March 2, 2018

2018 Season Preview

   

Thunder Bay Champions by Year
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Richmond Los Angeles Kentucky Chemung Carefree Lincoln Carefree Lincoln San Antonio San Antonio Colorado San Antonio Colorado Mad City

      The 2017 Thunder Bay season ended with the Mad City Paddlers claiming their first TBBL Championship by way of defeating the Springfield Isotopes in six games.  The Paddlers were 11-3 overall in the post season combined with a 98-64 regular season record.  This was the Paddlers third trip to the World Series in the past four years further enhancing their dynasty within the National League.    Congratulations Scott on a great season!   The American League is now 10-4 in World Series History.

2017 Champions

    To date, we have had 9 franchises win the crown with the Saints as the only team to win 3 championships.  The Gladiators, Rats and Coyotes (Siouxland Franchise) have all won two titles. 

     As the 2017 season ended, several owners decided to retire from the league leading us into a Dispersal Draft with 4 new owners and one team deciding to blow it up and rebuild.  The new franchises became the Atlanta Knights, Cracksville Plumbers, Newark Hen House and Sioxland Cyclists while we said good bye to Protect, Fort Wayne, Glenview and Marietta.   The dispersal draft started as expected with Clayton Kershaw being scooped up by Cracksville who almost immediately dealt him to Gotham for Alex Bregman, Mitch Haniger and Bradley Zimmer.  Several other big trades took place this offseason as players like Paul Goldschmidt, Corey Kluber, Nelson Cruz, Robinson Cano, Cody Bellinger, Miguel Sano, Zack Grienke and Shoeni aaaOtani all swapped uniforms.  All told, 40 deals have been made to this point in the off season. 

Prospect List Team
11 Jersey
9 Atlanta
8 Stn Mountain, San Carlos, Beartooth and Cracksville
7 Capital City, Los Angeles and Rock River
6 Siouxland, Emerald City, Mad City, Houston and Newark
5 Beale Street
4 Colorado and Gotham
3 Lincoln and California
2 Michigan and San Antonio
1 Springfield, Philadelphia and West Orange

     For the second straight year, many of the early draft picks were on disk players.  The Los Angeles Halos won the Draft Lottery and selected hard throwing Luis Castillo with the 1st overall pick while brother Bob of Lincoln selected SS Paul DeJong with pick two.  The first off disk player selected was Bo Bichette of Toronto who went 4th overall to Rock River.   A subscription web site named Fantasy Rundown produces a compiled list of prospects from well respected baseball entities including Baseball America, Major League Baseball, Top Prospect Alert, Fangraphs, Prospect 361 and Baseball Prospectus.  We went ahead and averaged out the rankings for those organizations and are producing the Overall Top Prospect List.  Ronald Acuna of Jersey tops the list followed by Shohei Ohtani and Vladimir Guerrero Jr who comprise the top three.  Jersey leads the TBBL with 11 players in total on the list followed by Atlanta who has 9 with West Orange, Springfield and Philadelphia making up the

bottom of the group with one prospect each.  The table to the right indicate how many players each TBBL club owns from the Top Prospect list.  There are a total of 158 players who had a score in our rankings.    

   

     Each preview we take a look at an All Time great and this year's trivia question asks you to identify which player holds the career stat line below:

Career AVG OBP SLG G AB H 2B 3B HR R RBI BB K SB Titles
Totals .310 .378 .551 2,169 8,383 2,601 478 18 497 1,344 1,489 892 1,688 19 0
162 Average - - - - 626 194 36 1 37 100 111 67 126 1 0

    The Beale Street Flippers nabbed this future Hall of Famer in the Dispersal draft and are hoping for some more Tiger Magic.  Miguel Cabrera is this first basemen who has been to the World Series two times and is 11 for 46 with zero home runs in 11 games.       

Year Trades Transactions
2004 15 76
2005 18 67
2006 43 66
2007 53 62
2008 48 54
2009 40 44
2010 55 57
2011 53 72
2012 46 89
2013 25 83
2014 57 87
2015 41 90
2016 41 94
2017 32 97

          The current open stadiums for the 2018 season are U.S. Cellular Field, Citizens Bank Ballpark, Globe Life Park, Tropicana Field, Great American Park and The Coliseum.  If any teams are looking to change parks please let me know as the deadline is a few days away.  

     The TBBL transaction frenzy continued in 2017 as we witnessed an All Time High for Transactions for the third straight season.  Utilizing free agent acquisitions is a great way to avoid over using players and the number of transactions has increased each of the past four seasons.  The table to the left shows Trades and Transactions by Year since the inception of the league.  The 2018 season, which is still in off season mode has already seen 40 trades (which has already surpassed last year's total).  Teams have been moving all types of players as the favorites are adding top quality pitching and the rebuilding teams (like mine) have been stockpiling the kids. 

     Each year I like to review a trade or two that should make some impact on the current season.  Back in November, possibly in response to the flurry of activity in the American League, the Springfield Isotopes dealt away Rookie of the Year Coldy Bellinger along with Gerrit Cole, Jacob Barnes and Xander Bogaerts in a deal that netted them ace Chris Sale and 3B Josh Donaldson from San Carlos along with pen arm Pat Neshek. This move, perhaps in response to the Capitals acquisitions of Corey Kluber, Andrew Miller and Nelson Cruz three days earlier look to be two of the bigger deals this offseason.  Later in the winter, the Gotham CityHawks and Emerald City Bombers made a splash as well swapping Jon Lester and Eric Thames (plus Beckham and Butcher) for Paul Goldschmidt and Zack Wheeler (plus Winker and a Rd 2 in 2019).  Lots of HUGE moves for 2019!

    

2017 Predictions

 

2017 Predictions
AL East Record 2017 Finish My Prediction NL East Record 2017 Finish My Prediction
x-Damage 117-45 1 1 x-Nuts 90-72 1 1
Smackdown 90-72 2 3 y-Confederates 89-73 2 3
CityHawks 68-94 3 2 Panthers 76-86 3 2
Rats 37-125 4 4 Komets 63-99 4 4
AL Central Record 2017 Finish My Prediction NL Central Record 2017 Finish My Prediction
x-Capitals 86-76 1 1 x-Paddlers 98-64 1 1
Oil Barons 81-81 2 2 Phils 81-81 2 2
Saints 81-81 3 3 Ravens 56-106 3 3
Whitecaps 72-90 4 4 Flippers 55-107 4 4
AL West Record 2017 Finish My Prediction NL West Record 2017 Finish My Prediction
x-Isotopes 107-55 1 2 x-Convicts 116-46 1 2
y-Aces 100-62 2 1 y-Bombers 86-76 2 1
y-Gladiators 93-69 3 3 Bitteroots 83-79 3 3
Halos 43-119 4 4 Flyers 76-86 4 4
x - Indicates Playoff Team  y - indicates Wild Card Team

     My predictions last year were very good considering it was the first season going with three divisions per league.  Of the six divisions predicted, four of them were spot on at the top while the other two had 1st and 2nd place finishes reversed.  We predicted 16 out of 24 spots exactly, which is a modest 67%!       

     The Most Valuable Players from 2017 were Daniel Murphy (.362-41-103) of Philadelphia and Joey Votto (.359-21-126) of Glenview.  Our Cy Young Winners were Max Scherzer (18-10, 3.06 ERA) of the Paddlers and Jose Fernandez (19-5, 2.57 ERA) of San Carlos.  David Ortiz ended his TBBL career with Jersey last year posting a batting average of .313 with 45 HR and 121 RBI making him the current All Time Leader in HR (518) and Walks (1,144).  Kris Bryant of Philadelphia also had a monster season compiling a line of .299-41-136 while starting every game for the Smackdown. 

     Rick Porcello of Jersey led the TBBL with 22 wins while his teammates Coe Kluber (19-6) and Tanner Roark (19-3) just missed winning 20 games each.  Carlos Martinez of the Convicts had a super season as well and put up a great record of 16-3 with a minescule ERA of 2.65.  Seung Hwan Oh led the league with 44 saves.

     Clayon Kershaw threw the TBBLs 2nd perfect game in history on September 10, 2017 vs Protect while Carlos Martinez and Steven Wright threw no-hitters. Marcell Ozuna had the only cycle in 2017.

     For the first time ever, the San Antonio/Chemung Franchise did not qualify for post season play.  This ended their streak of 13 straight seasons appearing in the post season.  What's interesting to note, if the format of the league hadn't changed (to mirror MLB), the Saints would have qualified for the playoffs and the streak would still be in tact.  Currently, the California Convicts have qualified for the post season 11 straight seasons (2007-2017) and hold the longest active streak at the time of this preview. 

 

The Shredder

     For this year's preview, we once again are utilizing rankings from MLB Network’s “Shredder” which takes into account a multitude of statistical factors with no human bias. The episodes are called MLB Networks Top 10 Right Now and have aired since mid January on the Network.  The table below displays each positions Top 10 list and the TBBL team the player is currently on:  

Rank First Basemen Pos Team Rank Second Basemen Pos Team Rank Third Basemen Pos Team Rank Short Stops Pos Team
1 Joey Votto 1B ATK 1 Jose Altuve  2B PAD 1 Kris Bryant 3B PHS 1 Carlos Correa  SS ISO
2 Freddie Freeman 1B ISO 2 Robinson Canó  2B BEA 2 Nolan Arenado 3B GOT 2 Corey Seager  SS ISO
3 Paul Goldschmidt 1B BOM 3 Brian Dozier  2B PAN 3 Josh Donaldson  3B ISO 3 Francisco Lindor  SS CCC
4 Anthony Rizzo 1B CCC 4 Daniel Murphy  2B PHS 4 Justin Turner  3B COL 4 Trea Turner  SS LAH
5 Cody Bellinger 1B SCA 5 D.J. LeMahieu  2B BOM 5 Anthony Rendon  3B CCC 5 Andrelton Simmons  SS SMC
6 José Abreu 1B SMC 6 Dustin Pedroia  2B CCC 6 Adrian Beltre  3B BEA 6 Jean Segura  SS HOU
7 Edwin Encarnacion 1B CON 7 Jonathan Schoop  2B CYC 7 José Ramírez  3B CYC 7 Paul DeJong  SS LTR
8 Brandon Belt 1B JER 8 Ian Kinsler  2B CON 8 Manny Machado  3B HOU 8 Elvis Andrus  SS BEA
9 Matt Carpenter 1B ISO 9 Neil Walker  2B SAS 9 Alex Bregman  3B PLU 9 Trevor Story  SS BOM
10 Carlos Santana 1B SCA 10 César Hernández  2B LAH 10 Kyle Seager  3B HOU 10 Tim Beckham  SS GOT
                               
Rank Catchers Pos Team Rank Left Fielders Pos Team Rank Center Fielders Pos Team Rank Right Fielders Pos Team
1 Buster Posey  C SAS 1 Marcell Ozuna LF CCC 1 Mike Trout  CF PAD 1 Aaron Judge  RF BEA
2 Gary Sánchez  C LAH 2 Yoenis Céspedes  LF ATK 2 Tommy Pham  CF ATK 2 Giancarlo Stanton  RF SAS
3 Willson Contreras  C ISO 3 Justin Upton  LF HOU 3 Charlie Blackmon  CF CON 3 Mookie Betts  RF ISO
4 Yasmani Grandal  C WHC 4 RYAN BRAUN  LF CON 4 George Springer  CF HOU 4 Bryce Harper  RF BEA
5 J.T. Realmuto  C CCC 5 Trey Mancini  LF LTR 5 LORENZO CAIN  CF PAN 5 J.D. Martinez  RF CCC
6 Austin Barnes  C COL 6 Khris Davis  LF CON 6 CHRISTIAN YELICH  CF SCA 6 Josh Reddick  RF PHS
7 Mike Zunino  C BOM 7 Adam Eaton  LF PAD 7 Kevin Kiermaier  CF CCC 7 Avisaíl García  RF LTR
8 Yadier Molina  C BEA 8 Andrew Benintendi  LF NHH 8 Chris Taylor  CF BSF 8 DOMINGO SANTANA  RF LTR
9 Tyler Flowers  C WHC 9 Marwin Gonzalez  LF ATK 9 Michael Conforto  CF NHH 9 Mitch Haniger  RF PLU
10 Robinson Chirinos  C PAN 10 Brett Gardner  LF LAH 10 A.J. Pollock  CF SCA 10 Dexter Fowler  RF ISO
                               
Rank Starters Pos Team Rank Closers Pos Team Rank Teams #   Rank Teams #  
1 Clayton Kershaw  SP GOT 1 Kenley Jansen  CL PAD 1 Capital City 11   11 Philadelphia 4  
2 Corey Kluber  SP CCC 2 Andrew Miller  CL CCC 2 Springfield 10   11 Lincoln 4  
3 Chris Sale  SP ISO 3 Craig Kimbrel  CL CON 3 California 7   11 Los Angeles 4  
4 Max Scherzer  SP PAD 4 Chad Green  CL GOT 3 Mad City 7   14 West Orange 3  
5 Stephen Strasburg  SP PHS 5 Archie Bradley  CL PAD 5 Beartooth 6   14 Colorado 3  
6 Madison Bumgarner  SP PAD 6 Zach Britton  CL SCA 6 Emerald CIty 5   14 San Antonio 3  
7 Noah Syndergaard  SP ISO 7 COREY KNEBEL  CL GOT 6 San Carlos 5   15 Michigan 2  
8 Carlos Carrasco  SP CON 8 Aroldis Chapman  CL JER 6 Gotham 5   15 Newark/Stn Mountain 2  
9 Justin Verlander  SP ATK 9 Brad Hand  CL CCC 6 Houston 5   15 Siouxland/Beale Street 2  
10 Kyle Hendricks  SP BOM 10 Raisel Iglesias  CL COL 6 Atlanta 5   15 Cracksville/Jersey 2  

 

2018 MLB Network Top 10 Right Now Team
. . . . .
.

Trout

. .
. .318 31 HR 115 RBI .
. . . . .
z M. Ozuna . A. Judge a

.287 32 HR 109 RBI

.

.232 1 HR 7 RBI

 a
. . . . a
.

C. Correa

Altuve

 .
. .260 16 HR 76 RBI .322 15 HR 125 RS .
.

K. Bryant

 .

J. Votto

 .

                               .299 41 HR 136 RBI .359 21 HR 126 RBI.
. . . . .
.   Posey   .
Starter

.288 17 HR 72 RBI

 Closer
Kershaw 15-2, 1.90 ERA

K. Jansen

 2.45 ERA 34 Sv
2017 TBBL Stats Displayed

      The Paddlers have three players ranked atop this list in Mike Trout (CF), Kenley Jansen (CL) and Jose Altuve (2B).  The graphic to the left displays the top players in baseball by position with their 2017 TBBL statistics included.  The Eaton brothers continue to own the list with 21 combined players in the Top 10's while the only team to not have one player listed in the Top 10's is Rock River, who's best player might be recently acquired Miguel Sano.  Mad City's Jose Altuve continues to be one of the best players in baseball and owns the TBBL line below:

 

  

     

     Altuve has played in every single game for Mad City since he was acquired from Jersey back in 2013.  He has alternated great seasons in the TBBL capped off with his championship last year.  The WAR stat continues to be one of baseballs trendy stat measures and it has helped me shape my predictions the past few seasons.  Unlike WAR, the salaries of players in MLB are bloated and that translates to the TBBL rosters as well.  More and more web sites are popping up analyzing stats and coming up with new measures and another favorite of mine is the Baseball Think Factory, a sabermetrically-oriented baseball web site that features the day's prominent news stories.  This site has been around for a while and is a great read as is the Fangraphs site.  For the measures below, I utilize an Access database with stats from www.fangraphs.com and match it up to the TBBL rosters.  This database is used throughout the season on our web site and we will start using charts to better tell the story of the TBBL in 2018.  Below is this year's Salary and WAR Ranks courtesy of Fangraphs:

TBBL Club Batter War Pitcher WAR Final WAR WAR Rank Team Salary Salary Rank
Atlanta Knights 18.8 15.8 34.6 16 163,494,000 8
Beale Street Flippers 16.3 19.1 35.4 14 159,611,000 9
Beartooth Bitteroots 22.3 19.0 41.3 10 190,323,000 7
California Convicts 32.7 24.1 56.8 4 193,819,000 5
Capital City Capitals 41.2 23.3 64.5 2 129,357,000 13
Colorado Gladiators 26.4 17.0 43.4 7 197,825,000 4
Cracksville Plumbers 12.6 13.8 26.4 21 81,038,000 22
Emerald City Bombers 23.5 18.0 41.5 9 90,778,000 18
Gotham CityHawks 19.7 24.9 44.6 5 193,662,000 6
Houston Oil Barons 25.8 15.0 40.8 11 207,741,000 2
Jersey Damage Inc. 23.4 21.1 44.5 6 144,554,000 11
Lincoln Tunnel Rats 8.9 9.1 18.0 23 64,797,000 24
Los Angeles Halos 21.0 6.6 27.6 19 73,101,000 23
Mad City Paddlers 39.9 23.1 63.0 3 144,356,000 12
Michigan Whitecaps 17.4 7.8 25.2 22 82,596,000 21
Newark Hen House 19.2 11.9 31.1 17 88,297,000 20
Philadelphia Smackdown 24.4 14.6 39.0 12 120,219,000 16
Rock River Ravens 11.7 6.0 17.7 24 89,013,000 19
San Antonio Saints 24.8 13.6 38.4 13 216,655,000 1
San Carlos Aces 25.0 16.7 41.7 8 206,131,000 3
Siouxland Cyclists 12.6 13.9 26.5 20 120,992,000 15
Springfield Isotopes 54.6 26.7 81.3 1 152,772,000 10
Stone Mountain Confederates 15.7 14.1 29.8 18 125,482,000 14
West Orange Panthers 20.7 14.4 35.1 15 111,243,000 17

     The bloated pig award for the highest team salary goes to the San Antonio Saints this year as they top the list with a $216 million dollar payroll.  This year's leader has a bargain payroll compared to the previous two seasons (Jersey $277m in 2017 and Protect $239m in 2016).  David Price ($30m), Adrian Gonzalez ($22.4m) and Jose Bautista ($18m) account for more than one third of the teams payroll and combined they have 26 HR with a .212 average and 6 wins.  The highest salary of any player in the TBBL belongs to Clayton Kershaw ($33m), taking up 17% of the Gotham funds for the year.  Bobby Bonilla is also still getting paid, just over a million per season from the Kentucky Wildcats from back in 2004!        

2018 Milestones

     Looking towards the 2018 season, the following milestones are in sight for some players and teams.

Career HR - 500 Career RBI - 1,500 Career Hits - 2,500 Career Walks - 1,000 Career SB - 500
Miguel Cabrera, BSF (497) Miguel Cabrera, BSF (1,489) Albert Pujols, GOT (2,485) Miguel Cabrera, BSF (892) Jose Reyes, SAS (443)
. Adrian Beltre, BEA (1,475) Adrian Beltre, BEA (2,438) . .
Career Wins - 200 Career App - 700 Career Strike Outs - 2,500 Team Wins - 1,500 Team Losses - 1,500
Felix Hernandez, HOU (168) Francisco Rodriguez, FA (654) Felix Hernandez, HOU (2,286) Los Angeles (1,393) Capital City (1,319)
Justin Verlander, ATK (154) . Justin Verlander, ATK (2,204) San Antonio (1,389) .

 

2018 Predictions and Simulation Results

     My predictions for the 2018 season are highlighted in each teams capsule and in many cases I used owner provided comments to craft the write-up.  18 out of the 24 teams contributed comments and 21 out of 24 teams provided a manager profile for the simulation.  Now, the moment everyone has been waiting for ... my prediction as to who will win the 2018 TBBL Championship is the Beartooth Bitteroots.  My streak of never having picked the TBBL Champion continued last year (I picked my team) and will most likely be the dagger in Mike Bush's season but with an outfield that consists of  Harper, McCutchen and Judge combined with the addition of Robinson Cano this team has the bats to go deep in the post season.  The pitching staff is strong and is led by Luis Severino and Dylan Bundy with other veteran innings eaters on board.  If Mike needs to add a SP at the deadline, he will considering he has eight prospects in our Top 100 list to deal from.  The rest of the National League boasts some strong teams including defending champion Mad City, California and Atlanta.  We are predicting a Mad City versus Beartooth NLCS with a great showdown between Mike Trout and Aaron Judge! 

     The American League might be weaker this year than it has been in recent memory.  The West Division is loaded with talent and great managers as displayed by all teams finishing at least ten games over .500 in the simulation.  The reigning AL Champion Isotopes look to return to the Fall Classic led by aces Chris Sale and Michael Fulmer followed by a strong bullpen.  Their offense is second to none led by Freddie Freeman, Corey Seager, Mookie Betts and Josh Donaldson.  We are expecting the Capitals to meet up with the Isotopes in the ALCS with it coming down to game seven where anything can happen.  Official World Series prediction --- Beartooth over Springfield in 6 games.           

2018 Simulations Standings
AL East Record Pct NL East Record Pct
x-Smackdown 80-82 .494 x-Knights 95-67 .586
Rats 73-89 .451 Hen House 71-91 .438
Flippers 64-98 .395 Confederates 64-98 .395
Damage 55-107 .340 Panthers 56-106 .346
AL Central Record Pct NL Central Record Pct
x-Capitals 95-67 .586 x-Cyclists 102-60 .630
Saints 84-78 .519 y-Paddlers 93-69 .574
Oil Barons 83-79 .512 CityHawks 85-77 .525
White Caps 67-95 .414 Ravens 67-95 .414
AL West Record Pct NL West Record Pct
x-Isotopes 106-56 .654 x-Bitteroots 99-63 .611
y-Halos 88-74 .543 y-Convicts 92-70 .568
z-Aces 86-76 .531 Plumbers 78-84 .481
z-Gladiators 86-76 .531 Bombers 75-87 .463
x - Indicates Playoff Team  y - indicates Wild Card Team

z - indicates tie for final playoff spot

      On March 2, 2018, the annual season simulation was run.  The table to the right shows the final standings of the sim.  There is a link to your team reports in each grid.  The Isotopes had the best record during the sim with 106 wins while the Cyclists were the only other 100+ win club.  JD Martinez of the Capitals led the league with 50 HR while Cody Bellinger of San Carlos drove in a league best 142 runs despite a batting average of just .229.  Mike Trout of Mad City won the National League MVP Award with a line of .316-40-141 but was sadly overused and not post season eligible.  Martinez was awarded the American League MVP in a landslide.  Dee Gordon of Gotham swiped a league best 60 bases while Yuri Gurriel of Colorado paced the TBBL with a .322 batting average, narrowly beating out Carlos Correa of the Isotopes (.322).  Joey Votto of Atlanta led the NL in walks with 142 while Aaron Judge of Beartooth devastated pitching all season long with a .282-35-92 line and 133 walks.  Perhaps the most impressive part of Judges' game was his strikeout total of 155 (53 less than in real life).  Miguel Sano of Rock River and Joey Gallo of Mad City were the whiff leaders with 192 each.

     Three pitchers posted 20 win seasons during the sim with Chris Sale of Springfield putting up a league best 23-4 record en route to the Cy Young in the American League.  Max Scherzer of Mad City and Luis Severino of Beartooth led the NL in wins with 20 each and were named Co-Cy Young Winners in a vote that stirred a debate amongst league owners.  Severino finished with a 20-9 record along with a league best 2.13 ERA and 212 strike outs while Scherzer posted a record of 20-10 with an ERA of 2.33 and 253 strike outs.  Votes were split right down the middle but one team left both pitchers off their ballot which resulted in the tie.  Chris Sale was the top K man with 256 while Dinelson Lamet led all small world countries with 138 walks.  Robert Osuna of Beartooth had 51 saves with a scant ERA of 1.33.   Corey Kluber of Capital City threw 6 shutouts while Ervin Santana led the league with 263.2 innings pitched.

          Here is the direct link for the sim results.  The final simulation DB is located here for anyone who wants to download it. 

      Jump to:
 AL East | AL Central | AL West | NL East | NL Central | NL West

AL EAST AL CENTRAL AL WEST
Jersey Damage Inc.

 

 Beale Street Flippers Lincoln Tunnel Rats Philadelphia Smackdown Houston Oil Barons Capital City Capitals Michigan Whitecaps San Antonio Saints Los Angeles Halos San Carlos Aces Springfield Isotopes Colorado Gladiators
NL EAST NL CENTRAL NL WEST
Stone Mountain Confederates

 

 West Orange Panthers Atlanta Knights Newark Hen House Siouxland Cyclists Gotham CityHawks Mad City Paddlers Rock River Ravens Emerald City Bombers Corona Convicts Cracksville Plumbers Beartooth Bitteroots

 
Team Jersey Damage Inc

Team Report

 Jersey Damage Inc.
Owner Rob Capizzano
2017 Record 117-45 (1st place)
Team ERA 4.88  

Team Batting:

 .240-.306-.408
. . . Salary: $144m 11th
. . Desmond WAR: 44.5 6th
. . C. Young . .
. Belt . Pence .
z Verdugo . N. Williams a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Semien

Odor

 .
. Riddle Miller .
Starters . . Pen
Roark

Happ

 .

Cron

 Chapman
A. Sanchez

Crawford

 .

.

 L. Weaver
Junis . . . Bedrosian
Zimmermann a Perez . Jeffress
Gallardo a Sucre

.

 Strickland
N. Martinez . . . Melancon
Tilman a . a Avilan
On the Farm: The purge of 2017 led to the acquisition of the #1 prospect Ronald Acuna and he is just the start of the youth movement.  Scott Kingery, Brendan Rogers, David Dahl, Chance Adams, Kolby Allard and Jorge Mateo are all major league affiliated and have a chance to break into the bigs in 2018.  
Strengths: Youth is the strength of the team and hopefully the players in the majors continue to develop.
Weaknesses:   Starting pitching is putrid as is the pen after Chapman
GM Thoughts: Hoping to flip a few more players before the trade deadline to improve the teams chances in 2019
Key Moves: Acquiring Acuna, Brendan Rodgers, David Dahl and Ian Happ
Prediction: 4th Place --  It's not going to be a fun season.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Damage finished 4th in the AL East in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Beale Street Flippers

Team Report

 Gotham CityHawks
Owner George Kurtinitis/Lee Vieron
2017 Record 55-107 (4th place)
Team ERA 4.06  

Team Batting:

 .255-.318-.424
. . . Salary: $190m 7th
. . C. Taylor WAR: 41.3 10th
. . Parra . .
. Kemp . Bruce .
z Cabrera . Bandy a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Hechavarria

Zobrist

 .
. Anderson Arroyo .
Starters . . Pen
Ray

Moustakas

 .

Morrison

 Devenski
McCullers

Cordova

 .

Cabrera

 Flaherty
Salazar . . . Butler
Odorizzi a Perez . Otero
Nova a Sisco . Phelps
Harvey . . . Loup
Chatwood a . a Torres
On the Farm: The owner did not supply any comments.
Strengths: The owner did not supply any comments.
Weaknesses:   The owner did not supply any comments.
GM Thoughts: The owner did not supply any comments.
Key Moves: The owner did not supply any comments.
Prediction: 2nd place.  The race in the AL East might for who has the worst record.
Sim MP Provided: No
Simulated Finish:  The Flippers finished 3rd in the AL East in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Lincoln Tunnel Rats

Team Report

 Lincoln Tunnel Rats
Owner Robert Woertz
2017 Record 37-125 (4th place)
Team ERA 4.09  

Team Batting:

 .260-.324-.442
. . . Salary: $65m 24th
. . Hicks WAR: 18.0 23rd
. . Allen . .
. Mancini . Garcia .
z Toles . Santana a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Polanci

Villar

 .
. Machado Rojas .
Starters . . Pen
Fiers

DeJong

 .

Olson

 Ronodn
Gonzalez

-

 .

Holiday

 Leiter
Godley . . . Smith
Paxton a Rupp . Duffey
Romano a Torrens . Doolittle
Finnegan . . . Blackburn
a a . a Vincent
         
On the Farm:

A few of the kids are looking good, Senzel looks ready to begin his MLB career and Soto has advanced his rating. For the most part we have stayed away from uncarded players and gone with youngsters already in the MLB. Yet to be seen how that works out as we are only a year into the rebuild.
Strengths:

Hitting has gotten much better this year. 2 players we drafted a while ago finally have been worthwhile as Avasail Garcia and Aaron Hicks had career years. Domingo Santana looks to be the real deal and late draft pick last year of Matt Olsen looks to have really paid off. Dejong will help too, hopefully more than just this year.
Weaknesses:  

starting pitching is terrible. We traded all our top line pitchers to rebuild the team with youth and draft picks, but have not seen much pay off in pitching. At least last year’s flier pick of Doolittle has helped the Relief pitching, but we will need to paste together starts from about 10 pitchers.
GM Thoughts:

hoping for close to .500 is probably the best we can expect. High draft pick of Villar last year really was a loser so far, hoping that DeJong does better in the long term. We have many young pitchers, so hopefully a few come through so next year can be better. Should be more fun watching the real MLB to see how our prospects do than actually playing the SIM.
Key Moves:

Last year’s trade that brought Santana, Paxton and Tomas was a big help. Last year’s high pick of Villar was a key move that has cost us, but later picks of Senzel, Soto, Doolittle, Olsen, Mancini, and Godley look to be working out. Need big payoff on DeJong to keep improving.
Prediction: 4th place.  Somebody has to win this division and if the Smackdown stumble the Rats will be right there.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Rats finished 2nd in the AL East in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Philadelphia Smackdown

Team Report

 Philadelphia Smackdown
Owner Noel Langlois
2017 Record 90-72 (2nd Place)
Team ERA 3.62  

Team Batting:

 .265-.329-.445
. . . Salary: $120m 16th
. . Taylor WAR: 39.0 12th
. . Jackson . .
. Carrera . Reddick .
z Schwarber . Renfroe a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Sanchez

Murphy

 .
. Coleman - .
Starters . . Pen
Strasburg

Bryant

 .

Valencia

 Fields
Ramirez

Devers

 .

Trumbo

 Uehara
Stroman . . . Madson
Shoemaker a Maldanado . O'Day
Dickey a Rivera . de la Rosa
Giolito . . . Kontos
Lopez a . a Boxberger
On the Farm:

Not much on the pure aaa front with just three minor leaguers in Yadier Alvarez, JB Bukauskus, and Corey Ray, with none drafted in the 2018 draft. But there's a lot of younger guys that have lost some of their prospect shine and have played a bit in the majors that hopefully can make a leap this year like Raul Mondesi, Blake Swihart, Lucas Giolito, and Reynaldo Lopez. And still holding out hope for former #1 prospect Jurickson Profar to make some contributions.
Strengths:

Some starting pitching and the bullpen. Strasburg and Stroman are a strong 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation. The bullpen looks decent with a bunch of no names, with Ryan Madsen set up to have a good season as the closer.
Weaknesses:  

Defense and power. It seems the infield could have 100 errors for the season between the four positions, so the pitchers will love that. And the team is definitely lacking in power, which is not good in this day and age. It seems quite possible the team will finish last in homers.
GM Thoughts:

This isn't a great team, but could make a little noise in the AL this year if things fall right. For some reason, the defense and power are not playing well in simulations, which will be the team's downfall if those materialize in the regular season.
Key Moves:

No trades as of yet, but I guess holding on to some of these guys will look good if they have put together a decent year in real life.
Prediction: 1st place.  After a surprisingly good season last year yet still missing the playoffs, it's doubtful the Smackdown will make it this year. Shooting for a .500 record and hoping the young guys with a couple of years under their belts like Schwarber, Renfroe, Taylor, Mondesi, Swihart, Profar, Giolito, and Lopez to make some decent leaps with solid full season's worth of production. That's a lot to wish on and will either show great patience or stupidity in the end.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Smackdown finished 1st in the AL East in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Houston Oil Barons

Team Report

 Houston Oil Barons
Owner Scott Felt
2017 Record 81-81 (2nd place)
Team ERA 4.73  

Team Batting:

 .257-.330-.438
. . . Salary: $208m 2nd
. . Springer WAR: 40.8 11th
. . Buxton . .
. Upton . Souza .
z Fisher . Pirela a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Machado

Segura

 .
.

Segura

 Goins .
Starters . . Pen
Hernandez

Seager

 .

Mauer

 W. Davis
Lamet

.

 . . Buehler
Nolasco . . . Cecil
Manaea a Gomes . Vizcaino
Shields a Romine . Martes
Gausmann . . . Montgomery
. a . a Herrera
On the Farm: Sadly, all of the best prospects on the farm are hitters so there is no light at the end of the tunnel. 
Strengths: Machado and Springer would be the elites.  Other good younger players are Segura, K. Seager and Buxton. 
Weaknesses:   The owner did not supply any comments.
GM Thoughts:

Houston looks to be stuck in a transitional mode, unable to get both the offense and the defense to come together at the same time.  The current on the field roster has some excellent players who will hopefully man their positions for many years.  But--and it's a big but--the pitching is going to be rough.  Gausman and Manea were solid and showed promise for more perhaps.  After that though it is a collection of former useful starters who have either been injured or diminished by age or both. 

Key Moves: The owner did not supply any comments.
Prediction:

3rd Place -- Stuck in a tough division, the Oil Barons may be in line for a possible playoff berth.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Oil Barons finished 3rd in the AL Central in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Capital City Capitals

Team Report

 Capital City Capitals
Owner Jason Eaton
2017 Record 86-76 (1st place)
Team ERA 3.40  

Team Batting:

 .274-.351-.476
. . . Salary: $129m 13th
. . Kiermaier WAR: 64.5 2nd
. . Gordon . .
. Ozuna . JD Martinez .
z Deitrich . Cruz a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Lindor

Pedroia

 .
. Hernandez Dietrich .
Starters . . Pen
Archer

Rendon

 .

Rizzo

 Diaz
Kluber

-

 .

-

 Hand
Bauer . . . Allen
Nola a Realmuto . Brach
Marquez a Leon . Glover
Richards . . . Miller
Albers a . a Cessa
On the Farm: Capitals used the vast majority of their draft picks on Minor League players.   The vast majority are high ceiling, high risk type players that are young and in A ball.   Looking to strike gold as you never know with these lottery ticket type players.
Players closer to the big league include Michael Chavis, Steven Duggar, Shane Bieber and Joey Lucchessi.   While our higher end prospects include Sixto Sanchez, Ryan Mountcastle, Nate Pearson and Jesus Sanchez.   We’ll see how the future pans out for all of these players.
Strengths: Offense and Bullpen.   In the pen we have some power at the back end.   All current relievers have a closer rating except...Andrew Miller.  Cody Allen, Brad Brach, Edwin Diaz and Brad Hand should be able to lock down a lead.
Captials are really excited about the starting nine that we can run out there.   Strong on the corners with Anthony Rizzo and Anthony Rendon, strong up the middle with Francicso Lindor, Dustin Pedroria and Kevin Kiermaier.  Our thump in the lineup comes from the corners and DH, with Marcell Ozuna, JD Martinez and Nelson Cruz.
Weaknesses:   Back end of starting pitching.   We have upgraded our rotation and like the front end with Corey Kluber, Chris Archer and Aaron Nola. The back end is solid but not spectacular with Trevor Bauer and German Marquez anchoring that.
GM Thoughts: We are continuing to put the peddle down and pursuing a win now mentality after a few years of rebuilding.   The window is now for the Capitals.
Key Moves: COREY KLUBER!  THE KLUBOT!
Prediction: 1st place.  Capitals should be a good team all year.   Hopefully we can make another playoff run and see where it takes us.   Coin flip in the playoffs and hope it bounces our way this season.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Capitals finished 1st in the AL Central in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Michigan Whitecaps

Team Report

 Michigan Whitecaps
Owner Jake Drake
2017 Record 72-90(4th place)
Team ERA 4.25  

Team Batting:

 .253-.322-.417
. . . Salary: $83m 21st
. . Pillar WAR: 25.2 22nd
. . Jones . .
. Martinez . C. Gonzalez .
z Duvall . C. Frazier a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Galvis

Forsythe

 .
. Torreyes Cuthbert .
Starters . . Pen
Boyd

Spangeberg

 .

Reynolds

 Alvarez
Shipley

-

 .

Bird

 Sewald
Straily . . . Ynoa
Ch. Anderson a Flowers . Greene
Urena a Grandal . Garcia
Hellickson . . . Busenitz
Stephenson a . a a
On the Farm: The owner did not supply any comments.
Strengths: The owner did not supply any comments.
Weaknesses:   The owner did not supply any comments.
GM Thoughts: The owner did not supply any comments.
Key Moves: The owner did not supply any comments.
Prediction: 4th place.  Sub .500 season and on the outside of the playoff picture.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Whitecaps finished  4th in the AL Central in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team San Antonio Saints

Team Report

 San Antonio Saints
Owner Alan Lehmann
2017 Record 81-81 (2nd Place)
Team ERA 3.90  

Team Batting:

 .258-.334-.439
. . . Salary: $217m 1st
. . Grichuk WAR: 38.4 13th
. . Nimmo . .
. Peralta . Stanton .
z Parker . Piscotty a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Reyes

Walker

 .
. Nunez Sogard .
Starters . . Pen
Price

Nunez

 .

Bell

 Motte
Peacock

Bautista

 .

Gonzalez

 Belilse
Bridwell . . . Stripling
Kennedy a Posey . Miner
Garza a Ramos . Stewart
Wacha . . . Benoit
Hoffman a . a a
On the Farm:

I think we have solid young SPs in the pipeline.  Gonsalves has been superb in the minors until his injury last year.  Alex Faedo should be contributing in the majors in 2020 and I think Kowar will be a year behind him.  Jeff Hoffman should be very solid then. 
Strengths:

Our hitting is not what it was in the glory years, but it should still be pretty strong with Stanton, Posey, Nunez and Walker.  Duda will be a key role player for us.  If his park factor can pay off, he will be a key cog in our lineup.
Weaknesses:  

our starting pitchers are still dragging this team down.  Wacha and Kennedy had down years.  Price and Hoffman were hurt.  If we can get to the playoffs with this bunch, our bully should keep us close and give us a chance if our starters can avoid total disaster early.
GM Thoughts:

I always praise Rob’s commitment to the league, so let’s do that now.  The league is perfect on never missing deadlines and regularly adding a fun new layer of history to the TBBL.  The owners in this league are brilliant and they make it tough to build a team that can stay at the top for a while. 
Key Moves:

I wanted to get younger, but couldn’t draft the exciting prospects I had hoped to.  Instead, I had to patch a terrible rotation with Bridwell and Kennedy in the early rounds.
Prediction:

2nd Place.  I think we win 85 to 90 games unless we can make a trade for a solid SP in the season.  That record would get us close to the wildcard, but we won’t go far unless our pitching is stellar in the playoffs. 
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Saints finished 2nd in the AL Central in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Los Angeles Halos

Team Report

 Los Angeles Halos
Owner Greg W.
2017 Record 43-119 (4th Place)
Team ERA 3.51  

Team Batting:

 .259-.328-.418
. . . Salary: $73m 23rd
. . Hernandez WAR: 27.6 19th
. . Heredia . .
. Gardner . Aoki .
z Allford . Wade a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Turner

Hernandez

 .
. Swanson Merrifield .
Starters . . Pen
Cashner

Merrifield

 .

Smoak

 Swarzak
Keuchel

Davidson

 .

-

 Sims
T. Anderson . . . Givens
Foltynewicz a Sanchez . Petit
E. Rodriguez a Suzuki . Kela
Woodruff . . . Freeman
Castillo a . a Albers
On the Farm: he Halos’ farm system through the years has primarily been an incubator for trade chips. Over the past couple of seasons as the team fell into a major rebuild, the focus changed and the farm system is being relied upon to generate the Future Halo Stars!
So far, both Gary Sanchez and Trea Turner look like future impact players and Foltynewicz and Swanson could both be rotation players or better. The next players that we hope graduate from the farm are: (1) Austin Meadows who it seems like we have been waiting forever for, and who we hope becomes a middle of the lineup contributor in a year or so; (2) Willy Adames who should join a very crowded middle infield as early as next season; and (3) Justus Sheffield who could at least help with the bullpen next season before taking over a rotation spot.
That will leave the following players still developing: (1) Domingo Acevedo who is a couple of years away from joining the rotation; (2) Nick Gordon another middle infielder who due to the log jam could be a likely trade chip; (3) Alex Jackson who came over in a trade last summer will take some time as we try to figure out if he can stay behind the plate; (4) Blake Rutherford who has not developed the power we had hoped when we drafted him last season and is on the bubble to stick with team or be released before the season.
The Halos’ only added one new player to the farm in this year’s draft and surprise it’s another middle infielder. Nander De Sadas is the first high school player drafted by the Halos but with comps like Lindor … the expectations are high.
Strengths: Last season’s sell-off resulted in a boat load of draft picks which the team used to build a pretty solid bullpen. With a young and unproven starting staff, we are hoping the additions of Minor, Petit, Swarzak, Kela, freeman and Albers who join the only holdover in Givens … will give the Halos one of the best pens in the TBBL.
Weaknesses:   This season may come down to how much the team can get from their starting rotation. Keuchel returns as the #1, but injuries continue to be a concern. Cashner also returns along with youngsters Rodriguez, Foltynewicz and Anderson. The team will also have to get more out of Ryu this season than the one start he gave last season. Therefore with the many question marks, the rotation is the biggest concern / weakness heading into the season.
GM Thoughts: We thought our team was young last year, but this team is even younger as the average age of the batters is 24.8 and the pitching staff is 27. In addition to the players on the farm, we are very excited about the ML level young talent, who if they figure things out and more importantly stay healthy, could accelerate the timeline for the rebuild. Players like (1) Devon Travis who when healthy in the past showed he belonged; (2) Anthony Alford who won’t contribute this season but remains a top prospect; (3) Matt Davidson who has enormous power but some big holes in the swing; (4) Andrew Knapp who we believe can hit but must improve his defense behind the plate; (5) Lucas Sims who seems like he has been a top prospect forever but is still only 23; (6) Brandon Woodruff who came over in a trade last season should have a high floor but low ceiling but could be a mainstay at the back of the rotation; and last but certainly not least (7) our #1 overall pick, Luis Castillo, who we hope will join Keuchel at the top of the rotation and be part of the next Halo Championship! With the optimism about the young talent, we hope that the dark days are behind us as this franchise is way too proud to suffer through another 40 win season.
Key Moves: In addition to landing Castillo with the #1 pick overall, we are very excited about the new talent brought in from this draft. We are hoping the bullpen additions make the team competitive while the young talent has some time to develop. However, the key move for this year’s team was drafting Justin Smoak in the 13th round last season. With him in the middle of the lineup along with Sanchez the Halos might actually be able to score some runs this year.
Prediction: 3rd place.  After winning 40 less games than the previous worst season in franchise history last season, it should be hard not to improve on last season. Unfortunately, being in the division of doom will make it even more challenging … however, if the team can get close to league average results from the rotation … the bullpen could be strong enough to carry the day. We are targeting 81 wins and if things break right … like strong seasons from Smoak and Sanchez and players develop enough to give some trade options … there is the potential of 90 wins and stealing a wildcard spot.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Halos finished 2nd in the AL West in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team San Carlos Aces

Team Report

 San Carlos Aces
Owner Jeff Thomas
2017 Record 100-62 (2nd place)
Team ERA 4.47  

Team Batting:

 .259-.327-.422
. . . Salary: $206m 3rd
. . Yelich WAR: 41.7 8th
. . . . .
. Bellinger . Gamel .
z Beltran . Heyward a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Bogaerts

Castro

 .
. Barney Barreto .
Starters . . Pen
Bailey

Harrison

 .

Santana

 Britton
Colon

.

 .

Vargas

 Casilla
Lackey . . . Lively
Cole a Martin . Gregerson
Darvish a Alfaro . Rogers
Chacin . . . Barnes
a a . a a
On the Farm:

Based on MLB .com rankings

Shohei Otani #1 overall prospect, Vlad Guerrero Jr #3 overall prospect, Royce Lewis #20, Hunter Greene #21, Kyle Wright #30, Heilot Ramos #63, Ethan Hankins, Nolan Gorman, Vlad Gutierrez. Hankins and Gorman should join the top 100 after June draft. Gutierrez might be destined for relief work to crack MLB roster or injury to SP. Feel we have one of top farm systems.
Strengths: Lead by Bellinger, Yelich, Santana, Pollock’s return, Bogaerts our new SS. Staff anchored by Darvish Cole and surprise season from Chacin, gives us 3 solid SP
Weaknesses:   Bullpen is a match away from dumpster fire. Beltran’s final year and Russell Martin, how many seasons does he have left?  Partial season from Castro at 2b, Harrison slides over to 3b with ¾ of a season, so Utley and Barney will get PA, at 2b and 3b
GM Thoughts: Losing Jose Fernandez is rough, may he RIP, huge hole to fill. But last yrs draft netted some top talent in ss Royce Lewis, SP Hunter Greene and SP Kyle Wright and this yrs draft added 2 more highly touted draft prospects in Ethan Hankins some scouts say has the best fastball in June draft. Plus, 3b Nolan Gorman, pure power. Heilot Ramos could be fun too watch in a few years. We just graduated Franklin Barreto to big’s and Vlad Guerrero Jr should not be far behind, hopefully making his debut for Aces in 2019. Hopefully the kids we have drafted soon join the club. Really excited about what club will look like in near future. Blockbuster dealing Greinke and adding uber prospect Otani & Lackey for serviceable starts. Otani could be DH/OF/1b and SP for club next yr as should earn rankings for both position and pitcher.
Key Moves:

Dealing Sale and Donaldson for Bellinger, Cole, Bogaerts, surprised by offer, but very happy with youth movement influx to roster. Really helped changed direction of club. Adding catcher Jorge Alfaro before draft hopefully answers catcher issue for yrs to come.

Trading Greinke and adding Otani could be franchise changing move one way or the other

Drafted Ben Gamel becomes starter over Heyward
Prediction:

4th place - Isotopes are class of division. Colorado is tough and LA is retooling nicely,

Playoffs are looking like longshot as retooling club
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Aces finished 3rd in the AL West in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Springfield Isotopes

Team Report

 Springfield Isotopes
Owner John Eaton
2017 Record 107-55 (1st place)
Team ERA 3.61  

Team Batting:

 .264-.356-.466
. . . Salary: $153m 10th
. . Fowler WAR: 81.3 1st
. . Marisnick . .
. Pederson . Betts .
z Young . Nava a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Seager

Correa

 .
. -- Carpenter .
Starters . . Pen
Sale

Donaldson

 .

Freeman

 Syndergaard
Fulmer

Freese

 .

Pearce

 Johnson
T. Walker . . . Baumann
Clevinger a Contreras . Ramirez
Wainwright a Voght . Reed
Karns . . . Olson
Blach a . a Neshek
On the Farm: Trading away 7 of our top 8 draft picks to make a run last October didn’t leave us with many top prospects to draft this year. Feel like the Cubs with a depleted farm system, even more so because we drafted the Cubs’ top two prospects.
Strengths: Infield hitting. Able to run out Donaldson, Seager, Correa, and Freeman across the diamond.
Weaknesses:   Starting pitching after Sale. Syndergaard won’t be that anchor this time around.
GM Thoughts: Will be interesting to see how we come out of the gates this year after giving up a 2-0 lead in the World Series to the Paddlers.
Key Moves: Went out and acquired Josh Donaldson and Chris Sale. Hopefully the GM doesn’t get fired for giving up Bellinger, Bogaerts and Cole to do so.
Prediction: 1st place.  Isotopes got lucky in taking down the heavily-favored Damage last October for the AL pennant. Hoping to get back into the playoffs this year where anything can happen!
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Isotopes finished 1st in the AL West in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Colorado Gladiators

Team Report

 Colorado Gladiators
Owner Casey Siller
2017 Record 93-69 (3rd place)
Team ERA 3.82  

Team Batting:

 .267-.336-.435
. . . Salary: $199m 4th
. . Herrera WAR: 43.4 7th
. . Blanco . .
. Dyson . Puig .
z Diaz . Choo a
.

-

 . . a
. . . . a
.

Crawford

Baez

 .
. Ahmed Albies .
Starters . . Pen
Arrieta

Turner

 .

C. Davis

 Harris
Grienke

Diaz

 .

Gurriel

 LeBlanc
Mengden . . . Font
Estrada a Vazquez . Pruitt
Banda a Barnes a Iglesias
E. Santana . . . Moylan
Triggs a . a -
On the Farm:

Shohei Otani, was the big fish here, exciting, two-way potential there... then I shipped him off to the Aces in a blockbuster-deal (with John Lackey) for the golden-arm of Zach Greinke. I also made an effort to snag as many young players as possible in this draft, and came away with some excellent position talent: Christian Pache, Braves, Isaac Paredes,Tigers, rifle-armed A's Catcher Sean Murphy, and especially Luis Robert, White Sox, a potential CF and power threat, in the Mike Cameron mold. 
Strengths: Pitching is above average, our hitting is around average, but this is a very strong defensive club. That can hold a team together in wild Coors Field contests, and make us pretty tough to beat. Vazquez, Baez, Dyson, Odubel Herrera, Albies, Turner, Crawford and Puig are all athletic defenders
Weaknesses:  

Starting pitching was not a strong-suit this year, so I needed to adress it. Mr. Greinke, and old Gladiator mainstay Ervin Santana are consistent and durable at the top of the rotation, but the rest is a mess of young guys (Banda, Triggs, Mengden), and veterans coming off down years (Arrieta, Estrada). Enjoy a busy year, bullpen!
GM Thoughts:

Enjoyed this off-season, added a ton of young talent and didn't destroy the team in the process. I don't like full rebuilds. 
Key Moves:

Several, trading my #1 (plus Cuthbert) for Baez was nice, dealing away stalwart Starling Marte for cannon-armed Christian Vazquez was another. Overall, replaced Molina at C and Zobrist at 2B with Barnes/Vazquez and the dynamic Ozzie Albies/ Baez. Drafting Otani in round #10 in 2015 was key as well, ultimately flipping that #10 for an ace.
Prediction: 2nd place.  Probably not a WS contender, but we will give it a go. I predict we will give teams trouble and could reach 90 wins. If we are in reach, Im always a threat to make a big deal and push it over the top! Should be fun. 
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Gladiators finished 3rd in the AL West in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Stn Mtn Confederates

Team Report

 Stone Mountain Confederates
Owner Joe Anglin
2017 Record 89-73 (2nd place)
Team ERA 3.86  

Team Batting:

 .263-.320-.439
. . . Salary: $125m 14th
. . Schebler WAR: 29.8 18th
. . Peraza . .
. Rivera . Bonifacio .
z Calhoun . Kendrick a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Simmons

Drury

 .
. . Rivera .
Starters . . Pen
Berrios

Shaw

 .

Abreu

 Cishek
Delgado

Anderson

 .

Kendrick

 Oh
Newcomb . . . Lugo
Goharza a McCann . Chafin
Teheran a Gattis . Alexander
McHugh . . . Middleton
Sabathia a . a Gearrin
On the Farm:

Ian Anderson, Grant Holmes, Jesus Luzardo, Bryse Wilson, Austin Riley, Garret Hampson, Chris Shaw and Monte Harrison make up the farm for the club. SMC concentrated on a balance of prospects, 4 starters, 2 infielders, 2 outfielders and 1 catcher make up the farm. Additionally, 3 carded players could be considered on the farm, Brian Anderson, Willie Calhoun and Luiz Gohara. Of these prospects a handful will probably see MLB service in 2018. Anderson, Riley, Harrison, Calhoun and Gohara are consistently ranked in the top 100 on most credible listings.

Strengths:

SS with Andrelton Simmons, catching position should provide some power with Evan Gattis and Brian McCann. The corner infield spots hopefully will produce with Jose Abreu and Travis Shaw. Howie Kendrick should provide a steady bat for half a season. I’m starting to reach now, I should move on.
Weaknesses:  

The OF is particularly weak. Scott Schebler and  Jorge Bonifacio should provide a little pop, but little else. Jose Peraza is slanted to handle CF. The relief corps is average at best. The rotation has seen its better days. When Jose Berrios and CC Sabathia are the 1-2 punch, concern beings to mount.
GM Thoughts:

While youth is in the air, there is little chance for a competitive year in 2018. Just too many positions are filled with mediocrity, and the strengths of this club are not strong enough to pull up the run-of-the-mill player stats. SMC desperately needs a talent infusion to help what has to be one of the weakest OF in the TBBL. A legitimate number 1 starter or even #2 would give this club a stroke of  confidence. Therefore, deals need to be made or stand pat and hope the bounty of youth brings a big harvest.
Key Moves:

There have been no key moves to speak of. It has been a very quiet front during the offseason regarding trades. However, this upcoming season may create a motivation to strip this club of its veterans and begin a total rebuild.

Prediction: 3rd place.  70-92. Anything better with this roster would be an overachievement.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Confederates finished 3rd in the NL East in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team West Orange Panthers

Team Report

 West Orange Panthers
Owner Craig Morancie
2017 Record 76-86 (3rd place)
Team ERA 4.21  

Team Batting:

 .257-.324-.421
. . . Salary: $111m 17th
. . Cain WAR: 35.1 15th
. . Bader . .
. Brantley . Tapia .
z . . Rickard a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Diaz

Dozier

 .
.

Rosario

 - .
Starters . . Pen
PIvetta

Valbeuna

 .

Napoli

 Norris
Duffy

Diaz

 .

Morales

 Betances
Matz . . . Watson
Musgrove a Avila . Whitley
Cole a Chirinos . Morris
Cobb . . . Colome
Thompson a . a Familia
On the Farm: The owner did not supply any comments.
Strengths: The owner did not supply any comments.
Weaknesses:   The owner did not supply any comments.
GM Thoughts: The owner did not supply any comments.
Key Moves: The owner did not supply any comments.
Prediction: 4th place.  Long season in Flushing for Craig's favorite MLB team mirrors the Panthers season in the TBBL.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Panthers finished 4th in the NL East in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Atlanta Knights

Team Report

 Atlanta Knights
Owner Gabe Anglin
2017 Record 90-72 (1st place)
Team ERA 3.92  

Team Batting:

 .274-.349-.448
. . . Salary: $164m 8th
. . Pham WAR: 34.6 16th
. . Span . .
. Cespedes . Markakis .
z Adams . Gonzalez a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Gonzalez

Panik

 .
. Camargo Descalso .
Starters . . Pen
Wood

Franco

 .

Votto

 Rodney
Verlander

Andujar

 .

Carafini

 Pazos
Moore . . . Treinen
Hamels a Barnhart . Clippard
Fister a McCann . Hunter
Montgomery . . . McCallister
Fried a . a Merritt
On the Farm: The Knights have starters Michael Kopech, Forrest Whitley, Alec Hansen, Mike Soroka, Joey Wentz, Max Fried and Nick Tropeano all looking to move forward this year in MLB. Taylor Trammell, Victor Caratini, Max Schrock, Bobby Bradley and Miguel Andujar look to give the Knights some talented players to keep an eye on.
Strengths:

Verlander and Alex Wood should provide for a solid top of the rotation tandem. Jordan Montgomery and Cole Hamels should provide for a decent #3 and #4 combo. Hopefully Matt Moore can eat some innings and bounce back in MLB this season.  The Knights should be able to score some runs with players like Joey Votto, Tommy Pham, Nick Markakis, Marwin Gonzalez, and Yoenis Cespedes. The Knights like their catching duo of James McCann and Tucker Barnhart.

Weaknesses:   The bullpen for the Knights is worrisome. There is not a dominate pitcher among the current bullpen. The age old Fernando Rodney saving games is going to be nerve racking. The Knights need the starters to go deep into games to prevent having to use the bullpen too much.
GM Thoughts:

The Knights are hoping to see a bunch of its young players take a step up the MLB this year and play well. I think the team has a good nucleus of proven veterans that can provide solid stats for the next year or so while waiting on these young players to make it to MLB. The team may be in a position to trade some of its veteran talent later in the year if things record wise go astray. However, if things are looking good come June, the might move some prospects to gather some good stats for the short term.
Key Moves:

During the dispersal draft went hard after young pitching and draft picks. Also,  was able to land some really good veterans, like Joey Votto and Justin Verlander.
Prediction: 1st place.  The Knights have a shot to have a winning record and could challenge for a playoff spot as long as the bullpen hangs tough.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Atlanta Knights team finished 1st in the NL East in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Newark Hen House

Team Report

Newark Hen House
Owner Scott Silberfein
2017 Record 63-99 (4th place)
Team ERA 4.34  

Team Batting:

 .248-.326-.434
. . . Salary: $88m 20th
. . Conforto WAR: 31.1 17th
. . Brinson . .
. Benitendi . Rasmus .
z Hazelbaker . Hays a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Owings

Kipinis

 .
. Adrianza Adrianza .
Starters . . Pen
Lynn

Fraier

 .

-

 Crick
Hammel

Moran

 .

Suarez

 Hughes
Freeland . . . Jennings
Faria a Castro . Shreve
Gray a d'Arnaud . Hatcher
Bettis . . . Blevins
Pineda a . a Lyles
On the Farm: The owner did not supply any comments.
Strengths: The owner did not supply any comments.
Weaknesses:   The owner did not supply any comments.
GM Thoughts: The owner did not supply any comments.
Key Moves: The owner did not supply any comments.
Prediction: 2nd place.  The logo is really nice!
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Hen House finished 2nd in the NL East in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Siouxland Cyclists

Team Report

 Siouxland Cyclists
Owner Richard Merrill
2017 Record 81-81 (2nd place)
Team ERA 3.94  

Team Batting:

 .273-.333-.460
. . . Salary: $121m 15th
. . DeShields WAR: 26.5 20th
. . Bradley . .
. Gennett . Rosario .
z Jay . Lind a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Cozart

Schoop

 .
. Escobar Robinson .
Starters . . Pen
G. Gonzalez

Ramirez

 .

Zimmermann

 Cingrani
Samardija

Robinson

 .

Lind

 Morrow
Davies . . . Minaya
Vargas ` Weiters . Yates
Richard a Iannetta . Wilson
Heaney . . . Sherfly
Norris a . a Rosenthal
On the Farm: The prize catch was LHP MacKenzie Gore, drafted in the first round. Marlins prospect Braxton Garrett was plucked from the dispersal draft after Tommy John surgery. Otherwise a lot of prospects who did well in the rookie leagues, and one home-town boy (Daniel Tillo of the Royals)
Strengths: The 2-7 hitters can stack up with anybody, and 1 and 8 aren’t bad. The roster has a lot of high OPS bats, and a deep bench.
Weaknesses:   Starting pitching is good but not great, with no true ace. Some decent arms in the bullpen, but no shut-down closer.
GM Thoughts: In their first year in the league, the Cyclists drafted well and look ready to challenge for a post-season spot. The GM better be ready to make some deals at the trade deadline if needed.
Key Moves: Strengthened the rotation by trading for Gio Gonzalez and Jason Vargas; added a bat at shortstop with a trade for Zack Cozart.
Prediction: 2nd place.  2nd in the NL Central, respecting that the World Champion Paddlers are in the division. The Cyclists should give them a fight and be right in the running for a wild card.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Cyclists finished 1st in the NL Central in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Gotham CityHawks

Team Report

 Gotham CityHawks
Owner Chris Longo
2017 Record 68-94 (2nd place)
Team ERA 3.82  

Team Batting:

 .253-.313-.424
. . . Salary: $194m 6th
. . Maybin WAR: 44.6 5th
. . Bourjos . .
. Polanco . Kepler .
z Cordero . Sierra a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Gregorius

Gordon

 .
. Beckham Difo .
Starters . . Pen
Kershaw

Arenado

 .

Thames

 Baez
Gray

Difo

 .

Smith

 Giles
Williams . . . Knebel
Eickhoff a Hundley . Nicascio
Tanaka a Mathis . Green
Lester . . . Peters
On the Farm: Quite a pivot for us as our typical approach was to maximize off-disk talent and young players while struggling through a rebuild. That changed this year (more in the GM thoughts), but we have 3 young arms in Romero, Burrows and Dunning that could all see the majors this year, if not next. Would be pleased if any of them became a #4 starter. We hope that Jake Rogers can become out catcher of the future. Great defense should get him a look, but inconsistent contact could relegate him to a backup role in the majors. Still a few years away, so there is time.
Strengths: Bullpen. I would say it’s one of the stronger ones in TBBL. Probably could use another lefty, but that is something we can pursue during the season. Dare I say starting pitching? If not statistically this year, the pieces are there for a fairly good rotation. Kershaw at the top. Jon Lester is getting older, and was off a bit in 2017, but I still think he has a few good years left in him. If Tanaka can throw like he did in the 2nd half and playoffs, Sonny Gray can continue on the progress he made bouncing back from an awful 2016 last season and one of Trevor Williams/Jared Eickoff settle in at the #5, I think we are in decent shape for the next several seasons.
Weaknesses:   Offense output. If this team does anything this season, it will have to win close, lower scoring games. Our offense has some pieces in it, but I don’t expect an explosive unit here. Our catching situation is terrible, likely the worst in TBBL. Our outfield has potential, but it will require Polanco and Kepler to take steps forward. They didn’t do that in 2017, so there will be a lot of bodies shuffled in and out of the Gotham outfield this season
GM Thoughts: Where to begin? For the entirety of our existence, Gotham has been in a rebuild. Then one move changed that, even though, if I am being honest, the franchise probably wasn’t ready for it yet. That move was acquiring Clayton Kershaw. Coming into the off-season we knew that we had an excellent bullpen, an emerging offense, and a black hole at starting pitching. As any owner knows, trying to acquire a true ace is harder (and more expensive) than anything else in the game. When that opportunity came up, ready or not, we took it and that set off an avalanche of changes in personnel and drafting philosophy. It took a lot of restraint to let young players and prospect go early while we drafted for the now. Time will tell if we made the right choice or now, but it’s the course we are on now and we are committed to it.
Key Moves: Acquiring Kershaw and Lester would have to qualify as the biggest of what was a very active off-season for Gotham. Also, moving Goldschmidt. I can’t explain it, but I can never get him to perform up to even 65-70% of what he does in MLB, especially against LHP. Park factors are, well, a factor, for sure, but it has to be more than that, no player of that ilk do I see having that big of a gap in performance. Having a chip like as good as he is, but not able to crack the riddle of why it doesn’t click for my team was the sole purpose of moving him for pieces to make a run in the short term. It’s the 2nd time I have owned him in TBBL, I have moved parks multiple times, and no matter what, he has underperformed for me. I wish you luck Mr. Goldschmidt.
Prediction: 3rd place.  It’s not saying much, but this is the best team Gotham has put on the field, at least on paper. The NL is a challenge because it is so left-handed heavy when it comes to starting pitching. Seriously, check out the splits. An AL team will face half amount of LH starters that a NL team will on average. That said, we have never finished .500 or better. I think we can do that this year with the hope that some incremental improvements next year will make us a NL contender in 2019. Call it 84-78.
Sim MP Provided: No
Simulated Finish:  The CityHawks finished 3rd in the NL Central in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Mad City Paddlers

Team Report
Owner Scott Lewis
2017 Record 98-64 (1st place)
Team ERA 3.54  

Team Batting:

 .268-.338-.449
. . . Salary: $144m 12th
. . Trout WAR: 63.0 3rd
. . . . .
. Altherr . Calhoun .
z Eaton . Phillips a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Iglesias

Altuve

 .
. Aybar Assuaje .
Starters . . Pen
Bumgarner

Gallo

 .

Bour

 Abad
Quintana

Longoria

 .

Healy

 Jansen
Scherzer . . . Alvarado
Senzetela a Lucroy . Pagan
Meyer a Maxwell . Ynoa
Fedde . . . Maddox
Perez a . a Bradley

 
On the Farm: The Paddlers AAA roster is all pitchers. 5 AAA SP's, all in MLB top 100 led by lefty AJ Puk. Hopefully 1 or 2 pan out.
Strengths: The Paddlers strength is in the heart of their lineup. Altuve and Trout are potential MVP candidates. If we have a late lead, Bradley and Jansen are set to close out nicely.
Weaknesses:   We are weak at SP depth. Scherzer, Bumgarner and Quintana are a fine front 3 but it falls off after that. Only 156 GS.
GM Thoughts: We would like to make a move for a top starting pitcher (as would most teams).
Key Moves: Our big move may turn out to be a big mistake as we gave up Brendan Rodgers and Koby Allard.
Prediction: 1st place.  I think we have a shot at the playoffs and anything can happen after that.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Paddlers finished 2nd in the NL Central in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Rock River Ravens

Team Report

   Rock River Ravens
Owner Jeff Otteson
2017 Record 56-106 (3rd place)
Team ERA 4.17  

Team Batting:

 .257-.317-.409
. . . Salary: $89m 19th
. . Revere WAR: 17.7 24th
. . Perez . .
. Joyce . S. Smith .
z . . Hernandez a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Solarte

Phillips

 .
. Perez Perez .
Starters . . Pen
Andriese

Headley

 .

Sano

 Bush
Miranda

Solarte

 .

Moreland

 Romero
Corbin . . . Ramirez
Perdomo a Pina . Warren
Conley a Cervelli . Tepera
Claudio . . . Duensing
Stratton a . a a
On the Farm: We have complied a very nice farm system. Six of our ten AAA guys are rated in the top 100 prospects and five are in the top 50. Bichette, Jimenez, McKay, Moniak, Morejon and Urias are the names that will be shouted in a couple seasons. Others like Gurriel, Brito, Alcantara and Reid-Foley might show up as well. We also pulled Miles Mikolas in from Japan to hopefully strengthen our rotation.
Strengths: The owner did not supply any comments.
Weaknesses:   The owner did not supply any comments.
GM Thoughts: First off, the management would like to apologize to our fan base for the next couple of seasons. This is where we say, "trust the process". Well, we have torn it down and are now building it back up. We moved out our two best players in Cozart and Herrera and brought back some youth and a few hole fillers for the coming year. On the field our strengths are few. We do have a solid veteran infield and a great catching corp. The bullpen isn't bad either (good thing too). Our weakness will be a total lack of power and a spotty rotation. There are a couple guys that could fit into our future in that rotation though.
Key Moves: The owner did not supply any comments.
Prediction: 4th place.  All in all, there is little hope beyond next years lottery for the Ravens in 2018. This is the team the others will lament losing to if they miss the playoffs. The goal is to not lose 100 games but it might be a stretch. Just hang in there, trust the process...
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Ravens finished 4th the NL Central in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Emerald City Bombers

Team Report

 Emerald City Bombers
Owner Mark Jones
2017 Record 86-76 (2nd place)
Team ERA 3.98  

Team Batting:

 .255-.333-.441
. . . Salary: $91m 18th
. . Mahtook WAR: 41.5 9th
. . Kivlehan . .
. Marte . Granderson .
z . . Mazara a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Story

LeMahieu

 .
.

Marrero

 Marrero .
Starters . . Pen
deGrom

Lamb

 .

Goldschmidt

 Brebbia
Hahn

Candelaria

 .

Delmonico

 Kahnle
Happ . . . Zych
Suter a Zunino . Montero
Hendricks a Joseph . Urias
Ross . . . Morgan
Wheeler a . a Pressly
On the Farm: The Bombers have budding starter Brent Honeywell ready to make a major impact next year and beyond. They round out their farm system with 4 other MLB 2018 top 100 prospects in Jake Bauers (#64), Dylan Cease (#61), Anderson Espinoza (#89) and Carter Kieboom (#90).
Strengths: Bombers pitching will carry their success this year. A couple of trades this preseason have honed in the position players that will play this year and also build some hope for the future.
Weaknesses:   Although the top 3 starters can handle their own against most, it falls precipitously after that, relying on Brent Suter, Joe Ross, Zach Wheeler and Rafael Montero to patch the #4 and #5 slots. The OF bats are also probably below league average as a whole, we'll be relying a lot on splits out there this year.
GM Thoughts: We struggled with a stance of competing legitimately this year, or, trying to strengthen the overall roster for next year and beyond. The trade of Marcell Ozuna speaks to the decision, which means we'll be leaning towards next year and beyond. However, the team should still be able to pull a .500 record and maybe snag the 2nd Wild Card spot in the NL. We aren't tanking, but, going deep into the playoffs will wait until hopefully next year.
Key Moves:
Key Moves: Trading away Marcell Ozuna for Nomar Mazara, Julio Urias and Nicky Delmonico is hopefully a win for both the Capitals and the Bombers. We also brought on Paul Goldschmidt, Zach Wheeler and Jesse Winker via trade.
Prediction:

3rd Place.  85 wins. Jacob DeGrom makes a case for Cy Young in the NL.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Bombers finished 4th in the NL West in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team California Convicts

Team Report

 Corona Convicts
Owner Chris McKay
2017 Record 116-46 (1st place)
Team ERA 3.64  

Team Batting:

 .268-.336-.451
. . . Salary: $194m 5th
. . Hamilton WAR: 56.8 4th
. . Brugman . .
. Davis . Blackmon .
z Braun . Castellanos a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Arcia

Kinsler

 .
. Mercer Gyorko .
Starters . . Pen
Morton

Castelanos

 .

Encarnacion

 Kimbrel
C. Martinez

.

 .

Hosmer

 Garcia
Garcia . . . Soria
Pomeranz a Castillo . Barraclough
Taillon a Hicks . Mahle
Carrasco . . . Ramos
Snell a . a .
On the Farm: The owner did not supply any comments.
Strengths: The owner did not supply any comments.
Weaknesses:   The owner did not supply any comments.
GM Thoughts: The owner did not supply any comments.
Key Moves: The owner did not supply any comments.
Prediction: 2nd place.  Post Season Appearance streak continues for the club from California.
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Convicts finished 2nd in the NL West in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Cracksville Plumbers

Team Report

 Cracksville Plumbers
Owner Jerry Anderson
2017 Record 76-86 (4th place)
Team ERA 4.31  

Team Batting:

 .256-.326-.433
. . . Salary: $81m 22nd
. . Ellsbury WAR: 26.4 21st
. . Goodwin . .
. Dickerson . Haniger .
z Chisenhall . Soler a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Escobar

Cabrera

 .
. Marte Moncada .
Starters . . Pen
Maeda

Bregman

 .

Myers

 Barnes
Miley

Escobar

 .

Chisenhall

 Farquhar
Rodon . . . Kelly
Nelson a Hedges . McGrath
Gibson a Wolters . Shaw
Glasnow . . . Skaggs
Graveman a . a Neris
On the Farm:

The farm is very strong, maybe the strongest in the TBBL with Gleyber Torres, Fransisco Mejia, Franklin Perez, Jo Adell, Michael Baez, and Triston McKenzie all being top 50 prospects on most every scouting list plus a few other 50 – 125 type prospects sprinkled in. But alas, none of them will be any help in 2018.
Strengths:

The Plumbers trot out an impressive array of young talent, but as with the farm system, they need time to develop so the results won’t show in 2018, but if some of these guys develop well the Plumbers could be a very dangerous team in about 3 years.
Weaknesses:  

Neither pitching nor hitting are going to be strong, lots of mix and max lineups, lots of bad starting pitchers, likely looking at a 100 loss team here.
GM Thoughts:

I knew coming into the dispersal draft that there was no way I could build a team that could win so instead focused on young players with upside, it’s going to be a rough next 3 years as the team adds a few more assets and watches players grow up, but after that this club should be a contender for a very long time.
Key Moves:

Trading Kershaw for a couple of young players and then loading up on youth in the dispersal draft have hopefully set this team up well for the long haul.
Prediction: 4th place.  100 losses and going to make a lot of teams look very good hitting against this pitching!
Sim MP Provided: Yes
Simulated Finish:  The Plumbers finished 3rd in the NL West in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats. 
Team Beartooth Bitteroots

Team Report

 Beartooth Bitteroots
Owner Mike Bush
2017 Record 83-79 (3rd place)
Team ERA 4.06  

Team Batting:

 .275-.348-.485
. . . Salary: $190m 7th
. . McCutcheon WAR: 41.3 10th
. . Robles . .
. Harper . Judge .
z Osuna . Robles a
. . . . a
. . . . a
.

Andrus

Cano

 .
.

Flores

 Wong .
Starters . . Pen
Severino

Beltre

 .

Alonso

 Paulino
Bundy

Chapman

 .

Valakia

 Bleier
Leake . .

-

 Stammen
Cotton a Molina . Parker
Velasquez a Mesoraco . Minter
Cueto . . . Feliz
Porcello a . a McGee
On the Farm:

Most are quite a way away from the majors but hopefully Mitch Keller and Luis Ortiz can arrive by the 2nd half of the year to support the SP rotation next season.  Hiura has a great bat but can he stay healthy and where will he play.  The SS due of Javier and Franco are both way away from the majors and are big upside gambles but if one or both pays off……..   Will Smith has his supporters behind the plate but he is competing with several good Catchers in LA.  Ortiz appears to be the real thing with the bat but he is huge and may or may not stay in the OF, he would make a good 1B prospect if he can’t make in the OF.  Casey Mize is a great young control pitcher who has an outside chance to go ahead of Brady Singer this spring.  Adonis Medina is going to try to live up to his first name!
Strengths:

The strength of this team without a doubt, featuring Aaron Judge in RF, Bryce Harper in LF, and Andrew McCutcheon in CF.  It will be interesting to see how the power of these three plays out in AT&T.  Harper’s injury time will put him in to a platoon situation with Valaika and Osuna.  Victor Robles is primed to take over most of the CF responsibilities for this team next year with McCutcheon moving to a corner (and likely a 4th OFer role on this squad).
Weaknesses:  

This is the weakness of this team.  It will be helped by playing in AT&T Park.  Severino came out of the pack to clearly be the #1 of this staff.  Porcello fell back to his career norms which is that of a stable #3 starter.  He will be matched up with Mike Leake also a career solid #3.  The rest of the starters will be pieced together from among Cueto (hoping for a healthy 2018), Dylan Bundy, Vincent Velasquez, and Jharell Cotton. 

GM Thoughts:

Management was very happy to get their bid of pick 1-13 accepted for Roberto Osuna.  Health permitting he will be our closer for the foreseeable future. AJ Minter was also potentially a big pick up for the future if this LHP’s late 2017 is a harbinger of his future.  The rest of the pen is solid with Beier*, Stammen, Parker, McGee*, and Feliz.  David Paulino is waiting in the wings for opportunity in 2018.

Catcher:  One of three big off season trades that were completed with the intent to get back to the playoffs in 2018 brought Yadier Molina to the Beartooth squad.  He clearly is getting toward the end of his career but he is still a solid everyday backstop.  He will be supported by the frequently injured Devin Mesoraco and Tom Murphy.

Infield:  Robinson Cano was brought in much like Molina to be a solid win now 2Bman.  He will be partnered in a same side platoon with Kolten Wong.  SS Elvis Andrus had his career year and will be solid both offensively and defensively anchoring the IF.  Ageless wonder Adrian Beltre will pair with Matt Chapman to anchor 3B and 1B will feature the platoon of Yonder Alonso (another of the off season trade targets) and Wilmer Flores.
Key Moves: The owner did not supply any comments.
Prediction: 1st place.  This is the best Beartooth team in several seasons.  Hopefully the team will compete and get deep into the playoffs.  Looking forward to a strong MiL team developing to fill the holes in the Majors.
Sim MP Provided: No
Simulated Finish:  The Bitteroots finished 1st in the NL West in the March 2 simulation.  Click here for team stats.