[Elendil]

Here's how those top 15 free agents ultimately landed:

1. Tom Robbins - Signed to a 1-year, $32,000 contract by Kodiak. A big coup for this oft-ignored mid-tier club.

2. Louis Mays - Re-signed by the Senators to a 1-year, $38,810 contract on May 31st (had already missed a good bit of the season).

3. John Abston - Re-signed by the Nicks to a 2-year, $30,000 per year contract.

4. Jonathan Bertrand - Signed to a 2-year, $28,000 per year contract by the Anchorage Bucs.

5. Jack Hatt - Re-signed by the Bucs to a 1-year, $42,000 contract as they make a push for the division title.

6. Adam Joly - Signed by the Bucs to a modest 1-year, $21,000 contract on May 31st.

7. Wynn Dunsmore - Re-signed by the Senators to a shockingly low 2-year contract ($11,800 per).

8. Dave Bonnar - Signed by the Bucs to a 1-year, $42,000 contract.

9. Chip Becker - Signed by the Nicks to a 1-year, $34,000 contract.

10. Bryan Kendall - Signed by the Oilers to a modest, $13,000 per year contract for two years.

11. Greg Trudel - Re-signed by the Miners to a 2-year deal, $50,400 per year.

12. Ron Yuke - Signed by the Grizzlies to a 2-year deal, $23,500 per year (little high for a closer).

13. Terry Kuhn - Signed by the Mushers to a 1-year deal, $27,500.

14. Bill Colwill - Signed by the Senators to a 2-year deal, $17,650 per year.

15. Tim Rowsell - Signed by the Grizzlies to a 1-year, $8500 deal.

Synopsis

The Bucs, Nicks, and Grizzlies all seem to have improved their teams markedly, followed by the Senators and Miners. Overall, the Bucs and Nicks then seem to have consolidated their favored status in their respective divisions.

May Turns to June

At the end of May, the Glacier Pilots were shocking everybody and stood atop the Seward Division, followed by the Bucs. In the Denali Division, the Miners and Nicks were dueling for first place, while the defending champion Senators were mired in last!

The Glacier Pilots' luck didn't hold long. In fact, they quickly went into a record-breaking tailspin, losing 13 consecutive games before finally defeating Kodiak 5-3 on June 17th. During that span, they had fallen from first to last in the division, while the Peninsula Oilers jumped out in front.

June ended up being an active trading month. Alan St. George (4-1, 3.30 this year), who knew what it was like to get traded, went from Peninsula to the Glacier Pilots and immediately became their #1 starter. The Oilers got SS Terence Ostrom (.138/.194/.172 this year in limited time). It looked like a lopsided trade in the Pilots' favor - or maybe a salary dump for the Oilers, but that didn't make sense, as the Pilots were the cash-strapped club.

The Bethel Mushers also sent 25-year-old reliever John Oram to the Mat-Su Miners in exchange for hot center field prospect Scott Jayne. Oram had a 2.33 ERA and immediately signed a two-year contract extension with the Miners. Meanwhile, the Mushers dealt Jayne just nine days later to Eagle River-Chugiak in exchange for starting pitcher Dave Gibbon (4.35 ERA, 1-5) and a minor league infielder.

The Mushers weren't done putting together a rebuild, as they also dealt Vincent Robinson (2-7, 5.52) to the Miners for top first base prospect Arnie Heard. They clearly did not expect to defend their Seward Division title this year.

The Mushers then got another decent first base prospect, Mark O'Feeney, by dealing top young reliever Philippe Bisaillon (2-0, 2.41 last year) to the Bucs.

The biggest trade of the whole season happened on June 29, when the Miners dealt starting first baseman John Brown (.322/.394/.502), who had just signed a two-year extension with the team and had played all his career there, to Sitka for starting pitcher John Dewitt (4-4, 3.92) and journeyman reliever Randy Wright (2-1, 5.71). Dewitt has been a very solid pitcher and is still just 26, but the deal still caused some perplexity in Mat-Su.