SIM COMPLETE - 1992 - SIM 1

[Jake]

Jose Guzman and Roger Morgan both hit #2000 this SIM.

Either on the path to the Hall of Fame?

Discuss!

Guzman yes, Morgan no chance IMO. Guy really only had two great years.

[funclown]

Guzman yes, Morgan no chance IMO. Guy really only had two great years.

Agree about Morgan. Just a decent hitter and nothing more.

[Carlos]

I'm gonna vote for him. Just because.

[Matt]

Baltimore Bulldogs (5-1, T-1st in Porter)

3-0 vs. MOR
2-1 vs. VIR

Some guys much wiser than I said, "its not how you start but how you finish." All due respect to those guys, but I hate digging holes that I have to crawl out of.

The Week in Review

- O'Moore for Prez: Despite the lingering sadness of leaving the team that he won 5 championships with, O'Moore is showing that he still has the fire to win. In two starts, Gil has two wins, a 1.38 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 14 strikeouts.

- Kyoden the Conqueror: Kyoden has been placed in the cleanup spot for the time being and hasn't missed a beat. The 28 year old catcher had a .480 OBP for the week. His addition allows Wallace to comfortable enjoy the 3 spot as both Kubota and Wallace hit .400 for the week.

- Is It Real Or Is It Memorex: We brought out the broom for a young Morgantown squad and won 2 of 3 against the mighty Colonials. Its a long season and anything can happen, but 3 games with only 5 hits, and 5 ER and 5 BB IN PHILLIPS FIELD, is quite an accomplishment against any BLB squad. I don't believe I have EVER seen a stat line like that for or against any opponent in my 8.5 years in Baltimore.

Other News
- Curt Boyd quietly played well in the first week of the regular season. A .343/.389/.649 line is very nice, but where I am more impressed with Boyd is the timeliness of his hits. A return to form for this defensive wizard could go a long way towards solidifying our infield's offensive production.



The Injured
NONE (fingers crossed)

Next

Another early litmus test will be conducted next week, as we host the Stout's other half, Wilmington and Washington. The Wildcats, aside from last year, are always a true test for us with their power lineup feasting in Phillips Field. When facing Washington, we may likely see their starting rotational aces, Toapanta and Tucker. I'd like to see how we fair against this level of talent early.


Predictions: 2-1 vs. WIL / 2-1 vs WAS.

Are we playing the exact same schedule? Maybe we can carpool. The Cessna is getting crowded!

[Carlos]

Looking at the two men with the greatest chance of becoming all-time saves leaders (Diaz and Bayer) and comparing them to Old Blue (542 saves).

Through 28-years-of-age, Adrian Diaz (now 29) collected 223 saves.

Ken Bayer, through the same age, has amassed 177 saves.

To make it clear how impressive those men need to pitch in the second half of their careers, Vernon Simmonds rounded up 373 saves by the time he was 28.

As for the men closest to Simmonds, most are retired and guys like Wayne Van Slyke (389 saves), Joe Alveraz (301) and Brian Harharan (298) are very old and aren't even the primary closers on their current teams. The active player with the second most saves, Kenshin Krsnich (406), is now setting up Old Blue Simmonds.

It's just an interesting thing to note because Vernon Simmonds did not suffer from being an old all-time great closer. His career started in 1978 and he was 20-years-old. There may not be another closer like him. Definitely looking forward to seeing him wearing a Windy City cap in the Hall.

edit: Looked a bit deeper to see if anyone is on the track toward surpassing Simmonds by starting early and being great at a young age.

Virginia's Ivan Olivo has second most saves by age 23 with 82. (Simmonds, 148).
Adrian Diaz by age 24 with 84, Olivia 82. (Simmonds, 177).

Ivan Olivo could find himself on pace to at least surpass Diaz and Bayer. He'll need 40 saves this season to be at Diaz's pace by the time he was 25.

[Clay]

Those early seasons had amazing save stats. Not as out of control as the steals, but there were some monster save numbers. Simmonds is a stud. It'll take someone with JJ Black like skill landing on a good team to really get into the conversation.

[liquidcrash]

Simmonds sucks. Cabezas was the man.

[Jistic]

Cabezas couldn't hold Old Blue's jock. Simmons was great at 21 and picking up close to 50 saves. he'll be hard to catch. I think Colm Engle is gonna be a dominant closer for a long time, but he's "already" 24. None of these guys are gonna catch Simmmonds.

[Carlos]

Those early seasons had amazing save stats. Not as out of control as the steals, but there were some monster save numbers. Simmonds is a stud. It'll take someone with JJ Black like skill landing on a good team to really get into the conversation.

The steals numbers are likely because of league settings, too many fast guys, not enough great catchers with arms, OOTP. The such. Things I'm sure we all already know and acknowledge. To make sense of it in the BLB world we'll just say that there were a bunch of guys running like maniacs.

Saves, however, are pure circumstance. I'm not sure what has to change to decrease saves especially when starters today are throwing less innings in our league.

Perhaps there were more pitchers going into the 8th and giving their closer a nice three run lead, whereas today we're letting bullpens blow leads before the closer comes in? I don't know for sure. Would be interesting to run some studies.