Vancouver is led offensively by young CF richard Truman, who hit over .330 for the year, scored over 100 runs, while clubbing 19 HRs. 3B Joseph Gonzalez is the only real power threat having clubbed 36 HRs and 101 RBI while hitting .275. 2B Rafael Espinosa leads the team in runs scored with 117. The team is not any threat on the basepaths, with 9 SBs from Espinosa accounting for 100 % of the team's SB total! Vancouver's offense is pedestrian at best.

Pitching wise, Cody Young has been the rock of the staff over the past decade, and continues to provide a very reliable pitcher who will have to step up over the next few weeks if Vancouver is going to make a run. Louis Bailey and Billy Sanders are also solid, and Vancouver boasted five double digit winners on their starting staff this year.

The strength of the team is their bullpen, led by Jalel Priest, Jumbo Abercrombie, and Sam Allen. Priest's numbers are worthy of Cy Young consideration this season, with 7 wins and 33 saves to go along with a 1.18 WHIP and an ERA barely over 2. These pitchers will have to step up and perform if Vancouver is going to succeed.

Meanwhile, Philadelpia's offense is very impressive, led by 1B and MVP candidate Omar Alvarez, who hit 55 HRs and 140 RBI and an OPS of 1.102. And he is not alone. 3B Dan Percival contributed 44 HRs and 109 RBI, 2B Vicente Lee hit 34 HRs with 100 RBI, as well as 30 HRs and 84 RBI from Bronson Bell. The Philadelphia offense is extremely strong and will pose a bit challenge for Vancouver.

Bret Dawkins paces the starting staff in Phlly, with 15 wins, a whip of 1.02, and an ERA under 3.00. Geoffery McNamara is also a phenomenal SP who will anchor the playoff staff. Santos and Ma are also solid contributors. The only advantage for Vancouver will be the bullpen, where Philly has a real piecemeal effort.

Prediction: Philadelphia 3-1

#3 Seed Chicago (91-71) vs. #6 Seed Salt Lake City

Chicago has the premier offense in the National League, and led all of Plumpy in HRs this season. The are paced by probable NL MVP Jeff Hackman, who clubbed 70 HRs, knocked in 175, and logged an OPS of 1.225. 2B Mark Spehr added 52 HRs, C Alejandro Romano clubbed over 40, while OFs Richardson & Perez both topped the 30 plateau. For those keeping score at home, the cubs lineup boasts 6 starters out of 8 who hit over 30 HRs, while Neal and O'Malley, the other two starters, each hit over 20, with Neal adding over 100 RBI.

The Cubs pitching is paced by 22 game winner and Cy Young candidate Aaron Hinske. Chipper Anderson and Oscar Christman provide three solid starters who should be very effective in the playoffs. The biggest weakness and probable achilles heal for the Cubbies is their bullpen by committee, which is filled with decent arms, but lacks shut down arms who will slam the door in close games. The Cubs will need their powerful bats and top three starters to give their bullpen large leads which they can hold.

Salt Lake City made a surprise run to the World Series last season. They hit a full 120 HRs less than the Cubs this season, and lack the dominate offense they will face in Chicago. Ewell Coles and Moises Bravo provide the power for Salt Lake, with each hitting over 30 HRs and 100 RBI.

But pitching wise, the top starters for Salt Lake are simply dominate: Tom Booker and Anthony Stanley and Carlos Olivo. All have outstanding ratings, ERAs, and ratios and are a stronger trio than Chicago will be able to bring to the pitching rubber. Salt Lake also has a legitimate front line closer in Doug Caruso, who as a 23 year old posted 40 saves.

In the end, the home field advantage and the superior offense will win this battle for the Cubs, 3-1.

Montgomery Burns

Last year, the Burns looked like a coiled spring ready to blast through the NL playoffs after turning in their sixth straight 100 win season. With a lineup already featuring Todd Ford and Jamie Jung was coupled with the mid season acquisitions of Che Ong, Andruw Henderson, Ariel Sosa. But it was for naught as the Burns fell to the cinderella Salt in the NLCS. The season the lineup is as potent as ever even with loss of Jung to free agency. GM Ttjack cashed in the trade chips of Lonny Aguilar, Tom Booker, and Ed Cannon to restock the prospects last season's trades had depleted.

Overall, the moves mitigated the off season losses, but one has to wonder if the Montgomery pitching staff will be strong enough to ensure another 100 win season and NL South title. The staff is lead by Sandy Mieske but after him there is a considerable drop off in talent and the bullpen has no real "go-to guy." With the organization's top pitching prospects likely at least a year away, there doesn't seem to be any in house reinforcements riding to the rescue should injury or ineffectiveness strike. However, as we all know, GM TTjack is not afraid to go out and fill any holes mid season.

Prediction: 98-64, 1st place NL South

Jacksonville Alcoholics

Last season Jax finished with a higher expected winning percentage than the Burn yet finished 10 games back in the standings. They did however earn the franchise's first playoff berth in team history which inspired enough confidence in GM Frankum to stand pat this off season. While the 'Holics were a bit unlucky in one-run and extra inning games, its a bit puzzling why no moves were made to shore up the long relief, catching, or add bench depth. The entire rotation is very young and strong with the trio of George Reuschel, Glenn Carlyle, and Howard Fasano and the backend of the bullpen is solid. If the #4-5 starters don't regress too much, the pitching staff should be formidable again.

Offensively, Ron Puffer should rebound slightly from his down year, but at age 30 one has to wonder if the 50 HR seasons are behind him. Rolando Guerrero continues to be the definition of consistency with the bat which should make up his age slowly draining his first step on defense. Dan Clayton and Zeus Thurman are nearing the cusp of their prime and need to continues their offensive progression. The most glaring weakness for the Alcoholics seems to be their bench with no LH pinch hitting option and little more than defensive value. All in all, Jax is a solid team and should be in playoff contention

Predicition: 95-67, 2nd place NL South, NL Wildcard

Tampa Bay Pirates

GM presidentdan went into full blown rebuild mode by dumping high priced veterans like Andruw Henderson, Ariel Sosa, Gabe Matthews, and Vicente Lee. While their returns were solid but lacked any players with real impact upside. They should provide a solid base to build upon, but only a few are ready to help out now. Steven Hiljus and Desi Nunez are on the 25-man roster and Rule V pickup Carlos Rios should slot into the starting CF job, but right now Chuck Robertson is the lone offensive force. The good news is that Pirates have one positional player over age 30 and should stay nice and cheap while progressing.

The pitching staff will be the major concern as Edgar Pascual and Bernard Frederick appear to be the only two that are capable of replacement level production. Giving innings to Brian Brea, William Wang, and P.J. Bush should give Tampa sports writers plenty to talk about.

Prediction: 60-102, 4th place NL South

Richmond Tyrants

Richmond's inexplicable free fall caused some uproar last season as GM bwb53 turned in his worst season ever by 16 games. Every pitcher not named Philip Reed struggled to miss bats while only two players with over 200 PAs had OPB better than .340. So distraught over his performance, Dion Forrest restructured his contract to give Richmond future financial flexibility. In order to right the ship, Richmond signed FAs Kirt Strong, Jaret Hall, Benny Rodriguez, and Daniel Ruffin. Richmond sports a solid rotation backed by a shaky but improved bullpen, but the staff was hit by the recent injury to Eugene Hartman.

The Tyrants abysmal OPB led to being the 4th worst in runs scored and a poor 15-26 record in one run games. The bright spot for the offense this season should be newly promoted prospect, Peter Chong. The #11 pick in season 8 should bring some much needed power and on-base skills and could partner with potential mid season call up Ivan Silva to form a young and potent 1-2 punch in the middle of the Tyrants' lineup. Until then the offense is going to have to rely on Chong and David Rojas to shoulder the load. Richmond has a potential contending level pitching staff, but until they provide the offense to back it up they will end up with more losses than wins.

Prediction: 72-90, 3rd place NL South

Salt Lake City The Salt
The most redundant team name appears to be quite apt after the experience gained during last years impressive playoff run. Taking over after the previous went GM AWOL, rds_lsu righted the ship and turned in the franchises' first 100 win season. Not to rest on his laurels and coast his previous success acquired 28 year old ace Tom Booker. Booker will be the centerpiece of a well rounded rotation that features Anthony Stanley and Carlos Oliva with no starters over the age of 30. Their bullpen offers quality depth in case of injury with Doug Caruso at the backend as the anchor. Injuries seem to be a concern for rds_lsu as the Salt are inexplicably carrying 14 pitchers on the roster.

The Salt's positional players offer the most concern. While Moises Bravo and Ewell Coles have plenty of pop and phenom Craig James is a potential all-star, they lack depth both bench-wise and organizationally. With no real advanced prospects, an injury or two could spell disaster for the Salt. Having traded uber-prospect Damon Hampton to get Tom Booker might have to rely on in house options or waiver wire scraps to fill any potential gaps.

97-65, NL West Champs

San Fransico Steriod Sluggers
The Steriod Sluggers finished one win behind the Salt and because of it faced a tougher road in the playoffs and ended up watching their division rivals win the NL Pennant. GM Grecianfox's offseason was met with firestorm of criticism from the SF area sportswriters after trading for Midre DeJesus and his albatross contract and allowing FA 3B Alan Sisco to sign for a mere 4.4 million over two years with Honolulu rather than being resigned. Sisco's departure leaves a big hole at the hot corner and in the middle of the lineup. Grecianfox used the money saved by signing perennial Gold Glove CF Shannon Lemon to patrol the vast AT&T outfield and is a considerable offensive upgrade to the position. He adds to a young offensive core of Freddie Gray, Dee Riley, and Luis Santiago. Their defense looks to be top notch with DeJesus moving to LF, Lemon, and SS Phillip Benson.

The staff is anchored by Randy Edwards who continues to nearly unhittable. The rotation behind is solid if unspectacular and their bullpen doesn't really have a weak link. The Sluggers' pitching and defense were the big reason they outperformed their pythag by nearly .040 points, the question will be whether they can score enough runs this season to catch the Salt.

Prediction: 94-68, 2nd place NL West, NL Wildcard

Vancouver Mounties
The NL West's 3rd 90 win team found themselves on the outside looking in as they missed the last wild card spot by 3 wins. With Tony Soriano and Wilson Krause leaving for free agency, GM Jerico picked up Matty Tatis via trade and promoted young prospect Julio Gil fill their spots. They don't expect to be much of an upgrade, but they should fill their respective voids. Last season Thurman Liverman proved his rookie campaign was no fluke and Richard Truman will look to do the same this year. The Mounties offense is fairly young and could improve upon their 846 runs scored last year.

The Mounties pitching staff will be their main concern. With Soriano's departure, they lack any solid RH starting pitching. With Jalal Priest and Jumbo Abercrombie swapping jobs in the bullpen, expect Abercrombie and Sam Allen to be asked to come in and shut down right-handed batters in the middle innings. The Mounties lack of quality backend starters is going to hurt their playoff chase and really seperates them from San Fran and Salt Lake City. Vancouver might need to make a mid season move to improve the rotation or else they may be watching the playoffs on tv from home once again.

Prediction: 85-77, 3rd Place NL West

Tacoma Chicken Dance
Last season GM Moustachee cut payroll and saw his wins drop below 80 for the first time. Through a flurry of moves, some savvy, other questionable, Moustachee is looking to get the Chicken Dance back into contention in the NL West. Allowing Patrick Rigby, Alvin McKay, and CF Shannon Lemon to leave and cutting P Benji Dykhoff cleared the way to trade for CFs Andrew Fox and Sid Nelson and signed upgrades Kyle Adkins, Jesse Garcia, Ronn Gagne, and RF Dean Walsh. Adkins, Gagne, and Garcia all look to be good compliments to Ben Duncan and Rey Van Hekken which is important because Tacoma is relying on their pitching staff to give up as little as possible since their offense has the second worst OPS in the NL last season.

Part of the problem for the offense was Tacoma's spacious Cheney Stadium, the other part was their dreadful production from COF (Mariano Mercedes - OPS .786 and Lonny Martin - OPS .678) and with two of their top OPS producers in Lemon and Francisco Alvarez gone, look for the Chicken Dance to continue to struggle to score runs and win ball games.

Prediction: 71-91, 4th place NL West

1st place: Monterey Jacks. Their incredible power hitting lineup coupled with solid starting pitching and a nice bullpen makes the Jacks the team to beat.

2nd place: St. Louis Crazy Horses look to go from 4th to 2nd and perhaps compete for a wild card spot in season 12. An improved young lineup, great young relievers, and a solid corp of starting pitchers will put Monterey on notice. They are one elite SP away from really making a run at the division.

3rd place: Atlanta Shockers, a team with a very solid lineup, lacks the pitching to truly compete this season.

4th place: San Jose Elephant Seals, has a great young bullpen, but needs to rebuild significantly and should start dealing vets to restock and reload for seasons 13 and beyond.

The Jacks have made the playoffs 5 times and have won the division two consecutive years. The Jacks play in a slight hitters park.

The Jacks are loaded with solid sluggers, including former first round pick and left handed slgger Julius Moreno, who has elite power, a great eye, nice splits, and makes good contact. In 3 and a half MLB seasons, Moreno has collected 139 HRs, including 40+ the past two seasons. Batting average has not been a strong suite, particularly last year, when he hit only .256. Moreno should be good for 40 HRs most every year, and will likely have a 50 HR campaign at some point.

3B Andrew Jones is the veteran slugger for the Jacks. The five time all star has collected 285 HRs and over 1000 RBI in a ten year big league career. Only 32, Jones could join the 500 HR club if health permits. Jones should be good for 25 HRs and 80 RBI this season, while playing a solid 3B. Meanwhile, LF Jimmie Richardson brings great range and a nice glove to the defensive end, while offensively he is an incredible lead-off hitter, with great splits, an awesome eye, and a great contact rate. Richardson should be able to improve on his average and OBP in years to come, which have been a disappointing .274/.349. Richardson has the skill set to win a batting title some day.

2B Enrique Ozuna is a good fielding solid all-around hitter, with an excellent eye and decent power. Over the past four seasons in the majors, Ozuna has 90 HRs and has hit .272. 2B Frank Mauer should also garner some playing time. Despite poor plate discipline, Mauer makes excellent contact and is particularly dangerous against LHP. A rookie in season 12, Mauer is lightening fast, with over 400 minor league SBs. SS Quinton Cust has a great arm with accuracy, but his range and glove are a bit underwhelming for a SS. Cust is an above average offensive player for a SS, but has no one special skill at the plate.

Jerry Torres has elite power and passable hitting skills across the board. Over 7 seasons, Torres has averaged almost 50 HRs per year, and has 800 career RBI, with a .259 BAVG. He should continue to hit for 40 or more HRs with regular playing time. Melvin Lilly is another great power hitter on the Jacks, with nearly 170 HRs in just four full-time big league seasons. 

1B Red O'Donnell has elite power and crushes LHP while holding his own against righties. He also makes good contact and has a good eye. O'Donnell hit 41 HR and had a batting average over .270 during last season's rookie campaign, earning AL Rookie of the Year honors. O'Donnell figures to be a core of the Jacks lineup for years to come.

Rigo Osuna is a very nice defensive SS who has decent power. He is a solid defensive replacement, spot starter, and pinch hitter against RHers. Even though he is a switch hitter, he has a lot of trouble vs. LHP.

Benny Iglesias was a nice pickup as a free agent CFer. An excellent defender who is injury prone, Iglesias has very good contact skills and splits, but no power. A career .310 hitter, Iglesias will be a nice contributor if he can stay healthy.

C Donnie Leskanic struggles with pitch calling, but is an excellent hitter, with awesome splits and solid skills as a hitter. He should improve his offensive numbers in the coming years.

Staff ace Ernie Wood provides great control, nice splits, and four good pitches, including an excellent slider. In three plus ML seasons, Wood has a 48-31 record, with over 500 K's and an ERA just over 4.00. Season 11 was probably his best season, as Wood sported a 16-8 record and made the all star team. Wood's broken arm in season 8 stunted his growth and prevented Wood from being the Cy Young quality pitcher many had projected, but Wood is still a serviceable #1 or #2 starter.

Young RHP Chris McDill is a very solid #2 SP, with great control, is tough on RHers, and has two good pitches. His lack of a dominant pitch holds him back, but he will still be a solid contributor for many seasons. In two big league seasons, McDill has a 28-18 record, and an ERA under 4. He should be good for 12-15 wins again this season. Meanwhile, Carlos Guardado offers great durability, stamina, and controlto go with three plus pitches, but has weak splits. The lefty has particular problems with RHers. He struggled last season during his rookie campaign, with an ERA well over 5, to go along with 17 losses. Still Guardado projects to be a very nice SP for years to come.

#4 SP Frank Kuo has a nice four seam FB and decent skills across the board, suitable for a back end of the rotation guy. Nothing special here, but he is serviceable.

Rick "Superfreak" James is a decent 5th starter/long reliever, with good control, decent splits, and two ML pitches. Johnnie Bennett is another long reliever with excellent control but sub-standard splits. Bennett does have a great 4-seamer and is an extreme ground ball pitcher, making up for his deficiencies somewhat. Bret Ross is yet another long reliever, with decent control, a great sinker, and the ability to keep the ball on the ground. His splits are decent bit not great.

Benito Olivo, in addition to having a cool sounding name, is a very nice short reliever, with good control, very good splits, and two nice pitches. Steve Duran is a RH set up man, with great control, good splits, and a lights out 4-Seam FB. Buck is a passable short reliever with average control & mediocre splits, but with a great 4-Seam FB, great velocity, and the ability to keep the ball on the ground. William Stockton is another nice reliever in a talented Jacks bullpen, with good control, splits, and quality pitches.

Tom Reed is the closer, sporting excellent control, solid splits, and two good pitches. The HR ball might be a problem, but he anchors a very good bullpen with lots of good arms.

Monterrey has a nice lineup, some good pitching, and a very good bullpen. They should be in the mix for the division.

St. Louis Crazy Horses

Just two playoff appearances for the franchise, St. Louis toils in a park that leans slightly in favor of the pitcher.

Lineup:

CF J. Cedeno

2B D. Hall

3B T. Tatum

RF M. Koloff

1B P. Spiers

DH R. Meyers

LF E. Walker/T. Broome

SS H. Harris

C  M. Adams

 

Rotation:

Arias

Stoops

Baker

Price

Davis

 

STL is paced by veteran Tris Tatum on offense, though Tatum has been on the trade block recently. In 9 full seasons, Tatum has demonstrated average power, with a season high of 23 HRs and three seasons of 100+ RBI. An all star twice in his early 20s, Tatum has never lived up to his full potential. A good defender with a .281 lifetime batting average, 31-year-old Tatum is solid, but not special, as a veteran 3B. The Crazy Horses acquired RF Matthew Koloff last season, and he offers a great RH hitting power bat in the middle of the order. The former #7 overall pick has averaged 27 HR and 95 RBI in two seasons at the big league level, while hitting nearly .280.

25-year-old 2B Damian Hall was the AL rookie of the year in season 10, when he also was an all star and silver slugger winner thanks to a .350 batting average and an OBP of well over .400. Hi second season was not nearly as productive, and Hall was traded from Arizona to STL late in the year. Hall has the fielding tools to garner multiple gold gloves at either 2B or CF. His great eye, contact rate, and ability to hit lefties are tempered by his relative struggles against RH’s and a lack of elite power. Still, along with Tatum and Koloff, Hall is an excellent offensive weapon.

1B Phillip Spiers offers excellent hitting skills, accented by a great eye and nice power, as well as good splits. He crushed pitching last year as a September call-up, hitting .391 with 4 HRs in only 46 ABs. The 22 year old former first round pick has a bright future in the middle of the STL lineup. Meyers, another 22 year old rookie, will play DH with a bit of 1B mixed in this season.  He has great power, excellent splits, and above average contact skills and eye.

LF Ed Walker also provides nice power and hitting skills against LHP. The former supplemental first rounder has logged four full big league seasons, averaging 25 HR and 80 RBI while hitting .271. Not an elite hitter, Walker is a nice contributor. Theodore Broome provides a nice platoon hitter against righties who is best suited for LF. He is an excellent contact hitter with mediocre power who has stolent double digit bases as a platoon guy in each of the last two seasons.

Injury prone CF Jorge Cedeno is a very nice defensive player with excellent speed, great contact, decent splits, and absolutely no power. A career .290 hitter with over 250 career SBs, 8 DL trips in his career have slowed Cedeno down. Still Cedeno has two silver slugger awards as a CF, including one for last season when he had his best season, hitting over .350 with 61 SBs, 211 hits, and an OBP well over .400.

SS Horace Harris is a gem defensively, and had a respectable rookie season last year hitting .260 with 12 HR, but his OBP of .315 will have to improve. Harris lacks elite hitting skills, hitting lefties better than righties, but he has trouble making contact. Still, his glove compensates for this end of the order contributor.

Catcher Mark Adams is a good defensive hitter who is passable offensively, but mediocre on a good day, though he did it .270 with 16 HRs last season. Meanwhile, backup catcher Max Jacquez offers a far superior bat, but poor pitch calling. Jacquez has great power, crushes RHers, and should see significant playing time at DH and as a pinch hitter, along with a few games behind the plate.

 Odalis Suarez, a season 5 second round pick out of Liberal, Kansas (who knew there was a liberal Kansas?), offers some nice depth around the diamond at the corners, second base, and the corner OF positions. Suarez is particularly effective against LHP, and is an average hitter across the board otherwise, except for a poor batting eye. Suarez should be a regular against lefties and a nice PH and defensive replacement. Ken Russell is a nice hitter off the bench who can play the corner IF and OF positions. He hits lefties really well, and holds his own against righties, with decent power, contact, and eye. Russell is a nice pinch hitter and bench player.

PITCHING

#1 SP Julio Arias is a wily veteran with great stamina, control, and splits, though he is susceptible to the fly ball and lacks a dominant pitch. In 11 seasons, Arias, a 3-time all star, has gone 137-114 with over 1700 K’s, a 1.33 WHIP and an ERA of 4.21. At age 35, Arias shows no signs of collapse, and should have another nice campaign in St. Louis, though he is not quite ace material. #2 SP Gus Stoops is a very nice young pitcher, with great control, passable splits, and a very nice 4 seem FB, as well as a good slurve, whatever that is!  The nineteenth overall pick in the season 7 draft, this Colorado State University product went 11-9 with an ERA of 3.65 in his first full big league season last year.  

Veteran hurler Stump Baker offers great control and effectiveness vs. RHers along with three decent pitches to compensate for his difficulties against LHers. The 33 year old has amassed an 87-97 record over the years, accented by all star appearances in seasons 8 and 9. The 33 year old should be a passable middle of the rotation starter. Harry Davis is the LHP counterpart to Baker, with excellent control and decent splits, but lacking any plus pitches. Davis’s once promising career has been riddled with serious injuries.

Bert Price is a power pitcher who induces a lot of groundballs. A steal late in the second round of the season 5 draft, Price had a nice rookie campaign last season, going 7-10 with a 4.35 ERA. To reach his full potential, Price needs to improve the next couple of years, but even with modest improvement and a good fielding infield behind him, Price could post several 12-15 win seasons. His average splits and decent but not overwhelming pitches are not ideal, but that groundball/power combo could be very nice in the right environment. 

Mark Lindsey offers very effective long relief for STL. A Rule 5 draftee, Lindsey has great control, nice splits, and three decent pitches along with a nice groundball frequency. He can step in and spot start if need be. With a career ERA of 3.63 and WHIP of 1.25, Lindsey always offers quality innings. 

Closer Clayton Philips has great skills across the board, including awesome control, nice splits, and a great sinker that induces a lot of ground balls. Though he was roughed up in the first game of the season, Philips headlines a sensational group of young arms in the STL bullpen. LH set up man Lonny Arroyo offers a relatively high stamina bullpen arm with great control, passable splits, and two awesome pitches. He struggled at the ML level in his rookie season last year, but this former first round pick has the skills to do well. Meanwhile, RH set up man C.J. Riggs offers great control, is dominant against RHers, and is an extreme groundball pitcher with two nice pitches. Riggs has the tools to be a future closer, though is not quite at Philips level.

Long reliever Julio James will eat up a lot of garbage innings for STL, but offers little else of value to STL. Marvin Belinda has similar skills (or lack thereof) and will serve as a mop-up guy for STL. J.R. Swann rounds out the bullpen with great control and three good pitches, but low stamina and average splits. 

STL has a great young lineup and great young relievers, but lacks a dominant SP. Still, the team should have a solid season. Add a top of the line SP, and this team will be a legit playoff contender.

Atanta Shockers 

History: Have made the playoffs in 8 of 11 seasons, and one back-to-back championships in seasons 2-3 while in Charlotte. Atlanta plays in a fairly neutral ballpark.

Opening day Lineup:

 2B            Fernando Garces

CF            Benji Taveras/Bernard Gunderson

1B            Jose Lee

C            Orlando Ordaz

DH            Vic Morales

RF            Juan Zapata

3B            Artie Cox/Julian Aguilera

LF            Rickey Milton

SS             Julian Aguilera/Bernard Gunderson

 

Bench: Stuart Stevens

Rotation:

Mendoza

Duran

Rollins

Paquette

Crow/Tavarez

C: Slugger Orlando Ordaz is a 33 year old whose catching skills are regressing quickly.  A hamstring injury in season 11 really slowed Ordaz down. Despite his slide, Ordaz remains a great power hitter, particularly against LHP. He is sub-par against RHP, but will continue to contribute as a DH and catcher in season 12. In 10 ML seasons, Ordaz has averaged around 35 HR’s and 80 RBI with a .275 BAVG. Ordaz should surpass 400 HRs if he can hang on a few more years. C Flash Michaels is a good defensive catcher who hits RHes fairly well despite a lack of power. Michaels should contribute decently in a platoon/backup role this season.

 1B Jose Lee is an excellent slugger, with great contact and an awesome eye along with solid power. The RH hitter holds his own against lefties and righties. In two full major league seasons, Lee has averaged 27 HRs, 95 RBI, and has a career .299 average and an OBP of .406. Lee has some 30 HR seasons in him, and should continue to flourish at the heart of the Shockers line-up.

2B: Fernando Garces is a good defender with nice speed and an excellent all-around hitter, especially for a middle infielder. A seven year vet, the 29 year old has hit over 150 career HR’s with a .297 bavg, and a solid OPS of .890.  Garces had his worst season in a long while last year, netting only 329 Abs with his lowest HR total as a major leaguer with his lowest batting average at any level (.264). Getting out of Columbus/Cleveland via trade and moving to Atlanta should be a career booster for Garces, who has all the skills that resulted in 20+ HRs and a .300 average prior to last year.

SS: 23 year old Julian Aguilera looks like he will be a fixture in the Shockers lineup for years to come. While his defense needs to develop a bit to be fully ready to play a solid Major League SS, he has solid hitting skills across the board. In his rookie campaign at only 22 years of age, Aguilera hitt .254 with 15 HRs and 12 SBs in 489 ABs while logging games at 2B, 3B, SS, and RF. Aguilera will only get better at the bat and on the field. Atlanta signed FA Bernard Gunderson, who qualifies as the best defensive player on the team. He is a plus defender at SS, and has logged some ST games at CF. The 31 year old has been a major league starter for 8 seasons, hitting a solid .290 with an average of 10 HRs per season. Gunderson may step in at SS for Atlanta, allowing Aguilera to play some 3B and fill in all over the diamond. A solid hitter, Gunderson is limited only by a low durability which will limit him to 120 or 130 games per year, but this was a great signing to solidify the defense.

3B: Artie Cox is a 26 year old switch hitter who is very effective against LH pitching. He makes good contact but has a below average eye, with decent power. He holds his own against RHP as well. Cox is a career .291 batter over parts of four seasons, and has collected 55 HRs.

Outfield

Juan Zapata  (RF) is a plus hitter with excellent contact and eye and a nice arm if not a great glove. The 30 year old has a career batting average of .293 with over 100 career HRs. He should be ready to contribute another solid season this year. Benji Taveras (CF) is a 25 year old with excellent range but a weak arm and only average glove for the position. A year of regression defensively at age 23 both offensively and defensively may prevent Taveras from being the player he could have been. Still, Taveras couples a great contact ability with incredible speed and base running to be a very nice leadoff man against RHP. His struggles vs. lefties may mean he will do best as a platoon player. In 4 years as a part time player, Taveras has amassed 90 SBs and a .279 average. Rickey Milton (LF) is a 26 year old who makes great contact and has plus power and a good eye. He is best against RHP, and will do well in a platoon role. Last year, in Milton’s rookie campaign, had a great campaign, with 27 HR’s, 101 RBI, a .274 Average, and an OPS of over .800. Milton will do well in the middle of the Shockers lineup. Stuart Stevens is a plus hitter versus RHP, with solid contact, power, and a nice eye. He is best suited for LF, but can play RF in a pinch. Stevens is set to make his ML debut in season 12, but has amassed an impressive 222 minor league HRs and a .327 BAVG and a .949 OPS during his eleven year minor league career. Stevens has the bat to contribute as a part-time player in his rookie campaign.

DH Vic Morales is a very solid hitter, particularly against LHs. His eye is one of the best in the league, and he has nice power. The 26 year old has only gotten 120 big league at bats going into this season, but has 7 HRs to show for those Abs, including 4 in only 41 Abs last season. With regular playing time, Morales could be a nice contributor for the Shockers this season. The former Montgomery Burns farmhand also has the ability to be a back up catcher.

Starting Pitchers:

Tony Mendoza is the ace of the Atlanta staff. Now 34 years old, Mendoza has won 152 games and logged 1997 K’s over 11 big league seasons.  The two-time all star overcomes average control with excellent splits, great velocity, and a great curveball and slider to go along with a nice change up, though his fastball is subpar. Mendoza has been on the trade block, but if he stays in Atlanta, he should have another solid year and should crack the 2000 K plateau in his first start.

 Young Vic Duran is a very nice rotation member for the shockers. Still only 24, Duran has excellent control, a great split vs. RHers, and a solid sinker and slider. In ½ seasons at the ML level in seasons 10 and 11, Duran has done okay, particularly as a 23 year old when he went 5-6 with a 4.46 ERA and 1.43 WHIP. Duran should be ready to be a rotation contributor for a full season this year. 30 year old James Rollins is a nice innings eater at the end of the Atlanta rotation. He has excellent stamina and control, adequate splits, keeps the ball on the ground, and has an excellent 4-seam FB. His secondary pitches hold Rollins back. Still, in six ML seasons, Rollins has averaged 12 wins a year with an ERA just over 4.29. Rollins is unlikely to repeat the success he had in seasons 6 & 8 when he won 15 and 16 games respectively, but will contribute. Manny Paquette is a very solid left handed starting pitcher with excellent control, two plus pitches, and a great split verses lefties. In three full big-league seasons, Paquette has been a solid player, peaking in season 9 with a 14-8 record and a 3.79 ERA for Charlotte. The former first rounder is now 30, and should be in the middle of the Atlanta rotation.

 28 Year Old Yamil Tavarez rounds out the rotation. He has good control, decent splits, and a nice Fastball and a decent slider, but his third and fourth pitches are not ready for prime time. His major  league numbers have been quite poor, so Tavarez may find himself as a long reliever or mop up guy. Gregory Crow will also compete for the fifth starting spot. The two year veteran LHer started 23 games in season 11, with a respectable 8-8 record despite underwhelming skills.  Crow has decent control, but his splits are weak, particularly against RHers. Crow’s fast ball is mediocre, but his plus changeup allows him to be a big-league hurler. His curveball is average.

The Bullpen is headed by only one elite player: Shane Prince, who has been a stellar reliever in this league for 7 seasons. He has mainly pitched in middle relief, but has logged on average over 100 innings a year out of the bullpen, while compiling a 49-37 record with 22 major league saves. He does it with a very strong mix of stamina and durability, impeccable control, and two plus pitches. His lack of a third pitch limits Prince to the bullpen, and his right handed split is a little less than ideal, but overall, Prince has been a very good reliever over the years.

 Larry Brown is a decent reliever with good control, nice stamina, and decent splits. He lacks a dominant pitch, however. Despite this, Brown has had a few very effective seasons as a short reliever. John Shibata is another decent relief pitcher with good control. A lefty, he does particularly well against LH hitters. Like Brown, he lacks any dominant pitches. Unlike Brown, Shibata has struggled at the major league level. Kevin Thompson is a decent long reliever, with good control and great stamina for a reliever. His splits are low and his pitches underwhelming, however. Despite a great WHIP in his rookie year (Season 11), Thompson gave up 10 HRs in only 58 IP, leading to an ERA over 5. Hunter Wendell is a rule 5 draft pick who offers strong stamina, tub has average skills across the board, with his ability to induce ground balls his only plus skill.  Atlanta may regret this Rule 5 pick, who is not ready for the majors, and probably never will be. Turner Christensen is a decent reliever with good control who is effective against righties, and has two plus pitches. Jerry Murphy is a lefty specialist who is only good for 6 to 10 pitches due to dreadfully low stamina.

Outlook: Very solid hitting lineup, but Atlanta lacks the pitching depth or the bullpen to go too far this season.

Minors: 1B/LF Red Castillo is a nice hitting prospect. Likewise, Kris Post is a nice hitting 2B prospect who is a year away. CF Al Lee projects to be a nice leadoff hitter down the line. Guillermo Guerrero and Eric Pettitte are very nice starting pitching prospects.

San Jose Elephant Seals

Historically, San Jose has made the playoffs three times, but has not finished above .500 since season 9. The team plays in a park that favors power hitters.

Possible Opening Day Starting Lineup:

2B Alredo Morales

LF Vicente Jose

3B Andy Bell

CF Matthew Sweeney

1B Juan Benavente

DH Tom Henderson

C  J.P. Hernandez/Ryan Brooks

SS Josh Ellis

RF Mark Suzuki

Key subs: Ricardo Johnson, Andres James, Gary Youkilis, Jim Coco

Starting Staff: 

Ed Nunnari

Alex Aoki

Rex Pederson

Damion Shibata

Abraham Diaz

Bullpen:

Marvin Becker

Wes James

Luis Sivilla

Pascual Fernandez

Dee Kershner

Jason Reed

Analysis:

The team is hoping to build around 23 year old CF Matthew Sweeney, who just missed a 20/20 season as a rookie last year. Sweeney should be a great piece to build around over the next several seasons, although his glove may make him a better 2b than CF. 25 Year Old RF Mark Suzuki is an excellent defender who could step in at 3B or even SS if need be. While his contact rate and power are limited, he has averaged about 15 HRs and a .283 average over his three + major league seasons.

30 year old speedster Ricardo Johnson has several seasons of 100 + steals thanks to a great batting eye, an awesome contact swing, great base-running and speed. He might be good trade bait for this team that is trying to rebuild. Alfredo Morales, coming off of a 25 HR season with a .290 average, should be a solid overall hitter who can step in at 2B. 3B ANdy Bell, meanwhile, is coming off a .300 season at the plate. 

23 year old speedster Andres James also seems to have the tools to cause trouble on the basepaths, but has been slowed by substandard OBPs, including a low .313 last season, despite a great eye and good contact. James is perhaps hurt by a total lack of power, allowing pitchers to challenge him without a threat of making them pay. Still, it is way too early to give up on this young future lead off hitter, who could have a very bright future.

Josh Ellis is a very good fielding SS who struggles against RHP and has very limited power. Gary Youkilis, on the other hand, handles RHP well, but lacks the power necessary for a corner outfielder, especially on a team that is in desperate need of power. Newly acquired LF Vicente Jose is an on base machine, with a career OBP over .420, but his power is fading as he ages, and again as a LF he will not provide much in the way of extra base hits. Juan Benevente is a nice hitter in the mode of Sean Casey (a 1B with very limited power-a theme on this squad).

Where is the Power? Jim Coco does provide power, swatting 60+ HRs in his past two minor league seasons, but the Jack Cust clone was in the minors at age 26 for a reason, striking out over 130 times per year. While his average has been decent, his atrocious contact rate and substandard splits make it unlikely Coco can produce an OBP to justify his power at the major league level. The only power hitter who is proven at the major league level is 1B Tom Henderson, who hit a HR in every 10 ABs last season, netting 38 in under 400 ABs. Henderson has a good batting eye, but like Coco is limited by poor splits and a poor contract rate. Henderson may have had his best overall season as a 26 year old rookie.

C JP Hernandez will be an excellent platoon catcher and relief pitcher against LHP. He is dreadful against RH'ers, but young Hernandez should have a long platoon career ahead of him. Brooks offers good power as the other part of the catching platoon, and they both are solid defensively.

The strength of the pitching staff, unfortunately, is the bullpen. 22 year old Luis Sivilla has an excellent arm, and should only get better as a future shut down closer or set up man. Pascual Fernandez is even better, and was one of the better relief pitchers in Plumpy Rules in season 11. Wes James is yet another fine reliever, but he is coming off a poor year in the ERA and WHIP departments. Marvin Becker provides veteran leadership for a bullpen that is among the best in all of Plumpy Rules, and it had better be, because as we will see, they will log a lot of innings to compensate for a very substandard starting staff.

26 year old Alex Aoki is a decent starting pitcher, with excellent control and passable splits, but has only one major league pitch, which limits his effectiveness as a starter. Veteran Daimion Shabata has accumulated over 100 victories, and is a reliable 4th starter. Pederson is very similar, with 114 career victories, but waning skills, but he will be asked to be a #2 or #3 SP on this team. Abraham Diaz, meanwhile, is a passable end of the rotation SP for San Jose. Rule 5 pick Ed Nunnari has some of the best skills of any potential SP for the Seals. He has excellent control, a great first pitch, decent second and third offerings, and he keeps the ball on the ground. His achilles heal is barely passable splits vs. lefties and righties, but on this staff, flame throwing Nunnari appears to be the cream of the crop. 

Jason Reed, meanwhile, is barely passable as a long reliever or mop-up guy. Kershner's control will pose problems for him, and he doesn't have the splits or enough great pitches to compensate. He is more of a mop up guy than anything.

Verdict: San Jose simply does not have the starting pitching or the lineup to compete in season 12. They do have a great bullpen and a few very nice young players to build around. Perhaps trading James or Sivilla for emerging prospects could accelerate the rebuilding process.

And help is on the way with slugging DH/C Vin Romero, AAA SS Pedro Campos (who is one of the very best prospects in Plumpy Rules), and pitchers Sherman Fick and A.J. Fassano, who both project to be far better than any of the Starting Pitchers currently laboring at the ML level. With the 8th pick in the upcoming draft, San Jose is sure to add another nice building block to their team.

Chicago Fatties (AL) daweiproject View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Talk about a team on the rise the Cubs have gone from the cellar to the top of the division all because of the hard work and effort of dawei. The team started out strong finishing 2nd but after that first season the team started to fall. After 4 straight seasons of finishing in 3rd they finally finished 2nd and broke trough and finished 1st last season. The one problem that many experts have on their minds is after Oswaldo Escobar retires for the Fatties no longer think his stats and skills warrant a big pay check who will play CF. The team has no true CF on the farm to replace him. But they do have a lot of SS. Here's hoping the team can continue their strong play.


TOP TEN
PROSPECTS
1. Phil Davenport
2. Miguel Lopez
3. Frank Wagner
4. Del Baptist
5. Kris Wood
6. Milt Lidge
7. Jean Kelly
8. John Padden
9. Francisco Candelaria
10. Chris Payton

Top Draft Picks
Of the Decade
Season 2: Enrique Uribe
Season 3: Eric Nance
Season 4: Benito Camacho
Season 5: Mark Latham
Season 6: Frank Bako
Season 7: Gus Stoops
Season 8: Miguel Lopez
Season 9: Frank Wagner
Season 10: Rip Oliver
Season 11: Chris Payton

Best Tools
Best Power Hitter: Lance Phillips
Best Hitter for Average: Philip Gardner
Fasetest Baserunner: Les Sowders
Best Fastball: Francisco Candelaria
Best Curveball: Dwight Henley
Best Control: John Padden
Best Defensive Catcher: Miguel Lopez
Best Infield Arm: Donald Vanguri
Best Outfield Arm: Phil Davenport