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Old 08-25-2019, 02:21 PM   #8
Paulie123
All Star Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: Manchester, England
Posts: 1,945
November 2054

Roster moves
  • Outfielder Cy Cox and catcher Mike Williams both decided to call it a day on their professional careers. Cox was on my list of free agent departures, but Williams was under contract for another year, so his decision came as a surprise. The veteran would not have made our 2055 roster, but this avoids me having to eat his salary by releasing him (he had zero trade value). He plans to move into coaching at college, and everyone here wishes him all the best for the future.
  • There were no surprises at the salary arbitration hearings. As we expected, infielder Bill Lloyd’s salary has increased from $6.8m to $11.7m in 2055. I intend not to go back to the arbitrator in future years - I like to get contracts agreed between club and player and not resort to the arbitration process.
  • I decided to trade first baseman Pok-too Xiao and third baseman Reynaldo González. Xiao is surplus to requirements at 1B with Numbers and Smith on the roster and my top prospect Phipps in the minors. That he is still a year away from arbitration only adds to his trade value. Other teams seem to value González’s power and defense more highly than I do and he is not worth his $17m wage. 24-year-old Fernando Galván will get the 3B job this season. His defense is on a par with González’s and he’s $16.5m cheaper.

Trades
  • I decided to try to move quickly to trade Xiao and González. The early bird gets the worm. And I definitely wanted to move González on before teams started to tie up payroll dollars on free agents. In the end I managed to tie up trades for both before the start of the winter meetings. Hopefully in my haste I haven’t overpaid.
  • The first was with Boston: 1B Pok-too Xiao, C Mike Merrill, RF Pepe Holgain for SP Haden Monroe (age 22, LHP, 1.5*), SP Doug Roberts (age 24, RHP, 1*). Monroe is a crafty young pitcher with a nasty slider and the stamina to go deep into games. If he can improve his control he’ll become a good #3 starter but will nevertheless go straight into our rotation as the #5. He’s also the lefty I was seeking to add. I didn’t really want to lose Merrill, a decent prospect who has great power at the plate, but the Adventurers wouldn’t do the deal without him.
  • Trade two was with Nashville: 3B Reynaldo González, CF Arthur Miles, SS José Zúńiga for SP Adrián Cortéz (age 22, RHP, 2.5*), SP Joe Mathis (age 21, LHP, 1*). Zúńiga and Miles were two more up-and-coming hitters I didn’t want to lose, but I agree this trade anyway because it offloads González’s salary, puts an excellent young pitcher (Cortéz) in the rotation and adds another quality arm (Mathis) to the minor league roster. Cortéz, the SCL #6 prospect, combines four good pitches with outstanding control. His arrival means the rotation next year will be Ryan Hurley, Butch Davis, Manny Clemons, Cortéz and Monroe: four cheap, quality young talents led by a highly respected veteran. That means that now Scott Hale and his monster contractual commitment are surplus to requirements...
  • ...which led to an unplanned trade with Carson City that brought in three more prospects, all aged 19: SP Scott Hale, SP Doug Roberts for 2B Jason Noble (age 19, RHB, 1*), LF/CF Luis Manuel Wyatt (age 19, RHB, 1*) and RF Fred Greene (age 19, RHB, 1*). The Rattlesnakes nabbed a wildcard spot this year but their weak spot was their rotation; they saw Hale as a chance to significantly upgrade their group for another playoff push next season. I was surprised at the prospect package they were prepared to give up. Maybe they know something about these lads that my scouts don’t. Wyatt is the SCL #74 prospect and the standout of the three. All are good and speedy hitters.

Free agency
  • Nine players left the organisation on 16 November when free agents filed: CF Warren Glass, SS David Thomas, CL Doug Bradley, SP Fred Bowling, MR Paolo Barreirinhas, MR Miguel Roa, MR Jerry Hayes, MR Bronson O’flaherty, MR Chet Andrews. Operation “Rebuild The Bullpen” begins here.
  • Barreirinhas, Roa and Andrews are, surprisingly, all Type A free agents and I will very gladly accept the compensation picks if any of them sign for other teams. I fear there is a reasonable chance, however, that none will find new teams unless they significantly soften their ambitious salary demands.
  • The departures prompted some promotions from the minor league roster to fill a few of the holes. Our #2 prospect OF José Arroyo (age 22, LHB, 2*) will likely begin the season as one of the backup outfielders. I expect him to push hard in spring training to win a starting role. Relievers Mark Forrest (age 29, LHP, 0.5*) and Wes Adams (age 21, RHP, 3*) will be in the bullpen. But that leaves three bullpen spaces still to fill, including that I don’t have a recognised closer.

Financial outlook
  • The departures of the costly Bradley, Hale and González, plus the free agents, have had a massive impact on my payroll. Total player salaries for the coming season are down from over $180m to $120m. That will go back up a fair bit if I manage to recruit the free agents I’m targeting to plug roster holes, but nevertheless it will end up significantly below the original position I inherited. In the process of getting the budget under control, I’ve also brought in a number of young, cheap and highly promising new players to the club.

News from around the league
  • Julián Emery (Madison) won his sixth straight WL Outstanding Hitter award.
  • Des Moines’s Donnie Lee won his fifth career Outstanding Pitcher gong.
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Last edited by Paulie123; 09-02-2019 at 06:26 PM.
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