British Isles Baseball

orin2 · 04-26-2006, 07:28 AM

After reading a lot of dynasties here I am going to take a stab at one of my own. I would like to tip my cap to Gforce, Big Six, DAED and Metsgeek. Each of them does something that I like and I will strive to mix elements from each to form my own style. This dynasty will be an alternate history dynasty with some story and some stats.

Historical Background

World War II struck MLB especially hard. President Roosevelt signed a bill that outlawed sporting events for the duration of the war after a group of German-Americans were discovered planning attacks against baseball stadiums across the country. These attacks were planned as a way to destroy public morale. Public interest in baseball was scarred as many associated going to the baseball park with danger.

In Europe, the Third Reich rolled over France and promptly began planning the invasion of Britain. Hitler announced to his Generals his intent to unleash Operation Barbarossa, an ambitious attack on the Soviet Union. However, Erwin Rommel returned from Africa and closeted himself with Hitler and convinced him that the Soviet Union was a secondary threat. Against his own judgement Hitler agreed to delay his attack and focus on Britain. With 3.2 million extra men available, Hitler order the construction of a fleet of landing craft. By the spring of 1942 the Third Reich had constructed over 500,000 landing craft and harbored them all along the French, Belgian and Norwegian coastline. Operation Royal Fury began on 4 June 1942 at the same time the American Navy was battling the Japanese at a small island known as Midway.

The invasion landed over 100,000 men at Portsmouth, Exeter, east of London and near Newcastle. The British, and their American and Canadian Allies, fought fiercely to defend their homeland but the efficiency and might of the German infantry proved to be overwhelming. Contributing to the downfall of Britain was the introduction of a newer U-Boat class called the Tigershark. The Tigershark class went into operation with eight of the new boats lanching from May- September 1941 and the resulting carnage left Britain short on every major war supply.

The pacification of England took until October of 1942. With London on the verge of surrender the Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, removed the government of Britain to Belfast, Northern Ireland. "We may withdraw our bodies to Ireland but our spirit, the undefeatable British spirit, remains in London and we shall return one day," Churchill vowed.

Scotland and Wales never fully surrendered, although every major city was pacified, sometimes brutally, by the Germans. Ireland became the focus of the war in Europe, one last foothold before the imposing expanse of ocean that led to America. In the states, every man and woman able to fight or contribute to the war effort was drafted into some duty or another. The Great American Past-time became war. Industries ramped up production and rationing became severe. Men, supplies and weapons poured into Ireland, despite the heavy losses they suffered from the deadly Tigersharks. The introduction of new technology, most notably advanced sonar sets in 1943, allowed the US to find an even playing field. Two years after the invasion of Britain by German forces, 6 June 1944, the US launched Operation Overlord, securing a beachhead in Liverpool and then driving south and east towards London. At the same time a secret agreement between the US and Soviet Union was reached and the Soviet Union launched an invasion of their own against the Germans. Unable to reinforce their holdings in Britain because the troops were needed to fight the Russians, the German forces were forced into retreat after retreat but they left massive destruction in their wake. But by the end of 1944 the Germans were driven out of Britain and Winston Churchill returned to the smoking ruins of London.

After the huge amount of resources needed to retake England the United States faced the obsticale of ending the Nazi threat on the mainland of Europe. The battle with Japan, a less important fight to some Americans, ended ubruptly with the dropping of the atomic bomb on two Japanese cities. The Germans responded to the attacks by declaring they had created a bomb of their own and vowed to destroy American cities if the weapon was used on them. Even if they had had another A-bomb, which they didn't, President Truman was given intelligence to support the German claim and the war continued in conventional fashion. The end came in February 1951 when Hitler, still convinced of Nazi success, was assassinated by Erwin Rommel and the remaining Nazi powers negotiated the surrender of Germany.

At the end of the war the American people were weary after 10 years of war and hundreds of thousands dead. As far as baseball was concerned, MLB attempted to restart in 1952 but attendance was poor and financially it was not a success. The league folded officialy in November 1952 after the Cubs defeated the Yankees in six games in the World Series. The question on some minds was whether baseball would ever rise again, but there were rumors of a new British Isles Baseball league circulating.

-More to follow soon-

-Note: I am also planning an online version of this when the new version of OOTP comes out.

metsgeek · 04-26-2006, 10:51 AM

Great stuff, Orin. Just one aesthetic formatting suggestion....separate the paragraphs by a blank line. The current format hurts the eyes.

orin2 · 04-26-2006, 11:51 AM

Thanks for the hint metsgeek, and the support!

metsgeek · 04-26-2006, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by orin2

Thanks for the hint metsgeek, and the support!

I've got this subscribed

Tyke · 04-27-2006, 05:33 AM

Nicely done, Orin, I'll be following this. Just make sure there's a team in Leeds!

orin2 · 04-27-2006, 06:47 AM

Tyke,

I will be sure to place a team there just because you asked.

Tyke · 04-28-2006, 03:46 AM

Jamee999 · 05-01-2006, 10:38 AM

Nice start. I'll be supporting any Leicester team

orin2 · 05-03-2006, 02:08 AM

London, England 03 October 1952

"And I'm telling you it won't work, Joe. It's a ****** bet."
The two men were walking down a cobblestone street, the sun hanging heavily in the sky. It was unusually warm for an October in London, or what was left of London. Even after almost two years of peace the city still had all the harbingers of a city at war. Rubble lay strewn in many streets and garbage lay uncollected in alley after alley. The men passed a group of veterans standing on a street corner, talking and smoking.

"Maybe," the other man said. He was wearing a finely tailored suit complete with hat and black shoes. His black hair was cropped short and his face, best described as craggy, was drawn in thought. He nodded at one of the veterans who waved at him.
"There's no maybe about it. Look at this place. Does it look like somewheres you'd want to play baseball?"
His companion was a somewhat shorter version of himself, although he was the elder of the two.
"I'm not thinking about playing anymore, Vince. My playin days are done."
"Just like mine. I mighta played a few more years if the war didn't start up but I was getting tired."

The two walked in silence for a while. Overhead a single seated fighter roared by, waggling its wings. They turned a corner, dodging around a horde of children that went racing by. One of the kids, a little boy about eight or nine with smudges of dirt on his face, stopped and stared at him with an open mouth. Joe ruffled the kids hair and walked on.
"No, I been talking to this Llwedd guy. He owns the an iron works in Wales. Anyways, he wants to start up some English League. Wants investors," Joe said.

Vince pointed to the underground opening a block ahead. "There it is. So, you're gonna give this guy money? What makes you think anyone here wants to watch baseball? The league couldn't even make it in the states," Vince said.
They passed a grocery store with a long line of people waiting to get in. Sullen eyes stared at the two well dress Americans. Each person waiting in line clutched a green ration book. A banner over the grocery doorway proclaimed 'Fresh Meat Today!'. Joe and Vince paused to let a pretty blonde english woman and her small daughter enter the underground in front of them. The little girl looked at the two men over her shoulder then stuck out her tongue. Joe stuck out his own in reply and the girl laughed.
"I think the people here need something to believe in. I know that baseball might have gone belly up back home but things are different here. The Brits had a lot worse time of it during the war."

A train rattled to a stop at the platform and the two men boarded and took seats on one of the ancient wooden benches.
"So you are going to give him money then. How much?" Vince asked
Joe looked out at the tunnel as it raced by. The walls blurred together to form a streaking gray and black punctuated occasionaly by bright lights. He'd been struggling with the same question Vince had just asked him. Ever since Dorothy had gone and married whats his name, nothing had seemed to matter anymore. But now he had something that might bring back his old spark. The ulcers were finally gone and the docs said he was ship shape. The train clattered to a stop and the two men exited the car.

"I've got about fifty thousand left over from my last contract, Vince. I'm going to use it," Joe said.
The nodded at an english police officer in his weird hat who was coming down the underground steps. They emerged into a section of the city that was in much better condition. Construction cranes loomed overhead like huge arms, lifting steel girders into position on half a dozen buildings. The streets were clear and clean and there was even a decent amount of traffic. Nothing like New York of course, but still something.
"Thats a lot of dough, Joe. You sure about this?" Vince asked.
"You see this place, Vince? You see how they never gave up? Even when the Nazis killed the Queen they never gave up. Its like a new country now and that means new opportunities."

The had walked a dozen blocks from the underground, passing one bombed out building that was being destroyed until they stopped in front of an imposing building constructed of brown marble. A plaque on the front of the building read 'London Sportsman's Club Est. 1822'. A doorman dressed in a perfectly pressed uniform with tophat opened the door.
"Good day, yanks," the doorman said.
Joe smiled and nodded.
The lobby was imaculate black marble with gold trim. A man stood waiting, turning to greet them as they entered. The man was dressed in a gray suit and a bright red tie. Joe couldn't be sure how old he was but figured it was somewhere between 40-50. His hair was black with some white mixed in around the ears. A set of keen looking green eyes stared at them.
"Are you Mr. Llwedd?" Joe asked.
"Oh please, don't call me that it makes me look for my father. Call me Kenneth if you would. And if I might be so bold, could I call you Joe?" Llwyedd asked.
Joe smiled and nodded. He liked the man right away. "Sure," Joe said and pointed at Vince. "And this is my older brother Vince. He wanted to see England so I brought him along."
Llwedd smiled sadly. "Not much left of the old girl, I'm afraid. But still, things are better now than before. Shall we sit?"

Mr. Llwyedd didn't wait for an answer. He turned to his left, wandering into a large lounge decorated in muted browns and tans with a number of large couches and chairs. A picture of the late Queen hung over a large fireplace. Two sets of floor to ceiling windows provided more than enough light. The three men found a couch and chair situated near the fireplace and sat down.

"Now this is classy," Vince said as he sank into the couch. "Joe, we need to get one of these for ourselves."
Mr. Llwyedd smiled. "The club hid all of their furnishings when the Germans invaded. Its amazing how much you can fit under a manure pile when you need to. Now Mr. DiMaggio, have you considered my offer?"
Joe nodded. "Let's play ball."

Tyke · 05-03-2006, 03:40 AM

Nice. Orin. The detailed touches are good, capturing the atmosphere, and I liked the sting in the tail!

orin2 · 06-01-2006, 03:24 PM

The game is out! I will be moving forward with this now. I was holding off.

kleric · 06-01-2006, 03:31 PM

Sign me up for Galway in Ireland.

Mad Jackal · 06-01-2006, 07:29 PM

Sign me up for a Scottish team.

I need to track down the right city name (and mascot) but if we don't tell my wife too much I 'm in.

railroad_ross · 06-02-2006, 04:27 AM

I'll invest 50,000 if Joe plays for me

orin2 · 06-02-2006, 08:18 AM

Ross, I think Joe thinks he is too old. He wants to sit back and enjoy the show.

Oh and if anyone else would like to join a league based on this dynasty, let me know.

Carplos · 06-02-2006, 08:32 AM

A British Isles league sounds interesting. Count me in.

Jamee999 · 06-02-2006, 08:37 AM

Count me in.

orin2 · 06-02-2006, 09:22 AM

If you want to play BIBL please email me at freddlloyd@hotmail.com We currently have around 6-8 owners so there are still more openings. The website is under development as are the rules. Thanks

Ben Music · 06-07-2006, 09:28 AM

Email sent yesterday, no response as yet.

kleric · 06-07-2006, 10:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ben Music

Email sent yesterday, no response as yet.

The commish, orin, is operating on Iraq time.
So there's be some weird delays every now and then as time schedules are off.

04-26-2006, 07:28 AM	#1 (permalink)
orin2 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 92	British Isles Baseball After reading a lot of dynasties here I am going to take a stab at one of my own. I would like to tip my cap to Gforce, Big Six, DAED and Metsgeek. Each of them does something that I like and I will strive to mix elements from each to form my own style. This dynasty will be an alternate history dynasty with some story and some stats. Historical Background World War II struck MLB especially hard. President Roosevelt signed a bill that outlawed sporting events for the duration of the war after a group of German-Americans were discovered planning attacks against baseball stadiums across the country. These attacks were planned as a way to destroy public morale. Public interest in baseball was scarred as many associated going to the baseball park with danger. In Europe, the Third Reich rolled over France and promptly began planning the invasion of Britain. Hitler announced to his Generals his intent to unleash Operation Barbarossa, an ambitious attack on the Soviet Union. However, Erwin Rommel returned from Africa and closeted himself with Hitler and convinced him that the Soviet Union was a secondary threat. Against his own judgement Hitler agreed to delay his attack and focus on Britain. With 3.2 million extra men available, Hitler order the construction of a fleet of landing craft. By the spring of 1942 the Third Reich had constructed over 500,000 landing craft and harbored them all along the French, Belgian and Norwegian coastline. Operation Royal Fury began on 4 June 1942 at the same time the American Navy was battling the Japanese at a small island known as Midway. The invasion landed over 100,000 men at Portsmouth, Exeter, east of London and near Newcastle. The British, and their American and Canadian Allies, fought fiercely to defend their homeland but the efficiency and might of the German infantry proved to be overwhelming. Contributing to the downfall of Britain was the introduction of a newer U-Boat class called the Tigershark. The Tigershark class went into operation with eight of the new boats lanching from May- September 1941 and the resulting carnage left Britain short on every major war supply. The pacification of England took until October of 1942. With London on the verge of surrender the Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, removed the government of Britain to Belfast, Northern Ireland. "We may withdraw our bodies to Ireland but our spirit, the undefeatable British spirit, remains in London and we shall return one day," Churchill vowed. Scotland and Wales never fully surrendered, although every major city was pacified, sometimes brutally, by the Germans. Ireland became the focus of the war in Europe, one last foothold before the imposing expanse of ocean that led to America. In the states, every man and woman able to fight or contribute to the war effort was drafted into some duty or another. The Great American Past-time became war. Industries ramped up production and rationing became severe. Men, supplies and weapons poured into Ireland, despite the heavy losses they suffered from the deadly Tigersharks. The introduction of new technology, most notably advanced sonar sets in 1943, allowed the US to find an even playing field. Two years after the invasion of Britain by German forces, 6 June 1944, the US launched Operation Overlord, securing a beachhead in Liverpool and then driving south and east towards London. At the same time a secret agreement between the US and Soviet Union was reached and the Soviet Union launched an invasion of their own against the Germans. Unable to reinforce their holdings in Britain because the troops were needed to fight the Russians, the German forces were forced into retreat after retreat but they left massive destruction in their wake. But by the end of 1944 the Germans were driven out of Britain and Winston Churchill returned to the smoking ruins of London. After the huge amount of resources needed to retake England the United States faced the obsticale of ending the Nazi threat on the mainland of Europe. The battle with Japan, a less important fight to some Americans, ended ubruptly with the dropping of the atomic bomb on two Japanese cities. The Germans responded to the attacks by declaring they had created a bomb of their own and vowed to destroy American cities if the weapon was used on them. Even if they had had another A-bomb, which they didn't, President Truman was given intelligence to support the German claim and the war continued in conventional fashion. The end came in February 1951 when Hitler, still convinced of Nazi success, was assassinated by Erwin Rommel and the remaining Nazi powers negotiated the surrender of Germany. At the end of the war the American people were weary after 10 years of war and hundreds of thousands dead. As far as baseball was concerned, MLB attempted to restart in 1952 but attendance was poor and financially it was not a success. The league folded officialy in November 1952 after the Cubs defeated the Yankees in six games in the World Series. The question on some minds was whether baseball would ever rise again, but there were rumors of a new British Isles Baseball league circulating. -More to follow soon- -Note: I am also planning an online version of this when the new version of OOTP comes out. Last edited by orin2 : 04-26-2006 at 11:45 AM.

04-26-2006, 10:51 AM	#2 (permalink)
metsgeek Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Norwood, MA Posts: 5,408	Great stuff, Orin. Just one aesthetic formatting suggestion....separate the paragraphs by a blank line. The current format hurts the eyes. __________________ Commissioner - PBRL Time Warp Baseball - Boston Red Sox The Baseball Chronicle - Cleveland Spiders

04-28-2006, 03:46 AM	#7 (permalink)
Tyke Major Leagues Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Leeds, U.K. Posts: 358	Ta!

05-03-2006, 02:08 AM	#9 (permalink)
orin2 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 92	London, England 03 October 1952 "And I'm telling you it won't work, Joe. It's a ****** bet." The two men were walking down a cobblestone street, the sun hanging heavily in the sky. It was unusually warm for an October in London, or what was left of London. Even after almost two years of peace the city still had all the harbingers of a city at war. Rubble lay strewn in many streets and garbage lay uncollected in alley after alley. The men passed a group of veterans standing on a street corner, talking and smoking. "Maybe," the other man said. He was wearing a finely tailored suit complete with hat and black shoes. His black hair was cropped short and his face, best described as craggy, was drawn in thought. He nodded at one of the veterans who waved at him. "There's no maybe about it. Look at this place. Does it look like somewheres you'd want to play baseball?" His companion was a somewhat shorter version of himself, although he was the elder of the two. "I'm not thinking about playing anymore, Vince. My playin days are done." "Just like mine. I mighta played a few more years if the war didn't start up but I was getting tired." The two walked in silence for a while. Overhead a single seated fighter roared by, waggling its wings. They turned a corner, dodging around a horde of children that went racing by. One of the kids, a little boy about eight or nine with smudges of dirt on his face, stopped and stared at him with an open mouth. Joe ruffled the kids hair and walked on. "No, I been talking to this Llwedd guy. He owns the an iron works in Wales. Anyways, he wants to start up some English League. Wants investors," Joe said. Vince pointed to the underground opening a block ahead. "There it is. So, you're gonna give this guy money? What makes you think anyone here wants to watch baseball? The league couldn't even make it in the states," Vince said. They passed a grocery store with a long line of people waiting to get in. Sullen eyes stared at the two well dress Americans. Each person waiting in line clutched a green ration book. A banner over the grocery doorway proclaimed 'Fresh Meat Today!'. Joe and Vince paused to let a pretty blonde english woman and her small daughter enter the underground in front of them. The little girl looked at the two men over her shoulder then stuck out her tongue. Joe stuck out his own in reply and the girl laughed. "I think the people here need something to believe in. I know that baseball might have gone belly up back home but things are different here. The Brits had a lot worse time of it during the war." A train rattled to a stop at the platform and the two men boarded and took seats on one of the ancient wooden benches. "So you are going to give him money then. How much?" Vince asked Joe looked out at the tunnel as it raced by. The walls blurred together to form a streaking gray and black punctuated occasionaly by bright lights. He'd been struggling with the same question Vince had just asked him. Ever since Dorothy had gone and married whats his name, nothing had seemed to matter anymore. But now he had something that might bring back his old spark. The ulcers were finally gone and the docs said he was ship shape. The train clattered to a stop and the two men exited the car. "I've got about fifty thousand left over from my last contract, Vince. I'm going to use it," Joe said. The nodded at an english police officer in his weird hat who was coming down the underground steps. They emerged into a section of the city that was in much better condition. Construction cranes loomed overhead like huge arms, lifting steel girders into position on half a dozen buildings. The streets were clear and clean and there was even a decent amount of traffic. Nothing like New York of course, but still something. "Thats a lot of dough, Joe. You sure about this?" Vince asked. "You see this place, Vince? You see how they never gave up? Even when the Nazis killed the Queen they never gave up. Its like a new country now and that means new opportunities." The had walked a dozen blocks from the underground, passing one bombed out building that was being destroyed until they stopped in front of an imposing building constructed of brown marble. A plaque on the front of the building read 'London Sportsman's Club Est. 1822'. A doorman dressed in a perfectly pressed uniform with tophat opened the door. "Good day, yanks," the doorman said. Joe smiled and nodded. The lobby was imaculate black marble with gold trim. A man stood waiting, turning to greet them as they entered. The man was dressed in a gray suit and a bright red tie. Joe couldn't be sure how old he was but figured it was somewhere between 40-50. His hair was black with some white mixed in around the ears. A set of keen looking green eyes stared at them. "Are you Mr. Llwedd?" Joe asked. "Oh please, don't call me that it makes me look for my father. Call me Kenneth if you would. And if I might be so bold, could I call you Joe?" Llwyedd asked. Joe smiled and nodded. He liked the man right away. "Sure," Joe said and pointed at Vince. "And this is my older brother Vince. He wanted to see England so I brought him along." Llwedd smiled sadly. "Not much left of the old girl, I'm afraid. But still, things are better now than before. Shall we sit?" Mr. Llwyedd didn't wait for an answer. He turned to his left, wandering into a large lounge decorated in muted browns and tans with a number of large couches and chairs. A picture of the late Queen hung over a large fireplace. Two sets of floor to ceiling windows provided more than enough light. The three men found a couch and chair situated near the fireplace and sat down. "Now this is classy," Vince said as he sank into the couch. "Joe, we need to get one of these for ourselves." Mr. Llwyedd smiled. "The club hid all of their furnishings when the Germans invaded. Its amazing how much you can fit under a manure pile when you need to. Now Mr. DiMaggio, have you considered my offer?" Joe nodded. "Let's play ball." Last edited by orin2 : 05-03-2006 at 02:10 AM.

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04-26-2006, 11:51 AM	#3 (permalink)
orin2 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 92	Thanks for the hint metsgeek, and the support!

04-27-2006, 05:33 AM	#5 (permalink)
Tyke Major Leagues Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Leeds, U.K. Posts: 358	Nicely done, Orin, I'll be following this. Just make sure there's a team in Leeds!

04-27-2006, 06:47 AM	#6 (permalink)
orin2 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 92	Tyke, I will be sure to place a team there just because you asked.

05-01-2006, 10:38 AM	#8 (permalink)
Jamee999 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 118	Nice start. I'll be supporting any Leicester team

05-03-2006, 03:40 AM	#10 (permalink)
Tyke Major Leagues Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Leeds, U.K. Posts: 358	Nice. Orin. The detailed touches are good, capturing the atmosphere, and I liked the sting in the tail!

06-01-2006, 03:24 PM	#11 (permalink)
orin2 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 92	The game is out! I will be moving forward with this now. I was holding off.

06-01-2006, 03:31 PM	#12 (permalink)
kleric Minors (Double A) Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Crystal, MN Posts: 130	Sign me up for Galway in Ireland.

06-01-2006, 07:29 PM	#13 (permalink)
Mad Jackal Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 59	Sign me up for a Scottish team. I need to track down the right city name (and mascot) but if we don't tell my wife too much I 'm in.

06-02-2006, 04:27 AM	#14 (permalink)
railroad_ross Minors (Double A) Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 151	I'll invest 50,000 if Joe plays for me

06-02-2006, 08:18 AM	#15 (permalink)
orin2 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 92	Ross, I think Joe thinks he is too old. He wants to sit back and enjoy the show. Oh and if anyone else would like to join a league based on this dynasty, let me know.

06-02-2006, 08:32 AM	#16 (permalink)
Carplos All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Idaho Posts: 1,806	A British Isles league sounds interesting. Count me in.

06-02-2006, 08:37 AM	#17 (permalink)
Jamee999 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 118	Count me in.

06-02-2006, 09:22 AM	#18 (permalink)
orin2 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 92	If you want to play BIBL please email me at freddlloyd@hotmail.com We currently have around 6-8 owners so there are still more openings. The website is under development as are the rules. Thanks