Game Date: May 6th, 2064
League Forum
Forum >> Leagues >> V.7 
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| Post ID | Date & Time | Game Date | Function |
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| #10016 | 09/10/2014 10:53:12 am | ||
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Luizmussa Joined: 01/23/2014 Posts: 120 Inactive 
| Hi there, anyone else active on the forum? Pretty sure Ive already seen Davenport Cobras manager posting around. With the 1st half of the season gone, the West is once more the most balanced division and just amassed a 105-75 record overall against the East teams. As of now, our 5th place team would be definetly safe in the East but instead, it is being demoted to level VI. So, the question remains: Is the West really stronger than the East like last season? Or is that just a matter of perception? |
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| #13360 | 01/09/2015 11:44:17 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Hey ! Just noticed this thread. The originator has promoted out now though..lol Anyone else from the league around? |
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| #13582 | 01/17/2015 7:44:25 pm | ||
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Luizmussa Joined: 01/23/2014 Posts: 120 Inactive
| Yeah I created this 2 season ago, but nobody else answered. Anyway, hope you have a better luck talking to the other managers. And have a great season. GL |
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| #14966 | 02/19/2015 3:05:06 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3 
| I'm being optimistic and getting in early, looking good for a promotion into this league next year, 17 game lead at the all-star break, lets see if I can hold it! Having had a quick squiz through the rosters I think I'll be semi-competitive at least, even managed to fluke a couple of wins against Vallejo in the cup. Fingers crossed I see you guys there! |
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| #15854 | 03/10/2015 4:44:22 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Clinched the division, and promotion today - see you all next season! | ||
| #17711 | 04/14/2015 7:36:56 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, this season is starting about like last season in level VI for me, starting out strong and looking like I have a decent chance to advance in the cup. | ||
| #17869 | 04/17/2015 11:52:39 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| You're in a slightly stronger division than me at first glance, my aim is to beat you in the play offs this year...  |
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| #18055 | 04/21/2015 6:25:37 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Three way tie for first in the west! | ||
| #18271 | 04/26/2015 8:26:23 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Looking like the west is going to stay very close, I don't think I'll write have enough with my current roster. | ||
| #18763 | 05/07/2015 10:23:58 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Looking like a very close battle in the west, 4 teams within 9 games at the top, the east is pretty well a two way battle. I'm pondering whether to continue to fight for promotion or whether to cut some of my veterans and give the younger guys some more game time, the next few series should make my decision for me (pretty stoked to have gone 4-1 today though) | ||
| #18901 | 05/12/2015 1:48:47 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| East is a runaway, looks like Gulfport will likely promote if this keeps up. I'm feeling pretty safe in second, 9 back from first, and third place is 21 back. I'm probably going to start working on getting younger guys into the lineup more to get some more experience for next season. I still have an issue with aging pitchers, I can't seem to get any particularly good pitching prospects in the draft. | ||
| #18916 | 05/12/2015 11:30:00 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Pretty solid showing in 2nd for you. I just went 9-1 over the last 2 series and only made up 1 game on Joilet, still with only 5 games back I'm right at the point where I can't decide whether to develop more players for next season or give it a full on push towards promotion | ||
| #18918 | 05/13/2015 12:02:23 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Nice catch on picking up Theo Winters, I had 9 claims out tonight, some pretty realistic ones and missed them all. | ||
| #18927 | 05/13/2015 10:16:05 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I'm getting kind of desperate for younger pitching so I'm trying to chuck some waivers around. He was probably my #1 choice out of all the ones I had waivers on. I picked up another waiver claim I had out, not sure how he's going to work out because his rating seem good, but his stats aren't so hot. I have to think it's the team he was on that is the cause of his stats so I figured I'd take a shot on him. Updated Wednesday, May 13 2015 @ 10:17:11 am PDT |
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| #18987 | 05/14/2015 10:38:17 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| You've got a strong team there, on paper your pitching probably shouldn't work as well as it does, but going 1-4 against you wasn't flash! Yeh is a monster, the 2HR in the last inning of the last game nearly bought me to tears. | ||
| #18989 | 05/15/2015 5:02:40 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| This thread is getting quite active, great to see. Ten straight wins has lifted College Station into a tie for first with Joliet as we head back to division matchups! Pitching is finally getting consistent with the "big 4" leading the way. Gotta keep it rolling! |
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| #19026 | 05/15/2015 8:51:53 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Its fair to say it hasn't helped me with deciding to go into 'drop the vet's and give the newbies a go' mode, I'm not completely out of it yet, will go down to the wire. | ||
| #19030 | 05/16/2015 5:35:48 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Yeah I did that last season to save money and develop the youth and I do not regret it at all. This season I thought we could compete so I added in a couple vets. Had we faltered I'd have dropped them all again. Until very recently I felt we were under achieving but we are hot right now. Missoula you have a couple young flame throwers there! Wells looks like a "Randy Johnson" wannabe! |
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| #19047 | 05/16/2015 5:35:10 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Yeah wells and Madison have developed brilliantly, I'm a little concerned with the gap until Turner and Trevino are ready, my bullpen is the biggest concern at the moment though. | ||
| #19084 | 05/17/2015 9:48:12 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Managed to get a couple of vet pitchers to help out my bullpen, and now my no.4 starter Andou is down for 35 days with elbow surgery, one final roll of the dice this week I think before settling in for next season | ||
| #19221 | 05/20/2015 9:55:08 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| And now my no.3 starter - Madison, whose having a fantastic second season is out for 19 days just in time for the series with Joilet, doh! Not to mention my starting LF Robertson, not a huge loss, but 3 days without him when he's finally been swinging a hot bat. |
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| #19330 | 05/23/2015 7:18:54 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| So after winning twelve straight to get to a tie for 1st in the division, the College Station A's went a dismal 5-11 in the next 16 including dropping 3 of 4 at home to Joliet. This team just isn't as good as I expected them to be this season. Probably the limited exp of my starting pitching staff and the dismal state of the bullpen has been the main trouble. We've still got 6 left with Joliet so we will not give up yet but the next 9 games will likely tell the tale. I have a couple young pitchers I'd love to get some action and that is exactly what they will get barring an immediate return to winning. |
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| #19355 | 05/23/2015 11:05:59 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I understand your pain Freddy, my team is very streaky also, went 2-2 today against Everett and made the decision to call up 2 minor leaguers, Fossas to the bull pen, first call up since 2020, and Caputo to make his major league debut at SS. My former all star closer Beck managed to give up 3 runs in the 9th to give up a 2-0 lead, he's unfortunately overmatched at LL5 so was released. |
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| #19372 | 05/25/2015 12:15:49 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| After going 1-2 against Janesville today and now being 6 games back with 26 to go I've raised the white flag, more games for the upstarts! On the positive side both Caputo and Fossas made reasonable debuts today, Caputa in particular going 7-14 with 1SB and 1HR, if he can develop the ability to take a walk he should be a solid player for me for some time to come |
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| #19485 | 05/28/2015 9:38:18 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Joliet continues to roll. They are 6 up on us and 5 of those came in head to head match ups so nobody to blame but ourselves. They've been the best all season. Still hope but we have to gain at least 3 games in the next seven or the rookies will be finishing up this season. Going to be a tough race next season too! Could be in this div for a while haha. |
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| #19537 | 05/29/2015 8:00:31 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| You're not wrong there Freddy, I just got rolled by both Everett and Janesville - not my strongest line up but I was expecting a far better showing than that. I've been trying to work out who'll be coming to join us, Beverley Hills Hornets from my old V1.13 should be a good match. | ||
| #19540 | 05/30/2015 8:29:11 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| We both are taking similar routes in our rebuilds so there is a good chance that this "rivalry" could last many seasons in this and the next division. This is a really fun game for me and will even be better with a true rival. So be prepared for some trash talk and whoopings on the field hahaha. Cheers! |
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| #19553 | 05/30/2015 3:20:42 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I'll look forward to it! Although with the 2 wins you've had in your first two games today against Joilet its certainly not over for you yet - my last two series are against both Joilet and College Station so I could be a heart breaker for someone! | ||
| #19554 | 05/30/2015 3:39:17 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| yeah..maybe I spoke too soon. Just moved Adkins to the bullpen and sat all the young pitchers to try and get the sweep. If we do it's still a long shot but there is certainly hope. Joliet's magic number remains at 5 for now. This is preventing me from playing any youth down the stretch but ya gotta try to win if there is still hope right? It's going to be a beat up pitching staff that plays you tomorrow..lol (or my young guys should we lose the third game). |
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| #19563 | 05/30/2015 4:40:50 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Two run homer in the bottom of the 9th to send it to extras. We gave it everything we had. Congrats to Joliet. |
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| #19572 | 05/30/2015 10:33:29 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Rough, you're probably at the white flag waving time, good battle to the end though - going to be very close between Everett and Janesville to stay out of relegation. You're going to get two of my best pitchers tomorrow, aiming to improve their slim chances at the all league team, or get a higher grade on my clubs own records! You do also get my one young pitcher who I'm hoping to stick on the roster for a while, Fossas will be with me for some years to come, hopefully causing you all sorts of headaches haha! |
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| #19651 | 06/02/2015 1:32:02 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Congrats to Joilet and Gulfport. Looking at the teams for the next season, College Station appear to be the early favourites, with Beverly Hills and Everett likely to put up a good shot also, should be a good close season! History would also appear to favour College Station - the last 3 runner up's in the west have gone on to win the next season... |
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| #19662 | 06/02/2015 10:13:36 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Finished out with a respectable 97 wins. Congratulations to Gulfport (who ironically appear to have just gotten a new owner), they were tough to beat all season. Looks like I have the strongest team for next season at the moment, the West is definitely the more competitive division. Next year will be interesting for me. Although my pitching staff is fairly strong, I've got several aging pitchers that will need replacing soon. Hopefully I can snag a couple solid pitchers in the preseason and let some of the older guys go. | ||
| #19690 | 06/02/2015 6:26:54 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Yeah I called up three minor league guys and pitched them in the last few games. Still a good season with 99 wins but in hind sight I'd have liked to get those young arms in earlier. We have a few glaring weaknesses that cost us this season but hopefully we can patch them up. Still not sure exactly how many new rookies we will go with next season. I may actually start a couple of young pitchers in the 4 and 5 spots unless we land a big top 3 free agent. I agree that college station will have the favorite tag on us but with two new rookie outfielders coming up as well (one is a base stealer and possible lead off hitter which would fill a glaring weakness) we may be a little weak in the exp department. We'll see. Lots of time to sort it out. We also now have 8 guys in the minors with 14 potential (the rest are 13P with the very good potential tags) so technically we will still be rebuilding for a couple of seasons and will have to walk the line between playing for now and playing for the future. We were really hoping to win the div this year and use next season as a retooling year while just trying to stay up. Damn you Joliet!! hahaha This off season week is just brutal...I wanna play ball!! |
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| #19738 | 06/04/2015 11:52:04 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I have 2 in the minors with 15 pot, no-one else above 13 after a brutal season for drafts, only kept 2, one Pot13 and one 12, so it sounds like this season is the one I'll have to put up my best challenge against you! | ||
| #20314 | 06/22/2015 9:49:06 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| College Station is ready to go for the new season. Unfortunately, we didn't really solve any of our weak spots from last season and actually may be starting the season a little weaker (at least temporarily)albeit a little younger. Still no true lead off hitter (he remains in the minors after a tremendous spring showing). Still weak at short stop where one can't hit and the other has little range. My all star second baseman also is a little weak in the fielding/range dept. The outfield will feature two rookies that will need to develop quickly in order to stick, and a strong fielding cf that will do for the season at least. Catcher and third base continue to be manned by all stars that can do it all. Pitching will be an issue. Our big 4 starters from last season are back, three now have a year of exp under their belts and all should hold there own. After that it gets really thin really fast. A couple veteran arms that are lacking control and a couple of rookies that will have to pitch a lot of innings with their currently very low SI. We are short manned in the bullpen and what is there is nothing to write home about. We'll need a career year out of somebody. We are still holding out hope that we can get some help off of the waiver wire but in reality this has been a thin year for waivers and we have not been able to sign any decent arms anyway. Our goal remains winning the division but by no means are we making any predictions. I think we will be the type of team that can beat or lose to anyone any given series. Let's play ball!! |
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| #20353 | 06/23/2015 12:09:47 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I died a little inside seeing you win the waiver claim on Hartman - no offense, but my task just got a little harder! | ||
| #20365 | 06/23/2015 4:49:08 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| hahahahha Saw that eh? Not sure if I'll start him or relieve with him. His numbers were poor the last couple of seasons (in div 1) and he has less si this season. If he can be a 12-10 starter or reliable reliever I'd be happy. We were so thin a pitcher, he will at least eat up some innings. Updated Tuesday, June 23 2015 @ 4:51:05 am PDT |
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| #20388 | 06/23/2015 11:12:30 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Fairly predictable first day by the looks of it, I'm pretty satisfied with the showing, poor start from Wells cost me a good chance at a sweep but that will happen! | ||
| #20391 | 06/24/2015 4:15:29 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Hartman was hit hard and often in his first series. 12.60 era...nice! lol | ||
| #20427 | 06/25/2015 10:28:29 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Terrible start for me. My pitching staff has started the season in the dumper, and I'm not sure it is going to get any better unless I can snag some hot free agents. Might be fighting relegation this season instead of fighting for the division crown. | ||
| #20496 | 06/28/2015 12:41:35 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Despite my pitching staff insisting that College Station take all 3 games today I think the west especially will be a very even division this year judging by early results | ||
| #20535 | 06/29/2015 6:15:19 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Agreed. Division looks tough for sure. We were very lucky to get three from Missoula, in game two we'd have lost if not for two base runners being throw out in the bottom of the ninth in a tie game and we probably should have lost game 1 as well...but we'll take it. My waiver pick up Hartman has looked awful at times but he hasn't cost us yet. If we are up 5 runs he'll give up 4..very consistent that way so far lol. So the jury is still out. Our young pitchers have looked ok (although 1 seems injury prone and is currently our again for 22 games) but we are still very thin. So thin that we picked up a non contested waiver on a hope and a prayer that he can pitch a few innings when needed. My rookie outfielders are performing poorly to average and will have to improve in what should be a very tight pennant race. Fortunately the offense is firing and collecting the big hits when we need them and is the main reason for a pretty decent start overall. Cheers guys! |
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| #20599 | 07/01/2015 6:06:48 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Both the Gulls and Athletics have streaked out to an early lead - my recent SS reclamation project cost me a game today, 8 runs, only 2 earned, and the other 6 were as a result of 3 errors by him - turned a 4-2 victory into an 8-4 loss. Got a complete game shut out from my No.2 starter to finish things off though, helped bring his ERA down from 7.00+ | ||
| #20600 | 07/01/2015 6:33:46 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| After a bad early start I seem to have recovered. The pitching has mostly recovered from stinking it up early on, still have a couple of older pitchers that seem to be struggling some. I'm hoping to have a AAA prospect ready to go later in the season. | ||
| #20702 | 07/05/2015 1:11:59 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| 2-2 with the Athletics today, both closers blew a game, very even match up - how thankful am I that Adkins is on the DL! |
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| #20704 | 07/05/2015 5:13:28 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Yes, even the first series games were close and fun to "watch". Should be a good rivalry all season. Next up is current second place Kirkland. Haven't really looked at their roster other than to read SI numbers..and they look very good! Adkins has not been as good this season (so far) and Hartman is getting close to being benched. On the bright side our uncontested waiver pick up Cesar Soto showed up and gained 4 SI before even throwing a pitch. He then pitched 5 innings giving up one run to the top team in our cup division and followed that by stopping the bleeding in game three vs. Missoula, getting the win after throwing six scoreless innings. Hopefully he continues to be so useful. |
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| #20732 | 07/05/2015 4:52:11 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Kirkland seems to have an aging but very solid roster, I don't think the owners very active but one or 2 more younger pitchers on there would be a real problem for us! I tried a tactic of no trash talk before the last set, 2-2 is ok, might have to amp things up next time out against the Athletics |
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| #20738 | 07/05/2015 5:23:32 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| LOL ! I was going to talk some trash but with Adkins out I thought better of it..haha. Missoula with 6 of 8 and four in a row is the hottest in the div right now. We need to win two or three tomorrow to make it through to cup round two. The cup is a great place to pitch young guys but I also don't want to miss out on the extra cash round 2-3 bring in. |
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| #20761 | 07/06/2015 12:07:35 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Yeah some pretty league altering sweeps today with me gaining ground, and Bowie losing the lead in the East. The Bronx Yankees got a good pick up on waivers tonight in Cobb. You're right Freddy, I enjoyed watching those 4 games between us as much as any other game I've watched on here, felt any of the games could've gone either way at any point. I need to win 3 in the cup tomorrow but against a LL6 team so should have a chance - the only positive is that I've managed to beat Joilet in the cup this year to make up for all the torment from last season! Updated Monday, July 6 2015 @ 12:08:17 am PDT |
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| #20871 | 07/07/2015 11:08:41 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| So much for the cup...hahaha We got our asses handed to us in a four game sweep when we only needed a single win...ah well, time to concentrate on div play. More pitching injuries too.Last year we were extremely lucky to not get pitching injuries. Bright side is I have to play the young pitchers and they are holding their own. |
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| #20891 | 07/08/2015 10:44:13 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Scraped though into the cup, tied with old foes Joliet in my division! Speaking of old foes, I'm looking forward to the match up between Juarez and Pozzi in the series tomorrow against Beverley Hills - Pozzi narrowly won the Cy Young in 2021 in VI.13 so Juarez has something to prove! Updated Thursday, July 9 2015 @ 11:30:19 pm PDT |
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| #20911 | 07/09/2015 11:31:42 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| So Juarez pitched as well as he has all season and took the game off Pozzi but Beverley Hills mashed a couple of my starters good and proper to go 2-2 in the series. Next up, College Station after a cup series. Adkins better watch his knee caps during his days off.... |
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| #20912 | 07/09/2015 11:43:47 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| lol Not worried about Adkins..he may just no hit ya!! What I am worried about is the four players including my number 2 starting pitcher and my #3 and 4 line up hitters, that were injured today!! We do have pretty good depth so we'll see just how good against the Missoula Polar Bears (Polar Bears??!)...I really need to come up with a derogatory nickname for that team hahahaha Missoula Underwears? Carebears?? nah..I can do better.... Expect to lose 2 of three as college station is in a bad mood after dropping 2 of three today!! |
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| #20913 | 07/09/2015 11:57:27 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Gee some hitmen, they got the wrong guy?! Not that I'm too fussed, DeLeon is a heck of a pitcher who has played me very tough thus far, you'll only be without your 2B for our series and perhaps your C, although your back up is pretty good as far as depth goes! If it makes you feel any better I'm only playing good against top teams, I'll probably lose against the LL.IV in the cup tomorrow and injure 4 of my key players while doing it..... BTW, I've renamed you the College Station Gymnasts.... Updated Thursday, July 9 2015 @ 11:58:30 pm PDT |
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| #21008 | 07/11/2015 11:22:30 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Turns out that taunting was not the solution to my problem! 3 1 run games, I was on the wrong end of 2 of them. I feel my team played well but were just out played, other than that wild pitch in the last game though my No.5 starter Barker would've pitched a CG shutout - its not all bad news! | ||
| #21093 | 07/15/2015 4:34:52 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Its turning into a tale of woe at Missoula - interleague has started poorly, a 3-5 record so far, but worse than that my No.3 starter Madison is out for the maximum of 35 days, and my starting SS and CF are out for 3 and 5 days respectively. Sigh. Updated Thursday, July 16 2015 @ 3:44:52 am PDT |
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| #21096 | 07/15/2015 7:18:16 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Tight race in the East right now. Only 4 games separate first and last place. It's been a really up and down season so far, my team seems to be pretty streaky and hovering just above .500, yet I'm still tied for first. I guess that shows either how even or how weak the East division is. | ||
| #21098 | 07/16/2015 3:45:43 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| It seems that every time I play the gulls that both Yeh and Roque do their best to taunt me and this series was no different, it seemed that Yeh especially was HR'ing at every at bat... | ||
| #21100 | 07/16/2015 7:53:00 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Wow. That is a tight division in the east! I love the inter league play and five games a day as well as double headers that bring pitching depth into the equation (tough on teams that are still alive in the cup though..) The Athletics are cruising along and managing to avoid any kind of extended slumps. We've lost a couple series but always seems to bounce back in the next. After Kirkland whooped us we were able to help out the Gulls the other day by sweeping Fort Wayne. You are welcome Benchwarmer hehe. Our bullpen continues to get smashed daily but our starters are really pitching well now and (knock on wood) are all healthy at the moment. Our young pitchers and outfielders are getting lots of playing time so I'm looking forward to the training update to see if we can get a few pops! Finally, it's nice to see the Carebears seem to be made of glass and although we outwardly show concern for their injury problems, in private we are high fiving! hahaha |
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| #21108 | 07/16/2015 5:16:36 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Haha, thanks Freddy. Unfortunately my team seems to have squandered most of that by splitting pretty much every series lately. JJNZ, interestingly enough Roque only has 4 HRs and Yeh only 7. My two biggest sticks have been 1b Fan and backup 3rd/DH McDaniel. McDaniel also has the highest slugging on my team of players with a decent number of AB with .510 SLG. |
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| #21113 | 07/16/2015 7:23:44 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| The Missoula 'Treat with Care' Bears have another 3 injuries to report, LHS Avila was feeling home-sick, it was reported as 'fatigue' and he's been shown the door after a poor season. 4th outfielder Bates is on a short-leash after taking out his frustration on a called 3rd strike by heat-butting the bat - he's out 11 days with concussion. Rookie SS Montano is out for a couple of days after a 'shower related incident' where he's reported a sprained wrist. Manager Todd Lester was last seen drinking out of a paper bag in RF after the bull pen blew 2 games against Fort Wayne, one in a horrendous fashion, leading to the 3rd consecutive inter-league series loss. A closed door meeting was held directly after the series; strangely, team owner JJNZ was the only one in the meeting. |
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| #21259 | 07/21/2015 7:46:13 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| LOL. I need to chill when watching the games. We blew a 9 run lead vs. Iowa and in a fit of anger I fired a serviceable reliever! lol With pitching so hard to find I better not be doing that very often. "Blown save" Hartman has also lost his job as closer as management is losing all patience with the bullpen. We can blow leads with rookies!! |
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| #21288 | 07/21/2015 10:47:30 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| The white flag has officially been waved, and the Polar Bears are setting up for another go next season. 1-4 today against Savannah, 3 of which were 1 run losses. The cuts could be coming thick and fast! | ||
| #21321 | 07/22/2015 10:14:34 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Pretty surprised to have 6 all-stars, I thought 3 had a small chance with Wagner being a lock as closer - his 6th all star appearance after 5 as a starter. Very surprised that D.Guzman and Bender starter, and can't believe Valera made it, let alone as the starting 1B, must be a pretty weak field! | ||
| #21354 | 07/23/2015 9:53:37 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I'm usually disappointed on a cup day because I don't get to see a game, however with FOUR players currently inured again, including both catchers (The Guzman cousins), my star CF, and Madison about to come off his 35 day injury - I'll happily take a day or 2 off to refresh the staff in time for the next league series. Veteran pick up McLaughlin at SS is off to a flyer, he's likely to hold the SS job until the next of end season unless I fluke something on waivers | ||
| #21419 | 07/24/2015 5:16:22 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| It is supposed to be windy today. Just warning the CareBears management to keep your players indoors so they don't get blown over and injured.  *sigh* I hate non-game days.. |
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| #21421 | 07/24/2015 5:20:10 pm | ||
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Pig_Cola Joined: 09/15/2013 Posts: 1445 Glendale Marshals III.2 
| Who doesn't? | ||
| #21447 | 07/25/2015 4:41:49 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Thanks for the warning Freddy, luckily they're not only all kept in doors, but in padded room while donning strait jackets. I find its the only way. Btw Benchwarmer, that bribes in the mail for you to drop 4 of 5 tomorrow..... Updated Saturday, July 25 2015 @ 4:42:20 am PDT |
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| #21488 | 07/25/2015 11:55:20 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Ah thanks Benchwarmer. I wasn't supposed to lose another SP for 16 days though! | ||
| #21554 | 07/28/2015 6:41:39 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Spoke too soon! I had better add a padded room for my team too! Four starters out last week and we tanked hard. Our relievers are absolutely killing us. One more week like this and we will have to drop a starter into the closer role to try and stop the bleeding. Our offence has also gone into the tank with at least four guys in prolonged slumps. I don't know how real MLB managers handle the stress!! hahaha Long way to go and we're only a single game out but we have to turn it around soon. This pennant race may just come down to who can keep nine guys healthy or whoever gets hot in the final 20 games! Love this game! P.S. nice pick up in Stien Missoula! Our slump may have changed your mind on the second half eh? |
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| #21566 | 07/29/2015 4:22:10 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| You've had a poor run there Freddy, the new owner of Kirkland seems about as active as the last one so its a bit rough for him to be leading the division! My 'slumpers' were cleared out and I got a couple of flucky waiver claims like Stein - he was too good to pass up on, fits the mould of a genuine No.3 hitter which I've been lacking. Still trying to get as many AB's as i can for my key young guys, pretty stoked with my pick up of Black, small sample but he's off to a good start including a game winning grand slam! Spoke too soon! I had better add a padded room for my team too! Four starters out last week and we tanked hard. Our relievers are absolutely killing us. One more week like this and we will have to drop a starter into the closer role to try and stop the bleeding. Our offence has also gone into the tank with at least four guys in prolonged slumps. I don't know how real MLB managers handle the stress!! hahaha Long way to go and we're only a single game out but we have to turn it around soon. This pennant race may just come down to who can keep nine guys healthy or whoever gets hot in the final 20 games! Love this game! P.S. nice pick up in Stien Missoula! Our slump may have changed your mind on the second half eh? |
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| #21626 | 07/30/2015 6:11:54 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Rattled off 7 wins in a row against Everett and College Station to draw within 1 game of Fort Wayne. I'm still desperately searching for answers in my pitching staff, a lot of them are very streaky this season. Called up a hot AAA prospect a little early to try to help out, so far he hasn't done much and seems to be struggling in the majors. If I can pick up one of the waivers I have out I can send him back down next week. The bats have picked up a little bit after a few weeks of struggles. Park and Roque are still not living up to their abilities at the plate, I really need them to get the bats going more. I expect better than a .230 avg and measly .275 obp (Roque) from them. It may be time to cut Vargas loose. He's been trash the last couple of seasons. | ||
| #21630 | 07/30/2015 7:09:36 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| That east division is impressively close! And its not often that I'm stoked to have had a 3-2 series, but after both Kirkland and College Station went 0-5 today I'm back to only 2 games back, exciting! It's intriguing to watch Paramount and Beverley Hills also, likely that they'll be battling to avoid relegation and it keeps swinging either way! Benchwarmer - I went nuts on the waiver wire and picked up 2 very expensive relivers, (10m combined for the season!) and also fluked a starer who i've put into my LHS spot, so much for waiving the white flag huh?! |
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| #21652 | 07/31/2015 10:17:54 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Wow it sure is fun watching my relievers blow games!! Getting swept in a five game series is awesome too..first time for that. The only positive is that we are still in the hunt. If the carebears steal the pennant I may just have to fire the manager and take up heavy drinking lol. I was a split second from cutting Hartman last night..decided to sleep on it and may still cut him. 4-8 and 8 blown saves on a division contender. I'm pretty sure we can blow games without him and his salary (highest pitcher salary we have). I have loved to hate him all year long. Back to divisional games now and the division is close. Should be fun to see who self destructs last! Good luck to all!!! |
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| #21653 | 07/31/2015 10:19:28 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| P.S. thanks for the spanking Bowie!! We owe you one now..lol Cheers! |
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| #21700 | 08/01/2015 5:41:02 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Never fear Freddy, the Missoula Cripples are back to their usual tricks, both catchers are spending frequent time on the DL so relying on my 3rd string heavily, and Bender who was having a fantastic season a 3B has just gone on the DL for 10 days leaving me to use the heavily disappointing http://brokenbat.org/player/90940for the 4 game series against Kirkland. Maybe he can save himself from being the first to be cut when my next prospect needs to come up. | ||
| #21837 | 08/04/2015 5:01:06 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Things are getting scary in the East. 4 1/2 games separate 1st and 5th place. Anyone could easily promote or relegate right now. | ||
| #21856 | 08/04/2015 11:12:12 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I think they just got a bit harder for everyone too with Fort Wayne picking up Duran. Big series for me tomorrow against College Station who have loaded their rotation, on the positive side I'm injury free! |
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| #22033 | 08/08/2015 4:11:35 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Oh, Chul Moo Park, why must you get injured so often? If it weren't for the fact that he's really my only truly viable catcher at the moment, I'd be tempted to put him aside. He seems to get injured a lot, and his backup is not nearly as capable, and my closest prospect is down in AA (I have 2 "catchers" in AAA, but I've been training them for other positions since they seem like they might be more suited there). | ||
| #22038 | 08/08/2015 7:32:24 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yup, we fight all the way back to a tie into first, then tank all four games against the Bronx. Defines this roller coaster of a season, pretty much. Fortunately the Bears didn't fare much better, so it's still tight. | ||
| #22044 | 08/09/2015 12:25:10 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I use my primary C only against RHP and he's a DH against LHP to give him a bit of a break, thankfully my back up guy is a monster against LHP, and for the last 2 seasons was my starter - only reduced to back up due to his injury history! Tomorrow will be interesting, I've somehow crawled my way back into a tie for first with Kirkland who I'm up against! Whoever gets 5th in the east is going to have every reason to feel a bit hard done by |
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| #22089 | 08/10/2015 7:20:03 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Very busy lately and out of town as well, sorry no posts. Looks like a dogfight down to the wire. College Station just can't break out of this funk. Two big series coming up with the league leaders and we are going to kick some a$$! See you all soon. |
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| #22131 | 08/11/2015 12:37:06 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Swept by both Kirkland and Beverley Hills after my pitchers gave up 42 runs in 3 games to Kirkland, although 6 errors in the final game by my team was at fault for most of that one. Offence went to sleep against Beverley Hills, just before my bull-pen gave up 2 of the 3 games in the 9th. 4 to look forward to against a stacked College Station line up, now or never right? |
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| #22142 | 08/11/2015 6:06:32 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Yep..now or never for us too. We have 4 with you guys then 3 with Kirkland in the next seven. My team is healthy so I don't even have any excuses if we get smashed again! lol In other news the Gulls are back in the lead in the super tight east..what a dogfight! |
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| #22154 | 08/11/2015 2:53:25 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| It's going to be tough to hang onto this thin lead. My primary 3b and 1b are out with injuries for several days (although admittedly my offense may be better off without 3b Roque), hopefully no one else goes down. After this 3 game series with 4th place Savannah, I go head to head with the 2nd place Bears, whoever comes out the loser in that one may seal their fate to not win the division. Although they are also the last series of the season, so it could come down to the wire if all things stay the same for the next month. 2nd and 3rd are playing each other right now, the best thing for me would be to win all my games in this series, and have those two split. Updated Tuesday, August 11 2015 @ 2:57:43 pm PDT |
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| #22224 | 08/12/2015 3:00:58 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| And in other news, the Gulls now have a 2 game cushion over Fort Wayne after 1 of the 3 games in the series, giving us a magic # of 17. With the way the season started, I never would have dreamed I would be in this situation at this point. I thought I'd be fighting relegation, but now it looks like promoting is a realistic possibility. Not sure my team is ready for LL IV, though. If I do promote, I'll probably be back down here in a year. I need to work on rebuilding my pitching staff anyhow, I still have a few more aging vets than I would like. Also, decided to bench the still injured Roque for the rest of the season in exchange for the much better hitting combination of Fletcher vs R and McDaniel vs L. Both are almost as capable as Roque defensively as well, so I think this will work better. Updated Wednesday, August 12 2015 @ 3:06:48 pm PDT |
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| #22239 | 08/12/2015 5:45:52 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Things can still go any way, although it looks like the bottom 4 are likely to stay that way until the end, leaving 7 of the remaining 8 teams in with a chance of promotion (Beverley Hills are mathematically out even after a brilliant 9 game win streak) I see the axe has been swung on a few vets over at College Station, I've got a relatively easy run to the finish with the final series against Everett, but Kirkland are looking likely to promote at this stage, barring a few upsets. I certainly wouldn't be brave enough to put any money on the east, but the Gull's are sure on a roll, injuries could well be the deciding factor |
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| #22298 | 08/13/2015 7:06:28 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| And riding 9-1 in the last 10 games, the Gulls now hold a 4 game lead over the Fort Wayne Bears and Iowa City Hawks. The Hawks are up next in a 3 game series so that could help a lot if I can manage to win that series. Need some help from the Bronx Yankees to further increase that cushion. | ||
| #22351 | 08/14/2015 4:28:42 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, that went well. What is it with my 3B all of a sudden getting injured? Now McDaniel goes down for half of the remaining season, and I drop all 3 of the games against the Hawks. At least the good news is I should be safe from relegation as long as my team doesn't completely collapse. | ||
| #22358 | 08/14/2015 5:31:06 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Iowa might sneak through on you yet Bowie! That's crazily close. Unfortunately went 1-2 against Kirkland's new owner today, gotta make up 4 games in the final 10 and I'm behind in RD - fair to say I'm highly likely to be back here next season.... | ||
| #22367 | 08/14/2015 8:11:54 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| See you here Missoula! The rookies are playing now in College town. Disappointing second half for us. *breaks bat over knee and goes looking for somebody to blame* |
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| #22369 | 08/14/2015 8:14:09 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| P.S. If you get close enough we'll take three of four from kirkland to end the season for ya! The rest is up to you lol. | ||
| #22396 | 08/15/2015 4:33:08 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| My rookies are looking enviously over at College Station, although Kearns has snuck his way back in at LF against RHP. I think it would be a tough fight to stay up if I did fluke my way up there, Joilet is sitting about about .500, another season or two at this level won't be the worst thing for me, although having to sit through others during the playoffs is motivation enough to give it all I got. That and looking at the College Station roster which will be even more improved next year. And they won't have Hartmann as closer..... |
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| #22431 | 08/15/2015 3:33:24 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I'm not giving up yet, this fight is going down to the wire. It's still any of the top three's division. If I'm back here next year, it will likely be with a completely retooled pitching staff with a couple of promising rookies and some vets picked up from the waiver wire or free agency. | ||
| #22442 | 08/15/2015 9:59:45 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Beverley Hills took another 3 from me to go 6/7 in the last 2 series. Another season of fighting College Station and that pesky Adkins guy beckons! I see that the South Gate Blue Jays will be joining us from VI.13, they'll be another good team. Benchwarmer, you've gotta be sweating over the last 2 series, best of luck! |
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| #22444 | 08/16/2015 1:06:47 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I should add that true to form, the injuries have set in again, and D Guzman, my leading HR hitter and No.3 hitter has gone on strike for the final 2 series - rookie Yanez will be called up to take his spot | ||
| #22462 | 08/16/2015 3:30:44 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| And down the stretch, Park is out again. He's great when he's healthy, but he is out for a few games as a time quite often. Need to win just about all of the remaining games to win the division, I think, and need Iowa City to drop a few. | ||
| #22532 | 08/17/2015 5:55:52 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, looks like we are all back in the same league again. Went out in style losing the last 2 games. It wouldn't have mattered regardless, since Iowa City had a greater run differential than I did. Time to work on the pitching staff and letting go of some past sell-by date players. Might be a good idea to try to pick up a capable backup catcher, the homegrown Harper just isn't cutting it as a backup. He could probably use some more development time in the minors. Updated Monday, August 17 2015 @ 5:57:09 pm PDT |
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| #22557 | 08/17/2015 10:49:53 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I guess welcome back to V.7 for all of the regular posters in here?! Unlucky run at the end there Benchwarmer, at least you know you're in with a very solid shot next season. I've still gotta deal with the College Station Leotards, led by chief gymnast Robert Adkins, along with whoever drops down into this league. Bring on spring training already! | ||
| #22731 | 08/21/2015 6:32:23 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Congrats to the winning players for the year - Adkins was pretty well a lock at Cy Young, bit of a lucky score with the Rookie pitcher award though, I though Fossas was going to win it easily but it looks like he took himself out of eligibility by playing too well/too many games! Pretty happy with my 2 All league guys, Bender had a brilliant season at 2B, and veteran Wagner performed brilliantly in his first season as my close after many seasons as a starter, has earned himself a chance to stick around for another season. |
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| #22732 | 08/21/2015 7:28:11 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Clearly defense is not a problem on the Gulls. I have not one, not two, but THREE gold glove winners this season (1B Yang Fan, 2B Cruz Garza, LF Nathan McCoy). Just need the bats to be more consistent and to get a few better pitchers, and I think I can win this division yet. It will be interesting to see what the newly promoted teams bring to the table next season. | ||
| #22733 | 08/21/2015 7:37:39 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| It shows quite clearly the different approaches between the east and west - all but 2 of the all leaguers were from the west, and all but 1 of the golf gloves were from the east - impressive effort from your boys in Bowie! | ||
| #22768 | 08/22/2015 7:22:36 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| That would probably also explain why the good West teams tend to mostly dominate the East teams. I do tend to emphasize defensive skill over offensive skill somewhat, so that is probably part of why I have 3 gold glovers on my team. | ||
| #22911 | 08/23/2015 6:43:43 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| "That and looking at the College Station roster which will be even more improved next year. And they won't have Hartmann as closer..... " hahaha no kidding!! Good riddance to the man I loved to hate! But it wasn't just him..the whole bullpen ate buckets of crap. I assure you that will not happen next season, not as bad anyway. Ye is going to the bullpen, starters may get rocked but the bullpen will be better. Id rather get blown out than to blow late leads hahaha. Also we have fired our manager for blowing the pennant last season and brought in a new hot shot from the minors to get us over the hump Wow..our division is so tough this coming season with lots of depth. I have to think the Athletics are again a contender if not the slight favorite but the gap is so small. College Station is going to have to make a decision on a few young guys. We also have some other huge holes to fill but we may truly be just 1-2 players away from a pretty solid team capable of promotion. Now to go find those players! Welcome to the new additions of our league. Feel free to chime in here |
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| #22920 | 08/23/2015 10:47:05 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| That east division looks super scary this year, I don't think there's a weak team amongst them - a lot of powerful looking lineup's, whoever can get their pitching working will take it but who knows who that will be! If I had to put money on a team I'd choose St Paul - Bowie, there's your challenge! The west doesn't look as strong this year, I think the inter-league could be a bit messy for us, Freddy, no need to be modest, the Athletics are the strongest looking team pre season, I'm hoping to again challenge you, Beverley Hills and South Gate are both teams I've admired and will be very evenly matched, they'll be keeping me honest. The Aces have more than their fair share of veterans but seem to perform generally well, and that just leaves the Warriors - struggled last time up, but appear to have made their roster younger and as the season goes on could push any one of us. My pick: College Station. In other news, Todd Lester has fired his last rum bottle into the bull-pen, with no manager Chad Bosco being head-hunted for the job - literally - a tribe of Zulu's was specially imported from Africa to stake out Bosco's house, threatening him with spears any time he wished to leave until he accepted the job. |
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| #22974 | 08/24/2015 2:33:10 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I wouldn't count Fort Wayne out, either. They have some potency in their lineup as well. It could be a fight to avoid relegation this year. I trust my bats and fielding, not so much my pitching. And pitching unfortunately is what might be needed to survive the East this season... The Gulls bid farewell to their manager last season and welcome the new manager, Mototsugu Kinugasa to the team. A couple of new players have signed so far, a new pitcher to replace the retiring Sam Flynn, and a backup SS of which we really haven't had a proper one in the last few seasons since I took over the team. Updated Monday, August 24 2015 @ 2:51:59 pm PDT |
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| #23062 | 08/25/2015 9:18:20 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Oh.. my guy Escobar winning rookie pitcher of the year is so bad that I may bug report it to Steve (admin). While he did indeed pitch well, he got into only 6 games and pitched only 20 innings in a 160 game season. (he played 13 games for his previous team this season and was hit hard and often for terrible numbers 7+ era) Surely you should need more than 20 innings to qualify. |
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| #23140 | 08/26/2015 4:10:17 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yeah, that seems a little silly. Unless there really weren't many rookie pitchers that weren't crap last season. | ||
| #23230 | 08/27/2015 6:26:31 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Still haven't managed to pick up a young pitcher to challenge for the Rookie Pitcher title this season, and since Black picked up a couple of votes in this years Rookie OTY I'm picking he's out of the running for next year there too. In another news, stoked with my new SS pick up in Walker, along with a couple of minor leaguers who no-one else had claimed on I consider my off-season successful |
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| #23278 | 08/28/2015 3:22:59 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Nice pickup there JJNZ. Looks like a good counter to my SS Yeh when we face each other. Wish my new backup SS pickup was as good, he already injured himself in Spring Training *doh* | ||
| #23333 | 08/30/2015 1:01:49 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I shuddered at the mention of Yeh's name, be nice to finally get something over him! Managed to pick up a substantial back up in Manning also - very few claims on him which surprised me, probably mostly due to his salary but I can cope with it for a season and hope it normalizes the following year. Start the season already! |
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| #23484 | 09/02/2015 4:49:29 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Geeze, my minor leaguers must have had "handle with care" signs that I missed. I've had 4 or 5 of them get injured in Spring training so far. Maybe because they aren't used to playing this much, but seriously, I don't remember other Spring trainings being this bad. | ||
| #23589 | 09/05/2015 11:01:35 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I've got a lot of pitchers in the majors, and too few in the minors. This could be interesting, I'm trying a 6 man rotation for the first time because of the full roster of seemingly capable pitchers I have. Someone who doesn't do well will probably get axed and I will return to a 5 man rotation. | ||
| #23603 | 09/06/2015 2:07:01 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Seems like a good Strategy BW, I'm carrying one extra pitcher than I'd like, waiting to see which of the veterans under performs to move on from though - picked up a 26 y.o with 74 SI who has gained 3SI in the minors already, hoping he can develop into a bull pen piece for a few seasons. | ||
| #23652 | 09/07/2015 4:14:45 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, fantastic. We just started cup play and already C Chul Moo Park has a fatigue injury. I've got to find a good backup and/or replacement for him... | ||
| #23726 | 09/08/2015 5:15:59 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Started off the season taking Des Moines to the slaughterhouse, which is a little surprising considering some of the talent they have. Didn't expect that I would blow them out 3 games in a row. | ||
| #23748 | 09/09/2015 2:23:59 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Couple of sweeps in the openers, I got a little lucky against South Bay after my now former closer Wagner gave up 3 runs in the 9th, luckily my offence fought back allowing a grand slam for Valera. Big series tomorrow against the Athletics, Adkins up first! |
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| #23754 | 09/09/2015 6:45:33 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Good starts for 2/3 of the posters here. College Station's goal this season is to not blow so many games. At this early point of the season fans are already calling for the return of Harvey Hartman. Ace Ben Ye whom is a little short on stamina, was moved to the bullpen to solve our reliever woes. Thru the first cup and league series he has 3 losses and 3 blown saves in three appearances and a lovely 12.71 era. Our only FA acquisition was solid experienced reliever Tyler Austin: 8 innings, 14 hits and a 6.75 era. Management's patience will not last long... |
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| #23771 | 09/09/2015 2:51:40 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Geeze, how heartbreaking is it to watch your team come back to within striking distance from a large deficit not once, not twice, but three times in one game and come up short. Especially because the darn manager left in a pitcher a batter or two longer than I would have if I had a say (multiple times). I was nearly yelling at my computer "stick a fork in him!" a couple times just before Fort Wayne smashed yet another 2 or 3 run homer to pull away again. Ugh. Looks like Fort Wayne is going to be real stiff competition again. Also really insulting to have your starter pitch 1/3 of an inning... | ||
| #23784 | 09/09/2015 9:40:54 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Many toys were thrown in the typing of this post. College Station deserved to win 3 of today's games, but giving up 4 runs in the 8th to blow a 3 run lead....... New manager Chad Bosco hasn't gelled with the team yet its fair to say! |
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| #23787 | 09/10/2015 5:09:40 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| The profanity laced closed door tirade by owner FreddyTheEye seems to have got the attention of the team and they played a little better this last series.As mentioned, we were the beneficiaries of several missed opportunities and could easily have lost 2-3 of those games. Ben Ye sat and watched the series from the bench. It can be a very frustrating game..lol. |
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| #23809 | 09/10/2015 4:33:51 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| 5 runs in the top of the 9th to blow the last game today - 3 different closers tried already, I'm running out of options! And the Missoula Cripples are back to their old tricks with 4 players on the DL currently. |
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| #23811 | 09/10/2015 6:10:20 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| The Care Bears may very well end up being a very long term rival for College Station and a few bench clearing brawls may erupt, but man I feel your pain!! Still have to admit I literally laughed out loud at your post. |
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| #23890 | 09/11/2015 6:48:49 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ouch, that's painful to watch. I'm fairing a bit better than that at the moment, finally picked up a good backup catcher and tossed Harper aside. Might need to look for a couple more cuts from majors or minors to clear out a little space in the old farm field for more pitchers. I've got 2 in AAA and one in rookie, and nothing in between. | ||
| #23897 | 09/11/2015 8:48:38 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Freddy, my players have been banned from bench brawls, mostly in fear they'll end up injuring each other and not the opposing team. Benchwarmer - thats a brave approach on pitching prospects! I'm considering dropping some of my hitting prospects to create more space for P's of any level. In other notes, where did St Paul come from in the standings! |
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| #23917 | 09/12/2015 7:07:29 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, considering St. Paul is a demotion from LL IV, it's not that much of a surprise that they'd be doing well. It also looks like they did a major overhaul in the offseason. As far as my pitching prospect approach goes, that's not what I want. I seem to have no luck drafting pitchers as either I only get field position players or pitchers with very little scouting info. And when I do pick up a pitcher, he tends to be very underwhelming, and the waiver wire hasn't done me any favors in that area either. | ||
| #23935 | 09/12/2015 3:49:06 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Yeah I had the same problem so I loaded up a few 12 pot guys with low range, I've still got 3 of them who I think will be productive big league guys - Time will tell whether that will be the case, but I'm optimistic. Current 8 game series against Beverley Hills is a unique experience - 4 cup games and then 4 league games in a row. |
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| #24113 | 09/16/2015 4:11:37 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| The pain... Watching my team get runners on second and third with no outs in the top of the 9th with a 0-0 tie, and not score. Then give up the winning run on a single with 2 outs and a runner on second. At least I'm doing pretty well over all (1 game back of St. Paul), but those are the losses that really hurt. Looks like both the Care Bears (hopefully your players are healthier by now JJ) and and the Athletics are up there once again as well. Looks like in the East there's only one team that will have to worry about demotion, poor Arlington Heights seems to be everyone's punching bag this season. | ||
| #24127 | 09/16/2015 9:25:03 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Its almost like the divisions are reversed compared to last season, with the west being pretty close and the east being more spread out. You'd like to think that Missoula was healthy BW, but I lost both my ace for 13 days, and my No.3 hitter for 10 days during the series with College Station - very close series, could've been a sweep if my bullpen didn't throw away the first in extra innings again, I think the 3rd game was my first victory in one where Adkins started? |
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| #24156 | 09/17/2015 6:23:25 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Yeah Adkins went 9 shut out innings and lost! Ben Ye (starting stud last season) is this season's Harvey Hartman and is killing us, not that anyone else in the pen is doing much better...sigh. We'll get it figured out. Our bats really need to come alive too, I think every starter save 1 is hitting below lifetime averages. If the care bears were not so injury prone I'd have them as fav's for the pennant now with all the new additions this season and their massive hitting attack but their injury problems and with Adkins being so dominant and Station's starting pitching depth we may still have a razor thin edge. We'll see. I keep expecting Beverly to lose a few but so far they seem intent on making it a three team race. Looks like it's going down to the wire either way. |
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| #24167 | 09/18/2015 5:41:11 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I'd need at least 2 more bullpen guys before I really think I have a chance - its yours to lose. I've got a tough fight for second place though In positive news, I finally got my first half decent draft for the year - not a stud by any means, but he can stick around for now to see how he develops. |
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| #24246 | 09/19/2015 7:08:46 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| OK we'll take it !! hahaha After a couple dry seasons drafting (not a complaint as we have done well on waivers) we drafted a stud late last season https://brokenbat.org/player/113378and another early this season https://brokenbat.org/player/114194. This gives us 6 solid 14 pot minor leaguers under the age of 22 plus a couple very solid 13's and a couple more 14's in the 23-24 age range. The future looks good for College Station. The trick will be getting them into the line up and working through the growing pains. Speaking of growing pains... What do you guys think of this guy?? https://brokenbat.org/player/92632 14 potential, lots of SI and playing time, great scouting but has done absolutely nothing. I plan to give up on him if he doesn't come to life this season sometime. Frustrating to draft him and invest so many seasons in him if he turns out to be a dud lol (although I am very happy that the game works like this, with uncertainty) and this guy..https://brokenbat.org/player/79329 similar situation but is starting to come alive..still not living up to scouting.. Combined they give me a very young inexperienced, under achieving outfield and are hurting the team again this season. Not sure what to do about them tbh. A big positive for us going forward is my #4 starter Kroes...he picked up 7 si points (1 in range) this past training update. Combined with Adkins, Deleon and Ruiz (who has been lights out awesome this season), he give college station a very tough top 4 pitchers and spells trouble for the rest of the league. Now if only I could find a reliever that could get a win in extra innings (we are 1-5 in extras) or that can hold a 4 run lead and keep his era under 6.00 we'd be laughing!! Finally...we are looking good in our cup division this season. How are you guys doing? An extra round or two in the cup really injects the cash!! |
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| #24248 | 09/19/2015 7:26:37 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I'm tied for second in the cup at the moment, and my last series is against the team in 4th, so I may have a chance to advance to the next round. My starter rotation can't seem to make up their mind if they want to be good or bad. Half of them have ERA's below 1, and the other half has 5+. Granted, it's still early in the season with a small sample size, but still. Reid, Lemus, and Hartman have been lights out so far. Flores, Arias, and Weber, not so much. I think one of those guys gets cut in the next couple of weeks if they don't improve. I've also got a potential star ready to go in AAA, I plan to bring him up at some point this season. |
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| #24258 | 09/19/2015 4:40:43 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I think you should play those 2 guys against the Care Bears every time out Freddy, and encourage the rest of your team to learn from them Saavedra especially has gotta be frustrating for you -might be a bench guy until some of your studs come through. I've had a tough run in the drafts, finally getting a 13 pot in this last lot but he's another 1B/DH guy which I already have 2 of. Kroes is going to be another pain in my side, have been watching his development, he's basically mirrored Fossas, I enjoyed their match up in the last series and will be looking forward to a few more. DeLeon is a perfect example of why 12 pot low fielding Pitchers are my current target I'm 9-7 in the cup - 5 of those losses are care of the bullpen. Up against Burlington in the last where I'll need to take 3 - so looks like my good run in the cup is going to end. Frustrating to have such a good run differential in both the league and the cup, and let be struggling in both. Will have my ace back shortly, but the 5th spot in the rotation is up in the air currently, considering just throwing Harrison in the deep end and letting him gain a whole lot of SI, should be a good bullpen guy next year; Lynn might solidify the rotation for this season. |
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| #24313 | 09/21/2015 4:02:59 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| McDaniel is batting out of his mind in league play right now. He has a .395 AVG and .795 slugging with 119 at bats. That is insanity. In cup he hasn't been quite that good, but I care a lot more about league than cup anyhow. Updated Monday, September 21 2015 @ 4:04:12 pm PDT Updated Monday, September 21 2015 @ 4:04:36 pm PDT |
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| #24316 | 09/21/2015 6:26:57 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| wow..like last year we seemingly had a cup advancement locked down and like last year, needing only one win to advance we went out and dropped four straight to an underdog team to finish third in our division. Unbelievable. What a bunch of chokers eh?? But unlike last year, for some reason we seem to have advanced anyway even as a third place team..go figure! We'll take it. |
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| #24371 | 09/22/2015 6:32:59 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| In other news Emilio Otera hit for the cycle in a game tonight with two homers two triples a double and single (6/6) and 7 rbi's... | ||
| #24372 | 09/22/2015 6:39:35 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Hat trick post... The bats have finally started to come to life and.. College Station will send Adkins, Deleon and Ruiz to the mound in the battle for first place vs. the CareBears. Hopefully we'll get our first sell out in our oversized stadium and injure a few more of the glass bears! |
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| #24385 | 09/23/2015 12:47:26 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| The Bears became aware of the upcoming series against the Gymnasts, John Heath who has been doing a fantastic job in the leadoff spot promptly went and injured himself for 8 days. Its an away series too, so any wins will constitute a successful series, followed by not getting any more injuries, and to really make my day roughing up Adkins. #dreaming | ||
| #24546 | 09/25/2015 3:35:09 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, Bowie moves on to round 2 of the cup. We will see how that goes. | ||
| #24572 | 09/25/2015 8:48:31 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Congrats! We used young pitchers but still squeaked through to round two as well. Love the extra cash gates! Good luck. |
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| #24640 | 09/27/2015 5:38:08 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ah, looks like inter-conference play is coming up. I've got the Athletics up first, should be some good games between me and you Freddy. I'll try and give you and your Handle With Care Bears a little help Meanwhile, I seem to have some injury woes of my own with my heavy hitting outfielder Cervantes out, being replaced by my subpar backup outfield. They are really not up to snuff this season, Potter hasn't developed quite like I was hoping, and Vargas' bat has gone dead. Time to give the offseason pickup McFadden a chance, who is mostly untested so I have no idea what I'll get out of him. I've also picked up a couple of cast off pitching prospects and stuck them in AAA. Not my first choice, but they seem to be better than my pitching draft choices have been lately. |
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| #24670 | 09/28/2015 5:42:24 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| The Athletics are coming! Curious to see how my pitchers (and slumping hitters)do in that big field. We are coming in injury free and with lots more pitching depth than last year but now hitting is an issue lol. Yeah..those guys that just won't develop are frustrating, especially when they have huge preseasons! haha Good luck in the five game set! |
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| #24672 | 09/28/2015 6:38:44 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Freddy, can you just hurry up and run away with this thing so I can dump all of my veterans and blood in a couple of new boys? You're taunting me into hanging onto the old guys currently! Having a look through the overall league statistics Missoula should have a better record than we do. Interleague should be more even this year I think, the top 3 in the east are very imposing. | ||
| #24679 | 09/29/2015 6:39:48 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| That's just not how we roll...we like to build up a 3-5 game league then quickly throw it away with a 5 game skid vs. the bottom teams in the division. Keeps it all more interesting. Meanwhile, we just picked up a pretty good, albeit expensive waiver wire pitcher who gives us real good depth in the pen now (finally). We remain committed to getting the young pitcher Padilla more innings and hopefully Yakoitowo as well, but we clearly have more options than last season. |
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| #24699 | 09/29/2015 7:12:50 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, we split the series 3-2 in what looks like was more of a pitching duel than anything else. Some good games there Freddy, I don't really think this changed much as far as standings go. My starting pitching seems to be pretty strong (surprisingly), while my bullpen is a little iffy, it can be like a gasoline station next to a match factory just waiting to go up if the wrong guy is in at the wrong time. At least I look like I'm pretty safe from relegation this season, as opposed to last year where anyone could have promoted or relegated from the East up until the last couple of weeks. Not too hopeful for promotion, either, but things can happen. Updated Tuesday, September 29 2015 @ 7:14:46 pm PDT |
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| #24762 | 10/01/2015 6:23:11 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Somethings going wrong - I have no injured players, and managed to go 3-2 against 2 of the top 3 east teams so far - had a chance at sweeping Lake Charles today but they got to my bull-pen in game 3 (I guess some things remain normal) The revolving door policy continues in the 5th starter spot, might be time to try something radical! |
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| #24828 | 10/03/2015 4:26:16 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| You just jinxed yourself!! haha You'll have three injuries by Monday. We just played 15 straight games vs. the top three of the East, not fun but got thru it at 8-7 (10 home games). After backing into the cup elimination rounds the Athletics have rolled right down to the round of 32 after winning three straight 3 game series. |
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| #24852 | 10/03/2015 2:57:55 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| All that really shows Freddy is that Adkins should be permanently banned from pitching at LL5 3 players are making their debuts today, had a mid season clean out of some of the more expensive guys, or under developed players. Repetto got a hit, a walk and an RBI in his first game out - I'll take that each time out! |
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| #24866 | 10/04/2015 12:44:05 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| And yep, you picked it Freddy - star SS Walker went down for 3 days, but not to be outdone, RHS Lane (who is having an abysmal season) conveniently found an injury to blame it all on and is out for 25 days. | ||
| #24871 | 10/04/2015 11:05:36 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ouch, that's not even fair. Hey, at least you are leading the division for the moment. | ||
| #24894 | 10/05/2015 1:51:05 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Big series against Bowie tomorrow - it looks like your boys have been drinking the Missoula water already with 2 big pitchers for you out - all I ask is not to bean-ball any of my guys ok? There might be the first fatal accident in BB if you do! Almost time for the All-star teams - I think I'll have a couple in this year - Fossas and Wells should make it as pitchers, and Stein and perhaps Heath might sneak in as hitters. Bender would be borderline, looks like a bit of competition at 2B this year though. Walker is also a possibility with a strong second quarter. Updated Monday, October 5 2015 @ 1:57:11 am PDT |
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| #24913 | 10/05/2015 2:37:20 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Man, there's something about Missoula that causes injuries lol. Losing Burton is going to hurt, Arias we might be alright without. We'll have to be, seeing as he's gone for the better part of a month. | ||
| #24961 | 10/06/2015 10:17:22 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Close series against you BW, bit lucky to have taken it 3-2, especially after you took those first 2 games off me, and probably single-handedly knocked Wells out of contention for an all star nomination! I see that the Leotards are up to their usual 'leveller' tricks of losing to the lower ranked teams and dominating the top teams - you're messing with my head Freddy! | ||
| #24986 | 10/07/2015 3:37:33 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, 6 guys from the Bowie squad made it on the All-Star team. Not entirely sure why Yeh is there, he's not having what I'd call an All-Star season. Saint Paul's pitching must be deadly. All but 2 of the pitchers in the East are from there. You're not doing too shabby, either, JJ. 8 guys, that is nuts. | ||
| #24991 | 10/07/2015 4:02:21 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Yeah 8 guys including 5 starters in the game - insane! I guess my already high wage bill will be creeping up even further! 7 of the 8 got into the game too - even if it was Wells giving up both of the Easts runs, and Heath as a 9th inning defensive replacement - it'll be a long time before I manage to beat this years class I think |
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| #24995 | 10/07/2015 6:17:00 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| We were thinly represented but deserving. We have about 6 guys who have been in season long slumps. Player of the game and winning pitcher were both Athletics so at least we represented. We'll have to be better in the second half.Clubhouse blow up were recently reported, but not confirmed. The cup run continues into the final 16. We are playing to win now (rookie pitchers early on) so if we can win another series it's going to start effect our league play! We were 2 games over .500 vs the east division, good but we'll have to be better second run through or the all-star filled overpaid brittle Carebears will run away from us. Ruiz has arguably been our best pitcher this year is out 33 games with a torn Labrum but we have a couple options for replacement. Updated Wednesday, October 7 2015 @ 6:22:57 pm PDT |
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| #25001 | 10/07/2015 10:26:22 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Oh so Ruiz received the package of bottled water sent to him from Missoula? Adkins may receive one in the future also........... | ||
| #25039 | 10/08/2015 3:03:57 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Crap, and now Reid will miss a start with a dead arm. My starting pitching which has been pretty solid most of the season is starting to fall apart before my eyes with guys going down with injuries. Curse that Missoula water! | ||
| #25072 | 10/09/2015 11:37:33 am | ||
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biggestillinifan Joined: 11/19/2013 Posts: 18 Inactive
| I feel very lucky that my pitching has come together. It's really a couple homegrown prospects with free agent rentals. I was confident that our hitting would be great but the level of pitching from guys not named Norton has been fantastic. Missoula comes to town on Saturday. I'm going with a 3-2 Polar Bears series victory. That pitching staff has been ridiculously good. Here's hoping for a big series from MVP candidate Rick Williamson. Updated Friday, October 9 2015 @ 11:37:45 am PDT |
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| #25076 | 10/09/2015 1:57:07 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Welcome along St Paul! Don't worry, I've planned ahead and sent some Missoula water to Williamson, that guy can play! I'd happily take a 3-2 series, pitching staff got roughed up against Fort Wayne though, fingers crossed they can bounce back some |
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| #25128 | 10/10/2015 3:37:23 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Looks like Saint Paul is going to run away with the division, especially now that I've gone on a big losing streak. Having several star players out is not helping. | ||
| #25142 | 10/11/2015 2:49:46 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Tough series against St Paul, could've gone either way and St Paul deservedly took it - the 5th starter spot continues to give me trouble, nice to get Madison's first ever complete game shut out in game 2 though! | ||
| #25195 | 10/12/2015 4:35:28 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Fun Cup run. But it's back to business now. We're a little banged up but at least the team is playing more consistently. We consistently pitch pretty well and consistently can't hit worth crap! lol Four teams in the division are one good streak away from winning this division, we're looking forward to playing you all! |
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| #25202 | 10/12/2015 8:55:11 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yeah, the divisions have definitely flip-flopped this season. You guys are looking like the East did last year, anyone's race. I am going to need a strong run to have a shot at winning the division this season, St. Paul is looking pretty tough up there. In other news, that was probably one of the best series to lose my star 1B in, Still took 4 of 5 against the hapless South Gate Bluejays. Up next in interdivisional play, South San Fransisco. |
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| #25249 | 10/13/2015 9:20:19 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I think for me the biggest disappointment has to be College Station actually winning a series against one of the lower teams in the east. What gives? You're only supposed to go well against the top teams! Speaking of which - BW, I promise to stop sending your players Missoula water if my guys perform in the series against you |
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| #25268 | 10/14/2015 7:13:53 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| lol yeah some days we can't beat anybody! Still no streaks or sweeps to speak of but we have won 7 straight series so no complaints either. Finally getting a little hitting so knock on wood to that. Ruiz should be back soon so we'll be very deep at P for the stretch run. Go Bowie go!! Time to smash some care bear...butt. |
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| #25272 | 10/14/2015 10:51:55 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I'll have you know I've only had 1 injury in the last 3 series! Didn't help today though as the hitters appeared to forget which end of the bat to hold and dropped the first 3 games against Des Moines. | ||
| #25360 | 10/16/2015 3:50:27 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| May be about time to start letting the young guys into the lineup to gain experience. Promoting is a very remote possibility at this point, and I think I'm pretty safe from demotion. In other news, yet another sub par pitcher pulled from the draft, but I'll keep this one because he's the best I've seen in a while and I need some pitchers down on the farm. | ||
| #25432 | 10/17/2015 6:59:07 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Well, we're ready for the big series. Just a couple moves to get some range in that huge outfield at CareBear park. Big pitching match-ups all the way thru so probably be double digit slugfest scores lol. |
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| #25437 | 10/17/2015 9:30:17 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Unfortunately my hitters have just forgotten how to hit - you'll notice that by how you've not just caught up to the RD I had, but overtaken it! I think it might have something to do with the latest shipment of bats, allegedly from China. The importer is now being investigated for match-fixing. The new EXWL has a tight race to the finish for us, currently picking 102 wins a piece, I've got 5 games to make up if that's the case! It does seem to be a lock that one of us will promote though, I'd say the odds are 70% in your favour. P.S. - Did any parcels turn up for Adkins in the mail?..... I like your thinking re: next season BW, if I get swept in this series I'll just throw in the towel (again!) and bring up my 3 young pitchers who need all the game time they can get. |
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| #25452 | 10/18/2015 3:41:02 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| oh you got the bats from China? I got you a great deal on those....that's for the Missoula water you gave us last time we were here. The parcel arrived for Adkins but you've gone to that well too many times now. Adkins is still in recluse anyway after getting shelled and chased in two innings last time out. Maybe the projections don't like us because we have a lot of road games left? OR MAYBE it's because we choke every year at this time?? hahaha As I write this the series is 1-1 and looking like a split judging by the identical scores. |
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| #25455 | 10/18/2015 4:18:54 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Game 3 is a 10-5 defeat, at this point in the series you've scored 15 runs, 11 of which have been unearned, if my guys knew that gloves go on hands and not feet I'd be up 3-0! | ||
| #25458 | 10/18/2015 4:54:27 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| LMAO! Frustrating to watch sometimes. Hopefully we can show some killer instinct here. |
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| #25461 | 10/18/2015 5:12:26 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yup, time to bail and start giving youngsters some time. Not doing too great, though, just dropped 3 of 4 to the team right behind us in the division. | ||
| #25470 | 10/18/2015 8:25:15 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Killer instinct indeed, did you want another 3 unearned runs btw? 2 top prospects have been bought up and into the starting rotation, one aging reliever has been set free with more cuts due later tonight depending what I can steal from FA....... unless something dramatic happens I think you're set for a well deserved promotion Freddy! BW, whose your biggest prospects for next season? Turner and Trevino are my only 15 pot's, they're they 2 SP I've just bought up, while not quite in Adkins stead, they should be the front of my rotation for the next 6-7 seasons providing they pan out! |
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| #25493 | 10/19/2015 3:10:02 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| It's officially garbage time, time to bring in the young guys. Russell Morrison is probably my biggest prospect, He's listed as a catcher but I'm trying to train him for middle infield with those defensive skills he has. I've had him promoted as a backup, I'll probably stick him in the lefty lineup to get him more playing time. I might also call up Ricky Jones and see how he does in the outfield with that cannon of an arm. If he works out better than Potter, Potter will probably end up in the trash heap, he's been underwhelming so far (batting below the Mendoza line in 46 AB, but he has been solid in the field. Can't justify a sub-.200 hitter just for the defense though.) Alfredo Macias is about due for some time in the big leagues, too. Might have to swap between him and Morrison for middle infield time. Theo Winters is my biggest pitching prospect, but he's been up for a while so he doesn't really count (and he is doing all right for a rookie at the moment). Don't really have anyone else who is ready for the bigs yet. So far one of the spare prospects I picked up (Mancuso) has been a bust, but he just needs some time. |
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| #25747 | 10/25/2015 4:55:28 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| If you don't mind Freddy I'd like to give the scoreline for the series just passed Missoula - 3W College Station 0 W, 1L Missoula's bullpen - 3L (they tried in the second too) I'm obviously building the 'pen wrong cos its mostly a different set of guys who were on my roster at the start of the season, but still getting the same results. |
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| #25786 | 10/26/2015 3:04:36 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, the good news is I am mathematically safe from relegation. Looks like College Station is on it's way to LL IV (barring an epic collapse), hope you are ready or else we'll see you in two seasons, Freddy. Time to go full training mode now that I don't have to worry about relegating. | ||
| #25797 | 10/26/2015 5:01:17 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Last year College Station blew game after game with the bullpen so I feel your pain. I posted early season that it wasn't happening again and I meant it. I was gonna move Adkins and Deleon to the pen if it continued this season. So frustrating to blow games that way. Luckily, after a shaky first week, the pen was great this year and held us together when the hitting went south. Now we are rolling and on cruise control. So Missoula, at least you know where the problem was! lol You'll get it sorted and we'll see you up after next season. There no risk of embarrassment by accepting the pennant now because if we collapse I'll quit the game break the keyboard and never be back anyway hahaha. We have a lot of rookies on the way but if we promote I don't plan on being back anytime soon BW. I hope that we can either compete (our pitching staff is clearly worthy but we still have many holes on the team) or stay out of relegation trouble while mixing in as many young guys as possible. As always it will be wait and see and a work in progress. |
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| #25928 | 10/29/2015 6:11:47 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Congrats, Freddy, on officially claiming the West title. Now go and beat the Killer Bees in the league championship game as the underdog like I did to JJ in 2021 in our LL VI matchup. Updated Thursday, October 29 2015 @ 6:12:13 pm PDT |
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| #25930 | 10/29/2015 7:02:40 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Thanks man! I'll do my best! |
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| #25932 | 10/29/2015 9:45:05 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Yeah Congrats Freddy, also to the Killer Bee's, should be a good fun match up tomorrow with a few rookies taking the mound by the looks! | ||
| #25936 | 10/30/2015 5:09:55 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Yes and now that the training update is done...a few more rookie pitchers and two rookie middle infielders! It's the triple A Athletics vs. the triple A Carebears! Fun indeed! Bitter sweet though..I go from the number one active message board league to a non existent one! It really makes being down in the V leagues a lot more fun having the constant chat forum going. I assume that both of the div winners goes to IV.4?? Cheers guys! |
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| #25960 | 10/30/2015 10:35:52 am | ||
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biggestillinifan Joined: 11/19/2013 Posts: 18 Inactive
| St. Paul has certainly exceeded expectations. I was envisioning a 90-95 win season and tight battle to the end. The pitching staff has been a surprising bright spot and the team is hitting .280 as well. The Killer Bees are excited about Division 4 but will have to cut payroll. Last update shows a $52 million salary projection, far above the $40-45,000 million range needed to be profitable. I have two cuts in mind that will take away a $11 million chunk. It should be a great championship match-up! Good luck. |
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| #26180 | 11/02/2015 5:01:12 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Looks like the Gulls roster will probably look pretty familiar next year, no big changes except maybe a couple new pitchers from the minors while saying goodbye to a couple of underperformers, same on the fielding side. Might try to pick up a pitcher on the waiver wire, and maybe a couple backups to replace ones I have (1B, SS, 3B). Good news is I'm not reliant on the waiver lottery to fill holes, I'm feeling pretty good about my existing team. I'm hoping a couple of my young guys don't ask for monster raises next season, I'm afraid my new star 1B Yang Fan will have a big pop in salary. | ||
| #26182 | 11/02/2015 5:17:45 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Well, my team is hot after a monster second half of the season so hopefully we can perform in the division finals vs. the Mosquitoes. Thx St.Paul..Good luck to you too!! |
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| #26215 | 11/03/2015 7:42:32 am | ||
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biggestillinifan Joined: 11/19/2013 Posts: 18 Inactive
| I like the way your team has been playing. My pitching was bad in the final series of the season. I'll say 4-2 in favor of your crew. See you in Division 4! | ||
| #26344 | 11/05/2015 3:24:15 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| What a final! Gotta tip my cap, ya beat us at home three times in the series and Adkins twice. Congrats and see you next season. Cheers to JJ and BW see you after you promote next season. |
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| #26351 | 11/05/2015 3:57:23 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I sure hope I can promote next year, felt like I had the team to do it this year (except for some of my shaky pitching, which I think I have mostly fixed now) until the Killer Bees showed up and slaughtered everyone. The only reason I finished 9 games behind Fort Wayne is because I started throwing rookies and young developing players into the lineup to get them play time after it was clear my shot at the division was over. I think I have a good chance next season as well, I'm coming back with mostly the same roster. We'll see how the new promotions and relegations are, that may determine how well I can do next year. Edit: Speaking of which, just checked out the teams that are promoting, and gosh the Bangor Bearcats look scary. 2 15 and a 14 pot fielder, 3 pitchers with well over 100 SI (and one of them is only 25 as a 14 pot O.o). Not too worried about Savannah, they are a bot team and their pitching looks weak. That's the newcomers to the East. In the West, JJ you might need to watch out for the Bellevue Bears, they have a pretty intimidating lineup (9 fielders over 100 SI and a 15 pot pitcher). How all those guys are so cheap is beyond me. The Camarillo team doesn't look like it is much of a slouch, either. Could be a slugfest out in the West this year. Updated Thursday, November 5 2015 @ 4:08:14 pm PST Updated Thursday, November 5 2015 @ 4:09:09 pm PST |
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| #26356 | 11/05/2015 4:52:01 pm | ||
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biggestillinifan Joined: 11/19/2013 Posts: 18 Inactive
| My hitting was just good enough to pull it out. Great series for sure. I am only releasing two players and letting it ride again in Division 4. | ||
| #26426 | 11/07/2015 7:08:24 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I seem to have the opposite problem I had a few season ago. It used to be that my pitching was ancient and my fielders were young. Now I have young pitching, but an old lineup. | ||
| #26492 | 11/07/2015 11:03:16 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Worryingly enough I feel you could be right there BW - I'm going after as many arms as I can lay my greasy mitts on in this waiver period, I've been lucky that none of my top hitters declined dramatically so unless a super star pops up there shouldn't be too many changes there for me. The end of year awards went about as I thought - to me the biggest surprise was my pitcher Juarez only getting 9 votes for the Cy Young despite a 1.90 ERA over a full season - even more telling was that at the all-star make he was sitting at just over 3.00 ERA, so must've have had nearly a record second half! |
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| #27082 | 11/18/2015 3:23:06 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| JJ, you will be happy to know that Leroy Yeh is no longer a Gull. He was getting old, though, and his numbers were declining pretty quickly, so I decided it was time to cut him loose. In his place I picked up another SS that looks to be about Yeh's equal, surprisingly in FA, not from waivers. He is overpriced as he's coming down from Legends, which might be why he slipped through waivers, but he's just a stopgap until my promising young middle infielder gets a little more experience. | ||
| #27089 | 11/18/2015 5:25:56 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I'm sure you'll have someone else ready to step up and taunt me! Yeh was certainly a goody for ya. The new guy was a very surprising pick up for FA, should be a big defensive upgrade immediately. Waiting for the season to kick into gear, I've made some good improvements with my bull-pen, and am going with a 4 man rotation up until the inter-league series, should be an interesting experiment. | ||
| #27261 | 11/23/2015 10:23:01 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Starting the league season tomorrow with a 3 match series against South San Fran with a new (inactive it seems) owner - I'm fairly confident after the cup showing today. 2 new starts in the rotation handled their first showings, Turner will be up in game 3 tomorrow also. Wondering at what point to bring Seymour up, won't be for the first week or 2 at least and we'll see how all the games and players pan out at that point. | ||
| #27306 | 11/25/2015 3:20:50 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Unbeaten through the first 9 games (4 cup, 5 league) although the treat with care bears are back to their old tricks, with Wells out for 22 days after throwing a complete game. Undecided who his replacement will be at this stage, there's a few candidates luckily, possibly even an AAA starter could come up for a week. | ||
| #27333 | 11/26/2015 10:26:50 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, off to a good start with only 1 loss in the first two series, the new SS Hanson seems to be working out well so far, as if OF Dennis. My catchers both seem to be made of glass, though. Both have gotten brief injuries (Park twice) in the young season. Losing starting pitchers seems to be a theme, my #2 starter Adams is out for 2 weeks. I can either go to a 4 man rotation, or trust the underskilled Mancuso in the SS spot. | ||
| #27351 | 11/27/2015 12:29:48 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| If the season ended today BW we'd be having a playoff rematch! Camarillo took 2 from me today though, good pitching effort from their staff, assisted by my 3B making 4 errors in 2 games Updated Friday, November 27 2015 @ 2:29:27 pm PST |
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| #27372 | 11/27/2015 7:59:32 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, it's a long season and anything could happen. But I'm off to a good start, I think. Took 3 of 4 from one of the teams I think could be a main rival. As long as my starters stay healthy, I feel like I've got another shot this year. | ||
| #27508 | 11/30/2015 3:28:34 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| The care bears are at it again - after losing Wells for 20 odd days, Trevino went down for 11 days, I was poised to get them back for the next series and now fresh call up Boyd is out for 36 days along with my starting C for 2 days. Maybe its the cold weather! 3 of my starting rotation out at once though, ouch! | ||
| #27510 | 11/30/2015 4:52:39 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ouch, that's tough. You need to get some better trainers (or perhaps better water... |
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| #27514 | 11/30/2015 7:51:37 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Or some concrete pills - I had to use Fossas to spot start, he's now gone down for 6 days and 3B Heath decided that his feelings were hurt so has taken a day off also. 5 players including 4 Pitchers on the DL! | ||
| #27546 | 12/01/2015 6:00:08 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| 5 players including 4 Pitchers on the DL! *Secretly laughing* |
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| #27552 | 12/02/2015 12:43:40 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Lol Freddy, not quite so secret! Looks like Bowie and Missoula could well be on the way to LL IV at the current rate, but then again you might not even be there very long! Impressive stuff! *from a team of cheating head-hunting slide tackling players* I was up to 6 players on the DL after today's first game, 2B Bender had his annual DL stint also. Updated Wednesday, December 2 2015 @ 12:44:32 am PST |
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| #27578 | 12/02/2015 5:59:42 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Yeah good starts for you guys for sure but you just jinxed it lol (combined 0-5 in current streaks since your post). I think we can certainly compete in this division but it's still a little early to know where we really stand. Cheers guys! |
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| #27708 | 12/05/2015 2:35:55 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| noted - no more confident predictions on my part Back up to 4 guys on the DL, sigh! Seymour, my minor league hitter of the year for the past 2 seasons received his promotion today, 1/3 with a double in his first game, I'll take that each time out! |
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| #27712 | 12/05/2015 6:55:37 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| *Jinx alert* He'll probably be injured within a week with your record  My best thief and leadoff man Roque went down for a couple of games, fortunately he'll be back very soon. I've got a couple of pitchers that I might want to shop to replace, they were really just stopgaps until I had better pitching come up through the ranks. They've been shelled a lot whenever they come in. Seems like it's a never ending search to shore up the pitching corps. |
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| #27721 | 12/06/2015 1:42:23 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I know your pain BW, although this year I'm happy with the way my pitching (bar Lane) are performing, its just the health that seems to be the issue. And yes, I suspect you've jinxed me very well, although I'd rather it was now than before the inter league |
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| #27909 | 12/11/2015 4:45:50 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| *hands Missoula a roll of tape as a gift to help tape up those injured CareBears..get some real men already!* 31-12 and 33-11 wow you guys are ripping it up early season! Good show. I'll just post here haha one active thread is better than two dead ones. College Station is looking to go on another Cup run. We luckily had an easy first group so I was able to play all our back up pitchers for good exp. In the elimination rounds though we are going with Adkins and co. We are off to a good start in league play but still have the same old issues as the last couple seasons (weak outfield, no natural lead off man, no stolen bases etc) and are generally inconsistent . We are pretty deep though and should be able to stay in the race. It's always hard trying to compete while also trying to develop young guys. Are you guys playing rookies at all? any solutions / advice? Do you think you have to play them loads to fully develop or will they do well with 40-50 games started a season? I'm wondering if next season I may have to take my foot off the gas to better develop the youth (a development season) I have lots of them coming up next season. Cheers! |
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| #27915 | 12/12/2015 1:07:14 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I've had a tough cup run this year, one legends team in my group, just scraped past a ll2 team to come up against another legends team! Just glad to still be in it after my abysmal showing last year. I'm blooding in a couple of new guys this season and trying different approaches, Seymour is in my starting line up and getting a lot of at bats, Saldivar is on the bench and not getting as many, will see how it works out. I've got 4 rookie pitchers learning their trade, I've thrown 3 of them into the rotation to both get them a lot of innings and to fortify my bull pen with good results so far from last year's starters. I think I'm in a position to have a strong team for a couple of years with the way they're all developing, and as you mentioned Freddy, the results are there at this early stage Updated Sunday, December 13 2015 @ 1:30:34 am PST |
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| #27932 | 12/12/2015 5:27:24 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I think the more you play them, the better. I've got a couple of young guys that I'd like to get in the lineup, but since I'm looking at a potential championship run here, I've instead invested in a couple of pricier veterans that are getting all the playtime. I'm doing well in cup, advanced to round 2 for the second season in a row. I'm tempted to give the young guys a chance to play in those games just to give them a chance to see what they can do. Although, on that note, I think I figured out where that mysterious package of water bottles that showed up in the clubhouse earlier this week came from (and of course some fools drank it). It has to be from Missoula because my star 2B Cruz Garza has gone down for a week. At least it gives me a chance to get a couple of those young guys some reps since two of them are middle infielders. Edit: Interestingly, my initial fears about Bangor seem to be unfounded, they are stinking it up being tied for last place in the division by a mile. Updated Saturday, December 12 2015 @ 5:35:51 pm PST |
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| #28108 | 12/18/2015 4:18:20 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ouch. Dropped four of five against South San Fransisco and went to second place in my division. | ||
| #28120 | 12/19/2015 2:47:42 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Yeah the inter league stuff hasn't been particularly kind to us, and I got knocked out of the cup by an ll6 team after I couldn't get my pitching roster sorted following a 12 day injury to my ace Juarez (of course!) It's not all bad though, just had probably my best ever draft, he'll probably be ready by the time I beat Freddy for the division title in legends, and in time to lose another play off against Bowie! |
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| #28145 | 12/19/2015 3:44:32 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| ...If he doesn't get injured first (Couldn't resist.) I doesn't help that my smashing DH has gone into a slump along with a couple of my other good hitters. It seems like in general the bats have gone quiet compared to last year. Pitching has been doing an admirable job though with a sub-4 team ERA. Updated Saturday, December 19 2015 @ 3:48:49 pm PST Updated Saturday, December 19 2015 @ 3:51:24 pm PST |
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| #28161 | 12/19/2015 7:41:44 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| lol The care bears are never going to beat College Station at anything except man days on the DL. Our starting pitching has been surprisingly inconsistent but our hitting has been over achieving. Relievers? The jury is out. A little inconsistent and we just dropped a pretty good reliever do to our depth and his 4.5m price tag. Lots of young pitchers coming in AAA too (nothing spectacular but a couple promising lefties. We've never had lefties.) We remain solidly in the hunt as no team has been able to string much together yet. Bowie back in first but looks like it may be close all season. The Care Bears are miraculously threatening to pull away from the field. Cheers! |
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| #28168 | 12/20/2015 1:03:58 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Lol Touche BW. Going for a decent result against Des Moines before the first series with Bowie, my starting 3B is out for 7 days but he's not having a great season thus far anyway. Good luck to you sir! Very close race for you Freddy, I'm surprised how different the easy and west is up there, and also that St Paul seems to be struggling somewhat. I am looking forward to matching up my rising star Trevino against Adkins at some point in the future! Updated Sunday, December 20 2015 @ 1:04:16 am PST |
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| #28246 | 12/22/2015 6:54:59 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Darn it, I warned my players not to drink the water in Missoula... 4 players got injuries during our series, JJ > |
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| #28281 | 12/23/2015 3:49:46 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Poor showing in the all-star game this season, I only had 1 player, James Reid (P), get in. But then again none of my players are having a very good year, I think my pitching is holding the team together because the bats have been kind of quiet lately. | ||
| #28303 | 12/24/2015 2:17:19 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| That's some bad luck there BW! Relatively even series though, I've got a few guys over performing and a few under performing, overall happy with things though. Good representation in the all star game, although I'm not entirely sure all of them were warranted! | ||
| #28488 | 12/30/2015 5:52:44 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Oh, look, the injury bug has bit Bowie again. Right before a series with Missoula. Coincidence? I think not! |
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| #28489 | 12/30/2015 6:44:00 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I'm hoping I've left the bug behind for now, injury free heading into this series! A few pitchers struggling though, I'm resting Wells for this series and giving Lombardo a run in the rotation, he's been a good pick up thus far. Have a few young guys I'd like to get a bit more playing time so it'd be nice to pull out a lead before the end of the season. | ||
| #28794 | 01/10/2016 3:42:37 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Bowie is getting hot again and pulls to within 3 (with a game o go today). Missoula Care Bears continue to control the west despite more injuries and a minor current 2 game skid. College Station is getting hot at just the right time with 7 straight wins to move 6.5 up on Kodiak. Our top slugger is out for ten games but we are getting production up and down the order right now. Pitching continues to be adequate and deep but unspectacular as almost everyone is having a slightly "off year" in the rotation. We just need one guy to get hot if the others can be .500 pitchers down the stretch and it will be a four man rotation all the way. Just posting today because it appears that league posters have better results! lol I hope you both promote and that the Athletics aren't around to greet you when you get here! Hope you guys had a great holiday season. Cheers! |
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| #28841 | 01/11/2016 4:05:35 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I don't know what has happened to half of the batters in my lineup. I think someone must have set fire to the bat rack and replaced them with plastic bats or something. Still within 5 games of first, though. My guys need to stop losing to the really bad teams, so far tonight dropped both games to the worst team in the East. Ugh. | ||
| #28864 | 01/12/2016 3:27:23 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Bowie's giving Fort Wayne a very good run to the finish line, clawed back another game or two, be an interesting race to watch. I've managed to recover from my mini skid with a 6 game streak currently, should be enough for me to hold first place now, enjoying giving the rookies a bit more playing time too (excluding Soriano who is injured of course!) Looking more and more like College Station is going to rocket through into LL3, the good news for me is that I won't have to face you, and also that since we were generally pretty close last season that I should have a reasonable chance next year. The relegation race in the west is extremely close too, Kirkland and South San Fran aren't really being managed so I'd like for Beverley Hills and Bellevue to pull ahead of them although it could be a tough ask. Good luck to Bowie and College Station! |
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| #28865 | 01/12/2016 3:41:32 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| After posting we went out and dropped 2 of 3 to Kodiak lol. Fortunately we are the only team they can beat the last week or so! The injury bug has been hitting us hard lately but our depth is proving to be sufficient. It would take a nightmarish disaster to blow this lead now. (we could still do it lol) This division is mildly stronger than V.7 but not much. Just no bot management but you never know what it will look like after four teams change. Bowie was 3.5 out at the time of writing and very much in contention with lots of head to head games to go. Go get 'em BW! We will be mixing in rookies and will wait for you in III.2 JJ! Looks to be a similar div with Vallejo and Joliet holding 1st and fourth place. Cheers guys! |
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| #28868 | 01/12/2016 7:36:43 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I've got a couple of rookies that I wish I could mix in, but right now I need to focus on closing that 4 game gap. I hope I can sweep Bangor tomorrow to keep it close, and do the same to Des Moines. Then it'll be a head to head fight with Fort Wayne for potentially the division lead. I've still got a realistic shot if someone would just bring my players lumber back. I think I saw a rogue fan running off with Roque's bat after the last game... | ||
| #28869 | 01/12/2016 8:26:44 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| BW you say rogue fan.. I am unable to confirm or deny how Soriano's injury occurred......... It seems I was a little forgetful, Kirkland are in no danger of relegation and Camarillo look like they're going to be a really strong team too so unfortunately one of the active guys will be demoting. If Joliet are winning LL3 then there's a good chance College Station will follow them through, we were both pretty close to Joliet in the 2022 season from memory. |
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| #28959 | 01/14/2016 4:50:32 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, looks like it's almost time to throw in the rookies. The next series will determine my fate, I need to sweep Fort Wayne to have any hope of winning the division. | ||
| #29023 | 01/15/2016 3:41:25 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, my team totally collapsed against Fort Wayne. I guess I'll be down here in LL V until my team can manage to play real baseball for a full season. | ||
| #29030 | 01/15/2016 5:38:35 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Tough series there BW, if Iowa drop down into V.7 I'd say it'll be a 2 horse battle between you and Saratoga next season. Despite playing some pretty average all round baseball in the last week we managed to clinch today, and Huber received his call up to start 3 games at the end of the season, started well, 6 games with no ERA. Looks like Freddy is set to promote so we'll be spread out over 3 league levels. Another good training day for me, Trevino has now gained 28 SI this season, I've sent Turner back to AA to finish the season as an experiment since he didn't officially receive his ready for promotion call up |
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| #29044 | 01/16/2016 9:43:25 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Basically at this point in order to win the division I need to win the rest, and Fort Wayne needs to lose the rest. I guess I'll slide the young guns into the lineup and let them get a little experience. | ||
| #29062 | 01/16/2016 9:10:39 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| We were ready to promote until we lost four straight today! lol sigh Better happen tomorrow!! Started the parade a little early. |
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| #29067 | 01/17/2016 2:08:51 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Hard luck BW, you did your part today, Fort Wayne just didn't come to the party! Could be another tough series tomorrow too Freddy, nothing like having meaningful games right through though, although I am enjoying running a full rookie team out there! |
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| #29102 | 01/17/2016 4:18:52 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Well, we backed in! Even had time to get rookie pitchers in for game three today. |
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| #29107 | 01/17/2016 4:58:13 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Tough luck down the stretch BW. Congrats JJ on promotion. Here's a stat: on Aug 22nd Robert Adkins wins 6-3 to go to 18-5. Since then in 11 starts he is 1-6 and has been hit hard in almost every game and HR's have hurt him badly. He has pitched at least 50+ more innings than anyone else in the division. The College Station brass is worried. We'll see how he does in the finals but it's hard to be optimistic. Updated Sunday, January 17 2016 @ 5:07:42 pm PST |
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| #29153 | 01/18/2016 4:44:15 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| A little bit of a disappointment to finish out the season, but otherwise it was a good year for Bowie. Several of the young guns are looking pretty good, and we've got quite a bit of spare change lying around to go after some high-dollar waiver claims in the off season to fill a few gaps. Might be time to say goodbye to a couple more aging vets before the year is over. | ||
| #29161 | 01/18/2016 7:09:42 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I saw your post in the other thread Freddy, how has that compared to his other seasons? I don't recall him ever slacking off against Missoula unfortunately so might just be a random variance? Looking forward to the playoffs, lets hope they go better than the last ones in which Bowie dominated us! |
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| #29162 | 01/18/2016 9:11:13 pm | ||
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newtman Joined: 11/02/2013 Posts: 3343 Inactive
| Looking at Adkins numbers, even after late season problems, they are still very good by LL IV standards. I'd agree with JJNZ's comment of random variance. My bet would be that if he had had another 10 starts he would have lowered his ERA again a bit, but those are very solid numbers. They are up from LL V and VI, but the overall competition is also supposed to get tougher (and except for a very few isolated league cases it does) as you climb the leagues. This is meant only to keep in mind that the numbers will very likely go up slightly as you climb the ladder as fewer teams have fewer holes. | ||
| #29169 | 01/18/2016 10:45:29 pm | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7 
| Hey, League V.7! Since I clinched the VI.13 West division this season, I thought I would introduce myself and my franchise. I recognize a lot of owners and teams here and I think it will be a lot of fun to have a league with forum-active owners to interact with throughout the 2026 season. It's been a long ride for me to earn my LL V spot, joining the Beaverton franchise at the end of the 2018 season and the last seven seasons have been a crazy ride and I'm happy to have earned a promotion spot and am honestly surprised I was able to find a way out of the notoriously tough VI.13 West (no division winner has had fewer than 100 wins since 2016, and division winners have averaged 108 wins in that span). I'm excited to step up and face some tougher competition. I'd also like to know what you think of my team and how it might transition into LL V and beyond. Can't wait for the new year! |
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| #29172 | 01/19/2016 1:58:34 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Welcome along Rdub - I'm convinced VI.13 and V.7 are tougher than average leagues, I have a pretty good team IMHO and its taken a long time to promote out! congrats on the promotion and good luck, your toughest competition is likely to come against Benchwarmer in the east Other than one of 2 guys you've got a very good looking roster and an amazing minor league system at a quick glance, providing Kirkland stay unmanaged you could blast your way through V.7 east, Bellevue has a good looking system and the very good looking Camarillo team was unlucky to be demoted. I'll be watching with interest! |
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| #29231 | 01/19/2016 7:46:32 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Hey, welcome aboard Rdub. I think you might be in one of the toughest leagues below level III, it's always a fight in V.7. I've come close to winning the East but came up short a couple of times. My team always seems to find a way to fall apart. This year someone stole our bats and replaced them with plastic ones. | ||
| #29243 | 01/20/2016 7:38:14 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Hey guys. Probably my last post here for a while. After double promotion we are now two leagues above and clearly too good for the ham and eggers down here hahaha. Kidding of course. Perhaps we should set up a chat group that consists of connected divisions (V.7,IV.4,and III.2) to keep us connected as we move up and down. Might get a few more participants. Our three posters here are now all in different leagues. Welcome to Rdub. Good luck in V.7 next season. @ Newtman- thx for the input, I appreciate it. I tend to agree with you. Solid numbers indeed (but still an off year compared to the last couple seasons). He was also weaker in the second half last season, again, probably fluke but still mildly concerning. I'll keep an eye on him next season to see if the trend continues. Next season the competition he faces will clearly be better as well. His second half collapse was just so complete that I felt it would be prudent to explore other possible reason than just random luck...just in case I was missing something. FYI- things change quickly at brokenbat but in my limited experience IV.4 was not much tougher than V.7. I just scanned the rosters of III.2 (where we are playing next season) and it looks like there is a much bigger jump in competition, no weak spots at all. So much so that I'll enter the season very unsure if we can stay up. We'll need big pitching performances. Adkins and Deleon will have to be better than this season (both had off seasons) and younger guys like Kroes and Padilla will have to step up. My team is aging a little but a well stocked minor league system will begin graduating players every season now. We will have to get them into the lineup while trying to stay up and that will likely be a challenge. Good luck next season in V.7 (IV.4 for JJNZ) and we will see you all soon. Maybe even in spring training or cup match ups! Cheers!! |
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| #29275 | 01/20/2016 9:42:14 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I'll put in a vote for using IV.4 as the community forum since its in the middle (and selfishly cos it suits me!) Alternatively this one has been and will probably continue to be active so it seems like a logical place to post. Hopefully though I'll follow Freddy through to LL3 straight away although I do see a couple of holes in my roster that might prevent that. | ||
| #29308 | 01/21/2016 3:33:18 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Congrats to the Fort Wayne Bears for coming back from 0-2 down to win 4 in a row and take the title. Sound familiar BW? JJNZ proving again that he has absolutely no idea how to manage a play off series! | ||
| #29309 | 01/21/2016 3:55:04 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| lol, your guys can't seal the deal in the post season. Hopefully I'll be able to promote next season, I need to check out the promotions and relegations to see what new stuff I'll be up against. Edit after scouting: Looks like Iowa City will be back and not for the better. They look like they should have a decent lineup, but nobody hit above much above .250 and the pitching looks awful. Doesn't help that it looks like it has bounced between several owners with the latest owner not having logged in since two weeks ago. It's not pretty for the Hawks. Not afraid of them in the least, wouldn't be surprised to see them relegate to VI. The promoting teams, Binghamton looks alright, they have a fairly potent lineup and pitching that looks strong if you look at stats, but skill wise a little underwhelming, most of the staff is mid 80's to low 90's. The fielding also looks iffy, a lot of sub-10 fielding ratings and the infield in particular looks very suspect. May put up a little challenge, but with the pitching and fielding probably a 3rd or 4th place team. Looking at Beaverton, one word sums it up: scary. Rdub, I think you have a serious chance of promoting up to IV at the end of the season. Solid, talented players all around. Half of the lineup batting near or above .300, and solid pitching staff. Bowling Green, not concerned about them, either. It's a bot team with a lot of pitchers that look too young and too underskilled to be in the majors (22 year olds with 51 and 65 SI for gosh sakes, plus a few more 60-70-low 80 SI pitchers). Just not really enough talent on either side to be able to compete. Which brings us to the Olympia Aces, another scary team. It'll be a fight for the West between the two promotees, that's my prediction. Another team absolutely loaded with talent. Updated Thursday, January 21 2016 @ 4:15:52 pm PST |
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| #29366 | 01/22/2016 4:31:07 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| As I figured, pretty much no Bowie names showing up in the awards (except for 1B Yang Fan getting the gold glove). Overall the team had an acceptable year, but there were no real standouts this season. Nice job with your rookie pitchers, JJ. 3 of them in the running for rookie pitcher of the year. | ||
| #29374 | 01/22/2016 9:46:50 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Thanks BW, to be fair that was the only category where I thought I had a chance, very nice that Seymour managed to get rookie of the year also, he an unusually built 12 pot, but I think he'll stick around for some time to come. Bender getting an all league appearance was a deserving although somewhat surprising outcome. 5th full season and I'm still get to get a gold glove in any category, despite Atkins only making 3 errors all season in CF and RF, potentially my fault for moving him through both positions I guess? | ||
| #30279 | 02/06/2016 2:44:19 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4 
| Hey there, I'm the new GM (for my sins) for the Hawks, which Benchwarmer just panned - and quite rightly too! This is my first experience of Broken Bat and digging it thus far. I'm from the UK and have played fantasy baseball (standard, keeper, dynasty) for about 12 years but this is definitely something different. The Hawks have gone from pretty good to pretty terrible from what I've seen. Some of their better players have been languishing in the minors while a bunch of worn-down old guys manned the MLB roster (I think the average age was nearly 33 when I took over). I've cut some of the crap and brought in a bunch of younger and/or better players and hopefully the whole team looks much better now. There are still a bunch of holes and the whole season might be a struggle but here's to the challenge, and to knocking heads with y'all! Updated Saturday, February 6 2016 @ 2:45:25 am PST |
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| #30280 | 02/06/2016 2:48:39 am | ||
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Haselrig Joined: 04/13/2014 Posts: 2790 Novi Doubledays III.4 
| Welcome to Broken Bat amalric7 o/ | ||
| #30294 | 02/06/2016 12:11:35 pm | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7
| Welcome to broken bat, amalric7! As someone who has had to rebuild a franchise in this tough section of the pyramid, I love to preach patience as it took me 7 years to get promoted out of VI.13. Best of luck, and I hope to see your team turn around soon! Also, with the season quickly approaching, I would love to hear the communities opinions/predictions on the upcoming season. Who will win major awards (MVP, Cy Young, etc.), division winners, and sleeper teams. My Picks; MVP: Miguel Valenzuela (Kirkland) [But I'm not counting out Julian Tejada from Saratoga, that youngster can play] Cy Young: With all top 5 vote getters from last season gone, this one is wide open. I think Herb Yeh in Olympia and Jon Musial in Bellvue have a lot of stuff, so they're my frontrunners. ROY: For hitters, if Raul Casanova gets time in Rocklin he could definitely win, but my money is on 27 year old rookie slugger Randy Abercrombie Binghamton. I think pitcher winner will be another 27 year old, Christian Jimenez from Iowa City. West Winner: Rocklin (edges Kirkland barely due to more consistent ownership) East Winner: Saratoga I'd love to hear what everybody thinks, can't wait for the season to start! |
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| #30295 | 02/06/2016 12:33:26 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Iowa City are now the Lombard Lancers. |
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| #30335 | 02/07/2016 4:24:26 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| As an outsider I'll keep my forecasts to teams: West should be a good battle, I like Beaverton against Rocklin for the division title battle. East is likely to be a two horse race, if Bowies monster offence can hold up its pitching then they'll lead a very good Saratoga team but it'll be close. The Lombard team with an active manager will be in with a sneaky underdog chance. |
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| #30447 | 02/10/2016 3:54:43 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Made a nice start in these very early days, highlighted by a 17-inning epic in game 2 last night. My CF (18 Spd/Rng/Arm but 5 Fld) dropped a fly ball for a 2-run error in the top of the 7th, cutting our lead to 4-3. Then we had two errors and a wild pitch to start the 9th which led to another unearned run which tied the game. Then our same CF got caught trying to steal 2nd base with a runner at 3rd and 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th - idiot! We twice let our opponents load the bases in extra innings, with 1 and 0 outs respectively, but got out of it both times. Only to allow a double and a homer in the top of the 17th! With hope almost gone, down 4-6 and our #2 to #5 and #7 hitters going a combined 0-29 on the night (UGH!), our #6 hitter led off our half of the inning with a shot to left field to make it 5-6. The #7 hitter reached first (for once) on an error, and after a foul out up stepped our CF Lawson... ...Who promptly smashed a 2-run, walk-off homer the other way! From goat to hero! Gotta love baseball! |
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| #30448 | 02/10/2016 5:04:36 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| And after four guys out of the bullpen threw 140 pitches in that game, our starter for game 3 gave them a deserved night off - he went the distance, giving up 3 runs on exactly 100 pitches over 9 innings. Still wasn't enough to be Player of the Game, somehow! | ||
| #30480 | 02/11/2016 2:17:48 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| And sure enough, after posting about our positive start...we were shelled in 3 straight games by Saratoga! To be fair the first two were close: a 6-12 loss after the Cowboys scored 5 in the top of the 9th; and a 3-9 loss after leading 3-0 entering the 8th. No complaints about the 3-12 loss in game 3 - Saratoga are a very good team, with a killer lineup, seems like they can all smash out XBH at will! So had little expectation for game 4, only to get up this morning and find our bats suddenly found their aim to the tune of 20 hits (10 XBH) and 6 walks, while my #1 starter stopped the bleeding with 7 strong IP (2 ER). A 20-4 win certainly improved our run differential while giving the fans something to smile about. On to Binghampton! |
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| #30522 | 02/12/2016 2:13:05 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| 10 hits and 8 walks last night...and 35 LOB. Yeesh! Will take the win (3-1), but it was much closer than it should have been. | ||
| #30586 | 02/12/2016 4:32:52 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Getting hammered in the cup by a LL III team, don't think I'm going to get out of the pool play this season. | ||
| #30595 | 02/12/2016 6:15:36 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| and we were smashed by a IV team..feel your pain!! (see IV.4 thread). I post in every league thread but my own lol. (there is no III.2 thread, I'll wait for you and JJ to get here before starting one, I don't wanna talk to myself as it would be too much like real life!! lol) |
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| #30611 | 02/13/2016 12:29:44 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Feel your pain(s) - just played a II.2 team! Lost 4-7 and 0-17 so was surprised to pick up a 14-6 win before losing the fourth game. Given the opposition I'll take 1-3. | ||
| #30630 | 02/13/2016 10:08:03 pm | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7
| In terms of cup play I seem to be getting my toughest competition out of the way, so I'll take a 4-4 split against two IV teams. | ||
| #30943 | 02/20/2016 5:24:08 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Huge to come back and win the 3rd and 4th games of our series against Bowie, and that despite blowing an early 3-0 lead in game 4 by giving up single-error-error-grand slam in the bottom of the 5th - YEESH! Good comeback in the 8th and 9th to get a series split. @Benchwarmer - I'm in my first season so no expert, but I've noticed that your stadium has been full to capacity a few times this year, including all four games of our series - time to consider increasing seating? I'm assuming more bums in seats = more revenue? (edit:) Never mind, just saw the rules for newbies as regards stadium adjustments, and have discovered mine is now locked until next off-season! Had increased it a few times from 22.5k up to 30k, but moved it back down to 28k (and now wish I hadn't). Ah well. Updated Monday, February 22 2016 @ 4:19:27 am PST |
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| #30983 | 02/22/2016 3:13:09 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I'm not sure whats more remarkable - scoring 60 runs in 4 games against the bot-controlled Bowling Green team, or managing to have 96 runners LOB. Nice to be able to pad your stats but its not great from a competition stand point. |
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| #31057 | 02/23/2016 7:20:41 am | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7
| @amalric - Yeah, there will be some teams that you will face that are like that. I will say I am surprised to see it happening in LL 5 rather than in LL 6, but barring a crazy turnaround, it seems as if Bowling Green will be down there soon enough. Still, I have to say congrats on a nice start to your broken bat career. In promotion contention early and surviving the group stage of the cup tournament. I wasn't able to do either of those until season 5 or 6. |
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| #31155 | 02/24/2016 3:43:49 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Amalric, I think somewhere (in the newbie guide maybe) there is a recommended amount of seats in the stadium for each league level. The more seats you have, the more money you can potentially make, yes. But the more seats, the more they cost you every economic update. I may bump up my seating a little next season, but I don't want to go too large and end up costing myself more money because I don't get enough butts to fill all of my seats. | ||
| #31158 | 02/24/2016 4:01:52 pm | ||
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newtman Joined: 11/02/2013 Posts: 3343 Inactive
| Someone did the math awhile back and figured out that you want to fill your stadium 13 times in a season to maximize profits, not sure whether the math still holds considering there have been several adjustments since then. Personally I just go with the recommended size since I make plenty of money doing it, and there really isn't an outlet for that cash. | ||
| #31171 | 02/25/2016 7:28:41 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| @Rdub - Thanks for the nice words! It has been a good start and long may it continue. Pretty happy with my bats but my pitching (outside of my starters and my few reliable relievers) scares me, will just have to grin and bear it and hope my "Moneyball" approach pays off! Don't have any superstars on my roster and half my better players were languishing in the minors when I took over thanks to previous (mis-)management - we'd also only ever drafted two players before this year, which is beyond me. Saratoga are still the team to beat IMO, despite dropping from LL2 with successive relegations - very talented squad. Was delighted to get a series win last night after they shelled me in a 4-game series earlier (1-3 overall). @Benchwarmer/newtman - Yes there's a guide in the Rules which I found after I posted:- I (Legends): 50,000 capacity II: 45,000 capacity III: 40,000 capacity IV: 35,000 capacity V: 30,000 capacity etc. My league avg last year was 22,421 and cup was 22,500, in a 22,500 stadium, which cried out for an increase in seats. I had settled on 28,000 capacity after getting full houses in some early games but had reduced that from 30,000 and wish I'd stayed up there - we've sold out 7 of our last 9 home games, including 6 in a row. I guess that'll come down if/when we lose a few games but again, so far so good. Finances had dropped from $72M to $57M over the past three years so increasing stadium cap seems an obvious way to get the money coming back in - curving upwards now. |
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| #31192 | 02/25/2016 4:28:36 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| And so, having tempted the baseball gods with talk of our achievements... Won our first game at Binghamton and took a 6-2 lead after 5.5 innings of the second...then imploded for a 8-12 loss. Worse, all 'Moneyball' ethics went out the window in game 3: shutout for the first time, a horrendous batting debacle, allowing a 115 pitch CG with K after K, and THREE CS, two by the same guy (who is a - to steal bases, soon to become an 'x'). Had done to us what we've done all season, and against a team we should be beating. Sickening! |
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| #31214 | 02/26/2016 5:00:43 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Woke up today to find we won game four to split the series, letting a 5-2 lead slip to 5-5, only to pull out a 13-5 win. More importantly, Saratoga just lost their owner. Not sure if that makes a difference, still a talented team, but I doubt it helps them. |
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| #31258 | 02/26/2016 4:42:53 pm | ||
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mjhack Joined: 10/17/2015 Posts: 97 Binghamton Bobcats VI.15 
| OK, for Binghamton, it seems "we are what they thought we were" in the pre season analysis. We were not blessed with a great team, but none the less advanced a level after our first full year. It is appearing obvious that we are likely to be relegated after this season. We may not be a great team, but we are realists. Here is the dilemma. Do we cut the older expensive players now and just wait until the inevitable happens and continue the rebuild that was started in LL6 ? Or do we continue to fight the good fight and purchase players that will probably bankrupt us at LL6? Thanks for ANY input! This really looked like a great competitive group to be with. | ||
| #31274 | 02/26/2016 7:56:39 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I'd hang on to some of your better older guys and maybe try to pursue some waivers to improve your lineup, I don't think you are out of it yet, you can certainly battle your way to 4th with that team. Pitching looks like the point you need to focus on, you have some really underskilled guys that need to be replaced ASAP. Also would take a look at the right side of your infield, some of the fielding stats for those guys are horrific so far. | ||
| #31276 | 02/26/2016 8:40:44 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| My advice mijack - you're definitely not out of it yet, should be able to fight for 4th at least, Des Moines has been 4th the past 2 seasons straight. Basic advice: Hinojosa (who you just claimed off me!) should be your starting CF - he has the best range and arm combination out of all your OF's - he's probably a middle order guy against LHP, and lower order against RHP, if he struggles then look for a young platoon partner for him Schmitt should be getting as many AB's as you can, he looks like he should be your LF, or 1B if you're running Juarez out in the LF as often as you can - Juarez doesn't have the fielding skill or arm to be an SS or 3B Daniel - good looking 3B Kerr's lack of range will hurt out in RF, but his arm is OK, his bats a good one to have in your line up Poole should be your starting C - he'll need a bit of development but being a switch hitter with that massive arm, he's a very solid piece Correa is a passable 2B Any of your other hitters are probably neither here nor there - keep your favourite 2-3, your best hitter as DH obviously and a couple of bench bats and then kick the rest to touch and get some young talent in there - you really really need a good fielding SS or 2, someone like: Hill is an immediate defensive upgrade, and keep your eye out for a younger guy so that Hill can become your back up guy Pitching is probably your biggest area where you can upgrade though, I'd cut: Pina, Sanchez, Sparks, straight away and give your young guys all the innings you can. A couple of FA pick ups like Abeyta or Dubois will help you more towards the end of the season. Hope that's of some help! |
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| #31277 | 02/26/2016 9:00:19 pm | ||
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mjhack Joined: 10/17/2015 Posts: 97 Binghamton Bobcats VI.15
| Wow , that is a lot more good advise than I expected. It is most appreciated. I will take another look and see how I can implement those suggestions. | ||
| #31386 | 03/02/2016 2:51:50 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Although they have the same record as the Lancers Beaverton lead the West division, and they showed they are a better team than us with a 4-1 series win. One bad inning cost us two of those games and our lights-out closer with his 1.26 ERA contrived to allow the tying run in the 9th inning of another game we lost in 14. I'd obviously have much preferred a 2-3 split for the series but I have no real complaints - Beaverton have a young, talented team and they have studs that we lack, and those guys all came through. I guess we can take solace in the fact things should get easier from here! |
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| #31528 | 03/05/2016 7:22:53 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, interleague is not being kind to the East. The top 3 are a combined 13-17 in the last 10 games. I dropped 3 of 5 in my last series and am still only 2 games out of first. | ||
| #31539 | 03/06/2016 2:37:26 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Tell me about it. I dropped 4 of 5 to the bottom team in the West, after a 5-0 sweep of the 2nd-bottom team (prior to dropping out of the cup). My worst starter got my only win, everyone else had an off day, and dropping games 4 & 5 by a 4-5 score did not make me a happy bunny. |
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| #31546 | 03/06/2016 7:37:24 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| 3 way tie for the East lead, it's going to be a heck of a fight for promotion this season. | ||
| #31572 | 03/07/2016 5:22:50 pm | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7
| @amalric Thanks for the kind words. I had confidence in my team's ability, but I never thought I would be first in the division at this point. Also, I was really sweating it during that 14 inning game. It was a good fight, and good luck for the rest of the season! | ||
| #31582 | 03/08/2016 2:15:33 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well you have the best manager and best player (All-World MVP Otis Hall) in V7 by some distance, so I think you'll be okay! I would have enjoyed the 14-inning game a lot more if we hadn't GIDP twice in extra innings and actually won. We've gone 11-14 against the West, and if you take away our 5-0 sweep of the Bears that's an ugly 6-14 record and FOUR losing series. We were 35-15 in our own division! I thought we'd continue in that vein but the West have beaten us down to this point, with our hitters whiffing everywhere and our pitchers going in to meltdown. I have to hope that we can get back on track in the return fixtures - if not before then against Kirkland. But yes, good luck against everyone else, rotten luck against us! |
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| #31628 | 03/09/2016 2:58:14 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| The Lancers had seven players (four batters started) in the All-Star game and helped lead the way to a 10-3 win over the West, with Al Dorsey named MVP. Made a nice change from our recent struggles against West teams! (edit) All seven players were first-time All Stars, which says something about their achievements this year and something else about previous management. Fuentes is our best/highest-rated player, yet he's 31 years old and playing his first full season in The Show after 12 years on the team. I don't need to say any more. Updated Wednesday, March 9 2016 @ 3:04:08 pm PST |
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| #31631 | 03/09/2016 3:50:38 pm | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7
| Had six all-stars this season, third straight year with at least five and fifth straight year with at least four. All players for me have made an All-Star appearance before except for Garrett, and those five who had made previous appearances have now been in back-to-back years. Franzoni has made 5 consecutive teams now (one for each year in the majors) and Elliott has made 6 consecutive. Another fun All-Star day in Beaverton. |
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| #31637 | 03/09/2016 5:44:21 pm | ||
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mjhack Joined: 10/17/2015 Posts: 97 Binghamton Bobcats VI.15
| We had an all-star game? Invites must have been lost in mail. |
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| #31934 | 03/17/2016 3:08:23 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| For a team on their third manager this season, and with the 'current' manager having registered and disappeared on the same day, you'd think Rocklin might not be the best team in V7. Yet here they are at 70-35 and riding an 18-game win streak, and have just swept the Lancers in five games (by an average of just two runs, yeesh). Funny that the East won the All-Star game 10-3, because the West have hammered the East in inter-division games. The Lancers were 15-15 against the West prior to the ASG, and have gone 11-14 since...and I daresay our record is one of the better ones. Only one ID series left and that against bottom-place Kirkland, but we're taking nothing for granted. Updated Thursday, March 17 2016 @ 3:09:21 am PDT |
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| #31981 | 03/17/2016 7:56:38 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Playing the West has been painful, it's been really ugly all around. Hopefully things will get better now that we are getting back to divisional games. I still think some of my guys are batting with plastic bats that have holes in them... | ||
| #32016 | 03/18/2016 7:38:58 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Went 4-1 against Kirkland last night, which means the Lancers finish inter-division games at .500, 30-30. Have to agree, glad that's over! | ||
| #32157 | 03/21/2016 6:48:54 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, now that we are back in the division things are looking a little more up. Steamrolled the two worst teams in the division and pulled up to 2 back from Lombard. Hopefully we can keep this up against 4th place De Moines and the divison leading Lancers after them. | ||
| #32165 | 03/22/2016 6:16:23 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Yes, good to get back to playing in our own division again, but might have some words with the schedule makers - 7 straight road games to start against 4th place Des Moines and then 3rd place Saratoga, very happy to come out of that 5-2 and put some distance between the top two and the Cowboys. Get some 'respite' with three games at home to Binghamton, but then have six more road games with series at 2nd-place Bowie and then last-placed Bowling Green. So yes, 13 of the first 16 games back playing our own division are on the road, guess that comes with leading the division! First season so had no expectations, but it'll be a very interesting 40 games or so! |
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| #32166 | 03/22/2016 6:22:35 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Someone did the math awhile back and figured out that you want to fill your stadium 13 times in a season to maximize profits, not sure whether the math still holds considering there have been several adjustments since then. Just counted, and the Lancers have managed 33 sellouts this season, so certainly playing well and bringing in the crowds (and money). Think we'd lost around $13M the last two seasons so good to get the arrow pointing back the right way. |
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| #32191 | 03/22/2016 3:25:26 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Two home games at last...and two losses. YEESH. Had absolutely nothing going on with bat or ball. |
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| #32246 | 03/24/2016 5:14:53 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| After dropping the first two games to Benchwarmer's Gulls I'd begun to think my offence had gone in the tank since the ASG. Had just gone 8 straight games without scoring more than 5 runs (and that only twice, including once in extra innnings), not ideal with my pitching as average as it is. But they all stepped out in a 14-2 blowout in game 3, which keeps me 1.5 games in the division lead. Been checking the numbers and some of my All-Stars have been letting me down:- Parisi - 5 HR since ASG, 18 before Zuniga - 5 HR since ASG, 16 before Choi - 6 HR since ASG, 15 before Not all have though:- Dorsey - 10 HR since ASG, 19 before Fuentes - 9 HR since ASG, 7 before Fletcher - 8 HR since ASG, 2 before Dorsey is still batting .291 but he's hitting just .266 against RHP and has gotten cold against them. Fuentes has our only 3 HR game. Fletcher is a very good hitter but he's symptomatic of the team as a whole - batting .305, but well down on what he was up to the ASG. Think my team AVG has dropped from .301 to .283 since the ASG, something I really didn't need. Which might explain why I've only gone 22-21 since then. Need to pick it up. |
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| #32273 | 03/24/2016 3:21:36 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| And losing to 31-94 Bowling Green for the first time is not picking it up. A guy with a 6.17 ERA held us to 4 hits and 1 run, while my starter went right through for just 3 runs. And now my SS is out 3 games. YE GODS. My average score this season against Bowling Green, in ten games before today? 11.3 - 2.4 Updated Thursday, March 24 2016 @ 3:30:47 pm PDT |
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| #32386 | 03/26/2016 7:09:14 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Great, one of my starters is done for the rest of the season. I have to hope that I can use one of my other guys in his place and have him perform well enough. | ||
| #32401 | 03/27/2016 4:10:31 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| It looks like the relegation race is all but over in the East, Bowling Green is definitely out and Binghamton will need a minor miracle to pass Des Moines. Looks like the promotion race is going to be tight to the finish, I'm only a half game back from amalric and Saratoga is by no means out of it either. Should be a fun last month of the season here. | ||
| #32411 | 03/28/2016 2:29:09 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well I just lost one of my top 3 starters for 12 days, which won't help (me). Binghamton has 15 games (and 145 runs or so) to make up on Des Moines and - with all due respect - I don't think they can. At the top I have two games in hand over both Benchwarmer's Bowie and Saratoga, but the Lancers are all over the place these days. Since we returned to playing in our own division we've gone 2-1 at Des Moines, 3-1 at Saratoga...and then 1-2 at home to Binghamton. Then 1-2 at Bowie, 2-1 at Bowling Green (losing to them should just not happen), 2-1 home to Des Moines, then 1-2 home to Saratoga. In total, 12-10 against division rivals in recent games after starting 35-15 (Saratoga recently: 14-10, Bowie: 17-7!). Which is why our division lead is basically gone. On the one hand its obvious we are still competing at a high level - "there's no quit in this team!" - but its equally frustrating that we appear to have too many off days atm. We have to play Bowie 7 times and Saratoga 3 times durin the run-in so who knows what the heck is going to happen. We need to make our 18 games against everyone else count though, and that is what we have NOT been doing recently. Bowie's hiring of Stover as manager (after Binghamton let him go) may make all the difference, as he's just the sort of manager a title run requires. I personally have been reluctant to make such a move as Mason is an excellent teacher of the game, and I still feel that will benefit the Lancers more in the long term. He's above-average at coaching hitting and pitching too, and I decided some time back that living with the below-average defense is something I'll just have to do. I've brought Burton out of cold storage in my attempt to swing the run-in. On paper he's my best bat but he got off to such a cold start while the heart of my lineup (Zuniga, Parisi, Choi, Dorsey) was red-hot (see a few posts up) that there was just no opportunity to play him. But Choi is currently 'Very Cold', so I've moved Parisi and his 'poor fielding' to LF and brought Burton (an 'atrocious fielder' himself!) in at DH. Early returns are one win and one loss, but Burton is 3-7 with 2R, 2RBI, 1 HR and 2BB:1K. Considering I'm 4-7 in games decided by 2 runs or less recently, it might make all the difference. |
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| #32447 | 03/28/2016 7:00:45 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Looks like both title races will go right down to the wire, fascinating division this one! | ||
| #32450 | 03/28/2016 8:04:59 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yeah, it was a little tough pulling the trigger on the manager swap because I'd give up some teaching ability, but with my entire bench and some of my starters batting under the Mendoza line I really needed something to jumpstart the offense, and a swap to a manager with better offensive skill just may be the spark we need. Historically my team has flaked down the stretch, I'm hoping that won't be the case this season and we'll be able to reach the ever elusive promotion this year. Updated Monday, March 28 2016 @ 8:05:46 pm PDT |
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| #32451 | 03/28/2016 9:35:19 pm | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7
| Both of these division races will be fun to watch unfold for sure, and a big four game series on Tuesday between myself and Rocklin. Our last matchup of the season before the final stretch and this series could be absolutely monstrous in deciding who wins the division race. I want to have confidence in my team, but we are stumbling into this series after going 5-5 in our last 10 (currently on a 3 game losing streak), and star 1B Kurt Franzoni will miss at least the first two games of this massive contest, so I'll have a bit of a makeshift top of the lineup going for me. Still, I'll likely be on the edge of my seat watching those games tomorrow afternoon. |
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| #32460 | 03/29/2016 5:59:39 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well I'm not sure bringing Burton up has made the difference or if we've just started hitting again (or perhaps Binghamton blooded some youngsters), but whatever the case the Lancers shelled the Bobcats 12-4, 15-4 and 11-5, racking up 54 hits including 10 doubles and 10 homers, with a shedload of walks and runners LOB to boot. First series sweep since the ASG. Which means tonight's four game series home to Bowie should be mighty interesting! All to play for. |
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| #32479 | 03/29/2016 2:37:04 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Not a good start, 4-5 loss. Led 2-0 through six, 4-2 through seven, then saw my closer have his first meltdown in weeks, giving up 3 runs in two innings to blow the lead. Got a runner to third base in the bottom of the 9th but couldn't bring him in. On to game two. |
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| #32482 | 03/29/2016 3:28:41 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Went down 5-6 in game two! Saved all my worst fielding errors for this series, great timing. Bowie making all the clutch plays. |
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| #32487 | 03/29/2016 7:18:00 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| And you took the other two, so the series was a wash. Your guys got me with a hit and run in the last game, that was disappointing. On to face Saratoga, a sweep would be great, and I think I'll need it since you are playing Bowling Green. | ||
| #32495 | 03/30/2016 3:08:11 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| It was much needed after dropping the first two games. Checked the score on my phone this morning: when I could see "Bowie 8"...I thought the worst! But then in the blink of an eye I could see "Winning Pitcher: Schneider" and knew I'd pulled it out (9-8), which was a massive relief. Really needed that. Still had my own disappointments - blowing a 7-2 lead, having two runners thrown out at the plate by your 10 ARM RF, my closer twice letting you tie the score..! But I'll gladly take the W and a split was a good result in the end for me. Still a ways to go. |
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| #32505 | 03/30/2016 10:03:42 am | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7
| An incredible series in Beaverton yesterday, as the hosts blew two late leads (including Beavers closer Fitzgerald giving up back to back home runs in the 9th with Beaverton up 5-4 in game 4) to lose 3 out of 4 and relinquish the division lead. To sum up: I'm in absolute shock, we might have just given away the division right there.. | ||
| #32520 | 03/30/2016 4:14:40 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ouch, those are the kind of series that make you want to throw your computer out the window. Well, we didn't do what we needed to do against Saratoga. We lost one game which puts us two back from Lombard. Come on Bowling Green, win that last game. | ||
| #32542 | 03/31/2016 7:31:40 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I think we've all had series like that! Four game sweep of Bowling Green yesterday but I'm actually very relieved at that, because they played a darned sight better than a 32-111 record would have you believe. The first three games were all one run victories (needed a 2-run HR in the bottom of the 8th to get the first W) and only the fourth game was relatively comfortable, 7-2. Four games series in Des Moines tonight, might give Bowie and Saratoga a chance to close the gap (again). |
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| #32557 | 03/31/2016 2:32:13 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Went down without much fuss to Des Moines in game one, but caught a huge break with Bowie getting shut out at Bowling Green. We actually led 3-0 early on, but the Hawks #9 hitter (.255 season avg) hit a grand salami in the bottom of the 2nd and we were never in it after that. Who knows what happens next... |
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| #32564 | 03/31/2016 3:37:51 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| What happens next is getting whipped 1-9, worst loss since July 20 at Beaverton! Its called the bottom of the rotation for a reason, I guess, but its not like my bats have done anything either. Yeesh. | ||
| #32596 | 04/01/2016 6:22:36 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Yet again, came back to win the two remaining games (11-3, 5-1) and square the series. With everyone having played the same number of games the Lancers hold a two game lead with 13 to play. Three game series at Saratoga tonight, that will be tough. |
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| #32639 | 04/01/2016 3:20:23 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| So, while I'm getting pumped twice in Saratoga, Bowie are scraping by Binghamton by 1-0 (with just 5 hits) and 7-6 (thanks to FIVE Bobcat errors). We're tied up - anyone think this is NOT going down to the wire? |
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| #32644 | 04/01/2016 4:11:24 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Our last series just may decide the division. This is going to be a fun stretch. Haven't played so well in the first two games tonight despite eeking out wins. The bats were dead on both sides in the first game, and all the errors by Binghamton may have been the deciding factor, although we failed to capitalize on half of them. Wilcox gave up two walk and two homeruns in that exact order in 4 at bats. And we left 14 freaking men on base. Not a winning combination but we got lucky. Here's to hoping game 3 goes better, we should be whipping the pants off of these bums (pun not intended). Edit: And the bullpen blew it this time, but the bats didn't help either. 4 hits and 9 men left on base leading to us being shutout. The Bowie Choke Artists strike again. Updated Friday, April 1 2016 @ 4:14:10 pm PDT Updated Friday, April 1 2016 @ 4:14:35 pm PDT |
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| #32671 | 04/02/2016 5:38:29 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Yes it's been a crazy run-in. With ten games to go anything could happen - you might think Saratoga are out of it being six games back, but if they sweep Bowling Green and Des Moines they could be right in it when you guys play your four game series to end the season! Our head-to-head might well prove the difference, but at the risk of getting ahead of myself if we can play to the best of our abilities against Binghamton and Bowling Green that might be enough to swing it in our favour. Then again, the way this run-in has gone I'm just as likely to go 0-10! |
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| #32700 | 04/02/2016 4:18:00 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Geeze, two of my big bat starters are out for 2 games. That's going to hurt in this crucial series which just may decide the division. | ||
| #32722 | 04/03/2016 12:16:08 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well had a restless night and got up this morning to find we'd been blown out by Binghamton in game four, not good. A 2.5 game lead with six to play would have been sweet but as we've said it looks like tonight's three game series will decide the East title. Gonna be a long day's wait... My #4 starter is now 1-7 in his last eight decisions, looks like a 3-man rotation for the last two series. Updated Sunday, April 3 2016 @ 12:19:07 am PDT |
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| #32723 | 04/03/2016 12:22:55 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Ugh, and a win would have eliminated Saratoga from the running. Not the way to end your last home game of the season - have to hope for a shot at redemption! | ||
| #32729 | 04/03/2016 6:54:07 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, how about that. Both East and West are in the exact same situation for the division win. 1-1/2 games separate 1st and second, and in both divisions those two teams play each other tonight. What an exciting division this is. I need to win all 3 tonight if I want to have a chance to win and promote, but with a couple of my stars out injured it's going to be tough. looking forward to the games. | ||
| #32748 | 04/03/2016 4:36:11 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well in the end you took 2 of 3, including the last in an epic 3-4 finish! My starter King went the whole way though obviously I'd rather have him pulled for the ninth with the game tied and him near his pitch count limit, but that's the way it goes - he was yanked from his previous start after just 84 pitches because it was a save situation, and that game ended up going to extra innings. Pitching let me down in the first game, and my bats - which had put up 15 runs in the first two games - went quiet until the top of the 9th in game three, just woke up enough to tie the game...which was soon lost. Ah well, half game lead going into the final series. Difference is, I play 3 games against last place Bowling Green, and you play 4 games against third place Saratoga. Honestly, as I've said all along, could still go either way. Looks like Rocklin have won the West, winning 2 of 3 from Beaverton, and their last four games are against last placed Kirkland. Bring on tomorrow! |
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| #32751 | 04/03/2016 5:34:26 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| That was cool, now I really need to sweep tomorrow. Hopefully the Gulls and not the Choke Artists show up tomorrow. | ||
| #32756 | 04/03/2016 11:24:48 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Very cool divison to watch this year - I'm disappointed that Rocklin won solely as their owner appears to be a one hit inactive wonder, Beaverton has a slim chance but even in a draw Rocklin currently has a 25 better RD. I still aren't brave enough to put money on the east, good luck all-round! | ||
| #32758 | 04/04/2016 2:19:55 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| One more point of interest... In the West, Olympia and South San Francisco are tied with 3 games left, and the team that finishes with the poorer record gets relegated! Never a dull moment in V7. |
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| #32821 | 04/04/2016 4:12:22 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, down to the last game here. It's all on my guys now. Unfortunately we're facing the Saratoga ace so it'll be tough. Updated Monday, April 4 2016 @ 4:17:52 pm PDT |
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| #32824 | 04/04/2016 4:19:56 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| After scoring 20 runs in the first two games it perhaps wasn't the best idea to put back in a guy recovered from a 3-game injury, and sure enough we put up just 4 runs (to 6) in a loss to end the year. Still, even if Bowie win their last game and tie us on W-L record, I'm pretty sure the second tiebreaker is RD - so unless Bowie win by 143 runs, I think we're V7 East champs? |
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| #32836 | 04/04/2016 5:14:25 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, it didn't matter anyway because we got shut out by Saratoga. Argh, we come up just shy yet again. Maybe next season will be the year for us. Good season Almaric, congrats on the division win and best of luck in the playoffs |
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| #32862 | 04/05/2016 2:22:20 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Congrats almaric and commiserations BW - I wonder if there's a record for the owner with the most runner up awards! if you're lucky you'll get Hampton come down into your side which will give you more of a chance, they had a rough season! | ||
| #32871 | 04/05/2016 7:07:48 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Thanks for the kind words! I must say I feared the worst down the stretch given our inconsistency, but I guess there wasn't a whole lot between the top three teams and we all managed to drop games we probably feel we should have won. I had no expectations for this season with it being my first, and TBH I just hoped to avoid relegation - I figured Saratoga and Bowie would fight it out for the East title. But we had a really good spring (FWIW) and carried that into the regular season, sitting at 35-15 before the inter-division games started. We only managed .500 against the West (30-30) and then went 30-20 the rest of the way. So our 95-65 record looks great and I am proud of it, but we went 60-50 in our last 110 games which is mid-table form. We'll have to do much better if we want to avoid coming straight back down next season. I thought Beaverton would run away with the West given they have likely-MVP Otis Hall and a really good roster but they seemed to struggle in the run-in much like we did. Which makes Rocklin's run to the title all the more surprising. I mentioned before that they were on their third owner this season, and the last one hasn't been online since his first day, so to win the West in the style they did says a lot about that roster. We went 2-3 at home to Rocklin (game five was an extra-innings squeaker loss) but we went down 0-5 on the road against them, although the first four games were lost by a combined six runs. Don't fancy my chances of claiming the title but at this stage it'll just be the cherry on top, had a great season. |
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| #32873 | 04/05/2016 7:31:15 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| @Benchwarmer - I apologise up front but I can't resist this. It really isn't a dig! Looks like Iowa City will be back and not for the better. They look like they should have a decent lineup, but nobody hit above much above .250 and the pitching looks awful. Doesn't help that it looks like it has bounced between several owners with the latest owner not having logged in since two weeks ago. It's not pretty for the Hawks. Not afraid of them in the least, wouldn't be surprised to see them relegate to VI. To be fair you wrote that nine days before I even joined Broken Bat, and as I said at the time I wholeheartedly agreed with your summation. That its gone this well is beyond belief, to me as much as anyone. My pitching has been a sore point all year outside of my top 3 starters, my closer (who had a very average post-ASG run) and a couple of relievers. On top of that my top 3 are all age 31, as is my closer, and my #4 starter is 30 (my nominal 5th starter is 33!). There's only a handful of guys after them and only a couple of them are anyway decent, so pitching may be even more of a problem next season unless I can bring in a few quality free agents (@Rdub tipped Jimenez for pitching ROY but he has a poor build and nothing outside of stamina in his report, so a 6.00 ERA isn't surprising to me - it was nearly 10 at one point). At least my bats should keep swinging and keeping me close (fingers crossed). @JJNZ looks like a wise man though:- As an outsider I'll keep my forecasts to teams: West should be a good battle, I like Beaverton against Rocklin for the division title battle. East is likely to be a two horse race, if Bowies monster offence can hold up its pitching then they'll lead a very good Saratoga team but it'll be close. The Lombard team with an active manager will be in with a sneaky underdog chance. Hindsight makes wise men of all of us. |
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| #32906 | 04/05/2016 12:34:20 pm | ||
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Rdub29317 Joined: 07/14/2014 Posts: 82 Indianapolis Ducks IV.7
| The end to this season was an absolute gut-punch. I felt like I was in the lead in the division for 75% of the season, but a poor run down the stretch of inter-division play (I went 39-21 vs the East, but went 8-8 in my last 16; and Rocklin went 44-16 vs the East), and going 2-5 in the final two series' against Rocklin, including two blown leads at home, it really hurt big time. At the beginning of the season, I appreciated everyone's kind words about my roster, and while my expectations were just to stay in LLV, I really started to drink the kool-aid when the division lead stayed in my hands for a while. This was really the first time we'd been in a competition for promotion, since we won VI.13 West by 15 games last year, and we were not up for the challenge. However, I'm confident we can get better as a team and come back ready to do what it takes to gain promotion next season. Still, despite the heartbreak, it was fun, dramatic and as broken bat usually is, very entertaining. Congrats to everyone on another great year! |
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| #32920 | 04/05/2016 6:48:23 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| @Almaric, no offense taken. The fact that you took a junk team and turned it around makes your division win even more impressive. As for JJNZ's prediction about my offense, well, they fell a bit short of the expectations. On paper we should be mashing, but we don't play baseball on paper |
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| #32958 | 04/07/2016 2:59:26 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well we went down 2-4 to Rocklin, which was frustrating. Against Sosa in games 1 and 6 we outhit them both times, 20 hits and 8 walks to 13 hits and 5 walks. And we hit much better against lefties all year. Yet we lost both games, 3-4 and 2-3. I'm not sure if it's skill or luck, but Rocklin showed a remarkable knack of getting all their hits and walks (and defensive errors) in the same innings. We lost game six and the series despite holding a 2-0 lead with 2 outs in the bottom of the 6th, which went walk-out-out-RBI double-RBI triple-out. They then scored the winning run on an error in the 7th by my 16 Fielding CF, just his second error in 50 games (yeesh). Game six was symptomatic of our main problem in the second half of the season - our inability to bring home men on base (unlike Rocklin): 23 men LOB to 10 for the Bearcats. Only game three was a blowout, but I can't complain too much - Rocklin did what they've done all year, so even as what amounts to a bot team they deserve it. |
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| #33235 | 04/11/2016 8:27:04 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Been away for a few days so some last points of note. After having seven All-Stars we had to settle for just two All-League players: Ivan Anderson and Clyde Schneider. All our batters that made the ASG were up against studs: Al Dorsey against Otis Hall, Edgar Fuentes against Julian Tejeda, Brian Parisi against Kurt Franzoni. Santiago Zuniga had better numbers than Cervantes who made it for the LF position, but Zuniga only played 44 games there (and 63 in RF, 39 at C) so that may well explain that. Parisi finished 3rd in MVP voting and yet didn't make the All-League team, because he and Franzoni (who edged him by just 2 votes) both filled the DH spot. Anderson also won the Cy Young, which was nice, and by some margin (42 votes to 26). Edgar Fuentes was Rookie of the Year...at age 31. Playing his first season after 12 years in the club he made it count, also winning the Gold Glove at SS. Why a previous GM didn't find an active spot for Edgar is beyond me, even with Jim MacDonald filling SS - someone should have found a spot somewhere, made best use of the talent on the roster. Mel Fletcher came 3rd in the voting. Rdub tipped Jimenez for Rookie Pitcher of the Year which surprised me - shows what I know, as he came 2nd! More surprising, Joaquin Anaya actually won it! Was a great year but the challenge of IV.4 with an ageing roster is daunting to say the least. I've switched managers and hope to add a few arms, otherwise I may be back here next season! Good luck one and all. Updated Monday, April 11 2016 @ 8:29:00 am PDT |
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| #33321 | 04/14/2016 2:02:23 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| If Bowie weren't the favourites already, adding Esparza to the rotation surely tipped it in their favour! Great pick up BW! | ||
| #33367 | 04/14/2016 5:22:19 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Bowie got Esparza?! Damn! Seems like division rivals past and present are getting all the waiver luck! | ||
| #33373 | 04/14/2016 8:03:14 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Man, that was lucky. Out of 180 some claims, too. Hopefully he won't crap out and be a bust, I've been trying to pick up some talent to fill a couple of holes to make a run at promoting. Pitching isn't too much of a worry, but I was hoping to pick up someone so I could dump one of my aging guys that didn't have too great numbers last year. I picked up yet another new SS after dumping my old one (SS has been a revolving door since Yeh retired), I'm hoping he'll work out for this year and maybe some of my young guys will start showing their potential more. My main concern is I've got a lot of guys that are suggested for the majors, but I don't want to cut anyone from the bigs. Potter is on the potential chopping block, I've just about had it with his bat (or lack thereof). I have a pretty deep outfield corps in both majors and AAA, so he'd be easy to replace. Seems a shame to get rid of him because he looks amazing on paper, which is why I haven't pulled the trigger yet. And of course I'm debating whether to call up my newly drafted Asian 1B (100 SI with 14 pot, 24 y.o.) who is recommended for AAA or the guy that's been coming up through my system who is recommended for the majors (Castillo, 12 pot 92 SI, 23 y.o.) Tempted to cut Fingers and bring them both up, but I think Fingers still has some mileage left and he did pretty well last year, I kept him over the other 1B he split time with the last couple seasons. Lots of tough decisions this off season. | ||
| #33398 | 04/15/2016 7:53:58 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Time for my annual review of the newcomers to the league. East: Demoted: Hampton Isotopes - Looks like they could be a contender for the division, a good mix of veterans and promising young stars. Very potent lineup, but a somewhat suspect pitching corps, looks like they were the reason for relegation as the bats were very hot. I predicts they will either promote or finish second. Promoted: Mishawaka Pirates - Another team that could potentially be a threat, but the team's defense could be it's undoing, fairly poor fielding numbers all around. Good looking pitching and a potent lineup, with the caveat of it was against LL VI pitching. Top 3 potential here if the fielding improves. Madison Mavericks - This team doesn't look particularly threatening. A lot of mid-90 and less SI players, and the pitching looks particularly dreadful SI wise, a lot of mid-80's. They did pretty well in LL VI, but I don't think those numbers will hold up in LL V. Might be fighting to avoid relegation (I have been known to have to eat my words when making this kind of prediction *cough* Amalric West: Demoted: Delta Tigers - Old dudes galore. The average age of the major leaguers is 32.4, and only 4 players under 30 on the major league roster. I think a lot of these guys are over the hill and won't be big contributors, and because they were stars at one point they are being overpaid for what they are now. Pitching is particularly bad, not a single pitcher with and ERA under 4 and a team ERA of 5.55. Might see them head down to LL VI next season unless they get some younger players to the bigs. Promoted: Beverly Hills Hornets - Back up after one season in LL VI. Roster looks fairly balance, nothing too bad looking, and a couple of potential impact players. Looks like a team that can stay up in LL V this time, not really much else to say here. They did really well in LL VI, but they look like about a LL V team, maybe an outside shot at promotion. South Gate Blue Jays - This team has a lot of potential. The pitching staff is stocked with aces, and quite a few potential big impact players on offense. The stats say the batting is just average, but looking at the roster there are several big bats in there. The infield is terrible, however. Fielding may be the downfall of this team. They may have a chance of promotion with their shut-down pitching. |
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| #33453 | 04/19/2016 4:15:12 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Some thoughts from up above (and soon to crash back down next season, LOL). I'll see if I've picked anything up from Benchwarmer's fine work over the past season plus, maybe even some of the good stuff. East It looks like a fight between Bowie and Hampton to me. Bowie have the best pitching in the East though their hitting looks light, but after squeaking past them last year I'm certain they'll be up there. Hampton are loaded on offence and their pitching should be good enough for LL.V so they're top two for me, easy. Saratoga could challenge the top two, again, given that they have several studs on the roster and led the East in the early going last season. Mishawaka look pretty decent and have some nice pieces but really I expect them to fight to avoid relegation with Des Moines. Madison look to be in over their heads, sorry. West I'll be careful here after the West hammered the East in inter-division play last year! Firstly, I'll be shocked if Beaverton don't run away with the West. Led most of last season until Rocklin's surprising surge edged them out, and I think they still have way more talent than their competition. St Clair and South San Francisco are good teams. The Bears have good hitters but are short on power and their pitching is only so-so. The Warriors might be a lot better than the sum of their parts. They really improved once the new owner took over last season, although they too (outside of Fischer) lack power. Have to agree with Benchwarmer on Delta, who could be in free-fall: holes all over the offence and terrible pitching. Also, paying nearly $9M for an average manager is very poor business. I also don't see enough in South Gate to stop them going straight back down. When all your hitters have their highest ratings in Speed, Range, Arm...you're in for trouble. Hitters need to hit. I like Beverly Hills a lot. They have good pitching and although they are another team short on power (outside of a couple of players) they have a whole bunch of good hitters. Their main problem might be an appalling lack of range on the fielding side - they average just 10 RNG for 13 batters, and only six of those are in double figures (and three of those are 10-12)! And you can look over my ageing, over-achieving roster and pan it as much as you want. |
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| #33850 | 05/03/2016 3:50:48 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Everything seems to be going pretty smoothly so far. Second place in my cup group and I have yet to play the first and third place teams in my group, I think I have a good chance to advance to the elimination rounds. In league play it's going fairly well, the pitching is holding up for the most part and the bats are lively enough at the moment, a couple guys seem to have forgotten that the narrow end is the handle, but other than that the lineup looks alright. I'm pleased that Potter is batting decently so far, I hope he keeps it up as he's one of my best defensive outfielders, but his bat has been so lackluster in the past that I've considered cutting him if it doesn't improve. | ||
| #33881 | 05/05/2016 4:20:21 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Taking 2 out of 3 games in a series is not a recipe for winning the division. We need to start getting some sweeps here. | ||
| #34154 | 05/14/2016 4:38:20 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Unless something serious happens, it looks like Saratoga is going to steamroll the East. I got beat down by them in all 3 games today, it was not pretty. | ||
| #34161 | 05/14/2016 8:13:42 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I think you'll need to be aggressive on the bases against Saratoga - a lot of guys playing out of position, and 2 catchers with 9 arm - their offense can only carry them so far surely? | ||
| #34491 | 05/25/2016 4:31:11 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Only 2 guys in the all star game this year, a starting pitcher and a guy who is my regular DH got to play in the OF as a backup. Finally the East won for once, yay. In other news, it might already be time to let some younger players get some play time. Tied for second 12 games back, I think Saratoga is virtually untouchable. | ||
| #34579 | 05/27/2016 8:59:00 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I think you'll find the East won last year, too. A bunch of hitters from some team called the Lancers led the way in a 10-3 victory... |
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| #34602 | 05/27/2016 3:05:30 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Oops, forgot about that one lol. Got that mixed up with the East teams getting destroyed by the West in interdivisional play last year |
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| #34606 | 05/27/2016 3:44:44 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| No arguments on that one! I went 30-30 against the West and I'm pretty sure that was one of the better records. Seems to be the opposite in IV.4 though - he says, tempting fate once again. | ||
| #34917 | 06/04/2016 5:25:29 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Barring an epic collapse by either myself or Saratoga (East leader by 16 games) I will be reappearing in LL V next season. After a couple more series making sure I pad myself against relegation, It's time to let the young guys get some playing time and cut loose an aging veteran or two that I will be wanting to replace next year. | ||
| #35874 | 06/20/2016 4:52:10 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Hey! Remember me? I'll be seeing you next season. Talk about a heart-breaker. |
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| #35959 | 06/21/2016 4:51:56 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Dang man, that is tough. Welcome back to the mayhem of V.7! While I'm at it, let's see how the pre-season predictions did: Got is spot on with Hampton, they finished second. Newport (was Mishawka) did not improve their fielding, and ended up relegating. The pitching was a bit of a surprise that it did not do well given the numbers they put up in LL VI. Also correct with Madison, they relegated in spectacular fashion. Correct with Delta, the aging lineup sent them straight to the cellar. Beverly Hills barely avoided relegation, so not quite as good as I predicted they had the potential to be. I was wrong with South Gate, they finished solidly in third while I predicted a shot a promotion. However, I did correctly predict that their poor fielding would hamper their chances. Overall, a kind of boring year in V.7, not really any big fights for promotion or relegation except in the West. Now, to review my team's performance. We still struggle with consistency and closing out games, below .500 in 1 run games and extra innings. Still a very streaky team, we get on good stretches where we seem almost unbeatable, then we get in stretches where we just plain stink and couldn't beat a team of T-ballers. Batting: B- Some guys were really slugging this year, and others were sluggish. Pitching: A- Overall team ERA below 4.00, but some pitchers had a habit of crumbling under pressure. Infield: A The infield got boosted by a couple of mid-season acquisitions, the young guys are looking somewhat promising if they can learn to swing a bat better. Outfield: A+ Looking solid, Potter is finally growing into the star I was hoping for, and is surrounded by plenty of other talented players. |
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| #35973 | 06/21/2016 11:57:53 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| BW I'm most interested in the odds of Bowie breaking the curse and getting to Ll4 next season! Obviously Lombard will offer a challenge, but other than the end of the season losses it looks like you should have it against Hampton? | ||
| #35998 | 06/22/2016 4:07:25 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yeah, we were ahead of them until the last couple of series. I'm sure all those losses were due in no small part to throwing the young guys into the lineup and sitting the veterans. | ||
| #36167 | 06/28/2016 8:41:25 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I managed to pre-empt the UK's disastrous decision to leave the EU by getting demoted on the second-last day, and in the spirit of "another fine mess I've gotten myself into" lets take a look at my predictions for this season past... East I did wonder at the time that I may not have given Saratoga enough respect, given they battled for the East lead in 2026 for much of the season and had a talented roster, and it showed - 17 games clear was a big win. Bowie were the team that pushed me all the way that year so I gave them and Hampton (just down from IV.4) the props and they finished 2-3, so not too far off. Mishawaka/Newport did indeed end up in the relegation spots with the doomed-before-they-started Madison, but Des Moines were well clear of them (10 games) at the end. Look forward to renewing old rivalries with Bowie, Des Moines and the came-back-up Bowling Green! West Beaverton ran away with it, as expected, although St Clair finished just 6 games back, though I did rate them too. South San Francisco finished 2026 really well and I fancied them but the owner who took over then left only days into the season, and that was them doomed, though they did finish only 2 games off safety in 5th place. Beverly Hills held their own, just about, but South Gate did much better than I expected and finished 3rd. I predicted Delta's free-fall, but it (obviously) didn't take a genius to figure that much out! So, two spots out on Saratoga and one or two out on South Gate, but pretty accurate otherwise. Just don't expect me to do predictions this year... |
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| #36503 | 07/02/2016 4:06:54 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| My final series this season will be away to...Bowie. Two seasons ago we split the penultimate series 2-2, which kept me just ahead in the division lead. What could it mean this time around? | ||
| #36514 | 07/02/2016 7:35:08 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| lol, our predictions have a tendency to backfire, don't they? Now for my annual tradition, a quick look at the newcomers: East: Lombard - After a tough season in LL IV last year, I expect them to rebound and compete to promote again. The roster looks pretty well rounded. On paper there don't appear to be any particularly weak spots, but as I always say, we don't play baseball on paper Bowling Green - Welcome back Crusaders. The stats from last season make them look like a good team, but the caveat is that they were in LL VI. Overall, it looks like they will need better talent to compete for promotion. I think they may be fighting to not relegate, particularly when the average SI for the pitching corps is mid 80's. Lincoln Park - Potential contender, good looking pitching, fielding and batting. A team to watch out for. West: Joilet - Power heavy lineup but slightly suspect pitching if you look at stats. If the pitching can hold together they may be back up in LL IV next year. Kirkland - Back under new ownership. May have an outside shot at promotion, but I think they are a solid 3rd-4th place team. Nothing too exciting based on the SI. Looking at stats, they may be another team with big bats but weak pitching. They'll be a team to keep an eye on, looks like they have the potential to go either way. Olympia - Looks like they have a couple of big stars and not too much else, but the else looks good enough to keep them in contention. The stats also say the pitching has the potential to be very good. They may have a shot at the division. Overall, not anything obvious this year. For once the teams that demoted are not trash that are headed for the basement, and the promoted teams look like they fit right in. Could be another one of those tight seasons that comes down to the last couple of series for promotion or relegation. |
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| #37293 | 07/19/2016 6:11:09 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well the Cup games didn't go as planned, so may already be looking to ditch that and concentrate on the league. Will be waiting with baited breath to see how the first series turns out tonight. Was one of many people in on Yama*beep*a, who went to the West's Cleveland Blue Jays, but wasn't too upset because I claimed an almost identical player off waivers last year in his cuontryman Kokawa (still my highest claim at 34). Had five successful claims thus far (22,9,7,5,2) but haven't really found anyone special. The 7-claim Bass might turn out to be the pick, with a +4 SI gain in the first training update. Really need my youngsters to come through but don't have anyone expected up before 2029. |
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| #37314 | 07/19/2016 4:03:39 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I don't really have any exciting guys in the minors that are close to ready, either. I guess the closest guys is Chong but his growth has been underwhelming, I don't think he'll reach anywhere near his 14 POT. I do have one guy who hopefully will be ready in a year or so that is a 14 POT 3B, he's already at 91 SI at 23. Other than that, my minors look pretty blah. Good start to the cup and the season for me, though. Nobody above LL IV, so I might have a decent shot at advancing. | ||
| #37326 | 07/19/2016 10:38:03 pm | ||
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Slug5373 Joined: 12/23/2014 Posts: 376 Inactive
| @Bowie I hope you can break the curse this season, even though we are in the same division. The Isotopes are better this year now that the young arms have developed into now solid pitchers. However, I still think we are a year away from making a run at IV again. :/ Other than last season, the past three seasons have been very frustrating. I was just happy with a winning record last season. |
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| #37335 | 07/20/2016 8:36:41 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Still carrying on my Murphy's Law run with a 1-3 start. Pitching is a bit of a mess but having 3/4 of my starters make terrible starts was still surprising: was out-scored just 24-25, thanks to my 10-0 win in game two. Keep telling myself its a long season... Oh, and I ditched a 23-yo 13-pot OF to make room on my roster, and while I can't moan too much about picking up a 14 pot off waivers he is a...25-yo OF. More advanced but obviously doesn't help my pitching! |
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| #37336 | 07/20/2016 8:40:54 am | ||
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Haselrig Joined: 04/13/2014 Posts: 2790 Novi Doubledays III.4
| He had a decent run of AAA ABs, so Valenzuela's not far botched. Looks more like a 3B to me than an OF though. | ||
| #37340 | 07/20/2016 9:14:55 am | ||
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newtman Joined: 11/02/2013 Posts: 3343 Inactive
| I agree with Haselrig, the guy looks good and ML ready, but he looks like a 3B with that outstanding fielding, very good arm, and rather low range. | ||
| #37363 | 07/20/2016 7:13:53 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ugh, then we go and drop 4 in a row. Here we go again... | ||
| #37365 | 07/20/2016 10:43:41 pm | ||
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Slug5373 Joined: 12/23/2014 Posts: 376 Inactive
| Wow, the Isotopes are off to a fast 6-1 start. My starting pitching has been extremely strong. (Did I say that correctly??? My starting pitching has been... strong??? Wow, that's a new one) Seriously though, I do expect my pitching to be my biggest improvement this season, but still, they have been nothing short of terrific thus far. Have to give credit to the offense too -- they have performed very well to start as well. |
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| #37370 | 07/21/2016 2:19:30 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| @Haselrig, newtman - Yep, Valenzuela looks like a 3B to me too. Of course, I'm not lacking for 3B and OF as they're probably my deepest positions - Ortiz isn't coming off 3B, because his 10 Fielding isn't suited to 2B or SS. But you have to put in claims on guys like that (IMO) - so I guess he's yet another guy I'll have to filter in with the vets. Of course, starting 2-5 should give a GM every reason to make changes. Getting an early lead on Benchwarmer's Gulls in the "Most Disappointing Start/Team" awards. |
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| #37372 | 07/21/2016 3:21:45 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Valenzuela's signing also spelled the end for another 14 POT, Marroquin. Marroquin has been terrible throwing out runners so perhaps his 16 Arm isn't what its cracked up to be, and his bat hasn't played well either. I haven't given him as much playing time as he needed but I had better options on my roster last year when I was fighting to avoid demotion (Zuniga lost points off hitting, power, speed, range and arm this offseason but was really good prior to that), and this year I'm going with my 18 Arm 3B/OF who is 13-for-29 in CS opps and is a much better hitter, plus I still have Reyes who is no slouch either. There just isn't enough opportunity for all of them and Marroquin hasn't lived up to expectations (his ID contains 666, but he's been a beast to his four owners!), and I'd soured enough on him that he had to go. Moving on. | ||
| #37374 | 07/21/2016 7:27:54 am | ||
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newtman Joined: 11/02/2013 Posts: 3343 Inactive
| Ortiz looks like an OF, 1B, or DH to me far more than a 3B. I wouldn't trust him with fielding the hot corner with that report and those skills. | ||
| #37380 | 07/21/2016 8:55:49 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well neither would I under ideal circumstances, but I thought he was the best candidate when I took over - I had to cut four hitters who were at least 35, and my two 3B were Casillas and Zepeda. Casillas was 29 and stuck in AAA thanks to my two predecessors who did next to nothing, and Zepeda was 32 and already declining - and Ortiz had a higher SI than both. Casillas may be the better fielder but being new to the game I went with all-out hitting, because that was what we did best. Ortiz has almost no experience at 1B or OF, so DH might be his best option. But he's blocked at all of those:- 1B: Filippini isn't showing much of a decline, and Hastings and Trevino lie in wait to replace him. DH: Castellonas is a DH-only, even though he is qualified at OF/3B/c. LF: Parisi has been my best hitter these two seasons. CF: Lawson is an 18 Hit/Spd/Rng/Arm guy who made the All-Star game last year hitting .332 but has hit .190 other than that half season (go figure). RF: Fletcher isn't fast or much of a fielder, but he's a great hitter with 15 Rng and a 17 Arm. Moody is my 4th OF, a guy needing playing time. So Ortiz doesn't really have anywhere else to go! He has the small 2b and ss but obviously would play even worse there. There's no doubt Valenzuela is the better 3B, but... ...Anyone wanna trade? |
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| #37387 | 07/21/2016 3:41:41 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| You aren't alone, Amalric, my guys are in freefall right now, people seem to have forgotten what a bat is for or even what one is. | ||
| #37422 | 07/22/2016 6:14:52 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Season has barely begun but I've never known a series of injuries like this. Johnson (AAA) - out 35 games from near start of ST Ortiz - out 10 games after game one last night Parisi - out 10 games after game two last night Kokawa - out 2 games after game two last night Moody (4th OF) - out 3 games after game four last night My pitchers are getting shelled and yet its my hitters that are getting hurt! At least we won some home games, some 1-run games and have had good luck in the draft. |
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| #37474 | 07/22/2016 3:45:18 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| You didn't happen to get a package of water bottles with a return address in Missoula, did you? |
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| #37507 | 07/23/2016 12:55:56 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Haha never fear, I've had my No.4 pitcher out for 35 days already, you could be in for one of THOSE seasons though amalric! | ||
| #37513 | 07/23/2016 2:44:46 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Ha! I think you might be on to something, Benchwarmer. Team ERA is currently 5.91 - my pitchers get shelled almost every time they're up. Jack King has been my most consistent guy since I started, and yet he's 1-3 with a 10.80 ERA, and none of his four starts have been quality. I don't have a starter under 4.91! My manager is just average for pitchers but they were fine in IV.4 last season. Got the best hitting in V.7 right now but they just can't keep pace. |
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| #37573 | 07/25/2016 2:26:41 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well pulled out the narrowest of series wins against Bowie last night, 2-1. As usual it was a very close affair, net 0 RD, and as usual it was decided in the last game...in extra innings. Feared the worst when my 1B Filippini (leading the league with a .396 AVG) was injured after game one but just about got by. Jack King had his best start of the season, though of course my closer managed to blow it in the top of the ninth. Bowie though managed an error in each game, and each error led to at least one unearned run, so I'm glad to be on this side of the equation (and will stop moaning about luck). The race for 3rd place is on, LOL! Valenzuela is off to a terrific start though I sat him in game 3 last night as he's 2-for-12 against lefties thus far. Overall hitting .276 with a .690 SLG! He has balanced his 3 HR and 1 POTG with 2 errors at 3B, but he's also turned 2 DP. I've moved Ortiz around to accommodate him but the way I've accumulated injuries this year there'll be plenty of opportunity for everyone. Updated Monday, July 25 2016 @ 2:28:03 am PDT |
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| #37675 | 07/27/2016 8:17:12 pm | ||
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Slug5373 Joined: 12/23/2014 Posts: 376 Inactive
| I'm honestly really surprised at my team's performance this season. Would never have guessed we'd start 16-6. I'm worried about Bowie and Lancord now though. 😳 | ||
| #37708 | 07/28/2016 4:21:16 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Me too - wherever the heck Lancord is. |
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| #37712 | 07/28/2016 7:17:56 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| lol. My team seems to be struggling this year, might be time to focus a little more on rebuilding as most of my aging vets that made the team good are gone at this point. I might struggle to reach .500 with the way my guys are playing right now. They are doing great in the cup, though. Go figure. | ||
| #37726 | 07/29/2016 2:16:00 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| You and me both BW, I'm one series loss from cutting 3-4 vets minimum, lucky I've got the minor league talent available to get into it, but I might yet be joining V7 again next season at this rate! | ||
| #37787 | 07/29/2016 4:20:53 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, I might not see you in V.7 the way things are heading because I'll find myself back down in VI. :P | ||
| #37831 | 07/31/2016 3:26:20 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Still waiting for my hitters to wake up. Doesn't seem to matter whether my walls are in or back, up or down (I've changed it both of the last two offseasons), we've struggled at home since 2026 and now we can't hit lefties - which was undoubtedly why Hampton served up three straight in games 2-4 last night. Getting swept in four games is never fun, especially when you lose by a net 7 runs. Of particular disgust is losing game one 0-1, then losing game three 1-2 after entering the ninth leading 1-0. We're hitting just .231 against LHP. Last year we hit .273, and the year before .305. No reason behind our extended slumps. Last season both Parisi and Dorsey got off to slow starts, but they came around eventually. But Dorsey, a career .299 hitter against lefties, is hitting .200 so far. Parisi is .292 against LHP, just .250 this year. And their power numbers are WAY down - Parisi has hit 34HR in each of the last two seasons, but has just one through 24 games. Dorsey has 3 in 30 games, after hitting 62 the last two seasons. Even if my home park has got bigger their numbers shouldn't have fallen off a cliff to that extent. And to cap that, we've struggled to hit RHP the last two seasons (well not as effective as we were against LHP) and now we're hitting .301! Our BB:K ratio is ususally 2:3, but this season its 1:2. But all these guys have done it before, so I'll be sticking with them and (im)patiently waiting for a turn-around. My pitching has at least turned it around, ERA is down to 4.30 from a high 5 or 6 in the first couple of weeks. Bowie up again tonight, and as usual completely lottery as to what happens! |
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| #37858 | 07/31/2016 7:47:31 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| My turn to win the series And in pretty dramatic fashion, too. The bats actually were used as intended for once this series. |
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| #37861 | 07/31/2016 10:44:04 pm | ||
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Slug5373 Joined: 12/23/2014 Posts: 376 Inactive
| @amalric I appreciate you trying to give me credit for the great strategy of throwing three straight lefties, but to be honest that's just how my rotation ended up. Sheer dumb luck lol Also, I don't blame you for being mad about some of those losses. I would have been fuming for hours about the 1-0 then 2-1 loss. (Especially the 2-1 game; that one was kind bs) |
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| #37866 | 08/01/2016 6:27:13 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Hey, I'm all about pleasing other Broken Bat GMs, apparently. First casualty is Jack King, my most consistent starter over my two-plus seasons. Just been flat-out awful this year, 80 hits and 32 ER in 46.1 innings, .374 BAA, with a terrible BB:K ratio of 16:11. I'm needing a few guys to turn it around but Jack hasn't shown anything at all, which has been really disappointing. If he'd put in some QS that would have been one thing, but just 2/10 there. On paper he should still have been my best starter, but sadly not to be. And there are a couple more on shaky ground. I needed the roster spot and will need another one tonight after claiming Vallejo, but I'll be throwing the young guys out tonight in the last cup games - currently 2nd and two games back, but doubt I'll progress and in a quirk am up against Lincoln Park, which means I'll play them seven straight games! What probably irks me most is that all my young guys under-perform when put in the lineup on either side of the ball, and yet young pitchers consistently throw strong games against me while young hitters have breakout games. My young guys are just black holes. |
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| #38289 | 08/13/2016 6:15:03 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Currently 9-11 against the West. Had a chance to be .500 but a strange call on my bullpen led to a loss in game five. Have to say I'm baffled by the success of South Gate's pitching, even though I won this series 3-2. There's no-one there that looks particularly threatening, and yet they're throwing a 3.00 ERA. They're only batting .227 and yet scored in every game, and the scoring was 17-16 in my favour. Weird. |
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| #38316 | 08/15/2016 4:31:10 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well I guess we can say (at this stage) that the West is better than the East. I knew the Hornets would put up runs given they've done it all year, but the fact that I can't hit anything in my own ballpark is extremely frustrating. Last two home series I'm 1-4 in each, 2-8 total. Look at XBH and Runs scored:- Away team: 25 doubles, 8 HR. 75 Runs. My team: 21 doubles, 9 HR. 37 Runs. Yet the simple fact is I'm breaking in four pitchers 25 or younger, and another who is 27. I know I'm going to have to take my lumps with those guys for them to be the future, but it doesn't help that my vets are getting whupped too. We can't seem to put good hitting and good pitching together, and when we do our opponent does so too - and better. Olympia - 43 hits, 17 walks. Lombard - 39 hits, 16 walks. Two blowouts, two close losses, then held them to just 3 hits in game five to win (it all came together, once). Beverly Hills - 74 hits, 29 walks. Lombard - 41 hits, 22 walks. The Hornets are a quality hitting team and they sure showed it! Our only win came in extras in game five, a game where we had to hit four HR to win. But blowing a 5-0 lead in the top of the 9th in game two really stung (no pun intended). We're a good hitting team (starting lineup: 15/16/17/19/17/16/18/19/DH), but we're way too inconsistent. Worse, Parisi just hasn't got going at any point, and his power has vanished (18 POW, and only 31; his 1 SI lost in the offseason was Speed) - even with making my park bigger he should still be hitting on the road, maybe, but its not like other hitters can't still knock them out. Maybe its a sign of an early decline, or maybe its just extended bad luck. He couldn't hit at home last year when I had a bandbox (just .202) and his average is much better this year in a bigger park (.265), but the power was there last year and this year it isn't. I have good range (18-18-15) in the OF and had to cut two ageing power guys (17 & 18) in the offseason, so thought I'd play to perceived strengths, but it hasn't worked (the bandbox didn't really work last year, either!). I guess its just a matter of patience and to keep plugging away - either that or get the young guys in even more and to hell with challenging for promotion. |
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| #38353 | 08/16/2016 3:32:55 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I'm really going to have to claw my way back, I'm in relegation position right now. Hopefully things will improve after the allstar break. | ||
| #38369 | 08/16/2016 11:43:56 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I am genuinely surprised to see the Gulls struggling down there, but I'd have faith on them bouncing back up. The rest of the league is a bit of a surprise too, I didn't post any predictions this time around but it hasn't gone how I'd have envisioned it | ||
| #38379 | 08/17/2016 8:15:59 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| LOL, welcome to our world, JJNZ! |
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| #38416 | 08/17/2016 7:02:30 pm | ||
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Slug5373 Joined: 12/23/2014 Posts: 376 Inactive
| To be honest I'm pleasantly surprised with Hampton's position at the break. Our offense has done its part and the pitching has really stepped up this year. Really hope to promote but it won't be easy. I have a feeling things will get really tight down the stretch. | ||
| #38507 | 08/20/2016 6:21:19 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, took 4 of 5 from the West leading Olympia Aces, still need to improve to get out of relegation position. Looks like it could be a big fight to avoid relegation in the East. | ||
| #38548 | 08/21/2016 7:34:30 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| And just like that we win 9 out of the last 10 to pull above .500. | ||
| #38550 | 08/21/2016 7:47:08 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Nicely done, I finally won two games in a row today for the first time in a fair while, still lost the series though. Looks like some more good battles in both the east and west in this division, will be watching closely! | ||
| #38574 | 08/22/2016 6:46:16 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Won the first 3 games against Olympia last night, which made up for going down 1-4 against them in our home series before the ASG. Lost half my bullpen for the remaining two games though and ended up losing both, though my hitters put up just 4 hits in game four (after we won game three 12-3) and you don't win many games that way - not even with the opposition coughing up 3 errors (one error usually proves disastrous for me). So, in game five with my rookie Johnson on the mound (usually a loss) I put a few youngsters into my lineup, and we cranked out 14 hits (6 for extra bases) and put up 7 runs. Unfortunately my LR guy that day was Maldonado, with his 10+ ERA, so we managed to cough up 8 runs and lose. Showing some signs of form though, even if it did take half a season to find it. Currently on a 16-7 run, almost a third of which have been decided by one run (3-5). Its been a very strange season, a real struggle for the most part, but we've drafted very well and had some remarkable luck on waivers - wins this season on 22 claims, 9 (since cut), 7, 5 (since cut), 2, 22, 15, 12, 13, 27, 3 (straight cut), 8, 11, and 26. Those include my #2,3,4 SPs, 2 RP, my 3B, future 2B, future SS, and future CF. There have been 3x 14 POT and one 15 POT included in there. Crazy. |
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| #38733 | 08/27/2016 7:05:22 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| 2 Big wins over Bowling Green tonight giving me a little bit of breathing room. Pitching is doing well, bats are still hit and miss. Updated Saturday, August 27 2016 @ 7:05:43 pm PDT |
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| #38844 | 09/01/2016 3:25:42 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well to begin with last night promised much, and then delivered little - which is to be expected, really. Minoso won just his second game in eleven tries for us in the opener, with a beaut as we won 6-0 while holding the Isotopes to a mere 3 hits. I don't usually go for pitchers like Minoso who have control issues, and he's 'lacking' never mind 'below average', but he has electric stuff (19 fastball, 19 curve) and he's only 30 so I went with it. He's only given 4 QS in those 11 starts, which you kinda expect with those issues, and still its funny to me that his two wins have given him his two POTG awards. But a great start for our team in this series. And then we got shut out 0-6 in game two, and held to just two hits. It figures with our luck that Canales would go out injured for 5 games after he pitched a complete game against us, although to be fair Isotopes pitchers have had our number all season. I did wonder about starting one of my younger guys in this game but he actually had our first hit, and the guy that pinch hit for him had the other - so maybe I should have sat my entire starting lineup, couldn't have been much worse! So honors even at this point, on to game three with all to play for... A 6-12 loss, with an UGLY 8-run sixth inning where seven runs scored before an out was made. "Cannonball" Wood had been on a tear for us recently but tonight his control issues came up (now, of course) and he didn't get out of the 4th inning. And then the young arms came in and immediately imploded. It took Barrera, my very average 4th starter who has been pitching badly (which was why I skipped his start) to come in and stop the bleeding with four scoreless innings, but by then it was too late. We had closed to within 3.5 games of the Isotopes but are now back down to 5.5 behind. And there's a very good reason for this - Hampton are simply a better team, I would say the best in V7. Slug has built an excellent roster, and as a result the Isos are about a season or two ahead of us and are where we'd like to be. We're just 4-9 against them, including 1-6 at home (so technically if you take away those games we'd be all even ). I'll just have to hope my division rivals take more games off them than they do off me, LOL.But we're not throwing in the towel just yet, still a fair distance to go, and we'll battle to the end like we always do (though perhaps not with sitting our young guys this season, for the first time, like we have the last two years). Our season has gone down to the penultimate game in both of my first two seasons, so I guess at this point I'm hoping it does again! Next up is Bowie which is never easy, and we're 1-2 on the road against them so far. And it further won't help that my best power guy Parisi is out for 9 games, when he's already missed 12 this season. But he's turned into something of an enigma. In 2026 he had a career year (.308 AVG, .979 OPS, 50 doubles, 34 HR, 147 RBI) and to take advantage of his bat in 2027 (in a tougher league, IV4) I turned my ballpark into a bandbox - and he hit just .202 at home. A lot of his numbers stayed the same but he hit 21 less doubles and 38 less RBI, and hit way better on the road (.328!) - a head scratcher for me. This season I had to let go a couple of my power guys, but with a bunch of good hitters and good range in the OF I made my ballpark a pitcher's park - and this year he's hitting .277 at home (.254 on the road). His HR are down but doubles are up, and it figures he's hitting more fly balls than ever (0.66 GB:FB) the season I make my park bigger! Ah well, makes for an opportunity for a young guy. Never a dull moment... |
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| #39031 | 09/06/2016 2:45:55 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Huge series tonight (didn't get a chance to post earlier today), my second place Lancers at first place Hampton for four games. Not the best start in game 1, going down 5-6. We're now 4 games back with 22 to go (to Hampton's 24 games left). Four games isn't much but we've struggled against the Isotopes all year, so coming out at least even in this series would give us some hope of catching them. Losing...not so much. |
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| #39048 | 09/07/2016 12:45:01 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Swept in four games. Two 1-run losses to start, then blew a 4-1 lead through six innings to lose in extras (for the first time all season) in game three. With morale in the abyss it was no surprise to lose game four. And so the series (and likely the season) was lost by a grand total of just seven runs (over 36 innings Hampton outscored us by just four, showing the value of timely hitting - and/or luck!). Both division leaders now have seven game leads and a magic number down to 14, so both could - should? - be over. We still have another three game series to lose to Hampton yet, but it would be quite a shock if they faded now. |
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| #39051 | 09/07/2016 6:18:13 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| 4-13 against Hampton, 73-51 against everyone else. They're 70-52 against everyone else - thankfully we only have one more 3-game series against them but it looks academic anyway. It's like they're my new Rocklin (who we look likely to be seeing again in V7 next season). I guess I'm free from relegation worries with just 19 games left, but I will struggle on gamely until I mathematically can't catch Hampton, because the competitor in me won't quit until he has to. So the youngsters will only get token AB until then. |
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| #39183 | 09/10/2016 5:49:28 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Been a crazy couple of days in V7. The West looks pretty much settled, Joliet only require two games to clinch the title and at the bottom Kirkland are down, and St Clair's 6-game win streak has them chasing South Gate but 5.5 games is probably too much to make up now. The East appeared to take a wild turn on Thursday night when first place Hampton lost three straight to last place Des Moines, who are going down. Lombard swept Lincoln Park that night which meant the chase for the division was back on, just 3 games between the top two with one head-to-head series left. But the Lancers then lost two at home to Bowling Green, before stopping the Crusaders 9-game win streak in game three, while the Isos took two of three from Bowie, meaning the gap is back up to five. The Isos will clinch if they win six of their last ten, and five would probably do given their RD is 20 better than Lombard. The Lancers need to sweep Hampton tomorrow night to have a chance, and given we're an abysmal 4-13 against them thus far the odds on that are slimmer than a gnat's eyelashes. And even then we'd need some breaks. The other relegation spot in the East will be between Bowling Green and Lincoln Park. The Crusaders surprising 9-1 run has really come from nowhere but their timing could not have been better. The Wolves however have gone in the opposite direction: their 12-4 start to the season is a distant memory, and although they have won consecutive games they preceded that with their second 7-game losing streak of the season, and at the worst time. A 3.5 game difference isn't surmountable, and the four-game series they play tomorrow night at Bowling Green may well decide the outcome. Updated Saturday, September 10 2016 @ 5:51:30 am PDT |
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| #39193 | 09/10/2016 3:23:31 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well I'm calling it now. The Lancers just played their two worst games of the year against last place Des Moines, and Hampton now need just two wins to clinch the division. We played our top two pitchers and lost both games - having just two hits in game one would doom anyone, and we were shelled in game two. Can't see us winning half our remaining eight games, let alone running the board. Lincoln Park are clawing and scratching to hang on, having won four straight while Bowling Green have lost three straight - and even Bowie are now getting dragged in: just two games separate the teams in 3rd-5th place. So there is some excitement here. |
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| #39231 | 09/11/2016 6:56:52 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, how about you just roll over and let my team win Ironically, only one of us can get what we want as Lincoln Park is playing Hampton. It'll be an interesting 4 game series, good luck! |
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| #39243 | 09/12/2016 6:16:34 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| You wish! It figures that as soon as I call the season Hampton can't win a game and we sweep them for the first time all year (still finish a poor 7-13 against them). So yet again I haven't been going all-in with my youngsters who need the playing time. It'll take just one loss for me or one win for the Isotopes to end the contest, but it was a fun night (for me) last night. Until we're absolutely and mathematically out of hope (could be game one!), we'll be all-in as usual. |
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| #39261 | 09/12/2016 2:38:42 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Still in it! We won, Hampton lost, and the contest is still on! Still expect the Isotopes to get there, but great finish - maybe the sort of excitement the 3rd-5th place teams would rather do without. |
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| #39266 | 09/12/2016 3:25:16 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| And the late drama, at least as far as the V7 East pennant goes, is over. Hampton actually lived down to their end of the deal, losing their seventh straight, but we couldn't come through against Bowie, going down 0-4. Ah well, it was always extremely unlikely, would have liked to go one more game though (and preferably two!). 162 game season, anyone? (and congrats Slug, btw, led from post to post, can't argue with that!) |
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| #39281 | 09/12/2016 5:35:15 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, I needed the two wins I got, because I finished .500 and tied for relegation, but stayed up by virtue of having the greater run differential. When we lost, we usually lost small, and when we won we won big. That was the difference in staying in LL V. Time to make some moves in the offseason to build for next year. | ||
| #39291 | 09/12/2016 7:39:22 pm | ||
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Slug5373 Joined: 12/23/2014 Posts: 376 Inactive
| Wow, want to talk about running out of gas at the end. The elimination number to clinch was 1 with 7 games to go...lost 8 straight. And to amalric's credit, he almost pulled off the miracle. This is probably the worst I've felt going into the playoffs, but I'm happy(ish) to move up to IV. | ||
| #39310 | 09/13/2016 5:56:23 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I'd be happy if I were you - its not how you get there, its just getting there! Been so many points in the season where I could look back and point the finger as to why I didn't win the East, all those close losses to Hampton for starters. But ultimately you look at the most recent games, and being swept in three games by Des Moines prior to the penultimate series against Hampton was the difference - I'd never previously lost a single series to Des Moines, in ELEVEN attempts, so getting swept with a -14 RD was a real shock. That was 2 wins minimum I would normally expect, and with the swing in RD from winning as opposed to losing that should/would have clinched it for me. To then sweep Hampton was an even bigger shock, but it still left me with an almost impossible task - in twelve series (now) between us and Bowie, there has been not one single sweep either way. At least some of the younger guys got two games worth of experience, LOL, but even then I was expecting Jeremy Johnson to put up his usual 3-5 IP of 4 runs plus, but noooo...2 ER into the 8th inning, far and away the best of his measly 3 QS - in 24 attempts! Which meant a couple of the bullpen guys didn't get in, but w/e, nice to end with a win. Congrats to Bowie on staying up and commiserations to Lincoln Park on demoting, really thought the Wolves were too good to go down, but the real story here is Bowling Green - the Crusaders finished on an incredible 19-7 run! That came on the heels of losing 7 of 8 to Bowie and myself, and you can't time running into form any better than that. They finished 1 game ahead of Bowie and Lincoln Park despite the poorest RD, which gives some indication how far back they were. Compare the run-ins:- 3rd - Bowling Green: 19-7 4th - Bowie: 10-16 5th - Lincoln Park: 14-12, including an 8-2 finish Hard to take for the Wolves but I know how they feel, after last season. Honourable mention to Bowie for their consistency/average-ness! 40-40 at home 40-40 away 50-50 against the division 30-30 outside the division |
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| #39352 | 09/13/2016 4:32:44 pm | ||
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Slug5373 Joined: 12/23/2014 Posts: 376 Inactive
| @almaric Of course I'm happy to move up, I'm just saying the way we ended was really disturbing. I think the guys were a little ticked off going into the championship series though. We won a good old fashioned butt whooping 20-2. We lost game two then 3-1 but at least we're not down 2-0. |
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| #39382 | 09/14/2016 7:10:13 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| You won 20-2? Didn't know I'd made the playoffs! It will be an interesting series. I went 5-5 against Joliet so no idea what my chances would have been - also went 5-5 against them in IV4 last season. |
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| #39418 | 09/15/2016 12:47:15 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Solid victory in the play offs for Hampton there, the west was stronger than the east in IV.4 this year so Hampton could be challenge Gastonia for the title judging by this. Fingers crossed I'm back in V.7 next year rather than V.8 but we shall see I guess! | ||
| #39453 | 09/15/2016 6:33:59 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I've got plenty of room in the budget to try to go after some big money free agents in the offseason and hope to catch some gems. I'm not sure I'll win it, though, based on this season. I've got a lot of promising young guys on my roster that probably need another season or two to really crank it up, then I should be right back in contention. | ||
| #39481 | 09/16/2016 1:33:32 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| MVP! MVP! I was kinda expecting it but I was still delighted to see Rafael Ortiz get the V7 MVP Award, he really deserved it. He's about league-average as a defender at 3B but he started hot this season and kept it going - his numbers were superb, and he consistently put them up for us even when everyone else was struggling. Delighted how he's turned out since I stuck him into the lineup early in my first season. On the other hand, I was shocked Diego Silva won the Cy Young. Thought he had a chance at All-League but the CY was a plesant surprise, though by comparison with the runners-up he pretty much earned it. It's his second CY, won his first way back in 2021 for the Rock Hill Wolves, for whom he pitched 13 seasons. Been a real nice get for us these last two seasons, though he's odds-on to be cut come the season flip - which is funny, because my other CY winner was Ivan Anderson in 2026, and he didn't last the 2027 season with us! Neither award was particularly close in the voting, which was nice for me. Edgar Fuentes surprisingly came 3rd in MVP voting, one year after coming 4th (Brian Parisi also came 3rd in 2026) and won his first All-League award. Edgar has had an amazing three seasons, which only makes me wonder how much he could have achieved if previous owners hadn't left him stuck in the minors until his age 31 season in 2026 (when I promoted him). Ernie Lawson won his first All-League to go with his All-Star awards this season and last year. Another guy just completing his 3rd season and about to turn 30. Al Dorsey won our only Gold Glove this year, his first, although he was an All-Star this year (and in 2026). Not sure how Fuentes didn't win the SS Gold Glove given his FPCT was better, and although he had 6 less DP than the winner he also had 6 less errors. Duffy had more opportunities and thus had more assists, but I though Edgar played the position better. I won't grumble any more than that though. An MVP, a Cy Young, four All-League and a Gold Glove. A division win would have been icing on the cake, but hey, always next year... |
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| #39602 | 09/17/2016 11:01:09 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Ah, Hi guys, remember me? ............ | ||
| #39629 | 09/18/2016 8:09:00 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| The Care Bears are back!! V.7 trainers and physio therapists are rejoicing. V.7 should be called the fun league with all you active posters here!! |
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| #39646 | 09/18/2016 12:39:59 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Welcome home! Interesting move on changing your manager from the established Bosco to a new guy. Case of the manager carrying the can for a poor season? I'd have stuck with him, considering the new guy is basically the same. A sign of new priorities? A slight improvement on defense and pitching at the expense of some hitting? I did change my manager too but it was a definite improvement. |
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| #39690 | 09/19/2016 12:07:16 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Hey Freddy you're welcome back down here anytime....... Manager change - as much as an experiment as anything else - there's been a couple of casualties from the poor 2028 season, and it seemed an opportune time to go with a younger manager, given how poorly my pitching has performed over the last 2 seasons its worth focusing on that and the defense for a bit! |
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| #39691 | 09/19/2016 12:55:08 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Time for the all important season predictions! (As always all opinions are my own and not intended to offend!) West: South San Fran: New owner, average offense, below average defense and an unbalanced pitching staff. Camarillo: Always been a fan of the Camarillo team, great offense, improved defense but that outfield is pretty brutal, and a good pitching staff led by Horton who looks like an absolute stud. I'm having flashbacks to facing Atkins (nervous twitch) Beverley Hills: great offense, good pitching but a couple of holes in the defense. Looking forward to lining up against them again! South Gate: below average offense, good defense and solid pitching - should be an interesting season from them Olympia: Good hitting, above average defense but those massive holes in the IF are going to hurt, and a below average pitching staff. Missoula: above average defense, very good defense and an improving pitching staff. I like my chances at promotion hence: To Promote: Missoula Relegation: South San Fran, Olympia East: Newport: Dormant owner, above average offense and defense, below average pitching, this is a good looking team that just needs a bit of love to get them back on track Binghampton: Glad to get to play with mjhack this season, Very good offense, good defense, below average pitching - a couple of good pitching waiver claims and these guys are going to be very scary Bowling Green: Solid offense, a defense that is sneakily better than it seems at first glance, but that pitching is really going to hurt. Hempstead: Very old staff age, above average offense, but below average defense and pitching Bowie: First off - whats with McDaniel not having a listed position! Average offense, good defense and a quality pitching staff. Very different to the Bowie of old! Lomba.... Broken Arrow: Good hitting and defense, young pitching staff which has a lot of growing to do - I'm going to put it at average for now but expect it to be good by the end of the season. Relegation: Hempstead, Newport (due to dormant owner, Bowling Green will keep them out until then) Promotion................ You heard it here first, Missoula is going to see revenge against Bowie in the play offs this season! Broken Arrow will chase the whole way through especially up the stretch, shaping up for another intriguing V.7 season. I expect the east to be much stronger overall than the west this season. Good luck to everyone! |
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| #39699 | 09/19/2016 5:20:07 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Broken Arrow, yes... I check the available place names every once in a while and was surprised to see this one available, had seen it some time ago and quite liked the uniqueness of it. So I jumped on it. Required a new nickname and a new logo, hopefully approved later. As you'll see, its Rebels of the Star Wars variety! Was thinking of Bounty Hunters but its too long for my liking (at this time). Pitching is always an issue for us, but the young guys are starting to come through. Johnson should be much better as the season goes on; Bass came on leaps and bounds; McGinnins and Hoffman are getting there. From the vets I was going to cut Silva even coming off his CY as he's old, same with Vasquez, but I haven't brought anyone in yet. McKee should stick another season, him and Mancini are good pen arms. Wood might be my #1 starter now, and Minoso will be hit-or-miss again. Barrera did nothing and gained nothing last year at 27, not high hopes for him, nor for Maldonado who was awful last year or for Montes, who is way behind. If those last three don't shape up this spring/cup then they're probably gone. Hitting should be fine, my lineup should be exactly the same as last season, but I'd really like Vallejo at 2B and Lopez at SS (plus Kokawa in the OF) to make some major gains early on. Lopez ideally would finally put Feuntes out to pasture, at least fielding-wise. Castellonas may be done, never going to come near his cap at 29 due to previous owners leaving him down too long and me not playing him enough (no place for him!). Hopefully Moody gets somewhere near his cap or SI range, he had the same problems. Valenzuela might start at 3B over MVP Ortiz, who would DH, but although supposedly the better fielder Valenzuela made 10 errors at 3B in just 58 games, while Ortiz made 12 in 104! Which was why Valenzuela ended up at the DH spot 23 times. But Fuentes apart my batting lineup lost just one SI, so fingers crossed they stay good. If we don't start as poorly as we did last season we could be right up there. I certainly plan on being in amongst it. |
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| #39737 | 09/19/2016 4:51:22 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I'm going to have to knock on some wood after that prediction. The bats are what really let us down last season. When they are hot they are great, and when they are down they are awful. Kind of like the Orioles (my local MLB team) are in real life. We were last or tied for last in AVG, SLG, and OBP in the East, the only team worse was South Gate in the entire league. On the flip side the pitching staff was one of the best, as was fielding. The fielding is interesting because at each individual position my players were no better than third best, but the overall team fielding percentage was a division best. Definitely a switch from when I took over the team, pitching was suspect, fielding was average, but the bats were out of the park. The team nickname may as well be the Chokers for the number of one-run games we lose. Hopefully the pitching will hold and the youngsters will live up to their potential, I have a lot of hope for several of my young guns. Might shop free agency for a position player or two, possibly one pitcher although I'm pretty happy with the staff I have right now. I already picked up a decent looking 3B to be a stopgap until the guy in AAA is ready to come up, likely sometime this season. One thing I just noticed going through the team stats, my catchers had an insane 46.8 CS%, a full 5% above the second best team. You might want to think twice about thieving against the Gulls. McDaniel doesn't have a position because he is and has been for several seasons my full-time DH and has consistently been one of my best sluggers. I think he still has a season or two left before he will be sent out to pasture. @almaric, your team move and rename confused me for a second, I thought it was someone who had promoted or demoted. It should be a fun division again as it always is. Don't touch that dial, the start of the 2029 season in LL V.7 is up next! Updated Monday, September 19 2016 @ 4:55:14 pm PDT |
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| #39750 | 09/20/2016 12:19:31 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| I hear ya Amalric! I initially only went with Missoula as it was the only available team with Polar Bears as their mascot when I joined, and I did like my brief visit through Montana! The most exciting location change for the off season surely has to be my AA affiliate though who moved to Lost Springs, Wyoming. I loved Wyoming (although only stayed one night), and given that its the smallest 'town' in the US (population 4), how could I possibly go wrong! Have also managed to link in the NZ theme with the Katipo's, our native poisonous spider! I wouldn't be surprised if the east came down to the final 4 game series between Bowie and Broken Arrow - how exciting would that be! |
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| #39753 | 09/20/2016 3:30:08 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| While I'm in a betting mood, I'll put forward Missoula's contenders for each of the main awards: MVP: Velez - had a chance to challenge last year but I cut his innings short to develop younger guys more, starting C this year, lets see what he can do! Cy Young: Trevino - spent most of last season at AAA to gain some lost SI, control issues but otherwise solid Rookie Hitter: Prieto nominated by default as he's my only candidate, poor offensive season last year, fingers crossed for improvement over his first full season Rookie Pitcher: Chavarria - long awaited debut of my top 14 pot P, I'm optimistic about what he can do in the rotation this year! What's everyone else got? |
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| #39756 | 09/20/2016 4:12:21 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well I just renamed my Rookie team the Cool (TX) Crazies, which might mean they're borderline psychopaths. Nice to get a NZ link in there, might have to get my hometown added to the list as there is a couple of places in the US named after it. Never much between us and Bowie. We played the penultimate series in 2026 and the Gulls came out on top 2-1, but I still only needed to win 1-2 games of my last three-game series to win the East, and I did. Last season we played the final four-game series head-to-head, and if I swept I'd have won the division - instead, I now know what it feels like to miss out by just two games, like Bowie did in 2026! Never dull. |
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| #39759 | 09/20/2016 5:05:44 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Winning awards was so 2028... MVP: Ortiz is the reigning MVP, and his numbers last season fit with his growth. Whether he continues in that vein, or gets better, or (more likely) regresses a little remains to be seen, but my best bet. Cy Young: "Cannonball" Wood. Silva won it last season but he's 34 and I cut him this morning, didn't want to wait and see how he fared this year after further regression. Wood was terrific for me after coming in off waivers in May, and if he pitches like that all year I'll be very happy. Again, he might not! Rookie Hitter: Sheppard. Not much here, I've mostly got young guys who have passed the minimum to qualify and established vets. Sheppard is due up at some point this season and will be a solid LF with good power and a shaky average. Rookie Pitcher: Knepper. I'm not sure McGinnis qualifies due to time on the MLB roster. Knepper might be up early and has the stuff but he needs to get his Mov skill up, might be why he gives up so many taters (1 HR every 7 IP). Again, most of my pitchers are established or not ready until 2030-31. Not sure where my hitting will be by then but my pitching should be the best its ever been. Updated Tuesday, September 20 2016 @ 5:11:26 am PDT |
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| #39793 | 09/20/2016 3:08:54 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, I'll give the award guesses a shot, although I'm not sure I'll have any real contenders in most categories. MVP: KamidaYes I am picking my C over my 1B Fujita. Why? His bat looks promising and if he can throw out would-be thieves at the same rate he did last season, he will be a very valuable asset indeed. Cy Young: Hartman His K:BB ratio was excellent last year, and his ERA was just above 3. He is aging but I think he will still be a contender. Rookie Hitter: Brewer Pretty much the only guy I have at the moment that is likely to come up at any point this year, so a no brainer here. Hoping his fielding improves some from what it is now, I really need him at 3B. I have some other guys that can play 3B (with a lowercase 3b), but none of them have much experience, and the guy I have right now is a stopgap I picked up until Brewer is ready. Rookie Pitcher: Chong Another no-brainer for the same reason. That is if he even gets up to the bigs this year. I've been really disappointed in his development, looks like he is not going to reach his potential and has looked that way pretty much from when I drafted him. I'm hoping I can pick up a good pitcher in the draft this season, I have several in the minors but none are very promising. |
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| #39800 | 09/20/2016 4:32:45 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| And in other news I made my own logo. Yes, it's basically text added to my old logo. But I wanted it to have my city on it. Maybe sometime I will make my own version, but I am rather fond of the Gull that is in the game. | ||
| #39809 | 09/20/2016 7:24:22 pm | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| nice! | ||
| #40275 | 10/03/2016 3:04:33 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Picked up this guy today on waivers, I figure to keep him in the minors this season and call him up next year. Won't get anywhere near his potential, but could be a solid contributor. | ||
| #40283 | 10/03/2016 4:16:00 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| That's a great sneaky pick up there BW! Missoula has started 0-2 in the cup, I'm starting too repeat 'small sample' to myself in a chant in my head.... |
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| #40309 | 10/04/2016 5:26:24 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Terrible signing, BW - I'd cut him. Rebels started 3-1 in the cup, much better than our 0-4 start last season and hopefully indicative of a fast start to the league games too. We begin with a four game series against newly-promoted Newport, who may lack a GM (registered and not seen since) but have some talent. Should be interesting. |
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| #40345 | 10/04/2016 3:13:11 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| By "interesting" I didn't mean "shut out at home in the first two games", but that's whats happened. Newport have some very good pitching, no doubt about it, but their closer is an 11 POT/80 SI guy - so of course we have one hit against him in 5.2 innings. We have 12 hits through 2 games, and 11 of them are singles. With one walk. Not going to win many games that way. |
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| #40353 | 10/04/2016 8:53:12 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I think JJ must have sent my clubhouse some water as a "hello again" gift. I've had 3 players already go down with injuries this season. Also, not a good start at all, 2-2 in cup and 0-3 in the first league series. I don't understand how the offense is so poor, especially when my manager is a 15 in offense. Clutch chokers throughout the lineup. | ||
| #40387 | 10/05/2016 4:39:58 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Maybe I should complain about my offense more often. Then maybe more stuff like this would happen |
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| #40414 | 10/06/2016 8:09:04 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Maybe I should try complaining about my offence. Batting just .255 but worse, a .671 OPS, way below our norms. Small sample size of course, but after pounding Binghamton 14-1 in game one last night we promptly went quiet and lost the next two. Maybe Broken Arrow is too close to Broken Bat(s)? Perhaps I should have stuck to being the Lancers... |
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| #40454 | 10/07/2016 1:48:39 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Made up for my poor cup start with a good start to league play this far, great series against Beverley Hills today taking 2 each. Chavarria has had a sensational start to his career, looking like ace material so far! (Conveniently forgetting the small sample chant...) Looking like almost anyone's game in the east on early going! |
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| #40458 | 10/07/2016 3:48:35 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Hmph, lots of guys look like aces when they play against Broken Arrow. We started 35-15 in 2026, my first season, but every year since has been a struggle in the early going and I have no idea why. I thought starting 3-1 in the cup was a good sign but it hasn't turned out that way. I just have to remind myself to be patient. At least training has been going well, think my new manager could be a good one. And I have to admit I still look at my game reports as the "Lancers" reports when I read them out in my head! I'm probably going in for another mascot/logo change, but actually to something else (go figure). |
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| #40587 | 10/10/2016 3:03:30 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well 13 series against Bowie now, no sweeps either way! Might do myself a favour if I ever remember to change my management settings when moving pitchers around. Moved the guy I initially had down as the LR for both game two (Madrigal) and game three (Bass) into the starting rotation, but forgot to up their pitch count so both were removed around the 75 pitch minimum. Worked in game two, a 3-0 win, less so in game three, which was 1-1 when Bass was pulled and immediately went south in a 1-7 loss. My relievers have all gone stone cold at the same time, never a good thing. But poor starts have been a thing for us so I'm not worried...at this stage. I expect (/hope) we'll turn it around soon. |
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| #40598 | 10/10/2016 5:18:17 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, thanks for the two wins But we fell completely flat in cup today and gave up all 4 games. Not looking good for advancement in the cup. |
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| #40604 | 10/11/2016 12:53:55 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Seems like this snake's den is all too inviting. We're 9-8 at home so far this season in competitive games. We top our cup group by two games at 9-3, but after scoring 20 runs in two games on the road we lost both home games by a combined 8-17 score. Against a bunch of 10 and 11 POT pitchers we couldn't hit much at home, and certainly not over the fence. As I've said these cold starts have happened three straight seasons, and...why? There's no reason for it. Doesn't matter if the youngsters or the vets are in, nobody seems to be able to get anything going with any semblance of consistency. Doesn't appear to matter what talent level we're playing against either. Its frustrating as hell. But I'll take topping the group and not completely sucking in league play (yet?). |
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| #40639 | 10/11/2016 6:23:09 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, and just like that we are on top of the division. Looks like this is going to be another one of those down to the wire seasons. Another interesting note, the Gulls have the largest run differential by a long shot, +30 with the next closest team having +7. | ||
| #40991 | 10/21/2016 1:14:42 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Had my nice 5-game win streak snapped last night, when my suddenly strong pitching just as suddenly imploded, blowing two 5-0 leads. Nice to pull out the third game in front of a full house. Looking forward to the Cup tonight. Am away for a few days with limited internet so almost no chance of making lineup changes where necessary! |
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| #41081 | 10/22/2016 5:33:29 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| The battle continues to rage over in the east, where if you're not from a town beginning with B you might as well go home by the looks! Still happy with the progress betting made by Missoula, pretty solid all around with a surprisingly small injury toll so far! |
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| #41125 | 10/23/2016 6:17:26 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, looks like you got the better of me this time, Almaric. We're now even up at the top of the division. I haven't been hit too hard by injuries either, but I did have a couple of stars out for several games. Hopefully that trend will not continue. It looks like my pitching is starting to falter a little bit, but the bats are doing well now. Darn it, can't I get both bats and pitchers going at the same time? | ||
| #41178 | 10/25/2016 1:56:07 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I might have baulked at the B name thing but I just liked the Broken Arrow name too much. Arrow Venom has a nice ring too. I still sometimes read through the game reports as "the Lancers" though, that's still an adjustment. And I wouldn't worry too much Benchwarmer, I'm sure next time around you'll be the one on top - these things have a tendency to even out between our two teams. As regards injuries, my presumed top starter went out for 36 games after only two starts, and hasn't put it together since he came back despite actually maxing out in velocity at age 31 while injured. Thought that might have contributed to another mediocre start but since then my younger guys Bass and Johnson have stepped up, and Minoso and my waiver claims have all been solid. It scares me to think I might be following the Bowie path of going from a strong hitting to a strong pitching team. Now watch me get whipped by Missoula tonight! |
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| #41179 | 10/25/2016 2:06:38 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Sure enough, 0-9 loss in game one, Bass gives up 5 runs in the top of the 1st. Never fails, make a post and get a big L. | ||
| #41192 | 10/25/2016 5:49:46 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Looks like Missoula is the prohibitive favorite to win the West at this point, so I wouldn't worry too much about losing to them. When I face them we'll probably even back out |
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| #41208 | 10/26/2016 12:17:45 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Wow, didn't expect that result but I'll happily take it. Headlined by a 1 hit complete game by Figueroa in game 3, I certainly don't expect a repeat next time out! | ||
| #41209 | 10/26/2016 12:38:31 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I don't expect a repeat either. Really couldn't get anything going this time around, but that's usually the way it goes - haven't had a losing record against any West division yet, and tend to get a lot better after the ASG. One extra-inning loss and one win, and blew a 4-0 lead through seven innings in game five...it happens. The two shutouts were just butt ugly, but like I said if you make a post about your team it seems more often than not to come back and bite you! We're moving on, undaunted. |
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| #41211 | 10/26/2016 3:30:43 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Well both bull pens have up a game each. I just looked closer at Figueroa's game, he was perfect through 8 and then gave up one each of a hit batter, a hit and a walk. Way to blow it buddy! | ||
| #41216 | 10/26/2016 6:30:31 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Just checked back, and we went 4-6 against Missoula two seasons ago in IV4 (1-3 in 1-run games). I'd settle for that after the return matchup! | ||
| #41247 | 10/27/2016 3:55:29 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| My favourite song this year has been by a British band called Bastille, their last single which was called "Good Grief". Pretty much sums up my current futility. I'm clutching (desperately) to the belief that we didn't turn into a poor team overnight and that the RNG will eventually turn back in our favour. No reason for going 1-9, none at all, but its happened. |
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| #41332 | 10/29/2016 4:19:03 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| 4-14 against the West so far, just awful. My season numbers still look good but my record is now an even 34-34. Thought we were over the worst at 30-20 entering ID games and tied for the division lead but things have gone south in a hurry. Some of the pitching we're seeing is about as rank bad as it gets in LLV, and we can't hit any of it. Our pitching meanwhile gets shelled home and away, despite looking a darned sight better. The worst thing is that it makes no sense at all. And there's no easy fix. |
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| #41370 | 10/31/2016 5:03:52 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Oh boy, Missoula is up next. We will see just how good we are right now. | ||
| #41381 | 11/01/2016 8:00:21 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| My old rivals are both opening leads in the div. Nice job boys! My team is hot right now as well..we'll see what the second half brings. |
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| #41387 | 11/01/2016 2:09:10 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| "Nice job"?! GET OUT!! We decided to give Benchwarmer something of a head start at halfway, make things interesting, because being tied at 30-20 entering inter-league play just wasn't exciting enough. Because obviously it was a choice on our part to go 1-9 then, which 'improved' to 4-15, before winning our last six. Just gearing up now for our traditional second half run - well, we had one last season, so that counts as tradition. Always hard in this league. |
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| #41397 | 11/01/2016 6:18:47 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ha-ha! Took three out of five from Missoula heading into the All-Star break. We will see how many Bowie players make it to the game this year, I have a couple that I expect to see. | ||
| #41401 | 11/01/2016 8:27:52 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Ahhh BW by any chance did you deliver a package to my club house before the game? Most injuries I've had in a series this season and having lost 2 of those games on unearned runs due to replacement players making errors, I'd say that was a sound strategy on your part 😉 I'm looking for 3 hitters and 3 pitchers to make the game tomorrow, Velez is having a fantastic season for me. Looking good over in college station too, having a good cup run 😀 |
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| #41407 | 11/02/2016 8:28:08 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well we've sent 7, 5 and 9 players to the ASG the last three seasons, but I honestly have no idea who might make it, let alone will make it this season. Johnson, Bass, Minoso and Perry all figure among the pitching leaders but none stand out, although Bass is 3rd in Ks and 8th in WHIP. Ortiz and Fletcher are 2nd & 3rd in AVG, with Ortiz also 10th in SLG and Fletcher 9th in OBP. Dorsey is 8th in HR, tied 4th in RBI and 7th in SLG and made it in 2026 and 2028. Parisi has been to three straight but he's been very average thus far. Fuentes might have made it if I'd played him from the start, but given he's 34 and started slowly I thought he was finally declining on the field (his SI has dropped steadily since the end of 2026, but his performance hasn't) - as is he's played just 56 games, yet has batted .341 and leads my team in runs. I'm usually surprised by how many of my players make it, but I'm expecting to be disappointed this season. |
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| #41423 | 11/02/2016 3:49:12 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Sure enough, the exact opposite happened, story of my Broken Bat expectations! I checked the ASG score before I saw who had made the team, and the first thing I saw after the score was, "Losing Pitcher: Jamie Bass". So at least I had one guy make the team! As it happens, we had seven guys on the team (again). Bass (who earned the loss thanks to 6 unearned runs in the 14th inning) and my closer Perry made it in the list of six pitchers (at #1 and #6). On the hitting side 3B Ortiz, SS Fuentes (who never ceases to amaze me) and RF Fletcher all started the game, and 2B/1B Dorsey and - shockingly - LF Parisi were reserves who played. Did everyone else pull their hitters for the game, citing injuries? Because I'm not sure how a guy with a .274/.352/.452 line (ie. an .803 OPS) who has made 4 errors in left field qualifies. You may well feel the same. But I'll take it. I would say that hopefully this provides the spark under these guys to produce a second half run, but given how my predictions tend to go I shall instead say Missoula and Bowie will each win at least 100 games, the Cleveland Browns will win the SuperBowl, that we'll establish a colony of polar bears on Mars and that I shall win the lottery this weekend... |
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| #41430 | 11/02/2016 7:51:35 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Lol never say never right?! 4 hitters and 2 pitchers so I wasn't too far off, couple of surprises there though with Seymour and Manning making the starting line ups |
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| #41455 | 11/03/2016 3:18:00 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| 2 hitters, 2 pitchers made it for me. One of my hitters was the DH, the other the backup 1B. | ||
| #41461 | 11/03/2016 7:34:47 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Well Amalric, I guess Bowie had better watch out after that performance where we got well and truly outplayed! | ||
| #41470 | 11/04/2016 6:28:59 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Thanks JJ. After the surprising ASG awards I'd decided to chuck all my vets into the lineup and go for it, but forgot for game one and so Jorgensen (a rookie) was in the starting lineup, though it didn't matter considering how well Figgy has been pitching for you. It was also slightly alarming for me that Minoso lost that game considering he started the only game we won in the previous series! But I really didn't expect to sweep the remaining games - had gone to bed last night after game three and when I saw "Broken Arrow 2.." this morning I feared the worst! But as you know "..Missoula 1" followed, and that being the series clincher was pleasing enough, with the win in game five being the cherry on top. That is how well we can play when we're on, though we just haven't seen it enough this season. But we've done this for three straight seasons so I'm not that surprised. Probably jinxed myself again in saying all that, and we face Olympia tomorrow who swept us last time by a grand total of ten runs (2 3-run losses, a 2-run loss, and 2 1-run losses). |
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| #41637 | 11/10/2016 7:48:44 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Got awfully quiet in here - you'd think those runaway division leaders would have something to crow about! Then again, perhaps - like me - they've seen enough to know it can all change in an instant. Can't say I jinxed myself with Olympia, went 2-3 this time to be 2-8 overall, not great but just wasn't to be. However as we won the last game of that series and then swept South Gate, and won the first game against Beverly Hills, we had a seven-game win streak going, which seems like our longest in forever. Now we're going somewhere...but... True to form we've since gone 2-8, getting outscored 34-48. Camarillo have struggled against RHP yet hammered ours, and they and Beverly Hills both have terrible pitching (4.96 and 5.06 ERA!!) which we couldn't touch for the most part. I have no idea why. I thought picking up Berger off waivers (who played against us in IV4 two seasons ago) would be the spark our offence needed, but while he's been fantastic (.429 AVG overall, 15-29 against RHP!), and Ortiz and Fletcher are in consistent good form (and Fuentes and Dorsey have been decent), everyone else has flat-out sucked. I've been over this in the Venting Thread, but take these latest OPS scores:- Parisi: .668 Reyes: .655 Lawson: .611 Valenzuela: .516 Vallejo: .492 Waters: .475 Moody: .462 There are a couple of others but these are my 'best' hitters after the top five, and they've been terrible. Vallejo and Valenzuela have been good over the season vs LHP, but Parisi's power has vanished (9HR all season) and Lawson can't buy a hit of any kind. Waters is always injured and plays nothing like his abilities, like the others. The talent is there but performances have not been. It makes no sense. But what can you do, but shrug it off as "just baseball"? After tonight's last ID series (we need to win four against San Francisco to avoid a first losing record against the West, fat chance) and tomorrow's cup games we enter the final 50-game stretch against our own divisions. We were 30-20 first time up and will need to do better to have a chance at the title. As usual I'm not ready to give up although I do wonder with the vets being so poor whether I should just stick the young guys in anyway. Our pitching is fine, although our inconsistency as a team has returned these last ten games - good hitting performance, bad pitching. Good pitching performance, bad hitting (plenty examples of this side). Its more than a little ironic that we've played some of our best games against Missoula and Bowie, the two leaders, and yet played so poorly against some of the others. Wow, I've gone on so long I almost forgot where I started! One last note then: I've kinda missed being the Lombard Lancers. I loved the Broken Arrow name and the new logo, but I miss the old team name, and as I've said several times I still think of us as the Lancers! May be time to pack up in the offseason and head back, say that the stadium was being refurbished... |
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| #41640 | 11/10/2016 12:24:29 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| That was a novel and a half, nearly had to read it in 2 sittings! I'm out of the country at present so have limited access and have been unable to delve into the stats as much as I normally would, intrigued to see what happens in today's series v Bowie though, as I've had a tough run since the all star break, losing 4 of 5 series so far. Luckily for me no one has really taken advantage in the west, but it's still too close to be completely comfortable with the lead | ||
| #41648 | 11/10/2016 5:17:56 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, it's not looking pretty for me so far. A couple of ugly losses and yet another extra innings loss, and one win. Really need to split the series 2-3 as Broken Arrow is creeping closer. I'm fairly pleased with the top of my lineup, not so much the bottom. The bats are struggling down there. | ||
| #41905 | 11/17/2016 2:38:18 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well, it's not looking pretty for me so far. How's it looking now? Bad loss for us in game one, taking a 1-0 lead into the 8th inning and losing 1-3. Don't have a problem with the leadoff single in the 9th but not getting a play on the grounder to second next up hurt: even when we got the lead runner on the next play there were still two on. And then the double steal, which you get against a guy who isn't a C despite his 16 Arm. Rotten timing for me. A strikeout got us within one out but Fujita is dynamite, the last guy we want to face there. It happens, and honestly I think apart from one outing we can never touch Reid. Chong's scoreless outing, especially the 3 Ks in the top of the 9th against the heart of our lineup, was very disappointing - I expect more against a guy at that stage of his development. Good game though, hope to pick up something in the next two. I may call it after this series if we don't though, 8 games back with 35 to play is tough - I know we made up most of that against Hampton last year but like the Isotopes the Gulls have led from the start, can't see them slipping. Top three are set in the East, probably more of a contest for 2nd/3rd and then also for 4-5-6 with the bottom three teams separated by just 1.5 games. Missoula has the West sewn up, and it looks like the bottom two teams are set. |
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| #41909 | 11/17/2016 3:48:02 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, good job by Missoula, they already have the magic number countdown. We've split the series 1-1 so far, who will win the third? | ||
| #41946 | 11/18/2016 3:22:52 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Apparently I did. Our yearly tease continues, now 6 games back with 33 to play, and 7 of those are H2H between us. Think its the best either of us has done against the other (to this point of a season), but I'll swap an 8-5 advantage for a 6-game division lead any day - doubt you would do the reverse! It does mean I also have my usual roster issues. Vallejo, Lopez and Jorgensen all need regular AB and aren't getting any because my developing young hitters always suck. CF Lawson has sucked all year and yet gained 1pt of SI today, his first since 2027. "OF/1B" (ie. DH only) Moody also gained 1pt, only his second this year, and he's sucked too. Valenzuela had hammered LHP all season until the end of ID play, and is now something like 6-for-60. Waters has gained SI steadily for the last couple of seasons and has a great SI batting line (17/16/10/15) yet sucks. Kokawa has at least come onto his game. And I had two guys in AAA get the call today, 3B/C Norton and OF Sheppard. I don't know where they would play, let alone who they would replace. Might have made sense to give up down the stretch last season and blood those developing guys, which might have helped me this season...but I can't ever do that during a close run-in. I might well end up saying the same next season. Same old! |
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| #41961 | 11/18/2016 8:41:06 pm | ||
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newtman Joined: 11/02/2013 Posts: 3343 Inactive
| I actually recommend letting them get the ABs from the start of the season, that way you can always make up the ground if needed. It will bite you if you put it off until your veterans are worse than rookies. | ||
| #41970 | 11/19/2016 5:18:33 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well I did this time around. Vallejo (72G, 284AB), Lopez (60G, 217 AB) and Jorgensen from when he was brought up (26G, 75AB) have all had playing time, the first two from the beginning of the season because I feared Dorsey and Fuentes (particularly) would be getting past it this season (as is they have played as well as ever, with Dorsey filling my 1B hole when my prospects there didn't pan out). Kokawa (55G, 216AB) has had more playing time recently due to injuries and has responded. Lawson and Moody have just never got going but I sprinkle them in when I can - Lawson is in a season-long slump, while Moody can take plenty of walks but is terrible at everything else. Valenzuela was terrific from the start against LHP and is still sporting a .261/.331/.548 line against them, but is in a 3-for-43 slump which might actually be more like 6-83, and he hasn't hit righties all year (8-80). Still, some of these guys are already in the lineup for tonight. I had hoped for more growth from the 24-27 age hitters because I've been giving them 'recommended' AB/DIS every week, but the results haven't been there (and we've had our best development season). Vallejo is just +3 SI, Lopez +4 (although he was +5 before his Arm dropped 1pt), Kokawa is +4, Moody +2, Reyes was +3 before dropping 1pt of Range. The pitchers have all improved very nicely. |
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| #41976 | 11/19/2016 8:19:18 am | ||
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newtman Joined: 11/02/2013 Posts: 3343 Inactive
| Sounds good. Hitters do improve slower than pitchers. Although several users have posted examples of quick, huge growth among hitters, the norm for a full time major league hitter with 12 or 13 potential is ~4-6 per season with 14 or 15 potential players posting closer to ~5-7 usually with more room to grow. Plenty of examples abound of players which grow faster and slower than this range, but this has been my development experience. Keep in mind that if the last pops were early in the season, you could see more pops any update now. It would be more concerning if the last pops were more recent with that low a gain. | ||
| #42050 | 11/22/2016 5:58:10 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Down to crunch time now! Eight series and 23 games left (for me) to chase down the 6.5 games we sit behind Bowie, with the first of our two remaining head-to-heads due up tomorrow. Certainly not looking past Hempstead after they took 2 of 3 from us last time, but really have to take a bunch of these next two series to have any chance. Funny that we share almost exactly the same division record as Bowie (47-30 to 48-30), which means the difference between us is that they were six games better against the West: 35-25 to 29-31, not a good time for us to post our first losing record against that side. Leading V7 in GIDP surely hasn't helped us but I really don't know what to do about that - Ortiz (14), Dorsey (12) and Fletcher (9) are three of our best hitters but have 35 between them, when Bowie as a team have just 56! Waters continues to play below his profile and has 11 GIDP in 299 AB, which is pretty bad, but I still hold out hope for him. Seemed to have a lot of the random issues we had last season, teams getting hot when they play us. Obviously we're regarded as the team to beat so everyone raises their game against us, allowing Bowie to slip past unnoticed... *cough*. LOL, just kidding Benchwarmer, you're up there on merit! |
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| #42064 | 11/22/2016 5:08:44 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Ugh. Lost the last two games to the bottom team, and were lucky to win the first two. Ten of our 15 runs were scored in the last two innings of the four games. Hopeless. | ||
| #42070 | 11/22/2016 6:53:41 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, this series has big implications. I can shave a lot off of the magic number with a sweep, and Almaric can heavily cut into our lead. We will see how it goes. | ||
| #42073 | 11/23/2016 12:58:32 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Good luck to both of you, I've managed to relax a bit and get a few more AB's for the rookies and gone to a 6 man rotation to get Milani a few more innings. Also meddling with my line up a bit in the hope I can work out the optimal order to finally win a play off series! | ||
| #42088 | 11/23/2016 3:22:51 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Not dead yet... Still think its too much to make up, and losing game one with a grand slam in the top of the 9th for a 0-4 loss was not a great start. My LHS who was holding lefty hitters to a less than .200 average coughed it up...to a 'cold' hitting lefty. It happens. The game two win was absolutely welcome but a game three loss would end it - ten games back with 16 to play is impossible. Its almost impossible now in any case. But as I've said dozens of times, I'll play to the end, even if this time the end is tonight - at least I could then play the young guys tomorrow! |
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| #42108 | 11/24/2016 7:02:30 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Took game three so we're back to just six games behind now, with sixteen to play - the last four of which are at Bowie. We lost two of our last three against Newport at home but swept them last time we played there, in four close games, so hope for some good results tonight. Interesting to see how our former player Castellonas is doing with an extended run of playing time, albeit in LLVI. I dumped him because I thought he was done improving (he had the 'too old to improve' label last season) and I wanted to give more time to the developing Moody and Barrett. Of course, Moody has sucked and Barrett was worse so got cut, and I played Dorsey most of the year at 1B. I guess Oscar could have played there but I doubt I'd have had room for him either way, and there's no guarantee he would have produced those numbers up here. |
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| #42125 | 11/24/2016 6:40:54 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Argh, couldn't win the series and let Broken Arrow back into the race at only 5 games back. However, I have a magic number of 9 so a combination of wins and Broken Arrow losses will get me there. Go Binghamton! I'm also playing the worst team in the division next in Hempstead, hopefully a sweep will be on tap. I'll be away for the rest of the season but hopefully I will be able to check in on how things are going. This could be exciting to the end, personally I hope it is boring in my favor |
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| #42161 | 11/25/2016 6:00:29 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| LOL! Five games in it with 13 to play. Picked up one game last night and will need to do that for the next three series to make the last series at Bowie the decider. I honestly don't know how we do it - our season has been decided on the 2nd or 3rd last day all three of my seasons, and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see it happen again this time around. You couldn't make it up! |
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| #42183 | 11/25/2016 5:11:51 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well we won two of three (while I was out tonight) against Binghamton, and yet managed to fall a game further back when Bowie swept Hempstead. Now 6 back with 10 to play, tallest of orders, but I did play some of the developing guys tonight (due to injuries) so tonight wasn't wasted. | ||
| #42191 | 11/25/2016 8:14:56 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Congrats on the clinch Missoula! Now time for my boys to get it done, magic # of 5. It's a tall order in game 1 though, we face the 7-1, 2.02 ERA ace Alba of Newport. We shall see how that goes, it may get you a little closer Almaric. At least my guys did what was needed against Hempstead. | ||
| #42195 | 11/26/2016 12:56:28 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Exciting as ever in the east. Pretty pleased with my pre-season predictions there! Also, Chavarria is looking pretty good for rookie pitcher of the year, Prieto has had a reasonable season in the rookie of the year competition but I wouldn't be surprised if he gets outdone - how have your guys rookies gone? Updated Saturday, November 26 2016 @ 1:31:08 pm PST |
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| #42203 | 11/26/2016 6:01:11 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well we really need to sweep our next two series at Bowling Green and home to Hempstead, but we're just 4-3 against both in those places so far (5-5 home to BG, 6-4 on the road against the Giants). So that seems very unlikely. We're 4-2 so far at Bowie, so go figure - maybe we can only play well against the good teams! No real rookie highlights. Knepper has gained 40 SI in the three seasons since we drafted him and has the makings of a fine starter. His 4.81 ERA isn't bad for a rookie I guess, but it's all about the future with him. Johnson and Bass made huge improvements in performance this year and I expect Knepper (although a lefty) will do the same. Batting has been a huge disappointment despite what appears to be solid numbers, and that is largely due to Ortiz (ridiculous .352 AVG and possible MVP candidate again), Dorsey, Fletcher, Fuentes and waiver claim Berger. The catchers have been underwhelming mostly, the developing guys have been painfully slow to develop and the power fell off a cliff, with Parisi's sub-par performance a particular black spot: not what you want from your cleanup hitter. We scored 852 runs last year and yet currently sit at 697 with ten games left, so even if we average five runs for these last games we'll be about 100 runs short of last year's total, which is a huge dropoff. Easy to see where our problems lay. And if you haven't seen it, we're heading back to Lombard for next season, just as soon as the season flips. Have to say I missed being the Lancers! |
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| #42210 | 11/26/2016 2:18:41 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Might have got me a little closer...if only we could beat lefties, and Bowie are the only team in our division who can do that. Our AVG against LHP has dropped for three straight seasons, with essentially the same (righty-heavy) lineup. | ||
| #42214 | 11/26/2016 4:22:56 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well Bowie were kind enough to drop all three games at Newport, pity we couldn't take advantage of that because we lost two of three at Bowling Green. Which means the gap is still five with seven to play. Goes to show that overall numbers can be deceiving - we scored 15 runs in the three games, but 14 of those came in our game two win, and we managed just 9 hits in the other two games. Ugh. |
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| #42217 | 11/26/2016 5:53:51 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, my guys took a complete dump today, but the all important magic # is down to 3 with two series remaining, and one of those against Lombard. Should be a good run to the end. You will probably have to sweep our final series to win the division Almaric. | ||
| #42227 | 11/27/2016 6:09:51 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| BW - I have to hope your guys do what Hampton did last year, losing their last eight. We had to win our last eight then but could only manage six, and I don't see us winning five down this last stretch let alone winning out. That combined 5-15 record against Olympia and Beverly Hills, neither of which I rate that highly, is the real difference here: 10-10 would have made this finish to the season a lot more exciting from my PoV. But we'll go out all guns blazing and see. |
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| #42246 | 11/27/2016 4:38:05 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Congrats Benchwarmer! Pretty much post-to-post and a deserved winner. We were tied at 30-20 when the ID games started but that was where it all went wrong for us, lost 6 games there and never recovered, and that proved to be the difference - we're pretty even apart from that. I guess after eight seasons in V7 it was finally time to move up. Championship playoff should be interesting viewing. I'm about to make some changes to my roster and bring in the kids for the last four games for some much needed development. |
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| #42250 | 11/27/2016 6:32:48 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Thanks Almaric, it was a good fight to the end. Now on to beat Missoula in the playoff games again I'm not sure we have the roster to stay in IV next season, so we may be back. Now off to put in my rookies for tomorrow's games and remember to switch it back for the playoff. |
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| #42257 | 11/27/2016 7:45:21 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Congrats BW and commiserations Amalric - I'm pretty sure you'll clean up this league next season though with the way your roster is coming on. Might as well leave your rookies in for the play offs BW, in true Missoula form my ace managed to injure himself for 19 days today. Sigh! |
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| #42290 | 11/28/2016 5:28:18 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Swapping to a 4-man rotation for the playoffs, we shall see how this goes. | ||
| #42302 | 11/28/2016 8:13:42 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Additionally my star set up reliever is out for 6 days. I think you could run a 13 man rotation and still beat my pitching staff! | ||
| #42304 | 11/28/2016 10:30:22 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| MVP voting looks like its going to be close, I'm struggling to pick the gap between Ortiz of Broken Arrow or Missoula's own Velez Bowie's Fujita will probably be top 3 also. I'm really hoping my 12 pot guy who was battling to get into the rotation get the Cy Young - Livingston - it looks like he has a good chance IMHO. |
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| #42310 | 11/29/2016 4:06:56 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Ortiz can repeat as MVP. He's 2nd in R, 4th in OBP, 3rd in SLG and OPS and not only is he 1st in AVG he's 22 points better than the second place guy. His HR did drop from 30 to 19 this year, but given only two guys hit more than 28 in our league this season I'm hoping its not that much of an issue. But it wouldn't surprise me if it was Velez given his huge production, and although I don't think Fujita wins it I do believe SB can make a difference and he's obviously a factor because of his numbers there, just one short of double the next highest total. I am looking forward to NOT having to face these two guys next season, at least! |
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| #42314 | 11/29/2016 6:32:27 am | ||
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FreddyTheEye Joined: 11/11/2014 Posts: 625 Inactive
| Don't awards just mean higher salary? Maybe some "prestige" or fan mood increase??? I usually hope to lose these awards! lol |
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| #42317 | 11/29/2016 7:18:23 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I don't think awards affect anything, but I'm not sure. I think players get salary increases based on performance, and awards just add a little colour. Prestige is only affected by promotion (and perhaps relegation) and winning the Cup. |
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| #42361 | 11/29/2016 6:36:40 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| I will be highly surprised if Fujita is not in the running for MVP, he's been our main man all season. After 2 games in the playoffs it's tied at 1 apiece, after the beatdown we suffered in game 1 in addition to losing our starting catcher for two games, I thought we might get swept. But we held it together in game 2. |
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| #42364 | 11/29/2016 6:48:44 pm | ||
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Rock777 Joined: 09/21/2014 Posts: 9602 Haverhill Halflings III.1 
| Yes, awards affect salary. You can expect to pay a guy extra after he wins an award. Steve has confirmed this in previous threads. | ||
| #42372 | 11/30/2016 12:35:44 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Strike 3 - My number 3 pitcher has just gone down for the remainder of the series leaving me with 3 starting pitchers. Good close start to the series barring the 9th innings of the first game. Freddy - I don't think you tried hard enough to lose those awards when playing against Missoula.... |
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| #42403 | 11/30/2016 7:56:58 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Alright, up 3-2 heading into the last 2 games. I just need to win one of them to take the trophy! Can we do it again and beat a Missoula team that should dominate on paper? | ||
| #42416 | 12/01/2016 12:56:22 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Definitely advantage Bowie going into a home series. Despite the injuries my pitching hasn't been too bad but the offense has been very much all or nothing. Let's hope for some more of the 'all' today! | ||
| #42417 | 12/01/2016 2:12:01 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| As with the 2021 season its going down to gave 7! Possible injury cloud over CF Potter for Bowie, Missoula is healthy other than the 2 top pitchers being out. Good luck BW! |
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| #42421 | 12/01/2016 3:06:27 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Oooh, who to win? Eh...who cares. Be awfully quiet in here next season, talking to myself! |
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| #42423 | 12/01/2016 3:36:19 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Wow, great series BW, Livingstone is probably a deserving final winner of the final game after the season he's given me. | ||
| #42424 | 12/01/2016 3:40:01 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| We'll still come back to visit Amalric, I imagine it'll only be a season until IV.4 is the most popular league in BB Time to compare against my predictions, I've done pretty well! West: To Promote: Missoula Relegation: South San Fran, Olympia Got the relegation completely wrong! East: Relegation: Hempstead, Newport (due to dormant owner, Bowling Green will keep them out until then) Promotion................ You heard it here first, Missoula is going to see revenge against Bowie in the play offs this season! Broken Arrow will chase the whole way through especially up the stretch, shaping up for another intriguing V.7 season. - How good was this prediction! Not far off getting the relegation pick's right also - all in all a very good season - thanks to everyone in the division, very enjoyable season |
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| #42426 | 12/01/2016 3:48:04 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yes, another great year in V.7! Almost makes me sad to leave. Comparing my team to the teams up in the LL IV we are promoting too it looks like I am very overmatched. I might be back down again next year. It'll probably depend on how bad the teams that demote are. Great win by Missoula, congrats on the playoff trophy. The manager should have just left Livingstone in for the last batter. |
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| #42428 | 12/01/2016 3:48:36 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| I'm looking forward to you predicting Lombard to win the East by a considerable margin next season... |
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| #42429 | 12/01/2016 4:10:00 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| There's a good chance that'll happen Amalric BW - I was about to say, its impressive how many of the all-time awards Bowie have in V.7 now, McDaniel is right up there for most things |
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| #42430 | 12/01/2016 5:43:40 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, just realized that Fujita was only 10 SB short of the league single season record. | ||
| #42460 | 12/02/2016 10:41:57 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Congrats on the win JJ, tough luck BW, heck of a series! Digging the new Bowie logo, bit strange seeing the Blue Crabs as opposed to Gulls but I like it, and I'm quite glad - barring name changes this next season will be my first (barring further name changes) without a Gulls opponent. Can only be a good thing! |
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| #42472 | 12/02/2016 9:55:31 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Congrats on the MVP Amalric, its not a complete waste for you! Rookie pitcher for me and my first ever Cy Young for Livingston, fairly appropriate that it comes on a 12 pot for me I guess! | ||
| #42478 | 12/03/2016 7:23:38 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Cheers! No surprise on Livingston, deserved it. Funny that I predicted that I wouldn't have many players in the ASG, only to end up with seven. Turns out I was almost right - Ortiz was MVP and the All-League 3B, but he was our only representative in the season end awards. Which isn't that surprising, as the other ASG players were all playing multiple positions (or poorly, in Parisi's case) so perhaps didn't quaify for the hitting/fielding awards or pitched well but not quite well enough for the pitchers. No matter, Ortiz was the one I wanted, don't mind paying him an extra $500k after that season! And as you can see we're back in Lombard, feels like home (and like we should never have left)! |
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| #42527 | 12/03/2016 5:59:08 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, I am shocked that Fujita wasn't even in the running for MVP. I did however have two gold glove fielders, one being Fujita and the other Carmelo Alvarez, who I occasionally forget is even on my team |
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| #42544 | 12/03/2016 9:30:46 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Well there you are BW - there are certain things Missoula has been very consistent at - 10 seasons of average or worse first round picks since I took over, and 10 seasons without a golden glove at any position! | ||
| #42907 | 12/13/2016 10:58:07 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Well Amalric - I've just been through the east division, and I predict the winner to be.......... you! None of the teams are weak but none are great, you have the best all-round combination of defense and pitching, (the pick up Yoder could be the difference you need) and your offense is certainly no slouch, although not the best in the league. Good luck! |
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| #42918 | 12/14/2016 7:47:17 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well you have been very accurate in the past JJ, so I'll hope you're right once again! I quite like where my team is at right now, though we'd all like to be a little better, but we'll see how it goes once the season proper begins. Hopefully Yoder still has it with the glove (the bat would be a bonus) as our defence looks decent, and the pitching looks good, which means its just a matter of whether our batters can produce consistently, which hasn't always been the case (despite good talent levels). | ||
| #43793 | 01/09/2017 7:30:26 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Well stage one of the season is done, so lets sweep the cobwebs away and pen a league update. West Just seven games between top and bottom, but no real surprise in that Olympia and Joliet lead the way. St Clair might give them a run the rest of the way but I expect Camarillo, National City and San Rafael to fight it out for the two relegation spots. East So far the top two teams in V7 appear to be the top two teams in the East. The Lancers 33-17 tops the league, four ahead of Taylor and five ahead of the top teams in the West. No chicken counting going on here though: Lombard may have swept the Tigers in four games last night, but we were tied for record going in and all four games were decided by just one run (2-3, 3-4, 3-4, 2-3), so it really could have gone either way. Its a bit early to tell but we may have a three-tier group: Lombard and Taylor fighting for top spot, Lincoln Park and Binghamton duking it for 3rd/4th, and Newport and Des Moines sitting in the relegation spots. There are of course 110 games still to play! Lombard has had another of those awful hitting starts, batting just .248 through fifty games (and that without Bowie or Hampton to face). The youngsters have been stuck on the bench lately and all the under-achieving 'promise' guys have been cut, so now a roster of proven veteran hitters comprise the Lancers lineup - which has meant some better results, but there will need to be a substantial step-up if we are to keep our spot. Last season's awful performance against the West still lingers in the memory, which even with a strong second half comeback meant a 29-31 record in inter-division, which cost us the division. Our pitching has been tremendous thus far, easily our best performance, but we'll take nothing for granted - the Cup was very disappointing this season, and we don't need to slip up against the West in any way. |
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| #44012 | 01/17/2017 2:58:41 pm | ||
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jackozar Joined: 10/21/2015 Posts: 29 Inactive
| My first no-hitter in the series opener vs national city, thrown by no other than my first quality prospect brought through, Mays. | ||
| #44049 | 01/18/2017 2:27:52 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Four Lancers in the All-Star Game, lowest of my tenure, but I'm happy with it given our performances. Best pitching around so Knepper (who pitched 2.1 innings for the Win, East 4: West 2) and Johnson earned their spots. Two-time defending MVP Ortiz was a shoo-in again, but Berger making it (fourth of his career but first for us) was a surprise - of course he GIDP in his only plate appearance! Like I said elsewhere, very happy to have a league-leading 51-29 record at the break. Just need our woeful bats to wake up and support our terrific pitching: polar opposite of where we were when I started. (edit) Must mention Jamie Bass, who leads the league with a 1.77 ERA (0.42 better than anyone else) in 86.2 IP and sports a 7-1 record plus 5 POTG awards (one off the lead)...and didn't make the ASG. At least he got the nod last season. Updated Wednesday, January 18 2017 @ 2:34:27 pm PST |
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| #44108 | 01/20/2017 12:03:53 am | ||
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jackozar Joined: 10/21/2015 Posts: 29 Inactive
| Was a bit buffled by the snub of Mays, who is third in ERA, third in WHIP, has 5 potg and 6-1, with a no-hitter added in for good measure. At any rate, fine with it and after my recent stretch going 12 games unbeaten I have solidified somewhat, I really want to avoid what happened two years ago... | ||
| #44968 | 02/11/2017 4:31:09 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Haven't wanted to post recently for fear of tempting fate, but can relax now because...holding an eight game lead with just seven to play, the Lombard Lancers are V7 East Champions! Absolutely delighted. Commiserations to Braddles' Taylor Tigers who have managed 92 wins and have pushed us all the way. The biggest factor in the standings? In sixteen games between the two teams the tally is Lancers 13-3 Tigers. And therein lies the story of the season. More tomorrow. |
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| #45079 | 02/12/2017 9:42:49 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Congrats Lombard, I look forward to matching up again next season! | ||
| #45096 | 02/13/2017 7:42:43 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Heh, same here! We've had an excellent season, excluding the Cup exit to five LLVI teams. Made a very strong start to league play then made up for last season's poor 29-31 record against the West (first losing record against a West division) by going 37-23 this time. Our tremendous H2H record against Taylor (13-3 so far) kept us ahead pretty much all season, and we haven't faltered at all down the stretch: went 16-4 in the first twenty games after inter-division play ended, and 14-9 after that was enough to clinch the East. Since then we've put the young guys in for much-needed experience so it would be no surprise to close out with six losses, but who cares? It'll keep salaries down too! Pitching has been tremendous all season, the strength of our team. Offence was terrible up until the ASG but a few key signings - Fisher, Quiroz and Sherman - really turned things around, and Fletcher broke out of his .170 first half slump by hitting around .350 in the second. Next season is going to feature many changes. The four guys mentioned above may all go, depending on salaries and ages, and Berger, Parisi and Lawson may also move on among the hitters - I have seven guys who will be 26 or younger that all need experience, and that process is starting now. It may be these guys play from here on through spring training and into next season, and so I then only keep the old guys around for cover should the youngsters really struggle and it looks like I may demote back down. The pitching side is pretty strong with eight guys who'll be 28 or younger next season, and the old guys were all good so again it'll be ageing and salary which will determine their futures. Will probably be looking for another guy to play SS but Alarcon handled it very well this season and him and some combination of Fisher/Kokawa/Gaytan at 2B will likely handle my MI next year. Have a good manager and a strong minors system so hoping to build on this season's success. |
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| #45269 | 02/15/2017 6:43:08 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Never fails. Post all the positive stuff above, then go out and lose both of the first two playoff games. Went 4-1 at home against Joliet this season so hoping for better tonight, but after going 3-2 against them on the road really wasn't expecting to go down by scores of 1-5 and 2-3. Gave my old guys a week off after clinching, seems they forgot where they left their bats. | ||
| #45353 | 02/16/2017 3:35:06 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| And that was a disappointing end. Good luck one and all, hope not to see you for a long time (but not betting on it, LOL)! |
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| #47101 | 03/21/2017 7:18:50 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Wow, Lincoln Park is on a tear. 10 W's in as many games. At this early juncture they look like the team to beat. | ||
| #47829 | 04/09/2017 10:09:12 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Good battle between Bowie and Lincoln Park in the east, will be watching this one closely! | ||
| #47836 | 04/10/2017 11:16:47 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Same here - mainly because its looking very much like I'll be coming back! | ||
| #48250 | 04/22/2017 9:23:45 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yeah, it's really tight over in the East. The West is pretty much settled at this point. As for the East, well, it is going to be fun for sure. Our next to last series is against Lincoln Park, that could be the decider potentially, but we've still got quite a few games to go. Edit: Looks like you have a pretty good shot at winning your division, JJ. Good luck to you! Updated Saturday, April 22 2017 @ 9:24:52 am PDT |
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| #48300 | 04/23/2017 2:48:05 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Cheers BW, El Monte is still the favourite but I like that I'm in with a shot. Your division looks like one of those where its clear that both teams should promote, but someones going to miss out - good luck buddy! | ||
| #48427 | 04/27/2017 3:13:21 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, looks like I'm out of it. Mathematically I can still win, but it would take a lot of things falling correctly to happen. I'm not throwing the rookies in yet, though. | ||
| #48479 | 04/28/2017 4:18:02 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Congrats to Lincoln Park, they really deserved the win. I know my team really isn't ready for LL IV anyway after the thrashing we took last year, and we aren't too much different this year. We've still got a bit of building to do. | ||
| #48491 | 04/28/2017 10:57:58 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Looks like a pretty solid team to me, you and Lombard are really going to duke it out next season | ||
| #48692 | 05/03/2017 3:20:25 pm | ||
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crackit Joined: 05/15/2013 Posts: 315 Anchorage Lawless IV.4 
| Congrats to Lincoln Park on their resounding playoff victory. We had a couple of key players with injuries but mostly didn't show up so I don't think it would have made much difference if they had been available. Good luck to you all for next season. |
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| #48720 | 05/04/2017 12:07:23 am | ||
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jackozar Joined: 10/21/2015 Posts: 29 Inactive
| Thanks everybody. I apologize for not writing at all, I got kind of if I speak I start loosing feeling... It was unexpected, I had lots of youngsters playing all year long and Bowie is such a good team, but in the end my pitchers kept missing bats in a way or another. The playoffs were strange, certainly there is not a 4-0 gap and if anything I thought they were the best team but whatever, I'll take it! Congrats to all, I'll be following and anticipate a close Bowie-Lombard run next season but who knows... I'm afraid I'm not ready for the IV, we'll see what happens in the offseason. |
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| #49098 | 05/11/2017 8:00:44 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Back down here again... Nice to reunite with old enemies Bowie, Binghamton and Des Moines! Here's to a good season. |
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| #49149 | 05/13/2017 3:23:39 pm | ||
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mjhack Joined: 10/17/2015 Posts: 97 Binghamton Bobcats VI.15
| Welcome back? Looks like a reunion | ||
| #49150 | 05/13/2017 4:07:15 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, looks like the gang is all here. This should be quite a competitive season. My team always seems to be in the running in this league, but we aren't quite good enough for IV yet. | ||
| #49182 | 05/14/2017 12:59:49 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Last season was always going to be a rebuilding season for us, and it was better to do it in LLIV than down here - our hitting wasn't good enough for LLVI last season, never mind LLV. We'll be better for it long-term, but I'm not convinced its going to be enough to contend this season. Our pitching was fantastic down here two seasons ago, but spent the first half of last season serving up batting practice. By the time they turned it around we'd cut all our older hitters and the youngsters couldn't back them up. Definitely a learning experience. | ||
| #49194 | 05/15/2017 1:16:52 pm | ||
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mjhack Joined: 10/17/2015 Posts: 97 Binghamton Bobcats VI.15
| Binghamton is in transition with a younger starting rotation and we will also be working in some younger bats this season. The vets will be on a short lease as the young guys are just about ready. We make take our lumps, but no pain, no gain. Good luck to all. | ||
| #49529 | 05/24/2017 6:42:37 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Not the best of starts, scoring 8 of our 9 runs in our one win. Revere look to be no great shakes but their pitching which looks underwhelming on paper has some form - or perhaps its a combination of that and our developing bats. Jorgensen was our second-best hitter last season and only struck out once in the opening series - unfortunately he had one more strikeout than he did hits, going 0-13. Need him to get on track quickly, but we did land a potential big boost to our lineup in Donahue last night. Will have to see if his college production translates. | ||
| #49553 | 05/24/2017 7:37:06 pm | ||
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mjhack Joined: 10/17/2015 Posts: 97 Binghamton Bobcats VI.15
| Didn't Donahue play college ball with George Bush? Either way , he crushed us in the last game. Kind of embarrassing when he had to take a break at second base during his home run trot. | ||
| #49565 | 05/25/2017 6:13:49 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| George Bush Senior or Junior? I'm just glad you didn't say George Washington! Donahue has been as advertised in this very small sample, which is great given our all-or-nothing (and usually nothing) offence. Two hits in game three? Yeesh. Can't afford to have too many games where one mistake by a pitcher costs us the game, purely because we can't score runs. Was happy with the split at this early stage, hopefully things improve as the young guys improve. |
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| #49750 | 06/01/2017 1:58:50 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| The young guys can't improve quickly enough. Weird seeing us and Bowie so far down the table, but we're there on merit it would seem. 1-8 in one run games (including four in extras) tells the story of our season thus far, fifth place with a 10-14 record despite sporting a team ERA of 2.32, which is ridiculous - even worse when you consider that 19 of our 24 games have had QS. All our bats are dead cold, even Ortiz who is our one star and who rarely slumps. The pen has blown a bunch of games recently - throwing scoreless innings when the team has a safe lead isn't the point, they really need to earn their money in the close ones, which they haven't. Just have to ride it out. |
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| #49875 | 06/04/2017 4:48:56 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Don't worry, it'll get better eventually. I had one season that started out bad, and then I came close to winning the division in the end. Just need to ride out the storm. |
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| #50119 | 06/12/2017 8:04:55 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| It hasn't gotten better yet - where do I get my money back? Just wasn't our series last night, hoping the 'big turnaround' kicks off with inter-divisional play. |
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| #50135 | 06/13/2017 3:13:34 am | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| If I recall correctly, isn't that generally where the Lancer's do best? or do you just save that for when playing the Polar Bears Not surprised to see Bowie and Binghampton at the top but expected NY to be right there with them! The west is crazy close. |
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| #50144 | 06/13/2017 1:01:10 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yeah, I'm surprised at how low NY is right now. I really thought you'd bounce back like I did. As I expected, we got the pep back in our step and have rebounded to the top. We'll see what interdivisional games bring, on paper St. Clair looks like it should be a juggernaut, but the stats seem to say otherwise and don't really worry me. Makes me wonder if interdivisional may be easier than I think. | ||
| #50204 | 06/15/2017 5:56:36 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| You guys are surprised? Welcome to my world. I thought after going 3-2 against Everett we were turning things around, especially after we won the first game against Beverly Hills last night. But we lost the next four, with the bullpen blowing up in spectacular fashion (after having been rock-solid thus far) with three straight leads blown in the last 2-3 innings to end the series. Not that I was completely surprised - we always struggle against the Hornets, usually for no good reason. I think my players see the bright lights of Hollywood and break curfew to party the night(s) away, because I can't put their performances there down to anything else! Inter-division has been fine for us in the past, just the one losing season and that was one game under at 29-31 a few seasons back. But Beverly Hills and Olympia are always bogey teams for us - must have been all those Missoula games keeping our record up (but I doubt it)! Pitching has cooled a little, ERA up to 3.51 from 2.31 just a week or two back. And although the hitting has improved it has been marginal and is still our biggest issue by some distance: .243 AVG from what, .221? Still very poor. Losing Ortiz for the last 3 games last night might have really cost us, and he's out for two more, but he still hasn't gotten untracked - hitting about 50 points below his usual LLV average, and his doubles are down too. Jorgensen is hitting 10 points below what he did last season, in LLIV. We're last in the league in OBP. The guys who take walks aren't taking walks, and the guys who don't...still don't. Burkhart has been our one saving grace, but we're still waiting for big-money signing Tan to show up: he's hitting 100 points below his LLVI average this season. And I doubt the 15' wall in left field is the reason, given the 35' walls in his previous home stadium (something of the dimensions of either Petco, or Yellowstone). We have too many lefties who can't hit LHP (to be fair most in this game can't) and too many righties who can't hit RHP. Plus some who can't hit either! Hard to blame young guys with 13 Hitting for not hitting when the 'studs' with 17-19 hitting can't do it either. But hey, sure we'll turn it around in the next 100 games...*cough* |
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| #50574 | 06/29/2017 6:25:17 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Interesting, I am the only team above .500 in the East at the moment, everyone else is .500 or below. I guess that means the West is getting the better of us in interdivisional play. | ||
| #50864 | 07/08/2017 2:06:46 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, well, well. Look who is back in second place after sweeping my guys. Should be a fun run to the end of the season. | ||
| #50910 | 07/09/2017 11:48:13 pm | ||
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JJNZ Joined: 12/09/2014 Posts: 1580 Yakima Monster III.3
| Good to see, although Bowie's built up a fairly good little buffer there. Will watch with interest from the sidelines! | ||
| #50913 | 07/10/2017 5:46:07 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Heh, that Bowie sweep was a pleasant surprise! Was away in Amsterdam last week so could only do basic stuff on my phone, and even then was lucky if I could make any changes after the first game each night. Had to wait until the following morning to check the remaining scores. But that was very much out of the blue - we're just 10-10 for our last twenty games, if you exclude the Bowie series. We have improved in the second half of division games with a 14-10 record, but after that appalling start at 21-29 we're still under .500 at 35-39. Not sure why we can't win more in our division, when us and Bowie were the only two East teams with a plus record against the West (NY 34-26, BOW 36-24, all the rest were below). Ortiz eventually broke out of his half-season slump, all numbers back to previous levels, and Jorgensen and Tan have come around too. Our team AVG is up to .266, or 45 points higher than it was in early season. Those big walls I put up in my home park in the offseason (particularly in LF) might actually have hurt me, as most of my hitters have better road AVGs and the better home hitters are the switch-hitters and lefties. The bad luck in 1-run games evened out, and we've climbed from dead last to 3rd overall in OBP. But we have too many bad starts, its like a theme, too many guys over the seasons who haven't gotten untracked until the halfway point, and its not like you can do anything to change that apart from chopping and changing, or riding things out. Had no thought whatsoever of contending after our start, just wanted to turn things around and get back up the table to safety. And yet that Bowie sweep suddenly had us only 8 games back! But with just 26 games left I very much doubt we have a shot, and in fact I'm already considering putting the youngsters in and looking to the future. Will see how tonight goes against the Hawks. All tight in the West, Everett the favourites at this stage but only 8 games separate the top five! |
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| #50921 | 07/10/2017 4:39:25 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Never fails, post anything and you tempt fate - Ortiz is now out for 10 days. And I also jinxed Everett who have now lost four straight and dropped out of the lead in the West. Same old... | ||
| #50953 | 07/11/2017 4:16:29 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Hey, look, the magic number has appeared. 12 games and counting. | ||
| #50956 | 07/11/2017 5:45:33 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Make that 11. You're good now BW, no catching. We've been very average in the division all season, and it was only our inter-division success which took us out of danger - which is funny, because the West dominated the East outside of our two teams, as I said before. I'm going to have to review at season's end where it all went wrong (or right, might have been worse). Will start throwing out my underwhelming young arms for more development (ie. getting shelled). They've all grown nicely this season but the results have been worse than I'd expected. Couple of the young hitters really need to step up next season, been some poor showings there too. Still, can't wait for the flip, new season = new hopes! |
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| #50997 | 07/13/2017 4:27:00 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Down to the last cycle, five series left. Bowie's magic number is down to 9, with New York 8 games back. Still trying not to contend but took 2 of 3 from the Blue Crabs last night even with some of the kids in for game three, so we've evened up our season series at 8-8: 3-7 in the first half, 5-1 since. I'll be shocked if the last series of the season doesn't end 2-2, its always around .500 between us. No idea how we can play evens with the best team in the division (league?) and yet just 33-35 against everyone else. Crazy. | ||
| #51119 | 07/16/2017 1:37:43 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Looks like it's time to put in the rookies as we have clinched the division win. Good run Almaric, you'll be in the running next season for sure! | ||
| #51158 | 07/17/2017 8:02:37 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Yeah, I've had my rooks in for a while now, just glad to have clinched a winning season in the end. That 21-29 start will probably give me nightmares for some time to come, but we eventually turned it around (60-46 since, which over a whole season equates to 91 wins, which would have been nice!). Not winning enough on the road in our division appears to have been our main issue, will be looking into just why before the season flip. Oh, and congrats BW. Good luck in the playoffs! |
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| #51224 | 07/18/2017 1:44:14 pm | ||
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mjhack Joined: 10/17/2015 Posts: 97 Binghamton Bobcats VI.15
| Congrats BW, not enough horses to stay with you, yet again. Good luck in playoffs and next season. | ||
| #51285 | 07/20/2017 5:38:54 pm | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Well, I was busy early this week and never put my starters back in the lineup. Oops. At least we won one of the games. On to LL IV. | ||
| #51316 | 07/21/2017 3:21:36 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Good luck up there, BW! See you next season? One way or another... |
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| #51346 | 07/22/2017 8:55:11 am | ||
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Yeah, not expecting to be staying up there. I still don't think we are ready for LL IV. | ||
| #51446 | 07/23/2017 10:58:53 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Landed myself a 16 POT in the first round this season, stoked. Developing something of a logjam in the MI positions, but that's a very nice problem to have. | ||
| #52736 | 08/31/2017 7:53:34 am | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Gotten awfully quiet in here. Had a really good start, 31-19 through the first 50 games after our terrible 21-29 start last year doomed our season before it had got going. Team is coming along now, minors better than it has ever looked, everything in place to make a run - if we can survive the injuries. Still a long way to go and can't rule anyone out bar San Rafael and Orion, who look like falling too far behind already. |
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| #53621 | 10/01/2017 4:33:31 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Didn't want to post while things were going well (fate tempting), but having clinched tonight I'm mighty relieved and very pleased. San Rafael and Orion have indeed bottomed-out, but there's still a lot to be decided in V7. In the East Binghamton have a three game lead over Madison to avoid relegation, but the Mavericks have one game left tonight and then they play each other tomorrow to decide who stays up and who goes down. Over in the West, Cedar Hill have a half game lead on Mesquite, who have the better RD. Two games back lie Beverly Hills and National City, although the fourth place Rebels have a half game in hand tonight home to last-place San Rafael, so could close the gap. To heighten the drama the last series of the season features Cedar Hill playing Beverly Hills, and Mesquite playing National City - so anything is possible tomorrow night! |
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| #53787 | 10/05/2017 3:29:50 pm | ||
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amalric7 Joined: 01/20/2016 Posts: 2238 New York Lancers V.4
| Lancers win 4-2! We were second best to Rocklin back in 2026 (2-4), they were the better team, but we were twenty games better than Joliet in 2030 and somehow went down 1-4. So I felt we were due but for all that you still have to play the games. Feared the worst losing games two and three and being shut out for 22 consecutive innings, before scoring four over the ninth and tenth to win game four, then getting a two out, two run homer in the ninth to tie game five, and then score six in the eleventh to win. Had the lead early in game six, lost it, then got a three-run homer from my rookie catcher to take the lead and the bullpen shut it down to claim the title. Third attempt now at IV.4, hoping to stick this time around. Updated Thursday, October 5 2017 @ 3:31:05 pm PDT |
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| #53903 | 10/07/2017 2:46:38 pm | ||
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mjhack Joined: 10/17/2015 Posts: 97 Binghamton Bobcats VI.15
| Good luck and congrats! | ||
| #54588 | 10/19/2017 5:40:58 pm | Mar 14th, 2034 | |
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Benchwarmer Joined: 01/06/2015 Posts: 445 Inactive
| Ah, back in good old V.7. I think we will be bouncing between this and LL IV for a little while, don't quite have the caliber of players to stay up. | ||
| #54909 | 10/22/2017 8:10:15 pm | Mar 20th, 2034 | |
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HoboMan6525 Joined: 08/17/2016 Posts: 43 Inactive
| The Bombers are in the same cup group as Gastonia and after both of our records last season looking forward to some close games with them (plus theyre our first cup opponent). Maybe a foreshadowing of inter-league later on in the season. Since we were all like 3 games apart in the west last season i expect that our regular season should be close and exciting again. See you Camarillo after the cup games. | ||
| #55804 | 11/12/2017 6:58:31 am | Jun 4th, 2034 | |
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carlossweb Joined: 04/13/2017 Posts: 11 Inactive
| Greetings from the new owner of the Ventura Aces. We're currently working on rebuilding the team and trying to save the category. |
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| #55946 | 11/16/2017 7:47:40 am | Jun 20th, 2034 | |
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HoboMan6525 Joined: 08/17/2016 Posts: 43 Inactive
| welcome carlos and good luck with that, Ventura's had a rough run of things this season but not too late to turn it around. Weve got a lot of action going on in the west right now i haven't really been following the east like i should be In the west Inglewood has been obviously dominant with their pitching staff being pretty strong all round and Their batting being decent but not out-standing. They've for sure got the best Pitching staff in the West. National City has had a much weaker pitching staff then Inglewood, there bats have been strong all year leading to some high scoring victorys. Probably the best all round bats in the west Cedar Hill has been barely holding on to 3rd place and battling for the spot with Beverly Hills all season, Our pitching has been decent at best and our bats can really only seem to hit Home Runs (which were leading the league in) Our best aspect has been our fielding, with our catcher and middle infielders really showing their skills. Which leads me to believe we've got the best defense in the west Beverly Hills has been bouncing back and forth with Cedar Hill for the 3rd and 4th spot, Beverly Hills won the last series with Cedar Hill 3 games to 1. Thats a series I've come to call the battle of the hills. The Hornets bats have been a little better than the Bombers but our pitchers have been slightly better. were pretty even all round. Camarillo has had a rough go of things, they hired a new manager at the first of the month and their pitching being poor, their bats have been their strongest piece of the team and are performing pretty well at the plate Ventura has been controlled by a bot all season so hoping that carlos can turn thing around for his team and bring it back. good luck with that Thats what ive been seeing recently in the west, good luck guys! |
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| #56133 | 11/22/2017 4:25:21 pm | Jul 16th, 2034 | |
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HoboMan6525 Joined: 08/17/2016 Posts: 43 Inactive
| Inglewood definitely showed how strong their pitching has been all season with tonight all-star game. Although it wasnt enough to bring the west to a victory every single pitcher on the west was from Inglewood The star of the show for the east i would say was Rochester's Jose Macia. Hes been great this season for Rochester with 20 saves and 10 holds in 35 games. He showed his talent tonight as well holding the west scoreless for 3 innings to win the game. In the end i think this was just a battle of bats with both pitching staffs being very strong. The Inglewood pitching powerhouse vs a mixed group of East pitchers were very even. In the end East just out hit us. In the end it was a solid 6-4 victory for the east. Congratulations East! |
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| #56210 | 11/25/2017 6:12:17 pm | Jul 27th, 2034 | |
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HoboMan6525 Joined: 08/17/2016 Posts: 43 Inactive
| Wow! Great job bringing ventura back from last carlos. I dont know what youve been doing over there but keep it up. Cant wait for inter-league to end so we can all get a chance to play the new ventura. | ||
| #59959 | 07/19/2018 1:42:58 am | Nov 1st, 2036 | |
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HoboMan6525 Joined: 08/17/2016 Posts: 43 Inactive
| Not even gonna lie braddles youve got me scared right now. Its been alternating wins and losses since the playoffs started so if this continues ill win game 1 tomorrow and youll finish it in game 7. I kinda suspected wed go to game 7 after my record against you in inter-division play was 4-4. The games weve won against you have been tight battles but your wins have been much more dominant. I had to make some pitching adjustments as my closer was throwing away games. Anyways im hoping to take this all the way to game 7 and give you a run for your money. Good luck! | ||
| #60094 | 07/22/2018 1:11:18 pm | Jan 15th, 2037 | |
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Jaybrams Joined: 04/05/2018 Posts: 97 Inactive
| Well, back in div V after a tough season in div IV. Last round i was in V.8 so looking forward to matching up against unfamiliar players. Depending on how Waiver / Free Agency go, this will likely be a tough rebuilding mode year. As of right now, 3 young Starting Pitchers that show moments of promise, but have been very inconsistent. |
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| #88132 | 05/24/2022 2:56:34 am | Mar 25th, 2055 | |
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AssumedPseudonym Joined: 10/26/2016 Posts: 1130 Deerfield Beach Rats V.7 
| So I’m a bit out of practice on the whole preseason analysis thing, but I do still have the spreadsheet for it. I decided it was long overdue in dusting it off. Bear in mind, this is strictly by-the-numbers and quick-n’-dirty analysis. It doesn’t look at pitcher usage, who’s played at what position, or take previous season stats into account. For entertainment purposes only, and all that. Also, before I start in: » Description of a team as good or bad at a particular thing is in comparison to the league average of that particular aspect. ———————————————————— V . 7 W E S T Cedar Hill Bombers The West’s Bombers aren’t the best hitting team , but bat control, discipline, and power all rank highly. Their speed is more or less average, but the league average is also a bit on the high side. Their defense is superb, with V.7’s best range and excellent fielding. Their pitchers have the league’s best movement, but the West’s worst control. Prediction: 1st — Unpredictable pitching will be carried by offense and defense. College Station Athletics The Athletics are the worst contact team in V.7, and are below average nearly everywhere else offesively as well. The exception is speed, which could prove troublesome when they do get on base. Fielding and range are roughly average for the West, but their arms top the league — run at your own peril. While their pitching is below average nearly across the board, they’re tied at the top for the best heat on the mound. Prediction: 5th — The average-ish pitching and defense would hold if not for anemic offense. Tuscon Stallions The Stallions are well below average on contact, but make up for it in patience and power — they’ll wait for their pitch and make sure it doesn’t land anytime soon if they connect. Their speed is a bit off the league average, but again, fairly speedy league. Their gloves are notably subpar, but range and arm are both marginally above average. They have the lowest velocity in the division, but their junkball selection and command are all comfortably north of the league average. Prediction: 3rd — The offense won’t be reliable, but everything else will keep them respectable. National City Rebels The Rebels are the West’s best contact team, and they’ll need it with the division’s worst discipline. Their speed is marginally above average, which is enough that just putting the ball in play could add up over time, especially since the bats do have a fair bit of power in them. Their fielding is the best in V.7, but their range is the worst in the West and their arms aren’t much better off. Velocity and and stamina are both near or at the top of the division, but nothing else approaches league average. Prediction: 4th — The offense will need to pick up a lot of slack for the pitching and sluggish defense. Beavercreek Beavers The Beavers focus on contact and discipline at the expense of bat control and power, being amng the best or the worst in the league, respectively. They’re easily the fastest team in the league, however; expect aggressive running and an on-over-in approach. The fielding is just a tick below averate and the arms are a bit weak, but their range is exceptional. Velocity and movement are a bit low, but command and exceptional change of speed should make up for that. Prediction: 2nd — A little more anything and this team is ready to go places. Huntington Beach Demons The West’s Demons are a great contact team, but that’s the extent of their offensive capabilities. Apart from that, only their bat control is above average (and that only barely), and their speed is the worst in V.7. Adding to those woes is a defense that’s slightly-to-very below the league average across the board, including the West’s worst gloves. While the pitching is something of a bright spot with good change of speed and excellent movement, their West-worst stamina won’t play well with the porous defense. Prediction: 6th — This team needs everything, but defense first and foremost. ———————————————————— V . 7 E A S T Portage Trojans The Trojans are a bit light on contact and bat control, but their power is above average and discipline leads the league. Their speed is well below average, however. Fielding and range are both above average, and their arms are superb. Their offspeed stuff might be below par, but their velocity is solid and their control is tied for the league best, to say nothing of division-leading stamina. Prediction: 1st — Precision strikeouts and solid defense will overcome any offensive shortcomings. Deerfield Beach Rats The Rats are far and away the best contact team, and equally far and away the worst power team. Add a willingness to swing at anything and this is a team that will barrage their opponents with endless singles, with East-worst speed pointing toward station-to-station baserunning. Their gloves are nearly the worst in the league, but their range is close to the top in the division. Pitching is where this team shines, being notably above average everywhere but stamina and tied for V.7’s best velocity. Prediction: 4th — Even if the pitching can survive the defense, this team needs more than just contact. Akron Aardvarks The Aardvarks are well above average in hitting while being less below average in other categories than the Rats, with the added benefit of not being as sluggish on the base paths. They lack the bat control for a proper small ball approach, but expect a good running game from them. Their range is the best in the East, but their suspect gloves could lead to misadventures when they get to the ball. Their movement is the best in the East and command tied as such, plus excellent change of speed, but velocity is lackluster and stamina is league-worst. Prediction: 2nd — A bit more offense or defense and they’re challenging for the Pennant. North Port Bombers The East’s Bombers are distinctly below average in every offensive category save discipline. Their speed is the worst in the division. Their fielding and range are also the East’s worst, and arms only barely out of the basement. Their pitchers feature V.7’s slowest fastballs and have poor movement and control, but also have the league’s best change of speed and exceptional stamina, the latter of which is likely to be taxed to its limits by season’s end. Prediction: 6th — This the worst overall offensive and defensive team in V.7 by no small margin. Fort Wayne Bears The Bears follow a familiar pattern for the East on offense: Lots of contact, not much else. They do at least have fairly average speed, which, in a speedy league, should provide more bases than just parades of singles. Their arms are the division’s best and fielding nearly so, but the range is well below average. Their pitchers feature slightly above average heat, but that’s the best they have going for them; in particular, their change of speed is the worst in V.7. Prediction: 5th — Contact and defense will keep the team out of the basement, but not out of VI next season. Manchester Demons The East’s Demons are the polar opposite of many divisional rivals, offensively: The division’s worst contact, but best bat control and power, plus well above average discipline. Add to that the division’s best speed and you have the makings of a team that will give you fits if they can make contact (though that is a very big “if”, admittedly). Their fielding is fairly average and range well above, but their league-worst arms will invite a fast-running league to punish them on the base paths. Their command is the East’s worst, but the rest of the pitching tools are distinctly above average. Prediction: 3rd — With more contact, this team could be an unstoppable juggernaut. ———————————————————— Playoff prediction: Cedar Hill in six — The Trojans will have more baserunners, but the Bombers will drive more of theirs in. |
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