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

ifspuds · 04-01-2008, 11:48 AM

Welcome to the start of the season! As the sim schedule is Tuesday-Thursday-Sunday, expect three updates a week or so. We're into the middle of May right now, so I'll post a little more quickly than that until I get caught up to the current sim.

Season Starts With Bang, Rainiers Jump Out To Early Lead

The Rainiers dropped the first game of their FBL tenure, 5-1 to the Dallas Lone Stars, but swept the table after that, putting together a 6-game win streak to pace the FBL with the best record through 7 games.

First Series
Dallas 5, Seattle 1
Dallas 1, Seattle 6
Dallas 3, Seattle 4
Dallas 5, Seattle 6

In front of a raucous opening day crowd, Seattle ace Ryan Carson and Dallas #1 Patrick Cowgill battled through a hard-fought 8 innings, but it was the Lone Stars that blew it open with 3 runs in the top of the 9th off Rainiers reliever Willard Williams. Catcher Randy Davies accounted for the lone Seattle run with a first-inning homer.

In game two, Seattle got into the win column behind three hits (2 doubles) and two steals from Cesar Encarnacion and three RBI from Randy Davies. 25-year old hurler David Wheeler went the distance, allowing 5 hits and 2 walks, striking out 7 in the gem.

A leadoff walk, groundout and Henry Warren's RBI double in the bottom of the 9th chased home Dan Vincent with the winning run. Adam Webber picked up his first win, throwing two perfect innings in relief of Michael Hawks.

The Rainiers made it 3 of 4, putting five runs on the board in the first inning, then holding on for dear life as the Lone Stars tied it in the 7th. Dan Vincent's leadoff walk in the bottom of the 8th proved to be the difference, though. Vincent moved to second on Travis Murphy's sac bunt, then stole third base on an 0-1 pitch. With the winning run 90 feet away, Henry Warren hung tough on an 0-2 pitch, lining a sac fly to deep center that scored Vincent. While all 8 of the Rainiers' hits were singles, they also drew 6 walks and stole three bases, a theme that will likely be repeated often in the 1950 season.

Second Series
Seattle 9, Columbus 3
Seattle 4, Columbus 3
Seattle 8, Columbus 7

Ryan Carson, coming home to face the only other team he'd ever played for, went the distance for his first Seattle win in the opener, striking out 4 and walking none against 9 hits and 3 runs. Randall Adams and Bob Pollock provided the big offensive support, with Adams going 5-6 with two doubles and a steal and Pollock whacking 4 hits. 15 hits, 5 walks and 5 Explorer errors gave Carson all the support he needed.

Adams, Pollock and left fielder Tracy Jones made for an outstanding 2-3-4 in the lineup, combining for 7 hits (with each batter hitting their first home run of the season) ,all four runs and all four RBI in the game 2 nailbiter. David Wheeler went 2-0 and Bob Ford picked up the save.

In game three, Tracy Jones hit a 3-run homer and added a double, but it was another manufactured run that proved the game winner. Cesar Encarnacion got aboard with a 1-out single in the top of the 9th, stole second (his 6th of the season after getting thrown out twice earlier in the game) and moved to third on a groundout before scoring the go-ahead run on Randy Davies' RBI single. Willard Williams finished up 4 fine innings of relief and got his 1st Seattle win.

The final game of the 4-game set will be played in the next sim.

-----

Sim Record: 6-1
Overall Record: 6-1, 2 games ahead of 3 teams in the FBL West

Top Hitter: Tracy Jones, LF. .360/.448/.720, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 3 2B. Jones was an extremely productive hitter for Louisville of the old FBL for 9 seasons before injury struck. It's encouraging to see him start hot. He could be huge for us if the injury doesn't have any long-lasting effects.
Top Pitcher: David Wheeler. 2-0, 2.08 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 6 BB, 14 K in 17.1 IP. We're expecting big things out of Wheeler, and the 25-year old has started strong.
Injury News: Starting shortstop Jim Stephens has a bad knee suffered in a collision at second base against Dallas. He should be back in a week or two. He's primarily a glove man, so the drop-off in offense from Stephens to backup Pedro Fonseca is okay for a little while.
Development News: Management's a little down on first baseman Bob Pollock. The 24-year old has hit well at AAA the last three seasons, but there's just something they don't like in his swing despite his .345/.387/.448 start. He'll bear watching.

04-01-2008, 11:48 AM	#21 (permalink)
ifspuds Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 2,091	Welcome to the start of the season! As the sim schedule is Tuesday-Thursday-Sunday, expect three updates a week or so. We're into the middle of May right now, so I'll post a little more quickly than that until I get caught up to the current sim. Season Starts With Bang, Rainiers Jump Out To Early Lead The Rainiers dropped the first game of their FBL tenure, 5-1 to the Dallas Lone Stars, but swept the table after that, putting together a 6-game win streak to pace the FBL with the best record through 7 games. First Series Dallas 5, Seattle 1 Dallas 1, Seattle 6 Dallas 3, Seattle 4 Dallas 5, Seattle 6 In front of a raucous opening day crowd, Seattle ace Ryan Carson and Dallas #1 Patrick Cowgill battled through a hard-fought 8 innings, but it was the Lone Stars that blew it open with 3 runs in the top of the 9th off Rainiers reliever Willard Williams. Catcher Randy Davies accounted for the lone Seattle run with a first-inning homer. In game two, Seattle got into the win column behind three hits (2 doubles) and two steals from Cesar Encarnacion and three RBI from Randy Davies. 25-year old hurler David Wheeler went the distance, allowing 5 hits and 2 walks, striking out 7 in the gem. A leadoff walk, groundout and Henry Warren's RBI double in the bottom of the 9th chased home Dan Vincent with the winning run. Adam Webber picked up his first win, throwing two perfect innings in relief of Michael Hawks. The Rainiers made it 3 of 4, putting five runs on the board in the first inning, then holding on for dear life as the Lone Stars tied it in the 7th. Dan Vincent's leadoff walk in the bottom of the 8th proved to be the difference, though. Vincent moved to second on Travis Murphy's sac bunt, then stole third base on an 0-1 pitch. With the winning run 90 feet away, Henry Warren hung tough on an 0-2 pitch, lining a sac fly to deep center that scored Vincent. While all 8 of the Rainiers' hits were singles, they also drew 6 walks and stole three bases, a theme that will likely be repeated often in the 1950 season. Second Series Seattle 9, Columbus 3 Seattle 4, Columbus 3 Seattle 8, Columbus 7 Ryan Carson, coming home to face the only other team he'd ever played for, went the distance for his first Seattle win in the opener, striking out 4 and walking none against 9 hits and 3 runs. Randall Adams and Bob Pollock provided the big offensive support, with Adams going 5-6 with two doubles and a steal and Pollock whacking 4 hits. 15 hits, 5 walks and 5 Explorer errors gave Carson all the support he needed. Adams, Pollock and left fielder Tracy Jones made for an outstanding 2-3-4 in the lineup, combining for 7 hits (with each batter hitting their first home run of the season) ,all four runs and all four RBI in the game 2 nailbiter. David Wheeler went 2-0 and Bob Ford picked up the save. In game three, Tracy Jones hit a 3-run homer and added a double, but it was another manufactured run that proved the game winner. Cesar Encarnacion got aboard with a 1-out single in the top of the 9th, stole second (his 6th of the season after getting thrown out twice earlier in the game) and moved to third on a groundout before scoring the go-ahead run on Randy Davies' RBI single. Willard Williams finished up 4 fine innings of relief and got his 1st Seattle win. The final game of the 4-game set will be played in the next sim. ----- Sim Record: 6-1 Overall Record: 6-1, 2 games ahead of 3 teams in the FBL West Top Hitter: Tracy Jones, LF. .360/.448/.720, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 3 2B. Jones was an extremely productive hitter for Louisville of the old FBL for 9 seasons before injury struck. It's encouraging to see him start hot. He could be huge for us if the injury doesn't have any long-lasting effects. Top Pitcher: David Wheeler. 2-0, 2.08 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 6 BB, 14 K in 17.1 IP. We're expecting big things out of Wheeler, and the 25-year old has started strong. Injury News: Starting shortstop Jim Stephens has a bad knee suffered in a collision at second base against Dallas. He should be back in a week or two. He's primarily a glove man, so the drop-off in offense from Stephens to backup Pedro Fonseca is okay for a little while. Development News: Management's a little down on first baseman Bob Pollock. The 24-year old has hit well at AAA the last three seasons, but there's just something they don't like in his swing despite his .345/.387/.448 start. He'll bear watching. __________________ 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!)