Saturday, April 19, 2008
AL North preview
New York has been able to make a steady climb from the worst record in all of Cooperstown in season one to the best record in all of Cooperstown in season six. The team made some bold off-season moves which may come back to haunt them in the long run. After losing two of their starting pitchers (Kim and Ortiz combined for 34 wins) they took their savings and traded for Little Rocks two biggest stars, Rick Florie (30) and up and coming SS Jordan Stoops. The deal cost them super DH Copper Ruffin, who promises to be one of the best hitters for seasons to come. The win now approach continued with signing of SP Walter Simmons. Simmons is an under rated .500 pitcher with Milwaukee. New York will have a hard time improving on their 1032 win campaign but should approach the century mark again this season. A strong top of the rotation should win a ton of games with the powerful line up that New York has. The third and fourth starters are a question which might force NY to hurry SP prospect Benito Bonilla a season early Predictions; First place. This is a young and cheap team. They should be able to stay together for many seasons.
Cleveland has been mired in sub .500 seasons since the inception of Cooperstown but feel they have a decent shot of over coming that obstacle this year. Last season dmurphy was able to bringing talent across the board, acquiring DH Johnny Beiser, RF Wilfredo Rosado and set up man Eric Roberts, Adding to that this off-season he brought in aging closer Davey Montanez (37) for a three year 27 mil contract. A risky move but this does show dmurphy willingness to roll the dice in an effort to win games. Stud in the making Alex Hernandez comes back looking to improve on his career best season to anchor the staff. This kid has future Cy Young written all over him.
While the team is still a little light in the hitting department, they do have some strong arms. The pen is one of the more solid aspects of a team that is young and still growing.
Predictions; Third place, no playoffs. Until this team can show the 5-1 start is not just a good couple of games or that Toronto has fallen they will remain a third place team
After a second straight last place finish Augusta picked up and left for north of the border. Say hello to the Ottawa Octopus. Ottawa did some house cleaning by letting go of a couple older players such as strong man Ramon Masato (signed by New Orleans) who hit 57 four baggers last year. They did however bring in a group of 30 somethings that tells us they are no going into a rebuilding mode. They were all one or two year deals, which tells me their is a youth movement on the horizon. Still with these moves it was a mild surprise to see the winter meetings come and go with out and trades being made. The choice to grow the team from with in is often a good one albeit a slower process. Even with the loss of Masato the team looks to have pop up and down the line up. The team should hit some and surprise a few people but the pitching is a little behind the bats. The biggest down fall will be a lack of defense. The North is developing into a tough division and Ottawa will need to show something to get out of the basement.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Career Marks
Batting avg.....Bill Hall .374
Hits..................Roosevelt Richardson 1006
Home Runs.....Ed Tanner 283
OBP.................Anthony Rehfield .469
Slug %..............Bill Hall .744
OPS .................Bill Hall 1.204
RBI...................Terry Perez 798
Runs.................Livian Cordero 655
Stolen bases.....Willian Davis 244
Walks................Anthony Rehfield 600
Meanwhile the pitcher stats are dominated by only a handful of guys. Most of them are older but it looks as if their career numbers will stand on their own for a long time
Games...............Ben Wickman 427
Quality Starts...CJ Heiserman 157
Wins...................CJ Heiserman 109
Losses................Emil Sosa 75
Complete game. David Ramirez 51
Innings...............David Rameriz 1524.3
# of pitches........David Ramirez 21,811
Shutouts.............CJ Heiserman 15
Saves..................Fred Chase 189
ERA....................Angel Chavez .206
BA Allowed........Angel Chavez 2.17
Strikeouts..........CJ Heiserman 1,225
K's per 9.............Angel Chavez 8.18
Walks..................Sammy Perez 516
K's per BB...........Jimmy Durham 4.28
Monday, April 14, 2008
Franchise snapshots
I was looking to add something to the blog since it seemed neglected for such a long time. I was hoping the start of the new season would stir some people to contribute. I will periodically put something up but the hope is to get some help. I decided to start by taking a snap shot of all the franchises and comparing them to each other. Before people start complaining they have not been around the whole five seasons I would like to point out this is a franchise snap shot and not a look at the individuals. Maybe after this upcoming season when I update this I will add each owners personal winning percentage. Below is a list of all the teams in Copperstown and where they rank through five completed season based on winning percentage. I decided to stick with the basics and listed only wins and loses followed by winning percentage. Feel fee to let me know of any mistakes I made or if you have any suggestions.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
NL East Season 1 Draft Report
NEW YORK GOTHAMITES (College 7/High School 8)
Top Picks
Rnd 3, #110
DARIO KIM (18, RP) – Kim possesses an ML quality fastball and is an outstanding fielder, but that alone isn’t enough to compensate for control deficiencies and the lack of a major league skill set.
Rnd 4, #142
DARIN PERRY (18, SP) – If Perry works hard and squeezes every last drop out of his talent, he’ll be a steady back-of-the-rotation presence for the AA club.
Rnd 5, #174
CODY MILLIARD (18, SS) – an all-or-nothing slugger with mediocre intangibles and some serious holes in his bat, Milliard will nonetheless put up some solid minor league numbers. He projects as a borderline ML RF or 3B.
Notable: 6th round SS Armando Rodriguez will eventually be a defensive stalwart for the AAA club… The players selected were, on the whole, a durable and healthy bunch of subpar athletes.
Best Player: Milliard
Biggest Reach: Perry
Best Bargain: Milliard
Overall: With free agency snatching up their first two picks and an extremely thrifty scouting budget, the Gothamites’ S1 draft doesn’t look to have produced an ML player.
PITTSBURGH POMERANIANS (College 14/High School 14)
Top Picks
Rnd 1, #16 (unsigned)
A.J. HILL (22, SP) – one of the oldest available first-round graded arms, Hill has yet to commit to being a Pomeranian.
Rnd 1, #40
JOAQUIN DURAN (22, C) – another 22-year old, Duran – a catcher destined for a career as a DH – slipped past a number of
Rnd 2, #64
MATTY CUMMINGS (19, SS) – A strong defensive presence who may project to third in the majors, Cummings will make limited impact with his bat but can draw walks and hurt you on the basepaths. He will be a decidedly unsexy but steady day-in-day-out presence.
Rnd 2, #76
CLINTON GREY (21, SP) – A surprising pick in the second stanza, Grey will probably never advance beyond AA ball. An inning-eater with solid control and a good changeup, Grey’s stuff just doesn’t translate well. Case in point: His fastball has been nicknamed “the slug” by opposing batters.
Notable: 3rd round SP Ramon Ueno and 4th rounder Alex Clark look to be career minor leaguers, as well… 5th round RF Rusty Stoops signed for a pricey $3.6 million, but may spend his career as a AAA masher… The Pomeranians took some gambles in the later rounds, but ended up wholly unimpressed with the results: they have yet to sign a single player taken after the 5th round.
Best Player: Duran
Biggest Reach: Grey
Best Bargain: Duran
Overall:
ST LOUIS SAINT IFFS (College 6/High School 6)
Top Picks
Rnd 1, #9
JAMES WHITEHILL (18, 2B) – Whitehill has to represent one of the great blunders of the post-ranking draft process. A hotheaded Napoleon type, Whitehill has a keen batting eye and good-to-great speed, but his biceps look like Marvin Trunk’s wrists and his throwing ability is so poor he is projected as a 1B. Whitehill will eventually make the bigs (at $3.25 million, he better), but will probably never be more than a pinch-running utility player.
Rnd 4, #121
EDGAR CHAVEZ (18, 2B) – A poor man’s James Whitehill, if you can believe it. Another burner, with solid range but poor glove work and throwing accuracy, Chavez has a bit more pop than Whitehill but is lost against right-handed pitching.
Rnd 5, #153
BRIAN BONG (20, SP) – No matter where he pitches, this Bong will get hit a lot.
Notable: 6th round SP Monte Flair has the look of an overachiever that could sneak onto an ML roster, though probably not
Best Player: Whitehill
Biggest Reach: Whitehill
Best Bargain: Flair
Overall: For the moment,
TRENTON THUNDER (College 14/High School 14)
Top Picks
Rnd 1, #6
CHARLES ROMERO (18, 1B) – a 6-5, 200 pound terror with a fiery temper and an explosive bat, Romero is about as close to a sure thing as you can ask for. Romero mashes lefties and righties evenly, is terrifying enough to draw solid walk totals, and projects to be an absolutely devastating cleanup hitter.
Rnd 2, #54
BRADEN BENARD (18, SS) –
Rnd 3, #86
FOOTSIE MACDOUGAL (19, 2B) – Another slap-hitting burner, MacDougal isn’t going to turn any heads with his defense or bat, but he lays a mean bunt, has enough speed to preoccupy a pitcher and hasn’t missed a game in his ballplaying career.
Rnd 4, #118
DAVEY WILFREDO (19, SP) – Wilfredo could be a good AAA pitcher or an average spot starter for an ML club. He induces groundballs by the bushel with a plus sinker and solid slider, but his control is suspect and his track record spotty.
Notable: 5th round SP Al Hayes may not make an ML impression, but is a solid minor league arm… 6th round SS Pat Maurer is another solid all-around borderline ML type.
Best Player: Romero
Biggest Reach: MacDougal
Best Bargain: Wilfredo
Overall: Romero alone makes any draft class worthy, but
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
NL North Season 1 Draft Report
Top Picks
Rnd 2, #77
PETE SABATHIA (19, 2B) – a serviceable middle infielder with a keen batting eye and an iron constitution. His bat isn’t good enough to make up for his subpar defensive play, relegating him to a career on the razor’s edge between AAA starter and ML benchwarmer.
Rnd 3, #109
LARIEL SOTO (18, SP) – will probably peak in AAA. Not a terribly deficient pitcher, just not good enough in any particular way to warrant a spot on an ML club (particularly
Rnd 4, #141
BILLY STEVENS (21, RP) – projects to be a solid Setup B option, or perhaps LH specialist. Nothing spectacular, but boasts a solid fastball-curve combo and keeps the ball on the ground. Every team needs a couple of these arms.
Rnd 5, #173
Notable: Took a couple of 3B sluggers in the 6th and 7th rounds - Tom Schilling and Cameron Payton. Neither can hit righties, but one of the two might make it to the bigs as a LH-hitting utility bat… 8th rounder Billy Loiselle chose to go to college…
Best Player: Stevens
Biggest Reach: Soto
Best Bargain: Stevens
Overall: The Lobsters came away with a bullpen arm and maybe a bat for the bench. Considering the depth of the draft, they probably could have done better than this, but with their first pick at #77, the ceiling was limited.
COLUMBUS CONSPIRACY (College 10/High School 10)
Top Picks
Rnd 1, #17
LONNY PETRICK (21, SP) – a 6-8 knuckleballer, Petrick projects to be an inning-eating workhorse in the middle of a ML rotation. Equally tough against righties and lefties, Petrick brings three ML-quality pitches to the mound and has the kind of temperament clubs look for in clubhouse leaders.
Rnd 1, #29
BRIAN PEREZ (20, SP) – a risky pick with tons of upside. Though fully capable of being a reliable six-inning starter, Perez has the intangibles and “stuff” to make the transition to a back-end reliever role. A classic fastball-curve-change pitcher, Perez is injury-prone, has average-at-best control, little velocity, and is prone to the gopher ball, but his plus curve and formidable makeup suggest a strong ML contributor and a steal late in the 1st round.
Rnd 1, #31
TYLER HAWKINS (18, SP) – Hawkins has solid “stuff”, including the best curveball in the draft class and ML-quality fastball and slider, but hasn’t been able to harness them with consistency. His control may never be better than subpar, and his delivery will always make him susceptible to RH sluggers. The curve alone may be good enough to earn him a spot-start role on an ML club, but he’ll probably peak as a AAA all-star.
Rnd 1, #41
YORRICK DARR (19, CF) – Darr will be a solid but unspectacular ML center fielder; one of those players who is constantly thrown in to even out trades. If he earns an ML starting job – which is possible, considering his blend of speed, patience and glovework, as well as his switch-hitting ability – he will always be a guy looking over his shoulder as the team attempts to “upgrade.”
Notable: 2nd rounder Terry Brantley doesn’t the have moxie to advance beyond the AA rotation… 3rd round pick Dick Helton (18, LF) has the potential to play in the bigs, but is notoriously impatient and a hideous defender… Columbus has signed two of their last 16 draft picks
Best Player: Petrick
Biggest Reach: Brantley
Best Bargain: Perez
Overall: The Conspiracy started strong, with two solid arms and a third with potential in the first stanza (this is saying something, considering the pitching-thin S1 crop), but beyond the first round, the club’s draft picks simply lacked any ML potential. Plenty of teams were picking gems out in the 3rd, 5th and even 7th rounds, but the Conspiracy seemed to close up shop after their first few selections.
DETROIT PINK SLIPPED (College 10/High School 10)
Top Picks
Rnd 3, #111 (unsigned)
HARRY GIBSON (22, 2B) – a solid glove and subpar hitter, Gibson probably will be carrying his own luggage for the entirety of his ballplaying career.
Rnd 4, #143
RICHARD EDMONDS (22, SP) – Edmonds will someday devour innings for the AA club.
Rnd 5, #175
ED WALSH (20, SS) – A defensive guru with unparalleled range and just enough speed on offense to warrant a spot on an ML bench. The kind of player teams hope to uncover late in the draft.
Notable: Free agency gutted Detroit’s chances of acquiring any serious ML talent, but they nonetheless have to be disappointed with their first pick… The selection of Walsh in the fifth was a coup… 11th round C Brian Jackson may have just enough defense and pitch-calling acumen to warrant a 25th man role on an ML club.
Best Player: Walsh
Biggest Reach: Gibson
Best Bargain: Walsh
Overall: Hopefully the free agent acquisitions are paying off, because the draft paid little dividends.
Milwaukee Microbrewers (College 11/High School 11)
Top Picks
Rnd 1, #22
HECTOR TORCATO (22, SP) – a solid pitcher with pinpoint control and four passable pitches, Torcato will be a middle-of-the-rotation starter in a year or two. If anything diminishes Torcato’s luster, it is the more promising players selected directly after him in Round 1 (particularly Jorel Orie and Paul Grace).
Rnd 2, #69 (unsigned)
J.J. CURTIS (18, 1B) – This youngster has yet to sign with the club. Reports on his ability, a little-scouted slugger from War, WV, are rare and varied.
Rnd 3, #101
VICTOR VEGA (18, SP) – In possession of a rubber arm and a nasty sinker, Vega’s cringingly-bad control will relegate him to a minor league career and occasionally-astonishing boxscores.
Rnd 4, #133
MAX HAYES (19, 2B) – A solid defensive player and calm as a hindu cow, Hayes will make the majors if he can find a way to play beyond his God-given talent (God was not overly generous, particularly against lefties).
Notable: 6th round RP TJ Norton could make the club as a LH specialist… The Microbrewers were wildly aggressive in their pursuit of control pitchers, particularly in the first ten rounds… 12th rounder Davey Pineda is on drugs.
Best Player: Torcato
Biggest Reach: Vega
Best Bargain: Norton
Overall: If Curtis signs and pans out, this could be considered a solid draft. If not, it won’t.
Thursday, February 8, 2007
Cooperstown Power Rankings Week 2
1. St. Louis Saint Iffs (40-16) LW 3
Jay Chapman seems a little lost in
2.
It’s all in the eyes. Ernest Truman is the first
3.
Stuck behind the Iffs in the NL East, many disregard the storm brewing in
4. Louisville Lemurs (34-22) LW 4
The Lemurs and Red Sox look to be battling it out for AL East superiority all season, but for now, the Lemurs have sat atop for two straight weeks, enough for near-certain All-Star Anthony Rehfield to be excited, “I know we’re only a third of the way through the season, but we’re a confident bunch, and we know we have it in us to make a serious run at a title.” With an all-everything star like Rehfield (.341/.593/1.043), these house cat-devouring tree dwellers should be in it for the long haul.
5. San Jose Siliconites (35-21) LW 9
A recent three game winning streak and a solid first third of the season has earned the Siliconites a place in the top half of the rankings, somewhere they could start to settle into. Slugger Johnny Poole continues to simply smash the ball, hitting 16 HR with 65 RBI thus far. But the true gem has been the emergence of rookie staff anchor Vance Brooks (7-2 2.99 ERA). After a couple of rough early-season outings, Brooks has responded to give up only 8 runs in his last 6 starts.
6. Boston Red Sox (33-23) LW 8
Second place isn’t usually the favored standing, but fans in
7. Durham Delirious Dukes (33-23) LW 6
With the rankings based in
8.
A big drop from last week’s #1 ranking, the Travelers are still sitting atop what is coming to be known as “Murderer’s Row” (also commonly referred to as the AL South). Since escaping
9. Charleston Charge (33-23) LW NR
Numbers 8 and 9 seem to be interchangeable, and may be all year, as these two bitter rivals look to be locked together in a classic pennant battle. These teams are nearly a mirror image of each other, both posting a team ERA just over 4.00 and hitting the ball with a good consistency. The big surprise in
10.
These road warriors seem to like it better away from Petco, sleeping in disgusting hotel beds and constantly battling jet lag to a tune of a 15-8 road record. Future “85 Club” member Iago Powell has been simply dynamite, smacking 14 HR and driving in 45, but the pitching staff is where this team really shines. C.J. Heiserman is providing an early rival for Cy Young favorite Fred Scmidt, going 7-2 with a miniscule ERA of 2.01.
Dropped Out: San Antonio Stars (LW 10)Sunday, January 28, 2007
Cooperstown Power Rankings Week 1
1. Little Rock Travelers (20-6)
The AL South is widely compared to the AL East of Major League Baseball, and if that rings true, call Little Rock the New York Yankees (or Red Sox, if you're like me and refuse to give the Yankees and kind of credit for their overspending and constant obliteration of the rest of baseball). The Travelers have "charged" past Charleston and the rest of the AL South to take a commanding 7 game lead only 26 games in. Little Rock is paced at the plate by stud RF Benjamin Liniak who is simply smashing the ball at a rate of 10 HRs and 26 RBI.
2. Detroit Pink Slipped (20-6)
Similar to the Travelers, the boys of the steel city have already charged out to a big lead in their division. The rest of the NL North is struggling to keep pace, as Detroit is a franchise record 20-6 thus far, with dominance coming on both sides of the ball. The stats of C Ernest Truman will be tracked nationally all season, but the hidden gem of this team is the guys throwing 100 mph heat at Truman day in and day out. Angel Chavez has been lights out through 6 starts, compiling an ERA under 1.00 and firing a K nearly every inning. This team has the potential to truly dominate the league for years to come, so the rest of the NL North better take note and find a way to shut 'em up (or at least tone 'em down a bit).
3. St. Louis Saint Iffs (20-6)
Who are these guys, the New York Mets? Once again, the crafty St. Louis GM has compiled some kind of pitching staff, if only his lineup to come along to fully support it (this team may be 26-0 as we speak). Recently acquired 2B Felix Bale has been enfuego in the early goings of the season, hitting .330 and teaming with CF Roosevelt Richardson to lead the team in nearly every statistical category. Fred Schmidt is known by many as the "93 million dollar man", but should soon be referred to only as "One" for the place he will sit atop the league leaders in every pitching category except saves (which is reserved for teammate, and fellow billionaire Fred Chase).
4. Louisville Lemurs (18-8)
These cat-slashing monkey-like tree dwelling animals are the wild card of sorts so far in the young Cooperstown season. They don't seem to be ready to join the big 3, but they seem to draw the line between the top 3 and the rest of the league. They seem to compare favorably to the San Antonio Spurs of the NBA. Don't get me wrong, this is a great team with ALOT of potential, especially with a phenom pitcher like Hipilito Rios and a great young power hitter in Ramon Masato. They still have a ways to go before being considered an elite team, but don't rest on the Lemurs, as they definitely bite hard.
5. San Diego Fighting Pandas (15-11)
Considered a heavy favorite in the NL West going into the season, the Fighting Pandas (also commonly referred to as the San Diego "Whales Vaginas") can't be satisfied with only a one game lead in this early point of the season. San Diego is clearly outclassing the opposition, scoring 50 more runs than the other side, but can't seem to get it done when it matters. The Pandas are only 3-7 in one run games, and if the 2nd place Boise Bomb Squad keeps up those cardiac moments (8-1 so far), no division lead is safe. Iago Powell looks to have something to say about that, as he continues to punish division opponents and all comers to a tune of .318/7/24.
6. Durham Delirious Dukes (16-10)
Shigetoshi Aoki and the Delirious Dukes are leaving nothing to chance so far, winning big on good days, but losing big on the bad ones. Durham has been involved in only 5 one-run games, winning two, but has been more than impressive on their good days. A prime example would be yesterdays demolishing of the Bomb Squad, as Rodrigo Julio tossed a gem of a game, giving up only 4 hits and 1 run with 11 K's in 8 amazing innings. A couple days back, Pascual Trajano smoked a 480 ft game winning grand slam to victimize the Gothamites as well. If the good days can continue on a regular basis, Durham could be a force in the feisty NL South.
7. Trenton Thunder (16-10)
The NL East is going to be fun to watch, as Trenton is poised to sneak up on St. Louis if the Iffs aren't careful. If the Iffs are Cooperstown's version of the GAP Mets, then the Thunder would have to make up the GAP Atlanta Braves. When two of the top pitching staffs in the entire league rest in the same division, it is always a joy to behold. Trenton boasts the best bullpen in all of Cooperstown, giving up only 18 of Trenton's 89 earned runs, and only 13 if you don't count mopup pitcher Al Martin. New Jersey finally has something to be excited about, as even Vince Carter is coming down with a case of the "Thunder Fever", as he and teammate Richard Jefferson have been seen directly behind the Trenton bench at the last 4 home games.
8. Boston Red Sox (14-12)
The Lemurs may be the class of the AL East, but don't overlook the pesky Red Sox. Boston fields a powerful yet balanced lineup, led by Davey Hansen, who has yet to hit his stride, but has the potential to be one of the leagues top sluggers. The rotation isn't too shabby either, as young flamethrower Robbie Barnes has shot out of the gate with 5 amazing starts so far. This is by far the youngest team in contention, starting 4 pitchers under 26. There is a lot to be excited about in New England these days.
9. San Jose Siliconites (16-10)
San Jose is leading the rough and tumble AL West for now, but I'm guessing no lead in that division is safe. If anyone has anything to say about that, it's going to be Siliconite slugger Johnny Poole. Poole has fired off an AL leading 37 RBI to go with 10 homers thus far. He's getting a lot of help from 33 year old Patrick Kline, who's 4-1 record and sub-2.00 ERA has surprised his many critics who didn't really expect him to make the big league club this season.
10. San Antonio Stars (15-11)
Outspoken rookie Seth Nash said it best, "This team could win 100 games, then again, 100 losses wouldn't surprise me either." As the 21 year old goes, so do the Stars. The early ROY front-runner has been dynamite so far, hitting .333 with 9 HRs and 29 RBI through 26 games. Success may also rely on Nash's fellow rookie, SP Victor Plata who has not enjoyed the early success of his teammate. If Plata can turn it on every 5th game, things in San Antonio look very promising.