[ayaghmour2]

AAA Milwaukee Blues (Century League): 79-61, 3rd, 11 GB: The Blues could not complete their threepeat, but they still finished in the first division and third place. They also finished 3rd in runs scored and runs against, and had a pretty young team towards the end. After Skipper left we didn't have many top prospects in Milwaukee, with one of the more exciting ones Harl Haines. Now 23, the southpaw will end up with a 40-man roster spot after going 13-12 with a 3.72 ERA (109 ERA+), 1.38 WHIP, 66 walks, and 105 strikeouts in 225 innings pitched. With injuries to Eddie Quinn and Milt Fritz, plus the age of Lonardo and Lyons, Haines could end up spending some time in the five spot next season. The offense had a lot of depth players, with most of the everyday players middling pieces. One youngster that got time was Steve Mountain, but the 23-year-old catcher hit just .267/.362/.335 (85 OPS+) in 221 trips to the plate. Mountain profiles more as a backup catcher, and doesn't have an easy path to playing time until Mike Taylor is ready to age out. I expect Mountain to spend most if not all his time with the Blues next season and he could debut next year if we have any injuries. Former 8th Rounder Johnny Ruby threw half of his 24 starts with Milwaukee this season, and looked pretty good. The lefty went 7-3 with a 3.93 ERA (103 ERA+), 1.58 WHIP, 49 walks, and 51 strikeouts. I haven't decided yet if I'll protect him in the Rule-5 Draft, but I don't think he's ready for the big leagues yet. Not too many other overly productive players, but first basemen and 1932 draftee Cuno Myer hit .361/.414/.464 (131 OPS+) with 22 doubles, 2 tirples, 4 homers, and 58 RBIs in 414 trips to the plate. He got time because Bobby Mills spent most of his season in Chicago, and with Mills now out of options, Myer should get a majority of the time at first until Bill Dambreville is ready for AAA. The Blues have seen years with much better young players, but I can see Donnie and Johnnie in their rotation next season, but the offense will continue to see a lot more depth players then top prospects.

AA Mobile Commodores (Dixie League): 74-66, 2nd, 9 GB: It's now three consecutive second place finishes, but the Commodores we're closer to seventh then first. At the top of the rotation they had our top two prospects Donnie and Johnnie Jones, and the Commodores were tied for the fewest runs allowed. Donnie was healthy all season, going 10-10 with a 4.32 ERA (107 ERA+), 1.59 WHIP, 95 walks, and 92 strikeouts in 181.1 innings pitched. The walks were a little concerning, a 4.7 BB/9 rate, and while his raw stuff is superb, his command is not near finished developing. Walks may slow him a bit like with Peter the Heater, but he has the stuff and talent to top a rotation. Johnnie missed a few starts, but he finished 8-10 with a 4.66 ERA (99 ERA+), 1.79 WHIP, 87 walks, and 50 strikeouts in 152.2 innings pitched. He had a higher BB/9 and lower K/9 then Donnie, and the lefty is projected to be a middle of the rotation arm. He has plenty of movement on his pitches, gets a ton of grounders just like his brother, and they both could make a cameo next season. I can't wait to see these youngsters in Chicago and they could end up as the best brother duo in FABL history. The best Commodore pitcher, however, was the former 5th Rounder Ralph Kendall. After 124 consecutive relief appearances, he made 12 starts to finish the season. The soon-to-be 23-year-old finished the season 11-1 with 5 saves, a 3.76 ERA (122 ERA+), 1.26 WHIP, 42 walks, and 49 strikeouts. The offense wasn't great, but Jocko Pollard hit an impressive .320/.382/.538 (133 OPS+) with 42 doubles, 4 triples, 12 homers, and 92 RBIs. He didn't have much support in the lineup, but for 60 games got Bill Dambreville. The first basemen hit .351/.456/.480 (139 OPS+) with 16 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, and 26 RBIs with a strong 46-to-7 walk-to-strikeout ratio. Chick Browning was there the whole season, and the 8th Rounder from Chicago hit a respectable .286/.391/.418 (106 OPS+) with 24 doubles, a triple, 8 homers, and 50 RBIs. Those two should return to Mobile for next season, but I could see Pollard moving up to AAA. I'm hoping they could move up to 1st next season, and they could have some reinforcements from Lincoln making the difference.

A Lincoln Legislators (Heartland League): 79-61, 3rd, 9 GB: The Heartland League race was a two-way contest between the Peoria Pastimers and Terre Haute Braves, who ended the season tied at 88-52. Lincoln led the rest of the division, 7 games ahead of the fourth place Springfield Hustlers. They had help from one of our top prospects, Lou Eaker, who went 10-8 with a 3.54 ERA (113 ERA+), 1.41 WHIP, 71 walks, and 82 strikeouts in 20 excellent starts. Willie Gonzalez Jr. was unhittable in his 13 outings, 8-3 with a 2.94 ERA (137 ERA+), 1.14 WHIP, 26 walks, and 56 strikeouts. He kept his walks low and boosted his strikeouts, and got a pair of velocity boosts to push him up to 96-98. Unfortunately Boney Joe Crosby had a tough season, dropping in the prospect ranks and going 8-4 with a 5.28 ERA (76 ERA+), 1.52 WHIP, 48 walks, and 43 strikeouts. The offense had another top prospect in the soon-to-be 23-year-old Bunny Hufford. With right field a huge question mark right now, it's Hufford's spot to lose, and the former 4th Rounder could end up in AA or AAA next season. The top 100 prospect hit .315/.385/.466 (131 OPS+) with 17 doubles, 15 triples, 3 homers, and 53 RBIs in 417 PAs. A non top 100 prospect had an equally impressive season, with Slick Eddie Curtis batting leadoff and slashing .341/.390/.435 (124 OPS+) with 12 doubles, 11 triples, 3 homers, 18 steals, and 43 RBIs. The versatile infielder can play all around the diamond, but spent 50 games at second and 81 at short this year, with a few innings at third, left, and right too. Both look like they deserve to start the next season with the Commodores, which could really help that lineup. Hod Seagroves has been trailing Bill Dambreville, so he may stay with Lincoln, and they could use his .311/.397/.409 (120 OPS+) line for a full season instead of 64 games. The first and second basemen had 10 doubles, 3 triples, 3 homers, 42 RBIs, and 36 walks with just 2 strikeouts in just shy of 300 PAs for the Legislators. Lincoln has dropped a position in the leas three seasons, and I'd love for them to not fall to 4th next year. Our lower minors has a lot of talented youngsters, and that could help push the Legislators back up to first.

B San Jose Cougars (California-Oregon-Washington League): 92-48, 1st, 3 GA: Each one of our affiliates finished above .500 this season, but the San Jose Cougars were the only member of the organization to grab a pennant. The draft really helped the team, as it gave them new life in the lineup and brought up some guys from La Crosse who were ready for the next level. The biggest draft day acquisition was regional round selection Bill Rich, who hit a remarkable .353/.393/.667 (166 OPS+) with 8 doubles, 4 triples, 11 homers, and 35 RBIs. He showed much more power then expected, but really struggled in the outfield. Expect him to start next season in Lincoln, and the Illinois native may end up moving through the ladder very quickly. Joining him from the college ranks was Jimmie James, who split time between third and short and hit .359/.439/.526 (146 OPS+) with 9 doubles, 4 triples, 2 steals, 5 homers, and 37 RBIs. There was also some help from La Crosse, with Solly Skidmore and Harry Carr who joined the Cougars after spending the first part of the season as Lions. Skidmore is our top positional prospect and in 62 games with San Jose he hit an elite .395/.437/.566 (155 OPS+) with 17 doubles, 9 homers, and 52 RBIs. Carr, of course, couldn't match that, but his .362/.403/.525 (135 OPS+) line was well above average. After spending near all his time with La Crosse in center, Carr manned left in San Jose, and added 16 doubles, 4 triples, 4 homers, 5 steals, and 31 RBIs. The pitching allowed the fewest runs in the league, with 20-year-old Oliver Allen putting together 24 tremendous starts. Allen was 11-3 with a 3.55 ERA (136 ERA+), 1.38 WHIP, 54 walks, and 81 strikeouts. He had help from our 7th Rounder this season Fred Thaxton, who looked like an established vet, 5-2 with a 2.35 ERA (206 ERA+), 0.98 WHIP, 14 walks, and 28 strikeouts. One of our top prospects Danny Goff Jr. missed a lot of time with injury, and he wasn't too great on the mound. He went just 5-5 with a 5.13 ERA (94 ERA+), 1.49 WHIP, 27 walks, and 28 strikeouts. He was, however, much better with the bat, slashing .337/.402/.476 (124 OPS+) with 15 doubles, 4 triples, 2 homers, 4 steals, and 36 RBIs while walking 26 times with just 3 strikeouts. San Jose had a lot of our better prospects, and should compete for a pennant spot again next season.

C La Crosse Lions (Upper Mississippi Valley Association): 89-51, 2nd, 2 GB: They were in it till the end, but the Lions fell just short of a third consecutive pennant. Being our lowest level, they saw a lot of different players, with multiple prospects and filler players going up and down throughout the season. One of the biggest surprises was a strong season from Adolph Jacobson, who hit .274/.339/.517 (114 OPS+) with 30 doubles, 7 triples, 16 homers, and 73 RBIs. The former lottery pick isn't one of our more exciting prospects, but the 20-year-old has shown improvements each season, and could make the move to San Jose. 8th Rounder Leo Davis was a nice midseason pickup, as the 21-year-old hit .352/.433/.596 (159 OPS+) with 17 doubles, 6 triples, 9 homers, and 37 RBIs atop the Lions lineup. Fellow newcomer Don Lee, who was our 2nd Rounder and a top 200 prospect, looked good despite being 18, hitting .289/.411/.481 (126 OPS+) with 13 doubles, 7 triples, 3 homers, 4 steals, and 31 RBIs. The rest of the lineup had it's struggles, with most of the top hitters (like Skidmore) getting promotions throughout the season. Part-timer Ray Powell did hit well, but kept getting red arrows in San Jose. The former lottery pick hit .304/.378/.547 (132 OPS+) with 23 doubles, 9 triples, 14 homers, 7 steals, and 61 RBIs. Even if he continues to have a down arrow, he'll head to San Jose, as the 21-year-old needs to start moving up the ladder. We did feature a ton of exciting pitching prospects, including newcomers Mel Haynes, Harry Stewart, and Duke Bybee. Haynes looked much better then an 18-year-old should, going 7-3 with a 2.72 ERA (164 ERA+), 1.27 WHIP, 20 walks, and 40 strikeouts, showing decent command with great stuff while keeping the ball on the ground. Stewart had some struggles, and looked like a teen, but Bybee pitched well beyond his years. He turned 18 just a few days before the draft, but went 4-3 with a 3.48 ERA (129 ERA+), 1.38 WHIP, 25 walks, and 40 strikeouts. The trio will stay in La Crosse to start next season, but at this time next season they might be getting their feet wet in San Jose. Tommy Davis spent all but four of his starts with the Lions, and showed no signs of being slowed down by his torn labrum from last year. The 22-year-old finished the season in San Jose after going 12-6 with a 3.43 ERA (130 ERA+), 1.21 WHIP, 42 walks, and 165 strikeouts. His 9.3 K/9 was superb and he could start to move up pretty quickly. Ron Sexton and Jimmy Ballard, both top 500 prospects, had major arm injuries, and may miss most of next season. Still, we have a ton of talented young pitchers waiting for the Lions next season, and I'd bet we'll allow the fewest runs next year as well.