BLB Mid-Season Reports - 2021

[Pat]

BLB Mid-Season Reports - 2021

Team:
-Who is your MVP?
-Who/what is your biggest surprise?
-Who/what is your biggest disappointment?
-What are your 2nd half expectations?

League:
-Biggest surprise in BLB?
-Best team in each league?
-Award leaders?
-What are your 2nd half predictions?

[umd]

Team:
-Who is your MVP?
John Cardona and Ron Robertson have statistically been our best players. Every other player underperformed significantly. Cardona now plays for Dallas, Robertson for Toronto.

-Who/what is your biggest surprise?
How terrible we are and how quickly the clubhouse imploded.

-Who/what is your biggest disappointment?
Everyone.

-What are your 2nd half expectations?
Lose as many games as possible.


League:
-Biggest surprise in BLB?
New Orleans and Phoenix

-Best team in each league?
Toronto and Washington

-Award leaders?
No Scorpions

-What are your 2nd half predictions?
We win 78 games and ruin our draft position despite trading every significant player from the roster in typical nonsensical OOTP fashion.

[liquidcrash]

Team:

-Who is your MVP?

• Geoff Yonke. He's been a monster all season, with only a small blip a couple of weeks ago when briefly went cold. He leads us in practically every offensive category and is having a career year. His 5.0 WAR leads all BLB hitters.
• The starting rotation. I don't know who to single out here, but a 2.13 ERA as a group is pretty great.

-Who/what is your biggest surprise?

• I'll go with Dave Honea and Dave Koehler. The two Daves in the rotation. I figured they'd be good, but Honea is having the best season of his career, with a 12-2 record and 1.96 ERA. Koehler has come back to Earth a bit in his past two starts, but he's been much improved in his second season. I wasn't expecting this much from these guys.

-Who/what is your biggest disappointment?

• CJ Turnbow has basically been replaced as my starting 1B, continuing a perplexing downward trend in his career. I sent him to AAA and he won Player of the Week, but that success hasn't translated to any better hitting in the BLB.
• No one at 3B has done well enough to think that they are a long term answer. Bruce Gonzalez was a surprise hit for us last year, but it hasn't continued.

-What are your 2nd half expectations?

• If we stay healthy enough, I think we've got a good shot at winning the division. Baltimore isn't going away, but I like this team and think we can keep this pace if we play to our potential.

League:

-Biggest surprise in BLB?

• Positive - California and Baltimore are both better than I thought going into this season. I thought they'd both be playoff contenders, but right now they're on pace to win 100 games (or come close).
• Negative - I didn't think Seattle would be quite this bad. Death Valley's struggles have been a bit surprising as well.

-Best team in each league?

• In the DL I still like Toronto and Pittsburgh, though obviously CAL is making me rethink it.
• In the IL, I guess we are? Baltimore is right there.

-Award leaders?

• Just a quick look here, but in the DL, I'll go with Stout Slugger- O'Hearn, Pale Ale - McDade.
• IL - Stout Slugger - Yonke or Frederick, Pale Ale- Talley

-What are your 2nd half predictions?

• Playoff teams in the DL - TOR*, CAL*, PIT, NO, WIL, HAR
• IL - WAS*, WC*, BAL, PHO, DEN, BAT
• Fred Frederick sets the HR record

[Pat]

Team:

-Who is your MVP(s)?

• 3B Donnie Benoit. Amongst IL 3B, Benoit ranks 1st in wOBA, 2nd in OPS, 2nd in H, 3rd in WAR, 3rd in TB. The 23-year-old now has 153 BLB starts under his belt and a 4.5 WAR to show for it.
• C Ted Sandy. He is tied for the most home runs by a catcher this season with 13. He's also 2nd in the BLB in defensive efficiency behind the plate.

-Who/what is your biggest surprise?

• IF Dave Hallock - This is reaching here, but Hallock has been a very pleasant surprise through 23 games. For four seasons in Seattle, he was our utility infielder, bouncing around 2B-3B-SS, seeing a lot of starts vs. LHP and at SS for defensive purposes. In his four seasons, his best year here was a 1.1 WAR and .639 OPS in 350 PA. He was cut in July last year, joined the Maine Guide Org and then signed as a minor league FA back in Seattle this Spring. It's a small sample, but he's hitting .338 with a .845 OPS and a .9 WAR.

-Who/what is your biggest disappointment?

• Starting the season 1-12 and the team morale completely collapsing. Seattle surprised a lot of people landing veteran slugger Ricky Murillo in FA and then boasting one of the leagues best Spring Training records. My goal for the year was to be close to .500. After we started the year 1-12, half the team was angry and the morale just got worse.

-What are your 2nd half expectations?

• I think we have a good chance to be better in the 2nd half than the 26-57 first half. We have removed majority of the chemistry issues via trade/waivers and now majority of the roster is happy to be at this level, regardless of W-L record. We won't be as talented but a lot of the roster will be youngsters trying to make a name for themselves. I think we can go something like 34-43, that's a big improvement.

League:

-Biggest surprise in BLB?

• Positive - Easily Hartford. At the mid-way point, only DC, BAL and CAL have more than their 49 wins. With Pittsburgh, Maine, Wilmington and Toronto in the division, along with an improving Syracuse team, I think a lot of people figured they would finish 5th or 6th in the division. They have a chance to win the Ale for the 2nd year in a row! Wow!
• Negative - Besides myself, I would have to Maine. In their franchise history, their worst standing in the division was in 1995, when they finished 4th. And they have only finished that low once. Their worst record ever was in 2015 when they went 76-86. Currently in 6th place in the Ale with a 38-44 record, they are currently on pace for their worst season in franchise history.

-Best team in each league?

• DL - Toronto. Everyone knew they had a chance to be one of the most talented teams in the BLB based on their 2020 season full of youngsters. Then they added Jamie McPherson in FA, one of the best hitters in BLB history. This group is stacked and poised for a deep playoff run.
• IL - Washington. The trade to bring in Yonke combined with the signing of Honea has really made this team something special, again.

-Award leaders?

• Maybe later.

-What are your 2nd half predictions?

• Playoff teams in the DL - TOR*, CAL*, PIT, NO, HAR, WIL
• IL - WAS*, WC*, BAL, PHO, WC, CAR
• TOR vs. DC - Brewmaster's
• Seattle does not pick #1

[Carlos]

BLB Mid-Season Reports - 2021

Team:
-Who is your MVP?
I think it has to be Robby Szymanski. Right now T.J. Scott has a few better counting stats but that's mostly the result of a ridiculous June that not only would have earned him Denver's June MVP, but also earned him IL Hitter of the Month. Szymanski doesn't have anything like that in his resume.

But Szymanski has been the most consistent run-producer on our team. He's among the best hitters in walks, homeruns and RBI. In addition, he's playing average LF which is a real boost to his value. The past couple seasons we've sacrificed offense for defense in left field. Szymanski is letting us get both. Too hard to ignore that.

-Who/what is your biggest surprise?
Let's turn this one over to T.J. Scott. I've always liked Scott and when it came time to decide which outfielder should be sent down to AAA to make room for Szymanski and Ian Thomas, I knew there was no way I could send Scott down. He was too versatile in the outfield, too valuable AND he just had a weird 2020 with 11 doubles, 11 triples and 15 home runs. It was his best season. I had given up on him being a starting caliber player - he lost his job to rookie Ian Thomas - but Scott might be proving me wrong. Maybe we don't need a different right fielder. He's already here, he's only 26 and he might be the best position player not named Izzy from a 2015 draft I once clowned for having the worst performing hitters.

The former Rice Owl might actually be able to point to his head injury in June 1st as the turning point of his career.

-Who/what is your biggest disappointment?
RF Ian Thomas. I thought he was ready to break-through. He had a development bump. He had an amazing Spring. He had the ratings I like. But the BLB isn't always kind to first-year players (ask Ed Zahn). I think there's still a lot of talent in Thomas and his struggles are mostly the result of him needing to adjust to BLB-caliber pitching. He's down in AAA tearing the ball off which is usually a sign to me that he's past that competition. Unfortunately, for Ian Thomas, T.J. Scott grabbed the reins. This might be an Ichikawa / De Arruda situation. If not for a De Arruda injury in 2019 just before he was set to be promoted, Ichikawa doesn't get the chance to prove his value and win the starting 2B job.

Carpe diem.

-What are your 2nd half expectations?
We are essentially right where we were a season ago before getting hot in August and winning 90 games. I like our chances and I think we have enough impact players that are just heating up (Healey, Pelloni) to help boost the offense. Plus Banda is playing well at CF, Collazo has a chance to land the carousel catching job, and Ed Zahn can't possibly hit this bad all year, can he?

League:
-Biggest surprise in BLB?
There are quite a few surprises like Maine's struggles, California's explosion to the top of the standings, but I'm going with Baltimore's similar explosion back to the top of the IL. The Bulldogs missed the playoffs in 2018 and 2019 before returning in 2020 with 87 wins and a first-round exit. Now Dominquez is even better than he was last year; Willie Fajardo looks like a solid number one for them; and their rotation and lineup is producing. It's a nice return for Delandis.

-Best team in each league?
DL - California. Spear is trying, bless his heart, to build a rotation in Toronto but it hasn't happened. California might not have Toronto's offense but it's close and the Kodiak pitching is light years ahead.
IL - Washington because of Yonke and Carroll. Any other year, I say it's Baltimore but even Delandis knows he doesn't have a Yonke and Carroll on his team. Those two are difference makers.

-Award leaders?
DL SS - Mike Morla. Poor O'Hearn. He's always second-best, always in the conversation to be usurped by someone different having a slightly better year. One day.
IL SS - Fred Frederick with Yonke nipping at the heels.
DL Pale Ale - Johnny McDade is Toronto's brightest star in the rotation. But if Hartford wins the division, Pat Goldsmith might be the favorite.
IL Pale Ale - John Talley makes it another former Patriot. But if he slips at all, Ed Carroll will steal his prize.

-What are your 2nd half predictions?
I think we're already looking at our playoff teams. Peek the standings. That's them.
I say Hartford challenges Toronto but the addition of Robertson gives Toronto the help they need.
Wilmington will get hot but Pittsburgh isn't their 7-game losing streak. There's a much better team there.
Baltimore will play with Washington for a while but there will be separation come September.
Phoenix will finally see their pitchers show up and hold off Windy City and Denver.
Carolina will make a valiant effort but fall just short of the wild card.

[Delandis]

baltimore_bulldogs.png




Team: Baltimore Bulldogs


-Who is your MVP?
Right now the obvious choice is 1B D.J. Gosser but I'm going to go with SS Geoff Perritt. Perritt has significantly raised his level of play across the board and is on pace to having a career year. He is leading all IL shortstops in OPS, WAR, TB, ZR and Defensive Efficiency. Make no mistake, Perritt is one of the offensive team leaders and we go as far as he takes us.

-Who/what is your biggest surprise?
Our biggest surprise would have to be veteran catcher, Willie Lara. While we fully expected him to have great defense and work well with our pitchers, he's also hitting .316 on the season with 9 home runs. The 9 home runs stat is very impressive considering the fact that he platoons the position with teammate, J.J. Hanson. Also his reputation behind the plate must precede him as only 6 guys in over 460 innings of play have even attempted a steal on Lara this year. Four of those guys didn't make to second.

-Who/what is your biggest disappointment?
That would have to SP Jaylin Byrd. Byrd is usually a subtly efficient workhorse for us but this year has struggled quite a bit out of the gate. His leash is getting shorter and may soon find himself replaced, moved to the bullpen or maybe even demoted. I have at least three guys begging for the opportunity in AAA so he needs to get his ass in gear quickly.

-What are your 2nd half expectations?
Following the injury to OF C.J. Stripling, I'm just not sure our offense has the same firepower. We added veteran OF Oscar Sanchez from Seattle to replace the 20 year old Phoenix native, but I'm not sure that's going to be enough to maintain the pace we had before. Barring any other major injuries, I do think we can hold on to the #1 Wildcard in the IL but with the lovable losers of Baltimore, even that is no definite eventuality.

League:
-Biggest surprise in BLB?
-I'd have to go with Dallas. I thought they would continue their dominance in the Lager, but that isn't happening. Shark is signing every 1st baseman in the league to make a 2nd half push back to the top of the Lager, but with the emergence of California and the consistency of New Orleans, I'm not sure if it will be enough.

-Best team in each league?
DL: Cali
IL: I'm going to go the controversial route, and say I think Baltimore is the best TEAM in the IL. Now it is obvious that Washington has the most talent, but with what this team has accomplished so far as a sum greater than its parts, I honestly think we are the best team in the IL.

-Award leaders?
IL PA: Carroll (WAS)
IL SS: Fredrick (BAT), while I do believe Yonke should win.
IL NB: Maravella (DAV)

DL NB: Park (SYK)
DL SS: O'Hearn (PIT)
IL PA: McDade (TOR)

-What are your 2nd half predictions?
-DL Playoff Teams: TOR*, CAL*, HAR, NO, PIT, DAL
-IL Playoff Teams: BAL*, PHO*, WAS, WC, NY, DEN

[Pat]

Good reads so far.

Anyone else?

[Matt]

Batavia Muck...er Rough Riders



We sit 41-40 during our rebuilding/reloading year. Since we don't have the prospects or any money we really aren't doing either of those things but it gives the fans something to hope for.

-Who is your MVP?

Fred Frederick.

.307/.348/.635 with 31 HR and 65 RBI. Our pitching has been horrible, the rest of our lineup has struggled, yet Frederick keeps winning games for us.

-Who/what is your biggest surprise?

Jimmy Shaw got to pitch a little in the BLB last season but this year he has a 2.41 ERA and 1.05 WHIP. Sadly he's 5-7 because our team is so bad.

-Who/what is your biggest disappointment?

Tom Ackers hitting .238 with 9 HR's. He hit 30 last season. Ian Clark is 3-7 with a 4.02 ERA. The bullpen was a huge strength of ours the last few years, this season they have a 4.25 ERA and are 11th in the IL.

-What are your 2nd half expectations?

The struggle is real in Batavia. I don't think we'll finish .500 or make the playoffs. Our young guys are really sucking it up. SS Colin Carter (24 yo) is hitting .247...3B Pat Barker (23 yo) is hitting .217...2B Alex Aymond (23 yo) is hitting .189 and hasn't taken to 2B at all. Should I have thrown them all into the fire. Probably not. Hoping a year or two in the BLB under legendary hitting coach Zach Carter really helps them down the road.


League

-Biggest surprise in BLB?

I love the new top teams in the league. Toronto, Hartford, California, Phoenix, Windy City and a few others. It's good to see new blood. Weather it was building through the draft or adding those extra pieces via trade or FA it's good to see and great for the league.

-Best team in each league?

Cali and Washington. Cali will have a fight to win the DL with Toronto and a few others, Washington could walk away with the IL. They have no one on par with them.

-Award leaders?

Washington wins every award...let Frederick have his due!

[Z]

I wanted to wait until the All-Star break to chime in.

Maine Guides:

Who is your MVP?

Newly minted superstar third baseman Izzy Rivera carried the club for much of the season's first half. He leads the Domestic League in wins above replacement (WAR) while placing sixth in batting average, seventh in on-base-plus-slugging (OPS), fifth in hits, second in runs batted in, and fifth in total places. Rivera does all those things at the plate while providing good defense at the hot corner.

Who/what is your biggest surprise?

Tom Calligan ascending to top of the rotation starter and 2021 All-Star qualifies as the biggest first half surprise in Maine. Calligan holds an 8-4 record with a 2.43 ERA. Notably he allowed only three home runs in 118 1/3 innings before the All-Star break.

Edwin Alderdice, signed to fill in a right field platoon with Zachary Oldham in the absence of Steve Suarez, surprised in a good way as well. In 68 plate appearances against right-handed pitchers, Alderdice gave a .322 batting average with an .869 OPS while providing positive value with his glove. He even has nine walks to only five strikeouts in his 77 Guides plate appearances. Arriving on a small contract after being discarded by New Orleans, his presence helps us stay afloat amidst the injuries.

Who/what is your biggest disappointment?

The rest of the rotation around Calligan disappointed the most thus far. Injuries knocked out Jimmy West along with starter/closer Dave Haugh and top pitching prospect Willie Olivas. Longtime steady starter Dave Toste struggled with his command in the first half. Big Game Bill Eddy saw his control come and go, especially in June when he walked 16 batters in 34 1/3 innings. Other top pitching prospect, the reacquired Ted Adamo, pitched capably 13 starts, though not up to normal Guides standards for the fourth spot in the rotation.

What are your 2nd half expectations?

The Guides sit five games out of the final Wild Card spot. I expect the club to push for its fifth consecutive playoff berth. The recent acquisitions of closer Dusty Riddleberger and catcher Vinny Flores can help provide a boost.

League:

Biggest surprise in BLB?

Seeing umd- and Pat-run clubs sitting at the bottom of the league standings surprises me. It looks disconcerting to see them there.

Phoenix's rise to the top of that Bock division caught me off guard. Given they played mediocre baseball in Los Alamos in the past two seasons while trading away stars like Rod Sedivec and Geoff Yonke, watching this club rally around its young core of hitters like Josh Chandler, Erik Colgate, Dusty Black, Joey Kane, and Tom Antonietti provides refreshment to the league.

Best team in each league?

California looks like the best team in the Domestic League at the break. 26 year old superstar second baseman Mike Morla gets better every year. 23 year old Dave Rizer, a former third round pick playing in his first full BLB season, looks like one of the game's premier first basemen now as he smacks right-handers for a .354 batting average while handling every ball in his area. Another 23 year old, third baseman Ron DeCicco, adds another strong left-handed bat to the Kodiaks' lineup. While their group of pitchers lacks star power, they boast a number of good young arms.

Washington continues to shine atop the Stout division, which they look to claim for the third consecutive season. Geoff Yonke dominates as expected in his first complete year as a Bat. Jamie Urmson looks happy to be back in Washington after a year away. Their lineup scores a lot of runs and their pitchers allow few. The game's most complete team plays ball in the nation's capital.

Award leaders?

Pass.

What are your 2nd half predictions?

1) I anticipate Windy City finishing the year in the Bock's number one slot. The Blues have a good balance of skill on their club and they still have their best baseball ahead of them.

2) Dave Honea becomes the first BLB pitcher to finish with 25 wins since Hall of Famer Teagan Corrigan in 1981.

[Carlos]

Biggest surprise in BLB?

Import League batters combined for a total of only 11 triples before the All-Star break. First basemen, shockingly, account for ten of those triples. Ed Zahn, also listed as a first baseman, hit the other one while playing left field that day.
.

Am I missing what you mean by This?

There is way more than 11 triples in the IL. Denver alone leads with 28. And first baseman don't account for half of them.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk

[Z]

Am I missing what you mean by This?

There is way more than 11 triples in the IL. Denver alone leads with 28. And first baseman don't account for half of them.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk

Oh.

I probably fucked up and had a filter on. My bad.

I'll delete it.