OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - Making The Move Upstate: A Buffalo Nickels Story

dward1 · 04-12-2020, 05:04 AM

LA is the #1 team in the world. They edged past my old Brooklyn Atlantics last season into the top spot with an incredible trio of starters as they averaged 3.4 runs against or fewer for the third straight season and won the Super Cup, Baseball Cup and finally, finally the WBA title. Those 3 starters combined for a 74-27 record and an ERA of just around 3.10.

Herman Downie left in free agency at 39 for a 2-year deal with Washington and guess what? They call up Ryan Shuler, the #3 WBA prospect who in 7 starts so far has struck out 52 and has a 3.00 ERA. Suffice to say, Los Angeles are an enormous problem for us as they would be for anyone.

Game 1
It's Graves vs Dombroski, who we tried to get last offseason and in retrospect were crazy to ever go for. My former relief ace in Brooklyn was turned into a dominant starter since I left. He was the one who then inspired us to sign 2-pitch Burnsy thinking he could be the next Dombroski. I hope he becomes half that.

Today Dombroski was one of the best, fanning 12 over 8.1 innings and even though their star CF, Kieran Fleetwood, was tossed in the 2nd inning, they had plenty of offense.

Game 2
Now it's Fernando Ruiz, maybe the greatest pitcher ever seen in the WBA or USBL. The all-time pitching leader in WAR has a career 149 ERA+, a nearly Pedro Martinez level of dominant.

But Adam Stromgren got his 7th home run of the tournament in the first inning and we led 3-0. Kerry Burns was emulating his prototype through 3, only allowing an unearned run but another came in the fourth and then a 3-run bomb in the fifth turned the tide. Truly, we didn't stand much of a chance against these guys, we just aren't on the same level. LA wins the series with a 7-3 win.

Cup Thoughts
Overall I'm very pleased with our efforts. The sheer amount of home runs has me excited for the regular season, hopefully we can just blow away the competition and finally win the league. Farr's struggles have me wondering if we might be trying de la Cruz this season in the rotation, crazy that the guy who won Pitcher of the Year in 2063 might be at risk of losing his spot in 65.

An enormous tournament from Joe Duncan (.462 AVG) was great to see, Stromgren's 7 bombs have me thinking those two might be back. BJ Peterson was top class, but Rigsbee only had a .735 OPS.

Farr gave up 6 HRs in 25.2 IP and only struck out 15...6.90 ERA.

The team as a whole had a .837 OPS (113 OPS+) and a 4.53 ERA (97 ERA+).

We played well, accomplished the Elite 8, pocketed 200k and lost to the best team in the tournament, who would go on to win the Cup for the second straight season. Second straight year the Reign swept the Early Work tournaments: Super and Baseball Cup.

04-12-2020, 05:04 AM	#125
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 934	The World's Greatest LA is the #1 team in the world. They edged past my old Brooklyn Atlantics last season into the top spot with an incredible trio of starters as they averaged 3.4 runs against or fewer for the third straight season and won the Super Cup, Baseball Cup and finally, finally the WBA title. Those 3 starters combined for a 74-27 record and an ERA of just around 3.10. Herman Downie left in free agency at 39 for a 2-year deal with Washington and guess what? They call up Ryan Shuler, the #3 WBA prospect who in 7 starts so far has struck out 52 and has a 3.00 ERA. Suffice to say, Los Angeles are an enormous problem for us as they would be for anyone. Game 1 It's Graves vs Dombroski, who we tried to get last offseason and in retrospect were crazy to ever go for. My former relief ace in Brooklyn was turned into a dominant starter since I left. He was the one who then inspired us to sign 2-pitch Burnsy thinking he could be the next Dombroski. I hope he becomes half that. Today Dombroski was one of the best, fanning 12 over 8.1 innings and even though their star CF, Kieran Fleetwood, was tossed in the 2nd inning, they had plenty of offense. Game 2 Now it's Fernando Ruiz, maybe the greatest pitcher ever seen in the WBA or USBL. The all-time pitching leader in WAR has a career 149 ERA+, a nearly Pedro Martinez level of dominant. But Adam Stromgren got his 7th home run of the tournament in the first inning and we led 3-0. Kerry Burns was emulating his prototype through 3, only allowing an unearned run but another came in the fourth and then a 3-run bomb in the fifth turned the tide. Truly, we didn't stand much of a chance against these guys, we just aren't on the same level. LA wins the series with a 7-3 win. Cup Thoughts Overall I'm very pleased with our efforts. The sheer amount of home runs has me excited for the regular season, hopefully we can just blow away the competition and finally win the league. Farr's struggles have me wondering if we might be trying de la Cruz this season in the rotation, crazy that the guy who won Pitcher of the Year in 2063 might be at risk of losing his spot in 65. An enormous tournament from Joe Duncan (.462 AVG) was great to see, Stromgren's 7 bombs have me thinking those two might be back. BJ Peterson was top class, but Rigsbee only had a .735 OPS. Farr gave up 6 HRs in 25.2 IP and only struck out 15...6.90 ERA. The team as a whole had a .837 OPS (113 OPS+) and a 4.53 ERA (97 ERA+). We played well, accomplished the Elite 8, pocketed 200k and lost to the best team in the tournament, who would go on to win the Cup for the second straight season. Second straight year the Reign swept the Early Work tournaments: Super and Baseball Cup.