The Great American Pastime

Current Historical Team Records

2009-12-04T18:19:00.000-08:00

Team	Wins	Loses	Win %
OAK	1390	775	0.642
CLE	1240	925	0.573
BOS	1162	1003	0.537
TEX	1152	1013	0.532
TB	1150	1015	0.531
KC	1097	1068	0.507
BAL	1062	1103	0.491
DET	1060	1105	0.490
ANA	1054	1111	0.487
MIN	1051	1114	0.485
TOR	1021	1144	0.472
SEA	1011	1154	0.467
CHW	991	1174	0.458
MEM	986	1179	0.455
NYY	956	1209	0.442
VAN	826	1339	0.382

AL South	4385	4275	0.506
AL East	4309	4351	0.498
AL West	4281	4379	0.494
AL North	4234	4426	0.489

Team	Wins	Loses	Win %
SF	1263	902	0.583
STL	1251	914	0.578
NYM	1210	955	0.559
PIT	1184	981	0.547
SD	1184	981	0.547
HOU	1177	988	0.544
CIN	1108	1057	0.512
ATL	1082	1083	0.500
CHC	1058	1107	0.489
ARI	1051	1114	0.485
CHA	1039	1126	0.480
MIL	1016	1149	0.469
FLA	994	1171	0.459
LAD	920	1245	0.425
PHI	906	1259	0.418
WAS	821	1344	0.379

NL South	4461	4199	0.515
NL West	4418	4242	0.510
NL North	4366	4294	0.504
NL East	4019	4641	0.464

Revisit - Hatt best prospects (2B)

2009-10-30T20:45:00.001-07:00

Hatt - Second Base might be the most crowded position in the GAP, with a collection of prospects that would make Billy Beane drool. On Base Percentages are well over .400 and the collective OPS is known to sky past 1.000. Watch out in a couple years, as these guys fight for All-Star and Silver Slugger positioning, and look to power some very promising organizations.

I have to agree with hatt, this was the deepest of the bunch. Tough to really say who the best player is. May has the most power and Taylor is best at getting on base.

AAA – Norm May (23) Arizona Diamondbacks

Highly regarded as one of the better prospects in all of the Great American Pastime going into Season 1, May has not disappointed. Working his way up the ladder in Arizona, May has a career OPS of 1.065 and has 332 RBI in only 282 career games. His most impressive stat, though? 187 walks and a career OBP of .419, making him one of the most versatile players in the GAP, as he could sit nearly anywhere in the D-backs lineup when he finally gets the call.

Hitting: 1559G, 933R, 1672H, 351HR, 976RBI, 2-7 SB/CS, .281/.344/.513 Ave/OBP/Slg

Fielding: 2B - 1192G, 10263 innings, 13/28 +/-, .981 field%, 5.94 range

AA – Jim Jacome (21) Chicago White Sox

The “Bad Guys” first round pick in Season 2 has paid instant dividends, smacking the ball wherever he plays. Chicago is having a hard time deciding on a level for him, simply because wherever he lands, he just seems a little too talented to be there. This shouldn’t last too long as Jacome could very well see the big leagues by Season 4, especially if he keeps up his .338 minor league average.

Hitting: 1341G, 781R, 1506H, 106HR, 580RBI, 98-97 SB/CS, .283/.352/.400 Ave/OBP/Slg

Fielding: 2B - 623G, 5545 innings, 8/4 +/-, .989 field%, 5.73 range

HiA – John Mahoney (20) Charlotte Dukes

The up and coming Dukes are probably the major’s biggest surprise this year, and their farm system isn’t too shabby either, especially with prospects like John Mahoney. This future all-star is one of the better line drive hitters in the minors, holding an impressive career average of .368 with 199 runs scored in 206 career games played. He’s still pretty raw, but given a couple years, Mahoney could become a solid leadoff man for a stacked Charlotte squad.

Hitting: 156G, 66R, 135H, 10HR, 45RBI, 0-0 SB/CS, .265/.314/.377Ave/OBP/Slg

LowA – Pat Taylor (20) Cleveland Indians

They may be in the cellar of the AL East, but the people of Clevelandhave a lot to look forward to with a stacked system and a devoted GM.The most exciting prospect has to be Pat Taylor, who is lined up to be one of the best utility men once he hits the majors. Taylor has power to all corners of the field, and a batting eye unmatched by anyone in the league. This former Season 2 first round pick has torn up Rookie and Low A ball in an equivalent of one full minor league season, hitting .331/.441/.578/1.019 and scoring 129 runs in 117 games.

Hitting: 1271G, 881R, 1345H, 142HR, 582RBI, 171-104 SB/CS, .296/.396/.463 Ave/OBP/Slg

Fielding: 2B - 1198G, 9662 innings, 21/15 +/-, .983 field%, 5.89 range

Revisit - Hatt best prospects (1B)

2009-10-24T08:19:00.001-07:00

Amazing, that for such an easy position to find good hitters, that Hatt only hit on one good prospect. All the others were either decent (Norman) or just not good enough to stick at the ML level (Morales and Atkins). Bonilla is a HOFer though.

AAA – Al Bonilla (22) San Diego Padres

$12.3 million seemed outrageous for the first true international GAP prospect, but spending has increased over the first couple seasons, and it looks like right about where he would have landed for today. Bonilla was immediately thrown into the fire at AAA, and has flourished since day one. Al has been a terror at the plate, holding a career OPS of 1.127 and smacking 88 homers in only 221 career games. Season 3 looks to really be his breakout year, as he has already compiled a .385 avg with 18 HR and 48 RBI thus far.

Hitting: 1532G, 1007R, 1631H, 441HR, 1170RBI, 1-32 SB/CS, .285/.378/.575 Ave/OBP/Slg

AA – Joey Norman (22) Chicago Cubs

Norman, a Season 1 first rounder out of Central City, IA, was one of Vancouver’s prized prospects for the first couple seasons, but ended up in Chicago during the Season 2 playoffs in a blockbuster deal. Norman has enjoyed a meteoric rise through the minors, and should be hitting the majors by next season. He holds a career OPS of 1.065 and is hitting .348 so far between High A and AA in Season 3.

Hitting: 954G, 573R, 1044H, 152HR, 615RBI, 70-55 SB/CS, .285/.348/.487

HiA – Don Atkins (20) San Diego Padres

A steal as a 6^th round pick in the Season 2 draft, Atkins has made the most of his time in the Padres system, blasting 37 HR and 145 RBI in only 109 career games. Atkins is still 2 or 3 years off from seeing the big club, but he should be an impressive cleanup hitter when his time comes.

Hitting: Played 30 games and hit .189. Thats all you need to know

LowA – Damaso Morales (20) St. Louis Cardinals

Admittedly, Cubs management didn’t quite know what they were giving up when they traded Morales during the 2^nd GAP playoffs. An early international prospect who was paid only a $2.1 million bonus, Morales has been nothing short of spectacular when given the opportunity. Through the same amount of games as Atkins, Morales holds a career average of .365 with 38 HR and 146 RBI. Even more impressive is his career OBP of .459 and OPS of 1.211. Oh yeah, he’s only 20 years old...

Played in 4 games in the big leagues.

Revisit - Hatt best prospects (C)

2009-10-24T07:30:00.000-07:00

I decided to take a look back at the Hatt prospect review section. Mostly just a comparison of stats.

Not much separation of the catching bunch so far other than number of games played. Juarez is the best hitter of the best and Baez has probably been the most reliable from a defensive and number of games he can play every year - though he is no Joe Mauer. Would love some comments.

AAA - Torey Camacho (24) Arizona Diamondbacks

(Hatt)One more year should be all it takes before “Macho” Camacho finally hits the big show. He has decent power for a gap hitter, but his real strength lies in his pitch calling. D-Back’s management has never seen a youngster call a game quite like Camacho, and that could be the edge Arizonaneeds in a crowded NL West.

Hitting: 797G, 279R, 635H, 83HR, 314RBI, 0-4 SB/CS, .274/.332/.434 Ave/OBP/Slg

Fielding: 710G, 5320 innings, 52PB, 369SB - 69CS, .998 field%, 4.48ERA

AA - Max Baez (20) Cleveland Indians

You won’t find a better pure Catcher in the entire GAP than Baez.Comparisons to Joe Mauer might not even do him justice, as Baez has earned his nickname of “The Natural” in just a few short years. He’s only 20 years old, but could see the majors as soon as next year.

Hitting: 1422G, 636R, 1493H, 129HR, 588RBI, 0-3 SB/CS, .288/.349/.399 Ave/OBP/Slg

Fielding: 1405G, 11860 innings, 73PB, 634SB - 285CS, .997 field%, 4.39ERA

HiA – Bobby Ray Dixon (21) Oakland Athletics

For a signal caller, Dixon is merely average, but as a power hitter, he is well above that. Bobby Ray has a knack for crushing RHP, and it all stems from his presence in the batter’s box. A’s scout Ralph O’Connor put it best, “He may not be too physically imposing, but Bobby Ray doesn’t back down to anyone.” His most famous moment came in Season 2, when he was plunked in the head in a game against Seattle and went on to hit 2 HR’s in his next two AB’s.

Hitting: 987G, 373R, 697H, 102HR, 397RBI, 1-4 SB/CS, .262/.346/.425 Ave/OBP/Slg

Fielding: 845G, 6011 innings, 57PB, 450SB - 113CS, .998 field%, 3.97ERA

LowA – Juan Juarez (19) Toronto Blue Jays

Although he’s only played one game, Juarez could very well be the best Catcher/DH prospect in the entire GAP (yes, even challenging “Mighty” Max Baez). At only 19, this Venezuelen natural is ready to take on the GAP with excellent power to all fields and a batting eye rivaling Barry Bonds. Don’t look for this kid to be at Low A for too long.

Hitting: 849G, 536R, 871H, 192HR, 557RBI, 0-3 SB/CS, .275/.380/.507 Ave/OBP/Slg

Fielding: 698G, 5952 innings, 50PB, 494SB - 120CS, .997 field%, 4.81ERA

Veterans' Committee Nominees

2008-10-24T10:50:00.001-07:00

Tony Hudler
http://www.whatifsports.com/hbd/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=437835
9 seasons (age 33-41) RHP
131-69 in 289 G (289 GS) 32 CG
3.79 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 1826.3 IP, .265 OAV, .709 OPS Against
Won 20 games twice (career best 21), never lost more than 10, had no losing seasons, career high 287.3 IP, career best ERA 3.35, career best WHIP 1.20, went 15-7 at age 40
4-2 in postseason with 3.19 ERA and 1.51 WHIP in 53.7 IP in 8 GS
4-time All-Star
Need to project 7 seasons (age 26-32)

Willie Santana
http://www.whatifsports.com/hbd/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=438336

Wolf Morris
http://www.whatifsports.com/hbd/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=437937

LaTroy Franco
http://www.whatifsports.com/hbd/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=437828
7 seasons (age 29-35) LF/1B
.282/.358/.562, 303 HR, 961 RBI, 834 R, 144 SB, played in all but 8 of a possible 1134 games
Two 62-HR seasons, career high of 179 RBI, two 30/30 seasons, career high of 202 hits
708 OPS in 34 career post-season games, 7 HR
2-time AL MVP, 3-time All-Star, 2-time Silver Slugger
Need to project 4 seasons (age 25-28)

We're moving to a new blog...

2008-09-17T12:45:00.000-07:00

GAP APPRENTICE

2008-07-11T14:10:00.000-07:00

Our WorldChat rule going forward is that this place is for the enjoyment of all 32 owners here, and nobody should act in a manner that makes someone else decide to block their messages. Name-calling, excessive posting, baiting and needless repetition are banned and grounds for removal after the season ends.

Season 8 ALDS Game 1

2008-07-09T09:33:00.000-07:00

Network Associates Coliseum

330 ft. 362 ft. 400 ft. 362 ft. 330 ft.
-1 -2 -2 -1 -1

TM. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 R H. E
CLE 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 2 0 7 15 0
OAK 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 2 1 8 12 0

ML Division Series Game
7/9/08 PM

PLAY-BY-PLAY

1 Cleveland Indians
V.Palacios enters the game to pitch.
P.Taylor swings and misses for strike 3.
G.Nelson draws the walk.
J.Ricarrdi grounds it past the mound into CF for a single. G.Nelson is gunned down at 3B by T.Pujols.
J.Ortiz flies out to deep LCF.
Cleveland Indians 0 1 0
Oakland Athletics 0 0 0

1 Oakland Athletics
G.Stewart enters the game to pitch.
T.Linebrink grounds out to SS.
A.Villa grounds out to 3B.
C.Hutton flies out to deep CF.
Cleveland Indians 0 1 0
Oakland Athletics 0 0 0

2 Cleveland Indians
M.Medrano strikes out swinging.
M.Baez grounds out to 1B.
K.Wagner swings and misses for strike 3.
Cleveland Indians 0 1 0
Oakland Athletics 0 0 0

2 Oakland Athletics
D.Handworth grounds out to 2B.
E.Roque lines a single to CF.
M.Moore strikes out swinging.
G.Stewart is charged with a balk and all runners advance.
T.Pujols flies out to deep RF.
Cleveland Indians 0 1 0
Oakland Athletics 0 1 0

3 Cleveland Indians
R.Carrara swings and misses for strike 3.
P.Iwazaki strikes out swinging.
P.Taylor is plunked in the arm by a pitch.
G.Nelson swings and misses for strike 3.
Cleveland Indians 0 1 0
Oakland Athletics 0 1 0

3 Oakland Athletics
S.Harper smokes a line drive single to CF.
B.Dixon grounds into a 5-4-3 double play.
T.Linebrink strikes out on a ball out of the zone.

Cleveland Indians 0 1 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

4 Cleveland Indians
J.Ricarrdi strikes out swinging.
J.Ortiz takes ball four.
M.Medrano swings and misses for strike 3.
M.Baez grounds it past the mound into CF for a single.
K.Wagner grounds out to 3B.
Cleveland Indians 0 2 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

4 Oakland Athletics
A.Villa fouls out to third.
C.Hutton flies out to CF.
D.Handworth swings and misses for strike 3.
Cleveland Indians 0 2 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

5 Cleveland Indians
R.Carrara grounds out to 1B.
P.Iwazaki grounds out to SS.
P.Taylor hits a shallow flyout to CF.
Cleveland Indians 0 2 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

5 Oakland Athletics
E.Roque swings and misses for strike 3.
M.Moore grounds out to 2B.
T.Pujols grounds out to SS.
Cleveland Indians 0 2 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

6 Cleveland Indians
G.Nelson smokes a line drive single to CF.
J.Ricarrdi grounds to the pitcher. They get the force at 2B, but the batter beats the throw to 1B to avoid the DP.
J.Ortiz hits a groundball single to CF.
M.Medrano grounds it past the mound into CF for a single.
M.Baez pops out to SS.
K.Wagner flies out to deep CF.
Cleveland Indians 0 5 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

6 Oakland Athletics
S.Harper swings and misses for strike 3.
B.Dixon grounds out to SS.
T.Linebrink swings and misses for strike 3.
Cleveland Indians 0 5 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

7 Cleveland Indians
R.Carrara lines out to 3B.
P.Iwazaki flies out to CF.
P.Taylor grounds out to 2B.
Cleveland Indians 0 5 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

7 Oakland Athletics
A.Villa grounds out to SS.
C.Hutton grounds out to SS.
D.Handworth grounds out to SS.
Cleveland Indians 0 5 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

8 Cleveland Indians
G.Nelson pops out to SS.
J.Ricarrdi smokes a line drive single to RF.
D.Cook enters the game as a pinch-runner for J.Ricarrdi.
J.Ortiz takes strike 3 looking.
M.Medrano pops out to 2B.
Cleveland Indians 0 6 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

8 Oakland Athletics
D.Cook remains in the game at DH.
E.Roque takes ball four.
M.Moore grounds to SS. They get the force at 2B, but the batter beats the throw to 1B to avoid the DP.
T.Pujols flies out to deep CF.
S.Harper strikes out on a ball out of the zone.
Cleveland Indians 0 6 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

9 Cleveland Indians
M.Baez grounds out to 1B.
L.Ramirez enters the game as a pinch-hitter for K.Wagner.
L.Ramirez smacks a solo homer to CF that barely clears the wall.
R.Carrara grounds out to 1B.
J.Mercado enters the game to pitch.
P.Iwazaki swings and misses for strike 3.
Cleveland Indians 1 7 0
Oakland Athletics 0 2 0

9 Oakland Athletics
C.Simpson enters the game at LF.
T.Campbell enters the game to pitch.
B.Dixon hits a flyball solo homer to RF.
T.Linebrink grounds out to SS.
A.Villa hits a line drive double to CF.
D.Wanatabe enters the game to pitch.
C.Hutton grounds out to 3B.
D.Handworth flies out to LF.
Cleveland Indians 1 7 0
Oakland Athletics 1 4 0

10 Cleveland Indians
P.Taylor grounds a single to CF.
G.Nelson hits a groundball single to LCF. P.Taylor slides in under the tag and is safe at 3B.
D.Cook hits a groundball single to CF. P.Taylor scores.
A.Thomson enters the game to pitch.
J.Ortiz hits a triple. G.Nelson scores. D.Cook scores.
M.Medrano flies out to CF. J.Ortiz scores on T.Pujols's late throw home.
M.Baez flies out to deep LCF.
C.Simpson grounds out to SS.
Cleveland Indians 5 11 0
Oakland Athletics 1 4 0

10 Oakland Athletics
G.Martin enters the game at CF as a defensive replacement.
E.Roque lines a single to CF.
M.Moore hits into a 4-6 fielder's choice.
T.Pujols smacks a 2-run homer to LCF that barely clears the wall.
D.Nakajima enters the game to pitch.
M.Mercedes enters the game as a pinch-hitter for S.Harper.
M.Mercedes takes ball four.
B.Dixon smacks a 2-run homer to LCF that barely clears the wall.
T.Clifton enters the game to pitch.
T.Linebrink strikes out on a ball out of the zone.
A.Villa grounds out to SS.
Cleveland Indians 5 11 0
Oakland Athletics 5 7 0

11 Cleveland Indians
D.Takada enters the game at RF.
R.Carrara grounds out to 2B.
G.Martin hits a groundball single to CF.
A.Martin enters the game to pitch.
P.Taylor draws the walk.
G.Nelson strikes out swinging.
D.Cook hits into a 4-6 fielder's choice.
Cleveland Indians 5 12 0
Oakland Athletics 5 7 0

11 Oakland Athletics
C.Hutton grounds out to 2B.
D.Handworth strikes out swinging.
E.Roque grounds out to 3B.
Cleveland Indians 5 12 0
Oakland Athletics 5 7 0

12 Cleveland Indians
J.Ortiz strikes out swinging.
M.Medrano grounds out to 2B.
M.Baez pops out to SS.
Cleveland Indians 5 12 0
Oakland Athletics 5 7 0

12 Oakland Athletics
M.Moore grounds out to 2B.
T.Pujols hits a flyball single to RCF.
D.Takada hits a shallow flyout to RCF.
B.Dixon hits into a 4-6 fielder's choice.
Cleveland Indians 5 12 0
Oakland Athletics 5 8 0

13 Cleveland Indians
C.Simpson grounds out to SS.
R.Carrara strikes out swinging.
G.Martin crushes a solo homer to RCF.
A.Wagner enters the game to pitch.
P.Taylor grounds it thru the hole to LF for a single.
P.Taylor steals second base.
G.Nelson is issued the free pass.
D.Cook lines a single to RCF. P.Taylor scores.
E.Michalak enters the game to pitch.
++ J.Ortiz flies out to LCF.
Cleveland Indians 7 15 0
Oakland Athletics 5 8 0

13 Oakland Athletics
T.Linebrink grounds out to SS.
A.Villa hits a shallow flyout to CF.
C.Hutton lines a single to CF.
D.Handworth smokes a line drive to RCF for a double. C.Hutton scores.
J.Sierra enters the game to pitch.
E.Roque hits a Texas League single to RCF. D.Handworth scores.
M.Moore grounds out to 1B.
Cleveland Indians 7 15 0
Oakland Athletics 7 11 0

14 Cleveland Indians
M.Medrano grounds out to 2B.
M.Baez grounds out to 1B.
C.Simpson takes ball four.
R.Carrara takes strike 3 looking.
Cleveland Indians 7 15 0
Oakland Athletics 7 11 0

14 Oakland Athletics
T.Pujols crushes a solo homer to RF.
Cleveland Indians 7 15 0
Oakland Athletics 8 12 0

BOXSCORE

Cleveland Indians

Player Pos % AB R H RBI BB SO LOB AVG
Pat Taylor 2B 100 5 2 2 0 1 1 0 .391
Grant Nelson 1B 100 5 1 2 0 2 2 3 .364
Joe Ricarrdi DH 100 4 0 2 0 0 1 1 .389
Dan Cook DH 100 3 1 2 2 0 0 2 .333
Joaquin Ortiz 3B 100 6 1 2 2 1 2 4 .364
Miguel Medrano SS 100 6 0 1 1 0 2 2 .300
Max Baez C 100 7 0 1 0 0 0 3 .318
Kevin Wagner LF 100 3 0 0 0 0 1 5 .333
Leonardo Ramirez PH 100 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 .400
Corey Simpson LF 100 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 .100
Raul Carrara RF 100 7 0 0 0 0 3 1 .130
Paul Iwazaki CF 100 4 0 0 0 0 2 0 .316
Goose Martin CF 100 2 1 2 1 0 0 0 .375
Game Totals -- 100 55 7 15 7 5 14 .273

Batting
3B: J.Ortiz (1)
HR: L.Ramirez (1), G.Martin (1)
RBI: D.Cook 2 (2), J.Ortiz 2 (4), M.Medrano (1), L.Ramirez (4), G.Martin (2)
2-Out RBI: D.Cook, G.Martin
HBP: P.Taylor
SF: M.Medrano

Baserunning
SB: P.Taylor (1)

Fielding

Player % IP H R ER BB SO HR PC ERA
Greg Stewart 100 8.0 2 0 0 1 7 0 97 0.64
Theodore Campbell, BSV (2) 100 0.1 2 1 1 0 0 1 11 6.75
Del Wanatabe 100 1.0 2 2 2 0 0 1 16 6.75
Del Nakajima, BSV (1) 100 0.0 1 2 2 1 0 1 10 12.27
Tim Clifton 100 3.1 3 2 2 0 2 0 38 4.91
Jesus Sierra, L (0-2), BSV (1) 100 0.1 2 1 1 0 0 1 14 4.91
Game Totals 100 13.0 12 8 8 2 9 4 186

Oakland Athletics

Player Pos % AB R H RBI BB SO LOB AVG
Todd Linebrink SS 100 6 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 .000
Alberto Villa 2B 100 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 .167
C.C. Hutton 1B 100 6 1 1 0 0 0 1 .167
David Handworth DH 100 6 1 1 1 0 2 1 .167
Enrique Roque LF 100 5 0 3 1 1 1 0 .600
Mark Moore 3B 100 6 1 0 0 0 1 4 .000
Trenidad Pujols CF 100 6 2 3 3 0 0 2 .500
Stan Harper RF 100 3 0 1 0 0 2 1 .333
Miller Mercedes PH 100 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 -
Damian Takada RF 100 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000
Bobby Ray Dixon C 100 5 2 2 3 0 0 1 .400
Game Totals -- 100 50 8 12 8 2 9 -- .240

Batting
2B: A.Villa (1), D.Handworth (1)
HR: T.Pujols 2 (2), B.Dixon 2 (2)
RBI: D.Handworth (1), E.Roque (1), T.Pujols 3 (3), B.Dixon 3 (3)
2-Out RBI: D.Handworth, E.Roque

Baserunning

Fielding

Player % IP H R ER BB SO HR PC ERA
Victor Palacios 100 8.2 7 1 1 2 9 1 106 1.04
Javier Mercado 100 0.1 3 3 3 0 1 0 18 81.00
Artie Thomson 100 1.1 2 1 1 0 0 0 20 6.75
Antonio Martin 100 2.1 1 1 1 1 3 1 27 3.86
Andruw Wagner 100 0.0 2 1 1 1 0 0 15 -
Eric Michalak, W (1-0) 100 1.1 0 0 0 1 1 0 12 0.00
Game Totals 100 14.0 15 7 7 5 14 2 198

PLAYER OF THE GAME
Trenidad Pujols hits walk-off home run

rowe-speak

2008-07-02T09:36:00.000-07:00

Let's deconstruct some of the most recent spewings from our good buddy, rowesings.

(Referring to the real-life Red Sox) "turning the so called 'champs' into Chumps"
Ummm, wow. The Red Sox are not "so-called champs." They actually are the champs. They won the 2007 World Series. "So-called champs" are what the GAP Rays were in S6, taking advantage of a glitch.

(Referring to David Ortiz) "flash in the pan like that Poopie guy again!"
David Ortiz as a flash in the pan. This is a guy who has been a four-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger, and was in the top five in AL MVP voting five times. His career OPS+ is 138. He has led the AL at least one season in OBP, HR, TB, RBI, BB, XBH, RC, and AB/HR. He has a career post-season OPS of 1005 in 52 games and has won two titles. Compare and contrast with the actual flash in a pan Rays, who are looking to win more than 70 games in one season for the first time ever. The Rays who have finished 5th of 5 in the AL East in 9 of 10 complete seasons. (They were 4th once.) Compare and contrast with the best hitters in Rays' history: Aubrey Huff and Fred McGriff. Huff leads the franchise with 128 career HR. McGriff played 577 games for them and put up an OPS+ of 122 in them. This is the best-ever Ray!

If basketball was a real force in sports, the Rays would have a team.
First, since when does a baseball team have a basketball team? Second, ratings for NBA and MLB games are very similar, and as far as logo merchandise goes, the NBA ranks ahead of the MLB (both trail the NFL). Basketball is also widely believed to be the second-most popular sport worldwide, behind only soccer. As for how the world views baseball? Well, you'd better watch the upcoming Olympics in Beijing. You'll see baseball for the last time. It has been eliminated for the 2012 games in London.

"ask 1000 passer by on the street who the Celtics are. Guarantee you 80 percent or more would say, 'Isn't that those pretty Irish girls that sing?' I guarantee it."
Hmmm. Well, I wasn't on the street and I didn't ask 1000 "passer by", but I did ask 6 people at work. My results:
100% basketball team from Boston
0% pretty Irish girls that sing

"one of those stupid Sox fans living in the Tampa Bay area"
Listen to how the Tampa "faithful" react when Ortiz makes an out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6eA8N_a2AA

Now listen to how they react to an Ortiz HR:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLeASp5LP6A

Seems there might be more Red Sox fans in Tampa than Rays fans. Embarrassing.

I've been a Rays fan since 1998, have listened to or watched every inning of every game for years. I am also a lifetime Yanks fan, but more interested for the past 10 years in the Rays.
What can I say about a front-runner who roots for two teams in the same division, and jumps to the one performing better? I think everyone reading this can draw their own conclusions.

Hall of Fame Committee suggestions

2008-06-11T14:04:00.001-07:00

This is a post to kickoff discussions on forming a Hall of Fame committee to supplement what WIS is implementing at some point in the future. Bribar sent a ticket to WIS to find out the status. Here's the response Bribar got to his ticket:

"We will use the same rules as in real life. When we have the structure in place we will be looking at every player in all of the worlds that ever played so everything will be covered."

First, a key rule from "real life" is that a player must have played in each of ten Major League seasons. So I'll first suggest that any player who plays ten years in HBD is excluded from consideration by our committee. This is debatable; a guy who plays from age 31 through 40 in HBD might not have the stats to get in, but as long as another real life rule being carried over to HBD is the voting process, the owners as a whole will be able to have a say.

Second, I'll suggest that a player must play at least five seasons to be eligible. I can't see putting a guy in to our HoF who only played his last few seasons before retiring. It's just impossible to project such a short time playing over a whole career. I could see making the minimum four instead of five, but not any lower.

Third, a player must be retired but need not be retired for five years before we vote. As far as I know, that five-year period is to ensure a guy is really retired and not coming back. We don't have that risk in HBD--retired means retired.

Fourth, I'll suggest that the committee's role be limited to identifying the eligible players, projecting career stats, and making an argument for and against each eligible player's enshrinement. Then we take the eligible players to a vote, with a percentage of all votes required to enshrine. If it is 75%, it isn't necessarily 24 votes for. If only 20 people bother to vote, than 15 votes gets a guy in.

Last, I'll also suggest we consider a future addition of coaches and owners to the Hall of Fame. At least for owners, we should have some baseline requirements. Something like a minimum of 10 (15? 20?) years of ownership, and maybe something related to wins, playoff appearances, or titles, but I'm not sure about that. I don't know that I'd want something that excludes somebody like jenningss, who has been a loyal and hardworking owner who just hasn't found the right formula or caught the right breaks yet.

Thoughts?

All-Stars by the numbers

2008-06-10T11:40:00.000-07:00

Total number of individual all-star selections: 480 (30 per league per year)

Teams with 25 or more selections:

Athletics (40)
Giants (32)
Mets (31)
Indians (30)
Astros (28)
Cubs (27)
Royals (27)

Teams with fewer than 10 selections:

Reds (9) (seven in last four seasons)
Twins (9) (no player more than once)
Cardinals (8) (no player more than once)
Orioles (7) (no player more than once)
Blue Jays (3) (two this year)
Mounties (3) (two this year)
Nationals (3) (none in first five seasons, one per year since)
Dodgers (2) (none in first six seasons, one per year since)
Phillies (2) (both in Season 1)

Teams with most pitchers selected:

Giants (17)
Indians (17)
Athletics (16)
Mets (14)
Rays (14)
Royals (11)
Brewers (10)

Teams with most position players selected:

Athletics (24)
Astros (20)
Cubs (18)
Mets (17)
Red Sox (16)
Royals (16)
Giants (15)

Teams with most unique players selected:

Athletics (19)
Cubs (17)
Mets (16)
Pirates (15)
Brewers (14)
Giants (14)
Red Sox (13)

Players selected to 6 or more All-Star Teams:

Greg Stewart (8) (all as AL P)
Todd Linebrink (7) (all as AL SS)
Al Alvarez (6) (all as NL C)
Bob Wall (6) (three as NL P, three as AL P)
Chuck Rigdon (6) (all as NL P)
Cliff Simms (6) (all as NL P)
Gabe Brooks (6) (all as AL P)
Jorge Zapata (6) (three as NL RF, three as NL 1B)
Ralph Ryan (6) (all as NL P)
Wes White (6) (all as AL P)

Players who have been All-Stars five or more consecutive seasons:

Greg Stewart (8) (Seasons 1-8)
Todd Linebrink (7) (Seasons 2-8)
Gabe Brooks (6) (Seasons 3-8)
Jorge Zapata (6) (Seasons 3-8)
Ralph Ryan (6) (Seasons 2-7)
Joe Linden (5) (Seasons 4-8)
Theodore Haney (5) (Seasons 4-8)

Players who have been All-Stars for three different teams:

Bob Wall (Dukes, Angels, Orioles)
Brandon Canseco (Pirates, Brewers, Royals)
Cliff Simms (Pirates, Mets, Padres)
Wally Hunter (Rangers, Dukes, Angels)

Players who have been All-Stars in both leagues:

Bob Wall
Brandon Canseco
Chuck Hoover
Darryl Whitaker
Gerald Daly
Joe Linden
Luis Lopez
Mark Moore
Raymond Cambridge
Ricardo Castro
Shawn Becker
Tom Dickerson
Wally Hunter
Willie Santana

Player who has been an All-Star at three different positions:

McKay Woods (LF, RF, 3B)

Team Records

2008-05-23T09:26:00.000-07:00

HBD has been updated to include historical stats. I've started playing with them and have some franchise batting records (all through Season 7). Granted, most team hitting stats are slanted toward AL teams with the DH, but top five includes at least the top NL team in almost every category:

At-Bats
1 BOS 41,122
2 KC_ 40,683
3 OAK 40,615
4 CHC 40,516
5 CHW 40,293

Runs
1 OAK 7,673
2 KC_ 7,074
3 BOS 6,707
4 CHC 6,413
5 HOU 6,358

Hits
1 BOS 11,984
2 OAK 11,770
3 KC_ 11,594
4 CHC 11,414
5 SF_ 11,143

Doubles
1 KC_ 2,043
2 OAK 1,986
3 CHC 1,881
4 BOS 1,875
5 MIN 1,847

Triples
1 HOU 467
2 SD_ 426
3 KC_ 420
4 OAK 391
5 DET 371

Homeruns
1 OAK 2,001
2 KC_ 1,986
3 MIL 1,686
4 CLE 1,671
5 HOU 1,659

Runs Batted In
1 OAK 7,445
2 KC_ 6,869
3 BOS 6,450
4 CHC 6,207
5 HOU 6,176

Walks
1 OAK 4,662
2 MIL 4,258
3 BOS 4,099
4 KC_ 4,093
5 ANA 3,942

Hit By Pitch
1 MEM 558
1 KC_ 558
3 OAK 495
4 SEA 491
5 BOS 487

Strikeouts (fewest)
1 OAK 5,909
2 SF_ 5,976
3 ANA 6,352
4 CHW 6,383
5 FLA 6,411

Stolen Bases
1 CIN 1,011
2 NYY 933
3 DET 918
4 ATL 873
5 CLE 857

Batting Average
1 BOS .291
2 OAK .290
3 KC_ .285
4 CHC .282
5 SF_ .279

On-Base Percentage
1 OAK .368
2 BOS .361
3 KC_ .357
4 CHC .350
5 SF_ .348

Slugging Percentage
1 OAK .506
2 KC_ .499
3 HOU .466
4 CLE .456
5 CHC .454

OPS
1 OAK .873
2 KC_ .856
3 BOS .812
4 HOU .80394
5 CHC .80387

Plate Appearances
1 OAK 46,036
2 BOS 45,938
3 KC_ 45,558
4 CHC 45,141
5 CHW 44,878

Intentional Walks
1 SF_ 256
2 NYM 246
3 MIL 232
4 ATL 219
5 STL 216

Sacrifice Flies
1 OAK 257
2 KC_ 216
3 DET 212
4 MEM 210
4 ANA 210

Sacrifice Hits
1 NYM 276
2 LA_ 245
3 TEX 220
4 ATL 215
5 SD_ 211

Grounded Into Double Plays (fewest)
1 CIN 819
2 CLE 915
3 HOU 939
4 SD_ 998
5 NYY 1,006

Infield Hits
1 VAN 329
2 DET 303
3 CLE 292
4 ATL 285
5 PIT 282

Bunt Hits
1 CIN 123
2 BOS 119
3 NYY 115
4 PIT 108
5 VAN 106
5 DET 106

Number of Pitches Seen
1 OAK 162,730
2 BOS 159,223
3 KC_ 158,340
4 CHW 156,893
5 ANA 155,937

Number of Pitches Per Plate Appearance
1 OAK 3.53
2 ANA 3.499
3 CHW 3.49599
4 SF_ 3.49592
5 KC_ 3.48

Pinch Hits
1 CHC 360
2 ATL 333
3 PIT 331
4 CHA 321
5 CIN 319

Pinch At-Bats
1 CHC 1,235
2 PIT 1,228
3 WAS 1,186
4 ATL 1,184
5 FLA 1,182

Pinch Batting Average
1 OAK .409
2 CHW .310
3 VAN .304
4 NYY .294
5 CHC .291

GAP's Greatest Shortstop?

2008-02-08T08:24:00.000-08:00

For all the hype about Tampa's Miguel Torres, is he really the best SS in GAP? Let's take a look at the numbers and try to figure it out.

First, who is in the discussion? We'll start with Torres, and add active SSs who have earned at least two all-star berths at SS. Although, this criteria wouldn't include Torres (his only selection came way back in Season 1), it seems like a fair starting point. We'll knock out Eugene Hackman who hasn't played since Season 5, and Al Cradle, who is retired. That leaves us with Todd Linebrink (Oak), Alberto Abreu (Mem), and Theodore Haney (KC).

Hardball Dynasty's

Theodore Haney

Trolling through the league depth charts, I found quite a few other names that should be considered for this discussion. But first, we should note some guys who have a chance to be in this discussion a few years down the road, when they have some big league results to back up their ratings:

Rick Gordon (Bal)
Joaquin Ortiz (Cle)
Domingo Sosa (Hou)
Ugueth Herrera (Hou)
Chip Oliver (Phi)
Russ Anderson (Van)

There are a couple other guys who could play SS with some defensive deficiences (like Cincinnati's Andres Mieses and Tampa's Pedro Guerrero), but without ML SS results, I don't want to include them here. In fact, that same criteria diminishes Haney's case pretty strongly, which we will discuss further shortly. However, there are a few guys with results that warrant them being included in this discussion:

Roosevelt Kohlmeier (ChW)
Matt Moore (SD)
Barry Clayton (StL)

Missing my arbitrary cut but still worthy of note: Matt Kubenka (Cha).

So let's take a look at these seven. First, on the offensive side. The easiest available tool to measure hitting production is OPS. Here are our seven with their career OPS, and S6 OPS in parentheses:

Haney 947 (951)
Linebrink 882 (919)
Kohlmeier 879 (978)
Moore 874 (793)
Clayton 854 (769)
Abreu 775 (605)
Torres 687 (712)

Another way to slice offensive output is RC/27. That Runs Created per 27 outs. I had to make a couple minor tweaks due to the limited historical data (player card doesn't show extended batting info). I used the stolen base RC formula so we were including SB/CS, and eliminated GIDP, SH, and SF from the outs side because we don't have that. Here are our candidates, with their RC/27 career, and S6 in parentheses:

Haney 7.69 (8.08)
Linebrink 7.23 (7.95)
Kohlmeier 6.95 (8.62)
Moore 6.68 (5.20)
Clayton 6.51 (5.21)
Abreu 5.27 (3.07)
Torres 4.33 (4.78)

Our players fall in the same order as in the OPS rankings. So we can feel good about this order, and weight them on a sliding scale (100 as the top of the scale) as follows:

Haney 100
Linebrink 94
Kohlmeier 92
Moore 90
Clayton 87
Abreu 75
Torres 64

Now let's take a look at defense. First, we should note the number of games played at SS, versus total games played:

Linebrink 906/916
Torres 870/875
Abreu 860/860
Kohlmeier 509/571
Moore 476/477
Clayton 408/749
Haney 224/701

All but Haney and Clayton have played more than 89% of their games at SS. Clayton played most of S2 at 2B and 3B, and continues to move around to other positions, but has played 54% of this games at SS. On the other hand, he only played 17 games at SS last year, filling the 2B slot most of the way. Haney, however, has played just 32% of his at SS. As a 20-year-old in S2, he played most of his games in RF, and did the same in S3. He split time evenly between SS, CF, and 2B in S4. His S4 games at SS primarily came early in the season, and were enough for him to be selected as an all-star at SS that year. He played 38 games at SS in S5, working primarily in CF that year. Last year was his first full year at SS, playing 130 of his 139 games there.

Each reader will have to make their own judgment call on whether one or both of these guys should be excluded from this discussion based on this. Haney, now 25, and Clayton, now 26, both have nearly reached their rating projections and are being used at SS here at the start of S7.

As to the defense, the most basic defensive stat is fielding percentage. Let's start there. Here are our guys, with career SS FPct and S6 in parentheses:

Torres .989 (.998)
Abreu .985 (.985)
Linebrink .973 (.986)
Clayton .966 (.986)
Haney .961 (.969)
Kohlmeier .958 (.974)
Moore .956 (.980)

Bill James created Range Factor, believing the number of outs a player participates in is more relevant than the number cleanly handled. Here our the range factors for our group, career and S6:

Haney 6.75 (6.55)
Torres 6.29 (6.14)
Linebrink 6.27 (5.90)
Abreu 6.19 (6.15)
Kohlmeier 5.87 (5.73)
Clayton 5.73 (5.20)
Moore 5.71 (5.76)

Lastly, HBD gives us a quantified number of excellent plays. To account for the varied amount of playing time, I converted the + plays to a rate, dividing by 1458 innings played (162*9), giving us an approximation of Great Plays Per Season (GPPS). Here are career and S6 numbers:

Torres 9.6 (12.8)
Abreu 5.8 (3.5)
Kohlmeier 2.6 (5.4)
Linebrink 2.0 (1.2)
Moore 1.5 (3.3)
Haney 1.5 (1.3)
Clayton 0.9 (0.0)

While FPct and RF reflect an entire season worth of play, GPPS only reflects a handful of plays. So by weighting these categories accordingly, and re-weighting again with 100 at the top of the scale, we get the following defensive scores:

Torres 100
Haney 98
Abreu 97
Linebrink 95
Kohlmeier 92
Moore 90
Clayton 90

Now, to go about the task of merging the offensive and defensive scores. It's clear we can't just average them, as fielding is only a portion of the defensive formula, along with pitching. Let's keep it simple and make fielding worth half as much. Using this method, here are the final rankings, again re-weighting to make 100 the top of the scale:

Haney 100
Linebrink 95
Kohlmeier 93
Moore 91
Clayton 89
Abreu 83
Torres 77

In the end, it's clear that while Torres and Abreu are both very strong defensively, their signifcant offensive shortcomings don't put them in the same category as a Haney or a Linebrink.

Clearly, there are a number of methodolgies that could be used that might vary these results slightly. Based on the statistics used and what they both mathematically represent and historically have proven, these results can't be far off. In fact, the only way to construct a case for Torres over the others would be to select only certain rudimentary statistics. However, even just using a basic stat like batting average, Torres comes up ahead of just two of the other six. There really is no argument here whatsoever. Torres is simply not a contender for GAP's Greatest Shortstop.

The 85 Club (beginning of season 6)

2007-10-24T07:50:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of season 6, the current members of The 85 Club are:

95 Douglas Diaz, 2B, New York Mets
94 Cliff Simms, SP, New York Mets
92 Joe Linden, 2B, Atlanta Braves
92 Joe Warden, LF, New York Mets
91 David Russell, SP, Boston Red Sox
91 Greg Stewart, SP, Cleveland Indians
90 Brian Snyder, 2B, San Francisco Giants
90 Al Alvarez, C, San Francisco Giants
90 Jin-Che Wang, SP, San Francisco Giants
90 Theodore Haney, SS Kansas City Royals
90 Mark Moore, 3B, Atlanta Braves
89 Samuel Curtis, SP, Arizona Diamondbacks
89 Todd Linebrink, SS, Oakland Athletics
89 Andres Mieses, 3B, Cincinnati Reds
89 Victor Palacios, SP, Oakland Athletics
89 Tom Dickerson, CF, Milwaukee Brewers
88 Chuck Hoover, 2B, Chicago Cubs
88 Everett Hernandez, RF, Tampa Bay Rays
88 Ralph Ryan, RP, New York Mets
87 Barry Clayton, SS, St. Louis Cardinals
87 Harry Wilfredo, SP, Seattle Mariners
87 Bud Benjamin, SP, Vancouver Mounties
87 Tony Yoshii, 2B, Tampa Bay Devil Rays
87 Matt Moore, SS, San Diego Padres
87 Nipsey Morris, C, New York Mets
87 Ted Hogan, SS, New York Mets
87 Wiki Pena, 3B, Florida Marlins
86 Clarence Cooke, SP, San Francisco Giants
86 Harry Fox, 3B, Houston Astros
86 Russ Bartee, SP, Toronto Blue Jays
86 Tom Cornelius, SP, Houston Astros
86 Ricardo Castro, SP, Atlanta Braves
85 Max Jimenez, C, Texas Rangers
85 Matt Kubenka, SS, Charlotte Dukes
85 Brady Hall, LF, Chicago Cubs
85 Roosevelt Kohlmeier, SS, Chicago White Sox
85 Domingo Sosa, SS, Houston Astros
85 Damaso Pulido, 2B, Toronto Blue Jays
85 Derek Coleman, SP, Atlanta Braves

The $200,000,000 (+?) Kansas City Royals

2007-09-19T09:04:00.000-07:00

This is the story of how $200,000,000 hasn't been enough for KC.

Late in S4, I was laying out my S5 plan. At the start of S1, I signed the two prime FAs to five-year deals, Artie Rizzo and Tony Hudler. Both had $20,000,000 deals for S5. I had some other significant chunks of money committed as well. I determined I'd need $91 mil to pay the guys I already had.

However, my rotation needed help. I was good with Hudler, McCartney, and Faulk starting, but nobody else. Vosberg won 21 games in S4 but with an ERA over 5, I knew it was just good fortune and a good offense behind him. I didn't want to go with him getting 30-35 starts this year. And with the fatigue change taking innings away from the other guys, I realized I need at least 1.5 more starters (a solid starter and a spot guy) or even 2 (2 solid starters in a 5MR). So I determined I could bump my salary to $101 or $103 mil in budgeting to make room for two guys at $5 mil to $6 mil each.

WiredTiger announced late in S4 that he was moving all vets and rebuilding in S5. I targeted two of his pitchers--Jake Payton and Eugene Parkinson. Payton, with a career ERA just over 3 and a WHIP under 1.20 would be a nice addition to the rotation. He is signed through S7, but I felt like S5 was a better chance for the Royals to win it all than S6 or S7 will be, so it was an acceptable hit to take. Parkinson is a good fit as a two-times-out-of-three through the rotation guy, but making $11.5 mil. His ratings didn't justify that money currently, but he is also in year five of a five-year deal. He wouldn't hurt me financially after this year since he was expiring. With a sub-4 ERA and a 17/65 dur/sta, I felt I could get 160 good innings out of him and pitch the other four guys 35 times each.

For me to make room for them, I needed to budget more than $91 mil, or get money in the deal. Since WT was rebuilding, he had some dollars he wasn't going to need:

(WT trade chat to me on 7/16) "I guess you can assume that in any trade I am looking for the best prospects and not necessarily cap space. Even with these guys on my roster I'm only going to be at about $75 million."

He'd rather have better prospects than money. Seems like a fair use of the $185 mil WIS gives us. WT and I kept the discussion going and I felt good that we were going to get a deal made that brought me an additional $17.5 mil in salary. I couldn't budget $108 mil, but he was willing to include money:

(My trade chat to WT on 7/20) "I talked myself into this. Check out the new projections if/when we ever get started. I'll budget $98 million, which will be perfect if we make the deal but won't kill me ($7 million too high) if you want to bail after seeing the projections."

So we worked it out. I needed $108 mil including those guys' salaries, so I budgeted $98 mil. The deals were certainly fair. In fact, I may have given up too much but I was able to keep Santayana (the heir apparent to Rizzo at 1B). Much of the rest of my ML lineup is young, so ML-ready prospects aren't that important to me right now.

I then did something stupid. Italked myself into a 3MT for the first 10 games. I thought Vosberg could help me and I could get Hudler, McCartney, and Payton on the hill more often. I wasn't happy with the results however and ditched it. I still didn't have the team playing as well as I thought they could, so I gave Bill Strickland more starts at catcher. Plus, Hudler went down for ~80 days, and the guys picking up the extra starts made a need for a better pitch-calling catcher. I have Strickland, a good pitch caller who can't hit; Mintz, who should hit better but doesn't; and Pulido, who is a bad pitch caller and a great hitter but no durability limits him to 200-250 ABs a year, better spent at DH.

With Strickland in place, I still wasn't happy. Then I found out Gerald Daly was available from Pittsburgh. Daly has a big bat and a decent PC rating of 57. We worked out a deal with me taking Daly and another expiring contract, a difference of about $8 mil. I couldn't afford that, so WT added another $5 mil. Another fair trade, IMHO.

Now the injury bug has set in further. All three of WT's poison players have suffered serious injuries. First, Daly went down for the year on 9/8. So I've gone back to Strickland with Mintz still in the doghouse. Next, on 9/12, Payton went down for ~70 days. Newly promoted Howard File was now slotted to get some spot starts. Finally, on 9/18, Parkinson got hurt and is out for 59 days. My rotation is now three-deep, so I put Vosberg in temporarily and will still have to spot start File. I need some money to sign or trade for somebody that can hold it down for the next 60 days in the middle of a tight pennant race, thus the call for $2 million more.

Now, after all that, hopefully all can see that nothing shady is going on. I understand that there are two types of trades that some have a problem with, philosophically: 1) money for players trades; and 2) players with salaries paid for prospects trades. The first three with the $5 mil included were type 2, and a new trade would be type 1.

I personally don't understand the concern in this world. In a world where owners come and go, it would be bad for the world to allow a team to make a lot of trades for money and build a super team, destroying the team for years to come. However, that clearly isn't the case here. I understand the sacrifices I'm making (and have determined that I can afford them based on the fact that much of my team is young and we should be back in contention in S8) to make one last run this year with Rizzo, Hudler, Brooks, Phillips, and Silva. I'm committed to this world long-term (I've already renewed for S6, more than can be said for those objecting) and it should be clear that there is no collusion. What is the harm that is done?

Decline of K rate in GAP

2007-09-18T13:35:00.000-07:00

Look at the top 5 strikeout pitchers in GAP over their careers by K/9IP

Greg Stewart: Career - 8.05 K/9IP; Season 5 - 2.72
Jin-Che Wang: 7.11; 3.97
Cliff Simms: 7.01; 3.375
Bosco Jeffereson: 6.97; 4.2
Tony Hudler: 6.96; 5.85 (the smallest difference but only over 40 IP)

Obviously something has changed in the Sim engine. This is not a small sample size, since we are talking about 600+ IP for these 5 this season alone. Could they have changed which criteria is used to determine a good strikeout pitcher. Not sure. Wanted to show the observation.

All-Star Trivia

2007-09-17T11:44:00.000-07:00

1. Who is the only five-time All-Star?

2. Who is the only non-pitcher to be on at least four All-Star teams?

3. Who is the youngest player to be on at least three All-Star teams?

4. Name the three players tied for youngest All-Star, all making it at age 22.

5. Name the five players who have been on both the NL and AL All-Star teams.

6. Name the one guy who made it in the AL, then in the NL, and then in the AL again.

7. Who are the two 36-year-olds who made the All-Star team this year, the oldest players ever to make it?

8. Who are the two players to make it at both SS and CF?

9. Who is the only player to make four All-Star teams while aged 31 or older?

10. How many All-Star teams has Nick Alexander made?

ANSWERS IN THE FIRST COMMENT.

Chicago Cubs DITR Predicitions

2007-09-10T15:06:00.000-07:00

Slim Caincross

Stretch Barnes

Rob Kipling

Don Sullivan

Enrique Siqueiros

and hopefully

Hugh Durbin

Predict Your DITRs

2007-09-10T14:17:00.000-07:00

Here are my DITR predictions. If you care to play, post your own guesses in the 'comments' link at the bottom right of this thread.

http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=564893

http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=703555

http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=435846

http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=803419

50 Game Season 5 Observations

2007-08-27T13:47:00.000-07:00

Players of Interest

Jesse House - Boston Red Sox
House has been on a tear to start Season 5, hitting safely in 47 of 50 games, with two hitting streaks reaching 22 and 25 (active) games respectively. He has reached base in 48 of 50 games, and would be a runaway early season MVP if not for teammate Raul Santana.

-1st in Hits (89)
-1st in RBI (69)
-1st in SLG (.741)
-1st in OPS (1.260)
-1st in RC (75.770! - next closest is 59.134)
-2nd in AVG (.443)
-2nd in OBP (.519)
-2nd in BB (34)
-Holds longest/longest active hitting streak at 25
-Started the season with a 22 game hit streak
-Has 29 multi-hit games
-Went 3 games without a hit between hit streaks, but other than that has hit safely in 47 of 50 games

Chris Burks - Milwaukee Brewers
Burks is one of the most interesting players I have ever seen in HBD, and being in my division for 5 seasons, I'm surprised I haven't noticed him before. Maybe it's the sub .200 AVG that makes him forgettable, but how many guys below the Mendoza Line can boast a projected 155+ runs scored?

-Batting .197
-SLG of .207
-OBP of .370
-51 BB & 48 R in 50 games
-10 more R (48) than hits (38)
-Projected to steal 75 bases, but collect only 123 hits

Cliff Simms - New York Mets
It is no surprise that Simms is dominating opponents, as his current ratings are the most impressive of any GAP starter. The surprise is that with new ownership, Simms is putting together by far his most impressive season to date. How could a pitcher improve upon a season where he not only won the Cy Young, but the World Series as well, you ask?

-1st in ERA (1.55)
-1st in CG (tie-5)
-1st in OAV (tie-.197) - its like facing Chris Burks every game...without the impressive walk totals.
-WHIP of 0.98

Pete Frascatore - Chicago Cubs
Frascatore's numbers look eerily similar to Simms', but there is one glaring difference: He is only 21. Ten years younger than the reigning Cy Young winner, "Petey" is leading the NL in Wins with 7, and despite a 68 MPH fastball, is 9th and Ks. With the struggles of rest of his rotation, Frascatore has held the Cubs together, and is the sole reason they are above .500, and only a couple games back from Milwaukee.

-1st in NL in Wins (7)
-1st in opp. OBP (.249)
-1st in OAV (tie-.197)
-2nd in WHIP (tie-0.94)
-9th in Ks (49)

Other Observations
-Three AL pitchers are tied for most GAP wins. David Russell, Hector Guerrero and Pascual Samuel are also all undefeated at 8-0.
-The Nationals are already nearly halfway to their Season 4 win total (57 wins) at 27-23, and are only sitting 1 game behind the defending champion Mets.
-The Mets are playing .750 ball at Shea, while the Marlins are 16-3 (.842) on the road. Both teams are playing below .500 at their respective opposite sites.
-The Red Sox don't care where they play, winning 18 games at Fenway, while sharing the love away from Beantown, and winning 18 games on the road.
-And the winner for best start to the Season 5 season is...The Cleveland Indians at 37-13. No longer the AL Least...well...at least in Cleveland (Baltimore is already 15 games back in 2nd...)

Postseason

2007-08-10T11:30:00.000-07:00

Franchise W-L

2007-08-10T11:28:00.000-07:00

Hits

2007-08-10T11:26:00.000-07:00

Multiple All-Stars

2007-07-30T11:29:00.000-07:00

Pitching Wins Leaders

2007-07-30T10:45:00.000-07:00

HR Leaders

2007-07-30T10:38:00.000-07:00

Application for Temporary Restraining Order

2007-07-27T13:03:00.000-07:00

Plaintiffs Great American Pastime World (“GAP”), Bribar and Whiteslave hereby apply for a temporary restraining order restraining The_Stiffs, Defendant, and his agents and employees, from reviewing and commenting on WorldChat and any transactions in GAP or the GAP blog, and an order requiring defendant to show cause why a preliminary injunction should not issue to restrain Defendant and his agents and employees from doing the same while this action is pending. This application is based on the grounds that Defendant knowingly and willingly abandoned GAP while commissioner, and has entered and continues to enter WorldChat in GAP without permission despite written requests to cease and that great or irreparable or great and irreparable injury would result to Plaintiffs before the matter can be heard on notice via a Customer Support ticket, with the weekend being soon upon us.

Separated at birth

2007-07-26T14:49:00.000-07:00

Cliff Simms and Roosevelt Simpson http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=438063
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/PlayerProfile.aspx?pid=435089

The 85 Club, beginning of season 5

2007-07-17T18:52:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of season 5, the current members of The 85 Club are:

95 Cliff Simms, SP, New York Mets
95 Douglas Diaz, CF, New York Mets
92 Greg Stewart, SP, Cleveland Indians
92 Joe Warden, LF, New York Mets
91 Brian Snyder, SS, San Francisco Giants
89 Theodore Haney, SS Kansas City Royals
88 Chuck Hoover, 2B, Chicago Cubs
88 Todd Linebrink, SS, Oakland Athletics
88 Andres Mieses, 3B, Cincinnati Reds
88 Ralph Ryan, RP, New York Mets
88 Joe Linden, 2B, Atlanta Braves
88 Mark Moore, 3B, FREE AGENT
87 Victor Palacios, SP, Oakland Athletics
87 Nipsey Morris, C, New York Mets
87 Ted Hogan, 3B, New York Mets
87 Barry Clayton, SS, St. Louis Cardinals
87 Harry Wilfredo, SP, Seattle Mariners
87 Al Alvarez, C, San Francisco Giants
86 Tom Dickerson, CF, Milwaukee Brewers
86 Victor Palacios, SP, Oakland Athletics
86 Wiki Pena, 3B, Florida Marlins
86 Samuel Curtis, SP, FREE AGENT
85 LaTroy Franco, LF, Cleveland Indians
85 Clarence Cooke, SP, San Francisco Giants
85 David Russell, SP, Boston Red Sox
85 Harry Fox, 3B, Houston Astros
85 Jin-Che Wang, SP, San Francisco Giants
85 Brian Snyder, SS, San Francisco Giants
85 Everett Hernandez, RF, Tampa Bay Rays
85 Max Jimenez, C, Texas Rangers

2007-07-03T07:28:00.000-07:00

The current members of The 85 Club are:

95 Cliff Simms, SP, New York Mets
93 Douglas Diaz, CF, New York Mets
92 Brian Snyder, SS, San Francisco Giants
91 Greg Stewart, SP, Cleveland Indians
90 Joe Warden, LF, New York Mets
89 Chuck Hoover, 2B, Chicago Cubs
89 Todd Linebrink, SS, Oakland Athletics
88 Theodore Haney, SS Kansas City Royals
88 Nipsey Morris, C, New York Mets
87 Andres Mieses, 3B, Cincinnati Reds
86 Clyde Valentin, RF, Oakland Athletics
86 Ted Hogan, 3B, New York Mets
86 Ralph Ryan, RP, New York Mets
86 LaTroy Franco, LF, Cleveland Indians
86 Mark Moore, 3B, Atlanta Braves
86 Joe Linden, 2B, Atlanta Braves
86 Wiki Pena, 3B, Florida Marlins
86 Barry Clayton, SS, St. Louis Cardinals
85 Clarence Cooke, SP, San Francisco Giants
85 Harry Wilfredo, SP, Seattle Mariners
85 Samuel Curtis, SP, St. Louis Cardinals

S4 Odds & Ends

2007-06-28T12:41:00.000-07:00

Notes from S4:

Anaheim went 36 straight innings without scoring a run. Oakland was responsible for most of it, shutting out the Angels in a three-game series with Butch Brede, Mitch Moreno, and Paul Christenson each picking up wins for the A's.

The Chicago White Sox had 29 scoreless innings in a row earlier this year at the hands of Tampa Bay.

108,202 runs have been scored in 4 seasons, or 5.22 per team per game. Oakland has been the top scoring team with 7.10 per game, with Washington at the bottom at 4.12. In runs against, the Mets are best at 3.82, while Vancouver is giving up 7.59.

None of the 12 playoff teams in S4 are in the postseason for the first time. In fact, only 21 of the GAPs 32 teams have been to the postseason. Of the teams who haven't made it, San Diego (89-73) appears to be the closest to breaking through, along with the Chicago Cubs (86-76) and Baltimore (81-81). Meanwhile Washington (105 losses), Philadelphia (105), Arizona (104), Vancouver (100), and Cincinnati (100) all appear to be on the outside for the near future.

The White Sox not only became the first team in GAP history to qualify for the playoffs with more runs allowed than scored, they did so with a 54 run difference (789 RS, 843 RA).

Tied for the AL North title: Chicago, with a 32-19 record in one-run games; and Boston, with a 17-27 record in them. Boston had the tiebreak, however.

Some crazy games:

Cincinnati 18, Washington DC 15 (13 innings) http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4483313
Reds rally from 7 runs down in the 9th, scoring 8 in the top half, but the Sens force extras. Reds take a 2-run lead in the 12th but battle back again. Finally a 4-spot in the 13th holds up, despite Washington getting the winning run to the plate in the bottom half. 44 men played in the game--Cincinnati used 10 pitchers and 14 position players.

Anaheim 12, Baltimore 10 (15 innings)
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=5146342
Baltimore trailed 9-4 after 7 but scored 2 in the 8th and a three-run HR in the 9th from light-hitting 9-hole hitter SS Geraldo Cedeno (7 HR this year in 529 AB). RP Hal Dougherty kept shutting down the Angels, entering in the 5th inning and not allowing a run until he was pulled after the 13th. The Orioles finally pushed one across in the top half of the 15th, but closer Luis Lopez gave up a walk-off three-run jack to Eli Fernandez to lose the heartbreaker.

Baltimore 12, Anaheim 10
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=5194552
Just 9 games later, these teams met again and reversed the score this time. Anaheim fell behind 10-3 after 7 but put up 5 in the 8th and 2 in the 9th. That would've been enough to tie but they allowed two Oriole runs in the bottom half of the 8th including the 6th Baltimore HR of the game.

Chicago (AL) 12, Boston 11
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4276563
Here's one that looms large now, with these two tied for the AL North title. On opening day, Boston blew an 11-7 lead after 7 innings to the White Sox. A ground-rule double in the 8th made the score 11-9. RP Gabe Duncan came in with one out in the bottom of the 9th, despite his 0% fatigue (on opening day!) and promptly gave up a single, followed by an Edwin Casey game-tying HR. Rex Andrews relieved Duncan but Andres Piedra crushed the second pitch from Andrews over the 375-foot mark in LCF for the walk-off win.

Oakland 10, Kansas City 9 (11 innings)
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4934693

Kansas City 14, Houston 10
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4677603

St. Louis 12, Florida 11
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4903603

Chicago (NL) 13, Milwaukee 12
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4888049

Cincinnati 12, San Diego 10 (10 innings)
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4793744

Cincinnati 12, San Francisco 10
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4980790

Cleveland 10, New York (AL) 9 (10 innings)
http://www.whatifsports.com/HBD/Pages/Popups/Boxscore.aspx?gid=4862818

Playoff Picture

2007-06-28T09:51:00.000-07:00

One game left, and the playoff picture is still blurry.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

What we know:
-1- Oakland (116-45)
-2- Kansas City (100-61)
-5- Tampa Bay (94-67)

In the mix:
New York (83-78)
Cleveland (82-79)
Texas (82-79)
Chicago (81-80)
Boston (81-80)

Applicable tiebreakers held:
Cle over NYY (6-4)
Tex over NYY (6-4)
Cle over Tex (6-4)
Bos over CWS (7-3)
CWS over Cle (6-4)
Tex over CWS (5-5 but Tex wins on div record)

Last game vs:
NYY vs Min
Cle vs Bal
CWS vs Det
Bos vs Tor
Tex vs KC

Winner of AL East gets the -3- seed.
Winner of AL North gets the -4- seed.
Last WC gets the -6- seed.

NYY wins the AL East with a win OR a Cle loss.
Cle wins the AL East with a win AND a NYY loss, due to tiebreak advantage.
Cle clinches a playoff spot with a win which will be the -6- if NYY also wins.
NYY wins the -6- if they lose AND Cle wins AND Tex loses.
NYY is only eliminated if the lose AND Cle wins AND Tex wins.

Bos wins the AL North with a win OR a CWS loss, due to tiebreak advantage.
CWS wins the AL North with a win AND a Bos loss.
CWS can't get the WC due to tiebreak disadvantage vs Tex, so...
CWS is eliminated with a loss OR a Bos win.
Bos is eliminated with a loss AND a Cle win.

Tex wins the -6- with a win AND a Cle loss.
Tex also wins the -6- with a win AND a Cle win AND a NYY loss (Cle would win the AL East, Tex holds tiebreak advantage over NYY).
Tex is eliminated with a loss, due to tiebreak disadvantage vs Cle and overall record disadvantage vs NYY.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

What we know:
-3- San Francisco (99-62)
-4- Milwaukee (88-73)
-5- Houston (97-64)

In the mix:
New York (103-58)
St. Louis (102-59)
--------------------
Atlanta (91-70)
Florida (91-70)

Applicable tiebreakers held:
StL over NYM (6-4)
-----------
Fla over Atl (7-3)

Last game vs:
StL vs Cha
NYM vs Phi
-----------
Atl vs Was
Fla vs Hou

To determine who gets the -1- and -2- seeds:

NYM gets the -1- with a win OR a StL loss.
StL gets the -1- with a win AND a NYM loss, due to tiebreak advantage.
-----------
To determine who gets the -6- seed and who is on the outside looking in:

Fla gets the -6- with a win OR an Atl loss, due to tiebreak advantage.
Atl gets the -6- with a win AND an Fla loss.

HR Leaders

2007-06-20T13:19:00.000-07:00

As always, if you have or know of a player with 100+ career HR not on the list, let me know. Stats below are through 138 games of S4:

GAP Postseason Stats

2007-06-18T06:26:00.000-07:00

A Look Back: The Draft of S1

2007-05-14T10:08:00.000-07:00

It has been almost three years since the first-ever Amateur Draft in the GAP. With the S4 draft coming up, this seems an appropriate time to review. Here are the first five picks:

#1 Matt Moore
Moore was selected by sergei back when his franchise was the Louisville Sluggers. He certainly looks worthy of being the first top pick of the GAP. Moore made the big show this year in San Diego and appears to be well on his way to an outstanding career. After his selection, Moore tore up the Rookie league with a 1280 OPS, including 17 HR, 99 RBI, and 94 runs scored in just 65 games of the short season. Texas (formerly Louisville) moved Moore to San Diego, and he started S2 in AA. A 1096 OPS in 96 games (37 HR and 127 RBI!) got him a quick promotion to AAA. He finished S2 there getting in 16 games and then starting S3 in AAA again at age 20. In a full year there, he posted a 1039 OPS with 35 HR, 128 RBI, and 128 runs scored. He finished his minor-league career with a ridiculous 370 RBI in 293 games!

Out of the gate in S4, he has started 335 games as the Padres' SS, putting up a very nice 976 OPS. With 11 HR and 8 SB, he could be on his way to a 30/30 season and possibly the NL ROY.

However, Moore's path to San Diego and the ripples since then aren't so easy to follow. Moore was shipped to San Diego in S2, for Charles Shinjo and Kyle Milton, two decent pitchers. Milton is 21-15 with a 3.69 ERA in 83 games for Texas since then, while Shinjo was turned right around and sent to Arizona along with speedy CF Walt Wall in exchange for Gene Stevenson. Shinjo has a good ERA (4.19) and WHIP (1.39) but is just 24-35 in 103 starts for Arizona. Stevenson isn't a Ranger either, of course, as he was moved to San Francisco for SP Juan Brito and RF Enrique Roque. Stevenson is a decent ML CF, good defensively but nothing special at the plate. Roque has been a star MLer, with 117 HR and a 942 OPS in 3+ years, and now just 25 years old. Brito was released at the beginning of S3 and has bounced to Baltimore and now Seattle, where he toils as a 28 y/o SP in AA.

So what sergei ended up with in exchange for Moore is Milton, a serviceable SP/LR and Roque. It is certainly less than Moore, however, the move to get Milton and Roque in S2 helped propel the Rangers to a 96-66 mark and a surprising AL West title when they edged both Tampa Bay and Kansas City in the tiebreak. They may not have Moore anymore, but they have a division title flag to fly in Texas.

#2 Damion Scarsone
Scarsone, 21, is also not with the team who drafted him. Picked by the Mets, he was moved in a deal to St. Louis in S2. He went along with 100-HR Club member Jeff Cuyler and a throw-in for Chuck Hoover and two throw-ins. It looks to be a bad deal for New York in hindsight. Hoover and Cuyler have had simlar numbers at similar ages (Hoover a bit better and two years younger) but not too far apart. Hoover was just a rental, leaving for Minnesota via free agency after S2. It's not like cap space was cleared, as Cuyler was only locked up through S2 as well, also leaving his new team via FA after the season. The Mets did win the NL East and made it to the NLCS in S2, but they likely would've done so anyway without the trade.

Meanwhile, Scarsone is putting up some eye-popping numbers. In S1 he did even better than Moore's amazing numbers above. In just 66 games, Scarsone hit .393 with 16 HR, 109 RBI, and 113 runs scored. His OPS of 1334 (!) was sick. In S2, he had a 1033 OPS with 13 HR in 79 games in AAA for New York before the trade. St. Louis started him off back in Rookie ball for the last 12 games, then had him start S3 in AA. A 1037 OPS in 33 games got him bumped to AAA, where he wrapped up the year with a 956 OPS in 56 games. After one AAA game this year, he got the call and has gotten some action at both 2B and C. A great all-around defensive player, Scarsone has a PC of 30, just good enough to handle some spot duty behind the dish. In 21 games he has an 1125 with 5 HR in just 63 AB! No SB yet, but with his 98 speed rating that is sure to get to 100 before long, he could be another 30/30 guy as soon as he gets a starting spot.

#3 Miguel Paz
Straight out of high school and now just 21, Paz is on the Charlotte slow-track to the bigs. He split the end of S1 between Rookie (3-3/1.34/4.22) and Low A (5-0/1.34/2.72). Owner mdukes kept him in Low A for all of S2, and he posted a 12-4/2.26/1.19 mark in 25 starts. This wasn't enough to earn him a promotion, however, as he started S3 with the same club. After a 8-4/1.07/3.52 start, he finally got the nod to High A. There a 7-5/1.29/3.59 got him bumped to AA for one start at the end of the year, a nice 8-inning effort with only one unearned run allowed.

Paz is still in AA here in S4, with a 4-2/3.20/1.01 to show for his efforts so far this year. His ratings are climbing but slowly. His lack of control and too many fly balls will always be a problem for him. Could it be that his slow rise, which of course means lower-rated coaches at the lower levels, has stunted his progress?

#4 Charles Young
Young, a starting pitcher straight out of HS, is progressing nicely. About a year per level, he is now in AA. There have been some bumps along the way, however. In S1, Young went 2-10/1.75/7.83 mostly at Rookie but also a little Low A. He got settled in during S2, getting 29 starts in Low A while spending the whole season there, going 11-11/1.46/4.28. He started S3 in High A, and really shined, putting up a 10-1/1.20/2.56 in 18 starts. Then dmaxie made a strange move and promoted him to AA while moving him to the bullpen. He was 32 durability/74 stamina at the time, a really strange move. He finished S3 with 30 relief appearances in AA, going 2-3/2.46/10.40.

Management wisely moved him back into the rotation in S4, and Young is off to a 5-2/1.20/3.24 start. He is a workhorse (33/80 on his way to something like 35/90), averaging 7.3 innings in his 8 starts.

#5 Ernest Sellers
Sellers was the first non-high schooller selected. He was a 20-year-old college sophomore who was tabbed by Kansas City with their first pick. He just got the call to the bigs a couple weeks ago, and appears to be at the start of a solid, if not spectacular, career in the GAP. He has steadily put up good numbers, starting with a 4-1/1.50/3.46 in Low A at the end of S1. After a 3-0/0.89/2.08 dominating performance in 6 starts in Low A in S2, Sellers jumped to High A and stayed for just 4 starts. His 2-0/1.06/1.19 got him bumped quickly to AA. In AA for the rest of S2, he stumbled to a 3-5/1.69/5.09.

In S3, he looked ready to star in AA, and in 10 starts Sellers went 5-1/1.11/2.34 and moved on to the AAA club. He held his own there, at 6-8/1.46/4.30. A solid 2-1/0.95/1.89 start in AAA in S3, combined with an injury to Royals' ace Tony Hudler, gave Sellers the opportunity. He has started off well, going 2-1/1.15/4.15 in 6 starts.

He's shown steady improvement, conquering each level in a year or less, but his ratings are not jaw-dropping. It remains to be seen if he can dominate ML hitters within a year like he has other levels. But at just 23 years of age, if he can perform, there could be a spot for him in the KC rotation for 10 or more years to come.

GAP Breakdown: NL East Part 2 of 2

2007-05-13T23:35:00.000-07:00

Philadelphia Phillies
These Phillies have the same unfortunate problem as their MLB counterpart, or shall I say, two problems. Philadelphia has a tall order, trying to pass not only one elite team, but two in the Braves and Mets, which might be near impossible, as both teams look stacked for the future. If anyone is up for the challenge, it's the ownership in Philly, and thanks to them, there looks to be a light at the end of the tunnel.

Season 1 - 60-102 (.370)
Season 2 - 75-87 (.463)
Season 3 - 65-97 (.401)
Season 4 - 13-21 (.382)

4 Season MVP - Pedro Segui [.282 AVG - 113 HR - 358 RBI - 260 Runs - .904 OPS]
4 Season Cy Young - Earl Rhodes [26-27 - 3.93 ERA - 1.31 WHIP - .245 OAV]

Core of the Future
1B Tino Springer (19) High A
LF Artie Webster (25) ML
LF Jolbert Uribe (20) High A
SP Harry Maradona (19) Low A
SP Sam Bibby (19) Low A
SP Earl Rhodes (26) ML
RP Bartolo Vega (24) ML
RP Rolando Melendez (20) Low A
RP Greg Waters (24) ML

Washington D.C. Senators
A true reclamation project, the Senators are gradually growing into what should one day be a formidable foe for the rest of the NL East. Similar to the Indians in the movie Major League, the ownership in Season 1 looked to be destroying all hopes of winning in Washington...but after he was disposed of, the Senators are looking towards the future and have dreams of division titles dancing in their heads.

Season 1 - 55-107 (.340)
Season 2 - 57-105 (.352)
Season 3 - 47-115 (.290)
Season 4 - 8-26 (.235)

4 Season MVP - Tori Valentin [.249 AVG - 133 HR - 331 RBI - 253 Runs - .849 OPS]
4 Season Cy Young - Patrick Kirkland [22-38 - 4.18 ERA - 1.44 WHIP - .273 OAV]

Core of the Future
C Rafael Park (19) High A
SS Neil Moyer (25) ML
2B Edgardo Matos (19) Low A
2B Ryan Schmidt (26) ML
LF Rico Benitez (24) ML
1B Al Santiago (20) AA
1B Valerio Rivera (19) High A
RF Kelly Acosta (25) ML
SP Guillermo Cordero (21) High A
SP Jeff Butler (25) ML
SP Garry Valdes (21) ML
SP Stuart King (25) ML
SP Ryan Dixon (24) ML

GAP Breakdown: NL East Part 1 of 2

2007-05-11T13:25:00.000-07:00

Atlanta Braves
After cruising to division win in Season 1, Atlanta has been an interesting team to watch, showing signs of that same dominant team, but also flashing signals of a slight talent drop off in recent seasons. The Braves look to have the kinks worked out through 27 games in Season 4, compiling an impressive 19-8 record and challenging division rival New York for the league-best team ERA.

Season 1 - 101-61 (.623)
Season 2 - 94-68 (.580)
Season 3 - 88-74 (.543)
Season 4 - 19-8 (.704)

4 Season MVP - Joe Linden [.305 AVG - 62 HR - 285 RBI - 312 Runs - .991 OPS]
4 Season Cy Young - Malachi Carson [48-22 - 3.10 ERA - 1.18 WHIP - .231 OAV]

Core of the Future
2B Joe Linden (29) ML
2B Jorel Collins (22) Low A
3B Mark Moore (27) ML
LF Freddie Grieve (24) ML
SP Tanyon Flanagan (22) ML
SP Ralph Duncan (26) AA

New York Mets
After squeezing into the playoffs with the 2nd wild card in Season 1, the Mets have been on a tear since. The pitching has been simply outstanding, but like most big budget teams, there is a lot of future being sacrificed to win now. But win now they have, and should continue...at least for a couple more seasons.

Season 1 - 87-75 (.537)
Season 2 - 101-61 (.623)
Season 3 - 102-60 (.630)
Season 4 - 19-9 (.679)

4 Season MVP - Ted Hogan [.294 AVG - 88 HR - 296 RBI - 284 Runs - .917 OPS]
4 Season Cy Young - Cliff Simms [59-27 - 3.34 ERA - 1.15 WHIP - .236 OAV]

Core of the Future
1B Turner Davis (24) ML
3B Ted Hogan (23) ML
SS Jim Young (25) ML
CF Earl Garcia (22) AA
RF Eugene Betemit (27) ML
SP Jason Ray (24) ML
SP Sal Floyd (27) ML
RP Julio Saenz (24) ML

GAP Breakdown: NL North Part 2 of 2

2007-05-10T20:26:00.000-07:00

Milwaukee Brewers
After taking the North the first two seasons, the Brewers have since struggled to stay above .500, going 74-88 in Season 2, and currently sitting 4 games under after 26 games. Carlos Campos and Jimmie Iglesias have been studs, but the rest of the team has struggled mightily since their consistent early success started to drop off.

Season 1 - 88-74
Season 2 - 90-72
Season 3 - 74-88
Season 4 - 11-15

4 Season MVP - C Carlos Campos [.317 AVG - 161 HR - 450 RBI - 351 Runs - 1.016 OPS]
4 Season Cy Young - SP Lorenzo Tabaka [52-29 - 4.00 ERA - 1.23 WHIP - .255 OAV]

Core of the Future
C Carlos Campos (29) ML
SS Marino Cordero (21) AAA
LF Ricardo Melendez (22) AAA
O F Omar Arroyo (23) AAA
SS Eric Scott (24) AAA
SP Hideki Koh (23) ML
RP Will Andrews (25) ML
SP Arthur Hayes (19) AA

Pittsburgh Pirates
The new class of the NL North, the Pirates have risen from obscurity to become the team to beat in one of the most competitive divisions in all of the GAP. The scary thing is, the ML team is pretty much all relatively young, and the farm system has a couple of very impressive prospects. The Pirates should be a force in the North for years to come.

Season 1 - 81-81 (.500)
Season 2 - 88-74 (.543)
Season 3 - 94-68 (.580)
Season 4 - 15-11 (.577)

4 Season MVP - Chris Baker [.290 AVG - 131 HR - 391 RBI - 324 Runs - .924 OPS]
4 Season Cy Young - Jake Payton [54-33 - 3.15 ERA - 1.17 WHIP - .242 OAV]

Core of the Future
3B Quinn Hundley (25) ML
SS Al Martinez (21) AA
CF Denny Greenwood (19) Low A
OF Sammy Ordonez (20) AA
RF Carlos Alvarez (20) High A
RF Troy Decker (22) High A
SP Scot Weston (23) AAA
SP Alex Sparks (25) AAA
RP Glen Wise (25) AAA

GAP Breakdown: NL North Part 1 of 2

2007-05-09T12:15:00.000-07:00

The NL North has been very interesting and competitive to say the least over the first 3+ seasons of the GAP. In Season 1, the Brewers edged out the Cubs by a game to win the division, and the Cubs lost the wild card to the Mets in a tiebreaker. Season 2 belonged to the Brewers as well, but the division looked even closer, as every team was .500 or better, and the Pirates showed promise, finishing only 2 games behind the Brew Crew, and gave the North 2 playoff teams for the first time in the short history of the GAP. Season 3 was a dogfight most of the Season, as the Pirates and Cubs traded off turns in first for most of the season, until the Cubs fell apart in the 2nd half and the Pirates cruised to the North title in the last 2 weeks. Season 4 once again has the Cubs and Pirates in what looks to be an epic battle for the title.

Chicago Cubs
The Cubs have been consistently inconsistent, streaking to large division leads at time, then falling hard and needing to rebound to get back to .500. This is still a very young team, and has the talent to be dominant in the future years (as long as the young core stays intact)

Season 1 - 87-75
Season 2 - 81-81
Season 3 - 81-81
Season 4 - 15-7

4 Season MVP - RF Victor Parra [.294 AVG - 121 HR - 375 RBI - 353 Runs - .906 OPS]
4 Season Cy Young - SP Richard Hyun [34-19 - 3.77 ERA - 1.25 WHIP - .255 OAV]

Core of the Future
SP Johnny Buck (23) ML
SP Willie Ordonez (21) ML
SP Rich Allen (23) ML
SP Pete Frascatore (20) AAA
SP Carlos Gutierrez (18) Low A
RF Victor Parra (27) ML
1B Joey Norman (23) AAA
3B Kevin Watson (24) AAA
3B Stan Harper (21) AA
SS Jose Campos (19) High A

Cincinnati Reds
The Reds looked to be going places after a promising 82-80 end to Season 2, but things suddenly turned sour in Cincy, and the Reds ended up with a 49-113 record in Season 3, only 2 games better than the obviously rebuilding D.C. Senators. The team has some serious young talent, but it's starting to look like it's still gonna be a couple more years before they have a chance to reach .500 again.

Season 1 - 66-96 (.407)
Season 2 - 82-80 (.506)
Season 3 - 49-113 (.302)
Season 4 - 9-13 (.409)

4 Season MVP - Andres Mieses [.272 AVG - 105 HR - 310 RBI - 286 Runs - .858 OPS]
4 Season Cy Young - Nolan Schmidt [26-31 - 4.63 ERA - 1.48 WHIP .271 OAV]

Core of the Future
SP Thomas Davis (22) AAA
SP Bey Wainhouse (21) AA
SP Enrique Guillen (24) AAA
SP Alejandro Guerrero (22) High A
3B Andres Mieses (22) ML
SS Grover Lyon (23) High A
OF Horace Ross (24) AAA
1B Pinky Glavine (24) AAA

[Brewers/Pirates next]

Welcoming Mr. Warden

2007-04-26T18:32:00.000-07:00

NEW YORK--

The preseason blockbuster has become an annual event in Queens.

Before the start of Season 1, the Mets worked out a sign and trade with Seattle. The Mariners received 29 year old Harry Wilfredo (24-17, 3.26 in 70 career starts) and his 5 year deal worth $42.5M in exchange for 20 year old Ted Hogan (80 HR, 279 RBI, .296 AVG) making the ML minimum.

Season 2 saw the Mets orchestrate a salary cap saver with Pittsburgh. The Pirates got 35 year old Tomas Aguilera (15-14, 40/47 SV, 3.68 in 176 career appearances) who was making $9.5M at the time, 19 year old Al Martinez (110 HR, 389 RBI, .299 AVG in 3 years of MILB service), and 29 year old Jake Payton (51-31, 3.08 in 111 career starts) making $7.0M. Pittsburgh sent the Mets 28 year old Cliff Simms (54-25, 3.31 in 104 career starts) making $10.0M.

The Red Sox and the Mets swapped players before the start of Season 3. This time the Mets moved the NL's reigning Cy Young winner, 33 year old Bosco Jefferson (44-20, 3.06 in 81 career starts) making $6.5M in the final year of his contract along with AAA shortstop, 22 year old Mark Sugawara who is known more for his glove than his bat. In return the Mets took on a couple of "project" pitchers, Sal Flyod and Julio Saenz. In their first seasons in Shea Stadium, Floyd worked 185.1 innings over 34 starts while posting a 14-7 record working to a 3.11 ERA. Saenz worked 96.1 innings over 68 appearances, posting a 6-3 record, converting 6 of 7 save opportunites and compiling a 3.74 ERA to compliment his 1.05 WHIP.

And just the other day the Mets added another MVP canidate to their lineup. In terms agreed upon during the playoffs last season, New York acquires 29 year old left fielder, Joe Warden from Detroit in exchange for 3 highly touted yet unproven prospects (Grant Leary, Karim Rodriguez and Charlie Simas). Warden figures to bat 3rd in a scary Mets lineup featuring 4 members of the exclusive "85 Club".

The big decision for the Mets caoching staff will be: what to do with their extra outfielder? Joe Warden will play left field. That much is certain. And Eugene Betemit will most likely play right field. But that leaves Billy Brown and two-time Gold Glover Courtney Kennedy vying for time in center field.

Kennedy is in the final year of his 3 year contract and so his $6.0M salary makes him an attractive rental for a team looking for defensive help in center field. Brown is still making the ML minimum and will not arbitrate until Season 6. That's about as much value as you could hope for from a guy who played all 162 games last year while batting .304 before errupting in the post-season to the tune of a .417 BA while driving in 11 runs in 8 games. Defensively, Brown would be a downgrade if the Mets were to move Kennedy especially considering that Warden is not the defensive left fielder Brown is but the added offense provided by Brown's left-handed bat in the 7th hole might be enough to sway New York to move in that direction.

The other option would be for the Mets to find a new home for Betemit and let Brown patrol right field. Betemit has one more year of arbitration but his $4.1M raise this season has the Mets wondering if they'll be able to afford his .290/20/80 at the price he'll be seeking next year. Of course, Betemit has won a Gold Glove himself and he is a fan favorite in Shea where he ranks second in career plate appearances, at bats, home runs, runs batted in, hits and walks in a Mets uniform. So management seems a bit more hesitant to move him.

Hudler & Rizzo -- 3 Years Later

2007-04-20T08:28:00.000-07:00

As we start into S4 of the GAP, it is time for all of us to analyze our franchises, sign, release, promote, and demote. It is also time to look back on how we got to this point, and how to move forward.

GAP was the first elite HBD world, with a dedicated group of owners who boasted proven track records. Out of the gate, all of us wanted to make a splash. I spotted two stud FAs that I decided would fill my gaps perfectly--Tony Hudler and Artie Rizzo. They were certainly the two prized FAs that all owners coveted, whether they could afford them or not.

Hudler was the most interesting one. At 33, he was a big risk. Would he be able to maintain his ratings for several years? This was the key, because with all the bidders, he was certainly going to get a five-year deal. And with the price being driven up and up, owners had to ask themselves if he would be worth eight figures at age 37.

His ratings were sexy, however. 32/81 meant he could go every fourth game, 6 or 7 innings per game. Add in the 81/94 splits, 91 control, and 93 GB numbers, and there was a lot to like. But one ugly number--52 health. The bidding went higher and higher. When the smoke cleared, it took $90,000,000 across five years to get him. The one failsafe I built in was a team option for S5. If he broke down early, at least I'd be able to cut my losses by the tidy sum of $15,000,000 at the end.

Meanwhile, Rizzo was the best bat available. I liked my franchise's ML-ready options, but the missing cog was a slugging 1B, so Rizzo was a perfect fit. His health was an issue as well (62), but a risk worth taking for 93/93/73/79/90. Especially for the Royals, who were weak against RHP. Rizzo ended up cashing in for $75,500,000 while scoring a player option for S5. At 31, it seemed more likely he'd have something left by then, and what player is turning down a max contract to go to the market? That was the thought process anyway.

I was hoping to get both guys, as I budgeted the money I thought it would take to pull it off. I had to drive up my offers, and had to do it by back-loading the deals as much as I could. The end result is that by S3, I would be paying a combined $38,250,000 to two players.

When the smoke cleared, I had them both. The message board lit up with a wide variety of opinions from astonishment for the bold strategy or admonishment for the stupid strategy. I was convinced I had a two-year window, maybe three, to get a title with these guys.

The question now--Was it worth it? From a postseason-success standpoint, maybe no. Everyone has heard my whining about missing the postseason two straight years on tiebreakers. But 92 and 96 wins is nothing to sneeze at. Finally in S3, I pulled away down the stretch and almost grabbed a first-round bye. After dispatching the Yankees in the opening round, my Royals got swept by the Red Sox in Round 2. Then it was an agonizing week or two watching two teams with fewer regular season wins than my Royals advance to the WS.

Hudler and Rizzo have been very successful, however. They are two of only five GAPpers to make all three all-star squads. Hudler is 53-25 with a 3.57 ERA. Meanwhile, Rizzo won the S3 MVP, three silver sluggers and a gold glove while hitting 132 HRs while putting up a 1078 OPS.

There is a twist at this point in the story, however. The window might not be closed yet for KC. Tony Hudler got better. Yep, at age 35, Hudler improved from an 83 overall to an 85. His DUR and STA both inched up a point, while his CTRL, vLH, and P2 each went up 2 points or more. Rizzo is dropping but doing so fairly slowly, so he appears to remain a top-notch starting 1B for the remainder of his contract as well.

At the same time, I've been able to bring some young players along (with those big contracts, did I have any other choice?) who are moving into their prime. Theo Haney, now 22, led the MVP race until the final two weeks when he rested. He did lead the GAP in runs scored with 151. He made another big jump in S3, and is now an 87 overall, up from 64 when the world began. 24 y/o 3B Pedro Jose won the AL ROY while hitting 44 homers. SP JR Vosberg was in the ROY race as well, winning 19 games for KC.

The other key piece to the puzzle is the unique talent that is Gabe Brooks. With a 32/48 dur/sta back in S1, Brooks seemed like a tweener. I bounced him around to several different roles in S1 That 91/83 split, 98 control, and 80s and 90s throughout his pitching ratings made him appealing, but I couldn't figure out how to maximize him. Finally in S2, I decided to make him a closer. That's the spot for him although he struggled in S2. He settled in during S3, saving 38 games, winning 10 more, and putting up a 2.53 ERA while winning the AL Fireman award. The beauty in Brooks is that he often pitches two innings, or can go two or three days in a row with no trouble. 63 appearances and 89 innings is a nice combo to have at the back end of games. Brooks, now 35, is another guy who is getting better in his old age. His 91/84 split is now 94/88, with other numbers on the rise as well.

S4 shapes up to be at least one additional season in contention for Kansas City. I feel like a man living on borrowed time, and maybe, just maybe, this is karma evening out the score for the bad luck dealt to me in S1 and S2!

Philadelphia Season 4 Preview

2007-04-05T12:16:00.000-07:00

AP (Philadelphia) -- In a press conference held today, Phillies ownership stated they need to rebuild. Big shocker. The owners went on to say that the first three seasons in the GAP have been a disappointment and pledge to tighten the reins and make better decisions with personnel. A person close to the situation who talked based on anonymity stated that no job was safe and all areas of the team from the coaches to the “jock strap” holders (as he put it) would be reviewed and improved.

The ML team has 4 players; yes 4 players under contract for the upcoming season with only 18.025 million allocated in salary next year. Here is a breakdown of what players they have. (If you can call them that.)

Mario Smith 28 SP 7.0 Million

This overpaid player was brought over from the A’s in a season one deal. This has to be a top 10 worst trades in the history of the franchise. A combined 18-44 in 95 career starts with a 5.37 ERA.

Dion Perez 33 3B/1B 6.25 Million

A veteran, who has been with the team since day 1, Dion signed a two-year extension last off-season. He’s a .290 hitter that looks to be moved from 3B to 1B next season.

Giomar Colon 32 OF/IF 3.8 Million

A FA pick up. He is a slick fielding player who played at 6 different positions last year. With the roster up in the air he may look to crack the starting lineup (god help us)

Wilfredo Tavarez 30 IF/OF 1.2 Million

A FA pick up, Willie is another player with great defense skills. He will be used as a back-up/spot start player. His lack of hitting is keeping him from playing more. A career .151 hitter in 98 ML games.

The Phillies have a bunch of young guys who are arbitration eligible or have less then 3 years of service. The club has not stated whom they plan to bring back. Here is a look at the list.

Arbitration Eligibility

Artie Webster 24 CF .266 last year with 53 SB in 55 attempts
Cecil McGowan 28 C .252 last year
Sean Darwin 28 SP 12-11 3.65 ERA
Jimmie Cruz 28 RP 1-5 6.70 ERA
Billy Forrest 28 SP 7-17 6.23 ERA
Vic Alcantara 27 RP 2-5 5.16 ERA
Chili Carver 27 RP 0-0 9.19 ERA
Zephyr Starr 26 RP 1-2 4.64 ERA
Earl Rhodes 25 SP 9-10 4.34 ERA

Less then 3 Yrs ML

Andre Black 26 CF .275 last yr
Benny Bennett 25 C 22 games
Ryan Slocumb 26 SP/RP 6-4 4.40 ERA
Bartolo Vega 23 Closer 15 of 16 Saves 3.66 ERA
Greg Waters 23 RP 46 Games 6-4 4.57 ERA
Ernest Mattingly 22 RP 51 Games 1-5 5.81
Dustin Hill 24 SP 17 Starts 6-9 3.80 ERA

All-Stars

2007-04-05T09:54:00.000-07:00

More stats. This time, a list of players who made at least two all-star teams. Just five guys have made all three.

486 Games

2007-04-04T13:54:00.000-07:00

Up next in my stat roll, a list of all the guys who have played in all 486 games so far. One interesting note about a guy not on the list: Detroit superstar Joe Warden played in 162 games this year, but that wasn't his best. In Season 2, thanks to a well-timed trade, Joe played in 163. Put that on his GAP HOF plaque in about 15 years!

500 Hit Club

2007-04-02T14:07:00.000-07:00

Apologies to Vancouver's Denny Moore. In the Mounties' turn-around season, he piled up 166 hits to boost his career total to 499. Thought it'd be nice for Vancouver to get a little ink!

Historical Division WL

2007-04-02T10:53:00.000-07:00

The NL South, with its strong Season 3, has taken over as the best division in GAP History:

Franchise W-L and RS-RA

2007-04-02T09:24:00.000-07:00

Updated:

100 HR Club (updated)

2007-04-02T08:37:00.001-07:00

If you have or know of any players with 95+ career HR not listed below, please let me know.

GAP Playoff Picture

2007-03-26T12:30:00.000-07:00

With just 16 games left, the playoff picture is coming into focus. While it appears the Royals are on track for their first playoff appearance, I'm not counting it yet. Anyway, here is the glance:

AL
North - Boston (86) leads Chicago by 8 games.
East - Minnesota (82) leads New York by 5 games and Cleveland by 8 games.
South - Kansas City (85) leads Tampa Bay by 8 games.
West - Oakland (97) has clinched.

WC - Six teams fighting for two spots:
Seattle 80
Chicago 78
Tampa Bay 77
New York 77
Cleveland 74
Texas 72

Oakland will get the #1 seed. Boston and KC battle for the second bye, with Minnesota a longshot. Those four are in the drivers' seats for the division titles, with the WC race still wide open.

If the playoffs started today:
(1) Oak vs winner of (4) Min vs (5) Sea
(2) Bos vs winner of (3) KC vs (6) Chi

NL
North - Pittsburgh (83) leads Chicago by 8 games.
East - New York (82) leads Atlanta by 11 games.
South - Houston (89) leads Florida by 1 game and Charlotte by 4 games.
West - San Francisco (95) has clinched.

WC - Two teams in control:
Florida 88
Charlotte 85

San Francisco will likely get the #1 seed, but if either Houston or Florida gets hot, they could make it interesting. The byes will go to SF and the South winner. Charlotte has 7 games on Atlanta and 10 or more on the rest of the field for the last WC spot.

If the playoffs started today:
(1) SF vs winner of (4) NY vs (5) Fla
(2) Hou vs winner of (3) Pit vs (6) Cha

MVP Candidates - NL

2007-03-20T18:47:00.000-07:00

So now it is time for the NL candidates to step forward. The NL is a bit tougher in that many of the better teams lack a true MVP type candidate (Houston, Charlotte, Pittsburg, Florida) - especially since I am not considering pitchers (though I think they should be considered).

1a) Alvarez (SF) - (.381/.455/.682 34/102) Is part of the offensive duo that powers the Giants as what many will argue to be the best team in GAP. Leads the league in OPS, average, OBP, slugging, and RC/27 (second to Santana in GAP) and plays catcher. His problem in winning the MVP this year will be...

1b) Belcher (SF) - (.347/.414/.659 44/134) May well beat his teammate for the MVP, but without Alvarez, Belchers RBI production goes way down. Belcher ranks in the top 3 in the NL in every major offensive category, but plays the easier 1b instead of C. I give a slight edge to Alvarez, but that could change.

3) Iglesias (Mil) - (.305/.378/.654 54/136) Plays on a below .500 team, but is putting up huge numbers again. Leads the league in HRs and RBI, and is 3rd in slugging. Where would Milwaukee be without him and Campos?

4) Hogan (NYM) - (.286/.370/.553 30/96) Is a steady player for the Mets and plays a strong 3b as well. Probably would not be considered a leading candidate if the Mets did not have such a good record. Might be the second best offensive player on the team with the acquisition of Diaz.

5) Charlton (CHC) - (.356/.403/.544 19/93) Is playing great ball this year for the Cubs as they fight to stay in the wild card race. Charlton also gets credit for playing C as well as being second in the leaging in hitting. Would not have a problem putting him ahead of Hogan on a ballot.

Honorable Mentions: Campos (Mil), Mieses (Cin), Hall (CHC)

MVP Candidates - AL

2007-03-20T18:11:00.000-07:00

Well, it is that time of year again. Time to rollout my favorites for MVP with less than 30 games to play. I decided since HBD has given their list it was time for mine.

1a) Raul Santana (BOS) - (.339 ave/.490 obp/.650 slg 29 HR/109 RBI) Has been a force for the Redsox offensively creating 12.8 runs per 27 outs, easily leading the league. He also leads the league in OPS with 1.140. The weakness in his candidacy is that he is a DH and that he has played about 30 games les than his competition.

1b) Artie Rizzo (KC) - (.341/.445/.642 37/106) Is part of the offense that has carried the Royals (and their struggling pitching) to first place in the AL South. Is second in the league in OPS, 2nd in average, 2nd in OBP, 2nd in slugging, 2nd in RC/27, 3rd in Runs scored, 5th in HRs....you get the picture. He is an well rounded offensive player, and I would have no problem voting for him over Santana.

3) Chuck Hoover (Min) - (.301/.378/.534 27/110) Is an intregal part of the rise of the Twins to the top of the AL East. Although his numbers do not stack up to Santana's or Rizzo's, his defense make him very valuable as he is playing a gold glove caliber CF (compare his numbers to gold glove leading Rowand, and they are very similar).

4) Joe Warden (Det) - (.304/.434/.579 34/117) I usually am not fond of including players from bottom dwelling teams, but Joe is putting up monster numbers and deserves recognition. Was lost in the shuffle last year as he was traded mid season from the NL to the AL, but has adapted to the AL just fine this year.

5) CC Hutton (Oak) - (.279/.387/.567 38/134) The straw that stirs the Athletics offense, Hutton has been called on to play a bigger role this year with the many injuries to the A's team. The career RBI leader shows again why he is the best with 134 RBI in only 129 games played. Even though his other offensive numbers are down for him, the best player on the best team deserves consideration.

Honorable mention: Mota (KC), Everett (Bos),

The .900 club shrinks

2007-03-17T21:37:00.000-07:00

Already since I posted the .900 club, we have lost 4 members and 4 are on the verge of leaving. Ellis, Yoshii, Torrealba, and Daly have all dropped out, while Charlton (.901), Hogan (.903), Ford (.901), and Parra (.909) theaten to leave. We might drop below 30 by the end of the year. Within a few years, the .900 club might be a fairly exclusive club.

The .900 OPS Club - Large and Shrinking

2007-03-01T10:45:00.000-08:00

I put together what I believe is a comprehensive list of the players that are members of the .900 OPS club. Although not exact, I tried to use about ~1200 PA as a cut off(which eliminated Carrera (CLE) with 1100+ PA). My guess is that in a few weeks we will go from about 38 members to around 35 as our league moves away from the blotted offensive numbers of season 1. Several players have dropped below .900 already this year, including Cleveland Indian 3b Selby - although Charlton (CHC) is one person that joined the club his year with a torrid start. The 1.000 club includes 12 players. Next time I do this, I might switch to a .950 club (22 current members), but I was not about to ditch my work. Top Teams - OAK (4 - 3 in 1.000 club) and KC (4 - Ellis might drop out).

Name	Team	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	HR	RBI
Nunnally	OAK	0.352	0.478	0.695	1.173	98	290
Hutton	OAK	0.317	0.405	0.663	1.068	134	442
Rizzo	KC	0.324	0.438	0.628	1.066	105	312
Alvarez	SF	0.349	0.428	0.634	1.062	86	301
Santana	BOS	0.329	0.466	0.583	1.049	71	271
Warden	DET	0.328	0.429	0.618	1.047	100	351
Belcher	SF	0.327	0.401	0.643	1.044	117	345
Campos	MIL	0.325	0.396	0.641	1.037	126	364
Hamilton	OAK	0.299	0.385	0.645	1.030	113	342
Hunter	TEX	0.299	0.359	0.662	1.021	150	368
Franco	CLE	0.285	0.374	0.644	1.018	135	389
Reboulet	TEX	0.325	0.408	0.604	1.012	94	286
Wirth	ANA	0.293	0.376	0.630	1.006	122	320
Zappata	HOU	0.297	0.359	0.642	1.001	81	268
Valentin	OAK	0.298	0.369	0.623	0.992	94	316
Casey	CHW	0.309	0.388	0.596	0.984	110	346
Jimenez	TEX	0.291	0.369	0.602	0.971	120	311
Riggs	NYY	0.300	0.399	0.557	0.956	72	258
Linden	ATL	0.311	0.412	0.544	0.956	47	226
Fox	HOU	0.304	0.366	0.588	0.954	100	311
House	BOS	0.339	0.410	0.544	0.954	47	228
Mota	KC	0.291	0.366	0.585	0.951	103	361
Swann	PIT	0.304	0.393	0.554	0.947	71	252
Iglesias	MIL	0.282	0.356	0.583	0.939	123	313
Clifton	KC	0.298	0.366	0.570	0.936	86	325
Smart	MIL	0.294	0.370	0.566	0.936	80	269
Goldman	FLA	0.293	0.361	0.570	0.931	65	223
Para	CHC	0.298	0.360	0.564	0.924	99	307
Segui	PHI	0.285	0.349	0.575	0.924	98	300
Diaz	CIN	0.282	0.351	0.573	0.924	110	281
Lopez	FLA	0.300	0.376	0.547	0.923	63	203
Ford	TOR	0.314	0.393	0.526	0.919	59	227
Hogan	NYM	0.290	0.369	0.543	0.912	67	222
Charlton	CHC	0.317	0.379	0.526	0.905	66	251
Daly	PIT	0.284	0.400	0.503	0.903	68	205
Torrealba	SEA	0.282	0.373	0.528	0.901	78	247
Yoshii	TB	0.295	0.369	0.531	0.900	58	311
Ellis	KC	0.325	0.404	0.496	0.900	44	211

AL South Draft Review

2007-02-27T08:53:00.000-08:00

Stolen from the Cooperstown blog, here is the draft review, part one of eight. Numbers provided include scouting budgets, round and selection of each pick, age, and my projection of a players' best ML season (AVG/OBP/SLG for hitters, IP/ERA/WHIP for pitchers).

AL South

Kansas City ($3m C, $4m HS)

1/26 Larry Walker (19, RP) -- Not a great first round pick, but not a terrible one either. His 81/50 combo makes him an RP who can go quite often, or a guy who could work in a 6MT. He does appear to struggle with lefties, but he has very good control. With just two effective pitches, it remains to be seen if he will top out as a very good ML setup man, or something less.
(120/3.80/1.40)

2/69 Rick Reid (18, 1B) -- Reid should become a very good major leaguer in a few years. He may not quite make it to all-star status, but he will probably get a solid ten-year career in with his solid numbers and excellent eye.
(.320/.450/.525)

3/101 Max Plata (21, 2B) -- Plata went back to college for his senior year.

The Royals grabbed a couple other 1B/DH types in Bob Bailey, Gerald Hughes, and Don Greenwood, all of whom (save maybe Greenwood) could become serviceable MLers.

Tampa Bay ($10m C, $0m HS)

1/27 Lance Jennings (20, RP) -- Jennings looks to have all the makings of a very nice ML setup man. Excellent control, tough against righties and solid against lefties, a superb heater and an outstanding hook. The only possible question mark is his propensity to give up fly balls. Barring any unforeseen problems, Jennings should be a quality guy in the pen from about Season 6 through Season 17.
(75 /2.75/1.15)

2/70 Juan Sanchez (21, 2B) -- Sanchez is a speedy 2B with a suspect glove. He doesn't have the glove to play CF either, or the arm to play RF or 3B, so he may turn into an LF/1B type. If that is the case, his numbers don't look nearly as good. However, if he can stay at 2B, maybe for a team that doesn't give up a ton of ground balls to the right side, he could turn into a productive big leaguer.
(.295/.380/.440)

3/102 Diego Johnson (19, 2B) -- Johnson is unsigned at this time.

The Rays made a decision to forego HS players this year, and end up with a crop of 19-22 year olds that could help them sooner rather than later. They went with several more 2Bs in later rounds, but all seem to have one flaw or another. We'll all be shocked if Tampa's ownership is still in place after say, S8, as they continue to make moves to win now, future be damned.

Texas ($4m C, $4m HS)

1/25 Denny Daniels (21, C/DH) -- Daniels doesn't look to have what it takes to be a major league catcher. Never mind that, as he will have no trouble finding a way into a big league lineup. A prototypical DH, Daniels already has great power and projects to be one of the most prodigious sluggers of all time. Not just a big swinger, Daniels has a decent eye and hits for contact very well. Durable and healthy, and already nearly ready to be in the bigs after three years in the Big Ten, this Michigan Wolverine could put up 500 HRs or more by the time he hangs them up.
(.340/.440/.625)

2/68 Robert Mann (19, SP) -- Mann's selection was a head-scratcher among GMs. While he seems made to pitch in the bigs, he's got just one problem--he can't get guys out. He has decent stuff but hitters seem to eat him up, especially lefties. He is, however, off to a good start, allowing just one run in 9.2 innings in two starts. Rangers' scouts must've seen something they liked during his one season at Western Wisconsin Technical College.
(won't make it to ML)

3/100 Harry Whitaker (20, RP) -- Whitaker brings excellent control and speed to the table, along with a nice fastball. He gets guys out, but could have trouble in hitters' parks, as he gives up more than his share of fly balls. He will be a solid big leaguer for years, but it remains to be seen if he will be a closer or a setup guy.
(60/3.75/1.40)

4th-rounder Karim Amaro could be a serviceable ML 1B one day, but he won't hit for a ton of power, something most like in their 1B/DH types. Daniels is clearly the key to Texas' S3 draft class.

Memphis ($11m C, $10m HS)

1/14 Moose Bryant (21, 2B) -- Bryant is unsigned.

1/35 Junior Saenz (18, SS) -- There is a lot to like about Saenz. He is projected to be a solid ML SS defensively, while putting up solid numbers with the bat. He hits for contact well and has some speed. He won't be an all-star, but he will be a solid big leaguer for several years.
(.315/.395/.450)

2/57 Brendan Nixon (18, CF) -- Nixon is also unsigned.

3/89 Pascual Carrasco (18, RF) -- Carrasco has some nice facets to his game, but others that make him flawed, possibly fatally. He has nice range and an excellent arm defensively, with a shaky glove, so he'll either be an excellent 1B or a bad 3B/RF. He has a great eye and could hit for average, but lefties own him. It's hard to imagine Carrasco in an everyday major league role except under the most perfect circumstances.
(.240/.310/.425)

With two of their top three picks unsigned, the grade is incomplete on the Blues draft class.

Week 2 Power Rankings

2007-02-26T23:40:00.000-08:00

Here we are 70+ games into Season 3 of the GAP, and guess who's number 1? Yeah, it's still the A's, but not by a whole lot. There are more than a couple teams on their heels, and by Week 3, they could very well be dethroned...

SEASON 3 WEEK 2 POWER RANKINGS

1. Oakland Athletics (48-24) LW 1

To say the A's are less than impressive lately is a bit of an overstatement, but a 13-2 loss to the last place Padres and an 11-5 loss to the sub .500 Dodgers in the last week have caused quite a stir in Oakland as of late. Butch Brede (took the loss to the Padres) has been heard murmuring of early retirement, and Oscar Nunnally still has over a month before he's ready to even take BP. As long as they hold the best record in the league, they'll stick at the #1 spot, but things just don't seem as bright as they used to in Sunny California for the Athletics.

2. San Francisco Giants (46-26) LW 2

Playing the Mounties sure lifts the spirits of a team coming of a tough interleague battle with the AL West. The Giants felt pretty good taking 5 of 9 against the A's, Mariners and Angels, but are sure happy to be back in the NL, where their staff can finally take a breather. Clarence Cooke might be the happiest to be back in the NL as he shut down Vancouver with 8 strong shutout innings this afternoon. Cooke is again on pace to hit 20 wins with a sub 3.50 ERA, and even possibly an All-Star start.

3. Charlotte Dukes (45-27) LW 8
The resurgent Dukes have won 19 of 25, and suddenly look like serious title contenders. The pitching staff has been brilliant of late, as Clint Stephenson threw 7 shutout innings against the Rays while Frank Stockton (who's struggles have been well documented in Charlotte) rebounded in a 6 inning, 3 ER win versus the powerful Royals. No longer will the Dukes fly under the radar, as this team is finally on the map.

4. Boston Red Sox (44-28) LW NR

Like the Dukes, the Sox have been on fire as of late, winning 18 of 22, and the only reason they aren't ranked higher than Charlotte is due to a relatively weak schedule during the streak (although they did recently sweep the Cubs). Their rise to greatness came in a recent 13-3 whipping of Chicago, pinning 9 runs on young stud Rich Allen. The Red Sox enjoy an extremely balanced attack, as Raul Santana, Stuffy Everett and Jesse House are all having career years.

5. Minnesota Twins (45-27) LW 9

Another team on a big hot streak as of late, the Twins have won 18 of 24, including sweeps of the Phillies, Senators and Blues, plus taking 2 of 3 with the Royals, Angels and Mets. Scooter Spehr is off to a hot start so far, going 9-1 with an ERA just under 4.00, topping it off with a 7 inning, 1 ER win early this morning versus Philadelphia. Chuck Hoover and Teddy Rivera lead a balanced attack for the Twins, and are looking to lead someone other than the Indians to an AL East title for the first time in the short history of the GAP

6. Chicago Cubs (43-29) LW 3
The injuries keep piling up in Chicago, but somehow the Cubs are keeping it together. This time it was starting SS Jerry Boudreau and Setup man Louis Riley. The good news is, if this team can survive for another couple weeks, they should both come back around the same time and provide a spark for the depleted Cubbies. In positive news, early MVP polls point to Larry Charlton, who continues to defy skeptics and seems to be getting better with age. The 32 year old gap hitter has been compared favorably to a combination of Todd Helton and a young Mike Piazza, and is proving why with a .372 Avg and a 1.036 OPS so far in Season 3.

7. Houston Astros (44-28) LW 7
The NL South should be extremely enjoyable to watch down the stretch, as both the Astros and Dukes look poised to be in it till the end. Charlotte looks to hold the better lineup, but only the Giants have a better pitching staff than Houston. Kerry Sinclair is only 4-0 in 13 starts, but his 1.34 ERA and .199 OAV have generated whispers of "Rocket" in Minute Maid Park. Luis Lira has been Mr. Reliable thus far, averaging over 7 innings per start, and holding opponents to a .257 average. If the Astros can keep up their strong pitching, they should keep pace with Charlotte all season.

8. New York Mets (43-29) LW 4

This team is obviously hit or miss lately, and my best guess is that they sorely miss Bosco Jefferson. At times they look amazing, for example, in a 9-0 shutout against the Yankees early this morning. But 3 shutout losses versus the Indians and Yankees in the last week point to some glaring issues with the reigning NL East Champs. The offense just isn't quite there, and unless they plan to win alot of 2-0 games down the stretch, this team could be in some serious trouble. They have the talent in Turner Davis, Eugene Betemit and Ted Hogan, but they are going to need to turn it up, and soon.

9. Atlanta Braves (41-31) LW 10
The Braves continue to slowly warm up and are starting to look closer and closer to midseason form. The bullpen has been dynamite thus far, as Pedro Diaz, Hamlet Perkins and Donald Xaio all hold ERA's under 2.00 and Zephyr Bennett is right behind them with an ERA of 2.55. It helps when you have guys like Malachi Carson and Ricardo Castro (a combined 16-7 in 31 starts) pitching 7 strong innings every 5th day too. The Braves are only 2 games behind the NL East leading Mets, and could overtake them any day. This team looks built for the postseason, and is definitely one of the scariest October nightmares.

10. Seattle Mariners (40-32) LW 6

They nearly slipped off the radar this week, and that's just what this team is showing so far in Season 3. They look to be barely holding on, and could totally fall apart at any second. Wes White has looked eerily human thus far, with a pedestrian 3.72 ERA, and it may be partly due to the team trading away staff ace, and best friend of White's Brandon Freeman to the Tigers. The team is going to desperately need Harry Wilfredo and Alfonso Guardado to step it up if the Mariners want to return to the postseason.

Dropped from the rankings: KC Royals (LW 5)

Career Pitching Totals

2007-02-24T16:00:00.000-08:00

I wanted to take a look at career pitching stats of some of the top pitchers in our league. I have ranked them by career ERA with a min of 400 career IP(if I have missed any, let me know and I can update it). The stats were taken this afternoon and do not reflect the PM2 cycle.

Pitcher (ERA, Record, Win %, WHIP, IP)
1. Greg Stewart - CLE (2.62, 55-13, .809, 1.04, 593)
2. Bosco Jefferson - BOS (3.02, 35-16, .687, 1.20, 420)
3. Jake Payton - PIT (3.08, 38-27, .585, 1.16, 642)
4. Fergie Joseph - SF (3.17, 30-15, .667, 1.26, 414)
5. Hector Guerrero - CLE (3.22, 37-22, .627, 1.20, 552)
6. Kirk Strittmatter - FLA (3.30, 29-22, .567, 1.22, 463)
7. Bob Wall - CHA (3.32, 30-20, .667, 1.28, 490)
8. Nick Alexander - TB (3.35, 43-23, .652, 1.19, 618)
9. Malachi Carlson - ATL (3.36, 33-17, .660, 1.19, 444)
10. Brandon Freeman - DET (3.43, 35-10, .875, 1.22, 466)
11T. Cliff Simms - NYM (3.44, 42-19, .689, 1.18, 594)
11T. Willie Santana - TB (3.44, 39-16, .709, 1.29, 539)
13. Tony Hudler - KC (3.46, 41-20, .671, 1.26, 593)
14. David Ayala - NYM (3.54, 32-23, .582, 1.14, 440)
15. Eugene Parkinson - OAK (3.55, 41-12, .782, 1.23, 445)
Honorable Mention - Castro ATL (3.57), Hyun CHC (3.57), Buchanan DET (3.60), Cooke SF (3.79)

I'm sure that I missed some. I didn't really write this to highlight Stewart, because the only credit for his success that I can claim is that I signed him to an extension during arbitration and I think everybody would have done that. What I was hoping to accomplish is to highlight pitchers that don't otherwise get much credit. They are the guys that are listed 4-7 and Santana.

Joseph - Here is a guy that had a tremendous first season (15-6, 3.04, 1.24) but did not make the all-star team. During season 2 he had injury problems that limited him to 136 IP. This season he is posting strong numbers again.

Guerrero - Working in the shadow's of Stewart, he has put up great numbers. He was not great during season 1, but still posted commendable numbers. He followed that up with a Cy Young worthy season after that (18-7, 2.62, 1.18), but was overshadowed by Stewart. And this season he has only pitched better. Was named to the All-star team in season 2.

Strittmatter - He seems to be lacking run support. Despite his 2.78 ERA and 1.11 WHIP last year, he was only able to manage 14 wins during his 34 starts. During the other two years, he has posted very good, but not phenomenal numbers.

Wall - Made the all-star team during season one, but only finished the year with an 11-8 record despite a 3.20 ERA. Went a disappointing 11-11 during season 2 with a 3.60 ERA, but has started off strong during season 3 with an 8-1 record.

Santana - Despite a nearly identical ERA and a better winning percentage he has lived in the shadow of Nick Alexander. Though a little tough to call him underappreciated with two all-star appearances, he was a strong contributor to the Rays playoff appearances. This year he has struggled, but is sure to turn it around says GM Boggs.

100 Career Home Runs

2007-02-23T10:01:00.000-08:00

A little strange: KC Royals Jose Mota and Artie Rizzo each hit their 100th homerun today, in the same inning of the same game. Here is the GAP 100 HR Club, and those closing in:

145 - Wally Hunter (Cha) 29/LF (510)
130 - LaTroy Franco (Cle) 31/LF (432)
127 - C.C. Hutton (Oak) 28/1B (494)
126 - Dario Selby (Cle) 31/3B (406)
120 - Carlos Campos (Mil) 28/C (413)
118 - Jimmie Iglesias (Mil) 30/1B (496)
116 - Charlie Wirth (Ana) 24/C (566)
115 - Max Jiminez (Tex) 21/C (686)
110 - Chris Baker (Pit) 33/2B (280)
110 - Ivan Bechler (SF) 32/1B (372)
108 - Edwin Casey (CWS) 28/1B (469)
107 - Allan Hamilton (Oak) 31/2B (364)
103 - Trevor Valdez (Tor) 30/LF (392)
102 - Douglas Diaz (Cin) 28/CF (422)
100 - Jose Mota (KC) 24/DH (597)
100 - Artie Rizzo (KC) 33/1B (288)
99 - Ricky McIntyre (NYY) 29/3B (398)
99 - Jose Bocachica (Tor) 26/DH (418)
98 - Harry Fox (Hou) 28/3B (402)
98 - Oscar Nunnally (Oak) 29/C (319)
96 - Joe Warden (Det) 28/LF (452)
96 - Victor Parra (ChC) 26/3B (443)
94 - Clyde Valentin (Oak) 31/RF (296)
94 - Pedro Segui (Phi) 33/2B (282)
92 - Tori Valentin (Was) 27/3B (355)
90 - Yannick Reboulet (Tex) 28/LF (372)
90 - Victor Nieves (Tor) 29/3B (358)

Current team, age, position, and the last number in parentheses is a projected total using Bill James' Favorite Toy. It factors in age and last three seasons to project a career total. Since we only have 2.4 years in, I had to project an S3 total using stats-to-date, then plug in the numbers.
Let me know if I missed anybody. Guys who have split their 100+ among multiple teams probably got missed by me.

AL South Reigns Supreme

2007-02-22T12:34:00.000-08:00

Led by the Kansas City Royals' 222 wins, the AL South holds division bragging rights in the GAP. Despite all the chirping going on from North and East owners, well, they say the numbers don't lie:

Rk Lg Div.. WPct .W. .L.
1. AL South .532 815-717
2. AL West. .523 801-731
3. NL South .522 799-733
4. NL North .505 773-759
5. NL West. .497 762-770
6. AL North .490 750-782
7. NL East. .482 738-794
8. AL East. .450 690-842

Prospect Report Vol. V -- SHORTSTOP

2007-02-21T21:06:00.000-08:00

AAA – Ugueth Herrera (21) Houston Astros

Barely edging out Yankees top prospect Luther Callaway, Herrera projects to be one of the best young Shortstops in recent memory. Not only is he a solid overall defender, but he can flat out smash the ball. Herrera is on the cusp of hitting the majors, although his debut could very well find him somewhere other than SS until he hits his potential. Look for Ugueth in Houston come September callups.

AA – Domingo Sosa (20) Houston Astros

This spot once belonged to Cardinal Damion Scarsone, but his recent promotion and move to 2B gave Sosa the coveted spot of top AA Shortstop. Sosa hasn’t quite hit the ball as expected, but then again, he’s only appeared in 39 games (and 53 RBI in 39 games ain’t too shabby). His .311 average is sure to rise as he adjusts to the American game, and he is absolutely going to be a stalwart in the Astros organization for years to come (even if it ends up at 3B).

HiA – Al Martinez (20) Pittsburgh Pirates

A power hitting dynamo, many overlook the defensive prowess Martinez brings to the table. Sure, he’s hit 90 HR and knocked in 327 in only 243 career games, but at the raw age of 20, he is also already one of the better fielding SS’s in the minors. Look for Martinez to rocket up the ranks and hit the big time in a couple years. (He has recently been promoted to AA)

LowA – Omar Carrasco (19) St. Louis Cardinals

Any international signed for under $10 million is considered a steal nowadays, but when Carrasco was signed, he seemed to be receiving a fortune. Although he was recently promoted to High A, Carrasco spent the first part of the year at Low A, and simply raked the ball. Between the two, he has hit .379 with an OPS of 1.148 in 43 Season 3 games. With the inherit ability to smash to ball to all fields, Carrasco is going to be a superstar when he hits the majors in 2 to 3 seasons.

Week 1 Power Rankings

2007-02-19T15:40:00.000-08:00

Okay, so it's 50 games into the season, so it's not really week 1. But the early season rankings seem to be inflated by easy early season schedules and blatant luck, so I waited until the Cubs were really on fire to get the first rankings out there (I kid...of course...). Numbers 1 and 2 are right where they left off, but #3 is where things start to get interesting...

SEASON 3 WEEK 1 POWER RANKINGS

1. Oakland Athletics (36-14)
Who would have ever dreamed of the A’s atop the rankings? Unlike last season, where Oakland had to rise from the depths (a whole couple games under .500), they have dominated from the start in Season 3. What is really amazing here is how they have continued to reign despite the devastating injury to star DH Oscar Nunnally. The A’s are proving they’re loaded and ready for anything that might and will happen.

2. San Francisco Giants (33-17) The reigning World Series Champs started right where they left off, and it all begins with Ivan Bechler. At 32, Bechler is like a fine wine, continuing to improve as he ages, hitting .349 with 20 HR and 60 RBI in only 50 early season games. As much as Arizona and Los Angeles have improved, San Francisco is proving they are the class of the West, and are aiming at a return trip to the Series.

3. Chicago Cubs (31-19)
The surprise of the league so far, this “rebuilding” project has been anything but. The “lovable losers” did just that, they lost 3 starting pitchers to trades and free agency over the offseason, then lost career wins leader Edgardo Pena to a season ending injury this week. Add all this to the loss of previous closer Cooper Hoffman in a trade and current closer Lee Winn to shoulder surgery, this team was not supposed to win 15 of 19 and 31 of 50 games to start the season. But the resurgence of Larry Charlton and Brady Hall along with the superb pitching of Louie Foster and Rich Allen have really brought the Cubs together to prove a formidable force in the NL North.

4. New York Mets (30-20) They would be up a ranking if not for a recent sweep at the hands of the Cubs, but don’t let that fool you. The Mets consider a 30-20 record to be a “slow start” and to have only the league’s 4^th best ERA seems to be a point of concern. The loss of reigning Cy-Young winner Bosco Jefferson in the offseason hurt the rotation, but the Metropolitans should be fine, especially with the continued dominance from Ralph Ryan, David Ayala and Cliff Simms. This is still the best pitching team in baseball, and I’m sure they’re eager to prove it.

5. Kansas City Royals (31-19)
One of the other big surprises so far, the Royals have run out to an impressive 4 game lead in the AL’s most competitive division. They have always been a high-scoring experiment, but it seems this is the year they have really put it all together. The key to their success lies in all-everything Theodore Haney, who is still on 21, but leads the majors in Runs Scored and is up there in HRs and RBI. If he can bring up his average, we could have another one for the record book, this time as the youngest player to take MVP honors in the short history of the GAP.

6. Seattle Mariners (30-20) The Mariner’s season seems the same as always, as they continue to play very impressive baseball, but also continue to reside in the AL West, where 100 wins insures nothing more than a Wild Card berth. Wes White continues his dominance over everyone, saving 10 of 10 with a non-existent ERA of 0.00. All they need is to start hitting, and this team could climb up the rankings and into…second.

7. Houston Astros (30-20)
If the first 50 games is any forecast, it’s going to be a dogfight in the NL South in Season 3. The Astros and Dukes (and to a lesser extent the Marlins and Cardinals) all agree that this is anyone’s game. The Astros might have the advantage due to the best team ERA in the GAP. Leading the charge is journeyman Kerry Sinclair, who holds a microscopic ERA of 0.57 in 9 starts, and Closer Chuck Rigdon, who is 5 for 5 in save chances with an ERA of only 1.31.

8. Charlotte Dukes (30-20)
Charlotte seems to finally be putting it all together this year, as they challenge the Astros and the rest of the NL South for superiority in Season 3. Second year man Wallace Lowe has simply dominated thus far, with a 6-2 record and a 2.14 ERA in 10 starts. There is reason to watch this year in Charlotte, as the lineup hasn’t even come close to reaching it’s potential, hitting only .267 so far. If the Dukes’ bats warm up a bit, this could be a sleeper team in the playoff race.

9. Minnesota Twins (29-21) Another surprising team in the rankings, the Twins have taken control of the once Tribe-dominated AL East. This is a solid team from top to bottom, ranking near the middle in hitting and near the top in team ERA. They are led by 25 year old Charles Kim (5-3 2.52 ERA) and 27 year old Vincenzo Cunningham (13-15 saves 2.16 ERA), and could end the 2 year reign the Indians have held in the division.

10. Atlanta Braves (28-22)
They may be #10 right now, but it is a common assumption that the Braves will be more than contending come the playoff race. It’s only a third of the way through the Season, and a 28-22 record is no reason for Braves fans to panic. The key would be getting Rookie Joaquin Cairo started. His 2-4 record and 7.29 ERA will have to come back to Earth sometime, and that will probably be the day the Braves really get started.

Prospect Report Vol. IV -- THIRD BASE

2007-02-19T11:17:00.000-08:00

AAA – Denny Brinkley (20) San Francisco Giants

Probably the best international bargain in the Great American Pastime. With a signing bonus of only $6.3 million in Season 1 (albeit from the White Sox), Brinkley is the definition of “money well spent”, as he is looking to be a superstar, and could be that in a couple years, especially with a career average of .323 and an OPS of 1.008, almost all coming at the highly competitive AAA level.

AA – Kevin Watson (23) Chicago Cubs

Watson barely edged out A’s 3B Damian Takada for the AA spot, mostly due to the career season he’s having so far this year. Thus far, Watson is hitting a combined .351 between HiA and AA, and has scored 58 runs in 51 games. He is projected to take over the hot corner in Chicago in a year or two, and could provide the spark opposite Victor Parra that Cubs Management has been dreaming of.

HiA – Pedro Guerrero (18) Tampa Bay Rays

He could play virtually any position with his skill set, but for now, 3B is where the Rays need him. Guerrero is definitely a stud in the making, as he projects to be one of the best players in the game (even if that is 4 years down the road). In his first season, the 18 yr old dynamo has hit a modest .312 with 5 HR and 30 RBI in 32 games. His calling card, however, will always be the record $23.2 million bonus he received to sign with the Tampa Bay club. Hopefully his stats will soon speak for themselves.

LowA – Harry Cruz (19) Cleveland Indians

While the big club is struggling, the minor league system for Cleveland is thriving, especially with prospects like Harry Cruz. A 4^th round pick in the Season 2 draft, this Jersey boy has enjoyed great success in about one full season’s worth of action. He’s hit .352 with 26 HR and 149 RBI in 126 games between Rookie and Low A ball. Although he is obviously still raw, watch for Cruz to explode on the scene within 3 to 4 years.

Prospect Report Vol. III -- SECOND BASE

2007-02-15T11:27:00.000-08:00

Second Base might be the most crowded position in the GAP, with a collection of prospects that would make Billy Beane drool. On Base Percentages are well over .400 and the collective OPS is known to sky past 1.000. Watch out in a couple years, as these guys fight for All-Star and Silver Slugger positioning, and look to power some very promising organizations.

AAA – Norm May (23) Arizona Diamondbacks

AA – Jim Jacome (21) Chicago White Sox

HiA – John Mahoney (20) Charlotte Dukes

LowA – Pat Taylor (20) Cleveland Indians

They may be in the cellar of the AL East, but the people of Cleveland have a lot to look forward to with a stacked system and a devoted GM. The most exciting prospect has to be Pat Taylor, who is lined up to be one of the best utility men once he hits the majors. Taylor has power to all corners of the field, and a batting eye unmatched by anyone in the league. This former Season 2 first round pick has torn up Rookie and Low A ball in an equivalent of one full minor league season, hitting .331/.441/.578/1.019 and scoring 129 runs in 117 games.

Tomorrow: 3B!

Prospect Report Vol. II -- FIRST BASE

2007-02-14T14:29:00.000-08:00

Today is the first basemen of the future, and the Padres seem to take the cake with half of the entries. Some of these guys are familiar names, as they've been seen in international bidding, but others may be new to some. Check for the second base update tomorrow.

AAA – Al Bonilla (22) San Diego Padres

AA – Joey Norman (22) Chicago Cubs

HiA – Don Atkins (20) San Diego Padres

LowA – Damaso Morales (20) St. Louis Cardinals

Prospect Report Vol. I -- CATCHER

2007-02-13T16:26:00.000-08:00

Everyday for the next couple weeks I'm going to release another positional prospect report. It will detail one player per position/per level for positional players and 5 SPs and 4 RPs per level. Here are who I consider the best Catcher prospects at each minor league level:

AAA - Torey Camacho (24) Arizona Diamondbacks

One more year should be all it takes before “Macho” Camacho finally hits the big show. He has decent power for a gap hitter, but his real strength lies in his pitch calling. D-Back’s management has never seen a youngster call a game quite like Camacho, and that could be the edge Arizona needs in a crowded NL West.

AA - Max Baez (20) Cleveland Indians

You won’t find a better pure Catcher in the entire GAP than Baez. Comparisons to Joe Mauer might not even do him justice, as Baez has earned his nickname of “The Natural” in just a few short years. He’s only 20 years old, but could see the majors as soon as next year.

HiA – Bobby Ray Dixon (21) Oakland Athletics

LowA – Juan Juarez (19) Toronto Blue Jays

The 85 Club

2007-02-07T13:45:00.000-08:00

Few players attain the elusive overall rating of 85 or higher. As GAP’s season 3 has gotten underway, the Reds’ SS Andres Mieses and the Cardinals’ SS Barry Clayton are now at 84, and with a bit of diligent effort are poised to join this prestigious club. The current members of the Club are:

96 Cliff Simms, SP, New York Mets
90 Brian Snyder, SS, San Francisco Giants
90 Chuck Hoover, 2B, Minnesota Twins
89 Tom Buchanan, SP, Detroit Tigers
88 Douglas Diaz, CF, Cincinnati Reds
88 Joe Warden, LF, Detroit Tigers
88 Todd Linebrink, SS, Oakland Athletics
88 Danny Taylor, SP, New York Yankees
88 Harry Wilfredo, SP, Seattle Mariners
88 Greg Stewart, SP, Cleveland Indians
87 Clyde Valentin, RF, Oakland Athletics
86 LaTroy Franco, LF, Cleveland Indians
86 Mark Moore, 3B, Atlanta Braves
86 Clarence Cooke, SP, San Francisco Giants
86 Wilton Chang, SP, Chicago White Sox
85 Joe Linden, 2B, Atlanta Braves
85 Nick Alexander, SP, Tampa Bay Rays
85 Nipsey Morris, C, New York Mets
85 Brandon Freeman, SP, Detroit Tigers

Oddly enough, 10 of these 19 players have not made the All-Star team in GAP’s first 2 seasons, and only 3 members of this fraternity (the Tigers' Freeman and the Indians’ Stewart and Franco) appeared in both All-Star games. Seven others (Simms, Alexander, Cooke, Linebrink, Moore, Valentin and Morris) had one All-Star appearance in the first 2 seasons.

These players certainly don’t make their mark on the defensive end of the game, as the only Gold Gloves in this group went to SS Moore and C Morris in season 2.

Profile: Cleveland Indians

2007-02-06T09:30:00.000-08:00

It's fun writing about my own team, but probably pretty boring to read. Instead, I'm going to go through and profile each of the AL teams. (If hatt wants to do something similar in the NL, that'd be cool.) Today, I'll kick things off with the Cleveland Indians:

Steady As She Goes
The philosophy for whboone and the Indians, from Day 1 of the GAP on, has been consistency. With payroll budgets of $83m, $80m, and $83m, the Indians refuse to sacrifice the future to win now. They've been able to make the moderate payrolls work, with two AL East titles in two years. All the while, they've been commiting millions to scouting, training, and medical, ensuring that the pipeline that is the minor leagues will continue to fill future openings.

Over The Hump
84-78 got it done in a weak division in S1, so the first-round playoff exit was no surprise. But in S2, the Wahoos put up an impressive 101-61 mark, winning the division by 31 games. They earned a bye, but the en fuego Texas Rangers bumped them off en route to a World Series appearance.

Cleveland has started out slowly this year, at 7-7. However, the division appears to remain weak, and they are just one game out after two weeks. Could this be the year Cleveland gets over the hump and wins a playoff series, or more? Let's take a look....

Franco-American
Any discussion of the Indians' personnel has to begin with one LaTroy Franco. The 31-year-old lefty from Texas has two All-Star appearances, two Silver Slugger awards, and an S1 MVP. In his MVP season, he put up a .312/.400/.740 with 62 HR, (121 XBH), 179 RBI, and 35 SB in just 40 attempts. He slipped a tad in S2, down to a 980 OPS with 50 HR and just 94 XBH, and 22 steals in 33 attempts. Is this the beginning of the end for the Cleveland LF? He's got 6 HR in 14 G this year and 6/6 SB, with a 1007 OPS, so while he may not return to MVP form, he remains a formidable keystone in the lineup.

Order of Protection
Don't think Franco has to carry his lineup, however. The Cleveland batting order brings plenty of protection for Franco. Yorrick Rowand, Dario Selby, and Raul Carrara all do their share of damage on offense. Rowand, a 30-year-old CF, is not a slugger (17 HR in 1256 AB) but has stolen at least 70 bases in each of his first two seasons. Selby, 31, has played a little RF, 1B, and DH in his three seasons, and is one of the most underrated players in the GAP. He ripped 55 HRs in S1, and then led Cleveland with 56 more dingers in S2 when his power rating peaked at 101. He's off to an even-better start this year as his career OPS of 942 is dwarfed by the 1119 he has in the early going in S3.

Carrara, meanwhile, is one to watch. At just 21, he is in his third ML season, platooning in RF. He mashes RH pitching, but struggles against the lefties. After two solid seasons in the low 900s (OPS) and an average of 27 HRs, he is out to an 1119 start, 6 HRs in just 43 ABs.

Eminem Probably Hits Better Than MM
Michael Martin is another one to watch, but for a different reason. whboone seems committed to this guy, with 361 ABs last year and all 14 starts at 1B this year, but he just can't get it going. He has solid ratings (55 58 56 64 63), but his 789 career OPS leaves a lot to be desired, especially from a first baseman. Even worse is the 747 he has this year, .245/.339/.408. For a first baseman. Ugh.

GAP Greg Stewart or Real-Life Dave Stewart?
Ace Greg Stewart was the highest-ranked pitcher (#3 overall) on jakaitis' S2 GAP Player Ratings. Along with that accolade, Stewart has two all-star appearances and the S2 AL Cy Young Award. He's 3-1 with a 2.76 ERA already this year. His 0.85 WHIP is jaw-dropping, and his 26 K in 29.1 IP is impressive as well.

Let's compare his Cy Young S2 to the RL Dave Stewart's best year (1990):

Record - Greg 25-4, Dave 22-11
ERA - Greg 2.90, Dave 2.56
WHIP - Greg 1.13, Dave 1.16
IP - Greg 245, Dave 267
K - Greg 237, Dave 166

Greg holds up pretty well. The GAP's best Montanan is worthy of taking on the nickname from his namesake, so we'll call him "Smoke" Stewart from now on.

Smoke and Mirrors
The rest of the Indians pitching staff leaves a bit to be desired. SP/LR Lonny Lowry is off to a nice start, posting a 1.47 ERA through 18.1 innings, and setup man Del Nakajima has been solid again, with a 1.25 WHIP in 7 appearances. But 37-year-old Yorrick Brand, who took over closing duties last year, has struggled mightily. He converted 28 of 31 opportunities in S2, with a 2.16 ERA and 1.03 WHIP. This year, in his last three appearances, he has failed to retire a batter while giving up 5 earnies. He has an ugly 45.00 ERA and 7.00 WHIP.

Hitch Up the Wagner?
The Indians and whboone have to be anxious to let Kevin Wagner loose. In over a thousand MILB ABs, the 22-year-old RF has an OPS of 1095. He might not be quite ready (939 OPS in AAA last year, 833 out of the gate this year), but it won't be long. He hits lefties well, so he could be a platoon answer to Carrara for a long time.

Random thoughts about the Royals

2007-02-06T09:18:00.000-08:00

We're 14 games into S3 of the GAP. First, a glance at the standings. It's oddly satisfying to see the Rangers 7 games behind my Royals in the early going. Don't get me wrong, sergei is a great guy, and an asset to the GAP. I thought he had a contender in S1, but his squad wobbled all the way to a 71-91 finish. Last year, I thought I was going to only have to get by the Rays to win the AL South, but sergei's boys came out of nowhere.

Speaking of the Rays, "Big Nick" Alexander is looking at a two-month stint on the DL. Tampa Bay will need to keep it close over the next 60 or so games to make a run in the second half.

I'm thrilled to get off to a hot 11-3 start, of course. I don't have a .786 team, but I have the GAP lead in runs scored, at 115. I've done it without my .300/20/100 SS, Clark Hardy, who is about to come off the DL. 24 y/o Michael Cedeno (1092 OPS) has filled in awfully well at 2B, with Jose Silva moving to SS. Silva has struggled, so it will likely be him going to the bench when Hardy gets back. 23 y/o 3B Pedro Jose (1029 OPS) has stepped in nicely as well, and of course, my boy Theo Haney is putting up a 1078 OPS at just 21 years of age.

My younger players have to keep it up, as I have no cap room to pick up any vets. I'm paying S1 FA signees Rizzo and Hudler a combined $38,300,000 this year (and next). My two rookie SPs, Vosberg and McCartney, are a combined 3-0 with 2.74 and 4.58 ERAs. If they can keep it up, and Faulk and Hudler keep doing their thing, I might be able to wire-to-wire this thing.

Statistical Leaders

2007-01-30T12:58:00.000-08:00

A quick recap of the career leaders in some key statistical categories:

HITTING
BA - Oscar Nunnally (Oak) - .352
HR - Wally Hunter (Tex) - 131
RBI - CC Hutton (Oak) - 350
R - Sterling Phillips (KC) - 310
H - Sterling Phillips (KC) - 423
2B - Midre Melendez (Pit) - 96
3B - Raymond Goldman (Fla) - 53
SB - Chris Burks (Mil) - 163
BB - Chris Burks (Mil) - 277
OBP - Oscar Nunnally (Oak) - .476
SLG - Wally Hunter (Tex) - .702
OPS - Oscar Nunnally (Oak) - 1.169
Streak - Carlos Campos (Mil) - 40
PA - Sterling Phillips (KC) - 1,559

PITCHING
ERA - Greg Stewart (Cle) - 2.78
W - Greg Stewart (Cle) - 44
WPct- Brandon Freeman (Sea) - .833 (30-6)
K - Greg Stewart (Cle) - 426
G - Chuck Torres (NYM) - 186
IP - Nick Alexander (TB) - 593
CG - Nick Alexander (TB) - 26
ShO - Nick Alexander (TB) - 7
Sv - Wes White (Sea) - 101

That's all for now.

No tie-breakers in the blog

2007-01-30T12:08:00.000-08:00

Thanks to hatt for allowing me to contribute to his blog. While I was a little peeved about my S2 Final Power Rankings snub (as if a second-straight tie-breaker loss wasn't painful enough!), time has healed my wounds and I feel good about my squad and fired up for GAP S3.

For my first set of posts, I want to recap some stats from our first two seasons. Here is hatt's overall franchise W/L he posted in the forum. I added RS and RA, along with Pythagorean Winning Percentage:

Rk Tm. WPct .W. .L. .RS. .RA. Pyth
1. Oak .694 225- 99 2436 1535 .716
2. SF. .614 199-125 1802 1433 .613
3. Atl .602 195-129 1805 1414 .620
4. Sea .593 192-132 1824 1553 .580
5. TB. .580 188-136 1703 1438 .584
5. KC. .580 188-136 2236 1750 .620
5. NYM .580 188-136 1487 1263 .581
8. Cle .571 185-139 1863 1557 .589
9. Det .559 181-143 1914 1603 .588
10 Ana .555 180-144 1908 1798 .530
11 Mil .549 178-146 1870 1642 .565
12 Fla .540 175-149 1582 1448 .544
13 CWS .537 174-150 1931 1715 .559
14 Hou .534 173-151 1868 1740 .535
15 StL .528 171-153 1602 1501 .533
16 Pit .522 169-155 1771 1578 .557
17 ChC .519 168-156 1829 1679 .543
18 Tex .515 167-157 2035 1834 .552
19 Mem .494 160-164 1870 1747 .534
19 Az. .494 160-164 1640 1666 .492
21 LA. .475 154-170 1572 1597 .492
22 Cin .457 148-176 1579 1767 .444
23 Bal .451 146-178 1668 1839 .451
23 Cha .451 146-178 1496 1670 .445
25 Bos .448 145-179 1821 2407 .364
26 Phi .417 135-189 1468 1769 .408
27 Tor .401 130-194 1630 1997 .400
28 SD. .398 129-195 1361 1777 .370
29 Min .386 125-199 1763 2037 .428
30 NYY .373 121-193 1849 2258 .401
31 Was .346 112-212 1415 2140 .304
32 Van .238 .77-247 1510 2956 .207

It is really amazing how accurate the Pythagorean formula is. Of 32 teams, 11 are within 10 percentage points. I was hoping to find out that my Royals weren't the unluckiest team in the GAP. Sure enough, there are the hard-luck Twins at -42. (The Royals and the Blues are both -40.)

On the other end of the spectrum, the Red Sox appear to have vibrating horseshoes jammed 19 feet up their asses. They are 84 percentage points better than expected. No other team is more than 42. Odd. Too bad they are wasting all their luck during these non-contending years.

I can't be sure if it is all just dumb luck. The Royals bullpen has always been shaky--could that be the cause for not living up to the expected winning percentage? Does my squad lose more than its share of close games due to weakness closing things out?

I used (like WIS) the standard exponent of 2 in calculating these (more detail below if you are interested).

From baseballreference.com:

Pythagorean winning percentage is an estimate of a team's winning percentage given their runs scored and runs allowed. Developed by Bill James, it can tell you when teams were a bit lucky or unlucky. It is calculated by

(Runs Scored)^1.83
----------------------------------------
(Runs Scored)^1.83 + (Runs Allowed)^1.83

The traditional formula uses an exponent of two, but this has proven to be a little more accurate.

FASTFORWARD Chicago Cubs Roster Analysis Part One

2007-01-23T11:25:00.000-08:00

As many in the GAP have noticed, Chicago is undergoing a nearly complete rebuilding effort. Here is a basic rundown of what the Cub's management has accomplished for the future. We'll start with the Pitching Staff this week, and go into the lineup a little later on.

PITCHING STAFF

SP1: Richard Hyun (28)

Already a dominant force in the Majors, Hyun has monumentally improved from the start of Season 1 to the end of Season 2. His Season 2 line was really the only reason the Cubs were able to finish .500 and not sink to the NL cellar. After posting a 12-5 record with an ERA of 2.96, Hyun is ready to take the reigns as the staff ace come Season 3 and beyond. With Travis Seabol and Geronimo Olivares out of town, and Louie Foster and Edgardo Pena leaving after Season 3, Hyun will be the staff vet, at a whopping age of 28.

SP2: Johnny Buck (22)

Buck's meteoric rise to the ML fringe have been well documented in the Windy City. Although he may still be a couple years from attaining true phenom status, Buck is certainly impressing in AAA, going 14-6 with a 3.22 ERA in Season 2 in his first full stint with the I-Cubs. This former 18th overall pick is surely proving his place among the top picks in the Season 1 draft.

SP3: Willie Ordonez (20)

Chicago won the international bidding war on the 20 year old Cuban-defect when they offered him a 10mil bonus towards the end of Season 2. The 10mil seems like a steal after Ordonez immediately paid dividends in High A then AAA, going 5-2 with an ERA of 3.45 in 10 starts combined at the two stops. He may only be 20 years old, but Ordonez could be ready to make his ML debut in a year or two. One thing's for sure, the big wigs in Chicago are going to be keeping a close eye at the Iowa rotation come September call-ups.

SP4: Pete Frascatore (19)

With the 20th pick in the season 2 draft, the Chicago Cubs selected this little known Paterson, NJ soft-tosser. But after a dominating second half of Season 2, the comparisons to Jamie Moyer are simply deafening. Pete proved a steal with only a 2.2mil bonus, going 10-1 in 17 mixed A starts, compiling an ERA of only 3.08 and a OAV of only .232. He'll start the season at HighA, but look for Frascatore and his nasty Forkball to climb up the Minor League ranks fast.

SP5: Carl Upshaw (19)

Acquired in the off-season for aging Cubs closer Cooper Hoffman, Upshaw has all the makings of a staff ace come season 6 or 7. This Deerfield Beach, FL product boasts all kinds of upside that has Cubs management licking their chops. With a plus Split Fastball to compliment his dominant 4-seamer, Upshaw will most likely be eating up hitters in LowA to start the season, but could be up to AA come September.

SP6: Rich Allen (22)

Although he's technically already hit the Major's with the Rays, Allen looks to see some time in the Cub's farm system before he's really ready to contribute with the big league team. With a wicked Sinker and an extremely accurate Slider, Allen looks only a year or so off from being near the top of the Chicago rotation.

LR: C.J. Tatum (26)
LR: Anthony Randolph (23)

SU: Moises Gabriel (23)
SU: Dave Roosevelt (21)

CL: Luis Molina (22)
CL: Carlos Marin (23)

2007-01-13T19:53:00.000-08:00

WORLD CHAMPIONS
Congratulations to Jakaitis and the San Francisco Giants on their World Series Victory!!

Season Ending Power Rankings

2007-01-04T07:51:00.000-08:00

Season Ending Power Rankings

Great American Pastime
Thursday January 4th
Season 2

The playoffs are upon us, and as Season 2 of the GAP comes to a close, we take a look back on a season that has provided a couple of surprises, yet ended up somewhat predictable. For this final ranking, MVP, Cy Young and Rookie of the Year awards for each team will be examined. Good luck in the playoffs guys! (Hope to see you there next year...)

FYI - Just to clear things up, the MVP for these rankings is solely an offensive MVP, so I can clearly designate the best of each lineup and pitching staff through the MVP and Cy Young. Not to say there aren't pitchers who are the most valuable player on their team (such as the entire Mets staff).

1. Oakland A's (110-52) LW (1)
(MVP) OSCAR NUNNALLY - The scary thing about Nunnally is that he has yet to play close to a full 162 game season. There were many options here, namely C.C. Hutton, Allan Hamilton and Clyde Valentin, but Oscar takes the cake, mainly due to his .359 BA and 1.141 OPS.

(Cy Young) EUGENE PARKINSON - On a team dominated by a bruising offense, the pitching sometimes is overlooked. Few noticed the excellent season put together by the 30 year old out of Colorado. Everyone expected Oakland's starters to win games, then again, a 15 win season could be had with a 5.50 ERA. Parkinson was a little better than that, going 18-6 with a 3.02 ERA and an impressive WHIP of 1.13.

(ROY) PASCUAL SAMUEL - Just an FYI, this spot (and perhaps the two spots above it) are reserved for the day Victor Palacios hits the big leagues. But for now, Pascual Samuel takes the cake. The 22 year old Dominican Fireballer may be the best pitching prospect not named Palacios in the entire GAP. After giving up 5 ER in .2 innings in his December 15th debut, Samuel did not have another bad outing, going 4-1 with a 2.49 ERA and 43 Ks in 47 IP.

2. San Francisco Giants (105-57) LW (4)
(MVP) MILTON JAMESON - A tough pick between Jameson and Ivan Bechler, Jameson gets the slight edge due to his run-creating ability. Only playing in 127 games due to injury, Jameson made the most of his opportunity, scoring 103 runs and collecting 170 hits in his limited ABs. Bechler and Magglio Gomez may provide the punch, but Jameson holds the lineup together and has provided just what the Giants need at the top of the order.

(Cy Young) CLARENCE COOKE - And he's only 24! The young righty out of Jersey has simply dominated in season 2, posting 21 wins and an ERA of 3.27 and allowing an opposing average of only .251. Cooke has been everything and more for the Giants, leading the team in nearly every pitching category (39 GS, 266 IP, 193 Ks). The scary thing is, he hasn't even hit his prime yet.

(ROY) ALBERT RAMIREZ - A leader for league ROY as well, the 22 year old Mexico native has been nothing short of stellar in 30 starts since being brought up early in the season. An ERA over 5 in AAA didn't worry Giants management, as he was brought up with confidence and has returned amazing numbers since (17-10 / 3.27 ERA in 30 GS). Alongside Clarence Cooke, this Giants staff should be stacked for years to come.

3. New York Mets (101-61) LW (6)
(MVP) NIPSEY MORRIS - Really the only consistent offensive threat for the Mets, Morris is only 28 and is definitely in the prime of his career. My thoughts have always been that Morris could be the best leadoff guy in the GAP, and he is only proving he belongs with the best after a terrific season of part-time production in New York.

(Cy Young) BOSCO JEFFERSON - Oh how it hurts to write this! Bosco has been nothing short of spectacular for the Metropolitans in season 2. After missing some time with injury, Jefferson has rebounded to start 30 games, winning 16 and losing only 3, and posting an ERA just a shade above 2. It's hard for this writer to admit it, but Bosco has been the most dominating pitcher in the entire GAP this season. At least Eugene Hackman won a gold glove...

(ROY) JASON RAY - Filling out the end of the rotation for the Mets this year, Ray has not been dominant, but he has done just enough to win games for the best team in the Big Apple. Ray doesn't have amazing stuff, but he knows how to locate his pitches and simply doesn't make mistakes.

4. Cleveland Indians (101-61) LW (4)
(MVP) LATROY FRANCO - The powerhouse in a very productive lineup, Franco may have regressed a little from Season 1, but his production was nonetheless outstanding. Not only did the 30 year old Texan smash 50 dingers and drive in 155, he also scored 136 runs and swiped 22 bases.

(Cy Young) GREG STEWART - Near the top of the AL in nearly every pitching category, Montana's native son has proved he deserves to be in the limelight. After going 25-4 in 38 GS with and ERA of 2.90 and 237 Ks, Stewart now has the challenge of taking down the best in the AL as he faces Texas in hopes of advancing to the Season 2 World Series. No one short of Bosco Jefferson has been as dominating as this 29 year old righty.

(ROY) TROT MCENROE - He may not have the most impressive numbers, due to his lack of experience, but McEnroe may be the most important rook this season. With stellar closer Yorrick Brand out for nearly 5 months after elbow surgery, McEnroe has stepped in to fill the void quite impressively. If anything, he is proving his worth as a premier setup man going into season 3.

5. Seattle Mariners (99-63) LW (3)
(MVP) JUAN TORREALBA - There really isn't an offensive threat on the Mariners balanced offense that stands out atop the others, but Torrealba is as close as it comes. In an offense relying on top-to-bottom efficiency, Torrealba is brings a little punch to the table, hitting .304 with 35 HRs and 102 RBI.

(Cy Young) WES WHITE - Fireman of the Year hardly does justice to the season this midwestern boy has put together. Setting a GAP record with 58 saves in 63 chances, White has been unbelievable in Season 2. Even more impressive, he has given up only 19 runs in nearly 62 innings pitched. Even being a reliever, White should challenge for not only the FOY, but the AL Cy Young as well.

(ROY) KERRY KIESCHNICK - There aren't too many rooks on this veteran-laden M's club, but Kieschnick did provide some much needed help in the field at 3B. This defensive dynamo should be a vacuum at the hot corner for years to come.

6. Texas Rangers (96-66) LW (5)
(MVP) WALLY HUNTER - What a season! After smashing 61 homers in Season 1, few critics thought this southern slugger would match, let alone improve himself in Season 2. Hunter has proven himself as the top power hitter in the league, hammering 70 dingers with 164 RBI. If only his success could carry into the postseason...

(Cy Young) GARRETT KNIGHT - There weren't too many bright spots on the Texas staff this year, but Knight was definitely one of them. With a juggernaut offense to back him, this Denver native is relishing in the Texas heat, ending with a Season 2 record of 16-4 with an impressive ERA of 3.70 in one of the GAP's biggest hitters parks.

(ROY) JEFF PARK/KYLE MILTON - It was a very tough decision between the two, so it had to come down to Co-ROYs. Park was a spark for the Rangers high powered offense, hitting .335 with 22 homers and 102 RBI with 117 runs scored. Milton, however, was the other bright spot on the otherwise dismal Rangers pitching staff. Leading the team in ERA at 3.56, Milton won 10 games in 45 GP (19 GS) and lost only 4. Both should be rocks for this organization for years to come.

7. Atlanta Braves (94-68) LW (8)
(MVP) JOE LINDEN - Linden was simply an all-around stud in Season 2, and the scary thing is, he's just entering his prime. The only Brit in the GAP powered the Braves to the top wild card spot, hitting .303 with 30 HRs and 115 RBI to go along with 118 runs scored and an impressive 37 SBs. Watch out for Linden and Mark Moore in the years to come, as the Braves are building a powerhouse to counter the impressive Mets pitching.

(Cy Young) MALACHI CARSON - Flying a little bit under the radar this season, Carson was overshadowed by Linden and Moore, but may have been more important than both. Carson started 31 games in Season 2, going 16-7 with a spectacular 2.62 ERA. If only he could stay 32 forever...

(ROY) VICTOR MERCADO - So I don't think he really counts as a rook, but the Braves don't really have a true ROY candidate, so Mercado is the closest to fit the bill. He pitched 39 innings last year, but his breakout season really came in Season 2. The soft-tossing Dominican started 30 games this year, going 13-8 with an ERA just a shade over 4. With young guns such as Mercado, Linden and Moore, this Braves team should be stacked for years to come.

8. Tampa Bay Rays (96-66) LW (7)
(MVP) TONY YOSHII - The "Fighting Fukuokan" as he's known by, well, one of his teammates who happens to love the word Fukuokan, has continued to blossom for resurgent Rays in Season 2. The 27 year old hit .308 with 26 jacks and 123 RBI to go along with 112 runs scored and 23 stolen bases. He is the key to the Rays success along with the guy mentioned immediately below.

(Cy Young) NICK ALEXANDER - "Big Nick" as he's commonly known around the league threw an amazing 286 innings in Season 2 was the key cog in the Rays playoff run. As a couple teams were a "Big Nick" away from a wild card spot, the Rays were a "Big Nick" ahead of the competition the entire season. After winning 21 games and throwing an eye-popping 16 complete games, Alexander proved himself to be one of the top and most durable pitchers in the GAP.

(ROY) ENRIQUE GUILLEN - Guillen along with Rich Allen have provided the Rays a couple of future top of the rotation guys who really flourished in Season 2. While Allen isn't truly a rookie, Guillen is, and while only winning 1 game, he started 7 and pitched 67 innings with a decent ERA of 3.90. He may just be the best Venezuelan to hit the GAP in the first couple seasons, and has an extremely bright future ahead of him.

9. Milwaukee Brewers (90-72) LW (9)
(MVP) JIMMIE IGLESIAS - Iglesias barely won the award over Carlos Campos due to his extreme overachieving. Campos lived up to his Season 1 NL MVP billing, and while his Season 2 numbers weren't quite as impressive, he still hit his stride from day one. Iglesias, however, broke out with 50 HRs, 128 RBI and 104 runs scored. For a man known by critics as a "free swinger" and to have "no coordination" he definitely surprised some people.

(Cy Young) LORENZO TABAKA - After all that retirement talk following Season 1, Tabaka silenced the same critics judging Jimmie Iglesias. "Carefree" as his teammates know him, started 31 games, going 17-6 with an ERA of only 3.35. Here's to another season or two!

(ROY) REID RIVERS - Although his 5.10 ERA isn't too impressive, Rivers was an innings eater and a decent end of the rotation guy for the Brewers. He started 19 games, going 10-11 and holding opponents to a .257 average. With great control and a couple of plus pitches, Rivers should be a stalwart in the Brewers rotation for years to come.

10. Pittsburgh Pirates (88-74) LW (NR)
(MVP) DEAN SWANN - Many would say from his 42 dingers and 127 RBI that Chris Baker would be the runaway favorite for the Pirates team MVP, but Swann would have to say otherwise. Swann is the kind of all-around talent any team would kill for. With a line that reads .301/.392/.538/.930 with 22 HRs, 101 RBI, 114 runs scored, 44 doubles and 13 three-baggers, Swann seems to do everything right.

(Cy Young) THOMAS AGUILERA - The rubber-armed wonder only gets better with age. The prize of the Cliff Simms trade for the Pirates, Aguilera has been lights out as Pittsburgh's closer, saving 28 of 29 games with an ERA just above 2.00. With two good pitches and equal strengths against righties and lefties, Aguilera could still dominate for a couple more years to come.

(ROY) DAN AUSMUS - The New York native has been strong at the end of the rotation for the Pirates, going 7-5 in 20 starts with an ERA a shade under 4.00. His exceptional combination of control and velocity make up for his lack of a plus pitch and should keep his career steady for years to come.

2006-12-17T17:08:00.000-08:00

Week 7 Power Rankings

Great American Pastime
Sunday December 17th
Season 2

After a 2 week hiatus, the power rankings are back for the playoff push. This week we'll try something different, lemme know whatcha guys think. Its been a long 2 weeks before I had time to get these out, got done with finals, then immediately came down with strep throat. But there's gonna be alot more time now, so not only should you look forward to better rankings, but also a better Cubs team in the coming weeks!

1. Oakland A's (82-37) LW (1)
( + ) Pick one from the lineup...Allan Hamilton, C.C. Hutton, Oscar Nunnally, Todd Linebrink, Clyde Valentin, even Jack Perry and Jon File...there isn't one player in the starting lineup that wouldn't be a star on any other team.

( - ) I guess you could say Garrett Phillips is having a bad year, with a 6.60 ERA and a 1.53 WHIP...but then again, he is still 7-4 and allowing an OAV of only .246. There really isn't a dark spot to be seen on this team.

2. Cleveland Indians (77-42) LW (2)
( + ) Latroy Franco (.286/35/121) and Yorrick Rowand (84 R/52 SB) lead this suddenly explosive offense, which seems to be the only one worthy of challenging the A's for the weekly #1 spot. Don't forget the other Yorrick, as Yorrick Brand is 28 of 31 for saves with an ERA of 2.16.

( - ) Dan Cook (.193) and Miller Roberts (.249) continue to struggle offensively for the 2nd year in a row, and Lonny Lowry (5.36 ERA) is still struggling to find his niche on the staff.

3. Seattle Mariners (74-45) LW (4)
( + ) Juan Torrealba (.316/31/89) and Bobby Ford (.307/21/78) lead an offense that is backed by one of the strongest pitching staffs in the GAP. Wes White (40 of 45 SVO) just might be in the running for the Cy Young as well...quite an accomplishment for a reliever.

( - ) Louie Manuel (5.28 ERA) looks like he's lost it after a solid Season 1, and while Gregory Barber has 21 HR and 83 RBI, his .217 Avg is not so impressive.

4. San Francisco Giants (74-45) LW (3)
( + ) Milton Jameson (.300/25 SB) is thriving in the leadoff spot, while Albert Young (25 of 27 SVO) refuses to let a game slip past him. The Giants continue to hold a solid grip on the NL West.

( - ) Gene Stevenson (.246 Avg) has a lot to learn before he can be the All-Star Giant's fans are expecting.

5. Texas Rangers (75-44) LW (NR)
( + ) If not for Wally Hunter (.304/58/140), Yannick Reboulet (.326/37/105) might be running away with the AL MVP. Too bad Hunter's already sitting in Arlington rubbing it for good luck...

( - ) Even Jeremy Henderson (6.58 ERA) is wondering why he's started 14 games...

6. New York Mets (71-48) LW (6)
( + ) One writer is still scratching his head wondering how Bosco Jefferson (10-3 / 1.99 ERA) was so bad for the Cubs in the first half of Season 1. Ralph Ryan (28 Sv/2.57 ERA) joins the previously mentioned Wes White of the M's and Albert Young of the Giants as one of the top 3 closers in the GAP.

( - ) If the pitching staff is holding this team together, it's the lineup that's trying to tear it apart. Ted Hogan (58 RBI)and Courtney Kennedy (.246 Avg) lead this group of underachievers, who, if they ever play to their potential, could get this team well over 100 wins.

7. Tampa Bay Rays (70-49) LW (NR)
( + ) A newcomer to the rankings, the Rays have surprised the league as the 7th and final 70 win team so far, led by 2B Tony Yoshii (.309/19/97) and SPs Willie Santana (12-7/3.52) and Nick Alexander (13-9/3.81).

( - ) Miguel Torres (.251/8/41) has the 3rd most ABs on the team, but not much to show for it, while Wascar Olmedo (.247/21/73) isn't quite living up to the hype.

8. Atlanta Braves (69-50) LW (7)
( + ) Since coming over from the Astros earlier in the season, Bobby Messmer (.301/13/59 in 85 G) has provided the much needed spark for Joe Linden (.310/24/87) and the Braves lineup, while Malachi Carson (12-5/2.53) has been lights out for the staff.

( - ) Joaquin Cairo (7.70 ERA) is finally back where he belongs...the minors, while Zephyr Bennett (5.81 ERA) is wondering if he might be next.

9. Milwaukee Brewers (67-52) LW (5)
( + ) Carlos Campos (.282/35/100) is hard at work defending his Season 1 MVP, while Jimmie Iglesias, Kennie Smart, Rod Duffy, Tony Iwazaki, Bret Fiore and Craig Osbourne each have over 24 HRs as well.

( - ) Benji Corbin (.230/0/7 in 114 AB) is NOT making the most of his pinch hitting opportunities, while Cal Reynolds (1.72 WHIP) can't seem to hit the strike zone.

10. Kansas City Royals (68-51) LW (8)
( + ) Jose Mota (.272)32/122) and Artie Rizzo (.300/27/97) lead a smoltering hot offense ready to make a charge in the tight AL South. Theodore Haney (.301/16/50 in 76 G) has been a force since being brought up from AAA.

( - ) The pitching staff could use a little work if these Royals are going to make a push for the playoffs. Starters Diego Samuel (5.83 ERA) and Joe Faulk (5.55 ERA) need to step it up if KC wants to prove they're for real.

GAP Week 5 Power Rankings

2006-12-04T08:15:00.000-08:00

Week 5 Power Rankings

Great American Pastime
Monday December 4th
Season 2

An exciting week here in the Great American Pastime World. We have a new #1 for the first time in weeks, and some streaking teams in both directions, providing what should make for one interesting 2nd half of the season.

1. Oakland A's (55-28) LW (2)
The reigning GAP champs get the edge over the streaking Indians even though their record is one game worse. Their 15 game win streak just came to an end (dexoo, can't you just see another one starting right back up?). This is one dreaded lineup. C.C. Hutton exploded this week, and his numbers are starting to look more like the "out of this world" numbers we saw last season. Through 70 games, he is hitting .307 with 34 HRs and 84 RBI.

2. Cleveland Indians (56-27) LW (3)
If it weren't for the A's, this team would be a no brainer at the #1 spot. They just finished an 8 game win streak, and followed that one loss with a couple of convincing wins (albeit over the Mounties). The Indians are proving themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the AL, with Latroy Franco leading the way. Hutton better watch out, as Franco's #s are frighteningly similar (.307/26/92). The only problem I can see in this teams future is a drop off in the drive department, as they already hold a 20 game lead in the AL East.

3. San Francisco Giants (53-30) LW (6)
The Giants are out to prove to the AL that the NL is not going to take it lying down. They are only 5-5 after a 14 game win streak, but still hold a commanding 10 game lead in the NL West. Clarence Cooke and Albert Young are holding the staff together. Cooke is 11-4 with an ERA of 2.82, while Young has converted 17 of 18 save opportunities.

4. Seattle Mariners (52-31) LW (1)
A steep fall this week for the team who had held the #1 spot for so long. It's not like the Mariners are playing poorly, they just happen to be in the same division as the A's. It may be too early to say, but it looks like the AL West has changed guard this week, and the M's know it. Frustration is starting to take effect, as "oh shut it train"s are heard resonating in Safeco Field. The bright spot? Brandon Freeman is 11-2 and Harry Wilfredo owns a 2.99 ERA.

5. Milwaukee Brewers (50-33) LW (4)
The NL North is going to be a dogfight all year long, but if talent proves victorious, the Brewers should come out on top. Reigning MVP Carlos Campos has "struggled" to a .299 AVG and 26 HRs already. But in this writer's opinion, success lies in the right hand of Jeffrey Banks. Banks is 13 of 14 in SVO, and sports an amazing 0.47 ERA and a WHIP of only 0.78! Critics last year called for his retirement, but Banks has responded in the most impressive of fashions.

6. New York Mets (51-32) LW (8)
The epitome of "small-ball", the Mets have been on a tear lately. The pitching staff has been mentioned every week, but it's time for some of the unsung heroes to be noticed. Nipsey Morris is batting .359, and with a little more of an opportunity, could prove to be the best leadoff man in the business. Oh, and Jeff Cuyler and Ted Hogan are starting to heat up. Watch out for the Mets, because they won't give up more than a couple runs a game, and now that they're hitting, they're gonna be hard to stop.

7. Atlanta Braves (51-32) LW (7)
The Braves fell behind the Mets this week, even though for the 2nd week in a row, they've had the exact same record. They seemed to have leveled off a bit after an impressive turnaround in the past couple weeks. Still, this team has the potential for greatness, with sluggers Joe Linden and Mark Moore leading the charge. Linden has been very impressive in not only hitting 17 dingers, but hitting .314, swiping nearly 30 bases, and scoring 70 runs.

8. Kansas City Royals (48-35) LW (10)
What is there to say about Jose Mota? The man's a beast! He is 2nd in the majors with 92 RBI to add to 25 HRs and 72 runs scored. His protection isn't too shabby either. There are 6 players on the team with 55+ RBI, and all 6 have over 93 hits. Even the pitchers are starting to put it together, as Tony Hudler has 8 CGs and owns a record of 12-5. If the rest of the staff adds things up and starts playing to their potential, this could be a 100 win team in the making.

9. Florida Marlins (45-38) LW (9)
They may not score many runs, and they may not win pretty, but what the Marlins know how to do is simply win baseball games. The unsung hero on this team has to be Tomas Prieto. Only given 7 SVO, he has converted 6, and is holding opponents to an average a shade over .200. Given an extended opportunity to close games is all he has needed to prove he belongs with the big boys.

10. Chicago Cubs (45-38) LW (NR)
Okay, so I had alot of teams to choose from for the 10th spot this week, and in the end, it came down to the Rangers or the Cubs. This writer may be a little biased, but the Cubs have done alot to prove themselves as contenders after narrowly missing the playoffs in season 1. Yesterday, Larry Charlton sent a message to the NL that he has arrived, smacking 2 HRs and driving in 6 in his first game as a Cub. But the men holding it together this year have to be Victor Parra and Jerry Boudreau. Respectively hitting .336/29/74 and .290/21/79, these two men have sparked an offense that is making up for a dissapointing performance from the pitching staff. Especially reigning ROY Travis Seabol, who is 4-10 with a disgusting ERA of 5.55 and a WHIP of 1.67.

GAP Week 4 Power Rankings

2006-11-29T12:10:00.000-08:00

Week 4 Power Rankings

Great American Pastime
Monday November 27th
Season 2

So this is somewhat of what I envision the power rankings to look like, I will be dinking around with settings and such till Sunday, but come week 5, everything should be just about straightened out.

1. Seattle Mariners (41-23) LW (1)
Three straight weeks at the top for the M's. As good as the A's have been lately (7 straight as of the posting of this article), the M's have done an amazing job of holding the defending champs off. Brandon Freeman is putting together a strong case for the first half Cy Young, compiling a record of 10-2 in 13 games started, throwing 3 complete games and one shutout. His competition for the award? Wes White, his closer, who is 24 of 27 in SVO, allowing an outstanding average of .189. But who's that sneaking up from the 2 spot?

2. Oakland A's (39-25) LW (4)
Where to start with this offense? The numbers speak for themselves: Allan Hamilton (.328/20/60) C.C. Hutton (.315/26/66) Oscar Nunnally (49 BBs in 55 GP) Clyde Valentin (60 R / 13of13 SB) Todd Linebrink (.312/57 R). They've only scored 449 runs already!! The dogfight between the A's and the M's will surely be one for the ages.

3. Cleveland Indians (42-22) LW (3)
Sure they benefit residing in a weak division, but these Indians are not to be taken lightly. Cy Young frontrunner Greg Stewart is already 11-2 in 16 GS with an ERA of only 2.67. The reason he wins so many of those games? Yorrick Brand, who is 19 of 22 in SVO with a WHIP of only 0.95. I've got next Wednesday in the "day the Indians clinch the AL East" pool.

4. Milwaukee Brewers (41-23) LW (5)
Arguably the best division in the GAP, The Brewers have been near unbeatable lately. They've stretched their two game lead to 6 over the Cubs and 7 over the Pirates and Reds. Carlos Campos will get all the pub (and deservingly so) but don't take the rest of this team lightly. Jimmie Iglesias already has 22 HRs, Craig Osbourne is hitting .414, and Chris Burks has already stolen 26 bases. The pitching's not too bad either, as Preston Kendall (11-2/2.91/.204OAV) leads a staff holding opponnents to a .245 OAV.

5. Texas Rangers (40-24) LW (NR)
After going 0-18 in Spring Training, the Rangers have proven themselves as contenders in the GAP and especially in the competitive AL South. They suddenly zoomed right past the slumping Rays to take over the South lead, and are powered by slugging 2B Wally Hunter who already has compiled 31 HRs and 72 RBI. Like their MLB counterpart, the pitching staff is a little lacking, but the lineup is more than enough to compensate.

6. San Francisco Giants (39-25) LW (2)
Sinking a little bit from the two spot last week, the Giants aren't likely to stay put at #6. Magglio Gomez (.304/20/69) and Ivan Bechler (.373/14/37) have this offense hitting on all cylinders. The pitching is led by 24 year old stud Clarence Cooke (8-4/2.69/.243OAV) and Albert Young (13of14 SVO). Expect a jump up in the coming weeks for one of the NL's fiercest competitors.

7. Atlanta Braves (39-25) LW (NR)
This was a very hard decision between the Braves and Mets for the 7th and 8th spots in the rankings, but I had to take the team that has won 3 straight over the team that has lost 2 in a row. Other than that, there really isn't a huge difference between the two. Both are 8-2 in the last 10, the Braves have the better lineup, but the Mets have the better staff. Both will most likely make the playoffs, but which will win the divison?

8. New York Mets (39-25) LW (7)
This pitching staff is just unreal. The #s speak for themselves:
Cliff Simms - 3.19 ERA / .207 OAV / 1.04 WHIP
Nicky Hemphill - 2.59 ERA / .217 OAV / 1.06 WHIP
Bosco Jefferson - 2.52 ERA / .218 OAV / 1.06 WHIP
Ralph Ryan - 1.21 ERA / .173 OAV / 0.81 WHIP / 14-17 SV
Houston Mann - 2.37 ERA / .172 OAV / 1.03 WHIP / 33 GP

Now if only the bats can wake up...

9. Florida Marlins (37-27) LW (6)
The pitching has always been there, but the offense is starting to click, and that makes these Marlins an incredibly dangerous team. Charlie Clark is hitting .332 with 60 RBI, and Wiki Pena (the Cubs worst enemy) has already scored 54 runs. Even more impressive? The Marlins hold a road record of 14-8, proving they can play away from their sunny home.

10. Kansas City Royals (34-30) LW (NR)
They've actually scored more runs than the A's, but the Royals are still 6 games back from the Rangers. Recently promoted stud Theodore Haney is playing quite well despite critics views of an early callup. If the early season says anything, it's that the Royals are going to need all the offense they can get. Pairing Haney up with Jose Mota presents one of the most dangerous 1-2 punches in all of the GAP. Watch out for these Royals, they will only get better.