The New York Patriots - A Free To Play Project

[Magus978]

MORE BREAKING: With their 7-1 win over the San Francisco Giants, and Hamilton's 2-1 loss to the Georgia Braves, the New York Patriots have clinched the AC Eastern Division!

[Magus978]

BRONZE .248 DAY 6 - THE "THEY HATE US 'CUZ THEY AIN'T US" REPORT

Record: 17-11
Regular Season Record: 99-63
Position: AC Eastern Division Champions, #2 seed in AC Playoffs

HAPPY TRAILS
SP - Burleigh Grimes Sold for 450 points

2027 HITTING STATS
C - Bob Boone (.271, 14 HR, 65 RBI)
C - Mike LaValliere (.285, 1 HR, 19 RBI)
1B - Jose Reyes (.296, 5 HR, 55 RBI)
1B - Gregg Jefferies (.293, 4 HR, 28 RBI)
2B - Dave Cash (.277, 3 HR, 56 RBI)
2B - Barry Larkin (.304, 7 HR, 36 RBI)
3B - Luis Castillo (.280, 1 HR, 59 RBI)
SS - Jody Reed (.276, 0 HR, 19 RBI)
SS - Ozzie Smith (.271, 1 HR, 31 RBI)
LF - Richie Ashburn (.310, 1 HR, 47 RBI)
LF - Pete Rose (.332, 2 HR, 56 RBI)
CF - Tony Gwynn (.313, 6 HR, 82 RBI)
CF - Curt Flood (.324, 1 HR, 37 RBI)
RF - Babe Herman (.279, 11 HR, 79 RBI)

2027 PITCHING STATS
SP - Ismael Valdez (18-7, 3.13)
SP - Mark Mulder (5-2, 4.25)
SP - Bill Swift (14-7, 4.09)
SP - Claude Osteen (11-8, 3.89)
SP - Joey Hamilton (5-4, 3.84)

RP - Rick Wise (5-1, 3.34, 3 sv)
RP - Doug Drabek (4-4, 3.30, 4 sv)
RP - Mike Marshall (7-4, 3.20, 2 sv)
RP - Charlie Kerfeld (2-2, 4.35, 2 sv)
RP - Mike Jackson (5-4, 3.04, 1 sv)
CL - Gene Garber (7-6, 2.91, 44 sv)

WHO'S HOT?
Ismael Valdez: 2-0, 1.33 ERA in last 3 starts (20.1 IP)

WHO SUCKS?
Claude Osteen: 1-2, 8.31 ERA in last 5 starts (21.2 IP)

Notes: Try as they might, the OOTP gods could not wrestle the division title away from us. We wanted it way too much, and they finally just said the hell with it. I haven't decided our playoff rotation yet, but you can bet Claude Osteen won't be in it. That little cold streak down the stretch played him out of it, and he'll be used in the bullpen. We've won 99 games this season with smallball and defense, and that's what we'll use to win in the postseason. I'm positive that we will win our division series against Daytona Beach and win promotion. We won't have a prayer in Silver, but we'll worry about that on Monday.

CURRENT COIN COUNT: 2,512

[gemini615]

Congrats! Good luck to the Patriots in the playoffs!

[Magus978]

Gonna try a game-by-game report for this postseason. If I go out later, I'll still grab the box scores and logs and do the reports individually.

Here we go! Playoff baseball at The Black Hole!

Game 1 - Daytona Beach Pickleballers @ New York Patriots


Reyes Saves The Day For New York

A cool evening at The Black Hole saw the Patriots come through in extra innings to take a 1-0 series lead. This was their first ever playoff win in franchise history, and fans will remember the ending for the rest of their lives. Jose Reyes led off the bottom of the 1st with a solo HR off of Pickleballers starter Max Scherzer. Daytona Beach answered in the top of the 2nd with a Gil McDougald RBI single which brought in Vada Pinson from 3rd.

In the bottom of the 5th, Pete Rose had a runner on 3rd with 1 out after Tony Gwynn tripled. Despite flying out on the 1-0 pitch from Scherzer, he did his job, as Gwynn scored. Sacrifice fly, 2-1 Patriots.

With a lead in the 9th, Gene Garber was being called upon for the save. Unfortunately for Garber, the second pitch he threw to Vada Pinson went out of the yard for a solo home run. Garber blew the save in just two pitches, a new record for him. Luckily he recovered to get the next three hitters. 2-2 after 8 and a half. New York did nothing in the bottom of the 9th, so have some free baseball.

Let's fast forward to the bottom of the 11th inning, with Hoyt Wilhelm now in his second inning of work for the Pickleballers. Bob Boone doubled to lead off the inning, then Richie Ashburn made a productive ground out as Boone reached 3rd on the sacrifice. Luis Castillo couldn't bring Boone home as he weakly grounds out. Gregg Jefferies was not given the chance to kill the Pickleballers as he was intentionally walked, thus bringing up Curt Flood with two runners on. Flood worked a 5-pitch walk and that loaded the bases for Jose Reyes, who would be the hero of the night as he hits the second pitch he sees from Wilhelm into left field. In to score was Boone and the Patriots took game 1 of the divisional round 2-1.

W - Garber (1-0)
L - Wilhelm (0-1)

New York leads series 1-0

[Magus978]

Game 2 - Daytona Beach Pickleballers @ New York Patriots
Patriots lead series 1-0


Mulder Emerges From Pitchers Duel Victorious as Patriots Take 2-0 Lead to Daytona Beach

The Patriots moved to within one game of the sub-league series and an unexpected promotion to the Silver tier with a 2-1 win over the Daytona Beach Pickleballers in Game 2 of their Divisional Series. Daytona tried to throw New York off balance from the start, as they changed their listed starter at the last second to Al Downing. The Patriots were unfazed, as they pounced for two quick runs in the first inning. Jose Reyes led off the inning with a triple, and scored on a Curt Flood sacrifice ground out. Pete Rose then tripled off of Downing, and was brought in by an RBI single off the bat of Gregg Jefferies.

This was all Mark Mulder needed, as he was in cruise control. Mulder went 7 innings, scattering 5 hits while striking out 4 and walking 2. Mike Jackson, Gene Garber, and Claude Osteen combined on a scoreless 8th and 9th innings, with Osteen getting the save.

The series now shifts to Daytona Beach, where the Pickleballers will be looking to win the next two and bring the series back to New York for a decisive Game 5.

W - Mulder (1-0)
L - Downing (0-1)
SV - Osteen (1)

New York leads series 2-0

[Magus978]

Game 3 - New York Patriots @ Daytona Beach Pickleballers
Patriots lead series 2-0


Foster, Pickleballers Avoid Sweep, Force Game 4

George Foster made sure that there would be no sweep tonight as the Pickeballers survive 3 errors to beat the Patriots 5-3 and extend the series to a Game 4. R.A. Dickey starred on the pitching front for the Pickleballers, going 8 innings and giving up 3 runs.

Bill Swift was not so fortunate, going just 5 innings and giving up 4 runs over 9 hits.

W - Dickey (1-0)
L - Swift (0-1)
SV - Wilhelm (1)

New York leads series 2-1

[Magus978]

Game 4 - New York Patriots @ Daytona Beach Pickleballers
Patriots lead series 2-1



Foster Kills Patriots Again, Forces Game 5

George Foster is quickly turning into public enemy #1 in New York. He was responsible for 4 of Daytona Beach's 7 runs as they nip the Patriots 7-6 and force Game 5 back in New York. Foster went 2 for 4 with 2 HR and 4 RBI, including the game-winning 2-run HR off of Rick Wise.

Joey Hamilton was completely ineffective as the game 4 starter, going just 4 innings and getting torched for 5 runs on 5 hits before being pulled.

All hopes for the Patriots now ride on the arm of Ismael Valdez as the series returns to the Black Hole for a game 5 that nobody on this team wanted to have. All of a sudden, these 25 players are playing for their jobs if the manager and GM follows through on his threat.

Patriots manager Magus978 was quoted as saying "If we lose Game 5, NOBODY makes the team next season". We're also told that Patriots players and staff trashed the visitors locker room.

W - Betancourt (1-0)
L - Wise (0-1)
S - Wilhelm (2)

Series tied 2-2

[Magus978]

Game 5 - Daytona Beach Pickleballers @ New York Patriots
Series tied 2-2



Babe Herman Belts 4 RBI's, Patriots Promoted

A windy night at The Black Hole saw Babe Herman go 2 for 4 with 4 RBI as the New York Patriots beat the Daytona Beach Pickleballers 10-3 to win the divisional series 3 games to 2, advance to the Sub-League championship series, and more importantly win promotion to Silver.

Ismael Valdez did his part, going 7 innings and only giving up 3 runs over 10 hits. Rick Wise pitched a scoreless 8th and 9th to finish the job. The Patriots move on to face the top-seeded Syracuse Mets.

W - Valdez (1-0)
L - Scherzer (0-1)

New York wins series 3-2
New York are promoted

[Magus978]

BREAKING: New York falls apart in the LCS with a 3-0 lead and loses in 7 games.

The GM is too depressed to rage-sell his players...but is doing it anyway. Bill Swift and Dave Cash have been marked as culprits in our collapse and will never play another inning for this team again. None of you who read this can ever accuse me of not caring about the results. Worst thing to do is to go through the motions and not be invested to some degree. Being upset about failure shows that you care and that you're ready and willing to fight to ensure that what went wrong never does so again.

Failure has consequences.

[Magus978]

The Patriots have been placed in Silver .254 with 10 other Our League teams. Currently, I cannot log into the team as the league is apparently not ready. Thus I cannot go spend my points.

[Magus978]

2028 SEASON PREVIEW

The New York Patriots won promotion in 2027 despite a heartbreaking end in the playoffs, and will be playing in Silver League .254, a league that will prove to be very tough with 10 other "Our League" teams. The reigning Bronze .248 crown-wearers will have it all to do just to stay in the tier.

A few players from last season's team are no longer with us. Gone are Bill Swift & Dave Cash, sold last night. However, in their places are Matt Morris and Steve Rogers. Both groundball pitchers, they will fit in just fine with the team's emphasis on defense.

There was also a signing that will be stashed. Tony Fernandez (80), who played 376 games in the National League, and thus would qualify as a non-listed exception, is being stashed on the inactive list at the moment due to there already being a maximum of two non-listed players on the roster.

The Patriots have 933 points left, but are holding onto them for today as the season gets underway and they begin to accrue points for achievements. The hope is that a reliever that the team have been looking to acquire will appear at a reasonable price.

One problem that might surface in the early days of this season is Jody Reed's lack of ability at 2nd base. That's okay though, because he will train up relatively fast and according to the position ratings calculator, will train up to a 91 there. He's already in the 50's, so it's not the worst thing in the world at the moment.

Lineup vs RHP
1. 1B - Jose Reyes
2. CF - Tony Gwynn
3. DH - Pete Rose
4. C - Bob Boone
5. RF - Babe Herman
6. LF - Richie Ashburn
7. 3B - Luis Castillo
8. 2B - Jody Reed
9. SS - Larry Bowa

Lineup vs LHP
1. 1B - Jose Reyes
2. RF - Tony Gwynn
3. LF - Pete Rose
4. C - Bob Boone
5. DH - Gregg Jefferies
6. CF - Curt Flood
7. 3B - Luis Castillo
8. 2B - Jody Reed
9. SS - Larry Bowa

PITCHING STAFF
1. Ismael Valdez
2. Matt Morris
3. Mark Mulder
4. Steve Rogers
5. Joey Hamilton

Long Relief - Rick Wise
Middle Relief - Charlie Kerfeld
Middle Relief - Doug Drabek
Middle Relief - Mike Marshall
Setup - Mike Jackson
Stopper/Closer - Gene Garber

Logo by me, crown by Stanley Kuppchaser!

[Magus978]

SILVER .254 DAY 1 - THE ONE RUN LOSS REPORT

Record: 10-15
Position: 26th in league

TRANSACTIONS
SP - Omar Daal (83) 1998 One Hit Wonder Purchased for 1,600 points
RP - Butch Metzger (78) 1976 Rookie Sensation Purchased for 500 points
SS - Al Dark (70) 1948 Rookie Sensation Purchased for 150 points

HAPPY TRAILS
SP - Matt Morris RAGE-SOLD!!!
RP - Jeff Lahti Demoted to reserves
SS - Larry Bowa Demoted to reserves

HITTING STATS
C - Bob Boone (.212, 1 HR, 7 RBI)
C - Mike LaValliere (.207, 0 HR, 3 RBI)
1B - Jose Reyes (.340, 1 HR, 6 RBI)
1B - Gregg Jefferies (.286, 0 HR, 2 RBI)
2B - Jody Reed (.262, 0 HR, 5 RBI)
3B - Luis Castillo (.298, 1 HR, 10 RBI)
SS - Al Dark (.313, 0 HR, 3 RBI)
SS - Ozzie Smith (.261, 0 HR, 7 RBI)
LF - Pete Rose (.330, 1 HR, 14 RBI)
LF - Richie Ashburn (.209, 0 HR, 6 RBI)
CF - Tony Gwynn (.328, 1 HR, 7 RBI)
CF - Curt Flood (.281, 1 HR, 12 RBI)
RF - Babe Herman (.341, 2 HR, 17 RBI)

PITCHING STATS
SP - Ismael Valdez (1-1, 4.09)
SP - Matt Morris (1-3, 7.36)
SP - Mark Mulder (0-1, 1.67)
SP - Steve Rogers (3-2, 4.21)
SP - Joey Hamilton (2-1, 5.01)

RP - Rick Wise (0-0, 2.79)
RP - Doug Drabek (0-0, 1.42)
RP - Charlie Kerfeld (0-1, 5.40)
RP - Butch Metzger (0-0, 0.00)
RP - Mike Jackson (0-3, 19.64)
RP - Mike Marshall (2-1, 0.93, 1 sv)
CL - Gene Garber (1-1, 3.14, 7 sv)

WHO'S HOT?
I wish somebody was...

WHO SUCKS?
Matt Morris: 0-2, 9.00 ERA in last 2 starts (11 IP)
Us in 1-run games: 2-9

Notes: I knew we would be up against it in Silver, but damn I didn't think we would be this bad. While we're safe from the drop at the moment, all it takes is one extended losing streak and then we're as good as gone. If we're going to stay up, we MUST improve in close games. This just won't do, especially since you don't get points for failure.

Failure has consequences...just ask Matt Morris, because at 1-3 and a 9.00 ERA, he was sent to the guillotine. Since I'm in a relegation dogfight, I cannot under any circumstances wait for a starting pitcher to come around.

CURRENT COIN COUNT: 70

[Magus978]

SILVER .254 DAY 2 - THE DOORMAT REPORT

Record: 11-17
Overall Record: 21-34
Position: 28th in league

TRANSACTIONS
None

HITTING STATS
C - Bob Boone (.245, 2 HR, 18 RBI)
C - Mike LaValliere (.197, 0 HR, 2 RBI)
1B - Jose Reyes (.298, 2 HR, 16 RBI)
1B - Gregg Jefferies (.290, 3 HR, 8 RBI)
2B - Jody Reed (.273, 1 HR, 18 RBI)
3B - Luis Castillo (.299, 1 HR, 22 RBI)
SS - Al Dark (.349, 0 HR, 6 RBI)
SS - Ozzie Smith (.259, 0 HR, 14 RBI)
LF - Pete Rose (.280, 1 HR, 23 RBI)
LF - Richie Ashburn (.248, 1 HR, 12 RBI)
CF - Tony Gwynn (.277, 1 HR, 14 RBI)
CF - Curt Flood (.312, 2 HR, 25 RBI)
RF - Babe Herman (.301, 5 HR, 24 RBI)

PITCHING STATS
SP - Ismael Valdez (2-6, 4.90)
SP - Mark Mulder (4-2, 2.70)
SP - Steve Rogers (6-4, 4.35)
SP - Joey Hamilton (3-5, 4.60)
SP - Omar Daal (1-2, 6.26)

RP - Rick Wise (1-0, 4.66)
RP - Doug Drabek (0-0, 7.29)
RP - Charlie Kerfeld (0-1, 4.02)
RP - Butch Metzger (0-1, 1.84)
RP - Mike Jackson (0-3, 8.38)
RP - Mike Marshall (2-1, 1.08, 1 sv)
CL - Gene Garber (1-2, 3.96, 15 sv)

WHO'S HOT?
Who cares?

WHO SUCKS?
Besides the entire team?
Doug Drabek: 8.66 ERA in last 8 appearances (17.2 IP)

Notes: I'm pretty much resigned to my fate. We're glued to the bottom of the division, one game ahead of the drop. My desire to log in is back where it was a few weeks ago. Non-existent. Why should I bother when my team isn't gonna bother to show a sign of life? The most disturbing thing is that we only made like 200 points today. How am I supposed to improve things if the points aren't coming in? I'm just supposed to sit here and accept utter failure, and I can't do that.

CURRENT COIN COUNT: 330

[Magus978]

Executive decision time. The restriction on the number of non-listed players has been lifted. As we are in silver now and operating on a budget of near-zero, the player pool has to be expanded yet again...and this is the only way to do it.

As of now, there is no limit as to the amount of players that are not listed as with NL teams that can be on the squad. The games played requirement, however, has been increased to compensate for the lifting of the restriction, and can be seen below.

Position Players: Must have played in at least 150 games for National League teams (old minimum was 81)

Starting Pitchers: Must have made at least 30 starts for National League teams (old minimum was 15)

Relievers: Must have made at least 60 appearances for National League teams (old minimum was 30)

This does nothing to change the qualification status of Jody Reed (409 NL games) & Mark Mulder (53 NL starts), and will not hamper the qualification of Tony Fernandez (470 NL games).

[Magus978]

SILVER .254 DAY 3 - THE REPORT THAT TURNED THIS THING AROUND

Record: 18-7
Overall Record: 39-41
Position: 18th in league, 2.5 games behind for 2nd Wild Card

TRANSACTIONS
RP - Steve Howe (77) 1980 Rookie Sensation Purchased for 1,500 points

HAPPY TRAILS
RP - Rick Wise Demoted to Reserves
RP - Doug Drabek Demoted to Reserves
SS - Ozzie Smith Sold for 900 points
SS - Barry Larkin Sold for 549 points

HITTING STATS
C - Bob Boone (.262, 2 HR, 27 RBI)
C - Mike LaValliere (.200, 0 HR, 10 RBI)
1B - Jose Reyes (.290, 2 HR, 28 RBI)
1B - Gregg Jefferies (.281, 4 HR, 13 RBI)
2B - Jody Reed (.266, 1 HR, 31 RBI)
3B - Luis Castillo (.296, 3 HR, 35 RBI)
SS - Tony Fernandez (.483, 0 HR, 4 RBI)
SS - Al Dark (.320, 0 HR, 8 RBI)
LF - Pete Rose (.273, 1 HR, 36 RBI)
LF - Richie Ashburn (.276, 2 HR, 18 RBI)
CF - Tony Gwynn (.308, 2 HR, 24 RBI)
CF - Curt Flood (.276, 2 HR, 36 RBI)
RF - Babe Herman (.283, 7 HR, 39 RBI)

PITCHING STATS
SP - Ismael Valdez (5-7, 4.21)
SP - Mark Mulder (6-5, 3.14)
SP - Steve Rogers (8-5, 4.25)
SP - Joey Hamilton (6-5, 3.92)
SP - Omar Daal (3-3, 4.84)

RP - Steve Howe (No Stats)
RP - Hugh Casey (0-0, 0.00, 1 sv)
RP - Mike Jackson (1-3, 7.07, 1 sv)
RP - Charlie Kerfeld (2-1, 2.52, 1 sv)
RP - Butch Metzger (1-1, 3.51)
RP - Mike Marshall (3-1, 1.61, 2 sv)
CL - Gene Garber (2-4, 4.29, 24 sv)

WHO'S HOT?
Nobody

WHO SUCKS?
Luis Castillo: .120 (3 for 25), 1 RBI in last 7 games

Notes: We were left for dead at the start of the day, now we've risen from the dead. 2.5 out of the wildcard after a great run, and poised to make another big move tomorrow if we carry this form over. Our pitching is still an unmitigated mess, but with Steve Howe in the fold now, I think we'll see some improvement. I'm also happy to see our starting pitching begin to turn a corner. Our middle guys are combining for a 20-15 record and a 3.77 ERA. Now if only we can get Valdez over .500 and his ERA down under 4.

CURRENT COIN COUNT: 1,339

[Magus978]

SILVER .254 DAY 4 - THE AUTOPILOT REPORT

Record: 9-17
Overall Record: 48-58
Position: 25th in league

TRANSACTIONS
CF - Lenny Dykstra (82) 1993 Record Breaker Purchased for 1,399 points

HAPPY TRAILS
SP - Doug Drabek Sold for 189 points

I'm not even gonna bother with the details. Bottom line, we suck, nothing I've done works, and yesterday was a damn mirage. We're auto-piloting this garbage at least until the end of the season, maybe beyond. I have no patience for losers, and I have even less patience when there's nothing I can do to turn things around. At least in regular OOTP I could fire the manager and trade the loser veterans while bringing up prospects and embracing the failure while actually developing talent. Not an option here.

Taking a break from this until such a time where we will be competitive again. Go read some of the better dynasty threads.

[Magus978]

Think regardless of whether or not we stay in Silver, I'm going to scrap the National League only theme and putting the team together completely my way. We can always come back to the idea of a theme, but right now, I want to start having fun again, and losing with a theme isn't my idea of fun.

[Magus978]

Let's have a quick recap...

- I've ragequit twice in one season (new personal best!)
- We've abandoned the theme because it was hindering the amount of fun I can have
- Despite all this, we survived.

A 72-90 mark in our first season of Silver, and a late run of form allowed us to avoid relegation. As amazing as this may sound, this is our first ever 90-loss season. Took us 7 seasons to have a complete clunker of a campaign. Conglaturation?

As we don't have a lot of points to start with for Monday, we're not going to change much. We did make additions, and sold players. That said, here's the 2029 roster.

HITTERS
C - Mike LaValliere (69 OVR, 1987 Hardware Heroes)
C - Mike Matheny (60 OVR, 2000 Hardware Heroes)
1B - Jose Reyes (73 OVR, 2011 Historical All-Star)
2B - Al Dark (70 OVR, 1948 Rookie Sensation)
2B - Jody Reed (77 OVR, 1988 Rookie Sensation)
3B - Luis Castillo (74 OVR, 2003 Hardware Heroes)
SS - Tony Fernandez (80 OVR, 1987 Historical All-Star)
LF - Richie Ashburn (71 OVR, 1948 Rookie Sensation)
LF - Pete Rose (73 OVR, 1973 Historical All-Star)
CF - Curt Flood (76 OVR, 1963 Hardware Heroes)
CF - Tony Gwynn (69 OVR, 1984 Historical All-Star)
RF - Vladimir Guerrero (79 OVR, 2005 Historical All-Star)
DH - Frank Thomas (83 OVR, 1993 Historical All-Star)

PITCHERS
SP - Ismael Valdez (88 OVR, 1995 Rookie Sensation)
SP - Mark Mulder (83 OVR, 2003 Hardware Heroes)
SP - Steve Rogers (83 OVR, 1973 Rookie Sensation)
SP - Omar Daal (83 OVR, 1998 One Hit Wonder)
SP - Joey Hamilton (81 OVR, 1994 Rookie Sensation)
RP - Steve Howe (77 OVR, 1980 Rookie Sensation)
RP - Hugh Casey (75 OVR, 1942 Record Breaker)
RP - Mike Jackson (76 OVR, 1994 Record Breaker)
RP - Mike Marshall (77 OVR, 1974 Historical All-Star)
RP - Butch Metzger (78 OVR, 1976 Rookie Sensation)
RP - Charlie Kerfeld (77 OVR, 1986 One Hit Wonder)
CL - Gene Garber (84 OVR, 1982 Unsung Heroes)

[Magus978]

The Manager is Pissed, But What Else is New?

After starting the season 16-6, the New York Patriots tailed off big time to end the first day of play in Silver .294. At 16-11, they find themselves in a tie with the Sunnyvale Dope Growers for first place in the division. As April wore on, they were finding out more and more that they cannot rely on their starting pitching to win ballgames, because at this point, only Joey Hamilton is pitching to an ERA under 4.00, and that simply won't cut it at this level. The bullpen, however, is pitching to a strong 2.87 ERA. However, there is a lot of skepticism about being able to maintain that performance.

On the offensive side of things, Jose Reyes and Tony Fernandez have had strong opening months, but Frank Thomas has yet to really come to life in the heart of the lineup. The Patriots have historically had a big problem getting power hitters to produce, and even though it's early days, it's looking like more of the same type of struggles past power hitters Andy Pafko & Jeff Conine have had. The Big Hurt will need to start putting a hurt on opposing pitchers if the Patriots are going to get back on track.

On the transaction front, the Patriots added Jeff Russell. The 1989 Hardware Hero joins a bullpen already loaded with high-stuff pitchers in Charlie Kerfeld, Mike Jackson, and Butch Metzger. He also has a great mustache, just like Gene Garber. Garber's still our pick for best team mustache though.

TEAM LEADERS
Batting Average: Tony Fernandez (.373)
Home Runs: Frank Thomas (4)
Runs Batted In: Vladimir Guerrero (15)
Stolen Bases: Tony Gwynn (7)
WAR: Tony Fernandez (1.1)

Wins: Omar Daal, Mark Mulder, Ismael Valdez (3)
Earned Run Average: Joey Hamilton (3.66)
Strikeouts: Mark Mulder (26)
Saves: Gene Garber (5)
Pitcher WAR: Joey Hamilton (0.7)

Wanted to try something different with this season's daily reports. Full stats will return at the end of the season.

[Magus978]

At 50-47, the New York Patriots are going absolutely nowhere this season. Starting pitching has been abysmal, and certain players have not met expectations. One of whom being Frank Thomas, who has been placed for auction in the hope that he'll sell and the pitching can be upgraded. However, the team has had no success in selling him.

The lone All-Star representative was Pete Rose. I personally would rather have no All-Stars if we don't deserve any, and while Pete was deserving as he hit over .350, he was platooning with a struggling Richie Ashburn for a good chunk of the season, so I don't think he should get to go. Have I ever mentioned that I hate this whole "everyone must be represented" stuff? If a team is bad enough or has no outstanding performers, they shouldn't get any representation.

I've checked out on this team for the week, so nothing new will be said until Sunday night, where I'll briefly recap the season. This team is irrelevant, and I don't waste my time on irrelevance. I'll be using even less time on this team if the aforementioned Frank Thomas isn't sold, as I won't be able to upgrade my pitching, and the team will be even more stagnant than it was in Bronze. Why bother if we're not generating enough points?