The Professional Baseball Coalition - The Introduction

[JWay]

The year is 1954 and the Professional Baseball Coalition opens its doors in 16 major league cities. The appointed commissioner is Wyatt Bertson a 29-year-old businessman who plans on making baseball an integral part of North American entertainment.

Sixteen cities in the United States make up the Major League level of the PBC, with several cities already applying for planned expansion franchises. Commissioner Bertson commented, "We want baseball everywhere, families should be able to afford to go to games, enjoy a few hours of sport, and not have to travel hours to get to the games."

It could be a few decades before Bertson's and the PBC's goals come to fruition, but the initial selection of cities give a pretty fair spread of location.
The PBC was split into leagues, like traditional baseball of past and features the Coastal League (CL), which is made up of East and West divisions, and the Midwest League (MWL), which is made up of North and South divisions.

and

The Coastal League East division has teams in Atlanta, GA (the Peaches), New York, NY (the Generals), Philadelphia, PA (the Enforcers), and Washington D.C. (the Eagles.



The Coastal League West division has teams in Albuquerque, NM (the Warriors), Los Angeles, CA (the Sea Turtles), Phoenix, AZ (the Roadrunners), and Seattle, WA (the Emeralds).



The Midwest North division has teams in Chicago, IL (the Barnstormers), Milwaukee, WI (the Stealth), Sioux Falls, SD (the Snipes), and Minneapolis, MN (the Twin Cities Arctic).



And finally the Midwest South Division has teams in Dallas, TX (the Mustangs), Memphis, TN (the Sound), New Orleans, LA (the Voodoo), and St. Louis, MO (the Bombers).



Each organization has 4 levels of minor league teams spread across North America (USA, Mexico, and Canada). Baseball will begin this spring after an inaugural dispersal draft in my next post!

I have yet to create a quick start file for those who may want to use that, it will be made available, in this thread you can obtain all the user created logos, jerseys, caps, etc to create your own fictional setup from scratch if you wanted to. Mod-Files-Thread

[Carplos]

Phoenix and Albuquerque over a San Fran team? Downright offensive...

[JWay]

Originally Posted by Carplos

Phoenix and Albuquerque over a San Fran team? Downright offensive...

Perhaps a slight oversight, but I wanted two smaller market teams in the league (ALQ and SF). Plus I didn't want a ton of california teams. Anyway people are more than welcome to change the league structure in their own way!

Thanks for the post though!

[JWay]

January 2, 1954.

The Professional Baseball Coalition organized in Dallas, Texas to conduct the inaugural player dispersal draft. The 16 teams have spent more than 4 months evaluating talent across the country, and the last two months watching player camps.

Some of the emerging talent that is expected to hear their name drafted early on include OF Jon Trombley from Ft. Worth Texas. He’s a 23-year-old 5 tool talent player who should be a fan favorite.

Tze-meng Chien is one of the many imported players and Chien comes from China. He is a 31-year-old, switch-hitting outfielder, who looks to take his skill to the national level.

Kenneth Hampton of Richland Hills, Texas has been labeled the drafts best pitcher. He touched triple digits on the radar gun several times, has stuff to make hitters look silly, and despite already being 34-years-old, has the ability to leave a long lasting mark on the game.

From Omaha, Nebraska hails a 26-year-old left hander, Austin Tyler, who throws 6 different above average pitches and can hit 94 with his cutter.
These four guys are likely just a taste of who will be taken today, and who could be stars for the PBC for years to come.
Let the first round begin.

1) Memphis Sound: RF – Jon Trombley, without much question, Trombley set himself far above and beyond the rest of the talent. Being only 23 years old, there’s little question about his ability, Memphis won the lottery with the first overall pick.

2) Chicago Barnstormers: RF –Aaron Braggs, the Barnstormers go young, and get the 20-year-old from Millbury, Massachusetts. Braggs offers amazing bat control and good gap power, he should be able to pop a few home runs, but his power is only average.

3) Milwaukee Stealth: RF – Stuart Stephenson, not very often you see a run on a position with the first 3 picks of the draft, but Stuart Stephenson is a 25-year-old lefty from Boise Idaho. Stephenson doesn’t quite have the amazing bat control that Braggs has, and he has less power, but he more than makes up for it in defense and speed. Stephenson should get time in center and make that his home in the future.

4) Washington Eagles: SP – Mark Hayden, 27, Hayden is a natural born leader and a popular player to boot. The 6’6 righty from Missouri City, Texas has 3 above average pitches, all with tons of movement, and in the prior months has proved to be a work horse on the mound.

5) Atlanta Peaches: C – Tony Gomez, 21, Gomez was the first international player off the board. Gomez may have to move to 1B at some point in his career has the ability to be an annual All-Star. His work ethic is second to none, and the fans from Tenancingo, Tlaxacala, Mexico will be more than interested in their golden boy’s march to the major leagues. If Gomez can work on his backstop skills, the Peaches got a steal here.
6) New Orleans Voodoo: 1B – Jared Walker, 27, Los Angeles was high on this hometown kid, but New Orleans went up and got him. He should be one of the best hitters year and year out. Walker is on top of the game in contact, power, eye, and even speed, but his lack of glove skills will hold back his value some.

7) Albuquerque Warriors: RF – Rafael Campos, 22, Rafael is from Fort Defiance, Arizona, and is a five tool talent type of player. He is an asset in the field, and excellent with the bat. He even shown potential to steal 20 bases a season.

8) Dallas Mustangs: SP – Justin Hayes, 26, Hayes wowed scouts with his ability to take the ball for every start and throw until all the batters were out. He has amazing stamina and four plus pitches. His fastball tops out at 94 mph, but his curveball/slider combo allow him to fool hitters from both sides of the plate.

9) Phoenix Roadrunners: SP – Chris Dunbar, 23, Dunbar shocked some of the league scouts as he showed flashes of talent, but was very inconsistent. His pitches had incredible movement, and when he locked in, his control was impeccable. However, his stuff isn’t likely to get much better, and he will need a strong infield behind him as he gets most hitter to pound the ball into the ground.

10) Seattle Emeralds: SP – Bruce Gross, 23, Many of the older players available were scratching their heads as teams seem to be looking to capitalize on franchise type players, even if they’re not the best player available. Gross is one of those picks. Gross is more polished than Dunbar, but has less of a ceiling, The Emeralds may need to be worried as Gross fought through minor injuries during the camps.

11) St. Louis Bombers: SP – Ulysses London, 25, London from Oakton, Virgina was one of the more popular players in the fall camps. His pitches moved all over the place and he controls each of them. Like Dunbar, he’ll get tons of groundballs, but he’ll struggle to strike anyone out.

12) Sioux Falls Snipes: SP – Austin Tyler, 26, One of the previewed players before the draft began, Tyler has 6 plus pitches and should be a force to be reckoned with. Omaha is 3 hours away so Tyler won’t have to move very far.

13) Los Angeles Sea Turtles: LF – Dave Roberts, 28, Dave plays the utility role fairly well, but as a first round pick he’ll have to play everyday, his glove is average at 1B, LF, and RF, and his bat is pretty strong. Roberts is also very fast, and its likely we’ll soon find out why he is nicknamed “Heartbreaker”.

14) New York Generals: 1B – Craig Decker, 22, In New York fans were looking for a popular player to fit the city, however the guys in the front office thought Decker was the centerpiece they needed. Decker has .310-30-100 potential and should be a decent glove. His lack of speed makes him a station to station player.

15) Twin Cities Arctic: RF – Bob Hatcher, 29, Right field was the story in round 1, and Hatcher earns his keep with an amazing ability to hit with good contact, and ability to draw walks. His glove and arm in the field will steal hits on the defensive side. Hatcher struggles on the base paths, and likely won’t hit many home runs, but he should be a great leader on a new team.

16) Philadelphia Enforcers: CF – Brian Braun, 26, Braun will be the last to wear the label of first round pick in the inaugural draft. Scouts rate him to slug the heck out of the ball, tear up the base paths, and hold his own in the field. Many argue he is better than many of the picks ahead of him, time will tell how it all ends up. His lack of size helped shy some scouts away, but his bat has 30 homeruns a season in it.

Your first rounders:




The draft quickly finished over the week it took to get through the 120+ rounds. Teams are assembling and coming together, stadiums are getting their final touches and upgrades, and spring training will begin in early March. Stay tuned for more!

[JWay]

For those interested: here's the pre-season almanac: BNN Home Page

[JWay]

The inagural season was a success for the PBC as all the teams made money, the players wowed large crowds, and a champion was born in the heart of the USA in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Bombers (102-60) ran away with their division and made quick work of the Sioux Falls Snipes (85-77) in the Midwest League Championship, then battled against unlikely winner the Albuquerque Warriors (82-80) who bounced out the Philadelphia Enforcers (99-63).

The World Series lasted 6 games as the playoff hot Warriors kept pouring on runs despite being out matched. However Torii Sheffield dominated with several hits and a key stolen base, and Jose Juarez out dueled those he was matched up against. In the end Albuquerque's bullpen failed to hold a pair of leads.

Sluggers of the Year went to Memphis's LF-Mark Pugh, 31, who hit .332 with 37 homers, and 143 RBI, and Philadelphia's CF-Nick Quick, 36, who hit .355 with 15 homers and 103 RBI.

Ace of the Year went to St. Louis's Jose Juarez, 32, who went 23-10 with a 3.81 ERA, and Philadelphia's Leonard Eiesland, 30, who won 23 games lost 9 and had an era of 3.24.

St. Louis's Dave Stafford and Philadelphia's Benardo Ruiz won managers of the year, and Torii Sheffield (STL) and Rafael Campos (ALQ) won Freshman of the Year honors.

Many of the teams and players agreed to one year deals due to the uncertainty of the initial draft, so next years standing might look very different. Will the small market teams in Sioux Falls and Albuquerque be able to keep their hot hand? Or will we see Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles spend their way to the top? Time will tell.

Notable retired players:

SP David Hanson (1 season, SxF) started 41 games for Sioux Falls going 20-16, 288.2 IP 138K and a 4.93 career ERA. Dave was 38 years old and retired after getting his one year of pro ball under his belt.

SP Austin Tyler (1 season, SxF) The first round pick suffered a blown tendon in a finger in his pitching hand, and decided to pursue other ventures. Tyler helped lead Sioux Falls to the division title by going 15-12 with 255.2 IP striking out 182, with 4.01 ERA.

CF Noah Henderson (1 season, TC) The 39 year old got 338 PBC at bats, 84 hits, 8 home runs, and 41 RBI in his 5 seconds of fame. Like Hanson he retired due to age.

http://www.thecbu.com/pbc/arc/almana..._100_home.html

[JWay]

1955 saw some money fly around the league, many teams reinvested their earnings into the players, and it ended up paying off again as most of the teams out did last years financial profits.

The playoff picture was also very different as Philadelphia lost steam and was overtaken by the Atlanta Peaches (92-70). The Los Angeles Sea Turtles (86-76) edged out the Albuqueque Warriors in the West, and the Milwaukee Stealth (95-67) ran away in the North. The Midwest League South division ended up being the most exciting as the reigning champions, St. Louis Bombers, ended up playing a 1 game playoff against the Memphis Sound (92-71).

The Sound took game 163, but barely put up a fight by getting swept by Milwaukee. Los Angeles shocked the Peaches by taking them out in four quick games.

The Coalition Championships lasted 6 games for the 2nd straight year, but in much less dramatic fashion, the Milwaukee Stealth overpowered the Los Angeles Sea Turtles. Stealth outfielders Stuart Stephenson (.351 16 homers) and Jose Rodriguez (45 homers, 172 rbi) led the way for the Stealth in 1955.

Slugger of the Year went out to Twin Cities' Javier Vega (1B), 32, who hit .352 with 43 homers and 111 rbi, and Atlanta's Tony Gomez (C), 23, who hit .326 with 28 homers, and 88 rbi.

Aces of the Year went to Mark Hayden who signed in Los Angeles. Hayden won 26 games, scored 141K's, and kept his ERA to 2.46. The Midwest League saw Jose Juarez dominate and win the AotY award again with the PBC's first 30 win season. Juarez also struck out 144 hitters and had an ERA of 2.34.

Best Managers were awarded to Stealth manager Mike Houston, and Alonso Rivera of Los Angeles.

Freshman of the Year were awarded to New Orleans Voodoo's Valentin Roldan (LF) who hit .294 with 18 homers and 52 RBI. The Coastal League's best Frosh was Juan Martinez of the New York Generals. Martinez hit .304 with 14 homers, and 48 RBIs.

Another successful season, heads into another interesting off season, as former Dallas' Justin Hayes and New York's Manny Anaya are both looking for big pay days.

Notable Retired Players:

Sioux Falls can't avoid the injury bug, SS Kozue Hayakawa, 27, had to retire after suffering a high grade concussion. Hayakawa hit .314 with 34 homers and 149 RBI in his 296 game career.

Alfonso Alcola finished in Dallas, started in the Twin Cities, retired at 39 after hitting .269 in 1045 career at bats.

Dallas watched another infielder hang up their cletes, as Joe Cooper, 38, hit .273 with 56 homers in 2 seasons.

Pitcher Tommy Wayne (NO), 37, tossed 406 innings and won 24 games.

Pitcher Augusto Rosas (SxF), 38, 16-19, 276.0 5.36 ERA.

[JWay]

The Coastal League finally gets their first Coalition Championship as the Atlanta Peaches swept the St. Louis Bombers in four games. The Bombers struggled to score runs in the series as the Peaches' rotation absolutely dominated the post season.

The Sioux Falls snipes notch their 2nd division title and best record in 1956 at 98-64. This was the Peaches 2nd straight division title, and the Bombers 2nd division title as well as their 2nd MidWest league championship title. The Los Angeles Sea Turtles also won their 2nd straight division title, but also made their second straight early exit.

Centerfielder Jon Trombley of Memphis won his first Slugger of the Year award after hitting .343 18 homers and 82 rbi, but was also on base at a .471 pace in his amazing season which saw over 180 hits and over 130 walks.

Atlanta Peaches catcher Tony Gomez notched his second Slugger of the Year trophy in a row hitting .338 with 35 homers and 100 rbi from the backstop position.

Aces of the Year had new faces in each league, Emilio Villegas of Albuquerque tossed a record of 27-11 with a 2.50 ERA in 342 IP, while in the Midwest League SF Snipes Terry 'Crow' Hammylton pitched to 28 wins in 316 IP with a 2.33 ERA.

Freshman of the Year winner Lou Robinson of the Seattle Emeralds hit 8 home runs with a .315 average in the Coastal League, and Jose Rodriguez of the St. Louis Bombers popped 19 homers with a .285 average in the Midwest League.

Notable retired players:
Twin Cities Arctic Pablo Cavazos, 26, (torn labrum), injuries ended Pablo's career before it could take off. in 454 career innings he was 22-32 with a 4.26 ERA.

Chicago Barnstormers left fielder, 23, Had 3 seasons under his belt before suffering a career ending knee injury. The former young star hit .311 with 39 homers in 1242 at bats in his PBC career.

Expansion looms in 1957!