BNN Report
News from the CBO, Minors, College, and Youth Leagues
by Nat Wright-Kawolski
29 June 2308
CBO Analysis
At the midpoint of the season, we have some interesting races throughout the CBO's four leagues with five games the maximum difference between 1st and 3rd place. Three teams--Salem, Sunshine Tidings, and Vault 81--are now tied for the best record, all at 40-22.
If the playoffs were to start today, these would be the seedings:
NCA
1-T. Salem
1-T. Sunshine Tidings
3. Nordhagen Beach
4. Bunker Hill
5. Easy Town
The Witch Hats and Chemists have faced off four times this season, with each going 2-2. Therefore, we are listing them as tied although Sunshine Tidings would be the de facto #1 in tiebreakers for intraassociation record.
Other teams most strongly in the race are Starlight at a game back of the Assaultrons and The Slog at three games back. All other teams in the NCA are below .500 currently.
SCA
1. Vault 81
2. Spectacle Island
3. Oberland
4. Jamaica Plain
5. Egret
Oberland and Egret are tied for 2nd in the RL, but the T-51s hold a 4-2 advantage on the season to split them to 3rd and 5th seeds. Other teams in the hunt are Quincy at one game back of Jamaica Plain for 2nd in the ML and two games back of the Ninjas. Also, University Point is the other team above .500, three games back of the Rockets and four back of Egret.
Now the Power Rankings Top 5:
Vault 81 is this week's #1 after going 7-3 and moving into a tie for the CBO's top record. The Dwellers Swept Quincy (#13) and FHE (#22), split with University Point (#14), and then won one at Oberland (#10).
Coming in at #2 is Sunshine Tidings with a 7-3 mark and a tie for the CBO's top record. The Chemists split with County Crossing (#15), swept Fort Hagen (#23), split at Nordhagen Beach (#3), and then won two over Bunker Hill (#8).
Despite being a game back for 1st place in the BL, Nordhagen Beach is #3 this week with a 7-3 record in the past two weeks. The Party Boys swept Concord (#24), won two at Nahant (#16), split with the Chemists, and then won two more over the Celtics.
Spectacle Island went 7-3 in their last 10 and now jumps up to #4 in the rankings. The Reapers split with the Yao Guai, won two over Atom (#19), swept FHE, and then won two more over the Cats.
Coming in at #5 is Salem despite a 4-6 record the past two weeks. The Witch Hats split with the Silver Shroud, lost two of three at Easy Town (#9), split with the 75ers, and then won one at home over The Slog (#12).
Brotherhood League
This league is still looking to be the strongest from top to bottom with just 11 games separating 1st and 6th. Salem and Nordhagen Beach seem to be locked in a battle of wills, while Easy Town is silently creeping up on them.
One team we would like to take a closer look at is Nahant, which seems as though it is the team most likely to fall off in the race by the end of July. The Celtics had a pretty good start, but a rough June (7-13) now sees them four games below .500. Part of the problem is that the offense is just not productive enough, ranking 11th in runs scored (262). Their only good point has been their Starters ERA (4th at 4.40) with the 6th-best ranking for runs allowed (288). CF Grandson Quarles (.337/11/36) has been the most consistently good hitter, while rookie IF Jacob Tarberry (.317/13/29) is already starting to carve his place in stardom. Though 3B is Tarberry's natural position, he has started only six games there while starting 27 at 1B. Trade acquisition, 1B Duncan MacCready (.285/4/31) has hit only .185 with 0 home runs and two RBI since coming to the Celtics.
Institute League
As mentioned before, it appears that Sunshine Tidings has flexed its dominance once again, currently holding a four-game lead. Bunker Hill and Starlight each seem to be fully in the playoff race, and we know that at least one of those two teams will make the playoffs since Lexington, Fort Hagen, and Concord need to rebuild.
To stay on the theme of teams not playing well, the Radstags now possess the CBO's worst record at 15-47 after going 1-9 the past two weeks. Only three seasons ago, this was a playoff team, so their fall has been sharp since that time, going from 2nd in 2305 to 6th in 2307. The Stags are 12th in runs scored (220) as well as dead last in most offensive categories and 10th in runs allowed (352). That means Concord is outscored by over two runs per game! If there is any one player to pinpoint as a 2308 All-Star, it would be LF Forrest Library (.313/12/31).
Minutemen League
The ML is a four-team race since we are pretty sure University Point will not hover around .500 all season. That means that both Atom and Goodneighgbor are the odd teams for this competitive league. While the Reapers and Gunners still seem to be up-and-coming teams, the Cats and Hancocks have not been able to get much right in recent years with Atom last making the playoffs in 2305 during a five-year playoff stretch and Goodneighbor last making the playoffs in 2300 during a four-year stretch of winning the ML each year, including the Sole Survivor Series in 2298.
For Goodneighbor, they are loaded with talent at each level of the CBO, including eight players on the Hancocks roster who are 21 or younger. The star is 19-year-old Missile Crews (.301/11/36) with other youngsters, including rookie SP/RP Heaven Fontenot (2-3, 2 SV, 5.46), SP Oliver Oil (6-5, 3.90), rookie 1B Tony Two-time (,298/8/23), and RF Bill Lazarus (.322/5/38).
Railroad League
With Roxbury six games below .500, Vault 81, Oberland, and Egret are getting their chance to sit at the high table for now. The Rad Sox have been one of the more banged-up teams. In addition to pitchers Quest Dawg and Roger Failure being out for the year, RF Deerlord Fugivmee (.275/5/22) probably will not be back before late July.
One team that has shaped some young talent as an opposite of the older talent that used to pepper the lineup is Diamond City. Like Goodneighbor, there are young players that are starting to emerge for the franchise, but they will need to get much better before they can compete for a playoff run. 2308 will not be the year. Owner Moe Cronin is starting to be able to let go of his feelings when making moves now that he sees he held on to a few players for too long. 37-year-old closer Josh Samm (6 SV, 2.57) and 35-year-old SP Sheng Kawolski (6-5, 2.53) are still playing at a high level, but some of the other players over 30 are not as good.
There are some foundational pieces for the Swatters, including a young outfield featuring Magnum Peaeye (.253/12/40), Todd Smithfield (.289/13/36), and Weldon Steak (.250/3/8). They also have 21-year-old 2B Blaine Bishop (.261/4/13), youngest brother of 3B Allen Bishop (.283/2/14).
CBO Standings
CBO Power Rankings
CBO Players of the Week
June 22 - Today the North Charles Association announced the Player of the Week Award. This week's honoree is County Crossing's talented right fielder Babs Rooth. When he steps into the batter's box, it's usually a bad omen for pitchers.
For the week Rooth batted .632 (12-for-19) with 1 home run and 4 RBIs.
Rooth is currently batting .348 with 11 home runs and 39 RBIs.
Barker Cocoa is respected by most University Point Deathclaws fans for his no-frills style of play. The 29-year-old first baseman went about his business with vigor last week to grab the South Charles Association Player of the Week honors.
He compiled a .524 average (11-for-21) with 4 home runs, 10 RBIs and 6 runs scored.
This year Cocoa has batted at a .330 pace with 67 hits, 16 home runs, 49 RBIs and scored 46 times.
June 29 - Rich Verdu of the The Slog Ghouls cruised to North Charles Association Player of the Week honors after putting together one of the finest stretches in his career last week.
The first baseman batted .579 (11-for-19) with 1 home run, 3 RBIs and 4 runs scored.
A look at his season totals shows Verdu with 6 home runs, .431 BA, .450 OBP, 25 RBIs and 19 runs scored.
The South Charles Association has chosen David Seaweed of the University Point Deathclaws as Player of the Week.
What a week Seaweed had. He hit .636 (7-for-11) with 2 home runs, 7 RBIs and 5 runs scored.
This year Seaweed is batting .245 with 8 home runs.
CBO Top Prospects Update
With the mid-season mark upon us, now is a great time to update the pre-season BNN Top 100 Prospect list with what we have learned to this point. This year, 20 year-old 1B Kilometers Davis of the The Slog Ghouls is the #1 prospect overall.
Here is the top 10:
1) 1B Kilometers Davis, 20, Mass Pike (BMU), The Slog Ghouls - .354/23/67
2) 3B Tray Morgueman, 19, Greentop Nursery (GBRL), Jamaica Plain Red Rockets
3) CF Duff Fee, 18, Littleton Ragers (BMU), Concord Radstags
4) C Nu York, 19, Medford (MML), Atom Cats
5) 1B Rival Hey, 21, Forest Grove (BMU), Fort Hagen Silver Shroud
6) RHP Ma'Khail Redstick, 19, Taffington Boathouse (BMU), Egret Ninjas
7) LHP Sarthis Idren, 18, Pioneer Park (GBRL), Fort Hagen Silver Shroud
8) LHP Clubhouse Treelover, 18, Marblehead (BMU), Goodneighbor Hancocks
9) LF Boost Widdison, 19, Nuka Express (GBRL), Starlight Killers
10) 1B Anxious Wade Osteen, 19, Somerville Place (BMU), Atom Cats
The full list:
CBO Transactions
Monday, June 29th , 2308
Concord Radstags: Placed 3B Mike Van Noord on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/28/2308.
Sunday, June 28th , 2308
Concord Radstags: Placed 2B Seemly Sam Tucker on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/27/2308.
Roxbury Rad Sox: Placed RF Deerlord Fugivmee on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/27/2308.
The Roxbury Rad Sox traded 28-year old RHP Evan Before to the Bunker Hill 75ers, getting 21-year old minor league CF Adrian Worthmuch in return.
Saturday, June 27th , 2308
The Slog Ghouls: Activated C Silvam Fourteen from the injured list.
The Egret Ninjas traded 18-year old minor league LF Dickie Greenleaf to the Concord Radstags, getting 31-year old CF Pockets Aintfull in return.
Friday, June 26th , 2308
Salem Witch Hats: Released C Jason Radcon.
Roxbury Rad Sox: Activated CF Ben Pawlak from the injured list.
Roxbury Rad Sox: Released CF Joe Hayes.
Roxbury Rad Sox: Signed RF Eric Reliable.
Thursday, June 25th , 2308
Nahant Celtics: Placed SS Roger Coker on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/23/2308.
Concord Radstags: Signed SP Ryan Kaplon.
The Starlight Killers traded 19-year old minor league RHP Jayden Gray and 19-year old minor league SS Hatrack Hines to the Egret Ninjas, getting 26-year old minor league LF Brian Andrewson and 18-year old minor league RHP Moe Szyslak in return.
The Nahant Celtics traded 28-year old C Blitzen Rosetta to the Salem Witch Hats, getting 20-year old minor league 1B Tony Walksteady and 17-year old minor league LF Sulia Trebatius in return.
Wednesday, June 24th , 2308
Easy Town Assaultrons: Placed SP Pete Pembroke on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/23/2308.
Jamaica Plain Red Rockets: Placed 2B Jonathan Abern on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/21/2308.
Spectacle Island Reapers: Activated CL Ghost Kyudalson from the injured list.
Spectacle Island Reapers: Sent CL Ghost Kyudalson to Triple A Clifton for injury rehab.
The Sunshine Tidings Chemists traded 16-year old minor league 1B Silk Wilkes to the Concord Radstags, getting 23-year old minor league RHP Dufus Dumbson and 21-year old minor league 1B Hector Inspector in return.
Tuesday, June 23rd , 2308
Roxbury Rad Sox: Signed RF Lowton Roberts.
Roxbury Rad Sox: Released RF Lowton Roberts.
Monday, June 22nd , 2308
Nordhagen Beach Party Boys: Placed 1B Bryan Assman on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/21/2308.
Jamaica Plain Red Rockets: Released 1B Dave Wilhelm.
County Crossing Bloodbugs: Activated 2B Newscap Woldorf from the injured list.
Sunshine Tidings Chemists: Placed 1B Dusty Brownell on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/20/2308.
Saturday, June 20th , 2308
Diamond City Swatters: Placed RP Noah Williams on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/19/2308.
Spectacle Island Reapers: Activated SP Corey Ware from the restricted list.
Jamaica Plain Red Rockets: Signed 1B Armitage Hux.
Diamond City Swatters: Signed SP Ryan Mathews.
Friday, June 19th , 2308
The Slog Ghouls: Activated RP Steve Slocums from the injured list.
The Nahant Celtics traded 29-year old minor league 1B Cody Flatt to the Egret Ninjas, getting 23-year old minor league 3B Oleg Veers in return.
Thursday, June 18th , 2308
University Point Deathclaws: Activated 3B Nate Tivity from the restricted list.
The Slog Ghouls: Placed C Silvam Fourteen on the 7-day injured list.
Oberland T-51s: Placed CL William Butcherman on the 7-day injured list, retroactive to 06/17/2308.
The Slog Ghouls: Signed C Justin Browneye.
Oberland T-51s: Signed C Money Arevalo.
Oberland T-51s: Signed SP Edwin Mass.
Oberland T-51s: Released C Justin White.
Wednesday, June 17th , 2308
The Spectacle Island Reapers traded 20-year old minor league LF Cubby France and a 6th round draft pick to the Roxbury Rad Sox, getting 21-year old minor league LF Victor Desire in return.
Tuesday, June 16th , 2308
Concord Radstags: Activated RP John Oldsink from the 60-day injured list.
Concord Radstags: Sent RP John Oldsink to Triple A Arlington for injury rehab.
Lexington Synths: Activated CL Ryan Kazarian from the 60-day injured list.
Lexington Synths: Sent CL Ryan Kazarian to Triple A Wellesley for injury rehab.
University Point Deathclaws: Signed SS Georgie Buzzon.