OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

[KSUowls]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Debating on trying to find a Online Franchise, Ive never been a online player with anything, but doing it with OOTP might actually be fun, because it has nothing to do with your stick skills, like a console game. With OOTP, its about who makes the best in game decisions, and who does the best in building and sustaining its organization. I cant decide, if I want to do that or not. I know the only way I would consider it, is if I was the Reds, as I wouldnt want to be any other team.

I've never done OOTP online game, but I used to play in Baseball Mogul online franchises (though robust in its own right it was no where near as in depth as OOTP). It was a lot of fun, but it was also a lot of work. Basically how it would work was ever 2-3 days the league commissioner would Sim 2 weeks of the game and then put that save file in a drop box for all of the manager's in the league to download. They would set lineups, manage the farm system, sign free agents, trade with other player managers, etc.. Not sure if that's exactly what you're looking for, but if it does interest you I would recommend trying it out. Just a warning that it's easy to lose hours of your day sorting through your team to perfect the lineup, sorting through rosters of other teams, and then negotiating trades with those team's managers.

[KBLover]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

I've never done OOTP online game, but I used to play in Baseball Mogul online franchises (though robust in its own right it was no where near as in depth as OOTP). It was a lot of fun, but it was also a lot of work. Basically how it would work was ever 2-3 days the league commissioner would Sim 2 weeks of the game and then put that save file in a drop box for all of the manager's in the league to download. They would set lineups, manage the farm system, sign free agents, trade with other player managers, etc.. Not sure if that's exactly what you're looking for, but if it does interest you I would recommend trying it out. Just a warning that it's easy to lose hours of your day sorting through your team to perfect the lineup, sorting through rosters of other teams, and then negotiating trades with those team's managers.

Oh man, Baseball Mogul - I played that one year. Best thing I liked about it was the native support for female players. At the time it seemed superfluous, but it sure would be nice if I could create Yoshida and Mayeux as actual females in OOTP.

Anyway, you're right about being a commissioner, though you can cut down on that by requiring OOTP (so they can export their own stuff, including contract stuff and drafts) and whatever happens to their teams happens. That would leave trades you would have to manually process and of course your own team if you own one.

Last time I commished, I simmed 4 days every irl day.

[MvPeterson2828]

OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Looking to start a rebuild. What do you guys recommend for teams to rebuild?? I usually do my Twins but not this year. I hear Padres are a good rebuild but not sure 100%. I’m Not the most knowledgeable baseball guy. Still learning but I know basic stuff. Thanks guys![emoji4]


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

[KBLover]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

2019-2020 Offseason Begins

World Series

2019's Fall Classic saw a new champion crowned as the Seattle Mariners won it all over the Arizona Diamondback 4 games to 2.

In contrast to the Cubs, who stomped their way through the 2018 playoffs, the Mariners had to fight tooth-and-nail to get to the final prize.

Each the ALDS and ALCS both went to the final game and the World Series took six games. Had the Series gone to seven, the Mariners would have taken every series to the maximum distance.

Unfortunately for Ichiro, the win comes one year too late as he retired last season.


Retirements

P A.J. Ramos (White Sox) retired after suffering a serious set back while trying to rehab from a shoulder injury.

P Addison Reed (Twins) retired due to injury during rehab. He was already contemplating leaving the game after tearing his rotator cuff and he confirmed the decision after rehab didn't go smoothly.

Clubhouse Vandalized

The Reds reported that their clubhouse was vandalized after firing their manager.

"We wanted to let the league know to stay away from this person. His temper is not just rumor, as you can see, " a Reds official spoke.

No word on whether or not charges will be filed against the manager.


Arbitration

The Marlins have withdrawn arbitration from Jose Urena, Jumbo Diaz, and Miguel Rojas and will release them to free agency.

The Marlins tendered offers to Tyler Glasnow, Nick Wittgren, J.T. Realmuto, Tomas Teliz, Justin Bour, and Derek Dietrich.


Staff Hires

The Marlins continue to invest in player development on and off the team facilities. To this end, they brought in Chili Davis to be hitting coach at the major league level. He worked the past two season with the Cubs, both of those seasons seeing the postseason.

"Chili was a capable big league hitter and has shown he can teach the art of hitting to other major leaguers. We have a young corps of hitters and we think they could make gains under Chili's mentorship, " the Marlins general manager commented.

Marlins Rookies Snubbed, Frustrated

Adversity is the test of any man's character, and the hot quartet of Marlins rookie hitters that rejuvenated hopes in Miami are facing one of those tests now.

Royce Lewis, Isan Diaz, Jose Siri, and Monte Harrison were all passed over for every award, and they each had legitimate claims.

Royce Lewis being passed up for shortstop Sliver Slugger was especially frustrating.

"I don't know what they want. I mean, I was looking at this WAR thing I've been hearing about and hearing folks say how great mine is doing...and yet I don't get recognized? I would be lying if I didn't say it was frustrating, " Lewis commented.

"The Sliver Slugger and Rookie of the Year Awards were the ones they were most looking forward to and thought they could lay claim to, but it didn't work out that way. We've been talking to them, trying to help them channel these frustrations positively, " manager Don Mattingly commented, "I told them about Vladimir Guerrero and how he was never really mentioned because of where he played - then people looked up and were like 'he's a fearsome hitter, who is this guy?' It's part of building something in a place where you're considered the armpit of baseball."

Free Agents Hit the Market
Japanese Star Highlights International Entries

Hiroshi Koga. He is this year's marquee international free agent. He played mostly shortstop in Japan and scouts as an all-around hitter that is very solid in every aspect at the plate.

"He can hit for average, take a walk, put the bat on the ball, and has some home run potential. It's hard to find a consistent weakness, " head scout Stan Meek commented.

The Marlins would love to pick him up. He's already been look at as the team's potential answer to first base, which that and second base are probably the only legitimate options from a lineup standpoint.

Other international top talents include LF Juan Alicea, a slugger from Nicaragua, and Juan Urcullu, a fearsome southpaw from Venezula.

As far as domestic free agent talent goes, there's no shortage of star power there either.

• 1B Paul Goldschmidt
• SP Yu Darvish
• SP Chris Sale
• CL Arodys Viscaino
• 3B Josh Donaldson
• RF Yasiel Puig
• SP Stephen Strasburg (elbow, 4 months)
• RP Andrew Miller (elbow, 7 weeks)
• SP Gerritt Cole

Among several other solid players that should contribute where ever they sign.



It will be interesting to see if the Marlins try to make any moves. While still not flush with resources, they are at the point where they can start dreaming of the playoffs. Perhaps one of these talents could get them there.


A signing could also help further energize the fan base.

[KBLover]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Looking to start a rebuild. What do you guys recommend for teams to rebuild?? I usually do my Twins but not this year. I hear Padres are a good rebuild but not sure 100%. I’m Not the most knowledgeable baseball guy. Still learning but I know basic stuff. Thanks guys![emoji4]


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

White Sox maybe? You'll have Moancada to build around if nothing else. Giolitto and Jimenez aren't bad prospects either. Not "sure things" like Moancada but there's potential in them.

Plus, you don't see a lot of White Sox franchises around.

[N51_rob]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Looking to start a rebuild. What do you guys recommend for teams to rebuild?? I usually do my Twins but not this year. I hear Padres are a good rebuild but not sure 100%. I’m Not the most knowledgeable baseball guy. Still learning but I know basic stuff. Thanks guys![emoji4]


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

Miami is a sure fire rebuild for sure. Depending on what you do the Orioles are in line for a rebuild. Tampa Bay is/was selling off assets like crazy. White Sox, Tigers, Royals, Pirates. There are some teams out there.

[jvalverde88]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

I think I broke the game.

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

The month of April has come and gone and the expansion Carolina Knights find themselves at 10-21 and in a dog fight for last place in the National League East division. The other contenders for said honor? The Marlins and the Phillies.



PRESS RELEASE

Spoiler

The Carolina Knights got off to a decent start in their inaugural season before things started to come unglued. Carolina won its first game in franchise history on March 29th, 2018 in front of 35,772 fans at BB&T Ballpark in Charlotte, NC. In a tense 2-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, expansion draft #1 overall pick Collin McHugh was quality, going 7 IP while scattering 6 hits and striking out 7. McHugh required 111 pitches, 73 of which were strikes. Jett Bandy's 2nd inning RBI single and Brett Gardner's 6th inning oppo solo HR provided the winning margin. Carlos Martinez was the hard-luck loser for STL--he K'd 12 in 6 innings of work. St. Louis' lone run came on Yadier Molina's RBI blooper in the 4th inning to score Jose Martinez from 2nd base.

Carolina would drop 2 of 3 to St. Louis, lose 2 of 3 at Wrigley Field, and then sweep the Braves. At this point, a 5-5 record seemed pretty good. One interesting game during this stretch was the 13-3 romp over the Cubs at Wrigley Field on April 2nd. The Knights sent 13 men to the plate against Tyler Chatwood and scored eight 1st inning runs. Jett Bandy homered twice (including a 1st inning Grand Slam) and drove in 6. This game also featured a brief snow delay.

But, things soon started to unravel with Carolina really committing to playing expansion-quality baseball. The Knights would go 2-10 over their next 12 games to sit at 7-15 on April 19th after getting swept by the Dodgers and Nationals and dropping series to the Pirates and Giants. In fact, the early April sweep of Atlanta is still the only series win so far this season. The Knights finished April losing 2 of 3 to each of Philly, Miami, and Arizona and are in the process of dropping a series against the Rockies as the calendar turns to May. And not just losses, but some pretty severe blowouts.

A typical game in this stretch was the 10-2 loss on April 11th against the Dodgers. This game featured Chase Utley getting hurt running the bases (day-to-day), the Dodgers going back-to-back-to-back off of beleaguered lefty Mike Montgomery, and Jimmie Sherfy beaning Justin Turner to clear both benches. Sherfy got 8 games (and a demotion to AAA, Michael Lorenzen takes his spot) while Turner was suspended for 4 games. And, of course, Utley's replacement at 2B in LA, Brett Lawrie, homered twice off Carolina in this game to avenge the selection of Utley in the expansion draft.

And of course there was the 9-2 loss on April 13th. Carolina was beating Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers 2-0 entering the 7th inning when Trevor Williams ran out of gas and the bullpen starting walking in runs.

What's wrong with Carolina's team? Well, they actually have a great team. Except for batting and pitching.

The Knights rank second-to-last in the National League in runs scored (100), batting average (.229), and OBP (.292). They are dead last in home runs (19). Team payroll leader Brett Gardner has actually done a great job for Carolina as one of the bright spots on the team. The former Yankee outfielder has posted 1.1 WAR and a line of .333/.421/.505 for a 150 OPS+. Unfortunately his teammates haven't followed suit. Disturbing starts to the season from both Steven Souza Jr. and Mitch Moreland--these two were supposed to provide serviceable options in the middle of the batting order. Well, Souza is batting .223/.279/.320 with 2 HR and 10 RBI. Moreland is at .222/.300/.309 with 1 HR and 4 RBI. So, not getting any production whatsoever here. And it stinks. The Knights are expected to start shopping Moreland aggressively because they have no desire to pay him $6.5MM next season.

Pitching-wise, things haven't been too much better. Carolina has allowed 160 runs in 31 games (13th in NL). The team ranks 11th in the NL in starting pitcher ERA (4.54) and 13th in bullpen ERA (5.36). The latter bullpen mark is distressing considering the preseason assessment of this team identified the bullpen as a potential strength. Aside from winning on Opening Day, Collin McHugh has been a regrettable #1 expansion draft selection so far. McHugh is 1-5 with a 5.98 ERA. Mike Montgomery takes the cake with worst April, however. Monty has a 10.13 ERA after giving up 23 hits, 14 BBs, and 3 HR in just 13.1 IP of relief. That's a nightmarish 2.77 WHIP, 2.0 HR/9, and 9.4 BB/9. Matt Andriese and Nathan Karns have also struggled in the starting rotation.

Deserving special mention on the pitching staff is Drew Pomeranz. Pomeranz has been a terminator. In his first 6 starts, he is 3-1 with an 0.94 ERA and 34:9 K:BB ratio in 38.1 IP. He's allowed a minuscule 23 hits and a single, solitary home run. 1.4 WAR in April? Yes, please.

WHEELING AND DEALING

Spoiler

So naturally, GM/manager Bobby Cox did what anyone would do with a 10-21 expansion team and started to cut costs and plan for the future. He wasted zero time in capitalizing on Pomeranz's incredible start by trading Drew Pomeranz to Houston for prospects 1B A.J. Reed and 2B Ryne Birk. Now, Pomeranz is making $8.5MM this season, but was asking for a 5-year $19MM/yr extension which Cox knew they team would not meet.

Reed is a 24-year-old former top prospect slugger who is a patient hitter, but slow and strikeout prone. Importantly, Reed has 2 option years left and will not be arbitration-eligible for some time. Reed will play at AAA Providence, but expect an aggressive call up if Carolina finds a taker for Mitch Moreland.

Birk was more of a toss in with Bobby Cox not quite deeming Reed full value for Pomeranz. Birk is a 23 years old, bats left-handed, has yet to see MLB action, and is your consummate MLB-average prospect across the board. 50's in pretty much every tool save for being a stronger defender at 2B.

Interestingly, the Astros' need for a starter developed quite suddenly. The first two picks of the MLB expansion draft were Collin McHugh (CAR) and Charlie Morton (MON). Then Gerrit Cole went down for 4 months with a torn back muscle. That's how a team goes from maybe having the best rotation in baseball to plugging in Brad Peacock and Francis Martes.

Spoiler

Around the same time, Bobby Cox dealt scuffling but somewhat value lefty swing man Mike Montgomery. Monty takes his 10.13 ERA to the Bronx. In return the Yankees were willing to give up righty reliever Jonathan Holder. The impetus for this deal for Carolina was: (1) Monty clearly needed a change of scenery, had no MiLB options left and the team wanted to plug lefty specialist Jose Alvarado into the bullpen to stop the bleeding; (2) Holder is just 24-years-old with option years and not yet arbitration eligible; (3) Holder is good enough to earn a spot in the MLB bullpen right now, but will bide his time closing games at AAA until there is an opening with the parent club.

Spoiler

[KBLover]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Royce Lewis Among Marlins Honored in Team Ceremony
Lewis, Park, Harrison, and Siri Declared Faces of the Franchise

Fan polls remain difficult to make sense of, and this is one reason why.

Several Marlins players saw a big boost in their popularity with the fans. Players that were largely unknown are now seen positively by many of the fans. Perhaps it's the lingering effect of the charity, called the Lewis-Marlins Foundation (I made that up), or perhaps it's the fans realizing how impacting these players were.

For whatever the reason, Royce Lewis, Se-woong Park, Monte Harrison, and Jose Siri were the four players that first earned "Extremely Favorable" consensus ratings from the fans. As such, they were honored as "Faces of the Franchise." (also made up)

"When we were called to have a special meeting with skip and the brass in the front office, I was like 'Wonder what up? Are we getting traded or something?' I didn't know what to think, " Jose Siri commented.

The four players had their pictures taken together, holding a Marlins banner between them. The pictures were distributed in color in select issues of a local sports magazine as well as the local Miami newspapers. Fans could also enter to win one on the Marlins website.

The inconsistent part of all this is that the fans still dislike the team as a whole.

"Fan interest peaked when we named the charity but then it's been steadily dropping despite our improved play. At this point, I just think they don't like baseball here. Maybe we should move... " a team official commented.

Wouldn't be the first time the question of whether or not Miami fans will sustain a team has come up.

Trout Extended in Monster Deal

The Angels went all-out in getting the face of their franchise signed. The final damage came out to $336 million over the span of 8 years. Trout's agent confirmed a player opt out clause after the fourth season.

Also receiving a monster extension was Nolan Arenado of the Rockies. His contract was structured similarly, around $42 million per year for 7 years with an opt out possible after the fourth year.

"Suddenly, that number he [Royce Lewis] gave us wasn't so large, " one official commented, referencing the brief feeler talks between the two sides last year.

Marlins Left Out Again

The Marlins did indeed go after some free agents, but again came away empty handed for the marquee or known players.

The Hiroshi Koga efforts seemed like a possibility as the Marlins were eager negotiators. However, that call came crashing down when the Braves blew everyone out of the water with a $29 million per year bombshell of an offer. No way that Koga was going to turn down a deal like that, and it left all other interested parties shaking their heads.

Meanwhile, the Marlins saw that Xander Bogaerts was going unnoticed. The team decided to make a play at him, offering him a notch over his asking price in hopes of luring him to play 2B, a new position for him. However, after what seemed to be amicable negotiations, Bogaerts broke off talks. A week or so later, he signed with the White Sox for less money.

With no desire to get into a shooting match over the likes of Chris Sale or the still-injured Stephen Strasburg or Andrew Miller (who suffered a setback to that injury the day he was signed), the Marlins did what they did last year...look for interesting-but-raw minor league talent.

Notable among those is Richard Urena. Richard is noted for his humble attitude and his potential to be a utility fielder. Given the Marlins depth issues last year and the fact they ran a 13-man staff (something that might not happen this year, which will make the bullpen even more competitive in Spring Training), Richard's utility tendencies would be much welcomed if they developed.

It is expected that Richard will get an invite and probably a spot on the bench unless something significant happens. The contract he was offered included a call-up bonus, so both sides seem willing to make a promotion happen.

"We'll play him every where if he wants. That's what Spring Training is about...trying out guys and letting them show us what they can do, " Don Mattingly commented.

Tyler Jay Departs Via Rule 5 Draft

The Marlins didn't make a selection in the Rule 5 draft this year, but they did lose a player this year.

P Tyler Jay was selected by the White Sox in the second round.

Jay will likely spend the year on the DL, which makes the move a no-risk one in terms of on-the-field performance. Of course, that puts the risk on Jay's right shoulder and the 7 months between now and his prospective recovery.

Marlins Attendance to Climb Sharply?

The Marlins are noticing strong upticks in sales and projected overall attendance numbers increasing drastically.

Right now, if projections hold true, the team will increase from around 18,000 last year to 23,000 or so this year, a 25% increase.

The increase would be more than welcome in the Marlins front office, though it would cast yet an other confusing and contradictory piece of information on the behavior of Marlins fans.

[KSUowls]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

I'll have a more detailed write-up shortly but man...The Braves had an epic September collapse a few years ago before the rebuilding phase. Now we are going for October collapses.

Leading the NL East with 4 games to go
Magic number of 2

Lose the rubber match to Philly on 10/2. Magic number is still 2.
Going into final 3 game set against the mets
Leading the NL East over Washington by 3 games & the Mets by 3.5 games.

Mets Sweep me, end up with identical record to the Mets and Nats.

On a 4 game losing streak heading into a 1 game playoff with the Mets to decide the division winner.

Lose again.


End up as one of the 2 Wild Card teams along with Washington. Finally pull out a win in the 1 game Wild Card.

Then the team gets hot again.

Beat the Cubs in the NLDS 3-1
Win the NLCS over the Dodgers 4 games to 3
Finally lost to Cleveland in the WS in 6.

[KBLover]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Ohtani to Miami??
Angels Express Surprise Interest

"It's the Byron Buxton situation all over again, " K.L. commented, "Is it for real? Are they hoping to get overpaid? I mean, we probably have the prospects to do it, and we have a couple rotation spots to put him in, but...is it real??

This is how the preseason begins for the Marlins.

The Angels got a new GM last last season and perhaps this new blood isn't a big fan of Ohtani. It's also said he prefers hitting, but Ohtani is a two-way player. It doesn't make sense.

Though, Ohtani hasn't lived up to all the hype in his two seasons with the Angels. He's not been bad on the mound, registering a 3.54 ERA in his rookie season and a decent 4.26 ERA last season with the highlight being his absurdly low HR/9 rate of 0.5 HR/9.

At the plate, however, it has not gone well. In 2018, he posted a .218/.288/.356 line in 401 PA. Last season was no better, coming in at .214/.287/.331 in 422 PA.

Perhaps this is what's triggering the Angels to explore their options.

"Kevin Hooper [the new Angels GM] loves offense, so when Ohtani struggled at the plate, he's 'just a pitcher' to him and he's going to shop him probably looking for a good bat to come back in return, " one analyst spoke.

Reports have floated around that the Marlins could make this happen by including a couple of their young bats: Lewis Brinson and Thairo Estrada along with a pitching prospect - some think Bryan Hoeing would be offered up as the team has gone sour on him, or perhaps Tyler Glasnow after putting some good starts on tape for the Marlins could be interesting, showing he does still have what it takes to start.

It remains to be seen what, if anything, the Marlins will do. They made no move on Bryon Buxton, but this might be too intriguing. After all, they brought in Ichiro before. Perhaps trying to re-ignite the fans with another beloved Japanese star is not out of the question.

[KSUowls]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

2019 Season in Review:
The 2019 Braves were a team that took advantage of some big trades the last 2 seasons and promising young stars who have already begun to shine.

With a final regular season record of 88-75 the Braves finished 1st in the Wild Card and 1 game better than their pre-season projections.

End of Season and Playoff
It was a wild read the last week and a half of the regular season. The Braves seemed like a lock to win the NL East with 4 games to go needing a combination of just 2 wins or 2 losses by the Nats/Mets. Neither of these happened though as both the Nats and Mets won out and the Braves dropped their final 4. This forced a 1 game playoff to decide the NL East winner between the Bravees & Mets which the Braves also lost.

Things were headed in the entirely wrong direction as the team had to take a 5 game losing steak into a win or go home wild card scenario with the Washington Nationals. The Braves finally righted the ship though and won 7-3.

Off to the Divisional round to play the Cubs they were blown out in game 1 in Wrigley 12-5. After that though the team started rolling sweeping the next 3.

The NLCS started off very similar to the NLDS. The Braves dropped game 1 against LA, but then swept the next 3. With a 3-1 series lead and a chance to win it at home the Braves lost game 5 by a score 5-3. Both teams headed back to LA for the final 2 where the Braves struggled to get any offense going in game 6 losing 0-2. From a 3-1 series lead to a game 7 scenario on the road against the 100 win Dodgers, Atlanta won a dramatic game 7 by 1 run 6-5.

The Braves were off to the World Series for the first time since 1999. In what was becoming a habit for them, the team dropped game 1 against the Indians 2-6. Unfortunately there was no 3 game sweep to follow it up with this time around as the Indians also won game 2. With the series headed back to Atlanta the Braves did manage to win the next 2 at home before dropping game 5 to go down in the series 2-3.
Game 6 was a nail biter. Freddie Freeman put the Braves ahead in the first with a solo home run. They added 2 more in the second, and Michael Fulmer was cruising through the first 4 innings. Mid-way through 5 the Braves have a 3-0 lead and are just inching closer and closer to getting the game to the closer. In the 5th though things start to fall apart. Cleveland finally figures out Fulmer, knocking him out of the game and scoring 3 runs. They then add 1 in each of the next 2 innings, and that is your final score. Cleveland wins the game 3-5 and the 2019 world championship.



The Lineup

Spoiler

The offense was good in 2019. They didn't draw a lot of walks, and only a little better than middle of the pack in the NL in runs scored. They made opposing defenses work though. The offense finished first in batting average and hits, tied for 1st in fewest strikeouts, 3rd in slugging and 3rd in stolen bases.

Endar Inciate (CF) - Continues to be one of the better players in the league. He again hit near .300, had career highs in HR (16), SB (34), RBI (68). Final WAR (5.1)

Ronald Acuna (RF) - The newest member of the 30/30 club. 21 years old and in just his second year he hit 30 bombs, stole 31 bags, and finished with over 60 extra base hits. Final War (5.1)

Freddie Freeman (1B) - Once again the anchor in this lineup. He climbed back up to a .312 average after a bit of a down year in 2018. He was the 4th most walked player in the NL which hurt some of his offensive production, but he still managed 30 home runs, Full slash line .312/.429/.567. Final WAR (6.1)

Marcell Ozuna (LF) - The key acquisition this past off-season was a major force in the lineup. His 48 doubles led the NL, and his 121 RBI's led the Braves offense. Final WAR (3.8)

Ozzie Albies (SS) - Ozzie kept moving his way up the lineup as he performed all year. He finished the season with a .304, and he showed a surprising amount of pop for a guy his size. His 18 steals were a bit of a disappointment. He will need to work on improving his efficiency there. Final WAR (4.1)

Brian McCann (C) - McCann took a step back in 2019 offensively in every major category. He still finished as an above replacement level catcher, and his 15 Home Runs in 105 games added some pop towards the bottom of the lineup. Final War (0.9)

Johan Carmago (3B) - Carmago took over at 3B after original starter Austin Riley suffered an injury. He was far from dominant, but he played well enough to hold onto his spot even after Austin recovered from injury. Still, his .256/.294/.388 was a huge step back from his surprising 2018. Final War (0.9)

Dansby Swanson (2B) - Dansby enjoyed his best full season as a professional. He hit .266/.345/.416 with 15 HR and 15 SB. He also seems to have really found a home at 2B as he put together by far his best defensive performance finishing as a plus defender at the position. Final WAR (3.1)

The Rotation
The rotation surprised that Atlanta left Spring Training in Florida with looked very different than the one we ended with. Despite the patchwork rotation, the starters finished with the 6th best ERA in the NL

Spoiler

Michael Fulmer - Strong out of the gate, but lacked some consistency throughout the season. He was perhaps a bit unlucky as he was the only starter whose BABIP was over .300. He still managed to go 13-10 with a 4.18 ERA.

Kyle Wright - He didn't start the year with the big league team, and he really didn't perform great in AAA (5+ ERA) before being called back up. When he made it back to the big league team he made sure they couldn't send him back to Gwinnett though finishing with a team best (among starters) 3.75 ERA.

Kolby Allard - Quickly got a call up after the season started to take the #5 spot in the rotation. He was one of the more consistent performers over 169 innings finishing with a 3.99 ERA.

Mike Soroka - Much like Kyle Wright, Soroka starter the year in Gwinnett and was eventually called up to fill a spot. Also much like Wright, he wasn't very good in AAA. His 4.56 ERA over 12 big league starts wasn't great, but it was good enough.

Julio Teheran - Julio missed a month and a half of the season with a strained right shoulder. When he was out there he was a fairly consistent pitcher for the team though with a 4.02 ERA.

Bullpen
The 'pen was a major strength of this team in 2019. Despite suffering some injuries and getting taxed due to the starters not going deep into games (no starter had more than 170 innings) the 3.92 that the bullpen shared was good for 5th in th

Spoiler

e NL. The backend guys really held things down.

Trevor Rosenthal - The taditional setup man was credited with 19 holds throughout the season. April - August his ERA was in the low 2's, but it did jump to just north of 3 during the near Sept/Oct collapse.

AJ Minter - An all-star selection who was a perfect 28 out of 28 in save opportunities through August 8 dating back to September the prior year. He did fall apart toward the end of the season though like some others in the pen.

End of Season Awards

Spoiler

Gold Gloves
2B Dansby Swanson - Not only did Swanson improve things with the bat, but he was an asset defensively

RF Ronald Acuna - Is there anything this kid can't do? After being a strong contender for the RF GG as a rookie in limited action (in RF), Acuna takes home the prize is in first full season at the position.

Silver Slugger
RF Ronald Acuna - Hopefully this kid bought a house with a big trophy room. The awards are just going to keep growing.

Off-season Preview
It remains to be seen if the trend of major acquisitions the last 2 off-seasons will continue. The Braves are coming off of a world series performance with the core intact. Still there is always room to improve. Look for the team to make decisions in the following areas:

3B - While this was a relative weakness on the team in 2019 there is reason to believe that the team could take a wait and see approach. Prospect Austin Riley won't turn 23 until the start of next season so it is too soon to give up on him. There are also some internal options as well in Rio Ruiz and Travis Demeritte. Ruiz blasted 20 home runs in AAA in 119 games, and was a respectable .260 at the plate. Travis crushed AAA pitching in 48 games, but he also struggled during the first half of the season spent in AA. Whether it's Riley, Ruiz or Demeritte there is plenty of upside if the Braves want to plug them in and see what happens.

C - Brian McCann is a free agent and while Matt Wieters is signed through 2020 he didn't show much to give the team confidence in having him as th full time starter in 2020. The team could look to bring back McCann or another veteran in free agency to platoon with Wieters. There is also some thinking that they could give 24 year old Brett Cumberland another shot. The ladder option seems unlikely given the way he was overmatched against MLB pitching and still struggled even after being sent back to AAA.

SP - Despite the rotation performing better than expected there is plenty of reason to believe target some good arms this off-season. The best performer over the last 2 seasons for the team has been Michael Fulmer, but he hasn't quite looked like the ace they wanted him to be. While there is still reason to believe in some of the young arms the team may not want to take that chance and lose the window they have with one of the better offenses in the league.

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

KSU, looks like all the stars aligned for you last year. Career years from a lot of players and not really any awful ones. Didn't win the WS but I wouldn't expect that team to get that close, on paper.

[Perfect Zero]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Just finished my first month with the Rangers, and I must say I am surprised at how well this team is doing. The AL West is tearing itself up right now, and while I was in first for most of the month, I am now in third ahead of the hapless Athletics (who just had another piece of bad news with the retirement of Branden Phillips) and the slow starting Astros. Here are the standings so far:

Spoiler

Funny thing about Houston; so far I am 5-2 against them this year. I hope I can keep it up, but I'm not so sure now that Elvis Andrus has a strained oblique and Rougned Odor has a fractured thumb from an errant pitch from Justin Verlander (who may have been knocked out if that happened in real life).

I started the season with Willie Calhoun in Left Field, and he has been a very good player, being awarded the American League Rookie of the Month for April. IRL, I was wanting Calhoun to start in the big leagues right away, but apparently he has defensive issues. I'm sure once he hits the magic number in service time, he will be in Arlington. In my OOTP world however, he will enjoy the honor:

Spoiler

I don't know if you can see it in my messages, but I also signed a three year extension with RHP Jake Diekman for 3 years/$7m, with a vesting option for $2.4m if he hits 125 IP in the second year. I think this is a fair deal, and to be honest I really like Diekman in real life considering we both have gut issues. He will be 35 by the time this contract is up, but I think I can put a good team on the field by the end of it.

For no real reason, here is a look at the American League leaderboards. Joe Mauer was AL Player of the Month, and as you can see, the Twins are going to be a hard team to beat if this keeps up.

Spoiler

EDIT: Also, Jake Marisnick went on the DL. At first I thought "well, that only makes my job slightly easier. That was until I read the report:

Spoiler

Apparently, he is going to try and correct his vision by undergoing a procedure that has worked on "rats, several pigs, and most recently a Rhesus Monkey." I'm not one to tell my rivals what to do, but I would tell Jake to think twice before heading to Seoul to get this done...

[KSUowls]

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

KSU, looks like all the stars aligned for you last year. Career years from a lot of players and not really any awful ones. Didn't win the WS but I wouldn't expect that team to get that close, on paper.

Yeah. I was pretty confident in the lineup with guys like Acuna, Freddie & Ozuna. I was also pretty confident in the bullpen. Minter was good as a rookie closing games out, I added Rosenthal to the backend, and I still had guys like Mauricio Cabrera and Archie Bradley (via trade). The bullpen was definitely huge for me. My starters probably wouldn't have performed as well if they had to go deeper into games.

It bit me in the playoffs though. I just didn't have the arms you need for October.