by albert2b » Mon Oct 03, 2005 11:31 am
[b:dc5097c374]SEASON OF THE SUB MILLION DOLLAR PLAYERS[/b:dc5097c374]
Just look at the contributions of my bargain basement guys:
Comer (.75) 11-7 W-L, 172 IP, 145 H, 3.77 ERA, 1.22 WHIP
Pastore (.75) 13-10 W-L, 152 IP, 138 H, 4.30 ERA, 1.28 WHIP
Matthews (.75) 6-3 W-L, 56 IP, 46 H, 3.83 ERA, 1.01 WHIP
Gleaton (.83) 3-4 W-L, 2 SV, 95 IP, 92 H, 3.40 ERA, 1.28 WHIP
Garber (.75) 7-4 W-L, 21 SV, 125 IP, 111 H, 2.66 ERA, 1.14 WHIP
Kipper (.75) 7-1 W-L, 4 SV, 84 IP, 67 H, 3.72 ERA, 1.37 WHIP
Valle (.75) 197 AB, 9 HR, 27 RBI, .239/.432/.265 (his contributions while Brenly was hurt - over 30 games - goes beyond #s)
Remy (.96) 236 AB, 0 HR, 25 RBI, 12 SB, .284/.335/.321
Aguayo (.75) 318 AB, 14 HR, 44 RBI, .293/.500/.354
Man, I'd hate to think of where'd we be without these guys.
[b:dc5097c374]ABOVE AND BEYOND[/b:dc5097c374]
For the second consecutive season, George Brett is the team's MVP and IMO, should be the league MVP. Led the league in AVG, hits, OBP, SLG, INT BB, longest hitting streak, RC/27O. Also up there in RBI, HR, 2B, 3B and RS.
Also, for the second consecutive season, SS Roy Smalley has topped the 25 HR and 90 RBI mark. Not bad for a 5th round pick back in 1981. Certainly making up for that 3e24 in the field.
Bob Brenly and Lloyd Moseby both had terrific rookie campaigns for the Fatboys. Although they had some shortcomings (Brenly missed 30+ games due to injury and Moseby had to be platooned), they both did a fantastic job overall and we hope they both will have more prominent roles with the team in the future.
Ol' Man Blyleven just keeps rolling along. He's not as flashy as he was in 1981 (26-6), but he's still got a lot left in the tank as evidenced by his 19-11 season this year.
[b:dc5097c374]THE FLOPS[/b:dc5097c374]
Gotta start with Nolan Ryan. The club's first round pick was outclassed by pitchers making a fraction of his $8+mil salary. He's got something to prove in 1984.
George Hendrick has made it two consectutive mediocre seasons in a row now after his tremendous inaugural season in 1981. .262, 20, 76 and a .734 OPS is ok for some players, but for a guy making $5.64, that's unacceptable. If it wasn't for his sparkling defense, he would not have had a chance to even put up those numbers.
George Foster. This one was especially disappointing, given that I knew he had one of his good years. His 25 HRs was nice, but I expected a higher average than .241. Oh well, I suppose I owed the strat Gods one after his 41 HR season with a "bad" card back in 1981.
Albert2b. I shot myself in the foot late in the season, putting individual accomplishments ahead of the team's goal, which obviously is to win the World Series. By now, many of you know that I played Brett in the 2nd to last series of the year, after I had clinched the division, but not homefield. The reason for this was so that he could make a run at .400 (he was at around .390). Anyway, long story short, he gets hurt, misses two games in the semis (both losses) and we get eliminated in round one. Now I've got too much respect for Sykes' Murphs to say that Brett would've made the difference between winning and losing, but obviously, I would've like my chances much better with him than without.
[b:dc5097c374]THE FUTURE[/b:dc5097c374]
As we say farewell to a couple of original Fatboys, franchise HR leader, Foster and fan favorite, Remy, we are already hard at work in the front office in finding their replacements. Remy's successor may already be on the team as Steve Sax made a very nice showing for himself in his rookie season. But he will have to hit...and hit well...much like Smalley, to overcome that 3 at 2B.
Foster's replacement will have to be addressed out of house. Thus, any teams with extra LF or DH help can contact me for trade talks. If not, there's always the draft, which at first glance, looks VERY deep this year.
We're also in the market for a 1B and maybe another SP. Contact me with any possible trade scenarios.
Thanks, and onto 1984!!!