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2006 Season
October 4, 2006
The season has ended and the AL races went down to the wire with the
Yanks falling out after a dismal August and September (19-32). The Tigers snuck in after a terrible start
and the White Sox won the wildcard with the Yanks falling one game behind
both. The Rockies won their division by
only one game also. The Cubs and Twins
both clinched early and had the best records in both leagues with 100 and 103
wins. The Cubs had the second most worst
drop in wins though as they won 118 last year.
The top gainers from last year in wins:
Cleveland +19, Seattle, Houston +17, Dodgers +15 and Arizona +12. The worst were: Boston –22, Cubs, St. Louis –17, Colorado –14. All teams in the NL West except the Rockies
improved from last season. The play-off
matchups are: Arizona/Colorado,
Houston/Cubs, White Sox/Twins and Seattle/Detroit. Polanco won the Batting Title of A-Rod but Rodriquez led in runs
scored, hits, HR and was 2nd in RBIs. Pitching was dominated by Santana (Cubs) with 26 wins, 4th
in ERA at 2.93 (Carpenter 2.71 was leader).
Carlos Zambrano won 21 and Clemens and Martinez won 20. Wagner gave up 16 HRs in 66 IP. He only had 26 saves and blew a ton
more. Needless to say, A-Rod and
Santana won the MVP and Cy Young awards.
Another disappointing pitchers was Oswalt as he went 17-14, 3.95 with
289 hits in 257 ip. The Cubs and Twins
had the best pitching staffs with a 3.40 and 3.63 ERA respectively. Santana, Zambrano and Prior had BA against
of .196, .198 and .210 to lead in that department. Pedro Martinez had a run support of 7.23 on his way to 20 wins. The Rockies had the most powerful offense
with a .295 average and 278 HR. The
Cubs were next at .277. The Rockies
scored 990 runs, followed by the Mariners (892), D-backs (885) and White Sox
(841). The Twins were the best fielding
team-.989. Turnbow won the Rolaids
Fireman award, edging Nathan, Rivera and Timlin. Harlan was the manager of the year with two division winners and
the top two teams-recordwise. The
ALL-Star team was: I-Rod, Teixeira,
Roberts, A-Rod, Follins, M.Cabrera, A.Jones, Sheffield, Santan, Zambrano, Clems
and Turnbow. The Gold Glove winners
were: Carpenter, Varitek, Teixeira,
Roberts, Chaves, Everett, Jones, Suzuki and Edmonds. The Silver Bat selections:
I-Rod, Sexson, Kent, A-Rod, Tejada, Cabrera, Jones, Sheffield.
Sept
7, 2006
Now is the time to get a look at your prospects. KC dumped Sweeney and Derrick Lee to pick up future players-Jacobs and Gathright. Delmond Young is finally in the majors and is hitting .400 as of this morning. The Rockies are excited about Tulowitzki and their pitchers coming around next year (humidor help?). Who are these Sanchez guys (Pittsburgh SS and the no-hit guy on the Marlins)? Ryan Howard-53 HRs and not on steroids? Lidge with 30 saves and ERA of over 5! Must be a friend of Todd Jones. Speaking of the Tigers, when I was in Florida for spring training of course I had to see my beloved Tigers. The game we saw had a middle infield combination of Kelly (6’6) and Hooper (5’4). We laughed at how small this guy was and he made an error and probably struck out twice in 3 Abs. We wondered when he was going to graduate from HS. Well, Sunday he was called up by the Tigers from Toledo, so that shows how much I can judge talent. He’ll probably start in the WS at 2B for Polanco.
July
7, 2006
Mid-season. Division leaders-Yanks (2 games over .500), Twins, Cubs and Rockies. The NL won the All-star game, 6-0, having a no-hitter until the 7th (Almost unheard of in an All-Star Game). Always interesting to look at players available for the draft next year. The Dodgers are loaded so it looks like the GBA Dodgers will use their #1 to protect one player. Takashi Saito, Matt Kemp and Russ Martin are the candidates. Others who warrant a good look: Dan Uggla, Mike Napoli, Ronny Paulino, Miner, Ray, Broxton, Feliciano among the rookies and comebacks by Park, Oliver, Hendrickson, Mesa and Putz. Some last minute pickups in April have really panned out- Rios, and Red Sox trade of Soriano, Freddie Garcia and Luis Gonzalez(Col-if) to Angels for Iguchi, Papelbon, Blake and Haren has helped both teams.
Who is the best rookie pitcher in the AL at midseason- Liriano, Verlander or Paplebon? I think 3 other rookies deserve consideration: Kinsler and Uggla and Barfield in the NL. Look at the Yankees roster, they have 3 HOF pitchers-Clemens, Maddux and Glavine and has to be the oldest rotation ever. What other teams have future HOFs- Griffey, Bonds, A-Rod, The Big Unit, Pujols, Hoffman, Ramirez, Rivera, Ichiro, Jeter (?), I-Rod…
Players who are surprising at mid-season: Freddie Sanchez, Garciaparra, De Rosa, Rios, Matthews, Jacque Jones, Brandon Phillips, Arroyo, Park, Ethier, Chris Young. Disappoints: Teixeira, Sexson, Beltre, Francoeur, Gomes, Lane, Barmes, Files, Peralta, Wilkerson, Varitek, Crosby, Glaus, Peavy, Hudson, Duke, Pettitte, Garland and Beckett.
May
4, 2006
After
the first month of the season there are of course a lot of surprises. All the ownerless teams have a winning
record except Arizona. Cleveland had
the worst record in the GBA last year but are leading the AL East. The Cubs and Rockies both won over 110 games
last year but have started off slowly.
One big trade has already been made with Soriano going to the Angels
from the Bosox. Just like MLB, Sosa
and Bonds hasn’t hit a HR yet. For the
first time I can remember, both the Tigers and Rockies have winning records
thru April in the bigs. Pujols is a
freak! Maddox continues like Clemens.
March
31, 2006
The GBA has had quite a few owners changes since last season. We’ve had 4 new members with one quitting before the season begins. A lot of player movement too with 28 trades and an interesting set of drafts. Looking over top 100 prospect lists, our owners are right on with at least 90 of most of these lists already drafted or protected by our teams. It makes it hard to find those players for next year but I’m sure we’ll find them. For example Felix Hernandez was drafted last year before he ever pitched in AAA.
March
22, 2006
The Drafts are completed, rosters are close to being finalized as we
get ready for our 15th season.
New blood has brought trades, although a valued members has left the
league. After many replays it looks
like the Yankees, Twins, Cubs and Rockies are the strongest teams.
Personal stuff: Went to spring
training in Florida for a week with my buddy from junior high days. What a blast! Went to a game everyday, saw Tigers, Indians, Phillies,
Braves-twice, Devil Rays-twice, Pirates, Reds, Cards, BlueJays and Australia vs
Italy (I think). Didn’t see Ryan Howard
hit a HR though. Neat lady in front of
us one game, got her husband and herself a beer, every other inning-what a
woman.
December
27, 2005
We’ve added 2 new
owners to fill 3 teams. The draft will
start after the first of the year and already we have our first trade. After looking over the trades last year, you
can see how players like Soriano and Carlos Lee helped the Bosox get to the
World Series of the GBA.
2005 Season
December 14, 2005
The Rockies swept
the Red Sox in the World Series after winning a 7 game battle with the high
rolling Cubs. The NL Championship
Series included 2 grandslam walkoff homers by Larry Walker and Jason Bay
(Canucks!). The Red Sox also had a
great AL Championship Series with the Blue Jays.
AWARDS VOTING FOR 2005 Global Baseball Playoff Date: 10/30/2005
MVP AWARD CY YOUNG AWARD
I.Rodriguez(CON) 391 J.Santana(CHN) 138
T.Helton(CON) 366 P.Martinez(CON) 94
A.Rodriguez(CON) 205 A.Otsuka(TOA) 36
C.Lee(BOA) 136 S.Takatsu(BOA) 14
L.Berkman(CHN) 99 O.Perez(CON) 5
ALL-STAR SELECTIONS BY
POSITION
C I.Rodriguez(CON) 241,238 J.Varitek(CHN) 47,214
1B T.Helton(CON)
199,601 P.Feliz(CIN)
37,908
2B L.Castillo(CON)
89,427 A.Soriano(BOA) 74,484
3B A.Rodriguez(CON)
169,293 A.Ramirez(CHN)
79,506
SS K.Greene(CON)
133,593 C.Izturis(BOA)
55,398
LF C.Lee(BOA) 176,132 A.Dunn(CON) 129,437
CF J.Pierre(BOA)
90,918 M.Kotsay(TOA)
74,282
RF L.Berkman(CHN)
161,659 J.Drew(BOA)
108,896
Pi J.Santana(CHN)
231,589 P.Martinez(CON)
137,256
A.Otsuka(TOA) 86,227 S.Takatsu(BOA) 79,865
O.Perez(CON) 60,715 C.Cordero(CON) 48,975
R.Johnson(CHN) 45,343 J.Rincon(CHN) 38,141
M.Buehrle(BOA) 33,956 T.Glavine(NYA) 29,102
B.Wagner(CON) 26,742 J.Marquis(CIN) 26,158
GOLD GLOVE SELECTIONS BY
POSITION
WINNER RUNNER UP
P P.Martinez(CON) J.Frasor(MNA)
C I.Rodriguez(CON) J.Varitek(CHN)
1B T.Helton(CON) M.Teixeira(MNA)
2B L.Castillo(CON) B.Roberts(ATN)
3B H.Blalock(BOA) A.Beltre(TOA)
SS C.Izturis(BOA) C.Guzman(MNA)
OF I.Suzuki(CHN) G.Jenkins(CIN)
OF A.Jones(NYA) C.Beltran(MNA)
OF R.Hidalgo(ATN) M.Bradley(ATN)
SILVER SLUGGER SELECTIONS
BY POSITION
WINNER RUNNER UP
C I.Rodriguez(CON) J.Varitek(CHN)
1B T.Helton(CON) P.Feliz(CIN)
2B A.Soriano(BOA) R.Belliard(CHN)
3B A.Rodriguez(CON) A.Ramirez(CHN)
SS K.Greene(CON) C.Izturis(BOA)
LF C.Lee(BOA) A.Dunn(CON)
CF M.Kotsay(TOA) J.Pierre(BOA)
RF L.Berkman(CHN) J.Drew(BOA)
ROLAIDS FIREMAN RELIEF
AWARD
S.Takatsu(BOA) 11
A.Otsuka(TOA) 7
E.Gagne(CON) 7
J.Nathan(CHN) 5
C.Cordero(CON) 4
October 4,
2005
The Chicago Cubs
fell 8 short of tying the record for most wins (Cincinnati-1999). Two ownerless teams will make the
play-offs-Cincinnati and Oakland. The
most improved team was the Yanks with 26 more wins than last year. The Indians had the largest decline with 33
less wins. The Cubs (+19), Cardinals
(+17) and A’s (+14) had most gain in wins, the Phillies with -24 and the Braves
had -22 wins. Only 3 teams in the NL
had winning record. Cleveland will get
the first pick in the draft. The draft
is loaded with veterans including Tony Clark, Mark Ellis, Scott Podsednik, Ryan
Dempster, Brian Fuentes, and Aaron Heilman, along with youngsters like Derrick
Turnbow, Hector Carrasco, Zack Duke, Clay Hensley, Tadahito Iguchi, Jonny
Gomes, Robinson Cano and Ryan Church.
Individual
highlights include 62 HRs by Pujols, 7 KOs by Belliard, 4 HRs in a game by
Phelps and Griffey, 11 RBI by Griffey in 7 Abs, NO-hitters by Randy Johnson and
Luke Hudson, 17 KOs by the Rocket,28 runs scored by the Rockies, 10 Abs by
Andrew Jones and 6 hits by Furcal.
Barry Bonds only had 26 INT but still lead the league and had 180 total
walks. Crawford had 92 SBs and 25
triples, Bonds lead in all the hitting categories like SLG, OBP, Runs created,
total average. Five pitchers won 20
games or more. (Randy Johnson-25, Radke and Schilling-24, Sheets and
L.Hernandez-20. The Unit won the ERA
title and Foulke was the save leader.
Schmidt had the most Ks. The Big
Unit won the MVP and Cy Young.
AWARDS VOTING FOR 2005
Global Baseball
Date: 10/2/2005
MVP AWARD CY YOUNG AWARD
R.Johnson(CHN) 424 R.Johnson(CHN) 136
T.Helton(CON) 341 C.Schilling(OAA) 84
A.Dunn(CON) 203 J.Santana(CHN) 44
I.Rodriguez(CON) 132 K.Foulke(TOA) 16
A.Rodriguez(CON) 98 J.Schmidt(MNA) 8
ALL-STAR SELECTIONS BY
POSITION
C I.Rodriguez(CON) 2,967,631 J.Posada(NYA) 1,311,314
1B A.Pujols(SLN)
4,603,405 T.Helton(CON)
3,186,108
2B J.Kent(TOA)
2,100,178 B.Boone(ANA)
1,952,912
3B A.Beltre(TOA)
3,757,153 A.Rodriguez(CON)
2,916,110
SS M.Tejada(CHN)
2,333,304 D.Jeter(NYA)
2,007,567
LF B.Bonds(ATN)
3,784,541 A.Dunn(CON)
3,121,377
CF C.Beltran(MNA)
2,839,447 S.Finley(HON)
2,051,807
RF V.Guerrero(NYA)
3,176,898 G.Sheffield(CIN)
2,681,315
Pi R.Johnson(CHN)
4,419,269 C.Schilling(OAA)
2,909,739
K.Foulke(TOA) 2,333,119 B.Sheets(CIN) 2,270,462
J.Santana(CHN) 2,167,575 J.Schmidt(MNA) 2,092,217
B.Radke(MNA) 1,935,337 C.Zambrano(CHN) 1,894,525
T.Lilly(DEA) 1,839,710 L.Hernandez(ATN) 1,797,431
O.Perez(CON) 1,789,400 A.Benitez(DEA) 1,718,918
GOLD GLOVE SELECTIONS BY
POSITION
WINNER RUNNER UP
P O.Perez(FLN) F.Garcia(BOA)
C J.Posada(NYA) V.Martinez(DEA)
1B B.Wilkerson(BAA) D.Lee(OAA)
2B L.Castillo(CON) B.Boone(ANA)
3B A.Rodriguez(CON) E.Chavez(AZA)
SS C.Izturis(BOA) K.Greene(CON)
OF S.Finley(HON) C.Beltran(MNA)
OF J.Edmonds(DEA) C.Crawford(NYN)
OF A.Jones(NYA) V.Wells(CON)
SILVER SLUGGER SELECTIONS
BY POSITION
WINNER RUNNER UP
C I.Rodriguez(CON) J.Posada(NYA)
1B A.Pujols(SLN) D.Ortiz(CLA)
2B J.Kent(TOA) B.Boone(ANA)
3B A.Beltre(TOA) A.Rodriguez(CON)
SS M.Tejada(CHN) D.Jeter(NYA)
LF B.Bonds(ATN) A.Dunn(CON)
CF C.Beltran(MNA) S.Finley(HON)
RF V.Guerrero(NYA) G.Sheffield(CIN)
ROLAIDS FIREMAN RELIEF
AWARD
K.Foulke(TOA) 146
J.Nathan(CHN) 106
A.Benitez(DEA) 105
E.Gagne(CON) 104
M.Rivera(MNA) 80
July
7, 2005
Mid-season is upon
us. The Rockies and Cubs are both in the
same division and have winning pct over .700.
The division leaders are:
Toronto, Minnesota, Cincinnati and Colorado. The Cubs, SF and Atlanta (tied) in NL and Oakland and Boston in
the AL. It is amazing that Scott
Podsednik is a free agent as he had to be cut after nobody was interested in
trading for him. Tony Clark has been
also amazing with 12 HRs in 156 Abs.
What about Frank Thomas with 7 HRs out of 11 hits (slg of .767)? Back to the GBA, the Reds and A’s are
ownerless and in the play-offs at mid-season.
Even Arizona has a +.500 record.
Cleveland and Houston will battle for the #1 draft choice. Even though the Indians have the worst
record, Polanco (.359) and Ortiz (.323, 23 HRs) are in the top hitters
list. Bonds has only 12 INT as they are
pitching to him, although he does have 95 walks.. He only has 23 HRs, a .340 Ba and not even in the top RBI
leaders. He does lead the league in
SLG, OBP, Total Avg and Runs created/27 out.
He has been put out on the trading block but probably won’t be traded
unless the Braves fall out of the play-off picture. We might not have a 20 game winner this year as Schilling is the
leader with 12. Juan Cruz has a pertect
winning %. The Big Unit leads in ERA a
1.86 and another amazing feat is that Foulker has 19 of 19 saves. Garland has given up 26 HRs but wait until
next year… Roy Halladay has been given
8.5 runs per game support.so he should be 11-2. The Cubs have the best road record (games they play) and the
Indians have the worst. The Rockies
have the best record in games they don’t play and the Astros have the
worst. Here are the mid-season GBA
all-stars:
AWARDS VOTING FOR 2005 American League Date: 7/3/2005
MVP AWARD CY YOUNG AWARD
A.Beltre(TOA) 401 J.Schmidt(MNA) 128
M.Ramirez(MNA) 359 C.Schilling(OAA) 100
C.Beltran(MNA) 210 A.Benitez(DEA) 38
P.Konerko(AZA) 133 K.Foulke(TOA) 15
V.Guerrero(NYA) 94 M.Rivera(MNA) 7
ALL-STAR SELECTIONS BY POSITION
C
J.Posada(NYA) 629,255
J.Lopez(DEA) 475,833
1B P.Konerko(AZA) 1,474,213 D.Ortiz(CLA) 1,124,747
2B M.Loretta(OAA) 848,688 J.Kent(TOA) 827,742
3B A.Beltre(TOA) 2,191,016 M.Mora(OAA) 920,176
SS C.Guillen(AZA) 739,839 D.Jeter(NYA) 709,876
LF M.Ramirez(MNA) 1,459,556 E.Byrnes(OAA) 879,784
CF C.Beltran(MNA) 1,385,514 M.Kotsay(TOA) 865,930
RF V.Guerrero(NYA) 1,260,991 B.Abreu(ANA) 1,191,046
Pi J.Schmidt(MNA) 2,103,376 C.Schilling(OAA) 1,750,053
A.Benitez(DEA) 1,000,548
K.Foulke(TOA) 922,710
M.Rivera(MNA) 811,560
D.Bush(TOA) 786,695
B.Webb(AZA) 770,666 M.Morris(TOA) 691,338
R.Clemens(NYA) 638,279
J.Weaver(DEA) 634,870
F.Garcia(BOA) 628,077
B.Madritsch(OAA) 619,634
GOLD GLOVE SELECTIONS BY POSITION
WINNER RUNNER UP
P R.Clemens(NYA) F.Garcia(BOA)
C
J.Posada(NYA)
R.Hernandez(OAA)
1B D.Lee(OAA) P.Konerko(AZA)
2B B.Boone(ANA) M.Loretta(OAA)
3B E.Chavez(AZA) J.Randa(BAA)
SS C.Izturis(BOA) D.Jeter(NYA)
OF A.Jones(NYA) E.Byrnes(OAA)
OF C.Beltran(MNA) M.Kotsay(TOA)
OF J.Edmonds(DEA) J.Drew(BOA)
SILVER SLUGGER SELECTIONS BY POSITION
WINNER RUNNER UP
C
J.Posada(NYA)
J.Lopez(DEA)
1B P.Konerko(AZA) D.Ortiz(CLA)
2B J.Kent(TOA) M.Loretta(OAA)
3B A.Beltre(TOA) M.Mora(OAA)
SS C.Guillen(AZA) D.Jeter(NYA)
LF M.Ramirez(MNA) E.Byrnes(OAA)
CF C.Beltran(MNA) M.Kotsay(TOA)
RF S.Sosa(AZA) V.Guerrero(NYA)
ROLAIDS FIREMAN RELIEF AWARD
K.Foulke(TOA) 57
A.Benitez(DEA) 54
M.Rivera(MNA) 48
B.Looper(BAA) 40
D.Graves(OAA) 32
AWARDS VOTING FOR 2005 National League Date: 7/3/2005
MVP AWARD CY YOUNG AWARD
A.Pujols(SLN) [4]386 R.Johnson(CHN) [4]125
T.Helton(CON) [4]361 O.Perez(CON) [4]93
I.Rodriguez(CON) [4]210 J.Peavy(CON) [4]45
A.Dunn(CON) [4]139 C.Zambrano(CHN) [4]17
L.Berkman(CHN) [4]101 P.Martinez(CON) [4]8
ALL-STAR SELECTIONS BY POSITION
C
I.Rodriguez(CON) [4]1,156,585
J.Estrada(PHN) [4]430,825
1B A.Pujols(SLN) [4]2,191,016 T.Helton(CON) [4]1,232,408
2B R.Belliard(CHN) [4]744,063 L.Castillo(CON) [4]703,257
3B S.Rolen(PHN) [4]1,383,236 A.Rodriguez(CON) [4]1,068,001
SS M.Tejada(CHN) [4]1,053,438 K.Greene(CON) [4]987,622
LF B.Bonds(ATN) [4]1,397,448 A.Dunn(CON) [4]1,135,494
CF S.Finley(HON) [4]951,491 J.Damon(FLN) [4]843,780
RF L.Berkman(CHN) [4]1,135,740 M.Cabrera(CHN) [4]1,098,204
Pi R.Johnson(CHN) [4]2,103,376 O.Perez(CON) [4]1,399,717
J.Peavy(CON) [4]1,124,508
B.Sheets(CIN) [4]1,117,003
C.Zambrano(CHN) [4]1,115,934
L.Hernandez(ATN) [4]1,051,003
P.Martinez(CON) [4]1,029,600
J.Santana(CHN) [4]1,017,500
R.Halladay(CON) [4]1,016,496
C.Carpenter(FLN) [4]896,798
C.Lidle(SFN)
[4]885,700 J.Cruz(CON)
[4]767,978
GOLD GLOVE SELECTIONS BY POSITION
WINNER RUNNER UP
P
O.Perez(FLN)
P.Wilson(SFN)
C
J.Estrada(PHN)
I.Rodriguez(CON)
1B T.Helton(CON) C.Pena(FLN)
2B L.Castillo(CON) R.Belliard(CHN)
3B A.Rodriguez(CON) S.Rolen(PHN)
SS K.Greene(CON) O.Vizquel(CIN)
OF V.Wells(CON) I.Suzuki(CHN)
OF S.Finley(HON) M.Bradley(ATN)
OF C.Crawford(NYN) R.Hidalgo(ATN)
SILVER SLUGGER SELECTIONS BY POSITION
WINNER RUNNER UP
C
I.Rodriguez(CON) J.Buck(HON)
1B A.Pujols(SLN) T.Helton(CON)
2B R.Belliard(CHN) R.Durham(SFN)
3B S.Rolen(PHN) C.Jones(CIN)
SS M.Tejada(CHN) K.Greene(CON)
LF A.Dunn(CON) B.Bonds(ATN)
CF S.Finley(HON) V.Wells(CON)
RF M.Cabrera(CHN) L.Berkman(CHN)
ROLAIDS FIREMAN RELIEF AWARD
E.Gagne(CON) [4]48
J.Nathan(CHN) [4]43
D.Kolb(CIN) [4]37
J.Isringhause(SLN) [4]37
B.Lidge(HON) [4]30
June 7,
2005
The GBA season is off
to a great start (I say that every year, don’t I?). Anyway the surprise teams are mostly the ownerless teams as
Cincinnati is leading their division by 3.5 games and Arizona and Oakland are 2nd
and 3rd in the AL West.
Detroit is probably the most disappointing teams as they lost 20 of
Here is the first
round of the MLB draft as well as a history of top draft choices.
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1. Diamondbacks: Justin
Upton, ss, Great Bridge HS, Chesapeake, Va. Upton demonstrates excellent patience at the
plate and a quick stroke. His well-defined and muscular upper body give a
hint to his plus power potential, which he accompanies with equal amounts of
speed. His 6.23-second time in the 60-yard dash at a Perfect Game showcase
last year rates as the quickest in the scouting service's history. Upton
moves well defensively and shows clean actions at shortstop, but again
follows in his brother's footsteps because he has trouble harnessing the plus
arm strength that has allowed him to hit |
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2. Royals: Alex
Gordon, 3b, U. of Nebraska Gordon should hit for power and average
because he has a sweet lefthanded swing, strength, exceptional strike-zone
discipline and the ability to make adjustments. He uses the entire field and
can drive the ball where it's pitched after getting pull-conscious as a
sophomore. When Gordon first arrived at Nebraska, some thought he might have
to move to first base or an outfield corner. But he has worked hard on his
defense, where his strong arm, instincts and quickness are assets. |
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3. Mariners: Jeff
Clement, c, U. of Southern California Clement generates light-tower power with a
short, compact lefthanded swing. He stays inside the ball well and gets
excellent backspin. As a major league hitter, he projects to hit .270-.280
with 30-35 home runs. Clement has outstanding makeup and has worked hard to
shore up his weaknesses. He has shown his biggest improvement behind the
plate. His set-up, mechanics, blocking and arm quickness are all much
improved. He still has only a 40-50 arm on the standard 20-80 scouting scale,
but threw out almost 50 percent of basestealers this year. |
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4. Nationals: Ryan
Zimmerman, 3b, U. of Virginia Niemann hasn't been at 100 percent this
season. He had arthroscopic surgery last fall to clean out inflamed tissue in
his elbow. His fastball registers 92- |
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5. Brewers: Ryan
Braun, 3b, U. of Miami Braun has a hitch in his swing and a high,
unconventional finish, but his hands are quick enough to make it work, and he’s
athletic enough to repeat his stroke and drive pitches to all parts of the
field. His future position will be the main source of concern for pro teams.
He came to college as a shortstop and now plays third, but he has struggled
with errors at both spots. Some scouts doubt his infield actions and footwork
and say he'll have to move to an outfield corner, where his plus arm and
speed could allow him to be an above-average defender in time. |
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6. Blue Jays:
Ricky Romero, lhp, Cal State Fullerton Romero has three solid, major league-ready
pitches that he can throw for strikes almost at will, including a fastball
that sits at 90- |
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7. Rockies: Troy
Tulowitzki, ss, Long Beach State U. Tulowitzki compares favorably to Oakland's
Bobby Crosby, his predecessor as shortstop at Long Beach State. They're about
the same size and have similar speed and bat speed at the same stage, but
scouts say Tulowitzki is a better athlete and should be a better player. He
has more arm strength and range, and more power to all parts of the park,
while Crosby was more automatic on routine plays and had more pull power.
Tulowitzki has also won over scouts with his approach to the game. He plays
with exceptional intensity and an unrivaled passion for the game. |
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8. Devil Rays:
Wade Townsend, rhp, Dripping Springs, Texas Townsend didn't sign as the eighth overall pick
last year, deciding to return to Rice to complete his degree after
negotiations with the Orioles broke down. Townsend spent April and May
working out for clubs, and for the most part showed the same stuff he had in
2004. He wasn't in game shape, so he didn't maintain his velocity past three
simulated innings, but he pitched at 90- |
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9. Mets: Mike
Pelfrey, rhp, Wichita State U. Pelfrey has blown away hitters consistently
with a 92- |
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10. Tigers:
Cameron Maybin, of, T.C. Roberson HS, Arden, N.C. Maybin has a rare combination of premium
athletic ability, bloodlines and baseball savvy. He has broad shoulders and long
limbs and fingers, and physically evokes comparisons on the low end to
Preston Wilson and on the high end to Vladimir Guerrero. He should be a
premium defender in center field with experience, with long, graceful strides
gobbling up turf and an average arm. Some scouts think his bat might take
time to develop once he starts seeing good breaking balls consistently. His
makeup—including good work habits, maturity and love for the game--endears
him to scouts. |
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11. Pirates:
Andrew McCutchen, of, Fort Meade (Fla.) HS McCutchen’s game isn’t all about tools,
though his tools are plus across the board. That starts with the most
important tool: the bat. McCutchen has quick hands and a compact swing,
producing surprising raw power for his size and giving him the bat speed to
lash line drives to all fields. His athletic ability, speed and frame earn
comparisons to Mets prospect Lastings Milledge, but he’s more polished at the
plate, earning 60 and 70 grades from scouts (on the 20-80 scouting scale)
with 50 raw power. |
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12. Reds: Jay
Bruce, of, West Brook HS, Beaumont, Texas Bruce has been compared by scouts to Larry
Walker. Though he has average to plus tools across the board and enough
athleticism to play center field, Bruce profiles better in right field. His
swing can get a little long at times, but Bruce is a polished high school
hitter. He centers the ball well and already understands the importance of
using the entire field. He also has the strength and skill to eventually hit
30-plus homers annually in the majors. His average speed is probably his
worst tool, but he plays quicker than his stopwatch readings on the bases and
in the outfield. He has more than enough arm to handle the move to right
field in pro ball. |
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13. Orioles:
Brandon Snyder, c, Westfield HS, Centreville, Va. Snyder is tough mentally, jumping back and
forth between shortstop and catcher, though he moved behind the plate for
good late in his senior season. He plays the game hard with a dirt-rat
mentality in spite of his premium prospect status. Snyder's mature approach,
line-drive swing and ability to pull the ball with authority remind scouts of
Justin Upton at the plate. His athleticism and arm strength would play at
shortstop or third base, and some teams would start him out as an infielder
to make sure his offensive development doesn't get stunted. |
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14. Indians:
Trevor Crowe, of, U. of Arizona Crowe is an ideal leadoff man with a .500
on-base percentage, above-average speed and the kind of fiery personality
that can light a fire under a team. He can be undisciplined at times at the
plate and lacks raw power, but has juice in his bat and can hit almost
anything thrown at him. A switch-hitter, he tends to be a slightly better
hitter from the left side while displaying more power from the right. Crowe
arrived at Arizona as a second baseman and may end up back there, though he
has spent most of his college career in left field. |
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15. White Sox:
Lance Broadway, rhp, Texas Christian Broadway succeeds more with polish than
overwhelming stuff. His fastball is just average, but he has a plus curveball
that he can locate in and out of the strike zone. His delivery and command
are solid, and his makeup is a huge asset. He's developing a changeup and is
gaining more confidence in the pitch. He has a strong, lean frame and there
may be a little more velocity in him. |
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16. Marlins: Chris
Volstad, rhp, Palm Beach Gardens (Fla.) HS Volstad is a long, lanky pitcher with good
stuff now and plenty of projection for down the road. He pitches consistently
in the 88-92 range, but repeats his delivery well enough that scouts see him
sitting at 94 regularly as he gains strength and experience. He throws
strikes with the fastball and has done so right out of the gate this spring.
He uses his height well to get a good downward angle to the plate, giving his
fastball late life. His secondary pitches are solid for a prep pitcher,
particularly his changeup. Volstad’s breaking ball is his third pitch, though
it’s serviceable, and scouts consider his makeup a plus. |
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17. Yankees: C.J. Henry,
ss, Putnam City HS, Oklahoma City Henry has one of the highest ceilings in the
draft. He's an exceptional athlete with a tantalizing combination of power
and speed. One crosschecker calls him a potential Gary Sheffield and also
compares him to Vernon Wells. Henry's swing isn't as pure as Wells' and it
will take him time to adjust to professional pitching. Henry also will have
to polish his defensive game. He plays shortstop now but may not have quite
enough arm to play there in the majors. That's not a concern, however,
because Henry's tools would play well either in center field or at third
base. |
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18. Padres: Cesar
Carrillo, rhp, U. of Miami Carrillo throws his fastball anywhere from
90- |
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19. Rangers: John
Mayberry, 1b, Stanford At 6-foot-5 and |
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20. Cubs: Mark
Pawelek, lhp, Springville (Utah) HS Pawelek topped out at 94- |
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21. Athletics:
Cliff Pennington, ss, Texas A&M Pennington's best attribute is his makeup.
Scouts have loved Pennington's grit and energy since he was in high school,
and he won the Cape Cod League's 10th player award for his spirited play last
summer. Pennington is more than just a gamer, however, offering tools across
the board. He can bat at the top of a lineup, making consistent contact and
providing gap power from both sides of the plate. He doesn't have blazing
speed, but he runs well and his instincts make him a threat on the bases.
Pennington's savvy also enhances his range at shortstop, where he can make
both the routine and acrobatic plays. He has an above-average arm, a quick
release and the ability to make throws from any angle. |
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22. Marlins: Aaron
Thompson, lhp, Second Baptist HS, Houston Thompson is the most polished high school
pitcher in the draft, and he's lefthanded to boot. Thompson has an 88- |
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23. Red Sox:
Jacoby Ellsbury, of, Oregon State U. Ellsbury has few holes in his game and is
capable of beating teams in a lot of ways. He has excellent makeup and
instincts. His best tool is his speed, and it’s evident both on the bases and
in center field, where he catches everything hit his way. He has been clocked
in 6.55 seconds over |
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24. Astros: Brian
Bogusevic, lhp, Tulane U. Though more teams prefer him as a
three-pitch lefthander, he also has five-tool potential as a right fielder.
On the mound, Bogusevic shows an 89- |
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25. Twins: Matt
Garza, rhp, Fresno State Garza had only a four-seam fastball and a
slow, lazy curveball when he enrolled at Fresno State, but he now has plus
stuff with a four-pitch repertoire. His fastball ranges from 90- |
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26. Red Sox: Craig
Hansen, rhp, St. John's U. Hansen pounds the strike zone with a fastball
that has been clocked consistently in the mid-90s and tops out at |
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27. Braves: Joey
Devine, rhp, North Carolina State U. Devine has dominated this season and is one
of the closest players to the majors in this year's draft. He has plenty of
stuff, starting with a mid-90s fastball that touches 97, and throws it from a
funky arm angle--not quite sidearm but lower than three-quarters. His frisbee
slider, thrown in the mid-80s, is death to righthanded hitters, whom he
dominates. Scouts like Devine’s competitiveness, makeup and athletic ability,
which allows him to repeat his unorthodox delivery. He may need a changeup or
split-finger pitch, though, to better attack lefthanded hitters in pro ball. |
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28. Cardinals:
Colby Rasmus, of, Russell County HS, Phenix City, Ala. Rasmus’ tools grade out average or above
across the board. He covers |
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29. Marlins: Jacob
Marceaux, rhp, McNeese State Marceaux's fastball has taken a step forward
this spring, as he has pitched at 93- |
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30. Cardinals:
Tyler Greene, ss, Georgia Tech Green is a 60 runner (some say 70 under way)
on the 20-80 scouting scale, with good instincts on the basepaths and
elsewhere. A plus arm and good range make him at least an averages defender at
short. The question is offense. His hands are just OK both at the plate and
in the field. Greene’s swing has evolved to a metal-bat, inside-out style
that doesn't incorporate his hands, short-circuiting his power and leaving
him with several holes. His aptitude with wood, however, reminds scouts of
Cubs prospect Matt Murton, who also hit better in summers on the Cape than
with Georgia Tech. |
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2004 Season
October 25,
2004
The Twins lost their
first game of the play-offs and then lost the Series to the Rockies. The Twins had swept their other two series
before the finals. Detroit lost their
last 12 games of the season, getting swept by the Blue Jays in 2 4-game series
before squeaking into the play-offs against Minnesota. In the Toronto-KC series, both teams won
their home games but Toronto had the extra game. In the NL, Atlanta won a dramatic series over the Cubs with a
walk-off homer by Mackowiak. The
Rockies won the series against the Phillies, 4-1. Next year looks like the Cubs year as Prior and Wood are probably
only the 4th and 5th starters in their deep pitching
staff of The Big Unit, Santana, Zambrano with Nathan, Guardado and Rincon in
the pen, not to mention their lineup of Ichiro, Berkman, Tejada, Ramirez among
others.
The draft starts in
a couple of weeks so the off season looks interesting.
October 5,
2004
The 13th
regular season has come to an end with the Twins, Braves, Rockies and either
the Tigers or Blue Jays winning their divisions. The wildcards are the Royals, Phillies and Cubs. A-Rod won the HR and RBI titles with 61 and
191 (new league record). The batting
champ was Sheffield at .357. In
pitching, there were 5-20 game winners-Halladay (25), Ortiz (22), Schmidt and
Schilling (21) and Mussina (20).
Schmidt won the ERA title over Schilling 1.80-1.92.
Florida will have the
first pick in the draft. The Braves
(+28) and Royals (+26) had the largest win improvement from last year. The Marlins (-37), Yanks (-29) and Giants
(-22) had the largest drop.
September 2,
2004
This is probably the
closest races ever this late in the season.
Detroit has a 2.5 game lead over the Blue Jays but Minnesota has a 13.5
game lead and a magic number of 7. The
AL Wildcard is a dogfight between Cleveland, KC and Anaheim with Baltimore only
5.5 games out. In the NL, Atlanta has a
3 game lead over Philadelphia and the Rockies have a 6.5 game lead over the
Cubs. All four of these teams look to
advance to the postseason. Florida looks
like they have rapped up the top draft choice in the fall.
Sheffield, A-Rod,
Helton, Pujols, Brett Boone and Edmonds dominate the individual batting stats
and Schilling, Mussina, Halladay, Russ Ortiz, Smoltz, Schmidt and Rivera the
pitching. Besides the 2 no-hitters
(Wakerfiled and Prior), there have been 7 one-hitters (Ishii, Clement,
Gonzalez, Colon, Penny, Redman, Sheets).
Howard (Toa) allowed 8 HRs in 9 innings against the Angels (do you think
the CM left him in too long?).
Looking to 2005, the
Cubs look to be head and shoulders above the rest of the league as they have
the best pitching and hitting (based on my formula). Other top teams include:
Colorado, Minnesota, Toronto and Detroit. Maybe a team will make a big trade to mortgage their future or
get lucky in the draft to put them in this class.
August 18, 2004
These might be early draft picks next fall.
|
castilla,vinny |
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lawton,matt |
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hatteberg,scott |
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biggio,craig |
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bautista,danny |
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bell,david |
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lugo,julio |
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freel,ryan |
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holliday,matt |
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womack,tony |
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infante,omar |
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pena,wily_mo |
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miles,aaron |
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newhan,david |
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dellucci,david |
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cora,alex |
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quinlan,robb |
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scutaro,marco |
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gomez,chris |
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valent,eric |
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green,nick |
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thomas,charles |
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grabowski,jason |
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jacobsen,bucky |
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graves,danny |
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mesa,jose |
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drese,ryan |
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wright,jaret |
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frasor,jason |
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takatsu,shingo |
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cabrera,daniel |
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otsuka,akinori |
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silva,carlos |
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lima,jose |
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torres,salomon |
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robertson,nate |
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white,rick |
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wilson,paul |
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hermanson,dusti |
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alfonseca,anton |
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carrara,giovann |
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cerda,jaime |
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miller,trever |
August 7, 2004
Three of the four divisions are separated by 2 or less games. Toronto and Detroit in the AL East, Philadelphia and Atlanta in the NL East and Colorado and Chicago in the NL West have been battling all year. Minnesota has a comfortable 11 game advantage in the AL West. Seven teams have better records than last year (Toronto, Cleveland, KC in the AL, Philadelphis, Atlanta, Colorado and Chicago in the NL). Sheffield and A-Rod are neck and neck in the batting and HR races, although Helton leads the league. A-Rod has 136 RBIs to lead by a landslide. Barry Bonds is pitched to in the GBA (only 11 IW). Gagne has pitched 33 innings without giving up a run and batters are hitting .105 against him. He almost gave up a run last night as he had a runner on 3rd with 1 out but got out unscored upon.
The All-Star team:
C: J.Lopez-Det, J.Posada-NYA
1B: Helton-Col, Thome-KC
2B: Boone-Ana, Giles-Cin
3B: Rolen-Phil, Chavez-Az
SS: A-Rod-Col, Tejada-Cubs
LF: Pujols-St.L, L.Gonzalez-Phila
CF: Edmonds-Det, Wells-Col
RF: Sheffield-Cin, Huff-StL
P: Schmidt-Min, Webb-Az, Colon-Mets, Ortiz-Atl, Borowski-KC, Zambrano-Cubs
Power rankings
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2004 Minnesota |
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2004 Philadelphia |
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2004 Colorado |
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2004 Chicago (NL) |
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2004 Atlanta |
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2004 Toronto |
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2004 New York (NL) |
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2004 Detroit |
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2004 Cincinnati |
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2004 Baltimore |
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2004 Anaheim |
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2004 New York (AL ) |
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2004 San Francisco |
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2004 Cleveland |
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2004 Houston |
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2004 Arizona |
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2004 Kansas City |
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2004 Oakland |
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2004 Florida |
The Tigers look like they gave up too much future to try and overtake Toronto this season (which they haven’t done either). Hafner is on a terror and Alfonzo has been hitting pretty well (seeing more pitches, because they don’t want to pitch to Barry). Catalanotto has been hurt, joining Lee and Boone. Aaron Miles now looks like a steal for Uribe even though Juan has hit about 13 homers.
Notes from Colorado:
The ML Rockies (and I) can’t wait for Jeff Francis to be called up. He is only 15-
May 25,2004
Not too many surprises yet after one month of the GBA. The most interesting race looks like the NL West with the Rockies and Cubs battling it out for the best record in the league. Cleveland looks like the most improved team in the league. Javy Lopez looks like Babe Ruth with .424, 15, 35 stats. Pat Burrell looks like last year was a mistake. Young studs like Prior and Beckett are showing what all the hype was all about.
Some interesting trades made before and during the draft. Beltre was traded for Belliard and both were leading their league in hitting for a while in the majors this spring.
The Rockies had to dump Uribe and he is hitting about .350 with the CWS in the ML this spring, so the Indians got a steal in the GBA. Burnitz was traded for Nix. Both are having great seasons so far. The Giants decided to rebuild so they traded Sosa and Sexton and a lot of HRs. The Yankees have hung on to a few oldies and Clemens and Glavine have been two of the best pitchers in the NL in the early part of the season.
2003 Season
World Series highlights
The Detroit Tigers ended the 4
year reign of the Colorado Rockies with a stunning upset in game 7 of the GBA
World Series. The Tigers only got 3 hits (all home runs) in 11 innings,
with Pat Burrell’s homer in the top of the 11th, being the
winner. With the Tigers ahead 2-
October 16th
The Play-offs have started and the Tigers have won the AL play-offs and await the winner of the Rockies-Cubs series. The Tigers reached the World Series after winning two 7th games against the Twins and the Rangers. The Rangers beat the Red Sox 4 games to 1. In the NL, the Cubs took the Marlins in 7 and the Rockies disposed of the Giants in 5.
I predict a Cubs-Red Sox GBA World Series next year.
September 3, 2003
Even though the SF Giants are 31 games behind the Rockies in the NL West, they lead the wildcard chase. They hold a 3 game lead over the surprising Cincinnati Reds. The Reds are surprising because they were build from a pool of 4 teams at the beginning of the season. The players from 4 defunct teams (Oakland, Arizona, L.A. and Cincinnati) were put into a pool and 4 of our owners drafted these teams to be played automatically. Harlan drafted the Reds, Gary the Dodgers, Ken the A’s and Rick the D-backs. The A’s are also above .500 but because the AL has 3 teams in the West with a better W-L record, the A’s probably won’t make the play-offs.
The Yankees had a great August to make a push for the play-offs. They only trail the Red Sox by 6 games. Texas also has made the AL West a close race as the Twins slumped to fall 10 games back and are now in a race with Oakland and the Yankees for the wildcard. The Cubs, which added Tejeda, are pulling away in the NL Central. Florida and Philadelphia remain in a fight for the NL East.
The race for the #1 pick has gained some prospects as the Mets have joined the Indians for the worst record with prizes like Loaiza, Guillen, Podsednik out there.
Barry Bonds took over the batting lead as A-Rod dropped to 13 points off the pace, although he still has a big lead in HRs (59) and RBIs (150). Quite a few pitchers have a shot at 20 wins (Schilling 19, Mulder18, Jennings 17 and 8 with 16).
In a rare triple, the Rockies lead the league in batting average, ERA and fielding percentage. They have to go 27-5 though in September to tie the Reds all-time W-L record.
August 7th
The AL West continues to be a dogfight with the Tigers leading the Twins by 2 games and the Rangers by 4.5. Philadelphia and Florida are tied in the NL East although only 2 games over .500. Boston has an 11 game lead over the Yanks and O’s. The Cubs lost a half game lead to the Reds who are only 4 back. The Rockies hold a 23.5 game lead in the West.
Again Mike B was active in the trading market this month by making three trades, one giving up Tejeda to the Cubs.
A-Rod continues on pace for the triple crown (a first in the 11 year history of the GBA, I think).
There are some weird selections for the All-Star team, David Bell is the top 3b (according to SOM). Damon is the CF and Julio (Florida) and Acevedo (Tex) lead in the Rolaids Fireman Relief Award.
The Indians are no longer on pace to erase the record for most loses. Colorado can beat the wins record if it continues to win at a .755 clip. The Rockies still lead the league in both batting average and ERA. Cleveland has the worst pitching staff this season (6.08 era) but will have one of the best next year.
The Cubs look to have the best pitching staff next season as it has the best ERA and WHIP, Cleveland is 2nd. Boston is the offensive jugunot next season and is 3rd in pitching so watch out for a Cubs-Red Sox World Series next year (won’t that be ironic?).
Who will be the first pick of the draft next year? Loisza or Guillen? Both have been journeymen in previous GBA seasons but now look hot.
Speaking of hot, is anybody hotter than Dontrell Willis? How can anyone have an ERA under 1.00 (Smoltz and Donnelly)?
July 7th
Two teams going in the opposite directions made a major trade this weekend. The Blue Jays sent A.J. Burkett and Hinske to Florida for Dontrell Willis and Joel Pineiro. Mike B, who hardly ever keeps his draft choices, now has added futures like Willis, Biddle, Overbay, Blalock and Hudson to his team. Florida wants to keep it’s lead in the NL East to make the play-offs.
Just noticed in latest USA notes/stats that three guys who were drafted about 4-5 years ago and got big bonus after they were declared free agents, haven’t done much, remember Travis Lee, John Patterson and Bobby Sealy?
July 2nd
The Tigers/Twins/Rangers are all within a half game of each
other starting the second half of the season. The Marlins lead the
Phillies by 1.5 games in a division where they are only 3 games over
.500. The Red Sox hold an 8.5 lead in the AL East and the Cubs lead by
A-Rod is leading the triple crown race with a .387 BA, 41 HRs and 102 RBIs. Bonds is second in each category at .367, 37, 82.
The All-Star team at mid-season:
C-Piazza
1b-Palmeiro
2b-Kent
3b-Chavez
ss- A-Rod
lf-Bonds
cf-Cameron
rf-Walker
P- Pedro, Schilling, Mulder, Nen, Haladay, Batista
MVP-Alex Rodriquez Cy Young-Pedro Martinez
Although the Rockies have the best record this season, next year outlook isn’t as good. The pitching staff, although anchored by studs, Pedro, Halladay, Gagne and Wagner, hasn’t got the production from the younger prospects-Beckett, Peavy, Oliver Perez and Jennings. The C’s, Cleveland, Cubs and Cincinnati should be the most improved teams next year, based on mid-season 2003 stats.
HISTORY- Three teams reach 1000 wins
The Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox all reached 1000 wins during the first 2 months of the 12th year of the GBA. The Rockies were the first team to achieve this feat on April 9 by defeating the Diamondbacks 4-3. The Red Sox were next to 1000 on May 18th, hammering the O’s 12-3. Tigers won their 1000th on May 30, beating Houston 9-4. Other teams on pace to 1000 wins this seasons are Houston (13), Cubs (32) and Phillies (52).
The Cincinnati Reds were on pace to a 1000 wins also but the
team was disbanded two years ago and resurfaced this season. The Reds
hold the record for most wins in a season (
2004
Looking to next season (already?), a big surprise is that Cleveland (Nomo, Kevin Brown, Washburn, Sabathia), Cubs (Prior, Wood, Zambrano) and the Reds (Zito and Wolf) have the best pitching staffs and Red Sox (Nomar, Kent, Glaus, Bagwell, Hidalgo), Rockies (Helton, A-Rod), Cubs (Delgado, Suzuki, Berkman, Patterson, Alex Gonzalez, Baldelli) and Reds (Sheffield, Jenkins, Aaron Boone, Marcus Giles, Grissom) are the offensive leaders.
There are a few rookies that teams might use their #1 pick to protect include:
Eric Byrnes-Oakland
Morgan Ensberg-Houston
Jeff Davanon-Anaheim
Casey Blake-Cleveland
Alex Cintron-Arizona
Bo Hart-St. Louis
Bonds is 510/301 guy in the GBA. A lot has been written lately about Barry Bonds getting his 500th SB in the majors and being the first player to get that mark. Well in the GBA he has 510 HR and 301 SB in 11 years! Speaking of Bonds, did you know he went to Arizona State University (my favorite U, although I didn’t graduate from there). I went there when ASU had Rick Monday and then Reggie Jackson the next year. (I thought I was a basketball player and went to a small NAIA college in Tennessee after that). I moved back to Arizona after graduation and had season tickets to the Sun Devils football team until we moved to Colorado. Reggie even played DB a year. They also had a great track team that included Henry Carr (also a football player) among others. Anyway ASU has always been a force in the College World Series in Omaha and if you even get the chance to go to it, do so, it is a great time. I went for a weekend in 1998 and sat in LF. The first time Pat Burrell came up, I told the people around me what a great hitter he was (around .200 this season?) and he immediately made me a guru by hitting a blast over our heads and bleachers. I also had a chance to catch a grandslam HR by Lane (then of USC and now the Astros). He guy in front of me stood up to catch it and at the last moment, ducked. I didn’t have a glove and was kind of fooled by his movement, although I got my hands on it, I dropped it and it fell through to a kid under the bleachers. USC, ASU and Texas have been the big names at the CWS but it was great to see Rice and their old coach win it this year. It’s it amazing that two real academic intuitions like Stanford and Rice would be in the Championship?