Sim's Done

Game Date:  12/21/2022

My apologies.  I know the sim was due on Thursday night, but real work caught up with me.

Signings:
The following players were signed to minor league contracts:
C Ralph Peters, with Ohio (Maui)
P Matt Stevens with Houston (Maui)
P Tony Gonsales with Ohio (last with Los Angeles in 2016!!)
3B Shunsho Nakamura with Ohio (Maui)

Injuries:
Antelope Valley 2B Robert Camarena was injured with an unspecified injury and has retired.
'
News:
The 2022 Amateur Draft Pool is now available.  Click the links to see the pitchers and position players.

Next sim:  Monday night.

Sim's Done

Game Date:  2/14/2022

Signings:
Atlanta signed SP Marcus Santoro (Houston) 3 yrs/$9m

Next sim:  Thursday night

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Feb 7, 2022

Signings:
Hickory signed 3B Kenneth Lea (Monck's Corner) 2 yrs/$9m
Altanta signed P Victor Valles (Maui) 1 yr/$500k
Atlanta signed P Tony Errico (Antelope Valley) 1 yr/$690k
Atlanta signed P Leo Carrero (Houston) 1 yr/$660k
Antelope Valley signed 1B Carl Watson to a 4yr/$20m extension
Shackamaxon signed P Alejandro Cruz (no previous team), minor league contract

Next sim:  Wednesday night

With Antelope Valley's acquisition of  2 new infielders, we are looking to move one or two spare infielders for Outfield help.  Will also consider a middle to back end of the rotation starting pitcher.  Looking mostly for a 1 to 1 trade, but will consider packaging 2 for a better player. 
Infielders being shopped:

Robert Camarena 2B
John Calvert 3B/SS
Theron Miller 1B
Hernando Albacete 2B/3B/SS


Also - does anyone want to give some general advice to newbie?  I've got a crap-ton of single star potential guys down in Single A, most quite young.  When do you give up on a one star player and just release him?  I assume having too many players will rob some of playing time and make it harder to develop them?  Is there a 'sweet-spot' for roster size in the lower minors?

Sim's Done -- Preseason Has Begun

Game Date:  1/31/2022

Signings:
Antelope Valley signed SS Ronald Quijada (Seattle) 3 yrs/$55m
Atlanta signed P Timothy Vallejo (Ohio) 1 yr/$600k
Houston signed P Franklin Erickson (Hickory) 2 yrs/$2.4m
Houston signed 1B Rod Young (New York), minor league contract
Houston signed P Lu-Fang Xiu (no prev team), minor league contract
Atlanta signed P Buster Ducharme (Shackamaxon), minor league contract
Atlanta signed P Trey Albarado (Brooklyn), minor league contract

Notes:
The preseason has begun.  Now is the time to adjust your scouting and player development budgets for the coming year.

Next sim:  Saturday night.

Sim's Done

Game Date:  1/24/2022

Signings:  Maui signed 2B Jason Lefebvre to a three year extension at $32.9m

Next sim:  Thursday night

And don't forget, if you haven't already done so, please check out our new Hall of Fame.

Zev

Announcing the Grand Opening of the Hall of Fame

As you all know, there are four players that are currently enshrined in our Hall of Fame.  However, other than a simple webpage listing of their stats, the Hall had no home.

I am pleased to announce that our new Hall of Fame has been dedicated and plaques honoring the four members have been constructed and installed.  You can find the link to the plaques at the top of this blog.

Hopefully, as more members are enshrined, I will have the pleasure of installing more plaques in our new Hall.

Zev Steinhardt

Sim's Done

Game Date:  1/17/2022

Signings:
Shackamaxon signed CF Tony Reyes (Hickory) 1 yr/$800k
Maui signed LF Dave Johnston (Atlanta) minor league contract
Shackamaxon signed P Sergio Alvarez (New York) minor league contract
Shackamaxon signed 2B Khatib bin Majd (Seattle) minor league contract
Ohio gave P Pedro Ramos a three year extension for $4.5m

Next sim:  Monday night

Last Men Standing

With the recent New Year retirements, I thought I would check in again on who is left from the early days of the league.

There are five players left from the original inaugural draft:

SP John Okane (MON, 6th round, pick #48)
2B Timothy Palacio (OH, 15th round, pick #113)
RF Christopher Moss (OH, 42nd round, pick # 329
2B Robert Camarena (ANT, 44th round, pick # 346)
LF Tyler Thomas (BAR, 44th round, pick # 348)

There is only one player left from the 2003 expansion where teams filled out their AAA rosters:

MR Dale Beene (HOU)

There are five players left from the 2003 amateur draft, which was eight rounds and which was the first amateur draft:


SS Ricky Peppers (ANT, 1st round, pick #2)
RP Junior Cuomo (SHK, 1st round, pick #7)
SP Fernando Estrada (SEA, 2nd round, pick #13)
SP Jeffrey Brunton (OH, 3rd round, pick #22)
RP Timothy Vallejo (SEA, 5th round, pick #37)

There is only one player left from the 2004 expansion where the teams again filled out their AAA rosters after expansion to 12 teams diluted the talent base:

SP Jeffrey Shuttleworth (MAU)

There are seven players left from the 2004 amateur draft, where due to a bug we didn't even have enough players to fill out seven rounds:

RF Brian Frison (BAR, 1st round, pick #2)

CF Kevin Rubio (NY, 1st round, pick #9)
RP Pedro Ramos (MON, 2nd round, pick #17)
SP Ronald Placencia (NY, 2nd round, pick #21)
SP Christopher Hester (SEA, 3rd round, pick #27)
RP Alfonso Cabaña (MON, 5th round, pick #53)
RP Tony Errico (NY, 7th round, pick #81)

Looking at later drafts:   2005:  10 active players 2006:  13 active players 2007:  24 active players 2008:  31 active players 2009:  26 active players 2010:  51 active players

Scouting and Player Development Budgets?

When can we adjust these?  I do not want to miss the short window.

Added A Bit of History

For those that are curious, I added a list of the #1 draft picks throughout the league's history.

There was no draft in 2012 and for 2013, I only found data for Round 3 and later.

Zev

Sim Done

Game Date: 1/10/2022

Signings:  None

Next sim:  Saturday night

Game update re-uploaded

Some people could not download the update from last night's sim.  It's very possible that I simply did something wrong.  So, I re-uploaded the update.

Game Date: 1/3/2022

Signings:
Ohio signed MR Pedro Ramos (Seattle) 2 yrs/$2.8m
Antelope Valley signed SP Dave Klien (discovered in Canada)  1 yr/$450k

Retirements of note (main team(s), years played, notes):
P Larry Young (Houston, 2018-20)
CF Charles Sallee (Cleveland, 2014-20)
P Joshua Lewis (Danville, 2013-20)
RF Hal Pires (Houston, 2009-20, 3x Slick Fielder, still only 32 years old)
C James Hardman (Walla Walla/Ohio, 2009-20)
C Herman Gossard (Houston/New York, 2008-20, 2095 career hits)
P James Cropper (Maui, 2010-21)
LF Miguel Cuesta (Brooklyn, 2006-20, Slick Fielder, 2139 hits, 403 HR, 1300 RBI)
3B Malik Harder (Houston 2014-20)
P Tomas Ramirez (Hickory 2015-20)
2B Donald Lor (Cleveland, 2013-20)
CF John Jacobs (Brooklyn, 2012-20)
CF Clarence Horta (Los Angeles 2015-20)
2B Albert Peavy (Saskatoon 2014-20)
SS Freddie Mejias (Houston 2013-20)
P Dwight Murphy (Houston, 2014-20)
P Santos Gonzales (many teams, 2005-20)
CF Lonnie Machen (Seattle, 2008-20)
LF David Kerry (Seattle, 2006-20, 374 HR, 1231 RBI)
SS Brett Garson (Ohio 2015-20)
1B Basil Napoles (Houston, 2012-15, 2020)
P David Roberts (Houston, 2007-20)
P James Flietas (Ohio, 2013-20)

Next sim:  Wednesday night

There Was A Sim Last Night

I just didn't wait for it to finish (it took a long time since it was the end of the year).  I'll post a summary later tonight.

Next sim:  Wednesday night.

Need power?

I'm toying with the idea of trading Sherman Evanoff. His low salary ($1.3m in 2022) and immense power (30-plus HR each of the past five seasons) make him both affordable and valuable.

I'm hoping to get some pitching help in exchange for Evanoff.

Let me know if you're interested in adding a middle-of-the-order power bat to your lineup.

-- Michael / Shackamaxon (michael@symbiola.com)

Sim's Done

Game Date:  12/27/2021

Signings:
Hickory signed the following players to minor-league contracts:

• C Gregory Graham (Hickory)
• 2B Jeffrey Dutil (Antelope Valley)
• LF Mario Lopez (Hickory)
• 1B Perry Peach (Shackamaxon)
• RF John Brooks (Antelope Valley)
• C Ramon Reyes (Antelope Valley)
• SS Taizo Tanaka (Shackamaxon)

Shackamaxon signed CF Pyeong-min Pae (New York) to a minor league contract.
Antelope Valley signed MR Ken Rogers (Maui) to a minor league contract.
Shackamaxon signed CF Juan Arroyo (no previous team) 1 yr/$450k
Ohio signed SP Pio Ramirez (Brooklyn) 4 yrs/ $41.2m

Next sim:  Monday night.

Sim Delayed, but done

Game Date:  12/20/2021

My apologies for the delay.  I was sick last night and went straight to bed when I got home.  I'm feeling somewhat better today.

Signings:
Shackamaxon signed CF Rich Harris (Brooklyn) to a minor league contract.
Ohio signed 2B Billy Cremeans (Houston) 3 yrs/$4.8m
Shackamaxon signed MR Billie Pfeiffer (Houston) 1 yr/$460K
Atlanta signed SS Richard Bender (Barstow) 5 yrs/$55m
Seattle signed SP Lan-Quing Shu (discovered in Taiwan) 1 yr/$450k.

Next sim:  Saturday night

Sim Done

Game Date:  12/13/2021

Signings:
Antelope Valley signed 3B Bruce Parker (Maui) 4 yrs/$55m
Shackamaxon signed P Donald Castanon (Hickory) 2 yrs/$2.2m
Hickory signed P Tuan Olmstead (Shackamaxon) 4 yrs/$22.9m
Ohio signed P Ethan Moyer (New York) 3 yrs/$10.6m
Altanta signed 3B Joseph Barnett (Shackamaxon) 2 yrs/$1.5m
Ohio signed P Jose Lopez (no previous team) 1 yr/$450k

Next sim:  Wednesday night

Sim Done

Game Date:  12/6/2021

Signings:
Maui signed MR Joseph Curry (Shackamaxon) 3 yrs/$3.9m
Houston signed MR Abel Phillips (Danville), minor league contact
Houston signed MR Luis Dardy (Monck's Corner) 1 yr/$510k
Antelope Valley signed SP John Okane (Hickory) 2 yrs/$2.7m
Atlanta signed SP Brad Buckley (New York) 2 yrs/$2.2m


Notes:
The owner of the Atlanta franchise emailed me concerning the Rule V draft.  He had selected Jesus Garcia, but the game did not actually select the player for him with the first pick.  As a result, Garcia was selected by Hickory.

I considered various alternatives before realizing that, unlike Solomon, I actually *can* split the baby.  As a result, I decided to clone Garcia and award the twin (Ramon "Copycat" Garcia) to Atlanta.

Please note that this is a one-time decision and should not be used as a precedent for any further player disputes.  I will try to figure out a way to prevent this from happening again in the future.

Next sim:  Monday night

No Sim

I didn't get to run the sim on Thursday night.  In addition, I have a question regarding the Rule V draft to adjudicate.  I'll go into details once I have a decision.

We'll try again on Saturday night.

Zev

Rule 5 Draft Results

Game Date:  12/2/2021

Draft Results:
Hickory:  MR Jesus Garcia (Barstow)
Houston: MR Eduardo Rodriguez (Hickory)
New York:  MR: Ramiro Martinez (Seattle)
Antelope Valley:  MR Jacobo Centono (Atlanta)

Next sim:  Thursday night.

No Sim Last Night...

I was at work until very late last night and did not get to run the sim.

However, that's probably for the best anyway, as more than one owner told me that they didn't feel that they had enough time to prepare for the Rule V draft.

So, we'll try again on Wednesday night. 

Zev

Rule V Draft

Game Date:  12/1/2021

Signings:
Ohio signs SS Daniel Burdine to a 2 yr/$2.9m contract.

The Rule V Draft will be conducted in the next sim on Monday night.

Zev

Sim's Done. Get Ready for the Rule V Draft

Game Date:  11/27/2021

Signings:
Monck's Corner signed SP Steven Savage (Atlanta, 1 yr/$850k)
New York signed CL Junior Cuomo (Shackamaxon, 3 yrs/$13.1m)
New York signed SP Jefferey Shuttleworth (Barstow, 1 yr/$990k)
Ohio signed MR Caleb Austin (New York, minor league contract)
Shackamaxon signed SP Joshua Fullen (Monck's Corner, 1 yr/$770k)
Shackamaxon signed CF Mone Goss (Atlanta, 1 yr/$950k)
Monck's Corner signed C Douglas Stiger (Brooklyn, 1 yr/$950k)
Brooklyn signed SP Kevin Kepner (Maui, 4yrs/$19.8m)
New York signed MR Sachi Nakamura (no previous team, 4 yrs/$7.72m)
Houston signed SP Bartolo Olivarez (New York, 2 yrs/2.1m)
Shackamaxon signed 1B Luis Lozano (no previous team, minor league contract)
Ohio signed RF Gabriel Alacorn (no previous team, minor league contract)

Next sim will be either Saturday night or Sunday morning and will go to the Rule V Draft.

Zev

Sim's Done

Game Date:  11/20/2021

Signings:
1B Luis Lozano (no previous team) signed with Shackamaxon (minor league contract).

Injury of the Sim:

Bijkerk Involved in Accident Thursday, November 18th, 2021 The Seattle Monarchs will be without the services of Bas Bijkerk for a while. He suffered an undisclosed injury recently. He reportedly injured it while awkwardly picking up his child. The Seattle center fielder will be on the shelf for at least one week.

In the future, please make sure that your players do not pick up their children awkwardly.

Next Sim:
Wednesday night

Sim's Done

Game Date:  11/13/2021

Next sim:  Monday night

Sim Was Run Last Night

Game Date:  11/6/2021

Time to pull out the checkbooks!  Free Agent bargains can be found in aisle 5.

Next sim:  Saturday night.

Sim's Done. Next stop: Free Agency

Next sim:  Wednesday night.

EDIT (11/14 8:43AM):  Yes, I realize I forgot to process the trades.  I'll take care of it in the next sim.

Zev

First Sale of the Offseason

The first purchase from Seattle's Bargain Bin has been made.  Pitcher Kieran Dickson heads to Hickory to help the Huskers turn around their disappointing 2021 campaign in exchange for a measley fourth-round pick.

Seattle can still provide a solid back-up catcher or left-handed bat off the bench to any interested and/or rebuilding team.  Both are available even more cheaply than Mr. Dickson was.

CF wanted

Shackamaxon is looking to augment its up-and-coming team with a CF. Ideally that player has good defense and gets on base a lot. Power and/or speed would be nice, but not required.

I have a little bit of salary room so I'm not afraid of a veteran. I have a few good usable young players and prospects I'd consider dealing for the right player.

Sim's Done. Awards Announced! Arbitration Hearings Next!

Game Date: 10/23/21

Outstanding Hitter:  Jonathan Anderson, SEA .319/.368/.610/.978  198H, 40HR, 125RBI
Outstanding Pitcher: Christopher Hester, SEA 24-5, 2.46, .193OAVG
Outstanding Newcomer: Luis Figeora, BRK, .319/.378/.481/.859, 187H, 11HR
Manager of the Year:  Mack Shultz, SEA

Slick Fielder Awards:
P: Jermaine Karp, OH
C: Lewis Bell, MON
1B: Juan Gomez, SEA
2B: Callum Ganyon, OH
3B: Larry McCormick, NY
SS: Richard Bender, BAR
LF: Kevin Works, BRK
CF: Bas Bijkerk, SEA
RF: Lucio Muniz, SEA

Salary arbitration will be run next sim, so please be sure to get your offers in.

Zev

Seattle's Bargain Bin

I have some guys available that are not great players, but could be solid role/bench players.  They're superfluous in Seattle and so are available cheaply for a fringy low-level prospect or a not-high draft pick.  Let me know if you're interested in any of these guys.

Catcher Kevin Craig. Kevin is 32.  He has been the backup catcher in Seattle for six years now.  He is fine, not great.  Basically two wins above replacement in a little more than a full-season of playing time spread out over his career.  He is under contract for one more year at $850K, so he's not expensive.  He's not a starter for a great team, but is solid depth.  He's also eminently expendable given the strong year Roberto Perez had for me at AAA.  I know catching is a strong position right now in the league, but if you need a solid backup for a cheap price, he's your man.

Pitcher Kieran Dickson.  I really don't know how good Dickson is, but I don't really have a spot for him to find out either.  He had a 1.91 ERA in 89.1 innings in AAA and then a 3.09 ERA in 23 innings in the majors.  He seems to be better after moving to the new version, but what do I know?  I do know that he doesn't give up home runs.  He has a high movement rating and backed that rating up by giving up only two home runs in 112 innings pitched.  Right now he's the 12th man on my pitching staff (and 7th starter) for next year, and I only want to carry 11 guys.  He might be a good starting pitcher with a lot of years ahead of him.  Someone out there has to be willing to take a chance on him.  Maybe you?

First baseman Ki-Chun Kang.  Kang is 26 and has torn up AAA in the three years since I signed him as a international free agent.  He has good power and could be a good left-handed bench bat.  Unfortunately for him, he's something like fourth in line at first base for me.  Again, maybe someone else could make use of him.

Are any of these guys great?  Almost certainly not.  Would they help at least some teams?  I think so.  They don't have clear places though in Seattle.  If you think they can help your team, let's make it work.

P.S.  If someone thinks they're a very good SP away from a deep playoff run and want to trade for the missing link, let me know.  I could be talked into moving James Turner in the right deal.

Sim's Done

Next sim:  Wednesday Night

Sorry, No Sim Last Night

Personal family stuff kept me from running the sim last night.  We'll try again tonight.

Zev

Sim (Finally!!) Done

Game Date:  10/9/2021

Next sim (covering a week) will be on Monday night
I would like to get in four sims next week on each night from Monday to Thursday.

Zev

Power's Back On!!

Our electricity finally came back on at 4:30 this morning.  So, we will run the sim tonight.

Thanks to everyone for their patience.

Zev

Still No Power Yet

It's about 4:30PM and we still have no power.  If the power comes back tonight (which I doubt will happen) I'll run the sim tonight.  Otherwise, we'll just push it off.

Thanks for being patient.

Zev

Hurricane Delay

As I'm sure you all know, Hurricane Sandy has slammed into the Eastern seaboard.   While everyone here is safe and sound, we have no power.  So, for now, we're going to have to postpone the sim. 

For those of you in the hurricane's path, stay safe.  We'll pick this up when the power comes back on.

Option Year Choices

Game Date:  10/18/2021

If any of your players have team contract options, you must decide whether or not to exercise them.  You can find the option choices in your team email -- you should have one email for each player who has a team option.

Next sim:  Monday night.

Onward!

Congrats again to Mack on his eighth Cecil Cup championship!  Now it's up to him to defend his title as we begin to gear up for the off-season.

The next sim will be on Thursday night and will cover one day.

Zev

Crazy Eight for Seattle

The Seattle Monarchs captured their eighth Cecil Cup today with an 11-1 victory over the Maui Mashers.  The hitting heroes of the game are catcher Steve Jones, who went 3-for-5 with 2 home runs and 4 RBI and 1B Juan Gomez who was 4-for-5 with a pair of solo homers.

We'll give Mack a few days to bask in the glory of his victory before continuing with the league.

Zev

Seattle Takes Game Three

Seattle starter Christopher Hester (24-5, 2.46) pitched his worst game since April 9, but the Monarch batters saved his skin as Seattle took a commanding 3-0 lead over the Maui Mashers in the Cecil Cup series.  Maui started the scoring in the bottom of the first with a 2 RBI single by Reijiro Kondo against Christopher Hester.  Seattle evened the score with a two-run homer by Lucio Muniz in the top of the third.  The score did not stay tied for long as Maui put up another three runs in the bottom of the inning.

The score remained 5-2 in Maui's favor until the top of the sixth.  Terry Hubbard started the inning off with a solo shot to right.  Then, with two outs, Steve Jones singled and went to second on Juan Gomez's double.  Jones scored on Ronald Quijada's RBI single to center.  That brought up Bas Bijkerk who blasted a first-pitch shot to right-center for 3 RBI, making the score 7-5 in Seattle's favor.

Maui made it a one-run game again in the bottom of the sixth, but then the Seattle bats put the game away in the seventh.  Bill Dewall struck out the first two Monarch batters.  Then, with two outs, Jonathan Anderson homered, John Hukill singled, Steve Jones homered, Juan Gomez doubled, Ronald Quijada singled and Bas Bijkerk homered again.  The final tally -- six runs on six hits, all with two outs.  The score stood at 13-6, which is how it ended.

Game 4 -- Thursday night.

Seattle Takes Game 2

The Monarchs took a 2-0 lead in the Cecil Cup series with an 8-5 victory over the Maui Mashers.

Game 3 -- Wednesday night

Seattle Takes 1-0 Lead in Cecil Cup

I'm sorry... it's late and I've had an exhausting day, so I'm going to skip the summary on this one.

Rain Delay

I'm sorry, but I had to put off the Saturday night sim.  We'll try again on Sunday night.

Zev

Maui Wins, Once Again It's Maui and Seattle

The Maui Mashers sent the Barstow Lizards home for the season with a 1-0 victory.  Barstow starter Eric Thomas (6-13, 4.83) turned in one of his best games of the season, pitching seven innings and only allowing two hits.  However, he also allowed five walks, and it was one of those walks -- a leadoff pass to Ramiro Ramirez in the fifth -- that cost him the game.  Juan Villatoro 21-5, 2.99) picked up the win by pitching eight shutout innings.

The schedule for the Cecil Cup will be as follows (subject to change):

Game 1:  Saturday night, Oct 13
Game 2:  Tuesday night, Oct 16
Game 3: Wednesday ngiht, Oct 17
Game 4:  Thursday night, Oct 18
Game 5:  Saturday night, Oct 20
Game 6:  Sunday night, Oct 21
Game 7:  Monday night, Oct 22

Good luck, Matt and Mack.

Zev

Next Sim, Wednesday Night

Well, now that my Wolves have been run over by the Seattle steamroller, I guess I'm back in charge of the post-season sims.

Next sim, Wednesday night.

To Mack, -- well played sir and, as we say in Brooklyn, "Wait'll next year!"

Barstow stays alive!

Sadly, this will be my last scheduled sim of the postseason, as our beloved commissioner's team was eliminated. However, those who like underdogs (Sorry, Matt) will be pleased to learn that Barstow thumped Maui 13-5 to avoid being swept.

In the first game, Brooklyn faced elimination and didn't play with much urgency as the Monarchs stormed to a 5-0 lead. In the bottom of the seventh, perhaps inspired by the seventh inning stretch, Brooklyn stormed back to tie the game at 5. Two-run home runs by both Andy Robertson and Juan Carrillo highlighted the inning.

Lúcio Muñíz doubled home Bas Bijkerk, however, in the top of the ninth. Seattle closer Robert Riddick struck out the first two Wolves in the bottom of the ninth, and Katsuhiko Jouda grounded to short to end the fledgling postseason for Brooklyn.

Seattle gets to rest its starters for at least a day or two, as Barstow staved off elimination with a 13-5 victory. The Lizards batted around in the bottom of the sixth and scored seven runs, capped by a three-run home run by Richard Bender.

And, with that, I sign off for this postseason. Zev's got the reins again.

Seattle and Maui win again, again

Home field was not a friend for either Barstow or Brooklyn, as the two underdogs, already trailing 2-0, both lost critical home games. Maui and Seattle are both up three games to none, and are on a collision course for their third straight matchup in the Cecil Cup.

On the east coast, Brooklyn had little opportunity to break through against Seattle starter Juan Morrales, who pitched seven strong innings, only allowing two hits and a walk. Jonathan Anderson had two home runs for the Monarchs in their 5-1 victory over the Wolves.

Over in California, playing on the mainland was no problem for the Maui Mashers, as Barstow's two home runs from Gregorio Marzano was not enough to help the Lizards. Maui won 8-4 in convincing fashion.

Game four in both series will be on Tuesday night. Will the first game of the Cecil Cup be simmed on Wednesday night? Time will tell.

Seattle and Maui win again

Both Seattle and Maui repeated their game one successes in game two, each taking 2-0 leads over their opponents in the Cecil Cup semifinals.

Seattle scored five in the ninth inning to shock Brooklyn, as Juan Gómez hit a walk-off grand slam. Sean Jones was one strike away from the save when the Gómez struck. John Huckill paced Seattle with two home runs in the game, and now the series shifts cross country to the Big Apple. Will home cooking fuel a Brooklyn comeback? We'll find out this weekend.

Halfway across the Pacific Ocean, Maui outlasted Barstow 9-7 to take the 2-0 lead. Ramiro Ramirez also hit two home runs to lead the Mashers. While one series leaves the west coast, this one heads back to the mainland as the Lizards hope the island boys wilt in California's Inland Empire.

If Mack, Zev, Matt, and Paul each let me know that it's okay with them, I'll sim game three on Friday night, and game four on Sunday night. If not, game three will be on Sunday night.

Seattle, Maui win first games in post season

Sorry for the delay last night, and for the brevity tonight:

Seattle outdueled Brooklyn in their first game, and Maui crushed Barstow.

Game two will be simmed on Wednesday night.

Game 1 delay

Due to personal reasons, I have to delay the sim for game one of the first round until tomorrow night.

There is a new update for OOTP 13, version 13.7.29. Please go here and download it before tomorrow night's sim.

I apologize for the delay.

Preliminary post season schedule

Zev has asked me to take over the sims during the post season, as long as his team is still active. This is normally not a problem, but my schedule over the next week or so is already kind of booked, so I'm scrambling to setup a schedule for the first round of the Cecil Cup Tournament.

Here's what I have thus far:


Game 1: Sunday 9/30
Game 2: Wednesday 10/3
Game 3: Sunday 10/7
Game 4: Tuesday 10/9
Game 5 (if necessary): Wednesday 10/10
Games 6 and 7 (if necessary): TBD

Good luck to all participants!

Bring On The Post-Season

Game Date:  9/24/2012

Final Standings:
Adams:  Brooklyn won the division by 18 games.
Zotti:  Seattle finished thirty and a half games up.
Signorino:  Maui finished a game and a half up on New York

Wild Card:  Barstow and New York finished with a tie for the wild card.  In the playoff game, Barstow defeated New York 9-4.

League Leaders:

AVG:  Masahide Ueda, Ohio .362

OBP:  Ueda .427

SLG:  John Grondin, Shackamaxon .612

OPS:  Grondin 1.035

VORP: Andres Velasco, Houston 73.2

WAR:  Bas Bijkerk, Seattle 8.6

Runs: Dong Lutz, Monck's Corner 131

Hits:  Ueda 209

HR:  Lutz 52

RBI:  Terry Hubbard, Seattle 130

SB:  Guillaume Fournier, Hickory 48

ERA:  Christopher Hester, Seattle 2.46*

Wins:  Hester 24

WPct:  Hester .828

Saves: Robert Riddick, Seattle 44

CG: Juan Morrales, Seattle 8

SHO: Hester 5

BB/9IP:  Juan Villatoro, Maui 1.5

K: Emelio Romero, Barstow 260

K/9IP: Donald Hunnicutt, Hickory 10.0

WHIP:  Morrales 0.96

H/9IP: Hester 6.2

OAVG: Hester .193

OOPS: Hester .550

VORP: Hester 84.6

WAR:  Enrico Hernandez, Seattle 8.6

* What's scary is that of the five leaders in ERA, the top four are all Seattle pitchers!

News:

New York's Gene Reynolds named Player of the Week (9/20)

Significant Injuries:

Seattle's Gregorio Reyna suffered a setback in his attempt to come back from a ruptured disc.  As a result, he has chosen to retire rather than continue rehab.

Milestones:

None

 

Next sim:  Game 1 of the sim will be run by Michael on Sunday night.  The matchups are:

Brooklyn vs. Seattle

Barstow vs. Maui

Peppers Celebrates Joining Monarchs

Future Hall-of-Fame shortstop Ricky Peppers today took the stage to joyfully announce that he would be joining the Seattle Monarchs for the last six games of the regular season and the Monarchs' playoff push for another title. "It's a great day for me," said Peppers. "I'm finally joining a club that actually competes year in and year out. My former team, let's just call them 'Brand X,' talked a lot about winning but really hasn't done very much of it for over a decade."

"We're really happy to have Ricky join the Seattle family," said Seattle owner/GM Mack Shultz. "He's been toiling in obscurity for too long and we're glad that we can get him out in front of the spotlight where he belongs. Frankly, the way he's been benched this year has been disgraceful. We're going to be starting Peppers for the last six games of the regular season, as befits a star of his magnitude. It's a shame the way Shackamaxon tried to hide him in the closet."

Peppers, ironically, is following the reverse path trod by former Monarch and now Hall-of-Famer Gregory Mudge. At the end of his career, Mudge was claimed by the Shackamaxon Lenape. But unlike Peppers, Mudge did not welcome the late-career transaction. In fact, instead of reporting to the team, Mudge retired two days later. Mudge now hosts the Monarchs' popular post-game show on the radio, where "Uncle Greg" leads his adoring fans through an account of Seattle's latest victory.

The Borg-like powers of the Monarchs continue to amaze onlookers. For most of this league's history, the two great shortstops have been John Hukill and Peppers. Now, against all odds, they will be next to each other in the Seattle infield. "It's fantastic to be able to turn double plays with Ricky," said Hukill. "I'm thrilled that we get a chance to play together."

"Will Ricky play for the Monarchs next year?" asked Shultz rhetorically. "That's going to be up to him. We just want him to know that there's always a place for him here in Seattle."

September I Sim Done

Game Date:  9/16/2012

Standings:
Adams:  Brooklyn has clinched the Adams division.
Zotti:  Seattle locked up the Zotti division long ago.
Signorino:  Maui now leads New York by three games.

Wild Card:  Barstow and New York are tied for the wild card lead, four games ahead of Shackamaxon.

News:

Monck's Corner's Gabriel Sequerios hit for the cycle (9/6)

New York's Armando Cedeno named Player of the Week (9/6)

Shackamaxon's Jorge Clemente hits three home runs in a game (9/12)

Maui's Angel Banuelos named Player of the Week (9/13)

Significant Injuries:

Altanta SP Hidekazu Iwasaka is out for the year with a strained hamstring.

New York's Jim Edwards is done with a fractured hand.

Brooklyn's Bed Beard will miss 2-3 weeks with a fractured foot.

New York's Luis Jeon will miss 2-3 weeks with an elbow strain.

Milestones:

Barstow's Jefferey Shuttleworth won his 200th game, the seventh player to reach that milestone.

Hickory's Richard Shipp recorded his 2500th strikeout, the eighth player to do so.

 

Next sim:  Next Thursday night, when we'll finish up the regular season.  

August II Sim Done

Game Date:  9/1/2012

Standings:
Adams:  Brooklyn's leads Hickory by 12 games.
Zotti:  Seattle's leads over Shackamaxon and Barstow is completely ludicrous.
Signorino:  New York's lead over Maui has shrunk to two games

Wild Card:  Maui stands one game ahead of Shackamaxon and Barstow

News:

Antelope Valley's Carl Watson named Player of the Week (8/23)

For the first time ever in SDMB OOTP History, two pitchers have pitched no hitters on the same day -- Barstow's Jefferey Shuttleworth and Seattle's Christopher Hester.  It should also be noted that this is Hester's second no-hitter of the season and the FOURTH of his career.

Houston 3B Andres Velasco named Player of the Week (8/30)

Shackamaxon 2B John Grondin named Batter of the Month

Seattle's Christopher Hester named Pitcher of the Month

Brooklyn RF Juan Carillo named Rookie of the Month

Significant Injuries:

Brooklyn SP Allen Rueter tore a labrum and will miss the rest of the season.
Houston's Toby Thornton damaged an elbow ligament and won't be back until next July.
Houston's Christopher Wood is done for the year with a shoulder inflammation.
Monck's Corner's Kevin Jackson's season is over with an ulnar nerve irritation.

Milestones:

Maui's Juan Villatoro recorded both his 250th victory (only the second player to do so -- and only against 78 losses!) and his 2500th strikeout (7th player)
Barstow's Ronald Adorno reached 2000 strikeouts.

Next sim:  Next Wednesday night.  

I Think Senility Is Beginning To Set In...

I ended up being at work late last night (until about 10ish) and then, by the time I got home, I forgot all about the sim.

I'll run it tonight.

End of the line for superstar

It's a sad day in Philadelphia, as the upstart Lenape, in the midst of an unexpected pennant race, have made an even more surprising roster move. Superstar, and future Hall of Fame inductee, Ricky Peppers has been cut from the team.

"I'm not happy about it," Peppers stated. "But, I understand. The team is in a penant race, and needs all of the help it can get. And, I'm just not performing this season."

The illustrious home run hitter has not hit a ball over the fence yet this season, and has only 7 extra base hits. After being the opening day starter for fifteen consecutive seasons for the Lenape franchise, Peppers lost his starting job early in the season to Miguel Martinez, and hasn't thrived on the bench. He is in the last season of his contract, and earning $17,000,000 this season while providing -9 VORP and -1.5 WAR.

"I wish Miggy all the best, and I'll stay with the team if no one claims me on waivers. I'm told, too, that I can come back when the rosters expand in September. I know I won't be eligible for the postseason roster, but I want to do everything I can to help this team win and finally win my third championship ring."

Manuel Perez is being recalled from AAA Arizona Bay to fill Peppers's roster spot as the reserve infielder.

August I Sim Done

I'm sorry, everyone.  I completely forgot to run the sim last night.  Monday holidays always throw off my week.

Game Date:  8/16/2012

Standings:
Adams:  Brooklyn's lead over Hickory drops to eight games.
Zotti:  Seattle's leads over Shackamaxon is ludicrous.
Signorino:  New York expanded it's lead over Maui to three.

Wild Card:  Shackamaxon is one game ahead of Barstow and Maui

News:

Houston 1B Nigel Bryant named Batter of the Month

Seattle's Enrico Hernandez named Pitcher of the Month

Seattle's Lucio Muniz named Rookie of the Month

Hickory 3B George Labarre named Player of the Week (8/2)

Seattle 2B Ivan Castillo named Player of the Week (8/9)

Maui CF Angel Banuelos named Player of the Week (8/16)

Significant Injuries:

Atlanta's Geoffrey Boerner strained a hamstring and will miss 5-6 weeks.

New York CF Rafael Sandoval sprained a wrist and will be out for 3-4 weeks.

Milestones:

Seattle's John Hukill reached both his 2000th hit and his 1500th run scored this sim.

Next sim:  Next Wednesday night.  

Last Chance to Take Advantage of Hickory

Well, there are just a few real-life days left until the trading deadline, and my roster remains remarkably unpillaged.  I mean, look!  Over there in the corner sits Nitro Granado.  As recently as last season he was one of the top three catchers in baseball; he's only 29 years old and he could be again.  Sure, there's the small matter of his $19M contract, which lasts until Judgement Day... but Hickory is willing to pay a portion of that salary in a deal.

Or surely SOMEONE needs a cheap, solid left-handed relief pitcher.  Ray Lewis, Forrest Powell, Cristobal Reyes, Joel Riojas, even Patrick Beene for the right offer - are are lefties, all are good, all are very cheap, and most are relatively or even very young.  Nobody needs a lefty?  I'm likely to take the best offer that comes.

I've mostly given up on jettisoning my horribly underperforming starters Hunnicutt, Shipp, and Erickson.  But all are lottery tickets.

And others are available, too, in the right deal.  Carlos Pais is one of the best defensive shortstops in the game and manages to hit for enough power to maintain a positive VORP at short... maybe he'd be an interesting upgrade?  Or perhaps you want a speedy, defensively solid centerfielder who can hit well enough to hold down a fourth outfielder spot on a contender?  Tim Combs, Tony Reyes, Joseph Bevers, Manuel Cardona, and Guillauime Fornier are all on sale.

Hickory really doesn't want Wednesday to pass without dealing at least somebody.  Give us a virtual call; the store is open all weekend.

July II Sim Done

Game Date:  7/30/2012

Standings:
Adams:  Brooklyn's lead over Hickory is down to nine games.
Zotti:  Seattle's leads Shackamaxon by 24 games.
Signorino:  New York still leads Maui by one.

Wild Card:  Shackamaxon is still one game ahead of Barstow

News:

Maui's Juan Villatoro named Player of the Week (7/19)

Ohio LF George Vidal named Player of the Week (7/26)

Significant Injuries:

Maui C Barney Maxson is out for two months after straining a hamstring.

Milestones:

Barstow's Gregario Marzano drove in his 1000th RBI, the 18th player to do so.

Monck's Corner 1B Dong Lutz, the all time leader in hits, reached the 2500 plateau.

Next sim:  Next Wednesday night.  Please remember that the next sim is the trading deadline for this season.
 

Shackamaxon/Atlanta trade

With the middle of Shackamaxon's infield suffering injuries this sim, as well as a lackluster performance by the offense, the Lenape made a bold move to shore up their infield depth today, acquiring SS William Midkiff from Atlanta.

Midkiff will take over, immediately, for the injured John Grondin at 2B, and act as a super-utility player after Grondin returns from the disabled list.

Heading to Atlanta are catcher Gerardo Herrera, prospect 1B Miguel Rodriguez, and a 4th round pick in the 2022 amateur draft.

"We needed to act fast, and accomplished two goals with this trade," GM Michael Weintraub stated. "We found a capable batter to step in for John while he recuperates, and helped clear a log-jam behind the plate to allow prospect Bobby Krieger to finally reach the Show. We thank Gerardo for his seven seasons here with our franchise, and wish him luck in Atlanta."

A Quick Note About the Next Sim

As has been our practice in the past, the next sim will go to July 30, not July 31.  This will give owners another week (real-time) to execute trades.

Zev

July I Sim Done

Game Date:  7/16/2012

Standings:
Adams:  Brooklyn's lead over Hickory has grown to ten games.
Zotti:  Seattle's lead over Shackamaxon now stands at 21 games
Signorino:  New York told over the division lead and now leads Maui by one.

Wild Card:  Shackamaxon's lead over Barstow has dropped to one game.

News:

Hickory 1B Jesus Flores named Player of the Week (7/5)

Seattle 3B Terry Hubbard named Player of the Week (7/12)

Significant Injuries:

Atlanta MR Claudio Gonzales, already out with an inflamed elbow, has chosen to retire.

Ohio's Darin Sitton will miss 2-3 weeks with a forearm strain.

Shackamaxon 2B John Grondin has wrist tendinitis and will miss three weeks.

Ohio SP Fernando Estrada will miss three months with an elbow strain.

Seattle SP Ronald Placencia will be out for three months with a partially torn labrum.  

Monck's Corner CF Craig Bell sprained his thumb and will be out for five weeks.

.... and, the winner of "Best Injury of the Sim" goes to Brooklyn's Sean Rice, who was injured when he did one too many BMX bike tricks.  He'll be day-to-day for a week or two.

Milestones:

Seattle's Ronald Quijada recorded his 2000th hit, the 14th player to do so.

Next sim:  Next Wednesday night.
 

MOncks Corner Sells Out

Just like The Who.
These players can be had for one prospect each if they're good enough:
RF Brian Frison CON 72 GAP 69 POW 82

MR Eden Torres STF 56 MOV 59 CON 86

1B Dong Lutz CON 51 GAP 52 POW 93

CF Raul Ortega CON 58 GAP 62 POW 82

SP Rico Padua STF 64 MOV 65 CON 74

CL Tony Dominguez STF 67 MOV 59 CON 73
Could be more if you're interested.

Atlanta is hopeless and selling

So it has taken about 5 seasons, but my experiment is complete.  I may have the worst team in the history of the SDMB.  It is hard to believe that I won the divisions back in 2015 and 2016 and was in the Cecil Cup championship back in 2014 and 2015.  Well those days are long gone.

So I need to do something (I can't get much worse).  If you are looking for a #5 starter I might have your man:

While far from a stud Jamie Cruz could be what you need in the back end of your rotation.  Not going to ask for much just e-mail me and he could be yours.

Are you looking for a utility infielder?  Again, Atlanta is the place to go.  William Midkiff or Roberto Ferrer could answer your prayers from above.  Both solid players who could help out on your bench.

Is it a Catcher you need?  Well John Dash wants out and he is hot as can be right now.  He would look good on your championship bench.

And finally outfield.  Monte Goss deserves to be on a winner again.  There is no doubt that he has the talent and a change of scenery could do him good.  Carlos Martinez is also available so enquire now for the best deals.

There will never be a better time to find the 25th man on your roster at rock bottom prices.  Basically the first to contact me with a deal that includes young players or draft picks can get whomever they desire.  Everyone is up for grabs so make an offer now and see what deals we can make.

Shackamaxon turns over its rotation

Coming into the 2021 season, the starting pitching for the Shackamaxon Lenape was supposed to be a strength of the team. Instead, the surging bullpen (anchored by the back-end of Cuomo/Sweeney/Stoker) has led the Lenape to having the best bullpen ERA in the game, while the starters are only ranked 8th.

After losing Elder Guzman to injury after two superlative April starts, his replacements have struggled to hold down the #5 spot in the rotation, and, incumbent #5 starter Tuan Olmstead has also had difficulties this season.

Well, things are changing, big-time in the Lenape rotation. Superstar (and, Philadelphia native) Joseph Macaluso has been acquired from Antelope Valley and is expected to anchor the top of the rotation. Guzman, missing since the early days of the season, returns from injury this sim. The rest of the Lenape rotation remains John Cooper, John Kautz, and Scott Loman. Olmstead will slot into the back end of the bullpen, barring another trade.

Heading to Antelope Valley are two promising youngsters, 2B Glenn Tate and SP Sergio Valenzuela.

"We are conceding the Zotti League title, for the regular season, at least, to Seattle," GM Michael Weintraub said. "But, we're going to be in a dogfight for the wild card spot. And, I'll go toe-to-toe against Seattle in a seven-game series with a rotation fronted by Joseph, Elder, and the Johns, anytime and anywhere."

The Shackamaxon Lenape, one of the most successful franchises in SDMB League history, remain the only team to ever win four consecutive Cecil Cups.

Dateline Hickory: Commence the Purge

OK.

Hickory is terrible this year, thanks to some really dismal performances by starting pitchers who ought to be better, and with an aging roster and no prospect of short-term improvement, it is time for a massive overhaul.

I am not willing to trade 1B Jesus Flores or any major prospect.  I would consider offers for any other player on my major league roster.  This includes the following players of note:

LH Relievers - Joel Riojas (31 yo, $317K, 4.71 ERA); Ray Lewis (24 yo, $300K, 3.83 ERA); Forrest Powell (27 yo, $700K, 3.32 ERA); Cristobal Reyes (26 yo, $300K, 1.30 ERA with 33 strikeouts in 27 innings at AAA Beulaville)

Nobody here is going to blow your socks off, but all are useful left handed middle relief guys.  Lewis is having a down year but his peripherals are good and he's had a lot of success already in a young career.  Reyes is a decent prospect with nowhere to play in my organization.  I have a lot of young left-handed pitching talent in my organization and need to make room for some of them to actually play, so I'd let one or preferably two of these guys go either alone for a relatively low price, or as part of a larger package.

Catcher - Alberto Granado (.251/.328/..364, 29 yo, signed to a murderous 5-year, $19M/year contract) 

Nitro is having his worst year as a professional by far, but he's only 29 and he's bound to rebound at some point.  However, my best prospect, catcher Aaron Hampton, is Major League ready. I am thus very anxious to unload Granado if there's a willing taker.  I realize his contract is onerous, but I am willing to pay a sizable portion of his salary in the right deal.

Starting Pitchers - John Okane (LHP, 40 yo, $13M but expires this year; currently at 5-5 with an ERA of 4.77)

I'm not looking for much in exchange for Okane; he's been useless to me and won't be back next year, but if you'd like to rent a lefty starter with modest upside for the stretch run the price here is very, very, very low.

Starting Pitchers Don Hunnicutt and Richard Shipp - Both have played very poorly this year, but if you want a lottery ticket on either, have at it.

Centerfielders - Joseph Bevers, Tim Combs, Manuel Cardona, Guillauime Fornier - All are respectable fringe starters and/or fourth outfield guys, all can steal a lot of bases, and most play top quality defense in center.  Cardona is quite young; Combs is only 24.  All but Bevers are paid less than $1M this season.  All are available, since I really don't have playing time for all four even now, and will have less upon the return of Bo Bice.

ferrarafc@comcast.net.  Drop me a line - you'd be surprised how receptive I'll be to any even remotely reasonable offer.

Antelope Valley Rebuilding

The Raptors are still looking to trade some veterans to add some depth to their organization.  Veterans on the block include:

P Thomas Brasfield
C Thomas Geter

also
P Joeseph Macaluso although I need a much better prospect for him.

Also willing to package any combo of them for better, or a package, of prospect(s)

Thanks

Bill

June II Sim Completed

Game Date:  7/1/2012

Standings:
Adams:  Brooklyn's lead over Hickory has grown to seven games (and, they're at .500!).
Zotti:  Seattle's lead over Shackamaxon has shrunk to 16 games.
Signorino:  Maui's now leads New York by a single game.

Wild Card:  Shackamaxon leads Barstow by four.

News:

New York 1B Santiago Salazar named Player of the Week (6/21)

Seattle 3B Trey Hubbard htis for the cycle, the third player to do so this season. (6/23)

Barstow 1B Gregario Marzanno named Player of the Week (6/28)

Seattle's Christopher Hester pitches his THIRD career no-hitter against Barstow (6/29)

New York 2B Gene Reynolds named Batter of the Month

Brooklyn's Dennis Durand named Pitcher of the Month

Brooklyn 2B Luis Figeora named Rookie of the Month

Significant Injuries:

Monck's Corner MR Kenneth Byers has elbow inflammation and will be out about seven weeks.

New York's Jim Edwards was involved in a collision at a base and will sit out about six weeks.

Monck's Corner SS Daniel Burdine will miss six weeks with a fractured wrist.

Milestones:

Brian Frison becomes the third player to reach the 1500 run plateau (just two weeks after teammate Dong Lutz).

Next sim:  Next Wednesday night.