[ayaghmour2]

Weekly Record: 3-4
Seasonal Record: 78-76 (5th, 20 GB)

Weekly Schedule
9-24: Win vs Sailors (8-9)
9-26: Loss at Foresters (2-3)
9-27: Loss at Foresters (2-11)
9-28: Loss at Wolves (2-4)
9-29: Win at Wolves (7-6)
9-30: Win at Wolves (10-7)
10-1: Loss at Wolves (4-5)

Summary
So we sort of ended the season tied for third with the Stars and Sailors, but we're listed fifth, so maybe we get a better draft pick? As it shapes out we're set to pick 8th, the highest since 1929 when we picked #1 overall. Remember who that pick was? Just the 1934 Continental Association Al Allen Award Winner Tom Barrell who finished 29-3 with a 2.96 ERA (153 ERA+), 1.06 WHIP, 68 walks, and 189 strikeouts in 319.1 innings pitched.

Man I miss Tommy Wilcox...

Barrell and the Kings (97-57) finished just one game short of the Cleveland Foresters (98-56) who won six straight including 15 of the last 16 after blowing an eight game lead. They'll face the Fed champion New York Gothams (91-63) who we beat in the 1931 World Series. The Gothams have a crazy pitching staff, with the 1-2-3 ranked pitcher's in terms of ERA and 3 Allen Award Winners. It will be four once Hardin Bates takes home this year's, but the 27-year-old got hurt on the 20th and will miss the playoffs. Bates was 19-5 with a 2.35 ERA (184 ERA+), 1.19 WHIP, 69 walks, and 121 strikeouts. I considered trading for Bates when New York was shopping some of their starters, but I poorly decided against it as I was comfortable with my rotation. Of course, there's no way he would have performed like this if he pitched in Chicago, but the Gothams have enviable pitching depth and have been really good with identifying good arms.

Anyways, now that our season is over, I can do a season in review report. Obviously, there was a lot of disappointment, but I'll try not to dwell on that. Only one team can make the playoffs in each division, so I almost rather be in our position then the Kings, which was basically what we dealt with in 1932. There's a lot of work to be done, but we do seem to have a strong enough core that I should be able to compete with an extra piece or two. We've now got two top 10 prospects, Ford (4th) and Mitchell (10th) who both play the same position. I'd like to see Ford play in the outfield some too, but I can't see myself moving Mitchell. Still, we have 8 in the top 50, 11 in the top 100 and 23 in the top 200. Our system is better then ever thanks to the strong 1932 draft class which gives me hope for the future. Not sure I want to wait until the prospects are ready, but perhaps if we suck next year we may have to try to start back from scratch.

The Pitching Staff
Unfortunately it's quite obvious who our best pitcher was this year. It was just 19 starts (really just 17...), but Tommy Wilcox was leaps and bounds better then every other pitcher in our organization. Before his arm broke (well, his UCL ruptured), Wilcox was an unlucky 7-11 with a 2.93 ERA (155 ERA+), 1.19 WHIP, 37 walks, and 60 strikeouts. His ERA would've been third in the CA and his WHIP second with just one more out. For a guy on pace to lose 22 games (which would've been the most in the league), pretty impressive numbers all around. I'm scared that this will be the best season of his career after his former best season last year. He's going to be 28 or 29 next time he throws a pitch, so he still has age on his side, but this same injury has ended careers. I'm hoping with his lack of injury history he'll be spared, but I'm hoping for the best while expecting the worse. I may have to make plans for a Wilcox-less rotation, or at least a rotation where he's no longer an ace. Of course, we have much more problems in the rotation...

Dick Lyons was worth nearly 6 wins this year and he ended up finishing with a season very similar to his career average. He made 33 starts and finished 13-10 with a 4.14 ERA (110 ERA+), 1.51 WHIP, 45 walks, and 78 strikeouts. It's his most amount of starts since 1929 where he led one of the worst rotations in history. Still, since his first full season in 1928, Lyons has thrown 230 or more innings with the only injury he ever faced a cold back in 1930. I've praised Wilcox's Iron Man arm, when really it's Lyons who's the true Iron Man. He's 34, but the veteran ranks as the 11th best pitcher in baseball at the moment and the only healthy Cougar in the top 20 on either side. If you remember, when the season started we had three top 20 hitters (Lou Kelly, Tom Taylor, and Doc Love) and two top 20 pitchers (Tommy Wilcox and Dick Leudtke) plus Dave Rankin who now pitches for us.

Both Rankin and Leudtke didn't have great seasons, with very average years. A late season struggle cost Leudtke an above average year, as he finished 12-15 with a 4.64 ERA (98 ERA+), 1.56 WHIP, 79 walks, and 86 strikeouts in 234.2 innings pitched. Most of his numbers were career lows/worsts, including innings, runs, hits, walks, WHIP, ERA+, BABIP, BB/9, and losses. I'm not worried about Leudtke, as the 33-year-old has a ton of talent and was elite in both 1932 and 33. Even my scout hasn't soured on him, still dubbing him a middle of the rotation starter despite the subpar performance from this year. I'm really hoping to shore up the defense in the offseason which should help Leudtke out. With Rankin, he made 18 starts for us and finished an even 7-7 with a 4.48 ERA (102 ERA+), 1.56 WHIP, 50 walks, and 54 strikeouts across 138.2 innings. Not exactly what I wanted after trading a trio of talented pitchers, but Bill Ross has bone spurs and Jim Crawford had a 7 game stint in AAA. Still, Crawford was 5-3 with a 3.91 ERA (114 ERA+), 1.43 WHIP, 20 walks, and 25 strikeouts in 78.1 innings (10 starts), but at least not the super powered explosion I expected.

We did have a ton of other pitchers make starts, but really only Herb Lowman succeeded. I covered him last post, so I won't spend too much time on him, but after having only six guys make starts last season (Norm Stewart had one), 12 players made 3 or more starts and 14 total Cougars started a game. Of those, none of them pitched very well in the rotation. Ace McSherry had a strong year out of the pen, 1-2 with a 2.05 ERA (221 ERA+), 1.11 WHIP, 11 walks, and 14 strikeouts, but his 3 starts weren't as effective. He was 2-1, but with a 4.98 ERA (91 ERA+), 1.48 WHIP, 9 walks and 4 strikeouts. Rookie Johnny Walker made four starts, going 1-2 with a 4.97 ERA (92 ERA+), 1.55 WHIP, 15 walks, and 14 strikeouts, but again, not very effective. Norm Stewart was terrible, Art Black really struggled, and George Johnson made it clear why he was waived twice this season. Art Jackson didn't look good in his two starts, but at least Gordie Thompson allowed only two earned runs (6 total) in a 10-7 win over the Wolves. Still, it became very clear that we will need to add at least one arm in the offseason if we want to have any shot of winning games next year.

The pen was solid despite Chick Meehan's struggles. The 37-year-old was dominant in '32 and '33, but fell back down to his '31 levels. He finished with a 4.34 ERA (105 ERA+), 1.46 WHIP, 17 walks, and 29 strikeouts in 56 innings pitched. He was 5-2 with 10 saves, but he's likely done finishing games. He's still a dependable pen arm, but he may have to fight for a roster spot next year. Don Grossman looks like the new stopper, finishing the year 5-3 with 6 saves, a 2.37 ERA (192 ERA+), 1.29 WHIP, 28 walks, and 22 strikeouts in 60.2 innings as a rookie. Bill Kline had a bit of a down year, but still finished with a 3.40 ERA (134 ERA+), 1.13 WHIP, 12 walks, and 25 strikeouts across 42.1 innings. Our 1926 2nd Round Pick, Kline is one of the few players I've drafted that got significant playing time on the active roster. The bullpen is one of the few spots on the roster I'm really happy with and I won't need to add any new pieces there.

Grossman was named Rookie of the Month in September, something I found quite shocking considering how many rookies generally come up in the last month of the year. He was 3-2 with a 1.86 ERA, 7 strikeouts, and 8 walks in 19.1 innings pitched. Definitely strong numbers, but I would've expected at least one other CA rookie to be more deserving.

The Batters
So if I had to use just one word to describe the offense this year it would be disappointing. Raise your hand if you had the worst offensive season in your career this year!

(Claude Ramsey, Mike Taylor, Lou Kelly, Bill Ashbaugh, Russ Combs, John Kincaid, Joe Masters, Slim Bloom, Arnold Bower, Clyde Hinzman, and Cy Bryant all raise their hands)

Yeah, it was that bad...

Doc Love was really the only hitter that excelled, batting .325/.381/.511 (123 OPS+) with 21 homers and 98 RBI's in his first full season as a starter. 146 of his 162 career starts came this season and he really did make the most of it. He added 22 doubles and 13 triples with more then double his walks (57) then strikeouts (24). So at least in a season full of disappointment, Doc Love did more or less exactly what I expected. Tom Taylor wasn't great and wasn't nearly as good as he was in 1928 and 1929, and even though it was likely his worst season as a Cougar, Taylor led the league with 31 homers (as well as 751 plate appearances and 688 at bats) and hit a strong .294/.344/.496 (109 OPS+) with 23 steals and 116 RBI's. He spent a third of the season in center and was average there, but he was elite in right as usual. His +9.9 zone rating and 1.057 efficiency was best in all of baseball at right. The zone rating is crazy impressive as he ranked 8th in innings. Taylor also took homer Batter of the Month in September, slashing .345/.380/.538 with 4 homers, 4 steals, and 30 RBI's. It was easily the best month of his season despite the relatively low homer count, and I'm hoping he can carry it in to 1935.

Even with all the down seasons by our hitters, we still ranked 3rd or 4th in every single offensive category except hits, which we ranked 2nd in. Of course, Cleveland and Brooklyn generally ranked 1st and 2nd, as you would expect, and both of them could pitch. The more I look at things, the more I feel the lineup is strong, but I just don't like our defense. I really need someone to man short and I'm really betting on Tom Taylor turning into a capable defender out in center. This doesn't mean Cy Bryant is out of a job, I still plan on giving him 70-100 games out in center, but his bat has hurt.

The Farm
If you told me that our farm would rank 1st in all of baseball when the season ended, I'd call you crazy. Especially after the trade with the Chiefs! But, despite all that, our system ranks as the best in the league with 212 points, 5 more then the Washington Eagles. No one else is all that close, with St. Louis (144) in third. The Gothams (13th, 68) Cleveland (16th, 6) and Brooklyn (14th, 50) rank at the bottom, but considering all three won 90+ games, I think it's for the best. And I'd trade the #1 farm in a heart beat to win 90+ games again. I'll start a top prospect report soon, but here's how are top 30 shapes out:

1. 1B Ray Ford (4th Overall): Not in organization
2. 1B Leo Mitchell (10th Overall): 3rd/46th
3. SS Billy Hunter (17th Overall): 1st/18th
4. SP Cy Sullivan (32nd Overall): 5th/65th
5. LF Rich Langton (39th Overall): 4th/49th
6. C Harry Mead (43rd Overall): 6th/66th
7. SP Karl Wallace (47th Overall): Not in organization
8. CF Marty Roberts (64th Overall): 9th/82nd
9. 3B Hank Stratton (72nd Overall): 16th/115th
10. SS Ducky Jordan (89th Overall): 21st/148th
11. RF Bobby Mills (98th Overall): 14th/107th
12. 2B Homer Ray (109th Overall): 22nd/165th
13. SP Joe Foote (120th Overall): Not in organization
14. CF Roy Moore (126th Overall): 26th/171st
15. SS Tommy Wilson (132nd Overall): 1933 Draftee
16. 2B Gene Evans (137th Overall): 25th/170th
17. LF Dave Haight (145th Overall): 24th/169th
18. 3B Freddie Bennett (147th Overall): 20th/145th
19. SP Frank Gordon (155th Overall): Not Ranked
20. LF Larry Robinson (157th Overall): Not Ranked
21. RF Lou Roach (160th Overall): 11th/86th
22. RF Dick Earl (166th Overall): 30th/200th
23. 1B Cuno Myer (196th Overall): Not Ranked
24. RF Johnny Waters (230th Overall): 29th/195th
25. CF Elias Canady (236th Overall): Not Ranked
26. 3B Tom Spitzer (251st Overall): 23rd/167th
27. SP Art Black (314th Overall): Not Ranked
28. SP Chet Peacock (337th Overall): Not Ranked
29. SP Neal Wilkinson (348th Overall): Not Ranked
30. SP John Hartz (350th Overall): Not Ranked

Our system is not as deep, as last year all our top 30 prospects ranked in the top 200, but we have a lot more top of the line talent then we did before. Of course, we'll have a decent enough draft pick to add even more depth, but I'm not nearly as confident heading into this draft as usual. With the feeders removed, this draft will definitely be a challenge, but one all sixteen of us have to adjust to. I've been scouting the pool nonstop, but I do miss being able to pour through all the stats and teams as we once were able to. Still, I think we should be able to add a ton of new pieces to strengthen an already strong system.

Ray Ford, our now top prospect, had a rough start to his Cougar career, but really turned things up in September. He took home Heartland Player of the Month after hitting .389 with 2 homers, 19 RBI's, and 22 runs scored. The 23-year-old hasn't had much minor league success, but hit .320/.400/.440 (118 OPS+) in 285 trips to the plate with the Legislators. I'm hoping I can start him in Mobile next year, but I'm leaning towards making him a right fielder. I have no idea if he can handle it, and while the early returns at first are okay, he's just 5'10'' and I like having taller first basemen. Granted, Leo Mitchell is just an inch taller, but what I like more then tall first basemen are what I call "lefty shortstops" and I'm pretty sure that's what Mitchell is. I've debated trying him in the outfield as well, but I think it may be best keeping him at first.

Final Notes
Despite all our struggles, we still ranked 3rd in attendance (1,039,366). It's our lowest mark since 1929 when we managed just over 600,000, but that makes five consecutive seasons with more then a million Cougar fans packing into North Side Grounds. Our revenue was way down, which definitely makes sense, but it was still 3rd just like our attendance. In both attendance and revenue, just the two pennant winners rank ahead of us. We topped media revenue and merchandise and made about $800 thousand during the season.

I still haven't decided what I'm going to do with Hank Leitzke. He finished 40-34 with us and the clubhouse is somehow ecstatic. He's managed the personalities well, but he doesn't really have a good relationship with the players at the moment. This could be just because he's new, but I don't like how only the pitchers like him while all the hitters don't. I have until the World Series ends to offer him an extension, and I'll likely come decide on Monday or Tuesday whether Leitzke gets another year (he wants four) in Chicago.

I've already reached out to a few teams in regards to a new shortstop and probably after the draft is done I'll start browsing for starting pitchers. It's always hard to find arms and I want to scout those targets before making a move. Shortstop is a much more pressing need, so I want to get that taken care of as soon as possible.

Best of luck to both the Gothams and Foresters in the World Series! Even though we failed to meet all my expectations and the low ball (or at least what I thought) projections from OSA, it was still another great year in Figment. With such a great group of GMs, it makes losing feel a little bit better. It sucks I can't add another title, but both guys have put together excellent teams and we're set to have another first time champion. This is the Gotham's fourth pennant since 1926, but will be Cleveland's first (last one back in 1920) and it should be a really exciting series.