rourke
Season 40: 92-70, won Division, lost in Round 1 to Los Angeles
Season 40 Highs and Lows
Improved by 14 wins (92) to take the Division (2 of the last 3 seasons), but a first-round loss to LA left a slightly bitter taste. Destin Harang (.285/25/73) and Wayne Langerhans (.255/37/105) won the 2B and 3B Silver Sluggers, but the rest of the lineup lacked punch - only 702 runs scored. The pitching staff, behind Quintana (8 saves, 2.08 ERA in 103 IP), Rogers (2.65 ERA in 102 IP), Tollberg (12-6, 2.83 ERA in 229 IP), and Stammen (12-5, 3.20 ERA in 182 IP) was the AL's best with a 3.32 ERA.
Biggest Addition and Subtraction
Signed CF Paolo Ordonez and lost RP Ehire Quintana in FA.
Season 41 Preview
The AL's best pitching staff returns almost completely intact - it will again be the team's main strength. The lineup - with the obvious talents of Harang, Langerhans, 1B Domingo Marmol and DH Ernest Palmer - looks like it should produce more than 702 runs, but the outfield has struggled on offense. Ordonez in CF will be a big upgrade over Enrique Eovaldi runs-wise at the cost of some defense, but this should still be one of the AL's top defenses (.988 fielding % and 95/26 +/- last season).
Prognosis
With their pitching and defense, if these guys can get to 750 runs, watch out AL! 94 wins.
Intriguing Trade
A corner outfield bat could make a huge difference here...their own Peter Stockton (Sea 37 #9) might be the best bet.
weeback
Season 40: 69-93
Season 40 Highs and Lows
Hard to believe we are at the end of the Jin-Chi Itou era. The player who dominated Hobbs for nearly 2 decades and sparked envy among 2 generations of non-Las Vegas Hobbsians is our career leader in home runs (911), runs (2062), RBI (2462), runs created (2587) and slugging % (.637). Everyone make sure you have an appropriate ceremony when Vegas visits for the last time this year.
Biggest Addition and Subtraction
Lost pitchers Yimi Arcia, Ivan Beltre, and Christian Nakamura in FA; replaced then with Bucky Champion and Nolan Rodgers. Promoted Season 38's #4 pick, Greg Stock and Season 39's #1, Willie Taylor.
Season 41 Preview
Stock joins Montgomery's Steve Walsh and Pawtuckett's
Bud Robbins to form the most exciting new generation of 3B's since...well, ever. Taylor could be a 3B in his own right, but for now will settle in as a Gold Glove RF. Those 2, plus Season 40's #1, Eddie Fonville, are the core of LV's future. The 2 rookies will be the best players on an otherwise older but reasonably talented squad. With vets like Jacob Sheldon,
Mule Byrnes and Woody Reagan still swinging potent bats, the Desperados should be able to get their run production up to maybe 770. I wouldn't expect the staff to be much different than last year - 795 runs.
Prognosis
They'll be much improved but short of .500 - 79 wins.
Intriguing Trade
Nothing much on the trade front here, unless they can get something for a vet or 2 at the deadline. Just keep hitting on those good draft picks.
Los Angeles Motley CrueIceman67
Season 40: 85-77, Wild Card, advanced to Division Round and lost to Montgomery
Season 40 Highs and Lows
Their 85 wins were the most since Season 26. In a seldom-used strategy, the Crue won with defense, recording a world-high 120 + plays and a tied-for-world-low 12 - plays. They dominated the post-season Gold Gloves, with 2B Acosta, 3B Rosa, LF DeJesus, and CF Cespedes winning the coveted leather. And for all that picking, they did some reasonable hitting, scoring 738 runs (10th in AL).
Biggest Addition and Subtraction
Only move of any real size was the signing of P Rico Alomar
Season 41 Preview
It's good to see a team win with the innovative, defense-first strategy...wouldn't surprise me if they got as many as 6 GG's in a season (1B Mateo and RF Susac are right at GG-caliber for their positions). 738 runs certainly isn't bad for such a good defense...I'm not sure I'd disrupt the vibe by trading for a better-hitting COF or 3B. SS Ichiro Dong is a conspicuously inept defender in the middle of all those GG's. The sterling defense makes a rather mundane-looking pitching staff way better: Matty Ludwick with a 3.48 ERA? Harold Willis 4.14?
But I'd be a lot more confident they could go deep in the playoffs with a 737-run lineup than with this staff.
Prognosis
They didn't really change anything up, so, 85 wins.
Intriguing Trade
It would fit the theme...as well as address a major weakness to find a top SS. Probably wouldn't take too much to get Humberto Almora out of OK.
Colorado House of Horrorswerniss
Season 40: 77-85
Season 40 Highs and Lows
Despite a roster full of big names and some monster seasons, the H of H couldn't get it together in Season 40, dropping by 14 wins to 77 and missing the playoffs. Probably the biggest win was acquiring Doug Duncan for P Walt Hughes in the preseason. All Duncan did was hit .327 with 62 bombs and 152 RBI. Duncan was joined in the monster season department by several other hitters, and also Sam Stock, who notched 34 wins and a sterling 2.12 ERA in a career-high 208 IP en route to his 9th Cy Young.
Biggest Addition and Subtraction
Hard to pick - it was a busy offseason for the House of Horrors. CF Greg Ward was the costliest departure; either 2B Dante Kawasaki or OF Kelvim Hasegawa the biggest addition.
Season 41 Preview
I don't really know what went wrong in COL last year but I doubt it will happen again. This lineup will be right at 950 runs or beyond again this year...I'd really like to see them plug in a real SS. I'm assuming they're going with Kawasaki at 2B and Hasegawa in LF, with either Hee or Mendoza as the 1B/COF backup, and I'm quite interested to see what new DH Jerry King does after his .382 season in TX last year. The ballpark makes what is actually a good pitching staff look bad (a big part of their bad luck last year were the utterly terrible seasons posted by Juan Martinez and Chad Reid - they will both be much improved). When you look at the ratings of Martinez, Reid, Stock and Aurelio Duran, you've got about 650 innings from ace or near-ace pitchers...the equivalent of 3 ace SP's.
Prognosis
950 runs, more ugly-looking (but much better than last year) pitching numbers, and a playoff berth. Unless they tune up their defense a bit, I don't think they can catch OAK, but 90 wins nonetheless.
Intriguing Trade
Any for a real SS...shouldn't be too hard to swing.
Division Outlook
1. Oakland
2. Colorado
3. Los Angeles
4. Las Vegas
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