FINGERS SEASON 16

Formal Congratulations to Pedro Alvarez for becoming the 3rd player inducted into the Hall of Fame. He's the first member of the MAPS dynasty to hit the Hall. He's also the first player to hit 600 home runs but certainly not the last...

Carlos Sanchez started the year with 589 career home runs. He currently sits at 594. I'm praying he hits 50 more this season.

INJURY NEWS - Four-time NL MVP Taylor Glynn goes on the 15-Day DL with a torn miniscus. Luckily for johncfremont the injury only seems to have effected Glynn's baserunning abilities and range. The hitting stroke will be okay.

Ottawa Rockets pitcher Mark Fiore had to get shoulder surgery and will be out 120+ HBD days. The young righthander had started his career off well. In 52 career starts he owns a 3.17 ERA and bater have hit a mere .235.

CYCLE - Vince Moriarty hit for the cycle against Jacksonville. The cycle continues the dream. Over the last season Moriarty has been an All-Star, postseason hero, champion and he can now add the cycle to his list of accomplishments.

SADLER - Murray Sadler is unquestionably the MVP of the first 10 games. The MuckLucks LF is hitting .432 with 21 runs batted in.  He has hit safely in all 10 games and had an 8 RBI day vs. Jacksonville.

Good Luck to everyone. Can the NL please win a World Series?

HOF '16 Look

SLAM DUNK

Hardball Dynasty's

Pedro Alvarez

Best hitter during the Fingers League's first decade. Currently the career leader in home runs and runs batted in. Hit over 60 home runs in a season five times including 77 in Season 2. Took home four MVP awards - two in each league. Won three WS rings for froidl's MAPS. Six-time all-star, four-time silver slugger, and one gold glove.

career - 2046 G / .295/.375/.590/.965 / 601 HR / 1652 RBI / 2211 H / 1388 R
playoffs - 81 G / .276/.345/.571/.916 /    27 HR /      59 RBI /     89 H /      52 R

THE REST
There's only one postion player eligible that has a reasonable case to get into the Hall. And I'm even stretching for it with him. Harry Hinch. He leads the rest of the eligble players in runs, home runs and runs batted in. Had eight straight season of 100+ runs, nine straight seasons of 40+ home runs and ten straight seasons of 100+ RBIs.

The knocks against him are: low career batting average, playoff regressions and peer comparison.

Hinch is a .263 lifetime hitter. That's 30 points lower than both Pedro Alvarez and Season 15 HOF inductee Nolan Wall. He did walk the third most times in league history but he also struck out the most times (struck out one more time than Alvarez did). Only hit .234 in 214 playoff at bats. AB per HR jumps from 12.8 in regular season to 21.4 in playoffs. He also had more strikeouts than hits during October.

1737 G / .263/.368/.541/.909 / 503 HR / 1335 RBI / 1697 H / 1187 R - HINCH
1729 G / .293/.378/.581/.959 / 475 HR / 1457 RBI / 1908 H / 1270 R - WALL
2046 G / .295/.375/.590/.965 / 601 HR / 1652 RBI / 2211 H / 1388 R - ALVAREZ

The first thing is Wall and Hinch played nearly the same amount of games. But even though Wall hit 28 less home runs than Hinch in that time, Wall's SLG is 40 points higher and OPS is 50 points higher. Wall also drove in more runs, scored more times and had more hits. You can clearly see that Alvarez and Wall are more comparable than Wall and Hinch.

PITCHERS
There's around five pitchers that will draw some HOF consideration. Though it's doubtful that any one of the five will receive enough votes to be inducted. Two are former starting pitchers and the three others closed ball games.

Former NL East rivals Steven Morgan and Dario Thomas are the most qualified starting pitcher candidates. But like any HOF starting pitcher candidate they will need to uphold to the Frank Chong test. Here's a look how well do these two stack up against the greatest pitcher in Fingers League's first decade.

385 GS / 182-104 / 3.78 ERA / 2616.0 IP / 1885 K / 639 BB / .266/.313/.409/ 1.28 WHIP - MORGAN
356 GS / 170-88   / 3.68 ERA / 2328.2 IP / 1639 K / 710 BB / .250/.311/.380/ 1.26 WHIP - THOMAS
397 GS / 189-108 / 3.17 ERA / 2913.0 IP / 2284 K / 697 BB / .238/.290/.361/ 1.15 WHIP - CHONG

Chong trumps both players in nearly every category. Neither stands toe-to-toe with Chonger. With 13 All-Star appearances between Morgan and Thomas it's easy to see that they were at one time great pitchers. But were they HOF-caliber?

CLOSERS
Who will be the Fingers League's first closer to make the HOF? Will it be one of the three former elite closers with over 248 career saves up for debate? David Walsh, Miguel Santana and Tino Kimura are those three closers. Here's how their numbers stack up:

727 G / 56-65 / 321 SV / 3.81 ERA / 818.2 IP / 566 K / 222 BB/ .251/.307/.383/ 1.25 WHIP - WALSH
765 G / 50-55 / 248 SV / 3.06 ERA / 892.1 IP / 698 K / 209 BB/ .215/.267/.318/ 1.03 WHIP - SANTANA
556 G / 40-37 / 276 SV / 3.63 ERA / 575.0 IP / 426 K / 209 BB/ .253/.320/.372/ 1.35 WHIP - KIMURA

Despite having the least amount of saves and personal accolades of the three Santana was clearly the most dominating pitcher. I would think any owner would want the guy with the .215 OAV and 1.03 WHIP to shut the door of our games. In five different seasons Santana had a WHIP below 1.00. The other two closers did it once combined.

The question for you is: Did any of them do enough for the HOF?

World Series Champs

Congratulations to drvmu1 and his El Paso Federales on winning the 15th Fingers World Series.

WORLD SERIES MVP:

Hardball Dynasty's

Walter Swindell

.375 - 9 for 24 - 6 runs - 4 HR - 10 RBI - 3 BB - 0 errors in 24 chances at 3B

World Series 15

El Paso Federales (101-61) vs. Fargo Red River Sandbags (100-62)

Game 1 @ Cash Field, Fargo

El Paso 8, Fargo 5

WP: Nick Gil (1-0)

LP: Marlon Purcell (0-1)

Save: Eli Martinez (1)

HR: El Paso - Vince Moriarty, Walter Swindell 2; Fargo - Mike Parnell, Thurman Ellenwood

Player of the Game: Walter Swindell - 2 for 5, 2 HR, 5 RBI

Game Note: Purcell was chased by his former teammates during a five-run 7th inning that broke a 3-3 tie.

Game 2 @ Cash Field, Fargo
Fargo 5, El Paso 4 - 12 innings
WP: Joe Lankford (1-0)
LP: Travis Kapler (0-1)
HR: El Paso - Walter Swindell (3), Pepe Sosa; Fargo - Thurman Ellenwood (2), Ken Roosevelt, Juan Alou
Player of the Game: Juan Alou - 1 for 6, HR, RBI - hit a walk-off HR with 2 outs in the bottom of the 12th.
Game Note: Fargo was down 4-0 in the 7th inning. Ellenwood and Roosevelt hit homers to make it 4-3. Then in the 8th inning El Paso starting pitcher Felipe Moreno threw a wild pitch with the bases loaded to allow Fargo to tie the game. *Fargo starting pitcher Yamid Santiago had his playoff streak of 25 1/3 scoreless innings pitched broken up in the 3rd inning with Swindell's three-run HR.

Game 3 @ Citibank Ballpark, El Paso
El Paso 10, Fargo 9 - 11 innings
WP: Howie Timmons (1-0)
LP: Tony Iwazaki (0-1)
HR: El Paso - Vince Moriarty (2), Chuck Moore, Alex Arroyo; Fargo - Bum Kent
Player of the Game: Walter Swindell - 2 for 6, RBI - drives in game winning run in 11th with RBI single
Game Note: El Paso came back from a 9-1 deficit. They scored six runs in the 7th, and Moriarty tied the game an inning later with a 2-run blast. After 3 games Moriarty is 7 for 16 with 7 runs scored, 5 RBI and 2 HR. Swindell is 5 for 16 with 3 runs, 9 RBI and 3 HR.

Game 4 @ Citibank Ballpark, El Paso
El Paso 8, Fargo 5 - 13 innings
WP: Travis Kapler(1-1)
LP: Davey Terrero (0-1)
HR: El Paso - Pepe Sosa 2 (3); Fargo - none
Player of the Game: Pepe Sosa - 2 for 5, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 2 SB - hit a walk-off 3-run HR in 13th inning.
Game Note: Third straight game to go into extra innings and end with a walk-off hit.  The bullpens combined to allow 0 runs in 16 2/3 innings before Sosa hit the game winner.

Game 5 @ Citibank Ballpark, El Paso
El Paso 5, Fargo 1
WP: Nick Gil (2-0)
LP: Yamid Santiago (0-1)
Save: Eli Martinez (2)
HR: El Paso - Walter Swindell (4), Alex Arroyo (2), Rafael Jose; Fargo - Benji Morrison
Player of the Game: Nick Gil - 8 2/3 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 6 K
Game Note: El Paso wins series 4 games to 1. The Federales hit 13 HR in the series.

ALL-STAR GAME and MORE

Charlotte, N.C., home of the Wyverns, hosted the Fingers League's 15th All-Star Game. The NL bested the AL 14-6 for their 4th straight All-Star game victory.

Fargo's Juan Alou hit a first inning grand slam off of Milwaukee's Boomer Charles to put the NL up 6-0.  Alou was named the game's MVP because of the slam. Charles only made two outs while allowing six base runners to score. He took the loss.

Colorado's Al Abreu was the winning pitcher. He allowed only two hits in his three scoreless innings of work. He easily performed the best of all the game's pitchers in what turned out to be a slugfest.

The two teams combined for 20 runs, 29 hits and seven home runs.

ALL-STAR GAME WEEKEND NOTES:
-- Seven players hit home runs. They were: San Juan's Gary Buckley, Jacksonville's Damon Washington, El Paso's Chuck Moore, K.C.'s Russ Bale, Atlanta's Buzz Stewart, Mexico City's Victor Lopez and Alou.
-- Russ Bale has hit a HR in each of the past two All-Star Games.
--  Chuck Moore won the HR Derby. He hit 37 HRs to beat San Juan's Santos Lopez, who hit 36.
-- The World Futures Team crushed the US Futures Team 8-1. Santa Fe's Dave Cannon got rocked. He gave up six runs in 1 1/3 innings but at least he didn't take the loss.

LAST QUARTER OF THE SEASON
We're coming down to the final 40 games of the season and here's a list of things to watch down the stretch:

Chuck Moore is having an incredible season. He is on pace for: 78 HR, 202 RBI and 231 hits. All of which would place him top 5 in those categories for single season records. There should be no question about Moore winning his 3rd AL MVP.

Jacksonville rookie pitcher Alton Pierce has a 1-19 record.  Seven more losses will put him in the top 5 for losses in a single season. It begs the question: With splits like his, why is this guy in the big leagues?/

It seems like every season one player chases the single season batting average record for 100+ games and then falls fast as the season closes. This season Julio Ramirez is that player to chase the record. Ramirez is hitting .380, which is .003 points higher than the league record. He's a .320 lifetime hitter so he has the tools to break it.

And lastly, I will go far out on a limb here and say an American League team will win the World Series again. Six of the seven major league teams playing .600+ ball are in the AL. But at least the NL owns the All-Star Game

#1 Draft Picks

How have the #1 Overall Draft Picks done in the Fingers League?

It is easy to see that position players drafted first overall have outperformed their pitching counterparts. Despite that fact there hasn't been a position player drafted #1 since Season 7.

Below is a look at how #1 Draft Picks have done in the Majors.

PITCHERS
Eight pitchers have been the first overall draft pick. Six of those have played in the Major Leagues. They have pitched in a combined 593 games with a record of 174-189. Only one has made an All-Star appearance. The jury is still out on many of these players because only three have pitched more than 650 innings and the other three have thrown under 115 innings each.

The Best (So far): Brad Tebeau - Season 8 #1 Pick - Tebeau is the lone All-Star of the pitchers. He owns a 47-29 record in 112 starts.

Will Become the Best: Leon Padgett - Season 12 #1 Pick - Padgett was probably better than most major league starters after 1.5 pro seasons. He's in the big leagues now at age 22. Has some serious splits and two nasty pitches. Those ratings should only get higher too.

POSITION PLAYERS
Five of the six position players chosen first signed with their teams. Three of the five will be Hall of Famers. Combined they have brought home some serious accolades: 4 MVP Awards, 18 All-Star appearances, 11 Silver Sluggers, 3 Gold Gloves and one Rookie of the Year.

Hall of Famers: Clarence Black, Santos Lopez, Chuck Moore - Seasons 2, 5, 6 #1 Picks

Black is approaching 500 HRs and an automatic HoF bid. He is also closing in on 2,000 career hits. Quite possibly will finish in the top three all-time in career games played, hits, home runs, RBIs, runs scored and walks.

Lopez is an MVP Award away from owning every piece of hardware that a position player can win. He has 3 WS rings, 6 All-Star appearances, 4 Silver Sluggers, 1 Gold Glove and Rookie of the Year. He's only 28 years old. Imagine the numbers when he's 36.

Moore is the only one to match the great Pedro Alvarez's power. He hits a HR every 2.5 games and he plays EVERY game. This season has started out otherworldly. The offensive numbers are off the charts.

PREDICTIONS & HALL OF FAME

Last season I made awards predictions with some success. Going to do it again because it gives me a chance to profile some of the best players in the league as well as some up and comers.

NL MVP
Obvious: Taylor Glynn - Back-to-back NL MVP. In total, he has won three of the last four. Hit 50+ HRs in each MVP season.

Not So Obvious:

Hardball Dynasty's

Neifi Martin

Martin won NL ROY in Season 13 when he hit .352 and had 228 hits. In two seasons he's averaged 215 hits, 110 runs, 91 RBI and 25 HR. If  he bats above these averages then he has got to at least be a candidate to win the award.

NL Cy Young
Obvious: Leonardo Walker - Two-time NL Cy Young Award winner. Best NL pitcher. Period.

Not So Obvious:

Hardball Dynasty's

Vicente Delgado

Delgado is a former Cy Young winner from Season 13. He will need to duplicate the 2.08 ERA from that season to challenge Walker. Has won 13 or more games in nine of 10 seasons and had a sub-3.00 ERA in six of those seasons.

NL Rookie of the Year
Obvious: Leon Padgett - Former number one overall draft pick in Season 12. Extremely good pitching ratings for a 22-year old. Looks like a future Cy Young Award winner.

Not So Obvious:

Hardball Dynasty's

Louie Hayashi

Hayashi is a $15 million free agent from Japan that rawdk27 signed in Season 11. He was later traded to Mexico City and last season he made an impression during a cup of coffee stop to the Majors. He went 7 for 13 with four extra-base hits and drove in seven runs. His carrer minor league numbers were impressive as well. .324/.425/.584/1.009

NL Batting Champion
Obvious: Pat Rivera - Has won two of the last three NL batting titles. Career .345 batting average and plays in hitter's paradise.

Not So Obvious:

Hardball Dynasty's

Nap Sherman

Nap Sherman has the 5th highest batting average in league history (.322). He also owns a batting title from Season 10 and plays in the same extreme hitter's park that Rivera plays in.

AL MVP
Obvious: Louie Ma - All this guy does is win MVPs and batting titles. Has three of each.

Not So Obvious:

Hardball Dynasty's

Hugh McNeil

Lost most of last season and his hitting streak of 20+ games because of a herniated disk in his neck. McNeil, 25, has the skill to hit .300 with 40 HRs while stealing 30 bases.

AL Cy Young
Obvious: Tomas Armas - Best pitcher in Fingers history. Seven-time AL Cy Young winner.

Not So Obvious:

Hardball Dynasty's

Rico Macias

Rico Macias has 97 career wins in 5 big league seasons with the MAPS. He's recently been involved in a trade with Richmond but that won't stop him from contending for the Cy Young. If he limits the number of home runs allowed then he can win 20 games.

AL Rookie of the Year
Obvious: Samuel Davis - The 8th overall pick from Season 11 has destroyed mino league pitching at every stop. In 307 games he's hit .377 with an OPS of 1.234.

Not So Obvious:

Hardball Dynasty's

Rudy MacDougal

Righthander Rudy MacDougal was drafted 7 picks after Samuel Davis. In 100 minor league starts he has held opposing hitters to a .232 batting average and struck out 500 batters in 510 innings pitched. MacDougal has one decent pitch and good control & splits.

AL Batting Champion
Obvious: Horacio Martin - Two-time AL Batting champ. Hit .321 despite playing in extreme pitcher's park. froidl moved the team to a hitter's ballpark and Martin will benefit greatly.

Not So Obvious:

Hardball Dynasty's

Julio Ramirez

Ramirez has quietly been one of the best hitters in the league. Only once in nine seasons has his batting average been below .313. Last season it was .342 when he moved to the hitter's park in Boise. Like always, expect Louie Ma to be in this race too.

HALL OF FAME

Hardball Dynasty's

Nolan Wall

Congratulations to Nolan Wall for becoming the 1st postion player in Fingers League history to make the Hall of Fame. While looking at his statistics I saw what he accomplished in Season 5. It made me want to pose the question: In the last decade worth of seasons, who has put up the best offensive season?

Nolan Wall - FIVE - .339/.400/.705/1.105/ 59HR / 135R / 181RBI
Pedro Alvarez - SEVEN - .322/.378/.680/1.058 / 63HR / 120R / 188RBI
Chuck Moore - TWELVE - .325/.395/.694/1.089 / 71HR / 132R/ 158RBI
Pat Rivera - FOURTEEN - .361/.442/.546/.988 / 21HR / 145R / 103RBI
Louie Ma - ELEVEN - .352/.460/.665/1.125 / 40HR / 117R / 161RBI
Horacio Martin - TWELVE - .343/.433/.552/.985 / 27HR / 167R / 90RBI

WELCOME TO SEASON 15

OFFSEASON MOVES

Boston deals for some big names. In three seperate moves the Brawlers added OF Del Campos, P Cliff Dessens, P Marc White and their 10 combined WS titles. bunting also added former NL MVP Spike Cambridge and 23-game winner Felipe Marquez. Three-time AL MVP Louie Ma might have made some comments to management about the three straight seasons with no playoffs.

motey's big problem with the PooHoles was that he never provided the team with enough offense. The pitching was top notch but they always finished in the bottom half of the league in runs scored. New owner zoobaseball went out and added aging but still effective slugger Santiago Santiago, 200HR/200SB club member Byung-Hyun Chen and speedy CF Mike Pickett.

Big Money Free Agents:
Cristobal Rojas 5yrs/32.5mil (Charleston)
Kenny Borders 3yrs/20.6mil (Washington)
Jacob Wells 5yrs/40mil (Richmond)
Marlon Purcell 4yrs/37.8mil (Fargo)
Edwards Fitzgerald 4yrs/33.2mil (Santa Cruz)
Chris Green 4yrs/54mil (Scranton)
Nipsey Parrish 5yrs/43.5mil (Richmond)

THE YEAR OF THE 500th HR?

Five players are within striking distance of the 500-HR club. All need 43 HRs or less to reach the milestone.

Karim Oliva - 486 HR - Oliva was once a guy with a near perfect power rating. But that number as well as his HR total have been in steadily decline since Season 11. He struggled to hit 17 HR last season and may not reach 14 until late in the year.
Esteban Rivera - 471 HR - The longtime Chicago Blackhawks backstop quietly moved to Mexico City in what could be a steal of a signing. His power rating has also been in decline since Season 11 but his HR total has not suffered. It'll be interesting to see what type of effect the NL pitching will have on this future Hall of Famer.
Clarence Black - 469 HR - Black had his streak of nine straight 40+ HR season snapped last season. It's hard to tell why he dropped to 27 HR since I see his power rating staying the same from the prior season. Regardless though, I can't bet against this guy hitting at least 31 HR. He's just too damn good.
Dale Pritchett - 459 HR - It's been a couple of seasons since Pritchett clubbed 40 HR but if he sees enough LHP he will have a good shot at hitting 41. Again, this is another guy who is too good and too close to 500 to not reach this mark in under two seasons time.
Kenny Butler - 457 HR - The move to a pitcher's park in Portland will probably keep Butler from hitting his 500th HR this season. But it will only delay the inevitable for one more season. He is only 32-years-old so he has a good number of years to exceed 500.

HALL OF FAME

Hardball Dynasty's

Nolan Wall

Hardball Dynasty's

Quilvio Pena

In my opinion these two players are the most deserving of entry to the Hall of Fame. Both played a huge part in the three straight championships that the Richmond Tobacco Beetles franchise won.

Wall won a NL MVP Award and went to nine of the first 10 Fingers All-Star games. He had 11 seasons where he scored 90 or more runs, hit more than 26 HRs and drove in over 85 runs.

For the seven straight seasons it was a lock that Pena would finish with this line: .300 / 14 HR / 80 R / 70 RBI/ 40 XBH. In real life a catcher has only pulled this off 19 times ever. During the three Beetle title runs he hit .353 in 46 games.

WORLD SERIES RECAP

Game 1: New Orleans 4, Burlington 2
WP: John Stokes (1-0)
LP: Ruben Ramirez (0-1)
Save: Jeremi Gant (1)
HR: New Orleans - Sun Liang (1), Fred Butcher (1)
Player of the Game: John Stokes - 7 IP, 9 H, 2 ER, 4 K
NOTE: Burlington outhit the Flashers 11 to 6. But only one of the eleven went for extra bases.

Game 2: Burlington 3, New Orleans 2
WP: Rafael Castro (1-0)
LP: Marc Foster (0-1)
Save: Arthur Booker (1)
HR: Burlington - Santos Lopez 2 (2); New Orleans - Rick Wakeland (1), Allen Ruffin (1)
Player of the Game: Santos Lopez - 3 for 4, 2 runs, 3 RBI, 2 HR, triple
NOTE: Lopez broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the 7th with a 2-out, 2-run HR off Marc Foster.

Game 3:  Burlington 12, New Orleans 2
WP: Ruben Ramirez (1-1)
LP: Brad Grudzielanek (0-1)
HR: New Orleans - Rick Wakeland (2)
Player of the Game: Horacio Martin - 2 for 3, 4 runs, RBI, 2 BB
NOTE: New Orleans made four errors, had a passed ball, and gave up four unearned runs.

Game 4: Burlington 4, New Orleans 3
WP: Alving Guevara (1-0)
LP: Walter Sweeney (0-1)
Save: Arthur Booker (2)
HR: Burlington - Horatio Martin (1), Julian Alcantara (1)
Player of the Game: Alving Guevara - 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 5 K
NOTE: Only once in 11 games this postseason has a team scored more than 4 runs vs. MAPS.

Game 5: New Orleans 4, Burlington 1
WP: John Stokes (2-0)
LP: Rico Macias (0-1)
Save: Jeremi Gant (2)
HR: New Orleans - Allen Ruffin (1)
Player of the Game: John Stokes - 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 5 K
NOTE: With three hits in Game 5 New Orelans rookie catcher Rick Wakeland breaks the league record for hits in a single playoffs with 34.

Game 6: Burlington 9, New Orleans 8 (13 innings)
WP: Andrea Dodd (1-0)
LP: Javy Guerrero (0-1)
HR: New Orleans - Sun Liang 2 (3), Allen Ruffin (2); Santos Lopez (3)
Player of the Game: Kevin Houston - 1 for 6, 2 RBI; drove in the game-tying and -winning runs in the 13th.
NOTE: One batter before Houston ended the game, New Orleans' Albert Ferrell made a two-out error on a routine groundball.

WORLD SERIES

 BURLINGTON MAPS vs. NEW ORLEANS FLASHERS  

• For the third time in 8 seasons the MAPS and Flashers face off in the Fingers League World Series.
• MAPS took the title both times. The first was in 6 games. The second in seven games.
• MAPS going for 8th WS title in 8 tries.
• Flashers have no titles in 2 previous tries.
• MAPS are the first team in league history to win every playoff game on the path to the WS.
• On their road to the WS, the Flashers became the 5th team in league history to win two series in one and done scenarios.

 ***STARS TO WATCH***

Hardball Dynasty's

Ruben Ramirez

3-0 / 1.71 ERA / 21 IP / .181 OAV

Hardball Dynasty's

Rick Wakeland

.388 / 26 for 67 / 3 HR / 16 RBI / 10 R 

Hardball Dynasty's

Julian Alcantara

.452 / 14 for 31 /  2 HR / 7 RBI / 7 R / 7-game hit streak

Hardball Dynasty's

Vicente Delgado

2-0 / 3.04 ERA / 26 2/3 IP / 26 K / .242 OAV

Hardball Dynasty's

Santos Lopez

.333 / 10 for 30 / 3 HR / 10 RBI / 7 R

Hardball Dynasty's

Jeremi Gant

1-1 / 6 SV / 2.08 ERA / .200 OAV / 0.69 WHIP

Hardball Dynasty's

Horacio Martin

.429 / 9 for 21 / 8 R / 5 SB / .519 OBP

Hardball Dynasty's

Jonathan Scott

.367 / 26 for 67 / 3 HR / 10 RBI / 7 R

League Championship Series

ALCS
Dover Dozers vs. Burlington MAPS
The #1 seed vs. the #6 seed. Truly David and Goliath in the American League. 32 wins and seven World Series trophies seperate them. The Dover franchise is playing in its first postseason. The MAPS on the other hand have won 105+ games in ten straight seasons. These two franchises are as far apart as you will find in all of HBD. And yet here they are playing for a World Series berth.

History:  Dover standing four wins of the World Series because of a trade these two teams made in S13. neldozer shipped uber-pitching prospect Mariano Perez to froidl for catcher Crash Purcell and pitchers Cliff Dessens & Carlos Nunez.

In the two seasons with Dover:
Purcell:  .312/.376/.568 - 85 HR, 232 RBI, 207 R - Season 13 AL ROY
Dessens: 31-22, 3.99 ERA, 80 GS, 527 IP, 349 K - won 4 rings w/ MAPS
Nunez: 69 SV, 12-15, 3.86 ERA, 152 G, 158 2/3 IP, 149 K - won 5 rings w/ MAPS

This Season: The MAPS took 8 of ten. Dover won the first two games and the MAPS finished with 8 straight over Dover. Santos Lopez crushed the Dozers. He batted .343 (12 for 35) with 4 HR, 11 RBI, 10 R. Lopez only had 2 hits in 12 at bats in the ALDS vs K.C.

Ruben Ramirez started two of the three games in the ALDS and won both. In 11 innings vs K.C., he only allowed 4 hits and 1 earned run. His numbers in two games against Dover during the regular season are very similar: 2-0, 10 IP, 7 H, 3 ER.

NLCS
Trenton Capitols vs. New Orleans Flashers
Although it has been awhile, these two franchises have faced off in the playoffs five times. Trenton walked away the victor in four of those five, including two NLCS matchups. dedelman's Capitols had its lowest winning percentage in 14 seasons but have found their way to within four wins of its record sixth NL pennant. New Orleans is looking for NL pennant number three.

This Season: New Orleans and Trenton split their season series 5-5. Pitching was the deciding factor in most of those games. Each team pitched two shutouts against each other. And nine times an opposing team was held to two runs or less.

Division Series

National League Division Series

Trenton Capitols vs. Charleston Men of Risk
Men of Risk won season series 7-3
The winner of this NLDS matchup will undoubtedly be the favorite to represent the NL in the World Series. In seven of the past nine seasons, including four straight, one of these two NL East rival franshises have made it to the WS. It's hard to think of reason why it won't happen again.

Who to Watch
Trenton: Kris Jones - Mr. Trentonian crushed the ball in the Play-in Series (but who on theCaps roster didn't crush?). He was 8 for 13 with 3 HRs, 6 runs and 6 RBIs in three games. But against Charleston this past season he only hit .260 (6 for 23) with 1 HR, 3 runs and 2 RBIs.

Charleston: Felipe Marquez - I think I could have chosen the entire Big Three in Charleston's starting rotation but Marquez is the marked man. Marquez pitched stellar in his seven starts in postseason13. He followed that up with 23 wins this past season. He went 2-0 vs Trenton in S14 and only gave up 1 earned run in 14 innings.

New Orleans Flashers vs. Colorado Springs Rainbow Trout
New Orleans won season series 6-4
More than likely this will be a very tight series. Both teams have similar statistics on offense, pitching and defense. We know both teams have big-time aces so this series will come down to the other pitchers on the rosters.

Who to Watch
New Orleans: Vicente Delgado - In Game One, the NL Cy Young Award winner in S13 will face off against Leonardo Walker, the likely NL Cy Young Award winner in S14.  Delgado will have to match Walker pitch for pitch to give the Flashers a chance to win. He didn't pitch against Colorado Springs this season but in the past has been very effective in the postseason (9-3, 3.10, 123 K in 136 1/3 innings). Personally I hope to see these two pitchers face off twice in this series.

Colorado Springs: Clarence Black - Black had a down year...at least by his past standards. He had career lows in runs (83), hits (159), HR (27) and RBIs (92) but this is a guy with 469 career HRs and two MVP Awards. He didn't hit particularly well against the Flashers this season (7 for 36, .194) but he has had success hitting in the playoffs (.315, 8 HRs in 92 AB). If he gets the bat going the Rainbow Trout are heading to the NLCS.

American League Division Series

Dover Dozers vs. Santa Cruz Spartans
Santa Cruz won season series 7-3
This series has a very MAPS feel to it. Both teams sport several ex-MAPS on their rosters, including three ace pitchers, Cliff Dessens for Dover & Nick Ransom and Tomas Armas for Santa Cruz. The latter two no doubt give Santa Cruz the edge.

Who to Watch
Dover: Cristobal Gabriel - Gabriel was the MVP for all four first round matchups. He almost single-handedly knocked out the defending champion Brewmasters himself. In those four games, he went 10 for 19 with 4 HRs, 7 runs and 13 RBIs. All this coming from the Dozers lead off spot. But in his S14 matchups with the Spartans Gabriel hit a meager .200 (7 for 35).

Santa Cruz: Nick Ransom - What a shocking pick! This quite as easily could have been Armas but of the two, Ransom had more success vs Dover this season. In 3 appearances, he went 2-0 with an ERA of 2.12. He pitched 17 innings and gave up only 10 hits while striking out 20. Total Domination.

Kansas City Fountainheads vs. Burlington MAPS
Kansas City won season series 6-4
I was shocked to see that KC had won the season series against the MAPS. With 118 wins, I assumed that no team took a season series over them. Four of the ten games these two played were decided by one run (each won 2). This series has the potential to be alot tighter than we might think by just looking at records.

Who to Watch:
Kansas City: Bullpen - 10 players recorded a save for KC in S14. So this truly is a bullpen by committee. And every guy in the bullpen will be needed in this series because when you get a lead on the MAPS you can't let them back in the game. In 10 games vs MAPS, the KC bullpen pitched 37 1/3 innings. They allowed 36 hits and 22 earned runs (5.30 ERA).

Burlington: Andrea Dodd - Dodd easily posted the best season of his career in S14. He had career highs in wins, innings pitched and starts. He also had career lows in ERA and OAV. But a side from all the critical talk of his control, the one thing lacking with this guy is postseason experience. He has pitched exactly six postseason innings in only one career start and that was way back in S5.

Playoffs

National League
1. Charleston - 10th playoff appearance, defending NL Champions
2. Colorado Springs - 3rd playoff appearance
3. New Orleans - 11th playoff appearance
4. Chicago - 2nd playoff appearance
5. Trenton - 14th playoff appearance
6. Colorado - 9th playoff appearance

3-6 Matchup
Colorado won season series 6-4
Seven of 10 games decided by 2 runs or less
Jacob Wells vs New Orleans in S14 - .463 (19 for 41) 4 hr, 9 runs, 11 rbi, 2 bb, 9 k 
Orlando Bennett vs Colorado in S14 - 4 games, 1-1, 6.14 era, 7 1/3 ip, 10 h, 5 er, 2 hr

4-5 Matchup
Trenton won season series 6-4
Nive of 10 games dcided by 3 or more runs
Juan Henriquez vs Chicago in S14 - .200 (5 for 25) 2 hr, 7 runs, 5 rbi, 7 bb, 6 k
Mike Parnell vs Trenton in S14 - .325 (13 for 40) 4 doubles, 2 hr, 9 runs, 5 rbi, 3 sb

American League
1. Burlington - 11th playoff appearance
2. Santa Cruz - 9th playoff appearance
3. Milwaukee - 4th playoff appearance, defending WS Champs
4. El Paso - 4th playoff appearance
5. Kansas City - 6th playoff appearance
6. Dover - 1st playoff appearance

3-6 Matchup
Season series tied 5-5
Eight of 10 decided by 3 or more runs
Cliff Dessens vs Milwaukee in S14 - 3 starts, 0-2, 7.41 era, 17 ip, 22 h, 14 er, 8 k, 6 bb
Boomer Charles vs Dover in S14 - 3 starts, 1-1, 5.51 era, 16 1/3 ip, 24 h, 10 er, 11 k, 3 bb

4-5 Matchup
Season series tied 5-5
Five games decided by one run or less
Chuck Moore vs. KC in S14 - .316 (12 for 38), 6 hr, 9 runs, 12 rbi, 4 bb, 3 k
Zephyr Casian vs El Paso in S14 - 1 start, 0-0 6.43 era, 7 ip, 9 h, 5 er, 4 hr, 6 k, 1 bb

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Congrats to Sante Fe's Pat Rivera on breaking the single season hits record.

Best Defensive Catcher in League History

Hardball Dynasty's

John Kobayashi

Wins 5th Gold Glove Award

Greatest Collection of MVP Candidates Ever
Four of the five AL MVP Candidates are future Hall of Famers: (Santos Lopez, Horacio Martin, Chuck Moore, Louie Ma)
Four were top-5 draft picks: (Julian Alcantara, Lopez, Moore, Ma)
Two are former #1 draft picks: (Lopea, Moore)
Three will battle for highest career SLG%: (Ma, Moore, Lopez)
Two will battle for highest career batting average and OBP: (Ma, Martin)
Two will battle for most career home runs: (Lopez, Moore)

International Signings
Three international players were given bonuses of $18 million and over. There's a poll above with the question: Which of the four players will have the best ML career?

Hardball Dynasty's

Rafael Martin $32.0 M

Hardball Dynasty's

Dennis Kobayashi $26.0 M

Hardball Dynasty's

Victor Rodriguez $18.1 M