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reds1 · 11-06-2021, 06:38 PM

Notes on 1954-55 All-Braeland Team

Starting Pitcher

The top three pitchers in the United Leagues this season all came from non-playoff teams. But they represent the best the ULB has to offer. Queensland Eagles’ Logan Belsey and Wolseley Unions’ Joseph Sellwood won their respective League’s Satchel Paige Award and deservedly so. Still, the second-best pitcher in the Leagues is actually Belsey’s teammate, Stiofan Micklethwait, who may be deprived of further Satchel Paige Awards so long as he pitches for the same team as Belsey. But the clear choice this season was Belsey, who led the East in 14 pitching categories.

Here are the 3 pitchers that were under consideration:

• 29-year old RHP Logan Belsey – 21-11, 2.62 ERA, 34 GS, 275.0 IP, 178 K, 1.08 WHIP, 0.6 HR/9, 2.4 BB/9, 5.8 K/9, .243 BABIP, 3.07 FIP, 153 ERA+, 7.3 WAR.
• Queensland’s 27-year old RHP Stiofan Micklethwait – 20-9, 2.60 ERA, 32 GS, 262.2 IP, 142 K, 1.13 WHIP, 0.5 HR/9, 2.6 BB/9, 4.9 K/9, .253 BABIP, 3.14 FIP, 154 ERA+, 6.6 WAR.
• Wolseley’s 28-year old RHP Joseph Sellwood – 16-12, 2.74 ERA, 34 GS, 256.2 IP, 148 K, 1.20 WHIP, 0.6 HR/9, 2.8 BB/9, 5.2 K/9, .260 BABIP, 3.34 FIP, 150 ERA+, 6.0 WAR

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Catcher

It was a remarkable season for Sherburn’s 33-year old catcher Christopher Dainty and a remarkable resurgence after 5 seasons of obscurity. If the United Leagues had a Comeback Player of the Year Award, Dainty would have won it hands down. Instead, his outstanding season earned him his first selection to the All-Braeland Team. He finished runner-up twice before, in 1948-49 and 1950-51. But will it be his swan song? In the OOTP22 off-season currently underway, he has once again been relegated to a back-up position, although he doesn’t deserve to be. It will be something to watch for as the new season rolls around.

Here are the three catchers that were under consideration:

• Christopher Dainty – .327/.429/.526, 151 H, 28-2B, 18 HR, 83 RBI, 82 BB, .955 OPS, 149 OPS+, 169 wRC+, 7.1 WAR, .687 EFF.
• Stratford’s 35-year old Aaron Skidmore – .270/.439/.423, 117 H, 18-2B, 16 HR, 71 RBI, 134 BB, .862 OPS, 131 OPS+, 150 wRC+, 6.2 WAR, 1.015 EFF.
• Brunswick’s 26-year old Robert Kersey - .296/.377/.478, 150 H, 22-2B, 22 HR, 85 RBI, 69 BB, .855 OPS, 124 OPS+, 139 wRC+, 6.1 WAR, 1.015 EFF.

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First Base

I’ve been hard on him in the past for his defensive failures and while he remains just as defensively challenged as ever, Carlos Corea’s overall production this past season just could not be ignored. After the past two seasons of being a runner-up, the 28-year old finally earned his first selection to the All-Braeland Team.

Here are the three players I gave serious consideration to:

• Cambria’s Carlos Corea – .352/.414/.577, 216 H, 48-2B, 26 HR, 129 RBI, 60 BB, .990 OPS, 164 OPS+, 178 wRC+, 6.0 WAR, .834 EFF.
• Embro’s 27-year old Napana Mamo – .311/.361/.489, 188 H, 28-2B, 12 HR, 77 RBI, 47 BB, .850 OPS, 124 OPS+, 136 wRC+, 4.7 WAR, 1.027 EFF.
• Cobourg’s Harry Doxey – .305/.357/.462, 187 H, 38-2B, 18 HR, 95 RBI, 47 BB, .819 OPS, 115 OPS+, 129 wRC+, 4.1 WAR, 1.027 EFF.

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Second Base

Although Patrick Lidgate didn’t match the offensive stratospheric heights that he reached last season when he won his first Babe Ruth Award, he was still the easy choice as top second baseman for the third year in a row and fourth in the past six seasons. These players finished 1-2-3 in my rankings for the second consecutive season while Lidgate and Dudding finish 1 and 2 for the third straight year.

Here is how the Top 3 second basemen fared this past season:

• Braeland City’s 29-year old Patrick Lidgate – .297/.390/.530, 137 H, 20-2B, 20 HR, 88 RBI, 65 BB, 14 SB, .920 OPS, 140 OPS+, 157 wRC+, 6.6 WAR, 1.024 EFF.
• Downie’s 29-year old Dominic Dudding – .298/.361/.505, 170 H, 28-2B, 26 HR, 101 RBI, 60 BB, 7 SB, .866 OPS, 133 OPS+, 141 wRC+, 5.7 WAR, .992 EFF.
• Stratford’s 26-year old Matthew Channing – .286/.335/.480, 174 H, 27-2B, 23 HR, 113 RBI, 46 BB, 15 SB, .815 OPS, 115 OPS+, 123 wRC+, 5.0 WAR, .993 EFF.

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Third Base

After four straight seasons where Cobourg’s Alexander Tolmie was named to the All-Braelend Team, there is a new title holder. Embro’s 26-year old Moromao Nakagawa emerged this past season as one of the very best position players in the United Leagues, picking up the Eastern League’s Babe Ruth Award. After finishing third in 1951-52 and runner-up in 1953-54, he made the choice for top third baseman very easy this time around.

Here are the three that I considered for this exercise:

• Moromao Nakagawa – .342/.433/.430, 189 H, 32-2B, 18 HR, 100 RBI, 94 BB, .963 OPS, 155 OPS+, 169 wRC+, 8.0 WAR, .976 EFF.
• Pulberry’s 28-year old Makani Kahale – .306/.352/.475, 169 H, 22-2B, 15 HR, 83 RBI, 42 BB, 12 SB, .827 OPS, 122 OPS+, 126 wRC+, 5.5 WAR, 1.045 EFF.
• Cambria’ 30-year old Luis Torres – .289/.358/.491, 147 H, 18-2B, 27 HR, 88 RBI, 56 BB, .849 OPS, 127 OPS+, 139 wRC+, 5.2 WAR, 1.000 EFF.

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Shortstop

This was the first of two selections that I considered tough to make. For the top shortstop, I ultimately went with Embro’s 25-year old Kieron Bradridge based on his strong offense and defensive performance. But Hespeler's 32-year old Zhao-hui Qian was no slouch either and could easily have been named to his second consecutive Team. They were so close.

Here are the three shortstops that were considered this year:

• Kieron Bradridge – .305/.351/.500, 188 H, 34-2B, 26 HR, 113 RBI, 45 BB, .851 OPS, 124 OPS+, 136 wRC+, 6.9 WAR, 1.057 EFF.
• Zhao-hui Qian – .326/.406/.475, 181 H, 33-2B, 16 HR, 87 RBI, 77 BB, .880 OPS, 130 OPS+, 144 wRC+, 6.0 WAR, 1.011 EFF.
• Stratford's 23-year old Callum Spalton – .297/.339/.471, 153 H, 29-2B, 15 HR, 80 RBI, 32 BB, 8 SB, .810 OPS, 114 OPS+, 125 wRC+, 5.1 WAR, 1.059 EFF.

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Left Field

For the second straight season, Pulberry’s Aidan Thirkettle made the selection of top leftfielder a no-brainer. The 26-year old won his second consecutive Western League Babe Ruth Award and was arguably the best position player in the entire United Leagues this season.

Although Thirkettle was the clear front-runner, here are the three I felt were top leftfielders this year:

• Pulberry’s Aidan Thirkettle – .349/.451/.590, 191 H, 34-2B, 28 HR, 115 RBI, 103 BB, 19 SB, 1.041 OPS, 180 OPS+, 192 wRC+, 9.4 WAR, 1.000 EFF.
• Cambria’s 24-year old Calvin Handbridge – .328/.449/.504, 186 H, 29-2B, 17 HR, 79 RBI, 126 BB, 11 SB, .954 OPS, 157 OPS+, 171 wRC+, 6.4 WAR, .808 EFF.
• Wellington’s 27-year old Matthew Floyd – .325/.396/.517, 188 H, 30-2B, 23 HR, 94 RBI, 72 BB, 13 SB, .913 OPS, 145 OPS+, 153 wRC+, 5.8 WAR, 1.008 EFF.

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Center Field

Agonizing. That is how I would sum up my efforts trying to settle on who I felt was the top centerfielder this year. Narrowing down the field to Cooper Tyson, Raymond Williams and Alfonso León was not hard, but picking one over the other two was. At one point or another, I had settled on each one of them. At first, I leaned towards León, remembering his fast start to the season. But then I went with Williams, as I felt he perhaps had a better offensive year than the other two, if only slightly. But then Tyson and León both won Ball Hawk Awards meaning that they were the best at their position defensively in their respective Leagues. But then Williams wasn’t an embarrassment in the field either. So who do I pick?

In the end, I went with Tyson. Why? Because I said, ‘screw it’, I’m going with my gut. Tyson was simply outstanding this year on offense, and while his overall stats and percentages may not quite equal the other two, he was right there with them. Also, Tyson isn’t simply a great defensive outfielder, he’s one of the best if not the best I have seen since I started playing around with this little league of mine many years ago. That level of overall excellence has to account for something. Finally, after importing the Leagues into OOTP22, Tyson is ranked 4th overall among position players (just behind Thirkettle), Williams is ranked 5th and León 7th. That may be ‘neither here nor there’, but it is indicative of how the game highly rates Mr. Tyson. And so do I.

• Pulberry’s 28-year old Cooper Tyson – .317/.398/.459, 176 H, 25-2B, 12 HR, 87 RBI, 76 BB, 18 SB, .856 OPS, 131 OPS+, 144 wRC+, 8.0 WAR, 1.062 EFF.
• Cobourg’s 29-year old Raymond Williams – .319/.387/.542, 189 H, 26-2B, 28 HR, 100 RBI, 64 BB, 13 SB, .930 OPS, 144 OPS+, 154 wRC+, 7.0 WAR, .995 EFF.
• Downie’s 29-year old Alfonso León - .315/.380/.518, 188 H, 28-2B, 25 HR, 115 RBI, 67 BB, 10 SB, .898 OPS, 142 OPS+, 153 wRC+, 7.9 WAR, 1.022 EFF.

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Right Field

Returning to a less stressful analysis to wrap up this annual exercise, the field of right fielders in the United Leagues has traditionally been less impressive than other positions and that didn’t change this season either. Still, there were some fine players to choose from and this year, I went with Stratford’s 27-year old Andy Faulkner. He enjoyed a nice season at the plate and while he wasn’t the defensive equal to either Albert Sulley or Jim Mars, I felt his production at the plate was sufficient to compensate for that. But both Sulley and Mars were impressive in their own right and it was nice to see Mars, who finished third last season as well, do even better this year.

• Andy Faulkner – .304/.404/.502, 165 H, 29-2B, 24 HR, 103 RBI, 96 BB, .906 OPS, 140 OPS+, 153 wRC+, 5.5 WAR, .973 EFF.
• Sherburn’s 25-year old Albert Sulley – .294/.391/.411, 153 H, 23-2B, 8 HR, 56 RBI, 83 BB, 17 SB, .802 OPS, 111 OPS+, 125 wRC+, 4.4 WAR, 1.035 EFF.
• Wellington’s 29-year old Jim Mars – .313/.354/.451, 184 H, 29-2B, 14 HR, 73 RBI, 38 BB, .805 OPS, 117 OPS+, 122 wRC+, 4.3 WAR, 1.034 EFF.

11-06-2021, 06:38 PM	#716
reds1 Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2002 Location: Winnipeg Posts: 3,929	Notes on 1954-55 All-Braeland Team Starting Pitcher The top three pitchers in the United Leagues this season all came from non-playoff teams. But they represent the best the ULB has to offer. Queensland Eagles’ Logan Belsey and Wolseley Unions’ Joseph Sellwood won their respective League’s Satchel Paige Award and deservedly so. Still, the second-best pitcher in the Leagues is actually Belsey’s teammate, Stiofan Micklethwait, who may be deprived of further Satchel Paige Awards so long as he pitches for the same team as Belsey. But the clear choice this season was Belsey, who led the East in 14 pitching categories. Here are the 3 pitchers that were under consideration: • 29-year old RHP Logan Belsey – 21-11, 2.62 ERA, 34 GS, 275.0 IP, 178 K, 1.08 WHIP, 0.6 HR/9, 2.4 BB/9, 5.8 K/9, .243 BABIP, 3.07 FIP, 153 ERA+, 7.3 WAR. • Queensland’s 27-year old RHP Stiofan Micklethwait – 20-9, 2.60 ERA, 32 GS, 262.2 IP, 142 K, 1.13 WHIP, 0.5 HR/9, 2.6 BB/9, 4.9 K/9, .253 BABIP, 3.14 FIP, 154 ERA+, 6.6 WAR. • Wolseley’s 28-year old RHP Joseph Sellwood – 16-12, 2.74 ERA, 34 GS, 256.2 IP, 148 K, 1.20 WHIP, 0.6 HR/9, 2.8 BB/9, 5.2 K/9, .260 BABIP, 3.34 FIP, 150 ERA+, 6.0 WAR -------- Catcher It was a remarkable season for Sherburn’s 33-year old catcher Christopher Dainty and a remarkable resurgence after 5 seasons of obscurity. If the United Leagues had a Comeback Player of the Year Award, Dainty would have won it hands down. Instead, his outstanding season earned him his first selection to the All-Braeland Team. He finished runner-up twice before, in 1948-49 and 1950-51. But will it be his swan song? In the OOTP22 off-season currently underway, he has once again been relegated to a back-up position, although he doesn’t deserve to be. It will be something to watch for as the new season rolls around. Here are the three catchers that were under consideration: • Christopher Dainty – .327/.429/.526, 151 H, 28-2B, 18 HR, 83 RBI, 82 BB, .955 OPS, 149 OPS+, 169 wRC+, 7.1 WAR, .687 EFF. • Stratford’s 35-year old Aaron Skidmore – .270/.439/.423, 117 H, 18-2B, 16 HR, 71 RBI, 134 BB, .862 OPS, 131 OPS+, 150 wRC+, 6.2 WAR, 1.015 EFF. • Brunswick’s 26-year old Robert Kersey - .296/.377/.478, 150 H, 22-2B, 22 HR, 85 RBI, 69 BB, .855 OPS, 124 OPS+, 139 wRC+, 6.1 WAR, 1.015 EFF. -------- First Base I’ve been hard on him in the past for his defensive failures and while he remains just as defensively challenged as ever, Carlos Corea’s overall production this past season just could not be ignored. After the past two seasons of being a runner-up, the 28-year old finally earned his first selection to the All-Braeland Team. Here are the three players I gave serious consideration to: • Cambria’s Carlos Corea – .352/.414/.577, 216 H, 48-2B, 26 HR, 129 RBI, 60 BB, .990 OPS, 164 OPS+, 178 wRC+, 6.0 WAR, .834 EFF. • Embro’s 27-year old Napana Mamo – .311/.361/.489, 188 H, 28-2B, 12 HR, 77 RBI, 47 BB, .850 OPS, 124 OPS+, 136 wRC+, 4.7 WAR, 1.027 EFF. • Cobourg’s Harry Doxey – .305/.357/.462, 187 H, 38-2B, 18 HR, 95 RBI, 47 BB, .819 OPS, 115 OPS+, 129 wRC+, 4.1 WAR, 1.027 EFF. -------- Second Base Although Patrick Lidgate didn’t match the offensive stratospheric heights that he reached last season when he won his first Babe Ruth Award, he was still the easy choice as top second baseman for the third year in a row and fourth in the past six seasons. These players finished 1-2-3 in my rankings for the second consecutive season while Lidgate and Dudding finish 1 and 2 for the third straight year. Here is how the Top 3 second basemen fared this past season: • Braeland City’s 29-year old Patrick Lidgate – .297/.390/.530, 137 H, 20-2B, 20 HR, 88 RBI, 65 BB, 14 SB, .920 OPS, 140 OPS+, 157 wRC+, 6.6 WAR, 1.024 EFF. • Downie’s 29-year old Dominic Dudding – .298/.361/.505, 170 H, 28-2B, 26 HR, 101 RBI, 60 BB, 7 SB, .866 OPS, 133 OPS+, 141 wRC+, 5.7 WAR, .992 EFF. • Stratford’s 26-year old Matthew Channing – .286/.335/.480, 174 H, 27-2B, 23 HR, 113 RBI, 46 BB, 15 SB, .815 OPS, 115 OPS+, 123 wRC+, 5.0 WAR, .993 EFF. -------- Third Base After four straight seasons where Cobourg’s Alexander Tolmie was named to the All-Braelend Team, there is a new title holder. Embro’s 26-year old Moromao Nakagawa emerged this past season as one of the very best position players in the United Leagues, picking up the Eastern League’s Babe Ruth Award. After finishing third in 1951-52 and runner-up in 1953-54, he made the choice for top third baseman very easy this time around. Here are the three that I considered for this exercise: • Moromao Nakagawa – .342/.433/.430, 189 H, 32-2B, 18 HR, 100 RBI, 94 BB, .963 OPS, 155 OPS+, 169 wRC+, 8.0 WAR, .976 EFF. • Pulberry’s 28-year old Makani Kahale – .306/.352/.475, 169 H, 22-2B, 15 HR, 83 RBI, 42 BB, 12 SB, .827 OPS, 122 OPS+, 126 wRC+, 5.5 WAR, 1.045 EFF. • Cambria’ 30-year old Luis Torres – .289/.358/.491, 147 H, 18-2B, 27 HR, 88 RBI, 56 BB, .849 OPS, 127 OPS+, 139 wRC+, 5.2 WAR, 1.000 EFF. -------- Shortstop This was the first of two selections that I considered tough to make. For the top shortstop, I ultimately went with Embro’s 25-year old Kieron Bradridge based on his strong offense and defensive performance. But Hespeler's 32-year old Zhao-hui Qian was no slouch either and could easily have been named to his second consecutive Team. They were so close. Here are the three shortstops that were considered this year: • Kieron Bradridge – .305/.351/.500, 188 H, 34-2B, 26 HR, 113 RBI, 45 BB, .851 OPS, 124 OPS+, 136 wRC+, 6.9 WAR, 1.057 EFF. • Zhao-hui Qian – .326/.406/.475, 181 H, 33-2B, 16 HR, 87 RBI, 77 BB, .880 OPS, 130 OPS+, 144 wRC+, 6.0 WAR, 1.011 EFF. • Stratford's 23-year old Callum Spalton – .297/.339/.471, 153 H, 29-2B, 15 HR, 80 RBI, 32 BB, 8 SB, .810 OPS, 114 OPS+, 125 wRC+, 5.1 WAR, 1.059 EFF. -------- Left Field For the second straight season, Pulberry’s Aidan Thirkettle made the selection of top leftfielder a no-brainer. The 26-year old won his second consecutive Western League Babe Ruth Award and was arguably the best position player in the entire United Leagues this season. Although Thirkettle was the clear front-runner, here are the three I felt were top leftfielders this year: • Pulberry’s Aidan Thirkettle – .349/.451/.590, 191 H, 34-2B, 28 HR, 115 RBI, 103 BB, 19 SB, 1.041 OPS, 180 OPS+, 192 wRC+, 9.4 WAR, 1.000 EFF. • Cambria’s 24-year old Calvin Handbridge – .328/.449/.504, 186 H, 29-2B, 17 HR, 79 RBI, 126 BB, 11 SB, .954 OPS, 157 OPS+, 171 wRC+, 6.4 WAR, .808 EFF. • Wellington’s 27-year old Matthew Floyd – .325/.396/.517, 188 H, 30-2B, 23 HR, 94 RBI, 72 BB, 13 SB, .913 OPS, 145 OPS+, 153 wRC+, 5.8 WAR, 1.008 EFF. -------- Center Field Agonizing. That is how I would sum up my efforts trying to settle on who I felt was the top centerfielder this year. Narrowing down the field to Cooper Tyson, Raymond Williams and Alfonso León was not hard, but picking one over the other two was. At one point or another, I had settled on each one of them. At first, I leaned towards León, remembering his fast start to the season. But then I went with Williams, as I felt he perhaps had a better offensive year than the other two, if only slightly. But then Tyson and León both won Ball Hawk Awards meaning that they were the best at their position defensively in their respective Leagues. But then Williams wasn’t an embarrassment in the field either. So who do I pick? In the end, I went with Tyson. Why? Because I said, ‘screw it’, I’m going with my gut. Tyson was simply outstanding this year on offense, and while his overall stats and percentages may not quite equal the other two, he was right there with them. Also, Tyson isn’t simply a great defensive outfielder, he’s one of the best if not the best I have seen since I started playing around with this little league of mine many years ago. That level of overall excellence has to account for something. Finally, after importing the Leagues into OOTP22, Tyson is ranked 4th overall among position players (just behind Thirkettle), Williams is ranked 5th and León 7th. That may be ‘neither here nor there’, but it is indicative of how the game highly rates Mr. Tyson. And so do I. • Pulberry’s 28-year old Cooper Tyson – .317/.398/.459, 176 H, 25-2B, 12 HR, 87 RBI, 76 BB, 18 SB, .856 OPS, 131 OPS+, 144 wRC+, 8.0 WAR, 1.062 EFF. • Cobourg’s 29-year old Raymond Williams – .319/.387/.542, 189 H, 26-2B, 28 HR, 100 RBI, 64 BB, 13 SB, .930 OPS, 144 OPS+, 154 wRC+, 7.0 WAR, .995 EFF. • Downie’s 29-year old Alfonso León - .315/.380/.518, 188 H, 28-2B, 25 HR, 115 RBI, 67 BB, 10 SB, .898 OPS, 142 OPS+, 153 wRC+, 7.9 WAR, 1.022 EFF. -------- Right Field Returning to a less stressful analysis to wrap up this annual exercise, the field of right fielders in the United Leagues has traditionally been less impressive than other positions and that didn’t change this season either. Still, there were some fine players to choose from and this year, I went with Stratford’s 27-year old Andy Faulkner. He enjoyed a nice season at the plate and while he wasn’t the defensive equal to either Albert Sulley or Jim Mars, I felt his production at the plate was sufficient to compensate for that. But both Sulley and Mars were impressive in their own right and it was nice to see Mars, who finished third last season as well, do even better this year. • Andy Faulkner – .304/.404/.502, 165 H, 29-2B, 24 HR, 103 RBI, 96 BB, .906 OPS, 140 OPS+, 153 wRC+, 5.5 WAR, .973 EFF. • Sherburn’s 25-year old Albert Sulley – .294/.391/.411, 153 H, 23-2B, 8 HR, 56 RBI, 83 BB, 17 SB, .802 OPS, 111 OPS+, 125 wRC+, 4.4 WAR, 1.035 EFF. • Wellington’s 29-year old Jim Mars – .313/.354/.451, 184 H, 29-2B, 14 HR, 73 RBI, 38 BB, .805 OPS, 117 OPS+, 122 wRC+, 4.3 WAR, 1.034 EFF. __________________ United Leagues of Braeland