario has been lights out thus far and he may actually stay up as time moves on, he hasn't allowed a run in 7.2 IP and has struck out 7, only walking 1. Mike Montgomery, Brian Duensing, and Dillon Maples, have been so-so over the month, though it's important to note that they have seen mop up duty, inflating their ERA's quite a bit. Speaking of ERA's, Justin Wilson continues to be terrible, and I am at the point where I may have to shop him around just to get something before his contract runs out at the end of the season. Carl Edwards Jr is basically an example of what Wilson should be doing up to this point. Staff Injuries CP Brandon Morrow (2-0/25.2 IP/0.70 ERA/8 BB/23 K/14 SV/0.7 WAR) MRP Pedro Strop (1-0/8.2 IP/4.15 ERA/6 BB/7 K/0 HD/-0.1 WAR) MRP Steve Cishek (1-0/25.1 IP/4.97 ERA/11 BB/28 K/2 HD/-0.2 WAR) With Justin Wilson struggling, we really need Brandon Morrow back. Luckily, we're only looking at one more week without the closer, so that's fantastic. Strop will still be out four more months, and we officially got word that Cishek will miss the rest of the season, plus some of next, with a torn rotator cuff, nasty. __________________ ~ Return of the King ~

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