FABL - Detroit Dynamo's - Rise from the Ashes - Page 2

DD Martin · 03-09-2021, 02:29 PM

The Detroit World
Monday September 16th, 1935
Sports News
From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat

Dynamo's Shows Signs of Life, Will not set FABL Record for Losses in a Season

Sometimes its the little things in a season that can help build character and galvanize a team for the future. I'm not sure that translates to baseball but GM Martin and Manager Tom Bray certainly hope it does. The Dynamo's went 3-4 this week, which is almost 500 baseball. While they continue to add to the franchise record for losses in a season, the all-time record of 112 is safe so the 1890 Pittsburgh Miners can rest easy. After this week of rare victories and a current 2 game winning streak, the Dynamo's are 43-100 on the season with 11 games left. Not a lot to play for but with games upcoming against both St. Louis and New York in the last week of the season, the Dynamo's could play a factor.

Last Week's Record: 3-4
Season to Date Record: 43-100 (Dead Last)
Draft Position: #2 overall clinched
Run Differential: -309

Results Last Week
Monday Sept 9th @ Philadelphia 13-9 WIN
Tuesday Sept 10th @ Philadelphia 5-9 Loss
Wednesday Sept 11th @Philadelphia 3-7 Loss
Thursday Sept 12th @ Washington 3-11 Loss
Friday Sept 13th @ Washington 4-7 Loss
Saturday Sept 14th @ Washington 11-8 WIN
Sunday Sept 15th @Washington 4-3 (11) WIN

Newflash - Does OF Mickey Tompkins Want Out of Detroit

That is a tricky question said some with knowledge of the situation. Tompkins (31) who has played with the Dynamo's since coming up in 1928, has played 111 games so far this season, starting 80. But he has seen a significantly reduced role since the team acquired OF Howard Moss. Tompkins is definitely seen as a leader on the team that is losing its team captain C Dick York to retirement at seasons end. Teammates are hoping that the rumors of Tompkins unhappiness is just that, rumors.

When we reached out to Tompkins for a word on the rumor, he just smiled and said "don't believe everything you read or hear." and kept walking to the dugout. We did speak to GM DD Martin about the subject and he had this to say.

Martin - "Look it has been a very long season and losing does tend to cause additional stresses that nobody likes dealing with. Yes has Mickey's playing time been reduced some in the last month or two of the season, yes. Is Mickey really happy about it, the answer is the same as any real ballplayer would give you. He wants to play everyday. Did he come to me to demand a trade? No, but we did discuss his role and the importance he brings to the clubhouse. We agreed to meet in the off-season to discuss things and then get together in the spring. If Mickey is truly unhappy, we will trade him or give him his release so that he can pursue something that will work for him. But it is not something that is going to happen, today, tomorrow or during the last two weeks of the season."

So according to GM Martin, while he and Tompkins talked this past week, Martin has stated that the veteran OF did not ask for a trade. We have spoken to someone on the team though that will disagree with that. Said source states that Tompkins was so unhappy that he did go meet with Martin and he definitely asked for a trade, according to that source. I guess we shall see how the Tompkins situation unfolds in the off-season.

Manager Tom Bray Speaks About the Season

While losing is never fun, Dynamo Manager Tom Bray seems to be handling things ok. We have noticed that his hair is noticeably greyer now than it was in the spring, but that happens to men as they approach 50. Bray has been the skipper of the Dynamo's since the 33 season and in his 3 seasons to date he has a record of 206-245.

Reporter - How have you handled the season so far this year?

Bray - Losing is a tough thing, and something that you never want to accept. While we have been struggling I have seen signs from particular players that we hope means that this downturn will be short lived in length.

Reporter - Two seasons ago in 1933 you had a team win 90 games and finish 2nd just 6 games back. Today the team has set a franchise record for losses in a season with 100 and counting. How do things go from pretty good to so bad in such a short time.

Bray - It's never easy when a club has been together and the core of that team starts to age. It is no secret that 1933 was our last shot in the window that we were in. Last year we went 73-81, finished in 7th place and honestly had no team structure or core. It felt like we were just an afterthought in the grand scheme of things in the sports wheel of Detroit. Going into spring training this year I had to run not only the big league training camp but the minor league camp as well as we didn't have any coaches signed to those minor league teams. Last year it was sort of a committee approach by the players at those teams, so you can guess how that worked out.

Reporter - So with the change in May that brought GM DD Martin to town, how did that change things?

Bray - Well one of the first things he did was go out and find coaches and managers for those minor league teams so that there was some sort of organization and cohesion. You may not see immediate results but I have seen them as I am getting reports on players and we are meeting to discuss key prospects and whether they should move up the organization to the next level. We have a scouting department and while I believe there will be some changes in how we scout and have seen some of those right now. I have been told very clearly that we are going to emphasis scouting and player development in the minor leagues.

Reporter - So it sounds like you have bought into the changes that Martin has brought to the organization.

Bray - Hey I'm not a man on a deserted island anymore so yeah I've bought in. I hope to be here a long time and to see this thing through to the other side and restore the good name of Dynamo's baseball.

Reporter - Have you had any discussions on that front about your job security with all the losses this season?

Bray - On day 1 when Martin came to town we talked all day about what his plan was. How he was going to trade some of our veteran players to help stock at minor league system that was the worst in baseball. He told me this season would be tough, and likely next year will be rough as well although I hope we improve on the win/loss record some. So I am under contract through the 1937 season and we will probably sit down next year after the season and see how we both are feeling. It's not easy to know that you are going to lose this many games and that when you step on the field most nights you don't have all the pieces you need. These guys that are hear are giving us everything they have and I respect the effort they have shown. But to answer your question I have no concerns about my job security, I know I will be back on the field next year as the manager of this team.

Reporter - Thank you Tom for your time and good luck the rest of the season.

The Minor League System

Last year the minor league system was in a shambles both structurally and with the play on the field. This year there have been improvements made in the talent acquired, and the results on the field. Below is a quick view of the won/loss record of the affiliates this year and last year.

Newark Aces (AAA) 1935 64-70 .478 4th 25GB
Newark Aces (AAA) 1934 47-93 .336 8th 42GB

Akron Wheels (AA) 1935 55-79 .410 6th 31GB
Akron Wheels (AA) 1934 70-70 .500 4th 27GB

Terre Haute Brewers (A) 1935 60-74 .448 6th 33GB
Wichita Rustlers (A) 1934 44-96 .314 8th 43.5GB

Chattanooga Dynamos (B) 1935 73-61 .545 2nd 26GB
Chattanooga Dynamos (B) 1935 54-86 .386 8th 39GB

Biloxi Billies (R) 1935 70-64 .522 5th 22GB
Biloxi Billies (R) 1934 47-93 .336 8th 47GB

Overall Record Minor League Affiliates 1935 322-348 .481
Overall Record Minor League Affiliates 1934 262-438 .375

Below are the prospects lists at the end of the 1934 season (first) and the current rankings as of September 15th (second). The prospects the team has this year are higher rated and significantly more that at the end of last season.

DD Martin · 03-10-2021, 02:23 PM

The Detroit World
Tuesday September 24th, 1935
Sports News
From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat

One Week Left to a Truly Forgettable Season in Detroit

Yes it is true the Dyanmo's thankfully have only 1 week left in the season and all the games are at home (not sure that is a good thing). To bring the season to a close the Dyanmo's will host the top 2 FA teams with New York coming in for 2 games and then St. Louis coming in for the final 3. With last week's 0-6, the Dyanmo's are hoping not to end the season on an 11-game losing streak, but they will have to find a way to beat one of those two top team at least 1 game.

With the minor league season coming to an end, yes it had some better results that previous Dynamo affiliates last season. But with that time is also coming a time that GM Martin has promised will be a system wide cleansing. That process began on Monday when it several jobs postings were scene in minor league towns.

Dynamo's Fire Class A Terre Haute Skipper Jon Gruber

Sources surrounding the team stated that the 1st year skipper lost the Class A league team clubhouse during the season. Gruber's record was 57-70 once he took over from a player who had been running things since there was no one else around to do it. Gruber was hired in the middle of May so maybe the firing wasn't fair. The fan reaction was mixed in Terre Haute but one fan describe it this way, "Glad that bum is gone!". Who is going to become the new manager has yet to be announced but unlike the just completed season the Detroit organization will be ready early to pick the next man up.

Detroit's AAA Akron Team Fires Manager Billy McIlrath

The AAA Akron Wheels announced today that manager Billy McIlrath will not return to the organization next season. The Wheels went 68-72 this season and finished in 4th place, but the results were just not enough for the Dynamo's and GM DD Martin. There was obviously some tension between Martin, the Akron owner and the since fired skipper. McIlrath told sources that "It's not easy to manage when every decision you make is closely scrutinized and criticized, but that's what I dealt with."

Another official said that the firing was necessary because of "Major irreconcilable differences of opinion with upper management ownership." The Akron Owner Paul Litchfield has a number of issues brewing locally as well with threats of the rubble makers employees and labor negotiations. When pressed for comment he simply stated "It doesn't matter why he was fired, we are just going in a different direction and we support the parent organization in its efforts to build winners both here and in Detroit. End of story!"

The Dynamo's also fired Class B hitting coach Art Murphy on Monday.

Dynamo's Start Roster Purge in Lower Levels as Promised

Not all decisions were done by the organization though. On Sunday it was announced that class AAA Newark P John Tucker (35) was calling it a career. Also retiring were class A C Herm Landreth (29) and class B 3B Jimmy Jessee.

With the minor league seasons done, the Dynamo's announced what will be the first of likely many changes with players leaving the organization.

The organization released the following players
P Lee Smith (28) AAA Newark 8-5-5 6.53 ERA
P Sonny Coleman (30) AAA Newark 12-10-13 5.94
P Milt Robison (25) AA Akron 9-5-7 4.51 ERA
C Bob Bullock (29) AAA Akron 127/235/446 1-6
OF Gus Joseph (24) B Chattanooga 238/356/753 3-18
P Jack Hobbs (27) AA Akron 1-1-2 8.68 ERA
OF Harry Copeland (29) A Terre Haute 10 AB's
P Dick Bair (27) multiple 1-1-2 10.00+ ERA
P Freddie Boyd (27) B Chattanooga 3-0 4.82
1B Charlie Cook (31) AAA-AA Newark/Akron 305 2-21

Players DFA
P Chuck Matthews (24) Detroit 1-7 6.26 ERA AAA Newark 0-2-1 10.98 and AA Akron 2-3-1 5.85
OF Bobby Anderson (33) AAA Newark 245/286/592 1-10

Final Game of Season (and Careers)

It has been announced that C Dick York (39) and SP Max Wilder (38) will be starting the Dynamo's final game of the season as the starting battery. The two veterans announced their respective retirements earlier in the season.

Following the conclusion of the game both players have announced intentions of entering the professional coaching ranks. The Dynamo's have had talks with both and hope to have both with them next season as they start the re-birth of this organization.

Owner Meeting Looming

Following the season ending game over the weekend, it is likely that GM DD Martin and team Owners "Big Money" Eddie Thompson and former player and manager George Theobald will sit down to discuss the season. Martin is expected to announce his plans for the organization structure, the all-important draft, with scouting and player development changes.

Some have stated "off the record" that Thompson was shocked at how bad the team played this season. While he was told by Martin it could get really ugly, I don't think he felt things had gotten this bad. Detroit was pegged to finish last by many newspapers and so called experts, but with the trading of Wheeler and Vance the wheels fell off completely and the team has spiraled to over 100 losses. Thompson will likely go along with the changes but some in the organization have expressed concern over a rumor overall budget cut. While the team was profitable this season, it is the worst financial performance of the team since before the turn of the century. Martin will have to argue the changes he is intending to make will be worth the money investment.

Further rumors have it that he will make the organizational structural changes regardless and if money is tight it will likely be a payroll reduction that makes the ledgers balance. That would likely mean another terrible year on the field with low priced talent taking the places of several higher priced veteran players.

DD Martin · 03-10-2021, 04:23 PM

The Detroit World
Wednesday September 25th, 1935
Sports News
From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat

A Special Piece from the Baltimore Sun
Looks Like Baltimore has the #1 Pick in the Draft. What Should They Do with it?

Despite pleas from many Detroit fans, unless the Dynamo's can make a trade, they will not have the #1 pick in the draft despite a baseball worst (by a country mile no less) 43-106 record which is 19 games worse than the Baltimore Cannons who likely will secure the top pick. Because of the alternating year rule the #1 pick in the draft alternates based on CA in odd years and FA in even years. So the honor of picking Rufus Barrell II appears to be in the Cannons court.

Taking a closer look at the Cannons though, do they need Barrell or would they be better served going in a different direction. The Cannons recent history has been pretty bad since an 85-69 2nd place finish in 1931. Let's take a look.

Baltimore 1932 71-83 6th place
Baltimore 1933 65-89 7th place
Baltimore 1934 54-100 8th place
Baltimore 1935 62-87 8th place

Last season the Cannons were the worst team in all the FABL, but just like Detroit they wound up with the #2 overall pick. With that #2 overall pick they ended up taking SP Gus Goulding (22) out of St. Blane College. Goulding has responded by moving up from Class C after 7 starts to Class B where he spent most of the season with 15 starts. He finished his first pro season a Class A ball. In 29 minor league starts he finished with a record of 21-10 with a 3.00 ERA. He is rated the #17 overall prospect in all of the FABL. So it looks like the Cannons made a great pick last year.

He is even higher rated that the young man that went #1 overall last season when the Washington Eagles took Bobo White. Now White pitched exclusively at high level this year spending most of his time at Class AA where he went 10-10 with a 4.93 ERA in 25 starts. White looked strong in 4 starts at AAA to end the season as he went 3-0 with a 3.04. Still White is the #49 prospect while Goulding is #17.

Also in looking at the Baltimore system, they have two other young starting pitchers who look like they will join Goulding in what could be the next great CA rotation in a few seasons. SP John Edwards (19) was the 3rd overall pick in 1933 and is the #9 prospect in baseball. Edwards in his 2nd season of pro ball spent most of the season at Class A (9-11 3.90) and started 5 games at class AA (1-3 5.52). Remember he is only 19 so to be getting starts at AA even though he struggled some is pretty remarkable.

The other prospect was also a player taken in the 1933 draft picked #10 overall SP Rusty Petrick (19). Petrick had less than desirable high school stats but the scouts just loved him and the New York Gothams took the chance on him that the scouts were right. Before he ever threw a pitch for the Gotham to the Cannons along with several other position players and 1st, 2nd and 4th round draft picks for former multiple time Allen Award winner SP Rabbit Day. Petrick didn't disappoint his new organization as he threw a no-hitter in his first minor league start in April of 1934. He was quickly named the #20 prospect in baseball and has since risen to #13 overall. Petrick looked like he mastered class A going 7-7 with a 3.24 ERA in 23 starts. Like Edwards he pitched some games in class AA as a 19-year-old and struggled with a 4-4 5.83 record. But his future looks exceptionally bright.

So the Cannons have 3 highly talented arms who in the next couple of years will likely be joining SP Pinky Conlon who is already anchoring the Baltimore staff.

Picking high in the draft the last handful of seasons has allowed Baltimore to acquire some well thought of position players as well. They have several minor league SS in the top 100 with SS Charley McCullough (19) #23, SS Clark Car (21) #30, SS Jim Hensley (19) #34 and SS Charlie Rivera (21) #87. They also have a 3B Frank Covarrubias (24) who is #70 and a CF in Fred Galloway (19) who is rated #29 overall. What they are truly lacking though is a big league power bat, and none of the players mentioned really fits that definition.

Currently the Cannons are 6th in the CA in runs scored 711 (4.77 rpg) and 5th in home runs with 74. Their top power/RBI bats this season are 1B Bunny Stapleton (26) (350/401/913 13-64) and LF Jim Mason (27) (344/391/863 11-67). Both are solid professional hitters but they will never be a Max Morris/Rankin Kellogg or even a Doc Love type of power hitter. With some much pitching coming up, would the Cannons be better served to select either 1B Red Johnson or 3B Mack Sutton in the upcoming draft. One can argue that 3B Sutton is the better fit by position of need since Stapleton is at 1B, but there is no denying the power of 1B Johnson. Of course they are all kids that we are talking about and doing well in high school does not guarantee success at the major league level.

So what should the Cannons do? Draft Barrell and just add to their stockpile of young arms? Draft Johnson or Sutton and add a potential power bat to the lineup when the pitchers are ready in several seasons? Or trade the pick?

Now why would one ever think that they should "trade the pick"? Some say Rufus Barrell II is a generational pick that will someday set records. Maybe he will, maybe Johnson will be referred to as the Max Morris of the 40's and 50's as well. Or maybe they will not live up to their hype as superstar big man on campuses once they leave their respective high schools. Now trading the pick could if don't right bring in a slew of closer to finish developed prospects or more draft capital to play with. The key is not under selling the pick. Rumors were rampant that one GM suggested he'd trade his entire draft just for the slot so they could take Rufus the II. That's a lot of picks that could go a long ways towards filling a lot of holes. Some will tempt Baltimore with a draft swap of we will trade you our lower pick for the #1 along with yadda yadda yadda. It is the yadda, yadda, yadda that the Baltimore organization needs to be careful of. How far down would you slide and how much does that slide cost? Not all 1st round picks are the same and for this draft after the top 5 there could be a big drop in perceived talent. That is the risk in trading draft picks. But the biggest thing if they trade the pick is not to undersell the asset!!!!

Another alternative would be to take Rufus Barrell, sign him and then do what the New York Gotham's did in the Rabbitt Day trade, include the player in a deal that would make you significantly better. But not 1 player will solve the Cannon's issues, it would have to be a combination of prospects and 1936 draft picks which would open the door for some teams that can't compete in trading 1935 picks. By league rule only the current year picks (35) can be traded before or during the draft. But once the draft is complete and draftee's are signed to contract could you turn around and trade them for either picks in the next draft (36) or any player prospect combination that is out there to be had.

The truth is that many are believing in the high school legend of the famous family kid so drafting him #1 makes a lot of sense even with Baltimore's wealth of young arms. But then exploring the options or trading Barrell II or one of the other young guys instead might be the Cannon's "Golden Ticket" to once again being relevant in the CA Pennant race instead of a spoiler.

If you were Baltimore what would you do? And based on what Baltimore does has a ripple effect in what Detroit GM DD Martin does when its his turn to go on the clock.

DD Martin · 03-11-2021, 02:07 PM

The Detroit World
Monday September 30th, 1935
Sports News
From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat

Mercifully This Brutal Season Comes to a End!

The Detroit Dynamo's have completed one of the worst seasons in the history of organized professional baseball. The team that limped home to the finish of the season lost their last 11 games straight. It appeared that they just gave up during the last two weeks. Sure there hasn't been anything to play for since Memorial Day, but somewhere along the way professional pride should take over. It will remain to be seen if the performance and general lack of effort and pride will impact anyone whether it be players, coaches or elsewhere.

No matter what happens, team Owner Eddie "Big Money" Thompson has vowed that a product like this will not happen again. Whether that means that Thompson will demand that certain moves are made just for the 36 season to be competitive are made of if he will allow the continued course where the team looks to be trying to build up a woeful minor league and player development system continues. Needless to say this season of futility set numerous club and league records.

[B]Records of Futility set 1935/B]
Club record Losses 111 (previous low water mark 93 losses in 1898)
Club record Runs scored against 1081 (previous mark 1925 Detroit 978)
FABL League record Runs scored against 1081 (former league record 1040 by 1890 Pittsburgh Miners)
Club record Earned Runs against 859 (League record 1930 St. Louis 896)
Club and FABL records for Team ERA 5.98 (previous league mark 1930 St. Louis 5.87)

(If we discover other records they will be noted in future editions)

So where do the Dynamo's go now that the season is over? We the start of the off-season for Detroit starts today with team owners Eddie Thompson and George Theobald meeting with GM DD Martin. No jobs are expected to be in danger, but it has been noted that Thompson was particularly displeased with how the team finished. We will cover any interesting findings from the meeting tomorrow.

Season End Purge Continues

The Dyanmo's DFA 5 more players from their 40-man roster with Monday mornings moves. RP Joe Munk (33), RP Alex Harold (24), 1B Frank Shafer (33), CF Bill Groom (33), and RF Jerry Pierce (29). That brings to a total of 7 players DFA in the last week and the 40-man roster is down to 31. With the retirements of C Dick York and P Max Wilder also occurring as the World Series ends next week, that number will be at 29. Indications are there are a couple of more players being closely looked at, but for now these are all that have been announced.

Kings Collaspe (Again), Foresters win CA Pennant

Detroit GM DD Martin's former team the Cleveland Foresters won their 2nd straight CA Title and again it was in the last week by the narrowest of margins. The Foresters topped the Kings by just 1 single game. For the Foresters this is their 5th CA title since the team's inception in 1890.

The success of the recent Forester teams have to give Detroit fans hope for the future that maybe Martin knows what he is doing. Time will tell on that one.

With the 2nd straight disappointing finish, it is rumored that Brooklyn Kings Owner Daniel Prescott is furious and that despite denials before, manager Walt Bailey's job is hanging by a thread.

New York Gotham's Once Again Reign in FA

The New York Gotham's continue a run of dominance at least in the FA by winning their 2nd straight FA Pennant and 4 in the last 6 seasons. If you go back to the 1926 title it makes 5 Gotham pennants in just 10 seasons. That is quite a run of success for the club that unfortunately for them has not transferred a World Series win. The Gotham's will be looking for their first World Series win since they won back to back titles in 1895 and 1896 seasons. Will this be the year?

Pioneers 2B Jones Great Season - Wins FA Batting Title

The Pioneers star 2B Freddie "Fredrick the Great" Jones flirted with hitting 400 this season. Jones needed to go 11-19 to reach the plateau but struggled going just 4-19 in the last week of the season as the Pioneers failed in their bid to unseat the New York Gothams atop the FA. Still for Jones who hit 389/511/1.011 with a WRC+ 178 with 8 home runs, 89 RBI's and 145 runs scored, it was a great season. One that might win him the Whitney Award. In his 4 seasons of major league baseball he has amassed 824 hits, 423 walks, 474 runs scored and 305 RBI's for a career line of 369/469/925.

While Jones was winning the batting title Philadelphia Keystones great 1B Rankin Kellogg was again enjoying a fabulous season. Kellogg led the major leagues in home runs with 45 and RBI's with 165 while batting 338. Those numbers are impressive and he and RF Bobby Barrell make a very good combination but the Keystones were not a real factor in the FA race finishing 83-71, 3rd place 10 games out.

Former Dynamo Dominates the CA Wins Triple Crown

Former Detroit OF Al Wheeler spotted everyone in the CA a 1 month head start but once the "Wonder Wheel" arrived he started hitting right away. For his time in Brooklyn in 128 games, Wheeler hit 362/437/1.086 34-100. He ended the year including his Detroit stats at 39 home runs and 149 RBI's while hitting 344. Despite his efforts the Kings did not topple the Foresters in the fight for the CA title.

New Pitching Coach at Class A Terre Haute

Sam Mills (56) agreed to accept the Class A job in Terre Haute after spending 7 years coaching in Denver for the WBL (Class A) Plainsmen. The hope is he will bring some stability to the minor league team after a very inconsistent 1935 season.

DD Martin · 03-12-2021, 09:22 PM

Detroit GM Holds Meeting with Owners
(from GM Martin's perspective)

The first game of the World Series is today and I have the radio out so that we can listen to it around what I am sure will be a very long meeting with both "Big Money" Eddie Thompson and George Theobald as we discuss the season and the next steps to get the team back on track quickly.

We started the meeting at 9 am and we had 3 hours until the first pitch of game 1. I had my meeting notes all scheduled out and knew that I need to at least show the guys that while things looked dreadful on the field that they were not as bad as they appeared (although they really were).

I was surprised at the amount of information that Mr. Thompson had written out. He had pages and pages of notes and if we were going to go through all of that we'd be here for several days. I hoped to be done so I could head off to Cleveland for the middle games of the Series and catch up with my old friend Rick Marshall.

The owners came in, pretty form and Mr. Thompson said "let's get to it". He was pretty clearly disappointed in just how badly the team struggled. He acknowledged that he understood the team was not a playoff caliber team and almost every baseball writer in the country had picked the Dynamo's to finish last, but the drastic drop-off had certainly worried him. "Maybe if we had kept Wheeler and Vance....." he tailed off. So I took that as my cue to show exactly what we traded, what we got and where we are going.

Dynamo Trades in 1935

The first trade was the big trade with Brooklyn. A deal where we sent SP Jack Beach, OF Art Wheeler and 3B Frank Vance to Brooklyn for the Kings first 8 draft picks in the 1935 draft and 5 prospects.

What We Gave Up -
OF Art Wheeler (27) managed to put up triple crown numbers in the CA even after he was in Detroit for the first month of the season. Since Detroit is in the FA and Brooklyn is in the CA, only Wheeler's stats since the trade were counted in for his CA Awards. When Wheeler left Detroit the team was 13-13 and Wheeler was off to a very slow start. He was just hitting 250 with 5 homers and 19 RBI's. Once he got to Brooklyn and the mood of a winning team he went off in 128 games for 34 home runs, 130 RBI's and he hit 362. There is no doubt that Wheeler would have come around for us in Detroit, he is too good a hitter, but being left handed the move to Brooklyn was a good one for him. I wouldn't be shocked if he hit 50 home runs next year.

3B Frank Vance (33) who went to Brooklyn and they played him at 1B. Vance's skills as a 3B were on the wane and had deteriorated significantly. If he had stayed in Detroit he would have also made the shift to 1B. Fielding wise Vance is a league average 1B so he won't be detracting as much on that side of the field. Vance was off to a terrific start hitting 366 with 4 home runs and 24 RBI's for us prior to leaving. He hit 354 with just 7 home runs in Brooklyn but drove in 91 RBI's and getting on-base with 69 walks to have an on-base % of 432.

SP Jack Beach (33) wasn't sharp in the first month here in Detroit (1-1 6.00 ERA 4 starts) and never really got going. He was ok at AAA for Brooklyn going 10-3 with a 3.90 ERA but when up with Brooklyn he was brutal going 1-1 with an 8.78 ERA. When Brooklyn asked for Beach who was not originally part of the deal I simply agreed because honestly I thought he was done. His pitching after the trade didn't change my mind. He likely will not be in Brooklyn and if they don't trade him they will designate him.

What we Got - Brooklyn's 1st-8th draft picks that will be the 13th pick in each of those rounds. Who those players will be will be decided in several months when the draft takes place in December.

We also picked up 5 players in the deal.

SP Earle Robinson (19) was the top prize in the players coming back. Robinson pitched well for us going 5-2 at Class B Chattanooga with a 2.62 ERA in 68.2 innings. The only issue was he missed the last half of the season with back injury. But he is cleared and will begin a throwing program to get him ready for spring. At currently only 19 he is likely ticketed for Class A Terre Haute for most of next year and he is likely either a 1937 or 38 part of our rotation. He is currently rated the #24 prospect in baseball.

SP Jack Wood (22) pitched for us in AAA during his age 22 season coming straight from college. He was 4-7 with a 5.44 ERA so he has some work to do still, but that said his future looks bright and we are in no rush to promote him. He is currently the #63 rated prospect in baseball.

SS Tip Harrison (24) is the #46 rated prospect and split time between Class A, AA and even played 57 games at AAA Newark. He will begin next season at AAA to play for a full season and will likely get a call up in September. In 1936 we envision him being our everyday starting SS.

CF Jose Serna (23) played 49 games at the big league level and became the first of the 5 players to make it to Detroit. He hit a respectable 316 in 225 PA's with 11 doubles, 6 triples and 3 home runs. He played a very solid CF for us and we only expect he will get better.

LF Jay Buckingham (24) was the last of the 5 that came over in this deal. He hit 280/361 in 240 plate appearances. He will likely be on the opening day roster next year and he is a great joking clubhouse presence which only makes him a little more valuable in our eyes.

Summary - As long as we hit solidly on our draft picks, I think in the long run we will do quite well in this trade.

Trade #2 - and #3

Separate deals but in the first one we traded SP Roy Calfee (38) to Pittsburgh where he went 4-8 with a 5.51 ERA before ending the year injured with shoulder inflammation. In return we picked up a young SS Frank Davis (19) who hit 319 in Class C Biloxi and looks like a solid SS and will likely move up the ranks to start the year at Class B in the spring.

The other deal say us trade away SP Wayne Robinson (37) to the Chicago Cougars. Robinson went 6-9 with a 5.85 ERA in 26 games in Chicago and appears to be winding down his career. He was once a great SP but that time has passed. We picked up a very good 2B in Homer Ray who hit 291 in AAA Newark for half the season. He looks to possibly break spring training with the big league club and if not in April then he will surely be up sometime during the season. We also picked up veteran RP Chick Meehan (38) in the deal hoping he would find the fountain of youth and then we could flip him at the deadline. He ended up injured after being ineffective and was released before the end of July.

Summary - Pick up a future starter in Ray and a very capable SS prospect in Davis for two aging and likely done starting pitchers.

Trade #4 - Trading SS Bob Barringer to Chicago Chiefs
Barringer (29) was an all-star this season and hit 322 with us in Detroit in 50 games. He moved to Chicago and struggled with the bat hitting just 234 in 84 games as the Chiefs starting SS. We received two SP prospects and our hope was that hopefully one would pan out. That looks like it might be SP Art Brandon (19) who went 8-2 with a 3.19 ERA at Class B and is ticketed to moving to Class A next season. We also picked up another SP in Harvey Gaines (19) who just couldn't stay healthy. We will send him back to Class B and hope he gets into a healthy state and can make something of his career. He has tools but he needs to put somethings together.

Minor trades along the way. We traded for Cleveland backup C Jim Kyle (29) because we need to replace Dick York who had announced his retirement. Kyle was not going to start in Cleveland with TR Goins still going strong and the Foresters new GM wanted to bring up C Jeff Rose so we shipped a minor league P Mike Phillips to Cleveland. Kyle responded well to the trade and hit 279 with 5 home runs in 35 games and 111 AB's.

We traded Brooklyn's 7th round pick we acquired for SP Jim Crawford (29). I had seen Crawford pitch well in the CA with the Cougars so I felt he was young enough and still had some promise to take a flyer on him here. He went 2-6 with us and a 5.43 ERA (which for us was solid) and he will be back next year in the rotation. While he is not an all-star I believe him to be a very capable bottom of the rotation SP.

Summary Overall - My message to Mr. Thompson and Mr. Theobald was simple, we traded a lot of old SP's (3), a superstar OF who did fit our field well and would be in his 30's before we got back to being good and a 3B who while still good has definitely turned the corner on his career. We also traded a decent SS who was 29 and would be likely past his prime once we arrived back on the contending scene. What we got was youth, promise and the opportunity to help build this club with these young guys. Most of them will be around for years and even a decade for us or more. We just need to have patience to let them develop. We also picked up RF Howard Moss (29) who hit 294 with 11 home runs and 52 RBI's in 60 games. He will be starting in RF for us next spring. We picked him up for a minor league 3B Harry Peterson who I didn't have a lot of use for.

If we had kept all the pieces, we would have had a better record. But that said we still would be last, we might have gotten to 60 wins (60-94) we'd have 8-10 less youngsters who will have a shot at being around years and less quality draft picks to try and rebuild this thing quickly. I told them both that I think it was definitely the right move and even though we were terrible at the end of the year, I wouldn't have changed a thing.

Well that is not exactly true I would have changed 1 thing. I would have accepted Chicago's offer for a 3rd round pick and 2 players (one being OF Reyes) for OF Henry Jones. That was a mistake on my part not to accept that deal.

Budget
Next Mr. Thompson brought up attendance which had crashed to just 341,503 this season. I knew where this was going, it was headed to profit and the budget for next season. Thompson indicated that while the team was still profitable this season making $65,700 we had fallen dramatically over the years. He indicated that he didn't want to see the team fall into a situation where we were losing money so he was thinking about cutting the budget $120,000 from $550,000 (which we spent $376,000) to $430,000.

I had a feeling this was coming and was prepared to discuss why it would be ok to 1.) leave the budget alone next year and 2.) why it would be ok if we just broke even or even lost a few thousand dollars next season. Thompson indicated that I should go on....

So I started to talk about the scope of the rebuilding project we in front of us. How the financial structure of the team was significantly messed up in both the player development and scouting areas.

Player Development - Our spending last season was $54,000 which I felt that was about $18,000 too low and would be closer to $20,500 too low for next season. I explained that when we acquire young talent it is unacceptable to not have proper coaching staffs in place as it was when I got here. We quickly fixed that but with the season already a month in we were not picking the best coaches just who we could find that was available. With young draft picks (and we will get to more of that soon) we need to have the best equipment, and coaches that we can get. So with that we will be going to the FABL upper limits in spending, regardless of what we do with the overall budget.

Scouting - This was an area that I was ashamed of and not of Scout Fred Davis. He did the best he could with what he had but we had significantly underspent in this area and it could make a huge difference for us during this upcoming draft. Our scouting department was not set up the way I had done previously with Ollie Moses in Cleveland. Our budget was skewed to scouting more major league players than it was the minor leagues and the draft. On top of that we were woefully under budgeted in this area and were roughly $45,000 (for 1936) below acceptable funding. I let both owner know that we would be moving more operating funds into this area next season and that between Player Development and Scouting, there would be our profit from the 1935 season.

Draft - Besides the above two groups we look at our draft expense for next season. We double picks in the first 5 rounds we would be spending a lot of money on draft pick signing bonuses next season. With the #2 pick most of the guys that make an impact in those areas are wanting between $16,000-$21,000. Our projected budget is just $21,600 and we need to look at moving that to closer to $40,000-$45,000.

In those 3 areas that will be almost $100,000 more in expenses than we spent last season. When Mr. Thompson indicated that would have meant we would have operated at a loss of roughly $30,000 this season, I cut him off. I respectfully said "Look Mr. Thompson, your nickname is "big money" and you and the other owners have been making BIG MONEY for years while this operation was falling apart. Now it is time to reinvest that money and by doing so you will get this team back on solid footing sooner rather than later. Taking the CHEAP way out will only set back what we are going to do. I am prepared to make these adjustments even if you pare the budget, but it will come out of player salaries and that will effect the product on the field. While we will not be winning any championships next season regardless of who is on the field, I'd hate to start making decisions on putting a more competitive team on the field because we didn't want to fund an operating loss for a year or two. I have looked at the books of just the baseball team and over the last 10 years this franchise has made over $5 million dollars and that was during a depression. If you take the time this upcoming season and even the 1937 season and invest in this teams future, I can guarantee we will be doing those type of numbers again very very soon. The choice is yours gentlemen, you can cut the overall budget but I will make these structural changes to the organization. I think they are important enough that I will sacrifice another season if I need too. We aren't going to win next year so wasting money on excessive payroll for a 50-60 win club makes not sense. So if I have to cut team payroll to the lowest in the league, I will do it. That will effect the number of fans coming out even more. You can say no, and override my decision if you choose but that just means that I will not be the GM here next week.

With that I got up and left the meeting.....needing to take a break but hoping that my academy award performance for leaving the budget alone will make sense.

The Detroit World
Friday October 4th, 1935
Sports News
From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat

First Two Games of World Series End with New York Leading 2-0

The Gotham's are looking to wipe out their World Series demons as they took a 2-0 lead in this year's Fall Classic at home in Bigsby Oval. The Oval was being rebuilt in New York and the Gotham's had been playing their home games at Dyckman Field home of the CA NY Stars. While the Gotham's played well at home this year going 51-26, they were happy to be playing these two games at their new and improved stadium.

Over 50,000 attended both games as in game 1 SP Rabbit Day shut down the Forester's in pitching a 4-hitter winning 4-1. Game 2 saw Gotham SP Jim Lonardo who wasn't his same sharp self most of the season, continue with a 2nd half rebound and hold off the Forester's by a 6-3 count.

The series shifts to Cleveland now for the next 3 games where the Forester's hope to regain their hitting form and force the series back to New York for a Game 6. The Gotham's would just as soon not come back home to play games but to hold a parade with their first World Series victory in 39 years.

Detroit GM Holds Meeting with Owners
(from GM Martin's perspective)

The first game of the World Series is today and I have the radio out so that we can listen to it around what I am sure will be a very long meeting with both "Big Money" Eddie Thompson and George Theobald as we discuss the season and the next steps to get the team back on track quickly.

We started the meeting at 9 am and we had 3 hours until the first pitch of game 1. I had my meeting notes all scheduled out and knew that I need to at least show the guys that while things looked dreadful on the field that they were not as bad as they appeared (although they really were).

DD Martin · 03-14-2021, 07:16 PM

Later that day I returned to my office at the stadium and put Game 1 of the World Series on the radio. The Foresters had just clawed back a run in the top of the 3rd to get on the board and trail 3-1. Unfortunately it would be the last run of the day for the Forester's. They were facing an old nemesis in former Baltimore Cannon SP Rabbit Day.

As I sat back and listened to the game and gathered my thoughts of what had occurred earlier in the morning, George Theobald walked into my office. The elderly gentleman smiled as he walked inside and sat down. I was expecting to hear him blast me for the way I handled things earlier but I was wrong.

Theobald - Listen you fella. That took a lot of strength and passion to express yourself that way with Eddie here. He normally can use his size and his money to get people to react the way he wants them too. But you, you didn't back down and that showed him something. He believes in you kid, and honestly so do I. So whatever you are doing, stick to the plan. Thompson likes you, he will work with you. Yes he doesn't want to lose too much money, who does. But we have done well enough that we will be able to get by during a few down seasons.

As the old man got up out of his chair, he reached out his hand to me and said this.

Theobald - I can't promise you he will give you everything you want for next year, but he also won't get in your way. Just don't take too long getting the team back on track.

And just as quickly and quietly as he came in, he was gone. I felt more reassured in my plan more than ever now. We would focus on scouting, the draft and player development to get the team back on the right footing. I started to think about scouting and while Fred Davis was a nice man and pretty good, I was really missing the guy that was my right arm in Cleveland, Scouting Director Ollie Moses. I knew that Ollie was locked in at Cleveland and had not too long ago signed an extension. So there was no going about bringing him into Detroit anytime soon.

I began going through every organization, top to bottom and even the Indie leagues. While I wasn't prepared to let Fred Davis (who had a year left on his contract) go, I was also thinking about the things I wanted to do in the front office. I wasn't sure Fred was up to the job but if I couldn't find an affordable alternative, he would stay.

Someone who wasn't staying was my assistant GM Bert Manning. Bert's contract was up after the season and while he seemed like a nice guy he just wasn't very into what he was doing. Maybe it was the way the front office ran before my arrival, but he just wasn't engaged at all. So we have an open position and depending on my budget and what I do with our scouting department, it will either remain that way or Fred Davis will slide over into the AGM chair.

While I am sure that the ongoing World Series is going to be a very good one. Part of me is hoping that it gets over with sooner rather than later just so we can get started on the new baseball year.

Quote:

Games 3 and 4 of the series will be simmed Monday morning so we will do a quick update and see if my former guys in Cleveland can get back in this thing at home. If not then it may finally be the Gotham's turn to win the big one, and after 39 seasons that is a pretty long wait.

DD Martin · 03-16-2021, 01:36 PM

World Series Trip to Cleveland

I was getting ready to go with my wife to Cleveland to where it all began for me on this crazy baseball journey. Games 3, 4 and 5 will be played there. The Gotham's jumped on the Foresters in games 1 and 2 taking a 2-0 lead. I can't believe that I am an outside bystander in this who thing. I started by journey into big league baseball at 25 hired basically by my best friends grandfather Harold Marshall. When Harold passed away is when things got really weird but also successful in Cleveland. My only regret while I was in Cleveland was that I couldn't get Harold Marshall at championship before he passed away. Now after a tumultuous off-season in Cleveland I fled town to Detroit. Rick Marshall (Cleveland owner) and I have patched things up and he understood the move. Luckily for Rick, his pain in the ass gangsta father is now in jail and hopefully permanently out of the Foresters business.

But we head off to Cleveland though I had to finish some business with Mr. Thompson and Mr. Theobald. It really was nice to work with gentlemen even though I blew up and walked out. Mr. Theobald was right, Mr. Thompson liked my fire and just told me to do what I needed to do to back bring championship baseball to Detroit. He said he will work with me on the budget but he did buy into my front office, scouting and player development plans. He told me to enjoy the time in Cleveland, but he jokingly said don't get too comfortable there as I am not letting you out of your contract here.

World Series Game 3 -
I was in the seats at the stadium that Rick Marshall had behind home plate. Our wives went out shopping together while we sat at the game and watched. In a game that went back and forth New York had scored 1 in the 8th and 2 in the top of the 9th to take an 8-5. It wasn't looking good and surprising neither had SP Eddie Quinn. I remember acquiring Eddie in spring training before last year's championship season thinking he might be the final piece needed to get us over the hump. He had pitched well this year with a solid 3.21 ERA but luck wasn't really on his side as he managed just an 18-15 record this year. Today the Gotham's rocked him for 6 runs in 8 innings, but it was Sergio Gonzalez who took the ball in the 9th and laid an absolute egg. Sergio was young and I had and still do have real high expectations for him but he hadn't achieved the success I thought he would in Cleveland. He is exactly the type of pitcher who would do well in Detroit, but I can't see him leaving Cleveland. I really hadn't intended this to be a scouting trip so I got back into watching the game. Fortunately the Foresters rallied for 3 in the 9th to tie it and win it in the 10th on 3B Charlie Barry's solo blast. Cleveland won the game and now trails just 2-1 in the World Series.

World Series Game 4
This was going to be a good one and it was. New York started Rabbit Day who used to pitch in Baltimore and drive us nuts, he was that good. Pitching for Cleveland was Dean Astle who I was a little surprised hadn't started a game before game 4 of the series. Being in Detroit this season I hadn't seen a good old fashion pitchers duel much with our starting rotation being such a shambles. I wasn't disappointed on this day as both Astle and Day pitched brilliantly through 10 innings of a 1-1 game. I was watching as Cleveland was up in the bottom of the 10th and didn't see anyone warming up. I love manager Jim Wilson to death, but sometimes he just hangs on too long to a starter. It is probably because he was a former starter and his youthfulness as a manager. It would come to be the Foresters undoing in this game as New York scored 6 runs in the top of the 11th inning. I watched as I saw the spirit squashed out of the team that had endured a lot this season with losing Max Morris in September, and then losing Don Ward in game 1. I wasn't sure they could come back from such a brutal defeat.

World Series Game 5
My worst fears as a fan of the Foresters came true. While they did score a run in the top of the 1st there just didn't appear to be any life in them. New York cruised to a easy 10-1 victory to clinch its first World Series (1896) since before I was born.

My hat goes off to the Gotham's though. They showed grit all season as the St. Louis Pioneers sprinted to an early lead. But slowly the Gotham's gained traction and you could see the pieces coming together. It was manager Ed Ziehl first championship as a life long Gotham player and now manager after 30 years.

What's coming next
We spent a few more days in Cleveland with Rick and his wife before we boarded the train back to Detroit. It was time to start preparing for the off-season and the draft.

Speaking of the draft Baltimore was now officially on the clock with the #1 pick. They have said that they would listen to offers for the pick and the opportunity to "win the lottery" for high school phenom and family legacy legend Rufus Barrell II. For us while we might be able to pull off a trade like that with the draft capital we had, I wasn't really looking to move. It was a fairly certain lock that whoever had #1 (and I'm betting on Baltimore keeping the pick) would take Rufus II. That meant that one of the most high praised slugging 1B in recent memory since maybe Rankin Kellogg (no one compares with Max Morris out of high school) would be ours at #2. There was talk that maybe we go with 3B Mack Sutton since that was more a position of need for us in the organization, but Johnson just looked and sounded too good to pass up. Unless someone got really crazy with a trade offer, Johnson would be coming to our organization.

We also had #13 in the first round thanks to our trade with Brooklyn. While the deal didn't get the King's the title this year that they so desperately crave, I remembered the trades I made in Cleveland. Deals that put us on the road to a championship even if it was a year or two down the line.

While I was in Cleveland I did manage to do some work for us in Detroit and no it wasn't scouting Forester players that I wanted to target and bring to us. I was talking to some coaches and managers as I start to really look at our organization. While I won't disclose the names of those individuals at this time, it is safe to say that our minor league coaching will have some changes to it as we move into the future.

DD Martin · 03-18-2021, 05:07 PM

Moving onto the Draft

Well unless there is a stunning development or trade the top 2 picks in the FABL draft will likely already be made according to plan. Baltimore will most likely select SP Rufus Barrell II and add to an impressive young core group of SP's all 20 and younger. This team is going to be tough to beat if they all develop and remain major injury free. By the 1938 season most likely all 4 will be in the Cannon's rotation.

That will leave us with the #2 pick and everyone figures that we will be taken 1B Red Johnson with that pick. The power this kid possess with his right handed swing will be fit perfectly into our short porch in LF.

After those top 2 picks then the next 4 are expected to be in some order 3B Mack Sutton, SP George Garrison, C Bll Van Ness and 3B Hank Koblenz. It should be a real fun draft. Besides the #2 overall pick we have the #13 pick in the first round and then also the #18 overall pick with the 2nd pick in the 2nd round. We are hopefully of adding 3 very good players that are going to be a major impact to our franchise for years to come.

DD Martin · 03-19-2021, 11:54 AM

The Detroit World
Friday December 6th, 1935
Sports News
From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat

The Draft Has Begun and Dyanmo's Make an Offensive Splash

Dyanmo's Nab 1B Red Johnson with #2 Overall Pick

With the youthful talent that some say legends are made, the Dynamo's selected the best high school power hitter that has been seen in a decade. With the #2 overall pick, Detroit selected high school 1B Red Johnson (18) out of Portland, Oregon. All the scouts are raving about his power possibilities and a number of them had him rated higher on their boards that overall #1 Rufus Barrell II. Detroit's Director of Scouting Fred Davis stated that "The lean and athletic 1B has a plus-plus eye that should put him among the league leaders in walks and on-base %. He projects to be an elite hitter both for average and more importantly for the Dynamo's, power. Playing in Detroit, Johnson looks like he could have a legendary career."

The national service also said about the 6'1 185 high schooler, who hit over 500 in both his high school seasons with 21 home runs. "Johnson is an elite hitter with plus power and a plus-plus eye who should shred Dynamo records in Thompson Field."

The next key will be signing the slugger which won't be easy. He appears to be looking for a signing bonus of close to $20,000. He has committed to Stratton University for college if Detroit should fail to sign him. But with the Dynamo's they can ill-afford to blow it so expect them to give him anything he wants.

Dynamo's move up in trade with Chicago Cougars to Take 3B Hank Koblenz

The Dynamo's had the #13 overall pick, which was their 2nd first round choice acquired from the Brooklyn Kings. Detroit feeling that the pitchers they were looking at would not be there when they picked decided to get aggressive. They traded their remaining 1st round pick #13, their 2nd round pick from Brooklyn #29 and their own 3rd round pick #34 to the Cougars to move up to the #5 spot. There was probably some hope that they would be able to draft 3B Mack Sutton with the pick but he went to Boston when they acquired the pick for a AAA SP and #30 Roy Price. It is rumored that Detroit was in negotiations for the #4 pick as well but the pitching starved Washington Eagles are doing what a lot of teams seem to be doing, and are overpaying for pitching.

With the pick in hand and Sutton off the board, the Dynamo's still seemed happy to grab another 3B from Milwaukee, Wisconsin in Hank Koblenz (19). The high school senior will be another tough signing as he is looking for similar figure in the $18,000 range as Johnson. If he doesn't sign he will take his talents to Springfield State University. Nobody expects the Dynamo's to mess around with either of these guys when it comes to signing. As a high school senior Koblenz bashed 12 home runs and hit 484 while driving in 42 RBI's. Again being a right handed power bat plays well at Thompson Field, so if both guys pan out the Dynamo's might have their corner infield set for 15 years once they are up.

Scout Fred Davis raved that "Not only do other players look up to Koblenz but he has tons of raw power and will someday (likely with his teammate Johnson) via for Association home run titles. He has above average contact skills, a smooth swing with quick hands and good pitch recognition. He may not be an elite defensive 3B, but he's solidly above average. Koblenz has good potential and a very promising future." The national scouting service basically concurs with the Dynamo's head scout.

The Dynamo's traded a lot of draft capital to move up 8 spots and compared to the relative bargain that Boston to grab the #4 pick and keep their own #6 pick, it is still a deal most in Detroit seem excited about. When asked about the Washington/Boston deal, GM Martin just shrugged his shoulders and said that "We didn't have the near ready pitchers Washington was looking for and if we did we likely wouldn't have moved them anyway."

The one thing that Detroit didn't address in the 1st round was that of the serious need for starting pitching. When pressed about that, Martin said "This isn't a 1 year fix here, but don't worry there is always a plan. We might still find a way to acquire some pitching yet, even if it is not in the early rounds of this years draft."

Dynamo's On the Clock in the 2nd Round, Take CF Williams with #18 Pick

Some say the Dynamo's were targeting OF Prospect Nate Drake, a speedster from Buffalo, NY. Drake was selected in front of Detroit by the Baltimore Cannons with the first pick of the 2nd round. While Drake wasn't a CF by trade, it was felt he would be able to make the switch to the middle. With Drake off the board, the Dynamo's nabbed a true CF in college player Ollie Williams (21). Williams was a CF for Northern California University. He hit 308 in both his seasons at the school and was well over 400 in on-base average. He stole over 60 bases between the 2 seasons as well. The Dynamo's may have found a speedy leadoff hitter for themselves with this pick.

Scout Fred Davis chimed in "Williams is originally from Texas and is a defensive marvel in CF. He has good contact skills and elite speed and should be a top of the order hitter with an excellent ability to put pressure on opposing pitchers and defenses with his speed."

With the trades the team made to move up for Koblenz the Dynamo's will not pick again until late in the 3rd round at #45 and then again early in the 4th round at #50. When we talked to GM DD Martin he was looking very happy with how things had worked out, "We had a great day!"

DD Martin · 03-22-2021, 02:53 PM

Days 2-4 of Player Draft

Over the course of the draft we selected a total of 31 players. 21 of the draft picks have signed their rookie deals and unfortunately only 2 have appeared in our initial prospect rankings. While not shocking you are always hoping that you can find a few nuggets that surprise.

Our 8th round pick OF Bob Thomas has appeared currently as our #7 prospect and #133 overall. The 22 year old was signed out of Georgia Baptist after he hit 265/424/990 with 10 home runs and 29 RBI's. He does a good job drawing walks and has decent speed swiping 29 bags last season.

5th Round pick SP Harry Frenette (18) is a Canadian and was drafted out of high school. He was 8-0 with 1.85 ERA in 12 starts. He appears in our rankings as our #19 prospect and #347 overall. He has a lot of movement on his pitches and has a 5-pitch mix. He probably is a long shot, but he certainly has a shot to one day make it to the big leagues.

Draft picks negotiating their contracts are -
1st round picks 1B Red Johnson and 3B Hank Koblenz. Both are looking for $18,000 and are considered extremely hard to sign. We are not fiddling around with these guys and have offered to meet their demands.

Also negotiating is 2nd round CF Ollie Williams who is requesting a $5,500 bonus.

Our 3rd round pick P Joe Boyd (18) was 18-4 with a 1.58 ERA in 2 high school seasons. He was incredibly consistent going 9-2 in both seasons starting 14 games each season and tossing 108.1 innings in both years. I am a little surprised that he wasn't rated but currently the jury is out on whether he can start and that is likely effecting his rating. I think he has a solid shot at starting and he will be doing just that as one of 6 SP's at Class C Biloxi to start the season. Boyd didn't really seem to want to go to college and immediately signed a contract.

Since we covered the top 3 picks in details on day 1 here is a little more detail on the remaining currently unsigned picks. We do not anticipate having issues signing any of them.

C Ernie Miller (21) was the 4th round selection. We are looking for catching talent for our organization as it is really a pretty barren wasteland of lacking talent in the minors. Miller is considered a superior defensive catcher which is good since there is considerable debate how well he will meet the ball with his hitting. I see him as a back up catcher on our club down the road because of his superior defense. His only negative is a penchant for speaking his mind so we will try and teach him to reign it in a bit. He is seeking a bonus of just $590.

4th round SP Floyd "Snowman" Frost (18) was a cool cat in high school going 7-1 with a 1.65 ERA his senior year. He is a groundball pitcher who throws left-handed. He will join Frenette in the Biloxi starting rotation come this spring. He throws up to 6 different offerings that all have plenty of movement which will play well. While not projected to a top of the rotation guy, he does have back of the rotation talent. We need all 5 slots of the rotation filled since we were so horrendous last season. His signing bonus demand is $1,600.

We had 3 4th round picks and the last of which is SS Jim Parmelee (22) out of Daniel Boone College. He was considered an end of round 2-early round 3 talent and might have dropped because he has some lack of drive and can become complacent. He stole 69 bases in 2 seasons at DB, and is considered an excellent defensive player. He has good plate discipline but grades out slightly below average as a hitter. His bonus demands is $910 for a new car.

SP Dan Reeves (21) is a right handed ground ball pitcher selected in the 5th round. His final year at Miami State U was a bit of a let down after sophomore season going 4-4 with a 4.06 ERA. He has average stuff but tends to run up his pitch counts. We are currently undecided on if he will start at Class B or Class C and will see how things look this spring before deciding. Our Class B rotation is pretty loaded but at least 2-3 of those guys could be moving up quickly to Class A. If there is an opening we will slide him to class B because of his age, but if not he will be in the Class C rotation. Signing bonus demand was $460, and we offered him $500 just to be nice.

6th Round high schooler SP Ike O'Donnell (19) is committed to play at Carolina Poly. His desire to go to college is fair, but we believe the over slot $1000 bonus will get him to sign. He has 5 pitches and has a very promising change up that he will likely lean heavily on. He has strong control and won't give up many walks. Once signed he will be starting at Class C Biloxi.

3B Frank Cook (18) was originally drafted by the New York Gothams in the 7th round and it appears it was a mistake. Someone punched the wrong name into the telegraph as they intended to take Manager Ed Ziehl son, 3B Eddie Ziehl. We selected Ziehl Jr. 2 picks later. Being the nice guys that we are shipped the kid to New York for the 3B they took (Cook) and RP Ray Foster along with $10,000 cash. I was not hoping to use that cash to sign Cook, but he is looking for a $2,500 bonus. We will give it to him and hope that he is not a wasted pick. In his last 2 high school seasons he hit 500 and 505 with 29 doubles over those 2 seasons. He looks like a solid hitter but will it be enough?

12th Round pick 1B George Green (18) is the last of the bonus babies we have. He is looking for a $1,000 bonus and we are grudgingly going to give it to him simply because this organization is so lacking in talent. Obviously with Red Johnson being picked in the 1st round he really has no where to go, but if he pans out he could be a trade chip or maybe we will try him in the corner OF early next year.

We set aside a draft bonus amount of $50,000 and we are spending $49,560 which is partially offset by the $10,000 received from the Gotham's (Thank You). Now we will move forward with the off-season activities and head straight to the Rule 5 draft. I was disappointed in the talent available but maybe we will find a few pieces to plug in. We will take some changes on a few guys since we will not be competing next season so we at worst will strengthen our system. After that will be the minor league draft (1 round) and the Indie League Draft (1 round). We will be picking 2nd in both of those if we find anyone worth taking.

Transactions before the Rule 5 Draft -

We DFA 2B Bob Baker (31) who did a fine overall job for us last season. He was with us in Cleveland as well and was up and down there. He is a good quality depth piece who can play a solid 2B, and when his bat is going he can hit 300. If he is not claimed we will assign him to Class AAA where he will likely work with some of our young talent there like 2B Homer Ray.

Promoted to the 40-man roster were SP Jack Stemm (25) and CF John Cannon (26). Stemm was kept not because he was dominate at Class AAA last year, but he wasn't terrible and we have a glaring lack of big league arms in our organization. He will via for a spot on the big league club in spring training and depending on acquisitions will likely get a shot. If not he will use an option to pitch again at AAA Newark where he went 5-9 with a 5.00 ERA in 24 starts. Cannon was kept simply because of his base stealing capabilities as he swiped 45 bases at AAA Newark. If we get into a roster crunch then veteran OF Joe Snider (30) will likely be the odd man out.

Next - Rule 5 Draft

Bub13 · 03-22-2021, 03:52 PM

And so it begins.

"The journey of a thousand miles..." etc.

Looking forward to seeing how this plays out!

DD Martin · 03-25-2021, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bub13

And so it begins.

"The journey of a thousand miles..." etc.

Looking forward to seeing how this plays out!

It's going to be a long journey but I am pretty pleased with the off-season as you will see here shortly.

DD Martin · 03-25-2021, 10:54 AM

The Detroit World
Sunday, January 19th, 1936
Sports News
From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat

The Off-Season Roles on, Has it Been a Success?

When GM DD Martin took over this job in early May 1935 he stated that the franchise was broken and in need of serious repair. The team had finished 7th in 1934 with a 73-81 record. The pitching staff was aging, the minor league system was a mess as most affiliates didn't have managers or coaches for the entire 34 season. The front office was basically run by manager Tom Bray who was trying to keep the ship from sinking. The minor league development and scouting were a shambles. The team had no top 100 prospects and was ranked dead last (well tied anyway) in the FABL.

What followed was a blockbuster trade sending OF Art Wheeler, 3B/1B Frank Vance and SP Jim Beach to Brooklyn for a slew of draft picks and 5 prospects. A terrible season on the field that left many wonder what in the heck this GM was doing as the team finished with a franchise record 43-111 won/loss record. The losses were the 2nd most in FABL history (record 112).

What followed was a bit of a rocky meeting with the clubs ownership regarding where the team was going, and the budget. While the budget was reduced it was not reduced enough to significantly change the direction of what GM Martin wanted to do. Continue to upgrade and rebuild a once proud franchise. When questioned by reporters, fans, owners and anyone else who care about things, Martin just responded to his "Off-season Plan, there is always a plan".

While the 1936 season will likely not be remembered as the greatest turnaround in baseball history on the field, the organization does feel like it is going in the right direction. With the draft in the rearview mirror we moved onto the Rule 5 draft.

Dynamo's Select 6 Players in Rule 5 Draft

As promised the Dynamo's were very active in the Rule 5 draft. No there was no real blockbuster names in it, but the team did pick up some talent with 4 pitchers and an OF with a very interesting nickname being added.

Dynamo Rule 5 selections
SP Earle Killebrew, 23 (from Philadelphia Sailors) was 18-5 with a 2.77 ERA at class B Miami. He has shonw improvement in his velocity over his early years going from 80-83 to now 86-88. He throws 4 pitches and while they aren't consider "plus" he does throw strikes. His likely role this season will be as a long reliever who might get a few starts here and there.

SP Ben Watkins, 25 (from the Baltimore Cannons). Most likely available because of the Cannons wealth of young arms and a partially torn UCL in late July (35). He should be ready to pitch in spring training and scouts have him pegged from a mid-rotation arm to a front line SP. In 1932 he was named the #40 prospect in baseball. He pitched in Class A ball last year going 11-8 with a 4.08 ERA before his injury. Whether he pans out to his potential remains to be seen but he seems like a good candidate to take a flyer on.

P Ray Lee, 23 (from the Montreal Saints) - Lee has bounced around a bit in his early career after being named the #84 prospect in 1932. He was traded by the Chicago Chiefs during last season and came to Montreal with another player in exchange for OF Cliff Moss. He pitched mainly in relief this last season mostly at AA. The jury is out on whether Lee will develop into a SP. He does have 3 pitches and he manages to throw them all for strikes but he could end up being a middle man in the pen.

OF Joe Goodwin, 23 (also acquired from the Montreal Saints) has the unique nickname as "The Demon from Demopolis" (Alabama). He has power in his swing and he is still working to put it all together. He was a 2nd round pick of the Saints in 1930. He will likely see limited time this season but could work his way into getting more at-bats as the season moves along.

The final player acquired was a personal favorite of GM Martin from his days in Cleveland. SP George Coleman, 27 (from the Cleveland Foresters) is older than the other players taken. Coleman never got a real long chance at pitching for the Foresters and he was available in this draft. With Detroit's significant lack of quality arms, he will be given every chance this spring to make the team and fill in either as a SP or out of the bullpen. Of all the players taken, he is the only one out of options and the others could all be sent down after the season for more development. Coleman will have to show that he deserves a future roster spot, but Martin is happy to give him the opportunity.

As we said the Dynamo's selected 6 players and we have noted only 5. That is because the team did pick another SP in the Rule 5 Draft. Bud Robbins, 22 was selected from the Pittsburgh Miners and was rated the #85 prospect in baseball. Through a claimed clerical error it was deemed that Robbins should not have been exposed. After talking it over with the Pittsburgh GM and the league offices, the Dynamo's agreed to send him back but were looking for fair compensation for being the "good guys". Some have speculated that the Dynamo's should have just kept him, stash him on the roster and then developed him for a year or two more in the upper minors. Others have questioned why the Dynamo's would trade him back. Well whether it was the right decision for the organization the Dynamo's did send him back to Pittsburgh in a trade for a 3rd round pick in next year's draft.

Dynamo's make moves in the Minor League Draft and the Indie League Draft.

The team that needs pitching got a significant boost in stock over the last few weeks as the Dynamo's brought in 2 pitching talents via the minor league and Indie League drafts. In the minor league draft (1 round) a team may select any player that would be rule 5 eligible or have 4 years pro statistic from an unaffiliated minor league team (Indie team). The Dynamo's used their pick in this draft to claim SP Luis Sandoval, 23 from the Waco Wranglers of the Lone Star Association. The LSA is considered a AA minor league association with teams down in Texas. Sandoval went 13-8 with a 4.07 ERA in 30 starts last season. While he will be occupying a spot on the 40-man roster, he will be assigned to Class AAA Newark (This is the difference between the Rule 5 Draft and the Minor League Draft). He immediately checks in as the Dynamo's #15 prospect and is #211 overall.

The real find for the Dynamo's and the one that has GM DD Martin claiming that the off-season was a success was the Indy League Drafting of SP Ray McCarthy, 21 from the El Paso Missions. The Indy League Draft acts more like a trade as the Dynamo's had to give the El Paso team a player in return. The league announced that player would be 28 year old SP Spike Manifold.

McCarthy checks in as the Dynamo's #3 rated prospect and #23 overall and becomes the organizations #1 pitching prospect (SP Earle Robinson, 20 is #4 and #31 overall). With McCarthy joining Robinson and Jack Wood, the Dynamo's have 3 pitchers who could be in Detroit in the next couple of seasons and long time assets in the starting rotation.

Martin Claims Off-Season a Success!

GM DD Martin has claimed that the off-season has been a huge success in the rebuilding of the Dynamo's future. With the draft acquisitions of 1B Red Johnson, 3B Hank Koblenz, SP Ray McCarthy, CF Ollie Williams, OF Bob Thomas, SP Floyd Frost, and SP Luis Sandoval along with the 5 Rule 5 draftees, he has deemed it a very successful off-season.

Martin stated to me several times through the season that there was always a plan in place and they just needed some good fortune and luck to make it happen. When he didn't move up to try and select high school phenom Rufus II Barrell, he again said "we have a plan". Well it seems as though the plan, at least in Martin's mind, has worked.

Whether or not we will see great improvement on the field in Detroit this year is doubtful, but the future is starting to look a little brighter. As long as you have patience to wait for it.

Jiggs McGee · 03-25-2021, 11:47 AM

Some big moves in Dynamo land. They likely won’t have a big impact this year but certainly will down the road. Excitement in the organization is restored and Detroit is quickly becoming my favorite FABL team.

DD Martin · 03-25-2021, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jiggs McGee

Some big moves in Dynamo land. They likely won’t have a big impact this year but certainly will down the road. Excitement in the organization is restored and Detroit is quickly becoming my favorite FABL team.

Wow that is high praise coming from Jiggs, I'm honored.

DD Martin · 03-26-2021, 02:02 PM

February Blahs - GM Notes

So we have reached the time of the season where we tend to take a rest. Oh of course there is plenty to do. With our beefed up scouting department we will be heading out to view prospects and talk to coaches and scouts all over the country. We are focusing our scouting here in Detroit more than ever on the amateur players. We have already made contact with over 200 of the young men that are slated for next years draft and we will continue to keep notes on them all season long. Giving Fred Davis some more budget room, supplies and help should make a big difference we hope in our scouting accuracy going forward.

The family has come down to Florida with me ahead of spring training for a little vacation as is our usual deal. With the salary I am making here we are able to stay at much nicer places than what we used to. Its great to spend some time with the kids as they are really enjoying the family time. My oldest son (9) is starting to play baseball. He is hoping to be a pitcher and someday be playing for the Foresters of all teams. He still likes the green uniforms in Cleveland. I will help him along and I am sure he will hang around the ballpark this summer picking up tips from players and coaches.

Our players start to report in early March so there is still a lot of things to do before then. Our minor league coaches will be gathering here in Lakeland as we signed a new contract with the city to host our spring training. We are still in the process of weeding out some minor league guys and there are a few guys that will never get a shot coming out of the draft this year. We had a glut of 1B scheduled in our rookie league team so we moved that number from 6 to 4. I figure that 1B Red Johnson will only spend a month or two at most there so then we would have a more manageable number. I am also toying with the idea to give the big kid a few starts in the corner OF just to see what he has out there. Playing 1B is fine and with what we hope he can bring to the table the job there will be his in a few seasons. But if he had the ability to play LF or RF, there is another big bat in this next years up coming draft that is intriguing a lot. I can see the 1939 Detroit Dynamo's with Johnson, Koblenz and maybe this kid setting power hitting records.

Speaking of the 1936 draft there are some intriguing pitching prospects in it. Based on our coaches early thoughts by next season (1937) we could see SP Earle Robinson, SP Ray McCarthy, SP Jack Wood and maybe even Luis Sandoval in our starting rotation at some point that season. With that crew and some others that could be ready or improve (Ben Watkins) and future big league pitchers Art Brandon and even the much maligned Del Burns, pitching might not be as high a priority next draft. But you can never have enough and pitching options turn in to very attractive trade chips and who knows when we are that 1 player away one of those guys might be the key.

One guy in our minors leagues that hasn't gotten enough attention is 1B Bill Moore. Moore was a first round pick in 1932 (#13 overall) and hit a very impressive 349 in AAA with 21 doubles and 8 home runs. He is a flyball hitter but he is also left handed and so he will not take advantage of our short left field porch. Still he looks like he could be ready and will get a shot this spring to win the job. Currently we have converted 2B Claude Merrill penciled in at 1B but he could just as easily go back to 2B. We moved Claude to get his bat in the lineup last season and he played well at 1B, but with Johnson hopefully ready by 1939 it is a limited window. Merrill is steady defensively at 2B and since Homer Ray probably isn't quite ready this season, at least to start and Moore shows he can handle 1B. Merrill will likely start at 2B to open the season.

Another player we are going to watch very closely this spring is SS Tip Harrison. While he is 24 he is just coming off his rookie season of pro ball. He moved quickly from Class B all the way up to AAA by the end of the year. I am not sure his bat is ready for the big leagues and he might benefit from another season or part season to start in AAA. Spring will tell whether he is ready or not. He will get a lot of opportunity.

Owner Meeting
Before I left town I had another very long conversation with majority team owner Eddie Thompson (68). I am getting the feeling that while Mr. Thompson supports me, he is extremely anxious to get the club back into contention. He surprisingly raise our budget back up to the level it was last season after slashing around $75,000 to start the off-season. While part of me thinks he wishes we could just buy players from other teams, the other part of me thinks he has no idea what sort of player movement and anarchy that would cause. He let me know that he'd still like for me to find a way to win the FA this year. He didn't seemed amused when I laughed at what I thought was a joke. I reassured him of the plan and showed him the prospects report. He sighed some when he saw the rookies we drafted in the top 5 were projected to be ready in 1939. I mean I understood how dare those kids wait until they are 21-22 to get to the big leagues. Maybe it will be quicker I stated, but I also let him no under no circumstances were these boys to be rushed as it might ruin their development.

Next - A Prospect Review and a Guide to Spring Training

DD Martin · 03-28-2021, 02:41 PM

Prospects Review Pre-Spring 1936

We arrived in Detroit in mid-May with a farm system that wasn't exactly the envy of the league. We were ranked last in the league in our minor league system with no prospects in the top 100 at the start of spring training. By my arrival in May 1B Bill Moore had cracked the list at #98. We had a total of 2 prospects in the top 200 and just 9 in the top 300. Fast forward about 10 months and our system is looking at lot better.

We now have 7 prospects in the top 100, 16 in the top 200 and 24 in the top 300. In a bigger scope we have 38 in the top 500 which is 19 more than we had back in May 1935. So substantial progress has been made as we have moved up to the #4 overall system in the FABL. While it might be great to now have a system that has some hope in it.

Don't Expect Miracles this Season
That won't translate to overnight success on the field at the big league level. I expect that we will be an unanimous pick to finish dead last in the FA once again. That projection will not make our unhappy owner Eddie Thompson very happy. In my mind we are 3 seasons away from realistically making some noise in the Association. Do I believe we can be improved this year, yeah but it won't be easy. Maybe we will find some help during the spring or right before the start of the year. If I had to peg our win total right now I'd say 50-55. While not great that is significantly better than the 43 we won last season.

Next - A review of the prospects

DD Martin · 03-29-2021, 01:34 PM

Detroit Dynamo's Top Prospects List

As we prepare for spring training we will review the top prospects in the farm system a little more closely. In a surprise the #5 overall pick in last years draft is rated 1 spot higher than the #2 overall pick. Both are in the top 10 though so we aren't too worried about it.

#1 (Overall #8) 3B Hank Kolblenz (19)
Acquired - 1935 Draft 1st round 5th overall (pick acquired from Chicago Cougars)
The first line is what attracted us to him in his scouting report. "He has power potential to develop into a human highlight film." With our short porch in left field, he could become the first 3B in FABL history to hit over 300 career home runs. That is our hope anyway.

#2 (Overall #9) 1B Red Johnson (18)
Acquired - 1935 Draft 1st round 2nd overall
Honestly I see Johnson as the next Rankin Kellogg who is the 1B of the Philadelphia Keystones. Kellogg is the #2 all time home run hitter who could have a shot to catch Max Morris someday. Johnson is projected to be an elite hitter, with an excellent eye and tremendous raw power. If he plays his whole career with us, he could likely hit over 500 career home runs.

#3 (Overall #20) LHSP Ray McCarthy (22)
Acquired - 1936 Indie League draft from El Paso (AA)
McCarthy has been on a crazy journey in his career having been the #7 overall pick in the 1932 draft. For some reason after signing with St. Louis he was released and never threw a pitch in the organization (could have been a GM regime change). He was signed by several Indie league teams in 1933 and 1934 but was never given a chance to pitch. Last year El Paso gave him the opportunity and he went 12-11 in the hitter happy Lone Star Association (Indie league loop with a lot of former big league players in it).

#4 (Overall #23) RHSP Earle Robinson (20)
Acquired - Trade with Brooklyn on May 13th, 1935
Robinson appears to be a star in the making, but he is going to have to overcome a bit of the injury bug that has plagued him the last couple of seasons. He was 5-2 with a 2.62 ERA in 10 starts with Class B Chattanooga but missed the last half of the season. Hopes are high for him but he has had a problem with his back (thankfully are trainer is pretty good at handling back injuries). If he can overcome his back issues, he could potentially be in Detroit next season.

#5 (Overall #71) 1B Bill Moore (24)
Acquired - 1932 1st Round #13 overall
Obviously with Red Johnson a couple of years away Moore will be given every chance to win the job this spring. He could be in a camp battle with last year's power hitting surprise Claude Merrill who slide over from 2B to 1B at the end of the year. Moore's real only drawback is that he is a left handed hitting 1B in a park designed to right handed hitters. Still Moore hit 349 in 1/3 of a season at AAA Newark with 8 home runs.

#6 (Overall #88) SS Frank Davis (19)
Acquired - In a trade with Pittsburgh in May 1935
Davis was acquired along with a 4th round pick (SP Floyd Frost) for then 38 year old SP Ray Calfee. Davis was a prospect rated at #160 overall at the time of the trade so while he was a nice addition to a woeful system we were not jumping up and down in anticipation. He hit 319/399 in class C last year and is very good with the glove at SS. He will move up the line to play in class B to start the season in Chattanooga. If he plays well he might end the year in class A Terre Haute, but we won't rush him.

#7 (Overall #93) LHSP Jack Wood (23)
Acquired - May 1935 trade with Brooklyn
As one of the pieces in the mega deal last year with Brooklyn, Wood was the 2nd SP prospect that came over. A little more advanced than Robinson, but likely with not as much upside. The good news is that Wood has been bitten by the injury bug like Robinson. He made the jump from college all the way to AAA (after the trade he likely should have been in AA), because the organization lacked depth. He will likely return to AAA Newark to look to improve upon his 4-7 5.44 campaign of a year ago. We might even give him a couple of starts in AA just to make sure he has his confidence. He will be invited to spring training but has 0% shot at making the big league club simply because of his lack of experience and all the rule 5 pitchers we will be carrying.

#8 (Overall #108) SS Tip Harrison (24)
Acquired - Trade with Brooklyn May 1935
Another player acquired in the trade with Brooklyn when we arrived. We are a little disappointed that he has slide from the #46 prospect to where he is but still feel he has a fine future. Another 1934 college draft pick, last year was his first season in pro ball and he went from Class B (with Kings) to then making stops at A, AA and finally AAA last season. Probably a little too quick as he hit just 251 in AA and then 265 in AAA. Spring training invite but likely ticketed to AAA Newark to find his footing with the bat.

#9 (Overall #114) 2B Homer Ray (22)
Acquired - May 20th 1935 trade with Chicago Cougars (SP Wayne Robinson deal)
Ray tore up AA that he was moved to AAA and hit a respectable 291 in little over half a season. He is a good fielder and should be a #2 hitter potentially in the order. Again he will get a spring invite but look for him to spend most of the year in AAA Newark until the team decides what to do with veteran 2B Paul McLain.

#10 (Overall #116) CF Ollie Williams (22)
Acquired - 1935 2nd round draft choice #18 overall
We are very happy to see our 2nd round pick ranked this high. Williams will likely start his career in Class B as a college player depending on how things shake out. He has plus speed which is something the organization is lacking and should be an above average defensive CF. Our scout feels that he is not too far away from patrolling CF at Thompson Field.

#11 (Overall #166) LHSP Floyd Frost (18)
Acquired - 1935 Draft 4th round (#58 overall) via trade with Pittsburgh (Calfee)
Young high schooler was 7-1 with a 1.65 ERA his senior year. He has 6 pitches in his repertoire and has decent command. Whether he makes the big leagues as a starter will be determined in the years a head, but he looks promising.

#12 (Overall 179) RHSP Ben Watkins (just turned 26)
Acquired - Rule 5 draft from Baltimore
Watkins suffered a partially torn UCL last season which is why he was likely left unprotected in the draft. He should have been moved up farther in Baltimore's system but has only pitched as high as class A. He will miss part of spring training and we had hoped he might get to do a rehab assignment at AAA before coming to the big leagues. But he is a rule 5 pitcher and if he is ready to go before spring ends, he will be carried on the staff at least in the bullpen to start the season. Eventually he will likely get some starts but not right out of the gate.

#13 (Overall #181) RHSP Luis Sandoval (23)
Acquired - 1935 Minor League Draft (from Waco AA Lone Star Assoc)
The 2nd SP that we acquired last year between the minor league (AAA rule 5) and Indie league drafts. Sandoval was 13-8 4.08 with the AA Waco Wranglers and will start the year after a spring training invite at AAA Newark. The native Venezuelan prospect will be starting but depending on how things work out he could be a top RP in the future. If he pitches well in AAA he might force the Dynamo's move to bring him to the majors.

#14 (Overall #188) RHSP Del Burns (19)
Acquired - 1934 Draft 1st round #3 overall
Much maligned draft pick by the Dynamo's before our arrival in Detroit. Despite all the negative reaction to his place being drafted, he does have some promise. He was 2-5 with a 3.13 ERA after a promotion from class C and he will likely start in class B with a hopeful move up to class A before the seasons end. The promising thing with Burns is his pitches have plenty of movement and he is not likely to give up a ton of home runs, which in Detroit is promising.

#15 (Overall #189) RHSP Harry Frenette (19)
Acquired - 1935 Draft 5th round (#77 overall)
Another young high school pitcher that we decided deserved a shot. He was 8-0 with a 1.85 ERA in 12 starts his senior year. He throws 5 pitches and his velocity is improving upon arrival in spring camp. He will start the season in Class C Biloxi.

#16 (Overall #193) LHSP Art Brandon (19)
Acquired - June 1935 trade with Chicago Cougars (SS Bob Barringer)
At the time we traded Barringer we were desperate for young starting pitching prospects. In this deal we traded the then 29 year SS Bob Barringer for two prospects (my comment in the deal was maybe 1 of them will hit). In the trade we got SP Brandon and also SP Harvey Gaines (#222 prospect) at the time. Gaines struggled staying healthy last year and he has fallen all the way out of the top 500. Brandon on the other hand blossomed going 8-2 with Chattanooga with a 3.09 ERA. Brandon will get a few more class B outings and then will hopefully be ready for class A by June.

#17 (Overall #197) LF Bob Thomas (22)
Acquired - 1935 Draft 8th round (#125 overall)
Thomas showed some power at George Baptist University last season hitting 10 home runs with a 265/424/990 slash. He is very selective at the plate but he will need to drop a few more hits in if he hopes to make it to the big leagues. College player so he will start in class B with hopes of making a promotion to class A by the all star break.

Summary - So that is a list of our prospects that are currently rated in the top 200. With 17 players in that group we are pleased with our progress, especially since we had just 19 total players in the top 500 last year. While all of them will not rise up the ranks, we will hope that most of them will have strong seasons and work their way up another rung (or 2 in some cases) up the ladder.

Next - Spring Training Camp Opens

DD Martin · 03-29-2021, 04:30 PM

Welcome to Lakeland, Florida
Home of the Detroit Dynamo's Spring Training Camp

The Detroit World
Sunday March 15th, 1936
Sports News
From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat

Hope in Spring? Likely Not in 36

We are welcoming 45 players right now to our spring training complex (60 is the max). The 45th player is about to change and when we are done we will likely have 46 in camp. Before we get into the spring battles, there were two deals that went down prior to the first spring game.

Trade - New York Gotham's and Detroit Dynamo's

One teams left overs are sometimes another teams depth pieces. There is little secret that management of the Dynamo's is not enthralled with C Dave Armstrong. The problem is that there really isn't anyone knocking down the door to take his "spot". Maybe that is about to change as we traded our 1936 8th draft pick to the Gothams for the services of C Red Jackson (30). We need a #3 catcher and at a minimum Jackson will fulfill that requirement as he does have 2 option years. Once he arrives into town he will be the 3rd catcher with Jim Kyle and Armstrong.

The Dynamo's are not done likely looking for a catcher as that is one position in the organization that doesn't have much strength or depth to it.

Dynamo's make another move

The Dynamo's brass decided that four Rule 5 pitchers was too many to carry and send back SP Earle Killebrew to the Philadelphia Sailors. Then immediately after that they traded their 1936 9th round draft pick to the Sailors for the rights to Killebrew. Now one might ask why would the Dynamo's do that? The answer is that this way he doesn't have to be stashed on the big league roster and he can continue his development in the minor leagues.

The Dynamo's were not going to send him back but had explored the options with the Sailors who lost him for nothing in the Rule 5 draft. This way the Dynamo's can continue his development in a setting better suited to where he belongs (likely AA) and the Sailors get something out of the deal.

Spring Camp Battles?

When a team only goes 43-111 in the previous season one would hope that there are lots of changes and even battles for jobs in the spring. There will be plenty of those in the highly competitive pitching staff with now four Rule 5 guys taking up the 9 or 10 spots on the roster.

Pitching Staff
# of Spots 9-10
Starting Rotation 5 spots
Locks - Chuck Calvert, Jim Crawford
Rule 5 Guys - George Coleman, Ray Lee, Ben Watkins (injured 1-2 weeks)
Rotation contenders
Bullpen contenders

About the only sure thing that we know barring serious changes (or injury) during spring training is that Jim Crawford,30 (2-6 5.43 with Detroit) will return to the rotation. The team has also announced that Chuck Calvert (32) who has been a RP predominately in the big leagues will get a shot at starting. Who the other 3 starting pitchers might be is up for a lot of debate.

A couple of players that are up and will get week 1 starts in spring training will be Indie League and Minor League draft choices Ray McCarthy (22) and Luis Sandoval (23). While neither is considered likely to break spring camp with the big league team, they will get a taste of the action and I wouldn't be shocked if either are up sooner rather than later. McCarthy has the bigger upside and could be a force in the rotation in the future, the question will be is the future now.

Rule 5 pickup from Cleveland George Coleman will get a shot to start in week 1 as well. Coleman could be the #5 SP or the long man out of the bullpen. During the first week of camp the Dynamo's are only going with a 5 man rotation so they can see McCarthy pitch twice. In week 2 they are expected to add another SP and that arm might be Rule 5 P Ray Lee.

With Chuck Calvert moving to the rotation (for now) that means the team needs to find a new late inning "stopper". Last year saw Calvert, Dan Grossman, Marty Devorce, Duke Brown and the since departed George Johnson all rotate through the role. Surprisingly the early favorite by manager Tom Bray is Jim Simmons who mainly worked in the rotation (not very successfully) after being picked up on a waiver claim.

Other pitchers in camp trying to impress are RP Al Allen (who's days are likely numbered), SP Taylor Collins, Fred Hall, Marty Devorce, Ernie Miller, Donie Scheuermann, Jack Stemm, Jack Wood, Ray Benson, Duke Brown, Phil Hicks.

And then there is the case of 39-year-old Detroit P Andy Holton. Besides being the oldest pitcher in the entire organization, he also has an intriguing story. After all the trades last year with other veteran SP's, Holton was brought up to the big league club after going 5-3 with a 2.80 ERA at AAA Newark. Unfortunately the results in the big leagues in the 2nd half of last season (1-9 with an ERA over 6.00+) didn't make for a glorious return. The win he got last year was just his 2nd career big league win. His first big league win came in (check this) 1921. 14 years in between wins in the majors has got to be some sort of a record. His career big league record in Detroit (who drafted him in 1915) is 2-18. What was Horton doing in between 1921 and June 1935? Mostly pitching at AAA Newark where he has a career mark of 140-166. Holton is probably a long shot to make the team, but he does have a lot of veteran leadership.

This unit is still extremely poor in what will likely makeup this years staff. If they can't find better options then it will be another long year of baseball in Detroit. I wouldn't be shocked if the club continues in its search for re-enforcements to this unit as teams cut down to the opening day roster limits.

Position Players
13-14 spots available
Roster locks
C - Jim Kyle
1B/2B Claude Merrill
RF Howard Moss
CF Jose Serna

Behind C Jim Kyle will be a battle for the backup role. For now that battle will be between C Dave Armstrong and newly acquired C Red Jackson. This position (besides pitching and there is hope on the horizon in pitching) is a weak spot in the organization. There are no sure thing "future of the position" at this time in the system. The team did draft a defensive C in Eddie Miller but he is nowhere near ready. Who will emerge or maybe a better question is who will arrive to claim this required spot on the roster.

First Base - Second Base
Claude Merrill is a lock for this team and the starting lineup. The question is will he be here at 1B or will prospect Bill Moore force his way into the spot this spring. If Moore has a good spring the job will likely be his and that means that Merrill will slide in to take over 2B. Also in camp vying for a spot is 1B Ralph Conner (263/348/717 4-57) but he did not impress in his 119 games (94 starts) last season and is likely ticketed to Newark.

The future of the 1B job in Detroit Red Johnson is up and will likely gets some game action during the first week. He will not make the team straight out of high school but the club wanted to give him a taste of what the majors leagues were like.

If Merrill ends up with the 1B job, then that opens the door back up for competition at 2B. Veteran 2B Paul McLain, 34 (234 last year) was up and down between Newark and the big league team. He is wildly popular in Detroit and with interest so low he might get to keep his job no matter what. Also in camp and going to get a big look is 2B Homer Ray (22). The prospect likely is a future piece to the puzzle but management would likely prefer to see him playing everyday this year in AAA Newark. Team Captain Lynn Gray and Slim Ford are also in camp and provide versatility. It is likely that Ford and SS Slim Bloom are battling for 1 spot on the roster as a backup utility player.

Shortstop
There are 3 players in camp with rookie Tip Harrison (24) joining Slim Bloom and waiver claim pickup John McKinley battling it out. It would take a strong camp for the rookie Harrison, who would probably benefit from a full season at AAA, to make the team. This will be a roster position that is definitely going to be settled by spring performance.

Third Base
Besides rookie "future 3B" Hank Koblenz in camp in much the same way that Red Johnson is. The only other 3B is returning starter Chief Raymond (309/362-780 8-56). The job is likely Raymond's to be the caretaker of unless someone else is brought in to compete for the job.

Outfield
Spots 5-6

We know that RF Howard Moss is a lock in right and we have a pretty good feeling that CF Jose Serna will be patrolling CF. Unless the team finds a trading partner Henry Jones will likely open the season in LF. It is not a terrible starting trio but will not make anyone forget New York's trio of LF Moxie Pidgeon, CF Tom Tayler and RF Mahlon Strong.

The battles will be for the back up roles which will likely be 2 spots. LF Jay Buckingham is up to gain experience but he will be in AAA Newark to start the season. CF Ollie Williams (2nd round pick) is also on the same program as 1B Red Johnson and 3B Hank Koblenz, in that he is just getting a taste this spring but will report to minor league camp in several weeks. The other players vying for backup roles are CF John Cannon (45 stolen bases in AAA), CF Joe Snider (339/378/802 in 165 AB), RF Mickey Tompkins (298/351/790 last year) and Rule 5 pickup Joe Goodwin. With Goodwin in the mix he might cost an infielder a backup job or the veteran (and unhappy) Tompkins his job.

Summary
After going through the team like this it is hard to find 55+ wins in this group. The team is going through a lot of changes and those changes are going to continue this year. Maybe they will get lucky and find a few key pieces to plug in and upgrade but right now whoever is picked 7th in the Federal Association has no worries that this rag-tag bunch is going to threaten them anytime soon.

It might be spring training, but it already appears that the Dynamo's are "on the clock" with the first pick in the 1936 Draft next December.

DD Martin · 03-30-2021, 12:25 PM

Spring Training is off and Running

Oh how I love the spring where hope is eternal for all teams, well almost all teams. In our first game SP Ray McCarthy had an easy 1-2-3 against the St. Louis Pioneers. But then the storm clouds came rolling in and it was not rain in the forecast. Was my spring quickly going to ruined when our trainer ran out of the dugout in the 2nd inning. Had all that planning and plotting to acquire this guy all last summer just blown up in our faces? SP Ray McCarthy (22) was escorted off the mound after throwing just 23 pitches. In his brief outing he went 1.2 innings, giving up 1 hit and striking out 1 batter. McCarthy was taken out after his arm just felt dead. He would be sidelined for a week. The question was, would he return to the mound this spring or just go down to minor league camp and get ready for the season there.

As McCarthy was coming out of the game, I looked into our dugout I could see how much noticeably grayer our manager Tom Bray was looking. He was also stirring some sort of drink and quickly gulped it down. We ended up losing that first spring game 3-2 to the Pioneers scored 2 in the 8th on a pinch hit double by Fred Miller off of Jack Stemm.

We ended up getting pummeled in the 2nd game of the spring 9-1 by Pittsburgh as our early experiment with P Chuck Calvert starting was off to a rocky start (4 IP 6H 5R 3ER, 2BB, 2K, HRA). Today I saw manager Tom Bray popping some tablets and I was getting concerned that our terrible season last year had taken a toll on our skipper. Fortunately (or unfortunately) I talked to Tom and asked him about the drink and the tablets. He informed me that it was Alka Seltzer and Tums, some fairly new anti-acid type items for those with an upset stomach. I thought to myself I hope he is not getting an ulcer.

We ended the week going 2-2 the rest of the way for a 2-4 start to the spring. Not entirely unexpected as this is still pretty much the same rag tag group that ended last season. The youngsters who were up in camp were not going to be taking any roster spots over this season.

Weekly Results
St. Louis vs Detroit 3-2 Loss
Detroit @ Pittsburgh 9-1 Loss
Detroit @ Washington 4-3 Win
Philadelphia vs Detroit 4-2 Win
Detroit @ Chicago 7-3 Loss
Boston vs Detroit 6-5 Loss

Speaking of the youngsters, here is how our promising prospects did as they were threw into the fire.

1B Red Johnson 0-7 BB and 2K's
3B Hank Koblenz 1-9 2K's
CF Ollie Williams 1-8 2BB's and 3K's
SS Tip Harrison 1-10 R, K
2B Homer Ray 2-7 R, K

So the hitters were a combined 5-41 .122 average. The draft picks will spend 1 more week up with the big boys and then head off to minor league camp. Harrison might also be shipped out to AAA Newark after next week. Homer Ray will possibly be up for the entire spring training.

On the pitching side of things, other than the Ray McCarthy dead arm, things were fairly calm. SP George Coleman turned in a nice 4 inning start against against the Philadelphia Keystones getting the win and only allowing 2 hits. SP Jim Crawford had the same line as Coleman in our win against the Washington Eagles the next day.

SP Luis Sandoval was a bit shaky but that was understandable since he had never pitched against players higher than AA ball. He gave up 3 runs and 6 hits in 4 innings (6.75 ERA) but he will go out again this week.

With McCarthy likely not getting a start this week, his spot in the rotation will go to rookie SP Jack Wood who looked fairly sharp in 2 outings. He gave up 7 hits in 4.2 innings but avoided any serious trouble and didn't allow any runs.

C Red Jackson will immediately get in the lineup now that he has arrived after the trade with the Gotham's. He will split time with Jim Kyle catching and we will be limiting Dave Armstrong to pinch hitting and warming up the relievers in the bullpen. Not sure why I don't like Armstrong, he was a solid veteran player but it just feels like he is going to be spending his summer in Newark.

On the injury front, it appears that SP Ben Watkins will be ready to come off the DL on Friday. We will wait and see if he gets cleared and then just have him toss some bullpens and ease him into things. I would love to have him start the season on a rehab assignment, but the timing doesn't look like that is going to work out. Ray McCarthy will be re-evaluated on Wednesday.

Week 2 of Spring Training - First roster Cut Down Day

03-12-2021, 09:22 PM	#25
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	Detroit GM Holds Meeting with Owners (from GM Martin's perspective) The first game of the World Series is today and I have the radio out so that we can listen to it around what I am sure will be a very long meeting with both "Big Money" Eddie Thompson and George Theobald as we discuss the season and the next steps to get the team back on track quickly. We started the meeting at 9 am and we had 3 hours until the first pitch of game 1. I had my meeting notes all scheduled out and knew that I need to at least show the guys that while things looked dreadful on the field that they were not as bad as they appeared (although they really were). I was surprised at the amount of information that Mr. Thompson had written out. He had pages and pages of notes and if we were going to go through all of that we'd be here for several days. I hoped to be done so I could head off to Cleveland for the middle games of the Series and catch up with my old friend Rick Marshall. The owners came in, pretty form and Mr. Thompson said "let's get to it". He was pretty clearly disappointed in just how badly the team struggled. He acknowledged that he understood the team was not a playoff caliber team and almost every baseball writer in the country had picked the Dynamo's to finish last, but the drastic drop-off had certainly worried him. "Maybe if we had kept Wheeler and Vance....." he tailed off. So I took that as my cue to show exactly what we traded, what we got and where we are going. Dynamo Trades in 1935 The first trade was the big trade with Brooklyn. A deal where we sent SP Jack Beach, OF Art Wheeler and 3B Frank Vance to Brooklyn for the Kings first 8 draft picks in the 1935 draft and 5 prospects. What We Gave Up - OF Art Wheeler (27) managed to put up triple crown numbers in the CA even after he was in Detroit for the first month of the season. Since Detroit is in the FA and Brooklyn is in the CA, only Wheeler's stats since the trade were counted in for his CA Awards. When Wheeler left Detroit the team was 13-13 and Wheeler was off to a very slow start. He was just hitting 250 with 5 homers and 19 RBI's. Once he got to Brooklyn and the mood of a winning team he went off in 128 games for 34 home runs, 130 RBI's and he hit 362. There is no doubt that Wheeler would have come around for us in Detroit, he is too good a hitter, but being left handed the move to Brooklyn was a good one for him. I wouldn't be shocked if he hit 50 home runs next year. 3B Frank Vance (33) who went to Brooklyn and they played him at 1B. Vance's skills as a 3B were on the wane and had deteriorated significantly. If he had stayed in Detroit he would have also made the shift to 1B. Fielding wise Vance is a league average 1B so he won't be detracting as much on that side of the field. Vance was off to a terrific start hitting 366 with 4 home runs and 24 RBI's for us prior to leaving. He hit 354 with just 7 home runs in Brooklyn but drove in 91 RBI's and getting on-base with 69 walks to have an on-base % of 432. SP Jack Beach (33) wasn't sharp in the first month here in Detroit (1-1 6.00 ERA 4 starts) and never really got going. He was ok at AAA for Brooklyn going 10-3 with a 3.90 ERA but when up with Brooklyn he was brutal going 1-1 with an 8.78 ERA. When Brooklyn asked for Beach who was not originally part of the deal I simply agreed because honestly I thought he was done. His pitching after the trade didn't change my mind. He likely will not be in Brooklyn and if they don't trade him they will designate him. What we Got - Brooklyn's 1st-8th draft picks that will be the 13th pick in each of those rounds. Who those players will be will be decided in several months when the draft takes place in December. We also picked up 5 players in the deal. SP Earle Robinson (19) was the top prize in the players coming back. Robinson pitched well for us going 5-2 at Class B Chattanooga with a 2.62 ERA in 68.2 innings. The only issue was he missed the last half of the season with back injury. But he is cleared and will begin a throwing program to get him ready for spring. At currently only 19 he is likely ticketed for Class A Terre Haute for most of next year and he is likely either a 1937 or 38 part of our rotation. He is currently rated the #24 prospect in baseball. SP Jack Wood (22) pitched for us in AAA during his age 22 season coming straight from college. He was 4-7 with a 5.44 ERA so he has some work to do still, but that said his future looks bright and we are in no rush to promote him. He is currently the #63 rated prospect in baseball. SS Tip Harrison (24) is the #46 rated prospect and split time between Class A, AA and even played 57 games at AAA Newark. He will begin next season at AAA to play for a full season and will likely get a call up in September. In 1936 we envision him being our everyday starting SS. CF Jose Serna (23) played 49 games at the big league level and became the first of the 5 players to make it to Detroit. He hit a respectable 316 in 225 PA's with 11 doubles, 6 triples and 3 home runs. He played a very solid CF for us and we only expect he will get better. LF Jay Buckingham (24) was the last of the 5 that came over in this deal. He hit 280/361 in 240 plate appearances. He will likely be on the opening day roster next year and he is a great joking clubhouse presence which only makes him a little more valuable in our eyes. Summary - As long as we hit solidly on our draft picks, I think in the long run we will do quite well in this trade. Trade #2 - and #3 Separate deals but in the first one we traded SP Roy Calfee (38) to Pittsburgh where he went 4-8 with a 5.51 ERA before ending the year injured with shoulder inflammation. In return we picked up a young SS Frank Davis (19) who hit 319 in Class C Biloxi and looks like a solid SS and will likely move up the ranks to start the year at Class B in the spring. The other deal say us trade away SP Wayne Robinson (37) to the Chicago Cougars. Robinson went 6-9 with a 5.85 ERA in 26 games in Chicago and appears to be winding down his career. He was once a great SP but that time has passed. We picked up a very good 2B in Homer Ray who hit 291 in AAA Newark for half the season. He looks to possibly break spring training with the big league club and if not in April then he will surely be up sometime during the season. We also picked up veteran RP Chick Meehan (38) in the deal hoping he would find the fountain of youth and then we could flip him at the deadline. He ended up injured after being ineffective and was released before the end of July. Summary - Pick up a future starter in Ray and a very capable SS prospect in Davis for two aging and likely done starting pitchers. Trade #4 - Trading SS Bob Barringer to Chicago Chiefs Barringer (29) was an all-star this season and hit 322 with us in Detroit in 50 games. He moved to Chicago and struggled with the bat hitting just 234 in 84 games as the Chiefs starting SS. We received two SP prospects and our hope was that hopefully one would pan out. That looks like it might be SP Art Brandon (19) who went 8-2 with a 3.19 ERA at Class B and is ticketed to moving to Class A next season. We also picked up another SP in Harvey Gaines (19) who just couldn't stay healthy. We will send him back to Class B and hope he gets into a healthy state and can make something of his career. He has tools but he needs to put somethings together. Minor trades along the way. We traded for Cleveland backup C Jim Kyle (29) because we need to replace Dick York who had announced his retirement. Kyle was not going to start in Cleveland with TR Goins still going strong and the Foresters new GM wanted to bring up C Jeff Rose so we shipped a minor league P Mike Phillips to Cleveland. Kyle responded well to the trade and hit 279 with 5 home runs in 35 games and 111 AB's. We traded Brooklyn's 7th round pick we acquired for SP Jim Crawford (29). I had seen Crawford pitch well in the CA with the Cougars so I felt he was young enough and still had some promise to take a flyer on him here. He went 2-6 with us and a 5.43 ERA (which for us was solid) and he will be back next year in the rotation. While he is not an all-star I believe him to be a very capable bottom of the rotation SP. Summary Overall - My message to Mr. Thompson and Mr. Theobald was simple, we traded a lot of old SP's (3), a superstar OF who did fit our field well and would be in his 30's before we got back to being good and a 3B who while still good has definitely turned the corner on his career. We also traded a decent SS who was 29 and would be likely past his prime once we arrived back on the contending scene. What we got was youth, promise and the opportunity to help build this club with these young guys. Most of them will be around for years and even a decade for us or more. We just need to have patience to let them develop. We also picked up RF Howard Moss (29) who hit 294 with 11 home runs and 52 RBI's in 60 games. He will be starting in RF for us next spring. We picked him up for a minor league 3B Harry Peterson who I didn't have a lot of use for. If we had kept all the pieces, we would have had a better record. But that said we still would be last, we might have gotten to 60 wins (60-94) we'd have 8-10 less youngsters who will have a shot at being around years and less quality draft picks to try and rebuild this thing quickly. I told them both that I think it was definitely the right move and even though we were terrible at the end of the year, I wouldn't have changed a thing. Well that is not exactly true I would have changed 1 thing. I would have accepted Chicago's offer for a 3rd round pick and 2 players (one being OF Reyes) for OF Henry Jones. That was a mistake on my part not to accept that deal. Budget Next Mr. Thompson brought up attendance which had crashed to just 341,503 this season. I knew where this was going, it was headed to profit and the budget for next season. Thompson indicated that while the team was still profitable this season making $65,700 we had fallen dramatically over the years. He indicated that he didn't want to see the team fall into a situation where we were losing money so he was thinking about cutting the budget $120,000 from $550,000 (which we spent $376,000) to $430,000. I had a feeling this was coming and was prepared to discuss why it would be ok to 1.) leave the budget alone next year and 2.) why it would be ok if we just broke even or even lost a few thousand dollars next season. Thompson indicated that I should go on.... So I started to talk about the scope of the rebuilding project we in front of us. How the financial structure of the team was significantly messed up in both the player development and scouting areas. Player Development - Our spending last season was $54,000 which I felt that was about $18,000 too low and would be closer to $20,500 too low for next season. I explained that when we acquire young talent it is unacceptable to not have proper coaching staffs in place as it was when I got here. We quickly fixed that but with the season already a month in we were not picking the best coaches just who we could find that was available. With young draft picks (and we will get to more of that soon) we need to have the best equipment, and coaches that we can get. So with that we will be going to the FABL upper limits in spending, regardless of what we do with the overall budget. Scouting - This was an area that I was ashamed of and not of Scout Fred Davis. He did the best he could with what he had but we had significantly underspent in this area and it could make a huge difference for us during this upcoming draft. Our scouting department was not set up the way I had done previously with Ollie Moses in Cleveland. Our budget was skewed to scouting more major league players than it was the minor leagues and the draft. On top of that we were woefully under budgeted in this area and were roughly $45,000 (for 1936) below acceptable funding. I let both owner know that we would be moving more operating funds into this area next season and that between Player Development and Scouting, there would be our profit from the 1935 season. Draft - Besides the above two groups we look at our draft expense for next season. We double picks in the first 5 rounds we would be spending a lot of money on draft pick signing bonuses next season. With the #2 pick most of the guys that make an impact in those areas are wanting between $16,000-$21,000. Our projected budget is just $21,600 and we need to look at moving that to closer to $40,000-$45,000. In those 3 areas that will be almost $100,000 more in expenses than we spent last season. When Mr. Thompson indicated that would have meant we would have operated at a loss of roughly $30,000 this season, I cut him off. I respectfully said "Look Mr. Thompson, your nickname is "big money" and you and the other owners have been making BIG MONEY for years while this operation was falling apart. Now it is time to reinvest that money and by doing so you will get this team back on solid footing sooner rather than later. Taking the CHEAP way out will only set back what we are going to do. I am prepared to make these adjustments even if you pare the budget, but it will come out of player salaries and that will effect the product on the field. While we will not be winning any championships next season regardless of who is on the field, I'd hate to start making decisions on putting a more competitive team on the field because we didn't want to fund an operating loss for a year or two. I have looked at the books of just the baseball team and over the last 10 years this franchise has made over $5 million dollars and that was during a depression. If you take the time this upcoming season and even the 1937 season and invest in this teams future, I can guarantee we will be doing those type of numbers again very very soon. The choice is yours gentlemen, you can cut the overall budget but I will make these structural changes to the organization. I think they are important enough that I will sacrifice another season if I need too. We aren't going to win next year so wasting money on excessive payroll for a 50-60 win club makes not sense. So if I have to cut team payroll to the lowest in the league, I will do it. That will effect the number of fans coming out even more. You can say no, and override my decision if you choose but that just means that I will not be the GM here next week. With that I got up and left the meeting.....needing to take a break but hoping that my academy award performance for leaving the budget alone will make sense. The Detroit World Friday October 4th, 1935 Sports News From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat First Two Games of World Series End with New York Leading 2-0 The Gotham's are looking to wipe out their World Series demons as they took a 2-0 lead in this year's Fall Classic at home in Bigsby Oval. The Oval was being rebuilt in New York and the Gotham's had been playing their home games at Dyckman Field home of the CA NY Stars. While the Gotham's played well at home this year going 51-26, they were happy to be playing these two games at their new and improved stadium. Over 50,000 attended both games as in game 1 SP Rabbit Day shut down the Forester's in pitching a 4-hitter winning 4-1. Game 2 saw Gotham SP Jim Lonardo who wasn't his same sharp self most of the season, continue with a 2nd half rebound and hold off the Forester's by a 6-3 count. The series shifts to Cleveland now for the next 3 games where the Forester's hope to regain their hitting form and force the series back to New York for a Game 6. The Gotham's would just as soon not come back home to play games but to hold a parade with their first World Series victory in 39 years. Detroit GM Holds Meeting with Owners (from GM Martin's perspective) The first game of the World Series is today and I have the radio out so that we can listen to it around what I am sure will be a very long meeting with both "Big Money" Eddie Thompson and George Theobald as we discuss the season and the next steps to get the team back on track quickly. We started the meeting at 9 am and we had 3 hours until the first pitch of game 1. I had my meeting notes all scheduled out and knew that I need to at least show the guys that while things looked dreadful on the field that they were not as bad as they appeared (although they really were). Last edited by DD Martin; 03-12-2021 at 09:24 PM.

03-28-2021, 02:41 PM	#37
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	Prospects Review Pre-Spring 1936 We arrived in Detroit in mid-May with a farm system that wasn't exactly the envy of the league. We were ranked last in the league in our minor league system with no prospects in the top 100 at the start of spring training. By my arrival in May 1B Bill Moore had cracked the list at #98. We had a total of 2 prospects in the top 200 and just 9 in the top 300. Fast forward about 10 months and our system is looking at lot better. We now have 7 prospects in the top 100, 16 in the top 200 and 24 in the top 300. In a bigger scope we have 38 in the top 500 which is 19 more than we had back in May 1935. So substantial progress has been made as we have moved up to the #4 overall system in the FABL. While it might be great to now have a system that has some hope in it. Don't Expect Miracles this Season That won't translate to overnight success on the field at the big league level. I expect that we will be an unanimous pick to finish dead last in the FA once again. That projection will not make our unhappy owner Eddie Thompson very happy. In my mind we are 3 seasons away from realistically making some noise in the Association. Do I believe we can be improved this year, yeah but it won't be easy. Maybe we will find some help during the spring or right before the start of the year. If I had to peg our win total right now I'd say 50-55. While not great that is significantly better than the 43 we won last season. Next - A review of the prospects Attached Images

03-29-2021, 04:30 PM	#39
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	Welcome to Lakeland, Florida Home of the Detroit Dynamo's Spring Training Camp The Detroit World Sunday March 15th, 1936 Sports News From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat Hope in Spring? Likely Not in 36 We are welcoming 45 players right now to our spring training complex (60 is the max). The 45th player is about to change and when we are done we will likely have 46 in camp. Before we get into the spring battles, there were two deals that went down prior to the first spring game. Trade - New York Gotham's and Detroit Dynamo's One teams left overs are sometimes another teams depth pieces. There is little secret that management of the Dynamo's is not enthralled with C Dave Armstrong. The problem is that there really isn't anyone knocking down the door to take his "spot". Maybe that is about to change as we traded our 1936 8th draft pick to the Gothams for the services of C Red Jackson (30). We need a #3 catcher and at a minimum Jackson will fulfill that requirement as he does have 2 option years. Once he arrives into town he will be the 3rd catcher with Jim Kyle and Armstrong. The Dynamo's are not done likely looking for a catcher as that is one position in the organization that doesn't have much strength or depth to it. Dynamo's make another move The Dynamo's brass decided that four Rule 5 pitchers was too many to carry and send back SP Earle Killebrew to the Philadelphia Sailors. Then immediately after that they traded their 1936 9th round draft pick to the Sailors for the rights to Killebrew. Now one might ask why would the Dynamo's do that? The answer is that this way he doesn't have to be stashed on the big league roster and he can continue his development in the minor leagues. The Dynamo's were not going to send him back but had explored the options with the Sailors who lost him for nothing in the Rule 5 draft. This way the Dynamo's can continue his development in a setting better suited to where he belongs (likely AA) and the Sailors get something out of the deal. Spring Camp Battles? When a team only goes 43-111 in the previous season one would hope that there are lots of changes and even battles for jobs in the spring. There will be plenty of those in the highly competitive pitching staff with now four Rule 5 guys taking up the 9 or 10 spots on the roster. Pitching Staff # of Spots 9-10 Starting Rotation 5 spots Locks - Chuck Calvert, Jim Crawford Rule 5 Guys - George Coleman, Ray Lee, Ben Watkins (injured 1-2 weeks) Rotation contenders Bullpen contenders About the only sure thing that we know barring serious changes (or injury) during spring training is that Jim Crawford,30 (2-6 5.43 with Detroit) will return to the rotation. The team has also announced that Chuck Calvert (32) who has been a RP predominately in the big leagues will get a shot at starting. Who the other 3 starting pitchers might be is up for a lot of debate. A couple of players that are up and will get week 1 starts in spring training will be Indie League and Minor League draft choices Ray McCarthy (22) and Luis Sandoval (23). While neither is considered likely to break spring camp with the big league team, they will get a taste of the action and I wouldn't be shocked if either are up sooner rather than later. McCarthy has the bigger upside and could be a force in the rotation in the future, the question will be is the future now. Rule 5 pickup from Cleveland George Coleman will get a shot to start in week 1 as well. Coleman could be the #5 SP or the long man out of the bullpen. During the first week of camp the Dynamo's are only going with a 5 man rotation so they can see McCarthy pitch twice. In week 2 they are expected to add another SP and that arm might be Rule 5 P Ray Lee. With Chuck Calvert moving to the rotation (for now) that means the team needs to find a new late inning "stopper". Last year saw Calvert, Dan Grossman, Marty Devorce, Duke Brown and the since departed George Johnson all rotate through the role. Surprisingly the early favorite by manager Tom Bray is Jim Simmons who mainly worked in the rotation (not very successfully) after being picked up on a waiver claim. Other pitchers in camp trying to impress are RP Al Allen (who's days are likely numbered), SP Taylor Collins, Fred Hall, Marty Devorce, Ernie Miller, Donie Scheuermann, Jack Stemm, Jack Wood, Ray Benson, Duke Brown, Phil Hicks. And then there is the case of 39-year-old Detroit P Andy Holton. Besides being the oldest pitcher in the entire organization, he also has an intriguing story. After all the trades last year with other veteran SP's, Holton was brought up to the big league club after going 5-3 with a 2.80 ERA at AAA Newark. Unfortunately the results in the big leagues in the 2nd half of last season (1-9 with an ERA over 6.00+) didn't make for a glorious return. The win he got last year was just his 2nd career big league win. His first big league win came in (check this) 1921. 14 years in between wins in the majors has got to be some sort of a record. His career big league record in Detroit (who drafted him in 1915) is 2-18. What was Horton doing in between 1921 and June 1935? Mostly pitching at AAA Newark where he has a career mark of 140-166. Holton is probably a long shot to make the team, but he does have a lot of veteran leadership. This unit is still extremely poor in what will likely makeup this years staff. If they can't find better options then it will be another long year of baseball in Detroit. I wouldn't be shocked if the club continues in its search for re-enforcements to this unit as teams cut down to the opening day roster limits. Position Players 13-14 spots available Roster locks C - Jim Kyle 1B/2B Claude Merrill RF Howard Moss CF Jose Serna Behind C Jim Kyle will be a battle for the backup role. For now that battle will be between C Dave Armstrong and newly acquired C Red Jackson. This position (besides pitching and there is hope on the horizon in pitching) is a weak spot in the organization. There are no sure thing "future of the position" at this time in the system. The team did draft a defensive C in Eddie Miller but he is nowhere near ready. Who will emerge or maybe a better question is who will arrive to claim this required spot on the roster. First Base - Second Base Claude Merrill is a lock for this team and the starting lineup. The question is will he be here at 1B or will prospect Bill Moore force his way into the spot this spring. If Moore has a good spring the job will likely be his and that means that Merrill will slide in to take over 2B. Also in camp vying for a spot is 1B Ralph Conner (263/348/717 4-57) but he did not impress in his 119 games (94 starts) last season and is likely ticketed to Newark. The future of the 1B job in Detroit Red Johnson is up and will likely gets some game action during the first week. He will not make the team straight out of high school but the club wanted to give him a taste of what the majors leagues were like. If Merrill ends up with the 1B job, then that opens the door back up for competition at 2B. Veteran 2B Paul McLain, 34 (234 last year) was up and down between Newark and the big league team. He is wildly popular in Detroit and with interest so low he might get to keep his job no matter what. Also in camp and going to get a big look is 2B Homer Ray (22). The prospect likely is a future piece to the puzzle but management would likely prefer to see him playing everyday this year in AAA Newark. Team Captain Lynn Gray and Slim Ford are also in camp and provide versatility. It is likely that Ford and SS Slim Bloom are battling for 1 spot on the roster as a backup utility player. Shortstop There are 3 players in camp with rookie Tip Harrison (24) joining Slim Bloom and waiver claim pickup John McKinley battling it out. It would take a strong camp for the rookie Harrison, who would probably benefit from a full season at AAA, to make the team. This will be a roster position that is definitely going to be settled by spring performance. Third Base Besides rookie "future 3B" Hank Koblenz in camp in much the same way that Red Johnson is. The only other 3B is returning starter Chief Raymond (309/362-780 8-56). The job is likely Raymond's to be the caretaker of unless someone else is brought in to compete for the job. Outfield Spots 5-6 We know that RF Howard Moss is a lock in right and we have a pretty good feeling that CF Jose Serna will be patrolling CF. Unless the team finds a trading partner Henry Jones will likely open the season in LF. It is not a terrible starting trio but will not make anyone forget New York's trio of LF Moxie Pidgeon, CF Tom Tayler and RF Mahlon Strong. The battles will be for the back up roles which will likely be 2 spots. LF Jay Buckingham is up to gain experience but he will be in AAA Newark to start the season. CF Ollie Williams (2nd round pick) is also on the same program as 1B Red Johnson and 3B Hank Koblenz, in that he is just getting a taste this spring but will report to minor league camp in several weeks. The other players vying for backup roles are CF John Cannon (45 stolen bases in AAA), CF Joe Snider (339/378/802 in 165 AB), RF Mickey Tompkins (298/351/790 last year) and Rule 5 pickup Joe Goodwin. With Goodwin in the mix he might cost an infielder a backup job or the veteran (and unhappy) Tompkins his job. Summary After going through the team like this it is hard to find 55+ wins in this group. The team is going through a lot of changes and those changes are going to continue this year. Maybe they will get lucky and find a few key pieces to plug in and upgrade but right now whoever is picked 7th in the Federal Association has no worries that this rag-tag bunch is going to threaten them anytime soon. It might be spring training, but it already appears that the Dynamo's are "on the clock" with the first pick in the 1936 Draft next December. Last edited by DD Martin; 03-29-2021 at 04:32 PM.

03-09-2021, 02:29 PM	#21
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	The Detroit World Monday September 16th, 1935 Sports News From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat Dynamo's Shows Signs of Life, Will not set FABL Record for Losses in a Season Sometimes its the little things in a season that can help build character and galvanize a team for the future. I'm not sure that translates to baseball but GM Martin and Manager Tom Bray certainly hope it does. The Dynamo's went 3-4 this week, which is almost 500 baseball. While they continue to add to the franchise record for losses in a season, the all-time record of 112 is safe so the 1890 Pittsburgh Miners can rest easy. After this week of rare victories and a current 2 game winning streak, the Dynamo's are 43-100 on the season with 11 games left. Not a lot to play for but with games upcoming against both St. Louis and New York in the last week of the season, the Dynamo's could play a factor. Last Week's Record: 3-4 Season to Date Record: 43-100 (Dead Last) Draft Position: #2 overall clinched Run Differential: -309 Results Last Week Monday Sept 9th @ Philadelphia 13-9 WIN Tuesday Sept 10th @ Philadelphia 5-9 Loss Wednesday Sept 11th @Philadelphia 3-7 Loss Thursday Sept 12th @ Washington 3-11 Loss Friday Sept 13th @ Washington 4-7 Loss Saturday Sept 14th @ Washington 11-8 WIN Sunday Sept 15th @Washington 4-3 (11) WIN Newflash - Does OF Mickey Tompkins Want Out of Detroit That is a tricky question said some with knowledge of the situation. Tompkins (31) who has played with the Dynamo's since coming up in 1928, has played 111 games so far this season, starting 80. But he has seen a significantly reduced role since the team acquired OF Howard Moss. Tompkins is definitely seen as a leader on the team that is losing its team captain C Dick York to retirement at seasons end. Teammates are hoping that the rumors of Tompkins unhappiness is just that, rumors. When we reached out to Tompkins for a word on the rumor, he just smiled and said "don't believe everything you read or hear." and kept walking to the dugout. We did speak to GM DD Martin about the subject and he had this to say. Martin - "Look it has been a very long season and losing does tend to cause additional stresses that nobody likes dealing with. Yes has Mickey's playing time been reduced some in the last month or two of the season, yes. Is Mickey really happy about it, the answer is the same as any real ballplayer would give you. He wants to play everyday. Did he come to me to demand a trade? No, but we did discuss his role and the importance he brings to the clubhouse. We agreed to meet in the off-season to discuss things and then get together in the spring. If Mickey is truly unhappy, we will trade him or give him his release so that he can pursue something that will work for him. But it is not something that is going to happen, today, tomorrow or during the last two weeks of the season." So according to GM Martin, while he and Tompkins talked this past week, Martin has stated that the veteran OF did not ask for a trade. We have spoken to someone on the team though that will disagree with that. Said source states that Tompkins was so unhappy that he did go meet with Martin and he definitely asked for a trade, according to that source. I guess we shall see how the Tompkins situation unfolds in the off-season. Manager Tom Bray Speaks About the Season While losing is never fun, Dynamo Manager Tom Bray seems to be handling things ok. We have noticed that his hair is noticeably greyer now than it was in the spring, but that happens to men as they approach 50. Bray has been the skipper of the Dynamo's since the 33 season and in his 3 seasons to date he has a record of 206-245. Reporter - How have you handled the season so far this year? Bray - Losing is a tough thing, and something that you never want to accept. While we have been struggling I have seen signs from particular players that we hope means that this downturn will be short lived in length. Reporter - Two seasons ago in 1933 you had a team win 90 games and finish 2nd just 6 games back. Today the team has set a franchise record for losses in a season with 100 and counting. How do things go from pretty good to so bad in such a short time. Bray - It's never easy when a club has been together and the core of that team starts to age. It is no secret that 1933 was our last shot in the window that we were in. Last year we went 73-81, finished in 7th place and honestly had no team structure or core. It felt like we were just an afterthought in the grand scheme of things in the sports wheel of Detroit. Going into spring training this year I had to run not only the big league training camp but the minor league camp as well as we didn't have any coaches signed to those minor league teams. Last year it was sort of a committee approach by the players at those teams, so you can guess how that worked out. Reporter - So with the change in May that brought GM DD Martin to town, how did that change things? Bray - Well one of the first things he did was go out and find coaches and managers for those minor league teams so that there was some sort of organization and cohesion. You may not see immediate results but I have seen them as I am getting reports on players and we are meeting to discuss key prospects and whether they should move up the organization to the next level. We have a scouting department and while I believe there will be some changes in how we scout and have seen some of those right now. I have been told very clearly that we are going to emphasis scouting and player development in the minor leagues. Reporter - So it sounds like you have bought into the changes that Martin has brought to the organization. Bray - Hey I'm not a man on a deserted island anymore so yeah I've bought in. I hope to be here a long time and to see this thing through to the other side and restore the good name of Dynamo's baseball. Reporter - Have you had any discussions on that front about your job security with all the losses this season? Bray - On day 1 when Martin came to town we talked all day about what his plan was. How he was going to trade some of our veteran players to help stock at minor league system that was the worst in baseball. He told me this season would be tough, and likely next year will be rough as well although I hope we improve on the win/loss record some. So I am under contract through the 1937 season and we will probably sit down next year after the season and see how we both are feeling. It's not easy to know that you are going to lose this many games and that when you step on the field most nights you don't have all the pieces you need. These guys that are hear are giving us everything they have and I respect the effort they have shown. But to answer your question I have no concerns about my job security, I know I will be back on the field next year as the manager of this team. Reporter - Thank you Tom for your time and good luck the rest of the season. The Minor League System Last year the minor league system was in a shambles both structurally and with the play on the field. This year there have been improvements made in the talent acquired, and the results on the field. Below is a quick view of the won/loss record of the affiliates this year and last year. Newark Aces (AAA) 1935 64-70 .478 4th 25GB Newark Aces (AAA) 1934 47-93 .336 8th 42GB Akron Wheels (AA) 1935 55-79 .410 6th 31GB Akron Wheels (AA) 1934 70-70 .500 4th 27GB Terre Haute Brewers (A) 1935 60-74 .448 6th 33GB Wichita Rustlers (A) 1934 44-96 .314 8th 43.5GB Chattanooga Dynamos (B) 1935 73-61 .545 2nd 26GB Chattanooga Dynamos (B) 1935 54-86 .386 8th 39GB Biloxi Billies (R) 1935 70-64 .522 5th 22GB Biloxi Billies (R) 1934 47-93 .336 8th 47GB Overall Record Minor League Affiliates 1935 322-348 .481 Overall Record Minor League Affiliates 1934 262-438 .375 Below are the prospects lists at the end of the 1934 season (first) and the current rankings as of September 15th (second). The prospects the team has this year are higher rated and significantly more that at the end of last season. Attached Images

03-10-2021, 02:23 PM	#22
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	The Detroit World Tuesday September 24th, 1935 Sports News From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat One Week Left to a Truly Forgettable Season in Detroit Yes it is true the Dyanmo's thankfully have only 1 week left in the season and all the games are at home (not sure that is a good thing). To bring the season to a close the Dyanmo's will host the top 2 FA teams with New York coming in for 2 games and then St. Louis coming in for the final 3. With last week's 0-6, the Dyanmo's are hoping not to end the season on an 11-game losing streak, but they will have to find a way to beat one of those two top team at least 1 game. With the minor league season coming to an end, yes it had some better results that previous Dynamo affiliates last season. But with that time is also coming a time that GM Martin has promised will be a system wide cleansing. That process began on Monday when it several jobs postings were scene in minor league towns. Dynamo's Fire Class A Terre Haute Skipper Jon Gruber Sources surrounding the team stated that the 1st year skipper lost the Class A league team clubhouse during the season. Gruber's record was 57-70 once he took over from a player who had been running things since there was no one else around to do it. Gruber was hired in the middle of May so maybe the firing wasn't fair. The fan reaction was mixed in Terre Haute but one fan describe it this way, "Glad that bum is gone!". Who is going to become the new manager has yet to be announced but unlike the just completed season the Detroit organization will be ready early to pick the next man up. Detroit's AAA Akron Team Fires Manager Billy McIlrath The AAA Akron Wheels announced today that manager Billy McIlrath will not return to the organization next season. The Wheels went 68-72 this season and finished in 4th place, but the results were just not enough for the Dynamo's and GM DD Martin. There was obviously some tension between Martin, the Akron owner and the since fired skipper. McIlrath told sources that "It's not easy to manage when every decision you make is closely scrutinized and criticized, but that's what I dealt with." Another official said that the firing was necessary because of "Major irreconcilable differences of opinion with upper management ownership." The Akron Owner Paul Litchfield has a number of issues brewing locally as well with threats of the rubble makers employees and labor negotiations. When pressed for comment he simply stated "It doesn't matter why he was fired, we are just going in a different direction and we support the parent organization in its efforts to build winners both here and in Detroit. End of story!" The Dynamo's also fired Class B hitting coach Art Murphy on Monday. Dynamo's Start Roster Purge in Lower Levels as Promised Not all decisions were done by the organization though. On Sunday it was announced that class AAA Newark P John Tucker (35) was calling it a career. Also retiring were class A C Herm Landreth (29) and class B 3B Jimmy Jessee. With the minor league seasons done, the Dynamo's announced what will be the first of likely many changes with players leaving the organization. The organization released the following players P Lee Smith (28) AAA Newark 8-5-5 6.53 ERA P Sonny Coleman (30) AAA Newark 12-10-13 5.94 P Milt Robison (25) AA Akron 9-5-7 4.51 ERA C Bob Bullock (29) AAA Akron 127/235/446 1-6 OF Gus Joseph (24) B Chattanooga 238/356/753 3-18 P Jack Hobbs (27) AA Akron 1-1-2 8.68 ERA OF Harry Copeland (29) A Terre Haute 10 AB's P Dick Bair (27) multiple 1-1-2 10.00+ ERA P Freddie Boyd (27) B Chattanooga 3-0 4.82 1B Charlie Cook (31) AAA-AA Newark/Akron 305 2-21 Players DFA P Chuck Matthews (24) Detroit 1-7 6.26 ERA AAA Newark 0-2-1 10.98 and AA Akron 2-3-1 5.85 OF Bobby Anderson (33) AAA Newark 245/286/592 1-10 Final Game of Season (and Careers) It has been announced that C Dick York (39) and SP Max Wilder (38) will be starting the Dynamo's final game of the season as the starting battery. The two veterans announced their respective retirements earlier in the season. Following the conclusion of the game both players have announced intentions of entering the professional coaching ranks. The Dynamo's have had talks with both and hope to have both with them next season as they start the re-birth of this organization. Owner Meeting Looming Following the season ending game over the weekend, it is likely that GM DD Martin and team Owners "Big Money" Eddie Thompson and former player and manager George Theobald will sit down to discuss the season. Martin is expected to announce his plans for the organization structure, the all-important draft, with scouting and player development changes. Some have stated "off the record" that Thompson was shocked at how bad the team played this season. While he was told by Martin it could get really ugly, I don't think he felt things had gotten this bad. Detroit was pegged to finish last by many newspapers and so called experts, but with the trading of Wheeler and Vance the wheels fell off completely and the team has spiraled to over 100 losses. Thompson will likely go along with the changes but some in the organization have expressed concern over a rumor overall budget cut. While the team was profitable this season, it is the worst financial performance of the team since before the turn of the century. Martin will have to argue the changes he is intending to make will be worth the money investment. Further rumors have it that he will make the organizational structural changes regardless and if money is tight it will likely be a payroll reduction that makes the ledgers balance. That would likely mean another terrible year on the field with low priced talent taking the places of several higher priced veteran players.

03-10-2021, 04:23 PM	#23
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	The Detroit World Wednesday September 25th, 1935 Sports News From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat A Special Piece from the Baltimore Sun Looks Like Baltimore has the #1 Pick in the Draft. What Should They Do with it? Despite pleas from many Detroit fans, unless the Dynamo's can make a trade, they will not have the #1 pick in the draft despite a baseball worst (by a country mile no less) 43-106 record which is 19 games worse than the Baltimore Cannons who likely will secure the top pick. Because of the alternating year rule the #1 pick in the draft alternates based on CA in odd years and FA in even years. So the honor of picking Rufus Barrell II appears to be in the Cannons court. Taking a closer look at the Cannons though, do they need Barrell or would they be better served going in a different direction. The Cannons recent history has been pretty bad since an 85-69 2nd place finish in 1931. Let's take a look. Baltimore 1932 71-83 6th place Baltimore 1933 65-89 7th place Baltimore 1934 54-100 8th place Baltimore 1935 62-87 8th place Last season the Cannons were the worst team in all the FABL, but just like Detroit they wound up with the #2 overall pick. With that #2 overall pick they ended up taking SP Gus Goulding (22) out of St. Blane College. Goulding has responded by moving up from Class C after 7 starts to Class B where he spent most of the season with 15 starts. He finished his first pro season a Class A ball. In 29 minor league starts he finished with a record of 21-10 with a 3.00 ERA. He is rated the #17 overall prospect in all of the FABL. So it looks like the Cannons made a great pick last year. He is even higher rated that the young man that went #1 overall last season when the Washington Eagles took Bobo White. Now White pitched exclusively at high level this year spending most of his time at Class AA where he went 10-10 with a 4.93 ERA in 25 starts. White looked strong in 4 starts at AAA to end the season as he went 3-0 with a 3.04. Still White is the #49 prospect while Goulding is #17. Also in looking at the Baltimore system, they have two other young starting pitchers who look like they will join Goulding in what could be the next great CA rotation in a few seasons. SP John Edwards (19) was the 3rd overall pick in 1933 and is the #9 prospect in baseball. Edwards in his 2nd season of pro ball spent most of the season at Class A (9-11 3.90) and started 5 games at class AA (1-3 5.52). Remember he is only 19 so to be getting starts at AA even though he struggled some is pretty remarkable. The other prospect was also a player taken in the 1933 draft picked #10 overall SP Rusty Petrick (19). Petrick had less than desirable high school stats but the scouts just loved him and the New York Gothams took the chance on him that the scouts were right. Before he ever threw a pitch for the Gotham to the Cannons along with several other position players and 1st, 2nd and 4th round draft picks for former multiple time Allen Award winner SP Rabbit Day. Petrick didn't disappoint his new organization as he threw a no-hitter in his first minor league start in April of 1934. He was quickly named the #20 prospect in baseball and has since risen to #13 overall. Petrick looked like he mastered class A going 7-7 with a 3.24 ERA in 23 starts. Like Edwards he pitched some games in class AA as a 19-year-old and struggled with a 4-4 5.83 record. But his future looks exceptionally bright. So the Cannons have 3 highly talented arms who in the next couple of years will likely be joining SP Pinky Conlon who is already anchoring the Baltimore staff. Picking high in the draft the last handful of seasons has allowed Baltimore to acquire some well thought of position players as well. They have several minor league SS in the top 100 with SS Charley McCullough (19) #23, SS Clark Car (21) #30, SS Jim Hensley (19) #34 and SS Charlie Rivera (21) #87. They also have a 3B Frank Covarrubias (24) who is #70 and a CF in Fred Galloway (19) who is rated #29 overall. What they are truly lacking though is a big league power bat, and none of the players mentioned really fits that definition. Currently the Cannons are 6th in the CA in runs scored 711 (4.77 rpg) and 5th in home runs with 74. Their top power/RBI bats this season are 1B Bunny Stapleton (26) (350/401/913 13-64) and LF Jim Mason (27) (344/391/863 11-67). Both are solid professional hitters but they will never be a Max Morris/Rankin Kellogg or even a Doc Love type of power hitter. With some much pitching coming up, would the Cannons be better served to select either 1B Red Johnson or 3B Mack Sutton in the upcoming draft. One can argue that 3B Sutton is the better fit by position of need since Stapleton is at 1B, but there is no denying the power of 1B Johnson. Of course they are all kids that we are talking about and doing well in high school does not guarantee success at the major league level. So what should the Cannons do? Draft Barrell and just add to their stockpile of young arms? Draft Johnson or Sutton and add a potential power bat to the lineup when the pitchers are ready in several seasons? Or trade the pick? Now why would one ever think that they should "trade the pick"? Some say Rufus Barrell II is a generational pick that will someday set records. Maybe he will, maybe Johnson will be referred to as the Max Morris of the 40's and 50's as well. Or maybe they will not live up to their hype as superstar big man on campuses once they leave their respective high schools. Now trading the pick could if don't right bring in a slew of closer to finish developed prospects or more draft capital to play with. The key is not under selling the pick. Rumors were rampant that one GM suggested he'd trade his entire draft just for the slot so they could take Rufus the II. That's a lot of picks that could go a long ways towards filling a lot of holes. Some will tempt Baltimore with a draft swap of we will trade you our lower pick for the #1 along with yadda yadda yadda. It is the yadda, yadda, yadda that the Baltimore organization needs to be careful of. How far down would you slide and how much does that slide cost? Not all 1st round picks are the same and for this draft after the top 5 there could be a big drop in perceived talent. That is the risk in trading draft picks. But the biggest thing if they trade the pick is not to undersell the asset!!!! Another alternative would be to take Rufus Barrell, sign him and then do what the New York Gotham's did in the Rabbitt Day trade, include the player in a deal that would make you significantly better. But not 1 player will solve the Cannon's issues, it would have to be a combination of prospects and 1936 draft picks which would open the door for some teams that can't compete in trading 1935 picks. By league rule only the current year picks (35) can be traded before or during the draft. But once the draft is complete and draftee's are signed to contract could you turn around and trade them for either picks in the next draft (36) or any player prospect combination that is out there to be had. The truth is that many are believing in the high school legend of the famous family kid so drafting him #1 makes a lot of sense even with Baltimore's wealth of young arms. But then exploring the options or trading Barrell II or one of the other young guys instead might be the Cannon's "Golden Ticket" to once again being relevant in the CA Pennant race instead of a spoiler. If you were Baltimore what would you do? And based on what Baltimore does has a ripple effect in what Detroit GM DD Martin does when its his turn to go on the clock.

03-11-2021, 02:07 PM	#24
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	The Detroit World Monday September 30th, 1935 Sports News From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat Mercifully This Brutal Season Comes to a End! The Detroit Dynamo's have completed one of the worst seasons in the history of organized professional baseball. The team that limped home to the finish of the season lost their last 11 games straight. It appeared that they just gave up during the last two weeks. Sure there hasn't been anything to play for since Memorial Day, but somewhere along the way professional pride should take over. It will remain to be seen if the performance and general lack of effort and pride will impact anyone whether it be players, coaches or elsewhere. No matter what happens, team Owner Eddie "Big Money" Thompson has vowed that a product like this will not happen again. Whether that means that Thompson will demand that certain moves are made just for the 36 season to be competitive are made of if he will allow the continued course where the team looks to be trying to build up a woeful minor league and player development system continues. Needless to say this season of futility set numerous club and league records. [B]Records of Futility set 1935/B] Club record Losses 111 (previous low water mark 93 losses in 1898) Club record Runs scored against 1081 (previous mark 1925 Detroit 978) FABL League record Runs scored against 1081 (former league record 1040 by 1890 Pittsburgh Miners) Club record Earned Runs against 859 (League record 1930 St. Louis 896) Club and FABL records for Team ERA 5.98 (previous league mark 1930 St. Louis 5.87) (If we discover other records they will be noted in future editions) So where do the Dynamo's go now that the season is over? We the start of the off-season for Detroit starts today with team owners Eddie Thompson and George Theobald meeting with GM DD Martin. No jobs are expected to be in danger, but it has been noted that Thompson was particularly displeased with how the team finished. We will cover any interesting findings from the meeting tomorrow. Season End Purge Continues The Dyanmo's DFA 5 more players from their 40-man roster with Monday mornings moves. RP Joe Munk (33), RP Alex Harold (24), 1B Frank Shafer (33), CF Bill Groom (33), and RF Jerry Pierce (29). That brings to a total of 7 players DFA in the last week and the 40-man roster is down to 31. With the retirements of C Dick York and P Max Wilder also occurring as the World Series ends next week, that number will be at 29. Indications are there are a couple of more players being closely looked at, but for now these are all that have been announced. Kings Collaspe (Again), Foresters win CA Pennant Detroit GM DD Martin's former team the Cleveland Foresters won their 2nd straight CA Title and again it was in the last week by the narrowest of margins. The Foresters topped the Kings by just 1 single game. For the Foresters this is their 5th CA title since the team's inception in 1890. The success of the recent Forester teams have to give Detroit fans hope for the future that maybe Martin knows what he is doing. Time will tell on that one. With the 2nd straight disappointing finish, it is rumored that Brooklyn Kings Owner Daniel Prescott is furious and that despite denials before, manager Walt Bailey's job is hanging by a thread. New York Gotham's Once Again Reign in FA The New York Gotham's continue a run of dominance at least in the FA by winning their 2nd straight FA Pennant and 4 in the last 6 seasons. If you go back to the 1926 title it makes 5 Gotham pennants in just 10 seasons. That is quite a run of success for the club that unfortunately for them has not transferred a World Series win. The Gotham's will be looking for their first World Series win since they won back to back titles in 1895 and 1896 seasons. Will this be the year? Pioneers 2B Jones Great Season - Wins FA Batting Title The Pioneers star 2B Freddie "Fredrick the Great" Jones flirted with hitting 400 this season. Jones needed to go 11-19 to reach the plateau but struggled going just 4-19 in the last week of the season as the Pioneers failed in their bid to unseat the New York Gothams atop the FA. Still for Jones who hit 389/511/1.011 with a WRC+ 178 with 8 home runs, 89 RBI's and 145 runs scored, it was a great season. One that might win him the Whitney Award. In his 4 seasons of major league baseball he has amassed 824 hits, 423 walks, 474 runs scored and 305 RBI's for a career line of 369/469/925. While Jones was winning the batting title Philadelphia Keystones great 1B Rankin Kellogg was again enjoying a fabulous season. Kellogg led the major leagues in home runs with 45 and RBI's with 165 while batting 338. Those numbers are impressive and he and RF Bobby Barrell make a very good combination but the Keystones were not a real factor in the FA race finishing 83-71, 3rd place 10 games out. Former Dynamo Dominates the CA Wins Triple Crown Former Detroit OF Al Wheeler spotted everyone in the CA a 1 month head start but once the "Wonder Wheel" arrived he started hitting right away. For his time in Brooklyn in 128 games, Wheeler hit 362/437/1.086 34-100. He ended the year including his Detroit stats at 39 home runs and 149 RBI's while hitting 344. Despite his efforts the Kings did not topple the Foresters in the fight for the CA title. New Pitching Coach at Class A Terre Haute Sam Mills (56) agreed to accept the Class A job in Terre Haute after spending 7 years coaching in Denver for the WBL (Class A) Plainsmen. The hope is he will bring some stability to the minor league team after a very inconsistent 1935 season.

03-16-2021, 01:36 PM	#27
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	World Series Trip to Cleveland I was getting ready to go with my wife to Cleveland to where it all began for me on this crazy baseball journey. Games 3, 4 and 5 will be played there. The Gotham's jumped on the Foresters in games 1 and 2 taking a 2-0 lead. I can't believe that I am an outside bystander in this who thing. I started by journey into big league baseball at 25 hired basically by my best friends grandfather Harold Marshall. When Harold passed away is when things got really weird but also successful in Cleveland. My only regret while I was in Cleveland was that I couldn't get Harold Marshall at championship before he passed away. Now after a tumultuous off-season in Cleveland I fled town to Detroit. Rick Marshall (Cleveland owner) and I have patched things up and he understood the move. Luckily for Rick, his pain in the ass gangsta father is now in jail and hopefully permanently out of the Foresters business. But we head off to Cleveland though I had to finish some business with Mr. Thompson and Mr. Theobald. It really was nice to work with gentlemen even though I blew up and walked out. Mr. Theobald was right, Mr. Thompson liked my fire and just told me to do what I needed to do to back bring championship baseball to Detroit. He said he will work with me on the budget but he did buy into my front office, scouting and player development plans. He told me to enjoy the time in Cleveland, but he jokingly said don't get too comfortable there as I am not letting you out of your contract here. World Series Game 3 - I was in the seats at the stadium that Rick Marshall had behind home plate. Our wives went out shopping together while we sat at the game and watched. In a game that went back and forth New York had scored 1 in the 8th and 2 in the top of the 9th to take an 8-5. It wasn't looking good and surprising neither had SP Eddie Quinn. I remember acquiring Eddie in spring training before last year's championship season thinking he might be the final piece needed to get us over the hump. He had pitched well this year with a solid 3.21 ERA but luck wasn't really on his side as he managed just an 18-15 record this year. Today the Gotham's rocked him for 6 runs in 8 innings, but it was Sergio Gonzalez who took the ball in the 9th and laid an absolute egg. Sergio was young and I had and still do have real high expectations for him but he hadn't achieved the success I thought he would in Cleveland. He is exactly the type of pitcher who would do well in Detroit, but I can't see him leaving Cleveland. I really hadn't intended this to be a scouting trip so I got back into watching the game. Fortunately the Foresters rallied for 3 in the 9th to tie it and win it in the 10th on 3B Charlie Barry's solo blast. Cleveland won the game and now trails just 2-1 in the World Series. World Series Game 4 This was going to be a good one and it was. New York started Rabbit Day who used to pitch in Baltimore and drive us nuts, he was that good. Pitching for Cleveland was Dean Astle who I was a little surprised hadn't started a game before game 4 of the series. Being in Detroit this season I hadn't seen a good old fashion pitchers duel much with our starting rotation being such a shambles. I wasn't disappointed on this day as both Astle and Day pitched brilliantly through 10 innings of a 1-1 game. I was watching as Cleveland was up in the bottom of the 10th and didn't see anyone warming up. I love manager Jim Wilson to death, but sometimes he just hangs on too long to a starter. It is probably because he was a former starter and his youthfulness as a manager. It would come to be the Foresters undoing in this game as New York scored 6 runs in the top of the 11th inning. I watched as I saw the spirit squashed out of the team that had endured a lot this season with losing Max Morris in September, and then losing Don Ward in game 1. I wasn't sure they could come back from such a brutal defeat. World Series Game 5 My worst fears as a fan of the Foresters came true. While they did score a run in the top of the 1st there just didn't appear to be any life in them. New York cruised to a easy 10-1 victory to clinch its first World Series (1896) since before I was born. My hat goes off to the Gotham's though. They showed grit all season as the St. Louis Pioneers sprinted to an early lead. But slowly the Gotham's gained traction and you could see the pieces coming together. It was manager Ed Ziehl first championship as a life long Gotham player and now manager after 30 years. What's coming next We spent a few more days in Cleveland with Rick and his wife before we boarded the train back to Detroit. It was time to start preparing for the off-season and the draft. Speaking of the draft Baltimore was now officially on the clock with the #1 pick. They have said that they would listen to offers for the pick and the opportunity to "win the lottery" for high school phenom and family legacy legend Rufus Barrell II. For us while we might be able to pull off a trade like that with the draft capital we had, I wasn't really looking to move. It was a fairly certain lock that whoever had #1 (and I'm betting on Baltimore keeping the pick) would take Rufus II. That meant that one of the most high praised slugging 1B in recent memory since maybe Rankin Kellogg (no one compares with Max Morris out of high school) would be ours at #2. There was talk that maybe we go with 3B Mack Sutton since that was more a position of need for us in the organization, but Johnson just looked and sounded too good to pass up. Unless someone got really crazy with a trade offer, Johnson would be coming to our organization. We also had #13 in the first round thanks to our trade with Brooklyn. While the deal didn't get the King's the title this year that they so desperately crave, I remembered the trades I made in Cleveland. Deals that put us on the road to a championship even if it was a year or two down the line. While I was in Cleveland I did manage to do some work for us in Detroit and no it wasn't scouting Forester players that I wanted to target and bring to us. I was talking to some coaches and managers as I start to really look at our organization. While I won't disclose the names of those individuals at this time, it is safe to say that our minor league coaching will have some changes to it as we move into the future.

03-18-2021, 05:07 PM	#28
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	Moving onto the Draft Well unless there is a stunning development or trade the top 2 picks in the FABL draft will likely already be made according to plan. Baltimore will most likely select SP Rufus Barrell II and add to an impressive young core group of SP's all 20 and younger. This team is going to be tough to beat if they all develop and remain major injury free. By the 1938 season most likely all 4 will be in the Cannon's rotation. That will leave us with the #2 pick and everyone figures that we will be taken 1B Red Johnson with that pick. The power this kid possess with his right handed swing will be fit perfectly into our short porch in LF. After those top 2 picks then the next 4 are expected to be in some order 3B Mack Sutton, SP George Garrison, C Bll Van Ness and 3B Hank Koblenz. It should be a real fun draft. Besides the #2 overall pick we have the #13 pick in the first round and then also the #18 overall pick with the 2nd pick in the 2nd round. We are hopefully of adding 3 very good players that are going to be a major impact to our franchise for years to come.

03-19-2021, 11:54 AM	#29
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	The Detroit World Friday December 6th, 1935 Sports News From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat The Draft Has Begun and Dyanmo's Make an Offensive Splash Dyanmo's Nab 1B Red Johnson with #2 Overall Pick With the youthful talent that some say legends are made, the Dynamo's selected the best high school power hitter that has been seen in a decade. With the #2 overall pick, Detroit selected high school 1B Red Johnson (18) out of Portland, Oregon. All the scouts are raving about his power possibilities and a number of them had him rated higher on their boards that overall #1 Rufus Barrell II. Detroit's Director of Scouting Fred Davis stated that "The lean and athletic 1B has a plus-plus eye that should put him among the league leaders in walks and on-base %. He projects to be an elite hitter both for average and more importantly for the Dynamo's, power. Playing in Detroit, Johnson looks like he could have a legendary career." The national service also said about the 6'1 185 high schooler, who hit over 500 in both his high school seasons with 21 home runs. "Johnson is an elite hitter with plus power and a plus-plus eye who should shred Dynamo records in Thompson Field." The next key will be signing the slugger which won't be easy. He appears to be looking for a signing bonus of close to $20,000. He has committed to Stratton University for college if Detroit should fail to sign him. But with the Dynamo's they can ill-afford to blow it so expect them to give him anything he wants. Dynamo's move up in trade with Chicago Cougars to Take 3B Hank Koblenz The Dynamo's had the #13 overall pick, which was their 2nd first round choice acquired from the Brooklyn Kings. Detroit feeling that the pitchers they were looking at would not be there when they picked decided to get aggressive. They traded their remaining 1st round pick #13, their 2nd round pick from Brooklyn #29 and their own 3rd round pick #34 to the Cougars to move up to the #5 spot. There was probably some hope that they would be able to draft 3B Mack Sutton with the pick but he went to Boston when they acquired the pick for a AAA SP and #30 Roy Price. It is rumored that Detroit was in negotiations for the #4 pick as well but the pitching starved Washington Eagles are doing what a lot of teams seem to be doing, and are overpaying for pitching. With the pick in hand and Sutton off the board, the Dynamo's still seemed happy to grab another 3B from Milwaukee, Wisconsin in Hank Koblenz (19). The high school senior will be another tough signing as he is looking for similar figure in the $18,000 range as Johnson. If he doesn't sign he will take his talents to Springfield State University. Nobody expects the Dynamo's to mess around with either of these guys when it comes to signing. As a high school senior Koblenz bashed 12 home runs and hit 484 while driving in 42 RBI's. Again being a right handed power bat plays well at Thompson Field, so if both guys pan out the Dynamo's might have their corner infield set for 15 years once they are up. Scout Fred Davis raved that "Not only do other players look up to Koblenz but he has tons of raw power and will someday (likely with his teammate Johnson) via for Association home run titles. He has above average contact skills, a smooth swing with quick hands and good pitch recognition. He may not be an elite defensive 3B, but he's solidly above average. Koblenz has good potential and a very promising future." The national scouting service basically concurs with the Dynamo's head scout. The Dynamo's traded a lot of draft capital to move up 8 spots and compared to the relative bargain that Boston to grab the #4 pick and keep their own #6 pick, it is still a deal most in Detroit seem excited about. When asked about the Washington/Boston deal, GM Martin just shrugged his shoulders and said that "We didn't have the near ready pitchers Washington was looking for and if we did we likely wouldn't have moved them anyway." The one thing that Detroit didn't address in the 1st round was that of the serious need for starting pitching. When pressed about that, Martin said "This isn't a 1 year fix here, but don't worry there is always a plan. We might still find a way to acquire some pitching yet, even if it is not in the early rounds of this years draft." Dynamo's On the Clock in the 2nd Round, Take CF Williams with #18 Pick Some say the Dynamo's were targeting OF Prospect Nate Drake, a speedster from Buffalo, NY. Drake was selected in front of Detroit by the Baltimore Cannons with the first pick of the 2nd round. While Drake wasn't a CF by trade, it was felt he would be able to make the switch to the middle. With Drake off the board, the Dynamo's nabbed a true CF in college player Ollie Williams (21). Williams was a CF for Northern California University. He hit 308 in both his seasons at the school and was well over 400 in on-base average. He stole over 60 bases between the 2 seasons as well. The Dynamo's may have found a speedy leadoff hitter for themselves with this pick. Scout Fred Davis chimed in "Williams is originally from Texas and is a defensive marvel in CF. He has good contact skills and elite speed and should be a top of the order hitter with an excellent ability to put pressure on opposing pitchers and defenses with his speed." With the trades the team made to move up for Koblenz the Dynamo's will not pick again until late in the 3rd round at #45 and then again early in the 4th round at #50. When we talked to GM DD Martin he was looking very happy with how things had worked out, "We had a great day!"

03-22-2021, 02:53 PM	#30
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	Days 2-4 of Player Draft Over the course of the draft we selected a total of 31 players. 21 of the draft picks have signed their rookie deals and unfortunately only 2 have appeared in our initial prospect rankings. While not shocking you are always hoping that you can find a few nuggets that surprise. Our 8th round pick OF Bob Thomas has appeared currently as our #7 prospect and #133 overall. The 22 year old was signed out of Georgia Baptist after he hit 265/424/990 with 10 home runs and 29 RBI's. He does a good job drawing walks and has decent speed swiping 29 bags last season. 5th Round pick SP Harry Frenette (18) is a Canadian and was drafted out of high school. He was 8-0 with 1.85 ERA in 12 starts. He appears in our rankings as our #19 prospect and #347 overall. He has a lot of movement on his pitches and has a 5-pitch mix. He probably is a long shot, but he certainly has a shot to one day make it to the big leagues. Draft picks negotiating their contracts are - 1st round picks 1B Red Johnson and 3B Hank Koblenz. Both are looking for $18,000 and are considered extremely hard to sign. We are not fiddling around with these guys and have offered to meet their demands. Also negotiating is 2nd round CF Ollie Williams who is requesting a $5,500 bonus. Our 3rd round pick P Joe Boyd (18) was 18-4 with a 1.58 ERA in 2 high school seasons. He was incredibly consistent going 9-2 in both seasons starting 14 games each season and tossing 108.1 innings in both years. I am a little surprised that he wasn't rated but currently the jury is out on whether he can start and that is likely effecting his rating. I think he has a solid shot at starting and he will be doing just that as one of 6 SP's at Class C Biloxi to start the season. Boyd didn't really seem to want to go to college and immediately signed a contract. Since we covered the top 3 picks in details on day 1 here is a little more detail on the remaining currently unsigned picks. We do not anticipate having issues signing any of them. C Ernie Miller (21) was the 4th round selection. We are looking for catching talent for our organization as it is really a pretty barren wasteland of lacking talent in the minors. Miller is considered a superior defensive catcher which is good since there is considerable debate how well he will meet the ball with his hitting. I see him as a back up catcher on our club down the road because of his superior defense. His only negative is a penchant for speaking his mind so we will try and teach him to reign it in a bit. He is seeking a bonus of just $590. 4th round SP Floyd "Snowman" Frost (18) was a cool cat in high school going 7-1 with a 1.65 ERA his senior year. He is a groundball pitcher who throws left-handed. He will join Frenette in the Biloxi starting rotation come this spring. He throws up to 6 different offerings that all have plenty of movement which will play well. While not projected to a top of the rotation guy, he does have back of the rotation talent. We need all 5 slots of the rotation filled since we were so horrendous last season. His signing bonus demand is $1,600. We had 3 4th round picks and the last of which is SS Jim Parmelee (22) out of Daniel Boone College. He was considered an end of round 2-early round 3 talent and might have dropped because he has some lack of drive and can become complacent. He stole 69 bases in 2 seasons at DB, and is considered an excellent defensive player. He has good plate discipline but grades out slightly below average as a hitter. His bonus demands is $910 for a new car. SP Dan Reeves (21) is a right handed ground ball pitcher selected in the 5th round. His final year at Miami State U was a bit of a let down after sophomore season going 4-4 with a 4.06 ERA. He has average stuff but tends to run up his pitch counts. We are currently undecided on if he will start at Class B or Class C and will see how things look this spring before deciding. Our Class B rotation is pretty loaded but at least 2-3 of those guys could be moving up quickly to Class A. If there is an opening we will slide him to class B because of his age, but if not he will be in the Class C rotation. Signing bonus demand was $460, and we offered him $500 just to be nice. 6th Round high schooler SP Ike O'Donnell (19) is committed to play at Carolina Poly. His desire to go to college is fair, but we believe the over slot $1000 bonus will get him to sign. He has 5 pitches and has a very promising change up that he will likely lean heavily on. He has strong control and won't give up many walks. Once signed he will be starting at Class C Biloxi. 3B Frank Cook (18) was originally drafted by the New York Gothams in the 7th round and it appears it was a mistake. Someone punched the wrong name into the telegraph as they intended to take Manager Ed Ziehl son, 3B Eddie Ziehl. We selected Ziehl Jr. 2 picks later. Being the nice guys that we are shipped the kid to New York for the 3B they took (Cook) and RP Ray Foster along with $10,000 cash. I was not hoping to use that cash to sign Cook, but he is looking for a $2,500 bonus. We will give it to him and hope that he is not a wasted pick. In his last 2 high school seasons he hit 500 and 505 with 29 doubles over those 2 seasons. He looks like a solid hitter but will it be enough? 12th Round pick 1B George Green (18) is the last of the bonus babies we have. He is looking for a $1,000 bonus and we are grudgingly going to give it to him simply because this organization is so lacking in talent. Obviously with Red Johnson being picked in the 1st round he really has no where to go, but if he pans out he could be a trade chip or maybe we will try him in the corner OF early next year. We set aside a draft bonus amount of $50,000 and we are spending $49,560 which is partially offset by the $10,000 received from the Gotham's (Thank You). Now we will move forward with the off-season activities and head straight to the Rule 5 draft. I was disappointed in the talent available but maybe we will find a few pieces to plug in. We will take some changes on a few guys since we will not be competing next season so we at worst will strengthen our system. After that will be the minor league draft (1 round) and the Indie League Draft (1 round). We will be picking 2nd in both of those if we find anyone worth taking. Transactions before the Rule 5 Draft - We DFA 2B Bob Baker (31) who did a fine overall job for us last season. He was with us in Cleveland as well and was up and down there. He is a good quality depth piece who can play a solid 2B, and when his bat is going he can hit 300. If he is not claimed we will assign him to Class AAA where he will likely work with some of our young talent there like 2B Homer Ray. Promoted to the 40-man roster were SP Jack Stemm (25) and CF John Cannon (26). Stemm was kept not because he was dominate at Class AAA last year, but he wasn't terrible and we have a glaring lack of big league arms in our organization. He will via for a spot on the big league club in spring training and depending on acquisitions will likely get a shot. If not he will use an option to pitch again at AAA Newark where he went 5-9 with a 5.00 ERA in 24 starts. Cannon was kept simply because of his base stealing capabilities as he swiped 45 bases at AAA Newark. If we get into a roster crunch then veteran OF Joe Snider (30) will likely be the odd man out. Next - Rule 5 Draft

03-22-2021, 03:52 PM	#31
Bub13 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Maine Posts: 748	And so it begins. "The journey of a thousand miles..." etc. Looking forward to seeing how this plays out! __________________ Introducing Your Hawaii Islanders!

03-25-2021, 10:54 AM	#33
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	The Detroit World Sunday, January 19th, 1936 Sports News From the Desk of "Fast" Freddie Farhat The Off-Season Roles on, Has it Been a Success? When GM DD Martin took over this job in early May 1935 he stated that the franchise was broken and in need of serious repair. The team had finished 7th in 1934 with a 73-81 record. The pitching staff was aging, the minor league system was a mess as most affiliates didn't have managers or coaches for the entire 34 season. The front office was basically run by manager Tom Bray who was trying to keep the ship from sinking. The minor league development and scouting were a shambles. The team had no top 100 prospects and was ranked dead last (well tied anyway) in the FABL. What followed was a blockbuster trade sending OF Art Wheeler, 3B/1B Frank Vance and SP Jim Beach to Brooklyn for a slew of draft picks and 5 prospects. A terrible season on the field that left many wonder what in the heck this GM was doing as the team finished with a franchise record 43-111 won/loss record. The losses were the 2nd most in FABL history (record 112). What followed was a bit of a rocky meeting with the clubs ownership regarding where the team was going, and the budget. While the budget was reduced it was not reduced enough to significantly change the direction of what GM Martin wanted to do. Continue to upgrade and rebuild a once proud franchise. When questioned by reporters, fans, owners and anyone else who care about things, Martin just responded to his "Off-season Plan, there is always a plan". While the 1936 season will likely not be remembered as the greatest turnaround in baseball history on the field, the organization does feel like it is going in the right direction. With the draft in the rearview mirror we moved onto the Rule 5 draft. Dynamo's Select 6 Players in Rule 5 Draft As promised the Dynamo's were very active in the Rule 5 draft. No there was no real blockbuster names in it, but the team did pick up some talent with 4 pitchers and an OF with a very interesting nickname being added. Dynamo Rule 5 selections SP Earle Killebrew, 23 (from Philadelphia Sailors) was 18-5 with a 2.77 ERA at class B Miami. He has shonw improvement in his velocity over his early years going from 80-83 to now 86-88. He throws 4 pitches and while they aren't consider "plus" he does throw strikes. His likely role this season will be as a long reliever who might get a few starts here and there. SP Ben Watkins, 25 (from the Baltimore Cannons). Most likely available because of the Cannons wealth of young arms and a partially torn UCL in late July (35). He should be ready to pitch in spring training and scouts have him pegged from a mid-rotation arm to a front line SP. In 1932 he was named the #40 prospect in baseball. He pitched in Class A ball last year going 11-8 with a 4.08 ERA before his injury. Whether he pans out to his potential remains to be seen but he seems like a good candidate to take a flyer on. P Ray Lee, 23 (from the Montreal Saints) - Lee has bounced around a bit in his early career after being named the #84 prospect in 1932. He was traded by the Chicago Chiefs during last season and came to Montreal with another player in exchange for OF Cliff Moss. He pitched mainly in relief this last season mostly at AA. The jury is out on whether Lee will develop into a SP. He does have 3 pitches and he manages to throw them all for strikes but he could end up being a middle man in the pen. OF Joe Goodwin, 23 (also acquired from the Montreal Saints) has the unique nickname as "The Demon from Demopolis" (Alabama). He has power in his swing and he is still working to put it all together. He was a 2nd round pick of the Saints in 1930. He will likely see limited time this season but could work his way into getting more at-bats as the season moves along. The final player acquired was a personal favorite of GM Martin from his days in Cleveland. SP George Coleman, 27 (from the Cleveland Foresters) is older than the other players taken. Coleman never got a real long chance at pitching for the Foresters and he was available in this draft. With Detroit's significant lack of quality arms, he will be given every chance this spring to make the team and fill in either as a SP or out of the bullpen. Of all the players taken, he is the only one out of options and the others could all be sent down after the season for more development. Coleman will have to show that he deserves a future roster spot, but Martin is happy to give him the opportunity. As we said the Dynamo's selected 6 players and we have noted only 5. That is because the team did pick another SP in the Rule 5 Draft. Bud Robbins, 22 was selected from the Pittsburgh Miners and was rated the #85 prospect in baseball. Through a claimed clerical error it was deemed that Robbins should not have been exposed. After talking it over with the Pittsburgh GM and the league offices, the Dynamo's agreed to send him back but were looking for fair compensation for being the "good guys". Some have speculated that the Dynamo's should have just kept him, stash him on the roster and then developed him for a year or two more in the upper minors. Others have questioned why the Dynamo's would trade him back. Well whether it was the right decision for the organization the Dynamo's did send him back to Pittsburgh in a trade for a 3rd round pick in next year's draft. Dynamo's make moves in the Minor League Draft and the Indie League Draft. The team that needs pitching got a significant boost in stock over the last few weeks as the Dynamo's brought in 2 pitching talents via the minor league and Indie League drafts. In the minor league draft (1 round) a team may select any player that would be rule 5 eligible or have 4 years pro statistic from an unaffiliated minor league team (Indie team). The Dynamo's used their pick in this draft to claim SP Luis Sandoval, 23 from the Waco Wranglers of the Lone Star Association. The LSA is considered a AA minor league association with teams down in Texas. Sandoval went 13-8 with a 4.07 ERA in 30 starts last season. While he will be occupying a spot on the 40-man roster, he will be assigned to Class AAA Newark (This is the difference between the Rule 5 Draft and the Minor League Draft). He immediately checks in as the Dynamo's #15 prospect and is #211 overall. The real find for the Dynamo's and the one that has GM DD Martin claiming that the off-season was a success was the Indy League Drafting of SP Ray McCarthy, 21 from the El Paso Missions. The Indy League Draft acts more like a trade as the Dynamo's had to give the El Paso team a player in return. The league announced that player would be 28 year old SP Spike Manifold. McCarthy checks in as the Dynamo's #3 rated prospect and #23 overall and becomes the organizations #1 pitching prospect (SP Earle Robinson, 20 is #4 and #31 overall). With McCarthy joining Robinson and Jack Wood, the Dynamo's have 3 pitchers who could be in Detroit in the next couple of seasons and long time assets in the starting rotation. Martin Claims Off-Season a Success! GM DD Martin has claimed that the off-season has been a huge success in the rebuilding of the Dynamo's future. With the draft acquisitions of 1B Red Johnson, 3B Hank Koblenz, SP Ray McCarthy, CF Ollie Williams, OF Bob Thomas, SP Floyd Frost, and SP Luis Sandoval along with the 5 Rule 5 draftees, he has deemed it a very successful off-season. Martin stated to me several times through the season that there was always a plan in place and they just needed some good fortune and luck to make it happen. When he didn't move up to try and select high school phenom Rufus II Barrell, he again said "we have a plan". Well it seems as though the plan, at least in Martin's mind, has worked. Whether or not we will see great improvement on the field in Detroit this year is doubtful, but the future is starting to look a little brighter. As long as you have patience to wait for it.

03-25-2021, 11:47 AM	#34
Jiggs McGee All Star Reserve Join Date: Dec 2019 Posts: 677	Some big moves in Dynamo land. They likely won’t have a big impact this year but certainly will down the road. Excitement in the organization is restored and Detroit is quickly becoming my favorite FABL team. __________________ Lead Columnist of The Figment Sporting Journal The Scripture of Sports

03-26-2021, 02:02 PM	#36
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	February Blahs - GM Notes So we have reached the time of the season where we tend to take a rest. Oh of course there is plenty to do. With our beefed up scouting department we will be heading out to view prospects and talk to coaches and scouts all over the country. We are focusing our scouting here in Detroit more than ever on the amateur players. We have already made contact with over 200 of the young men that are slated for next years draft and we will continue to keep notes on them all season long. Giving Fred Davis some more budget room, supplies and help should make a big difference we hope in our scouting accuracy going forward. The family has come down to Florida with me ahead of spring training for a little vacation as is our usual deal. With the salary I am making here we are able to stay at much nicer places than what we used to. Its great to spend some time with the kids as they are really enjoying the family time. My oldest son (9) is starting to play baseball. He is hoping to be a pitcher and someday be playing for the Foresters of all teams. He still likes the green uniforms in Cleveland. I will help him along and I am sure he will hang around the ballpark this summer picking up tips from players and coaches. Our players start to report in early March so there is still a lot of things to do before then. Our minor league coaches will be gathering here in Lakeland as we signed a new contract with the city to host our spring training. We are still in the process of weeding out some minor league guys and there are a few guys that will never get a shot coming out of the draft this year. We had a glut of 1B scheduled in our rookie league team so we moved that number from 6 to 4. I figure that 1B Red Johnson will only spend a month or two at most there so then we would have a more manageable number. I am also toying with the idea to give the big kid a few starts in the corner OF just to see what he has out there. Playing 1B is fine and with what we hope he can bring to the table the job there will be his in a few seasons. But if he had the ability to play LF or RF, there is another big bat in this next years up coming draft that is intriguing a lot. I can see the 1939 Detroit Dynamo's with Johnson, Koblenz and maybe this kid setting power hitting records. Speaking of the 1936 draft there are some intriguing pitching prospects in it. Based on our coaches early thoughts by next season (1937) we could see SP Earle Robinson, SP Ray McCarthy, SP Jack Wood and maybe even Luis Sandoval in our starting rotation at some point that season. With that crew and some others that could be ready or improve (Ben Watkins) and future big league pitchers Art Brandon and even the much maligned Del Burns, pitching might not be as high a priority next draft. But you can never have enough and pitching options turn in to very attractive trade chips and who knows when we are that 1 player away one of those guys might be the key. One guy in our minors leagues that hasn't gotten enough attention is 1B Bill Moore. Moore was a first round pick in 1932 (#13 overall) and hit a very impressive 349 in AAA with 21 doubles and 8 home runs. He is a flyball hitter but he is also left handed and so he will not take advantage of our short left field porch. Still he looks like he could be ready and will get a shot this spring to win the job. Currently we have converted 2B Claude Merrill penciled in at 1B but he could just as easily go back to 2B. We moved Claude to get his bat in the lineup last season and he played well at 1B, but with Johnson hopefully ready by 1939 it is a limited window. Merrill is steady defensively at 2B and since Homer Ray probably isn't quite ready this season, at least to start and Moore shows he can handle 1B. Merrill will likely start at 2B to open the season. Another player we are going to watch very closely this spring is SS Tip Harrison. While he is 24 he is just coming off his rookie season of pro ball. He moved quickly from Class B all the way up to AAA by the end of the year. I am not sure his bat is ready for the big leagues and he might benefit from another season or part season to start in AAA. Spring will tell whether he is ready or not. He will get a lot of opportunity. Owner Meeting Before I left town I had another very long conversation with majority team owner Eddie Thompson (68). I am getting the feeling that while Mr. Thompson supports me, he is extremely anxious to get the club back into contention. He surprisingly raise our budget back up to the level it was last season after slashing around $75,000 to start the off-season. While part of me thinks he wishes we could just buy players from other teams, the other part of me thinks he has no idea what sort of player movement and anarchy that would cause. He let me know that he'd still like for me to find a way to win the FA this year. He didn't seemed amused when I laughed at what I thought was a joke. I reassured him of the plan and showed him the prospects report. He sighed some when he saw the rookies we drafted in the top 5 were projected to be ready in 1939. I mean I understood how dare those kids wait until they are 21-22 to get to the big leagues. Maybe it will be quicker I stated, but I also let him no under no circumstances were these boys to be rushed as it might ruin their development. Next - A Prospect Review and a Guide to Spring Training

03-29-2021, 01:34 PM	#38
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	Detroit Dynamo's Top Prospects List As we prepare for spring training we will review the top prospects in the farm system a little more closely. In a surprise the #5 overall pick in last years draft is rated 1 spot higher than the #2 overall pick. Both are in the top 10 though so we aren't too worried about it. #1 (Overall #8) 3B Hank Kolblenz (19) Acquired - 1935 Draft 1st round 5th overall (pick acquired from Chicago Cougars) The first line is what attracted us to him in his scouting report. "He has power potential to develop into a human highlight film." With our short porch in left field, he could become the first 3B in FABL history to hit over 300 career home runs. That is our hope anyway. #2 (Overall #9) 1B Red Johnson (18) Acquired - 1935 Draft 1st round 2nd overall Honestly I see Johnson as the next Rankin Kellogg who is the 1B of the Philadelphia Keystones. Kellogg is the #2 all time home run hitter who could have a shot to catch Max Morris someday. Johnson is projected to be an elite hitter, with an excellent eye and tremendous raw power. If he plays his whole career with us, he could likely hit over 500 career home runs. #3 (Overall #20) LHSP Ray McCarthy (22) Acquired - 1936 Indie League draft from El Paso (AA) McCarthy has been on a crazy journey in his career having been the #7 overall pick in the 1932 draft. For some reason after signing with St. Louis he was released and never threw a pitch in the organization (could have been a GM regime change). He was signed by several Indie league teams in 1933 and 1934 but was never given a chance to pitch. Last year El Paso gave him the opportunity and he went 12-11 in the hitter happy Lone Star Association (Indie league loop with a lot of former big league players in it). #4 (Overall #23) RHSP Earle Robinson (20) Acquired - Trade with Brooklyn on May 13th, 1935 Robinson appears to be a star in the making, but he is going to have to overcome a bit of the injury bug that has plagued him the last couple of seasons. He was 5-2 with a 2.62 ERA in 10 starts with Class B Chattanooga but missed the last half of the season. Hopes are high for him but he has had a problem with his back (thankfully are trainer is pretty good at handling back injuries). If he can overcome his back issues, he could potentially be in Detroit next season. #5 (Overall #71) 1B Bill Moore (24) Acquired - 1932 1st Round #13 overall Obviously with Red Johnson a couple of years away Moore will be given every chance to win the job this spring. He could be in a camp battle with last year's power hitting surprise Claude Merrill who slide over from 2B to 1B at the end of the year. Moore's real only drawback is that he is a left handed hitting 1B in a park designed to right handed hitters. Still Moore hit 349 in 1/3 of a season at AAA Newark with 8 home runs. #6 (Overall #88) SS Frank Davis (19) Acquired - In a trade with Pittsburgh in May 1935 Davis was acquired along with a 4th round pick (SP Floyd Frost) for then 38 year old SP Ray Calfee. Davis was a prospect rated at #160 overall at the time of the trade so while he was a nice addition to a woeful system we were not jumping up and down in anticipation. He hit 319/399 in class C last year and is very good with the glove at SS. He will move up the line to play in class B to start the season in Chattanooga. If he plays well he might end the year in class A Terre Haute, but we won't rush him. #7 (Overall #93) LHSP Jack Wood (23) Acquired - May 1935 trade with Brooklyn As one of the pieces in the mega deal last year with Brooklyn, Wood was the 2nd SP prospect that came over. A little more advanced than Robinson, but likely with not as much upside. The good news is that Wood has been bitten by the injury bug like Robinson. He made the jump from college all the way to AAA (after the trade he likely should have been in AA), because the organization lacked depth. He will likely return to AAA Newark to look to improve upon his 4-7 5.44 campaign of a year ago. We might even give him a couple of starts in AA just to make sure he has his confidence. He will be invited to spring training but has 0% shot at making the big league club simply because of his lack of experience and all the rule 5 pitchers we will be carrying. #8 (Overall #108) SS Tip Harrison (24) Acquired - Trade with Brooklyn May 1935 Another player acquired in the trade with Brooklyn when we arrived. We are a little disappointed that he has slide from the #46 prospect to where he is but still feel he has a fine future. Another 1934 college draft pick, last year was his first season in pro ball and he went from Class B (with Kings) to then making stops at A, AA and finally AAA last season. Probably a little too quick as he hit just 251 in AA and then 265 in AAA. Spring training invite but likely ticketed to AAA Newark to find his footing with the bat. #9 (Overall #114) 2B Homer Ray (22) Acquired - May 20th 1935 trade with Chicago Cougars (SP Wayne Robinson deal) Ray tore up AA that he was moved to AAA and hit a respectable 291 in little over half a season. He is a good fielder and should be a #2 hitter potentially in the order. Again he will get a spring invite but look for him to spend most of the year in AAA Newark until the team decides what to do with veteran 2B Paul McLain. #10 (Overall #116) CF Ollie Williams (22) Acquired - 1935 2nd round draft choice #18 overall We are very happy to see our 2nd round pick ranked this high. Williams will likely start his career in Class B as a college player depending on how things shake out. He has plus speed which is something the organization is lacking and should be an above average defensive CF. Our scout feels that he is not too far away from patrolling CF at Thompson Field. #11 (Overall #166) LHSP Floyd Frost (18) Acquired - 1935 Draft 4th round (#58 overall) via trade with Pittsburgh (Calfee) Young high schooler was 7-1 with a 1.65 ERA his senior year. He has 6 pitches in his repertoire and has decent command. Whether he makes the big leagues as a starter will be determined in the years a head, but he looks promising. #12 (Overall 179) RHSP Ben Watkins (just turned 26) Acquired - Rule 5 draft from Baltimore Watkins suffered a partially torn UCL last season which is why he was likely left unprotected in the draft. He should have been moved up farther in Baltimore's system but has only pitched as high as class A. He will miss part of spring training and we had hoped he might get to do a rehab assignment at AAA before coming to the big leagues. But he is a rule 5 pitcher and if he is ready to go before spring ends, he will be carried on the staff at least in the bullpen to start the season. Eventually he will likely get some starts but not right out of the gate. #13 (Overall #181) RHSP Luis Sandoval (23) Acquired - 1935 Minor League Draft (from Waco AA Lone Star Assoc) The 2nd SP that we acquired last year between the minor league (AAA rule 5) and Indie league drafts. Sandoval was 13-8 4.08 with the AA Waco Wranglers and will start the year after a spring training invite at AAA Newark. The native Venezuelan prospect will be starting but depending on how things work out he could be a top RP in the future. If he pitches well in AAA he might force the Dynamo's move to bring him to the majors. #14 (Overall #188) RHSP Del Burns (19) Acquired - 1934 Draft 1st round #3 overall Much maligned draft pick by the Dynamo's before our arrival in Detroit. Despite all the negative reaction to his place being drafted, he does have some promise. He was 2-5 with a 3.13 ERA after a promotion from class C and he will likely start in class B with a hopeful move up to class A before the seasons end. The promising thing with Burns is his pitches have plenty of movement and he is not likely to give up a ton of home runs, which in Detroit is promising. #15 (Overall #189) RHSP Harry Frenette (19) Acquired - 1935 Draft 5th round (#77 overall) Another young high school pitcher that we decided deserved a shot. He was 8-0 with a 1.85 ERA in 12 starts his senior year. He throws 5 pitches and his velocity is improving upon arrival in spring camp. He will start the season in Class C Biloxi. #16 (Overall #193) LHSP Art Brandon (19) Acquired - June 1935 trade with Chicago Cougars (SS Bob Barringer) At the time we traded Barringer we were desperate for young starting pitching prospects. In this deal we traded the then 29 year SS Bob Barringer for two prospects (my comment in the deal was maybe 1 of them will hit). In the trade we got SP Brandon and also SP Harvey Gaines (#222 prospect) at the time. Gaines struggled staying healthy last year and he has fallen all the way out of the top 500. Brandon on the other hand blossomed going 8-2 with Chattanooga with a 3.09 ERA. Brandon will get a few more class B outings and then will hopefully be ready for class A by June. #17 (Overall #197) LF Bob Thomas (22) Acquired - 1935 Draft 8th round (#125 overall) Thomas showed some power at George Baptist University last season hitting 10 home runs with a 265/424/990 slash. He is very selective at the plate but he will need to drop a few more hits in if he hopes to make it to the big leagues. College player so he will start in class B with hopes of making a promotion to class A by the all star break. Summary - So that is a list of our prospects that are currently rated in the top 200. With 17 players in that group we are pleased with our progress, especially since we had just 19 total players in the top 500 last year. While all of them will not rise up the ranks, we will hope that most of them will have strong seasons and work their way up another rung (or 2 in some cases) up the ladder. Next - Spring Training Camp Opens

03-30-2021, 12:25 PM	#40
DD Martin All Star Starter Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Seattle area Posts: 1,029	Spring Training is off and Running Oh how I love the spring where hope is eternal for all teams, well almost all teams. In our first game SP Ray McCarthy had an easy 1-2-3 against the St. Louis Pioneers. But then the storm clouds came rolling in and it was not rain in the forecast. Was my spring quickly going to ruined when our trainer ran out of the dugout in the 2nd inning. Had all that planning and plotting to acquire this guy all last summer just blown up in our faces? SP Ray McCarthy (22) was escorted off the mound after throwing just 23 pitches. In his brief outing he went 1.2 innings, giving up 1 hit and striking out 1 batter. McCarthy was taken out after his arm just felt dead. He would be sidelined for a week. The question was, would he return to the mound this spring or just go down to minor league camp and get ready for the season there. As McCarthy was coming out of the game, I looked into our dugout I could see how much noticeably grayer our manager Tom Bray was looking. He was also stirring some sort of drink and quickly gulped it down. We ended up losing that first spring game 3-2 to the Pioneers scored 2 in the 8th on a pinch hit double by Fred Miller off of Jack Stemm. We ended up getting pummeled in the 2nd game of the spring 9-1 by Pittsburgh as our early experiment with P Chuck Calvert starting was off to a rocky start (4 IP 6H 5R 3ER, 2BB, 2K, HRA). Today I saw manager Tom Bray popping some tablets and I was getting concerned that our terrible season last year had taken a toll on our skipper. Fortunately (or unfortunately) I talked to Tom and asked him about the drink and the tablets. He informed me that it was Alka Seltzer and Tums, some fairly new anti-acid type items for those with an upset stomach. I thought to myself I hope he is not getting an ulcer. We ended the week going 2-2 the rest of the way for a 2-4 start to the spring. Not entirely unexpected as this is still pretty much the same rag tag group that ended last season. The youngsters who were up in camp were not going to be taking any roster spots over this season. Weekly Results St. Louis vs Detroit 3-2 Loss Detroit @ Pittsburgh 9-1 Loss Detroit @ Washington 4-3 Win Philadelphia vs Detroit 4-2 Win Detroit @ Chicago 7-3 Loss Boston vs Detroit 6-5 Loss Speaking of the youngsters, here is how our promising prospects did as they were threw into the fire. 1B Red Johnson 0-7 BB and 2K's 3B Hank Koblenz 1-9 2K's CF Ollie Williams 1-8 2BB's and 3K's SS Tip Harrison 1-10 R, K 2B Homer Ray 2-7 R, K So the hitters were a combined 5-41 .122 average. The draft picks will spend 1 more week up with the big boys and then head off to minor league camp. Harrison might also be shipped out to AAA Newark after next week. Homer Ray will possibly be up for the entire spring training. On the pitching side of things, other than the Ray McCarthy dead arm, things were fairly calm. SP George Coleman turned in a nice 4 inning start against against the Philadelphia Keystones getting the win and only allowing 2 hits. SP Jim Crawford had the same line as Coleman in our win against the Washington Eagles the next day. SP Luis Sandoval was a bit shaky but that was understandable since he had never pitched against players higher than AA ball. He gave up 3 runs and 6 hits in 4 innings (6.75 ERA) but he will go out again this week. With McCarthy likely not getting a start this week, his spot in the rotation will go to rookie SP Jack Wood who looked fairly sharp in 2 outings. He gave up 7 hits in 4.2 innings but avoided any serious trouble and didn't allow any runs. C Red Jackson will immediately get in the lineup now that he has arrived after the trade with the Gotham's. He will split time with Jim Kyle catching and we will be limiting Dave Armstrong to pinch hitting and warming up the relievers in the bullpen. Not sure why I don't like Armstrong, he was a solid veteran player but it just feels like he is going to be spending his summer in Newark. On the injury front, it appears that SP Ben Watkins will be ready to come off the DL on Friday. We will wait and see if he gets cleared and then just have him toss some bullpens and ease him into things. I would love to have him start the season on a rehab assignment, but the timing doesn't look like that is going to work out. Ray McCarthy will be re-evaluated on Wednesday. Week 2 of Spring Training - First roster Cut Down Day