[ayaghmour2]

SS Buddy Jenkins (314th Overall)
Acquired: Via Draft: 5th Round, 77th Overall (1947)
Alma Mater: Whitman Panthers

The conversion was not too kind to Buddy Jenkins, who fell out of the top 200 to 314th, now 26th in our system. It's honestly a bit surprising, but after hitting .241/.332/.318 (78 OPS+) in 494 trips to the plate with Lincoln, it does make some sense. Known more for the glove then the bat, Jenkins appeared at every position, but catcher, first, and pitcher, though he spent a super majority of his time at short. It went about as good as you'd expect, as Jenkins had a 8.4 zone rating and 1.084 efficiency in 675 innings, approaching twice as good as the average Heartland League shortstop. His glove and athleticism are his best tools, so anything he can offer at the plate would be helpful. He hit almost .300 in San Jose last year, with an almost average .299/.359/.385 (96 OPS+) line, and with that level of production and his glove he'd be a competent starter. Of course, Class B stats don't have any impact on future success, but it gives us somewhat of an idea of what a successful Buddy might look like. Lucky for him, his utility raises his floor quite high, and since Skipper isn't going anywhere anytime soon, so I'll be more then happy if Jenkins gives us an excellent glove all around the diamond.

C Mike Bordes (318th Overall)
Acquired: Via Trade with Eagles (1946)
Drafted: 11th Round, 169th Overall (1944)
Alma Mater: Newburgh Knights

Currently our #3 catcher, Mike Bordes has appeared in a game in each of the last two seasons, though he was just 1-for-6 with a double last season, and he came off the bench in the 9th inning of a 7-5 loss to the Cannons this season. Most of his time this year was spent in Milwaukee, where he hit a productive .246/.390/.403 (120 OPS+), and since he drew 94 walks, he had an excellent 134 WRC+ in his 497 trips to the plate. He provided some pop too, 20 doubles and 13 homers with 58 runs and 52 RBIs. This is great offense from a catcher, and since his defense was decent enough too, he was worth an impressive 4.6 WAR in 118 games. Only three FABL catchers were worth more then that, as Bordes even outworthed Kellogg winner Larry McClure (4.4), who took the CA by storm when he helped fuel the Foresters offense since they inserted him into the lineup. Now I am in no way comparing the two, but Bordes has been walking at a near 20% clip the past two seasons. Even if that drops to 10 or 11 percent, that's where Sal, Red Bond, and John Moss are, and all are excellent at drawing walks. Bordes has one option left, which is good for Harry Mead, but I'm pretty sure Bordes is going to be the backup in 1952. He'll get some time before Garland Phelps is ready, though if we can get something decent for him, he could be a capable FABL starter for a team without much depth behind the plate.

RHP Tommy Seymour (325th Overall)
Acquired: Via Draft: 1st Round, 13th Overall (1943)
Alma Mater: Olathe Pioneers

Officially added to the 40-man roster this offseason, a FABL debut may be in the cards for former 1st Rounder Tommy Seymour, who spent his regular season in Little Rock before heading to Cuba this winter. After going 1-7 with a 5.33 ERA (75 ERA+) and 1.73 WHIP in AA last season, the uniform change did him well. In 24 starts, Seymour was 15-8 with a 3.03 ERA (132 ERA+) and 1.27 WHIP. After walking and striking out 43 in 77.2 innings this year, he improved both rates drastically, striking out 121 and walking 77 in 193 innings pitched. This saw his walk rate drop from 12.1 to 9.6, while the strikeout rate rose from 12.1 to 15.1. Not only that, the underlying numbers respect his body of work, as his 3.43 FIP (85 FIP-) is quite impressive. Unfortunately, he's been hit hard with Cienfuegos, allowing 15 hits and 8 runs in his 12 innings. Even worse, it's come with 10 walks to just 6 strikeouts, as his control has eluded him early on. That, combined with never gaining much velocity, has prevented him from reaching his ace level potential, but the stuff is now good enough to warrant a start in the majors, and he should be at least an option out of the pen in September as long as he looks good in 1951.

3B John Price (354th Overall)
Acquired: Via Draft: 9th Round, 140th Overall (1946)
Alma Mater: Holy Cross Tigers

It was another solid season at the plate for John Price, who spent 103 of his 122 games with San Jose. There he played 200+ innings at first, second, and third, something he may continue to do in future seasons. Back to the bat, he hit a nice .327/.398/.437 (122 OPS+) with 15 doubles, 4 triples, 6 homers, 54 runs, 62 RBIs, and 46 walks. This got him a late season call up to Lincoln, but instead of playing around the diamond, he was brought up strictly because they needed a first basemen. Price decided to hit like one, mashing .403/.462/.701 (218 OPS+) with 5 homers and 22 RBIs in just 78 trips to the plate. I'm not sure where the power came from, maybe he just hits more home runs when playing first (I don't think OOTP tracks this), I don't know, but his aggressive approach has really worked out for him. Even though he does draw walks, he swings as hard as he can when he has a strike to work with, and he did a great job punishing mistakes. What's nice is that Dixie's starting to take note of the pop, stating that Price has been "developing raw power [that] will rival that of an everyday player." This is definitely getting me excited, as big power from second or third is quite nice as well. He's not a star or top prospect, but power is a coveted asset, and anyone hitting 20+ homers in a season is going to get a chance to stick.

RHP Bill Davis (362nd Overall)
Acquired: Via Trade with Miners (1950)
Drafted: 13th Round, 193rd Overall (1948)
Alma Mater: Benton Harbor Indians

Acquired with glove first backstop Johnny Hadley from the Miners for Harry Beardsley (3-6, 8.64, 36), who had quite a rough go at it in Pittsburgh, Bill Davis spent his season in the La Crosse pen. The Chicago native struggled, allowing 27 hits, 23 runs, and 24 walks with 36 strikeouts in 26.2 innings pitched. As concerning as that is, there's a lot to be excited about, and I actually want him pitching out of the rotation next year. A 6'4'' righty, he was initially the 7th man in the rotation, but since he kept pitching so bad out of the pen, I just went with other guys who were either just drafted or having some success in the pen. With a fresh offseason for him to work on things, he'll be given at least a few starts, and I'm confident in him holding on. A three pitch pitcher, he has a fastball, sinker, and change, which puts a lot of pressure on the change being a useful offering. He doesn't throw too hard, still almost exclusively in the 80s, so a change up that can get chases is huge. He won't be able to dominate batters, at least not yet, so locating his pitches well is a factor. I do have some hope for him throwing in the 90s, he is just 20 and he's got the build for it, and if he can boost his velocity Davis might be a name to keep an eye on.