Brick and Norfolk trade two or is it three

Brick and Norfolk announce  a minor trade today...Brick sends it's fifth round pick in the draft to Norfolk for starting pitcher  Salazar in single a....both teams were happy with the deal. Tom the GM from Norfolk was happy with another draft pick. Fred the GM from Brick was happy with the addition of another starting pitcher for their single a team Tisdale which was lacking starting pitcher depth.

The Remaking of the Lenape Infield

Hours after trading away franchise cornerstone Miguel Martinez, who was only the second starting shortstop for the Shackamaxon Lenape in twenty seasons, the team has announced the trade of another infield starter.

"We have traded, for real this time, 25-year old third baseman Matt Stokes to his original franchise, Brick. Again, like last night's move," Shackamaxon GM Michael Weintraub stated. "This helps us with pitching depth, and creates an opening in the major league roster for a prospect."

Stokes, originally acquired in 2022 from Brick as a corner infield prospect, was joined by single A pitcher Pedro Guzman on the bus trip across New Jersey to their new home. Heading to the Lenape organization are pitching prospects Juan Santiago and Bartolo Ventura, plus a third-round pick in the draft next season.

Weintraub concluded: "Between the three pitching prospects we got in the Martinez trade, and the two we're getting from Brick now, we're happy with the return we are getting. We also get to see top prospects Jonathan Locker, Tae-Sang Pak, and Benjamin Anderson, each acquired this season, in action for the rest of the season, as we evaluate our team going forward.

"Oh, yeah, we still have other players available for trade," Weintraub couldn't help but adding.

June I Sim Done

Game Date:  Jun 16 2027

Standings:
Adams:  London has taken a two game lead over Atlanta
Zotti:  Seattle's lead has dropped to a mere ten games. :)
Signorino:  Antelope Valley holds a one game lead over Maui

Awards & Accomplishments:
London's newly acquired pitcher, Matt McDonald pitched a no-hitter against Seattle, the first no-hitter in the league since Seattle's Bruno Talamantez threw one in July 2025.
Ohio's Arturo Sanchez (6/7) and Martin Perez (6/14) named Players of the Week.

Significant Injuries:
Maui's Aaron Hampton fractured a finger.  He'll miss six weeks.
Highland's David Clark has an ulnar nerve irritation, he's gone for four months.
Seattle's Yvon Settignano strained a calf running the bases.  He should be back in 3-4 weeks.
Shackamaxon's Tony Dominguez is done for the year and will likely miss the start of next season with a torn flexor tendon.
Brick's Cristobal Cordero tore an abdominal muscle.  That'll cost him five weeks.
Norfolk's Clarence Spearman separated a shoulder in a base collision.  Four weeks.
Atlanta's Ernest Metcalf, already out since April and due back in August will likely see his return pushed back to September.

Milestones:
Houston's Nigel Bryant reached 1000 runs (6/11)

Trivia Question:
In some other baseball universe, in 2008, Carlos Zambrano had a thirteen game hitting streak, tying him with Jonny Sain for the second longest hitting streak while pitching.  Who has the longest?  (Hint... the person won at least 200 games -- that should narrow it down a bit).

Ronald Quijada Leaderboard Watch:
Runs: Quijada now has 1868 runs scored and has tied John Hukill for the all time lead!
Games: Quijada is at 2813, 75 games behind Luis Jeon.
At Bats: Quijada is at 9640, 479 behind Jeon.
Hits: Quijada is at 2588, 65 hits behind Dong Lutz in second and 70 behind Brian Frison in first.
Walks: Quijada has 1842... that's 36 behind Jeon.
Singles: Quijada has 1710, 49 behind Gregorio Marzano.

Next sim:  Thursday night.

Shackamaxon Lenape, London Dragons announce trade

The Shackamaxon Lenape and the London Dragons have made the following trade:

London trades:
(SP) Carlos Hidalgo
(SP) Dane Beck
(SP) Mike Jones

Shackamaxon trades:
(LF) Guillermo Martinez
(SS) Miguel Martinez

Shackamaxon/Highland trade

The Shackamaxon Lenape and the Highland Admirals have a small trade to announce.

The Lenape send former first-round pick and current right-fielder Gan Mah to the Admirals in exchange for prospect outfielder Kinnon Tomlinson and a third-round pick in the 2028 draft, previously acquired from Seattle.

Shackamaxon's sale sheet

The following players are available for trade:

• 3B Matt Stokes - just 25, making the minimum and under team control for many seasons to come, he is a switch hitter with power on both sides of the plate. He can play any corner IF position, and would make an excellent platoon or bench bat, or even a starter on a team looking to develop a young infielder.
• 1B John Grondin - one of the greatest players in league history who can still produce. He has settled into his new role at 1B well, and continues to rake. In a pinch, he can go back to his old home at 2B, or even 3B, and give you veteran experience. I'll kick in some cash to cover his salary, if necessary.
• SS Miguel Martinez - he inherited the coveted SS role from all-time great Ricky Peppers and is a solid gloveman who can play the infield skill positions 2B, 3B, and SS with gold-glove quality. He's a capable lead-off hitter, as well, and has a team option on his contract for next season.
• OF Guillermo Martinez - signed to be my #4 outfielder, he can start in the corner OF positions. He's a free agent after this season, so he'd be a cheap rental for any team that needs help.
• OF Gan Mah - a recent 1st round pick who made it into the starting lineup at age 24, he has been my starting RF for the past season and a half, and has done very well. While not a power hitter, he's on pace for over 20 HR this season. Again, he's only 25 and under team control for six more seasons.
• RP Tony Dominguez - veteran and inexpensive, he's a capable setup or late-middle innings guy.
• RP Jeff King - not that this means too much, but he's probably been my most consistent middle reliever this season. He's consistent and inexpensive, exactly what you need for relief pitching.
• RP Kwang-Sub Kim - my best relief pitcher not named Placeres. He can be an eighth or ninth inning guy for a contender.

I'll also listen to offers for Ieyasu Suzuki, George Robinson, Bartolo Olivarez, and Carlos Placeres, but I'm not too inclined to trade them. 

Interested in any of the above? Email me at michael@symbiola.com to start the trade discussions!

May II Sim Complete

Game Date:  Jun 1 2027

Standings:
Adams:  Atlanta leads London by a single game.
Zotti:  Seattle has a commanding 11 game lead over Brick.
Signorino:  Maui is one game up on Antelope Valley.

Awards & Accomplishments:
Brick CF Matt Foster named Player of the Week (5/17, 2nd career award).
Ohio's Gustavo Melendez struck out 15 batters (5/20)
Brooklyn's Arthur Cain hit for the cycle (5/21)
Maui CF Ernesto Salcido named Player of the Week (5/24)
Norfolk 1B Luis Lozano named Player of the Week (5/31, 2nd award this season)
Seattle CF Yvon Settignano named Batter of the Month (2nd career award)
Seattle's Bruno Talamantez named Pitcher of the Month (2nd career award)
Highland 1B Manuel Hidalgo named Rookie of the Month.

Milestones:
Maui 3B  Richard Bender reached 2000 hits.

Significant Injuries:
Antelope Valley 3B Peppino Rondinelli strained a groin and will miss 5-6 weeks.
Seattle RF Maximo Rodriguez strained his ACL and will be out 5-6 weeks.
Brooklyn 1B Arthur Cain strained a quadracep and will be out 3-4 weeks.

Ronald Quijada Leaderboard Watch
Runs:  Quijada scored one run this sim and now has 1866.  He is two runs behind Hukill.
Games:  Quijada has now played 2804 games and is now 78 games behind Hukill.
At Bats:  Quijada now has 9623 at bats.
Hits:  Quijada now has 2584 hits.
Singles:  Quijada has 1707 singles and follows Gregorio Marzano by 52.
Walks:  Quijada has 1838 walks, and is 40 walks behind Luis Jeon.

Next sim:  Thursday night

MR Help for the Hurricanes

Minor trade to announce.  The Shackamaxom Lenape have traded MR Carlos 'Toast' Arias to the Atlanta Hurricanes for their 3rd round pick in the 2028 draft.  There was much rejoicing.

Rain Delay

I'm afraid I'm going to have to postpone the sim to Saturday night.  We have one owner with a strange tech problem that is preventing him from uploading his changes.

Zev

Shackamaxon commences shedding

The Lenape, off to yet another slow start, have begun the process of shedding veterans from their underperforming pitching staff.

"We have traded Adam Hone to the London Monarchs," Lenape GM Michael Weintraub announced. "In return, we are getting exciting young infielder Jesus Alvarez and a 4th round draft pick."

Other members of the beleaguered Lenape bullpen were stunned as Hone said his goodbyes. "I really hope I'm not next," said Kwang-Sub Kim, who features a 1.82 ERA and a 10.9 K/9 ratio in 24.2 innings thus far this season.

Other veterans, including Carlos Arias, Jeff King, and Tony Dominguez, refused comment and stared into their lockers, pondering their fate.

Norfolk trades with Seattle again......

Norfolk GM Thomas Carrano seams to think draft picks are like hot potato's since he trades them as fast as he get them. Today was no different as he has traded London's 1st round pick that he just got from another trade to get 2 young pitching prospects and a young 2B. SP Hector Valdez will move from Seattle's AAA to Norfolk's rotation, while 2B Ramon Macias will also be joining the ML club. The last player in the trade is Mike Peck who is in single-A and has a chance to either be a CL/MR star if he develops. The rich get richer as I know Seattle is so great at finding great players through the draft and that's why I looked into his minor leagues players to try and get some talent that will help me for the future.

Raptors Bolster Sagging Pitching Staff

After 2026's surprising run into the playoffs, Antelope Valley is determined to go even deeper this year.  After locking up All Pro 2B Rick Bryant for 7 years and adding some bench depth with veteran 3B Ronald Quijada, the Raptors have bolstered a perennially underachieving pitching staff by adding pitchers Harry Wagner and Mark Blanton from the Highland Admirals.   Wagner will slot into the starting rotation, taking the place of beleaguered SP Jermaine "The Christmas Tree" Earp while Blanton may work as a starter, allowing Knowles to move to the pen where he is better suited.    Hopefully working long relief out of the pen will allow Earp to regain his form.  It is suspected that Chiang and free agent disaster Robles will be DFA'd.  The acquisition of Robles hadn't worked out as planned, but the emergence of Rule 5 pick Mark Fields has prevented the Raptor's bullpen from being a complete 'gasoline alley'.  Former starter Lucas Sweeney has also adapted well to his move to the bullpen.

The Raptors paid a heavy price to acquire the Admiral's pitchers, giving up minor leaguers MR Carlos Velazquez (AAA), 3B Craig Clayton (AA), MR Luis Quinones (AA), SP John Manning (AAA) and a 3rd round pick.  After years of stocking up minor leaguers and a few good drafts, AV felt they could sacrifice the youngsters in order to strengthen their run this year.

      
                                GM Fred Goldfarb seeking trade for disgruntled pitcher Ethan Moyer....

Ethan Moyer has approached me with the request to be traded. He feels that the role he is being used  for is not what he wants so he requested to be traded ..his career numbers are 77-70 with 106 saves and a career 3.99 ERA ..This year he has played in 20 games and has a 4.41 ERA.... H e can both start and close....Looking for reasonable offers of prospects or picks or both...well consider all options....

London announces trades with Norfolk, Highland

London -- The London Dragon announced two major trades late Saturday night. They first announced that they had come to terms with the Norfolk Tide, sending top pitching prospect Ron Hill and a 1st round pick for a couple of veteran arms for the bullpen in Matt McDonald and Alejandro Lopez. Just an hour or so later they sent another top pitching prospect Jesus Cruz and a 2nd round pick for slugger Jesus Flores and veteran starter Jack Kaiser.

Coach Urista, speaking to reporters after the deals were announced, said the deals were aimed at bolstering the team's major weakness - pitching. "Hill and Cruz have very bright futures ahead of them, but this makes us better now. Lopez gives us a much-needed left arm out of the bullpen, while Kaiser and McDonald give us a veteran presence for our younger SPs". Flores is expected to move into a platoon with Carlos Ortega.

Matt McDonald had only recently been traded from the Highland Admirals to Norfolk several days prior, and according to his agent he had barely unpacked his bags when news of the trade to London came in. "He's excited to be going to a team in the thick of a playoff race, and looks forward to contributing to getting the Dragons back to the Cecil Cup finals", said the agent.

John and Thomas Carrano must have interesting things to talk about at family gatherings; the cousins recently took over the Highland Admirals and Norfolk Tide, and both have been very active, quickly placing their respective stamps on their teams, both of which have struggled in recent years.

Antelope Valley Seeking Pitching Help

Anyone have any spare pitching they are willing to part with?  Looking for some bullpen help or bottom of the rotation guy.  Willing to take on an aging veteran in last year(s) of contract if they are still pitching OK, or will mortgage a little more of the future for a younger arm.

Let me know.

Bill Sauerwald
AV Raptors
bill.sauerwald@earthlink.net

May I Sim Done

Game Date:  May 16 2027

Standings:
Adams:  Atlanta leads London by two games.
Zotti: Seattle is four games up on Brick.
Signorino:  Antelope Valley has a three game lead on Maui.

Awards & Accomplishments:
Antelope Valley 1B Jaime Alvarez named Player of the Week (5/3)
Norfolk 1B Luis Lozano named Player of the Week (5/10)

Milestones:
Maui's David Seibel knocked in his 1000th run (5/5)
Shackamaxon 1B John Grondin recorded his 2500th hit (5/6), the sixth player to reach that level.

Significant Injuries:
Houston will be without RF Jesus Barcello for about three weeks because of a hamstring strain.
Atlanta SP Chris Black is done for the year with a shoulder inflammation.
London RP Bong-ok Ch'on is out for eight weeks with an elbow strain.
Atlanta 2B Toshinobu Mizutani fractured a rib and he'll miss about four weeks.
Norfolk SP Teddy O'herlihy will miss three weeks with shoulder soreness.


Ronald Quijada Leaderboard Watch:
Runs: Quijada did not score a single run this sim.  He still has 1865 runs and is only three runs behind John Hukill.
Games:  Quijada has played in 2791 games and is 97 games behind John Hukill.
At Bats:  Quijada is at 96061 at bats and is 513 at bats behind Luis Jeon.
Hits:  Quijada has 2582 hits.  He is 71 behind Dong Lutz and 76 behind Brian Frison.
Singles:  Quijada has 1706 singles.  He is 53 behind Gregorio Marzano.
Walks:  Quijada has 1837 walks and is 41 walks behind Luis Jeon.

Next sim:  Thursday Night

                               Brick and Highland trade again

Brick sends Velasquez  AA Reliever and Julio Quintana  and 2nd round pick in 2028 draft to Highland for  Miguel Archuleta SP  and Angel Padilla 3rd basemen ..both GM'S  are very happy with the trade ...GM John Carrano  was very happy with acquiring another top prospect in Quintana and buullpen help down the road in Velasquez...GM Fred Goldfarb was very happy with his picks as he has made it his mission to acquire as many young starters as he can get in Archuleta and fill in a need with 3rd basemen Padilla....a lot of smiles was evident between both GM'S

Higlands gets younger in major trade....

A trade has been worked out between Norfolk and Highlands. Norfolk approached me about seeing if I would trade some of my vets for a high draft pick and young players who they had traded for...Highlands is in rebuild and was looking at the trade as something maybe bigger to come? Highlands traded SP Matt McDonald, 2B Bill O'Neil and SP Gil Moore FOR Norfolk's 2nd round pick in 2028 draft SS Angel Rodriguez, CL Al Dougan AAA, 2B Angel Trujillo AAA and MR Ryan Pennington.
Norfolk feels if they get O'Neil that maybe he will spark there offense to turn around a dreadful start to a season and McDonald and Moore to an already surprising good start for there starters and relief pitching. Highlands gets to use this season to evaluate these young players and with the 2nd round coming will have 3 2nd's and 3 3rd round picks next years draft to get either good young prospects or make a major trade for some great talent.

April II Sim Done

Game Date:  May 1 2027

Standings:
Adams:  Atlanta holds a one game lead over London
Zotti:  Seattle leads Brick by two games.
Signorino:  Antelope Valley leads Houston and Maui by four games.

Accomplishments:
Houston 1B Nigel Bryant named Player of the Week (4/19, 14th career award)
Maui LF Juan Alvarez named Player of the Week (4/26, 2nd career award)
Antelope Valley C Lloyd Rideout named Batter of the Month
Antelope Valley SP Dave Klien named Pitcher of the Month (3rd career award)
Atlanta C Clay Burns named Rookie of the Month

Significant Injuries:
Ohio RP Leslie Bennett has an inflamed shoulder and will be out for 3-4 months.
Atlanta SP Ernest Metcalf also has a shoulder inflammation and will be out for 4 months.
Norfolk CF Pierre Gilbert has an intercostal strain and will miss four weeks.
Houston LF Wilson Santos strained a groin muscle.  He's out for 5-6 weeks.
Maui CF Angel Banuelos will miss four months with a fractured ankle.
Houston RP Kevin Alexander has an elbow strain.  He'll miss eight weeks.
Antelope Valley LF Ray McJannett separated his shoulder.  He's out for four weeks.
Norfolk's Stefano Gomez has shoulder tendinitis and will be out 5-6 weeks.

Milestones:
Shackamaxon's John Grondin scored his 1500th run.
Houston's Andres Velasco scored his 1000th run.

Ronald Quijada Leaderboard Watch:

Runs: Quijada has 1865 runs and is only three runs behind John Hukill.
Games:  Quijada has played in 2779 games and is 109 games behind John Hukill.
At Bats:  Quijada is at 9588 at bats and is 531 at bats behind Luis Jeon.
Hits:  Quijada has 2580 hits.  He is 73 behind Dong Lutz and 78 behind Brian Frison.
Singles:  Quijada has 1704 singles.  He is 55 behind Gregorio Marzano.
Walks:  Quijada has 1835 walks and is 43 walks behind Luis Jeon.

Next Sim: Thursday Night

Trade between Brick and Highland

Brick trade Jesus Souza shortstop to Highland for the rights to Todd Davis reliever...
this trade removes the rule 5 tag off  Davis and provides the ability to send him to the minors if desired....After the debacle against Norfolk GM Goldfarb feels it could be he needs more time in the minors....GM Goldfarb believes he is  part of the teams future but might not be ready now...

Delay

I'm going to delay tonight's sim until Saturday night to resolve a roster issue on one team.

April I Sim Complete

Game Date:  Apr 16, 2027

Standings:
Adams:  London has a one game lead over Atlanta and Brooklyn.
Zotti:  Brick and Seattle are tied for the lead, two games ahead of Shackamaxon.
Signorino:  Antelope Valley is four games ahead of Houston and Norfolk.

Accomplishments:
Houston 3B Andreas Velasco slugs three homers against Norfolk (4/6), the first player to do so in over a year.
Norfolk CF Pierre Gilbert takes the inaugural Player of the Week award (4/12, second career award)

Significant Injuries:
Houston CF Miguel Cantu has an intercostal strain.  He's going to miss five weeks.
London SP Miguel Cooper partially tore his labrum.  He's gone for three months.
London RF Jonathan Anderson has a concussion.  He's expected to be out for six weeks.

Milestones:
Houston's Andreas Velasco reached 1000 RBI (4/2)
Shackamaxon 1B John Grondin (4/14) scored his 1500th run, the sixth player to do so.

Ronald Quijada Leaderboard Watch:

Antelope Valley 3B Ronald Quijada is in position to become the all-time leader in several offensive categories this season.  Among them are:

• Runs -- Quijada (1859) is second to John Hukill (1868).  Nine runs will make him the all time leader
• Games -- Quijada (2767) is second to John Hukill (2888).  He needs 121 more games to take the lead.
• At Bats -- Quijada (9569) is second to Luis Jeon (10119).  He needs 550 more at bats to reach Jeon.
• Hits -- Quijada (2575) is currently in third place to Dong Lutz (2653) and Brian Frison (2658).  He needs 83 hits to reach Lutz and 88 to reach Frison.
• Singles -- Quijada (1699) is second to Gregorio Marzano (1759).  Sixty singles will allow him to reach Marzano.
• Walks -- Quijada (1829) is second to Luis Jeon (1878).  49 walks are needed to reach Jeon.

Next sim:  Thursday Night

Opening Day Delay...

Sorry, everyone, but I'm going to have to put off Opening Day until Saturday night.  We have two teams that do not have their rosters down to size.  They have until Saturday night before I either do it myself or allow the computer to do it.

Zev

Shackamaxon and Brick trade... again

Shackamaxon and Brick have a minor trade to announce:

The Lenape send AAA utility IF Glenn Tate to Brick for a 2028 6th round draft pick.