The IBL's Chicago Iron Pigs

[gehrig38]

GAME 26
The bullpen is officially a growing concern. Sanchez comes in, with the bases loaded and wiggles out of it, then leaves them loaded the next inning for Winston. He too loads’em up. They all escape and Ken Johnson gets the last 3, but what a nightmare. Alejandrez is cruising with a huge lead into the 6th before he walks them loaded. He wins his 3rd (3-1) going 5-4-3-3-4-5. Alexander goes 3-5 with 2 RBI’s, Hugh Collins hits his 6th HR, a 3 run shot, and Eric Hudson goes 2-3. Lorenzelli goes 2-5 with 2 doubles.
CHI 9 EDM 5 (17-9 +1)

WEEK 5 RECAP
WEEK 5 FL POTW-Alex Rodriguez (ALK) 11-25 4 HR’s 8 RBI’s (.262-7-24)
WEEK 5 CL POTW-Carlos Arredondo (PHI) 13-27 2 HR’s 7 RBI’s (.311-6-19)

ORG NEWS
AAA 1B Ricardo Gonzalez took hom UL POTW going 10-21 with 3 HR’s and 9 RBI’s. (.348-6-23). He could be potential trade bait given my glut of 1B, he’s by far the best fielder in the organization at 1st though.

WEEK 5 POWER RANKINGS
1) New York
2) Fresno
3) Chicago
4) Green Bay!
5) Arizona

BIG GAME NEWS
How about Green Bay? 16-10 and a game out? In just their 2nd season. Doing it with Rolen out no less. They are 2nd in SP ERA, and Def Eff, 2 big reasons. That and friggin Helton is hitting .461.

Knights SP Joe Maddox twirled a masterpiece today. A 14-0 win wasn't enough, as the 37 year old Maddox tossed the leagues 6th No-hitter and New York's first ever. It was the 2nd one this season. He punched out 7 and walked 2 in the win and is 4-0 3.89 on the year. (Box below)

[gehrig38]

WEEK 6
1 @ Edmonton (12-14)
3 vs Alaska (13-13)
3 @ Michigan (10-16)

GAME 27
Up against Dan MacFadden (former teammate) who comes in 2-2 5.26.
A win, but at too high a price. Jean Chartier goes down in the 8th (and he should have been out of the game, which I was considering!) running the bases and it does not look good.
Luis Chavez goes 4-5 with 2 runs, Alexander hits 2 doubles and drives in 3, Wes Morgan drills his league leading 13th homer and has 4 RBI’s. A very bumpy outing for Ken Lee (5-0) but a 5.1-8-5-5-2-1 win. Torres gets his ERA under 10 with 2 scoreless…..MacDadden was crushed, going 3.2-8-7-7-6-2.
CHI 13 EDM 5 (18-9 +1)

INJURY NEWS
Yep, 6 weeks. A strained PCL, thankfully not torn. But it’s 6 weeks. Lorenzelli will move in to play short, and Ferrer will get the call up.

GAME 28
Rogers moves to 5-0 with a 7-3-1-1-4-7 outing that was not as easy as it looked. Johnson and Sanchez get the 8th out of the way and Cruz reassures me there’s nothing wrong with a perfect 9th for his 6th Save. Avalanche SP Domingo Martinez goes the distance in 98 pitches (8-7-3-3-1-2). Collins had 2 hits and his 7th SB, Alexander was 2-3 with a triple and an RBI.
CHI 3 ALK 1 (19-9 +1)

DRAFT NEWS
Jorge Trujillo, ya another one, looks to be my target if by some miracle he lasts that deep into round 1. A 20 year old LH he’s mid 90’s right now, and a bonafide ace soon. His 2m ask is doable, too doable for him to last I think.

BIG GAMES
Rich Stone (FRE) went 5-6 in a 16-15 loss to New Hampshire today. He had 3 doubles, a triple and a HR (5) and drove in 4. He’s hitting .407-5-25.

Staten Island’s Ramon Ortiz moved to 4-1 2.57 with a 4 hit 7-0 win over El Paso today.

GAME 29
Ony Kamyshinski homered off former Iron Pig Riley Potts in the 9th and with 2 outs and runners on 2nd and 3rd. SS Alex Rodriguez booted a sure thing to tie the game. Chicago loaded the bases in the 10th and 11th with less than 2 outs and came away with nothing before Ernesto Gutierrez hit a 2 out 2 strike double down the left field line to score Collins for the walk off win. Curt Daugherty struggled again (5-5-5-2-2) and there’s a discussion to be made on his status. Ken Johnson went 3 scoreless in relief to hold the line before the game winning rally. 1B Tony Gonzalez went 3- 4 with 3 RBI’s on a double and 2 HR’s (3) and Troy Glaus hit his 6th in a 3-4 day. Paul Riggs went 2-5 with a double, Hudson 2-6 with 3 RBI’s, Ron Miller hit his 5th in a 1-2 4 walk day and Luis Chavez went 3-4.
CHI 8 ALK 7 (20-9 +2)

ROSTER CHATTER
There is conversation that it might be time to give 20 year old Gerardo Zamora a shot. Get Daugherty some relief back in Tulsa in a stress free setting to find his wits…… He pitched 2 days ago, so I have a few days to think about it.

Also, Pedro Salinas is now hitting .295/.392/.459 after an abysmal start. I need to start pondering the move. He needs to DH, has to DH honestly. The first thought is a major deal, and Gutierrez would be the guy I’d likely move, moving Collins to CF, Chavez into left. It weakens my D something fierce though. Barring an injury I’d really like to hold him off until September, and do something under no stress this winter. I’ll float Gutierrez’s name anyway, just to shake the tree.

And holy crap the names that come back…. Stars all over the screen…A Tunstall….and some others…Wonder what it’d take for a Vince Bray….

GAME 30
Zito no-hit us for 6. Lorenzelli broke it up with a 1-2 single to right with 1 out in the 7th, and he was replaced. Collins singled to put runners on the corners but Meikleham punched out Ferrer and got Chavez on an F8.
Their pen holds us to the 1 hit over the final 2.2, with Potts getting his 3rd Save. Walker goes 6-7-2-2-3-4 to fall to 2-2. Collins stole 2 bases (10).
ALK 2 CHI 0 (20-10 +2)

LEAGUE NEWS
DANG! Commish is serious. A 10 game suspension for fighting for Angelo Gomez (COL) and Michigan's Rafael Rosales.

BIG GAMES
Las Vegas RF Bob White, a 24 year old in his 4th season in Vegas, went 4-4 with 6 RBI’s, 4 Runs on 3 homers in a 14-2 win over San Antonio. White is hitting .267-11-31.


GAME 31
The pen blows another one. A Paul Riggs error didn't help but Randy Pennington surrenders a 2 run PH homer to Ted Long in the bottom of the 7th to turn a 3-2 lead into a 5-3 deficit. Alejandrez was good, going 6-5-2-2-2-3. Bill Alexander went 3-4 with 3 RBI’s on a double and his 5th HR.
MICH 5 CHI 4 (20-11 +2)

INJURY NEWS
The Baltimore Railcats learned they will be without 25 year old slugging 2B Randolph Boyd for at least the next month after he strained a hip. Boyd is hitting .273-6-16 on the year after a .309-30-129 season last year.

MINORS NEWS
Bison 2015 #1 pick Carlos Torres pounded 3 homers in a Class A Southern League game yesterday. He’s hitting .346-7-27 in 34 games at Reno.

GAME 32
Ken Lee gave up 4 runs on 5 straight hits to lead off the game. A hitter away from the hook he ended up grinding into the 6th going 5.1-9-5-5-0-3 for his 6th (6-0). Winston (H8), Torres and Garcia went 3.2-1-0-0-0-7 but Torres had to come out with an arm issue we have not heard on yet. Gutierrez went 3-6 with 3 runs on 2 doubles, Hugh Collins went 2-5 with 2 RBI’s on his 8th homer and Luis Chavez hit his 7th and drove in 3. Alexander was 3-5 with 2 RBI’s and is hitting .365 now. Eric Hudson was 3-5 also. Paul Riggs hit 2 doubles in a 2-4 day.
CHI 11 MICH 5 (21-11 +3)

INJURY NEWS
3 time All Star Closer Bill Barlow (DAY) is likely to miss the rest of the 2016 season after undergoing elbow surgery today. The 30 year old is coming off a 40 save 2.40 year and was 0-0 with 4 Saves for a struggling Dayton club (10-22 11 GB). Yohann Diffenderfer will assume the closer duties for Dayton.

No word on Torres.

GAME 33
Rogers (5-1) battles into the 8th but the Battlecat pitching was too much. He goes 7-7-2-2-2-6 and Pennington allows his inherited runner to score on yet another homer. Luis Chavez was 2-4 with 2 doubles. Steve Hurst (3-1 3.27) went 6.2-6-0-0-3-4 and Sherman Jacobs got his 6th Save. Spencer Moore went 3-4 in the win.
MICH 3 CHI 0 (21-12 +2)

WEEK 6 RECAP
WEEK 6 FL POTW-Bill Alexander 14-27 1 HR 11 RBI’s (.346-5-19)
WEEK 6 CL POTW-Bob White (LV) 11-22 4 HR’s 11 RBI’s (.282-12-38)

ORG NEWS
Tulsa’s Pedro Salinas took hom UL POTW after he went 13-29 with a HR and 8 RBI’s. He’s hitting .282-4-22.

IBL POWER RANKINGS
1) New York
2) Fresno
3) Arizona
4) Las Vegas
5) Los Angeles
(we’re 6th)

[CarolinaSoxfan]

Schill,

This is truly great stuff. Granted I have a bias when it comes to you since I am a long suffering Red Sox fan who had their suffering halted thanks to you and the band of idiots in 2004. Thank you again!

What I love about OOTP is all the different ways you can play. I have never done a complete fictional league but I am in the process of starting one based on college baseball settings. I am a Gamecock alum and season ticket holder. I am going to play 60 game seasons like college baseball, real college teams and conferences but I am not going to have age limits. So a professional college baseball league if that makes sense.

I usually like to play historical dynasties and then sprinkle in a fictional high school feeder league.

I am curious how often you have played with "Curt Schilling" on your teams? Did you ever try to get the 1993 Phillies to win it all? etc

I have a few Red Sox historical dynasties that I am working on. The one I am getting ready to start is my Theo Epstein challenge. I take over the 2003 Sox as the GM and see if I can do better than Theo over a 9 year period. I wonder if I can pull off the Schilling trade in 2003 instead of waiting for 2004? I also am in the middle of a 1975 Red Sox dynasty (the first Sox team of my life) and then a Fenway Dynasty starting in 1912. I love that dynasty. The 1912 Sox may be the best ever Red Sox team...of course I am biased towards the 2004 team. Anyway, great stuff. I look forward to reading more.

[gehrig38]

WEEK 7
3 vs Buffalo (13-20)
Off Day
3 @ Brooklyn (14-19)

ROSTER NEWS
Rookie Gerardo Zamora is recalled prior to the game tonight and will get the start. Curt Daugherty is optioned out to get back to himself in Tulsa.

Fan interest is up to 61….

GAME 34
Zamora K’s the first IBL hitter he faces, Bison DH Mike Harris, and the second, CF Shane Lacroix, and the third as LF Bob Veeck goes down swinging.
His first IBL hit (a single) is to Jeremy Moore, the Bison 3B, with 2 outs in the 2nd. But he has 5 punch outs through 2 IP…..
Through 6 he’s given up just the 1 hit, and K’d 10 on 81 pitches, with 3 walks.
I f’ing knew it too, was going to call it a night and didn’t, and Jose Palacios homers off him to start the 7th! His night is over, 7-3-1-1-3-11. What a debut.
Winston relieves him (1-1) and we score 3 in the bottom of the 8th, Cruz tosses a perfect 9th for his 7th Save. All in all a great day for the player development staff and head scout Martin Cintron. Needless to say the kid will likely get a few more starts.
CHI 4 BUF 1 (22-12 +3)

GAME 35
Up against Bison Ace Jim Peck (1-1 3.32). A guy who’s never won more than 13 and should file a suit for lack of support. 11-13 4.15, 13-11 3.64 the last 2 seasons.
2 in the 8th and a walk off balk in the bottom of the 9th to win it 7-6. Walker went 5.1-10-4-4-1-6 giving up 2 homers. Johnson (1-0) got the win in 2 innings of 1 run relief.
Collins went 3-5 with 2 runs on a double, Gutierrez doubled in a 2-4 1 RBI day and Morgan and Kamyshiinsky had 2 hits each.
CHI 7 BUF 6 (23-12 +3)

INJURY NEWS
Jose Torres is shelved for at least the next 8 weeks as he needs to strengthen a weakened shoulder. Former SP Jeff Bentley, who’s been working out of the Tulsa pen will be recalled.

GAME 36
Wes Morgan drills homer #14 in a 2-3 3 run 3 RBI day and Lorenzelli goes 3-4 with 3 runs. Gutierrez doubles (8) and drives in 3. Alejandrez (4-1) goes 6-7-4-4-3-6 and Bentley gets it to the 9th before Cruz (SV 9) has to bail him out.
CHI 10 BUF 6 (24-12 +3)

BIG GAMES
Avalanche Kunckleballer Matthieu Cafasso tossed a 6 hitter at Dayton in a 4-0 win. He’s 2-3 6.10 in 7 starts.

INJURY NEWS
Staten Island Ace Ron Pearce is out for at least 2 months with a strained hamstring. (19-10 3.26 last year)

Houston Ace Raul Gonzalez will miss at least another week with elbow inflammation. He’s 4-1 2.40 on the year.

OFF DAY NEWS
The off day minor league report.
A quick look around the Chicago system on our off day.
TULSA-25-14 and #1 in the UL power rankings. Home to 2015 #1 pick Pedro Salinas, who was off to a horrid start but has rebounded, and is now hitting .293-6-24. 2013 #2 pick Eric Coates is hitting .336-3-16. Top IF prospect (1B/3B) RH hitter Alberto Rivera (signed out of the Dominican in 2013 as a 17 year old) is hitting .268-2-20. A minor league free agent we recently signed, Orlando Reyes, a very good defensive CF/RF who can fly is in Tulsa and hitting .290-0-8 in 34 games with 10-12 stolen bases, a gem of a find. 3rd catcher Francisco Reyna is holding his own at .271. Ricardo Gonzalez is making a fuss at an already crowded 1B position, a gold glover today, his bat is now coming on and he leads the Majestics with 6 HR’s and 26 RBI’s while hitting .327. Teams are knocking at the door on him. Walton is the only ‘camper’ throwing well right now, at 3-2 2.34, the rest are struggling. Tulsa is 24-15, 1 GB.

BAKERSFIELD-Catching prospect Martin Ramirez (acquired in the big trade with the Hooks this winter for Raul Felix and van Bodegraven) has seen the expectations lowered quite a bit but in 34 games he’s hitting .280/.360/.417 with 4 HR’s 19 RBI’s. The other prospect in the deal, 24 year old Jose Ramirez, is struggling at .218 1-4 in 5 games. Santiago Flores, the 23 year old acquired from Dayton for Chris Dixon, is flourishing. Hitting .333/.429/.436 in 22 games after being called up from A ball. Scouts are now higher on him than when we acquired him. Former #1 pick Anthony Martin (2012) is stuck. Throwing well at 5-1 3.06 in 8 starts, his control is a concern and an impediment to a move to AAA. He’s K’d 43 and walked 32 in 50 IP.

(Feliz is hitting .245 with 1 HR 6 RBI’s in 30 games for CC and van Bodegraven is 0-0 4.91 in 14 games with 11 K’s and 14 walks in 18.1 IP).

DENISON-21-18 and 3 back. 2013 2nd pick catcher Shane Jackson appears to be leveling out. His defense would work today, but his bat doesn’t look to have the ceiling we thought. He’s hitting .269/.363/.426 and he’s still only 20, so there’s time. Eric Arnold is 2-1 2.77, Mike Ablett is 2-1 2.18 and Ed Harris is 3-1 4.19 with 43 K’s in 43 IP. They’re all fringe guys right now.

BELLEVIEW-2015 6th pick Kevin Holbrook is starting to hit. At .264-4-21 in 39 games he’s another high ceiling 1B/DH bat. Jose Gonzalez, signed out of Venezuala last year is leading the team hitting .282 and 5 HR’s. A 20 year old OF he’s still very raw. Tony Childs is the only starting arm worth talking about right now, 4-2 2.66 with 55 K’s in 40.2 IP. He was the SP acquired in the MacFadden for Chavez deal with Edmonton. A 4th rounder in 2013 out of HS. Has some potential.

GAME 37
Ken Lee (7-0) went 8-4-1-1-2-4 and Wes Morgan was 2-5 with a double, HR (15) and 4 RBI’s. Riggs, Hudson, Miller and Alexander all had 2 hits. The top 5 in the lineup were 10-23 5 runs and 6 RBI’s.
CHI 7 BRO 2 (25-12 +3)

INJURY NEWS
The Blizzard learned that Scott Rolen will be out another two weeks as he works to come back from a high ankle sprain.

GAME 38
Bryan Rogers (6-1) tosses another outstanding game and lowers his league leading ERA to 1.19 in 6-6-0-0-3-0. Wes Morgan homers again (16) in a 2-3 3 run 2 RBI day. Chavez, Gutierrez and Riggs double with Chavez driving in 2.
CHI 7 BRO 1 (26-12 +3)

GAME 39
Rookie Gerardo Zamora makes his 2nd start tonight.
Zamora leaves after 7 trailing 2-1 in another stellar outing (7-7-2-2-3-3) and Lorenzelli drills a 1 out bases loaded double in the 9th to finish the comeback. Ernesto Cruz tosses a perfect 9th for his 9th Save. The 3 9th inning hits came off Cyclone closer Greg Patterson who blew his 4th save (1-4). Dave Osborne was 3-4 in the loss. Dan Morris went 7-6-1-1-3-3 in the no decision.
CHI 3 BRO 2 (27-12 +3)

WEEK 7 RECAP
WEEK 7 FL POTW-Tim Thomas (AZ) 14-25 1 HR 6 RBI’s (.356-2-15)
WEEK 7 CL POTW-Bruan Barnes (BAL) 10-14 2 HR’s 2 RBI’s (.303-2-9)

IBL POWER RANKINGS
1) Chicago
2) New York
3) Sacramento
4) Green Bay
5) Las Vegas

[gehrig38]

Originally Posted by CarolinaSoxfan

Schill,

This is truly great stuff. Granted I have a bias when it comes to you since I am a long suffering Red Sox fan who had their suffering halted thanks to you and the band of idiots in 2004. Thank you again!

What I love about OOTP is all the different ways you can play. I have never done a complete fictional league but I am in the process of starting one based on college baseball settings. I am a Gamecock alum and season ticket holder. I am going to play 60 game seasons like college baseball, real college teams and conferences but I am not going to have age limits. So a professional college baseball league if that makes sense.

I usually like to play historical dynasties and then sprinkle in a fictional high school feeder league.

I am curious how often you have played with "Curt Schilling" on your teams? Did you ever try to get the 1993 Phillies to win it all? etc

I have a few Red Sox historical dynasties that I am working on. The one I am getting ready to start is my Theo Epstein challenge. I take over the 2003 Sox as the GM and see if I can do better than Theo over a 9 year period. I wonder if I can pull off the Schilling trade in 2003 instead of waiting for 2004? I also am in the middle of a 1975 Red Sox dynasty (the first Sox team of my life) and then a Fenway Dynasty starting in 1912. I love that dynasty. The 1912 Sox may be the best ever Red Sox team...of course I am biased towards the 2004 team. Anyway, great stuff. I look forward to reading more.

Thank for this! Glad you are following along. I have never played a dynasty with myself in it, until I started the 1950 Dynasty I posted in this forum. I have that league on my laptop and will play it as I travel over the year. I don't own a club yet, and it's a cool format I think, all players from all era's coming into the draft/league as the game chooses. The cool thing about it is I keep thinking of players not yet in the league, Ruth, Gehrig, Mantle, Mays, Koufax etc., but I was one of the original players the game chose..

[CarolinaSoxfan]

Thanks for the reply. It truly is a great game. I always think about all the different "what if" scenarios you can play out. I did one where the AROD trade to the Red Sox went through in 2004. It did not turn out well for the Sox. They came close but never won it all.

There are hundreds of examples like that throughout baseball history that you could play out.

What if Tony Conigliaro never got hit by that pitch? Does he become one of the all time greats?

What if there was no WWII, what would Ted Williams' numbers look like?

What if a young Curt Schilling never gets traded with Brady Anderson to the Orioles?

This game feeds the baseball nerd inside of me. LOL

[DanP68]

For me, I like to get lost in Fictional leagues where new histories are written.

My favorite fictional league is now into Season 11, and dates back to OOTP 10. I took over an expansion franchise in Year 4 (Tampa Bay Pirates), and we have captured 4 division titles and 2 world championships.

The single-season HR record is 48, and I keep waiting for someone to smash 50. I know a lot of the players very well, from a few fantastic shortstops who can't hit but save a ton of runs, to the monster sluggers standing in left field that everyone prays won't have the ball hit to him. The immersion factor is fantastic.

And back to Curt's Dynasty...

[gehrig38]

WEEK 8

Interest has bumped a tad, to 62. Averaging 38.5 a game, down on last years number and 23rd in the league.
3 vs Green Bay (24-15 3 GB MW 1st time seeing them since we swept them in the season opening series, are they for real?)
3 vs Staten Island (17-22 10 GB EM)
1 @ El Paso (23-16 1 GB WE)

GAME 40
They’re legit all right. They’ve called up young 2B Chase Utley by the way. Helton went 2-4 (now at .401). Former Roughrider Dave Miller went 2-3 with 2 solo HR’s (10). Denny Walker went 6-6-5-5-2-6 and gave up 3 solo shots. Down 5-4 entering the 9th Hugh Collins hit a 1 out double and Bill Alexander got his 3rd hit of the night next, a 2 run game winning walk off HR (6). Collins was 3-5 with a double, Alexander 3-5 2 RBI’s and Morgan 3-5 with a double. Luis Chavez was 3-4 with his 5th stolen base.
CHI 6 GB 5 (28-12 +4)

GAME 41
Young LF Josh Hamilton went 2-3 with 2 HR’s (10) but not to be outdone, 2B Paul Riggs had a 4-4 3 RBI night hitting a double (10) and his 1st 2016 HR. Ernesto Gutierrez was 2-4 with 2 runs and Wes Morgan went 2-4 on a double (7) and an RBI. Alejandrez (5-1) went 8-5-3-3-2-4 and Jose Sanchez got the last 3 outs for Chicago’s 8th straight win.
CHI 7 GB 3 (29-12 +5)

BIG GAMES
Dayton right Bartolo Serrano spun a 4 hit shutout at Michigan today in a 12-0 win. Serrano is 2-7 5.28 on the year.

GAME 42
Up against former Chicago SP Carlos De La Torre (1-3 5.05 in 8 starts). Ken Lee is tied for the IBL lead in wins with 7 going into this game.
Lee (8-0) goes the distance, no hitting the Blizzard into the 6th and losing his shutout in the 8th (9-5-2-2-1-6). Bill Alexander’s 3rd inning Grand Slam (7) opens the scoring and Gutierrez goes 3-3 with 3 runs on a double (11) and his 1st HR. Hugh Collins hits his 9th.
CHI 9 GB 2 (30-12 +6)

GAME 43
Bryan Rogers takes his IBL leading 1.19 ERA into the game tonight, almost a full run ahead of the next pitcher (J.R. Robinson (BUF) 2.01).
Rogers (6-2) goes 6.2-8-4-1-3-7 with a Wes Morgan error costing us. Randy Pennington gives up yet another late inning HR to a lefty (and his ERA is now a bloated 6.46!) to make it a rout. Alejandro Villanueva went 3-5 with 2 HR’s (13) and 4 RBI’s. Hugh Collins was 3-3 with 2 RBI’s on a triple and Wes Morgan hit his IBL leading 17th HR.
SI 7 CHI 3 (30-13 +6)

OEG NEWS
Eric Arnold of Denison tossed a 2 hitter with 5 K’s to run his record to 3-1 1.99 in 8 starts this year.

GAME 44
A 2 run 4 hit first didn’t rattle the rookie, though I think it had more to do with working with backup catcher Rafael Flores for the first time than anything. He settled in to go 6-7-2-2-2-6 for his 1st IBL win. Jorge Sanchez tossed 2 perfect innings and Ernesto Cruz closed it out for his 10th save. Wes Morgan slammed his 18th HR, driving in 2 and Bill Alexander was 2-4 with his 8th HR, driving in our other 2 runs. Hugh Collins was 2-3 with 2 doubles (10).
CHI 4 SI 2 (31-13 +6)

GAME 45
Leaving your starter in too long, sound familiar? Walker (2-3) went a hitter or two, too long (8-10-4-4-0-5) giving up Alejandre Villanueva’s 14th HR in the 8th to turn a 2-1 lead into a 4-2 deficit. Travis Bryant was 3-4 for the Yankees as well. Chavez (8) and Kamy (5) went deep for Chicago. Kent Martin went 7.1-8-2-2-3-3 for his 1st win.
SI 6 CHI 3 (31-14 +5)

INJURY NEWS
Brooklyn Cyclone LF Dave Osborne will miss the remainder of the 2016 season after tearing his PCL in yesterday’s game. Unsure what this will mean for the 37 year olds career from here. He was hitting .310-7-29 in 43 games and is a lifetime .275/.363/.381 in 381 games. He spent the past 4 seasons in Sacramento.

GAME 46
El Paso’s Tony Ruiz hit’s a single, double and triple, scoring twice, and Artie Johnson battles (5-1) through a 6.2-9-1-1-1-3 and Paul Woodard tosses a perfect 9th for his 15th Save. 10 left on, 2 hit days from Riggs, Hudson, Miller and Chavez. Alejandrez (5-2) goes 6-4-2-2-2-6 in the loss.
EP 3 CHI 1 (31-15 +5)

WEEK 8 RECAP
WEEK 8 FL POTW-Hugh Collins 13-25 1 HR 7 RBI’s (.347-9-38)
WEEK 8 CL POTW-Orlando Rios (FRE) 12-29 2 HR’s 8 RBI’s (.298-8-31)

IBL POWER RANKINGS
The +/- is spots moved, a (++) means they were not in the top 5 in the prior week.
1) New York (+1)
2) Las Vegas (+3)
3) Chicago (-2)
4) Fresno (++)
5) Sacramento (-2)

[Klew1986]

How come you have 6 teams in that one division, but 4 in all the others? Why not do 5-5-4 set up and 4-4-4 set up in the leagues.

[gehrig38]

A quick look at the IBl’s division winners the past 4 seasons. (World Series teams underlined, WS winners in bold)

Frontier League Empire (used to be the East)
’12 Buffalo
’13 Brooklyn
’14 Staten Island
’15 Staten Island
Meaning New York is the only Empire team to not have a post season appearance, which it appears they’re addressing this season.

Midwest (used to be the Central)
’12 Dayton with West Michigan the WC
’13 Tulsa with Dayton the WC
’14 Tulsa with San Antonio the WC
’15 Chicago with Columbus as the WC
Green Bay, Michigan are the only clubs here to not have made it, but the Blizzard are just 2 years old. Michigan appears to be just a poorly run club.

West
’12 Sacramento
’13 Sacramento
’14 El Paso
’15 El Paso
Edmonton, Arizona and Alask have yet to make an October appearance.

Coastal League

Keystone (used to be the East)
’12 Philly
’13 Phily
’14 Philly with Baltimore the WC
’15 Pittsburgh
New Hampshire is the only club yet to make it to the post season.

Lone Star (formerly the Central)
’12 Houston
’13 Chicago with Houston the WC
’14 Chicago
’15 Tulsa
Corpus Christi is the lone hold out here.

Pacific (used to be the West)
’12 Los Angeles with Las Vegas as the wild Card
’13 Las Vegas
’14 Los Angeles
’15 Las Vegas with Fresno as the WC
Everyone here has made a post season appearance.

[gehrig38]

Originally Posted by Klew1986

How come you have 6 teams in that one division, but 4 in all the others? Why not do 5-5-4 set up and 4-4-4 set up in the leagues.

Travel. Costs for league travel were of huge interest, and the new owner in Alaska, as part of his negotiations, is covering league travel for a 10 year stretch.

All 6 Midwest teams are, well, in the midwest. There was talk of Dayton or Columbus moving to he Western, but they are natural geographical rivals, and hate each other.

The next expansion is likely to see El Paso move from the FL West to the CL Lone Star.

Which likely means some more changes, or additions of 1 team in the FL West, to keep it at 14 and a new team in the CL after El Paso would move. Boston is pushing for a franchise. Hawaii is the early leader to be the new west team.

As part of their franchise agreement Green Bay is open to move, and we can move them. Though the Michigan teams are farther "east" they both need to remain in the same division, again as geographical rivals, so GB could possibly move to the FL Empire, though all 4 teams there want to keep that division exclusive to NY franchises (dicks).

[gehrig38]

WEEK 9
2 @ El Paso (27-19 +2 WE)
Off Day
3 vs Arizona (25-21 2 GB WE)
1 vs NY (33-13 +13 EM)

GAME 47
Ken Lee (8-1) drops his first decision in a Chicago uniform. It was a struggle from the get go (4.1-7-5-5-4-3). Garcia tossed some fuel on the fire in a 2-2-3-3-3-1 outing. Victor Lange scored 3 times in a 2-3 game and Cuesta (11) and McDonald (2) homered for the Diablos. Cuesta drove in 4, McDonald 3. Lorenzelli was 2-4 with a double (9) and a triple (2). Jason Allen (3-2) went 7-6-1-1-2-4 for the win.
EP 8 CHI 1 (31-16 +5)

INJURY NEWS
Gutierrez went down in the 1st inning, diving for a ball. It’s not serious, but he’s not available for a few days, maybe a week, leaving me short handed unless I DL him. Chartier is due back in 2 weeks but he’ll need a week on rehab at least. Theres a thought to maybe get Eric Coates up for a 2 week showcase as we near the trade deadline in 5-6 weeks.

And I make the move, Coates will leadoff for a few days, see how it works out. Gutierrez will get time to heal and we’ll see what we have in the young LF.

GAME 48
Eric tries to bunt for a hit in his 1st AB, but makes an out, goes 5-3 in his 2nd AB and drills a 2 run homer for his first IBL hit in his 3rd AB, and follows that with another homer, a solo shot, in the 6th, going 2-6 with 2 runs and 3 RBI’s in his debut. It was a day for multi homer games as Bill Alexander went 2-2 with 3 walks, scored 3 times and hit 2 HR’s (10) and drove in 4, Wes Morgan was 3-4 with 3 RBI’s on 2 more home runs (20). Caden Haynes (12) and Valentin Maitani (6) homered for El Paso. Bryan Rogers (7-2) went 6-4-2-2-4-7 (ERA now at 1.37) for the win.
CHI 11 EP 5 (32-16 +5)

GAME 49
Zamora (2-0) battled through some early troubles, bases loaded 1st, 2nd and 3rd 2nd but hung on to go 6-4-1-1-3-3 for the win. Pennington finally had a decent outing going 2 perfect with a K. Wes Morgan homered again (21) and drove in 3, Luis Chavez went 2-4 with his 9th, Hugh Collins was 3-4 with a triple and a HR (10) and 2 RBI’s. Ron Miller was 3-4.
CHI 8 AZ 1 (33-16 +5)

BIG GAMES
Marshall Wall (LV) tossed a 3 hitter in New Hampshire to move to 5-3 3.18.

INFO
Wes Morgan leads the IBL in homers, 21, and RBI’s, 55. Bryan Rogers is 1st with a 1.37 ERA, ahead of Buffalo’s J.R. Robinson and his 1.75. The Knights have the best record at 36-13, followed by our 33-16. In the Coastal League Keystone, Pittsburgh is tied for 1st with New Hampshire at 21-28! The Knights are already 15 up on Staten Island (21-28) and Brooklyn (21-28). Last years surprise winners Columbus are 26-23, 7 back of us and 2 back of Green Bay in the Wild Card.

Todd Helton is now under .400, sitting at .391.


GAME 50
Ken Johnson (H3) came into a close game and made some huge pitches, continuing his unexpected but phenomenal rise from a AAA fringe guy to premier IBL setup/closer. Cruz gets his 11th Save afterwards. Alexander (11) and Chavez (10) homer and each drive in 2, Michael Moran goes 3-4 for the Greyhounds. Eric Hudson has a 3-3 day in the win.
CHI 5 AZ 4 (34-16 +5)

ORG NEWS
Pedro Salinas was suspended 2 days for fighting, never one to get mad when players show passion. He’s hitting .269-9-32.

BIG GAMES
Tulsa’s Joel Downs tossed a 6 hit shutout at Pittsburgh today to move to 4-3 4.46 on the year.

GAME 51
Down 4-3 in the 9th we had our chances with Alexander doubling with 1 out, Morgan and Chavez go down as Greyhound Closer Arthur Newton grabs his 13th save. Jesus Mendoza (5-4) went 8-5-3-1-0-3 for the win. Alejandrez had good stuff (5-3) but was in and out of trouble in a 6.1-6-4-4-3-8 outing. Doug Winston drove in 3 with a triple. Eric Coates was 2-3 with his 3rd home run and Lorenzelli (12) and Alexander (5) doubled.
AZ 4 CHI 3 (34-17 +4)

STREAKS
Corpus Christi Hooks Don Evans went 1-3 to extend his hitting streak to 20 games. He’s hitting .239-6-31 on the year.

GAME 52
First time since mid April seeing the Knights. Last time we met all three games ended as shutouts, 1-0, 6-0 and they beat us 6-0 in the final. No hit Joe Maddox gets the ball in game 1.
Home Runs from Alexander (12, solo) Riggs (2, solo) Collins (11, 2 run) and Kamyshinksy (6, solo) propelled the offense. Former Iron Pig Alfredo Lozano went 3-4 (and is hitting .273-1-11 on the year). Ken Lee (9-1) went 5.2-7-2-1-4-6 on 114 pitches and Garcia (H3) and Bentley (H1) held until the offense busted it open.
CHI 7 NY 2 (35-17 +4)

WEEK 9 RECAP
WEEK 9 FL POTW-Brent McCoy (EDM) 10-22 5 HR’s 10 RBI’s (.315-13-43)
WEEK 9 CL POTW-Chad McGee (LV) 8-25 5 HR’s 10 RBI’s (.217-13-32)

ORG NEWS
LF Santiago Flores of Bakersfield took home PL POTW after his 10-20 3 HR 6 RBI week. (.307-6-23 since his call up).

IBL single season record of isolated power (ISO)
Bill Hill (DAY) .3529 ‘12
Alberto Vargas (BUF) .3490 ‘15
Cy May (HOU) .3448 ‘12
Gerald Wright (EP) .3244 ‘15
Valentin Maitani (EP) .3242 ‘14

IBL POWER RANKINGS (last weeks ranking)
1) Las Vegas (2)
2) New York (1)
3) Chicago (3)
4) Tulsa (11)
5) Green Bay (8)

[gehrig38]

WEEK 10 and May closes…
2 vs New York (37-15 +14 EMP)
3 vs West Michigan (21-31 14 GB MW)
2 @ Columbus (28-24 7 GB MW)

GAME 53
A 2-1 lead into the 8th disappears as the pen is unable to hold. Johnson and Sanchez give up 3 walks and 2 hits and Ernesto Cruz comes in, in the 9th, tied 3-3 with 2 on and 1 out and gives up 2 hits to allow Sanchez’s (0-1) runners to score. Rafael Quintania went 4-5 for New York in the win. Luis Chavez was 2-3 with 2 solo HR’s (12). Coates went 2-5.
NY 5 CHI 3 (35-18 +3)

GAME 54
Played catch up all day. Oginalara (8) and Norm Crawford (3) homered for the Knights and Jesus Romano (10-2 3.66) went 7.1-5-2-2-4-6 for the win . Zamora (2-1) went 6-7-4-4-2-2 yielding 2 HR’s in his first loss.
NY 4 CHI 2 (35-19 +3)

MAY RECAP
MAY FL HITTER-Hugh Collins (CHI) .389-6-21 with 28 Runs (.348-11-43)
MAY CL HITTER-Orlando Rios (FRE) .301-6-25 with 27 Runs (.289-10-37)
MAY FL PITCHER-Jesus Romano (NY) 7-0 2.68 51 K’s (first ever 7 win month) (10-2 3.66)
MAY CL PITCHER-Joey Johnson (SAC) 1-0 12-13 in Saves 1.08 (2-3 17 Saves 1.65)
MAY FL ROOKIE-Rob MacKey (COL) .252-3-12 10 Runs (.243-3-14)
MAY CL ROOKIE-Jeff Weeks (LV) .352-4-18 (.311-4-27)

NEWS AND STUFF
Noticed former Railcat #1 (4th overall) OF Barton Tinker is hurt and likely to miss the rest of the season. He got to the show as a 20 year old, the year he was drafted, and spent 2014 there as well. He’s bounced up and down mainly due to 5 DL Stints the past 3 seasons. Missed 10 weeks during the season with various pains, and then went down in September with a torn labrum, which he just tore again. He’s now a ‘fragile’ player, at just 23.

[gehrig38]

A look at the standings and leaders...
Some new names and faces emerge as the league continues to mature. Romano of NY, Robinson of Buffalo.
Some older ones remain, Cy May, Stone, Moore of NY, Raul Gonzalez of Houston.
I'm ecstatic at the financial fix, made the winter and trading far more enjoyable (Thanks again Orcin!). Also cool to see my teams developing personality. The have's and have nots.

[gehrig38]

A peek at our club and organization.

[gehrig38]

Not really a complaint but I'd love to see a more fluid UI, that allows me to find screens easier, I've wondered where the hell this one was for months.. and only just found it.
For you OOTP guys, check out the 'bug' on the right side, about a third of the way down "amp" I am guessing should read "&"?

[gehrig38]

I am looking forward to is finally having players into their 30's..
In all of my other leagues I've managed to stack my rosters and minors to the point where I generally move most players around 30, and have fresh replacements.
I will look to move players, the upcoming Salinas and Coates moves, or trades, will be interesting, but with players tied to fan interest, and financials being what they are, it'll be the first time I've truly played as an owner/GM with a real life feel, and that's cool imo.

[gehrig38]

GAME 55
Ken Johnson (SV 2) continues to astound, and pick up, the pen. A tired pen today, he came in in the 9th and punched out the side to end it. Denny Walker (4-3) was outstanding going 8-5-1-1-2-6 before tiring into the 9th. Luis Chavez went 3-3 with a double and 2 RBI’s.
CHI 4 WMI 1 (36-19 +3)

INJURY NEWS
Edmonton 3B Simone Politti will miss the next 6 weeks after straining his shoulder today. The 29 year old is hitting .282-2-15.

GAME 56
Alejandrez (6-3) goes 6-4-0-0-1-5 and Winston (H10) Sanchez (H4) get the ball to Cruz (SV 12) for the final 4 outs. Felipe Rosa goes 3-4 in the loss. Riggs and Morgan have 2 hit games as WMI turns 3 DP’s.
CHI 2 WMI 1 (37-19 +3)

STREAKS
Corpus Christi RF Don Evans went 2-2 in San Antonio today, extending his hitting streak to 25 games. The 35 year old has raised his average to .254.

DL NEWS
Chartier is due back in 5-6 days, Gutierrez in 5. I’ll likely send both for a short rehab stint. But Eric Coates is making me think about potential moves already.

GAME 57
Ken Lee (10-1) was solid, going 8-5-1-1-0-8 in the win. Eric Coates was 3-4 with 3 runs 2 RBI’s on his 4th HR. Luis Chavez (moved to the 2 hole) went 3-5 with 4 runs and stole his 7th base. Hugh Collinswas 2-5 with 3 RBI’s on his 12th HR, and Bill Alexnder hit a 3 run shot for his 13th. Eric Hudson hit his 5th.
CHI 11 WMI 3 (38-19 +3)

GAME 58
Bryan Rogers tired early (4.1-5-4-4-3-6) and the pen folded behind him. Christian Schall hit a 3 run homer in the win (14). Luis Chavez went 3-5 in the 2 hole, with a double (9). Haqverdi Hamidov was 2-4 with a double and a triple.
COL 7 CHI 4 (38-20 +2, can’t seem to shake Green Bay!)

STREAKS
Don Evans (CC) had his streak end at 26 today.

NEWS!
Clipper All Star Catcher Dean Strong was suspded for 10 games today for violating the leagues substance abuse policy. He tested positive for performance enhancing drugs, though details were not disclosed. The IBL has a 2 strike policy, and player caught a 2nd time is banned for life, from the league.

INJURY NEWS
San Antonio RP Dave Stout will miss the next 12 months after the 29 year old learned he’d need Tommy John surgery. Stout was an anchor in the Fresno pen before being traded to San Antonio in the 2014 off season where he’s appeared in 110 games the past 2 seasons, throwing 121 innings.

GAME 59
Ernesto Cruz (2-1) is summoned into a 4-1 game, bases loaded, 2 out 8th inning, he walks a run in, and surrenders a game tying single to Michael Griffin. Ignacio Ferrer leads off the 9th with a single and then scores 2 hitters later on a Paul Riggs sac fly. Cruz gets the final 3 in order for the win. Eric Coates goes 2-4 with 2 RBI’s on a double, Christian Scahll goes 2-4 with his 15th HR.
CHI 5 COL 4 (39-20 +2)

WEEK 10 RECAP
WEEK 10 FL POTW-Dave Miller (GB) 11-23 5 HR’s 13 RBI’s (.268-15-36)
WEEK 10 CL POTW-Ed Thomas (SAN) 12-26 4 HR’s 8 RBI’s 6 Runs (.288-13-37)

IBL POWER RANKINGS
1) New York (2)
2) Las Vegas (1)
3) Green Bay (5)
4) Chicago (3)
5) Fresno (6)
Out Tulsa (7)

June Draft is just 9 days away, been scouting our pants off…

[gehrig38]

For what it's worth, maybe I've missed it in the past, but prospects ratings ARE now changing once I sent my scouts to look them over, some better, some worse, but it is different, which I find awesome.

[gehrig38]

WEEK 11
1 @ Columbus
Off Day
3 @ Dayton
2 vs Edmonton

NEWS
The Knights resigned 2B Birger Kjorsvik to a 1 year 4m extension. Corpus Christi did the same with Closer John Miller, 1 year at 2.2 million.

GAME 60
A loss from the beginning. Zamora (2-2) had troubles from the start going 2.2-8-6-6-1-2 surrendering 2 HR’s. No pitcher got out unscathed. Hamidov went 3-5 with a double and 2 triples, driving in 4. Dan Bishop was 3-5 with 2 RBI's. Eric Coates went 4-5 in the loss.
COL 11 CHI 3 (39-21 +2)

ORG NEWS
Head trainer Ricco Cotichini’s contract was up this year, and at 240K a year, he’s been a bargain. He agreed to a 4 year extension, but it cost me, to the tune of 640 a year.

INJURY NEWS
Fresno slugger Qi-chen Jung will be out another 2-3 weeks after his torn quad stopped responding to treatment. Jung is at .285-8-35 this season. The 36 year old is set to enter free agency with the new IBL rule change this winter.

TRADE NEWS
Brooklyn has traded 25 year old SP Dan Morris (5-4 5.04) to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats for 19 year old P prospect Aurelio Prado and 23 year old OF prospect Leon Coleman. Morris was the Cyclones 2nd rounder in 2012 (40th overall) and is expected to move into the 3 spot in the Fisher Cats rotation. Prado was the Fisher Cats #2 pick in 2014 (32nd overall) and a 2015 rookie league All Star. Coleman has split 2016 between A and AA and is a burner who has defensive ability scouts love. Coleman was a 2012 AAA All Star.

In a 2nd deal Brooklyn sent 27 year old RP John Heyrick (1-1 2.91 in 26 games) to the Philadelphia Patriots for 18 year old P prospect Gabriel Espinoza. Heyrick was the 42nd round pick of Brooklyn in the 2012 inaugural draft, reaching the IBL this year and pitching extremelywell. He will assume the LH setup role for closer Elmer Osborn as Philly trails 1st place Pittsburgh by just 1 game. The price was a bit high in many folks mind, as Philly parted with their 2015 1st rounder (26th overall) in Espinoza. He was 6-3 3.69 in a combined 11 starts and 61 IP in Rookie and Short Season last year with 56 K’s and 36 walks.

It’s clear the Brooklyn baseball ops team is now in rebuild mode. And makes me think in a day, when Gutierrez comes off the DL, I am going to ping them to see what the price would be for Walt Thompson, their 34 year old K artist….

OFF DAY NEWS
Chartier was sent to Tulsa on a rehab, Eric Coates was optioned back and Ernesto Gutierrez was activated, for now….

BASEBALL OPS CHATTER
So there’s a conversation, on going, but a talk going on none the less. Walt Thompson, yes, he’s 34, yes he’s possibly a free agent at years end. But, he’s a true #1 who we would want to give the ball to in game 1. The price will be steep, Ernesto Gutierrez to start, and likely more. But my thought is to go for a swap of #1 picks as well, moving to the 4th spot to grab one of the franchise aces that this draft is potentially offering up. To do that I’ll need to give more, likely a good to great prospect. I’d need to resign him to make this worth it, and we have some budget room to try, but I have no idea what his ask will be. I do know we are ‘all in’ with the belief we can win it all this year. And I don’t believe we’re ‘selling out’ if we try and do this. With 7 days to the draft and Gutierrez just back from the DL I’d prefer to talk sooner rather than later, and pray that Ernesto doesn’t get hurt in the next few days as well.
Stay tuned….