The Outpost League

[ifspuds]

Excerpt from an interview with Ace Gervin, reprinted with permission from the Tifton Free Press, March 17, 2038.

"Did I think it was all going to turn out this way? No. And anybody who tells you that they knew it would is lying. That first year, when people started paying us to play ball while everyone else was working their tails off to build a society out of the Outposts, we all looked at each other like we were kids that had found the keys to the candy store. No, they didn't pay us much. No, the fields weren't much more than dirt infields and a few temporary bleachers. No, not many people came out to watch in the beginning. But I have to tell you, I wouldn't change a day of it. And now, well... let's put it this way: when I was eight years old, my parents brought me and my two sisters into the kitchen and told us we were moving to another planet. Nothing could ever change my life quite the same way as crossing over to the Outposts did, but playing in the Bay League and paving the way for the Outpost League comes in a very close second."

[ifspuds]

From the memoirs of Bay League founder John Baxter:

"Why did I even get started on the idea? We certainly had a lot of other things to be thinking about. We were bringing raw materials and technology through the gateway from Earth as fast as we could, but still, getting enough people and enough infrastructure together to start molding even a single city was very, very hard. Maybe that's why I started thinking we needed a distraction. Something to take our minds off the work from time to time. There were city leagues and teams in any settlement large enough to put together two teams to play against each other, so I knew there was interest in the game. Starting a professional league -- though the first seasons of the Bay League were professional only because the players were getting a paycheck -- was a risk. Nearly everyone thought we, the eight of us, were crazy to even bother starting it so early in the history of the Outposts.

But we started small. We didn't bother playing a whole lot of games, and the schedule allowed for a lot of days off, so that the players didn't get too separated from their fellow residents. We couldn't spare the labor, honestly. The teams would travel to other cities and most of the time on the off-days end up working on whatever projects were going on there. I have nothing but respect for those pioneer players. Yes, they got a little extra money to play ball, but they worked twice as hard as anyone, and that's saying something."

[ifspuds]

Welcome to the Outpost League!

The Outpost League is a fictional league that takes place on a fictional world with a fictional premise: a gateway that opens up between Earth and an unknown but habitable world. This is primarily the story of a small, barely professional baseball league that over the years will grow as the burgeoning society of The Outposts (as the world is called by its residents) grows. It will also be the story of that society, especially where society and baseball meet. A map of the Outposts can be found here.

For anyone that has read my Time Warp: Pittsburgh Pirates thread, the general format will be somewhat familiar. The bulk of each post will be from the point of view of a player, a writer, or some other resident of the Outposts, but also contain a fair amount of stats and commentary from yours truly. This will be a league-based dynasty, in that I'll write about the entire league and its teams and players, but from a variety of viewpoints.

Because I need Pierre's utilities to do some of the things I have planned, this is an OOTP 6.12 league. Once the first expansion is done, I may move the league to v6.5, but I haven't decided yet. Financials are turned off for now, ratings and talents are on a 1-10 scale, and the star rating is turned off. The era settings are The Golden Years (1946-1960). Other quirks of the league, and there are several, will be discussed as they become relevant.

My plan is to sim 25 years of league history and then, if there's interest, turn it into an online league. I already have much of the backdrop of those 25 years planned out, but the baseball is yet to be played.

Finally, I'd like to take a moment or two to acknowledge some of the people that have been of help or inspiration in this creation:

illeracula for his outstanding logo set.
SandMan for help with the Originator, including the development of a fictional city origin file, and also for help with the nuts and bolts of future league expansion.
seth70liz76 for his Prologue dynasty thread, which was a major inspiration in the creation of the Outpost League.
Eugene Church for answering a few questions I had and expressing his interest in seeing how the league will turn out.

[Tib]

How on earth did you make that map?

[ifspuds]

Originally Posted by Tib

How on earth did you make that map?

I used a freeware program called AutoREALM. It took me a little bit of fiddling around to get it to do what I wanted, and I know there are easier ways to go about getting what I came up with, but... in the end, it worked, and I was happy with the results.

[metsgeek]

Originally Posted by ifspuds

I used a freeware program called AutoREALM. It took me a little bit of fiddling around to get it to do what I wanted, and I know there are easier ways to go about getting what I came up with, but... in the end, it worked, and I was happy with the results.

You wouldn't happen to play Dungeons & Dragons, would you?

[ifspuds]

I used to, but I haven't in years. I wish I'd had a tool like AutoREALM when I was playing. Would've saved me a lot of money on hex paper and colored pencils.

[Vris]

Been looking forward to this Jeff. I've seen it in your sig for a while and I like your stuff.

Good luck!

(the map is fantastic)

[ifspuds]

Life in the Outposts has not been easy in the 15 years since settlers first crossed through the gateway from Earth. The sheer magnitude of the effort of colonizing a new world is nearly overwhelming all by itself, and while much of the landscape is reminiscent of Earth -- mountains, rivers, oceans, green plants -- it's very obviously not Earth. The indigenous plant and animal life bears enough resemblance to Earth species that the new residents of the Outposts have taken to naming them after those familiar species from home, but a vast number of never-before-seen species have also been discovered. While no sentient life has yet been found on the planet, very little outside the settled continent has been explored. It is expected that if it did exist, any intelligent life form would have made contact by now. While a lot of this new home feels like the old one, it was not unusual, especially in the early years of colonization, for the settlers to suffer from homesickness so deep that it would lead to crippling depression and sometimes worse.

For a reminder of home, a number of the larger settlements began forming local baseball leagues. Some of the players had experience at various levels of professional ball back home, some players had never made it out of Little League and some had never picked up a bat or glove in their lives, but for all involved, it was a form of community that helped the expatriates forget about the difficulties of their daily lives. As the leagues became more popular and more cities began forming them, John Baxter, a prominent citizen of Tifton, came up with the idea of forming a nominally professional league. Baxter approached other cities to gauge interest the venture and found enough willing participants to form an 8-team league. With all the cities involved save one located around Tifton Bay, it was decided to call the new association the Bay League.

Any player from anywhere in the Outposts could put his name into the pool for the initial draft, and the level of interest from players was surprisingly high, enough to hold a 35-round draft. There was talk in the early stages of assigning players to the team from the nearest city, but teams from smaller settlements argued that they would be placed at a severe competitive disadvantage, so the full pool of players was made available to all teams in the draft. There would be no minor league teams, but each team would maintain a 10-player reserve roster and practice squad in case of injuries. There was a good deal of discussion about whether to pay the players and how much, and it was finally decided that each player would receive a small stipend. With everyone in the Outposts needing to work together to build their new society, even baseball players had to maintain daily jobs and the 70-game schedule was set up to allow for a large number of off-days to make this easier.

[ifspuds]

Originally Posted by Vris

Been looking forward to this Jeff. I've seen it in your sig for a while and I like your stuff.

Good luck!

(the map is fantastic)

Thanks, Vris. I appreciate the good words. Hopefully I can keep your interest.

[ifspuds]

The initial draft of the Bay League was held two months before the scheduled opening day of the season. Scouting was particularly difficult, given that there is still little consistent travel between cities. Even if transportation was reliable, there was little time to spend jaunting about watching baseball players. So all teams agreed to share scouting information from the beginning in order to give each team an equal shot at players. The draft order was chosen randomly just before the selection of players was to begin, and soon after, the first selections in what its founders hoped would be a successful league were made.

The distant village of Marsein came up with the first pick and, given the Knights' close ties with Tifton Generals owner and league founder John Baxter, there was a bit of grumbling from some of the other teams, but since the draft order was to reverse in even-numbered rounds the benefit of receiving the first pick was muted somewhat.

How'd the first rounds of the draft turn out? Let's take a look at the players:

Round 1
1. Marsein Knights, RF Mario DeGray: 8/10/8/9/7 (8/10/8/9/7 Talents). The 26-year old DeGray is one of the unquestioned top talents in the draft. He can do just about everything except steal bases, and the lefty is expected to obliterate right-handed pitching.

2. Elliott Springs Tornadoes, 1B Riyad Gomes: 9/7/9/10/8 (9/7/9/10/8 Talents). Like DeGray, Gomes hails from the town of Silver Beach. There must be something in the water there that breeds baseball talent, because the 27-year old Gomes may be even a better hitter than DeGray, though he lacks the defensive skills of the right fielder.

3. Deepvale Ferrymen, 1B Henry "Ace" Gervin: 10/8/9/8/7 (10/8/9/8/7 Talents). It's hard to say whether Ace Gervin or Riyad Gomes is going to turn out to be the better player, but the early money is on Gervin. A year younger, a better defensive player and a left-hander, Gervin has the skills to just demolish baseballs. His nickname is well-earned.

4. Tifton Generals, P Mike "Juggie" Hawkins: 8/6/7 (8/6/7 Talents). The first pitcher chosen went to the first team incorporated in the Bay League. Juggie Hawkins struggles with his consistency, but when he's on his game, he's as tough to hit as anyone around. He throws a lot of groundballs, so look for Tifton to fill in some quality infield defense around him. Like the rest of the players chosen so far, Hawkins is young, just 25 years old.

5. Allison Spelunkers, P Kyle Richardson: 9/6/7 (9/6/7 Talents). If the first four players chosen were young, Richardson is a baby: just 21 years old. He throws hard and he launches the ball up in the zone, just daring batters to hit it. When they do get a bat on the ball, it's usually a fly ball somewhere. Some early observers of the draft wondered if the Generals, wanting to avoid the appearance of having extra advantages, let Richardson slip past them. Most people think Richardson will be the better pitcher in the long run.

6. Silver Beach Whales, 2B Carlin Chadwick: 7/7/8/8/7 (7/7/8/8/7 Talents). The 25-year old Chadwick comes from the ranching town of Valerma, which some people expected to be one of the founding cities in the Bay League. He's only got average range, but he's sure-handed and his bat will make up for any shortcomings he may have in the field.

7. Lorris Greens, P Dennis Phillips: 7/8/7 (7/8/7 Talents). The oldest player taken so far, at 29, Phillips is crafty and throws a very heavy assortment of pitches. He's got good break on his curveball and his changeup gets a lot of guys out in front pounding the ball into the ground. He's a big, strong guy, and should pitch a ton of innings.

8. Gentry Hills Scouts, P Broderick Earl: 7/8/7 (7/8/7 Talents). It's hard to call a 26-year old kid a junkballer, but Earl throws so many different pitches that it seems like he makes a few more up in between innings. He's pretty effective with all of them, too, which makes him a top-notch pitcher. The Scouts may have selected last in the first round, but they still came away with a very good player.

Round 2
1. Gentry Hills Scouts, 1B Tarise Ellis: 6/6/9/8/7 (6/6/9/8/7 Talents). The third first sacker chosen in the draft, Ellis is a big power threat with unbelievable range at first base and enough speed on the basepaths to make him a credible base-stealing threat. Ellis also plays an adequate left and right field, and his versatility makes him that much more valuable.

2. Lorris Greens, CF Tega Smith: 7/7/8/9/7 (7/7/8/9/7 Talents). Smith is a prototype #3 hitter, with the ability to hit for average and power, draw walks and steal whole gobs of bases. For a man with great speed and baserunning instincts, he's a surprisingly average outfielder, with some questioning his desire to play defense.

3. Silver Beach Whales, P Derrick "Hawkeye" Odle: 7/6/8 (7/6/8 Talents). Hawkeye Odle doesn't throw hard, but his ball moves well, stays on the ground, and has enough on it to fool hitters who don't think a guy under 6 feet can be all that dominating a pitcher. Odle's a hometown boy, and he's already a popular player around Silver Beach.

4. Allison Spelunkers, 2B Alton Strong: 7/6/7/9/7 (7/6/7/9/7 Talents). Strong is expected to man a spot at the top of the order for the Spelunkers, as he's got a great eye and terrific speed. He's a top-notch defensive middle infielder (he's also got the arm and range to play shortstop) and one of the better all-around talents.

5. Tifton Generals, 3B Renaldo Wright: 9/7/4/9/7 (9/7/4/9/7 Talents). Wright is an on-base machine, but lacks the footspeed to make him the ideal leadoff man. Instead, he'll be manning the 3 spot for the Generals. He's an average defender, but his cannon arm allows him to make the even the most difficult throws from the hot corner with ease.

6. Deepvale Ferrymen, P Clayton Howard: 8/6/7 (8/6/7 Talents). Down, down, down. Everything Howard throws is down, with a heavy sinker and a slider that darts out of the zone. One scout noted that 2 of every 3 balls put in play was beat in to the ground. The Ferrymen are going to need to stay on their toes in the infield.

7. Elliott Springs Tornadoes, P T.J. "No Neck" Selby: 7/8/8 (7/8/8 Talents). The Tornadoes went with the 35-year old Selby in the 2nd round, the only player over 30 selected in the first 15 picks. There was no question Selby's one of the stingiest pitchers available, as he won't walk many and he doesn't give up many long flies.

8. Marsein Knights, P Kevin Beik: 6/8/7 (6/8/7 Talents). Another extreme groundball pitcher, the southpaw Beik looks a lot like Clayton Howard, taken with the 14th overall pick, but where Howard is more of a strikeout artist, Beik relies on pinpoint control. The Knights have to be happy that a player of Beik's caliber was still available at the end of the 2nd round.

A full recount of the inaugural draft can be found here.

[ifspuds]

Well, I'm one of the lucky few that made a point of writing all my posts offline first, then pasting them to the boards, so... now begins the process of regenerating the lost posts. There will be a new (as in, never before posted) post at the end.

[ifspuds]

Allison Spelunkers

The city of Allison sits at the edge of the Allison Hills in the southwest corner of the continent and is the mining capital of the continent. It's a rough-and-tumble town, reminiscent of the American wild west during a gold rush, but it's also one of the most entertaining cities in the Outposts. In Allison city leagues, the precursors to the Bay League, it wasn't uncommon for brawls to break out both on the field and in the stands, and it's expected that will continue in Bay League games. Their home field, Hillside Park, is expected to be a hitter's haven, with short outfield fences, not much foul ground, and the wind that blows off the hills and out to center field.

Fresh-faced 21-year old Kyle Richardson from the isolated coastal town of Pelish is the big news on this team. Even though, back on Earth, he'd barely be old enough to have a legal drink, he's already one of the most talented pitchers in the Bay League. He's got a huge arm, and throws a sizzling fastball and a pretty solid curveball. Andre Logan and Bobby Edwards are solid middle rotation guys, and the bullpen is pretty strong. They've got a quality infield that'll get on base a ton, and a few guys that'll pop the long ball now and again. The Spelunkers should be a competitor in the first year of the league.

[ifspuds]

It's widely held that the city of Deepvale, nestled in the forested valley where the Vale and Outpost Rivers meet, is one of the most beautiful locations in the Outposts. Since getting from north to south or vice versa in the western half of the continent requires that you cross one of the rivers, most of the roads through that part of the Outposts go through Deepvale and their ferries. Two Rivers Field occupies a spot atop the southern bluffs that overlook the river junction. The space isn't ideal for a ballpark, which explains why the left field fence is so far and the right field fence so close, and the odd angles of the outfield walls lend themselves to a lot of doubles and especially triples. With all the gap and power hitters on this team, there are going to be a lot of runs scored in Deepvale.

The unquestionable star of this team is Ace Gervin, a sweet-swinging lefty first baseman that is expected to terrorize Bay League pitching. As player-manager Thomas Heide says, he can take over a game single-handedly. At just 26 years old, he's already getting mention as one of the top players on any team, especially since his home park favors lefties so much. The pitching staff is solid, led by Clayton Howard and 24-year old control specialist Jason Grant, and nearly everyone that'll take the mound has good control and movement on their pitches, which is helpful in Two Rivers Field.

[ifspuds]

Elliott Springs is called the crossroads of the Outposts, linking the eastern half of the continent to the west. It's also home to some of the roughest weather in the Outposts, between the mountains to the north and the bay to the south. It's no accident they chose the Tornadoes as their mascot. The Tornadoes are run by David DiStefano, who set up much of the transportation network in and around Elliott Springs. DiStefano is known as a consensus-builder, and stepped in frequently during the formation of the Bay League to settle disputes between Tifton's John Baxter and Silver Beach's Michael Hernandez.

Some people have joked that the Tornadoes got their name because their pitchers are going to have a lot of opponents swinging and missing. They do have a very strong rotation, with veterans T.J. "No Neck" Selby and Eddie Hope. Selby, 35, as you might expect, is powerfully built, 5'10 and tipping the scales well over 200 pounds, and both he and Hope, 33, are going to cause batters a lot of pain. On the other side of the roster, 27-year old first baseman Riyad Gomes is going to inflict his own share of pain on the baseball. He and Ace Gervin are going to be battling for the title of best first baseman in the game for many years. Gomes won't be doing it alone. In addition to the 1-2 punch in the rotation, Elliott Springs has a potent 1-2 in the lineup with Gomes and right fielder Jared Brown, who may not hit for much of an average, but when he connects, the ball is going to travel a long, long way.

[ifspuds]

One of the first Crossovers to the Outposts, Harold Gentry led a great deal of exploration of the continent, and as his legend grows, the amount of land he and his scouts supposedly covered grows even faster. Gentry died in a landslide near the site of the city that now bears his name, and a statue of him stands at the entrance to Gentry Field. He has become something of a mythic figure around the Outposts, and to call someone "Gentry" is to call them flighty, daring, groundbreaking and antisocial all at once.

The Scouts have two things going for them: Broderick Earl and a whole lot of first baseman talent. Earl's a 26-year old ace, and the first base talent is personified in 17-year old Brandon Dixon and 26-year old Tarise Ellis, who'll be keeping the spot warm while Dixon learns the ropes. Two of Gentry Hills' top prospects are also first basemen. It's a shame they don't have much else. Roland Harrington is a solid third baseman, but that's pretty much the end of it. It'll be a rough first few years for the Gentry Hills squad. Player-manager Gilbert Evans is going to have his hands full running the team.

[ifspuds]

Lorris is the most isolated of the Bay League cities and one of the smallest, ahead of only Marsein in population. The Greens were founded by Patrick Murphy, who back on Earth pioneered techniques for rapid crop breeding that have served the Outposts well. Lorris continues to be a center for agriculture, especially the raising of livestock on the wide ranchlands surrounding the city.

The Greens may not play to an overwhelming fan base at Lorris City Park, but this is one of the better teams in the league. Their rotation goes three deep with quality arms and they have two budding stars in the outfield in left fielder Cliff Rock and center fielder Tega Smith. Smith in particular is already generating buzz with his penchant for swiping bases, and Rock has one of the best gloves in the league. Catcher Kory Jackson will be helping the dynamic outfield duo out, and the rest of the lineup is capable of some good outings.

[ifspuds]

Marsein owes its entry in the Bay League to a long friendship between mayor Carroll Eichhorn and Bay League founder John Baxter. The town of Marsein is little more than a village, and the farthest away from any other Bay League city. The towns of Haystack and Valerma, more centrally located and a bit larger than Marsein, wanted to join the league, but Baxter called in favors to get his friend's town included.

Their pitchers, not a particularly distinguished group of hurlers, will be helped by their home park, which is one of the more severe pitchers' parks in the league. Their top starter, Kevin Beik, exemplifies the rest of the stuff: he won't strike many out, making batters put the ball in play. The Knights do boast two of the top offensive talents in the entire league, a pair of 26-year olds in shortstop Robbie Isenhour and right fielder Mario DeGray. This is a doubles and triples-hitting lineup, and also a young one, with only two position players aged 30 or over. The Knights may not be the best team in the league now, but they've got a good chance to be competitive for several years.

[ifspuds]

Silver Beach is rivalled only by Deepvale for its picturesque setting, located near the mouth of Tifton Bay. The city gains its name from the beach sands which, when the angle of the sun is right, seem to glow with a silvery sheen. The team gains its mascot from the huge seagoing creatures -- not exactly like Earth's whales, but close enough to be called by the same name -- that winter in the sheltered waters offshore from the city. The founder of the Silver Beach Whales, Michael Hernandez, has a long-standing feud with Tifton's John Baxter that stretches back to before the crossover from Earth. Neither man will say what their disagreement is about, but it is clear that neither man likes the other. Hernandez and his Whales are constantly trying to one-up Baxter and the Tifton Generals, making this a fierce rivalry even before the Bay League begins play.

The Whales might have trouble in the early going staying a step ahead of their rivals. While they have two top young stars in starter Hawkeye Odle and second sacker Carlin Chadwick, neither player has a tremendous amount of support. The Whales do boast one of the better all-around catchers in the league in Bryan Jones, but Jones is 33 and may not have many years ahead of him as a player, though he'll have an effect from the dugout as well as the manager. Silver Beach's home field, Bayview Park, is one of the more extreme parks in the Bay League. With deep fences and power alleys, it lends itself to a lot of doubles and triples, but that's all batters can really hope for. But, if the offense struggles, at least they'll have a day at the beach to look forward to.

[ifspuds]

The city of Tifton is the oldest and largest settlement in the Outposts, named after General Benjamin Tifton, the leader of the first expedition through the gateway, and is also the home of Bay League founder John Baxter, former American industrialist and reknowned adventure-seeker. The Tifton Generals play at Tifton City Park, the largest venue for baseball in the Bay League at 6,121 seats. It's not very friendly to left-handers, with a deep right field fence, but plays fairly neutral to right-handers.

The Generals' strength is in their infield and young starting rotation. 25-year old Juggie Hawkins leads the pitchers. He's the only strikeout artist among the starters, but Mike Woollum, Carlin Bonner and Robb Keyes -- all of whom are 28 or younger -- all have great control and will keep the ball in the park. Around the infield, the Generals have quality at second and third, with a 21-year old talent in Tarik York at shortstop. 27-year old third baseman Renaldo Wright is the top hitter on the team, a contact hitter with a discerning eye at the plate. There isn't a whole lot of power on the team, but they're pretty fast and for the most part, play solid defense.

Where they're weakest is in the outfield. It's an excellent defensive outfield, but they're either old or not very good hitters or both. If they could find a power-hitting outfielder or first baseman, this could be a very good team. As such, they're going to have to put the ball on the ground and take the extra base when they do reach the basepaths.

Shortstop Joey Warren, who will platoon with Erwin Linney until Tarik York is ready, will act as player-manager in the Generals' first season. The 30-year old is a hometown boy and an associate of founder/owner John Baxter. In addition to handling the managing duties, he's expected to groom top prospect York for the on-field leadership job in the next few years.