May II Sim Done. Amateur Draft Ahead

Game Date:  Jun 1 2031

Who Uploaded?:  Everyone!  :)

Standings:
Adams: Brick leads Brooklyn by seven games.
Zotti:  Seattle is two and a half games over Antelope Valley
Signorino: Philadelphia is two games ahead of Wilmington

Awards & Accomplishments:
Highland 1B Ben Turner named Player of the Week (5/19)
Maui C Aaron Hampton named Player of the Week (5/26, 4th career award, 2nd this season)
Philadelphia RF Jorge Benavides named Rookie of the Month
Philadelphia's 60 million dollar man, Tian-bai Chen named Pitcher of the Month
Philadelphia C Tony Cannon named Batter of the Month

Significant Injuries:
Antelope Valley LF Ray McJannett has a bruised kneecap.  He'll miss 2-3 months.
Brick SP Jose Rodriguez has an elbow inflammation which will keep him sidelined for three months.
Brooklyn RF Luis Santiago has a fractured finger.  He'll be out for six weeks.
Atlanta CF Carlos Ortega will miss an additional four weeks
Highland will be without LF Flint Francis for six weeks as he recovers from a sore shoulder.

Batting Line of the Sim:
Seattle's Sung-heun Hwa went 4-4 with a HR, 5 RBI and 3 runs scored vs. Brooklyn, 5/27

Pitching Line of the Sim:
Wilmington's Hector Valdez pitched eight two-hit shutout innings with 7K vs Appalachian 5/21.

Milestones:
Houston's Gene Reynolds scored his 1000th run.

Previous Trivia Question:
Who is the only person to play 165 games in a Major League Baseball season?

Fred correctly answered that Maury Wills played every game for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1962 -- all 162 games of the regular season and all three games of the tie-breaker series vs the Giants.

This Week's Trivia Question:
Who is the only person to be inducted into both the Baseball Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

Amateur Draft
The amateur draft will held next sim.  Please make sure to upload your draft lists.  Also, please make sure to check the Traded Draft Picks page and make sure that you are properly credited with all the draft picks that you are entitled to.  That is the page that I will use when setting up the draft.  We will not entertain appeals for missing draft picks after the draft.

Next sim:  Wednesday night.

Team with extra catchers seeks team with extra AA 1B

I'm rather overloaded with catchers in AAA, plus in the majors. I'm looking to deal one of my AAA catchers (Flores, Duran, Hayashi, or Murillo), or possibly major leaguer Steven Broadbent.

In return, I'd like a 1B who is ready for AA, and maybe something else to even things out in a deal. With the exception of Duran, who is somewhat of a prospect, the other catchers at AAA are pretty much majors-ready, in at least a backup role.

If you think there's a match, let me know.

Will Trade Draft Picks for Pitching and/or OF Help

Willing to trade any or even all of my draft picks in this year's draft for (1) Starting Pitching and/or (2) OF upgrades.  Pitching being the higher priority and will get the higher round picks.  Perfect for rebuilding teams and draft junkies alike!!

Philadelphia/Houston trade

The Philadelphia Hornets are proud to announce the acquisition of CF Albert Ramirez from the Houston Armadillos in exchange for three farmhands: AAA SP Jorge Villegas, AA RP David Torres, and A SP Curt Horne.

"Ramirez will help provide power and outfield defense with Arnold Miller on the DL," stated Hornets GM Michael Weintraub. "We are confident Albert will see better pitches to hit in our lineup and return to the All Star player he was last season."

Draft Scouting Help

I know nobody wants to give away their trade secrets, but I was wondering if anyone could/would want to help with the following:

In the draft pool list I have the players sorted by potential (either my scout or OOTP scouting, doesn't matter).  But when I click on the player, then click on the Scouting Reports tab, the potential rating (both mine and OSA) are often quite different from what was displayed (and sorted) in the Draft Pool tab.  I assume this info is more accurate and current that what is displayed (?).  Is there some way to see, or export, the info in the Scouting Report Tab?  Or do I really have to click on 837 individual Player Profiles to get the real scouting dope!

Trade between Brick and Houston

• GM Fred Goldfarb today announces a 5 player trade...Brick sends to Houston Darryl Fuller 3B ML Don Helton 2B AA and John Knight SP AAA and receives back the following players...Julian Roman CF AAA and Jose Poli LF AA.....

Appalachian Players Available

The Black Bears season has not started out as planned, so it's time to retool the team a bit with an eye towards the future. All of the players below are available for the right price. Make me some offers!

1B Arturo Sanchez - Has never hit less than 44 HRs in a full season since entering the majors. I'd love to keep him, but I have a couple of good prospects knocking down the door, so it's time to explore my options.

P Roberto Norales - Doesn't quite have the stamina for starting, but should be a shutdown setup/closer for any team.

CF Marcos Rodriguez - The quintessential leadoff guy - tons of speed, high ratings in contact and gap power. Bonus points for Gold Glove caliber defense in RF (and perfectly capable of playing CF). He's another guy that I'd love to keep, but his replacement will be ready soon, so I doubt I'll sign him long-term

C Jean-Charles Gauthier - has filled in as backup catcher/1B/DH for me for years. Still has plenty of pop and is only 27.

May I sim done

League Date: May 16, 2031

Who Uploaded? Everyone!

Standings:

• Adams Division: Brick leads Brooklyn by 4 games
• Zotti Division: Seattle leads Antelope Valley by 2.5 games
• Signorino Division: Philadelphia leads Maui by 4 games

Transactions:

• Maui signed SP Luis Salazar (extension) - 1 year, $6.5m
• Maui signed SP Jose Montanez (extension) - 4 years, $4.2m
• Houston signed 1B Howard Rogers (Wilmington) - 1 year, $920k
• Atlanta signed RF Eric Halliwell (Brooklyn) - 1 year, $1.66m

Awards:

• Brick LF Salvador Velasquez - Player of the Week (5/5)
• Mepkin Abbey CF Pedro Munoz - Player of the Week (5/12)

Injuries:

• Philadelphia 1B Manuel Hidalgo - 7 months (torn labrum)
• Antelope Valley SP Josh Dunlap - 4 weeks (elbow inflammation)
• Philadelphia RF Arnold Miller - 6 weeks (torn hamstring)
• Mepkin Abbey OF Cheung Ying - 3 months (concussion)
• Atlanta CF Carlos Ortega - 6 weeks (knee sprain)
• Philadelphia 3B Basz Marievska - 2 months (herniated disc)
• Antelope Valley CF Petero Hokualohi - 3 weeks (strained hamstring)
• Highland SS Art Whitaker - 1 week (concussion)
• Houston RP Matt Matthews - 1-2 weeks (sore shoulder)
• Antelope Valley LF Ray McJannet - undiagnosed

League News:

• The web reports are not updated. I have uploaded the files for Zev to unpack on Thursday.
• The next sim will take us to the Amateur Draft. Please use the transactions screen within the game to make your draft lists. 
• I adjusted the schedule for the Low A league to have its season 80 games long.
• If you missed the OOTP Developments blog post about our league's 15th anniversary, here's the link again.

Next Sim: Next Wednesday night, 12/27/2017. This will take us to the June 1st amateur draft.

We're famous!

A few weeks ago, thanks to Mack's tip to their marketing department, Zev and I were interviewed by Out of the Park Developments so they could write up our 15th anniversary.

A blog post with our interview went live yesterday. Check it out!

Apr II Sim Done

Game Date:  May 1 2031

Who uploaded?
Everyone  :)

Standings:
Adams: Brick leads Brooklyn by two games.
Zotti: Antelope Valley is a game and a half up on Seattle
Signorino: Philadelphia's lead over Maui and Wilmington is a game and a half.

Awards & Accomplishments:
Maui C Aaron Hampton named Player of the Week (4/21, 3rd career award)
Appalachian SS Martin Costa named Player of the Week (4/28)
Seattle LF George Hendricks named Batter of the Month (3rd career award)
Maui's Luis Salazar named Pitcher of the Month
Brooklyn LF Bill Abrams named Rookie of the Month

Significant Injuries:
Atlanta RF Mike Peoples has an ankle sprain.  He'll be out for 3-4 weeks
Brick 1B Martin Cox will be out four weeks with a fractured foot.
Appalachian 2B Michael Lambert has a herniated disc.  Six weeks is his estimate.

Batting Line of the Sim
Seattle's George Hendricks went 4-5 with a home run, 3 runs scored and 5 RBI vs Atlanta (4/30)

Pitching Line of the Sim
Philadelphia's John Ryan pitched a two hit, eight strikeout shutout vs. Atlanta (4/22)

Answer to Last Week's Trivia Question:
Who are the only two players to play more than 1100 for two different teams?

I'm kind of surprised that no one took a stab at this one.  After all there aren't too many players who have played at least 2200 games and both answers are Hall of Famers.

The answers are:  Eddie Collins, who played 1156 games for the Philadelphia A's and 1670 games for the Chicago White Sox and Dave Winfield, who played 1172 games for the Yankees and 1117 for the Padres.

This Week's Trivia Question:
Who is the only person to play 165 games in a Major League Baseball season?

Next sim:  Next Wednesday.

Another Philadelphia/Atlanta trade

The Philadelphia Hornets tonight announce the acquisition of closer Ralph Turner from the Atlanta Hurricanes. While an ace closer, Turner will serve in an 8th inning role, helping fellow former closer Pino Pontoni set up for Anthony White.

In return for Turner (and $2,500,000 cash), the Hurricanes receive RP Sergio Lujan, AAA SP Steve McClain, and AAA RP Gregory Griffith. All three are expected to join the Hurricane's major league roster.

Atlanta rebuilding!!!

Atlanta has started slow and with a thin minors are looking to trade all players that could help out a team. Young players or picks are needed

Raptors Looking for OF Depth

With the injury to Angel Banuelos, Antelope Valley is looking to add some OF depth.  The Raptors are actively shopping Utility Infielders Mario Silva or Miguel Rodriguez.  Both are solid hitters (career .280s), good defenders capable of playing 2B/SS/3B young and have minimal contracts.  Due to their ability to step in and start, we will also consider dealing older star 3B Andres Velasco.  He has a rather large salary, but next year is a team option (250K buyout) so he can be jettisoned after this year if desired. 

Prefer a comparable rated 4th OFer, capable of playing CF.  Speed and defensive ability preferred.  Not looking to add an aging, high salary veteran, unless it's for Velasco.

April I Sim Done

Game Date:  Apr 16 2031

Who Uploaded:
Everyone  :) 

Standings:
Adams:  Brick is two games up on Brooklyn
Zotti:  Highland has a half game lead over Antelope Valley
Signorino:  Wilmington is one game up on Philadelphia

Awards & Accomplishments:
Highland's Jesus Valdez named Player of the Week (4/7)
Wilmington's Jose Vega named Player of the Week (4/14, 2nd career award)

Batting Line of the Sim:
Brick's Ken Reed went 3-4, 2 HR, 4 R, 5 RBI vs Antelope Valley, 4/10

Pitching Line of the Sim:
Maui's Juan Ramirez pitched a three hit shutout with 5 K vs Wilmington, 4/3

Significant Injuries:
Houston CF Miguel Cantu fractured his rib on Opening Day.  He'll miss 5-6 weeks.
Brooklyn 3B Katsuhiko Jouda has a torn labrum.  He's going to miss four months.
Antelope Valley RF Angel Banuelos has a fractured ankle and will miss 4-5 months.
Atlanta CF Armando Burgos has a fractured finger and will miss six weeks.

Trivia Question:
Who are the only two players to play more than 1100 for two different teams?

Next Sim:  Wednesday night

Philadelphia/Atlanta trade

Hours before the start of the 2031 season, the Philadelphia Hornets and division rival Atlanta Hurricanes announced a prospect-laden trade. Four of the top 50 prospects in the game change teams in this deal.

Philadelphia sends AAA IF Lawrence Connolly (#6 prospect), AAA SP Juan Velez (#15 prospect), and SP Paul Reed to Atlanta for A SP Eric Hammond (#18 prospect), A SP Rodrigo Padilla (#46 prospect), and a 2nd round pick in the 2031 draft.

Atlanta and Highlands make minor trade

New Atlanta Gm was looking for some role players on a team starving for help, called Highlands and made a minor trade. Coming from Highlands in the trade are LF Ismael Rodriguez,1B Roberto Benitez AAA, SP Kieran Jenkins AAA and going to Highlands is CF Jesus Hernandez AAA, SP Alfredo Rivera A, and and a 4th,5th and 7th rd pick in this up coming draft.

Rain Delay

An owner asked for some additional time to get ready for Opening Day, so I'm delaying the sim until Saturday night.

The second sim, however, will still be the following Wednesday night.

Zev

Atlanta has a new GM

Coming back to the league to take over Atlanta is an old face to the league. Thomas Carrano who was GM of Norfolk and had to leave do to health reason is back.... " I wanted a second chance to prove I'm better then what I left in Norfolk". So with that I look forward to helping Atlanta make playoffs and hopefully a championship.

Opening Day!!

Game Date:  Apr 1 2031

Welcome to Opening Day!

The first sim of the new season (our 30th!) will be done on Wednesday night. 

Please, please, please, please make sure that your active roster is down to 25 players before the sim is run.  Please don't put me in the position of having to send down/release your players to make sure the sim is run.  If you do not have access to the game, please feel free to send an email to Michael and myself with instructions and we will execute them for you.

With that, there is only one thing left to say -- PLAY BALL!

Next sim:  Wednesday night.

Sim's Done! Opening Day is Next!

Game Date:  Mar 31 2031

Signings:

• Appalachian signed P Chad Harrison to a 1 year extension for $500k
• Mepkin Abbey signed RP Ray Lewis (Atlanta), 1 yr/$690k
• Appalachian signed SP Dale Long to a one year, $610k extension.

Significant Injuries:

• Philadelphia C Jesus Duran has a fractured thumb which will cost him five weeks.
• Brick 1B Martin Cox inflamed his elbow while trying to win a prize by knocking down all the bottles at the county fair.  He may have won a prize, but he (and Brick) have lost two weeks.

Answer to Trivia Question:

There is only one player who has exactly the same number of hits for a franchise as the number of games he played for that franchise (with a minimum of 1000 games for that franchise).  Who is the player and which team?

The answer is Hall of Fame second baseman Joe Gordon.  Gordon played exactly 1000 games for the Yankees and had exactly 1000 hits for the franchise. 

There are several players who are close, but just miss the 1000 game/hit requirement:

George Stovall (Cleveland) 955 games/hits
Pete Runnels (Washington Senators) 921
Bill Sweeney (Boston Braves) 902

Other Hall of Famers who did this (again without the 1000 game minimum) are:

Andre Dawson (Red Sox) 196 games/196 hits
Hughie Jennings (Brooklyn) 188
Al Simmons (Boston Braves) 93
Tony Lazzeri (New York Giants)  13
Flick Elmer (Philadelphia A's) 11
Roger Bresnehan (Washington Senators) 6
Mike Piazza (Florida) 5  (remember that week?)
King Kelly (Boston Reds -- American Association) 4
Dizzy Dean (St. Louis Browns) 1*
Jack Chesbro (Boston Red Sox) 1
Jesse Haines (Cincinnati) 1 

* Dean was retired and a broadcaster for the Browns in 1947.  The Browns were awful (as they usually were) and Dean had commented on the air that he could pitch better than the current staff.  Management took him up on his offer and allowed him to pitch the final game of the season.  Dean proved his point by throwing four scoreless innings and rapped a double in his only time at bat.

(Just to be clear -- I did know about Gordon, but not all the others.  I certainly don't know everyone's stats off the top of my head.  It helps to download a database and know how to write a SQL query.)

Next sim:  Monday night -- a one-day sim to take us to Opening Day.  I expect Opening Day to be simmed on Wednesday (with the regular sims being on Wednesdays throughout the season).  I will confirm with tomorrow's post when the actual Opening Day sim will be.

trade between Brick and Antelope Valley

Brick needing to upgrade the shortstop position dealt the following players Derek Hanson SP Miguel Hernandez 2B and Wang 3B to Antelope Valley for Rich Chase 2B/SS ....this move improves both are defense ans offense at the shortstop position all three players became expendable with the recent free agent signings....Chase only 27 cements the infield quite awhile ...youth is now served at second and shortstop plus with Santiago coming back in 3 weeks he well slot right in to rotation

Raptors Announce 4 Player Trade with Brick

The AV Raptors pulled the trigger on a 4 player trade with the Brick Barracudas.  Heading out of the AV is long time infielder Rick Chase for 3 prospects:
SP Derek Hanson (27 years old)
2B Miguel Hernandez (23) and
3B Tzu-hsia Wang (24)

"We hated to part ways with Rick", said Raptors GM Bill Sauerwald.  "But Brick came in with really good offer at a time we were looking to get younger.  In addition to adding some much needed pitching depth, we really like the potential of Hernandez and Wang - especially Hernandez's speed and defense.  They will probably slot into AAA, at least when we break camp.  But I think both can be contributors by the end of this year or early next."

"Rick's been a solid contributor since we drafted him in 2025", continued Sauerwald, "batting .280 for us over the past 5 years.  But with our team in a slight rebuilding mode, we felt it best for the fans to bring in some youngsters who may be ready in a year or two."

(Nearly) Free Players!

I have quite a few players who are out of options and probably not going to make my team. I will end up waiving and designating them for assignment, so if you want, they'll be free to claim soon.

But, if you aren't high on the waiver list, and don't want to risk having them claimed by someone else, I'm offering them for trade now. They are:

• C: Jesus Flores
• IFs: Adrian Sanchez, Garry Nicholson
• Ps: Paul Reed, Kwang-Sub Kim, Jim Knowles, Sergio Lujan

I'm not looking for much in return for the above: a mid-round draft pick or a 1-2 star prospect that catches my eye, maybe.

Additionally, I'm shopping the following players who are going to otherwise make my team, or still have options to go to AAA:

• C: Steven Broadbent
• IFs: Tokuma Kanno, Javier Cisneros, Javier Ortiz, Ieyasu Suzuki, Jonathan Locker, Jesus Mejia
• OFs: Ramon Gonzalez, Alejandro Garcia, Julio Quintana, George Candler, Jose Molina
• Ps: John Ryan, Steve McClain, Ben Cloherty, Julio Lopez

I'm also open to trading prospects like Juan Velez and Elwood Bolden. Let's make a trade this weekend. 

Spring Training Week 4 Done - Opening Day Approaching!

Game Date:  Mar 24 2031

Signings:  

Maui 3B Antonio Venet (extension) 6 yr/$57.3m
Seattle RF Hector Pena (extension) 1 yr/$510k
Seattle 3B Charles Cluett (extension) 1 yr/$520k
Brick SP Joong-guen Yi (extension) 8 yr/$187m!

Significant Injuries:
None

Commissioner's Note:  Please note that we are getting close to Opening Day.  The next sim will be the final full week sim of Spring Training.

Really Tough Trivia Question:

(since no one took a stab at it last time, you get the same question :)  :p  )

There is only one player who has exactly the same number of hits for a franchise as the number of games he played for that franchise (with a minimum of 1000 games for that franchise).  Who is the player and which team?

Example:  Carlos Delgado played 468 games for the New York Mets and has 468 hits for the franchise.  But only person has done it with a minimum of 1000 games.  Who is it?


Next Sim:  Sunday night

Spring Training Week 3 Done!

Game Date:  Mar 17 2031

Signings:
Mepkin Abbey signed C Brian Walker (Houston), 1yr/$570k
Appalachian signed 2B Michael Lambert (extension), 1 yr/$2.9m
Mepkin Abbey signed RP Carlo Humphrey (Maui) 1 yr/$760k

Significant Injuries:
Atlanta 1B Roberto Gonzalez has a strained quad that will cost him about four weeks.

Really Tough Trivia Question:

There is only one player who has exactly the same number of hits for a franchise as the number of games he played for that franchise (with a minimum of 1000 games for that franchise).  Who is the player and which team?

Example:  Carlos Delgado played 468 games for the New York Mets and has 468 hits for the franchise.  But only person has done it with a minimum of 1000 games.  Who is it?

Next sim:  Thursday night.

Spring Training Week 2 Sim Done!

Game Date:  Mar 10 2031

Signings:
Mepkin Abbey signed C David Hamilton (Brooklyn) 1 yr/$3.5m
Houston signed 1B Howard Rogers (Wilmington) 1 yr/$1.3m
Mepkin Abbey signed 2B Richard Bender (Atlanta) 1 yr/$2.8m
Houston signed RP Matt Mathews (Mepkin Abbey) 1 yr/$570k

Commissioner's Note:  Did you know that today is the league's birthday?  It's been fifteen years since we started!  That has to make us one of the longest running leagues in OOTP history.

Next sim:  Wednesday night

Happy Birthday To Us. 15 Years!

When I first started this league, I don’t think I ever imagined that we’d still be playing fifteen years later.  And, yet, that’s exactly what has happened.

It was fifteen years ago today, Nov 27, 2002, when I started a thread in the Straight Dope Message Board asking if there was anyone interested in starting an Out of the Park League.  It took a few days, but we eventually found eight people to take the plunge, purchase the software and set up the league.  And the rest, as they say, is history.  Now, fifteen years, thirty seasons and four additional franchises later, we’re still here, having fun.

I happen to like the way our league is built and the people that we have in it. Yes, we’re not the most active or flashy league out there - but I like that about our league.  We’re having the fun of running a baseball franchise without having to worry about three sims a week or deciding how many feet away the right field fence should be.  We don’t get bogged down into a morass of rule lawyering and we find ways to resolve disputes and problems quickly and fairly.  We simply have the fun of the game, without having to devote fifteen to twenty hours a week to it.  It’s just a friendly, easy going league -- and I like that.

I find it amazing that not only are we still here fifteen years later, but that four of the original eight owners are still here and have participated in every one of our 29 seasons to date. Michael, Mack and Will -- thank you for staying with me all these years as we continue to play season after season.  Matt, Bill, Nate, Fred, Brian, John and Tom - some of you have been here for many years, some of you are relatively new, but I've enjoyed having every one of you in the league with us.

I want to take this opportunity to thank my co-commissioner Michael for all of his help. I could not continue this league with him.  There have been times of late that I have simply not been up to the task of running the league and Michael has always been there to help pick up the slack. In addition, he's been a tremendous help in running the league, coming up with rule ideas and doing the many things that it takes to help keep this league running.  His assistance, insight and attention to league matters has been invaluable and is deeply appreciated.  

I also want to thank Mack for his assistance in keeping the statistical history of the league.  I know that if I ever need to get details about the ancient early years of our league, I can turn to Mack and his spreadsheets for help.  

I’ve had a blast running this league for the last fifteen years -- and I’m looking forward to continuing to do so for many years more.  Thank you all for being along for the ride - I could not do it without you.

Zev

First Spring Training Sim Done!

Game Date:  Mar 3 2031

Signings:  Houston signed RP Masatake Shibata (Wilmington) to a 1 year deal worth $405k.

Significant Injuries:
Brooklyn CF Edgardo Collazo has plantar fascitis.  He's going to miss about six weeks.
Seattle 2B Norm Kuhn has an oblique strain that will cost him four weeks.

Commissioner's Note:  The Atlanta franchise is still available.  If you know anyone who would be interested in joining the league, feel free to have them contact me.

Next sim:  Monday evening.

Spring Training Is Here!

Game Date:  Feb 25 2031

Welcome to Spring Training -- the 30th Spring Training of the SDMB OOTP League!

Signings:  
Philadelphia signed 2B Adrian Sanchez (Houston) 1 yr/$400k

Next sim:  Sunday.  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone!

Sim's Done!

Game Date:  Feb 24 2031

Signings:
Mepkin Abbey:  RP Carlos Arias (Atlanta) 1yr/$830k
Houston: RP Teddy O'Herlihy (re-signed) 1 yr/$448k
Brick:  2B Ken Moore (Appalachian) 1 yr/$710k

Commissioner's Note:
The next sim will cover one day, taking us to the start of Spring Training.

Next sim:  Tuesday night.

Sim's Done

Game Date: February 17, 2031.

Signings:

• Brick re-signed 3B Larry McCormick - 1 year / $2.08m

League News: The Preseason is almost over. The next sim will take us to the eve of Spring Training.

Next Sim: Monday (11/20) night. 

Barracudas and Black Bears Blockbuster

Brick and Appalachian have agreed to a swap of top-flight starting pitchers. The Black Bears are sending SDMB top-5 pitcher Joong-geun Yi to Brick in exchange for SP Miguel Archuleta, Brick's 2nd round pick, and Brick's (formerly Highlands) 5th and 6th round picks.

Black Bears GM Brian Hockin was not excited to give up Yi. "We love his passion and his baseball IQ, but we knew it would be impossible to sign him long-term and keep the rest of our young players. Archuleta is signed to a team-friendly contract for the next several years, and we know he can preform capably in Yi's absence."

Brick GM Fred Goldfarb was reportedly ecstatic to add a pitcher of Yi's caliber to his already stacked starting lineup. "This is the guy we need to us towards a championship."

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Feb 10 2031

Signings:
Maui signed closer Greg Fiala (Wilmington) to a 1 yr/$3.1m contract.

Next sim:  Saturday night

Sim's Done!

Game Date:  Feb 3 2031

Signings:

Atlanta went on a shopping spree this week, landing the following players:

C Miguel Angel Ramirez (Mepkin Abbey) for 4 yrs/$79.8m.
LF Ira Black (Philadelphia) 1 yr/$334k
SS Pedro Rivera (Maui) 1 yr/$860k
CF Jose Sandoval (resigned) 1 yr/$398k
C George Robinson (Wilmington) 1 yr/$6.7m
RF Maximo Rodriguez (Wilmington) 1 yr/$1.9m

Wilmington signed the following players:
P Ramiro Martinez (Atlanta) 1 yr/$1.78m
1B Jaime Alvarez (Antelope Valley), 1 yr/$630k

Next sim:  Thursday night

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Jan 27 2031

Commissioner's Note:  We have a new owner for the Atlanta franchise.  I am currently setting up the league file for him and will be sending him an invitation for the league blog soon, where he will introduce himself.

Next sim:  Scheduled for Tuesday night, but I reserve the right to push it back a day or so if the new owner needs additional time to get things up and running.

Zev

Sim's done: Welcome to the Pre-Season!

Game Date: January 26, 2031

Signings:

• Philadelphia signed SP Alejandro Baez to a one-year extension for $3.65m
• Philadelphia signed 1B Manuel Hidalgo to a one-year extension for $6.35m
• Philadelphia signed SP Tian-bai Chen (Mepkin Abbey) - 7 years / $305m
• Atlanta signed SP Felipe Martinez (Highland) - minor league contract

(Yes, I've been busy.)

League News:

• We are now in the Pre-Season. This means you can set your ticket prices, plus your scouting and player development budgets. You have until Spring Training starts to do so.
• I re-renamed the former Rookie League the Low A league.
• I set the AAA, AA, and A league schedules to be 140 games long, starting on April 2nd.
• As Low A is not yet in the pre-season, its schedule has not been updated.

Next Sim: Zev has got the conn on Saturday night as we enter the pre-season. Start making your spring training plans!

Philadelphia and Brick trade

In the waning hours of the offseason, a blockbuster trade between geographic (and family) rivals Brick and Philadelphia helped set the course for both team's plans for 2031 and beyond.

Heading east on I-105 to Brick's spring training site are rehabbing starter Juan Santiago and stud 1B prospect Dave O'Brien. In return for those two, plus a third round draft pick, the Hornets receive four players, including prospects RP Juan Diaz, SP Paul Gilbert, and OF Jim Robertson, as well as 1B Javier Cisneros.

Sim's Done. Offseason is almost over!

Game Date: January 20, 2031.

Signings:

• Mepkin Abbey - 3B Esteban Ordonez (Houston) - 3 years / $9.4 million
• Houston - CF Randy Pope (Appalachian) - 5 years / $16.68 million
• Antelope Valley - C Rory Li (international) - minor league contract
• Seattle - SS Byung-soo Yi (international) - minor league contract
• Appalachian - SP Christian Bedard (international) - minor league contract
• Appalachian - 3B Antoine Gagne (international) - minor league contract

League News:

• Frank, who ran the Atlanta team this season after Jeremy retired, has quit the league.
• I have placed Atlanta under CPU control for now.
• Zev and I may already have a new owner for this franchise. Stay tuned.

Next Sim: 

• Wednesday (11/8) night. 
• This will be a six-day sim taking us to the start of the preseason. 

Sim's Done! Welcome Our Newest Hall of Famers!

Game Date:  Jan 13 2031

Ladies and Gentlemen... your Hall of Fame Class of 2031!

And, of course, you can see these plaques, as well as those of our other thirteen inductees at our Hall of Fame exhibit.

The rest of the Hall of Fame balloting results:

SS John Hukill (1st year) 98.8%
SP Christopher Hester (1st) 97.9

CF Sean Arant (3rd) 47.6
LF Christopher Moss (3rd) 43.1
RF Paul Shunk (2nd) 42.7
RF Patrick Valdez (3rd) 33.6
SP Jefferey Shuttleworth (3rd) 32.9
1B Gregorio Marzano (1st) 24.9
2B Timothy Palacio (3rd) 20.3
SP Kyle Fike (2nd) 15.2
3B Bruce Parker (1st) 14.9
3B Octavio Cabrales (1st) 10.0

Dropped from future ballots:
CF Monte Goss (2nd) 2.8
SP Dennis Durand (1st) 2.3
SP James Turner (1st) 2.1
SP Donald Hunnicutt (1st) 2.1
SS Jeff Wardlaw (1st) 0.9


Signings:

Brooklyn:  RF Luis Santiago (Wilmington) 3 yrs/$10.5m
Mepkin Abbey:  CF Cheung Ying (Atlanta) 4 yrs/$4.8m
Wilmington: SP Carlos Salazar (Houston) 4 yrs/$14.4m
Mepkin Abbey:  SP Qing-hua Tso (Wilmington) 3 yrs/$9.2m

Next sim:  Monday night

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Jan 6 2031

Signings:
Maui: CF Jesus Barcello (re-signed) 2 yrs/$26.4m
Wilmington: RP Lan-quing Shu (Houston) 1 yr/$600k
Antelope Valley: 1B Eobanus Schnabel (Houston) 1 yr/$570k

As we flip the calendar to 2031, we have the customary Jan 1 retirements.  Among those hanging up the spikes are:

CF Steve Keo
13 years, 1644G, .271 AVG, .802 OPS, 28.6 WAR, 110 HR

RF Raul Ortega
15 years, 2078G, .289 AVG, .870 OPS, 38.7 WAR, 431 HR, 1408 RBI.
Outstanding Newcomer 2015, 6x Player of the Week, Batter of the Month (4/2019)

RP Lucas Sweeney
17 years, 857 G, 76-72, 57 SV, 4.74 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 11.7 WAR

SP William Lawrence
17 years, 165-162, 4.62 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 35.8 WAR, 2449K

RP Tony Dominguez
11 years, 681G, 50-46, 76 SV, 4.56 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 6.6 WAR

1B Masahide Ueda
11 years, 1578G, .319 AVG, 908 OPS, 41.9 WAR, 249 HR, 1047 RBI
5x Player of the Week, Batter of the Month (7/2025), 2x Slick Fielder

SP Emilio Romero
11 years, 130-117, 4.46 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 2098K, 26.8 WAR

RP Edgar Trevino
9 years, 293G, 28-33, 5 SV, 4.91 ERA, 1.49 WHIP

RP Edgardo Rodriguez
8 years, 536G, 33-43, 96 SV, 4.60 ERA, 1.40 WHIP

P Bruce Roughly
7 years, 282 G, 44-59, 5 SV, 4.84 ERA, 1.68 WHIP

Next sim:  Saturday night

The Sim Will Come Out... Tomorrow...

... you can bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow
they'll be sim.

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Dec 30 2030

Signings:
Maui: RF Don Jones (extension) 1 yr/$8.5m
Philadelphia:  SS Garry Nicholson (Appalachian) 1 yr/$450k
Wilmington:  C Cristobal Cordero (Highland) 1 yr/$2.5m
Antelope Valley: SP Kevin Lambert (Wilmington) 1 yr/$870k
Mepkin Abbey: SP Jesus Garcia (Atlanta) 1 yr/$730k

Next sim:  Wednesday night.

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Dec 23 2030

Signings:  Maui, CL Julio Delvalle (Atlanta), 3 yr/ $18m

Next sim:  Monday night

Sim's Done! Vote For Hall of Fame! Really Tough Trivia Question!

Game Date:  Dec 16 2030

Signings:

• Highland:  SP Jack Kaiser (Antelope Valley), 1 yr/$3.75m
• Houston:  SP Dylan Robinson (Mepkin Abbey), 1 yr/$476k
• Philadelphia: RP Kwang-sub Kim (Highland), 1 yr/$450k
• Mepkin Abbey: SP Jim Walton (Antelope Valley), 2 yrs/$7.7m
• Brick: RP Hector Estrada (Philadelphia), 2 yrs/$1.85m
• Houston:  SS Jesus Alvarez (Mepkin Abbey), 1 yr/$1.5m

Commissioner's Notes:

• Make sure to vote for the Hall of Fame, if you have not yet done so.
• Please make sure that there is a place for me to place your player when he comes off the DFA list.  That means having a place on the 40 man roster (if he has a major league contract) and a spot on a major or minor league team to place him.

Trivia Question:

What do the following pitchers (and only the following pitchers) have in common?

• Art Nehf
• Bob Kuzava
• Will McEnaney
• Mariano Rivera

Next sim:  Saturday night.

Sim's Done -- Cast Your Hall of Fame Ballot!

Game Date:  Dec 9 2030

Signings:

Houston:  RF Ed Weber (Appalachian) 2 yrs/$27m.

Commissioner's Note:  This sim is your chance to cast your ballot for the Hall of Fame.   To cast your ballot, go to SDMB -> Hall of Fame Voting.

Next sim:  Wednesday night.

Trade between Brick and Highland

BRICK AND HIGHLAND

Brick trades Evan Martin OF to Highland for their fifth and six round picks

GM Fred Goldfarb felt that there was a need for more picks and Evan wouldn't be able to make the roster so he was shipped to Highland who had a real need for a capable outfielder .John the GM of Highland was very happy with getting additional talent for the big club

Sim's Done! Rule 5 Results

Game Date:  Dec 2 2030

Rule 5 Draft Results:

Round 1:
Highland: SP Jose Morales (Seattle)
Antelope Valley:  RF Kyle Plummer (Brick)
Wilmington: RF Juan Alvarez (Philadelphia)

Round 2:
Highland: RP Tatsuya Kan (Seattle)
Wilmington:  CF Eric Clark (Seattle)

Round 3:
Wilmington: 3B Ruben Noya (Philadelphia)

Signings:
Houston:  3B Gene Reynolds 4 yr/$50.8m

Commissioner's Note:

I reverted our lowest level league to Rookie level and will leave it there until the calendar flips on Jan 1.  The reason is because Jan 1 is when the history of the league is recorded in final form.  When it was switched, it showed all of this year's rookie level players as having played in a Short Season A league.  This is, incidentally, the reason why when there is a renaming/relocation, I only do it after Jan 1. 

Once we flip the calendar, I will set it back to Short-A again. 

Next sim:  Tuesday night.

Sim's Done - Rule 5 Draft is Here!

League Date: December 1, 2030

Signings:

• Highland signed SP Yoshifumi Tanaka (Wilmington) - 2 years, $3.5m
• Highland signed 1B Luis Lozano (Seattle) - 2 years, $3.5m
• Highland signed CL Gregg Fiala (Wilmington) - 1 year, $5m
• Houston signed 3B Greg Reynolds (Brick) - 4 years, $50.8m

The Rule 5 draft is here! Please use the Rule 5 Draft Pool option in the SDMB menu in the game to make your selections. A reminder: You must have an open spot on your 40-man roster to make a selection in the Rule 5 draft.

Next Sim: The Rule 5 draft, and the first week of December 2030, will be on Saturday night (10/21/2017).

Sim's Done

League Date: Nov. 25, 2030

Signings:

• Mepkin Abbey signed SP Enrico Hernandez (Brick) - 2 years, $36m
• Mepkin Abbey signed SP Ivan Gallardo (Wilmington) - 1 year, $670k
• Houston re-signed SP Victor Galvan - 1 year, $940k

League News:

• I enacted the changes we agreed upon for the minor leagues, starting with the 2031 season. In particular:
• The former Rookie League is now known as Low A (A-).
• The age limits (A- 22, A 24, AA 27) are in effect, but are not enforced until the start of the offseason. As that date has already passed for this year and season, it will not be enforced until the end of the 2031 season. So, you have all 2031 to evaluate your minor league players at whatever level you want, but they will need to be assigned according to age at the start of the 2031-32 offseason.
• I removed the eligibility of pitchers to win the Outstanding Batter awards in the minors. We have that turned off in the majors, and I thought it was best to do so in the minors. If anyone strongly believes that pitchers should be eligible, we can discuss putting it back
• The next sim will take us to the Rule 5 draft. This, right now, is your last chance to protect players from being selected in that draft.

Next Sim: Wednesday night, October 18, 2017. This will take us to the Rule 5 draft!

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Nov 18 2030

News:

Mepkin Abbey closer Bong-ok Ch'on retires with 157 saves.
Houston re-signs SP Noah Hill (2 yrs/$6.1m)
Mepkin Abbey signs SP Adam Harrison (Houston), 2 yrs/$1.6m

Next sim:  Monday night.  Don't forget to protect your Rule 5 eligible players!

Bartering Barracudas and Black Bears

Brick and Appalachian have agreed to a trade involving 5 players and 2 draft picks.

Coming to the mountains of Virginia are 3B Angel Padilla, OF Tomas Kalakay, RP Esteban Valenzuela, OF Cliff Bowen, and 5th round pick. Black Bears GM Brian Hockin knew that he would have to take on Kalakay's contract to get the deal done, but was willing to do so to get some good talent in return. "All of the players in the deal can help us immediately, but we're really hoping that Padilla develops into a 25 HR guy who can nail down third for a while" said GM Hockin.

Heading to Brick is OF Evan Martin and a 10th round pick in the upcoming draft. GM Fred Goldfab said "While we're sad to see those guys go, dumping Kalakay's salary and picking up a solid young outfielder who can play all 3 positions well is absolutely worth it."

Sim's Done... Attention K Mart Shoppers -- Get Your Free Agents in Aisle Five!

Game Date:  Nov 11 2030

Next sim:  Saturday night

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Nov 4 2030

Next sim:  Tuesday night, which bring us to free agent filings.

Sim's Done -- More Hardware Given Out!

Game Date:  Oct 28 2030

Awards:

Platinum Stick Awards:

C: Steve Jones, Seattle (2nd career award)
1B: Hector Valera, Seattle (2nd consecutive award)
2B: Norman Kuhn, Seattle (3rd consecutive award)
3B: Antonio Venet, Maui (also won Slick Fielder this year)
SS: Tae-Sang Pak, Maui
LF: Salvador Velasquez, Brick (2nd consecutive award)
CF: Albert Ramirez, Houston
RF: Lorenzo Hernandez, Highland
DH: Jesus Valdez, Highland

Outstanding Newcomer:  CF Joel Randall, Mepkin Abbey

Outstanding Pitcher: Toyoshige Takahashi, Seattle (3rd consecutive award)

Outstanding Batter:  Hector Valera, Seattle

Next sim:  Monday night, which will take us through the arbitration hearings.

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Oct 21 2030

Awards:

Slick Fielder:

P:  Jesus Garcia, Atlanta
C:  Miguel Ramirez, Mepkin Abbey (2nd award)
1B: Ben Turner, Highland
2B:  Rodrigo Negron, Atlanta (2nd award)
3B:  Antonio Venet, Maui
SS:  Dmitri Radzilowski, Wilmington
LF:  Bill Love, Brooklyn
CF:  Chris Pace, Highland
RF:  Lucio Muniz, Atlanta (4th award)

Reliever of the Year  Anthony White, Philadelphia

Notes: The media revenues have been adjusted and the spreadsheet that Michael linked to in the previous comments section has been updated.

Next sim: Saturday night.

Sim's Done

Game Date:  Oct 14 2030

I have been made aware of a potential issue with the revenues in the game.  If I remember correctly, it is at this point in the year that we have to make the manual adjustments to change the amounts to the revenue formula that we agreed upon several years ago.  I will look into it with the next sim.

Next sim (when we should have some hardware to give out):  Tuesday evening.

Philadelphia's Trade Depot

Welcome to the off-season! Now that we can trade again, I have the following players for offer:

• C Steven Broadbent - starting catcher with power (21 HR), arbitration eligible. Can play 150 games a year and hit in the middle of the lineup.
• 1B Javier Ortiz - 23-years-old, slashed 289/321/829 this year with 34 HR and 125 RBI. 4-stars and still developing.
• 2B Ieyasu Suzuki - 27-year-old starting 2B who can play 3B or SS. 399 OBP! Hits for average, gets on base, and gets driven in.
• 3B Ruben Noya -  26-years-old and slashed 316/369/806 in AAA, can start in majors.
• IF Tokuma Kanno - slashed 310/351/827 with 1.5 WAR as a fifth infielder, can play all over the infield, and be a starter at 3B.
• OF Ramon Gonzalez - platoon or 4th OF (843 OPS against LHP), can play in any OF position, and is still developing into a starter.
• OF Jose Molina - 28-year-old RF defensive wizard (3 Slick Fielder awards). I'm willing to pay some of his remaining salary.
• SP John Ryan - legitimate 26-year-old top of the rotation starter: 3.72 ERA (127 ERA+) in 2030, 200+ inning workhorse for 3 straight seasons.
• RP Sergio Lujan - above-average relief pitcher. Can close or start, or just pitch dependable middle relief.
• RP Jim Knowles - 2.68 ERA left-handed relief pitcher making less than $1M. Dominant against LH batters.

I am also willing to discuss trading the following prospects. Some are ready to play in the majors now:

• SP Juan Velez
• OF Julio Quintana
• OF George Candler
• OF Alejandro Garcia
• OF Roberto Flores
• 3B Mario Zuziela (almost ready for AAA)
• OF Elwood Bolden (AA)

Each team has an asset or position of strength that interests me, so if one of the above catches your eye, let me know and we can discuss a deal.

Sim's Done. Welcome to the Offseason.

Game Date: Oct 12 2030

Welcome to the off-season.   Unless noted, all subsequent sims until the start of the 2031 season will cover until the next Monday. 

Next sim:  Monday night.

Onward....

Congrats to Matt on a great season and winning the 2030 Cecil Cup. 

Next sim (the first one will cover only one day) will be Sunday night.

He mau hōʻailona (Champions!)

Game Date:  Oct 10 2030

The Maui Mashers have captured their fourth Cecil Cup today with a 7-3 win over the Brick Barracudas.

Masher bats struck early, putting up a four spot in the first on home runs by batting champ and series MVP Antonio Venet and Juan Arroyo and adding another two in the second with a blast off of Don Jones.  That was all it took, as Brick could not recover from the deficit.

Congratulations to Matt on a well played season, and congratulations to Fred as well, on another well-played season.

We'll give Matt a few days to bask in his glory before kicking off the offseason.

Game Five To Brick As Barracudas Stay Alive

Game Date:  Oct 10 2030

The Brick Barracudas managed to stave off elimination with a 5-2 victory over Maui.  Brick struck early with a two run home run by Matt Foster in the second, an RBI double by Martin Cox in the third and a solo shot by Salvador Velasquez in the fifth.   Maui managed to put up two runs on homers off the bats of David Seibel and Thomas Lyons, but it just wasn't enough to overcome the strong pitching of rookie Jake Glenn.

Game Six:  Monday night.

Maui Wins Game 4

Game Date: 10/8/2030

The Maui Mashers knocked Brick starter Gustavo Melendez out of Game 4 of the Cecil Cup in the first inning, and rolled to an 11-5 victory that leaves them one win away from the championship.

Thomas Lyons led off the bottom of the first with a walk, and Aaron Hampton homered to give the Mashers a quick 2-0 lead. Don Jones singled, Antonio Venet and Carlos Madrigal both walked to load the bases. Juan Arroyo and David Seibel each singled in a run, keeping the bases loaded for Jesus Barcello, who cleared the bases with a grand slam. It was 7-0 Maui, and Melendez headed to the showers.

Game 5 will be Saturday night. Will Brick stay alive? Will the Cecil Cup bask in the Hawaii sun? We'll find out then!

Game Three Goes to the Mashers

Game Date: 10/7/2030

Catcher Aaron Hampton led the way with three hits as the Maui Mashers won game 3 of the Cecil Cup in front of a sold out crowd in Maui's Old League Park. Three Mashers mashed home runs off Brick starter Miguel Archuleta in the first two innings. The final score was 6-1 Maui, who take a two games to one lead in the best of seven series.

Brick's bullpen again pitched well, holding Maui scoreless after Archuleta left in the fourth inning, but the damage was already done. Maui starter Luis Salazar pitched four scoreless innings before leaving with an strained oblique, ending his season.

Maui is now two wins away from their first Cecil Cup victory in nine seasons.

Game 4 will be Tuesday night. Brown vs Melendez. Don't miss it!

Maui Ties Series

Game Date: Oct 6 2030

The Maui Mashers have tied up the Cecil Cup Series with a 6-4 victory against Brick today.

Maui utilized the long ball to put up six runs in the third inning on a lead off homer by Jesus Barcello, a grand slam by Don Jones and another solo shot by Juan Arroyo, sending Brick starter Enrico Hernandez to an early shower.  The Brick bullpen held Maui scoreless the rest of the way as the Barracuda bats tried to make up the lost ground.  They put two across in the fourth and another two in the seventh, but in the end, they could not catch up to the Mashers.

Game 3:  Monday night

Brick Takes Game One

The Brick Barracudas drew first blood in the 2030 Cecil Cup with a 5-4 victory over the Maui Mashers.

Maui got the first run on the board with a solo home run by Antonio Venet, but Brick responded with three in the bottom of the frame with back to back homers by Martin Cox (2 runs) and Salvador Velasquez.  Brick added two more in the bottom of the third on an RBI single by Velasquez and another one by Fred Kennedy.

Brick would not score again, but they would manage to hold on despite two more runs in the fifth and another solo home run by Venet in the sixth.  Maui had a shot to score with runners on first and third with no one out in the seventh, but could not score against Jake Glenn.

Game 2:  Thursday night.

The World Turned Upside Down...

The Maui Mashers have dethroned the Monarchs with a 12 inning, 2-1 victory.  They go on to face Brick, who advanced to the Cecil Cup finals with an 8-4 victory over Philadelphia.

Game 1:  Wednesday night.

Mack Claims Moral Victory, Brick Takes Lead

Game Date: Oct 1 2030

Seattle got to claim a moral victory today with a 13-6 victory over Maui today.  In the nightcap, Brick shut out Philadelphia and limited them to five hits to take a 3-2 lead in their series.

Game 6: Monday night

Seattle Staves Off Elimination, Brick Ties Series

Game Date:  Sep 29 2030

Seattle managed to stay alive to play another game, thanks to Roy Watts throwing eight shutout, four-hit, no-walk innings.

Watts retired the first ten batters he faced and, throughout the game, only one Maui batter, Juan Arroyo managed to reach third when he hit a one-out triple in the fifth.  However, Watts struck out the next two batters to get out of the inning. The hitting star of the game was Norman Kuhn, who went 2-3 with a home run and 2 RBI.

In the nightcap, Brick defeated Philadelphia 6-2 to tie their series at two games apiece.  Brick starter Gustavo Melendez went seven innings, giving up two runs on six hits and striking out eight for the victory.  1B Martin Cox hit his third home run of the series.

Game 5:  Saturday night.

Maui Takes Commanding 3-0 Lead, Philadelphia Outlasts Brick in Another Overtime Game

The Maui Mashers took a commanding 3-0 lead over the Seattle Monarchs and are in a position to be the first team to take the long-reigning Monarchs out of the playoffs since 2023.

Seattle starter Ernest Metcalf became the latest pitcher to be unable to stop the Maui bats, giving up eight runs and ten hits in 4 2/3 innings.  Maui's leadoff second-sacker Thomas Lyons hit his third home run of the series, and both Tae-Sang Pak and Juan Arroyo had two doubles off of Metcalf apiece.

In the nightcap, Philadelphia outlasted Brick in thirteen innings to take a 2-1 lead in their series.  Philadelphia had a 7-2 lead after five and a half innings, but Alajandro Baez and Joe Younger could not hold the lead and the game went into extra frames.

Philadelphia managed to put two across the plate in the top of the 13th on a home run by C Steve Broadbent.  Brick managed to push one run across in the bottom of the inning and had runners on second and third when RF Thomas Kalakay grounded weakly to first to end the game.

Game 4:  Wednesday Night.

Playoffs: Maui Takes 2-0 Lead, Brick-Philadelphia Tied

Game Date:  Sep 27 2030

The Maui Mashers took a 2-0 lead against the Seattle Monarchs with a 9-6 victory.  The hitting star for the Mashers has been second baseman Thomas Lyons who went 3-5 and smacked his second home run in as many games.  Seattle pitcher Chris Williams simply didn't have it today, giving up thirteen hits and seven earned runs in 5 2/3 innings.  The bright spot for Seattle was third baseman Sung-heun Hwa, who hit his third home run of the playoffs.

In the nightcap, it took 11 innings for the Philadelphia Hornets to beat the Brick Barracudas 7-6.  Philadelphia had a 5-4 lead going into the top of the ninth when closer Anthony White failed to hold the lead by giving up a game-tying home run to Anthony Powers to lead off the inning.

Brick took a lead in the top of the 11th on an RBI single by Salvadore Velasquez, but could not hold off the Hornets.  Brick brought in Frank Carey to face Javier Ortiz.  Ortiz smacked the first pitch of the inning for a single.  After a sacrifice bunt, Manuel Hidalgo launched a 1-0 pitch over the right field wall for a two run home run to win the game.

Answer to last week's trivia question:
Which Hall of Fame pitcher* did not earn his first major league win until nearly five years after his major league debut.

(* Only players elected as pitchers should be considered... so Jimmie Foxx, who earned his first [and only] pitching victory 20 years after his major league debut does not count.)

Fred came up with Warren Spahn, which is a good guess, but not the correct one.  Spahn made his big league debut for the Boston Braves on April 19, 1942.  He failed to win a game that year, enlisted in the Army after the season and spent the next three years in the war.  He earned his first win on July 14, 1946, a stretch of four years and nearly three months.  I will admit that that can be construed as "nearly five years" and give Fred partial credit.  But it is not the answer I was looking for.

The correct answer is Bob Lemon.  Lemon made his debut for the Cleveland Indians on September 9, 1941.  He played five games that year and five more in 1942 before joining the US Navy and missing the next three seasons.  He finally won his first game on June 9, 1946, four years and ten months after his debut.

Spahn pitched in four games in 1942 (including two starts) and did not win a game.  Lemon, however, had a pretty good excuse for failing to win any of the ten games he appeared in in 1941-1942... he was stationed at third base.  Lemon did not become a pitcher until he returned from the war.

Next sim:  Tuesday night

Game 1 to Maui and Brick

The Maui Mashers started off the 2030 postseason with a bang, as they jumped all over Seattle starter Toyoshige Takahashi for seven runs in three innings.

Takahashi's troubles started right away when leadoff hitter Thomas Lyons launched a 1-2 pitch over the right field wall in the first inning.  Takahashi would end up giving up two more home runs before being lifted to start the fourth inning.

In the nightcap, Brick waited until the fifth inning to put a run on the board, but by the time the game ended, they put up ten more, to defeat Seattle 11-2.

Game 2 will be Monday night.

September II Sim Done -- Up Next: Playoffs

Game Date:  Sep 24 2030

Upcoming Playoff Matchups:
Maui vs. Seattle
Brick vs. Philadelphia

Awards & Accomplishments:
Seattle's Steve Jones named Player of the Week (9/16, 5th career award, 3rd this season)

Significant Injuries:
Seattle's George Hendricks has a strained hamstring and will miss 2-3 weeks.

Final League Leaders:

Batting Average: Antonio Venet (Maui) .357
Hits:  Venet 231
OPS: Hector Valera (Seattle) 1.037
Home Runs: Valera 54
RBI: Valera 156
Stolen Bases: Miguel Hernandez (Brick) 39

ERA: Toyoshige Takahashi (Seattle) 2.70
Wins: Enrico Hernandez (Seattle/Brick) 21
WPct: Takahashi .900
Saves: Anthony White (Philadelphia) 47
Complete Games: Chris Williams (Seattle) 12
Strikeouts: Kieran Rose (Brooklyn) 256

WAR: Steve Jones (Seattle) 8.5

Answer to the last trivia question:
Actually, I'm kind of surprised that no one even took a shot at it, so I'm going to put it out there for one more try...

Specifically, which Hall of Fame pitcher* did not earn his first major league win until nearly five years after his major league debut.

(* Only players elected as pitchers should be considered... so Jimmie Foxx, who earned his first [and only] pitching victory 20 years after his major league debut does not count.)


Administrative Note:  Saturday night (when the next sim is run) is the deadline to vote in the thread about rookie league changes.  Please make sure to cast your vote.

Administrative Note II:  I'm sorry, everyone, but in a completely Fred Merkle-ish moment, I forgot to download the changes to everyone's lineups.  My apologies.  Unfortunately, I can't go back and re-run the sim, or else I would have already done so.  :(

Next sim:  Saturday night -- game one of the playoffs.

September I sim done

League Date: September 16, 2030

Standings:

• Adams: Brick won the division
• Zotti: Seattle won the division
• Signorino: Philadelphia won the division
• Wild Card: Maui leads Appalachian by 6 games with 6 to go (magic number is 1)

Barring a miracle, the playoff matchups will be Seattle/Maui and Philadelphia/Brick.

News:

• 2B Jose Vega (Wilmington) - Player of the Week (9/2)
• C Joe Haith (Houston) - Player of the Week (9/9)
• C Steve Jones (Seattle) - Player of the Week (9/16)

Minor League Awards:

• AAA Outstanding Pitchers: Paul Reed (PHI) and Carlos Rivera (MAU)
• AAA Outstanding Hitters: CF Antonio Zumaya (SEA) and 1B Carlos Rosales (MAU)
• AA Outstanding Pitchers: Jesus Gonzalez (SEA) and Jim Hall (MAU)
• AA Outstanding Hitters: 3B Matthew James (SEA) and 1B Ryan Gary (APP)
• A Outstanding Pitchers: Tim Jeffreries (HOU) and Jose Galvan (APP)
• A Outstanding Hitters: Jose Poli (HOU) and Jose Galvan (APP)

League Administrivia: If you haven't yet, please vote in the thread about the minor league changes we are considering for next season.

Next Sim: Wednesday 8/30. This will conclude the 29th season of our league.

Aug II Sim Done -- Roster Expansion

Game Date:  Sep 1 2030

Standings:
Adams:  Brick leads Brooklyn by eleven games.
Zotti:  Seattle.
Signorino:  Philadelphia leads Maui by five games
Wild Card:  Maui leads Appalachain by four games.

Awards & Accomplishments:
Philadelphia 1B Maunel Hidalgo named Player of the Week (8/19, 4th career award, 2nd award this season)
Seattle backstop Steve Jones named Player of the Week (8/26, 4th career award, 2nd award this season)
Seattle LF George Hendricks named Batter of the Month (2nd career award)
Houston's Russ Singleton named Pitcher of the Month.
Highland LF Flint Francis named Rookie of the Month

Significant Injuries:
Antelope Valley RF Pedro Mendoza, strained hamstring, done for the season.
Maui C Aaron Hampton, sprained elbow, 3-4 weeks
Antelope Valley SP Jim Walton, ruptured finger tendon, his season is over.
Atlanta C Lawrence Richardson, strained hamstring, out for the year.
Mepkin Abbey 3B Butch Patton, torn UCL, will miss seven months.
Houston SS Joe Carter, herniated disc, out for the year.
Brooklyn SP Fernando Mendoza, sprained ankle, season's finishd.

Batting Line of the Sim:
Philadelphia's Tony Cannon went 4-6 with 3 runs scored, a homer and 7 RBI vs. Highland (8/29)

Pitching Line of the Sim:
Maui's Luis Salazar pitched a one run, five hit complete game with 13K vs Brick 8/25

Last Week's Trivia Question:
First, it's well known that Babe Ruth wore the major league uniforms of the Red Sox, Yankees and Braves.  However, he also wore one other team's major league uniform.  Which team was it?  (Bonus points if you can tell me what uniform number he wore on that uniform.)

Second, speaking of the Red Sox,explain this picture (and no, Photoshop is not the answer): [picture of Rollie Fingers in a Red Sox uniform.

Fred correctly answered that Babe Ruth coached for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1938.  No one got the bonus question, however, as to his uniform number.  It was not 3 -- it was 35.

Fred also correctly pointed out that Rollie Fingers was never, officially, a member of the Boston Red Sox.  As free agency was first coming into effect, Oakland owner Charlie Finley decided to sell off his upcoming free agents, including Fingers.  However, commissioner Bowie Kuhn decided to void the sales in the best interests of baseball.

This Week's Trivia Question:
Which Hall of Fame pitcher did not win his first major league game until nearly five years after his major league debut?

Just to be clear, we're talking about people elected as pitchers, so please don't give any of the following as answers:

• Buck Ewing, C (debut 1880, first pitching win 1889)
• Jimmie Foxx, 1B (1925/1945)
• King Kelly, C (1878/1887)

Commissioner's Note:
It's September.  That's roster expansion season.  :)

Next sim:  Next Wednesday night.

Vote thread: Rookie league changes

Zev and I have discussed this, and taking the suggestion from Fred and the comments on his thread into consideration, we would like to put the following suggestions to a vote:

1. Change the current Rookie League designation to be a Short-Season low A level.
2. Remove the professional year restrictions we currently have on that level.
3. Change the draft from 25 to 20 rounds, and the setting for players available for the draft from 50 rounds worth of players to 40.
4. Institute age limits (which the game is better about enforcing than the pro year limits) for the following minor leagues:
1. Rookie/Short-season A: 22 years old
2. A level: 24 years old
3. AA level: 27 years old
4. AAA level: no age restriction
5. Change the start dates of the minor leagues to be:
1. AAA, AA, A: April 2nd (the day after the current opening day)
2. Rookie/Short-A: June 16th (the first day of the sim following the amateur draft)
6. Extend the minor league seasons:
1. AAA: From 130 to 140 games
2. A and AA: From 120 to 140 games
3. Rookie/Short-A: From 68 to 80 games

Please vote YES or NO on items 1-6 in the comments on this thread. Use Fred's thread for any further discussion; please just vote in the comments to this thread.

the need for a new minor league

hi i believe going forward next year we need to add a  low A or second Rookie League ..their are too many players who get promoted to A  ball but have red arrows pointing down ..these players are not ready mostly 18-20 years old  need one more year.........i feel this might also aids in development of players which only adds to better competition at major league level...feel we should vote on this and add a new team (rookie or low A)

Aug I Sim Done

Game Date:  Aug 16 2030

Standings:
Adams:  Brick leads Brooklyn by ten.
Zotti:  Seattle.  Just Seattle.
Signorino: Philadelphia is three games ahead of Maui
Wild Card:  Maui is five games up on Appalachian.

Awards & Accomplishments:
Maui 3B Antonio Venet named Batter of the Month.
Seattle's Chris Williams named Pitcher of the Month (2nd career award)
Antelope Valley RF Pedro Martinez named Rookie of the Month.
Houston's Albert Ramirez hits 3 HR in one game (8/1)
Seattle LF George Hendrick named Player of the Week (8/5, 3rd career award)
Maui 3B Tae-sang Pak named Player of the Week (8/12, 2nd career award)

Significant Injuries:
Atlanta CF Cheung Ying, shoulder inflammation, five weeks.
Atlanta 2B Rodrigo Negron, torn ankle ligaments, five weeks.
Seattle 3B Sung-heun Hwa, oblique strain 5-6 weeks
Mepkin Abbey LF Pedro Munoz, torn quadraceps, 4 weeks
Houston CF Miguel Cantu, fractured shoulder blade, 4 weeks
Atlanta 1B Jesus Flores, torn groin muscle, done for the season
Brick 3B Gene Reynolds, quadraceps strain, 7 weeks.

Milestones:
Brooklyn's Katsuhiko Jouda reaches 300 HR (8/5)

Batting Line of the Sim:
Houston's Albert Ramirez went 4-4, with 3HR, 5 runs scored and 6 RBI (and a walk) vs. Antelope Valley (8/1)

Pitching Line of the Sim:
Brick's Miguel Archuleta pitched 9.1 innings of two hit ball, giving up two runs, walking one and striking out eleven vs. Philadelphia (8/4)

Last Week's Trivia Question:
As many of you know, it's possible for a pitcher to have more than three strikeouts in an inning.  If a catcher fails to catch a third strike and the batter-runner makes it to first, the pitcher is still credited with a strikeout, even though no actual out was recorded.

Four strikeouts in an inning has been accomplished a good number of times... including three times this season (2017) so far.  In fact, four is the record for the number of strikeouts in an inning.  No pitcher has managed to record more than four strikeouts in an inning in an official game.

However, there was a well-known pitcher who managed five strikeouts in a single inning during a spring training game.  Who was that hurler?

As you might imagine, you would need a pitcher-catcher combination possessing specialized talents to make such a thing happen.  Having a knuckleball pitcher with a part-time catcher would certainly qualify... and it did.

On April 7, 1976, Houston Astros pitcher Joe Niekro was still learning the knuckleball.  His catcher that day was Cliff Johnson, a journeyman 1B/C.  In the first inning, Niekro ended up striking out five batters, but two reached base when Johnson could not field the third strike.

Here is an account of that day.

As it turns out, while it's never happened in regulation play in the majors, it has happened in the minors (doesn't it seem like *anything* can happen in the minors?), as recently as last season.

This Week's Question:

Today, we've got a pair of questions about players and the uniforms they are not usually associated with.

First, it's well known that Babe Ruth wore the major league uniforms of the Red Sox, Yankees and Braves.  However, he also wore one other team's major league uniform.  Which team was it?  (Bonus points if you can tell me what uniform number he wore on that uniform.)

Second, speaking of the Red Sox,explain this picture (and no, Photoshop is not the answer):

Next Sim:  Next Wednesday

Philadelphia/Wilmington trade

Minutes before the 2030 trade deadline, an eight-player trade between Signorino Division rivals Philadelphia and Wilmington was completed.

In exchange for five players, headlined by recent #2 overall draft pick Rick Griffin, the Philadelphia Hornets have acquired a trio of well-regarded youngsters, SP Steve McClain, OF Jorge Benavides, and IF Jason Linfoot from the Wilmington Atlantics.

McClain will replace Ivan Gallardo in the Hornets rotation. Gallardo, along with RP Dwight Rowe, AA RP Carlos Moya, and A RP Jose Bautista, joined Griffin in the caravan heading south to the Carolinas.

"We hate giving up Griffin so soon after drafting him," Philadelphia GM Michael Weintraub said. "But, adding McClain to our team in the midst of a pennant race was too tempting an offer to haggle over. We also really like Benavides and Linfoot."

This deal marks the third time that the Hornets have traded away Dwight Rowe, who is only 23-years-old. "I'm not selling my condo in Manayunk," Rowe said. "I know I'll be back here in a season or two."

Philadelphia/Highland trade

The Philadelphia Hornets have acquired lefty reliever Julio Lopez from the Highland Admirals for 7-11, which the two teams mean to be the Hornets's 7th and 11th round picks in the 2031 amateur draft.

Trade Brick/Highland

Brick completes another trade this time with Highland...Brick sends veteran catcher Cristobal Cordero and super sub Jesus Alvarez 1B/2B/SS/3B to Highland for Anthony Powers catcher and Jim Robertson CF A...GM Fred Goldfarb telling reporters the need to improve team togetherness and felt this trade would help saying how disappointed he was with how they were playing..GM John Corrano was happy with getting major league talent which will improve his team going forward

Wilmington/Highland Trade

The Wilmington Atlantics Base-Ball Club has bid its final farewell to ace batsman Jesus Valdez. He shall henceforth brandish his mighty timber to the considerable benefit of the Highland club. 

Highland have agreed in return to place young bush-league hurlers Harmon Rollin and Michael Russell on the next steamer to the port of Wilmington, though it will likely be many years before either of them again gazes upon its sparkling ocean waters or feels its languid, balmy breezes. While it is hoped that these young speed-ballers will bring some much-needed pep and vigour to the Wilmington club, many of the most disputatious among the local base-ball enthusiasts are said to be quite vexed at the club's decision to part with its foremost smasher of the horse-hide.

Jul II Sim Done -- Trading Deadline

Game Date:  Jul 30, 2030

Standings:
Adams: Brick up by six over Brooklyn
Zotti:  Seattle's lead holds at twenty over Appalachian
Signorino:  Philadelphia is seven up over Maui
Wild Card: Maui is two games ahead of Appalachian

Awards & Accomplishments:
Maui 3B Antonio Venet named Player of the Week (7/22)
Maui CF Ernesto Salcido named Player of the Week (7/29, 3rd career award)

Significant Injuries:
Maui SP Shawn Henry, torn flexor tendon, 8 months.
Houston RP Todd Davis, fractured elbow, done for the year.
Atlanta RP Ramiro Martinez, torn triceps, 2 months.
Maui CF Jimmy Estes, strained back, 3 weeks
Houston 2B Enrique Gonzalez, broken hand, 2 months
Houston 3B Esteban Ordonez, fractured finger, 6-7 weeks
Appalachian SS Martin Costa, setback from previous injury, another 4 weeks
Atlanta CF Cheung Ying, shoulder inflammation, 5 weeks.

Batting Line of the Sim:
Antelope Valley's Lloyd Rideout went 5-5, with a home run, 2 RBI and 4 runs scored vs. Highland, 7/19

Pitching Line of the Sim:
Antelope Valley's Dave Klien pitched a 4-hit shutout with 6 K and no walks on vs. Highland on 7/19 (the same day that Rideout had his big game!)

Answer to Last Week's Trivia Question:
Under what circumstances could a pitcher be credited with a shutout but not receive credit for a complete game?  And who was the last pitcher to accomplish this feat?
In most cases, a pitcher has to pitch the complete game in order to get credit for a shutout.  However, there is a loophole written into the rule (9.18):

A shutout is a statistic credited to a pitcher who allows no runs in a game. No pitcher shall be credited with pitching a shutout unless he pitches the complete game, or unless he enters the game with none out before the opposing team has scored in the first inning, puts out the side without a run scoring and pitches the rest of the game without allowing a run. When two or more pitchers combine to pitch a shutout, the league statistician shall make a notation to that effect in the league’s official pitching records.

There is a famous case of this happening, involving a very famous Hall of Famer.  On June 23, 1917, the Red Sox sent their star pitcher, Babe Ruth, to the mound to start the first game of a double header against the Washington Senators.  After walking the first batter on a questionable call, the Babe argued with umpire Brick Owens, which earned him an ejection.  The Babe must have decided "In for a penny..." because he then decided to punch Owens, which got him a suspension and a fine.

The Red Sox brought in Ernie Shore to take the mound.  The runner on first was then caught stealing and Shore retired the next 26 batters in a row to finish the game.  For a long time Shore was credited with a perfect game, but that was taken away when the rules were standardized.  However, he still has credit for a shutout.

However, Ernie Shore is not the right answer as to the last pitcher to do it.  If you remember, I told you that I saw the game.  While I am fairly old, I am not old enough to have seen the Babe pitch in 1917.

The last person to accomplish the feat was Yankees relief pitcher Neil Allen.  On May 31, 1988 the Yankees sent rookie left hander Al Leiter up to the hill to face the Oakland A's.  Oakland leadoff hitter Carney Lansford hit Leiter's first pitch right back to him, where it hit him on the arm.  Injured, Leiter was taken out of the game and Allen came in from the bullpen.  Pitching the game of his life, Allen proceeded to shut down the A's, going the distance while allowing only three hits and walking none.  As a result, he was credited with a shutout, but not a complete game.

This Week's Trivia Question:
As many of you know, it's possible for a pitcher to have more than three strikeouts in an inning.  If a catcher fails to catch a third strike and the batter-runner makes it to first, the pitcher is still credited with a strikeout, even though no actual out was recorded.

Four strikeouts in an inning has been accomplished a good number of times... including three times this season (2017) so far.  In fact, four is the record for the number of strikeouts in an inning.  No pitcher has managed to record more than four strikeouts in an inning in an official game.

However, there was a well-known pitcher who managed five strikeouts in a single inning during a spring training game.  Who was that hurler?

Next sim:  Wednesday night.  The trading deadline is upon us.   Get those last minute trades in.

Sim Tomorrow

I'm sorry everyone, but I got caught up in some stuff tonight and will run the sim tomorrow night.

Besides, it looks like you're all having so much fun trading, why not extend it another day?

Minor Seattle / Maui Trade

In an effort to bolster their bullpen, today the Maui Mashers announced the acquisition of MR Kazuhiro Morita from the Seattle Monarchs.  In return, Seattle receives Maui's 7th round pick in next year's amateur draft.

Philadelphia's Trade List

Hi guys. Here are some players (including prospects) I'm willing to trade now:

• IF Tokuma Kanno - he has been raking as a utility infielder this season, and can probably start at 2B, SS, or 3B
• OF Ramon Gonzalez
• OF Julio Quintana - he has been on the DL all season but is ready to play now
• RP Sergio Lujan
• RP Jim Knowles
• AAA 3B Ruben Noya
• AAA IF Greg Ray
• AAA 2B Kevin Wiggins
• AAA Outfielders:
• CF Alejandro Garcia
• RF George Candler
• LF Ira Black
• AAA pitchers:
• LHP Jorge Villegas
• RHP Ben Cloherty
• Lower minor prospects:
• AA LF Elwood Bolden
• AA CF Carlos Maldonado
• AA RF Jason Graham
• AA IF Michael Blair
• AA IF Ken Turner
• AA IF Brian McCoy
• AA SP Carlos Pena
• A RP Pete Cote
• A SP Curt Horne
• A SP Paco Nunez
• A SP Tommy Carter
• A RP Dustin Scott
• A RP Michael Potter

And, this offseason I may explore trading the following regulars on my major league team if you want to start scouting them now:

• SP John Ryan
• RP Joe Younger
• RP Leonard Christopher
• C Steven Broadbent
• 1B Javier Ortiz
• 2B Ieyasu Suzuki
• SS Jonathan Locker
• OF John Willis
• OF Jose Molina

I'll also consider trading two currently injured starting pitching prospects:

• AAA SP Juan Velez
• A SP Stanley Wolf

Of course, I'll discuss anyone in a deal now, but I'm mostly interested in dealing the guys in the first half of this post.

Highland, Wilmington Swap Miscellaneous Parts

In a move hailed by many as "nothing special," the Wilmington Atlantics have dispatched infielder Art Whitaker to Highland for a second round draft pick (via Maui) an 8th round pick, plus AA outfield prospect Juan Blanco.

While neither team will save its failing season with this move, fans of both are cautiously optimistic that their teams will play .500 ball sometime in the next 10 seasons.

Seattle Parts with Beloved Veterans and Bolsters Rival

"It's a really, really, really tough day for us here," said a glum-faced Mack Shultz. "It's hard to trade two players who are such an integral part of what we do here in Seattle, what we've done. It's the right thing to do, both for us and for them, but it's just hard."

Seattle traded starting pitcher Enrico "Whistler" Hernandez and shortstop Dewey Wilson to Brick in exchange for three draft picks and three prospects.

Hernandez has been one of the greatest starting pitchers in league history, winning 227 games over 13 years for Seattle. He also may be in the midst of his greatest season ever, going 16-2 with a 3.07 ERA this year. Wilson has been Seattle's starting shortstop for most of the last seven years, before being displaced in a trade earlier this year with Brick.

"I remember trading 13 years ago for a first-round pick in the hopes that we would have a chance to land Whistler," said Shultz. "He was a tremendous pitcher, even then. Luckily he fell to us, moved quickly through the minors, and everyone knows the rest of the story." A quick glance at the league career leaderboards establishes Hernandez's spot in history. He ranks sixth all time in wins, second in winning percentage, fourth in shutouts, and tenth in strikeouts.

Meanwhile, Wilson has hit .300 over his eight-year career while Seattle's infield defense through their recent title runs.

In return for the two stars, Seattle received Brick's first, third, and fourth round picks next year; shortstop Jesus Souza (who was traded from Seattle to Brick earlier this year); A-ball outfielder Michael Erwin; and rookie-league reliever Francisco Flores.

EDITED TO ADD: Seattle also sent $7 million in small unmarked bills to the Brick's owner's Swiss bank account. Seems totally above board.