OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

**KBLover** · 04-20-2018, 12:57 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Division Rivals to Clash in AL Division Series
Astros Won Season Series 11-8

"We reclaimed what was ours, " Springer commented after the Astros clinched the AL West.

Indeed, the Astros front office made bold moves to get back on top the division that had been controlled by the Angels in the past two seasons. The revamped lineup that featured new faces like Ryan Zimmerman, Khris Davis, Brett Lawrie, and Paul Goldschmidt, poses threats all along the batting order and that offense was a big reason why they took the division crown.

...and the season series with the Angels.

"We have to find some way to slow those guys down, " Meyer commented, "They get on a roll and they will bury you. That happened to us far too often."

Indeed, Ohtani was the only starting pitcher to have any success at all against the Astros, posting an impressive 1.76 ERA against them. Even Kershaw faltered with a 7.36 ERA against the Astros this season. Alex Meyer is the only other starter with an ERA under 6.00 against the Astros this season. That's not a good sign.

"You bet we're confident. We have just as great a group of guys and we all can hit the ball and we play as hard as they do, " Altuve spoke, "They pull together as team and we've always done that here, too."

This has the makings of a series that could end quickly or be an all-out high-scoring battle of attrition. The Angels offense doesn't figure to keep up on paper. The Astros lead the AL, and all of baseball, in runs scored. They were the only team in the league to break 900 runs scored.

"I'm excited for this series and I hope the guys are, too. It's going to be hard and a fight but those are the best games, " Trout commented.

**WaitTilNextYear** · 04-20-2018, 05:54 PM

Carolina Knights Update

END OF SEASON 2018

Code:

[B]Season Record:[/B] 74-88 (17 GB NL East)
[B]September Record:[/B] 10-10
[B]Standings:[/B] 4th Place NL East

[B]Market Size:[/B] Tiny
[B]Attendance:[/B] 2,733,651
[B]Payroll:[/B] $42.77MM
[B]Fan Interest:[/B] 89
[B]Owner Disposition:[/B] Delighted

TEAM PAGE

Spoiler

PLAYOFF RESULTS

Spoiler

SUMMARY

2018 was a qualified success of an inaugural season for the Carolina Knights. Predicted to go 68-94, the club surpassed that by 6 wins (74-88) while socking away a yearly profit of over $50MM and drawing in excess of 2.7 million fans. The strength of the team was mostly on defense [.699 Def. Efficiency, 4th NL] and in the bullpen [3.43 ERA, 4th NL]. Not to mention a surprising find at 2B with switch-hitting NL ROY Breyvic Valera [116 GS, .313/.354/.429, 9 HR, 56 RBI, 3.6 WAR].

The team did not score a lot of runs [620, 15th NL] or hit a lot of homers [138, 13th NL]--1B A.J. Reed paced the club with just 24 HRs even though he didn't debut with the club until May 10th. Brett Gardner was on track to put up a ~4 WAR season [140 GS, .277/.346/.393, 9 HR, 53 RBI, 12 SB, 2.4 WAR], until he went backward in September. Count on his $12.5MM team option being declined with prejudice and perhaps coming back with a much smaller salary. Mallex Smith had a decent year as the full-time center fielder [105 GS, .265/.335/.367, 3 HR, 28 RBI, 39 SB, 1.7 WAR] and will likely reprise the role in 2019. Ditto Phil Ervin [98 GS, .248/.336/.380, 11 HR, 48 RBI, 1.8 WAR] who figures to move over from RF to be an everyday, Gold Glove-caliber LF next year. RF is now a question mark, and Bryce Harper is a free agent. The team has $56 million and change to possibly spend on free agents. Hmmm. Otherwise, probably only catcher Jett Bandy [115 GS, .222/.295/.404, 18 HR, 66 RBI, 1.8 WAR] will return next season to go with Valera, Reed, Gardner, Smith, and Ervin. This team will be on the prowl for a SS, 3B, RF, UTIL, and another catcher.

The starting pitching was inconsistent, mainly being dependent on whether it was a good month or a bad month for Collin McHugh [212 IP, 9-17, 4.20 ERA, 7.7 K/9, 3.5 BB/9, 2.0 WAR]. McHugh did lead MLB in innings pitched. Both Nathan Karns and Matt Andriese flunked out of the Opening Day rotation; walk-year Drew Pomeranz was opportunistically dealt early on to Boston. Trevor Williams [187.1 IP, 8-14, 4.04 ERA, 6.3 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, -0.4 WAR] was the only starter besides McHugh to last the entire season with Carolina. Various stop gaps were plugged in using Derek Gordon, Luis Perdomo, Wilmer Font, and Anthony Banda. Of that entire group, only McHugh, Williams, and Perdomo ought to be part of next year's rotation. Expect maybe one "big money" free agent SP signing and a few fliers on MLB option contracts. By "big money," we're talking maybe $5-10MM/yr. Although Clayton Kershaw did opt out...and the club does have a ton of cash right now.

The bullpen is where this team was quite good in 2018 and really expects to shine next year. Dellin Betances [58 G, 35/38 SV, 2.92 ERA, 14.8 K/9, 3.8 BB/9, 2.5 WAR] was the anchor, saving 20 in a row at one point, and will be certainly brought back in his final arbitration year. Aside from Betances, there is a deep and versatile cast of inexpensive, interchangeable characters that can flat throw the baseball--Nick Burdi, Tyler Jay, Jonathan Holder, Nick Gardewine, Diego Castillo, Jose Alvarado, Wilmer Font, Raudel Lazo, Eric Peterson, Joe Palumbo, Matt Festa. Due to the team's penchant for hoarding bullpen arms, Carolina likely won't have to spend one red cent on a free agent reliever.

**KBLover** · 04-20-2018, 07:53 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Nice! I think good bullpens are underrated. I hope yours stays strong. Any leads your young franchise gets should be in good hands.

74-88 is a success for sure for an expansion team. You were probably better than the Marlins lol

Nicely done. Here's hoping for a successful 2019 for your boys.

**WaitTilNextYear** · 04-20-2018, 09:02 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Thanks. I actually finished 20 games ahead of Miami. So, yeah, way better than those stinkin' Marlins.

**N51_rob** · 04-20-2018, 09:20 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Great season WTNY! Agree about the bullpen KB. I lived and died with mine while attempting to build/buy a rotation. Last year was a culmination of that. Get starters that can go 5 or 6 and not be blown out of the game I trust my guys in the pen to bring it home.

**KBLover** · 04-20-2018, 11:29 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Angels Thwart Rivals, Head to ALCS

"Our guys stepped it up. They spend a lot of time in prep and it paid off, " John Farrel commented.

Indeed, the Angels staff that had been pummeled by the Astros all year long had just one bad game (which was a loss) on their way to a 3-1 series victory and a ticket to the ALCS.

Game 1
Angels 5, Astros 1

Oscar de la Cruz was masterful, going 7 strong innings and picking up 10 strike outs along the way. He allowed just 4 hits and no runs in his outing to lead the way for the Angels.

"I had my good fastball today and we just rode it all game. Felt like I threw 70% fastballs because I had good life on it, " Cruz commented.

The only blemish was a home run against Cam Bedrosian.

There was an injury, however. Jahmai Jones injured himself in center field trying to make a play on defense. He's listed as day-to-day with a minor thumb injury and should be fine to play.

Game 2
Angels 6, Astros 2

The Angels pulled out to a commanding 2-0 lead after Alex Meyer turned in a strong outing of his own. He went six innings and allowed just one run. He picked up nine strike outs.

"Felt good to beat these guys like this, " Meyer commented, "Really good for the confidence to beat a lineup like this when you stop them so soundly. Now to keep it going, " Meyer spoke.

Michael Chavis led the offense with a 3-hit attack while Wil Myers drove in two runs in a 2-for-4 effort.

Game 3
Astros 11, Angels 9

This was the kind of game Angels fans feared happening. The Astros got the offense going early and ended up dropping 9 runs on Fishman to take a 9-5 lead after four innings.

The bullpen tried it's best to keep the team in the game, and they succeeded for the most part.

The Angels closed the gap to 9-8, but the bullpen faltered at last as Rondon gave up two more insurance runs in the 9th that ended up making the difference in the score.

"How the **** do you think it feels? We get back in the game and I punched the guys in the mouth and knocked them out of the game. You think I feel good about that? Get away from me, " Rondon snapped after the game.

Game 4
Angels 4, Astros 3

Ohtani left it all on the field again. He Astros worked him very hard as he used over 100 pitches and couldn't get out of the 5th inning. He left the game with the Angels down 3-0.

But the Angels rallied late, thanks largely to Trout have a two home run game. The homers were the first two for him in the playoffs.

The Angels bullpen delivered 4 2/3 innings of shutout relief to help give the team a chance.

The Angels move on the ALCS while a dejected Astros squad would have to be content to watch their rivals move forward.

"It's a kick in the gut, but a reminder that we have more work to do. We can beat these guys but we have to keep getting better so they don't beat us as well, " Carlos Correa commented.

The Angels will face the Indians in the ALCS. The Indians defeated the Yankees 3-2 in their Divisional Series.

**KBLover** · 04-21-2018, 12:35 AM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Angels Fall Short, Indians Win 4-1
Defeat Snaps World Series Appearance Streak at Three

For the first time since 2017, the AL will be represented by a different team in the World Series.

The Angels will not make a fourth consecutive trip to the Fall Classic after the Indians handled them swiftly in the ALCS by a four-games-to-one margin.

"It's humbling and it sucks, " Andrelton Simmons commented, "It really just sucks. That's all I have to say about it."

Game 1
Indians 8, Angels 6

Both starters were knocked out early in this one, and the score was 5-5 after just three innings.

The difference was in the 5th as Will Smith gave up three runs on two hits to put the Indians up 8-5.

No one standout player for Cleveland as the whole lineup contributed in a variety of ways.

Instead, the standout was the Indians bullpen as the unit combined to throw six innings of shutout relief.

Game 2
Indians 4, Angels 3

The Angels bullpen again faltered late, but the real story of the game was the amount of runners the Angels left on base.

"That was just inexcusable baseball from the offense. You don't win games like that, and we didn't deserve to win that game. When you waste that many chances, you deserve to lose." Scoiscia commented.

The Angels left a whopping 18 men on base in the game. Bradley "led" with five men left on base with his 0-for-4 performance with four strikeouts.

"If the guys don't talk to me for a week, I'd deserve it. I'm going to turn that bat into firewood. Put it in my grill, douse it and light it up, " Bradley spoke.

Game 3
Angels 4, Indians 3 (15)

Ohtani again had a short outing as he hasn't looked like himself since that long Wild Card game outing, leading to a lot of second guessing.

"It's natural to second guess, but he had to win that game or else it didn't matter. A rested Ohtani does nothing when you're watching the playoffs at home, " an L.A. sports show host spoke.

While the second guessing goes on, the Angels bullpen put in a heroic performance in support of Ohtani. Down 3-1 after four innings, the Angels would get a total of 11 innings of shutout relief. Eleven.

Why 11 innings? Because the Angels rallied to tie the game in the seventh inning at three apiece. Mike Trout delivered a two-run double to tie the game. Vanderven, pressed into the shortstop position, hit a walk-off single in the 15th.

Game 4
Indians 3, Angels 2

The bullpen let the team down the next day.

Fishman pitched a strong outing as the knuckleballer threw six strong innings, allowing just one run, and leaving with a 2-1 lead. However, the perhaps worn out bullpen gave up runs in the 8th and 9th to give the Indians the 3-2 lead.

In the 8th, Jose Ramirez of the Indians hit an RBI double to tie up the game at 2-2.

The go-ahead run would score in the 9th after Bradley Zimmer led off the inning with a triple.

Game 5
Indians 6, Angels 2

This game was simply the Angels starting pitching not getting it done. Cruz was overmatched by the Indians, who smelled an arrival to the Fall Classic.

"I told the guys to go get them early, knock the wind out of them really quick and make them feel like it's already over. They are on the ropes, we can knock them out, " Mejia commented.

The Indians jumped out to a 4-1 lead, keyed by Shaw hitting a two-run home run as the second batter in the inning. That drained the life out of the home Angels crowd and maybe have sapped the Angels players of morale in the process.

After the game Terry Francona, the Indians manager, was quick to give respect to the Angels.

"This series is closer than the five-game finish will make it look. That game four was a classic and game three wasn't far behind. It looks easy in the papers but we had to claw for every inning and run and make it stand up because those guys don't quit, " Francona spoke.

The Indians will face the Cubs in the World Series after the southsiders blew past the Braves in a clean sweep in the NLCS.

Meanwhile, the Angels will face the sting of having to watch the World Series from home.

"We have to evaluate what happened as unemotionally as we can. It won't be easy, but it's what we have to do. Whether it's players, coaches, strategy, everything must be looked at when you come up short, " Yarrow commented.

This will be the first year Yarrow won't see his team in the World Series.

Indians Win 2021 World Series

The Cubs looked to have the series in hand. They had leads of 2-1 and then 3-2 as the Indians played inconsistent baseball.

But then the Indians won games six and seven on the road to stun the Wrigley faithful and celebrate the thrill of being World Champions.

"It's just a great feeling. Everyone fought so hard to get here and to finally reap the rewards of months of hard work, it just fills you with joy, " Francona spoke before being doused in champagne.

Francisco Mejia was again in the middle of the team's success as he was named MVP of the World Series. He posted a .500 OBP and a 1.020 OPS in the World Series alone.

Attached Files

playoffs.jpg (112.1 KB, 71 views)

**KBLover** · 04-21-2018, 01:54 AM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

2021-2022 Offseason Begins

The offseason began with Zach Britton voiding the final year of his contract to test the free agent market. Some wonder if the Angels will pursue him again after his major injury and rehab.

Other early offseason news comes from Oakland as a change in ownership has prompted a turnover of the front office and dugout staff, including the manager Jim Converse.

Players spoke, off the record, about Converse's style being the problem. Reports of him simply yelling and trying to shout down any issues fracturing the clubhouse and causing problems to fester instead of being brought up and perhaps resolved.

No word as yet on the new management both in the front office or the dugout.

Marlins fired GM Daniel Haigwood after three horrific seasons where the team could not win even 60 games.

Giants fired manager Tom Prince after the sharp downside move in the team's record. In 2020, the Giants won 94 games and made the playoffs. This year, the team won just 72 games.

In the awards department, the Angels' double play duo, Simmons and Guillermo both won Gold Gloves along with Mike Trout in right field.

Shohei Ohtani won both the AL MVP and the AL Cy Young for the second year in a row. He picked up 29 of the 30 MVP votes with the other vote going to Carlos Correa. He was unanimous choice for AL Cy Young. Ohtani went 20-5 with a 2.62 ERA and 5.8 WAR while batting .336/.413/.573 in 375 AB and 4.2 WAR.

The Angels made a qualifying offer to Zach Britton, but it was rejected, not unexpectedly.

This year's free agent class is far different than last year's ho-hum group. The top talents in the pool:

SP Noah Syndergaard
SP Corey Kluber
RF Nomar Mazara
C Buster Posey
CL Zach Britton
1B Miguel Sano
CL Jeurys Familia
CL Roberto Osuna
SP Sonny Gray
CL Aroldis Chapman
CL Archie Bradley
1B Miguel Sano

And that leaves off several very solid talents.

The Angels will probably find someone to be interested in this year. Perhaps adding another starting pitcher or pursuing one of the several veteran closers and relievers in the pool. Mazara is tempting but he probably has no where to go except to be a terrible first baseman, and there will certainly be debate in the Angels war room over Sano. He strikes out a ridiculous amount of times but still produces 4-5 WAR. Posey will likely be a person of interest as he should settle the catcher position at least for a few years when the debate about his age will really ramp up.

**N51_rob** · 04-21-2018, 11:10 AM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Spring Training and Opening Day Roster

The defending world champions entered spring training with few open rosters spots, lots of competition and an idea to change some things defensively. Some things went as planned and others caused some last minute changes to be necessary.

First order of business was to lock up 3B Ryan Mountcastle long term. We offered and he accepted a team friendly deal early in Spring Training. 7 years $120 million, Year 1-$15 Million, Year 2-$17 Million, Year 3-$17 million, Year 4-$16 Million with a player opt out at his age 33 season. If he elects to stay its $19/$18/$18 for the last three years.

While he was agreeing to those terms we also broke the news that he would be moving to DH this year DH for the spring and give 3B Zane Denton a run at third base. Denton is 24 years old and was a 2nd round pick in 2019. Last year in 2024 between AA he hit .292/.361/.513 12 HRs 37 RBIs. Denton has the glove to stick at 3B in the majors the question is his bat. If Denton can't cut it Adam Hall may be given a chance to man the position. There really isn't a lot of competition for roster spots right now, also maybe looking for a LHP in the bull pen. Offered to LHP RP Hunter Bowling (he choose Oakland), couldn't afford to offer Felipe Rivero who's the top LHP avialable.

With 4 spots in the rotation locked up. (Merandy Gonzalez, Gregory Soto, Nick Storz and George Kirby) three pitchers have been battled it out this spring for one spot. Jeremy Good (who has rejected the teaches of the Guru from India) Se-woong Park and Luca Dalatri. All three pitched well this spring. Good's ERA was 3.43 in 21 innings, Park's 1.50 in 12 and Dalatri 6.43 in 21. Not sure who was going to win that last spot. We were leaning towards giving Good the first shot at it and letting Dalatri either go the bullpen as the long man, or let him be the Ace in AAA and see how he responds. I just didn't trust Park and we thought about trying to move him in the last week of Spring Training. In his 3rd ST start Park suffered an oblique injury that will see him on the DL for 60 days and end his chances to win the spot or be traded. In the same game on March 17 that Park was injured George Kirby was injured as well....Not good news on George Kirby, torn meniscus down 3-4 months. Changed the dynamics of the rotation as lefty Matthew Turner got a long look during the last two starts of spring training, and Luca Dalatri received a new lease on life.

Despite the major injury to Kirby. It was a good spring for the ball club finished 20-10. Starting pitching with the execption of Dalatri managed to each keep thier ERAs under 4.50. Matthew Turner won the 5th spot in the rotation. In 15.2 innings his era was 0.57 with 8 innings pitched as a starter he didn't allow a run. Walks will be a bit of a concern. Chris Barnhart played himself on to the 25 man roster. He hit .353 with 3 HRs and 20 RBI, he can play 5 positions but figures to be the opening day 1B. Rule 5 C Cj Rodriguez had a hell of a spring he posted a crazy slash .444/.500/.944 with 2 HRs 8 RBIs in 18 ABs and will be the #2 catcher behind Gary Sanchez. 3B Zane Denton produced enough with the bat to earn the starting job at 3B kicking Ryan Mountcastle to full time DH. Neither Bryce Jordan or Anthony Santander played well at all and it will be interesting because Chris Barnhart can also play in the outfield.

Predicted to finish 86-76 2nd in the AL East behind Boston. 4 Pitchers predicted to be in the top 10 of AL pitchers.

Biggest question is where to hit Bobby Witt Jr and [/b]Trea Turner.[/b] They posted very similar numbers last year. Witt (.238/.277/.398 12 HR 43 RBIs 10 SB 7 CS) Turner (.240/.287/.393 17 HR 61 RBI 34 SB 8 CS) Turner played in 29 more games, and had more chances to steal leading off than Witt batting 7th for much of the year. Griffin Conine is locked into the #2 spot and the roster has a nice L/R mix that can cause problems for opposing bullpens.

Organization is still terrible. But our 1st round pick last year Juan Blanco is the 97th rated prospect in baseball. At 19 he will be starting the year A ball Delmarva with an eye on high A ball perhaps. But there is no need to rush him with the starting pitching we now possess.

New O's on the Opening Day Roster

Spoiler

Opening Day 25 Man Roster
Lineup:
1. 2B R Trea Turner
2. RF L Griffin Conine
3. DH R Ryan Mountcastle
4. LF L Joc Pederson
5. C R Gary Sanchez
6. 1B L Chris Barnhart
7. SS R Bobby Witt Jr
8. CF L Reese Albert
9. 3B S Zane Denton

Bench:
C R CJ Rodriguez (Rule 5 selection)
1B L Jack Yalowitz
2B S Cal Conley
CF R Jonathan Capellan
P/1B R Nick Storz

Rotation:
1. RHP Merandy Gonzalez
2. LHP Gregory Soto
3. RHP Nick Storz
4. RHP Jeremy Good
5. LHP Matthew Turner

Bullpen:
RHP Dylan Bundy
LHP Francisco David Sanchez
RHP Seong-Hoon Cho
RHP Do-kyu Kim
RHP Ryan Meisinger
RHP Zack Burndi
LHP Pete Merrill

Lack of LHP in the Pen has facilitate Merrill being removed from the closer role and put into a 7th inning or later setup role/lefty specialist. Burndi will take over as the closer for now.

**N51_rob** · 04-21-2018, 12:55 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Welp, I think I just lost my Orioles save. My game locked up and I had to force close it, and now when I restart my O's franchise is gone...I didn't make backups but this is just crazy. Its all gone.

Edit: Whew not actually lost, just a problem prevented all the .dat files from being in the league folder. Moved the auto save files into the league folder and the game is restoring them....this thread saved me.

why i can't loading my game??? :: Out of the Park Baseball 18 General Discussions

https://steamcommunity.com/app/465650/discussions/0/133261907139512344/

Problems Loading "could not initialize sqlite database" why i can't loading my game???

**KBLover** · 04-21-2018, 04:09 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Originally posted by N51_rob

Welp, I think I just lost my Orioles save. My game locked up and I had to force close it, and now when I restart my O's franchise is gone...I didn't make backups but this is just crazy. Its all gone.

Edit: Whew not actually lost, just a problem prevented all the .dat files from being in the league folder. Moved the auto save files into the league folder and the game is restoring them....this thread saved me.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/46565...1907139512344/

WHEW.

I was getting flashbacks from how my save got eaten...and that was with a backup.

Good thing your universe is unscathed.

**N51_rob** · 04-21-2018, 05:42 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Yep, lesson learned I now have a back up on the computer and another on a flash drive.

**WaitTilNextYear** · 04-21-2018, 09:08 PM

Carolina Knights Update

HOT STOVE SEASON 2018-19

2018 Carolina Knights Record: 74-88 (17 GB NL East)
Money for Free Agents: $56.2MM

Key Free Agents/Results:

Spoiler

Carolina Free Agency

The Knights went into the hot stove season with a bunch of cash piled up due to aggressive cost cutting of an already tiny payroll during the 2018 season. With an owner budget boost from $80M to $102M and less than $30M in guaranteed payroll for 2019, the team had exactly $56.2M to throw at free agents. This in addition to losing in arbitration to Dellin Betances (offered $7.25M, awarded $7.5M) and Jett Bandy (offered $900K, awarded $1.57M). But, despite a lukewarm 3-way bidding war between the Knights, Braves, and Indians for Bryce Harper (which the Braves sneakily won), Carolina decided to basically sit on their proverbial hands.

Carolina signed C Matt Wieters (1 yr $2.5M, team option for year 2), UTIL Sean Rodriguez (MiLB/MLB split contract, $1M if promoted), OF Brett Gardner (1 yr $1.5M, a far cry below what he was asking last season), SP Nathan Eovaldi (3 yr $15M, was lost immediately in the Rule 5 draft after a rookie mistake by GM Bobby Cox), SP Tyler Skaggs (MiLB/MLB split contract, $800K if promoted), OF Carlos Gomez (MiLB/MLB split contract, $1.25M if promoted), 3B Eduardo Nunez (1 yr $5.15M), RF/3B Lonnie Chisenhall (1 yr $4.15M), and SP Marco Estrada (1 yr $2.5M). Total outlays amounted to just $18.85M. Also worth mentioning that there were no deals signed for longer than 1 year other than the $3MM team option on Wieters for 2020 with a $600K buyout.

The team regrets not going the extra mile for Harper for a few reasons. First of all, with all due respect to Mike Trout, Harper is the best player in this OOTP universe. Second of all, it looked quite promising after tendering a 7-year deal for $175M (25 aav), then increasing the offer up to a 30 million average annual value in the face of moderate competition. However, Bobby Cox set a red line there and the Braves swooped in and got Bryce for a pittance more than than (30.2 aav). If the team had known Harper was so close to signing at that level, what's another million? But, it was impossible to tell how far toward Harper's $43M/yr original demand the negotiations would end up going. Oh well. The other problem is that Harper is going to a division rival to likely haunt the Knights for 7 years.

Aside from Harper, Carolina hardly pursued top level free agents, barely kicking the tires on Mike Moustakas (wanted too many years) and angering Logan Forsythe and Garrett Richards with low ball tactics. It was a bumper crop year for free agency, but the team doubled down with its draft and develop strategy, We'll see how that goes...

Carolina Trades

Seeing that they were going to have an impossible time filling all their glaring team needs with high-dollar mercenaries, the club worked some nice angles in the trade market.

First, they secured an interesting bullpen arm LHP Tyler Jay from the Twins in return for INF Jorge Polanco. Polanco would've been a bench player for Carolina, but the Twins apparently wanted him back after losing him in the expansion draft. Jay has no MLB service time, but he could have one of the best sliders in baseball making a strong bullpen even better.

Second, the Knights dangled 31-year-old reliever Oliver Drake. Drake had been Betances' setup man in a solid 2018 campaign (3.12 ERA, 88 K, 30 BB, 69.1 IP), but was inching closer to arbitration. The Royals offered interesting 23-year-old SS Nicky Lopez in exchange. Lopez bats lefty, is a plus-plus defender, a plus contact hitter, virtually never strikes out, has no MLB service time, and will fill the starting SS role in 2019. This was the club's favorite deal of the offseason.

The Knights also approached Detroit about OF Mikie Mahtook after having some trouble finding a righty bat/4th OF type that was better than Peter Bourjos. Carolina ended up sending 1B Luke Voit to the Motor City for Mahtook. Evidently, the rebuilding Tigers like the idea of Voit taking over for Miggy in the future. As far as Carolina was concerned, the 27-year-old Voit was expendable with A.J. Reed and Sam Travis topping the depth chart at 1B. Carolina attempted to include 3B Jeimer Candelario in this deal, but to no avail.

The final offseason deal was actually initiated by the Chicago Cubs. They inquired on RHP Ben Heller while offering prospect LHP Justin Steele. Despite Heller's amazing stuff, he always seemed to give up costly homers last season. Given that and the club's bullpen depth, Carolina didn't think too hard about this one. Steele provides a legitimate prospect for a weak farm system, and shouldn't be too far off from the show.

Your 2019 Carolina Knights

**KBLover** · 04-21-2018, 09:13 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

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Offseason Transactions Overview

Notable Free Agent Signings
Twins sign C Tomoya Mori (NPB) for $21 million/5 yrs
Mariners sign SP Tomoyuki Sugano (NPB) for $24 million/5 yrs
Indians sign P Corey Kluber for $22 million/3 yrs
Phillies sign P Noah Syndergaard for $24 million/7 yrs
Rangers sign SS Ju-suk Ha (KBO) for $10.9 million/5 yrs
Indians sign RF Adam Eaton for $13 million/5 yrs
Astros sign P Bryan Mitchel for $16 million/7 yrs
Nationals sign P Sonny Gray for $16 million/5 yrs
Nationals sign P Johnny Cueto for $10.5 million/3 yrs
Rangers sign C Buster Posey for $24.6 million/4 yrs
Padres sign P Jarod Keppell (Int’l FA) for $9.5 million/3 yrs
Royals sign OF Charlie Blackmon for $18.4 million/3 yrs
Giants sign OF Nomar Mazara for $22.6 million/6 yrs
Giants sign 3B Miguel Sano for $21.8 million/5 yrs
Phillies sign P Zach Britton for $21 million/2 yrs

Angels Free Agent Signings
C Tucker Barnhardt for $6.3 million/3 yrs
P Juan Chairez (Int’l FA) for $25 million/4 yrs
P Jeurys Familia for $17.6 million/5 yrs
P Cam Bedrosian for $10 million/3 yrs
P Aroydis Vizcaino for $3.6 million/2 yrs

Other MLB News
The number of years of service needed before a player can become a free agent has increased to 7 years. The number of years needed before becoming eligible for arbitration has increased by one as well.

Retirements
Oakland P Daulton Jefferies retires due to injury to his rotator cuff.

Major Trades
Seattle trades CL Edwin Diaz to Indians for P Ryan Lynch, P Jacob Maton, 1B Michael Cooper, P Jared Newcomer, P Samuel Vazquez.

Cardinals trade 3B Xander Bogaerts to Giants for 2B Peter Ahn and CF Yenrrys Mendez.

Astros trade LF Khris Davis to Marlins for LF Charlie Tilson. Astros retain part of Davis’ contract.

Angels trade LF Wil Myers, P Darwinzon Hernandez, 1B Jorge Lejia to Giants for P Ernesto Barajas, CF Brandon McIlwain, and P Jorge Arellano.

Rule 5 Draft
Round 1 – Angels select P Sean Wymer

Round 2 – Angels select CF Oswal Leones

The Angels lost no players to the Rule 5 draft this year.

Other Angels Moves
No other moves at this time.

**KBLover** · 04-21-2018, 11:04 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

2022 Season Set to Begin
Angels Expected to be Among Top Teams

The Angels are expected to regain control of the AL West Division, defeating the Astros by nine games. The Astros, however, are predicted to be a sure playoff team, winning the first wild card, while the Red Sox, Twins, and Rays do battle for the second, and it might be a hotly contested race.

Division winners in the AL: Yankees, Indians, Angels.

In the NL, the Giants and Nationals made major purchases in a push to climb the standings. The Giants went into all-out "Win Now!" mode and they made the moves to support it. BNN thinks the moves will pay off and see the Giants return to the postseason as first NL wild card. The second wild card is expected to be a race between the Padres, Braves, Cubs, Nationals, Mets, and Diamondbacks with the Padres coming out barely on top.

Division winners in the NL: Phillies, Brewers, Dodgers.

Angels Opening Day Roster

+ denotes Rule 5 selection
bold stat denotes league leader

Pitching Staff

Starters: (Last Year Stats)
1. Clayton Kershaw (16-5, 2.80 ERA, 3.06 FIP, 72 FIP-, 6.0 WAR)
2. Shohei Ohtani (20-5, 2.62 ERA, 2.96 FIP, 69 FIP-, 5.8 WAR)
3. Juan Chairez (no stats)
4. Jake Fishman (14-11, 3.57 ERA, 4.54 FIP, 107 FIP-, 1.8 WAR)
5. Alex Meyer* (11-8, 3.19 ERA, 3.89 FIP, 92 FIP-, 3.0 WAR)

*on DL for one week

Bullpen:
Jeurys Familia (3-3, 33 Sv, 1.91 ERA, 1.86 FIP)
Cam Bedrosian (2-4, 2.61 ERA, 2.30 FIP)
Arodys Vizcaino (7-4, 2.97 ERA, 3.34 FIP)
Bruce Rondon (4-4, 5.08 ERA, 3.62 FIP)
Will Smith (3-1, 4.42 ERA, 4.10 FIP)
Jose Soriano (0-1, 3.12 ERA, 3.53 FIP)
Sean Wymer+ (no stats)

Notes: While the Angels didn't get any of the household names, the rotation should be buoyed by the addition of Chairez. BNN predicts that the flame-throwing Nicaraguan known as "The General" will go 19-5 with a 2.71 ERA. Anything close to that will be strong production out of the #3 spot in the rotation. Alex Meyer is expected to return and that will round out a solid starting five. Should anyone falter or suffer injury, there are some depth arms as Hu, Cruz, and newly-ready arm Aquino are ready to step in, with Aquino getting the nod to make a replacement start or two while Meyer recovers.

The bullpen did add some known players in the form of Familia and Vizcaino. The re-signing of Cam Bedrosian also adds to the stability of the back end. Familia will have big shoes to fill since Zach Britton was essentially flawless. If Rondon can return to his 2020 form and if Jose Soriano makes good on his promising talent, the Angels bullpen could be one to fear from front to back.

Starting Lineup: (Last year stats)
1. 2B Luis Guillorme (.280/.348/.341, 91 wRC+, 3.3 WAR)
2. CF Oswal Leones+ (no stats)
3. RF Mike Trout (.297/.416/.548, 154 wRC+, 8.0 WAR)
4. DH Shohei Ohtani (.336/.413/.573, 158 wRC+, 4.0 WAR)
5. 1B Bobby Bradley (.242/.310/.480, 107 wRC+, 1.5 WAR)
6. 3B Michael Chavis (.234/.316/.425, 99 wRC+, 2.3 WAR)
7. LF Jahmai Jones (.280/.328/.444, 108 wRC+, 1.8 WAR)
8. SS Andrelton Simmons (.284/.336/.374, 94 wRC+, 4.1 WAR)
9 C Tucker Barnhart (.214/.296/.344, 79 wRC+, 1.3 WAR)

Bench:
1B Matt Thaiss
C Ali Sanchez
IF/OF Luis Carpio
3B Adrian Beltre
OF Tye Vanderven

Notes: While the young hitters Bradley, Jones, and Chavis are getting another shot, they all might want to produce at a high level. The Angels are always looking for upgrades and the offense remains a continued work-in-progress. The lineup can click and constantly keep the pressure on, but it is also a lineup that is prone to offensive droughts and getting completely shut down aside from perhaps Trout or Ohtani with some production in a losing effort.

The bench at this point is mostly for flexibility in case of injury or to give rest to a starter. They are unlikely to contribute much offensively when they do play, though defensively all except perhaps Thaiss and Beltre are gifted, so, at least, the defense won't suffer at all if a backup plays.

Summary and Prediction
Overall, the Angels are a "sum of the parts" kind of team on offense where they need to key players to produce at a high level and everyone else to contribute consistently. When it works, the Angels can go on long runs and look unstoppable and be near enough to unstoppable, especially if the pitching joins in the fun. When it doesn't work, it can lead to long stretches of frustration and losing.

The Angels will be driven the their pitching, regardless of how well the lineup does, but a productive lineup could make this team incredibly scary as we saw in 2020 where the team posted a win rate north of .700, or as in the 2018 and 2019 World Series runs.

BNN predicts 101 wins. I think that's a tad optimistic.

Over: 90, Under: 98, Prediction: 94 wins

Angels Pipeline: Top 5 Prospects

1. P Jeremy Denton, 19 - Stuff: 65, Movement: 65, Control: 70, Projection: Ace SP
Denton has the makings of a pure ace if he can put it together. His fastball and splitter combo is already around ML average, but it will be the development of his changeup that scouts will watch closely. Consensus is that the pitch will be the game changer for Denton. Right now, it's still a work-in-progress.

2. P Shinji Mukai, 19 - Stuff: 40, Movement: 70, Control: 70, Projection: Borderline Ace/#2 Starter
Mukai was a surprise discovery that seemed like a very strange kid to "bring home". However, what scouts see...and hope will be...is a pitcher that does a lot of the "unsexy" things well. Hold runners. Pick offs. Eat tons of innings. Few walks. Few home runs. Induce double plays. Movement is the name of Mukai's game. His cutter moves like a slider, his slider sweeps the plate, his change dips and darts, and then there's the screwball, his bread-and-butter pitch that he uses like most pitchers use curves.

3. OF Domenic Hutchinson, 19 - Contact: 65, Power: 60, Discipline: 65, Speed: 75, Fielding: 55, Projection: Possible All-Star
Hutchinson doesn't have a lot of elite athleticism, and that shows in his grades. He's fast, but even then he's not quick or agile. Still, he's got instincts for baseball and should develop a solid foundation of hitting and fielding skills. If he puts it together, he could be a solid "all-around" kind of player that puts everything on a plus level and makes a reliable anchor for a lineup and defense to center around.

4. P/OF Jim Lenhart, 21 - Stuff: 65, Movement: 50, Control: 55, Projection: #2-#3 starter
Pitching might be just half of Lenhart's story, but for now he's primarily graded as a pitcher, though his hitting prowess is well documented. Lenhart has progressed somewhat slowly, but still considered a future piece of the puzzle. He started as an outfielder and still hits for Burlington when he doesn't pitch, much like Ohtani at the big club. Lenhart has the tools for pitching - big 98-100 MPH fastball that's got good life, a splitter that's big league quality...just waiting for his breaking stuff to come forward.

5. P Tim Mavity, 18 - Stuff: 60, Movement: 65, Control: 50, Projection: #2-#3 starter
Mavity is perhaps GM Yarrow's favorite prospect, especially among the top of the system kids. Mavity and his "rules" induce a lot of ground balls, and he basically tries to intimidate hitters into hitting grounders, which is very unusual. He throws both his four-seam and sinker down, which makes for an interesting sequencing consideration. Most go north-south with fastball-sinker mix. His changeup gets excellent depth and can get hitters to roll over easily, inducing more ground balls. If he can not get upset as his defense at the low minors and focus on developing his pitches, he should be fine.

OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

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