[ayaghmour2]

It has felt like years, but baseball is back once again! The air in the Cougar clubhouse is much different this season, as for the first time in I'm not sure how long, I don't think we'll be competing for a pennant. After our pathetic collapse last year, the offseason couldn't have gone much worse. Not only did the Wolves (return of Garrison) and Cannons (return of Barrell and acquisition of Gifford and Sheppard) get quality players back, we lost three of the most valuable hitters in the CA last season. Our top three in the rotation is solid, but we won't score nearly as many runs this season, and with the war coming to a close, I don't really want to add to what's going to be an enviable group of high quality players with not nearly enough spots to put them. Still, we should be competitive, and with a lot of newly opened spots, we will have a very exciting spring with plenty of battles. Here's who is in camp for 1945:

RHP Bill Anderson
RHP Roy Carey
RHP Ben Curtin*
RHP Rube Finegan
LHP Ed Fisler
RHP Art Gilbert
RHP Jack Huston
RHP Charlie Kelsey
LHP Cal Knight
RHP Angel Lopez
LHP Dick Lyons*
RHP Harry MacRae
RHP Ken Matson
RHP George Oddo
RHP Harry Parker*
RHP Rusty Petrick
RHP Billy Riley*
RHP Joe Swank
RHP Merritt Thomas
RHP Mike Thorpe
RHP Bill Tuttle
LHP Art White*
C Homer Guthrie
C Gene Lee
C Harry Mead*
C Mike Taylor*
1B Norm Anderson
1B Chris Smith
1B Dick Walker*
2B Bill Dickens
2B Jimmie James*
2B Walt Layton
3B Steve Jones
3B Ken Mayhugh*
3B Danny Richardson
SS Tip Harrison*
SS Ollie Page
SS Steve Rosko
SS Skipper Schneider*
SS George Sutterfield
LF Huck Hanes
LF Billy Jordan Jr.
LF Rich Langton*
LF Jim Madsen
CF Leo Davis
CF Don Lee*
CF Hop Villers
CF Orlin Yates*
RF Chick Browning
RF Cliff Moss*
RF Bill Rich

*Denotes guaranteed roster spot

Camp Battles
Pitching Staff: 3
Inside Edge: Cal Knight, Ken Matson, Rusty Petrick, Angel Lopez
50/50: Bill Anderson, Merritt Thomas, Jack Huston, Mike Thorpe
Outside Looking In: Harry MacRae, Rube Finegan, Charlie Kelsey

Our pitching staff will be a little, how should I put this, interesting this season. There is a clear disconnect between the top three, Harry Parker, Billy Riley, and Art White, and the rest of the pack. So to account for this and hopefully maximize our production, I will use and abbreviated three man rotation, so the trio can get as many starts as possible. That means that the rest of the staff will contain of Dick Lyons, Ben Curtin, and three others, with all but Curtin likely in line to get starts based on who we are playing, last time they pitched, and how many games we have during the week. In hindsight, I wish Lyons hung up the cleats, as he took a huge step back during the offseason, and is probably going to be the worst pitcher in the FABL this year. Unfortunately, I'm too attached to our ageless wonder, and there's no way I can option or cut him in good conscience. I did make things a little easier for us, sending veteran Mike Murphy back to Detroit for a 10th Rounder. Murphy is still a decent starting option, but we have plenty of younger options I don't want to send down.

That leaves three spots for arms, and far more then three worthy arms to take those spots. Angel Lopez seems likely to start the season as the "4th Starter" and OSA goes far enough to list him in their top 10 for pitchers in their spring training predictions. Lopez only made one big league appearance last year, but was elite in AAA, going 17-6 with a 2.38 ERA (150 ERA+), 1.20 WHIP, 58 walks, and 72 strikeouts in 27 starts. Clyde Meyer slots Lopez into the 4th role, and ranks him far ahead of his closest competition in Rusty Petrick, Ken Matson, Mike Thorpe, and Cal Knight. Thorpe and Matson are penciled into the 5 and 6 spot, but I think Thorpe will be starting the season in Milwaukee. Our 4th Round selection last season, Tom Weinstock has dubbed Thorpe as big league ready since draft day, and he pitched his way up to AAA. Those 4 starts were excellent, as he was 3-1 with a 1.57 ERA (227 ERA+) and 0.87 WHIP. He projects to be a reliable, if unspectacular middle of the rotation arm, but if he struggles I don't want to burn an option when he's not close to being Rule-5 eligible. Matson, on the other hand, has just one option left, and I'd like for him to use that next season when Papenfus, Brown, Bybee, and the Jones brother's make their return. He wasn't great (6-6, 4.09, 41) last season, but he has great stuff and is perfect for the swingman role.

The pen will be an interesting mess on its own, with Rusty Petrick Meyer's choice for stopper. Petrick (7-8, 4.06, 92) has always profiled better as a reliever, with elite stuff and poor control, but he's got a rubber arm and can toss complete game after complete game. That gives him, like Matson, an advantage, as their versatility allows me to maximize their utility with limited roster spots. This works against guys like Cal Knight (1-2, 2, 2.13, 12) and Merritt Thomas (4-4, 3, 1.96, 10), who both are only capable of giving innings out of the pen. Thomas' season ended early with a hamstring strain, but both arms were extremely effective last season. I can't keep all these guys on the roster, but there are plenty more interesting arms in the system who likely won't get a shot to make the opening roster. That includes guys like George Oddo, baseball's 21st ranked prospect, our #8 and #9 specs Charlie Kelsey and Joe Swank, and Harry MacRae. All four are listed by Meyer to be the middle relievers, and all could probably start games at the big league level. Kelsey is the only one on the 40, but unless we're hit with injuries, these guys are all likely going down to the pen.

Camp Battles
Second Base: 1
Inside Edge: Jimmie James
50/50: George Sutterfield, Tip Harrison
Outside Looking In: Walt Layton, Bill Dickens, Ollie Page

The most interesting man in camp might be George Sutterfield, the current #47 prospect in the FABL, who has a chance to earn a starting spot ant second or third. A natural shortstop, Tom Weinstock keeps bouncing back and forth between him and Skipper for highest potential at short. He's not taking Skipper over anytime soon, but Jimmie James is an easier target, and we really have no one at third I'd trust much on an everyday basis. Sutterfield is a defensive marvel, potentially Jim Hensley/Skipper level in terms of range, and while he doesn't hit for any power, he'll almost never strike out due to his elite bat-to-ball skills. He's a handworker and his ceiling is immense, but like with Thorpe, he's not near Rule-5 eligibility and it would hurt spending an option on him this season. His biggest competition is Jimmie James, another former 4th Rounder of ours, who made 44 starts last season keeping Billy Hunter healthy. James slashed .211/.273/.310 (67 OPS+), which leaves a lot to be desired, but the 26-year-old is a capable defender who has a nice swing. He's a switch hitter, which makes him nearly a lock for a bench spot, but I think with regular playing time he could hit much better then he did last season.

Other options for the keystone are less exciting, but we have a few other capable options. Super utility man Tip Harrison had a 110 OPS+ in 35 PAs last season, but his value comes more as a defensive replacement who can play every position but catcher and pitcher. His 46 WRC+ leaves a ton to be desired, but his $22k salary makes it seem like he could be an average big leaguer. Regardless, he'll have a roster spot on the bench, but he could easily end up playing every day. Veteran switch hitter Walt Layton has a chance to steal a starting job, but the now 36-year-old hasn't taken a big league at bat since 1940. He's never hit much, a 73 WRC+ hitter in 905 FABL games, but he's an excellent defender and his hard work and leadership are huge pluses. Ollie Page and Bill Dickens are also glove first players, but Page is on the fringes of the roster and Dickens can be sent down without burning an option. It's been a while since we've had to worry about a middle infield position, but the #1 and #2 ranked second basemen are both overseas.

Camp Battles
Third Base: 1
Inside Edge: Ken Mayhugh, Steve Jones
50/50: George Sutterfield, Tip Harrison
Outside Looking In: Bill Dickens, Ollie Page, Danny Richardson

Another position that hasn't had much thought the past 15 or so years, we've gone from the always reliable John Kincaid to a pair of Hall of Famers in John Lawson and Hank Barnett. Lawson is now retied and Barnett is off to war, leaving a huge hole at the hot corner. While Sutterfield has a shot to claim this job too, I imagine this will be a two-way battle between veteran Ken Mayhugh and journeyman Steve Jones. Mayhugh gives us a much needed bat for the lineup while Jones is an excellent defender all around the infield. I think Mayhugh and his 107 WRC+ has the edge, but he hasn't put above average production up since 1938 for the now moved Baltimore Cannons. Jones, however, hasn't even been above average in the minors since 1942, the only time he's done that other then 55 games in San Jose back in 1939. He hit just .212/.338/.288 (80 OPS+) in Milwaukee last season, but his 91 WRC+ paints a better picture and his defense at third is elite (18.0, 1.073). Tom thinks he can be a middle of the road option at third, but I wonder if that has to do with his 4-for-6 cup of coffee for us last season.

Most of the other options for third are also fighting for second, but 25-year-old Danny Richardson could sneak his way in. He worked his way up to Milwaukee last season, and the now 25-year-old will get his first shot at a big league callup. He's always had a good bat, with the occasional show of power, but his chances may come during the season.

I won't go in depth over all the bench options, with many already mentioned, but we have a few options for the outfield not yet listed. Orlin Yates and Don Lee will tussle for center all season long, with Johnny Peters hopefully making himself known. To supplement the duo and our starting corner outfielders, Huck Hanes, Bill Rich, Chick Browning, and Leo Davis will all be looking to fill the bench. The composition of the bench will likely depend on the outcomes of the second and third base races, as the more NRI's and optionable players that make the team, the harder it will be to keep guys like Ollie Page on the roster.