Tuesday, February 23, 2010

POWER RANKING Ryan Week 2

I am trying a new Power ranking Equation out, I used it for another league a few seasons back and thought it would work pretty well here. It does shake things up a bit this 1st time. It should level out as the season wears on. It takes a combination of Offensive, pitching, and fielding stats and ranks each team in point values. It also looks at Wins and Exp Win Percentages to give a score. Highest possible score would be a 700. Lowest possible score would be a 40.

  1. Wichita (1) – Recipe for success: 5 starters batting over .300 and 6 pitches with ERA's under 3.5 RATING 571.69
  2. Toledo (3) Telford and Buchanon both have had their signature seasons in Toledo and both look to be continuing that trend this season, but Tino Chang is on a different plain 7 wins in 7 starts and still quite unhittable. RATING 557.94
  3. Philadelphia (4) – RF Valerio Guillen is still batting .420 with 15 hrs. If they hold this pace he would set all types of records.
    RATING 514.06
  4. Memphis (2) – Both New York and Memphis are road warriors who need to figure it out in front of the home crowds. The one who gets it first would be the team to beat. As both are pitching at an elite level RATING 472.75
  5. New York (NL) (5) – SEE ABOVE RATING 472.125
  6. Milwaukee(9)- 2B Jose Alonso has been struggling to find his way at 2B, might be costing the Stockings a few games in the long run, if he provided more consistent power or speed his defense might be acceptable but with the pitching struggles they sure could use a better glove at the 2 hole.
    RATING 463.31
  7. Cheyenne (17) – Chris Durbin has 22 stolen bases without being caught stealing this season, the rest of the Marmots have 8 stolen bases and have been caught 10 times, leave the stealing to the pro's guys RATING 443.31
  8. Norfolk (20) - S14 rule 5 pickup Bryan Easley was pressed into service last year, but it seems that season under his belt has made him a superior hitter this season. Already with 11 stolen bases and batting near .400 on the season.
    RATING 420.88
  9. New York(AL) (8)- RP Angel Beltre's season is over will an arm injury, His stable pitching will be hard to match, but ex-all star closer Luther Matthews will be ready for the challenge. RATING 418.06
  10. Chicago (16) defensively this could be one of the stronger teams in the league, The Defense will keep the opposition honest. RATING 413.63
  11. Salem (22) - SP Michael Foster just won't die, he is pitching like he did 4 years ago and is punishing batters with his Curve. Someone needs to remind him that he's 35 and not the pitcher he use to be anymore. RATING 401.56
  12. Colorado Springs (14) LF Enrique Chantres's injury should slow CSP's rise in the poll for next week, consistently a 30+ HR guy his offense will be missed for the next week or so.
    RATING 397.13
  13. Columbus (11) - 1b Bo Glanville could be the only guy standing in the way of Philly's Valerio Guillen's Triple Crown. RATING 389.63
  14. Florida (31) – Biggest benefactor of the new Power ranking system. The computer might have a BCS type error, but the Rays EXP Win % of .555 seems to say they belong this high. RATING 307.38
  15. Colorado (18) - 2B Lucas Martin is someone to watch should join the 30/30 club this season if he keeps on slugging. Stolen bases should be no issue he's a perfect 22-0 this season.
    RATING 307.125
  16. Austin (15) – 2B Lance Mann has found his lost power stroke, after hitting 14 dingers in s14 he's already back on pace for 30+. RATING 302.94
  17. Madison (13- ) – Some of the issues in Madison point to Gold Glove 2B Bo Nitkowski's below Mendoza performance this season. Batting .197 so far almost 100 points lower than his career average.
    RATING 292.13
  18. Kansas City (26) – DH Adrian Cassidy does not seem to be taken kindly to be cast as the DH and no longer asked to play the field. Batting just north of .200. A disgruntled Cassidy is no fun.
    RATING 286.44
  19. Salt Lake City (21) FA pickup SS Carlos Zapata filled in admirably for Injured Fritz Lowe. He will be a huge upgrade for predecessor Adrian Smith. Now they need to look for an upgrade for Blackley in RF. RATING 286.13
  20. Montgomery(6) – RATING 272.692
  21. Monterrey (23) – RF Seop Wan has returned to the Ml after 2 seasons of sparse play and has already stolen 7 bases in only 62 AB's Given the chance this guy has succeeded. RATING 272.69
  22. Washington D.C. (7) – To this day I still do not know how Theo Gibson has survived in the ML to the age of 34 and has pitched in the ML for the past 10 seasons. If he goes up for HOF He has by vote just because he is the MAGIC MAN.
    RATING 260.94
  23. Atlanta (19) PH Terrell Welch could be one of the all-time great pinch hitters in the history of the NL, This guy has made a career the last 5 seasons of being the man to count on to get a hit off the bench, just don't count on him in the field every day. RATING 255.75
  24. Texas (12) – Gold Glove SS Scott Rose needs to provide more offense if Texas is going to climb out of their funk and be serious contenders. RATING 252.63
  25. Las Vegas (27) – The Pitching staff is having a difficult time getting the ball over the plate already accounting for over 150 walks this season. Makes you wonder if the catcher and pitchers are all on the same page out there. RATING 249.63
  26. Burlington (30) – RP Miguel Arrojo has had 4 seasons of success leading the Storms bullpen, but just could seem to pull it together this season. As a result he gets a bus tickets to AAA. RATING 237.19
  27. Louisville (28) – Pitching has been an issue for the Sluggers Both Roy Robinson and Yanick Fonville are underperforming this season. Once they get rolling Louisville will be in better shape. RATING 235.194
  28. St. Louis (25) – The Coming of CF Lawrence Hutton should give the Rustlers a nice little push in the wins column, if he starts hitting. Why 2B Moose Payton is in the ML surprises me, I think he could be cut and have a cardboard cutout take his At bats and have similar results.
    RATING 235.19
  29. Pittsburgh(10) – SP Ted Gibbons and Alan Chambers showed nothing in their 8 starts so they got bus tickets to AAA, Here's hoping SP Rob Black is ready to roll RATING 202.88
  30. Minnesota (24) - Only been able to convert 9 out of 16 save opportunities, if they can figure out the bullpen this team could be a quick riser in the power rankings. RATING 166.94
  31. Durham (29) it took time but finally RP Luis Carrasco has pitched his way out of a job in Durham, Final season line 17 innings 42 hits 21 ER 8 W 12 SO and an 11.12 ERA. Good luck in AAA.
    RATING 120.5
  32. Toronto(32)-Kmueller is back to try to save this once proud franchise, but this time it might be a little too late to save the pitching RATING 84.63

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

POWER RANKINGS S15 Week 1

  1. Wichita (-) – 2B Vic Castilla already has 18 SB's to lead the league His team is scary good and will be hard to overtake at the top of the rankings.
  2. Memphis (-) – SP Johnny Powell is a good pitcher, but this start is just unbelievable. 30 innings 1 ER, 22 SO and 4 walks for .30 ERA.
  3. Toledo (-) what pisses me off most about Albert Frazier is that he refuses to negotiate in the off-season and then has the nerve to sign with my division rival. Oh Well, Pitching and hitting their way to lead the tough AL North, Plowed over Madison and New York with no issues in Conference play.
  4. Philadelphia (-) – Last season the pitching came alive and carried the team this season the hitting has been on fire. Cracking extra base hits at a league topping rate.
  5. New York (NL) (-) – Rebuilding year my ass, Shayne Nagy anchoring the usual all-star pitching has already amassed 2 complete game shutouts on his way for early consideration for the Cy Young.
  6. Montgomery (-) – SP Francis Charlton trying to earn every penny of his bloated 20M contract. He has done well with a 2.62 ERA and 4 wins for 4 in starts.
  7. Washington D.C. (-) – As a team they have struggled to find consistent bats, but yet they sit on top of their division. I predict a big fall next week.
  8. New York(AL) (-)- Here's a team which gave up more in the off-season from their ML squad than they returned with while all the teams around them stocked up there ML teams, yet they still are near the top of the Power rankings, It's that NY Magic.
  9. Milwaukee(-) The lack of quality Japanese translators in the Greater Milwaukee area has slowed any attempt to figure out what is wrong with duo Hideo Tamura and Daisuke Yoon. Both seem to be pitching well below their capabilities.
  10. Pittsburgh(-) –Tim Garcia and Pedro Sequignol on the same team! 5 years ago I think this would have been scary, but even a 42 year old Garcia can still pitch circles around most batters. It will be interesting to see how the bullpen holds up this season. If they do this could be a team poised to compete again.
  11. Columbus (-)- 2B Bernie Martinez seems to have lost his swing at the start of S15, they need his bat with the team has any hope of catching the surging Balboas
  12. Texas (-) – SS Aurelio Espada has been passed around the last 3 seasons, Hoping to hit his way into a home this superstar he leading Texas's offensive charge with 7hr 5SB while batting over .317 on the season
  13. Madison (-) - Offensively Madison has fallen to the middle of the pack, with Spring Training acquisition Matt Shave this should not be the case for long, Look For Madison to break out of the sub-500 record and turn things around quickly.
  14. Colorado Springs (-) SS Santo Montero seems to finally be adjusting to ML pitching rising his average to .171, still CSP needs to have a short leash or this division could be gone.
  15. Austin (-) – FA Acquisition Hugh Prokopec has always been fast averaging more than 100 SB a season, but this season he has found a bit more pop already hitting 4 HRs his career high is 16.
  16. Chicago(-) 1B Cristobal Jacquez has shown he has 40+ homerun power in the past, but has never hit over .300 in a season. Currently he is #1 in the league in HR (9) and batting a sizzling .364
  17. Cheyenne (-) – 8-2 at home and 0-6 on the road. Need to solve the road whoa if they want to stay contenders in the NL West. Babe Allen is struggling at Closer already 2-6 in save opportunities.
  18. Colorado (-) - Currently leading the NL West, but showing huge holes in blowout losses to CSP and Salem early in the season. SP Aaron Shiell seems to have found a way to pitch in the thin air going from a +6 era to a sub 3 this season.
  19. Atlanta (-) Dickie Tartabull seems to have worked out of his funk from S14 and is playing up to expectations if not beyond. Leading the team in all batting and running categories. He is the new face to Braves baseball.
  20. Norfolk (-) - SP Marty Hooper's 5 year 44M deal looks good right now.
  21. Salt Lake City (-) a team who dwelled near the bottom of the power rankings last season, seems to found new life in a fury of offseason moves and trades. SS Fritz Lowe's injury could derail his hot start and deflate the Assault's rise.
  22. Salem (-) - SP Josias Estrella has not taken kindly to Salem as he is being teed off left and right. 11.30 ERA.
  23. Monterrey (-) - INF Sam Miller's leash is off this year and he's back to his old thieving ways. Watch for him to steal 50+ this season.
  24. Minnesota (-) - all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average. The baseball team though might not quite live up to that standard
  25. St. Louis(-) Gerald Monroe (1), Spike Meusel(2) and Stephan Driefort (5) are among the league leaders in Strikeouts, a situation which needs to be corrected soon.
  26. Kansas City (-) – CL Jose Jose although he has not gotten much of a chance this season has shown little life left in his multi-million dollar arm.
  27. Las Vegas (-) – it always scares me when the man of glass (Vinny Hernandez) is a team's leading AB man and counted on so heavy in an offense. He's to hoping his bionic body can hold up to a full season of wear and tear.
  28. Louisville (-) - Happy Gilmore said it best " stop staring at me Swan"
  29. Durham (–) RP Luis Carrasco has never found much success pitching in Durham this season is no exception in 8 IP he has given up 22 hits and 12 runs for an ERA of 15.43
  30. Burlington (-) – LF Fergie Ryan's Torn Ligament might destroy an otherwise promising career. 80+ stolen bases over the past season and half and a preseason injury might take a good chunk of his speed for the future. He will see next spring how he adapts.
  31. Florida (-) – Looking for pitching help with a team ERA of 6.40 they have identified the issue.
Toronto (-)
  1. - Could be considered an abandoned franchise- 2 years in a row this is getting bad. Team ERA of 20.83 and Clarence Patrick still pitches here.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

NL East S15 Season Preview

NL EAST Season 15 Projected Standings

Team

Owner

W-L

Summary

New York Burros

pullmeafredo *

94-68

Might be a down year if you call 90+ wins a down year

Norfolk Train Wrecks

mattfurjan

80-82

A strong bat or ace pitcher is needed to solidify the lineup

Pittsburgh Pirates

noahkelley

77-85

Improved from last season, but still a ways to go

Atlanta Braves

warrior0510

63-99

Look for Atlanta to be handled all around this season

ATLANTA BRAVES

62.3M ESTIMATED OPENING DAY PAYROLL

Offense: Tartabull is the real deal. Evers should be able to expand on his audition from last season, but all and all this might be a 4A offense at best.
Defense: There are better more precise fielders. Atlanta has no true option at SS and weaknesses at Catcher and at 3B.
Rotation: If Jarret Dunn could pitch every night they would be in better shape. Since he's not Atlanta will struggle to get dependable pitching. I don't think Kevin Yamagushi can pitch as effectively this season. Look for a lot of scary box scores on those off nights
Bullpen: bringing in Victor Vegas was a wise move, but they need more in the Pen if they want to lockdown any lead each night. The rest of the pen is AAA at best.

Pittsburgh Pirates
81.0M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Shaggy Inglett is being pressed into service early, he's not a shortstop but might be a good 3B his bat is ready now though. Free agent grabs Feliz and Sheehan are welcome to a team that had no bats a year ago.
Defense: Diaz isn't going to hold up as the only catcher on the roster. The rest of the roster could be shuffled and the Pirates would field a superior defensive unit.
Rotation: Pedro Seguignol has been brought in to anchor the rotation. The rotation is seasoned and it might be a challenge for them to hold out the whole season. One more solid starter would go far on this team.
Bullpen: a nice assortment of relievers, but no true lock down closer. There might be a closer by committee approach or we might see 42 year old Tim Garcia getting a shot as closer.

New York Burros
24.9M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: This team can hit, SS Kurt Morgan is great all around and he is joined by stars Shayne Owens, Brett Sager and Ken Springer. Even scarier is the pack of guys waiting in AAA. Look to see SS's Benito Escobar and Moises Bonilla, and Catcher Arnold Kline
Defense: could be the best fielding team in the league, they have SS talent busting out of the seams. The defense as always made the pitching better this will be no exception.
Rotation: no longer the Burros rotation the NL is use too, but tomorrows Aces are around the corner. Youth has always been key to the burro's style. This season's crop is still a bit to green, Look for Ace Nagy to be joined by Gary Saunders, Max Estrada, and Sam Terry. Look for Prospects Juan Escuela and Eugene Buckley to get an early call up after the 1st month of the season.
Bullpen: lost established closer Kevin Burke, but still has talent in the pen to work with. Solid arms Lee may and Mendoza should hold their own and provide the core of the pen. Look for AAA prospect Julio Arias to get a chance to show his wares.

Norfolk Train Wrecks
70.5M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: The train wrecks have a few guys who can bat, a few guys who can swing for the fences and a few guys who can run, getting all those things to happen at the same time will be the challenge. They need 1 more solid slugger to make this offense click
Defense: defense is a priority in Norfolk; The defense should make balls in play turn to easy outs. Finnessey is the best defensive CF in the game, miss in defensive studs Wynn and Chaisson and the team looks very good
Rotation: 3 solid starters but not a whole lot else to look forward to pitching every 5 days.
Bullpen: a few solid arms Hong-Jin Xaio did a great job closing last season, but might find himself setting up Livan Campos who will not be able to pitch as often as Xaio.

NL SOUTH S15 Preview


NL SOUTH SEASON 15 PROJECTED STANDINGS

Team

Owner

W-L

Summary

Memphis Amon-Ra

holer *

101-61

Not much should stand in the way of a repeat of division champs. Should go deep in the playoffs

Austin BUTCHERS

bartkowski

85-77

Trying to steal the Division title, but will find themselves tagged out at home.

Florida Sting Ray

shanmeg

74-88

Pitching is holding the team back, should consider sending a stud position player off to get a few great pitching arms.

Monterrey Metros

Midmets

73-89

Should show signs of improvement and with some small tweaks they could easily be a plus .500 team this season.


Austin BUTCHERS
98.4M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Austin is the fastest lineup top to bottom in the league. Expect the team to run freely and see if they can steal a few games in Season 15. This will be a hit and miss team with their offense, don't expect a lot of big run games, but instead a number of close nail biters where you hope the pitching can hold up.
Defense: overall they have a defensive hole at 3B but should have enough range at SS and 2B to cover the hole. The Butchers also have defensive replacements to eliminate the late inning errors that might cost them the close games.
Rotation: Won 93 games, but it was not because of the starting pitching, Calvin Coco is a legitimate #1 guy, but the rest of the rotation pitched above their heads, expect the rotation to return to earth some this season. Don't expect a complete crash, but many of the on the fence games the bullpen wrangled in last season will not be there this season.
Bullpen: Rincon pitched lucky last season, his skills need to show its not all luck that gets him his 40+ saves. Around him the bullpen is quite strong Jim McMahon won over 10 games as a long reliever and Benny Miller and Edwin Wagner showed that they could convert the close games into wins or saves.

Memphis Amon-Ra
90.5M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Revamped starting offense is biggest stronger and more explosive than last season. There will be days when the pitching will have no pressure because the game is 6-0 before the end of the 1st inning
Defense: Slick fielding guys who will rarely make big mistakes, the addition of Stubby Cyrs and Eugene walker add a lot both offensively and defensively.
Rotation: Should be the best young rotation in the ML, Look for them to dominate the competition was their pitching prowess. Osvaldo Azocar is starting the season in the Majors after fast tracking it through the minors. Rookie pitcher might struggle this season to get his groove and because of the depth might find himself the odd man out.
Bullpen: Benito Hernandez is a top caliber closer, but he's not the only gun in the pen, the Depth were is quite good, look for the Amon-Ra pitching to be near the tops of the NL if not the whole league.

Monterrey Metros
71.9M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Rio and Miranda will get the chance to play fulltime and show what they can do, I'm not sure they both can maintain a .300 plus average. The Metro's a young inexperienced team; I think this will be a learning year for them.
Defense: Weak up the middle but strong on the edges. The team will make a sports center like catch one day and be caught on the blooper reels the next
Rotation: Strong 4 man rotation, with a couple of good options to pick up the rock on the 5th day. The Metros rotation needs to go deep in games to avoid exposing the weak bullpen. On a side note Pasqual Concepcion's injury seems to have completely derailed his career, look for him to fight for a relief spot on this team or be cut.
Bullpen: Butch Hamilton is a solid closer who might better serve the Metros as a super setup guy. The bullpen is go think that it is unfair to ask him to do all that he needs to make this area successful. Look for Hamilton to burn out quickly and again have an ERA which is less than impressive.

Florida Sting Ray
66.2M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Candy Zoltan, Footsie Long, and Tom Randolph all have shown they can hit and swipe bags. Add in fast-tracked superstar Ron Burns and you have the making for an elite squad. Right now though the Rush program Florida is using is stunted the long range effect of these guys. They should do well enough slugging to power over a few weaker opponents.
Defense: Defense is young and learning on the job, a Few balls will get by them as they learn their positions. In the long run they will be a great defensive team for now they are above average but flawed.
Rotation: Hit and Miss starting rotation Walker has the ability to control the game or destroy it deepening on the day of the week, the rest of the rotation is similar they will either control the game or throw it away. Tory Caro is not a bad catcher, but might not be good enough to handle this staff.
Bullpen: Pedro Escobar is a fine support guy in a bullpen, in Florida he is being asked to be the man, last season he had missed reactions in that role, with a frail bullpen the Sting Rays need to hope they don't have to hand too much to the Pen.

Friday, February 5, 2010

NL North S15 Preview


NL NORTH Season 15 Preview

Team

Owner

W-L

Summary

Columbus Horseshoes

bengal814

101-61

Might be the favorite in the NL this season

Milwaukee Blue Stockings

jweiland

87-75

The pitching staff is what to love, one more consistent hitter and they could become the league sweethearts

Philadelphia Balboas

booshie73

87-75

Without their ace the Balboas will struggle to hold opponents down

Toronto Terriers

zeg723 *

72-90

Already on AI control that's not a good sign at the start of the season for the 2nd straight season.

Philadelphia Balboas
74.8M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Power, Speed and good overall hitting should put Philly in the position to score enough runs to overcome pitching whoa
Defense: Miguel Bennett is the only defensive liability the Balboas have to worry about in the field daily. The Most glaring weakness might be with throwing out runners stealing second in the NL. Speed is king and the Balboas will struggle to contain that.
Rotation: With Ace Adam Parish still recovery most of this season, the Balboas rotation is remarkable pedestrian. Philly will not be able count on pitching to win many games for them this season.
Bullpen: JP Ordonez is a solid closer and could be the Best in the NL, top setup man Torrey Darnell makes sure the game is close when he gets the rock; beyond them the bullpen is very thin.

Milwaukee Blue Stockings
50.7M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: The Blues have never been shy of the Strike out, this year will be no exception, but the Addition of Hocking at C is a good pick up both offensively and defensively. Matthews, Estrada and Carson Need to fuel this offense and injury to anyone of those guys even for a short time will derail this team.
Defense: solid unit who will perform well behind a great pitching staff, There are a few players that make the Blues for the purpose of being a good glove
Rotation: The Blue Stockings have the best young rotation outside of New York; they still have developing to do. I am pretty sure though that they are quite capable of leading Milwaukee to the Promised Land this season.
Bullpen: Yoon and O'Malley are the stars of the pen, but they are surrounded by AAA talent, on nights when they need to rest Milwaukee could be riding a roller coaster

Toronto Terriers
67.0M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Brent Sheets is a 1 man show now with the FA departure of Carlos Hernandez. Power is very much lacking, where the offense is going to come from is the question at hand. This is the team that will have to thrive with the small ball and hope Patrick can pitch everyday
Defense: many holes to fill on defense, no true CF, and both the 2B and the 3B should be playing in the corner OF at best. A little shuffling and they might be able to piece a lineup together
Rotation: One of the NL's best pitchers is Clarence Patrick; behind him is a whole lot of nothing. There are a few arms at AAA that could be called up but rushing Junior Martin might not be in their long range interests at this point. There are still a few FA pitchers who could give the void.
Bullpen: Howard Neal returns as the stopper in Toronto. The hope for the Terriers might be on how well Jeff Watson comes back from his shoulder injury, the rest of the pen is average to below average. The longer the starters can pitch the better the pen will be which might be the problem.

Columbus Horseshoes
101.3M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Bo Glanville, Oscar Baker and Sergio Koplove are offensive juggernauts offensively they could be the best in the NL outside of Colorado
Defense: The Horseshoes have the defensive studs most teams are looking for even if they sacrifice for offense to start the game the bench will have the defensive subs.
Rotation: Rodriguez is an unappreciated workhorse, Webb can be successful as he has shown, the rest if the pieces should fall into place and gel as a fine rotation
Bullpen: Watson is most likely HOF bound. 1 more all-star nomination and he is automatic. 2 solid setup guys doesn't lead to the best pen, Columbus should look to add 1 more

NL West Season 15 Preview

NL WEST SEASON 15 Projected Standings


Team

Owner

W-L

Summary

Colorado Springs Organizational Filler

voteforlou

105-57

Returning close to the same team, a recovered CL York might be the difference

Colorado Mile High Club

Fregoe

88-74

Getting better each year, but pitching still a season away from where they need it. But the next generations Mile Highers are going to make noise now.

Salem Slammers

liamsar

85-77

Adjustment season to a new city, Durbin is still the "fastest man on Earth" let's see if the lineup around him get score him more often.

Cheyenne Marmots

djgaffer

83-79

Solid top to bottom for regular season, might peter out in the Playoffs

Salem Slammers
74.9M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Power hitting offense, Salem is going to ask the hitting to carry the team in S15. This will be a new approach for this franchise and with this group it will have mixed results
Defense: Good all around fielding bunch most are here for their bats first, but they all seem to have brought plus gloves to the field. Opponents will have a hard time getting this team to make many mistakes
Rotation: Michael Foster is no longer a capable 6+ inning starter, he still has skills and can pitch but he's not going to get you anything past the 7th inning. Lamb and Casey are quality young arms, but not a true ace which the team needs to solidify the rotation for the future.
Bullpen: Felipe Liriano has had success as a closer in San Diego, but the move up the coast might expose Liriano as a fraud. Like the rest of the pen, Felipe might not be good enough to count on every day. Buckle up this corp. will give you a ride.

Colorado Springs Organizational Filler
78.1M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Pedro Cela is the new standard for elite players, he is surrounded his great hitting corp. who should eat up the weak pitching and challenge the tough arms.
Defense: Solid yet unspectacular Brinkley could get tangled up at 1B and the options at CF are thin with the glove. Look for a few runs to roll by the Fillers.
Rotation: Starting Tandem of Telgheder and Perez is one of the best in the league; outside of them the rotation has a steep drop of long relievers and flawed pitchers. CSP should be able to piece together a strong rotation with what they have it just will take a keen daily eye on the team to do so.
Bullpen: York Bradford's elbow issues in S14 hurt the Fillers and sent them scrambling to fill holes in the bullpen, now with a recovered York the team should be better than last season. York no longer throws at the same velocity or has the same control, so look for his low split versus lefties becoming an issue.

Colorado Mile High Club
61.6M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Lucas Martin could be the 2nd Coming, He has All-star potential, and when he hits his stride could be averaging 40/40 every season. Walker is still a solid leadoff hitter if you can get over his strikeouts and the rest of the lineup though lacking the overall power of the early generation Colorado Mile High Club should knock in the runs.
Defense: Steve Smart is an all-star defender still, add in a number of young studs to mentor and you have a dedicated group of ballers fielding against you.
Rotation: Vincente, O'Malley and Hurst are all very young with huge upsides, calling them up early might have stunted their growth and could cost the Mill-Highers in the long run, but They are here now and should pitch well enough to get a few wins by themselves
Bullpen: Colorado has picked up a number of ex-closer through the last few seasons, Bell, Greenwood, Feliz, and Matthews have all had great success elsewhere, but like all pitchers seem to struggle in the thin air. Expect the pen to find a groove and put up better numbers in S15.


Cheyenne Marmots
58.0M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Cheyenne is a team that can hit in stretches and then just disappear. They have very capable hitters who will struggle with the elite pitching in the NL. Expect them to struggle when the playoffs roll around and they are forced to face the best night after night.
Defense: The Marmots make their money in the field, Chris Durbin is defensively there weakest hole at 2B and he's not going to make a lot of errors.
Rotation: 4 good starting pitchers led by Nolan Ryan-like Kiki Soto, The rotation is a good mix of youth and grizzled veterans which should serve the Marmots well throughout the season.
Bullpen: Outside of Super reliever Babe Allen, the Bullpen is full of guys who are best suited to pitch to 1 batter and sit back down. There is a good chance the pen will wear out and cost Cheyenne in the long run.



Thursday, February 4, 2010

AL East Season 15 Preview


AL EAST Season 15 Projected Standings


Team

Owner

W-L

Summary

Chicago Wolves

vico

100-61

How this team lost 100 games last season amazes me. No longer abandoned expect no less than the division

Washington D.C. old school warriors

mjdolloff

86-76

Huge disappointment in s14, I think they are better than there record indicates.

Burlington Ice Storm

tbarden

83-79

A big surprise in S14. They controlled the division and seemed t get hot hitting when they needed it. I can't see them being as successful this season.

Durham Bulls

bigalric

57-105

Right on trade to field their 4th consecutive 100 loss season. Pitching would sure help in Durham



Burlington Ice Storm
77.0M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: The Outfield sluggers of Osuna and Stroud should provide a good offensive base, to work from. The returns most of their big bats and fields virtually the same offense as in s14.
Defense: Solid defense, they will not ignite the field with their superior skills, but they should get burned too often. Burlington's Defense will not be either holding the team back or propelling it forward.
Rotation: The rotation is the in the lower tier of the Al, They are serviceable and on a few days might actually seem effective. Burlington needs a staff ace badly and they don't have one.
Bullpen: Fireman of the year R.A. Bellinger leads a strong bullpen but they could use another solid arm to round out the workload.

Durham Bulls
38.1M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Beyond Theodore Grace and Germany Baker the team's offense has more holes than grandma's colander.
Defense: deficient in all the key defensive areas, weak in the corners of the infield and right up the center. The pitching is going to get no help from the defense. There will be some keystone-like innings.
Rotation: SP Stuffy Lawrence is probable the staff ace, beyond him the rotation is quite battered. Anytime you have a guy like Rudy Waterson with splits in the mid 30's competing for a rotation spot there is an issue.
Bullpen: Shaky bullpen Pedro Ortiz has shown flashes of brilliance, but is far from a shutdown closer, Louis Carrasco has never really found his pitching touch in Durham and these are your go to guys, Hope for the starters to go deep to limit the damage.


Chicago Wolves
56.6M Estimated Opening Day Payroll


Offense: Solid hitting prospects dominate the Wolves lineup. I'm not sure this isn't the best hitting team in the AL that no one has heard of. They should be able to get runs across the plate without issue. Santana is probable the best Catching prospect the league has seen in years. Add in consistent all star bats in Morgan Candilaria and Lui and wow Chicago should win 100.
Defense: Super athletic team who should be able to make plays everywhere in the field. There isn't a real defensive weakness to worry about in the lineup and there might even be stronger gloves on the bench.
Rotation: The top of the rotation is loaded with cheap young elite talent; Harry Ortiz, Doug Evans, and Jose Blasco are a trio that is hard to match. With good seasoning they will be a tough rotation. This season they will win games for this team and could put this team in place to compete for the division.
Bullpen: CL Orlando Martinez showed grit last season and could be an all-star if the Wolves perform and put him in position to save a bunch of games. Wiki Nunez and Al Martinez serve as adequate setup but there is not a lot all in the pen beyond those names. Another arm would finalize the team's late innings. .

Washington D.C. old school warriors
60.8M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Vitello and Peterman are the offensive mainstays, both are featured in Washington and should contribute 100 rbi, Burke Ramirez and Kashmir should contribute offense in the stretch as well. This is a team that should stay in almost all of its games with its batting.
Defense: Good Defensive unit with all the position fielding at or above average. The defense should be able to steal a few hits this season and save some runs. The catchers aren't going to provide much outside of offense
Rotation: Perry, Ritz and Dunn are all proven commodities, Dunn might only be able to give Washington 5 innings but should be a good 5. How Theo Gibson was survived in this league until the age of 34 is one of the biggest mysteries of life. They add one more starter and this rotation is set-up
Bullpen: McRae did a good job last season closing games, but Washington say room for improvement and brought in Ny2 Closer Kevin Burke to compete for the job, 2 Capable relievers with proven track records is never a bad thing. Wall and Montanez finalize a good late inning bunch.

AL NORTH Season 15 Preview

AL NORTH Season 15 Projected Standings


Team

Owner

S14 W-L

Summary

Toledo Holy

factorganize

103-58

Added 4 great hitters in the off-season, This is the real life Yankees right now. Except they seem to be fiscally responsibly, Even scarier!

Madison Massa's

btkantz

95-66

Lost a lot of Offense in Albert Frazier and even more critical they lost their utility man In Vinny Hernandez. Expect the team to roll into the playoffs in spite of their issues.

New York Bombers

Bernie10025

85-77

Already looking like a rebuilding year. The last time New York was rebuilding they went 82-80. New York has never had a losing season. This will not be their first

Minnesota Wobegon's

job314

75-87

Improvements are in place, but the team still lacks the offensive punch to roll in the AL this season.



Minnesota Wobegon's
62.7M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: an outfield of Merrick, Stewart and Black isn't going to scare too many pitchers. The offense will specialize in a more small ball approach using their 2 established power bats, Oquist, and Gil to hopefully come to the plate when the light weights are on the bags
Defense: Defensively Minnesota is better than they were a year ago. Dan Boone will be an upgrade at 2nd base or as a defensive addition off the bench, but will not offer much in the way of offense. Beltre and Howard will struggle to throw anyone out that tries to steal. AAA Prospect Tex Ashley might get a chance to showcase his defense this season.
Rotation: a solid rotation, but far from sparkling. Benito Lee at 35 might not be able to give Minnesota 7 innings every turn, but should give them a consistent 5 innings. Whiteside could be the staff ace, but on a strong pitching team he's no better than a #3 or 4. Minnesota will miss Marty Hooper.
Bullpen: Minnesota's biggest strength is the pen. David Brennaman, Artie Luebbers, and Wade Hammonds are a great late inning combo and all are solid inning eaters who should close out the close games

New York Bombers
86.9M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: New York will live and die by what they do at the plate, They have great young hitters in Max Mills and Sergio Cuddyer, but they also have a few guys who will struggle to put the ball in play.
Defense: Catcher Castillo is best used as a DH, but the Bombers really don't have a great #1 catching option, Defense is also downgraded at CF and 2B with the losses of Tankersley and Feliz. The Bombers are not built to field
Rotation: The Starting Pitching should be hurting with the loss of Angel Mateo, but they still have the strongest rotation in the AL North, Bob Mann, Everett Roosevelt, and Virgil Diaz lead a crowded rotation, they might be able to deal one of them to get the help they need in other areas.
Bullpen: Closer Laker is now gone leaving the job up to Rafael Otanez who sports 100 career saves. Jefferries and Oliver are solid setup guys, but will not be able to pitch a lot of innings. If Starting pitching fails to go deep the bullpen will be in trouble in long stretches.


Madison Massa's
81.1M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Lost the Massa's cleanup Hitter Albert Frazier which will hurt the offense, but this is an offense built around good hitting and they should be able to still put up the runs with 2 time MVP Brett Sanders. Jason Tankersley is also an offensive upgrade over incumbent CF Fritz Lowe. Defense: Defensively the starting unit improves with Dan Young at SS, Gold Glover Bo Nitkowski returns to 2nd base and Tankersley heads a solid outfield unit.
Rotation: Madison doesn't ask their starters to do a whole lot they need to keep games close and that's what they do, All the starters have flaws, but they also should perform well enough as a unit to not cost Madison to many games. Bullpen: a new season and a new closer. Madison brings in their 4th closer in as many seasons to slam the door shut, this time the honor goes to 2nd All-time career save leader Jose Chavez. Chavez as a solid core around him with Tarrik Mcgee and a bunch of young prospects.


Toledo Holy
84.7M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Only added the 2 biggest Free Agent Hitters available in Albert Sanchez, and Carlos Hernandez. The Hispanic Bash brothers should cleanup in the AL and will rival with the best 1-2 punches in the league. The Holy surround the pair with real deal trade acquisitions Shultz and Sutton. This team could rival Murders row.
Defense: The Offense seems to be the key to Toledo's Season 15, but the defense is pretty solid as well, the only weakness might be Hernandez's defense at 2B, but with his Offense I think they will survive.
Rotation: A lot like Madison the pitching will be asked not to win games as much as they will be asked not to lose them. Starters are solid yet unspectacular Kiki Arroyo, Hal Buchanan and Tino Chang will all be asked to repeat what they did last season.
Bullpen: Byrne and Cruz are all-star relievers but beyond them they cupboards are bare right now.

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

AL South Season 15 Preview

ML AL South (Season 15 Projected Standing)
Texas Tornadoes mowbs69 93-69 Should be able to build off last season's success and continue to climb the win column
Montgomery Scott noel19 84-78 Only 17 men on the opening day roster expect some additions and subtractions to fill the roster.
Louisville Loud Mouths rdorrian 82-80 Small improvements but to many holes to be much better than .500
St. Louis Rustlers PeteInHall 55-107 There are some AAA teams that might beat the Rustlers consistently.

St. Louis Rustlers
48.3M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: solid offense is far and few between in St Louis. Perez can hit, but isn't the type of player you build a team around, Dreifort is the all-star but to expect him to be the feature player and hit more than .280 might be too much for him with little around him in the offense. Catcher Kevin Martin sat out last season and should step in and get a good amount of at bats in s15. That should tell you where this team is in the scope of things.Defense: The Rustlers will struggle in the field. Capable defenders are in short order and will not be able to cover the field without large holes somewhere. How the Rustlers configure their defense will be of interest during Spring training.Rotation: Newhouser, Forbes, Maxwell or solid long relievers but lack the stamina to be an effective starter unless you move to tandem options. The only decent classic starter St Louis has called home is Palacio. On a solid team he would be a #3 guy at best.Bullpen: Underperforming bullpen is the best description for the Rustlers relief. On paper the guys all look like they should be able to pitch well enough to control games, in reality, the pen struggles with almost every outing. If the bullpen is used appropriately and not overworked they should be team strength. Orlando Frias is capable of being an all—star every season in the pen.

Montgomery Scott
89.8M Estimated Opening Day Payroll


Offense: Montgomery is loaded with crushers. Shave, DuBois, Edwards and Leon would be cleanup guys almost anywhere. The team can slug top to bottom. And they will need everyone one of those runs if they expect to win. Defense: The Scott are playing a number of guys in new positions to fill out a lineup card, Dubois and Shave will find their new positions a challenge, pray the ball isn't hit their way a lot . Rotation: The Rotation is solid with 4 fine starters, but Charlton is well overpaid at 20M a season and it is his contract that cripples the organization. If they could move him the team would be able to address a lot of holes although they lose their ace. Bullpen: Luis Camacho is Major Leagues Ricky Vaughn in Ryan. Wild Thing can smoke one by you or miss the plate by 10 feet depending on the breeze. The bullpen is very thin currently and with no budget look for the Scotts to have to deal some players to add the needed depth.

Texas Tornadoes
76.4M Estimated Opening Day Payroll


Offense: Aurelio Espada is a superstar; he has a lot of specialists around him in the lineup. Expect him to be the feature guy who teams will look to bat around. Expect increased opportunity for Mondesi, Lee and Mouton who should be able to take advantage of weak pitching. Defense: Solid defensive core, the Tornadoes won't steal away a lot of hits, but they should make teams earn the runs they get. The Bench might be a little lighter than Texas wants it but they are better off than some teams. Rotation: The Rotation is set going into the season with solid contributors and quality inning eaters in Johnson and Millard. The wildcard might be how the team chooses to use Ronnie Leach who could be a capable starter if handled correctly and watched. Bullpen: Rijo, Coronado, and Cortez all have proven they can be dependable relievers, they should continue to play an important role this season. Late innings should be a strong point for Texas.

Louisville Loud Mouths
65.2M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: When the Loudmouths hit they will do well, against strong pitching they might be silenced and have long droughts, but against vulnerable pitching they should be swinging for the fences every time. Defense: Average to below average fielders, the Loud Mouth will struggle at times in the field and this deficiency might cost Louisville a few games in the stretch. Rotation: Middle of the road rotation with good upside, Fonville has always found great success without being a lights out pitcher. The rotation has good upside and should keep things close for Louisville.Bullpen: Jim Small is crazy good allow with a solid cast of relievers the Loud Mouths will be able to maintain leads deep into games

AL WEST Season 15 Preview

ML AL West (Season 15 Projected Standing)
Wichita Sizzlers
zsiegri 112-50 Hands down favorite to win the World Series each year this will be no exception
Kansas City McCoys raucous * 88-74 Big bats are paid a ton to hit, but unless they prove they can pitch it's all for null
Salt Lake City Assault cocobudda 75-87 Improving but next year well be the year they break .500 not this one without adding a solid starting pitcher.

Las Vegas Gamble cjmaxlax 72-90 Prieto might have a new home by the end of the season.
Las Vegas Gamble
70.9M Estimated Opening Day Payroll
Offense:
Del Prieto is still the man in Las Vegas, but he not surrounded by a lot of talent. Like the rest of the keys to a winning team Las Vegas is lacking Defense: solid defenders but aging quickly in CF and 2B. A few runs will slip by some of the fielders on occasion, with lower tier pitching this could be an issue. The catching prospects won't help the pitching at all.
Rotation: 2 solid pitchers in Walk Inge and Preston Walker but not a lot of help behind them in the rotation. The Gamble will struggle will the current pitching setup.Bullpen: below average bullpen that lacks a dependable closer Brian Clarke is the closest thing the Gamble have to a consistent reliever. He's not the guy anyone will want to hand the rock to in a critical game.

Kansas City McCoys
110.0M Estimated Opening Day Payroll
Offense: hitting should not be an issue, Freddie Reynolds, David Seanez, and Adrian Cassidy are killers at the plate, KC have the talent in the lineup to hit with anyone, but as they have shown the last 3 seasons this offense alone will not produce a division title Defense: below average in the field, Seanez finally moves out of short but he might find CF just as challenging. Reynolds could be a gold glover in RF.Rotation: SP D'Angelo Guevara, Pedro Barcelo and Jeremy Linden have been consistent for KC every season, but they have also been unable to deliver the wins. Rule 5 guy Pedro Barcelo is a wild card he's too inexperienced to offer much this season but could be solid in the future is KC can bear with him. Bullpen: Jose squared is added to an already strong bullpen. Jose should give O'Connor a run for the closer position, but both should get a lot of innings

Wichita Sizzlers
102.1M Estimated Opening Day Payroll



Offense: All stars up on down the lineup by far the most potent lineup in the league. Most teams have 2 maybe 3 potential all-stars this team could have 9. Defense: should have no issues in the field and might be able to save many a run with this fielded defense. Rotation: 5 very strong starters, 3 of which could be aces on any other AL team. This is one of the reasons the Sizzlers were so dominant in S14. Bullpen: Stan Mason takes over for Sizzlers career save artist Matthews, Mason should love his return to the AL being on the Best AL team. The bullpen is very exceptional, they have the setup guys to make the late evenings tough for the opposing teams.

Salt Lake City Assault
68.1M Estimated Opening Day Payroll

Offense: Added some offensive punch with Roosevelt Hansen and Scott Clarke at 1B and Minnie Coleman at 2B. Add those bats to Crummack and Santiago and the team should be able to produce a few runs. Defense: Quite pedestrian in the field, No one seems to be a superstar or a game changer in the field yet, but they seem to have great young talent at SS and 3B and CF that could change that in the near future. Rotation: good rotation core with 3 solid contributors in Carter, Spencer and Martin, but the starts seem to go down a steep incline after that. The rotation should still not lose the team a lot in the way of runs. Bullpen: Neil Young could be the next superstar closer to enter this league. Setting him up is an assortment of middle of the road relievers who should be able to hold their own in the late innings. Not a bad bullpen by any means.