[ayaghmour2]

AAA Milwaukee Blues (Century League): 76-64 (.543), 2nd, 6 GB: A system in transition, we don't have many at bats going to veterans or talented prospects, so the Blues' 2nd place finish was actually the best among our affiliates. Below them there were plenty of holes, but at least in Milwaukee when there wasn't a useful prospect there was a FABLish player waiting to take the spot. But what really sets the Blues apart from the rest of the system is their star. Far from flashy, Ed Duncan is one of the best the Century League hast to offer, and he announced he'll be back for his aged 38 season. #1 or #2 in plenty of career categories, he hit an impressive .289/.384/.528 (155 OPS+) with 22 homers, 76 RBIs, 17 doubles, 82 runs, 76 RBIs, and 60 walks. Now in a Century League most and counting 1,648 games, he has collected 1,628 hits, 957 runs, 322 homers, and 1,019 RBIs. He'll catch Monroe Johnson in some of these categories, as this guy is almost a good player in disguise. If he was on an affiliated team in his prime, he'd have been a decent FABL player, but without the multiple 4+ WAR seasons he posted with regularity.

As big a part of the 2nd ranked offense as Duncan was, he contributed little to the 2nd ranked staff, as defense is not a part of his game. When he was here, John Mitchell (5-1, 1.41, 25) was awesome, but for the most part it was the veterans in Milwaukee that carried the staff. Former 5th Overall pick Jake Roberts (14-4, 2.52, 86) Was elite at 39, and we got great innings from Foster Sherman (8-7, 2.50, 102), Allen Brown (6-9, 3.12, 104), and Jack Thomas (6-2, 2.79, 52), and before his September callup Doc Cook (4-2, 12, 2.09, 42) was an anchor of the pen. 40-man roster members Bob Burdick (4-1, 7, 3.46, 49) and Phil Means (2-8, 13, 3.65, 46) were effective, as was Rule-5 eligible hurler Herb Thomason (3-1, 1, 3.70, 55), but it wasn't at the level of the big league pen. The lineup saw a lot of players get extended looks, with the best performances aside from Duncan coming from interrupted stints. Mooney Vetter (.302, 16, 63) and Chappy Sanders (.289, 11, 42) combined for just over one excellent season's worth of plate appearances. Unfortunately the only real young talent, Wayne Wilson (.249, 5, 27), saw his season end after a serious concussion in May. I'm hoping next year the Blues get a big year from Orlando Benitez and Bill Reinhard, with the chance for Bill Grimm to hit his way up. This team could be a real force, and there's some potential 40-man guys who weren't there this year to upgrade both sides.

AA Little Rock Governors (AA Dixie League): 74-56 (.529), 3rd, 9 GB): Home to the now 34th ranked prospect Orlando Benitez, the Little Rock Governors may not have been as good as the record indicated, though they were in the right tier in the Dixie League. While not a bad team, they weren't a real contender, as a lot of the heavy lifting was done by one guy. Almost 21, the former 1st Rounder hit .310/.420/.573 (162 OPS+) in an MVP quality campaign. Logging 20 doubles, 5 triples, 29 homers, 93 RBIs, 85 walks, 77 runs, and 14 steals, he was one of the league's most valuable players, providing his club with offense and defense. The supporting cast lacked thump, but Bill Reinhard's (.300, 17, 36) 60 fames were Benitez level, and in 89 games Cliff Coleman (.252, 17, 46, 13) impressed. When the three were together, the Governors were great, but Benitez was the only one who spent all season here. In the rotation Whitey Gates (5-5, 3.93, 53) and Humberto Fonseca (2-2, 3.30, 25) gave good starts, but I expected more from Sam Davis (12-9, 4.55, 167). I think all three will be back in 1964, and with a few adjustments the rotation can be a strength of the roster.

A Rockford Wildcats (Heartland League) 77-63 (.550), 3rd, 4 GB: Milwaukee may have finish closer to first ordinally, but it was the Rockford Wildcats who had the fewest games between them and first. Just four out, the 'Cats had a rough end to the season, dropping 23 of their last 50 games to fall out of first. In a sense, it's a simple cause, as both Bill Reinhard (.332, 12, 51, 4) and Cliff Coleman (.344, 14, 43, 3) finished their season in Little Rock and combined for fewer then 120 games. Another midseason callup, though in the Wildcats favor, 22nd ranked prospect Bill Grimm (.301, 11, 46, 8) was excellent after coming from San Jose, and WAR leader Sam Pratt (.327, 14, 72, 14) came up a few weeks earlier. Stuck in a sort of transition phase, the offense couldn't quite get rolling, and I imagine next season it will be Grimm at Pratt going up and someone else having to come up to cover. The staff was really good, led by the pen courtesy of Pep Allen (8-7, 14, 1.85, 82) and Floyd Lane (4-1, 3, 2.23, 51). Like with the lineup, plenty of guys came and went, with Humberto Fonseca (6-5, 2.90, 102), John Roberts (7-3, 3.50, 49), and Whitey Gates (5-5, 3.93, 53) all impressed in the 13 to 16 starts. There's a lot of question marks in the rotation this year, and in a year or two we'll start to see our new influx of prospects impact the middle of our system.

B San Jose Cougars (California-Oregon-Washington League): 83-57 (.593), 3rd, 6 GB: In terms of winning percentage, the Cougars were the best of our full season affiliates, though it was this level not the major league club. A bit of a surprise, San Jose was dealt with arguably the most roster churning, as early in the season I had to shuttle guys from La Crosse and back and then after the draft some underdeveloped guys were pushed up. Still, they competed all season long, scoring plenty of runs. Some of the full-season guys did well, as Rafael Zambrano (.328, 11, 58, 11) and Sam Morrison (.299, 11, 55, 12) has similarly solid seasons. Zambrano hit for a higher average and Morrison played better defense, as they were the rocks of the lineup. Pieces of Joe Gallerani (.380, 9, 24, 6), Sam Pratt (.350, 1, 6, 3), Bill Grimm (.301, 11, 46, 8), Josh Davis (.332, 6, 26, 5), and Raul Zamora (.279, 19, 58) filled in the gaps, as a collection of arms allowed just few enough runs to win some games.

C La Crosse Lions (Upper Mississippi Valley Association): 38-24 (.613), t-3rd, 4 GB: Despite no champs, we get all the way to the bottom of the system, and not a single below .500 record can be found! Our only .600+ affiliate, the Lions got hot at the end of the year, starting with a 21-7 August that almost brought them up to first. Thank Harry Cummins for that, as the Hank Williams of the UMVA hit .453/.562/.858 (216 OPS+) with 21 doubles, 5 triples, 20 homers, 63 runs, 79 RBIs, and 50 walks. Worth a tenth of a win away from 5 in just 61 games, I'm sure he set every record out there with his monster season, and finishes his 567 PA UMVA career with a .403/.527/.761 (200 OPS+) batting line. Farm from the only notable performer, 10th Rounder Johnny Maples (8-1, 1.72, 42) was flatout dominant, sporting an otherworldy 331 ERA+. In the league, even a ERA above 5 like Hub Russell's (4-3, 5.05, 45) was still 13% above average. Him and Johnny Kern (3-4, 4.08, 43) both survived their first tests, as did 7th Rounder Bob Adams (.336, 9, 50, 17). With a high school heavy draft, a lot of these guys will be back for another go, and if I draft well again we'll have a good group of prospects here ready to compete.