OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - The Federal Baseball League: Rebirth of a Franchise

ifspuds · 03-21-2008, 10:58 AM

1941: Smoke and Mirrors

Team Record: 49-51, tied for 3rd, 8 games back
Top Pitcher: Cole Phillips (14-15, 4.10 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 1.52 K/9, 2.58 BB/9)
Top Hitter: Allen Reid (.342/.416/.465, 3 HR, 68 RBI)
Awards: Glove Wizard: Allen Reid (2B, 2nd award)

Glimmers of hope appeared for the fledgling Rainiers franchise. The team's record improved. 20-year old keystoner Allen Reid broke out, ranking among the league leaders in a number of offensive categories and added a 2nd straight fielding award to his trophy case. The offense continued to score runs in bunches, though a lack of power significantly hampered the team: no player hit more than 9 home runs, and extra base hits were hard to come by. What about Brooks Gilbert, who'd pounded 36 longballs the season before? Gilbert fell back to a .268/.365/.433, 7 HR line and no one stepped up to be that big run producer. In hindsight, it's hard to figure out just how the Rainiers scored 5.5 runs a game, ranking 2nd in the league. They had the lowest average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage in the league and were middle of the pack in other categories. Left fielder Jackson James (.268/.314/.434, 9 HR, 54 RBI, 23 SB) looked like a potential cornerstone of the team at age 25, and catcher Tony Brady was well on his way to an outstanding season until he was shipped off to Portland in return for pitcher Eddie Walter.

Ahhh... pitching. The achilles heel of the team once again. Walters helped, to be sure, and he would go on to be a rock in the rotation in future seasons, but like 1940, the Rainiers staff was dismal at best, completely miserable at worst. One only has to look at their best pitcher of the '41 campaign, Cole Phillips to recognize just what was wrong with this team: Phillips walked far more batters than he struck out, and he wasn't exactly getting guys to make outs when they did make contact. Team management continued to insist that the pitching would get better, but the fans weren't buying it. As the novelty of the team wore off, fewer fans were coming to the ballpark. Still, the braintrust wasn't too worried, yet. It was a young team, relatively cheap to run, and with dedicated ownership committed to standing behind the franchise, they could afford to look toward the future.

03-21-2008, 10:58 AM	#4 (permalink)
ifspuds Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 2,076	1941: Smoke and Mirrors 1941: Smoke and Mirrors Team Record: 49-51, tied for 3rd, 8 games back Top Pitcher: Cole Phillips (14-15, 4.10 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 1.52 K/9, 2.58 BB/9) Top Hitter: Allen Reid (.342/.416/.465, 3 HR, 68 RBI) Awards: Glove Wizard: Allen Reid (2B, 2nd award) Glimmers of hope appeared for the fledgling Rainiers franchise. The team's record improved. 20-year old keystoner Allen Reid broke out, ranking among the league leaders in a number of offensive categories and added a 2nd straight fielding award to his trophy case. The offense continued to score runs in bunches, though a lack of power significantly hampered the team: no player hit more than 9 home runs, and extra base hits were hard to come by. What about Brooks Gilbert, who'd pounded 36 longballs the season before? Gilbert fell back to a .268/.365/.433, 7 HR line and no one stepped up to be that big run producer. In hindsight, it's hard to figure out just how the Rainiers scored 5.5 runs a game, ranking 2nd in the league. They had the lowest average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage in the league and were middle of the pack in other categories. Left fielder Jackson James (.268/.314/.434, 9 HR, 54 RBI, 23 SB) looked like a potential cornerstone of the team at age 25, and catcher Tony Brady was well on his way to an outstanding season until he was shipped off to Portland in return for pitcher Eddie Walter. Ahhh... pitching. The achilles heel of the team once again. Walters helped, to be sure, and he would go on to be a rock in the rotation in future seasons, but like 1940, the Rainiers staff was dismal at best, completely miserable at worst. One only has to look at their best pitcher of the '41 campaign, Cole Phillips to recognize just what was wrong with this team: Phillips walked far more batters than he struck out, and he wasn't exactly getting guys to make outs when they did make contact. Team management continued to insist that the pitching would get better, but the fans weren't buying it. As the novelty of the team wore off, fewer fans were coming to the ballpark. Still, the braintrust wasn't too worried, yet. It was a young team, relatively cheap to run, and with dedicated ownership committed to standing behind the franchise, they could afford to look toward the future. __________________ Jeff Watson TWB (co-commissioner): Pittsburgh Pirates GM (team dynasty here, #5 Dynasty of 2005!) (TWB Champs 1966, 1967, 1973, NL Champs 1968, NL East Champs 1969, NL Champs 1970, 1971 NPBL: Illinois Jethawks GM Outpost League: A Fictional World Dynasty (#9 (tie) Dynasty of 2005!)