OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post

reds1 · 10-06-2015, 07:30 PM

November 1, 1940

Eastern League: Embro, Braeland City Battle for Top Spot

--------

The Embro Suns started off the new season 4-5 but then found their groove, going 14-2 the rest of the month. That hot stretch included an 11-game winning streak that ended with a 12-8 loss to the Cobourg Red Stockings on the last day of the month. That dominance is reflected in that Embro swept the monthly awards in the Eastern League.
One game was particularly noteworthy: the October 18 match against the Queensland Eagles. Embro pounded the Eagles 24-7. Four players stood out in that game for the Suns:

1B Jim Friend went 4-6 with 3 RBI, 1 R;
Newly acquired SS Gary Watkinson went 4-6 with 6 RBI, 3 R;
Newly acquired OF Rio Gidley went 4-5 with 3 RBI, 4 R; and
C Jack MacAvoy went 5-5 with 2-2B, 2 RBI, 4 R.

Top Position Player: There’s a lot to choose from, but CF Terence Durney had just an incredible month, winning Batter of the Month honours. That’s in addition the two Player of the Week awards he earned as well. He is rated as Embro’s top player and he is playing like it.

Top Pitcher: Perhaps this shows a limitation of OOTP. Edward Hill had a terrific month and won Pitcher of the Month honours. But in my opinion, RHP Colm Soper was better. Soper went 4-0, 1.58 ERA, 45.2 IP, 1.03 WHIP, 29 K, 14 BB. But he was passed over for Pitcher of the Month because Hill went 5-0? At any rate, Embro enjoyed a fantastic 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation in October.

Noteworthy: The Suns rated 1st in EVERY batting category in October (11 categories).

Key Injury: None.

--------

Like Embro, the Braeland City Monarchs started off slow in October. But after a 1-5 start, the Monarchs got red hot, going 16-3 the rest of the way. They enter November on a 7-game winning streak and just 1 game back of Embro for top spot. Offensively, the Monarchs are struggling in the early going (6th-7th), but are ranked 1st in pitching.

Top Position Player: LF Scott Kessler had a fine month, going .329/.400/.506, 2 HR, 21 RBI, 8 R, 10 BB.

Top Pitcher: LHP David Cooling went 4-1, 1.20 ERA, 45.0 IP, 0.93 WHIP, 18 K, 6 BB in October.

Key Injury: None.

Key trade: The Monarchs acquired 33-year old 1B Dale Langley (39/39 – .286/.361/.444, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 7 R, 8 BB) and minor leaguer 21-year old IF/OF Francis Burrow (23/59) from the Sherburn Tigers on October 23. In return, the Tigers received 28-year old SS Damien Davis (38/41– .273/.293/.345, 4-2B, 9 RBI, 5 R, 2 BB).

Knee-jerk analysis: Langley becomes the starting 1B for Braeland City, at least against RHP. It is apparent that the Monarchs now feel that 29-year old Marcus Mundford can no longer get the job done. Indeed, Mundford (23/25) has fallen in recent development reports, and is hitting only .227/.292/.348, -0.5 WAR thus far. It is a shame really, as Mundford was the 1940 EL Pennant Series MVP just last season. Langley will be an upgrade somewhat, but the Monarch sure could use a hard-hitting 1B to jump start their anemic offense.

--------

Getting off to a slow start then turning it on seems to be the latest fad, as the Wellington Athletics followed that pattern in October. After a 3-7 start, the Athletics then went 11-1 before finishing the month with a 3-game losing streak. Like Braeland City, Wellington is doing well on the pitching side of things (1st-2nd), but is struggling on offense in the early going (5th-6th).
A couple of interesting player transactions was made by the Athletics. Both 37-year old 1B Alejandro Valdés (73/73) and 30-year old 1B Byron Tope (48/48) were designated for assignment and sent to AAA after clearing waivers. This means that 28-year old Jeaic Risbrough (25/25) is now the starting 1B for Wellington. While Valdés was struggling (.176/.222/.206, -0.4 WAR), Tope was doing OK (.270/.312/.388, 0.6 WAR). Risbrough (.283/.350/.453, 0.2 WAR) is doing all right as well in the early going. I would not be surprised if Wellington seeks a trade to reduce their glut of veteran 1B in the not-to-distant future.

Top Position Player: 3B Ryley McLarnon went .327/.333/.407, 5-2B, 15 RBI, 13 R, 1 BB in October.

Top Pitcher: LHP Clyde Boney was Wellington`s top pitcher for the month, going 3-1, 2.44 ERA, 48.0 IP, 1.10 WHIP, 26 K, 12 BB.

Key Injuries: RF Quentin Stubber strained a rib cage muscle in a game against the Embro Suns on October 9. He should be back in 5 more days.

2B Brian Main (.253/.340/.462, 2 HR, 17 RBI, 12 R, 13 BB) injured himself while throwing the ball in a game against the Brunswick Legends on the last day of the month. His diagnosis is still pending.

--------

The injury bug has gotten to the Queensland Eagles early, as they entered the season missing two of their starting pitchers and now their starting shortstop. Despite that, the Eagles were able to finish October with a .500 record, thanks to a 4-game sweep of the Downie Chiefs to end the month. Given the injuries to the rotation, it’s not surprising that their pitching struggled, ranking 6th; although the bullpen has really struggled, ranking last (9.55 ERA). The offense has actually done quite well in the early going, ranking 3rd.

Top Position Player: LF Terry Aspden gets the slight edge this month, as he went .261/.373/.565, 5 HR, 17 RBI, 18 R, 17 BB.

Top Pitcher: LHP Max MacColl performed well for the Eagles, as he went 4-1, 2.45 ERA, 44.0 IP, 1.14 WHIP, 18 K, 8 BB.

Key Injuries: RHP Darren Stewart (13-5, 4.02 ERA-last season) and RHP Roger Young (9-13, 6.37 ERA) were injured during ‘spring’ training. Stewart is out for another 4 weeks with a partially torn labrum and Young may be back in 1-2 weeks after suffering a rotator cuff strain.

SS Ken Cutler (.425/.439/.650, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 6 R, 1 BB) was on fire to start the season, going 4-6 with 2 HR, 6 RBI, 2 R against the Cobourg Red Stockings on October 10 and going 4-4 with 3 RBI, 2 R against the Stratford Barons on the 16th. But in that game against the Barons, Cutler suffered bone chips in his elbow. He is gone for another 4 months.

--------

Leave it to the Stratford Barons to buck the trend. While other teams started slow and then heated up, the Barons started the month off fine, going 9-4; but then they nosedived, staggering 2-10 the rest of the way. Interestingly, the Barons are not terrible either on offense (2nd to 4th) or in pitching (2nd to 4th). Only their starting ERA is subpar, rated as 6th. If the rotation can rebound, then perhaps the Barons will be right back in the thick of things.

Top Position Player: SS Jake Walker is a candidate as the top position player in the ULB today (along with Kingston’s SS Okura Ito). In October, he went .311/.431/.522, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 9 R, 19 BB.

RF Paul DeLamare (.350/.398/.495, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 18 R, 9 B) is also having a fine start to the season; in fact, in a game against the Downie Chiefs on October 10, DeLamare went 6-6 with 1 HR, 1-2B, 3 RBI, 2 R.

Top Pitcher: RHP Larry Parrish is the top rated reliever in the ULB, and he also enjoyed a fine month, going 2-0, 3 SV, 2.04 ERA, 17.2 IP, 0.96 WHIP, 10 K, 4 BB.

Key Injury: None.

--------

Babe Ruth’s inaugural month as a field manager did not go as smoothly as some would hope, as the Brunswick Legends faltered to a 10-15 record in October. Without question, the loss of pitching ace Matthew Monroe for the season hurts. Brunswick started 3-0, against the defending Eastern League champions Braeland City no less, but then went 7-15 the rest of the way. They did end the month on a 3-game winning streak, taking 3 of 4 from Wellington, so at least they have something to build on in November. The Legends are middle of the pack when it comes to both pitching and offense thus far in the early going.

Top Position Player: 1B Teuk-chin Kim has been with the organization since the beginning, mostly as a utility player. But he is now getting a chance to start every game and making the most of it. In October, he went .414/.474/.621, 5 HR, 11 RBI, 14 R, 10 BB. He leads all EL players in batting average.

Top Pitcher: The rotation is seeking some stability after the loss of Monroe. LHP Anastasio Rodríguez may provide it, as he went 3-2, 3.35 ERA, 51.0 IP, 1.14 WHIP, 21 K, 7 BB.

Key Injury: 30-year old LHP Matthew Monroe (1-0, 1.29 ERA) suffered a serious elbow injury on Opening Day and will miss the entire regular season.

--------

After opening the season with a pair of losses to Queensland, the Cobourg Red Stockings then rattled off 7 straight wins. But that was immediately followed by 7 straight losses. Since then, they have only mustered two victories against 6 defeats. That accurately reflects a team that is devoid of front-line talent, outside of CF Clint Jones and 2B Matthew Lane. But Cobourg does have talent in their system that could help turn things around. Eventually.

Top Position Player: 25-year old Clint Jones is Cobourg’s biggest star, and he demonstrated that in October, going .312/.369/.667, 8 HR, 21 RBI, 22 R, 7 BB, 6 SB. Give that man some support!

Top Pitcher: The pitching staff is really struggling, but I’ll go with RHP George Blankley, as he went 1-2, 3.58 ERA, 37.2 IP, 1.35 WHIP, 15 K, 15 BB.

Key Injury: 29-year old RF Brian Herdman (.350/.480/.600, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 6 R, 5 B) suffered a partially torn labrum back on October 15 in a game against the Brunswick Legends. He is out for another 3 months.

--------

A series of offseason moves has not prevented the Downie Chiefs from hitting rock bottom. They find themselves in the cellar of the Eastern League standings after just one month. The Chiefs stubbornly continue to believe that they can compete. Thus, they went out and acquired players like 1B William Tozer and RF Aaron Flanagan. But they really need to face the fact that they are not very good and just cannot compete with the top clubs. Will this be the year they have an epiphany and finally embrace rebuild?

Top Position Player: 29-year old William Tozer is one of the best first basemen in the ULB, but he cannot carry a team every night. But he does what he can, and in October, he went .354/.433/.671, 7 HR, 18 RBI, 12 R, 10 BB.

Top Pitcher: 36-year old RHP Frank Leadbeater is also does what he can for a desultory team. In October, he went 2-3, 3.14 ERA, 43.0 IP, 1.35 WHIP, 20 K, 14 BB.

Key Injury: RP-LHP Keith Mailes (1-0, 0.00 ERA) was diagnosed with shoulder inflammation back on October 9 in a game against the Stratford Barons. He is out for another 2 months.

--------

10-06-2015, 07:30 PM	#163
reds1 Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2002 Location: Winnipeg Posts: 3,929	November 1, 1940 Eastern League: Embro, Braeland City Battle for Top Spot -------- The Embro Suns started off the new season 4-5 but then found their groove, going 14-2 the rest of the month. That hot stretch included an 11-game winning streak that ended with a 12-8 loss to the Cobourg Red Stockings on the last day of the month. That dominance is reflected in that Embro swept the monthly awards in the Eastern League. One game was particularly noteworthy: the October 18 match against the Queensland Eagles. Embro pounded the Eagles 24-7. Four players stood out in that game for the Suns: 1B Jim Friend went 4-6 with 3 RBI, 1 R; Newly acquired SS Gary Watkinson went 4-6 with 6 RBI, 3 R; Newly acquired OF Rio Gidley went 4-5 with 3 RBI, 4 R; and C Jack MacAvoy went 5-5 with 2-2B, 2 RBI, 4 R. *Top Position Player:* There’s a lot to choose from, but CF Terence Durney had just an incredible month, winning Batter of the Month honours. That’s in addition the two Player of the Week awards he earned as well. He is rated as Embro’s top player and he is playing like it. *Top Pitcher:* Perhaps this shows a limitation of OOTP. Edward Hill had a terrific month and won Pitcher of the Month honours. But in my opinion, RHP Colm Soper was better. Soper went 4-0, 1.58 ERA, 45.2 IP, 1.03 WHIP, 29 K, 14 BB. But he was passed over for Pitcher of the Month because Hill went 5-0? At any rate, Embro enjoyed a fantastic 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation in October. *Noteworthy:* The Suns rated 1st in EVERY batting category in October (11 categories). *Key Injury:* None. -------- Like Embro, the Braeland City Monarchs started off slow in October. But after a 1-5 start, the Monarchs got red hot, going 16-3 the rest of the way. They enter November on a 7-game winning streak and just 1 game back of Embro for top spot. Offensively, the Monarchs are struggling in the early going (6th-7th), but are ranked 1st in pitching. *Top Position Player:* LF Scott Kessler had a fine month, going .329/.400/.506, 2 HR, 21 RBI, 8 R, 10 BB. *Top Pitcher:* LHP David Cooling went 4-1, 1.20 ERA, 45.0 IP, 0.93 WHIP, 18 K, 6 BB in October. *Key Injury:* None. *Key trade:* The Monarchs acquired 33-year old 1B Dale Langley (39/39 – .286/.361/.444, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 7 R, 8 BB) and minor leaguer 21-year old IF/OF Francis Burrow (23/59) from the Sherburn Tigers on October 23. In return, the Tigers received 28-year old SS Damien Davis (38/41– .273/.293/.345, 4-2B, 9 RBI, 5 R, 2 BB). *Knee-jerk analysis:* Langley becomes the starting 1B for Braeland City, at least against RHP. It is apparent that the Monarchs now feel that 29-year old Marcus Mundford can no longer get the job done. Indeed, Mundford (23/25) has fallen in recent development reports, and is hitting only .227/.292/.348, -0.5 WAR thus far. It is a shame really, as Mundford was the 1940 EL Pennant Series MVP just last season. Langley will be an upgrade somewhat, but the Monarch sure could use a hard-hitting 1B to jump start their anemic offense. -------- Getting off to a slow start then turning it on seems to be the latest fad, as the Wellington Athletics followed that pattern in October. After a 3-7 start, the Athletics then went 11-1 before finishing the month with a 3-game losing streak. Like Braeland City, Wellington is doing well on the pitching side of things (1st-2nd), but is struggling on offense in the early going (5th-6th). A couple of interesting player transactions was made by the Athletics. Both 37-year old 1B Alejandro Valdés (73/73) and 30-year old 1B Byron Tope (48/48) were designated for assignment and sent to AAA after clearing waivers. This means that 28-year old Jeaic Risbrough (25/25) is now the starting 1B for Wellington. While Valdés was struggling (.176/.222/.206, -0.4 WAR), Tope was doing OK (.270/.312/.388, 0.6 WAR). Risbrough (.283/.350/.453, 0.2 WAR) is doing all right as well in the early going. I would not be surprised if Wellington seeks a trade to reduce their glut of veteran 1B in the not-to-distant future. *Top Position Player:* 3B Ryley McLarnon went .327/.333/.407, 5-2B, 15 RBI, 13 R, 1 BB in October. *Top Pitcher:* LHP Clyde Boney was Wellington`s top pitcher for the month, going 3-1, 2.44 ERA, 48.0 IP, 1.10 WHIP, 26 K, 12 BB. *Key Injuries:* RF Quentin Stubber strained a rib cage muscle in a game against the Embro Suns on October 9. He should be back in 5 more days. 2B Brian Main (.253/.340/.462, 2 HR, 17 RBI, 12 R, 13 BB) injured himself while throwing the ball in a game against the Brunswick Legends on the last day of the month. His diagnosis is still pending. -------- The injury bug has gotten to the Queensland Eagles early, as they entered the season missing two of their starting pitchers and now their starting shortstop. Despite that, the Eagles were able to finish October with a .500 record, thanks to a 4-game sweep of the Downie Chiefs to end the month. Given the injuries to the rotation, it’s not surprising that their pitching struggled, ranking 6th; although the bullpen has really struggled, ranking last (9.55 ERA). The offense has actually done quite well in the early going, ranking 3rd. *Top Position Player:* LF Terry Aspden gets the slight edge this month, as he went .261/.373/.565, 5 HR, 17 RBI, 18 R, 17 BB. *Top Pitcher:* LHP Max MacColl performed well for the Eagles, as he went 4-1, 2.45 ERA, 44.0 IP, 1.14 WHIP, 18 K, 8 BB. *Key Injuries:* RHP Darren Stewart (13-5, 4.02 ERA-last season) and RHP Roger Young (9-13, 6.37 ERA) were injured during ‘spring’ training. Stewart is out for another 4 weeks with a partially torn labrum and Young may be back in 1-2 weeks after suffering a rotator cuff strain. SS Ken Cutler (.425/.439/.650, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 6 R, 1 BB) was on fire to start the season, going 4-6 with 2 HR, 6 RBI, 2 R against the Cobourg Red Stockings on October 10 and going 4-4 with 3 RBI, 2 R against the Stratford Barons on the 16th. But in that game against the Barons, Cutler suffered bone chips in his elbow. He is gone for another 4 months. -------- Leave it to the Stratford Barons to buck the trend. While other teams started slow and then heated up, the Barons started the month off fine, going 9-4; but then they nosedived, staggering 2-10 the rest of the way. Interestingly, the Barons are not terrible either on offense (2nd to 4th) or in pitching (2nd to 4th). Only their starting ERA is subpar, rated as 6th. If the rotation can rebound, then perhaps the Barons will be right back in the thick of things. *Top Position Player:* SS Jake Walker is a candidate as the top position player in the ULB today (along with Kingston’s SS Okura Ito). In October, he went .311/.431/.522, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 9 R, 19 BB. RF Paul DeLamare (.350/.398/.495, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 18 R, 9 B) is also having a fine start to the season; in fact, in a game against the Downie Chiefs on October 10, DeLamare went 6-6 with 1 HR, 1-2B, 3 RBI, 2 R. *Top Pitcher:* RHP Larry Parrish is the top rated reliever in the ULB, and he also enjoyed a fine month, going 2-0, 3 SV, 2.04 ERA, 17.2 IP, 0.96 WHIP, 10 K, 4 BB. *Key Injury:* None. -------- Babe Ruth’s inaugural month as a field manager did not go as smoothly as some would hope, as the Brunswick Legends faltered to a 10-15 record in October. Without question, the loss of pitching ace Matthew Monroe for the season hurts. Brunswick started 3-0, against the defending Eastern League champions Braeland City no less, but then went 7-15 the rest of the way. They did end the month on a 3-game winning streak, taking 3 of 4 from Wellington, so at least they have something to build on in November. The Legends are middle of the pack when it comes to both pitching and offense thus far in the early going. *Top Position Player:* 1B Teuk-chin Kim has been with the organization since the beginning, mostly as a utility player. But he is now getting a chance to start every game and making the most of it. In October, he went .414/.474/.621, 5 HR, 11 RBI, 14 R, 10 BB. He leads all EL players in batting average. *Top Pitcher:* The rotation is seeking some stability after the loss of Monroe. LHP Anastasio Rodríguez may provide it, as he went 3-2, 3.35 ERA, 51.0 IP, 1.14 WHIP, 21 K, 7 BB. *Key Injury:* 30-year old LHP Matthew Monroe (1-0, 1.29 ERA) suffered a serious elbow injury on Opening Day and will miss the entire regular season. -------- After opening the season with a pair of losses to Queensland, the Cobourg Red Stockings then rattled off 7 straight wins. But that was immediately followed by 7 straight losses. Since then, they have only mustered two victories against 6 defeats. That accurately reflects a team that is devoid of front-line talent, outside of CF Clint Jones and 2B Matthew Lane. But Cobourg does have talent in their system that could help turn things around. Eventually. *Top Position Player:* 25-year old Clint Jones is Cobourg’s biggest star, and he demonstrated that in October, going .312/.369/.667, 8 HR, 21 RBI, 22 R, 7 BB, 6 SB. Give that man some support! *Top Pitcher:* The pitching staff is really struggling, but I’ll go with RHP George Blankley, as he went 1-2, 3.58 ERA, 37.2 IP, 1.35 WHIP, 15 K, 15 BB. *Key Injury:* 29-year old RF Brian Herdman (.350/.480/.600, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 6 R, 5 B) suffered a partially torn labrum back on October 15 in a game against the Brunswick Legends. He is out for another 3 months. -------- A series of offseason moves has not prevented the Downie Chiefs from hitting rock bottom. They find themselves in the cellar of the Eastern League standings after just one month. The Chiefs stubbornly continue to believe that they can compete. Thus, they went out and acquired players like 1B William Tozer and RF Aaron Flanagan. But they really need to face the fact that they are not very good and just cannot compete with the top clubs. Will this be the year they have an epiphany and finally embrace rebuild? *Top Position Player:* 29-year old William Tozer is one of the best first basemen in the ULB, but he cannot carry a team every night. But he does what he can, and in October, he went .354/.433/.671, 7 HR, 18 RBI, 12 R, 10 BB. *Top Pitcher:* 36-year old RHP Frank Leadbeater is also does what he can for a desultory team. In October, he went 2-3, 3.14 ERA, 43.0 IP, 1.35 WHIP, 20 K, 14 BB. *Key Injury:* RP-LHP Keith Mailes (1-0, 0.00 ERA) was diagnosed with shoulder inflammation back on October 9 in a game against the Stratford Barons. He is out for another 2 months. -------- __________________ United Leagues of Braeland Last edited by reds1; 04-15-2025 at 10:41 AM.