[DD Martin]

So it is time for Opening Day 2056

The raising of the Division banner and the USA South of the Border flags, but no World Series pennant.

Traverse City Bears vs Chicago Architects
At Chicago’s Pier IV Grounds
April 7th-9th 2056

This season the Architects start out at home and take on the Traverse City Bears. Chicago leads all time series vs Traverse City 482-383 and really beat up on the Bears last season until the final series of the season, but won the season series 16-8. It’s going to be important for Chicago to continue its mastery over the bottom 3 in the USA division. Last year Chicago was 48-24 against Traverse City, Milwaukee and Detroit and we figure if we want to win the US this year we need to win 50 against these 3 clubs. That won’t be easy but I feel like that is what it is going to take to give us the flag again.

The Bears as noted before did little and most would say nothing this off-season as they continue to horde their pennies like misers. They have 2 top 5 position players in CF Cal Braud and RF Earle Foote who has a strangled hold on the South of the Border MVP award in recent years. Unfortunately there is little more help in the Bears offense to be afraid of and the pitching oof.

Traverse City Bears vs Chicago Architects
Game #1 - Friday April 7th, 2056
RHSP John Hall 5-6 19 saves 2.59 last season vs Jose “Pongo” Cedeno 9-9 4.02
A - 36,937

Chicago’s José Cedeño (5 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 4 BB, 4 K) takes a no-hitter into the fifth, though walks meant that Traverse City base-runners reached base in every inning but the fourth. The fifth inning kinda exemplifies Cedeño’s evening: a walk, a single, and a hit batsman loaded the bases with no outs, but he managed to retire the next three batters to get out of the inning without allowing a run. The only run credited to him comes in the sixth when he hits a batter, gets yanked, and watches from the dugout as that batter comes around to score. That would be the Bears’ only run of the game. Bears SP Hall who pitched in relief rather effectively last season has been forced into a starters role to start this season. He looked more comfortable as a reliever as he gave up 4 earned runs in 5.2IP.

Chicago scores three in the third. John Lambert doubles in two, and Reagan Osborn triples in Lambert. Tom Stone singles in a fourth run in the fourth. Every Chicago hitter gets 1 hit each in the game. Chicago 4, Traverse City 1.

Home Runs - none
Player of the Game - Chicago SP Jose Cedeno

Game #2 - Saturday April 8th, 2056
Traverse City Bears (0-1) vs Chicago Architects (1-0)
RHSP Jeremy Laybolt 2-5 6.86 last season vs Julio Castro 9-6 3.79
A - 37,052

Okay, so there’s some early action. For instance, Traverse City’s two big stars hit their first home runs of the season. Earl Foote hits a two-run home run in the first, and Cal Braud homers in the third. But let’s pick things up in the sixth, where the Bears extend a 3-2 lead to 5-2 by scoring a pair. In the seventh, Chicago ties things. A sac fly scores one. Thomas Arnaud’s two-run home run ties the game, 5-5. The game goes to extra innings where Chicago was 10-1 in extra inning games last season.

Traverse City’s Ben Marshall starts the 10th with a double. Cal Braud gets walked intentionally. The next two hitters ground to second, but the Chicago infield can’t turn two. One run scores, and there’s a runner on first. The next Bears batters single, double, single, single, and hit a two-run home run. Seven runs scored.

Now trailing, 12-5, Chicago attempted a comeback in the bottom of the 10th. The first two batters singled. Jim Ashley hits a three-run home run. Robert Leroy hits a solo home run. Thomas Arnaud doubles. Two singles drove in Arnaud and put the tying run on base. With two outs, two on, and his team trailing by two, Kent Noseworthy comes to the plate. He pops out to first. Traverse City 12, Chicago 10 in 10 innings

2B J Lambert 2-6 3R, LF R LeRoy 5-6 DB, HR 2R 3RBI, RF T Stone 4-5 DB BB, 3B T Arnaud 3-6 2R HR DB 2RBI
Home Runs - CH 3B T. Arnaud (1), DH J Ashley (1), LF R LeRoy (1), TC CF C Baurd, RF E Foote and 3B A Martin
Player of the Game - Chicago LF Robert LeRoy

Game #3 - Sunday April 89th, 2056
Traverse City Bears (1-1) vs Chicago Architects (1-1)
RHSP John Nelligan 9-9 5.30 vs Val Imbert 10-9 4.20
A - 37,141

Chicago scores six in the fourth. Pedro Farrulla and Reagan Osborn hit two-run singles. Robert Leroy hits a two-run triple. Cris Luna singled and scored the first of those six runs, and he also doubled in a run in the second and doubled in three in the eighth, giving him three hits and four RBIs in the game. Chicago 11, Traverse City 3.

CF C Luna 3-4 2DB R, 4RBI, SS P Farrulla 2-3 R, BB, 2RBI
HR’s - CH 2B J Lambert (1)
Player of the Game - Chicago CF Cris Luna

Summary - Chicago takes 2 out of 3 at home but it is that middle game that will drive fans crazy with the Chicago AI manager. After closer Pat Wright saved game 1 of the series pitching a scoreless 9th inning, the Chicago boss had his closer come out in a tie game in game 2. Wright again pitched a scoreless inning and the game went to extras. For some reason with John Moore in the bullpen who had not pitched yet in either of these first 2 games, the Arch’s manager decided to let Wright go out for the 10th. Now Moore is a guy who can give you 5-7 innings in a start who is now starting the season in the bullpen this year. Why not give him the ball and rest the rest of the bullpen for another game. Who knows what the genius was thinking, but Wright got lit up in that 10th inning and we lost the game despite a huge comeback attempt. After the game I was furious and I had a long talk with our manager about doing a better job managing the pitchers.

(Side note, in this league we do not have managers or coaches so we can’t make changes like that. But I will be reviewing the game strategy components when I have some time in the near future. Not that it will help but this is a terrible example of using a closer.)

After taking two out of three at home and enjoying an off day on Monday, we went to Milwaukee to take on last season's worst club in the GLBL and one that doesn’t look any better this season.

Chicago 2-1 T-1st in USA vs Milwaukee Eagles 2-1 T-1st in USA
April 11th - 13th 2056
Milwaukee ballpark - The Nest

Chicago leads the all-time series 482-383 and won last season 18-6. Take a picture as this series has the top 2 teams in the US division as the Eagles won 2 out of 3 against Toledo (thank you Eagles!!!!). It’s not likely Milwaukee we see first place again after this week, but they are there for at least a day or two…..

The Eagles re-signed C Cecil Phillips who was traded last off-season to Thunder Bay and there he won a championship. For some reason after not getting the offers he thought he deserved, his agent must have panic and he re-signed with the Eagles for 5 years and $92 million. Unless things change he is likely not to see another championship, but who knows 5 years is a long time in baseball. Maybe the Eagles will soar again, and maybe this is just the start of that soaring…..

Game 1 - Tuesday April 11th, 2056
Chicago Architects (2-1) @ Milwaukee Eagles (2-1)
Joe Johnson 7-3 3.58 last season vs RHSP Jon Atkinson 4-5 6.34
A - 33,921

Another converted SP will face the Architects today as Jon Atkinson hasn't started a big league game since the 2050 season. Both teams scored a pair of early runs. Milwaukee’s John Crosby hits a two-run homer. Chicago’s Rodeo Leroy hits a two-run double. Then the Eagles break the game wide open. They scored six in the fourth. Logan Herring caps the scoring with a three-run home run. Both teams score another pair of runs, and Milwaukee takes a 10-4 lead into the eighth. Chicago trims that lead to three. Joe Hunt hits a three-run home run. Milwaukee pushes that lead back to four. Logan Herring singles in a run. We go to the ninth, Eagles leading, 11-7. In the ninth, the Architects scored eight runs. Rodeo Leroy kicks things off with a solo home run. The next batters double, single, walk, walk (2), walk (3), walk (4), sac fly (5), walk, walk (6), and double (7-8). Cruz Torres hits that double. In total, the Tects get four hits and draw six walks. Chicago 15, Milwaukee 11.

2B J Lambert 2-4 dB 2R RBI 2BB SB, LF R LeRoy 3-5 HR DB R 5 RBI’s BB, RF T Stone 4-6 DB 2R, C J Hunt 2-4 HR 2R 5RBI’s, 3B C Torres 2-3 R, 2RBI
HR - CH C Joe Hunt (1), LF R LeRoy (2), Mil HR 1B J Crosby (2),CF L Herring (2)
POTG - Chicago LF R LeRoy (2)
Chicago 3B T Arnaud was injured and left the game

Game 2 - Wednesday April 12th, 2056
Chicago Architects (3-1) @ Milwaukee Eagles (2-2)
Bill Lutz 11-8 5.36 last season vs Mike Emery 7-10 4.17 (AAA last season)
A - 33,958

Last season, Milwaukee acquired Mike Emery, 22, from Thunder Bay in exchange for Cecil Phillips. Today, Phillips is Emery’s battery mate as Emery picks up his first major-league win. Congrats, Mike! Emery tosses 6 2/3 shutout innings (6.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K). Milwaukee 3, Chicago 2.

SP B Lutz 5.2IP 7H 3R 4BB 5K’s
HR - Ch none, Mil 1B J Crosby (3)
POTG - Milwaukee SP Mike Emery

Game 3 - Thursday April 13th, 2056
Chicago Architects (3-2) @ Milwaukee Eagles (3-2)
Jose Cedeno 1-0 1.80 vs RHSP Mitch “Hypnotist” Belding 0-0 6.75
A - 34,424

Rodeo Leroy hits his third home run of the season—a two-run shot. Signed this off-season for six years and $157 million, the new Starchitect is batting .480/.552/1.000 with three home runs and 12 RBIs in his first six games. Eat your heart out, Frank Gehry. Chicago 7, Milwaukee 3.

C J Hunt 2-4 DB R RBI
HR - CH LF R LeRoy (3), Mil none
POTG - Chicago SP Jose Cedeno (2)

Summary - Arch’s win another 2 out of 3 but again trip over themselves in the middle game of the series as they get handcuffed by a rookie. Dropping our first 1-run game of the season also isn’t great news as we were 29-11 in 1-run games last season. Overall at 4-2 things are going fairly well. LF Robert “Rodeo” LeRoy has been a solid investment so far hitting 480 with 3 home runs and 12 RBI’s. Welcome to Chicagoland Mr. LeRoy!!!!

1B Reagan Osborn is off to a rather slow start hitting just 154 and searching for his first home run of the season. He has driven in 4 RBI’s so at least he is getting a clutch hit here and there. C Joe Hunt seems to be happy back in the Windy City as he is hitting 375 with 7 RBI’s in just 2 games played.

SP Jose “Pongo” Cedeno has gotten off to a nice start with a 2-0 record and a 2.25 ERA. Keep doing that and there will be no regrets about that $178 million dollar deal over the next 6 seasons.

The first real test is coming up as we head to Toledo to take on the Neptunes who have high hopes for this season.

Chicago Architects 4-2 T-1st US vs Toledo Neptunes 3-3 T-3rd USA
April 14th-16th 2056
At the Ballpark of Toledo

First meeting between two of the clubs who are expected to fight it out for the division. Chicago leads the all-time series 513-353 and won last season's series 14-10 winning 6 1-run games against the Neptunes in the process.

The Neptunes have completely reshaped their offense from last season's start. Trading away 4 key big money bats, but they have gone on a bit of a spending spree and acquired more offensive talent. Are they better than they were last season? Toledo led the GLBL in run differential with 196 more runs scored than they gave up. Of course they couldn’t win the close games and fell short of the playoffs. They will have to do a better job winning the close ones this season if they want to win the US Division.

This is the first of 24 games between these two clubs and along with Duluth it looks like it is going to be a real dog fight all season long.

Game #1 - Friday April 14th 2056
Chicago Architects (4-2) @ Toledo Neptunes (3-3)
Julio Castro 0-0 7.94 vs RHSP Nick Keddy 1-0 1.42
A - 33,501

Rodeo Leroy gives Chicago their first lead of the game with a two-run first-inning homer. Toledo ties the game in the sixth. Three singles load the bases with nobody out. Two force outs at home meant that Carlos Montaño’s ground ball to fourth should have ended the inning without runs scored, but an error scores one and a hit batsman scores the second. Ugly.

Chicago takes their second lead of the game in the seventh. Thomas Arnaud homers. Toledo’s Mark Wadell re-ties the game with a home run of his own. Chicago takes their third lead of the game in the eighth. Rodeo Leroy doubles in two. Toledo gets one of those back in the bottom of the inning. Jean-Paul Richard doubles in Eric Molina. The Tects take a 5-4 lead into the bottom of the ninth. Gray Dijkstra doubles with one out. A ground out puts Chicago one out away from victory. Philippe Labbé steps to the plate. He homers, giving Toledo their first lead of the game. Toledo 6, Chicago 5.

2B J Lambert 2-4 2R BB, 3SB (7), LF R LeRoy 3-4 DB, HR R 4RBI’s,
HR’s - CH LF R LeRoy (4) Tol _ LF M Wadell (1), 1B P Labbe (2)
POTG - Chicago LF R LeRoy (3)

Quick notes - First game is in the books and it's our 2nd 1-run loss of the season. It’s also the 2nd game that closer Pat Wright has last blowing his first save of the season. Wright seems to have a tough stretch each season so we are hoping it's going to be early this year. We will not hit the panic button but if it is a prolonged slump then RP Larry Stott will get his long waited shot at closing multiple games.

LF Robert LeRoy continues to shine hitting 517 now through his first 7 games with 4 home runs and 16 RBI’s. Not sure if Reagan Osborn is intimidated or what, but hitting in front of LeRoy, Osborn is hitting 133.

3B Travis Arnaud’s injury is not too serious being a slightly strained abdominal muscle, but it is one of those injuries that can be a nagging one. His return to full health is unknown at this point. He will get some rest, but I am sure our AI manager will plug him into the game even if I decide not to start him. Yes I could just hold him out for 4 games (sim length).

While the season has started that hasn’t meant that we are done tinkering with the ballclub. After the first series we signed a couple of veteran players who will join us starting with tomorrow's game. 38-year-old RHP Terry Noble has been added to the pitching staff and will start off his Chicago career as a middle reliever who will get the most use. He also is insurance if we need a SP before Yale Hulburt returns. Noble spent the last 2 years as one of Thunder Bay’s “modified” starting pitchers, often only seeing 18 or so batters in a game. He was only 5-7 last season with a 4.59 ERA 108 ERA+ but gives us a proven pitcher. We also signed veteran LH 1B David Kenney who spent most of last season on the shelf with a broken kneecap. He will primarily be a pinch hitter for us and an occasional DH while Jose Aranda recovers. Kenney signed a $1.4 million dollar pact, while Noble agreed to a $1.3 million dollar deal.

Making way for these two players, we will say goodbye to 3B Cruz Torres (more on that in a minute) and we sent backup CF Steve Hickman to AAA Saugatuck. We also sent minor league SP Ed Reddin (26) to Toledo for 19-year-old class A 2B Bryan Smith (prospect #170). With the signings of Noseworthy, Kenney, and Noble we really needed the 40-man space so we made the deal. Reddin had fallen out of favor over the winter with some regression after we originally thought he could be one of our LHRP out of the pen this season.

Also in a similar sort of deal, we shipped out 3B Cruz Torres in return for recently DFA OF Joe Justice. With Hickman going down to AAA we still needed a backup CF. While I am not sure what we are going to do with the lefty hitting Justice, we figure he is going to get a spot on the big club roster, we just aren’t sure who we are going to send down.

And finally the above mentioned Jose Aranda will begin a week to two week rehab stint which will serve as his spring training. Aranda missed the 2nd half of last season after a torn ACL in his left knee. We are eagerly awaiting the power hitting sluggers return to the lineup.

Reminder how this league works. We sim 4 days at a time. So this first update was 2 sims worth. With the 4 days simmed we will often have series end awkwardly like this Toledo series. Sometimes I will break up the post so that it ends at the end of a series and other times (like today) I didn't do that.
I also included the unique game graph from that crazy game with Milwaukee.