Starting Staff:
Madison Bumgarner (B-Z) is the supposed ace of the staff but his numbers do not indicate that, as he has a lifetime 51-79 mark. One would think it has more to do with the team because he has always received a nice grade from APBA but his career ERA of 4.48 leaves something to be desired. Next up in the rotation are four (B’s-No Z’s) in Jake Arrieta, Ian Kennedy, Chris Tillman, who returns to the Black Sox after a stint with Norfolk, and Nick Tropeano. The latter only has 68 innings. Down on the farm is a tandem of (D-Z’s) in Jordan Zimmermann, one of a host of reclamation projects by the Philly franchise, and the oft-injured Hyun-Jin Ryu. (D-No-Z’s) Michael Pineda and Sonny Gray along with un-carded Brent Honeywell round out the starting staff. Long time hopeful Robert Stephenson was cut loose during the draft.
Bullpen:
Headlining the pen is the versatile Andrew Miller (A&B*-Z). Supporting him is a host of (A*-No Z’s). Dan Jennings (A&C*), Hector Neris, Raisel Iglesias (B(A*))and Heath Hembree. The only other fireman with any semblance of control are Alex Wilson (B*-Z) and Dillon Gee (D(C*)-Z. Bases on balls will be an issue for most of the season with only Bumgarner in the rotation, the closer Miller and Wilson having the coveted (Z). Gee sports the (Z) also but with his (D(C*) rating he will only be used in mop up situations.
Catchers:
Pre Draft the Philly skipper was asked if he was going to address their catching situation. He responded that he was satisfied with his two veteran catchers, Francisco Cervelli (C-8) and “Chooch” Ruiz C-7 as he said they both had decent on base marks despite their low OPS’s. They did take a flier on un-carded Chance Sisco but he appears to be a few years away and the possibility of a position switch is always looming.
Infield:
Three fourths of the infield is ably set. Corey Seager (SS-8) and an OPS of .877 has the potential of reaching even greater heights. Dustin Pedroia 2B-8 is always steady and even at age 34 should have a few more productive years. Victor Martinez 1B-2 despite his glove work is a professional hitter and could easily slide into the DH slot should the “Sox” find another first baseman. Handling third base will be Martin Prado 3B-4 with Wilmer Flores 3B-3 2B-7 1B-3 SS-7 in reserve. The DH will be the veteran Carlos Beltran OF-1, another of the aforementioned reclamation projects along with Jordan Zimmermann, A.J.Pollock and to some degree Martin Prado and Matt Holliday. The farm boasts of Maikel Franco 3B-3, Pablo Sandoval 3B-3, Yoan Moncada 3B-3, all with the potential to break out next season. Sandoval, who reported to camp in great shape, Moncada who has a better shot at MLB stardom with the ChiSox as opposed to the stacked Redsox roster and Franco if he can cut down his whiffs are all prospective candidates to man the hot corner next year.
Joining them on the farm are Jorge Polanco SS-7 2B-7 3B-3 and the non-carded 1B Greg Bird who missed last season due to an injury.
Outfield:
Yoenis Cespedes OF-3 and an OPS of .884 is the elite member of this group. There is no questioning that David Dahl OF-2 .859 OPS is a rising star. The rest of the ensemble is a little puzzling. None of them can field as they all sport an OF-1 rating. Beltran as noted earlier will be the DH so his lack of a glove will not be a hindrance. Robbie Grossman, a darling of a few rabid on base fanatics in the league will probably flank Cespedes in one of the other outfield slots. His lack of speed and moderate power will still require two more hits to score him even if he reaches base successfully. Hyun Soo Kim will complement Dahl at another spot due to the latter’s limited at bats. Matt Holliday some how survived the roster cuts and hopes to resurrect his career with the Yankees. The minors have alternatives in the injured David Peralta OF-3 and A.J.Pollock OF-3. Mitch Haniger OF-2 hopes to make his mark in the “Show” this year at age 27. Un-carded Jesse Winker rounds out the fly chasers.
Draft Analysis:
With their first pick of the free agent draft they reclaimed P Chris Tillman. In the 2nd their enthusiasm for Robbie Grossman clouded their judgment on more ably skilled players. Neris in the 3rd gives them plenty of A* relief even without the (Z). With their other 3rd rounder they selected un-carded Brent Honeywell. Kim arrived in the 4th, the jury is still out on him. Jennings gives them some bullpen help with his 5th round selection along with fellow 5th rounder Nick Tropeano, a B starter, with his low but valuable 68 innings.
The 6th round gave them Heath Hembree another quality bullpen arm and Carlos Beltran. No pick in the 7th but in the 8th they grabbed un-carded Chance Sisco. Showing confidence in their coaching and instructional skills they took a gamble on Jordan Zimmermann in the 9th, Gee in the 10th and Prado in the 11th. The 12th saw them select Haniger who should get a shot this year for the Mariners. A roster SNAFU after the draft forced them to pick up Jorge Polanco in the 16th and jettison P Jaime Garcia.
Synopsis:
Last year the Black Sox supposedly posted this analysis on their clubhouse bulletin board to inspire the team and it had some marginal success as they finished at .500, 69-69 but came in fourth place and missed the playoffs. This year the bulletin board will be filled with such mundane notices as the opening of trout season and various yard sales in the Philly area. The second oldest team in the division next to Rochester and a lineup virtually tied along with Maine, Amsterdam and the Rockers at the bottom rung of the East will relegate them to the list of also-rans. Porous defense especially at first base and the outfield, a dearth of Z’s in both the rotation and the pen and a below average starting lineup are not ingredients for a playoff team.
Starting Staff:
Two A-Z studs in Noah Syndergaard and Kyle Hendricks sit atop the Machine’s rotation. Jose Quintana is a solid # 3 with his B-Z. After that it gets a little tricky. Albert Suarez C-Z, 84 innings is next on the active roster. Seth Lugo B(A*) No-Z could be utilized here as well but Sherwood’s penchant for stats/formulae/graphs will probably result in roster moves with Robert Gsellman (A No-Z) 45 IP, Chad Kuhl (C No-Z) 71 IP and even Andrew Triggs D(C*)-Z getting the call from the farm to supplement the rotation. Joining this trio is the non-carded Henderson Alvarez.
Bullpen:
The Machine will rely heavily on their pen with A&C*-Z Richard Bleier, but only 23 IP and Shawn Kelley A*-Z sharing the closer duties. Lugo listed with the potential starting pitchers will no doubt see some duty here in the bullpen as well. The rest of the relief corp will be filled by Sammy Solis A*-No-Z, a pair of B*-Z’s in Nick Wittgren and Sean Doolittle along with B*-No-Z Ryan Pressly. Waiting in the bushes for the call are Grant Dayton A*-Z 26 IP and Miguel Socolovich A*-Z 18 IP. Mark Rzepczynski A*-No-Z and Jake Barrett B*-No-Z provide them plenty of options either with player moves or when rosters expand to fortify the bullpen situation. Andrew Triggs D(C*)-Z gives them an emergency route to cover any lapses in coverage.
Catchers:
Russell Martin (C-9), called by his skipper as the “best player in baseball” is no longer the # 1 back stop. That honor goes to Willson Conteras, who the Machine traded for in the off-season, although his 262 at bats will still keep Martin as an integral part of the receiving corp. Derek Norris, C-7, is in the minors.
Infield:
D.J.Lemahieu 2B-9, the NL batting champion last year will be at second base. Early season sensation from a year ago, Trevor Story SS-8, will form the double play combo with Lemahieu. Story has 382 at bats so fielding whiz Andrelton Simmons SS-9 will be summoned early and often. Machine favorite Brandon Belt 1B-5 and Evan Longoria 3B-4 will be at the corners. On base machine Carlos Santana will do the DH honors. On the bench is Matt M.Duffy 3B-5 SS-8 as skipper Tarantino has to have a fielding one at every infield position and all-around handy man Chris Owings SS-8 2B-7 OF-2 who will see service in a variety of roles. In the minors is Timothy Beckam 2B-7 SS-7, who they refuse to give up on especially since he is in his age 27 season, a magical age in Sherwood’s way of thinking. Also down on the farm is Eugenio Suarez who returns to the fold with the Machine still very high on his upside along with Ruben Tejada 3B-3 1B-7 SS-7.
Outfield:
The three starters here all have some what limited at bats that have to be monitored but should not pose any major problems. Joc Pederson OF-3 OPS .847 406 AB’s and Giancarlo Stanton OF-2 413 AB’s and an OPS of .815 will occupy two of the slots on a regular basis. Cameron Maybin, OF-2 349 AB’s and a .801 OPS fills out the outfield alignment. Maybin who they were ecstatic to acquire with their first pick in the draft (4th round) has an excellent on base card. Bret Gardner OF-3 is the main reserve with Chris Owings, who is listed with the infield reserves, gives them a little more flexibility as he qualifies in the outfield. On the farm are Corey Dickerson and Trayce Thompson, both OF-2’s. Buried deep in the Machine system is former bromance partner Jayson Heyward OF-3 who endured a horrible season despite the Cubs winning it all.
Draft Analysis:
They didn’t pick until the 4th round where they had two picks and here they grabbed two players they thought were out of their grasp in Maybin and Gsellman. Forced to mix and match both their starting staff and their bullpen their next picks from round 5 through 16 were all pitchers except one. In order starting with round 5 were Seth Lugo, Marc Rzepczynski, Sammy Solis, Richard Bleier, Nick Wittgren, Chad Kuhl, Grant Dayton, Sean Doolittle and Albert Suarez. They deviated from this plan when Norfolk cut loose former Machine Eugenio Suarez and Sherwood scooped him up in round 13. They went back to their master plan in the final three rounds adding Ryan Pressly, Andrew Triggs and Jack Barrett.
Synopsis:
Their perennial run at the playoffs should go without challenge again this year although a pennant will be harder to come by. Their lineup is on a par with the division best Las Vegas’s squad. Skillful manipulation of the # 4 spot in the rotation is paramount to how high they will finish. The bullpen requires some juggling also and with the roster moves limited to 5 before everyone comes up, it could cost them a few games in the standings. The at bat situation in the outfield although not drastic could impact a few games with Gardner and Owings a big drop off from the starting trio. All in all, Manager Tarantino always brings his A-Game to the table faced with whatever inadequacies his on-field charges offer him.
Starting Staff:
Rich Hill A-No-Z is the highest rated hurler on the Met’s staff but he is limited to just 110 IP. Masahiro Tanaka and the late Jose Fernandez, both B-Z’s, will follow him.
Up next is another B-Z in Carlos Carrasco, he too is stymied by just 146 IP. Mike Foltynewicz C-Z rounds out the rotation with his 123 IP. Providing depth on the farm are Alec Asher A-Z 28 IP and a pair of C-No-Z’s in Collin McHugh and Carlos Rodon. Remaining un-carded but still on the roster is Zach Wheeler. Any perceived shortcomings here are rectified in the next paragraph concerning Brooklyn’s bullpen.
Bullpen:
Perhaps the best and deepest bullpen ever assembled. It is led by Kenley Jansen A&C*-Z followed by another pitcher of the same ilk in Tony Barnette. Work horse Chris Devenski B(A*)-Z 108 IP is next in line. A pair of A*-Z’s follow him in Addison Reed and Will Harris. If that is not enough, on the farm awaits Matt Belisle A&C*-ZZ, Pat Neshek B*-ZZ and the weakest link among the relievers in Ryan Madson, merely a B*-Z.
Catchers:
The back stopping corp is ably handled by Yasmani Grandal (C-8 .816 OPS) and back up J.T. Realmuto (C-7 .771 OPS).
Infield:
They traded 3B Justin Turner, Jonathan Schoop and 1B-DH Miguel Cabrera but the infield remains more than adequate with super star Paul Goldschmidt (1B-5 .899 OPS) at first base and across the diamond at third base, Anthony Rendon 3B-5. Second base will be manned by hatchet card supreme Ryan Schimpf 2B-7 3B-4, who has a 44-0 and double ones along with his four 14’s and a 42, he is hampered by only 276 at bats but another part-timer in Steve Pearce 2B-6 1B-3 OF-1 and a .866 OPS should complement him nicely. Brad Miller, only a SS-7 but a lot of “pop” will be the shortstop with Addison Russell SS-9 in reserve. Scooter Gennett 2B-7 will also be on the bench. The minor league system is a little short on infielders, in fact there are only five and they are all un-carded players. They are Nick Senzel, Matt Chapman, Kevin Maitan, Glyber Torres and Brendan Rodgers. There are a lot of top 100 prospects in this group.
Outfield:
A talented collection of players will patrol the pastures for Brooklyn this season. One of them will probably have to amass at bats as the designated hitter. They can pick and choose from Tyler Naquin OF-2 .886 OPS, Dexter Fowler OF-3 .840, George Springer OF-3 .815, Matt Joyce OF-2 .866 OPS, 231 at bats but with seven walks on his card, Wil Myers OF-2 1B-5 .797 OPS or Adam C Eaton OF-3 .790 OPS. In the minors are Alex Dickerson OF-1, Lonnie Chisenhall OF-2 and injury riddled Michael Brantley OF-3 who they are banking on returning to form.
Draft Analysis:
They had five first round selections, with their Lottery pick they chose Chris Devenski a 108 IP weapon with an A*-Z grade. They mixed and matched the remaining four picks taking the un-carded Glyber Torres, addressing the lineup with the monster card of Ryan Schimpf and further bolstering their pen with Addison Reed and Tony Barnette. In the 2nd, Naquin, a rumored first round pick, was still available so he became a Met. Un-carded Senzel arrived in the 3rd and Matt Joyce with his seven 14’s was taken in the 4th. A-Z Asher was their 5th round selection; Foltynewicz came along in the 6th and un-carded Maitan in the 7th. Their last two picks saw them add Alex Dickerson and un-carded Matt Chapman.
Synopsis:
Manager Turner collected his 1000th ZSABL victory early this season but an appearance in the league championship has eluded him. This team should make the post season and with their much-heralded bullpen a short series makes them a prohibitive favorite no matter whom they face. They lack the fire power of the line ups of Sherwood and Las Vegas and maybe they are a little light on quality starting pitching but that bullpen makes them clearly one of the three play off teams in the East. It has been regurgitated ad nauseum that the franchise’s only appearance in the ZSABL Championship series was Bill Clinton’s 2nd year in Office in 1994 when they were known as the Marakesh Xpress under the guidance of George Zangari, the current skipper of the Pensacola Piranha’s. That reference may soon be obsolete.
Starting Staff:
The Rockers rotation has a lot of deficiencies, the top two hurlers Stephen Strasburg and Yu Darvish are not only sans the control rating of “Z”, they are also limited in innings with 148 and 100 IP respectively. Jeremy Hellickson and Ivan Nova do not have the burden of limited IP but both are only C-Z’s. Chris Rusin and Tim Adleman, also C-Z’s, maybe asked to do some swing shifts between starting and relieving. Trevor Bauer, C-No-Z, will probably see all his action in mop up roles. On the farm is Tyler Chatwood C-No-Z and Mike Leake a D-Z, who they have high hopes of rebounding this year. Other hopefuls in the bushes are Edinson Volquez and Clay Buchholtz, both D-No Z’s with the latter a prime candidate to come back to prior form with the Philadelphia Phillies. A pair of young prospects, both D-W’s, in Lucas Giolito and Henry Owens will bide their time.
Bullpen:
(A*-Z) Derek Law is the closer. The setup guys are Vidal Nuno C(B*)-Z and Deolis Guerra B*-Z. David Robertson B*-No-Z is the only other reliever on the roster so pitchers like Bauer, Rusin and Adleman will be asked to provide some relief innings. Carlos Torres B*-No Z is in the minors but will be summoned quickly should the need arrive. Although two years away, Japanese sensation, Shohei Otani, a pitching and hitting star in the Nippon Professional Baseball League was a nice gamble to add to their minors.
Catcher:
They has no catchers on their roster going into the draft but they came away with Tucker Barnhart C-7 .702 OPS and Anthony Recker C-7 .828 OPS but only 90 at bats.
Infield:
A blockbuster trade on the eve of the draft netted them two first rounder picks and they took Aledmys Diaz SS-7 to start at shortstop and un-carded Cody Bellinger who they hope will be their first baseman of the future. The left side of the infield in addition to Diaz will have 3B-4 Kris Bryant at third base. On the right side will be Cesar Hernandez 2B-7 at the keystone bag and veteran Albert Pujols, 1B-3. Not a whole lot of leather being thrown around with this quartet. Justin Bour 1B-3 will be the main DH with Brandon Phillips 2B-7 ready to lend a hand there. Zack Cozart SS-9 and Jhonny Peralta 3B-4 are the reserves. In addition to the aforementioned Bellinger the minor league system will include Chase Headley 3B-4 and Un-carded J.P.Crawford.
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. These are the exact two sentences the analysis opened with last year in Rochester’s outfielder report and it makes no sense changing them now because everything remains the same, even Trout’s OPS repeated at .991. The drop off begins with Andrew McCutchen OF-2, not in name recognition but in production as he plummeted to a .766 OPS, the 2nd best among the Rocker outfielders. Adam Jones OF-2, is another notable star, who fell off the shelf with a .746 OPS. This is the starting trio of fly chasers. Raja Davis OF-2 will see lots of playing time with his 0-0-0-11-11 card. Down on the farm is Charlie Tilson OF-2 who has a chance to be the ChiSox starting center fielder, Melvin “B.J.” Upton OF-2, Roman Quinn OF-2 who has a shot at a starting gig with the Phillies and un-carded prospect Austin Meadows who seemingly has been on the cusp of a MLB career forever.
Draft Analysis:
Until they obtained two lottery picks on the eve of the draft, they only had a 3rd, a 5th and their 8th round and up picks. The deal with USMC, which gave them those two Lottery picks at the cost of Nick Castellanos and Salvador Perez, netted them Aledmys Diaz and un-carded Cody Bellinger. Biding their time until they picked again in the 3rd was more bearable with their starting shortstop in Diaz and the prospect they coveted in Bellinger on the roster. With that 3rd round pick they got a closer in Derek Law and their next pick in the 5th gave them Jeremy Hellickson. Not selecting until the 8th again, they were surprised another C-Z with innings was available in Ivan Nova. Now on a regular draft rotation in the 9th they grabbed Deolis Guerra, and in the next round their starting catcher in Barnhart. In the 11th they got another C-Z in Rusin and in the 12th a back up catcher in Anthony Recker. The 13th saw them tab Torres a B* with 80+ IP and in the 14th round they took a gamble on C.Tilson. They took another OF gamble in the 15th with Roman Quinn. In the 16th round there was some confusion after taking Chatwood and the Japanese star Otani, they only had 39 players but added Tim Adleman to round out their roster.
Synopsis:
The Rockers are the oldest team in the division although not by much just .07 years older than Philadelphia. After the first round they had very limited draft picks but came up with a detailed plan and obtained everything they were looking for in this rebuilding year. Offensively they do not have much after Trout, Bryant and Diaz although Bour with his 280 at bats is a capable bat. The infield defense is pernicious. The pitching depth is woeful. I don’t see anything other than next to last place for them this season but skipper Schall has surprised before. They do have three picks in the first round next year and two in both the 2nd and 3rd rounds so the future is bright.
Starting Staff:
There is nothing to dislike here. A formidable staff is made up of Jon Lester A-Z, Chris Sale B-Z, Corey Kluber B-Z and Kevin Hausman B-Z, all with plenty of IP. Matt Andriese C-Z is the 5th starter if needed although Brandon Finnegan, who they resisted trade offers for all winter, got a start early this season while Andriese worked out of the pen. In the minors are Chris Archer C-No-Z, (D-Z) Drew Smyly, and a trio of (D No-Z’s) in Jimmy Nelson, Andrew Cashner and Luis Severino, another one of those so-called reclamation projects.
Bullpen:
A&B*-Z Zach Britton, who was lights out for the Orioles last year is the closer. Set up men include Nate Jones A*-Z, Mike Montgomery B(A*) No-Z with 100 IP and Joaquin Benoit A*-No-Z. Brandon Kintzler B*-Z fills out the pen. Ken Giles C*-No-Z is the only bullpen guy in the minors.
Catchers:
The Crazy Horse are nicely covered behind the dish with Wilson Ramos C-8 and a .850 OPS and Mike Zunino C-8 with double ones and a .787 OPS.
Infield:
The infield is par excellence with 1B-5 Freddie Freeman, 3B-5 Adrian Beltre, 2B-9 Ian Kinsler and SS-8 Xander Bogaerts. 1B-3 Mike Napoli and Brock Holt 3B-4 OF-2 2B-7 SS-7 provide all the back up insurance they need. The DH will be Yasmany Tomas OF-1. On the farm offering more versatility is Jose Reyes 3B-4 SS-8, Kolten Wong 2B-8 OF-2 and Nick Ahmed SS-9. They also have future hopefuls in un-carded Rafael Devers, Willie Calhoun and Casey Gillaspie.
Outfield:
Trading Bryce Harper to USMC left a little gap in the Crazy Horse outfield. The star of this group is J.D.Martinez OF-2 .908 OPS who has had back-to-back solid years. Joining him is the multi-talented Christian Yelich OF-3 .859 OPS. The third spot will be with some sort of time-sharing between Keon Broxton OF-2 .784 and Kevin Kiermaier OF-3. Jacoby Ellsbury OF-3 also makes the squad. This latter trio is a far cry from the production Harper provided. Down in the bushes is Andrew Toles OF-2 with a great hatchet card but only 105 at bats, Domingo Santana OF-2, who they have been very patient with and Albert Almora OF-2. They did lose patience with OF Dalton Pompey and unceremoniously released him during the draft.
Draft Analysis:
They had no 1st but made up for it with three 2nd rounder picks and they were all highly sought after commodities in Nate Jones, Mike Montgomery and Andrew Toles.
In the 3rd round they really wanted Keon Broxton and were forced to take him here which was earlier than anticipated because of rumors of other interested parties. Mike Zunino was a nice pick in the 4th with his double ones. They did not select again until the 7th and a B*-Z in Brandon Kintzler was still on the board. No 8th but Andriese, a C-Z was added in the 9th and he will be a valuable addition to the Vegas staff as a swingman. Napoli arrived in the 10th and they went un-carded in the next two rounds in Gillaspie and Calhoun. Hartford released Jacoby Ellsbury and the Crazy Ones were there to snatch him up, another one of those reclamation projects that this draft seemed rife with. Since they were in that state of mind that they can restore production from other teams rejects, they jumped on Luis Severino cut loose by USMC with their final pick.
Synopsis:
A rotation as good as anybody or at least on a par with Brooklyn and Sherwood, a solid but not extremely deep bullpen, anchored by the A&B*-Z Zach Britton, a pair of fine receivers in Ramos and Zunino, an infield consisting of Freeman, Kinsler, Bogaerts and Beltre that can both hit and play defense and 2/3 of a sweet outfield corp is the recipe for a playoff bound ball club. The lack of perceived depth is the pen can be compensated for by the abundance of innings of the starters.
Some combo of Broxton and Toles, when he is re-called, could be employed in the open outfield a slot after Martinez and Yelich to fill that gap. So any questions about the strength of the Las Vegas club can already be answered. They can print play-off tickets but they have to be reminded they cannot go deep into the post season without winning a play off series for the first time in Vegas history.
Starting Staff:
Two B-Z starters in Danny Duffy and Michael Fulmer, the consensus # 1 pick in the draft, although there were a few that would have selected Alex Bregman, are the aces of this staff. Filling out the rest of the rotation are Marco Estrada B-No-Z and Matt Shoemaker C-Z. In the minors are C-No-Z’s, Danny Salazar and Matt Moore along with D-No-Z Michael Wacha and the un-carded Jason Groome.
Bullpen:
Ryan Dull and Edwin Diaz, both A*-Z’s, will handle the closer duties. Tyler Thornburg A*-No Z will be the set up man with Matt Bowman B*-Z rounding out the unheard of eight hurler pitching corp to start the season. There are plenty of reinforcements in the minors, led by A&B*-No Z Cam Bedrosian, A*-No-Z’s, Zach Duke and Brian Ellington, C(B*) Vance Worley and B*-No Z’s Tyler Clippard and Jeff Manship.
Catchers:
Alex Avila and Jason Castro both C-8’s will split the catching chores although not 50-50 as Avila has just 169 at bats but his seven 14’s will extend that number. Devin Mesoraco C-7, working his way back from injuries, will be in the minors as will be Carson Kelly C-6 who hopes to unseat Yadier Molina in the near future in St.Louis.
Infield:
Third base will be manned by 3B-3 Jung Ho Kang .867 OPS, although he does have a cloud of a third DUI and leaving the scene of an accident in his homeland of South Korea hanging over him as jail time is a possibility. The shortstop will be Jean Segura SS-9 2B-8 and likewise an OPS of .867 so the left side of the infield is in capable hands if you consider Kang’s 3B-3 hands as capable. Danny Valencia 1B-2 seems like the best option at first base with Ken Vargas 1B-3 getting some starts there with his 152 at bats and helping out Pedro Alvarez in the DH spot. Jose Ramirez 3B-5 OF-2 will see most of his starts in the outfield but with Kang’s limited at bats and fielding weaknesses he will be see a lot of action at the hot corner. Miguel Sano 3B-3 will split his time at 3B and DH when he is inserted in the line up. Logan Forsythe 2B-7 will be at the keystone bag. Justin Smoak 1B-5 and Freddy Galvis SS-9 are in reserve mostly as defensive replacements. Down on the farm are a pair of first basemen in Matt Adams 1B-4 and Byung-Ho Park 1B-3.
Outfield:
Mookie Betts OF-3 OPA .897 is fast becoming one of MLB’s best players. Flanking him on one side of the Maui outfield is the previously mentioned Ramirez and on the other side is power hitting Mark Trumbo. Saddled with an OF-1 rating, he will be forced by Maine’s lack of other options in the pastures to spend a lot of time out there. They will have to suck it up to keep his bat in the line up. Paulo Orlando OF-3 will be his defensive caddy and if Ramirez is forced to move to the infield at any time then Billy Hamilton OF-3 or Michael Conforto OF-2, who has not progressed as much as the Maine management would like, could be utilized there also. Austin Jackson OF-3 and still only 30 years old will be in the minors.
Draft Analysis:
They had the # 1 overall pick and went for the best B-Z starter in the draft in Michael Fulmer, a selection that no one could argue. In the next two rounds they addressed their need of a closer with a pair of A*-Z’s in Ryan Dull and a highly coveted Edwin Diaz. The 4th, saw them with three picks so they added some depth to the pen in Thornburg and then they grabbed their back up catcher in Avila before returning to the shortage in the bullpen with Cam Bedrosian, which was a very good selection with his A&B* rating. The 5th gave them St. Louis catcher, Carson Kelly and with their other 5th rounder they added Zach Duke. They were not done creating bullpen depth so in the 6th a B*-Z in Matt Bowman was chosen. Two picks in the 7th netted them Ken Vargas and Freddy Galvis both nice additions. Two more in the 8th gave them OF Paulo Orlando and the un-carded Jason Groome. Their final selection was another reliever in Brian Ellington.
Synopsis:
The rotation and the pen are both above average in the Eastern Division. The line up however pales in comparison to the big three of Sherwood, Las Vegas and Brooklyn. Defensive liabilities in both Kang and Trumbo will inflict much suffering to the Maui skipper. So even with a strong group of core players in the likes of Segura, Betts and Trumbo it will not be enough to reach the post season. They are trending in the right direction. They look like a 4th place club but I would not be “mildly” surprised if they managed to capture one of the three post season slots. The uncertainty of the dice over a long season is why we play the game. There is something I cannot exactly pinpoint that keeps me from calling them a legitimate contender whether it is APBA experience or something about the make up of the team.
Starting Staff:
James Paxton B-Z 121 IP is the ace of the staff. Following him is Carlos E.Martinez B-No Z 195 IP, Lance McCullers Jr. is next at B-W but only 81 IP. A pair of veteran C-Z’s in Hashasi Iwakuma and Zack Greinke fill out the rotation. Gerrit Cole C-No Z and Chad Bettis D-No Z will be carried on the big league roster to provide mop up innings. On the farm are a tandem of limited innings B-No Z’s in Daniel Norris 69 IP and Julio Urias 77 IP. (D-No-Z) Jonathan Gray and un-carded fire-baller Michael Kopech join them.
Bullpen:
The closer is Alex Reyes A(A&C*) No-Z 46 IP. He unfortunately will under go Tommy John surgery and miss the current season. The rest of the pen is pretty shaky. It includes B*-No Z’s Pedro Baez and Tony Watson plus two B*-W’s in Kyle Barraclough and Craig Kimbrell.
Catchers:
They are set behind the plate with their 2nd round selection Sandy Leon C-8 .845 OPS and the veteran Yadier Molina C-9, who has 55-7.
Infield:
The corner infield posts are well stacked with Anthony Rizzo 1B-5 .928 OPS and across the diamond at third base with Kyle Seager 3B-5 .859.
Jason Kipnis 2B-8 .811 OPS and Elvis Andrus SS-8 .800 OPS will form the double play combination. Tommy Joseph 1B-3 will be the primary DH.
# 2 overall pick Alex Bregman 3B-3 will also garner some at bats there. Jurickson Profar qualified at every position 1B-3 2B-7 3B-3 SS-7 OF-1 so there is no need for any other back ups. In the minors are Travis Shaw 3B-4 1B-3, fielding whiz Jose Iglesias SS-9, Utility man Enrique Hernandez 2B-7 OF-2 3B-3 SS-7 and Jeimer Candelario 3B-3.
Joining them are un-carded Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Willy Adames.
Outfield:
The starting outfield corp are all OF-3’s in Jackie Bradley Jr. .835 OPS, Kole Calhoun 786 OPS and Justin Upton .775 OPS. In reserve they have another OF-3 in Kevin Pillar.
Down on the farm are Brandon Guyer OF-2 .795 OPS, the enigmatic Yasiel Puig OF-2 and Kyle Schwarber OF-1, limited to just 4 at bats last year due to injuries. They hope to see the much-anticipated arrival of un-carded Clint Frazier at some point this season but for now his un-carded status will remain in the bushes.
Draft Analysis:
The crème de crème of the non-pitchers available in the draft was Alex Bregman and they snagged him with the 2nd overall pick. Two 2nd round selection got them C Sandy Leon, who had a break out year and Alex Reyes the very talented St. Louis Cardinal hurler who underwent TJ surgery a few days after the draft. In the 3rd they went un-carded with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Their next pick was in the 6th and here they went un-carded again in Michael Kopech who routinely throws 100 MPH. Kyle Barraclough went in the 7th and he has all the stuff to excel but needs to harness his control issues. Tommy Joseph with his double ones was tabbed in the 8th. Grade (D-No-Z) Chad Bettis in the 9th was a testimony to the Bulldogs faith that he will blossom as a MLB hurler. Un-Carded Willy Adames arrived in the 10th and with their final pick they took 3B-3 Jeimer Candelario.
Synopsis:
The lack of pitching both in the rotation and the bullpen will doom Amsterdam to the nether regions in the East. A (B-Z) with 121 IP, a (B-No Z) with 195 and a pair of (C-Z’s) might be able to contend if they have an offense and a deep group of relievers. The Bulldogs have neither, Reyes A(A&C*-No Z) is the only decent fireman among the bunch that consists of two (B*-No-Z’s) and Two (B*-W’s). Swingmen like Cole, Bettis and Gray will have to be employed to cover all the innings. They went into the draft saying they “were not going for it” and the final on-field product surely demonstrates that strategy. Despite the quality of their infield and behind the plate, Jackie Bradley Jr. is the only other player that provides any offensive prowess. It looks like the “Dog’s” Lottery pick next season will be very valuable.
Looks like a three horse race between Las Vegas, Brooklyn and Sherwood. The Metropolitans bullpen depth is unparalleled in ZSABL annals. Their starting pitching is good enough to stretch out a game until their vaunted pen can take over. Defense at 2B and SS could be an issue. Despite trading away a ton of offense they still have the 3rd best in the division, trailing only Sherwood and Las Vegas. Maybe they will not bring home the pennant but in a short series play off match up the bullpen will be the deciding factor.
Vegas on the other hand is the most solid club in the East. They have an excellent rotation and a very good bullpen as well as the best lineup among their peers. The only “bug-a-boo” may be their relief corp might be short one “Z”. They probably have enough to capture the Eastern flag.
Sherwood has their hands full juggling their part-time starters and relievers after the three aces, Syndergaard, Hendricks and Quintana throw. There are a lot of limited innings relievers. The 4th starter will be filled with a host of candidates. The problem arises on how to mesh the five player moves allotted by the league to coincide with the roster expansion in the last section. A further dilemma will be to make out the play off roster jive with all the gerry rigging.
Maine keeps making strides to post season legitimacy. They are not quite there yet but I expect them to top the Deeter regime best win total of 65 by at least 5 to 10 games. Defense at 2B and 3B along with Trumbo in the outfield is problematic enough to keep the Maui’s from reaching the play offs.
Outfield fielding lapses will plague Philadelphia. Having just one “Z” in the rotation and only two with control in the pen are too much to overcome to make a playoff run. Couple these factors with a lack of production from their catchers and non-existent pop from their third sackers will make for a long season.
Rochester on paper looks a little lack luster but on the field all they do is win as evident by their early season hold on first place. It is doubtful it will hold up but with a plethora of draft picks next year things bode well for the future.
Amsterdam with no bullpen to speak of is destined for last place. Next year with Schwarber, Puig, Greinke and Cole returning to form plus the emergence of Bregman and Urias, it should be enough to return them to their former place among the contenders.
Final Prediction
1-Brooklyn
2-Las Vegas
3-Sherwood
4-Maine
5-Philadelphia
6-Rochester
7-Amsterdam
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.