Season 16 preview-AL North

Here we go again. Another season has begun, off season is pretty much over and each and every team is tied for best record in the league again. After a season in which I really slacked on the blog, my plan this season is to get back to what is acceptable with this thing. I know, everyone can't wait to see what I have to say about their teams so they can call me an idiot and try to prove that I don't know what I'm talking about. I would like to point out that I did a pretty good job in the AL last season though. I predicted 3 of 4 division winners and gave a pretty good prediction of each divisions finishes. I was 12 for 16 on division finishes in the AL. Take that to the bank and cash it. Seriously though, I hope everyone enjoys reading these as much as I enjoy writing them. Um, actually I hope you enjoy reading these much more than that because writing these can be a pain in the ass. One last thing I have to add. I would like to thank all the owners that have been a part of this league, especially those that have been here for quite a while, for making this league so much fun for me. I would also like to thank the few new owners for joining and hope that you guys can find as much fun as I have in this league and stick around a while. I hope everyone has an enjoyable season and gets their teams going in the right directions.

AL North
By now everyone that is not a part of this division is tired of seeing me put in print how great of a division this is and seeing the stats and info to back it up. Well guys, I'm sorry but I'm going to do it again. I think most divisions wish they could put together what this division has. In each of the past 5 seasons, the AL North has put 3 teams in the post season. They have 34 post season appearances in all. As a matter of fact, you have to go all the way back to season 6, to see an ALCS without a team from this division in it. They have 2 World Champs, and 4 World Series appearances. The division has produced thirteen 100 win seasons and each team has accomplished that feat at least twice. Last season was much of the same in the AL North. Syracuse won the division for the fifth straight season, with Milwaukee and Ottawa securing the Wild Card spots. Milwaukee, found themselves in the ALCS for the second time in four seasons after finishing third in this grueling division.

Syracuse Snow Pirates
Season 15 record- 109-53(AL North Champs)
5 year record- 550-260

Offense- Average-5th(.271), OBP-4th(.338), Slg-3rd(.461), Runs-4th(856), HR-3rd(262), SB-15th(24)
Defense- Fielding %-1st(.991), Plus Plays-1st(83), Minus Plays-2nd(25)
Pitching- ERA-1st(3.46), OAV-1st(.239), SO-6th(1065), Saves-1st(58/72)

Key Additions-None
Key Losses-RF Rob Lee(FA), 3B Rob McNamara(FA)

After back to back World Series appearances, a threepeat as AL champs wasn't meant to be. The defending World Champs really had nowhere to go but down, but I doubt management expected a 3 games to 1 loss to division rival Milwaukee in the DCS. Arguably one of the best teams in the AL during the regular season just couldn't carry that success into the playoffs. It seems they are content with what they have and didn't make any big moves to bring in some help. They did however lose a couple key players that have been big parts for this team the past few seasons in Lee and McNamara. Those are blows to the offense for sure. The team has been at the top of the rankings offensively for quite some time and while they slipped a bit last season they were still a tough team to pitch to. The team does still have some good hitting and shouldn't drop too much in the rankings if at all. The team was atop the league defensively again last season and heading into season 16, not much has changed. They are still an elite defensive team. One of the best pitching teams for years, this group should continue to be among the best group of arms in Pine Tar. I think this is still an elite team without the losses or adding anything to it, just maybe not as elite as they were. I have no doubt that this team will finish near the top of the league once again this season.

Ottawa Otters
Season 15 record- 97-65
5 year record- 491-319

Offense- Average-3rd(.283), OBP-3rd(.345), Slg-5th(.455), Runs-3rd(908), HR-7th(226), SB-6th(134)
Defense- Fielding %-2nd(.987), Plus Plays-12th(44), Minus Plays-7th(30)
Pitching- ERA-3rd(3.93), OAV-2nd(.244), SO-5th(1084), Saves-16th(30/47)

Key Additions-3B Freddy Cuddyer(FA)
Key Losses-SP Greg DeJean(FA), LF Nap Clements(FA), 2B Jeremy Stanley(FA)

Ottawa has been another really tough team for quite a while now. They've been close to the top of the league but just not good enough to take over the top spot in the division from Syracuse. The team put together a very impressive regular season in season 15, but got to the playoffs and ended their season with a 3 games to 2 loss to Los Angeles in the Wild Card round. So what did they do in the off season? They went and took one of LA's top players as the teams only major addition. They declined the options on a few of their own top players and seen them go to other teams in free agency. Is this a sign of decline or just a few moves that needed to be made? Well offensively Ottawa was one of the better teams in the AL last season and looking at the roster it seems they will be again. They still have good contact hitters and a couple guys that will hit some homers. They should get some steals out of Presley to add a threat of speed, but besides that the team will probably not be stealing a lot of bases. The fielding on this team is impressive and should finish near the top of the league again. The pitching should be good again this season as well. The rotation is good and they have some good arms in the bullpen as well. They should finish toward the top of the AL in pitching. This team is going to be good again this season, but a slip in win total wouldn't surprise me. I doubt this is a 100 win team, but I also doubt they are below a 90 win team. Ottawa should challenge for a wild card spot as I don't think they have the talent to take the top spot in the division this season.

Milwaukee Cream Citys
Season 15 record- 88-74(ALCS runner up)
5 year record- 480-330

Offense- Average-2nd(.286), OBP-2nd(.350), Slg-2nd(.462), Runs-2nd(916), HR-9th(218), SB-8th(99)
Defense- Fielding %-14th(.979), Plus Plays-6th(62), Minus Plays-11th(37)
Pitching- ERA-6th(4.43), OAV-6th(.264), SO-9th(1027), Saves-11th(40/54)

Key Additions-SP Russell Wheeler(FA)
Key Losses-SP John Ashley(FA)

Here is the example of a team that under achieved in the regular season and turned it on in the playoffs. Already a dangerous squad with a top offense, the team lacked defense and elite pitching. They finished near the top of the league in pitching but well off the pace of the top teams in the AL. The team was much more successful in season 14 during the regular season but found no success in the post season that season. Last season was the exact opposite. The question will be this season if they can get to the top. The offense, while not losing any major pieces is still intact. They don't have much power and they aren't the best contact hitters but they produce quality at bats. They can steal some bases but are not real threats on the bases. The pitching rotation is fairly average if not a bit below average. Wheeler will help some as he is the only player that I label as a key addition. The loss of the aging John Ashley won't really hurt the team. The bullpen is decent but not in the upper part of the league.  The defense wasn't a bright spot of this team last season and I doubt they will be again. My prediction for this team is that they won't match the success from last season. I think the are going to struggle to make the post season this time around and don't really match up well with the top teams in this division.

Minnesota PeaceFrog
Season 15 record- 68-94
5 year record- 339-451

Offense- Average-15th(.252), OBP-15th(.318), Slg-12th(.417), Runs-15th(731), HR-6th(233), SB-10th(93)
Defense- Fielding %-6th(.985), Plus Plays-5th(66), Minus Plays-7th(30)
Pitching- ERA-9th(4.88), OAV-10th(.272), SO-15th(955), Saves-14th(36/62)

Key Additions-C Stretch Wilkinson(Rule V)
Key Losses-None

This once proud franchise continued the rebuild process last season and found themselves in last place of a tough division for a fifth consecutive season. The team did improve upon the previous seasons win total and showed some positive signs as they continue to move forward. The offense finished in the upper half of the league in homers and the defense was at the top of the league as well. Committed to the process, ownership has chose not to make any splash signings in free agency and stick to the plan. Offensively, the team was bad for the most part last season, even though they did hit some bombs to keep the crowds excited. It looks to be pretty much the same this season as the team surely has some power but not much contact and overall hitting abilities. The fielding on the team is good, but not great. I can see this being the strength of the team, but they aren't among the best in the league. The starting rotation is solid and should eat up some innings. The bullpen isn't too bad either. I think they will improve upon last seasons numbers and should get some good pitching this season. To sum up this team, I think they will finish at the bottom again, but it won't be long until they are challenging once again. They have some players in the minors that should be ready to help out this club soon and get this team back to being one of the better teams in the AL.

Prediction
I don't see a whole lot of improvement across the division as the teams chose to stay with what they have. That isn't really a bad thing though. Syracuse should be the team to beat once again with Ottawa right behind them. Milwaukee is the team that has me puzzled. I'm not sure if they have the team to challenge for the division but they could be a playoff team again. I'm just not sure. Minnesota will continue to rebuild, but I think they are closer this season and will start to make a real push next season.

1. Syracuse
2. Ottawa
3. Milwaukee
4. Minnesota

Owner of the Year-Season 15

Time to vote for the owner of the year for this past season. Once again, I had to go through and decide who to include and who to leave out. There are some owners that got left off the list that had good seasons, but I didn't want to go over 10 choices. The list leaves off some owners that made the post season and has an owner that didn't, but I had good reasons. I'll explain why I think each owner that was included is on the list.

prezuiwf (Syracuse)
Being included on this list is routine for prez. Each season, putting out one of the best teams in the world. Once again, Syracuse was a force in Pine Tar. Finishing 109-53 was good for the second best record this season. The team did miss out on a third consecutive World Series appearance, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this team dominated for 162 games of the regular season. In what is the best division in the league, pulling off a 100 win season and another division title is once again impressive.

jquick1 (Milwaukee)
jquick1 may have finished 3rd in the division this season, but that didn't stop them from making it to the ALCS. This team finished 88-74, and finished 3rd in the division, but this is a brutal division. jquick1 can be over looked sometimes being in such a tough division and never winning the division title, but this owner has produced in the post season. 2 of the last 4 seasons jquick1 has been in the ALCS and has now made 5 straight post season appearances. Just another something to keep in mind when voting.

radkison (Atlanta)
radkison has now ran the team in Atlanta for 5 seasons and has brought this team back to prominence. After posting an impressive 104 wins a couple seasons ago, they followed it up with 95 wins this season. Winning the division by 19 games, radkison has dominated the division for the past 2 seasons now. They haven't taken that next step in the post season yet, but that shouldn't deter you from voting for this owner that has got this team on the map. The team is right up there as one of the best in the league.

bnags (Nashville)
bnags has done something very impressive in this world, and it's not the fact that they are the current World Champs. Nashville has now improved their record for 8 straight seasons. With 112 wins this season, I think they can possibly do it again next season. What a run for this franchise? Now having won 4 consecutive division titles the team finally reached the top of the mountain and added that World Championship. Any other reasons to vote for this team? This is one heck of a team that bnags has put together.

bobswagger91 (LA)
In his first season running this franchise, bobswagger91 found a way to get them into the post season for the 3rd time in franchise history. They improved the win total from the previous season by an impressive 24 games and won the division for just the second time in franchise history. With an 88-74 record, it may be the lowest total of teams to make the list, but based on the history of this franchise, it is very worthy of some votes.

Starbuckdc (Fargo)
A season after not winning the division for the first time, this team took it's place atop the division once again. Surely the most impressive franchise in league history, this owner continually finds ways to make a mark in the league. The runner up for the Championship, this team participated in their 5th World Series this season. At 90-72 during the regular season, Fargo didn't look like the team to beat in the post season, but everyone should have known better. 10 times this team has made the NLCS now.

qtip32 (Trenton)
This is the only team on the list that didn't make the post season. With a record of 89-73, the team improved their record by 28 games this season. It was also only the second time in franchise history that they finished second in the division and third time posting a winning record. qtip32 has done a great job at setting this team up to challenge for the division title. They finished 1 game behind Fargo this season and was very close to making sure that Fargo didn't even have a chance to make the World Series. A pretty good season any way you look at it.

greygoose123 (Jacksonville)
This team appeared to be on the decline a couple seasons ago, but they came back and improved their record by 19 games this season and finishing 93-69. Making it back to the top of the division once again after a 1 season layoff, this team has now won 9 division crowns and 5 of the last 6. They fell just short of the World Series, losing to Fargo in the NLCS. It was their fifth trip to the NLCS. greygoose123 did a great job again this season in getting this team back into the upper class of the league.

bobbyj7 (Jackson)
In his third season bobbyj7 got this team to win just their second division title and second post season appearance. Improving 14 games from season 14 they finished 97-65 for a franchise best record. Taking over a franchise that has seen many owners through the seasons, bobbyj7 seems to have brought some stability to this embattled franchise. This is another owner that is well deserving of some consideration as owner of the year.

ghutton9 (Seattle)
Seriously, do not vote for me. The only reason I included myself was because I had to. After having the best regular season record in the NL with a 98-64 record, this team once again disappointed in the post season. Getting handled by Fargo in the DCS was enough to not include me, but I didn't feel right about it after getting the #1 seed. Still a good season, but their are many more deserving candidates.

Owner Hall of Fame

I know I'm a little behind on this but I figure better late than never. Congrats to our latest entrant, bjohara1. bjohara1, has been an owner in the league since season 5 and has had pretty good success since entering the league. A World Series champ back in season 12, and 7 time division champion with the Charleston Riverdogs. The team has also reached the World Series 3 times, the NLCS 5 times and has made the post season in all but 1 season. Since taking over the franchise, they have gone 1035-747 and have posted three 100 win seasons with a high of 106 in season 11. The only time the team has had a losing record was the first season for this owner back in season 5 with a respectable record of 74-88. bjohara1, has been one of the more successful owners in Pine Tar over his tenure in the league and surely deserves this honor as our latest entrant into the Pine Tar Hall of Fame.

Hall of Fame Review-Rich Meyers

Well, it's time for my final review of the season 15 Hall of Fame inductee's. The only pitcher elected this season was star pitcher Rich Meyers. Meyers had a great career in Pine Tar and is another of the three that more than deserved this honor. This crafty pitcher from Princeton, WV, surely had the career to enter the Pine Tar Hall of Fame.

Meyers got his start in Pine Tar back in season 1 with the Salt Lake City Slop Tarts. He pitched in Salt Lake City for his first 2 seasons before being traded to Philadelphia in season 3 when his original franchise moved to Portland. He would go on to pitch the rest of his career in Philadelphia. He pitched his last game for the franchise in season 11. For as dominant a pitcher as he was, Meyers played his career for very little money considering he could have made much more if he tested free agency. He made a total of 71.8 million dollars in his 11 seasons as he chose to resign twice with Philadelphia by giving them a hometown discount.

Meyers displayed really good control throughout his career and was especially tough on right handed hitters. Early in his career he was a power pitcher, but a couple injuries in his career forced him to be more crafty later on. He was a pitcher that kept the ball down in the zone a featured a good fastball to go with a decent slider and change up. He had an excellent 4th pitch with his curveball and had a cut fastball he would throw in their that wasn't very good and used more to get batters thinking.

This is the first pitcher to win a Cy Young in Pine Tar as he did so in season 1 and then repeated it in season 8. He also had 6 all star appearances in his career. The first Cy Young came after pitching 35 games and finishing 5 of those. He had a 25-5 record and pitched 264.2 innings. Opponents batted a .203 and he had an ERA of 2.41. His second Cy Young came after pitching 31 games, and going 19-6. In 184.2 innings he allowed opponents to hit .234 and had an ERA of 2.49.

The career stats for Meyers are 326 starts and 333 games, with 16 complete games. He finished 170-55 and also had 2 saves. In 2068.1 innings he struck out 1736 batters. Hitters batted only a .235 and had an OBP of .288. His final ERA was an outstanding 3.08 for his career. He had 20 wins twice, over 200 strike outs 3 times, and a sub 3.00 ERA seven times. His 25 wins in season 1 are still the record for most wins in a season.