[jksander]

MARCH 3, 1963 . . . The league had a random draw for the draft order for this coming June’s first-ever CDBA Amateur Draft, and we came out with the 14th pick out of 16. That is unfortunate, as the pool does not look particularly deep this year. But we’ve put together a really solid team in my opinion, and we picked up some high quality young prospects in the league’s initial draft this January, so we’ve got plenty of room to develop. We’ll be opening the regular season with a three-game set against the Bayamo Bombadiers on April 2-4, followed by sets against the Nuevitas Naturals and the Pinar del Rio Roosters, before we hit the road in mid-April for a two week road trip.
 
APRIL 1, 1963 . . . Here are our opening day rosters for the upcoming season!

Starting Lineup (con / pow / eye / def) ... 20/80 scale
C - Jose Colon, 22 (50/65/55/50)
1B - Giordano Cantimori, 31 (65/50/50/40)
2B - Antonio Fernandez, 30 (60/50/45/55)
3B - Jose Alcaraz, 31 (50/65/45/50)
SS - Samuel Brisset, 28 (55/50/50/60)
LF - Juan Flores, 32 (70/45/45/50)
CF - Victor Diaz, 32 (65/70/80/50)
RF - Jonathan Gonzalez, 27 (65/50/40/45)

Bench (con / pow / eye / def) ... 20/80 scale
1B - Edgar Hernandez, 23 (60/70/65/40)
SS - Fernando Esquivel, 24 (60/40/40/55)
LF - Jose Castro, 28 (60/55/50/55)
CF - Ramon Adams, 25 (50/40/40/70)
RF - Alejandro Botello, 24 (40/65/70/65)

Pitching Staff (Stu / Mov / Con / Sta) ... 20/80 Scale
SP - Jose Guzman, 34 (55/65/50/55) ... best pitch is above average sinker, plus average fastball, slider, curve, changeup
SP - Ludovic Peltier, 28 (50/65/55/55) ... best pitch is above average sinker, plus average fastball, slider, changeup
SP - Juan Ortiz, 25 (50/65/45/55) ... best pitch is above average sinker, plus average fastball, curve, changeup
Setup - Esteban Salinas, 31 (55/75/70/35) ... best pitch is an average slider, plus below average sinker
Middle - Lucien Rocchigiani, 33 (60/70/50/40) ... has two pitches, a curve and a cutter, both above average

Due to roster limits, every team in the league has five pitchers on their rosters, and starters are eligible to pitch in relief. Based on the players the league has generated, this looks to be a very hitting-focused league at the moment -- it will be interesting to see how young pitchers coming up develop stronger arsenals. We currently have a five-man reserve roster, but are searching for free agents to add depth, as well as pursuing trade opportunities within the league. As for prospects, Roberto Diaz, age 18, is a five-star prospect with a four pitch arsenal ranked 2nd overall in the CDBA rankings. When he reaches his potential I expect him to be a dominant force in our fledgling league.