OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - OOTP 7 Dynasty: Cubby Blue & Wrigley Field

DawnBTVS · 03-22-2008, 11:16 AM

July started off slowly but on 7/15 we kinda get a lucky break as Rick Helling is injured for 2 weeks with the flu. He was 2-10 with a 7.96 ERA but had managed to get his K/BB to 53 vs. 46 in the 78.0 IP he has thrown so that was some brief optimism.

I also noticed that my ballpark has suddenly jumped up to 1.020... which might explain the sudden derailment of my not so stellar pitching staff. I call back up Kevin Foster to see if he can make a few starts as the #5 starter.

On 7/30 with Helling healthy I send Foster back down. He really wasn't very good.

There are no real moves I want to make at the trading deadline so I decide to keep my roster intact for the time being.

We finished the month out at 9-18 but our pitching ERA has been going down by a lot, which is very good to witness. We're still 6th in opponent BA and BABIP.

Our Record: 34-75 and 29.0 GB of the New Evil Empire.

The bright spots of the team...
2B Miguel Cairo: 465 AB with 36 doubles and 82 R. 13 SB (76.5%) and is hitting .297/.339/.439 for a .777 OPS.
3B Kevin Orie: Has bounced back. 420 AB with a team leading 65 RBI and 44 BB vs. 65 K. Hitting .236/.320/.402 for a .722 OPS with 33 doubles.
3B Dave Hansen: 372 AB with 13 HR and 60 RBI. Also has 73 BB vs. 81 K and is hitting .274/.394/.465 for a team best .859 OPS.
SS "The Phenom" Tony Batista: 364 AB with a team best 18 HR. Is hitting .253/.316/.467 for a .783 OPS.
CF Brian McRae: 324 AB with a line of .235/.327/.377 for a .704 OPS but has 45 BB vs. 52 K.
1B Pedro Valdes: He's hitting! Much, much improvement over Hero. In 139 AB he has 5 HR and 21 RBI with 20 BB vs. 35 K. Hitting .273/.358/.482 for a second on the team .840 OPS.
Tim Kubinski and Doug Bochtler have combined for an ERA of 3.25 in 62 IP with 57 K vs. 42 BB.
Gio Gonzalez: 3-3 record in 7 starts with an ERA of 4.18 in 47.1 IP. Only has 21 K but that's against 17 BB (3.25 BB/9).

We now have 7 pitchers, including 3 starters underneath the 5.00 ERA mark which is a sight for sore eyes to see.

As for in house moves...

Noodle Arm is pissing me off with his dismal .562 OPS in 418 AB (I know I should've pulled the trigger much sooner but I'm one of those "Let it ride out and eventually it'll turn around" managers/GMs). Needless to say, I have 3 guys at AAA who have combined for 38 HR at the C spot.

The options are...
Mel Rosario: Good power and patience (6 HR in 134 AB with 30 BB vs. 27 K) but his issue is contact (.231 BA) and I can't afford to have a repeat of Stahoviak. Acquired by trading SP Frank Castillo.

Mitch Hubbard: Is hitting well with a .782 OPS in 401 AB and has a .294 BA but the 33 BB vs. 93 K concerns me.

Mike Figga: The most league ready. Hitting .303/.355/.481 (.837 OPS) in 320 AB with 12 HR. Slight fear at his 26 BB vs. 54 K but he can make contact, has power, and has a decent enough eye.

I call up Mike Figga to start off August at Catcher for us. I send Tyler down to get some of his confidence back.

Around the minor leagues... Note to Self: Remember to change control of minor league depth charts/lineups to somebody not yourself! That would explain the low numbers... whoopsie.

AAA
CL Roland de la Maza: May get a shot in September. Currently has a 1.83 ERA in 19.2 IP with 19 K (8.91 K/9) with 8 BB and 1 HRA.
MR Allen McDill: Just about league ready. Could challenge for a bullpen spot next season. Has a 2.70 ERA in 20 IP but only 13 K vs. 9 BB.
SP Jeremy Fish: Converted to SP upon seeing his 41 endurance rating (I like converting guys with a 40+ endurance to starters for depth purposes. At worst, they become #5 guys in the rotation). Has great stuff but no control at all. He's only 21 and a guy to keep an eye on.

AA
RF Jonathan Myers: Not much future potential but was hitting .331/.350/.418 with little power (18 XBH in 359 AB) and 11 BB vs. 64 K but I'll see how he handles AAA.

A
MR Juan Padilla: The only rookie impressing right now. Round 14 pick, in 13.2 IP he has an ERA of 3.95 with 12 K vs. 4 BB and 1 HRA.

Here is a list of the current minor league starters...
Mike Irwin: Single A with 41 endurance. Marginal prospect who could be worth something if he learns how to avoid getting hit.
Ben Powers: Single A with 47 endurance. Same issues as Mike Irwin.
Manuel Roman: Single A with 48 endurance. Pretty much a future as minor league depth.
Brian Walker: Single A with 40 endurance. Interesting case, has the future of a #5 rotation pitcher but could do well with some strong seasons.
Nate Dyer: Released. Absolutely no future as a major leaguer.
Cesar Franco: Released. Absolutely no future as a major leaguer.
Fernando Pina: Double A with 74 endurance. Could make a case if he can develop the ability to strike hitters out. Looks like minor league depth.
Kevin Foster: Triple A with 58 endurance. Is 29 years old and has potential but needs to learn how to not get hit.
Jeremy Fish: Triple A at 21 with 41 endurance. The most potential and the only true "top of the rotation" pitching prospect we have.

Feel free to comment on the moves I'm making or the inability for me to manage the franchise properly (i.e. minor leagues). The one good thing is that I have a strong track record at calling up young players and having them be productive for me almost immediately... outside of Hero: Kevin Orie, Tony Batista, Miguel Cairo, Pedro Valdes, Gio Gonzalez, and hopefully Mike Figga.

What's your over/under on 105 Losses? Right now if I keep up my current pace, I'm projected for a 51-111 record.

03-22-2008, 11:16 AM	#43 (permalink)
DawnBTVS Minors (Double A) Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Sudbury, MA Posts: 145	In July birds fly, and the Cubs continue to wither July started off slowly but on 7/15 we kinda get a lucky break as Rick Helling is injured for 2 weeks with the flu. He was 2-10 with a 7.96 ERA but had managed to get his K/BB to 53 vs. 46 in the 78.0 IP he has thrown so that was some brief optimism. I also noticed that my ballpark has suddenly jumped up to 1.020... which might explain the sudden derailment of my not so stellar pitching staff. I call back up Kevin Foster to see if he can make a few starts as the #5 starter. On 7/30 with Helling healthy I send Foster back down. He really wasn't very good. There are no real moves I want to make at the trading deadline so I decide to keep my roster intact for the time being. We finished the month out at 9-18 but our pitching ERA has been going down by a lot, which is very good to witness. We're still 6th in opponent BA and BABIP. Our Record: 34-75 and 29.0 GB of the New Evil Empire. The bright spots of the team... 2B Miguel Cairo: 465 AB with 36 doubles and 82 R. 13 SB (76.5%) and is hitting .297/.339/.439 for a .777 OPS. 3B Kevin Orie: Has bounced back. 420 AB with a team leading 65 RBI and 44 BB vs. 65 K. Hitting .236/.320/.402 for a .722 OPS with 33 doubles. 3B Dave Hansen: 372 AB with 13 HR and 60 RBI. Also has 73 BB vs. 81 K and is hitting .274/.394/.465 for a team best .859 OPS. SS "The Phenom" Tony Batista: 364 AB with a team best 18 HR. Is hitting .253/.316/.467 for a .783 OPS. CF Brian McRae: 324 AB with a line of .235/.327/.377 for a .704 OPS but has 45 BB vs. 52 K. 1B Pedro Valdes: He's hitting! Much, much improvement over Hero. In 139 AB he has 5 HR and 21 RBI with 20 BB vs. 35 K. Hitting .273/.358/.482 for a second on the team .840 OPS. Tim Kubinski and Doug Bochtler have combined for an ERA of 3.25 in 62 IP with 57 K vs. 42 BB. Gio Gonzalez: 3-3 record in 7 starts with an ERA of 4.18 in 47.1 IP. Only has 21 K but that's against 17 BB (3.25 BB/9). We now have 7 pitchers, including 3 starters underneath the 5.00 ERA mark which is a sight for sore eyes to see. As for in house moves... Noodle Arm is pissing me off with his dismal .562 OPS in 418 AB (I know I should've pulled the trigger much sooner but I'm one of those "Let it ride out and eventually it'll turn around" managers/GMs). Needless to say, I have 3 guys at AAA who have combined for 38 HR at the C spot. The options are... Mel Rosario: Good power and patience (6 HR in 134 AB with 30 BB vs. 27 K) but his issue is contact (.231 BA) and I can't afford to have a repeat of Stahoviak. Acquired by trading SP Frank Castillo. Mitch Hubbard: Is hitting well with a .782 OPS in 401 AB and has a .294 BA but the 33 BB vs. 93 K concerns me. Mike Figga: The most league ready. Hitting .303/.355/.481 (.837 OPS) in 320 AB with 12 HR. Slight fear at his 26 BB vs. 54 K but he can make contact, has power, and has a decent enough eye. I call up Mike Figga to start off August at Catcher for us. I send Tyler down to get some of his confidence back. Around the minor leagues... Note to Self: Remember to change control of minor league depth charts/lineups to somebody not yourself! That would explain the low numbers... whoopsie. AAA CL Roland de la Maza: May get a shot in September. Currently has a 1.83 ERA in 19.2 IP with 19 K (8.91 K/9) with 8 BB and 1 HRA. MR Allen McDill: Just about league ready. Could challenge for a bullpen spot next season. Has a 2.70 ERA in 20 IP but only 13 K vs. 9 BB. SP Jeremy Fish: Converted to SP upon seeing his 41 endurance rating (I like converting guys with a 40+ endurance to starters for depth purposes. At worst, they become #5 guys in the rotation). Has great stuff but no control at all. He's only 21 and a guy to keep an eye on. AA RF Jonathan Myers: Not much future potential but was hitting .331/.350/.418 with little power (18 XBH in 359 AB) and 11 BB vs. 64 K but I'll see how he handles AAA. A MR Juan Padilla: The only rookie impressing right now. Round 14 pick, in 13.2 IP he has an ERA of 3.95 with 12 K vs. 4 BB and 1 HRA. Here is a list of the current minor league starters... Mike Irwin: Single A with 41 endurance. Marginal prospect who could be worth something if he learns how to avoid getting hit. Ben Powers: Single A with 47 endurance. Same issues as Mike Irwin. Manuel Roman: Single A with 48 endurance. Pretty much a future as minor league depth. Brian Walker: Single A with 40 endurance. Interesting case, has the future of a #5 rotation pitcher but could do well with some strong seasons. Nate Dyer: Released. Absolutely no future as a major leaguer. Cesar Franco: Released. Absolutely no future as a major leaguer. Fernando Pina: Double A with 74 endurance. Could make a case if he can develop the ability to strike hitters out. Looks like minor league depth. Kevin Foster: Triple A with 58 endurance. Is 29 years old and has potential but needs to learn how to not get hit. Jeremy Fish: Triple A at 21 with 41 endurance. The most potential and the only true "top of the rotation" pitching prospect we have. Feel free to comment on the moves I'm making or the inability for me to manage the franchise properly (i.e. minor leagues). The one good thing is that I have a strong track record at calling up young players and having them be productive for me almost immediately... outside of Hero: Kevin Orie, Tony Batista, Miguel Cairo, Pedro Valdes, Gio Gonzalez, and hopefully Mike Figga. What's your over/under on 105 Losses? Right now if I keep up my current pace, I'm projected for a 51-111 record.