SIM COMPLETE - 1991 - SIM 4

[Lintyfresh85]

Somehow we have the second-lowest ERA in the DL. Behind some very solid pitching, Sin City goes 5-1 this week to move into a tie for first in the Lager. Unfortunately, O'Finegan was lost for the next four weeks with a strained rib cage muscle, which means Rule V pickup Brad Byers will be in for a bump in playing time. I'm starting to think offense is going to be a problem this year, especially in the OF. That weakness has our front office pondering a variety of moves.

By the way - anyone know how I can slot a guy to get the majority of PH at bats? I don't have Roger Dieter slotted into any backup fielding positions because he's not that great defensively, but the game absolutely refuses to use him as a PH. Is there a way to get him into games other than putting him in a backup fielding spot? Didn't there used to be a screen on an older version where you could rank PHs in the order you wanted them used? Or did I just imagine that?

Short answer is no. Long answer is you could always cut the guys that are currently in head of him and hope he starts picking up at-bats when you replace them with lower rated guys.

[Carlos]

There's an offense in Denver.

[Andrew]

I'm glad Tino Suarez finally decided to show up. Great first month for Guides rookie Don Robison.

[Jim]

Hey Dallas...you suck.

Just for that I'm cheering for the Rays.

Sorry, I rarely check the waivers and happened to see Escarcaga available very cheap and with high popularity. Since we don't even have 10 wins yet, I need players to get the fans to the games.

Thanks for the donation!

[Lintyfresh85]

California Kodiaks (14-12; 3rd in the Porter)

1-1 vs. Baltimore
2-0 at Batavia
3-0 vs. Virginia

Solid week for the Kodiaks. Still not happy with the bullpen, but the team played well when it needed to most.

The Good
- Robby Shannon hit .417 for the week. Limited power, but I can't deny the big man is a steady force in the Kodiaks lineup.

- Jose Compres continues to hit like its his job. Another week, another 10+ hits. Can't ask for much more.

- Hector Sanchez, a bright spot, if you can call it that in our bullpen was Sanchez this week. Three saves in three chances. It's not pretty, but he's somehow getting the job done (mostly).

The Bad
- Curt Godwin turned in a pair of crappy games in his two starts this week. He's perfectly fine as a #5, but he's got to cut down on his walks.

-Lucio Mendez may be the world's best fielding SS, but the man just cannot hit. If he keeps it up for another week or two, I may have to give former Denver Bull Kip Higgins a shot at the job.

-Walks. Last year I led the league in strikeouts, and lowest amount of walks allowed. This year we're second in strikeouts, but have fallen all the way to fourth in walks allowed. Have to tighten that area up.

The Injured
-Seems about half of my minor leagues is banged up right now. Hopefully we can get some guys back in the coming sims.

Next
-It's Stout week as we first travel to Wilmington for three games and then host Washington at home for a three game series.

[Jake]

Joe Gauina got shelled. 6 ER in less than 2 innings. Our pitching overall is just mediocre, and that's gotta improve or we're going to let Pedro Zamarida win the division.

[Pat]

Washington Bats - SIM 4 - (17-9; 1st)
2-0 @ Morgantown: W 8-0, W 2-0
1-1 vs. Virginia: L 1-10, W 8-7
1-2 vs. Davenport: L 2-5, L 0-1, W 6-5
Eh. 4-3. I should have taken care of business against the Brawlers....I was lucky to split versus the Colonials...and the Mohawks...well, they are still the Mohawks.

The Good
Two starts this week for Tommy Lang. 16 IP, 8 H, 1 ER, 11 K, no walks. Sadly, he went 1-1.

The Bad
Just a rough week. Didn't hit well. Didn't pitch well, outside of Lang and Carlton. When my team can be missing this many key players (MAP, Abbott, Fitz) to injury, and the team plays this poor overall, to go 4-3, feels good.

The Transactions
Two under the radar moves by the Washington Bats. First, the signing of George McSwain, formely of Virginia. The 35-year-old lefty has been out with Tommy John surgery for the past eight months and still has a few weeks of recovery left but at $350k (less after being prorated), I'll take the risk that he still has something left in the tank. Plus, he was anxious to sign in the division so he can prove to Virginia his career isn't over.

Second move was the claim of Shaw Barnes from Batavia. The 21st overall pick of the 1981 draft hit .278, with an .855 OPS, including 19 homeruns in just 112 games in '89. However, last season he struggled. This year, after a solid Spring Training, Batavia put him through waivers. I'm not sure what to expect, but my scout thinks he has the best power bat in my entire organization. Because of injuries, he will start in LF versus RH pitching.

What's Next?
Three vs. Philly (2-1?) and three @ California....won't be easy....

[Jim]

The highlight of this sim was a contract extension for Brode. I've been trying to extend him for a while now and he was finally willing to sign long term. It was more than I wanted to pay, especially when looking at Magness' contract, but I ended up giving in and going with it. Hopefully it pays off.

[Ryan]

The highlight of this sim was a contract extension for Brode. I've been trying to extend him for a while now and he was finally willing to sign long term. It was more than I wanted to pay, especially when looking at Magness' contract, but I ended up giving in and going with it. Hopefully it pays off.

I've noticed that with OOTP 11: Extended Delay 2.0, signing arby eligible guys to extentions is a bit tougher in that they want big money early. No Evan Longoria deals to be found here.

[Carlos]

Joe Gauina got shelled. 6 ER in less than 2 innings. Our pitching overall is just mediocre, and that's gotta improve or we're going to let Pedro Zamarida win the division.

The old man from Rocky Top has spoken.

[Jim]

My problem with Brode is he kept just wanting 1 year deals. I kept trying for 5, with a 6th year team option. He finally countered with a 6 year, $12.5/yr option. I could've shot lower, but went with it, because I had similar issues with Quintero and when just trying to save a few hundred thousand per year with him, he ended up deciding to stop negotiating. Lesson learned.

[Pat]

My problem with Brode is he kept just wanting 1 year deals. I kept trying for 5, with a 6th year team option. He finally countered with a 6 year, $12.5/yr option. I could've shot lower, but went with it, because I had similar issues with Quintero and when just trying to save a few hundred thousand per year with him, he ended up deciding to stop negotiating. Lesson learned.

Something I have avoided with a lot of players. I'd rather pay them the extra cash then run the risk of him bolting in FA.

Of course, I do have a huge....budget.

[Delandis]

Same thing with Ivan Garcia. I gave him 3 yr / 20 mil and he declined but jumped at the 1 yr deal.

By the way, Washington is looking good there Carlos.

[Delandis]

Baltimore Bulldogs (15-11; 3 GB-2nd Place)

1-1 at California
1-1 vs. Philadelphia
3-0 at Chicago

A promising 5-2 week which probably should have been 6-1. In Game 1 at In-and-Out Field, we jumped out to an early 4-0 lead. Young pitcher, Lonnie Grady, slipped up and gave up a 2-run home run in the bottom of the six, which cut the lead to 4-3. Then in the bottom of the eighth, Grady gives up 3 more runs, as our manager decides to not allow any relievers to come in and try and close things out. I was pretty upset to see that with a 4-3 lead in the 8th.

Other than that mishap and the late game dismantling that occurred on May 1st, 1991 in Baltimore, I was pleased with our performance. Our pitching looks decent and despite our relatively lackluster plate performance last week, we still went 5-2 so I shouldn't complain at all.

The Good
- Wallace won the first IL Batter of the Month Award for 1991. He has also moved up to the #9 Top Batter in the BLB. He only hit .208 last week, but he still had an OBP of over .400, with 8 walks. Nobody wants to pitch to him anymore.

- Who leads our team in home runs? Wallace? George? Campo?
None of those guys. The Answer: Don Castor. He has five homers in just 38 AB. Yes, it may be time to let him loose.

- Ok. It looks like JJG just had to get those early poor performances out of his system. Last sim, he went 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA and 15 innings. This is what a #1 pitcher's line should look like.

-Right behind JJG was the performance of Lonnie Grady. He's been begging to close out games, but after a couple more dominant games, I think he'll see that he should be starting games. 1-0 with a 2.35 ERA, .91 WHIP, 15.3 innings with 11 K's, the Grady-Washington deal is working out well for both sides.

The Bad
- Joe McMonies. In five relief appearances, he gave up 11 hits, 10 runs, and 3 home runs in just under 4 innings. This is unacceptable, but we are still on the hook for 6 million this year and 6 million next. Hopefully, this just a slow start from him.

The Injured
No injuries to report.

Next
-We head back home to host to face the Bock's respective 1st and 2nd place teams, Davenport and Carolina.

[Carlos]

Same thing with Ivan Garcia. I gave him 3 yr / 20 mil and he declined but jumped at the 1 yr deal.

By the way, Washington is looking good there Carlos.

Players jump at 1 year deals, I've noticed. They are clever too. You could offer more money over 4 years then they want for three years and then say, why don't you give me that 4 year salary in just one year. And you're like, wait? that's more than you asked for previously!

Anyway, yes Washington is hitting well right now. I do predict he'll be back to his All-Star form.

As for Lonnie Grady: my expert opinion is he should have stayed in AAA for the remainder of last year. He struggled. But he looks like he's showing some improvement. He's going to be a fine pitcher, but he looks like one of those that will need a season or two in the show before fully getting it. (ie: Look at Donnie Greene. He might actually be figuring it out finally).