1899 Analysis
Posted 08-31-2017 at 11:12 PM by bjohn13
First of all, I want to say that I'm having a lot more fun with this league than I thought I would have. I'm getting close to the turn of the century, though, and that means that I'm starting to run into more players that I'm more familiar with because I've played simulations with them before. Hopefully, that works to my advantage.
It has not escaped my notice that my core group of player is getting old, and I attribute that to the fact that I haven't been allowing myself to trade into the first round. I have been taking a lot of second round picks every year, though, and that has allowed me to amass a AAA team that is extremely deep but lacking a bit in high end talent. When I had the opportunity to trade for Rube Wadell, I jumped on it.
I suspect that Wadell was undervalued by the AI simply because, for some reason, his endurance rating is very low. Odds are pretty good that he'll get plenty of chances because Charlie Buffington probably only has one or two productive seasons left in him.
And that's the big part of what comes next. Buffington is coming off of an amazing season, and he only needs six wins to reach 300. I intend to give him every chance possible to get there for two reasons. First, he deserves it. And second, there are too many unknowns going into the 1899 season for my expectations to be too high.
I don't know who my starting left fielder is going to be. I think my best outfield right now has Keeler back in left with Slagle in center and Hamilton in right. That means Seymour is expendable, but I'm not going to pull that trigger until I have some proof that Slagle can play at the Major League level. I will start 1899 with Slagle on the active roster, but he will not be my regular starter until he can win the job.
The infield has the opposite problem. My offensive output from my second base, third base, and shortstop positions has been horrific. Bierbauer might be showing his age, and he has shown that he is difficult to replace. Corcoran, Clymer, and Coogan are defensive stalwarts, but their hitting is atrocious. There doesn't seem to be any relief in site, either, as they are the only four infielders on the active roster entering the season.
Finally, the pitching staff. I'm excited about Wadell, but what I'm truly proud of on this team has been my ability to assemble a good bullpen. I hope that the likes of George Boone, Andy Boswell, Joe Corbet, Effie Norton, and Walter Thornton can continue to pitch as well as they did last year, and it does seem as if I have found my closer in Roger Bresnahan.
It has not escaped my notice that my core group of player is getting old, and I attribute that to the fact that I haven't been allowing myself to trade into the first round. I have been taking a lot of second round picks every year, though, and that has allowed me to amass a AAA team that is extremely deep but lacking a bit in high end talent. When I had the opportunity to trade for Rube Wadell, I jumped on it.
I suspect that Wadell was undervalued by the AI simply because, for some reason, his endurance rating is very low. Odds are pretty good that he'll get plenty of chances because Charlie Buffington probably only has one or two productive seasons left in him.
And that's the big part of what comes next. Buffington is coming off of an amazing season, and he only needs six wins to reach 300. I intend to give him every chance possible to get there for two reasons. First, he deserves it. And second, there are too many unknowns going into the 1899 season for my expectations to be too high.
I don't know who my starting left fielder is going to be. I think my best outfield right now has Keeler back in left with Slagle in center and Hamilton in right. That means Seymour is expendable, but I'm not going to pull that trigger until I have some proof that Slagle can play at the Major League level. I will start 1899 with Slagle on the active roster, but he will not be my regular starter until he can win the job.
The infield has the opposite problem. My offensive output from my second base, third base, and shortstop positions has been horrific. Bierbauer might be showing his age, and he has shown that he is difficult to replace. Corcoran, Clymer, and Coogan are defensive stalwarts, but their hitting is atrocious. There doesn't seem to be any relief in site, either, as they are the only four infielders on the active roster entering the season.
Finally, the pitching staff. I'm excited about Wadell, but what I'm truly proud of on this team has been my ability to assemble a good bullpen. I hope that the likes of George Boone, Andy Boswell, Joe Corbet, Effie Norton, and Walter Thornton can continue to pitch as well as they did last year, and it does seem as if I have found my closer in Roger Bresnahan.
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