News from the Dream Team Baseball League

  • Trade Deadline Recap

    Written by:

    Kevin
    Demigods outfielder Carlos Beltran

    Here is my review of the trades involving one or more DTBL players which were made in the weeks/days leading up to today’s MLB trade deadline.  Since I’m not too knowledgeable about prospects, my take will focus mostly on the DTBL players and the impact these guys will have on their new teams as well as the DTBL implications.

    July 12 – Brewers/Mets

    • Brewers get:  RP Francisco Rodriguez (Moonshiners)
    • Mets get:  2 PTBNL
    • MLB impact:  The Brewers made a significant improvement to their bullpen without giving up any players of note.  When this deal was initially completed, it wasn’t clear what this would mean to their closer situation.  However, John Axford has continued to save games for the Brewers, so Rodriguez appears to have been acquired strictly for set-up duties.  Meanwhile, the Mets were able to unload a potentially enormous payroll drag had K-Rod finished enough games to kick in his guaranteed player option for 2012.  This appears to have been a win-win deal for everyone but Rodriguez.
    • DTBL impact:  This was a costly trade for the Moonshiners, leaving them with just two closers.  Fortunately, another rumored trade of Drew Storen to the Twins never happened, or they could have been left with a single closer.  They still rank third in saves, but that position could be in jeopardy.

    July 26 – Nationals/Reds

    • Nationals get:  OF Johnny Gomes (Cougars)
    • Reds get:  LHP Chris Manno, OF Bill Rhinehart
    • MLB impact:  Not much point in discussing this one too much.  This was simply a dump trade by the Reds to make room for a rookie.  I don’t really know why the Nats were interested in Gomes though, as they clearly aren’t going anywhere this season.
    • DTBL impact:  Gomes has been on the Cougars bench since May.  Since he figures to remain a platoon player in DC, it is unlikely he’ll give the Cougars much of a boost from here on out.

    July 27 – Cardinals/Blue Jays/White Sox

    • Cardinals get:  SP Edwin Jackson (free agent), RP Octavio Dotel (free agent), RP Marc Rzepczynski, OF Corey Patterson, 3 PTBNL
    • Blue Jays get:  OF Colby Rasmus (Naturals), 3B Mark Teahen, RP Brian Tallet, RP Trevor Miller, RHP P.J. Walters
    • White Sox get:  RP Jason Frasor, RHP Zach Stewart
    • MLB impact:  This was one of the strangest trades of the week in that it featured two teams in tight division races selling off pieces while a non-contender acquired the biggest impact player.  Rasmus had lost favor in St. Louis and had been relegated to the bench.  So the Cardinals getting rid of him wasn’t terribly surprising, but they certainly sold low on a talented player.  They did acquire some much needed help for their rotation with Jackson though.  The 27 year old Jackson has already been traded 7 times in his career!  He’s a free agent after this season too, so it is likely he’ll be in yet another uniform next year.  The White Sox got a nice reliever in Frasor, but this trade was mostly done to shed some payroll.  Meanwhile, the Blue Jays are probably the big winners in this trade, getting Rasmus for hardly anything.
    • DTBL impact:  Jackson and Dotel are free agents.  The Kings dumped Jackson about a month ago.  It is possible some other team will give him a shot now that he is pitching for a NL team that can score some runs.  This was a great trade for the Naturals since Rasmus will return to being an everyday player.  Also, he could see a big spike in his numbers playing in a good hitters park and as part of a strong lineup.

    July 28 – Giants/Mets

    • Giants get:  OF Carlos Beltran (Demigods)
    • Mets get:  RHP Zach Wheeler
    • MLB impact:  Beltran was considered the premier offensive player on the market, and the Giants definitely needed some offensive help.  Beltran should give the Giants a significant boost as they attempt to defend their World Series title.  He will be a free agent following this season, so it made sense for the Mets to trade him.  Apparently, Wheeler is a very highly regarded pitching prospect, so this should be a good trade for both teams.
    • DTBL impact:  Even though this was one of the biggest trades of the week, it will probably have a minimal effect on the Demigods.  Beltran is moving from one pitchers park to another and probably a weaker supporting cast.  Beltran is also not the fantasy player he used to be since his power numbers are down and he doesn’t steal a lot of bases any more.

    July 29 – Phillies/Astros

    • Phillies get:  OF Hunter Pence (Jackalope)
    • Astros get:  RHP Jarred Cosart, 1B/OF Jonathan Singleton, RHP Josh Zeid, PTBNL
    • MLB impact:  This is a huge trade for the Phillies who have had a bit of a black hole in right field this season.  It makes their already impressive lineup just a bit stronger, further strengthening their resume as the best team in the National League.  The Giants are still a threat due to their pitching, but the Phillies are the team to beat in October.  Meanwhile, this was phase one in the Astros fire sale.  They acquired some very good prospects, but the near term future is not bright.
    • DTBL impact:  I would call this deal a big win for the Jackalope, who have had almost nothing but positive developments all season.  Pence figures to get a lot more RBI opportunities in Philly and is going to a great hitters park.  The Jacaklope lead has shrunk a bit in recent days, but this trade should give their offense a boost.

    July 30 – Red Sox/Royals

    • Red Sox get:  2B Mike Aviles (free agent)
    • Royals get:  INF Yamaico Navarro, RHP Kendal Volz
    • MLB impact:  Not much to this deal.  Aviles was simply a utility player in Kansas City and that will continue to be the case in Boston.
    • DTBL impact:  It is unlikely the DTBL free agent Aviles will attract much attention following this deal.  His playing time will be severely limited.

    July 30 – Rangers/Orioles

    • Rangers get:  RP Koji Uehera (Gators)
    • Orioles get:  P Tommy Hunter, 1B/3B Chris Davis
    • MLB impact:  The Rangers picked up a setup man who has some of the best numbers in the league this season.  Uehera has incredible 64/8 strike out/walk numbers in 48 IP.  They gave up a pair of players who they didn’t have much use for either, so this has to be viewed as a good deal for them.  On the Orioles side, not receiving any legitimate prospects was surprising, but they did get two MLB ready players.  They didn’t appear to have anywhere to put Davis when the trade was made, but the Lee trade a few hours later opened up 1B for him.
    • DTBL impact:  Minimal.  The Gators have used Uehera almost all year, but unless he’s going to start getting save opportunities (very unlikely), this trade doesn’t change his value at all.

    July 30 – Indians/Rockies

    • Indians get:  SP Ubaldo Jimenez (Gators)
    • Rockies get:  RHP Alex White, RHP Joseph Gardner, IF/OF Matt McBride, LHP Drew Pomeranz
    • MLB impact:  I don’t like to criticize teams for trying to go for it all when the opportunity presents itself, but I think this may be a bit of a short-sighted trade by the Indians.  Yes, they are only a couple games out of first right now, but I believe they have overachieved to this point and are unlikely to win the division even with Jimenez.  Meanwhile, they traded away two of their best pitching prospects.  Jimenez should benefit by no longer pitching in Coors Field.  Also, the NL to AL switch is less significant in this case since he is going to pitch in a very mediocre AL Central.  He is not a free agent to-be, so this trade could be an important building block for the Indians, but call me skeptical.  Great deal for the Rockies, IMO.
    • DTBL impact:  It will be very interesting to see how Jimenez pitches in Cleveland.  He hasn’t been a truly elite pitcher in well over a year now.  The Gators need him to return to his early 2010 form in order to help revive their middle-of-the-road pitching staff.  It’s all about how well he pitches.  This trade probably won’t affect his numbers that much one way or the other.

    July 30 – Giants/Indians

    • Giants get:  SS Orlando Cabrera (Moonshiners)
    • Indians get:  OF Thomas Neal
    • MLB impact:  I was a little surprised by this trade on the Indians side.  On the heals of their Jimenez deal, they sold off a valuable veteran in Cabrera.  Apparently, they are very comfortable with Jason Kipnis as their everyday 2B, even though he just made his MLB debut earlier this week.  I think it came down to Cabrera requesting to go somewhere he was wanted.  The Giants are a perfect fit.  He has a wealth of playoff experience and can help fill a number of roles for the Giants.
    • DTBL impact:  The Moonshiners have been shuffling Cabrera in and out of their lineup.  That doesn’t figure to change much, but this is still a good trade for them because Cabrera was seeing his role diminish in Cleveland.  He could still provide some value for the Moonshiners before this season ends.

    July 30 – Pirates/Orioles

    • Pirates get:  1B Derrek Lee (Choppers)
    • Orioles get:  1B Aaron Baker
    • MLB impact:  The Lyle Overbay era as the Pirates starting 1B is mercifully over.  The Pirates got so little production from that position, it is a miracle they are still in contention.  Lee provides a significant upgrade at that position.  I doubt it will be enough for them to hang with the Cardinals and Brewers, but it was the right move to make.  Obviously, getting rid of the veteran Lee made sense for the Orioles who are going nowhere fast.
    • DTBL impact:  The Choppers haven’t used Lee since May.  I don’t see this trade changing his role too much since he is probably in a worse hitting situation in Pittsburgh.  He is a capable replacement though, should they need to call on him.

    July 31 – Cardinals/Dodgers

    • Cardinals get:  SS Rafael Furcal (Moonshiners)
    • Dodgers get:  OF Alex Castellanos
    • MLB impact:  Furcal is clearly a big upgrade over Ryan Theriot at shortstop for the Cardinals.  This all comes down to him staying healthy.  If he is able to stick in the lineup, he will be a nice addition to the highest scoring team in the NL.  This is pretty much just a dump for the Dodgers.
    • DTBL impact:  Pretty much the same as the impact for the Cardinals.  If Furcal can actually stay healthy, he will be a valuable contributor for the Moonshiners.  This trade doesn’t change his value too much, though he will probably have a chance to score more runs with the likes of Pujols, Holliday and Berkman hitting behind him.

    July 31 – Braves/Astros

    • Braves get:  OF Michael Bourn (Jackalope)
    • Astros get:  OF Jordan Schafer, RHP Juan Abreu, RHP Paul Clemens, LHP Brett Oberholtzer
    • MLB impact:  Big addition for the Braves.  They are trying to piece things together with all their recent injuries.  Two obvious needs were center field and leadoff hitter.  Bourn fills both holes.  I think the Braves could have used another power hitter too, but Bourn will certainly improve the offense.  This was part two of the Astros fire sale.  Of course it makes sense for them to get as many decent prospects as they can, but boy are they going to struggle to win games the rest of this year and probably next season too.
    • DTBL impact:  Once again, the Jackalope benefit from the Astros upheaval.  Bourn was putting up great numbers for a pathetic team.  I doubt he will be able to improve upon his current stats too much, but getting out of Houston is definitely a net positive for him and the Jackalope.

    July 31 – Rangers/Padres

    • Rangers get:  Mike Adams (Cougars)
    • Padres get:  LHP Robbie Erlin, RHP Joe Wieland
    • MLB impact:  You can pretty much read everything I wrote about the Uehera trade and repeat it here.  In fact, Adams’ stats are almost identical to Uehera’s too.  They have been two of the best setup men in baseball this year.  So Adams is a very nice addition to the Rangers bullpen.  Unlike the Uehera deal though, the Rangers actually gave up prospects to get Adams.  Therefore, I would say this is a good trade for the Padres too.  The Rangers are going to have an awfully strong bullpen.
    • DTBL impact:  Again, a non-closing reliever changing teams doesn’t really change his value much.  Neftali Feliz has struggled at times this season, so Adams could be next in line to get saves if that continues.  But for now, Adams fantasy value is unchanged by this deal.  Perhaps a slight downgrade based on going from a great pitchers park to a hitters paradise.  The Cougars will no doubt continue to use him though.

    July 31 – Pirates/Padres

    • Pirates get:  OF Ryan Ludwick (Moonshiners)
    • Padres get:  PTBNL
    • MLB impact:  The Pirates need all the help they can get to improve their offense.  Although I doubt he will make a major splash, Ludwick should help.  Remember, he is only a couple years removed from being a big time power hitter for the Cardinals.  Getting out of PETCO could be just what the doctor ordered.  On the flip side, the dreadful Padres offense will only get worse without Ludwick.  Hard to judge this trade for the Padres though since all they got was a player to be named later.
    • DTBL impact:  This wasn’t one of the big deadline trades, but it has the potential to be one of the biggest in terms of fantasy implications.  The Moonshiners haven’t gotten much out of Ludwick since signing him in early June, but he could be a major contributor the rest of the way.  This deal is a big win for them.

    Just a reminder that the DTBL trade deadline is still a couple weeks away.  Trades must be completed by August 15.  We haven’t had a trade since the draft, but this could certainly change in the upcoming weeks.  I think the reason for the lack of trades is two-fold:  a lot of teams have had their hands tied due to a rash of injuries, leaving few healthy bodies to deal.  Also, it seems a lot of teams have needs at the same positions (3B and OF in particular).  But now that the race is starting to heat up, perhaps some teams will get creative to make a deal.

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  • Choppers Power Boost

    Written by:

    Kevin
    Choppers outfielder Curtis Granderson

    It has been a while since Charlie’s Thunder Choppers have been a DTBL title contender.  They haven’t finished a season in the top half of the standings since 2006 and haven’t had a top three finish since 2001.  That ’01 team was the last Choppers squad that remained in the title hunt until the final weeks of the season.  But that could be about to change.  Thanks to the league’s most powerful offense, the Choppers find themselves in second place here in late July.  As long as the Jackalope remain around the 80 point mark, they will be virtually impossible to catch.  But should they stumble, the Choppers lead a pack of five teams waiting to make a run.

    It’s all about offense for the Choppers, particularly the power categories.  They lead the league in both home runs and RBIs.  Their lead in the home run category is relatively safe at the moment.  This is quite impressive and surprising considering they finished in the bottom half of the league in that category a year ago, 92 home runs behind the Naturals.  The reason from the resurgence?  Three veteran players:  Jose Bautista, Curtis Granderson and Lance Berkman.

    Two of those three players were the Choppers last two first round draft picks (Granderson in ’09 and Bautista this year.  The Choppers didn’t have a first round pick in ’10).  Granderson was a surprising choice as the first overall pick in the 2009 draft.  They chose him over Evan Longoria, a pick that didn’t look too wise the last two years.  But now Granderson has started hitting home runs at a career high pace.  He has 26 long balls already this year, trailing only Bautista.  This hasn’t slowed him down any on the base paths though.  He has stolen 19 bases and is on pace for a career high in that category as well.  He is playing a huge role in helping the Choppers try to chase down the team that released him following the 2008 season:  the Jackalope.  Granderson kept his remarkable season going with a two run home run in the DTBL All-Star Game last week.  It was the only home run hit in the game.

    I think everybody knows Bautista’s story by now.  He has suddenly become the premier power hitter in all of baseball, once again leading the league in home runs with 31.  While last year was quite an impressive surge season, this year has been even better because he also has one of the best batting averages around.  He is currently hitting .330, good for third in the league.  Bautista was a fairly obvious choice for the Choppers with the fourth pick in this year’s draft, but nobody knew for sure if he would be able to reproduce the numbers he put up last year.  So far, he has improved upon them.  An interesting sidenote:  even though he is a veteran player, he is actually eligible for the DTBL Rookie of the Year Award this year since he had never appeared on an active DTBL roster prior to this season.  He seems like a pretty safe bet to win that award at this point.

    Perhaps the best story among the Choppers players is Berkman.  Along with Granderson, he is also trying to help the Choppers catch the team that released him.  The Jackalope cut Berkman following last season after 10 great years with the team.  It was understandable why they did so though.  He appeared to be done.  In 2010, Berkman hit just .236 with 12 home runs in an injury riddled season for the Jackalope.  The Choppers decided to take a flyer on him in the 12th round of this year’s draft.  It would be safe to say that pick has worked out pretty well.  He has a .287 average with 22 home runs.  He is fifth in the league in home runs.

    The Choppers lead a pack of five teams that hold down second through sixth place.  Those five teams are within 3 1/2 points of each other, so it is anybody’s guess which team(s) will make a serious run at the Jackalope.  But the Choppers have to be pleased to be in the discussion after years of disappointment.

    Categories:

  • National Division Wins 3-2

    Written by:

    Kevin
    All-Star Game MVP Alex Rodriguez

    On Friday night, the National Division defeated the American Division 3-2 at Jackalope Stadium in the 18th Annual DTBL All-Star Game.  In a game full of missed chances, the National All-Stars pulled out a little small ball to scratch out the winning run in the top of the 9th inning.  It was the second straight year the National Division picked up a win despite a seemingly over-matched roster.

    Justin Verlander was the starting pitcher for the National All-Stars and was opposed by Roy Halladay.  Both aces pitched two scoreless innings.  Verlander retired all six batters he faced.  Halladay allowed the leadoff man to reach base both innings, but prevented those runners from scoring, which became a theme of the game for both teams.  The game was scoreless through four innings.

    Dan Haren took the mound for the American Division in the fifth and got knocked around, but was also betrayed by his defense.  Carlos Gonzalez led off the inning with a single to right and advanced to second when Jose Bautista had trouble fielding the ball.  He advanced to third on a wild pitch and then scored the first run of the game on a double by Alex Rodriguez.  Two batters later, Jose Reyes lined a hit into center to score Rodriguez.  He also moved up to second on a booted ball by center fielder Curtis Granderson.  Jacoby Ellsbury then singled to left, but Reyes was inexplicably unable to score from second on a single with two outs.  So the National All-Stars settled for a 2-0 lead.  If you take a look at the box score, it says both runs were unearned, however I believe this is incorrect.  Based on the sequence of events, both runs would have scored anyway if the errors had not been made, so they should have been earned runs.  Chalk that up as a bug in OOTP.

    The National lead didn’t last long.  Kings pitcher Tommy Hanson quickly gave back the two runs his Kings teammates knocked in in the top half of the fifth.  Brian McCann starting the frame with a double and scored on a two run home run to right center by Granderson.  So after trading pairs of runs in the 5th, the game was tied at 2.

    The next three innings were filled with missed opportunities, especially for the American All-Stars.  In both the 6th and 7th innings, they had runners on first and second with nobody out and failed to score.  Again in the 8th, they had two men on with one out, but the inning ended when Brian McCann hit into a double play.  He had done the same thing in his previous at bat in the 6th.  Prior to those at bats, he had been an early contender for the game’s MVP award with a pair of hits and his throw outs of Reyes and Ellsbury on stolen base attempts early in the game.

    The ninth inning featured something you don’t see very often in an All-Star game:  a sacrifice bunt.  Drew Storen was pitching for the American Division and surrendered hits to David Ortiz and Matt Holliday to start the inning.  Then Brandon Phillips came up and laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move the runners up.  Alex Rodriguez took advantage of the opportunity and hit a sacrifice fly to score Ortiz and gave the National Division a 3-2 lead.  It was Rodriguez’s second RBI of the game.  Brian Wilson and his beard then came into the game in the bottom of the 9th to pick up the save.  He allowed a one out walk, but retired the next two hitters to secure the win for the National team.

    Although OOTP disagreed, Rodriguez was a pretty easy choice as the game’s MVP.  He was involved in all three National runs, knocking in two and scoring the third.  Not bad for a guy with a bum knee who probably won’t play in a real game for at least another month or so.  Cole Hamels picked up the win thanks to his scoreless 8th inning.  Drew Storen took the loss and Brian Wilson earned the save.

    Some interesting stats from the game.  11 leadoff batters reached base safely, but only three of them wound up scoring.  The National squad put the first man on in six innings, while the American team did it five times.  With numbers like those, you would have expected this to be a very high scoring game.  But both teams hit into a pair of double plays to kill some of those rallies.  Also, there were a lot of strike outs with men on base.  National batters whiffed 11 times; 7 for the American All-Stars.  Three different American players left at least four men on base with their at bats:  McCann (4), Troy Tulowitzki (4) and Rickie Weeks (5).  As a team, they stranded 11 men on base to end innings.

    I think the live video streaming of the game went very well.  I know from my standpoint, it was a lot easier being able to describe the action through speech rather than having to type it all.  In addition to the three active participants, I know we had at least one other onlooker.  Hopefully you all enjoyed it as well.  I am quite certain we will try something similar again next year.  Feel free to check out the archived video which is available on the LiveStream channel.  Thanks to everyone for showing up on Friday night!

    Box Score

    LiveStream Channel (with archived video)

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  • Watch DTBL ASG Live!

    Written by:

    Kevin
    National Division starting pitcher Justin Verlander

    The 18th Annual DTBL All-Star Game is going on right now at Jackalope Stadium, home of Jay’s Jackalope.  For the first time ever, you can watch the American Division take on the National Division live by viewing the DTBL LiveStream channel.

    Click here to check it out!

    Categories:

  • 2011 DTBL All-Stars

    Written by:

    Kevin
    Jose Bautista highlights a loaded American roster.

    Sorry I’m a few days late with this, but I’m finally ready to announce the 2011 DTBL All-Stars.  The 18th annual DTBL All-Star Game is tentatively scheduled for next Friday, July 15 at 10 p.m. EDT, 7 p.m. PDT.  As mentioned a few days ago, the game will be live video-streamed here.

    For the second straight year, the American Division will be managed by Nick while Dave will call the shots for the National Division.  Perhaps there will be a little extra drama involved in this matchup as Nick and Dave try to claim final bragging rights from their championship tie a year ago.  They broke all ties in voting and chose the 23rd player for their rosters.  For the first time in  league history, there was a team without any representation on the initial All-Star roster.  Therefore, Nick was forced to use his 23rd player slot to make sure the Gators received a bid.  He chose third baseman Johnny Peralta, who wasn’t even on the All-Star ballot (also a first).  Peralta had fewer at bats than Danny Valencia at the time I created the list, which kept him off the ballot.  Dave was able to use his 23rd slot with a more conventional pick, David Ortiz.

    The American Division appears to have the stronger roster, which is not surprising considering they hold four of the top five spots in the standings.  Their rotation of Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Jered Weaver, Felix Hernandez and Dan Haren is about as good as you can get (all but Haren were Jackalope a year ago).  Meanwhile, the National team is loaded with Kings.  10 of the 23 players are from the Kings roster, which isn’t terribly surprising since they are the division’s lone contender so far this year.

    Here are the 2011 DTBL All-Stars:

    American Division

    Starters:

    • P – Roy Halladay, Jackalope
    • C – Brian McCann, Jackalope
    • 1B – Prince Fielder,  Moonshiners
    • 2B – Rickie Weeks, Naturals
    • 3B – Adrian Beltre, Choppers
    • SS – Asdrubal Cabrera, Naturals
    • OF – Jose Bautista, Choppers
    • OF – Ryan Braun, Jackalope
    • OF – Curtis Granderson, Choppers

    Reserves:

    • C – Victor Martinez, Naturals
    • 1B – Paul Konerko, Moonshiners
    • 3B – Johnny Peralta, Gators
    • SS – Troy Tulowitzki, Naturals
    • OF – Hunter Pence, Jackalope
    • OF – Justin Upton, Naturals
    • P – Cliff Lee, Jackalope
    • P – Jered Weaver, Moonshiners
    • P – Felix Hernandez, Jackalope
    • P – Dan Haren, Moonshiners
    • RP – Craig Kimbrel, Choppers
    • RP – Heath Bell, Jackalope
    • RP – Mariano Rivera, Choppers
    • RP – Drew Storen, Moonshiners

    National Division

    Starters:

    • P – Justin Verlander, Kings
    • C – Miguel Montero,  Kings
    • 1B – Adrian Gonzalez, Darkhorses
    • 2B – Robinson Cano, Kings
    • 3B – Alex Rodriguez, Kings
    • SS – Jose Reyes, Kings
    • OF – Matt Kemp, Demigods
    • OF – Carlos Gonzalez, Kings
    • OF – Jacoby Ellsbury, Darkhorses

    Reserves:

    • C – Carlos Santana, Mavericks
    • 1B – Mark Teixeira, Cougars
    • 1B – David Ortiz, Demigods
    • 2B – Brandon Phillips, Cougars
    • OF – Jay Bruce, Kings
    • OF – Matt Holliday, Darkhorses
    • P – Cole Hamels, Demigods
    • P – James Shields, Darkhorses
    • P – Clayton Kershaw, Mavericks
    • P – Tommy Hanson, Kings
    • RP – Joel Hanrahan, Cougars
    • RP – Francisco Cordero, Kings
    • RP – Brian Wilson, Darkhorses
    • RP – J.J. Putz, Kings

    Click here to view the full voting results.

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  • All-Star Game Live!

    Written by:

    Kevin

    I am excited to announce a new twist to the DTBL All-Star Game.  For the first time since the days when we used to all gather at someone’s house for the All-Star Game, you will be able to follow the action live with your own eyes and ears.  There will be a live video stream of the game available on a LiveStream channel I created a few days ago.  I downloaded software from LiveStream which allows me to stream my PC desktop to this channel.  So you will be able to see what is going on within my Out of the Park baseball sim game as I play it out on my computer.

    I did some preliminary testing of this and I was pretty happy with it.  If you are expecting a professional, HD broadcast, you are in for a a disappointment though.  The video feed is a little blurry, and the only way I was able to read the game’s play-by-play was by putting the video into full screen mode.  But you should be able to get the gist of what is going on even in standard mode, particularly since I will be providing my own play-by-play which will accompany the video.  At the very least, you should get to enjoy me making a fool out of myself.  I’ve set a pretty high bar for myself in the past, but this has strong potential to be the nerdiest thing I’ve ever done.

    The actual date and time of the 18th annual DTBL All-Star Game is still TBD.  Dave and Nick will be managing their respective divisions, so I will have to check with them to find out their availability.  They will be able to communicate their in-game managerial decisions to me using the chatroom that is part of the LiveStream channel.  I invite the rest of you to join in on the conversation as well.  It should be interesting and mildly entertaining.  Even if you aren’t able to join us live, the video will be available on-demand on the LS channel following the game.

    There will be a lot more to come soon about the All-Star Game, including the rosters, lineups and a link to the actual video channel.  The All-Star rosters may be announced as early as Monday.  In the meantime, have a great Independence Day weekend!

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  • Pujols-less Jackalope Keep Rolling

    Written by:

    Kevin
    Injured Jackalope Star Albert Pujols

    One of the big stories of the 2011 season has been the rash of injuries to corner infielders, particular for the top contending teams.  Perhaps the biggest blow came last week when the Jackalope lost their All-World first baseman Albert Pujols to a fractured forearm.  This injury will probably put him on the shelf until sometime in August.  In the mean time, the Jackalope’s strong hold on first place will be put to the test.

    The Jackalope currently lead the league by a comfortable 13 points.  They have perfectly positioned themselves to be able to survive injuries, even this one to their most valuable player.  In years past, the Jackalope almost solely relied on Pujols to carry their offense.  But that has not been the case this season.  They have accumulated a very solid 37 batting points despite Pujols not quite putting up his usual MVP-worthy numbers.  Of course, losing him for a couple months weakens their offense, but I believe they are still in great shape.

    The off-season focus on rebuilding the offense may really pay off now.  With Ryan Howard and Mike Stanton on board, the Jackalope do have some other guys to turn to for some power.  Those two players were the direct result of a couple bold trades which sent elite starting pitchers elsewhere.  The Jackalope pitching hasn’t missed a beat though as they are currently first or second in every pitching category.

    The other thing the Jackalope have going for them is that they aren’t the only contending team fighting significant injury issues.  The second place Kings learned yesterday that first baseman Justin Morneau needs neck surgery, and he too will likely be out until August.  They also lost a pair of starting pitchers (Tommy Hanson and Clay Buchholz) to the DL last week, although neither are expected to miss much time.  The Kings have been the hottest team in the league over the past month, despite a complete lack of production from the usual power position of first base.  Morneau and Adam LaRoche were supposed to anchor that position, but both were ineffective and now injured.  LaRoche is out for the year and has been released.  On the other side of the infield, the Kings have had a pair of third basemen spend significant time on the disabled list.  Ryan Zimmerman is back, but David Freese remains out.

    Third base has been an especially troubling position for the third place team, the Moonshiners.  Almost every week, the Moonshiners have had to call on someone new to fill the hot corner position.  Losing David Wright to an injury has been very costly as his replacements have been completely ineffective.  Next in line are the Naturals, who are also missing their top third baseman, first round pick Pedro Alvarez.  Like the Moonshiners, the Naturals have had a hard time trying to find a worthy player to fill that spot.  With all these injuries to corner infielders, there is basically nothing left to choose from in the free agent market.

    So while the Pujols injury is very significant, the Jackalope have a great chance of holding their lead since their closest competitors have equal or greater injury problems of their own.  I didn’t even get to the teams lower in the standings who have been absolutely decimated by injuries.  It has been a war of attrition so far this year, and the Jackalope are winning that battle.

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  • My Realignment Plan

    Written by:

    Kevin
    Will Hunter Pence and the Astros be playing in the AL soon?

    One of the hot topics in baseball the last couple weeks has been the suggestion of possible realignment to even out the leagues to 15 teams each.  Although I am a bit of a baseball purist and generally do not like change, I support this idea if it is done correctly.  Here is the plan I have come up with in my own head.

    Ever since the expansion to 30 teams in 1998, the National League has had two more teams than the American League.  For a while, I considered this to be payback for the days of my childhood when it was the American League that had the two extra teams.  Obviously, the reason for the uneven balance between the two leagues is because interleague games would need to be scheduled throughout the entire season if each league had an odd number of teams.  But sine we are about 15 years into interleague play, and it appears to be a permanent fixture at this point, I don’t see it is a bad thing to spread these games throughout the entire season.  For me, the positives outweigh this one negative.

    The primary reason for realignment would be to create a more balanced system and a leveling of the playing field.  With just four teams in the AL West, logic dictates that those teams have a better chance at winning their division each season than do the six teams in the NL Central.  Similarly, all American League teams have less competition when it comes to the Wild Card race.  The NL Central part of this story has been somewhat nullified by the fact that the Pirates pretty much don’t count when it comes to yearly contenders in that division.  So for me, the advantages of the AL West teams is the most unfair thing about the current system.

    So what should be done?  Most of the realignment rumors have been focused on the Astros moving to the AL West.  The Diamondbacks have also been mentioned, but that would mean the Astros would need to shift to the NL West as well.  So the way to make this work with the least amount of change would be the Astros switching leagues.  Personally, I would prefer to see the Brewers move back to the AL Central and then ship the Royals to the West.  But as long as Bud Selig is around, there is no chance of that happening.  I would put the ball in the Astros court and give them the decision:  stay in the National League but move to the West where they would have no obvious division rival, or move to the AL West and create an intriguing division rivalry with the Rangers.  If they choose to stay in the NL, the Diamondbacks would move to the AL West.

    Next is the matter of the schedule.  Interleague games would need to be scheduled throughout the entire season, but this is doable while keeping the number of interleague games the same as it is right now.  Some people have argued that it wouldn’t be good to have teams playing interleague games in September during pennant races.  While that may be true, there are always plenty of interleague games between likely non-contenders anyway, so why not shift a few of these to the last weeks of the season?  Does it really matter if the Pirates are playing the Orioles in the last week of the season instead of June?  It’s not going to be a compelling matchup at any point in the season, so why not have them play each other in meaningless September games?  Keep in mind that there would only need to be one team from each league playing an interleague series at any given time, so the number of teams that would need to play interleague games down the stretch would be minimal.  Also, I don’t think compelling interleague games in August or September would be a bad thing.  Can you imagine how big a Sox/Cubs or Yankees/Mets series in late August could be if one or both teams are in contention?

    While I’m on the topic of interleague play, I would like to see one other change made.  I think the natural geographic rivalries should continue to be played every season, but I would scale it back to one series per year.  I think we have reached a point where these games aren’t nearly as big as they once were, and part of that is because of how often they play each other now.  Sure, they still draw big crowds, but the overall excitement and buzz about these games isn’t like it used to be.  I think scaling it back to one series a year could fix that.  Plus, it would reduce some of the current issues with teams benefiting from playing much easier interleague schedules than their division rivals.  The other problem with the current system is that these geographic rivals are playing as many games against each other as they are against some teams in their own league.  That has never seemed right to me.

    With all six divisions having five teams, a system could be set up where each team plays one series against every team from one of the divisions in the other league, plus that one series against their natural rival.  So now teams would be playing almost the identical interleague schedule as their division rivals.  The division matchups would be rotated every year, so every team would be guaranteed to play every team in the other league every third year (and every six years at home).  In this system, the natural rivals could continue to play a pair of series against each other on those third years when their divisions are scheduled to meet up anyway.  But otherwise, it would be just one series per year.  I think this setup makes a lot more sense than the current interleague schedule, which seems to be completely random outside of the geographic rivalries.

    Some more radical realignment plans have suggested the abolishing of divisions.  All 15 teams in the league would be grouped together with the top four (or five, or six) teams making the playoffs.  I do not support this idea.  First, I think division titles are meaningful accomplishments, so getting rid of them would just give teams one less thing to play for.  No, a division championship shouldn’t be a teams ultimate goal, but it is still a notable achievement.  But more importantly, getting rid of divisions would take away from a lot of existing rivalries and create travel nightmares for some teams who would have to make more frequent cross-country road trips in a balanced schedule scenario.  Having said that, I would be in favor of slightly reducing the number of games played against division teams in order to get a few more games against the other teams in the league.  My plan would call for 14 games against teams in the same division (down from the current 18) and eight or nine games against the other teams in the league.  The only significant imbalance here would be that each team would play three series against most of those intraleague, non-division teams, meaning that one of the teams would get to host two of the three series.  But this happens already in the current system, so I don’t think it is a big deal.  It would be easy enough to make sure the team with the extra home series rotates each year.  And of course, the total number of home/road games would remain at 81/81 for every team.

    Finally, there is the matter of the playoffs.  It sounds like it is almost inevitable that the baseball playoffs will be expanded to at least 10 teams.  I do not support this.  I think this is where MLB stands above the rest of the major professional sports.  The more teams you include in the playoffs, the less significant the regular season becomes.  I find the NBA and NHL regular seasons to be almost meaningless since they play for six months to not even eliminate half the teams.  So my preference would be to keep things exactly as they are now:  4 playoff teams in each league.  I wouldn’t mind seeing the first round expanded to a best of seven series though.  But since it sounds like additional playoff teams is almost a done deal, my recommendation would be to have two wild card teams face off in as short of a series as possible.  Even a one game playoff to determine that wild card spot would be preferable to a longer series which would require the rest of the playoff teams to sit around for a week or longer.  Expanding to six playoff spots per league would be even messier.  So the fewer, the better in my book.

    Thoughts?  Do you have your own plan in mind, or are you against all forms of realignment?

    Categories:

  • Rivera Breaks Save Record

    Written by:

    Kevin
    Choppers closer Mariano Rivera

    Talk about a long overdue post.  Over a month ago, Choppers relief pitcher Mariano Rivera became the DTBL’s all-time save leader.  His 561st DTBL save moved him ahead of Trevor Hoffman.  He has added another five saves since then and currently sits at 566 for his DTBL career.

    Rivera has shown absolutely no sign of slowing down.  In 2011, he has recorded 16 saves, putting him just a few behind the league leaders.  His ERA of 1.90 and 1.056 WHIP are tough to beat.  Even at 41 years old, there is no reason to think Rivera can’t keep pitching for several more years.  Since turning 40, he has continued to rack up the saves with an ERA below 2.00.

    Most of Rivera’s 16 DTBL seasons came with the Cougars.  He was their first round pick in the 1997 Draft and remained with the club until a 2009 trade.  Prior to the trade, Rivera appeared to be aging a bit, posting a career high 3.33 ERA.  But almost immediately after he arrived with the Mavericks, he returned to his perch as the best relief pitcher in baseball.  Following a strong year and a half with the rebuilding Mavericks, they traded him to the Choppers this past March for a second round draft pick.  So after spending most of his career with one team, Rivera has now been traded twice in the last three years.

    A model in consistency, Rivera has posted an ERA under 3.00 in every season except one (2007) and has had at least 30 saves every year but one (2002).  Incredibly, he has been under a 2.00 ERA in nine seasons and has a career mark of 2.02.  His career ERA and WHIP (0.976) are both the best of any pitcher in league history.  It is virtually indisputable that he is the greatest relief pitcher in league history and possibly the best pitcher overall.

    Rivera has been a welcomed addition to the very surprising Choppers squad.  After years of disappointment, they find themselves in title contention.  They are currently tied in fourth place.  Perhaps most surprising is their grip on the league lead in saves after finishing dead last in that category a year ago, 32 saves behind the next worst team.  Obviously, Rivera has played a big part in that resurgence.  The bullpen has helped keep the Choppers pitching staff afloat while the rotation has been decimated by injuries.  The latest coming to Brett Anderson, who may need Tommy John surgery.  But with a powerful offense and a great bullpen, the Choppers figure to remain in contention as the season progresses.

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  • Liriano & Verlander Toss No-Hitters

    Written by:

    Kevin
    Choppers pitcher Francisco Liriano

    There have been a ton of close calls this season, but Francisco Liriano and Justin Verlander managed to break through to complete the first two no-hitters of the season in a span of five days.  First, the Choppers’ Liriano picked up a no-no on Tuesday evening.  Then, the Kings’ Verlander did the same on Saturday afternoon.

    Of the two, Liriano’s no-hitter has to be the more improbable one.  He entered the game against the White Sox with an ERA over 9.00.  He had never pitched a complete game in his career.  And for a while, it looked like he would have trouble completing this one as well.  A bunch of early walks sent his pitch count soaring.  On the game, he walked six and only struck out two.  So there were probably at least a half dozen more impressive starts than his just last week, but a no-hitter deserves special mention.  Despite the ugly walk/strike out numbers, it was very much a dominating performance.  The White Sox hitters only hit a couple balls hard all evening.

    Liriano is still having a tough season.  His ERA stands at 6.61 and the win was only his second this season.  He has walked more hitters than he has struck out too.  Prior to this start, he was on the verge of a possible bullpen demotion by the Twins.  You have to think the Choppers were losing patience with him as well.  He has been the sour point on an otherwise surprisingly solid Choppers pitching staff.  If he continues to pitch like he did last Tuesday, things could get very interesting as the Choppers already find themselves in third place and are the surprise team near the top of the standings right now.

    Verlander’s no-hitter was less surprising and much more dominating.  He took a perfect game into the 8th inning against the Blue Jays, but a walk to J.P. Arencibia on an extended at bat ruined that.  Arencibia was quickly erased on a double play though, allowing Verlander to finish the game facing the minimum 27 batters.  This was Verlander’s second career no-hitter, joining Mark Buehrle as the only active DTBL pitchers with multiple no-hitters.  (Technically, Roy Halladay has two as well, but his playoff no-hitter didn’t count towards his DTBL stats, so I’m not including him.)

    The Kings pitchers have had a mediocre start to the season, but Verlander has been solid as usual.  He has a 3.16 ERA with 3 wins, a sub 1.00 WHIP and 55 strike outs.  Verlander, his Tigers teammate Max Scherzer, and Tommy Hanson have been outstanding for the Kings, but the bottom of their rotation has been a disappointment.

    As mentioned, there have been plenty of close calls on other potential no-hitters this season including Anibal Sanchez twice.  Also, two Cougars pitchers took no-hitters into at least the 7th inning on the same night last Friday:  Jaime Garcia and Derek Lowe.  The way pitching has dominated so far this season, you have to figure we’ll see a few more guys complete the task.

    Here’s another indication on just how good the pitching has been.  Only one DTBL team has an ERA over 4.00 (Demigods).  They were inching towards the 4.00 mark a couple days ago, so there is still a good chance we could see all ten teams under that mark at some point soon.

    Once again, Mariano Rivera’s save record is getting bumped to a later post.  I promise to write about him soon!

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