Starting Staff:
The # 1 pick of the free agent draft netted them their ace in Jaime Garcia (A-Z 129 IP). Black Sox management felt even with his limited innings his upside was too much to pass on. More of a concern than light innings is his inability to stay on the playing field for a full season. The # 2 starter is the solid Sonny Gray (A-No Z 208 IP). Next up is the perennial stalwart Madison Bumgarner (B-Z 218 IP). It drops off a bit after that, Phil Hughes (C-ZZ 155 IP) and Adam Warren (B-No Z 131 IP) round out the rotation. Michael Pineda (C-Z 160 IP) will be utilized to compensate for the lack of innings for three of the four starters.
In the minors are three (C-No Z’s) in Ian Kennedy, Eduardo Rodriguez and Raisel Iglesias. The latter two are highly thought of in baseball circles. Joining them on the farm are C.C. Sabathia (D-No Z), who appears to be nearing the end and Jarred Cosart, another (D-No Z), who may blossom yet.
There is more depth here with a trio of hurlers who did not receive cards. One is Hyun-Jin Ryu who is rehabbing from arm surgery and another is Japanese pitcher Kenta Maeda who hopes to make a splash with the L.A. Dodgers. Robert Stephenson, who has been on the “Prospect List” for seemingly an eternity, may finally arrive at the show this year. One tends to forget he is only 23 years of age.
Bullpen:
One would assume that either George Kontos (A*-Z 73 IP) or Alex Wilson (B(A*)-Z 70 IP) will be asked to close out the ballgames. A pair of (A&C*-No Z’s) in Andrew Miller and J.P.Howell, have higher grades but lack the control factor. Xavier Cedeno, another (A*-Z 46 IP) will be used in lower leverage situations with his inning deficiency. Rounding out the pen is Glen Perkins (B*-Z 57 IP).
In the minors is Arodys Vizcaino (A&C*-No-Z 33IP), who looks like the Atlanta Brave closer of the future if he can hold off Jason Grilli. He is the sole occupant of the minor league relief corp. That is one more reliever that the Sox had in their farm system the last two seasons.
Catchers:
Age has finally caught up to C-7 Carlos “Chooch” Ruiz, as evident by his .575 OPS so he will be relegated to back-up duties. The Black Sox seeking receiving help, jettisoned long-time Sox catcher Geovany Soto and obtained via the trade route, C-8 Francisco Cervelli, seven years Ruiz’s junior, and with a healthy .771 OPS he will start the majority of the contests.
Infield:
1B-4 Mark Teixeira is the starter here and as his .905 OPS attests, he still has plenty of pop.
Dustin Pedroia 2B-8, hampered by nagging injuries the last few years, is still is one of the top key-stoners in the league.
Adrian Beltre 3B-5 is a constant force year after year, although he is beginning to show his age.
Eugenio Suarez SS-7 mans the shortstop position; unconfirmed sources say he is heading elsewhere for the 2017 season. He is capable enough offensively but his glove drags down his value. Complementing him at short is All-World prospect Corey Seager SS-7; he carried a .986 OPS in his limited 98 at bats.
A declining Chase Utley 2B-7, 3B-3, 1B-2 backs up most of the infield spots and at 38 years of age there is little hope of a resurrection in his career.
Prince Fielder will handle the DH duties with his .841 OPS and with a possible return of his power stroke, now that he is a few years removed from his surgery, may increase that number.
In the minors are 1B-4 Logan Morrison, who never reached the stardom that was predicted for him and the enigmatic 3B-3 Pablo Sandoval. Perhaps an enrollment in a Jenny Craig program would revitalize his career. Also down on the farm is un-carded Inf Yoan Moncada, who impressed everyone while in the Red Sox spring training camp but still needs a little more seasoning.
Outfield:
David Peralta OF-2, Yoenis Cespedes OF-3 and Andre Ethier OF-2 make up an impressive trio of fly-chasers. Their average OPS is .870. Ethier only has 395 at bats so Matt Holliday OF-1 will spell him occasionally; he is the only other outfielder on the major league roster. Holliday is still productive with a .804 OPS but his super-star caliber of play is behind him. On the farm is Kevin Pillar OF-3 and penciled in to bat leadoff for Toronto this year and a pair of un-cards in Jesse Winker and David Dahl. The latter suffered a lacerated spleen last season to further delay his arrival in the “Show”.
Draft Analysis:
With the first pick of the free agent draft there comes pressure. World leaders do not suffer as much angst as the Philly skipper did when he had to decide between Jaime Garcia and John Lackey (B-Z 200+ IP). He chose the former. Their # 2, # 3 and # 4 picks were all A*-Z relievers in George Kontos, Alex Wilson, who also was rated a B starter, and Xavier Cedeno. They went un-carded in the 5th with P Kenta Maeda. The 6th saw them grab P Raisel Iglesias, who is a hot commodity in fantasy leagues around the country. Searching for outfield depth in the 7th round they selected OF-3 Kevin Pillar who made several highlight defensive plays on Baseball Tonight during the course of last season. In the 8th they took highly rated P Eduardo Rodriguez of the Red Sox, although he has been slowed by injuries early in spring training. Their final pick in the 9th was P Arodys Vizcaino (A&C*-No Z) who has a bullpen job locked up in Atlanta.
Synopsis:
By ZSABL methodology the Black Sox have the best lineup in the Eastern Division, they are also as mentioned last year “long in the tooth”, only Rochester has an average age older than Philadelphia. The deep bullpen may compensate for the lack of innings for their starting pitchers. Shortstop defense, both Suarez and Seager are SS-7’s, cannot be over looked. Most members of the East feel any one of them can take home the flag. I don’t disagree. Amsterdam, Las Vegas and Brooklyn’s lineups are only a hair behind the “Sox”. The shortstop defense however is a huge liability. We shall see how it plays out.
Starting Staff:
The World Champs roll out a pair of (B-Z’s 200+ IP) studs at the top of the rotation in Johnny Cueto and Jose Quintana. Their # 3, Noah Syndergaard, is no slouch either other then being hampered a tad with just 150 innings. The 4th starter is a collection of limited innings arms. Tyler Duffy (B-No Z 58 IP) starts the year on the big league roster. He will be supported by farm hands Chris Young (B-No Z 123 IP), Jhoulys Chacin (B-No-Z 26 IP) and Tom Cooney (B-Z 31 IP) who will all wait patiently for their opportunity.
Unknown at this time is how Kyle Hendricks (C-Z 180 IP) will be employed, he is on the active roster but it remains to be seen if he will see duty as a mop up man or a spot starter. Henderson Alvarez (D-Z 22 IP) joins Young, Chacin and Cooney in the minors but will see little or no action.
Bullpen:
The Machine like last year will rely heavily on their pen with A&C*-Z Charlie Furbush the best of this group. He is saddled though with only 21 IP. Sherwood will turn to veteran Jon Papelbon (A*-Z 63 IP) for most of the save opportunities. Supporting him will be (A*-Z 51 IP) Shawn Kelley. More relief comes in the form of
Cesar Ramos (A*-No Z 52 IP) and (B*-Z 56 IP) Addison Reed. Mid or late season help will arrive from the minors with Miguel Socolovich (A&C*-No-Z 29 IP),
Joe Smith (B*-Z 65 IP) and Andrew Chafin (B*-No-Z 75 IP)
Catchers:
Russell Martin (C-9), called by his skipper as the “best player in baseball” is the starter with his .787 OPS, although that represents a big drop off from last year. His back up will be C-7 Derek Norris. In the minors is Josmil Pinto who did not receive a card.
Infield:
The bromance between the Machine skipper and 1B-5 Brandon Belt led them to trade Joey Votto over the off season to land Syndergaard. Belt, with a .834 OPS and a .356 OBP, pales in comparison to Votto’s OPS of 1.000 and an OBP of .459. They thought the time was right to move him and Syndergaard is certainly not a persona non grata.
With five trips to the finals in the last six years it is hard to criticize any moves they make.
In the defense oriented Sherwood game plan, 2B-9 D.J.Lemahieu will patrol second base while third base will be handled by either Evan Longoria or Matt M. Duffy, both of course are rated 3B-5. Duffy was acquired in a trade on draft day after USMC selected him in the first round. Whoever is placed at the hot corner; the other will do the DH honors.
At shortstop is Troy Tulowitzki SS-9, he had a down year, an OPS of only .777, after his trade to our Canadian neighbor, Toronto.
1B-3 Carlos Santana is the backup first baseman but will garner a lot of at bats as a DH and PH.
Andrelton Simmons SS-10 will bring his magical leather into the game in the late innings. Duffy is the back up at second base.
In the minors are Sherwood’s favorite son, Reuben Tejada SS-8, 2B-7 3B-4. Joining him are the following players the Machine brain trust just cannot sever ties with, they include; Timothy Beckham 2B-6 SS-7, Jesus Montero 1B-2 and Ike Davis 1B-3.
Having a great spring and still loaded with potential is Chris Owings SS-8 2B-8 who I would not lump in with the aforementioned trio.
Spring training sensation shortstop Trevor Story, un-carded, but probably Colorado’s opening day starter is also on the minor league roster.
Outfield:
Limited at bats plague all the Sherwood outfielders except Jayson Heyward OF-3. OF-2 Corey Dickerson 224 AB, OF-2 Hunter Pence 207 AB, OF-2 Justin Ruggiano 125 AB and OF-1 Ryan Raburn 173 AB all have OPS’s of over .800 so some form of mix and match will be in play here. Heyward, another “favorite son” of skipper Tarantino will play every day. Denard Span OF-3 246 AB will also see his share of the action.
Organizational depth on the farm is slim pickings with only OF-2 Joc Pederson to choose from. He faded fast after he had impressed with his home run derby participation prior to the All-Star game.
Draft Analysis:
They didn’t pick until the 3rd round where they grabbed SS Trevor Story, they claimed to have had him on their list last year but in the confusion of draft day forgot about him.
In the 4th they selected P Shawn Kelley to bolster their pen. The 5th saw them start to add to their collection of limited inning starting pitchers by taking Tyler Duffey. In the 6th, P Cesar Ramos came on board along with their second 6th round pick P Charlie Furbush and in the 7th, “Hatchet Carded” Ryan Raburn was surprisingly still available. P Chris Young was drafted with one of their 8th rounders and Tim Cooney joined him with their other and then with the 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th picks they went for more bullpen help in
Addison Reed, Miguel Socolovich. Felipe Rivero and Andrew Chafin. They later flipped Rivero to Norfolk in the Jonathan Papelbon deal. The 13th round landed yet another limited inning starter in Jhoulys Chacin and with their final selection in the 14th they added Justin Ruggiano.
Synopsis:
It will be hard for Sherwood to capture another pennant in the East with so many good squads. In fact it will be hard for them to make the play offs. Starting out with a 2-10 record as this analysis went to press makes it even a more daunting task. In the past their mathematical approach to APBA has left the rest of their opponents in the East “in the dust”. Perhaps with their “Plug and Play” outfield corp, a strong pen and the judicious use of limited innings for their starters after Cueto and Quintana, the magic will happen again.
Starting Staff:
The rotation that starts the regular season for the “Met’s” will not be what they finish with. Rich Hill (A&C-Z 29 IP) is the top rated pitcher of this group and of course once his 29 innings are exhausted he will be replaced. Carlos Carrasco (B-Z 183 IP) and Collin McHugh (C-Z 203 IP) look to be mainstays of the starting corp throughout the year. A pair of (B-Z’s 60+ IP) in Jose Fernandez and Josh Tomlin will no doubt be optioned to the minors during the season as their limited innings suggest.
Masahiro Tanaka (B-Z 154 IP) and Stephen Strasburg (B-Z 127 IP) will be summoned as soon as they are needed as will Carlos Rodon (B-W 139 IP). The only starting pitcher down on the farm is the injured and un-carded Zach Wheeler.
Bullpen:
Ryan Madson (A*-Z 63 IP) will do the closing honors and he is supported by the slew of relievers Brooklyn took in the draft. They include Matt Thornton (A*-Z 41 IP),
Will Harris (A&C*-No-Z 71 IP), Sergio Romo (B*-Z 57 IP) and Pat Neshek (B*-Z 54 IP). In the minor league system is Erik Goeddel (A*-Z 33 IP),
Javier Lopez (A&C*-No Z 39 IP), Matt Belisle (A*-No-Z 33 IP) and Pedro Villarreal (B*-Z 50 IP)
Catchers:
Yasmani Grandal (C-8 .756 OPS) is more than adequate behind the dish but the back up J.T. Realmuto (C-7 .696 OPS) leaves a lot to be desired.
Infield:
Paul Goldschmidt (1B-5 1.005 OPS) anchors the infield. Miguel Cabrera (1B-3 .974 OPS) will be the designated hitter. (3B-3) Justin Turner, it is unknown if he is a distant relative of the Metropolitan skipper, will play third. He only has 395 at bats so his PT will be closely monitored. (2B-7) Jonathan Schoop, is the starter at the keystone sack an he has shown a lot of “pop”. At shortstop they have a lot of options, in the opening series they went with Addison Russell (SS-9 2B-8) for the most part and started another (SS-9) in Alcides Escobar in one of the games. Brad Miller (SS-8 2B-7 OF-2) is another candidate, he has a higher OPS than the former two but at least early on he has been relegated to pinch-hitting and occasional outfield duty.
Anthony Rendon (3B-4 2B-7) will be the primary back up to Turner at third base. Steve Pearce (1B-4 2B-6 OF-1) will bide his time on the bench in a reserve role.
Down on the farm are Victor Martinez (1B-2), who can’t seem to shake the injury bug in the last few years, Hector Olivera (3B-3), beginning a new career as an outfielder with the Atlanta Braves and Lonnie Chisenhall 3B-3 OF-2.
Two highly touted un-carded youngsters in Brendan Rodgers and Daniel Robertson round out the infield squad.
Outfield:
Michael Brantley is the star of this group, OF-3 .859 OPS. George Springer OF-2 .826 OPS is a solid # 2 but has just 388 at bats. It drops off a bit after those two. Wil Myers OF-2 .763 OPS 225 at bats and Dexter Fowler OF-2 .757 OPS are the options for the 3rd spot in the pastures. Brad Miller will probably see more time here than in the infield.
Steven Moya OF-1 .553 has not shown enough to warrant a roster spot so he will be in the minors along with un-carded Austin Meadows, only 21 years old, poised to take the next step although he is battling an orbital bone fracture and will be out the next six to eight weeks.
Draft Analysis:
There was no surprise trade this year by the Met’s on draft day. They had no 1st, 2nd round or 4th round picks.
They did however make 11 selections, 10 of which were pitchers.
The first four were relievers, Ryan Madson in the 3rd, Will Harris in the 5th, Erik Goeddel in the 6th and Javier Lopez in the 7th. In the 8th they chose a starting pitcher in Josh Tomlin before going back to the pen with their 9th pick in Sergio Romo. The 10th gave them A&C-Z 29 innings SP, Rich Hill, before going back to the pen in the 11th, 12th and 13th picks, here they acquired Pat Neshek, Matt Belisle and Pedro Villarreal. Their final pick in the 14th was the much heralded, Brendan Rodgers, an un-carded shortstop drafted by Colorado. Gone are the days when Brooklyn would scour the sandlots and Community Colleges seeking the Holy Grail of unknown prospects.
Synopsis:
The Met’s have a high-powered offense and a very deep bullpen. This should be enough to send them to the playoffs in a very competitive division. The only “bug-a-boos” may be how they juggle their starting pitching and match up their outfield after Brantley. We have seen how the APBA BLACK CATS work their magic. There are some strong teams in the East and as mentioned last year, the franchise’s only appearance in the ZSABL Championship series was Bill Clinton’s 2nd year in Office in 1994.
Starting Staff:
The Rockers strategy this year is to employ a host of starting pitchers and hope they can go deep into games. They have 13 SP’s on the roster plus two in the minors sans cards and are carrying only three relievers. This section is about the rotation not Manager Schall’s plan to attack the 2016 season. So lets go there, at the top is Danny Haren (B-Z) who they obtained via a trade right before the draft. He has retired but his 187 innings will be a key for any of Rochester’s success this year. Following him are three (B-Z’s) all with limited innings. Jake Peavy (110 IP), Vidal Nuno (89 IP) and Patrick Corbin (85 IP). Next in order are three (B-No Z’s) in Chris Archer (212 IP), Edinson Volquez (198 IP) and Yovani Gallardo (184 IP). This trio has to step up and perform following Haren and the insertion of the three B-Z limited innings at management’s discretion.
In the minors is (A-Z 51 IP), Jerad Eickhoff, (C-Z) Mike Leake and a triad of C-No Z’s in Trevor Bauer, Nathan Eovaldi and Henry Owens. Joining them is (D-Z) Derek Holland, who has been throwing well this spring and no-carded Yu Darvish, rehabbing from surgery and un-carded prospect Lucas Giolito, who is expected to arrive in Washington at some point this summer.
Bullpen:
By default (A*-Z 52 IP) Kenley Jansen will be the closer. His only support comes from (C(B*)-Z 76 IP) Joe Blanton and (B*-Z 63 IP) David Robertson. It is what it is so there is not much to add. Unorthodox is a term usually reserved for Brooklyn but the Rockers are taking it to a different level.
Catcher:
Salvador Perez C-9 .706 OPS and Matt Wieters C-8 .742 OPS make up an above average receiving corp. The latter has only 259 at bats so Perez will see most of the action. Both are still under 30 years of age.
Infield:
A blockbuster trade netted them Kris Bryant 3B-4 .858 to start at the hot corner. Over at first they can choose between Justin Bour 1B-2 .800 OPS and Albert Pujols 1B-4 .787 OPS. Brandon Phillips 2B-8 .723 OPS will see most of the action at second base with Kelby Tomlinson 2B-7 .762 OPS spelling him occasionally. Jhonny Peralta SS-8 .745 OPS will be the everyday shortstop with Zach Cozart SS-9 .769 194 at bats seeing plenty of PT. Alex Rodriguez 3B-3 .842 will be the DH as he hopes to make a triumphant return to the ZSABL.
Down on the farm are Howie Kendrick 2B-7, Nick Castellanos 3B-3, James Loney 1B-5, Chase Headley 3B-4, Yasmany Tomas 3B-3 OF-1, a major disappointment so far in his career and Cesar Hernandez 2B-7, the starting Philly second baseman. Most of this group has had success in the past.
Outfield:
When Mike Trout OF-3 .991 is your starting centerfielder the superlatives are never adequate enough. Describing the rest of the outfield candidates is a lot easier. The 2nd best fly chaser is Adam Jones OF-3 .782, he is 31 years old already and while a solid, capable performer will not IMHO ever reach super star caliber. On paper Alejandro de Aza OF-2 .755 and Rajai Davis OF-2 .746 are the best choices to fill the last outfield post but the Rocker management is very high on OF-2 Billy Burns .726 OPS and he may wheedle his way into the starting lineup. In the minors is Melvin B.J.Upton OF-2 .757 OPS and a surprising decent APBA card but he became a last minute roster casualty and will open the year in the minors.
Draft Analysis:
They did pick until the 3rd round after the monster Kris Bryant deal and with that selection they took Jerad Eickhoff (A-Z) who pitched impressively with the Phillies last September. They had two fourth round picks and added Joe Blanton, who resurrected his career last year with Pittsburgh and Jake Peavy, a former # 1 pick of the draft in 2013. With one of their two 5th round picks they added the speedy Billy Burns who they were very high on and with the other, B-Z Vidal Nuno was chosen. No 6th but with two 7th round selections they tabbed Justin Bour and Cesar Hernandez. They had two more picks in the 8th and made a nice choice in Zach Cozart and a somewhat puzzling pick in Kelby Tomlinson, who is blocked by Joe Panik, although he had shown to be injury prone. Tomlinson, albeit a .303 hitter in MLB last year, has a career major and minor league Slugging Percentage of only .346.
Synopsis:
Although the lineup is respectable it is still only the 5th best in the East according to my methodology. The bullpen lacks the resources both in quality and quantity. Perhaps leading the league in complete games will take some of the pressure off the beleaguered pen. The East is a tough division; it is hard to see the Rockers advancing to the post season although skipper Schall has surprised me before and thusly earned a portion of my Manager of the Year votes.
Starting Staff:
There is nothing to dislike here. Solid but not spectacular can describe the trio of B-Z’s 200+ IP at the top of the rotation. Jon Lester, Chris Sale and Corey Kluber would be welcome additions to any team in the league. Joining them to start the season is Marcus Stroman (A&C-Z 27 IP), ready to rebound after his ACL surgery of a year ago and Chris Bassitt (B-No-Z 86 IP). After these two have used up their inning allotment the call to the minors will bring in B-Z’s Clay Buchholtz 113 IP and Drew Smyly 66 IP. Also in the farm system but not big factors in the upcoming season are three C-No-Z’s in Yordano Ventura, Jimmy Nelson and Andrew Cashner.
Bullpen:
A&C*-Z Jeurys Familia will do the closing gig. He will be supported by A&C*-No-Z Ken Giles and Roberto Osuna (A*-Z). Joining them in the pen are Joaquin Benoit (A*-No-Z), Huston Street (B*-Z) and Drew Pomeranz C(B*)-No-Z. Highly regarded Brandon Finnegan C(B*) No-Z is the sole reliever in the bushes.
Catchers:
The Crazy Horse weakened themselves in this area by dealing Jonathan Lucroy and Francisco Cervelli to address other needs. Instead they will rely on draftees A.J.Ellis C-8 and Caleb Joseph C-8. The former has a decent OPS of .758 but only 181 at bats. In the minors is Wilson Ramos C-8 acquired in the Lucroy trade and un-carded hopeful Willson Conteras. (He does have two “L’s” in his first name)
Infield:
First base is capably covered by Freddie Freeman 1B-4 .841 OPS 416 at bats and Justin Morneau 1B-5 .821 OPS 168 at bats. Jose Reyes SS-8 .688, obtained from Memphis on the eve of the draft, will be one starter. Depending on where they decide to plug in Matt Carpenter 2B-7 3B-3 .871 OPS will determine the rest of the infield. If he plays second base then Yunel Escobar 3B-4 .790 OPS will cover third base. If Carpenter starts at the hot corner then Ian Kinsler 2B-9 .770 will be the key-stoner. There will no doubt be some form of a rotation during the course of the season. Chris Colabello 1B-2 .886 will do the bulk of the DH duties. Because of the versatility of the aforementioned group Nick Ahmed SS-9 will be the only additional infielder needed on the active roster.
In the minors are two un-carded studs in J.P.Crawford and Rafael Devers along with veteran Erick Aybar SS-8 and super utility man Brock Holt 2B-7 3B-4 SS-7 OF-2.
Outfield:
Whatever you say about Mike Trout can probably be applied exponentially to the inimitable Bryce Harper OF-2 1.109 OPS. He absolutely owned MLB pitchers last year. So if opposing managers are thinking of pitching around him by issuing him a free pass they then have to deal with J.D. Martinez OF-2 .879 who is no doubt the lesser of two evils.
Jerry Garcia of the Grateful dead once said, “Constantly choosing the lesser of two evils is still choosing evil”. The Latin phrase, Caveat Emptor (Buyer beware)
may apply to those managers who choose to go that route. The 3rd starter in the Las Vegas outfield will be Christian Yelich OF-3 .782 who will carry a much less offensive threat than Harper and Martinez to the plate. The only reserve in this group to start the season is Domingo Santana OF-1 .768, who had a torrid spring with the Brewers. In the minors is Norichika Aoki and Dalton Pompey both OF-2’s. Joining them will be un-carded Albert Amora.
Draft Analysis:
They had no 1st but made up for it with three 2nd rounders and they were all highly sought after commodities in Roberto Osuna, Domingo Santana and Chris Colabello.
No 3rd round but in the 4th they grabbed un-carded Devers and in the 5th, P Chris Bassitt. They had no 6th so in the 7th they selected C Willson Conteras and with two picks in the 8th went back to the catching position by taking Caleb Joseph with one and Brandon Finnegan with the other. Their 9th round choice was Nick Ahmed and their final selection in the 10th was another catcher in A.J.Ellis.
Synopsis:
They are a contender, of course everyone you talk to in the East thinks they are also. Having Harper and a nice lineup complementing him, a solid rotation and a decent bullpen
should get them to the post season. The only drawbacks are a weak hitting receiving corp and maybe Yelich in the outfield. Despite these perceived shortcomings they figure to
be playing in “our October”.
Starting Staff:
Five B-No Z starters make up this group. They include; Danny Salazar 185 IP, Michael Wacha 181 IP, Marco Estrada 181 IP, A.J. Burnett 164 IP and Nate Karns 147 IP. Down on the farm are C-Z Matt Shoemaker, C-No-Z’s Wade Miley, Gio Gonzalez and Danny Duffy. Joining them is D-No-Z Matt Moore who looks totally returned to health this spring.
Bullpen:
Perhaps unheard of in the ZSABL prior to this, the Maui’s have three (A&B*-Z’s) in the pen. Unfortunately all are in the 30-40 inning range so any one of them could potentially
be the closer. More conventional relievers on the major league roster are Brett Cecil (A*-Z) and Jeanmar Gomes (B*-Z). On the farm is yet another (A&B*-W) Jason Frasor although that “burdensome “W” lessens his value. Joining him is Tyler Clippard (B*-No Z) and swingman Vance Worley (D(C*)-Z)
Catchers:
The starter will be veteran A.J.Pierzynski C-7 .769 with Jason Castro C-8 as his back up.
Devin Mesoraco C-7 working his way back from injuries will be in the minors.
Infield:
Third base is the strong suit in Maine’s infield with Miguel Sano .916 OPS and Danny Valencia .864 OPS splitting time. Strong at least on the offensive side, both are 3B-3’s and they are hoping to avoid chronic neck injuries from turning around quickly as balls get by them. Jung Ho Kang SS-7 .816 OPS helps at the dish but that defensive rating further tarnish’s the left side of the infield. No such problem at second base as Logan Forsythe will hold down that position with his 2B-8 and .804 OPS. 1B-4 Justin Smoak will be the first sacker and occasionally “jack one” but does not provide the overall production one expects from a first baseman. Pedro “All or Nothing” Alvarez as the USMC skipper used to call him will be the DH. Jose Ramirez provides the utility depth with his 2B-8 3B-4 SS-7.
In the minors are two youngsters who hope to return to prominence in Starlin Castro SS-7 2B-6 and Jean Segura SS-8. Joining them are veterans Matt Adams 1B-4 and Jed Lowrie SS-8 3B-4. Maine also took a flier on un-carded Korean first baseman Byung-yo Park.
Outfield:
Mookie Betts OF-2 and Michael Conforto OF-2 are the best of this lot, both with tremendous ceilings. The latter only has 189 at bats so his contributions this season will be minimal. The rest of the crew is fairly weak with Steven Souza OF-2 .717 OPS, Austin Jackson OF-3 .696 OPS, Billy Hamilton OF-3 .593 OPS and Mark Trumbo OF-1 1B-3 .759 OPS, if you can stomach his glove or lack of one. In the minors is Travis Snider OF-2.
Draft Analysis:
They had four first one picks and they made good their intention of addressing offense on three of them. Their 1st round pick was Conforto no argument from anyone on that selection. Their 2nd first rounder was Logan Forsythe who has a solid all around APBA card. Danny Valencia was their 3rd offensive pick in a row and while he has a wonderful hatchet card he might better be served as a missing piece for a bona fide contender instead of a building block for an aspiring playoff team. They finally went for a hurler with their final 1st round choice by taking Marco Estrada (B-No-Z). In the 2nd and 3rd rounds they continued their strategy of taking B starters with innings regardless of control, which they don’t have, netting Nate Karns and A.J.Burnett.
With their other 3rd rounder they tabbed Pierzynski as their starting catcher before going un-carded with Park in the 4th. In the 5th they grabbed Carter Capps, with the unique delivery, but it looks like a one-year deal as he is heading for Tommy John surgery. Two 6th rounders gave them a pair of A&B*-Z’s 30+ IP in Jeff Manship and Matt Albers, they then promptly left the draft room.
Synopsis:
Five B starters all without control will be “a tough road to follow”. The lineup is missing that middle of the order guy who can do some damage and has ample at bats. The porous defense on the left side will be problematic. The outfield depth is non-existent. That is enough of the negatives. Mookie Betts and Miguel Sano are going to be Super-Stars. Michael Conforto is not far behind them. Matt Moore looks to be dominating again. Jean Segura had a tremendous spring and the change in venue may boost him back to the elite status he enjoyed his rookie year. Starlin Castro, now with the Yankees, may spur him to grandiose heights (maybe not that high). Danny Salazar and Michael Wacha are exciting young pitchers.
It is all a matter of doing too much too soon. Competition is relative, one can improve your team from the previous year but if all he teams ahead of you improved incrementally then you did not help yourself. The A.J.’s Burnett and Pierzynski were not the right answers. The core is there in Maine now; the next step is to assemble a playoff team. That will have to wait until next year.
Starting Staff:
It is a formidable rotation to say the least. Led by A&C-Z Zack Greinke followed by David Price A-Z, both with 200+ innings. Max Schertzer B-Z 228 IP is the # 3 man. Filling the fourth spot in the rotation will be a pair of B-Z’s in Hishasi Iwakuma 129 IP and Andrew Heaney 105 IP. Down on the farm is Daniel Norris (B-No-Z 60 IP) along with Alex Wood and James Paxton, both C-No-Z’s. Joining them will be Jonathan Gray (D-No-Z) and un-carded Julio Urias of the Dodgers.
Bullpen:
The closer is Tony Sipp A&C*-Z 54 IP. In the setup role is Tony Watson (A*-Z 75 IP). Further support comes from Sean Gilmartin B(A*-Z) 57 IP. Add Craig Kimbrell (A*-No-Z 59 IP) and Pedro Baez (B*-Z 51 IP) and you have a very deep pen. In the minors is Brandon Mauer (B*-Z 51 IP).
Catchers:
They have five back-stoppers on the roster. Most intriguing is Curt Casali with his triple one’s and two sixes albeit only 105 at bats. Yadier Molina C-9, had an another off year for him, just a .660 OPS, but his glove is invaluable to overall team defense. Robinson Chirinos C-7 will see plenty of action with his .762 OPS. In the minors is Travis D’Arnaud C-7 hoping to rebound from an injury riddled year and Austin Hedges C-7 whose bat has come alive in spring training.
Infield:
Anthony Rizzo 1B-5 .899 OPS has reached the upper echelons of MLB. Across the diamond at third base is Kyle Seager 3B-5 .779, sort of a down year for him offensively.
Jason Kipnis 2B-7 .823 and Jose Iglesias SS-8 .717 will form the double play combination although both improved offensively they took a downgrade on the defensive side.
The DH honors might fall to a pair of utility infielders in Andres Blanco .863 OPS 233 AB’s 3B-4 2B-7 SS-7, a very versatile and productive extra player, and Phil Gosselin .873 OPS 106 AB’s 2B-6. Danny Espinosa SS-9 rounds out the major league infield corp. In the minors is Ben Paulsen 1B-3 .787 OPS and getting more PT in Colorado may improve those numbers. A veritable truckload of extra infielders inundate the farm system, they include; Eduardo Escobar, Elvis Andrus, Martin Prado and Scooter Gennett.
Outfield:
Andrew McCutchen OF-3 .889 OPS is the star of this group. Justin Upton OF-3 .790 OPS is solid in another outfield post. Jackie Bradley Jr. adds much needed depth with his OF-3 .832 OPS 221 at bats. Brandon Guyer OF-2 .771 figures to supplement Bradley’s limited AB’s. Mark Canha OF-1 .742 OPS is probably not an option here but will see duty as the DH at times. Kole Calhoun OF-2 and un-carded Clint Frazier are in the minors.
Draft Analysis:
Jackie Bradley Jr. was their first round selection and he provides exactly what the Bulldogs were looking for. They had no 2nd but in the 3rd they got their closer in Tony Sipp. Sean Gilmartin was selected in the 4th and Hatchet Card extraordinaire Curt Casali was chosen in the 5th. Andres Blanco another Hatchet-type was still there in the 6th. They sat quietly until their next pick which wasn’t until the 9th round, there they took Brandon Guyer. In the 10th it was Pedro Baez, the 11th saw them get Phil Gosselin, the 12th Brandon Mauer, the 13th Danny Espinosa and with their final pick in the 14th they welcomed Mark Canha to the squad.
Synopsis:
A superb starting staff, an A&C-Z, A-Z, B-Z, B-Z, and B-Z will take you pretty far. An A&C*-Z, A*-Z and A*-Z will help you go further. The lineup is solid; defense is a little shaky with Kipnis at second. The outfield lacks depth when Bradley is not in there but Hatchet Cards like Casali and Blanco can win you a few ballgames. Overall they look like a sure fire playoff team. They will face stiff competition as the East is starting to reach some form of parity.
Sherwood’s strangle hold on the top spot in the East has ended. Las Vegas and Amsterdam are now the class of the division. They will battle for the top two spots with the edge going to the Crazy Horse thanks to Bryce Harper. It is contingent however on how many games Casali and Blanco win for the Bulldogs. Brooklyn with their offense and the correct juggling of their starting pitchers looks like they can hold off Philly for 3rd, who will be plagued by defensive woes at short and despite a tremendous bullpen their rotation looks deficient compared to the others. Rochester is an unknown equation going in with virtually no bullpen. Their offense is okay but pales in comparison to the top four ahead of them so they will battle Sherwood for 5th. The Machine their rough 2-10 start aside doesn’t look like they have enough offensively, only one regular with an OPS of over .800, to make any kind of run, despite the graphs and statistical analysis they employ. Perhaps it is the “Curse of the Votto”. Maine with all B-No-Z starters does not have enough firepower to stay in the hunt. Sano, Betts and Conforto will make them a trendy pick next year. I do think there will be not much of a disparity between all seven teams in the East and in that sense I agree with their consensus that anybody can win it but I will call them as I see them.
That is:
1-Las Vegas
2-Amsterdam
3-Brooklyn
4-Philadelphia
5-Rochester (Tied)
Sherwood (Tied)
7-Maine
Disclaimer:
This journalistic endeavor is just an opinion. Please, if you disagree with it, post your own predictions. I do take a lot of time analyzing the rosters etc. If you must comment, make it to the entire league, sort of like a Letter to the Editor. In the past I have been wrong and sometimes right on the money just like the Weathermen.