[ayaghmour2]

I'll have a weekly post up later today, but more importantly, we worked out a trade with the Cleveland Foresters. Veteran inning eater and unlucky multiple time 20 loss pitcher Dave Rankin will be taking his talents to the Foresters in exchange for their 4th Round Pick next season and right hander George Sacchetti. Rankin was acquired almost exactly four seasons ago from the Chiefs, and was a constant in our rotation, going 59-78 with a 4.19 ERA (101 ERA+), 1.41 WHIP, 359 walks, and 436 strikeouts in 1,177 innings pitched. It was much of the same for the consistent complete game machine this year, but a poor start and relief appearance last week dropped him to 5-11 with a 4.12 ERA (99 ERA+), 1.34 WHIP, 39 walks, and 39 strikeouts, but before this week he had a 3.85 ERA and 1.30 WHIP.

Contrary to popular belief, I am not trying to collect all the fourth round picks I can, but I do want to strengthen our lower minors and draft picks are the best way to do that. The hope for next season is that there will be good talent after the first three January rounds, and now I can guarantee selecting a hitter and a pitcher. Sacchetti is also an interesting piece, selected in the 4th Round this year and currently slotted as the 215th best prospect in the league. My scout wasn't too high on him pre-draft, so he wasn't the highest on my list, but he's started to warm up to him. 22 in August, he pitched two seasons in college, going 35-27 with a 3.50 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 69 walks, and 112 strikeouts for Redwood University. His two starts in C ball haven't gone great, but I like the kids profile. He's a four pitch pitcher with a nice change and reliable mid-to-high 80s fastball. Sacchetti keeps the ball on the ground and has good command, both which should lead to few longballs. I think this deal will work really well for Cleveland, but we both agreed that Sacchetti could end up being a diamond in the rough. He's got that exciting high ceiling, low floor combination that is the perfect amount of risk for me. We have a lot of exciting young arms in the system, so we can take that risk, and it opens the door for a bigger move.

It's time for the Papenfus era!

Replacing Rankin on the roster and in the rotation will be the now 3rd best prospect in baseball (he's #1 in my book, and that's all that matters!), Pete "Peter the Heater" Papenfus. A blossoming young 20-year-old, Papenfus hurls triple digit fastballs like its nothing, likely finishing his minor league career with an 8-2 record with the Milwaukee Blues. His 3.46 ERA (136 ERA+) and 1.48 WHIP are strong marks, and he's struck out 77 with 51 walks in 80.2 innings pitched. 77 is how many Toronto's Joe Hancock has struck out as well, but he's done it in 142 innings. This may be the last time he leagues the league in strikeouts, as Papenfus may end up breaking Charlie Sis' FABL 3,462 strikeout record. The sky truly is the limit for Papenfus, and I'd be very surprised if he doesn't strike out more batters then any other Cougar this year. I've gone on and on about how good he is, and now we finally get to witness it! The future is really bright on the mound in Chicago, we just have to be patient and let the young guys flex.

EDIT: Made a second trade, not really worth it's own post. We quickly moved Oscar Morse, sending him to the Gothams for a 6th Round Pick and SS Stu Stasny. Stasny ranks outside the top 500, but I think he could develop into a decent major league piece. He projects to be a .290 hitter and has worked well on improving his pitch recognition. He's 20 and a lanky 6'4'', and I think the former 14th Round selection will not stick at short. He's not hitting too well in C ball this year, but this deal was more about making room in the rotation. Papenfus will be joined by Cy Sullivan in the rotation, while another top prospect in Joe Brown will function out of the pen. I may do a six man rotation to get all the youngsters starts, but I have not yet decided. Morse was having a good season himself, 6-6 with a 3.55 ERA (115 ERA+), 1.37 WHIP, 45 walks, and 25 strikeouts, but he was going to start losing starts to the youngsters and was sitting in the 5th spot in the rotation.