MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

[NDAlum]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

Maybe just edit Estrada's potential down to like 75 or something?

That way you won't have to just throw him away. He could still be a prospect in your system.

Oh, and Ramirez was just a 2-pitch pitcher? Didn't think the game made those.

That's a good idea, I'll knock him from 95 to 75.

Ramirez has 4SFB/2SFB/SL so technically 3 pitches

[The Chef]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

I technically lost. But rage quit before the last out was finished. All star hitting HoF pitching with TNK sliders. No offense at all in the 15 or so playoff games ive had.

I had the same issue when I got to the playoffs in my Dodgers franchise. I went on to win the World Series but only because of my pitching. I know I faced some solid teams in the playoffs who generally have better pitching but it felt like the playoffs were designed this way to produce nothing but pitching duels constantly.

[B Easy]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

That's a good idea, I'll knock him from 95 to 75.

Ramirez has 4SFB/2SFB/SL so technically 3 pitches

ND, did you auto draft the other teams picks, or did you pick them yourself? Nice draft BTW. Enjoy reading your write ups.

[NDAlum]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

They drafted on their own. I had the first three picks fully scouted and was considering all 3 in round 1. I was shocked to get all 3

[KBLover]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

2014 is in the books.

The Marlins had a decent September, but were indeed relegated to playing tough spoiler - which almost succeeded.

The Nationals had an up-and-down September, but the Marlins really gave them fits to end the year. The Fish won 6 of the last 7 games against the Nats, turning the NL East race into a complete dogfight.

In the end, the Nats did hold on to the NL East crown, but the Mets made a strong final push of their own to finish just one game back.

The Braves also faltered in September to go from top NL Wild Card seed to OUT of the playoffs entirely. The Mets took the second spot.

The Marlins found themselves still in fourth place, but just six games behind. The team finished with an 83-79 record.

Final NL East Standings
Nats: 89-73
Mets: 88-74
Braves: 87-75
Marlins: 83-79
Phillies: 58-104


The optimism surrounding the Marlins was further aided by some individual award winners.

NL MVP: SP Jose Fernandez (18-6, 1.94 ERA, 250 K)
NL Gold Glove: IF Greg Dobbs (played 1B mostly)
NL Cy Young: SP Jose Fernandez (18-6, 1.94 ERA, 250 K)

Jose Fernandez led the NL in:
-Strikeouts: 250
-ERA: 1.94
-Win Percentage: .750
-Wins: 18
-Complete Games: 9
-Innings Pitched: 245 2/3

Pedro Alvarez (PIT) edged out Stanton for the HR crown. Stanton ended up with 41 home runs while Alvarez launched 43 bombs out of the park. Matt Harvey gave Fernandez a fierce run in WHIP and ERA. Harvey finished with a 2.04 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP, just 0.01 higher than Fernandez. Strasburg racked up 246 K's, just 4 shy of Fernandez's mark.


Team Top Hitting Performers
Giancarlo Stanton: .246/.331/.516, 41 HR, 101 RBI
Christian Yelich: .289/.358/.450, 18 HR, 63 RBI
Greg Dobbs: .277/.312/.462, 10 HR, 36 RBI

Team Top Pitching Performers

Jose Fernandez: 245 2/3 IP, 18-6, 1.94 ERA, 75 BB, 250 K, .248 BABIP
Steve Cishek: 49 1/3 IP, 3-3, 33 Sv, 1.82 ERA, 14 BB, 50 K, .262 BABIP
Andrew Heaney: 133 2/3 IP, 11-5, 3.10 ERA, 44 BB, 103 K, .270 BABIP


Offseason Goals:

The Marlins still need to fix the offense. Perhaps a year of Viciedo and Montero against southpaws will make a difference, and Montero might still improve into a useful everyday player, but corner infield remains an issues vs RHP at the least.

Middle infield is fine defensively and may improve even further as Didi Gregorius, Donovan Solano, and Chris Taylor all gain experience in the field. However, none of them really showed any positive signs at the plate and can the team really expect another defense-first prospect in Hechavarria to hit 10 HR again?

The rotation still needs solidification, though that will be mostly a waiting game as the Marlins have a stable of young arms just needing to round their talent into baseball skills. The upswing in September coincided with the return of Andrew Heaney, cementing thoughts that he could be a fine #2 behind Fernandez. Adam Conley also shows promise with his big fastball and flashes from his off-speed.

The bullpen might need a bit of help as well. Henry Rodriguez is fun to watch pitch, but he's prone to sudden meltdowns as well. Caminero has all the stuff in the world, and there's not a lot of people named "Arquimedes" out there, but the young reliever with a great name hasn't put it together on the field. Capps remains a strong point and Cishek is just fine. Marmol slowed down as the year went on, though he kept picking up K's, and Ramos was just a disappointment all season.


Notes:

-SP Angel Sanchez's stock has taken a tumble, perhaps exposed by the challenge of the higher levels. His major league stint was less-than-impressive, and he continued his struggles back at AAA New Orleans. As a result, scouts have lowered the ceiling on Sanchez.

-SP Brian Flynn is heading in the positive direction. He got another chance when Angel Sanchez was demoted and made the most of it. Flynn posted a solid 3.11 ERA and showed good poise on the mound. Scouts raised their projection on him, but it is hard to see him as more than a #3 if/when all the arms develop. He may be valuable as trade bait if this trajectory continues.

-3B Colin Moran got a taste of the majors in September. He showed some signs of his line drive swing but also struggled against some of the better pitchers he faced. Defensively, he was solid though harder hit balls sometimes found their way through him.

-CF Jake Marisnick is perhaps pushing Ozuna for center field. The young outfielder made some gains defensively and showed some life at the plate. It might be a position battle come next spring. Ozuna looked to have this locked up but his bat died in the second half.

-SP Steven Wright couldn't crack the 40-man roster for a September call-up, but that's not stopping his progress, according to team scouts. While optimism is still tempered, there's no denying he's getting a firm grasp of his knuckler. "Let's not get crazy, this is still a project pitcher trying to cling to the knuckleball to save his career, but he has improved his results and has a more consistent delivery, " one scout spoke.

-Is OF Christian Yelich about to breakout? He showed surprising power down the stretch, finishing with 18 HR. May have been just a good run to end the year, but it could be the sign of budding strength in his swing.

-Michael Feliz might be on his way to the majors despite a bad ending to his AA season. Feliz has been constantly improving and makes a case for being in the rotation to start the year, and likely will get a good look during Spring Training. Tyler Kolek may get a shot at AAA, though the 18-year-old may stay in AA until his command improves further as the Marlins have been careful with him after the first attempt at AAA went poorly.

[PhilliesFan13]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

In June in my Rays franchise. Final game of a 3 game series with the Astros in Houston. David Price on the mound. Here's his pitching line.

8.0 IP, 1 hit, 1 ER, 3 walks, 8 strikeouts

And he took the LOSS!! Final score was 1-0. Rays had 7 hits but couldn't get the big hit. Price had a no hitter into the 6th inning that was broken up on a Jesus Guzman double. 2 groundouts later and the Astros had the lead for good.

Hate pitching that well and taking the loss.

[NDAlum]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

Jr. Needs to get in here and share his loss from last night.

He threw 9 no hit innings and lost in 10!!!

[Brandwin]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

Thinking of doing a fantasy draft, but letting the CPU pick for me...

I am in May in my Rangers season, not sure if I want to continue.

[guayo10]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress



Cubs Franchise dies early due to corruption

File got corrupted, so with that I'm going back to a Yankees one, simulated up to the ASG and am 43-52. 7 out of a WC spot and 10.5 out of the division. Fire Sale ensues ala Red Sox (one minor but huge difference, most these guys have 1+ years on the deals)

Looking to get younger, not really realistic but going for fairness in this one. (Have my semi-realistic one going, no quick count so I took a pause on that one).

Here are the moves with a mini summary of why I did them.

Rangers & Yanks:

Spoiler

Rangers get: CP David Robertson (0-2 2.86 28.1 IP 22 SV 21 K 8 BB 1.13 WHIP)

Yanks get: SP Luke Jackson (AA 7-8 3.35 107.1 IP 123 K 31 BB 1.29 WHIP) & SS Travis Demeritte (AA .305 0 HR 6 RBI)

Rangers are 5 out of the WC and have literally no pen, Robertson can be resigned as well.

Cubs & Yanks:

Spoiler

Cubs get: SP Michael Pineda (5-9 4.18 113.1 IP 110 K 50 BB 1.45 WHIP), C Gary Sanchez (AAA .244 13 HR 49 RBI), & SP Bruce Billings (AAA 11-4 2.40 142.1 IP 112 K 58 BB 1.19 WHIP)

Yanks get: SS Javier Baez (AAA .237 8 HR 28 RBI), RP Wesley Wright (2-2 5.01 41.1 IP 42 K 17 BB 1.21 WHIP)

With the addition of Addison Russell, Baez became available. His rough year at AAA made it easier for Theo as they acquired a relative young SP in Pineda and their C of the future in Gary. Billings can also go straight into the rotation to pluck some holes as he has demolished AAA this year.

Nats & Yanks:

Spoiler

Nats get: 1B Mark Teixeira (.268 18 HR 61 RBI)

Yanks get: SP AJ Cole (AA 6-7 3.55 109 IP 98 K 34 BB 1.31 WHIP)

Nats have Adam LaRoche at 1B, that's all. They are 50-45, 1st in the East. Lineup could definitely use some good pop, that and their rotation has been outstanding. Giolito should get a call up soon, 10-4 2.44 124 K 42 BB.

Angels & Yanks:

Spoiler

Angels get: RF Carlos Beltran (.306 27 HR 75 RBI) & SP Hiroki Kuroda (4-9 4.23)

Yanks get: 1B CJ Cron (AAA .252 6 HR 55 RBI), CF Chevy Clarke (AAA .250 2 HR 13 RBI), SP Hunter Green (AA 1-8 5.05 82 IP 58 K 20 BB 1.46 WHIP) & Ibanez (.228 7 HR 22 RBI), McDonald (.162 0 HR 8 RBI) & Smith (2-3 2.56 31.2 IP 23 K 13 BB 1.14 WHIP) for cap reasons

Angels are 4 out of the West and 1 from the 2nd WC. Pitching consists of Weaver (9-7 2.85), CJ Wilson (6-3 3.46), Richards (5-6 4.60), Santiago (6-8 4.89), & Skaggs (8-7 4.02). Kuroda not the biggest upgrade but some help. Beltran goes to RF as they needed production from that spot as Kole Calhoun is hitting .207 7 HR 16 RBI. Beltran is 2nd in the MVP voting, behind his teammate Trout .333 31 HR 85 RBI).

Mets & Yanks:

Spoiler

Mets get: LF Brett Gardner (.283 5 HR 20 RBI 25 SB) & 2B Corban Joseph (Class A)

Yanks get: SP Cory Mazzoni (AA 6-9 3.17 125 IP 97 K 44 BB 1.18 WHIP), RP Vic Black (AAA 0-0 4.11 35 IP 32 K 12 BB 1.63 WHIP) & SP Gabriel Ynoa (AA 8-9 3.53 114.2 IP 76 K 45 BB 1.26 WHIP)

Both the Mets & Yanks are out of it, but with Gardner on the block the Mets get their CF for cheap as he has 4 years left at 1.6 M per season.

3 team trade; Dodgers, Marlins & Yanks:

Spoiler

Dodgers get: SP CC Sabathia (3-6 3.70 74.2 IP 69 K 17 BB 1.30 WHIP), CF Jacoby Ellsbury (.283 14 HR 57 RBI 16 SB), C Brian McCann (.255 15 HR 42 RBI)

Yanks get: RF Giancarlo Stanton (.261 11 HR 37 RBI), 2B Rafael Furcal (.154 2 HR 5 RBI), RP Michael Dunn (2-1 3.21 42 IP 40 K 14 BB 1.21 WHIP), RF Andre Ethier (.261 2 HR 14 RBI), LF Carl Crawford (.261 7 HR 24 RBI 2 SB), RP Onelki Garcia (0-3 6.00 27 IP 29 K 12 BB 1.67 WHIP), For Salary purposes also took on Jamey Wright, Chad Billingsley and Paul Maholm

Marlins get: SP Julio Urias (AA 7-4 3.48 124 IP 116 K 40 BB 1.31 WHIP), 3B Corey Seager (AA .254 4 HR 18 RBI), SP Luke Jackson (AA 7-8 3.35 107.1 IP 123 K 31 BB 1.29 WHIP), SP AJ Cole (AA 6-7 3.55 109 IP 98 K 34 BB 1.31 WHIP), 1B CJ Cron (AAA .252 6 HR 55 RBI), SP Bryan Mitchell (AAA 7-7 4.06 124 IP 103 K 40 BB 1.36 WHIP), SS Travis Demeritte (AA .305 0 HR 6 RBI)

This is the big one, Yanks needed to make a splash for next year and so they did. The Dodgers staff was struggling after Kershaw, the OF's weren't giving much and Ellis is out 6+ months. The Dodgers are currently 59-38, 4 behind the Giants and 4.5 ahead of the Rockies for that 1st WC spot. The Fish get a pretty nice haul for Stanton who had showed his dismay to the front office by putting up subpar numbers thus far. Fish had it clear that it was time to sell.

Worth noting that CC has gone up to an 85 (started as an 84 on the pitch edits one). Also, LA made a separate deal for Starlin; sent Lee, Joc & Scavuzzo to Chicago for Starlin & Veras.

Team before the moves:

Spoiler

Lineup
LF Brett Gardner
SS Derek Jeter
CF Jacoby Ellsbury
DH Carlos Beltran
1B Mark Teixeira
C Brian McCann
3B A-Rod
2B Alfonso Soriano
RF Ichiro

Bench
LF Juan Pierre
C Francisco Cervelli
2B Brian Roberts
3B Yargevis Solarte

Rotation
1.CC Sabathia
2.Hiroki Kuroda
3.Masahiro Tanaka
4.Michael Pineda
5.Ivan Nova

Bullpen
LRP David Phelps
LRP Alfredo Aceves
MRP Preston Claiborne
MRP Andrew Bailey
SU Matt Thornton
SU Dellin Betances
CP David Robertson

Team after the moves:

Spoiler

Lineup
CF Carl Crawford
SS Derek Jeter
DH Giancarlo Stanton
LF Andre Ethier
1B Raul Ibanez
C Francisco Cervelli
3B A-Rod
2B Javy Baez
RF Ichiro

Bench
LF Juan Pierre
2B Brian Roberts
2B Alfonso Soriano
3B Yargevis Solarte

Rotation
1.Masahiro Tanaka
2.Brandon McCarthy (8-5 3.86) did the real trade for Nuno (AAA 10-6 3.17)
3.Ivan Nova
4.Chad Billingsley
5.Shane Greene (AAA 8-6 3.72 116 IP 95 K 54 BB 1.42 WHIP)

Bullpen
LRP David Phelps
MRP Jamey Wright
MRP Preston Claiburne
MRP Andrew Bailey
SU Matt Thornton (hoping to find someplace to trade him before the 31st)
SU Michael Dunn
CP Dellin Betances (3-2 2.49 43.1 IP 53 K 7 BB 1.18 WHIP)

Other real life moves I made:

Prado (.208 4 HR 17 RBI) for O'Brien (AA .317 5 HR 14 RBI)
Masterson (5-6 3.73) for Ramsey (AA .257 7 HR 29 RBI)
Asdrubal (.197 2 HR 6 RBI) for Walters (AAA .252 3 HR 14 RBI)
A-Jax (.290 7 HR 29 RBI) for Franklin (.282 1 HR 4 RBI)
Smyly (5-8 4.38), Frankiln (.282 1 HR 4 RBI), Betancourt (AA .290 1 HR 8 RBI) for Price (8-6 3.48)
Lackey (7-2 2.51) for Craig (.226 6 HR 37 RBI) & Kelly (2-2 3.45)
Lester (10-4 2.91) & Gomes (.228 14 HR 37 RBI) for Cespedes (.251 13 HR 39 RBI)
Straily (2-2 4.68), Russell (AA .249 16 HR 46 RBI) & McKinney (AA .224 0 HR 1 RBI) for Samardzija (5-6 2.88) & Hammel (2-7 3.85)
Milone (1-2 3.46) to the Twins
Kendrys (.221 5 HR 24 RBI) for Pryor (AA 0-2 2.37)
Parra (.251 5 HR 24 RBI) for Haniger (AAA .230 7 HR 25 RBI)
Almonte (AAA .220 3 HR 31 RBI) & Kohlscheen (AA 1-3 5.43) for Denorfia (.222 8 HR 38 RBI)
Escobar (AAA 6-7 5.12) & Hembree (AAA 0-3 4.13) for Peavy (6-5 3.66)
Miller (3-1 3.77) for Eddy Rodriguez (AAA 1-1 5.14)
Caratini (AA .380 3 HR 13 RBI) for Bonifacio (.227 3 HR 25 RBI 18 SB) & Russell (2-0 1.74)
Marisnick (.183 1 HR 3 RBI) & Moran (AAA .467 2 HR 10 RBI) for Cosart (7-8 4.97), Wates (AAA .286 0 HR 13 RBI) & Hernandez (AA .259 6 HR 33 RBI)
Doubront (5-9 4.29) to the Cubs
Barney (.191 3 HR 26 RBI) for Martinez (Class A)

I'm on July 18th, will be playing from here on out. Maybe I can find a way to crawl back into the race, have to jump every AL East team for the division and 9 AL teams for the 2nd WC. Wish me luck, going up agains Latos and the Reds (52-43)

Top 10 prospects (in the minors) after the moves:
1.SP Luis Severino 20 58 B (AA 3-5 5.23 93 IP 109 K 43 BB 1.70 WHIP) has jumped from 80 potential to 83. 109 K's!!!!
2.RP Onelki Garcia 24 65 B (AAA 0-1 12.00 3 IP 3 K 3 BB 3.33 WHIP)
3.SP Ian Clarkin 19 58 B (4-7 5.36 84 IP 65 K 33 BB)
4.SP Cory Mazzoni 24 65 B (starting up in AAA)
5.RP Vic Black 25 63 B (AAA 0-0 4.11 35 IP 32 K 12 BB 1.63 WHIP)
6.CF Mason Williams 22 63 C (currently on the DL)
7.CF Chevy Clarke 21 61 C (AAA .250 2 HR 13 RBI)
8.SS Erisbel Arruebarena 23 68 C (AAA .275 0 HR 2 RBI)
9.CF Slade Heathcott 23 68 C (AAA .248 7 HR 23 RBI)
10.SP Gabriel Ynoa 20 65 C (starting up on AAA)

Just missed:
11.RP Brett Gerritse 23 57 C (AA 1-4 3.99 29.1 IP 25 K 5 BB 1.36 WHIP)
12.SP Chase Whitley 24 67 C (AA 8-7 3.64 121 IP 93 K 41 BB 1.40 WHIP)
13.RP Mark Montgomery 23 58 C (AAA 3-2 2.43 40.2 IP 31 K 21 BB 1.45 WHIP)
14.SP Hunter Green 18 56 C (starting up in AAA)
15.RF Aaron Judge 22 57 C (AA .292 15 HR 51 RBI) Will be in AAA in mid/late August

[mkilcNYR]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

Mets 2014 Franchise Season:

Game 18: (Played whole way through) The Mets faced the Braves at Citi Field and broke out the brooms for their first sweep of the season! Zach Wheeler threw 8 innings giving up only one run while striking out 4 and Bobby Parnell picked up his 4th save of the year. The Mets have now won 4 in a row, 5 in a row at Citi, and won the last 5 games against the Braves.

Game 19: (Played whole way through) The 2006 NLCS was replayed in Flushing as the Cardinals lumbered into town to face the Mets in a 4 game series in Queens. The first game was a nail biter. Niese went 5 innings giving up one run and the Cardinals had a total meltdown in the 5th throwing 3 errors and allowing the Mets to take the 2-1 lead. Dice-K came on and coughed the lead back up allowing a home run to Allen Craig to tie it at 2-2. Mets stranded runners on the corners in the Bottom of the 8th and Carlos Torres struck out two in the Top 9th until Jhonny Peralta hit a two run home run to give the Cardinals the win 4-2. Dice K took the loss as the runner on first was his. Mets streak broken, Cardinals losing streak broken and the Mets are throughly demoralized.

Game 20: (Played whole way through) The Mets tried to rebound with Jeremy Hefner on the mound. He lasted 6 giving up 3 runs. The Mets went into the Bottom of the 8th with the Cardinals holding a slim 3-2 lead. Facing Jason Motte with two on and two out, Daniel Murphy slams the first pitch he sees to deep center for a three run home run. Bobby Parnell comes on in the 9th to slam the door shut with his 5th save and some '06 demons were exorcised from Queens as the Mets take a 5-3 win over the Cards.

Game 21: (Played whole way through) Matt Harvey takes the mound and gets his 4th win of the year improving to 4-0. The Mets managed to hit back to back to back home runs off Michael Wacha in the 4th and they would go onto win it 7-4. Harvey gave up 3 runs and now has an ERA of 1.23 but not bad overall. Murphy once again hit a homer and now has 5 on the year. Valverde got his first save of the year.

Game 22: (Player lock as Lucas Duda) The Mets closed out the last game against the Cardinals in the afternoon at Citi with a 5-3 win. David Wright hit a grand slam (his 2nd of the season) and the Mets rolled to victory with Dillon Gee in his first start. Gee is 1-0 and my player lock Duda went 1-4 with a single.

The Mets swept the Braves in 3 and they took 3/4 from the Cardinals on this ten game home stand. The Mets stand at an impressive 6-1 on the home stand with the last 3 games coming up against the Miami Marlins. Colon may also be on the move as the Royals and Astros have interest in him and I offered a deal to the Nationals for Doug Fister in exchange for Colon and a catching prospect from Double-A. They have yet to get back to me but I can't see a future for Colon in the borough of Queens. The standings currently are:

Washington Nationals 16-7 -
New York Mets 14-8 1.5
Miami Marlins 12-10 3.5
Philadelphia Phillies 11-12 5.0
Atlanta Braves 9-13 6.5

[guayo10]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress



Ellsbury who?
Game #96 Lineup - Win 13-7 vs. Reds
Carl Crawford have yourself a day, he went 4-5 in his Yankees debut. As what was expected to be a low scoring game turned into a wild circus display. Tanaka v Latos, no ace to be found as the Yankees pull out a 13-7 win.

CF Carl Crawford 4-5 HR 4 RBI 2B BB 3 R
SS Derek Jeter 2-4 2 RBI R
DH Giancarlo Stanton 2-5 2 RBI R K
LF Andre Ethier 2-3 RBI 2B BB
PR- LF Juan Pierre 0-0 SB left game with a concussion
PH- 2B Alfonso Soriano 0-1 K
1B Martin Prado 2-5 RBI K
3B A-Rod 0-4 R BB K
2B Javier Baez 1-4 HR 2 RBI 2 R BB 2 K
C Francisco Cervelli 0-4 R BB 2 K
RF Ichiro 2-2 3 R 2 BB

SP Masahiro Tanaka (W 11-3) 5 IP 9 H 6 R 6 ER 3 BB 3 K 3.72
RP David Phelps (H 1) .1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 3.62
RP Wesley Wright (H 7) .2 IP 1 H 1 R 1 ER 0 BB 0 K 5.14
RP Andrew Bailey (H 6) 1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 2.75
RP Matt Thornton 1.1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 4.50
RP Michael Dunn .2 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K 3.16

Game #97 Lineup - Loss 5-6 vs. Reds
Brandon McCarthy got hit hard early, Yankees bid at a comeback falls short. Had runners on 1st & 2nd down 6-5 with no outs in the 8th. Ichiro + Crawford struck out and Jeter popped out.

CF Carl Crawford 2-5 R K SB
SS Derek Jeter 1-5 R 2 K
DH Giancarlo Stanton 2-5 HR 3 RBI R K
LF Andre Ethier 1-3 BB K
PH- 2B Alfonso Soriano 0-1
1B Martin Prado 1-5 R K
3B A-Rod 1-4 HR 2 RBI R K E
2B Javier Baez 2-4 K
C Francisco Cervelli 0-2 2 BB
RF Ichiro 0-4 K

SP Brandon McCarthy (L 8-6) 4 IP 10 H 6 R 4 ER 0 BB 4 K 4.03
RP David Phelps 4 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 2 BB 5 K 3.47
RP Wesley Wright 1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 0 K 5.02

Game #98 Lineup - Loss 0-5 vs. Reds
Votto hit 2 HR's and Bailey had his complete game, while my starter came out slow once again and no offense. Time for the I miss Ellsbury + CC signs? Fire Girardi? After the 1st series after the ASG I sit 11.5 out of the East and 7 from the WC. Got an important series upcoming vs. Texas. Meanwhile Aaron Judge killing it still, .293 16 HR 55 RBI 9 SB 10 A

CF Carl Crawford 0-4 2 K
SS Derek Jeter 2-4 1 K
DH Giancarlo Stanton 2-4
LF Andre Ethier 0-4 3 K
1B Martin Prado 2-4
PR - LF Juan Pierre 0-0
3B A-Rod 1-4
2B Javier Baez 0-4
C Fransisco Cervelli 0-4
RF Ichiro 1-2 BB

SP Ivan Nova 6.1 IP 7 H 4 R 3 ER 3 BB 2 K 4.89
RP Matt Thornton .2 IP 1 H 1 R 1 ER 0 BB 0 K 4.76
RP Preston Claiborne 1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 2 K 2.43
RP Andrew Bailey 1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 2.70

[guayo10]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress



Trade Deadline Coverage

Played the first couple ones, then sport cast managed till the deadline. This was fun.

But first the Yankees have been hit by the injury bug:

SS Derek Jeter out 1-6 Days
RF Giancarlo Stanton out 1-2 Months
SS Erisbel Arruebarena out 1-2 Months
3B Scott Sizemore out 5-6 Months

Call up galore as CF Slade Heathcott (AAA .258 8 HR 35 RBI) will be joining the major league team

Other developing story lines
-Detroit have fallen out of the race after a disastrous July that saw them go 6-18, currently on a 6 game losing streak. Now the question looms, will they deal Scherzer? Will they pay Price? Price has gone 2-6 5.11 42.2 IP 30 K 12 BB 6.33 K/9 with them while Scherzer is 9-5 3.73 135 IP 121 K 44 BB 8.07 K/9
-Pirates have the worst record in baseball at 42-65, will they trade Pedro? What time of moves will they make?
-Cubs aren't that much better as they sit at 46-61, who else can they deal?
-Padres surprisingly have the best record in baseball at 66-41, what do they do?
-Ichiro to Seattle? Yanks have been abysmal after the ASG and sit at 46-62 15.5 out of the division and 11.5 out of the 2nd WC. Seattle on the other hand are at 57-50, 1 game behind the Halos and tied for the WC lead.
-Time to sell for Texas? Another one of those teams that really really had a bad July. Only 6.5 out of the WC but with a record of 51-57.
-Add the Giants to those teams that fell apart, after acquiring Peavy they went 7-28. Do they keep Pence, Peavy & the Panda? The 3 P's btw.
-Diamondbacks are 4 games under .500 at 52-56, yet 8 games out of the WC; do they call it a year?
-Would the White Sox entertain offers for Sale (7-10 4.40 139 IP 131 K 43 BB 8.48 K/9)? Also Jose Abreu has gone down to a B potential while going (.241 13 HR 44 RBI) do they move him as well for a nice haul?

Follow it all on todays live blog coverage of the deadline:

Spoiler

8:00 AM, 8 hours to go
No dealings as of yet, GM's must be wide asleep still.

8:27 AM, 5:27 A's time. Phillies - A's trade
Billy must have heard me, 1st trade of the day is in.

A's get 2B Chase Utley (.279 9 HR 29 RBI)
Phillies get CF Billy Burns (AAA .270 1 HR 21 RBI 5 SB) & SP Dylan Covey (AA 10-7 2.72 135.2 IP 87 K 53 BB 5.77 K/9)

The A's get their 2B but this probably means what we already knew, Jon Lester will be a free agent. Unless a Qatari billionaire buys the team over. The Phillies get a nice haul back for an aging player due 6.7 M next year. Dylan Covey can be a #3 for the Phillies, while they hope Billy Burns regains his potential after a disappointing 2014.

8:38 Giants - Orioles trade

Orioles get SP Matt Cain (9-3 1.57 154.2 IP 107 K 35 BB .89 WHIP) & Sergio Romo (0-1 1.91 28.1 IP 28 SV 32 K 6 BB .92 WHIP)
Giants get SP Dylan Bundy (0-1 2.45 7.1 IP 2 K 4 BB 1.91 WHIP) , SP Kevin Gausman (8-10 5.38 130.2 IP 106 K 34 BB 1.59 WHIP) & SP Juan Guzman (AA 5-13 6.79 116.2 IP 110 K 52 BB 1.89 WHIP)

Well good morning to you too. The O's are going for it all as they've seen their lead in the East cut down, now tied with the Jays. This move probably means bye bye Cruz and Hardy next year. But they're now a top 3 AL team for the WS. Big big move. Also to note Gausman has gone down to a B. Cain was leading the CY Young race in the NL, while the O's had no real closer. Red Sox were rumored to be in for Cain, Bundy sealed the deal.

8:55 Giants - Red Sox trade

Red Sox get CF Angel Pagan (.264 6 HR 25 RBI 15 SB)
Giants get C Christian Vazquez (AAA .241 1 HR 19 RBI)

Those Giants sure don't waste any time. After trading away their whole team the Red Sox have had a strong July, polar opposites to those guys in the Bronx. Now they find themselves 6.5 in the East and 2 in the WC. Now they get Pagan to have a nice OF of Cespedes, Pagan and Victorino. Craig is still out for 2 months.

9:17 Yankees - Mariners trade

Mariners get RF Ichiro (.246 0 HR 26 RBI), RP Matt Thornton (0-3 4.85 26 IP 14 K 4 BB 1.35 WHIP) & SP David Phelps (6-4 3.40 103.1 IP 87 K 34 BB 1.18 WHI)
Yankees get LF Dustin Ackley (.239 6 HR 15 RBI) & SS Gabriel Noriega (AA .152 0 HR 2 RBI)

The Mariners get Ichiro to platoon in the OF with Hart, Denorfia, and Saunders. Ackley had lost starting time and is now a mid C. Phelps (now a B, woo hoo) will also go into the rotation to take Erasmo's place as he was 7-9 4.29. Thornton gives them another lefty in the pen. M's are currently 1 game back of the Angels in the West and tied for the 1st WC with the A's. Best division in baseball.

9:28 Tigers - Mariners

Mariners get SP David Price (8-8 3.99 146.2 IP 114 K 36 BB 7 K/9)
Tigers get SP James Paxton (9-4 2.48 130.2 IP 112 K 48 BB 7.71 K/9), 3B DJ Peterson (AA .323 7 HR 15 RBI) & SP Danny Hultzen (AA 2-0 0.63 14.1 IP 16 K 1 BB 10.05 K/9)

Price has to change homes one more time. It's unclear if Seattle will resign him, but it's clear that Detroit has chosen the one pitcher that can handle pitching in Detroit. Big big deal as the M's now have a clear shot at winning the West and maybe the AL. Arms race has begun between the Mariners, A's & O's. Paxton is 3rd in ROY behind Tanaka & Abreu.

9:55 Giants - Padres

Padres get SP Jake Peavy (6-8 4.26 120.1 IP 96 K 37 BB 1.29 WHIP) & C Christian Vasquez
Giants get C Austin Hedges (AA .255 1 HR 13 RBI)

The Giants turned Vasquez and Peavy into one of the better C prospects. While Hedges has struggled at AA this year, it's still possible he turns out to be an A type player. Potential now says B, but the Giants hope he gets back to form. As for the Padres, welcome home Peavy. He will join a staff of: Ian Kennedy (9-6 2.61), Andrew Cashner (5-4 3.62), Josh Johnson (8-4 2.95), & Eric Stults (10-3 2.37). He will take over the 4th/5th spot from Tyson Ross who has a 5.89 ERA. Padres easily have the best rotation in the West and NL.

10:21 Rockies - Pirates

Pirates get RF David Dahl (AAA .290 7 HR 34 RBI)
Rockies get SP Francisco Liriano (7-8 2.85 132.2 IP 110 K 44 BB 1.16 WHIP) & RP Jeanmar Gomez (2-3 2.17 45.2 IP 35 K 9 BB 0.92 WHIP)

The Rockies are quietly still in the race with a record of 60-48. They're 6.5 behind the Padres in the West and hold the 2nd WC, a half game ahead of the Reds. They get their Ace for the playoff push as well as a much needed RP in the pen. Jeanmar has been fire this year. While the Pirates get Dahl, who will most likely be shifted to LF. Or moved in future years.

10:39 Braves - Pirates

Pirates get SP Aaron Northcraft (AAA 8-7 1.98 141 IP 116 K 59 BB 7.40 K/9) & 3B Edward Salcedo (AA .338 3 HR 11 RBI)
Braves get SP Wandy Rodriguez (8-4 3.29 128.2 IP 81 K 56 BB 1.20 WHIP)

Braves get another pitcher for the playoff hunt as Mike Minor (4-9 4.38) and Alex Wood (5-13 5.77) have both been struggling. Wandy will be their new #3 behind Medlen & Beachy. The Pirates are in full sell mode as they have the #1 draft pick as of now!

12:15 Blue Jays & Pirates

Pirates get C AJ Jimenez (.215 1 HR 9 RBI)
Blue Jays get C Russell Martin (.221 9 HR 26 RBI)

Martin was 93% out of Pittsburgh, now he's 100%. The Jays get a starting catcher. The AL East co-leaders are loading up with offense to combat the pitchers in the AL.

12:41 Yankees - Orioles

Orioles get SP Alfredo Aceves (AAA 4-3 2.03 120 IP 115 K 36 BB 1.12 WHIP)
Yankees get CF Julio Borbon (AAA .225 2 HR 20 RBI)

The O's get another arm for the pen, while the Yanks get an OF who might come in to play everyday now to compete for a spot on the team next year.

2:33 Astros - Cubs

Cubs get SP Michael Feliz (AAA 5-4 2.41 74.2 IP 82 K 11 BB 9.88 K/9)
Astros get SP Travis Wood (5-6 2.93 138 IP 106 K 49 BB 1.21 WHIP)

It's thought that the Cubs asking price was too high, they lowered it somewhat but still got a nice prospect from the Astros. Stros sit 6.5 & 7.5 out of the postseason, Wood gives them a boost. Slim but a boost none the less.

3:51 Giants - Nationals

Nationals get 3B Pablo Sandoval (.261 10 HR 44 RBI)
Giants get CF Brian Goodwin (AAA .246 11 HR 35 RBI 11 SB) & 2B Tony Renda (AA .264 10 HR 54 RBI 11 SB)

Ryan Zimmerman had a setback and will now miss the rest of the season, they had a chance to move Rendon back to 3rd but feel it is necessary he continues at 2B. Specially since he's having a solid year. The Giants negotiations with the Panda stalled more than once, now he might have played his last game as a Giant.

3:58 Phillies - Cardinals

Cardinals get SS Jimmy Rollins (.242 4 HR 14 RBI)
Phillies get SP Boone Whiting (AAA 5-2 2.82 76.2 IP 65 K 15 BB 1.19 WHIP)

The Cardinals have grown tired of the Peralta errors, so they go out and rent Jimmy Rollins for 3 months. The Phillies get something for Jimmy and have a shot to resign him in the offseason.

And that's all she wrote. Postseason is next. Not for the Yanks as well, we suck.

Aaron Judge has moved on to AAA to begin August, splits of .286/.349/.478 at AA with 17 HR and 61 RBI. Depending on how AAA goes he might get a shot to crack the team next year, also might get some AB's in September. Again depending on how he does in AAA.

Chase Whitley goes to AAA, went 10-7 3.17 144.2 IP 108 K 46 BB 1.35 in AA.

Eric Jagielo goes to AAA, splits of .322/.360/.412 at AA with 6 HR 54 RBI.

Luis Severino stays in AA for now, continues to be on fire. 4-5 4.89 105 IP 122 K 46 BB 10.46 K/9. Will probably shut him down when he gets to 160-180 IP.

Onelki Garcia has struggled at AAA 0-1 8.64 8.1 IP 7 K 6 BB 2.28 WHIP

Cory Mazzoni as well 0-2 5.28 15.1 IP 12 K 8 BB 1.76 WHIP

Ramon Flores is doing well at AAA .284/.353/.385 4 HR 37 RBI 10 SB

Sportcast managed sim up to September, will play/sportcast this month.

Here are the Standings going into the last month:

Spoiler

AL East
1.TOR 77-57 -
2.TB 70-65 7.5 (had a killer August)
3.BOS 67-67 10 (meh August)
4.BAL 65-69 12 (that trade didn't help, this is a sinking ship. Had an 8 game lead entering July)
5.NYY 61-73 16 (sigh)

AL Central
1.KC 67-67 - (choke cough cough)
2.DET 63-71 4 (were 11 back at the deadline. That Price deal work gold)
3.CLE 62-72 5 (doing it with minor league players, but really the Central sucks)
4.MIN 61-73 6 (same as above ^^^)
5.CWS 56-79 11.5 (they could win 24 games and win this division this month)

AL West
1.LAA 75-60 - (Top 2 in the MVP still Trout & Beltran)
2.OAK 73-61 1.5
3.SEA 69-64 5
4.TEX 64-70 10.5
5.HOU 62-74 13.5

AL Wild Card
1.OAK 3.5 ahead of TB
2.TB -
3.SEA tied with Tampa, 2 games in hand
4.BOS 2.5
5.BAL 4.5
6.TEX 5.5
7.DET 6.5
8.CLE 7.5
9.HOU 8.5
10.NYY 8.5 (We still have a shot, the AL really really sucks this year)
11.MIN 8.5
12.CWS 14

NL East
1.WSH 77-57 -
2.ATL 73-62 4.5
3.MIA 65-69 12 (after trading Stanton away they got red hot)
4.NYM 64-71 13.5
5.PHI 54-80 23

NL Central
1.STL 81-53 -
2.CIN 72-63 9.5
3.MIL 71-63 10
4.CHC 57-78 24.5
5.PIT 55-79 26 (no longer the worst, for now)

NL West
1.SD 85-48 - (WOW)
2.LAD 75-60 11 (Wow as well for the wrong reasons)
3.COL 72-63 14
4.ARI 67-67 18.5 (They would be tied for 1st in the ALC)
5.SF 55-80 31

NL Wild Card
1.LAD 2 ahead of ATL
2.ATL -
3.CIN 1
4.COL 1
5.MIL 1.5
6.ARI 5.5
7.MIA 7.5 (percentage wise, a better shot at making the playoffs than us. smh)
8.NYM 9
9.CHC 16
10.PIT 17.5
11.SF 18
12.PHI 18.5

This will be fun. Update it tomorrow.

The Aaron Judge watch, struggling at AAA .198/.270/.457 but has 6 HR in 81 AB. Not bad at all.

[guayo10]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress



Can You Make The Playoffs With 81 Losses?

Well 5 teams are attempting to do so, as their will be a minimum of 4 games played to get a 2nd wild card team in the AL. The winner of this mini tourney gets a trip to Oakland to face Lester (16-8 3.20) or Gray (13-11 3.89) or Griffin (16-5 3.77) or Samardzija (6-8 2.71).

So who are these 5 mystery teams? We'll get to that in a second. Fun Fact: The NL WC will also be determined by a one game winner take all as the Cincinnati Reds (87-75) travel to face the Atlanta Braves (87-75). Winner of that one wins a trip to LA to face the Dodgers (91-71).

Here are the New York Yankees last 3 games.

Spoiler

Game #160 - Loss @ Red Sox 3-10
CF Carl Crawford 1-4 RBI R BB 2 K
DH Derek Jeter 3-5 2 2B R K
RF Giancarlo Stanton 2-5 HR 2 RBI R
SS Javier Baez 0-4 BB 2 K
LF Andre Ethier 0-4 3 K
1B Martin Prado 1-4 2 K
3B A-Rod 2-4
2B Brendan Ryan 1-3 K
C JR Murphy 1-3

SP Shane Greene 3.1 IP 8 H 6 R 6 ER 4 BB 3 K 6.08
SP Luis Severino 2.2 IP 4 H 1 R 1 ER BB 4 K 3.37
RP Andrew Bailey 1 IP 3 H 3 R 3 ER 0 BB 2 K 2.59
RP Michael Dunn 1 IP 2 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K 3.39

Game #161 - Win @ Red Sox 4-0
RF Juan Pierre 3-5 R
DH Derek Jeter 2-5 R
1B Martin Prado 4-5 R
SS Javier Baez 2-4 RBI SB BB K
CF Carl Crawford 1-5 K
2B Dustin Ackley 1-5 HR 2 RBI
3B A-Rod 0-4
C Francisco Cervelli 0-3 BB 2 K
LF Slade Heathcott 1-3 BB

SP Masahiro Tanaka 9 IP 3 H 0 R 0 ER 2 BB 5 K 3.09

Game #162 (must win) - Loss @ Red Sox 0-2
CF Carl Crawford 0-4 K
DH Derek Jeter 0-4 2 K
RF Giancarlo Stanton 0-4 2 K
LF Andre Ethier 1-4 K
1B Martin Prado 1-4
2B Dustin Ackley 0-3 E
3B A-Rod 0-2
PH - LF Juan Pierre 1-1 2B
C Francisco Cervelli 0-2 BB
SS Brendan Ryan 0-2
PH - SS Stephen Drew 0-1

SP Chase Whitley 6 IP 4 H 1 R 0 ER 4 BB 0 K 4.35
RP Preston Claiborne 1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 2 K 3.19
RP Andrew Bailey .1 IP 2 H 1 R 1 ER 0 BB 0 K 2.68
RP Shawn Kelley .2 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K

The 5 teams vying for one spot for a trip to the Coliseum

Boston Red Sox (81-81)
September record: 13-13
Next opponent: @ Baltimore Orioles
Probable pitcher: Anthony Ranaudo 3-1 4.31 31.1 IP 16 K 11 BB 1.31 WHIP

Baltimore Orioles (81-81)
September record: 14-12
Next opponent: vs. Boston Red Sox
Probable pitcher: Ubaldo Jimenez 11-10 3.69 202.1 IP 206 K 77 BB 1.34 WHIP

Tampa Bay Rays (81-81)
September record: 10-15
Next opponent: vs. Seattle Mariners
Probable pitcher: Alex Cobb 12-12 3.84 190 IP 122 K 60 BB 1.26 WHIP

Seattle Mariners (81-81)
September record: 11-16
Next opponent: @ Tampa Bay Rays
Probable pitcher: Hisashi Iwakuma 11-7 3.54 213.2 IP 166 K 73 BB 1.29 WHIP

New York Yankees (81-81)
September record: 19-8
Next opponent: TBD
Probable pitcher: Masahiro Tanaka 17-4 3.09 215.1 IP 136 K 58 BB 1.24 WHIP

I'll be updating these the next couple days, should be done with 1 season (depending how far I get in the extra games & playoffs by tomorrow). Leaving for California on the 20th so trying to play as much as I can before I head back to work.

Also after 162 games here are my stats:
Lineup
CF Carl Crawford .281/.341/.417 13 HR 45 RBI 16 SB 494 AB
DH Derek Jeter .260/.302/.338 5 HR 39 RBI 547 AB
RF Giancarlo Stanton .287/.373/.555 19 HR 57 RBI 265 AB
LF Andre Ethier .270/.346/.405 10 HR 49 RBI 440 AB
1B Martin Prado .245/.300/.346 11 HR 44 RBI 474 AB
3B A-Rod .258/.329/.416 19 HR 69 RBI 503 AB
2B Dustin Ackley .274/.336/.400 9 HR 34 RBI 310 AB
SS Javier Baez .258/.306/.406 9 HR 26 RBI 217 AB
C Francisco Cervelli .233/.319/.336 4 HR 32 RBI 253 AB

Bench (with all the call ups it's a huge bench)
C JR Murphy .208/.260/.236 0 HR 3 RBI 72 AB
SS Brendan Ryan .257/.297/.457 1 HR 7 RBI 35 AB
CF Slade Heathcott .295/.347/.443 3 HR 16 RBI 4 SB 88 AB (might have won a roster spot for next year)
LF Juan Pierre .298/.332/.450 3 HR 37 RBI 20 SB 289 AB
3B Yargevis Solarte .222/.281/.339 5 HR 26 RBI 239 AB
2B Rafael Furcal .154/.231/.231 2 HR 5 RBI 117 AB
2B Brian Roberts .241/.294/.374 5 HR 24 RBI 187 AB
2B Jose Pirela .239/.255/.283 0 HR 1 RBI 46 AB
SS Stephen Drew .253/.329/.372 10 HR 46 RBI 395 AB
RF Aaron Judge .062/.062/.250 1 HR 1 RBI 16 AB
LF Zoilo Almonte .429/.429/.571 0 HR 0 RBI 7 AB
SS Erisbel Arruebarena .213/.258/.300 3 HR 6 RBI 150 AB

Rotation
1.Masahiro Tanaka 17-4 3.09 215.1 IP 136 K 58 BB 1.24 WHIP
2.Chad Billingsley 6-3 3.50 100.1 IP 68 K 30 BB 1.29 WHIP
3.Ivan Nova 9-13 4.24 161.1 IP 106 K 52 BB 1.37 WHIP
4.Chase Whitley 4-4 4.35 62 IP 30 K 22 BB 1.45 WHIP
5.Shane Greene 4-6 6.08 71 IP 48 K 38 BB 1.65 WHIP

Accidentally let McCarthy go. Not really though, was 16 back when Chicago Sox claimed him.

Bullpen
LRP Luis Severino 0-0 3.38 2.2 IP 4 K 1 BB 1.88 WHIP
LRP Chris Capuano 4-0 4.47 50.1 IP 28 K 23 BB 1.61 WHIP
MRP Andrew Bailey 6-4 2.69 87 IP 84 K 31 BB 1.22 WHIP
MRP Preston Claiborne 6-3 3.20 76 IP 49 K 25 BB 1.30 WHIP
MRP Onelki Garcia 0-0 13.50 2.2 IP 2 K 1.88 WHIP
MRP Wesley Wright 4-4 4.63 70 IP 62 K 23 BB 1.23 WHIP
SU Shawn Kelley 2-0 4.95 36.1 IP 38 K 20 BB 1.65 WHIP
SU Michael Dunn 4-2 3.39 63.2 IP 59 K 19 BB 1.24 WHIP
CP Dellin Betances 3-2 2.32 66 IP 22 SV 76 K 11 BB 1.08 WHIP

[KBLover]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress

2014 Marlins Offseason


Notable Transaction Summary

-Added SP Michael Feliz to the 40-man roster.
-Released SP Kevin Slowey.
-Offered arbitration to P Matt Reynolds, C Hector Sanchez, 3B Casey McGehee, P Henry Rodriguez.
-SP Tom Koehler and C J.T. Realmuto were among the non-tenders.
-Signed 1B Adam Lind for 2 yrs/3.96 M.
-Signed RP Joel Hanrahan for 2 yrs/3.2 M.
-Selected RP Dominic Leone in round 1 of the Rule 5 Draft.
-Selected SP Eddie Butler in round 2 of the Rule 5 Draft.
-Signed 3B Yangervis Solarte for 3 yrs/1.5 M.
-Re-signed C J.T. Realmuto for 2 yrs/1.0 M.
-Signed SS Eugenio Suarez for 3 yrs/1.5 M.
-Signed 2B Steve Lombardozzi for 3 yrs/1. M.
-Extended 2B Donovan Solando for 4 yrs/2.32 M.



Late Player Development (Happened during Postseason)-2B Donovan Solano was elevated from C to B Potential after a solid September.

-CP Steve Cishek was elevated from B to A Potential after his strong season.

-RF Kyle Jenson was elevated from C to B Potential after a rebound in AAA and a very strong September showing.




(Detailed notes follow)




The Marlins weren't really looking to make any big splashes in the free agency pool. The top prize this year was SP Max Scherzer, which is a non-starter for the Marlins as they are looking to develop in-house solutions to their rotation puzzle.

Most of the Marlins signings were to regain their own minor-league free agents as well as sign some others that might have slipped through the cracks and might have a ghost of a chance to make it one day.

The Marlins avoided any established talent that had a qualifying offer, as the team is not interested at this point at losing any picks. That limited options, but didn't shut the door completely.

As a result, the Marlins inked 1B Adam Lind and RP Joel Hanrahan to contracts.

Lind is a perfect fit for the Marlins' goal of a potential vs RHP upgrade at first base. He has a mixture of contact and power - both a tick above average. Not exactly the best protection for Stanton, but is more threatening on paper than Greg Dobbs.

Hanrahan matches the goal of trying to help the bullpen. The veteran reliever still has a lot of velocity and good overall decision making on the mound. He should help take pressure off the younger relievers and provide some leadership at the same time. Should Cishek falter or suffer injury, Hanrahan has closing experience as well.

Most of the arbitration-eligible players were offered arbitration. RP Matt Reynolds was surprisingly one of them. His solid, and surprisingly good, season filling the lefty role with the trade of Matt Dunn likely earned him the tender.

The Marlins also changed some personnel in the dugout. They brought in a new pitching coach and farm director.

"We have young pitchers, and some veteran pitchers, who struggle at times with command. We looked for coaches that have a reputation for correcting flaws in a pitcher's mechanics and helping develop more consistency and feel for their pitches, " the Marlins GM commented.

Mark Redmond was not fired though he seems less well-liked for his player mentoring ability. However, with the winning season and coaxing solid play out of his young roster, the team felt secure in giving the skipper another season.


Rule 5 Draft

The Rule 5 Draft presented an interesting dilemma to the Marlins.

For one, Rougned Odor was selected. He was a Marlins' top target if he was left exposed. However, the Giants jumped on him. Also gone was 3B D.J. Peterson from the Mariners. The Tigers snatched him up far ahead of the Marlins' #17 pick.

That left the team with a decision. Would they pass? Would they take a gamble?

Then the Marlins saw another target. A reliever named Dominic Leone. Leone is a 23-year-old prospect that's well developed and appears ready to be tested at the major league level. Like many of the Marlins young bullpen arms, Leone throws absolute gas. Scouts grade his velocity with their highest marks and there's little debate. That velocity alone tends to intimidate hitters. He has reasonable control, but, again like most of the Marlins' young arms, it needs work. His movement is also a concern. Leone will need to be solid with changing speeds to be most effective.

That was the first round pick. What would the Marlins do for the second round? The same dilemma showed up. The team decided to pick up another young starting pitcher. Just what the Marlins...don't need?

Eddie Butler is the pitcher's name, a 24-year-old from the Skysox. Butler looks to be a bit slow in his development. He has some significant weaknesses and hasn't developed the ability to bear down or maintain his concentration over the course of an outing. His endurance is also a concern. His velocity, though, is not a concern.

"The Marlins must believe in high velocity as being a good indicator of success as that's a trait many of their young pitchers share - the ability to throw 95+ " one scout spoke.

With this second pick, the Marlins had a full 40-man roster, so they were done for this year's draft.

Leone will definitely see plenty of action in relief. Butler is more questionable. He may start the season as 5th starter, but he might take Jacob Turner's long relief spot as Turner hasn't been called up to the majors. With Leone and Hanrahan, the Marlins bullpen might have some real teeth behind it before getting to Cishek. Capps might have some help finally.


Offseason Player Development

Could Jose Fernandez be getting better? That's a thought striking fear into the rest of the NL. It might be happening.

"Fernandez, great talent that he is, still has issues with command at times. Those issues might be starting to dissipate. That's scary, " one scout commented.

Donovan Solano might be fighting for his job after all. Scouts noted a renewed work ethic from Solano and are taking a chance on raising his ceiling a bit. With Gregorious doing horribly at the plate and Solano being equally gifted in the field, second base may have just become a battleground.

Giancarlo Stanton is determined to produce career year. He's been working to cut down on his ridiculous strike out rate that he put up last season. Stanton struck out 27% of the time last season.

"I worked myself into slumps by not staying in my zone. I didn't let the game come to me enough. I'm going to do what I can to change that this year, " Stanton commented.

Steve Cishek: team's ace closer or prime trade bait? That's something the Marlins will need to answer. Cishek posted a 1.80 ERA that helped scouts elevate Cishek a bit higher in projections.

However, with so many "closer prototype arms" in the bullpen, many wonder if the Marlins should try to sell high on Cishek and groom someone like Capps for the closer role. Some have even mentioned giving Kolek a chance as a closer instead of a starter.

The smoke and rumors got fueled once the Hanrahan signing was announced - not to mention selecting Leone in the Rule 5 Draft.

[guayo10]

Re: MLB 14 The Show Franchise Progress



Girardi's gamble pays off in Fenway. While Tanaka checkmates the King.



Somewhere in the air flying to Oakland.

All signs said that Billingsley was going to get the ball in the game at Fenway after the Sox defeated the Orioles to stay alive in the single elimination tourney between 5 teams. Even Billingsley imagined he would get the ball as the Yanks didn't want to rush Tanaka back on 3 days rest.

"Yeah I mean, I was ready to go. I was excited, I had read up on their reports. I wasn't shocked when he named Luis the starter. I mean maybe a little shock but that's Joe for you." - Billingsley

Luis? Who's this Luis guy. Only Luis Severino who pitched extremely well in AA this season. He had only pitched 2.2 innings in the majors before getting the start in a crucial win or go home game. Now everyone knows Luis, he went 6 strong innings in Fenway in a sort of October game. He gave up 1 hit and struck out 7 while only walking 1.

"Adrenaline no? Wow, that was exciting. I couldn't believe I got through the 1st inning that quickly, striking out Big Papi are you serious. All of this is still real surreal. Won't be able to sleep on the plane ride to Seattle tonight. Amazing feeling, hoping this boosts my chances of getting to the majors sooner now" - Luis Severino

I would say yes, yes they do. He quieted the whole city of Boston. Inning after inning everyone expected this 20 year old to crack. He didn't. He kept on making bats swing and miss. It was an incredible sight for the people of Boston, so silent after the 3rd inning.

AL Tiebreaker
Boston Red Sox 8 Baltimore Orioles 0
WP Workman (6-3) LP Chris Tillman (4-8)
Key player LF Yoenis Cespedes 2-5 HR 3 RBI

Seattle Mariners 5 Tampa Bay Rays 4
WP H Iwakuma (12-7) LP Jeremy Hellickson (14-9) SV Fernando Rodney (40)
Key player 1B Kendrys Morales 2-4 3 RBI

NL Tiebreaker
Cincinnati Reds 4 Atlanta Braves 5
WP David Hale (1-0) LP Aroldis Chapman (BS 2-4)
Reds had a 4-2 lead going into the 9th.
Key player LF Evan Gattis 2-5 2 HR 3 RBI

Yankees Postseason, sort of:

Spoiler

Game #163 - Win @ Red Sox 2-0
CF Carl Crawford 0-5
DH Derek Jeter 2-3 2B R BB
PR - LF Juan Pierre 0-0 SB
RF Giancarlo Stanton 1-4 HR 2 RBI R K
LF Andre Ethier 1-4 E
1B Martin Prado 1-4
3B A-Rod 1-3 2B BB
2B Dustin Ackley 2-4 2B K
SS Stephen Drew 0-4 K
C Francisco Cervelli 0-4 K

SP Luis Severino (W 1-0) 6 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 7 K 1.04
RP Wesley Wright (H 12) 1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 2 K 4.56
RP Andrew Bailey (H 15) .2 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K 2.67
RP Onelki Garcia (H 1) .1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K 12.00
CP Dellin Betances (SV 23) 1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 2 BB 0 K 2.28

Red Sox (82-82)
2B Dustin Pedroia 0-3 BB K E
RF Daniel Nava 1-2 BB
PR - RF Shane Victorino 0-0 CS
DH David Ortiz 0-3 2 K
1B Mike Napoli 0-3 K
LF Yoenis Cespedes 1-3 2B K
3B Will Middlebrooks 0-3 2 K
C David Ross 0-3 3 K
SS Jonathan Herrera 0-3 E
CF Jackie Bradley Jr 0-3 K

SP Anthony Ranaudo (L 3-2) 6 IP 5 H 2 R 2 ER 2 BB 4 K 4.10
RP Craig Breslow 2 IP 2 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 3.92
RP Edward Mujica 1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 3.59

Game #164 - Win @ Seattle Mariners 1-0
CF Carl Crawford 0-2 R SB BB K
DH Derek Jeter 0-4
RF Giancarlo Stanton 3-4 RBI
LF Andre Ethier 0-3 K
PH - LF Aaron Judge 0-1
1B Martin Prado 1-4
3B A-Rod 1-3
PH - SS Brendan Ryan 0-1 K
2B Dustin Ackley 1-3
SS Stephen Drew 0-3 K
C Francisco Cervelli 1-3 2B K

SP Masahiro Tanaka (W 18-4) 7.1 IP 5 H 0 R 0 ER 2 BB 5 K 2.99
RP Michael Dunn (H 16) .1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 3.38
RP Preston Claiborne (H 7) .1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 3.18
CP Dellin Betances (SV 24) 1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K 2.25

Seattle Mariners (82-82)
CF Austin Jackson 2-4 K
LF Julio Morban 0-1
PH - LF Ichiro 1-3 K
2B Robinson Cano 0-1 2 BB K
RF Corey Hart 1-3 K
1B Kendrys Morales 1-3 2B
3B Kyle Seager 0-3 E
DH Justin Smoak 1-2 K
PH - DH Ji-Man Choi 0-1
SS Brad Miller 0-2 K
PH Chris Denorfia 0-1
C Mike Zunino 0-2
PH - SS Willie Bloomquist 0-1

SP Felix Hernandez 6 IP 4 H 1 R 1 ER 1 BB 4 K 3.35
RP Charlie Furbush 2.1 IP 3 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 3.10
RP Yoervis Medina .2 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K 0.00

With the Regular Season finally finished here are some League Leaders & Awards:

Spoiler

Batting AL
1.CF Mike Trout, LAA .332
2.1B Victor Martinez, DET .315
3.RF Wil Myers, TB .313
4.1B Miguel Cabrera .312
5.1B Edwin Encarnacion, TOR .311

Batting NL
1.3B Matt Carpenter, STL .344
2.1B Paul Goldschmidt, ARI .312
3.1B Freddie Freeman, ATL .306
4.CF Andrew McCutchen, PIT .304
5.RF Yasiel Puig, LAD .301

Hits AL
1.1B Victor Martinez, DET 195
2.SS Jose Reyes, TOR 193
3.1B Edwin Encarnacion, TOR 189
3.CF Mike Trout, LAA 189
5.RF Wil Myers, TB 183

Hits NL
1.3B Matt Carpenter, STL 208
2.1B Paul Goldschmidt, ARI 184
3.SS Jean Segura, MIL 179
4.1B Freddie Freeman 176
4.SS Starlin Castro, LAD 176

HR AL
1.1B Miguel Cabrera, DET 45
2.1B Edwin Encarnacion, TOR 41
3.CF Mike Trout, LAA 40
4.RF Carlos Beltran, LAA 37
5.RF Jose Bautista, TOR 35

HR NL
1.1B Paul Goldschmidt, ARI 41
2.1B Joey Votto, CIN 37
3.3B Aramis Ramirez, MIL 34
4.LF Mark Trumbo, ARI 32
5.C Wilson Ramos, WSH 31
5.CF Matt Kemp, LAD 31

RBI AL
1.CF Mike Trout, LAA 126
2.1B Edwin Encarnacion, TOR 120
3.1B Mike Napoli, BOS 117
4.1B Billy Butler, KC 108
5.RF Carlos Beltran, LAA 106

RBI NL
1.1B Paul Goldschmidt, ARI 110
2.1B Joey Votto, CIN 103
3.LF Mark Trumbo, ARI 97
3.CF Andrew McCutchen, PIT 97
5.3B Aramis Ramirez, MIL 96

Wins AL
1.SP Masahiro Tanaka, NYY 18
2.SP AJ Griffin, OAK 16
2.SP Jon Lester, OAK 16
4.SP Mark Buehrle, TOR 15
4.SP Scott Kazmire, OAK 15
4.SP Max Scherzer, DET 15
4.SP Tyler Skaggs, LAA 15
4.SP Robbie Ross, TEX 15

Wins NL
1.SP Clayton Kershaw, LAD 21
2.SP Johnny Cueto, CIN 19
3.SP Kris Medlen, ATL 16
3.SP Stephen Strasburg, WSH 16
5.SP Jordan Zimmerman, WSH 15
5.SP Zack Greinke, LAD 15
5.SP Shelby Miller, STL 15

Saves AL
1.CP Huston Street, LAA 52
2.CP Casey Janssen, TOR 47
3.CP Jim Johnson, BOS 42
3.CP Glen Perkins, MIN 42
5.CP Grant Balfour, TB 41

Saves NL
1.CP Craig Kimbrel, ATL 51
2.CP LaTroy Hawkins, COL 49
3.CP Aroldis Chapman, CIN 45
4.CP Rafael Soriano, WSH 44
5.CP Francisco Rodriguez, MIL 43

ERA AL
1.SP Matt Cain, BAL 2.12
2.SP Anibal Sanchez, DET 2.68
3.SP Jeff Samardzija, OAK 2.71
4.SP Masahiro Tanaka, NYY 2.99
5.SP Jered Weaver, LAA 3.10

ERA NL
1.SP Clayton Kershaw, LAD 2.03
2.SP Jose Fernandez, MIA 2.44
3.SP Jordan Zimmerman, WSH 2.61
4.SP Josh Johnson, SD 2.67
5.SP Brandon Cumpton, PIT 2.70

Strikeouts AL
1.SP Yu Darvish, TEX 266
2.SP Anibal Sanchez, DET 220
3.SP Steve Johnson, BAL 208
4.SP Ubaldo Jimenez, BAL 206
4.SP Max Scherzer, DET 206

Strikeouts NL
1.SP Stephen Strasburg, WSH 285
2.SP Clayton Kershaw, LAD 259
3.SP Jose Fernandez, MIA 237
4.SP Gio Gonzalez, WSH 227
5.SP Justin Masterson, STL 215

Innings Pitched AL
1.SP Matt Cain, BAL 229.1
2.SP Jon Lester, OAK 228
3.SP Jered Weaver, LAA 223.2
4.SP Masahiro Tanaka, NYY 222.2
5.SP Anibal Sanchez, DET 221.2

Innings Pitched NL
1.SP Clayton Kershaw, LAD 239.1
2.SP Daniel Hudson, ARI 226.2
3.SP Johnny Cueto, CIN 225
4.SP Kris Medlen, ATL 222
5.SP Jordan Zimmerman, WSH 220.2

AL MVP
CF Mike Trout, LAA .332 40 HR 126 RBI
2.1B Edwin Encarnacion, TOR .311 41 HR 120 RBI
3.1B Miguel Cabrera .312 45 HR 100 RBI

NL MVP
SP Clayton Kershaw, LAD 21-7 2.03 259 K
2.1B Paul Goldschmidt, ARI .312 41 HR 110 RBI
3.SP Stephen Strasburg, WSH 16-10 3.64 285 K

AL CY Young
SP Masahiro Tanaka, NYY 18-4 2.99 141 K
2.SP AJ Griffin, OAK 16-5 3.77 155 K
3.SP Jon Lester, OAK 16-8 3.20 203 K

NL CY Young
SP Clayton Kershaw, LAD 21-7 2.03 259 K
2.SP Johnny Cueto, CIN 19-6 2.88 148 K
3.SP Jordan Zimmerman, WSH 15-6 2.61 189 K

AL Batting Title
CF Mike Trout, LAA .332 40 HR 126 RBI
2.1B Victor Martinez, DET .315 21 HR 86 RBI
3.RF Wil Myers, TB .313 27 HR 98 RBI

NL Batting Title
3B Matt Carpenter, STL .344 23 HR 84 RBI
2.1B Paul Goldschmidt, ARI .312 41 HR 110 RBI
3.1B Freddie Freeman, ATL .306 27 HR 79 RBI

Delivery Man of the Year
CP Huston Street, LAA 52 SV 2.98
2.CP Craig Kimbrel, ATL 51 SV 1.43
3.CP LaTroy Hawkins, COL 49 SV 1.71

ROY AL
SP Masahiro Tanaka, NYY 18-4 2.99 141 K
2.SP James Paxton, DET 11-7 3.14 164 K
3.1B Jose Abreu, CWS .241 17 HR 58 RBI

ROY NL
LF Oscar Taveras, STL .284 27 HR 63 RBI
2.CF Billy Hamilton, CIN .233 10 HR 44 RBI
3.SP Kevin Gausman, SF 12-14 3.95 154 K (had a major turn around with SF)

Playoffs Summary

Spoiler

Wild Card Round
Atlanta Braves (Kris Medlen 16-9) @ Los Angeles Dodgers (Clayton Kershaw 21-7)
New York Yankees @ Oakland A's (Jon Lester 16-8)

ALDS
Cleveland Indians (Rotation: Salazar 8-8, Kluber 10-11, Tomlin 10-12) @ Los Angeles Angels (Rotation: Weaver 14-9, Wilson 17-7, Skaggs 15-10, Richards 10-10)
Oakland A's @ Toronto Blue Jays (Rotation: Hutchinson 11-8, McGowan 6-5, Morrow 12-11)

NLDS
Washington Nationals (Rotation: Strasburg 16-10, Zimmerman 15-6, Gio 14-6, Fister 12-12) @ San Diego Padres (Rotaion: Kennedy 12-10, Johnson 13-8, Peavy 9-12, Cashner 8-7)
?????? @ St. Louis Cardinals (Rotation: Wainwright 12-8, Wacha 13-5, Masterson 9-7, Lackey 9-2, Miller 15-9)

2B Derek Jeter 0-4
1B Martin Prado 0-4 R K
DH Giancarlo Stanton 1-4 HR 2 RBI R
SS Javier Baez 2-3 HR RBI R BB K
3B A-Rod 0-4 2 K
LF Dustin Ackley 0-4 K
CF Carl Crawford 0-4 K
RF Andre Ethier 1-4 K
C Francisco Cervelli 0-2 BB

SP Ivan Nova 4 IP 4 H 3 R 3 ER 3 BB 3 K 6.75
SP Chase Whitley (L 0-1) 3 IP 3 H 2 R 2 ER 1 BB 3 K 6.00
RP Wesley Wright .1 IP 1 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 0.00
RP Andrew Bailey .2IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 0 K 0.00

Oakland A's
DH Craig Gentry 0-4 K
CF Coco Crisp 1-4 K
3B Josh Donaldson 1-4 K
PR - LF Sam Fuld 0-0 R
1B Brandon Moss 1-3 2B RBI 2 R BB K
2B Chase Utley 1-2 R 2 BB
C John Jaso 0-3 R BB
RF Josh Reddick 1-3 2 RBI
SS Jed Lowrie 1-4 RBI 3 K E
LF Jonny Gomes 2-4 RBI K

SP Jon Lester 4.2 IP 2 H 3 R 2 ER 1 BB 2 K 3.85 (left injured)
SP Jeff Samardzija 2.1 IP 2 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 2 K 0.00
RP Eric O'Flaherty (W 1-0) 1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 1 K 0.00
CP Sean Doolittle (SV 1) 1 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 2 K 0.00

The playoffs
AL Wild Card game
New York Yankees 3 Oakland A's 5
WP Eric O'Flaherty (1-0) LP Chase Whitley (0-1) SV Sean Doolittle (1)
Lester gave up 3 in the 1st from back to back HR from Stanton & Baez. Oakland tied it up int he 4th as Nova was knocked out of the game. Oakland got 2 in the 8th to seal the win.

NL Wild Card game
Atlanta Braves 1 Los Angeles Dodgers 3
WP Clayton Kershaw (1-0) LP Kris Medlen (0-1) SV Kenley Jansen (1)
Kershaw gave up 2 H in 7.2 innings. Automatic.

ALDS
Cleveland Indians (80-82) vs. Los Angeles Angels (93-69)

Game 1 Cleveland Indians 3 Los Angeles Angels 6
WP Danny Salazar (1-0) LP Jered Weaver (0-1)
Weaver got knocked out in the 5th, Salazar went 7 striking out 8.

Game 2 Cleveland Indians 2 Los Angeles Angels 3
WP CJ Wilson (1-0) LP Josh Tomlin (0-1) SV Huston Street (1)
2 runs in the 6th gave the Angels the win.

Game 3 Los Angeles Angels 14 Cleveland Indians 9
WP Joe Thatcher (1-0) LP Scott Atchinson (0-1)
5-5 game until the 7th when both teams scored 4 to make it 9-9. Angels added 5 in the 8th to take the game.

Game 4 Los Angeles Angels 10 Cleveland Indians 1
WP Hiroki Kuroda (1-0) LP Carlos Carrasco (0-1)
Hiroki goes 9 to take the Angels into the ALCS.

Oakland A's (89-73) @ Toronto Blue Jays (93-69)

Game 1 Oakland A's 4 Toronto Blue Jays 2
WP Jon Lester (1-0) LP Sergio Santos (0-1)
Buehrle left with a 2-1 lead, Oakland scored in the 6th, 7th and 9th.

Game 2 Oakland A's 9 Toronto Blue Jays 0
WP Sonny Gray (1-0) LP Drew Hutchinson (0-1)
Gray went 9 striking out 7, while Hutchinson went 4 giving up 6 ER.

Game 3 Toronto Blue Jays 2 Oakland A's 4
WP AJ Griffin (1-0) LP Brendan Morrow (0-1) SV Sean Doolittle (3)
O'Flaherty, Cook & Doolittle shut the door for the Jays, easy sweep for the A's.

NLDS
Washington Nationals (94-68) @ San Diego Padres (99-63)

Game 1 Washington Nationals 6 Sand Diego Padres 7
WP Ian Kennedy (1-0) LP Stephen Strasburg (0-1) SV Tim Stauffer (1)
Padres were up 7-4 entering the 9th, Nats scored twice

Game 2 Washington Nationals 6 San Diego Padres 5
WP Drew Storen (1-0) LP Nick Vincent (0-1) SV Soriano (1)
This one went to extras, Nats won it in the 11th.

Game 3 San Diego Padres 3 Washington Nationals 5
WP Craig Stammen (1-0) LP Joaquin Benoit (0-1) SV Soriano (2)
Nats were up 5-2 going into the 9th, Padres could only score once in the 9th.

Game 4 San Diego Padres 3 Washington Nationals 1
WP Andrew Cashner (1-0) LP Doug Fister (0-1)
Cashner threw a complete game, Padres scored all their runs in the 5th.

Game 5 Washington Nationals 3 San Diego Padres 4
WP Ian Kennedy (2-0) LP Stephen Strasburg (0-2) SV Troy Patton (1)
Strasburg finished the playoffs with a 7.20 ERA. Kennedy struck out 10 in 8 innings.

Los Angeles Dodgers (91-71) @ St. Louis Cardinals (100-62)

Game 1 Los Angeles Dodgers 2 St. Louis Cardinals 0
WP Clayton Kershaw (2-0) LP Adam Wainwright (0-1)
Kershaw went 9, striking out 10. Mr. Automatic.

Game 2 Los Angeles Dodgers 1 St. Louis Cardinals 6
WP Michael Wacha (1-0) LP Zack Greinke (0-1)
Wacha goes 9 as well, struck out 7.

Game 3 St. Louis Cardinals 1 Los Angeles Dodgers 6
WP Hyun-Jin Ryu (1-0) LP Shelby Miller (0-1)
Ryu went 9 as well, struck out 9. Miller only lasted 4 innings.

Game 4 St. Louis Cardinals 2 Los Angeles Dodgers 4
WP Clayton Kershaw (3-0) LP Adam Wainwright (0-2) SV Kenley Jansen (2)
Only went 8 this time around, not too bad eh.

NLCS
Los Angeles Dodgers (91-71) @ San Diego Padres (99-63)

Game 1 Los Angeles Dodgers 7 San Diego Padres 4
WP Zack Greinke (1-1) LP Joaquin Benoit (0-2) SV Kenley Jansen (3)
Josh Johnson gave up 4 in 5 innings, Benoit gave up 3 in his inning of relief.

Game 2 Los Angeles Dodgers 1 San Diego Padres 4
WP Tim Stauffer (1-0) LP JP Howell (0-1) SV Alex Torres (1)
A run in the 7th and 2 in the 8th gave the Padres the game.

Game 3 San Diego Padres 4 Los Angeles Dodgers 3
WP Tim Stauffer (2-0) LP Paco Rodriguez (0-1) SV Alex Torres (2)
Benoit came in the 8th to give up the 3-1 lead as the Dodgers tied it at 3. Padres saved him as they scored 1 in the 9th.

Game 4 San Diego Padres 8 Los Angeles Dodgers 14
WP Clayton Kershaw (4-0) LP Ian Kennedy (2-1)
Kennedy got hit hard giving up 5 ER (8 R) in 2.1 innings. Kershaw's defense let him down as he gave up 2 ER (7 R) in 5 innings pitched.

Game 5 San Diego Padres 2 Los Angeles Dodgers 3
WP Chris Perez (1-0) LP Nick Vincent (0-2) SV Kenley Jansen
The bullpen once again lets the Padres down giving up a 2-1 lead in the 8th.

Game 6 Los Angeles Dodgers 2 San Diego Padres 3
WP Joaquin Benoit (1-2) LP Paco Rodriguez (0-2) SV Torres (3)
This time around it was the Dodgers bullpen that gave up the 2-1 lead in the 8th. 6 outs away from advancing and they blew it.

Game 7 Los Angeles Dodgers 1 San Diego Padres 2
WP Tim Stauffer (3-0) LP Clayton Kershaw (4-1) SV Alex Torres (4)
Dodgers took an early 1-0 lead in the first, that was all the run support Kershaw would get. He gave up a run in the 6th & 7th to take the loss. Padres continue their shock run.

ALCS Oakland won 4-2, pressed advance to offseason instead of box score accidentally

World Series
San Diego Padres (99-63) @ Oakland A's (89-73)

Game 1 San Diego Padres 2 Oakland A's 4
WP Sean Doolittle (1-0) LP Joaquin Benoit (1-3)
Doolittle blew the save in the 9th as the Padres tied it at 2, only to be rescued by a Jed Lowrie 9th inning 2 run walk-off HR.

Game 2 San Diego Padres 7 Oakland A's 9
WP Ryan Cook (1-0) LP Eric Stults (0-1)
Torres blew the save in the 9th as the A's tied it up at 6-6. Padres scored in the 11th to take the 7-6 lead only to blow it in the bottom of the inning as Chase Utley hit a 3 run walk-off HR.

Game 3 Oakland A's 4 San Diego Padres 3
WP AJ Griffin (3-0) LP Jake Peavy (0-1)
Griffin took a 4-1 lead into the 9th, after allowing a run Doolittle was brought in to close the game. He gave up 1 ER as the Padres fell short of a comeback.

Game 4 Oakland A's 2 San Diego Padres 3
WP Joaquin Benoit (2-3) LP Luke Gregerson (0-1)
Cashner went for the complete game shutout as the Padres were up 2-0 in the 9th, he allowed 2 runs to let Oakland tie it back up. After it seemed that the A's were destined to win it in extras and sweep the Padres, Maybin came up with a walk-off HR in the 10th.

Game 5 Oakland A's 1 San Diego Padres 5
WP Ian Kennedy (3-1) LP Jon Lester (2-1)
Ian Kennedy pitched a complete game to give some hope to San Diego, striking out 9.

Game 6 San Diego Padres 3 Oakland A's 5
WP Sonny Gray (3-0) LP Jake Peavy (0-2) SV Sean Doolittle (6)
Peavy got hit hard in 5 innings of work, Padres felt short of a comeback as they could only muster 1 run after the 7th. The A's are the champions, Billy's gamble pays off.

World Series MVP - SS Jed Lowrie .333 HR 4 RBI

Notable Retired Players
CF Franklin Gutierrez, NYY - Poor FA Market
LF Raul Ibanez, NYY - Age
SS Derek Jeter, NYY - Age
1B Jason Giambi, CLE - Age
RP Brett Tomko, KC - Age
SP Hiroki Kuroda, LAA - Age
SS John McDonald, LAA - Age
RF Ichiro, SEA - Age
RP Jamey Wright, SEA - Age
RF Bobby Abreu, NYM - Age
CP LaTroy Hawkins, COL - Age

Offseason review coming soon.