Bay League Preview, 2017 Season
Here's a quick rundown on the Bay League teams, their stars, their prospects and their hopes for a good season in 2017. In order of 2016 finish, we'll start with the champs from Elliott Springs.
Gentry Hills Scouts
Last Season: 33-37, 5th place, 9 games back
Top Hitter: Third baseman
Roland Harrington defies the adage that players get worse as they get older. After a decent 2015 season that saw him hit 12 homers and drive in a respectable 36 runs, he broke out at the age of 35 and established career highs in nearly every category, including 19 homers, 49 RBI and a career-high 37 walks, all of which put him in elite company.
Top Pitcher: Even if he hasn't won any Top Pitcher Awards, you can make a case that
Broderick Earl is the best pitcher in the Bay League. He was 14-10, 2.90 last season with 221 strikeouts. His 7 shutouts and 18 complete games were both tops in the league, and he's finished in the top 10 of every meaningful pitching category every season.
Top Prospect: Not just the top prospect of the Scouts, but the top prospect in the league.
Ty Fuchs, last year's 2nd overall pick, has nearly unlimited potential. He may have gone 4-15 with a 4.37 ERA in low-level city ball, but those numbers don't tell the whole story. How about 32 walks and 133 strikeouts in 160 innings? The 18-year old will be a few years in reaching the Bay League, but when he does, look out.
Forecast: There's some real talent on this team.
Broderick Earl and
Will Brooker are one of the best 1-2 punches in the game, and if Harrington can repeat even his 2015 season, there's enough offensive support to make Gentry Hills a competitor. They could surprise people this year.
Lorris Greens
Last Season: 32-38, tied for 6th place, 10 games back
Top Hitter: Center fielder
Tega Smith doesn't hit .350, he doesn't slug .600, but he might just be the most exciting player in the game. He had a career-best year of .320/.401/.554 last season, with career highs in doubles and homers, but what separates Smith is his speed. Smith swiped 17 bags last season, tops in the league (he's led the league twice and finished 2nd in 2015), but better yet, he didn't get caught a single time.
Top Pitcher: Frank O'Neil led the Greens in wins with 10, and his 3.80 ERA is deceptive: he held opponents to a .227 average and posted a 1.18 WHIP, tops in the Lorris rotation.
Top Prospect: Things aren't getting better for the aging Greens. Their top prospect, starting pitcher
John Oliver, isn't expected to be much more than a back-of-the-rotation guy. He pitched admirably at high-level city league last year (5-2, 2.51), and could join the team if one of the older members of the staff falters.
Forecast: All the signs of a collapse are here. Old rotation, not much offensive support for Smith. Remember the Greens were on a league-record losing pace for much of the 2016 season? They could complete that disaster this year.
Tifton Generals
Last Season: 32-38, tied for 6th place, 10 games back
Top Hitter: Did
Steven Underwood burst on to the scene or what? Selected 1st in the 2016 draft, he hit the Bay League in late May and never left. Hitting an incredible .389/.475/.681, numbers previously reserved for
Ace Gervin, Underwood capped a brilliant rookie season by hitting .429 and slugging 1.107 in September.
Top Pitcher: Carlin Bonner would probably like a new home. One of the league's better pitchers, he doesn't get much notice in Tifton. 12-11 with a 3.56 ERA last season, he's been a dependable force in Tifton's otherwise underachieving rotation.
Top Prospect: We can't really call Underwood a prospect any more, so let's talk about
Ahmad Reese. Selected 3rd in the 2015 draft, Reese has climbed slowly through the city league system but has picked up speed lately, and could very well pitch for Tifton this season. He went 2-3, 2.23 at mid-level city league and 4-2, 2.69 at high-level last season.
Forecast: Tifton has never finished last, but they've never been in danger of the upper half of the standings. Underwood aside, they won't do it this year either. There's just not much there.
Allison Spelunkers
Last Season: 28-42, last place, 14 games back
Top Hitter: When is a career best season a disappointment? When you have the talent that
Alton Strong does and that career year is .278/.350/.480. Strong has terrific skills at the plate, great speed and instincts, a fantastic glove, all ingredients to make a superstar, but he's never come close to putting it together.
Top Pitcher: One of the few players on the Spelunkers to step up last season, Edwards was dominating on the mound: .190 batting average against, 2.68 ERA, a solid 1.19 WHIP. It's an indication of his poor support that he was just 5-9. The Spelunkers keep waiting for
Kyle Richardson to take charge of the rotation, and he keeps faltering.
Top Prospect: When is
Tony Jones going to move up? He was 15-4, 2.37 at low level city league play in
2014, and has put up similar numbers in the two years since, but has never even sniffed an inning at a higher level. He's 23 years old, so it's hard to imagine he has much left to prove down there.
Forecast: Allison surprised a lot of people with their horrid season. They're still fairly young, and maybe that's the problem. Stories of carousing, brawls and attitude problems abound, and manager
Joe Leonard doesn't seem to be able to keep it under control. The Spelunkers could finish anywhere from first to last and no one would be surprised.