Detroit Wolverines
Last season: 89-73, NL North Champs, Lost in 1st Round of Playoffs to Richmond
Management came out yesterday with a bold statement declaring the Detroit Wolverines
S13 champs. We’ve always had a solid club but feel like the moves this off-season
will give us a legitimate chance at going deep into the playoffs and getting that trophy
out of Charlotte.
Key Losses: Setup Pitcher Ronald Berger, 3B Buster Wiggins, SP Julio Johnson, and 1B
Eddie Sanford
Key Additions: 1B Michael Maddux, 2B Julian Cortes, CF Bernie Ortiz, Cl Bernard
Townsend
Big trades were made this offseason, giving up 61 HR and 164 RBI of production from
a team that was barely above average last season in batting, along with a SP who is
1 game shy from totaling up 100 wins. So why does management feel so strongly?
Even though booze flows freely in the offices of Detroit, we managed to add 113 HR
and 337 RBI to our lineup while also giving us flexibility at positions defensively.
We now can put out a lineup that features 4 players hitting 30+ HR with another
2 hitting 20+. Our pitching has always been good (4th last season in ERA in the
majors) so giving up one SP shouldn’t hurt us as we should be greatly improved on
the offensive side. We also managed to talk S12 save leader Bernard Townsend away
from a 4 year deal, which we would have let him walk if he insisted, instead inking
him to a one year deal to close out games again. We did trade away some young
players in an effort to make a strong push for the next few seasons but we feel this is
one of the best teams Detroit has put together.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Iowa City Preview
Key players added SP Mel Reed, Closer PT Lind, and Setup Justin Ward
Key Players Lost None
Rookies Orel Raines
Preview With management and ownership in question due to too many loses last season Iowa needs to put a halt on losing. Hitting wasn;t a problem last season but holding leads was so we went out and got a new closer in PT Lind and a new setup man in Justin Ward giving us depth at the setup position a new starter in Mel Reed and hopefully this will add up to more wins less loses and an ownership that doesn't get kicked out of the league LOL
Key Players Lost None
Rookies Orel Raines
Preview With management and ownership in question due to too many loses last season Iowa needs to put a halt on losing. Hitting wasn;t a problem last season but holding leads was so we went out and got a new closer in PT Lind and a new setup man in Justin Ward giving us depth at the setup position a new starter in Mel Reed and hopefully this will add up to more wins less loses and an ownership that doesn't get kicked out of the league LOL
Syracuse Preview
Syracuse Orange
Key Players Lost: Former Cy Young Winner: Charles Carlyle. He was key a few years ago, but not last season.
Key Players Added: None.
The Syracuse Orange is, one again, the Syracuse Orange you know and love. I’ve had so many high salaries and not many draft good draft picks lately. So we’ve been pretty much tied into the guys we’ve had. We have a decent bullpen and more coming. So the biggest change this year is moving Roosevelt Loux back into the rotation. He’s got 143 wins and 168 saves. He’s only at most a 6 inning starter, but we’ll give it a shot. If he does well, the rotation should be nice. We need a bounce back season from Jose Barrios (9-11 4.00). And WIS has a way of doing that it seems.
We won’t beat Charlotte in the race unless something weird happens. We think we have a strong chance at the wild card,from there we’ll see.
If we completely suck, I might be ready to begin making some moves so stay close people!
Key Players Lost: Former Cy Young Winner: Charles Carlyle. He was key a few years ago, but not last season.
Key Players Added: None.
The Syracuse Orange is, one again, the Syracuse Orange you know and love. I’ve had so many high salaries and not many draft good draft picks lately. So we’ve been pretty much tied into the guys we’ve had. We have a decent bullpen and more coming. So the biggest change this year is moving Roosevelt Loux back into the rotation. He’s got 143 wins and 168 saves. He’s only at most a 6 inning starter, but we’ll give it a shot. If he does well, the rotation should be nice. We need a bounce back season from Jose Barrios (9-11 4.00). And WIS has a way of doing that it seems.
We won’t beat Charlotte in the race unless something weird happens. We think we have a strong chance at the wild card,from there we’ll see.
If we completely suck, I might be ready to begin making some moves so stay close people!
Portland Preview
Portland Ducks
Key Player Added: Ajax Brown has been signed to replace the lost of Damon on the FA market.
Key Player Lost: Otis Damon and Einar Arias
Key Transaction: None
Rookies: We may see Harold Santangelo or Ricardo Mota playing at 1B in the bigs. Also, Earl Levrault could be promote to the ML at the start of the season. If the Ducks need some replacement in his pitching rotation, Gary Frey could be the man. Frey will start the season in the AAA, but who knows.
Outlook: The heart of the team is almost the same, but we could see some young guys making their debuts in the ML this season. The Ducks are in need of a 1B, but no decision has been taken at the moment. Does a young guy will be called up or a free agent will be signed?
The Ducks had to replace Otis Damon because he wanted to try the free agent market. The Ducks decided to not bid on him thinking that it would be a bidding war, but it seems that few teams were interested. Ajax Brown has been signed to take a spot in the rotation.
The Ducks’s rotation should be something like this: Vic Keefe (16-9, 3.08), Alvin Barnes (14-8, 3.72), Ajax Brown (7-5, 4.64), Joe Creek (12-11, 3.96) and Pat Gibbons (9-12, 4.43). Therefore, Clayton Brunette (4-5, 3.23) may be use as starter if someone doesn’t satisfied the team’s owner.
Richard Vanguri will still be the designate closer for the Ducks, unless things are going bad for him.
The Ducks are still looking for a division title, but making the playoffs will be the ultimate goal this season.
Key Player Added: Ajax Brown has been signed to replace the lost of Damon on the FA market.
Key Player Lost: Otis Damon and Einar Arias
Key Transaction: None
Rookies: We may see Harold Santangelo or Ricardo Mota playing at 1B in the bigs. Also, Earl Levrault could be promote to the ML at the start of the season. If the Ducks need some replacement in his pitching rotation, Gary Frey could be the man. Frey will start the season in the AAA, but who knows.
Outlook: The heart of the team is almost the same, but we could see some young guys making their debuts in the ML this season. The Ducks are in need of a 1B, but no decision has been taken at the moment. Does a young guy will be called up or a free agent will be signed?
The Ducks had to replace Otis Damon because he wanted to try the free agent market. The Ducks decided to not bid on him thinking that it would be a bidding war, but it seems that few teams were interested. Ajax Brown has been signed to take a spot in the rotation.
The Ducks’s rotation should be something like this: Vic Keefe (16-9, 3.08), Alvin Barnes (14-8, 3.72), Ajax Brown (7-5, 4.64), Joe Creek (12-11, 3.96) and Pat Gibbons (9-12, 4.43). Therefore, Clayton Brunette (4-5, 3.23) may be use as starter if someone doesn’t satisfied the team’s owner.
Richard Vanguri will still be the designate closer for the Ducks, unless things are going bad for him.
The Ducks are still looking for a division title, but making the playoffs will be the ultimate goal this season.
Huntington Preview
Huntington Thundering Herd
After finishing last season with an 87-75 record which was good for 3rd in the South, Huntington’s management once again did not rest on their laurels. 5.0 games out of a playoff spot will do that to a person. The offense was 4th in the NL in runs scored, and the defense was tied for 1st…but it came down to pitching which finished 10th in the NL in ERA.
Key Losses:
3B Bernie Ortiz, 1B Michael Maddux, RF Marc Everhart, 2B Julian Cortes, C Matty Johnson, SPs Artie Hinch, Frank Tamura, Mel Reed, Terry Simmons, RPs Pinky Matheson, David Cox, Allen Guerrero
Key Additions:
RF Clay Lavarnway, C Ron Montgomery, SS Anthony Myers, 2B Rich Perry, LF Eddie Sandford, 3B Buster Wiggins, SPs Julio Johnson, Don Martin, Don Holt, Daniel Mullens, RPs Hector Uribe, Austin Byrne, Ronald Berger, Bartolo Lugo
Outlook:
Enough is enough and management made a huge investment in improving the team pitching this season. 4 pitchers return from last season, while 4 position players return as well. It isn’t often that a team loses 166 HRs from their offense, but actually feels better about their team going into the season. This is due to the fact that the pitching staff went from a collection of #3 and #4 pitchers, to a true staff, with an ace and a group of #2’s. While the team may not be as strong defensively this season, offensively we should not suffer too terribly much. The excitement is building for phenom Jeremy Livingstone’s debut as the full-time closer. For the first time in a long time Huntington presents a true ace in Julio Johnson. This team is still built for power as 10 players topped double-digits in HRs while 9 players knocked in 50+ runs. This is a do-or-die season for this team as only 6 players are signed past this season.
After finishing last season with an 87-75 record which was good for 3rd in the South, Huntington’s management once again did not rest on their laurels. 5.0 games out of a playoff spot will do that to a person. The offense was 4th in the NL in runs scored, and the defense was tied for 1st…but it came down to pitching which finished 10th in the NL in ERA.
Key Losses:
3B Bernie Ortiz, 1B Michael Maddux, RF Marc Everhart, 2B Julian Cortes, C Matty Johnson, SPs Artie Hinch, Frank Tamura, Mel Reed, Terry Simmons, RPs Pinky Matheson, David Cox, Allen Guerrero
Key Additions:
RF Clay Lavarnway, C Ron Montgomery, SS Anthony Myers, 2B Rich Perry, LF Eddie Sandford, 3B Buster Wiggins, SPs Julio Johnson, Don Martin, Don Holt, Daniel Mullens, RPs Hector Uribe, Austin Byrne, Ronald Berger, Bartolo Lugo
Outlook:
Enough is enough and management made a huge investment in improving the team pitching this season. 4 pitchers return from last season, while 4 position players return as well. It isn’t often that a team loses 166 HRs from their offense, but actually feels better about their team going into the season. This is due to the fact that the pitching staff went from a collection of #3 and #4 pitchers, to a true staff, with an ace and a group of #2’s. While the team may not be as strong defensively this season, offensively we should not suffer too terribly much. The excitement is building for phenom Jeremy Livingstone’s debut as the full-time closer. For the first time in a long time Huntington presents a true ace in Julio Johnson. This team is still built for power as 10 players topped double-digits in HRs while 9 players knocked in 50+ runs. This is a do-or-die season for this team as only 6 players are signed past this season.
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