OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

**KBLover** · 05-20-2018, 12:36 AM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Originally posted by WaitTilNextYear

I see that Max Alba has broken in for you...I wonder what kind of role he'll play going forward.

So far, I might be putting Chairez back to SP #2 and move everyone down a slot (don't want to...I want my 4.6 WAR MR...). So unless I go 6-man (which the real Angels are actually doing...hmm...) no spot for him yet.

I might go 6-man and do something funky. I mean this manager is "unorthodox" after all.

Believe me, I want Alba to play. His ratings are still coming in very meh but serviceable. More than I can say for 38-year-old-injured-twice-a-year Kershaw.

**KBLover** · 05-20-2018, 11:04 AM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

The rift between GM Xander Yarrow and owner Arturo Moreno seems to be widening and the frustration mounted when the Angels made another big splash for a Japanese free agent, but the owner still wasn't happy.

"It should have been a proud moment for us. We again land a coveted Japanese player, this time a big time slugger, and yet my staff and I still can't satisfy the top brass with this power hitter obsession, " Yarrow commented. "It's becoming really frustrating."

Moreno was on hand at the press conference and he didn't look terribly impressed. He seemed happier at the acquisition for Vlad Jr, even though, at least on paper, Sakai should be much more potent in the power department.

The Angels raised ticket prices from $30 to $36 average price. To the fans credit, support via season ticket sales has actually increased with 55% of seats now spoken for by season ticket holders. This ticket price increasing has also been a thorn in the side of Yarrow.

"All I will say is we are fine financially so I don't see why we need to raise the prices, but they want more revenue...and that means higher tickets, less high-paid, talented players, or both...and the fans have to suffer either way I go, " Yarrow commented at an interview. "The owner might give me my job, but the fans keep everyone in business, so I will side with them if pushed. As far as the roster goes...you'd think he'd not want to mimic other teams...teams that haven't, you know, won four World Series in nine years? I'm just saying..."

**KBLover** · 05-20-2018, 12:27 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

2027 Angels

BNN has cooled off on the Angels...and a lot of the division winners from last season. Perhaps they think parity is as strong as ever in the league. Judging by no 100-win or 100-loss teams in the projection, that might be a reasonable conclusion to draw.

On the Angels' side, no longer is the whole rotation expected to be among the top performers. Now, that could be the Angels going with a six-man rotation, so starts will be cut down and so will wins and innings and all that. Only Ohtani graces the list.

Offensively, once again the Angels aren't given much credit for their bats. Only Mike Trout makes the top projections on the offense side, despite having a team last season that was among the leaders in runs scored in the AL.

Speaking of the six-man rotation, manager Andy Moulin has made it clear that it's as much a "audition spot" as anything else.

"This sixth spot is real, but it is not guaranteed to anyone right now. Perform or lose it. Believe me, there's plenty of AAA talent that would love to be the one to secure the spot as their own, " Moulin spoke at the practice field.

Max Alba, drafted way back in 2018's amateur draft, will finally make an Opening Day roster. He beat out the other competitors out of spring training and is rewarded with first shot that the 6th spot.

Juan Chairez will get his wish to return to the rotation. The decline of Kershaw pretty much made this move a requirement, even without the six-man rotation. Chairez will be happy, but the Angels will likely miss his sheer dominance out of the bullpen. Ironically, in the six-man rotation, he might not pick up many more innings than he did as a reliever.

Derrick Cherry will also get his wish as he is listed as the Opening Day starter at second base. The team decided to reward him for four years of thankless utility work by giving him a chance as an everyday player to see how he responds. Cherry should be no drop off from Guillermo's strong defense at the position and the bat could be better. It's up to Cherry to bring these talents to the forefront now.

A new face arrives in the form of Chris Becker, a bat-to-ball center fielder that likes to use his speed on offense and plays solid defense. He should be right at home here as Moulin is not shy about using all kinds of strategies with pretty much anyone. The challenge for Becker will be getting playing time. The Angels outfield is one tough nut to crack at this point.

The Angels farm ranking has improved, perhaps some of the effort to rebuild the farm system is paying off. The team also has a top 10 prospect again in the person of Dan Lail, a now 22-year-old third baseman. Lail was drafted in the 4th round in the 2022 draft. With Vlad Jr at third base, Lail might be more valuable to the team as a prospect to dangle in trade talks should a pressing need arise. In the meantime, Lail will get played at 2B while he marinates in AAA to refine some of his hitting skills, perhaps for a stronger roster push next spring.

**KSUowls** · 05-21-2018, 11:38 AM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Love the updates guys, and it's really impressive you stick with it. I finally just started another new (completely new) franchise and gave up on these. It does make the game more fun and makes you feel even more connected to the team, but damn is it a lot of work to stick with. I'm going to try it again now in my 3rd attempt at a Braves franchise, but with less updates.

I just finished season 3.

Quick summary to this point:

Year 1:
-Went 87-65 and made it in as the 2nd WC team but lost to SF in the play-in.
-Called up Acuna in late April to save on service time, he hit about .280 with 30+ HR
-Freddie had a quietly productive year hitting .300 with 30+ HR.
-Offense really carried me through the season, and I got just enough pitching out of guys like Julio, Newcomb, and some journeymen BP arms.

Off-season:
-traded for Ohtani. Gave up Newcomb + several big prospects for him, but it was clear I needed a #1 arm to anchor the rotation.
-Acquired a 33 year old INTL FA 3B with some really good ratings (can't remember his name)
-Traded for Reds pitcher Luis Castillo. I gave up a couple of good prospects, but he was coming off a down year so the asking price wasn't quite as high as it could have been.
-Signed FA C Brian McCann. A fan favorite
-Re-signed Kurt Suzuki
-Signed mid 20's INTL FA RF to replace Markakis.

Year 2:
-Rotation (Ohtani, Teheran, Castillo, Gohara, Soroka).
-Ohtani won 19 games, finished runner up for the Cy Young to 'Thor'
-Freddie won the MVP batting .340 with 37 home runs
-Freddie, Acuna, and my new 3B all hit better than .300 and combined for about 350 RBI and 110 HR
-Ozzie Albeis finished 3rd in MVP voting hitting about .320, 40+ SB, 28 HR, and won the 2B GG
-The RF I signed absolutely bombed.
-6 All-Star game starters + 1 in relief (1B, 2B, 3B, LF, CF, SP, RP)
-Record 101-61
-World Series Champions

Draft:
Signed 2 SS with 80 potential (20/80). 1 was an "impossible" guy so I had to break the bank, but it was worth it. Both have a lot of offensive power and great defensive skills. Both have the arm to play 3B.

Off-Season:
-Re-signed Brian McCann
-Traded for C Jake Rogers (McCann and Suzuki hit near the Mendoza line in year 2. Catchers across the league hit poorly).
-Signed FA RF Andrew McCutchen to both increase fan interest and provide a legitimate threat at RF instead of the black hole I had in year 2
-Signed IF Wilmer Flores for a utility role

Year 3:
-Acuna raked. He hit near .350, just missed being a 30/30 guy, GG in LF, 100+ RBI. He was the NL MVP
-Freddie finished top 5 in the MVP voting and boosted his career BA to over .300
-Ohtani won the NL Cy young winning another 19 games and a sub 3 ERA
-Just missed having 4 guys with 100+ RBI with McCutchen batting 6th and finishing with ~95
-Record 99-63, 2nd straight NL East division crown.
-Back to Back World Series Champions

Off-season:
-Did not re-sign Julio
-Traded McCutchen and his salary + my most recent top 2 draft picks for a good SP prospect from the last draft (ouch), but Drew Waters is ready to take the reigns in RF.
-Made a couple of other salary relief trades as Freddie Freeman is going into the last year of his deal, and he wants $47/year and 10 years. I'm actually not sure what I want to do here. I want and need him, but I don't want to give a 31 y/o a 10 year deal, especially at that price).

Finances are going to get sticky really quick. I cut some salary in Year 1 and since then I've been playing 30m under budget. Some big contracts are coming up soon though. Freddie's asking price is actually more than I have allotted for extensions. Plus Albies, Swanson, Ohtani and Castillo are already in their arbitration years.
I'm thinking I'll trade Swanson. He's had pretty good production, but I have 2 studs who can potentially replace him at SS cheaply. My 3B has put up MVP like numbers since I got him, but he's in his mid 30's now and I can convert my other big SS prospect to 3B. I will probably also look to trade Castillo. I can't afford to pay 2 pitchers plus all those position players.

I want my core to be Albies, Acuna, Freeman, Ohtani....without a much bigger budget or at least one of those guys taking a home town discount that's going to be hard though.

**N51_rob** · 05-21-2018, 01:19 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

I need to get back into my franchise, been so busy in recent weeks I miss my Os.

**WaitTilNextYear** · 05-21-2018, 02:50 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Originally posted by KSUowls

Spoiler

I'd play it by ear with Freddie and see what it'll actually take to sign him. Goldschmidt--arguably a better player than Freeman--also had an ask in the high 40s but the Phillies signed him for something like $35MM per year in my save. Still expensive, but significantly below sticker price.

Have you played Ohtani any in the outfield? Maybe he could solve your issue in RF on days he doesn't pitch. KBLover seems to get a lot of mileage out of him as a 2-way player.

Originally posted by N51_rob

I need to get back into my franchise, been so busy in recent weeks I miss my Os.

Apology accepted.

**KBLover** · 05-21-2018, 03:29 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Originally posted by WaitTilNextYear

I'd play it by ear with Freddie and see what it'll actually take to sign him. Goldschmidt--arguably a better player than Freeman--also had an ask in the high 40s but the Phillies signed him for something like $35MM per year in my save. Still expensive, but significantly below sticker price.

Have you played Ohtani any in the outfield? Maybe he could solve your issue in RF on days he doesn't pitch. KBLover seems to get a lot of mileage out of him as a 2-way player.

Seeing those prices makes me feel even better about the price I have Trout at.

Indeed, Ohtani can be a total monster.

He's a solid corner outfielder. Nice arm, decent range for the corners. Manager sometimes wants to put him in CF in the non-DH lineup and I'm like "uh, no" but LF/RF - perfect.

Gave me a surprising amount of PAs, too. Maybe that's because he's DH primarily, given I'm an AL team (easier to sub for him when he needs rest), but you don't have to baby him as far as PAs if he's hitting for you.

Just keep a solid back up at the position you play Ohtani and it's fine.

**KBLover** · 05-21-2018, 03:32 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Originally posted by KSUowls

I want my core to be Albies, Acuna, Freeman, Ohtani....without a much bigger budget or at least one of those guys taking a home town discount that's going to be hard though.

Assuming Ohtani keeps his personality (their personality ratings can and do change), he might not be a hard sign. Good value, too, if he can develop solidly as a two-way for you. That makes him a unique talent and his Humble/low Greed personality will keep him (relatively) affordable.

**KSUowls** · 05-22-2018, 11:32 AM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

I've been using Ohtani as a Pitcher who also pinch hits. It does take away from some of his 2 way value, but I've had stud's in the OF all around (minus the black hole year) so I haven't really needed him out there.

Originally Freeman's asking price was around $42m (I tried when he still had 2 years left on his current deal). I low balled him in the $35m range, and then he jumped up to $47.

**WaitTilNextYear** · 05-22-2018, 02:48 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

You might have to wait him out. If no one is bidding him up, then his demand will fall. If some CPU team is bidding on him, they usually start significantly below the MSRP and you can get in on that lowered price.

**KBLover** · 05-25-2018, 02:12 AM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

2027 Angels Review

BNN sold the Angels short this year, pretty much missing on how the Angels would win games and undershooting the wins by about 10. The Angels won 100 games and were again more impressive than expected on the offensive side. The Angels will defend their title as the AL West division leader as they go for their sixth World Series title.

The six-man rotation was a success. Nothing else can be said about an AL-leading 3.35 ERA in the rotation and all six guys, barring injury, occupying the rotation slots all season long.

This means Max Alba's first full campaign was a success. While he's probably a bottom rotation starter, he held up as well as Jim Lenhart, which might say more about Lenhart falling back this year than Alba.

Ohtani, now 33, has continued to succeed on the mound. Offensively, he's getting slightly worse each year - slightly concerning but still good enough to warrant hitting as often as he does. Jim Lenhart, on the other hand, is improving as a hitter and winning plate appearances both from Jahmai Jones and Shohei Ohtani. Lenhart racked up 470 PAs despite not being a starter in the lineup, and posted 3.1 WAR, his highest offensive mark yet.

Mukai and Mavity are still looking poised to be the 1-2 combo leadership on the mound in the near future. Mavity has adopted a very aggressive pitch-to-contact (and to the hitters' ankles) style that has cut his K's and his pitches thrown down while still enjoying his usual level of success. Mukai is doing similar, two finesse young masters in era of the strikeout.

The biggest problem with the 6-man rotation has been the bullpen. The Angels resisted carrying a 13th pitcher, but the strain combined with the injuries might force the issue for the sake of depth.

On offense, the acquisition of NPB star Toshikuni Sakai was an unqualified success. He met the hype and then some by bombing 56 home runs on the season and batting .338 in the process. His .710 slugging percentage led all of baseball, beating out Twins slugger Alex Kirilloff by 5 points. Kirilloff, however, edged out Sakai in the home run department 57 to 56. Sakai and Kirilloff look to be the two big bats in all of baseball. The two were in the top two in BA, SLG, OBP, OPS, WAR, HR, and RBI in all of baseball. Kirilloff had the highest WAR in the majors, breaking the 10-win mark.

Mike Trout wasn't about to be left behind completely. He stroked 46 home runs as the 36-year-old is still one of the better all-around players in the league. Trout has blown past the 600 HR mark and has his sights set on 650 and then 700 if he can hold on to his skills and his health, which, so far, has been no issue for him.

Dominic Hutchinson is still getting caught stealing at a concerning rate, but he improved his SB from 25 to 58, improving his success rate from 47% to 67%. Hutchinson is now hitting for power it seems as well. Two years ago, he wasn't at 20 HR, now he might be pushing for becoming a 40/40 player.

Mason Doolittle will take over the catching duties in the playoffs. His bat was the most consistent during the regular season.

Derrick Cherry will be the starter but his campaign as a starter was disappointing, especially on offense. This has left the door wide open at second base. Expect intense, even encouraged competition from Moulin at this position next spring. The Angels manager is not shy about setting players in direct fights for jobs and using a "survival of the fittest" approach.

2027 Postseason Preview

Spoiler

**WaitTilNextYear** · 05-25-2018, 02:13 PM

Carolina Knights Update

MAY 1, 2020

Season Record: 10-11 (4.5 GB NL East)
Position: 5th Place NL East

TEAM PAGE

SUMMARY

After a 2019 season that saw the Carolina Knights end up in last place and 33 games under .500, fans are glad for that ordeal--The Year of the Horrible Pitching Staff--to be over with. Aside from Carolina's woes in 2019, it's worth noting that the Cubs rebounded from a 3-0 World Series deficit against the Seattle Mariners to take another title. Joey Gallo of the Texas Rangers set a new MLB single season strikeout record (236 whiffs); Noah Syndergaard won the NL pitching Triple Crown (20-5, 245 Ks, 2.80 ERA); the Orioles and Marlins both cleaned house in their respective organizations; and Barry Bonds was finally enshrined in Cooperstown. The league expanded again to 36 teams, adding the Oklahoma Outlaws and the Nashville Volunteers, finally coming to rest at 6 divisions containing 6 teams each.

Upon witnessing the offseason acquisitions of Chris Archer (trade), Gerrit Cole (free agent), Collin McHugh (surprisingly re-signed), Kyle Seager (trade), Yasiel Puig (free agent), Trevor Rosenthal (free agent), and Aaron Hicks (free agent) fans were pretty stoked about 2020--they started watching re-runs of Barbara Walters and Hugh Downs for sho. And, then, when BNN's preseason report came out and said Carolina would go 92-70 while winning the division, fans were over the moon like Apollo 11 astronaut Mike Collins. Archer (#1) and McHugh (#4) were predicted to be among the NL's top 10 pitchers. Adding Seager finally and solidly fulfilled the team owner's quest to add a "hometown player." The team went just 13-17 in Spring Training and lost the allegedly-fragile Cole for 6 weeks to shoulder inflammation, but spirits were high.

The regular season started off well enough for Bobby Cox's 3rd year expansion club as they swept the Giants in 3 games, shutting them out twice. Carolina would also take 2 of 3 from San Diego (including another pair of shutouts) and 2 of 3 from the Marlins in the month of April. At one point, the club was 8-4 and in 1st place. But, then came a brutal sweep at the hands of the Mets, losing 2/3 to the Reds, ditto with the D'Backs, and dropping 2/3 to the Cubs punctuated by a 10-1 drubbing to close out the month on April 29th. The Carolina offense showed a troubling penchant to simply not score runs. In fact, the Knights were held to 0 or 1 runs in 7 of their first 22 games. Even more troubling is that Chris Archer was on the receiving end of the 10-1 drubbing against the Cubs after he gave up 8 runs in just 4 IP the start before that. Not really what the team had in mind for the #1 rated starting pitcher in the National League.

Sitting at 10-11 after one month of play, Carolina has its work cut out if that BNN prediction is going to hold up. The Knights are 2nd-to-last in the NL in runs scored, last in batting average, last in OBP, and last in home runs. Gotta start hitting or it's gonna be another long season.

NEW EXPANSION TEAMS

Spoiler

**KBLover** · 05-25-2018, 02:45 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

More expansion teams??

I guess the league is like "MOAR TEAMS!"

You're going to have as many as NCAA at this rate! Time to expand international soon. When's the first team in Mexico? Or Europe?

And I believe in the Knights. They'll get those 92 wins, or at least close.

Over 87, Under 95.

**WaitTilNextYear** · 05-25-2018, 04:03 PM

Re: OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

Actually, I was going to keep it at 32, but then the auto-expansion kicked it up to 34 teams for year 2. I didn't like having 5 teams in some divisions and 6 in others, so I put teams 35 and 36 in to even that out. That's it, man. Un-checking the auto expansion box and not looking at my folders of fictional team artwork anymore, lol.

**WaitTilNextYear** · 05-25-2018, 06:09 PM

Carolina Knights Update

JUNE 1, 2020

Season Record: 20-30 (10 GB NL East)
May Record: 10-19
Position: 6th Place NL East

TEAM PAGE

SUMMARY

Carolina fans have seen this seen this dog and pony show before--this ballclub had a heckuva letdown in the month of May. Teetering around .500 entering the month, a 10-19 May makes it a very disappointing 10 games under .500 (20-30) at the 50-game mark. Yowza. So much for BNN's 92-70 prediction? The club would have to go 72-40 (0.643 ball) the rest of the way to get there.

Chris Archer. What the hell, bro? Archer had a run of starts spanning from late April to the middle of May that really boggle the mind. Behold:

Code:

4/24 @ CIN: LOSS, 4 IP | 8 ER | 5 K | 5 BB | 6 H | 2 HR
4/29 vs CHC: LOSS, 6 IP | 6 ER | 6 K | 2 BB | 7 H | 2 HR
5/4 vs WAS: ND, 5 IP | 5 ER | 6 K | 3 BB | 10 H | 0 HR
5/9 vs PHI: ND, 7 IP | 7 ER | 5 K | 4 BB | 8 H | 1 HR
5/14 @ ATL: LOSS, 6 IP | 7 ER | 7 K | 4 BB | 5 H | 2 HR

Again, the question is asked: bruh? Archer pitching to a 6.96 ERA/5.47 FIP in the month of May is regrettable. Hopefully the in-game RNG puts him on a late season hot streak to compensate...recall that BNN rates you as the #1 SP in the entire NL, bruh.

The pitching as a whole has struggled, with Antonio Senzatela regressing badly--a 5.92 May ERA following a pleasant 2.01 April mark. The other back-end starter, Jon Duplantier, has been beset with a herniated disk and had an unhelpful 6.07 May ERA before getting hurt. Fortunately, both Gerrit Cole and Collin McHugh are doing all they can to hold this staff together. Cole with a very respectable 3.38 ERA/3.47 FIP in May, McHugh with a 3.89 ERA/3.67 FIP.

The offense has continued to sputter pretty badly. The club is mired in 2nd-to-last place in the NL with just 194 runs scored in 50 games (3.88 runs per game). Carolina also ranks dead last in batting average (.230), 2nd-to-last in both OBP (.305) and homers (39). It's even worse w/RISP as the team holds a .215/.290/.320 slash line with runners in scoring position.

There really isn't anyone in the lineup to spotlight as doing yeoman's work--it's just that some are not doing quite as awful as the others. Kyle Seager has been especially bad (.219, 8 HR, 23 RBI) and his scouting reports are getting more negative by the month. Aaron Hicks has been scuffling as well (.208, 7 HR, 24 RBI).

It's anyone's guess as to how long the slump will last or if the club will look to break this short-lived team up as the trade deadline starts to approach.

One thing the team has been working at is augmenting the minor league system through personnel moves. GM/manager Bobby Cox took over minor league personnel duties from the assistant GM and proceeded to clean house on any managers with less than an "average" developmental effect. Hopefully doing so will help this system start producing its own MLB players soon. There are some interesting players coming through the pipeline whether or not this year's big league club has any surprises in store down the stretch.

OOTP 19 Franchise Progress

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